Norris Blasts F1 Speed Limit That Makes Cars Slower Than Motorbikes

Lando Norris has slammed Formula 1's 2026 battery-deployment speed limit, calling it a rule that makes overtaking nearly impossible by holding cars to the same top speed — even when one driver has a slipstream.

The McLaren driver made the comments after the Mexico City Grand Prix, where he found himself stuck behind Charles Leclerc's Ferrari on the long front straight.

Norris said the problem is not the power unit hardware.

It is the regulatory cap on how much electrical energy drivers can deploy.

Under the 2026 regulations, maximum electrical deployment is capped at 350 kW.

In standard mode, deployment begins to taper above approximately 290 km/h and stops entirely at 345 km/h.

Overtake mode raises the limit to 355 km/h.

But Norris argued that when two cars are closely matched in pace, both hit the same ceiling — and the attacking driver gains no advantage from the tow.

"I mean the main thing with overtaking is you just have the limiter on," Norris said.

"Like you literally have a limiter that stops you from going over a speed, so it doesn't matter if you come out two tenths behind the guy, you just hit the limiter and the same limiter as them, and then you cannot do anything, so it kind of ruins racing."

The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez front straight is 1.2 kilometers long.

That should be enough distance for a driver to use a slipstream and make a pass.

Norris said the deployment ceiling can erase that advantage entirely.

He also invoked an unusual comparison to illustrate how restrictive the rule feels.

"We should easily go quicker than a motorbike," Norris said.

Lewis Hamilton has separately criticized the same engine profile that causes the speed clipping.

The 2026 rules combine active aerodynamics with tightly controlled energy deployment.

Straight Mode reduces aerodynamic drag on designated sections of the circuit.

But Norris believes the potential of those systems is compromised by the restrictions on electrical power.

A major pace advantage can still make a pass possible, Norris acknowledged.

But when cars are evenly matched, the limiter can neutralize the simplest and most reliable passing tool in racing.

Norris also acknowledged that McLaren's poor Saturday in Mexico contributed to his result, not just the regulations.

The speed-linked deployment limits are set to be removed from the 2027 regulations.

Alongside that change, planned adjustments include increased fuel flow, turbo boost and energy harvesting.

Those changes are intended to ease energy shortages that have forced the current restrictions.

Until 2027, drivers will race under the current rules.

Norris is currently sixth in the F1 Drivers' Championship.

He won back-to-back races in Budapest and Zandvoort earlier this season.

McLaren introduced upgrades in Baku in September but have not been at the sharp end of the grid since.

Norris described the MCL40's handling as "horrible" and "difficult to drive the whole season."

He said other teams — Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari — have brought more upgrades and improved more than McLaren has.

"The team are still doing a good job, considering we were 1.5 to one second off at the beginning of the year," Norris said.

"The fact we won almost three races was a pretty sizeable achievement in itself, so we have had a pretty good year, if you want to look at it from that perspective."

McLaren have a new front wing, rear wing and floor components for the Sao Paulo Grand Prix.