DRS, the drag reduction system, was a movable rear wing flap a driver could open within a second of the car ahead in marked zones, cutting drag to make overtaking easier. It ran from 2011 and was dropped for the 2026 season, replaced by active aerodynamics and an electrical boost.
The system was introduced to fix a specific problem. Cars following closely lost downforce in the turbulent air of the car in front and could not stay near enough to attack, so the rules gave the chasing driver a temporary advantage instead. Critics said it made passing artificial; supporters said the alternative was a procession.
The 2026 regulations removed it. In its place cars run active aerodynamics, with front and rear wings that move automatically between a low-drag setting on the straights and a high-downforce setting in the corners, available to every car rather than only to a driver within a second of another.
The overtaking aid moved to the power unit. A driver close enough behind can deploy extra electrical energy through what the regulations call an override, and the sport markets as an overtake mode, giving a short burst of additional power for the run to the next corner.