During qualifying at the iconic Suzuka Circuit, drivers will now only be able to recover 8 megajoules of energy, when that limit was initially set at 9 megajoules. The change is aimed at reducing the amount of super clipping at a circuit which, like Melbourne, is described in the paddock as “poor in recovery”.

At Albert Park, that led to uncomfortable onboard images heading into Turns 9 and 10, including George Russell’s pole lap. The pilots were in super clipping long before the braking zone, a state in which they can recharge energy while remaining at full throttle. This caused the speed to be reduced earlier than normal and took some of the challenge away from the pilots. Even in Shanghai, Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri, among others, said they were effectively being penalized the more risks they tried to take.

In a meeting after the Chinese Grand Prix, the consensus among the F1 teams was that the races themselves are entertaining and do not require an “impulsive reaction”, but that qualifying is an area that could be improved. After all, qualifying should remain a challenge for drivers, which means lift-and-coast and super clipping during a flying lap should be reduced.

The initial outcome of the meeting was that nothing would change for Japan and that the classification would only be reviewed before the Miami Grand Prix. However, the FIA ​​has now walked back that stance with a statement issued on Thursday, media day at Suzuka.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

Photo by: Lintao Zhang / LAT Images via Getty Images

“Following discussions between the FIA, F1 teams and power unit manufacturers, a minor adjustment to the energy management parameters for Japanese GP qualifying has been agreed, with the unanimous support of all power unit manufacturers,” the governing body said.

“To ensure that the intended balance between energy deployment and driver performance is maintained, the maximum energy recharge allowed for this weekend’s qualifying has been reduced from 9.0 MJ to 8.0 MJ. This adjustment reflects feedback from drivers and teams, who have emphasized the importance of maintaining qualifying as a performance challenge.”

Normally, the FIA ​​must inform teams four weeks in advance of such a change, but this situation is different. Following discussions after China, the FIA ​​technical department reanalysed the simulations for Suzuka. These showed that teams would have to rely more on super clipping than initially anticipated, making earlier intervention desirable.

Teams and power unit manufacturers were informed on Tuesday about the FIA’s idea to reduce recharging power during qualifying at Suzuka, with the governing body stressing that it would only implement such a change if all teams and manufacturers agreed.

Nothing changes for Sunday’s race, and the FIA ​​again stressed that it considers the overall product to be in a relatively good position for now.

“The FIA ​​notes that the first events under Regulation 2026 have been operationally successful, and this specific adjustment forms part of the normal optimization process as the new regulatory framework is validated in real conditions.

The FIA, together with F1 teams and power unit manufacturers, continues to advance the evolution of energy management, with further discussions planned in the coming weeks.”

Photos from Thursday at the Japanese GP

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