Former driver Marc Surer is a fan of the new Formula 1 cars, but not of the new rules—one thing in particular is a thorn in his side.
The new Formula 1 regulations have attracted a lot of criticism even before the start of the season. Max Verstappen complained about “Formula E on steroids,” and fans and experts are still skeptical about whether the new Formula 1 will be any good. Former driver Marc Surer also joins the critical voices, but still finds a lot to like about the new cars.
“I really like the cars themselves,” says the Swiss driver in an interview on the Formel1.de YouTube channel. This is because the move away from the pure ground-effect cars of previous years means that the vehicles move more in the corners, giving the drivers a little more to do at the wheel.
“You can see that the cars are a bit more agile in the corners,” says Surer. This means that they don’t just stick to the ground, but show significantly more movement than before. “And I like that,” he says. “Actually, it’s much better than in recent years.”
“That can’t be it”
And yet there are still some points in the regulations that bother him – namely, exactly what many drivers, including Max Verstappen and Fernando Alonso, have also criticized: that the fastest driver may no longer be the one at the top in the end.
For Surer, one fact is definitely part of Formula 1: “Whoever brakes the latest and takes the corner the fastest should win the race.” But in 2026, that will probably no longer be the fastest way to the finish line, because drivers will sometimes ease off the gas much earlier to save energy for the straights, otherwise they will run out of juice.
“That means that whoever charges best before and in the corner will win the race. And that can’t be right,” criticizes the Swiss, who is therefore concerned about whether the races will be as good as they were in the past.
Can drivers no longer drive on their own?
However, management has always existed in Formula 1 in some form. Surer is aware of this, but for him there is a crucial difference compared to the past that is a thorn in his side: “The fact that the engineer has to tell the best driver in the world what to do. That can’t be right,” he says.
“Formula 1 should be such that the driver has to decide for himself in the race and can decide for himself how to drive,” says the former driver. “And now suddenly he is being told what to do by an engineer who may have just come straight out of school. That bothers me terribly.”
In the past, the driver was responsible for how much power he wanted to use. “We could also increase the boost pressure or not. We then had to economize on fuel consumption. But basically, the driver always decided that himself,” said Surer. “And I believe that today’s cars can no longer be driven by drivers without instructions. And that bothers me.”