Hamilton explained that the biggest challenge of the new regulations is managing the energy‑deployment system, which now dictates lap time far more than in previous eras.
The seven-time world champion said, “The deployment is the biggest part. The rest of it is all kind of similar and familiar, but the deployment is so challenging and it’s different from track to track.”
The Briton warned that drivers will only fully understand the complexity once racing begins. “We probably also won’t know until we’re thrown in the deep end in the race to understand, when we overtake someone, how it’s going to affect us coming out of that corner,” he said, adding that managing deployment in wheel‑to‑wheel situations “is going to be difficult.”
Hamilton also described how dramatically deployment choices can affect performance: “There can be a big difference between deployment, of a second. If you don’t lift in one corner… it has a massive compound effect through the rest of the lap. You can do a good lap but you could be a second down because the deployment is off.”
He stressed that success will depend not only on the driver but on the team’s ability to optimise the system: “That’s going to be the biggest challenge, not only the drivers optimising it, but the team being on top of it and delivering.”
Piastri: “A lot of the things we have to learn are not intuitive”
Oscar Piastri echoed Hamilton’s assessment, emphasising that the 2026 cars require a fundamentally different approach to driving and setup.
He explained that “all the driving, car set‑up, everything is kind of optimised around getting the most out of the power unit.” While this has always been part of Formula 1, he said it is now “by far the biggest element.”
Piastri highlighted that the new techniques required from drivers do not come naturally. “What is difficult about these new regulations is that a lot of the things we have to learn to do as drivers are not very intuitive,” he said. He added that adapting to the new style “takes some getting used to and a lot of discipline.”
The Australian driver, who retired from his home race even before he could have started it, comments underline that the 2026 cars demand a more strategic, calculated driving approach, where energy management and power‑unit behaviour shape every decision behind the wheel.