The idea behind the DRS overtaking aid was to create a sticking-plaster solution to the problem created by aerodynamics in F1.
That is, make the car’s performance dependent on downforce, and overtaking will always be hard because the disruption to the airflow over a car behind another reduces its grip and makes it hard to follow closely.
DRS was meant to simulate a slipstream – a straight-line advantage to the car behind – and the plan was to make overtaking possible, not inevitable.
Trying to balance those demands has not always been easy – sometimes overtaking has been too easy; sometimes it still is.
It was only ever meant to be a temporary solution. And when the current regulations were conceived, the hope was that it could be discarded, because following would be a lot easier. It became apparent even before they were introduced in 2022 that would not be the case.
Now, another rule-set has forced another solution. But it’s not because DRS hasn’t worked; it’s because the rear wing opening has had to be added to the front wing doing something similar to balance the energy demands of the new cars with their new hybrid engines.
From 2026, there will be a ‘push-to-pass’ system that gives an extra boost of electrical energy for the car behind. It’s arguably even more artificial than DRS, and whether it will work is far from the only question hanging over the new rules.
