The seven-time world champion believes Formula 1 is heading in the wrong direction—Hamilton explains why software issues and energy management are changing the sport
Lewis Hamilton has criticized Formula 1’s growing reliance on complex software systems. According to the Ferrari driver, drivers are increasingly being held back by the energy management of hybrid powertrains instead of being rewarded for their driving skills.
In a conversation with Neil deGrasse Tyson on the “StarTalk” podcast on the sidelines of the Miami Grand Prix in early May, the seven-time world champion explained that the current technical regulations are difficult even for the drivers to understand.
Hamilton explains the pitfalls of the current energy management system
“It’s really hard for the fans to fully understand all of this, and it’s hard for us to understand, too. Because the real goal when you’re driving a Formula 1 car is to push the car to the limit,” Hamilton explains.
“The faster you take a corner, the more time you should gain over the others. But right now, because of the limited battery capacity, we have to constantly manage energy. When you lift off the throttle, you charge the battery; when you accelerate, you consume energy,” the Briton continued.
Taking More Risks Can Be a Disadvantage
According to Hamilton, the current systems mean that drivers can actually be at a disadvantage in certain situations when they’re going particularly fast. The reason, he explains, is the reduced energy recovery following the removal of the MGU-H.
“We have less energy available this year because they removed the MGU-H, which we still had last year. It’s already pretty complicated as it is. So if you take a fast corner particularly aggressively, take more risks, and are faster as a result, you’re subsequently penalized because you’re not recovering enough energy,” Hamilton emphasized.
Software Issues Cost Valuable Time, According to Hamilton
In his opinion, software issues are also causing additional frustration. “Yesterday I lost three-tenths of a second just because the software didn’t do its job. But I didn’t realize that until I got back to my engineers.”
“I apologized and said, ‘I’m sorry, I’m too slow.’ They replied, ‘You’re not too slow. The software wasn’t working properly.’ That’s really frustrating because we didn’t have problems like that in the past. We need fewer of them,” says Hamilton.
After the first nine races of the season, the Briton is in third place in the drivers’ standings. Kimi Antonelli leads the standings, ahead of his teammate George Russell.
The next race is already on the schedule this weekend: the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, where the energy management system criticized by Hamilton will once again play a key role due to the long full-throttle sections and high energy demands.