The FIA has unveiled its latest masterpiece in regulatory philosophy: addressing complaints about current rules by immediately drafting different future rules while simultaneously discussing a return to completely different past rules.
Four races into the 2026 season, with teams still figuring out whether their cars prefer understeer or catching fire, F1’s governing body has decided the real issue isn’t the current hybrid power units struggling on track. The real issue is that the 2027 hybrid power units might also struggle on track.
This represents a quantum leap in administrative thinking. Why wait to see if your regulations actually work before changing them? Why let reality interfere with the pure art of rule-making? The FIA has transcended such pedestrian concerns as “evidence” and “results.”
'Wait, so we're changing the rules for rules that haven't been written yet? Are we governing a sport or running a philosophy experiment?'
— Team principal, confused
We found this written on a napkin in the McLaren hospitality.
The current 2026 power units, which teams spent millions developing based on FIA specifications, have generated criticism for being too complex, too quiet, and too expensive. The FIA’s solution? Develop 2027 power units that will presumably be criticized for being too simple, too loud, and too cheap. Balance achieved.
Meanwhile, the V8 discussion adds a delicious layer of chaos to this regulatory lasagna. Nothing says “we have confidence in our hybrid future” like immediately discussing a return to naturally aspirated engines from 2014. It’s the automotive equivalent of ordering a salad while asking if they still have the bacon cheeseburger.
Teams are reportedly thrilled at the prospect of developing three different engine philosophies simultaneously. Why choose between hybrid complexity, modified hybrid complexity, or V8 simplicity when you can budget for all three? Accountants across the paddock are practicing their resignation letters.
'Next they'll be planning the 2028 regulations based on criticism of the 2027 regulations that don't exist yet. This is advanced stupidity.'
— Engine manufacturer representative, defeated
Overheard through three walls of hospitality unit. Accuracy not guaranteed.
The beauty of this approach lies in its infinite scalability. Why stop at 2027? The FIA could preemptively modify the 2028 regulations based on anticipated criticism of the 2027 modifications to the 2026 rules that teams are still learning to use. They could plan the 2030 V8 return to address complaints about the 2029 V6 return that replaced the 2028 hybrid modifications.
This regulatory time-travel represents peak FIA thinking. They’ve discovered that the best way to handle criticism of your current decisions is to make completely different future decisions while keeping all your current decisions in place. It’s governance by quantum superposition: all possible engine regulations exist simultaneously until someone observes them working or not working.
The teams, meanwhile, continue the simple task of making cars go fast with whatever mechanical philosophy the FIA dreams up next. They’ve mastered the art of developing cutting-edge technology for regulations that might change before the technology is finished.
At this rate, the 2026 season will be remembered not for Kimi Antonelli’s championship charge or Mercedes’ dominant return, but as the year the FIA perfected the art of solving problems by creating more problems. Revolutionary stuff, really.
