F1 News: Fernando Alonso Disagrees With 2026 Regulation Changes But Offers Keen Insight

Fernando Alonso has spoken out after recent admissions from FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem that the aim is to have lighter cars from the regulation change in 2026, however, the Spanish driver believes the focus should lie elsewhere.

The Aston Martin driver believes the main issue which needs to be addressed is the size of the car rather than the weight. Alonso made his F1 debut back in 2001 when the cars were just 1.796 metres wide and 4.445 metres long, whereas his Aston Martin AMR23 is 2 metres wide and 5.5 metres long.

During an interview with Motorsport.com, the two-time champion argued:

"I don't think it would change much.

"I think it's more the size of the cars than the weight which makes things a little bit more difficult, overtaking, fights into the first couple of corners of a race, it is difficult now to position the car, just because of the size of it, not because of the weight.

"I think it's going to be really difficult to significantly reduce the weight because of the hybrid engines, which will always be heavier than normal engines, and the safety on these cars is a lot higher as well.

"I know there is some interest in going in that direction, so let's see what they can do. It will always be welcome and it's always more fun to drive light cars. But at the end of the day, it's more the size of them that makes racing a little bit more difficult."

Grand Prix Drivers' Association director and Mercedes driver George Russell has agreed that the cars need to become lighter for safety reasons. He explained:

"We keep making these cars safer and safer, but obviously the heavier you make them when you have an impact it's like crashing with a bus compared to a smart car.

"You're going to have a greater impact if you're going the same speed with a car that weights 800-odd-kgs or over 900 kgs at the start of a race, compared to one 15 years ago when they were at 650 kg."