Martin Brundle says Miami GP tweaks could “relaunch” 2026 F1 season

Martin Brundle believes the regulation tweaks will improve F1 racing, but says further changes will likely be needed

Sir Jackie Stewart with Martin Brundle, Sky F1

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Sky Sports Formula 1 analyst Martin Brundle has backed the regulation refinements that have been introduced for the upcoming Miami Grand Prix, claiming that the tweaks will improve the racing, but more changes will likely be needed in the future.

With the changes coming after just three rounds of the season and after a five-week break in April, Brundle argued that the alterations could somewhat relaunch the season.

“Yes, I think it can [change the competitive order], but it’s more like a relaunch of the season, frankly, with the enforced break,” Brundle told Sky Sports F1. “Teams are going to turn up with dramatic changes and hopefully improved cars.

“We don’t know who’s going to get it right. I think it’s going to be the story of the season actually, with such a massive change that we’ve had for 2026. I’m really looking forward to it. Will it satisfy the drivers? It’s quite clear that the drivers who have got fast cars and are winning are somewhat more satisfied than those drivers who are not.

“So, I guess that’ll carry on. There will always be a huge amount of unintended consequences in anything you change in Formula 1. It’s a pretty complex business. So what we are in the process of is smoothing out the power delivery of these complex hybrid cars, and I think it will be a step forward.

“The drivers are concerned about closing speeds. We always did have that sort of thing if somebody missed a gear in front of you, for example, back in the day when you shifted your own gears or suddenly blew up. But back then, you could smell a little bit of oil or hear the engine or whatever.

“Obviously, you can’t see that now with it being a lot of it being battery-driven. So yes, in summary, it will improve the racing. It will improve the cars, but I’m sure there’s more to be done yet.”

The regulation tweaks include adjustments to energy management parameters to reduce excessive harvesting, a +150 kW cap on the boost system in race conditions to limit sudden speed differentials and a ‘low power start detection’ system to avoid dangerous situations from cars getting bogged down at the race start, among other changes.