Oscar Piastri WARNS New F1 Cars Are ‘Borderline Unsafe’

Oscar Piastri has delivered a shocking take on the 2026 F1 challengers which are unsafe for the drivers, especially during race starts.

Oscar Piastri WARNS New F1 Cars Are ‘Borderline Unsafe’

Oscar Piastri (via F1)

In Short
  • Oscar Piastri warns that new F1 regulations may pose safety risks for drivers.
  • The removal of the MGU-H component complicates race start procedures, leading to potential performance issues.
  • Piastri highlights the need for further testing to address safety concerns and improve race start reliability.

The first race of the 2026 season of Formula 1 is right around the corner. The 2026 F1 regulations are currently the talk of the paddock. Many drivers have delivered skeptical remarks on the new regulations and how they are overly complex. Now, Oscar Piastri has shared a unique take and pointed out that the regulations might be very unsafe for the drivers on track.

In the new regulations, the MGU-H component has been removed from the power unit, and the turbo needs another source to start spinning. This could take upwards of ten seconds for the drivers to get into an optimal position to recharge their batteries. This means that energy management would be very important for the drivers, and those ignoring these parameters could lose crucial performance.

On the final day of the pre-season test in Bahrain, a race start procedure was conducted, which was far from ideal. Many drivers pulled off the grid, while others, including Oscar Piastri, remained stationary. Now, the Aussie asserted that the race start was just a big mix-up of instructions and needed to be addressed. The 24-year-old noted that the race procedure was very complicated and not even competitive.

The start today was just a mix-up in instructions, starts need to be addressed, As we’ve all seen, it’s a pretty complicated process now to have a safe start, let alone a competitive one.

Oscar Piastri said, as reported by RacingNews365.

Oscar Piastri highlighted that the extra testing time was very necessary for the teams to work on their challengers. However, it had no use from a performance point of view. Apart from the performance side of things, Piastri went over the things that were borderline unsafe and needed to be addressed as soon as possible.

The extra testing time has definitely been necessary for just the systems. From a performance point of view, you don’t really need it. But there’s so many things just from a borderline safety point of view that need to be figured out on track that do need addressing.

Oscar Piastri added.

Oscar Piastri reveals Formula 1’s ‘Formula 2-like’ problem with race starts

In the past, Formula 1 race starts were pretty safe, and it was easy for the drivers to go racing with the lights going off. A poor race start only meant that the driver either spun the wheel off too much or reacted late to the lights. Meanwhile, Formula 2 had its own fair share of problems with race starts. Piastri reckoned that the pinnacle of motorsport could face similar problems during race starts in 2026.

Oscar Piastri (via IMAGO)
Oscar Piastri (via IMAGO)

Oscar Piastri pointed out that the teams needed many different things to nail the race start, as no one was aware of what was actually needed for now. Piastri continued that drivers could now go into the ‘anti-stall’ mode during the race start, which was rarely seen before in Formula 1. Now, drivers risked losing over SIX-SEVEN (no pun intended) spots on track if they botched the race start.

Everyone is going to need different things for the start, To be completely honest, I’m not sure anyone knows what we need. It’s just that the difference between a good and bad start last year was you got a bit of wheel spin or you had a bad reaction time. Whereas this year it could be, effectively, like an F2 race, where you almost go into anti-stall or something. You’re not just losing five meters or so, you could be losing six or seven spots if it goes wrong.

Oscar Piastri noted.

Despite the sketchy remarks from the drivers initially, the new regulations have barely begun and have many more years to come. The teams and drivers will definitely get the hang of it and start performing much better in the coming seasons. For now, everyone is managing expectations and hoping to start on the best possible note.

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