Formula 1 is bracing for one of its most significant technical overhauls in years. Still, before discussions about next season’s racing even begin, fans have already zeroed in on a new meme. The FIA is revising the names of several key performance modes introduced with the latest regulations, with the one in question being the now-famous “MOM” mode, which stands for Manual Override Mode.
The term spread so rapidly that it almost became more famous than the rule itself. Now, the FIA wants to change it to simplify things for the sport.
How MOM Mode Became an F1 Meme
The new rule set for 2026 is one of the most significant shifts the series has attempted in a long time. Instead of relying on DRS, the cars will run with the help of active aerodynamics. Both the front and rear wings will open and close depending on the part of the track, and drivers will have more downforce in corners and less drag on the straights.
To prevent overtaking from being possible, the FIA added a temporary electrical boost that drivers can use when they are within one second of the car ahead.
When these ideas were first presented publicly last year, the FIA used terms such as X Mode, Z Mode, and Manual Override Mode. The names sounded like something from a video game. The last one quickly gained attention amongst fans and commentators, calling the Manual Override Mode by its short form, MOM.
For a while, the FIA tried to calm things down by renaming X-mode and Z-mode to straightline mode and cornering mode, with teams further shortening straightline mode to SLM, but the federation still felt that the whole thing sounded messy.
With such a large rules package arriving, the FIA wants everyone, from engineers to commentators, to use simple language for these modes.
“We are revising some of the terminology because we want to make it clear and we want to make it simple for the fans to understand what’s happening,” FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis told the media. “We want to have a unified terminology used by the teams when they speak to the drivers on the radio and also the same terminology in the regulations.”
F1 Fans React to the End of MOM
The moment the news reached social media, fans jumped straight back into joking about it, with one fan writing, “MOM would give fun memes. F1 hates fun.” Another fan wrote, “Good move, it’s waaaaay too meme-able (from a professional perspective). But damn, did we lose out on so many great jokes?”
There were a few more takes from disappointed fans, with one saying, “What’s wrong with MOM? So this era ended before it started?” Another wrote, “They couldn’t possibly be smart and use a term like Push-To-Pass, could they….”
It is a rare moment where the technical rulebook becomes a source of humor, and fans seem determined to make the most of it before the names disappear for good.
The FIA aims to keep things clean and easy to follow when the new rules arrive. But as usual, the internet finds its own entertainment even in a dry regulations document, and MOM mode might stick around in memes long after the official titles change.