From 2026, Formula 1 will introduce new safety measures. In addition to a revised nose structure designed to withstand a second impact, the cars will also feature LED lights on the mirrors to improve visibility in wet conditions, especially during close on-track battles.
The 2026 revolution will bring with it numerous changes, particularly on the technical side, thanks to the introduction of the new power units and a completely revised aerodynamic concept that will make extensive use of movable wings. At the same time, the FIA has continued to intervene on the safety front as well, with the aim of making the cars even more robust through increasingly demanding crash tests.
For example, from 2026 the chassis in the nose area will be divided into two sections, allowing it to absorb a double impact in the event of a spin. When it comes to safety, however, there are also more “operational” aspects, such as procedures in wet conditions, which currently require the activation of LED lights at the rear of the car to improve the visibility of the car itself.
Initially, the only flashing light was the one integrated into the rear crash structure, but since 2019 two additional LED lights have been added to the outer ends of the rear wing endplates. This solution was introduced to give drivers an extra visual reference to identify the car ahead within the spray cloud generated in wet conditions.
From next year, a further innovation will be introduced. To reduce the risk of side impacts, the 2026 cars will also be fitted with LED lights on the outer side of the mirrors, making them visible even when cars are running side by side and providing an additional light reference within the water spray.
The FIA hopes that the new regulatory package will also help to reduce the amount of spray generated by the diffuser. The current ground-effect cars tend to atomize water much more aggressively, producing large spray clouds that significantly compromise visibility, especially when following another car closely, as demonstrated by several incidents that have occurred in recent years.
This situation has led the FIA to introduce a regulatory change that, starting next season, will allow race control to increase the distance between cars from 10 to 20 car lengths in particularly difficult conditions, in order to guarantee better visibility for the drivers. In 2026, the diffuser load will still remain significant, but it will be managed differently compared to the current cars, with the hope that this will help limit the formation of large spray clouds.
These updates highlight the FIA’s ongoing commitment to solving the persistent problem of visibility in the rain, which has often brought racing to a standstill in recent seasons. By combining hardware additions like mirror LEDs with structural changes to the diffuser and nose, Formula 1 is aiming for a 2026 generation that is not only faster and more efficient, but significantly safer during the high-speed duels that fans love to watch.
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