1992 Formula 1 World Champion Nigel Mansell has delivered a brutal assessment of the sport’s maligned new regulations, accusing them of producing “totally false” overtakes.
F1 2026 has already proved to be one of the most controversial seasons in recent memory, with the brand-new 50-50 hybrid power units coming under fire from fans and a number of drivers.
With those behind the wheel now required to ‘harvest’ energy every lap, lap times have gone down, but with overtake numbers going up.
However, much of this is down to the energy being expended by one driver to perform an overtake, and will thus be subsequently re-overtaken by the same car.
It has led to a number of drivers, most notably Max Verstappen, to publicly condemn the new ruleset.
And Mansell, speaking to Autosport, has become another to voice his opposition to the new era.
“I might get shot for saying this, but sadly, some of the overtakes are just totally false,” the former Lotus, Williams and Ferrari driver said.
“I mean, some of the overtakes look great and then you come out the next corner, and then the car just blasts past you and the other car goes backwards because the “computer” is giving you the extra power not at the right time, and the driver doesn’t control that obviously, because he wouldn’t have employed it.”
Many F1 fans ‘are very grumpy’ about new changes – Mansell
After the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, reigning World Champion Lando Norris admitted he felt unwilling to engage in battle with Lewis Hamilton.
The McLaren driver cited the likelihood that an overtake would lead to being re-taken by Hamilton immediately afterwards as reason for his reticence.
And Mansell referred to this as a key reason why the new regulations are not working.
“I think it was Lando [Norris] who who quoted, ‘Well, I didn’t want to overtake him going into the first corner and into the chicane, but I had no choice’,” he said.
“And then coming out of the corner, he’s in the lead and then the car just blasts past him again going down the straight.
“So I think you’ve got to be very careful because, forget me, it doesn’t matter about me, but the fans around the world, I know an awful lot of them are very grumpy.
“And to be fair to the fans, I agree with them.”
Mansell is just another in a line of other drivers, past and present, who have voiced their opposition to the new regulations.
With “refinements” having been made for this weekend’s season reset in Miami, there will be much intrigue as to how much they will alter the entertainment value.
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