The FIA is preparing measures to prevent overtaking from becoming more difficult under the 2027 Formula 1 engine regulations. Although the approved power unit changes are intended to improve energy management and address several problems with the current hybrid systems, they could also reduce the performance differences that help drivers complete overtakes. FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis has explained how the governing body intends to address that risk.
The technical regulation changes already approved for the coming seasons are designed to resolve several shortcomings of the current power units, but they could introduce new challenges. By altering the balance between internal combustion engine output and electrical power, the revised rules should make energy management less complicated. However, that same improvement could make overtaking more difficult, prompting the FIA to investigate additional measures.
FIA explains 2027 F1 power unit changes and overtaking concerns
Nikolas Tombazis discussed the revisions made to Formula 1’s technical regulations in recent months, explaining that the FIA has worked closely with teams and power unit manufacturers to introduce improvements over several seasons.
“In the spring, we worked intensively with the teams and power unit manufacturers to make short-term changes, which we have already introduced this year, more significant changes for 2027 and even more substantial ones for 2028. The short-term changes sought to resolve various details related to the regulations and improve certain safety aspects, while those for the coming years will aim to increase the contribution of the combustion engine relative to the electric motor, and I think they will be very well received by the drivers.”
The revisions include a modest increase in internal combustion engine output, estimated at around 20 kW, alongside a 50 kW reduction in electrical power. Battery charging power will also rise to 375 kW, compared with the current 350 kW, while the amount of energy recovered per lap will increase from 4 MJ to 4.5 MJ.
These adjustments form part of the wider 2027 F1 power unit changes affecting battery capacity, the MGU-K and combustion engine output. Together, they are intended to make electrical energy management more straightforward for drivers and teams.
However, the improvements could have an unintended consequence. Under the current Formula 1 regulations, energy deployment and battery recharging play a major role in creating the power differences between an attacking car and the driver defending a position. Those differences are often essential for completing an overtake.
“With the changes to the 2027 and 2028 regulations, we are improving all the aspects that drivers have found problematic in terms of energy management compared with the outright power available at the accelerator,” Nikolas Tombazis explained.
“There is a reasonable possibility that, at some circuits, this will affect overtaking. For this reason, we have launched an initiative focused specifically on overtaking, to manage the energy profiles of the car in front compared with the car behind.”
How the FIA could modify Overtake Mode for 2027
Under the 2027 regulations, a driver using Overtake Mode will have access to up to 350 kW of electrical power, compared with 300 kW for the defending driver. Under the current system, meanwhile, the power difference between the two cars tends to increase as their speed rises.
The distinction is important because energy management and Overtake Mode are central to Formula 1’s 2026 racing regulations. The system is designed to help a following driver gain a performance advantage through electrical deployment rather than relying on the aerodynamic DRS system used in previous seasons.
Nikolas Tombazis suggested that further changes could be introduced to preserve that advantage.
“Everything has to do with the energy of the following car compared with the one in front,” the FIA single-seater director explained.
In 2026, Overtake Mode also gives the attacking driver an additional 0.5 MJ of energy to use over the course of a lap. This allows the electric motor to provide assistance for longer, potentially helping the driver sustain an advantage during an overtaking attempt.
The FIA’s idea is to increase that additional energy allowance, ensuring that the pursuing car retains a sufficient advantage to compensate for the disruption caused by dirty air when following another car.
The governing body is therefore investigating how the energy deployment profiles of attacking and defending cars could be adjusted without undermining the broader improvements planned for the next generation of power units.
FIA hopes to improve overtaking at circuits with limited passing
Conceptually, the proposed approach resembles the adjustments previously made to DRS activation zones. Under the former system, the FIA could lengthen or shorten DRS zones depending on how difficult overtaking proved to be at individual circuits.
With the new hybrid regulations, the equivalent adjustment could involve changing the additional energy available to a following car. Instead of modifying the length of an aerodynamic activation zone, the FIA would be able to influence the electrical advantage available during an attack.
The wider changes to electrical deployment also reflect the FIA’s efforts to address the limitations of the current regulations. The 2027 F1 engine rules and revised combustion-electric power balance are intended to reduce some of the energy-management difficulties experienced during the first season of the new technical era.
Nikolas Tombazis is confident that targeted changes to overtaking assistance can compensate for any negative consequences of the revised power unit regulations. The objective is not simply to preserve the current level of overtaking, but potentially to improve racing at circuits where passing has already proved particularly difficult during the 2026 season.
“I am confident that this work will compensate for any negative impact from this regulatory change. However, I hope to go even further and have better overtaking at those circuits where we have not seen much of it this year.”
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