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Lewis Hamilton has become the latest high-profile voice to question the quality of overtaking in the current Formula 1 era, arguing that battery management has fundamentally altered the nature of wheel-to-wheel racing. The Ferrari driver said roughly half the circuits on the calendar now produce little genuine overtaking, with drivers instead passing each other mid-straight through power deployment rather than racecraft. His comments align closely with criticism Max Verstappen voiced after the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Asked about his experience of overtaking in the modern regulations era, the seven-time world champion said the satisfaction has diminished sharply. While certain circuits still allow for traditional late-braking moves, Hamilton pointed to venues like Silverstone where drivers are overtaken on straights without defensive opportunities.
"It absolutely doesn't feel like it used to," Hamilton said. "At about half of the circuits you can barely overtake and not much happens on track. At others it's still possible, for example by braking late. That's how it should be. But here and also at Silverstone you see a driver being overtaken mid-straight, without much extra power."
Battery deployment replaces racecraft
Hamilton identified energy management as the core issue distorting modern racing. Drivers must constantly calculate remaining battery capacity, leading to a pattern where an overtake using electrical deployment is immediately reversed when the original attacker runs out of charge and the defender has reserves available.
"You mainly have to understand how much battery you have left," the Ferrari driver explained. "If you use it to overtake someone, that driver shortly afterwards has enough power to get you back. As a result you get a kind of position-swapping that doesn't always feel like real racing."
Verstappen delivered identical verdict in Hungary
The convergence between Hamilton and Verstappen on this subject is notable given their contrasting careers and current team situations. Verstappen made nearly identical observations after Hungary, saying he derives little enjoyment from the current overtaking paradigm.
"I really don't like it," the Dutchman said. "Sometimes it's quite funny to see drivers fighting ahead of you. They use their battery and then you overtake them on the straight without really having to do anything for it."
Verstappen argued that authentic overtaking should be prepared through corners and completed under braking, not executed mid-straight through power differentials. He added that the disconnect between corner speed and straight-line performance creates perverse incentives.
"Sometimes you can go faster through a corner, but then you lose time on the straight," Verstappen said. "That's just wrong. In every racing class, being faster in a corner normally just gains you time. You shouldn't then be punished for it on the straight."
Spectacle versus substance
Both drivers acknowledged a gap between how overtaking appears to casual viewers and how it feels to those inside the sport. Verstappen suggested that while increased passing statistics might seem impressive to less engaged audiences, dedicated race fans recognise the difference between manufactured DRS-and-battery exchanges and genuine combat.
The shared frustration from two of the grid's most accomplished drivers suggests the current regulations, designed to increase overtaking frequency, may have succeeded in quantity while eroding quality. With no major technical regulation changes scheduled before 2026, drivers face at least two more seasons of energy-managed racing before the next-generation power units arrive.
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