Fernando Alonso built a fantasy Formula 1 circuit from three favorite sectors. Sergio Perez immediately said it would suffer “a lot of clipping” under the 2026 rules, per the source article. Alonso’s reply: “Not for us.”
Alonso’s three-sector “dream”
During a stage appearance alongside fellow drivers, Alonso was asked to pick three sectors from current F1 tracks to form one lap, the source reports. He chose Suzuka sector one, Spa sector two, and Barcelona sector three. He singled out Suzuka’s opening ‘S’ curves, the fast, flowing middle of Spa, and the technical finish in Barcelona.
Perez’s warning: 2026 ‘clipping’
The source says Perez immediately flagged a 2026 problem: battery “clipping.” As described in the source, the 2026 power units target a roughly 50/50 split between internal combustion and battery power. On long, fast stretches without heavy braking to recharge, the battery can run out of deployable energy, causing a drop in top-end power—what the paddock calls “clipping,” per the source. Perez’s line, per the source: “There will be a lot of clipping on that circuit.”
Alonso fires back
Alonso answered with a tongue-in-cheek nod to his camp’s 2026 hopes, according to the source: “Not for us.”
Why it matters
Whether or not this Suzuka–Spa–Barcelona mashup ever leaves the sim world, the exchange underlines what the source frames as a key 2026 constraint: energy management shaping which layouts suit the new hybrids.
