Next season's DRS will be "far more extreme" than the current one, claims Aston Martin's Bob Bell

With the all-new technical regulation fast approaching, Aston Martin's Executive Director - Technical, Bob Bell has revealed that the 2026 Drag Reduction System will be not completely dissimilar to the current one, but it will be "far more extreme."

Although there are still ten races to complete in 2025, the majority of the teams are busy with designing their all-new cars for the coming season which will see Formula One introduce a major technical overhaul both in terms of aerodynamics and power unit.

While the discussions about the all-new 2026 technical regulation usually focus on the new power units, there will be signicifant changes to aerodynamic configuration of the F1 cars as well.

With the arrival of the new power units that will features a fifty-fitty ratio between the electric components and the internal combustion engine, the sport will introduce a host of aerodynamic changes.

While the 2026 cars are expected to hit broadly similar lap-times to what we have now, they'll achieve those times in a different way. The extra electrical power will provide more of a push on the straights, working in conjunction with the straight-line wing setting. This low-drag configuration is called X-mode (or straight-line mode), with the corresponding high-downforce cornering set-up referred to as Z-mode (or corner mode).

A moveable rear wing is nothing new for F1: since 2011 the 'drag reduction system' (DRS) has been opening and closing the rear wing to provide an overtaking boost on specified straights for cars within one second of the car in front. X-mode, conversely, will work on every straight, irrespective of traffic.

There will be a replacement for DRS, however, with a Manual Override Mode providing extra electrical power at the top end of the speed range for a car following another closely.

Commenting on the new regulation, Aston Martin's Executive Director - Technical, Bob Bell said: "How these cars are going to perform on the track will be different. The big difference is the concept of having a cornering mode and a straight-line mode.

"The straight-line mode will operate like DRS does now, though it'll be more like a super-DRS, operating on every straight and having a much bigger impact: we'll have cars that adjust both the rear and front wings on the straights to have reduced drag. When you're not on a straight, you'll have cornering mode, which will be all about delivering downforce.

"It means we have to take a conceptually different approach to the development of these cars. We're almost having to think about two separate modes of operation and how that will individually impact the aerodynamic development of the car. It's not completely dissimilar to what we have with DRS but it's far more extreme, and that affects how we will work to get the best out of them.

"It's still early days, and we are running a lot of simulations, trying to understand the design implications. We'll get there, but the best approaches are a lot less straightforward than used to be the case. Offline simulations and human-in-the-loop sims with the drivers will help us set targets and understand what to aim for.

"We brought Lance and Fernando into the development process in February. It was their first opportunity to experience our state-of-the-art new simulator, and drive a 2026 car, albeit virtually. It's very important to get an early assessment from the drivers because their feedback is a critical part of the development process.

"This isn't like a refinement of an existing car: what they feel, and how they think these cars will potentially handle, is part of the learning process," Bell concluded.