The rules of correct overtaking
New Formula 1 season, new technical rules and – hopefully – new battles on the track. With the advent of the 2026 season the FIA has also presented what will be the new guidelines from the commissioners to evaluate the correctness of overtaking and – consequently – apply penalties in the event that there are maneuvers assessed as illegal. After the controversies that emerged on several occasions during the last season, with the drivers criticizing the management of some episodes by the stewards, the international federation has tried to meet the requests of the protagonists in the Circus.
“These documents are the result of a collaborative process between the FIA, F1 teams and drivers“, explained the federation, presenting the result of a winter of work which, in everyone’s hopes, should allow us to judge dubious episodes better and above all encourage the show. Always assuming that with this new type of single-seater it is actually possible to have some good battles to conquer positions on the track.
THE main points in which these new guidelines for overtaking and penalties can be generically summarized are five and have been “modified to align them with the objectives expressed by the pilots and the GPDA”. The discussion took place last year in Qatar and the results we list below are the results it produced.
Password: interpretation
-) The stewards will no longer impose penalty points except for dangerous, careless or apparently deliberate actions causing a collision or for other unacceptable or unsportsmanlike behavior.
-) The commissioners will demonstrate greater flexibility in applying the rules.
-) Leniency will be shown in cases where an accident is the result of an attempt to avoid a collision. The guidelines now recognize that a temporary loss of control or wheel lock may be due to the “laws of physics” or an attempt to avoid a collision.
– ) The stewards will recognize that in an overtaking manoeuvre, once a car has won the right to the corner, the other car cannot simply disappear.
-) Guidelines on expected behavior in the presence of yellow and blue flags have been added, in order to provide greater clarity to pilots.
So what is expected is greater interpretation of the episodes And less willingness to intervene on the part of the ‘referees’except in cases of obvious irregularities. A common sense approach on paper which – it is the hope of all enthusiasts – will then have to find concrete confirmation when it is actually applied.
