Formula E: Less power, more full-throttle racing? FIA explains surprising new Gen4 rule

Formula E's Gen4 cars can unleash up to 600 kW, yet the FIA wants to reduce their power to enable more full-throttle racing. A new system called power scheduling will be tested in Madrid, cutting race power from 450 to 200 kW between 180 and 250 km/h. Meanwhile, the relative power advantage in attack mode rises from 33 to 75 per cent. FIA Formula E chief Pablo Martino explains why less power could change the way drivers race.

Up to 600 kW of power, permanent all-wheel drive and a top speed of more than 330 km/h: With the new Gen4 generation of cars, Formula E will make the biggest performance leap in its history from the 2026/27 season onwards. Drivers will have up to 450 kW at their disposal in normal race mode, with an additional 150 kW available in attack mode. However, the sporting regulations allow the FIA to specifically reduce the power of the electric race cars at higher speeds.

During a media roundtable on Thursday, which e-Formula.news attended, FIA Formula E head of championship Pablo Martino explained the reasoning behind the regulation known as "power scheduling". The FIA aims to reduce the amount of energy management required during races and gain greater flexibility in its choice of circuits.

Full power under acceleration, less power at high speeds

The principle behind power scheduling is relatively simple: Up to a certain speed, drivers have the full amount of power allocated for the respective race at their disposal. Above that speed, the maximum available power is gradually reduced as the car goes faster.

"You start acceleration with full allocation of power until a certain speed amount, and then the power of the car decreases," Martino explains. This allows the FIA to influence the cars' energy consumption without having to restrict power at lower speeds.

Such a reduction could be particularly useful at circuits with long full-throttle sections. Aerodynamic drag increases disproportionately as speed rises. Overcoming aerodynamic drag alone at 250 rather than 200 km/h requires almost twice as much power, assuming unchanged aerodynamic conditions. This can have a significant impact on the energy consumption of a Formula E car, particularly at fast permanent circuits.

With power scheduling, the regulations effectively take over part of a task that was previously left to the drivers and teams. "It's something that the drivers were doing themselves by managing the accelerator," Martino says.

Why the relative power advantage in attack mode increases

The practical effects of power scheduling will become apparent as early as next week during official pre-season testing at Jarama. Formula E will trial the system with specific power parameters at the former Formula 1 circuit on the outskirts of Madrid.

Up to a speed of 180 km/h, drivers will have the full 450 kW at their disposal. Above that speed, the maximum available power will be reduced linearly until only 200 kW is available at 250 km/h. Power will remain capped at that level even above 250 km/h.

At 250 km/h, drivers will therefore have just 44 per cent of the original 450 kW available. This significantly restricts the acceleration of the Gen4 cars on the straights. However, it is not a speed limit: The cars can continue to accelerate beyond 250 km/h, provided the available power is sufficient.

Notably, the difference between race mode and attack mode remains constant regardless of speed. In attack mode, power is also reduced linearly between 180 and 250 km/h - but from 600 to 350 kW. Drivers therefore have exactly 150 kW more power available at any given speed than in normal race mode. While attack mode offers a 33 per cent power advantage at 180 km/h, this rises to 75 per cent at 250 km/h. On long straights in particular, this advantage could provide drivers with additional overtaking opportunities.

Power scheduling in Madrid: power curves in race & attack mode

However, it remains unclear whether power scheduling will be used in exactly this form during the 2026/27 season. These figures initially apply to pre-season testing in Madrid. The FIA has the ability to adjust the power parameters to suit the characteristics of each circuit.

FIA: "We reduce the energy management requirements by 4 to 5 per cent"

But why does the FIA want to take some of the drivers' power away in the first place? Is it about protecting the battery of the new Gen4 cars? Martino's answer is a clear no. Instead, the governing body's focus is on shaping the nature of the racing.

"Basically, to reduce the amount of lift-off of the race," explains the FIA Formula E head of championship. "By implementing this power scheduling in the races, we reduce four to five per cent the energy management requirements for the drivers on those races."

It may sound paradoxical at first: By limiting the power of the cars, the FIA could actually allow drivers to spend more time at full throttle. If the cars consume less energy at high speeds, drivers need to save less energy through lift-and-coast - the practice of lifting off the accelerator early before a braking zone. The power limit therefore takes over part of the energy management process.

Gen4 designed to race on almost any circuit

With the Circuit of The Americas in Austin, Brands Hatch and Zandvoort, three permanent circuits will join the Formula E calendar in the 2026/27 season. In Mexico City, Formula E is also set to race on a longer version of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

"That was one of the core objectives of Gen4: to give the capacity to the car to perform in almost any single circuit layout," Martino explains. "We have to implement some elements into the sporting regulations to achieve that objective." Power scheduling is one of those elements.

The FIA will decide ahead of each event whether and in what form the speed-dependent power limit will be used. According to Martino, teams will receive the relevant information at least 21 days before each race.

For the season opener in Mexico City on 16 January 2027, the FIA intends to announce the race parameters in early December due to the Christmas break. It should then become clear whether and in what form the power limit will be used in the very first Gen4 race.