# The Race
> Stay ahead with The Race – the world’s largest independent motorsport channel. Get the latest news, expert analysis, videos and podcasts across F1, MotoGP, Formula E and more.
Public Ghost content for AI and LLM tooling. This file includes a bounded export of public pages first, then recent public posts.
Append `.md` to any post or page URL to get the content in Markdown (for example, `/example-post.md`).
## Pages
### As it happened: Verstappen wins, Haas protests Australia result
URL: https://www.the-race.com/live-f1-2023-australian-grand-prix-race-day/
Last updated: 2023-09-15T16:34:43.000Z
_No content available._
### COMPETITION: The Race Members' Club signed cap giveaway
URL: https://www.the-race.com/the-race-members-club-giveaway/
Last updated: 2025-05-19T11:17:52.000Z
- This competition is open exclusively to all active members in The Race's 'Racers', 'Racers (F1-only)' and Champions tiers on Patreon and not the general public.
- Entries will only be accepted via the competition post on Patreon.
- Each member can only enter once.
- The closing date for entries is 23:59 BST on May 31.
- The two winners will be drawn at random and contacted by email using the email details attached to their Patreon account.
- Each winner will receive one signed cap.
- Should the winner not respond within 10 days an alternative winner will be drawn.
- There is no cash alternative for the prize. The prize is not negotiable or transferable.
- All participants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
### Welcome to The Race Live Hub
URL: https://www.the-race.com/live/
Last updated: 2024-11-21T14:40:45.000Z
## The latest Formula 1 live updates
Welcome to The Race Live Hub homepage – the place for all the latest live updates, paddock insight, and expert answers you need from each Formula 1 grand prix weekend.
**The 2024 F1 season is here! Follow every session as it happens right here on The Race Live Hub.**
### Coming up next: Las Vegas GP
[Las Vegas GP qualifying](live-f1-2024-las-vegas-grand-prix-qualifying)
[Las Vegas Grand Prix](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-las%20vegas-grand-prix/)
## Brazilian GP November 3 2024
[Brazilian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-brazilian-grand-prix/)
## Mexican GP October 27 2024
[Mexican GP race day](f1-mexican-grand-prix-live-race-updates-2024)
## US GP October 20 2024
[US GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-united-states-grand-prix/)
## Singapore GP September 22 2024
[Singapore GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-singapore-grand-prix/)
## Azerbaijan GP September 15 2024
[Azerbaijan GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-azerbaijan-grand-prix/)
## Italian GP September 1 2024
[Italian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-italian-grand-prix/)
## Dutch GP August 25 2024
[Dutch GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-dutch-grand-prix-race/)
## Belgian GP July 28 2024
[Belgian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-belgian-grand-prix/)
## Hungarian GP July 21 2024
[Hungarian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-hungarian-gp/)
## British GP July 7 2024
[British GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-british-grand-prix/)
## Austrian GP June 30 2024
[Austrian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-austrian-grand-prix/)
## Spanish GP June 23 2024
[Spanish GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-spanish-grand-prix/)
## Canadian GP June 9 2024
[Canadian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-canadian-grand-prix/)
## Monaco GP May 26 2024
[Monaco GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-monaco-grand-prix/)
## Emilia Romagna GP May 19 2024
[Emilia Romagna GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-emilia-romagna-grand-prix/)
## Miami GP May 5 2024
[Miami GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-miami-grand-prix/)
## Chinese GP April 21 2024
[Chinese GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-chinese-grand-prix/)
## Japanese GP April 7 2024
[Japanese GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-japanese-grand-prix/)
## Australian GP March 24 2024
[Australian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-australian-grand-prix/)
## Saudi Arabian GP March 9 2024
[Saudi Arabian GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-saudi-arabian-grand-prix-race-day/)
## Bahrain GP March 2 2024
[Bahrain GP race day](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/live-f1-2024-bahrain-grand-prix-race-day/)
### Members’ Club
URL: https://www.the-race.com/members-club/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T00:25:01.000Z
# Welcome to The Race Members’ Club
### Thank you for your support
You are playing a key part in ensuring The Race continues to produce world-class independent motorsport coverage.
As well as unlimited access to The Race stories, in a reduced ad environment, you can get a whole host of exclusive content.
If you have any questions or need assistance with your account please email:
[members@the-race.com](mailto:members@the-race.com)
## MEMBERS-ONLY PODCASTS
As part of The Race Members’ Club, you get early access to our much-loved Bring Back the V10s podcast, a special members-only podcast from Edd Straw and Gary Anderson where they answer your questions, plus a couple of extra exclusives too.
[RSS FEED](https://www.spreaker.com/show/6482699/episodes/feed?key=hHSXmCzscBnJ&ref=the-race.com)
The RSS feed will allow you to add our podcasts to either Apple or Google Podcasts.
To add to Apple Podcasts:
- Open the Podcasts app.
- Tap Library.
- Tap Edit in the upper right corner, and then tap “Add a Show by URL...”
- Enter your RSS feed URL.
- Tap Follow.
To add to Google Podcasts:
- Click the "Activity" icon (bottom-right of your screen).
- Click the "Subscriptions" link at the top-right part of your screen.
- Click the "···" menu (upper-right).
- Select "Add by RSS feed".
- Paste in the RSS feed URL.
- Click "Subscribe".
[](https://shop.the-race.com/?ref=the-race.com)
## YOUR 15% OFF CODE FOR SEPTEMBER IS: GZAXJE9S4P0J
### The Race Memberships
URL: https://www.the-race.com/membersclub/
Last updated: 2024-03-06T12:13:05.000Z
_No content available._
### Results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/results/
Last updated: 2024-04-09T14:27:40.000Z
_No content available._
### Race Events
URL: https://www.the-race.com/race-events/
Last updated: 2025-04-24T14:28:21.000Z
_No content available._
### All-Star Series
URL: https://www.the-race.com/all-star-series/
Last updated: 2023-09-15T16:36:20.000Z
### Race format
For each category the race format is the same, although the race length and number of laps depends on the circuit:
1x qualifying session
1x race
1x reversed grid race (the starting order is the inverse of the qualifying times)
### Points
Points are awarded by this system.
\[therace\_allstar\_points\]
### Where to watch
The Race All-Star Series is shown live and in full on The Race’s YouTube channel – [the-race.com/youtube](https://www.the-race.com/youtube)
It can all be viewed live on [ESPN2](https://www.espn.com/watch/player/%5F/type/live/channel/espn2/country/us?ref=the-race.com) in the US and on the [ESPN app](http://www.espn.com/espn/apps/espn?ref=the-race.com).
### How to get involved
#### Simracers
You can race in the All-Star Series! If you think you have what it takes to battle with the best sim racers, there are places on the grid up for grabs. To enter, you need to go through the Hot Lap qualifiers – which take place between 10 am and 10 pm (UK) time on the Friday ahead of each race.
For details on how to enter the Hot Lap qualifiers, click here [click here](https://rfactor2.studio-397.com/competition?ref=the-race.com) (you will need a Steam account)
#### Real-world Racers
If you are a currently an active racing driver who wishes to take part – or a icon from motorsport’s rich history who fancies competing in the the Legends Trophy – please send an email to [drivers@the-race.com](mailto:drivers@the-race.com)
[Download the Season 2 Competitor Handbook](https://storage.googleapis.com/the-race-com.appspot.com/1/2020/05/The-Race-All-Star-Series-Competitor-Handbook-Season-2.pdf?ref=the-race.com)
### Advertising and sponsorship
To discuss commercial opportunities regarding The Race All-Star series, please contact [advertising@the-race.com](mailto:advertising@the-race.com)
### Media and broadcasting
For media information (including photos) or broadcasting opportunities, please email [contactus@the-race.com](mailto:contactus@the-race.com)
### Our Partners
\[therace\_partners id=”” note=”Do not edit this shortcode”\]
[Learn more about rFactor2](https://www.studio-397.com/?ref=the-race.com)
### Podcasts
URL: https://www.the-race.com/podcasts/
Last updated: 2024-05-13T12:05:55.000Z
_No content available._
### Terms & Conditions
URL: https://www.the-race.com/terms-and-conditions/
Last updated: 2025-10-09T13:55:22.000Z
## Introduction
These terms and conditions apply between you, the User of this Website (including any sub-domains, unless expressly excluded by their own terms and conditions), and The Race Media Ltd, the owner and operator of this Website. Please read these terms and conditions carefully, as they affect your legal rights. Your agreement to comply with and be bound by these terms and conditions is deemed to occur upon your first use of the Website. If you do not agree to be bound by these terms and conditions, you should stop using the Website immediately.
In these terms and conditions, User or Users means any third party that accesses the Website and is not either (i) employed by The Race Media Ltd and acting in the course of their employment or (ii) engaged as a consultant or otherwise providing services to The Race Media Ltd and accessing the Website in connection with the provision of such services.
You must be at least 18 years of age to use this Website. By using the Website and agreeing to these terms and conditions, you represent and warrant that you are at least 18 years of age.
## Intellectual property and acceptable use
1\. All Content included on the Website, unless uploaded by Users, is the property of The Race Media Ltd, our affiliates or other relevant third parties. In these terms and conditions, Content means any text, graphics, images, audio, video, software, data compilations, page layout, underlying code and software and any other form of information capable of being stored in a computer that appears on or forms part of this Website, including any such content uploaded by Users. By continuing to use the Website you acknowledge that such Content is protected by copyright, trademarks, database rights and other intellectual property rights. Nothing on this site shall be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel, or otherwise, any license or right to use any trademark, logo or service mark displayed on the site without the owner’s prior written permission
2\. You may, for your own personal, non-commercial use only, do the following:
a. retrieve, display and view the Content on a computer screen
b. print one copy of the Content
3\. You must not otherwise reproduce, modify, copy, distribute or use for commercial purposes any Content without the written permission of The Race Media Ltd.
4\. You acknowledge that you are responsible for any Content you may submit via the Website, including the legality, reliability, appropriateness, originality and copyright of any such Content. You may not upload to, distribute or otherwise publish through the Website any Content that (i) is confidential, proprietary, false, fraudulent, libellous, defamatory, obscene, threatening, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, infringing on intellectual property rights, abusive, illegal or otherwise objectionable; (ii) may constitute or encourage a criminal offence, violate the rights of any party or otherwise give rise to liability or violate any law; or (iii) may contain software viruses, political campaigning, chain letters, mass mailings, or any form of “spam.” You may not use a false email address or other identifying information, impersonate any person or entity or otherwise mislead as to the origin of any content. You may not upload commercial content onto the Website.
5\. You represent and warrant that you own or otherwise control all the rights to the Content you post; that the Content is accurate; that use of the Content you supply does not violate any provision of these terms and conditions and will not cause injury to any person; and that you will indemnify The Race Media Ltd for all claims resulting from Content you supply.
## Prohibited use
6\. You may not use the Website for any of the following purposes:
a) in any way which causes, or may cause, damage to the Website or interferes with any other person’s use or enjoyment of the Website;
b) in any way which is harmful, unlawful, illegal, abusive, harassing, threatening or otherwise objectionable or in breach of any applicable law, regulation, governmental order;
c) making, transmitting or storing electronic copies of Content protected by copyright without the permission of the owner.
## Registration
7\. You must ensure that the details provided by you on registration or at any time are correct and complete.
8\. You must inform us immediately of any changes to the information that you provide when registering by updating your personal details to ensure we can communicate with you effectively.
9\. We may suspend or cancel your registration with immediate effect for any reasonable purposes or if you breach these terms and conditions.
10\. You may cancel your registration at any time by informing us in writing to the address at the end of these terms and conditions. If you do so, you must immediately stop using the Website. Cancellation or suspension of your registration does not affect any statutory rights.
## Password and security
11\. When you register on this Website, you will be asked to create a password, which you should keep confidential and not disclose or share with anyone.
12\. If we have reason to believe that there is or is likely to be any misuse of the Website or breach of security, we may require you to change your password or suspend your account.
## Links to other websites
13\. This Website may contain links to other sites. Unless expressly stated, these sites are not under the control of The Race Media Ltd or that of our affiliates.
14\. We assume no responsibility for the content of such Websites and disclaim liability for any and all forms of loss or damage arising out of the use of them.
15\. The inclusion of a link to another site on this Website does not imply any endorsement of the sites themselves or of those in control of them.
## Privacy Policy and Cookies Policy
16\. Use of the Website is also governed by our Privacy Policy and Cookies Policy, which are incorporated into these terms and conditions by this reference. To view the Privacy Policy and Cookies Policy, please click on the following: https://the-race.com/privacy-policy/ and .
## Availability of the Website and disclaimers
17\. Any online facilities, tools, services or information that The Race Media Ltd makes available through the Website (the Service) is provided “as is” and on an “as available” basis. We give no warranty that the Service will be free of defects and/or faults. To the maximum extent permitted by the law, we provide no warranties (express or implied) of fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy of information, compatibility and satisfactory quality. The Race Media Ltd is under no obligation to update information on the Website.
18\. Whilst The Race Media Ltd uses reasonable endeavours to ensure that the Website is secure and free of errors, viruses and other malware, we give no warranty or guaranty in that regard and all Users take responsibility for their own security, that of their personal details and their computers.
19\. The Race Media Ltd accepts no liability for any disruption or non-availability of the Website.
20\. The Race Media Ltd reserves the right to alter, suspend or discontinue any part (or the whole of) the Website including, but not limited to, any products and/or services available. These terms and conditions shall continue to apply to any modified version of the Website unless it is expressly stated otherwise.
## Limitation of liability
21\. Nothing in these terms and conditions will: (a) limit or exclude our or your liability for death or personal injury resulting from our or your negligence, as applicable; (b) limit or exclude our or your liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or (c) limit or exclude any of our or your liabilities in any way that is not permitted under applicable law.
22\. We will not be liable to you in respect of any losses arising out of events beyond our reasonable control.
23\. To the maximum extent permitted by law, The Race Media Ltd accepts no liability for any of the following:
a) any business losses, such as loss of profits, income, revenue, anticipated savings, business, contracts, goodwill or commercial opportunities;
b) loss or corruption of any data, database or software;
c) any special, indirect or consequential loss or damage.
## General
24\. You may not transfer any of your rights under these terms and conditions to any other person. We may transfer our rights under these terms and conditions where we reasonably believe your rights will not be affected.
25\. These terms and conditions may be varied by us from time to time. Such revised terms will apply to the Website from the date of publication. Users should check the terms and conditions regularly to ensure familiarity with the then current version.
26\. These terms and conditions together with the Privacy Policy and Cookies Policy contain the whole agreement between the parties relating to its subject matter and supersede all prior discussions, arrangements or agreements that might have taken place in relation to the terms and conditions.
27\. The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 shall not apply to these terms and conditions and no third party will have any right to enforce or rely on any provision of these terms and conditions.
28\. If any court or competent authority finds that any provision of these terms and conditions (or part of any provision) is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that provision or part-provision will, to the extent required, be deemed to be deleted, and the validity and enforceability of the other provisions of these terms and conditions will not be affected.
29\. Unless otherwise agreed, no delay, act or omission by a party in exercising any right or remedy will be deemed a waiver of that, or any other, right or remedy.
30\. This Agreement shall be governed by and interpreted according to the law of England and Wales and all disputes arising under the Agreement (including non-contractual disputes or claims) shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English and Welsh courts.
## The Race Media Ltd details
31\. The Race Media Ltd is a company incorporated in England and Wales with registered number 12232793 whose registered address is 201 Borough High Street, London, England, SE1 1JA and it operates the Website www.the-race.com.
You can contact The Race Media Ltd by email on [editorial@the-race.com](mailto:editorial@the-race.com).
## Attribution
32\. These terms and conditions were created using a document from Rocket Lawyer (https://www.rocketlawyer.co.uk).
### Contact
URL: https://www.the-race.com/contact/
Last updated: 2024-05-02T20:12:24.000Z
_No content available._
### Join Our Newsletter
URL: https://www.the-race.com/newsletter/
Last updated: 2024-03-06T13:50:31.000Z
_No content available._
### Privacy Policy
URL: https://www.the-race.com/privacy-policy/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T22:53:55.000Z
This privacy policy applies between you, the User of this Website and The Race Media Ltd, the owner and provider of this Website. The Race Media Ltd takes the privacy of your information very seriously. This privacy policy applies to our use of any and all Data collected by us or provided by you in relation to your use of the Website.
This privacy policy should be read alongside, and in addition to, our Terms and Conditions, which can be found at: www.the-race.com/termsandconditions Please read this privacy policy carefully.
**1: Definitions and interpretation In this privacy policy, the following definitions are used:**
**Data**
Collectively all information that you submit to The Race Media Ltd via the Website. This definition incorporates, where applicable, the definitions provided in the Data Protection Laws;
**Cookies**
A small text file placed on your computer by this Website when you visit certain parts of the Website and/or when you use certain features of the Website. Details of the cookies used by this Website are set out in the clause below (Cookies);
**Data Protection Laws**
Any applicable law relating to the processing of personal Data, including but not limited to the Directive 96/46/EC (Data Protection Directive) or the GDPR, and any national implementing laws, regulations and secondary legislation, for as long as the GDPR is effective in the UK;
**GDPR**
The General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679;
**The Race Media Ltd, we or us**
The Race Media Ltd, a company incorporated in England and Wales with registered number 12232793 whose registered office is at The Race Media Ltd., 201 Borough High Street, London, England, SE1 1JA;
**UK and EU Cookie Law**
The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 as amended by the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) (Amendment) Regulations 2011;
**User or you**
Any third party that accesses the Website and is not either (i) employed by The Race Media Ltd and acting in the course of their employment or (ii) engaged as a consultant or otherwise providing services to The Race Media Ltd and accessing the Website in connection with the provision of such services; and
**Website**
The website that you are currently using, www.the-race.com, and any sub-domains of this site unless expressly excluded by their own terms and conditions.
**2: In this privacy policy, unless the context requires a different interpretation:**
a) the singular includes the plural and vice versa;
b) references to sub-clauses, clauses, schedules or appendices are to sub-clauses, clauses, schedules or appendices of this privacy policy;
c) a reference to a person includes firms, companies, government entities, trusts and partnerships;
d) “including” is understood to mean “including without limitation”;
e) reference to any statutory provision includes any modification or amendment of it;
f) the headings and subheadings do not form part of this privacy policy.
## Scope of this privacy policy
**3.** This privacy policy applies only to the actions of The Race Media Ltd and Users with respect to this Website and any associated web properties owned and managed by The Race Media Ltd. It does not extend to any websites that can be accessed from this Website including, but not limited to, any links we may provide to social media websites.
**4.** For purposes of the applicable Data Protection Laws, The Race Media Ltd is the “data controller”. This means that The Race Media Ltd determines the purposes for which, and the manner in which your Data is processed.
## Data collected
**5.** We may collect the following Data, which includes personal Data, from you:
a) name;
a) date of birth;
b) gender;
c) job title;
d) profession;
e) contact Information such as email addresses and telephone numbers;
f) demographic information such as postcode, preferences and interests;
g) IP address (automatically collected);
h) web browser type and version (automatically collected);
i) operating system (automatically collected);
j) a list of URLs starting with a referring site, your activity on this Website, and the site you exit to (automatically collected);
k) Device settings including access to your WiFi or GPS location/settings related to the location of your device.
Additionally, we may collect the following information indirectly from partners:
a) We may enhance our knowledge of you, from other companies who have obtained your permission (through their own privacy policies) to share information about you.
b) If you log-in to our websites through a social media site, such as Facebook, you are granting permission to Facebook to share your user information with us. This will include your name, email address, date of birth, location, plus any other information you have permitted Facebook to share with third parties. If you remove the app from your Facebook account, we will no longer have access to this information. In each case, in accordance with this privacy policy.
## How we collect Data
**6.** We collect Data in the following ways:
a) data is given to us by you; and
b) data is collected automatically.
## Data that is given to us by you
**7.** The Race Media Ltd will collect your Data in a number of ways, for example:
a) when you contact us through the Website, by telephone, post, email or through any other means;
b) when you register with us and set up an account to receive our products/services;
c) when you complete surveys that we use for research purposes (although you are not obliged to respond to them);
d) when you enter a competition or promotion through a social media channel;
e) when you elect to receive marketing communications from us;
f) when you use our services;
In each case, in accordance with this privacy policy.
## Data that is collected automatically
**8.** To the extent that you access the Website, we will collect your Data automatically, for example:
a) we automatically collect some information about your visit to the Website. This information helps us to make improvements to Website content and navigation, and includes your IP address, the date, times and frequency with which you access the Website and the way you use and interact with its content.
b) we will collect your Data automatically via cookies, in line with the cookie settings on your browser. For more information about cookies, and how we use them on the Website, see the section below headed “Cookies”.
## Our use of Data
**9.1.** Any or all of the above Data may be required by us from time to time in order to provide you with the best possible service and experience when using our Website. Specifically, Data may be used by us for the following reasons:
a) improvement of our products / services;
a) transmission by email of marketing materials that may be of interest to you;
b) contact for market research purposes which may be done using email, telephone, fax or mail. Such information may be used to customise or update the Website;
d) personalise content and advertising experience;
in each case, in accordance with this privacy policy.
The legal basis for processing your data in each of these cases may vary.
Where we are delivering a service:
– Delivering customer service and support
– Contacting you during the course of a sale or a transaction
– Communicating with you in relation to your account or service, providing a service update or other non-marketing communication
– Dealing with or responding to a comment or a complaint
– Obtaining market research and customer reviews
– Maintaining a record of our communications, if you contact us.
**THE LEGAL BASIS FOR THE ABOVE IS LEGITIMATE INTEREST**
## Communicating with you directly via email, SMS and Direct Mail.
**9.2.** For the delivery of direct marketing to you via email, we’ll need your consent, whether via an opt-in or soft-opt-in:
a) soft opt-in consent is a specific type of consent which applies when you have previously engaged with us (for example, you contact us to ask us for more details about a particular product/service, and we are marketing similar products/services). Under “soft opt-in” consent, we will take your consent as given unless you opt-out. We will use this opt in to share our regular newsletter, you can opt-out at any point through our unsubscribe functionality on the email or by emailing contactus@the-race.com
b) for other types of e-marketing, we are required to obtain your explicit consent; that is, you need to take positive and affirmative action when consenting by, for example, checking a tick box that we’ll provide. Types of marketing where we will require a positive opt-in is where the content contains a partner advertising. From time to time we will include content from third parties in our emails.
c) We will from time to time run partnerships with other companies and brands on the website, whereby signing up you will give the option to opt-in to their database at the same time. In this instance you will be giving us permission to share your data with this brand.
d) if you are not satisfied about our approach to marketing, you have the right to withdraw consent at any time. To find out how to withdraw your consent, see the section headed “Your rights” below.
**THE LEGAL BASIS FOR THE ABOVE IS LEGITIMATE INTEREST**
**10\.** Profiling for Personalisation
To personalise your experience we use your data you submit to us, including cookies, IP addresses, web or similar technologies in relation to the devices you use. By doing so, we can provide you with editorial content and/or advertising that we believe is more relevant to your interests. You can adjust your setting at any points.
**LEGAL BASIS FOR THIS IS CONSENT**.
Legal basis for this processing activity: Consent
**Tailored advertising**
We use advertising to fund our business. Some advertising is based on the context of the page, whilst the other is based upon your likely interest, which is inferred from what we know about you due to your browsing history. This can be collected from information associated to your devices, cookies and email address.
We sell advertisement space on the website based on the profiles on the consumers viewing it, therefore you are served more personalised advertising, if you opt-in to receive targeted ads.
We do not share your personal data with these advertisers and we only allow them to use your profile, if you have opted in to see targeted advertisements.
**LEGAL BASIS FOR THIS IS CONSENT**.
**Location-based services and advertising**
Where you have granted permission to access your device’s location and consented to us to use your data for advertising purposes, this location information may be used to tailor the advertising you receive, including showing you certain advertisements when you are in the vicinity of a particular location.
**LEGAL BASIS FOR THIS IS CONSENT**.
**Measurement and analytics**
We may use analytics to see how you move across the website and what you click on to measure the effectiveness of content and advertisements.
**LEGAL BASIS FOR THIS IS CONSENT AND LEGITIMATE INTEREST**
11\. We may use your Data for the above purposes if we deem it necessary to do so for our legitimate interests. If you are not satisfied with this, you have the right to object in certain circumstances (see the section headed “Your rights” below).
12\. When you register with us and set up an account to receive our services, the legal basis for this processing is the performance of a contract between you and us and/or taking steps, at your request, to enter into such a contract.
13\. We may use your Data to show you The Race Media Ltd adverts and other content on other websites. If you do not want us to use your data to show you The Race Media Ltd adverts and other content on other websites, please turn off the relevant cookies (please refer to the section headed “Cookies” below).
## How We Share Your Data
**Tech providers**
With consent, we use data to:
– analyse user cohorts and behaviours across our website; we build aggregated audiences around key attributes and behaviours. This allows us to improve our content to be of the most interest to fans and make other business improvements.
– facilitate targeted advertising on https://www.the-race.com/, affiliated sites and apps and across the internet. The purpose is to provide relevant advertisements to you and to make effective use of advertising inventory.
– fulfill other commercial interests, including selling sponsorship deals and other revenue-generating partnerships that allow The Race to run successfully.
We facilitate the above functions by using advertising technology providers:
**Lotame –** data management platform, for the purpose of gaining audience insights and enabling consented audience data to be activated on the below platforms. Lotame uses cookies and other identifiers to track online behavioural, demographic and technographic data; they don’t receive information such as your name and email. Lotame can also receive anonymous data segments that The Race sends, such as user IDs associated with people who have been registered members for a certain length of time. Lotame stores data on average for 9 months, and in special cases for up to 18 months. Lotame’s privacy policy: https://www.lotame.com/about-lotame/privacy/lotames-products-services-privacy-policy/.
**Google Ad Manager (DFP) –** ad server and ad exchange, for the purpose of selling advertising inventory on our site in a targeted manner. Google’s privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads?hl=en-US.
**Xandr (Appnexus) –** demand side platform, for the purpose of buying audience-targeted advertising across the internet. Xandr’s privacy policy: https://www.xandr.com/privacy/platform-privacy-policy/.
**Facebook –** social media platform, for the purpose of buying audience-targeted advertising on Facebook. Facebook’s privacy policy: https://www.facebook.com/policy.php.
**Partners**
We may also share personal data that we hold on you, in an anonymised and aggregated fashion, with partners including Sponsors, Advertisers and Agencies – to convey insights on The Race audience, demonstrate how our audiences/customers overlap with each other, facilitate advertising targeting and measurement both on and off our website; secure investment and help keep our league strong.
**HalfSpace and Brevo**
Halfspace provides email marketing and customer acquisition services. They provide the CRM and Email marketing platform (Brevo) which we utilise to send our email. Half Space acts as a data processor and will process the data under our instructions and cannot use the data for their own purposes.
**Vendors –** We may add other vendors over time to provide additional services. These vendors will be processors and not control the data. They will act under our instructions and cannot use the data for their own purposes.
## Keeping Data secure
**14.** We will use technical and organisational measures to safeguard your Data, for example:
a. access to your account is controlled by a password and a username that is unique to you.
b. we store your Data on secure servers.
**15.** All data is securely stored on an encrypted database, with automated scanning tools built in to detect fraudulent activity. This family of standards helps us manage your Data and keep it secure.
**16.** Technical and organisational measures include measures to deal with any suspected data breach. If you suspect any misuse or loss or unauthorised access to your Data, please let us know immediately by contacting us via this email address: contactus@the-race.com.
**17.** If you want detailed information from Get Safe Online on how to protect your information and your computers and devices against fraud, identity theft, viruses and many other online problems, please visit www.getsafeonline.org. Get Safe Online is supported by HM Government and leading businesses.
## Data retention
**18.** Unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law, we will only hold your Data on our systems for the period necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this privacy policy, we deem this to be 2 years or until you request that the Data be deleted.
**19.** Even if we delete your Data, it may persist on backup or archival media for legal, tax or regulatory purposes.
## Your rights
**20.** You have the following rights in relation to your Data:
a) Right to access – the right to request (i) copies of the information we hold about you at any time, or (ii) that we modify, update or delete such information. If we provide you with access to the information we hold about you, we will not charge you for this, unless your request is “manifestly unfounded or excessive.” Where we are legally permitted to do so, we may refuse your request. If we refuse your request, we will tell you the reasons why.
b) Right to correct – the right to have your Data rectified if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
c) Right to erase – the right to request that we delete or remove your Data from our systems.
d) Right to restrict our use of your Data – the right to “block” us from using your Data or limit the way in which we can use it.
e) Right to data portability – the right to request that we move, copy or transfer your Data.
f) Right to object – the right to object to our use of your Data including where we use it for our legitimate interests.
**21.** To make enquiries, exercise any of your rights set out above, or withdraw your consent to the processing of your Data (where consent is our legal basis for processing your Data), please contact us via this email address: contactus@the-race.com.
**22.** If you are not satisfied with the way a complaint you make in relation to your Data is handled by us, you may be able to refer your complaint to the relevant data protection authority. For the UK, this is the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). The ICO’s contact details can be found on their website at https://ico.org.uk/.
**23.** It is important that the Data we hold about you is accurate and current. Please keep us informed if your Data changes during the period for which we hold it.
## Links to other websites
**24.** This Website may, from time to time, provide links to other websites. We have no control over such websites and are not responsible for the content of these websites. This privacy policy does not extend to your use of such websites. You are advised to read the privacy policy or statement of other websites prior to using them.
Changes of business ownership and control
**25.** The Race Media Ltd may, from time to time, expand or reduce our business and this may involve the sale and/or the transfer of control of all or part of The Race Media Ltd. Data provided by Users will, where it is relevant to any part of our business so transferred, be transferred along with that part and the new owner or newly controlling party will, under the terms of this privacy policy, be permitted to use the Data for the purposes for which it was originally supplied to us.
**26.** We may also disclose Data to a prospective purchaser of our business or any part of it.
**27.** In the above instances, we will take steps with the aim of ensuring your privacy is protected.
## Cookies
**28.** This Website may place and access certain Cookies on your computer. The Race Media Ltd has carefully chosen these Cookies and has taken steps to ensure that your privacy is protected and respected at all times.
**29.** All Cookies used by this Website are used in accordance with current UK and EU Cookie Law.
**30.** Before the Website places Cookies on your computer, you will be presented with a message bar requesting your consent to set those Cookies. By giving your consent to the placing of Cookies, you are enabling The Race Media Ltd to provide a better experience and service to you. You may, if you wish, deny consent to the placing of Cookies; however certain features of the Website may not function fully or as intended.
**31.** This Website may place the following Cookies:
**Analytical/performance cookies**
They allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.
**Functionality cookies**
These are used to recognise you when you return to our website. This enables us to personalise our content for you, greet you by name and remember your preferences (for example, your choice of language or region).
**Targeting cookies**
These cookies record your visit to our website, the pages you have visited and the links you have followed. We will use this information to make our website and the advertising displayed on it more relevant to your interests. We may also share this information with third parties for this purpose.
**32.** You can find a list of Cookies that we use in the Cookies Schedule.
**33.** You can choose to enable or disable Cookies in your internet browser. By default, most internet browsers accept Cookies but this can be changed. For further details, please consult the help menu in your internet browser.
**34.** You can choose to delete Cookies at any time; however you may lose any information that enables you to access the Website more quickly and efficiently including, but not limited to, personalisation settings.
**35.** It is recommended that you ensure that your internet browser is up-to-date and that you consult the help and guidance provided by the developer of your internet browser if you are unsure about adjusting your privacy settings.
**36.** For more information in general on cookies, including how to disable them, please refer to aboutcookies.org. You will also find details on how to delete cookies from your computer.
## Transferring data outside of the EU
If data is transferred outside of the EU due to dealing with organisations who have access to your information in the course of providing services on our behalf to you will be governed by contractual restrictions to make sure they protect your information and comply with applicable data protection legislation.
Where these organisations are based outside of the EEA in a jurisdiction that has not been deemed adequate by the EU, we enter into EU approved model clauses with them to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.
## General
**37.** You may not transfer any of your rights under this privacy policy to any other person. We may transfer our rights under this privacy policy where we reasonably believe your rights will not be affected.
**38.** If any court or competent authority finds that any provision of this privacy policy (or part of any provision) is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that provision or part-provision will, to the extent required, be deemed to be deleted, and the validity and enforceability of the other provisions of this privacy policy will not be affected.
**39.** Unless otherwise agreed, no delay, act or omission by a party in exercising any right or remedy will be deemed a waiver of that, or any other right or remedy.
**40.** This Agreement will be governed by and interpreted according to the law of England and Wales. All disputes arising under the Agreement will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English and Welsh courts.
Changes to this privacy policy
**41.** The Race Media Ltd reserves the right to change this privacy policy as we may deem necessary from time to time or as may be required by law. Any changes will be immediately posted on the Website and you are deemed to have accepted the terms of the privacy policy on your first use of the Website following the alterations. You may contact The Race Media Ltd by email at contactus@the-race.com.
## Advertising with Playwire
All or partial advertising on this Website or App is managed by Playwire LLC. If Playwire publisher advertising services are used, Playwire LLC may collect and use certain aggregated and anonymized data for advertising purposes. To learn more about the types of data collected, how data is used and your choices as a user, please visit [https://www.playwire.com/privacy-policy](https://www.playwire.com/privacy-policy?ref=the-race.com).
### COMPETITION: Win an Insta360 Ace Pro 2 MM93 Edition
URL: https://www.the-race.com/competition-win-an-insta360-ace-pro-2-mm93-edition/
Last updated: 2025-07-01T12:16:29.000Z
- Entries will only be accepted via the question submission form linked to in The Race’s posts.
- The closing date for entries is 23:59 BST on July 10
- The winner will be chosen by The Race MotoGP Podcast panel and contacted by email using the email details submitted in the question form.
- The winner will receive one signed Insta360 Ace Pro 2 MM93 Edition
- Should the winner not respond within 10 days an alternative winner will be drawn.
- There is no cash alternative for the prize. The prize is not negotiable or transferable.
- All participants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
### The Race Fan Census 2026 terms and conditions
URL: https://www.the-race.com/the-race-fan-survey-2026-terms-and-conditions/
Last updated: 2026-08-14T15:02:55.000Z
- To qualify for access to The Race Members' Club, respondents must complete Part 1 (1-month access) or both Parts 1 and 2 (3-month access) of The Race Fan Census 2026.
- Entries are verified by their survey status: 'Partial' (Part 1 completed) qualifies for 1-month access; 'Completed' (Parts 1 and 2 completed) qualifies for 3-month access. Proof of status is available on request. Access is provided via the Patreon platform.
- Existing members of The Race Members' Club who reach 'Partial' or 'Completed' status will instead receive a code extending their membership by 1 or 3 months respectively, as described in Patreon's [FAQs on gifting](https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-us/articles/31345065123597-Gifting-memberships-to-your-fans-creator-to-fan-gifts?ref=the-race.com).
- Entries that do not reach 'Partial' status are not eligible for any benefit.
- The Race may use anonymised survey responses in future editorial output.
- Access codes will be emailed to eligible respondents within 7 days of their survey entry. This email will be sent only once; proof of sending is available on request.
- There is no cash alternative.
- The survey closes on September 1, 2026\. The Race reserves the right to shorten or extend this period.
- By taking part in the survey, all respondents are deemed to have accepted and agreed to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
**\*Terms and conditions updated on August 14 2026.**
### Patreon content test
URL: https://www.the-race.com/patreon-content-testsdf-1999376462-unkonwn-url/
Last updated: 2025-11-10T11:39:48.000Z
_This page is for paying subscribers only._
### COMPETITION: The Race Members' Club Singapore GP giveaway
URL: https://www.the-race.com/competition-the-race-members-club-singapore-gp-giveaway/
Last updated: 2025-09-29T14:50:40.000Z
- This competition is open exclusively to all active members in The Race's 'Racers', 'Racers (F1-only)' and 'Champions' tiers on Patreon and not the general public.
- Entries will only be accepted via the competition post on Patreon.
- Each member can only enter once.
- The closing date for entries is 23:59 BST on October 6.
- The two winners will be drawn at random and contacted by email using the email details attached to their Patreon account.
- Each winner will receive a bundle of Singapore Grand Prix merchandise.
- The image at the top of this post is an example of some of the items that will feature in each bundle.
- Any clothing included in each bundle is likely to be a mix of small, medium and large sizes.
- Should the winner not respond within 10 days an alternative winner will be drawn.
- There is no cash alternative for the prize. The prize is not negotiable or transferable.
- All participants will be deemed to have accepted and be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
### Motorsport coverage that cannot be beaten
URL: https://www.the-race.com/about/
Last updated: 2026-03-02T15:45:19.000Z
The Race started in February 2020 as a digital-only motorsport channel. Our aim is to create the best motorsport coverage that appeals to die-hard fans as well as those who are new to the sport.
### The Race F1 - COTA United States Grand Prix Grounds Pass Giveaway
URL: https://www.the-race.com/the-race-f1-cota-united-states-grand-prix-grounds-pass-giveaway/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T13:22:04.000Z
## Official Rules / Terms and Conditions
**NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE WILL NOT INCREASE YOUR CHANCES OF WINNING.**
### 1\. The Promotion
1.1 This promotion ("**Promotion**") is hosted by The Race Media, a Rafa Media company. The Promotion is run and administered by **RAFA Media LLC**, a company registered in Texas, USA, under registration number 99-4879580, whose principal place of business is at 8582 Katy Freeway Suite 119, Houston, Texas 77024, United States of America ("**Promoter**", "**we**", "**us**"). References to "The Race" throughout these Terms refer to the brand under which the Promotion is hosted; Rafa Media is the legal entity responsible for the Promotion.
1.2 The Promotion runs from **08:00:00 Eastern Standard Time on 1 September 2026** to **23:59:59 Eastern Standard Time on 30 September 2026** (the "**Promotion Period**"). Entries received before or after the Promotion Period will not be counted.
1.3 By entering the Promotion, entrants agree to be bound by these terms and conditions ("**Terms**").
### 2\. The Prize
2.1 The prize is **two (2) Grounds Pass tickets to the 2026 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas ("COTA")**, valid for **Friday 23rd, Saturday 24th, and Sunday 25th October 2026**, awarded to a single winner (the "**Prize**").
2.2 The Prize consists of tickets only. It does not include travel, transfers, accommodation, food, drink, spending money, event upgrades, paddock or hospitality access, parking, or any other costs associated with attending the event. All such costs are the sole responsibility of the winner.
2.3 Tickets will be collected via **Will Call at the COTA Box Office**. The winner must provide their full legal name, email address, and phone number to be registered for Will Call collection, and must bring valid government-issued photo ID matching the name on the Will Call record to collect the tickets.
2.3a Will Call registration details must be confirmed with the Promoter no later than **16th October 2026**. Details submitted after this date may not be processed in time for collection.
2.3b If the winner is unable to personally attend Will Call, they may nominate **one named guest** to collect the tickets on their behalf, provided the winner supplies that guest's full legal name to the Promoter in advance as part of Will Call registration. The nominated guest must bring valid government-issued photo ID matching the name provided at registration in order to collect the tickets.
2.4 Tickets are subject to Circuit of the Americas' own ticketing terms and conditions, available at: [https://circuitoftheamericas.com/ticket-policy/](https://circuitoftheamericas.com/ticket-policy/?ref=the-race.com). Entrants and the winner are responsible for reviewing and complying with these separately.
2.5 The Prize is non-transferable, non-exchangeable, and cannot be redeemed for cash or any other prize, in whole or in part, except at the Promoter's discretion (for example, if the event is cancelled or postponed — see clause 8).
2.6 There is one Prize available (comprising two tickets). No cash or other alternative will be offered. Approximate retail value of the Prize: **$450 USD**.
2.7 The winner is solely responsible for any and all federal, state, and local taxes, and any other costs and expenses, associated with acceptance and use of the Prize not specifically stated herein. Depending on the Prize's approximate retail value, the Promoter may be required to issue tax reporting documentation (e.g. IRS Form 1099) to the winner; the winner will be required to provide any information reasonably requested by the Promoter for this purpose as a condition of receiving the Prize.
2.8 If the winner (or their nominated guest) fails to collect the tickets via Will Call by the close of the Box Office on the final applicable day of the race weekend, the tickets will be treated as forfeited and unclaimed. The Promoter is under no obligation to offer a replacement, refund, or compensation of any kind in this circumstance.
### 3\. Eligibility
3.1 The Promotion is open to legal residents of the United States who are **18 years of age or older** at the time of entry.
3.2 The Promotion is void in Puerto Rico and any other US territory, and void wherever prohibited or restricted by law. It is the entrant's responsibility to confirm that entering is lawful in their state or territory of residence.
3.3 Employees, contractors, and freelancers of Rafa Media, The Race Media, The Race Media LTD, or any of their group companies, and the immediate family members, household members, and close friends of such persons, are not eligible to enter.
3.4 The Promoter reserves the right to verify eligibility and to disqualify any entrant who does not meet these criteria at any stage.
### 4\. How to Enter
4.1 Entry is free. No purchase is necessary.
4.2 To enter, eligible entrants must sign up to The Race F1 newsletter during the Promotion Period entering their email address in the newsletter sign up form and then completing the official competition entry form found here: [https://theracemedia.typeform.com/to/qYPd6dZZ](https://theracemedia.typeform.com/to/qYPd6dZZ?ref=the-race.com). Entrants must provide their first and last name, email address, confirmation of US residency, and tick the consent box confirming they have read, understood, and agree to these Terms; including the marketing and data-sharing consents described in clause 9.4\. Individuals who were already subscribed to The Race F1 newsletter prior to the start of the Promotion Period are eligible to enter and must still submit their information via the entry form to be entered into the Promotion.
4.3 Each eligible person may submit **one entry only**, regardless of how many times a sign-up form is submitted. Duplicate entries from the same person, email address, or household will be treated as a single entry.
4.4 The final deadline to submit an entry is **23:59:59 Eastern Standard Time on 30 September 2026**. Entries submitted after this time will not be accepted.
4.5 The Promoter accepts no responsibility for entries that are lost, delayed, corrupted, or not received for any reason, including due to technical faults, network issues, or human error.
4.6 The Promoter reserves the right to void any entry, and to disqualify any entrant, that it reasonably suspects to be fraudulent, automated (including bot-generated), submitted via VPN or proxy masking to circumvent geographic eligibility, or otherwise made in bad faith or in an attempt to gain an unfair advantage in the Promotion.
### 5\. Winner Selection
5.1 After the close of the Promotion Period, one provisional winner will be selected at random from all eligible entries received during the Promotion Period. Odds of winning depend on the total number of eligible entries received.
5.2 In addition, **four (4) reserve entrants** will be selected at random at the same time, in order, in case the winner (or any subsequent reserve) does not respond in time or declines the Prize.
5.3 The draw will take place after the close of the Promotion Period, with winner contact beginning on or after **1 October 2026**, and no later than 23:59:59 Eastern Standard Time **8 October 2026**.
5.4 The Promoter's decision on all matters relating to the Promotion, including winner selection, is final and binding. No correspondence will be entered into.
### 6\. Winner Notification
6.1 The provisional winner will be contacted by email, using the email address supplied at entry, from 1st October 2026 onwards.
6.2 The provisional winner must respond to the notification email within **24 hours** of it being sent, confirming acceptance of the Prize and providing their full legal name, email address, phone number for Will Call registration and copy of photo ID to verify US residency.
6.3 Before being confirmed as the winner, the Promoter must be reasonably satisfied that the photo ID provided under clause 6.2 verifies the provisional winner's US residency. If the photo ID is not provided, is illegible or incomplete, or indicates the provisional winner is not a legal resident of the United States, they will be disqualified and treated as though they had declined the Prize under clause 6.4.
6.4 If the selected provisional winner does not respond within 24 hours, does not provide the required Will Call details, or declines the Prize, the Promoter will contact the first reserve entrant, who will then have 24 hours to respond. This process will continue down the list of reserve entrants until the Prize is accepted or all reserves have been exhausted.
6.5 If all selected winner and reserve entrants fail to respond or decline, the Promoter reserves the right not to award the Prize.
6.6 It is the entrant's responsibility to ensure the email address and phone number provided are correct, monitored, and able to receive communications from the Promoter. The Promoter is not responsible for any failure by an entrant or winner to receive communications for any reason, including but not limited to email delivery or spam/junk filtering issues, incorrect or disconnected phone numbers, undelivered or blocked SMS/text messages, or carrier-side filtering.
### 7\. Publicity
7.1 By entering the Promotion, and without further compensation, notice, or consent, the winner grants the Promoter and its affiliates the right to use their name, city/state of residence, and, if voluntarily provided by the winner, their photograph and/or likeness, in any and all media now known or hereafter devised, throughout the world, in perpetuity, for advertising, promotional, and publicity purposes relating to the Promotion, The Race, and Rafa Media, including on The Race's website, social media channels, podcast, and other marketing materials.
7.2 No further compensation will be provided for this use.
### 8\. Event Changes, Cancellation, and Force Majeure
8.1 The Promoter is not responsible for, and accepts no liability in relation to, the running, staging, cancellation, or postponement of the 2026 United States Grand Prix, or any changes made by COTA, Formula 1, or any other third party to the event, ticketing, Will Call procedures, or venue access.
8.2 If the event is cancelled, postponed, or materially altered for reasons beyond the Promoter's control, the Promoter's only obligation is to make reasonable efforts to arrange a reasonable alternative or equivalent, where possible; no cash alternative or compensation will be provided.
8.3 The Promoter reserves the right to amend, suspend, or cancel the Promotion at any stage if circumstances beyond its reasonable control make this unavoidable.
### 9\. Marketing Communications and Data Sharing
9.1 By entering their email and pressing ‘Subscribe’, entrants agree to receive The Race F1 newsletter by email.
9.2 Entrants may unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time, independently of the Promotion, using the unsubscribe link included in any marketing email. Unsubscribing does not affect an entrant's eligibility to remain in the prize draw once entered, but entrants must have been subscribed at the time of entry to be eligible.
9.3 Entrants' personal data will be processed in accordance with the Promoter's Privacy Policy, available at .
9.4 By submitting the giveaway entry form, entrants automatically consent to the Promoter sharing their first and last name and email address with Circuit of the Americas ("COTA") for purposes connected to the Promotion, including verifying eligibility and coordinating Prize fulfillment. This consent is given at the point of entry. Entrants who do not wish for their name and email address to be shared with COTA on this basis should not enter the Promotion. Circuit of the Americas ("COTA") Privacy Policy is available at [https://circuitoftheamericas.com/privacy-policy/](https://circuitoftheamericas.com/privacy-policy/?ref=the-race.com).
### 10\. Limitation of Liability
10.1 To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Promoter accepts no liability for any loss, damage, or injury arising from a winner's acceptance or use of the Prize, or attendance at the event, except where such liability cannot be excluded by law.
10.2 Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits the Promoter's liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law.
### 11\. General
11.1 The Promoter reserves the right to disqualify any entrant it reasonably believes has breached these Terms, tampered with the entry process, or acted fraudulently or in bad faith.
11.2 These Terms constitute the entire agreement between entrants and the Promoter in relation to the Promotion.
11.3 These Terms, and any dispute arising out of or in connection with the Promotion, are governed by the laws of the **State of Texas**, without regard to conflict of law principles.
11.4 **Severability.** If any provision of these Terms is found to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable by a court or arbitrator of competent jurisdiction, that provision will be severed, and the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.
11.5 **Accessibility.** Entrants who require an alternative way to enter the Promotion, or who need these Terms provided in an alternative format, should contact [info@the-race.com](mailto:info@the-race.com).
## Posts
### What's resting on Vinales' latest - and final - MotoGP return
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/what-is-resting-on-maverick-vinales-latest-final-motogp-return/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T16:31:59.000Z
Maverick Vinales will return to the MotoGP field for this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix at Motegi after the latest of his string of absences dating back to the original shoulder injury he suffered nearly 15 months ago.
It's a comeback he was at one point thought unlikely to actually make - though Vinales fiercely denied reports that KTM was trying to get him out of its line-up early while he was sidelined.
And whether it'll be a successful or particularly worthwhile comeback remains extremely uncertain given the saga of Vinales' time at KTM and the fact he's about to lose his place on the MotoGP grid.
"I’m really happy to finally say that I’m coming back to racing," said Vinales.
"The last few months have been a long process, and I’ve worked hard every day to get to this point.
"I’m not at 100% yet, but I’m on the right path and I feel ready to take this next step.
"Motegi will be about building things up step by step, understanding where I am physically and getting my feeling back on the bike."
Vinales initially sustained his shoulder injury during the 2025 German GP weekend.
Ever since then he has been repeatedly on and off the grid, through a combination of returning before he was ready, further complications resulting from a screw in his shoulder coming loose, and most recently muscle damage limiting the rotation in his left arm.
And whenever he was in the field, his performances were a far cry from the bright start he made to life at KTM in the first part of last year.
And typically given Vinales' eventful career, it all became far most emotive and complicated than your average injury and recovery tale.
Once it became clear this summer that KTM had cooled on its initial plan of promoting him from Tech3 to the factory team for 2027, and that actually there might not be a place on the grid for him at all, Vinales didn't hold back.
"In the end if I'm not in the world championship, it'll be because of one party - and that's KTM - not because of anyone else," Vinales told Spanish media at the Dutch GP in June.
But the frustration went both ways. Tech3 team principal Guenther Steiner lost patience with Vinales simultaneously insisting he was fit enough to race but then using his ongoing recovery as a reason for poor performance.
"This is my frustrating thing," Steiner admitted to The Race during the summer. "I said it last year, I said it this year - first you need to be fit.
"You can't say, 'Oh, I'm fit but I'm not performing because I'm not fit'. You have to pick your battles. It's one or the other. 'Oh I'm fit.' So why isn't the performance there like when you were fit? 'Oh because I'm not fit.' This is a contradiction.
"To show your performance you need to be fit. You need to be 100% fit to ride one of these machines, and I think coming back early doesn't make you quicker. It doesn't heal you.
"I think you can't be too hard on KTM in this moment - or at least, he shouldn't be."
So when reports emerged that KTM might be trying to eject Vinales with immediate effect around the time of the British GP in August, it seemed neither surprising nor especially illogical, this relationship looking like it was already beyond saving.
The reports turned out to be inaccurate. But as Vinales returns to the grid once again admitting he's not "100%" yet, will Vinales, Tech3 and KTM end up all wishing they found a way to call it quits mid-season?
Or will this frustrating enigmatic, yet on his day so incredibly fast, racer actually sign off from MotoGP, KTM and Tech3 with a few more of the startling performances that he's always actually been capable of?
### Audi to bring fan events across Singapore ahead of the grand prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/audi-to-bring-fan-events-across-singapore-ahead-of-the-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T14:29:29.000Z
The Audi F1 Team will bring a series of fan events to Singapore during its grand prix week as part of a city-wide campaign designed to connect Formula 1 with audiences beyond the race circuit.
The programme, called *The Art of Influence*, will feature activations across the city covering food, fashion, and of course, F1\. Many of the events will be open to fans without race tickets.
A key part of the campaign is a digital platform on audif1.com, where fans can register, collect digital team cards and enter exclusive prize draws. Each team card collected through activities and participating locations earns an entry into a draw for a VIP trip for two to the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
**Activations at a glance:**
- **GABICO gelato -** **October 3-11**
Drivers Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg have partnered with Singapore gelato brand Birds of Paradise to create a limited-edition flavour named GABICO. It will be available at the brand's Craig Road and Beach Road stores.
- **Audi House of Progress - October 3-11**
Visitors can see an Audi RS 5 display and enjoy a collaboration with Burnt Ends Bakery, including exclusive food and drink options created with chef Dave Pynt.
- **Funan Mall - October 8-11**
The team's R26 show car and an Audi RS 5 will be on display, while the adidas Singapore collection will be available for purchase. The team's drivers are also scheduled to make a public appearance.
- **Community run - October 11 from 7:00 am**
Audi, Adidas, World of Hyatt and local running clubs will host a run starting at Andaz Singapore and passing through Funan Mall. Participants will be eligible for prizes and digital rewards. Registration required via the Adidas running app.
- **Paulaner Brewery watch parties - October 8-11**
The venue will host public F1 viewing sessions, with themed merchandise and campaign activities.
- **Singapore food guide**
Audi's head of race strategy Rithvik Dhananjay will share recommendations for local food spots through a team-produced guide highlighting Singapore's hawker and street-food scene.
Stefano Battiston, chief brand and commercial officer of the Audi F1 Team, said the campaign is aimed at making F1 more accessible during race week.
"From the beginning, we promised to bring F1 closer to people," Battiston said.
"In Singapore, we are putting that promise into practice through experiences shaped by the city's culture and communities."
### What time is F1's 2026 Bahrain GP in Malaysia? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1-2026-bahrain-grand-prix-in-malaysia-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T12:43:12.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
Be sure not to miss what is set to be the most novel event of the 2026 Formula 1® season this weekend as the championship heads to Malaysia for a very different Bahrain Grand Prix to the previous 21 editions.
That's right - the ongoing situation in the Middle East means a special arrangement has been made for this year's Bahrain race, which will take place at the Sepang circuit, more than 3700 miles away from its traditional home at the Bahrain International Circuit.
Sepang previously hosted grands prix from 1999 to 2017 and was a popular choice of replacement venue when it was announced, but so much has changed in the time since F1 last visited - particularly with this year's cars - that teams and drivers are essentially treating it as a brand-new track.
That in itself should make for an intriguing weekend, but if you needed any more encouragement to tune in there's the threat of rain further into the race weekend - always guaranteed to cause chaos at Sepang - and an immediate chance to see whether there's been any real swing in momentum in the title fight, after George Russell's win in Azerbaijan and Kimi Antonelli's recovery to fifth following a crash in qualifying.
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia schedule (US time)
PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time
**Thursday October 1/Friday October 2**
**Practice 1**: 9.30pm (PDT), 12.30am (EDT)
**Practice 2**: 1am (PDT), 4am (EDT)
**Friday October 2/Saturday October 3**
**Practice 3**: 9.30pm (PDT), 12.30am (EDT)
**Qualifying**: 1am (PDT), 4am (EDT)
**Sunday October 4**
**Bahrain Grand Prix**: 12am (PDT), 3am (EDT)
---
Watch The Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), October 1-4\. U.S. only.
---
## Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia schedule (local time)
**Friday October 2**
**Practice 1**: 12.30pm
**Practice 2**: 4pm
**Saturday October 3**
**Practice 3**: 12.30pm
**Qualifying**: 4pm
**Sunday October 4**
**Bahrain Grand Prix**: 3pm
## Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia schedule (UK time)
**Friday October 2**
**Practice 1**: 5.30am
**Practice 2**: 9am
**Saturday October 3**
**Practice 3**: 5.30am
**Qualifying**: 9am
**Sunday October 4**
**Bahrain Grand Prix**: 8am
## How to watch the Bahrain GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026.
Fans can view every minute of the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple's](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), October 1-4\. U.S. only.
### F1's plan for higher-degradation tyres in 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-plan-higher-degradation-tyres-2027-pirelli/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T12:04:25.000Z
Formula 1 is aiming to have higher-degradation tyres in 2027 that could result in fewer one-stop races such as the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
High tyre wear has been a feature of some 2026 races, such as the Hungarian GP, which Lando Norris won with three pitstops, but a one-stop strategy has been favourable at most circuits.
In fact, nine of the 15 grands prix so far this year have been one-stop races for the majority of the field, including the race winner.
This is partly a consequence of how the 2026 tyres were designed and developed throughout last year.
F1's tyre supplier Pirelli had to work with estimations and predictions from teams on what the 2026 cars would actually be like, in terms of downforce levels and the load that would be put through the tyres.
That simulation data from teams varied widely; in August last year it was revealed there was up to a [30% difference in downforce levels](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pirelli-admission-f1-2026-performance-gaps/) between teams' simulations, which would equate to around four seconds' difference in laptime. And of course Pirelli had to make a range of tyres that would cope with the full spectrum.
An actual 2026 car didn't exist when Pirelli developed its product. The closest Pirelli had was the 'mule' cars provided by the teams, which had basic 2026-style aerodynamics, but they did not feature the 2026 power units and their unique characteristics.
By contrast, the 2027 tyres can be - and have been - tested by F1 teams with 2026 cars and power units at specific Pirelli test days.
Most recently, Ferrari (Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Antonio Giovinazzi) and Racing Bulls (Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad) completed a combined total of 400 laps at Imola, testing the 2027 tyres after the Spanish GP in Madrid.
Those tyres should feature a high level of degradation.
"We have worked this year, not with the mule car but with the real cars from this year, so it was much better for us to have a clear picture," Pirelli's chief engineer Simone Berra said.
"Then our target was less related to the balance of the car, the stability itself. It was more related to generating more degradation level.
"So we worked on the structure to generate more degradation. We checked different solutions to generate more degradation on the front \[tyres\] and other solutions generating more degradation on the rear axle.
"At the moment I don't want to go too much into detail about these solutions, but the idea was just to increase the level of decay because we have seen that, especially in the first part of the season but also in other races, that the decay was quite low.
"We worked on the structure itself to generate more heat generation and thermal decay.
"Then obviously we still have the test for the compound range and to define the compound range for the next season. So this is another topic that we have to consider in this discussion."
Pirelli's next 2027 tyre test is scheduled to take place at Magny-Cours in mid-October, where the circuit's artificial watering system is due to be used to test out wet weather tyres for next year.
### Norris apologises to Colapinto for race ban demand
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-apologises-colapinto-for-race-ban-demand-f1-baku-crash/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T09:58:22.000Z
Lando Norris says he has apologised to Franco Colapinto after saying he should receive a race ban for taking Norris and Pierre Gasly out of Formula 1's Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Fresh from being wiped out in Baku by Colapinto on the first safety car restart, when the Alpine driver misjudged his braking point for the first corner, Norris told media right after the race that whoever caused the pile-up deserved a race ban.
He also referred to "some drivers that shouldn't be in Formula 1".
But on Monday morning Norris posted an Instagram story revealing he'd apologised to Colapinto for his comments.
"Tough weekend overall in Baku and of course a disappointing and early end to the race," said Norris.
"After the race, I sent Franco a message apologising for the comments I made that I simply should not have said.
"I know better and emotions were running high but that is not an excuse, it was wrong of me. I've made mistakes of my own over the years and I know this is very much part of racing and fighting on the limit.
"Me and Franco came to a good understanding, and are still good friends and are both excited to get back racing this weekend."
The incident prompted huge social media discourse, with Alpine releasing a statement on Sunday calling out the online abuse directed towards all parties.
"As a team, we feel it's necessary to speak out once more about the hate and abuse online following the Azerbaijan Grand Prix," the statement read.
"Not only aimed at one of our own drivers, but also members of the Formula 1 community, including media, and to our racing counterparts who we respect, admire, and revel competing against in the pinnacle of motorsport.
"Mistakes happen when racing at the limit and no matter the result or outcome, nobody should be subject to hateful or abusive comments. Condemning abuse on social media is not aimed at any one fan base or the supporters of one team or driver, this is universal and should be called out and recognised to all fans of the sport.
"As we have said in previous instances, we strongly condemn the reaction of some fans online and stand in solidarity with Formula 1, the FIA, and other teams in wanting to stamp it out. It has become a regular occurrence in recent races and cannot be condoned. We know as a proud participant and stakeholder in the sport, we hold a responsibility to speak out and also help support in finding a solution.
"We will continue to work closely with the championship promoter and rights-holder, and the governing body to discuss ways in which to tackle online abuse and encourage healthy sporting rivalry, which Formula 1 is renowned for and what makes it so special."
### Horner to Ferrari rumours: What's really going on
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/christian-horner-to-ferrari-f1-rumours-whats-really-going-on/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T06:23:24.000Z
There's fresh speculation hanging over Ferrari and its team principal Fred Vasseur - but what's really behind the rumours linking Christian Horner to the team?
The trigger for the speculation was an interview Horner did with The Times, as he declared Ferrari "the biggest brand in Formula 1", and "the dream" destination, but a "sleeping giant".
Most significant was Horner indicating he was willing to drop a previous red line to any F1 comeback for one team: "\[There is\] only one team for which I would accept non-participation in ownership."
The strong implication being that one team was Ferrari, enough for some to wonder if the door is open, and that Horner may be setting sights on a move there. But sources have made clear to The Race that that is not quite the case.
Context is important. That interview took place before the Italian Grand Prix in early September - (When rumours began to swirl again about Vasseur's future at the team.) It was done as a promotional piece for the book Horner is releasing next month and arranged through its publisher, rather than by Horner.
This isn't believed to be Horner publicly throwing his hat into the ring.
While Horner has long had regular contact with Ferrari chairman John Elkann - who visited his house in the summer of 2022 to offer him the team principal job prior to it going to Vasseur - there have been no discussions about a role at Maranello.
Furthermore, reservations that Horner has long had about taking on that job at Ferrari - which are why he rejected Elkann's offer four years ago - remain in place.
## What Horner would want
From Horner's perspective, while he would theoretically accept a role at Ferrari without necessarily needing to have a team shareholding, there are important elements of control that are still understood to be critical.
At Red Bull, for example, Horner did not have any equity in the team. But as team CEO, he had control over everything - and he was central to many of the key decisions made by the racing division of the energy drinks giant.
He influenced driver decisions, staff hirings, was involved in sponsorship deals across Red Bull and Racing Bulls, and was central in signing off approval for major investment projects including Red Bull Powertrains, and a new windtunnel, that he felt were needed to keep the team pushing forward.
Such a high level of control was, in his head, essential if Red Bull was going to achieve success in F1.
But the scale of his influence ultimately proved to be a factor in his downfall. Red Bull's Austrian management pushed back against fears that the squad was becoming 'Horner Racing'.
Horner has always been of the mindset that there is only one way that he can achieve success in F1, and that is by being in complete charge.
Success in his eyes cannot be achieved if every call he makes, big or small, has to be approved by another level of management above him.
This is why Horner was both CEO and team principal at Red Bull Racing.
## Would Ferrari give him what he wants?
Getting into such a position of authority at Ferrari would require a totally different approach from Elkann and CEO Benedetto Vigna.
The pair have stuck to a rigid management structure through recent years - with team principals Mattia Binotto (2019-22) and Vasseur (2023-present) having nowhere near the level of control in the operation that Horner had at Red Bull.
So even if Elkann and Vigna came to the conclusion that Horner was someone they would be interested in, they would have to totally revise the way that Ferrari is run if they wanted to move it forward.
Horner would want to have a level of authority that has not existed at Ferrari perhaps since the Jean Todt days that helped drive success in the Michael Schumacher era in the late-1990s and early-2000s.
But change at Ferrari goes beyond Elkann and Vigna handing full control to someone like Horner. There are also questions about whether the Ferrari operation in Maranello would be open to such a different way of doing things.
As F1's most historic team, Ferrari has built up its own culture over many decades and that has led to a fair degree of internal politics that can sometimes be hard to keep under control.
Vasseur has been open in the past that there were challenges for him to deal with in the early days.
This included getting staff to not be afraid to stick their head above the parapet and take risks, rather than constantly be in fear of having fingers pointed at them so acting in a way of self-preservation.
There were also frustrations early on about how readily information seemed to leak out to Italian media from staff at Maranello. This, Vasseur felt, was simply helping the opposition gain knowledge.
The media pressure put on Ferrari and its staff is like no other in F1 - with every move scrutinised and what is being reported having an impact inside the factory walls. This is something Vasseur has tried to isolate staff from as much as possible.
One thing that cannot be predicted in advance, though - and could be decisive in Horner concluding whether Ferrari would work underneath him if an offer came - is whether there would be a willingness inside Ferrari to accept sweeping change.
If Horner went to Ferrari then he would almost certainly surround himself with allies who he felt were needed to move the team forward, which could ruffle some feathers with incumbent staff.
The risk then of resistance to change is that this would create factions inside Maranello that would limit any progress being made.
So while Horner may be willing to take on a role at Maranello without shareholding, there is still a lot that would need to change for him to believe it is a project that could work in the way he would want it to.
There was an interesting line in The Times interview where Horner said that he was aware he was both "the cure and the problem" for any team that wanted him, as he suggested that egos would ultimately have to be put aside.
"There comes a point in time where a team's competitiveness outweighs other egotistical stuff," Horner said.
## Pressure on Vasseur
Horner's comments have certainly stirred up the rumours in the paddock, and only added to the heat that Vasseur is facing.
Vasseur's leadership was put under the spotlight after the Italian GP when Lewis Hamilton suggested that the buck stopped with Vasseur when it came to making changes at Ferrari that he felt were necessary to move it forward.
Some Italian media interpreted Hamilton's messaging as a call for fresh blood at the top. [Hamilton took to social media](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-firmly-denies-asking-for-ferrari-staff-to-be-replaced/) to clarify that this was not the case.
He said that he has "never asked for anyone on my team to be replaced".
On top of this, there have been whispers floating around the paddock for several races now that Ferrari has already settled on a plan to wait until the end of the season before making a change.
After last weekend's Azerbaijan GP, when The Race asked him about the impact of the rumours on him and Ferrari, [Vasseur confessed](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mr-horner-looking-for-a-job-vasseur-laments-ferrari-distractions/) that "we are not working in the perfect serenity" and labelled it a "frustrating situation" as "50% of the questions" are about his future.
Vasseur is not in denial that speculation is out there over his future, but it is something he has endured throughout his tenure at Ferrari.
There have been repeated stories in the past that his job was under threat, and he knows it comes with the territory of being Ferrari team principal.
The last time the noise got as intense as this, in the middle of 2025, Ferrari responded by handing Vasseur a new multi-year contract.
Vasseur knows the speculation is not going to go away, but he is also aware that there is little he can do to shut the speculation down other than help Ferrari deliver better results on track.
When The Race asked him if he's willing to fight on despite the growing questions, Vasseur said: "For sure. Motorsport is my life, it's my business. I'm trying to do my best. For sure. I'm there to do my job. I have the best job in the world. But, it is like it is. We have still seven races to go, and I will push until the last corner."
And crucially, he said "it is not in my hands" when The Race asked about the mounting rumours.
Instead, the ball right now is very much in the court of Elkann and Vigna. They know what Vasseur can do, they can see the results on track, and they are sure to have a pretty good idea of where Horner's red lines are now.
It is up to them to decide what path they think is best to get Ferrari back to the front in F1.
### Colapinto penalty exposes a big F1 blindspot
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-penalty-points-system-big-blindspot/
Last updated: 2026-09-28T06:24:51.000Z
Franco Colapinto's punishment for wiping out two cars in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix exposes why Formula 1's penalty points system is no longer fit for purpose.
Colapinto was handed a 10-second time penalty for losing control of his Alpine and spearing into team-mate Pierre Gasly, who in turn also ended the race of Lando Norris's McLaren.
That penalty couldn't be served because he was out of the race, so Colapinto will serve a five-place grid penalty at the next race in Malaysia instead.
It's not the [race ban](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-wants-f1-race-ban-for-colapinto-azerbaijan-gp-clash/) that Norris called for but, as most other F1 drivers agree, that would be too extreme a punishment for an isolated incident.
As race winner George Russell said when asked if a race ban for Colapinto would be fair, "it was a small error that had a big consequence", so a race ban would be "too harsh".
A simple five-place grid penalty is probably too far the other way, though, considering Colapinto's error ended the race for two other drivers.
But the most striking aspect of the stewards' verdict on the Colapinto/Gasly/Norris incident is the one thing it's missing: the awarding of any penalty points.
F1 introduced a penalty points system to try to punish any repeat offenders, with a total of 12 points triggering a ban.
Kevin Magnussen became the first driver to reach the 12-point threshold, as he was banned from the 2024 Azerbaijan GP. And the likes of Ollie Bearman, Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly have all been one or two points shy of that at certain points.
There was consensus among the drivers that the [system wasn't working](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-penalty-driving-guidelines-changes/). None of those drivers deserved a ban and points were being handed out for fairly minor offences.
But it feels like there's now been an overcorrection.
We're 15 rounds into the 2026 season, and not a single penalty point has been handed out to a driver for causing a collision. They've only been awarded for yellow-flag or safety-car breaches.
There was certainly no deliberate intent from Colapinto, but it's hard to see why it wasn't deemed reckless or dangerous.
It begs the question: if Colapinto did the same thing in Malaysia, would he simply get another grid penalty or would that then warrant some penalty points?
You could argue the bar has been set extremely high for an incident to warrant penalty points. It has set the precedent that you can lock-up and wipe out two cars and you won't get a bigger penalty than a grid drop or any penalty points.
A full range of penalties is available to stewards at each race. Penalty points aren't the only route to a ban - they can even suspend drivers from the next race - but if that's the preferred route, then why even have the penalty point system?
Leaving it to the stewards at the race where a major incident took place rather than a points system would also put more emphasis on who the stewards are at each race.
The previous penalty points system at least meant the stewards judged each incident in front of them and awarded the correct penalty points. If a driver reached 12 points, then that was a consequence of the decisions of different stewards at multiple races, not just the stewards panel where a driver triggered a race ban.
It's hard to find a perfect system. The penalty points system on paper is a good idea; it will punish anyone who is repeatedly failing to respect yellow flags, for example.
But right now, the way it ignores drivers causing collisions feels like a huge blind spot.
### Antonelli passed a key test Piastri had failed
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/kimi-antonelli-worst-weekend-f1-2026-azerbaijan-key-test-passed/
Last updated: 2026-09-27T12:04:37.000Z
You win world championships on your bad days as much as you do on your good ones.
Kimi Antonelli's Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend, which he rightly described as "the worst by far" of the season, was proof of that as he passed a test he would inevitably face at some point with flying colours. In doing so, he avoided a fate that befell Oscar Piastri in last year's unsuccessful pursuit of the Formula 1 title.
Minimising such performances is part of the title-winning equation, but it's essential to limit the damage when things go wrong. We knew Antonelli had the comfort of a gargantuan 81-point lead heading into the weekend, but what he demonstrated in Baku was he understands how to use it. That's something Piastri failed to do with the more slender, but still healthy, 31-point lead he took to Baku in 2025.
Piastri crashed in qualifying, moved before the start and knew a penalty was inevitable despite plummeting down the order, then crashed at Turn 5 on the first lap. The only saving grace was that McLaren team-mate and title rival Lando Norris didn't make the most of his opportunity, but even so this represented the start of Piastri's campaign unravelling.
I asked him during that year's Brazilian GP weekend about his struggles and it was Azerbaijan that he mentioned as a weekend when "you could argue there were some other things that maybe crept in" and compromised him. It's difficult to escape the conclusion that he was pointing to the hangover of the 'papaya rules' incident from Monza where he was ordered to let Norris past after his team-mate's slow pitstop.
Even without the complicating factor of such team-orders bafflement, Antonelli could so easily have let something similar happen, especially given he's still so inexperienced, after hitting the wall needlessly in Q1.
That was a significant error given there was no reason to take risks so early in qualifying. That blunder was perhaps the consequence of overreaching to close the pace deficit to Mercedes team-mate George Russell, perhaps because of his longstanding tendency to flirt a little too much with the extremities of the track this year, but while ideally he wouldn't have made the error he took exactly the right mentality into the race.
His recovery to fifth was aided by the safety car, but it was a steady, well-executed drive in which he deliberately left a margin and kept his head after sustaining floor damage through no fault of his own after contact with Ollie Bearman in the Turn 1 chaos of the first safety-car restart.
"I was driving a bit like my grandmother, just damage-safe mode, just didn't take a risk," said Antonelli. "Before making a move, I was making sure that I could go for it."
This showed wisdom that belies his inexperience that is often hard-won and at great cost by drivers who aren't such fast learners. He later elaborated on his reasons for this, as well as indicating that he quickly set aside any pretensions of a Monza-style recovery early in the grand prix. While he suggested he had "nothing to lose" after qualifying, when he spoke following the race he explained why that wasn't really the case.
"If I had the same pace as at Monza or in previous races, it would have been different," said Antonelli. "It would have been full attack. But I realised very early that, first of all, it was a lot harder to overtake with a train of cars all in overtake mode. And then I didn't have the same pace as I had previously. So the mindset changed very quickly.
"And also seeing so many people doing mistakes, you kind of pulled back a little bit. I just took advantage of everyone else's mistake and just moved forward."
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and others around him will have drummed that approach into him, but only Antonelli himself could lock into a mindset at odds with the attacking one that usually serves him so well. The result was losing 15 points to Russell in the championship rather than 25\. A big hit, but not as big as it could have been.
Had he been too aggressive and crashed or collided with a rival and retired, the points loss would be multiplied by the mental scars he would carry into the run-in. Instead, Antonelli could finish a race he described as driving at 80% satisfied with his approach and able to lay down the gauntlet to Russell for the coming race in Malaysia.
"I'll make sure next week I re-establish the order and just make sure that I will be back at my usual level because this weekend I was driving more like a grandmother," he said. "So it wasn't the usual Kimi. But, luckily, we have another race coming up and I'm really looking forward to it."
Antonelli has showed his class time and again during 2026 with his pulverising pace and relentlessness. In Baku, he showed a different aspect that's just as important in the make-up of a champion.
### Edd Straw's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-09-27T10:07:23.000Z
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix's Baku city circuit provided a real test of the Formula 1 drivers and their cars - one that was failed by plenty, including the championship leader.
But there were also drivers who excelled - even if one of them didn't end up with the result to show for it.
Here's Edd Straw's final verdict on the field in Azerbaijan:
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and** [**ask your questions in reply to this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/quiz-edd-on-his-170696212?utm%5Fmedium=clipboard%5Fcopy&utm%5Fsource=copyLink&utm%5Fcampaign=postshare%5Fcreator&utm%5Fcontent=join%5Flink)**.**
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-170641445?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to!**
---
**Started**: 1st **Finished**: 1st
On strong form from the start of the weekend, describing his recent progress as the result of being able to drive more intuitively.
Produced a mighty pole lap and while Kimi Antonelli's mishap gave him a clear run he looked, for the first time since the Barcelona GP, resoundingly the faster Mercedes driver across practice and qualifying.
Controlled the race well in the first stint, then resisted pressure from Verstappen in what he described as a "high-intensity" last stint.
**Verdict**: The best level he has reached all season.
**Started**: 8th **Finished**: 2nd
His qualifying defeat to Isack Hadjar was the consequence of a power unit deficit, which led to parts changes before the race, and yellow-flag timing.
Came within a couple of tenths of winning, with the safety-car fortune partly counteracting the bad luck of qualifying.
Needed team orders to ensure that he stayed ahead of Hadjar in the first stint, but that was largely down to the struggles with the medium-compound Pirellis.
**Verdict**: Was finally able to show his speed in his relentless chase of Russell after the pitstops.
**Started**: 7th **Finished**: DNF
Comfortably headed the midfield in qualifying with what he characterised as the best car balance and confidence he's experienced in Baku for some time.
Led the midfield battle comfortably and was seventh, albeit with the quicker cars of Antonelli and Lando Norris right behind, at the first restart when he was eliminated by Franco Colapinto's blunder.
Had a clear advantage over Colapinto on both qualifying and race pace.
**Verdict**: An outstanding weekend ruined by someone else's mistake.
**Started**: 4th **Finished**: 3rd
Returned to action almost two months after his last race and produced his strongest all-round weekend of the year.
Sensibly, played his way into the weekend and felt that if he'd had an unbroken run in the car he'd have qualified second.
Produced a strong race, quicker than Verstappen in the first stint (albeit on softs while his team-mate struggled on mediums), and ultimately finished 10 seconds behind.
**Verdict**: Couldn't have been asked to do more on his first weekend back.
**Started**: 2nd **Finished**: 4th
Qualifying on the front row represented an overachievement, and although that was largely facilitated by others underdelivering it also required Leclerc to be somewhere close to the maximum of what the car could do.
Sliding to fourth in the race reflected the car's pace, as there was nothing he could do to keep the Red Bulls behind.
Had an edge over Lewis Hamilton.
**Verdict**: Couldn't have done much better on a difficult weekend for Ferrari.
**Started**: 13th **Finished**: 8th
Showed good pace in the Haas, and with both cars seemingly able to perform at the same level did have a slight edge over Ollie Bearman in terms of underlying pace.
Although he understandably lamented his bad luck in Q2, an error on his first run also cost him. That meant he was behind Bearman.
Drove a strong race, taking advantage of the chaos and restarts to climb to seventh. However, being overly cautious coming out of the yellow-flag zone after cutting the inside of the corner allowed Arvid Lindblad to pip him at the line, relegating him to eighth.
**Verdict**: Strong pace-wise, but should have beaten Lindblad.
**Started**: 20th **Finished**: 14th
Was on superb form, characterising this as "one of my best weekends in Baku". That's quite something for a driver with two grand prix victories and a sprint win here at a track where he excels.
He was forced to abort his final qualifying lap, which denied him the possibility of doing something special, although he compounded that by carelessly impeding Oscar Piastri despite warnings.
Was quick in the race, keeping himself in the mix with quicker cars in particular in the first stint and having a huge pace advantage over Valtteri Bottas.
**Verdict**: But for the needless impeding in qualifying that led to a grid drop, a potential number-one weekend.
**Started**: 6th **Finished**: 6th
Struggles with getting the tyres switched on and the lack of a tow in Q3 led to a disappointing qualifying performance, meaning the half-second gap to Leclerc was in no way representative.
Struggled for pace in the race and fell behind the damaged Antonelli in the closing stages.
While there were mitigating factors, the race demonstrated that his pace wasn't quite as good as Leclerc's.
**Verdict**: A solid but unspectacular weekend.
**Started**: 11th **Finished**: 12th
Given Racing Bulls struggled in Baku, his qualifying performance was better than it looked. With a tow, he might have nicked a Q3 place.
Drove a good race, initially holding 10th place before being shuffled back, but was 12th by the time of the safety-car restart where he suffered damage after being hit by Lindblad.
Battled on well, just holding off Gabriel Bortoleto to finish 12th before the Audi driver was given a penalty.
**Verdict**: Was the better Racing Bulls driver, despite what the race result suggests.
**Started**: 10th **Finished**: 9th
Almost made Q3, although had to abort his final lap because of a yellow flag and was relegated to 11th by Colapinto.
Lost a couple of places at the start, but repassed Alex Albon and Lawson to get back into the top 10.
Took the first restart 11th, which became ninth but with damage after hitting Antonelli amid the chaos at Turn 1\. Finished ninth despite being passed by Lindblad thanks to being handed a position by Piastri's off.
**Verdict**: A good weekend, although perhaps didn't have the last tenth Ocon did.
**Started**: 18th **Finished**: 11th
Although Audi was struggling, Hulkenberg seemed to struggle a little more than Bortoleto for pace and was always up against it in Q1, even though a yellow flag and the lack of a good tow also cost him.
Ran 16th for much of the first stint before letting Bortoleto by, although he regained that place during the safety-car period having run two laps longer.
Held 10th place once Piastri had made his mistake, but lost out to the superior straightline speed of Carlos Sainz's Williams late on.
**Verdict**: The main limitation was Audi's lack of pace, although Bortoleto was ultimately quicker.
**Started**: 17th **Finished**: 15th
Struggled on his final Q1 run thanks to a lack of grip, which meant he was unable to progress to Q2 having failed to improve on his final run.
Fell behind Hulkenberg at the start, but on the same strategy had a slight advantage in terms of pace and his team-mate was ordered to let him by. However, Hulkenberg moved back ahead in the safety car pitstops after stopping two laps after him.
Took the first restart 16th, and the second 13th, but lost a couple of places and had to fight his way back to 13th. That then turned into 15th when he was penalised for a yellow-flag offence.
**Verdict**: The faster Audi driver overall, but didn't make the most of that speed.
**Started**: 3rd **Finished**: 13th
Conclusively outperformed Norris in qualifying, although the fact he was just 0.001s off Leclerc shows he could have been one place higher on the grid.
Drove a strong first stint to hold the faster Red Bulls at bay, although lost second at the first restart when he was passed by Verstappen.
His lock-up and trip up the escape road ruined his race and, although the McLaren was clearly tricky under braking given Norris made a similar error, that turned a potential podium into 13th place.
**Verdict**: A good weekend undermined by a single error.
**Started**: 14th **Finished**: 10th
Adapted well to the Williams upgrade, but suggested he had "overachieved" by reaching Q3.
Undid his good work in qualifying with a yellow-flag infringement that cost him five places on the grid.
Had a difficult first stint on the mediums and was shuffled back to 18th before becoming the first to pit while under pressure from Perez.
The safety-car timing didn't help his cause, but he gained six places to the chaos at the first restart, taking the second restart 12th and passing Hulkenberg, with Piastri's off giving him another place, to salvage a point.
**Verdict**: Quick, but yellow-flag penalty and difficult first stint left him relying on luck to score.
**Started**: 5th **Finished**: DNF
Underachieved in qualifying, although that was partly down to a fuel injection-related problem that left him slower on the straights than Piastri.
Turn 1 error in the race dropped him from seventh to ninth, meaning he was set to finish at the back of the 'big four' team cars.
Was in no way at fault for the collision that led to his elimination.
**Verdict**: An unusually untidy weekend.
**Started**: 16th **Finished**: 5th
Admitted that "I wasn't 100% there" even before the Q1 error when he hit the inside wall at Turn 1.
Drove a cautious race to recover to fifth place, with the assistance of the safety car, carrying damage in the final phase of the race after contact with Bearman that wasn't of his making.
He described this as his "worst weekend" of the season, which it was given his pace was unusually subdued, but in the wider context of the championship it was a positive that he took a low-risk approach to the race and limited the damage.
**Verdict**: Limited the damage well on his worst weekend of the season.
**Started**: 15th **Finished**: 7th
Hitting the wall in FP2 proved costly, not helping his confidence and leaving him not running in the same aero spec as Lawson.
Struggled on the brakes in qualifying and never looked like a serious Q3 threat.
The collision with Lawson was his fault despite the attempt to blame Ocon, giving both cars damage.
Passed both Haas cars on track, including Ocon on the run to the line on the final lap.
**Verdict**: The result belies the fact this was not an impressive weekend.
**Started**: 21st **Finished**: DNF
After struggling badly on Thursday, still struggled on Friday but slightly less badly.
By his own admission, made an error on his final Q1 lap and visited the Turn 15 escape road in a car that was inconsistent under braking.
Diced with Bottas's Cadillac in the first stint and held his own in that battle despite dire straightline speed before retiring with a power unit problem that Honda said it couldn't see.
**Verdict**: Barely had any opportunity to show his class thanks to problems.
**Started**: 22nd **Finished**: DNF
With power unit penalties and a dreadfully uncompetitive car, qualifying was always a write-off, although he didn't make the most of difficult circumstances on Friday after a Turn 1 wall-clip in FP3 then a couple of offs in Q1.
His race was short-lived, complaining of instability before being instructed to retire on lap eight with a water pressure problem.
It's difficult to measure his pace fairly as, although he never seemed quite as quick as Alonso, he was close behind in his short-lived race.
**Verdict**: Struggled but in impossible circumstances.
**Started**: 19th **Finished**: 16th
His weekend started badly with Thursday struggles, although things improved overnight with floor and damper changes.
Qualifying didn't go well, with a time that put him 21st on the grid deleted for a yellow-flag offence, but regardless he never had anything like Perez's pace.
His race pace was so poor, leading to him falling away from Perez dramatically from the start, that there must have been problems.
He suggested his late crash was down to some strange behaviour under braking related to the ERS that meant he lacked rear brakes, although there's not yet a clear explanation for the cause and it wasn't his first excursion.
**Verdict**: A terrible weekend, but exactly how much of that was down to the clear car problems is unclear.
**Started**: 12th **Finished**: DNF
His Q2 elimination, 0.372s off Sainz, was partly down to the lack of tow and a bad downshift at Turn 6.
Briefly ran 11th before being passed by Bearman, with the recovering Antonelli inevitably getting ahead. That put him ahead of three drivers who scored points: Ocon, Lindblad and Sainz.
Turn 5 crash put him out of the race, with the team saying there was no problem in an off that Albon described as "odd".
**Verdict**: Was having a solid race before his crash ruined it.
**Started**: 9th **Finished**: DNF
By his own admission, he lacked the confidence of Gasly on the brakes in particular and lacked his team-mate's single lap pace.
After making Q3 with a late-Q2 effort to knock out Bearman, he struggled with a lock-up giving him "crazy" vibrations and tow problems stretching the gap to a misleading 0.916s - although he never looked like he could get to Gasly's level even with a perfect session.
Had a solid first 30 laps, running ninth then 10th after the recovering Antonelli inevitably passed him. Again, the pace deficit to Gasly showed as he gradually fell away from his team-mate.
Held 10th at the restart and was still well-placed for a decent result despite his pace struggles, but got it disastrously wrong at the restart, eliminating himself, Gasly and Norris.
**Verdict**: Was battling a pace deficit to Gasly even before his disastrous restart mistake.
### Gary Anderson: Alpine should handle Colapinto action, not the FIA
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-alpine-should-handle-colapinto-action-not-the-fia/
Last updated: 2026-09-27T09:32:23.000Z
***Alpine team boss*** [***Flavio Briatore's pointed declaration***](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-to-consider-what-action-to-take-after-colapinto-baku-crash/) ***that he'll "consider what course of action should be taken" over Franco Colapinto taking out team-mate Pierre Gasly (and Lando Norris) in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix suggests there might be more trouble to come for Colapinto, who already has a five-place grid penalty for the incident.***
***Gary Anderson had to deal with a few intra-team clash headaches in his time on the F1 pitwall. Here's his take on the Colapinto incident and both the FIA and Alpine's handling of it so far.***
The one golden rule in Formula 1 and motorsport in general is 'don't wipe out your team-mate'. It shouldn't be down to whether the official penalty fits the crime.
A team needs to have some discipline of its own in place, and the drivers need to buy into it. All the teams are bigger than any of their drivers, so it's all about respect, but racing is racing. For any driver on the grid, they want to beat the other 21 cars that are out there and in reality that is why a driver gets their place on the grid.
We have seen some very close racing between team-mates this season. We've seen it more often with the frontrunning cars, but that's just because that's who the TV director follows.
Think George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc on more than one occasion, even Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar this weekend, but it happens all the way through the field; these cars and the power units seem to mean that the grid is made up a bit like Noah's Ark, and when that happens it will bleed through to the race itself.
We saw many drivers make mistakes in Baku; Lando Norris, Hamilton and Oscar Piastri, to name but a few, all had lock-ups that sent them down the run-off areas or over the kerbs.
For Colapinto, it was a mistake at the wrong time, but when you lock a wheel, you become a passenger. So should he not have tried to make up some places and in turn, lost a few on the safety car restart? No, that's not how a racing driver's brain is wired.
For me, it is the same for Racing Bulls team-mates Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson and [their incident at the same time](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/shock-inaction-over-bakus-other-f1-team-mate-clash-explained/). Lindblad didn't mean to hit his team-mate; it just happened that that was the car that was there when he got a little excited about life.
While he was a helpless casualty of Alpine's intra-team clash, I think [Norris's post-race outburst](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-wants-f1-race-ban-for-colapinto-azerbaijan-gp-clash/) calling for a race ban for Colapinto is out of place. Norris has had his close shaves on various occasions, so when you live in a glass house, the first thing you learn is not to throw stones.
In my time running a team, we had it on many occasions. Jordan team-mates Ralf Schumacher and Giancarlo Fisichella in Argentina in 1997 was probably the worst; it robbed us of a potential win or at least two drivers on the podium. Schumacher still finished third but with the pace and strategy we had, both drivers were in contention that day.
We also had a few close scrapes with Eddie Irvine and Rubens Barrichello, but in general back in those days the stewards didn't get involved, so it was all down to a quick get-together in the back of the truck whilst the blood was still boiling, with me telling them to sort it and quickly.
I'm not condoning what Colapinto did; he made a mistake at a time when there was no opportunity to get out of it, but for me it is up to the team to issue any reprimands.
That certainly seems to be the old-school approach executive advisor Flavio Briatore has taken, as he said Alpine will "consider what course of action should be taken, so we can learn from it and avoid such a situation in future".
### Everything we learned from F1's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-from-f1s-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-09-27T06:38:30.000Z
The reigning world champion calling for another driver to be banned, two different team-mate collisions and the closest finish since 2002 - Formula 1's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix certainly delivered the drama we've come to expect from Baku.
Here's everything we learned from the weekend…
## A bad day for F1's penalty system
Many of Lando Norris's peers did not share his view Franco Colapinto deserved a race ban for the accident he caused at the first safety car restart in Baku - and neither did the stewards.
A five-place grid penalty for Malaysia (in lieu of just a 10-second time penalty in the race as Colapinto did not finish) was all the stewards saw fit to give the Alpine driver.
The FIA wants to focus on punishing the offence rather than the outcome. Still, five places is something of a light touch, especially as licence penalty points have gone out the window this year.
There's been an overcorrection from the FIA after wanting to ease back on some of the silly things penalty points were given for previously. Now, causing a collision alone is not considered worthy of them. Generally, it must be dangerous or deliberate.
That undermines the purpose of a system designed to punish repeat offenders with an automatic one-race ban if they get 12 penalty points in a 12 month period. Few could argue that if Colapinto did that three times (at four penalty points a pop) a suspension would be merited.
And a bad day for F1's penalty system was compounded by Arvid Lindblad being completely exonerated for his own poor driving at the same restart, when he clattered into Racing Bulls team-mate Liam Lawson and was lucky not to wipe one or more cars out of the race.
Letting Lindblad off the hook was meekly justified as being a result of the knock-on effect of the Colapinto crash ahead. Nothing really supports this watching back replays and onboards.
A more likely explanation is the old, unofficial ‘the stewards don't usually get involved with team-mate-on-team-mate collisions' policy. Sometimes it happens but not here, perhaps again helped by some lap-one (restart) leniency. **\- Scott Mitchell-Malm**
## ...But Alpine might take its own action
Colapinto knows what the FIA's doing to punish him for the pile-up, but the open question coming out of Baku is what *his own team* will do.
The extremely strong comments about Colapinto from de facto team boss Flavio Briatore and the hanging threat of "I want to take time to reflect on it and consider what course of action should be taken" were deliberately placed in the team's official press release rather than being blurted out mid-anger in a TV interview. This was a considered message that Briatore and Alpine wanted to make sure Colapinto, and the F1 world, took on board - and our understanding is Briatore's anger at the incident is as strong as his press release phrasing implies.
It's the constructors' championship battle damage that hurts. Alpine had the edge on fifth-place rival Racing Bulls this weekend and was on course to trim its deficit to six points. Now that gap is up to 15 instead.
Alpine actually fulfilling Norris's wish and giving Colapinto its own race ban is extremely unlikely, and we wouldn't anticipate any kind of internal financial penalty either.
It feels more likely this is intended as a strong warning, perhaps one that will be followed with some form of official internal 'yellow card' and a hint that if there's a next time then the consequences could be as strong as a suspension.
But this is Briatore, so you never know. If nothing is said publicly, expect plenty of questions to Alpine and Colapinto in Malaysia next week about what's gone on behind closed doors. **\- Matt Beer**
## Mercedes about to move goalposts again
Mercedes ended a four-race run without a pole position with George Russell's dominant turn in Baku, where its car and engine package was clearly the class of the field.
The all-round strength of the W17 and the 2026 Mercedes power unit was on full display as Russell thrived through the city's twists and turns, then had just enough to keep Max Verstappen at bay even with a prodigious tow and the extra benefit of the overtake mode behind him in the final stint. "Our car has been working exceptionally well on the low-drag circuits," Russell said.
Mercedes' rivals traded places in the pecking order yet again in Azerbaijan as Red Bull came to the fore, Ferrari slipped back, and McLaren had a mixed weekend (then a terrible result). The championship leader continues to be strong, or strongest, everywhere - and it's about to shift the goalposts again.
A significant Mercedes aerodynamic update is coming for the next race in Malaysia, with which Russell said "we're hoping to make a bigger step to the rest of the field".
But that's not all. We're still waiting for Mercedes' upgraded engine to appear - and that's now due at the United States Grand Prix next month, giving Russell and Kimi Antonelli an even sharper weapon to fight with during the run-in. **\- Scott Mitchell-Malm**
## Ocon is going down swinging
While his replacement is yet to be signed, Esteban Ocon effectively knows his time at Haas is over.
He's lost the battle to convince Haas to stick with him beyond their initial two-year agreement and the team's likely to opt for a fast rookie (F2 points leader Rafael Camara is the favourite) to replace him.
But even if that is almost a foregone conclusion, it's not going to stop Ocon from going down swinging. He's determined to prove he still deserves to stay in F1, even if his chances of finding a vacancy elsewhere for 2027 look minuscule.
It's why Ocon was furious after qualifying on Friday when he felt an ill-timed yellow flag cost him a place in Q3; "It's different race weekend, same s\*\*\*".
He drove brilliantly to recover in the grand prix, diving down the inside of Lawson on the restart, then pulling off a bold move on his team-mate Ollie Bearman just one corner later.
Ocon knew that was his chance to get ahead and be the Haas driver with the biggest points total at the end of the race.
His eighth place is only his third points finish of the season; "I can say I deserved that, not all the rest of this year."
His final answer to written media after the race was telling of his mindset right now.
"I've raced with everyone out there, and I've always been on par, or I've won every championship that I've raced in," Ocon said.
"I've won races in Formula Renault, I've won championships in go-karts, I've won Formula 3, I've won GP3, I was racing in the top 10 in DTM for half a season, and I won in Formula 1\.
"I can do it, you know? I'm one of the best out there, and I'm not afraid to say it." **\- Josh Suttill**
## Ferrari's losing its car advantage
As Ferrari's biggest 2026 advantage has been eroded away, it's still been hamstrung by its biggest disadvantage.
Despite the ADUO 2 update introduced at Monza, Ferrari's engine is not on the level of the Mercedes or Red Bull, and that was exposed across Baku's 2.2km (1.4-mile) flat-out run.
"With the situation that we are in with the engine, we are losing one position per lap, and then we lose the path of the race," team boss Fred Vasseur explained.
"The biggest limitation is that when you are in this situation and you want to defend, you go in a kind of negative spiral, perhaps to try to run a bit lower downforce than is optimum, because you need to defend and you are losing laptime, and it's quite often this kind of spiral. We had a similar case in Monza."
It means Charles Leclerc's second place on the grid was something of an overachievement on Friday.
As Vasseur explained, Ferrari can't properly address its main deficit until 2027 while rivals have been able to take lumps out of any chassis advantage it might have.
"There is also a kind of convergence on the chassis; you can improve much quicker than with the engine," Vasseur said.
"There is a kind of convergence of performance on the chassis that you don't have on the engine."
Ferrari still has chassis upgrades to unleash this season, but it's not going to have F1's best package until it's able to make significant improvements to its power unit. **\- JS**
## The key Audi weakness upgrade couldn't solve
Audi brought its first major upgrade package since the Austrian Grand Prix at the end of June, but that was never going to solve the key issue that limited it to a frustrating weekend.
The chassis upgrade worked as expected and delivered more performance, but Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto were hamstrung by a familiar weakness in Baku.
"We need more top speed, simple as that. But we didn't have it today and this weekend, I think that's a bit of the story of the weekend," Hulkenberg said.
Team-mate Bortoleto said "the pace was actually very promising in the race" compared to a double Q1 exit on Friday, but "we were super slow on the straights".
He added: "\[I was\] 0.2 seconds from Liam for like five laps, and I couldn't overtake him at the end of this straight.
"I couldn't be closer than that. But it is what it is. We were lacking with this the whole weekend. It's not news, but we go for the next one."
It meant Audi couldn't capitalise on the restart chaos, and its deficit to seventh-placed Haas has bloomed from four to 10 points in the constructors' championship.
Much like Ferrari, Audi will have to wait until 2027 to make a step with its power unit, but the upcoming tracks should at least suit it more than a punishing Baku circuit. **\- JS**
## Hadjar's immediately 'paid' Red Bull back
Isack Hadjar started his first F1 weekend in two months with the knowledge he'll be sticking around at Red Bull in 2027.
And in the words of team boss Laurent Mekies on Saturday post-race: "We wanted to reaffirm how much we were confident in his current and future progress with the team…and I think he paid us back."
Hadjar did so with arguably his strongest weekend in the senior team so far, especially given the context of having missed the last three races.
He felt it was the "first time with the team that I actually get to do a very clean weekend" and Mekies felt Hadjar had set a new standard for himself.
"It was outstanding what Isack has produced this weekend, really outstanding," Mekies said.
"To stick the car in P4 \[in qualifying\] was already a very, very strong result. \[Then\] the sort of race pace he has shown on the medium, on the soft, is something that we had not seen before.
"So, on the weekend of his return, he has raised the bar again.
Mekies was particularly impressed with how Hadjar handled what could have been a tense situation in the race as he ran right behind team-mate Max Verstappen, praising Hadjar for racing "extremely cleverly with Max".
Asked about Hadjar's radio messages, including informing the team he was happy to stay behind Verstappen if it was best for the result, Mekies said: "It shows you how cleverly the kid is racing, and how much brain capacity he is developing while in the car, and how much emotional control he is managing to have.
"It's indicators of steps he has made in all these areas, on top of producing more speed." **\- JS**
## Antonelli's human!
It speaks volumes for Antonelli's outstanding season that Baku featured his first genuinely consequential mistake since his round one practice crash. After looking absurdly composed and fast, and though it was all coming so easily in 2026, this new and improved Kimi is human after all.
He won't be feeling much pressure with his championship lead whittled to 66 points. And right now it is nothing more than coincidence that Antonelli came slightly unstuck at the same place last year's runaway points leader Oscar Piastri had a nightmare that sparked the unravelling of his championship bid.
Antonelli stopped his own weekend from spiralling into an all-round disaster with a sensible, patient recovery to fifth on Sunday. He described it in less flattering terms: "I was driving a bit like my grandmother today, just damage-safe mode, just didn't take a risk."
There was a secondary element to Antonelli feeling "it wasn't the usual Kimi" this weekend, though, as he also was just not as quick as team-mate Russell.
He needs to shake that off to contain this to a one-off disappointment - although in reality he can easily afford to be the second-best Mercedes a few more times to the end of the season, as long as it's not accompanied by early qualifying crashes. **\- SMM**
## McLaren drivers were left exposed in Baku
McLaren's drivers both made costly errors in the grand prix, but team boss Andrea Stella felt the car's main limitation in Baku left them exposed - a lack of straightline speed.
"We had issues and some mistakes, but at the same time I think we paid \[the price for\] some fundamental limitations of our package in this kind of circuit because we were not fast enough in the corners but at the same time, and mainly, we were not fast enough in the straights," Stella said.
"This continuously exposed our drivers to being attacked and having to spend the race pretty much watching the mirrors rather than thinking about how they can progress in the race."
McLaren's gear ratio choices versus the works Mercedes team and having a more draggy car partly explain that, but Stella says the data in Baku also showed "our power unit was not optimised" compared to the works Mercedes.
McLaren made big strides in power unit optimisation, having started the season well adrift of Mercedes' understanding, but Baku showed how much progress it still needs to make in that area. **\- JS**
## Upgrade hasn't changed the essence of Aston Martin's season
Aston Martin made another important weight-saving step in Baku, meaning the car is now "very close" to the minimum weight limit, having started the season very overweight.
But that didn't translate into a good weekend as Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll managed 27 laps between them on Saturday, having only fought Cadillac all weekend.
Stroll stopped with a water pressure leak after seven laps, admitting, "There aren't many positives to take away" from Baku.
Alonso stopped because of a suspected engine problem with "anomalous" straightline speed, but Honda's initial post-race inspection didn't find any issue.
Even if Alonso had a healthy enough car to continue, he wouldn't have been fighting for much, as Baku's layout rivals Monza as a worst-case scenario for the package's main limitation.
"We are doing our part of the job, which is helping the team to try to understand how to get faster in the corners," Alonso said.
"When we press the throttle pedal, when we go on the straights, we need to rely on Honda getting better and better.
"We made a step forward this year with the engine upgrade, but obviously, as we see, there is not enough, and we need to keep on going."
Alonso expects Malaysia to be "a better situation than Monza and Baku, but we need to do better as a team in Malaysia and Singapore". **\- JS**
## Racing Bulls got away with its worst weekend
Racing Bulls can leave Baku feeling relieved that it won F1's midfield fight despite an intra-team collision and a confusing lack of pace that it couldn't understand.
The team has been such a consistent force at the front of F1's midfield; it was surprising to see it seven and a half tenths of a second slower than Alpine in qualifying.
*And,* after such a consistently impressive rookie season, it was the first properly messy weekend for Lindblad.
He crashed in practice, was kicking himself for underdelivering in qualifying and then wiped team-mate Lawson out of the race.
Crucially, Lindblad avoided a penalty and then battled past both Haas drivers, beating Ocon on the run to line, having taken advantage of him misjudging how much to lift off after cutting the corner to avoid Valtteri Bottas's stricken Cadillac at the Turn 15 left-hander.
It was a brilliant salvage job, aided by some luck for Lindblad (no terminal car damage or penalty from hitting Lawson and Colapinto's wrecking ball mistake), that meant Racing Bulls surprisingly did what it's been doing for most of the year - win the midfield fight.
As Lawson said, the team "got very very lucky today." **\- JS**
### Shock inaction over Baku's other F1 team-mate clash explained
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/shock-inaction-over-bakus-other-f1-team-mate-clash-explained/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T16:06:16.000Z
The intra-team Racing Bulls collision at Formula 1’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix that wiped out Liam Lawson was surprisingly dismissed as needing no further action.
Franco Colapinto was handed a 10-second time penalty (converted into a five-place grid drop for the Malaysian Grand Prix) for spearing into his Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris’s McLaren, but the stewards decided not to act on the collision that took place behind them.
While Ocon and Lawson were side-by-side in the Turn 1 braking zone, Lindblad ended up locking his brakes and running into Lawson in the sister car, punching a big hole in its floor and ruining Lawson’s race.
Within 20 minutes of the incident occurring, the incident had been noted, placed under investigation and then dismissed as needing no further action.
Asked about the ruling by The Race, Lawson said: “Great for the team \[Lindblad went on to finish seventh\], yeah, obviously I'm not going to go and protest my team-mate - but I don't understand it because I got hit so hard that it put a hole in my floor.
“I was just turning for the corner, giving the guy space. So where I'm sitting, I don't understand, but let's say it's great for the team.”
Lindblad apologised to Racing Bulls and Lawson for the clash but offered two mitigating circumstances for the incident.
“It was an absolute mess. I think as you see on almost all safety car restarts here in Baku it gets quite chaotic in Turn 1, I don't know what was happening at the front, but it was pretty poorly managed in the sense that the field wasn't bunched up,” Lindblad said.
“From where we were, me and Esteban, we'd gone - or Ollie \[Bearman\] - about three times on the straight; we'd sort of gone and braked and gone again. So it was complete chaos, the battery wasn't in a good window because of that.
“Everyone braked a little bit too late in Turn 1 and I was going to make the move on Esteban and he moved in the last minute - basically moved under braking, so \[I\] had to take avoiding action, which meant I locked the front slightly and I hit Liam.
“So obviously I've apologised to him already; I've apologised to the team because it's not something you want, because there could have been two of us in the points today, but also at the same time we take the result.”
Lindblad was speaking fresh from finishing the race with limited time to review the incident, but he says it was “terrible” in the middle of the train at the safety car restart.
“It wasn't a well-done restart. In the end it should be a bunched-up field that goes slowly, and then we all go at once,” Lindblad said.
“So I'm sure it will get raised at the briefing next week, and it's something we'll discuss, but honestly both restarts weren't very good.
“You're trying to look a few cars ahead to see what's going on, but there are so many things we're having to manage here. In the end, it's a 2km straight, tyres are cold, brakes are cold, batteries are obviously a new problem. When everyone's going-and-stopping it's pretty dangerous and I think we need to understand why.”
His first mitigating factor, a tricky restart on cold tyres and brakes, is certainly relevant, but whether that should absolve him of any penalty is highly questionable. Those were also factors applicable for the penalised Colapinto, after all.
As for Ocon moving under braking, this really doesn’t appear to be the case, with Ocon holding his line to the left of Lawson. If anything, it’s Lawson on the right who makes a move across to try to cover Ocon.
Lindblad shouldn’t be judged harshly for giving a fresh-from-the-moment opinion, but what’s baffling is why the stewards elected to quickly rule out any punishment for what appeared to be a clear-cut case of one out-of-control driver slamming into another with a misjudged move.
## Why did it go unpunished?
The stewards predominantly didn’t punish Lindblad because they believed the incident to be a direct consequence of the Colapinto/Gasly/Norris shunt ahead.
“That incident, together with Colapinto locking his brakes, triggered a braking reaction among the cars immediately ahead of Lindblad,” the stewards’ decision read.
“At the same time, Lindblad was positioned between cars on either side. During the corner, Lindblad made contact with Lawson.
“Having reviewed the positioning and movement of the cars involved, the stewards determined that the contact was primarily the result of the restricted space available to Lindblad and the chain reaction caused by the incident ahead, rather than any action or error for which Lindblad could be considered wholly or predominantly to blame.”
When you review the incident footage, that explanation feels incredibly generous to Lindblad. The Gasly/Colapinto/Norris crash happened far enough up the road that Ocon and Lawson didn’t appear to initiate any meaningful avoiding action before Lindblad went into Lawson.
The stewards' report makes no reference to it - but there could also be the unwritten rule of the stewards not judging team-mate collisions as harshly as collisions involving drivers from different teams. As Lawson himself said: “I'm not going to go and protest my team-mate.”
Had the stewards opted for a post-race investigation, Racing Bulls would have obviously requested no penalty.
But what colour the cars are shouldn’t be a factor when judging these incidents.
### Alpine to consider what action to take after Colapinto crash
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-to-consider-what-action-to-take-after-colapinto-baku-crash/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T15:55:55.000Z
Alpine will "consider what course of action should be taken" against its driver Franco Colapinto for the "very poor move" that caused a multi-car crash in Formula 1's Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
World champion Lando Norris said Colapinto [deserved a race ban](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-wants-f1-race-ban-for-colapinto-azerbaijan-gp-clash/) after the Alpine driver locked up into the first corner at a restart following a safety car period, and wiped out himself, team-mate Pierre Gasly and Norris too.
Colapinto described it as a "big mistake" and said he was "out of control" after locking up as soon as he jumped on the brakes.
F1's timing system reported a 10-second penalty for Colapinto after the race had finished for causing a collision, which gets converted into a grid drop for the next race instead as he did not finish.
The stewards has announced that this will be a five-place drop.
Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore said: "I want to take time to reflect on it and consider what course of action should be taken, so we can learn from it and avoid such a situation in future."
Briatore said Alpine apologises to Norris and McLaren "for ruining their race", which Colapinto had already done himself too.
"I know that Franco has taken full responsibility for it, as he should; in fact he braked far too late considering the context of the race and the safety car restart," said Briatore.
"It was a very poor move for a driver of his experience."
It is not clear what action Alpine would be willing to take against Colapinto, like benching him for a race itself, or whether it would limit it simply to a warning internally.
However, Briatore is understood to be very unhappy with the error, given the impact it has on Alpine's championship fight.
Colapinto and Gasly were on course for a double-points finish for Alpine in the race, at least ninth and 10th, which would have cut the gap to Racing Bulls to just six points in the constructors' championship.
Instead the incident allowed Racing Bulls to land an unexpected points haul as the chaos cleared a path for Arvid Lindblad - who drove into his own team-mate Liam Lawson at the same restart but avoided a penalty - to finish seventh.
This means Alpine now trails Racing Bulls by 15 points in the fight for fifth.
"Obviously I'm extremely disappointed with the outcome of today's race, knowing we lost valuable points in the championship fight," said Briatore.
"These sort of incidents shouldn't happen, particularly when we were running well with both cars in point-scoring positions.
"I feel very sorry for the team and for Pierre who did a great job all weekend."
Norris stands alone in believing a full-on suspension is merited.
He was a passenger after locking up and other drivers had sympathy for this, with the top-three finishers - George Russell, Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar - all agreeing a ban would be too harsh.
"It was a small error that had a big consequence," said Russell. "I think, personally, race bans should come from drivers intentionally doing something very dangerous and very reckless.
"So I think it was unfortunate."
Hadjar actually said the track is "not good enough" because it is bumpy off-line and hard to generate tyre temperature behind the safety car.
Wiping out two cars, and the call for a ban, conjures images of the 2012 Belgian GP start shunt caused by Romain Grosjean, which he got a one-race ban for.
But there are two key differences in Colapinto’s crash – it involved a smaller number of cars, and Grosjean's ban was the trigger for a formal licence penalty point system that now tots up driving offences over a 12-month period.
So, there is a structure in place to punish repeat offenders of dangerous or deliberate acts. Which is why unilaterally banning Colapinto would be heavy-handed at best as the system will take care of that if he proves a repeat offender and it is applied correctly.
Facing the wrath of a stern operator like Briatore, mourning the loss of an important result in the team's championship fight, is an unenviable punishment in itself. But it could certainly be argued that this sort of crash might have merited a rare application of licence penalty points in addition to a five-place grid penalty.
### Winners and losers from F1's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-f1s-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T15:51:20.000Z
Team-mates colliding, the world champion calling for a driver to be banned, a win drought broken, a top team resurgent and a returnee on the podium - there was plenty going on in Formula 1's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Here's our take on who came out best and worst.
## Loser: Franco Colapinto **(DNF)**
After a couple of encouraging signs at Monza - where Franco Colapinto was fast but made errors - and Madring - where Colapinto was quicker than Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly and arguably executed his best weekend yet in F1 - he went and spoiled it all by doing something stupid.
A few drivers spoke out in his defence. Carlos Sainz addressed the tricky tyres, dirty circuit and weird power delivery of the engines in Baku, while Arvid Lindblad criticised the way the safety car restarts were handled.
But ultimately Colapinto was the only one to lock both front wheels and clatter into two cars at once. When one of those cars is your team-mate's you really are in trouble. He at least took "full responsibility" - not that there was much else he could do in the circumstances.
And because he couldn't serve the 10 second time penalty the stewards gave him, that will mean a grid penalty for Sepang. - Ben Anderson
## Loser: Alpine (2x DNF)
From looking odds on for a double points finish to actually achieving a catastrophic double DNF in the space of one major Colapinto braking misjudgement.
This was ultimately a disastrous conclusion to the weekend for Alpine, after producing what Gasly called "the best race car we've had so far this year".
Colapinto wiping out both Gasly and the McLaren of Lando Norris not only robbed Alpine of at least the seven championship points they were holding before it all went wrong, it also created the conditions for Lindblad to bag the seventh place Gasly was holding and extend the gap Racing Bulls holds over Alpine to 15 points in their battle for fifth in the constructors' title race. **\- BA**
## Winner: Isack Hadjar (3rd)
April 21 2024\. That's how far you have to go back for Red Bull's most recent double podium before Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar's 2-3 finish in Baku. It's frankly an absurd stat for a team that, despite its troubles, has so obviously remained among F1's top operators throughout that time.
This was as good a performance as we've seen from Hadjar since his graduation to the senior team - he acknowledged as much, saying it was the "first time with the team that I actually get to do a very clean weekend" - all the more impressive considering it came on his first weekend back from injury.
He was effective in battle, understood the assignment when Verstappen closed up to him, and played the team game like a pro. Even the radio messages felt like they were a little less terse than usual here.
If he was looking to show Red Bull what it had been missing while he was out, this was a damn good way to do it. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Loser: McLaren (14th and DNF)
Turn 1 felt as if actively malicious to the McLarens this Saturday, with two offs and one crash that meant zero points on a weekend the team really should have outscored the power-limited Ferraris.
Norris seemed up against it (speed-limited by an issue but also clearly just in a bit of a funk) throughout the entirety of the weekend, so took the crash with the Alpines - shortly after he'd messed up his own race already by visiting the run-off at the same corner - as a final insult to cap off a miserable outing.
He was unsparing in his assessment of Colapinto's error, but also just unhappy about his race.
"I had no chance out there with the speed I had," he lamented. "Sure there were some things I wasn't doing well enough in driving and I need to see what I could improve next time, but at the same time, the speed that they came past me, that was impossible. So it was a pretty impossible task out there."
But team-mate Oscar Piastri was doing stellar work in the fight for a podium until it was undone by a strange lock-up of both fronts that sent him down the order.
"I didn't think I did anything spectacular \[to cause it\]," he mused. "Obviously I was on a different line to what I normally would be, defending, so I don't know if I was on a crown in the road or something, but it certainly was a surprise to me." **\- Val Khorounzhiy**
## Winner: George Russell (1st)
George Russell's victory from pole position, which he described as "the most dominant weekend I've had in my career" validates the progress he's spoken repeatedly about making since the August break.
After all, while he was given a clear run by title rival Kimi Antonelli clipping the Turn 1 wall in qualifying, Russell was genuinely quick and looked to have a pace advantage over his Mercedes team-mate anyway.
"I'm very proud of the resilience that I and my close group of engineers have shown during the tough periods this year, because there's been a lot of hard work to overcome some of the challenges to adapt my driving style to suit this new car better," said Russell. "F1 is so tough you don't get opportunities to practice this.
"And finally, it's coming to me a bit more intuitively than it once did, and I'm gaining confidence. And especially on circuits like this, it just allows you to eke out that little bit more on the brakes, get that little bit closer to the walls, and it's been a flawless weekend." **\- Edd Straw**
## Loser: Valtteri Bottas (DNF)
Fastest race lap is usually a rubbish metric to measure performance in an F1 race, but Valtteri Bottas's being 1.5s down on what Cadillac team-mate Sergio Perez managed does seem reflective of the race we saw.
Even before his crash at the end of the race - attributed to a harvesting glitch triggered by an earlier off at Turn 1, as "the systems got a bit confused" - the performance was properly, head-scratchingly miserable.
"A long one," Bottas admitted. "Just, honestly, no pace at all. I could only fight with Fernando \[Alonso\]. For sure, we lost some time there, but otherwise just pretty far off, so lots of things to look into from this weekend."
"Pretty far off" is an understatement - Bottas was nearly a minute down on Perez at the time of his first pitstop, so whatever was wrong was *very* wrong - and has to be a huge priority for himself and Cadillac to figure out. **\- VK**
## Winner: Max Verstappen (2nd)
This was Verstappen and Red Bull's strongest weekend in terms of pace and the fact he finished just two tenths of a second behind winner Russell despite a power unit disadvantage is proof of the progress Red Bull is making.
While his victory chances might have been boosted had he started where he should have done on the front row, instead of eighth thanks to a power unit problem, Verstappen suspects that it would have been difficult to have done better than second anyway.
"Even if I started second, I think the pace of George would have been very hard to pass," said Verstappen.
But the fact Red Bull was a genuine victory contender in Azerbaijan (a rarity in 2026) and the tantalising possibility that starting where he should have done could have led to victory, is a much-needed boost for Verstappen. **\- ES**
## Loser: Alex Albon (DNF)
After Carlos Sainz was given a five-place penalty having initially qualified in ninth, Alex Albon was given the chance to avenge the defeat from his Williams team-mate, given he was dumped out in Q2.
He was keeping Esteban Ocon behind in 13th when he crashed at Turn 3, locking up and heading straight into the wall. Sainz recovered from dropping to 19th with an early stop to come back and score a point.
Albon said the incident was "odd". He reckoned a combination of a big wind gust, and the Williams car's characteristic of raising a wheel under heavy braking, could have caused the incident, although he still acknowledged his need to hold his hands up for it.
A big opportunity missed, especially to outperform his team-mate, who repeatedly bounced back from adversity this weekend. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner: Arvid Lindblad (7th)
After consecutive crashes in FP2s at the Madring and in Baku, Lindblad was struggling for confidence entering this race, and even though it wasn't the perfect way to do it, leading the midfield and bagging big points in Sunday's race will be a nice boost.
First, the elephant in the room, his contact with team-mate Racing Bulls Liam Lawson on the lap 39 safety car restart.
Lindblad claimed Ocon "basically moved under braking" so he "had to take avoiding action which meant I locked the front slightly and I hit Liam".
Whatever the accuracy of those mitigating circumstances (a review of the angles suggested Ocon wasn't doing so), Lindblad escaped unpunished and inadvertently benefitted from the chaos.
He also criticised the slackness of the start and how it was poorly formed up, causing drivers to accelerate then brake repeatedly.
After that, he pulled off some epic overtakes in the final stint and capitalised on Ocon's poor run to the line to take seventh by 0.030s.
It moves him to within four points of Gasly and a place in the drivers' championship top 10, and extends Racing Bulls midfield constructors' lead by six points to 15\. Great recovery. **\- JB**
## Loser: Audi (11th & 13th)
With Alpine having taken itself out of the Azerbaijan GP and McLaren in a world of woe, Baku should have been the perfect opportunity for Audi to bag some decent points.
Instead, a major upgrade that arrived for this weekend was not enough to help Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto into the top 10 as Audi lost big ground to closest rival Haas.
The lost opportunity owed a lot to its Achilles' Heel: a lack of engine power. It's struggled all season with it and it left both drivers unable to do much on Saturday.
Bortoleto typified the situation when he said the Audi was "flying" in sector two, but was all at sea on the run across the start-finish line.
"On the straights, we were super slow," he said. "I was leaving the last corner, I think, 0.2 seconds from Liam for like five laps, and I couldn't overtake him at the end of this straight. I couldn't be closer than that!" **\- Jon Noble**
## Winner: Haas (8th & 9th)
A bittersweet return to the points here for Haas?
Perhaps, considering Ocon's final-straight defeat in the fight for seventh place with Lindblad, in part a consequence of Ocon backing off after cutting the corner passing Bottas's Cadillac and 'overdoing' said bit of backing off.
But neither Ocon nor ninth-place finisher Ollie Bearman seemed to mind too much at the flag. This is just a third points finish of the year (and a best to date) for Ocon who, in the week where it emerged he is heading for the Haas exit, said of his result "I deserved that, not all the rest of this year".
The relief was palpable for Bearman, too, as he ended an even longer wait for points that had stretched back to the Canadian GP in May.
And beyond the breaking of those point-less streaks, and the six-point gain on an Audi team that somehow failed to score, don't underestimate the significance of Haas finally getting two cars into broadly the same competitive window - and being able to reap rewards for doing so. **\- JC**
## Loser: Aston Martin (2x DNF)
Aston Martin's upgraded chassis and Honda power unit was supposed to have turned the corner on its season – but Azerbaijan proved to be another race to forget.
Both cars retired – Lance Stroll out early with a water pressure problem while Fernando Alonso's exit came after what he described as a mysterious power loss down the straight that was costing him 1.5-seconds alone (Honda said no engine issue has been identified as it stands).
The race trouble came after little sign of promising pace all weekend, as the deficits in the Aston Martin package remained obvious. Stroll bemoaned it simply as a lack of downforce and a lack of power.
For Alonso, who continues to weigh up his F1 future, it is fairly clear where step forward has got to come from.
"When we press the throttle pedal, when we go on the straight, we need to rely on Honda getting better and better," he said.
"We made a step forward this year with the engine upgrade, but obviously, as we see, there is not enough, and we need to keep on going." **\- JN**
### 'Mr Horner looking for a job' - Vasseur laments Ferrari distractions
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mr-horner-looking-for-a-job-vasseur-laments-ferrari-distractions/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T14:35:25.000Z
Ferrari Formula 1 team principal Fred Vasseur says he and his team are being undermined by relentless speculation over his future - and acknowledges "Mr \[Christian\] Horner looking for a job" as part of this.
Vasseur took over from Mattia Binotto at the helm of the Ferrari squad in 2023, but - like under his predecessor - Ferrari still has not been able to break through into genuine F1 title contention.
In 2026, a potential grid-best chassis has been neutered by a power unit deficit, which Vasseur again accentuated as the primary factor in his team's cars finishing fourth and sixth this weekend in Baku.
The race took place against the backdrop of a recent interview with The Times by ex-Red Bull boss Christian Horner, in which Horner claimed that, in terms of running an F1 team again, there was "only one team for which I would accept non-participation in ownership".
That team was implied to be Ferrari, which Horner described as "the dream" destination and "arguably the sleeping giant of F1".
When asked by The Race after the Azerbaijan GP about the noise surrounding his own future and Ferrari's F1 team leadership plans, Vasseur briefly pivoted from his usual jokey-and-deflective tone to make it clear he doesn't appreciate the situation.
"Ah, we are not working in the perfect serenity," he insisted. "For me firstly, but for everybody in the team. For the media, for 50% of the questions \[to be\] about this, I think it's a bit of a frustrating situation.
"We are fighting for P2 in the championship, and at the end of the day, we are all speaking a lot about this, and even for the guys in the garage, to discuss about this, it's the best discussion that we can have.
"But it is what it is, it's not in my hands. Mr Horner is looking for a job - that everybody knows - everywhere.
"But what can I do? Just try to do my best to push the team, to rise them to be motivated, focus on what is better today.
"Each interview, 25 times a day, we are coming back to this."
Vasseur also affirmed his commitment to Ferrari and "the best job in the world" - but also curiously added: "But it is like it is. We have still seven races to go, and I will push until the last corner."
On whether he would be open to working with Horner within Ferrari, he joked: "You have to ask my assistant."
### Norris wants F1 race ban for Colapinto
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-wants-f1-race-ban-for-colapinto-azerbaijan-gp-clash/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T13:26:37.000Z
Lando Norris says Franco Colapinto should face a Formula 1 race ban for his error during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix that took Norris, Colapinto and Pierre Gasly out of the race.
After a fairly processional first 30-plus laps of the Baku race, Colapinto had a massive lock-up while entering Turn 1 on a safety car restart while running in 10th place, seemingly caught out by the rate of deceleration from the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli ahead of him.
He avoided hitting Antonelli but instead had to hug the inside wall and never scrubbed off anywhere near enough speed, ploughing into Alpine team-mate Gasly in the braking zone, with the chain reaction also eliminating Norris.
It was an error that Norris, who had had a particularly difficult weekend up to then and had his own Turn 1 mistake just before the safety car, did not take kindly to.
Norris stressed that he had not seen the replay at the time of speaking but said: "I think the FIA should be more strict and start handing out bans for this kind of stuff. It's just careless from people.
"It costs a lot of money, all my parts are in the bin now. People should just get banned, because that's not driving that deserves to be in Formula 1."
On whether race leader George Russell's approach to the restart bunched up the field too much, he said: "George can do what he wants.
"In Formula 1 I think you expect drivers to anticipate things, know grip is going to be low, know tyre temps are low - they weren't even that low.
"In Formula 1 you want to be against the best drivers in the world, and when stuff like this happens, it's because...yeah, \[it\] shouldn't be there."
He reiterated later that he wanted "at least a one-race ban" for this kind of crash.
A race ban in F1 requires a driver to amass 12 penalty points in a 12-month period - which has become a lot less likely since the FIA revised its approach to penalty points, seeking only to penalise what it perceived as actively dangerous driving or unsportsmanlike conduct.
By virtue of a number of yellow flag infringements, Colapinto is joint-top with Carlos Sainz in the current penalty points leaderboard - but, pending a verdict on this incident, that still means only four points, so there is no precedent under the current system by which he would be banned for the next round.
Colapinto, for his part, was immediately apologetic on the radio and maintained that tone in his media appearance.
"I was out of control completely. Not a lot more to say than sorry to the team, to Pierre, of course, to all the factory," he said.
"I'm sorry to Lando also. I'm sorry to everyone. It was a big mistake, of course."
He didn't respond specifically to Norris's suggestion of a race ban but said: "I do expect to get something \[in terms of a penalty\], of course. I don't know, I'm not a steward."
A 10-second penalty was assessed against Colapinto as the Baku race concluded - but as he did not reach the finish, this is now set to be converted to a grid drop.
### Russell denies Verstappen in Azerbaijan GP punctuated by two safety cars
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/russell-denies-verstappen-f1-2026-azerbaijan-gp-two-safety-cars/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T17:40:08.000Z
George Russell ended a barren run without a Formula 1 victory in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix by just 0.196s over Max Verstappen, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli recovering to fifth from 16th in part thanks to a pair of safety cars for crashes.
Russell did everything a leader on a street circuit with a long straight on it should do: he got a good start, immediately cleared the one-second overtake window, and had extended his lead to 12 seconds by the time of the first pit stops.
His biggest early cause for concern was "nibbling" the wall at the exit of Turn 15 on lap 25 of 51, but he otherwise ran untroubled until Alex Albon crashing at Turn 4 on lap 31 erased his advantage.
The safety car benefitted Russell's team-mate Kimi Antonelli most.
Championship leader Antonelli started 16th and actually lost a spot at the start, then took 17 laps to pass seven cars and make it to the points-paying positions. While his progress wasn't as rapid as his comeback win at Monza from 19th, it was risk-averse and steadier with the championship lead likely in mind.
He caught and passed Franco Colapinto after erasing a just under four-second gap for ninth and then was gifted eighth when Lando Norris's disappointing race continued as the McLaren driver went straight on with a lock-up at Turn 1.
At the point of the safety car Antonelli was eighth and 35s off Russell, but the safety car bunched the field to give him a better chance of progressing and allowed him to switch to the favoured soft tyre.
He immediately made up a place on the restart as a massive melee broke out at Turn 1.
A massive, near-comical lock-up from Colapinto smashed him into Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly - who'd been seventh on the restart - and also took Norris out, while Liam Lawson was also spun in the concertina effect behind by Arvid Lindblad. "I love getting taken out by my team-mate," said a sarcastic Lawson, while Alpine lost a double-points finish in the chaos - much to Gasly's displeasure and Colapinto's apologies.
In the highest-pressure scenario of having Verstappen behind, Russell absolutely nailed the restart on lap 39 but Verstappen remained in overtake mode range until three laps later, and then Verstappen set the fastest lap of the race to close back in - refusing to accept defeat.
All the way until two laps to go Verstappen stayed within range and subjected Russell to pressure, until Russell finally built a 1.4s gap, but then Verstappen closed back in on the run to finish line on the final lap once both had cleared the scene of Valtteri Bottas's crashed Cadillac.
But Russell was just able to hold on for his first win since the Austria GP in late-June.
"After the double-yellow I had no boost, had no power," said Russell after the race.
Verstappen charged through the field from his eighth-place starting spot in the early stages, and despite some bickering between himself and his engineer over the mediums, and intense early pressure from Isack Hadjar, drove a fine race to take second. He'd passed Oscar Piastri for second already after the first safety car restart.
Hadjar bagged an amazing result to take third after three races out injured, and was clearly faster in the early stages and played a great team-mate race by offering to stay behind Verstappen.
Fourth-place finisher Charles Leclerc was passed by both the Red Bulls and appeared to struggle for pace, making a podium unlikely on the day, and it could have been worse had Piastri hadn't taken himself out of the battle with a lock-up at the first corner that sent him into the runoff area, compounding McLaren's disappointing day.
Antonelli received damage to his floor after being clipped by Ollie Bearman on the first safety car restart, and initially struggled to clear Lewis Hamilton, but finally got past five laps after the second restart at Turn 1 and went no further, taking fifth in another comeback drive.
Hamilton was the only driver in the top 10 other than Russell to finish where he started, perhaps reflecting Ferrari's race pace struggles.
Behind him, the Alpine-induced crash created chaos and brought a host of cars well out of points contention into play.
In-the-news Esteban Ocon may be losing his Haas seat but vaulted team-mate Bearman between the two safety cars, but then was bested on the last lap by just 0.030s - with Lindblad stealing the spot at the line. He avoided a penalty for the Lawson incident and made some opportunistic overtakes to make the best of a tough weekend with seventh place.
Ocon took eighth ahead of Bearman, while the upgraded Williams bagged a point through Carlos Sainz, who was as low as 19th after his early stop.
Hulkenberg missed out on the point with 11th, ahead of Lawson, Gabriel Bortoleto, Piastri and Sergio Perez.
## Azerbaijan Grand Prix race result
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 51 laps
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.196s
3 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +10.704s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +14.136s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +15.512s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +22.382s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +31.159s
8 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +31.189s
9 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +31.929s
10 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +32.416s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +33.231s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +34.013s
13 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +36.401s
14 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +41.400s
15 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)\* +44.230s
16 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1 lap - accident
DNF Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
DNF Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
DNF Lando Norris (McLaren)
DNF Alex Albon (Williams)
DNF Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
### F1 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix race results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix-race-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-26T17:39:46.000Z
Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell held off Red Bull's Max Verstappen to win an Azerbaijan Grand Prix punctuated by two safety car periods.
Below you'll find the full result from the 51-lap race in Baku:
## Azerbaijan Grand Prix race result
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 51 laps
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.196s
3 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +10.704s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +14.136s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +15.512s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +22.382s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +31.159s
8 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +31.189s
9 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +31.929s
10 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +32.416s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +33.231s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +34.013s
13 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +36.401s
14 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +41.400s
15 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)\* +44.230s
16 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1 lap - accident
DNF Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
DNF Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
DNF Lando Norris (McLaren)
DNF Alex Albon (Williams)
DNF Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
### The surprise ex-F1 driver aiding Alpine's revival
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-surprise-ex-f1-driver-role-daniil-kvyat/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T19:13:33.000Z
Alpine has revealed a surprise asset supporting its Formula 1 revival this season - ex-Red Bull driver and podium finisher Daniil Kvyat.
Kvyat, who started 110 grands prix from 2014 to 2020, quietly rejoined the Enstone team this year as a simulator driver.
He had a stint at Alpine in 2021 as its reserve driver, having spent his F1 career racing for Red Bull's teams across multiple stints split by a year on the sidelines in 2018, when he was a simulator driver for Ferrari.
Kvyat's role has been kept under wraps as he shares simulator duties with Alpine reserve drivers Paul Aron and Kush Maini.
This includes development work but also race weekend support duties when Aron is required to be on-site at flyaway races.
During race weekends, Kvyat keeps in contact with Alpine race driver Pierre Gasly, who he was team-mate to at Red Bull's junior team and has a good relationship with, to share direct feedback.
Kvyat is understood to have played a significant role in Alpine's in-weekend turnarounds in Japan and Canada.
Alpine is enjoying a much improved season in F1 as the new rules and its switch to Mercedes engines have launched it back to the head of the midfield.
Kvyat has raced and/or tested NASCAR, top-level sportscar and Formula E machinery since his F1 exit, and had a role as a reference driver racing against an autonomous vehicle in Abu Dhabi.
He is competing in Japan's Super GT series this year in the GT300 category, alongside veteran driver Takashi Kogure. The pair are 16th in the points with a best class finish of sixth.
### Gary Anderson: Breaking down Audi's colossal F1 upgrade
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-audi-baku-f1-upgrade/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T17:44:46.000Z
Audi should get the prize for the most comprehensive car update this season given how many new parts it has brought to Azerbaijan.
However, it’s all about how it works together - and not just about a jumble of parts.
Starting as always with the front wing, it looks like a completely new package. The mainplane now has a more defined upsweep going outboard, still integrated into the footplate of the front wing endplate, while the flap assembly appears to be loaded further inboard.
Both of these changes will improve the consistency of the airflow going around the inside of the front tyre, especially when varying degrees of steering lock are applied.
The increase in the three-dimensional effect on the leading edge of the front wing endplate will increase the outwash, as will the reduction in the camber of the blue-highlighted horizontal vane coming out of that endplate and the increase in size and detail of the small orange vane just in front of the tyre.
Audi is more or less alone in that its front wing actuator is mounted on the wing’s upper surface. As opposed to hiding it, Audi has decreased its size.
All of these developments could be grouped together as one development to better manage the airflow going around the inside and outside of the front tyre and wheel assembly.
F1 being an open-wheel formula, the tyres are one of the most obtrusive blockages that F1 teams have to aerodynamically deal with. Changes in this area can have consequences further downstream, so these changes have led Audi into a very comprehensive update package.
Audi's unique (until McLaren introduced its new sidepod package) sidepod leading edge and radiator inlet have also been modified in that there is now a slightly more bulbous section at the floor leading edge. This is probably to be more sympathetic to the airflow as it separates to go under the floor’s leading edge and/or around the side of the floor.
The actual sidepods have also changed, with the upper surface now allowing more downwash and, with that, a change to the cooling exit system.
Audi has gone from an array of louvres to a more common opening. This has required the magenta-highlighted section to be made into two sections: the front part with an opening at the rear and the rear section’s leading edge blocked off, which looks very bulbous.
Continuing that theme of managing the airflow around the front tyres, the next question is - how can you optimise that new and revised flow structure?
This magenta-highlighted outer floor edge doesn’t look very different. There seems to be a small more aggressive turned-up section just behind the bargeboard area; it’s simply a knife edge which should, because of the difference in pressure on the top and bottom surfaces, produce a vortex along its length, helping to seal that area of the floor.
To complete this floor detail, Audi has also revisited the vanes in front of the rear tyre contact patch. This is in line with what I said earlier about managing the airflow around the blockage created by the tyres.
Maximising the outwash in this area means there is less inwash, which disrupts the airflow structure to the diffuser, reducing its efficiency.
Small details also count, as they all add up. This area of the intersection between the halo and the leading edge of the headrest can very easily create turbulence that affects the stability of the driver’s head. This small vane will help to consistently manage some of that turbulence.
There are now four fairly large cooling exit openings. The cooling system works because of the pressure drop across the radiator cores: positive pressure on the inlet, negative pressure on the outlet. It’s very difficult to increase the positive pressure as that is generated by car speed, but a larger, better-positioned opening can fairly easily increase the negative pressure at the exit. The important thing is to minimise the downforce losses that any of these openings induce.
Audi has also changed the angle of support that the diffuser sides are getting from these longer and repositioned floor stays that are highlighted in green.
Nothing has been left unaddressed. The rear wing trailing edge trim details have also come under review.
The aero, as with the cooling exits, is in reality circuit-dependent, so depending on the circuit requirements it can be altered as the race weekend progresses.
The battle in that midfield is just as intense, if not more so, than the battle up front. Every single point has potential $ signs in front of it.
Alpine introduced its big upgrade a few races ago, Williams came to Baku with a big upgrade, mainly a weight reduction - and now it’s Audi’s turn to air its developments. Who has taken the biggest step?
Hopefully we will get an indication this weekend. Audi has not fared well so far - but Baku is a strange circuit.
### What explains Mercedes' most dominant performance of 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-behind-mercedes-f1-2026-rivals-most-crushing-defeat/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T17:46:53.000Z
George Russell's pole-winning margin at Formula 1's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, 0.837 seconds, marked the biggest defeat for Mercedes' rivals in a 2026 qualifying session.
Even with just one car in Q3, Mercedes managed to beat its previous benchmark, of 0.785s, from the season-opening Australian GP weekend.
It undeniably has the best car and power unit package in Baku, but its rivals compromised themselves, making that gap bigger than it needed to be, as we explain.
## Verstappen was down on power
Max Verstappen's Red Bull topped final practice and was looking like Mercedes’ closest challenger ahead of - and during - qualifying.
But that challenge failed to materialise, with Verstappen ending up eighth and a second and a half away from pole - his biggest time gap to pole of the season when he has set a lap in Q3.
His returning team-mate Isack Hadjar ended up as the lead Red Bull, in fourth, over half a second clear of Verstappen, who believed the majority of the gap could be explained by a mysterious power issue.
"The whole qualifying we were down on power, it was consistently half a second down to Isack's car," Verstappen said after qualifying.
"For whatever reason, we don't know why that happened in qualifying. Then in Q3, the middle lap coming out of the last corner, my battery didn't go to 100%, so I had to abort that lap.
"And too cold tyres then, because you don't have the speed, you don't have the power that you should have. Then when I tried on my final lap, with no power, the tyres \[being\] too cold and a yellow flag, it's not happening."
Verstappen encountered the yellow flags for Lando Norris's off in Q3, which also compromised him, so that 1.5s gap was far from representative.
If Verstappen had been able to put his three best sectors together, that deficit would have been 1.014s. That gap would have been reduced further with a clean final Q3 lap, with Lewis Hamilton believing Red Bull has the second-fastest car in Baku.
"It's a shame...the whole weekend we're doing a good job, I'm happy with the car and then it all just falls apart in qualifying because of problems out of my control," Verstappen said.
"It's a little bit this season...it's a bit too fragile at times."
The Red Bull drivers have suffered from an aerodynamic degradation issue all season but Verstappen said this wasn't present in Baku.
Asked by The Race if he might sacrifice his eighth place on the grid to take a new power unit, Verstappen said: "First just need to figure out what it is \[the problem\].
"Otherwise, if you have to run with that also tomorrow \[in the race\], it's not going to be a lot of fun. Let's see."
Verstappen did rank 20th out of 22 drivers in the speed trap (306.3km/h) across the start/finish line in qualifying, 11km/h down on Hadjar and over 18km/h down on Hamilton, the fastest driver through there.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies confirmed Verstappen's comments, saying his car developed an issue during qualifying that "got worse as the session went on".
"Not only did it bring a large straight-line speed deficit, but it also made our life very complicated with energy deployment and tyre preparation," said Mekies, who felt Verstappen's eighth place was "sort of a damage limitation" in the circumstances and added that Red Bull would "change the faulty parts" overnight.
## McLaren's major straightline deficit
Verstappen wasn't the only driver complaining about straightline speed after qualifying.
Reigning world champion Lando Norris seems resigned to a difficult Azerbaijan GP considering McLaren's overall lack of aerodynamic efficiency and what he perceives to be a particular straightline deficit on his car compared to the sister McLaren of Oscar Piastri.
"The guys say everything's working as expected, but when you see eight tenths to the top, it's painful," said Norris. "Our time losses are in the straights. That's another area we just need to look at, because we're just a step worse to Mercedes in everything straightline-related.
"I've been comfortable in the car the whole weekend. My last lap I made a mistake and I paid the price, but I'm at a point in the championship where I kind of have to go for pole, or I kind of die trying. Of course, I paid the price for pushing too much, but it is what it is.
“It's been tough, especially with my car. We have to understand why I'm basically having to push more than Oscar to try and make up for my straightline speed \[deficit\].”
Team principal Andrea Stella said McLaren was investigating Norris's deficit and added: "It seems to be linked to the behaviour of the fuel injection, something that hopefully we will be able to or the adaptive systems should be able to improve \[for the race\].
"It looks occasionally \[like\] the power unit generates a bit less power. But this is a specific phenomenon; it's nothing to do with the overall behaviour of the power unit."
McLaren has brought a significant suite of upgrades to Baku, in an attempt to improve the car's efficiency - including a return for its revolving rear 'H-wing' that debuted at Monza - but Norris clearly felt further steps are needed to put McLaren in range of Mercedes.
"They have a very efficient car - they always have done for years," he added. "We need to take a big step in that direction if we want to be competitive in any straightline speed track for the rest of the season.
"But they also have just a good car in all the corners as well. They're just doing a better job in all areas, power unit and car."
Stella agreed. "While we have the same power unit, there's a few differences and I think it's fair to say that their package, chassis, ratios, power unit itself, it just seems to be more effective when it comes to generating top speed."
## Hamilton rues Ferrari run plan and 'stupid tyres'
Hamilton's furious weaving before each of his push laps in Q3 highlighted that getting temperature into his front tyres was a factor in his challenge for a better grid slot falling away.
"I was weaving to try and save my life, and I still couldn't get these stupid tyres working," he said afterwards after he ended up sixth. "Such a pain in the ass. We've got to bring back some good tyres."
But tyre temperatures did not explain the full deficit to pole position as he ended up 1.3s adrift of Russell and nearly half a second behind Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Instead, the biggest time loss came from Hamilton having found himself running at the front of a train of cars so he was left without a slipstream.
Ferrari opted to change its run plan for Q3, doing push, cool, push laps rather than having a run and then changing tyres.
But its strategy backfired when cars Hamilton was running behind in the train - such as the two McLarens and Carlos Sainz's Williams - all were stopping, so got out of the way.
By the time things had shaken out, Hamilton had realised he was alone on track, more than 25 seconds behind Russell and simply towing his team-mate Charles Leclerc around.
At one point, realising what was happening, Hamilton asked his team for advice on what to do - but then told them not to worry as he would "look on the TV".
Based on what Hamilton had learned when he got a good tow in FP3 as he ended up third, the lack of a slipstream was very costly.
"It was six tenths," he said, when The Race asked how much the gain from getting the tow right was worth. "I didn't have one in that session."
Leclerc did, though, having followed Hamilton around, and that helped him secure his spot on the front row, albeit still well adrift of Russell.
## Russell's form, Antonelli's blunder
Russell’s first pole position since the Austrian GP in late-June stands as his most compelling qualifying performance since his outstanding Friday and Saturday at the Barcelona GP.
He pointed to a slipstream that he felt gave him a tenth or two extra on a qualifying lap that "all perfectly came together" in Baku.
"I've been feeling in a great spot this whole weekend," said Russell. "I felt confident, I felt hooked up. I'm getting more and more on top of this car and what it requires, and it's just all feeling more intuitive."
Not that he believed this has come from nowhere. Asked whether he felt this represented a breakthrough, he suggested that wasn't the case and instead pointed to his improved form since the summer break.
"It's definitely just been perfectly hooked up for me this weekend so far," he said. "Me and my team have put so much work in to help me get on top of the limitations.
"Since the summer break it's been great and the performance has been substantially better than the results have shown."
Inevitably, Antonelli's absence from the track after clipping the inside wall at Turn 1 in Q1 means Russell didn't have the opportunity to prove he would have maintained his form from the build-up to qualifying and outpace his team-mate.
But Antonelli, who completed fewer practice laps than anyone after a hydraulic problem struck in FP1, with the resulting power unit change delaying his start to FP2, always seemed on the back foot.
"I did miss a lot of laps but in FP3 I felt pretty good," said Antonelli. "It was just a misjudgement, with the grip changing so much. An unnecessary one in Q1, and it’s a very good reminder that, like this, things don't go my way, so I need to do a much better job."
### Azerbaijan Grand Prix starting grid with four penalties
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/azerbaijan-grand-prix-starting-grid-f1-2026-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T16:17:33.000Z
George Russell is set to start the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from pole - but the grid order behind him isn't quite what the qualifying order was.
Four separate grid penalties - though three of them given to firmly backmarking cars - have so far altered the grid relative to qualifying results.
Below is the latest on the Saturday grid order...
## Provisional Azerbaijan GP grid
1 George Russell (Mercedes)
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
4 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
5 Lando Norris (McLaren)
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
8 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
10 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
12 Alexander Albon (Williams)
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
14 Carlos Sainz (Williams)\*
15 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
16 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
17 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
18 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)\*
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)\*
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)\*
**Sainz** has five-place penalty for yellow flag breach
**Perez** has three-place grid penalty for impeding
**Alonso** has back-of-grid penalty for engine components
**Stroll** has back-of-grid penalty for engine components
### Sainz penalised for second yellow flag breach in one day
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sainz-loses-williams-best-f1-2026-grid-slot-azerbaijan-gp-qualifying-penalty/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T16:42:28.000Z
Williams Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz has received a five-place grid penalty for ignoring yellow flags during Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying.
The penalty denies Williams what was set to be its best grid position of the year, superseding Alex Albon's 11th place on the Monaco GP grid.
Remarkably, the sanction came on a day on which Sainz was already investigated - and found guilty - of a different yellow-flag breach, although on that occasion he was let off with a reprimand due to mitigating circumstances.
Sainz and Williams were originally hauled in front of the stewards after Friday morning practice for a yellow flag breach through Turn 4\. The stewards ruled that Sainz "failed to sufficiently reduce speed" under the yellow flag - but felt there was sufficient mitigation to avoid the imposition of the grid penalty in "the very short period between the single yellow being displayed and Sainz entering the relevant marshalling sector".
No such mitigation was present in a different incident, recorded during the third qualifying segment. In fact, the stewards pointed out that Sainz received advanced warning from the team that a yellow flag was out on the approach to Turn 3, and simply failed to heed it sufficiently.
The warning in question was "yellow ahead, yellow ahead, \[Lando\] Norris, just do a lift, do a lift, and complete the lap" and then an apparent "clear-clear" that followed seconds later - seemingly creating a situation that led Sainz to believe the yellow flag was no longer acutely relevant.
"\[Sainz\] explained that he intended to demonstrate a reduction in speed across the yellow area as a whole," the stewards wrote as part of a lengthy explanation.
"He stated that he did not consider it necessary to reduce speed on the straight and instead intended to demonstrate his response when approaching and exiting Turn 3\. He considered this to be a 'global lift' covering the consecutive yellow sectors. He further explained that the car \[Norris\] which had originally caused the yellow was no longer in the runoff area and that he expected the yellow flags to be withdrawn.
"The stewards did not accept this interpretation. Where consecutive marshalling sectors are subject to yellow-flag conditions, a driver must demonstrate a significant reaction to reduce speed in each individual yellow marshalling sector. A reduction in a subsequent sector cannot retrospectively satisfy the requirement applicable to the preceding yellow sector. The obligation is also not dependent on the driver's own assessment of whether the original hazard remains present within a particular part of the yellow sector."
McLaren driver Lando Norris had indeed vacated the relevant runoff by that point - but as the FIA stewards do not want the drivers to self-assess the validity of a yellow flag, they found the lack of any "meaningful reduction in speed" in the relevant marshalling sector was sufficient grounds for the penalty.
In addition to the five-position penalty, which demotes Sainz from ninth to 14th, he has also received two penalty points - taking him to a total of four for the 12-month period.
Sainz was not alone in incurring a grid penalty after Baku qualifying.
A three-position penalty has been assessed against Cadillac driver Sergio Perez for impeding McLaren driver Oscar Piastri in the opening segment.
The stewards wrote that Perez "received two radio warnings" from the team but still forced a needless lift from the McLaren driver through the Turns 18-19-20 section, by "not managing his preparation lap in accordance with specific traffic-management instructions" - namely the race director's order that a driver on a prep lap stay to the right-hand side and avoid weaving in front of incoming cars.
Because of the engine component penalties to the Aston Martin cars, however, Perez is only set to lose one position on the grid - going from 19th to 20th (the position he originally qualified in), behind team-mate Valtteri Bottas.
### Winners and losers from F1 Azerbaijan GP qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-azerbaijan-gp-qualifying-winners-losers/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T16:21:50.000Z
As a headline statistic, the biggest pole position margin yet around the streets of Baku points to an Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying session that might've lacked a bit of edge.
The reality was very different - and not just because of the contrasting fortunes of the two Mercedes drivers.
Here's our pick of winners and losers from Friday:
## Loser: Kimi Antonelli (16th)
Given Mercedes' form so far this weekend, even with how compromised Antonelli's Thursday had proven this was still an easy (relatively speaking) 18 points just begging to be collected.
That's still a plausible outcome, but it sure will be harder now after an "unnecessary" impact with the inside barrier at Turn 1 during the opening segment.
"I had a lot more headwind compared to the lap before, so the front just was much stronger, and I turned in roughly in the same spot, but obviously the car turned more and I clipped the wall," Antonelli explained.
With 81 points in the pocket he can afford it - but there's no need to 'spend' a chunk of that margin this weekend. And maybe he won't - but he's put himself in a bit of a danger zone, in terms of grid position and the overtaking he will now need to do. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Winner: George Russell (1st)
Even before runaway championship leader Antonelli clipped the Turn 1 wall, Russell had been in formidable form. Without his team-mate for competition, that turned into pole position by a crushing margin of 0.837s.
Russell described himself as feeling "hooked up" from the start of the weekend, and while Max Verstappen, who he described as "the biggest threat", was hindered by yellow flags and a worsening engine issue, Russell always looked on target for pole position.
While it will take far more than one pole position, or even a victory on Saturday, to reignite his faded title chances, it's an important step in what Russell calls the "upward cycle" of improving his performances. **\- Edd Straw**
## Loser: Max Verstappen (8th)
Max Verstappen reckoned he was losing half a second to Isack Hadjar because of an engine/power-related problem - and what was Verstappen's deficit to Hadjar in Q3? 0.581s.
OK, you'd expect Verstappen (who topped FP3) to beat Hadjar with the half-second deficit removed, especially after Hadjar's three-race injury lay-off, and he might still have done had he not caught a yellow flag on his final run.
On his second run prior to that, his battery didn't go to 100% for the run to the finish line, so that was another chance lost. Combined with the car's front-bottoming, which caused brake struggles, that meant a day that looked so promising turned into a nightmare for Verstappen. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner: Isack Hadjar (4th)
Ever a glass-half-empty driver in his time in F1 so far, Hadjar emphasised that with continuity instead of injury he would've "definitely" been on the front row here - instead missing out by 0.141s.
"Nothing outstanding," he added. But while a 2027 deal is already in his pocket it's certainly not a bad time to remind everyone, after three rounds of impressively workmanlike stand-in pace from Liam Lawson, that Hadjar has had serious speed this year.
And he did admit he has been happy about how he's eased himself into this weekend, at a track that is just waiting to catch you out.
"I told myself it's mandatory not to touch the wall or anything. For a comeback, there's no point taking a lot of risks. So I was really driving a bit under the limit the whole weekend in that very tight section - I think I just did that natural step in Q3." **\- VK**
## Loser: Audi (17th and 18th)
The two heavily-upgraded Audis had not impressed very much in practice - but even so, the double Q1 exit looks like an aberration.
It's not just the power unit, Gabriel Bortoleto insisted.
"There were tracks like Monza where we were almost in Q3 and there are more straights than here. So I think it's something bigger that we need to understand," he said.
"I think it was better \[earlier in the weekend\], but still we were always on the edge of going out in Q1.
"The whole weekend we had no grip. If you don't have grip, you cannot go fast in the corners. If you don't go fast, you don't make a laptime. It's simple as that, and it's what other teams, when they go out in Q1, they probably say."
Team-mate Nico Hulkenberg was more cheery, in relative terms, arguing his Q1 exit was "mostly because of circumstances", specifically a yellow flag and a lost tow. And neither he nor Bortoleto is suggesting the upgrade is misfiring - but certainly it's proving no game changer for Baku. **\- VK**
## Winner (then loser): Carlos Sainz (9th)
Sainz put Williams into Q3 for the first time this year as its significant car upgrade excelled on debut - although Sainz felt the result was an overachievement.
Alex Albon joined Sainz in Q2 as Williams escaped Q1 with both cars for the first time since July's British GP, which serves as evidence the FW48 is a more competitive beast in Baku.
But Sainz (who does still face a yellow flag investigation) felt his ninth place was a result of Williams nailing its tyre usage and run plan, and "some serious laps on the limit" from himself, to end up a little higher than it would be on pace alone.
He described the car as no different "in feel, just quicker" because it's lighter and has a bit more downforce - but the work done to achieve that has been immediately rewarded.
Sainz admitted that getting a noticeable result felt pretty good for him, too, after a year spent toiling further down the midfield - and described the laps to achieve that as "the highest stress of the season" because of the challenge threading through the twists of sector two on a gusty day and low-grip track.
What a shame, then, that a good deal of that good work was undone by a five-place grid drop for failing to slow for yellow flags. **\- Scott Mitchell-Malm**
## Loser: Esteban Ocon (14th)
That aforementioned Hadjar lock-up in Q2 (on the right front, sending him into the Turn 15 escape road) had no real impact on his own qualifying - but did compound the misery of another French driver.
Ocon had three tenths in hand over team-mate Ollie Bearman coming into their final run in Q2, but couldn't match Bearman with his first effort after returning to the track - compromised by what he described as a "gust of wind", which seemingly sent him onto the outside kerb at Turn 16.
"And then I did the same laptime, again, \[before\] arriving to Turn 15\. I don't know who went off \[Hadjar\], but I had to back off on the exit to make sure that I was not going to get any penalty," he vented.
"I did exactly the same laptime. So yeah, I lost, what, three-four tenths? Unbelievable. You know, I just have no words. It's different race weekend, same s\*\*t. It's always something going on, on my side, if it's either the car, if it's something else, now yellow flag, safety cars, whatever.
"But I don't deserve all the s\*\*t that I have on my back at the moment. So I don't know, I might need to take a good shower." **\- VK**
## Winner: Alpine (7th & 10th)
Alpine took full advantage of Antonelli's absence to get both cars into Q3 - a good day for any midfield team when the top teams usually hog eight of the 10 spots at the top of the order.
Pierre Gasly managed to beat Max Verstappen - caveated by Verstappen's power issue, but still impressive - with his take being "great balance, great car, managed to get to Q3 pretty comfortably".
Franco Colapinto had more of a struggle, and his off into the Turn 15 run-off, blamed on a flatspot, also cost Gasly on his final flying lap. Gasly reckoned sixth-place qualifier Lewis Hamilton was also there for the taking without that.
A scruffy Q3, but it didn't matter, and Gasly's confident of keeping the rest of the 'midfield' behind. **\- JB**
## Loser: Sergio Perez (20th)
The opportunity was there but, in the words of Perez, Cadillac "needed everything to go our way" to bag its first Q2 appearance.
Everything did not go its way.
Perez said Cadillac had the "wrong programme" in terms of how he and team-mate Valtteri Bottas prepared their laps. That went further awry when Bottas, who was due to provide the tow, was called to the weighbridge.
Then Perez had his final lap wrecked by Fernando Alonso going up the escape road at the Turn 15 left-hander ahead of him (a chain of events that meant the Aston Martin outqualified the Cadillac). To add insult to injury, Perez has also been assessed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri.
The biggest shame is that we didn't get to see what Baku specialist Perez was capable of dragging out of the Cadillac. Because the form was there: 13th in FP2, 16th in FP3 - at the end of an eight-lap stint on the soft tyre on the latter occasion, too.
The positive for Perez and Cadillac is that this wasn't competitive reality setting in.
But not for the first time this season, they've probably been left frustrated by imperfections in their own execution. (To such an extent that a three-place grid drop for impeding Oscar Piastri doesn't make a great deal of difference.) **\- Jack Cozens**
## Winner: Oscar Piastri (3rd)
Although a front-row position was possible, as he was just one thousandth slower than Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, it was important for Piastri to get on top of McLaren team-mate Lando Norris after struggling in recent times.
Piastri described it as "not an easy weekend" for McLaren, so felt third on the grid was "a really good result".
Though he admitted that there have been some difficult laps amongst the good ones in Baku, overall he was encouraged with his own performance.
"On a personal level, I feel we've been building up well," said Piastri. "I was pretty happy with my laps in Q3." **\- ES**
## Loser: Arvid Lindblad (15th)
Racing Bulls's hopes of significant mid-weekend gains have not so far come to fruition - the car looked outmatched in qualifying relative to some of its usual opposition, and is at risk of a particularly bad points day on Saturday if the two Alpines ahead benefit from some classic Baku chaos.
But while Lawson simply lamented the deficit on the straights, saying that Racing Bulls drivers are "trying to make up time that is not really there", for team-mate Lindblad such a quiet Q2 exit felt particularly sour.
"I'm a bit frustrated, more at myself than anything just because I feel that I didn't do something special like I normally do at the end of these qualifyings to put us in the final part," he regretted, admitting that his Thursday crash has compounded a shortage of confidence on braking.
"It's not been a good day, it's not been a good week. I just need to understand why I haven't been on it." **\- VK**
### Why an F1 2026 standout regrets 'trying to be too special'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/scathing-lindblad-self-criticism-for-trying-to-be-too-special/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T16:18:31.000Z
Formula 1 rookie Arvid Lindblad delivered a scathing self-assessment of his performance so far at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and will adjust his approach after “trying to be too special”.
The Baku weekend is proving arguably the toughest of Lindblad’s impressive first season in F1 as he crashed heavily in FP2 then made several mistakes in qualifying, which he ended slowest of the Q2 runners - his second-worst result of the year.
Lindblad said the Racing Bulls car has been “bad on the brakes” all through practice and qualifying and “just not been fun to drive” but said he shouldered responsibility for misjudging how aggressive to be in practice and shattering his own confidence.
His FP2 shunt, which was a result of taking too much speed into the narrow castle section and slamming heavily into the wall on the outside, came after crashing in second practice at the last race in Madrid too.
It has left Lindblad running a slightly older specification of parts compared to team-mate Liam Lawson, too, after Racing Bulls debuted a new front wing here.
“I have no confidence, to be honest,” he said.
“Crashing yesterday, it doesn't help. I'm running a different car to Liam - as you'd expect when you crash, so that doesn't help.
“I've missed mileage as well, I missed the start of FP1, start of FP2 and then I crashed, I missed basically all the rest of it.
“I need to...I think there's stuff for me to learn on how to approach these weekends and manage them in a little bit of a better way because it's been two street circuits now where I've crashed in FP2 and hurt my trajectory to qualifying.
“We were struggling this weekend so probably Q3 wasn't possible but I definitely think if I'd managed things a little bit better we could have been in a better place going into this session and maybe, with a little bit of magic on my side, could have been in Q3.”
Lindblad said that not pulling something out of the bag was “what annoys me” most. He has started inside the top 10 for nine of the 14 grands prix – including the last seven in a row.
“I'm just mad at myself because, more than anything, in trying to be too special I've hurt my trajectory for when it matters and I haven't delivered in the moment,” he said.
“I enjoy being able to sort of switch off the brain and just send it when it matters and just go and have a bit of fun with it but this week I haven't really been able to do that and I think I could have just managed things in a better way to do that.”
Lawson was only 12th fastest on a weaker weekend for Racing Bulls than the fifth-placed team in the championship has come to expect this year.
He put that down to lacking engine performance compared to other teams in the midfield - and said that is partly where being on a knife-edge on the brakes has come from.
“We're just trying to make up time that is not really there and it's really tough,” said Lawson.
“Overall, if I look at my last lap of quali, it was the best lap I've done and with the right tow it would have been enough to get through to Q3, but that's pretty much everything going perfectly to plan and on a track like this that's obviously not happening for everybody.
“We've definitely struggled all weekend, it's been tough, but I think it's similar to Monza. These tracks with these really long straights we suffer a little bit more now than we did before.”
### Antonelli crashes in Baku qualifying as Russell takes crushing pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-azerbaijan-gp-qualifying-antonelli-crash-russell-crushing-pole/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T13:41:37.000Z
George Russell took Azerbaijan Grand Prix pole by eight tenths with a sensational lap, a massive boost given his Mercedes Formula 1 team-mate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli crashed and is due to start 16th in Baku.
The big drama unfolded with seven minutes left in Q1 as Antonelli whacked the inside wall at Turn 1 which immediately pointed the front left wheel in the wrong direction and punctured his tyre.
> ⏪ Rewind to Antonelli's moment at Turn 1 that ended his qualifying[#F1](https://x.com/hashtag/F1?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [#AzerbaijanGP](https://x.com/hashtag/AzerbaijanGP?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/3Nee1nEO7D](https://t.co/3Nee1nEO7D?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Formula 1 (@F1) [September 25, 2026](https://x.com/F1/status/2103461036347064380?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
Multiple exchanges followed as Antonelli wanted to continue and try to bring the car back to the Mercedes garage, but his engineer Peter Bonnington told Antonelli to stop the car as there would be no chance to repair it even if he made it back.
Antonelli eventually pulled over and had to watch the remainder of Q1 through a fence.
He had been sixth when the accident happened but fell all the way to 15th with late improvements, which was at least enough to secure passage to Q2 - meaning he is due to start 16th, pending any grid penalties.
Left to fend for himself as the only Mercedes in the pole fight, Russell set benchmarks on his second Q3 run relatively early in the session, starting the final runs with a 0.435s advantage over Charles Leclerc.
He extended that to 0.946s before Leclerc completed his final run, but the Ferrari drive could only reduce the gap to 0.837s. Only three cars were within a second of Russell on the day.
Oscar Piastri beat McLaren team-mate Lando Norris on the second-to-last run and then Norris had a massive lock-up at Turn 3 on his final pole shot to wipe him out of contention, allowing Piastri to take third - just one thousandth behind Leclerc in the end - ahead of one of the stars of the session, Isack Hadjar.
In his first qualifying session since injuring his wrist and missing the first three races after the summer break, Hadjar repeatedly traded fast times with team-mate Max Verstappen through qualifying and only missed out on third thanks to Piastri's late improvement.
Norris took fifth, his previous lap good enough to beat a struggling Lewis Hamilton, who complained of tyre-warm-up woes throughout qualifying in the second Ferrari.
Alpine driver Pierre Gasly beat Verstappen to seventh - it looked like FP3 pacesetter Verstappen had to bail on his final flying lap for a yellow flag and reported after the session he had been down on power.
The upgraded Williams of Carlos Sainz delivered the stunning feat of reaching Q3 for the first time this year, in what must be a massive boost back at Williams's Grove factory after such a rough first part of the year. Sainz's contribution can't be underestimated given Alex Albon was 13th in Q2.
Franco Colapinto rounded out the top 10 after a lock-up at Turn 15 hampered his chances.
## Haas's missed opportunity
Haas and Racing Bulls both lost their pair of cars in Q2, with the Alpines and Sainz making it through instead.
Ollie Bearman was knocked out at the very-last moment by Colapinto and had to settle for 11th, awaiting his first appearance in Q3 since the second round of the season in China in March.
His team-mate Esteban Ocon appeared to fare even worse as he'd regularly led Bearman and even run in the top 10 this weekend and in qualifying, but he had a lap deleted for track limits after going off at Turn 2 with his last flying run.
Liam Lawson and Albon split Bearman and Ocon, Albon a costly 0.372s adrift of team-mate Sainz, with Arvid Lindblad suffering a lap deletion for track limits at Turn 1, in 15th, ahead of Antonelli.
## Audi's upgraded car exits in Q1
On a weekend where it has brought a significant upgrade package to Baku, Audi had two cars out in Q1 for the first time this year - a nightmare for a team that has regularly challenged to lead the midfield this season.
Hulkenberg had a small chance to escape Q1 before Fernando Alonso visiting the Turn 15 runoff caused a yellow flag that hampered Hulkenberg's chances.
Alonso followed the two Audis, with Sergio Perez splitting the Aston Martins. Some may have expected the Ferrari-powered Cadillac to have an advantage over the Aston Martin-Honda, but Cadillac's apparent plan to give Perez a tow failed when Bottas had to go to the weighbridge, and Perez also had to abandon his final lap due to Alonso's off.
Bottas had his final laptime deleted as he set it under double-waved yellows, and completed the order in 22nd.
## Qualifying result
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m42.526s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.837s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.838s
4 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.974s
5 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.146s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +1.332s
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.521s
8 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +1.555s
9 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.040s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.437s
11 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.092s to Q3
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +0.177s
13 Alexander Albon (Williams) +0.318s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.333s
15 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.423s
16 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) no time
17 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.295s to Q2
18 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.416s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.089s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1.154s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.833s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.497s
### Azerbaijan Grand Prix qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/azerbaijan-grand-prix-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T13:07:33.000Z
George Russell took pole position by over eight tenths of a second in Azerbaijan Grand Prix Formula 1 qualifying in Baku.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli smacked the inside wall at Turn 1 in Q1 and broke his suspension - so could take no further part in qualifying, even if he nominally made Q2 by virtue of an earlier laptime.
## Session results
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m42.526s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.837s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.838s
4 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.974s
5 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.146s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +1.332s
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.521s
8 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +1.555s
9 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.040s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.437s
11 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.092s to Q3
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +0.177s
13 Alexander Albon (Williams) +0.318s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.333s
15 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.423s
16 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) no time
17 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.295s to Q2
18 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.416s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.089s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1.154s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.833s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.497s
### How F1 2026 team-mates are comparing in qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-f1-2026-team-mates-are-comparing-in-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T13:12:02.000Z
The 2026 Formula 1 season will allow each driver to compare themselves to their team-mate in full qualifying trim up to 30 times - 24 in grand prix qualifying, and six more in sprint qualifying.
Here's how this year's team-mate pairings are stacking up over one lap so far.
\*Right now, this is raw data. We've discounted comparisons only where one driver can't compete in qualifying. Further adjustments will be made with a large sample size to account for outliers.
## McLaren
### Lando Norris versus Oscar Piastri
**Head-to-head:** Norris 14 - Piastri 6
**Average gap:** Norris ahead by 0.060s
## Mercedes
### George Russell versus Kimi Antonelli
**Head-to-head:** Russell 9 - Antonelli 10
**Average gap:** Antonelli ahead by 0.108s
## Red Bull
### Max Verstappen versus Isack Hadjar
**Head-to-head:** Verstappen 11 - Hadjar 4
**Average gap:** Verstappen ahead by 0.174s
### Max Verstappen versus Liam Lawson
**Head-to-head:** Verstappen 3 - Lawson 0
**Average gap:** Verstappen ahead by 0.277s
## Ferrari
### Charles Leclerc versus Lewis Hamilton
**Head-to-head:** Leclerc 10 - Hamilton 10
**Average gap:** Leclerc ahead by 0.048s
## Williams
### Carlos Sainz versus Alex Albon
**Head-to-head:** Sainz 13 - Albon 4
**Average gap:** Sainz ahead by 0.240s
## Racing Bulls
### Liam Lawson versus Arvid Lindblad
**Head-to-head:** Lawson 9 - Lindblad 6
**Average gap:** Lawson ahead by 0.113s
### Yuki Tsunoda versus Arvid Lindblad
**Head-to-head:** Tsunoda 0 - Lindblad 4
**Average gap:** Lindblad ahead by 0.593s
## Aston Martin
### Fernando Alonso versus Lance Stroll
**Head-to-head:** Alonso 15 - Stroll 3
**Average gap:** Alonso ahead by 0.315s
## Haas
### Esteban Ocon versus Ollie Bearman
**Head-to-head:** Ocon 6 - Bearman 13
**Average gap:** Bearman ahead by 0.194s
## Audi
### Nico Hulkenberg versus Gabriel Bortoleto
**Head-to-head:** Hulkenberg 9 - Bortoleto 11
**Average gap:** Bortoleto ahead by 0.100s
## Alpine
### Pierre Gasly versus Franco Colapinto
**Head-to-head:** Gasly 14 - Colapinto 6
**Average gap:** Gasly ahead by 0.272s
## Cadillac
### Sergio Perez versus Valtteri Bottas
**Head-to-head:** Perez 11 - Bottas 8
**Average gap:** Perez ahead by 0.247s
### MotoGP finally reveals 2027 calendar with Argentina + Adelaide dates
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-2027-calendar-revealed-buenos-aires-adelaide-dates/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T10:42:04.000Z
MotoGP has finally announced its long-awaited 2027 calendar, with no major surprises coming from the 22-race schedule for the first year of its new 850cc era.
There is nevertheless some minor movement for some of the season's races, the addition of a new race in Argentina, and the Australian Grand Prix's move from Phillip Island to Adelaide.
The season will kick off, as previously announced, in Thailand on March 7, one week later than in 2026, and is currently scheduled to then head directly to Qatar a week later - although The Race's sources in the paddock believes that could be alternated with October's Indonesian GP should the geopolitical situation in the Middle East remain complicated.
The series will then move to Brazil on April 4, the first part of a double-header that will then take MotoGP back to Argentina for the inaugural race at Buenos Aires' Autodromo Oscar y Juan Galvez, before rounding out the American trip two weeks later at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas.
Jerez will, as usual, host the first European race on May 9, a week before the slightly later French Grand Prix at Le Mans. That will be followed by races at Mugello, Barcelona, Assen, Sachsenring and Brno before the summer break.
Action will resume at Silverstone in August, one week later than usual, before Austria returns to an August date. Misano, Aragon, and a rescheduled Portuguese Grand Prix at Portimao come next before the overseas leg.
Japan starts the flyaway action on October 17 ahead of Malaysia, Indonesia, and the new Adelaide parklands race in mid-November, before the championship heads back to Europe for the traditional conclusion at Valencia on November 28.
## 2027 MotoGP calendar
**March 7**: Thailand
**March 14**: Qatar
**April 4**: Brazil
**April 11**: Argentina
**April 25**: US
**May 9**: Spain
**May 16**: France
**May 30**: Italy
**June 13**: Barcelona
**June 27**: Netherlands
**July 11**: Germany
**July 18**: Czechia
**August 15**: Britain
**August 29**: Austria
**September 12**: San Marino
**September 19**: Aragon
**October 3**: Portugal
**October 17**: Japan
**October 24**: Malaysia
**October 31**: Indonesia
**November 14**: Adelaide
**November 28**: Valencia
### What happened in F1 2026 Azerbaijan GP final practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-f1-2026-azerbaijan-gp-final-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T09:59:08.000Z
Red Bull Formula 1 driver Max Verstappen headed Mercedes' George Russell by a tenth of a second in a busy final practice session for the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Thursday pacesetter Russell was the benchmark once again for much of FP3 in Baku, at one point heading Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli by six tenths of a second.
But Verstappen gradually chipped away at his best time as the session moved towards its conclusion. Having been more than a second off with his first attempt on softs, he split the Mercedes on his next attempt, got within a tenth of Russell after that, and finally set the session's best time, a 1m43.922s, with a small slipstream assist from Charles Leclerc's Ferrari.
Verstappen had been on course to go faster still as the chequered flag fell, on what was his 11th lap on that set of soft tyres, but he locked up and took to the runoff at the tight Turn 15 left-hander for a second time in the session.
Nevertheless, Verstappen still topped an FP3 session for the first time this season, with Russell - who had a late lock-up of his own and just avoided skating into the barrier at the Turn 7 right-hander - 0.099s down in second.
Russell's Mercedes was one of three cars that Lewis Hamilton was able to gain a slipstream from along the main straight as he jumped to third at the end of the session. Hamilton had spent some time in the garage prior to that while Ferrari inspected his front-left brake.
Championship leader Antonelli ended up fourth, 0.351s down, with Leclerc six tenths back in fifth and Monza polesitter Pierre Gasly jumping up to sixth late on for Alpine.
The McLarens again were not in the picture. Oscar Piastri complained mid-session of having "very low confidence" into the first corner but he was the faster McLaren in seventh thanks to a tow, a tenth and a half ahead of team-mate Lando Norris.
Isack Hadjar was 1.2s off Red Bull team-mate Verstappen in ninth, without a tow assist and complaining of traffic, with Franco Colapinto making it two Alpines in the top 10 - just ahead of Williams's Carlos Sainz.
But the midfield pack looked particularly congested. Just half a second covered 10th down to 17th, with Cadillac's Sergio Perez again in that mix. He was 16th, 2.082s off the pace.
That meant Alex Albon (Williams) and both Racing Bulls drivers were in the bottom six, with Fernando Alonso a mildly encouraging 2.590s off the pace for Aston Martin in 20th.
Despite the wind picking up and a number of drivers missing apexes, Alonso's team-mate Lance Stroll had the only real incident of note when he clipped the pitwall through the first corner.
He initially thought that had caused a puncture but was then asked to stop the car and took to the runoff beyond the Turn 4 left-hander.
## Results
1 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1m43.922s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.099s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.111s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.351s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.622s
6 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.715s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.824s
8 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.977s
9 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.254s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.670s
11 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.683s
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.770s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.932s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.996s
15 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +2.076s
16 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.082s
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.154s
18 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +2.300s
19 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +2.349s
20 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.590s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.665s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +5.357s
### F1 teams reject Hamilton idea to manage dangerous Baku closing speeds
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-rejects-hamiltons-idea-for-managing-dangerous-baku-closing-speeds/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T16:33:35.000Z
Lewis Hamilton’s idea to reduce the dangers of car tripping over each other in the final sequence of corners at Baku has been ruled out following resistance from Formula 1 teams.
The Ferrari driver has called for tweaks to the energy management rules at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix to avoid a repeat of the [near-miss situation](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-baku-problem-exposed-by-scary-hamilton-and-lawson-near-miss/) that he faced with Liam Lawson in practice on Thursday.
That incident, where Lawson had to take avoiding action at 300km/h to not hit the back of the Ferrari through the Turn 18/19 sweeps at Baku, exposed how a quirk with F1’s 2026 rules had increased risks of trouble.
With the current energy starved cars, the long flat-out run from Turn 16 to the start/finish line has triggered a big speed offset this weekend between those on out laps and those on timed runs.
This is because those preparing to go for a push lap want to conserve use of any battery until nearer the start-finish line, so they run through the high speed section at Turn 18/19 without any extra deployment.
Hamilton felt that closing speeds of 50km/h, plus the difficulty of judging gaps when running full throttle without maximum power, required a rethink on energy management.
During a hearing with the stewards on Thursday night to discuss the Lawson incident, for which Hamilton picked up a reprimand, he suggested that the FIA should mandate full use of energy until after Turn 19.
Hamilton said: “I said to them \[the stewards\] what they should do is on a single lap, when we're doing a push lap, we get max power out of the last corner.
“Then, when you come through \[Turn 19\], it resets, and you have a little bit more power in here. There should just be nobody going slow ever through \[Turns\] 18/19.”
The Race has learned that this suggestion was brought up with the FIA in Thursday night’s drivers’ briefing as a way to ensure that speed differentials were reduced in this particularly difficult area of the track.
However, despite being discussed, the idea did not gather support for implementation after teams felt that it was too late in the weekend to make such a dramatic shift in energy deployment patterns over the weekend.
A revision to battery usage on to the main straight would effectively have left teams needing to start their energy preparations from scratch, with just one hour of practice to go before qualifying.
F1 race director Rui Marques has already laid down a request to drivers who are on out laps to stay well off the racing line on the run between Turns 16 and 18 to avoid getting in the way.
Hamilton received a reprimand after FP2 for failing to follow this instruction and impeding Lawson as a result.
### F1 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix-practice-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T12:05:34.000Z
F1 is back in action in Baku, and practice is vital this weekend with so many teams bringing well-sized upgrade packages in a bid to move forward.
Here are the results you need to know.
## FP3
1 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1m43.922s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.099s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.111s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.351s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.622s
6 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.715s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.824s
8 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.977s
9 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.254s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.670s
11 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.683s
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.770s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.932s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.996s
15 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +2.076s
16 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.082s
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.154s
18 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +2.300s
19 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +2.349s
20 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.590s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.665s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +5.357s
## FP2
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m43.347s
2 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.552s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.827s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.126s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +1.318s
6 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.484s
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.496s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.510s
9 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.521s
10 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.943s
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.132s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +2.334s
13 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.413s
14 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +2.447s
15 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +2.507s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.776s
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.874s
18 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +3.044s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.390s
20 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +3.454s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +4.056s
22 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +4.542s
## FP1
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m45.387s
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.400s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.404s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.437s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.878s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.011s
7 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.053s
8 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.214s
9 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.237s
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.301s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.484s
12 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.506s
13 Alex Albon (Williams) +1.552s
14 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.594s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.607s
16 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.656s
17 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1.866s
18 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.136s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.448s
20 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +2.486s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.160s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.928s
### The Baku problem exposed by scary Hamilton and Lawson near-miss
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-baku-problem-exposed-by-scary-hamilton-and-lawson-near-miss/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T17:59:23.000Z
Lewis Hamilton's reprimand for impeding Liam Lawson during second practice at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has exposed one of the big dangers with Formula 1's 2026 rules around the Baku track.
The Ferrari driver was deemed by the FIA stewards to have been guilty of "severe" impeding as he got in the way of his Racing Bulls rival through the high-speed Turn 18/19 sweeps in Baku.
Lawson had to hit the brakes and take avoiding action at 300km/h (186mph) to avoid the dawdling Hamilton. The New Zealander expressed his shock about things on the team radio straight after.
"Oh my God. That is so f\*\*king dangerous," declared Lawson, prior to the incident being deemed serious enough to warrant the stewards' intervention later.
The situation is an unusual one though, because it was triggered not by the normal inattention to faster cars that happens frequently in practice.
Instead, it revolved around a fundamental risk point that teams and drivers were aware of ahead of this weekend thanks to the energy starved 2026 cars and the Baku layout.
The speed differential between the Ferrari and Racing Bulls was not because one of them was going flat out and the other was cruising around off the throttle. Both were flat out at that point.
However, Hamilton was only going 250km/h against Lawson's 300km/h because his power unit was in a mode known as 'auto-k', where the battery is not being deployed and he is only running on the internal combustion engine.
That happens in this area of the track because teams do not want to waste any more battery energy than is necessary before the timing line.
Instead, there is a set point on the straight after Turn 19 where the MGU-K will kick in and deliver the power boost for maximum power and perfect top speed when the lap starts.
Teams and drivers knew before they arrived in Baku that the speed offsets between cars on out-laps – so not using battery early – and those pushing on maximum deployment would exist.
That is why F1 race director Rui Marques on Thursday morning issued revised event notes to try to avoid a situation where the speed mismatch risked a collision through the Turn 18/19 sequence.
Marques had demanded that drivers on out or slow laps should keep to the extreme left from the exit of Turn 16 to Turn 18, and then manage the gaps to cars behind to avoid the risk of being caught in the middle of the turns.
In theory the idea was good, but in practice it proved hard to act upon as teams faced an uphill battle in learning the kind of gaps needed.
Hamilton thought that the buffer he and Ferrari had left Lawson was enough, but they were proved wrong.
"I was four seconds ahead basically and I went into the last corner pushing," he explained. "I could see him. I thought the gap was enough. I got into full throttle. And then literally, as we got into \[Turn\] 18, it's like the car just died, and he swamped up the gap massively. That could happen to anyone."
Lawson had some sympathy with the situation Hamilton had found himself in, as he reckoned that expecting drivers to back off before Turn 18 to avoid trouble was potentially even more dangerous.
"If you slow down before Turn 18 to let a car go, that's fine if you let that guy go," he said. "But if there is somebody else pushing behind like in my situation, you are going to be doing 100km/h and I'm going to be doing nearly 300km/h.
"If you're that car in front and you get on power and you have nothing, it's a really scary feeling because you can't even get out of the way."
During the stewards' hearing to investigate the incident, they noted that Hamilton had not kept off-line on the run between Turns 16 and 18\. And while they felt that there had been no intent by Hamilton to block Lawson the situation had been "severe" so deserved something greater than a warning.
But because the energy management headaches in that area that both drivers raised were taken into account, Hamilton was given a reprimand rather than anything more serious.
Hamilton reckoned, however, that teams and drivers should be given better guidelines by the FIA about gaps needed to fast cars approaching – something he said he planned to bring up in Thursday night's drivers' briefing.
"When you come into the weekend, there's no data or simulations to say, OK, when you come to the last corner and you go to full throttle and you have 500bhp less than the car behind you on the lap, this is the gap you need to have before they get on you," he said.
"So I think it's having clearer guidelines from them \[the FIA\], because none of us drivers want to get in trouble."
Hamilton reckoned a better solution, which he had told the stewards, was that they should mandate maximum deployment through Turns 18/19, to prevent there being big speed differentials between cars.
"I said to them what they should do is on a single lap, when we're doing a push lap, we get max power out of the last corner," he said.
"Then, when you come through \[Turn 19\], it resets, and you have a little bit more power in here. There should just be nobody going slow ever through \[Turns\] 18/19."
### F1's latest plan for where to end its 2026 season
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/whats-going-on-with-f1s-uncertain-final-2026-races/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T18:01:06.000Z
Preparations are being made at Imola in case Formula 1 needs to switch its season finale venue but the intention is to continue with races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
F1 is waiting to see how events unfold in the Middle East given the ongoing conflict that forced the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian GPs earlier this year.
At the end of July F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said that "if the situation will not be cleared the way that we believe it should be before the middle of September, we will take the decision".
However, after it was discussed in the F1 Commission on Monday this week, teams are expecting to get an answer by mid-October.
This is the point at which the situation needs to be settled for logistical reasons – even sea freight to Qatar by that point will be cutting it fine for a race at the end of November.
F1 wants to hold the Qatar and Abu Dhabi races as planned and currently preparations for those events continue on the expectation they will go ahead.
But the championship cannot afford for this to change at short notice and leave it without a contingency for a finale after the Las Vegas round on November 21.
That means it has readied a Plan B, understood to be Imola - and work has started to ensure the Italian circuit is able to host a race if needed.
F1 will cover the costs of this work – which includes setting up grandstands – if a switch to Imola does not happen, to guarantee there is a ready-to-go alternative it can turn to if required.
"I believe that Imola is getting ready in case we have to do it," said Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu.
"I think the challenges are, for instance, things like European motorhome structure, etc – all those people who look after them, they have a winter job, so we need to find alternative people to do that."
Audi boss Mattia Binotto also played down the weather concerns over a December race in Italy.
He said that while there may be talk about "snow tyres" in wintertime "as a matter of fact, the average temperature in Imola in that time of the year is hotter than \[when F1 races in\] Las Vegas".
"So I don't think that's a true concern," Binotto added. "It's more from the organisation and the logistics, really.
"And mid-October, hopefully we may do the right decision."
### Cadillac unveils major F1 hires who worked at top teams
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cadillac-unveils-major-f1-hires-who-worked-at-top-teams/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T15:21:21.000Z
Cadillac has revealed it has made three high-profile appointments with experience in Formula 1’s top teams.
One of them is its new chief development engineer Craig Skinner, who departed Red Bull earlier this year after 20 years with the team.
Skinner helped build Red Bull into a championship-winning force, and at Cadillac he will “provide technical direction across the development process, supporting the connection between car concept, aerodynamic design, analysis and delivery”.
He’ll report to chief technical officer Nick Chester, who was one of Cadillac’s first major signings before it had even secured an F1 entry.
Another new hire is Eric Blandin, who held senior aero roles at Ferrari and Mercedes before joining Aston Martin as deputy technical director under Dan Fallows.
But by 2025 he was [out as part of an Adrian Newey-led reshuffle](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-drops-aero-chief-and-f1-car-designer-in-newey-led-overhaul/) of the team’s technical department, with seven exits.
Blandin joins Cadillac as its new head of aerodynamics, also reporting to CTO Chester.
The third hire is Cadillac’s new chief engineer for aerodynamics modelling and simulation, Tim Lean.
Lean joins with a combined 20 years of experience working for McLaren, Red Bull and Ferrari.
He will report into new aerodynamics head Blandin.
New team boss Marcin Budkowski called the hires a “vital step in the technical evolution of the team.”
“Bringing together experienced leadership across development, aerodynamics and modelling will help us create a stronger integrated technical organisation and improve performance on track. Craig, Eric and Tim bring race and championship-winning experience to Cadillac F1 in areas that are central to our long-term development.”
### Winners and losers from Baku F1 Friday practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-baku-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-25T09:38:53.000Z
The Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend has begun with Mercedes in early-2026 form, in both pace and reliability.
Here's how teams up and down the grid stacked up on this rare Thursday of track action - and what they had to say afterwards.
## Winner: George Russell (1st)
Mercedes insists the gap is not "representative" because it managed more proper push laps than its immediate rivals and "every timed lap you did, the laptimes were improving".
Even so, Russell is in as strong a position as you really can be coming out of practice day, with a car that seems to have an edge of some degree and a team-mate who is on the back foot due to unreliability (and anyway should be super-happy to settle for second if it comes to that).
"George was pretty sick here last year and finished P2," pointed out Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord.
"He goes well at every circuit \[but\] this is one where traditionally he's had some really strong results, and that's what you're looking for as a team - if one car hits trouble, the other one's right up there and leading the way." **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Loser: McLaren (6th and 8th)
This was an inauspicious first outing for McLaren's major bodywork upgrade - as it had to execute some slightly makeshift engineering work on it during practice, and was mileage-limited in FP1.
McLaren, though, is wholly convinced the upgrade is performing as anticipated, and Lando Norris, who was ultimately the quicker of its two drivers (1.5s off the pace, and 0.026s up on Oscar Piastri), says the car felt good.
But, as Norris also said: "We're just... miles off the pace. So, yeah...
"We're at a slow-speed track with a very long straight. Mercedes is quicker than us in every slow-speed corner, as we expect, and they're quicker than us in the straights, as we expect.
"I think that nothing's a surprise. Maybe the size \[of the gap\] is. But I said yesterday I don't expect to be that great here. Of course, I hoped to be better than my expectation. But I don't think it's a surprise." **\- VK**
## Winner: Pierre Gasly (7th)
If Pierre Gasly can end Saturday (that's race day, remember!) where he finished today, he'll be very happy indeed as he split the McLarens in FP2.
"I'm very pleased," said Gasly. "What I've felt gives me some good confidence for tomorrow."
Audi has brought a sizeable upgrade package here and Racing Bulls is always a threat, but Alpine has started the weekend as the midfield car to beat - at least in Gasly's hands. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Loser: Audi (14th and 15th) and Williams (16th and 17th)
An uninspiring start for both of these teams, ending up behind Sergio Perez’s Cadillac in FP2 despite having brought substantial upgrade packages to this race.
Gabriel Bortoleto ran the almost front-to-back new Audi parts in both sessions and reported after FP2 that the car "didn't feel amazing in FP2 if I'm very honest, we're lacking a little bit of grip", while team-mate Nico Hulkenberg was just under a tenth further off - having run the old parts in FP1 before a gearbox problem curtailed his running.
Over at Williams there’s a lot riding on the new lightweight chassis, which Carlos Sainz reported "feels a bit quicker" - but he was half a second down on the leading Cadillac in FP2, following a brake fire in FP1.
With Williams having stood still for so long, Sainz feels even a better-sorted version of this new car is only likely to lift Williams back to being a Q2 regular.
"If we want bigger steps, we’re going to have to wait for next year". **\- Ben Anderson**
## Winner: Esteban Ocon (10th)
Yesterday it emerged Esteban Ocon was all but out at Haas for next year, likely to be replaced by Rafa Camara.
While a strong day of practice won't make up for that, he started the weekend very well to run ninth and 10th respectively in the two practice sessions.
"I didn't even push that much and I got a good feel, and it's working on the laptime," said Ocon.
"The car seems to be healthy for the moment. We've seen from one day to the other that it could change, so hopefully we are not going to make it worse on that second day."
He added it was "very nice to drive" and "much better" than last year, when he "couldn't brake at all".
His comments do give a certain feeling of someone not needing to keep his team happy anymore! But we're here for the honest take. **\- JB**
## Loser: Arvid Lindblad (18th)
Make that a second time in two weekends that Lindblad has junked his car on the opening day of running - this time with a slightly unconventional crash in the castle section (normally you see cars go nose-first into the outside wall there, rather than side-on for two impacts).
"He feels he was 1mm too far to the right. I'd say he was probably 20mm too far - but we can argue about what that number is!" chuckled team chief Alan Permane.
"He was up quite a lot on that lap - and he just went a bit too far."
It's less than ideal, also remembering that the Madring practice crash did influence his confidence through the weekend, and the sole remaining Racing Bulls car wasn't massively fast in the afternoon in Liam Lawson's hands - but ultimately it's no disaster.
"We're OK," reckoned Permane. "We're where we think we were. We've certainly got a bit of time to find. But no more than normal between a P2 and a P3 session.
"We've made some changes between P1 and P2\. And maybe they weren't quite in the right direction." **\- VK**
## Winner: Sergio Perez (13th)
"I think we are ahead here," said Valtteri Bottas, when asked how Cadillac compared to Aston Martin at the end of FP2.
The laptimes overwhelmingly back up that opinion. But Bottas's team-mate Perez might well have his sights set a little higher still.
The ADUO 2 Ferrari engine is definitely providing an assist here - reckoned to be worth around two tenths - but a tow can make or break your qualifying; Cadillac chief racing officer Marc Hynes said tows are "everything here".
Perez certainly got a tow from Oscar Piastri on his fastest lap, which put him an eye-catching 11th at the time and was still good enough for 13th come the end of the session. But you can never underestimate Perez's brilliance here, too.
Competitive gravity might come into play in qualifying, and make this look like a flattering outlier. But practice form suggests that if Perez can string everything together - and conjure up a bit more of his Baku magic - then Cadillac's in with a shot of its first Q2 appearance in F1. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Loser: Lewis Hamilton (5th)
Lewis Hamilton was accused of getting in the way in Madring practice on multiple occasions and hit the headlines for it again here in Baku as he's been summoned to the stewards for alleged impeding.
Lawson - back in at Racing Bulls after his Red Bull stint subbing for Isack Hadjar - was furious when he caught Hamilton in the esses approaching the final straight - but did soften his stance in his comments after the session, sympathetic to the closing speeds created by the battery-thirsty 2026 cars.
Hamilton reckoned he was four seconds ahead initially but "as we got into \[Turn\] 18, it's like the car just died, and he \[Lawson\] swamped up the gap massively - and that could happen to anyone".
Hamilton's view is everyone should have access to full power and have to be on full throttle in that section, whether on a fast lap or not. He reckons this will be raised in the drivers' briefing.
As for the actual performance, it was nothing to shout about from Ferrari. "For some reason we're just lacking speed," Hamilton said, while team boss Fred Vasseur says the times were "very up and down". **\- JB**
### What happened in second Azerbaijan GP F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-second-azerbaijan-gp-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T13:10:31.000Z
George Russell continued his strong start to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend by setting the fastest time in second practice, well clear of Mercedes team-mate and Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli.
Russell’s Mercedes and the Red Bull of Max Verstappen traded fastest times in the early part of the session with McLaren’s Lando Norris on the Baku City street circuit, before Russell bolted on a set of soft tyres for a qualifying simulation.
But that run was cut short on Russell’s out-lap when F1 rookie Arvid Lindblad clouted the wall with his Racing Bulls’ right rear tyre while navigating the narrow castle section.
As the red flags came out to clear up that shunt, the order stood as Verstappen, Russell, Norris, Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari, Isack Hadjar’s Red Bull - making up for missing most of FP1 to an engine problem - and Charles Leclerc.
After the session resumed Russell was the first driver to lap below 1m44s, cutting the timing beam at 1m43.7s to lead the way by four tenths from Verstappen, who earlier had complained of “constantly counter-steering” his upgraded Red Bull because “my rear axle is coming off the ground”.
Russell shaved a further four tenths off to finish the session with a 1m43.347s best, despite needing to swerve around Gabriel Bortoleto’s slow Audi on the final straight.
This section has been flagged already as an area of particular danger this weekend, especially when cars on hot laps come across those on cool-down/battery recharge laps.
Liam Lawson encountered Hamilton’s Ferrari in precisely this scenario through the kinks at the start of that section and Hamilton will be investigated by the stewards after the session for what Lawson called "dangerous" driving.
Having missed a large chunk of FP1 to a hydraulic problem on his Mercedes, Antonelli looked a step behind Russell in FP2 and finished up over half a second off the pace - having eventually slotted his Mercedes between Russell and Verstappen’s Red Bull in the times.
Verstappen was just under three tenths clear of Leclerc’s Ferrari, with Hamilton just under two tenths further back, and the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in sixth and eighth, split by Italian GP pole winner Pierre Gasly’s Alpine - all three on a 1m44.8s.
Returnee Hadjar ended the session ninth in the other Red Bull, also on a 1m44.8s, while soon-to-be ex-Haas driver Esteban Ocon rounded out the top 10.
Franco Colapinto’s Alpine and Lawson’s Racing Bulls were next, just ahead of Sergio Perez, who made good use of a tow from Piastri’s McLaren and Ferrari’s latest ADUO 2 engine upgrade - reckoned to be worth 0.2s by Perez’s Cadillac team-mate Valtteri Bottas - to set the 13th quickest time.
That put the lead Cadillac ahead of both Audis, both Williamses, Lindblad’s crumpled Racing Bulls, Bottas, the broken down Haas of Ollie Bearman and the two Aston Martin-Hondas.
### What we learned about Chadwick's Williams F1 test debut
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/jamie-chadwick-first-woman-in-11-years-to-drive-williams-f1-car/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T16:28:09.000Z
Jamie Chadwick has become the first woman in more than a decade to drive a contemporary Williams Formula 1 car, having recently completed a test at Portimao.
Chadwick drove 32 laps behind the wheel of Williams's 2025 car on Monday September 21, her first taste of modern F1 machinery.
The Race heard from Chadwick after the test to find out how it went.
### Why it's finally happened now
The F1 test took place as part of Williams's Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) programme that currently allows teams to use pre-2026 machinery in up to 20 test days across the year, with race drivers limited to 1000km total mileage.
Not every team has a TPC programme, but Williams was able to start its own last year, and that was crucial to Chadwick's opportunity.
Chadwick had previously demonstrated historic Williams cars at Goodwood, such as Nigel Mansell's championship-winning FW14B car (1992) and Keke Rosberg's title-winning FW08 (1982).
But this marked Chadwick's first proper F1 test, her having joined Williams in 2019, first as a junior driver, then later transitioning into being a driver ambassador.
"Obviously I've been with the team for a long time now, but only since last year Williams had a TPC \[programme\] so there's never really been an obvious opportunity to do anything," Chadwick told media including The Race after the test.
"To be honest, I think having now experienced it, I don't think there was an obvious opportunity anyway. I think the level I was at doing everything that I was doing, it didn't necessarily align."
### Wolff inspiration
Susie Wolff - who participated in several practice sessions for Williams in 2014 and 2015 - was the last woman to drive a Williams before Chadwick.
"I remember being young and watching Susie Wolff step into a Williams F1 car and how much that inspired my own journey," Chadwick said.
"I'd love to be able to do the same for the next generation, and the experience I gained will make a real difference both to my own racing and to what I can pass on to the drivers coming through.
"I'm so grateful and incredibly happy with how the day went."
Chadwick said she had coffee with Wolff the week before her F1 test bow.
"I keep saying I remember clearly the day she did her test and the impact that had on my journey, 11 years later, being sat speaking with her about me doing a test felt quite surreal," Chadwick said.
"Everyone said the same thing, but 'just go out and enjoy it. Rest your neck. Don't even try and hold it up. Don't crash. Just have fun.' So, yes, obviously took all of those bits of advice, and definitely \[they\] helped a lot."
Williams team principal James Vowles called Chadwick "an inspiration for millions of women and girls, who has broken records at every level" and said she had "thoroughly earned this F1 test opportunity".
The F1 test adds to Chadwick's CV, which includes three W Series titles and race wins in IndyCar's support series [Indy NXT](https://www.the-race.com/indycar/jamie-chadwick-indycar-proving-critics-wrong-first-indy-nxt-win/) and the LMP2 class in the European Le Mans Series.
Alongside being a team ambassador for Williams, Chadwick also advises Williams-backed young driver Jade Jacquet in F1 Academy and French Formula 4, where Jacquet recently became a race winner.
Chadwick is one of only three women to drive an F1 car in the 2020s, after F1 Academy champion [Doriane Pin](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pin-makes-landmark-f1-test-debut-with-mercedes/) (Mercedes, 2026) and [Jessica Hawkins](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/advancing-beyond-landmark-f1-test-looks-tricky-jessica-hawkins/) (Aston Martin, 2023).
### Sainz advice
Chadwick got advice ahead of the test from Williams's race drivers Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz.
"I was lucky enough to speak to both of them. Carlos I happened to bump into the day before," Chadwick said.
"Actually the best advice he gave, which is the bit I took the most, was 'find a laptime or find a pace where you're enjoying it and you're comfortable and you're having fun and then just stick to that'.
"That's exactly what I did. I didn't overdo it; I didn't try and put myself in a position where my neck was going to be left somewhere in Portimao.
"For that reason, I think I really did get the most out of it and enjoy it. So some good advice for sure."
### Learning for Williams
The test will be used as a feature for Sky Sports F1's Azerbaijan Grand Prix coverage, but - as a whole two-day test, with reserve driver Luke Browning at the wheel on the first day - it will also provide important learnings for Williams ahead of F1 returning to the Portuguese Grand Prix at Portimao next year.
"Jamie gathered important data for the team as F1 prepares to return to Portimao next year, and her feedback and performance were impressive as we knew they would be," Vowles said.
The track has changed since the last time F1 raced there, and Chadwick has experience of it from racing in an LMP2 car in the European Le Mans Series there.
### How fast was Chadwick?
Chadwick had less than half of a race distance behind the wheel and headline laptimes were not the target of the TPC test.
But Vowles hinted at where Chadwick ended up relative to Browning, telling Sky Sports F1 that Chadwick was within a couple of seconds of Browning's benchmark.
Vowles said: "That is a very good place to be on the first outing."
Chadwick said: **"**I pushed enough to enjoy it. I didn't go crazy. I mean, corners like Turn 1, for example, super high speed and you're always going to have a bit of margin there...\[you don't\] want to put the thing in the fence.
"So I was pushing enough to get a good feel for it and enjoy it, but obviously kept enough margin. I did 30 or so laps, so not loads and loads to even find myself anywhere near the limit.
"Even finding the limit is giving me more appreciation...I think to get within a second or half a second in a car like that is one thing, but that final bit - when the speeds are that high and the limit is that black and white - is super impressive."
### How MotoGP's brake masters are preparing for 2027's massive change
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/how-motogp-brake-masters-preparing-2027-massive-change/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T12:13:39.000Z
Presented by Brembo
MotoGP is bracing for one of the biggest changes in the championship's history in 2027, with the debut of the new 850cc bikes and the switch to Pirelli tyres from the Michelins in use right now.
Teams, manufacturers, riders and suppliers are all hard at work, day after day, test after test, in an effort to prepare as best as possible for the upcoming season. And this includes Brembo - which, as the exclusive brake supplier to all MotoGP teams, has to tailor its offerings to five all-new bikes from five different manufacturers.
The bikes, and the tyres they will use, remain a moving target. "We have to collect more data," admits Brembo's MotoGP Racing Market Manager Andrea Pellegrini - but by and large Brembo knows what to expect from the new formula.
"For sure the performance \[of the bikes\] will be lower - because the target is this. To reduce the top speed. So for sure the effort will be lower, less demanding on the brakes," he said.
"For the moment we keep the same configuration of disc. Maybe the 355mm \[diameter, the largest on offer\] finned disc will be not used - maybe not for next year but 2028.
"It depends on how the evolution of the bike will be in the first year."
The standard-mass 355mm carbon disc is still in the picture, and it is complicated to forecast how much braking demand will evolve between now and the end of the first campaign - especially as manufacturers are already showing they will push the boundaries of the new regulations.
"I know some teams have some ideas...there is a reduction in aerodynamics \[in the regulations\], but they are discovering other parts of the bike where they can put aerodynamic parts."
While the offering in terms of disc diameter will stay consistent, Brembo is also introducing a new, lighter caliper.
"I don't know if all the teams will choose this configuration - because the bike \[overall\] is lighter compared to this one," Pellegrini explained. "Let me say 90% of the teams are interested in this new caliper."
Ultimately, though Brembo is the supplier to all the teams, the target is to give all the participants as many options as possible. It is currently collecting data from each of the factories for the 850cc switch.
"And we don't share it with the others! So it's a sort of NDA we have with all the teams," Pellegrini laughed.
"It's just for our analysis and to understand how to develop the brake system for the future."
This also applies to race weekends. "We have a sort of remote garage in Brembo - so after every race weekend, we check all the data and we make a proper report to the teams in order to give the teams the right way to follow.
"In the past, OK, we gave some information not to go over 1000 degrees, for example. Now, we can suggest to the team, in each corner, the temperature of the discs.
"So we have a sort of map, a working map, for the teams - because the operating temperature is between 200, 250, 300 degrees to 1000, but it depends on the energy you are putting in. So we create a sort of map, and the team may learn a lot from this, how to properly use the discs.
"Now, if you are in the correct working map, the performance of the brakes is good from the beginning to the end of the race. It's important for the rider to get this feeling from the start of the race."
There's variance among the riders, too - crucially in terms of whether they brake with two fingers or favour the increasingly in-vogue one-finger technique.
"We also introduced other smaller things I can't tell you about but in order to help the rider - because we want to help every rider," added Pellegrini.
"We have a small solution that can help a lot the feeling of the rider \[depending on how many fingers they use\].
"So it's our target, our goal, to give every rider the best solution to customise the brakes to each rider."
Otherwise, though, the braking approach is increasingly uniform among the grid - and the preferred specification of brakes tends to be set in stone already before you hit the track.
"Now we're more or less on the same line," Pellegrini says of rider preferences. "OK, we have different master cylinder sizes, but just because some riders brake with one finger, so they can achieve less force.
"But let me say, now they are riding with the same style - but because it's also the bike that needs this sort of riding style."
### F1 owner Liberty shakes up senior roles at MotoGP with key new hires
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/f1-owner-liberty-shakes-up-senior-roles-at-motogp-with-key-new-hires/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T10:36:24.000Z
Liberty Media has shaken up MotoGP's senior roles by hiring new personnel with previous experience from across Formula 1 and other sports both in North America and Europe.
F1 owner Liberty completed its acquisition of MotoGP parent company Dorna Sports in July last year in a deal reported to be over $4.5 billion USD.
The first role move is that of chief commercial officer, which has been vacant since former NBA executive Dan Rossomondo departed after only a short spell in the role. He will be replaced by Ryan Norys, who currently serves as chief revenue officer at English Premier League football team Tottenham Hotspur.
His departure has been described as a major blow to the team. Norys’s four years in his role included helping Spurs move into its new stadium - although it’s been reported that, with a lengthy notice period to serve, it could be months before he is in his MotoGP position.
The media team will be strengthened by the appointment of Sameer Pabari, who leaves his role as managing director of international media at the NFL and brings experience of working as director of media at Manchester United and as vice president of business development at Discovery.
Denitza Batchvarova joins from UFC and WWE owner TKO, where she held the role of executive vice president for strategy and corporate finance.
Perhaps most interesting is the appointment of Louise Young, who joins as chief operating officer.
She previously spent eight years working at F1, most recently as chief race promotion officer. That's a role she is likely to bring key experience from, as MotoGP prepares for a future calendar shake-up including changes such as the planned replacement of Phillip Island with a new parklands circuit in Adelaide for 2027.
"These appointments are an important step in building the team that will help shape MotoGP’s future,” said MotoGP deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta in announcing the new hires.
“Ryan, Sameer, Louise and Denitza bring hugely valuable experience from leading sports and entertainment organisations that will strengthen our commercial, media, operations and strategy capabilities.
“Together with our existing team, they will help us deepen our connection with our fans, reach new audiences and create new opportunities for our existing and new commercial partners, building on the strong foundations of the sport."
### The 2027 F1 grid: Every confirmed driver
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/2027-f1-grid-every-confirmed-driver/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T17:04:14.000Z
The 2027 grid so far hasn't brought the seismic changes some expected, but there are still some interesting vacancies.
Below you'll find the confirmed seats for F1 2027 so far.
## McLaren
**Lando Norris**
**Oscar Piastri**
Lando Norris recently signed a [new deal ](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-extends-mclaren-f1-contract-2030-at-least/)keeping him at McLaren until "at least 2030" with options to extend beyond then, while Oscar Piastri has a contract in place that should keep him at the team unti the end of 2028\.
## Mercedes
**George Russell\***
**Kimi Antonelli\***
George Russell and Kimi Antonelli were only [confirmed for 2026 in October 2025](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-2026-f1-driver-lineup-russell-antonelli-contracts-verstappen/), and nothing beyond 2026 was communicated within that announcement, although The Race understands both drivers have multi-year deals with various options that can be triggered for extensions.
So while not officially confirmed for 2027, there's no reason to believe the line-up will change.
## Red Bull
**Max Verstappen**
**Isack Hadjar**
Back in 2022, Max Verstappen [signed a deal ](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/an-easy-decision-verstappens-f1-deal-to-2028-explained/)to keep him at Red Bull until 2028 and ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix he extended that deal to 2030.
Verstappen's new 2026 team-mate Isack Hadjar received a new deal announced just before his return after a wrist injury, in Baku.
## Ferrari
**Charles Leclerc**
**Lewis Hamilton**
Charles Leclerc signed a bumper long-term deal in January 2024 for "several more seasons" and signed an extension to that earlier this year, which will keep him at Ferrari well beyond 2027.
Lewis Hamilton should remain for a third year.
## Williams
**Carlos Sainz**
**Alex Albon**
Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon committed to racing for Williams in 2027 on the eve of the Dutch GP.
## Racing Bulls
**TBC**
**TBC**
Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad are Racing Bulls' driver pairing for 2026, but neither knows if they'll be continuing into 2027 yet.
## Aston Martin
**Lance Stroll\***
**TBC**
Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin contract expires at the end of 2026, while Lance Stroll's place for 2027 isn't confirmed; he's expected to remain.
## Haas
### Ollie Bearman\*
TBC
Ollie Bearman has an option at Haas for 2027, while Esteban Ocon is expected to leave the team at the end of the 2026 campaign.
## Audi
**Nico Hulkenberg**
**Gabriel Bortoleto**
Both Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto signed for Audi on "multi-year" deals back in 2024\. At the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in September 2026, Mattia Binotto said both drivers were contracted at the team for 2027 and that Audi didn't even feel the need to announce the fact. Secure!
## Alpine
**Pierre Gasly**
**Franco Colapinto**
Midway through 2025, Pierre Gasly's Alpine deal was extended through to the end of 2028.
Franco Colapinto's form was rewarded with a new deal for 2027, just prior to the Italian GP in September 2026.
## Cadillac
**Sergio Perez**
**Valtteri Bottas**
Cadillac's first F1 driver line-up of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas both signed up for the team on "multi-year" deals from 2026.
### 2027 F1 grid so far
**McLaren**: Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri
**Mercedes**: Kimi Antonelli and George Russell\*
**Red Bull**: Isack Hadjar and Max Verstappen
**Ferrari**: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc
**Williams**: Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz
**Racing Bulls**: TBC
**Aston Martin**: Lance Stroll\* and TBC
**Haas**: Ollie Bearman and TBC
**Audi**: Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg
**Alpine**: Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly
**Cadillac**: Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez
\*yet to be officially confirmed
### What happened in F1 2026 Azerbaijan GP first practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-f1-2026-azerbaijan-gp-first-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T10:02:23.000Z
George Russell was fastest in a first Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice session in which Mercedes Formula 1 team-mate Kimi Antonelli stopped on track and both McLaren drivers spent an extended spell in the garage.
In what was a disrupted first hour of running on the Baku street circuit, Russell set the fastest time - a 1m45.387s - midway through the session, with the aid of a tow from the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso along the final straight.
That put Russell exactly four tenths up on Max Verstappen, who set his fastest time of the session on his third timed attempt on the single set of soft tyres he and Red Bull used, with Charles Leclerc a mere 0.004s further back - the Ferrari having been marginally up on Russell's Mercedes at the end of the second sector.
Lewis Hamilton was fourth in the second Ferrari, with Antonelli's initial hard-tyre time good enough for fifth despite stopping inside the first half of the session.
Antonelli had been fastest at that point and was preparing for his first run on the soft tyre when he came to a stop in the runoff area past the Turn 7 right-hander, citing a loss of hydraulic pressure.
Oscar Piastri moved up to sixth right at the end of FP1, with he and team-mate Lando Norris both forced to spend time in the McLaren garage while the team checked its upgraded MCL40s.
Both cars were eventually sent back out, with a close-up of Norris's McLaren showing a makeshift hold on its bargeboard arrangement. Norris completed 14 laps, setting the 14th-fastest time.
Racing Bulls had both cars in the top 10\. Liam Lawson, on his return to that cockpit after his three-race stand-in spell at Red Bull, was seventh ahead of Arvid Lindblad - who caused a yellow flag late in the session when he stopped at Turn 7 and had to reverse out.
Esteban Ocon - who as reported by The Race is [set to lose his drive](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/esteban-ocon-set-for-haas-f1-exit-what-we-know-replacement-favourite/) at the end of the season - was ninth for Haas and briefly stopped in the pit exit in the final two minutes of the session.
Gabriel Bortoleto completed the top 10 ahead of Audi team-mate Nico Hulkenberg. He also stopped in the final minutes and had to have his R26 wheeled behind the barriers.
Williams duo Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon were 12th and 13th in the [upgraded FW48](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-f1-upgrade-baku-chassi-revolution-worrying/).
Isack Hadjar's return to the Red Bull cockpit following his recovery from a wrist injury was a truncated one. He'd completed just eight laps when he complained of "something really wrong with the engine", after which Red Bull asked him to use second gear only and return to the pits - from which he did not emerge.
Hadjar therefore was consigned to 20th, sandwiched between the two Aston Martins of Alonso and Lance Stroll, both of whom have taken fresh power unit components this weekend.
## Results
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m45.387s
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.400s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.404s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.437s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.878s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.011s
7 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.053s
8 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.214s
9 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.237s
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.301s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.484s
12 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.506s
13 Alex Albon (Williams) +1.552s
14 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.594s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.607s
16 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.656s
17 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1.866s
18 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.136s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.448s
20 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +2.486s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.160s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.928s
### When does each 2026 F1 driver's contract expire?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-driver-contracts-when-do-they-expire/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T11:27:48.000Z
Save for the significant arrival of a new Formula 1 team and two returning drivers, there were scarcely any changes to the grid for 2026.
But that could all change over the remainder of the season, as more than 50% of the field are due to be out of contract come the end of the year.
Here's what you need to know about when each driver's contract ends.
## McLaren
**Lando Norris - 2030**
**Oscar Piastri - 2028**
McLaren announced Norris had committed to a [new deal through to 2030](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-extends-mclaren-f1-contract-2030-at-least/) \- with the option for longer - in late-August, at a point where the defending F1 champion had also won the two most recent grands prix.
Piastri extended his contract in March 2025 with a "multi-year" deal that you'd suspect will keep him at McLaren until the end of 2028 at least.
## Mercedes
**George Russell - 2027**
**Kimi Antonelli - 2026**
F1 2026's two title protagonists were only officially confirmed for this season in [October last year](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-george-russell-new-mercedes-f1-deal-curious-omission/).
Russell's contract is understood to run into 2027, though the way it was presented could still leave both team and driver free to do something different next year.
## Red Bull
**Max Verstappen - 2030**
**Isack Hadjar - 2027**
After months (well, years) of speculation about Verstappen's future at the team, Red Bull made the surprise announcement ahead of the 2026 Dutch GP that the four-time F1 champion had [agreed a new deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/) that is due to keep him there until 2030.
Hadjar was brought into the Red Bull line-up at the expense of Yuki Tsunoda and had his [contract renewed ](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-extends-hadjar-in-main-f1-team/)for 2027 in September.
## Ferrari
**Charles Leclerc - 2030+**
**Lewis Hamilton - 2027**
In announcing Charles Leclerc's deal had been renewed, Ferrari released an ambiguous statement ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix that was light on details and stated merely that he would "continue to wear the team's colours for the coming seasons".
As Leclerc's existing arrangement (also publicly announced at the time only as being for "several more seasons") was in place until 2029, The Race understands that the new deal is an extension to that and as such will [keep him at Ferrari until beyond 2030](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/charles-leclerc-new-ferrari-f1-contract-could-run-into-2030s/) \- the current longest F1 driver contract.
While the length of Lewis Hamilton's contract has never been made official, it was widely accepted to be a two-year-minimum affair and the seven-time champion said at the Canadian GP that he was committed at least until the end of 2027.
## Williams
**Alex Albon - 2027**
**Carlos Sainz - 2028**
Williams used the week leading up to the Dutch GP to separately announce that both drivers would be staying on beyond the end of the 2026 season.
In the case of Albon, his deal was presented as an ["extension" for 2027](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-know-williams-unveils-new-alex-albon-f1-deal/) \- although his existing contract was thought to cover next year already. The Race understands no new racing contract had been agreed and, instead, that the 2027 confirmation relates to exit clauses that existed in the contract.
Sainz, meanwhile, agreed a [multi-year contract extension](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-convinces-sainz-to-sign-multi-year-extension/) that did not specify the length of his contract but will include options over forthcoming years.
## Racing Bulls
**Liam Lawson - 2026**
**Arvid Lindblad - 2026**
Lawson regrouped well following his demotion to Racing Bulls just two rounds into the 2025 season, sufficiently so that he was [retained for 2026](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/yuki-tsunoda-f1-2026-no-seat-red-bull-line-ups/).
He's performed well alongside rookie Arvid Lindblad.
Neither yet has confirmation of their 2027 plans.
## Aston Martin
**Fernando Alonso - 2026**
**Lance Stroll - 2026**
Two-time champion Alonso and [Stroll](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/four-consequences-aston-martin-lance-stroll-f1-contract-driver-market/) are currently contracted only until the end of a gruelling first year (that is at least on an upward trajectory) of Aston Martin's works partnership with Honda.
## Haas
**Ollie Bearman - 2026**
**Esteban Ocon - 2026**
Both [Bearman](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/who-is-oliver-ollie-bearman-ferrari-f1-debutant/) and [Ocon](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/haas-signs-esteban-ocon-multi-year-f1-deal-explained/) are contracted until the end of the current season, the latter is [expected to depart](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/esteban-ocon-set-for-haas-f1-exit-what-we-know-replacement-favourite/).
## Audi
**Nico Hulkenberg - "multi-year"**
**Gabriel Bortoleto - "multi-year"**
Audi's having a mixed first season in F1 - with a decent turn of speed being paired with more reliability issues than it would like - and should really have more points on the board than the two Bortoleto scored at the season opener.
The 21-year-old is racing alongside Hulkenberg for a second season, following the team's transition from Sauber into the works team.
In September 2026, Audi's Mattia Binotto said both drivers were under contract for the following year and that Audi didn't feel the need to announce anything further to that.
## Alpine
**Pierre Gasly - 2028**
**Franco Colapinto - 2027**
[Gasly's Alpine deal was extended further](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pierre-gasly-alpine-f1-contract-extension/) into the future in the second half of the 2025 campaign.
In August 2026, Franco Colapinto was [retained for 2027](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/franco-colapinto-2027-f1-deal-alpine/), which will be his second full campaign in F1.
## Cadillac
**Sergio Perez - 2027**
**Valtteri Bottas - 2027**
Grand prix veterans Perez and Bottas were both signed on "multi-year" deals that brought them back to the grid with the new Cadillac team.
Perez has generally been the more impressive of the two so far in 2026, though speculation that Bottas's place could be at risk - for now or for 2027 - [appears to be wide of the mark](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-worried-bottas-should-really-be-about-his-f1-future/).
### What's worrying about upgraded Williams as Baku package appears
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-f1-upgrade-baku-chassi-revolution-worrying/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T08:50:18.000Z
Williams has spent the 2026 Formula 1 season so far eating humble pie. After all the talk of building the company's design, manufacturing and operational structure, it fell flat on its face with a car that wasn't competitive and, more importantly, massively overweight.
Through the season we have seen various developments being introduced, but the reality is that none of them seemed to improve the performance. The expectation is the long-awaited Azerbaijan upgrade will change that.
For Baku, Williams has introduced a few small aerodynamic developments, but more importantly a lighter package including the chassis. Williams has talked about a new and revolutionary way of [building the chassis](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/six-f1-tech-talking-points-at-the-azerbaijan-gp/), but more than getting excited about that statement it worries me.
Williams is in a position where revolution is not what's needed, it just needs to do the basics well and efficiently and not keep trying to reinvent the wheel.
We know the two new chassis are significantly lighter, which is not something we can see other than on the stopwatch, so what has Williams brought to Baku aerodynamically?
This stay supporting the footplate of the bargeboard assembly has been removed. I suppose if you don't need it remove it to save weight, everything adds up.
This detail in front of the rear wheel contact patch has also been revised. The objective here is to connect it as best possible to the outward tyre squirt. The better you can do this, the better the sealing of the underfloor in this area.
Williams has also made some detail changes to the front and rear brake ducts, the cladding of the rear suspension and at the rear of the bodywork.
We will have to see what the weight reduction has brought Williams, as I’m not seeing much here aerodynamically that is going to close the gap to the midfield bunch, never mind the teams at the front.
Later on, I will compare its performance to Racing Bulls as that is a fair reference point and it is the area of the grid at the front of the midfield that Williams should be fighting in.
## What else is new at the Azerbaijan GP?
**Jon Noble**
Audi has introduced a major F1 update package at the Azerbaijan GP that it hopes can push it towards the front of the chasing pack behind the top four teams.
Having finally got a bit of momentum behind its 2026 campaign with points-scoring finishes in five of the last six races, Audi has revealed a hefty revamp of its R26 ahead of this week's Baku race.
The changes are significant and include a new front wing, nose fairing, suspension changes, floor, bodywork and rear wing assembly.
As well as the all-new front wing and nose fairing, Audi has revised its front suspension covers to help feed components further down the car.
Audi is also introducing an all-new floor that should deliver more downforce, while tweaks have been made to the bodywork and halo fairing.
At the back of the car, tweaked rear suspension covers and a revised rear wing assembly are being introduced to all help supplement the other new components.
As well as the Audi and the Williams, a lot of attention has been focused on the big [upgrade package at McLaren](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclaren-brutal-f1-body-package-change-azerbaijan-gp/) \- but other teams have brought developments too.
Red Bull has made modifications to its floor and sidepods in a bid to add more downforce and enhance flow stability.
The sidepod has been revised with a new split line that runs to the floor. This works in conjunction with modifications to the floor geometry in this area of the car.
As well as the sidepod changes, the cooling louvres on the RB22 have been tweaked.
Red Bull has also worked on revising the mirror assembly geometry, and reprofiled a turning vane on the halo fairing.
Elsewhere, Racing Bulls has introduced a new front wing geometry to clean up the airflow that is fed to the rest of the car.
This works in conjunction with new front brake ducts and a revised profile on the front suspension legs.
As part of its Baku upgrades, Cadillac has also updated its brake cooling inlet to increase capacity off the back of the overheating problems that have marred a significant portion of its first F1 season.
### Where McLaren's been brutal with big F1 body package change
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclaren-brutal-f1-body-package-change-azerbaijan-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-24T06:52:54.000Z
McLaren continues to push on with upgrades, with some visually striking developments appearing in Baku. For the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, it has introduced more or less a complete new body package, the most visible elements of which are the sidepods, sidepod intakes, engine cover and the profile of the airbox intake/rollover bar fairing.
It has struggled with these new regulations in terms of efficiency. McLaren has very seldom been up there as far as straightline speed is concerned, so I'm pretty sure this package was rushed through for Baku - as straightline speed there is a prime mover as far as laptime is concerned.
Starting with the radiator intakes, McLaren has gone off the beaten track here. If anything, it has gone down a similar route to what Audi has been running since the start of the season.
It's a fairly brutal change and you might call it a bodged-on blanking panel. The main reason for this is that this section of the sidepod incorporates the side-impact structure and is bonded to the survival cell, so to completely change that is not easy or, working within the budget cap, cheap.
However, if it improves the performance of the car, then it is better to get it on there, suffer the potential remarks (like mine) and reap any benefit in laptime possible.
The intake area highlighted in magenta is fairly similar as far as the open area is concerned, but the airflow into that area is coming from a very different place upstream. As most teams do, McLaren loads up the outer section of the front wing just inside the inner wheel fairing/brake duct inner surface. This change in the opening position will mean that loading up the front wing as required to get the balance required won't affect the cooling quite as much.
This has also allowed McLaren to revise the unseen cooling system. I would assume it has moved the radiator cores forward. This change in sidepod side profile will induce more downwash earlier.
This sidepod change has also allowed it to revise the outlet louvres. It's difficult to say to what extent, as these are normally circuit-dependent. Slow, hot circuits mean the car needs more cooling. Baku has decent straights with high top speeds, meaning that cooling is not quite so difficult.
The change to the airbox intake from more of an ellipse to a triangular shape is again in line with cooling requirements. As I often say, airflow used for cooling is wasted as far as producing downforce is concerned. However, if some of the required cooling airflow has been moved from the sidepod intake to the airbox intake, then it is probably less dramatic as far as those losses are concerned.
In line with that airbox intake change, McLaren has also altered the engine cover fin, which is highlighted in purple. These steps on the upper edge of the older version of the fin would generate vortices when the car is in yaw mid-corner.
Whether these vortices help or hinder the rear wing performance is down to hours and hours of CFD modelling and probably tunnel testing. Their requirement will also be dependent on rear wing configuration.
There are also small detail changes to the area in front of the rear tyre. This area is critical to the amount of inwash and outwash. The more outwash you can generate, the better the sealing of the underfloor and, in turn, the better the performance of the diffuser.
It will be interesting to see how these developments have improved the efficiency of the overall car. Can McLaren run a higher downforce level for these slow corners in Baku while reducing its straightline deficit?
Baku is definitely the circuit where you will find out very quickly.
### F1 drivers braced for 'super unnatural' challenge in Baku
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-drivers-braced-for-super-unnatural-challenge-in-baku/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T16:34:21.000Z
Formula 1 drivers are braced for Baku to expose the requirement for more "super unnatural" driving of the 2026 cars during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix this weekend.
Baku provides a unique challenge as it possesses the longest flat-out run on the calendar (over two kilometres long), but that creates major problems for F1's energy-starved 2026 cars.
It means drivers will need to deploy most of their battery on the start/finish straight in qualifying, leaving them with very little power around the rest of the lap and some huge power disparities on corner exits.
"**‘**It's going to be interesting because you have two or three distinctive straights where you have to deploy a lot of power and then you spend a lot of the middle sector running with really, really low power because it's very inefficient to deploy any energy in those super short straights," Haas driver Ollie Bearman explained.
"You tend to save it for the longer ones into Turn 1, into Turn 3\. It means that you have a massive disparity in power delivery. You come out of Turn 2 heading into Turn 3 and you have a thousand horsepower or however much, maximum horsepower and then you have like two-thirds of that coming out of Turn 3 because it's a really short straight, so suddenly your throttle pedal is half as powerful as it was in the previous corner.
"So it's a really strange thing. It happens in some circuits, especially the energy-starved ones, but it's only in specific areas where there's short straights.
"We had it in Monza out of the second chicane \[towards the Lesmos\], here between every short straight you have really low power.
"It means that it's really strange because you can imagine you spend the middle sector doing one thing and then suddenly you come out of another corner and you have twice as much power.
"It's super unnatural for us; we've never had that before ever until February this year."
Drivers have no control over this, as Bearman says, "you just press the throttle pedal and brake and steer, and it all takes care of itself. There's nothing we actually do whilst driving that can necessarily affect it".
It's going to be crucial for drivers to arrive at the start/finish straight with as close to 100% battery as possible - or it will be very costly in both qualifying and the race.
As Pierre Gasly explained, "if you don't have 100%, "You're just going to start clipping earlier, but earlier here is not 200 metres \[and\] when you're down a couple of km/h for that long, then it starts to be quite costly.
"Racing-wise, it's the type of straight where sometimes you don't only see one car passing by, so I would definitely recommend to be top of the pack, especially when it comes to race day.
"But the reality is we don't have control of all of that side. It's software, it's whatever, incidents, conditions, etc that sometimes leads us to being on the right side of it or the wrong side of it, so we'll have to see, but for sure, it's important to be fine."
**Intense closing speeds**
The start/finish line being located less than 200 metres from Turn 1 means drivers on a preparation lap will be relying solely on internal combustion engine power for the majority of the run out of the Turn 16 left-hander.
There's a 1250 metre period beginning at the exit of the Turn 16 left-hander where drivers can avoid a ramp-down rate and drop 350kw of power, meaning they'll just be on internal combustion engine power. And a similar period where they can do the same and run purely on ICE power from Turn 3 all the way to Turn 12 if they wish to do so.
In contrast, those drivers on a lap will be deploying most of their energy once on the main straight, so there's the potential for some extreme closing speeds as drivers have already warned.
"People opening the lap are very slow until the battery comes in just before the line," Fernando Alonso said.
"There are like 20 seconds that you will be at 200km/h, and people are coming at 350\[km/h\].
"There is no way to move, especially in Turn 18-19 \[flat-out kinked corners\]. So that will be one of the challenges of the weekend: to make sure that we are safe, on the drivers' briefing, and we choose the places where to move."
Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto predicted, "it's going to be a bit of a mess, especially as we are leaving the last corner in a push lap so quickly, and then people opening the laps are going to be so slow.
"So hopefully that's not going to be dangerous. Hopefully there is going to be something that we can do in that Turn 18 and Turn 19 corners, because I guess it can be dangerous if you are coming at I don't know 300km/h and something, and another car is at 250km/h because there is no MGU-K being deployed."
Asked if it will be discussed at the drivers' briefing on Thursday, Bortoleto said: "Yeah, but what are they going to do about it?"
**‘Sketchy' wind interference**
One of Baku's staple challenges is the wind that flows between the buildings that surround the circuit and changes lap after lap and corner after corner. There are also 39km/h winds forecast for qualifying on Friday.
Franco Colapinto said "I think the wind is going to be tricky; last year we saw a lot of red flags because of the wind. It was changing like crazy - the gusts, because of the buildings.
"You'd get it for five seconds and the five seconds after, no gust, and then again. It was so inconsistent that it would be very difficult for us, especially on a street track.
"It makes it much more tricky and much more sketchy."
Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad wasn't so sure: "I think that's less of a thing in this year's cars because they're less sensitive with the aero". I'm sure it's still a thing, though."
### Everything we learned on day one at F1's Azerbaijan GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-azerbaijan-gp-everything-we-learned-day-one/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T16:27:49.000Z
Two stories - one that's been announced, and another that's developing - have helped fill in a couple more gaps in the 2027 Formula 1 driver market ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Throw in drivers' reactions to the recently announced Monaco sprint race, the arrival of an unexpected tech upgrade, and engine-penalty updates at Mercedes and Ferrari, and it's been a surprisingly newsworthy Wednesday in the F1 paddock.
Here's what we've learned so far from this early-starting Baku weekend.
## McLaren's bringing revised sidepods
McLaren is continuing its aggressive upgrade push in Baku, with dramatically revised sidepods as part of the package it will evaluate during FP1.
This follows the major aerodynamic upgrade introduced across the Hungarian and Dutch GP weekends either side of the August break and the first on-track appearance of the revised H-wing at Monza, a part that will reappear this weekend having been taken off the car for the Madring two weeks ago.
The sidepods have been reshaped to have a very different downward ramp shape as they travel rearwards, which is closer to the Ferrari and Mercedes designs. There's also a revised, more vertical inlet shape similar to the Audi design. **\- Edd Straw**
## No engine penalty yet for Russell...
Baku's long straights mean it is an attractive place for drivers to take engine change penalties, which is why that option remains on the radar for Ferrari and Charles Leclerc.
But over at Mercedes, the manufacturer and its driver George Russell have committed to waiting a bit longer to add the final power unit to the pool.
As has been hinted at before, the timing of Russell's final power unit change is planned to coincide with an ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) step that Mercedes will introduce at some point soon. The United States GP at Austin in late-October would be a logical place for it.
From Russell's perspective, there is no point taking a grid drop now only to then face another one a few races down the road when the better parts come along.
There has been speculation that the Mercedes ADUO upgrade will revolve around the turbo, something that Russell himself all but confirmed in Baku when he said he was having to wait because he had to take an extra one in Hungary after a failure in qualifying.
"It's all a bit complicated," he said. "But long story short, if I took one now, I would have had to have taken another one." **\- Jon Noble**
## ...and Hamilton's engine might've 'gained a race'
We are at that stage of the season where most F1 teams are furiously trying to work out if their drivers have enough miles left in their power units to get to the end without the need for a grid drop penalty.
For some (such as Russell) that fate is unavoidable, so it is a matter of picking the best time to do it.
Lewis Hamilton had been in a similar situation over recent weeks as it looked like he would not make it through to the end of the campaign without a swap.
But ahead of the Azerbaijan GP, Hamilton revealed that there was a silver lining to the cloud of his early Spanish GP retirement. The DNF reduced the mileage on his latest power unit enough to make it possible to now get through to the end of the campaign with what he has.
"I 'gained' a race, so I think it should be OK," he said in Baku.
However, he has suggested that a tactical call could come into play if Ferrari concludes that the extra performance a fresh engine gives outweighs the downside of any grid drop.
"Naturally with engines, from new to when they've done several races, there is a difference in performance, so we will take that decision later on in the year," he said.
Team-mate Leclerc is one of those who will need a fresh one at some point. He is weighing up when best to take a penalty, and it's not impossible he elects to do so in Baku this weekend.
One good bit of news for him, though, is that his Monza engine, of the latest ADUO 2 spec, is now back in his pool and available to be used. **\- JN**
## Ocon and Haas set for split
As [reported by The Race's Scott Mitchell-Malm](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/esteban-ocon-set-for-haas-f1-exit-what-we-know-replacement-favourite/), Esteban Ocon is now expected to be let go by Haas at the end of the year without a renewal offer - leaving him with limited options to continue an F1 career that has already spanned nearly 200 starts.
While the seat Ocon currently occupies has not been filled officially, The Race understands Ferrari's Formula 2 title-contending junior Rafael Camara is in pole position - and it doesn't appear like Ocon is even second choice.
Ocon certainly spoke on Wednesday like a driver who knows there is no joint future with his current team, describing himself as a "free agent" and repeatedly deflecting questions about a continued employment at Haas.
And he clearly feels hard done by, given Haas's well-documented issues in the matter of its two cars producing consistent, equal load weekend to weekend.
"My performance hasn't been an issue this year. I've performed every time I had the \[performing\] car," he said. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Red Bull's rookie can't argue with Hadjar deal
In recent years, a rookie season as healthy as the one Arvid Lindblad has enjoyed in Red Bull's second team has usually meant an immediate graduation to the main team - in large part because Max Verstappen has been demolishing anyone matching up against him as a team-mate.
But Lindblad will have to wait until 2028 at the earliest to get a promotion. And while he reckons [Isack Hadjar's extension](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-extends-hadjar-in-main-f1-team/) at the main team came "a little bit earlier than normal", he says he can't question the decision.
"Full credit to Isack, he's probably been one of the first drivers in the last eight years that has been performing well as the second driver in Red Bull - so also fair play to him that he gets that comfort of getting announced a bit earlier," Lindblad acknowledged.
"For myself, it wasn't really something I was thinking about; I'm very focused on myself, I know my own path and trajectory that I'm on. I'm very happy where I am at the moment."
Racing Bulls team-mate Liam Lawson indicated that the prospect of taking Hadjar's seat was also never really a topic for him - even after his impressive stand-in stint at Red Bull in recent races - and that the new Hadjar deal is "not surprising". **\- VK**
## Williams is now *under*weight
Williams has been overweight all year, up to now. Crucially, Alex Albon has confirmed that not only is the car on the minimum weight limit of 768kg thanks to the introduction of two brand-new chassis, but it is in reality below that.
This allows Williams to carry ballast, which is useful for fine-tuning the weight distribution.
"We've been carrying a substantial weight penalty this year so far," said Albon. "Going into this weekend, we've got ballast on the car, so you could imagine there's a big \[performance\] swing in many ways. The weight itself is a big thing and weight is a guarantee of laptime, so that's why we know it will be a good step regardless of how the aero side performs - but it's a good upgrade."
At the start of the season, the Williams FW48 was understood to be around 28kg over the weight limit. While that was whittled away at in the ensuing races, it required the new chassis to achieve the majority of the weight reduction.
That, combined with the aerodynamic upgrades, is expected to give a significant performance bump to the Williams, which has been the ninth-fastest car on average this season but lately slipped to 10th behind the improved Aston Martin-Honda.
However, as Albon has pointed out, this is an upgrade that "in any other year would have been a massive one" but that isn't as big a relative stride as it normally would be given the overall rate of development across the grid.
Nonetheless, he says "it's certainly going to get us back in contention with that group" - even if team-mate Carlos Sainz offered the downbeat verdict that "even with all the upgrades, we're still going to struggle to get out of Q1 and we're going to struggle to be at the top end of Q2".
Williams isn't the only car that's running lighter in Baku. Aston Martin also has what chief technical officer Enrico Cardile recently characterised as the completion of its weight-saving programme for the Azerbaijan GP. **\- ES**
## Hamilton breaks ranks on Monaco sprint choice
The drivers stayed broadly on positive message when asked about the decision to make Monaco a sprint event.
However, after Sergio Perez hinted there may have been a little dissent in the drivers' WhatsApp group, which he described as "a bit busy" after the news emerged, Lewis Hamilton broke ranks to deride the idea - albeit also throwing in the benefit cited by many drivers that having double the qualifying was a potential gain.
"It makes no sense to me," said Hamilton. "On the positive, maybe we get another qualifying session, which is quite cool, but I've always said that Monaco needs something different. I don't think it should be the same race formula that it is everywhere else.
"We've already included sprint races, which I think have really brought something new to the sport. But I think we've got to come up with something new for somewhere like that. Because it's a beautiful place, such a beautiful country, and an incredible circuit to drive - but the race is as dull as it gets.
"I don't know what that is, but a sprint race is not the answer."
That’s not to say there weren’t reservations detectable in what others said, even if they were careful not to be too overtly critical.
Pierre Gasly, for example, said that "objectively, Monaco is not the place to overtake so I don't expect the sprint to be particularly different to the Sunday, but my favourite quali of the year is Monaco, at least you're going to have two shots at it". That’s a position Perez shared.
Sainz suggested that having the extra qualifying session would be "really cool", but that having two races is "not ideal", pointing to the idea of a special format to tackle this. Arvid Lindblad went a step further.
"They should sack off the sprint on these weekends and just do FP1, sprint quali, give the points for sprint quali and then you do FP2, quali, race," said Lindblad. "The drivers would enjoy that a bit more and you would have an incentive to push in sprint quali because that’s where you get the points." **\- ES**
## Alpine's Colapinto media threat
Alpine boss Flavio Briatore has threatened to stop Franco Colapinto’s interviews “with Argentinian television, the social media - we stop everything” if fan abuse continues to be a problem.
Colapinto’s team-mate Gasly [hit out at “disturbing” levels of abuse](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gasly-hits-out-at-disturbing-abuse-over-colapinto-incident/) he, his family and his girlfriend received in the wake of the Madring race – where Gasly held up Colapinto just before pitting, and inadvertently put him under pressure from Oscar Piastri.
Alpine never instructed him to let Colapinto past, or told him there was any threat to Colapinto behind either, so while Colapinto was justifiably angry Gasly was also not in defiance of any team order.
It is hardly the first time that an incident involving Colapinto has led to a rival receiving significant online abuse. Esteban Ocon even received a letter of support from FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem when it happened to him earlier this year.
But Alpine - which can have its own social media channels filled with criticism and abuse at times - is so fed up with the situation that Briatore has told ESPN Argentina enough is enough.
“If the Argentinians want to support Franco, they support Franco clean, loyal, not what I see on social media,” he said.
“If not, at one point, Franco stops talking with everybody. Because if I see every time we have a lot of the anger from the fans – for no reason.
“If the people are like that, we stop the interviews with Argentinian television, on social media. We stop everything.
“Because it makes no sense what we’re reading on social media.” **\- SMM**
## Cadillac hopes brakes finally off the agenda
Brake angst has not-so-quietly defined much of Cadillac's first season in F1, and even an intended fix in Hungary has not prevented subsequent brake-related retirements or the need for excessive management.
Valtteri Bottas says, however, that already at that point Cadillac "knew we needed a further step" that was "already in the pipeline".
That step is here, and Bottas hopes it will finally put the issue to bed - protecting the MAC-26 in Baku but also more pertinently at the humid races of Singapore and Sepang.
"This weekend we have quite a big upgrade to the brake cooling," said Bottas. "So, we're going to have much more airflow through the brakes - which has been the main cause of stoppage this year with the car.
"So, finally we're getting this upgrade and that's going to help us - for sure a little bit here, but mostly in Malaysia, Singapore. And hopefully this issue we've had with the brakes is now behind us." **\- VK**
## The case for extended races, not shorter ones
F1 races will be two to three laps [shorter in 2027](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-approves-plan-for-shorter-grands-prix-in-2027/) (barring Monaco) to match the increased fuel-flow rate - but Hamilton thinks that's the wrong direction for race lengths.
"I don't really know anything about it or any of the reasons they put behind it \[but\] I think the races should be longer, because the races are physically easier than ever before," Hamilton said.
"There's been many races where I wish we had more laps. So it's the opposite that I would be asking for: longer races, to be honest.
"This is supposed to be the sport that's the most physically demanding; mentally and physically.
"There are some that are just so hot and ultimately you are on the edge. Singapore is incredibly hot and demanding. Malaysia will be crazy this year.
"But that's where I think you want to see athletes, just right on the edge, right? Right on the edge of their performance, having to actually push their bodies further, because that's what this sport is about.
"So shortening the races makes absolutely no sense to me."
Lance Stroll said "we're just going around the corners 30-40km/h slower than last year, so it just makes it much less physical" - but Verstappen wasn't convinced F1 has got all that much less strenuous.
"It depends. Sometimes they \[the cars\] are quite a handful, so I wouldn't say they are...like you're still sweating.
"Sometimes, actually it's harder to keep it on the road at times. But yeah, in general, I guess a little bit more relaxed.
"It's also probably more comfortable because last year on the straights you're constantly hitting the ground really aggressively.
"Now with straight mode, you're just floating a bit. It's just different." **\- JS**
## Nurburgring and Spa for Verstappen - but no Le Mans yet
When F1 finally unveiled its 2027 calendar, many took note of there being no clash with next year's Nurburgring 24 Hours (May 29-30, slotting in between Canada and Monaco), nor the Spa 24 Hours (June 26-27, between Portugal and Britain).
The relevance was the understanding that Max Verstappen had those two races circled on his calendar - and that understanding is accurate, Verstappen confirmed this Wednesday.
"I said already, of course, after the \[2026\] race in the Nordschleife that I wanted to go back," Verstappen insisted. "So, if it allows me to prepare well and it all works out well...I know there is no clash, but if it still needs to work out in my schedule, \[and if it does\] then I'll do it. And Spa is an exciting option, yeah, to do it."
What about the Le Mans 24 Hours, though, scheduled for June 12-13, between the aforementioned F1 races in Monaco and Portugal? It's "not on my list right now", Verstappen said.
Fernando Alonso, who had talked of teaming up with Verstappen at the endurance race he is already a two-time winner of, said that particular Le Mans plan will wait until "Max is a little bit more free on the calendar. There are a lot of races! Maybe in the future. Would be very nice".
Lando Norris, who tested McLaren's new LMDh prototype last week at Portimao, also downplayed the possibility of taking on Le Mans any time soon. **\- VK**
### How you can drive the British GP track this Christmas
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/how-you-can-drive-the-british-gp-track-this-christmas-silverstone/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T14:47:29.000Z
Silverstone is giving motorsport fans the opportunity to drive the circuit themselves and ice skate through the paddock this Christmas.
The track will once again transform into a Christmas-themed attraction this winter, with visitors able to drive the British Grand Prix circuit as part of a festive lights experience.
The circuit has confirmed that its Christmas at Silverstone event will run from December 11-31, 2026, excluding Christmas Day, combining motorsport-themed attractions with more traditional festive entertainment.
The main event is "Lap of Lights", which allows visitors to take their own cars onto the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit after dark and drive through a light installation laid out around the track.
Silverstone says it is the only festive attraction of its kind to use an active F1 circuit, with sections of the track illuminated and accompanied by laser displays.
Several areas usually associated with the grand prix weekend will also be repurposed for the event.
An ice rink overlooking Silverstone's start-finish straight will be installed in the F1 paddock area, while the circuit's garages will play host to both a Santa-themed attraction for children and indoor curling.
The venue will also feature racing simulators, displays of F1 cars, supercars and MotoGP machinery, as well as access to Kart Silverstone and the Silverstone Museum.
Tickets for Christmas at Silverstone are on sale now through the circuit's official website.
### Ocon set for Haas exit - what we know
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/esteban-ocon-set-for-haas-f1-exit-what-we-know-replacement-favourite/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T14:07:25.000Z
Esteban Ocon is expected to leave the Haas Formula 1 team at the end of the season with Ferrari protege and Formula 2 title contender Rafael Camara the favourite to replace him.
Ocon joined Haas in 2025 to partner Ollie Bearman after his five-season stint with Renault/Alpine ended.
He was narrowly outscored by his rookie team-mate last year and trails Bearman 18-3 this season in what has turned into a disappointing campaign for the team - though Ocon was the more recent of the two to score points, when he finished ninth in June's Monaco Grand Prix.
Haas started evaluating alternatives to Ocon earlier this year with the private testing programme it undertakes alongside technical partner Toyota.
Camara, 2025 F2 champion and McLaren junior Leonardo Fornaroli, Toyota-backed Ryo Hirakawa, and Haas reserve Jack Doohan are the main drivers Haas was able to evaluate in these tests. Of those, Camara is considered the leading candidate to replace Ocon.
Ocon's Haas exit is not official but he expects to leave the team as it stands. He admitted on Wednesday ahead of this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix that "at the moment I'm definitely a free agent for next year" and confirmed he is talking to other teams.
The Race understands that nothing has been signed regarding his replacement. When asked by The Race if it was still an option for him to continue with Haas, Ocon only replied: "Let's see."
Ocon referred to "things in the discussion that are out of my control" - Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu has previously acknowledged that there is a wider commercial element to consider with its driver line-up but stressed that performance would be the first priority.
Haas is understood to have an option to extend Ocon's contract into 2027 but it wants to continue with Ferrari-backed Bearman, who is very highly rated within the team, and Ocon was unable to make a compelling case to be retained on performance alone.
Komatsu said during the winter that he had expected more from the one-time grand prix winner last season, when Ocon had a particularly tricky final part of the year in which he regularly reported issues with his car.
However, this season Haas has struggled more as a team. The gap between the two drivers in the standings is warped by Bearman scoring 17 of his points in the first two races, when Haas was most competitive and he finished fifth in an attritional Chinese GP.
Bearman and Ocon have only scored four points between them in the 12 events since.
The decline in Haas's relative performance until a recent upgrade has also coincided with the team finding both cars behaving inconsistently.
"We're all on the same page," said Ocon. "We're not hiding it. We know it's been an ongoing issue.
"It's reassuring that I'm doing a good job. My performance hasn't been an issue this year. I've performed every time I had the car.
"And I've been the last one to score in Monaco. I was almost scoring in Madrid \[he finished 11th in the Spanish GP\]. There's been a lot of times where I've performed when the car was underperforming. It's been clear."
A reserve role is Ocon’s best chance at staying in F1 because the remaining unconfirmed seats - at Mercedes, Racing Bulls, Audi and Aston Martin - are all likely to be filled by the current drivers.
Valtteri Bottas spent a season back at Mercedes in a reserve driver role to get onto the grid with Cadillac this year, but it is understood that Ocon’s own return to Mercedes - where he was a junior and reserve driver previously - is unlikely given the role Fred Vesti plays for the team as its third driver.
Picking a team where he could then parlay a test/reserve driver role directly into a race seat is therefore likely to be the priority.
### Gasly hits out at 'disturbing' abuse over Colapinto incident
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gasly-hits-out-at-disturbing-abuse-over-colapinto-incident/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T09:07:36.000Z
Pierre Gasly has hit out at "disturbing" social media abuse and threats received by him and his family members, including his girlfriend, after holding up Alpine Formula 1 team-mate Franco Colapinto in the Spanish Grand Prix.
This arose from a lap late in the Madring race when he held up Colapinto, who was on his way to finishing seventh but being chased by McLaren's Oscar Piastri, on an in-lap before pitting. Although this didn't cost Colapinto a position, it did lead to him being backed up into Piastri and caused him to complain multiple times over the radio.
Gasly, who finished 12th, and those around him were then subject to attacks on a variety of social media platforms that he has described as inappropriate.
"Personally, I find it a little bit disturbing for our sport," said Gasly when asked by The Race about how he dealt with the social media backlash.
"I'm a top athlete, so I know I'm exposed, it's always been the case, but the extent of the threats, attacks, I find completely inappropriate, especially when it reaches out to family members, \[my\] girlfriend etc. I don't think that should be the case.
"Things were not that way in the past and as a sport we just need to find a way to make it a healthier place because you're exposed, you know you are going to be attacked.
"You can be liked, disliked, it's completely fine, but there is a certain line that should not be crossed just because you're behind a screen and a keyboard, and these lines are crossed too many times."
## Colapinto's response
Colapinto said he's aware of the abuse and backed Gasly's position about the need to stop it happening.
"I think he got a lot of people messaging him," said Colapinto. "I haven't seen it because I'm not on social media a lot, but it's never nice to get it, even more when it's happening to the team that I'm racing in.
"We are team-mates and we get on very well together. We are playing and focusing on the same result, and \[have\] the same goal and the same target - that is to make Alpine better. We are always working as a team and it's not nice to see it.
"So, hopefully, they can stop it. The same happened to other drivers - Yuki \[Tsunoda\] last year, it was quite bad as well at one point, I talked about it.
"The stewards, after Zandvoort, I went to see them as well. They had some abuse after the penalty they gave me. It happens a lot with fans in Formula 1, in any sport nowadays, it's something very common.
"Unfortunately, that shouldn't be common. Definitely, we should be taking more care about the things, the words that come out of the keyboards of everyone.
"The way to support us as a team is to push the team forward and stay strong together.
"Hopefully, it doesn't keep happening. But it's something tricky with fans in the sport. It's not just my fans. I've got some very passionate ones. They want me to do well. Hopefully, they can enjoy the good results I'm having."
Colapinto also responded to a suggestion that ultimately what happened between him and Gasly in Madrid wasn't a big deal because of the difficulty of overtaking by pointing out the threat he was under from Piastri.
"Well, I almost got overtaken by Oscar! It was two tenths behind," said Colapinto.
"We spoke in the team and we managed it together. With Pierre, with Flavio \[Briatore\], Steve \[Nielsen\], everyone in the team did a very good job in understanding what happened and how to improve it for the next time.
"I'm happy with it, I think. The most important part is to learn from the things that we can improve. The next time, not have the same thing happening - and we move forward."
## What actually happened
The situation arose because of the early-race VSC, which had allowed Colapinto, who started on mediums, to pit while Gasly was left out on hards.
Although Gasly complained angrily about this over the radio late in the race, the strategy was justified given it gave Gasly the opportunity to finish as high as sixth in the case of a VSC or safety car, or a red flag, and he never had an opportunity to make a pitstop and emerge from the pits still in the points.
Colapinto spent a substantial period in his second stint stuck behind Gabriel Bortoleto, but had been released when the Audi driver pitted on lap 47\. He then began to close on Gasly rapidly, with Piastri chasing him. By the start of lap 55, he was 1.5s behind Gasly.
When Gasly was told he would pit at the end of that lap, he was warned to "watch for Franco behind", but he was never given an instruction to let him past or told that there was any threat to his team-mate behind.
However, he was also expressing his frustration at the team, saying "I don't want to talk to you, radio over" just after the message about Colapinto.
Although Colapinto never launched an attack given the difficulty of overtaking at the Madring, being held up by Gasly's in-lap allowed Piastri to close a gap of 2.3s at the start of the lap to as little as two tenths. The McLaren driver never got close to making a pass, but Colapinto was justifiably angry at being held up by his team-mate.
Gasly confirmed that there were conversations about how this had played out after the race, although neither driver offered any detail about the outcome.
"We obviously discussed it with the team," said Gasly when asked about the fallout inside the team. "There wasn't a call for an actual swap, but it's all been discussed with the team, and it's all clear."
### Red Bull extends Hadjar in main F1 team
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-extends-hadjar-in-main-f1-team/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T07:30:21.000Z
Red Bull has officially retained Isack Hadjar as Max Verstappen's team-mate for the 2027 Formula 1 season.
The team made the announcement upon Hadjar's return from injury at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, after he'd missed three rounds with a wrist fracture.
He had been having a very productive first season in the team before that, arguably the closest of Verstappen's team-mates since Daniel Ricciardo, though this may have been aided by the competitive re-balancing triggered by the new-for-2026 cars and power units.
Team boss Laurent Mekies says Hadjar "has been superb on and off track, especially considering this is only his second Formula 1 season, which made extending his contract an easy decision".
"The period since his injury has been a difficult one for Isack, but this extension is a testament to how much we believe in him and we can't wait to see him back out on track," Mekies added.
Hadjar has scored 71 points to Verstappen's 145 (over three more rounds) and has scored a podium in Monaco - which was taken away and then reinstated in a drawn-out appeals process over Pierre Gasly's penalty.
Attention now turns to Red Bull's second team Racing Bulls, where rookie Arvid Lindblad is virtually certain to remain but there's more intrigue surrounding team-mate Liam Lawson.
Red Bull has Formula 2 title contender Nikola Tsolov waiting in the wings for an F1 debut, but Lawson has acquitted himself very well standing in for Hadjar and has had a strong season at Racing Bulls so appears to be the favourite to stay on.
### Too little too late? What's resting on Williams's Baku upgrade
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/too-little-too-late-whats-resting-on-williamss-baku-upgrade/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T05:06:29.000Z
After declaring for so long that the main focus of its rebuilding programme was being ready to capitalise on Formula 1's major 2026 regulation changes, Williams has tumbled backwards in the season when it had promised to leap forwards.
Fifth in the constructors' championship and a podium finisher last year, now it's ninth in the standings on only 11 points (59 fewer than at this stage, after 14 rounds, in 2025), and has been only the ninth-fastest car on average this year, an average of 2.8% down on single-lap pace.
This weekend it's bringing a major upgrade package to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, focused largely on weight reduction but also featuring aerodynamic changes.
Is it too little too late, though?
Edd Straw, Ben Anderson and Samarth Kanal debated Williams's big Baku weekend on the latest episode of [The Race F1 Podcast](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast?ref=the-race.com).
## How big will the Baku step be?
**Ben Anderson**: We know that carrying excess weight is like giving away free laptime, isn't it? So they should make a step but I don't think it will make an absolutely life-changing one - unless they're taking out something like 40kg or 50kg, some nonsensical amount. I don't think it's going to completely change their world. I'd like to think they might get back into that zone of kind of fighting with whichever is the best of the Haases on a given weekend, whichever one of those cars is trying to be at the bottom of Q2.
I think the Williams is actually the 10th-best car and the fact it's got the Mercedes power unit flatters it and really exposes them as a team. So they desperately need to see a big step on the chassis side.
**Edd Straw**: Ultimately, a lot of what they're doing for Baku is what I'd sort of call the standard housekeeping stuff because you want to be on or in fact under the weight limit. And apparently this will put them under the weight limit. So that'll allow them a little bit of ballast, which is useful to have for making sure you've got the ballast within the allowed window where you want it to be.
But ultimately, while that's a load of performance, that's really only getting them back to where they should have been much earlier in the season. So whatever they do this year, they're still really playing catch-up and just eliminating some of the negatives.
It's just one step really, isn't it? You just need to see the performance improvement. It's not going to suddenly turn into a top-six car by any stretch of the imagination or even a Q3 car.
**Samarth Kanal**: They are so far behind now that this is all catching up. Rival midfield teams have completely outdeveloped them, left them standing still. and now Williams is so far behind that I think this upgrade can only put them at the bottom of that midfield set.
There's such a fundamental issue in car balance, the whole aero map needs to probably be redone. That's going to need an incredibly drastic update - that's more for 2027 than 2026.
## Managing expectations
**BA**: They've been talking it down actually since Aston Martin bought their B-spec car to Hungary and kind of wowed certainly Williams and Haas with the step they took there.
I think before Aston Martin did what they did, Williams were a bit more bullish about what they were expecting from Baku. Now there's been a lot of expectation management. I think that's a reasonable thing to do because compared to expectations of Williams this year, they've been pretty much embarrassing.
This is very much the 2023 into 2024 cycle repeating. And that's the thing I really worry about with Williams. It's like we've been here before.
They came out of it really well in 2025, but then 2025 was all about 'we're in the windtunnel with the 2026 car really early, our baseline now is to be top of the midfield and then look to bridge the gap'. And they've just fallen way off that track.
---
**More on Williams's 2026 struggles**
- ['Everything was on fire' - Williams's F1 2026 disaster laid bare](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-was-on-fire-williamss-f1-2026-confessions/)
- [Don't expect Williams's upgrade to make it competitive](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dont-expect-williamss-upgrade-to-make-it-competitive/)
---
**ES**: James Vowles, the team principal, said at the start of the season that their new baseline is the fifth place they got last year. So they've fallen short by their own standards and there's all sorts of reasons for that. The car was late. Obviously it's overweight, downforce isn't there and the high rake concept didn't work, there are handling troubles, this sort of three-wheeling problem that's been persistent over a number of years that they're still battling.
## What happens next
**ES**: To judge them, we need to see what they do at the start of next year. That for me is the critical thing because they've got to eliminate the problems with being late. They've got to be on the weight. They've got to have the right aero package and be performing decently in that midfield at the very least.
Because if they're not there, then that's when you really start to sound the alarm bells.
### Unique items from Schumacher and Senna's careers auctioned
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/unique-items-from-schumacher-and-sennas-careers-auctioned/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T13:52:18.000Z
Signed, race-used items from pivotal moments in Michael Schumacher’s Formula 1 career and a unique souvenir from the last time Ayrton Senna ever raced against Alain Prost are among a treasure trove of memorabilia items linked to motorsport legends in BUDDS’ latest auction.
See below for five items that really caught our eye.
## Schumacher's top from his last F1 race
This is the Nomex top Schumacher wore as part of his race kit in his last ever F1 race - the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix, in which he finished seventh for Mercedes.
It’s personally signed and dated by Schumacher.
Though his Mercedes stint didn’t live up to all that he’d achieved in his original F1 career, it was poignant that after being taken under Mercedes’ wing in his youth he finally got to race one of its F1 cars when it revived its works team after over 50 years - and that he played a part in building the foundations for the era of Mercedes domination that followed.
All of which makes this signed top an incredible souvenir of a very important part of F1 history - [bid for it here.](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141/lot-details/d36f35eb-a790-4393-95ec-b4c000832026?ref=the-race.com)
## Senna vs Prost - For the very last time
When did legendary arch-rivals Senna and Prost race against each other for the final time?
It WASN'T the 1993 Australian Grand Prix, Prost's final F1 start, won by Senna.
It was at that December's Elf Masters charity karting event in Paris, organised by ex-F1 driver Philippe Streiff.
These are the race gloves Senna wore for the event, and the front bumper of the kart he raced (above) - and they could be yours in the auction. [Bid for them here](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141/lot-details/e7c8d4e6-a731-43ec-8547-b4c000835f1f?ref=the-race.com).
## Mansell's JORDAN gloves
Remember when Nigel Mansell raced for Jordan? That’s right, he didn’t.
Remember when he tested for Jordan? You might recall he tried its 1996 car while mulling a potential F1 comeback which never came to fruition.
But the world did get to see Mansell’s famous helmet in a Jordan eventually, when he got behind the wheel of one for a demonstration event in the centre of London that was held in the build-up to the 2004 British GP.
These are the gloves Mansell wore for that event, and they’re signed by him too.
Any genuine souvenir of Mansell’s epic career is a special piece of memorabilia to own. But actual used Mansell Jordan kit - that’s extremely rare. [Bid for it here](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141/lot-details/a00a0da0-aeeb-4ade-a63e-b4c00083847c?ref=the-race.com).
## The helmet from Gasly's epic day
Pierre Gasly and Alpine were having a horrible time for most of the 2024 F1 season.
By the end of October, the team was ninth in the championship - and ninth was also the highest position Gasly had managed to finish in a grand prix all year.
Then came the changeable weather of Brazil, and Gasly and team-mate Esteban Ocon took full advantage to score a sensational double podium.
The enormous points haul from their second and third places transformed Alpine’s season, vaulting it up to a much more respectable sixth in the standings immediately.
This is the helmet Gasly wore that day and it’s signed by him too. [Bid for it here](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141/lot-details/1c3519b7-6760-45bd-a41e-b4c000833b49?ref=the-race.com).
## Gloves from Schumacher and Ferrari's breakthrough year
In 2000 it finally happened. After the agonies and near-misses of 1997-99, Schumacher led Ferrari back to F1 championship success for the first time in two decades.
These race-worn, signed gloves come from Schumacher’s 2000 season, and have plenty of authentic wear and tear on them from Schumacher’s efforts against Mika Hakkinen and McLaren in that epic and highly significant title fight. [Bid for them here](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141/lot-details/184f4266-9ea4-4698-816f-b4c00083273b?ref=the-race.com).
---
Pole Position: Motorsport Timed Auction is live now at [BUDDS.com](https://bidlive.budds.com/auctions/9771/srgrah10141?ref=the-race.com) and runs until September 29.
### Six F1 tech talking points at the Azerbaijan GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/six-f1-tech-talking-points-at-the-azerbaijan-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T13:03:05.000Z
Formula 1 heads to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for the first race of a punishing triple-header that could prove defining for the world championship.
But it is not an ideal place for teams to unleash the kind of major upgrades they typically would for such a run of back-to-backs.
The layout of the Baku circuit with its long straights puts a premium on aero efficiency over downforce, so the focus is more on optimisation rather than improvement.
That is why teams such as Mercedes and Ferrari are expected to wait a little bit longer before gunning for what will likely be their final development packages of the year.
But there remains plenty of tech intrigue to keep an eye out for this weekend.
## New innovation on lighter Williams
After a troubled start to F1's new rules era, Williams hopes that the Azerbaijan GP will mark the start of its recovery.
Having held fire on a major car revamp until now, all eyes will be on the new, lighter chassis that it hopes will mark a step-change in getting rid of the excess weight its drivers have been forced to carry around so far.
What will make the Williams upgrade especially interesting is that team principal James Vowles has talked of there being innovation at the heart of the new chassis when it comes to how it has been manufactured.
"This learning will be one that kicks us off for the next five years," he told The Race recently.
"There's no other chassis in the grid made the way we've done it. I can give you an assurance of that."
Exactly what Williams has done has not been explained in detail yet, but it is understood to revolve around some manufacturing processes that have allowed the team to shed off more mass than would normally be expected.
But a word of caution. Neither Vowles nor the drivers are anticipating a game-changing leap in performance.
As Alex Albon said: "It's going to be a good step, but is it going to be the full step? I'm hopeful for it, but I don't think it would be."
## Aston Martin gets lighter too
Aston Martin saved pretty much all its aero upgrades for its mid-season chassis overhaul at the Hungarian GP, as team principal and managing technical partner Adrian Newey slashed weight and addressed the weaknesses of his first AMR26 concept.
With the team wanting to make sure it starts 2027 on the front foot, it does not want to continue development into the end of this season, which is why it has wound down its update rate.
But that does not mean it will not bring new parts - and in Baku it is set to introduce some lighter components to get down closer to the 768kg weight limit.
Chief trackside officer Mike Krack said at the Spanish GP that the changes will likely go under the radar, as teams only have to officially declare to the FIA components that look different.
"We still bring some more parts going forward, some will be declared because we have to, some will not," he said. "I don't think it \[Aston Martin's development\] is completely finished, but I don't think that we will have an upgrade like Budapest."
## Perez gets Ferrari's 'ADUO 2' engine
While the works Ferrari team and one of its customers, Haas, have both used Maranello's latest ADUO 2-spec engine since the Italian GP at Monza in early September, Cadillac has held fire so far.
Due to complications of installing the revised power unit, which requires new parts, Cadillac wanted to wait until after the Monza/Madrid double-header before committing to it.
It has now given the green light for Sergio Perez to run it in Baku, while Valtteri Bottas will have to wait a little bit longer.
The extra power on offer from the engine upgrade will be a welcome boost to Cadillac, which will also be introducing some small aerodynamic upgrades as well.
ADUO 2 will likely be a topic of interest at Ferrari as well, as the manufacturer weighs up its power unit plans over the remainder of the season.
Charles Leclerc's ADUO 2 engine, which was in use when he crashed in the Italian GP, is likely to return to the track for evaluation in Azerbaijan, but it is also possible that he may get a totally fresh one as well to see him through to the end of the campaign.
Baku's long straights mean that it is a good place to take a grid drop for an engine swap.
## McLaren's H-wing returns alongside another update
McLaren has unlocked a rich seam of performance from its MCL40 since the summer break, having made big gains in fast- and medium-speed corners.
The team is still mindful of some core weaknesses, though, especially when it comes to straightline performance and low-speed turns.
For Baku, which features that very long start/finish straight, McLaren will bring back into action its low-drag 'H-wing' that it raced for the first time at the Italian GP.
It is also set to evaluate another upgrade package that it hopes can deliver gains in areas where it is giving away laptime to its main rivals.
Chief technical officer Rob Marshall said that rules stability meant there was little reason not to keep the upgrades coming.
"With regulatory continuity into next season and the competition at the front so close, our motivation to keep developing the car remains high," he said.
## Energy deployment questions
The Baku layout is a mixed blessing for the current energy-starved cars.
The tight, low-speed corners and city section that make up the sequence from Turn 1 through to Turn 16 should offer plenty of opportunity to charge the battery and unleash added electrical power.
But the extremely long run from Turn 16 all the way through to the first corner is one where battery efficiency and state of charge are going to be critical.
One thing that teams will need to evaluate is whether the reduced downforce of the 2026 cars means that the fast Turn 18/19 sequence can still be taken flat.
If it can, then that will mean a different deployment pattern compared to if it requires a lift, which will deliver a bit of a boost for energy harvesting.
One other issue, which could cause some trouble over the weekend, is of potential big speed differentials between cars on outlaps and cars on push laps in practice and qualifying.
Teams will want to programme their MGU-Ks to not burn up any battery until as late as possible before the timing line in qualifying, which will mean running slower on the internal combustion engine beforehand down the main straight.
That means a speed profile very different from cars that will have maximised energy usage coming out of Turn 16, and that will be approaching the start/finish line much quicker as a result.
## Bigger tyre and brake headaches
It has been well understood that the increased need to harvest energy on the entry to corners this year has resulted in teams calling upon the mechanical brake components much less.
This has had consequences in terms of both brake discs and tyres being much cooler than before, which can be a problem when they are suddenly required.
Baku's long main straight has always meant drivers have had a challenge keeping temperature in the front brakes and tyres as they are cooled down for a long time after the final corner.
The situation could be a bit more extreme this year with the shift of emphasis with the 2026 rules meaning neither are anything like as warm as they were in the past.
McLaren's Marshall thinks drivers could regularly arrive at Turn 1 with things "relatively cold", which could be a recipe for plenty of lock-ups.
### What I learned escaping the F1 bubble
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-i-learned-escaping-the-f1-bubble/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T18:39:04.000Z
Nearly a decade in a bubble is a long time. Others have done plenty longer but a ninth consecutive season travelling to or working nearly 200 races means Formula 1 has dominated a huge part of my life.
For better and worse, following F1 inside the paddock is not the same as watching from afar. It is both an immense privilege and quite a burden, depending on circumstance - and an increasingly curated method of studying F1 for the information I have needed to do my job gave me a very narrow lens to view it through, too.
It has been a long time since I watched an F1 race to enjoy it, or followed a weekend without poring over thousands of words of quotes and hours of data or onboard footage. Though the F1 media talks to, and sometimes on behalf of, fans an awful lot, we rarely have the same perspective. Again, for better and worse.
This summer was different. I stepped away for three months on paternity leave to focus on my three-year-old son and my daughter, who was born last September, and in doing so escaped the bubble that had dictated so much of my time for so long.
With seven races taking place in this period, a very early thought I had was: how much will I still care about F1 if I don't have to? Especially in the middle of a season that, thanks to the new rules, has tested my patience professionally and personally more than once.
## F1 should phase out Thursdays again
One of the very first things I noticed was something I didn't notice happening.
The day before cars even hit the track, F1's circus is already in full swing. Media day is such a big deal in the paddock, and I know there are fans who are very aware it's a thing and do know to look out for quotes or even follow driver press conferences.
It is a colossal operation to feed a content machine that is bigger and hungrier than it's ever been. All the drivers speak to various broadcasters and the written media, there's a couple of team people that speak too, teams are doing their own content production. It's incredibly vast.
I get that there is interest in it, and I'm not knocking that. But I have often thought it feels like a bit of a waste.
There's very little shelf life for what preview content is picked up and often in double-headers and triple-headers (which are so common these days) we have typically heard from all these people a few days ago. F1 did try to phase this day out a few years ago, and I think the principle was right even if the way it was trialled didn't work.
I've often wondered - given we can see in our own analytics that there isn't any major uptick in attention on a Thursday - how much this is a self-serving exercise that has ballooned into a massive part of F1's footprint without actually having the value to merit it. And I was surprised how early on it was that the Thursdays just completely passed me by once I was not there.
There were at least a couple of occasions where it was only seeing that there had been a practice session on Friday that I remembered 'it's race X this weekend'. I know that's heavily influenced by my own circumstances, but that is the point: it was the single-biggest shift for me from a day that took up a huge amount of time and energy to one that did not even register.
And I wonder how many fans that goes for.
## A sprint benefit I did not expect
Two of the race weekends I watched from the fan position were sprint events. These actually have a slightly stranger function than I thought they would.
On normal weekends it was difficult to really engage fully with three practice sessions to labour through (and Friday just not being possible to follow in the moment). As I said, I didn't even notice some of them starting!
That meant I'd watch qualifying with quite a big knowledge deficit compared to what was possible - and I felt that sometimes. It also inevitably carries over into the race, and not in a good way. It's not, 'Ooh, I don't know what's going to happen' it's, 'Oh, things are happening and I'm not really comprehending it'.
But I found the sprint weekends surprisingly good for quick-fire catch-ups of what's going on, without really feeling like I had my comprehension of the weekend dragged down. They were an easier and better experience to follow casually, whether that was a Friday evening where the daytime action has been missed and it's simply to have a quick catch-up with sprint qualifying, or finding the time to watch the sprint at some point on the Saturday.
So the sprints, actually, I enjoyed a lot more than I thought - even though the races are what they are.
I've long been accepting of F1's primary argument that the sprint weekend makes for two better like-for-like viewing events. Sprint qualifying is better than an FP2, the sprint race is better than FP3\. That doesn't change the fact I think the races usually aren't good, and I would like F1 to do more with the sprint format overall - this was also emphatically reinforced by sitting through the sprints at home.
## Tired of the propaganda
This is old news now, because the comments were made a while ago as I write this, but the messaging from F1 and Stefano Domenicali when it comes to what fans supposedly want was a grating experience from a distance. Especially as it wasn't the first time that's happened this year.
We are all familiar now with Domenicali feeling the need to confront any challenge to F1's product quite combatively. Even against the uncomfortable reality that the 2026 rules have been an extremely bad compromise and many changes are coming next year, after extensive deliberation, to address the issues that supposedly don't exist.
I'd like to think it just comes out the wrong way, and worse than intended, but I can see why so many fans feel like the propaganda flirts with borderline contempt for 'traditional' fans because of supposed metrics and the apparently very important testimony from George Lucas that, actually, new fans love this version of F1 and they don't care about technical information or the nuance of a driver's racecraft.
Personally, I believe that's wrongly dismissive of fans who do value such wonderful elements of grand prix racing - and I think it sells newer fans short, because we have come across plenty who got into F1 watching Drive to Survive, for example, and swiftly wanted deeper coverage.
It blended poorly with another thing I saw that exemplified the hyperbole that engulfs some aspects of modern F1: the teaser of something dropping during the summer break, which just turned out to be promotional material that had no depth or substance whatsoever.
That would annoy me in a professional capacity but seeing it casually as a fan it felt ill-judged at best: I don't think this is the year to be hyping up something that doesn't live up to expectations.
## Hope for 2027
A hill I am happy to die on with the 2026 rules is there are elements of the racing that are actually good. They're just clouded by problematic extremities.
Having initially championed my position from the luxury of watching trackside and seeing how the new cars moved around (even if that was still to the displeasure of drivers including Max Verstappen) I have now seen the best and worst of this ruleset from afar.
Monza was a great deal better than I feared, and it remains the case that cars can follow closely on a range of tracks even though proper overtaking can be hard to come by - if I never see a lap of the 2026 Madring race again, I'll be a happy man.
What disappointed me a few times was just how hard it was to follow who's doing well and who isn't. When you're working the weekend and in the middle of it all, there is a drip feed of information and a picture starts to form almost just by being there - so then when things happen in the race, there's usually some morsel of context or understanding that helps put it into context.
But I saw so much of what felt like first-lap randomness with battery usage, and cars rising up or falling back, without really being sure if these people were doing a good job or a bad job. Is it algorithm-dependent? Are the drivers more passive participants in crucial moments than ever before?
I found it really frustrating to almost struggle to see the sport in this sometimes. So it really resonated at Zandvoort, where Verstappen talked about F1 being too easy in that regard.
Still, I am curious and optimistic about what will change in 2027\. I was not being glib when I wrote at the top that I was curious to discover what my relationship would be with F1 when it was more casual - I wanted to know if I still cared. And I think the biggest takeaway for me is I still do.
I was a bit worried that I wouldn't like it anymore, or my interest would fade when I wasn't obliged. It was never the number-one priority for me - that was the whole point of taking time away! - and I admitted I tuned out of one or two races out of boredom a couple of times.
But the enthusiasm for F1 is still very much there. And it is perhaps now underpinned by a slightly different perspective beyond just the one gleaned from the privileged position I had for so long.
### What time is F1's 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1-2026-azerbaijan-grand-prix-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T13:32:21.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
Expect drama as Formula 1® heads to Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix as the next stop on the 2026 calendar.
The epic street track offers a huge contrast in challenges for the drivers - from the flat-out slipstreaming of the ultra-long run past the pits, to the sinuous twists between the walls, including the tricky Castle section that has caught out so many drivers.
Kimi Antonelli is - at least according to his rivals - now unbeatable in the championship race, but the excitement going into each weekend is undiminished as McLaren bids to keep up its recent winning form, and with George Russell and Ferrari desperate to get out of their current slumps.
Something unusual for this weekend is that the whole schedule shifts forward by one day so the grand prix can take place on the Saturday, leaving Sunday clear for Azerbaijan's national Remembrance Day.
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Azerbaijan GP schedule (US time)
*PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time*
**Thursday September 24**
**Practice 1:** 1.30am (PDT), 4.30am (EDT)
**Practice 2:** 5am (PDT), 8am (EDT)
**Friday September 25**
**Practice 3:** 1.30am (PDT), 4.30am (EDT)
**Qualifying:** 5am (PDT), 8am (EDT)
**Saturday September 26**
**Azerbaijan Grand Prix:** 4am (PDT), 7am (EDT)
---
Watch The Formula 1 Qatar Airways Azerbaijan Grand Prix on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 24-26\. U.S. only.
---
## Azerbaijan GP schedule (local time)
**Thursday September 24**
**Practice 1:** 12.30pm
**Practice 2:** 4pm
**Friday September 25**
**Practice 3:** 12.30pm
**Qualifying:** 4pm
**Saturday September 26**
**Azerbaijan Grand Prix:** 3pm
## Azerbaijan GP schedule (UK time)
**Thursday September 24**
**Practice 1:** 9.30am
**Practice 2:** 1pm
**Friday September 25**
**Practice 3:** 9.30am
**Qualifying:** 1pm
**Saturday September 26**
**Azerbaijan Grand Prix:** 12pm
## How to watch the Azerbaijan GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026\.
Fans can view every minute of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)'s new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The Formula 1 Qatar Airways Azerbaijan Grand Prix on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 24-26\. U.S. only.
### Why Yamaha just hit a new MotoGP low
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/why-yamaha-just-hit-new-motogp-low/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T13:13:48.000Z
Yamaha's long-term MotoGP struggles reached another pinch point at the Austrian Grand Prix, leaving its riders "very shocked" and "embarrassed" by their performances.
The Red Bull Ring has long been a tough track for Yamaha, which has been winless at the circuit since its return to the calendar in 2016\. However, its difficulties in Austria exacerbated those facing its current line-up, with all four riders slamming the M1 package after a fruitless weekend - the first of the season where neither the factory team nor satellite outfit Pramac managed to score.
The four Yamahas were so far off the pace in Sunday's grand prix that they were posting almost identical times to last year's race - despite having a completely new bike and V4 engine - with Jack Miller comparing his 1m38s pace to "f\*\*\*ing Baggers times".
Fabio Quartararo had qualified ninth but slipped right back to 17th over the grand prix - yet he was still the best Yamaha, with his stablemates filling 19th through 21st places.
Multiple reasons were given for the riders' struggles, which mostly circled back on the reinforced tyre Michelin brought to Austria - which exposed Yamaha's problems with lack of grip, wheelspin on acceleration, and an obscenely high amount of tyre wear at the end of the race.
Pramac Yamaha's Toprak Razgatlioglu said he was "really angry on the bike" after questioning how it was possible to have "no grip" at the start of the race - labelling the weekend "the second-worst race in my life" after this year's Thailand season opener.
"Yesterday, we ride very well. OK, when we fight with Pol \[Espargaro\], we lost the group, but in the end he did a good job," Razgatlioglu explained after Sunday's grand prix.
"Today, I expected more, but in the beginning, no grip. If the bike has no grip, the bike has no acceleration. In the end, last six laps, I thought to myself, 'How is it possible I finish the race?' Because on the straight, the bike just \[wheel\]spins.
"The first corner exit, when I pick up the bike, the bike just spins. Everywhere, I feel just a spin the last six laps."
Pramac team-mate Miller agreed this was the second time they've experienced the issue, with the first coming in Thailand, where Michelin also opted for the hard-cased tyre.
However, Razgatlioglu and Miller both said they couldn't accept the wheelspin on acceleration that they had to deal with at the Red Bull Ring being just down to the tyre issues.
Miller further added that Yamaha had struggled with electronics problems throughout the weekend, with its set-up seemingly aggravating the tyre and further creating wheelspin.
"We're not able to transfer that weight smoothly, so any sort of sharp input or whatever you have on this tyre, it upsets it, and then it creates spin. And once the thing starts spinning, it doesn't f\*\*\*ing recover, and then the laptime just slowly but surely gets slower," Miller said.
"The other guys, especially the Aprilia, are really able to transition the power really well and then use more power. We could have 40bhp more, but we're not going to be able to use it cause we're going to spin, especially with this casing."
To compound these problems, excessive tyre wear cost Yamaha's runners further time, with Miller only having a small strip of rubber left on the middle of his rear tyre while Quartararo compared his laptimes at the end of the race to those of Moto2 race winner Izan Guevara.
Given Quartararo's rift with Yamaha, it's perhaps unsurprising he put less blame on the tyre issues due to all manufacturers seemingly struggling. However, he still admitted those problems did cause his times to fall away substantially.
"I knew already, like in the sprint, my tyre was destroyed at the end, so I didn't know what was going to happen, but I feel what's going to happen," Quartararo said.
"I think my last laps were like Guevara at the end. We struggle a lot; we spin. The amount of spin that we have was big."
Team-mate Alex Rins, meanwhile, saw the funnier side in the disappointment while trying to keep Franco Morbidelli at bay. The VR46 Ducati rider was running six tenths a lap faster than the Yamahas after falling down the order before eventually overtaking Rins, Miller and Razgatlioglu.
Although Rins was hoping to keep tabs on Morbidelli, he was ultimately unable to and joked that the positive from the weekend was just being able to run in the 1m34s, more than five seconds off the best race lap.
"It was quite funny because our pace was really bad compared to the others, in general," said Rins.
"So when I saw in the pitboard that Morbidelli was catching me, when I saw that he was at 0.4s that he recovered from one second, I just turned around and made \[a wave past gesture\] like this because we don't need to lose time fighting when another rider catches you like this.
"And I tried to analyse him, I tried to ride in a good way, but it doesn't matter. He left me. So yeah, in the end, I would say it was great to hold the laptime there \[in the 1m34s\] and that's it."
### How each active F1 rear wing concept works - Gary Anderson explains
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-each-active-f1-rear-wing-concept-works-gary-anderson-explains/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T12:59:56.000Z
Baku is another track where, like Monza, straightline speed is a major contributor to performance. This means rear wing design, and in particular the difference between cornering mode and straightline mode under Formula 1's new-for-2026 active aerodynamic regulations, is particularly important.
The objective of these two wing states is to create as much downforce as possible when in cornering mode and as low a drag level as possible when in straight mode. However, by regulation that transition between the two modes has to happen within 0.4 seconds.
The driver presses a button to activate straight mode, so there's no real urgency in getting to the low-drag mode. However, when going from straight mode to cornering mode it all happens automatically when the driver hits the brake pedal. When it closes, the airflow must reattach to the wing's undersurface just as quickly, otherwise the rear of the car will be unstable in the initial braking phase.
If that happens too often, the driver can also press a button to set it off just that little bit earlier, but then the on-track closing position will be a little bit random and, when in battle with another car, it could be easy to forget or even try to push the closing more to the limit, triggering the airflow problem again.
On two occasions earlier in the season, at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, we saw Max Verstappen go off track on corner entry. Both of these offs were at initial braking after a straight mode, and the team later admitted were caused by a [mechanical problem](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-has-fix-for-its-parked-macarena-wing/) with the design. This sort of problem can increase in magnitude just by being that metre or two later on the brakes, increased turbulence or a slight change in wind direction.
The actual use of it is in no way to improve overtaking, as everyone has it on the straight-mode sections of the track on every lap. It is simply to achieve higher top speeds, especially when these cars, because of a flawed set of hybrid regulations, are prone to running out of electrical power well before the end of the straights. Also, when in straight mode it means lower drag, so you get a bigger bang for your buck when it comes to top speeds, especially relative to the power level it takes to achieve that speed.
So what are the various different solutions that the teams have come up with for this season? Well, there are four main concepts. Within those four are obviously slightly different operational functions.
## Concept one
This is what I would call an extension of the previous DRS concept. However, the size of the opening is not defined as it was with the DRS solution, so it can be as big as you like.
The magenta arrow shows the rotational direction that the leading edge of the flap assembly goes in when opening, and the blue arrow shows its direction when closing. Not surprisingly, with the knowledge they had, this was the concept that most teams pursued for the start of the season.
On the Mercedes annotation, the red-line thickness difference is hopefully illustrating the downforce levels from when the wing is in cornering mode to when it is in straight mode.
With this concept, the wing's main plane and upper flap assembly will, even in straight mode, create some level of downforce and the two of them will probably still interact or, as I like to call it, ‘talk' to each other, again producing downforce.
This means that the airflow on each of these sections of rear wing will still be attached to the undersurface even when in straight-line mode. So depending on how aggressive the design group has been on the actual wing configuration there shouldn't be any reattachment problems when it goes into cornering mode.
## Concept two
This concept was first introduced by Ferrari and tested in a grand prix weekend very early in the season at round two in China. It has had many names, from ‘macarena' to flip-flop and H-wing, which is what McLaren called its version.
It is now used consistently by Ferrari and Red Bull and seemingly randomly by McLaren - it's only actually been raced at Monza but will be back this weekend for Baku.
If we take into account that both Red Bull and McLaren followed this path after seeing what Ferrari was up to (though Red Bull's insisted it had its version in the works before Ferrari's appeared), there must be something worthwhile in this concept. Otherwise, why bother?
Assuming that the cars generate similar levels of rear-wing downforce when in cornering mode, the red arrows change in weight just like the ones on the Mercedes. However, when open this concept is different. When open, the flap assembly, by being upside down, will, as highlighted with the green arrows, produce some level of lift – in other words, the opposite to downforce.
The mainplane will still produce a small level of downforce, as the reduced red arrows show. This reduction will mainly be because of the lack of interaction – ‘talking' – between the airflow on the flaps and the main plane. Will that reduce the levels of drag? Probably, but it would need fairly intense research to actually come up with the potential percentage performance gain.
The interesting thing for me about the Ferrari concept is the direction of rotation the flap assembly goes through when opening and closing. Looking from the driver's right-hand side of the car, the flap assembly rotates anti-clockwise, as the magenta arrows show, when opening. As I said earlier, this function is not critical to the airflow change, as all you want is a drag reduction as quickly as possible. As for the closing, it obviously closes in the opposite direction, clockwise, as the blue arrows show.
This means that it increases its angle of attack and induces airflow reattachment as it rotates. The last part of the rotation is very similar to the Mercedes concept in that it is just reducing the slot gap to its minimum, so it is not asking the airflow to reattach any differently from this more standard concept. One of its potential advantages for me is that, when being rotated to close, it is fighting against the in-line aerodynamic forces, so its closing rotation will be taking up the maximum of that allowable 0.4 seconds. During that period it is a bit like a parachute, helping with the speed reduction of the car.
The big difference with the Red Bull and McLaren versions of this flip-flop wing is that they both rotate their wings in the opposite direction when opening and closing. So for both of them, the flap assembly is going through a greater angle of attack until it gets to its final position, meaning they are asking for instantaneous airflow reattachment when that positioning is achieved.
## Concept three
This is a lone concept used by Alpine since the start of the season. Assuming once again that, when closed, it produces similar levels of rear-wing downforce to Mercedes and Ferrari, it simply reduces the angle of attack of the flap assembly by dropping the trailing edge, illustrated by the blue arrow.
This inherently opens the slot gap slightly, so reduces the downforce level and with it the drag of the complete wing assembly. Its positives are that it never really loses airflow attachment on the wing assembly, so when the angle of attack of the flap assembly is increased, which is shown with the blue arrow, all it is asking is for the downforce to increase in relation to the angle of attack.
## Concept four
This is again a one-off, but I would call it a deviation of the Alpine concept. It is only used by Audi.
It reduces the angle of attack of the flap assembly by rotating the flap assembly around more or less its centre. When it goes to straight-line mode, it drops the trailing edge and raises the leading edge of the flap assembly, as shown by the magenta arrows. It does the opposite to go to cornering mode, again highlighted with the blue arrows.
---
So the big question is which concept is best? Well, if you simply look at poles, race wins and the points table, you would have to err on the side of the Mercedes concept.
That, together with the fact that the concept is simply an extension of the DRS concept, means Mercedes didn't start the season from a clean sheet of paper. It had knowledge and understanding of the wing's characteristics and had a mechanism to operate it fairly well defined, so didn't have to use a lot of research and design capacity to come up with a functioning system.
It will be interesting to see who heads in which direction for next year as this season progresses.
### Inside Turkey's massive F1 return revamp
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/inside-turkeys-massive-f1-return-revamp/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T14:24:43.000Z
Despite a track that drivers loved (especially its iconic Turn 8), and it being right on the doorstep of the kind of destination city Formula 1 so loves, the Turkish Grand Prix had failed previously to establish itself as a permanent fixture on the calendar.
After arriving to much fanfare in 2005, it was dropped after 2011\.
Race organisers had baulked at the high hosting fee, the government did not want to bankroll it, and F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone was left unhappy about a lack of promotion that meant race attendances were low.
It briefly returned during the Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021 before once again falling away from the spotlight.
Fast forward to now and, with a [five-year deal that has put it back on the calendar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-long-f1-grand-prix-circuits-contracts/) in 2027, the situation surrounding the Istanbul Park is very different and signals the start of a new chapter for Istanbul Park.
One critical thing is staying the same - the track configuration.
But on many fronts the Turkish Grand Prix’s bosses are planning to change a lot of things.
The Race has spoken to Eren Uclertopragi, president of the Turkish Automobile Federation (TOSFED), to find out what is being done and why organisers are confident it can now establish itself for the long term.
### Paddock modernisation
Work is already underway to expand and modernise the pits and paddock complex.
As Uclertopragi explains: “We are expanding the paddock, so the capacity will be doubled.
“The infrastructure will be done from scratch – beginning from race control and expanding to the surrounding roads.”
A clear priority is to improve the fan experience, with work going on to try to cover as many of the grandstands as possible. There will be expansive fan zones.
A lot of effort is also going into ensuring that the track delivers on the corporate hospitality front, which has become a lot more important for F1 since the last time the Turkish GP was on the calendar.
“We are looking into top quality secondary hospitality – especially at our famous Turn 8,” added Uclertopragi. “We want to give everyone the best experience that we can.”
### Better access
The remote location of the Istanbul Park circuit meant in the past it could be a bit of a traffic headache getting in and out each day.
For its return, organisers want to deliver a much improved experience, which is why a lot of thought has gone into ensuring things work better outside the track.
Uclertopragi said: “We want to prioritise the fan experience, which starts with traffic control and management.
“The surrounding roads have been constructed in a new way to make sure traffic flow is much better.”
### No slippery track surface repeat
The Turkish GP’s return in 2020 grabbed attention as drivers battled an extremely slippery track surface - that some compared to racing on an ice rink.
The situation had been caused by last-minute resurfacing, which meant that the oils that are released when asphalt is freshly laid were being released.
The situation improved for 2021, with water blasting helping eradicate any further headaches, and Uclertopragi says there should be no concerns about any problems this time around because the track should be well rubbered in.
“We were not a big fan of resurfacing the layer with that short period of time \[before the 2020 race\],” he said. “It was a new surface and there were no races prior to F1.
“The surface will remain the same as it is now, but there are 30 weeks of track action around Istanbul Park every year and once we have finished the renovation and upgrades, we will start again holding national and international races prior to F1.”
**No rush to be back**
The return of the Turkish GP to the [calendar in 2027](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/monaco-sprint-and-season-opener-plan-b-f1-2027-calendar-revealed/) inevitably prompted some speculation earlier in the year that it could be a contender for an event later this year if F1 needed some replacement for Middle East races.
But despite the obvious attraction of getting an early slot, Uclertopragi said that it was never on his radar to rush things.
Instead, he thinks it better to wait until work at Istanbul Park is properly finished - rather than hosting something that is only half ready.
“We want to have a race, but a proper race, a properly prepared race for the upcoming season,” he said when asked about the possibility of a potential slot this year.
“I haven't had any discussions with either the FIA or F1 \[on a 2026 race\] and I didn’t have a request for it.
“We have a timeline. I want to stick to my timeline.”
Imola has instead emerged as F1’s Plan B season finale if Qatar and Abu Dhabi cannot happen.
### A more secure future
One key difference to before is that the Turkish Grand Prix has much more direct backing from the government.
Previously the Turkish government has declined to help subsidise the race hosting fees, as it preferred for the event to be run by private companies only.
Now there is a new arrangement with the track ownership transferred to the Ministry of Sports, which duly allowed TOSFED to take over management and promotion of the whole facility.
Uclertopragi believes this arrangement has given the Turkish GP a much more solid foundation in the past - which means it can invest for the long term.
“For the first time ever, we are receiving great support from our state, and this time it will be fully backed by the state,” he said.
“TOSFED has always been good at arranging races from the sporting side, but now we will bring our expertise and our discipline onto the commercial side as a promoter as well.”
He added: “The worst part was, prior to our management, the circuit was managed by a private company, and their priority was not the sport, not the fans, not F1\. So we unfortunately had problems with regards to the fan experience.”
### Where every Red Bull driver stands as Hadjar returns
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/isack-hadjar-injury-return-where-every-red-bull-f1-driver-stands/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T10:00:13.000Z
Red Bull will have its first-choice driver line-up back again at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, as [Isack Hadjar returns](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/isack-hadjar-cleared-to-return-f1-azerbaijan-gp/) from an injury-enforced three-race spell on the Formula 1 sidelines.
That means Liam Lawson heads back to Racing Bulls after a second (and, incredibly, longer) spell at the senior team, while Yuki Tsunoda takes up his reserve-driver role once more after his F1 2026 cameo.
What did those three races after the summer break tell us about the five drivers in Red Bull's F1 pool? What did it do for their reputations? And where does it leave them for the rest of 2026?
## Hadjar needs to join Red Bull's rising tide
Hadjar reclaims his Red Bull seat safe in the knowledge he should eclipse his stand-in Lawson's perfectly adequate job in the circumstances. But his return is not without pressure.
With no prior knowledge of the car, and being bounced between teams yet again, Lawson's point-scoring efforts kept Red Bull's tally ticking over.
That means Hadjar must be returning with the expectation of being at or very close to his best. Otherwise, Red Bull would be making the wrong call for its competitive prospects.
It's also a triple-header that will be physically demanding. It will test his rehabilitation, his concentration, and how sharply he gets back up to speed.
Hadjar's body of work before the summer break was very encouraging. In the first 11 races, he averaged 6.5 points to Verstappen's 9.9\. In other words, if Verstappen typically finished fifth, Hadjar would be one or two places behind him.
But Hadjar will be expected to do more than just what he was doing before he had to vacate his seat. In the three races he missed, Verstappen's average rose to 12 points per race despite his crash at Zandvoort, thanks to podiums at Monza and the Madring. Lawson only managed 4.7 per event.
Verstappen has shown the peak is rising for Red Bull, and Hadjar steps back in needing to rise with it. **\- Scott Mitchell-Malm**
## Lawson proved he could do the job after all
Lawson's future within the Red Bull F1 empire had looked pretty secure already before the summer break, off the back of a consistent first half to the season for Racing Bulls that had left him the leading driver in the points' standings outside the top four teams.
Yes, there had been a fair deal of hype around Nikola Tsolov off the back of his impressive Formula 2 campaign, but those who worked most closely with Lawson talked of a step change in approach and performance over the winter.
His engineering team in particular liked the way he had, despite his dislike of the 2026 regulations, knuckled down to unleash a fair few tricks in energy management that had pushed the team onwards.
The indications back then were that Racing Bulls had every intention of capitalising on what he was delivering to keep him on alongside Arvid Lindblad for another year. Even in F1, if your driver line-up is not broken, don't fix it.
The surprise opportunity at Red Bull offered Lawson a chance to banish the ghosts of that troubled start of 2025, and in settling in so quickly to a tricky car he proved what those at Racing Bulls already knew.
He did a more than solid job. Twice in the points, with the most difficult weekend being Monza, which was always going to be an uphill battle because he was starting from the back with an engine penalty.
Did he do enough to force a rethink at Red Bull that Lawson is the man they really should have alongside Verstappen? Probably not.
But did he do enough to show that he is exactly what Racing Bulls needs to capitalise on its progress as it aims to top the midfield? Absolutely. **\- Jon Noble**
## Tsunoda is still a reliable points scorer
Yuki Tsunoda simply backed up what his previous four full seasons at Red Bull's second team had suggested: he's a reliable points scorer in the right machinery. A bruising season alongside Verstappen has done little to change that.
He was quickly on the pace when he jumped into the 2026 Racing Bulls for the first time at Zandvoort, qualifying only a tenth slower than Lindblad on Saturday.
Tsunoda then picked up the first point of his comeback at Monza despite a disappointing Q1 exit on Saturday and some dodgy grid parking at the start of the race (something Audi is trying to use to have the point taken away from him).
Damage in Madrid ruined any chance of doing the same there but he more than proved he's an ideal stand-in driver. Quick to adapt and capable of delivering points. But not stunning enough to go 'this guy shouldn't be left on the sidelines'.
In Tsunoda's words: "I gave it my all and there's nothing to regret."
If this is the end of Tsunoda's 114-race F1 career, then it's a far more fitting end than toiling miles off Verstappen. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Lindblad's passed another test
As the sole rookie in the field this year, Lindblad had already made an impressive start to life in grand prix racing.
But this three-race spell ticked at least one other box.
The Lawson-Lindblad partnership has been a particularly well-matched one; their effectiveness is a big part of the reason Racing Bulls still heads Alpine in the constructors' championship.
But while Tsunoda adjusted perfectly well to the demands of these 2026 cars, Racing Bulls was always going to need its other driver in this dynamic to lead the line. Lindblad did just that.
His pace was sufficient at Monza to finish ahead of an Alpine that he had little right beating (notwithstanding Franco Colapinto's self-inflicted drama); the Madring weekend was imperfect but he still brought home two points; and even at Zandvoort, where a harsh in-race penalty dropped him out of contention, he was an effective disruptor in stopping Pierre Gasly from scoring more points and giving Tsunoda the best chance of getting off the mark.
That's now seven Q3 appearances in a row, too, and Racing Bulls has preserved a margin over Alpine in the constructors' championship.
More impressive stuff from a driver who's still only 19, whose performances won't have escaped the attention of Red Bull higher-ups. The question now is whether the balance of power at Racing Bulls might have shifted in his favour. **\- Jack Cozens**
## A fit Hadjar helps Verstappen
Verstappen cares who his team-mate is and how they are performing. It directly, and indirectly, impacts him.
A seamless Hadjar return would be a boost for Verstappen as Red Bull continues to try to fight consistently at the front. Getting the second car in the mix is crucial when Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren can all typically count on both their drivers.
Lawson didn't finish within a minute of the race winner on any of his Red Bull starts. Regardless of the mitigating factors, that inevitably meant Verstappen and Red Bull were fighting one-handed (although Verstappen was the one who exited spectacularly at Zandvoort, of course).
If Hadjar can be immediately at his best, he will be a factor in race outcomes at the front and in Red Bull's bid to try to improve on its fourth place in the constructors' championship.
As he's missed three races and spent two months away, an instantly strong return could also be seen as further vindication for Verstappen's theory that F1 2026's not as strenuous as it should be.
But that's unlikely to be something Verstappen complains about if it benefits him and his team. **\- SMM**
### Hadjar cleared to return for Azerbaijan GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/isack-hadjar-cleared-to-return-f1-azerbaijan-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T08:41:36.000Z
Isack Hadjar will be back in action for Red Bull at Formula 1's Azerbaijan Grand Prix this weekend after recovering from the fractured wrist he suffered during the summer break.
Hadjar hurt himself during a gym training session shortly before the Dutch GP at Zandvoort, with the injury leaving him unable to drive.
He was forced to miss the races in the Netherlands, Italy and Spain while his wrist healed, with Red Bull not wanting to take any risks in rushing him back.
Hadjar said he was "just so excited to get back into my car" and emphasised the importance of being adequately prepared for the Baku street circuit, one that "you need to be locked in for from the very start of the weekend".
"The last month has been tricky for me; it's the first time in my life that I've not been racing and that's a weird feeling to get used to," he said.
"I want to thank Laurent \[Mekies, Red Bull team principal\] and the team for their patience throughout this process; it was important not to rush the decision and now I feel ready to get back to what I do best - driving."
Racing Bulls's regular Liam Lawson stepped up into his place and took seventh place at Zandvoort, later following that up with sixth in Spain.
He had had a tougher time at Monza, thanks to an engine penalty that put him at the back of the grid and then his hopes in the race being dashed by a damaged front wing that he picked up in a clash with Nico Hulkenberg.
Lawson had welcomed the opportunity to show what he could at Red Bull's main team, having had a troubled time with the squad at the start of 2025 when he was dropped after just two races.
"It's been overall quite positive," said Lawson. "I managed to score in two of the three. I think Monza was tough just with the whole layout of the weekend, and then the engine penalty. Then obviously having damage in the race really ruined it for us.
"But I think overall we've had good speed."
With Hadjar now back in action, Lawson will return to Racing Bulls, meaning that his own temporary replacement Yuki Tsunoda will go back to his regular reserve driver role.
Tsunoda quickly adapted to the demands of the F1 2026 cars and scored a point for Racing Bulls at the Italian GP, although that result remains subject to an appeal lodged by Audi relating to a grid formation situation following an early red flag.
### Mir ruled out of more MotoGP races as illness continues
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/mir-ruled-out-of-more-motogp-races-as-illness-continues/
Last updated: 2026-09-22T08:12:36.000Z
Honda MotoGP rider Joan Mir will remain sidelined for two more rounds of the 2026 season, but a "definitive diagnosis" regarding his affliction is yet to be reached.
Mir struggled badly for strength and energy during the Misano weekend and, after retiring from the grand prix, was also ruled out of the Red Bull Ring weekend due to what was described as inconclusive findings in his bloodwork.
On Tuesday, Honda said that Mir "has continued to undergo a series of tests" since, at the Dexeus University Hospital in Barcelona where MotoGP medical chief Dr Angel Charte is a director, and that those tests have "remained inconclusive".
Honda also revealed that the symptoms have been present "for several months".
Dr Charte was quoted by Honda as saying: "Joan Mir has been experiencing a variety of symptoms impacting his energy and performance for several months with a recent increase in severity, the cause is still unconfirmed at this time.
"Due to their persistence and severity, Mir has been undergoing a series of tests at the Dexeus University Hospital with the aim of reaching a definitive diagnosis. Due to the symptoms, the medical advice is to observe strict rest and undergo various treatments for the next 15 days.
"Consequently, I have advised him against participating in the Japanese and Indonesian Grands Prix. His condition will continue to be closely monitored by my team."
Honda says it will announce Mir's replacement "in due course".
Tester Takaaki Nakagami fulfilled the role admirably at the Red Bull Ring - but is already entered into his home round at Motegi as a wildcard, though he potentially could be simply shifted into the main factory line-up again.
### F1 approves plan for shorter grands prix in 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-approves-plan-for-shorter-grands-prix-in-2027/
Last updated: 2026-09-21T16:46:34.000Z
Formula 1’s plan to have shorter races in 2027 has received agreement at the latest F1 Commission meeting.
It emerged earlier this month that there was consensus among the teams that shortening the length of races next season from 305km to 290km was a necessity.
That’s because fuel flow rates are being increased for 2027 as part of F1 moving its power unit formula away from the initial 50/50 internal combustion engine-electrical power split.
It’s more like 53-47 in favour of the ICE in reality, but with the help of the increased fuel flow rate, this is set to shift to 58-42 in 2027, before a further step to 60-40 in 2028.
The increased fuel flow rate would have meant more fuel was needed to complete the same race distance as before.
Therefore, some teams would need to increase the size of their fuel tanks for 2027 and dip into cost cap money that could be spent elsewhere.
So the teams and the FIA have instead now formally agreed to reduce the total race distance, which corresponds to a reduction of two or three laps everywhere but Monaco, which already runs to a season-low 260km.
That still needs to be formally approved by the FIA world motorsport council, which will next meet again virtually on October 15, but that should be a formality.
The other conclusions from the F1 Commission meeting in London (pending final WMSC approval) were “minor changes to the 2026 sporting and financial regulations”.
There was also the removal of the three-hour time limit for races that are halted. There’s currently a two-hour limit for actual racing, but there had been a rule that the total time from the race starting couldn’t exceed three hours if there were stoppages.
Those changes have been made to increase the chance of a full race being able to be run even if disruptions occur.
They also agreed on “greater flexibility to extend free practice sessions should they be interrupted”.
Gearbox homologation for 2027 has been removed so manufacturers - including first-time builder Aston Martin - will have freedom to improve their designs.
Other minor, so far unspecified changes were also made to the 2027 technical regulations.
### FIA's Honda help could trigger major ADUO system revamp
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/howfias-honda-help-could-trigger-major-aduo-system-revamp/
Last updated: 2026-09-21T16:04:12.000Z
An overhaul of Formula 1's ADUO rules is on the cards for next year as part of a twin-pronged attack to make the catch-up mechanism work better at the front and help Honda at the back.
The Race has learned that the FIA is evaluating potential tweaks to the contentious ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) system for 2027.
It is hoped that this can avoid some of the headaches that have marred it this season - as well as help deliver on its original aim of being a safety net for those at the back rather than something influencing the fight at the front.
ADUO was originally intended as a means of helping manufacturers that had got things wrong have the ability to recover.
But it threw up unintended consequences, as well as causing a fair deal of controversy, when Red Bull was declared as having the best engine despite having not won a race.
Red Bull's frustrations were amplified by the fact that championship leader Mercedes was judged to be enough behind that it qualified for one development step this season and next.
One of the bones of contention was how the ADUO rankings were based only on the power output of the internal combustion engine and not the performance of the overall power unit.
That left F1 facing a situation whereby Mercedes, which is widely acknowledged as having the best performing package, is allowed to bring developments while Red Bull cannot because its ICE is so strong.
It has also become clear that the ADUO system can leave the benchmark manufacturer trapped in being unable to improve, because rivals can choose to only develop components that are not measured by the FIA when it does its rankings.
The issues exposed this season have added impetus to the FIA's long-standing belief that improvements to ADUO are needed.
And thoughts of further tweaks have accelerated in recent weeks off the back of a push by Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll to help his team's struggling engine manufacturer Honda get some extra assistance.
The Race has learned that the FIA is now looking into potential changes for 2027, when tweaks to the regulations to improve fuel flow rates are also coming into play.
Any revisions coming will be focused on two main areas: what makes the ADUO system as a whole better and also what can be done within it to offer more assistance to a struggling manufacturer such as Honda.
While analysis of what can be done is still at an early stage, momentum behind getting changes in place for next year could accelerate this week with teams gathering for the next meeting of the F1 Commission on Monday.
There, off the back of recent discussions regarding extra assistance for Honda, the ADUO topic could well get raised to see if there is consensus between manufacturers for change.
That could then set in motion a more formal move to change the rules through discussions in F1's Power Unit Advisory Committee (PUAC) that deals with engine regulations.
**A work in progress**
The FIA has long been open to the view that in the first year of its implementation, ADUO was very much a work in progress that always had room to be improved.
While the governing body rejects Red Bull's scepticism about it being F1's benchmark engine, the FIA never shied away from thinking that the rules could be improved.
The FIA's single seater director Nikolas Tombazis told The Race before the summer break: "I think our measurement, in my opinion, has proven to be very accurate.
"With that said, has everything worked fine? No, because obviously people are not happy and so on. So do we need to think about improvements in the future? Yes, I would say so."
The Race has learned that the FIA is now studying what changes could work to improve ADUO for next year - both to help struggling manufacturers but also alleviate concerns about how things are measured at the front.
While nothing has been decided yet, it is understood that a range of options are on the table.
This could include changes to the way that the ICE power is measured, so it takes into account elements such as turbo size, operating temperatures and outside factors that influence output like exhaust wings.
One route could be to base the ADUO rankings on the overall power unit performance rather than just the ICE, while there could even be a more radical way of deciding which manufacturers can improve.
Audi project chief Mattia Binotto suggested earlier in the year that it would be better to base allowances for improvement on constructors' championship positions and not a judgement on the power of a single component.
Tombazis has said many times that the FIA's preference was always to take more factors into consideration for judging the ADUO rankings.
Speaking about initial discussions on the rules with manufacturers, he said: "We offered whether we wanted to consider certain things like the turbo pressures, or the turbo diameters, or the operating of the plenum temperature, for example, and such like.
"The universal position by the PU manufacturers back then was that we should keep it simple."
**Reaching agreement**
While a more complicated measurement system was rejected by manufacturers before, the views of everyone may well be different now that they have seen the ADUO system in operation, plus everyone has a better idea of how the 2026 regulations are working.
Key to change will be getting support from all the carmakers as any revisions to the regulations would need to go through the PUAC.
For rule tweaks to happen, four out of the six manufacturers (Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull, Audi, Honda and Cadillac) that sit on the PUAC would need to support them.
Impetus for getting a new ADUO framework in play could be increased though off the back of moves to try to bring Honda some extra help.
Honda has struggled in the first year of the 2026 rules despite having received a first batch of help at the start of the year following support from rivals.
This manifested itself in a package of measures that included Honda receiving a $19million spending boost - $11m of which was an increased allowance and a further $8m that was effectively a loan.
But with its situation having not improved dramatically, team owner Stroll has increased pressure for an extra leg-up - with Fernando Alonso also joining calls for help.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem spoke openly at the Spanish Grand Prix last week about his desire to find ways to give Honda some assistance that would help give it a brighter future and keep Alonso in F1.
Ben Sulayem's viewpoint – and it is one shared by other manufacturers – is that nobody stands to benefit from having a major manufacturer like Honda struggling so much.
There is a clear acceptance that if the situation did not change, there would be an obvious risk of Honda pulling out of F1.
The matter has been raised with some manufacturers already, and early indications are that there is support for tweaks to ADUO to help Honda again.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff says he is open to the idea of handing Honda more help – because it is better for everyone if all manufacturers were competitive.
"I think ADUO was designed as a catch-up mechanism," he said. "That formula was unlocked for Honda, and they need more.
"The conversation that the president had with a lot of us is that we want to have all of these top constructors in the sport.
"We want them to be competitive and successful. We need the best of the best in the sport, and sometimes maybe we need an adjustment."
It is obvious, though, that if the FIA wants Red Bull to help Honda's cause then the governing body would likely need to offer it some form of compromise adjustment in terms of the wider ADUO system to help end gripes about how it has been measured and implemented so far.
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies suggested in Spain that, while he is in favour of making changes again for Honda, this will almost certainly prompt a wider debate about the entire ADUO process.
"We cannot agree on everything, but certainly as stakeholders of the sport, if there is a situation that needs fixing, that needs to be fixed, or needs to be supported, we normally find solutions," said Mekies.
"I'm sure that we will at some stage sit down and discuss the future of the ADUO regulations and the shortfalls. We know some of them, and I'm sure there will be a few others to address."
### **The Honda element**
### Key to working out what assistance works best for Honda will be in finding something that does not step over the line of being unfair to other manufacturers by hindering their own development and competitive hopes.
Honda itself has not been directly involved in any dialogue with the FIA about the situation, and it is also not one to stir things up in public as it prefers to keep a low profile on political matters.
Honda's trackside general manager Shintaro Orihara said at the Spanish Grand Prix that the focus for him right now was on working on planned developments into 2027 rather than hoping that there is a miracle step that can be delivered through a rule change.
Asked by The Race about Ben Sulayem's push for help, Orihara said: "I don't know what he is thinking about, so I don't think he can give us some magic.
"We will focus on our development plan and work hard to improve by ourselves. That is our plan at the moment."
Honda has elected to use only one of the two ADUO upgrades it is allowed to bring this season so it can instead focus on a bigger leap forward for next year.
Orihara said recently that there was some optimism that work to improve areas it is lacking will help unlock more power with its 2027 specification.
"We have a development plan to improve our performance for the future, for 2027 and 2028," he said. "I'm not saying we're going to be top competitors immediately, let's say in round one of 2027, but we are trying to bring big steps."
There is also going to be a[ change in its senior leadership team](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-makes-f1-project-leadership-change/), with Yoichiro Fukao taking over as large project leader of the F1 engine programme from Tetsushi Kakuda.
Honda said that the move was aimed at helping "accelerate PU development" ahead of the revisions needed for the tweaked 2027 rules in which fuel flow rates will be increased.
### Austrian Grand Prix 2026 MotoGP rider rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/austrian-grand-prix-2026-motogp-rider-rankings/
Last updated: 2026-09-21T13:27:36.000Z
MotoGP's newest grand prix winner is also my rider of the season for 2026 so far - but he had no real chance of heading up these Austrian Grand Prix rankings.
Instead, first place was a very easy call in someone else's favour. So where does Pedro Acosta end up?
---
***Agree, disagree or want to send Val off down a tangent? Leave your thoughts and question about his Austria rankings in the comments*** [***on this post in The Race Members' Club***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/170151884/?ref=the-race.com) ***and he'll reply in his Q&A recording***
---
**Qualifying:** 1st **Sprint:** 1st **Grand Prix:** 2nd
A weekend of gargantuan quality that backed up Martin's bluster about his race pace at Misano (before that race was ruined by arm pump).
In the groove from the start of the weekend, at a track that clearly speaks to him, he had the edge within the Aprilia camp - and really flexed his muscles in the sprint to salvage the win after going down to eighth place (though of course was partly culpable in having to make that recovery).
He felt less competitive in the grand prix but got another important result, fighting off Marco Bezzecchi and extending his championship lead - while also putting any ideas of in-season arm pump surgery to the side.
**Qualifying:** 10th **Sprint:** 7th **Grand Prix:** 10th
Zarco continues to look like he's never been out, and this was up there with Jerez for his best weekends of 2026.
Though his edge over fellow Honda riders wasn't huge, it was reliable across qualifying and the races.
The sprint in particular was a spectacular success, with a 5.9s gap to the winner a terrific return. The grand prix was complicated by Zarco dropping to as low as 17th on the opening lap - but his underlying speed meant that compared to his Honda peers he was uniquely well-positioned to recover.
**Qualifying:** 2nd **Sprint:** 2nd **Grand Prix:** 5th
This was a difficult weekend for Marquez's title aspirations, and particularly unpromising for Mandalika next month - where the harder-construction tyre will return, at a less favourable layout.
But while Ducati struggled Marquez himself was basically unimpeachable, as the fastest Desmosedici rider in every session but one (Friday practice).
He had single-lap speed concerns coming out of Friday but turned it around emphatically in qualifying, and rode a fantastic sprint.
A podium, Marquez insisted, was also on the cards on Sunday, but he was among several riders at Ducati affected by an inconsistent front brake - which led to him completely overshooting Turn 1 and left him fearing he may need to retire before the stopping performance suddenly corrected itself.
**Qualifying:** 3rd **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 1st
I welcome any accusations of being a hater but know this - this is Acosta's lowest ranking since Jerez in April (!) and only because he over-complicated a weekend that had the potential to be shockingly straightforward.
I believe Acosta wasn't much better this weekend than his season average. The truth is, the gaps to other KTM riders were about in line with the rest of 2026 - but the KTM just loved the Red Bull Ring this time, with its lower-than-expected grip, weird rear tyre and stop-and-go corners.
Acosta blundered significantly twice - in the sprint, with the win firmly in his grasp, and in Sunday warm-up when he nearly wrote off his main bike.
But this is plenty forgivable, given he'd waited so long for an opportunity like this, and faced with the now-or-never (at least at KTM) pressure of the grand prix he floated through the 28 laps.
The relatively low ranking, then, also reflects the fact that his performance 'floor' this year is so obscenely high.
**Qualifying:** 18th **Sprint:** 15th **Grand Prix:** 13th
I seriously flirted with putting Nakagami above the grand prix winner here. In the end I couldn't quite get there (which is probably for the best for the comments section) but I do believe this was an incredible shift.
Though Nakagami was in a slightly more favourable position relative to fellow stand-in Pol Espargaro in terms of having had a fairly recent 1000cc bike test (as prep for his Motegi wildcard), most of his year has been about 850cc testing - and his race fitness is minimal.
But he looked decent on Friday already and gained steam through the weekend, culminating in an exceptional Sunday ride - which was made possible by a request to Honda to reduce traction control as Nakagami "had confidence I could manage", and was proven correct.
**Qualifying:** 5th **Sprint:** 4th **Grand Prix:** 4th
Ogura felt "lucky" to be returning at the Red Bull Ring, where - he said - the layout was too simple to make his finger injury a real limitation.
But he had still expected to be limited, and just wasn't at all. A pre-weekend prediction of '11th-12th place' was revised already after a very strong Friday, and he very ably backed up the factory Aprilias in both races - making you wonder whether without the injury he'd still be right in the thick of the title battle right now.
**Qualifying:** 4th **Sprint:** 3rd **Grand Prix:** 3rd
It's highly unusual for Bezzecchi to be lead Aprilia in just one session all weekend (Sunday warm-up), but though the underlying performance was on the weaker side by his 2026 standards, in terms of execution it was the stabilising weekend he needed to counter his rollercoaster recent form.
The points outlook is not so rosy - he has now dropped 42 points back from Martin, more than a race weekend's worth - but his options to prevent that were limited.
He could have perhaps beaten Martin on Sunday if not for a couple of mistakes, and this would have meant an eight-point swing, but ultimately Bezzecchi still has some time to turn things around.
**Qualifying:** 9th **Sprint:** 12th **Grand Prix:** 17th
By around the lap 10 point in Sunday's race, Quartararo was heading for P1 in these rankings. But the true competitive gravity of the Sunday race punished him in the end, as he was reduced to Moto2 laptimes and simply trundled to the chequered flag.
You can debate whether his strategy for the race was the most efficient, but he was still the lead Yamaha, on a dreadful weekend for the bike.
And his performance in the less tyre life-dependent portions of the weekend was scintillating again, with a qualifying effort that stablemate Jack Miller described as "nothing short of a miracle".
His one-two performance punch of Misano and here has hopefully put any questions over his effort level completely to the side.
**Qualifying:** 7th **Sprint:** 6th **Grand Prix:** 7th
Bagnaia has finally snapped out of his dreadful Silverstone-Aragon-Misano funk - but only after a miserable Friday at the Red Bull Ring too. When he came to the media after practice, he looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him where he stood.
But there was a big step forward on Saturday morning, in damp practice, and for once it stuck. Bagnaia was solid in qualifying and then fairly strong in both races, despite likewise encountering that aforementioned brake trouble.
Both he and Ducati needed this.
**Qualifying:** 12th **Sprint:** 8th **Grand Prix:** 8th
Aldeguer never truly looked like matching his superb performance at the same track last year - but did have more in his locker than a pair of eighth places suggests.
The main culprit in limiting his weekend was, as it often is, qualifying. He was three and a half tenths back from his own Friday time in Q2, so consigned to the back of row four - from which options were limited.
His recovery was messy in both races, particularly on Sunday, where he committed the cardinal sin of compromising a team-mate's race. He lunged at Alex Marquez at Turn 6 but had to check up for the two Fabios fighting up ahead, so ran Alex nearly off the track, something that eventually earned him an understandable time penalty.
**Qualifying:** 11th **Sprint:** 9th **Grand Prix:** 6th
It's important not to lose sight of the context of Binder's weekend, in which the primary driver was the excellent (at this track) KTM RC16 rather than any sort of personal breakthrough.
That said, Binder did seem a touch closer to team-mate Acosta than normal, perhaps less compromised than usual by the rear tyre overpowering the front.
Because of this, an even slightly better weekend looked on the cards. But Binder lost the front at Turn 8 on his best qualifying lap, didn't navigate the start of the sprint optimally, and had to use "the f\*\*king Moto2 \[engine\] map" for a chunk of the grand prix to save fuel.
**Qualifying:** 8th **Sprint:** 10th **Grand Prix:** 9th
A "wrong weekend" was how Di Giannantonio put it in the end, putting it down to some set-up work that just didn't pan out rather than any specific issues.
He had hoped to thrive, relative to his Ducati peers, within the grip limitations imposed by the reinforced tyre, but really couldn't lay a glove on Marquez - on a layout that has never truly agreed with him.
We can draw a line under his long-shot title campaign now, but even like this the season is still good, even if it's lost a bit of its shine.
**Qualifying:** 6th **Sprint:** 5th **Grand Prix:** DNF
The younger Marquez's underlying performance was healthy enough, in the context of a Ducati that he described as "not like the one that we know" because of the different rear casing.
The execution was very messy. He crashed on Friday and again in Q2 (though that one, the weird front lock out of Turn 1, didn't look like his fault), then went down while duelling Raul Fernandez in the race - and admitted in the end that he'd made too many mistakes.
But the sprint result was a properly good one despite the bike feeling being "zero fun", and his grand prix was primarily compromised by being punted out of the top 10 by Gresini team-mate Aldeguer.
**Qualifying:** 14th **Sprint:** 14th **Grand Prix:** 16th
Espargaro's 300th grand prix start was not among his best, nor among his worst. He again performed reasonably well in terms of sheer pace but looked race-rusty (and this time got shown up a bit by a fellow test rider).
There were race mistakes on both days that left him catching up. He believed a top-10 was potentially in the offing on Sunday but lost any chance at it when he went wide in Fernandez's slipstream.
**Qualifying:** 15th **Sprint:** 13th **Grand Prix:** 14th
Marini's weekend had looked a lot more promising than this on Friday - but once he'd missed the Q2 cut by 0.004s, he knew he was in trouble.
But he also seemed increasingly outmatched the further into the weekend we got, culminating in a particularly quiet grand prix ride.
Marini lost out in the early battling and wasn't helped by getting smacked into the chest by a piece of debris. He also lamented not getting the most out of the stiffer rear tyre - putting more temperature into it than other Honda riders, perhaps due to his body dimensions, so unable to manage wheelspin effectively.
**Qualifying:** 17th **Sprint:** 11th **Grand Prix:** 11th
A very ropey weekend in which Bastianini was badly outshone by his fellow KTM full-timers - and even outqualified, though not outraced, by stand-in Espargaro.
He really, really needed that Q2 spot on Friday but had trouble navigating the treacherous Schlossgold corner, and never really recovered from that setback.
A "disaster" laptime in Q1 meant two compromised races in the pack. Not helping was the need to use the medium tyre, which he found unusually less suitable than the soft but felt he had to run when in the pack.
**Qualifying:** 20th **Sprint:** 18th **Grand Prix:** 19th
Coming off a San Marino GP that was destroyed by migraine-like symptoms, Rins was in much better shape than at Misano but had zero opportunities to make that count.
The V4-engined Yamaha M1, just like its inline-four predecessor, was completely hopeless here with the reinforced rear tyre - which it absolutely chewed through unless you took extra care.
Rins, who laboured in qualifying as usual, took the best care of the rear on Sunday among the Yamaha riders. This still translated to finishing 34s off the winner.
**Qualifying:** 16th **Sprint:** 16th **Grand Prix:** 15th
Moreira now appears to be a bit on the back foot after such a strong Sachsenring-Silverstone-Aragon run. It isn't something very drastic that should worry Honda, but noticeable all the same.
His Red Bull Ring weekend ultimately came across as just a bit too untidy. He felt he missed a real chance at Q2 on Friday, then predictably struggled more in Q1, then finished off his Saturday with a jump start that he acknowledged was a "big mistake".
Sunday is harder to read, with a very strong warm-up on the soft front and then a fairly turgid race on the medium front, which Moreira said felt completely out of control, with excessive locking.
**Qualifying:** 22nd **Sprint:** 17th **Grand Prix:** 20th
This was another track where Razgatlioglu hasn't raced in ages by virtue of being in a different paddock. It's been so long since he was at the Red Bull Ring that he actually forgot what series it was in - not Red Bull Rookies Cup, as he was telling everybody, but the IDM Yamaha R6 Cup (he finished third, 10 seconds behind Niki Tuuli, who you may know from MotoE).
He will have enjoyed that race a lot more than this Sunday's, which he described as "the second-worst of my life", behind only this year's Thailand opener. I think that's a little harsh - but I get it, and there is the common link of the reinforced rear tyre.
Razgatlioglu was uncompetitive in qualifying, though maybe marginally better than as of late, but fairly impressive in the sprint despite a mini-feud with Espargaro (both were angry at one another post-race over losing touch with the pack).
But he ran out of rear tyre immediately in the main race and just "tried to stay alive", bewildered and only carrying on "out of respect for Yamaha".
**Qualifying:** 13th **Sprint:** 19th **Grand Prix:** 12th
Probably Fernandez's joint-worst weekend of the season (with Brazil), but one that he is convinced has at least produced some light at the end of this particular Styrian mountain tunnel.
Fernandez says he is not making the Aprilia RS-GP work for him this year at stop-and-go tracks - which does seem to tally with the results - but it looked particularly drastic this weekend as his stablemates dominated him (even with accounting for the jump start that demolished his sprint).
He described the grand prix as "s\*\*t" and finishing 13th as something an Aprilia rider is "not allowed", but also said that the bike finally felt good in clean air, and hopes Motegi will prove that the troubles of this weekend weren't for naught.
**Qualifying:** 21st **Sprint:** 20th **Grand Prix:** 21st
Miller has been the greatest cheerleader of the Yamaha MotoGP project this year, but he was boiling with rage here - perhaps because his future is sorted and he can afford to be a bit more openly critical, but more likely because he'd felt "embarrassed" by the bike.
There were F-bombs aplenty as Miller lamented hideous wheelspin from the reinforced tyre, which affected him in particular and left him doing "f\*\*king Bagger times" by the end of a demoralising Sunday.
"I know I'm not extracting my best out of the bike," he admitted during the weekend - but it's clear the full Yamaha group was riding with one hand tied behind their backs.
**Qualifying:** 19th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 18th
An excruciatingly long and difficult weekend for Morbidelli, whose 0.662s deficit to the lead Ducati in FP1 was the closest he would get across the three days.
There is very little positive to latch on here - Morbidelli himself has had no issue admitting this - and though the next few rounds are irrelevant to his contractual future, he must be desperate for his time in MotoGP not to end like this.
### What Mercedes' rivals got so badly wrong in F1 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-mercedes-rivals-got-so-badly-wrong-in-f1-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-21T06:47:03.000Z
In the wake of an underwhelming Spanish Grand Prix for both Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, the two drivers closest to championship leader Kimi Antonelli in the standings, they have all but conceded the 2026 Formula 1 title race is over at this point.
There could be some psychology going on here, of course, but there does anyway feel like an increasing inevitability about Antonelli being crowned. Madrid was his eighth grand prix victory from 14 starts this year, and none of his rivals have yet been able to gain the sort of momentum needed to slow him down.
Not counting sprints, Russell hasn't won since Austria, six races ago. Hamilton hasn't won since the race before that, at Barcelona. And Lando Norris, who sits a further five points behind Hamilton in the championship, has won two of the past four races for McLaren but coming off a sparse run of just three podiums in 10 races before that.
---
**Top six points and wins**
**1 Antonelli** 292 (8)
**2 Russell** 211 (2)
**3 Hamilton** 191 (1)
**4 Norris** 186 (2)
**5 Leclerc** 167 (1)
**6 Verstappen** 145 (0)
---
Max Verstappen's incredible comeback to just two points adrift of Norris in 2025 creates a massive caveat here, but as things stand Hamilton would need to come from even further back than Verstappen was at this stage in the season - with potentially fewer than the 10 races Verstappen still had available to him to make up the ground - to even make a fight of it, let alone defeat Antonelli.
And after his brake-related retirement from the Spanish GP, Hamilton declared: "There's no stopping him \[Antonelli\] and Mercedes this year", while Russell, who finished fifth in that race, also indicated the 81-point deficit he faces, considering also how Antonelli is performing so consistently better in the same car, is likely insurmountable.
"I'm not going to say it's over, but it's exceptionally unlikely that I'm in this fight," said Russell who has ultimately found the challenge of driving these lower-grip, energy-starved F1 cars a much tougher nut to crack than Antonelli has.
"I'm not even thinking about being in the fight because I don't think I am in the fight."
When Verstappen and Norris were sat either side of Antonelli in the post-race press conference in Madrid, Verstappen joked "I'm definitely not having a comeback" from almost 150 points adrift, while Norris praised the "scarily good job" Antonelli is doing in only his second season in F1, before saying the Mercedes driver is "more than likely going to go on and win the championship".
So how did it come to this - why has the 2026 title race so quickly become a one-man show, rather than a multi-team (and driver) fight?
## Ferrari peaked too soon
Ferrari really suckered us in with their early-season promise. The car looked so good in the corners - the best on the grid many said - that it seemed the Scuderia was only a few engine upgrades away from becoming the team to beat.
But it hasn't worked out that way. Deliberately compromising engine performance to boost chassis performance, not only in certain design features like the exhaust wing but also in the way the engine is operated, has ended up looking like a wrong turn in a season so dominated by engine performance - especially on the more energy-starved circuits.
On top of this, Ferrari has been out-manoeuvred politically - ending up on the wrong side of early season arguments about startline procedures and safety, negating one of the key advantages conferred by Ferrari's smaller turbo design, and also with ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) - whereby Mercedes has somehow been able to upgrade its own engine and maintain a clear advantage.
The second of Ferrari's two in-season ADUO engine upgrades, introduced for Monza, hasn't really moved the needle yet in terms of Ferrari's performance profile. And although Ferrari has been super aggressive in upgrading its chassis throughout the season, leading the way with some innovative design features, many of them have proved easy for rivals to copy, and some of them will soon be banned regardless.
So Ferrari has ended up looking a bit like it always does - quite limited and a bit of an outlier. Which leads to a few questions:
- Should it have said more in those meetings about extending the pre-start procedure at the start of the season?
- Should it have gone for a bigger turbo from the very beginning?
- Should it have been more aggressive with its rear brake design, considering the difficulties both drivers have had with the braking system at times this year?
- Should it have been more aggressive with its overall engine concept?
- And should it have spent more time figuring out how to manage the drivers?
This last aspect has become a real talking point recently, and things have become so tense behind the scenes that Hamilton has felt the need to publicly refute stories he is pushing for more personnel changes in the wake of fumbled opportunities at Zandvoort and Monza.
This suddenly feels very much like the Ferrari of old, paralysed by driver politics, unclear communication and flat-footed strategic thinking and execution.
Focus will naturally move towards 2027 now at Maranello, where there will surely be enormous pressure building on everyone in that team to make up for the missteps of this season.
## McLaren's late show
Norris is on a tear of three poles and two wins from the past four races, which really should have been three wins considering how dominantly he performed in Madrid.
It's sensible to question whether this is simply the nature of recent circuit profiles intersecting neatly with the particular characteristics of McLaren's 2026 car, or the beginning of a broader trend that should lead to a proper title push in 2027.
This is a question we tackled in a recent Mailbag episode of The Race F1 Podcast, where those signed up to [The Race Members' Club](https://www.patreon.com/c/TheRace?ref=the-race.com) get to pose the questions that shape our conversations about F1.
The sort of thing we've seen from McLaren recently is what you'd really expect from the reigning F1 champions from the get-go, but this sort of late arrival to the front of the grid is a consequence of the three months Andrea Stella admits his team fell behind the development curve while focused on its 2025 battle with Verstappen and Red Bull.
McLaren basically came into the new 2026 rules fixated on getting weight out of the car, which is understandable considering how difficult it's proved for other teams - particularly Aston Martin and Williams - to hit that target.
McLaren shortened the wheelbase to make this process easier and then discovered the car lacked sufficient floor area to chase additional aerodynamic performance. If it had its time again, McLaren admits it would have gone for a longer wheelbase and probably will make its car longer for 2027\.
"For next year we'll end up with a longer car," confirmed McLaren's engineering technical director Neil Houldey during the August break, "because aerodynamically you give yourself a little bit more plan area on the floor."
That all comes back to the question of drag and how to avoid it. Straightline mode hasn't proved as efficient as McLaren predicted in 2026, and so it needs to find ways to make the car itself more efficient in a straight line while also adding downforce.
McLaren tried making a flip-flop rear wing, similar to Red Bull's one, but it took ages to get working and when it did finally work, McLaren's only used it once, at Monza. Which raises questions over whether the design is a one-hit wonder rather than something usable on a broader range of circuits.
There's a couple of other loose ends with McLaren that relate to Mercedes customer status and the feeling McLaren has been relegated to being a pure customer again this year, having previously enjoyed a quasi-works relationship with its engine builder.
McLaren's early-season problems with energy deployment, as well as using gear ratios that are shorter than ideal for most tracks, have roots in McLaren and Mercedes becoming more like frenemies in 2026.
McLaren is still in the process of working through some of these problems and, although the current car has become perhaps the class leader in high-speed corners, it is still proving tricky for the drivers to extract the most from - particularly on slower tracks and corner entries that require a degree of combined braking and steering.
But if McLaren can stay on the trajectory we've seen over the past four races, there's every reason to believe the 2025 champions can be a proper threat to Antonelli and Mercedes in 2027.
## Verstappen and Red Bull baggage
Sometimes you just need to get your head in the game, and after a troubled start to 2026 that's where Verstappen seems to be right now.
He started off this year hating F1: it's too much about the battery, the battery dominates the car, it makes the cars too slow, and too easy for an average F1 driver to jump in and be competitive.
But there's been a subtle shift over the summer. It's not that Verstappen particularly enjoys this version of F1 more than he did before, but he's come to terms with the fact it's the only show in town right now - and he needs to make the best of it.
And even though the 2026 Red Bull has been tricky to make work, four podiums from the past five races suggests Verstappen is finally starting to find some rhythm.
For his Red Bull team the outlook is a bit more difficult. They look and feel like a group still in transition following the departures of Christian Horner and Helmut Marko - with more to come in the wake of that sudden rupture triggered by Horner's sacking more than 14 months ago.
They threw everything at trying to get Verstappen over the line against Norris in the 2025 title race and fell just short, and are definitely paying the price for that now in terms of car concept and development.
A breakdown of Red Bull's shortcomings looks a bit like this:
- Too much focus on 2025 at the expense of 2026.
- Learning from that which hasn't carried over from one car to the other.
- A great new RBPT/Ford combustion engine that's so good the FIA won't allow updates!
- A weak Energy Recovery System that's letting that engine down.
- And, to top it all off, a bad-handling car that doesn't ride kerbs well, is difficult to set up, doesn't manage the tyres especially well, and that mysteriously ‘degrades' aerodynamically through a weekend, especially at the rear.
Some of this cannot be tackled unless there is movement on revising the FIA's ADUO mechanism, while the car degradation is something Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies remains coy about but confirms the team is working hard to solve for 2027.
"There is an element of car performance degradation that is happening through a session and through a race," Mekies said. "I consider it a complex issue, otherwise we would get to the bottom of it.
"We don't have all the solutions yet in the car, but I trust that we are on the right way. It will not be fast, so it's something that will probably take us through next year."
## Embarrassed outsiders
Aston Martin and Williams both majorly flexed their muscles and made big promises about what would be possible in 2026, and the main reason they've gone missing is they simply haven't got their respective acts together.
For Aston Martin that means:
- A late start because Adrian Newey arrived late and threw out the original car concept, meaning Aston Martin was late into the windtunnel with its definitive 2026 model.
- Then realising Newey's preferred high-rake aero concept didn't actually work because it made the car tricky to set up and unstable at high speeds, as well as not producing the downforce levels expected.
- A state of the art F1 facility, but a staff structure that was immature and, after rapid expansion, not operating as a cohesive unit.
- Outdated tools and processes, some dating back to the team's 1990s Jordan Grand Prix days, making the new-car build messy, late and overweight.
- The AMR26 was massively overweight. Some of this was due to Honda integration and vibration work; some from Aston not saving weight well enough.
- Relying on weak simulation tools that weren't up to spec, creating unreliable predictions.
- And, of course, the Honda power unit, which lacks pure power, has weak deployment, terrible driveability, unstable combustion, initially created vibrations that destroyed the chassis and gearbox - and even now causes continual instability under braking and problems with gearbox synchronization.
And as for Williams, team principal James Vowles made big, bold declarations about how much focus his team would put into 2026 to make sure Williams could bridge the gap from leading F1's midfield to competing at the front again.
But it's ended up nowhere near. Carlos Sainz has labelled 2026 "a wasted year", so now it's on Williams, and Vowles, to make sure they get themselves into proper shape as quickly as possible.
That means:
- Not building a car late, over budget, lacking downforce and well short of the performance level anticipated.
- Not choosing the same wrong high-rake aero concept as Aston Martin, setting the project back months.
- Not growing complacent and failing to realise that infrastructure, production and manufacturing were not at the level needed for an all-new car built to all-new rules.
- Not relying on simulation tools that are, in some cases, 15 years out of date, sending designers in the wrong direction.
- Not upgrading from Excel to more modern software then having to almost immediately rip that out again because it wasn't working!
- Not promising way more in public than you can deliver in reality - manage expectations and communicate that better.
In the end, and as can often be the way in F1, a bunch of teams have failed to get anywhere near realising their theoretical or stated potential in 2026, allowing one team that's got much closer to its own threshold to run away with both championships.
Ferrari didn't get the car/engine tradeoff quite right, and its team culture looks strained; McLaren took some wrong turns initially and is still working through the problems caused by those mistakes; Red Bull and Verstappen came into this year carrying too much baggage and it's still weighing them down even now; and outsiders like Aston Martin and Williams set expectations way too high and then fell embarrassingly short of meeting that standard.
And so, even with as many as nine races to go, and potentially 233 points still on the table, it looks as though no one is going to be able to upstage Antonelli and Mercedes when F1 2026 finally reaches its crescendo.
### Marc Marquez explains his Austrian GP slump
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marc-marquez-explains-his-austrian-gp-slump/
Last updated: 2026-09-20T15:04:14.000Z
Marc Marquez revealed that "many, many problems with the front brake" were the cause of his slump to fifth in MotoGP's Austrian Grand Prix.
Marquez dropped to fourth from second on the grid on the opening lap of Sunday's race, and fell as low as seventh after running well wide at Turn 1 while chasing fourth-placed Ai Ogura.
The Ducati rider recovered to finish inside the top five at the chequered flag, and revealed his issue came with the front brake lever point being inconsistent throughout the first half of the race.
"The problem is that the first part of the race I had many, many problems with the front brake, for that reason I went wide in Turn 1\. The front lever was unconstant, every brake point was in one way," Marquez explained.
"When I had the mistake in Turn 1, I braked and it was empty, there was nothing there, and for that reason I went super wide - not a little bit - super wide.
"I feel like today we were very lucky, because in one point of the race I saw that 'OK, I cannot continue'. But then, brakes from one lap to the other started to work, and then I started to be faster again, and gain some positions, but obviously it was too late.
"The good thing, the positive thing, is that it's something that you can see on data, so they can analyse and try to have some solution for the future."
Marquez further clarified he had no issues with "shaking" after brake supplier Brembo had worked on the issues the riders had struggled with between Turns 7 and 9\.
However, the issue with his braking meant he was overthinking into every braking zone that cost him time to "fight for the podium", with Marquez believing he could have challenged title rivals Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi for second place before feeling "lucky" to return to the top five.
Marquez was far from the only Ducati rider to struggle with the issue, as Gresini's Fermin Aldeguer admitted he also had inconsistent problems with his front brake while Marquez's works team-mate Pecco Bagnaia found it difficult to make his bike turn.
“I had also a lot of problems in my front brake, it wasn't constant. In some corner I arrived without brakes, something strange,” Aldeguer said after hearing his fellow Ducati riders speak of their issues.
Bagnaia further explained: “It was difficult to make the bike turn because the bike wasn't accelerating the way I wanted and when I was trying to enter in a better way I was still on the brakes to stop the bike, but it was quite tough.”
The result meant Marquez dropped a further nine points behind Martin in the riders' standings, after conceding three by finishing second to the Aprilia rider in the sprint race to leave him 12 behind at the end of the weekend.
"The rest of the track was consistent, but we had a big issue, for that reason in the first lap I was not hard on the brake points, I was just trying to understand where the front lever was at every brake point, and then I was losing a lot there.
"Today the maximum position was second/third but in the end we finished fifth, so that's it."
### Acosta finally wins first GP, Marquez loses title race ground
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/acosta-finally-wins-first-gp-marquez-loses-title-race-ground/
Last updated: 2026-09-20T13:31:39.000Z
Pedro Acosta finally scored his overdue first MotoGP grand prix victory - and took KTM's first in four years - at the Red Bull Ring.
Jorge Martin could not hold off the charging Acosta for the race win, but second place with Marc Marquez only fifth rebuilds Martin's championship lead to 12 points.
Acosta blew a certain sprint win by crashing from the lead with three laps to go on Saturday, and then fell from third to fifth on the first lap of the grand prix.
But the pace Acosta had shown from the start of the weekend was still there and he took little time to hack his way through to the front and make up for that error by keeping the Aprilias at bay for a commanding victory.
He then celebrated with a low-speed deliberate replica of the Saturday crash at the same point on his slowing-down.
Prior to this result, Acosta's only MotoGP race win had been in the season-opening sprint in Thailand. He had been eager to actually win a grand prix for KTM before leaving for Ducati next year, and doing so at his team's home event was the ideal outcome.
Marquez was never a factor at the front this time. He seemed to lack pace in the middle phase of the race and was steadily edged back to seventh before regaining a couple of positions to finish a distant fifth.
Aprilia filled positions two to four. Marco Bezzecchi battled Martin for the lead at first and led for a spell, and came back at his team-mate in the closing stages too, but Martin had little trouble maintaining second, with Trackhouse's returnee Ai Ogura following them home.
## Results
1 Pedro Acosta (KTM)
2 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +1.017s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +1.209s
4 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +2.139s
5 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +7.339s
6 Brad Binder (KTM) +8.720s
7 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +9.686s
8 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +9.786s
9 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +15.290s
10 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +16.687s
11 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +17.061s
12 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +21.361s
13 Taka Nakagami (Honda) +21.453s
14 Luca Marini (Honda) +22.812s
15 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.370s
16 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +25.569s
17 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +30.561s
18 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +34.621s
19 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +34.834s
20 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +47.145s
21 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1m07.951s
DNF Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati)
### Why Ferrari has fallen back - and what it plans to do
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-f1-2026-development-latest-stalled-whats-going-on/
Last updated: 2026-09-20T10:04:06.000Z
After a very positive start to the summer for Ferrari with its Barcelona win, the second half of its 2026 Formula 1 season has had a much more negative trend.
It hasn’t even been on the podium since Spa in July.
At times it still shows it can be close to the leading positions, but then fails to turn that potential into an actual top-three finish.
The SF-26 has not suddenly become an uncompetitive car, but the development rate of its rivals – McLaren above all – has progressively moved the benchmark forward and Ferrari hasn't been able to keep up lately, having actually postponed a major part of its own upgrade plan.
So what happens now?
## Leapfrogged by McLaren
Between Hungary and the Netherlands, either side of the summer break, McLaren’s MCL40 received a series of aerodynamic developments, especially around the floor, which allowed the team to make a clear step forward.
Added to these were specific solutions for the faster circuits, such as the particular H-wing, McLaren's own version of the flip-flop wing - used everywhere after Hungary except in Madrid - which broadens the car's configuration possibilities when reducing aerodynamic drag becomes a priority.
But it would be reductive to explain McLaren's progress exclusively through the aerodynamic updates.
According to some competitors, one of the aspects on which the most important work has been carried out at Woking concerns the understanding and activation of the tyres.
It is a particularly significant topic because already in 2025 the ability to bring the tyres into the correct operating window was very important in McLaren’s performance, and an element which Lando Norris in particular has managed to exploit.
McLaren seems to have made a further step forward precisely in this area. It is therefore not only a matter of having added aerodynamic load to the MCL40, but of having become more effective in exploiting that load and using the tyres in the correct window.
## The delayed upgrade
At Maranello, on the other hand, it was already known before Zandvoort that the update introduced in the Netherlands would not represent a particularly large performance step.
The changes to the floor were in fact only part of the work initially planned.
The package brought to Zandvoort can be considered, conceptually, around three quarters of the update Ferrari had planned in that area. Some of the more substantial interventions were postponed - because progress was not living up to what Ferrari had hoped.
The choice of the technical group led by Loic Serra, with Diego Tondi at the head of the aerodynamic department, was not to accelerate the production of the entire package simply to meet the Netherlands window.
Ferrari preferred to give the aerodynamicists more time to work on other areas, including the floor, and to look for a greater performance gain.
One of the areas on which work has continued concerns the outer edge, where Maranello's technical department gave the aerodynamicists more time to develop, dissatisfied with the gain that had been achieved up to that point and also taking the budget cap into account.
## Major changes coming for Austin
It is at the Circuit of the Americas late next month that the postponed interventions on the SF-26 are expected to make their debut. These should comprise a more substantial evolution of the floor and of the areas on which the aerodynamicists have continued to work since after Barcelona in June.
Ferrari has accepted going through the current part of the season with an incomplete solution. From what The Race has learned, the aerodynamic department has worked extensively around the SF-26 in a very dynamic way in the second part of the season, changing different components between new and old parts in the windtunnel. This is because some solutions had not produced great results in the windtunnel.
The main new parts are now scheduled for Austin, for both logistical reasons and because of the track layout, which is ideal for evaluating the hoped-for progress.
## Ferrari's penalty plan is being finalised
On the power unit front, Ferrari believes it has reached the targets set with the ADUO 1 and ADUO 2 developments. It has always been clear that the in-season changes permitted under ADUO would not produce a game changer for the engine, which has nevertheless followed a development curve that has met the expectations of power unit technical director Enrico Gualtieri’s department.
The ADUO 2 spec introduced at Monza, with the fourth internal combustion engine and fourth turbo fitted, is understood to have lived up to expectations.
The issue to resolve now concerns penalties: Leclerc’s power unit underwent extensive checks following the accident in Italy, with Ferrari deciding to contest Madrid using the ADUO 1 power unit.
The unit is understood to have survived. However, it is certain that both Hamilton and Leclerc will fit a new power unit between now and the end of the season. Rumours suggest the team could choose to unlock Leclerc’s fifth unit as early as Baku next weekend, thereby serving the penalty that would send him to the back of the grid at a circuit where overtaking should be achievable.
The fifth unit will certainly be in ADUO 2 specification for Leclerc and would then be rotated with the unit introduced at Monza over the following remaining races, in the team’s ideal scenario.
The decision on whether to take the penalty in Baku will only be made during the Azerbaijan GP weekend, where Leclerc will run the unit used at Monza in free practice. Only afterwards, also depending on the performance shown by the car, will Ferrari decide whether to fit the new power unit and take the penalty.
Sacrificing the starting position in Baku is not the ideal option, but it could put Leclerc in a position to tackle the following races with a fresher power unit, while at the same time keeping the unit introduced at Monza available for use.
## Can Hamilton's fifth power unit wait?
Hamilton's situation is different, although the possibility of introducing a fifth power unit on his car remains open. The decision has not yet been definitively made. But as he now appears to be out of the fight for the drivers' championship, the possibility of taking a penalty in one of the remaining races and having two ADUO 2 units to rotate becomes more likely.
At the moment, two places considered most logical would be Mexico City or Interlagos - or Austin at the start of that triple-header if Ferrari wants to bring the change forward.
Much will naturally depend on the mileage accumulated and on the condition of the power units present in the seven-time world champion's pool over the coming weeks.
### Winners and losers from Austria MotoGP sprint 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/winners-and-losers-from-austria-motogp-sprint-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T16:47:54.000Z
The Austrian Grand Prix MotoGP sprint race seemed to have a nailed-on winner until three laps to go when that rider made an inexplicable mistake.
So that’s one slot in our list below decided very easily…
### Loser: Pedro Acosta (DNF)
Acosta had this race completely in the bag when he blew the chicane so comprehensively he was sliding through the run-off area on his side.
Credit to him for so readily admitting [that he “just f\*\*\*ed it up”](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/i-f-ed-it-up-acosta-explains-his-crash-from-austria-sprint-lead/). But also Pedro… you’re supposed to be an era-defining superstar, don’t f\*\*k up obvious race-winning opportunities. Next year that will be very, very costly. **\- Matt Beer**
### Winner: Jorge Martin (1st)
Every time you feel like you can rule Martin out of something in 2026, there he is again. Often leading the championship, and for a long time doing so by a lot more points than seems logical for his actual pace.
So it was probably predictable he’d follow the Misano arm pump and championship lead loss with a performance like this. He didn’t really look like a Red Bull Ring pole contender until there he was suddenly on pole. And even if Acosta hadn’t crashed, going from eighth to second after his first lap incident and outperforming his main title rivals with such apparent ease would have already been a huge warning shot to them.
This season clearly has a few twists in it yet, and Martin will probably be at the centre of them all. **\- MB**
### Losers: Martin's title rivals (2nd & 3rd)
Second and third was kind of fine for Marc Marquez and Marco Bezzecchi - especially Marquez. Bezzecchi really needs to be clawing some big handfuls of points back from his rivals to have any title hope now but at least didn't lose too much today, Marquez really needn’t worry about being three points behind Martin again tonight having already come back from being 85 behind him once this season.
But given they’re in a championship fight, Martin sliced past both Bezzecchi and Marquez a little too easily for comfort today. **\- MB**
### Winner: Ai Ogura (4th)
Ogura had expected very little from his first weekend back from finger injury - to run in the 11th-12th range, to be precise - but he's looked totally in the groove, and with no particular physical limitation to speak of.
At 77 points adrift the championship train has left the station, but at least there's no sign at all of Ogura's campaign being derailed by mid-year disruption the way it was last year. **\- Val Khorounzhiy**
### Loser: Raul Fernandez (19th)
Both Fernandez and LCR Honda rider Diogo Moreira had their sprint undone by penalties for jumping the start, both seemingly caught out by the red lights being on a little longer than is conventional. Fernandez was confused by the sanction, but Moreira held up his hand.
And while Moreira at least has something to be happy about, having improved his situation through the twisty third sector, Fernandez remains at sea. It is now the third round in a row that he doesn't look quite right, and he says the feeling of rear grip hasn't been quite right in all three.
It's left Fernandez "worried" going forward, particularly for tracks with more of a stop-start layout - of which the next round at Motegi is also one. **\- VK**
### Winner: Pecco Bagnaia (6th)
Bagnaia looked like he'd rather be anywhere else on Earth when he rocked up to his media debrief after a dreadful Friday. On Saturday, he was all smiles and jokes - even if he's had plenty of better MotoGP finishes than this one.
Some overnight tweaks to find badly-needed rear grip finally paid off, and he banked crucial prep for Sunday by running the medium rear tyre in the sprint.
And after having put Spanish broadcaster DAZN on blast coming into the weekend, he was grateful to one person in their staff. That person? Pundit (and KTM tester) Dani Pedrosa, who said Bagnaia needs to focus on feeling on the bike and totally ignore the timesheets - advice that Bagnaia says he has taken to heart. **\- VK**
### Losers: Yamaha riders (17th, 18th, 20th) who aren't Fabio Quartararo (12th)
For a second successive weekend, coming off his PR explosion versus Yamaha leadership at Aragon, Quartararo is riding absolute circles around his M1 peers. Stablemate Jack Miller described his Q2 laptime here - a second clear of the other Yamahas - as a "miracle".
It was the same amount of points for each of them, i.e. no points - but Quartararo clearly dug in for his 12th place in the sprint, while his peers all couldn't hide their frustration: Alex Rins admitting it stung to be stuck behind Honda test rider Taka Nakagami, Toprak Razgatlioglu was irritated by the battle antics of another test rider Pol Espargaro, and Miller as angry as he's been all season about a lack of a workable electronics set-up. **\- VK**
### Winner: Johann Zarco (7th)
Speaking of lone warriors carrying their manufacturer forward… well, OK, Zarco’s margin over the other Hondas is not quite in Quartararo/other Yamahas territory, and admittedly Joan Mir is absent.
But in making it to Q2 (over three tenths of a second clear of LCR team-mate Moreira and works rider Luca Marini) and then sticking with the Alex Marquez-led group in the race on the way to seventh while next-best Honda Marini was six places and 10 seconds further back, Zarco was definitely the only rider saving Honda honour today.
That’s the best actual race finish since he returned from his savage Barcelona injury, though he’s slipped so comfortably back into regular top 10 running that it doesn’t even seem that exceptional. And he thinks his full-distance race pace tomorrow is likely to be better too. **\- MB**
### Loser: Fabio Di Giannantonio (10th)
The 'Di Giannantonio title challenge' balloon has continued its inexorable deflation here, as the VR46 rider lost crucial ground on the opening lap - at Turn 1, Turn 3 and Turn 4 - and couldn't recover to the points.
This is not Ducati's strongest weekend, obviously, but Di Giannantonio had looked in a better position within the Ducati ranks on Friday than on Saturday - and it's been a long, long while since he's been the clear standout among the Desmosedicis.
The rider who will effectively inherit his seat next year, Fermin Aldeguer, also performed below his Friday baseline - but at least made some moves and got some points. **\- VK**
### Who actually owns each F1 team?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/who-actually-owns-each-f1-team/
Last updated: 2026-09-20T09:02:03.000Z
Who is benefiting from the huge spike in Formula 1 team valuations? While writing my recent piece on [why team valuations are ramping up so fast](https://www.the-race.com/business/are-f1-teams-still-undervalued-compared-to-us-franchises/), I realised that I didn’t definitively know that answer for each team.
With the interest in valuations, plus the ongoing story around Cadillac’s ownership and recent revelations around Aston Martin shareholding I thought I’d go down some rabbit holes and look into available shareholding information for each team.
Available is a key word here. Depending on the type of ownership structure and where it is domiciled the strength and depth of the information differs.
The answer to the seemingly simple question of ‘Who actually owns each F1 team’ is actually very complex. Having dug deep and thought about how we got here, there are three key reasons for people to want to own part of an F1 team. Those reasons do overlap but have undeniably shifted since the ‘owner/operator’ models of Frank Williams, Colin Chapman, Bruce McLaren and Ken Tyrrell when the only target was to win.
1) You own one because you want to go racing.
2) You own one because going racing helps another business make money.
3) You (part) own one because you believe the racing team itself will make you money.
Frank Williams largely represented the first. Benetton and Red Bull are examples of the second. The arrival of Arctos, Otro and other institutional investors represents the third.
But we are not anywhere close to a grid with a 100% ownership by institutional investors, representing reason 3\. And that’s what makes the detail so interesting.
Today's grid is increasingly populated by hybrids. Manufacturers alongside private capital, billionaire controllers alongside institutional investors, sovereign wealth alongside entrepreneurs, even senior employees owning equity.
Once you dig into these structures some of the strategic decisions of the teams and cultural differences make sense. Gene Haas is the only 100% owner/operator left on the grid. Haas are also the only team operating below the cost cap. This is perhaps not a surprise correlation.
With Haas being the simplest to explain, I’ll start at the opposite end of the complexity scale.
## Aston Martin: Lawrence Stroll controls it, but plenty of others own part of it
Stroll doesn't simply 'own' Aston Martin F1, and Aston Martin Lagonda, the listed road car company whose name is above the door, doesn't own the F1 team either.
The F1 business ultimately sits within AMR GP Holdings Limited and this is probably the best example on the grid of how sophisticated F1 ownership has become.
PlanetF1 [recently did some detailed digging](https://www.planetf1.com/news/adrian-newey-aston-martin-ownership-stake-details?ref=the-race.com) into filings relating to Adrian Newey's shareholding and calculated that Stroll-related interests account for around a third of the economic ownership of the team.
It also highlighted something considerably more important: Stroll doesn't need to own anything close to a majority to control it.
UK Companies House currently records Racing Point UK Holdings Limited, the Stroll-led consortium holding vehicle, as owning more than 25% but no more than 50% of AMR GP Holdings' shares. But it has 75% or more of the voting rights and the right to appoint or remove directors.
Then it gets more interesting.
The latest articles of association define Racing Point UK Holdings as the 'Controlling Shareholder' for as long as it owns at least 15% of the company's shares.
That status brings significant governance rights, including around appointment of the chairman, directors and the quorum required for board meetings.
So Stroll has achieved something increasingly important in modern F1, he has brought substantial amounts of other people's capital into the business, and crystallised some of the extraordinary increase in its value, without surrendering control.
Who are the others?
Arctos Partners, one of the biggest specialist sports investment firms in the world, is a substantial shareholder. HPS Investment Partners is another. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has an interest. Woody Johnson, owner of the New York Jets, joined through Delaware vehicle Green Racer LLC. Adrian Newey has an equity interest through a special class of shares. There are also management interests.
PlanetF1's analysis puts Newey's interest at approximately 4.7% and Racing Point UK itself at around 27%, with total Stroll-associated interests around 33%.
## Ferrari: Publicly owned, family influenced
Ferrari ought to be straightforward as well.
It isn't a separately syndicated F1 operation like Aston Martin. Scuderia Ferrari sits inside Ferrari itself.
And Ferrari is a publicly listed company, so in one sense it has thousands of owners.
But that doesn't mean all Ferrari shares are created equally when it comes to control.
As of February 2026, Exor, the Agnelli family's investment company, owned 21.33% of Ferrari's ordinary shares.
Thanks to Ferrari's loyalty voting structure, those shares represented 32.32% of the voting power.
Piero Ferrari's trust held another 10.67% economically, representing 16.17% of the votes.
Put those together and interests representing around 32% of the economic ownership command approximately 48.5% of the voting power..
So saying Ferrari is ‘publicly owned’ is correct.
Saying Ferrari is a company over which the Agnelli/Exor and Ferrari family interests retain enormous influence is also correct.
And this is a good example of the difference between economic ownership and control.
There is another important difference with Ferrari. If someone says the Ferrari F1 team is worth $5billion, there isn't a standalone company containing Scuderia Ferrari that can simply be bought for that number.
Ferrari's F1 team is part of the wider Ferrari business.
That makes comparing an implied Ferrari F1 valuation with, say, a transaction in Aston Martin or Alpine slightly more apples and pears than most valuation tables acknowledge.
## Red Bull and Racing Bulls: Two F1 teams, one strategic purpose
At its simplest, Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls are ultimately part of the Red Bull empire.
This is perhaps the best current example of our second reason for owning an F1 team: going racing helps another business make money.
Red Bull wasn't created to go motor racing. Red Bull Racing was created to help sell Red Bull.
That has worked rather well.
But the ownership trail is worth understanding.
At the UK level, Red Bull Technology sits above much of the Milton Keynes operation. Companies House currently identifies Mark Mateschitz as owning more than 25% but no more than 50% of Red Bull Technology. The same pattern runs through Red Bull Powertrains and other UK entities.
Ultimately, however, you arrive at privately-held Austrian parent Red Bull GmbH and the interests of the Mateschitz and Yoovidhya families.
That structure has itself changed [since Dietrich Mateschitz's death](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-co-founder-dietrich-mateschitz-dies/) and there has been a further change involving a 2% holding previously held personally by Chalerm Yoovidhya being transferred to Swiss trustee Fides Trustees.
## Mercedes: Three equal owners, plus one
Mercedes is refreshingly easy at team level.
Mercedes-Benz, INEOS (ultimately Sir Jim Ratcliffe) and Toto Wolff each own one third.
When INEOS joined the ownership in 2020, Mercedes explicitly announced that the team would be owned in three equal parts. Companies House still identifies Mercedes-Benz Holdings UK, INEOS Industries Holdings and Toto Wolff as the three active persons/entities with significant control.
Except there is now a footnote.
In November 2025 CrowdStrike founder George Kurtz acquired a 15% [minority interest in Wolff's ownership](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/wolffs-300million-mercedes-stake-sale-what-you-need-to-know/) entity.
Because that entity owns one third of Mercedes, Kurtz's indirect economic interest is equivalent to around 5% of the F1 team.
Crucially, Mercedes said the governance had not changed. Wolff remains in control of his ownership entity and continues as CEO and team principal, although Kurtz joined the team's strategic steering committee alongside Wolff, Ola Källenius (Mercedes) and Ratcliffe.
This is a small transaction but an interesting one.
Wolff has effectively been able to sell part of his economic exposure to an F1 team valued in the billions without giving up his position or changing the three-way governance structure.
## McLaren: Sovereign capital has ended up owning the racing team
McLaren's ownership has recently become simpler.
During the pandemic, McLaren Racing brought in MSP Sports Capital and other investors at a time when the wider McLaren organisation badly needed capital.
That proved to be a spectacular investment.
In September 2025 McLaren announced that the remaining minority shareholders MSP, O'Connor Capital Solutions, Ares and Caspian [had been bought out](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-significance-of-another-big-mclaren-ownership-change/).
That left Bahrain's Mumtalakat and Abu Dhabi-based CYVN Holdings owning 100% of McLaren Racing between them.
Mumtalakat remains the majority shareholder and CYVN holds a non-controlling stake. McLaren has not publicly disclosed the exact split.
The transaction reportedly valued McLaren Racing at more than $4billion.
This is an important distinction from McLaren Automotive, which has gone through its own ownership restructuring. McLaren Racing is the business we are interested in here, and it contains more than F1\. IndyCar and McLaren's incoming World Endurance Championship programme also sit within the racing operation.
Again, what exactly are we valuing when we say ‘McLaren F1 is worth $4billion’?
It isn't necessarily only the two orange cars turning up at 24 grands prix.
## Cadillac: The newest team produces one of the least obvious answers
If you asked somebody who owns the Cadillac F1 team, the instinctive answer would probably be General Motors.
Understandably.
Formula 1 itself described the successful entry application as being made by General Motors and TWG Motorsports, and TWG CEO Dan Towriss has subsequently confirmed publicly that GM is an equity owner in the team
But the UK corporate record gives us another name.
The British company is now TWG Cadillac Formula 1 Team Limited.
Companies House identifies Mark Walter as its sole active person with significant control, on the basis that he “has significant influence or control”.
TWG is Walter's wider investment group and its sports interests stretch well beyond Formula 1\. With Walter [very recently and unexpectedly selling](https://sports.yahoo.com/soccer/article/dodgers-owner-mark-walter-sells-off-shares-of-chelsea-weeks-after-surprise-lakers-sale-amid-investigation-001732960.html?ref=the-race.com) parts of his sports investment portfolio including the LA Lakers and Chelsea FC and facing increasing US government scrutiny, the longevity of TWG involvement in F1 is currently in doubt.
TWG itself recently denied reports that those assets might be for sale.
So where exactly does GM sit economically?
Public descriptions variously refer to TWG owning the team in partnership with GM or to a TWG owned operation backed by GM. What isn't publicly available is a clean percentage split. Paddock insiders suggest that GM has options up to 30%, Dan Towriss has 3% with Walter owning the remaining equity.
## Audi: A works team with a sovereign wealth shareholder
Audi is another good example of the modern hybrid.
Audi initially moved to take complete ownership of Sauber Holding as it prepared for its 2026 works entry.
Then, before the Audi name had even appeared on an F1 grid, Qatar Investment Authority signed definitive agreements to acquire a significant minority stake in Sauber Holding.
Neither Audi nor QIA publicly disclosed the final percentage in their announcement. Formula 1 described it as a “substantial minority” investment and a significant capital injection into the project.
Subsequently Audi has admitted to various parties including Joe Saward to be looking towards a Mercedes-esque split, looking at offers for 33% of the team in part a reaction to cost cutting and major restructuring within the wider VW group.
## Alpine: Renault owns 76%, financial investors own 24%
After some of the structures above, Alpine almost feels straightforward, despite being the most newsworthy in recent months.
Renault Group owns 76% of Alpine Racing Limited.
An investor group led by Otro Capital owns 24%.
The latter stake was acquired for €200million in 2023, valuing Alpine Racing at around $900million at the time. Renault explicitly identified Otro, RedBird Capital Partners and Maximum Effort Investments as the investor group.
The investment subsequently attracted plenty of headlines because athletes and celebrities including Patrick Mahomes, Rory McIlroy and others participated.
But the important ownership point is that Renault retained very clear legal and voting control. Its 76% holding also puts it above the 75% threshold required for major corporate decisions such as special resolutions under UK company law.
The saga of the 24% [has been dragging on](https://www.the-race.com/business/10billion-f1-teams-briatores-take-on-teams-spiralling-values/) and is likely to conclude in the coming months.
## Williams: An F1 team owned as an investment
Williams is historically important to this story because for decades it was almost the definition of our first ownership model.
Frank Williams owned a racing team (with Patrick Head) because he wanted to race. The only blip in the simple model was a long forgotten part listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and a cameo role from Toto Wolff (with 15% equity). This was a glimpse of the hybrid ownership model we now see over a decade later.
The modern Williams represents something very different.
Dorilton Capital [acquired Williams in August 2020](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-f1-team-sold-to-us-investment-company/) following the strategic review undertaken by the then-listed Williams business. Williams described Dorilton at the time as a US-headquartered private investment firm with a long-term approach to investment.
Matthew Savage, Dorilton's chairman, became chairman of Williams following the acquisition alongside fellow Dorilton figure Darren Fultz and paddock insider James Matthews on the board.
This is therefore perhaps the cleanest example on the grid of our third reason for owning an F1 team.
Dorilton doesn't need Williams to sell cars, energy drinks or petrochemicals.
The racing business itself is the asset. My own conversations with Savage also make clear that this isn't simply a passive financial investment. He genuinely wants Williams to win again.
There are more layers to the corporate structure than the simple word ‘Dorilton’ suggests. The UK operating company currently records that there is no registrable person or relevant legal entity for UK PSC purposes.
This illustrates why the quality of public ownership information differs from team to team. Private investment structures, overseas entities, trusts and statutory reporting thresholds don't all produce the same neat trail.
## Haas
Finally, Gene Haas.
After multiple share classes, sovereign wealth funds, private equity, holding companies, enhanced voting rights and 83-page articles of association, this comes as something of a relief.
Gene Haas founded the team.
Gene Haas controls the team.
Companies House identifies Haas as the only active person with significant control of Haas Formula UK, with 75% or more of both the shares and voting rights, Haas itself goes further, describing Gene Haas as Formula 1's only sole team owner.
That leaves Haas as the closest thing on the 2026 grid to the traditional proprietor-owned F1 team.
How long might that last? Toyota's technical and commercial involvement with the team continues to grow and Haas has inevitably attracted investor interest as F1 valuations have increased. But as of today the ownership model remains remarkably clean and simple.
## So what does an F1 owner look like in 2026?
That turned out to be a considerably longer answer than I expected.
Via different routes and structures modern F1 has accumulated different types of capital.
You want to race.
Racing helps another business make money.
Or you believe the racing business itself will make you money.
For much of Formula 1's history it was relatively easy to work out which box an owner belonged in.
Frank Williams wanted to win races.
Benetton wanted to sell clothes.
Renault wanted to sell cars.
Today the boxes increasingly sit on top of each other.
Winning can now be both the sporting objective and the mechanism through which a shareholder achieves a wider commercial or investment return.
One thing that revealed itself as I dug into the detail is that an F1 team has now become valuable enough that an owner no longer necessarily must choose between keeping it and selling it.
Renault could sell 24% of Alpine, raise €200million and retain control.
Audi could bring QIA into Sauber without surrendering its works team.
Toto Wolff could sell 15% of his Mercedes ownership vehicle while retaining his role and control.
Lawrence Stroll has brought successive investors into Aston Martin while preserving overwhelming voting power.
For an owner, a multibillion dollar valuation can therefore become more than a theoretical number on a Forbes list. You can monetise part of it.
For the incoming investor the calculation is the opposite. There are only 11 F1 teams and very few owners who want to sell one.
If the only way into an appreciating global sports franchise is buying 10%, 20% or 24% while somebody else remains in charge, increasingly sophisticated investors appear perfectly happy to do that.
That is a very different Formula 1 ownership market from the one that existed even a decade ago.
How that happened and when an F1 team stopped being something you had to continually fund and became something investors fought to own is an extraordinary case study to explore.
For now, though, I started this exercise asking who is actually benefiting from the huge increase in Formula 1 team values?
The answer isn't private equity. It isn't the manufacturers. And it isn't a collection of billionaires.
It is all of them.
Formula 1 hasn't replaced one type of owner with another.
It has become valuable enough to attract them all.
| Team | Who controls it | Other significant ownership / capital |
| --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Aston Martin | Lawrence Stroll / Racing Point UK | Arctos, HPS, PIF, Woody Johnson, Adrian Newey and management interests |
| Ferrari | Ferrari N.V., with strong Exor/Agnelli and Piero Ferrari voting influence | Public shareholders |
| Red Bull Racing | Red Bull GmbH | Mateschitz-side 49%, Yoovidhya-linked TC Agro 49%, Fides Trustees 2% |
| Racing Bulls | Red Bull GmbH | Same ultimate Red Bull shareholder structure |
| Mercedes | Mercedes-Benz / INEOS / Toto Wolff — one third each | George Kurtz owns 15% of Wolff's interest, equivalent to roughly 5% of team economics |
| McLaren | Mumtalakat — majority | CYVN holds a non-controlling minority; exact split undisclosed |
| Cadillac | TWG / Mark Walter has disclosed control | GM is a confirmed equity owner; precise split undisclosed |
| Audi | Audi | QIA holds a significant minority; exact percentage undisclosed |
| Alpine | Renault Group — 76% | Otro-led investor group — 24% |
| Williams | Dorilton Capital | Private investment structure |
| Haas | Gene Haas — sole owner | No publicly disclosed outside equity investor |
### 'I f***ed it up' - Acosta explains his crash from Austria sprint lead
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/i-f-ed-it-up-acosta-explains-his-crash-from-austria-sprint-lead/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T14:44:57.000Z
Pedro Acosta says he simply lost focus when he made the mistake that cost him a [certain Austrian Grand Prix MotoGP sprint win](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-back-into-motogp-lead-after-acosta-throws-away-sprint-win/).
The KTM rider had dominated practice, then moved from third to first on the opening lap as both Jorge Martin and Marc Marquez made errors.
Acosta was over two seconds clear of the recovering Martin with three laps to go when he then crashed at the chicane.
**"**I was riding in a really good mood, the pace was really good, I was just checking the laps that there was remaining in the dash to see how I was with the fuelling and I f\*\*\*ed it up, that's it. I lost my braking point and that's it," he explained.
**"**Three laps to go, three seconds ahead, it also was the moment that I rolled off a bit to not take any risks and also was the moment that I lost focus a bit.
"Tomorrow, if I'm in the same place, sure, I will not roll off."
Acosta ran into the run-off area at the chicane when he made the mistake and then fell when his KTM touched the gravel there.
Asked if there had been any chance he could have saved the incident if he hadn't tried to make the corner at all, he replied "f\*\*k, I was that fast that it was even going to be tough to cut the corner".
He added: "Also, my mistake was not that big for the amount of speed that I was carrying. It was a mess on my side. Thankfully tomorrow we have another chance."
Acosta remounted and continued in 13th initially before retiring a lap later.
**"**I was out of the points, I was slow, I had to warm up the tyres again. It was not necessary to take any risks," he explained when asked by The Race why he'd eventually pitted even though he still seemed competitive.
He wasn't sure if his domination of the race before the crash was a reflection of the KTM's pace or his main rivals focusing on each other, with Martin having to come back through from eighth after his first lap error.
"I was surprised that I was really fast at the beginning, that normally is where I struggle the most," said Acosta.
"And also they were having their own fight. I was just making my way."
He said his sprint error would make "zero" difference to how he approached Sunday's grand prix, when he'll again start third alongside Martin and Marquez.
"I have nothing to lose. And also it's \[the grand prix\] the moment that I'm showing more speed, with more constant good results."
### Martin back into MotoGP lead after Acosta throws away sprint win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-back-into-motogp-lead-after-acosta-throws-away-sprint-win/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T13:35:28.000Z
Jorge Martin came back from eighth to first after an early tussle with MotoGP title rival Marc Marquez to win the Austrian Grand Prix sprint - but only after Pedro Acosta crashed from a comfortable lead.
Polesitter Martin had gone slightly wide into the first corner at the start, allowing Marquez's Ducati to get a run on his Aprilia into the following machine.
Martin's bid to hang on as Marquez came through left him visiting the run-off area, crunching over the kerbs and losing all momentum on the exit - dropping him right back to eighth.
But Marquez then ran wide at the tight right-hander at the top of the hill, with Acosta's KTM slipping through and duly charging away.
Martin's recovery was rapid - even Aprilia team-mate Marco Bezzecchi and main title rival Marquez unable to hold him back as he sliced through to second again by half-distance.
Acosta looked out of reach, though - two and a half seconds ahead and showing no sign of being caught.
But then with three laps to go, Acosta went down going into the chicane, carrying far too much speed into the complex and losing it in the gravel trap. He got going again before soon retiring in the pits.
Martin duly swept to victory ahead of Marquez and Bezzecchi, putting him back in the championship lead by three points.
Ai Ogura marked his first race back after injury by claiming fourth via a late pass on Alex Marquez.
Pecco Bagnaia scored his first points since July's German GP in sixth, ahead of top Honda Johann Zarco, Fermin Aldguer's Gresini Ducati and final scorer Brad Binder.
Results
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia)
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +1.026s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +1.675s
4 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +3.495s
5 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +4.447s
6 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +5.142s
7 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +5.895s
8 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +6.810s
9 Brad Binder (KTM) +7.233s
10 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +9.228s
11 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +11.580s
12 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +13.050s
13 Luca Marini (Honda) +15.076s
14 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +18.373s
15 Taka Nakagami (Honda) +19.201s
16 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +20.503s
17 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +20.964s
18 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +21.054s
19 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +22.646s
20 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +26.053s
DNF Pedro Acosta (KTM)
DNF Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati)
### Martin beats Marquez and Acosta to Austria MotoGP pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-beats-marquez-and-acosta-to-austria-motogp-pole/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T09:40:01.000Z
Jorge Martin beat MotoGP championship rival Marc Marquez and Friday dominator Pedro Acosta to a vital Austrian Grand Prix pole.
Acosta carried his immense practice form for home team KTM through to the first part of Q2 but was upstaged on the final laps by Aprilia rider Martin and Marquez's works Ducati.
Marquez and Martin share the championship lead after Marquez's pair of wins and Martin's arm pump issues at Misano last weekend, with Marquez officially ahead on countback.
Martin's team-mate Marco Bezzecchi was two tenths of a second off the front row trio in fourth, just in front of Trackhouse's post-injury returnee Ai Ogura.
Though three of the Aprilias start in the top five, the other couldn't get beyond Q1\. Raul Fernandez qualified only 13th, his worst starting position since Austin six months ago.
Gresini's Alex Marquez crashed at Turn 1 in the final moments of Q2, just as brother Marc had in the final moments of the preceding practice session.
After a very poor Friday, Pecco Bagnaia made it through from Q1 along with Johann Zarco and qualified an encouraging seventh.
## Starting grid
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia)
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
3 Pedro Acosta (KTM)
4 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia)
5 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia)
6 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati)
7 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
8 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati)
9 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha)
10 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda)
11 Brad Binder (KTM)
12 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati)
13 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
14 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM)
15 Luca Marini (Honda)
16 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda)
17 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM)
18 Taka Nakagami (Honda)
19 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati)
20 Alex Rins (Yamaha)
21 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha)
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha)
### Gary Anderson: Four incident rule changes F1 should make
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/four-incident-rule-changes-f1-should-make/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T08:54:17.000Z
There’s a set of circumstances in Formula 1 that have irritated me for a long time, something the first race at the new Madring circuit last week exposed.
First of all, the use of the VSC.
Yes, it’s better than using the safety car every time a car stops on the track, but the reality is if the yellow flag or double yellow flag were adhered to by the drivers and a simple set of consistent penalties were issued, then we wouldn’t need the VSC quite so often.
However, we have got ourselves into this situation, and it is ruining racing.
There is no way Lando Norris deserved to lose that race at the Madring. He was fully in control, and just because of his on-track position, he lost out to Kimi Antonelli. Even Antonelli admitted, “It’s good to win, but it doesn’t feel as good because I think Lando today deserved the win”.
Norris drove a qualifying lap that, as he says, was probably the best lap of his F1 career.
He led from pole on medium tyres and eeked out a decent gap and then at the end of lap 14, just as he passed the pit entry, the race director called for a VSC when Lance Stroll pulled off. His rivals got a cheap pitstop, while the VSC was recalled before Norris could take advantage on the next lap.
A simple change that doesn’t even require a regulation change would be that all drivers have to pass the start-finish line at least once during a VSC interlude.
This would mean that all drivers would have a chance to complete a reduced time-loss pitstop, so it would take away good or bad luck from a grand prix race result.
After all, we have something similar when the safety car is being used, the safety car pulls into the pits at the pit entry, however, drivers can’t overtake until the start-finish line.
Yes, in the end Norris may not have won the race because of other circumstances, but to potentially steal it away from him through no fault of his is basically influencing the end result.
So the question I have to ask is: when could this situation be intentionally used to manipulate a race result? It wasn’t this time, but it could be questioned if it was a close call for points near the end of a championship.
Some would say it potentially reduces racing laps, but I don’t agree. If we look at this situation at the Madring, it would have meant we would have stayed under the VSC for another 20 seconds, so it's no big deal.
### Red flag issues
Also another thing that bugs me is that when a red flag is thrown during qualifying, the driver who causes the red flag doesn’t really suffer any setback, other than perhaps a damaged car, but drivers on a quick lap potentially lose a set of tyres by having to abort their lap.
Why can’t the red flag be thrown from the start-finish line to the scene of the incident? Drivers on a qualifying lap that is past the scene of the incident could finish their lap.
Also, if the medical car was required, it could exit the pits at the end of the pitlane so well into the red flag area of the track.
Yes cars between the start-finish line and the scene of the incident would still lose a set of tyres, but it’s the old saying: you can’t please all of the people all of the time, but at least you could potentially please some of the drivers some of the time.
As far as the driver who causes a red flag getting a penalty, in F2 any driver who causes a red flag loses all their qualifying laps. Personally, I think that is a bit heavy-handed, but to lose your fastest lap in that qualifying session would be a fair punishment. It could make the difference between getting into the next qualifying session or even your actual grid position if you caused it in the final session.
Also, during a race red flag situation, I don’t think that drivers should be able to change tyre compounds, so basically you can’t comply with the two-compound race requirement.
Yes, you can change tyres to reduce the risk of tyre damage or punctures from running over debris, but that would be the same for everyone. So it again reduces the potential influence on the race result for those who have pitted prior to the red flag and those who hadn’t.
### What we learned at Red Bull and Verstappen's wild kart race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/red-bull-max-vs-100-kart-race-what-we-learned/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T16:12:51.000Z
There was just one question on everyone's lips at Silverstone on Wednesday evening: could Max Verstappen beat 100 karters when starting from the very back of the grid?
The answer, emphatically, was yes.
Max vs 100 was the latest in a long-line of incredible marketing stunts from Red Bull, bringing together athletes, creators and journalists to take on the four-time Formula 1 world champion. The catch? He'd be starting from 101st and would be tasked with picking off every single one of them around the extended karting track at Silverstone.
Opinions were mixed on whether he'd be able to do it, with Arvid Lindblad having put the two halves of the grid through their paces the day before. He'd had less time to do it in, but was beaten in the first race, leading people to question whether Verstappen - with twice as many competitors and plenty of opportunities for pile-ups and chaos - would get it done in time.
That line of questioning was rendered redundant when he passed 60-plus people on the opening lap, and went on to win the race in just 14 of the planned 30 laps, even with a slight excursion that might have raised some track-limits eyebrows in an actual F1 race.
Impressive as that was, what was really astonishing was how many moving parts were constantly at play during the lead-up and race day itself.
The 100 karters were made up of some who had never even sat in one before alongside drivers with some serious experience and speed. They were given proper training and acclimatisation time and, even if some of them were "bounced past" before they had even taken the first corner, they were all brought up to speed remarkably quickly to a safe and competent level.
Red Bull really made the most of the event, and it was clear from his post-race press conference that Verstappen had genuinely enjoyed himself. Karting is the purest form of racing and no matter how much F1 experience a driver has, you can tell they all enjoy returning to it. It was never 'gimmicky' even though there were 'gimmicks', with the newly created proximity chat proving a hit with both the audience and seemingly Verstappen himself. (An F1 introduction when?)
As part of a group of media invited to the event, it's hard to quite put into words how much fun it was. We had access to the host of karters, a chance to put some questions to driver-trainer extraordinaire Lindblad, plus dinner and a tour at Red Bull's MK7 campus. You could tell there was a lot of genuine care and thought put into all of the details and, given the amount of people involved, it was remarkable that everything ran so smoothly.
Some parties involved in the running of the event might have hoped the race would have lasted a little longer, but all that means is that they'll have to give it another go at some point in the future. Anyone up for Max vs 200?
**Megan covered the 'Max vs 100' event alongside Charley Williams - and they gave the lowdown on their experience over in** [**The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com)**! Head over there to** [**listen to their full debrief**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/behind-scenes-at-169784113?utm%5Fmedium=clipboard%5Fcopy&utm%5Fsource=copyLink&utm%5Fcampaign=postshare%5Ffan&utm%5Fcontent=web%5Fshare)
### MotoGP Austrian GP: Who made Q2 - and who missed out
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-austrian-gp-who-made-q2-who-missed-out/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T14:20:38.000Z
Pedro Acosta continued to command KTM and Red Bull's home MotoGP race as he led throughout the Austrian Grand Prix Friday afternoon practice session too.
Gresini Ducati rider Fermin Aldeguer ended up his closest challenger, 0.127 seconds adrift.
Ai Ogura marked his return to the field after hand surgery by being top Aprilia in an impressive third place for Trackhouse.
None of the title contenders showed especially standout pace, though Marc Marquez brought his Ducati up to fourth by the end, just ahead of Jorge Martin's Aprilia.
Martin's team-mate Marco Bezzecchi had a particularly muted Friday, bar some errors under braking, and was only ninth.
The session was interrupted by a late red flag for a nasty crash for Alex Marquez.
His Gresini Ducati's front wheel locked as it hit the ground from a small wheelie out of the first corner, firing him into a crash that sent him sliding down the straight while his bike cartwheeled down the grass.
Marquez was able to rejoin on his spare bike after the restart and earned a Q2 place in eighth, just behind an unusually strong late-2026 performance from outgoing KTM rider Brad Binder.
Yamaha will be represented in Q2 thanks to Fabio Quartararo taking 10th place.
But Honda missed out despite LCR's Johann Zarco spending much of the afternoon in the top 10.
Zarco had an early crash at Turn 4 in which team-mate Diogo Moreira also went through the gravel while he was walking away. The stewards quickly determined that Moreira had had no time to react so had not breached yellow flag rules.
The LCR pair were edged down to 12th and 13th at the end, just behind works Honda rider Luca Marini.
## Session results
1 Pedro Acosta (KTM) 1m28.381s
2 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.127s
3 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.187s
4 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.204s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.222s
6 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.252s
7 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.269s
8 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.321s
9 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.430s
10 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.436s
\--
11 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.440s
12 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.484s
13 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.558s
14 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.680s
15 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.710s
16 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +0.720s
17 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.810s
18 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.885s
19 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.949s
20 Takaaki Nakagami (Honda) +1.215s
21 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.568s
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.601s
### KTM CEO reveals Acosta's key Marquez stance for 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/ktm-ceo-reveals-pedro-acosta-key-2027-marc-marquez-stance/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T13:42:30.000Z
KTM CEO Gottfried Neumeister says there was no financial offer that KTM could have made to tempt Pedro Acosta to stay, because Acosta is desperate to measure himself against Marc Marquez.
Though Acosta is yet to win a grand prix, he and Marquez are the two arguable standouts of the current campaign - with Marquez now the title favourite despite injury troubles and Acosta massively outperforming his KTM peers.
Acosta agreed a deal to replace Pecco Bagnaia at Ducati in the last off-season - despite the widespread belief that he could have commanded more lucrative contracts elsewhere.
KTM motorsport boss Pit Beirer said last weekend that KTM felt "there was somehow a chance" to kept him - "but also it was quite long growing in him that he wanted to go there and have the same bike as Marc, and just find out who is better, him or Marc, so there's something I think we couldn't even beat".
And this was corroborated emphatically by Neumeister during KTM's home MotoGP weekend at the Red Bull Ring, when he was asked by The Race about the damage losing Acosta does to his brand's championship ambitions in the short-term in MotoGP.
Neumeister was very keen to emphasise his faith in KTM's future factory line-up of Alex Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio - also making a point to specifically mention it after the end of his media session.
But of Acosta leaving, he said: "I'm really very sorry, and I tried. And it's not a secret. I tried personally to convince him to stay.
"But I mean, I still have goosebumps because he told me, 'Listen, Gottfried, it's not about a million more or less'.
"We have seen riders who are sitting on the best bike at the beginning of the season just signing with others for money. This is, for me, not a racing spirit, yeah?
"And he simply said: 'I'm Spanish. Even if you have a better bike, the 850cc, and I'd be winning on this one, I want to beat Marc with the same weapon.'
"And then you're disarmed, you're dismantled. And this is such a great encouragement. And I will always have the best feelings when I see him."
The line about 'signing with others for money' can be read as reference to joint-championship leader Jorge Martin - who had left KTM on bad terms half a decade ago and who this year committed to a switch from Aprilia to Yamaha early on.
All the evidence corroborates Neumeister's suggestion that KTM's relationship with Acosta remains very healthy until their end-of-year separation - with Acosta allowed to again test KTM's 850cc prototype this Monday at the Red Bull Ring (he already tested it at Brno) and Neumeister making reference to a potential reunion down the line.
### Senior TT moved from Isle of Man finale slot in 2027 changes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/tt/isle-of-man-tt-2027-schedule-changes/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T13:31:46.000Z
The Isle of Man TT has announced schedule changes for 2027 that will concentrate race-week activities around the blue riband Senior TT event, partly as a response to weather disruptions in recent years.
The new schedule also sees one race dropped from the calendar, with the Superstock class reduced to just a single race - something that happened in 2026 anyway when the second race was scrapped due to the inclement weather that disrupted most of race week after glorious sunshine during practice week.
The Superbike TT, traditionally the opening race of the event, will reclaim that slot for 2027 after swapping with the first Supersport race for 2026, with the four-lap Supersport TT now taking its place on Sunday with its shorter, closed-roads window thanks to the island's church services.
Monday will be a contingency day, ahead of the Superstock TT on Tuesday and the return of the sidecar class following its 2026 [suspension on safety grounds](https://www.the-race.com/tt/why-the-isle-of-man-tt-has-suspended-sidecar-racing/), with the second Supersport TT and the newly revamped Sportbike TT class going on Wednesday.
Thursday will be another rest day, with only the Senior TT scheduled for Friday (traditionally a public holiday on the Isle of Man). This year's race was rescheduled for Saturday and was due to be shortened to four laps, but [could not be completed](https://www.the-race.com/tt/senior-tt-red-flagged-on-lap-two/) due to rain and windy conditions - meaning the result was taken from the single lap of racing completed before a red flag the previous evening.
Racing will then conclude on Saturday with another sidecar race and the second Sportbike race.
"The schedule introduced in 2023 achieved a number of important objectives for the TT," said TT boss Paul Phillips. "It created stronger opening and closing weekends, provided more racing across the week and gave visitors much greater choice around how and when they came to the Island.
"Across the four TT events in which it has operated, the schedule has helped us attract more fans and deliver greater economic benefit to the island. Those gains remain central to the 2027 programme, but four years of experience have also provided valuable evidence about where the schedule can now be refined.
"For 2027, we believe the right balance is nine substantial and clearly defined races. Moving from two Superstock races to one allows us to give the remaining Superstock race and both Sportbike races greater substance, create more recovery time within the programme and provide better protection around the Superbike and Senior TTs.
"This is an evolution rather than a return to the programme that existed before 2023\. It retains the stronger two-weekend structure while giving each race day a clear purpose. Superbike provides an immediate headline race on the opening Saturday, while placing the 100th Senior on Friday allows us to build the day around that historic occasion and retain Saturday as a genuine contingency opportunity.
"We also want the 100th Senior to be about much more than the race itself. It gives us an opportunity to celebrate the riders, motorcycles and extraordinary performances that have made it the most important race at the TT."
## 2027 Isle of Man TT race schedule
**Saturday June 5**
Superbike TT - 6 laps
**Sunday June 6**
Supersport TT Race 1 - 4 laps
**Monday June 7**
Contingency day
**Tuesday June 8**
Superstock TT - 4 laps
Sidecar TT Race 1 - 2 laps
**Wednesday June 9**
Supersport TT Race 2 - 4 laps
Sportbike TT Race 1 - 4 laps
**Thursday June 10**
Contingency day
**Friday June 11**
Senior TT - 6 laps
**Saturday June 12**
Sidecar TT Race 2 - 2 laps
Sportbike TT Race 2 - 4 laps
### Where the next leaps in F1 brake technology will come from
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/brembo-where-the-next-leaps-in-f1-brake-technology-will-come-from/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T10:45:51.000Z
Presented by Brembo
"Probably the only thing that is in common is that it has carbon as a chemical element. The rest is completely different."
That's how Mario Almondo, Chief Officer of Brembo Performance, describes how Formula 1 brakes of 2026 compare to what was used 20 years earlier. And the next 20 years could bring even bigger changes - though not necessarily in materials.
It's in the last 10 years in particular that Almondo feels visitors to Brembo's factory in Curno, Italy, have been overwhelmed by what goes into F1 brake design and creation "in terms of energy, complexity and the variety of processes behind the creation of the material that makes up an F1 brake".
"You have to create the material, it's not like melting a cast iron disc," he adds of carbon.
Over the last two decades, that process has changed radically.
"It is completely different in terms of shapes and quality of the rotors and their lay-up, as well as the design and cooling of the brake pads," says Almondo.
"It is completely different in terms of the cycle of production into the furnaces. The cycle time is even more different. We also had some different chemical and thermodynamics reactions, let's say, compared to even the recent past, we are using improved gas mixtures.
"It is different in terms of the additives and chemical additives that we put onto the discs and pads.
"The process of manufacturing is completely different, because, of course, we started with 50 holes or something like that. Now, we are at more than 1000.
"As I said, the chemical element of carbon is still there, but that's it!"
Brembo is about to introduce carbon-ceramic brakes into superbike racing, a project that’s been in progress for more than five years in terms of what Almondo calls "the cooking recipe" of the creation of the brakes by maximising thermal, mechanical, and friction profile properties.
While that is now sufficient to slow a high-performance racing bike, Almondo (above) believes F1-level braking - "the best expression of the technology in terms of pure performance" - will still require all carbon-carbon brakes for "several years still" because the friction level, resistance and thermal properties achievable with carbon-ceramic discs is not at that level required from F1 cars.
So while a major material change might not be on the immediate horizon for F1 brakes, the big leap Almondo foresees is around how "digitally pre-empted" the braking group can be, before it even gets on an F1 car. Simulation tools aren't just helping F1 teams, they're a massive boost for suppliers such as Brembo too - achieving remarkable results in the preparation and anticipation of problems that may arise with any new project, such as the implementation of the new technical regulations at the start of 2026.
"You have to digitalise and simulate everything and you have to foresee what's going to happen. And this is something where we are very, very, very good," says Almondo.
"For example, this year, there are completely new technical rules in Formula 1\. It is something that I'm very proud of that if I have to compare what we predicted and what was happening at the first test or the first race this year, we were 99% spot on."
And asked where the next technical advances in F1 braking were most likely to come, it's in this area of simulation that Almondo expects the biggest strides.
"Probably, simulation is the area where we have more room for expansion and the quickest pace of expansion, because the rest is linked to something that is more physical," he explains.
"And of course, physics has to be tested, proved, retested. It is a constant pace, but not with big leaps.
"While on the other side, with simulation, if you have a good idea, you can find something that gives you the possibility and room for big expansion and big low-cost improvement - indeed, digitally validating a new idea drastically shortens development times, even though physical component testing must still be carried out."
The level of complexity in a 2026 F1 braking system, especially in terms of blending with the regenerative braking component, it remains a highly demanding engineering challenge.
"The reason why I say 'braking technology', because it is not just about calipers and other mechanical components, but it's also about software, it's about simulation, it's about brake-by-wire, it's about the pump and all this kind of stuff. It is very, very complex, the interaction between the vehicle and the braking technology," explains Almondo.
And it's in this area of interaction between the braking system and the wider car performance that Almondo thinks most competitive gains can be made in the coming years.
"The evolution will be towards having a technology of braking that is much more into the dynamic of the car, much more interacting with the dynamic of the car, because of course this is better for the packaging," he says.
"This is what everybody is asking, and this is because it is the natural way to better integrate the dissipative braking with the regenerative braking - through software, through technology, through hydraulics, through electrical.
"It's something that is completely in evolution and we rely on this kind of development, we rely as well on the input of the teams. We are here for this."
The likelihood of the next generation of F1 regulations being simpler - with a smaller electrical energy component potentially teamed with a V8 internal combustion engine - does appeal to Almondo personally, but he warns against regarding it as a simpler challenge for braking technology.
"Of course, braking with an ICE is something that we know very well, but the point is that you have to go to the limit and a little bit above the limit, but keeping performance and, of course, safety at 100%," he says.
"So, if we go in this direction, we are going to play on a pitch that we know very well - and that I like, I have to say also personally, in terms of a motorsport exercise. And in any case, it certainly seems to be the direction that the vast number of F1 fans are asking for."
"But it will always be the same: constant improvement, we will reach the limit, some teams will, as usual, push us to overtake the limit a little bit, because they want more, more, more, and this is why Brembo is what it is."
And wherever F1 car technology goes, braking performance is going to be critical to it.
As Almondo puts it: "Ifyou want to have something rolling, of course, you have to have something to stop it. That’s been true since the invention of the wheel!"
### What happened in KTM-led first Austria MotoGP practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/ktm-1-2-what-happened-austrian-gp-motogp-first-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-18T09:42:47.000Z
KTM started it and title sponsor Red Bull's home MotoGP weekend with a 1-2 in opening Austrian Grand Prix practice.
Pedro Acosta - who would particularly like to win his first full MotoGP grand prix in Austria as he goes into his final months with KTM before leaving for Ducati - set an early 1m29.851s that kept him on top.
Tech3's Maverick Vinales stand-in Pol Espargaro then used fresh tyres at the end to go to second, just over two tenths of a second slower, as he recovered from an early crash.
Joint championship leader Jorge Martin had to switch to his spare Aprilia after a technical problem in the opening minutes, but was second until Espargaro's late run.
Martin is optimistic that the nature of the Red Bull Ring layout will mean there is no repeat of the arm pump problem that caused his Misano slump last weekend and allowed Marc Marquez to draw level with him in the championship and lead on countback.
Marquez was fourth in the session, with fellow title contender Marco Bezzecchi sixth behind top Honda rider Johann Zarco.
Alex Marquez fell back to eighth in the final minutes having been in the top five but run through the gravel after part of the aero on his Gresini Ducati came loose.
## Results
1 Pedro Acosta (KTM) 1m29.851s
2 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.233s
3 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.308s
4 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.335s
5 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.513s
6 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.533s
7 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.566s
8 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.631s
9 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.669s
10 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.680s
11 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.709s
12 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.800s
13 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.843s
14 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.861s
15 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.921s
16 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.997s
17 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.010s
18 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.122s
19 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.404s
20 Takaaki Nakagami (Honda) +1.438s
21 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.487s
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.512s
### Do driving styles really explain these drivers' 2026 F1 struggles?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/true-impact-of-driving-styles-on-f1-2026-top-drivers/
Last updated: 2026-09-23T12:37:25.000Z
After two sectors in the final Q3 runs of Madring George Russell was within 0.1 seconds of Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli. By the end of the lap, he’d dropped a further two tenths. An average of half-a-tenth loss in the first two sectors but four times that in the last one.
His rear tyres were simply too hot for the repeated 90-degree turns of sector three and that, obviously, was a function of how he had used them up to that point.
It defined his weekend as one in which he finished fifth, half-a-minute adrift of the race-winning Antonelli, albeit on a different strategy.
It was somehow emblematic of Russell's 2026 season, probably the weakest of his eight-year F1 career at just the time he finally gets a title-calibre car.
Afterwards he was pondering where his struggles this year lay and he puts it firmly in the category of a mismatch between his natural driving style and the demands of the 2026 generation of car and tyre.
"It's been a strange season when you look at the competitiveness of \[Oscar\] Piastri against Lando \[Norris\] last year, Charles \[Leclerc\] versus Lewis \[Hamilton\] and even the dominance of Max \[Verstappen\] against all of his team-mates in the previous era," Russell said.
"This year myself, Charles, Oscar are struggling much more compared to our team-mates. And Max, his team-mates have been substantially closer to him than anybody has in the last six years, and I think we've all got pretty similar driving styles.
"The drivers performing very well this year - Kimi, Lewis, Lando - have got quite similar driving styles. So to me it's pretty clear with this car, with these tyres, the trends are there."
There is almost certainly a causal relationship between these cars/tyres and the struggles of Russell and Piastri. They each tend to drive to a geometric ideal, late turn-in with a positively abrupt initial turn of the wheel, relying more on that steering than weight manipulation for rotation into the turn and using very little overlap between braking and cornering.
It can work brilliantly well on a high-grip track in a car with a lot of downforce. But not as well as the grip reduces.
---
**Get more in-depth F1 driving style analysis from Mark Hughes and Edd Straw in their** [**Driving Style Secrets**](https://www.patreon.com/collection/1486512?view=expanded&ref=the-race.com) **series in The Race Members' Club**
---
The reduced downforce and tyre grip of the 2026 cars has raised the crossover point of circuit grip at which that technique begins to be problematic - ie with these cars there are more circuits than before which don't really sync very well with that technique.
Furthermore, the penalty of that is compounded in these cars by the demands of energy management. The less momentum you can maintain on entry, the more in-fills the battery makes, meaning the deployment doesn't last as long on the straights. Russell and Piastri have both struggled in places with this.
But the equivalence Russell makes breaks down when comparing Verstappen and Leclerc, who each have their own styles unrelated to each other's or those of Russell and Piastri.
Verstappen has perhaps the most versatile range of skills of anyone on the grid, but his preference is a car with an extreme front end which allows him to derive corner rotation from relatively little steering. He has the amazing sensitivity to rotation and yaw, which allows him to adjust steering/brakes/throttle to dampen out the latent exit oversteer which would normally come with an ['on-the-nose'](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-is-a-pointy-front-end-max-verstappen-f1-preference/) car.
Any car - such as the current Red Bull RB22 - which understeers at low- and medium-speed entries will limit how much laptime that skill buys him over others. The performance profile of other cars suggests that it's perfectly feasible to have an on-the-nose car under these regulations. It's just that Red Bull has not been able to provide one.
Leclerc has traditionally got his rotation from an energetic balancing act between brakes/throttle/steering, with lots of overlap. It makes him absolutely dynamite around short corners where the reward for the quick rotation isn't overwhelmed by the penalty later in the corner.
He's probably the fastest driver there is around Monaco, Baku and the Red Bull Ring. But long-corner tracks - Shanghai, Hungaroring - can present difficulties for him, as a price is extracted later in the corner for the way he tricked the car into turning more than it wanted initially. The 2026 regulation's demand for energy management mean that some of those tricks have become almost redundant. But he remains a fantastically fast driver.
Antonelli, Norris and Hamilton are also quite distinctive in their styles - and adaptable.
In fact, Hamilton's adaptation to the demands of this generation of car after his struggles with the ground-effect era has been one of the most noteworthy driver performance stories of the season.
As a generalisation, he keeps the car flatter and calmer than Leclerc on entry and this means there is a variance in corner type at which one betters the other. He's still able to be super-late on the brakes when required, but he's combining it with a suppleness that is not overworking the front axle - and the Ferrari's downforce balance is allowing that to work very well for him.
Antonelli and Norris have clearly worked very hard with their engineering teams to understand the quirks of these cars as they've introduced features in their driving specifically tuned to the energy management. Antonelli's throttle usage is highly distinctive, for example, and seems to be tailored around maximising harvest under braking rather than wasting it on part-throttle.
His inputs are beautifully smooth as he judges the grip upon entry with such precision and confidence that there is very little corrective input required through the corner - this is probably the most visible contrast between him and Russell.
It suggests he's just got a better feel for the front-axle grip, but when the grip is high he's perfectly comfortable taking the Russell late entry/big steering approach. He just seems to have a better awareness of when that's not the optimum tactic.
---
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---
Norris has always had a beautiful way of progressively loading the front of the car up and can take whatever line is needed according to the available grip.
As with Verstappen, it's a style which tends to fall apart if the car is an understeerer, but using that progression, sometimes turning in shallow from further back (seen to great effect in the final turn at the Hungaroring in FP1 when the grip was super-low), means he suffers far less from snaps on the exit, because he doesn't have as much lock on when the fronts finally grip.
Norris himself doesn't see his style as the distinctive differentiator.
"I wouldn't really say my driving style suits this car," he says. "I think my driving style is good because I'm able to adapt better. I don't think it's one style that works and I don't drive the same way as Kimi…my adaptability is what allows me to drive the car I've got. My strength is my adaptability to different driving styles.
"Last year at the beginning \[the car\] suited Oscar a little bit more. My strength was being able to adapt better to then finally understand how to drive it in a better way. Hence I had a better second half of the season.
"This year? You don't drive this car anywhere close to last year, not even 1% I feel is remotely the same. So it’s about adaptation."
The bottom line is Russell (and Piastri) have to adapt. Because the cars aren't coming to them.
### 'It looks terrible' - Bagnaia infuriated by Di Giannantonio chat airing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/it-looks-terrible-bagnaia-infuriated-by-di-giannantonio-chat-airing/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T14:53:00.000Z
Pecco Bagnaia says he has been made to look "terrible" by the airing of a conversation with Ducati MotoGP stablemate Fabio Di Giannantonio, which he believes was taken out of context.
Footage released by Spanish broadcaster DAZN, captured at Misano between various broadcaster interviews as Di Giannantonio semi-privately quizzed Bagnaia about his struggles with the bike, picked up a lot of steam online due to one particular phrase by Bagnaia - a suggestion that Ducati "isn't letting" him use a more straightforward set-up.
Bagnaia fully anticipated questions about this coming into Thursday at the Red Bull Ring - and said that while he regretted his "not correct" phrasing, he also clearly felt he was treated unfairly by DAZN.
"You know me very well, you listen to me every day when we are racing," Bagnaia told the assembled print journalists. "I think that many times it was asked to me: 'Is the team supporting you?'
"And I always said yes, the team is doing the maximum to help me.
"The video that was out of recording was out of context \[...\] The video is not complete. We were speaking about one more thing \[specific part\].
"Sometimes you say things in the wrong way. But what I always said is that Ducati supported me a lot - and what I meant is that I tried to put and remove \[certain parts\] many times already, so Ducati is not allowing me to do \[it\] anymore. But just because I already did many times - and I don't want to continue this kind of thing. What came out of my mouth was \[said\] in the wrong way.
"But then what happened next is a disaster for me. Because it's completely out of \[devoid of\] respect. And the relationship between journalists and riders needs respect.
"Yesterday we spoke about it \[within Ducati\]. It's normal that, the way it comes out on television, it looks terrible."
The footage has since been erased by DAZN, which has apologised to Bagnaia - who said Ducati understood the situation and "know that I'm not completely crazy".
"It's clear that you can take our words and put them online in the way you want. Because you can say three words and can have two different complete contexts. Positive or negative.
"You \[media\] are the ones that need to be transparent, and understand what we are saying. But I know that sometimes it's important to have a nice clickbait title.
"But I always try to be as transparent as possible. But I will try to be less. In the future maybe you will have less from me."
Di Giannantonio, who ended up an unwitting third party in the controversy, was also displeased on Bagnaia's behalf.
"I don't want to say something about this story \[specifically\] because it's not my story, but I can say that us as riders, especially us as Italians, we have known each other for a long time - and we always talk about bikes, it's completely normal for us. What happened, it was a thing outside the cameras, but apparently it was inside. So I think it was a bit unfair \[to air it\].
"But the problem is now that we always have cameras - so we are going to a world where we cannot talk anymore.
"Journalists should have a sense of limit. It's like, I can be in a pub talking about bikes and I don't have to be worried that somewhere there is a journalist with a mic, because it was a friendly chat.
"For sure it's a thing that we can improve as a sport, also because I think it's not nice for the sport, honestly."
As for his specific conversation with Bagnaia, Di Giannantonio said he was keen to offer his advice to Bagnaia because he had benefitted from the works Ducati's rider input in the past.
"When I was struggling with the Ducati, I was always talking with Pecco and trying to get as much info as I can, and he was always helping me, trying to give me the best advice to improve - and when I can, I try to do the same with other riders that I have known for a long time. So it was a completely normal chat for us."
### Hamilton firmly denies asking for Ferrari staff to be replaced
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-firmly-denies-asking-for-ferrari-staff-to-be-replaced/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T14:18:23.000Z
Ferrari Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton has taken to social media to insist he’s “never asked for anyone on my team to be replaced” after a report in the Italian media suggested he had.
Italian newspaper Corriere della Seraclaimed Hamilton had asked for changes to be made to trackside personnel at Ferrari and reported a weakened relationship with team boss Fred Vasseur, who had been instrumental to Hamilton signing in the first place.
But on Thursday, Hamilton posted an Instagram story that rubbished the rumours.
“I’ve seen some of the stories that have gone out and I want to clear it up here. I’ve never asked for anyone on my team to be replaced,” Hamilton wrote.
“Everyone I work with works hard every day, and their dedication is what moves us forward.
“I always try to empower and lift people to be the best versions of themselves or at least see the best in themselves.
“I may not always achieve that but it’s my intention and that’s what I’m here to do.
“We all work together and that will continue.”
It follows a tricky patch for Ferrari, which hasn’t had a grand prix podium since Spa in July.
It peaked with a nightmare home race at Monza, where an exasperated [Hamilton pleaded for Ferrari to work together](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/here-there-are-no-rules-hamilton-calls-ferrari-out/) to correct operational errors and poor execution.
He [effectively conceded the title in Madrid](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-effectively-concedes-2026-f1-title-after-latest-blow/) as he fell over 100 points adrift of points leader Kimi Antonelli, having retired with a brake issue.
### Gary Anderson: F1's overtaking problem is bigger than one circuit
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-overtaking-problem-is-bigger-than-one-circuit-gary-anderson/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T12:21:15.000Z
Competitive overtaking in Formula 1’s first race at the Madring basically didn’t exist, but that is true of many, if not all, of the current F1 circuits.
I use that phrase ‘competitive overtaking’, because, since the beginning of this season, we have seen some exciting racing, but that has been mainly down to harvesting and deployment of an inadequate battery pack.
I don’t call it competitive overtaking when one car has run out of battery while another car still has some electrical energy to deploy. This happens because the backroom engineers have come up with a harvesting and deployment strategy that simply outwits another team's harvesting and deployment strategy.
Basically, it is far removed from any driver skill, and driver skill is the reason I believe behind why many millions of other viewers and I watch F1.
But moving on from that general problem to another…
I still believe the cars are too downforce-reliant, especially the front wing. When you lose downforce in this area, it creates understeer and basically you lose laptime.
So if you have caught another car because you are faster, because of that downforce loss you are slower, and you can’t pull off an overtaking manoeuvre. Also because of that loss of downforce, the car starts sliding around more and then overheats the tyres.
If you get to within one and a half to two seconds of the car ahead, you then have this problem. To get any extra deployment to help with overtaking, you need to be within one second of the car in front. So I don’t think you need to be a brain surgeon to know this doesn’t work.
Secondly are the tyres. Pirelli instigates, through the FIA, the camber, blanket temperatures and out-of-the-blanket tyre pressures. This is done to reduce the risk of a tyre failure (public embarrassment), so the tyre pressures have increased dramatically over the years.
There has been a desire to lower them, but it's never actually happened.
Back in the old days, when we had Bridgestone tyres, we would use on-track pressures of \~20psi at the front and \~16psi on the rear. Currently, they are running front and rear at more like \~25psi.
Tyre pressures equal grip. The higher the pressure, the stiffer the tyre and the smaller the tyre contact patch becomes, resulting in less grip, which creates more sliding. At a certain level of sliding, the tyre surface starts to overheat and you get less grip again, so you get into a spiral.
Don’t mollycoddle the teams. I would suggest that Pirelli should advise camber and tyre pressures, but allow these very competent teams to decide for themselves what camber and tyre pressures they actually run.
Yes, some teams will push into the risk side, but that is what a team does with the rest of the car, i.e. engine cooling, brake cooling and even the mechanical and aerodynamic set-up.
Whilst on about tyres, for the Madring, Pirelli brought the C2 hard, C3 medium and C4 soft tyres, basically the middle of its range. All the talk prior to the event was that this circuit was going to be a tyre-killer. Well, I got news for you and your simulations: it wasn’t.
Pierre Gasly did 55 of the 56 laps in the race on one set of hards; Ferrari got through first qualifying on the mediums, Lando Norris and Kimi Antonelli did 14-15 laps on the mediums on full tanks with no sign of tyre degradation.
Most drivers were able to improve their laptime in qualifying by doing fast - slow - fast laps on the same set of softs, and in the race Nico Hulkenberg and Max Verstappen started on softs and did 14 laps when the car was at its heaviest. To cap it off, later in the race Fernando Alonso did 24 laps on the softs, so please don’t tell me the tyre compound choice was on the limit!
And I don’t agree with Oscar Piastri that the medium tyre was “just awful at the start of the race". His team-mate in the same car was steaming off into the distance on the same tyre.
One step softer to the C5, C4 and C3 would have meant a greater strategy challenge for the teams; potentially some cars would have suffered more tyre degradation, which can very easily lead to overtaking because of the difference in tyre grip.
[Pirelli's not so sure](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/suggested-fix-would-not-have-saved-f1-spanish-gp-madring/) it would have changed the race, but at the very least it would have put everything more on the limit as opposed to always being on the safe side, which simply leads to these long stints on the hard tyre.
Then there is the bit about the luck of getting a cheap pitstop during a VSC interlude.
And now we get onto the Madring circuit. Yes, it wasn't the best track layout to instigate overtaking and the much hyped banked ‘La Monumental’ corner was just a bit of a damp squib. It would have been flat out if the cars had had the electrical energy available at that point of the lap, but most had a little lift to harvest some energy, knowing that they were better off by doing that for the next short straight.
Corners that have compound braking and cornering characteristics never promote overtaking. Basically, the tyres can only do one thing at a time; that is why we see so many lock-ups when the inside tyre is unloaded whilst braking for a corner where that tyre will be the loaded tyre.
So here is my suggestion for circuit changes: do away with Turn 5 and 5A and make it one curve instead of a chicane.
This means you will arrive at Turn 7 with the potential to outbrake another driver. Then do away with Turn 11 to increase the entry speed into Turn 12\. If you have a challenging corner, then let’s make it challenging! Do away with Turns 16, 17, 18 and 19 and make it one long curve, which is like Curva Grande at Monza and have a third straight mode in that area.
And then, for my way out wacky suggestion, do what Paul Ricard did over 50 years ago and have a two-part pitlane with a bridge in the middle. This would mean it would go from the longest pitlane in F1 to the shortest. I am sure if that happened, combined with a softer tyre selection, it would instigate multiple pitstops.
To mitigate any potential differences in pitstop time the top five teams in the constructors’ championship could use one section and the other six teams could use the other section. Although I’m pretty sure with today’s simulation tools both sections could be equalised fairly well, and when in place it could be optimised by just moving the pitlane speed limit control lines.
### The Formation's mission to bring women together through F1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/the-formation-mission-to-bring-women-together-through-f1/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T11:40:56.000Z
For Amy Mansell, The Formation began with a pattern she could no longer ignore.
After spending two decades working in sponsorship, partnerships and fan engagement around F1, she found herself having the same conversations over and over again. Women would approach her after industry panels, keen to talk about the sport they loved. Their backgrounds varied, their stories differed, but a common thread kept emerging.
“Although they all had different stories, there was one thing many of them had in common… They loved F1, but often experienced it alone,” Mansell says.
“Some wanted people to go to races with. Others wanted somewhere to ask questions without feeling judged. Some worked in the industry and wanted to meet other women who shared their passion. Others simply wanted people to talk to during a race weekend.”
At the same time, F1 itself was changing, bringing with it a whole new wave of female fans.
“We’ve all seen the numbers from the Global F1 Fan Survey, so we know that women now make up 42% of its global fanbase and account for three in four new fans entering the sport, but the experiences surrounding that audience had not always evolved at the same pace.”
## From observation to opportunity
**Founder of The Formation, Amy Mansell*
Those observations would eventually inform the creation of The Formation, a new community aimed at bringing together women who love F1.
Mansell explains: “At its heart, we are creating a community. It’s a place where women can come together to share their passion for the sport, whether they’ve been watching since the days of Schumacher and Senna or discovered Formula 1 through Drive to Survive.”
The concept is deliberately broad. Mansell describes a community that will exist both online and in person, through online conversations, premium live events, race watch parties, intimate dinners, industry discussions and experiences that connect women through a shared love of F1.
“But if I had to sum it up in one word, it would be *belonging*.”
That word appears repeatedly throughout her vision for The Formation and reflects what she witnessed during her years inside the sport.
While leading the groundbreaking partnership between Elemis and Aston Martin that brought F1's first official beauty brand into the sport, she heard directly from women who felt increasingly represented by F1's changing landscape.
“Many said that despite loving the sport, they hadn’t always felt like it had been built with them in mind,” she says.
“That really stayed with me, and eventually I realised this wasn’t just a sponsorship conversation anymore - it was a conversation about community.”
## Building a bridge
**The Formation advisory board (from L-R clockwise: Amy Mansell, Natalie Pinkham, Katharina Nowak, Silvia Schweiger and Natalie Neal)*
The Formation arrives at a time when female-focused F1 spaces are becoming increasingly visible, something Mansell views as overwhelmingly positive.
“Firstly, I genuinely think it’s fantastic that we’re seeing more communities emerge for women who love F1,” she says.
“With more than 350 million women following F1 globally, there is room for many different communities, each with its own personality, purpose and approach.”
For Mansell, the opportunity was not simply to create another fan community. For her, it was about creating a bridge between the women helping shape F1 today and the women shaping its future as fans.
“Having spent twenty years working in and around F1, I wanted to create something that brought those two worlds together.”
The Formation's vision is also reflected in the women who have joined its advisory board. Sky Sports F1 presenter Natalie Pinkham, Miami Grand Prix president Katharina Nowak, NKrush founder and CEO Natalie Neal and motorsport communications specialist Silvia Schweiger all signed on early, bringing experience from across the sport and wider industry.
For Mansell, their immediate support was a sign that the need for a community like The Formation extended far beyond the conversations she'd been having herself.
Those women, and others within the sport, she believes, also have an important role to play in helping shape the sport's future.
“There are so many incredible women across teams, media, circuits and the wider industry who have broken down barriers to build careers in F1, and I believe they have an important role to play in helping the sport feel even more welcoming and accessible for its rapidly growing female fanbase.”
The result is a community intended to appeal equally to lifelong followers, Drive to Survive converts, industry professionals and casual race-weekend viewers.
“One of the things I love most about F1 is that there isn’t one definition of what makes a ‘real fan’,” Mansell says.
“Some people have followed the sport for decades. Others discovered it through Drive to Survive. Some can tell you every Constructors’ Champion since the 1950s, while others are still learning what a pit stop strategy is. They’re all F1 fans. The Formation has been built for all of them.”
## Shaping the next generation
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/p/DdWTjNIkbcG/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
> [A post shared by The Formation (@wearetheformation)](https://www.instagram.com/p/DdWTjNIkbcG/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
But creating a space for women to connect is only part of the plan.
Bringing the online community into the real world is a key part of the vision. The Formation's events programme will range from race watch parties and intimate dinners with women working across F1 to larger conversations with industry leaders, giving members opportunities to build friendships, hear personal stories and gain insights into the sport from those helping shape it.
“One of the things I’m most excited about is creating more opportunities for fans to connect with the incredible women helping shape F1 today,” she says.
“There are so many inspiring stories within the sport that fans rarely get the chance to hear in a personal setting, and I want The Formation to help bring those worlds a little closer together.”
That mission is informed, in part, by Mansell's own experience working in the sport.
“When I first started, there simply weren’t many women in the room,” she says.
“Thankfully, that’s changed enormously over the last two decades, and it’s one of the reasons I’m so optimistic about where F1 is heading.”
Building The Formation has also required a leap of faith.
“Probably convincing myself to press publish,” Mansell says when asked about the biggest challenge.
“That said, launching a global community while eight months pregnant probably says quite a lot about me and my tendency to take on ambitious projects!”
Any doubts she may have had were quickly put to rest.
“Within a few days, thousands of women had joined, our social channels had grown beyond anything I expected, and we’d received messages from fans, broadcasters, engineers, journalists and people throughout the paddock saying, ‘We’ve been waiting for something like this.’”
Ultimately, Mansell hopes success will not be measured by membership numbers or geographic reach.
“I’d love to see The Formation become the place women naturally think of when they think about F1,” she says.
“A truly global community with local events, meaningful partnerships, unforgettable experiences and opportunities that genuinely make a difference.”
But the real benchmark is simpler.
“Long-term success won’t be measured by the number of members we have or the number of countries we’re in. It will be measured by whether we’ve helped more women feel that they belong in this sport.”
Among all the feedback received since launch, one message remains her favourite: *“I’ve found my people.”*
“Honestly, that’s exactly what we hoped The Formation would become.”
### Alpine hires ex-Mercedes F1 tech chief
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-hires-ex-mercedes-f1-tech-chief/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T10:40:24.000Z
Former Mercedes Formula 1 technical boss Mike Elliott will return to the paddock after a three-year absence as Alpine's new chief technical officer.
Alpine said Elliott, who had a previous stint at the team as principal aerodynamicist in its Renault/Lotus iterations from 2008 to 2012, will "lead and oversee the technical and engineering functions at the team's factory at Enstone".
Elliott joined Mercedes when he previously left Enstone and was a key part of Mercedes' technical team through its domination of the late 2010s.
But his time in charge of it coincided with Mercedes' slump in the 2022 rules era.
He succeeded James Allison as technical director going into those regulations, but the 'no sidepod' design concept created under Elliott's leadership was problematic and Mercedes fell from fighting for titles to just occasional race wins.
Elliott and Allison swapped roles back in early 2023 after Mercedes failed to make the hoped-for gains that winter, with Elliott moving into the chief technical officer role Allison had held and Allison becoming technical director again.
Six months later, Elliott announced that he was leaving Mercedes and taking a break from F1 altogether - a break that's now ended with his Alpine appointment.
Alpine said signing Elliott "strengthens the team's technical capabilities as the team looks to build on the improved performances on track and close the gap to the top four teams", and his chief technical officer title suggests a likely focus on bigger-picture development and future regulations work, while existing executive technical director David Sanchez leads development of the 2026 and '27 cars.
### Robbie Williams to kick off 2027 British Grand Prix weekend
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/robbie-williams-to-kick-off-2027-british-grand-prix-weekend/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T08:58:25.000Z
Silverstone has announced British music superstar Robbie Williams as the first headline act for the 2027 Formula 1 British Grand Prix entertainment programme, with the pop icon set to launch the race weekend on Thursday 1 July.
Williams will take to the M&S Mainstage for the opening-night concert at the home of British motorsport. The performance will kick off four days of F1 action and entertainment at Silverstone, combining world-class racing with a festival atmosphere that has become a feature of the British Grand Prix.
The announcement follows a record-breaking attendance of 564,000 fans at Silverstone earlier this year, confirming the event's status as one of the biggest sporting occasions in the UK. Organisers continue to expand the off-track experience, with major music acts playing a central role in the grand prix weekend.
"I've heard Silverstone gets loud... Thursday night on the Mainstage, let's kick off the British Grand Prix properly...." Williams said following the announcement.
Silverstone's concert programme has attracted a string of high-profile artists in recent years, helping transform the British Grand Prix into a major entertainment destination as well as a sporting event. The addition of Williams continues that trend and provides fans with a high-profile opening to the 2027 race weekend.
Access to the concert is included with Thursday event tickets, with evening passes available from £50\. Fans can register for artist pre-sale access before tickets go on general sale later this month.
### Melbourne rules itself out of 2027 F1 opener contention
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/melbourne-rules-itself-out-of-2027-f1-opener-contention/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T08:43:36.000Z
The Australian Grand Prix has made clear it won't be a standby option for Formula 1's 2027 season-opener slot and is now fully committed to its early April date on the provisional calendar.
F1 [announced a 2027 calendar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/monaco-sprint-and-season-opener-plan-b-f1-2027-calendar-revealed/) on Tuesday that begins with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, despite the current uncertainty over the situation in the Middle East that also means where this year's season will end still remains unclear.
It had been suggested that if F1 did decide it couldn't start 2027 in the Middle East after all, then Melbourne could be shifted forward into March and resume the season-opener position it has often held.
But Melbourne is in the middle of a revamp of its pit and paddock facilities, the first phase of which will be completed for the 2027 race, and Australian Grand Prix Corporation CEO Travis Auld said the timelines involved mean its April date effectively cannot shift now.
"Our date’s been locked in now, April 1-4, and clearly we’ve got a big asset being built behind us that has some timelines attached to it," Auld said at a media call on Thursday, in quotes reported by [Speedcafe](https://speedcafe.com/f1-news-2026-australian-grand-prix-2027-date-change-speculation-middle-east-conflict-implications-albert-park-updates/?ref=the-race.com).
"So we’re pretty much locked in at that April 1-4 date.
"I think it would be difficult for us to move that date now."
It's also understood that keeping the current date is Melbourne's preference because it coincides with local school holidays.
The Chinese GP - currently scheduled to be round five on April 18 next year as the final element of an Australia, Japan, China triple-header - has also been mooted as a contender for a date change if a non-Middle East season-opener is required.
### Verstappen beats 100 karters (from the back) in Red Bull event
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/verstappen-beats-100-karters-from-the-back-in-red-bull-event/
Last updated: 2026-09-17T14:26:02.000Z
Max Verstappen came from the back of the grid to beat 100 celebrity karters in Red Bull's highly entertaining Max vs 100 event at Silverstone.
The field of content creators, athletes and fans had been given tuition and practice time and were allowed to take one shortcut during the race. But once Verstappen passed them, they had to instantly drop out of the race.
Despite all the obstacles, Verstappen passed 64 karts on the first lap and was soon into the top 10\. The shortcut privilege was withdrawn from Verstappen and the top four were given an extra one to try to delay his progress, but it was to no avail.
The race was due to run for either 30 laps for 75 minutes, but it took only 35 minutes for Verstappen to finally hit the front by passing breakaway top three Jacky Martens, Lewis Osler and Zac Alsop.
"I got lucky in a few places, but that was a lot of fun," said Verstappen.
### Mir out of Austrian GP due to bloodwork anomalies
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/joan-mir-out-of-austrian-gp-to-bloodwork-anomalies/
Last updated: 2026-09-16T09:30:53.000Z
Honda MotoGP rider Joan Mir has withdrawn from the Austrian Grand Prix on medical advice, despite a lack of "clear diagnosis".
Mir suffered symptoms of fatigue and a lack of strength during the Misano weekend, ultimately making an early exit from the grand prix.
Honda has now revealed medical checks in Barcelona following his return from Misano "have revealed altered parameters in the bloodwork, which require further investigation and testing".
But no diagnosis has been made, and Mir, who will switch to the Gresini Ducati team on a two-year deal starting in 2027, has not travelled to Austria - skipping the race "to rest and for more tests and studies to be done".
Though the entry could have been left vacant had Honda desired, given the short turnaround between Misano and Red Bull Ring means there is no regulatory requirement to substitute, Mir will be replaced by test rider Takaaki Nakagami.
This will be Nakagami's first MotoGP round this season. He has been busy with development work on the 850cc prototype - having tested at Mugello in the lead-up to the Austrian GP.
He will also run in the collective Pirelli/850cc test on Monday after the race, and then race the current 1000cc bike as a wildcard at Motegi, his home round, in early October.
Mir, Honda says, is "targeting a return to health" for Motegi.
### Sacrilege? Our verdict on 2027 F1 calendar + sprint expansion
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sacrilege-our-verdict-on-2027-f1-calendar-sprint-expansion/
Last updated: 2026-09-16T09:01:45.000Z
Formula 1's 2027 calendar announcement carried more anticipation than most tend to, particularly considering the uncertainty in the Middle East that may still disrupt the back end of the current season.
So while it's no real surprise to see Bahrain (at Sakhir) and Saudi Arabia back on the calendar for now, the move to incorporate 10 sprints is eyebrow-raising - as is the choice of some of those sprint-hosting venues.
Should the season opener - be it in Bahrain or Australia - really have a sprint attached? Is there any logic to a sprint race in Monaco? And do more sprints translate to more entertainment?
Here's our verdict:
## Season-opening sprint is sacrilege
**Scott Mitchell-Malm**
I became far less baffled and annoyed by a Monaco sprint weekend when Edd Straw pointed out that it means we will get two qualifying sessions on those streets, and go piling into them with just a single practice session.
Actually, it makes me look forward to the Monaco weekend more (I am sadly largely ambivalent to Monaco nowadays). In all likelihood, Monaco's sprint will be a bad race, but so will the grand prix. Monaco's not about racing anymore, so I don't really care.
What's far more egregious is having a season-opening sprint race. It's sacrilege. All the excitement, all the build-up, all the anticipation - and we burn it on a shallow impersonation of the main event?
I'm fine with the sprints in principle, and the inevitable expansion of them for 2027, even if I wish they went further and offered something different so they had a more meaningful existence than 'it's better than watching FP3'.
But this is a desecration of one of the biggest racing moments of the year. Even a great sprint race is just a sprint race. And it will eliminate a fundamental joy of the opening grand prix because it will no longer be the first race of the year.
## Why not go even further with Monaco?
**Glenn Freeman**
At first I couldn't look past the absurdity of deciding to have an extra race that doesn't even feature a pitstop around Monaco.
Then, when it dawned on me that it also means two qualifying sessions in Monaco, I thought, why stop there?
The sprint itself will be a waste of time. You could make it a race to the exit of the first corner, then drop the chequered flag on the run up the hill. Or if we must, then maybe do a whole lap and declare the result.
So why not bin it off entirely and have a third qualifying session?
The Friday 'sprint' quali can set the order for a one-shot showdown session that takes place on Saturday morning and pays the sprint points. If you're fastest on Friday, you get the advantage of running last on Saturday.
I'd much rather watch that - with points on the line - than a sprint procession.
## More sprints doesn't solve their big problem
**Edd Straw**
The increase in the number of sprints has long-since been inevitable, but what's frustrating is F1 never fully committing to the potential of the format.
So far, sprints have been condensed, single-stint versions of grands prix with little individual character of their own. There have been 29 sprints so far, and I wonder how many specific ones would be remembered by a typical F1 fan in terms of the race they produced?
This underlines the fact that the sprints are disposable, snack-sized versions of the main event rather than something distinct in themselves.
The argument cited is that sprints are more interesting than FP3, and this is correct. However, the real question is whether F1 has made the most of the sprints in terms of making them have their own character, must-see viewing with their own identity and shape rather than acting as shoulder programming to the main event.
The answer lies in the need to be less conservative with the format. This doesn't mean turn it into a lottery race, or garnish it with absurd random elements just to create a story line, but consider ways to redefine the challenge. For example, why must the qualifying session be a condensed version of the existing three-segment format?
As long as the core spectacle remains completing a lap as fast as possible, there are a plethora of ways this could be made more distinct. The same applies to the race. Provided you run these on a fair and equitable basis without gimmicks that introduce random elements, it's an opportunity to create a different kind of spectacle and competitive challenge.
It's time to give the sprint elements of the weekend their own character and identity and make them must-see viewing in a way that genuinely adds to the sporting challenge and tests teams and drivers in different ways.
## Sprint format could actually make Monaco chaotic
**Jon Noble**
When I first spotted Monaco's inclusion on the sprint schedule for 2027, my immediate reaction was it was nuts!
What benefit could there possibly be in hosting a sprint on F1's second-most difficult (hello Madring) track to overtake on?
But the more I've thought about it, the more I can see the logic in giving it a go - because it could make the entire Monaco GP weekend itself a bit bonkers.
Yes, the sprint race on Saturday is probably not going to be peak drama but the resulting shake-up to the timetable means plenty of something that F1 needs a bit more of: jeopardy.
The two practice sessions for drivers to dial themselves and their cars in prior to qualifying will be gone.
Now they have just that single practice session on Friday morning and then they are into it - shooting it out for sprint grid positions in a place where qualifying is almost everything.
There will be a lot on the line - including more championship points - in ending up first on the grid for the sprint. Then the day after they must go again.
Will those that mess it up on Friday afternoon make the same error on Saturday? Is there going to be a fascinating bit of variability between Saturday and Sunday grids?
It is often said that the best part of the Monaco GP is qualifying. Next year we are going to get it twice.
I am quite looking forward to seeing how it all plays out...
### Monaco sprint and season opener Plan B - F1's 2027 calendar
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/monaco-sprint-and-season-opener-plan-b-f1-2027-calendar-revealed/
Last updated: 2026-09-16T09:01:42.000Z
A sprint race in Monaco is a shock addition to Formula 1's revamped 2027 calendar, as championship bosses push on with plans to start the season in the Middle East.
Following weeks of delay in F1 and the FIA not being able to commit to a schedule for next year because of the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, a calendar was finally published on Wednesday morning.
While the tensions in the Middle East have not gone away, and there remain doubts about F1's final races this year in Qatar and Abu Dhabi happening, F1 has in the end decided to stick with its original plan to start the season with races in Bahrain (March 14) and Saudi Arabia (March 21).
This double header in the Middle East is then scheduled to be followed by grands prix in Australia (April 4), Japan (April 11) and China (April 18).
The decision to stick with a Middle East start follows the tactic that F1 has pursued with all the races in the region so far, in holding fire for as long as possible on making a call about whether they can go ahead.
The fate of this year's season-closing Middle East races had been expected to be decided within the next week or so, but may be deferred even more.
## Middle East Plan B
As well as Bahrain being scheduled as the first race, it is due to host the pre-season test from February 24-27, so F1 would need to be sure about the safety of going there early in the New Year.
As The Race has previously reported, if the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia cannot take place when they are currently scheduled to, then it is understood F1 will look to bring forward the Australia/China/Japan events to kick off the campaign instead.
If this happens, critical to the order of these will be how soon the Australian Grand Prix organiser can complete work in building a new pits and paddock complex, so it is able to host a race.
The construction had been based around the original provisional date in April and initially there was not much wriggle room to bring that forward - meaning that if races had to be shuffled forward to March, then it would mean China and Japan starting the season.
However, it is now understood that there is increased optimism in Australia that if circumstances dictate an early season shuffle, it should be able to accommodate a move to become the season opener.
A final call will not need to be made for a while now with the current plan to start in the Middle East in play.
The 2027 calendar also confirms that Portugal's return to the calendar will be as a standalone in Portimao on June 20, with Turkey's comeback being as the middle event in a triple-header that includes Azerbaijan and Singapore.
F1 has also elected to have Las Vegas as a standalone on November 20, with a two-week gap following the event before the final races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
## More sprints including Monaco
One of the big surprises in the calendar is the addition of a sprint race in Monaco - one of the most difficult tracks on the schedule to overtake on.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has said many times that the number of sprints would increase next season from the current six.
The 2027 calendar announced on Wednesday has revealed that there will be 10 in total, with Bahrain, Australia, Japan, Monaco and Abu Dhabi holding them for the first time.
The timing of the sprints means that if the Bahrain GP goes ahead as planned, or the Australian GP becomes the first race, then the season opener will run to this format for the first time - leaving teams with just one practice session with their new cars prior to competitive action beginning.
The choice of Brazil, Qatar and Abu Dhabi being included in the schedule also means that three of the final four races will be sprints,
The biggest surprise addition to host a sprint is Monaco, with the tight and twisty street circuit not an obvious place to have an extra short race due to its lack of overtaking opportunities.
However, it is understood that one of the primary motivations for turning Monaco into a sprint was about adding some variability to the entire weekend rather than just being about an extra race on Saturday.
The sprint format means drivers will have just a single practice session on Friday before they go into sprint qualifying, so they will not be as well dialled in as they usually are with three sessions prior to Saturday's grid position battle.
This extra jeopardy could well throw up different grids between Saturday's sprint and the main grands prix on Sunday.
It also means that, at a track where qualifying is often viewed as the best part of the weekend, this will now take place two times.
### F1's huge dilemma over VSC lottery rule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-virtual-safety-car-rule-lando-norris-no-easy-fix/
Last updated: 2026-09-16T07:38:51.000Z
Formula 1's virtual safety car rules are set to be put up for team discussion in the wake of what happened to Lando Norris at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Sources have suggested that debate over the VSC rules triggered by events at the Madring mean that the topic will almost certainly be added to the agenda of the next meeting of F1's Sporting Advisory Committee (SAC).
Norris looked on course to romp to a straightforward win in Spain before what he referred to as the "insanely unlucky" timing of a VSC period - for debris on track as well as the stopped Aston Martin of Lance Stroll - cost him.
Race control called a VSC just five seconds after Norris had passed the pitlane entry, gifting all his pursing rivals an opportunity for a cheap pitstop.
Then, to make matters worse, the VSC ended just seconds before Norris himself had got back around to the pits, meaning that he endured the full 25-second pitlane time loss for a tyre change.
Norris dropped down the order, with his subsequent slow pitstop not impacting his position. Although he finished third, there was little doubt that he would have won had positions been maintained through the stops.
Speaking after the race about how unfair he felt the situation had been, Norris backed the idea of his experience being a catalyst for potential VSC regulation change.
"It's a rule that shouldn't define a race," he told Sky Sports F1\. "A race should be won by the guy who can put in the best performance, who maybe takes a risk by going long in a stint, and maybe you get a safety car later on and things can help."
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella supported his driver's view that perhaps the events of Spain - which were unprecedented in exposing a race leader as being the only car unable to pit under VSC conditions - should serve as a prompt to evaluate whether the regulations need to change.
"Perhaps there's a wider reflection that the F1 community should apply as to whether to keep things like they are or \[to\] introduce ways of maintaining more fairness," he said.
However, despite the apparent injustice of such a situation, a consensus to change the rules appears unlikely because alternative solutions to even things out have all been ruled out in the past.
## No easy solution
Reflection on the VSC looks set to take place in F1's SAC, which is the body composed of FIA representatives and sporting managers from each of F1's 11 teams.
It is used as a forum to discuss issues with sporting regulations, decide on improvements if they are needed, and work through with the FIA the framing of regulation changes if they are supported by enough teams.
Once a proposal has been passed by the SAC it then goes to the F1 Commission for approval, before the final stage of getting ratified by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council.
It is normal for the SAC to review potentially contentious issues to see if there is desire for change, and any debate over the VSC will fall under this remit.
However, any movement to go for a rule change would likely need agreement from every representative that what happened to Norris was unfair, which is an element where opinion may be divided.
While McLaren and Norris will certainly feel that way as the only ones who had no chance to pit under the VSC, in reality these things happen according to mapped out procedures that are implemented based on events that occur randomly.
No one could have predicted Stroll was going to head down the escape road at Turn 20\. No one could have predicted he was going to get stuck in that escape road. And no one could have predicted the Turn 5 collision between Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz that put debris on the circuit that race control felt needed sweeping up.
That those things happened when they did, and that the VSC procedure followed those events, is at best unlucky for Norris - but it's not unfair.
Stella said there was no suggestion that race control had acted in any way it should not have in judging the timing of the VSC entirely on what was required for the safe operation of the race.
And he suggested what happened was more an element of misfortune.
"I think at times that being unlucky is used for too many applications, but in this case it's almost a mathematical definition of being unlucky," he said.
## The potential changes
If, however, it is decided that a rules tweak should be pursued, there are several ways of altering the VSC rules.
Norris said that drivers had regularly discussed alternative solutions when the topic of VSC had come up in drivers' briefings.
"We have spoken about it in the past, several times, about how it can be at least covered for one lap or everyone has the opportunity to do the pitstops," he said.
"Or you just block the pit entry, and no one can box apart from if you have a puncture or something. I think there's a few things you could do to make it more simple and more fair for everyone, but that’s a bigger discussion."
While Stella supported the idea of teams discussing alternative VSC options, he was not certain about how best to improve things.
He said he was "puzzled" about what to do, before presenting a binary choice between extending every VSC period so all cars have equal opportunity to pit, or just leaving it, in his words, "in the hands of the gods and sometimes you're lucky, sometimes you are not".
As Edd Straw suggested in our race review episode of The Race F1 Podcast, if you decide to extend VSC periods so everyone gets a chance to pit, you will end up in a situation where race control is focused more on how the race is playing out at that moment, than simply doing its primary job of keeping the circuit in a safe condition.
It's also nonsensical to prioritise yellow flag running over green flag racing.
Another option would be to follow what Formula 2 does and allow mandatory pitstops under a full safety car but not the VSC, so this kind of 'free pitstop' doesn't count towards your mandated tyre compound switch.
That obviously disincentivises pitting under VSC, but it doesn't necessarily eliminate the pitstop lottery, especially if a race requires multiple stops or it means drivers could gain an advantage by using the pitstop time gained under the VSC to switch to a multi-stop strategy.
Such a change would likely shift the problem to a different area rather than cure it entirely.
Perhaps the best solution would be to simply close the pits whenever a VSC is deployed.
The VSC is already designed to effectively freeze the time gaps between cars while safety matters on track are dealt with. If F1 and the FIA banned any and all pitstops under these conditions, then no one is ever able to gain an advantage under VSC.
The downside with this one is what to do with cars that are already in the pits when the VSC is thrown; do they get to retain the benefit of their good fortune and anticipation, or should they be stuck in the pits until the VSC ends?
## A warning from IndyCar
A perfect solution to VSC rules is a very difficult problem that may not have a solution.
And there's also a cautionary tale F1 should take note of from another high-level single-seater racing category that tried to tackle this kind of problem and failed.
IndyCar decided to change the way it managed yellow flag periods to avoid ruining leaders' races - and had to undo the rules afterwards.
While it's not quite the same, as that series doesn't have a VSC option, IndyCar made a change to how it dealt with safety car periods - known as cautions or full course cautions - in certain race scenarios, hoping to avoid the exact problem Norris suffered in Madrid: a leader being disadvantaged by the timing of a safety car period and losing crucial track position.
IndyCar altered its strategy to keep incidents under local yellow flags if a stranded car was considered to be in a safe position.
Race control would wait and provide time for all cars to pit, before then calling a full course caution - effectively just delaying a safety car period until everyone had the chance to pit.
But that policy came under the microscope earlier this year at the Indianapolis road course race, when Alexander Rossi reacted unhappily after he stopped on the main straight and a caution wasn't called for more than a lap. He felt he was in an unsafe position and the caution should have been called immediately.
IndyCar reacted to the criticism by changing how it responds, and has effectively reverted to how things were before. It no longer takes the pit window into consideration when deciding whether to call a safety car.
IndyCar was rightfully praised when it originally made the change to try to avoid ruining its leaders' races, pressured for a long time by drivers to make a tweak to its race management.
But like we're seeing with F1, there are always pros and cons to difficult decisions and ultimately safety has to be the priority - even if the consequences feel unfair sometimes.
### MotoGP's radically different 2027 rider line-up is complete
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/2027-motogp-line-up-complete/
Last updated: 2026-09-16T07:49:52.000Z
Australian Moto2 frontrunner Senna Agius will, as long expected, step up to MotoGP in 2027 as part of the Tech3 KTM squad, sealing the final vacancy on next year’s grid.
Agius won a long battle for the ex-Maverick Vinales seat with current Intact team-mate and Moto2 championship leader Manu Gonzalez.
Tech3 boss Guenther Steiner has been open for some time about how the team's final spot, joining the already-signed Luca Marini, was essentially reserved for either Agius or Gonzalez, with no rush for the team to make a decision until it saw how the middle part of the season played out.
Agius, who came though the slightly less traditional route of the European Moto2 championship instead of Moto3, steps up as a current frontrunner in Moto2, currently sitting fourth in the championship, and brings lots of potential according to his new boss Steiner.
"We believe Senna has the qualities to make a very strong step into MotoGP," said the former Haas Formula 1 team principal.
"He has shown impressive speed and maturity in Moto2, but what really stood out to us was his determination to keep improving and his attitude towards the work required to succeed.
"We are building a team for a completely new era of MotoGP, and we wanted to combine experience with young talent. Senna represents an exciting part of that future.
"We know there will be a lot for him to learn but we are ready to support him through that process. We are very pleased to welcome him to Tech3 and look forward to seeing him grow with us."
The length of Agius's deal hasn't been confirmed by Tech3, with the release announcing his signing stating only that it is for 2027.
The move to sign an Australian, as countryman and stalwart of the grid Jack Miller departs, has been linked to MotoGP's big push to replace the iconic Phillip Island with a new parklands circuit in Adelaide for next year, with the importance on having a local racer on the grid believed to have played a role in Agius's deal.
However, it has also caused paddock consternation that it will come at the expense of Gonzalez, who currently leads the Moto2 championship race.
Five times a race winner this year to Agius's two and well on path to title success that he was denied last year in large part by technical problems, Gonzalez will likely remain in the middleweight class should he win the championship or not.
Tech3's Agius announcement means the only question mark left in the radically changed 2027 MotoGP line-up is where Honda places Diogo Moreira and David Alonso.
It has signed both but is yet to decide who gets the work seat alongside Fabio Quartararo and who is in the LCR ride currently occupied by Moreira.
Only five of the current line-up will go into 2027 in the same team as this year - or six if Moreira stays at LCR.
And the arrival of rookies Nicolo Bulega, Dani Holgado, Agius, Alonso and Ivan Guevara means race winners Franco Morbidelli, Vinales, Alex Rins, Miller and Brad Binder have all lost their places on the MotoGP grid.
## Complete 2027 MotoGP line-up
**Ducati**:Marc Marquez, Pedro Acosta
**VR46 Ducati**:Fermin Aldeguer, Nicolo Bulega
**Gresini Ducati**: Joan Mir, Dani Holgado
**Aprilia**:Marco Bezzecchi, Pecco Bagnaia
**Trackhouse Aprilia**: Raul Fernandez, Enea Bastianini
**KTM**:Fabio Di Giannantonio, Alex Marquez
**Tech3 KTM**: Luca Marini, Senna Agius
**Honda**:Fabio Quartararo, Diogo Moreira or David Alonso
**LCR Honda**:Johann Zarco, Diogo Moreira or David Alonso
**Yamaha**:Jorge Martin, Ai Ogura
**Pramac Yamaha**:Toprak Razgatlioglu, Izan Guevara
### This 'fix' wouldn't have saved F1's Spanish GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/suggested-fix-would-not-have-saved-f1-spanish-gp-madring/
Last updated: 2026-09-15T13:49:11.000Z
The failure of the Spanish Grand Prix to produce the kind of spectacle offered by other Formula 1 races this year has inevitably focused on the lack of overtaking opportunities around the Madring circuit.
Combined entries, barrier pinch points and a lack of wide, heavy braking zones - especially at Turn 5 - all contributed to making it extremely difficult to pass a rival.
It is little wonder, as The Race revealed on Sunday, that Madring chiefs are already [planning changes](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/madring-f1-spanish-gp-circuit-three-changes-planned-2027/) to three key corners for 2027 with the expectation that next year's race produces a bit more of a show.
But it was not just the track layout that contributed to a lack of action, as another factor in how things played out was that there was not much strategic variation either.
Even the most boring of track layouts can deliver thrillers if tyre strategy gets blown open.
Make the fastest route to the chequered flag unclear and you get teams taking different approaches, plus the kinds of pace offset that create the circumstances for wheel-to-wheel action.
## The hard tyre's durability
The Madring delivered one of those Monaco/Sochi-style phenomena where the hard tyre (the C2 compound in Spain) was good enough to last the whole race - as Pierre Gasly proved by waiting until the penultimate lap for his mandatory compound switch to get off what he had started the race with.
After tongue-in-cheek claims after first running on Friday of a potential six-stopper being on the cards, based on the high levels of degradation seen, the transformation into an easy one-stopper was remarkable.
Haas driver Esteban Ocon said the behaviour of the tyres was one of the limiting factors in why there was not much action in the race, because drivers could push on without fear of excessive degradation as long as they did not spend too much time in the dirty air of the car ahead.
"The thing is that it was so consistent, the tyres on the second stint, that as soon as you were following another car, you were losing so much grip," he said.
"When I was doing blue flags to other cars, I was losing half a second, seven tenths easily. And then after it was coming back because it was all about overheating.
"As soon as the overheating was coming down, you had pace again. So that's why there was no overtaking. It was too fast, the pace, basically.
"It was like 120% from as soon as you pitted to the end. And because the graining didn't happen, that's where we ended up. If we had a race on Friday, it would have been much better!"
This outcome has inevitably prompted questions about whether the Madring spectacle would have been more entertaining had the tyre compounds been a bit more on the aggressive side.
## Complex influences
It is a nice theory that if you took away the comfort of the thermal and mechanical robustness of the C2 hard tyre the Spanish GP would have been better.
That suggests that, forced onto softer compounds, drivers would have had a more challenging time in having rubber that did not last the whole distance, thereby producing more excitement.
The idea is good, but sadly reality bites when it comes to understanding the complex factors that dictate whether races become strategic masterclasses.
First, there is a notable difference in behaviour and characteristics between the C2 and the C3, which means that, while the hard was good for the whole race, the medium was significantly not as good and much more prone to the risk of graining.
As McLaren's Oscar Piastri said: "The medium tyre was just awful. It was good for literally one lap, but then it was terrible."
Increased degradation does not automatically mean more stops though. It can (especially when overtaking is difficult) lead to more tyre management and cars running well off the pace, and you end up with the same spectacle as we got on Sunday.
Plus, one important element at Madring that will forever speak against multi-stop races is the length of the pitlane.
Swapping tyres there costs around 25 seconds - one of the biggest losses of the season - so teams are always going to try to minimise the need to change tyres.
## Tiny differences, big outcome
Based on the evidence from the Madring, Pirelli felt that going a step softer with the compounds - bringing the C3/C4/C5 rather than the C2/C3/C4 - was not a way to improve the spectacle.
That is because, as Pirelli's head of motorsport, Dario Marrafuschi, pointed out, based on the struggles that drivers had with the C3 and C4 in the short stints in which they managed to keep them alive in the race, it would have simply turned the race into a major management drama.
Throw into the mix too that the Madring, thanks to the banked La Monumental and high numbers of corners, is one of the most challenging tracks on the calendar for tyres, then it would also increase the possibility of safety dangers thanks to the high levels of wear.
"It would have been a two-stop race with a high wear," Marrafuschi told The Race. "On paper you can say, 'OK, it must be a two-stopper'.
"But, because of traffic, drivers would just end up doing what Gasly did.
"It was a good choice to have the C2 as a race compound and give teams the possibility to have one-stop in case of an early safety car. The C3/C4/C5 would have been too much."
Going softer would also have caused trouble in qualifying. As it was, the C4 teams took into the fight for grid positions was screaming from overheating doing a single push lap.
The C5 would probably have fallen off a cliff and been pretty useless.
Marrafuschi added: "Even during one lap with the soft, after La Monumental, the overheating of the rear was there. If the soft was a C5, maybe you would run the risk of thermal degradation during qualifying as well. It wouldn't pay the bill."
The reality is that the margins between a race delivering a perfect strategy mix of different approaches, a nailed on easy one-stopper, and complete chaos are sometimes not very much.
With Madrid's track being super-smooth, and offering high grip, teams knew going into the race that if they could avoid the risk of graining, then the one-stop strategy was on.
If not, as one engineer said, then it would instead have turned into a chaotic, heavy-degradation, two-stop-plus graining fest.
While the latter may sound exciting, it actually risks producing something that is equally as bad: one of those grands prix where there is just an endless cycle of stops so the race has no narrative.
Some of the nailed-on elements of Madring - the smooth, high-grip surface, the forces through La Monumental, and the long pitlane - mean that unless overtaking opportunities are improved there is little that can be done to encourage more stops.
All eyes are on what track changes are done next year because opening the door for passes will be the best way to improve the strategy element too.
### Audi's shrewd choice of F2 team for its first F1 junior
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/audi-f1-junior-freddie-slater-joins-f2-champion-team-2027/
Last updated: 2026-09-15T11:51:14.000Z
Audi's first Formula 1 junior driver Freddie Slater will join forces with defending champion team Invicta in Formula 2 in 2027.
Slater narrowly missed out on the Formula 3 title at the Madring last weekend but has had a highly impressive rookie season, living up to the promise built up by strong karting success and back-to-back titles in Italian Formula 4 and the Formula Regional European Championship.
It was that early-career success that meant he had offers from multiple F1 teams to join their junior programmes from an early age.
But much like Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, Slater and his management team held off on accepting those offers too early.
At the start of this year, he accepted Audi's proposal for him to become the first driver to join its F1 driver development programme as it entered F1 in 2026.
Slater fell 14 points short of winning the F3 title, having suffered a costly mechanical failure in the Monza feature race and a nightmare Madrid title-decider that allowed chief rival Ugo Ugochukwu to take the crown instead.
Slater will now move up to F2 with Invicta, the team that has taken back-to-back championship doubles in the last two years, with Audi F1 driver Gabriel Bortoleto and McLaren reserve driver Leonardo Fornaroli taking the last two drivers’ titles with it. Bortoleto and Fornaroli both also went from Trident's F3 team to Invicta's F2 team, just as Slater will.
Invicta is currently hoping to make it three out of three F2 titles this year with Ferrari junior Rafael Camara, who is seven points adrift of championship leader Nikola Tsolov. Invicta itself is also just six points off Campos in the teams' title race.
F2 has added an extra feature race to its next round in Baku amid uncertainty over its current final two rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
Slater is set to make his debut in the post-season Abu Dhabi test, although this will likely have to be rescheduled if F1 cancels its Qatar and Abu Dhabi weekends as expected. F2 could decide to join F1 if it holds its season finale at Imola in December, as is the current back-up plan. Logically the post-season F2 test would also be held there.
"The move to Formula 2 is the natural next step for Freddie, and an important new phase of his development as a driver," Audi's driver development director Allan McNish said.
"He enjoyed a strong Formula 3 season, fighting for the title until the final round - showing his speed, racecraft and progress throughout the year.
"We are very proud of what Freddie has achieved this season and how he has developed along the way. Invicta Racing has had an excellent record in recent years, and we are delighted to be working with them.
"We believe it is the ideal environment for him, and we look forward to supporting him as he takes on this new challenge in 2027."
Invicta has been the clear benchmark team during the three years of F2's current car, but the series is introducing a heavily revised version of the car from 2027.
Slater was present at the launch of the new car at Monza, telling The Race: "I think it's mega. I think it's very exciting.
"Obviously F1 has changed a lot this year so F2 kind of needs to follow suit to progress to that ladder.
"So I'm very excited to get a go behind the wheel of one and it's going to be very interesting to see what it performs like."
Slater is the first confirmed 2027 F2 driver, but he’s expected to be joined by a number of his F3 rivals, including champion Ugochukwu.
A second-place championship finish in F3 and titles in F4 and FREC mean Slater, who is yet to drive an F1 car, has more than enough points to clear the 40-point threshold for an F1 superlicence.
### Just bad luck? What really robbed Norris of Spanish GP win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/bad-luck-or-mistake-what-really-robbed-norris-of-spanish-gp-win/
Last updated: 2026-09-15T15:23:54.000Z
There is little doubt, even from eventual winner Kimi Antonelli, that without the "insanely unlucky" timing of the virtual safety car, Lando Norris would have won the Spanish Grand Prix.
The reigning Formula 1 world champion had built up a comfortable advantage at the head of the Madring field when Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin stopped in the run off at Turn 20 as the leaders were on lap 14 of 57.
Norris was around five seconds past the pitlane entry, and well around the final corner, when race control called for a VSC to allow Stroll’s car to be recovered.
At that point it was too late for Norris to get into the pits for a change of tyres and capitalise on the reduced time loss of doing so while the field was slowed by the VSC. Meanwhile 6.5-seconds further back, Antonelli was perfectly positioned to dive in.
With the VSC remaining out as Norris toured around slowly, committed to going for his stop at the end of the following lap.
But just before he entered Turn 21, the final right hander before the pit entry, the VSC ended. It meant that, in taking his stop, Norris lost the maximum stop time of around 25 seconds – hampered further by a slow tyre change.
That dropped him to fifth behind George Russell. Despite the clear pace advantage he showed early on, Norris’s fate was sealed by two factors: tyre degradation on the hard was negligible and overtaking was nearly impossible unless there was a big tyre offset.
Had passing been on, then McLaren team principal Andrea Stella was in no doubt about what the race outcome would have been.
"I think if overtaking was possible today, we would have had Lando again in the lead because the pace advantage was significant," he said.
In the end, Norris came home third, behind Antonelli (who acknowledged he was lucky) and Max Verstappen.
While the timing of the VSC could not have been crueller in hurting Norris to the max – coming out too late for him to respond and finishing too early for him to benefit – McLaren will still analyse if it could have handled the situation better.
And there are two key questions that it will seek answers to over the coming days.
**Should it have pre-empted the VSC?**
With the benefit of hindsight, it is obvious to say that the best way for McLaren to have saved Norris’s Spanish GP win would have been to stop the moment the Stroll situation was developing.
While it is true that there was nothing McLaren could have done to react quicker to the VSC being triggered, as Norris was well past the pit entry when it was called, an element it does want to understand better is if there was a way to predict where things were heading.
So when it sits down at Woking to dig through the details, it will want to understand if there was enough information from the state and location of Stroll’s car to pre-empt that the situation was going to switch from a double yellow to VSC imminently.
Stroll’s car, having suffered a brake problem, had come to a halt pointing towards a gap in the barriers – but had not gone all the way through it.
Norris had been warned over the radio shortly before arriving about there being a yellow flag, but there did not seem to be any indication that this would be a serious incident.
Once Stroll had jumped out the car, race control was happy that the marshals were ready to retrieve the Aston Martin and push it through the gap.
It is when track officials are exposed on the other side of the barriers that triggers a double yellow incident being escalated to VSC.
So was this step from a double yellow to a VSC something that McLaren could have predicted?
Based on the positioning of Stroll’s car, probably not.
There was no major damage, no debris scattered everywhere and the AMR26 was only a few metres from safety.
So it is debatable if there was enough information in the less than 20 seconds McLaren had between being aware Stroll had stopped and the chance to make a pitstop call to be convinced that this was going to trigger a caution period.
Had it opted to go for a stop, and then race control managed to deal with Stroll’s car under double yellows, McLaren would have been lambasted for throwing a win away.
As Stella later explained: "If you get it wrong, it would be extremely penalising. From the lead, you pit unnecessarily and now you lost the victory.
"I think a good rule is to respond to what is a fact, to what is the real condition of the circuit.
"But we will definitely take a look as to whether in these conditions it was just simply obvious that it would end up in a virtual safety car. I cannot answer at the moment."
But what was not known to McLaren at the time as well was that race control’s decisions about going for the VSC option was influenced by a desire to clear up debris on the track at Turn 5 as well.
Parts of carbon fibre left on the circuit at the chicane, most likely from the collision between Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz on lap 12, posed a clear risk of causing punctures and there was a desire to remove it – which would require a VSC.
So with Stroll’s car in the position it was, the decision to go for the caution was based on the double influence of the Aston Martin and the track debris at the other side of the circuit.
This also explains why there was nearly one minute between Stroll's car being behind the barriers and the VSC ending.
While pre-empting the VSC would obviously have been the right thing to do, there would have been no way for McLaren to know about all the influences race control had in its decisions – especially the Turn 5 debris.
**Should McLaren have kept Norris out?**
With the VSC out and Norris past the pitlane entry, there was nothing McLaren could do before he came around again.
It made a call to bring him in that lap, obviously in the hope that the VSC continued so the deficit to those who had stopped on the previous lap was equalised.
McLaren thought until the last second that the extended VSC was due to marshals being on the track, but as Norris rolled into Turn 21 the caution period ended.
Norris was 10 seconds from the pitlane entry at this point but the team committed to seeing through on its decision to stop – even though it meant it would lose the full 25s plus what it took for a tyre change.
The subsequent slow stop, which cost more time, ultimately changed little as McLaren thinks Norris would still have returned to the track behind Russell.
The obvious question to be asked here is whether McLaren should have abandoned the stop and pushed on to build up more of a gap – and then changed tyres a few laps later.
The theory is nice based on the pace early on, but the reality was that the tyre situation in the race meant it was never going to prove beneficial.
The hard that many of the cars behind had switched to had proved to be a very robust tyre, with minimal degradation and not needing too much management.
The medium, which Norris was on at this stage, was much more fragile – so after 15 laps of running would not have been in condition for him to get his head down and build up a buffer.
So while things had looked comfortable in terms of the gap to Antonelli prior to the stops, both were coming to the end of their usable tyre life.
As one rival team said about managing the different tyres: "You could drive the medium slowly, or you could go fast and they would be gone after 10 laps."
There is also a small element that, even with the VSC ending, stopping then still has advantages over one in normal racing conditions.
Norris said: "It's the fact that everyone’s kind of on colder tyres and you’re still minimising the pit loss. But the medium tyre was destroyed and the hard tyre was amazing."
As Stella explained after the race, if Norris had stayed out, the upside was minimal.
"We considered staying out," he said. "But you have to accept the fact that now you are on relatively used medium tyres and the people behind you will be on new hards. So you're never going to open a gap on people on a new hard.
"Therefore, we kind of needed to accept that that was what we should have done. It was incredibly unfortunate."
## The pace paradox
There was little else that McLaren could have done to change the outcome – as Stella ultimately concluded that his squad suffered from a paradox of being too fast.
Had its race pace not been so good, and Norris not had those six seconds over Antonelli, then he would have been in the perfect spot to dive into the pits when the VSC was called to win the race.
But F1 is not about going slower – and McLaren ultimately knows that it was just a case of wrong place, wrong time.
As Stella reflected on Sunday night: "We take it on the chin that what we could not control just played against us."
### Edd Straw's 2026 Spanish Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T15:04:00.000Z
The inaugural Formula 1 race at the Madring was no classic - but the Spanish Grand Prix weekend as a whole did seriously test the grid.
Here's who passed with flying colours, and who was found wanting...
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and ask your questions** [**in reply to this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/ask-edd-about-f1-169507113?utm%5Fmedium=clipboard%5Fcopy&utm%5Fsource=copyLink&utm%5Fcampaign=postshare%5Ffan&utm%5Fcontent=web%5Fshare)**.**
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-169408584?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to!**
**Started:** 1st **Finished:** 3rd
**PROS**
\- Put in a mighty qualifying lap to take an unexpected pole position in what McLaren is certain wasn't the fastest car.
\- Held onto the lead at the start despite the lower grip level in the pole position grid box compared to second place, and built a healthy lead in the early stages.
\- Would have won without the virtual safety car being perfectly-timed to cost him the lead as he was the fastest in race conditions.
**CONS**
\- The rear stepping out at the last corner cost him three tenths in Q3, and denied him a potential all-time great qualifying lap. That was down to him misjudging how much his mighty lap up to then impacted tyre condition, but shows he didn't deliver the maximum possible.
\- Couldn't get past Verstappen in the closing stages. But considering how difficult overtaking was for everyone and how difficult Verstappen is to pass generally, that's not something he could have done much about.
**Verdict:** Only bad luck cost him victory.
**Started:** 9th **Finished:** 7th
**PROS**
\- Recovered from an alarming moment in La Monumental on his first Q2 run to put in a superb lap on his last run, "one of the best I've done", to top the midfield and reach Q3, outpacing team-mate Pierre Gasly.
\- Achieved the best-possible qualifying position for an Alpine by defeating Arvid Lindblad in Q3.
\- Drove a strong race to head the midfield pack, and overachieved by one place by holding off Oscar Piastri.
**CONS**
\- Left a fraction on the table in Q3 and was the driver with the biggest deficit to his theoretical best lap at 0.204s. Not that it made any difference to his position.
\- Had he been able to pass Gabriel Bortoleto, then Liam Lawson was beatable but given the overtaking challenge that's not a big negative.
**Verdict:** Probably his best through-weekend execution in F1.
**Started:** 13th **Finished:** 11th
**PROS**
\- Put in a good qualifying effort on his final Q2 lap, with the three-tenths gap to Bortoleto suggesting that in qualifying conditions the Haas wasn't quite at the level of the Audi.
\- Made a characteristically good start and jumped to 11th ahead of the Audis, which put him 10th once Lewis Hamilton retired early.
\- But for losing a place to Nico Hulkenberg in the VSC pitstops due to Haas's pit equipment not being as advanced as Audi's, he would almost certainly have scored a point.
**CONS**
\- Ollie Bearman's self-inflicted absence from qualifying and poor grid position make comparisons difficult, but there's nothing to suggest Ocon was leaving any significant laptime on the table.
**Verdict:** A well-executed weekend that merited a points finish in probably the eighth-best car.
**Started:** 3rd **Finished:** 2nd
**PROS**
\- While the Red Bull was stronger in qualifying conditions than on race pace, he got close to the maximum out of the car on Saturday - even if, as for most, there was maybe a little left on the table.
\- Even on a track where passing is difficult, did a good job to keep Norris behind.
\- While luck assisted him in the path to second, even if he'd stayed in third without jumping Norris it would have probably been about as much as was possible.
**CONS**
\- Given the first-corner move was always likely to lead to a chicane cut, you can argue that this led to him being behind Antonelli, who was the other beneficiary of Verstappen having to let Hamilton past.
**Verdict:** Largely made the most of the Red Bull.
**Started:** 2nd **Finished:** 1st
**PROS**
\- Was clearly the faster Mercedes driver, with his pace advantage over George Russell clear-cut.
\- The vast majority of his race was well-executed, showing patience when holding position while long-running Leclerc led.
**CONS**
\- Needed luck on his side to win, as this gave him track position over Verstappen and Norris.
\- The frenetic first lap featured track cuts at Turn 1 and Turn 5, which led to him being shuffled back to third.
**Verdict:** No question about his pace, but a little untidiness.
**Started:** 5th **Finished:** 4th
**PROS**
\- Despite the self-inflicted disadvantage of having to run some old-spec power unit components as a result of his Monza crash, he was just 0.005s down on Hamilton in qualifying.
\- Drove a good, clean race and did what he could in his lengthy hard stint, although ultimately the car pace meant that he was always likely to finish fourth once Hamilton had retired.
**CONS**
\- Probably left a little pace on the table in qualifying, particularly early in the lap owing to the prep laps not being perfectly executed, but as he put it, still delivered "quite a clean lap" albeit with "a few moments here and there".
**Verdict:** No major negatives, but still didn't look at his absolute best.
**Started:** 18th **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- While the huge advantage over Valtteri Bottas was inflated by his team-mate being impeded by Carlos Sainz on his final lap, Perez always looked destined to be the faster Cadillac in qualifying. And he executed well, with a strong final lap.
\- Drove a strong race before a water leak in the power unit led to him first slowing then retiring, having gained places to the Turn 1 incident then chased Alex Albon.
**CONS**
\- The only real downside is that he didn't have the chance to run the second half of the race, which wasn't his fault.
**Verdict:** A strong weekend when he was the quicker Cadillac driver.
**Started:** 16th **Finished:** 15th
**PROS**
\- Recovered superbly from practice troubles and his FP3 mistake to put in a strong Q1 lap. Although the advantage over Sainz was infinitesimal at 0.005s, that was a big step forward.
\- Williams didn't have the pace to have done any better than 16th in qualifying, especially given Albon didn't have a fresh set of softs left for Q2.
\- Drove a good race in a car that didn't have the pace to do any better.
**CONS**
\- Struggled on Friday with deployment problems that put him on the back foot and well off Sainz's pace.
\- Clipping the wall early in FP3 cost him important running.
**Verdict:** A strong weekend, with the FP3 wall-clip the one negative.
**Started:** 17th **Finished:** 17th
**PROS**
\- Always looked like the faster Aston Martin driver throughout the weekend.
\- Was able to show the strength of the car in certain corners, which was offset by time lost on the straights.
\- Battled on to the finish despite deployment troubles and a front wing change after being hit by Sainz.
**CONS**
\- He was a tenth and a half off his personal best in sector three on his final lap, which was sufficient to swing the battle for Q2 with Albon against him.
\- Race problems meant he was compromised, losing significant race time.
**Verdict:** A decent weekend, but perhaps could have got the Aston Martin into Q2.
**Started:** 4th **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- While qualifying wasn't maximised, it still represented a decent recovery after his FP3 off cost him his simulation.
\- Probably had the stronger underlying pace of the Ferrari drivers, although didn't make the most of it.
**CONS**
\- Crash in FP3 cost him half of that session and his qualifying simulation run, despite his best efforts to get back to the pits against the team's instructions.
\- Didn't make the most of qualifying with a small error early in the lap that cost him time.
**Verdict:** Had the pace to achieve more, but compromised Saturday then brake misfortune meant he didn't show it.
**Started:** 10th **Finished:** 9th
**PROS**
\- Showed strong pace on Friday before his crash, but despite admitting to still being down on confidence in qualifying he made Q3.
\- Ran ahead of Piastri in the first stint after jumping him on the opening lap.
\- Managed to hold off Hulkenberg late on.
**CONS**
\- FP2 crash at Turn 13 when the rear end gave up immediately on turn-in cost him some running on a day when he was quick, with a hangover that led to him not joining FP3 until the closing stages.
\- Couldn't hold Piastri off after the McLaren driver had made his pitstop, but considering the advantage of fresh mediums there's no disgrace in that.
**Verdict:** FP2 crash had significant consequences, but Lindblad recovered well.
**Started:** 11th **Finished:** 10th
**PROS**
\- Won the battle of imperfect execution with his team-mate in Q2 by 0.165s.
\- Made the most of starting on softs and the timing of the VSC to take a point.
\- Was the slightly better Audi driver when everything is taken into account.
**CONS**
\- There might have been a way to get past Lindblad late on, but hardly a big negative considering the difficulty of passing.
\- Didn't make the most of the car in qualifying, as slipping into Q3 was possible.
**Verdict:** A solid weekend's work, putting the Audi broadly where it should have been.
**Started:** 8th **Finished:** 6th
**PROS**
\- Made an important pass on Colapinto early on, albeit having lost the place at the start.
\- Stayed out on hards under the VSC, and made that strategy work decently to capitalise on Bortoleto holding up Colapinto to finish ahead of him.
**CONS**
\- Again struggled to follow Verstappen's pace steps as qualifying progressed, ending up a respectable but disappointed 0.352s down.
\- With the caveat that it's only his third outing in the Red Bull, he was very much in the group of top-team second drivers as defined by pace.
**Verdict:** Solid but unspectacular, with an unobtrusively effective race drive.
**Started:** 6th **Finished:** 5th
**PROS**
\- Was one of the few drivers to make a successful overtaking move by passing Lawson after he made his second pitstop.
\- Had a clean weekend and was on the wrong side of the VSC in terms of having started on the hard tyres - although that was a deliberate choice to open up the possibility of staying out if there was an early interruption. This was closed off when Leclerc ahead did the same thing, leading to Russell stopping and then, thanks to the mediums not having the range, having to make a second pitstop.
**CONS**
\- There was no hint of him being at Antonelli's level throughout the weekend.
\- Asked a little too much of the tyres at Turn 11 on his final Q3 lap, which cost him time but he was already gradually slipping back from Antonelli prior to that.
**Verdict:** A step back from Antonelli in terms of pace.
**Started:** 7th **Finished:** 8th
**PROS**
\- Wasn't at fault for the front-wing damage on the opening lap that compromised his race.
\- Managed to pass Lindblad after making his pitstop, having run the hard/medium strategy without a VSC stop.
**CONS**
\- Simply wasn't at Norris's level in terms of pace.
\- Couldn't find a way past Colapinto in the closing stages.
**Verdict:** A lacklustre weekend.
**Started:** 12th **Finished:** 13th
**PROS**
\- Drove a tidy long stint on hards, keeping the quicker Colapinto behind him.
\- Was unlucky with the VSC timing given he had started on hards.
**CONS**
\- Wasn't at his best in qualifying, admitting he didn't extract the maximum from the car with being a little too conservative into Turn 1 putting him on the back foot versus Hulkenberg.
\- Poor start dropped him down to 15th, but that's mitigated by the fact he was on hard Pirellis.
**Verdict:** A middling weekend, marginally worse than Hulkenberg's.
**Started:** 14th **Finished:** 12th
**PROS**
\- Showed good pace in the race, but the timing of the VSC meant he stayed out on hards and that didn't allow him to translate it into points.
\- His underlying speed was, save for when it really mattered in qualifying, where you'd expect it to be.
**CONS**
\- Lacklustre in qualifying, expressing bafflement at a car that felt good in FP3 struggling for grip in qualifying thanks to poor tyre prep on the outlap.
\- Picked up a five-second penalty added at the end of the race for speeding in the pits, which was needless although it only cost him time, not a position.
**Verdict:** Poor qualifying defined his weekend.
**Started:** 19th **Finished:** 18th
**PROS**
\- The 2.098s qualifying deficit to Perez was completely unrepresentative because Bottas had to rely on his first-run time, with the second ruined by traffic and the third by Sainz impeding him.
**CONS**
\- Looked the slower Cadillac driver overall.
\- Race gave him little opportunity to shine given the damage he picked up through no fault of his own.
**Verdict:** Had bad luck in both qualifying and the race, but didn't look to be at Perez's level.
**Started:** 21st **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- Ran ahead of Alonso for a couple of laps early on before falling behind him approaching Turn 13.
\- Brake troubles and damage from debris meant that the race comparison with Alonso doesn't mean anything.
**CONS**
\- Had no opportunity in qualifying given a water leak prevented him setting a time in Q1, but there was nothing before that to suggest he would have been close to Alonso's pace.
\- Single-lap pace ultimately wasn't a factor for Stroll given he had a 40-place grid penalty for power-unit element changes, which limited his opportunities to impress. That context significantly mitigates the negative of the fact he didn't show anything like Alonso's single-lap pace through practice.
**Verdict:** No chance in qualifying or the race, but also no glimmers of Alonso-like pace elsewhere.
**Started:** 15th **Finished:** 14th
**PROS**
\- Considering the damage, his race pace was respectable, but losing time behind Perez early on limited his horizons.
**CONS**
\- Struggled in qualifying, with the 0.880s deficit to Lindblad down to Tsunoda being far happier with the car on scrubbed tyres than fresh ones. This meant he couldn't exploit the peak of the available grip and was therefore nowhere.
\- Damage at the first corner from being clobbered by Sainz meant there was no opportunity to recover from a difficult qualifying.
**Verdict:** A nothing weekend thanks to qualifying struggles and race damage.
**Started:** 20th **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- Showed good pace on Friday and seemed on form heading into qualifying.
**CONS**
\- While the pitwall takes the responsibility for being oblivious to Bottas's presence and not warning Sainz, the driver always has to take a small share of the blame, even with visibility limited.
\- Qualified behind Albon (by 0.005s) but pointed to poor timing of the final run and a straightline deficit as holding him back.
\- Was caught out by the inevitable Turn 1 concertina at the start then compromised his race by hitting Alonso.
**Verdict:** Pace was fine, but too many errors.
**Started:** 22nd (pits) **Finished:** 16th
**PROS**
\- Drove a good race from the pitlane, although his two on-track passes were of the damaged Bottas and Stroll.
**CONS**
\- Crashing heavily in FP3 after tagging the inside wall in the Turn 10/11 sweep caused a major accident - and came after a warning on Friday when he clipped the front-left at Turn 15 with less serious consequences. It also cost him qualifying.
**Verdict:** As he said, "I have only myself to blame" for the shunt that defined his weekend.
### San Marino Grand Prix MotoGP rider rankings 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/san-marino-grand-prix-motogp-rider-rankings-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T13:41:15.000Z
The San Marino Grand Prix weekend at Misano was dominated by Spaniards - and so are our MotoGP rider rankings for the weekend. But which of the two clear standouts leads the way this time?
**What do you think of Val's judgements? Let him know in the comments on** [**this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/quiz-val-on-his-169498898?ref=the-race.com) **in** [**The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **and he'll answer in his Q&A later this week.**
**Qualifying:** 2nd **Sprint:** 1st **Grand Prix:** 1st
For the second weekend running the 2027 Ducati line-up monopolises the top two in these rankings - and this time Marquez gets the nod, again by the narrowest of margins.
He had claimed on Friday he would "sign right now" for a podium and that Marco Bezzecchi was the favourite - and whether that was 'mind games-y' or not, the claim did seem backed up by what was going on on track.
But a bet on the medium rear combined with another great approach to Turn 1 at the start won Marquez the sprint - and he controlled the main race after Bezzecchi's exit.
At a track which doles out a real punishment to the right side of the body - where Marquez is compromised - he was the top Ducati in every session.
**Qualifying:** 7th **Sprint:** 6th **Grand Prix:** 3rd
The standards remain sky high for Acosta, who got his customary Friday crash out of the way early on and subsequently was again on another level compared to his fellow KTM riders.
He lamented losing ground in a Fermin Aldeguer battle in the sprint - in which he claimed both were doing "stupid s\*\*t" - and was generally unhappy with the stopping performance of his RC16.
But a "disaster"-esque warm-up on Sunday was followed up by a fantastic ride in the grand prix, delivering another podium that had never felt on the cards for KTM.
**Qualifying:** 3rd **Sprint:** 8th **Grand Prix:** 4th
Aldeguer had a technical issue on Friday that cost him a real shot at Q2, so did it the hard way on Saturday morning - powering to third on the grid in one of his best qualifying efforts yet in MotoGP.
He got roughed up a bit on the sprint, by Acosta but particularly by Raul Fernandez, and then coped much better in the main race with the field more spread out and the pace clearly strong.
Given Misano is so demanding physically, and Aldeguer is still injury-limited (and also riding an old bike), this was a triumph of a weekend.
**Qualifying:** 6th **Sprint:** 9th **Grand Prix:** 9th
Marini's best weekend of the year, the high point of it a Q2 run to a spectacular sixth on the grid - which he did admit was probably aided by yellow-flag timings and others messing up.
Never one for excessive modesty, he described himself as "every time faster than my team-mates" this weekend - and the two races bore that out.
He was "giving everything" on Sunday to keep Fabio Di Giannantonio at bay - laughing that "for sure he hates me!" given the defensive lines, though Di Giannantonio saw no issue with it and was full of praise for his friend. Ultimately, that defensive effort was for naught, a late-race vibration in the rear forcing Marini to simply drag the bike to the finish.
**Qualifying:** 9th **Sprint:** 5th **Grand Prix:** 2nd
Super-fast again, the younger Marquez had performance for a front-row start and should have been in the mix to snipe a win.
A two-crash Q2, in which he was wrong-footed by adjusting to a new soft tyre after running used rubber in preceding practice, was a hammer blow to his hopes of a truly amazing result.
Still, he recovered well in both races, so well that many went away after Sunday's contest wondering whether he really should have worked his way past his brother and put himself in position to win.
**Qualifying:** 5th **Sprint:** 3rd **Grand Prix:** 5th
This was so nearly an almighty smash-and-grab by Martin, who went from trailing Aprilia team-mate Bezzecchi by six tenths of a second in qualifying to being in position to win the race and extend his championship lead.
Whether he would've won the race without his compartment syndrome issue is conjecture at this point - but he certainly he feels he could have, and he feels that his title charge is emboldened by this weekend, as long as he can suitably address this arm issue, through surgery or management.
There is still a very substantial single-lap question mark - 0.546s off on Friday, 0.587s off on Saturday is a losing formula - but there's something to be said for how deftly he was navigating the race circumstances this weekend.
**Qualifying:** 4th **Sprint:** 4th **Grand Prix:** 7th
Di Giannantonio was pacing for a front row (or maybe even better) after three corners of his final Q2 lap, then went down in Turn 4.
But it didn't compromise his grid position too much, and that anyway didn't seem all that important to the outcome of his weekend.
Much more impactful was that early grand prix melee that dropped him into the mid-pack - with Aldeguer squeezing him to the outside kerb at Turn 1 in the inciting incident - and a subsequent brake-lever concern that limited his ability to overtake back up the order.
**Qualifying:** 13th **Sprint:** 21st **Grand Prix:** 10th
Make no mistake - after the unseemly business of his stroppy back-and-forth with Yamaha at Aragon, Quartararo properly showed up at Misano.
That was easy to overlook given his most notable moment of the weekend was a clumsy fall on the sprint while trying to set up a move on Diogo Moreira - but this indirectly will have been a consequence of being the only Yamaha rider with the potential to do anything of note. Of the 11 1m31s laps delivered by Yamahas in the sprint, Quartararo was responsible for all 11.
"It's clear he has more than us this weekend," admitted team-mate Alex Rins, usually not one to acknowledge it so plainly.
Quartararo's grand prix was more muted in terms of performance, due to a need to conserve fuel - but given that he stood his ground impressively in the top 10.
**Qualifying:** 10th **Sprint:** 7th **Grand Prix:** 6th
Fernandez wasn't perfect, but clearly wasn't given the best opportunities to make much of this weekend. A return of seventh and sixth in the two races is kind of the bare minimum given the level of the Aprilia, but he can't really be faulted.
He did labour a bit on Friday, with errors in crucial moments, but navigated Q1 well - including a massive "one in 15" save tucking the front at Turn 1\. But in Q2 there was a "problem on both bikes", so he was well off his Q1 time and grid position-limited, conditioning both races.
An unexpected fuel-consumption problem on Sunday meant he was in the lean engine map for virtually the whole thing and never got the chance to pick off the arm-pump-limited Martin or show much of anything.
**Qualifying:** 16th **Sprint:** 15th **Grand Prix:** 8th
Bastianini just missed out on Friday on what would have been a weekend-transforming top-10 place. He had decided against fitting a fresh front tyre for his final time attack - which is not an unconventional decision, but in his case it proved "a big mistake".
The pace was probably there to do better (he set his fastest lap of the grand prix, and a very good one at that, on the final lap, in typical Bastianini fashion) but from 16th on the grid it was never really on the cards, and even for all these caveats there is little doubt the transcendent Acosta had much more performance.
**Qualifying:** 12th **Sprint:** 16th **Grand Prix:** 14th
'The world's fastest journalist', or whatever they say, lived up to the billing this weekend by grabbing onto the back of Acosta and powering to a great Q2 appearance.
But that 'journalist' quip is increasingly more relevant. It has been a long, long while since Espargaro has raced regularly and it is showing. He "missed the aggression to overtake" on Saturday, and Sunday's race exhausted him.
He was all too keenly aware at the end that he was a 35-year-old fighting against a grid of largely 20-somethings. "My respect to Marc Marquez and Johann Zarco!" he laughed.
**Qualifying:** 21st **Sprint:** 18th **Grand Prix:** 12th
The best laptime of Razgatlioglu's weekend came in the grand prix, on lap 12\. If you know your MotoGP, you know this is extremely suboptimal in terms of extracting a positive result.
He said knowledge of Misano from World Superbike "did not help" here, and his one-lap pace was extremely poor, particularly in a "very bad" Q1.
But the race pace was obviously there, at a fairly high level. He was the top Yamaha on the road, in the sprint, though lost a position for track limits, then was right with Yamaha benchmark Quartararo in the grand prix - though again fell foul of track limits, even if the resulting long lap didn't actually cost him a position.
**Qualifying:** 11th **Sprint:** 10th **Grand Prix:** DNF
The follow-up at Misano was more like what we all would have expected from Zarco's comeback weekend at Aragon - and even so, the actual speed was fairly decent.
Zarco navigated Friday well to land in Q2, but this was probably flattering his ultimate potential race trim. Still, he could have been much higher on the grid had he improved on his second Q2 run - and had he avoided a penalty for impeding Bezzecchi, which he acknowledged as "totally fair".
He got stuck behind a fuel-managing Quartararo on Sunday before missing his braking at Turn 8 late on and going down.
**Qualifying:** 17th **Sprint:** 20th **Grand Prix:** DNF
Mir was markedly slower than usual relative to his fellow Honda riders, but this seemed to have less to do with a lack of confidence on braking he reported on Friday and more to do with some sort of unspecified ailment that increasingly bothered him over the weekend.
Suffering from a headache and with no strength, he gutted it through a fruitless sprint but had to give up very early in the main race, fearing that riding around "would only make the situation worse".
He now has medical tests to do between here and the Red Bull Ring to properly figure out his situation.
**Qualifying:** 15th **Sprint:** 11th **Grand Prix:** DNF
After a run of really strong form of late, Misano was largely a letdown for Moreira.
For most of the weekend, the third sector - and Curvone in particular - was the culprit, as he and LCR struggled to stabilise the Honda sufficiently in the fast right-hander.
He said after the sprint: "I told Honda, tomorrow we're cutting this corner, I don't care!" But Moreira actually made a bit of a breakthrough there in Sunday warm-up, then fell off right away on Sunday without managing to properly confirm his work.
**Qualifying:** 1st **Sprint:** 2nd **Grand Prix:** DNF
This one will sting for a while.
A 37-point weekend looked on the cards for Bezzecchi after his blistering record lap in Q2 - but it turned into a nine-pointer instead, with defeat in the sprint and catastrophe in the main race.
He seemed in a real hurry to break away from Marquez and the rest of them at the start of the grand prix, but with the bike unsettled through Curvone and the subsequent Turn 12 he arrived at Turn 13 compromised and lost the front.
Forget about this being a home race or whatever. This is a monumental blow for his championship.
**Qualifying:** 19th **Sprint:** 14th **Grand Prix:** 11th
"Not fast enough" was Binder's summary through the weekend and at the end of it. His qualifying was "a bit s\*\*t" and his race pace was generally underwhelming, but he did spare his KTM team any repair bills and finished in the points.
He's pacing for an inglorious, ill-fitting conclusion to his MotoGP tenure - but is at least just quietly struggling rather than properly imploding. Or is it better to burn out than to fade away (my my, hey hey)?
**Qualifying:** 8th **Sprint:** 12th **Grand Prix:** 13th
Despite lacking confidence again with the Ducati GP25, Morbidelli looked notably more competitive than for most of his difficult final season in MotoGP. He gets a bit of credit for this - but it gets almost entirely offset by the fact he didn't capitalise on the opportunity.
Another instance of impeding a fellow rider - this time Bastianini on Friday - needlessly capped his Sunday potential by virtue of a long lap penalty, meaning Saturday was the best shot at a headline result.
But no such luck. He looked uncharacteristically timid in the early laps of the sprint, roughed up a bit by Moreira and then forced to spend the rest of the race shadowing the LCR Honda rider without a way past.
**Qualifying:** 20th **Sprint:** 19th **Grand Prix:** DNF
Friday had looked gently encouraging but proved a mirage as Rins ultimately just didn't have all that much performance to offer this weekend - and was not happy with the bike.
He was only ever in play for some attrition-aided points on Sunday but became part of said attrition, parking up as he suffered from a "migraine and severe nausea".
**Qualifying:** 18th **Sprint:** 17th **Grand Prix:** DNF
A freak "cold brakes, cold tyres" crash at Rio literally something like 30 seconds into the weekend set the tone for Miller.
He just wasn't very competitive, chasing the right set-up all throughout and falling off in the grand prix as early as lap two shortly after a ding-dong battle with Zarco.
He said the bike felt improved on Sunday but "I didn't get to do bugger all on it".
**Qualifying:** 14th **Sprint:** 13th **Grand Prix:** DNF
Favourable track, unfavourable track, home track, foreign track, left-handers, right-handers, hard braking, high-speed - suddenly it just doesn't seem to matter at all.
This is the third time in a row (and yet only the third time this season) that Bagnaia sits lower than 20th in these rankings. He has looked all wrong since his arm-pump surgery - though he clearly seems of the opinion this is more coincidence than causation.
"It's extremely easy to see the difference between what my bike is doing compared to all the other Ducatis. Big, big difference, but difficult to understand why," Bagnaia lamented in-weekend, hitting a familiar note. He could not extract rear grip and struggled to stay on the bike, feeling "humiliated" by the experience.
The Turn 2 crash in the grand prix delivered a coup de grace to this terrible weekend - but who's to say it will be any better in Austria?
### Everything we learned from F1's 2026 Spanish Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-madring/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T13:13:36.000Z
There was no real chaos to speak of at the Spanish Grand Prix - which instead gave way to pre-weekend fears that the first Formula 1 race [on the Madring might be a tepid one.](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/a-massive-missed-opportunity-our-verdict-on-first-madrid-f1-race/)
But that's not to say the weekend was a dud: the track proved a hit with drivers, and away from it there were significant revelations - about this year's title fight, but also involving the bid to keep one of F1's star drivers in the championship.
Here are our main takeaways from the Madring:
## Hamilton's title bid is over
You may not have felt like there was a realistic Lewis Hamilton/Ferrari 2026 F1 title bid ongoing for a while (or, if you're sceptical, ever) but there was a notable change in tone from Hamilton about it after his early retirement with brake problems in Madrid.
In recent weeks his warnings to Ferrari over its management of races and its drivers had been all about how the title shot was getting more distant at best.
But when Sky Sports F1 put it to him in Madrid that Kimi Antonelli "looks hard to stop now", Hamilton pretty much congratulated his Mercedes replacement on the 2026 title.
"There's no stopping him and Mercedes this year," said Hamilton. "I think they've done a phenomenal job and they deserve it."
Which was about two steps further down that road than he really needed to go in the circumstances. The fact Hamilton went there shows that - at least in the immediate disgruntlement of his early Madrid retirement - the last title hope is now gone in his mind.
With the deficit now up to 101 points and few signs lately of Ferrari having Mercedes-beating pace, it would be hard to imagine any other scenario.
## Aston Martin really needs some Honda help
It emerged at the Madring that FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been speaking to Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll about the prospect of giving Honda some extra help to boost its recovery plan.
The Madring weekend exposed yet again that Honda is lacking - even though it is a far less power-sensitive circuit than Monza.
Alonso said "the engine was very bad today" after the race, saying he almost stalled at the pitstops because of an engine issue. He also reported the power unit was struggling to recover when he was slowing to respect blue flags.
So a boost for Honda can't come soon enough, and we know there isn't another major Honda upgrade coming until 2027.
Any such extra help - be it homologation freedoms, extra spending allowances, or specific rule changes in areas where Honda is failing to make progress - will require the support of other power unit manufacturers.
The good thing for Aston Martin Honda is that both Mercedes and Red Bull were receptive to the idea of once again assisting Honda, as its rivals did [earlier this year](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-honda-19-million-dollar-f1-bailout-will-really-work/).
Exactly how, what they may leverage in return, and where everyone stands in private, remains to be seen.
But the Madring was a stark reminder of how welcome that help would be right now.
## Red Bull's car is still degrading
The mysterious 'car degradation' problems afflicting Red Bull this season aren't going away, based on both Max Verstappen and team principal Laurent Mekies' comments in Madrid.
Red Bull is still not offering any insight on precisely what the problem is, but Mekies admitted it's still there, has been for a long time, and will be for the rest of the season.
"There is an element of car performance degradation that is happening through a session and through a race," said Mekies.
"He's \[Verstappen is\] right in saying it's not a new issue. We are not sleeping on it. We have been trying to tackle that in different ways.
"Obviously, I consider it a complex issue, otherwise we would get to the bottom of it. But everyone is very constructive about it and tries to make small steps at the time to be able to get to the bottom of it eventually.
"We had a couple of positive steps in that regard this weekend. It will never be the full picture, but we certainly have - through pain - made progress in our understanding.
"We don't have all the solutions yet in the car, but I trust that we are on the right way. It will not be fast, so it's something that will probably take us through next year."
## This wasn't the ideal Madring layout
As you may have seen, [The Race revealed](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/madring-f1-spanish-gp-circuit-three-changes-planned-2027/) on Monday that three key areas of the track have been identified for improvement to increase the prospect of overtaking after a race bereft of passing.
What we've also learned is that those revisions - to the Turn 5 braking zone at the end of the first sector, the Turn 13 left-hander after La Monumental, and the tight Turn 20 - had already been proposed to the FIA before this year's race.
That they weren't implemented for its F1 debut, and are being made for 2027 instead, comes down to two factors: the complexities of track simulations, and complicated homologation processes.
The construction of the Madring was already tight, time-wise - work started in April last year - and was delayed by a wet winter in Madrid.
So, the safer option was to avoid any changes so no extra delays were built into the homologation process that could've hindered the construction work and opened the door to much bigger issues had the track not been ready in time.
In the case of the Madring, that process also required the involvement of local authorities. Consider that road, rail, and aviation stakeholders all needed to be consulted, alongside emergency officials and water, drainage, and other environmental agencies, and you can see why this was a risk-averse first race on this 'street' circuit.
But expect the Madring to look a little different when F1 returns next Autumn.
## This isn't the end of Williams's 2026 pain
Williams awaits its big 2026 upgrade at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix but Alex Albon doesn’t think it will be enough to turn the team into a midfield contender.
Albon had another frustrating race in Madrid where he probably maximised the package, but still finished 15th, while Carlos Sainz retired with damage.
Albon said he was "just waiting for Baku" - but changed his tone when asked by The Race's Edd Straw what he was expecting from the step.
"We're finishing, really simply, 50 seconds behind the midfield at the minute in the race - so we're losing a second a lap more or less in the race, and it needs to be a pretty big upgrade to do it \[wipe out that gap\]," he said.
"All we know, it's going to be a good step, but is it going to be the full step? I'm hopeful for it, but I don't think it would be.
"Unfortunately, we said it last year, but the focus is on next year as well, and we realise we're too far back at the moment to have a couple of upgrades for this year. We need to focus on next year."
He added that the rate of development among the midfield has seen some teams bring "three or four upgrades a year" recently, and said some of those upgrades are "huge".
Alpine made a big step back to the front of that pack with its Dutch GP package, and Haas made progress with its Monza upgrade - and both teams are already in front of Williams.
Albon explained: "If you think of us in a normal year, Baku would have put us back in contention, but we have to be honest with ourselves, the speed of the development race this year is huge, and we've fallen back."
It is therefore unlikely that Williams will contend for points in Azerbaijan and add to its tally of 11 - but previous editions of that race have proven chaotic.
## Gasly's Monza pole catalysed Colapinto
The elation from Pierre Gasly's pole position at Monza might have been short-lived given he was quickly consumed by faster rivals in the race, but that Saturday result did prove useful for Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto.
At Madrid, Colapinto qualified ninth and finished seventh ahead of McLaren's Oscar Piastri, with another great start off the line.
He was particularly pleased with his execution of the Madrid weekend - and credited it to learnings gained from Gasly's Monza pole.
"After Monza, I learned a lot of the quali of Pierre and I tried to do a step here. And I did it. And I maximised everything again," he said, when asked by The Race's Edd Straw whether this was his best F1 weekend in terms of execution.
"The quali was one of the best I've done. With very, very, very perfect laps. And putting the car in Q3 - that was always a bit tricky with the Audis going very fast here. And today, we stayed in front in the race and scored a lot of points.
"So, very happy. Again, it's extremely positive. And I'm very happy with the pace and the results."
He explained that Gasly's experience gave him useful information "on everything" in terms of qualifying execution in Madrid.
"On driving and energy management, from run to run, from Q1 to Q2 to Q3, were very clear. And yeah, I learned from that.
"Here, I was really on it in qualifying. On a very difficult track. Probably the most difficult one of the year to nail a lap. And also the most satisfying one when you do it. And both Q2 and Q3 were amazing laps."
It's happy days at Alpine, with Gasly - who was 12th after waiting until the end of the race to pit - also buoyed for Baku.
"Honestly, the pace was insane after that VSC \[virtual safety car\]. I think it's really positive," he claimed.
## Haas is close to ending points drought
Haas hasn't scored a point since the Monaco GP in early June, but it did come very close to ending that dry spell in Madrid.
The car inconsistency issues that have plagued Haas all season weren't present here and Esteban Ocon was running 10th in the early stages.
But he was then jumped in the pitlane under the virtual safety car by Nico Hulkenberg because of an Audi pitstop that, in terms of time spent in the pitlane, was 1.133s faster than Haas's.
"We lost out on the pitstop against Audi, but I don't believe it was our team's fault; it's really the equipment that we need to improve to give them a better chance," Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu explained.
That dropped Ocon just out of the net points-paying positions, leaving him 11th at the chequered flag despite a late push.
But Ocon still felt that was an overachievement, saying "we extracted more than what the car could do" even if he was "sad at the same time because we could have got a point".
Team-mate Ollie Bearman couldn't do the same after the FP3 crash that ensured he missed qualifying, started from the pitlane and ended up 16th.
But Bearman thinks Baku will suit the upgraded Haas as it hopes to fend off an Audi team that's been slowly chipping away at Haas's points advantage in the fight for seventh in the constructors' championship.
### Three changes Madring will make after terrible F1 debut
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/madring-f1-spanish-gp-circuit-three-changes-planned-2027/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T08:50:21.000Z
Spanish Grand Prix chiefs are planning changes in three key areas of the Madring circuit for 2027, The Race can reveal, off the back of its processional Formula 1 debut.
[F1 drivers' worst fears](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/i-almost-fell-asleep-drivers-react-to-dull-madring-f1-debut/) were realised on Sunday when it proved ultra-difficult for cars to pass one another at the Madring, triggering a far-from-thrilling spectacle.
Not taking into account the first lap shuffling, there were hardly any overtakes at all.
While there is no official count made by F1 on the number of passes, everything points to it being the worst of the season when it comes to changes of position on track.
There are suggestions the number of passes was below even Monaco, where 10 in-race overtakes were completed.
The most notable ones were limited to Liam Lawson getting past Franco Colapinto and George Russell passing Lawson.
Although some of the stilted action was a consequence of a lack of tyre degradation on the hard compound, which meant there was not much offset strategy and performance from the rubber, the main reason for the lack of excitement was that the is no obvious overtaking spot.
For while the overall Madring layout, which included the banked La Monumental corner, was praised as being super-challenging for qualifying, the lack of passing places had been obvious in the build up to the race.
The most likely location to overtake, which was the Turn 5/6 chicane after the long run down from the opening sequence of corners, ended up being shaped in a way that deterred passing.
This was due to it having a tight entry which, as Haas driver Ollie Bearman said ahead of the weekend, meant that an overtake would never really be on.
"That kind of curved braking takes away any possibility of different lines and sending one up the inside," he said. "So that's a shame and maybe a bit of an oversight."
It is understood that this design had been settled on because of safety considerations regarding the speed and angle of approach of cars towards the tunnel section here.
## The planned changes
Madring officials are not blind to the lack of action in the race, and The Race has learned that changes are planned in three areas for 2027 aimed at improving overtaking.
Discussions are now set to take place between the circuit and the FIA, drivers and teams over the next weeks about nailing the final details of the revisions, but they will be focused on three key areas of the track.
The first idea is to widen and alter the approach to the Turn 5/6 chicane, so it will better allow cars to contest positions there.
As was proven over the Madrid weekend, the curved entry and layout of the kerbing there meant that there was not enough room for two cars to go cleanly side-by-side there.
That meant it was easy to defend and the only real way to get through was to go super aggressive and risk pushing a rival off.
The second area being looked at is the profile of Turn 13, which is the left-hander straight after La Monumental.
This is currently a medium-speed corner, which does not have the level of braking that offers much chance for a car to make a move if they have picked up a tow through the banked corner.
This bend can be tightened a lot to allow cars to fight for position here.
The third area being looked at is widening the track around Turn 20.
This is one of the tightest corners on the track with the barriers currently acting as a narrow pinch point.
The idea here will be to reprofile the entry and barrier alignment to allow cars to make a passing attempt without fear of not making the exit.
## Approval complexities
The Race has learned that revisions in these three areas had already been proposed to the FIA ahead of this year's race because of concerns that passing would be too difficult.
However, due to the complexities involved in track simulations and the time it takes to go through homologation processes, it was decided that it would make more sense to wait until 2027 to do this.
The timetable to build the track was already quite tight, with work only having started in April 2025, and things had not been helped by a very wet winter in Madrid, which had delayed construction efforts.
It was agreed in the end that it was better to not risk homologation delays potentially hindering construction that would then open the door for much bigger issues if the track was not ready in time.
F1 tracks have to go through detailed approval processes with the FIA in order to be homologated, and Madrid faced extra challenges because those processes also involved local authorities.
Design decisions required dealing with public road changes, rail and aviation stakeholders, emergency officials plus water, draining and other environmental agencies.
The design of the Turn 5/6 chicane was also made more complicated by the tunnel on the exit, which restricts the angle of attack plus the speed at which cars can arrive due to the limited runoff area.
## Small changes, significant difference
F1 drivers were in agreement after the race that the Madring circuit needed only one clear and obvious overtaking spot.
Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc reckoned that it would not take a lot of tweaking to make passing possible and therefore change the spectacle dramatically.
"It's a great track and honestly I think everybody did a great job with the track as it is, particularly in qualifying," he said.
"But in the race, there are some corners and it doesn't require a big change, I think just a small change or two small changes could change significantly the racing that we have."
The lessons that many of the drivers have learned in their careers is that a good street track only requires a single good overtaking spot to become a hit.
This is no better proved than at the Macau GP which, while featuring a tight and twisty city section where passing is difficult, has a long straight with a tight-but-wide-entry corner - Lisboa - where cars can pass.
Carlos Sainz, who plans to speak to the FIA about potential revisions to Madring, thought that lessons from Macau and the Azerbaijan GP should be taken on board.
"Good street tracks like Baku, Macau tend to have one single overtaking spot with a very long straight," he said.
"I think we just need to have a look where there's the possibility to add that overtaking spot and see if it's feasible."
### Honda replaces its F1 engine development chief
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-makes-f1-project-leadership-change/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T06:53:30.000Z
Honda is replacing the leader of its Formula 1 engine development programme.
In what it called a "planned transition", Tetsushi Kakuda - who has led the development of Honda's 2026 F1 power unit so far - will be replaced by his current assistant leader Yoichiro Fukao from the start of next month.
Like Kakuda, Fukao has been part of the Honda motorsport set-up for over two decades, holding a variety of roles across its F1 and MotoGP programmes.
"Following the introduction of the new regulations in 2026, and with further regulatory changes expected from 2027 onwards, Honda aims to establish a robust development framework and deliver a highly competitive PU by transitioning to the new structure at an early stage," said Honda's statement announcing the change.
Honda and Aston Martin's poor form in their first season together has been one of the biggest storylines of F1 2026.
The partnership is ahead of only newcomer Cadillac in the constructors' standings having scored just three points all season.
Major upgrades to both the chassis and engine either side of the summer break provided some encouragement but have not been truly transformative. Driveability remains a particular concern.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem met with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll to discuss a [potential action plan to help Honda](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-surprise-plan-to-keep-fernando-alonso-in-f1/), including possible development concessions.
Lance Stroll retired early in Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix while Fernando Alonso struggled to a twice-lapped 17th place, after which he said "the engine was very bad today, the boost control was difficult" - though his pace was also affected by early damage.
Asked in Madrid for his thoughts on the progress with Honda's upgraded engine over the three events since its debut, Aston Martin's chief trackside officer Mike Krack said he accepted that engine gains would be slower than chassis progress.
"We are in this together, we came a long way I think since the start of this collaboration and the progress has been steady," he replied.
"Now the progress for anyone is never quick enough. But we also need to understand that on the chassis side you can make progress quicker than on the power unit side, so that is something we are discussing, we are aware of and, I think, Honda is the first one who would like to be better and everyone else as well.
"We have solved a couple of issues that have been problems before and we will work from there and make progress step by step."
### Grosjean apologises for 'misunderstanding' Brown's Piastri comments
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/grosjean-apologises-for-misunderstanding-browns-piastri-comments/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T04:25:40.000Z
Ex-Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean has apologised for how he represented McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown's comments about Oscar Piastri at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Grosjean was commentating qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix on French TV channel Canal+ when he reflected on comments from Brown on Piastri that Grosjean said left him "speechless".
That referred to an interview on F1TV's post-qualifying show between Brown and F1TV's four presenters - Laura Winter, Grosjean himself and fellow ex-F1 drivers Juan Pablo Montoya and Jolyon Palmer.
Asked by Winter for his reaction to Norris taking pole, Brown told them "the whole lap was amazing and Lando's just getting better and better and better.
"When you see a lap like that put down, you just go, ‘he's a world champion'."
When Montoya asked what Piastri, seventh in qualifying while Norris was fastest, needs to take a step up in qualifying, Brown replied: "I think a) you got Lando on his A-plus game, right? So I don't think there was anything left laptime-wise there. So he found that.
"Oscar's been right there with him all weekend and just didn't get that same extra lap. We'll continue to look at it.
"He'll look at the data and probably do what we all did and go, 'wow, what a lap' as well."
On Sunday, while commentating on the grand prix for Canal+, Grosjean described Brown as taking a chainsaw to Piastri's performance.
He claimed that when asked about the difference in Norris and Piastri's performances, Brown had said Norris is a world champion and better than Piastri.
Grosjean's comments quickly gained traction on social media on Sunday, becoming one of the trending topics.
Then on Sunday night, Grosjean took to social media to apologise and clarify his comments.
"Today, I made a comment on Canal+ regarding Zak Brown's comments about Oscar Piastri during an interview yesterday on F1TV, which I was part of," Grosjean wrote.
"I completely misunderstood his words and want to apologise for that. I know how important it is to Zak and the entire McLaren team to respect their drivers and treat them fairly and equally.
"McLaren had the fastest car today and were unlucky with the VSC.
"I'm sure both Lando and Oscar will have another chance to fight for the win in Baku."
### Norris calls out 'unfair' VSC rules after lost Madrid win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-calls-out-unfair-vsc-rules-after-lost-madrid-win/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T18:00:36.000Z
Lando Norris says Formula 1 should change its “unfair” virtual safety car rules that robbed him of victory at the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix.
Norris was looking on course for victory at the Madring before an ill-timed virtual safety car for Lance Stroll’s stricken Aston Martin took it away.
The McLaren driver had already passed the pit entry when the virtual safety car was called, while those chasing him, like Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen, were able to pit and lose far less time than Norris, who pitted the next lap under green flag conditions.
“I was just unlucky, I was the only one on the whole grid who doesn’t get a pitstop,” Norris told Sky Sports F1 after the race.
“So I lose 20 seconds on the whole grid, this is out of my control, it’s out of their control, it’s… It’s a rule that shouldn’t define a race.
“A race should be won by the guy who can put in the best performance, who maybe takes a risk by going long in a stint, and maybe you get a safety car later on and things can help.
“You know that’s one of the big factors but for everyone to get a VSC pit and for me to get nothing…It’s just, it’s unfair, but it’s happened in the past, others have won from it, probably won it for me in the past.
“It’s just…I don’t think many people have lost a race win over it. So it’s frustrating I don’t feel like it’s the way you should lose.
“We spoke about it in the past in drivers’ briefings, saying they should leave it out at least for a lap, so it’s equal for everyone.
“Today I was the only one who lost out and I lost about 20 seconds of race time and that’s… that’s not how it should be.”
Norris added: “It's been brought up many times over the years by different drivers. I think there's always probably some cons to doing it.
“But it's tough. Like I said, I've won from it in the past. I've lost from it in the past, over the course of a season it's hard to know if it's a good thing or a bad thing. It probably equals out over time.
“It just hurts more the fact I lose a win. There's literally nothing I could do as a driver today to do a better job. Pole, led the race. And to lose it for nothing in my control is... I don't think how a race should be won.
“I think people, I hope people agree, I think people would agree…but it is racing and it's happened. So I can't really complain about it. I can be upset about it, but I can't really complain about it.”
As well as the idea of leaving out the VSC for a full lap, Norris also floated, “Or you just block the pit entry and no one can box, apart from if you have a puncture or something.
“So I think there's a few things you could do to make it more simple and more fair for everyone. But that's a bigger discussion.
“This is not something I can just ask for. I think it's something as a group of drivers, I think we would all want. But there's a lot more to it, depending on if it's raining and there's a VSC and you're on slicks, does it mean you can box or not? So it's a complicated subject.
“But I think as a collection of drivers, if we all talk about it, I think everyone wants the same thing and that's just fairness for everyone.
“I'm complaining about it today. I could benefit from it next week, next time out and I could win because of it. I have to take it on the chin. But I just hope it doesn't happen to anyone again, because it's just not how you should lose a race.”
Asked whether he’d like to see a rule change, Verstappen - sat next to Norris in the post-race press conference - said: “I’ve also won races because of it. I've lost races because of it.
“It is extremely painful today for Lando in that case to lose a win. Like sometimes it can be, you might lose points, but this time it's a win. That's really not nice.
“But unfortunately, I think a lot of drivers have had it that you win some, you lose some. But can it be better? Probably yes, in the future. But we'll probably talk about it in the next briefing and see if there is anything that can be done.”
Race winner Antonelli acknowledged Norris “deserved to win” the race.
Norris’s McLaren team boss Andrea Stella was asked by The Race whether changes needed to be made to the VSC rules.
“Offering a personal opinion, I'm puzzled myself as to what's right,” Stella replied.
“Is it correct to give enough duration such that everyone will have been subject to the same track conditions, so for instance the virtual safety car lasts at least one full lap or you just keep it in the hands of the gods and sometimes you're lucky, sometimes you are not?
“I'm not sure myself but in general there's the right place where is a sort of conversation, which is the Strategy Advisory Committee \[SAC\] and this is a topic that may be added to the agenda and discussed over there.
“But if it's a change it will have to be a change that goes through the SAC, then we have confirmation and then we have to do at some stage in the sporting regulations.
“But I would envisage such that this is a relatively lengthy process unless there's a big push from F1, from the institutions, FIA or F1 to say ‘we need to make this different’.
“As a competitor at the moment, I don’t have a clear idea.”
Stella made it clear he had no problem with how the Spanish GP race director handled things on Sunday.
**“**Like all the times in which a safety car or a virtual safety car timing or duration has a large influence on a race, we have an opportunity to review whether we can do things differently, but this is not under the jurisdiction of the race director,” Stella explained.
“The race director applies the guidance and the regulations at the moment of the race that he is directing.
“When there's a situation like the one that caused the virtual safety car, the attention of the race director and rightly so, is on when the conditions exist to turn the virtual safety car on and when they exist to turn it off.
“I don't think he takes a look at what's happening in the race; it would be a big distraction.
“So I think we have absolutely no comment on the race director themselves. I think they've done a good job according to what is the present.
“Perhaps there's a wider reflection that the Formula 1 community should apply as to whether to keep things like they are or \[if you should\] introduce ways of maintaining more fairness, but this is not for the race director to do.”
### 'I almost fell asleep' - drivers react to dull Madring F1 debut
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/i-almost-fell-asleep-drivers-react-to-dull-madring-f1-debut/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T08:36:25.000Z
The 2026 Spanish Grand Prix was a procession - but what do Formula 1 drivers think is the main problem with the Madring, and what are their proposed solutions?
The Madring is part new, permanent circuit, and part existing roads that flow in and out of the IFEMA conference centre in the north-east of Madrid. It therefore benefitted from a partial blank slate.
In a recent interview with Architectural Digest, designer Jarno Zaffelli said: "Testing was very positive, so I am quite excited to see what Formula 1 has to say,"
"No other course has this particular character, in my opinion, in terms of its flow.
"I hope it gives the drivers and fans a unique feeling. And I would hope that people walk away recognising that it's possible to build a street circuit that is not boring."
A street circuit that's not boring, at least. The race… a different story.
## What the drivers said about Madrid's first race
There was consistent praise over the location and the atmosphere at the Madring with drivers including Fernando Alonso, Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton and Arvid Lindblad among those enthusing over the off-track experience.
But Lindblad did concede that it "wasn't the most exciting race" while Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto was asked whether it was as dull to drive as it was for some watching.
"Yeah, I almost fell asleep as well," replied the Brazilian.
Haas's Esteban Ocon said that a lack of tyre degradation and graining on Sunday made for a boring race.
"It was like 120% from as soon as you pitted to the end. And because the graining didn't happen, that's where we ended up. If we had a race on Friday, it would have been much better."
The track layout itself garnered heavier criticism.
Max Verstappen's lap one off at the opening chicane summed up how little space there was to pass there, while the Turn 5-6 chicane was branded too narrow and the various left-handers after the banked La Monumental gave drivers little room.
"I don't know how someone looks at this design and goes, mint!" said McLaren's Lando Norris in the press conference.
A lot of the corners also offer little visibility, and drivers including Sainz pointed out safety concerns.
"Same as in Jeddah and Baku, it's poor," he said. "But it seems like the FIA is happy to go in this direction moving forward in terms of new circuits, which obviously, as drivers, we are raising our… not concerns - but our point of wanting to keep improving safety.
"We're going to go towards these circuits because going at 260km/h, 270km/h \[162-168mph\] on esses that you cannot see through is definitely eye-opening and definitely makes you question how safe everything is."
Compatriot Alonso deflated the hype around La Monumental as he said his Aston Martin press officer could have taken the corner flat out.
"It is sad, you know, in a way, with this generation of cars to come to a very nice circuit like this one, with challenges here and there, like Monumental corner, Turn 12, and the driver input is just nothing.
"Michael \[Clayton, press officer\] can drive in Turn 12 because you go flat with no deployment," he said.
## What solutions have drivers offered?
George Russell touched on a fundamental issue with the track.
"I guess the one small frustration in the design is just the lack of clear overtaking opportunities. On every track, at the end of a long straight, you need a clear opportunity to overtake, and the longest straight here goes into that tight roundabout section. So that's probably the only thing we wish was different."
Norris was forthright, saying: "They should get rid of \[Turns\] 18-19 - useless."
He explained that the track could be improved with a "straight line from \[Turn\] 17 straight to 20, have a much wider entry like Austin Turn 1 or Turn 10 in Austin.
"A big hairpin, you create much better opportunities for everyone and you'll be able to enjoy the race. There's some simple changes and maybe some trickier ones like Turn 5, 6, 7."
Cadillac's Valtteri Bottas said it was "quite easy" to block after the longest straight, echoing Russell's comments.
He added: "What I'm not a big fan of is the sector two and three, how blind it is, especially people on the slow laps. Sometimes it's a bit sketchy, unnecessarily blind in places. But that was the first time we went to Saudi, it was the same issue and then they widened some of the walls, so I don't know - maybe there's some room for improvement."
Aside from Turns 13 (left-hand kink) and 20 (sharp left-hander), Turn 5 garnered the most criticism as, while it's a heavy braking zone, the entry to the chicane is bumpy, there are high kerbs, and the track is still narrow - essentially ruling it out for overtakes.
Williams's Alex Albon said: "I think we need to revisit this track a little bit… because I think, I don't know if you watched the F3 and F2 races, but it was all drivers going side by side in the chicane and then complaining that one of them didn't let them back past, so that corner in particular is the corner that I think needs the most work."
Bortoleto questioned the inclusion of that Turn 5-6 chicane.
"I just don't see how… Like even if they slow down the corner, what are they going to do, you know… especially with the big cars we have nowadays; if it was 1990s cars, maybe you could put something, but it's not like this anymore."
And, echoing Alonso's bluntness over La Monumental, Verstappen said: "Yeah, I mean, it's cool, the banking, but I think they should have done it the other way around, though. Initially more banking and then just flatten it out."
Perhaps street circuits themselves just don't suit the cumbersome footprint of a modern F1 car.
Verstappen said: "I'm not a fan of street circuits, so that will never change. I will always prefer to drive on a track like Spa.
"What they have done, the way they have built everything up, I think they have done a really good job, but I'm not a fan of street circuits."
Alonso, incidentally, shared a similar comment: "I still prefer normal circuits. You know, in general, you push the limits of the car… On a street circuit, you are always 95% because the track is always surprising you."
The criticism over Madring's layout isn't for nothing as changes are already being discussed for the next iteration of the Spanish Grand Prix - and it's clear that the drivers aren't afraid of making their opinions clear.
### Winners and losers from F1's 2026 Spanish Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-from-f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T16:37:49.000Z
Not many winners from Formula 1's 2026 Spanish Grand Prix - and even the actual race winner felt he really deserved to be second.
Here's our full winners and losers rundown.
## Loser: McLaren (3rd + 8th)
A race it should have won, and therefore not had a car finishing eighth in, either. A really tough day at the office.
The VSC giving an advantage to every other car on track apart from Lando Norris was the sole issue. He drove almost perfectly, a clip of the Turn 7 wall his only blemish as he appeared to have the race sewn up before it was taken from him.
Oscar Piastri's race was much more complicated. How much did the damaged wing from clashing with George Russell on lap one really hamper him? And was it his lack of pace, the pitstop, or McLaren's strategy bods to blame for him being caught behind Gabriel Bortoleto and Franco Colapinto in the closing stages? It chose to pit him, knowing being stuck in that pack was a possibility.
Piastri has struggled relative to Norris with the 2026 car, but this felt like a poor weekend even in the circumstances. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Loser: Lewis Hamilton (DNF)
Lewis Hamilton didn't really put a foot wrong at the start. He was quicker than Max Verstappen off the line and the Dutchman did eventually have to concede after cutting the opening chicane.
Then a long brake pedal quickly turned into a malfunction and Hamilton had to stop his Ferrari.
"Braking into Turn 5, I had hit the brake, the car started stopping and then the pedal took a step and the car didn't decelerate as fast as it would normally and I ended up carrying a lot of speed in and… brushed the barrier.
"After that, the pedal came back, it was fine, and then a few corners later the pedal went long. Don't really know where that's come from," was Hamilton's post-mortem.
What could have been a podium finish turned into a DNF for the driver, who then conceded that Antonelli was unstoppable in the title race.
Given McLaren's rate of development, it could prove to be a stinging points loss for Ferrari - whose advantage in their fight for second in the championship is now down to 52 points. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (1st)
Another race, another win for Kimi Antonelli - and another VSC capitalised upon.
Antonelli didn't need to make an overtake on track for this one, as first polesitter Norris's race unravelled as the VSC was deployed a moment too late and his pitstop one lap later was slow.
Then Charles Leclerc had to relinquish the lead late in the race having forgone the VSC pitstop.
Low tyre degradation, a lack of overtaking opportunities and McLaren's unfortunate timing and poor strategy made this one Antonelli's least remarkable win of the season.
He was gracious in victory, saying he "felt a bit bad" for Norris and that the McLaren driver would've been the deserving winner.
With victory here, Mercedes has tied Ferrari for most grand prix wins by a power unit manufacturer (251).
More consequentially, Antonelli is on 292 points to team-mate George Russell's 211.
He's on course to become F1's youngest world champion by some margin. **\- SK**
## Loser: Carlos Sainz (DNF)
The Madring event ambassador was never expecting a particularly competitive home grand prix, but he'd have hoped for better than an incident-filled Sunday.
It began on lap one with a rather clumsy first lap where he clunked into Yuki Tsunoda's Racing Bulls, and was followed by squeezing his fellow countryman Fernando Alonso into the wall.
Thankfully Carlos Sainz was at least able to serve that penalty before he retired - so it won't carry over to Baku - but it rounded off a disappointing and sloppy weekend. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Loser: Fernando Alonso (17th)
After the worst-case scenario at Monza, there was hope the Madring would provide a better chance for Aston Martin to challenge for points like at Zandvoort.
But it never materialised nor looked likely. He certainly wasn't helped by Alonso carrying damage from Sainz squeezing him, and that makes it particularly hard to know the true potential of the Aston Martin here.
"The engine was very bad today," Alonso said. "I think the boost control was difficult today. I nearly stalled on the pitstops.
"With some of the blue flags as well, letting the people go and slowing down. The engine was struggling to recover after that, so I was losing a lot of time on the blue flags.
"We need to analyse what happened."
He ultimately finished two laps down in 17th while Lance Stroll pulled off the track 15 laps into the 57-lap race. **\- JS**
## Winner: Franco Colapinto (7th)
Colapinto led the midfield with an accomplished drive to seventh.
He led a train of mid-pack cars that pitted under the Stroll-induced VSC, and then pressured Bortoleto and held off Piastri in the closing stages.
While the gap was three seconds at one point to Piastri - expertly extended by Colapinto under pressure from what was a much quicker car - it did come down towards the end. But that doesn't change the scale of the achievement.
Colapinto's only four points off 11th-placed Arvid Lindblad in the drivers' championship now, and Alpine's gap to Racing Bulls in the chase for fifth in the constructors' has reduced from 13 to nine. **\- JB**
## Loser: Madring
The Madring did plenty right this weekend, but it's difficult to describe the first F1 race as anything but dull.
The lack of overtaking opportunities around the circuit certainly didn't help, nor did the lack of significant tyre degradation.
But what's perhaps most painful is that this is exactly what many F1 drivers warned would happen when the layout was revealed.
So for all the great things the Madring has done, the first event will most likely be best remembered for its underwhelming Sunday product. **\- JS**
### A massive missed opportunity - our verdict on first Madrid F1 race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/a-massive-missed-opportunity-our-verdict-on-first-madrid-f1-race/
Last updated: 2026-09-14T08:36:47.000Z
Madrid’s first Formula 1 race [was not a thriller](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-wins-first-madrid-f1-race-after-norris-vsc-blow/). Here’s our team’s take on it.
## A baffling lack of overtaking opportunities
### Josh Suttill
I can't quite understand why, in 2026, F1 circuit layouts are being approved without featuring any obvious overtaking opportunities.
The beauty of a brand-new circuit is the blank sheet of paper it offers, and while in Madrid it's been used to create an interesting track for a single-lap driving experience, and some F2/F3 chaos, it's baffling why more thought wasn't given to the F1 Sunday product.
You can make the most amazing event in the world - a great fan experience, a cool location, some standout corners, great transport links, etc. - but it means absolutely nothing if the actual circuit isn't good for racing on.
And the worst thing is this was entirely predictable as soon as the layout was revealed, yet nothing was done by any of the stakeholders.
## This keeps happening
### Gary Anderson
I’m glad to see that the latest addition to the F1 calendar has managed to keep with tradition - a circuit that it is almost impossible to overtake on. In reality it must be very difficult to achieve this so consistently.
The circuit looks like fun for the drivers and it wasn’t the crashfest that some had predicted. If there is an incident they do really need to find a way to clear the track quicker - Ollie Bearman’s accident in FP3 showed that very clearly. Getting the car away was no problem but repairing the Tecpro barriers was very time consuming.
To see a couple of marshals trying to push one of those barriers into place when they are designed to resist the forces of a 900kg Formula 1 car travelling at speed was comical.
This race also highlights what a lottery the VSC and/or safety car brings to the race result. As the other drivers all said, Lando Norris deserved the win but it was taken out of his grasp when Lance Stroll going off brought out the VSC.
It’s simple to fix so why don’t the powers that be do something about it?
## At least it makes the classics look good
### Jack Benyon
Madring just gave us the perfect example of why creating a new circuit is so hard.
In terms of a test for the drivers over a qualifying lap - phwoar. It's excellent for that. It's clearly set out with the proviso of 'how do we make this an excellent circuit to test and extract the maximum out of the drivers', and that's important.
But it also has a number of design features that needn't have impacted the driving challenge *and* ruined the racing.
It's never easy to make a street circuit wide, but this one is narrow in all the wrong places. Plus, there's not enough 'clean' braking zones where drivers can launch proper moves without the need for combined braking and steering.
And there's really no excuse with a street circuit for making it not good for F1\. This track and race was built with that in mind. It wasn't designed to make F3 or touring cars look good.
It's easy for me to sit here, throwing stones while creating my epic Scalextrix track that's much better than this, in my bedroom. I acknowledge that. It's just so frustrating because it feels like this track is a few moved walls and a couple of flatter, more comfortable braking zones away from being absolutely mint.
And another reason this one was tough? Look at the track it was compared to: Macau. That's tough to overtake on outside of its long straights from Fishermen's to R, and R to Lisboa. So this isn't a new problem, although the Madring had more flexibility than the set roads of Macau. A big missed opportunity.
## Was it really that bad…? Sadly, yes
### Matt Beer
I tend to be charitable towards street circuits. I quite liked the Valencia version. I like anything that makes me think of mid-1990s Vancouver CART races and that track was objectively rubbish for both racing and a driving challenge. I don’t actually think every F1 circuit needs clear opportunities and across a 24-race calendar a few places where everything has to be done on strategy or extreme overtaking creativity are actually good for variety.
There are so many positives about Madrid as an event based on the reports from my colleagues on the ground, and watching onboards and trackside footage there was loads to like about Madring as a spectacle on a fast lap too.
But... this race was just too flat. A car as fast as Norris’s McLaren should have had shots at coming through the field once delayed. Charles Leclerc shouldn’t have been able to stay in front that long with no pitstop. Too many people just seemed to be stuck in traffic they needn’t have been in, and that squashed any hope of intrigue in the race.
I don’t think it would take much to sort this. Maybe even just a much more aggressive tyre compound choice rather than circuit tweaks would do the job.
I like this track, I really wanted to enjoy the race. But I spent most of it pretty bored.
### F1 2026 Spanish Grand Prix race results at Madrid
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-race-results-2/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T14:48:10.000Z
Mercedes's Kimi Antonelli took advantage of a VSC pitstop to win the inaugural 2026 Spanish Grand Prix at Madrid's Madring.
McLaren's polesitter Lando Norris settled for third behind Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
Here are the provisional results from the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix at Madrid.
### Race results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +4.4s
3 Lando Norris (McLaren) +5.1s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +29.1s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +29.8s
6 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1m26.7s
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1m34.3s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1m35.8s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1 lap
11 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1 lap
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 lap
13 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1 lap
14 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
15 Alexander Albon (Williams) +1 lap
16 Oliver Bearman (Haas) +1 lap
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2 laps
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3 laps
DNF Carlos Sainz (Williams)
DNF Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
DNF Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
### Antonelli wins first Madrid F1 race after Norris VSC blow
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-wins-first-madrid-f1-race-after-norris-vsc-blow/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T15:04:48.000Z
Kimi Antonelli won the first-ever Formula 1 race at the Madring, as Lando Norris and McLaren lost a likely victory due to their pitstop timing.
Norris led away from pole, with Antonelli only briefly jumping ahead twice when he ran off the circuit on lap one, before returning the lead to Norris on both occasions.
The McLaren driver was looking comfortable until Lance Stroll brought his Aston Martin to a halt in the run-off area at Turn 20\.
That triggered a virtual safety car, but Norris had already passed the pit entry by then, while Antonelli - as well as Max Verstappen and George Russell behind - were able to make their pitstop under the VSC.
Norris pitted a lap later, but the race was back under green flag conditions. The pitstop was slow too (seven seconds), so he was jumped by Antonelli, Verstappen and Russell.
Charles Leclerc didn't pit, so he led more laps of the race than any other driver before finally trading in his hard tyres on lap 48 of 57, allowing Antonelli to claim a race lead he'd never relinquish.
Verstappen finished second, having lost out to Antonelli on the opening lap.
He'd passed him and Lewis Hamilton on the first lap to run second behind Norris, but he overtook the latter by missing the first chicane to avoid Hamilton's Ferrari.
Much to Verstappen's dissatisfaction, Red Bull ordered him to give the place back to Hamilton - but Verstappen lost out to Antonelli too because he'd passed Hamilton.
"He can give me the position now, f\*\*\*ing bullshit. F\*\*\*ing mickey-mouse racing this is,” Verstappen told his team at the time.
Hamilton's race didn't last much longer than that as he retired with brake problems.
Norris had to settle for third place despite a penultimate lap attack on Verstappen, while they were lapping a scrapping Arvid Lindblad and Nico Hulkenberg.
Verstappen had to cut a chicane, and while he was noted for leaving the track and gaining an advantage, it was quickly dismissed as needing no further investigation.
He finished ahead of Leclerc, who didn't get the safety car intervention Ferrari was hoping for.
Russell was fifth, having stopped for a second time and lost the position he gained on Norris with his VSC pitstop.
Stand-in Liam Lawson earned his best result for Red Bull so far in sixth place ahead of Franco Colapinto, who won F1's midfield scrap and even beat McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
Lindblad was ninth for Racing Bulls, having triumphed in a tight duel with Hulkenberg's Audi, in the points for the third time in four races.
Along with Hamilton and Stroll, home hero Carlos Sainz retired - but not before picking up a five-second time penalty for clashing with fellow Spaniard Fernando Alonso - as did Sergio Perez's Cadillac.
### Race results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +4.4s
3 Lando Norris (McLaren) +5.1s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +29.1s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +29.8s
6 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1m26.7s
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1m34.3s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1m35.8s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1 lap
11 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1 lap
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 lap
13 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1 lap
14 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
15 Alexander Albon (Williams) +1 lap
16 Oliver Bearman (Haas) +1 lap
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2 laps
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3 laps
DNF Carlos Sainz (Williams)
DNF Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
DNF Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
### Martin mulling surgery as arm pump ruins Misano race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-mulling-surgery-after-arm-pump-ruins-misano-race/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T14:49:53.000Z
Erstwhile MotoGP championship leader Jorge Martin has revealed arm pump was the cause of his [San Marino Grand Prix slump](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-into-motogp-points-lead-for-first-time-in-2026-amid-aprilia-disaster/) \- and intends to have surgery during his title campaign.
Martin led the Misano race in the early going after the crash for his Aprilia team-mate Marco Bezzecchi, but his performance dipped suddenly after taking the lead, as low-to-mid 1m31s laps became high-1m31s laps and then he settled into the 1m32s range.
He tumbled to fifth, which meant that Marc Marquez has drawn level on points with Martin coming out of Misano and leads the championship on countback.
"I'm really happy about my performance in the first half of the race," Martin told British broadcaster TNT.
"Looking back to Friday and all the struggles that I had, and today overtaking Marc for the lead, was super nice. I think we have to be proud of the job of the team.
"For sure I think we lost a big opportunity today. I had a chance to win, I think. But I was struggling with arm pump, I couldn't brake anymore, I was completely out of control of my bike. I was just waiting till the race finished."
Martin said he had had an issue since Friday this weekend - and that he never encountered it in past Misano MotoGP rounds. He said he now faces a "question mark" for the end of the season.
[Compartment syndrome, known colloquially as arm pump](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/what-is-arm-pump-the-scourge-of-motogp-riders-explained/), is a frequent bugbear of the modern MotoGP rider, referring to a build-up of pressure in the muscles that compromises blood and oxygen flow.
Martin had already undergone one operation to alleviate arm pump back in 2019, when he was just starting his Moto2 career, and he was able to have the operation without missing any races.
This is a conventional outcome - but it does not mean a rider won't remain compromised in some capacity, and both the two upcoming rounds - Red Bull Ring pre-surgery and Motegi potentially post-surgery - are potential candidates to expose arm fitness issues.
"Now I don't have enough time to do anything for Austria so I'm just trying to recover. I think, honestly, Austria is not a race where I will suffer from arm pump - but looking towards the end of the season, we need to understand if it's better to undergo surgery after Austria or not."
### Hamilton effectively concedes 2026 F1 title
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-effectively-concedes-2026-f1-title-after-latest-blow/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T14:49:29.000Z
After retiring from the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix with a brake failure, Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton conceded that there will be "no stopping" Mercedes and its Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli this season.
Seven-time F1 champion Hamilton has been Antonelli's closest pursuer in the standings at times this season, and was within 32 points of him after the British GP two months ago.
But he came to Madrid 76 points behind Antonelli and in the race soon told Ferrari that his brake pedal was long before reporting a full loss of brakes and retiring on lap six.
When Sky put it to him in his post-retirement interview that Antonelli now looked "hard to stop", Hamilton replied: "There's no stopping him and Mercedes this year. I think they've done a phenomenal job and they deserve it."
Hamilton had retained fourth place off the line in Madrid, although Red Bull's Max Verstappen cut the opening chicane to get ahead of him and was eventually made to return the place - prompted furious radio responses from Verstappen.
"It was pretty good racing to be honest," said Hamilton of the incident with Verstappen.
In reply to another question about Verstappen's complaints over the incident, Hamilton replied: "Nothing to do with me".
He said his brake issues ebbed and flowed before the lap six retirement.
"Braking into Turn 5, I had hit the brake, the car started stopping and then the pedal took a step and the car didn't decelerate as fast as it would normally and I ended up carrying a lot of speed in and… brushed the barrier.
"After that, the pedal came back, it was fine, and then a few corners later the pedal went long. Don't really know where that's come from."
Hamilton expects Mercedes' advantage over Ferrari to be pronounced at the next race in Baku as well.
"It's long straights there, so I don't really know what to expect at that track, but I'll give it everything," he said.
"Mercedes will be very strong for me."
### Marquez into points lead for first time in 2026 amid Aprilia disaster
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-into-motogp-points-lead-for-first-time-in-2026-amid-aprilia-disaster/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T12:52:35.000Z
Defending MotoGP champion Marc Marquez won the San Marino Grand Prix to take the points lead for the first time in 2026, as Marco Bezzecchi crashed from pole.
The win has taken Marquez to level on points with Jorge Martin, and he places first coming out of Misano by virtue of having four grand prix wins this season to Martin's one.
This didn't look on the cards at the start as Bezzecchi fought Marquez off the line and began breaking away, with Martin slotting into third - but coming up to Turn 13 Bezzecchi hit the deck, promoting Marquez into the lead once more.
Martin looked the stronger of the two in the early laps after that, and found a way past Marquez at the Rio corner on lap seven - but once ahead his lead stopped growing at around six-seven tenths of a second, before quickly being eroded.
It soon showed that Martin didn't have even podium pace - as he was cleared by the elder Marquez on lap 12, then Alex Marquez two laps later, then Pedro Acosta another two laps later, and finally Fermin Aldeguer on lap 20 of 27.
Martin’s slide ceased there as fellow Aprilia rider Raul Fernandez in sixth place proved too far back to threaten.
Out front, Alex Marquez kept up with Marc - but was never close enough to truly threaten an attack, ultimately following Marc home in a Marquez 1-2.
Acosta was just 2.3s back at the finish in the last of the podium places, with Aldeguer and a distant Martin completing the top five - in what was a remarkably attritional race.
Bezzecchi's crash had kicked off an early salvo of retirements, with falls also for Jack Miller, Diogo Moreira and the out-of-sorts Pecco Bagnaia - while Joan Mir parked up in the pits, having felt unwell through the weekend.
Alex Rins retired in the pits, and Johann Zarco crashed late on to leave the field at only 14 finishers.
Of those 14, Luca Marini was the top Honda rider in ninth, while Fabio Quartararo led the line for Yamaha in 10th.
## Race results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.657s
3 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +2.326s
4 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +6.027s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +14.021s
6 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +18.252s
7 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +20.581s
8 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +20.858s
9 Luca Marini (Honda) +22.911s
10 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +23.229s
11 Brad Binder (KTM) +23.905s
12 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +28.031s
13 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +28.927s
14 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +31.792s
DNF Johann Zarco (LCR Honda)
DNF Alex Rins (Yamaha)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Joan Mir (Honda)
DNF Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda)
DNF Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha)
DNF Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia)
### 5 factors that will dictate Madrid's first F1 race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/5-factors-that-will-dictate-madrids-first-f1-race/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T11:41:27.000Z
Formula 1’s teams and drivers head into the unknown in today’s Spanish Grand Prix as it’s the first time grand prix cars have raced at the new Madring. And that means there are some big questions about how the race will unfold, but with signposts to the potential answers.
Practice and qualifying have set some expectations, as has the way the Formula 2 and Formula 3 support races have played out, but the lack of racing history here to go on means that there could be some surprises.
Here are five key aspects that could shape the race.
### Antonelli's possible start advantage
In the five Madring races held at the time of writing - two Formula 2 and three Formula 3 races - second on the grid has taken the lead at the start four times. And in Sunday’s F2 and F3 races, on both occasions the polesitter moved left quickly to cover the stronger start of the driver in second.
Pole position is on the left side as the TV viewer looks at it, which is as per convention as it gives the usual racing line for the corner, with second on the right.
You can be certain that McLaren's Lando Norris will be very well aware if there is any disadvantage to being on pole position, potentially meaning he will recognise the need to cover Antonelli. Then again, it might be that McLaren's generally good launches offset any disadvantage.
There is often a difference in grip on different sides of the grid, as well as the potential for it varying depending on each row, but this weekend the second-placed grid slot has got a little more grip than pole position. That could mean an opportunity for Antonelli at the start, and the need for Norris to consider covering him depending on how the launch goes.
### Chicane chaos potential
The main passing place at the Madring is the kerb-rattling Turn 5/5a/6 chicane that follows the long flat-out blast from Turn 2\.
This has produced the most wheel-to-wheel action in the support races, but with the majority of instances resulting in one, or occasionally both, cars cutting the track. As George Russell put it, "the one small frustration in the design is the lack of clear overtaking opportunities", meaning the chicane is going to be the best chance anyone has.
"It's going to be very hard to overtake in the race in general," said Red Bull's Liam Lawson.
"It's very easy to defend there, or easier than normal corners, because you just push the guy off through the chicane and he has to give the place back."
This means there will be plenty of radio complaining, lots of frustrated attacks and the potential either for a collision or hitting the wall if you get it wrong in battle.
Or, as Alex Albon put it, "if you watched the F3 and F2 races, it was all drivers going side by side in the chicane and then complaining that one of them didn't let them back past."
### The degradation challenge
Tyre degradation – both from front graining and rears overheating – has been one of the big talking points over the Spanish GP weekend.
The situation has improved a lot from Friday practice, when George Russell half-joked that the Madring race looked like it was heading for a six-stopper.
In fact, with the track having rubbered in quite well, things now look quite delicately poised time-wise between a one and a two-stopper.
So, with overtaking appearing to be difficult, that means the likely preference for teams will be to tell drivers to manage tyres and play the conservative route to minimise pit stops.
But that is all well and good for handling overheating tyres; stopping graining is a much harder task. Therefore, the level of graining will potentially be key.
As Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg said about whether the race would be chaotic or processional: “Look, it really depends, if we get graining, if we don't, I think that will be the main driver.
“If we get graining, I think it's going to be quite something and it might be chaotic. But, like you say, you know, you never know.”
Graining could trigger understeer, make the high-speed corners very difficult and trigger a rapid increase in degradation levels – throwing some strategy complications.
So all eyes need to be on those front-left tyres.
### Will there be rolling roadblocks
Given the need to protect the tyres and potentially eke out a one-stopper, Antonelli suggested "it's going to be grandmother driving in the first 10 laps", while Max Verstappen says "you need to rely on people \[tyre\] deg-ing very aggressively".
So does that mean this could be one of those races where the leader either of the race overall, or of a pack of cars, can back off dramatically and easily hold up a queue of cars?
It's a track where defending is easy, and with last year's cars it would definitely be on the cards.
However, with the deployment factor, it's now possible to use a huge power advantage to make a drive-by move in an unlikely place, meaning that you are more vulnerable if you are committing to holding up rivals too much.
But, there are limited opportunities even to do that as there are full-throttle zones where it’s easy to keep a car behind - Carlos Sainz inadvertently impeding Valtteri Bottas on the run up the hill to Turn 7 illustrated that yesterday.
### Driving mindset
A look back through the history of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix has shown that the characteristics of a race can often depend on the collective mindset of the drivers.
When chaos is predicted – as has happened many times in Baku – the drivers can change their approach. They opt to play it safe, sensing that staying out of everyone else’s trouble will guarantee points.
That tactic is all well and good. However, when everyone does it then the result can be a level of calmness that leads to a subdued race.
Cadillac driver Valtteri Bottas thinks it is possible that Madring does not deliver the unpredictability that its layout hints at – as happened when opening practice threw up zero stoppages.
“Like FP1, if people are too cautious, then that can happen,” he said.
“But you just never know. It's a track like that: one mistake and it will be yellow or safety car or red flag, so surely somebody is going to make a mistake.”
Despite the example of Baku bouncing between chaos and calm, Charles Leclerc thinks in the end Madrid will be somewhere in the middle.
“I wouldn't use those extreme ends, but surely I don't know about the chaos in a way,” he said.
“I think there may be some red flags or some incidents on a track that is so challenging like this one. However, Baku can be quite crazy with overtakes, while here, I struggle to see many, many overtakes.”
### When a young Ayrton Senna drove F1's elite crazy
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/when-a-young-ayrton-senna-drove-f1s-elite-crazy/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T08:55:09.000Z
Supreme car control and a devastating turn of speed were two qualities that marked Ayrton Senna out as a future champion on his path to Formula 1 and during his rookie season with the Toleman team.
But it was after his first F1 move, to Team Lotus, that Senna also made his mark on F1 as he routinely left his (significantly more established) rivals disgruntled.
That's a story that Edd Straw and Mark Hughes dig into for the second episode of F1 Rewind, the new F1 history podcast from The Race, which revisits some of the biggest tales from grand prix racing (and the drivers and teams involved in them) with a fresh perspective and angles that weren't necessarily available at the time.
Senna's Lotus years were, in effect, an apprenticeship before his ultra-successful McLaren move - and a last hurrah for a Lotus team that was beginning to unravel - where he became a proper thorn in the side of the F1 elite.
### A young man in a hurry
The driver who would go on to become a three-time world champion caught the eye before and during his title-winning British Formula 3 campaign in 1983; Ron Dennis had offered to pay for Senna's F3 campaign if he committed to McLaren long-term, and during that season he tested for Williams (which had no space for 1984) and Brabham.
Senna wanted control of his own destiny above all else, though, and so the decision was to pick Toleman - on a three-year deal, with a relatively modest release clause of around £100,000 - for that first step.
Senna, of course, turned heads in his rookie season; outstandingly with his runner-up finish in the red-flagged Monaco race, but also with podiums at Brands Hatch and Estoril.
And so really the Toleman deal just deferred his arrival at Lotus, another team that had showed interest for his F1 debut, until 1985\. There was no problem with that, per se; Senna had signed the contract, and Lotus had met the threshold for the release clause.
The problem was that Senna hadn't told Toleman before his move was announced - even if that did demonstrate, as Straw says, "how proactive Senna is being" and how already he was "very deliberately avoiding being under the control" of any team.
Hughes - one of those who saw Senna during his F3 campaign - picks up the story.
"\[Senna was\] absolutely ruthlessly strategic in his planning of his career," he says. "You saw it in his junior career as well.
"He wanted that independence. He was quite prepared to do what was necessary to get in the most competitive machinery that he could at that moment."
Straw adds: "He was very much involved in the contracts and the detail. And even at this time, there's stories of him being quite pernickety in terms of those contract negotiations and the detail. He wasn't just signing it and off he goes; he really was on top of things.
"And I think that's one of the qualities Senna had, even at this time in his career. He knew he needed to be at Lotus. And he was prepared for there to be a little bit of a mess."
### Senna the disruptor
As suggested, this only really ever put Senna's movements - which he'd often already calculated, something we'll come back to later - on hold for a year.
Toleman did bench him for the antepenultimate round of the 1984 season at Monza, something that probably taught Senna a lesson for not following the right sequence of events in telling Toleman before his move was announced.
But he joined Lotus as a driver with a very big reputation - one he lived up to. Perhaps not instantly, as he was outqualified by team-mate Elio de Angelis at the season-opening Brazilian GP (his home race), but Senna claimed his first grand prix win on only his second start for Lotus, and it was arguably the best of his 41 victories.
"He thought so," says Hughes. "He thought that was the greatest of all his grand prix wins.
"Dominant pole. Start to finish in the wet, in the lead. Fastest lap by, what, three-quarters of a second? Something like that, totally dominant. He was a minute clear of second place. Just an extraordinary demonstration of just who he was. That's the level of driver that you're dealing with.
"And that's when, I suppose, you could say it was properly apparent this wasn't just \[Senna\] punching above his weight in a less than fully competitive car, which he'd been doing in '84\. This was, 'OK, here's a car that is capable of winning. Watch this'. And yeah, extraordinary."
The Lotus 97T of 1985 was undoubtedly more competitive than the Toleman he'd driven the year earlier, but it wasn't as good as Senna was making it look. (This was, after all, a car that was very similar aerodynamically to what Lotus had campaigned in 1983, and hadn't changed all that much by the time of his final season with the team in 1987 either.)
And that meant to be competitive, Senna had to box smart - but that also meant ruffling the feathers of the established drivers around him, starting with team-mate de Angelis but extending much further.
"The thing I really like about this season, '85 in particular with Senna, is the extent to which he annoys everyone," says Straw. "It's the classic thing with a young driver.
"In Rio testing, he has a collision with \[Nigel\] Mansell because they have a bit of an annoyance in the morning on the Monday of a Rio test and Mansell's on a race run and didn't want to spoil his numbers, so Senna gets irritated. Then they have a collision late in the day.
"And then you've got, at Imola, \[Alain\] Prost - that was the third race - criticises 'F3 driving tactics' from Senna.
"\[In Monaco, Michele\] Alboreto forces him up an escape road in retaliation in qualifying. Because Senna actually got told by \[Lotus team manager\] Peter Warr to get in Alboreto's way as well, which was probably the start of actually the Senna-Peter Warr relationship, \[which\] didn't go particularly well.
"Senna and Warr didn't entirely see eye to eye; Senna was sort of calling the shots, whereas Warr was this kind of military background. He'd been to Sandhurst. So he was very much a kind of chain of command \[character\], 'what I say, goes'.
"And actually this gradually kind of unravels through the time at Lotus when Senna sort of starts calling the shots."
Senna was not the absolute first to do it this way, but he was in a sense the prototype for the modern-day young driver in a hurry, and the shift away from long apprenticeships - even if his Lotus spell did last for three years.
"It's a driver who comes in, knows that they're good enough and is really not prepared to hang back and wait," says Straw. "It's like, 'No, I'm going to be number one. I'm going to make decisions. I'm going to get myself into the best team'."
"The really special ones can come in at a level where they can compete at the front, pretty much straight away. Not necessarily fully rounded, but can compete," says Hughes.
Straw adds: "But I do just love this spell of annoying all the established top drivers, which \[Max\] Verstappen did, which Michael Schumacher did - he annoyed Senna, didn't he? So you start to see that happening more and more.
"And I think because Senna was so influential as a driver, the legend of Senna endures to this day. I think drivers are almost more conscious of the need to be a massive pain in the neck straight away \[because of the impact Senna made\]."
### The first McLaren machinations
The statistics from Senna's Lotus spell are impressive: seven poles, two wins, and four further podiums from his first year; and six wins in total across his three-year spell with the team.
The fact that ran into a third year was something of a surprise, as Senna elected to stay with the team on a new two-year deal.
But there was a calculation behind that: that two-year deal included a break clause that allowed either side, team or driver, to get out of it regardless of the situation. And Senna, the operator that he was, had started his machinations towards a McLaren seat for 1988.
Honda was in the picture with McLaren for that season, and Senna had instigated the first meeting with Honda - as early as the Monaco GP in 1986 - for Lotus to take its engines for 1987, thus creating a route to McLaren for the following year.
"It \[the break clause\] was before a date in early August. So obviously Lotus wouldn't have signed that if they didn't have to," says Straw. "But that tells you the power Senna has got in the driver market, and he's not afraid to use it.
"\[There's\] that undercurrent of \[Senna being\] in a hurry, a bit of frustration. He wasn't delighted with where Lotus was. But obviously realising the value of that extra year with Lotus, because Honda's coming on board and it's all part of the masterplan."
Edd and Mark analysed all of that in depth in the full second episode of F1 Rewind, so make sure you [listen to it here](https://shows.acast.com/681cc8f924b1daf01a704cf4/6aa289a8ff74edfd00ff5c2b?ref=the-race.com).
### What's behind McLaren's brazen public meeting with Lambiase
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclaren-ramps-up-effort-to-get-lambiase-early-f1/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T08:55:55.000Z
McLaren is accelerating efforts to get hold of Red Bull’s engineer Gianpiero Lambiase early – with a deliberately brazen paddock meeting helping draw attention to the matter.
Lambiase, who is Red Bull’s head of racing and has long been Max Verstappen’s race engineer, has agreed to join McLaren as its chief racing officer.
However, with his current contract with Red Bull running until the end of next year, unless an early exit is agreed then McLaren will have to wait until the start of 2028 to get hold of him.
McLaren is eager not to delay Lambiase’s integration so long, and has held a series of discussions over recent months with Red Bull about whether there are grounds to reach a compromise deal.
However, nothing has been arranged so far – but it now appears to be ramping up efforts for some movement.
Intriguingly, Lambiase and McLaren CEO Zak Brown chose a very conspicuous spot in the Madring paddock on Saturday morning – at a café table right by the main thoroughfare - for a chat.
The choice of location, one easily captured by photographers and camera crews, was interesting because the pair could easily have met in a quieter spot in the huge pit and paddock complex at the Spanish Grand Prix venue.
Instead, by choosing the café, the aim was almost certainly to send a message that the pair are openly talking.
This could influence Red Bull to think there is little to gain by delaying Lambiase's release.
### Handover debate
McLaren's hopes of securing a deal appeared to have increased recently with Red Bull having settled on its replacement plans for Lambiase.
The squad has signed Aston Martin’s Tom McCullough as its new head of racing from next year, while Tom Hart is to take over as Verstappen’s race engineer.
With those appointments in place, McLaren senses an opportunity to not have to wait until 2028, so it has started pushing again to see if there are grounds for Red Bull to let Lambiase go early.
However, Red Bull appears to be in no rush to fast track a release – as it is still weighing up what to do.
The Race understands that one of Red Bull’s big considerations is how best it wants to handle the transition to the new arrivals.
A priority is a good enough handover so both McCullough and Hart do not face a cold start in their new roles.
Red Bull has already begun preparations for Hart’s closer integration with Verstappen.
He has begun acting as Verstappen’s engineer in some practice sessions – which will continue in Baku – and is set to take over for full race-weekends towards the end of the season. This may start from the United States Grand Prix.
A handover to McCullough, who does not join until the start of 2027, would have to wait until the start of next year though – which would mean Lambiase not being in place at McLaren for the start of the season.
### Leclerc says old Ferrari engine cost him in Madrid qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/leclerc-says-old-ferrari-engine-cost-him-in-madrid-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T19:26:01.000Z
Charles Leclerc reckons being without Ferrari’s latest ADUO 2 power unit specification was a key factor in him slipping down the order in qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix
The Monegasque had looked to be Mercedes’ main rival in the fight for pole position in Madrid after showing strong form throughout all three practice sessions.
But, after ending up fifth on the grid, Leclerc reckoned that the performance patterns of the top teams shifted because rivals were able to step up thanks to fresher engines for qualifying.
He instead effectively stood still because he has been forced to revert to Ferrari’s old ADUO 1 power unit version for this weekend as a consequence of his [hefty crash](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-gp-red-flag-charles-leclerc-crash-ferrari/) in last weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.
Ferrari did not feel comfortable enough to commit to run the ADUO 2 version immediately after Monza without time for thorough checks for damage, so instead moved him to an older spec.
“I think most of the people put a new power unit, or a newer spec, for today and I kind of had the same spec,” Leclerc explained after qualifying.
“And that's on me obviously for last week. So maybe I didn't do the step forward that the others did on that side. Having said that, I think the lap was quite clean.”
Leclerc reckoned that there was nothing particularly wrong with his lap, as he missed out on the top spot by 0.195 seconds, but said a poor first sector was his downfall.
What he needed to understand was whether the deficit was the result of being down on power or due to time loss in corners.
“It was more the first sector on my side,” he said. “I lost I think four tenths in sector one on my fast lap, so we've got to look at that.
“My outlaps were not ideal but four tenths is a lot. So, I don't really know what went on there. Surely there are many straights but I doubt that we are losing four tenths in the straights.”
Ferrari is conducting further checks on Leclerc's crashed Monza engine at Maranello to get a better picture on whether there is any risk in bringing it back into action.
While sources suggest that early prognosis is positive, a final green light will only come before the next race in Azerbaijan.
Until then, Leclerc says he cannot be sure if there is a danger of needing to take a further fresh power unit later in the year which would trigger grid penalties.
“For now, we don't know yet,” he said. “There are some checks that we have to do. So yeah not 100% sure yet.”
Ferrari's ADUO 2 power unit is understood to revolve around an improved turbo to help boost power.
### Winners and losers from Spanish GP F1 qualifying at the Madring
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-qualifying-winners-losers/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T17:22:24.000Z
Just 0.011s separate first and second in the first-ever Formula 1 qualifying session at the Madring, and the first four slots on the Spanish Grand Prix grid will be occupied by drivers from four different teams too.
But considering all the fears of a Sunday procession, is this the end of the action?
And if it is, who's maximised their opportunity, and who's been found wanting?
## Loser: Oscar Piastri (7th)
Eighth in Q1, ninth in Q2...Piastri was well off the pace throughout qualifying.
He had to abort his first flying lap of Q1 and, from then on, it was a "messy" session by his reckoning.
He even called it a "pretty crap" go in Q3, as he laboured to seventh.
"That's how it goes sometimes unfortunately," he said. "It's been a bit of a better weekend, like Monza, in that I at least am...happier with what the car's doing, and today was simply just one of those sessions."
More painful will be the fact that it's expected to be hard to overtake here. And even more painful will be the fact that team-mate Lando Norris took a stunning pole position - so the pace was definitely there.
Piastri's middling run continues. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Winner: Lando Norris (1st)
A winner not just because of the end result, but because of the manner in which it arrived - pretty much out of nowhere.
The earlier stages of qualifying suggested this would be a fight between Mercedes and Ferrari, with Max Verstappen's Red Bull maybe interloping.
Norris was fifth in Q1 but only seventh in Q2, and when Kimi Antonelli stuck his Mercedes on provisional pole with the first 1m31s lap of the weekend, having been narrowly usurped by Lewis Hamilton in the first Q3 runs, it looked at though the session was going to form.
But then came Norris, with a full-send, ultra-committed lap in his McLaren.
The last corner was untidy - team principal Andrea Stella reckoned Norris lost three tenths there - but the rest of it Stella called "a masterpiece", and what Norris reckoned was probably the best qualifying lap of his entire career was enough to snatch pole from Antonelli by a hundredth of a second.
Not totally clean from the world champion, but certainly brilliant. **\- Ben Anderson**
## Loser: George Russell (6th)
Gap to Antonelli in pace: 0.314s (not great)
Gap to Antonelli in positions: four (also not great)
Russell seemed shake off his brush with the wall in Q1, a session he ended up topping, pretty easily and said he felt in a good place afterwards - claiming he was "about three tenths up" on his previous best midway round his final Q3 lap.
"Tried pushing hard in Turn 11, the tyres couldn't take it and then lost all the laptime thereafter," said Russell, who added it has been "really challenging" to judge how hard to lean on the tyres.
Salvaging a time loss in that three-tenth ballpark obviously would've made a difference to his grid position. But after a promising start to the weekend, qualifying was another example of Russell being a step behind at Mercedes - and barely being able to grasp at any title hopes right now. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Winner: Lewis Hamilton (4th)
Hamilton outqualified Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc by just 0.006s and did well to take a place on the second row after crashing and losing time in FP3.
The seven-time champion delivered a terse post-qualifying summary as he recalled a "pretty straightforward" session and praised "good execution" from the team.
"I'm going to have fun, that's all I can say, I’m going to have real fun, I'm not going to put too much pressure on it," he said.
Leclerc, who is using an older-spec Ferrari engine after his Monza crash, said he lost time through sector one in particular.
"I think most of the people put a new power unit or a newer-spec \[in for qualifying\], and I kind of had the same spec - and that's on me obviously for last week - so maybe I didn't do the step forward that the others did on that side," he said.
"But having said that I think the lap was quite clean. I've had a few moments here and there, which I maybe lost a little bit and when I see how close it is, it's frustrating but at the same time I feel like if you ask any drivers on the grid today, everybody probably can find something on the lap."
After their clash at the start of the Italian GP, the spotlight will again be on the Ferrari drivers at the start of this race in Madrid. **\- SK**
## Loser: Ollie Bearman (21st)
Bearman's Madrid weekend unravelled on Saturday morning when he crashed at Turn 10 [right at the end of FP3](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-it-is-like-watching-f1-crash-unfold-ollie-bearman-haas/).
That crash ruled him out of qualifying and put him a provisional 21st on the grid.
Painful - as Haas team-mate Esteban Ocon was up in 13th.
"It's a shame to be standing here right now," said Bearman as he stood watching on from the sidelines in qualifying. "The car was quick. Yesterday was a tough day but we made some changes overnight and the car was feeling really good in FP3.
"Unfortunately I got caught out in Turn 10 on that final lap."
He said worn tyres and a gust of wind contributed to his mistake.
Sunday could be Bearman's ninth-straight grand prix without points, and Haas's eighth, as Audi continues to chip away at its advantage in the fight for seventh in the constructors' championship. **\- SK**
## Winner: Max Verstappen (3rd)
Another typical Red Bull turnaround from Friday, when technical director Pierre Wache indicated his team needed to work on set-up, mechanical grip, ride quality and energy deployment in order to get Verstappen into a better position.
The four-time champion was knocking on the door in FP3, just under four tenths off the pace, and come qualifying he was right in the mix: 0.170s off the pace in Q1 (where team-mate Liam Lawson lapped within a tenth of Russell's Mercedes) then fastest of all in Q2.
Verstappen was one of only three drivers to lap below 1m32s in Q3, enough to place him third on the grid and ahead of both Ferraris, a Mercedes and a McLaren, while Lawson faded to eighth.
Verstappen credited the car for finally doing what he wanted it to in the corners, but it's hard to escape the feeling there was also a bit of Max magic in play to make the difference in the end. **\- BA**
## Loser: Pierre Gasly (14th)
Baffled and bemused. That's how best to describe Gasly at the end of qualifying.
"Something doesn't add up," he lamented after qualifying 14th, an uncharacteristic seven tenths off Alpine team-mate Franco Colapinto in Q2.
He suggested he'd never felt such a switch from where the car had been - on Friday, it had left him confident of making the top 10 - to where it ended up.
"All my traction, I'm laying rubber every corner, sideways in all the high speed," said Gasly, who tentatively concurred when The Race asked whether this might be a deeper, set-up related issue.
Asked if he expected chaos or a procession in tomorrow's race, Gasly was in no mind to look ahead.
"At the moment I just want to get back in the office and get the answers I need." **\- JC**
## Winner: Franco Colapinto (9th)
One place worse off on the grid compared to last weekend, as Colapinto noted, but there were plenty of reasons to be happier with this performance than Q3 at Monza.
Having gathered up a lairy moment at La Monumental on his first Q2 effort, Colapinto strung together a lap he called "amazing" that he was rightly proud of to progress to Q3.
He felt this was a track more likely to be suited to Alpine's current midfield rivals Audi and Racing Bulls, an assessment that seems to have been supported by the general trend of the weekend so far - so the Alpine had little right leading the midfield, really.
That it did owed everything to Colapinto replicating (actually improving) the laptime in Q3 - a potentially significant result on a weekend where the usually dependable Gasly has looked slightly off-colour. **\- JC**
## Loser: Aston Martin (18th & 21st)
The Madring might be a temporary, street-style circuit, but it's still plenty fast enough and demanding enough on the power units to expose Honda.
Fernando Alonso had a mighty good go at escaping Q1, but he needed another 81 thousandths of a second to leapfrog the two Williamses - cars Aston Martin has recently been spooking with its impressive rate of chassis improvement.
Alonso felt he was losing "probably more than one second" because of the Honda engine.
At least he managed to participate in the session, though, unlike team-mate Lance Stroll, who was parked by problems with his fresh engine's water pressure.
Cadillac might be firmly in the rear view mirror now, but there's still clearly a massively long road to travel for Aston Martin to become even remotely as competitive as it wants to be and should be. **\- BA**
### F1 2026 Spanish GP starting grid after two penalties and a pitlane start
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-spanish-gp-starting-grid-after-two-penalties/
Last updated: 2026-09-13T11:31:12.000Z
Lando Norris claimed pole position for the first Spanish Grand Prix to be held on Formula 1's new Madring circuit in Madrid, ahead of F1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli.
Antonelli won't need to blast from the back to the front like he did last time out at Monza, though that may be difficult anyway given the nature of this new temporary circuit and how hard it looks to overtake on.
Most drivers behaved themselves and there were no red flags in qualifying, despite fears this track would lead to frequent crashes.
But there were a couple of grid penalties to account for: Carlos Sainz drops three places for impeding Valtteri Bottas in Q1, Lance Stroll has a 40-place penalty for taking a completely new Honda power unit that promptly sprung a water leak before he could set a time, and Ollie Bearman will start from the pitlane after his Haas team changed a number of power unit components.
## Provisional Spanish GP starting grid
1 Lando Norris (McLaren)
2 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
6 George Russell (Mercedes)
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8 Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
16 Alex Albon (Williams)
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
18 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
20 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
Pitlane: Ollie Bearman (Haas)
### Winners and losers from MotoGP’s Misano sprint
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/winners-and-losers-from-motogps-misano-sprint/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T16:35:58.000Z
Marc Marquez [ran riot in the Misano MotoGP sprint](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-outfoxes-bezzecchi-to-take-crucial-misano-sprint-win/) \- and he was the only rider who could really be particularly elated with how his San Marino Grand Prix Saturday has panned out.
Here are our winners and losers from the 13-lap dress rehearsal race.
### Winner: Marc Marquez (1st)
Marquez had looked all through the weekend as the only rider with a real shot of stopping Bezzecchi - but it was still a surprise in the end, both that he succeeded and how easy he made it look.
After the sprint, he said that he thought a P2-P3 finish was on the cards with the soft rear. But with the medium, which he chose, "I was able to finish second-third... or victory!"
The difference-maker was the extra margin the medium granted him, seemingly in terms of the rear pushing the front, and he exploited it very well - blasting past Bezzecchi at the start and then breaking his counter-charge with a lap 11 1m30.7s scorcher. As long as Sunday's result is any kind of decent points haul, this weekend is a success.
### Loser: Fabio Quartararo (21st)
Before going in too hard on Quartararo, it is important to point out - he is the only Yamaha rider who looks like doing anything of note this weekend, and he is clearly trying.
A crash is a crash, and it looked very clumsy, Quartararo trying to outfox Moreira but getting caught out under braking by what he described as "zero" rear support and running out of margin. But also a bit of a chapeau. There were a total of 11 sub-1m32s laps by Yamaha riders in this race - 10 of those were Quartararo after the crash, and the other one was Quartararo before the crash. The pace is there.
### Loser: Pecco Bagnaia (13th)
“Honestly \[it’s\] difficult to speak about feeling when I don’t have any” was how Bagnaia opened his post-race debrief. We didn’t need him to tell us that though - the lack of feeling and control meant it was yet another fruitless sprint for the Ducati rider.
Given Misano is a track Bagnaia has done countless laps around in the past, he could have been forgiven for expecting a slightly different outcome from this weekend. Instead, it looks to be more of the same as he’s running out of things to try to escape his troubles aboard the GP26\.
“Really frustrated but also humiliated” was how Bagnaia summed up how his struggles have made him feel. A performance like this in front of a home crowd can’t have helped his overall confidence.
### Winner: Jorge Martin (3rd)
Martin lost points to both of his main title rivals at the conclusion of the 13 laps - but it looked on Friday like he would be losing a lot more than this, which is effectively bare minimum.
He was very close to an unwanted Q1 ticket yesterday, but corrected some things on the bike and in his riding - though remained outmatched in qualifying trim.
"I cannot ride with the soft \[rear\]," Martin lamented. "That's why I am suffering in time attack. I feel it's pushing \[the front\] and everything gets so aggressive, and really difficult to manage the bike."
Hence the choice of the medium for the sprint - and it clearly worked, enabling him to pick off Fermin Aldeguer and Fabio Di Giannantonio en route to a comfortable podium, even if the front was "cooked" by the laps behind the latter.
### Loser: Franco Morbidelli (12th)
A rare opportunity for a genuinely good weekend in what has been a profoundly forlorn season is being squandered here for Morbidelli, who does genuinely look pretty decent on pure pace.
But with a needless long lap penalty for impeding - imagine a long sigh in the middle of this sentence - meaning his Sunday is already compromised by default, perhaps the sprint was the big chance. Instead, he looked a bit timid over the first few corners, so got roughed up by Diogo Moreira and spent the rest of the race looking for a way back - which he never did find.
### Loser: Raul Fernandez/Trackhouse (7th)
If Fernandez's assessment is accurate, this is much more of a Trackhouse entry than a Fernandez entry - as he says his Q2 was hamstrung by a "problem on both bikes", which meant he was three tenths slower than he had been in Q1\. It had a huge knock-on on his grid position and meant his race prospects proved extremely limited as, after barging past Aldeguer, he got stuck behind Acosta and couldn't get the front tyre in a good enough state to give the KTM man anything to worry about.
The Aprilia is clearly better than seventh place here, but on Trackhouse's side the reliability could certainly be improved.
### Norris snatches first Madring Spanish GP pole from Antonelli
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-spanish-grand-prix-qualifying-norris-beats-antonelli-pole/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T17:02:35.000Z
Lando Norris snatched pole position for the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix from Formula 1 points leader Kimi Antonelli by just 0.011s in a breathless finale to qualifying at the Madring.
With Lewis Hamilton on provisional pole for Ferrari (1m32.079s) ahead of the Mercedes drivers after the first Q3 runs, Red Bull's Max Verstappen and the McLarens of Norris and Oscar Piastri waited until the very end of the session to set their final flying laps.
Norris - who was seventh in Q2 then fifth in Q1 - put in a lap of 1m31.824s right at the very end of Q3 as he found a second of laptime between Q2 and Q3.
He said it was "probably one of the best laps I've ever done" after taking his third pole position of 2026.
Verstappen improved as the clock ran out, but lost time in the final sector to qualify third, behind Antonelli, and 0.140s off Norris's pace.
Hamilton lost time in the first sector but still improved, only to qualify fourth and 0.189s off pole.
Charles Leclerc was just 0.006s behind Ferrari team-mate Hamilton as he rounded out the top five.
Mercedes' George Russell slid out of the final corner on his final effort, losing time and finishing sixth. His pace fell away after a table-topping performance in Q1, as he also finished sixth in Q2.
Piastri was off the pace throughout and finished seventh, 0.470s off his polesitting team-mate.
The other Red Bull of Liam Lawson was almost half a second off in eighth.
Alpine's Franco Colapinto rescued his car after it bottomed out at La Monumental in Q2 as he went on to secure ninth on the grid, having been one second off the pace in Q3.
Arvid Lindblad was two tenths further behind as he put his Racing Bulls 10th.
In Q2, Verstappen set the pace (with a 1m32.431s) to go 0.160s clear of Antonelli.
The speed trap-topping Audis were eliminated in Q2, with Nico Hulkenberg 11th and Gabriel Bortoleto another 0.165s off in 12th.
Esteban Ocon was 13th for Haas.
Monza polesitter Pierre Gasly lost a laptime to double yellows in Q2 and was eventually eliminated in 14th. "Compared to \[FP3\] it's a completely different car, I don’t get it," he said over the radio.
Replays also showed Gasly tapping the walls on the entry to Turn 16.
Racing Bulls's Yuki Tsunoda had a laptime deleted for track limits in Q2 and could not improve sufficiently. He was eliminated in 15th, one place ahead of Williams's Alex Albon - who was 3.101s off the ultimate pace in Q2.
Madrilenian Carlos Sainz was eliminated in 17th in Q1, having lapped just 0.005s slower than Williams team-mate Albon - who missed FP3 with suspension damage.
Both Aston Martins were eliminated in Q1: Fernando Alonso (18th) missed out by 0.076s and Lance Stroll did not execute a flying lap due to a suspected water pressure issue.
Stroll is set to start at the back of the grid with engine penalties.
The Cadillacs were split by two seconds with Sergio Perez 19th and Valtteri Bottas 20th.
Ollie Bearman failed to turn a lap in Q1 due to his FP3 crash, calling that a "shame" given the potential of his Haas.
## Qualifying result
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m31.824s
2 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.011s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.140s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.189s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.195s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.325s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.470s
8 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.492s
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.079s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.217s
**Q2**
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.019s (to Q3)
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.184s
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.463s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.549s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.880s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.328s
**Q1**
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.005s (to Q2)
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.081s
19 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +0.606s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.704s
21 Ollie Bearman (Haas) no time
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) no time
### Spanish Grand Prix 2026 Madring F1 qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T16:30:43.000Z
Lando Norris took his third pole position of the 2026 Formula 1 season as he pipped championship leader Kimi Antonelli in Spanish Grand Prix qualifying.
Below you'll find all the results from the first-ever F1 qualifying session at the Madring.
## Qualifying result
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m31.824s
2 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.011s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.140s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.189s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.195s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.325s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.470s
8 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.492s
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.079s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.217s
**Q2**
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.019s (to Q3)
12 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.184s
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.463s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.549s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.880s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.328s
**Q1**
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.005s (to Q2)
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.081s
19 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +0.606s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.704s
21 Ollie Bearman (Haas) no time
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) no time
### What it's like watching an F1 crash unfolding in front of you
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-it-is-like-watching-f1-crash-unfold-ollie-bearman-haas/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T13:59:42.000Z
It's the crunch that stands out.
That loud, violent, smack of carbonfibre and metal making violent contact with an immovable solid surface is what sticks in your mind when a Formula 1 car crashes into the barriers right in front of you.
It is what stands out recalling those moments at the end of the Spanish Grand Prix's FP3 when Ollie Bearman got it all wrong at the Madring's Turn 10 and ended up smashing into the barriers centimetres in front of me.
It is what I remember from the other time it happened to me, at the Monaco swimming pool back in 2001, when Ralf Schumacher shunted right at the end of opening practice on Thursday.
There is something strange in how your brain processes those moments when the car you are watching is suddenly not doing what you expect it to, and is well off line and travelling in the wrong direction.
You see it is going to go all wrong. You see the tyre smoke. You prepare yourself for the impact. Then the contact happens.
And then, what must be milliseconds later but seems an eternity: that crunch as the sound catches up with the light. It is that which rams home that this is a big one.
After that, the violence dies down, the strewn debris all rolls to a stop, and there is almost a calmness before the marshals get to action.
For a driver, these moments must be even harder to process and the emotions more extreme - as afterwards they appear to go through the classic five stages of grief.
Observing Bearman, as he sits in the Haas making clear to marshals he is OK, you can sense from the way he holds his head and hands the denial and then anger he has about having binned it right at the end of the final practice session.
As he climbs out through a hole in the barriers, there is the depression and then the acceptance of what has happened, as a moped arrives to whisk him away. But he stands there instead, staring into the distance, desperate to watch a crash replay on the big screen behind us.
Then, as the adrenaline winds down, Bearman - since ruled out of qualifying - is beckoned to the medical car. He climbs in the back, looking at the badly damaged Haas still wedged up against the wall. There is the acceptance that it is unlikely that this will not hamper the rest of his weekend.
As Bearman is driven away, the marshals move into action, lifting the car onto a truck and throwing chunks of wrecked carbonfibre through the gaps in the fence.
Drivers had talked before the weekend about the Madring being a punishing venue, and Bearman himself said that the plenty of crashes he had in the sim meant hopefully he had got them out of his system.
"Like that, you learn exactly where the limits are and you find them in the most efficient way possible," he said. "By doing that, you don't do that on the real track, hopefully…"
Unfortunately, real life bites sometimes. And it can be very noisy.
### Marquez outfoxes Bezzecchi to take crucial Misano sprint win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-outfoxes-bezzecchi-to-take-crucial-misano-sprint-win/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T13:27:47.000Z
Defending MotoGP champion Marc Marquez defeated title rival Marco Bezzecchi to win the sprint race at Misano.
Equipped with the medium rear tyre - versus the conventional sprint choice of soft - Marquez pounced on Bezzecchi immediately at the start, using a marginally better getaway to take control of the inside line into Turn 1.
He had far too much pace early on for Bezzecchi, building a lead of over a second - though Bezzecchi did whittle this down to around the 0.5-0.6s mark in the second half of the 13-lap race.But the fastest lap of the race from Marquez on lap 11 broke his resistance, and he settled into second behind Marquez.
Points leader Jorge Martin mitigated the damage by completing the podium - which means he now heads Marquez by 14 points and Bezzecchi by 22.
Fifth after the start, Martin quickly picked off Fermin Aldeguer and then later in the race overtook outside title contender Fabio Di Giannantonio - pouncing at Turn 6 and then fighting off the Ducati on the straight out of the corner.
Di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez completed the top five, the latter having made the most of an Aldeguer v. Pedro Acosta battle up ahead of him to clear both.That battle ended up putting Aldeguer in the firing line of Raul Fernandez, too, and he ultimately came home behind both Acosta and Fernandez, and ahead of last points-scorer Luca Marini.
Fabio Quartararo was the only rider to crash, falling off when he ran out of room trying to squeeze past Diogo Moreira on the inside. He remounted to finish 21st and last.
## Race results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +1.068s
3 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +3.538s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +3.968s
5 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +4.348s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +6.944s
7 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +7.707s
8 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +8.832s
9 Luca Marini (Honda) +11.712s
10 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +14.534s
11 Dario Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +17.043s
12 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +17.405s
13 Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) +17.763s
14 Brad Binder (KTM) +18.181s
15 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +18.476s
16 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +18.752s
17 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +21.113s
18 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +20.698s\*
19 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +21.740s
20 Joan Mir (Honda) +22.054s
21 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +24.419s
*Razgatlioglu received a one-place penalty for track limits on the last lap*
### Hamilton, Bearman crash in final Madrid F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-bearman-crash-in-final-madrid-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T12:11:06.000Z
Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli headed a final Spanish Grand Prix practice session at the Madring featuring two red flags, including one for a Lewis Hamilton crash at the final corner.
Antonelli ended up 0.166s clear of Hamilton's Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, the long-time pacesetter before the first red flag and after the session resumed, with the McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris improving to third and fourth in that period too.
But Hamilton's crash was the session's most noteworthy moment - even if Ollie Bearman's late red-flag inducing crash was the biggest of the Madring weekend yet.
Hamilton had just set the fastest middle sector of all (which still stood as the fastest at the end of the session) when he crashed at the final corner 23 minutes into FP3, locking up and heading nose-first, square-on into the Tecpro barrier.
> Lewis Hamilton locks up and hits the barrier! 😳
>
> Here is how the incident unfolded... 👀[#F1](https://x.com/hashtag/F1?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [#SpanishGP](https://x.com/hashtag/SpanishGP?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/YDTN59NAlC](https://t.co/YDTN59NAlC?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Formula 1 (@F1) [September 12, 2026](https://x.com/F1/status/2098728899790135798?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
He found reverse gear from there and, despite protestations from Ferrari to stop the car, attempted to limp his SF-26 back to the pits.
With the front wing rubbing against the front-right tyre, which became punctured, Hamilton did eventually park the Ferrari at Turn 14 - though only after he was told by race engineer Carlo Santi: "It's a formal request, they \[the FIA\] told us to stop in the safest place possible. Stop before Turn 12 \[La Monumental\], on the left."
Repairs to the barrier took a significant amount of time, which prompted race control to take the unusual step of pausing the clock to prevent the session time from elapsing before track activity could continue on what is only the second day of official F1 running at the track.
FP3 did finally resume 39 minutes after the red flag was shown with a quarter of an hour left on the clock, a period in which Leclerc improved his best time before Antonelli set the fastest lap of the weekend so far, a 1m32.797s.
Any further changes to the head of the order were prevented by Bearman's crash, which came at Turn 10, the first part of a right-left leading into the circuit's banked La Monumental corner.
Bearman did not appear to clip the wall but lost the car at the apex and spun, which pitched his car backwards into the barrier on the outside of the subsequent left-hand bend.
He was assured by his Haas team afterwards not to worry and that the team would "get it rebuilt" before qualifying, but significant damage to the left-hand side of his car suggested that is far from guaranteed.
Max Verstappen completed just seven laps in the session but ended up fifth-fastest in the best of the Red Bulls, two places but more than seven tenths faster than team-mate Liam Lawson. George Russell was sandwiched between them in the second of the Mercedes cars.
Hamilton's time was still good enough for ninth, with the Audis of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto either side of him.
Alex Albon was the only driver not to set a time. He glanced the barrier with the left-hand side of his car exiting the penultimate corner and could not rejoin the session, even after the long pause in proceedings.
## Session results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m32.797s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.166s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.189s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.236s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) +0.375s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.702s
7 Liam Lawson (Red Bull Racing) +1.105s
8 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.136s
9 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +1.487s
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.491s
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.549s
12 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.633s
13 Oliver Bearman (Haas) +1.684s
14 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.708s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.768s
16 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +2.174s
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.223s
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.667s
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.773s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.644s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.873s
22 Alexander Albon (Williams) — no time
### F1 Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring: Practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-spanish-grand-prix-at-the-madring-practice-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T11:50:12.000Z
Kimi Antonelli led Charles Leclerc to end Formula 1 practice at the new Madring circuit on top - as both Lewis Hamilton and Ollie Bearman crashed.
Below you'll find the full results from all three practice sessions.
### FP3 results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m32.797s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.166s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.189s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.236s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) +0.375s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.702s
7 Liam Lawson (Red Bull Racing) +1.105s
8 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.136s
9 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +1.487s
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.491s
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.549s
12 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.633s
13 Oliver Bearman (Haas) +1.684s
14 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.708s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.768s
16 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +2.174s
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.223s
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.667s
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.773s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.644s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.873s
22 Alexander Albon (Williams) — no time
### FP2 results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m33.662s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.113s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.149s
4 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.228s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.337s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.401s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.538s
8 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.096s
9 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.205s
10 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.276s
11 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.297s
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.398s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.508s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.541s
15 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.224s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.629s
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +3.118s
18 Alex Albon (Williams) +3.274s
19 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.533s
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.611s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.065s
22 Lando Norris (McLaren) — no time
### FP1 results
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m34.077s
2 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.286s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.459s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.543s
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.626s
6 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.870s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.956s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.071s
9 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.452s
10 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.462s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.575s
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.680s
13 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.757s
14 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.856s
15 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.396s
16 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2.680s
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.793s
18 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +2.862s
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.177s
20 Alex Albon (Williams) +3.514s
21 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +4.073s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.741s
### New Misano lap record from Bezzecchi as he beats Marquez to pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marco-bezzecchi-new-misano-motogp-lap-record-san-marino-gp-pole/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T09:48:24.000Z
MotoGP title hopeful Marco Bezzecchi dominated qualifying for the San Marino Grand Prix at Misano, seeing off his main rival this weekend Marc Marquez.
A first-ever 1m29s MotoGP lap of Misano - replacing Pecco Bagnaia's 2024 time as the new record, and set in the wheeltracks of Aprilia team-mate and points leader Jorge Martin - propelled Bezzecchi to a huge lead early on in Q2, and meant he didn't have to risk on the second run.
Though the gap was whittled down by the end, nobody got close to Bezzecchi's 1m29.982s.
Marquez bounced back from a mistake early on his second run to deliver the second-fastest lap of the session, two tenths down on Bezzecchi, with Fermin Aldeguer a surprise third for Gresini Ducati.
Aldeguer worked his way through Q1 on his year-old Ducati and found another two tenths between sessions to score his second front row of the year.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) crashed late on but still took fourth, ahead of Martin - whose last-lap attempt went awry at Tramonto - and Honda standout Luca Marini.
Pedro Acosta again led the KTM contingent in seventh, ahead of Di Giannantonio's team-mate Franco Morbidelli, who will serve a long-lap penalty on Sunday for having impeded Enea Bastianini on Friday.
Two Q2 crashes meant a frustrated Alex Marquez could do no better than ninth, but he still outpaced Raul Fernandez (who would have been fifth had he matched his Q1 time), Johann Zarco and Pol Espargaro.
Fabio Quartararo led the Yamaha contingent by six tenths but just didn't have the sectors three-and-four performance to challenge for the top two in Q1, ending up a quarter of a second back in 13th.
He was followed in the order by Bagnaia, who never looked like a big threat for Q2 - even before he scuffed up four successive laps on his second run in Q1.
## Qualifying times
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m29.982s
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.198s
3 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.368s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.404s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.587s
6 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.627s
7 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.658s
8 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.661s
9 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.714s
10 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.871s
11 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.905s
12 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.198s
13 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.222s to Q2
14 Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.339s
15 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.389s
16 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.536s
17 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.572s
18 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.836s
19 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.975s
20 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.016s
21 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.687s
### F1's TV visuals are letting its Madrid track down
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-madrid-spanish-gp-tv-coverage-madring/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T09:28:03.000Z
Television doesn't do the Madring justice.
It's a spectacular place to watch Formula 1 cars, which was clear from heading trackside during FP1 and visiting various vantage points in the first half of the lap during the session. Yet following FP2 from the media centre with sight of the world feed it looked like an entirely different - blander - venue.
Partly, that is the curse of such 'urban' circuits. The nature of such facilities means endless fences, barriers punctuated only by occasional bridges branded by Pirelli, American Express et al, which dominate what fans at home see. It also leaves little room to manoeuvre when it comes to camera positions in terms of space, especially given the need to ensure they offer clean backdrops that aren't polluted by some of the necessary temporary infrastructure such as Portaloos.
This makes it difficult to showcase a circuit that, while certainly no Suzuka or Spa, is a very worthy addition to the calendar. "A commitment track" is how Charles Leclerc characterised it, and that's exactly what drivers and fans desire from the driving challenge of a new circuit. Yet the onboard cameras, which usually sanitise and stabilise the experience, are forced to do the heavy lifting.
It's a privileged position to be able to get up close to the cars when they are running - and this isn’t about arguing viewers should appreciate what they can't see. But while the coverage is, for all the criticisms, excellent (check out a broadcast from 30 years ago to see how far it has come), it's the alpha and omega when it comes to showcasing F1\. You cannot build excitement and enthusiasm for a first grand prix, then show it off so poorly.
There's an unavoidable flattening effect from filming that is impossible to get around, and no matter how many races you see from Spa before you visit, your reaction to seeing the steep incline of Eau Rouge in person will always take your breath away.
This means the elevation change at Madring will be subdued on screen. But what doesn't come over so well is just how unforgiving it is, giving drivers little or no margin for error in many places where there can be big laptime gains, or losses, in committing that little bit more. This side of Madring should be experienced by everyone, not just those on the ground.
The banked corner of La Monumental is a great example. Conceived as a Mexico stadium-style cauldron, where spectators crowd the corner, it is a uniquely long turn with big consequences should things go wrong - yet it becomes flat on TV. The low angle and the not-quite-high-enough elevated angle diminish its grandeur. And parts of the track resemble just another Miami/Sochi-style venue.
Part of that is the surroundings. It's built in and around the IFEMA exhibition centre, which by definition will comprise large halls and their infrastructure. In some ways, this is used well with the distinctive indoor team trucks/engineering hubs (as opposed to the hospitality units, which are outside). But it poses limitations because the environs are, fundamentally, bland. There's little that screams 'Madrid' about it, partly because it's outlying rather than in the city centre.
It will improve next year, even if no conscious action is taken - because the Madring will have had time to bed in, it will be tidier and cleaner. Camera locations and views will be optimised and that should at least close the gap.
None of this is easy and plenty of effort will have already gone into showing it off well, but there must also be some serious thinking in how to present a charismatic circuit that genuinely adds something unique to the calendar more faithfully.
The design of the ribbon of asphalt is the key part of any F1 newcomer, and Madring has done a good job with that, but more can be done to show that to the outside world.
**A version of this column first appeared in** [**From the Paddock**](https://theracemedia.beehiiv.com/p/the-surprise-plan-to-keep-alonso-in-f1?ref=the-race.com) **\- part of The Race's new expanded newsletter offering in which our team bring exclusive paddock and behind the scenes insight direct to your inbox.** [**Click here to find out more and sign up**](https://theracemedia.beehiiv.com/?ref=the-race.com)**.**
### F1 teams face big Madring strategy dilemma
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-face-big-madring-strategy-dilemma/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T08:52:45.000Z
Formula 1 isn't really heading for the six-stopper Spanish Grand Prix that George Russell half joked was on the cards after opening practice.
But tyre supplier Pirelli says a combination of factors at F1's newest venue means strategy is going to be particularly tricky to work out.
In fact, the initial prediction following Friday's running is that teams are going to be stuck between a rock and a hard place when working out what is best to do.
The super-long pitlane, which has left the pitstop loss time at around 24 seconds, is a deterrent for tyre changes and means the most logical route should be a one-stopper.
But high levels of thermal degradation of the rubber, and particularly challenging front left graining, means that a two-stop would be sensible.
With no middle ground between those two choices, it is not going to be a case of what is the best strategy to pick. It is about which is the least bad.
**Outside expectations**
F1 teams were left wide-eyed after opening practice when the tyre degradation looked pretty extreme.
A combination of high grip asphalt (highest of the season according to Pirelli), a smooth surface and fast corners has meant cars are sliding a lot – and that triggered some alarming findings during that first session.
As Russell said: "It's often a possibility on new tarmacs that the grip is very high but you're sliding quite aggressively.
"With the deg we had in FP1, a six-stop race would have been the fastest way. FP2 was slightly better and I'm sure the race on Sunday will be better again. But that's the biggest question mark."
From Pirelli's perspective, there are two issues that drivers and teams are going to have to manage as the Spanish GP weekend continues – and neither is particularly straightforward.
The most complex issue is front left graining, which is being generated because the combination of the smooth surface and high grip means the rubber hits peak stress easily and the surface effectively tears.
Front graining triggers mid-corner understeer and a subsequent drop in performance. It is much harder to manage on the kind of high-speed corners that feature at the Madring than it is at low-speed venues.
Oscar Piastri said after Friday that this element had been the biggest headache from running.
"It's been a nightmare to try and manage the tyres with graining," he said. "It normally gets better through a weekend, but we'll have to wait and see how much better."
It is not just the fronts that are proving to be hard to deal with around the Madring, because the high-speed corners and the way the cars are almost constantly in turns means that the rears are overheating too.
Throw these two elements together and the result is high degradation.
Pirelli chief engineer Simone Berra reckoned that the drop off here was at a "very high" level – around 0.2-0.3 seconds per lap based on some of the long runs in FP2.
"It was a surprise to have these kinds of values," he said. "They were outside our range of expectations."
While general track evolution and improved set-ups should help reduce that figure by the time the race comes around, the scene is set for the Spanish GP turning into a race where tyre strategy will be critical.
That is what has fuelled all teams apart from Audi electing to keep two hard tyres back after Friday practice – as that could well be the most resilient option for Sunday.
Berra said that the unpredictability thrown up by the front graining and overheating, plus the levels of the degradation, meant that plotting the right path through the race was going to be tough to nail.
"I don't want to exclude any kind of situation," he said. "I think looking from the data, you would think that the teams will go for a two-stop because the degradation is very high.
"But the pitstop loss is 24 seconds, so I'm pretty sure that some teams will try to reach as a target the one-stop race.
"It means we could end up in different situations, with some teams trying the one-stop and other teams trying the two-stops."
Which route is best is unclear right now, and matters are further complicated by how difficult it could be to overtake.
For even though the new power units mean deployment offsets can make passes easier at some venues than in the past, equally there are downsides to falling into the pack.
Berra added: "If you are in traffic, you lose quite a lot of performance, and you also destroy your tyres because you lose load and you generate high temperatures as you're sliding.
"So, we have different factors that are pushing teams towards different directions.
"It's not easy; in fact, it is pretty complicated."
### The surprise plan to keep Alonso in F1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-surprise-plan-to-keep-fernando-alonso-in-f1/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T20:47:42.000Z
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is working on a fresh rules concession plan to help accelerate Honda’s progress and keep Fernando Alonso in Formula 1.
Alonso is currently weighing up whether he wants to stay in grand prix racing next year, as he feels little excitement for F1’s current regulations and is facing competitive uncertainties too.
It has emerged at the Spanish Grand Prix, however, that efforts are underway behind the scenes to give Aston Martin’s struggling engine supplier Honda an extra helping hand for 2027 – and therefore boost Alonso’s incentive to remain.
Fresh from a difficult Italian Grand Prix outing for Honda’s upgraded power unit, Ben Sulayem met with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll on Thursday to discuss a potential action plan that can help both his squad’s competitive fortunes and secure a fresh contract with Alonso.
It is understood that the FIA president, having spoken to Alonso at Monza, plans further talks with the two-time world champion in Madrid to try push forward with a package of measures that can help.
Earlier this year, the FIA helped secure agreement from all manufacturers for Honda to be granted extra assistance under the ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) catch-up mechanism.
This opened the door for Honda to get more test bench hours plus the ability to secure an extra $19 million spending package – although some of this was taken as [a theoretical loan](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-honda-19-million-dollar-f1-bailout-will-really-work/) against its own future development budget.
It is unclear what fresh assistance Stroll and Alonso are chasing now, and sources suggest that discussions have not yet got as far as any formal rule change details being focused on and talked about in detail with Honda.
Options could involve more homologation freedoms, extra spending allowances or even specific rule changes in areas where Honda feels that its progress is being limited.
Any tweaks to the rules would need support from other manufacturers, however, who showed earlier this year that they were willing to put self-interest aside to assist.
Sources have told The Race that Ben Sulayem is determined to do everything in his power to help push this matter through, as he thinks this would be of benefit to F1 as a whole.
That is because he wants to avoid a situation where Honda is stuck where it is – which would risk both Alonso walking and the Japanese engine manufacturer itself even pondering its own future in F1 if it continues to face difficulties on track.
### Alonso 'very sad'
Speaking at the New Economy Forum event in Madrid on Friday morning, Ben Sulayem spoke about how a chat he had with Alonso at the Italian GP had sparked a call to action.
He revealed that he was awaiting some feedback from Alonso about what the FIA can do to assist things.
“I saw him very sad,” said Ben Sulayem. “I said, Fernando, I understand that it's not acceptable that you are coming to your own country, and then now, after two times \[being\] the world champion, you are in the last \[place\].
“We did something earlier in May, legally, for the team, towards the engine, to go and improve.
“I said to him, I'm not going to tell you what we are going to do. Please tell me what you want! Because you are the driver, come and tell me what do you want us to do, to improve these results.”
On Thursday, Alonso hinted at potential changes being on the horizon beyond the fuel flow increase that has been set in stone.
His comments caused intrigue in the paddock, but now appear to be related to his conversations with Ben Sulayem.
“I still have some hope that next year’s rule will still have to be tweaked again, that this is not the final version,” he said.
Aston Martin chief trackside officer Mike Krack said at the Madring circuit that a decision on Alonso’s future would depend on a lot of factors. But he had faith that, whatever it was Alonso wanted, it would be seen through.
**“**I think he made clear that it is not one single thing that he wants to see change,” explained Krack. “I think the sport needs someone like that. I think we will all be keen to see Fernando continue.
“And what can be done to accommodate, I think it will be done. And then I hope we come to a good solution and continue.”
Ben Sulayem is emphatic that he will do what he can to ensure that this is not Alonso’s final year in F1.
“There's no way we can allow Fernando to leave,” he said. “He has to be successful, and then he leaves whenever he wants, not because he was forced to leave because of the performance.”
### Winners and losers from F1 Madring practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-f1-madring-friday-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T18:21:34.000Z
The first day of proper Formula 1 on-track running at the Madring didn't produce the predicted chaos.
But it did provide some early winners and losers...
### Winner: Madring
A first day of F1 track action at a venue is always scary times, especially for a track that was tipped to be an immediate cauldron of chaos.
This was largely true in Formula 3 and Formula 2 - but the Formula 1 grid by and large kept things tidy, and first impressions up and down the field seem seriously positive.
This has to be caveated with the note that, as always, it's in everyone's best interest to speak highly of the new race, and there are serious question marks over the quality of race action on Sunday - though unexpectedly high tyre wear might help.
But the track is getting early approval.
"We've seen street circuits come and go in Formula 1 - and it feels already like this is one that's here to stay," rejoiced Mercedes deputy team boss Bradley Lord.
"I think putting the perfect lap together tomorrow in qualifying is going to be a real challenge and that's exactly what it should be."
"I think it's a very, very impressive facility," said Racing Bulls chief Alan Permane. "It doesn't feel like a new street track they've just sort of slapped down in a car park, it really feels like they've taken some time and effort and put together a really interesting circuit. Really impressed."
Drivers weren't necessarily unanimous (Max Verstappen, for instance, just doesn't care for street circuits in principle, as he admitted), but there was significant praise on that end, too, with Pierre Gasly saying he "really loved it" and Charles Leclerc appreciating a "commitment" track with higher grip than expected. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
### Loser: Arvid Lindblad
OK, not everybody kept it clean - with Lindblad the outlier, triggering a long slide that ended with a right-rear-first smack into the Turn 13 barriers.
"It looked quite bad, but actually the impact was not very hard," he said afterwards. "Charles did it in much more spectacular fashion in Monza!
"Yeah, there's a bit of damage, it's a good amount, quite a lot, but nothing that's not repairable. So I just apologise to the engineers, but especially the mechanics, because they've got a bit of extra work tonight, unfortunately." - **VK**
### Winner: Arvid Lindblad, also
Even with the crash, both Lindblad and his boss Permane were remarkably, tellingly bullish - believing his mere 0.228s deficit to the front was a genuine signal.
"It's not really mixed emotions, I'd much rather be in 4th place with a damaged car than 18th place with a car with four wheels on," enthused Permane.
"It's not ideal of course, and we certainly can't do that every weekend - but we can accept that.
"There's no doubt the car is quick, very quick, it's properly P4 pace today, and I don't say it'll be P4 pace tomorrow afternoon, but it'll be right up there, I think."
Lindblad said: "We were P4 on merit. Every lap we did in FP2 we were fast, so that's the most important thing." **\- VK**
### Loser: McLaren
Golden rule at a new F1 track: get as many laps in during practice to make sure you're prepared.
Sadly, McLaren couldn't follow that rule as a gearbox failure ruled Lando Norris out of any meaningful running in FP2\. A big opportunity to get the car and driver in the right window.
If that wasn't bad enough, Oscar Piastri, who did get the two practices in, said that the team is "lacking pace".
We've seen McLaren turn things around from difficult Fridays before, but the usual Mercedes juggernaut and what looks like a resurgent Ferrari certainly make this look like a tough event ahead. **\- Jack Benyon**
### Winner: Haas
The upgrade Haas debuted on both cars at Monza was always expected to work better at the Madring and the early on-track evidence supports that.
Esteban Ocon was ninth in FP2, calling it a “very good day” after practice, with early indications suggesting he doesn’t have the car inconsistency issues that limited him at Monza.
“There doesn't seem to be the inconsistency that we had in Monza,” Ocon said.
“We've changed many parts on the car again, and now it seems to be working quite well.
“We need to have a deep dive tonight to see what has improved exactly, but so far, driving the car, I'm not feeling that today there was an issue.
“We need to obviously keep that going for tomorrow. Overall, it's been pretty good.”
He also suggested the prevalence of tyre graining at this circuit is good news for Haas, which suffers less from it than its rivals do. **\- Josh Suttill**
### Loser: Red Bull
The best part of Red Bull's day was Verstappen's retort when asked if he would have wanted more given where Lindblad (fourth in FP2) was, and Max's hilarious reply was "I don't drive that car, so I don't know how fast it is".
Verstappen merely pointed to needing to improve the balance, while team-mate Liam Lawson complained of a lack of rear grip. Still, it was a complicated day, as even though Verstappen finished higher up the order in FP1, in fourth, he was closer to the Mercedes' pace in FP2 when he was sixth.
It's fair to say we haven't got a clear picture of where the Red Bull/McLaren/Ferrari picture lies, but Ferrari certainly seems to have the upper hand at the moment, and Red Bull might be F1's fourth-best team, again. *\-* **JB**
### Winner: Mercedes
Such a tough track still has the potential to catch 2026’s benchmark team out, but for now Mercedes looks reasonably comfortable out front with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli topping a practice session each.
“We started well in FP1, and the car was strong from the off,” FP1 pacesetter Russell said.
“We made some set-up changes for FP2, but I’m not sure they improved the car, so we may row back on them overnight.”
From the limited long-run data, there’s nothing to suggest Mercedes doesn’t head into the rest of the weekend as the marginal favourites once again. **\- JS**
### All that happened in red-flagged second Madring F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/all-that-happened-in-second-madring-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T09:15:24.000Z
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli topped the times in Madring's second practice session as the first red flag of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend was triggered by the star of the session up until that point.
The Madring circuit had been labelled a car killer in the run-up to the event, and drivers were on best behaviour with no incidents in FP1\. Unfortunately, there was a red flag in FP2 as just under 15 minutes of the session was lost.
Lindblad repeatedly put his Racing Bulls up in the top five in the early running and was fourth when he lost the rear really early trying to enter Turn 13, the slow left-hander after the banked La Monumental corner, with 25 minutes remaining in the session.
Lindblad reported he was OK, and apologised to the team. At the time, the next 'midfield' car was Esteban Ocon's Haas in eighth, 0.977s behind!
After Lindblad's shunt, just over 12 minutes remained in the session, which meant the overall times from before stood with very few improvements in the top 10 after it.
While George Russell topped FP1, it was points leader Kimi Antonelli appeared to be a step ahead in FP2 and repeatedly topped the order as teams experimented with tyres and set-up.
In fact, Russell emerged from the red flag on mediums, which basically consigned him to his pre-red flag fifth. He had struggled to pull together his equivalent soft fast lap to Antonelli, lacking even a personal best first sector on his best lap.
Instead, the Ferraris challenged Antonelli with Leclerc 0.113s behind the benchmark and just ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who struggled with his front end earlier in the session, narrowly avoiding the wall at the Turn 17 exit.
Behind Lindblad and Russell, Max Verstappen led Oscar Piastri, both the highest-placed drivers in their respective teams, while Yuki Tsunoda improved to beat Ocon and set the second-best time of the midfield in eighth.
Verstappen's team-mate Lawson rounded out the top 10, complaining of a lack of rear-end grip and losing time to hitting the wall, ahead of Ocon.
Piastri's team-mate Lando Norris did not have a great session.
Norris only managed two laps on track, neither at speed, after gearbox issues where he had found a false neutral. There was a lot of work going on at the back of the car throughout the session, but the time lost will be even more crucial than normal, where track time is at a premium on what is a new track.
Fernando Alonso was another driver in trouble with pre-session clutch issues, but he did get out on track to set the 17th-best time, splitting the Williams.
Lance Stroll also had a late issue in the other Aston Martin and was told to slow.
### FP2 results
1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m33.662s
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.113s
3. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.149s
4. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.228s
5. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.337s
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.401s
7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.538s
8. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.096s
9. Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.205s
10. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.276s
11. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.297s
12. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.398s
13. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.508s
14. Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.541s
15. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.224s
16. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.629s
17. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +3.118s
18. Alex Albon (Williams) +3.274s
19. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.533s
20. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.611s
21. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.065s
22. Lando Norris (McLaren) — no time
### Misano Friday: Who made Q2 and who missed out
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/bezzecchi-beats-marquez-brothers-to-lead-misano-friday/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T16:17:14.000Z
Aprilia MotoGP rider Marco Bezzecchi outpaced the Marquez brothers to set the Friday pace at Misano.
After narrowly trailing Marc Marquez in the opening session, Bezzecchi beat the reigning champion in the time attacks at the conclusion of the hour-long second practice.
He was a tenth quicker than Marquez, as the laptimes improved by over a second relative to first practice.
Alex Marquez was third, ahead of VR46 duo Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli - Morbidelli having to rely on a last-second improvement after an earlier top 10-worthy lap was struck off for track limits.
Pedro Acosta placed sixth but for once will definitely not be the sole KTM representative in Q2, with injury stand-in Pol Espargaro also booking a Q2 spot in ninth - aided by using Acosta as a reference ahead of him.
Two Hondas have also made the cut in Luca Marini and Johann Zarco.
Finally, points leader Jorge Martin has avoided a title blow despite trailing team-mate Bezzecchi by half a second - as he snuck into a Q2-granting top-10 spot by 0.016s over Enea Bastianini.
The Q1 roster on Saturday will include the likes of Bastianini, Raul Fernandez, Fermin Aldeguer and Pecco Bagnaia, the two-time champion looking particularly out of sorts again.
## Session results
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m30.144s
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.103s
3 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.185s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.241s
5 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.271s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.344s
7 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.496s
8 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.510s
9 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.530s
10 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.546s
\---
11 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.560s
12 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.572s
13 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.614s
14 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.715s
15 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.799s
16 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.034s
17 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.119s
18 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.137s
19 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.315s
20 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.423s
21 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.927s
### What happened in F1's first-ever Madring practice session
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-madring-first-practice-what-happened/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T12:55:03.000Z
Mercedes' George Russell led his team-mate Kimi Antonelli in a largely incident-free FP1 session for the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring.
Russell set the benchmark of 1m34.077s with Antonelli 0.286s off the pace. The pair set their respective fastest laps on soft tyres towards the end of the 60-minute session - the first for F1 at the new street circuit on the outskirts of Spanish capital Madrid.
Barring a few yellow flags for spins and off-track excursions, the session was trouble-free with no red flags waved.
Numerous drivers had their times deleted with 12 violations at Turn 5 and nine at Turn 17\. Graining was also visible on the medium and soft tyres after just a handful of laps, with the spectacular-looking banked Turn 12 (La Monumental) putting considerable load through them.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was third on soft tyres, 0.459s off the pace, while team-mate Lewis Hamilton locked up at Turn 17 on a soft-tyred flying lap, so his fastest lap of the session was a 1m34.620s set on mediums.
Leclerc is believed to be using the older-spec Ferrari power unit from Zandvoort after crashing out at Monza with the upgraded Ferrari engine.
Lando Norris was two tenths off Max Verstappen in sixth, with the McLaren driver’s fastest time coming early into a soft-tyre stint, his team-mate Oscar Piastri another two tenths off in eighth.
Between the McLarens was Racing Bulls's Arvid Lindblad, around a second off the pace.
Audi's Nico Hulkenberg was 1.452s off in ninth, and Red Bull's stand-in Liam Lawson rounded out the top 10.
The field was split by 4.741s with Cadillac rounding out the standings - Valtteri Bottas seven-tenths behind team-mate Sergio Perez, who in turn was half a second back from the next-slowest team.
Aston Martin's home driver Fernando Alonso was 2.396s off the pace in 15th but almost eight tenths faster than team-mate Lance Stroll, 19th.
Carlos Sainz began his home weekend in 17th, 2.793s off the pace, while Williams team-mate Alex Albon was seven tenths slower and 20th ahead of only the Cadillacs.
## FP1 times
George Russell (Mercedes) 1m34.077s
Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.286s
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.459s
Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.543s
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.626s
Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.870s
Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.956s
Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.071s
Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.452s
Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.462s
Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.575s
Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.680s
Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.757s
Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.856s
Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.396s
Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2.680s
Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.793s
Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +2.862s
Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.177s
Alex Albon (Williams) +3.514s
Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +4.073s
Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +4.741s
### Chinese manufacturer has to make 'serious offer' to join F1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/byd-has-to-make-serious-offer-to-become-f1s-12th-team/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T13:49:17.000Z
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem is open to Formula 1 adding a 12th team to the grid, but says any candidate will have to join on the championship's terms.
Ben Sulayem prompted the FIA to launch an expression of interest process in early 2023 for an 11th team to join the grid, despite resistance from many of the existing teams to expand the field.
Cadillac emerged as the sole successful candidate from that process despite continued resistance, becoming F1's 11th team at the start of 2026.
Since then, there's been talk of a Chinese manufacturer [such as BYD](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/horner-in-talks-over-new-byd-f1-team-entry/) weighing up whether to launch an entry of its own.
BYD doesn't want to acquire an existing team (as Audi did with Sauber, for example), so any brand-new team would need the FIA to launch a new expression of interest process.
And, speaking at the New Economy Forum in Madrid, Ben Sulayem opened the door to restarting that process for a manufacturer like BYD.
"The FIA can open for a 12th team. But, 'Do we need a team, Mr President?' No, we don't need a team, we need the team," Ben Sulayem said.
"So now we have three races in America and the United States, and we have a manufacturer, we have Haas, but we needed an OEM \[manufacturer\].
"So I said, and even the promoter, \[Formula One Management\], agrees that we need the team, and the team has to come from China."
Attracting manufacturers was a key aim of the process of forming F1's 2026 regulations, with sustainable fuel, partial electrification of the power unit and then the removal of the MGU-H all crucial to convincing Audi to join - with Honda also reversing its F1 withdrawal.
But Ben Sulayem made it clear that any new manufacturer would be joining on the terms of the FIA/F1 in future.
"I had meetings with them \[other manufacturers\], and they came and they said, we need to be in. And one of them was BYD, and one was Geely. And we said, 'OK, we will open the expression of interest if you are coming'.
"But the regulations is not going to be affected only by Chinese \[manufacturers\]. We cannot do this. The regulations have to stay permanent, and it has to \[keep\] stability in it.
"I know the Chinese are leading in electrification, but is the only way to reach our target in electrification? What are we after? We are after a clean environment and clean air. So there are so many ways to reach it.
"Now we are opening to hydrogen, hybrid, electrification for the WRC \[World Rally Championship\] in the future, and sustainable fuel.
"So when I had my meetings, I was very, very clear. Why don't you take a team to start with - that was with BYD; why should I be secret about it? - and they said, 'No, we want a team ourselves'.
"\[Ben Sulayem said\] 'Fine. Then come back with a serious offer that we can see that it's going to work'. And this is our regulations. I was very clear with them about the regulation.
"We have a race in China. It's huge. The manufacturers, we have also, we had a Chinese driver \[Zhou Guanyu who raced for Sauber from 2022-24\] and the Chinese technology is there.
"But it has to be on our terms and our regulations, which is fair for everyone. Because that's also the responsibility of the FIA."
F1's currently set to move towards having V8 engines from 2031, a logical entry point for any new manufacturer.
### Marquez on top at start of Misano MotoGP weekend
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-on-top-at-start-of-misano-motogp-weekend/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T09:45:25.000Z
Marc Marquez led MotoGP title rival Marco Bezzecchi in the opening practice session of the San Marino Grand Prix premier-class weekend at Misano.
With practice held on a 'greener' Misano than usual in terms of grip, due to weather in the lead-up to the weekend, laptimes tumbled gradually through the session even as riders stuck with the same rubber.
Marquez ultimately sniped the top spot from Bezzecchi by 0.060s at the chequered flag, courtesy of a particularly strong final sector.
Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia), Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) and Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) completed a top five covered by two tenths.
Pedro Acosta (KTM) was right behind them in sixth despite an early crash at Turn 1.
Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) was the only other rider to crash, falling on his outlap at Turn 4 just 30 seconds after the start of the session - in a shunt so sudden it basically looked like a wet-weather crash.
## Session results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati) 1m31.468s
2 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.060s
3 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.133s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.180s
5 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.182s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.210s
7 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.254s
8 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.267s
9 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.402s
10 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.509s
11 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.537s
12 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.659s
13 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.703s
14 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +0.737s
15 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.753s
16 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.761s
17 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.900s
18 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.993s
19 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.153s
20 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.170s
21 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.854s
### What's behind Russell and Mercedes' F1 engine penalty delay
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/george-russell-mercedes-f1-engine-penalty-delay/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T08:40:21.000Z
George Russell is to delay taking his inevitable Formula 1 engine change penalty until Mercedes' new ADUO-upgraded specification is ready - which may not be until around the time of the United States Grand Prix.
Early-season reliability problems mean both Russell and team-mate Kimi Antonelli have been forced to go over their in-season component allocation to get through to the end of the campaign.
Antonelli elected to take extra power unit components at the Italian GP last weekend, which meant he started down in 19th - although he still managed to win the race.
It had initially appeared likely that Russell would choose to take his at the next race in Azerbaijan, because the Baku circuit's long straights would allow him to make similar progress up the field.
However, it has emerged that Mercedes plans to hold fire on making the switch because it wants to coincide Russell's change with upgraded parts.
As [The Race reported](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-new-engine-upgrade-plan-is-terrible-news-for-ferrari/) after the Italian GP, Mercedes is preparing an update to its power unit thanks to the extra allowance it has been granted under F1's Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) system.
This move has added an extra layer of complication as to when Russell takes a new power unit because he is already at the limit of several of his components - so has no headroom for new parts without penalties.
Having maxed out his internal combustion engine, turbo, energy store (battery), and control electronics allowance for the season, a move to fresh components at the next couple of races would trigger penalties.
He would face a further grid drop if he then moved to ADUO-improved parts.
Speaking at the Spanish GP, Russell said that the plan now was to twin his engine penalty with the ADUO step as it was illogical to take a double penalty hit.
Asked if there were any regrets about not following Antonelli in taking a fresh engine for the Italian GP, Russell said: "We were always going to take my penalty with the ADUO upgrade.
"Otherwise, if I took it there, I'd have to take it again. So it makes zero sense for me."
A final decision has not been taken by Mercedes yet about when its ADUO step will be introduced, although it had originally been anticipated that it could come for the next batch of flyaways in Azerbaijan, Malaysia, and Singapore.
However, sources suggest that the spec is now looking much more likely to appear for the triple-header in the United States, Mexico and Brazil that begins at Austin on October 23-25.
When Mercedes goes for that upgrade - which is understood to include an improved turbo - then Antonelli will also have access to it.
The championship leader did not go for a full power unit change in Italy, as Mercedes instead restricted the switch to his internal combustion engine, battery and control electronics.
That means he has freedom to take a new turbo, MGU-K, exhaust and ancillaries without penalty.
Any improvement in specification that the works Mercedes team introduces also has to be made available to customer teams, although only via a single unit for each customer at the first event.
### Everything we learned on day one at F1's Spanish GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-on-day-one-at-f1s-spanish-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T07:33:09.000Z
Perhaps in part down to the abundance of intrigue about the Madring track, the drivers have arrived in the Spanish capital in great form and had plenty to discuss on the first day of 'action' in Madrid.
Whether it's the fallout from Ferrari's Monza nightmare, the track itself, one team's resource issue manifesting, driving style analysis or how F1 2026's newest classmate is learning, there's plenty to get into. Let's get started, class.
### Ferrari drivers claim the air has been cleared
As has become the norm in F1, Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc [did their best to diffuse any noise](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-ferrari-drivers-have-revealed-about-post-monza-talks/) around the fallout from a bruising Monza weekend on Thursday in Madrid.
Hamilton said they had a productive face-to-face talk after the race, in which they “squashed” any differences of opinion over their opening lap run-in.
Leclerc said it’s now “very clear what we should do or avoid going forward”.
Rules of engagement didn’t come up in Hamilton’s post-race talks with team boss Fred Vasseur either.
So all is fine at Ferrari, right? Well, we’ll only know that when they meet again on track.
And importantly, all the changes Hamilton called for after Monza can’t be implemented as quickly as Madrid. He described it as “a longer-term process.
“There's a huge amount of moving parts. There's a lot of people. There's a culture that's been there for a long, long time. Moving big pieces is not so easy.”
He thinks Ferrari will “eventually get to the point we need” in terms of execution and operations, but it certainly won’t be this weekend in Madrid. **\- Josh Suttill**
### Leclerc 'fine' after medical checks
Having been released from the medical centre on Sunday afternoon after the crash, Leclerc said he would have “quite a few additional checks” to know if he’d be “fully fine” to race in Madrid.
He’d revealed his “right eye was not showing me great vision” immediately after the crash, though that cleared up soon afterwards.
On Thursday in Madrid, when asked what was checked after Monza, Leclerc said: “Quite a lot of things. But it was quite a big one. Probably from outside, it looked like a big one as well. But it felt also like a big one.
“Sometimes you can look quite big from outside, but from the car, it's fine. But going out, I wasn't feeling so well.
"But actually, it was just the shock. I did quite a lot of checks and quite a lot of treatments in the first few days, mostly for the neck, because I felt a little bit tight, which I guess is normal.
“But now I'm fine, all the checks I did were fine.” **\- JS**
### Mad Madring has drivers spooked
To the F1 grid, on the sim and now in the flesh, the Madring circuit has lived up to that initial shock of hearing about the 19 red flags in F3 testing.
George Russell said he was surprised by how high that number was when he first heard it - then surprised it hadn't been higher once he did his sim sessions.
Described as "crazy" and "scary" and the calendar's most "complicated", the Madring is being tipped for a Monaco-esque weekend of gradual pace and track ramp-up (and being peppered with red flags) - but it is less intuitive set-up-wise than the 'no straights, no high-speed corners' Monaco, so that will be a headache, too.
But it is all about qualifying. Ollie Bearman and Alex Albon pointed out that the best overtaking opportunities are hindered by angled corner entry meaning that overtakes will need to happen before the braking zone rather than on the brakes, if they happen at all.
But the 22 drivers need to get their cars to the grid in one piece before they can worry about any of that. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
### Antonelli is defending by attacking
There are few things more exhausting in motor racing than runaway championship leaders talking about how 'you guys, I don't look at the standings at all, I take it one race at a time'. That talk is almost always a waste of the molecular vibration required for it to be heard.
Antonelli right now is one of the rare exceptions - because, as he argued, "I think Monza was the proof that I wasn't thinking about or worrying about the championship".
That 'proof' is in both his charge early on and in nearly throwing it all away in the Variante del Rettifilo gravel while battling Mercedes team-mate George Russell. The aggression risked egg on Antonelli's face but instead pushed his points lead above 60 - and he vows not to abandon it just yet.
"Of course, there might be occasions in the future where, before taking a certain decision, I might think about the championship - but the thing I want to avoid is going to the track for a free practice or a qualifying, or even a race, thinking about or worrying about the championship.
"That's the thing I want to avoid, at all costs."
### Tsunoda highlights overlooked 2026 challenge
This generation of Formula 1 cars has garnered plenty of criticism from mainstay drivers, but what about the driver who’s jumped in partway through the season?
Yuki Tsunoda’s fresh perspective on the 2026 cars has outlined an overlooked challenge unique to this energy-starved generation.
In Madrid, before his third substitute appearance of the season, Tsunoda said energy management on outlaps was a challenge.
He said he has to remind himself not to use too much energy during outlaps, the caveat being that “if you don't use the energy, the tyre is going to be cold, so you want to be sometimes aggressive…”
“You want to start the lap with 100% battery. Sacrifice places, where to do it, where to not. It was very complicated and something that I f\*\*\*\*\*\* up quite a lot in qualifying. The consequences were huge,” he said with emphasis.
“I was underestimating the amount of damage or penalty you'll get if you don't do everything right and I definitely experienced it in qualifying.”
Tsunoda wasn’t scathing about the F1 2026 cars, however.
He added: “It's a bit more difficult and there's a lot more things going on, \[even\] how to do the switch changes out lap. So, it can be more stressful.
“But at the same time, in the race you can have more overtakes. So far, it's a car that I'm able to adapt pretty quickly for me and able to be on the pace pretty quickly. So, I don’t hate it.”
He's still seeking a seat for 2027 and, on Thursday in Spain, he said he “doesn’t want to” remain on the sidelines. **\- Samarth Kanal**
### Even less sim time than Lewis!
Much was made earlier this season about Lewis Hamilton's decision to [ditch the simulator](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-ditched-ferrari-simulator-for-canadian-gp/) as a tool to establish set-up on his Ferrari.
Ollie Bearman reckons he and Haas team-mate Esteban Ocon are the only drivers even close to Hamilton in terms of how little sim work they do.
Addressing Haas's new simulator in Banbury - which will be physically complete by the end of the year but will require longer to be ready due to the need to develop things like the software involved - Bearman made a hilarious quip about Hamilton, but which exposes where Haas might be at in comparison to the better-funded teams.
"Their \[Ferrari's\] simulator runs eight days a week. Our simulator runs one day a month, so you can imagine the differences there," Bearman said.
He added: "I would say on the grid, I would say Esteban and myself are the least, maybe except for Lewis, I would say we drive the least on the simulator."
Until their new sim is ready, Haas is using Ferrari's Maranello sim but having to share that with the bigger team means it is restricted in how many hours it gets, as Ferrari gets the priority.
Bearman also addressed another resource element Haas doesn't have. Whereas Ferrari has a junior - like Bearman once was - doing the prep work in the simulator each time it's used to make sure it's working correctly and relevant for the main drivers to then jump in and takeover, Bearman says he and Ocon have to do that prep work themselves and that eats into their time for using the sim.
It feels like Haas's lack of resources are addressed relatively often, especially when it comes to things like upgrades and parts on the car. But the sim is an example of some of the lesser-talked about plight F1's poorest-resourced team has to suffer. **\- Jack Benyon**
### Norris on F1 2026 driving styles
Lando Norris has said that this generation of F1 cars really doesn’t suit his driving style.
Given the current of Formula 1 car’s energy management intricacies, new bodywork, and narrower tyres, there’s been plenty of talk about driving styles with Russell one frontrunner outspoken in how his driving style doesn’t suit F1 2026’s demands. And now the reigning champion has admitted he's in the same boat.
Asked about Russell's comments, Norris said: “I wouldn't really say my driving style suits this car.
“I think my driving style is good because I'm able to adapt better. I don't think it's one style that works. I don't think I drive the same way as Kimi.
“I've obviously never had him as a team-mate. Or Lewis. So I have no idea.”
Norris said his strength lies in “adaptability”.
“I think last year at the beginning it suited Oscar \[Piastri\] a little bit more and my strength was being able to adapt better to then finally understand how to drive it in a better way," he added. "Hence then I started to have a better second half of the season."
Norris said that this year’s generation of car is “not even 1%” in similarity to last year’s.
After Mercedes dominated at Monza, Norris said he hopes Madrid’s range of corner types “shift \[McLaren\] back in the direction of being more competitive”. **\- SK**
### Perez loves Cadillac's new factory
Sergio Perez has driven for almost half of the teams on the grid in one form or another, but reserved high praise for Cadillac's new factory building at Silverstone.
He described it as "very impressive", saying that "I've never seen a factory like this in my career". That's high praise from someone who was driving for Red Bull only two years ago.
The Silverstone site is still a work in progress, but the new building that was moved into at the end of the August break features what new team principal Marcin Budkowski described as an "amazing engineering office layout", which is circular with a car in the centre that "reminds us what we're here to do".
And from Perez's perspective, it's not just about the design office or the new shiny kit.
"Everything is new," said Perez. "The new equipment they have, all the platforms, how nicely it is connected, all the different departments. It's very well organised, very well thought out."
Cadillac is still a long way off being the finished article as a team in terms of its facilities, but Perez's reaction points to this latest step being an important one. - **Edd Straw**
### F1's 'most complicated' track - What drivers expect from the Madring
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-drivers-expect-from-f1s-new-hardest-track/
Last updated: 2026-09-11T07:32:19.000Z
Formula 1 drivers are bracing to drive the "scary" and "crazy" Madring circuit for the first time on Friday, with expectations that it will be the "most complicated" track of the year.
All F1 drivers have completed many laps in the virtual world to prepare for the first brand-new track in three years, but Thursday gave them their up-close look at how the circuit has come together in the real-world.
Here’s what the drivers are expecting, from the toughest corners to whether there was a missed opportunity to improve overtaking.
## A 'scary' track
A two-day Formula 3 test at the circuit produced 19 red flags two weeks ago, raising expectations of a frenetic weekend, with Williams team principal James Vowles calling it "a track that kills cars".
"When I heard about the 20 \[19\] red flags in F3, I was a bit surprised. And then after I drove on the sim, I was surprised there was only 20 \[19\] red flags," quipped Mercedes driver George Russell.
"It's a crazy circuit. I would put it, arguably, as the most risky circuit of the whole calendar."
The circuit is littered with tricky corners, blind exits and close walls that leave very little room for error. "Mentally exhausting" is how Gabriel Bortoleto described a lap of the Madring.
Fresh from walking the track, Alex Albon said there's "a lot of walls, a lot of high-speed corners, a lot of blind corners gives me vibes of Macau, but more for an F1 track".
"A little bit concerning the blind spots in some of the corners, like if there is a car that's stopped on the other side of the corner, I hope they're just quick on the VSCs \[virtual safety cars\] and the red flags," he added.
"Inevitably, there are going to be a few crashes this weekend."
Pierre Gasly echoed that, saying, "I'll put my money on the red flag, that's for sure", and he expects quite a "disrupted weekend" with accidents.
Albon said he is "quite concerned" about where cars will get out of the way in qualifying at the banked La Monumental corner, given the line you take through there and the blind exit.
"I don't think there's a correct place you can position the car," Albon said of La Monumental. “If you put the car up top, actually I think the line is kind of drift up to the middle of the track and then you come back again.
"So, you're not in a perfect place. It reminds me a little bit of, do you [remember Fernando and Esteban in Brazil at Turn 3](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sprint-qualifying-brazil-report-norris-verstappen-ocon-alonso-shunt/), where they had that crash \[in sprint qualifying in 2023\]?
"You can get dirty air and the dirty air can create the knock-on effect."
After his simulator running, Cadillac driver Sergio Perez said it was "a proper track. It's a bit scary. It reminds me a bit of Jeddah". Team-mate Valtteri Bottas described it as a mix between Jeddah and Baku, while others have compared it to Monaco.
Haas driver Esteban Ocon called it a "crazy circuit" with so much risk versus reward trade-offs to make, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli said it's the "most complicated" track of the year for both drivers and engineers.
"Driving-wise, you've got all kinds of corners. You've got chicanes, fast corners, banked, medium-speed, also braking - you've got a lot of straight-line braking, but \[also\] a lot of braking where you're actually still turning," Antonelli said.
"Turn 17 is a corner where, when you hit the brake, you're still turning, and then you straighten the car. So it's a very tricky track, very challenging, but very exciting at the same time with zero margin of mistake.
"It's also complicated on the engineering side because finding a set-up that is a good compromise for the whole lap is not going to be easy.
"You can find a set-up that helps you in the chicanes, when you need to cut kerbs, or a set-up that helps you in the fast corners, but to find a set-up that is good over kerbs, good on changing direction, good on fast corners, is going to be difficult."
## Limited overtaking
There are expectations for a knife-edge qualifying on Saturday, but drivers have expressed fresh concerns about the quality of racing on Sunday.
"Overtaking will be hard. It's going to be, in my mind, closer to Singapore," was Perez's view.
Gasly saw it as an opportunity, though. He was relishing exploring the overtaking opportunities, as drivers will have to "improvise and be creative on race day and see what's possible.
"We'll be the creators of these first moves."
There had been hopes that drivers taking different lines into the La Monumental corner would create an overtaking opportunity, but Albon isn’t so sure.
"I worry about the marbles in the race. So on top of trying to find clean air and trying to go up high on the banking, you'll have marbles to contend with as well later into the race, so you've got to be careful with that," Albon said.
"I personally don't think you can do that many lines. The track's quite narrow and it's different when you have clean air and there's space, whereas if you have a little snap you're into the wall immediately.
"Drivers aren't as willing to stick it up to the top of the banking and take the risk of running a high line. I hope I'm proved wrong, but I think that part of the track is not going to offer that much overtaking."
## A missed opportunity?
Haas driver Ollie Bearman felt like an opportunity was missed with the layout of the Madring.
"It's a shame in a way because I think the layout is OK, but there are some features of the circuit which naturally deter overtaking," Bearman said.
"One of them is the braking for Turn 5, which is curved - and that's the real overtaking opportunity. That kind of curved braking takes away any possibility of different lines and sending one up the inside.
"So that's a shame and maybe a bit of an oversight, but it means that we're going to be fully focused on qualifying."
The Turn 5/6 chicane, the site of many accidents in the F3 test, is preceded by two flat-out kinks, which also feature one of only two straight mode zones on the circuit.
So into that chicane, along with the first chicane, is the most logical overtaking opportunity.
But, as Bearman said, the entry to the chicane is curved and tight, so the overtakes will really have to be completed before the braking zone.
Albon shares his frustration, believing any overtakes on Sunday will be decided by energy management differences rather than braking differences.
"I wish they did something a bit different with the braking zones and not having them too much angled," Albon said.
"You've got a lot of combined corners which, just thinking of overtaking on Sunday, it feels like it's quite easy to defend. You just put the car in the middle of the track and you're not going to get a car that's going to go past you.
"That just means that it will be more of a deployment overtake than a braking overtake."
## Expect the track to ramp up
Gasly was expecting a Monaco-style ramping up of the track conditions and driver confidence, meaning laptimes will drop significantly as the sessions go by.
"In the simulator, if you touch a wall, brush a wall, you press escape and restart. Here the approach is going to be slightly different," Gasly said.
"That's what I like, when you're going to be very humble to the track. It's going to be one of these tracks where the build-up to it will be very important, similar to Monaco.
"I think it's exciting. It's going to be a first for everybody."
The track ramping up and drivers getting more confidence as the weekend progresses has a big impact on how teams manage their energy deployment through the lap. Every team will have run simulations pre-weekend that won't necessarily correlate with the first laps in FP1\.
Honda's chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said: "We have done some simulation sessions before coming here. That gives us some ideas.
"But laptime improvement will be significant for everyone come qualifying. So we shouldn't panic in FP1, even if we see a big difference from the simulation session.
"One important point is to adjust energy management step by step, looking at the laptime. Quali will be a big step from FP3\.
"So we should predict the driver and throttle application based on what we have observed from FP1 to FP3, to prepare data for quali. I think these are quite challenging topics."
It will also depend on the car you have.
"There's a lot of corners on this track that will be between 90% and 100% throttle. I think the top teams will be flat out; for the midfield teams and the backfield teams, a bigger lift, which has a big effect on deployment," Albon explained.
"Without going too technical, if you can do a corner flat or not massively changes the way the deployment works.
"You don't want to go in qualifying and suddenly all these corners start to become flat and your deployment starts to move around a lot."
### What Ferrari drivers have revealed about post-Monza talks
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-ferrari-drivers-have-revealed-about-post-monza-talks/
Last updated: 2026-09-10T15:30:47.000Z
Ferrari Formula 1 drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc claim they've cleared the air after their opening lap Italian Grand Prix squabble - and they'll continue to race without rules of engagement for now.
Hamilton dived down the inside of Leclerc at Turn 1 at Monza but found himself in the gravel at Turn 2 as they battled each other hard.
Leclerc said "we went too far" after the race, a remark Hamilton wasn't too pleased about saying "I was ahead in Turn 2\. By the apex, I was ahead. So there was no 'we' in it."
But Hamilton said they spoke to each other afterwards to clear the air.
"What's great is that there was no shying away from having a discussion. We sat face-to-face, just him and I and talked about it," Hamilton explained on Thursday in Madrid.
"We were just both open and honest and we squashed it and we can move on. I think that shows the maturity from him and I think it's healthy. It's a relationship we have built over time.
"Of course, there's going to be frustrations and I'm sure there'll be more times where we're close because we're very close in pace. We both want to win just as much as each other and we both want to do well for the team as well. But yeah, I think it's a real positive."
For his part, Leclerc said it's "clear that we never want to see a car of the same team in the grass.
"So yeah, I mean, after reviewing, we spoke with Lewis. I obviously know I went too far in Turn 2 and I said it to Lewis and I think it's very clear what we should do or should avoid going forward.
"But I won't go into much more detail than what we've said. The only thing I can say is that it definitely did not affect the good relationship that we have and it will not affect anything going forward. And that is the most important for me, really.
"When these things happen at our home race, then it does \[make\] a huge mess outside. However, I mean, looking at the race from outside, there's also been some friction between other team-mates.
"The only thing \[people\] end up speaking of is Lewis and I, which I don't think is quite right. But that doesn't mean we did everything perfectly. I didn't in Turn 2.
"And for that, I've been straight away very clear with Lewis after reviewing the images."
Leclerc doubled down on this assertion that a disproportionate focus had been placed on the Ferrari drivers, when other team-mates had been fighting each other hard too.
"Again, I need to be careful with that because it's not to minimise the way that this unfolded, it's not acceptable to see Lewis going in the gravel, etc." Leclerc said.
"But for sure, the proportions, as a matter of fact, are much bigger on our side compared to the two other teams that have had some…I didn't follow the whole race…but the two other teams I saw that were fighting at the top, there wasn't as much noise around it.
"So surely the proportions that it takes when you are driving for Ferrari is much bigger and particularly if we're in Monza. But that's not to minimise what happened. It's not something that should happen again."
## No rules of engagement (for now)
There was much surprise after Monza when it was revealed the Ferrari drivers have "no rules" for racing each other.
Hamilton spoke to team boss Fred Vasseur on the Monday after Monza, having spent much of his post-race media sessions calling for Ferrari to make big changes to the way it operates and executes its weekends.
It's been really positive," Hamilton said of the days after Monza.
"I spoke to Fred on Monday, and we're just clearing up…discussion of…naturally, we're going to always have different opinions, but at the end of the day, we come together and we find a way forward.
"That's the positives of where we've got to over the past 15 months or whatever it is. We've got to a place where we have really great communication internally, and the same with me and Charles."
Asked if the introduction of rules of engagement - similar to what Hamilton had throughout his time at Mercedes - was part of those conversations with Vasseur, Hamilton said "It was not".
Asked why they weren't, Hamilton replied: "Right now I'm just trying to focus on having a better weekend, this weekend.
"I'm sure at some stage we'll discuss how we can be better, but we've not had a lot of time to turn around. You can't change things in two days."
Asked by The Race if Ferrari could quickly implement the kind of communication and procedural changes Hamilton was calling for after Monza, he replied: "I think it's a longer-term process. It's not something we can just change into this weekend.
"There's a huge amount of moving parts. There's a lot of people. There's a culture that's been there for a long, long time. Moving big pieces is not so easy.
"We just take it one step at a time. It starts with discussing it. It starts with the acknowledgement, which internally we have.
"Then it just comes to working out solutions together. It just doesn't happen overnight. We'll probably try things and it still won't be good, but we'll eventually get to the point we need."
Hamilton continues to insist publicly that any change he's calling for at Ferrari doesn't include asking the team to prioritise him over Leclerc. Instead it's all about ensuring the team all pulls together so it can make the most of any slip-ups from Mercedes.
"I mean, that's not actually really what I've been asking for," he said.
"It's really just making sure we're executing to make sure we get the best result for the team instead of us working against each other and finishing fourth and fifth.
"Maybe you can work together and get a podium and pull off more points. I think at this point,
"Mercedes, if you look at the last race, there was six tenths of a lap quicker on the straights. Pretty much most of the other tracks, there's three or four tenths we're losing just on the straights.
"So I think we've done a really great job given that we've had that deficit and we continue to make improvements to the car. We've made improvements to the engine. We knew that the last upgrade wasn't going to be a silver bullet and close that gap completely. But for me, it's really positive to see us continuously stepping forward and they are just very, very quick and it's not easy.
"So as I said, rather than focus on them, they're not a focus for me at the moment. I think our focus should just be how we can do the best and execute the best on our weekends because there'll be weekends where they're exceptional and there'll be weekends where they maybe drop the ball.
"As long as we just focus on our consistency and trying to optimise our weekends, maybe there's going to be a moment where we are able to capitalise on perhaps their shortcomings."
### Will Buxton fronts new Hot Wheels x Psycho Bunny collection
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/will-buxton-fronts-new-hot-wheels-x-psycho-bunny-collection/
Last updated: 2026-09-10T14:11:10.000Z
Hot Wheels and Canadian apparel brand Psycho Bunny have teamed up for a new limited-edition clothing collection that brings the toy brand to life.
Available now online and in stores, the Hot Wheels x Psycho Bunny collection features graphic T-shirts, a hoodie and a trucker hat inspired by the iconic toy car brand's racing heritage and collector culture.
The collaboration brings together two brands that say they share a "Challenger Spirit" - a commitment to pushing boundaries and challenging expectations. The collection draws inspiration from Hot Wheels' long-standing connection to automotive and motorsport culture while incorporating Psycho Bunny's bold design approach.
Motorsport broadcaster Will Buxton fronts the campaign promoting the collection in his role as brand ambassador.
The launch comes as motorsport continues to grow in popularity worldwide, with racing culture increasingly influencing fashion and lifestyle trends. Both brands said the collection is designed to appeal to collectors, automotive enthusiasts and fans looking for limited-edition products.
"Working with Hot Wheels wasn't about simply combining logos," said Sonya Thomas, chief marketing officer at Psycho Bunny. "It was about uniting two brands that share the same DNA - disruptive, detail-obsessed and driven by a relentless challenger mentality."
The Hot Wheels x Psycho Bunny collection is available beginning today through Psycho Bunny retail locations and online.
### Rins to walk away from motorcycle racing after MotoGP exit
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/rins-to-walk-away-from-motorcycle-racing-after-motogp-exit/
Last updated: 2026-09-10T10:55:55.000Z
Yamaha MotoGP rider Alex Rins says he will step away from motorcycle racing at the end of the year as his grand prix career comes to an end.
It has been known for several months that Rins no longer featured in Yamaha's MotoGP plans past this year, and that he had no real options to remain in MotoGP at all.
He was actively mulling a World Superbike switch, and was reported to be courted by Ducati satellite team GoEleven, a race winner with Andrea Iannone and with Michael Ruben Rinaldi.
But Rins never sounded totally sold on the idea of moving over and has now confirmed he has declined the offer.
"I had two possibilities there," Rins said, suggesting there was another suitor besides GoEleven, "that I really say thanks to them because they were quite interested in me."
Ultimately, the 30-year-old found "something that motivates me more" - and while he's not ready to announce it yet, the way he phrased it (and subsequent conversation with the Spanish-language media) suggests his immediate future is in some form of car racing instead.
"As I told you some races ago, I have a really good, really interesting project on my mind - that I can't reveal because it's not, like, done 100%.
"So, yeah, I'm really-really happy for sure. It was difficult to choose because all my life in MotoGP, in this championship, many-many fights, many races, many wins... 14 years, I think, more or less. So, yeah, I will stop with the two wheels."
Rins is set to retire with six MotoGP wins - five at Suzuki and one at LCR Honda.
He had a real championship shot in 2020, and looked to be establishing himself as a truly elite MotoGP rider when a bad leg injury in 2023 and an ill-fated subsequent move to Yamaha snuffed out his career momentum.
### Five first impressions of F1's new Madring circuit
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/five-first-impressions-of-f1-new-madring-circuit/
Last updated: 2026-09-10T08:39:45.000Z
The new Madring circuit that hosts this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix is Formula 1’s first new circuit since Las Vegas in 2023.
While officially also a street circuit, as it runs around the IFEMA Exhibition Centre space near Madrid's main airport, half of it is more like a permanent venue as it winds its way towards the iconic La Monumental banked turn.
The elevation change is impressive too - with an 8% gradient uphill from Turn 7 to Turn 8 alone - looking even more spectacular in real life than it probably does in photos.
While drivers still have another 24 hours to go before they take to the track proper, some clear first impressions have emerged that show why F1 is bracing itself for what could be a challenging weekend.
### La Monumental is stunning
The most talked about corner at the Madring is of course the banked corner at La Monumental.
It has grabbed attention ever since the first designs of the track were revealed, and drivers, teams and tyre supplier Pirelli have talked openly about it being the most technically demanding of the season.
It looked impressive when under construction but, with track work now complete around the 550-metre-long turn, it looks even more stunning now.
With grandstands towering high above it, and a huge hospitality area having been constructed on the inside, there is something akin to an amphitheatre feel to it that is reminiscent of the intensity of the start-finish straight at Interlagos.
Now the key thing to understand is whether there are multiple racing lines on offer through there that could make it even better.
### Turn 5 could be the trouble point
There are plenty of places around Madring that have potential to catch drivers out.
There is La Monumental, plus the Turn 17 right-hander, where drivers have to brake heavily while navigating a quick left sweep beforehand, is going to be quite a handful.
But based on evidence from F3 testing, and proven by the tyre marks still left on the track, it is the Turn 5/6 chicane that could be the main trouble point.
Coming at the end of the quickest point of the track – the long sweeping section from Turn 3 – drivers have to negotiate a quite tricky chicane.
The kerbs will require treating with caution, but it is the angle of the barrier on the exit – which offers a pinch point – that could well be what catches a lot of people out.
### Track surface is silky smooth
While street circuits have had a habit in the past of throwing up problems with bumpy surfaces, Madring is super smooth.
A walk around the track has shown that the asphalt put down should pose few problems for cars in needing to raise ride heights to adjust from some unexpected undulations.
In terms of track limits, the walls form a natural edge to the circuit in a lot of places, but there are some spots where painted kerbs have been put in to keep drivers away from the concrete.
To help give drivers some guidance to stay within the white lines, the FIA has used little painted rib lines that are utilised at places like Jeddah, Miami and Austin to help assist.
### The paddock is bonkers big
One of the adventures everyone arriving at Madring has faced is trying to get their bearings around the F1 paddock – because it is bonkers big.
The garages have had to be fitted into the IFEMA exhibition centre complex and that has meant a unique layout.
Rather than being one long line of garages next to each other, there is a 150-metre gap in the middle between Williams and Racing Bulls – where the media and TV pen has been slotted in.
There is also quite a unique situation behind the garages too, where the trucks and engineering offices are based. (The hospitality units have their own separate area).
Because of the layout of the IFEMA complex, some teams have been slotted into air-conditioned buildings, while others – like McLaren and Mercedes – are outside in the heat.
There are also some unusual gaps between teams. Walking between Williams and Racing Bulls, who are normally right next to each in the paddock, takes more than two minutes.
### The pitlane is long and the exit is tricky
Thanks to the extended pit garage complex layout, the pitlane is long – very, very long.
The official distance of the pitlane between the two speed limiter lines is 562 metres.
There is quite a bit of extra distance on the way out too – which is going to be quite tricky to negotiate as cars are going to accelerate towards a right-hand concrete barrier before they blend in at the exit of Turn 3.
F1 tyre supplier Pirelli estimates that the time loss will be around 25 seconds – helped in part by the pitlane not rejoining at the first turn but instead coming out at Turn 3.
### The driver handling lessons Ferrari can take from two big rivals
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-driver-handling-lessons-ferrari-can-take-from-two-big-rivals/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T17:41:14.000Z
There is little doubt that Ferrari needs to make a call now about how best to handle its Formula 1 drivers going forward.
The lost opportunity of what happened at the first chicane at Monza, plus Lewis Hamilton's frustrations at a lack of racing rules and team work, means boss Fred Vasseur is not blind to the need for action.
As Vasseur confirmed on Sunday night at the Italian Grand Prix, a response is coming.
"By reason, you have to take a decision at one stage," he said. "Each team is different. But you have to make a decision, and we \[will\] decide."
What path Vasseur chooses to go down is unclear – because the options on the table are plenty.
At one extreme is throwing everything behind Hamilton as the lead driver in the standings to try to maximise Ferrari's fading title chances.
This is the most unlikely option because it's not something Hamilton has explicitly called for.
Imposing it would also be a bitter pill for Charles Leclerc to swallow at a time when he is not mathematically out of title contention.
Other choices include agreeing clear rules of engagement, or even electing simply to let things carry on as they are and trusting the drivers to get on with it themselves.
But if there is one thing that is crystal clear from how Ferrari's rivals have dealt with similar situations themselves, there is no easy solution here that will keep everyone happy.
As McLaren chief Andrea Stella has referenced many, many times about the handling of drivers, it is impossible to come up with a framework that fits both their own personal interests and that of the team.
"I always discuss with the drivers that this is the most difficult thing we are going to face in our career," he told me several years ago.
"This is the only thing that we cannot face by having our interests exactly matching."
## 'Papaya Rules' complexities
McLaren has faced plenty of headaches in the management of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri over recent years, with the famed 'Papaya Rules' being tested to the limit on many occasions.
The simple stance of allowing both drivers to race but with a strict no contact mandate seemed straightforward enough but still was not enough to avoid all controversy.
Troubled afternoons like Hungary and Monza in 2024, and last year's Italian Grand Prix, exposed the scale of challenges that come when what the pitwall wants and expects from the drivers never lines up perfectly with their own individual desires.
Plus, agreements get tested to the max and the team then has a duty to impose responses to breaches – as happened after the Singapore GP wheel banging last year when Norris briefly faced repercussions.
While McLaren faced criticisms at times – especially after Monza 2024 – for keeping 'Papaya Rules' in place on occasions when it could have been better to throw everything behind one driver, Vasseur noted after Monza that equality proved better for his rival's title aspirations than having swooped early to choose a number one.
"Last year, Piastri was leading McLaren at this stage of the season," said Vasseur after Monza about going down a route that would back one of his drivers.
"If McLaren put everything on Piastri, Max Verstappen would have been champion."
Vasseur's point about not backing Piastri being key to McLaren winning the title (with Norris) is debatable though, as subsequent events would have played out differently had it done so.
Throwing its weight behind Piastri would likely have changed results at other races, and in particular avoided the upset that caused Piastri's Baku troubles, and collisions in Singapore and the Austin sprint that impacted the final points tally.
'Papaya Rules' has done one thing though in acting as an anchor point in keeping some unity in play.
Even after an intense title fight like last year, there have been no lingering tensions from either driver over how things were handled – which has allowed McLaren to roll into 2026 without any festering troubles.
But this does not mean that even a solid framework like that is a dream ticket to avoid tension on track.
In Italy last weekend, the freedom to race opened the door for some Norris radio complaints late on after he felt he had been pushed onto the grass as he battled with Piastri.
Stella said even after many years of an agreed framework, circumstances throw up the need for constant review.
"Even if in 2025 we achieved both championships with an approach to racing which was based on some important principles of equality, let them race, fairness, in reality, it's always difficult to translate these principles into real racing," he said.
"Like if you see \[in Italy\], we took again an approach which is on the risky side. We let them race, and we ended up with one car having the wheels on the grass. Something that we will have to review.
"If you ask them not to race each other, then Lando finishes fifth, and he may say, 'But for fairness, I would have liked to have my opportunities.' So, it's a tricky matter."
What seems central to best managing the conflict between team interest and what each driver wants is at least everyone buying into what is agreed.
"It's important that we go united with the drivers," added Stella. "I think it's difficult for a team to say 'this is what we impose, now you guys adapt'.
"You always want to make sure that you get a contribution from all the parties.
"But as soon as you see that the team interest is under attack or is in danger, then you might have to elevate the game and start to be strict from a team point of view. These are the foundation of how we approach it."
## 'Racing intent' at Mercedes
One of Hamilton's most striking remarks after the Italian GP was about there being 'no rules' in play at all between himself and Leclerc when it came to racing.
"I think it comes down to rules of engagement," he said when asked about what he wanted to see.
"When I was at Mercedes, we had a written rule of engagement… here there are no rules. I think that's something that needs to be addressed to try and fix that."
The Mercedes framework was a response to the intense rivalry between Hamilton and former team-mate Nico Rosberg that boiled over at times when they collided on track.
Team boss Toto Wolff has since refined the framework to be more about 'racing intent', where the desire is like McLaren's rules in that both drivers can battle hard as long as they don't make contact.
There is also an element of the pitwall not being afraid to intervene if it feels that the team interests are being hurt.
The need for this has intensified this season because the lap-time from yo-yo racing is so big that battling exclusively for the lead risks drivers falling back into the pack.
This is why Mercedes has opted at times, like at Monza last weekend, to dictate that positions are held – even if that does bring frustration for the driver in second.
The end result of Mercedes' racing intent agreement is that at least both drivers can see why there is a bigger interest in what they are being asked to do.
Trust then manifests itself in abiding by whatever they are told to do, even if sometimes it does not totally suit their own interests.
The contrast between Kimi Antonelli helping out title rival George Russell with a slipstream in Monza qualifying, and how Ferrari duo Leclerc and Hamilton handled things, says a lot about faith in the system.
But the rules in play at Mercedes have not prevented flash points like it faced in Canada, or even Antonelli's annoyance in Italy about being told to hold fire at one point.
From the team's side, even letting them race comes with risks as was shown with Antonelli's late off at the first chicane as he fought Russell.
As Wolff said: "It could have ended up in a disaster when it comes to the race result, and we would have looked like idiots.
"We will be talking about that situation as another building block of how we want to race in the future, but I think it was worth showing the racing spirit in the team and having them go at each other."
## No easy answer for Ferrari
As Vasseur now weighs up what approach to take, he acknowledged in Italy that there is no more ideal scenario for a boss than simply letting drivers get on with it and trusting they do the right thing.
"For sure, it's never good to lose points," he said in reference to what happened on the opening lap in Italy.
"At the beginning of the season, I think every single team principal in the world would love to let them race, but to freeze positions when you are the team principal, don't imagine that it's an easy choice.
"You do it for the team. You do it for the results at the end, but it's never an easy call. By definition, I would love to let them race for the weekend."
Monza has exposed that Ferrari can no longer let that happen.
But, as McLaren and Mercedes have experienced, the solutions on offer all come with their own failings. The choice is which headache Ferrari is willing to live with.
### Audi's first F1 protege is on the brink of extending his title streak
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/audis-first-f1-protege-is-on-the-brink-of-extending-his-title-streak/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T20:01:03.000Z
As Formula 1 debuts in Madrid, Audi's first F1 protege will be vying to maintain his 100% title-winning streak on the undercard in the Formula 3 title-decider.
F3 championship leader Freddie Slater was the first-ever signing to Audi's F1 driver development programme at the start of 2026, a major coup for the German manufacturer, given he's been courted by F1 teams ever since his silverware-filled start in karting.
Slater and his management team deliberately resisted pairing with an F1 team earlier in his career despite a litany of offers - similar to Max Verstappen and Lando Norris who waited until they were in F3 before accepting the support of Red Bull and McLaren respectively.
"There was a bit of attraction probably in karting, but at that time it wasn't right \[to join an F1 team's programme\]," Slater told The Race.
"Me and my management team, my family and the people around me, we knew it wasn't the right kind of point in my career because I didn't need it. It was about just developing through the ranks.
"But now, going to Formula 3, it was the perfect opportunity to kind of develop into more of an experienced driver and hopefully a future Formula 1 driver. Perfect timing now.
"It felt more like a family to me and that's what really attracted me to it. It didn't feel like I was going into a business.
"It felt like I was actually going to a family that kind of had a lot of trust in me and that's why I wouldn't choose anyone else."
The 18-year-old's track record since graduating from karting is right up there with the most impressive junior CVs on the F1 grid now.
He won 16 of the 20 races en route to winning the Ginetta Junior championship in 2023, followed by winning 15 of the 20 races in a title-winning Italian F4 campaign in 2024.
Slater then switched to the Formula Regional European Championship (an intermediate step between F3 and F4), winning eight of the 20 races, backing up all of that star quality he showed in karting.
It means he has a 100% title-winning record for his full-time programme since graduating from karting; he's only been beaten in short winter series or championships where he only raced part-time.
## His F3 season
Slater heads into F3's Madrid finale as the championship leader, having been the standout driver this year despite being a rookie. He's been in a league of his own in terms of average qualifying position.
**F3 2026 qualifying average position**
Freddie Slater - 3.3
Theophile Nael - 6.6
Ernesto Rivera - 6.7
Ugo Ugochukwu - 6.9
Tuukka Taponen - 7.9
He's also finished on the podium in six of the eight feature races this year, and he was only denied in Monza because of a mechanical failure.
Without that failure, Trident driver Slater was set to head into Madrid with a comfortable lead. Instead, he has a slender 15-point buffer over his only realistic title rival, ex-McLaren junior Ugo Ugochukwu, with 67 points up for grabs in Madrid.
"Previous success definitely gives you confidence and kind of people expect a lot of things, but I think F3 is a very interesting season," Slater said.
"Lots of things happen, and also I'm battling a lot of second-year drivers \[such as Ugochukwu\], who are also very good.
**F3 standings**
1. Freddie Slater 141 points
2. Ugo Ugochukwu -15
3. Ernesto Rivera -65
4. Theophile Nael -66
"So it was never going to be a walk in the park. I've had to kind of catch up on a lot of experience and get on the pace very quickly.
"As you saw in the second half of the season, I've kind of settled into a nice rhythm, obviously getting to know the car more.
"Now we're fighting for a championship, and it was nearly kind of job done \[on Sunday in Monza\], which is a bit unfortunate, but now we've full focus on Madrid."
Slater says he learned "not trying to go for too much" when "a lot of the things are out of your control sometimes in this championship".
He learned it was sensible to "pick up a fourth from the fifth where it was necessary and not trying to make too much out of the race and try and be a hero".
"I've matured a lot as a driver, letting the race come towards me more instead of trying to force a situation.
"That's definitely been one of the key factors that puts \[you\] in a position to win the championship."
Slater hasn't really had an off weekend this season, having never qualified outside the top 10 all season. Barcelona comes closest as he qualified 10th there and ended up eighth in the feature race - but he was still second in the sprint race there.
But after that weekend, Slater had an important reset that allowed him to kick on and build a championship lead.
"After Monaco and Barcelona, we all had a big kind of reset of me and the team coming together," Slater said.
"The team gave me a car that kind of suits me more. I've adapted my driving style to the F3 car more as I've gained more experience. I think it's just a combination of things throughout the season that's kind of picked up the momentum."
That certainly worked for Slater, who has scored 55 points in the last four rounds (despite the Monza DNF and a collision with Ugochukwu at Spa) compared to the 22 scored by nearest rival Ugochukwu.
## The title decider
Given there were 19 red flags across two days of F3's test there, the Madrid finale could be chaos.
Slater said of Madrid: "I loved it. I thought the track was incredible. I think it had character. It was a bit more old school.
"All these new tracks that are coming out, they're smooth, they're flat, it doesn't feel as exciting to drive them. Madrid reminds me of Macau and Monaco, those sort of tracks, Oulton Park in the UK, where you actually have a bit of excitement, bumps, and walls actually closing in on you.
"It's a lot more fun to drive. I can't wait to get out there for the qualifying run on Friday, which is going to be probably one of the most exciting parts of the weekend."
But will Slater be driving with the points situation in the back of his mind?
"No, no, it's been the same thought all year. It's execution - just maximise the results," Slater said.
"\[At Monza\], we maximised every ounce of the result we could have. Things have gone wrong out of our control and that's motorsport at the end of the day.
"Hopefully we can have some better luck because this year there's been quite a few things that have gone wrong that actually haven't been in my control that put us in bad situations.
"But I think in terms of myself and the way I've been driving, I couldn't be driving at a higher level and I'm definitely proving that.
"So I can't wait for Madrid and now it's just maximise, execute and see where we end up."
## What's next?
Slater's fully focused on walking away with the F3 title this weekend, but Audi and his management team will be weighing up his options for 2027.
A move up to Formula 2 appears most likely, and given the F3 season will be finished after this weekend, there's the potential to make an early debut in F2 in Baku in two weeks' time.
Slater's certainly doing everything needed to continue his path to F1, but he and Audi are keen not to rush things.
He's been allowed to fully focus on his F3 campaign this year, rather than getting started with any behind-the-scenes simulator development work for the F1 team.
That will surely follow soon and he's going to have zero problems getting an FIA superlicence with far more than the 40 points needed, no matter what happens this weekend, thanks to a record that is justifying exactly why there was such a fight between F1 teams to sign him up.
### Ogura's MotoGP title bid all but over with another withdrawal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/ogura-motogp-title-bid-all-but-over-with-second-straight-withdrawal/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T16:36:36.000Z
Trackhouse MotoGP rider Ai Ogura will miss a second successive round of the championship through injury, withdrawing from the San Marino Grand Prix at Misano.
The news likely marks the end of Ogura's title bid. Third in the standings and 37 points off coming out of Silverstone one month ago, he dropped to fifth in skipping Aragon and is likely to fall further down the championship order before his return.
Ogura had sustained a left thumb fracture while riding motocross in Japan and was ruled out of Aragon, having undergone surgery - which he'd originally hoped to avoid - upon returning to Europe.
He was pushing to be fit for Misano but, as per Trackhouse, "the latest medical advice following an assessment in Barcelona late Tuesday is that he is not, yet, sufficiently healed to ride".
Trackhouse would in theory be required by regulations to replace Ogura but says it has "no option" but to run only Raul Fernandez this weekend.
It says Aprilia tester Lorenzo Savadori had stepped in for Ogura "at extremely short notice" at Aragon, and is not available this time. Past precedent suggests the team will not be sanctioned for not substituting Ogura - who now targets a return at the Austrian Grand Prix the following weekend.
The 25-year-old will leave Trackhouse for the Yamaha factory team at the end of the season, replaced by Enea Bastianini.
### Why F1's new Madrid track is a 'car killer'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1s-new-madrid-track-is-a-car-killer/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T13:23:15.000Z
Formula 1’s new Spanish Grand Prix venue has been described as a “car killer”.
The first-ever race at the brand-new Madring circuit will take place this weekend, but only now are F1 drivers starting to realise what a huge challenge the circuit is going to be.
It’s been described as a mix of Monaco, Macau and Jeddah by those who have already driven it.
It’s an old-school circuit with proper character and corners that have the potential to be instant classics. But there are fears about what kind of race it will produce and how brutal it could be for the cars and drivers.
Having [explored the circuit](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-learned-exploring-f1-newest-track/) during its construction in June, we’ve since dug more into exactly what kind of challenge the track will present and what we can expect this weekend.
The biggest indicator of that was the two-day Formula 3 test held there a couple of weeks ago.
“In the Formula 3 test there were 19 red flags and three broken chassis, broken suspensions…OK, they’re Formula 3 drivers, but it’s a track that kills cars,” Williams F1 team principal James Vowles told Spanish outlet [Sport](https://www.sport.es/es/noticias/motor/formula1/jefe-sainz-avisa-madring-circuito-133948845?ref=the-race.com).
The Race understands some F3 teams were less than impressed by having to test there, because the damaged parts list was very long.
But that F3 test was highly valuable as a pilot episode for F1’s Madrid event, one requested by the circuit organiser to try to avoid the kind of issues that plagued Las Vegas’s debut when errant drain covers disrupted practice, wrecked Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari and infuriated team principal Fred Vasseur.
The chaotic F3 test has also acted as a warning sign for F1 teams and drivers about how much of a challenge it will be.
Ferrari conducted an F1 filming day there back in July, but that was on a much rougher version of the circuit, so the F3 running was the first proper test for the venue.
What’s worrying F1 teams and drivers is that the 19 red flags in F3 were scattered throughout the circuit (see below). It means there isn’t just one danger zone to navigate, as there are so many places where you can come unstuck and find yourself with a hefty repair bill.
With many teams working out their remaining development budget within the 2026 cost cap, the last thing they’ll want is a wrecked car.
### The danger zones
We spoke to several F3 drivers and teams to find out why the Madring is so challenging in so many different ways and why there were so many red flags.
Asked why it’s so challenging, Audi-backed F3 championship leader Freddie Slater told The Race: “Because the corners that are there, they're so tight and they're not forgiving and also the walls come at you on the exit of the corners. They don't go away from you like most tracks.
“You're always coming out of the corner and trying to drive away from it instead of maximising, so it's a very tricky track to get in the rhythm of things.
“You have to push otherwise you're slow. So I think that's why it creates so many crashes because if you don't push you're just not on the limit.
“But honestly it's probably one of the best tracks on the calendar in my opinion, just because it's got that old-school feeling to it. Kind of like some of the old-school UK tracks, Macau, places like that. So I'm really excited to have the \[F3 championship\] finale there.”
The Madring lap starts with a slow-speed chicane akin to Jeddah’s, followed by a flat-out blast through Turns 3 and 4, which builds up into the first real danger zone - the second chicane.
It’s a high-speed chicane where the wall certainly comes at you on the exit, and it was the site of many a crumpled F3 car in the test.
“That's where there's so much laptime because there's uphill section after that, so there's so much laptime to gain going uphill,” Slater said.
“That's why I see a lot of people risking obviously for maximum laptime but also it's probably the place where the most crashes are.
“Also the kerbs are not very forgiving so you have to get it correct otherwise, you're going to end up crashing.”
It’s essentially an even harder version of the now-removed triple-apex Singapore Sling where the trajectory is 'head-first into the wall if you get it slightly wrong'. It’s not anything like some of the laps in the virtual world make it look where you’re able to effortlessly skip over the kerbs.
And the entry to the chicane is one of only two straight mode zones on the circuit, so drivers will be arriving at around 340km/h (211mph). It’s certainly not the kind of place you’d want a straight mode failure like those on Max Verstappen’s Red Bull earlier this year.
Negotiate that wall and you drive beneath the underpass and start climbing uphill through another tricky session that also claimed many an F3 car as a victim.
The standout feature of the circuit is the banked La Monumental corner but actually the corners just before it caught out just as many F3 drivers in the test.
There’s a tight chicane followed by a quick right/left in quick succession at Turns 10 and 11 that’s very easy to get wrong.
That then propels you into La Monumental, a 24% banked corner that dwarfs the challenge of Zandvoort’s banked turns.
Pirelli’s chief engineer Simone Berra labelled it “the most severe turn” in the championship and when The Race asked him how it compared to Zandvoort’s banking, Berra said La Monumental places 20 to 30% higher energy on the tyres.
Plus it has a completely blind exit and it’s grip-limited rather than power-limited like Zandvoort’s banked corner is, i.e. it’s a huge strain on the tyres and cars to give the drivers the grip they need.
F3 drivers were trying lots of different lines during the test and expect F1 drivers to do the same on Friday.
"It feels like I'm in an IndyCar \[on an oval\]," Slater told The Race.
"So yeah, it's pretty cool. It's just about flat, probably, in a Formula 3 car. I think it's going to be a little bit more difficult in your Formula 2 and maybe even Formula 1.
"But it's quite difficult to get the right line because obviously where the crest is, the bottoming can get quite bad. It looks an easy corner when you look at it but actually to drive it, it's quite a difficult corner to get the rhythm."
La Monumental only marks the halfway point in the lap and there are plenty more challenging corners after that, like the tight Turn 17 right-hander.
There’s very little breathing room around the lap and going conservative doesn’t work either.
Monza F3 sprint race winner Taito Kato explained: “If you want to gain laptime, you have to push until you’re close to the wall, so it’s risky but fun to drive.”
### Is it dangerous?
F1 drivers were swapping first impressions of Madrid on the drivers’ parade at Monza, with Sainz revealing “everyone seemed quite shocked by the track that Madrid has come up with”.
Sainz, who is an ambassador for this grand prix, explained he meant shocked in terms of F1 adding a track that has actual character, as opposed to some of the blander street tracks that have joined the calendar in recent years.
And while he acknowledges it’s been an F3 car killer, it remains to be seen whether it will be an F1 car killer.
Sainz did also say “we are all expecting safety cars, red flags and yellow flags in qualifying”.
Audi F1 driver Gabriel Bortoleto said: “It looks like a very interesting track, dangerous track, but at the same time very challenging and it's nice to race in a new track like that.”
Asked if it was dangerous, Sergio Perez pointed out: “I don't think it's any more dangerous than Jeddah, to be honest”.
Of course, Jeddah has sometimes been a car-killer too, with big accidents like Mick Schumacher’s huge qualifying crash in 2022 that meant he couldn’t race his Haas the next day.
So “not any more dangerous” still leaves an awful lot of room for it to be really brutal on the cars.
With a high risk factor, there is hope that drivers will be able to make a difference, plus the layout is very technical and there are so many low-speed corners.
Arvid Lindblad labelled it "a real drivers’ track” and there’s predictions of an edge-of-the-seat qualifying with razor-thin margins and the potential for a Monza-like surprise.
But it’s those same reasons that are leading to fears about the Sunday product.
### Race day fears
So expect a nail-biting qualifying in Madrid, but there are concerns the grand prix could be something of a procession.
With such tight corners, very few straights and a lack of heavy braking zones, there are not many obvious overtaking opportunities.
There’s plenty of recharge opportunities around the lap so you’d expect a more traditional F1 race like Hungary than the overtaking bonanzas of Monza, Silverstone or Spa.
Alex Albon even joked, “I don’t think there’s going to be any overtaking. I hope you guys got your fix in \[Monza\] and ignore next weekend.”
Of course, chaos could liven up the race if there are safety car or red flag interventions.
But there’s also the element of F2 and F3 racing there this weekend too, having five races between them before F1’s grand prix. F3 is holding its title-decider too, so there’s an added element of this being the last chance for that grid to impress future employers.
Remember 10 years ago for F1’s first race in Baku, F2 predecessor GP2 had probably its craziest round ever before the F1 grand prix, with 17 retirements across the two races because of accidents.
The F1 drivers at the time were consequently cautious in their race and it turned out to be a dull debut, with the predicted Baku F1 chaos coming in subsequent years instead.
“The grand prix was boring, right? Yeah, I remember. I was there in 2016 in Baku and I think F1 drivers, we tend to be a bit more disciplined in these things,” Sainz said.
“We obviously have bigger responsibilities in the fact that we represent a thousand people at the factory building those cars and we need to be a bit more careful with the material.
“We know we have also sometimes parts constraints and we have more experience also, so we also drive faster cars, which normally if anything is easier to crash.
“But yeah, we tend to have a bit more discipline with that.
“Also from a safety and circuit recommendation perspective, I think even by watching an FP1 live, we could almost sometimes text the race director and say this kerb there doesn't make sense, it's going to generate a crash or a bad moment.
“We can help the race director and the FIA learn through the weekend with us as we observe the same kind of patterns.”
It does feel almost inevitable somebody will be caught out this weekend. And there aren’t many places around here where you can get it wrong and emerge unscathed.
Whichever way it goes, Sainz has urged his fellow drivers not to be too quick to judge the circuit’s merits, calling for a “good debrief” after the race of what can be improved in the future.
Sainz said F1 does “need to see if it’s \[producing\] a bit too much” chaos and he expects there will be things that “go greatly, and other things that don’t go as well”.
He pointed out Miami had what he called a “bit of a disaster” of a debut in 2022 before turning into a “great grand prix”, so he wants that same patience for Madrid.
But with so many cities vying for grands prix now, Madrid will want to make an immediate impact to justify its place on the calendar, even if it does have a 10-year contract.
Its car-killing traits and old-school characteristics should make for a thrilling qualifying session. The main question is whether the racing spectacle can live up to that on Sunday.
### Kimi Raikkonen's son joins Red Bull
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/2007-f1-champion-kimi-raikkonen-son-robin-joins-red-bull/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T10:31:29.000Z
The son of the 2007 Formula 1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen will join Red Bull's driver development programme next year.
The 11-year-old karter Robin Raikkonen - born just before Kimi Raikkonen's second season back with Ferrari in 2015 - had been rumoured to join Red Bull over the Monza weekend.
Red Bull has now announced it will add Robin to its junior team from 2027.
While years away from being able to race in single-seaters, Raikkonen has already enjoyed strong success in karting, winning at both a national and international level.
"Robin has already demonstrated exceptional ability in karting," Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said.
"His speed, racecraft and natural talent have established him as one of the most promising young drivers in his age group. At the same time, he impresses with his maturity, his calm approach and his clear focus on driving.
"Our goal is to develop him step-by-step, without placing any unnecessary pressure on his shoulders.
"The path through motorsport is a long one, and we will give him the time, support and resources he needs to maximise his potential.
"We strongly believe that talent can thrive when supported by the right people, the right culture and the right environment. That is what we are committed to providing Robin as he continues his development.
"We are very much looking forward to taking the next steps in his journey together with Robin and his family."
Robin’s father Kimi added: "We are all thrilled and excited that Robin has been chosen to further his racing path as a member of the Red Bull junior team.
"Laurent and everyone else at Red Bull have been incredibly supportive throughout all our discussions. They offer a compelling and comprehensive programme to develop and nurture Robin's progress over the coming years and provide him with all the experience required to develop his natural talent, which has amply been displayed in all his karting endeavours to date."
Kimi said Robin joins the programme with "great humility" and that his son would "dedicate all his efforts to warrant the trust that Red Bull is placing in him".
F1 champion Raikkonen never raced for Red Bull but he was team-mates with one of its most famous products, Sebastian Vettel, at Ferrari, and he had plenty of experience racing the other (Max Verstappen).
He also made his F1 debut in 2001 with Sauber, when it ran as the Red Bull Sauber Petronas team, though this was not without controversy; The decision to field the then-21-year-old Raikkonen disgruntled Red Bull, which wanted Enrique Bernoldi placed at the team instead.
During his sabbatical from F1 from 2010-11 he also drove in the World Rally Championship for the Citroen junior team in a Red Bull-sponsored Citroen C4.
The Red Bull junior programme will be led by Gwen Lagrue when Robin joins next year.
Lagrue, who had spearheaded Mercedes' junior efforts including developing Kimi Antonelli through the junior ladder, is effectively replacing Helmut Marko as the head of the programme.
### Everything you need to know about WSBK dominator's MotoGP move
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/everything-you-need-to-know-about-wsbk-dominators-motogp-move/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T09:01:22.000Z
World Superbike championship leader Nicolo Bulega will officially move to MotoGP in 2027.
Bulega's long-anticipated move to the satellite Ducati team VR46 was announced on Wednesday. It will coincide with MotoGP's pivot to 850cc bikes and Pirelli rubber.
Here's what you should know about the 26-year-old's way here, and his prospects in MotoGP.
## Bulega is ridiculously well-prepared
Though he's shone on occasion, Bulega's former World Superbike rival Toprak Razgatlioglu has found the going tough in his rookie MotoGP season this year - but Bulega himself should face none of the adaptation headaches that have plagued Razgatlioglu's campaign.
Bulega did race the current MotoGP Michelins as injury stand-in last year - and acquitted himself well - but got carte blanche to discard all of that knowledge and instead zero in on the incoming Pirellis.
Not only does he know Pirelli rubber very well from World Superbike (Pirelli is the current tyre supplier there, though it will be replaced by Michelin in an effective swap move next year), he has done extensive testing with Ducati's 850cc prototype - and Pirelli's in-progress MotoGP tyres - already.
Though he has just two grand prix starts in MotoGP to his name, there's an argument that he is currently the best-prepared of anyone for MotoGP's new era.
## Bulega was a VR46 prodigy who fizzled out
A decade ago Bulega had arrived to the MotoGP paddock as the 2015 champion of the prestigious CEV Moto3 category, succeeding its 2014 champion Fabio Quartararo, who himself had succeeded 2013 champion... uhhh, Fabio Quartararo.
Arguably the crown jewel of Valentino Rossi's VR46 programme at that point - certainly more fancied than counterpart Pecco Bagnaia - Bulega lived up to the hype in his first year of Moto3\. But then, not unlike Quartararo, he really struggled and lost his way.
There was a growth spurt that hindered him, but things were clearly not right behind the scenes, too, and they never got better when he switched from Moto3 to Moto2 and eventually left the VR46 family to ride for Gresini instead.
Increasingly a stranger to even the top 10 in the intermediate class, he was no longer in any kind of MotoGP conversations - short-term or long-term - when he left the paddock.
## Bulega made World Superbikes his own
The rise in the WorldSBK surroundings was almost as sharp as the decline in his MotoGP prospects.
Bulega ran riot in main support series World Supersport, clinching the 2023 crown for Ducati in dominant fashion and doing enough to earn a promotion to Ducati's World Superbike factory team - where he right away showed himself to be a match for franchise rider Alvaro Bautista, and soon left Bautista behind.
Razgatlioglu's BMW heroics denied Bulega the crown as a rookie in 2024 and, in a much closer fight, as a sophomore in 2025\. But with Ducati growing increasingly dominant and Razgatlioglu leaving the paddock, Bulega was such a heavy favourite coming into this year that the question in season previews wasn't whether he would be champion, but rather whether he would win all 36 races.
That hasn't happened - new team-mate Iker Lecuona has beaten him once, at Donington Park. But Bulega has won every other race of the season, and his coronation as 2026 champion is a matter of pure mathematics, currently pencilled in for the late-September round at Cremona.
He has led 401 laps, compared to 53 for the rest of the grid.
## Morbidelli is going the other way
Given the success of its Lecuona hire (one win, 22 second-place finishes), Ducati was thought to favour other young, low-cost options to fill the WorldSBK seat Bulega is vacating.
In the end, though, Morbidelli is widely understood to have landed the seat as his MotoGP off-ramp.
His MotoGP career as a whole deserves it - three wins, eight podiums, title runner-up in 2020 - but you can certainly quibble about his recent form, both in terms of being a magnet for on-track incidents and in terms of struggling dreadfully for any kind of speed with the 2025-spec Ducati this year.
Of the MotoGP outcasts who will find refuge in WorldSBK next season, he has arguably performed the worst this year but will get the best gig.
And, depending on how much of a shake-up the switch to Michelins proves, it may be that only Lecuona will stand between Morbidelli and the world title.
### Mercedes' new engine upgrade plan is terrible news for Ferrari
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-new-engine-upgrade-plan-is-terrible-news-for-ferrari/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T04:12:09.000Z
Mercedes is working on what could be a killer blow to rival Ferrari's fading 2026 Formula 1 title chances with an ADUO-assisted engine upgrade set for introduction.
Despite it being accepted in the paddock that Mercedes has the best complete power unit package, it has earned the right to bring a development step this year under F1's catch-up mechanism known as Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO).
That is because the FIA's analysis of the different manufacturers has concluded that, based on the internal combustion engine element that ADUO is judged on, Red Bull is more than 2% ahead of everybody else.
It means Mercedes has the right to bring one power unit upgrade this season and one in 2027, while Ferrari, Audi and Honda can bring two this year and two next. Red Bull is not allowed any improvements yet.
Mercedes had declared earlier this season that, while it would be making use of the extra test bench hours and development spending that has been opened to it through ADUO, it did not plan to introduce any hardware changes.
However, The Race has learned that there has now been a change of plan and that efforts are ongoing at Mercedes' Brixworth engine facility to ready an ADUO step before the end of the campaign.
No date has yet been set in stone for the introduction of the upgraded specification, but it is anticipated that it will likely be at some point during the upcoming triple header that comprises Azerbaijan, Malaysia and Singapore.
The timing of this could coincide with when George Russell has to take a grid drop penalty for fresh power unit components, with him unable to get through to the end of the season on his current pool.
## Clues from Antonelli's new parts
It has not been confirmed in what area the Mercedes ADUO modifications will be made, but a big clue may have come at the Italian Grand Prix through the new parts Kimi Antonelli did and did not introduce there.
The world championship leader had headed into his home race knowing that he would be starting from the back of the grid because of an engine change penalty.
However, Mercedes chose not to fit a totally new power unit and instead restricted the changes to Antonelli's internal combustion engine, battery and control electronics.
It did not fit a fresh turbo, MGU-K, exhaust and ancillaries, even though taking new versions of these would have been without consequence.
Holding fire on introducing the full suite of components suggests Mercedes plans to bring those parts later this season – with the door then open for any of these to be upgraded when they are fitted.
It is widely understood that Mercedes has little to gain through improving its ICE, and that doing so risks pulling it ahead of Red Bull and handing its rival an opportunity for ADUO.
Modifications are likely to be focused in other areas, with the turbo the most obvious area where good gains can be found.
Due to Mercedes' tactics in Italy, in terms of what it did not replace, bringing the first fresh turbo will be without penalty.
So, when any ADUO step comes then that could mean both Russell and Antonelli getting their hands on it at the same time.
Under F1's rules, if a manufacturer introduces an upgrade of specification, then this has to be made available to its customer teams.
At the first race where it comes, the works squad must make at least one version of the change available to each of its customer teams.
So, when the new part comes, Alpine, Mercedes and Williams will all enjoy any progress that has been made, even if they have to choose how best to stagger any introduction between their drivers.
This could have an impact on the fight at the front too, with McLaren's recent progress having helped it win races and any gain it has potentially giving it a further edge over Ferrari.
The arrival of the Mercedes ADUO upgrade will likely come around the time of a major car upgrade that looks set to arrive at the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia at the start of next month.
With the team having been conservative with its development spending this year, it has elected to space out its introduction of major new parts.
It last introduced a major package in Montreal in late May, but is working on what could be a big overhaul for Sepang.
## Hamilton says Mercedes advantage 'mind blowing'
Mercedes' plan to bring an ADUO upgrade will be bad news for Ferrari, which introduced the second of its two allowed upgrades at the Italian Grand Prix.
It is understood that the changes it made to try to improve engine power were related to the turbo – making the design bigger with some other modification to the concept aimed at helping its potential.
Ferrari had downplayed the significance of its ADUO 2 step, which was also raced by Haas's Ollie Bearman.
However, it was clear from the relative performance of Ferrari against Mercedes on Monza's straights that there remains a big differential in play.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said that his team did not have the energy available to fight properly, as rivals battled with different deployment strategies.
"\[Some\] were 10km/h faster on one straight and 10km/h slower on another," he said. "The issue was that we were almost 10km/h slower everywhere.
"When we were putting a bit more energy in one corner, the gap was even bigger in the next straight line. It was quite impossible to manage."
Lewis Hamilton said he was taken aback by the differences between his own Ferrari and the Mercedes.
"We knew that they were fast on the straight, but it was really mind-blowing just how quick they were on the straight," he said. "Mercedes power, that thing just keeps pulling, pulling, pulling."
Despite Vasseur singling out the deployment deficit as a limiting factor in the race, he said there was no obvious root cause for the overall poor Ferrari performance.
"When you have a lack of pure power, then you start to play with deployment to try to compensate in one straight line," he said.
"If you deploy more somewhere, for sure you will deploy less somewhere else. And then you are going in the wrong spiral to try to play with this when you are fighting.
"Honestly, it's not about deployment. I think deployment was good. Even McLaren, they were playing a little bit Friday and Saturday morning. At the end, we are missing pure power."
Despite the Monza upgrade being the second step that Ferrari has made this season, following the revisions introduced in Austria in June, Vasseur thinks the long lead times for engine changes means getting on terms with Mercedes will be a long-term project.
"We were not expecting to recover \[with\] ADUO 1 or ADUO 2," he said. "We are doing small steps, but what you have to keep in mind is that…even if you make a couple of horsepower, it's a good step on the grid.
"We have a new engine next year, and ADUO 1 in 2027, and ADUO 2\. The target is to catch up, to catch up as soon as possible, but I was not expecting that in two months we will recover the delta with Mercedes."
### The wider significance of Vettel's Schumacher run
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sebastian-vettel-michael-schumacher-ferrari-f1-demo-wider-significance/
Last updated: 2026-09-08T19:01:38.000Z
Sebastian Vettel was quite open that his run in Michael Schumacher's 2002 Formula 1 championship-winning F2002 at last weekend's Italian Grand Prix was about more than just a demonstration of famous machinery.
On the one hand were the emotions of it all, with Vettel stepping into a cockpit once occupied by one of a childhood hero and, later, friend.
"We had a deep connection with the friendship, got fairly close and shared so many nice memories," he said of Schumacher.
"We'd much rather see him drive than me, myself included."
But there was an added element of the demonstration helping stoke the flames on a current debate about what F1 should really be in the future.
Because while the 2026 rules have, whether through design or by accident, produced some spectacular racing, Vettel said F1 is about more than just overtaking.
"It is exciting, the racing is exciting, but there's so much more to unpack when you look at F1," he said at Monza.
"Of course, from a driver's point of view, I want to drive the best car, and I want to win races. But then, what is the best car?
"The car of 2002 was state-of-the-art at that time, and a pioneer, and represents so much for what F1 stands for.
"The cars today do the same, and I think it's about performance, precision, discipline, hard work, but also responsibility and taking that forward.
"Also caring about the future, which you know these cars are trying to do."
Midway through a year in which opinions have been divided over the impact of the 2026 rules, Vettel argued that the F2002 run was something to remind people of what the essence of F1 could be.
"I'm probably not agreeing on everything that we currently have in the \[2026\] regulations from a driving point of view," he explained.
"But looking forward, I think that's where there's a huge chance to take people on board.
"And maybe also, for a moment like this, remind them what the sport was, what the sport is, and what the sport should be and can be in the future. And to do it responsibly."
Vettel is not a fan of F1's turbo hybrid rules, even though as a keen environmentalist he is aware of the sustainable benefits from such power units. He has often questioned the true road relevance of it all.
This stance was what prompted him to be one of the very first to suggest a few years ago, following a demonstration run in Nigel Mansell's 1992 FW14B at the 2022 British GP, that rather than F1 becoming more electric, the opposite would be better.
With the growth of sustainable fuels - used in that FW14B run and last weekend at Monza - a door instead was open for a return to V8s or V10s in the future.
While F1 initially poured cold water on that idea, times have changed. The complexities, costs and response to the new 50/50 rules have come together to leave both F1 and the FIA convinced that this will be the final ruleset for turbo hybrids like this.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has declared that F1 [will be moving to V8s](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-v8-engine-plan-2030-2031-fia-ben-sulayem/) by 2031 at the latest, even though a small electrical element will remain.
For Vettel, the acceptance of his vision for a sustainable fuel/V8 future is something he welcomed - but he said it would be wrong to think that this singular shift will be a miracle cure for all of F1's ills.
"There is nothing you can apply that will fix all the problems," he said. "There are a lot of people in the paddock that I know, and I've been one of them, to look for the silver bullet.
"You want something that propels you forward and gives you an advantage. But it's never one single thing. It's always a combination of a lot of things.
"I think sustainable fuels are a step forward when you look at F1 and racing. There's huge potential, not just for F1, but also to inspire other racing series.
"Then if you shape the next generation of cars, there's a lot of potential to do so responsibly, because some things that are maybe incredible from a technology point of view might not be transferable to the streets. So, I think there's also responsibility to do that.
"And if there is not that chance anymore, then maybe you have to get to a point where you are happy to simplify.
"You can achieve being responsible and setting an example in different ways and on different tracks, not just the racetrack, but even just next to the racetrack \[on the streets\]."
It's the potential to return to some of the core attractions of the past, through both new technology and simplification, that has left Vettel convinced the impact of his F2002 run is proof of why an old-school F1 future can be bright.
"I look forward to the future and what it brings, because I think F1 has so many nice values that shaped me and inspired me in my life," he said.
"It touches a lot of people around the world and has that power to do so on many other things that are meaningful and impactful."
### Why F1 pole shocks like Gasly's are close to extinct
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-pole-shocks-like-gaslys-are-close-to-extinct/
Last updated: 2026-09-08T18:21:14.000Z
Pierre Gasly’s pole position at the Italian Grand Prix was one of the biggest shocks that Formula 1 has seen in a while.
In fact, over the past decade there have been just two pole positions by drivers outside the current big four teams of Mercedes, McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull.
That was Kevin Magnussen’s sprint pole for Haas from the 2022 Brazilian GP and Lance Stroll’s top spot for Racing Point in 2020 Turkish GP qualifying. Both of those, however, were assisted by outside influences throwing in an extra level of unpredictability.
In Magnussen’s case, it was the weather as a downpour at the end of the session meant his early SQ3 effort could not be toppled. For Stroll, Istanbul’s super slippery track surface threw up a bit of a curveball that Racing Point mastered.
Gasly’s moment in the spotlight at Monza was a bit different because it was secured on merit in completely normal dry conditions.
The performance spread between everyone was small and key to nailing a qualifying lap was execution and track positioning – something that Alpine did to perfection [as the big squads all got it wrong for different reasons. ](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/five-reasons-for-gaslys-shock-italian-grand-prix-pole/)
Such toppling of the F1 frontrunners on normal weekends does happen, like Felipe Massa’s 2014 Austrian GP pole or Pastor Maldonado’s from his amazing 2012 Spanish GP weekend, both of those achieved by Williams, but is incredibly rare.
If we pore through the history books, such unusual outcomes have pretty much dried up – as can be seen from the below table of pole positions by the non-big four squads.
---
**Most recent poles by squads outside of 'big four' + team's position in constructors' championship**
Pierre Gasly - Alpine - **2026** Italian GP (currently 6th)
Kevin Magnussen - Haas - **2022** Brazilin GP (8th) \*wet weather
Lance Stroll - Racing Point - **2020** Turkish GP (4th) \*abnormal grip
Felipe Massa - Williams - **2014** Austrian GP (3rd)
Pastor Maldonado - Williams - **2012** Spanish GP (8th)
Nico Hulkenberg - Williams - **2010** Brazilian GP (6th) \*wet weather
Giancarlo Fisichella - Force India - **2009** Belgian GP (9th)
Fernando Alonso - Renault - **2009** Hungarian GP (8th)
Jarno Trulli - Toyota - **2009** Bahrain GP (5th)
Sebastian Vettel - Toro Rosso - **2008** Italian GP (6th) \*wet weather
Robert Kubica - BMW Sauber - **2008** Bahrain GP (3rd)
---
## Reality's 'punch in the face'
While Alpine had its day in the sun thanks to perfect execution in getting the tow it needed, managing director Steve Nielsen says the team’s performance in the race – where Gasly came home seventh and Franco Colapinto ninth – was a more realistic reflection of what its true pace was.
He confessed that the simulations heading into qualifying had suggested the bottom end of Q3 was all that was realistically on the table before it pulled off its surprise.
“We were just over the cut-off for Q3,” he told The Race. “I think we were a bit flattered \[in qualifying\] that we didn't make any mistakes.
“We got good tows, the drivers didn't make any mistakes, they didn't overdrive, and we put our best lap together.
“We got the best out of the car. And honestly, others didn't, and that was good enough to put us on pole.”
Alpine, inevitably, allowed itself to hope that, with track position so important in F1, starting at the front could give it a sniff of something awesome on Sunday.
But in F1, as Nielsen says, reality only ever “punches you straight in the face” when it comes to turning a good pole into a race result.
“In the race, that is our pace,” he said. “We were back to being top of the midfield, which is lovely. But we're still out of reach of the top four, which is where we want to be.”
## The cost cap divide
What the “punch in the face” of Alpine reverting to the mean in slipping behind the top four by the chequered flag highlights is that there is a clear divide of teams into two categories.
Many in the paddock believe that the divide - and the fact it has been carried through a major rule overhaul - is a consequence of the cost cap.
While the cost cap has been critical in improving F1’s overall health since it was introduced in 2021, with teams becoming profit centres rather than facing an endless fight for survival, one surprise element is how it has not equalised things all that much.
Yes, the big teams have been unable to throw even more money at winning to make the victory margins bigger. But that has not meant the smaller squads having the freedom to catch up.
Williams boss James Vowles is adamant that legacy infrastructure advantages have been locked in – because there is not the spending freedom to allow those behind to catch up.
“Best rule decision we made in the sport, it really is,” he told The Race recently about the cost cap.
“But what it did is also lock in any advantage or differential that was created by anyone else as a result of it.
“It's not a surprise to me that you have the top four and the rest, which is what you have today. Let's be blunt about it.
“That is actually more to do with what was created many years ago. Even just basics on how you do your structures, your learning behind it, how you do your outside production, the suppliers you work with.
“That's built up over 10 years of investing at the right level. Not one or two years of trying to catch back up.
“What cost cap does really well is it means we're a business. But what it does also, unfortunately, is it means that I'm putting a lot of dollars into just trying to fix basics, which others won't be.”
Nielsen sees Alpine’s route to success being not about just designing a better car. It is as much about improving efficiency at the factory – so getting a bigger bang for each buck spent.
“I think if I look at our own garden, because I can't see other people's unfortunately, where we need to be much better is internal efficiency to maximise the in-cap money that we've got,” he said.
“Perhaps be a bit cleverer around how we use it, maximise the regulations. I think there's some quite big wins there for us if we do that.”
Alpine is a world away from last year when it ended up bottom in the standings, and Monza has shown that there are days it can shake up the F1 order and make the top teams uncomfortable.
But there is a long way to go before it - or anyone else - can join them regularly.
### Miller's post-MotoGP future revealed
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/millers-post-motogp-future-revealed/
Last updated: 2026-09-08T12:08:39.000Z
MotoGP veteran Jack Miller will move to the World Superbike Championship next year, joining the factory Yamaha team in place of Xavi Vierge in a two-year deal.
Miller will leave the MotoGP paddock after 15 full-time seasons of competition, 12 of which he has spent in the premier class (having moved up straight from Moto3).
In his time in MotoGP the 31-year-old won four races and claimed 23 podiums, having competed on factory deals with Honda, Ducati, KTM and now Yamaha.
He has been off the radar in MotoGP this season as a consequence of Yamaha's V4 engine being largely uncompetitive in its first season, but has had some strong weekends. These, though, mostly came after it became clear Miller would not be keeping his seat at Yamaha satellite team Pramac, with Moto2 standout [Izan Guevara picked as replacement](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/new-yamaha-motogp-signing-izan-guevara-what-you-should-know/).
## The rider he's replacing
A WorldSBK pivot for Miller appeared unlikely earlier this season, with a seeming dearth of obvious fits - especially if he wanted to remain in the Yamaha family.
Yamaha already had three of its four 2027 WorldSBK factory-contracted seats (across the main team and satellite team GRT) filled by virtue of two-year contracts, and new recruit Vierge - though brought in on just a one-year deal - looked to be doing more than enough to ensure continuity.
Yamaha WorldSBK chief Andrea Dosoli indicated to The Race back in April that Vierge was on track for a renewal. But while Vierge's form has hardly sagged, Yamaha has clearly deemed Miller is an upgrade.
Vierge, though, is expected to land on his feet. He told WorldSBK.com last weekend at Magny-Cours that he was certain of remaining on the grid - and is the apparent favourite for a seat at privateer Ducati team Barni.
In the current realities of World Superbike, that Barni team is much more competitive than Yamaha. It is outscoring the works Yamaha team by 168 points, and has scored 14 podiums.
No Yamaha rider has finished on the podium this year, its R1 clearly no match for the dominant Ducati Panigale right now - though there's hope for this to change during Miller's tenure, with the switch to Michelin tyres in WorldSBK in 2027 and a rebalancing of the field that will include a MotoGP-style concession system in 2028.
### Russell to get his own grandstand at the 2027 British GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/russell-to-get-his-ownngrandstand-at-2027-british-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-08T11:46:41.000Z
*You* get a grandstand, *you* get a grandstand - and now so does George Russell.
The Mercedes driver today announced that he will have his own *‘GRandstand’* at the 2027 British Grand Prix.
“I’m really excited to announce that in 2027, for the grand prix, we’re going to have our own GR grandstand,” Russell said in the announcement video on social media.
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdBbE8NNi5B/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
> [A post shared by George Russell (@georgerussell63)](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdBbE8NNi5B/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
Located at Farm Curve, the grandstand offers a view of the first four corners. Russell said: “It’s a really, really cool place on the circuit. It’s one of the best in my opinion.”
The driver was asked about the possibility of his own home grandstand at this year’s British Grand Prix - to which he said it was something he would like to do.
He then went on to joke that he would like to take Lando Norris’ Landostand location from him.
"Where I'd like to put it? Probably, I mean, Lando's got quite a good spot on the outside of Stowe, so I'll try and steal it off him."
Norris was quick to respond with a quippy “good luck!”.
Further information is yet to be released but on-sale dates are expected in the next few months. Russell fans are encouraged to register for pre-sale access on the [Silverstone website](https://www.silverstone.co.uk/events/formula-1-british-grand-prix/george-russell-grandstand-sign-up?utm%5Fsource=Klaviyo&utm%5Fmedium=email&utm%5Fcampaign=WK37%5F080926%5FGeorge%5FSilverstone%5FGrandstand%5FAnnouncement%5FUK&utm%5Fid=01M1XSSRPE44CNW2XB7R1BTPT5&%5Fkx=iU0Pd64mXlhTgdFn90YXfIRqoFd2rsG5%5FOLiW6gZ7dI.Tjtg98).
### The pivotal choices Ferrari is now facing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-now-facing-pivotal-f1-choices/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T20:38:39.000Z
Ferrari faces significant challenges as its 2026 Formula 1 season spirals: there's disharmony in the driver line-up, and a growing list of problems concerning how the team is operating, while Mercedes and Kimi Antonelli have just delivered the most embarrassing of blows at Ferrari's home race.
As the pressure and scrutiny mounts, what's next for the drivers, the team at large, and Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur - and how does ex-Red Bull Racing CEO Christian Horner potentially fit into this mess?
As regards the drivers, Lewis Hamilton already made his feelings clear on what he feels [needs to change](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/here-there-are-no-rules-hamilton-calls-ferrari-out/) to get Ferrari back on the right track.
In Q2 at the the Italian Grand Prix, Hamilton made jibes about a lack of cooperation from Leclerc's side of the garage - which Hamilton felt almost led to a catastrophic elimination from the top-10 shootout, and there was clear disagreement about who was to blame for their Turn 1 incident in the race.
Hamilton even made a point of defending his conduct since joining Ferrari, saying: "I've come into the team and tried to be respectful of space - and definitely not put the team in jeopardy. You have to speak to Fred about the other side."
The clear inference being that Charles Leclerc is the problem here...
So, has Ferrari lost control over its driver line-up?
It certainly seems less harmonious than the Leclerc/Carlos Sainz combination that preceded it.
Hamilton's resurgence in 2026 has potentially created a dynamic closer to the one Ferrari experienced with Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell back in 1989-90 - essentially two big beasts who want to have the team pulling for them.
Leclerc probably thought he had Hamilton's number at the end of 2025, easily Hamilton's worst season in F1\. But this year Hamilton has come out swinging, driving far better and talking about how much of a stamp he's had on the new car for this season, and how much more in tune he is with the team.
Does Leclerc sense a shift in the political dynamic behind the scenes, and a need therefore to reassert himself - to ensure Hamilton doesn't essentially take the team off him?
Leclerc is publicly dismissive of the idea there is a polarisation between him and Hamilton, and said he doesn't know who's "forcing" this narrative, but the past two races at Monza and Zandvoort are indicative of a team that is struggling to deal with these two particular drivers when they are close together on track, and one needs to be compromised to help the other.
It just so happens on both of these recent occasions it's been Hamilton needing help from Leclerc and that help has not been forthcoming.
Is the lack of assertiveness from Ferrari in dealing with this indicative of a team that fears favouring one over the other?
It does seem that way. After Monza, Vasseur used a rather spurious comparison with McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris from last year, saying if they'd favoured Piastri over Norris while Piastri was leading the standings then Max Verstappen would have snuck through to become champion, which completely ignores the fact McLaren still operated to its own 'Papaya rules'.
As Hamilton said, Ferrari has no rules in that respect.
Vasseur also maintains close relationships with both drivers. Is he paralysed between Ferrari's golden homegrown talent in Leclerc, and statistically the greatest F1 driver of all in Hamilton, whom Vasseur himself helped nurture in the junior categories?
It does look from the outside like he's desperately trying to keep both parties happy while pleasing no one.
It's a difficult position to be in, because Leclerc has also just recently agreed a new long-term contract with the team he's been tied to since he was a kid. That potentially makes him Ferrari's immoveable object - up against the irresistible force of F1's biggest and most marketable driver, suddenly once again driving at or near his best level.
And if they're both performing at a high level there's no natural order of things on track to settle the matter, which adds pressure on Vasseur - as the man at the top - to make tough decisions that, so far, he seems to be avoiding.
All the while the defeats stack up and Ferrari looks more exposed, which leads us to our next question: can Vasseur even survive this latest embarrassment?
## Will Vasseur pay the price?
Hamilton was emphatic in the aftermath of Monza in singling out where change at Ferrari needs to come from: "Ultimately it comes from the top. It trickles down, decisions. And so, it starts with Fred."
But this isn't Hamilton trying to throw Vasseur under the bus and kick start a hunt for a new team principal. It's instead a rallying call for Vasseur to assert his authority and make the changes Hamilton thinks are necessary for Ferrari to succeed.
Hamilton understands the limit of his own influence, in "shouting repeatedly from the mountaintops", as he puts it. Ultimately, it's the team boss with the authority to shake things up.
Hamilton understands that mistakes made in the battlefield - be it operational errors such as poor execution in qualifying, a strategy blunder in the race, or tension between drivers - are not primarily about the weaknesses of individuals.
Instead, a team is a manifestation of the leadership structure put in place from the top: lines of reporting, lines of communications, who makes the decisions, and the quality of information that influence calls are all shaped from above.
Fail to address deficits here and solutions only become plasters covering a wound. Cleaning this up all rests with Vasseur.
The inference from Hamilton is Ferrari needs to start acting in a way that other big teams do. He feels the issues exposed in recent weeks require a proper reset if Ferrari is going to make the most of the remainder of this season.
Ferrari's Monza trouble will undoubtedly have increased the pressure on Vasseur to take decisive action and address the concerns Hamilton is raising. And while Vasseur once again tried to brush off the disappointment, patience could be wearing thin after Ferrari, in Vasseur's words, "failed" the tifosi in the grandstands with such a limp performance in the Italian GP.
Well-connected paddock sources suggest the optics of Monza - of a Ferrari disaster on the day Antonelli grabbed the hearts of the tifosi, in a Mercedes - have not gone down well with the Prancing Horse's top brass.
The question now is whether this will trigger a review of Vasseur's position. There is certainly plenty of probing to do about many of the key decisions he's taken this year.
Should Vasseur have fought harder to block the start procedure changes that wiped away the advantage his team gained with its smaller turbo?
Was sacrificing ultimate engine power - through the turbo, operating temperatures and the exhaust wing - to boost chassis performance and game the Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities system the right route to take in this engine-dominated, energy-starved formula?
Should Ferrari have laid down a code of conduct for its drivers and been more decisive to try to maximise its title chances?
Even if the conclusion is that better results went begging this year and a change of boss longer term should come, Ferrari's senior chiefs will have to be sure they are bringing someone in who can do a better job and change things that Vasseur cannot.
As Hamilton said, you cannot keep doing the same thing and expect results to change.
Ferrari's World Endurance Championship boss Antonello Coletta has long been linked to the F1 role, and is obviously well-loved in Maranello circles.
But there's no denying that the longer Horner remains on the sidelines, as [efforts to return](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/horner-in-talks-over-new-byd-f1-team-entry/) as a team owner or [shareholder](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-renaults-intervened-over-f1-team-sale-talks/) fail to materialise, the greater the chances of him considering Ferrari could be a realistic option.
Horner turned down the Ferrari top job several years ago, despite a personal plea from Ferrari chairman John Elkann.
Would Ferrari be prepared to ask him again to find out if this time the answer is different?
### Hadjar to miss third straight F1 race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/isack-hadjar-to-miss-third-straight-f1-race-madring-spanish-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T17:13:30.000Z
Red Bull Formula 1 driver Isack Hadjar will be sidelined for a third consecutive grand prix, missing the first-ever F1 race at the new Madring venue.
Racing Bulls regular Liam Lawson deputised for his former team-mate Hadjar in the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort and in the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, following the wrist fracture sustained by Hadjar during the summer break.
And Lawson will again be in the RB22 in the Spanish GP at the new Madrid street circuit, on the heels of a seventh-place finish at Zandvoort and a grid penalty- and wing damage-influenced 14th at Monza.
"The decision has been taken as Isack's recovery continues to progress positively," Red Bull said. "While he is not yet ready to return to the cockpit, he will be in Madrid supporting the team."
Red Bull added that it looked forward to having Hadjar in the RB22 "very soon".
Lawson claimed at Monza that he was "trying to prepare for both cars" for Madring - "they're just so different to drive so it's not ideal" - but can now officially focus all of his attention on the Red Bull.
Yuki Tsunoda will continue to deputise for Lawson at Racing Bulls.
### Edd Straw's 2026 Italian Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T15:08:35.000Z
The Italian Grand Prix delivered a lot of action and a particularly memorable home win - though the local crowds also had to contend with the home team tripping up badly.
Those two things cover off the two opposite ends of our driver rankings this week, but what about the rest of the field?
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and** [**ask your questions in reply to this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/ask-edd-about-168863668?ref=the-race.com)**.**
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-168771687?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to in a separate feature!**
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**Started:** 19th **Finished:** 1st
**PROS**
\- Hinted with his Q2 lap and his out-of-sequence no-tow Q3 lap that he had the pace for pole despite not focusing on single-lap pace through the weekend.
\- Incisiveness both on the two opening laps (gaining a total of seven places), then in clearing cars to get to Russell, was key to pulling off his unexpected win.
\- Showed no sign of the pressure of either the championship situation or being at Monza, where he'd had tough times both in 2024 and 2025, getting to him.
**CONS**
\- There were circumstances that played in his favour, even though he still had to drive superbly to capitalise on them.
\- The error in battle when he was caught out by the breaking-up track surface while attacking Russell late on led to a trip through the gravel that could have been more costly, although he recovered well.
**Verdict:** The difficulty of his mission means the gravel moment doesn't cost him top spot.
**Started:** 1st **Finished:** 7th
**PROS**
\- His execution of qualifying was close to flawless, finding pace as the session progressed, positioning himself well for tows and putting together his best three sectors on the all-important pole lap.
\- Drove intelligently in the race, realising that the race pace of the Alpine was such that he was inevitably going to fall behind the big-team cars. That said, he covered Norris for some time, so he did what he could.
\- Realistically, top of the midfield in seventh place was the optimum race result.
**CONS**
\- Nothing of any real note - and in the race that's impressive given his team-mate showed what could go wrong if you got overambitious in an Alpine.
**Verdict:** Backed up his brilliant qualifying with an intelligent race.
**Started:** 2nd **Finished:** 2nd
**PROS**
\- Raced intelligently, particularly in the way he forced Antonelli into an error when attempting to hang onto the lead late on.
\- Dealt well with the front tyre vibration in the closing stages to minimise the time loss.
\- The VSC timing was unfortunate, allowing Antonelli to make a cheap stop and transforming the trajectory of the battle at the front.
**CONS**
\- Should have taken pole position, but a combination of struggling with brake locking and being too close to Max Verstappen on his final Q3 lap contributed to him slipping behind Gasly.
\- Appeared to lack Antonelli's edge of pace, although direct comparisons are difficult because of the different approaches to qualifying and race strategy.
**Verdict:** Better than the narrative that he 'flopped' suggests, but not at Antonelli's level.
**Started:** 13th **Finished:** 13th
**PROS**
\- Produced what he called "mini wins" in qualifying by reaching Q2 and beating Esteban Ocon, by 0.001s, and couldn't have qualified higher.
\- Made the most of the cheap virtual safety car pitstop to come through to 13th, making the most of that opportunity to finish higher than a Williams should have done.
**CONS**
\- Despite getting a good launch at the start, he was shuffled back by the end of the lap - albeit only behind quicker cars.
**Verdict:** After big errors in the last two events, was back on car-maximising form.
**Started:** 9th **Finished:** 8th
**PROS**
\- At times, showed impressive pace and appeared to be on top of the car for the most part.
\- Eighth was probably the best he could achieve given he never showed the speed to threaten Gasly.
\- Drove a good, clean race despite seeming to struggle a little more with ageing hards than Gasly.
**CONS**
\- Q3 was a disappointment, and he apologised over the radio for leaving time on the table - albeit he suggested that was only in the vicinity of a tenth.
\- Perhaps over-managed for much of the hard stint, but that was down to instructions from the team so doesn't really count against him.
**Verdict:** Another Q3 underperformance aside, a good weekend.
**Started:** 5th **Finished:** 3rd
**PROS**
\- Third place in the grand prix was the best possible result.
\- Hung around the lead battle while he could despite the Red Bull not being as quick, which was not easy given the deployment disadvantage to Mercedes.
\- When the car was working as it should, he generally extracted all of the pace from it - and even when there was a problem in qualifying that compromised the rear ride height he made the best of it.
\- Considering he was on the back foot after missing FP1, it was a well-worked weekend.
**CONS**
\- Two offs at the first chicane, one at the start of his final Q3 run that meant he lost the tow to the McLarens and another during the race, the main negatives.
**Verdict:** Got everything he could out of the Red Bull package.
**Started:** 8th **Finished:** 4th
**PROS**
\- Drove intelligently in battle, exemplified by out-deploying Piastri to prevail in their battle for fourth on the last lap.
\- While the qualifying result was disappointing, there's an asterisk against it in that Piastri's first-chicane error cost him a tow.
**CONS**
\- Wasn't consistent in executing qualifying laps, which contributed to being only eighth on the grid.
**Verdict:** Marginally the more accomplished McLaren driver despite qualifying disappointment.
**Started:** 11th **Finished:** 15th
**PROS**
\- Adapted well to the upgraded aerodynamic package of the Haas, and also benefitted from having the new Ferrari power unit.
\- His race pace was good, and his overall result would have been better had the VSC not been deployed just as he passed the pit entry, making a stop impossible.
\- Made gains at both starts.
**CONS**
\- Failed to improve on his second Q2 lap, meaning he didn't get the most out of the Haas despite a decent overall result.
\- Compromised himself slightly by pushing a little too hard to stay with Yuki Tsunoda - but ultimately he needed to do that to maximise the chance of a point.
\- Lost a place to Colapinto when he was jumped at the VSC restart.
**Verdict:** A strong performance on a track where even the upgraded Haas wasn't a points-scorer.
**Started:** 4th **Finished:** 6th
**PROS**
\- Although he struggled with the car more than Leclerc early in the weekend, he recovered well.
\- Final Q3 lap, just seven-thousandths off Leclerc, ensured he salvaged a good position from what had been a very difficult qualifying.
**CONS**
\- Had an untidy qualifying, albeit not entirely of his making.
\- Turn 1 move on Leclerc was perfectly legitimate, but it put him in a high-risk position for Turn 2 and he paid the price for that. Not the ideal trade-off of risk-versus-reward given how the racing was expected to pan out and it cost him significant ground, albeit with the caveat he might have expected his team-mate to give him the necessary space.
\- Cut the first chicane on lap 35, allowing Antonelli past.
**Verdict:** A patchy weekend, but Ferrari itself played a big part in that.
**Started:** 10th **Finished:** 11th
**PROS**
\- Showed good pace in the Audi throughout the weekend at a track that played to the car's weaknesses.
\- Realistically, 11th place was probably about where an Audi should finish even though there was perhaps an opportunity to have beaten Tsunoda.
\- Passed Nico Hulkenberg in the race to secure lead-Audi honours.
**CONS**
\- A small mistake at Ascari on his final Q2 lap cost him a place in Q3.
\- A poor second start cost him, and despite Audi's launch troubles it was significantly worse than Hulkenberg's. Conversely, he had made a better first than Hulkenberg.
\- Pace-wise, Tsunoda was beatable to the last point but only if Bortoleto hadn't lost track position at the second start.
**Verdict:** The stronger Audi driver, but with a few untidy moments.
**Started:** 22nd (pits) **Finished:** 14th
**PROS**
\- Power unit component changes mean he was always on the back foot this weekend given he had a grid penalty.
\- Couldn't have done much to avoid the front-wing damage sustained on the restart lap - given that was the result of Hulkenberg chopping across him on the run to Turn 1.
\- Although comparisons are difficult, Lawson's pace was more than respectable and there's no doubt he would have scored well with a clean race, even from the pitlane start.
**CONS**
\- The circumstances of the weekend in terms of the grid penalty and the front wing damage - which forced a pitstop that disconnected him from the field - meant the opportunities to impress were limited.
\- He was given a black-and-white warning flag for squeezing Hulkenberg onto the grass approaching the second chicane, but that came with no associated penalty and was a harsh marginal call anyway.
**Verdict:** Another decent stand-in performance, even if the results don't show it.
**Started:** 6th **Finished:** 5th
**PROS**
\- Drove a clean race and for the most part played his hand well in battle.
\- While he has struggled at times with race pace recently, including last time out at Zandvoort, he and Norris were well-matched at Monza.
\- First Q3 lap was strong and allowed him to outqualify Norris, albeit partly because of his own error on the second run.
**CONS**
\- Felt he could have prevailed in the last-lap battle with Norris for fourth place, saying "I know what I'd do differently".
\- While he was put into a difficult situation and the stewards justifiably concluded he had "no other options available" and "inadvertently" blocked Lawson at the first chicane in Q3, earning himself a three-place grid drop, it has to be considered a very minor negative given there's usually something the driver can do to avoid such outcomes.
\- Chicane lock-up on his final Q3 run ruined his final lap.
**Verdict:** A much-needed weekend of even pace across conditions.
**Started:** 15th **Finished:** 10th
**PROS**
\- His Q1 exit was partly down to what he described as technical problems that he battled during Friday and Saturday, so that's a mitigating factor.
\- Drove a good, incisive race to climb to take a point.
\- Of the three drivers who ran from the restart to the finish on mediums, his pace stood up the best in relative terms.
**CONS**
\- His inexperience with the quirks of the power units troubled him at times and contributed to what went wrong in qualifying.
\- While he escaped without penalty for confusing which side of the grid he was restarting on, which the team must take some responsibility for, there remains some jeopardy given Audi's intended appeal.
**Verdict:** Raced well to salvage a good result from a challenging weekend.
**Started:** 20th **Finished:** 17th
**PROS**
\- Played the team game both in qualifying and the race, in the latter case also ensuring Sainz got overtake mode to harvest extra energy.
\- Was making a de facto non-stop run on hards work, only to have to make a late precautionary stop because of vibrations.
\- His underlying race pace was good despite the disappointing result.
**CONS**
\- Not his fault so it doesn't directly count against him, but power unit component changes and the resulting 20-place grid penalty reduced him to a tow-provider in qualifying and cost the opportunity to show his true single-lap speed.
\- Circumstances made it more difficult for him to make an impression.
**Verdict:** A better weekend than the results suggest.
**Started:** 14th **Finished:** 16th
**PROS**
\- Had the dual disadvantages of not having the upgraded Ferrari engine and being the Haas driver to suffer from the aerodynamic problems that seem to blight one car or the other.
\- Given the car wasn't working well, his qualifying pace was decent.
\- A great first start briefly got him into the points.
**CONS**
\- It's difficult to make a fair evaluation of his pace given the power unit-spec difference and the fact his car wasn't working as it should do aerodynamically.
**Verdict:** Machinery limited his opportunity to show what he could do, and his ranking has to reflect that.
**Started:** 17th **Finished:** 18th
**PROS**
\- Drove a good race to win the Cadillac battle after jumping Bottas at the first start.
\- Covered Alonso well in their battle in the first part of the race.
**CONS**
\- Was behind Bottas in qualifying by 0.231s, although there were mitigating factors for that.
\- Picked up a five-second penalty for failing to follow the prescribed route in the first chicane run-off area, which didn't affect his position but was needless.
**Verdict:** Disappointing in qualifying, but more effective in the race.
**Started:** 16th **Finished:** 19th
**PROS**
\- Through no fault of his own, lost around 10s in the VSC pitstop as the second car in a double-stack where both stops were slow.
\- Had the edge on Perez in qualifying.
\- His race pace fundamentally was decent.
**CONS**
\- Lost position to Perez at the first start, although that was largely down to circumstances rather than any major error on his part.
\- Falling into blue-flag territory earlier led to him losing more time than Perez.
**Verdict:** A good weekend, with the 32-second gap to Perez at the finish misleading.
**Started:** 12th **Finished:** 12th
**PROS**
\- For the most part drove a good race, including a decent second start, which is no easy thing in an Audi.
\- Came through well after making a stop under the VSC, following Bortoleto home.
**CONS**
\- Off at the first chicane allowed Colapinto to pass him during the race.
\- Didn't execute qualifying especially well, ending up 0.262s behind his team-mate.
\- A brief "sitting duck" phase in the race that he struggled to explain, likely related to deployment, cost him track position and compromised his chance of scoring.
**Verdict:** A solid weekend, but he was the second-best Audi driver overall.
**Started:** 7th **Finished:** 9th
**PROS**
\- At times, he showed good pace.
\- Did a superb job at the two starts to turn seventh on the original grid to, all-too-briefly, third place.
\- Kept his head down in recovery to salvage a couple of points. His ninth place potentially was only one place worse than he would have been without the mistake - but he was much further back on time than he should have been.
**CONS**
\- Couldn't match Gasly's pace evolution in qualifying, dropping from 0.050s behind in Q1 to 0.323s in Q2, then the final 0.434s.
\- Admitted to there being corners that "troubled me" in qualifying, primarily the second chicane and Ascari - where his trend for being more attacking on the brakes and a bit later on the power proved a disadvantage when the energy demands were factored in.
\- His Lesmo off was hugely costly, both in terms of positions and the floor damage he sustained.
**Verdict:** A missed opportunity, although he did at least salvage a reasonable result.
**Started:** 21st (pits) **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- Extracted what pace he could from the car, outqualifying Lance Stroll despite having to rely on his first Q1 run thanks to power unit problems intervening.
\- Raced well in the early stages to take the fight to the Cadillacs.
**CONS**
\- He took responsibility for a wide moment that gave him damage and led to his retirement because, as he put it, "we were slow and with damage on the car, no point".
**Verdict:** Did what he could with the Aston Martin, but ranking is hurt given he took responsibility for the damage that led to his retirement.
**Started:** 18th **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- Wasn't in any way responsible for his retirement with a hydraulics failure.
\- Largely drove cleanly through the weekend.
**CONS**
\- While the 0.072s deficit to Alonso looks decent on paper, that was a clean session compared to his team-mate's curtailed one with the laptime set on scrubbed softs.
\- Lost the tow early in the race, which Alonso was able to stay in.
**Verdict:** Had nothing to work with, but still did less with it than Alonso.
**Started:** 3rd **Finished:** DNF
**PROS**
\- Did a better job than Hamilton in qualifying, albeit in the final reckoning only by the narrowest of margins.
**CONS**
\- Parabolica shunt at the end of lap two was a big error, especially given he'd made a similar mistake there in the 2020 race - albeit with the added complication this time of it being during battle.
\- While he mentioned the "difference in power delivery" from lap one to lap two as a contributing factor to the crash, that comes with the territory with these power units.
\- Given it was his team-mate, could have been more judicious at Turn 2 on the first lap.
**Verdict:** Quick, but race shunt was a major error.
### Everything we learned from F1's Italian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-italian-grand-prix-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T12:35:18.000Z
Formula 1's Italian Grand Prix may have ended up producing a familiar 2026 winner (who also had a more routine run to victory than might have been expected), but the weekend-long route to that outcome was a far more complicated process.
Here are the key parts of the story from F1's visit to Monza, as the European leg of the season came to its conclusion.
## Ferrari flaws were exposed
This should've been a run-of-the-mill defeat for Ferrari, or at least as run-of-the-mill as it can be in the home confines of Monza. The upgraded engine - more on that later - is no miracle cure for the kind of layout that just doesn't suit its particular strengths and weaknesses this year, and even with Antonelli's grid penalty the idea of making a big dent in his and Mercedes' lead was fanciful in hindsight.
But Monza didn't just expose the engine. "Honestly, this is not news," team principal Fred Vasseur said. "Coming to Monza, we knew that it would be like this. Then the circumstances of the race didn't help for sure."
From a messy Q2-Q3 run for Lewis Hamilton in terms of tows and runplan, to that Variante del Rettifilo clash between Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, to Leclerc's instant crash in the aftermath, everything lined up very neatly [to pour fuel on the internal-politics fire](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/here-there-are-no-rules-hamilton-calls-ferrari-out/) initially ignited by Hamilton's dissatisfaction coming out of Zandvoort.
"Ultimately, I feel massively gutted for the tifosi who show up for us," Hamilton added on Sunday at Monza. "The guys back at the factory, who really, really are giving it everything.
"Yesterday we didn't really execute that well - and the same today.
"Giving it everything I can. Sometimes it's just not enough. You need all the other stuff to come together."
There is nothing hugely damning about Ferrari's subpar performance at Monza - but the manner of that performance has left it out of options to shrug it off and play it down.
## 'AI agent' Antonelli is Monza's new hero
Ferrari's failure to achieve much more than self-imploding would normally have the Monza crowd in a shared state of misery.
Not on Sunday. Antonelli's route to victory might not have been quite as complicated as the headline 19th-to-first stat would lead you to believe, but take nothing away from him - and don't underestimate the weight of expectation on his just-turned-20-years-old shoulders.
Juxtapose how he dealt with that compared to Ferrari - and compared to how he dealt with it a year ago - and the gulf is clear.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said last year's Italian GP was the first time he'd had to speak to Antonelli and say "listen, you've got to wake up" - and it hasn't been lost on him just how remarkably Antonelli has responded.
"He came out after the winter, out of the blocks in a way that no one saw coming," said Wolff.
"The ability, how he processed last year, he's been at all the races, he's seen the pressure of the media, the attention that he gets, it's in a way that the system has been processed and saved. And that's why \[he has got\] the results that we've seen afterwards.
"But it is still a surprise and amazing to see how quickly he develops. For me it's like an AI agent that continuously self-improves and learns, that's the speed."
## 'Exceptionally challenging' for Russell to beat Antonelli now
As much as a Mercedes win was always likely at Monza, it wasn't expected to come from Antonelli.
No, it was expected of Russell, both before the weekend - as Mercedes had communicated Antonelli's engine change almost [a month prior](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-drivers-facing-almost-inevitable-f1-grid-penalties/) to the race - and even on Saturday evening, though Russell had been beaten to pole by Alpine's Pierre Gasly.
Circumstance of course played a part in Russell losing out on Sunday; there's not a lot more he could have done.
And he was right to hold his head high and "take the positives from the weekend", no matter how tough a blow this was to take.
Still, as he acknowledged, Antonelli is firmly in control of this championship fight.
"For me personally, I'm not even thinking about a fight or a comeback or anything. I'm just focused on taking it race by race and trying to maximise every single weekend," said Russell in the post-race press conference.
"He \[Antonelli\] is performing incredibly well. It's going to be exceptionally challenging to overcome that gap, so I'm just sort of accepting that it is what it is and I'm just going to enjoy it from here on in and try and win as many races as possible."
We'll see whether that translates into anything more than a continuation of the uptick in form Russell's shown since the summer break but, right now, there is only one direction of travel as far the championship is concerned.
## Alpine massively overachieved on Saturday
A first career pole for Pierre Gasly and a first for 'Team Enstone' since the 2009 Hungarian GP was a massive moment: the biggest shock of F1 2026 so far, and a proper feel-good result. (Not least after [the International Court of Appeal's Monaco GP ruling](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-feels-unjustly-punished-as-gasly-loses-monaco-podium/) on Friday.)
It owed a lot to others underachieving, sure, but also to excellent execution. Still, Sunday was always going to be the bigger test of how high up Gasly and Franco Colapinto could stay - and tell us just how much it had overachieved on Saturday.
And, well...it was by a significant amount.
Seventh and ninth, though Alpine's best score since the Canadian GP in May, and a mere three-point gain on Racing Bulls was almost certainly at the lower end of what Alpine expected, as it proved just that bit too difficult for Gasly to stay with the leading pack.
And yet, it wasn't by much, as Gasly pointed out: "I was looking at the cars ahead, they were a couple of seconds in front of us \[Hamilton was 2.7s ahead at the finish\], we finished 18 seconds ahead of \[Arvid\] Lindblad.
"The gap with the cars in front was smaller than the gap with the cars behind, that's what we've got to build on."
So, the glass is definitely half-full. Has the momentum shifted again in the midfield fight?
## McLaren isn't a contender everywhere yet
The burst of form put on track by the MCL40 - and Lando Norris specifically - since the summer break had generated a lot of excitement over the team's continued in-season development prowess, and even the prospect of a Max Verstappen-style come-from-behind title challenge.
But Norris in particular had been very, very clear in emphasising that there will come tracks - low-speed corners, long straights - that will expose McLaren's lingering deficiencies.
Here was one. Even without the calamities of qualifying, McLaren was a marginal podium contender at best here - potentially closer to Alpine than it was to the works team in the 'Mercedes power unit' pace rankings.
And Norris said he would have signed up for a fourth place before the weekend.
"It was clear that Mercedes are still in a league of their own compared to us," he said.
"We were not even close to fighting for the top two. Just frustrating, but I think we've seen what our expectation was and we still have work to do - which we knew.
"It's nothing that's a surprise. We just need to really work on the slow- and medium-speed corners, the stability of the car, which is just not good enough, and some straightline speed."
## Upgraded Haas progress obscured
Don't read too much into Haas's lowly 15th/16th on Sunday for a read on how well its upgraded car performed at Monza; Ollie Bearman missed the virtual safety car window that others behind him were able to take advantage of, and sank like a stone on the hard tyre at the end of the race.
Equally, don't read too much into Bearman's 12th in qualifying for a read on how well-sorted the car actually is.
Haas is still afflicted by a parts inconsistency - even if Ocon felt "we did a really good job as a team the whole weekend trying to mitigate the issues that we had on the downforce side of things" - and Monza was also more likely to suit its package, especially on Bearman's car, which had the upgraded Ferrari engine bolted into the back of it.
But there was some gentle encouragement about what's to come, as Haas bids to end its extended seven-weekend point-less run.
"It \[the upgrade\] is going to be worth a lot more in a track like Madrid and hopefully Baku as well," said Bearman. "This track is not the best to showcase how an upgrade works, so I'm very hopeful for the next races."
## These cars actually suit Monza
A lot has been said and written about what this current formula has done - not in a good way - to some of F1's most cherished, most legendary tracks.
But though these cars are still what they are, disaster was by and large averted at Monza. Not only that, but you could make the argument that it's the first time in a while that F1 put something resembling its best foot forward at the legendary venue - certainly on race day.
Before that, the anticipated tow madness of qualifying was relieved somewhat by the field spread and by having several drivers - in particular Antonelli - who did not have a huge issue running without a tow (and thus heading up the pack) given grid penalties rendered their qualifying result irrelevant.
And then the race looked good: fairly lively, fairly safe, with good early action at the front between the Mercedes team-mates in particular, and no big closing-speed incidents or even close calls.
It was a notable change of pace because the Italian GPs of the ground effect era struggled to generate action, requiring massive pace offsets to make overtaking viable.
"I would say F1's a bit...it's not got enough racing in it, so it's a bit too single-file," rookie Arvid Lindblad said when talking about the initial start.
"If you watch an F2 or an F3 race that's what it's like the whole time - and I think it was good for the sport to show that. I'm not sure it was the right way that we should be showing overtaking and passing in the sport - but it was cool to have a bit of a scrap, have a bit of a dogfight going on because that's what we're all here for."
## Hulkenberg calls Lawson's racing style 'sketchy'
It's not that often you see a driver issued a black-and-white warning flag for driving standards. But that's what Liam Lawson received for his defence in battle with Nico Hulkenberg.
Footage of the incident in question - Lawson "caused car #27 \[Hulkenberg\] to have two wheels off the track" while defending on the run to Turn 4 - has been difficult to zero in on, and on the basis of what we saw it seems harsh to have issued the black-and-white flag.
Lawson wasn't sure about the origin himself, but said that if there was an incident at that corner it was "probably exactly what he did to me I probably did to him", referencing Hulkenberg clipping his front wing and causing damage on the run to the first corner at the restart. Lawson also said he'd lost his mirror so couldn't see to his right, "but if I squeezed him, which maybe I did, I didn't mean to".
But Hulkenberg used the opportunity post-race to pass comment on Lawson's style of racing.
"He just likes to squeeze," said Hulkenberg, who finished 12th and two places ahead of Lawson. "He always likes to squeeze people when you go next to him.
"He never really wants to leave a car's width. It's his signature. No hard feelings, but it's just a bit tricky."
And asked about the decision from the stewards not to investigate any further - a consequence of the black-and-white flag having been issued by the race director - Hulkenberg added: "Need to see from the outside, but in briefings we said that this should be taken seriously, especially at those speeds.
"It felt a bit sketchy at the time from the car."
## Colapinto learns from one error - but makes another
Colapinto had his Dutch GP (already compromised by a lack of upgrades) doubly compromised by a contentious penalty for overtaking under yellow flags - but was not deterred by it at Monza, going full deployment to pounce on Oscar Piastri once he saw Leclerc veer off the road right in front of him at Parabolica.
It was a clever bit of anticipation - as a safety car-turned-red flag then froze the order and reset the battery situation. "It was legal, I learned!" he joked in regards to the overtake, and it set up Colapinto's cameo at the front of the race with Gasly, but at that point he admitted he probably got carried away.
After battling Verstappen through the first two chicanes, Colapinto got loose through the first Lesmo and went skating through the gravel - which transformed his race into one of fighting for scraps in the lower reaches of the points.
"You feel so strong and suddenly fighting with the top teams, you get very motivated very quickly and a mistake like that, it throws all away. It's just frustrating," he said.
"We should have scored more points so yeah, sorry to the team.
"You don't realise that it's not really your fight. You're feeling the podium and you want to keep going and taking risks and maybe it didn't make sense. I aim just to learn from it and try to improve for the next time I get a chance like this.
"I did some smart things and some pretty stupid ones, too. I guess they balance each other out."
## Why Cadillac won't have Ferrari ADUO until Baku
As allowed for by the regulations, Ferrari only made one 'ADUO 2'-spec power unit available to each of its customers. Haas used the one it got, on Bearman's car, feeling Monza was too much of a power-sensitive circuit not to upgrade - but Cadillac kept it on ice for now.
"It's not up to me, sadly - I would take it immediately," Valtteri Bottas acknowledged.
"But we're trying to get it as soon as possible, of course, because it seems to be a small gain."
"As soon as possible" doesn't appear to mean Madrid, as Sergio Perez revealed "I don't think that will be possible, from what I have heard from the team" because "we are lacking a few parts".
But also, "a small gain" appears to be the right description, according to comments by both Bearman and Vasseur.
Vasseur said Monza showed "I was right" that the new spec wouldn't be a game changer, and that it was in line with expectation.
"But the reality of this is that if you are missing X in Zandvoort, you are at two or three tenths. If you are missing a bit less than X in Monza, the delta with the Merc is two times bigger."
### What time is F1's 2026 Spanish Grand Prix? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1-2026-spanish-grand-prix-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T12:28:41.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
The excitement is palpable as Formula 1® heads to a new track for the first time this year, with the Madring, just outside the Spanish capital, taking on the Spanish Grand Prix title.
The circuit, based around the IFEMA Exhibition Centre, is 3.365 miles long with 22 corners, including La Monumental, a huge right-hander which is set to become the longest banked corner in F1\.
Kimi Antonelli leads the championship heading in, backed up by an epic win from the back of the grid in Monza, so can the rest of the title challengers regroup? Or has Antonelli proven he's on another level?
There will be plenty of attention on the home Spanish drivers, as the fans will be spoiled for choice between Williams's Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin.
Sainz is involved with the track and organiser of the race, and said: "With the way they've put the barriers and the design of the track is going to be one of the biggest challenges in Formula 1 recently.
"The track reminds me a lot of Jeddah, reminds me a lot of Baku, even reminds me a bit of Macau in some ways. So having that in an F1 with a 1000bhp is going to be quite an interesting challenge."
Will it be Alonso's final Spanish Grand Prix? The decision isn't made, but that uncertainty adds an extra layer of intrigue to proceedings.
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Spanish GP schedule (US time)
*PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time*
**Friday September 11**
**Practice 1:** 4.30am (PDT), 7.30am (EDT)
**Practice 2:** 8am (PDT), 11am (EDT)
**Saturday September 12**
**Practice 3:** 3.30am (PDT), 6.30am (EDT)
**Qualifying:** 7am (PDT), 10am (EDT)
**Sunday September 13**
**Spanish Grand Prix:** 6am (PDT), 9am (EDT)
---
Watch The Formula 1 TAG Heuer Gran Premio de España 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 11-13\. U.S. only.
---
## Spanish GP schedule (local time)
**Friday September 11**
**Practice 1:** 1.30pm
**Practice 2:** 5pm
**Saturday September 12**
**Practice 3:** 12.30pm
**Qualifying:** 4pm
**Sunday September 13**
**Spanish Grand Prix:** 3pm
## Spanish GP schedule (UK time)
**Friday September 11**
**Practice 1:** 12.30pm
**Practice 2:** 4pm
**Saturday September 12**
**Practice 3:** 11.30pm
**Qualifying:** 3pm
**Sunday September 13**
**Spanish Grand Prix:** 2pm
## How to watch the Spanish GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026\.
Fans can view every minute of the Spanish Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)'s new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The Formula 1 TAG Heuer Gran Premio de España 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 11-13\. U.S. only.
### Watch: A2RL's five-car autonomous race at Imola
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/watch-a2rl-five-car-autonomous-race-at-imola/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T10:46:06.000Z
The Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League, A2RL, hosted an action-packed five-car race at Imola last weekend.
It's the first time A2RL has ever raced in Europe, having competed at Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina circuit as well as Suzuka.
A2RL invited the top five teams from last November's Abu Dhabi finale to compete across 12 laps at Imola.
The A2RL cars are fully autonomous racing machines, heavily adapted from Super Formula cars, and coded by each of the teams to race each other wheel-to-wheel on track.
The 2024 and 2025 champions, TUM (from Germany), went into the event looking for another victory, but it faced stiff competition on one of the world's toughest circuits.
You can watch highlights of the Imola weekend below to find out who came out on top.
### Audi to appeal stewards' decision in Tsunoda aborted start case
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/audi-appeals-fia-stewards-decision-yuki-tsunoda-aborted-start-monza/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T08:36:47.000Z
Audi has lodged notice of its intention to appeal against the Italian Grand Prix stewards's decision not to apply Formula 1's sporting regulations in relation to Yuki Tsunoda's alleged infringement of the start procedure at the first planned restart.
Tsunoda was due to line up 14th on the grid for the restart but initially headed towards the 15th-place grid slot, only to veer to the right-hand side.
He was able to park up in the 14th-place slot and was not out of position beyond the forwardmost line, although his Racing Bulls car was pointing at a slight angle towards the pitwall.
Race director Rui Marques initiated another formation lap as a result as, in the words of the stewards, "he stated he was not comfortable starting the race with the car in that position".
The matter was referred to the stewards but in a post-race investigation into alleged breach of article B5.9.4 of the sporting regulations, relating to a driver causing an extra formation lap, they deemed Tsunoda had not been responsible for that.
Any driver who does cause an additional formation lap but is able to start that lap is required to "enter the pitlane at the end of the lap and must start the \[session\] from the end of the pitlane".
But Racing Bulls successfully argued that Tsunoda's car had not been in a "false start" position with the contact patch of the front tyres outside of the grid box, that no other driver had been impacted by Tsunoda's position, and that Tsunoda had not been the "cause" of the extra formation lap nor had Racing Bulls been advised that he was the cause.
The main distinction therefore is that the stewards considered the "extra formation lap resulted from the race director's assessment of the situation" in deciding against applying the relevant article and said additionally that Racing Bulls had "in our determination, no reason to instruct its driver to enter and start from the pitlane".
They determined they were unable to give Tsunoda a stop-and-go penalty as a result.
But Audi is contending that decision.
It said in a short statement that it had "raised a concern regarding the application of Article B5.9.4" after the race and that following the stewards' "no further action" decision it had notified its intention to appeal. It has a 96-hour window in which to decide if it will definitely go ahead with that appeal.
Audi would stand to benefit were Tsunoda to be penalised.
As standard, F1's sporting regulations state that any unserved stop-and-go penalty is converted to a 30-second post-race time penalty.
That would drop Tsunoda - who scored the first point of his stand-in spell at Racing Bulls in 10th - to 15th in the classification, promoting Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto to the final points-paying position.
### Is Ferrari shooting itself in the foot? Our Italian GP verdict
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-italian-gp-handling-f1-2026-title-fight-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T19:27:08.000Z
Ferrari's home Formula 1 race always brings added pressure, but the truth is it never really got going at the Italian Grand Prix.
In fact, that's maybe being a little generous; as its drivers came to blows at the first corner and Lewis Hamilton's frustrations bubbled to the surface as the weekend went on.
Did it embarrass itself? Is Ferrari fumbling a title shot - or was that never even on? And what state is the drivers' title fight in after Kimi Antonelli's drive through the field to yet another win?
Here's our thoughts at the end of the Monza weekend.
## First lap fight did go too far
**Josh Suttill**
Both Ferrari drivers need to take some responsibility for the Turn 1/2 shenanigans: Hamilton for diving down the inside of Leclerc and Leclerc for not leaving enough room.
Leclerc is right to say ["we went too far"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/we-went-too-far-charles-leclerc-lap-one-fight-lewis-hamilton-italian-gp/) because Ferrari is shooting itself in the foot with team-mates racing like this.
They seem to race wheel-to-wheel like they're in an exclusive title fight.
Instead, not working together as well as they could - I include Ferrari's management of racing situations within this - is making a long shot title bid an even longer one.
## Are we watching F1's next record holder?
**Gary Anderson**
As the races count down for Antonelli, it is becoming more of a championship for him to lose than one that someone will beat him to.
He did turn 20 last week, and at Monza driving from 19th to win without losing a front wing or ending up stuck in the gravel trap shows the maturity that age has brought to him. Keep on building on that and I'm pretty sure the championships will build to a level that could outdo both Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton, who both have seven championships in the bag.
Yes, he did have one excursion for sure and probably a few more small one that we didn't really see, but in general it was a faultless drive in front of the pressure of his home crowd. Once it was evident that Ferrari just didn't have the car to get on the podium the tifosi really got behind him - and that win at Monza for an Italian, which is the first for 60 years, will be with him forever and his supports are probably now tenfold.
It's all rubbish about Russell losing out by not pitting under the VSC and I'm pretty sure I would have done the same pitcall. Russell was on the hard tyre intending to brave it out to the end, Antonelli was on the medium so it would have been just that little bit more difficult for him to get them to the finish, perhaps for the final five laps or so. Pitting for a fresh set of mediums lost him track position so he needed to push to the limit to regain that lost time and with it track position.
One thing I would have a word with him about is doing the fastest lap on the last lap while leading. Yes, it's impressive to show what you have up your sleeve but totally unnecessary, so Bono have a word.
If anything, Antonelli who started on the hards - intending to go long - lost out with the early red flag so in reality he had no choice other than going to a medium compound to comply with the two-compound dry-race requirement.
As for Ferrari, its little intra-team skirmish at the first chicane on the first lap - which I personally think was Hamilton being a bit bullish with his team-mate - and then Leclerc's crash coming out of the Parabolica scuppered any potential of either of its two cars challenging for a podium. In reality I don't think Ferrari had the pace anyway so it needs to eat a bit of humble pie and accept it has work to do.
I'm pretty sure it's another season and another championship of should've, could've, would've - but didn't because the car isn’t good enough.
## A compound of bad fortune for Russell
**Ben Anderson**
This will be an especially tough blow to take for Russell, who would have come into this weekend expecting to slash his points deficit to Antonelli and ended up seeing it extended.
But, he needn't be too hard on himself. Firstly, there's a new/old engine offset there, which is perhaps why we heard them say in the cooldown room that they were using different strat modes during the race.
And, although Antonelli will rightly get plaudits for an excellent recovery drive, his victory from 19th on the grid was significantly aided by Charles Leclerc's crash and the VSC caused by Lance Stroll's Aston Martin conking out.
The red flag effectively made this a win from 12th on the grid rather than 19th, and the VSC gave Antonelli much fresher tyres with about 10 seconds fewer of race time lost compared to normal.
Had this race run normally, perhaps Antonelli still finishes second with all that incisive overtaking he did with taking the benefit of that new power unit, but I'm not sure he still beats Russell in a completely straight fight.
Russell will need to compartmentalise this outcome and try to disassociate it from his own performance - even though it looked a bit like the days when Lewis Hamilton used to devour team-mate Valtteri Bottas at Monza.
## Was that entertainment?
**Jack Cozens**
I couldn't help but feel there was a sense of inevitability about that result. And even if there are enough races left for something to go wrong for Antonelli that you can't truly say the title race is done, the debate over which driver's been the most impressive this season probably is.
And I couldn't help but feel shortchanged by Sunday's race either. I know we're in the 'we're stuck with this, it is what it is' phase of this ruleset now until next year, so I won't dwell too long on that - we've all grown tired of that in one way or another.
It just felt like quite a comedown from - and contrast to - the out-of-the-seat, 'oh f\*\*\*!' moment that Pierre Gasly's pole position offered a day earlier.
Even if this was something a little different to what we're used to at Monza, it didn't really move the needle any more: the drive-by passes back-and-forth - it just didn't seem very fitting, cliched though it is, for the Temple of Speed.
### Why Tsunoda was ruled innocent in aborted Italian GP start
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-yuki-tsunoda-innocent-in-aborted-italian-gp-start/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T18:26:15.000Z
Yuki Tsunoda's 10th-place finish in the 2026 Italian Grand Prix is no longer in jeopardy as the Racing Bulls Formula 1 driver escaped a penalty for causing an extra formation lap at Monza.
After the red flag for Charles Leclerc's heavy lap-two crash, and the resulting lengthy barrier repairs, Tsunoda appeared to miss his grid slot on his way back round for the restart.
The Japanese driver entered the 15th-place grid slot and then last-minute diverted to the right to the 14th-place grid slot instead, which left him pointing slightly towards the pitwall.
That caused the FIA race director, Rui Marques, to initiate an extra formation lap as, per the stewards, "he stated he was not comfortable starting the race with the car in that position".
Tsunoda was investigated for breaching article B5.9.4 of the F1 sporting regulations that reads: "Any driver who caused an extra formation lap, and is then able to start the, or any subsequent, extra formation lap must enter the pitlane at the end of the lap and must start the \[session\] from the end of the pitlane."
But he did not do so and instead lined up in the 14th-place starting position.
Racing Bulls argued that the car was not in a "false start" position as its front tyres were within the lines of the grid box.
It also argued that, despite the track limits being defined by the pitwalls, the car had four metres to move off from the start.
Furthermore, the team argued that no other driver was impacted by the position of Tsunoda's car, Tsunoda was not the "cause of the extra formation lap", and "at no time" were Tsunoda nor his team told that the extra formation lap was his fault.
The stewards agreed with those points and Tsunoda escaped penalty as the FIA considered the formation lap to be the race director's choice.
As for Article B5.9.4 of the sporting regulations, which imposes a stop-and-go penalty for any driver who causes an extra formation lap and does not start from the pitlane, the FIA reasoned: "The penalty is for failing to come into the pitlane and start from there.
"The penalty is not for causing the extra formation lap, if indeed, he caused the extra formation lap in the first place."
The stewards acknowledged that neither Tsunoda nor Racing Bulls were told they were the cause of the extra formation lap, which is why they escaped a penalty for not starting from the pitlane.
However, the stewards noted that the FIA "might wish to consider" a process to advise the team and driver if they are the cause of an extra formation lap so that a pitlane start can apply.
Tsunoda launched from 14th to 11th at the first corner after the restart, then picked off Haas's Ollie Bearman to essentially secure the first point of his stand-in spell at Racing Bulls.
He had run in ninth, but was passed late on by the Alpine of Franco Colapinto - who had been third on the first lap after the restart before going off through the Lesmo corners.
### Winners and losers from F1's 2026 Italian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-winners-losers/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T18:43:57.000Z
Kimi Antonelli stole the show by winning his home Formula 1 race from 19th on the grid, but who else shone in the Italian Grand Prix?
A big early crash, back-and-forths up and down the field, and the late hunt for victory made this a lively Monza race - but some will be leaving far happier than others.
Here's our pick of winners and losers from race day in Italy.
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (1st)
Yes, maybe the couple of caveats that have to be mentioned - essentially taking victory from 12th (on the restart grid) not 19th; the virtual safety car pitstop - keep this victory out of the pantheon of greatest [front-to-back wins](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-wins-from-the-lowest-grid-position-kimi-antonelli-italian-gp/) in F1 history.
But take nothing away from Antonelli. He looked imperious, incisive - and like an inevitable winner once he'd forced his way right into the heart of the leading pack just two laps after the restart.
Surely there's no stopping this title charge now. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Loser: Ferrari (6th + DNF)
In the cold light of day, it feels exceptionally unlikely that Ferrari, with either Lewis Hamilton or Charles Leclerc, was going to get too much out of this weekend - as Mercedes's engine and deployment efficiency was the dominant force.
But the Ferrari of today doesn't do 'mediocre' - it does 'sky is falling down', and in the home confines of Monza it fell down repeatedly as Antonelli stole the adoration of the home crowd instead.
Whatever the inside-team ruling on the Leclerc/Hamilton encounter at the first chicane, it was very publicly embarrassing in conjunction with Leclerc's subsequent devastating Parabolica exit. Then Ferrari got unlucky with the virtual safety car timing, which didn't offer Hamilton the same strategic 'free stop' option as his fellow medium runners ahead. Though the reason he wasn't with them may well have been that very first chicane run-in.
Leclerc must surely be devastated. Hamilton is struggling to hide his frustration - and has [publicly accused his team of having "no rules"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/here-there-are-no-rules-hamilton-calls-ferrari-out/), while also putting increasing pressure on team principal Fred Vasseur.
In the end, it's not just a bad result. It's also a particularly painful and costly way of getting there. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Winner: Max Verstappen (3rd)
Was Verstappen ever a genuine contender for victory?
Maybe not. Any hope of that certainly faded with the time lost in battle with Oscar Piastri after pitting.
But regardless of how big a part the yo-yo nature of the racing played, how good was it to see Verstappen in the hustle and bustle of the lead fight once again?
Certainly, his heorics were put to good use in securing a far better result than The Race (and this writer specifically) [saw coming on Friday evening](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-f1-2026-italian-gp-practice/). **\- JC**
## Loser: George Russell (2nd)
By no means was this a poor race for Russell, but he was essentially undone by the mid-race virtual safety car that gave Antonelli (and Verstappen) a free pitstop.
"I was on the hard tyre and Kimi was on the medium tyre, so if either of us were to pit, it was going to be Kimi and that's I guess why I was just a little bit annoyed with the timing of that VSC because it would have been tough for those guys on the medium to have competed with anybody on the hard tyre," he said.
Russell did well in defending against Antonelli late on at the opening chicane, where Antonelli miscued and almost threw it all away with a trip into the gravel, but there was no defence in the end.
Russell took some positives, citing an uptick in pace at Monza compared to before, and the slight 3.8-second margin of victory.
"I would have loved to have won today, but the performance is far better than I've had," he said.
He was also gracious in defeat, taking nothing away from Antonelli's recovery to victory, and paying little attention to the podium boos - but the reality is now stark: Antonelli is 66 points ahead and going strong. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Winner: Lando Norris (4th)
Norris a winner, or Piastri a loser?
That's the debate The Race had when putting this list together. But Norris gets the nod by dint of this being a decent recovery from a poor qualifying, dealing with a brake issue, and ultimately prevailing (and keeping his cool) in a scrappy McLaren battle for fourth late on.
That result - salvaged on one of his weaker weekends of late, where he should really have been defeated by his team-mate - is more evidence of the level the defending champion is operating at right now. **\- JC**
## Loser: Aston Martin (DNF + DNF)
Lance Stroll's VSC-triggering exit has a massive impact on the race - but that was the only way the badly outmatched AMR26s were ever going to influence things here.
Starting from the pitlane in the aftermath of power unit changes necessitated by the battery issue in Q1 - "understood" but "not totally solved", in Fernando Alonso's words - the Spaniard had a feisty run after the restart, and claims he was pleasantly surprised to be actually fighting the Cadillacs "because we thought we were on our own".
But an apparent off at Lesmo 2 created some car damage, and Alonso soon parked it up - before Stroll's AMR26 gave out with a hydraulics issue.
In any case, there was going to be no great result on offer. An inquest will surely follow, but for now it's clear Aston Martin is not competitive at all on power tracks even after Honda's engine upgrade. **\- VK**
## Winner: Racing Bulls (8th + 10th)
Looking at the starting grid, Racing Bulls might've been braced for a battering as far as its ([International Court of Appeal-enhanced](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-feels-unjustly-punished-as-gasly-loses-monaco-podium/)) constructors' championship advantage over Alpine was concerned. Doubly so when the Alpines lined up second and fourth for the restart. (And when Yuki Tsunoda almost headed for the wrong grid slot.)
Gasly was always likely to regress through the leading pack, and Colapinto's off played into its hands too, but even so Racing Bulls comes out of this a winner for limiting its points-dropped total to just three.
That relied on the increasingly dependable Arvid Lindblad stringing together another excellent weekend - building up enough of a buffer to resist Colapinto's late charge for eighth - and Tsunoda, once he'd found the right grid slot, launching his car opportunistically up the inside into Turn 1 to move from 14th to 11th at the restart and then dealing with Ollie Bearman's slower Haas efficiently.
And, now he's escaped any penalty for that grid-position near-miss, who could begrudge him that comeback point? **\- JC**
## Loser: Liam Lawson (14th)
Lawson had to start from the pitlane with engine penalties but that alone wasn't an excuse for a lack of progression. (See Antonelli.)
The Red Bull was actually up to 11th before losing part of his front wing in a skirmish with Audi's Nico Hulkenberg - for which Lawson was shown a black-and-white driving standards flag.
The resulting early pitstop set him back, and then the mid-race VSC pretty much killed off Lawson's hopes of a comeback as the Racing Bulls and Alpine finished in the top 10.
With a new engine in the back of his car, Lawson said he hoped to finish "well in the points" and, having seen Verstappen hold off the McLarens and Ferraris, he could feasibly have finished around seventh - where polesitter Gasly did.
So, this was certainly one of those frustrating weekends. **\- SK**
### 'Here there are no rules' - Hamilton calls Ferrari out
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/here-there-are-no-rules-hamilton-calls-ferrari-out/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T17:33:41.000Z
Ferrari Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton has hit out at a lack of rules within the team, following an Italian Grand Prix compromised by an early incident with team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Moments after the start, Leclerc responded to a Hamilton divebomb into Variante del Rettifilo by trying to keep position through the second part of the corner and crowding Hamilton out into the gravel on exit, which dropped the #44 car well down the order.
It weighed heavily on Hamilton's mind at the conclusion of the red flag-disrupted race (the flag triggered by Leclerc's lap-two crash), as he trundled home in sixth, struggling on used mediums after not taking a 'free' virtual safety car pitstop that both Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen were able to make ahead of him.
It would have been marginal for Hamilton - the VSC was lifted only a few seconds after Antonelli and Verstappen headed out of the pits - but it may have been possible (and Ferrari could have also simply fitted the harder tyre for Hamilton during the red flag).
Leclerc had suggested a joint responsibility for what happened at Turn 1, even seemingly placing most of the blame on Hamilton. In response to his claim that "we went too far", Hamilton offered a sharp rebuke: "I was ahead in Turn 2\. By the apex, I was ahead. So there was no 'we' in it."
He also alluded to a dissatisfaction with his team-mate's approach to racing with his answer to the question of whether Ferrari fans should fear a team-mate feud.
"Look, you know, I don't race dirty," he said. "I've always raced clean and fairly and always left space. So I don't think they should be worried about me.
"I've come into the team and tried to be respectful of space - and definitely not put the team in jeopardy. I stand by that and that's all I can talk about, on my side. You have to speak to Fred \[Vasseur\] about the other side."
## Lack of oversight?
Hamilton spoke to the written press for an unusually long time in the aftermath of the race, though pushed back when asked whether there was a cultural issue at play at Ferrari.
"I know what you guys are trying to do! I don't want to get into arguing and fighting about my team," he said. "At the end of the day, I'm trying my hardest to make this team and help this team get to where it needs to be.
"We didn't do so well today. It's painful enough as it is, to be badgering my guys. They go home to their families. They're working really, really hard. Yes, we didn't get it right today. It isn't good enough. But we'll go back to the drawing table."
However, before that he very clearly expressed a dissatisfaction with the wheel-to-wheel racing not being reined in - and again, as he had done after the Dutch GP and after Saturday's qualifying, indicated that not enough weight had been thrown behind his title campaign.
"It's far too late for that, for those decisions to come. It's many, many weeks too late. So, all I can do is just try and turn up," he mused.
There were operational problems for Hamilton through this weekend independent of Leclerc - though he was also pointedly unhappy with Leclerc's side of the garage on Saturday over a Q2 run plan that hindered his own.
Asked by The Race about Ferrari losing points operationally, he said: "Ultimately it comes from the top. It trickles down decisions - and so, it starts with Fred.
"There's only so much you can say, so much you can push and shout from the mountaintop. Yesterday \[Saturday\] I said we've got to look at just how we communicate because if we continue to travel the same path, we get the same result.
"It's like, we keep getting the same result. We've got to change things because this is not helping us move forwards. I think they're receptive to it and we'll take it offline over the next...probably not for next week, but particularly after next race to try and look how we can procedurally do things different so the same thing can't keep happening."
And when it came to prioritising his title charge, he said it wasn't about moving Leclerc over but just avoiding situations like what transpired at the first chicane.
"I think it comes down to rules of engagement. When I was at Mercedes, we had a written rule of engagement. We never really, really had too bad. There was a moment maybe with me and Nico \[Rosberg\] a couple of times. But more often than not it was good, I mean, \[especially with\] Valtteri \[Bottas\]...
"Here there are no rules."
## Vasseur's response
At the time of his written media session, Vasseur said he had not yet talked through the start incident with Leclerc - and just for "two seconds" with Hamilton. "I prefer to discuss with them first than with you first," he insisted when asked for his view.
On the no-stop under VSC, he said: "We had the same gap with Max before and after the VSC." This is in reference to the fact Hamilton trailed Verstappen by around six-to-seven seconds when Lance Stroll's hydraulic failure brought out the VSC, and ended up 10 seconds back from Verstappen at the finish.
"But in our case, if you pit you are behind \[Yuki\] Tsunoda and \[Pierre\] Gasly, I'm not sure that you are able to overtake them," Vasseur added, though at first glance it appears 100% certain Hamilton would've cleared the Racing Bulls, and also extremely likely he would've got back past Gasly.
As for whether the championship picture was raised with the drivers pre-race, Vasseur said: "To see if we have a team order or whatever, I think that the good comparison that I made was that last year, \[Oscar\] Piastri was leading \[for\] McLaren at this stage of the season. And if McLaren put everything on Piastri, Max Verstappen would have been champion.
"But for sure, at one stage, you have to take a decision. But I think it was too early to take a decision before Monza. Now we have time to discuss with the guys."
Hamilton trails championship leader Kimi Antonelli by 76 points, with Leclerc 112 off Antonelli - and a maximum total of 258 available over the rest of the season.
### Antonelli completes winning Monza recovery with late Russell pass
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/kimi-antonelli-f1-italian-gp-recovery-win-pass-on-george-russell/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T17:35:25.000Z
Kimi Antonelli was unstoppable at Monza as he won Formula 1's Italian Grand Prix from 19th on the grid ahead of Mercedes team-mate George Russell and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Antonelli made up seven places before Charles Leclerc crashed out at the end of lap two, causing a red flag. Once the race resumed, Antonelli continued his charge right the way through to the front, swapping positions with Russell numerous times as the Mercedes battled for the lead.
But the championship leader gained a decision advantage when at the end of lap 28, while running second, he pitted under a virtual safety car - something Mercedes chose not to do with Russell.
Antonelli took the lead late on despite an off-track excursion, to become the first Italian to win their home race at Monza since 1966.
Also pitting under the VSC, Verstappen completed the podium having tailed the Mercedes drivers throughout the race.
Polesitter Pierre Gasly was ultimately defenceless and finished seventh for Alpine.
## Antonelli's relentless charge
During the red flag for Leclerc's crash, Antonelli was one of a handful to choose medium tyres instead of hards for the restart - having taken the intial start on the hard compound.
The race restarted on lap six with Antonelli in 12th. He was up to sixth within a couple of laps, and by lap 14 he had closed up to the lead battle between Russell and Verstappen.
By lap 16, Russell had repassed Verstappen for the lead and, on that lap, Antonelli took second off the four-time champion - who had reported that his rear axle was "completely broken".
Antonelli and Russell then engaged in an F1 2026-style back-and-forth for the lead until, around lap 22, engineer Pete Bonington told Antonelli to 'stop yo-yoing', later detailing that Russell was being given time to build up a gap to Verstappen behind.
"If he can't do that, we’ll invert," Antonelli was told.
The team orders conundrum was waylaid on lap 28 after Lance Stroll's Aston Martin stopped to bring out the VSC. Antonelli and Verstappen pitted for mediums and hards, respectively - while Russell stayed out and would nurse his hard tyres to the end.
The pitting pair made easy work of the cars ahead from sixth and seventh, respectively. By lap 37, Antonelli was within 10 seconds of the lead; by lap 47 he was closing to within a second.
On lap 49 of 53, Antonelli attempted to pry the lead off Russell at the opening chicane but miscued, going into the gravel and losing 1.4 seconds.
"Keep it clean, no risks here," Russell was told as he continued on.
One lap later, Antonelli took the lead with ease on the run to Ascari and cruised to victory from there with a margin of 3.8s at the chequered flag, becoming the first Italian to win a grand prix at Monza since Ludovico Scarfiotti did so for Ferrari 60 years ago.
Verstappen finished third, 10.8s behind Russell, having seen off a late retaliatory attack from the McLarens.
Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris engaged in a spirited battle for fourth that came to a head with three laps remaining, when Norris took a trip into the gravel, complaining that Piastri had pushed him wide at the exit of Curva Grande.
"Clean racing" was the reminder from McLaren's pitwall but both would have their separate trips off the track later on before Norris passed Piastri for fourth on the final lap of the race.
Lewis Hamilton settled for sixth behind Piastri; he'd earlier run wide in battle with Leclerc at the start of the race and fallen from fourth to eighth. He briefly challenged the McLarens but could not keep up with them, going off the track twice as he stayed on medium tyres from the red flag to the end.
## Gasly settles for seventh
Alpine driver Gasly's pole position was short-lived: He lost the lead to Russell on the second lap and after the restart was gradually swallowed up by Verstappen, the McLarens, Antonelli and Hamilton before holding station in seventh.
Gasly’s team-mate Colapinto was rapid on the early race restart, beating Verstappen off the line before losing the place, then going off the track to fall down to 16th.
But Colapinto recovered to ninth, two seconds behind Racing Bulls's eighth-place driver Arvid Lindblad.
Yuki Tsunoda finished 10th for Racing Bulls but was under investigation at the end of the race for a starting procedure infringement; after the red flag, he missed his grid box and forced another formation lap to be taken.
The Audi drivers missed out on points with Gabriel Bortoleto 11th and Nico Hulkenberg 12th, the latter having pitted during the VSC.
Carlos Sainz also pitted under the VSC and finished 13th for Williams, ahead of Red Bull driver Liam Lawson. Lawson lost ground early on with a broken front wing that forced him to pit on lap 12, and he was also shown a black-and-white-flag.
Ollie Bearman finished 15th ahead of Esteban Ocon, the former having had the upgraded Ferrari power unit this weekend at Monza while his Haas team-mate was forced to wait.
Alex Albon finished 17th ahead of the Cadillacs, while neither Aston Martin made it to the chequered flag.
## Italian GP race result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 53 laps
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +3.857s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +14.718s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +19.056s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +19.253s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +24.655s
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +27.351s
8 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +45.136s
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +47.353s
10 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +58.187s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +65.187s
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +66.187s
13 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +74.117s
14 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +75.609s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +78.958s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1 lap
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +1 lap
18 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1 lap
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2 laps
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
DNF Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
DNF Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
### F1 2026 Italian Grand Prix race results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-race-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T15:07:07.000Z
Kimi Antonelli completed a remarkable turnaround to win from 19th on the grid at his home Formula 1 race, the Italian Grand Prix - which was red-flagged early on the second lap.
Below you'll find the full race result:
## Italian Grand Prix race result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 53 laps
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +3.857s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +14.718s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +19.056s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +19.253s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +24.655s
7 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +27.351s
8 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +45.136s
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +47.353s
10 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +58.187s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +65.187s
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +66.187s
13 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +74.117s
14 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +75.609s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +78.958s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1 lap
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +1 lap
18 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1 lap
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2 laps
DNF Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
DNF Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
DNF Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
### The F1 wins from the lowest grid position
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-wins-from-the-lowest-grid-position-kimi-antonelli-italian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T15:16:25.000Z
Kimi Antonelli's 2026 Italian Grand Prix victory puts him joint second in the rankings for the lowest grid positions from which a Formula 1 grand prix has been won.
Antonelli had to take an engine grid penalty, which meant he started 19th at Monza in front of his home crowd.
But Antonelli roared back through the field in style, overtaking Mercedes team-mate George Russell in the dying stages of the race to win.
It eclipses Max Verstappen's 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix win from 17th on the grid - and similar achievements by F1’s statistically all-time greatest drivers Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher.
Hamilton’s best on this front so far is his win from 14th in the chaotic mixed conditions of the 2018 German GP, while Schumacher’s is winning the 1995 Belgian GP from 16th for Benetton in similarly changeable weather.
## Wins from the lowest grid positions
### 17th - John Watson - 1982 Detroit Grand Prix
McLaren driver John Watson carved through the field to win F1’s inaugural Detroit street race in 1982 with relatively little help from attrition, though early leader and eventual champion Keke Rosberg’s Williams did wilt in multiple ways including its Goodyear tyres not faring as well on race day as Watson’s Michelins.
A qualifying collision with Chico Serra’s Fittipaldi was part of the reason Watson was so far down the grid.
### 17th - Kimi Raikkonen - 2005 Japanese Grand Prix
The only entry on this list where the charge to victory was completed on the very last lap of the race.
McLaren and Kimi Raikkonen had dominated much of the 2005 season on raw pace but poor reliability meant Renault’s Fernando Alonso was already champion before the Suzuka race, where ill-timed rain in one of F1’s final ‘one-shot’ single-car qualifying sessions left Raikkonen starting 17th.
Though he made rapid progress from there, catching Alonso’s polesitting and race-leading team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella looking like a tall order - with the Renault still 10.7s clear of Raikkonen when the McLaren rejoined after its final fuel stop (this was the season of no in-race tyre changes) with just eight laps to go.
But Raikkonen still hunted down and passed Fisichella around the outside of the first corner as the very last lap began.
### 17th - Max Verstappen - 2024 Brazilian Grand Prix
Alex Albon non-starting after his qualifying crash meant technically Verstappen was 16th in the line of cars starting the wet Interlagos race, but as Albon’s grid spot was left empty the reigning champion’s Red Bull was officially 17th on the grid.
Yet he was in the top 10 by lap two and the top six by lap 11.
Verstappen did get a stroke of luck when early leaders George Russell and Lando Norris made pitstops for free intermediate tyres during a virtual safety car period and dropped behind him.
That moved Esteban Ocon and Verstappen into first and second - and they were able to change their tyres ‘for free’ during a subsequent red flag for a Franco Colapinto crash.
All Verstappen had to do after that was dismiss Ocon’s Alpine at a later safety car restart and then dominate the race to the finish.
### 18th - Rubens Barrichello - 2000 German Grand Prix
The electrical problem that left Rubens Barrichello’s Ferrari only 18th on the Hockenheim grid was typical of his luck for much of his stint as Schumacher’s sidekick in the team that dominated the first half of the 2000s.
But the way the race came to him for a famously emotional first F1 win was a career high.
While Schumacher went out in a first-corner crash, Barrichello made good use of a two-stop strategy to charge smoothly into third but far behind the dominant McLarens of Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard.
Then a track invader protesting against his dismissal from a job at Mercedes prompted a safety car during which Coulthard missed McLaren’s call to pit and tumbled down the order, promoting Barrichello to second.
That became first when he boldly stayed out on slick tyres - against the team’s advice - as rain hit the closing laps, and made it work to secure an extraordinary win.
### 19th - Bill Vukovich - 1954 Indianapolis 500
Here’s the anomalous one - a quirk of F1 counting the Indy 500 as a points-scoring world championship round in its first decade, even though it was rare in the extreme for anyone contesting the rest of the F1 season to enter it or for Indy drivers to appear anywhere else on the F1 schedule.
So though IndyCar legend Vukovich’s drive from 19th to eventually control this race was undoubtedly a great one, its status as officially joint second-best on F1’s all-time list of wins from low grid positions is somewhat awkward.
### 19th - Kimi Antonelli - 2026 Italian Grand Prix
Even a late trip into the gravel trap on the exit of the first chicane couldn't stop Antonelli from charging from 19th on the grid to first.
With a fresh Mercedes engine, Antonelli quickly cut through the field, leading the race after less than a third of the distance was completed.
Team-mate Russell did re-pass him, and the team temporarily froze their positions before a virtual safety car interruption, which Antonelli used to make a second change of tyres.
He then chased down Russell on older tyres, and overhauled him for victory with three laps to go - despite having gone into the first chicane gravel just before.
Antonelli's previous best was winning from second on the grid in Montreal. His other five victories were all from pole position.
### 22nd - John Watson - 1983 USA West Grand Prix
Watson’s second appearance on this list should hold as an F1 record for a long time further - with the current 22-car grid only able to equal it rather than eclipse it.
He and McLaren team-mate Niki Lauda were among many Michelin runners unimpressed with the firm’s qualifying tyres around the Long Beach street track as they lined up way down in 22nd and 23rd on the grid, 4s from pole.
But their race pace was the complete opposite, and this time helped by a little chaos up front that included a clash between early lead rivals Keke Rosberg and Patrick Tambay then Riccardo Patrese going off while trying to pass new leader Jacques Laffite. They made it through to first and second by lap 45 of 75 and controlled the race from there, Watson having got back ahead of Lauda along the way after losing out to his team-mate at the start.
### 'We went too far' - Leclerc on first-lap Hamilton fight
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/we-went-too-far-charles-leclerc-lap-one-fight-lewis-hamilton-italian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T14:46:55.000Z
Charles Leclerc admits his scrap with Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton "went too far" during the opening corners of Formula 1's Italian Grand Prix.
From fourth on the grid, seven-time world champion Hamilton went down the inside of third-place starter Leclerc into the first chicane.
They ran side-by-side through the corner, but Hamilton ended up being fed into the gravel on the exit - telling his race engineer shortly afterwards that "Charles pushed me off".
Asked about the incident in the context of talk that the Ferrari drivers need to work together, Leclerc - who crashed out at the end of the second lap - said: "I don't really know who is forcing that narrative that we are one against the other.
"At Zandvoort there were way too many talks already.
"Here it's true, though, that we went too far, I think, \[with\] Lewis in Turn 1\. Then in Turn 2 I tried to do the tightest corner possible, but that was just not enough, and doing it here is not good."
At Zandvoort, Hamilton made some strong team radio comments in frustration at Ferrari not swapping its cars when Hamilton was on fresher tyres, something Hamilton issued an apology for in the week after.
After qualifying at Monza, Hamilton aired his frustration at Ferrari's execution and said "we do have to work as a team" to reverse the trend of its title chances becoming "dimmer".
Crash after-effects and cause
Leclerc visited the medical centre after his crash at the Parabolica (Alboreto), but was quickly released.
"The neck was OK, it was just the vision a little bit at first, the right eye was not showing me great vision, but now it's all good, so that's the thing I was most worried of getting out of the car," Leclerc said when he spoke to media shortly afterwards.
"Then after that, a bit of pain here and there, which is normal after a crash like this, so nothing more."
Asked how he would pick himself up from that disappointment before next weekend’s Spanish GP at the new Madring circuit, Leclerc replied: "Well, first of all, I think I'll have quite a few additional checks that we still have to do on my side probably tonight and tomorrow to make sure that I'll be fully fine for Madrid.
"It should be the case, but better be safe than sorry."
Leclerc did not think McLaren driver Oscar Piastri trying for a move contributed to his crash, saying: "I wouldn't say that this is the issue. I think from lap one to lap two I had a bit of a difference in power delivery.
"We'll look into it, but I don't want to comment too much before checking the data and confirming it 100%."
### Huge Leclerc crash brings out early Italian GP red flag
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-gp-red-flag-charles-leclerc-crash-ferrari/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T14:07:04.000Z
Formula 1's Italian Grand Prix has been red-flagged following a huge crash for Charles Leclerc on the exit of the final corner at the end of the second lap.
The Ferraris ran side-by-side into the first turn on the opening lap with Hamilton diving down the inside of Leclerc - who, in Hamilton's view, proceeded to push him off the track and into the gravel at Turn 2.
Leclerc continued in third, then briefly overtook polesitter Pierre Gasly at the start of lap two before being repassed, and later dropped to fourth behind Max Verstappen's Red Bull.
And Leclerc's race then came to an end when he had a wobble through the Ascari chicane and lost control of his Ferrari at the Parabolica (Alboreto) and speared into the barriers at high speed.
> Charles is out of the car 🙏
>
> And we have a red flag while the marshals begin the clear up 🚩[#F1](https://x.com/hashtag/F1?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [#ItalianGP](https://x.com/hashtag/ItalianGP?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/32cBZoXhLT](https://t.co/32cBZoXhLT?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Formula 1 (@F1) [September 6, 2026](https://x.com/F1/status/2096586963226657276?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
Oscar Piastri's McLaren had been looking for a move into the corner and Leclerc appeared to run slightly wide onto the green Tarmac just off the track, with his Ferrari swapping ends on him.
Leclerc quickly emerged from his wrecked Ferrari and the safety car, then the red flag, were issued in quick succession.
The incident was similar to Leclerc's crash at Parabolica in the 2020 Italian GP.
Ferrari said shortly before the race was due to restart - at 3.39pm local time - that Leclerc had left the medical centre.
When the red flag was called George Russell led, having overtaken Gasly's Alpine at the start of lap two.
Gasly was second ahead of Verstappen, the second Alpine of Franco Colapinto, Piastri, his McLaren team-mate Lando Norris, Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) and Hamilton.
### Gary Anderson on F1 2026's low-drag 'Monza special' aero tweaks
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-on-f1-2026s-low-drag-monza-special-aero-tweaks/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T08:49:16.000Z
Monza is all about optimising a low-drag aerodynamic set-up, while retaining as much downforce as possible. But corners are still corners, and the faster you can go around them, the better the initial straightline speed will be and, in turn, the laptime.
Monza has changed a lot since its early days, but it still has many straights, with a top speed this year a little in excess of 340km/h (211mph), which is 94m/s, and at the end of all of them is some varying levels of braking.
Into some of the chicanes, that speed needs to be reduced to 80km/h (50mph), and that speed reduction happens in just over a second or, in distance, 100 metres, so rear-end stability and confidence in the consistency of the braking balance is critical.
When the rear wing closes from straight mode (low drag) to cornering mode (high downforce), you need that rear-end stability immediately, as that is when you really hit the brake pedal with everything you can.
After that, the big challenge is to reduce that pedal pressure in line with the grip reduction and then thread the eye of the needle at corner entry. One metre too late and you will lose a couple of tenths of laptime or, even worse, two metres too late and you have a trip across the runoff where you lose seconds.
And to add to that, you have the battery harvesting on the rear axle diminishing near the end of braking, leaving you with the transition over to hydraulic braking on both axles and complicating things even more.
With the levels of anti-dive on the front suspension and anti-lift on the rear suspension that most of these cars are running to control the pitch of the car for aerodynamic stability, the driver has very low levels of feedback during braking.
Yes, even though I would say the power unit, with its electrical harvesting and distribution, is more important than the driver, I still believe they earn their keep.
So what have the teams come up with that A) works and B) works well enough to allow the driver to maximise their confidence to go just that one metre later before hitting the brake pedal?
McLaren is finally happy with its 180-degree rotating rear wing, or H-wing as it’s called. McLaren has tested it many times, but the one thing that McLaren is good at doing is showing discipline: don’t put bits on the cars unless you are confident that the goals have been met.
We can see here the McLaren rear wing in cornering mode and the actuator that rotates it to straightline mode.
Some of these changes may be to suit the actual wing specification between Zandvoort and Monza, but it looks like the geometry of the linkage and the length of the middle link, which I have highlighted with the double-ended white arrow, has increased. This will be to either alter the opening size or speed up the opening and closing.
We don’t get many close-up pictures of the wing in the open state to allow us to do much comparison as the cars are travelling in the region of 300km/h (186mph), or 83m/s at that time. As far as its opening and shutting is concerned, in the regulations the wing has to open and/or close in less than 0.4 seconds, so the blink of an eye.
It’s also interesting to see McLaren has retained more or less the same horizontal size of gurney flap, which I have highlighted with the blue arrow (above). This Gurney flap will be a bit draggy, but it will act a bit like a parachute being pulled along behind the car and improve the rear-end stability under braking.
For Ferrari, a win at Monza is probably just as important as winning the championship, but the fear of not being on the podium at Monza is probably just as strong a motivation, so normally it’s about throwing the kitchen sink at the car for the Italian GP.
This year, it has mainly been about getting its upgraded engine up to speed. I’m led to believe that, as part of that, it has increased the size of the turbo. As we saw from pre-season testing, only Ferrari, with its smaller turbo than the other power unit manufacturers, was able to get off the start line very impressively.
However, after that the FIA decided that, for safety reasons, it would add a five-second time delay before the start lights would come on to allow the drivers to increase the engine revs to build up turbo boost - so, in fact, taking away most of the advantage that the smaller turbo brought to the package.
Ferrari also has a couple of aerodynamic developments. These vertical vanes on the bargeboards, highlighted in green (above), manage the turbulence that is created by F1 being an open-wheel formula. For Monza Ferrari has gone from a three-element component to a single-element component. This may be a development that will be for the rest of the season and not just Monza-specific. Time will tell.
Ferrari has also gone for a bigger and more detailed exit opening on the rear brake duct. Monza is a strange circuit as far as braking is concerned because, as a result of the long straights, the brakes can be too cold when you first hit the brake pedal but too hot when you achieve your speed reduction. That problem is highlighted into the first chicane as it’s the biggest speed reduction.
The harvesting is all being achieved through the rear axle until the battery pack is full, and then diminishes to only hydraulic braking just at the end of braking, and to save weight the teams run smaller-than-ideal rear brakes.
Increased cooling for Monza is no bad thing, but I have said more than once you can’t just put a bigger opening in. You are better to go for a bigger exit and optimise the cooling of the various areas - pads, discs, callipers, etc. - within the braking system.
The exhaust gas direction blocker, which is highlighted in green, has also been changed. It is now higher, which means it is closing off more than half of the tailpipe vertically, but it has a central opening slot, so the open area is probably not much different. It may also be part of Ferrari’s requirement to optimise the gas flow of the bigger turbo, if it really has gone down that route.
Also the vanes on the side of that blocker highlighted in magenta have been reduced in width and by removing the small endplates a small drag reduction has probably been achieved.
As for the others, Mercedes has removed its rear-wing extensions. However, again to improve the rear-end stability, it, like McLaren, has retained the rear-wing gurney flap.
Mercedes has also reduced the length of the rear-view-mirror-mounting sidepod vane, which is highlighted in magenta. This is probably a small drag reduction, which I have highlighted with the red arrows, as it will allow some of the flow going over the top of the sidepod to get pulled into the sidepod undercut.
Red Bull has also gone down that same path in tidying up the wing’s trailing edge. However, it has gone to a full-length trailing-edge Gurney flap. The actuator geometry is also different from earlier in the season, but after Verstappen’s offs on corner entry in Austria and Silverstone, Red Bull took a race off from using this style of wing while putting some time into getting a better understanding of how efficiently the airflow was reattaching when going from straight-line mode to cornering mode.
Williams has also added some small vanes, which are highlighted in yellow, to the trailing edge of the halo. These should tidy up the airflow coming off the round section of the halo side support tubes.
And it has also reduced the length of the trailing edge of its bargeboard. The trim is highlighted with the dotted white line. Both of these are probably small drag reductions.
As I said at the beginning of this column, braking stability is critical for Monza, especially as it will probably be a one-stop race. This is mainly because of the time loss when your car is sitting in the pits having its wheels changed while your competitors are passing on the track at 340km/h. But that does mean that, coming up to the end of the race, the tyres are getting well past their optimum grip level, making it much easier to make a mistake.
As the saying goes, never count your chickens until they are hatched. In motor racing, that’s when the chequered flag is waved.
### What to expect from F1’s Italian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-italian-gp-strategy-preview-slipstream-yoyo-racing/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T08:26:52.000Z
Formula 1’s Italian Grand Prix has already served up one of the biggest shocks of recent years thanks to Pierre Gasly’s pole position for Alpine.
But on a weekend of energy deployment headaches and a very powerful slipstream, the surprises may well not be over - as the consensus is that the race itself should throw up some more.
No one in the paddock is exactly sure of what is to come and how things will play out in the end, with yo-yo racing, performance swings and the potential for jeopardy all on the agenda.
But there is agreement on some key factors that will influence the type of race we should be braced for.
### Early chaos
We have seen plenty of times this year how tracks that leave the 2026 cars energy-starved are a catalyst for shaking up the order on Sundays.
Different deployment patterns and offsets of battery power make passes easy and open the door for what’s become known as yo-yo racing.
This phenomenon is often exacerbated in the opening laps as the variability can be more extreme with cars bunched together and energy management more haphazard.
Throw into the mix how powerful the slipstream is, plus the long run to Turn 1, and it’s no wonder Oscar Piastri thinks there could be some shenanigans early on.
“The first few laps of the race could be quite chaotic - and not necessarily the quickest car is going to be leading all the time,” he said.
### Yo-yo racing compromises
While races often eventually settle down from early yo-yo madness as drivers converge on where they deploy power, it is not definite that will happen at Monza because of how energy-poor the cars are there.
One lesson drivers have learned in 2026 is that once you start battling someone, that costs a lot of laptime as energy deployment is compromised – so attacking someone runs the risk of dropping you into the pack.
McLaren team boss Andrea Stella reckoned it was not easy to work out how best to approach things, because anyone wanting to move up the order faces potential consequences.
“It's a race in which if you start to play with the boost, and overtake cars, you may get overtaken and you may start to lose overall time in the race,” he said.
“But at the same time, if you're faster, you may want to pass. Being close to the car ahead will make you fast - and if you pass you may be slower than you were after. It will be very interesting.”
Carlos Sainz reckoned that drivers were going to have to weigh up how aggressive they wanted to be.
“I think it depends how disciplined people are with their boost press,” he said.
“It will all come down to how much race time you want to give up by starting to get into yo-yo racing with the boost presses, and how optimal you want to stay without pressing the boost and just doing whatever the deployment wants to do.
“It's going to be quite a bit depending on who you have around you and who is willing to get into a yo-yo battle.”
### Breaking the tow
While a key consideration for drivers will be how much to go on the offensive to move forward, as much thought is going to have to go into protecting yourself from behind, too.
The energy starvation problem means that the extra energy on offer from overtake mode is going to help keep drivers in touch with the cars ahead – so could lead to some trains.
Key to stopping a queue forming behind, with all the risks of then getting dragged into a yo-yo battle, will be breaking the one-second gap where overtake mode is triggered.
This is going to be decisive to the outcome, according to Williams driver Alex Albon.
**“**I think it's going to be a fun race,” he said. “From what I've seen, it's quicker to stay as close as you can to the car in front, and the moment you lose overtake mode, at least for us, you lose performance.
“So, everyone's going to be trying to break that tow. It's going to be one of those kinds of swinging-around races.”
Albon suggested that this game would become as critical a thing for teams to help manage as it was for the drivers – as he reckoned the cat-and-mouse games would be helped by staff back at base.
"The mental warfare has overtaken the physical combat,” he said.
“This is more like GPS data analysis back at factory, giving us immediate response times of what we need to do and what mode switches we need to change to anticipate what cars are doing around us.
“This in many ways is tactical, but at the same time you feel sometimes helpless. You cannot just defend anymore.”
### Team-mates working together
Part of those tactics should involve some team-mates working together.
Front row starters Pierre Gasly and George Russell don't have their team-mates nearby to help them, but the Ferraris are starting alongside each other on the second row.
It's why Lewis Hamilton urged "we do have to work as a team" after a qualifying session where he was disappointed by the execution - he was left without a tow on his first Q3 run, and that meant he didn't have the right braking references for his crucial final lap.
After a messy Zandvoort, this race is a huge test for Ferrari and whether it can get its drivers to work together to get the result on a weekend where the pressure to deliver has never been higher.
### Can Gasly hold on?
One of the key questions is whether Gasly can convert his shock Saturday result into a giant-killing on Sunday, taking into account all of the above factors.
The track record for surprise polesitters is mixed. Those who take their poles in wet conditions via an inspired tyre call in qualifying often slip back on race day, as you’d expect given they don’t have the car performance to match in the dry.
But there is a good history of those who take a surprise pole in the dry bringing home a strong result on race day.
---
### Where surprise polesitters ended up
Kevin Magnussen Brazil 2022\*: 8th in the sprint, DNF in grand prix
Lance Stroll Turkey 2020\*: 9th
Felipe Massa Austria 2014: 4th
Pastor Maldonado Spain 2012: 1st
Nico Hulkenberg Brazil 2010\*: 8th
Giancarlo Fisichella Belgium 2009: 2nd
*\*Pole taken in wet conditions*
---
The key question will be whether Alpine has that same strong car in race conditions. The A526 is a very efficient car, with its lack of downforce relative to the top teams not a penalty around Monza.
The Alpine has a good top speed that should serve Gasly well when defending, but it won’t be as comfortable as when he was leading the 2020 Italian Grand Prix (thanks to a well-timed safety car) and he could keep Carlos Sainz’s McLaren at arm’s length.
For all the reasons we’ve listed above, there are far more opportunities for rivals to pass him than there were back then.
“This year Monza is an energy-starved circuit with four overtaking zones. A driver cannot defend all of them, so a faster car should be able to make progress relatively straightforwardly,” Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin pointed out ahead of the weekend in relation to Kimi Antonelli making progress from the back of the grid.
So it’s all down to what kind of race pace the low-drag Alpine has, whether it can look after its tyres in the race, keep them in the right window when under pressure from other cars, and get the energy management equation right.
It’s a huge opportunity for Alpine to regain the points lost from its Monaco podium being stripped away, a decision that’s allowed Racing Bulls to extend its grip on fifth in the championship to 16 points before a wheel was even turned at Monza.
Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad is expecting Gasly to be swallowed up by the top teams.
“More than anything, I'm just surprised by the Alpine; obviously they were holding something in reserve,” Lindblad said after qualifying 10th.
“I don't think Pierre's going to stay there. I think he'll slowly shuffle back, but for sure he's going to be starting ahead of me, so when he shuffles back he'll still be quite far ahead.”
How long does Gasly think he’ll stay ahead? “That’s a very good question,” Gasly said when that was put to him.
“My plan is to stay first as long as I can. How long is that going to be? I have no idea. And my focus is going to be on my driving and making no mistakes and making the best out of what I have.”
But when asked by Sky Sports F1 if he could actually win the race, Gasly replied: “Why not?”
### An easy one-stop
The tyre degradation level at Monza has been lower on the soft tyre than it has been on the hard tyre at other circuits. It means, barring safety car or red flag interventions, a one-stop race is the most likely strategy.
There is an interesting question of starting tyre, though. Pirelli’s motorsport director Dario Marrafuschi said it will depend on “the characteristics of each car” as well as each team’s strategy approach.
Starting on the mediums makes a lot of sense as it gives the most strategic flexibility to make that one pitstop under a virtual or full safety car interruption.
Pirelli says the quickest strategy on paper is to start on mediums, pit somewhere between laps 24-30, and run the hard tyre to the end of the 53-lap race.
It estimates a medium-soft strategy (pitting within laps 30-36) is around two seconds slower.
Teams could also start on the soft tyre, benefit from the extra grip off the line, and then pit between laps 19-25 for the hard tyre and run that to the end.
---
### Tyre sets available top 10
Gasly: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 4 used softs
Russell: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 used medium, 3 used softs
Hamilton: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 3 used softs
Leclerc: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 3 used softs
Verstappen: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 3 used softs
Piastri: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 3 used softs
Colapinto: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 4 used softs
Norris: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 3 used softs
Lindblad: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 4 used softs
Bortoleto: 1 new hard, 1 new medium, 1 new soft, 4 used softs
### What Alpine got right at Monza and everyone else got wrong
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/five-reasons-for-gaslys-shock-italian-grand-prix-pole/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T20:27:25.000Z
The car that's currently sixth in the Formula 1 constructors' championship just took pole position in a straight fight in a dry qualifying session at the Italian Grand Prix.
F1 is used to freak underdog poles in mixed weather, but Pierre Gasly and Alpine's Monza achievement was something very different.
You have to go back to Pastor Maldonado's 2012 Spanish GP pole for Williams (then seventh in the championship) for an equivalent - and even that only happened because Lewis Hamilton's pole-winning McLaren was excluded from qualifying. Which means perhaps the real equivalent is Giancarlo Fisichella's 2009 Belgium pole for Force India (which was on zero points for the season before that race).
So how on earth did it happen?
The answer is really a 50/50 split between things Alpine got right and things the teams that should've beaten it got wrong.
## What cost the favourite pole
Mercedes, and more specifically George Russell given team-mate Kimi Antonelli had a sizeable grid penalty, went into qualifying as the clear favourite, with most of Mercedes' rivals expecting Russell to emerge with pole position.
And it was heading that way after the first Q3 run, with Russell on provisional pole, via a small tow assist on the start/finish straight from Antonelli, who had already made it clear he'd sacrifice his Q3 to help Russell.
But everything went wrong in the preparation for the crucial final lap. Russell was running on track behind Antonelli, however, Antonelli encountered a slowing Max Verstappen at Parabolica and had to back up into Russell, who also had to slow just before opening his flying lap.
Antonelli towed Russell on the start/finish straight, then jumped out of the way before the first chicane, leaving Russell to pick up a tow from Verstappen, albeit closer to him than he'd have liked. Russell called it a "bit of a mess".
He still improved his laptime on his final run, but he ended up 0.060s behind Gasly - time he likely lost with the sub-optimal preparation. Plus, Russell struggled with his brakes locking like many drivers at Monza.
Russell admitted "It was a very scrappy session" and said the car didn't feel as good as it did in final practice.
It was undoubtedly still a car good enough to secure pole position. Put together Russell's three best sectors and his ideal lap is a 1m21.633s, 0.233s faster than his qualifying lap and 0.155s ahead of Gasly's pole lap.
Gasly in contrast put all of his three best sectors together on his final run. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Ferrari botched it but got away with it
[Hamilton made it fairly clear](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-sends-ferrari-a-clear-team-orders-plea/) after qualifying that he felt Ferrari should have been much more coordinated in how it choreographed its two cars.
If you contrast how smoothly Alpine ran throughout the three segments, getting Gasly at or near the top of the timesheet from Q1 right through to Q3, with Ferrari's relatively yo-yo performance, you can understand why Hamilton was so frustrated afterwards.
But for Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi oversteering through the middle of the Ascari chicane at the end of Q2, Hamilton wouldn't have even made Q3, and the higher risks taken by Ferrari (and McLaren for that matter) in trying to work both cars towards the front of the grid were more exposed to the ‘essentially sacrifice one car' approaches taken by Alpine, Mercedes and Red Bull.
And the fact Ferrari, even with its updated ADUO 2 engine, still carried a 10-20km/h deficit through every speed trap, suggested properly executed towing and clean laps were even more valuable to Hamilton's and Charles Leclerc's chances.
Considering how close Ferrari came to disaster in Q2, to then have both its cars ultimately (and fortuitously) starting on the second row of the grid is a fantastic outcome from such a messy session. **\- Ben Anderson**
## McLaren's poor execution
Monza was never expected to be McLaren territory, but the underlying pace of the MCL40 in qualifying trim was stronger than expected - certainly far better than its final grid positions of sixth (Oscar Piastri) and eighth (Lando Norris).
"It would be a little bit of a red herring, or an excuse, to say 'oh we have too much drag," said team principal Andrea Stella of the role the car's aero efficiency weakness played. Instead, he pointed firmly in the direction of execution for McLaren's underachievement when it should have been "in the mix for the first couple of rows".
Hidden beneath a solid second and third in Q2 was the first key mistake. Piastri joined the track for his first run at the point where an out-of-synch Liam Lawson was on a quick lap, leading to him impeding the Red Bull in the chicane. A three-place grid penalty was the result, which puts Piastri sixth for tomorrow's race.
In Q3, there were myriad problems. McLaren struggled to position its cars ideally for a slipstream, which was partly owing to its position in the pitlane. This meant Norris didn't have a good slipstream on his first run in Q3\. The McLarens were then at the front of the pack for the second run, with Piastri ahead, but when he locked up and cut the first chicane it not only hindered Norris but cost him his tow. Although Norris did improve on that run, it wasn't by anything like it should have been.
That lock-up from Piastri was a consequence of not optimising the outlaps by dealing well with the 4MJ harvest limit that makes it difficult to get temperature into everything before the start of a push lap. On top of that, Stella admitted that "we had some issues managing the battery, and here in Monza every 1% in the battery charge costs you a significant amount of milliseconds". **\- Edd Straw**
## Red Bull had its own problems
In a way Red Bull made the biggest contribution to Alpine's pole given how much Verstappen's positioning affected the lap with which Russell really should've beaten Gasly.
And Red Bull should have been well placed to pull off some intra-team slipstreaming choreography given Lawson's grid penalties meant his own performance could be pretty much sacrificed to boost Verstappen.
Only if Lawson got to Q3, though. And thanks in large part (but not solely due) to Piastri baulking him in Q2 just as he was being given a reciprocal tow by Verstappen, Lawson wasn't actually there to play the team game when it was needed.
But Verstappen didn't think any of that mattered as much as the unspecified component failure that meant his Red Bull wasn't running at the right ride height for his Q3 runs.
"With how the car was responding in FP3, I didn't think I was fighting for pole, but it was quite a comfortable car to drive for once, and that was actually really nice," said Verstappen, "but unfortunately then we picked up another problem in qualifying."
Which was the diplomatic translation of his "this car is made of paper" radio rant after qualifying only sixth. **\- Matt Beer**
## What Alpine got right
It is fair to say that Alpine was as surprised as its rivals about a pole position that it had never even dreamed of before the Italian Grand Prix weekend.
As it tried to piece together the answers on Saturday night as to how it had done it, it became clear that, as much as the big teams had all slipped up in their own ways, Alpine had equally got itself into the perfect position to capitalise by getting everything within its control spot on.
Having a Mercedes engine around Monza certainly helped, as it remains the benchmark power unit.
But one of Alpine's weaknesses earlier in the year – of not enough downforce – may well also have become a strength at Monza because of the low drag benefit.
The A526 appears to be very efficient with good top speed, so that helped lift it into contention.
The upgrades Gasly first got for Zandvoort have also served to give the car a better balance, and throughout practice Alpine had evolved the set-up to get him into a place he was very happy with.
That allowed him to attack the corners under braking (where others were struggling a lot) and take things to the edge through Ascari and Parabolica.
Perhaps most critical of all though was Gasly's perfect slipstream positioning in the train of cars.
Alpine had confidence to drop to the back of the pack in that final run – as that offered the biggest tow gain.
That is not without risk, because there is a threat of slow traffic ahead meaning you don't get across the line in time (Gasly and Franco Colapinto made it with around 10 seconds to spare), plus a danger of anyone ahead going off and bringing out yellow flags that derail everything.
Despite a couple of cars going down the escape road at Turn 1, Gasly had a clear run and a beautiful slipstream from Hamilton ahead to secure himself the six-hundredths of a second edge that gave him the top spot over Russell. **\- Jon Noble**
### Winners and losers from Italian Grand Prix F1 qualifying 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-italian-grand-prix-f1-qualifying-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T17:50:27.000Z
Italian Grand Prix qualifying produced Formula 1’s most surprising dry weather polesitter in over a decade.
But apart from him, there weren’t many in the pitlane with reasons to be cheerful.
Here’s our winners and losers rundown.
## Winner: Pierre Gasly and Alpine (1st)
A podium is worth 15 points and a pole is worth 'nothing' - Pierre Gasly has gained a pole and lost a podium in the span of this weekend, and yet it feels like the loss of 15 points is an acceptable trade for his F1 CV.
He's now an F1 winner and an F1 polesitter. That feels right. That feels significant. Regardless of what Sunday brings, he's poleman number 109 in F1's history books.
But it's also a big deal for Alpine, which has felt a bit no man's land-y for much of this season but seems to be squeezing out some good juice from its Zandvoort upgrade.
"I don't think we quite got the best out of the package in Zandvoort. It's a bit of a quirky circuit. But we've come here and the car is responding very well," an elated Steve Nielsen, Alpine's managing director, told Sky.
"We got the gaps right. We got the tows right. The drivers didn't make a mistake. And laptime's clearly in the car. Because both cars were quite quick."
It's not the first midfield car to star on a low-downforce track, and it won't be the last, but compared to the rest of the season it feels even more significant than it usually would. **\- Val Khorounzhiy**
## Loser: Max Verstappen (6th)
"This car is made out of paper," was a curious Q3 radio message from Max Verstappen, as the Red Bull’s habit of small but costly breakages continued with a problem that affected its ride height. Not ideal for this kerb-heavy circuit.
He felt that was far more significant than losing his slipstream wingman when Liam Lawson was eliminated in Q2 after coming across the slow-moving Oscar Piastri.
Speaking of which… **\- Matt Beer**
## Loser: Oscar Piastri (3rd but penalised)
On pure qualifying results, Piastri was a ‘winner’ category candidate. Third on the grid at a track not great for the draggy McLaren, a long way ahead of team-mate Lando Norris and all despite (but also partly because of) blowing his last qualifying lap with a trip over the first chicane.
But already by that time a penalty was highly likely given Piastri’s inadvertent but massive block on Lawson in the middle of the first chicane in Q2\. And, as referenced above, that Q3 error blew the lap on which he was supposed to be giving Norris a helpful tow.
So as third on the grid becomes sixth, that error and messing up the team’s plans means Piastri ends up in the Loser list instead. **\- MB**
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (7th)
Given the championship leader spent all of Monza qualifying as team-mate Russell's tow servant, seventh in the actual results via one tow-less out of sequence solo lap that didn't matter was quite an achievement.
And one that probably suggests a) he'd have been a clear polesitter if he'd participated in qualifying properly and b) he has a shot at a very, very good result even from the back of the grid on Sunday.
One of his title rivals being beaten to pole by an Alpine and the other only qualifying fifth behind his team-mate and [hinting at Ferrari team prioritisation angst ](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-sends-ferrari-a-clear-team-orders-plea/)already is quite good for Antonelli too on a weekend where he has nothing to lose. **\- MB**
## Loser: Liam Lawson (14th)
Best-laid plans, and all that.
Red Bull hoped to use Lawson, faced as we now know with back-of-the-grid engine penalties, to tow Verstappen around in Q3\. "But obviously you need to get there to be able to do it," reflected Lawson after his elimination, in 14th, in Q2.
That was much calmer than he'd been on the radio during the session. "Dude, what the f\*\*\*?" he exclaimed as he was baulked by Piastri at the first chicane, which earned the McLaren driver a grid penalty, before telling Red Bull at the end of Q2: "Bro, that's actually appalling. I can't believe how badly you just left me out to f\*\*\*ing dry!"
Maybe the Piastri block is what stopped him progressing. Maybe it wasn't; Lawson was three tenths away in the end, didn't improve in the final sector, and generally looked borderline - not helped by the fact he'd "spent the whole quali in clean air until that last lap".
"It was the first time I'd sat behind a car and the tyres were super hot," he said. "It just wasn't an ideal situation, so trying to do it for the first time was not ideal. But I think obviously having Oscar in Turn 1 probably hurt more than anything."
Whatever the cause(s), Lawson should really have been in the final part of qualifying. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Winner: Ollie Bearman (12th)
Having spent the last four months sliding backwards, Haas needed the upgrade it brought to Monza to show something encouraging.
So for Bearman to declare it "night-and-day different" and feel he had a shot at Q3 as he produced his best qualifying result since Shanghai in March will do nicely.
Bearman was also seven tenths of a second faster than team-mate Esteban Ocon. Only Bearman has the upgraded Ferrari engine, but he felt that was only a marginal difference and that he'd still have been fighting to get out of Q1 if that was the only change on the car for Monza.
Ocon has the same aero upgrades. Asked if they worked, he replied: "They worked on Ollie’s side". **\- MB**
## Loser: Yuki Tsunoda (17th)
Tsunoda lost a lot of laptime on the straights and sounded totally bewildered by it, in comments that will sound familiar to anyone who's heard drivers up and down the grid speak about single-lap deployment and optimisation and all that jazz across 2026.
"I mean, if you look at the first sector, I was like seven tenths off - and there's only two corners," he mused. "I don't think I've done anything massively wrong, enough to lose a lot of laptime a lot in basically a straight line.
"I've done a lot of things in practice and it didn't happen like this."
His grid position is far from horrific - but, given that all of this is obviously part of a mission to prove his value to prospective F1 employers down the line, he's unlucky that what will surely be a short stand-in stint includes an energy-starved track like this, whether either a lack of experience with these cars' quirks or a freak deployment issue or both can really, really bite. **\- VK**
## Winner: Valtteri Bottas (19th)
"It seems like we're on a better run. Things are working as they should. Like I said, it's also easy to find the rhythm when you can actually get laps with a car that works."
Bottas was talking about the execution of the weekend so far for his side of the Cadillac garage - "not really a single issue" - but his comments may as well apply to the wider picture of his season.
He's on a 6-0 run versus team-mate Sergio Perez in qualifyings, a significant reversal after a start to the season shaky enough on paper to where people started talking about potential replacements for 2027.
Perez had some issues through Q1 and didn't get the tow he would've liked - but also acknowledged Bottas put in a strong effort he "couldn't match".
For tomorrow, both still need to get through the opening stint - with Bottas worried about how the brakes will cope with running in traffic - but amid those continued teething problems for Cadillac things have certainly trended right for Bottas. **\- VB**
## Loser: Aston Martin (21st + 22nd)
After the measured optimism the previous two rounds have offered, the Italian GP weekend has been a bruising reality check for Aston Martin-Honda so far.
OK, Fernando Alonso might've outqualified the two Cadillacs (and therefore possibly Alex Albon's Williams) had he made it out for a second run in Q1\. Alonso certainly felt there was more laptime to come.
"We only did one set of tyres and the time we set was done with a scrubbed set, after waiting on the pitlane for a long time, cold tyres, etc.," he said. "So I think there was something more to come on the last attempt."
But the reason he didn't get to exploit it, and had to hop out of the car early before Q1 had ended? "The engine didn't start, so we had a problem with the power unit. I don't know if it's the ICE power or the battery or whatever it is, but yeah, it didn't start."
Sunday could be a long, lonely afternoon. **\- JC**
### F1 2026 Italian GP starting grid with two pitlane starts
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-starting-grid-penalties/
Last updated: 2026-09-06T10:33:58.000Z
Italian Grand Prix qualifying threw up a real shock as Pierre Gasly and Alpine beat George Russell and Mercedes (and the rest of the Formula 1 frontrunners) to pole position.
But the starting grid wasn't quite set in stone come the end of Q3, as three grid penalties for engine component changes - for Kimi Antonelli, Alex Albon and Liam Lawson - were applied.
And there was a further change, too, as third-place qualifier Oscar Piastri received a three-place grid drop for impeding Lawson in Q2.
On Sunday morning, Red Bull and Aston Martin then committed to pitlane starts for Lawson and Fernando Alonso respectively, by breaching parc ferme.
For Lawson, this was to fit a new rear wing assembly, while on Alonso' side Aston Martin replaced Honda engine components - namely the MGU-K, the control electronics and the energy store.
## Provisional Italian GP starting grid
1 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
2 George Russell (Mercedes)
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)\*
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
8 Lando Norris (McLaren)
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
11 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
13 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
16 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
17 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
19 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)\*\*
20 Alex Albon (Williams)\*\*
PL Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
PL Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
\*three-place penalty for impeding
\*\*back-of-grid penalty for engine component changes
### Hamilton's obvious frustration at Ferrari team tactics
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hamilton-sends-ferrari-a-clear-team-orders-plea/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T17:32:26.000Z
Lewis Hamilton believes his Ferrari Formula 1 team is putting its "dimming" chances of a 2026 title comeback at risk by not prioritising his campaign over team-mate Charles Leclerc's.
Hamilton trails championship leader Kimi Antonelli - who is starting at the back at Monza due to engine penalties - by 59 points and has 28 in hand over Leclerc.
He already felt last time out at Zandvoort that Ferrari's race execution [didn't do enough to prioritise him](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-contrast-worsens-lewis-hamilton-team-order-frustration/) as the driver ahead in the championship - contrasting it to how Mercedes played its cards with Antonelli and George Russell - and in qualifying at Monza saw another example of what he clearly sees as Ferrari leaving opportunities on the table.
There were a lot of knowing pauses as Hamilton recounted his session - in which he ultimately placed fifth, one spot behind Leclerc - and emphasised the importance of teamwork and the size of the deficit to Antonelli.
"I mean, we're at a point in the year where 59 points is a huge - huge - deficit to recover from, especially when Mercedes continue to be the leaders in speed. So yeah, we do have to work as a team," he mused, before making his feelings clear with a couple of half-finished sentences: "Have we been... if and when that would ever change... We'll find out, but all I can do is just try to arrive and do the best job I can."
Unrelated to the championship position, Hamilton has priority this weekend in terms of when he runs in qualifying relative to Leclerc - and naturally chose to go behind his team-mate, with slipstream more valuable here than at any other track.
Leclerc acknowledged this already on Thursday - but also said he didn't expect Ferrari to "compromise" his qualifying because of this, and indicated he would be happy to tow Hamilton along while himself having a rival car to get a slipstream from.
This appeared to be at the heart of what got Hamilton talking about championship position and priority on Saturday.
Though happy with his Ferrari, Hamilton was very close to missing the Q3 cut entirely - just 0.001s up on 11th-placed Gabriel Bortoleto in the end - and indicated his Q2 session was hindered by Leclerc's run plan preferences.
"We were supposed to do a push-cool-cool-push. But because everyone was waiting and Charles didn't want to go out first, we had to wait-wait-wait. And then we only got one push. And, yeah, it made it pretty challenging for us," he explained.
Q3 was then operationally suboptimal - he was supposed to be right behind Leclerc on both runs, but Ferrari didn't send him out early enough on run one - leaving him to run all by himself, a good third of the lap behind most of the grid.
"I didn't have any wheels on the car basically and everyone left whilst my engine was running.
"And that just put me out of rhythm \[for the second run\] because when you're following another car, when you're in that tow, you arrive much faster so the braking zones are different. And then when you're on your own, you lose the tows. A lot of time lost in the tows."
Asked about the conversations that have happened since Zandvoort in terms of teamwork and strategy, given his unhappiness there, Hamilton paused for a while - and didn't really answer the question in the end.
"What I can say is, Pierre \[Gasly\] did a great job of… clearly, looking from a distance, it looked like they \[Alpine\] worked really well as a team."
Asked by The Race whether Ferrari needs to throw its weight behind the lead driver given there remains a sniff of the title, he said: "There's light at the end of the tunnel, but it's getting dimmer the further we get through. Even though the team's doing an amazing job in bringing upgrades and pushing us forward, I'm so proud of everyone working- I say it all the time, but it's because I really am. I couldn't do what I do without seeing the great work of everybody, and I feel like I always want to make sure that I acknowledge them and recognise them for that, because I want them to continue to push and I want them to stay hungry and keep that passion and fire.
"But also at the track, we need to come correct and act accordingly to make sure we get the result we need."
The issue, however, remains the same for Ferrari, which has Leclerc on an even longer-term contract now and would strain to make the case to the Monegasque that it's already time to give up on his title hopes in favour of Hamilton's.
A total of 283 points should remain up for grabs in F1 this season, which Leclerc can argue should be sufficient for him to stay in the hunt, too - especially as he and Hamilton have been virtually indistinguishable in terms of the qualifying head-to-head this year.
### Piastri gets grid penalty for Lawson Q2 incident
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/piastri-gets-grid-penalty-for-lawson-q2-incident/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T17:05:39.000Z
Oscar Piastri has lost third-place on the grid for Formula 1’s Italian Grand Prix after impeding Liam Lawson in qualifying.
Towards the end of Q2, the McLaren driver exited the pits on an out-lap just as the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson were beginning their final push laps.
The Red Bulls were running out of sync with the field as Lawson had towed Verstappen initially and Verstappen was trying to help Lawson get through to Q3 by returning the favour.
Piastri managed to get out of the way of Verstappen, but as Piastri turned into the first chicane he baulked Lawson, who lost valuable time that he was unable to recover later in the lap.
Piastri was summoned to see the stewards after qualifying, and explained that while had been warned about the Red Bull duo approaching, he was not aware they were on push laps.
When he realised that Verstappen was indeed going for a time, he got out of the way as best he could.
However, due to his positioning, he had no choice but to continue to roll into the chicane where he impeded Lawson.
Although the stewards accepted that Piastri had been left in a tricky spot, they felt that there was no option but to serve him with a penalty for blocking a rival.
A statement issued by the FIA said: “The Stewards accept that with the information he had, and the situation he was placed in, the driver of Car 81 had, at this stage, no other options available and hence, inadvertently, and also unnecessarily, impeded Car 30.
“Therefore the standard penalty of a drop of 3 grid positions is imposed.”
The penalty drops Piastri from third down to sixth, and means that Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton will move up to the second row behind Pierre Gasly and George Russell.
Lawson’s failure to get through to Q3 meant that Verstappen was left alone to try to find a slipstream, with the team having hoped that Lawson could act as support in helping give his team-mate a tow thanks to the engine change penalty that puts him to the back of the grid for Sunday's race.
### Gasly and Alpine stun Mercedes to take Italian GP pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pierre-gasly-alpine-stun-mercedes-f1-italian-gp-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T15:28:42.000Z
Pierre Gasly claimed a shock pole position for the Alpine Formula 1 team in Italian Grand Prix qualifying at Monza, beating George Russell's Mercedes to the top spot.
The recently upgraded Alpine looked top-10 fast through practice but no one was expecting it to be a pole threat come qualifying.
Yet Gasly was super quick from the earliest runs in Q1, where he was fastest of all and team-mate Franco Colapinto was fourth.
Q2 was slightly tougher, where Gasly ended up fourth behind Kimi Antonelli's Mercedes and the two McLarens of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, while Colapinto slipped to eighth.
But in the top-10 shootout Gasly came back into the picture, lapping just 0.071s behind Russell's Mercedes on the first Q3 runs, and placing third behind Piastri's McLaren.
And on the final runs, even though Russell found 0.083s thanks to a tow from Max Verstappen, Gasly found more by following a Ferrari to claim his first pole position in F1 by 0.06s.
Piastri locked up at the first chicane on his final Q3 run, but his first lap was still good enough for third - though questions remain as to whether he may be penalised for impeding Liam Lawson's Red Bull in Q2.
The Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were fourth and fifth, after narrowly avoiding Q2 elimination, where Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi almost eliminated Hamilton and was only 0.008s slower than Leclerc.
Verstappen's Red Bull rounded out the top six, ahead of championship leader Antonelli, who sacrificed his Q3 to aid Russell's pole bid.
Antonelli will drop to the back of the grid thanks to taking a new engine for this weekend.
Colapinto was eighth in the second Alpine, ahead of Norris, whose final Q3 lap was compromised by Piastri's Turn 1 lock-up - robbing Norris of a lap-long tow.
Arvid Lindblad completed the top 10 for Racing Bulls, just 0.03s down on the 2025 world champion.
Bortoleto missed out on Q3, just 0.001s down on Hamilton's Ferrari, ruing a slide in the middle of the Ascari chicane, but he will anyway start 10th thanks to Antonelli's grid penalty.
Ollie Bearman's Haas, Nico Hulkenberg's Audi, the compromised Red Bull of Lawson, the Williams of Carlos Sainz and Esteban Ocon's Haas were the other cars eliminated in Q2.
In Q1 it was Yuki Tsunoda's Racing Bulls and Alex Albon's Williams that joined the expected Cadillacs and Aston Martin-Hondas in being eliminated.
Tsunoda was told to calm down on team radio after the session, while Albon was thanked by Williams for helping tow Sainz into Q2.
Valtteri Bottas was only 0.008s slower than Albon's Williams in the battle at the back, where Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin, which didn't make a second run in Q1, was more than half a second slower than Sergio Perez's Cadillac as energy-starved Monza brutally exposed the upgraded Honda engine's remaining power shortfall.
## Qualifying result
1 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 1m21.786s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.060s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.180s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.218s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.225s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.284s
7 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.307s\*
8 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.434s
9 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.470s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.500s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.008s to Q3
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.247s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.263s
14 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.305s\*
15 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.937s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.938s
17 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.289s to Q1
18 Alex Albon (Williams) +0.740s\*
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +0.748s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +0.979s
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.534s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.756s
\*denotes drivers with grid penalties
### F1 2026 Italian Grand Prix qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-practice-results-2/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T15:03:05.000Z
Pierre Gasly took a sensational pole position for Alpine in Italian Grand Prix qualifying, beating George Russell by 0.06s.
1 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 1m21.786s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.060s
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.180s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.218s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.225s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.284s
7 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.307s\*
8 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.434s
9 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.470s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.500s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.008s to Q3
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.247s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.263s
14 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.305s\*
15 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.937s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +0.938s
17 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.289s to Q1
18 Alex Albon (Williams) +0.740s\*
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +0.748s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +0.979s
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.534s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1.756s
\*denotes drivers with grid penalties
### Russell fastest in final Italian GP practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/russell-fastest-in-final-italian-gp-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T11:52:02.000Z
Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell marked himself out as favourite for Italian Grand Prix pole position by setting the pace in final practice at Monza.
Russell and team-mate Kimi Antonelli spent part of the session practicing the tows that are likely to play a significant role in the fight for pole position in qualifying, though Russell looked fast with and without assistance.
His final effort - a 1m22.219s that was three tenths clear of Friday's FP2 benchmark - came without a tow from Antonelli (who has grid penalties this weekend) and was 0.226s faster than the next-best time, set by Lewis Hamilton.
Max Verstappen was third as Red Bull's single-lap pace appeared in a much better place than on Friday, though he and Ferrari driver Hamilton did have a minor on-track altercation at the end of FP3 that was noted by the stewards.
Hamilton jumped ahead of Verstappen entering the Alboreto (Parabolica) corner, with Verstappen subsequently giving Hamilton a thumbs-up as they crossed the start/finish line to indicate his lap had been compromised and then running deep into the first corner to ensure Hamilton could not take the apex.
Championship leader Antonelli was fourth ahead of Lando Norris, the winner of the past two races, in the best of the McLarens.
His team-mate Oscar Piastri set the fastest first sector of all on his final attempt and was still inside Russell's benchmark through sector two, but ended the lap more than half a second down and only eighth-fastest - a clear indication of the varying energy deployment patterns teams are working to this weekend.
Between them were Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari and the Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad, who for a while at the end of the session held the fastest final sector courtesy of a huge tow from the Audi of Nico Hulkenberg.
That partly accounted for Lindblad's gap to the next-best midfield driver, Pierre Gasly, who finished the session ahead of team-mate Franco Colapinto as the Alpine duo rounded out the top 10.
Liam Lawson had a difficult start to Saturday in the second Red Bull, looping his RB22 as he got on the power - and the kerb - through the first chicane. He finished the session in 12th, the best part of a second off Russell and more than six tenths down on Verstappen.
At the back, Fernando Alonso improved late on to lead the Aston Martin-Cadillac quartet that once again looks cut adrift.
## FP3 times
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m22.219s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.226s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.350s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.361s
5 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.406s
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.489s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.505s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.554s
9 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.679s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.882s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.907s
12 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.984s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.079s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.366s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.598s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.656s
17 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.801s
18 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.218s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.700s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.785s
21 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.812s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.336s
### F1 2026 Italian Grand Prix practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-italian-grand-prix-practice-results/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T11:50:44.000Z
F1 is back at Monza, where plenty of car and engine upgrades plus the championship leader committed to starting at the back means there's plenty of opportunity for excitement.
Here are the practice results for the Italian Grand Prix.
## FP3 times
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m22.219s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.226s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.350s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.361s
5 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.406s
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.489s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.505s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.554s
9 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.679s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.882s
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.907s
12 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.984s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.079s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.366s
15 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.598s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.656s
17 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.801s
18 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.218s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.700s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.785s
21 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.812s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.336s
## FP2 times
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m22.559s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.120s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.141s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.384s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.457s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.469s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.790s
8 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.811s
9 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.818s
10 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.896s
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.060s
12 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.101s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.173s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.214s
15 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.217s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +1.294s
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.341s
18 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.848s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.468s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.523s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.590s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.694s
## FP1 times
1 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 1m23.008s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.173s
3 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.304s
4 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +0.425s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.636s
6 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.711s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.794s
8 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.998s
9 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.020s
10 Paul Aron (Alpine) +1.169s
11 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.176s
12 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1.563s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.618s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.638s
15 Luke Browning (Williams) +1.732s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.819s
17 Ayumu Iwasa (Red Bull) +1.865s
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.772s
19 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.844s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.976s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +3.058s
22 Colton Herta (Cadillac) +6.914s
### F2 reveals revised car to reflect F1 2026 changes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/junior/f2-reveals-revised-car-in-line-with-f1-2026-changes/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T09:53:34.000Z
Formula 2 has revealed a heavily modified car for the coming seasons at the Italian Grand Prix, bringing it closer to the look of Formula 1's current machine.
The revised car, which will retain the existing chassis, was revealed in the F1 paddock at Monza on Saturday and will be used in F1's primary feeder series from 2027 to 2029.
F2 last introduced a new car in 2024 to more closely mirror the look of F1's ground-effect-era cars used from 2022-25.
This new 2027 car better reflects the visual direction of F1's new 2026 cars but without being a complete overhaul, keeping costs lower.
Its aero package is also designed to allow cars to follow each other more closely.
The new car will be powered by the same 3.4-litre turbocharged V6 Mecachrome engine used in the 2024-26 generation.
And it will run on 18-inch wheelrims once more, having pioneered them on its 2020 car, two years before F1 adopted them.
The car will run on sustainable fuel, supplied by Aramco, partner of Aston Martin's F1 team.
For the first time, the car will feature an on-board starter, meaning stalled cars are less likely to be stranded.
F2 said this had been accomplished through the development of "an evolution of the current gearbox" from supplier Hewland.
It should be the car used by Lando Norris's brand-new LN4 Fusion team next year, led by former Prema leader Rene Rosin.
The team is yet to be officially granted an entry, but this is believed to be a formality.
### Briatore-FIA row continues with appeal court response
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/fia-ica-statement-after-flavio-briatore-court-of-appeal-comments/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T11:53:40.000Z
The FIA International Court of Appeal has issued a statement defending its processes in the wake of Alpine Formula 1 executive advisor Flavio Briatore's comments that appeared to question the independence of one judge on its panel.
Briatore [started a public row](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/briatore-starts-explosive-row-with-mclaren-over-court-of-appeal-judge/) against McLaren during a press conference appearance at the Italian Grand Prix on Friday. That came after the FIA communicated that its International Court of Appeal had ruled to reinstate the two five-second penalties that Pierre Gasly incurred at the Monaco GP in June, which Alpine had previously successfully had quashed.
This meant Gasly lost his podium for a second time, having crossed the line in third.
While Briatore said he accepted the decision, he also appeared to question the impartiality of one of the four ICA judges - Filippo Marchino - on the panel during the August hearing.
Reading from a piece of paper that he continued to refer to, Briatore claimed Marchino had been "very nasty during the hearing" and was "acting as a prosecutor".
"And after, we found out what is the reason why he's so nasty, this guy? He's very linked with McLaren. I'm very surprised this guy has the link with McLaren," Briatore said.
That McLaren mention is pertinent because it was one of two teams, alongside Red Bull, that had appealed the decision to reinstate Gasly to third place.
In a statement released on Saturday morning, the FIA Court of Appeal rejected any suggestion that the process of its selection of judges had not been impartial.
It did not name Briatore directly but said the comments related to case ICA-2026-06-07-08-09 - the hearing for the case brought by McLaren and Red Bull.
"The FIA courts wish to make clear that the appointment and participation of the judges in that case, like for any other case, were conducted in accordance with the applicable FIA judicial procedures and usual practice, which are inspired by the highest standards like the IBA guidelines on conflicts of interest in international arbitration," the FIA statement read.
"All judges are elected by the FIA general assemblies, some of them upon proposition of a group of at least five F1 teams in accordance with the FIA statutes.
"They are all subject to the independence and confidentiality requirements contained in the FIA judicial and disciplinary rules, make annual disclosures of interests to the FIA compliance officer, and sign a specific declaration of independence for each particular case in consideration of the issue at stake and the parties involved, which is served to the parties."
The International Court of Appeal has a roster of 36 leading legal experts, at least eight of whom are selected to be part of a pool that can be picked for each case.
This pool is communicated to relevant parties ahead of time to assess whether there are any "serious and objective reasons to consider that any or all of the shortlisted judges should be recused due to the existence of a conflict of interest or other legitimate grounds".
The statement said this had happened, with the relevant parties "invited to raise any issue concerning the proceedings or the composition of the court".
"None did so," the statement added. "No objection was raised during the hearing concerning the manner in which the court questioned the witness or conducted the proceedings.
"The ICA emphasises the importance of constituting panels with judges from different cultural and geographical backgrounds. This helps ensure that the deliberations and discussions reflect a diversity of legal traditions, perspectives and approaches, further strengthening the fairness, independence, credibility of the process and access to a fair trial.
"A court's decision can leave room for various interpretations and comments as for its legal merits; that is fair and accepted by all the judges. The court is confident in the soundness of the proceedings and the integrity of the judges. The FIA courts remain committed to the independence and impartiality of their judges and to the integrity of the judicial process."
### What F1 teams' Monza deployment patterns have revealed
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-monza-italian-gp-early-energy-depoyment-patterns/
Last updated: 2026-09-05T08:49:34.000Z
The 2026 Formula 1 cars are at their most energy-starved at Monza since the in-season rule changes were [agreed in April](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-mid-season-rule-changes/), and there are currently plenty of telling differences in energy deployment between the cars.
Teams - particularly manufacturers and their customers - often converge closer on energy deployment come qualifying, with more variance on Friday.
But there's still some interesting patterns we can see from analysing the data, the long run times and what the teams and drivers have said so far at the Italian Grand Prix.
## Mercedes vs Ferrari
Ferrari has the benefit of its upgraded 'ADUO 2' power unit this weekend but, given the team's played down how big a step it is, there's no reason to believe Mercedes still doesn't have the benchmark 2026 power unit.
### Russell vs Leclerc fastest FP2 times
Looking at the GP Tempo data of George Russell's FP2-topping time (green) and Charles Leclerc's best (red; 0.120 seconds slower), you can see the Ferrari loses time to the Mercedes on the first three straights, to the point where Leclerc is 0.466s adrift on the entry to Ascari.
It's out of Ascari and towards the Parabolica (Alboreto corner) where Ferrari claws back most of that time - an interesting deployment split that, if maintained, would certainly make lap one on Sunday exciting. And you can add to that, as Alex Albon pointed out on Thursday, that "the Ferraris tend to be quite opportunistic in \[the opening laps\]; they run different modes, and they can catch other cars out".
Check out [Edd Straw's analysis](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-f1-engine-upgrade-italian-gp-early-verdict/) for a more in-depth look at Ferrari's start to the Italian GP.
## How strong is the upgraded Ferrari engine?
Comparing the Haas drivers does give you an unusual opportunity to assess the upgraded Ferrari power unit as Ollie Bearman has it and team-mate Esteban Ocon doesn't.
Though that does come with the caveat that Ocon was suffering from the parts inconsistency issues that have hurt Haas all season.
Those inconsistencies often result in a loss of downforce or feeling that will certainly explain a lot of Ocon's one-second deficit to Bearman - who was eighth fastest in FP2.
But the straightline speed difference between Bearman (purple) and Ocon (white) is noticeable on the run to both Ascari and into the Parabolica.
## Bearman vs Ocon fastest FP2 times
Really, we'd need those parts inconsistencies to be solved to know the true difference in power units.
Certainly Haas's aero upgrade (which is on both cars) is performing well with what Bearman described as "the best Friday" since March.
That's sorely needed as Haas has long drifted outside of points-scoring contention, having not scored at the six rounds since Monaco in June.
## Where McLaren is lacking
McLaren's expectations of a tough Monza look correct based on its Friday performance, where Lando Norris was almost four tenths off Russell on single lap pace, and slightly further away on long-run pace.
McLaren’s technical director for engineering Neil Houldey said: "From an energy perspective, we've still got a bit of work to do.
"There's certainly laptime there available to us, a little bit moving around recharge, moving around deployment."
The GP Tempo data certainly supports that when you compare Russell (green) and Norris (papaya).
### Russell vs Norris
Even with the same power unit, McLaren is losing out on the three long straights after Turn 1 - with the run to Parabolica particularly painful.
We have seen plenty of times this year quite different energy deployment strategies between Mercedes and customer McLaren on Friday, before McLaren learns and starts to converge by qualifying.
McLaren did successfully run the modified version of what it's dubbing its "H-wing", with "no reason to take it off" unless the team has suddenly found something wrong in the data overnight.
Norris summarised: "We'll see what we can change overnight, but we're not in as good a position compared to the last few weekends, so, yeah, tough."
Its shorter gear ratios won't be helping it here either. It knows it pitched them wrong this year, but it doesn't want to use its one joker to change them (as Audi has) because of the cost, which could instead go to aerodynamic upgrades.
Red Bull is in a similar position and will have needed a fruitful overnight period if it's to have any chance of joining the Mercedes/Ferrari fight. The only silver lining for the team was Verstappen's solid long run where he was only three tenths off the Mercedes, which probably underpins technical director Pierre Wache's hope that a podium is still possible if Red Bull takes a step forward overnight.
## Honda's 'Spec 2' is still lacking
This is the worst-case scenario circuit for Aston Martin-Honda, given its sizeable power unit deficit - one that its upgraded 'Spec 2' engine hasn't solved.
Looking at Fernando Alonso's best FP2 lap versus midfield leader Arvid Lindblad's, there are clear major losses on every straight.
Alonso loses four tenths on the run to Turn 1 alone and a whopping half a second from exiting Ascari to Parabolica.
Honda's chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said: "As we can see from the results, our straightline speed isn't enough compared to our competitors.
"This isn't a surprise, and we knew this was coming at a circuit where the power unit performance is so important.
"Therefore, this track presents a challenge for us. We will optimise our settings to maximise our performance as much as possible, but we should remain realistic for what’s to come."
What's to come is likely a fight with Cadillac and potentially Williams to avoid returning to the back of the grid this weekend after the Zandvoort ninth-place watermark.
## A very different Monza
As expected, the GPS data of a single lap around Monza looks very different to one year ago.
There's a night-and-day difference when you look at Norris's FP2-topping time from 2025 (orange) versus Russell's 2026 FP2 benchmark (green) - with 2.681s between them.
### Norris 2025 FP2 vs Russell 2026 FP2
There's a sizeable difference in-between the Lesmos and on the run to Ascari, Parabolica, and the finish line.
There isn't the dramatic tail-off in speed that we saw prior to the in-season rule changes at the end of the straights, but rather a levelling off where they lose a lot of time versus one year ago.
On Thursday, Oscar Piastri said the speeds at the end of the straights in Monza in the pre-weekend simulations were slower than they were in Hungary - and that's proved to be the case on Friday, with Russell 6km/h quicker by the end of Turn 1 in Hungary than at the end of any of the Monza straights.
Given Pirelli is expecting Sunday's race to be an easy one-stop with tyre degradation minimal on Friday, differing energy deployment/harvesting strategies will once again be a critical factor.
### The early verdict on Ferrari's Italian GP engine upgrade
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-f1-engine-upgrade-italian-gp-early-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T19:35:25.000Z
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur always downplays the impact of specific upgrade packages, so by his standards his verdict after the debut of the upgraded Formula 1 power unit was encouraging despite confirming it's still at a deficit on power.
With Charles Leclerc second fastest in FP2, 0.120s slower than pacesetting Mercedes driver George Russell, and showing promising long-run pace, there was nothing on Friday to suggest that Ferrari had taken a giant leap to the front. What there was is proof of gains with the second engine upgrade introduced under the FIA’s Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) regulations, the first having arrived in Austria in late June.
"You have to keep in mind the performance in the straight line is the drag, the weight of the car, it's everything, it's not just the engine," said Vasseur. "We did a step for sure, and we didn't bring ADUO 2 for nothing, but I think we still have a decent gap."
What Lewis Hamilton calls a "considerable" deficit to Mercedes was evident on the straights. Comparing Leclerc's fastest FP2 lap to Russell's, there is a clear pattern of the Ferrari losing ground on the straights but making gains on the brakes and through the corners.
He loses around six tenths in the first two-thirds of the lap before clawing back a couple of those on the final straight, with Russell suffering more clipping on the run to Parabolica. In line with the comments of many teams and drivers, there's still plenty of room for optimisation of the harvesting and deployment strategies on this energy-starved track.
While Hamilton complained about the balance that made it "really hard to pull the lap out of the car" and "not an easy one to drive" after some set-up changes in FP2, he was hopeful that there are gains to come both in terms of set-up and the energy management.
"That's what we need to look into, if it's that \[or\] if it's the deployment," said Hamilton when asked if there could be gains in trimming back the downforce and therefore drag.
"But the engine is an improvement, which I'm really grateful for the guys back at the factory for working on. But our deployment schedule is different to the others, our competitors. It seems like they maybe have less drag for the straights, so that's something we need to definitely look at."
Hamilton also described the engine as "really nice to drive in the low speed". But it was Leclerc who led the way for Ferrari not only on single-lap pace but the long runs.
His long run was just three hundredths a lap on average off Kimi Antonelli's, albeit with the significant caveat that Leclerc was on the softs and the Mercedes on the hards. Despite that offset, that potentially puts Ferrari as the closest challenger, albeit with most expecting Mercedes to have the edge depending on how overnight changes shift the balance of power.
The wildcard in this is Red Bull, with Max Verstappen complaining of balance problems and playing catch-up after sitting out FP1 to allow Ayumu Iwasa to run.
"Clearly we have a balance issue on the car," said Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache. "A little bit like Zandvoort, to be honest, and we try to understand what the issue is, try to fix it in a different way by setup and car components.
"It's the main thing we are working on. What doesn't help is when Max didn’t drive during FP1 and he jumped in the car there, we have less time to react and now we have to react for FP3."
And yet, in the other Red Bull, Liam Lawson - whose preparation was complicated by having to put in the pre-weekend legwork both for his current team and Racing Bulls amid uncertainty about Isack Hadjar's fitness - produced an impressively quick and consistent hard stint that matched Antonelli's. However, both Leclerc and Antonelli encountered traffic during their stint, potentially slightly flattering Red Bull.
As for McLaren, Lando Norris was 0.443s off on the long runs, with his completed on hards, and only a little closer at 0.384s off on overall pace on a day he called "much trickier than the last few Fridays".
"It's a bit everywhere, honestly," said Norris, winner of the previous two grands prix, of the time loss. "There's not one corner we're quicker than anyone else ahead of us.
"We're losing a bit in the straights compared to Mercedes, which we kind of expect, but also the high speed is where we lose most of our laptime, which is normally where we're quick. So we have to try and figure out a few things, but we're just off the pace everywhere at the minute."
In the midfield battle, Arvid Lindblad led the way on a strong day for Racing Bulls, but unusually with Haas's Ollie Bearman just 0.021s behind. The Haas pace slipped behind Racing Bulls and Alpine (with Franco Colapinto delighted with the car in FP1 but finding the car "disconnected" in FP2) on the long runs, but this was nonetheless encouraging.
Both Haas VF-26s are running a major aerodynamic upgrade, but only Bearman has the upgraded Ferrari engine (Haas just has one available this weekend), with team principal Ayao Komatsu confirming "it's delivering in terms of characteristics". That's encouraging for a team that has not scored in the last six events, but less positive is the ongoing "inconsistency issues" that have hit both cars at times recently with Esteban Ocon having problems.
Audi, which introduced no aerodynamic upgrades on Friday but played the joker allowing changes to the homologated gear ratios/final drive, struggled compared to the midfield leaders a little more than expected, with an improvement expected on Saturday. That left it only just ahead of on single-lap pace, and a fraction behind on long-run pace, Carlos Sainz's soft-shod Williams, which had an experimental Friday while making the most of its time before the major upgrade due in Azerbaijan later this month.
At the back, an intriguing early-season subplot returned with Aston Martin struggling as anticipated despite the introduction of the upgraded Honda engine at Zandvoort two weeks ago.
There were at least driveability improvements as hoped, something Lance Stroll described as "a little bit better", but the fact that Valtteri Bottas reckoned Cadillac "have the upper hand on the straights" means a repeat of Fernando Alonso's Zandvoort points-scoring heroics seems unlikely.
### What's next after Briatore's press conference bombshell
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/flavio-briatore-f1-press-conference-bombshell-alpine-mclaren-what-next/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T19:15:46.000Z
Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore stirred up one of the most explosive Formula 1 press conferences of recent times on Friday amid the fall out of the FIA International Court of Appeal verdict that took away his team's Monaco Grand Prix podium.
Just a few hours after the FIA published the verdict that McLaren and Red Bull's had been successful in their appeal against Pierre Gasly having his Monte Carlo top-three finish reinstated, Briatore went on the offensive.
But rather than criticise the conclusions the judges had come to, he took aim at one of them in particular in suggesting that he had links with McLaren.
"Filippo Marchino is a judge, he was very nasty during the hearing, was acting as a prosecutor," said Briatore as he read off a piece of paper in his hand.
"And after, we found out what is the reason why so nasty, this guy. He is very linked with McLaren."
Briatore said that he felt the situation was "very unfair".
He added "we have a nice picture of this guy at a speech for McLaren in 2018 in MSO, Beverly Hills", although without showing the piece of paper.
"He has a foundation, it's called One Drop Foundation, and McLaren gave two, three McLaren cars," Briatore added. "This was quite unfair."
This remark about the cars specifically is linked to a charity auction that was held in 2019 for the One Drop Foundation, of which Marchino sits on the board of directors.
One Drop was created by Guy Laliberte, the co-founder of Cirque du Soleil, who has long had ties to McLaren as a friend of former McLaren supremo Ron Dennis.
So, there is clear logic in it obtaining items from McLaren as part of the charity auction that Briatore referenced.
## McLaren's anger
Briatore's remarks not only took the FIA and the media present by surprise, but they clearly infuriated McLaren team principal Andrea Stella, who gave an angry response to suggestions that there was anything untoward at play.
"I find that this conference going in this direction is quite insulting for McLaren, for the reputation of a team that deserves a lot of respect," said Stella.
"If anybody makes these kind of allegations - which seem quite serious - they are going to have to take the responsibility for what they are saying in a public forum.
"The hearing, the whole International Court of Appeal, was conducted to the highest standards and we should not question this phase like it’s been done."
Briatore suggested that the matter was not closed though, as he hinted that Alpine might considering taking the matter further.
"We’ve been thinking about it," he said. "Just pass the weekend and after that we think about it. For the moment, I don’t know."
## What next?
Quite what Alpine's options could be is unclear, because the FIA's International Court of Appeal is the highest authority - and parties cannot appeal what it decides.
However, there is a right of review element that is similar to normal stewards' verdicts where decisions can be challenged if any "important new evidence is discovered which was unknown at the outset of the case before the ICA".
Briatore suggested Alpine knew nothing about the alleged links until after the hearing.
"We found out, after the meeting, logically, not before," he said. "We found out this guy was linked with the McLaren team."
It is unclear if what Briatore said is new information would be enough to cross the threshold for a right of review, because the FIA made clear on Friday that the make-up of the judging panel is put through a strong vetting process.
The International Court of Appeal has a roster of 36 leading legal experts, with at least eight of them selected to be part of a pool that can be picked for each case.
This pool is communicated to relevant parties well ahead of time to see if there are any "serious and objective reasons to consider that any or all of the shortlisted judges should be recused due to the existence of a conflict of interest or other legitimate grounds".
At no point in this process did Alpine offer any objection about who the shortlisted judges were, and that meant the president of the ICA - Monaco's Laurent Anselmi - went ahead and selected four for the hearing.
Interestingly, as part of F1's regulations, at least one of the judges involved in an ICA hearing that relates to the world championship must have been elected to the pool at the FIA's general assembly on proposal from at least five teams or three manufacturers.
Back in 2023, Marchino (as well as Luigi Fumagalli, who was also a judge in the Monaco appeal hearing) was nominated at the FIA's general assembly after being proposed by teams.
Any judges proposed by teams are subject to a due diligence check by the FIA compliance officer, and are then reviewed by an ad hoc panel before recommendations are made to the eligibility assessment committee.
Beyond this initial assessment, when judges are called up to specific cases they must confirm to the FIA's secretary general that they are not affected by any conflict of interest.
Only once this is complete will the final make-up of the ICA judging panel be finalised, with it then kept secret from everyone involved in the case until the day of the hearing.
With the hearing finished and the ICA verdict now out, the F1 paddock must wait a little longer to see if a three-month fight over the Monaco GP podium is prolonger further still.
### Winners and losers from Italian GP F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-f1-2026-italian-gp-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T16:41:37.000Z
The Italian Grand Prix is a big weekend for two of Formula 1's biggest teams and their drivers.
At Mercedes, Kimi Antonelli is the first Italian driver to be leading the championship at their home grand prix for more than 70 years; while on the other side of the garage, George Russell knows this weekend offers a big chance to reignite his title challenge considering Antonelli is carrying a grid penalty.
And we can't really overstate how significant the Monza race is to Ferrari - not least this year, where it still has outside hopes of winning the F1 title.
So who from that quarter has started off strong, and who else is up with them? And who already needs the weekend to take a drastic upturn?
Here's our pick of Friday winners and losers and their FP2 positions:
## Winner: Ferrari's new engine (2nd & 5th)
Ferrari's second ADUO upgrade has been the big talking point heading into the weekend, and the early signs are promising - with Charles Leclerc second fastest in FP2, 0.120s off Russell's pace and right up there on long-run pace.
To this we must add not only the usual caveat that this is Friday practice, but also the fact Leclerc's impressive pace was on the soft Pirellis versus the hards used by the Mercedes drivers - and the rapid Red Bull of Liam Lawson.
Friday isn't the day for definitive conclusions, but it's at least a promising start for Ferrari at a circuit that exposes its power deficit.
And given that the engine upgrade, which both drivers are running, was never expected to wipe out the disadvantage but reduce it, that's encouraging for the Tifosi. **\- Edd Straw**
## Loser: Honda's latest engine (19th & 22nd)
Fernando Alonso suggested on Thursday that Monza might be the better test of [how much Honda's improved](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-2026-italian-gp-day-one/) its F1 engine than the Zandvoort circuit at which it made its debut.
And, well... the initial results don't look great on that score.
Monza is the circuit where power is king. Honda was always likely to be exposed here; trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara accepted the need to be "realistic" and said it would be "challenging for \[the\] power unit side".
But Honda, Aston Martin, and Alonso (and team-mate Lance Stroll) would've wanted better than to be back at the foot of the table, sandwiching the Cadillacs, and realistically more than a second a lap off the next-slowest car. (Discounting Esteban Ocon's Haas.) **\- Jack Cozens**
## Winner: George Russell (1st)
"I don't know if we can say we're favourites this weekend, but we probably have a greater opportunity than we've had in the last two races where it's been less about the power unit and more about the chassis.
"It's so close right now, that last tenth in qualifying can be the difference of a couple of positions, which can change the podium. Right now, I don't know who is going to be the team to beat."
This was Russell speaking on Thursday, before he became the 'driver to beat' at Monza by topping Friday practice, overturning a three-tenth deficit to Ferrari in FP1 to lead Leclerc by 0.120s in FP2.
Such an energy-starved circuit should naturally play to the inherent strengths of the Mercedes package, and Russell can also count on assistance from penalised team-mate and title rival Kimi Antonelli come Q3 on Saturday.
So, although we can't yet know how much extra performance is to come from that upgraded ADUO 2 Ferrari engine, while Russell also has to deal with the fact his own Mercedes engine is growing quite tired, he's at least started this weekend very much on the front foot. **\- Ben Anderson**
## Loser: Red Bull (9th & 12th)
Remember when Max Verstappen's new Red Bull deal was announced and all the mutual optimism that was shared by team and driver?
Perhaps it's unfair to use that as a direct callback here; Verstappen and Red Bull know they're not title contenders this season and even the results that have stood out have required a touch of magic from the four-time world champion.
Still, the performance picture looks rough since that pre-Zandvoort announcement: sixth in the sprint in the Netherlands; a crash in the Dutch GP; and then the various complaints - of a total lack of downforce (and resulting wing change), lack of grip in slow-speed corners, the brakes not working, and the car "jumping" on the front axle - in FP2 at Monza.
Those seem so bad right now that some Verstappen heroics might be needed once again - only this time just to hoist Red Bull above the midfield. **\- JC**
## Winner: Ollie Bearman (8th)
Haas's biggest upgrade of 2026 has landed - but only completely on Bearman's car.
And he took the new bodywork and Ferrari engine (which team-mate Ocon doesn't have) to eighth in second practice, just 0.8s off the ultimate pace set by Russell and 0.02s behind Racing Bulls's Arvid Lindblad.
"It's definitely been our best Friday since probably March or that time of year," said Bearman.
"We're in need of a bit of a boost and today has been a big boost for the entire team," he added.
Bearman caveated his praise of the new upgrade package - giving him more downforce through corners and more confidence throughout - with the fact that Saturday will be about slipstreams and track position.
He added that the car is a bit more draggy than rivals' - but it's a huge step up.
Haas head of car engineering Hoagy Nidd said: "It's a huge upgrade. We've updated all of the chassis. It's all of the bodywork rearwards of the cockpit pretty much."
Nidd echoed Bearman's comments on Friday at Monza being among the team's strongest of the year, as Haas looks to halt a six-strong run of point-less weekends on Sunday. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Loser: Esteban Ocon (18th)
Ocon has the new bodywork but not the new Ferrari engine, as part of a quirk of F1's technical regulations around [additional engine homologation steps](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/haas-unusual-f1-engine-upgrade-split-italian-gp-ferrari-aduo/), and ended the day more than a second off Haas team-mate Bearman in FP2.
Haas's Nidd did play down the difference, saying that Ocon perhaps wasn't given "the best opportunity to get up there" as the new engine doesn't completely account for the disparity.
Traffic also cost Ocon on his FP2 push laps - a classic trope at Monza.
But it's hard to get past the fact that a (relative) lack of Ferrari engine pep will be painful at the temple of speed and Ocon might find himself towards the back of the pack come qualifying and race day. **\- SK**
### Williams to sell jewellery made from F1 cars
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/williams-to-sell-jewellery-made-from-2025-cars/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T16:17:32.000Z
Williams has partnered with motorsport jewellery specialist RESS to launch a range of limited-edition pieces made from components of its Formula 1 cars.
The collection features bracelets and pendants containing material from Williams machinery, including Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon’s FW47s from the 2025 season.
The FW47 was Williams’ most successful car since 2017, with the team finishing fifth in the constructors’ championship and scoring two podiums with Sainz.
The initial collection comprises five products.
**A bracelet made from Sainz’s 2025 Williams F1 car, the FW47*
A £70 Williams team bracelet is made from metal used in the construction of this year’s FW48 and comes with an adjustable navy-blue woven nylon band.
Separate Sainz and Albon ranges each feature a £100 bracelet and a £150 pendant made directly from parts of their respective 2025 FW47 cars. The pendants are supplied on 26-inch sterling silver chains.
RESS says every piece can be traced back to its source material. Each item carries a unique serial number identifying its driver, season, car and individual piece number.
Buyers also receive a certificate of authenticity and access to a digital record on RESS’s website. The record, unlocked using the serial number, details the original component from which the jewellery was made, where and when it was used, and other associated material.
According to RESS, the components originate from Williams’ Grove factory and can come either from parts of the car itself or from the car-building process. Material that is no longer suitable for racing can subsequently be repurposed by RESS.
The collaboration will initially launch in person at the Williams F1 Team Fan Zone in Madrid’s Plaza del Callao from September 7-13.
The collection will then be available online from 10am BST on September 12 through RESS and Williams’ official online stores.
RESS says the Williams partnership will expand beyond the initial five products, with further releases and highly limited-edition “drops” planned during the F1 season.
“This is the start of an exciting partnership, and we look forward to sharing more details as the collection expands,” said RESS founder Mike O’Connor.
Williams merchandise and licensing director Luke Timmins added: “Working with RESS has given us a new way to engage with fans, and showcase the very material that shapes our sport.”
The partnership marks a move towards giving fans a more tangible connection to retired F1 machinery, with the provenance of each piece intended to establish a direct link to a specific car and season.
### Everything you need to know about Italian GP FP2
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-leads-ferrari-f1-2026-italian-gp-what-you-need-to-know/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T15:15:55.000Z
George Russell disappointed the Ferrari-supporting home crowd at Monza on Friday by setting the pace in second Italian Grand Prix practice, with Charles Leclerc demoted to second after setting the pace in FP1.
The two Mercedes drivers duked it out almost unchallenged early on for the top times, with Russell seemingly holding the edge over his championship-leading team-mate Kimi Antonelli - who will start at the back of the grid on Sunday for engine-change penalties.
After successful early running on the hard tyre, Russell topped the order on two consecutive soft-tyre runs, boosted by Antonelli catching an Audi at Parabolica at the end of his first proper flying lap. Russell also had a worry, ending the session with a suspicious suspension vibration he cautioned the team to look at.
Leclerc did his best to repeat his FP1-topping efforts, and did split the Mercedes with a soft run with just over 13 minutes to go in the session, well after Mercedes had switched to longer running. Leclerc's huge spin at the Variante della Roggia chicane with just under 10 minutes to go was a blemish on a mostly clean session for the grid.
The other major incident impacted the winner of the last two grands prix, Lando Norris, who ended up on the grass trying to avoid Lance Stroll's Aston Martin at Turn 1 in an incident near the start of the session that could have been much worse.
In line with recent form, Norris, in fourth, had the measure of McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri. The pair had an intriguing last 10 minutes of the session where they appeared to simulate race conditions by running very close to each other over a lengthy period.
Lewis Hamilton split the McLarens in fifth and appeared a step behind Ferrari team-mate Leclerc's pace despite being in a similar window in FP1, which could of course come from run plans and fuel loads.
Arvid Lindblad spent much of the first half of the session in the top three and ended up heading the midfield impressively in seventh for Racing Bulls, ahead of Ollie Bearman.
Bearman is the one Haas driver with the upgraded Ferrari power unit this weekend, as Esteban Ocon - 18th in FP2 - has been favoured for other upgrades in recent races and there was only one engine available.
Combined with an aero upgrade package, Haas will hope to have found an answer for its awful run of form, having failed to score at the previous six grands prix.
Max Verstappen was even more annoyed on the radio than usual in FP2, his first session of the Monza weekend as Ayumu Iwasa took over his car in FP1.
First he complained of a total lack of downforce, which led to a front wing change, then of no grip in slow-speed corners, and then his brakes weren't working. Later in the session Verstappen reported the car was "jumping" on the front axle, complaining of bouncing.
He finished behind Bearman in ninth, ahead of the second Racing Bulls of Yuki Tsunoda - making a second appearance in a row in place of Liam Lawson, who is substituting for the injured Isack Hadjar at Red Bull. Lawson was 12th, behind Franco Colapinto in the best of the Alpines.
Colapinto has the Alpine upgrade for the first time this weekend and beat his team-mate with it in FP2\. He narrowly avoided a massive crash late in the session after finding the gravel at the exit of Ascari.
## FP2 times
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m22.559s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.120s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.141s
4 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.384s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.457s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.469s
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.790s
8 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.811s
9 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.818s
10 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +0.896s
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.060s
12 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.101s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.173s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.214s
15 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.217s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +1.294s
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.341s
18 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.848s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.468s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.523s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.590s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.694s
### The thing people are missing about F1's commercial boom
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/the-thing-people-are-missing-about-f1s-commercial-boom/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T15:04:44.000Z
Formula 1 has spent years chasing bigger audiences. What is easy to miss is that a good number of the people it has picked up along the way belong to a surprisingly small and important group: the investors, chief executives, policymakers, founders and media personalities whose judgment shapes how markets, regulators and the public understand a company.
Communicators have a term for this group. They call them key opinion formers, meaning people whose views carry outsized weight with everyone else who is paying attention.
Before joining The Race, I saw firsthand how much time, budget and internal political capital Fortune 500 corporate communications and corporate affairs teams poured into reaching them. As [Axios's](https://www.axios.com/?ref=the-race.com) first Chief Revenue Officer, I helped build the commercial foundation, in its early years, for what became one of the most influential media brands in Washington and corporate America.
The playbook for reaching them is well established, and for good reason, because it often works: Sponsor premium business and political journalism. Secure a speaking slot at the flagship conference. Build a thought-leadership programme timed to an earnings cycle or a regulatory debate. Host a boardroom dinner or a curated summit. Each of these channels succeeds because it meets influential people inside their professional identity, while they are thinking as investors, operators or policymakers.
What that playbook has never fully reckoned with is that these same people do not stop being influential when they close the laptop. They are also fans of things. And a rising number of them are fans of Formula 1.
That is the point that often gets overlooked. Formula 1 reaches many of the same people corporate communicators work hardest to reach, but it reaches them through passion rather than professional obligation.
That distinction, between an audience that shows up because it has to and one that shows up because it wants to, changes what is possible for a company trying to earn genuine authority rather than simply rent attention.
### Why Formula 1 is different
Formula 1 is not a typical sports property, and its recent trajectory backs that up. Nielsen Sports reported that the 2025 season delivered a cumulative global television audience of 1.83 billion, the sport's largest audience in five years and a 6.8% increase on 2024, with live race viewership up nearly 20%.
Liberty Media's full-year 2025 results, published in February 2026, showed Formula 1 revenue of $3.87 billion, up 14% year on year, alongside 6.75 million fans attending races in person, an increase of 4%. A joint fan study conducted by Formula 1 and Motorsport Network in 2025, drawing more than 100,000 responses across 186 countries, found that 61% of self-identified fans engage with Formula 1 content daily and 86% watch at least 16 of the season's races.
Numbers like that describe reach, not necessarily influence, and I want to be careful about that distinction. But reach is only part of what makes Formula 1 interesting to a corporate communicator.
F1 sits at an unusual intersection of business, capital, advanced engineering, technology, luxury and global culture. A grand prix weekend brings together automotive and aerospace engineering, artificial intelligence and data science applied at the pit wall, energy and materials innovation, high-performance leadership under extreme time pressure, and a hospitality and cultural scene that draws executives, investors, celebrities and policymakers into the same physical spaces.
Formula 1 itself has begun formalising that convening power. Liberty Media now runs an F1 Business Summit alongside the Las Vegas Grand Prix, bringing together executives from sport, entertainment, hospitality and fashion for panel discussions on sponsorship, race promotion and brand strategy, a clear signal that F1 sees itself as a business gathering place and not only a broadcast product.
### Becoming an influence ecosystem
For most of its modern history, Formula 1 was sold to corporate partners largely as a visibility platform: a logo on a car or a suite in the paddock, measured in television seconds and impressions. That era is not over, but it is no longer the whole story.
Formula 1 now supports a year-round media and content ecosystem that extends well beyond race Sundays: independent motorsport journalism, business-focused coverage of the sport's finances and strategy, podcasts and video series, a large and active social media presence, race-week hospitality and live events, and a growing body of writing in culture, fashion and lifestyle publications that treat Formula 1 as a subject in its own right rather than a backdrop.
Publications like Sector, which covers the commercial side of Formula 1 through technology, sponsorship, finance, sustainability and personnel, illustrate how much specialist business journalism has grown up around the sport. Esses, an independent title launched in 2024 at the intersection of motorsport, culture and lifestyle, shows the same shift from a different angle, treating the sport as a subject for design, fashion and storytelling rather than laptimes.
The Race, where I am now CEO, is one part of that same shift, alongside official Formula 1 channels, established motorsport outlets and a wider group of newer media companies approaching F1 through business, culture and lifestyle. None of us owns this opportunity. The ecosystem is bigger than any single publisher.
### What corporate communicators may be missing
Most conversations I have with brand and communications leaders about Formula 1 still start with consumer marketing questions: how many people watched, how many impressions did the logo generate, what did the activation cost per eyeball.
Those are reasonable questions for a sponsorship budget, but they are the wrong questions if the goal is influence with the audience described at the start of this piece.
A more useful set of questions looks like this: Who is actually paying attention within this audience? Why are they paying attention, and what does that tell you about their state of mind while they are engaged? What subjects do they care about in this context? What can our company credibly add to that conversation? And in which environment, editorial, event, audio, video or cultural, does that contribution actually belong?
### The credibility test
None of this works if a brand simply shows up. An influential audience being present does not guarantee that any message aimed at it will land, let alone change how that audience understands a company or an issue.
Success depends on the relevance of the company to the subject, the quality of the idea, the environment it appears in, and whether the audience actually gets something useful out of the exchange. A cybersecurity company with real expertise in protecting high-value data has something legitimate to say about how a Formula 1 team defends its telemetry and strategy systems from attack. A generic wellness brand attaching itself to the same story usually does not, no matter how large its media budget.
This is also where the line between sponsorship and journalism matters most. Hospitality and paid partnerships create visibility and access, both of which are legitimate and useful. But credible, independently produced journalism is what helps an audience actually understand a complex subject, and that credibility depends on editorial independence.
A company can support a conversation, contribute expertise, or make its people available to be questioned. It should not expect to control the conclusions.
### A practical framework
When I think about whether a company has a legitimate role in this environment, five questions tend to sort it out.
**Audience:** which stakeholders actually matter to this company's reputation and business, and are they present here.
**Authority:** what can this company credibly discuss, based on real expertise or action, not aspiration.
**Environment:** which editorial, event, audio, video or cultural setting actually fits the subject and the audience.
**Value:** what will the audience walk away understanding that they did not understand before.
**Measurement:** did the activity change attention, understanding, relationships or perception in a way that can be observed, rather than simply generating a number that looks good in a report.
None of this is an argument against business journalism, executive conferences or the other tools corporate communicators have relied on for decades. Those channels remain essential, and nothing here suggests replacing them.
It is an argument for expanding the map of where influence actually happens, and recognising that a serious motorsport story, a well-constructed podcast episode or a genuine conversation about the business of the sport can now sit alongside a keynote or a magazine feature in that map.
The next frontier of corporate influence will not always look like a business conference stage or the homepage of a financial publication.
Increasingly, it will also look like a grand prix weekend, a deeply reported motorsport story, or a serious conversation about the business behind the sport, provided the company involved has earned its place in that conversation.
### Briatore starts explosive row with McLaren over court of appeal judge
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/briatore-starts-explosive-row-with-mclaren-over-court-of-appeal-judge/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T17:16:47.000Z
The Alpine Formula 1 team's executive advisor Flavio Briatore has started an extraordinary row with McLaren over the International Court of Appeal's decision to reinstate Pierre Gasly's Monaco Grand Prix penalties and strip him of his podium finish.
Briatore appeared to question the appointment of one of the ICA judges presiding over [McLaren and Red Bull's appeal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-feels-unjustly-punished-as-gasly-loses-monaco-podium/) against the decision to rescind Gasly's Monaco pitlane speeding penalties.
Gasly was promoted back into the Monaco GP podium places after Alpine succeeded in a right of review appeal against his two speeding penalties, which were applied at the chequered flag, but a further appeal launched by Red Bull and McLaren led to Gasly being demoted back to seventh in the final classification, and Red Bull's Isack Hadjar promoted back to third.
Reading from a piece of paper that he waved around during Friday's Italian GP team bosses' press conference,Briatore appeared to question the impartiality of one of the ICA judges - Filippo Marchino - on the panel during the August hearing.
"First, we accept the decision, but what is very strange is, of the four judges on the panel, one of the judges acts like a prosecutor," Briatore said.
"For us, that's not a big problem. The problem is that he's very linked with McLaren, the company, because we have a nice picture of this guy at the speech for McLaren in 2018 at McLaren Special Operations \[MSO\] in Beverly Hills.
"He has a foundation - it's called the One Drop Foundation - and McLaren gave two or three McLaren cars.
"And I think this was quite unfair, \[that\] one of the judges was linked with a team protesting us."
These are all accusations made by Briatore. Marchino was not present to respond to them.
Marchino's FIA biography calls him an "experienced trial Attorney" who "routinely litigates some of the most technical and challenging cases in the United States".
He was added to the list of judges elected to the FIA international tribunal and International Court of Appeal in the December 2023 FIA General Assembly.
Briatore argued "the judge normally would be independent, completely" and continued by claiming that Marchino was "very nasty during the hearing" and "acting as a prosecutor".
Briatore continued: "And after, we found out what is the reason why he's so nasty, this guy? He's very linked with McLaren. I'm very surprised this guy has the link with McLaren."
McLaren team principal Stella, also present in the press conference, later rebutted: "I find that this conference is going, in this direction, quite insulting for McLaren, for the reputation of a team that deserves a lot of respect.
"If anybody makes these kind of allegations, which seem quite serious, they are going to have to take the responsibility for what they are saying in a public forum.
"The hearing, the whole International Court of Appeal, was conducted to the highest standards, and we should not question this case like it's been done."
Briatore was asked why Alpine did not question the inclusion of Marchino on the ICA panel.
“We had no idea this guy was linked with McLaren," Briatore replied. "We go to the hearing with McLaren, and we see...it was very funny, because the judge was not a judge, he was a prosecutor.
"It was four judges, this one was really a prosecutor against the FIA, against us, against FOM \[Formula One Management\]. And after that, we found out, after the meeting with Marchino before, we found out this guy was linked with the McLaren team.
"So it's quite unfair, if some of the judge is linked with one of the teams that fighting with us."
Briatore repeatedly insisted that Alpine "accept the decision, we accept everything" but returned to his theme of a perceived conflict of interest, saying: "It's quite strange - to have one guy in the panel linked to the team.”
He was vague on whether his team is considering further judicial review, saying only "we're thinking about what we do next".
### F1 to hold 2027 season launch in Milan
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-to-hold-2027-season-launch-in-milan/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T13:00:39.000Z
Formula 1 will hold a 2027 season launch event in Milan next February, two years on from its F1 75 Live event at the O2 arena.
The F1 75 Live event hosted by comedian Jack Whitehall was a first for F1, bringing together all 10 teams and 20 drivers and showcasing every 2025 livery for one night only.
F1 has been keen to repeat it, and while it wasn’t held amid a busy 2026 pre-season with new regulations and three separate pre-season tests, the launch event will return in 2027 in Milan in an expanded form.
The one-night launch event ‘F1 The Show’ will be held at a yet-to-be-confirmed “iconic city venue” on February 18, with drivers and team principals from all 11 teams and “music, entertainment, and more”.
There’s also a three-day fan festival in the city taking place across February 18-20.
More details of both events will be released at a later date.
Tickets will go on sale later this year and fans can pre-register their interest in the event now. As with F1 75 Live, the event will be broadcast around the world.
Milan hosted multiple Ferrari events on the Wednesday prior to the Italian GP, with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc’s appearances attracting huge crowds on the streets of the city earlier this week.
### What happened in Italian GP first practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-italian-gp-first-practice/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T11:49:31.000Z
Charles Leclerc led a Ferrari one-two in first practice for the Italian Grand Prix, marking an encouraging start for Ferrari’s ADUO 2 upgraded F1 engine at the team’s home race.
Ferrari decided not to use the soft tyre at all in FP1 at Monza, running the hard compound on both cars for the early part of the session before switching to the medium.
Leclerc went to the top on a 1m23.008s best, with Lewis Hamilton later slotting into second, 0.173s down.
George Russell was third fastest in the quickest of the Mercedes, using the soft tyre to lap 0.304s slower than Leclerc’s Ferrari.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli, who will start from the back of the grid after taking a new Mercedes engine for his home race, was fifth, six tenths off the pace and just under two tenths behind the Red Bull of Liam Lawson, who is again subbing for the injured Isack Hadjar this weekend.
Lando Norris, winner of the past two grands prix for McLaren, rounded out the top six, like the Ferraris using the medium tyre, ahead of Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls), Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi and the Alpines of Franco Colapinto and rookie Paul Aron.
Aron was the quickest of four rookie drivers appearing in this session, despite a few close calls with other cars - including Racing Bulls sub Yuki Tsunoda, who got blocked by the Alpine approaching Parabolica.
Oscar Piastri was only 11th in the other McLaren, despite using the soft tyre. McLaren also trialled its new upside down H-wing during this session.
Tsunoda was 11th quickest, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Audi and Ollie Bearman, whose Haas is the only customer using the new Ferrari engine this weekend.
Rookie FP1 driver Luke Browning was just under a tenth quicker than regular Williams driver Carlos Sainz, despite a couple of moments through the first chicane, though unlike Browning Sainz didn’t run the soft tyre in FP1.
Ayumu Iwasa was only 17th in Max Verstappen’s Red Bull, half a second clear of Fernando Alonso in the underpowered Aston Martin (another to eschew the soft tyre).
Colton Herta was the other FP1 substitute, but the Cadillac usually driven by Sergio Perez broke down with a suspected hydraulics problem before Herta could set a proper lap time.
### Gasly stripped of Monaco podium after court decision
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-feels-unjustly-punished-as-gasly-loses-monaco-podium/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T12:12:57.000Z
Alpine Formula 1 driver Pierre Gasly has had his two five-second penalties reimposed and therefore lost his 2026 Monaco Grand Prix podium finish, again.
The decision comes after appeals were brought by McLaren and Red Bull against the FIA’s decision to rescind Gasly’s pair of penalties for pitlane speeding in Monaco.
That decision to rescind Gasly’s penalties was made after Alpine petitioned for a right of review. It emerged that Formula One Management had made a measurement error relating to the pitlane distance used to calculate speed.
Red Bull and McLaren appealed the reversal, arguing that changing the measurement benchmark retrospectively undermined sporting fairness as competitors had calibrated their pitlane speed limiters using the original measurements.
Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar - out this weekend in Monza with a wrist injury - therefore receives the final podium place from the 2026 Monaco GP.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri was classified fourth in Monaco and demoted to fifth when Gasly was reinstated to third.
Piastri, crucially, was one of several drivers who picked up pitlane speeding penalties - but could not have had his punishment rescinded as he served the penalties during the race.
The Australian will however move back up one place in the Monaco standings to fourth, ahead of the Racing Bulls pair - with Gasly now demoted to seventh.
“The team expresses its disappointment and frustration with the outcome reached by the FIA International Court of Appeal relating to the result of the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix,” began a statement released by the Alpine F1 team.
“While we disagree with the decision, and still fully maintain that Car #10 did not exceed the Pit Lane speed limit at any point during the race, the team acknowledges the decision of the judging panel from the recent hearing in Paris.
“While the result is not what we had hoped for, as we feel that we have been unjustly punished, the team is firmly focused on continuing to improve its performance on track and remains in a close and very competitive Championship fight.
“This outcome will not deter the team’s efforts and motivation in achieving its objectives by the end of the season.”
### Slower than Hungary? Why F1 drivers think Italian GP will be 'weird'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/slower-than-hungary-why-f1-drivers-think-italian-gp-will-be-weird/
Last updated: 2026-09-04T11:15:36.000Z
Formula 1 drivers have talked about being braced for a “weird”, “confusing” and “not fantastic” experience in driving Monza for this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix.
The energy-starved 2026 F1 cars are going to face their most extreme challenge so far, and it is going to throw up some quirks that may be a step beyond what has been witnessed at other venues.
From the outside, some of the unusual elements may not be so obvious, but drivers have already offered us some insight about what they expect.
## Top speeds slower than Hungary?
When Formula 1’s 2026 regulations were first tried out on simulators, Monza proved to be one of the most troublesome tracks on the calendar.
Based on initial analysis, fears were widespread of cars blasting out of the corners and then speeds falling away as the battery power ran out. The drop-off was such that drivers were even having to change down gears halfway down the straights.
The tweaks that have been made to energy management – in reducing recharge limits and capping deployment – have meant the speed profile down the straights are different now.
It means that the car will not actually be suffering a 30-40km/h speed drop-off from the typical 350-360km/h peaks we have seen in the past.
Instead, they will flatline to never get near the old highs.
As Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad said: “There's just not much battery. We don't actually go slower on the straights. We just don't use any.”
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri said that one of the bizarre consequences of the energy starvation was that top speeds would likely be lower at Monza than at a track like the Hungaroring.
“I think in our sim running we were actually quicker on the front straight in Hungary than we were here,” he said. “It doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but it's more that we just don't have the energy to spend.”
Sim running suggests drivers may not need to change down gears halfway down the main straight into the first chicane, but they may need to slip into seventh on the uphill entry to Ascari.
## It won’t be a super-clipping fest
One of the fears ahead of the Monza weekend was that, because it was so energy starved, there could be a desperate need to super clip everywhere.
This would have meant further reducing the challenge of spectacular corners like the Lesmos and the Ascari chicane.
But the 5MJ harvesting limit that the FIA put in place for this weekend means that super clipping is not going to be called upon much, as opportunities to recover energy are so limited.
As Piastri said: “If the harvest limit was higher, we would be super clipping everywhere, probably losing 30 or 40 km/h at the end of each straight, but with the \[5MJ\] harvest limit, the super clipping is a normalish amount, or a reasonable amount.”
## Being smart won’t help
F1 drivers have learned quickly in 2026 the various clever ways to be quick at energy starved tracks with these current cars.
Being slower through some corners to help harvest more energy can deliver benefits if it delivers more energy on subsequent straights.
This is something that reached extremes at Spa-Francorchamps, as some found that lifting off in previously super-fast corners like Pouhon was actually the best way to go, or not accelerating with maximum power coming out of some corners was beneficial.
Some drivers think that the layout of Monza does not offer the opportunity for such a smart approach, as the chances to recover energy are much less.
As Lando Norris said: “I think the difference to Spa was that you had two big straights but you had lots of corners in-between that you could charge up and then deploy everything.
“Unfortunately here you have two long straights back-to-back, but even between them there's not really any corners. So, there's just no energy, there's just no power. You don't have an ability to charge, so it's just slow.”
## Cool-down laps could be super slow
The key to a good lap around Monza is going to be about maximising the state of charge of the battery.
This matters not only for laps that count in qualifying but also for preparations before the timing gets underway.
With F1 setting a recharge limit of 9MJ for out-laps, plus a need for drivers to get their tyres up to the right operating temperature, there should be every reason to push on rather than go super slow.
However, cool-down laps are capped at the standard 5MJ. So, if a driver is on a strategy of push-cool-push in qualifying, then the likelihood is they may need to go super slow to risk not over-charging early on and hitting the ceiling.
This may not be fun, reckons Lindblad.
“I think the out-laps will be slow, but I don't think they'll be stupid,” he said.
“I think what won't be enjoyable is going to be cooldown laps, because the rules are different between out-laps and cool laps. So, in cool laps you'll be going very slow to try to charge the battery.”
## Starting laps could be a challenge
One of the key aspects that teams and drivers are going to need to get on top of is how best to manage the battery for the start of the lap.
Deploy too much for a top speed boost out of Parabolica and it could mean you have burned too much energy, so you are left short on the run to the final corner.
Earlier in the year, drivers had to work out where best to accelerate before the timing line to start their laps in the best place possible.
This was not ideal as it meant there was a certain level of unpredictability about what everyone was up to.
As part of the package of in-season tweaks pushed through for Miami in May, this was automated to allow teams to execute this through programming of what’s become known as ‘auto-K’ where teams decide when the battery kicks in.
The exit of Parabolica is an area where this will take place, so means drivers will exit flat on the throttle – but the battery will only deploy in an area that is predetermined.
Lindblad is one who thinks this could pose some risks in qualifying if there is a major speed offset between cars on quick laps and those who are about to start.
“We saw it a bit in Zandvoort, but it was okay because of the banking,” he said.
“There was a 50-60 km/h speed delta, so you could get out of the way and let the guys through.
“Here it's even more - and it could become a bit dangerous. So, starting the lap won't be easy, to have it full, have the tyres ready.
“But even just from traffic, from safety, it's not great. We need a better battery.”
### F1 teams agree plan to cut race distances for 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-agree-plan-to-cut-race-distances-2027/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T18:02:53.000Z
Formula 1 races are set to be shorter in 2027, with teams having agreed a plan to cut race distances across the board from 305km to 290km.
In the wake of changes being made to the regulations to stop cars being so energy-starved, fuel flow rates are being increased for next year.
But the move to improve the spectacle has triggered other headaches for teams, because more fuel going through the engine means more is needed to complete a race distance.
That was a problem for teams that had built their current fuel tank sizes around the 2026 requirements and did not want to make an all-new car for next season.
Allowance has been made in the cost cap to give teams that were planning to carry over their chassis some extra spending freedom to make modifications, but alongside this were also moves to minimise the distance cars were expected to run.
Once the fuel-flow tweak had been agreed, discussions opened about potentially reducing some race distances by a couple of laps, with a further change being made in limiting drivers to just a single formation lap before the grid.
But amid the talks with teams about which races needed to be targeted for adjustment, it became clear that there could be some unintended consequences if there was a variety of race distances throughout the season.
It is understood that there was a risk of some events turning into fuel-economy runs.
So, following dialogue between the FIA and teams, it was agreed that it would be better to have a universal distance for a grand prix throughout the season, as there is now.
As first reported by Autoracer.it, this idea has now received unanimous support from teams so moves are in play to have it added to the rulebook.
For years now, F1 race distances have been the fewest number of laps required to exceed 305km. The only exception to this (beyond when grands prix start behind the safety car) is the Monaco GP, which runs to 260km.
The Race's calculations of the likely impact if race distances are set at 290km
The change agreed by teams for next year would result in all races (apart from Monaco) being reduced to around 290km - so will pull the events back by around three laps.
While the change in distance has been supported by teams, it still needs to go through a formal process before it is put into the 2027 sporting regulations.
This means revised regulations need to be proposed to the F1 Commission, which is made up of teams, the FIA and FOM. Once approved there, it will then need ratification by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council.
It is understood that the reduction in race distance is currently only agreed for next season because of the compromise caused by the change of power unit rules at such a late stage.
However, teams may decide to keep it at that level for longer if it is found that the additional fuel-flow changes planned for 2028 cause further trouble.
### Everything we learned on day one at F1's Italian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-2026-italian-gp-day-one/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T18:05:31.000Z
No circuit is more synonymous with Formula 1 engine performance than Italian Grand Prix host Monza.
So is it any wonder talk of slipstreams (and associated tactics), engine upgrades, and even the raceability of these 2026 F1 cars dominated conversations in the paddock on Thursday?
Here are the biggest takeaways ahead of the on-track action kicking off on Friday:
## Antonelli's willing to tow Russell
Kimi Antonelli will start from the back of the Monza grid whatever happens in qualifying thanks to a power unit penalty.
That means he's got nothing tangible to fight for in terms of starting position in qualifying, and on a weekend where slipstreaming is expected to be beneficial he's willing to help out team-mate, and title rival, George Russell if asked. (Something that the non-engine-penalised Charles Leclerc will also do for Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton.)
"It has been discussed with the team, and yes we have agreed on a few things," said Antonelli, when asked by The Race if he's willing to tow Russell. "So let's see how the session develops.
"If the team will ask me to do so, I will do it. Because obviously I'm not fighting for...Of course, I will still be happy to do pole, but I'm starting at the back so if I could do anything to to help the team, I will do."
Starting from the back gives Antonelli an unusual challenge in a season where he's usually started at or near the front, but he argued that "in some ways it helps to release pressure" and that he's "very free mentally".
Of course, that's easy to say, and limiting the damage will be a test of his mental strength. **\- Edd Straw**
## Monza will be truer test of Honda's latest engine
Fernando Alonso remains coy on his own F1 future, but he thinks Monza will provide a much clearer picture as regards the step Honda's taken with its latest F1 engine upgrade.
Alonso called his ninth-place finish at Zandvoort a "nice boost" for Aston Martin, helping validate the development direction taken with the B-spec chassis and suggesting "eventually we will be one of the fastest in the corners", but he said the new engine fitted for Zandvoort "was not a big improvement, to be honest".
"The driveability was a problem and the extra power was difficult to feel in Zandvoort," Alonso added.
"Maybe Monza is going to be a more true test for the engine, but still a long way to go - and we need to improve in both ends, in chassis and on engine for next year, it's a must."
Honda accepts it has work to do to improve the [driveability of its latest engine](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-next-for-aston-martin-alonso-and-honda/) and allow the drivers to properly exploit the extra power derived from the update.
Alonso felt the return to the standard weekend format of three practice sessions at Monza will further aid that process and he said he has "100% trust" Honda will eventually crack the code.
"We just need to shortcut somehow that process," he added.
"Unfortunately, we started with the wrong foot and we started with this set of regulations not at the level that we wanted, but I have no doubts that they will get there.
"As I said many times we don't want to wait five years like they did last time, or six years. We want to do it in two years or three years maximum." **\- Ben Anderson**
## Audi plays gear-ratio joker that McLaren's declined
Audi has taken its one permitted opportunity to change its gear ratios during the 2026 season, a move McLaren revealed it declined to make earlier this year.
Teams only get one joker, but there's a cost involved in reconfiguring them that put McLaren off doing so - despite knowing it had erroneously picked gear ratios that were too short compared to engine supplier Mercedes before the season began.
Audi has taken its joker, though, as it looks to improve a weakness with its first F1 engine.
"This change we have made, it was something we spotted quite early in the year, and I think it's just, again, for overall driveability, that's the main thing we have been working with our engine through the whole year now," Gabriel Bortoleto explained.
"I don't think it's going to improve our starts massively, if I'm very honest, but I think it's going to help us overall to be a bit more consistent on the performance of the starts, maybe.
"Also in wet conditions, in dry conditions, the way the gears are going to work is probably going to help us a little bit on keeping the car a little bit more stable."
For Audi, it wasn't a case of having too short or too long a gear ratio, but was more about adjusting the steps between them to try and improve driveability. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Haas's uncomfortable engine situation
While Ferrari is introducing its upgraded 'ADUO 2' specification engine at Monza, courtesy of the ruling of F1's Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities ranking, Ollie Bearman's Haas is the only customer car that will run it.
That's because Ferrari could only supply enough of its upgraded power units for Haas and Cadillac to have one each, putting both teams in an uncomfortable position.
Cadillac elected not to run it, but Haas, also debuting a sizeable aerodynamic upgrade at Monza, will do so with Bearman.
So why Bearman?
"Yeah, of course that's part of the consideration," team principal Ayao Komatsu said when asked if championship position (Bearman has 18 points to Ocon's three) played a role.
"But, again, the last two, let's say, not aerodynamic upgrades, but items we had, like CI \[Carbon Industrie\] brakes test, Esteban was actually struggling more on the brake locking etc so considering that Montreal upgrade, we got it on Ollie first.
"We decided to give the brake upgrade to Esteban first. Also, in terms of power steering, we had another upgrade on the power steering before shutdown in Budapest. We decided to give that to Esteban because, again, he was more vocal about it and he was struggling more \[with\] the power steering feel.
"The last two upgrades we gave it to Esteban, so this time around, it's back to Ollie."
Komatsu said "we don't have any hidden agenda" because there's "no point bulls\*\*\*ting" when telling the drivers about it. **\- JS**
## Early-race phase will be critical for Cadillac
Cadillac's battle with its brakes continues after myriad overheating problems this year.
Valtteri Bottas has previously characterised this as a mixture of airflow and component problems, and on Thursday referred to "even more robust material than before in the brake ducts" available here as a key area of improvement. Monza should not pose a brake-cooling challenge in normal running, but he highlighted the early laps of the Italian GP as the critical phase for this.
"In our numbers, we should be OK but what is quite hard to simulate is the traffic effect, especially if there's multiple cars in a train," said Botas. "That's when you get the lack of airflow on the straights. So I would say the first part of the race is going to be the most critical for us."
There are still "further steps to make in terms of the pure airflow", but Cadillac has made significant progress in improving this weakness.
However, it was only two races ago, in Hungary, that Bottas retired with cooked brakes early on the 14th lap, having spent the early stages of the race in the queue behind Alex Albon's Williams. **\- ES**
## Slipstreams and power games to come
Virtually everyone quizzed about it has acknowledged that the slipstream effect [will be supercharged](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/overtaking-records-messy-qualifying-f1-braced-wild-monza/) here - which will no doubt influence qualifying, but will also intensify the nature of the "yo-yo race" that's widely expected to play out here.
The expectation is one of deployment strategies converging in terms of the optimal lap - but that the actual race situation can create some crazy offsets.
"I don't actually know how it will play out. It's going to be massive yo-yo racing, really," reckoned Alex Albon.
"The thing is, you don't want to be in a situation where you come out of sync with everyone else and then you are kind of exposed to falling down the grid pretty quickly.
"I think the race pace side of things, what you'll see in FP1, FP2, will be drivers using overtake buttons, anti-buttons, playing around with creating almost fake racing scenarios, just to get some rhythm and experience on how to do it."
"We started to look at it now since quite a few days and trying to understand," said Charles Leclerc. "It's also very, very difficult to predict because the thing is that once you are in the car, it always looks nice from outside - but the difference is sometimes is that much that it's very difficult to then react to the car in front."
"I think the race is going to be chaos, especially at the beginning," said Oscar Piastri.
There have also been some outlandish figures cited in terms of the benefit of a slipstream on a single laptime - but no real fear of a 2019-like Q1 farce. **\- Val Khorounzhiy**
### What's behind Haas's uncomfortable engine upgrade split at Italian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/haas-unusual-f1-engine-upgrade-split-italian-gp-ferrari-aduo/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T17:42:08.000Z
Haas faces an unusual situation at the Italian Grand Prix with only one of its drivers getting Ferrari's upgraded Formula 1 engine.
With Ferrari introducing its 'ADUO 2' step for both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, available under F1's Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities mechanism for engine manufacturers, its customer teams have been told that there is only one available for each of them right now.
Cadillac has elected to not run it on either of its cars in Italy, but Haas felt the opportunity of more power at the high-speed Monza circuit was too good a chance to pass up.
In going for the engine, Haas faced the unenviable task of having to pick which of its drivers would get it. In the end it was decided that it would go to Ollie Bearman.
Team principal Ayao Komatsu explained that the decision to give Bearman the nod was due to Ocon having had priority with recent developments.
Brake improvements and changes to the power steering made before the summer break were given to Ocon first, so Haas felt it was only fair to give Bearman the new power unit at Monza.
Komatsu admitted that the situation was not ideal and was actually something it avoided previously when Ferrari's first ADUO step came in Austria at the end of June.
Back then, Haas delayed introducing the engine upgrade until both cars could have it.
"Last time around we didn't do that, we waited until we had enough engines to introduce both drivers together," he said.
"But this time, obviously, Monza is a very power-sensitive circuit so it's a shame to have performance sitting in a garage, right? But, yeah, of course it makes it very challenging \[having only one available\].
"It would have been better if two engines are available at least. But, again, Ferrari is pushing like hell to get as much performance on the engine as possible.
"Of course, they want to introduce it at Monza for the reasons I just said to you. So that means they've got the minimum quantity just to satisfy the regulation."
Komatsu said that while it was not ideal for Haas having to pick a driver for the power unit, it was important that the reasoning behind it was explained clearly to both drivers.
"You just have to be transparent about it," he said. "We operate in as transparent and as fair a manner as possible.
"Now, of course, you can't please everyone every time, but we don't have any hidden agenda, we don't have any personal agenda for one driver or another.
"We've been building that relationship up, so of course, Esteban won't be happy not to get the PU number four straight away. But this is the best for the team and then this is the fairest way we can do it."
## What the rules say
Haas has only ended up with one upgraded Ferrari power unit because manufacturers do not have to supply customer teams with more than that when they introduce a new specification.
F1's technical regulations state that if a new homologation step comes into play, then a manufacturer must make it "available to each F1 team supplied by the PU manufacturer at the competition at which it is first introduced with at least one power unit of the new homologation specification".
The requirement for at least one new spec to be available will be to ensure that customer teams get some parity with works squads when modifications are made.
If manufacturers were forced to supply two fresh engines to each partner team, then that would impose an extra burden on those that have a large number of customer outfits, which could delay the introduction of a new step in the first place.
## How much is the new engine worth?
Ferrari has been eager to play down how big an impact its ADUO 2 engine will make on the pecking order.
Team principal Fred Vasseur said ahead of the Italian GP weekend: "It represents a step in the right direction and as we know this year is very much about marginal gains."
However, Ocon suggested that, based on what he has been told, he expected there to be a notable difference between the old and new power units.
"I'm going to be driving with the old engine, so that's going to be quite some loss," he said.
Ferrari's upgraded engine is understood to feature a larger turbo that features other key modifications to its design aimed at improving power.
It initially went for a smaller turbo at the start of this season because it felt a more responsive power unit would give it a big advantage at race starts.
However, the deficit rivals faced with turbo lag was reduced a lot by revisions made to the start procedure - so Ferrari's advantage here was wiped away.
A larger turbo should help boost overall power. And although the differences are unlikely to be a game-changer, Hamilton reckoned that it would help cover some of the deficit that has been faced this year.
"Every little helps," he said. "Up until this point of the year, even in the last race on such a short circuit, we were losing four tenths a lap through the race. So that's a huge deficit and we've carried that through the year to this point.
"This is a step forward. It's not the whole gap that we need, but we knew that would be the case. But to see bits coming each weekend, adding to the car, it's exciting to see that we are pushing and strongly still believe that we've got what it takes to win."
### Why Norris has started his own racing team
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-champion-lando-norris-started-own-racing-team/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T16:33:22.000Z
Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris has explained the logic for creating his own racing team and driver development scheme - the first of which had "over a few hundred job requests" within an hour of being announced.
Ahead of the Italian GP, [Norris launched LN4 Fusion](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-sets-up-racing-team-with-ex-prema-chief/) \- a single-seater racing team that will compete in Formula 4, Formula 3 and (pending approval) Formula 2 - as well as the separate LN4 Legacy Programme, a talent scheme led by ex-Alpine sporting director Julian Rouse.
On Thursday at Monza, Norris explained how it had happened earlier in his career than he thought was possible.
"I wouldn't say we've \[Norris and his personal team\] ever spoken about it properly, but we've always kind of thought it would be a cool idea to do at some point," Norris explained.
"I probably didn't think it'd be something I'd do this early on. Certain things came together, and certain groups came together. Opportunities arose from that.
"It's been a lengthy process from when we started to speak about it, which was already last year, into turning it into a thing this year. So I don't know if that's a long time or not in terms of creating something like this.
"But I think the main thing is, we've just got a lot of pretty experienced people from kind of all directions. We've been able to piece things together pretty quickly, I would say. That's been a great thing."
## 'Hundreds of applications'
Norris's new racing team has already received strong interest, as it looks to rapidly build up teams to compete across F1's junior ladder.
"The reactions have been great. I know \[LN4 Fusion team principal\] Rene \[Rosin\] said he got over a few hundred job requests within an hour or so of the announcement," Norris added.
"There's a lot of attraction from a range of drivers, but also mechanics, engineers, all the people that make a team, a big team. I'm proud as an individual, but also proud that we've been able to put something very special together."
Norris already has a strong recruit in team principal Rosin, who took the Prema team that his father co-founded to the majority of its 40-plus championship titles, before the family's sudden exit last year.
Prior to that, Prema was the benchmark team on the ladder, and one which Norris spent a lot of his pre-F1 career racing against - breaking Prema's six-year F3 title streak with Carlin in 2017.
"A lot of the guys are people I've known for a long time. I've known Rene for many years, and I have raced against Prema since F4, so back in 2015," Norris recalled.
"I've known of him very well, and I know him personally reasonably well, and so do my team around me.
"So we wanted to put together a group that is experienced and knows how to lead a team - and not just create one good team, whether that's just in F3 or just in F2, but be able to put together a project and something long-term, know how to bring people together.
"I've also been able to experience over the course of the last seven years what makes a good leader, what makes a good team, and a lot of it starts with the person at the very top, and he is that person.
"Just a very nice guy, a guy you can just enjoy having a good chat with, but a guy who also loves doing what he does, which is winning and creating a successful team, bringing people together, maximising things.
"So he was the inevitable choice at the end of the day. He was available, and he was the guy we wanted."
Norris's McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri, who won his F3 and F2 titles with Prema, said: "I've got great memories with Rene, the Rosin family at Prema as well.
"I can't really speak highly enough of that family as people and also the success they're able to have.
"I'm certainly not expecting that team to be slow, that's for sure."
Another Prema F1 graduate, Ollie Bearman, called it a "cool initiative" and said: "He's picked a very good person to run the team in Rene.
"He led the most successful junior team in history. So really nice to see him back.
"I'm really happy about that, and I hope he can also continue that legacy for himself, for his father as well, for his family. It's something really, really cool."
## How does he have time?
Williams driver Alex Albon expressed surprise at how Norris is able to fit in such a big project while racing.
"Yes, I would," Albon said when The Race asked him if he'd like to do something similar.
"It's impressive in many ways, because I feel like I've got way too much on my plate, just trying to do this sport, never mind other championships as well.
"But it's very cool to do. I think it's noble to see his work being put back into the roots of it all.
"Whether that's sooner rather than later, I don't know, but I'd love to do something - maybe not race teams, but working out a way to help kids either get better or get their chances in motorsports."
For Norris, it's all about the strong team that he has around him - the same team that enabled him to pull off a successful 'Landostand' at the British Grand Prix and other off-track activities.
They ensure Norris can still focus on his day job while maximising his branding - the striking dayglow yellow - and him being a big draw which can bring investors to the table.
"A lot of this stuff goes on in the background," Norris said. "I've also been able to really focus on just doing my own job and focus on driving fast.
"So I'm pleased that it can be something that can run very separately to me.
"We have great people running the whole thing, but I can also just be part of it when I'm able to. It's been great."
## Helping drivers one-by-one
Alongside the racing team is the LN4 Legacy Programme that is more focused on picking out young drivers and taking them all the way to F1.
"The Legacy Programme is more to pick out individuals, people that I believe can get to F1, and we believe can get to F1, and try and help them one at a time," Norris said.
"That's our initial goal, when you say hundreds of thousands, you're still talking about millions of dollars to help one person.
"When you say to help a much bigger group, you're talking about needing a lot more money. We've got to start somewhere, and I'm happy that I'm trying to help at least one to begin with, and then we'll work on two, and then three, and then four, and five.
"But the bigger project is not just what one thing can one driver do? If you want to help bigger areas and economies that are just worse to start racing and allow people to start their dream, it's much bigger than just me doing my job and trying to help out on that.
"That takes the sport itself, that takes a lot more work from F1, from FIA, from karting companies. It's just simply too expensive, so you cannot rely on people just to fund more people. You have to find other ways to make it more friendly for people to start racing, especially financially.
"You've got to lower the costs somehow of teams, of the ability to go testing, of just signing up to do F2\. F2 is over $2million, or €2m I think, to start. You've got to start somewhere.
"My ability is starting with one, and that's already a big project, and I think bigger than what people expect, but I want to expand on that. That takes time.
"Obviously, I have my own go-kart. I know other drivers, and Daniel \[Ricciardo\] and so forth have started projects to get more kids into racing. That's certainly my plan, but this is the beginning of it.
"With time and with more partners coming on board, and more money, more support, we can turn it into a way of helping more people from around the world."
## Norris isn't the only one...
Plenty of drivers like Albon expressed an interest in doing something similar, but one driver is forming their own driver development project: Cadillac's Sergio Perez.
"It's really nice what Lando has done. From my side, I'm also at the point of my career that I would like to do something," Perez said.
"I'm preparing something with my manager, Khalil \[Beschir\], for the near term.
"We will be able to share that in the next few months - but we are definitely working on something from our side because we would like to give back to the sport and help the younger generations as well."
### What's next for Aston Martin's and Honda's F1 development
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-aston-martin-revealed-about-2026-and-2027-upgrade-plan/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T16:08:49.000Z
Aston Martin's major Hungarian Grand Prix upgrade package and subsequent refinements it introduced at the Dutch GP look set to be its final developments of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
That's according to its chief technical officer, Enrico Cardile, who has offered more about Aston Martin's development plan for this season and the 2027 campaign in [the latest edition of the team's Undercut interview feature](https://www.astonmartinf1.com/en-GB/news/feature/undercut-an-espresso-with-enrico-cardile?ref=the-race.com) ahead of the Italian GP.
Here are the main takeaways from that - as well as more on what engine partner Honda can do over the remainder of the year.
## No more aero upgrades
Aston Martin overhauled its car significantly at the Hungaroring before the summer break with the introduction of what essentially amounted to a B-spec car.
That 16-part upgrade package included a new, lighter chassis and a new front wing concept - adjustments to which were made after the summer break at Zandvoort, where Aston Martin also introduced revised floor fences and a modification to its diffuser winglet.
As a result, the team has introduced the joint-fourth-highest total of updates in 2026, with 34, though it jumps to second on the list - behind only Ferrari - when only performance updates are taken into account. The Race estimates it as being the highest upgrade spender so far this year.
Cardile stated, though, that the parts introduced recently would be "the last planned aero developments" for its 2026 car.
He said the only exception would be as a result of Aston Martin discovering something in its 2027 car development that "makes sense to test on track this year to help our correlation".
"But as of now, nothing more is scheduled," Cardile added.
## Where more laptime can be found
What will still change in the coming month is the weight of the car.
Cardile confirmed Aston Martin still had "our weight‑saving programme to complete" and that it expects this to be done at the Azerbaijan GP, from which point "we'll essentially be running the final version of the car for the rest of the season".
While there has been no official word on how much Aston Martin is, or was, over the limit, the suggestion is that at its peak the initial version of the AMR26 was 10-15kg too heavy.
Cardile said Aston Martin would be "very, very close" to the weight limit by the time of the Baku race weekend on September 24-26.
"It depends on what you choose as your reference race, but it’s a significant number - enough to dramatically improve laptime," he said, when asked how much weight had been saved.
"That's a major achievement. Sometimes it comes from changing individual parts. Other times, it means rethinking how something was engineered in the first place - even the chassis. It's a mix of small details and big structural ideas."
## No 2027 carryover
Cardile said in reference to Aston Martin's recent uptick in performance that he had recognised the frustration felt by drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll and said it was "important for us to get closer to giving them a car they can drive the way they want".
Having accomplished that - with Alonso scoring points for only the second time in 2026 with a season's-best ninth at Zandvoort - Cardile said: "Now though, a lot of the conversation with them is about looking ahead. We're asking: what are the limitations of the 2026 car, and how do we make sure we take another big step for 2027?"
But while saying the focus for the remainder of the campaign will be to use everything it can learn to "guide the 2027 project", he said there was no expectation that parts from this season would be used next year.
"Every single part will be new," he said. "Everything will have been improved.
"But conceptually, it will be an evolution of the direction we took with this year's car.
"We're on the right path now, but we’re not tied to it. Let's put it this way: when it comes to tackling the '27 project, we haven't placed any constraints on ourselves in terms of trying to carry anything over from the previous car.
"In this sense, it will be a completely new car, and it gives us the freedom and mindset to achieve what we want."
## Honda latest
Honda brought its spec 2 engine upgrade to the Dutch GP - and this was an improvement. "We've made a double step, if you like: a big increase in raw performance and a big improvement in driveability," Cardile said.
But Honda's F1 chief engineer Shintaro Orihara has accepted [that driveability remains its biggest limitation.](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-next-for-aston-martin-alonso-and-honda/)
He said at the Italian GP that another countermeasure to improve this would be introduced following work at Honda's Sakura facility.
But these kinds of updates are likely to be the extent of what Honda brings over the remainder of 2026.
Asked at Zandvoort whether any further hardware improvements were expected for this year, Orihara said: "This is the only major update for this year.
"But if we found something, a good solution to improve our performance by small modification, that can be on the table. But \[there won't be\] a major update before 2027."
Orihara nevertheless felt there was more power to be found - an estimate is that the Zandvoort upgrade provided a step in the 10-30bhp range - from optimisation.
"We have brought some calibration change for this track to maximise our performance, but it's going to be no big change, just optimisation," Orihara said at Monza, when asked by The Race whether more performance was available.
Alonso said the Honda upgrade was "not a big improvement, to be honest" - as he and Stroll were having difficulty exploiting the extra power - but asked by The Race if he still believed Honda could get back to the title-winning level it was at with Red Bull, he said: "100% yes. 100%.
"It's a huge commitment from Honda. The facilities we have in Japan are one of the best. I think the personnel and the management of the power unit now has been reinforced as Honda said - and all the people that were in the previous project, they are in again on this one, so I think I have no doubts and I trust 100% Honda.
"We just need to shortcut somehow that process."
### Carlos Sainz becomes newest Giorgio Armani 'Fragrance Ambassador'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/carlos-sainz-becomes-newest-giorgio-armani-fragrance-ambassador/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T12:10:09.000Z
Carlos Sainz is adding a stylish paragraph to his CV after being announced as the newest Giorgio Armani Spain Fragrance Ambassador for theI WILL Eau de Parfum.
He is the latest face of Armani Beauty, with the brand saying Carlos represents “authentic elegance, fierce discipline” - and we have to agree.
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/p/DcyyVZJjOFb/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
> [A post shared by Armani beauty (@armanibeauty)](https://www.instagram.com/p/DcyyVZJjOFb/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
Carlos looked the part, too, during his latest visit to Venice, attending the Venice Film Festival, just before heading to Monza for the Italian GP this weekend.
Giorgio Armani dressed a group of their guests for opening night, including Sainz. He wore a Giorgio Armani tuxedo, which included an ivory dinner jacket, standing out among the sea of black tuxedos, and paired it with black trousers. He was joined on the red carpet by his partner Rebecca Donaldson.
Between racing, red carpets and now a Giorgio Armani campaign, Carlos has really been keeping busy. We will be keeping an eye out for what stylish moment comes next!
### A2RL's international racing debut: What you need to know
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/a2rl-autonomous-racing-european-debut-imola-what-you-need-to-know/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T17:13:47.000Z
The most advanced autonomous racing series in the world has headed to Europe for the first time, with Imola hosting a race between five autonomous single-seaters this Saturday.
The Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) returns with its first major on-track event since staging its 2025 finale in Abu Dhabi last November, where teams competed for a $2.25million prize pool.
This time around, five teams have qualified for a race at Imola this Saturday, where they'll race Super Formula cars which have been heavily adapted to drive autonomously.
Here's everything you need to know about A2RL's international debut:
## Nine days of testing
Teams are using the A2RL EAV-25 platform, which marks a huge step forward from the series' initial autonomous concept.
There's no better evidence for that than it lapping just 1.58 seconds off ex-F1 driver Daniil Kvyat at Abu Dhabi last November, having been 10 seconds adrift at Suzuka just 18 months prior to that.
"Still, today, after two and a half years here, I'm still amazed when I see this car running," A2RL technical director Nicola Palarchi told The Race at Imola.
"The level of performance when they approach, when they attack a corner is amazing.
"And thinking that there's no one there \[in the cockpit\], and it's not remote control...there's no predefined driving or strategies, the car is driving by itself and making its own decision, \[is\] mind-blowing."
Imola presents a huge, new challenge for the technology, with far more bumps and kerbs than Abu Dhabi, very little margin for error with gravel traps aplenty, and variable weather conditions.
So teams have been given nine days of testing at Imola prior to the Saturday finale. They all have identical EAV-25s and the autonomous stack that sits within the cockpit and has been developed by the series, but it's down to the teams to code their AI machines to be the fastest.
Teams qualified their cars at the end of those nine days of testing, with Italian outfit Unimore Racing coming out on top, ahead of fellow home team Polimove.
---
### Imola qualifying result
**Unimore Racing** 1m37.314s
**Polimove** +1.084s
**TUM** +1.746s
**Kinetiz** +2.936s
**Constructor** +3.964s
---
Season one and two champion TUM was third, but it knows the result is far from settled.
That's because these autonomous cars really can race each other, with TUM passing Unimore for victory in the Abu Dhabi finale last year.
Just like in traditional motorsport, there are also trade-offs for the teams to make when programming the cars, in terms of one-lap speed and race pace, so there's every possibility that the order will change in Saturday's race.
The laptimes have been very competitive too. A2RL says the fastest time got to within eight and a half tenths of the benchmark human laptime, set by current Super Formula driver Juju Noda.
## The cars have been weatherproofed
Presently, the weather forecast is for a scorchingly hot and dry Saturday at Imola. But should that change, A2RL is now ready for it.
A2RL's testing at Suzuka in 2024 exposed one vulnerability with the initial cars: in wet conditions, the sensors and autonomous stack were exposed to moisture, which caused some issues.
Therefore, a rainproofing kit can be fitted to the EAV-25, which means it can run in the wet - and has done successfully - at Imola. It even ran in hail conditions.
That kit includes sharkfin louvres on the cockpit to cover air exhaust vents, cockpit cover seals, and specifically designed and engineered rubber 3D-printed camera sleeves to seal the forward camera hatches.
"We are very happy; we have been working on a rain kit for some time," Palarchi told The Race.
"We had some rain already in 2024 when we were preparing for the exhibition in Suzuka at the time of the Super Formula event.
"We have been focusing on this in the last few months, as we knew we were coming to Imola and the weather is not as stable as in Abu Dhabi.
"So we managed to roll out the rain kit that was very successful, and the teams could enjoy wet track condition, which was a first also for all of them."
## How to watch
The five-car race will take place on Saturday, September 5 at 6.30pm local time.
You can attend the race at Imola for free by registering here: [https://www.autodromoimola.it/en/events/a2rl-abu-dhabi-autonomous-racing-league/](https://www.autodromoimola.it/en/events/a2rl-abu-dhabi-autonomous-racing-league/?ref=the-race.com)
Otherwise, race highlights will be broadcast on [The Race's YouTube channel](https://www.youtube.com/@WeAreTheRace?ref=the-race.com).
### Italian GP tipped for mad 'MotoGP-style' race with F1 2026 cars
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/overtaking-records-messy-qualifying-f1-braced-wild-monza/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T12:02:52.000Z
Formula 1 figures are bracing for the potential of a particularly wild Italian Grand Prix weekend at Monza, as slipstream is expected to massively impact both qualifying and the race.
Aston Martin trackside chief Mike Krack has forecast "a record of all times" in terms of overtaking in the grand prix, while 22-car Q1 - due to the massive benefit of towing and complexities of energy strategies - is particularly at risk of being dominated by the efforts to catch a slipstream.
F1 is heading to one of the most challenging venues for the new turbo hybrid 2026 cars, with Monza's long straights meaning cars are going to run out of battery energy easily.
Cars struggling for top speed on the straights, allied to the new active aero characteristics of straight and corner mode, means that there is now a much bigger benefit than there has been in recent years from receiving a tow.
Being in the slipstream of the car ahead will not only help increase top speed marginally by reducing drag, but will also deliver gains in terms of battery deployment - as less energy will need to be burned to push the car through the air.
Williams chief engineer Paul Williams reckons that slipstreaming could become a "significant tactic" once more. And Krack went as far as to express hope the gains do not trigger a repeat of what happened at Monza in 2019, when drivers tripped over themselves trying to get a slipstream at the end of qualifying.
Asked by The Race if slipstream games were back in play at Monza this year, having fallen away in recent years, Krack said: "I think yes!
"I think the lack of energy that you have here over the qualifying lap will manifest itself in people looking for that.
"I hope we will not have a situation like 2019, certainly not in Q1 - but who knows what will happen? Nobody wants to be first probably, but I think there will be more of this than we have seen here recently."
Cadillac driver Sergio Perez said of slipstreaming at Monza: "In previous generations it was \[already\] very critical.
"Now it's going to become even more, with the lack of energy that we're going to experience.
"We saw already in Spa it was around two seconds to a second and a half, so I think it's going to be really close.
"It's going to be a bit messy \[in qualifying\] because everyone will be trying to get some towing."
Measures are in place in modern F1 after the chaos of 2019 that should mitigate the issue, as the FIA has instituted a minimum laptime delta - but it's exceedingly rare for this to lead to a driver penalty, and the FIA may have to be stricter with enforcement this year than is convention.
One question that will only be answered when cars are running together is whether excessive slipstreaming could prompt some safety concerns.
This could become an issue if there are wildly different deployment strategies in play that mean there are big speed differentials between cars in areas of the track.
Krack said: "Normally if you see the deployment profiles, they converge over a weekend - so I do not expect any major differences.
"But if people deploy completely differently, then there is always a risk."
## Monza compromises
F1 teams know that this weekend is going to be incredibly challenging from an energy management perspective and that some unusual tactics may need to come out.
Krack felt that the new rules will force a completely different approach for teams.
"Monza is a bit of a new game this year that we need to learn how to handle," he said.
"I think all the teams will have to learn and maybe what we know about Monza is not necessarily true anymore."
One of the main uncertainties for qualifying will be how best to unleash energy coming out of the final Alboreto or Parabolica corner for the start of a qualifying lap.
Teams will have to work out where the best place is to go on full power to maximise speed for the start of the lap, but without burning up so much battery that they run short before the first chicane.
Despite the FIA's measures to combat these issues of energy starvation, Perez said: "You're going to get into this situation where if you went half a percent too much in one corner on throttle, it's going to cost you even a few tenths.
"Belgium \[Spa-Francorchamps\] was very critical in that regard and I expect that here it's going to be, like, the worst of them all."
## MotoGP-style racing?
Krack suggested Monza could produce an extreme level of yo-yo racing.
He said it remained unclear how easy overtaking would be, but expected it will "probably will be a record of all times here, or like MotoGP".
Though Monza's layout should naturally lead itself to this kind of racing, that hasn't really been the case in F1 in recent years - with the venue struggling to deliver much in the way of wheel-to-wheel action, though Formula 2 and Formula 3 have remained "overtake-fests".
This time, the expectation is of a grand prix more in line with those kinds of categories.
"Top speeds are way down from the past - which is a bit of a shame, but on certain straights you can make a bigger difference than before when it comes to defending or attacking," said Cadillac driver Valtteri Bottas.
"It's been normally a good place for racing anyway but now it adds another element of more dynamic racing here. So no doubt there's going to be plenty of overtakes."
Rookie Arvid Lindblad was more pessimistic, though, after what he described as "the most confusing sim session of the year" in preparation for Monza's unique energy challenges.
"I think the first two laps will be interesting, depending where you spend your energy you'll pass three cars and then lose to three cars," he said. "\[After that\] I don't know if there's going to be much passing.
"I think the difference to other tracks, even energy-starved ones, if you use the boost it takes you one lap to recover, so you're a bit slow on the next two or three straights, but one lap after you're alright, whereas here it takes a lot longer to recover. So basically if you use the boost, you gain on one straight, but then you're so slow for the next three laps.
"So I think it will... you could call it 'yo-yo racing' maybe, but I just think it will be really bad yo-yo racing. Even in the past it used to be decent, we would actually be passing each other, whereas now it's just, you're going to pass the guy and then you're just going to lose a second and a half. I don't know what to expect, but I'm not very optimistic."
### F1's take on its battle to satisfy new and old fans
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-liberty-media-fanbase-old-new-fans-interview/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T08:15:42.000Z
Bernie Ecclestone once infamously said that there was little point in Formula 1 chasing a younger audience, because they could not afford what sponsors had on offer.
Now, well into the post-Ecclestone Liberty Media era, F1 not only has a bigger audience but a much younger one, too.
The latest figures issued by F1 suggest that 830 million people now follow grand prix racing, which is 64% up from 2018 when its current owner took over.
It is estimated that 43% of F1's audience is now under 35, with 42% of the audience female. Out of the new fans, three quarters are female.
While the numbers are a huge triumph for Liberty, they are also at the heart of a debate triggered by the divided opinion over the 2026 rules.
How much should F1 and its stakeholders obsess over the new audience, and what should you do about the fans who have long been there?
Turn off the hardcore, who will stick with you through thick and thin, then there may be nobody left if the bubble bursts and the casuals are lost, too.
## Widening the access
Those notorious Ecclestone remarks about younger fans came just as F1 began its hybrid era back in 2014.
"Young kids will see the Rolex brand, but are they going to go and buy one?" he said back then. "They can't afford it. Or our other sponsor, UBS - these kids don't care about banking. They haven't got enough money to put in the bloody banks anyway. That's what I think."
F1 is in a very different place right now, thanks to the new approach taken by Liberty.
According to FOM's chief communications and corporate relations officer Liam Parker, this wasn't an Americanisation of F1.
"It was a modernisation approach," he told The Race.
There was a time in the 1980s when all F1 had to really care about was making sure it was in front of as many TV eyeballs as possible on Sunday afternoons.
Ecclestone's approach to maximise the audience and the value for broadcast deals was to lock down the distribution of content to increase its exclusivity.
His successors – then-CEO Chase Carey and commercial chief Sean Bratches – viewed things differently. Rather than shut off everything on social media and view it as the enemy, they embraced it and saw opportunity.
Parker says: "Their view was, 'well, look, we've got access to all of this. How can we cut this in different ways?'.
"'Why don't we have a social media team that is large enough to service a wider audience? Why are the teams not allowed to post content? Why are the drivers not allowed?'"
It was this mindset that opened the doors for a different approach through social media and paved the way for the Netflix: Drive to Survive show that had a major role in delivering a new audience.
While Drive to Survive was important in attracting a new F1 audience, it should not be viewed as the magic bullet that did it all. Instead, it more amplified F1's new Liberty Media approach.
Parker adds: "A lot of credit is given to Netflix about what it did, and it deserves it, but it wasn't the panacea.
"I genuinely believe the opening up of social media access, alongside the Netflix environment, that then built into the F1 film and other things, shifted the demographic quite substantially. That's taken time."
## What a new audience means
When audiences and customers change, organisations must react.
There is always a balancing act required in responding to what your new followers want without it risking being a turn-off for those who have been around a while.
In F1's case, it has been able to satisfy different segments quite easily off track by simply expanding the content on offer.
There are those happy to follow F1 simply through watching 15-second TikTok videos, while those that want technical analyses that pore over the finest of details can find that, too. One offering does not come at the expense of the other.
As Parker says: "If you just rely on, ‘let's just put out racing content', you're serving a certain market and hoping that the new market will just like that.
"You've got to keep up with trends. You've got to work out where the trends are.
"There's no point saying, ‘OK, we've got a growing fanbase aged between 16 and 20,' without saying, ‘well, what do they consume? How do they get their information? How do they get their entertainment? What news do they consume? What are they interested in and what are they not interested in?'"
It is here where F1 faces a bit of a juggling act because different audiences value different content in different ways.
For some, Lewis Hamilton's latest clothing choice is as important as the latest rear wing design is to others.
"If you talk about tyres and degradation in a video, then there's a whole load of people that just don't understand it," adds Parker. "They perhaps feel stupid and then don't want to be a part of it.
"They just want to know that Charles Leclerc turned up with the dog today. How big is George Russell's fiancée's wedding ring?
"That is just different content. What we shouldn't say is 'this \[bit of content is\] trivial, and that bit is far more serious'."
## The hardcore vs casual debate
Varying needs of different audience segments go beyond just content though, because the make-up of the fanbase inevitably feeds through to what shape F1 itself should take.
When it comes to deciding rule changes, a key factor is always whether fans will like them or they'll prove to be a turn-off. And you are never going to please all the fans all the time.
There are times when a series has to decide whether it moulds itself into becoming what its fanbase wants, or if it commits to doing what it thinks is best and expects the audience to adapt.
This is something that F1 has faced head-on in 2026 with the new regulations having clearly divided opinion between audience segments.
Some have embraced the action-packed overtakes that many F1 drivers and hardcore fans have bemoaned as fake. Many could also not care less about the cars being energy-starved and how super-clipping has ruined some great corners.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali recently caused some controversy as he upset established and new fans alike in response to a question about the more hardcore of followers not liking the new rules.
"There are diehard motorsport fans who talk about clipping during a Formula 1 weekend," he told De Telegraaf. "But there will also be many who think of a clip as something you put in your hair."
Coming off the back of a comment he made over the summer that "no one is interested in how you drive the car", Domenicali's stance has left many long-term fans questioning whether they are now just a minority that F1 no longer cares about.
Parker is clear that is not the case - and he suggests Domenicali's hair clip remark was misinterpreted.
"I was in the room, and Stefano wasn't dismissive," he said. "He explained that he was a super fan, but he also had to think about those that are not.
"There's a great set of people out there that are our core, that care about clipping and battery state and charge, and you must give them that content.
"But there's others out there that think a clip is what you put in your hair. He wasn't saying that no one cares about super clipping. It's just different content ignites different people in different debates."
## Not messing with the rules
Parker is adamant that while F1 has not hesitated to rip things up when it comes to content, there is a red line that it will not cross.
It is that grand prix racing must remain a meritocracy where the best drivers in the best cars come out on top. The sport will always come before the entertainment.
"The sport is the core," he said. "You can't mess with that."
Parker says evidence of this being central to Liberty's remit is that, while it's not afraid to shake up the experience for fans at grand prix weekends, the on-track elements have not been radically overhauled.
"I bet if you went back 10 years and asked someone to crystal ball gaze and say, ‘what do you think Liberty as an American company would do to F1', you'd say 'they will probably have sprinklers and have fake this and fake that'," he said.
"I think the most ambitious thing we've really done on track is to evolve the sprint races over time."
For F1, delivering a quality spectacle that stays true to its roots is something that is good for all fans.
"If that's strong, then everything else has a strong basis," added Parker.
"If people are saying that racing is rubbish, the drivers are boring, there's no entertainment, these cars are not interesting, then there isn't a Netflix story, there isn't a social media story."
But he says that F1 must be mindful that it cannot stay locked in the past. It has to evolve and adapt to ensure that there is a new generation of fans coming through, otherwise global interest will fall away.
"If F1 works and is fundamentally strong, then everything else goes from it," he said.
"There are fans that have been with us a long time, and they are vital. Hopefully they will be with us all the way through.
"But we would be wrong to say that, as a sport, all these other people that don't understand the technology, 'we don't want you'. From a sporting perspective and potentially a commercial perspective it would be stupid.
"I know sometimes it gets lost in understanding, but Stefano has been in the sport for 30 years, it's his business, but he's got to think: 'How do I make it bigger? How do I grow?'
"Because if you sit still, the NBA, cricket, football, everything else will grow, and we'll be left behind."
Sitting still is not something you'd associate with the Liberty F1 era, but keeping that much more varied audience – rather than winning it over in the first place – could be its greatest challenge yet.
### Norris sets up racing team with ex-Prema chief
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-sets-up-racing-team-with-ex-prema-chief/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T17:45:15.000Z
Lando Norris has co-founded a new racing team – LN4 Fusion – and launched a driver development programme as part of a two-pronged effort to help young driving talent on the way towards Formula 1.
LN4 Fusion, which has pulled together a host of top-class talent from motorsport including the highly-respected Rene Rosin as its team principal, is to compete in the Italian F4 championship, the FIA Formula Regional European Championship and F3 next season.
It has sights set on joining F2, and has already begun a British F4 testing programme as it aims to secure an entry to that category.
As well as the racing team, Norris has also launched the LN4 Legacy Programme. This is a fully funded young driver scheme, which will be led by former Alpine sporting director Julian Rouse.
Speaking about the decision to commit to both projects, Norris said that he wanted to “create opportunities for the next generation, both on and off the track, and hopefully make a real difference to young drivers coming through the sport”.
With his own path to F1 being helped by backing from his family and then the support of McLaren, Norris is well aware that being fast is not all that is needed to succeed.
“I’ve been really lucky to have some amazing people around me throughout my career, and I know that getting to Formula 1 takes so much more than just talent,” he said.
“You need the right people around you, the right support and the right opportunities at the right time. That’s what these two projects are all about.
“LN4 Fusion is about building a race team that can compete with the best in junior motorsport, with great people and a great environment for drivers to develop. The LN4 Legacy Programme is about helping talented young drivers get opportunities they might not otherwise have.”
LN4 Fusion has the backing of an investment group that is led by Dan Richards, and has acquired selected assets from the AIX Racing operation, which has a licence to race in F3 until the end of 2027\. It has also begun the application process to join F2.
Rosin’s signing is a coup as the Italian, who has won more than 40 junior championships at various levels, has been pondering his next steps following his surprise exit from Prema earlier this year. Another long-time Prema figure, engineer Guillaume Capietto, has also joined LN4 Fusion.
The team's European headquarters will be in Veneto in northern Italy where a new facility is being built. There will also be a British operation based in Cambridgeshire, that will be run by Dan Hazlewood, who has led the successful Fusion Motorsport karting team to multiple national and international titles in recent years.
Richards, who is CEO of LN4 Fusion, believed that getting a roster of world-class talent on board was critical to making a success of the operation.
"It has taken an enormous collective effort to bring the different elements together, but the objective from the beginning has been to build this properly and for the long term,” he said.
Norris’s plans have received the backing of F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, who says his involvement will help further cement the strength of F1's support series.
“Seeing Lando Norris involved in this new project is an incredible statement on how much the pyramid of Formula 3 and Formula 2 is crucial to the future of Formula 1,” he said.
“Through Lando’s investment and experience, we can build a future, with new drivers, engineers, mechanics, and a tradition that will be followed by motorsport lovers.”
### MotoGP 2027 testing: Dates and tracks announced
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/when-is-motogp-2027-preseason-testing/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T15:31:41.000Z
MotoGP factories have been intensively testing their 2027 prototypes all through this year - but full-grid testing will only commence once the 2026 season has concluded.
The usual one-day test in Valencia on the Tuesday after this year's season finale will be followed two months later by a two-day shakedown and two-day test at Sepang, and a two-day test at Buriram.
Most of the grid will thus get five days of pre-season 850cc running with Pirelli tyres.
Rookies will be an exception, allowed to run in the shakedown along with the factories' test riders. While this is totally normal practice for MotoGP, it could be more contentious than usual this year - as some believe next year's rookies (coming from Moto2 or World Superbikes) already have a built-in advantage in their knowledge of Pirelli rubber from their respective series'.
**Full testing schedule:**
**Valencia test** \- Dec 1 (Tue)
**Sepang shakedown** \- Jan 29 (Fri) and Jan 30 (Sat)
**Sepang test** \- Jan 31 (Sun) and Feb 1 (Mon)
**Buriram test** \- Feb 6 (Sat) and Feb 7 (Sun)
There will be a gap of a month between the Buriram test and the season-opening Thai Grand Prix at the same venue.
### Lawson gets another Red Bull outing with Hadjar sidelined again
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lawson-red-bull-italian-gp-f1-race-outing-hadjar-injury/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T14:15:42.000Z
Red Bull Formula 1 driver Isack Hadjar will remain on the sidelines for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, with Liam Lawson continuing to deputise.
Hadjar, who was absent from the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort due to a wrist fracture, is known to be taking a cautious approach to his recovery - having sought advice from MotoGP legend Marc Marquez, who endured career-changing complications after trying to return too soon from an arm break in 2020.
Red Bull said it is "closely monitoring" Hadjar's rehabilitation and that, despite "encouraging progress", it "will take no unnecessary risks with his return".
"It's good to hear Isack is recovering well and is back in the car soon, but it's great to have another weekend with the team," said Lawson, who was reasonably competitive on his first outing in the RB22 at Zandvoort, placing seventh in the grand prix.
"Zandvoort gave me a really useful first reference in the car, and having a full sprint weekend behind me means I'm coming into Monza with a much better understanding of the car and what I need from it."
Lawson will drive the full weekend schedule, while Max Verstappen will cede his RB22 to Ayumu Iwasa as part of the season-long obligation to tick off four rookie practice outings.
Like at Zandvoort, Yuki Tsunoda will replace Lawson in his usual Racing Bulls car.
### Gilles Villeneuve biopic to premiere at Toronto film festival
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/gilles-villeneuve-biopic-to-premiere-at-toronto-film-festival/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T14:36:13.000Z
A feature-length biopic charting the early life of Formula 1 legend Gilles Villeneuve will make its world premiere later this month, before a wider theatrical release in 2027.
*Villeneuve: Rise of a Legend* will close the Toronto International Film Festival on September 19, with a Quebec cinema release scheduled for November and a global launch planned for early next year.
The timing coincides with the 50th anniversary of Villeneuve's F1 debut at the 1977 British Grand Prix.
The French-language film focuses on Villeneuve's formative years in Quebec, tracing his rise from snowmobile racer to Formula Atlantic star and eventual F1 prospect.
Québécois actor Rémi Goulet plays Villeneuve, while director Yan Lanouette Turgeon said the project has been more than a decade in development.
"For me, Gilles Villeneuve's story needed to be told," said Turgeon. "He was such an interesting character. He remains a monumental figure in Quebec and in Formula 1, and a movie had never been made about him.
"I felt I needed to be the one to make this movie, and the timing is perfect as interest in Formula 1 has never been greater."
Villeneuve's son Jacques, the 1997 F1 world champion, said he was particularly pleased that the film explores a period of his father's life that has largely remained out of the public eye.
**Gilles and his family in 1979*
"Watching the trailer, it was difficult to hold back the tears. And I love that it focuses on the early years, the years no one but our family knows about," Jacques Villeneuve said.
"Most biopics focus on when someone's in their prime. They give the audience what they already know, whereas this film shows the building blocks."
The film revisits Villeneuve's upbringing in rural Quebec, his emergence as one of North America's leading snowmobile racers and his success in Formula Atlantic competition.
It also depicts the pivotal 1976 Formula Atlantic race at Trois-Rivières, where Villeneuve defeated several established F1 drivers, including that year's eventual F1 world champion James Hunt, helping to put Villeneuve on the radar of grand prix teams.
Production included filming at Montreal's Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, which was renamed in his honour following his death in 1982\. Replica period racing machinery was supplied by Race Car Replicas, the company behind the cars used in the film *Ford v Ferrari*.
The project has involved Villeneuve's family throughout its development, with daughter Melanie Villeneuve serving as an executive producer.
"When I started on this journey, I wanted to understand my father's public legacy and reclaim our family heritage," she said.
"I wanted to ensure his memory was preserved by those who loved him most.
"The film charts the incredible rise of a working-class man from rural Quebec who became Enzo Ferrari's favourite driver."
### Miami GP changes title sponsor
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/miami-gp-changes-title-sponsor/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T13:42:14.000Z
The Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix will from 2027 be sponsored by Hard Rock, which has held the naming rights to the NFL’s Miami Dolphins stadium since 2016.
The Miami GP - which previously had Crypto.com as its title sponsor - is contracted to remain on the F1 calendar through to 2041.
This new title sponsor agreement will see Hard Rock branding incorporated into the official event title - making it the Formula 1 Hard Rock Miami Grand Prix - along with track, paddock, fan area, and podium signage.
Hard Rock will continue its deal to produce live entertainment at the track.
The 2026 iteration of the Miami GP included performances by Nelly, Zedd, Marshmello, Kane Brown and others.
“Hard Rock has been part of Miami’s Formula 1 story from the very beginning, and we are incredibly proud to welcome them as the new title partner of the Formula 1 Hard Rock Miami Grand Prix,” said Miami GP president Katharina Nowak.
“This partnership marks a new era for our race, as we look to build upon the success of our first five years and continue to evolve alongside one of the most iconic and culturally significant brands in the world in Hard Rock.”
Hard Rock already sponsors the Beach Club hospitality area that is located on the outside of Turns 11 to 13 of the Miami International Autodrome. This area will be revamped for 2027 - with ticket-holders able to experience live performances, cabanas with views of the track and food and beverage options.
“They \[Hard Rock\] have been alongside us in growing Hard Rock Stadium into a global sports and entertainment destination for more than a decade and in establishing our race as one of the defining moments on the Formula 1 calendar,” added Nowak.
“Together, we will seek to set a new standard of what is possible when the best of racing, entertainment and culture converge in Miami, and we could not be more excited for this new chapter together.”
Hard Rock’s chairman Jim Allen added that the “partnership reflects Hard Rock’s commitment to delivering world-class experiences to international audiences.”
Hard Rock International is a privately-held company owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, which purchased it for $965 million USD in 2007\. It owns more than 300 restaurants and cafes, and more than 80 hotels and casinos around the world.
### Free Allwyn x McLaren F1 showrun announced for Athens
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/free-mclaren-f1-showrun-announced-for-athens/
Last updated: 2026-09-07T10:11:21.000Z
McLaren Racing and partner Allwyn will bring a Formula 1 showrun to Athens on October 3 as part of a new global fan event series.
The free event, called *Allwyn x McLaren Racing: Live in Athens*, will take place outside the Olympic Athletic Center of Athens (OAKA) in Greece.
Fans will be able to see McLaren's 2025 F1 World constructors' championship-winning car in action, alongside Ayrton Senna's McLaren MP4/6\. Two-time F1 world champion Mika Häkkinen will also drive during the event.
Other former F1 drivers and personalities are expected to attend - however, who it will be exactly is yet to be confirmed. Additional modern and historic McLaren cars will be displayed at the event alongside a fan zone and other entertainment activities.
Athens will be the first stop in a new series of fan events being launched by Allwyn and McLaren Racing.
"Launching this global event series in Athens is a major milestone for our partnership with McLaren Racing," said Pavel Turek, Allwyn's chief officer of global partnerships.
"Bringing more speed, thrills and excitement to this iconic sporting location is the perfect way to introduce our international event platform and entertain more fans around the world."
Allwyn Hellas chairman and CEO Jan Karas said the event would be one of the largest motorsport fan experiences ever held in Greece.
"We're expecting to welcome thousands of fans in October, which will make Allwyn x McLaren Racing: Live in Athens one of the largest motorsport fan experiences ever held in Greece," he said.
McLaren Racing chief marketing officer Louise McEwen said the event was designed to help bring the team closer to fans who are unable to attend Formula 1 races.
"Our fans are at the heart of everything we do at McLaren Racing, and while not everyone can experience a Grand Prix weekend in person, we're always looking for ways to bring the team closer to them," she said.
The event will be free to attend, with no ticket needed. Further details on appearances, experiences and event activities will be announced ahead of the October event on Allwyn and McLaren’s social media.
### F1 upgrade spend tier list revealed
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-upgrade-spend-tier-list-revealed-surprise-leader/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T09:41:16.000Z
Formula 1's top teams agreed long ago that this year's title battle was going to be decided by the upgrade war.
But few could have predicted how quirky and unpredictable the 2026 development fight would be with teams adopting different strategies to attack the new rules.
F1 has ended up with a surprise leader in the update spending battle, and a team that you would have expected to be near the top lingering towards the bottom so far.
## Rapid steps
With the 2026 rules in their infancy, a steep development rate has opened the door for big in-season gains.
It's why, when we have seen teams bring big update packages, it tends to shake up the competitive order and push those teams forward significantly.
With the title fight having closed-up after the summer break, it is patently clear that whichever team does the best job with its upgrades has the chance to push for the ultimate crown.
A fascinating secondary element to this 2026 development war has emerged because unlike battles of the past, this is not just a competition about having the best ideas inspiring what gets bolted onto a car.
Instead, F1's cost cap is weighing heavy on everyone's shoulders - and teams are having to think carefully about what each development costs and when they bring them.
The significance of this aspect became clear after the Dutch Grand Prix when Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff suggested that his squad was [tight on cash](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-extraordinary-f1-title-fight-claim/) right now.
"We haven't got the money to put developments on the car," he said when asked about any extra response to McLaren's growing performance threat.
Why Mercedes is in a situation that appears different to others is not easy to understand, because it appears to have been one of the most conservative when it comes to bringing new parts.
But what we do know for now - and this is because teams must declare upgrades to the FIA ahead of each weekend - is that different approaches are in play up and down the grid.
Some are spreading out developments, some have regular big changes, some have front-loaded, and some are back-loading.
The Race has conducted some analysis of all the upgrades introduced so far to try to get an understanding of how each team compares.
And having crunched the numbers with some estimates of costs based on how extensive the new parts are, we have been able to come up with some interesting rankings.
This covers both developments and an estimate of spending to get an idea of who has been the most aggressive so far - and who has potentially held back.
## The development war rankings
In terms of pure numbers of new car parts, it is straightforward to see who has brought the most.
Analysis of all the new parts that are declared to the FIA puts Ferrari on top up until and including the Dutch GP, having had 40 new components since the Australian GP season opener.
As the ranking below shows, McLaren and Red Bull have brought 38 each - with Aston Martin and Cadillac leading the chasing pack with 34\. Mercedes has brought just 24.
### Total updates so far in 2026
1 Ferrari 40
2= McLaren 38
2= Red Bull 38
4= Aston Martin 34
4= Cadillac 34
6 Racing Bulls 30
7 Alpine 29
8 Haas 28
9 Audi 25
10= Mercedes 24
10= Williams 24
But the number of parts does not directly relate to ultimate upgrade aggression.
Red Bull, for example, has had nine reliability tweaks over the first 12 races, while Ferrari has had none.
Also, some teams have chased circuit-specific modifications. Williams has had four, while others like Red Bull have introduced none at all.
In terms of pure performance upgrades, again it is Ferrari that leads the way with 36, ahead of Aston Martin on 33 and McLaren on 30\. Mercedes lags here, on 19.
### Total performance updates so far in 2026
1 Ferrari 36
2 Aston Martin 33
3 McLaren 30
4 Alpine 29
5= Cadillac 27
5= Haas 27
7= Red Bull 25
7= Racing Bulls 25
9= Mercedes 19
9= Audi 19
11 Williams 16
When it comes to judging development budgets though, there is not necessarily a direct link between the number of declared parts and how much a team has spent.
Not all parts cost the same. A new floor, for example, costs a lot more than a minor extra Halo flick or a tailpipe bracket.
And as Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur explained earlier this year, after he faced questions from Wolff over Ferrari's spending pattern early on, sometimes what appears to be a big upgrade is in fact just a tweak to a current part.
To understand how the actual number of developments fits into spending, we need to look a bit deeper into the details.
If we go through the season's development, it is possible to assign some estimates to the level of spending that has been committed to so far - based on the number, timing and kind of components that have been brought.
This comes with a caveat that not all parts cost the same for every team, so a definitive cash figure is not possible.
What we can work out though is how teams stack up against each other based on a weighted calculation of their upgrades, and that then allows us to create some benchmark estimates of who has really spent the most.
Our table, which has been created with insight from paddock sources, splits the grid into seven different tiers as detailed below - with the percentage figures linked to how much it is estimated has been spent relative to the benchmark.
And interestingly, it looks like the biggest spender of all, due in part to the scale of its Hungarian GP upgrade that included a new lighter chassis (which doesn't come cheap), is Aston Martin.
It was already high up the list of overall updates (34) and performance updates (33), but many of its changes have also been significant.
An estimate of the spending tiers of 2026 so far, and each team relative to the others, is below. Aston Martin and three of the top four teams are well in front.
**Tier 1**: Aston Martin
**Tier 2**:Ferrari, Red Bull @ 90%
**Tier 3**: McLaren @ 85%
**Tier 4**: Audi, Alpine @ 70%
**Tier 5**:Racing Bulls @ 60%
**Tier 6**:Mercedes @ 55%
**Tier 7**: Haas, Cadillac, Williams @ 50%
## What the figures tell us
We have talked already about why Aston Martin has ended up top in our estimates based on the scale of its mid-season overhaul.
At the bottom, there is no huge surprise, with Haas clear that it is not throwing money around as it is not going to hit the cost cap this season, and Cadillac having slowed down its upgrade introduction.
Williams's figure is skewed by it holding fire on a major update until Azerbaijan (which includes a new chassis) that will certainly push it much further up the spend list.
The offset between F1's title contenders, Mercedes and main rivals Ferrari and McLaren, is perhaps the most interesting though when it comes to the title battle.
As one of the big-four teams, Mercedes might've been expected to have the same level of upgrade allowance in its budget to the other frontrunners.
Based on Wolff’s quotes, there is a sense it does not have the same freedoms as others. But is this the real situation, or is it playing games with the opposition?
Mercedes has clearly chosen to space things out, optimising the arrival of upgrades with when components are at the end of their life.
But even with that, trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin reckoned that Mercedes will not be doing as many upgrades as others.
"Over the season, we will probably produce one fewer floor and one fewer bodywork package than those \[other\] teams," he told the Mercedes YouTube channel after Zandvoort.
Why Mercedes is doing less numerically is not clear, but it could be a consequence of it having spent more pre-season - which would not be noted in the FIA documents - or that it is saving cash for later.
It does have a big upgrade coming around Malaysia (Bahrain GP) time in early October that could be extensive, and would lift it well up the spending rankings if it is a really big one.
But we will not be able to judge the different strategies properly until we have seen the entire season play out.
Then we will know if Mercedes was more restricted overall as Wolff suggested, or if its spending pattern was just different.
## Unexpected spending
Another important element that needs taking into account when it comes to budgets is crash damage - as this comes out of the cost cap.
The more money that needs to go on repairs, the less there is for development. So teams need to keep a buffer.
According to the latest 'destructors' world championship' that is regularly published on social media, Red Bull currently tops the repair list at around $2.8million, ahead of Alpine on $2.2m and Williams on $1.9m.
Mercedes has had an expensive year, judged to be at $1.8m, with both Ferrari and McLaren on $1.4m.
This could be another factor in why Red Bull has talked about winding down its development spending over the second half of 2026.
Team principal Laurent Mekies said: "We've decided to make the big push as early as we could from an engineering and engineering resource perspective, and we would like to hope that things will slow down for most of the top teams in the second part. But we may have some surprises."
## The $3million question
The pattern of spending so far may not fully tell the story of the season run-in though, because we must remember that there is an extra $3m as part of a cost cap allowance [related to rule changes](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-top-f1-teams-face-a-big-six-million-dilemma/) for next year.
So those who have spent a lot already may have some extra development leeway if they want, while Mercedes' claims about struggling for budget may not be strictly true.
McLaren for one is convinced that Mercedes will dig into the extra $3m and up its development aggression late on.
This comes against the backdrop of it being understood that the manufacturer was one of those that vocally supported the extra cash when it was discussed in FIA meetings.
Andrea Stella, the McLaren team principal, said: "I'm sure that Mercedes, having seen that the rivals are kind of elevating the game, I'm sure they will now cash in on their development. Surely, it's happening on the ground."
All eyes then are on what Mercedes does, and especially if the major upgrade that is expected to arrive in Malaysia changes the game completely and if there is even more coming.
F1's 2026 title battle could yet have a twist in its tale - but it's one that may well be decided by the accountants.
### Bagnaia, Ducati and MotoGP are all lucky
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/bagnaia-ducati-and-motogp-are-all-lucky/
Last updated: 2026-09-02T10:46:24.000Z
Pecco Bagnaia, Ducati and MotoGP as a whole may have got particularly lucky with the timing of Bagnaia's separation from Ducati - if his latest slump is anything to go by.
Whatever momentum Bagnaia had ended the first half of the season with has been snuffed out as he followed up a very worrying British Grand Prix with an equally poor Aragon outing.
He was marginally more competitive within the Ducati pecking order at Aragon, but still unproductive and very uncomfortable with the bike.
---
### Bagnaia's gap to top Ducati in Aragon GP
**FP1:** +1.875s
**PR:** +1.022s
**FP2:** +0.262s
**Qualifying:** +0.620s
**Sprint:** +14.575s
**Warm-up:** +0.700s
**Grand prix:** DNF
---
Bagnaia is still having to manage the condition of his right forearm, which was operated on between Sachsenring and Silverstone to alleviate arm pump.
He reckoned at Aragon that it is not creating any direct limitations for him on the bike - but it could be influencing his riding in subtler ways. And that riding is clearly not at the level that everyone has come to expect of him.
"We honestly came in thinking that Pecco here could be at least in the top five," Davide Tardozzi told British broadcaster TNT during the weekend.
"We're still struggling to find the way for him. He's still not confident, he's not pushing, he's not able to do what he was able to do."
And when asked about the psychological side of the issue, Tardozzi agreed that "it could be his approach that sometimes limits his performance".
There was a whole narrative over whether Ducati is listening enough to Bagnaia's complaints last year, when he struggled so much with the 2025-spec Desmosedici.
Clearly, this narrative is bubbling under the surface again; Bagnaia hasn't accused Ducati of turning a blind eye, but he has made repeated references to other Ducati riders having more grip available to them, and to the whole organisation struggling to zero in on the reason.
Whereas last year he hated the GP25's front end, now he's at odds with the GP26's rear. But the performance picture comes out shockingly similar to 2025: that of a rider who struggles more in race conditions than in the more pressured sessions, and of a rider who cannot maintain pace through a race the way he used to.
"I think the feeling wasn't that bad until Sachsenring," Bagnaia said.
"Everything was working in a more constant way - I was struggling, it's true, but the results were more optimistic.
"From Silverstone something happened. Because I have zero grip, completely, zero. And I don't know \[what will happen\] when we will arrive in other circuits where the level of \[track\] grip is lower. I can't imagine."
Bagnaia revealed his crew played with the set-up to load the rear more, which didn't work well in the sprint, so then unloaded it, which didn't work in the grand prix.
To Italian media, Bagnaia said he was at one of the lowest points of his sporting career - and described his situation as "humiliating and mortifying".
He said that "the things I could do easily a few years ago are now impossible" - but insisted he is still the rider he was, as every time he rides something other than a Desmosedici MotoGP bike he feels strong and he feels relieved.
But what he, Ducati and probably MotoGP as a whole should feel most relieved about is that this will run its course soon.
Bagnaia has been a total championship non-entity since Marc Marquez's arrival to his team in 2025\. Whether by coincidence, causation or a bit of both, his fortunes turned virtually overnight - and they turned quickly enough for Ducati to prioritise signing Pedro Acosta for 2027.
But imagine if it hadn't. Imagine if general manager Gigi Dall'Igna looked at Bagnaia mid-2025, said 'this is still our two-time champion' and put a firm 2027-28 deal on the table - a deal I believe Bagnaia would have accepted.
Maybe that would have been worth a few tenths. But in all likelihood it would have meant a lopsided line-up at one of MotoGP's top teams - all the rumours suggest Ducati's [850cc bike is awesome](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/insane-ducati-tipped-for-early-advantage-in-motogp-2027/) \- and a great rider stuck in a place where something just no longer works.
Instead, Bagnaia has bagged himself a wonderful fresh start at Aprilia (with a four-year deal, which... is a conversation for another time).
Ducati, in Marquez and Acosta, has one of the most loaded line-ups in the championship's history. And MotoGP bosses can sleep well knowing that even if Ducati's 850cc turns out to be a juggernaut, the Marquez-Acosta rivalry will guarantee sky-high levels of intrigue.
### Red Bull signs ex-Aston Martin F1 chief to replace Lambiase
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-signs-ex-aston-martin-f1-chief-to-replace-lambiase/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T17:31:07.000Z
Red Bull has announced the signing of Tom McCullough as its new head of racing, and says he will start work at the beginning of the 2027 Formula 1 season.
The position is currently occupied by long-time Max Verstappen race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, who has already committed to a future move to McLaren as its chief racing officer.
McCullough's signing comes as Red Bull counters the prior managerial exodus on its side - with Adrian Newey, Jonathan Wheatley, Rob Marshall and strategy chief Will Courtenay among those who have moved on in recent years, in addition to Lambiase's aforementioned McLaren move and the expected switch of chief engineer Paul Monaghan to Cadillac.
"We're delighted to welcome Tom to the team at the beginning of 2027 and look forward to the wealth of experience and expertise he will bring to the role," Red Bull said in a brief statement.
A veteran F1 engineer, McCullough is primarily synonymous with Aston Martin's F1 squad and its direct predecessors Force India and Racing Point.
In one of the numerous F1 leadership reshuffles at the outfit, McCullough (pictured below with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll) was shifted from the F1 project to an Aston Martin Performance Technologies role at the start of last year - but he will now return to grand prix racing.
### Italian GP unveils one of F1’s most unusual trophies
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/italian-gp-unveils-one-of-f1s-most-unusual-trophies/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T15:53:49.000Z
The winners of this year’s Italian Grand Prix will lift a trophy resembling a stack of cups and bowls.
Named *FRAGILE*, the trophy designed by Italian artist duo vedovamazzei, will be presented to the top three finishers and a representative of the winning constructor following Sunday's race at Monza.
The commission forms part of an annual initiative launched in 2021 where a different Italian artist creates the Italian Grand Prix trophy each season. Previous contributors include Alice Ronchi, Patrick Tuttofuoco, Ruth Beraha, Andrea Sala and Nico Vascellari.
Created by Stella Scala and Simeone Crispino, who work together under the name vedovamazzei, *FRAGILE* is built around a stack of everyday household objects including cups and small bowls.
**The artists, vedovamazzei, with their trophy design - Photo credit: Pirelli*
“The idea for the trophy stems from the ancient tradition of passing a celebratory cup from hand to hand. It served as a large drinking vessel, creating a sense of shared celebration and festivity,” explained the artists.
“We wanted the trophy to be the symbol of a victory that an individual holds in their hands, yet it reflects the spirit of a community. In the case of Formula 1, this community includes the team, the fans, and the entire world revolving around the drivers.”
The artists said the stacked arrangement is intended to represent a victory that is never permanent, drawing a parallel with the competitive realities of F1.
"It is unstable, short-lived, and must be reclaimed. In fact, it is fragile."
The trophy will make its podium debut at Monza on Sunday, when the Italian GP winner lifts the latest addition to the race’s long-running collection of unusual trophies.
### Ben Sulayem's stance as Argentina steps up push for F1 return
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/argentina-steps-up-push-for-f1-return-fia-president-ben-sulayem-stance/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T15:43:49.000Z
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has thrown his weight behind efforts to get the Argentine Grand Prix back on the Formula 1 calendar following talks with the country's president.
Ben Sulayem met Javier Milei ahead of the start of the FIA's American Congress in Buenos Aires, with the pair discussing the return of world-championship competition to the South American country.
Argentinian interest in F1 has exploded since Franco Colapinto's arrival at the top tier of motorsport, and improvements being made to the Buenos Aires track that hosted 20 world championship grands prix on and off between 1953 and 1998 has always been viewed as a critical step in winning a race back.
Milei has a strong desire to secure both an F1 and World Rally Championship event for Argentina and used a speech at the FIA event to lay out his ambitions, saying the country had "all the conditions necessary" to host those championships again.
"We have the tradition. We have the drivers. And now we are once again developing the institutional seriousness that these categories demand before choosing a country," Milei (pictured below, left, with Ben Sulayem) said. "We have absolutely everything.
"It is time to accelerate at full speed in this direction, and I invite you to make this \[FIA American\] congress the first step towards that return."
Ben Sulayem backed Milei's ambition and said that Argentina ticks all the boxes for the FIA to allow it to host an F1 race.
"I am going to support the initiative for there to be a Formula 1 race in Argentina," Ben Sulayem told local news channel A24\. "I will support the initiative to have an F1 race or the World Rally Championship here in Argentina.
"Does Argentina deserve to be part of the F1 calendar? The answer is yes. They have history, they have a track record; the first race was held here in 1953\. The rally started in 1980; it's a big deal.
"There's a love for motorsport and the economic situation is good; Argentina is better now. So, we know it's feasible."
That reference to Argentina's economic outlook includes a significant decrease in the inflation figure, which stood at 209% in September 2024 according to the country's National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INDEC), in part due to austerity measures introduced by Milei's government.
The most recent inflation figure of 33.8%, from July this year, is the highest of the previous 12 months.
Key to Argentina winning a place back on the calendar will be securing a deal with F1's commercial rights holder Liberty Media.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has long said he is open to seeing the country secure a place on the calendar providing a venue and deal can be sorted - and funding will be critical.
Speaking over the summer break, Domenicali said that "discussions" were ongoing in South America, as he suggested the continent was one of those primed to secure a new race.
Ben Sulayem acknowledged, however, that with F1 already capped at 24 races, finding a slot for Argentina would require a current race to fall off in addition to "support from the government to make it happen".
"Now, beyond the emotional aspect, there is also the rational side when it comes to the F1 calendar," Ben Sulayem added. "Does Argentina deserve it? It does, but there is a process to go through. There is a business plan and there are a limited number of slots.
"If Argentina comes in, someone else has to leave."
### Every rookie to drive in FP1 in F1 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/every-rookie-to-drive-in-fp1-in-f1-2026/
Last updated: 2026-09-03T16:35:35.000Z
All 11 Formula 1 teams are obliged to run a 'rookie' driver in each of their cars twice during the 2026 season - meaning four outings are required in total.
Rookies are defined by the regulation as any driver who has completed no more than one grand prix.
Arvid Lindblad's rookie status means Racing Bulls had already satisfied the requirement on his side of the garage by round two in China.
Below you'll find a list of all the FP1 rookies to have driven so far this season.
## 2026 FP1 rookie runs
**McLaren (2)**
Leonardo Fornaroli: Barcelona, Hungary
**Mercedes (2)**
Frederik Vesti: Barcelona, Hungary
**Red Bull (2)**
Ayumu Iwasa: Barcelona, Italy
**Ferrari (2)**
Dino Beganovic: Barcelona, Austria
**Williams (2\*)**
Luke Browning: Austria, Italy
\*Barcelona attempted but Browning didn't manage to participate due to a car problem
**Racing Bulls (3)**
Arvid Lindblad: Australia, China
Ayumu Iwasa: Austria
**Aston Martin (3)**
Jak Crawford: Japan, Austria, Belgium
**Haas (2)**
Ryo Hirakawa: Austria, Hungary
**Audi (2)**
Paul Aron: Barcelona, Austria
**Alpine (2)**
Paul Aron: Hungary, Italy
**Cadillac (3)**
Colton Herta: Barcelona, Hungary, Italy
### 'Everything was on fire' - Williams's F1 2026 disaster laid bare
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-was-on-fire-williamss-f1-2026-confessions/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T12:37:29.000Z
It is no secret *what* Williams got wrong this year. As team boss James Vowles admitted: "We were late. We were over budget. We were overweight.
"And we were not to the performance level that we were anticipating. So everything was a little bit on fire at this point…"
But what has not been so clear up until now was *why* things went so badly.
How had a team that had punched well above its weight in 2025 and taken two podiums, plus been the earliest to switch to its 2026 design, slipped up in concept and execution to leave itself ninth in the constructors’ championship right now?
Williams’ answer and planned response were enough to convince Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon it was a blip and agree to stay on, despite a season that has fallen far short of expectations.
With the pair now locked down, The Race sat down for an exclusive chat with Vowles to understand better why things had gone awry and what fixes are coming.
His answers were candid, both in the detail offered on the errors made and the personal accountability for some of it.
But there was also a clue about why what’s coming soon will show how serious the recovery plan is.
## Why things went wrong
Vowles thinks a critical element as to why this year went wrong was that last season went so right.
A stronger-than-anticipated 2025 was viewed as proof that Williams was on a surge to the front, and led to some complacency.
"I think last year hurt us because we had belief we'd produced a car that was below the weight limit, and that doesn’t happen by chance," he said.
"There was enough belief in that, that it was strong enough and robust enough, to be able to carry over into a new regulation set. It wasn't. Simple as that."
Changes to production and manufacturing processes put in place under Vowles that worked well for a stable rules set were ultimately not good enough when it came to a total car revamp for new regulations.
Regulatory stability had not stress-tested things in recent years, and deficits in the team's tools – the result of a lack of spending over years – had not hit home until now.
As Vowles explained: "For 20 years, Williams didn't have the investment needed. If I compare it to my previous place \[Mercedes\], it's hundreds of millions of difference."
An obvious consequence of not having simulation tools up to the job is that the design office gets bad answers. That can put designers down the wrong aero concept path – which is exactly what happened to Williams.
The high rake concept that it (along with Aston Martin) developed was the wrong way to go. While the error seems minor, the reality is it was quite damaging. It is little wonder both outfits are bailing.
As Vowles said: "It doesn't sound like a big problem - but actually it is, fundamentally, from an aerodynamics perspective.
"You're not developing the floor systems and structures at the level you need. That loses you not days or weeks, but months."
Vowles also confesses to his own role in Williams’ situation this year – in having allowed expectations to get set so high with how he framed 2026 that it was never going to live up to them.
"I was asked this in a different forum, do you regret? Yes, because I communicated poorly."
Vowles says that amid the success of 2025, he should have done more to stop runaway talk about what was possible for this year.
"2026 was never a championship fight," he said. "It's just not going to happen with a team that's got 20 years \[of underinvestment\].
"I think the words I used were, ‘last year is a benchmark’. So, still a failure. Just perhaps my role in all this was poor in explaining it."
## The solutions in place
Getting things so wrong this year has forced Williams to challenge everything, probe deep for the weaknesses and get solutions in place that make a difference.
Without that, the risk of losing Sainz or Albon (or both) was on the table.
Speeding up production to the right cadence is critical. Williams has openly admitted it has been behind the curve with its car this year: its Miami upgrade was supposed to be what it had in Melbourne.
One standout move to improve this has been the signing of McLaren’s former chief operating officer Piers Thynne, who started at the squad last month (August) as chief optimisation and planning officer.
Vowles hopes the systems that Thynne put in place that helped McLaren in its push to the front will be valuable to Williams.
"He is a fantastic individual," enthused Vowles. "He brings greatness. He brings championship-level thinking and approach."
Williams has taken action on major system weaknesses too – which includes the pulling of software that Vowles says was "frankly unfit for the organisation".
A few years ago Williams famously replaced a 20,000-cell Excel spreadsheet with a modern-day software car-build system following his arrival. Some of what was introduced has fallen flat though.
Vowles added: "Actually, in many regards, it was hurting us, not helping us."
Accepting the fault, Williams pulled some of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software this summer to move to a different way of working.
Not ideal mid-season, but better to address things that are failing than brush them under the carpet and pretend they are not a problem.
Vowles: "Don't worry, we're still not back on Excel spreadsheets. But we are in a much better way of working."
Williams also needs to invest in bringing more of its systems up to date, with Vowles revealing that some of Williams CAD design software is 15 years out of date.
"If that's one piece I'm showing you, there's probably 100 behind the scenes," he added. "And we're going to get to each and every one of them: find them, fix them."
## The innovation on the horizon
Solving production, software and infrastructure flaws is not all that is needed.
Vowles says that critical to a turnaround is a change of mindset too – with Williams needing to get its confidence back.
"When the pressure came on, we didn't push the boundaries as much as I know we can," he said.
So that is why he sees the need for Williams’ revised lighter chassis that is set to arrive from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix to lay a marker for the future.
It needs to be proof not only that the team’s design and manufacturing capabilities are back on track – but also that the squad itself is in a totally different place to before.
Vowles says the new chassis is going to push boundaries of innovation in terms of how it has come together.
"True innovation for me is that when another team finds out about it, they will change what they do," he said.
"This learning will be one that kicks us off for the next five years. There's no other chassis on the grid made the way we've done it. I can give you an assurance of that."
Vowles wants the chassis innovation, whatever it is, to be evidence that Williams can get things right – and to act as inspiration for that approach to flow through everything Williams does.
"It's those projects that allow us to start thinking differently, that allow you to start moving up the grid. There's just not enough of them, and they're not happening quick enough. They need to be."
The lessons of 2026 have highlighted that the changes that Vowles made to Williams since his arrival did not go far enough.
This year’s "big failings" were a catalyst to push more and have resulted in a team that Vowles says is now in a "different world".
It’s not been an easy time, and one that Vowles says made for the most difficult winter he can remember in F1.
But there is a hope and belief the team has now bottomed out. With that new chassis coming for Baku, the time is nigh to prove it.
### What's gone wrong for this former F1 title contender
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-has-gone-wrong-for-former-f1-title-contender-piastri/
Last updated: 2026-09-01T09:10:43.000Z
A year ago, Oscar Piastri looked like he had one hand on the Formula 1 world championship trophy as he headed to Monza with a 34-point lead after McLaren team-mate Lando Norris's Zandvoort failure.
But Zandvoort 2025 was the last time Piastri won a grand prix. Norris has won the last two grands prix and Piastri is 55 points and three places behind his team-mate in seventh in the standings. Piastri was extremely unlucky in the Hungary race that Norris won but he could/should have, but in the Netherlands he finished over half a minute behind Norris in sixth.
Norris has been the more impressive McLaren performer on balance this season, so what's going on with Piastri?
Edd Straw, Mark Hughes and Val Khorounzhiy debated that in The Race F1 Podcast's latest episode.
## The driving style issue
**Mark Hughes:** I see him struggling more with this generation of car especially in low-grip situations. And that was exposed a little bit at the tail end of last year when we got on the low-grip circuits, Mexico in particular.
These cars now have less downforce and are running on smaller tyres with higher tyre pressures. Piastri does still seem to be trying to drive it in his natural way with a later turn-in, more on the steering - similar to what's happening with George Russell, but I think Russell is a little bit further along with understanding it and ironing it out.
I would say Norris has a much more malleable style in terms of how he's working the car. He needs the front end to get introduced into the corner, but he doesn't demand everything of it immediately in the way that Oscar does. Sometimes you then get into a situation where you've induced an understeer and then you've got so much lock on that when the front finally does grip up, then you've got an oversteer snap and you've lost time going in and you've lost time coming out.
You then look at set-up changes to try to alleviate that, but it takes the car further away from its ideal sweet spot and the problem compounds.
We've seen the level that Oscar can perform to and that won't have changed. It's just a question of finding that sweet spot again and getting the car to work around that.
## Is the narrative fair?
**Edd Straw:** It's important not to swing too hard with the narratives. There were times last year when people would say Piastri was certain to win the championship and he'd made Norris look like a fraud.
Now Norris has turned things around and people say Piastri is rubbish.
So many things go into making each of these individual race weekends work. It's so complicated - and really tiny differences can look enormous.
But I wouldn't say Piastri's had a bad season as such. He led at Suzuka. At the Hungaroring he was struggling for pace but he drove a fantastic race before Carlos Sainz hit him. He was on a trajectory to win a race he wasn't really quick enough to win.
There's still been a lot of good. It would be a real mistake to portray him as some kind of ghostly figure alongside Norris at McLaren who needs to get out.
## He's still improving
**Val Khorounzhiy:** You judge team-mates against each other and by and large it's a zero-sum game. When one rises, the other must fall.
But there's just not very much to be judging Piastri with based on this season. Take into account the fact that this is a guy who didn't start the first two races of the season and that McLaren's car is still evolving.
Go back to the qualifying element. Piastri is a driver where you can trace a weekend through all the practice sessions, maybe even Q1 and Q2 and think he's half a step behind Norris and that he's really in trouble. Then suddenly come Q3, maybe he won't beat Norris, but he's only half a tenth off. Where did that come from?
Norris had got used to a fairly comfortable life with Daniel Ricciardo next to him. Whenever the two were out on track together, you could count on Norris just obliterating him in terms of laptime. And here comes Piastri, who you think you have a handle on through the weekend, and then boom, something happens. I imagine that would have been a culture shock for Norris that maybe he took half a season to deal with.
It is still alarming to see weekends where Piastri's 30 seconds off his team-mate at the finish. That's never good. He's obviously still going to be a work in progress in year four in F1\. But if he is a generational superstar or whatever, then you would have ideally liked weekends like that to not show up anymore, the way they maybe don't show up for a lot of the other top drivers.
But he's working. We know he can improve parts of his game. It's a safe bet to expect him to improve this part and get better at adapting to these cars and become more of a sort of adjustable driver like Norris, even if maybe he will never quite be Norris.
### What's killed off the F1 driver market
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/whats-killed-off-the-f1-driver-market/
Last updated: 2026-08-31T09:54:25.000Z
The Formula 1 driver market is dead. But who killed it? And when will it truly return?
Max Verstappen and Lando Norris's huge new Red Bull and McLaren deals mean many of F1's prime seats are locked down until the end of the decade.
So why aren't star drivers moving very often? Is it good or bad for F1? And is there any hope for aspiring F1 drivers and fans who want a more volatile driver market?
## Is our perception accurate?
The statistics are clear: there’s a very, very strong downward trend in what you might call driver market volatility. Measuring driver changes from one year to another, it’s about half of what it was at the start of the 1990s - with a pretty continuous trend downwards.
There are also extreme spikes - such as 2019 and 2025 - featuring a huge amount of change. But they’re the exception.
The trend applies very clearly when you limit it to changes among the top four teams at any time. Driver market movement has declined by around half.
If you count Toro Rosso as effectively part of Red Bull, Verstappen and Norris could realistically be ‘lifers’ for their F1 teams. Norris is on course for at least 12 seasons at McLaren and to cruise past Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard’s records of nine after next year. Charles Leclerc is on course to beat Michael Schumacher’s record 11-season run at Ferrari.
Bar Hakkinen and Nico Rosberg (who both still started at smaller teams), every F1 champion in the last 40+ years has made at least one significant team move in their career - until most recent champions Norris and Verstappen. They’re at the vanguard of this new trend of extreme career stability.
## Reason 1: The cost cap
Exact figures for deals such as Verstappen and Norris’s are kept secret, but they’re known to be in the mega-millions. And they’re outside the limits of the cost cap - the early-2020s bid to introduce a driver salary cap within that too having been rejected.
Throw in the explosion in team valuations and the commercial popularity of F1, and there’s more money flowing around the top teams but a hard limit on what they can spend on car development, which means spectacular amounts of money are available for top teams to spend on driver salaries. And that gives teams the financial firepower to tie down their ‘franchise’ drivers long-term - and gives drivers plenty of financial security.
Being able to promise driver continuity also helps for tying down long-term deals with potential sponsors, so it’s in teams’ interests.
## Reason 2: F1's very slow 'social mobility'
What you might call the ‘social mobility’ of F1 teams - the potential for their competitiveness to rise and fall - has slowed significantly. Drivers have to be more long-term strategic. Remember Norris being linked with a Red Bull move in Red Bull and Verstappen’s heyday, while McLaren was still yet to resume winning? Norris could’ve jumped ship just as McLaren usurped Red Bull at the top.
Even pre-cost cap there were very few potential or proven championship-winning teams. Now the baked-in facilities advantages of the teams that could spend heavily before the cost cap and the way the cap limits the potential for big development leaps from season to season make it much harder - and slower - for ‘upwardly mobile’ teams to actually progress.
It’s therefore a much bigger leap of faith for a driver to pick an ambitious midfielder such as an Audi, Alpine or even Aston Martin, than it would’ve been just a few years ago. If you’ve got a seat in an established top team secured, you want to keep hold of it. Drivers are no longer chasing the elusive great team to leap into next.
## Reason 3: The adaptation period has got longer
It takes longer to adapt to a new team than ever before, and that means any big team move guarantees an adaptation period that might effectively waste a first season. Lewis Hamilton’s 2025 struggle and much better 2026 at Ferrari are a prime example, and Carlos Sainz - a prolific 'mover' who's raced for five different teams - recently told The Race that he feels he gains at least a tenth of a second per lap just from team familiarity in his second season at a team.
These are now very, very complicated cars, with a lot of subtleties. Teams are bigger than ever, with more personnel and processes to adapt to. It takes a long time to get the last fractions of a second out of a new car and team. Drivers can no longer be confident of jumping into a new team and very quickly getting the best out of its car.
## Does it matter and should anything be done?
We love a driver rumour mill, but it’s not purely a media-confected thing. Fans want to see different drivers in different teams taking on different challenges - it’s a fundamental part of F1.
But it can’t be forced. MotoGP, for instance, is eyeing up a rider transfer window for different reasons, and has a convention of two-year rider contract cycles anyway. Something like a contract-length limit would be contrived and restrictive for no real benefit.
If F1 can create more opportunity for teams’ form to fluctuate, drivers will have more incentive to move around. With four teams in the mix to a degree at the front right now, this feels like a less urgent priority than in eras of clear single-team domination, but keeping hold of the recent influx of new and returning manufacturers will be easier if they see tangible routes to the top. F1 also needs to think more about what it’s doing to bring more young drivers through.
## Where are there signs of hope?
One significant move could still trigger a domino effect, and the most obvious contender is Hamilton. He’ll be at Ferrari next season but will be approaching 43 years old by the end of it. Will he retire at the end of 2027? That *could* create a lot of changes… but equally Ferrari could simply slot Ollie Bearman in and it would remain something of a closed system.
Remember that even in deals such as Verstappen at Red Bull there will be performance clauses. He’s not going to completely handcuff himself to Red Bull. If a once-top team is suddenly ninth in the championship, a leading driver won’t get stuck there.
And will Oscar Piastri decide he wants a move out of McLaren? He's still got a few years on his deal, but it's possible. Does George Russell see life alongside Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes as what he wants for the long term?
Based on where we know some of these contracts are now, it could be 2031 - which is currently scheduled to be when the rules change, likely pivoting to V8 engines - when we next see major movement.
But you never know. And that's the tantalising thing with the driver market. It may feel flat and locked, but you never know when that bombshell happens that will change everything and the market scrambles again. As the data shows, the general picture is much calmer now than it used to be, but when there’s a spike in movement, it tends to be a very big one.
### Why Quartararo is now refusing to help Yamaha
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/why-quartararo-is-now-refusing-to-help-yamaha/
Last updated: 2026-08-31T08:27:11.000Z
The Aragon MotoGP weekend has exposed fresh tension between Yamaha and its Honda-bound star Fabio Quartararo.
It came amid an uncharacteristically subpar outing for the 2021 MotoGP champion, who struggled to competitively assert himself against the other Yamaha riders - and finished the grand prix last, nearly 52 seconds back from the winner, after going off multiple times.
Quartararo and Yamaha seemed to have settled into a 'truce' of sorts after the Frenchman resolved his future. Disappointed with Yamaha's development efforts for nearly half a decade, Quartararo never entertained penning a 2027 deal with his current employer - admitting recently that he never initiated any renewal talks before committing to Honda instead in the off-season.
But this ultimately seemed to settle things. With Yamaha firmly in a 'rebuilding' year as it focused on exploring its first attempt at a V4 engine, Quartararo has produced the occasional heroics and fairly reliably led the line within its four-rider regular roster.
He has also publicly accepted that Yamaha would deprioritise improving the current 1000cc bike ahead of the 2027 switch to 850cc and Pirelli tyres, acknowledging that this made sense for the project.
Yet doing development work that could benefit that 850cc project appears to be where Quartararo draws the line.
He was uncomfortable with the bike during the Aragon weekend but also unsettled by Yamaha's requests to re-test a new chassis that he had already found lacking.
"It's worse," he insisted on Saturday. "Yesterday I said it was worse, they wanted me to compare again this morning, it was worse \[again\]. I was more of a test rider this weekend, testing three times the chassis, it was not working. We had a new linkage also, it was not improved."
He took a firmer line on Sunday, saying that he will "stop trying 100 things in a weekend".
More revealing, though, were his reported comments to French media in attendance - in which he said he would not be aiding Yamaha's development due to "personal reasons".
This comes off as particularly unseemly given Quartararo has been very well-compensated in this contract cycle for limited on-track results (though they have clearly been limited by machinery rather than his own underperformance), and perhaps Quartararo himself is aware of this - because, according to French reporters, he subsequently revealed that these "personal reasons" were what he claims is a Yamaha refusal to allow him to try the Pirelli tyres in the Red Bull Ring test after the Austrian Grand Prix.
Yamaha will never put him on the 850cc bike, which it is developing with testers Augusto Fernandez and Andrea Dovizioso - but one idea that has been floating is at least giving riders in contractual situations like Quartararo's a shot at running Pirellis on the current 1000cc machines.
Whatever the precise details of that test, there's now again an added needle over the final eight rounds of the Quartararo-Yamaha partnership - which was once one of the best stories in MotoGP.
### Every 2025-26 Formula E driver ranked from worst to best
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/every-2025-26-formula-e-driver-ranked-from-worst-to-best/
Last updated: 2026-08-31T06:20:38.000Z
Eight drivers went into the Formula E season finale weekend with a chance of the 2025-26 world championship after a typically wild campaign.
But who actually did the best (and worst) job?
Sam Smith ranks all the drivers’ performances from worst to best.
## 20 Norman Nato
**Nissan**
Points: 20
Championship position: 19th
Best result: 5th
Nato’s season was barely an improvement over his last. In fact, in terms of points, it was actually just worse with one fewer than he achieved in 2025.
Forty-one points across 33 races tells only some of the story of Nato’s two-season return to Nissan after what was a decent initial campaign in 2023 before a one-off season with Andretti in ‘24\.
His net return was clearly never going to be good enough to stay as Oliver Rowland’s team-mate, yet his actual performances, particularly in the first half of the season, were reasonably strong.
Jarama in particular looked promising with a fine fourth on the grid. But things went south quickly in the race with a mistake at Turn 1 and then a cycle back through the field thereafter. That became a familiar story in his season, as strategic missteps and a lack of race execution cost he and the team dearly.
Victor Martins was seriously considered as a replacement for Nato after the Jarama weekend but Nissan stuck by him at least to the end of the season.
There was genuine poor luck too for Nato, such as being shunted off by an errant Pascal Wehrlein in Sanya when he was in line for strong points. He then got serious salt sprinkled into the wounds at Shanghai, with a penalty for new components as a result of Wehrlein’s mistake.
Nato showed some grit in taking a strong sixth in Tokyo but by then he knew his time at Nissan was over.
A fine racing driver and a positive influence on any team, Nato has had a lucrative Formula E career, but now his six-season stint there is done.
## 19 Zane Maloney
**Lola Yamaha Abt**
Points: 3
Championship position: 20th
Best result: 10th x3
If there is a contest for the most ludicrously unlucky driver in 2026 then Maloney takes the top step of that podium, and by a huge margin.
It seemed at stages that whatever the F2 race winner did, it ended with proverbial egg all over his face to match his garish yellow overalls. The Lola driver could not catch a break throughout the season as whatever ill luck was floating around he inadvertently caught.
In Jeddah he got swiped out by a wayward Pepe Marti, then qualified an excellent 10th next day and then got a bizarre penalty for an energy overspike on the way to the grid, at Shanghai his driveshaft broke; in London he had another breakage…and on it went. Most of the incidents Maloney could do little about. He must have felt like howling at the moon.
His pace and understanding of Formula E was much improved from his rookie season in 2025\. It was telling that it all led to an opportunity at Nissan for Gen4, in which the Bajan is expected to be able to reveal his potential in Formula E much more. After an exasperating season of underachievement, due largely to circumstances way beyond his control, many feel as though he deserves it.
## 18 Lucas di Grassi
**Lola Yamaha Abt**
Points: 32
Championship position: 17th
Best result: 1st
Di Grassi’s final significant act in Formula E was typical box office from the rumbustious Brazilian polymath.
A sensational call by him and his engineer Markus Michelberger paid off beyond their own imaginations for an unforgettable win at Shanghai. It was like Formula E’s own little weird fairytale.
As a send-off for a driver who has been an integral part of Formula E’s growing up over the last 14 years or so it was perfect.
Di Grassi will likely always be a central part of the Formula E paddock but his final season was ultimately 90% frustration and 10% Shanghai sensation.
Again, poor reliability and a lack of out-and-out efficiency meant that aside from freak chances like Shanghai both he and team-mate Maloney were anchored to lowly positions.
Di Grassi didn’t make it out of the qualifying group stages at all. That was telling because although he was in his final season, he was still able to turn it on when allowed to but it just didn’t happen for him in qualifying. His racecraft was typically robust but this year there were markedly fewer contacts - tactical or otherwise - with his rivals.
Ultimately, despite his best efforts the deficits to other cars just couldn’t be overcome and the two season deficit that Lola Yamaha Abt had to others told pretty starkly across its two seasons of Gen3\.
But di Grassi should be afforded huge kudos for the manner in which he led development and the team as a whole, which with a recalibration and new hires for Gen4 could become a surprise package.
Di Grassi meanwhile will celebrate the birth of another child in the coming months and spend some much needed time with his family. But it won’t be too long until the competitive urge strikes and he’s at Interlagos in a Stock Car or two.
## 17 Maximilian Guenther
**DS Penske**
Points: 23
Championship position: 18th
Best result: 6th x2
Although not Guenther’s worst season in Formula E (that came in 2022 in his single campaign with a transitional Nissan team), this was punctuated by scrappy team strategies, misguided race plans and an inherently mediocre DS Penske technical package.
It’s therefore really hard to gauge Guenther’s season properly because it was essentially ruined by these factors and not by anything he could tangibly control.
For DS Penske to finish the season 91 points off stablemate Citroen kind of told its own story. Decisions on race tactics fell way short.
Guenther was fast in qualifying and races but was rarely in the position to use that speed to gain material benefits.
With Penske not able to tell him what car he’d be racing in Gen4, Guenther took the decision to accept an offer from Envision, where he will line up alongside Zak O’Sullivan. He will immediately try to banish the memory of recent struggles to the back of his mind and rebuild the strong momentum of fine seasons with Maserati MSG and DS Penske prior to 2026.
## 16 Jean-Eric Vergne
**Citroen**
Points: 68
Championship position: 12th
Best result: 2nd
Vergne’s switch from DS Penske to Citroen felt like a seamless one until it became clear around the mid-season mark that he was never going to get close to the potential of new team-mate Nick Cassidy in being able to fight for wins and podiums.
By downscaling his racing programme and taking a season off from Peugeot sportscar competition, it was assumed Vergne would be fully attuned to FE and at least getting one final Gen3 win to add to his Hyderabad E-Prix success back in February 2023.
But it really never looked like happening, other than a surprise chance at Shanghai when he gambled on dry settings and just lost out to old rival di Grassi.
Vergne loathed the Gen3 car concept completely. He was never truly comfortable with it but he can still race, as he proved at Shanghai and Tokyo in particular. Yet, there were also too many races where he barely featured. Yes, he had far from the best car out there but for a second consecutive season Vergne was generally beaten on pace by his team-mate, which would not have been countenanced in the late Gen1 and early Gen2 eras.
There were a lot of misfortunes but it all ultimately felt like Vergne was just counting down the days to when he could kick his Gen3 experience into touch.
He will now attempt to rekindle the potent force he was in Gen2, and that mission starts now as he pounds around desolate European test tracks developing the Stellantis Gen4 car.
## 15 Joel Eriksson
**Envision**
Points: 55
Championship position: 16th
Best result: 3rd
Very few fancied Eriksson’s chances at Envision and although he won’t retain his seat there for Gen4, the amiable Swede can feel quite hard done by after a promising season.
Eriksson’s CV is one of racing’s hidden gems. A reasonably close runner-up to Lando Norris in European F3 back in 2017 and a DTM race winner, he has a seriously strong pedigree.
He also had some real believers at Jaguar where he was a very highly rated reserve and sim driver. It was a recommendation from Jaguar’s Gary Ekerold that helped Eriksson seal the Envision drive and he pretty much made the most of the chance by making strong impressions on tracks he had no experience of.
One of Envision’s leading engineers, Connor Summerville, pulled this writer aside in Sao Paulo in December and essentially said that The Race’s pre-season questioning of the decision to hire Eriksson would be proved wide of the mark. He was right. Eriksson scored points in half of the races, claimed a mega podium at Shanghai and kept ultra-experienced team-mate Sebastien Buemi honest throughout.
Buemi’s 22 point haul at the London finale pulled him away and out of sight of Eriksson but generally the two were evenly matched. Eriksson’s median gap to the fastest driver in qualifying was the same as Buemi’s and the overall fight in qualifying went Eriksson’s way at 9-8.
So, while Eriksson strives for drives at Penske and Lola now, he can at least look back on a very credible return to one of motorsport’s toughest pound-for-pound grids.
## 14 Pepe Marti
**Cupra Kiro**
Points: 66
Championship position: 13th
Best result: 2nd
A little like Eriksson, no one really fancied Marti’s chances in Formula E, as he embarked on a huge career change just after he’d turned 20\.
A late deal meant just a few days of testing and his signing was really a big risk for Cupra Kiro team. Those thoughts soon faded into the distance in what ultimately became one of Formula E’s strongest rookie seasons ever.
Two podiums and nine points scores from 17 races was a super strong haul from the Spaniard. Yet it all looked to be heading for disaster initially, after he barrel-rolled his Porsche to destruction when a full course yellow mistake played out in Sao Paulo.
This is where not only Marti, but also Kiro, need a special mention because other teams and drivers may have panicked a bit at this point. They didn’t and the resulting calm brought results.
Marti was a chunk off team-mate Dan Ticktum on out-and-out pace but that was no disgrace at all in a first season, especially in the last of a rules set, and against a talent like Ticktum. Marti’s racecraft was naturally impressive, especially from round three in Miami onwards, and his layered races were tactically excellent. He has an exciting Formula E career ahead of him.
## 13 Felipe Drugovich
**Andretti**
Points: 65
Championship position: 14th
Best result: 2nd
It’s simultaneously true to say both that Drugovich under-delivered on what was expected of him in 2026 and also that he ultimately delivered enough to make him stand out as a definite future E-Prix winner.
He had a horrible start to the season with mistakes in several of the opening races, most notably when he threw a podium away in Miami after he misjudged his braking and clouted the back of Antonio Felix da Costa’s Jaguar.
It was after that incident that Drugovich changed his approach a little and started to look at the longer game. That philosophy played out nicely in Monaco with a stealthy runner-up place, which in turn triggered a series of good results, including fifth in Sanya (should have been a podium but for a penalty) and fourth at Shanghai.
Finally, Andretti had a team-mate capable of scoring big points when Jake Dennis didn’t. It made for a much more cohesive camp at the US team and Drugovich, despite a sloppy end to the season in Tokyo and London, felt like a driver really on the cusp of doing something quite special in Gen4.
## 12 Sebastien Buemi
**Envision**
Points: 97
Championship position: 10th
Best result: 2nd
Buemi bowing out of Formula E came quickly and perhaps the appreciation he really deserved wasn’t quite as fulsome as it should have been because of the timing of the news. He will, like di Grassi, still be involved but in a much different capacity in the future, yet his legacy will live on as one of the true original greats.
His final season was a consistent one with six top six positions, the highlights of which were his incredible pole position at Mexico City and a strong second in Jeddah to da Costa. Each of those races he could possibly have won in different circumstances but in Mexico he made an embarrassing error by out-braking himself at the first corner.
There were mistakes and lost opportunities but in a team that had been slightly cut adrift from partner Jaguar in the mid-phase of Gen3, Buemi’s experience held things together and he was, unlike di Grassi, always a threat in the top six during his final season.
For that Buemi deserves extra credit because at the age of 37, like Edoardo Mortara, he showed that he still had a turn of pace and finally a strong understanding of pack racing. He left the championship very much on a high.
## 11 Taylor Barnard
**DS Penske**
Points: 68
Championship position: 11th
Best result: 1st
Barnard’s win in the London finale, while brilliant and thoroughly deserved, couldn’t hide the disappointment of a season which tested his resolve greatly.
Changing from a Nissan to a Stellantis Gen3 car was never going to be easy but Barnard prepared and honed himself excellently, fitting into the Phil Charles led Penske environment with aplomb.
But wrong steps on race strategies, poor team calls and mediocre efficiency from the powertrain all combined to leave Barnard scratching around the lower points reaches for the vast majority of the season.
He was the fifth-best in the average starting position ranking (8.18), with Cassidy the only other Stellantis runner in that top 10.
In group qualifying his median gap to the front was a tiny 0.139s, so he definitely had the pace.
But when moored to the lower echelons in races frustration creeped in and he had a few erratic days, notably at Jarama and Monaco. He managed to wipe out Vergne on both occasions, much to the double champion’s chagrin.
Barnard calmed it down quickly and had a very strong end to the season, dealing with not only a slowly dying DS relationship but also a lack of knowledge of what he would be driving in Gen4.
He now knows and is relishing the Gen4 period when like Marti, O’Sullivan and Theo Pourchaire he will be aiming to make Formula E’s youth movement surge to the top.
## 10 Nyck de Vries
**Mahindra**
Points: 115
Championship position: 7th
Best result: 1st x2
A position in the top 10 looked a bit fanciful for de Vries after a succession of mistakes in the first quarter of the season left him cut adrift of his Mahindra team-mate Mortara by a huge 79 points as he rocked up in his town of Monaco in May.
It was there that he quenched Mahindra’s almost five-year thirst for a win after an assured and patient display. It kick-started his season nicely and the errors stopped.
Yet, those blunders, such as clouting team-mate Mortara and Ticktum off the start line in Sao Paulo (unbelievably not punished!) and his reckless assault on Pascal Wehrlein at Jarama threw away points that otherwise might have meant he actually usurped Mortara in the final standings.
De Vries’ propensity to sometimes drive like a thrashing electric eel was still there but it dissipated as the season went on. His win in Tokyo was sublime, as was his pole position in the final race in London, which should have been the platform for a third win but for tactical sloppiness.
On the whole, this was a strong season for de Vries but he himself knows that he and Mahindra were actually capable of a lot more. Expect a stronger and more consistent de Vries in Gen4
## 9 Nico Mueller
**Porsche**
Points: 102
Championship position: 9th
Best result: 1st
Mueller had plenty of doubters after a tricky first half-season when he was seconded to Porsche customer Andretti in 2025\. But a recovery in the second half of that campaign gave Porsche the confidence it needed to ensure he replaced da Costa in the factory team and would be a long-term solution.
It was a shrewd move because Mueller was strong from the start, already bringing big points by the time he arrived in Miami in January. It was there that Mueller went from solid team player to potential race winner when he scored an exceptional pole position in tricky conditions.
He followed that up with a fine second place before his day of days came in Berlin, when he brought home the bacon with his ‘Rosa Schwein’ Porsche, taking a conclusive win.
But weirdly that then seemed to trigger some rare erratic driving in Mueller too. There was a clash with da Costa in the second Berlin race, for which he was fortunate not to get penalised, and then his ramming of team-mate Wehrlein at La Rascasse was embarrassing in Monaco.
Those aberrations apart, Mueller had a strong season, one in which yes he was occasionally a bit of a patsy for Wehrlein, but there were enough strong races and 102 points. While not quite enough for the teams’ title this time, that score was a big part of Porsche’s manufacturers’ crown, as well as being by far Mueller’s best ever points total during his five seasons in Formula E.
## 8 Dan Ticktum
**Cupra Kiro**
Points: 62
Championship position: 15th
Best result: 1st
Imagine a giant malfunctioning neon sign that occasionally flashes ‘genius’ then sparks out, and on other occasions flashes up ‘irritant’. Ticktum operates like a human glitch flashing up those two traits spontaneously around the racetracks of the world.
Quite how an individual can weave pure magic like he did in Monaco to deliver two of Formula E’s best ever qualifying laps, but then flounce out of the paddock in a sulky huff soon afterwards, is really hard to explain or comprehend. But this is Dan Ticktum. Plenty love him as much as they are utterly baffled by him. And vice versa.
On the positive side, Ticktum proved again that occasionally, when the circumstances are right, he can deliver exceptional things at the wheel of a racing car.
He was, from the first qualifying session in Sao Paulo, ‘on it’. The problem was that difficulties with aspects of how Cupra Kiro treated and prepared the older version of the Porsche 99X Electric frustrated Ticktum and he didn’t seem to be capable enough to address them properly himself.
Monaco was a prime example. When trying to get a solution for the overheating tyres just didn’t materialise, he went into a perpetual loop of frustration that ended in a meltdown. That is always going to have repercussions and so it proved.
There was then an ill-advised blast at stewards at Shanghai and a highly scratchy finale in London when he refused orders to allow team-mate Marti through, clearly and concisely telling his own team principal Russell O’Hagan to f\*\*\* off.’
Ticktum has chances at Lola and Penske for next season, as well as a remote possibility of staying at Kiro. Gen4 should be right up his street and the notion that he won’t be part of the grid at all, which is a real prospect, seems ludicrous for a driver capable of truly great things albeit with a side garnish of volatile madness.
## 7 Nick Cassidy
**Citroen**
Points: 114
Championship position: 8th
Best result: 1st
On one level Cassidy deserves to be much higher in this list simply because of the way he adapted to a new manufacturer so quickly, after his move from Jaguar to Citroen.
To win in only his second race for Citroen, in what was arguably the best victory of the season and perhaps in the Kiwi’s whole Formula E career, was a remarkable accomplishment. At that stage it felt genuinely like he could fight for the title.
Yet, as Cassidy said privately at the time and something that was corroborated by his late team boss Cyril Blais, such a notion as a title tilt was always going to be way too far-fetched in 2026.
Jeddah was the real realisation of that realisation. That was when strategic conflict cul de sacsplayed out and caused irritation between driver and team. It wasn’t the only time it happened and occasionally Cassidy got a bit scrappy, especially in the second race at Berlin and then again in Monaco when he shunted Dennis off.
Some high points came Cassidy’s way again, especially with a double podium in Tokyo. In light of Blais’ death just a week before, his races there were hands down the grittiest and bravest performances of the season.
The bigger picture though for Cassidy is Gen4\. This is the real reason he jumped ship from Jaguar at the end of 2025.
The overt pack racing of Gen3 was Cassidy’s own private plaything and he was the best at it. A growing theory that he won’t be as good in Gen4 should be deemed well wide of the mark. The last time he was in a big powerful single-seater was in Super Formula, a series which he won handsomely in 2019.
## 6 Edoardo Mortara
**Mahindra**
Points: 137
Championship position: 5th
Best result: 2nd x2
It seems absurd to think that di Grassi won a race this season and Mortara did not. Such was Mortara and Mahindra’s pace and performances across most of the campaign that it feels a complete injustice he didn’t stand atop the podium.
He had his best season since 2021-22 with a suite of performances that were as dynamic as they were consistent. After the first race in Berlin, Mortara led the title fight. But after that he was simply hanging on as a contender and never really felt like he could challenge the Wehrlein, Evans, Dennis axis.
Mortara’s superpower is being super aggressive with the Hankook tyres and getting them into a pliable state so that he can retain the heat for his qualifying laps. His average starting position was the third best after Wehrlein and da Costa, but it was his ability to pivot his Mahindra so incredibly in Jeddah, Berlin and Tokyo that really took the breath away.
There was real misfortune for Mortara too this season. He should have won at Mexico City but for a slight technical issue, and then in Sanya when he was right in contention for what would likely have been at least a second place a stray piece of debris hit his car's external emergency shut-off loop, instantly killing its power. That was also essentially the kill switch for Mortara’s title chances.
At 39, Mortara is enjoying a great Indian summer at Mahindra. It will continue into Gen4 and don’t bet against him really featuring in that era too.
## 5 Oliver Rowland
**Nissan**
Points: 137
Championship position: 4th
Best result: 1st
The points were good, so were a lot of the performances, yet there also seemed to be something missing from Rowland’s title defence season.
After the dream first three-quarters of the season in 2025, the final part was tetchy and a feeling of unease permeated his 2026\. It all came to a head in July when Rowland looked at one stage to potentially be flying the Nissan nest. It settled down but some questions still remain about their working relationship as Gen4 looms.
The 2025-26 campaign began reasonably strongly for Rowland but Miami and Madrid disasters ultimately lost him a foothold in the title battle, one which he never at any point headed.
A brilliant win in Monaco was his only top step of the year appearance but equally excellent podiums at Berlin and Sao Paulo were definite highs too.
But the lows were like depth charges. He was furious after Jarama when the team all but fell apart tactically and then amid a damp end to the season he acquiesced the title with nothing but a whimper. That's not the Rowland way or style and it should trigger a significant retaliation and rejuvenation in Gen4.
## 4 Antonio Felix da Costa
**Jaguar**
Points: 128
Championship position: 6th
Best result: 1st x2
A combative season from a driver who for the first half of it was still learning the ‘Big Cat’ ways at Jaguar after a torrid couple of seasons at Porsche.
The hangover from that though was not too painful, as da Costa quickly adapted to getting quick wins at Jeddah and Jarama. They were both well-deserved after races that were constructed elegantly with his new engineer, Kazuto Shiomitsu.
Monaco was a crossroads in the sense of a title quest for da Costa. After the dust had settled on his controversial coming together with Ticktum, da Costa himself admitted he might have been a bit more patient.
It all cost him at least 18 points, which combined with being swiped out of a similar position in Miami by an errant Drugovich, was ultimately the difference between finishing sixth in the final standings and still having a proper title challenge in London.
With better luck and a little more patience, da Costa will be a factor for the title next season. His grasp of the Gen4 car is already said to be highly impressive and his hunger to add to his 2019-20 title, which he couldn’t celebrate properly because of the pandemic, is now off the scale.
But some caution is needed as well. What he can’t afford to do is get sucked into another chapter of his bitter feud with Wehrlein next season. Because the only winners out of such antics as the two displayed at London are the opposition and rabid headline hunters.
## 3 Jake Dennis
**Andretti**
Points: 164
Championship position: 2nd
Best result: 1st x2
Walking back to the nearby hotel from the Sao Paulo paddock last December, Dennis swung his trophy with one hand and fought to send a text message with the other. Simultaneously, as drivers seem to be able to do, he also held a conversation with this writer about the final Gen3 season, which he had just started in the best way possible.
His overview was essentially that outright consistency would be the key and that if he and Andretti did what they did in 2023, when he fought back from a mid-season slump to take the crown with a stellar end to the season, then they had a chance to top and tail the Gen3 era with titles.
He was nearly proved right because his 2026 had some eerie similarities with that 2023 campaign.
The mid-season trough came with a barren period between Miami in late January and Monaco (where he rarely gets any joy) in mid-May. Again, he picked up zero points in the Principality, and as he headed to his home near the track, any thought of a 2023 repeat was surely over, such was the gap (62 points) to Wehrlein the leader.
But then, as the series embarked on its Asian leg, Dennis’ hopes were reborn with a win in Sanya, a podium at Shanghai and then two poles and a pair of podiums in Tokyo.
It was Tokyo where the title was really lost, however. In the first race he had one hand on the winner’s trophy until a slight energy overspend allowed Ticktum through on the final lap. Then in the second race a compromise on his attack mode, via a full course yellow, shattered his plan to hunt down de Vries for what would have been a relatively simple victory.
The messy circumstances of his rude exit via Wehrlein from the London finale were quickly digested, with Dennis telling the Race that having one title already it was easier to take such bad fortune.
He will surely be a champion again, though. But if it transpires against him and he doesn’t reprise 2023, he’s got a decent claim to being some kind of moral winner in 2026 after a brilliantly built season and a great degree of class in how he reacted to a bad-tempered final race.
## 2 Pascal Wehrlein
**Porsche**
Points: 169
Championship position: 1st
Best result: 1st x3
Only Formula E’s second double champion, and the first to be able to use the double world champion moniker, Wehrlein thrust himself into all-electric greatness in 2026.
His campaign was not perfect. But as a driver who had the ‘favourite’ tag ahead of the season he dealt with the pressure well, despite the vast majority of his competitors actively not wanting him to win.
Wehrlein is a monster of a competitor. Fast, agile, often uncompromising and most of all a cleverly effective racer, who utilises relationships in his team to a devastating degree of efficiency.
A prime example of that was the pace and immediate understanding he had with his new engineer for this season, Robert Sattler. They gelled incredibly well together and had each other’s backs throughout the season. An ‘us against the world’ mentality, reminiscent of football managers like Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson, soaked through their side of the garage and it was used to decent effect.
A brilliant pole and win in Jeddah, a pocket picking third at Jarama and a clinical win at London in the penultimate race were all important milestones in his successful title season.
But it was the way he came back from his mid-season slump in Monaco (hit by Mueller) and Sanya (mistake overtaking Nato) that really pointed to Wehrlein as a clear champion elect.
At Shanghai he smashed in some of the best qualifying laps of the season, before then taking a commanding win in the race. It took him from a 27 point deficit after Sanya to a nine point lead after Shanghai. Psychologically that was a very firm strike of the hammer from Wehrlein and Porsche.
While Wehrlein was a deserving champion, he was far from a popular one. A bit of a lone wolf in the paddock at times combined with that ‘us against the world’ mentality, while positive in getting the job done, is not popular outside of Porsche’s four walls. Others feel it unnecessary and insular.
Wehrlein will not care about all of that, and perhaps neither should he, because he has the silverware and the added kudos of now being a double champion.
At the same time some of his remarks after he took the title in London were on the wrong side of crassness. Maybe with the benefit of the doubt being the high-adrenalin, high-stress nature of that finale weekend he might look back and re-evaluate the veracity of some of the words he expressed that afternoon.
## 1 Mitch Evans
**Jaguar**
Points: 160
Championship position: 3rd
Best result: 1st x2
Fairytales rarely play out in motorsport. For Mitch Evans they don’t even try to.
Knowing pretty much since the start of the season that this would be his final campaign with Jaguar, the sentimental script was surely already written. After coming so close, so many times, one of Formula E’s greatest competitors would surely do it this time at the final time of asking.
Inevitably it went from despair to triumph and back again to despair over the nine month duration of the season. When Evans and Jaguar are involved nothing is ever straightforward or linear.
From a messy start in Sao Paulo in which he ended up in the barriers, to another scrappy non-score at Mexico City, it was hardly the foundation for that fairytale to happen. But then came a reflex win in the damp and cold of Miami and a string of results to the end of the Berlin weekend where he was all of a sudden just three points behind leader Wehrlein.
That win in Berlin was epic in the sense he gambled hugely on saving a set of tyres and came through from 17th on the grid. It was one of his best ever performances but actually his run from 16th to second at Jarama really set Evans apart.
This was an exquisite drive on a track much more difficult to overtake on than Berlin. Creating new racing lines and overtaking positions, Evans would have won it had it not been for a recalcitrant Mueller protecting Wehrlein (sound familiar?).
That scenario came back to haunt Evans a bit in London, but before that came Shanghai where a spec part failure made him a non-starter. This was the stake in the heart for his fairytale, and despite fighting performances in Tokyo and London, where again he was dealt a poor hand with the FCY, he just fell tantalisingly short.
But context is everything for Evans this season. And because of that final season scenario, the poor start, the incredible Jarama and the other many stand-out performances, Evans should be considered across the season as the absolute outstanding performer.
### Everything Ferrari's changing to try to win at Monza
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-ferraris-changing-to-try-to-win-at-monza/
Last updated: 2026-08-31T05:54:32.000Z
Ferrari's Zandvoort weekend marked not only its return to action after Formula 1’s summer break, but also the start of a new phase in the development of the SF-26.
A new floor and diffuser specification made its debut in the Netherlands, although the package represented only part of the upgrade Ferrari had originally planned for this stage of the season.
The initial plan was to introduce a more extensive update at Zandvoort. Ferrari ultimately decided to split the development programme, bringing forward the solutions that had already reached sufficient maturity while allowing more development time for the lateral section of the floor edge.
The floor used at Zandvoort was therefore mainly revised around the front floor boards and the diffuser.
The Race understands that the revised lateral floor edge will arrive later in the season, within a window currently stretching from Baku in late September to Austin a month later, with its exact introduction date still to be decided.
Overall, the Zandvoort package is estimated to have a potential worth around 0.15 seconds per lap.
So this is not a transformation of the SF-26, but another refinement of its aerodynamic platform, building on the floor evolution Ferrari had already introduced at Barcelona in mid-June - after which it won two of the next three grands prix.
Results have been harder to come by since the Silverstone win in July. Now it comes to Monza still with a degree of title hope for Lewis Hamilton in particular, and somewhat in need of home success. This is what it's doing to maximise its chances.
## Monza package is more than a wing trim
The Italian Grand Prix is inevitably one of the races Ferrari places particular emphasis on, but this year the technical significance of its home event goes beyond Monza's traditional importance to Maranello.
On paper, the circuit's characteristics could play more to the strengths of the Mercedes- and Red Bull-powered cars.
Monza’s long full-throttle sections put a premium on outright power and energy management, while aerodynamic efficiency remains crucial. It is not simply a question of how much power is available, but how much downforce a car can retain for a given level of drag.
That makes finding the right configuration for the SF-26 particularly important.
And this is where Ferrari's work on the floor takes on a second purpose.
With active aerodynamics and the extensive use of straight-line mode, the compromise required for Monza could be less extreme than it has historically been.
The Italian circuit has traditionally been associated with the lowest-downforce wing configurations of the season, but The Race understands Ferrari has taken a somewhat less conventional approach in its search for low drag in 2026.
The rear wing will naturally form part of the circuit-specific adaptation, but it is not where all of Ferrari's work has been focused.
A high-downforce specification was introduced in Hungary, some elements of which – including the hanger flaps – were retained for the Dutch GP.
Those additional devices will be removed for Monza. But there will not be a completely bespoke 'Monza-spec' rear wing.
Instead, Ferrari will remove or revise elements across the bodywork and wings. The front wing is not expected to undergo any significant changes, while the rear wing will be cleaned up through the removal of the hanger flaps.
A significant part of Ferrari's low-drag work has instead focused, once again, on the floor.
## The precedents
Ferrari has developed a Monza-specific adaptation of the floor aimed at reducing drag, following a similar direction to one it had already explored in Austria and Britain two months ago.
At those two races, the single vertical element in the floor-board area reappeared on the SF-26\. That configuration is set to return at Monza.
It had previously been used through to Miami at the start of May before Ferrari switched to the subsequent three-element arrangement, which was revised again as part of the Zandvoort update.
This makes the timing of the Dutch GP upgrade particularly interesting.
The new floor represents the latest development baseline for the SF-26, but individual components can still be adapted – or removed altogether – according to the requirements of a particular circuit.
For Monza, Ferrari's approach is therefore not simply to take downforce off through the wings. It is also looking at how the floor itself can contribute to reducing the car's overall drag.
## Why the exhaust wing stays
The ‘FTM’ or flick tail mode system – the small winglet positioned ahead of the exhaust outlet – has also been part of Ferrari's low-drag evaluation for Monza.
One of the options considered was removing it altogether, something Ferrari had already experimented with at the Red Bull Ring with both Spa and Monza in mind.
At Spa, however, the grip compromise and uncertain weather conditions led Ferrari to retain the winglet rather than sacrifice the downforce associated with it.
Its removal was considered again for Monza as Ferrari looked at ways of cleaning up that area and minimising drag.
However, The Race understands Ferrari has ultimately opted to keep the FTM, preferring to find drag reduction elsewhere on the SF-26.
## Then there's ADUO 2
The other element that could make Monza particularly significant for Ferrari is the power unit.
Maranello has a new internal combustion engine specification ready, developed using the second of its two available ADUO opportunities, after the first update was introduced in Austria alongside a new Shell fuel specification.
The ADUO 2 engine represents only a partial step compared with the broader development work Ferrari is carrying out on its internal combustion engine for 2027.
But some of that work can be transferred to the 2026 unit, and the new specification is already ready to race.
The question is when Ferrari chooses to introduce it – and Monza is a realistic possibility.
Ferrari is looking to align the introduction of its ADUO 2 engine with the addition of the fourth internal combustion engine and fourth turbocharger of the season to each driver's pool.
Both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have so far used three ICEs and three turbochargers.
Synchronising those two steps would allow Ferrari to introduce its latest engine specification at the same time as it brings a fresh unit into service anyway, then maximise the use of the upgraded version over the final part of the season.
There is no obligation for Ferrari to introduce it at Monza and a final decision has yet to be made.
The engine is ready, though, and the combination of Monza's characteristics and Ferrari's power-unit pool management makes the Italian Grand Prix a particularly logical opportunity to introduce it.
### Aragon Grand Prix 2026 MotoGP rider rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/aragon-grand-prix-2026-motogp-rider-rankings/
Last updated: 2026-08-31T07:27:05.000Z
Marc Marquez picked up the 37 points he had targeted at the Aragon Grand Prix - but was he the true star of the MotoGP weekend?
... OK, yes, he was, but there was another rider who shone every bit as bright, and it was very close between the two of them for number one honours in our rider rankings this weekend.
---
***Did Val make the right call? Let him know your thoughts and questions on*** [***this post in The Race Members' Club***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/quiz-val-on-his-168124815?ref=the-race.com) ***and he'll reply in his post-race Q&A***
---
**Qualifying:** 6th **Sprint:** 4th **Grand Prix:** 2nd
This isn't a perfect Acosta weekend - crashed in FP1 (as he does), crashed in Q2 (as he does), damaged his bike while dragging it back into its sprint grid slot after overshooting the mark.
But I feel zero hesitation placing Acosta as the number one here, despite the exceptional job Marc Marquez did, and below is the stat that swung it for me.
Acosta's fastest Aragon GP lap: 1m47.093s
Acosta's 20th-fastest Aragon GP lap: 1m47.457s
KTM's fastest non-Acosta Aragon GP lap: 1m47.734s
**Qualifying:** 2nd **Sprint:** 1st **Grand Prix:** 1st
Title rival Marco Bezzecchi correctly identified on Friday that Marquez was "for sure hiding a little bit". Despite Bezzecchi and Acosta's best efforts, he never really looked beatable when points were on the table this weekend.
A couple of rough edges here and there - a Turn 14 mistake chasing pole in Q2, a ride height device error while divebombing Bezzecchi at the start on Sunday - never looked like anything his sheer pace wouldn't overcome.
I suspect he could've won both races by a fair bit more if that were the target.
**Qualifying:** 1st **Sprint:** 3rd **Grand Prix:** 3rd
The left knee gash he suffered at Assen two months ago is still troubling Bezzecchi, and was a particular hindrance at Aragon - but as far as the battle within Aprilia goes, he was in total control all weekend, leading the line in every session but FP1.
It's fair to ask whether he did enough to protect his lead at Turn 1 in the sprint - Bezzecchi himself seemed to wonder exactly that - but the grand prix result seemed as good as it was ever going to get.
**Qualifying:** 9th **Sprint:** 9th **Grand Prix:** 15th
Awesome to have him back - and better still that he looks like he's never left.
Zarco said his only physical limitation was a bit of Friday cramping that he correlated with "six coffees on Thursday" - and the timesheets looked like a rider at full fitness, though also one who still needs to get back into the groove of wheel-to-wheel racing.
In the end it was incident-free and with the two long lap penalties for the crash in which he got hurt back in May finally served (and the Sunday pace was very solid, even if the long laps ruined the result).
Impossible to be unhappy with this.
**Qualifying:** 10th **Sprint:** 7th **Grand Prix:** 9th
Moreira has ranked higher than this a couple of times this season, but I suspect this was actually his best weekend yet in MotoGP, or at least his most purely competitive.
He under-delivered a bit on Friday and nearly denied himself Q2 by crashing late on in Q1, but his sheer pace carried him through - and for once he seemed comfortable enough doing his laps by himself, without a reference rider, which bodes incredibly well for his future.
Both races were strong, though Sunday in particular required him to hang on a bit - and he felt he could've kept Enea Bastianini behind for eighth with a cleaner final lap.
**Qualifying:** 3rd **Sprint:** 2nd **Grand Prix:** 4th
The younger Marquez ran his brother impressively close over one lap (faster on Friday, only a bit slower in Q2) and in the sprint - but had no answer in the longer distance.
His grand prix was partially determined by a messy run through the opening corners, including a missed gear through Turns 2-3, but Bezzecchi and Acosta were probably out of reach anyway - and Marc definitively so.
Nonetheless, he continues to impress.
**Qualifying:** 11th **Sprint:** 6th **Grand Prix:** 6th
Another injury returnee albeit from a shorter absence, Aldeguer was firmly in Ducati's B-tier this weekend - far off the Marquez brothers but probably stronger than the others - and seemed happy enough with that.
He found the low-grip Aragon wasn't punishing him physically, and seemed to have good pace - though he underwhelmed in Q2, so had to work hard for a pair of sixth places (which seemed about right for his performance).
**Qualifying:** 13th **Sprint:** 10th **Grand Prix:** 11th
Crashing on Friday afternoon while trying to stick with Marc Marquez for a laptime was the only bit of tangible underperformance from Miller all weekend, as he really impressed otherwise.
Equipped with an "old-new concept" swingarm, Miller led the Yamahas in qualifying and was pace-y in both races, though on Sunday ultimately had no answer to the straightline speed of the KTMs late on.
**Qualifying:** 5th **Sprint:** 5th **Grand Prix:** 5th
Martin's track record at Motorland Aragon in grand prix racing is unremarkable, and he didn't much improve it here - but also kept the weekend from being a disaster.
He plainly wasn't competitive relative to team-mate Bezzecchi but picked up a decent chunk of points, despite a very robust battle with Aprilia stablemate Raul Fernandez in the sprint.
Martin admitted this was "a really bad weekend, I think the worst almost of the season in terms of speed" - yet in that context was happy with the yield, and believed his struggles were more track- and low-grip-specific rather than a recurrence of his mid-year woes with the RS-GP's front end.
**Qualifying:** 19th **Sprint:** 12th **Grand Prix:** 13th
The second-best Yamaha rider this weekend, Rins quietly put together maybe his best weekend of the season - never the lead M1 rider but never particularly far from it.
He was competitive enough to be actively disappointed with a feisty enough P13 in the end, feeling he had the pace - but not the engine power - to at least beat former team-mate Joan Mir.
**Qualifying:** 15th **Sprint:** 16th **Grand Prix:** 12th
Mir found his usual strength - braking - "a nightmare" this weekend, so settled into a fairly anonymous, unremarkable rhythm.
He was out of contention in the sprint right away via Turn 3 contact with Bastianini that relegated him to last, in which Bastianini may have been slightly more at fault but Mir anyway seemed a touch too ambitious.
In any case, the grand prix itself showed there was just not much on offer.
**Qualifying:** 18th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 14th
Marini hopes and believes his side of the Honda garage has found something extra in qualifying trim - but wasn't quite able to exploit it this weekend. He was again solid on Friday but just on the wrong end of the Q2 cut-off, then again disappointing in Q1.
A crash early in the sprint raised eyebrows as being un-Marini-like and was quickly determined to be a consequence of contact with Bastianini for which Marini bore very little responsibility. He did a reasonable job bouncing back on Sunday, though the extra two points are fairly immaterial.
**Qualifying:** 7th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 7th
A weekend that feels like it's snuffed out any realistic chance of Di Giannantonio being a major player in this title race from here on out - given Ducati matched up well with Aprilia at Aragon and yet he just couldn't capitalise.
A crash from eighth in the sprint was a symptom rather than the biggest issue. He hinted that he believed this was down to a bad rear tyre, but much of the weekend beyond that just felt a little off - and Di Giannantonio indicated there have been various 'need-to-know basis' disruptions that cost him both at Aragon and Silverstone.
Di Giannantonio wants to believe that even weekends like this one can still keep his title bid on track as long as he picks up some points - but I am not particularly optimistic.
**Qualifying:** 16th **Sprint:** 14th **Grand Prix:** 8th
Bastianini looked very slow on Friday - and complained of the rear pushing the front again - and was then involved in a couple of early incidents in the sprint (with the Honda factory duo) that he might have had a decent bit of culpability for, though were not enough to penalise.
He was struggling badly for front tyre longevity but seemed to find an improvement on Sunday, allowing for that classic Bastianini charge - but still in a different part of the race to where KTM stablemate Acosta was operating.
**Qualifying:** 20th **Sprint:** 17th **Grand Prix:** 16th
Espargaro found the second part of his return to the current 1000cc bikes a little easier at Aragon - but maybe not as much easier as you'd have expected.
He was again fairly anonymous relative to his late-2025 heroics, not terribly far from KTM stablemates Brad Binder or Bastianini but with Acosta completely out of range.
The picture was slightly better over one lap than race distances. In the sprint, he was spooked by the Marini crash and Fabio Quartararo engine blow-up, while on Sunday he found he "doesn't know how to act" with this bike right now on used tyres.
**Qualifying:** 4th **Sprint:** 8th **Grand Prix:** DNF
Fernandez was in the top eight in every session until the grand prix, where he had an unspecified (seemingly gearbox-related) mechanical failure while running sixth.
That moment was also the best he'd felt through the weekend, after some Sunday warm-up set-up tweaks, before which Fernandez wasn't really in the groove with his Aprilia despite some decent single-lap efforts.
There was potential in the grand prix to significantly bump up his ranking, but as it turned out his Aragon GP was mostly notable for roughing up Martin in the early going into the sprint before running out of speed.
**Qualifying:** 21st **Sprint:** 13th **Grand Prix:** DNF
In the more familiar confines of Aragon (relative to the Sachsenring and Silverstone) this was a much better outing for Razgatlioglu, a 13-time podium finisher at the track in World Superbikes... though only a one-time winner.
Podiums and wins weren't on the table here but Razgatlioglu was acceptably competitive among the Yamahas - though found it difficult to overtake or avoid mistakes.
One such mistake snuffed out a shot at points on Sunday, when - already struggling badly to maintain consistent pace due to the front tyre drop - he crashed with Zarco in pursuit.
**Qualifying:** 14th **Sprint:** 15th **Grand Prix:** 10th
Binder's farewell tour in MotoGP is playing out with few highlights. Aragon was never going to be one - what Acosta was doing the other KTM riders clearly could not do - but Binder also admitted execution let him down.
Qualifying was reasonable for the pace (better than a disappointing Friday 'Q0' effort) but he had several offs in the sprint, then was barged down to 20th on Sunday in a cascade of overtakes that began with a Turn 11 error.
Tenth from 20th is not bad. Tenth when your team-mate is second, 25 seconds up the road, is rough.
**Qualifying:** 22nd **Sprint:** 19th **Grand Prix:** 17th
Like Espargaro, Savadori has found the adjustment from his regular 850cc/Pirelli test work to this stand-in gig very complicated - and unsurprisingly he was last in every session, until the grand prix in which Quartararo dropped behind him and never repassed.
Ultimately, it's nice that Trackhouse and Aprilia didn't leave Ai Ogura's bike vacant this weekend, but it didn't make a huge competitive difference.
**Qualifying:** 17th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 18th
Quartararo and Yamaha's 'post-divorce' run in 2026 hasn't been so bad - but this was one weekend where both may have been better off had he stayed at home.
Unhappy to do multiple runs with a new chassis that he insisted was no upgrade and describing himself as "more of a test rider this weekend", Quartararo didn't qualify particularly well and didn't race particularly well at all.
He is not culpable for the poor sprint, which was plagued by an engine issue even before the V4 finally gave out in smoke, but was a calamity in the GP - going off the track multiple times to eventually finish 52s off the winner.
**Qualifying:** 8th **Sprint:** 11th **Grand Prix:** DNF
A second profoundly bad weekend in a row, with Bagnaia pointing to a common culprit in having "completely zero" rear grip.
Saturday morning's race pace session FP2 was his only truly good session (Q1 and Q2 were alright), but he was badly outmatched in both races and was already struggling for tyre life when he lost the rear and crashed out of the grand prix.
He's still having work done on the arm that required surgery during the break but says, to his credit, that this is "not affecting the speed", of which there is very, very little right now.
**Qualifying:** 12th **Sprint:** 18th **Grand Prix:** DNF
A very poor weekend that never looked like much of anything, save for a glimpse of promise on Friday when Morbidelli did get into Q2 - again favouring a fast-lap reference from VR46 team-mate Di Giannantonio on track.
He had a Q2 lap deleted for yellow flags that would've put him a row higher - but anyway just wasn't terribly competitive on race pace.
He went off at Turn 12 early in the sprint and didn't have the pace to make any progress back up, then went down early on Sunday while in the pack - having gone "too aggressive on throttle", with the rear coming around.
### What time is F1's 2026 Italian Grand Prix? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1s-2026-italian-grand-prix-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-08-30T17:50:59.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
Formula 1**®** heads to one of its most evocative venues next - the legendary Monza, home of the Italian Grand Prix and the ultra-passionate Ferrari fanbase.
The high-speed circuit's characteristics are unlike anything else on the calendar, and will be an even more distinctive challenge with the nature of the 2026 F1 cars.
There's a home driver leading the championship in the shape of Kimi Antonelli, who already knows he'll be starting right at the back due to engine penalties, but is expected to surge through the field.
Even with the prospect of the first Italian champion driver in over 70 years, the Monza crowd's main focus will be Ferrari - at the race it wants to win more than any other.
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Italian GP schedule (US times)
*PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time*
**Friday September 4**
**Practice 1**: 3.30am (PDT), 6.30am (EDT)
**Practice 2:** 7am (PDT), 10am (EDT)
**Saturday September 5**
**Practice 3**: 3.30am (PDT), 6.30am (EDT)
**Qualifying**: 7am (PDT), 10am (EDT)
**Sunday September 6**
**Italian Grand Prix**: 6am (PDT), 9am (EDT)
---
Watch The Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio D'Italia 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 4-6\. U.S. only.
---
## Italian GP schedule (local time)
**Friday September 4**
**Practice 1**: 12.30pm
**Practice 2:** 4pm
**Saturday September 5**
**Practice 3**: 12.30pm
**Qualifying:** 4pm
**Sunday September 6**
**Italian Grand Prix**: 3pm
## Italian GP schedule (UK time)
**Friday September 4**
**Practice 1**: 11.30am
**Practice 2:** 3pm
**Saturday September 5**
**Practice 3**: 11.00am
**Qualifying:** 3pm
**Sunday September 6**
**Italian Grand Prix**: 2pm
## How to watch the Italian GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026\.
Fans can view every minute of the Italian Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)'s new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio D'Italia 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), September 4-6\. U.S. only.
### Marquez slashes Martin's MotoGP lead with Aragon win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-slashes-martins-motogp-lead-with-aragon-win/
Last updated: 2026-08-30T13:30:50.000Z
Marc Marquez was victorious in MotoGP's 2026 Aragon Grand Prix, taking home full points for his title defence.
Marquez faced a spirited challenge at the left-hander-dominated circuit, one of his MotoGP favourites - but ultimately took a relatively comfortable win.
The source of that challenge was a surprise, for it wasn't poleman Marco Bezzecchi but KTM rider Pedro Acosta, still chasing his first grand prix win.
Bezzecchi led off pole but was again lunged by Marquez at Turn 1\. Marquez looked to have completed the move like on Saturday, but this time was very slow through Turns 2 and 3 with what looked like a stuck ride height device - allowing not just Bezzecchi back past, but Jorge Martin through as well.
But Marquez forced his way past Martin through the Turn 15 left-hander (with Acosta also sneaking through), then set about catching Bezzecchi back up.
He made his move at the same Turn 15 corner on lap six, then squeezing Bezzecchi to the inside of the track on the back straight - and as they braked into Turn 16, Bezzecchi didn't just yield to Marquez but lost second to a sudden round-the-outside dart from Acosta.
The KTM man, who will be Marquez's team-mate at Ducati next year, hounded Marquez over the next few laps, before a string of 1m46s laps from Marquez finished the fight.
He spent the rest of the race managing his advantage over Acosta, which was ultimately in little doubt despite a couple of minor mistakes from Marquez.
Bezzecchi completed the podium, followed by Alex Marquez and championship leader Martin. Martin, thus, leaves Aragon with 19 points in hand over Marquez - and 24 over Bezzecchi.
Ducati riders Fermin Aldeguer and Fabio Di Giannantonio rounded out the top seven, Aldeguer having worked his way past Di Giannantonio. The other two Ducati men, Pecco Bagnaia and Franco Morbidelli, exited the grand prix in early crashes from the top 10.
Diogo Moreira kept a train of riders behind his LCR-run Honda for most of the grand prix, ultimately settling for ninth as he yielded to Enea Bastianini on the final lap.
Jack Miller was the top Yamaha runner again, in 11th, just behind KTM's Brad Binder. Miller's Pramac team-mate Toprak Razgatlioglu was the third rider to crash out of the race.
The only other DNF was that of Trackhouse Aprilia's Raul Fernandez, who had an apparent gearbox failure early on.
## Race results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +1.754s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +3.629s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +8.687s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +12.572s
6 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +17.687s
7 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +23.136s
8 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +25.741s
9 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.899s
10 Brad Binder (KTM) +26.441s
11 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +27.206s
12 Joan Mir (Honda) +27.999s
13 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +28.276s
14 Luca Marini (Honda) +29.794s
15 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +30.003s
16 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +35.874s
17 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +49.761s
18 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +51.657s
DNF Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha)
DNF Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati)
### The final verdict on Formula E's Gen3 era
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/the-final-verdict-on-formula-es-gen3-era/
Last updated: 2026-08-30T08:24:18.000Z
Formula E will begin its fourth era of technical regulations later this year and it will be a huge step up in power that will affect the sporting landscape significantly until 2030 at least.
How it got there is largely through the car that went before it, the Gen3, and since 2025, the Gen3 Evo. For good and bad, that car has informed Formula E's growth a great deal as the championship reaches a level of pace and power that will likely grab more and more fans' and investors' attention.
Born during the Covid-19 pandemic era, as a project Gen3 was a massive challenge for the FIA and Formula E Operations. That was one that was largely met, but along the way there were myriad difficulties and flashpoints.
## A dramatic start
"Welcome to the farce." That was how one team principal greeted this writer walking through the paddock gates at Valencia in early December 2022.
The Race had heard about the issues and accidents in private testing of the Gen3 car. Theo Pourchaire had [ended up atop a sandbank](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/details-of-two-large-formula-e-gen3-test-crashes-emerge/) at Calafat; [Sam Bird](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/bird-unhurt-in-major-formula-e-gen3-test-crash/), in a Jaguar-run car, had escaped a scary-sounding shunt at the same track; Oliver Rowland had bruised his legs in a crash at Mallory Park; and Mahindra's Lucas di Grassi severely damaged his car [at Almeria](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/gen3-formula-e-car-quirk-could-lead-to-drivers-missing-races/). There were others too that were not quite as damaging.
Why these accidents were happening was essentially because there were no rear traction brakes on the Gen3 cars. Through the design of the Gen3 it was deemed that regen and brake-by-wire systems would be enough. They weren't.
If the powertrains hit issues and shut down, which they frequently did, drivers were left with zero braking capability as they headed for a wall (or, in the case of Pourchaire, a sandbank protecting a field).
That salty paddock greeting from the team principal was still a shock though, because it was said with such disdain and resignation. At this point Formula E was in a real crisis, no doubt about it.
Teams were unsure about the safety of their cars; drivers were actively worried and some manufacturers were even looking at their insurance and human resource compliance policies to see if they could legally compete knowing of the issues.
All the while the opening race in Mexico City was just a few weeks away and there was no chance whatsoever of getting emergency braking systems fitted to the cars before they left Europe. Things were getting fraught. And then Sebastien Buemi [wrote off his Envision-Jaguar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/jaguar-limits-test-running-after-buemis-concerning-crash/) in the Valencia test. This time it was public and all hell broke loose.
Suddenly, there was open talk of the season opener being postponed. Meetings took place almost every hour at Valencia. A solution had to be found.
Eventually it was with a secondary, solenoid-activated braking system applied for the second event in Saudi Arabia. It went some way to appeasing the teams and drivers. For Mexico City, extra Tecpro barriers were fitted to some corners. Despite this, Mitch Evans had a big shunt and for several hours Jaguar and Envision considered withdrawing. They were talked down.
There were several other issues too. A shortage of spares was one other major obstacle to overcome. The fact that around nine cars were destroyed or significantly damaged (Max Guenther's Maserati at Diriyah; Edoardo Mortara (Maserati) and Pascal Wehrlein (Porsche) at Cape Town; and a quarter of the grid at Rome!) did little to help matters, but such was the conflation of the Gen3 cars with some gnarly tracks such as Rome and Diriyah that this level of chaos felt almost inevitable in the first season of the era.
Just for extra pain, the teams and manufacturers were now working under a cost cap of €13million and €15m respectively across two seasons.
When Mortara piled into Bird in Formula E's most cataclysmic ever accident in Rome, you could see the colour draining from his Maserari team principal James Rossiter's cheeks in real time. In a way that vision kind of encapsulated a wild west-like first Gen3 season.
## The fightback
"It was challenging but I think in the long-term memory of Formula E, Gen3 will be seen as a key step of the championship in terms of achieving a huge technological leap in efficiency."
That is the verdict of FIA championship manager for Formula E, Pablo Martino, who tells The Race he believes the recovery from that 2022 and 2023 period was successfully pulled off.
He's probably right, because by 2024 Formula E had more stability in all corners of the paddock. The Gen3 project had solidified, the racing was generally very good, and Formula E had a new, dynamic and engaging CEO in Jeff Dodds, who replaced Jamie Reigle in June 2023.
By the second season, the racing itself had developed past the initial inability of the cars to lay down the extra 50kW of attack mode power, largely because the spec tyres, supplied by Hankook, were so hard.
This led to a new form of racing, peloton or pack racing. As drivers managed useable energy knowing that the attack mode would lose them track position, a weird type of high-speed queuing pursuit took effect.
Races would then explode into life, and often carbonfibre shards too, when the pace quickened in relation to the energy targets being hit. Then the pace was unleashed and the action got really fraught, often resulting in cars running three or four abreast. It sometimes resembled a trippy kind of single-seater Talladega NASCAR scene.
At some tracks it worked fine but at wide-open expanses such as Portland, Berlin and Misano, it became essentially a tactical contact sport with front wings (brittle on the original Gen3 car) scattered around the place like confetti.
"Yes, we had maybe chaotic races, but it was also one of the most exciting periods in terms of unpredictability on track and multiple winners or multiple champion possibilities," appraises Martino now.
"I think the playing field across the different teams has been really narrow and the competition has been really tight between them.
"I think that's going to be remembered well, and it will be considered as an important step for the Formula E progress, especially on the evolution of the car.
"Season 9 to season 12 \[the Gen3 period from 2023-26\] is pretty significant on how the technology has evolved towards efficiency."
The arrival of all-wheel drive with the Gen3 Evo car for 2024/25 went a long way to fixing the lack of overtaking in the high-power mode. And with the PitBoost energy top-up stops finally coming in for that same campaign, there was extra flexibility for the FIA with the sporting format - which it diluted somewhat for 2026 as it was clear to competitors, consumers and fans that the races were just too busy and chaotic.
It is also important to remember that traction control limitations were lifted when all-wheel drive came into being in 2025, as they will be for Gen4\. Deploying all the power into the wheels with no tyre slip changed the way drivers were conducting their races. This resulted in drivers such as Rowland, Wehrlein and Nick Cassidy really coming to the fore because they saw specific areas in which they could be tactically positive on gaining track position at crucial times.
The Gen3 Evo period also came with an improvement of performance from the Hankook tyres. So too upgrades to the power units themselves.
"The fundamental part was the four-wheel drive mode, but I think it was a package of improvements too," says Martino.
"Because the pure laptimes did already improve as well. It was not only on attack mode during the qualifying session. The overall race performance has improved."
## The conclusion
Gen3 certainly created challenges for the teams, but they were mostly overcome.
Will it be remembered fondly? Perhaps by the fans, yes. But by the drivers? Largely not. Many actively disliked Gen3 but that was probably born from the early, troublesome days more than anything.
"We have a much more robust structure today than the one we had in Season 9 \[2023\] and that is good for all future development of Formula E," adds Martino.
In that sense, and in the circumstances of Gen3's birth, Martino is probably right. Gen3 feels already like a stepping stone to something really special with the potent Gen4 cars.
All kids go through awkward stages growing up. Gen3 was Formula E's later teenage years when it was still discovering itself, still making occasional embarrassing mistakes at the school disco. Now it's time to properly grow up.
"I think we have grown together as a championship," concludes Martino.
"We have built on all this knowledge. Sometimes knowledge comes because of the challenges or things that were not predicted at the very beginning.
"But overall, I think it has been a really positive four years for the championship, and no one can deny that because it has seen a huge evolution in fan base and interaction with the fans."
### Nobody wins from trying to divide F1's fanbase
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/nobody-wins-from-trying-to-divide-f1s-fanbase/
Last updated: 2026-08-30T07:04:47.000Z
"There are diehard motorsport fans who talk about clipping during a Formula 1 weekend, but there will also be many who think of a clip as something you put in your hair."
For F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, that's an amusing evolution from his "super clips and super chips" line he gave The Race's Edd Straw and Jon Noble in an [exclusive podcast interview earlier this year](https://shows.acast.com/6819ae2bf30c20bff775e8a1/69e9dbcd1e1e8123642877eb?ref=the-race.com).
Domenicali has had to fight back against a lot of criticism this year and, as you'd expect from someone in charge of a global institution that is flying high but also under huge pressure to succeed, he'll defend F1 with all he's got. As he should.
But I think it's a risk to regularly paint the "diehard fans" as a minority group who are too negative, prompting Domenicali's recent quotes given to media that featured the suggestion that "negativity gets us nowhere".
I'd agree that after a while, endlessly moaning about F1's engine rules gets a bit old and we all have to live with it. Although, let's not forget, the controversial not-quite-50/50 power split between electrical power and the internal combustion engine is changing for next year to help solve the issues fans and drivers are unhappy with.
However, when things are going well - and in F1's case, they are on several levels at the moment - don't forget the people who got you to the dance. Don't forget that those "diehard fans" are people who stuck by F1 through thick and thin, and were the backbone of a fanbase that was big enough to make Liberty Media think F1 was worth buying in the first place in 2016.
If the F1 bubble pops one day, or even just deflates a bit, it will need those diehards to stick around. If you alienate them while all the charts are pointing 'up and to the right', you run the risk of not having them as a safety net in future.
---
Glenn spoke about this topic passionately on the latest episode of **The Race F1 Podcast** \- you can listen [here](https://embed.acast.com/$/6819ae2bf30c20bff775e8a1/hamiltons-apology-monaco-appeal-latest-and-domenicalis-lates??ref=the-race.com), or search for it on your podcast platform of choice
---
None of this is meant to denigrate the vast wave of newer fans F1 has attracted in recent years. I think it would be unfair to suggest that anyone who has discovered F1 in the Liberty/Drive to Survive era is automatically a lightweight fan who isn't interested in anything beyond the surface level. [No matter what George Lucas says](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-logic-for-no-battery-graphics-is-absurd/#:~:text=Star%20Wars%20creator%5D-,George%20Lucas,-on%20Saturday.%20He).
F1's growth should be great for everyone involved, both on the inside and the outside. As someone who remembers being one of only two F1 fans in my entire secondary school at the turn of the century, it's amazing to be on the school run with my own kids today and see how many F1 caps and backpacks there are around. This sport we live and breathe is truly mainstream now and appealing to the next generation, and I love that.
That's why I'm uncomfortable with the notion that new fans and old fans, or new fans and "diehard fans", are two groups that can be divided into ones who are interested in technical details and bring negativity about the current cars, and ones who just want to see action on track.
As someone once told me, 'people don't remain new fans forever'. Eventually many of the ones who stick around want to immerse themselves in what's going on and understand more about it. That doesn't mean they'll all want to know about super clipping one day - I've been an F1 fan since the late-1980s and I'd quite happily never hear about it again!
I wince whenever I see older fans trying to 'gatekeep' F1, but I also don't think it's helpful to declare that people who want to know all the finer details of what's really going on with these highly complex cars are "a niche", as Domenicali recently suggested.
Also, if "the vast majority of people" just want to see action on track, why not do more to make that happen? F1 is expected to have more sprint races in 2027, and as our social media team cheekily noted at Zandvoort, that weekend's sprint was so dull it ['could have been an email'](https://www.instagram.com/p/DcV0XOHsSMf/?ref=the-race.com).
If the main focus is for the on-track action to get people out of their seats cheering lots of overtakes, why is F1 so cautious with its sprint format? Why is it just a stint of a grand prix that runs a day early?
I'm all for protecting the sanctity of the grand prix itself. But let's mix the sprints up. Use one shot qualifying to differentiate from the main event and increase the chances of cars qualifying out of position. Or, dare I say it, reverse the grids, even if it's just the top 10.
Arguing over super clips, super chips and hair clips is playground stuff. Let's find something proper to argue about, and see if we can create even more of that all-important action on track while we're at it.
### Winners and losers from MotoGP's Aragon sprint
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/winners-and-losers-from-motogps-aragon-sprint/
Last updated: 2026-08-29T16:38:46.000Z
Marc Marquez has lived up to his status as pre-weekend favourite at Aragon in the sprint, clawing back some much-needed points in the MotoGP title race.
With no prizes for guessing which category we're placing him in, here are our winners and losers from MotoGP's Saturday action.
## Winners: The Marquez brothers (1st and 2nd)
A callback to 2025 not just in it being a Marc-Alex 1-2 - but in the fact it looked fairly uncomplicated.
Once Marc ushered the soft-shod polesitter Marco Bezzecchi to the outside of Turn 1, he was all but assured a straightforward race.
His title bid needs 37 points here - and it looks like he will get them. He has already all but promised to repeat the same Turn 1 move on Sunday.
On Alex's side, another morsel of evidence that he is a genuine Aragon master - but also a continuation of an increasingly strong season that's not really reflected by the standings.
## Loser: Raul Fernandez (8th)
Fernandez doesn't owe anything to Jorge Martin's title bid, but it's probably less than ideal that his race was only notable for roughing up Martin on lap one - before settling into a relatively anonymous ride to eighth.
Once a dominant Moto2 winner at Aragon, Fernandez says he hasn't felt comfortable at the track since its resurfacing, and here unlike his fellow Aprilias he didn't fancy the lifespan of the soft rear.
Eighth is no disaster but being beaten by a KTM and a Honda is underwhelming.
## Winner: LCR Honda (7th and 9th)
Team-mate battles are usually zero-sum games but both Diogo Moreira and Johann Zarco are clearly boosting their value this weekend - and both LCR and Honda, which has both riders under contract beyond 2026, have every reason to be delighted.
Zarco really doesn’t look like he’s been out for three months (or even two months, or one month). He led the line for Honda in qualifying and was mixing it in the usual places in the sprint (though he felt a tiny bit of regret in not attacking Fernandez earlier to make his race even better).
And Moreira is clearly exceptionally comfortable this weekend, as evidenced not just by his sprint performance but by the fact he decided not to follow other riders in Q1 and advanced by flying solo.
## Loser: Pecco Bagnaia (11th)
This was in some ways what we used to expect from Bagnaia in a sprint - in that he only built into the race once it was already all but over. Except it was transposed much further down the grid than we used to see him.
The end result, thus, is a finish comfortably outside of the points - and the evaluation is much the same as on Friday - a lack of rear grip.
After a mid-season flourish he is firmly in the doldrums again.
## Winner: Jack Miller (10th)
The best Yamaha in three of the five comparable sessions so far this weekend, Miller has probably profited at least a little bit from Fabio Quartararo's engine issue (which he'd felt all weekend before it finally gave up the ghost on Saturday).
But even accounting for that, Miller’s probably the faster Yamaha rider right now - suddenly soaring in what we now know for sure to be his last half-season in MotoGP.
Picking off Zarco at the end would've been the cherry on top here, but even without a point a top-10 looks very nice on paper.
## Loser: Factory Honda (16th and DNF)
LCR’s rookie and returnee have relegated Honda's actual factory team duo firmly to the status of afterthought so far this weekend.
For what’s supposed to be Honda’s main team, this sprint was effectively over midway through lap one, when Luca Marini slid out of the race - as unlucky collateral in a Miller-Morbidelli-Bastianini incident right ahead of him - three corners after Joan Mir had to pick up his bike and go to last place due to contact through Turn 3 with, again, Enea Bastianini.
But even before that it was unlikely to be a particularly productive race for either Mir or Marini, who aren't dreadfully outmatched but aren't on the level of the LCR duo.
## Winner: Pedro Acosta (4th)
Acosta managed to fit in a whole slapstick routine in the moments before lights out, though it was hard to see on the broadcast. Seemingly distracted by Alex Marquez right in front of him, he blew past his grid slot, had to hop off his KTM and reverse, then kicked off a seat winglet as he rushed to hop back on.
The result was a less-than-compliant bike through the fast right-handers and thus a disappointed Acosta, but you really wouldn't know something was amiss if you compared him to his fellow KTM riders, who he ran rings around again.
It seems far-fetched to suggest he could've got much more out of this one.
## Loser: Fabio Di Giannantonio (DNF)
Di Giannantonio isn't really winning races this season so his title bid demands extremely dependable points-scoring, with no room for errors - which, however, are increasingly creeping in.
This crash from eighth is much less of a problem than the DNF from the grand prix in Germany, as the points blow today is negligible, and within the Ducati camp he clearly does not have an answer to the Marquez brothers at Aragon.
But the potential confidence blow isn't well-timed.
## Winner: Fermin Aldeguer (6th)
Aldeguer needed to qualify better and probably needed a better first lap - but his pace looks pretty electric this weekend, and he had impressively little trouble working his way through the likes of Bagnaia, Zarco, Fernandez and Moreira.
Given his recent injury and given his status as a GP25 rider, this race is another positive signal.
### Marquez regains MotoGP title ground with Aragon sprint win
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-regains-motogp-title-ground-with-aragon-sprint-win/
Last updated: 2026-08-29T13:30:39.000Z
Defending MotoGP champion Marc Marquez dominated the Aragon sprint after overtaking title rival Marco Bezzecchi.
Bezzecchi looked to have got a decent enough launch from pole, but Marquez had enough room on the inside to force Bezzecchi to the outside on corner exit - taking the lead and allowing brother Alex Marquez to sneak through, too.
They controlled the race from there, aided by the longer-lasting medium rear tyre, with Bezzecchi never really threatening on the soft rear and ultimately settling into third place.
His team-mate, championship leader Jorge Martin, also ran the soft rear but was frustrated in the early going by fellow Aprilia rider Raul Fernandez - which began as Fernandez retook fourth place on the outside of Turn 2 after losing the spot to Martin at the start.
Their robust wheel-to-wheel racing later into the lap dropped both behind KTM's Pedro Acosta, before Martin cleared Fernandez and went back past Acosta.
But the medium rear-shod Acosta bided his time behind the points leader and when Martin made a mistake at the penultimate corner, Acosta went past and consolidated fourth.
Martin's fifth-place finish means he is now 29 points ahead of Bezzecchi and 33 ahead of race winner Marquez. The injury-absent Ai Ogura is 42 back and Fabio Di Giannantonio remains 46 adrift, after crashing out from eighth place early on.
Fermin Aldeguer was 10th after the start but scythed his way through into sixth place by the end of the race, overtaking Diogo Moreira on the final lap - with Moreira settling for top Honda honours in seventh.
Fernandez and Johann Zarco, Aldeguer's fellow injury returnee and Moreira's LCR team-mate, completed the points-scoring top nine, with Jack Miller just a tenth away from picking up a point from Yamaha.
The only other rider to crash besides Di Giannantonio was Luca Marini, who exited the race on the opening lap.
Fabio Quartararo also didn't finish, his Yamaha suffering what looked like an engine blow-up just before halfway.
## Race results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +1.140s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +2.089s
4 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +2.648s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +6.237s
6 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +10.475s
7 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +11.071s
8 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +11.213s
9 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +12.021s
10 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +12.166s
11 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +14.575s
12 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +14.648s
13 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +15.776s
14 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +16.051s
15 Brad Binder (KTM) +16.761s
16 Joan Mir (Honda) +19.845s
17 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +23.160s
18 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +25.074s
19 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +27.798s
DNF Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha)
DNF Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati)
DNF Luca Marini (Honda)
### Bezzecchi upsets Marquez for Aragon MotoGP pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/bezzecchi-upsets-marquez-for-aragon-motogp-pole/
Last updated: 2026-08-29T09:43:28.000Z
Marco Bezzecchi upset pre-weekend favourite Marc Marquez to claim MotoGP pole position for the Aragon Grand Prix.
Bezzecchi was the only rider setting sub-1m45s laps, so saw off Marquez by 0.089s - the latter threatening the benchmark in the final seconds but messing up the entry to Turn 14 and having to settle for second.
Alex Marquez will join the pair on the front row for the sprint and for Sunday's main event.
Raul Fernandez, points leader Jorge Martin and Pedro Acosta will complete row two. Acosta set his best lap in the elder Marquez's tow, before sliding off on entry into Reverse Corkscrew while trying to improve.
VR46 team-mates Fabio Di Giannantonio and Franco Morbidelli ran together on track and were split by just three tenths in the end, but that also meant five positions, Di Giannantonio in seventh and Morbidelli in 12th.
Between them were Pecco Bagnaia, Johann Zarco, Diogo Moreira and Fermin Aldeguer. Bagnaia and Moreira had advanced from Q1, despite Moreira crashing late in that session.
Jack Miller, whose impending departure from Pramac Yamaha (and MotoGP as a whole) was announced earlier this week, placed 13th as the best of the Yamahas and the best-of-the-rest in Q1 - ahead of good friend and future World Superbike rival Brad Binder (KTM).
Joan Mir had a last-second shot at picking off Moreira for the final Q2 spot but came up two tenths short and settled for 15th - though did outqualify team-mate Luca Marini for the 12th time in 13 attempts this season.
## Qualifying results
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m44.962s
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.089s
3 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.299s
4 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.413s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.474s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.593s
7 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.653s
8 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.709s
9 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.821s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.840s
11 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.930s
12 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.957s
13 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.118s to Q2
14 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.157s to Q2
15 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.185s to Q2
16 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.255s to Q2
17 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.290s to Q2
18 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.370s to Q2
19 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +0.481s to Q2
20 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.543s to Q2
21 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +0.708s to Q2
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.547s to Q2
### Our verdict on Norris's deal + state of the F1 driver market
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-new-mclaren-f1-deal-2030-driver-market-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-08-29T09:34:13.000Z
The long-term Formula 1 driver deals keep coming, as defending champion Lando Norris has extended his stay at McLaren [until at least 2030](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-extends-mclaren-f1-contract-2030-at-least/).
That's in line with the recent announcement that four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen will [remain at Red Bull](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/) until the same year, while Charles Leclerc's contract at Ferrari could run [even longer than that](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/charles-leclerc-new-ferrari-f1-contract-could-run-into-2030s/).
Norris's stock right now is arguably the highest it's ever been; as defending champion, he has also won the two most recent races as McLaren's 2026 development begins to bear fruit.
So was a berth anywhere else realistic? What does this say about the driver market? And what are the consequences of more and more longer-term deals being announced?
Here are our team's thoughts:
## The F1 driver market is dead
**Val Khorounzhiy**
It's unfortunate how static the F1 driver market is at the sharp end.
This is not a point about Norris or McLaren specifically - this is a sage deal for both parties - but it feels like whatever incentive structure existed in the past for drivers to sign shorter-term or properly explore alternative options and try to manoeuvre themselves is totally, totally gone.
It may have been gone already for a decade or so, but it feels like something you could connect to the explosion in [team valuations](https://www.the-race.com/business/are-f1-teams-still-undervalued-compared-to-us-franchises/) under Liberty Media. A driver salary cap to go with the cost cap was explored but never introduced and while that's good from a labour point of view, it means truly generational wealth is available to all the top drivers rather than just outliers such as Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton in the past.
These deals create security against the natural ebb and flow of a driver's market value. And changing teams is hard, so is a great way of accidentally tanking that market value. It's different in other sports - when you go from, say, Tottenham to Bayern in football, you don't need to learn an all-new ball, you just need to adjust to actually winning games for a change.
And, yes, Hamilton-to-Ferrari was an exception but if he were 15 years younger, he'd obviously be on a Mercedes deal to 2035 right now.
## No possible reason to look elsewhere
**Edd Straw**
While Verstappen and Red Bull is **the** defining team/driver partnership of the 2020s, Norris and McLaren isn't so far behind. Therefore, it's logical for this alliance to keep a long timeline in place.
The choice of 2030 aligns well with F1's rules cycles and also other deals, such as Verstappen's recently announced Red Bull contract. There are similarities there in that Norris has had enormous success with McLaren and clearly feels very comfortable there, but the difference is that, right now, McLaren has less to prove to Norris than Red Bull has to Verstappen.
Therefore, there's no possible reason for Norris to look elsewhere, while from McLaren's perspective it is wise to lock down Norris and continues to hold flexibility on Oscar Piastri's seat.
That said, Piastri's contract still has plenty of time on it, so there's not necessarily need for urgency in extending that, which gives McLaren the flexibility should it want to make a move for someone else down the line. But don't underestimate how strong a two-driver line-up this is.
## A big downside to these big contracts
**Gary Anderson**
For McLaren and Norris this is the best thing to do: given the opportunity (car) he is winning races and McLaren has the determination under Zak Brown's leadership to get back to its heydays of being a consistent championship-winning team.
Also to add to that, in reality, where else is there to go that would give a winning car and a team relationship that Norris currently has?
Piastri has had his chance to show what he is worth and he is very good, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him also continue with McLaren. Why not? He fits in well and, again, when he has the opportunity (car) he can win races.
However, these long-term contracts are closing the doors to potential up-and-coming drivers and with more or less no testing available to show a driver's talent, how is anyone going to show their worth? Take Leonardo Fornaroli, McLaren reserve and the reigning Formula 2 champion, for example: what happens to him?
F1 keeps talking about finding true talent, it even talks about getting a female into F1, but can someone please explain to me how these scenarios can happen? Yes, we have testing of previous cars opportunities, but who really pays any attention to that?
Something needs to be done as the stepping stones to F1 through Formula 3 and F2 are just too expensive. It's always been the same and as Alpine has proven with [re-signing Franco Colapinto](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/franco-colapinto-2027-f1-deal-alpine/), money is much more important than talent.
## Your move Piastri
**Josh Suttill**
Norris's extension puts Piastri in an interesting spot.
I have zero doubt McLaren doesn't mind which of its drivers is winning races or championships, but only one of them has been doing that recently.
So you can imagine how McLaren is starting to become Norris's team. Not that it's favouring him but it's naturally going to start coalescing around the stronger driver, in terms of direction.
Therefore you could see why Piastri (and manager Mark Webber) might be considering whether his long-term future should be at McLaren, beyond his likely-end-of-2028 deal.
The problem is his stock's taken a knock versus 12 months ago. Since then, he's blown a decent title lead and has looked firmly second-best to Norris this year with too many weekends, by his own admission, spent too far off the pace.
So while it's tempting to wonder whether Piastri could be a project leader for someone such as Audi or Aston Martin - and I think he has the raw ability to be - he's got to first get himself out of this current hole or risk being an unattractive second-best to Norris.
## The market is a very different beast these days
**Jon Noble**
With what has all the makings of a great Shakespearean play, the House of McLaren, the House of Ferrari and the House of Red Bull are now locked in following Norris's contract extension until 2030.
Where once F1's driver market was a source of intrigue and excitement, machinations on this front have now stopped.
Instead, loyalty, stability and family are the order of the day. Verstappen and Leclerc have now been joined by Norris in taking themselves off the market for a while; and expect Mercedes to shore up its own situation pretty soon.
Stability may be less exciting than the drama of a big silly-season switch but it's the logical outcome in an era of F1 where the cost cap appears (thanks to legacy infrastructure reasons) to have helped edge the top four clear of the pack for now - so prime seats are increasingly rare.
The pool of favourable options is narrowed down even more once one team locks in one of their A\* drivers, as that makes becoming their team-mate less exciting because it means going up against another big gun with the same equipment.
Better to be the big fish in your own still very big pond and make it the best one of there, than face the headaches that come from a topline driver rivalry.
Leclerc, Verstappen and Norris all settling down makes perfect sense.
Is it exciting for gossip? No. But the family dynasties are now in play to shape F1 until the end of this ruleset, and that in itself is going to throw up plenty of its own drama.
## McLaren has earned Norris's trust
**Jack Benyon**
Of all the top teams in recent years, McLaren has proven it is better at developing a car than the rest - so if you're Norris, McLaren is the only option.
Sure, Mercedes has started this cycle with a better package, but that was inevitable as soon as it was confirmed McLaren would remain a Mercedes customer for this ruleset.
McLaren is fighting Mercedes with one arm tied behind its back given it gets data last-minute from weekend to weekend and doesn't have access to the data Mercedes has had while building this power unit. McLaren has no right being as close as it is. The last two tracks may have flattered it but it's clear McLaren is developing towards Mercedes again and is trending in the right direction.
The only real downside is that power unit deficit as a customer, but as the rules cycle wears on that will be less of an issue as the status quo sets in. And in those circumstances, in the last ruleset McLaren became F1's top squad.
With Leclerc and Verstappen tied down at the other top teams, and Kimi Antonelli set to lead Mercedes for as long as he wants to be there, there's no better option for Norris. And even if one of those other teams had an opening, McLaren has earned Norris's trust. It wasted a bit of his early career with poor cars but is certainly making up for that now.
## Going elsewhere is going to get harder
**Sam Smith**
On one level I get this: stability, trust, faith, reward etc.
On the other, you could look at it as somewhat shut off and lacking ambition for fresher challenges that can come up. Even, perhaps, dare one say that Norris may have a bit of Stockholm Syndrome in F1.
He's only ever known Zak Brown-era McLaren. Of course, it's served him well with a title and 13 grand prix wins so far. But by 2030 he will have raced for the same team for 12 seasons and if he needs or wants a change how much of a shock to the system will that be for him? And would he be able to adapt?
You presume that for a driver of Norris's class it would be straightforward. But the longer he stays with a single team the harder it will get as more Antonellis come on to the scene.
The bigger question also here I feel is how Norris can stay hungry, motivated and avoid future burnout.
Contesting 25 grands prix a year (as will surely soon become the norm) over a decade-long-plus stretch is a big ask for anyone. Mika Hakkinen had to stop after a similar period, and so did Fernando Alonso to an extent with his World Endurance Championship and Indycar 'break' - and in both of those cases that was with much fewer grands prix on the calendar.
Perhaps modern drivers are more conditioned for the constant grind and can soak it up better through more understanding of the mental stress these days, which is of course a good thing and one that Norris can keep on top of.
### Norris extends McLaren F1 contract with bumper new deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-extends-mclaren-f1-contract-2030-at-least/
Last updated: 2026-08-29T09:58:21.000Z
Reigning Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris has extended his McLaren contract, taking his stay with the team beyond a decade and through the 2030 season.
But there is scope for that to run longer - as McLaren's announcement of the deal added there was a "multi-year option to commit beyond" that 2030 date.
Norris, who has won the last two F1 races in the upgraded McLaren, became part of McLaren's junior programme in 2017 and earned a race drive for 2019.
He has already notched the highest number of starts of any McLaren driver and is on course to extend that record substantially with his new deal.
It means Norris joins rivals Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen in being signed at least through the 2030 season, the planned end of the current engine rules cycle unless an earlier switch to V8s is agreed for 2030.
"McLaren is my home, and I'm very pleased to be signing a new contract to keep me with the team until at least 2030," said Norris.
"When I started this journey nine years ago, I was clear about the goals I wanted to achieve: to get McLaren back to the front and to win championships. We've achieved that goal, but we want more, we want to keep on winning, and we know as a team that we're capable of achieving it."
Team principal Andrea Stella said Norris had been an "integral" part of McLaren's success, and was a "special human" and "exceptional driver".
McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown added: "His journey with the team is a fantastic example of our commitment to identifying, developing and supporting world-class talent, and his achievements speak for themselves."
As part of the deal, Norris will be gifted an MCL39 car from his 2025 title-winning year, a "lasting reminder of his contribution to the team".
Norris's deal was the soonest to expire of the lead figures at McLaren, with team-mate Oscar Piastri having committed to the end of 2028 last year, while Brown and Stella agreed new deals within the last two years.
### Aragon GP 2026: All MotoGP session results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/aragon-gp-2026-all-motogp-session-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-30T12:48:45.000Z
Find below all the session results from the MotoGP 2026 weekend at Motorland Aragon.
## GP results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +1.754s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +3.629s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +8.687s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +12.572s
6 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +17.687s
7 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +23.136s
8 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +25.741s
9 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.899s
10 Brad Binder (KTM) +26.441s
11 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +27.206s
12 Joan Mir (Honda) +27.999s
13 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +28.276s
14 Luca Marini (Honda) +29.794s
15 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +30.003s
16 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +35.874s
17 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +49.761s
18 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +51.657s
DNF Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha)
DNF Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati)
## Warm-up results
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m46.512s
2 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.474s
3 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.743s
4 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.846s
5 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.932s
6 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.037s
7 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.089s
8 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +1.127s
9 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +1.164s
10 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.218s
11 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.260s
12 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.319s
13 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +1.321s
14 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.388s
15 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +1.394s
16 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +1.413s
17 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.443s
18 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.481s
19 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.738s
20 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.743s
21 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +1.953s
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +3.039s
## Sprint results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati)
2 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +1.140s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +2.089s
4 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +2.648s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +6.237s
6 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +10.475s
7 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +11.071s
8 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +11.213s
9 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +12.021s
10 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +12.166s
11 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +14.575s
12 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +14.648s
13 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +15.776s
14 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +16.051s
15 Brad Binder (KTM) +16.761s
16 Joan Mir (Honda) +19.845s
17 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +23.160s
18 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +25.074s
19 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +27.798s
DNF Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha)
DNF Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati)
DNF Luca Marini (Honda)
## Q2 results
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m44.962s
2 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.089s
3 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.299s
4 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.413s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.474s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.593s
7 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.653s
8 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.709s
9 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.821s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.840s
11 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.930s
12 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.957s
## Q1 results
**1 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) 1m45.820s**
**2 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.021s**
3 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.139s
4 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.178s
5 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.206s
6 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.276s
7 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.311s
8 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.391s
9 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +0.502s
10 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +0.564s
11 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +0.729s
12 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.568s
## PR results
Marco Bezzecchi saw off the Marquez brothers during the Friday battle for automatic Q2 spots.
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m45.455s
2 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.010s
3 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.038s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.299s
5 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.440s
6 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.504s
7 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.572s
8 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.609s
9 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.763s
10 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.843s
11 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.853s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.921s
13 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.032s
14 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.163s
15 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.168s
16 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.249s
17 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.494s
18 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.554s
19 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.638s
20 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.733s
21 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.902s
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +2.254s
## FP1 results
Marc Marquez led the opening session of the weekend at his favoured left-hander-dominated track.
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati) 1m47.532s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.035s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.221s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.264s
5 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.713s
6 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.767s
7 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.847s
8 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.937s
9 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.966s
10 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.108s
11 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +1.117s
12 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.273s
13 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.290s
14 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.352s
15 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.477s
16 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.574s
17 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.582s
18 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +1.591s
19 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.789s
20 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.875s
21 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.969s
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +2.785s
### Bezzecchi leads Ducatis in Aragon practice, Zarco shines
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/bezzecchi-leads-ducatis-in-aragon-practice-zarco-shines/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T14:26:05.000Z
MotoGP title hopeful Marco Bezzecchi bested a quartet of Ducatis in the second Friday practice session at Aragon, as Johann Zarco made an immediate impact on his injury return.
Sidelined since the Barcelona race in May, Zarco marked his first day back in MotoGP with a place in the top 10, securing Q2 passage at the last moment of the hour-long practice session - at the expense of LCR team-mate Diogo Moreira.
He was the only Honda representative in a Ducati/Aprilia-dominated top 10.
Aprilia rider Bezzecchi beat the Marquez brothers in the late dash for a laptime, his 1m45.455s outpacing Alex Marquez by 0.010s and Marc Marquez by 0.038s.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) and Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) made it four Desmosedicis in the top five, ahead of the Aprilias of Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse) and Jorge Martin.
Pedro Acosta was again the top KTM by a long way (nine tenths), and grabbed a Q2 spot, while Di Giannantonio's team-mate Franco Morbidelli used his team-mate as reference to also end up in the top 10.
Pecco Bagnaia was the only Ducati rider missing from the top 10, his late bid for a Q2-worthy laptime coming up short as he botched the entry into the penultimate corner, Turn 16.
## Result
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m45.455s
2 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.010s
3 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.038s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.299s
5 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.440s
6 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.504s
7 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.572s
8 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.609s
9 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.763s
10 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +0.843s
---
11 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.853s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.921s
13 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.032s
14 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.163s
15 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.168s
16 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.249s
17 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.494s
18 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.554s
19 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.638s
20 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.733s
21 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.902s
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +2.254s
### Schumacher help + Alonso blindsided: When Ferrari signed Vettel
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/schumacher-help-alonso-blindsided-when-ferrari-signed-vettel/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T12:56:33.000Z
**Rewind to November 29 2014\. It's Sebastian Vettel's first day at Ferrari, and he's set to drive a red car for the first time at the team's Fiorano test track.**
**It's an emotional moment. As a young child, the future four-time world champion had driven through Ferrari's hometown of Maranello with his parents, trying desperately to catch a glimpse of his hero, Michael Schumacher, lapping the same track through the fences.**
**Now, the moment belongs to him.**
**On the surface, anything seems possible for Vettel and Ferrari. But beneath the surface, the cracks have already begun to appear because the Ferrari he's now driving for is very different to the one he agreed to join.**
---
That's how the scene is set for the first episode of The Race's brand-new podcast, F1 Rewind.
On each episode, Edd Straw and Mark Hughes will be rewinding to a particular topic, event, or person from F1 history.
They'll be revisiting some historic events, but with a fresh perspective, analysing them from a new angle that wasn't necessarily available at the time.
They’re kicking off the series by unpicking Vettel's rollercoaster Ferrari stint. We've picked out part of their conversation below but you can [listen to the first episode ](https://shows.acast.com/and-colossally-thats-history/episodes/how-sebastian-vettel-ferrari-dream-was-stolen-from-him?ref=the-race.com)or [watch it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMufUtPTfXg&ref=the-race.com) now.
And those of you in The Race Members' Club got [early access to this episode](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/f1-rewind-how-167627051?ref=the-race.com). If you'd like similar perks in future - as well as tonnes of bonus content - [make sure you're signed up](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com).
## The uncoordinated announcement
The episode starts at the beginning with the announcement on the Saturday of the 2014 Japanese GP that four-time world champion Vettel was leaving Red Bull.
Straw recalls: "It was the Saturday of the Japanese Grand Prix. So that was the October 4 2014.
"This press release landed announcing that Sebastian Vettel was leaving Red Bull - although in classic press release fashion, they slightly buried the lead because the title was **New Team Driver Line Up For 2015** \[in reference to Daniil Kvyat joining Daniel Ricciardo at the team\].
"It was actually seven weeks before Ferrari announced anything about \[Fernando\] Alonso's departure."
Hughes picks up the story: "I'd completely forgotten that Ferrari just stayed schtum on it for all those weeks when it was obvious where he was going.
"Just unusual the way it was done, it was totally uncoordinated, wasn't it? Basically, Red Bull just wanted to get it out there as soon as it had happened, because they didn't want to have to deal with all the speculation that was inevitably going to come.
"\[Red Bull team principal\] Christian Horner had been taken by surprise by it. He got a knock on the door and it was Seb saying, 'I want to trigger the release clause', which the rest of the paddock didn't know about, incidentally.
"Fernando Alonso didn't know about it, nor did his manager, Flavio Briatore, as they were trying to negotiate with Ferrari about extending his contract. So that caught everybody on the hop.
"I think both Christian Horner and the management of Red Bull and \[then-Red Bull motorsport advisor\] Helmut Marko thought, 'Well, we don't want to be dealing with the flack that's going to come with this for the next few weeks, so we're not going to bother waiting for Ferrari; we're just going to say: Seb's leaving us'."
## The timing of the talks
It's often assumed Vettel essentially fled to Ferrari when his new Red Bull team-mate Daniel Ricciardo got the better of him as then defending champion Vettel struggled to adapt to the new generation F1 cars in 2014.
But as the podcast explains, that doesn't align with the actual timeline, which began the previous year.
"This whole thing you can trace back even to the start of the \[2014\] season - well, pre-season in fact, because Sebastian Vettel had a meeting with \[then-Ferrari chairman\] Luca di Montezemolo," explains Straw.
"And they discussed this move in principle at this stage - there was later a pre-contract signed - but basically the agreement was, 'Well, if Red Bull aren't that good this year and I don't win the championship, I think I'd like to go to Ferrari, please'.
"That was really the serious start. There'd been discussions before. It wasn't coming from nothing. But that meeting seems to be the real start, where it turns from a hypothetical - a thing I think everyone expected to happen one day - into something that would actually surprise us and happen probably a year before we were anticipating."
Hughes adds: "It was already quite seriously discussed - not the terms, but the idea of it - in 2013, so before the 2014 season had even started.
"So the idea that because Daniel Ricciardo had outperformed Seb, Seb wanted an escape, that doesn't hold up because it was already being discussed well before the wheels had even turned in 2014.
"Subsequently I did an interview with Luca di Montezemolo, and asked him to talk me through it. Basically he'd said that he had the sense that Alonso, although he was a fantastic driver, in the way that he spoke that when he did well, it was because it was Alonso and when he didn't do well, it was because of the team.
"He'd got a bit tired of this and he didn't think it was very healthy for the team. So he'd had a conversation with Michael Schumacher and said, 'Look, I want to recreate what we had with you. How do you think I should go about this?'
“Michael had said, 'Well, the guy you need here to build everything around is Seb: Sebastian Vettel'. And Luca didn't take much convincing of that.
"So that was all part of it. The three key people were Schumacher, Vettel and di Montezemolo. Schumacher and Vettel, of course, \[were\] close friends. You can be sure that they were talking to each other. Then, of course, Michael has his skiing accident \[in December 2013\].
"But that was all part of the general discussion. It was very much in the minds of Luca di Montezemolo and Seb that this was going to happen.
"Now, the timing of it wasn't certain because his contract with Red Bull went to the end of 2015\. But there was a release clause if he wasn't in a certain position by a certain stage of the season and the last moment that he could trigger it by informing them was the weekend of the Japanese Grand Prix, hence the knock at Christian Horner's door."
## Three drivers into two seats
Red Bull's announcement caught pretty much everyone by surprise, but it also spelled trouble for Alonso - who was considering whether he wanted to go the end of his contract and had been speaking to other teams.
"Ferrari have that problem, don't they? They've decided they want Vettel if they can get him. They think they probably can, although it's going to take a little time to play out," says Straw.
"They've got Kimi Raikkonen under contract to the end of 2015 and Alonso to the end of 2016\. So it was three drivers for two seats.
"\[This is\] unbeknownst to Alonso, in fact, who thinks he's got this fantastic hand he's been playing for months, Alonso thinks he's in this brilliant position. And this is all going on in the background.
"Meanwhile Ferrari are having a nightmare in 2014\. They've been far too late starting that engine project: 2014 is the first year of the 1.6-litre V6 turbos, so they're miles behind on that, they're nowhere. You've got Ferrari struggling. You've got Alonso doing all the Alonso tricks, my favourite being that sarcastic arm raised over the line when he finishes ninth in Bahrain. And then, of course, he claims, 'Oh, I was just celebrating a good team effort'. But, of course, it was pure sarcasm, which tells you where Alonso is.
"Alonso is running around in the background. He's trying to get in at Mercedes. There's a little bit of talking going on with McLaren-Honda as well in the background.
"But Alonso obviously believes he is the guy for Ferrari. And he has been since joining in 2010: almost won the 2010 championship, almost won the 2012 championship. And then 2014, he can't win. It's Ferrari's first winless season in just over a decade.
"So he thinks he's got this brilliant hand that he's playing all the way through that year.
"Unbeknownst \[to Alonso\], like pretty much most of us, didn't realise there was this release clause."
Hughes adds that di Montezemolo had instructed short-lived Ferrari team principal Marco Mattiacci "to just string him \[Alonso\] along for as long as possible because what might have happened was that Seb didn't trigger the release clause or wasn't in a position to trigger the release clause. In which case they would have needed Alonso to stay".
"It was all in a state of flux and Ferrari knew what was going on and Alonso didn't, so that was an unfair negotiation really. Fernando's thinking he's got all the information and he didn't have. And that was very much part of why Ferrari and Alonso had sort of broken down. They were no longer a unit," Hughes adds.
"Somebody who worked there said to me, he said in his first year in 2010, he \[Alonso\] was absolutely part of the team and it felt fantastic, like they were really building something. And when we lost in that title finale with the wrong strategy call, he said that's when it broke.
"It broke almost from that moment. From then on, everything that was wrong was a team's fault and everything went right was Fernando's merit. And it just broke down and it just got too wearing and it just was felt that we're going to have to refresh here, we're going to need to press the reset button."
The only silver lining for Alonso - who subsequently made his ill-fated McLaren-Honda switch - when he found out was that Ferrari had broken a clause in his contract that said he had to be informed if the team was speaking to other drivers.
Hughes says: "I don't know if he got all of his Ferrari salary, but most of his Ferrari salary got paid in 2015, even though he was driving for McLaren and getting paid by McLaren as well."
That's how the Vettel-Ferrari story started. But there's even more to it than that, including the fact that De Montezemolo would be gone before Vettel turned a wheel at Ferrari, as part of a sequence of events that might even have sown some of the seeds of Vettel's later title failures.
**Edd and Mark analysed all of that in depth in the full F1 Rewind episode, so make sure you** [**listen to it here**](https://shows.acast.com/and-colossally-thats-history/episodes/how-sebastian-vettel-ferrari-dream-was-stolen-from-him?ref=the-race.com)**.**
**And look out for more episodes of F1 Rewind being released soon.**
### Marquez leads opening Aragon MotoGP session
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-leads-opening-aragon-motogp-session/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T09:41:01.000Z
Defending MotoGP champion Marc Marquez headed the opening premier-class practice session at Aragon.
Marquez brothers Marc and Alex, who both count Aragon among their favourite circuits, led for most of the session - and Marc stayed ahead despite sticking with the same set of tyres.
He was close to being usurped late on by the fresh-tyred Raul Fernandez, but Trackhouse's British Grand Prix winner ultimately came up 0.035s short.
Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) and the younger Marquez were 0.221s and 0.264s off the top time in the end, both staying on old rubber in the end.
But there was a surprising chasm of over four tenths between Alex Marquez in fourth and Pedro Acosta in fifth, Acosta by far the strongest of KTMs but having his almost-customary FP1 crash at Turn 12 late on.
There were strong showings for injury returnees Fermin Aldeguer (ninth) and Johann Zarco (11th), Zarco the lead Honda in his first MotoGP appearance in months after a long absence due to knee injury.
As for the injury stand-ins, Pol Espargaro was a credible 15th for Tech3 KTM in Maverick Vinales's stead, and Aprilia tester Lorenzo Savadori was 2.8s off in last - on his first appearance on the 1,000cc bike in a long time as he replaces injured title hopeful Ai Ogura.
The only other crashes besides Acosta was Fabio Di Giannantonio, who shrugged off an early fall at Turn 3.
## Session results
1 Marc Marquez (Ducati) 1m47.532s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.035s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.221s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.264s
5 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.713s
6 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +0.767s
7 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.847s
8 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.937s
9 Fermin Aldeguer (Gresini Ducati) +0.966s
10 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.108s
11 Johann Zarco (LCR Honda) +1.117s
12 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.273s
13 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.290s
14 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.352s
15 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.477s
16 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.574s
17 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.582s
18 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +1.591s
19 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.789s
20 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.875s
21 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.969s
22 Lorenzo Savadori (Trackhouse Aprilia) +2.785s
### MotoGP set to cancel Qatar GP with no replacement
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-set-to-cancel-qatar-gp-with-no-replacement/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T09:18:44.000Z
MotoGP looks set to cancel the already-rescheduled 2026 Qatar Grand Prix, according to The Race’s sources in the paddock, amid ongoing uncertainty about the regional geopolitical situation in the Middle East.
And, despite paddock rumours suggesting that an alternative was set to be added to the calendar to replace the Lusail race, with a double-header in Sepang touted as the most likely option, it seems that plan has now been shelved and that the championship will instead drop one of its 22 rounds.
The Qatar race was originally set to take place in April, but was moved to November following the outbreak of hostilities between Iran and the United States, with the US air base at Al Udeid (only 25 miles from the circuit) the site of repeated Iranian missile attacks in the early stages of the conflict.
That move triggered a reshuffling of the final rounds of the season, with the new Qatar date directly after the Malaysian Grand Prix pushing back the final two rounds in Portugal and Valencia by a week.
But, with tensions in the region still high amid the US-Iranian stalemate, The Race’s sources in the MotoGP paddock are suggesting that the race will be officially cancelled in the coming days with no replacement added.
There have been some suggestions in recent days that the race would, in fact, go ahead, with F1 boss Stefano Domenicali "confirming" at last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix that that series (also owned by Liberty Media) would be able to finish their year as planned in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
However, this is thought to have been a matter of a choice of words rather than intended messaging - and a decision on what will happen with those F1 races is still pending.
The expected cancellation of the Qatar GP would be a significant development for the MotoGP title race given it would mean 37 points fewer on offer.
Right now, Aprilia rider Jorge Martin maintains a 31-point lead over team-mate Marco Bezzecchi. Only 10 points cover Bezzecchi and Ai Ogura, Marc Marquez, and Fabio Di Giannantonio - and Marquez in particular counts Qatar (and mooted replacement Sepang) among his weaker circuits.
The conflict has also impacted the announcement of the 2027 MotoGP calendar, according to the series’ new deputy CEO Carlos Ezpeleta, who told media at this weekend’s Aragon Grand Prix that MotoGP can’t yet finalise next year’s dates.
“The 2027 calendar is nearly set,” he confirmed. “We're obviously waiting to see how the situation in the Middle East evolves, because that would also affect next year's calendar.
“We're probably a couple or three weeks away from being able to announce.”
### What next for Aston Martin, Alonso and Honda
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-next-for-aston-martin-alonso-and-honda/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T07:09:12.000Z
Aston Martin has, as Fernando Alonso pointed out, found three seconds over two Formula 1 race weekends.
Alonso himself scored points for only the second time in 2026 in the Netherlands as he took the team's best finish of the season.
Plus, Honda says its new engine that arrived at Zandvoort hit its key target. Sounds promising, right?
Not entirely. Lance Stroll still says the car is a lottery to drive, and both drivers, plus team principal Adrian Newey, named the exact same problem with the engine after the race that is now a priority to fix.
The Race has spoken exclusively to Honda's F1 chief engineer Shintaro Orihara to hear the inside story of what has been done with its new engine, what's still not working, and why taking the next step could turn out to be incredibly difficult.
## How good is Honda's spec 2 engine?
From Honda's perspective, there were reasons to be encouraged by the evidence of the Dutch Grand Prix as Alonso took a best result of the season in ninth.
The revised power unit didn't have any reliability problems over the weekend and Orihara was happy that "everything was working as expected" with the cooling and lubrication elements of the revised engine.
In terms of extra power, Honda was not revealing much - although it is likely to be somewhere in the range of 10-30bhp so far.
"We achieved our internal target from the dyno and then we have confirmed the same improvement trackside," said Orihara.
However, he accepted Honda is "still far away" from F1's top manufacturers and that there is one big fix that's still needed.
It’s something the drivers, Newey and even Honda itself are aligned on.
As Orihara said: "We know that there is room to improve our driveability and this remains paramount for us looking ahead to the next races."
## What exactly is Honda's driveability headache?
Driveability is a pretty generic term, but The Race has learned about the specifics behind what is happening at Honda and why the drivers need more.
In simple terms, when F1 figures talk about driveability it is about the engine responding in line with what the driver requires.
The most common assumption is that this revolves around making sure that the engine delivers power in a predictable way when a driver gets on the accelerator. But it's not just that.
Driveability also counts for corner entry, too, because engine braking is a critical element of performance, so manufacturers have to carefully manage how things operate off-throttle.
Ever since F1 became a hybrid formula - first with KERS and most recently with the turbo hybrid engines - driveability has also included how the engine braking works in conjunction with the MGU-K and energy harvesting.
The new challenge is that, when the driver lifts off the throttle or brakes, the engine switches from powering the rear wheels to acting as a generator (via the MGU-K) to feed the battery.
It's a complicated process because there needs to be an incredible amount of synchronicity between the engine feeding the MGU-K, being able to have the perfect amount of engine braking through the right combustion, plus how this interacts with the brake-by-wire adjusting how much is required of the rear brake discs.
Plus you need to add on top of this the impact of downshifts from the gearbox.
To further increase the challenge, when the battery has reached 100% capacity, or has hit a charge limit for a particular corner that the team does not want to go over, then the engine has to instantly stop harvesting - which removes a big deceleration force.
This transition phase, as the engine returns to normal engine braking behaviour, needs to be carefully managed.
As Orihara revealed: "If the driver lifts off the throttle, there is engine braking, but then the MGU-K is harvesting 350kW so the operation point is almost double.
"Then the MGU-K power is decreasing, and engine torque is also decreasing, but the driver demand is 0N. To achieve 0N it is very complicated.
"It is communication between the engine, combustion, and MGU-K control. That is one of the areas we need to improve, how we organise this combination."
If any of these driveability elements are out of kilter, then it can result in the kind of issues that Alonso and Stroll have repeatedly experienced.
The engine braking may be too harsh and that creates instability, the battery may not harvest enough, the engine could push the car into understeer, or the seamless shift gearbox may reject a downshift as it does not have the synchronisation to engage a lower gear.
The difficulties of mastering all these driveability challenges have also escalated hugely with the 2026 regulations.
This is down to two factors. The first is that the increase of the battery influence to almost 50% of the power available has meant that it is even more critical to ensure that the harvesting phase is done as well as possible.
Plus, the loss of the MGU-H - which generated energy from the turbo - has robbed manufacturers of a very valuable tool that assisted with harvesting.
This is because electrical energy could previously be sent from the two MGUs - therefore bypassing the battery totally.
Achieving good driveability requires the right software configuration, plus the right combustion characteristics for the engine not to deliver power while the driver is not on the throttle.
This is something that Honda has struggled with during 2026, not only under braking but also under acceleration. As Orihara said: "Sometimes our combustion is not stable."
The change of power unit rules for this year, as well as Honda working with new fuel and lubricant suppliers, Aramco and Valvoline, means it has not been achieving all that it wants in this area.
So there are clear gains Honda can find from improving combustion on both acceleration and deceleration.
Bringing all this together, until Honda's driveability is sorted then neither it nor Aston Martin will know what the true potential of its engine is because only then will the full power be unleashed.
That is why Alonso said it was hard to judge just how much better the spec 2 engine was.
## How Honda is fixing the problems
A fix for the driveability issues requires Honda improving its calibration and introducing revamped software to ensure that the internal combustion engine is doing exactly what the drivers want.
Following the first day of track running at Zandvoort, Honda used the data to work on improvements at its Sakura R&D base overnight.
A new calibration was introduced for qualifying on Saturday, and this did produce a step forward. But more is needed.
Orihara admitted this was "still not enough for the drivers" but it has at least confirmed progress is happening, and further work will be done to make gains for the Italian GP.
There will be no miracle solution that solves all of the driveability headaches instantly, but it will be a case of Honda working hard on the dynos during this fortnight between Zandvoort and Monza.
It then has to continue chipping away at its understanding as it faces tracks with different corners, different energy and engine braking demands, and different surfaces.
Alonso felt there are "a couple of tenths" to come if Honda optimises the package which, based on when things went right at Zandvoort, will push Aston Martin right into regular points contention - as his ninth-place finish in the Netherlands, though well-executed, still owed plenty to an opportunistic one-stop strategy.
However, it is fair to say the overall performance of the Aston Martin-Honda upgrades has thrown up some encouraging results.
Having started the year 3.1% off the benchmark pace in Q1, Aston Martin slumped to more than 4% adrift at Barcelona, the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, as rivals developed their cars.
It finally closed the deficit in Hungary, reaching Q2 with its upgraded chassis, but it was never closer to the front than at Zandvoort last weekend when the new Honda engine arrived.
Even with Aston Martin messing up its execution in qualifying when Alonso got stuck behind Esteban Ocon on his outlap, his Q1 time was just 1.4% adrift of the benchmark.
Highlighting that Q1 pacesetter, McLaren's Oscar Piastri, was only 1.3 seconds ahead, and referencing the many times Aston Martin had been more than four seconds off, Alonso said: "We improved three seconds in two races. This is amazing."
If Honda's progress does bear fruit (although there still may be struggles at power-sensitive tracks such as Monza) this will almost certainly be enough to convince Alonso to stay as he weighs up his future.
Right now, we still don't know if he actually wants to stay in this team, or in F1, in 2027.
Alonso was seen deep in conversation with team principal Newey in the Aston Martin motorhome on Sunday night after the Dutch GP, and will likely be holding talks with owner Lawrence Stroll in this gap to discuss his future.
There is a lot riding on Honda making gains - both the team's results this year and what Alonso does next.
### Lando Norris to star in new Prime Video docuseries
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/lando-norris-to-star-in-new-prime-video-docuseries/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T16:11:11.000Z
Current Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris is set to get his own docuseries, launching on Prime Video in 2027.
The McLaren driver announced on social media that he has partnered with the streaming service to give fans an "unprecedented" behind-the-scenes look at his life on and off the track.
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/p/Dci7DyCDDs2/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
> [A post shared by Lando Norris (@lando)](https://www.instagram.com/p/Dci7DyCDDs2/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
The three-part series is currently operating under the working title *Lando* and will be produced by Box to Box Films, the company behind *Drive to Survive*.
"It's going to be taking you well into depth about my life, about my whole life away from the racetrack, so the stuff that you never really see," Norris said.
He added: "This is my chance to get to share more of that with you because you're always there supporting me every single weekend. So you pretty much are the reason I do all of this and I'm just very excited to share this all with you."
Referring to the support of his fans, Norris said the series would offer a more personal look at his life away from F1.
Prime Video says the series will explore the realities of modern F1, shedding light on both the racing and the mental and emotional pressures that come with competing at the sport's highest level.
Beyond the announcement, few details about the series have been released, with further information expected closer to its 2027 debut.
### Our verdict on Alpine keeping Colapinto
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-alpine-keeps-franco-colapinto-f1-2027/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T14:35:27.000Z
Alpine has seen enough from Franco Colapinto to keep him in its Formula 1 car in 2027.
Colapinto's time at the team has followed a largely-upward trajectory - but were better options available to what is now a Mercedes customer outfit?
Our team give their takes.
## Conservatism rules in F1
**Josh Suttill**
In 90% of cases, F1 teams will go conservative when making driver market decisions, and this is further, somewhat frustrating evidence of that.
Colapinto brings useful backing and is within an acceptable margin of Pierre Gasly most weekends.
But is there an available driver out there who could score more points than Colapinto and get closer than Colapinto's adjusted 0.176s average qualifying deficit to Gasly in 2026? I think so. I'd back Yuki Tsunoda to do so or Liam Lawson if there isn't space for him within Red Bull's teams. Or how about one of Formula 2's leading drivers, who certainly have the potential to do so?
New Alpine junior Alex Dunne for example, who looked so impressive in a McLaren last year, but hasn't even been given a chance to shine in an FP1 with Alpine yet.
Ultimately Alpine - like a lot of teams - must feel there aren't enough reasons to take that risk to find out. It does feel quite counter to the Flavio Briatore way to hand someone an extension this early when they have less than half the points of their team-mate.
And it's ironic that it was a great bit of anti-conservatism from Williams that got Colapinto a foot in the door in the first place and onto Alpine's radar.
It just makes you wonder how many other junior talents are being overlooked simply because they're never given a chance to shine like Colapinto was by Williams…
## The right team and driver for each other - right now
**Matt Beer**
In Alpine's current position of making some progress from a nadir, just not as quickly as it hoped, it has more question marks and problems to tackle than its drivers. So in the absence of an ousted top-tier driver popping onto the market and being up for a gamble, or someone in the junior ranks showing unstoppable future superstar momentum, Colapinto continuity is sensible.
He's having a decent enough season; his bad days are a bit worse than you'd hope for with the experience he now has, and his good days aren't quite impressive enough to suggest he'll be that future superstar himself, but he's a known quantity for Alpine and still relatively early in his F1 career with scope to improve.
If that sounds like a bit of a 'you'll do' outcome for both driver and team...well, it is. And that's fine for 2027, but you'd hope that over the next 12 months both Alpine and Colapinto would show enough progress to make either or both of them more active players in the 2028 market.
## Alpine needs to rethink juniors
**Valentin Khorounzhiy**
Did you know that Alpine has two juniors in the top four in the Formula 2 standings right now?
You probably didn't, and I can't fault you if so, because neither Gabriele Mini (third in the standings) nor aforementioned former McLaren protege Dunne (fourth in the standings) have been credibly mentioned at all as having a shot at replacing Colapinto.
Even Alpine reserve Paul Aron, who is notionally ahead of both in the queue and is something of an FP1 staple, didn't seem to have a realistic shot once Colapinto had dug himself out of his early-season trough.
I can't blame Alpine one bit for not taking any of those three bets. Colapinto hasn't been a revelation but he's been plenty good enough to stick with rather than starting from scratch with another 'project' driver.
But the fact a change never seemed on the cards at all with Alpine tells me that the drivers they have right now haven't been able to convince the team that they can be future superstars - and should probably seek other pathways, while Alpine should probably look to 'restock' its junior driver cupboard.
## Don't forget the backing
**Samarth Kanal**
Colapinto's longevity in F1 could rival that of Sergio Perez, given e-commerce juggernaut Mercado Libre's backing of the Argentinian.
Mercado Libre is the biggest publicly traded company in South America, with an estimated market cap of $100billion - having just surpassed $10bn in revenue in the second quarter of 2026\.
That is some serious backing. And it's no surprise that Colapinto is such an attractive asset in F1 as, with his talent, you get significant exposure to the South American market - and sponsorship money to boot.
It's a situation that evokes that of Perez, the third-most experienced driver (by starts) on the 2026 F1 grid.
Perez's F1 status has been bolstered by considerable backing from Carlos Slim's America Movil telecommunications giant - and he's weathered numerous storms over the past 15 years.
So, I wouldn't be surprised to see Colapinto on the F1 grid for years to come.
He's not been the most spectacular driver on the grid but the Miami-Canada brace of top-seven finishes show that he's capable of bringing home points - and those finishes means he can't be written off as a pay driver.
Regardless, any analysis of Colapinto's career and potential longevity in F1 needs to be viewed with that Mercado Libre context in mind.
### What you should know about Yamaha's new MotoGP signing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/new-yamaha-motogp-signing-izan-guevara-what-you-should-know/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T12:14:43.000Z
Yamaha has unveiled Izan Guevara as a MotoGP rider for its satellite team Pramac in 2027, replacing series veteran Jack Miller.
Unlike Miller, who is a household name, Guevara may well be not all that recognisable to many fans who tune in to the premier class - and many of those who do know the name may be surprised to see him getting the call-up.
If you're in either of those categories, here's what you should know about MotoGP's newest Spaniard.
## Guevara was a prodigy...
Very few riders - maybe only Pedro Acosta - had a better run through the categories below MotoGP across the years 2019-2022 than Guevara.
He comprehensively won the European Talent Cup over the likes of Fermin Aldeguer, David Alonso and Diogo Moreira, saw off Acosta and Xavi Artigas in a three-way Spanish Moto3 title race and was a very strong rookie in the Moto3 world championship (though had his thunder stolen by Acosta, who became rookie champion in the category).
With Acosta moving up to Moto2 immediately, Guevara took control of the Moto3 category in his absence - his already-high reputation only growing and public praise aplenty, including from living legend Marc Marquez.
It also hadn't hurt that Guevara had embedded himself with a fantastic Moto3 team in Aspar - which was also taking him to the intermediate class in 2023.
## ...but lost his way
But Guevara's move to Moto2 felt off from the start.
He was horribly uncompetitive in testing, eventually struggling so much that it could only be explained by something fundamental - which turned out to be a wrist injury paired with arm pump.
Once healed up and finally ready to race, he still looked like nothing special, struggling to crack the points amid suggestions of both a riding style incompatibility and insufficient physical preparation for the switch to the category.
There were better signs in year two, but it was still disappointing - and a route to MotoGP looked complicated.
## This has worked for Yamaha before
It won't have hurt that over at Pramac, which had just become Yamaha's MotoGP satellite team and also expanded in Moto2, Gino Borsoi was team manager. Borsoi had been in charge at Aspar when Guevara shone in Moto3.
Pramac's Moto2 debut came with the Boscoscuro chassis - which convincingly won the 2024 title with Ai Ogura, but by 2025 was re-usurped by its main rival, Moto2 standard-bearer Kalex.
In that context, Guevara (who moved over from Aspar for 2025) performed well enough if not spectacularly. But he did close out the season with a win - which earned him a prize run on the Yamaha MotoGP bike - and then properly broke out this year, entering title contention and elevating himself far above other riders on Boscoscuro machinery.
In MotoGP, he will be Yamaha's first rookie full-timer since RNF curiosity signing Darryn Binder. But Yamaha will hope and expect that his case is less like Binder's and more like Fabio Quartararo's - its previous MotoGP rookie, who was in many ways a Guevara-like reclamation project.
It lucked into Quartararo. But it seemed to believe in Guevara throughout - reportedly so much as to include a MotoGP clause into his Pramac Yamaha Moto2 deal, which he is rumoured to have done enough to activate.
## All eyes on Moto2 riders
Nobody knows what the true pecking order will be like in 2027, but the initial expectation is that the switch to 850cc bikes and Pirelli tyres will level the playing field among the riders.
KTM tester Pol Espargaro, who has done extensive 850cc riding (and is mentor to another upcoming MotoGP debutant, Dani Holgado), went as far as to suggest Moto2 graduates will be an immediate threat because the 2027 premier-class bikes will be closer to Moto2's current machinery.
Guevara's Moto2 fortunes improved as the series pivoted from Dunlop tyres to Pirellis, though this is likely correlation over causation.
But having conclusively overcome such a major career trough he may quietly be an extremely shrewd pick-up by Yamaha - and one of the most interesting storylines of next season.
### What F1's new engine verdict has - and hasn't - told us
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-new-engine-verdict-what-we-do-and-do-not-know-aduo/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T11:27:20.000Z
The [FIA's announcement of its findings](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-misses-out-as-fia-reveals-fresh-f1-aduo-results/) from the first two Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) periods has served up answers and mystery in equal measure about Formula 1's engine ranking system.
On the one hand came the first official confirmation that Red Bull has started the 2026 rules era with the best internal combustion engine.
It was something that had never been formally ratified by the FIA before now, with the initial analysis having instead leaked over the Monaco GP weekend within minutes of the information being released to manufacturers.
The FIA said at that time that Red Bull was the only manufacturer not able to upgrade its power unit, with Mercedes allowed one development step and everyone else - Ferrari, Audi, and Honda - two.
But the FIA's announcement this week of no additional upgrade tokens being handed out after the second review period fell short of offering any new information about how things have changed since the first review and what the latest ranking is.
In a note tucked away in the middle of its release, the FIA stated: "Due to the confidential nature of this information, no further details on power unit performance index measurements will be communicated."
But in an F1 world where details matter, the ranking of power units is critical to performance.
So it was no surprise that the phones of manufacturers and teams lit up on Wednesday night as they tried to piece together a picture of where things stack up right now.
And although details were sparse about what the FIA's findings were, there is enough out there to give us a broad picture of the situation and what it means for the fight at the front of F1.
## What we have (and have not) been told
Because of the sensitive nature of the FIA's analysis of the power units, it was agreed that whenever it released its ADUO rankings, the details it gave out would be light.
However, manufacturers did want knowledge of whether rivals would have opportunities to bring upgrades, so a procedure was agreed.
The FIA's policy is to release a document (the ADUO 1 version seen above) that states simply how many extra homologation opportunities each manufacturer will get.
Even though the information on offer is minimal, the first ranking - taken from the start of the season until round five in Canada - was enough to piece together a picture of where everyone stacked up.
That is because there are three grades of power units: the benchmark, any manufacturer 2-4% off that gets one upgrade, and those that are 4% or more off that get two.
So post-Monaco, we could work out that Red Bull had been judged the best, Mercedes was between 2-4% off, and everyone else was more than 4% off.
The FIA's ADUO 2 document shows that the homologation steps are unchanged, but there is no more information than that.
Manufacturers have been informed individually of where they stack up against the best and what allowances they get, but not where everyone else is ranked.
While this situation does not lay things out in black and white of how the engine ranking has evolved, it offers enough to piece together a broad outline of how things have developed.
For Red Bull not to have earned an homologation token, it means that it has to remain in the benchmark category.
That means any progress that Ferrari (which brought an ADUO upgrade to Austria) and Mercedes (reliability tweaks from Austria helped lift performance a little) made has meant neither is at least 2% ahead.
If one of them had leap-frogged Red Bull to leave it at least 2% adrift then Red Bull would have been granted ADUO and the right to a homologation token.
## Shifting sands
While we know then there has not been a dramatic shift in the order since the first assessment, what we cannot be sure of from the FIA's announcement is whether there has been some more subtle movement.
The homologation tokens are not cumulative, so once you fall into a window that earns one then you do not earn any extra.
The limit is also capped at two, so only Red Bull or Mercedes dropping further from the front would have triggered a change of token allocations.
Lesser shifts cannot be confirmed from what the FIA has said.
For example, Mercedes not earning an extra token means it is in a window of anywhere between 1.99% in front of Red Bull to being 3.99% behind.
From Ferrari's perspective, its first engine step could in theory have also pushed it 1.99% ahead of Red Bull without it changing the homologations offerings - providing Mercedes had also kept itself within the 2% window.
According to the best guess of multiple sources, however, and based on what we have seen from new engine introductions, the most logical outcome from the second assessment period is that the original ranking has not changed much at all.
The Mercedes upgrade on reliability was more battery-related than on the internal combustion engine element that ADUO is based on, so its impact would have been negligible on the FIA's rankings.
Plus Ferrari's Austria upgrade, while a step forward, did not appear to be a game changer.
So it means the Red Bull is almost certainly still F1's best engine, with Mercedes and Ferrari behind.
Over the course of the ADUO 2 period (which ran from Monaco in early-June to Hungary in late-July), Audi and Honda also remained more than 4% adrift.
Things could change for the third ADUO period, which runs until the United States GP in late-October, if Ferrari's second engine upgrade, provisionally set for the Italian Grand Prix next weekend, is a good step forward. Honda's 'Spec 2' will also get judged this time out.
But unless there is a big movement at the top, it means Red Bull remains alone in not being allowed to upgrade until the winter, when changes in some areas are allowed for the start of 2027.
## Red Bull trapped
Red Bull was clearly taken by surprise at the first ADUO rankings, as it was convinced from its data that it never showed itself to be consistently more than 2% ahead of Mercedes.
But despite its belief, and request for the FIA to [go through its analysis again](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-queries-aduo-ranking-as-fia-pledges-to-review-results/), the governing body has stood firm and on Wednesday declared its findings were "incredibly robust".
While not having an in-season upgrade opportunity is frustrating in itself, there is actually another aspect to the upgrades system that is even worse for Red Bull.
It is that while the upgrade opportunities are capped, so Mercedes will only get one this season and one next, extra allowances for spending and dyno hours are not restricted.
So for every period that Red Bull is deemed to be in front - and it will remain there until others make a big step with their internal combustion engines - then its opposition are gifted extra cost cap spending and test bench hours to improve their power units.
Mercedes, if it is 2-4% off in ADUO 1 and 2 as suspected, gets a $3million downward adjustment in its cost cap each time.
And if it does not bring an upgraded engine before the end of the season that moves it into the same band as Red Bull, then it will get another $3million for the third measuring period and so on.
This element of rivals continuing to gain from a system where nobody wants to be judged the 'best' has highlighted another element of ADUO that perhaps does not work as originally intended.
There has already been debate about whether the FIA's analysis should be based on more than just the internal combustion engine element, with some suggesting that ranking should be judged on championship position instead.
Now, however, the way that Red Bull's hands are tied with a benchmark engine but an overall power unit that is not viewed to be the best (that accolade goes to Mercedes) will likely further push it for a change of rules going forward.
This is something that the FIA is open to, with single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis stating on Wednesday that "naturally there are areas which we may evolve over time".
But making change requires support from a majority of manufacturers, and right now Red Bull's rivals are all in a good place to keep on getting extra money and test bench hours by staying where they are.
### Colapinto keeps Alpine F1 seat for 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/franco-colapinto-2027-f1-deal-alpine/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T11:00:14.000Z
The Alpine Formula 1 team has completed its line-up for the 2027 season by retaining Franco Colapinto.
[Alpine executive advisor Briatore said in May](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpine-f1-2027-line-up-mercedes-driver-admission/) that he wanted to hold out on completing the team's line-up for next season in case either of Mercedes' drivers suddenly became available, in such a scenario as Max Verstappen choosing to move there.
But Briatore also said at that point that Colapinto was on the right trajectory to retain his seat, those comments coming shortly after a seventh-place finish in Miami, then a career-best sixth in Canada.
Any prospect of a Verstappen move has been extinguished anyway - the four-time F1 champion [signed a new deal with Red Bull](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/) ahead of the Dutch Grand Prix - and Alpine has now moved to extend Colapinto's stay into the 2027 season.
The competitiveness of the Alpine - the clear midfield benchmark at the start of the season - waned in the lead-up to the summer break but Colapinto still scored points at three of the six grands prix before the mid-season pause.
The 23-year-old is 12th in the drivers' championship, with 19 points to team-mate Pierre Gasly's 44, in what still represents his first full season in F1.
Colapinto made his debut with Williams in 2024 - where he scored five points - before he was promoted to an Alpine race seat at Jack Doohan's expense from round seven of the 2025 season, a campaign in which neither of those two drivers scored and in which Alpine prioritised its car for this year's all-new rules era.
Gasly - who is 10th in the drivers' standings and is the only driver outside of F1's 'big four' teams to have scored a podium in 2026 - agreed a new deal with Alpine in September last year that is due to keep him [with the team until the end of 2028.](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pierre-gasly-alpine-f1-contract-extension/)
He had access to [Alpine's substantial upgrade package](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/will-this-big-upgrade-swing-a-key-f1-fight-gary-andersons-take/) at the Dutch GP, which Colapinto is set to receive at the upcoming Italian GP.
### Ex-Williams F1 junior to become latest Formula E convert
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/ex-williams-f1-junior-to-become-formula-es-youngest-driver/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T08:55:05.000Z
Zak O’Sullivan will become the latest junior single-seater racer to switch to Formula E after agreeing to become Maximilian Guenther’s team-mate in an all-new Envision team line-up.
Current Super Formula and Super GT driver O'Sullivan is set to end his two-year stint in Japan to race in Gen4 after a successful recent test for Envision.
The 21-year-old joins new signing Guenther as current drivers Sebastien Buemi, who is retiring from Formula E, and Joel Eriksson depart the team.
He follows the likes of Taylor Barnard, Pepe Marti and Zane Maloney in exiting the F2 ladder to try to build a Formula E career.
O'Sullivan joined Guenther at Estoril in Portugal, as well as Jaguar drivers Antonio Felix da Costa and Stoffel Vandoorne, for the two day development test. A large contingent of Envision engineers were also in attendance.
O’Sullivan has been part of the Envision team since the start of 2025, shortly after he departed Williams's junior programme, and headed to Japan.
He took part in the rookie free practice session at 2025's Jeddah E-Prix, where he was hit by Jamie Chadwick in the final moments of running.
He then also took part in the rookie test day at Berlin last July ahead of an appearance at both the Miami and Jarama rookie days earlier this year. O’Sullivan has also appeared at several other E-Prixs this season assimilating to the team and to how E-Prixs are run.
Envision signed the experienced Guenther in July and is set to confirm each of their drivers publicly next month.
It will also open a newly extended headquarters at Silverstone later this year, including a new Dynisma simulator at its facility.
The team confirmed last month that it will continue with Jaguar as its power unit supplier, and is set to continue its small allocation of test days with the manufacturer next month.
### Why Envision went all-change
The Envision team elected to do something it has never done before in its 12 season Formula E history – change both of its drivers.
Sylvain Filippi, the managing director of the team, with its chairman of the board Franz Jung, employed the all-change philosophy after seeing the team slump from teams’ champion in 2023 to an eight place finish last season and seventh this.
Since Nick Cassidy left for the Jaguar factory team at the end of the first Gen3 season in 2023, Envision has won a single race in Monaco in 2025 with Buemi. While flashes of pace and results punctuated the last two seasons, any consistency of top results was out of reach for the team.
Its technical relationship and partnership with Jaguar was ultra-close in 2023 but then cooled somewhat for the last three seasons. However, judging by the collaboration between the two at this month’s Estoril test, the close two-way partnership ethos has returned as Gen4 approaches.
Buemi will continue with the team for next season but only in a consultancy capacity which could be a potent hidden weapon for the team. Buemi also told The Race recently that he will continue to test the Gen4 car on occasion and offer a range of advice for the team.
“I'm going to attend the races without having that stress of the calendars, which is going to be actually quite nice for once,” said Buemi
“It's going to also be a year where we try to assess the value I can bring. The team has a lot of faith in me, thinking and really believing I can bring a lot of value. So, we'll see how next year goes and I'll attend a few races and then we'll see after for the future.”
Eriksson, who many feel was hard done by in not retaining his seat for Gen4, is speaking to several other teams.
The Swede could return to the Penske team with which he raced in Gen2 briefly. There are ongoing talks for Jaguar to supply powertrains to Penske.
### Will this big upgrade swing a key F1 fight? Gary Anderson's take
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/will-this-big-upgrade-swing-a-key-f1-fight-gary-andersons-take/
Last updated: 2026-08-27T05:42:30.000Z
It’s true that the top four Formula 1 teams receive more coverage and column inches than the rest but the reality is that the mid-pack fight is even more intense.
The battle between Racing Bulls and Alpine for fifth in the championship is full on, and the big problem is that it is for the minor points, so it is very difficult to recover from a bad weekend.
Alpine arrived at Zandvoort with an update kit that it felt would bring two or three tenths of a second of performance having previously faded away after a strong start to the season. It could only manage enough parts for one car and Pierre Gasly was the recipient of that. It was a sprint weekend so not a lot of running to get the best out of it but comparing Gasly to Franco Colapinto's old-spec car over the weekend's sessions we get the following:
### Colapinto deficit to Gasly
**Free Practice 1**
+0.915s
**Sprint Qualifying**
**SQ1** +0.641s
**SQ2** +0.719s
Colapinto didn't reach SQ3, Gasly qualified 9th, Colapinto 14th
**Grand Prix Qualifying**
**Q1** +0.207s
**Q2** +0.184s
Neither reached Q3, Gasly qualified 11th, Colapinto 14th
---
As the weekend went on, Colapinto closed the gap to Gasly to around that two tenths which Alpine had predicted from the upgrade. However I’m sure the team would have been happier if it had been three tenths as it classified this as a substantial upgrade.
So let’s have a look at what Alpine has brought to the show.
Front wing-wise, I’m not seeing any big differences. Perhaps this was updated earlier in the season and the rest of these developments are in line with optimising the revised airflow structure further rearwards.
The one thing I will say about the front wing package is how neatly integrated the upper horizontal vane and the foot plate outwash vane (red ellipse on the image above) are into the actual endplate surface. Components integrated like this, as opposed to simply being a separate component bonded on, always make me happy.
The radiator intakes, as far as the opening is concerned, are now repositioned, with a slightly higher bottom profile offering more of a sidepod undercut and slightly wider.
They could also be a little smaller as far as intake area is concerned. It’s the old compromise, airflow used for cooling is wasted on producing downforce so compromise is always necessary when it comes to these decisions.
The sidepod profile in side view has changed dramatically. The dotted line on the image below shows the profile change which basically puts Alpine in line with most other teams' concepts.
It has removed that bulbous rear section which will improve the mass flow down into the area between the inner body shrouding the gearbox and inner side wall of the rear tyre. This will improve the performance of the diffuser by allowing more airflow to pass over its upper surface.
To allow this sidepod surface change to happen, the mechanical side of the cooling under the sidepod will also been revised.
The radiator intake is now undercut, the lower leading edge of the opening being further rearward. When the car speed reaches a certain point the mass airflow presented to the radiator just doesn’t want to pass through the radiator core so it has to spill off somewhere. This positioning will allow it to flow into that sidepod undercut with more consistency.
This increased undercut will also allow the bargeboards and bargeboard footplate to be revised and to be used more powerfully. The mounting stay (cyan highlight) has been revised and is now a twin-element component acting as a flow management device turning the airflow downwards into that increased side pod undercut.
All three of the horizontal bargeboard vanes (green, magenta and yellow highlights on the image below) have been altered in side profile. They are now longer, running into that increased sidepod undercut area.
The lower one at its trailing edge (yellow highlight) has now become a two-element component. This will work the footplate outer edge turned-up section harder (blue highlight).
Getting this front corner of the floor working as its own small diffuser is beneficial for the main diffuser.
Managing the airflow here and also managing the turbulent wake behind the front tyre as efficiently as possible means that the floor outer edges can be aerodynamically ‘sealed’ better, allowing the main diffuser at the rear of the car to increase the airspeed passing under the car all the way from the leading edge of the floor. This means it will be at a lower pressure, generating more downforce.
This area in front of the rear tyres is also critical to how efficient the diffuser is. The objective here is to manage the airflow that is displaced when the rear tyre rotates onto the track surface. It has to go somewhere and if not managed as well as possible some of it will be pulled into the diffuser area, basically reducing the diffuser's volume and reducing its efficiency.
The longer side vanes (blue and green highlight) start earlier and basically allow the airflow to be turned outwards earlier too, creating higher levels of outwash or, even more importantly, reducing in-wash.
If a twin-element wing is more powerful than a single-element wing then a two-element exhaust flow turning vane (cyan highlight below) should also be better.
This exhaust flow turning vane working in conjunction with the boxed turning vane (green highlight) mounted on the crash box will improve the consistency of that central section of the diffuser, again improving the consistency of the underfloor and diffuser performance.
Will these developments mean Alpine will have succeeded in leapfrogging Racing Bulls and others that might be its closest competition?
Personally, I doubt it, as most of these developments only bring Alpine in line with what some of the other teams have had since day one. However, that’s the main challenge of a new set of regulations, who can get it right immediately and who has to play catch-up.
Catch-up is always difficult as it means you are spending twice, and all that has to come out of the budget cap, so for this year, budget cap management is probably more important than car development.
Let’s see what happens over the next few races when Alpine gets this package working as planned and on both cars.
### Ogura dealt heavy MotoGP title blow by training injury
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/ogura-dealt-heavy-motogp-title-blow-by-training-injury/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T16:13:06.000Z
MotoGP title hopeful Ai Ogura has been ruled out of the upcoming Aragon Grand Prix weekend due to a training injury,
The Trackhouse Aprilia rider sits 37 points back from leader Jorge Martin, with 10 rounds left in this year's campaign.
But Ogura, who will join the factory Yamaha team next year, will be sidelined this weekend - and is thus set to lose crucial ground in the championship race.
The Trackhouse team has revealed Ogura had sustained a training injury in Japan which, once he returned to Europe, was found to necessitate surgery due to a "fracture close to his left thumb".
Aprilia tester Lorenzo Savadori will deputise of Ogura. The Japanese was sidelined at such late notice that Trackhouse had initially sent out a media schedule with Ogura on it - before announcing his absence later on Thursday.
### Red Bull misses out as FIA reveals fresh F1 ADUO results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-misses-out-as-fia-reveals-fresh-f1-aduo-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T16:29:25.000Z
Red Bull remains the only manufacturer unable to upgrade its Formula 1 power unit - after the FIA announced no change to its ranking of engines.
Under F1’s catch-up mechanism known as ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities), manufacturers that were more than 2% adrift of the benchmark are allowed extra development scope.
This includes an increased cost cap allowance, more dyno hours, plus the ability to introduce new homologations in-season.
If a manufacturer is more than 2% adrift they get one upgrade this season and one the next, while anyone more than 4% off gets two upgrades this year and two in 2027.
Following the first ADUO period that ended at the Canadian Grand Prix, the FIA’s measurements had concluded that Red Bull had the best internal combustion engine, with Mercedes 2% behind and everyone else 4% off.
That decision triggered controversy, with Red Bull adamant that its data showed it was never that far clear of championship leaders Mercedes – and it opened dialogue with the governing body to review the findings.
But following the conclusion of that analysis, plus the FIA’s findings from the second ADUO period that ran from Monaco to Hungary, there has been no change in the FIA's view.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the FIA said that its awarding of ADUO allowances was unchanged – meaning Red Bull has to stick with what it has got for now and will not get any extra development freedom.
The FIA did not reveal any details of what the findings from the second ADUO period were but, with things being unchanged from the first period, it means that no manufacturer was deemed to have improved enough to overtake Red Bull by at least 2%.
Under ADUO, the extra homologations are not cumulative - so once they have been awarded once, no further opportunities will be given for the same threshold.
The situation means that unless one of Red Bull’s rivals delivers an upgrade to overtake the Red Bull engine by over 2% by the time of the third ADUO review period, which runs from the Dutch GP until the USA GP, then Red Bull will be stuck in being unable to improve.
While Red Bull has questioned the findings of the FIA’s first ADUO assessment, the governing body has defended the quality of its analysis.
Nikolas Tombazis, the FIA’s single seater director, said: “The FIA has undertaken thorough and exhaustive analysis as part of our ADUO review process.
“With the release of the findings of period 2, we are confident that, based on the quality of the data, its analysis is incredibly robust, giving us a high level of confidence in our findings."
Tombazis also reiterated that the FIA cannot release specific numbers: “We also have to respect the confidentiality and intellectual property of the teams and their power unit manufacturers in disseminating any details from the findings.”
The controversy over the assessment that has put Red Bull on top has triggered talk about the need to revise the ADUO process.
One element that has come under the spotlight is that ADUO is based purely on the performance of the internal combustion engine element and ignores other performance factors like the batteries.
It is widely accepted in the F1 pitlane that Mercedes has the best package overall because its energy management is more efficient - but it has been awarded ADUO because its ICE is not the best.
Tombazis says the FIA is open to making changes to the way ADUO operates, but that this would require support from teams and manufacturers.
"This is the first year of ADUO so naturally there are areas which we may evolve over time, in discussion with all the PU manufacturers,” he said.
### Verdict: What we want see from Days Of Thunder 2
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/verdict-what-we-want-see-from-days-of-thunder-2/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T15:44:19.000Z
It looks like *Days of Thunder 2* is getting the green light.
With [reports](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/jonathan-levine-direct-days-of-thunder-2-tom-cruise-1236653926/?ref=the-race.com) that Paramount is moving ahead with a sequel, Tom Cruise returning as Cole Trickle and director Jonathan Levine in talks to come on board, NASCAR could soon be heading back to the big screen.
The timing is hardly a surprise. With the rise in popularity of Formula 1, motorsport movies are in demand. Last year, F1: The Movie grossed $634 million according to [IMDB](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/release/rl2507374593/?ref=the-race.com), making it the highest-grossing auto racing film in history. Cruise has also shown with *Top Gun: Maverick* that legacy sequels can work when they bring something fresh rather than simply trading on nostalgia.
So if *Days of Thunder 2* really is next on the grid, what should it look like? The Race's writers give their verdict on what they want from the long-awaited sequel.
**Edd Straw**
The timing for a Days of Thunder sequel couldn’t be better. Riding on the coattails of F1: The Movie and with the star power of Tom Cruise, it has the potential to surpass the 1990 original and be a genuine cinematic event.
However, it comes with risk. NASCAR will rightly regard it as the opportunity to boost its flagging popularity, which brings the risk of 'blandification'. Product placement has long been a reality when it comes to Hollywood movies, but if the mindset is simply to make this a glossy advert for NASCAR then it will fall short as a movie.
It must also not make the mistake of F1: The Movie. You can't question the popularity or success of it, but my biggest problem was that it simply wasn't as good a film as it should have been - and part of that was down to the writing. One of the strengths of Days of Thunder is its sense of fun, so any sequel must tap into that rather than getting weighed down by a sense of earnestness that it can't back up, which was a problem I had with F1: The Movie.
It must be a movie first, and a promo for NASCAR a very distant second. Strike that balance and it could not only be a great watch, but also move the dial for NASCAR as a whole.
**Fictional APXGP pit garages used for filming F1: The Movie at Silverstone in 2023*
**Jack Benyon**
If Days of Thunder 2 doesn't have throwback liveries, I'm going to be so, so mad.
One of my favourite things NASCAR has done in recent years is have retro throwback livery weekends, which have produced some spectacular pieces of beautiful, perfect nostalgia.
What is Days of Thunder 2 if not beautiful, perfect nostalgia?!
There's the perfect chance to build this into the plot also. Picture it. Tom Cruise is going into the final race of the season, he has to beat Russ Wheeler's son (presumably he's called something like Tucker), to win the Cup Series championship.
The cars roll off pitlane and for the first time in the movie, Cole Trickle's number 42 has a throwback Mello Yello or City livery, and Wheeler's is in the famous Hardee's. They'll go head to head for the title with a perfect callback to the first movie. All of the other cars on the grid also use paint schemes from the original, too.
How would that not be absolute perfection?
**Darren Cox**
One of the reasons great racing films are great is that they perfectly fit the era they are released in. The original Days of Thunder followed on from Top Gun and was part of the MTV era of America conspicuously celebrating success and celebrating that success with confidence and without irony. The recent F1 movie added Brad Pitt to the rocket ship of the ‘content first’ Formula 1 era. That contrasted with its somewhat related '60s cool', arty and edgy predecessor, Grand Prix. They were great because they were both of their time and not interchangeable.
I was involved in the movie Gran Turismo and it absolutely was not the film the 52-year-old me would have made. But the teenage version of me that watches it thinks it’s ‘their’ racing movie. A hero who games and succeeds even though his parents don’t support or understand him, all wrapped in an airy, tech-heavy, easy to follow story that belongs exactly in the post-lockdown era.
At just the moment that NASCAR has again realised their actual audience is the ‘good ol’ boys’ and not a facsimile of an F1 fan, Days of Thunder becomes the perfect device for the series and the film producers to retell a story of American industry built on V8s and blue collar sweat against one built on data centres and private equity. The film might just have found its own geopolitical moment.
I for one am praying to the eight-pound, six-ounce, newborn infant Jesus that if Cole Trickle is making a comeback, so should the real icon of Hollywood NASCAR, Ricky Bobby.
**Tom Cruise at Daytona in 2009*
**Valentin Khorounzhiy**
Ultimately this movie will only exist because Top Gun: Maverick showed that you can make serious bank with a modern sequel to a beloved-but-flawed slice of Tony Scott-directed Tom Cruise-led late-80s cheese. But I hope Days of Thunder 2 doesn't follow the Maverick blueprint too much - because... let's be honest, F1: The Movie already basically did that.
Ultimately, I'm OK with Cruise's character Cole Trickle still driving (Cruise is 64, but it's easier to swallow in a NASCAR context), and I'm OK with what will inevitably be copious amounts of nostalgiabait - but I want to see a central story concept, and screenplay around it, that stands on its own and doesn't drown in sports movie cliches.
Reporting has named Jonathan Levine as director and Will Staples as scriptwriter. Levine is a deeply interesting choice, primarily a comedy director up to now without a track record of smash hits, though the one movie of his I have seen - 2019 Seth Rogen/Charlize Theron politics romcom Long Shot - I am very fond.
Of Staples' work, I am only really familiar with the script he wrote for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 over 15 years ago. It wasn't exactly Shakespeare - but, again, it was 15 years ago, and I would be lying if I said I don't love it.
I hope they both bring their A-game.
I also hope, for my own sake more than anything, that the sequel acknowledges the horribly sexist way Nicole Kidman's character was introduced in the first movie with a "hey, that was messed up, wasn't it? Sorry about that".
**Samarth Kanal**
So many questions.
I have so many questions after seeing the news about a Days of Thunder sequel: Does the original Days of Thunder deserve a sequel? Isn't Tom Cruise slightly too young to be playing Hershel McGriff? Will this movie drive up the value of my NASCAR jackets?
It's easy to be cynical about this endless cycle of Hollywood reboots, and I will be - but the grass-touching, rose-sniffing side of me wants it to be fun, loud, and visceral.
Two and a half hours of this would probably beat watching the 2026 Brickyard 400, too, so there's that.
### Why Monaco F1 appeal ruling could take weeks
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-monaco-f1-appeal-ruling-could-take-weeks/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T14:43:44.000Z
A judgement from the FIA’s International Court of Appeal hearing into Pierre Gasly’s Monaco GP podium could take up to three weeks to be issued because of the complexity of the legal arguments at the heart of the case.
Appeals by McLaren and Red Bull over the reinstatement of Gasly to his third-place finish in Monaco were heard by the FIA’s ICA at a session in Paris on Tuesday, August 25.
With some detailed legal arguments emerging about both Gasly’s penalty and the wider implications of post-race sanctions being rescinded, it became obvious that there would be no quick verdict from the panel of four judges.
The Race understands that the parties at the hearing, which took place behind closed doors, were instead informed that it could take between two and three weeks for the judgement to be made.
That means another lengthy wait for Gasly and his Alpine squad to know if they have held on to their top three finish from Monaco, or if Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar is reinstated.
### Double intent
Rivals McLaren and Red Bull were unhappy that post-race time penalties handed down for Gasly speeding in the pits were wiped away at an FIA Right of Review hearing after it emerged that FOM had not measured the pitlane speed distance correctly.
A post-event LIDAR scan had revealed that the shortest distance between the timing loops where all offences occurred during the race was 77cm shorter than what had been used to set-up the FOM timing zones that the speeding calculations are based on.
This meant it could not be proven that Gasly had actually gone over the 60km/h speed limit in the race.
But while Gasly’s penalty could be overturned in light of the new evidence, there was no way to do anything about drivers like McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Mercedes’ George Russell who served punishments during the race.
Although the key reason for the Paris hearing involved Gasly’s penalty situation, wider issues also emerged about the principles of sanctions in F1.
Speaking at the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend, McLaren boss Andrea Stella said that there was a “double intent” from his team in taking the matter to the ICA.
First was that McLaren had lost points through Piastri serving a speeding penalty during the race for the same offence that Gasly was eventually let off for.
But beyond the specifics of the speeding offences, Stella said: “The fact that the penalty was removed introduces some significant elements of concern.”
He believed that it was important for the FIA judges to clarify the bigger picture situation of penalties, when they must be served and an acceptance of how they are policed that is understood by everyone.
Stella added “I think what happened sets some significant concerns”.
### Williams brings F1 fan zone to Madrid for first time for Spanish GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/all/williams-brings-f1-fan-zone-to-madrid-for-first-time-for-spanish-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T12:11:29.000Z
The Williams Formula 1 team will bring its fan zone experience to Madrid for the first time during the week of the Spanish Grand Prix, with Carlos Sainz set to headline a series of appearances in his home city.
The Williams F1 Team Fan Zone will run from September 7-13 at [Plaza del Callao](https://maps.app.goo.gl/fvvg3z8t6TtBGAZz7?ref=the-race.com) in central Madrid, offering free public access throughout race week.
Sainz, who joined Williams ahead of the 2025 season, will be joined by team principal James Vowles and reserve driver Luke Browning at the event, with appearance times to be confirmed closer to the race weekend.
Visitors will be able to get up close to a full-scale FW48 show car, while Williams will also launch a Madrid-exclusive merchandise collection alongside its 2026 official team kit.
Among the attractions will be a dedicated gaming area where visitors can drive the new Madrid circuit in simulators before the F1 field takes to the track, while a special-edition Williams x Marvel comic created for Madrid will also be available.
A range of partner activations will be on offer, including Kraken’s reaction-ring challenge and prize competitions, Komatsu’s haul-truck simulator experience, and interactive games from BW Scores. Estrella will also host a sampling bar featuring its locally brewed alcohol-free beer.
Williams will additionally showcase a display celebrating its Spanish racing history. Helmets from its Spanish drivers Sainz and Marc Gené and 2012 Spanish GP winner Pastor Maldonado will be exhibited alongside trophies from some of the team’s other notable victories in Spain, including Alain Prost’s 1993 Barcelona win, Nigel Mansell’s 1987 triumph at Jerez and Jacques Villeneuve’s 1997 victory at Barcelona.
Williams says the initiative is part of its effort to make F1 more accessible beyond the race circuit, noting that only a small proportion of F1 fans are able to attend grands prix in person. The fan zone concept is now entering its fifth season and has attracted close to half a million visitors worldwide.
Madrid becomes the latest city to host the activation as F1 prepares for its first grand prix in the Spanish capital.
The event has been organised with support from Madrid City Council and will be open throughout the week leading into the race.
**The Madrid fan zone opening hours are as follows:**
Monday 7 September - Friday 11 September: 11:00 - 21:00
Saturday 12 September: 10:00 - 21:00
Sunday 13 September: 10:00 - 16:00
### Steiner's first MotoGP signing follows his F1 blueprint
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/steiners-first-motogp-signing-follows-his-f1-blueprint/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T10:11:59.000Z
Luca Marini's announcement as a Tech3 KTM MotoGP rider from 2027 onwards marks the first signing of the team's Guenther Steiner era - and, in that sense, it is fitting.
After fielding KTM-contracted riders for several years, Tech3 is pivoting to having riders under its own contractual control (note how Marini was announced only by Tech3 and not by KTM) - and Marini was not thought to be particularly high on KTM's shopping list for its satellite team.
But he is a quintessential Steiner signing, and a rider who - even before the actual talks had started in earnest - seemed to be the inevitable fit for Tech3.
When the cracks first started really showing in the Maverick Vinales relationship with Tech3 and KTM, I remember mentioning Marini to Steiner - and being very surprised when he indicated they had not yet met (with the hint being that Marini wasn't hugely on the radar).
In the end, Marini more or less had to be the choice.
During his time in charge of the Haas Formula 1 team, Steiner very clearly favoured long-time continuity with established 'midfield professionals' - see Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen, who were only eventually phased out due to budget - over 'upside' bets or rookies or any left-field options.
Tech3 is more established in MotoGP than Haas has ever been in F1, so Steiner has showed a keenness on a rookie signing (which he never wanted at Haas). Senna Agius is the favourite for that rookie spot.
But two rookies was a no-go, even though there were suggestions KTM had an interest in this. For Steiner, having a benchmark of established quality was paramount.
Ideally, this would have been one of the incumbents, Enea Bastianini or Maverick Vinales.
But Vinales has become non-viable through injury and what can only be described as 'baggage'.
And Bastianini, also through 'baggage', had long made up his mind towards going somewhere else - he just never seemed truly settled as a Tech3 KTM rider, initially hamstrung by the adaptation from the Ducati and subsequently never truly at ease on a bike he found to be too much of a 'bucking bronco'.
It is curious that Steiner has sounded so dismissive of Brad Binder - expected to go to World Superbikes as a BMW rider - as another option. But Binder and Marini seemed like the only logical riders to pursue, and now Marini has got the nod.
He is not a flashy, buzzy signing by any means, but he does seem fundamentally misunderstood - to the point where a lot of people exist under the impression Marini has stuck around by virtue of being Valentino Rossi's brother.
Certainly for this signing, that is completely irrelevant. Marini has stuck around because he has a paddock-wide reputation for possessing a keen engineering mind, and because he scores points and keeps equipment intact.
He has outqualified Honda team-mate Joan Mir only once all season. He is, however, outscoring Mir 86 to 29.
If Tech3 wants someone who will maximise its chances at stealing a win here or there, Marini is absolutely not the guy.
But after the travails of the Bastianini-Vinales line-up, all the irritation the various dramas surrounding both are known to have caused, the appeal of Marini is only too clear.
### What settled the fight for Nissan's vacant seat
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/what-settled-the-fight-for-nissans-vacant-seat/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T09:18:43.000Z
Nissan has signed Zane Maloney to replace Norman Nato because it believed his recent experience in Formula E, combined with his already banked Gen4 test days, would be more beneficial than taking out-and-out rookie Victor Martins.
The deal for Nissan to take former Lola Yamaha Abt racer Maloney was announced on Wednesday, but for a long spell it looked like Alpine World Endurance Championship racer Victor Martins was on course for it, with Martins having previously tested for Nissan on several occasions.
The Race has learned that the ultimate decision of who would partner Oliver Rowland next season came down to a straight choice between Maloney and Martins.
The last of Martins' Nissan tests was last month in Navarra where he joined test and reserve driver Sam Bird.
But it was ultimately Maloney who got the seat after team principal Tommaso Volpe is believed to have had some Nissan board level pressure to take a driver with some Formula E experience.
Maloney has scored just three points in two seasons with the Lola squad, propping up the points table in each of his campaigns so far. But Volpe and Nissan saw past the poor results and found that the Bajan was, especially this season, just as quick as team-mate Lucas di Grassi.
"Despite the beginning of Gen4 presenting us with the opportunity to start with a rookie, which was definitely a valid option for us, we were a little bit concerned that no Formula E experience could have left us a little bit disadvantaged," Volpe told The Race.
"So, we preferred to have someone with Formula E experience. We also looked at the performance of Zane in F2, and from what the drivers tell us about the characteristics of Gen4, we thought that overall that Zane would have been the best choice for us at this time."
The Race understands that Maloney will be in the Nissan simulator next week before getting his first taste of the Nissan Gen4 development car next month. He has previously conducted several test days with the Lola Gen4 test car, most recently at Estoril the week before the London E-Prix finale races.
## What now for Martins?
Martins' hopes of racing for Nissan next season may be over but the F2 race winner has a 'plan B' in Formula E, which is a berth at Lola Yamaha for next season.
Two seats are now available at the British manufacturer, which is continuing its Gen4 testing in Spain today [with Dan Ticktum](https://fenotebook.com/2026/08/24/revealed-ticktum-to-test-for-lola/?ref=the-race.com) running with the team as he considers his Formula E future.
At present Martins is a free agent and is believed to be evaluating several options in sportscars and Formula E. He is likely to be given an offer to stay with the Alpine team which is expected to metamorphose into a Geely branded entity next season, as [first reported by The Stint website](https://www.thestint.com/geely-on-its-way-to-the-wec/?ref=the-race.com) earlier this month.
Nissan boss Volpe said that choosing between Maloney and Martins "was definitely a very difficult decision because Victor is super talented".
"He also has equally strong results and performance in F2 like Zane," Volpe added.
"We do not know his plan for endurance next year and we also have an overlap \[clash\] with one race, which has hurt us in the past, so there were many other things that it looked like a little bit easier with Zane and more in his favour."
## What went down with Rowland?
Running concurrently to the Maloney or Martins situation was some turbulence around Nissan's outgoing champion Rowland.
He started to become unsure if staying at the manufacturer that took him to his 2025 crown was absolutely right for him in Gen4\.
The Race revealed last week that Rowland is believed to have received attention and potentially offers from both Penske and Envision recently despite having a long-term arrangement at Nissan.
While that fragile situation got resolved over the London E-Prix weekend, thought soon went toward doing a deal with Maloney, which Is understood to have been agreed just after the final race weekend of the season too.
A fraught build up to the London showdown was understood by The Race to have included several intense discussions between the Rowland camp and Volpe about their future together.
Rowland has a multi-year deal with Nissan, potentially for the duration of the Gen4 rules set, although it is rumoured to include several clauses within it that could have allowed the 2025 champion to move on.
Volpe was reluctant to divulge much detail on the situation but did tell The Race that "Oliver is. a champion and he does not like not being a champion, like us, so we have that in common."
"Of course, at the end of the cycle we had a moment of discussion with Oliver, where his priority was to understand what our plan was, and everything went well," added Volpe.
"We also were not particularly happy not to have him on the top of the championship again for the second season running, but we just had a conversation about our plans for Gen4 and then everything went well. I think we are all focused on doing as well as possible for Nissan in Gen4."
### Are F1 teams still undervalued compared to US franchises?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/are-f1-teams-still-undervalued-compared-to-us-franchises/
Last updated: 2026-08-26T05:45:50.000Z
“I think the teams are undervalued compared to US franchises” - Jefferson Slack, managing director of Aston Martin, at the 2026 Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Seventy-six days after Jeff made this statement at [The Race Business’s event in association with Axios](https://www.the-race.com/business/are-f1-teams-actually-being-undervalued/) at Monaco, Aston Martin announced that the owner of the New York Jets NFL franchise has bought into the Aston Martin F1 team.
F1 team personnel have been at pains to tell the world that the gap between F1 team valuations and those of American sports franchises should not exist. The announcement that [Robert ‘Woody’ Johnson had bought into Aston Martin](https://www.the-race.com/business/ex-us-ambassador-takes-stake-in-aston-martin-f1-team/) was the third piece of American sports franchise related news of the week - and all of them a surprise.
I had written the first draft of this article after deciding during the summer break that I should reflect on various conversations I’d had with paddock heavyweights for The Race Business in the first half of the season.
I had started the original piece with quotes from Zak Brown and Flavio Briatore to set the scene, but, with the Aston Martin news, I shall let Jeff’s words build on the blunt ones above.
“In my opinion, we’re still trading at relatively low levels. Franchises, which is what Formula 1 is, because there’s no promotion and relegation like football, are valued based on a multiple of revenue. We’re valued at six or seven times revenue. Why is an NBA team valued at 12 times revenue?
“There are only 11 Formula 1 teams, and there are probably only ever going to be 11\. The risk is relatively low in the sense that we have a global footprint. We have long-term contracts and the sport continues to grow."
Zak was agreeing with his fellow American in the quote I had chosen to lead the original piece.
“If you look at sports in general, values have only ever gone up. Every time there’s a record-breaking deal in any sport, people say, ‘Oh, that was crazy’. Then, five years later, you look back and see that the values have continued to rise,” said Brown in conversation with The Race Business in Miami in May 2026.
Whilst Flavio did sound a little stunned at the evolution of values when looking back and predicting forward.
“I sold my share in Benetton, and the value of the team was $80million. OK, now you’re talking about $3.5, $4billion. And everybody predicting Formula 1 in three, four years, the team is worth $10billion,” said Briatore in conversation with The Race Business at Enstone in July 2026.
Team valuations are very personal to those we talk to as part of our new focus on the business of the sport, which we imaginatively titled The Race Business. The news flow about F1’s finances is also of increasing interest outside of the paddock, with the numbers always moving and always in a positive direction.
I’m sure we have not reached peak newsworthyness on this subject as there is movement and intrigue around the teams themselves, their shareholders and the macro sports investment space.
As well as the New York Jets connection via Robert ‘Woody’ Johnson, the LA Lakers ‘sale’ also has an F1 angle and is an ongoing story related to [Mark Walter’s complex and varied financial dealings](https://www.the-race.com/business/cadillac-f1-owner-twg-firm-statement-team-sale-talk/) that include TMG Motorsports, which owns Cadillac F1.
The takeout from the Lakers deal for the purpose of this article is that it’s the ‘biggest valuation for a sale of sports franchises ever’. An increase from $10bn paid only 10 months ago to an ‘agreed’ sale price of $12.5bn this week gives added credence to Jeff and Zak’s insight above.
Private equity behemoth Apollo Capital has set up a sports investment arm and has got to work quickly with investments in the Wrexham and Atletico Madrid football clubs and, most recently, the legendary New York Yankees - with franchise valuations a big part of the story.
The ownership profile of F1 teams is starting to change to reflect this private equity lead in the Lakers and Yankees deals. Dorilton Capital is the most visible representation of the genre in F1\. In the UK, private equity has gained a bad reputation in football where it has been operating for several years, and yet everything I heard from Matthew Savage in our June conversation at the Williams factory gave me huge comfort that Dorilton has a very different approach and mindset.
During our conversation Matthew gave plenty of insight into how he has viewed valuations before and during his ownership of Williams. Once again his comparison to American sports franchises won’t have hurt Jeff and Lawrence Stroll’s negotiations with ‘Woody’.
“In 2020 we saw that valuations were around one times revenues at the time for Formula 1 teams. NBA teams, NFL teams were going for seven, eight, nine, 10 times revenues. And I just looked at this and I thought, look, there’s only 10 teams at the time. NFL is 30\. It’s a great global sport. These teams are going to go for more. We thought valuations would increase,” said Savage.
The full interview is well worth a watch or listen to get the full context and an insight into the man and his company.
Currently private equity is only a small part of the ownership structure in F1 teams. Like most things in F1, below the surface the differences in the team structures are stark and all unique. No one ownership model is the same and that subject will deserve a further deep dive on The Race Business in due course. This means in some regards valuation comparisons are somewhat irrelevant across the grid as they are mainly theoretical.
What is the Ferrari F1 team worth? Impossible to say, due to its ownership structure. To a lesser extent it’s the same case with Red Bull. The debate gets most solid when an actual transaction takes place. And recently, that’s helped feed the news frenzy. Toto Wolff structuring an unusual deal using some of his personal stake in Mercedes that spat out a $6bn valuation and a tidying up of McLaren’s ownership implies a $4.1bn valuation there.
Where will the next real, firm valuation data come from? The Aston Martin deal gave no indication of the financial details but, as Briatore and I discussed, it could be in September when Otro Capital is free to sell its Alpine stake. A stake that Flavio has done the man-maths on…
“We have an \[offer\] for the 24% of Otro, the valuation \[is\] $3.2bn. All \[of\] Renault is worth $8.3bn. So we’re representing 40% or 50%.... it's completely crazy.”
Yes, really. The part of the Renault group that races two cars is now potentially worth 40% of the whole company that produces two million cars. Is that credible? We might soon find out. It may not be Alpine that provides that firm data point as there are other various deals in process across the grid. None of those opportunities are public but a process of sorts is allegedly in progress, whether by design or need, with the most obvious one being Cadillac.
My A-level Economics is enough to tell me why the numbers associated with any new deal that does become public can only be ‘up and to the right’. There are several sensible, defensible and additive theories into what is driving the demand side.
The investors behind the Lakers and Yankees deals have previously described their shifts into sports as being because respectively they “wanted assets with qualities that cannot be replicated by technology” and that “sport is structurally insulated from AI-driven substitution”.
Adam Kelly, president of leading sports marketing agency IMG, makes the point even clearer: “I actually see sport as an antidote to AI. AI content is going to flood the market and flood our platforms. Sport becomes a counterweight: live, appointment viewing that cuts through the noise, with scarcity value and human stakes.”
Briatore’s apparent surprise at these levels of valuation is countered by others that think that valuations around tech companies and specifically AI businesses are crazy. They are seemingly increasingly being fuelled by “circular financing”, one of several reasons investors fear parts of the AI boom may be overheating.
It allows Iuri Struta, Editor at S&P Global Market Intelligence, who specialises in technology, mergers and acquisitions, and capital markets, including AI and sports investment, to once again use American sports franchises as a positive reference point.
“I would rather bet that the Lakers are going to be around in a hundred years, but I’m not sure about Apple, or Alphabet, or any other big tech company," said Struta. "The durability of an asset should be valued at a premium.”
These and many other inputs mean that Savage clearly sees the impact on the demand side by and says he receives ‘two or three calls a week’ from “institutional investors, high-net-worth families, and the occasional car manufacturer.”
Speaking at our Miami Grand Prix event this year, Brandon Snow, chief commercial officer and operating partner of RedBird Capital Partners, which is one of the group of investors represented by the now-almost-infamous Otro Capital 24% Alpine share, provided some of the insight for the motivation for one of those groups: the institutional investor.
“The most valuable IP \[intellectual property\] out there in the world today is sports. We’re going to be long on F1 as long as we can. What you’re seeing in most of these PE \[private equity\] firms now moving into sports is much more evergreen, long-term capital investments. No one is really looking for short-term trades.”
All of that demand is balanced against a supply of 11 teams, of which at least half, seemingly, have no interest in selling, or can’t.
Economics 101 is at play here despite a very complex and fast evolving market. In short, huge demand is outstripping very limited supply.
On reflection, it is perhaps not a surprise that three senior executives (Slack, Brown, Savage) in F1 with more exposure to American financial markets and interest, experience and knowledge of American sports franchises have been the most vocal about how F1 teams were undervalued against that benchmark.
Now, the rest of the paddock has been schooled in the subject and as more crossover ownership takes place might we see F1 outperform those iconic names like the Yankees and Lakers financially?
One thing is for certain: The Race Business will be asking those that matter in the coming months.
### F1 calendar latest: New back-up plan for 2027 season opener
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-calendar-latest-new-back-up-plan-for-2027-season-opener/
Last updated: 2026-08-28T09:17:27.000Z
The Chinese Grand Prix has emerged as a leading options to be the 2027 Formula 1 season opener if starting in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia is not possible.
F1 is currently holding a watching brief over the situation in the Middle East, following the conflict that erupted between the United States and Iran back in February.
Decisions it plans to make over the next few weeks are not only to what happens to the final phase of this year's calendar, but will dictate the fate of the 2027 schedule too.
F1's provisional idea is to start next year in Bahrain – so if that cannot happen then an alternative plan needs to be put in place.
## September decision
The tensions in the Middle East already resulted in the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix being called off earlier this season, with a race in Malaysia, funded by Bahrain, getting slotted in as a replacement in early October.
The fate of this year's planned season-closing Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix still remains up in the air.
F1 has long been clear that it will make a call on whether it is comfortable to go ahead with those two races by the end of September.
Comments by F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali at the weekend that the calendar was "confirmed" did not mean a final decision had been made about Qatar and Abu Dhabi, but are understood instead to be related to the fact that the current plan is to go there.
Speaking to F1's own channel at the Dutch GP, Domenicali said: "The calendar is confirmed. So there are still a few tickets to be sold in Abu Dhabi.
"Everything is progressing well and we stay focused on delivering the calendar we promised at the beginning of the year."
If, however, by the end of September the conflict between the USA and Iran is not over then F1 will likely be forced to abandon the Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix for now.
If that happens then the season finale will take place at Imola in December, most likely a fortnight after the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
## The 2027 decision
The Middle East situation impacts next year too. F1 has held back on releasing its provisional 2027 calendar, which has made it more difficult for race promoters to get on with selling tickets. In recent years it has been able to release the following season's calendar during the summer.
Should the situation in the Middle East have not improved by the end of September then that will likely force a rejig on plans to start next season in the region too.
The Race understands F1's 2027 plan A is to start the year with back-to-back races in Bahrain (March 14) and Saudi Arabia (March 21) before a triple header in Australia (April 4), Japan (April 11) and China (April 18.)
But if that cannot go ahead, the leading alternative is to begin the season in March with the Chinese Grand Prix, followed by Japan.
The reason for this is that the Australian GP, which has previously been a season opener for F1 on plenty of occasions, cannot move too far forward from its current provisional April slot because work on a new pit building will not be complete in time.
So the race in Melbourne would then slot in after the Asian races – either as the third race of a triple-header with China and Japan or as a standalone.
F1 would then have to make a call about whether to attempt to slot in the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian races for April, and hope things improve in the Middle East, or delay them even further by pulling other events forward.
Speaking over the summer break, Domenicali said F1 would definitely hold a full calendar next year, whatever happens in the Middle East.
"We have different plans with different options ready in place that will accommodate the fact that we will keep, in any case, the target of 24 grand prix also for next year," he said.
This season's calendar currently looks set to end up at either 22 or 23 races.
### Why Mercedes can't fast-track McLaren-matching upgrades
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-mercedes-cant-fast-track-mclaren-matching-upgrades/
Last updated: 2026-08-25T14:23:49.000Z
Mercedes says it has a “major update” in the works to help it fight back against the renewed threat from rivals in Formula 1, but admits it faces a tough battle until then.
There has been intrigue about how capable Mercedes is of responding to the step forward that McLaren in particular has made with its car, with team boss Toto Wolff suggesting that cost cap limits were restricting it.
Speaking about whether Lando Norris’s second victory of the season, in the Dutch Grand Prix, meant it needed to fast-track some upgrades, Wolff said: “We haven't got the money to put developments on the car.”
It is understood his comments were in relation to his team not having flexibility to do extra updates beyond a plan it has put in place since the start of the season to space out its new parts.
Mercedes has adopted a different strategy to its rivals so far this year with upgrades, introducing fewer developments to its car compared to many other teams.
It has not had a major new package since the Canadian GP back in May, and its lack of upgrades has led to uncertainty about whether it spent too much in the build-up to the year, or if it is saving everything for a late season splurge.
Speaking in Mercedes’ regular post-event debrief about the wider title fight, Mercedes’ trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin said the team was not without upgrades at all – it was just biding its time for the right moment.
“It's obviously getting really tight now in terms of performance,” he said.
“We're still waiting for our major update to land, and that will help. But in the meantime, it is going to be a bit of a fight.”
The timing of Mercedes’ next upgrade is unclear, but it would be highly unlikely to come for the low-downforce Monza – especially with the team electing to take an engine penalty there for points leader Kimi Antonelli.
It would be much more beneficial either for the Madrid Grand Prix street race - although introducing it at a new circuit may not be ideal - or for the Malaysia/Singapore double-header.
### An offset strategy
Mercedes’ upgrade tactics appear well offset to others, both in terms of timing and resources.
It is unclear why the team is so restricted on money despite having introduced so little, while others are able to keep up developments.
Based on the official FIA figures for declared upgrades over 2026, Mercedes is well behind when it comes to the number of new parts it has brought.
Ferrari has introduced 40 new components, Red Bull and McLaren 38, while Mercedes has added just 24.
However, those basic numbers do not tell the full story of how much spending has been done on development, as for example, a new floor costs a lot more than a mirror shroud.
A weighted analysis giving a cost grade for each new component puts Red Bull at the top of the leading four teams, just ahead of McLaren, with Ferrari third and Mercedes quite a bit adrift.
A clue to Mercedes’ approach may have come from technical director James Allison recently though, who suggested that Mercedes spent heavily on development before the start of the season.
It felt doing that would help capitalise on a really aggressive development slope with the new rules that was delivering improvements six to seven times greater than 2025.
Allison told the Mercedes YouTube channel: “We took a decision internally on the aerodynamic side and on the bodywork side of the car that we were going to leave it later than we've ever left a car before by several weeks.
“We were going to do a plan that had less than no contingency in it. As a result of that plan, we got as much of that very, very steep development slope in the first car at the first race as I think was humanly possible to get in there. And we emptied everything out to do that.”
Allison believes other teams delayed spending to introduce more in-season upgrades, putting squads out of phase.
He accepts that the strategy did bring with it some risks in terms of there being phases of the campaign where rivals caught up.
“Our strategy is just to try to keep our nose ahead and to make sure that the next lump of performance that we deliver will restore the status quo ante – restore the goodness we put in at the beginning of the season," Allison added.
“We just have to ride out these scary events where other people bring their fancy new bits.”
Allison reckons that, with gains being found in the windtunnel of around two tenths for every month of work, that opportunities are still great to catch up.
So if Mercedes has not unleashed anything since May’s Canadian GP then it may have 0.6-seconds of development potential available.
That would in theory be enough to decisively put it ahead of rivals McLaren and Ferrari which have closed the gap or even caught up with their latest packages.
### Verstappen to take on 100 rivals in world-record kart race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/verstappen-to-take-on-100-rivals-in-world-record-kart-race/
Last updated: 2026-08-25T13:49:01.000Z
Max Verstappen will return to his karting roots in September as he takes on 100 rivals in what is being pitched as the biggest go-kart race ever staged.
The four-time Formula 1 world champion will headline a one-off event called *Max vs 100* at Silverstone on September 16.
Rather than racing from the front, Verstappen will start behind a field of 100 other racers, made up of athletes, streamers, personalities and fans, with the objective of overtaking every kart ahead of him.
The event will be broadcast live globally on Disney+, while viewers in the United States will be able to watch via the ESPN App before a delayed ESPN2 broadcast later in the day.
"For me, it's always nice to return," Verstappen said. "In go-karts you learn all the basics: starts, defending, overtaking.
"I spent a long period of my life go-karting, so it's always nice to come back and drive them again."
Verstappen began karting at four years old and rose rapidly through national and international competition, winning multiple European and world titles before making his F1 debut in 2015.
Although Verstappen has spent more than a decade racing single-seaters, he believes reverting back to karting will come naturally.
"It's about understanding the grip of the go-kart," he said. "I've done so many years in go-karting that you quite naturally get back into things."
French driver and kart designer David Terrien, who has created the circuit layout, said accommodating 101 competitors in a single race required an entirely new approach.
**David Terrien - Photo Credit: Joerg Mitter / Red Bull Content Pool*
"Creating a track for 101 drivers at the same time has never been done, never been seen," Terrien said.
With Verstappen typically accustomed to running at the front-end of F1 races, the format is intended to recreate the challenge of working through traffic.
Terrien expects the event to place a premium on racecraft rather than outright speed.
"You're going to have Max showcasing all these skills of \[working\] through the traffic, trying to prepare and plan where he can overtake people," he said.
The field will include a range of Red Bull athletes and creators, including ultrarunner Arda Saatçi, basketball coach Chris Matthews, freestyle mountain biker Matt Jones, and streamers TheGrefg, Caedrel and TheDonato.
Whether Verstappen can actually pass all 100 rivals remains the question.
Red Bull sim racing driver Sebastian Job, who helped test the format during development, said even simulations involving half the intended field proved challenging.
"I think to overtake 100 cars is going to be extremely difficult," Job said. "Today we did it with 50, and even that was a challenge to do it in the allotted time. He's got his work cut out for him."
Verstappen, however, appears more intrigued by the unpredictability than concerned by the difficulty.
Asked what he was looking forward to most, his answer reflected the chaotic nature of the concept.
"Just seeing the carnage unfold in front of me," he said.
### What's at stake for Red Bull as engine decision approaches
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-f1-engine-decision-approaches-aduo/
Last updated: 2026-08-25T10:19:49.000Z
Red Bull is set to find out before the Italian Grand Prix whether there will be any scope for it to get the opportunity for Formula 1 engine upgrades before the tail-end of the year.
The FIA is expected to announce as early as this week the findings of its second round of analysis of the performance of F1's power unit manufacturers in relation to the rules surrounding Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO).
Earlier this year, Red Bull was caught by surprise after the FIA deemed it to be the benchmark engine during the first round of ADUO auditing that covered the Australian to Canadian Grands Prix.
Red Bull was deemed to be more than 2% ahead of every other manufacturer, which meant it was the only one that would not be allowed extra dyno development time, spending, nor the ability to introduce a new specification.
It did not agree with the FIA's findings and requested the governing body check its data once again to be sure - with a review subsequently taking place.
The outcome of that review has not been released in public yet, but it is understood there was no evidence of anything that changed the FIA's opinion.
While work on the FIA review has been ongoing, the second ADUO period also concluded. That ran from the Monaco GP to the Hungarian GP.
And, under the agreement with manufacturers, the FIA has to notify them within a certain window of the outcome of its findings to ensure the door is open for the introduction of new homologation specifications.
It is understood that the deadline for announcing the result of the second measurement expires before the Italian GP next week, so news of these findings, as well as the outcome of its review into the first verdict, should be imminent.
The outcome of the second ADUO period is critical to Red Bull's plans for the remainder of the campaign because it will dictate upgrade opportunities into the winter.
If analysis of Red Bull's performance over the Monaco-Hungary period deems it to be more than 2% behind any of its rivals, then that will open the door for it to be granted development opportunities - which could allow it to introduce an upgrade before the end of the year.
If, however, it is once again deemed to be ahead, or even on equal terms or within 2% of closest rival Mercedes, then the door will be shut for it to have any extra development chances.
If Red Bull's hands are tied once again then there will be one final opportunity left in 2026.
The third ADUO period runs from the Dutch GP to the United States GP, and will be the last window for teams to get extra work in-season before things reset ahead of the 2027 campaign.
The system has proved to be controversial because while Mercedes is widely viewed to have the best power unit, the rankings are not based on overall performance.
Instead, they only take into account the internal combustion engine element of the package - where Red Bull is understood to be very competitive.
Speaking before the summer break, the FIA's single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis suggested that perhaps a new way of measuring things in the future could be agreed - as he reckoned the governing body had got it right with its initial analysis.
"Our measurement, in my opinion, has proven to be very accurate," he said.
"With that said, has everything worked fine? No, because obviously people are not happy and so on. So do we need to think about improvements in the future? Yes, I would say so."
Tombazis has played down suggestions, however, that Red Bull's rivals, having earned ADUO, would now game the system to hold back on developments and leave Red Bull trapped by never being able to improve.
This is partly true because ADUO rules do not offer any benefit for others to remain adrift as the gains are not cumulative during the season - so once you are granted extra development once that is it for the season.
"I don't think it would be convenient for you to always be below, just to sort of keep getting more opportunities," he said. "What's the point of opportunities if it isn't ultimately for you to be on top?
"I think the system is working as it was designed. I do think there are some weaknesses that we need to address in the future, for sure, to make it less time-consuming, less controversial. We do need to make some steps to improve it in the future."
### Opel's new 'dream team' makes it a title dark horse
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/opels-new-dream-team-makes-it-a-title-dark-horse/
Last updated: 2026-08-25T08:18:05.000Z
The official announcement that Mitch Evans is Opel's star signing for its first Formula E campaign brings down the curtain on one of this year's most open paddock secrets.
Evans put pen to paper back in the spring, with [The Race first reporting the deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/mitch-evans-opel-everything-behind-formula-e-big-2026-move/) soon after. Since that time, Evans has been seen on several occasions by rival manufacturers testing the Stellantis Gen4 development model after being released by Jaguar to get some experience of the new car this summer.
The driver with the highest number of Formula E wins (16) will join the [already announced Theo Pourchaire](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/theo-pourchaire-opel-formulae-announcement/) in the Opel GSE Formula E team, which is essentially a start-up team.
It is running with its own licence which will mean it is the first Stellantis operation not to run in conjunction with independent service providers such as MSG (Maserati and Citroen) or Virgin, Techeetah and Penske (DS).
Opel is presently recruiting for several senior positions after signing up former Porsche sportscar team manager Francis Shammo in April.
But while its experience in some quarters is not as great as its Formula E competitors in the often super quirky all-electric world championship, Opel does have the benefit of a mainlined test and development push via a completely separate Stellantis Motorsport test team.
"This is absolutely a positive thing, believe me," said Opel Motorsport director and team principal Jorg Schrott when asked about that cohesiveness being such a specific positive.
"We have a very good engineering team together there, and the base work has to be done as one team, and the more input you get, also from all those good drivers, they always give you always a little bit different input and this is helping to push the whole programme forward.
"This brings the whole thing forward. To me, it's absolutely positive. And again, we are backing definitely on the strong experience of Stellantis over the last decade too."
## Where else could Evans have gone?
There was an inevitability of Evans [moving on from Jaguar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/evans-and-jaguar-to-split-after-10-years/) ever since two very fractious season finales in 2024 and 2025, both at London Excel.
On each occasion, a seething Evans vented furiously at his team over what he believed were messed up chances for him to gain a long-awaited title in 2024 and a strong result in 2025 at the end of a difficult season.
Evans was not an innocent party in either of those flashpoints and some in the team internally distanced themselves from his forthright opinions on those occasions. Others openly pointed the finger at him, particularly in 2024 when he and team-mate Nick Cassidy were head-to-head against Porsche's Pascal Wehrlein.
When James Barclay gave his notice to leave the team in the early summer of 2025 for McLaren's Hypercar programme, and with a new technical director in Theophile Gouzin also coming in last December, Evans's position in the team felt like it was coming to a natural end after a decade of largely successful campaigns.
Without Evans's drive and ability to squeeze out wins and results, Jaguar would have been highly unlikely to have claimed the manufacturers' and teams' championships in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
Since 2016 he saw off highly rated team-mates in Adam Carroll, Nelson Piquet and Sam Bird, and was reasonably evenly matched with countryman Cassidy, although was ultimately let down by reliability and mistakes in their second season together last year.
But Evans's stock has always been high, and righty so. And prior to his deal with Opel being signed in April, the 32-year-old had strong offers from at least two other manufacturers.
One of them is known by The Race to have been from an ambitious Lola, while Porsche also definitely had talks with Evans's representatives, Mark Webber and Matthieu Michel, but it is understood ultimately a firm offer was not forthcoming. Conversations were also held with Nissan.
Another plus for Evans is the possibility of a future sportscar drive with Peugeot. Although this will not happen in 2027, Evans's deal, which is believed to be for two years plus an option for a third, may mean Stellantis gives him the chance for a drive alongside former team-mate Cassidy - who will continue to do a double programme next season.
## Can Opel 'dream team' win on debut?
"We have secured our dream team," said Schrott upon the formal announcement of Evans arriving.
It's a snappy soundbite but one which Schrott might just be proved right on next season. Evans is joining as a major ruleset change takes place, meaning his experience in developing the Gen2 and Gen3 Jaguars, which were successful, is a key positive for Opel.
There is also a vibe with some other manufacturers that Stellantis will have an advantage with its experience of how to work certain control systems in relation to the active differential off the front powertrain in particular.
Stellantis's experience with the Citroen World Rally Championship programme and Opel's own concurrent electric rally project - the ADAC Opel Electric Rally Cup - is where that new Formula E urban legend has brewed from. But more than that, those that have attended the recent Gen4 testing indicate that the Stellantis's car appears very well sorted indeed.
Maybe that is what has supercharged Opel's optimism so much.
"Now the Opel family and Mitch are taking this next step together. In doing so, we are sending a clear message: we are joining the world championship to challenge at the front," added Schrott.
That's some nice early fighting talk. Yes, Citroen has a season of racing together but that team has its own recalibration to achieve after a messy off-track scenario with its actual ownership of the MSG licence holding company, a relocation of technical staff from Monaco to Paris, and the tragic death of team principal [Cyril Blais](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/citroen-formula-e-team-principal-cyril-blais-dies/) last month.
All of that will mean at least a healthy competition between the two Stellantis brands, something which could help it repeat its [aura with DS](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/the-two-words-key-to-formula-e-losing-its-era-defining-team/) in Gen2, where it won titles and many races with Jean-Eric Vergne and Antonio Felix da Costa.
Evans himself said that "after 10 years with a manufacturer, it was time for me to take on a fresh challenge".
"The leap to the Gen4 cars represents the perfect moment to start something new," he said.
"I immediately felt how much energy and passion Opel is putting into the Formula E project. The team isn't just coming into the series to compete, Opel is here to win, and that's exactly what I aspire to."
Seeing Evans in anything other than theJaguar logo overalls feels a bit strange right now.
But it feels already that the retina-bedazzling dayglow of the Opel brand will reflect well from the very start of Formula E's equally bright new era.
### Edd Straw's 2026 Dutch Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-grand-prix-f1-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-08-24T14:53:40.000Z
Combine the sprint weekend format, the demands of the Zandvoort circuit, and rain just before the start - and the final edition of the Dutch Grand Prix (for the time being) had enough about it to properly test the Formula 1 field.
Who came out of that test unscathed and whose hopes were torpedoed? Here are Edd Straw's driver rankings from the Netherlands.
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and ask your questions** [**in reply to this post.**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/ask-edd-about-f1-167546458?utm%5Fmedium=clipboard%5Fcopy&utm%5Fsource=copyLink&utm%5Fcampaign=postshare%5Ffan&utm%5Fcontent=web%5Fshare)
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-167454246?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to in a separate feature!**
---
How do the rankings work? The 22 drivers will be ranked in order of performance from best to worst on each grand prix weekend. This will be based on the full range of criteria, ranging from pace and racecraft to consistency and whether they made key mistakes. How close each driver got to delivering on the maximum performance potential of the car will be an essential consideration.
It’s important to note both that this reflects performance across the entire weekend, cognisant of the fact that qualifying is effectively ‘lap 0’ of the race and key to laying the foundations to the race, and that it is not a ranking of the all-round qualities of each driver. It’s simply about how they performed on a given weekend. Therefore, the ranking will fluctuate significantly from weekend to weekend.
And with each of the 11 cars fundamentally having different performance potential and ‘luck’ (ie factors outside of a driver’s control) contributing to the way the weekend plays out, this ranking will also differ significantly from the overall results.
**Started**: 1st **Finished**: 1st
**PROS**
\- His stunning pace on the hard tyres, which team-mate Oscar Piastri couldn't switch on, was key to his victory.
\- Razor-sharp in battle to take the opportunity to pass Kimi Antonelli when the pair were chasing the slower Lewis Hamilton.
\- Was the faster McLaren driver even compared to Piastri's best work.
**CONS**
\- Had a shot at sprint pole, but only produced what he called a "reasonable lap" to end up 0.041s behind George Russell.
\- Slipped from second to third in the sprint, although in mitigation his pace after being passed showed the rear tyre degradation was a problem.
\- Losing the lead at the restart from what he felt was the lower-grip pole position grid box after the red flag complicated his race.
**Verdict**: Probably his best grand prix win capped a strong weekend.
**Started**: 18th **Finished**: 9th
**PROS**
\- While his qualifying performances looked poor on paper, the failure of straight mode in the rear wing ruined sprint qualifying, with some traffic-management errors from the pitwall infuriating him in Q1 proper.
\- Drove an impressive sprint race after starting from the pits, going against convention by making some overtaking manoeuvres.
\- Race drive was high-class, as he was the only driver to execute a de facto one-stopper and made the most of clear air when he had it, then kept Pierre Gasly at arm's length in the closing stages.
**CONS**
\- The only negative is that qualifying circumstances and the way the races played out made it difficult to benchmark his pace definitively. But that's not his fault.
**Verdict**: Showed he could still produce a race miracle after a troubled weekend.
**Started**: 8th **Finished**: 7th
**PROS**
\- Adapted well to the Red Bull and looked dramatically more comfortable than he did in early 2025 from the start of practice.
\- Showed good single-lap pace relative to Max Verstappen, particularly in main qualifying as he ended up just over a tenth-of-a-second slower.
\- Seventh in the grand prix was as good as it was going to get, albeit without the yardstick of Verstappen to measure it by.
**CONS**
\- Was on target to make the top 10 in sprint qualifying, only to struggle to go with the improving grip in SQ2\. Given how hard it was to pass, that doomed him to a pointless sprint.
\- The grand prix itself was straightforward given he had a car that didn't have the pace to threaten those ahead, but was clear of the midfield.
\- Yellow-flag infringement penalty may not have impacted his finishing position, but it was a needless penalty.
**Verdict**: At the upper limit of what he could have expected to achieve given he had never driven the RB22 before Friday.
**Started**: 11th **Finished**: 10th
**PROS**
\- Gelled well with the heavily upgraded Alpine and excelled in the sprint parts of the weekend, getting the best-possible result in qualifying and the race.
\- Ambushed Yuki Tsunoda at the restart from the Esteban Ocon-induced virtual safety car to turn 11th place into a point.
\- Race pace was good in the grand prix, although he was contained for a spell by Arvid Lindblad's rolling-roadblock Racing Bulls.
**CONS**
\- Didn't get the most out of the car in Q2 on Saturday, although that was largely down to the team's confused traffic management.
\- Pace advantage over Franco Colapinto is meaningless given only Gasly had the upgrade.
**Verdict**: Adapted well to upgraded Alpine.
**Started**: 2nd **Finished**: 3rd
**PROS**
\- Maximised what was possible in the sprint component of the weekend, winning from pole position.
\- While he wasn't necessarily the faster Mercedes driver, taking the weekend as a whole he was the tidier one.
\- Brilliant rearguard action to hold off Hamilton salvaged a podium, after letting through his team-mate.
**CONS**
\- Had a shot at pole position for the grand prix, but overdid it into Turn 11 and spiked the tyre temperatures, which swung the battle with Norris against him.
\- Lost out to Antonelli at the start, then Piastri at the restart, which meant his victory chances took a big hit.
**Verdict**: Outstanding in the sprint part of the weekend, but struggled a little more in the grand prix.
**Started**: 6th **Finished**: 5th
**PROS**
\- Drove an excellent race in the sprint as one of only two drivers to start on softs, passing Norris to finish second.
\- Race pace was good across compounds, and he made a good pass on Piastri in the grand prix.
\- The timing of the first VSC went against him in the grand prix battle with Hamilton that he initially had the advantage in.
\- Rated his sprint qualifying lap as "my best qualifying lap this year".
**CONS**
\- Did a fractionally worse job than his team-mate in main qualifying, pointing to a change of power modes from Q2 to Q3 putting him off.
\- Losing a place to Piastri at the restart compromised his race and ensured he fell back from the top two.
**Verdict**: Showed how quick the Ferrari was in race trim, but always started on the back foot.
**Started**: 5th **Finished**: 4th
**PROS**
\- Executed his offset strategy in the grand prix well, although the first VSC played to his advantage.
\- Had the race pace for a podium finish, but track position was always against him.
\- Beat Leclerc in grand prix qualifying and the race.
**CONS**
\- Sprint qualifying went badly, as he struggled with a car that felt very different to practice after what he called "subtle" changes. That led to a mediocre sprint result.
\- Qualifying proper was also disappointing, with Hamilton saying tyres were the "culprit", although the Ferrari's single-lap pace wasn't as strong as on long runs.
**Verdict**: Had the pace for better results, but the weaker qualifying pace meant he was always on the back foot in terms of track position.
**Started**: 16th **Finished**: 17th
**PROS**
\- Started the second half of the season well, characterising his Friday lap as the first good qualifying lap the car has allowed him to do this year.
\- Led the way for Williams, and put the car as high as it had the performance to be throughout the weekend.
\- Wasn't in any way responsible for the clash with Sainz, given he'd attacked in a safe way with a tyre advantage.
**CONS**
\- The pitstop strategy put him in trouble with blue flags, which made it difficult to maximise the grand prix even before the Sainz clash.
**Verdict**: Considering the car, a good weekend's work.
**Started**: 15th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Largely got the most out of the Haas, putting it roughly where it should be.
\- Had got himself up to 13th at the first start, and given his pass on Albon was legitimate as he'd cleared the Verstappen crash it was unfortunate he lost that position because of the way the restart grid is calculated.
**CONS**
\- Failed to improve on his final lap in sprint qualifying, although it's unlikely to have cost him a place.
**Verdict**: Continued his recent revival by leading the line for Haas.
**Started**: 10th **Finished**: 12th
**PROS**
\- Thrived on his first experience of the Zandvoort track, with his attacking approach enjoyable to watch trackside at Turn 3 during practice.
\- The drivethrough penalty that destroyed any realistic hope of points was harsh and cost him a good chance of 'winning' the midfield fight in the grand prix.
\- Had genuinely good pace in the race.
**CONS**
\- Qualifying execution was a negative, as he didn't fully deliver on his underlying pace in either qualifying session.
\- Lock-up at Turn 2 on the opening lap of the grand prix temporarily cost him a place to Tsunoda.
**Verdict**: A classic rookie blend of real pace that wasn't always capitalised on.
**Started**: 13th **Finished**: 8th
**PROS**
\- Brilliantly avoided T-boning his spinning team-mate at the end of the first lap of the grand prix thanks to a well-judged last-second change of direction. Fortune played its part, but Hulkenberg also had time for his response to impact the outcome.
\- The grand prix was very well executed, with crucial passes on Gasly and Lindblad to put him clear of the midfield.
\- Eighth in the grand prix was the best possible result for an Audi, while his sprint was a write-off owing to a power problem.
**CONS**
\- Although Hulkenberg said he felt confident in free practice, watching trackside at Turn 3 he seemed a clear step behind Gabriel Bortoleto.
\- Both qualifying sessions went badly, sprint qualifying due to the car feeling very different to practice, and main qualifying due to a snap at Turn 1 that was wind-influenced.
\- His outright pace was, at least at times, perhaps not as strong as Bortoleto's.
**Verdict**: Tricky Friday and Saturday, but a superb Sunday.
**Started**: 12th **Finished**: 11th
**PROS**
\- Considering he'd never even driven a 2026-spec F1 car before, adapted well to the demands of the reduced downforce and the energy regime and showed more than respectable pace relative to Lindblad.
\- Had the pace to fight for points, although he wasn't able to make good on that in either race.
\- Pulled a good pass on Gasly in the grand prix to put himself in a strong position to score.
**CONS**
\- Got caught out at Turn 1 in the sprint and dinged the rear of Lindblad's car, which allowed Colapinto get past him.
\- Squandered just over six seconds of the advantage that he'd built up over Gasly, thanks to Lindblad holding him back, with a self-inflicted trip through the gravel the lap before his final pitstop.
\- Was passed by Gasly after the first VSC restart into Turn 1, which is a move he probably wouldn't have been vulnerable to had he not had the earlier off.
**Verdict**: An impressive return, but going off at Turn 13 during the race cost him a likely point.
**Started**: 14th **Finished**: 14th
**PROS**
\- Considering he had the significant disadvantage of running the old-spec Alpine aerodynamic package, both of his qualifying performances were strong.
\- The yellow-flag infringement penalty was harsh, given the onboard shows he drove perfectly responsibly in the circumstances.
\- A good start to the grand prix briefly got him into the points, before he had to serve his penalty.
**CONS**
\- The 10-second penalty he received for not respecting yellow flags in Turn 3 was something he could have avoided.
**Verdict**: A strong weekend while on the back foot in terms of specification, but the second yellow-flag infringement dents his ranking.
**Started**: 3rd **Finished**: 2nd
**PROS**
\- Qualifying suggested that his underlying pace was slightly better than Russell's, given he was faster over the rest of the lap after under-driving into Turn 1.
\- Turned fifth into fourth in the sprint at the start by going around the outside of the boxed-in Piastri at Turn 1.
\- Put himself into a position to win with good restart after the red flag and covered Norris well while he had tyre-age parity.
**CONS**
\- Underachieved in the sprint element of the weekend, with the SQ1 run through the gravel at Turn 13 giving him damage that cost him performance throughout qualifying despite repairs.
\- Admitted to being overly-conservative into Turn 1 at the start of his final Q3 lap because of rain, which swung the battle with Russell against him given he was faster across the rest of the lap.
\- Second hard-tyre stint under pressure was messy in terms of managing the tyres and small errors, including getting caught out when Norris passed him.
**Verdict**: Too many untidy moments when he had a car capable of winning.
**Started**: 4th **Finished**: 6th
**PROS**
\- Single-lap pace relative to Norris was very respectable, lapping 0.058s and 0.142s off Norris in sprint and main qualifying respectively.
\- Well-executed restart lap after the red flag, jumping Leclerc then passing Russell, got him up to third - and losing the place to Russell in the first round of pitstops was thanks to McLaren's slow service.
\- Race pace on softs was good.
**CONS**
\- Was nowhere near Norris's level when it came to extracting performance across a stint from the hard tyres.
\- Even when at his best this weekend, didn't quite have Norris's edge, and at his weakest was well off.
**Verdict**: Lacked a little compared to Norris, and a lot when on the hard Pirellis.
**Started**: 21st **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Was the quicker Cadillac driver in both qualifying sessions, by 0.073s and 0.229s respectively.
\- Produced a decent sprint drive, and a good first stint in the grand prix, although the hydraulic problems kicked in later in the race before his retirement.
**CONS**
\- Difficult to benchmark his pace fairly against Sergio Perez.
**Verdict**: Continued his improved run of form.
**Started**: 22nd (pits) **Finished**: 15th
**PROS**
\- His pace after joining the sprint race two laps down after hitting a hydraulic problem was impressive.
\- Executed his grand prix strategy well, overcutting his way past Bottas, although the VSC timing meant he lost ground to Colapinto.
**CONS**
\- Was the slower Cadillac in both qualifying sessions, although problems in sprint qualifying then a failed experiment with a soft rear suspension set-up on Saturday led to that.
\- Circumstances make it difficult to benchmark his overall performance.
**Verdict**: A better weekend than the qualifying results, in particular, suggest.
**Started**: 20th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Capitalised on starting on softs to drive a good sprint race, jumping Albon at the start and chasing Ocon home.
\- The pace deficit to Ocon wasn't as big as it was in Hungary.
**CONS**
\- Power unit shutdown before the restart meant he had no chance to show what he could do in the race.
\- Was the slower Haas driver.
**Verdict**: In his own words, "a really horrible weekend".
**Started**: 19th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- While his race looked awful, he had damage that he suggested cost 20-30 points in downforce, presumably picked up in the Verstappen debris field.
\- Drove a reasonable sprint race and was just two hundredths off pipping Albon to 16th at the finish line.
**CONS**
\- Never looked able to access the pace Alonso did.
**Verdict**: Wasn't able to get what Alonso could out of the improved package.
**Started**: 9th **Finished**: 13th
**PROS**
\- Was the more convincing Audi driver in terms of single-lap pace.
\- Qualifying execution was mostly good, particularly in heading the midfield.
\- While his recovery didn't get him anywhere near the points, he showed he had decent race pace despite suspecting he had an unidentified engine problem.
**CONS**
\- Was fortunate to get away with high-speed spin in the last corner at the end of the first lap - although he also reacted well to keep it out of the wall.
\- Moment at Turn 13 on his final lap cost him a place to Gasly in sprint qualifying - and potentially therefore a point in the race.
\- With the mitigations of Audi's launch difficulties and a low-grip grid box, Bortoleto lost ground at the start of the grand prix.
**Verdict**: Fast but grand prix spin badly hurts his ranking.
**Started**: 17th **Finished**: 16th
**PROS**
\- Recovered from a tricky sprint part of the weekend to get close to Albon's level in qualifying.
\- In the circumstances, his race drive was going well before the Albon collision.
**CONS**
\- Clattering into his team-mate after locking up when he hit the bump while defending at Turn 1 was an honest mistake, but a needless one.
**Verdict**: Blunder with his team-mate torpedoes his ranking.
**Started**: 7th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Achieved probably the best-possible result in both qualifying sessions and the sprint race.
\- Dealt well with the struggles for grip and balance on a weekend when he largely performed well.
**CONS**
\- Yes, track conditions were difficult, but placing the car low on the kerb on the first lap of the grand prix and going hard on the throttle was risky, leading to his huge crash.
\- Had a modest margin over stand-in team-mate Lawson in main qualifying, although he would argue that's partly down to the cars being too easy to get to the limit of.
**Verdict**: Grand prix shunt has to tank his ranking given most of the field was more cautious considering the conditions at Turn 14.
### Everything we learned from F1's Dutch Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-dutch-grand-prix-2026/
Last updated: 2026-08-24T10:37:10.000Z
Zandvoort enjoyed a great Formula 1 send-off (for now) as the Dutch Grand Prix delivered genuine intrigue at the front - and some surprising developments in the shape of the championship that could echo through the coming races.
Here are our main learnings from the Sunday race.
## Mercedes doesn't have money to match McLaren
As increasingly potent as Mercedes' rivals - and specifically McLaren - have looked as of late, the F1 world has largely operated under the assumption that McLaren's gains on Mercedes are in large part a consequence of development cycles, and will be offset by a W17 upgrade package just around the corner.
That could still be the case, but team principal Toto Wolff has suddenly come out very firmly with the assertion that Mercedes ["haven't got the money"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-extraordinary-f1-title-fight-claim/) \- meaning cost cap allowance - to keep up with McLaren's upgrade rate.
"We left between 50 and 100 points on the table with reliability issues and that would have given us a little bit more of a gap than we have," Wolff also argued.
"Other than that, we're just continuing to execute what the plan was and what the financial realities mean for us."
Perhaps Mercedes always intended to make hay in the early part of the year - and, if that's the case, those dropped points Wolff references may indeed take on an extra significance.
## Norris is more decisive in battle now
Lando Norris has picked up a lot of stick over the past couple of years for some of the rougher edges of his racecraft, particularly when fighting Max Verstappen for titles.
But he was supreme on Sunday at Zandvoort, backing up a really strong season so far, which is arguably a step clear of most of his title-winning campaign.
The crowning moment of his Dutch GP victory was the move around the outside of championship leader Kimi Antonelli at the first corner.
"Definitely, he is now expressing a higher level of assertiveness, as he drives - the manoeuvre to pass Antonelli, I think is a really good demonstration of that," McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said.
"He is demonstrating more self-confidence, and this is interesting, and I quite like it.
"Self-confidence is sometimes not demonstrating by being the most aggressive. Sometimes you are self-confident, but you think, like, 'You know what? I'm not going to have a fight now, because I may lose in this fight. It's a very long race. See you at the end of the race'.
"It's confidence in your means, in your strength, that I quite like, which means that sometimes you are actually the one backing off, when the situation becomes too risky.
"We need to remember that in both of the last couple of races that he won, he didn't defend the pole position \[on lap one\]. He was actually second at the end of the first lap, but I did not hear or perceive any decay in his confidence, as to the fact that he was faster, he was just preparing his opportunity \[rather\] than cashing in on his self-confidence.
"Assertiveness and confidence are probably the two characteristics that he has improved the most from a non-technical, non-operational point of view."
## Honda has a clear priority with new engine
Fernando Alonso's ninth-placed finish in the Dutch GP has shown the progress that both Aston Martin and Honda have made with their mid-season upgrades.
But despite its best result of the season so far and it no longer being adrift at the back, the team left Zandvoort well aware that there is a key area it needs to get on top of before it can start thinking of doing better: engine driveability.
A combination of the very complicated 2026 rules, plus Honda not being as on top of the combustion characteristics of the new power units as its rivals, has left it struggling to deliver an engine that does what the drivers want it to do at all times.
The biggest (but not only) problem is corner entry, where the engine can push on under braking, or trigger rejected downshifts, which then makes life super hard for the drivers.
Honda already had its Sakura dynos fired up to help find improvements over the weekend, with a first calibration tweak introduced for Dutch GP qualifying on Saturday. Further changes are coming for Monza.
More improvements there will be double good news. They will make life easier for the drivers but also help unlock more power.
That latter element is critical because, right now, the driveability headaches have left a big question mark over just how much of a step forward the latest Honda specification truly is.
## Piastri 'a long way off' at too many races
Oscar Piastri remains a consistent threat to Norris over one lap: though the score is 4-13 over the year, in terms of the average gap they're still up there with the [closest of F1's team-mate pairings](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-f1-2026-team-mates-are-comparing-in-qualifying/).
But his grand prix was a particularly chastening experience, as evidenced by the half-minute gap to his team-mate at the finish.
"Lando has won the race by quite a lot so I think the car is in a good place, it's been quick the last two weekends, I think these two tracks suit the car well - it's just for whatever reason I've not been able to get the pace out of it," Piastri accepted.
"It's not the first race this year that that's been the case - some have been good, some have been very strong but there's been too many now that have been really a long way off."
Both Piastri and Stella did emphasise that it was really only one particular stint - the stint on the hards mid-race - that did the vast majority of the damage.
"We were not able to switch these tyres on. They stayed permanently in a regime of very-very low grip, which we didn't see in the first stint," Stella said.
## Racing Bulls spoiled upgraded Alpine's debut
Alpine was overhauled by Racing Bulls for fifth place in the championship at the Hungaroring, and in performance terms had also slipped behind Audi to F1’s seventh-best car.
The team hoped its Zandvoort upgrade - only on Pierre Gasly’s car, with Franco Colapinto set to receive it at Monza - would change things.
And the evidence of the sprint race, where Gasly led the midfield and scored a point in eighth, certainly supported that the upgrade had changed that.
But Gasly’s chances of repeating that result in the grand prix were ruined by Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls.
Lindblad played the team game by screwing over Gasly, as his race was already wrecked by picking up a drivethrough penalty for overtaking the Alpine driver under yellow flags.
He defended very hard against Gasly in the middle of the race, allowing Nico Hulkenberg's Audi and Yuki Tsunoda's Racing Bulls to slip through.
It limited Gasly to scoring one point in 10th place, but the Alpine driver suggested he'd take his revenge later in the year.
"VCARB ruined our race and played a team game for the championship, and did it well," Gasly said. "Congrats to them, and I can't wait to race them."
He added: "\[It’s\] annoying, but it's Zandvoort, you can't really overtake, and this is going to change in the coming tracks.
"The good thing is I have a good memory, so I'm going to make sure we smile at the end of the year."
When those comments were put to Lindblad, he said: "I think that's a nice story. In the end, I played the team game.
"If he has a good memory, then fine. We will fight as hard as we can every weekend."
Just three points separate Racing Bulls and Alpine right now, and the step Alpine's made with its upgrade means their cars look finely-poised for more close, elbows-out battles in the coming races.
## Driver clash was least of Williams's problems
It won't help under the cost cap - and apparently significantly damaged at least one floor - but ultimately the collision between Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon came at a point where Williams's Dutch GP was already over.
And it was already a disappointment by then, both because the car proved unsurprisingly unspectacular and because there had been a glimmer of hope that was extinguished.
"We are pretty much where we expected, which is towards the back - we are only quicker than Cadillac at the moment," mused Sainz.
"You saw the Aston's race pace, they are a different league right now - so yeah, we couldn't fight them, we couldn't fight anyone, really."
But that's not quite how Albon felt. He believed the car may have had just about enough about it to exploit track position and one-stop into the points like Alonso managed.
"We were in front of Fernando for most of that race. We were maybe not with his pace - but I think we boxed too early," Albon lamented.
"If you actually look at our race run, when we did box we came out behind a group of seven or eight cars. I need to understand why we boxed so early, because we genuinely had a chance to score points."
## Ferrari is qualifying too far back
A fresh serving of [team order angst](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-contrast-worsens-lewis-hamilton-team-order-frustration/) was the big-ticket item from Ferrari's race - but more concerning to both Charles Leclerc and team principal Fred Vasseur was how limiting qualifying has proved yet again.
Leclerc was in the mix for sprint pole but neither Ferrari could trouble the Mercedes or McLaren cars in grand prix qualifying.
"I think we lost today's race and a better result today because of a bad qualifying yesterday, and that's where our focus should be," stressed Leclerc. On Saturday, he lamented "mistakes in changing power modes" during qualifying, but added that "I don't think the potential for pole position was there anyway".
"In qualifying, it's a lot about the outlap preparation, the tyre management," said Vasseur on Sunday. "We made some choices yesterday, to save one set, we did one set less in Q2, but it was not the right call.
"I think if we have to learn something from the weekend, it's not about the pure potential, I think it's more about execution."
## Tsunoda hasn't given up on F1 at all
Yuki Tsunoda is being very heavily linked with a Honda-backed switch to IndyCar next year or the year after (when the series debuts a new car).
But there's still clearly a feeling of unfinished business for him in F1 even after 112 starts, and he did not shy away from repeatedly playing up his focus on returning to the grid all through this weekend.
While a clear route back to the grid is hard to see, if any hope does remain then Tsunoda did it absolutely no harm at Zandvoort - producing a competitive weekend that came up just short of points.
"Call me, please," he laughed in a plea to F1 teams.
"It's definitely better having this opportunity - rather than not having any opportunity, not being able to show what I can do with this regulation. So I think that this was overall positive," he also said.
"And what performance I showed I think is \[also\] positive. So it's up to also my manager and also other teams who have not decided yet about next year's line-up - if they want to have me or not. But they should!"
### Bastianini's next MotoGP move announced for 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/trackhouse-signs-bastianini-for-2027/
Last updated: 2026-08-24T07:42:01.000Z
Aprilia MotoGP satellite team Trackhouse has announced Enea Bastianini as its new signing for the 2027 season.
The 28-year-old will replace Ai Ogura in the Trackhouse roster, following Ogura's [deal with the Yamaha factory team](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/jorge-martin-ai-ogura-yamaha-factory-motogp-line-up-2027-28/). Bastianini will team up with Raul Fernandez, who won the British Grand Prix last weekend.
Like with Fernandez, Bastianini's new Trackhouse deal covers two years, putting him in sync with the conventional MotoGP deal cycle.
A seven-time grand prix winner in MotoGP since his debut in 2021, Bastianini took all seven of those wins as a Ducati rider - but signed a KTM works deal to race for Tech3 in 2025, after his stint as Pecco Bagnaia's factory team-mate at Ducati didn't pan out through injury and underperformance.
He never really settled in as a KTM rider, lamenting a particularly difficult learning curve and a lack of stability from the KTM RC16 bike - and with his positive momentum in 2025 snuffed out by the exit of his long-time crew chief Alberto Giribuola.
Though he has by and large been KTM's second-best rider this year, he has been comprehensively outshone by Pedro Acosta - and seemed to make up his mind about leaving the KTM camp very early on, even as it held a 2027 option on his services.
A return to Gresini Ducati was floated as one possibility but Joan Mir [took that spot](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-2027-silly-season-joan-mir-gresini-ducati-enea-bastianini-trackhouse-aprilia/).
Instead, Bastianini will be the third Italian rider in Aprilia's 2027 roster, behind factory duo Marco Bezzecchi and Bagnaia.
"\[Enea's\] racing pedigree, his MotoGP winning history, and his experience at the top of this game all contribute to the perfect scenario for a racing team that we all believe is on the verge of greatness," said team owner Justin Marks.
"Enea’s infectious personality, eagerness to get started, humility, and positivity are the attributes we always look for in our mission to attract athletes that are the entire package."
### Mercedes' extraordinary reason for not upgrading its F1 car
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-extraordinary-f1-title-fight-claim/
Last updated: 2026-08-24T14:57:58.000Z
Mercedes says it can't respond to McLaren’s Formula 1 resurgence with an urgent upgrade because it hasn’t “got the money” to put extra developments on its car.
Lando Norris delivered his second consecutive victory of the season for McLaren in the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday as his pace and better tyre management allowed him to overhaul early race leader Kimi Antonelli.
The major step that a two-stage upgrade from McLaren over the Hungarian and Dutch Grands Prix unleashed has caught Mercedes by surprise – and left championship leader Antonelli convinced his squad no longer has the fastest car.
Such a scenario would typically trigger a move to fast-track upgrades to help get Mercedes back to the front.
However, team boss Toto Wolff has suggested that his outfit cannot divert from the strategy it has employed since the start of the campaign to spread out its developments – as it does not have the leeway under the cost cap to bring many changes through.
“We haven't got the money to put developments on the car,” he said.
“I said it before, we are trying to evenly split that through the season, based on our calculations of when we can bring the biggest updates and optimising the championship points. We just can't do what we can't do.”
Mercedes has been much less aggressive than its rivals since the start of the year with its development spending.
It has not had a major upgrade since the Canadian Grand Prix and elected against joining its closest rivals in bringing any major new parts to the Dutch Grand Prix.
Based on the official FIA figures for declared upgrades over 2026, Mercedes is well behind when it comes to the number it has brought.
Ferrari has introduced 40 new components, Red Bull and McLaren 38, while Mercedes has introduced just 24.
However, those basic numbers do not tell the full story of how much spending has been done on development, as a new floor, for example, costs a lot more than a mirror shroud.
A weighted analysis giving a cost grade for each new component puts Red Bull at the top of the leading four teams, just ahead of McLaren, with Ferrari third and Mercedes quite a bit adrift.
It is not clear why, after being so conservative with its upgrades, Mercedes does not have the same headroom as other teams for extra development spending.
One theory could be that it invested more into the 2026 project early on in the hope of building up such an advantage in the championship that it did not need to spend much on development later on and rivals were put off wasting money on a title they could not win.
But any hopes of capitalising on its pace and putting the championship out of reach of its rivals were derailed by early-season reliability woes that have kept Ferrari, and now McLaren, in touch.
When asked by The Race about whether early spending explained why Mercedes did not appear to have the same capabilities as other teams who have brought more, Wolff was not convinced.
“Did we spend too much at the beginning in the initial development? I don't think so,” he said.
“I just think we're an organisation that has a certain size and infrastructure. And, you know, in that respect, we had a really quick car.
“We left between 50 and 100 points on the table with reliability issues and that would have given us a little bit more of a gap than we have today.
“Other than that, we're just continuing to execute what the plan was and what the financial realities mean for us.”
Speaking before the summer break, Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord said that the squad had plenty of development potential coming through the system – it was just a question of when items were brought to the track.
“There's a decent amount of performance working its way through the production machinery at the moment, that will start coming to the car from the races after shutdown.”
### McLaren sceptical
McLaren is not convinced that Mercedes is on the back foot when it comes to cost cap limits, and thinks it has more freedom to bring upgrades than it is suggesting.
This is especially true with an extra cost cap allowance, of [two lots of $3 million](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-top-f1-teams-face-a-big-six-million-dilemma/), that has been added to the regulations aimed at helping teams adjust to the new power unit rules for 2027 and beyond.
Asked by The Race about Wolff’s remarks suggesting it was on the backfoot with spending, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said: “I would like to believe you, but I actually don't believe you. I don't believe it, because thanks to the 2027 power unit regulations, all teams will have an allowance in their reporting for the cost-cap.
“I'm sure that Mercedes, having seen that the rivals are kind of elevating the game, I'm sure they will now cash in on their development. Surely, it's happening on the ground.
“I'm sure the car in the windtunnel is quite a bit faster than the car they have on track, and they will want to now convert some of this potential into upgrades that make it to the real car. I'm pretty sure that they will have upgrades. Obviously, it would be good if not, but I don't even want to think it.”
Wolff thinks that ultimately the Mercedes cost cap strategy can only be judged over the full season – as it could be that others may have to switch off spending later in the campaign while his outfit has some more headroom.
“You will see how towards the end of the season if they're going to be able to deploy as much stuff onto the car as they do now,” he said.
“Someone might have a different strategy in spending more at the beginning and in the middle of the year than towards the end.”
Earlier in the year, [Wolff annoyed Ferrari](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/whats-got-ferrari-so-wound-up-over-mercedes-upgrade-comments/) by suggesting Mercedes could not understand how the Maranello squad had been able to be so aggressive with bringing upgrades to the SF-26.
Wolff’s stance triggered a pointed response from Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur.
"I found it quite ironic coming from Toto and Mercedes," he said. "But when Red Bull is developing or when Mercedes is developing, they are genius. When we are developing, we are cheating.”
Adding to Mercedes’ complications over the choice of timing of committing to bring an upgrade is that Antonelli will take an engine penalty at his home Italian Grand Prix – so his chances of fighting for the win there will be hampered.
Wolff added: “In theory, our calculations say that that's the best track to take it.
“Obviously, algorithms don't take the nationality into consideration. But we're here to fight for a championship and not get the most PR. So, yeah, that's what we're going to do. With George, the discussions are ongoing on if we were to take it.”
### Mercedes contrast worsens Hamilton's team order frustration
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-contrast-worsens-lewis-hamilton-team-order-frustration/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T17:59:00.000Z
Ferrari's approach to Formula 1 team orders became a talking point again during and after the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, with Lewis Hamilton criticising his team's execution of the race relative to how Mercedes played its cards.
Hamilton's frustration boiled over during the second stint of the Zandvoort race, as he felt he was losing time behind his team-mate Charles Leclerc - who was on marginally older medium tyres versus Hamilton's hards.
Once Hamilton raised the issue, Leclerc was called into the pits, but didn't comply at the first time of asking, and Hamilton grew increasingly exasperated. Once Leclerc did pit out of the way, he radioed: "Great way of losing time, guys, good job!"
Team boss Fred Vasseur did not feel that moment was key to how Hamilton's race was playing out at the time, given the consideration was to keep him out there until the finish - and so the time loss in question would have been immaterial.
But the virtual safety car giving Hamilton a 'discounted' pitstop changed the complexion of his race.
The earlier two laps right behind Leclerc before he pitted appeared to cost Hamilton around 1.5-2s before he pitted, and that time loss was still firmly on his mind after the chequered flag - as he came up just short of picking off George Russell for third place.
Hamilton repeatedly indicated that he felt that moment of delay behind his team-mate was the difference between third and fourth.
He described the race as "definitely frustrating for me" and, while repeatedly making a point of lauding Ferrari's upgrades, repeatedly pointed to his former team Mercedes's handling of the George Russell-Kimi Antonelli swap as a disappointing contrast.
"It is difficult, when you're looking ahead and you see the two Mercedes drivers - they get the call, and it's done, they execute straight away," he vented to F1 TV.
"They let Kimi by and let him get on with the race.
"And I was on a different strategy \[to Charles\] - and it's not the same here. And that's a little bit difficult - but we'll take it off-line. When I go back now, I'll speak to them about it."
Leclerc, meanwhile, was hardly happy either.
Ferrari never ordered a swap, but it did, as mentioned above, call him into the pits as an alternate solution to the situation.
Leclerc was unconvinced by this strategy, which was the key factor in his dawdling over the order. He had sat behind Russell in that stint, and was perplexed to be called in two laps after Russell's own pitstop, believing it ran counter to the logic of building a tyre offset to the Mercedes driver.
While he acknowledged after the race that he got unlucky with the subsequent virtual safety car timing, he continued to question that second pitstop after the race.
"For me, it was very important to create a tyre delta to the Mercedes in order to come back strong at the end. We didn't quite do that, so we need to look at why," he said.
"I was very surprised to box so early when we had done exactly what we wanted. George was pitting and so that was the time for us to do five, 10 laps longer to build a tyre delta and to come back at the end on George."
When quizzed about Hamilton's frustrations, he said: "I had a very good first stint, I had to stop early to try and undercut the guys in front and that's a bit of a team game sometimes. You've got to put yourself a little bit at risk, especially in the first stint, for that. Lewis was very strong in the second stint, but it's the way it goes.
"I think sometimes I'll be frustrated, sometimes Lewis will be frustrated, but it's the way it is."
Leclerc also said "I don't think there was much debate" over his pit timing. "At first I was asked to stop and then towards the end of the lap I was asked to stay on track, which I did, and the lap later I was asked to stop."
This, though, runs somewhat counter to the available evidence from his radio channel on F1 TV.
**BB \[Bryan Bozzi, race engineer\]:** Box, Charles, box.
**CL:** What do you mean box-box? Why stop two laps after Russell?
**CL** \[25s later\]: Hello?
**BB**: Yep, coming back to you.
**BB** \[another pause\]: Charles, we want to box.
*Leclerc finishes the lap without pitting*
**BB:** So, box, Charles, box. Will be for hard. Plus two clicks.
**CL:** Box.
**BB:** Copy box. Plus two clicks.
*Leclerc pits*
The evidence is that Leclerc had enough time - though not a huge amount - to respond to that "we want to box" and thus played his role in Hamilton being held up. But he could've perhaps misheard that message or hoped for further clarification - and he acquiesced a lap later without further debate.
What the situation has potentially exposed, however, is a different view altogether on Ferrari's current championship situation between its two drivers.
"I'm here to win and I really believe that this team can win. We couldn't win this race - but to win championships you have to pick up every point," Hamilton told Sky F1\.
He also made a very pointed reference in his session with the written media to something he shares with Antonelli - the status of being the team's leading driver in the points standings.
But with Hamilton 59 points down on Antonelli and 28 up on Leclerc, there is currently no indication of Ferrari prioritising Hamilton's drivers' championship yield over Leclerc's - and certainly no sign of Leclerc trying to lend a helping hand at his own expense.
### Winners and losers from F1's 2026 Dutch GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-f1-2026-dutch-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T17:49:39.000Z
A frenetic last-ever Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix produced plenty of winners and losers.
Here are our team's picks...
### Winner: Lando Norris (1st)
Much faster than anyone else out there, Norris has breathed some against-the-odds life into a title bid that...still doesn't make much mathematical sense just yet.
He properly ran up the score on team-mate Oscar Piastri in the process (32-second gap at the finish), and outfoxed Kimi Antonelli beautifully when the latter attempted an ill-advised half-move on Lewis Hamilton.
That overtake was surely coming one way or another anyway, but it's always nice to seal a win with aplomb. And whether the points gap is too big already or not, Norris is now again comprehensively spearheading a team that is proving it's carried over its developmental acumen into the new regulations set and can dominate races on merit. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
### Loser: Max Verstappen (DNF)
There is a cruel irony in Verstappen being caught out by the damp Zandvoort circuit on Sunday, after suggesting on Saturday that Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda’s impressive stand-in performances showed the limit is too easy to find in these cars.
Of course Verstappen wasn’t saying ‘the limit in these cars in the damp around Zandvoort’s banked final corners is easy to find’, but Verstappen smashing his Red Bull into the wall was good evidence of how tricky F1 can still be, even for its benchmark driver. **\- Josh Suttill**
### Winner: Nico Hulkenberg (8th)
A sterling drive from Hulkenberg that began with a last-second dodge through the smoke of spinning team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto.
Bortoleto’s race was almost disastrous as he crawled off the line and lost places before spinning at the same corner that claimed the car of Verstappen - and while he recovered to a decent finish, he ought to have scored points.
It was that battle against Racing Bulls’s Arvid Lindblad and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly - both of whom were also converging on Williams’s Carlos Sainz - that set the race alight on lap 27\.
Ultimately, Hulkenberg was in a class of his own against the Racing Bulls, and the Audi driver put on a remarkable performance on Sunday - for his second-straight points-scoring weekend of 2026. **\- Samarth Kanal**
### Loser - Oscar Piastri (6th)
Piastri’s race unravelled early on as he started on the hard tyre, lost out to Charles Leclerc at the start, and was then pitted swiftly to cover off a George Russell undercut.
The Australian also endured a slow first stop before emerging on another set of hard compounds.
Piastri was unable to contend with the Ferraris for P5 or better and, after picking up just 12 points over the last two weekends, has been left searching for answers.
“I think these two tracks suit the car well, it's just that, for whatever reason, I've not been able to get the pace out of it,” he said. **\- SK**
### Winner: Fernando Alonso (9th)
Speaking about his future on Thursday at Zandvoort, Alonso said he’ll be “sitting with Lawrence \[Stroll\] and Adrian \[Newey, and\] if the need for the team is for me to drive, I will consider”.
On the evidence of his Sunday drive at Zandvoort, Newey and Stroll should be doing everything they can to convince Alonso to keep driving next year.
Alonso made a bold one-stop strategy work to finish second in F1’s midfield, keeping Gasly in the upgraded Alpine at bay, and beating the Racing Bulls that have led the midfield fight so far.
He did all of that in an Aston Martin that is clearly still significantly down on power despite the introduction of Honda’s spec 2 engine.
It’s exactly the kind of dogged midfield drive Alonso’s long become a master of - the question is whether the prospect of delivering more of these drives is enough for him to continue for another year. - **JS**
### Loser: Carlos Sainz (16th)
Sainz's season has been good on an individual level - I am not really interested in dissenting opinions on this - but he has managed to bookend the summer break with a pair of moments of particularly naff 'season lowlight' driving.
He held up his hands as being at fault in the collision, explaining that he'd been surprised how hard he hit the bump on the inside of Turn 1 - which triggered a lock-up and led to the collision with team-mate Alex Albon.
Albon retired from the race afterwards with floor damage, but was much less cross about the incident than about the fact Williams hadn't aped Alonso's one-stop strategy (which he felt could've been a point(s?)-scorer for Williams, too).
But when you're racing for nothing, the last thing you want to do is tack on an extra repair bill. **\- VK**
### Loser: Racing Bulls (11th and 12th)
Tsunoda's fairly smooth adaptation meant Racing Bulls looked well-positioned to weather the minor storm of Lawson's Red Bull call-up and keep up its scoring run as the midfield leader.
But Lindblad's drive-through penalty - which he disputes as "a bit harsh, we can all be honest, quite extreme for such an incident" - immediately removed his scoring prospects and forced him to effectively race Tsunoda's race instead.
He did the job fantastically as a used-tyre pest bothering Gasly in particular (allowing Hulkenberg and Tsunoda to jump Gasly) but a subsequent late-race defence against Gasly was understandably too much of an ask for the stand-in.
Ultimately, there wasn't enough attrition at all here to make any significant dent in Racing Bulls' championship outlook - but it would have scored with anywhere near an optimal run. **\- VK**
### Winner: Dutch GP farewell
After a static sprint race, this was one hell of a final Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, with different strategies at play and great racing up and down the field.
It’s not an argument that F1 should suddenly ensure Zandvoort remains on the calendar. There are genuine financial reasons why it can’t continue.
But a great final race only adds to the reasons why it’s such a shame we’re losing such a well-attended, atmospheric race with a circuit layout with some unique geometry. **\- JS**
### Loser: Franco Colapinto (14th)
Colapinto’s Sunday was curtailed by a drive-through penalty for overtaking Tsunoda under yellow flags on the opening lap.
The Argentinean driver called it a “very harsh” penalty after a quick start, and the onboards seemed to back up his case that it would’ve been “far more dangerous to slam on the brakes”.
From then, Colapinto finished two laps down in P14 for a second-straight weekend without points - before picking up another penalty for not respecting a yellow flag at Turn 3.
Some solace comes in the form of the Alpine upgrade package, which should be fitted to his car in Monza. **\- SK**
### Our verdict on Norris's win and Mercedes team orders
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-on-norris-win-and-mercedes-team-orders/
Last updated: 2026-08-24T14:09:25.000Z
What do back-to-back victories for Lando Norris and McLaren mean for Formula 1's title fight?
And was Mercedes right to order George Russell to let Kimi Antonelli pass him in the closing stages of the Dutch Grand Prix?
Here's what our team thinks...
### There's caveats to McLaren's rise...
### Ben Anderson
I'm not getting too excited about a potential Norris title fightback just yet, simply because...
1) Mercedes has barely upgraded its car since the start of the season, yet was still right in the mix for poles and wins here against a McLaren that has basically been totally overhauled these past two grands prix.
2) There's a bit of an engine offset as well as an upgrade offset that's currently working in McLaren's favour. Norris got a new engine as recently as Spa, three races ago. The Mercedes drivers' engines are another two races older (Austria).
Once Antonelli gets a new engine for Monza (even if a grid drop means more pain there), and Mercedes finally releases some more aero upgrades onto that car, I can see things swinging quickly back in favour of the Silver Arrows.
The big caveat here is whether Mercedes *is* deliberately sitting on upgrades and just waiting to unleash them once others have run out of spending power, or whether there's something else at play that means they need to upgrade the car but can't afford to (as team boss Toto Wolff claims).
If Mercedes is actually broke under F1's cost cap that could be game-changing.
But regardless of all that it's good to see Norris's excellent driving this season finally being rewarded with the results it deserves.
## Teams order wasn't necessary
### Gary Anderson
With (likely) 10 races to go, the championship is by no means decided; however, Mercedes and Antonelli just need to keep taking home as many points as they can without going into a risky zero-points situation and they should win both championships.
Yes, Ferrari and McLaren are closing in, but as for the drivers' championship, Antonelli is 59 points ahead of both his team-mate Russell and Hamilton, so over two race DNFs of a cushion. Norris is another 24 behind, so 83 in total or over three DNFs cushion. Leclerc is another four behind, so 87 in total.
The championship is still well and truly mathematically possible for Russell, so it meant he wasn’t a happy camper when he was asked to let Antonelli through for second at the end of the race.
Personally, I wouldn’t have done that because there was no way that Antonelli was going to catch Norris, and they were on a different strategy and different tyres, so perhaps a quick warning to not take each other out would have been a fairer message. Then let them get the result they had raced for.
Politically, it showed a little bias towards Antonelli, but I’m sure that will get discussed behind closed doors.
It was really the same for Hamilton and Leclerc when Hamilton was asking for Ferrari to move Leclerc aside. I think each driver should be racing 21 other cars, especially if it’s because of a strategy variance and that improving your position through team orders simply ends up being a shallow victory.
I wouldn’t count out Ferrari for a Monza one-two; somehow it always brings something to the party, but as I say, for Antonelli, he just needs to do what he is doing and keep his nose clean.
### Antonelli has this under control
### Josh Suttill
I don't see Kimi Antonelli as any more under threat than he has been for most of F1 2026.
To me, it feels like a 2019-type season. A benchmark car (Mercedes) and a benchmark driver (Lewis Hamilton then, Kimi Antonelli now) build a solid lead early in the year. They're then beaten to victories later in the year by different cars (Ferrari and Red Bull then, Ferrari and McLaren now), but no single challenger emerges clearly enough to make it a proper title fight.
George Russell is more of a threat to Antonelli than Valtteri Bottas was to Lewis Hamilton back then, but he's still not that much of a threat. Would Mercedes have pulled that team order if he was?
Antonelli is just fundamentally the faster Mercedes driver right now, and it means every Sunday he's finishing ahead unless he encounters serious strife.
As for Mercedes' rivals, Antonelli only needs to be worried if McLaren blows it away on an energy-poor circuit; otherwise, the pendulum will probably keep swinging between McLaren and Ferrari as the primary long-shot title rival.
### Piastri risks falling behind
### Samarth Kanal
Oscar Piastri has been almost anonymous in this Lando Norris purple patch, and the Australian is scrambling for answers.
McLaren has outdeveloped Mercedes and stymied Ferrari's progress, but Piastri has been left behind in all of this - and he's now closer to Red Bull's Isack Hadjar (36 points behind) than he is to Norris (55 points ahead).
Not only does Piastri risk falling behind in the drivers' championship, McLaren now risks having just one driver in the constructors' championship fight against Ferrari.
### Why Russell's U-turned on Mercedes team orders angst
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-russell-u-turned-on-mercedes-team-orders-angst/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T18:01:02.000Z
Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell was surprisingly magnanimous in his post-race assessment after being ordered to let team-mate - and direct title rival - Kimi Antonelli through at the conclusion of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
Antonelli had got ahead of Russell at the (initial) start, but ended up closing down on his team-mate on fresher tyres after Mercedes took the opportunity of a late-race virtual safety car to swap him to softs.
There was a clear pace offset as Antonelli approached Russell (with the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc also closing in after their own VSC pitstops), and so an overtake between the Mercedes drivers looked likely - but not necessarily nailed on.
Russell had initially asked Mercedes for some teamwork - meaning either the use of Antonelli's car as a buffer or trying to deliberately 'feed' him overtake mode once swapping - seemingly aware already of the threat posed by the Ferraris. This was never particularly likely to be ordered, but he did not sound impressed when told to wave Antonelli by at Turn 1.
But while acknowledging post-race that the podium "could have gone either way", Russell surprisingly stuck up for the strategy. "Kimi was ahead of me anyway, so he deserved to finish ahead," he insisted.
"And of course when you're in the race you want to fight for every single position - but with the pace with the new tyre, he would have overtaken anyway. It was the right decision."
In the post-Dutch GP press conference, Russell added that the position swap was written into Mercedes's rulebook.
"We've always said as a team when we're on different strategies we're never going to fight and we're always going to invert. That's always just been our sort of rules...
"Could I have kept him \[Antonelli\] behind? Maybe, but equally it could have been a P5 as well - so in the end he deserved to be P2\. I think P3 was a fair result for me and, yeah, it's a long season."
That post-race reaction was in sharp contrast to Russell - perhaps sarcastically - querying "Is he fighting for the win? Or, is he planning to catch Norris?" when Antonelli was ordered ahead, with Norris over 11 seconds clear at that point.
In acquiescing, Russell surrendered two seconds relative to his pace - which should at least raise questions as to whether the swap was executed optimally or whether the optimal point was chosen.
Though he ultimately held onto the podium, a fifth-place finish looked dangerously likely at one point as both Hamilton and Leclerc were beginning to absolutely swarm him - the race being suspended by virtual safety car just as Hamilton lined up a move on the main straight.
The question then is whether the view Russell expressed in the immediate aftermath of the race will be the same as what he says behind closed doors - or whether his real feelings are closer to that initial incandescence in the car.
Ideally he would have surely liked the chance to fend off the fresher-tyred Antonelli - given that he did fight off the Ferraris in the end, and given that Antonelli appeared distinctly uncomfortable pace-wise for the entire second half of the race.
The four-second gap between the two at the finish does not really suggest the pass was an inevitability. But perhaps this is a case of Russell and other drivers of his generation being increasingly mindful of picking their battles and playing the long game in terms of harmony.
Russell could have tried to stick it out for a long-shot six-point swing against Antonelli but will have calculated the more profitable thing is to stay in Mercedes' good graces by following a team order.
He then will have had the presence of mind not to launch into more public deliberations over the strategy - something that Antonelli slightly bizarrely chose to do on team radio at the finish - given it ultimately just about worked out.
Playing the team game in the car and in front of the media won't help him in this year's title race - but it may help him ensure he enjoys Mercedes' help and Mercedes' car in many future title races.
### Norris passes Antonelli's Mercedes to win F1's final Dutch GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lando-norris-passes-kimi-antonelli-mercedes-to-win-f1-final-dutch-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T16:45:52.000Z
McLaren’s Lando Norris won the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix after overhauling Mercedes’s Kimi Antonelli, who finished second ahead of team-mate George Russell.
Max Verstappen’s opening lap crash brought out red flags early on as the Dutchman spun and hit the outer barriers of the final corner on a damp surface, ending what could be his final home race prematurely.
The lengthy delays for barrier repairs were extended as Haas’s Ollie Bearman retired with suspected power unit issues on his lap to the grid.
On the race restart, Antonelli passed Norris off the line, but the championship leader was tailed by the reigning champion throughout. Antonelli took his second pitstop on lap 40 with Norris pitting seven laps later. On lap 54, Norris passed Antonelli around the outside of Turn 1.
What would have been a simple drive to the flag turned on its head as Haas’s Esteban Ocon stopped at Turn 3, bringing out a virtual safety car on lap 56\.
Antonelli took fresh softs during the VSC, along with the Ferraris - leaving Norris in the lead ahead of Russell.
Norris won comfortably - by more than 11 seconds - but Russell finished third, behind Antonelli.
Having stayed out during the VSC, Russell was swapped with Antonelli on lap 65\. The Briton protested, asking whether his team-mate was fighting for the win and adding that Mercedes had “lost a double podium”.
### Hamilton’s frustration at Ferrari strategy
Russell was vulnerable and perhaps resigned to a late battle with Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, but he hung on with the help of another late safety car - this one triggered by a collision between the Williams.
Russell finished third by just 0.849s as Hamilton therefore settled for P4 from P6 on the grid.
The seven-time champion extended his stints beyond those of team-mate Charles Leclerc and found himself tailing Leclerc around lap 40\. Hamilton requested a position swap and made his frustration clear - complaining that he wasn’t able to put his tyre offset to good use - on the radio.
When Leclerc was finally pulled into the pits on lap 44, Hamilton said: “Great way of wasting time guys, good job".
Oscar Piastri had lost a place to fast-starting Leclerc before the early red flag.
His McLaren was then fitted with hard tyres (while his team-mate Norris was on softs alongside the Ferraris, and the Mercedes were on mediums) for the race restart.
Despite having the tyres to extend his first stint, Piastri was pitted on lap 18 to cover a Russell undercut - which itself was nixed as he emerged in traffic - and the Australian ended up sixth, having been picked off by the Ferraris in the middle of the race.
Liam Lawson finished a lonely seventh in the sole Red Bull - despite taking a 10-second time penalty for a yellow flag infringement late on.
### Hulkenberg stars
Nico Hulkenberg drove a highlight reel of a race, dodging his Audi team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto at the end of the opening lap with a stunning show of reflexes.
The veteran driver then won out in a long and scintillating battle against the Racing Bulls, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, and Williams’s Carlos Sainz around lap 25 - which involved overtakes throughout this notoriously difficult circuit.
Fernando Alonso took P9 for Aston Martin, taking just one pitstop on lap 34 as he ran a soft-soft-hard strategy to beat Alpine's Pierre Gasly.
Racing Bulls stand-in Yuki Tsunoda fell 4.6s short of scoring a point on his F1 return, while team-mate Arvid Lindblad took a drive-through penalty for a yellow-flag infringement at the start of the race and finished 12th, ahead of Bortoleto - who endured a glacial start and then spun - in P13.
Alpine’s Franco Colapinto was 14th having also received a drive-through penalty at the start.
Sergio Perez finished 15th from the pitlane for Cadillacs ahead of the Williams drivers.
Sainz took 16th after an intra-team collision with Alex Albon, who was classified 17th.
Valtteri Bottas and Lance Stroll joined the retirees with separate troubles late in the race as Cadillac and Aston Martin continue to diagnose their respective reliability issues.
### Dutch GP results
1. Lando Norris (McLaren)
2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +11.5s
3. George Russell (Mercedes) +15.9s
4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +16.7s
5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +17.2s
6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +32.3s
7. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +79.9s
8. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1 lap
9. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1 lap
10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1 lap
11. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
12. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
13. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 lap
14. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2 laps
15. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2 laps
16. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2 laps
17. Alex Albon (Williams) +6 laps
DNF: Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), Esteban Ocon (Haas), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Ollie Bearman (Haas) and Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
### F1 Dutch GP 2026 race results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-dutch-gp-2026-race-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T15:11:01.000Z
Lando Norris took his second consecutive Formula 1 victory at the final Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
### Dutch GP Results
1. Lando Norris (McLaren)
2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +11.5s
3. George Russell (Mercedes) +15.9s
4. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +16.7s
5. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +17.2s
6. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +32.3s
7. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +79.9s
8. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1 lap
9. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1 lap
10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1 lap
11. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
12. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
13. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 lap
14. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2 laps
15. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2 laps
16. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2 laps
17. Alex Albon (Williams) +6 laps
DNF: Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac), Esteban Ocon (Haas), Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Ollie Bearman (Haas) and Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
### F1's Dutch GP red-flagged after monster Verstappen crash
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-dutch-gp-red-flagged-after-monster-max-verstappen-crash/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T13:16:04.000Z
Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort was red-flagged at the start of the second lap following a big shunt for local hero Max Verstappen.
In what is the final Dutch GP for the time being, as Zandvoort relinquishes its place on the grid, Verstappen lost control of his RB22 navigating the final corner and went into the barriers, necessitating an immediate suspension of the race due to the amount of debris and the precarious position of the car.
Verstappen reported to his team immediately that he was not hurt in the incident.
Pre-race rain had left the track dampened but it had dried enough for all 22 drivers to favour slicks for the start.
But cars were kicking up a substantial amount of spray coming through the final two corners and Verstappen crashed hard out of seventh place - having had a bit of wheel-to-wheel contact with his stand-in team-mate Liam Lawson earlier in the lap.
There was also a huge spin coming through the same corner for Gabriel Bortoleto, but he avoided the barriers and thus was able to continue in his Audi.
Lando Norris was the race leader ahead of Kimi Antonelli at the time.
### Gary Anderson: Ferrari's deceptive Zandvoort upgrade explained
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-ferraris-deceptive-zandvoort-upgrade-explained/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T08:36:15.000Z
It’s all about the details in Formula 1.
Ferrari’s Zandvoort upgrade - bolted on from sprint qualifying onwards, likely because Ferrari doesn't have many spares and didn't want to risk damage in practice - might not look like much, but it is the finer details that we are talking about that optimise the overall performance. In effect, they cost very little, so they don’t break the budget as far as the all-important cost cap is concerned.
This small detail change in the bargeboard mounting system (highlighted in cyan) acts as a flow preparation device for the underfloor. So even though it doesn’t look like much, it could very well have a reasonable effect on the performance and consistency of the underfloor.
The reduction in height of the outer vertical turning vane (highlighted in green) again allows the lower section of the foot plate (highlighted in purple) to have more influence over the direction the flow is going to take at that point.
This should allow the lower horizontal vane to be more powerful, which should create a more powerful sealing system along the sides of the floor.
The positioning of the floor leading edge splitters will best optimise the flow coming off that repositioned bargeboard mounting (highlighted with the orange arrow).
The horizontal turning vane running across those splitters will also work in conjunction with that modified bargeboard mounting, optimising the airflow to the undersurface of the floor's leading edge.
This detail on the trailing edge of the diffuser is another way to help with the consistency of the underfloor.
Using the increase in the chord length of the beam wing (highlighted in green) in that central section will improve the performance of the central section of the diffuser.
Moving the larger central section of the vertical trailing edge trip (highlighted in cyan) outboard will improve the consistency of that outer section where the vertical wall meets the top section. This transition is always susceptible to separation problems.
Overall, these developments are more about aerodynamic consistency as opposed to out-and-out downforce. Consistency is what gives the driver confidence, allowing them to dig deeper into their talent without getting bitten by sudden unexpected snaps, especially on corner entry.
Just one additional thing I've spotted. All the teams do their best to monitor the front and rear tyre temperatures; this is critical to that one-off lap in qualifying, as it’s always difficult to get front tyre temperatures.
You can see in these two pictures above that Ferrari has been playing around with the infrared camera position (orange ellipse) to get the best reading.
The old picture has no camera; the new one is on the endplate foot, and the alternative is pictured below on the outer endplate surface.
This will be the best place for the least aerodynamic compromise, as it won’t influence the outwash generated by the turning vanes mounted on the endplate foot.
### What Verstappen thinks strong stand-ins have exposed about F1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-verstappen-thinks-red-bull-substitutes-f1-2026/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T19:41:13.000Z
Are the very respectable stand-in performances of Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda at the Dutch Grand Prix evidence that Formula 1 has become too easy in 2026?
That’s certainly what four-time world champion Max Verstappen was hinting at after qualifying, where his stand-in Red Bull team-mate Lawson was just 0.115s slower than him.
Yuki Tsunoda, who replaced Lawson at Racing Bulls and hadn’t driven the 2026 cars with just a single day of simulator work aboard the VCARB-03 prior to this weekend, was just 0.102s off regular Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad in Q2.
Verstappen thinks this is evidence of how much easier it is to get to the limit of these cars in qualifying, given their unique energy demands have taken the emphasis away from swashbuckling, elbows-out one-lap efforts - much to the frustration of drivers like Verstappen and qualifying specialist Charles Leclerc.
“Especially in qualifying, I think it's a lot easier nowadays with these cars to find the limit, because you're also in quite a few places where you're a bit down on battery and everything becomes a bit easier to land,” Verstappen said when asked if Lawson and Tsunoda’s gaps were evidence drivers can make less of a difference this year.
“I think that demonstrated quite well this weekend compared to the previous cars. For me, that's not a surprise.
“You see it already the whole season; everyone is always within one tenth, two tenths.
“If you have a very bad qualifying, three tenths. It's always the margins are small.”
### Lawson’s one-lap gap to Verstappen: Dutch GP
**FP1:** +0.536s
**SQ1:** \-0.165s
**SQ2:** +0.374s
**Q1:** +0.102s
**Q2:** +0.427s
**Q3:** +0.115s
Lawson is very familiar with the 2026 Red Bull Ford power unit, as it’s powered his Racing Bulls all year, but he’d never driven the Red Bull RB22 prior to Zandvoort.
Take an average of the gap to Verstappen from his two Zandvoort qualifying sessions and you get 0.245s, very close to Isack Hadjar’s average gap to Verstappen in 2026 so far (0.232s), albeit over a much bigger sample size.
That Hadjar gap is considerably lower than any average Red Bull team-mate qualifying gap to Verstappen since Daniel Ricciardo was his team-mate in 2018\.
But of course that’s not necessarily all down to the new rules. Hadjar has done a sterling job this year, so much so that Red Bull isn’t even considering its number two driver for the first time in years.
And Lawson’s put in a stellar season with Racing Bulls, so his performing better in the senior team than he did at the start of 2025 also makes sense.
But Verstappen raises an interesting hypothesis. The Race, namely Edd Straw’s weekly [driver rankings](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-mid-season-driver-rankings-edd-straw/), have certainly been complicated by it being harder to separate the performance of the driver and car this year and make definitive intra-team judgements.
Drivers like Oscar Piastri have also complained that “computers behaving or misbehaving” are also often deciding qualifying sessions, so there’s less power in the driver’s hands.
Looking more generally at the gaps between team-mates in 2026 versus 2025, the gap between team-mates in six of the 10 teams (discounting newcomer Cadillac) has gotten smaller since last year. The average 0.303s gap between Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll is the largest intra-team gap this year, compared to the largest of 2025, the 0.735s between Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull.
Perhaps it is the case though that it’s harder for Verstappen to destroy his team-mates like before, given the next biggest 2025 gap was 0.453s (George Russell-Kimi Antonelli).
Although that data again has caveats, like Lewis Hamilton and Antonelli’s increased competitiveness versus difficult 2025s, that aren’t necessarily to do with it being easier to get to the limit of F1 cars in qualifying. Plus the fact only half a season’s complete so there's plenty of time for those gaps to close or widen.
## Stella thinks it's more difficult
But all of that is not necessarily evidence that things are easier for drivers in F1 2026, according to McLaren team boss Andrea Stella.
“These cars are classified by both our drivers - I don't know about the others - as difficult cars to drive,” Stella said when The Race put the topic to him.
“Definitely last year we could see much less scatter between the two drivers. Here, when a driver is a bit on the back foot, then this can be a large amount.
“They are difficult cars to drive for several reasons. At the start of the season, it was in the corners and then in the straights. In the corners because of the low grip, much less downforce, smaller tyres, and in the straights because of the inconsistencies of the deployment, or the fact that you may have a sudden superclip before braking and now you've lost your braking reference, or sometimes the frustrating element that you go on power early in high speed and now you're losing deployment later.
“So there were several angles from which driving this year's car was more difficult. Those related to the power unit, I would say that the drivers and the engineers are now more familiar with, have become more familiar with, and they are sort of more ready to cope with that.
“Still, in the debriefing of this qualifying, drivers refer to elements of the power unit behaviour which affect the consistency of pushing at the limit. So this is not completely gone, but it's much less than the start of the season.
“But the reason associated \[with\] the corners and the grip is still there. Even if all teams have added downforce, it's very difficult for the drivers to predict what the problem is going to be in braking, or whether the car will snap or not in traction.
“With the previous generation of cars, there was much, much more load aerodynamically and much more grip from the tyres, and it was easier. While it was difficult for the drivers because everything was happening much faster, it was easier because normally you had kind of one thing to cope \[with\].
“Here, there's a lot that can happen at any moment from a grip consistency point of view, or even sensitivity to the wind, which in Hungary, or here, played a major part in the fact that nobody here had a clean lap in qualifying.”
Asked about Verstappen’s comments that F1 2026 put less onus on drivers’ skill, Stella replied: “I'm not so sure, like I'm genuinely not sure, and I would be inaccurate if I commented for another team.
“If I comment for what I've understood at McLaren, based on what I said before, I would say that this year is even more difficult.
“Like in the past, like in 2025, you needed to get used to the speed, and how fast things were happening. But this year you have to get used to adapt to the fact that you can have any kind of problem, because the car slides a lot.
“So it's, maybe this may depend on car characteristics, or even the driver's characteristics. But if I consider the McLaren experience, I think it's more difficult this year.”
### F1 2026 Dutch Grand Prix starting grid with a pitlane start
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-grand-prix-starting-grid/
Last updated: 2026-08-23T10:41:44.000Z
Lando Norris will start on pole position ahead of the Mercedes duo at Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix.
Sergio Perez will forfeit last place on the grid to line up in the pitlane due to suspension set-up changes made in breach of parc ferme.
Below you'll find the full starting grid...
1 Lando Norris (McLaren)
2 George Russell (Mercedes)
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
4 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
7 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
8 Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
11 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
12 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
14 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
16 Alex Albon (Williams)
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
20 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
PL Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
### Winners and losers from 2026 Dutch GP qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-2026-dutch-gp-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T16:47:54.000Z
Our picks for the winners and losers from a highly competitive and close F1 qualifying session for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
## Loser: Aston Martin Honda (18th and 19th)
Progress from sprint qualifying, no doubt, but it was [Lance Stroll’s verdict](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/strolls-bleak-verdict-on-hondas-f1-engine-upgrade/) on Honda’s step forward that was most telling after qualifying.
He called it a “small step” and said it’s “not nearly enough”.
Plus, it’s also created unwanted driveability issues that were first flagged in the Hungaroring filming day debut. It means the drivers are heading into corner entries uncertain of how much power they’ll have, and whether they’ll be fired off the road like Fernando Alonso was in SQ1 on Friday.
“It's a lottery. Right now we're just not getting the consistent engine braking, going into the corner and a lot of rejected downshifts. So, yeah, a lot of issues,” was Stroll’s summary.
Those driveability issues need to be solved back at Honda HQ in Sakura, Japan, rather than trackside. So it’s unrealistic to expect improvements until Monza - where it could be even more punishing.
Both drivers were effusive about the step with the chassis Aston Martin made in Hungary, but right now, according to the drivers, the spec 2 Honda hasn’t matched that. - **Josh Suttill**
## Winner: Lando Norris (1st)
The reigning champion took his second-straight pole position and the second non-Mercedes pole position of 2026 - holding off both Mercedes drivers on Saturday afternoon in Zandvoort.
As the rain fell at the end of Q3, Norris held George Russell off as the Mercedes driver loomed in his wing mirrors, looking to overtake and gain clean air. That spot ahead of the Mercedes in Q3 proved pivotal to Norris’s pole lap.
“It doesn't get any better, a little surprised honestly. A decent lap, I was pushing as you've seen how close it is, every one-hundredth can make a difference,” he said. “A good turnaround from earlier where I felt we struggled a little bit."
This turnaround could prove crucial given that since Zandvoort returned in 2021, the Dutch Grand Prix has been won from pole position. - **Samarth Kanal**
## Winner: Liam Lawson (8th)
Over five qualifying segments, Liam Lawson was an average of 0.128s off Max Verstappen at Zandvoort. Max Verstappen! It’s a result basically worth throwing a party for if you’re Lawson or one of his fans.
In two of those segments he beat Verstappen, and in the final one that counted, he was 0.115s off.
Verstappen’s almost impossible to beat. This Red Bull is so tough to drive. But still, Lawson has found a way to be relevant despite his lack of preparation stepping in for Isack Hadjar.
After how badly his first Red Bull stint went, you can understand why nobody is linking him with a permanent return to the works team. But that aside, he’s done about as well as you’d expect any driver to in these circumstances. - **Jack Benyon**
## Loser: Ferrari (5th and 6th)
Ferrari’s qualifying hoodoo continues as the team just can’t get it going on Saturdays.
Hamilton and Leclerc are incredibly competitive on qualifying pace and were split by just 0.064s on Saturday afternoon - having been almost six-tenths apart in Friday’s sprint qualifying. But that’s really as positive as it gets.
Leclerc explained that Ferrari made “mistakes in changing modes, power modes from Q2 to Q3\.
“That put me off a little bit with the feeling I had with the car and we'll have to look into it," he said. "But I don't think the potential for pole position was there anyway.”
Hamilton pointed towards poor tyre warm-up for his qualifying woes, but hopes Ferrari’s strong race pace can provide the consolation.
With a solid start, the Scuderia could at least stay on the tail of the leading pack on Sunday - although the podium might be a stretch given how hard it is to overtake at Zandvoort. - **SK**
## Loser: Pierre Gasly (11th)
There was a lot of hype about the upgraded Alpine of Pierre Gasly leading the midfield in sprint qualifying on Friday, but fast-forward to qualifying proper a day later and Gasly was left perplexed and out in Q2.
“If it was the absolute best lap and everything felt amazing and we're a tenth off, then it would be more concerning. I just think things didn't quite click yet,” was Gasly’s glass-half-full take on the situation.
Clearly the upgrades are a step forward, but Alpine hasn’t worked out exactly how to get the best out of them. That’s annoying as the sprint race showed how important qualifying is here, and the race will be tough tomorrow in terms of overtaking, at least to match Gasly’s P8 from the sprint race.
But he’s right ultimately that there’s no need to panic here. It’s just a case of inexperience with an upgrade package introduced early on one car only. - **JB**
## Loser: Ollie Bearman (20th)
After being very critical of Haas’s car development on Thursday, Ollie Bearman followed that up with two Q1 exits behind his team-mate at Zandvoort, bagging 20th on Saturday, which was his worst result of the season so far.
“We did a few small changes \[after the sprint\], but there's not really much that we can do, to be honest with you,” Bearman said.
“We always end up running the same configuration, because it's the only way we can get any remnants of performance out of the car, and yeah, it's just not worked.”
Esteban Ocon pointed to the [parts inconsistency issues](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/is-this-f1-2026-team-mate-fight-too-skewed-to-trust/) affecting Bearman this weekend, which means "Every time you put a car down, you flip a coin and one car will work, one car will not".
This weekend, Bearman's isn't. - **JB**
## Winner: Gabriel Bortoleto (9th)
A huge slide at the exit of Turn 1 in Q1 nearly ended Bortoleto’s qualifying session early - yet he recovered, and then some.
“I don’t know what I’m doing,” he exclaimed on the radio after he took too much of the kerbs and had to reset.
The Brazilian driver recovered to 10th in Q1 and then went three-tenths faster than team-mate Nico Hulkenberg in Q2\.
He conceded it was a “scary moment” - and he almost repeated it in the following sessions - attributing his Q1 moment to the gusts around Zandvoort.
The Audi driver also outqualified Racing Bulls’s Arvid Lindblad (P10) and the upgraded Alpine of Gasly (P11).
Having missed out on a point in the sprint, Bortoleto now has a chance to score points for the third time in four weekends. - **SK**
### 'Not nearly enough' - Stroll's verdict on Honda's F1 engine upgrade
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/strolls-bleak-verdict-on-hondas-f1-engine-upgrade/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T17:24:10.000Z
Lance Stroll believes Honda’s upgraded Formula 1 engine is “not nearly enough” of a step forward after Aston Martin’s double Q1 elimination at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Aston Martin lost both cars in the first stage of sprint qualifying on Friday, but hopes were higher given that it was the first proper day of the new Honda engine running on a race weekend - plus the caveat of Fernando Alonso’s [straight mode not working](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-ruined-aston-martin-honda-big-f1-upgrade-engine-debut/) on his rear wing in sprint qualifying.
And while the pace was better after the first runs, with Alonso 12th, ultimately both Aston Martin drivers fell short of a Q2 place, with Alonso a tenth adrift.
Stroll was a tenth and a half behind Alonso and delivered a somewhat bleak verdict on Honda’s “small step” forward when quizzed about it after qualifying.
“Not so much, I think. Maybe a bit, but not nearly enough,” Stroll said, when asked by The Race if he could feel a step forward.
“On the chassis side, I think we're quite good. We made a big step in Budapest. The driveability and the power is the next thing we need to really work on.”
He said there are “still a lot of issues on the engine side”, namely the driveability problems, which is making the Aston Martin very unpredictable on corner entries.
“Not good, not good. It's a lottery,” Stroll said of the driveability. “Right now, we're just not getting the consistent engine braking, going into the corner and a lot of rejected downshifts. So, yeah, a lot of issues.”
## Alonso: Aston Martin has taken "amazing" step
Alonso felt like there was around a tenth more on the table with a better outlap for his final run, which wasn’t an improvement on his previous best.
But he was far from disappointed when comparing the much-reduced gap between Aston Martin and the ultimate Q1 pace of Oscar Piastri's McLaren.
“Piastri P1 in Q1 was 1.3 seconds in front of us - we used to be 4.5 seconds average on the gap to the leader, so we improved three seconds in two races," Alonso explained.
"This is amazing. Everything is working as expected, but this is a tough sport. You need to always keep improving.”
He agreed with Stroll that there’s more time to be found if Honda can improve the driveability of the new power unit, but that can only be done at Honda’s Sakura base in Japan.
“Unfortunately, here on the track side, there is not much we can do," Alonso added. "We need to rely on some big changes in the factory or software or whatever is needed.
"This has to come from Japan, so it's not from one day to the next. It's more towards Monza where we need to find another step there. There are a couple of tenths to optimise in the package.”
As for Aston Martin’s prospects for the race from 18th and 19th on the grid, Alonso said: “Let's see. Normally we are doing better on the race pace because our chassis is very good.
“When \[rivals\] have old tyres or older tyres in the race, we rely more on our good grip from the chassis and we don't rely so much on the tyres and grip.
"We can do a better job, but at the same time we cannot overtake on the straights. We are in a difficult position there, but we try our best.”
Honda's trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said: “Today we ran the sprint race and qualifying without any reliability issues with the new spec engine.
"We have received similar feedback from both Aston Martin drivers after these sessions.
"Together, with our engineers’ assessments, and our work on the test bench at HRC Sakura overnight and after the sprint race, we have seen some improvements to get a better control over the internal combustion engine (ICE) and to further improve the consistency of the combustion behaviour in qualifying.
"We need to ensure that the engine does what the driver needs at the right time. We have taken some steps today, but there is still more to be done to give the drivers the confidence they need.
"This is our primary focus for the short and medium term.”
### Norris takes pole in tense Dutch GP qualifying finale
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-takes-pole-in-tense-dutch-gp-qualifying-finale/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T15:10:24.000Z
Lando Norris made it back-to-back pole positions by topping qualifying at Formula 1’s Dutch Grand Prix, beating the Mercedes duo.
Norris took pole at Zandvoort with a 1m11.163s in Q3 to best sprint race winner Russell by just over a tenth of a second.
Norris and Russell were among those to set their final Q3 laps relatively in anticipation of rain at the end end of the session, with the McLaren driver ending up quickest.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli was third fastest, just 0.031s shy of Russell, with Oscar Piastri fourth, a tenth and a half adrift of his McLaren team-mate.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc set their final laps slightly later but ended up fifth and sixth with Hamilton the last of the leading teams to set a time, jumping Leclerc in the process.
Max Verstappen was seventh for Red Bull with his stand-in team-mate Liam Lawson doing a solid job to qualify eighth, just over a tenth slower.
Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto led the midfield fight in ninth ahead of Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls.
Having been the top midfielder in sprint qualifying and the sprint race, Pierre Gasly struggled in the upgraded Alpine, missing out of Q3 and ended up 11th.
Racing Bulls stand-in Yuki Tsunoda was 12th ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Audi and Franco Colapinto in the older spec Alpine.
Albon Albon made it back-to-back intra-team qualifying victories, beating team-mate Carlos Sainz by 0.022s to advance into Q2 while Sainz was knocked out in 17th place.
Albon ended up 16th as the slowest driver in Q2, half a tenth behind Esteban Ocon’s Haas.
### Upgraded Aston Martin Honda falls short of Q2
The upgraded Honda engine went better in the back of the Aston Martins than it did in sprint qualifying, with Fernando Alonso 12th ahead of the final runs in Q1.
However Alonso couldn’t improve on his final lap and ended up being eliminated in 18th place, just ahead of team-mate Lance Stroll.
Ollie Bearman’s Haas was 20th - his worst qualifying of the year - ahead of the two Cadillacs, led by Valtteri Bottas for the fifth consecutive qualifying session.
### Dutch GP F1 2026 qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dutch-gp-f1-2026-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T15:05:32.000Z
Lando Norris claimed pole position for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix, narrowly beating the Mercedes of George Russell and Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli.
## Classification
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m11.163s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m11.265s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m11.296s
4 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 1m11.305s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 1m11.494s
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 1m11.558s
7 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1m11.618s
8 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) 1m11.733s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) 1m12.079s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) 1m12.185s
## Q2
11 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 1m12.616s
12 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) 1m12.627s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) 1m12.797s
14 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) 1m12.800s
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas) 1m13.137s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) 1m13.182s
## Q1
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) 1m13.574s
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 1m13.650s
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 1m13.818s
20 Ollie Bearman (Haas) 1m13.826s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) 1m14.371s
22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) 1m14.600s
### Winners and losers from F1's Dutch GP sprint race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-from-f1-dutch-gp-sprint-race/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T11:22:52.000Z
Formula 1's first (and last) ever sprint race at the Dutch Grand Prix was hardly a classic, but it did produce some winners and losers.
Here's our team's picks...
### Loser: F1
We’re going to have more sprint races in 2027, and while it wouldn’t be fair to judge that decision based purely on this turgid Zandvoort race, it’s at least a warning that F1 has to be very careful in choosing which races get the sprint treatment.
I’ve seen more action in supercar parades than this so-called 'race'. Up front, Leclerc’s dive down the inside of Lando Norris was the only overtake not assisted by the start, in which Kimi Antonelli jumped Oscar Piastri. Franco Colapinto also mugged Yuki Tsunoda at the start for 12th.
The retiring Audi of Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez’s ailing Cadillac even assisted some of the rises up the order further down, too.
An awful race and I only hope qualifying and the race is better to give Zandvoort a more fitting F1 send-off as it leaves the calendar. Because based on that sprint, I’m happy it’s leaving, and that’s really not fair and very sad. **\- Jack Benyon**
### Winner: Charles Leclerc (2nd)
Thank goodness for Charles Leclerc’s gamble to wear soft tyres for the Zandvoort sprint, and to have the audacity to…make an overtake! Shocking.
It was a strong move on Norris in the second half of the race, although Leclerc reckoned it was boosted because he could see Norris didn’t have as much deployment on the straight as he did. Perhaps that will be a theme that runs through this weekend in terms of deployment styles and execution.
Using the soft tyres should have produced a gain at the start and a loss as they degraded at the end, but it looked the opposite for Leclerc, and he felt he and the team were vindicated by the “homework” they did on the softs.
Ultimately, he had a bad start which hampered early progress, but Leclerc and the Ferrari kept the softs in better condition for longer than some of the medium runners, which is an intriguing prospect for race day. **\- JB**
### Loser: McLaren (3rd & 5th)
Lando Norris’s rear tyres appeared to fall off a cliff just over a third of the way into this sprint race, and Oscar Piastri’s total anonymity in fifth just showed McLaren didn’t quite have the pace today.
Both drivers were victims of the only two meaningful overtakes of the race, respectively.
Hopefully they have learned a lesson from this that they can apply to the race as struggling that quickly on the mediums might make Sunday difficult for them if that continues. **\- JB**
**Winner: George Russell (1st)**
Whatever George Russell did over the summer (and maybe it was his engagement), he has returned from the summer break refreshed and with exactly the mental approach needed to grab the results that keep his title hopes alive.
His Zandvoort sprint pole and victory (the third time out of five he has done the double this year) were helped by perfect execution in qualifying and some clever tyre management in the race – showing he is back at one with the W17.
The points deficit to Kimi Antonelli is still big (56), and he is going to need a bit of luck on his side, but Russell has shown he is far down and out from a first half to the campaign that did not go to plan. **\- Jon Noble**
### Loser: Liam Lawson (11th)
This placement isn't much of a reflection of Liam Lawson's driving in the Dutch Grand Prix sprint race, as he couldn't do much once Arvid Lindblad fended off his attack on the opening lap.
Thereafter, it was a frustrating race for Lawson, who couldn't make any impression on his usual team-mate.
Ultimately, Lawson was doomed by not making it into SQ3 on Friday and breaking into the top 10 will be the key goal for grand prix qualifying to ensure he doesn't get stuck again on Sunday of what's been a 'very respectable' stand-in weekend so far. But he'll need to do more than this to tip it into 'spectacular' territory. **\- Josh Suttill**
### Winner: Pierre Gasly (8th)
As with most drivers on the grid, this result was born out of qualifying, where the upgraded Alpine of Gasly led the midfield, and maintained that during the race.
Given the lack of overtaking, you wouldn’t want to read too much into this race. But despite early pressure, Gasly was able to gap Gabriel Bortoleto to the tune of nearly two seconds by the end.
Positive signs for a team which has felt in no-man’s-land while Racing Bulls’ upgrades had shoved it ahead in the pecking order. **\- JB**
### Loser: Nico Hulkenberg (NC)
With just seven laps completed in the sprint thanks to a "power issue right from the beginning", Nico Hulkenberg is the biggest loser in mileage terms.
He was always unlikely to score points from 14th on the grid, but he did need laps to understand his baffling SQ2 exit on Friday, which he had very few answers to explain. **\- JS**
### Russell wins static Dutch Grand Prix sprint race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/george-russell-wins-static-dutch-grand-prix-sprint-race/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T10:42:43.000Z
Formula 1's 2026 Zandvoort sprint race could have been mistaken for a car parade rather than an actual race, as George Russell won from pole and only two changes of position happened in the top 10 over the 24 laps.
Lando Norris managed to keep Russell under pressure for the first stretch of the race but over laps nine and 10 he lost over a second to Russell with a tail-happy rear-end. That allowed Russell the breathing room he needed.
The only uncertainty was late rain, which hit almost immediately after Russell crossed the line. The perfect start for his bid to turn around his tough first part of the season.
The change of position in the top 10 at the start came when Kimi Antonelli jumped Oscar Piastri’s McLaren and set about chasing Charles Leclerc for the last spot on the podium.
As if doing the fans a favour by anticipating the turgid race, Leclerc added a grain of interest by bolting on soft tyres - alongside only 17th-place starter Ollie Bearman - which theoretically gave him a chance at making up early positions before degrading later on.
But with Norris ahead struggling a third of the way through with a loose rear, Leclerc was able to pressure him and on lap 18 he dived to the inside at Turn 1, pushing Norris wide and barging through for the only meaningful overtake of the race not happening at the start.
Leclerc wasn't able to catch Russell but avoided his softs going off dramatically at the end to seal second.
Norris immediately came under pressure from Antonelli once Leclerc went through, and Antonelli tried all the way up until the last lap when he half-tried a Turn 1 dive, but couldn’t make it stick and had to settle for fourth.
Piastri was a very distant fifth, dropped by Antonelli, while an intriguing battle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton - a regular occurrence in 2026 F1.
Hamilton dropped as far as two seconds behind at mid-race, having been close early on, but Hamilton closed back in during the closing stages, typically of this race, unable to make a move stick.
Pierre Gasly was under pressure for the entire race, but his upgraded Alpine yielded the final point for eighth ahead of Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi.
Arvid Lindblad claimed another scalp as the Racing Bulls driver beat his usual team-mate Liam Lawson, who’s standing in for Isack Hadjar this weekend at Red Bull.
But before you condemn Lawson, remember the difficulty in overtaking in this race.
Yuki Tsunoda lost out to Franco Colapinto at the start, perhaps that could be put down to Tsunoda doing his first-ever race start with the complicated process required for 2026 cars.
So Colapinto - without the Alpine upgrade - took 12th ahead of Tsunoda.
### Dutch GP sprint race results
1. George Russell (Mercedes)
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.3s
3. Lando Norris (McLaren) +5.1s
4. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +5.5s
5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +10.1s
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +10.5s
7. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +12.1s
8. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +42.5s
9. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +44.4s
10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +44.9s
11. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +47.4s
12. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +54.4s
13. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +56.4s
14. Esteban Ocon (Haas) +66.0s
15. Ollie Bearman (Haas) +66.5s
16. Alex Albon (Williams) +74.6s
17. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +74.6s
18. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +75.2s
19. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1 lap
20. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1 lap
21. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3 laps
22. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +17 laps
### F1 2026 Dutch Grand Prix sprint race result
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-grand-prix-sprint-race-result/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T10:36:11.000Z
George Russell emerged victorious from the sprint race at Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix, beating Charles Leclerc's Ferrari and Lando Norris's McLaren.
Below you'll find the full sprint race results.
1. George Russell (Mercedes)
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.3s
3. Lando Norris (McLaren) +5.1s
4. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +5.5s
5. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +10.1s
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +10.5s
7. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +12.1s
8. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +42.5s
9. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +44.4s
10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +44.9s
11. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +47.4s
12. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +54.4s
13. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +56.4s
14. Esteban Ocon (Haas) +66.0s
15. Ollie Bearman (Haas) +66.5s
16. Alex Albon (Williams) +74.6s
17. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +74.6s
18. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +75.2s
19. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1 lap
20. Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1 lap
21. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3 laps
22. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +17 laps
### The warning for Mercedes in its Zandvoort data
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-warning-for-mercedes-in-its-zandvoort-data/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T08:44:43.000Z
George Russell's sprint pole position at Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix provided relief for Mercedes that its strategy of holding fire on upgrades had not yet dropped it into the pack.
While Ferrari and McLaren have been aggressive in bringing development packages to their cars – with latest updates from both appearing at Zandvoort – Mercedes has been playing the long game.
Having selectively had just one major spec change at the Canadian GP in May, it is saving its development spending for an end of season splurge when it hopes the coffers of its rivals are empty.
But despite Russell's form in edging out Lando Norris's McLaren showing that the W17 is still very strong, tucked away in the data is a clear warning signal that Mercedes may not be able to wait much longer before needing to bring more.
Russell's advantage over Norris to take pole was a slim 0.041 seconds, but there was a very topsy turvy nature to how they achieved their laps – with big variability between sectors.
SECTOR 1 SECTOR 2 SECTOR 3
RUSSELL 24.381s 25.434s 21.752s
NORRIS 24.622s 24.983s 22.003s
There was nearly half a second of difference between them in the middle sector, with Kimi Antonelli similarly adrift to show that this was a Mercedes trend.
Under F1's 2026 rules, such variability is not uncommon and often comes from different deployment strategies – where one driver will use more energy on one straight compared to another.
Some of the difference between Norris and Russell can be explained from this, with there being a big speed difference for example as they run to end the lap.
As Russell's Mercedes keeps accelerating to 317km/h (197mph) in the chase to the timing line, Norris's McLaren peaks at around 307km/h (191mph) before falling away.
But the Mercedes advantage here does not seem to be the upside to it having deliberately not used energy elsewhere, as the only real difference in top speeds between them is when McLaren appeared to have used more at the start of the lap.
In fact, digging into the telemetry of their best SQ3 efforts, the poor middle sector of Russell's was nothing to do with saving energy on the straights – it was performance through the corners.
As the data above shows, which we have used from F1tel.com shows, Mercedes has been struggling compared to McLaren and Ferrari in the high-speed Turns 7 and 8 – which neither Russell nor Kimi Antonelli can take anywhere near as fast as McLaren and Ferrari.
While McLaren's upgrade has helped Norris keep his minimum speed up at 253km/h (157mph) through Turn 7 and 219km/h (136mph) at Turn 8, Russell drops to 242km/h (150mph) and 205km/h (127mph).
Those differences pull Norris back from two tenths of a second adrift at the time, to back on par with Russell.
The performance through these two high-speed corners points to McLaren having made a clear step with its most recent upgrade – as it is in contrast to what we have seen in turns with such a speed range earlier in the year.
At Silverstone, for example, Norris was 7km/h (4.3mph) slower than Russell through Copse (283km/h vs 276km/h), and a similar speed adrift at Stowe (238km/h vs 231km/h).
What Mercedes now needs to understand is whether that speed offset through Turns 7/8 at Zandvoort is a sign that it has genuinely fallen back in high-speed corners so needs to respond with some car improvements, or if there is some set-up or driving approach issue that has left it exposed.
A clearer answer for that will come when Mercedes has another go at qualifying on Saturday afternoon.
### Could have been 2.5s quicker?! Honda's deceptive F1 engine upgrade debut
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-ruined-aston-martin-honda-big-f1-upgrade-engine-debut/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T06:51:23.000Z
The debut of Honda’s upgraded spec 2 Formula 1 engine proved to be a disappointment in sprint qualifying at the Dutch Grand Prix on paper.
Aston Martin duo Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso failed to make it out of SQ1 at the Dutch Grand Prix as the squad appeared to have made a step back from its promising Hungaroring weekend.
Stroll, who ended up 19th and six-tenths off making it to SQ2, was left struggling for answers about where he could have got more time from.
Alonso, who was 22nd and last after a first effort ended up with a big lock-up into Turn 1, suggested on team radio afterwards that Honda’s early-season vibration bugbear had returned.
“Huge vibrations on the straights,” he said. “And not from the tyres, eh....”
So, had Honda’s much-hyped, more powerful spec 2 engine fallen flat at the first hurdle?
Not totally, but equally it has exposed that the improved power does not automatically translate to better laps yet.
## The rear wing issue
Alonso's poor showing was quickly explained as not being down to a power unit problem.
Instead, it emerged – even though Alonso had not noticed it at the time – that his rear wing active aero had failed.
It meant that running down the straights, his rear wing had stayed closed in corner mode, which increased drag to reduce top speed. It also meant he burned through his battery pack quicker.
The end result was a 20km/h speed deficit compared to his best lap from practice into Turn 1 – and he was 2.3 seconds slower by the time he hit the apex.
A further two tenths were lost on the run between Turn 10 and 11, where he was 15km/h slower.
While it is not an exact science, if we take 2.5 seconds off Alonso’s laptime then he would have ended up in the mid 1m13.5s – which would have been easily enough to get through to SQ2.
But this comes with a caveat that team-mate Stroll did not have an SM problem and also did not make it out of Q1.
The SM issue had another impact on Alonso too, in that it pushed the car down more.
So, the ‘vibration’ experience that Alonso complained about on the radio may have been the result of the car grounding out and struggling as its rear got more loaded.
Sources suggest there had been no vibration issues during opening practice for Honda.
## What does need sorting
While the reality of Honda’s showing did not match the laptimes delivered, it would be wrong to suggest that without the SM problem it would have been mission accomplished for Alonso, Honda and Aston Martin in continuing its push forward.
Both practice and qualifying had highlighted that there is still a mountain for Honda to climb when it comes to sorting out the driveability of the power unit.
The 2026 rules demand perfect performance under both acceleration and braking – with that corner entry phase particularly critical to maximising energy harvesting.
And this is an area where Honda has not yet got sorted with its spec 2 engine.
Alonso talked about the car pushing on as he slowed for turns, and it was this exact issue that triggered Alonso’s lock-up in SQ1 that derailed his first effort.
**“**When you brake and the throttle is open, it's difficult to stop the car,” he said.
Solving this requires a lot of detailed software tweaking and can take time - but that work was already starting in Japan on Friday night as Zandvoort closed up for the evening.
As Honda’s chief engineer Shintaro Orihara said on Friday night: “HRC Sakura will analyse the data overnight and perform dyno tests to optimise these parameters for the rest of the weekend.”
Having taken stock of things after getting out of the car, Alonso was certainly not as despondent about where things were with the spec 2 engine as he had seemed in the car.
“Free practice felt okay and I felt a step forward, I think it's very early days and probably a little bit immature, a little bit of the controls,” he said.
“It's a sprint weekend. On a normal weekend we had three practices to nail the package.”
Aston Martin and Honda will have another opportunity to nail it on Saturday afternoon, and hope to prove that the sprint qualifying showing was an anomaly rather than a sign that this is what their genuine performance is like.
### Lawson's first day back at Red Bull was very revealing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/liam-lawson-red-bull-f1-dutch-gp-zandvoort-friday/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T17:18:15.000Z
For Liam Lawson to be frustrated after lapping a respectable 0.365s off team-mate Max Verstappen in sprint qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix is revealing.
With just one free practice and a day in the simulator under his belt, Lawson looks significantly more comfortable with the Red Bull than he did at any point in his troubled two-event stint with the Formula 1 team last year - but even a margin well under half the deficit of the best of his three qualifying outings alongside Verstappen last year didn't do his underlying pace justice.
Lawson's elimination in SQ2, leaving him 11th on the grid for tomorrow’s sprint race, was so disappointing given it was out of kilter with what came before. He made that clear over the radio after the second of his two quick laps in that session, saying “I’ve no idea what happened in Q2”. He didn't have a clearer explanation after he got out of the car.
“Honestly, I don’t really know,” said Lawson of what went wrong in SQ2\. “It's been an interesting day, but normally you'd improve through quali and we started SQ1 quite strong and then we didn't make the same step that everybody else did. Obviously we'll look into it, there's a lot to learn today, but so far I feel quite good in the car. I was honestly feeling OK through quali, I thought we'd get through, so it's a shame.”
Feeling “OK” in the car is what matters. You could see he was relatively at ease watching trackside in free practice at the banked Turn 3\. Yes, he was a little more conservative than team-mate Max Verstappen in how he attacked the corner, as you would expect, but Lawson at least looked like he was on top of the machinery.
The main concern was that two of his quick laps at the end of the session resulted in him running wide and dragging the floor of the car across the exit kerb.
The last time I watched him in a Red Bull up close was in China last year, where he looked all at sea on what proved to be his final outing - until now - for the team. There, he was tentative, taking a trip through the gravel on his first push lap and never getting to grips with it, but here he looked nothing like that. He was not at Verstappen’s level today, inevitably, but in the circumstances it was a good start.
The same applies to SQ1\. The first of his three push laps was slow, but that was down to traffic on the lap. His final two efforts were much more convincing, allowing him to end the first segment of qualifying 0.165s ahead of Verstappen in sixth place.
This raised expectations for SQ2, as even on a day when Red Bull was struggling Lawson appeared to have the pace to make the top 10\. So to miss out, and only be a few thousandths ahead of the man who took over his usual car, Yuki Tsunoda, was understandably a blow.
Moving with the evolving track is one of the skills of qualifying, but it’s excusable not to have mastery of it for a driver who is unfamiliar with the car. There was a reminder of that at the end of SQ1, when he returned to the garage and referenced what Racing Bulls normally does with the front wing flap angle. He reported he was happy with the balance, and it’s not clear what direction Red Bull went in because the radio feed fell silent to the outside world, but understanding how a car might react to adding in a little more front wing as the track grip improves is something that comes with experience of the machinery. Given Lawson lacks that, the way today played out bodes well for the rest of the weekend.
“It definitely does,” said Lawson. “We'll obviously try and fix it and put it together for quali. But we definitely had the potential to be right up there today, so it's frustrating.”
What matters is that this was, all things considered, a good start for Lawson. And that's much better than what happened last year.
### F1 2026 Dutch Grand Prix sprint race starting grid
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-grand-prix-sprint-race-starting-grid/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T09:44:52.000Z
George Russell and Lando Norris will share the front row for the sprint race at Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix.
Below you'll find a list of the full starting grid - including pitlane starts for both Williams's Carlos Sainz and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso after their teams made changes to their cars following poor qualifying sessions.
## Dutch GP sprint race starting grid
1 George Russell (Mercedes)
2 Lando Norris (McLaren)
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
4 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
7 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
8 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
11 Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
12 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
14 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
16 Alex Albon (Williams)
17 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
Pits Carlos Sainz (Williams)
Pits Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
### Winners and losers from sprint qualifying at F1's Dutch GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-sprint-qualifying-dutch-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T16:35:46.000Z
Formula 1's first competitive session in almost a month delivered a closely fought battle for sprint pole and some interesting intra-team victories.
Below are our picks for the biggest winners and losers from sprint qualifying at Zandvoort.
### Loser: Red Bull (6th and 11th)
Despite a disappointing SQ2 outcome relative to what he'd managed in SQ1, it's ultimately fair to say Liam Lawson is holding up his end of the bargain.
But the RB22 does appear fourth-best here, and a fourth-best enough that Max Verstappen's sixth is an arguable overperformance. As Verstappen himself put it, sounding a little sardonic: "I guess we outqualified one car."
He found his Red Bull more compliant than in practice but still not with the balance and grip that he needs - so the hopes rest on a significant change when the cars come out of parc ferme. **\- Val Khorounzhiy**
### Winner: Yuki Tsunoda (12th)
Tsunoda ended up with a similar laptime deficit to Arvid Lindblad as the equivalent in the sister team between the stand-in and full-timer - but gets the nod in the 'winner' category here (which is not to say Lawson disappointed).
Considering he has never qualified one of these cars before, 12th is a rock-solid return in the Racing Bulls car, and while you'd think the team-mate gaps here are diminished by the track length, the rest of the qualifying results do not overwhelmingly support that hypothesis.
Consider also that Lindblad went beyond the limits of the car trying to squeeze out more in SQ3, and this is a very good start for this latest line on Tsunoda's racing CV (that may or may not include IndyCar not so far down the line). **\- VK**
### Loser: Aston Martin (19th and 22nd)
After what appeared to be a strong start in practice (Fernando Alonso was 12th), the debut of the upgraded Honda engine aboard the Aston Martin was a disappointment.
Alonso ended up slowest of all with a failure that meant he couldn’t use straight mode, a huge loss in 2026 as it upsets the balance of the car and the energy requirements around the lap. He also complained of vibrations unrelated to his off at the first corner and struggled with the drivability of the new Honda engine.
The quicker Aston Martin of Lance Stroll, whose straight mode was working, was still nearly seven tenths from making it into Q2.
It’s a big contrast to the team’s promising Hungarian GP weekend, which will have given the team hopes of fighting for a place in Q2 again at Zandvoort.
The big question is how many of those driveability problems Honda can iron out, given this - Hungaroring filming day aside - is the first day it’s properly been tested in anger. **\- Josh Suttill**
### Winner: Pierre Gasly’s upgraded Alpine (8th)
After several races of toiling in an increasingly uncompetitive car, this looked much more like the level of performance Gasly and Alpine were achieving at the very start of the season.
The substantial upgrade Alpine has fast-tracked onto Gasly’s car for this event, featuring a substantially revised floor and diffuser, as well as new sidepods and rear brake drums, looks extremely powerful and, according to Alpine managing director Steve Nielson, was worth most of the 0.719s gap between the team’s two cars in SQ2.
McLaren made a huge step with a substantial floor upgrade for Hungary, and it seems Alpine has done something similar in the midfield here. That means mixed feelings for Franco Colapinto, who barely scraped through SQ1 and was out in SQ2 in 14th: on the one hand, he's delighted to see the team take a big step forward; on the other, he's frustrated his car won’t get to take that step until Monza. **\- Ben Anderson**
### Winner: George Russell (1st)
You could argue George Russell was the driver who most needed to excel this weekend, and he’s started that off perfectly with his team-mate Kimi Antonelli making multiple errors as he cruised through practice and qualifying almost without incident.
“It's good to remind myself I still got it and haven't forgotten how to drive,” stated Russell, whose difficulty in adapting to the specific demands of the 2026 cars is well documented.
“I came into this weekend with a real open mind because I had no idea how it was going to go, confidence level wasn't exactly at my highest,” he added, but his strategy of treating this weekend like the first race iof the season and not overthinking it led to an excellent pole where he clearly made the difference as four cars were within a tenth of a second - and none were his team-mate. **\- Jack Benyon**
### Loser: Lewis Hamilton (7th)
Hamilton's final push lap in sprint qualifying looked really ropey, easily ropey enough to account for a six-tenths gap to Leclerc - and he admitted afterwards it was "not a good session".
But rather than a consequence of errors creeping in, he felt the SF-26 had just got away from its sweet spot after "subtle adjustments" after practice that - correlation or causation - suddenly left him with a "completely different car".
"Charles is in a slightly different place than me \[in terms of set-up\], so a bit closer to where I was," Hamilton suggested. **\- VK**
### Loser: Kimi Antonelli (5th)
Antonelli’s stated loss of 25-points of downforce certainly explains his two-tenth time loss to team-mate George Russell.
It’s not the ideal return from the summer break for Antonelli, who spun in FP1 and then went off at Turn 12 in SQ1, causing damage.
“It was a little bit too much entry speed in the last corner in that lap one and lost the rear and went through the gravel,” he noted, adding he had holes in the floor of his car and it knocked his confidence.
These are the sorts of errors you can get away with when your team-mate and the opposition are floundering, but Antonelli needs to get back to executing at an elite level if he wants to avoid his momentum being eroded.
### Winner: Alex Albon (16th)
For the first time since Monaco, Alex Albon was the quicker Williams driver in a qualifying session - and by just under a tenth and a half.
There’s no immediate driver market jeopardy for Albon, given he’s just recommitted to racing for Williams next year, but starting to reverse what’s been an extremely one-sided qualifying battle with Carlos Sainz this year certainly won’t hurt.
Carlos Sainz’s tricky qualifying was partly explained by his multiple off-track moments in FP1 that damaged his Williams, and meant he had to be swapped to some sub-optimal parts.
In Albon’s words, Williams is “struggling with our own demons” with parts consistency right now.
“With the parts on our car, just making sure that we're actually getting the best out of the bodywork, the car itself, that we actually have,” Albon explained.
“We've obviously had these cars for a while now, we haven't upgraded for a while, so they're a little bit worse for wear. We have to treat them nicely.”
Ultimately, Albon’s treated those parts nicer so far this weekend and reaped the (limited) benefits. **\- JS**
### Loser: Nico Hulkenberg 14th
A shocked Nico Hulkenberg was 0.830s slower than team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto in Zandvoort sprint qualifying and had nothing in the way of an explanation.
“I’m surprised myself,” he said, lamenting a “a day with two very different sessions”.
In FP1 he thought the car was “feeeling really good” and then “I went out in SQ1, it was a completely different sensation and I just didn't have the same grip anymore”.
Hulkenberg is very seldom that far off Bortoleto in any session, and even as he set his time earlier in the session and Bortoleto managed a session-best final sector, so that time gap is a worry. **\- JB**
### Winner: McLaren (2nd & 4th)
To miss out on pole by less than a tenth is always gut-wrenching, but Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri can at least be pleased that their race-winning pace from Hungary has at least somewhat translated to the first race following the summer break.
For both drivers, it went wrong with the switch to the soft tyre for SQ3.
“It's often the case this year that you put the soft tyre on and it's not quite as nice as the balance you have on the medium”, said Piastri, with Norris acknowledging he left time on the table with the compound switch.
But the positivity even just in discussing a session is clearly much higher than it was even two races ago, and the drivers seem very happy with where they are at generally. **\- JB**
### Winner: Esteban Ocon (15th)
Fifteenth place and an SQ2 exit isn’t much to shout about for a Haas team that is sliding backwards as midfield rivals relentlessly improve, but it *is* good news for Esteban Ocon to out-qualify both Williamses and be two tenths clear of Haas team-mate Ollie Bearman.
It’s no secret that Ocon’s seat is under threat for 2027, so it’s a good time for him to be pumping in this kind of performance.
"It's positive that we're continuing on Budapest, getting the maximum out of the car,” he said. “The car felt quite decent since we put it down, no particular issues, which is what we are looking exactly into.
“We still don't know why sometimes we have issues, but it's good when we don't have them because we can get the maximum out of the potential, and we did that today.
“The first lap was very good, in front of the Audis even. We had a bit more degradation than the others on the second lap, so that's what we need to look at.” **\- BA**
### Russell upstages Antonelli with Dutch GP sprint pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dutch-gp-f1-sprint-qualifying-2026-russell-pole/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T15:31:43.000Z
George Russell claimed his third sprint pole of the season for Mercedes in a Zandvoort Formula 1 sprint qualifying where the top four were split by less than a tenth of a second.
Russell trails team-mate Kimi Antonelli by 50 points, but nailed a 1m11.567s lap here - despite a relatively slow middle sector - as the field switched to soft tyres for the one-lap sprint pole shootout.
“Must be a bit lighter after the engagement ring,” joked Russell, alluding to his recent proposal to his partner.
Lando Norris was the first to set a proper flying lap of the SQ3 runners with the upgraded McLaren that has crinkle-cut louvres on its rear-wing endplate, and McLaren was the only team to have two cars in the top four with Piastri in fourth.
Norris was just 0.041s off Russell, while Charles Leclerc led the Ferrari charge just 0.055s off the Mercedes benchmark.
Kimi Antonelli spun in practice and went off at Turn 12 in SQ1, and could only manage fifth and over two tenths off Russell in the final pole shootout.
Max Verstappen, who was noted but soon cleared by stewards for potentially impeding Lewis Hamilton in SQ1, was sixth and over half a second off the pace, while a snap of oversteer at Turn 1 and a struggle to turn in at Turn 9 hampered Lewis Hamilton in seventh.
The upgraded Alpine propelled Pierre Gasly back to the front of the midfield where it lived for the first part of the season before the upgraded Racing Bulls took over, with Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto actually ahead of the top Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad.
## Lindblad’s statement
The promoted Liam Lawson had staggeringly beaten Verstappen in SQ1, having taken over the injured Isack Hadjar’s Red Bull for this race, but it was a different story in SQ2.
Such is the cut-throat nature of Red Bull’s junior programme, Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad will be absolutely delighted that he relegated Lawson out of SQ2 in the so-called B-team.
“I have no idea what happened,” said Lawson, who appeared to be struggling with understeer, and ended up 11th and the first car out of SQ2.
“Come on, boys, well done!” was Lindblad’s message.
On the plus side, taking the context of being beaten by Lindblad out of it, being just over three tenths off Verstappen in sprint qualifying is a decent result for Lawson's first time in this Red Bull car.
Yuki Tsunoda was three tenths off team-mate Lindblad, despite just getting his first taste of a 2026 car today in place of Lawson for this weekend.
Franco Colapinto suffered as his Alpine team-mate Gasly’s upgraded car sailed into SQ3 while he had to settle for 13th, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg - who perhaps suffered from setting his best lap earlier in the session, eight-tenths off stablemate Bortoleto.
Esteban Ocon and Alex Albon managed 15th and 16th as the top Haas and Williams respectively…
## More Aston woe
Ollie Bearman and Carlos Sainz have both hammered their team-mates in 2026 qualifying, but were both beaten by their partners and out in SQ1 here in Zandvoort, landing in 17th and 18th respectively.
Late improvements from Ocon and Albon helped relegate their respective team-mates in a great start to the post-summer-break season for both.
Aston Martin’s massive step for Hungary was not replicated in Zandvoort - with Lance Stroll 18th and Fernando Alonso dead last complaining of vibrations on the straight, and “not from the tyres, eh?”. His straight mode rear wing setting was also not working.
The Cadillacs, led by new team boss Marcin Budkowski for the first time this weekend, split the Aston Martins, with Valtteri Bottas 20th ahead of Sergio Perez.
1 George Russell (Mercedes) 1m11.567s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.041s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.055s
4 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.099s
5 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.227s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.527s
7 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.624s
8 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.011s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.016s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.170s
11 Liam Lawson (Red Bull)
12 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls)
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
14 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
16 Alex Albon (Williams)
17 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
19 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
21 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
22 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
### F1 2026 Dutch GP sprint qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-gp-sprint-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T15:22:52.000Z
George Russell took pole position for the sprint race at Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix.
Below you'll find the full results from a closely contested sprint qualifying session at Zandvoort.
1. George Russell (Mercedes) 1m11.567s
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.041s
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.055s
4. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.099s
5. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.227s
6. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.527s
7. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.624s
8. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.011s
9. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.016s
10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.170s
11. Liam Lawson (Red Bull) 1m13.136s
12. Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) 1m13.145s
13. Franco Colapinto (Alpine) 1m13.439s
14. Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) 1m13.616s
15. Esteban Ocon (Haas) 1m13.893s
16. Alex Albon (Williams) 1m14.294s
17. Esteban Ocon (Haas) 1m14.728s
18. Carlos Sainz (Williams) 1m14.738s
19. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 1m15.391s
20. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) 1m15.472s
21. Sergio Perez (Cadillac) 1m15.545s
22. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 1m16.014s
### What happened in only Dutch GP F1 2026 practice session
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-only-dutch-gp-f1-2026-practice-session/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T11:46:21.000Z
Kimi Antonelli kicked off the second half of Formula 1’s 2026 season on top, beating Lando Norris’s McLaren to the top spot in practice at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Championship leader Antonelli delivered a 1m12.949s lap in the dying moments of the sole practice session at Zandvoort, his second flying lap on those soft tyres after he was baulked by traffic on his first.
Antonelli also had a harmless spin earlier in the session on the exit of Turn 10 before resuming.
Norris also improved on his second flying lap to end up 0.121s adrift of Antonelli, with George Russell third, 0.125s off his team-mate Antonelli.
The Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were fourth and fifth quickest but within three tenths of the pace.
Oscar Piastri’s McLaren was 0.659s slower than Antonelli’s benchmark in sixth.
Nico Hulkenberg’s Audi led the midfield in seventh on the medium tyres, ahead of Pierre Gasly, who has Alpine’s major upgrade on his car (Franco Colapinto will get it at Monza), and Hulkenberg's Audi team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto.
Arvid Lindblad was 10th for Racing Bulls, ahead of Max Verstappen, fresh from recommitting to Red Bull.
It was a tricky session for Red Bull, with Verstappen struggling with understeer and Liam Lawson trying to get to grips with the RB22 that he only found out he’d be driving for the first time earlier this week.
Lawson ended up 14th, around six tenths adrift of Verstappen, having had a moment at the Turn 11/12 chicane on his final flying lap.
That section also caught out Carlos Sainz’s Williams, which ended up 22nd and last for Williams, having had a couple of off-track moments.
Elsewhere, the new Honda engine upgrade racked up decent mileage (49 laps) and powered Alonso to the 12th fastest time, 1.5s off the pace.
And Yuki Tsunoda was 17th in his first F1 session for Racing Bulls, eight months on from losing his Red Bull drive at the end of last year.
### F1 2026 Dutch Grand Prix practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-dutch-grand-prix-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-22T14:26:08.000Z
F1 is back from the summer break and on track again at Zandvoort.
There's been plenty of upgrades, but only a single practice to get into the right window before sprint qualifying on Friday afternoon.
### FP1 result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m12.949s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.121s
3 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.125s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.190s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.289s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.659s
7 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.835s
8 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.962s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.043s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.336s
11 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +1.376s
12 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.562s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.877s
14 Liam Lawson (Red Bull) +1.912s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.925s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.948s
17 Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) +2.161s
18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.250s
19 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.408s
20 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.631s
21 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.751s
22 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +3.396s
### Crinkled McLaren rear wing among Dutch GP F1 upgrades
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/crinkled-mclaren-rear-wing-among-dutch-gp-f1-upgrades/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T12:28:44.000Z
McLaren’s latest rear wing upgrade raised some eyebrows ahead of Formula 1's Dutch Grand Prix thanks to a striking endplate solution.
The second part of a development package that first arrived in Hungary has included a new rear wing, revised central bodywork and tweaked rear brake ducts.
All three areas are aimed at manipulating the airflow better at the rear of the car for improved downforce, but it is the wing solution that has taken things to a new level.
The rippled endplate features multiple swage lines and is a step beyond what McLaren has run so far this season.
The idea of the ripples is to help better control the airflow coming off the rear tyre and the impact it then has on the vortex at the tip of the wing.
The trend for such swage lines on the rear wing endplates was started in 2023, with Alpine and Aston Martin bringing solutions simultaneously to the Monaco Grand Prix before other teams copied it.
McLaren’s latest concept pushes the boundaries more than before in an area of the car that is quite heavily restricted by regulations that limit endplate thickness.
So, designs like McLaren's have to be quite intricate but also structurally robust enough to withstand the high aerodynamic forces that rear wings are exposed to.
### Gary Anderson says...
It's interesting to see the extent of turning vanes that McLaren have added to the outer surface of the rear wing end plates.
These vanes help the airflow that is coming off the turning vanes on the rear brake ducts, which in turn helps the performance of the diffuser.
Getting that complete rear end to work as one is critical to the overall performance of the car aerodynamically.
### Aston Martin tweaks front wing
Aston Martin has made adjustments to the new front wing concept that it brought to the Hungarian Grand Prix.
There is a reduced chord to the final outboard elements as well as an upgraded inboard foot.
The team also has the option of fitting a new front wing flap to help give it a wider range of options to balance the car should it be needed.
Aston Martin has also introduced revised floor fences and a modification to its diffuser winglet.
### Ferrari tweaks floor
Ferrari has also introduced some floor upgrades to its car that are aimed at increasing downforce across all speed ranges thanks to a more energised flow to a tweaked rear diffuser.
The revisions include an updated board brace layout and vane arrangement and they work in conjunction with the changed diffuser and altered beam wing.
### Alpine's upgrade debuts on Gasly's car
Alpine’s major upgrade has appeared on Pierre Gasly’s car at Zandvoort, with team-mate Franco Colapinto due to get it for the next race in Italy.
The changes focus on the floor area, with a new floor body, reprofiled floor boards, a tweaked floor edge and a reprofiled diffuser.
All the tweaks, which are boosted by new sidepod bodywork and a new rear brake drum design, are aimed at increasing downforce and improving flow quality.
The squad has struggled with a high-speed imbalance problem this season.
Colapinto's older-spec Alpine was on display during the show-and-tell session, meaning we're yet to get a detailed look at the upgrades.
### What's next for F1's driver market after Verstappen's new deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-next-for-f1s-driver-market-after-verstappens-new-deal/
Last updated: 2026-08-21T08:42:30.000Z
A big piece of the Formula 1 driver market has fallen into place with [Max Verstappen's recommitment to Red Bull](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-max-verstappen-suddenly-committed-red-bull-f1-2030/) until the end of 2030\.
It's all but ruled out any major changes among F1 2026's top four teams for next year, but there are still some interesting lingering driver market questions.
Here are the major outstanding issues to resolve now that Verstappen's decided *not* to make a bombshell departure.
## Red Bull’s in-house choice is now more complex
Now that Verstappen’s place is certain for ‘27, Red Bull can turn its attention to the other three seats in its stable. Isack Hadjar is on course to remain, but there is the possibility that the combination of his injury and Liam Lawson’s stand-in outing(s) could change that.
However, the Racing Bulls line-up is more likely to change. Nikola Tsolov’s championship-leading performances in Formula 2 mean he’s closing on promotion as Red Bull’s next cab off the rank, which could create a problem.
Red Bull will want to keep Arvid Lindblad in F1 after his strong rookie season, but Lawson’s performances in the other Racing Bulls car means he’s doing exactly the job the team needs him to.
This means that, when it comes to deciding on its B-team’s 2027 line-up, Red Bull will likely have to decide if it wants to accelerate the progress of Tsolov, or stick with a driver line-up that has served it well this year. - **Edd Straw**
## Alonso has deferred his own big decision
Fernando Alonso had appeared at one point to be one of the key players in the driver market.
If he'd decided this was going to be his last season competing, then it could have left – even though Aston Martin is having a difficult 2026 season – a potentially interesting seat open for 2027.
But despite having spoken openly before the summer break of using August to make a call on whether or not he wanted to continue, Alonso has returned from his holidays kicking the can down the road a little bit.
He said he still needed things to be sorted in his own head about whether the competitive drive was still there for him to carry on – even though he says there is no doubt he will be competing somewhere, whether that is F1, Dakar or the Indy 500.
But he also intriguingly suggested that any movement on getting his fresh contract sorted would rest on what team owner Lawrence Stroll and team boss Adrian Newey wanted – and he had not had the chance to see them over the break.
An opportunity for a chat with either would only come at an F1 race or during his next visit to the Silverstone factory.
“Sitting with Lawrence and Adrian, if the need for the team is for me to drive, I will consider,” he said.
“I will be happy if I can be more valuable in another position, I will consider and I will be happy as well.”
On one hand Alonso’s comments suggest that there is some uncertainty – from both himself and the team about what goes on next.
But the reality is probably more that the main ambiguity that needs clearing up is how competitive Aston Martin can be in 2027.
If next season starts like this year did, you could easily see Alonso thinking that he could do without the commitment of going all in and racing again.
But if Honda’s upgrade this weekend shows the promise that has been teased from the dynos and the Hungary filming day, and Aston Martin can unleash further improvements from its B-spec chassis, then expect a tad more enthusiasm to get that deal over the line.
By the time Alonso gets to see Stroll Sr properly, most likely at the Silverstone factory, Zandvoort will be in the bag and the picture of Aston Martin’s potential will be clearer.
And there is also no huge rush to get a deal over the line as other potential big-name candidates – like Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz – linked with the seat over recent months have all locked themselves down elsewhere.
In the end, the direction of travel points towards another contract extension for Alonso. - **Jon Noble**
## What about Alonso's old team?
Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore had cheekily suggested a few months ago that he would hold fire on making a call on who Pierre Gasly’s team-mate in 2027 would be until he knew what Mercedes was doing with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
The opportunity to exploit any explosive fall out at the German manufacturer and grab on the Silver Arrows pair was too good a one to miss - even if it was very remote.
But with that door pretty much shut now, it means incumbent Franco Colapinto is increasingly likely to get a contract extension so long as he continues doing what he's doing right now.
The Argentine had a shaky start to life at Alpine last year, as he struggled to meet the high expectations placed on his shoulders and endured his fair share of frustrations early on.
But a stronger end to 2025, and with momentum having carried through into this year, has pointed to him doing everything he needs to stay.
Colapinto himself talks of being “happier than last year” and feeling more comfortable in the team – but well knows that Briatore is a hard taskmaster who will demand even more from him.
But based on where Alpine is in the pecking order, and that sorting out its car and team infrastructure right now is the main priority, Colapinto’s progress is in line with what is needed for him to keep his seat.
Briatore told The Race recently that Colapinto was “from last year to this year, improving 100%,” but wanted to see that development continue.
So if Colapinto keeps going like now, there is every reason to believe that deal will get across the line.
He may just have to wait a little bit for things to be settled though - as Briatore likes nothing more than keeping his drivers hungry. - **JN**
## Sharks are circling for Ocon's Haas seat
Esteban Ocon has an option in his Haas contract for 2026, but for some time he’s been drifting towards the exit door with multiple potential alternatives.
However, he’s still in the mix, especially after an improved performance before the August break.
The trouble is that there are many other options for Haas, which is taking a patient approach to deciding who should be team-mate to Ollie Bearman, who is under option for 2027\.
An agreement exists to take Formula 2 championship leader Leonardo Fornaroli on loan from McLaren should Haas want to, and he made a positive impression when testing a 2025 Haas at Jerez earlier this year.
Current F2 frontrunner Rafael Camara will also drive the ‘25 car soon and is also in the mix. Ferrari, which has him under contract, is pushing for Camara to get the place.
However, it’s important to note that Ferrari has no direct control over the seat.
Toyota-contracted Ryo Hirakawa and reserve driver Jack Doohan are also on the teams books and should not be ruled out. - **ES**
### Everything we learned from day one at F1's Dutch GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-day-one-at-f1-dutch-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T16:55:48.000Z
F1 is back from the summer break with a bang.
Today was the first chance to hear from drivers who made big statements like Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz, ones who haven't, like Fernando Alonso, new team bosses and teams which needed to use the summer break to capitalise and improve.
Luckily, our team on the ground in Zandvoort and back at base were on hand to sift through Thursday's media day to bring you the most important nuggets.
### Verstappen was closer to retiring than joining rivals
Max Verstappen extending his stay at Red Bull until the end of 2030 was the biggest news from Thursday at Zandvoort.
It’s a big win for Red Bull and evidence that Verstappen really does want to end his F1 career with the team.
Rumours of his management talking with McLaren and other rivals were real, but Red Bull’s clearly managed to convince Verstappen that there’s no need to look elsewhere.
And perhaps even more importantly, Verstappen feels F1’s regulations are slowly getting there, so he basically put up with the flaws in them.
“The rules are slowly getting a bit better and I'm willing to live with it,” Verstappen said.
“And hopefully, by 2030 it opens up another opportunity, potentially with V8 engines coming in, to look again.”
Those V8 engines are currently set for 2031, so, having previously considered walking away completely, Verstappen’s now even started talking about his F1 career further into the 2030s…**\- Josh Suttill**
### Alonso can't thank his 'lucky' stars
Fernando Alonso had been definitive before the summer break that his ‘plan’ was to decide on his future in Formula 1 during the holidays.
In fact, at the British Grand Prix, he suggested that a potential epiphany moment could come during the annual Perseids meteor shower in the middle of August.
But as he returned to the F1 paddock in Zandvoort on Thursday, it became clear that the night sky had not given Alonso his answer.
Instead, he seemed unsure about what he wanted in his own head, and whether or not team owner Lawrence Stroll or boss Adrian Newey would even want him to continue driving or move into a team management role.
“Sitting with Lawrence and Adrian, if the need for the team is for me to drive, I will consider,” he said.
“I will be happy if I can be more valuable in another position, I will consider and I will be happy as well.”
While teasing the idea of definitely racing something else next year – whether it was F1, the Dakar Rally or the Indy 500 – Alonso seemed to suggest that things were out of his hands.
“I think it's more a team need, more than myself,” he said. “I'm happy to be here, I'm here to help Aston as well. I feel fast, I feel motivated. Let's see what happens.”
For someone as insanely competitive as Alonso and eager to keep racing, the relaxed approach was slightly unexpected, but the Spaniard is also a smart cookie.
By the time he gets around to chat with Stroll and Newey over the next few weeks, both parties will have more knowledge about whether or not Honda has turned the corner on its early 2026 struggles, so will be more qualified to judge what 2027 could really look like.
The answer to that matters much more to Alonso's future than any shooting star. **\- Jon Noble**
### ‘Cascade’ to blame for Cadillac brake troubles
Marcin Budkowski spent three “long” days at Cadillac’s Silverstone base before flying to Zandvoort late last night, his first look at it since being appointed team principal.
He talked positively about how well-equipped it is, but looking at the team up close, he suggested that “there’s potentially some reprioritisation to be done in terms of what’s important”.
While he wasn’t precise in terms of what that meant, he pointed to the brake overheating problems that have dogged the team as an area to be addressed.
“There’s been some mistakes made in terms of design and materials that will be addressed,” said Budkowski.
“It's an unlucky chain of events in a way because the brake failures - I don't want to go into details, but they're not a single source of failure, there's a cascade of different things.
“It's one of these situations when you fix one thing and something else goes wrong and you learn as you do it.”
When asked by The Race whether the brake problems were aerodynamic or mechanical in terms of the brake cooling problems, described it as “a little bit of both”. Crucially, while accepting the cooling airflow is inadequate, he also revealed “some of the sealings and stuff has been unreliable”.
Improving the build and assembly quality is therefore likely to be one of the areas Budkowski will attempt to address, although he says “I’m focused everywhere at the moment”. **\- Edd Straw**
### Tsunoda feels ready thanks to extensive TPC running
Yuki Tsunoda says he feels physically and mentally “sharp” ahead of his unexpected return to F1 with Racing Bulls at Zandvoort, thanks mainly to extensive TPC running with Red Bull this year that allowed him to cover “five race distances”.
“Physically and in terms of my mind, I think it's sharp enough,” he said. “I was training for almost every day for a long time. I had a lot of time to train because I didn't have anything to do other than that.
“Also, I've done four TPCs and within that I was doing five race distances. Feeling sharp. I had a good experience and good laps in those TPCs. All I just need to do is to get used to this car.”
Tsunoda’s job there will be more difficult than on a conventional F1 weekend, as he only has a single practice session to familiarise himself, on top of a single simulator session he completed with Racing Bulls yesterday (Wednesday), after getting the call up to race on Tuesday, while he was relaxing on a beach in Greece.
He feels the similarities in steering wheel and button configurations between the two Red Bull teams, plus how similar those things are compared to last year when he was racing for Red Bull, should aid that process of assimilation and make it “a pretty smooth transition”, but nevertheless the lack of track time means Tsunoda is “not setting any expectations”.
“For now, I just enjoy and have fun, which I wanted to have for a long time.” **\- Ben Anderson**
### More power - but that's not enough
After Aston Martin’s Hungary upgrade delivered its promised step forward, engine partner Honda knows that all eyes are on the contribution its upgraded power unit will bring at Zandvoort this weekend.
But the Japanese manufacturer is playing things very close to its chest when it comes to being definitive about what kind of step it is anticipating.
So much so in fact that Honda chief engineer Shintaro Orihara jokingly held up a sign at his regular media event on Thursday saying: “Ask me anything…except the kW (Kilowatt) and laptime.”
> 😅 A few laughs in the Honda media session earlier [pic.twitter.com/MPBmwx0gJq](https://t.co/MPBmwx0gJq?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — The Race (@wearetherace) [August 20, 2026](https://x.com/wearetherace/status/2090369553372954727?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
Orihara was eager to point out that in F1 there is no such thing as a ‘magic’ update and Honda needed to be ‘realistic’ about what could be expected the first time out.
What seems certain is that there is more power, with Lance Stroll having noted progress when he tried it out during the post-Hungary filming day.
But it came with a firm caveat that more power alone is not enough in the world on F1.
“I think it was better on power. There were still some things to tune in, drivability and all that," said Stroll.
“Hopefully we get more on top of that this week and we just go faster with it. We just need more power.”
Driveability is something that Honda singled out as a factor that will need fine-tuning as it starts unleashing the engine in anger for the first time.
Orihara said: “We have got a significant difference in the combustion characteristic, and driveability is also affected by changing the combustion characteristic. So we need to optimise driveability with this engine.”
This is something that may not be mastered in the single practice session that takes place before sprint qualifying gets underway, so the message is not to expect dramatic progress from Aston Martin-Honda straight away. **\- JN**
### Sainz didn’t want to abandon Williams
There was a lack of massively alluring alternative options, but Carlos Sainz says his new multi-year deal with Williams is partly about not wanting to abandon the team at the first sign of trouble.
“I don't think it's part of my character to jump ship when this situation is at its worst,” Sainz said.
“I told everyone how committed I am to this project two years ago, how excited I was about it, and the first time there is a bump on the road, a big bump, probably bigger than anyone could have imagined after the podiums of last year, I don't think it's part of my way of being my character to jump ship at the first possible opportunity.
“In the back of my head I wanted to always renew, but I was obviously worried \[and\] concerned that we need to make sure this doesn't happen again.
“I obviously had to go back to everyone and understand where we are, where we're planning to go and how it has this affected our plans?”
Sainz said he “didn't fully go into considering” other options because his main focus was keeping faith with Williams.
There wasn’t going to be an opportunity within one of the top four teams for Sainz, so he judged it better to stick with Williams, having bought into what it can deliver in the medium to long term future.
Even if Sainz admits its objective of returning to the front has clearly been “delayed” by its woeful start to this new regulation cycle. **\- JS**
### Alpine's Zandvoort upgrade is only on one car
Much is riding on Alpine's upgrade to elevate it back into the fight with Racing Bulls for best-of-the-rest status week-in, week-out, and both Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto spoke confidently on Thursday about the step it should offer.
But only Gasly will have use of it, to begin with at least, at Zandvoort.
There's been some mixed messaging, because this is now being described, timeline-wise, as a development that's been brought forward from an originally planned Monza debut - yet both drivers spoke after the Hungaroring round before the summer break with an expectation they would have the package in the Netherlands.
But it does appear that will just apply to one car now; Gasly said the plan is to run the parts exclusively on his A526 - in FP1, before sprint qualifying - and added: "I think we might have some spare coming just before the race."
So for the time being, it looks like Colapinto will be waiting to get his hands on a package that he described as "very powerful" on the simulator. **\- Jack Cozens**
### Perez wants long-term future at Cadillac
There appears to be a driver market theme of staying put right now.
Sergio Perez being the more impressive of the returning Cadillac drivers could have made him a contender to switch teams, but he appeared to indicate at Zandvoort that his long-term future lies with Cadillac.
“From my side, it was already clear when I came here. It was a two-year deal,” Perez said.
“But obviously I want this. I see this as my project and I want to be part of Cadillac for the long term, because when you start something from scratch it requires a lot of time.
“I'm really happy here and I look forward to continuing for the long term here. I think there will be some discussions later on and we'll see what happens.” **\- JS**
### Bearman laments Haas’ regression to its former self
Recent chatter around Haas has focused around ongoing parts inconsistencies between the two cars, as well as the same car not performing correctly between rebuilds.
It’s something Esteban Ocon has been banging on about for ages, and team-mate Ollie Bearman has recently joined that chorus - but at Zandvoort he also called out Haas for its sudden regression during 2026 to something that is more like the Haas of old when it comes to an overall weak rate of car development.
“We started off incredibly strong. We had a really, really good first few races where the car was quick, performing well, and we were really happy,” Bearman said.
“But then, step by step, others caught up, others overtook, and now they've left us totally behind.
“At the start of the year, we were quicker than \[Racing Bulls\]. I remember overtaking both of them in the race in Australia and driving away, and we wouldn't dream of doing that these days.
“2025 was really the first year for us, or one of very few years, where we seemed to have good pace throughout the year. We actually improved our relative performance as the year went on, and now 2026 is kind of more of what we've seen from us in the past, of starting incredibly strong with a really quick car as a base, but not being able to improve like the others have.
“Quite frankly, we've been overtaken. Right now, we are the 10th best team. It really hurts, but that's the reality of where we are right now.”
Bearman says Haas would only now beat Aston Martin on power tracks, like Monza, and feels the relative lack of human and financial resources at Haas’s disposal is really holding it back during a season where the rate of upgrades, as well as the amount of performance those upgrades can potentially give you, is so relentless.
“The fact is we can't bring as many upgrades as the others,” he added. “When we do upgrade the car, it's competitive and it works, but when the rate of change is so fast, like at the start of a new set of regulations, we can't keep up.
“The way that we started shows that we understand the platform of the car very well, and we know how to make a fast car, but we don't have the resource to continually upgrade the car.
“Last year, we probably didn't get found out because it's the last year of a very mature set of regulations. Now we come to 2026, where everyone's updating the car.
“These guys opposite us are bringing a different car every three races. It's insane. Did you see the Red Bull from Japan to Miami? It was a different car. We couldn't dream of doing that, ever.
“Ferrari, the way that Ferrari is developing the car is incredible. We can't do that.” **\- BA**
### Ex-US ambassador takes stake in Aston Martin F1 team
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/ex-us-ambassador-takes-stake-in-aston-martin-f1-team/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T15:57:27.000Z
Former US ambassador to the United Kingdom Robert Wood Johnson has acquired a minority stake in the Aston Martin Formula 1 Team.
Johnson is owner and chairman of the NFL’s New York Jets and was the US ambassador to the UK from 2017 to 2021, during Donald Trump’s first Presidential term.
The businessman is an heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical empire. He also owns a 43% stake in Crystal Palace football club.
Johnson’s purchase of the Aston Martin stake is purely commercial, with Aston Martin having stated that he will “not undertake any day-to-day management duties” as Lawrence Stroll still manages and controls Aston Martin.
The NFL owner’s stake has not been disclosed.
“During my time as US ambassador to the United Kingdom, I have developed a deep appreciation for Aston Martin’s rich history, as well as Lawrence Stroll’s strategic vision and entrepreneurial spirit,” he said.
“I am excited to partner with him and contribute to the continued development of the team, with the ambition of building an organisation capable of competing at the very highest level of the sport. We also share a commitment to growing the fanbase in the United States and introducing even more fans to the excitement of Formula 1.”
Aston Martin’s executive chairman Stroll said that Johnson’s “experience, passion and investment further strengthen our position as we enter the next phase of our competitive journey.
“His deep appreciation for our brand, combined with his commitment to innovation and commercial opportunity, makes him an ideal partner as we look to the future.”
The Aston Martin F1 Team is owned and operated by AMR GP, a private company in which Arctos Partners and Adrian Newey are minority shareholders. Lawrence Stroll’s Yew Tree Consortium owns the controlling stake in AMR GP.
### Why Verstappen has suddenly committed to Red Bull until 2030
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-max-verstappen-suddenly-committed-red-bull-f1-2030/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T13:37:46.000Z
After months (well, years) of speculation, genuine talks with other teams, and considerations of walking away, Max Verstappen has [recommitted to Red Bull](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/) and Formula 1 with a deal that lasts until 2030.
That will easily make Verstappen-Red Bull the longest team-driver partnership in F1 history, overtaking Lewis Hamilton-Mercedes and setting a benchmark beyond that, which will be tough for anyone to beat.
So why has Verstappen chosen now to recommit with an additional two years to his existing contract?
What Red Bull's been able to convince Verstappen of is part of the picture. Staying at Red Bull has always been Verstappen's preferred option, but it had to give him enough reasons to do so - particularly in this new post-Christian Horner era of Red Bull.
Verstappen explained of team principal Laurent Mekies' arrival: "From the start, the relationship has been really, really good, very open and transparent. That's why I think also from my side to make up my mind was just about exactly that: about the future, some strategic decisions as well within the team.
"For me, it feels absolutely right to continue here. And I always said, and I said this when Dietrich \[Mateschitz, Red Bull co-founder\] was still alive, I said, my goal and target is to finish my career in this team. We're getting closer to that. There's still a lot of years ahead, but that's still the target.
"That's why I'm very proud to extend and, of course, try to get back to the top. We have tasted a lot of being on top. That's why I think you are very hungry to try and get there again."
Mekies referred to those "strategic decisions" as one of the three pillars needed to restart Red Bull's winning cycle.
"If one thinks to what are the pillars you need to have in order to open that winning cycle again, well, certainly the driver's side is done now," Mekies said.
"We have been saying many, many times that we trust we have the best talents in Milton Keynes, and that's the second pillar.
"Certainly, the third pillar is the number of strategic decisions that have been made that we trust will give us a competitive advantage - I'm referring to many, many of the fun stuff we have in Milton Keynes with the \[new\] windtunnel and a few other secrets."
For Red Bull, key to that second pillar was retaining Verstappen too, Mekies added: "When you are able to say that the fastest driver in the world, more than the drivers, for the team he is with us, it's a massive stability element. It's a massive ambition element."
Verstappen staying at Red Bull is key to it attracting personnel, particularly when it's lost so many big names in the last few years.
## Rules improvements
Verstappen has been the most vocal critic of the 2026 regulations since their introduction - and that was a huge part of his uncertainty about whether he wanted to stay in F1, let alone with Red Bull.
"I have to say, after the first few races, I said to Laurent, don't come to me with any kind of questions about the future, because I don't even know if I want to stay," Verstappen said, when asked by The Race whether he was properly questioning whether he wanted to stay in F1.
"But honestly, we always kept it very open. I love racing. And I think I had a lot of very good discussions with F1, but also with the FIA. And I think we are slowly working towards something that becomes better and better.
"So also from my side, I adapted. I accept the situation that I think we're all in and \[I'm\] just trying to make the best of that.
"Also with the year that I signed to \[2030\], it again opens up the door, maybe, when potentially the V8s come in to look at that again as well."
Verstappen said "he can live with" the rules for now after the in-season rule changes the FIA has made and the planned 2027 and 2028 shift that will bring the current notional 50-50 split (53-47 in reality) between internal combustion engine and battery power to 60-40 eventually.
And with V8s planned for 2031 - a move Verstappen supports - it does open up the prospect of Verstappen remaining beyond the new deal to race those cars too.
## Closer to retiring than switching teams
Verstappen's management team did hold genuine talks with other teams - McLaren and Mercedes at the very least - over the past year, but he claimed he was closer to retiring than a move elsewhere.
"I never felt that desire or need also to change just to change, to another team, to try and win somewhere else," Verstappen said.
"If I feel well within the team here, why should I? Because I know that they do everything for me, and they know that I do everything for them once I'm on the track and trying to get the results."
He added: "I think I was closer to retiring than changing teams."
## More freedom (and money)
Verstappen had huge leverage when negotiating with Red Bull, something talks with other teams will have enhanced.
While neither Red Bull nor Verstappen will reveal exact figures, the renegotiation has almost certainly helped the four-time world champion’s bank balance.
Reports in the lead up to the announcement of Verstappen's previous commitment, agreed in 2022 and running through to 2028, suggested that could be worth [€50million a year](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-finalises-deal-worth-up-to-e50m-a-year-report/).
And also, importantly, Verstappen's been able to retain the freedom of Red Bull allowing him to race in other categories, like with his Nurburgring exploits over the last 12 months.
"Red Bull allows me to do things also a little bit outside of Formula 1, so it's like a big plus, all of it, the whole package - which I'm very grateful for," Verstappen said.
So Verstappen's extracurricular activities can continue - with all of the world's best endurance races on the table - but the bigger question will be whether the jam-packed F1 calendars will allow it.
## Will he really stay until 2030?
The announced deal will last until 2030, but there's not a cast-iron 100% guarantee Verstappen will stay until that year - even if he's expressed interest in the potential arrival of a V8 engine formula from that year.
Every contract has exit clauses - including Verstappen's previous agreement - and there's no reason to suspect this new one will be any different.
Red Bull will still have to deliver on the promises it made and ensure the "strategic decisions" that the team's convinced Verstappen with are properly implemented and bear fruit.
Mekies acknowledged this, saying: "With that trust comes a huge amount of responsibility in living up to being able to give him the best package for the years to come."
For as long as he is F1's benchmark driver, Verstappen will continue to have immense power and influence in the driver market. Verstappen pondering his future has, and will continue to, have the ability to put the whole rest of the driver market on pause.
But this new announcement is further evidence that Verstappen really does want to end his F1 career with Red Bull, whenever that will be.
It's just all about Red Bull giving him enough reasons to stay and, for now, it has done just that.
### Zarco returns early after one of MotoGP 2026's worst crashes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/zarco-returns-early-after-one-of-motogp-2026s-worst-crashes/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T12:29:47.000Z
LCR Honda racer Johann Zarco will make an earlier-than-anticipated MotoGP return at next weekend’s Aragon Grand Prix.
He finally jumps back onto a race bike for the first time since suffering major knee injuries in a Turn 1 pile-up at the Catalan Grand Prix in mid-May.
The French racer tangled with Pecco Bagnaia in the red flagged and restarted race at Montmelo, getting trapped between the seat and rear wheel of the Italian's factory Ducati as they started the race for the second time following the high speed collision between Alex Marquez and Pedro Acosta's malfunctioning KTM.
Tearing his medial collateral and anterior cruciate ligaments as he was thrown through the gravel attached to the bike, he escaped with only damage to his posterior cruciate ligament, leading his doctors to proscribe a non-surgical return to fitness.
They believed he would be able to ride a MotoGP bike again before the end of the 2026 season. And, with Zarco making strong progress in recent weeks, that target was originally set for the San Marino Grand Prix next month when his LCR team last updated on the 36-year-old’s progress in early July.
However, with Zarco finally able to return to riding in recent days, first on supermoto machinery and then on a Honda Fireblade, he’s now been passed fit by his doctors to jump back into MotoGP two weeks earlier than planned.
"Zarco’s recovery has continued to improve in recent weeks," said his team in a statement, “allowing him to bring forward his return to racing.
"He has gradually increased his workload, riding both a supermoto and a Honda CBR1000RR as part of his rehabilitation.
"Having made steady progress and received clearance from his medical team to resume racing, Zarco will travel to Aragon with the aim of returning to competition, subject to passing the mandatory medical assessment at the circuit."
Zarco, who will have to serve a [double long-lap penalty](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/johann-zarco-given-penalty-for-his-eventual-motogp-return/) for his role in the crash which injured him, said he is "pretty happy with how the knee is progressing and recovering".
He added: "I feel good enough to jump back on the MotoGP bike, and I'm really looking forward to getting back to racing.
"The Supermoto and CBR have been great for building up the intensity and doing long runs. I've really missed my team, racing and the paddock, so I can't wait to be back in Aragon!"
The news means yet another end to British racer Cal Crutchlow’s time in MotoGP, after the former LCR racer stepped in for the past six rounds to replace Zarco, including the chance to race in front of his home crowd once again, last time out at Silverstone.
### Cadillac F1 team owner issues firm statement over sale talk
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/cadillac-f1-owner-twg-firm-statement-team-sale-talk/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T11:38:35.000Z
The Cadillac Formula 1 team is not being considered for sale, according to the TWG Global group that owns it, amid a US federal investigation into billionaire Mark Walter.
Four intermediary companies within Walter's business empire are [subject to investigations in the United States](https://www.the-race.com/business/mark-walter-la-lakers-sale-what-it-could-mean-for-cadillac-f1-team/) over alleged undisclosed loans between his own companies.
Walter made headlines recently as he instigated the sale of his stake in the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team just 14 months after purchasing it. That led to speculation over the future of other sporting entities in which he owns a stake, which include Chelsea Football Club, the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, and the motorsport teams under his TWG Motorsports investment umbrella.
Those motorsport teams include the Cadillac F1 team and the Andretti Global IndyCar and Formula E teams.
In a statement issued ahead of the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix, TWG Motorsports said: "TWG is not considering a sale of the Cadillac team or any other part of TWG Motorsport."
In a circumstantial move, the team last week ousted Graeme Lowdon and replaced him with new team principal Marcin Budkowski.
On replacing Lowdon, Budkowski said: "There's been a change of leadership at the head of the team, it's been a decision made by the top leadership and the owners and the shareholders of the team. I'm honoured to have been picked to lead that following phase.
"As I said and I will repeat it, I have immense respect and admiration for what's been achieved so far by Graeme for building this team from the ground up, recruiting these people and actually showing up and racing with the level of competitiveness that I think is reasonable for a new team."
The federal investigations have not brought a charge and do not implicate Bradford Allen - the intermediary company that is developing Cadillac F1's Indiana headquarters alongside Andretti Global's IndyCar facilities - in any wrongdoing, nor has Cadillac F1 team been implicated in any way.
Regarding the Walter investigation, Budkowski said, "there was absolutely no discussion about that, there's no doubt for me that there's no influence there".
"Again, the new factory, my appointment, there's key personnel that hopefully we will be able to announce soon as well."
"I think it just shows the commitment and the investment behind the project."
TWG Motorsports CEO Dan Towriss is not present at Zandvoort for the Dutch GP, instead attending the IndyCar 250 race in Washington, DC, this weekend.
### Our verdict on Verstappen committing to Red Bull after all
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-new-f1-contract-2030-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T09:30:31.000Z
Max Verstappen will remain a Red Bull Formula 1 driver through until the end of 2030 if he sees out his [new extension to a deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/) that he'd previously said might be his last.
A lot has changed in the four years since he made that statement, but this is nevertheless a surprise amid the regular links Verstappen has had to a move elsewhere for much of the past 18 months, and an overt dislike for the latest F1 ruleset that even prompted him to consider publicly whether he would race elsewhere.
How big a coup is this for Red Bull and F1? Was Red Bull ever the problem? And what does it mean for the driver market?
Here are our immediate thoughts:
## Rules - not Red Bull - were always Verstappen's main gripe
**Jon Noble**
It was always the rules, not on-track performance, that produced the biggest risk to Red Bull of losing Max Verstappen.
While there will be a sense of relief within the corridors of its Milton Keynes factory that Verstappen is now committed for the long term, it would be wrong to say that such an outcome was guaranteed when the season kicked off.
In fact, insiders suggest that Verstappen's open angst about the 2026 regulations, and the loss of pure racing, meant the danger was real in making him throw the towel in and going to get his fun elsewhere if things did not improve.
So while Red Bull knows there is work to do to make its chassis better, and improve it overall power unit (beyond the internal combustion engine), the catalyst that put things back in its hands to get Verstappen locked down was F1 accepting that F1's 50/50 power split era wasn't a success.
The changes introduced for this year have been a pigeon step, and next year's shift will not be a revolution, but in Verstappen's head the timeframe of 2028 - where F1's 60/40 plan should come into force - is one of perfect alignment.
By then his team will have had plenty of time to push itself forward, and that means Verstappen can set sights on getting enjoyment from winning - and more importantly racing - once again.
## Don't underestimate how big a deal this is for Red Bull
**Jack Cozens**
Yes, the immediate options elsewhere for 2027 might have dried up, and the hints of a full season of sportscar racing have quietened in recent months, just as the bigger complaints about the 2026 regulations have too.
But don't think for a second this isn't a big deal for Red Bull.
It effectively admitted as much with the wording of its announcement. Red Bull said it was "immensely proud" to confirm that Verstappen was continuing, talking up the achievements that have made this "one of the most successful and defining partnerships in F1 history".
But this is about more than looking back: "It is a powerful statement of mutual trust and ambition - and a shared decision to shape the future together."
Hyperbolic or not, this is the statement that Red Bull will have wanted, and perhaps needed, to make amid perceptions of a brain drain and those closest to Verstappen in the camp departing.
And it's the biggest vindication yet of Red Bull 2.0 under stewardship of Mekies, who said the decision was "rooted in the trust Max and the team have built over many years, as well as Max’s confidence in our people, our culture and our vision for the future".
No qualms about a bit of indulgent wording here. Because yes, you'd be pretty proud too if you'd managed to get the driver who remains the benchmark generational talent to commit to extending a deal that four years ago he said [might be his last](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappens-hints-that-current-red-bull-deal-may-be-his-last/), right?
## Shame for the driver market
**Matt Beer**
What a massive achievement for Red Bull to tie Verstappen down through to the end of a decade in the middle of a year when it's looked further from the top than at any time since he started winning titles, and in which F1 seemed to be frustrating him more than ever.
If he and Red Bull, plus its in-house engine, can recover championship-winning form together, that will be a great narrative and an achievement on a par with toppling Mercedes in the first place. The story of Verstappen plus Red Bull deserves to end on a high.
But seeing him adapting to and winning at another team, seeing how a different elite driver would fare at Red Bull, watching all the driver market dominoes scatter around a big Verstappen move to Mercedes, McLaren, Aston Martin or anywhere...there would've been a lot of storylines there that I'd have enjoyed seeing play out even more.
## Glad he's staying
**Gary Anderson**
I think we all knew that this would be the outcome of all his rants. F1 needs to rectify this stupid set of regulations where the car is more important than the driver, that’s not only for Verstappen but all the drivers, basically for everyone.
But the bigger question is, where else could he go that:
A, were in a position to give him a seat.
B, where he could be a clear number one.
C, where he had the respect to lead the team in his direction.
D, where he could have fun getting involved in his other hobbies.
E, where he could get paid the amount he does.
Red Bull need him because he is one of the best at dragging a result out of a reluctant car, if it can give him better equipment then more championships are just around the corner.
I’m glad he is staying at Red Bull, I want to see Verstappen head-to-head with some of the up and coming talent that is around; wheel-to-wheel battling between him and Kimi Antonelli would make an entertaining afternoon, bring it on!
### Winners and losers from Verstappen's big new Red Bull F1 deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-verstappens-big-new-red-bull-f1-deal/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T08:26:29.000Z
A new deal between Max Verstappen and Red Bull, coming after well over a year of intrigue about Verstappen's future, has immediately reshaped the landscape of Formula 1's driver market - despite seemingly maintaining the status quo.
Here is our view of who the winners and losers are from this major piece of news.
## Winner: Red Bull
Obviously no financial terms will be disclosed, but we can safely make the assumption that this will cost Red Bull the full GDP of a small Oceanian nation - and will presumably come with extra allowances for Verstappen in terms of exploring non-F1 racing activities.
But...like, whatever! In one fell swoop Red Bull has gone from a limping F1 giant to a limping F1 giant that doesn't have to worry about losing its greatest asset - who doubles as probably the greatest asset any F1 team up and down the grid has.
Rumours will re-fire in some capacity if the 2027 car is particularly bad, but this is a huge victory for Red Bull - and a reaffirmation of its status as one of F1's top dogs for years to come.
## Losers: Carlos Sainz, Oscar Piastri and other 'dreamers'
It's probably no coincidence that Sainz's new Williams deal - which now really feels like a 'might as well' - was announced the day before a Verstappen extension.
Would Sainz have been a lead candidate to replace Verstappen at Red Bull? Likely not. But any driver market movement will have been good for his chances to returning to the top half of the grid - and Verstappen deciding to step away from F1, which now has conclusively not happened, will have created a small driver vacuum among the 'big four' that Sainz would've been top-of-the-queue (or close to it) to fill.
Verstappen staying cuts off options for all the 'dreamers'. And this doesn't have to just mean the midfield drivers - if someone like, say, Piastri is truly unsettled at McLaren and was at all tempted by the prospect of leading a team like Red Bull instead, that avenue is now shut off for a long time. And anyone who had been eyeing Red Bull will now know that a move there will mean, as it has for a long time, going up against the most fearsome driver in F1.
## Winner: Laurent Mekies
There are a few ways you could view the first year and a bit of Mekies at Red Bull up to now. Results were strong in late 2025 and not exactly terrible in 2026 so far, but as my colleague Edd Straw argued quite convincingly in a recent column, the Mekies-era Red Bull seemed at risk of losing what had made it special before.
But the Mekies-era Red Bull has kept Verstappen. Despite the brain drain, which has now extended to McLaren-bound race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase and reportedly Cadillac-bound chief engineer Paul Monaghan, Laurent Mekies has kept Max Verstappen.
And there's a lot of reason to doubt this extension would have happened at Christian Horner's Red Bull.
## Loser: Aston Martin
Aston Martin has much bigger fish to fry in 2026 than fanciful pursuits of big-money driver signings.
But now even if the AMR chassis makes huge strides under Adrian Newey and the Honda engine catches up to respectability, Aston Martin has no easy button to press for assembling an elite driver line-up.
You can certainly doubt whether it would have ever been able to attract Verstappen. I am not sure I believe it myself. But it may have been able to use a Verstappen move to its advantage, to secure whoever is displaced.
But now all the best drivers in F1 don't really have decisions to make, and once Fernando Alonso retires Aston Martin may have to make the most of midfield solutions to its driver question.
That is, of course, assuming the car becomes truly competitive.
## Winner: George Russell
The looming spectre of Verstappen coming to take George Russell’s Mercedes seat - and it would be *his* seat, Kimi Antonelli's start to 2026 has made triple-sure of that - is gone.
As shaky as Russell's year has been so far, Mercedes is the right place for him to be in the medium term. If he wants to be champion, and of course he does, then wrestling control back from Antonelli and hoping that Mercedes' competitive level keeps up is his absolute best and 'easiest' path to doing so.
It probably won't happen in '26, but it could happen in '27, and he's no longer under any outside pressure from the only driver that it would make sense for Mercedes to pursue as an immediate upgrade.
## Losers: Other Red Bull drivers
Two elements here.
One - drivers like incumbent Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, maybe Liam Lawson and probably Formula 2's Nikola Tsolov now have one fewer Red Bull Racing seat to target and one fewer free spot in the overall roster.
Admittedly, had Verstappen left Red Bull would have surely pursued an outside recruit - but nonetheless.
Two - all of those drivers, if they progress as they hope, will have to go up against Verstappen at some point, which as we know is a great way to derail or potentially ruin your F1 career.
## Winner: F1
Verstappen's new Red Bull commitment must be taken as a vote of confidence in the steps F1 is taking with the current ruleset that he hates.
He has sounded some degree of fed up with this kind of F1 racing all through the season, and Verstappen putting up with the full regulations cycle genuinely felt unlikely given the strength of feeling on his end.
Now he stays. And while we will surely hear more criticism here and there from Verstappen as to the state of the formula, the ultimate embarrassment of having your strongest driver walk away because he doesn't respect the product is averted.
## Loser: Also F1
Remember when F1 drivers used to, like, change teams? That was nice.
Lewis Hamilton's switch to Ferrari was a jolt but seemed an aberration in the general trend of F1 - which is drivers, both top and increasingly midfield, favouring the financial security of long-term commitments and teams having the means to provide that security.
It is particularly felt at the top of the grid. Apart from Ferrari, where Hamilton's age is a question mark, and that revolving-door second Red Bull seat, the top teams appear 'frozen' for the medium term.
The current realities of contractual incentives - and the difficulty in adapting to new teams - seem to have created a market that's closer to the 15-year deals they hand out to superstars in baseball than the game of musical chairs that we're more used to in F1.
### Verstappen signs surprise new Red Bull deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-red-bull-f1-contract-2030-extended-deal/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T07:47:56.000Z
Max Verstappen has extended his contract Red Bull Racing and will remain at the Formula 1 team until the end of the 2030 season.
The four-time champion and his future with the team has been the subject of speculation for much of the past season and a half, most prominently amid interest from Mercedes about securing his services - which were headed off last year by performance-related clauses in his contract - and this year in the wake of Verstappen's reaction to the new F1 ruleset.
The fabric of the team that Verstappen has been with for the past decade has also changed significantly in recent years, with key figures such as Helmut Marko - who was pivotal in making Verstappen a Red Bull junior before his graduation to F1 - Adrian Newey and Christian Horner all gone.
His race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase has also agreed to join McLaren "no later than 2028".
But Verstappen has now been announced at staying with Red Bull for the next four seasons, on the eve of his home Dutch Grand Prix - the last planned edition of the race at this time.
His current contract, announced in 2022, ran until 2028 with those aforementioned performance-related clauses, so this new arrangement essentially represents a two-year extension to that.
Red Bull said it was "immensely proud" to announce Verstappen's extended stay, calling it "one of the most successful and defining partnerships in F1 history".
It also called him a "defining part" of the team's "history, identity and success".
Verstappen was quoted as saying he was "really pleased with the contract extension" and thanked Red Bull itself, the racing team and team principal Laurent Mekies - who succeeded Horner last July - "for the trust they put in me".
He said he was "excited to keep working together with everyone to get back to the top again", amid a mixed start to the new rules era by Red Bull - a team he described as "like a second family for me" where "I feel very at home"
"Getting to work with Laurent now for over a year has also been great, I see a clear vision he has for the team," Verstappen added. "Everyone in Milton Keynes believes in what we are building and I am looking forward to the next chapter, fighting for more victories and competing for championships as we continue to shape the future of this team.
"To make this announcement during the last Grand Prix at Zandvoort is a great moment for me as well. Hopefully we can give the fans a special send-off for the final race."
Mekies said retaining Verstappen was "fantastic news for everyone at Red Bull, Oracle Red Bull Racing, as well as F1 and motorsport as a whole".
"His impact on our team and on Red Bull’s motorsport story has been transformational, and he has been fundamental to everything we have accomplished together," Mekies added.
"The decision to continue our journey together is rooted in the trust Max and the team have built over many years, as well as Max’s confidence in our people, our culture and our vision for the future."
### F1 2026 has neutered Albon's biggest strengths
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-has-neutered-albons-biggest-strengths/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T05:03:34.000Z
Newly recommitted Williams Formula 1 driver Alex Albon believes the 2026 regulations have neutered his key strengths in a way that might partly explain his tricky season.
Williams’s season so far has fallen well short of lofty expectations, meaning Albon and his team-mate Carlos Sainz have rarely had a chance of fighting for points.
But Albon in particular has struggled, having been outqualified 12-1 by Sainz with an average margin of nearly three tenths of a second. Things have been closer in the races and Albon has scored five of Williams’s 11 points, but there’s little doubt Sainz has been the stronger Williams driver this season, having been closely matched with Albon in their first year together last season.
Unpicking exactly why isn’t easy though, given Williams has had myriad reliability issues and performance consistency problems as well as a slower-than-expected car.
Plus the 2026 regulations and the power unit quirks that make it difficult to confidently assess which drivers are doing the best job, especially with the emergence of deployment issues like the one Mercedes revealed after Spa last month that had been affecting George Russell.
“Honestly, it's really hard to pinpoint,” Albon replied when The Race asked him in Hungary how much of his 2026 performances so far have been within his control.
“There's so much going on. I think there's multiple factors. If you just take what's happening to George and Kimi \[Antonelli\], that's not a single car, single team issue.
“You can imagine if the works team was struggling with it, it definitely happens to the customer teams as well.
“I can count quite consistently on qualifying sessions, even in Spa, where you should be in front and you're not. There are elements to that.
“There's elements also to ourselves as well. I think Williams, we are in the process now of understanding, but Carlos has had this issue too, where it's hard for us to understand.
“There's differences performance-wise, session to session, weekend to weekend, which we've sometimes accounted for, sometimes not.
“It's not been the cleanest of starts of the year for me.”
Albon, now [recommitted to Williams](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-know-williams-unveils-new-alex-albon-f1-deal/) until the end of 2027, feels he’s still getting to grips with what’s needed to be quick in these cars. And he fears they may have neutered key strengths of his.
“There are elements where I do think these regs are away from my strengths,” Albon said.
“Things like, there is no high speed \[corners\] anymore. I always consider high speed as one of my strengths, but whenever a corner is high speed, it's now either flat itself, like it was in Pouhon \[at Spa\], or we're just arriving so slowly now that they're not high speed.
“Then there's also just trying to understand these regs. Cars, these tyres, they're quite sensitive.
“At the moment, I haven't really found the sweet spot with them. Sometimes I can do OK, but generally speaking, it is tricky. It's a different driving style, for sure.”
It’s true that the 2026 cars have shifted in where a driver can make a difference outside of the usual parameters, like late braking or commitment and approach to high-speed corners.
You only have to look at telemetry traces to see the time won and lost between team-mates at places such as Silverstone and Spa, is due to deployment differences at the end of straights and out of corners, rather than corner entries.
And unpicking what can be explained by the quirks of the power unit and what can be explained by the driving inputs has been a big headache for many for the likes of Albon, Russell and Charles Leclerc.
“It's very psychological this year, in that sense, because there is no easy thing,” Albon said.
“As a team, we're also fighting \[with\] extinguishers. We have little fires that we're trying to put out, so it's hard to differentiate what's you and what's the car and what's what.
“So, all you can do, which is my approach for the last three or four races, is just purely focus on the driving and let engineering do engineering. If you think you've done a good job, you've done a good job, and leave it like that.
“It's a very simple approach to going into a race weekend, but it's actually something which I feel like my last few weekends, my performance has got a lot stronger because of doing that. I think as the year goes on, it's almost like a cross list. We just cross out, fix problems, and get to the next one.”
The ‘focus on the driving’ also has echoes of Russell’s comments earlier this season when he was frustrated that the driving style he’d used for his entire F1 career so far didn’t work with the 2026 cars.
“Every driver is very open to, if there's a reason why, for example, why you're slow on a straight or whatever, tell me and I'll adapt to it, and I'll figure out a way to drive around it,” Albon explained.
“Sometimes, though, it's very complicated. I can even remember Silverstone. You're in between qualifying runs, trying loads of different things, different styles. I think that it takes the mind away from just driving.
“I've said this before, but you've only been taught to drive quickly your whole life. You know what is quick. Suddenly, there's a layer that's this grey box in the back of your head that's like, ‘well, if I do this differently, does this help the laptime in a different way?’ kind of thing. It's not instinctive or natural.
“Then, again, it goes back to the question before of just drive and let engineering do engineering.”
### Has Russell already blown his big title chance?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/has-russell-already-blown-his-big-title-chance/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T05:00:36.000Z
George Russell has had a lot to think about over Formula 1’s summer break as he restarts the season 50 points behind his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli, with two victories to Antonelli’s six.
So has Russell already blown his big title chance?
The Race F1 Podcast discussed that question and plenty more ahead of Zandvoort, with Dutch F1 commentator Nelson Valkenburg and Ben Anderson joining Edd Straw.
Below you’ll find a flavour of what they said, but make sure to [listen](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/driver-market-moves-cadillacs-shock-change-who-mercedes-shou?ref=the-race.com) to the full episode here or [watch it here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myly40tV1TA&ref=the-race.com).
“There is always hope, especially in this season where unreliability can and has played a role for both of them, but I think in terms of pure performance, it's starting to look like his goose is cooked, just because of that underlying performance that Antonelli is showing,” Ben Anderson said.
“The margin is obviously not as big as it's looked at times because Russell has had particular technical problems on his side of the garage. He calls it an unprecedented season in his whole racing career, never mind his F1 career.
“Try and think of the last race in this season where you genuinely felt that Russell had the edge over Antonelli over the whole weekend. Not just in qualifying like Montreal, where he nabbed the pole right at the end, or Austria, where he played the yellow flags better. Both of those weekends, come the race, Antonelli was the one really digging at him or showing the superior race pace.
“So I really feel like you have to go right back to sort of Japan before the enforced break, where Russell was more on top of things than Antonelli. Ever since Miami, where he beat \[Lando\] Norris to victory, it's just felt like Antonelli has kind of been inevitable, even in the races he's been behind.
“He's looked eventually more impressive than his team-mate. So if that trajectory continues into the second half of the season, it's with that buffer, it's Antonelli's to lose.”
Valkenburg added: “Sunday race pace for Antonelli, that's his superpower. The relentlessness of it all, just banging in the laps, lap after lap, like there's no tyre wear, like there's no problem on deployment.
“He makes it look simple on a Sunday and it's just over-exuberance or technical failings that have kept him back a little.
“But what is going to be interesting, if \[Russell\] does turn it around, he will need the help of Ferrari and McLaren to be in amongst the Mercedes cars.
“If George Russell wins a race and Kimi finishes second, it doesn't do enough. But if there are four or five cars in between, it's different. Same for qualifying.”
The key to Russell’s turnaround will be cracking how to be fast in these cars, having had to move away from his natural driving style that had served him well in his F1 career prior to 2026.
“The high-speed \[corners\] don't exist at all \[in these cars\], and that's one of Russell's big strengths, so he can’t count on that any more,” Anderson explained.
“He's boxed into this very narrow way of driving the car. It favours the guys who are specifically very good at dealing with that lack of grip on the front, the nervousness, the sliding, the fact that it's almost like \[driving in the\] wet all the time. Just low grip.
“I don't see how he solves that. That's the heart of it. He admits that's one of his biggest problems. How do you transform yourself from a guy who's hardwired into being brave in the high speed and really sensitive to through-corner balance, if those things don't matter to the same degree anymore?
“You've got to fundamentally reprogram yourself and that's not going to happen in the space of 11 races.”
Russell isn’t the first driver needing to adapt to change to save a season, but as Valkenburg points out, history suggests it’s a very hard thing to do successfully.
“Lewis Hamilton couldn't do it in a previous iteration of F1\. We've seen it with Sebastian Vettel when basically blown diffusers were outlawed, we saw him struggling to adapt his driving style,” he said.
“So this is part and parcel of F1, but it's mentally tough because this was his chance. This was the chance he'd been waiting for.
“Kimi Antonetti, he seems unbothered, right? He has a decade to get this right. He's just going to go out and push and see where this lands him, see if he can take this chance.
“It’s weird that the championship leader seems to be carrying less baggage than the one chasing, and that's what we're looking at right now.”
Oscar Piastri being on course to win the F1 title last year before a dramatic collapse and Max Verstappen’s surprise emergence as a title contender is good evidence that things can still change.
But Edd Straw feels Russell is in a deeper hole than Lando Norris, who was able to recover from early-season struggles in meshing with the McLaren MCL39 to beat Piastri and Verstappen to the title.
“Can Russell win the championship? Well, yeah, he absolutely can. Mathematically, a long way back, but with unreliability and this kind of thing, there's enough races for it to be possible because we know he's got the same machinery and the same performance potential as his team-mate,” Straw said.
“The question is, has he got the ability to adapt and unlock the pace and turn the tables on Antonelli? That's the big question.
“Antonelli's lost points this year through no fault of his own. He's just been better than Russell overall.
“But if you're Russell, you think, ‘right, I've had the reset. I've had to think about it. I think I can change my style. I can deal with all that. I need to live with the microslides'. You've got to be happy with the car doing that.
“If he can convince himself he can do all that and deliver it, he'll then think, 'well, then the tables are turned. The pressure's on Kimi Antonelli. Suddenly I'll be on the up', because it's really easy to look like nothing's worrying you when things are going well, isn't it?
“If things are going badly, you will look like you've got the weight of the world on your shoulders. So it can flip.
“Now that's what George Russell will be telling himself is possible. And it is. But is it probable from my perspective? It's not because it requires such a big swing.
“You should never, never count people out or be too quick to assume something isn't doable. But the odds are certainly against Russell.
“I would say the problems Russell is having versus Antonelli are more fundamental than the problems Norris was having versus Piastri last year in the first half of the season.”
Nelson, Ben and Edd also discussed the power shift behind Cadillac’s shock team boss change, whether Mercedes should fear McLaren or Ferrari more, and whether to expect any silly season bombshells. Listen to the podcast [here](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/driver-market-moves-cadillacs-shock-change-who-mercedes-shou?ref=the-race.com) or watch it [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Myly40tV1TA&ref=the-race.com).
### Fortunate? Our verdict on Williams retaining Sainz and Albon
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-williams-convinces-sainz-albon-to-stay-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T15:24:45.000Z
There's some good news for Williams to come out of its underwhelming 2026 Formula 1 season - as it's convinced Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon to stay with the team.
Those two deals, announced a day apart, involve Sainz agreeing to a new multi-year commitment, while with Albon The Race understands no new racing contract has been agreed - and that instead his 2027 confirmation relates to exit clauses that existed in the contract.
And that's pertinent in the context of this troubled Williams campaign. So were they right to stay? And was there ever a better option out there anyway?
Here's our reaction to those developments:
## Williams is very fortunate
**Matt Beer**
Williams has been fortunate here. There are still just a few too many question marks over the other midfield options, and too few signs of driver movement at them, to offer convincing exit routes for Albon and Sainz, and in that context it makes sense for them to still believe in all of the promise of the lead-up to 2026 over the absolutely terrible reality of their 2026.
Because the Williams arriving late, being slow and overweight, and not having much real hope of getting any quicker this year, could - and in some circumstances, should - have torpedoed the team's chances of keeping two drivers with so much to offer in F1, given its plan had been so clearly built around taking a big leap forward with the regulation change. Not a giant tumble backwards.
Anyone with a bit of F1 romance in them wants to see a Williams resurgence. It was painful to see this team at the bottom, and heartwarming to see it striding forwards again. This year is such a big misstep, just at the time its new era should have really started bearing fruit, that it goes into 2027 with a massive amount to prove to its fans and particularly its drivers.
## What else could Sainz have done?
**Gary Anderson**
I suppose the big question is where else could Sainz go? Yes, there is potentially Audi, but it is not really setting the world alight. Perhaps it's better the devil you know than jumping ship with no guarantees of any better success.
Sainz is at a time in his career where he will be thought a lot more of by staying put and doing the best he can to build Williams back into a competitive team. He has that drive and engineering knowledge to point it in the right direction - the question is: will it follow his lead?
Williams has two good drivers in Sainz and Albon, so if it is still uncompetitive next season then it needs to look deeper to find the problems.
## A marriage of two factors for Sainz
**Jon Noble**
Of all the drivers who would have been prime for cutting their losses and jumping ship off the back of 2026 disappointment, Sainz was right up there.
This season was supposed to be the big one for Williams after it threw everything at going early with its new-rules design.
So, the scale of its struggles, with a late, overweight and uncompetitive car, were particularly difficult for someone of Sainz's calibre to accept as something simply to smile at, endure and hope the team got through.
That he has committed to staying has to be seen as a marriage of two factors.
The first is that Williams has at least accepted and owned up to the responsibility of things not working - and committed to making necessary changes to ensure that what has gone wrong this year does not happen again. Being in denial, and ploughing on blindly with a bunch of excuses, would not have cut it.
But there is also an element that outside options were pretty limited for Sainz to get himself anywhere else that could be guaranteed to be better in the short term.
The top-four teams all look locked down - Max Verstappen's confirmation of remaining at Red Bull should be imminent - and even going down the order there is not much scope for a shake-up.
Racing Bulls is a closed shop. Audi is happy with Nico Hulkenberg. Aston Martin remains a gamble in the short term to work out how much progress it can make. And Alpine was never really on the radar.
For now, Williams has headed off Sainz's thoughts of the grass being greener anywhere else. But it knows that it needs to deliver on steps forward.
And while it has hailed Sainz's contract as multi-year, modern deals are full of options - and we know his management team is too smart to have given itself no break clauses that would prevent an escape route if some top-line vacancies do eventually open up.
## All eyes on 2028
**Josh Suttill**
Williams has bought itself time, and James Vowles and co deserve great credit for the strength of their arguments, including those that won Sainz from the temptation of Audi and Alpine in the first place in 2024.
But the race will already be on to convince Albon and particularly Sainz to stick around beyond 2027 - when there may be more tempting options to move elsewhere than there are presently.
Sainz has committed himself to Williams, but that doesn't mean he won't be spending some of the next 12 months keeping an eye on the competition.
I still see him as the ideal successor to Fernando Alonso at Aston Martin or the leader Audi needs.
He has a relentless off-track work ethic that still sticks in the minds of former employers McLaren and Ferrari.
Plus, he has the dogged on-track determination that means Oscar Piastri is right when he says Sainz fights for last place like the world championship - except that's a positive in 99% of races and exactly why it's such a win for Williams to retain a driver line-up that's far better than its current car.
## Williams benefits far more from this
**Megan Cantle**
I'm sure Carlos Sainz is being excellently reimbursed for his time but this is a deal that seems to be a lot more beneficial to Williams than to him.
He may have fallen slightly out of favour with the general F1 watching audience at times this season but I still think there's a driver in there who could offer a more upwardly mobile team something.
Williams may well complete a turnaround and change its fortunes next season - we've seen it do so before - but on this year's performances it doesn't appear to be offering much in terms of results.
I admire Sainz's conviction that he can help the team return to more successful ways but I can't help but feel he would have been an interesting player in the driver market when one of the BIG dominoes inevitably falls in the next few years.
### Why Gasly podium hearing will take place in private
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pierre-gasly-podium-hearing-will-take-place-in-private/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T14:11:50.000Z
The FIA International Court of Appeal hearing into Pierre Gasly's podium reinstatement in Formula 1's Monaco Grand Prix will take place next week - but unusually behind closed doors.
Gasly was awarded third place after [Alpine successfully overturned](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/pierre-gasly-gets-monaco-gp-podium-penatlies-rescinded-fia-review/) a post-race time penalty he was given for speeding in the pitlane.
This change of heart from the FIA was the result of Formula One Management admitting that there had been errors with its pitlane measurements that meant Gasly was wrongly deemed to have broken the speed limit.
The FIA's right of review decision to give Gasly his third place back did not go down well with other teams, which subsequently protested the decision.
Both Red Bull, whose driver Isack Hadjar had originally been classified third before Gasly was reinstated, and McLaren, whose driver Oscar Piastri had served a speeding penalty in the race, elected to take the matter to the FIA's International Court of Appeal.
A hearing has now been set for the FIA's headquarters in Paris on August 25\.
However, in a step away from normal process, the session will take place behind closed doors with the public and media barred.
Under the FIA's judicial rules, International Court of Appeal hearings for anything other than cost cap breaches are "open to the media and to the public".
There is a clause though that states: "The president of the hearing may however decide to conduct all or part of the hearings in closed sessions for public order reasons or in order to preserve the confidentiality of data."
A statement issued by the FIA said that the judging panel had elected not to allow the media and public access to this hearing because of a request from the parties involved in the case.
"Upon decision of the judging panel and as requested by the parties involved in this case, for confidentiality reasons the above hearing will be closed to public, media and any person who is not authorised to attend it," it said.
What has prompted the request for confidentiality has not been revealed, but it most likely relates to the details surrounding how pitlane measurements are made and how teams calculate speeds.
A verdict on any International Court of Appeal hearing typically takes up to three weeks to be made, but the FIA has said that on this occasion a ruling will be made "as soon as possible".
### Sainz is being wasted at Williams
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-carlos-sainz-is-being-wasted-at-williams/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T14:49:42.000Z
Toiling in obscurity down the field in Formula 1 condemns you to the fate of only catching the eye when you make a mistake.
Ask most fans about Carlos Sainz's season so far and hitting race leader Oscar Piastri while being lapped in the Hungarian Grand Prix will leap to mind. Yet that blunder, which drew justified criticism, is incongruous with the rest of what has been an outstanding campaign. You can even argue that this blunder was an unintended consequence of the very mindset that has allowed Sainz to thrive.
[He's staying at Williams next year](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-convinces-sainz-to-sign-multi-year-extension/), partly because of the lack of credible opportunities elsewhere, but he’s made a conscious effort to leave nothing on the table this year. Partly, this is motivated by the desire to salvage what results he can, but the primary impetus is keeping his stock as high as possible.
The Williams FW48 is, based on average pace, the third-slowest car and was ahead only of Cadillac at the Hungaroring before the August break after Aston Martin's major aerodynamic upgrade.
This would be a performance-sapping experience for many drivers in Sainz's position, given he became accustomed to running at the front during his Ferrari years and Williams was expected to be far more competitive this year. You wouldn't blame him for losing that edge, and it's happened before to drivers in his situation, but he's all-too-aware of the fact that, at 31, he can't afford to back off. What he's doing now will impact his strength in the driver market, even when it comes to the longer-term future beyond 2027.
Oscar Piastri slated Sainz for "fighting Fernando \[Alonso\] for last place like it was the world championship" in Hungary. This is exactly the approach, dragging everything out of a limited car and fighting for everything even if your reward is non-existent, that has made Sainz's campaign so impressive.
It doesn't excuse what he did to Piastri, and there is something to the Australian's characterisation of Sainz as one of the most vocal complainers yet also one of the most criticised by rivals, but this approach has usually yielded results that are, relative to the potential of the machinery, superb.
A trio of ninth places, and just six points, is the worst stretch of his F1 career in terms of results, but based on the [driver rankings](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-mid-season-driver-rankings-edd-straw/) I compile after each race, which evaluate each driver's performance across the weekend, Sainz is fifth so far in 2026.
He’s often taken a Q1-level car into the second stage of qualifying, and on multiple occasions, notably when he kept Franco Colapinto's delayed Alpine behind on his way to ninth in China, he's held off faster machinery. Transplant his performances into frontrunning machinery and he would be getting rave reviews. You could even make a case that this might be his best season in F1 in terms of what he's achieved relative to the capabilities of the equipment.
Craig Evans / Spacesuit Media
"I hate thinking like that because I'm P16," Sainz tells The Race when this is put to him in an exclusive interview in the Williams motorhome in Hungary. "It's a very 'relative' sport, but I'm qualifying P15, P16\. How can you tell a fan or a reader that's your best season? It's completely counterintuitive.
"But in F1 we need to isolate what is the car and what is the driving. If I isolate the car versus the driving, it's one of my most complete seasons. Is it the best? I rank probably my McLaren seasons as my best in F1, 2024 with Ferrari, the second half of Williams in '25, and this year."
He's reached the second stage of qualifying 10 times out of 14 (Sainz did not contest qualifying in Australia) and has only been outpaced twice by team-mate Alex Albon ([whose "new" Williams deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-know-williams-unveils-new-alex-albon-f1-deal/) was announced on Tuesday), on both occasions by thousandths of a second. He's also produced race results at or close to the ceiling of what a Williams can do.
Asking Sainz what stands out to him sends him in an unexpected direction, particularly within the context of his well-earned reputation as being a cerebral driver. The way he talks about his driving in qualifying in particular points to another underrated part of his skillset.
"It's the combination of race weekend preparation together with my engineering team," says Sainz. "We've done a good job on understanding the energy management, developing the set-up around trying to make me feel comfortable, and understanding the tyres to put the lap \[in\] when it matters at the end of Q1.
"I've always been relatively good in Q1, it's been always one of my strengths to do very good laps early in qualifying, I've actually never been a fan of five sets \[of tyres\] in quali, because it's perfecting rather than going all out and putting a lap \[in\].
"It sounds weird, but I'm more of an instinct driver. I benefit more from Q1s than running through all the sets until Q3, which is just \[about\] putting everything together. Maybe that's playing a bit in my favour.
"But it's a good engineering team, a second year with them and we're understanding each other better, knowing what I need from the car, from the tyres and from the energy management. It's a typical transition in a second year with a team, you normally become one tenth quicker."
The reference to driving on instinct inevitably demands a follow-up. Sainz puts meat on the bone by explaining that the work done out of the car is to allow him to drive as he wants on instinct once behind the wheel. In short, this makes it easier for him to get into the flow state where any athlete does their best work, relying on subconscious processing.
And these lower-downforce cars, which require a driver like him who is comfortable dealing with the tiny 'microslides' to get the most out of them, appear to have played to his strengths.
"I'm a very hard worker behind the scenes, but then as soon as I put my helmet on and I jump in the car, I rely purely on instincts and I don't think that much inside the car, unless it's for strategy," says Sainz.
"I do like keeping a thought for strategy, but when it comes to feeling the car and driving the car, I'm very instinctive and I like putting the work \[in\] beforehand. I don't know if that's helped me or not this year. With energy management you need to put in the work, but for everything else I rely more on instincts."
While it's perhaps no surprise that Sainz has been one of the best at adapting to the new cars, it's worth remembering that the ground-effect machines weren't to his liking. While Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc modified his braking style right from the start of testing, it took Sainz time to tune himself into them. And he never felt as if he was able to drive on instinct, keeping himself on a tight leash to get the best out of them.
"The way I've approached it is I'm just going to drive natural," says Sainz of the '26 cars and his style. "I never drove the ground-effect cars naturally, I had to change my driving to adapt and be disciplined with some of my driving techniques. When I started this year, I said, 'Clean sheet of paper, I'm going to forget the ground effect and I'm going to go back to driving as natural as I can do and see where this brings me'.
"After a couple of tests in Bahrain and then the first race, I saw my natural style seemed to give me quite a good level of speed and I said, 'OK, from here I'll do what the energy now is asking rather than the set-up or the driving technique'.
"With the energy, they say the minimum speed is important, they say pushing the entries and not caring about the exits \[is important\], but if I look back I've always been someone that gets good exits out of corners and I don't see I've been too penalised with these regs by going early on the throttle. It's an interesting question because, at least for me, I would have thought then I would be slow, or relatively slower because of that, and I haven't felt that in particular."
Sainz describes his approach to understanding dialling into the new machines as "not overthinking it", and that the "thorough analysis" of it can wait until the end of the season.
That's easy to say when things are going well. The opposite is likely true of those who are struggling, including pre-season championship favourite George Russell, and perhaps also Sainz's Williams team-mate, Albon.
Albon has run into more than his fair share of problems in an already-troubled season for Williams, but his style hasn't gelled so well with the cars. Not that Sainz is sticking the boot in.
"Alex has had weekends where he's been really, really competitive this year and then in qualifying maybe hasn't put it together because of multiple factors that we are struggling with, with the car and with the consistency of the car," says Sainz.
"Maybe there's been other weekends where he's been a bit more off, but honestly I wouldn't doubt Alex. In every corner I do, every lap I do, there are data points from him that I'm always copying or trying to improve. There's never been a lap that he's more than a tenth off or two tenths off and I'm always using him as a great reference.
"It's just more that I believe with a second year in the team I'm settling in and even by the second half of last year I was already performing at a much higher level and the level I know I can perform. It just takes time. It takes time to adapt to a team and to get into bed with your engineer, with the set-up, with everything you want to do."
Craig Evans / Spacesuit Media
Sainz has been critical of the 2026 cars, and shares the concerns of some of his rivals about the apparent randomness of deployment at times. Earlier in the season, he described the regulations as "not good enough for Formula 1", even though the change has arguably been to his advantage.
"If you're naturally quick with these cars you can still get away with the randomness," says Sainz. "I think everyone's getting randomness, no driver out there is not getting randomness, but if you have the underlying speed, most of the time when it matters you get the laptime out of it.
"We all hate the randomness, we all hate to be down one or two tenths on some straights suddenly, but if you're coming from a strong sector one and two you can still make it through that qualifying section if you are on a good lap.
"Also, one thing that I'm feeling is this year the gaps are too big to make a difference as a driver. Last year you would go into Q1 and you knew you could beat all the other 19 drivers with a good lap. This year, unfortunately, you can only beat maybe one Alpine or one Audi or one Haas if they get it wrong. Drivers are making less of a difference because the gaps are bigger between teams."
That's one of the key reasons why Sainz's performances have gone under the radar. Grafting in the lower reaches of the F1 field is part of the problem but, when even those outstanding qualifying laps rarely elevate him higher than the eighth row, it's hard to make an impact. Unless, of course, the impact is a literal one with the race leader while you're being lapped.
### Williams convinces Sainz to sign multi-year extension
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/williams-convinces-sainz-to-sign-multi-year-extension/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T13:31:25.000Z
Carlos Sainz has committed his immediate Formula 1 future to Williams, after agreeing a multi-year contract extension despite a difficult start to 2026.
The Spaniard joined Williams at the start of last year because he believed that the squad was well-placed to make the most of this season’s regulatory overhaul.
But the results have fallen far below expectations, with the Williams car suffering from being late, being very overweight in launch spec and not having the pace needed to fight near the front.
The scale of the competitive struggles, and little hope of a turnaround this season despite a major new package coming for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, fuelled doubts about whether or not Sainz would stay committed to the project.
Obvious options for him elsewhere over the long term included Audi, which he had spoken with prior to joining Williams, and Aston Martin that has endured an even more difficult 2026 campaign.
But despite clearly keeping an eye on the driver market situation elsewhere, it was announced on Wednesday that Sainz had agreed a new multi-year contract to stay at Williams.
No specific length of the contract was detailed, but it is likely there there will be options over forthcoming years.
The deal means that, with team-mate Alex Albon having also extended in 2027, that the squad will retain both its drivers into the new season.
### Change coming
While Sainz has been left frustrated at times by Williams’ struggles this year, he says that signs of promise from changes being made at the team have left him convinced it remains the right place for him.
“There are many reasons to stay and continue to push with the team,” he said.
“First and foremost, because of the people who form this big family. I believe in the strength of the group in order to be successful, and I think the people at Williams have the right talent, motivation and passion to bring this team back to the top.
“There are also a lot of changes, investments and projects happening in the background that make me believe we are on the right path.
“We have hit a bump in the road this season, but we have all the right ingredients to bounce back and come back stronger.”
Sainz said that there had been some “transparent and honest” conversations with senior team management, including boss James Vowles, about what had gone wrong this season and what was needed to address things.
He felt it critical there was a “working environment in which everyone can take responsibility for their actions with a view to improving.”
He is sure that if Williams: “focus on the process, pay attention to the details and trust our instincts, I’m convinced the results will follow".
Team principal James Vowles is clearly delighted that he has convinced Sainz to stay, as losing him would have been a big blow to the squad in its efforts to move forward,
“He is a leader of this team, and I’m thrilled that he can see what’s possible as we continue to rebuild it,” said Vowles.
“It’s not just his race craft and speed that stand out, but the work he does behind the scenes in the pursuit of high performance.”
### What's really at stake for Lawson on shock Red Bull F1 return
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-really-at-stake-for-liam-lawson-shock-red-bull-f1-return/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T12:05:39.000Z
Liam Lawson’s [unexpected outing](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lawson-replaces-injured-hadjar-as-tsunoda-gets-f1-return/) for Red Bull Racing at Zandvoort is a free hit.
He’s never driven the Red Bull RB22, he’s been thrown into it at short notice, it’s not an easy car to drive and he’s up against Max Verstappen. Failure, in terms of the results, is the baseline, so no rational observer should take any negatives from how it plays out while anything he does achieve should enhance his reputation.
This is the ideal mindset for Lawson to embrace. Unburdened by expectations, he has the best chance of getting into that flow state where athletes do their best work, focusing fully on the process rather than obsessing about the results. That is what will allow him to do something that is, in the circumstances, special.
This is easier said than done, and is dependent on Red Bull giving him the support and confidence that it denied him in 2025\.
When he was promoted last year, he was set up to fail. This wasn’t by design, but in the situation.
It’s true he didn’t make the most of the opportunity, looking all at sea in the first two events of 2025, and the first objective for any driver is to deliver and hang onto the seat, but axing a young and inexperienced driver before giving him the time and backing to do his best work was absurd.
Once you've made the decision to promote a driver you need to back them and let it play out. Regardless of your position on whether or not he should have been promoted, that reflected terribly on Red Bull.
Fortunately, that’s a different Red Bull team to the one that exists today, and Laurent Mekies has worked with Lawson before and should know how to get the best out of him.
Inevitably, there has to be some adverse set of circumstances making it difficult for Lawson as that appears to be baked into the Red Bull way of doing things.
He’s under pressure for his seat in 2027 despite performing at a level so far this season that should make him a lock, as he's proven himself to be a good F1 midfielder. It would do in a normal midfield F1 team, but the Red Bull driver conveyor belt keeps on rolling and the need to find a berth for Formula 2 championship leader Nikola Tsolov means Lawson’s position isn’t yet secure.
So this is his chance to demonstrate to Red Bull just how much he’s improved now he’s had the chance to bed in as an F1 driver.
He has impressed for Racing Bulls so far this year, performing consistently, building on the momentum that gathered as last season progressed once steering changes had been made to give him the feel he thrives with, and adapting well to the challenges of the new power units.
This is less about a shot at getting back into Red Bull Racing, more about underlining the fact he should be in a Racing Bulls next year, and if not there then elsewhere in F1’s midfield.
The stakes and his lack of familiarity with the car will make it difficult for Lawson to lock into the process-focused, free-hit mindset.
---
[Our verdict on Lawson and Tsunoda's Dutch GP call-ups](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-lawson-tsunoda-dutch-gp-f1-call-ups/)
---
But that’s the job of the professional sportsperson, while it’s the responsibility of those on the outside to be realistic about what constitutes doing a good job as a stand-in and recognise this is a no-downside, all-potential-upside weekend.
And, as a consequence, how much it would mean if he produces something special.
### Our verdict on Lawson and Tsunoda's Dutch GP call-ups
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-lawson-tsunoda-dutch-gp-f1-call-ups/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T11:29:34.000Z
Liam Lawson is back in a Red Bull Racing Formula 1 car and Yuki Tsunoda is back on the F1 grid at the Dutch Grand Prix.
But has Red Bull made the right choices in its contingency plan around [Isack Hadjar's wrist injury?](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lawson-replaces-injured-hadjar-as-tsunoda-gets-f1-return/) Are these actually good opportunities for Lawson and Tsunoda?
Here are our team's snap verdicts.
## Right choice for Red Bull, best choice for Tsunoda
**Edd Straw**
When in need of a stand-in driver, teams will rightly be pragmatic. They need the driver best-placed to slot in and do the job, and in the Red Bull stable Lawson is the best-qualified at this time.
That's unfortunate for Tsunoda, who is officially Red Bull Racing's reserve, but particularly given the challenges of the 2026 power units it's logical to put in a driver who has significant experience of the harvesting and deployment challenges. That augments the usual advantages such as familiarity with the tyres and race sharpness, meaning that it's unlikely Red Bull had to spend too much time thinking about how to cover Hadjar's absence.
I'd also argue it's an advantage for Tsunoda to be in the Racing Bulls instead. He's slotting into a car that, heading into this weekend, is the class of the midfield in an environment where he has done his best work in F1\. When it comes to boosting his own chances of getting back into an F1 race seat at a time when he's having to look elsewhere, he's probably better off having a shot of catching the eye in the midfield rather than being pitched in at Red Bull.
## Lawson needs to make it count, Lindblad's time will come
**Gary Anderson**
It's a pity for Hadjar that he has to sit this one out but I think Lawson is the right choice.
He didn't get a real chance when he joined Red Bull before, so this is a second opportunity to show his real talent. Not many get that so he needs to make it count.
It would be too much pressure - if that is the right word - to promote Arvid Lindblad this time.
He is doing a great job in his first year so leave him alone to sort out some of his little mistakes. Give him time, his opportunity will come.
## This should be Lindblad's shot
**Josh Suttill**
I'm delighted that Lawson is getting this chance, having been unfairly treated at the start of last year, but I can't help but feel...why not promote Lindblad?
The 19-year-old has had a brilliant rookie F1 season and has looked on the pace from the off in Australia. He's only been on average a tenth of a second behind Lawson in qualifying and has had weekends such as Spa where he's been clearly quicker.
As dependable a points scorer he is, I don't see Lawson securing a permanent return to Red Bull Racing because of how poorly the first stint went. The same goes for Tsunoda.
So why not give Lindblad the chance? He's risen to all the pressure in F1 so far. He's shown to be very quick at adapting and has avoided many of the mistakes that blighted his Formula 2 season last year. He looks like a future Red Bull Racing driver, so why not try him out and get an early answer on whether he can hack it alongside Max Verstappen?
Ferrari did it with then-complete rookie Ollie Bearman in Jeddah in 2024 when it could have turned to a more experienced hand. And Mercedes got a lot out of testing out George Russell (as stand-in for Lewis Hamilton at the Sakhir GP) in late 2020, over a year before it gave him the full-time seat.
Red Bull is all about taking big swings, after all. I wonder if this is the first sign that the new regime has moved away from that...
## A pivotal moment for Tsunoda
**Jack Benyon**
Could this change everything for Tsunoda?
At the end of his Red Bull stint last year he was linked to an IndyCar seat for 2026 which never happened, but Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist joining McLaren has left a seat open at Rosenqvist's current team, Meyer Shank Racing, that Tsunoda is now linked to.
Tsunoda would be a great fit for that. The team is regularly open to looking further afield for its drivers and his style would suit driving an IndyCar. It's also a Honda-powered team.
There's nothing yet to suggest Hadjar could miss more than one race. But even if it is just one race, could Tsunoda do enough to reinvigorate his chances of a future F1 seat which pulls him away from a switch Stateside?
I'm not sure people grasp how pivotal a point in Tsunoda's career this is, as if he makes the IndyCar switch he'll almost certainly not race in F1 again.
Can he use a Nyck de Vries-at-Monza-style race to change his F1 future?
## Lawson must undo some damage here
**Matt Beer**
Lawson's previous Red Bull Racing stint being both so catastrophic and so brief has so far threatened to define the rest of his career.
Any good work he's done back at Racing Bulls so far comes with the caveat of his biggest F1 chance yet having gone so badly. Being ninth the championship (best driver outside a top-four team and impressively close to his Red Bull replacement Hadjar) and the team being so positive about his improvement this year is harder to shout about when Lindblad's bright start to life in F1 has caught the attention too.
With Red Bull junior Nikola Tsolov leading F2 right now in his first full season, Lawson's F1 future looked like it would either be relatively brief or limited to 'experienced benchmark in second team' status prior to this chance.
Get somewhere near Verstappen, or match what Hadjar's been doing despite being new to the car, and Lawson could change his storyline considerably.
### Lawson replaces injured Hadjar as Tsunoda gets F1 return
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lawson-replaces-injured-hadjar-as-tsunoda-gets-f1-return/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T11:05:24.000Z
Liam Lawson will make a return to the Red Bull Formula 1 team at this weekend's Dutch Grand Prix in place of an injured Isack Hadjar, with Yuki Tsunoda in turn getting a call-up to race for the sister Racing Bulls team.
Hadjar injured his wrist during the F1 summer break - as first reported by Dutch publication [De Telegraaf](https://www.telegraaf.nl/sport/autosport/isack-hadjar-kampt-met-polsblessure-max-verstappen-krijgt-waarschijnlijk-oude-bekende-naast-zich-in-zandvoort/160201887.html?utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=share&ref=the-race.com) \- to such an extent that he will be sidelined for this weekend's race at Zandvoort, where last year he scored his first F1 podium for Racing Bulls.
Lawson will therefore make his third start for the senior team, stepping up from Racing Bulls.
He was originally picked as Sergio Perez's replacement for the 2025 season, but lasted just two rounds before being unceremoniously dropped - returning to Racing Bulls while Tsunoda was promoted to partner Max Verstappen.
Lawson rebounded well from that demotion, scoring points seven times with a best finish of fifth over the remainder of that campaign, and that uptick in form helped him retain a drive for 2026 at the expense of Tsunoda, who also struggled to make an impression in the second Red Bull seat.
And Lawson has begun the 2026 campaign encouragingly; he sits ninth in the drivers' championship standings with 43 points, a tally that has also helped elevate Racing Bulls into fifth in the constructors' standings.
That experience of these vastly different and complex 2026 cars is likely why the 24-year-old - who got his F1 break at Zandvoort three years ago, deputising for [Daniel Ricciardo when he broke his hand](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ricciardo-broken-wrist-dutch-gp-lawson-f1-debut/) in an FP2 crash - has been picked over Tsunoda to race alongside Verstappen.
Tsunoda is currently serving as Red Bull's reserve driver following his exit from a race seat at the end of 2025.
This week, he has been linked to an IndyCar future at the Meyer Shank Honda team in place of Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist, as Rosenqvist returns to McLaren’s IndyCar team for 2027.
The Zandvoort opportunity will mark Tsunoda's 90th start for the junior team that he first raced for in 2021.
Red Bull has not announced whether Hadjar will need to miss any subsequent rounds.
For the past five years the Dutch GP has taken place one week before the Italian GP at Monza, but this year there is a two-week gap between them, providing longer for recovery.
### Rowland rejects rivals' bids to lure him from Nissan
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/oliver-rowland-tempted-by-rival-formula-e-offers-but-sticks-with-nissan/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T07:08:25.000Z
Oliver Rowland will remain a Nissan Formula E driver next season despite significant rival efforts and offers to lure him away.
Rowland, series champion in 2025, signed a long-term deal with Nissan earlier this year and was thought to be nailed on to continue with the Japanese manufacturer for the duration of the Gen4 period.
But recent approaches from at least two teams were believed to have turned his head temporarily, triggering emergency discussions between Rowland and Nissan that took place earlier this month.
Although neither party would comment when approached by The Race in London last week, it is believed that an agreement for continuity between them has been reached in recent days despite Rowland's talks with rival teams.
The Race understands that two of the teams in question - that at least talked to Rowland and also made offers for his services - are Penske and Envision.
Envision is set to announce the already-signed Maximilian Guenther shortly but is not completely set on his team-mate yet, although current Super Formula driver Zak O’Sullivan recently tested the Gen4 development Jaguar and is being considered at the team.
Rowland is believed to have been unsettled for a while at Nissan after an inconsistent campaign in which, despite scoring a win at Monaco and racking up four other podium finishes, he was unable to mount a sturdy title defence.
But talks between the outgoing champion and Nissan team principal Tommaso Volpe are understood to have ironed out some discord and enabled a renewed focus on upcoming Gen4 testing, which Rowland will lead next month in addition to development driver Sam Bird.
## Who replaces Nato?
Norman Nato said goodbye to his team on Sunday evening at London and, as [reported by The Race last month,](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/staple-of-formula-e-gen3-grids-set-to-lose-his-seat/) will concentrate his racing programme in endurance competition.
Nato was close to not being retained for 2026 after a difficult 2025 as Nissan almost signed Stoffel Vandoorne last summer, in an intricate deal with Stellantis Motorsport that was then the 2022 champion's employer.
A replacement for Nato for next season is still being considered by Nissan but should be selected by the end of August. Victor Martins and current Lola Yamaha ABT driver Zane Maloney are believed to be the only two drivers in the frame for the drive.
Martins was considered the favourite to replace Nato after a Gen4 test in May at Navarra in Spain. However, The Race understands Maloney has emerged in recent days as the clear favourite - despite him having had a torrid second season with Lola.
That, though, has largely been through poor reliability and mistakes via the Lola Yamaha ABT team rather than Maloney himself, and Maloney out-qualified teammate Lucas di Grassi across the season.
Development driver Bird is not believed to be in contention for a return to a race seat for next season.
### Hadjar in doubt for Dutch GP after wrist injury
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hadjar-reportedly-in-doubt-for-dutch-gp-lawson-on-standby/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T08:24:20.000Z
Isack Hadjar is likely to miss Formula 1’s Dutch Grand Prix due to injury, meaning Liam Lawson could make a surprise return to Red Bull Racing this weekend.
First reported by [Dutch outlet De Telegraaf](https://www.telegraaf.nl/sport/autosport/isack-hadjar-kampt-met-polsblessure-max-verstappen-krijgt-waarschijnlijk-oude-bekende-naast-zich-in-zandvoort/160201887.html?utm%5Fmedium=referral&utm%5Fcampaign=share&ref=the-race.com), Hadjar has picked up a wrist injury over F1’s summer break, which has put his participation at Zandvoort into major doubt. The Race understands Hadjar being sidelined is the most likely outcome but that a final decision has not yet been made.
No decision has been made on who replaces him but if Hadjar is unable to participate, Racing Bulls driver Lawson could make an unlikely return to Red Bull Racing, where he lasted just two races before being demoted at the start of 2025.
Ironically Lawson's F1 racing career began with a Dutch GP injury call-up three years ago, when then AlphaTauri driver Daniel Ricciardo broke his hand in a practice crash.
The shuffle would also hand Yuki Tsunoda an F1 return, as he’d take Lawson’s place at Racing Bulls, a team he made 89 starts for before his own short-lived promotion to Red Bull Racing last year, in place of Lawson.
Tsunoda is currently serving as the team’s reserve driver, having been so far unable to secure an F1 race seat since losing his Red Bull Racing drive at the end of last year. He has been [linked this week to an IndyCar future](https://www.motorsport.com/indycar/news/f1-veteran-yuki-tsunoda-in-talks-for-2027-indycar-seat-with-meyer-shank/10846938/?ref=the-race.com) in place of Indianapolis 500 winner Felix Rosenqvist, as Rosenqvist returns to McLaren’s IndyCar team for 2027.
Zandvoort was the scene of Hadjar’s first F1 podium last year, and he’d been putting together a solid 2026 season, with every indication being that he’d be retained in Red Bull's main team for 2027.
If he misses Zandvoort, Hadjar would have two weeks to recover before the next race at Monza.
### Mark Walter LA Lakers sale: what it could mean for Cadillac F1 team
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/mark-walter-la-lakers-sale-what-it-could-mean-for-cadillac-f1-team/
Last updated: 2026-08-18T18:12:45.000Z
Billionaire Mark Walter's sale of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA franchise - announced just 14 months after purchasing it for $10billion - could have implications on the Cadillac Formula 1 team.
Walter is the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, an investment company that co-owns Premier League team Chelsea via BlueCo, as well as numerous LA-based sports teams including the LA Dodgers baseball team.
He is also the CEO and co-chairman of TWG Global, which owns a majority stake in the Cadillac F1 team through TWG Motorsports alongside IndyCar and Formula E team Andretti Global and other motorsport entities.
Companies tied to Walter are under investigation by the US government and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a wide-ranging probe, the latest development in which concerns four companies within his investment empire and alleged undisclosed loans between them.
## What does LA Lakers sale have to do with Cadillac?
Walter is offloading his majority stake in the LA Lakers just 14 months after he agreed to buy the prestigious basketball franchise.
The Athletic has reported that Walter's controlling stake in the LA Lakers was valued at $12.5bn, whereas he purchased it for a reported $10bn.
The move stunned the National Basketball Association as the LA Lakers was at least partially owned by Jerry Buss and his family for nearly 50 years.
Now Walter's stake is being sold to venture capitalist Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger.
The ownership of Chelsea FC has now hit headlines as Walter and co-owner Todd Boehly are reportedly in talks to sell their shares in the club to majority owner Clearlake Capital.
Discussions to sell Chelsea precede - but may have been accelerated by the aforementioned investigations.
Bloomberg has reported that Walter is selling off his stakes to raise money to pay loans on the books of his company's insurers amid the ongoing investigations.
Attention has inevitably turned towards the Cadillac F1 team. There are no concrete reports of a potential sale of TWG Global's majority - and valuable - stake as yet, though the Financial Times' coverage of the situation suggested further sales of Walter's assets could be on the cards plus TWG seeking to refinance loans, restructure companies and bring in outside investors.
One of the four intermediary companies being investigated is Bradford Allen, which is developing Cadillac F1's Indiana headquarters alongside Andretti Global's IndyCar facilities.
The investigations - which have not brought a charge - do not implicate Bradford Allen in any wrongdoing, nor has Cadillac F1 team been implicated in any way.
The recent sacking of Graeme Lowdon as Cadillac F1 team principal is also circumstantial at this point - and there is no implication that General Motors's ownership position on the F1 team has changed.
Given the sale of the LA Lakers was facilitated in a reported 72 hours, the situation is fluid and rapidly changing.
### What we know as Williams unveils 'new' Albon F1 deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-know-williams-unveils-new-alex-albon-f1-deal/
Last updated: 2026-08-18T13:44:31.000Z
Alex Albon will remain with Williams for a sixth Formula 1 season in 2027, in what the team has presented as a contract "extension".
His current multi-year deal was already thought to cover 2027, and The Race understands no new racing contract has been agreed. Instead, The Race understands that the 2027 confirmation relates to exit clauses that existed in the contract - particularly relevant in the context of Williams's huge struggles with its current FW48 car, its first attempt at a design for these new regulations.
Albon, too, has not had the easiest time of it himself, as after a tough adaptation period in 2025 team-mate Carlos Sainz has comprehensively turned the tide of their intra-team battle in his favour over the last year or so.
Sainz's future still remains in question for 2027\. But Albon is now locked in, in what Williams has described as a "renewed commitment" - but one that, as per the announcement, only appears to cover next year for now.
"Alex is one of the best drivers on the grid and knows better than anyone the enormous improvements we have made in recent years - re-signing him shows the belief we both have in the direction we are heading," team principal James Vowles was quoted as saying.
"Obviously, I have a great relationship with the team," said Albon. "I really do enjoy working with everyone - the team at the factory, the team at the racetrack, but also the board and James himself. We've clearly formed a strong relationship.
"We've also hired some great people within the organisation, targeting areas we know we've been struggling in as a team. I think it's great to see how honest we are about that.
"Speaking with James, and him showing me the planning around the number of people who've joined the team in the last 12 months, but also how he's still looking at other areas of the company - it's clear the investment and the strategy towards powering our workforce, and hiring the best of the best, is what's going to help us get to the top quicker."
For now, the FW48 remains a disappointment, and not much is expected of the car in the upcoming Dutch Grand Prix weekend at Zandvoort. A big upgrade is coming for Baku, but its expected impact has been played down by multiple figures in the team, with the suggestion being that a true course-correction is only likely to show in 2027.
Amid all that, the focus is on Sainz - a year older than Albon, and slightly more vocal in his dissatisfaction with the current situation.
A report from Spanish outlet Marca earlier this month suggested Sainz is closing in on a Williams stay for 2027, but more specifics of his contractual situation are likely to emerge this upcoming weekend.
### MotoGP teams need saving from themselves
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-teams-need-saving-from-themselves/
Last updated: 2026-08-18T12:59:16.000Z
A MotoGP 'transfer window' is closer to becoming reality than ever before, following a frenzied rider signing period for the upcoming 2027 season.
The sheer scope of rider movement agreed for 2027 before a single race of the 2026 season had even taken place has prompted some factories to pursue a regulation that would limit the ability of manufacturers, teams and riders to sign and submit valid contracts for the following season before a certain date.
LCR team boss Lucio Cecchinello, who heads up the teams' association IRTA, confirmed to The Race that a proposal was being developed - and that the 'window' of contractual validity would be opened around May-June-July.
This would mean that the numerous agreements reached for 2027 early - such as Pedro Acosta's Ducati deal, Pecco Bagnaia's Aprilia contract, Fabio Quartararo's Honda contract and more - would not be allowed to happen in the same way going forward.
We have more detail on the proposal in our YouTube video below.
But does MotoGP actually need something like this? New MotoGP team boss Guenther Steiner, who has arrived from Formula 1 (which has no such system and feels no need for it), is unconvinced, describing the idea as "a little bit bulls\*\*\*".
"What happened here this year, for me, it was amazing," he mused. "I've never seen it anywhere else. In January, they talk about who signs already for '27 somewhere else.
"But then they don't admit it \[that they signed\], but everybody knows. Everybody knows what's going on, but nobody knows.
"I think even with the regulation, you could not change that. You can put something in that if \[a deal\] is announced before, it is not official. But that's also a little bit bulls\*\*\*.
"In the end, we need to grow up."
Steiner believes that the uncertainties - and, specifically, the injury risks - are too high with MotoGP riders for these early commitments to make sense.
"I think it needs also a little bit of discipline by the management of the teams. Not only putting rules in place for everything. It's like, this is not good for the sport.
"In my opinion, why would you sign somebody, especially in a sport like MotoGP - it's a long season, 22 races, you sign someone and there's an accident or something, you know…
"Nobody thinks about the downsides which can happen. Everybody thinks, 'Oh, I need to get the best guy as soon as possible'. But it could go against you and then you don't look very smart, in my opinion.
"But until that happens, people, it looks to me like they don't care. And then when something bad happens to them, they just find an excuse for it. 'I didn't tell him to fall off the bike'. And I hope nobody falls off a bike, by the way! \[But\] they do.
"We can sit here all day trying to make it sound like it doesn't happen - it happens, you know. As we have seen already this year quite a few times."
Steiner, whose Tech3 team has played out its 2027 negotiations much later than most and for whom that was a deliberate strategy, isn't wrong in his general assessment - but modern MotoGP manufacturers are de-incentivised from showing restraint in contractual matters.
Most of them have more than two riders not just on their bikes (across factory and satellite teams) but under factory contract specifically (see Fabio Di Giannantonio and Fermin Aldeguer at Ducati, both LCR Honda riders, both Tech3 KTM riders, etc.).
It arguably gives manufacturers more 'bullets in the chamber' than ever before. Where one 'bad' signing still leaves you with a roster to fall back on.
But succeeding in just one of your contractual pursuits, with a truly A-tier rider, can be transformative to your programme, while waiting around too long and failing entirely to grab a top name will be ruinous for your championship hopes, no matter how good a bike you have been cooking up back at the factory.
Names like Marc Marquez, Fabio Quartararo, Pedro Acosta were all self-evidently too valuable to ever linger on the market - but also too aware that a mid-season injury could significantly depress their sporting and financial potential, so themselves incentivised to commit early to a big-money, big-status deal.
So the early rush to sign is just an expression of this particular market's particular set of conditions - and the only way to break out of it is to impose limits.
Whether those limits will be strict and robust enough, and whether MotoGP succeeds at getting them rubber-stamped along with a corresponding system of sanctions - that's an entirely different question.
### How Lawson's changed his F1 narrative during 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/turbulent-f1-career-red-bull-racing-bulls-liam-lawson/
Last updated: 2026-08-19T10:56:52.000Z
**Liam Lawson could be in line** [**for a surprise Red Bull Racing return**](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/turbulent-f1-career-red-bull-racing-bulls-liam-lawson/) **at the Dutch Grand Prix with Isack Hadjar reportedly in doubt due to an injury.**
**Lawson being in that position is down to the foundation he's put in place in an under-the-radar campaign in which Racing Bulls feels he's made huge progress - as Jon Noble explained with insight from the team and Lawson in this article earlier this week.**
While Formula 1 drivers are often only as good as their last race, it is equally true to say that the measure of talent is not a one-off star showing. It's turning up week in, week out and repeating it.
Consistency is king, and delivering that in as competitive an arena as F1 is no mean feat.
It requires not just natural speed but a host of elements lining up in tandem. There is never one thing that is the trigger point; it's a lot of small details that must perfectly align.
That is very much the case with Liam Lawson in 2026, as he returns, three years on from his unexpected F1 debut, to the Dutch Grand Prix as the leading driver in the points standings outside of the top four teams.
With team-mate Arvid Lindblad having such an eye-catching rookie campaign and Red Bull junior Nikola Tsolov leading the Formula 2 championship in his first full season, Lawson can't feel too comfortable. But by sitting ninth in the drivers' standings, just one place and 25 points behind Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar, he is certainly standing his ground in the seemingly never-ending battle for seat security across Red Bull's F1 teams.
It's been a bit of a rollercoaster for the New Zealander since stepping in for the injured Daniel Ricciardo back in 2023, but he confesses that presently he is the happiest he has been in F1.
What is perhaps most striking though is that where he is now is such a world away from things just 12 months ago – when many had written him off after a troubled move to Red Bull, and thought he was on borrowed time at Racing Bulls.
Yet Lawson is, as he often shows on track, a steely and robust character who is not wired to roll over and accept defeat. He has knuckled down, listened to those close to him and focused on the bits of the job that make him faster.
As his team boss Alan Permane told The Race: "He's come on immensely. I can see he's happier, and in his driving he's more focused. He's quicker."
For Permane, the improvement has been noticeable, and is the result of Lawson having taken on board advice on things he needed to do better.
"I think if you said to him last year, 'you're doing these things wrong, and therefore, by doing this, we think you can be quicker,' maybe he wouldn't have agreed. But \[this year\] he has," he explained.
"He's listened to what we said to him. So that gives us a nice bit of trust. It makes us work together a little bit better. He maybe trusts me and trusts the team a bit more.
"When we say stuff to him, he knows we've only got his interests at heart because they're the same as our interests.
"If he's faster, we're all faster. But I don't say it's coming easy because he's working incredibly hard at it, and you can see that it's bearing fruit."
Lawson himself does not see his personal shift being so dramatic.
"It's easy to probably feel like, 'oh, I made a significant step since last year'. But not that much has changed, honestly," he tells The Race.
However, F1 is an area where details matter. And he acknowledges that this is a year where hard work pays off in particular, thanks to the complexities of deployment strategies that require ever closer effort with the engineers around him.
"I think there's probably a bit more homework you can do on each weekend to make sure that you're getting everything out of the power unit. That's something that's been quite powerful this year.
"I've enjoyed that work ethic with the team. The more you look into it, you find little things that work for you.
"There's been a couple of scenarios this year where I've benefited from something we've found before the race or before a session that we've used to our advantage.
"That stuff is always exciting - separating that from the actual cars themselves…"
A clear example of this came at the very first race in Australia.
Already on the Thursday track walk in Melbourne, Lawson was telling engineers that he reckoned lifting through some corners that in theory would be easy flat, like Turns 9/10, could help in harvesting energy more – to allow greater deployment later. He proved to be correct.
It is well known that Lawson does not like the 2026 rules but he has not allowed those feelings to overshadow his determination to get the most out of the cars.
As his race engineer Alexandre Iliopoulos says: "He understands how important it is to make this car and this series of regs fast. He fully is on board with it and tries to ask the right questions."
Another factor that has contributed to Lawson delivering this season is the fact that there has finally been some stability for him.
He's in his fifth year with what's now Racing Bulls since stepping up to the then-AlphaTauri team as test/reserve driver in 2022 (he had a run at the post-season Abu Dhabi test at the end of 2021), and this is the third 'year' of racing.
His campaigns in 2023 and 2024 were both late-season stand-in/replacement stints though, while last year was overshadowed by the difficult start with Red Bull and then the rebuilding of his confidence.
It is only in 2026 that there has been consistency over the winter and the benefits that come from being able to feed knowledge into the system from the off.
Lawson has absolutely no doubt that this has helped. "It's really important," he said. "We were struggling a lot in the pre-season tests and spent a lot of time talking about the direction we needed to go.
"So being a part of those conversations and knowing everything we're developing, knowing exactly what we're focused on, that's been really important.
"I'm not jumping in having missed all of that and just trying to sort of play catch-up.
"It's as simple as in a race weekend, if you miss a practice session because of an issue, it really knocks you back more than you'd think. Trying to play catch-up when everybody's at the top of their game is quite hard."
This stability element is something Iliopoulos says perhaps has not been appreciated by many.
"Really, last year was his first season in Formula 1 even though he'd been around for a lot of time," he said.
"We tend to forget maybe that he was almost a rookie. And obviously, experience in Formula 1 is key, I think, because it's such a different series from other motorsports.
"Having that full year of experience is very helpful for him to focus on the things that matter most."
One dynamic that has helped a lot also is Lawson's relationship with this team boss Permane.
The pair of them may appear to be quite different characters, but they share a trait of saying things as they see them. There is no beating around the bush or a desire to treat anybody with kid gloves.
"We have a good relationship," says Permane. "I'm not scared to give him a b\*\*\*\*\*king if it's not going well. I'm also trying not to be an ogre.
"I do try and be really honest with the drivers. If something isn't good enough, I'll tell them. But also, if they've done a fantastic job, I'll tell them as well. So I do try and give them that feedback."
It's a stance Lawson likes.
Speaking about Permane he says: "He's very black and white, and I'm very, very black and white as well. I think that's been something that we relate to a lot when we talk about weekends.
"We talk about things that need to be better and more things that we've done a good job at. It's just honestly taking the learnings, shutting the door, and focusing on the next weekend."
Lawson is certainly thriving in the exponential gains that come from a run of good results. Confidence-boosting performances deliver more belief to chase ever better results.
As Iliopoulos explains: "In every sport, the confidence aspect is very important. Scoring points is important to \[help you\] keep focussing on what matters.
"There's so many details, so many things that you can get lost in - and then you start doubting stuff and not trusting what people say.
"So if you score, it reinforces that you trust the car, you trust the people, you trust the engineers and you trust the whole process. And then you can just focus on driving the car and driving it fast."
Right now, that is exactly what Lawson is doing – and it has resulted in him being the happiest he has been in F1 even though he knows his final job is not done yet.
"Yeah, definitely you enjoy it when you have success," he said. "But at the end of the day, we know we all have this mission that we're all working towards.
"That's very much the focus, and I get maybe more enjoyment out of taking steps and getting closer to that."
### Why a fuel giant ended its F1 exile
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/audi-bp-f1-return-castrol-sponsorship/
Last updated: 2026-08-20T10:27:37.000Z
How does a Formula 1 sponsor measure success? For BP, which returned to the grid with Audi in 2026 after a decades-long absence, the victories are already stacking up alongside its lubricants brand, Castrol.
Castrol boasts a formidable global motorsport pedigree - including recent F1 experience with Alpine and McLaren, plus legendary World Endurance Championship and World Rally Championship successes with Audi.
BP is more closely associated with the World Rally Championship than F1\. After leaving F1 in the late 1960s, the fuel giant briefly returned with Toleman in 1983 and sponsored other teams into the 1990s before vanishing from the grid once again, before returning briefly as Alpine's fuel partner in the 2010s.
So, why come back now?
"An opportunity for us to be involved in a team that is entering F1 from the start and build that out together is what made this partnership so attractive," explains SVP Marketing and Transformation for BP, Nicola Buck.
"It's an opportunity for us to showcase our technology credentials, our innovation credentials, and our partnership credentials."
The depth of the Audi alliance goes far beyond traditional sponsorship. BP supplies the fuel, while Castrol provides the lubricants, making this a foundational pillar of Audi's 2026 works entry.
"From a technology perspective, it's a true co-engineering journey," Buck says. "This is not just a sticker on a car. It's the opportunity to develop the powertrain together to make a very unique offering that hopefully gives the team the extra power needed to win on the track."
## How is BP measuring its success?
According to Buck, Audi's on-track performance - securing points on debut, followed by three more top-10 finishes across Silverstone, Spa, and Hungary - has already made a tangible impact.
"For us to be in a true technology partnership with a team that's performing so well in its first season, it does wonders for the halo impact on the brand," she notes.
Strong track results translate directly into consumer trust. Buck explains that Audi's competitiveness allows BP and Castrol to better communicate "how brilliant our fuels and lubes are to the general public, and upsell the products that we're so proud of".
Crucially, the partnership also deepens commercial ties with the wider Volkswagen Group, opening doors to supply products across other VW-owned manufacturers.
Buck says the data backs it up. Initial coverage of the BP-Audi partnership in March 2026 was overwhelmingly positive, buoyed by BP being among the first suppliers to homologate its fuel for F1's new regulatory era.
"We run tracking programmes to say, 'Is that partnership helping us build that association with our brand amongst our target audiences around the world?'" she says.
BP and Castrol also measure internal optics.
"Another reason we do this kind of thing is to build pride in our organisation for the partnerships, the technology, and the amazing products we've got. And that we can track very quickly," Buck says.
Furthermore, a physical trackside presence allows both brands to engage stakeholders directly, whether through BP's trackside fuel lab or via activations with Audi F1 drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto, alongside F1 Academy driver Emma Felbermayr.
From an engineering standpoint, BP's motorsport technology lead, Luc Jolly, highlights the crucial and useful sharing of information between BP's engineering teams.
"We're tapping into the wider BP technology brain for skills and specialisms that would be difficult to have completely within my core team," Jolly explains.
"The shared learnings are real. We might not be talking about all of them yet, but that's going to be part of this journey over the coming years."
## Why 2026 - and why partner with Audi?
This year's sweeping engine regulation changes created a rare opening. They provided the perfect blank slate for Audi to enter as a new powertrain supplier, complete with dedicated, ground-up fuel and lubricant partners.
Castrol's historical success with Audi - a partnership that has bred victories across numerous disciplines such as the WEC, DTM, Dakar Rally, and Formula E - laid a solid foundation for the deal.
"When we're able to talk to customers, the credibility of having that joined-up relationship - to talk about the history, the heritage, and why this is the next generation of it - is really powerful," Buck says.
Jolly agrees, noting the "organisational learnings" that carried over from their dominant LMP1 days.
"Having worked with Audi previously, as two organisations, we know how to work together and get the best out of each other. Some of the team members are actually the same. So, there's a natural sense of not starting from scratch."
However, the partnership might never have materialised without Liberty Media's dramatic transformation of F1 that began in 2017\. When asked if BP would have returned to the grid without F1's recent commercial boom, Buck replied: "I think the simple answer is no, right?
"You go back four or five years, F1 numbers were declining. It wasn't a sport that had the growth that it has today. It was a sport that we were questioning our involvement in for the long term.
"Now, what that translates to from a business perspective is that the audience has dramatically shifted. There is an element of a blank slate.
"There are many in this new generation of 17- and 18-year-old fans who have no memory of the Le Mans partnership. For them, it's a very modern take on a sport for the future that I think we can be really proud of, as well as building off that heritage."
It will take time to find out the real returns of BP and Castrol's partnership with Audi - but the capitalisation on the 2026 rules reset, Audi's F1 debut, and a growing F1 fanbase, is already paying dividends.
### Just spend more? Mercedes' intriguing theory for McLaren's PU deficit
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/just-spend-more-mercedes-intriguing-theory-for-mclarens-pu-deficit/
Last updated: 2026-08-18T13:00:56.000Z
Mercedes has a different explanation for why customer team McLaren has not been able to exploit its 2026 Formula 1 power unit as effectively as the works operation.
Defending champion McLaren not getting as much out of the power unit as Mercedes has been one of the major behind-the-scenes topics in the development of this year's title fight, and has been known to be a source of at least mild frustration for McLaren - one it has at least hinted at, if never fully expressed publicly.
Back at Silverstone in July, where McLaren expressed surprise at the qualifying power trick being used by the factory Mercedes cars, team principal Andrea Stella said: "There's definitely conversations ongoing with HPP \[Mercedes High Performance Powertrains\] at technical level to make sure that we use what is available in this power unit, which is brilliant. It's a really piece of great technology. There's a lot of performance, which is also in the details of the exploitation.
"...Definitely there's some other factors that we need to keep discussing with HPP, because when we look at the performance in the straights, even taking into account the fact that they \[Mercedes\] may have less drag, there's still some question marks."
The [shorter gear ratios](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/key-f1-mistake-mclaren-cannot-correct-until-2027/) picked by McLaren at the start of the year based on early Mercedes info have been one such point of differentiation.
But according to Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord, simple intellectual property logistics and matters of spending - rather than any deliberate strategy from Mercedes to give its factory team a leg up - have been central to any difference in power unit exploitation.
"Everything is in the rules and everything is in the contract. I think McLaren and the other customer teams, Alpine and Williams, are great partners to work with, they're rightly demanding. They've chosen Mercedes because they choose to work with a company that provides excellent support and a great product," said Lord.
"The \[power unit\] team at Brixworth have proven over the last however-many-years of customer supply that they do that in a very even-handed and correct way.
"Where there have perhaps inevitably been perceptions of differences, or they \[customers\] have...felt potentially one step behind is in the...a lot of the simulation tools, the ability to predict behaviour of the power unit and the chassis and things like that.
"And a lot of those toolsets are things that we've developed not just at Brixworth but between MGP \[Mercedes F1 team\] chassis team and HPP at Brixworth - and obviously the technical regulations are very clear on what chassis team IP can and cannot be shared between teams as well.
"So, in some instances there is unpicking that needs to be done before elements can be then provided to the customer teams - or the customer teams themselves are needing to do work and spend, invest their own cost cap resource into developing the tools to be able to get the most from the power unit.
"So that's probably one of the complexities that we've bumped into - but kind of understandable in a brand new ruleset and a new ruleset that is more complex than the previous one."
## 'Out of the main loop'
McLaren beat Mercedes by 364 points in the constructors' standings last year, the final season of that regulation cycle, but currently trails by 159 points - though it did dominate the Hungarian Grand Prix with Lando Norris.
An interview it released with technical director for performance, Mark Temple during the summer break shed some more light on matters of power unit exploitation, and backed up some of what Lord said, while also stressing a fundamental "out of the main loop" characteristic of the team's customer status right now.
"I think some of it comes from how much influence you have over the design and the installation. We do have considerable input, but ultimately MGP \[the Mercedes race team\] have the final say with HPP on what happens. That shouldn't be taken to mean we're ignored - we're ultimately just not the ones in complete control.
“The way HPP work on a race weekend is with a main team and customer support teams. We work very closely with our customer support team and have good relationships with people in the main programme. From that, we have influence on what's happening within the main programme - but we don't have guarantees they'll accept things we request.
"We're a little out of the main loop in that respect, working in a side loop that feeds into the programme, but it means we don't always get the configurations we want and that would suit us.
"It's the same with the timeline. In the run-up to a race, we receive information from HPP, but there's decision-making and evolution we're not part of. When we find out what we've got, there's often not a huge amount of time to react and respond - so part of what we're trying to do this year is build and improve our process to make this less of a limitation."
Temple indicated this was a matter of further developing and acclimatising McLaren's new "power unit performance team, which we didn't have before".
"As a normal activity, HPP will do simulations and come up with a configuration for a particular event and a given session and present a multitude of different options of how best to use energy around the lap.
"We want to then check that against our tools and the specific requirements of the MCL40, plus variables like the wind direction, the grip level, the amount of fuel in the tank, and so on. So, we explore all of those things and compare them against what we think is optimal and then make recommendations to our race engineers alongside the HPP engineers.
"It's a very collaborative process - but we use some of our tools differently, and indeed have slightly different tools, to HPP, so it's a combination of the two approaches."
### Formula E's bitter feud explodes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/da-costa-wehrlein-formula-e-bitter-feud-erupt/
Last updated: 2026-08-17T15:35:58.000Z
Pascal Wehrlein and Antonio Felix da Costa's well-chronicled feud never really went away. And at the London E-Prix, it got supercharged to a new alarming and bitter level.
The pair engaged in a volatile scrap during the race as Wehrlein attempted to hunt down a second world title and da Costa was deployed as a blocker to both assist team-mate Mitch Evans's remote title chance and to help secure a teams' title for Jaguar.
Strong opinions on each other's driving were articulated on their respective pit-to-car radios, with da Costa instructed to back up the Porsche. At that stage da Costa said: "They are just getting a taste of their own medicine. Don’t f\*\*\* with me, don't f\*\*\* with me."
The pair didn't actually clash to any significant degree, save for a minor altercation on the final lap, but left each other very little margin in their duels, and the acrimony peaked with Wehrlein mocking da Costa moments before he crossed the line, having already secured the title.
"Look at him, he still wants to fight. What an idiot, this guy," said Wehrlein. "Sore loser. I f\*\*\*ing beat you three years in a row."
Da Costa's tactics were effective, insofar as Evans passed him and Wehrlein in a well-coordinated swoop and a lap later both he and Wehrlein were swallowed up by the chasing pack - to such an extent that the Porsche driver briefly lost the live points lead to Jake Dennis, the other points rival, before they came to blows as part of a three-car clash.
But ultimately Evans ran out of time to catch the race leaders for the points he needed to overhaul Wehrlein - who after the race called da Costa's driving "one of the most unsporting and unfair things I have seen".
"But yeah, that's how it is if you have enemies in the paddock," he acknowledged, before later adding: "Antonio tried for 20 laps to ruin my race. Driving next to me, slowing down, pushing me against the walls, brake-testing me...and just trying to ruin my race and ruin my championship."
Da Costa told The Race that the roots of his "taste of their own medicine" strategy - in attempting to destabilise his rivals and assist Evans - came from the day before with what he and Jaguar believed were questionable tactics deployed by Porsche, in particular by using Nico Mueller as a spoiler for Evans's race.
"I didn't like what they \[Porsche\] did yesterday," said da Costa on Sunday.
"Obviously, they gave themselves the flexibility to do it after qualifying and the track allows for that type of racing, \[but\] I didn't like it. And when I saw that lap one \[on Sunday\] they started it again, I said, 'OK, I deploy my plan B' and I played their game.
"They have no right - no right, zero - to say anything. We did nothing that they haven't done before.
"I've heard that he's been saying things here, and I haven't seen or heard anything in particular, but you take what you get, man; you can't have it both ways, right?
"They \[Porsche\] play these political games with other teams, with teams that they supply powertrains to, and man, you can't have it both ways. If you do bad things to people, people will do bad things to you.
"Now, having said that, what I did on track, just like what they did to us, it's not illegal. Look at the rules, look at the guidelines, I did nothing wrong, we barely touched, I think we touched wheels once in the whole race."
Both Wehrlein and da Costa were given five-second time penalties, converted to three-place future grid-drop penalties: Wehrlein for his contact with Joel Eriksson and Dennis in the ultimately title-defining moment of the day; and da Costa for his own contact with Dennis.
Ironically, the aforementioned final-lap contact between Wehrlein and da Costa at Turn 19 went unpenalised by the stewards, who reasoned: "The contact resulted from the combination of car #94's \[Wehrlein\] late turn-in and car #13 \[da Costa\] turning towards the apex while the cars were alongside.
"Accordingly, the stewards determined that neither driver was predominantly to blame for the contact and therefore take no further action."
In addition to his da Costa-targeted radio messages, Wehrlein also issued a warning for the Gen4 era of Formula E, one which it is said that Porsche has had a very strong initial private testing period for.
"Everyone's against me!" Wehrlein exclaimed. "Bet against me! Try it. Be sure I remember everything for the future. Be sure."
### What time is F1's 2026 Dutch Grand Prix? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1s-2026-dutch-grand-prix-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-08-17T14:25:01.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
As Formula 1**®** returns from its summer break, next up in the 2026 season is the ever eye-catching Dutch Grand Prix.
Zandvoort won't be on the calendar next year - so this is the final chance for now to watch F1 cars navigate the crazy banking at Hugenholtz or the high-speed Scheivlak corner. And it's a sprint weekend!
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Dutch GP schedule (US times)
*PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time*
**Friday August 21**
**Practice**: 3.30am (PDT), 6.30am (EDT)
**Sprint qualifying:** 7.30am (PDT), 10.30am (EDT)
**Saturday August 22**
**Sprint**: 3am (PDT), 6am (EDT)
**Grand Prix qualifying**: 7am (PDT), 10am (EDT)
**Sunday August 23**
**Dutch Grand Prix**: 6am (PDT), 9am (EDT)
---
Watch The Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), August 21-23\. U.S. only.
---
## Dutch GP schedule (local time)
**Friday August 21**
**Practice**: 12.30pm
**Sprint qualifying:** 4.30pm
**Saturday August 22**
**Sprint**: 12.00pm
**Grand Prix qualifying:** 4pm
**Sunday August 23**
**Dutch Grand Prix**: 3pm
## Dutch GP schedule (UK time)
**Friday August 21**
**Practice**: 11.30am
**Sprint qualifying:** 3.30pm
**Saturday August 22**
**Sprint**: 11.00am
**Grand Prix qualifying:** 3pm
**Sunday August 23**
**Dutch Grand Prix**: 2pm
## How to watch the Dutch GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026\.
Fans can view every minute of the Dutch Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)'s new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The Formula 1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), August 21-23\. U.S. only.
### Winners and losers from Formula E's contentious title decider
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/winners-losers-formula-e-contentious-season-finale-excel-london/
Last updated: 2026-08-17T15:31:55.000Z
What looked like a relatively tame Formula E season finale exploded into life in the final 10 laps thanks to some classic team-order interference and its contact-inducing consequences.
Add in some curt exchanges over the team radio, as the destiny of the championship changed hands briefly in-race, and this made for a fitting send off for an Excel London venue that's provided its fair share of Formula E action.
Here's our pick of winners and losers as the 2025-26 title was decided:
## Winner and loser: Porsche
Pascal Wehrlein's second title ensured that he became the only official double Formula E world champion - Jean-Eric Vergne's brace of triumphs were before the absolute moniker of FIA Formula E world champion existed - and he therefore became statistically the most successful driver of the Gen3 era.
Porsche, with its 99X Electric, also cemented its reputation as statistically the best manufacturer of the era too as the drivers' title meant that it secured a sixth title (three drivers', two manufacturers' and a teams' triumph) since the Gen3 car's debut in 2023.
It achieved that result in a slightly different manner to all of those victories before it though, as it felt the need to protect Wehrlein at all costs via a mixture of overt calls to Cupra Kiro and Dan Ticktum and especially Wehrlein's works team-mate, Nico Mueller.
It wasn't a popular way of doing it. Up and down the paddock, the bitching was more akin to an Eastenders episode. But in the East End last weekend Porsche played just about every card it had, and it reaped the rewards.
Those tactics, to be clear, were not against any rules and regulations. It will be, to an extent, next season though when the FIA cracks down on such practices between manufacturers and teams.
That Porsche's actions were looked at very dimly in some corners of the paddock was no surprise. Were its rivals naive? Perhaps. But it's fair to say that as elegant title triumphs go, this was on the more debatable side of the conversation.
Yet, when were winners ever universally popular in a paddock of competitive and hungry individuals, especially those from manufacturers and big independent teams? Probably never.
But the overt deployment of Mueller as arch spoiler really got up Jaguar's collective noses, and that irritation manifested in a retaliation that ultimately acted as an accelerant to the Antonio Felix da Costa and Wehrlein feud, one that has burned white hot ever since the pair irreversibly fell out as team-mates at the 2024 Sao Paulo E-Prix.
It all meant that the antics ramped up to an inelegant degree on Sunday, with multiple incidents and marginal driving by both Wehrlein and da Costa. It almost cost the former the title and it cost both of them penalties they will carry into the Gen4 period.
Through it all though was the fact that Wehrlein won. And it was telling that his aggressive slamming down of his protective cockpit fixture in parc ferme and a primal scream into the claustrophobic Excel hall was a clear message to his detractors, of which there are many in the Formula E paddock.
While it wasn't a pretty way to win, win Wehrlein did, and over the course of the season he has been one of the very top performers and Porsche certainly did have probably the best car in many areas across the grid.
Yet, that unease with some of the tactics left an aftertaste. Will that have a legacy? Possibly. Will Porsche and Wehrlein care too much about it as they celebrate another successful season? No.
On the da Costa-Wehrlein rivalry, which now feels like an out-and-out vendetta, Porsche director of motorsport for Formula E, Florian Modlinger would not comment directly, only telling The Race on Sunday: "He \[da Costa\] was down on energy in attack mode, but still attacking Pascal. This looked like he clearly compromised his own race.
"But everybody needs to decide what he's doing, what the team is doing. We will review this race exactly and in detail afterwards. But it's not the day where we do it. We do it when it's quiet and calm."
## Loser and winner: Jaguar
Jaguar savoured its second team title as Evans's fourth position on Sunday ultimately consolidated its points lead, as Porsche notched up its third blank score of the season.
The fact that Jaguar had four such non-scores across the campaign will surely rankle Porsche's ultra-competitive nature because really it had more than one chance of taking a hat-trick of drivers', manufacturers' and teams' titles across the 17-race season.
Jaguar, a deserving teams' title winner, did suffer genuine bad luck in London with Evans's Saturday race compromised by the full course yellow before he signed off from his decade-long career with the Big Cat with a typically tenacious and well-driven Sunday race.
For that, Jaguar is, like Porsche, considered a winner and loser: a winner for its teams' title success; but a loser for the same reasons as Porsche, with the spoiling tactics via da Costa at times just as uneasy.
That said, the tight confines of the Excel track were always going to bring such scenarios to the fore. Add in the genuine loathing of former team-mates and disparate characters of da Costa and Wehrlein, and it is a perfect recipe for what was seen by both last weekend.
There were plenty of neutral teams and drivers too that were subtly and not so subtly getting involved through nothing other than friendship and a kind of nosey inquisitiveness.
Some stated off-the-record that both Porsche and Jaguar could take it but couldn't give it when it came to the spoiling tactics employed. While there is some credence in this both ways, Jaguar proved categorically that after Saturday it wasn't shy in street fighting too after what it felt were bullying tactics from its major rival.
Jaguar's team principal, Ian James, naturally defended his team when questioned about the tactics and the feud between da Costa and Wehrlein, saying: "As you go through any kind of competitive sport through the years, it would be naive to think that there are rivalries in certain areas and I suppose friendships in others.
"Between Pascal and Antonio, it's for them to say the state of their relationship. But from the outside looking in, it doesn't look like there's any love lost between them.
"But at the end of the day, that is what it is. We just need to make sure that out on the track, the driving is fair and respectful. And once again, I can only speak on behalf of my team and my drivers. I think what we saw was exceptional."
## Loser: Andretti
It would be unfair to single out Jake Dennis as an overt loser because generally the first Gen3 champion was excellent.
But it can't be disguised that Andretti lost its fight for third place, albeit through the hands of, quite ironically (some may say inevitably), its manufacturer provider Porsche.
Wehrlein's tagging of both Joel Eriksson and then Dennis was the defining factor of the Andretti driver's Sunday race and it was one that Dennis felt ultimately lost him what could have been a second title.
Dennis, who was fast throughout the weekend, ultimately probably lost out because of a poor Sunday qualifying. That was put down to poor rear stability on his Andretti-Porsche and it was a big setback because from 16th position he had to employ a super energy-save strategy.
He was pulling that off superbly up until the point of contact via Wehrlein, and with an energy advantage and part of his second attack mode left Dennis was lined up to deliver.
But the heartache was dealt with pretty quickly as context and peace with it all for father-to-be Dennis was digested, especially in light of the Andretti driver having already won a title (in 2023).
"It definitely softens the blow," said Dennis.
"I didn't think it would, but it does. If that was mine for the first time, I would be really salty. But I'm just already at peace a bit that that's how they win it. And so be it, is what it is. I can just go into the off-season knowing I gave it my absolute best."
## Winner: Mahindra
That Mahindra had a quick car in the halls of and perimeter roads around the Excel was never in doubt. That it could switch it all on definitely was after a Saturday in which it left with just six points for Edoardo Mortara's seventh-place finish.
It should have got much more. But several key technical changes overnight allowed it to reactivate the pace of both cars to claim its first ever 1-2 grid lockout and then a double podium in the race to seal third position in the final teams' standings.
From where Mahindra began the Gen3 era - at the back and needing to rebuild - to where it ended it - beaten only by Porsche and Jaguar - is one of the stories and best achievements of the entire ruleset.
That is why the Indian-flagged team celebrated its achievement so viscerally, even if in reality it should have been celebrating its third win of the season as it looked to be in total control of the race with Nyck de Vries and Mortara orchestrating what looked at one stage to be the perfect strategy.
While that didn't quite play out, Mahindra can be justifiably proud of a remarkable turnaround that left its team principal Frederic Bertrand waxing lyrical about the achievement.
"What we have done is a big testament to the spirit of the team to say we are down but never, ever out of it," he told The Race even ahead of last weekend.
"This gives us a lot of confidence and momentum for Gen4 because we have proved that Mahindra can be close to Porsche and Jaguar at the end of a season. There is so much pride in how we did from where we came from."
## Loser: Nissan
The outside chance of Oliver Rowland going back-to-back on drivers' titles always felt remote and so it proved as he never really featured at a track where the Nissan has struggled to match any of its direct rivals in the Gen3 Evo era.
A 10th- and ninth-place finish and a pair of fastest laps was slim pickings for Rowland and, with team-mate Norman Nato again barely contributing, it meant Nissan ended the season a lowly sixth in the teams' standings.
A gargantuan 131 points off winner Jaguar tells its own tale at the end of a season in which on several occasions it looked like a squad that was chasing its own tail.
All of that will be addressed in the off-season as Nissan continues to develop its Gen4 challenger. Rowland will play a huge part in that in the late summer months because the team needs a re-energised focal point who can help galvanise a team that often feels to be in a continual state of rebuilding.
## Winner: Taylor Barnard
To say Barnard's first victory in Formula E felt like it was coming would be disingenuous because DS Penske frankly has had a horrible season, one in which at no stage did Barnard look like becoming the all-electric world championship's youngest-ever winner.
He left it late in the Gen3 era in which he emerged as an unlikely star, albeit one in which he was heavily invested in by first McLaren and then DS Penske.
Barnard has been quick this season but a mixture of average technical performance from the Stellantis powertrain and some incorrect team calls on race strategy meant it was hands down DS's worst season in its decade-long commitment to Formula E. That it left it with a win though was one of the feel-good stories of the season as the Stellantis brands change again (with Opel incoming) for Gen4.
Barnard's victory was well deserved after his side of the garage played his final attack mode strategy perfectly to vanquish the probably-slightly-quicker Mahindras. For Barnard himself, it answered a question he asked almost ad nauseam.
"Everyone's always asked about the youngest race winner, youngest pole and podium and when is the youngest race winner coming?" he told The Race.
"My answer was always, 'It's coming' so I'm not going to stress about it.
"I thought it would happen in its own time, and to get it at the last-possible moment was very Formula E style.
"It's been super difficult this season, lots of hard work, but those results was tough for all of them, so to give them the best send-off into the off-season was, I think, the best thing possible."
## Loser: Lola-Yamaha Abt
There have been plenty of weekends across Lola-Yamaha Abt's two seasons of Formula E existence where you have to cut the plucky underdog a lot of slack. The London E-Prix most definitely wasn't one of them.
In fact, the team's display across the whole London weekend was lamentable. There is no possible way you can dress it up as anything else.
Constant reliability issues hamstrung it to the point where it barely operated and a few laps into Saturday's race the team may as well have gone to the local pub, The Fox, to drown its sorrows as both cars were loaded onto tow trucks and brought sorrowfully back to the pits.
How can the last race of a ruleset produce such dreadful reliability? It was a situation that completely dampened Lucas di Grassi's farewell. He deserved so much better. There were inevitably tears in the garage, and while the sentiment of those was for di Grassi's racing career exit, some were also of frustration and probably embarrassment at what should have been a celebratory finale.
Lola is said to have a fast Gen4 car after a recent test at Estoril. It better hope it has a bigger picture because frankly its London weekend just wasn't good enough.
Remarkably, it is still replacing the Abt engineering power that it stated it was forsaking. That was six months ago. Quite why it is taking so long is only known internally at present. But it's clear someone needs to get a grip of the overall situation immediately.
It has a massive rebuilding job to activate in the months to come if it is to be taken seriously at world-championship level as a consistent and credible entity.
### One-sided 2026 F1 driver battle hasn't always been a 'fair fight'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/is-this-f1-2026-team-mate-fight-too-skewed-to-trust/
Last updated: 2026-08-17T11:37:08.000Z
The raw statistics of one intra-team fight so far in Formula 1 2026 make for pretty grim reading for one side of the garage: 18-3 on points, 11-4 head-to-head in qualifying, 9-3 head-to-head in races.
That's the current difference between Haas drivers Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon. But in the words of the clear winner, Bearman, it's "not always \[been\] a fair fight" because of a big issue Haas has encountered this year.
That problem is a frustrating parts inconsistency that team principal Ayao Komatsu has long been open about and that has affected *both* drivers at different stages throughout the year.
In fact, Bearman made those "not always a fair fight" comments just before the Hungarian GP, where he would end up suffering with that issue, while Ocon had one of his strongest weekends of the year relative to Bearman.
Ocon has generally been the more publicly frustrated driver, believing that prior to Hungary he'd only had "normal car performance" at Suzuka and Silverstone.
Asked to sum up his first half of the season, Ocon said on Thursday in Hungary: "Too many difficulties really. Too many issues, too many things that prevented us from performing.
"Probably the most difficult first half of the season that I've ever had in terms of how consistent the car was from one race to another and how many problems I had this year."
That's led to a lot of parts swapping between the Haas cars to try to work around that inconsistency in part performance, including between practice sessions. For example, Bearman's car felt "terrible" in FP3 at Barcelona because of parts inconsistencies and it left him "heavily compromised" for that event, according to Komatsu, while Ocon was compromised in practice in Austria before parts were swapped.
"It has been tough, definitely, because you always want to come in the weekend and everything to be smooth, just work on the car normally, fine-tune it and get the maximum out of it, but that is how it has been," Ocon explained.
"I keep working with the team to help them as much as I can to figure out those issues and try and choose what is the best outcome for us.
"All together, I am sure we will come out of this. It is true that it has been persisting for some time now, which is difficult, but we are sticking together and we will fix it."
Ocon swapped to a different floor and rear wing within Haas's parts pool ahead of Friday practice in Hungary and felt immediately buoyed by the changes.
He also benefitted from being granted his wish of a lighter steering rack in Hungary.
"He's always wanted lighter steering on this car," Haas's head of car engineering Hoagy Nidd explained.
"We managed to get that for him, so he was pretty happy right from the get-go.”
Despite this, he was wary of a repeat of Spa - where he had been happy on Friday only for the race engine to go in the car on Saturday and suddenly be accompanied by a "rear downforce loss and an imbalance between front and rear".
However, the momentum continued into qualifying in Hungary - where Ocon was two tenths quicker than Bearman in Q1, advancing while Bearman was knocked out - and into the grand prix, where Ocon finished as the lead Haas for only the second time this year when both drivers have finished.
"We had the consistency back," Ocon enthused after the race.
"The car was healthy all weekend. We managed to keep the same performance from Friday to Saturday to Sunday and the same car balance, etc. So that was good."
## 'Hoping to be on the good side'
The parts inconsistency issue means Haas is struggling to field two cars that allow the drivers to extract the maximum of the car's theoretical potential each weekend.
It's leaving Bearman and Ocon heading into every weekend hoping they're not the one on the wrong side of it.
"It's been a horrible, horrible weekend and it's just a sign of how poor we are in terms of consistencies, because if it's not me, which it has been this weekend, and maybe one or two others, it's Esteban's car that is suddenly missing 10-15 points of load," Bearman said on Sunday in Hungary.
"So you're kind of just hoping you're going to be on the good side and if you are, you're going to have a decent weekend, and if you're not, you're going to have a really, really long one. We had the long one."
It's why on the eve of the Hungarian GP Bearman declined the chance to talk up his big intra-team advantage so far when he was asked if he was surprised to be so far ahead of Ocon.
He replied: "It's a tough situation that is happening at our team. The inconsistency between our parts has been quite high. I've been on the bad side of that and I've also been on the good side of that, but it's a shame because it means that you're always chasing a moving target. Overnight, we can have changes to our car balance without expecting that.
"All of that is to say that it's not always a fair fight, the one that we are having, and sometimes we feel like we're fighting with our hands almost tied behind our backs.
"Of course, I feel like I'm performing at a really high level, and I really see a step in my performances from 12 months ago, even from the start of the season. That's all I can do.
"It's been a challenge for us. I'm happy with what I'm doing, but the story is not necessarily what you see in the headline."
Exactly *what* is causing the issue is unclear. Komatsu said "certain things we identified, we solved \[them\], but we still have issues" to resolve.
## 'Very difficult to get the true picture'
It's already difficult with the quirks of the F1 2026 power units to get a proper read of which drivers are doing the best job this year, but Haas's parts inconsistencies have added an extra layer of murkiness.
Then there's also an element of the 18-3 points difference being skewed by how the early races played out when Haas had a car capable of even challenging Red Bull in Shanghai, before it slipped into the middle of the midfield, failing to score points in the last six events running.
"It's very difficult from outside to see the gap between team-mates," Komatsu said.
"If you look at the points difference, some of the points difference happened because of the safety car as well. In Shanghai, Ollie got the full benefit of \[pitting under the\] VSC or safety car \[and finishing fifth\]. Esteban didn't \[and collided with Franco Colapinto and finished 14th\].
"Then \[at Spa\] on Friday, when he \[Ocon\] was happy with the car, he was reasonably close to Ollie. He was within two tenths. Then Saturday onwards, he just wasn't happy with the car. But honestly, we didn't change much at all. We still don't understand it.
"But clearly, when he was happy, it's not about laptime. He's obviously got a good feel to the car. So, without looking at his laptime, he said, 'Yeah, I'm happy with this car'. Guess what? He's close to Ollie. But FP3, he goes out, straight away, he said stability is gone. We don't understand why. He's absolutely nowhere close to Ollie.
"So yeah, I think it's very, very difficult to get the true picture."
This kind of quirk could naturally be a serious complication when deciding your driver line-up going forward. But when that was put to Komatsu, he said: "At least I know exactly what's happening. So, yeah. I can put everything into context, if you like."
Even with those Shanghai caveats, there's still no doubt that Bearman has clearly been the stronger Haas driver this year. And had Haas kept up its development pace, there's little reason to think Bearman wouldn't still have a healthy points margin over Ocon.
There's good reason why it's Ocon's seat that's the subject of so much speculation, and the only question mark over Bearman's future is whether Haas can hang on to him.
Bearman has spent 64% of the racing laps in 2026 ahead of Ocon - an improvement on a near 50/50 split last year - meaning Hungary was a rare off-weekend in what has generally been a really strong second year in F1\.
So Ocon will need more weekends like Hungary if he's to retain his seat and his place in F1\. That's unlikely to be judged by the end-of-season points totals, but by what Ocon adds to the "context" Komatsu has when assessing the not-always-fair fight.
### How Wehrlein was squeezed out of all his F1 chances
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-wehrlein-was-squeezed-out-of-all-his-f1-chances/
Last updated: 2026-08-16T15:17:33.000Z
**Pascal Wehrlein has just become only the second two-time champion in Formula E history in a wild 2025-26 season finale, continuing an unusual career journey that included using the DTM as a Formula 1 launchpad after an initial post-Formula 3 diversion off the single-seater path.**
**There's an alternative version of history in which Wehrlein had a spell as a Mercedes F1 driver during the team's original hybrid era peak. But it didn't turn out that way.**
**In an adapted version of a column that first ran when Wehrlein clinched his original Formula E title two years ago, Ben Anderson explains how Wehrlein was edged out of first the Mercedes pipeline and then F1 itself.**
Pascal Wehrlein's brief F1 career ultimately ran aground because of Force India's decision to pick Esteban Ocon over him when offered the choice of Mercedes F1 junior drivers to sign for 2017.
At the time, Ocon and Wehrlein were Manor-Mercedes team-mates. Wehrlein was theoretically ahead in the pecking order - having joined the Mercedes scheme a year ahead of Ocon, become the youngest ever DTM champion the day before his 21st birthday, and done more than half a season in F1\. Both had tested for Force India in 2015 too.
The team gelled better with Ocon, so chose him to replace Renault-bound Nico Hulkenberg. So that question of character, and how a driver communicates and builds bonds with the team around them, was pivotal in Wehrlein's F1 career trajectory just as it had been a [theme of his early Formula E years](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-champion-pascal-wehrlein-post-f1-transformation/).
Wehrlein's ability in F1 was abundantly clear: some of his qualifying laps to get that 2016 Manor out of Q1 were stunning. But ability is only ever one part of the equation and career momentum is as easily lost as it is gained.
Mercedes rightly thought Wehrlein was plenty good enough to be in F1, but not so good that he required a clear path to racing for the works team. He and Ocon are similar in that way.
Mercedes helped place Wehrlein at Sauber instead, and he did well - but as new team principal Fred Vasseur began forging the alliance with Ferrari that would bring generational talent Charles Leclerc into that team, the fact Marcus Ericsson's Swedish backers were still heavily invested too meant it was always likely to be Wehrlein making way.
Wehrlein was never a Leclerc-level F1 driver, but he was an Ocon-level one - so in a different world perhaps could have won a grand prix and still been scrapping for his place on the grid to this day.
Such is the life of an F1 driver who belongs, but isn't considered essential. It's to Wehrlein's credit he has rediscovered that vast motorsport world outside of F1 - and made a success of it too.
### Wehrlein clinches Formula E title despite finale clashes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/wehrlein-clinches-formula-e-title-despite-finale-clashes/
Last updated: 2026-08-17T13:37:53.000Z
Pascal Wehrlein became only the second driver to win multiple Formula E titles despite failing to score a point in a contentious season finale at Excel London in which he and main rival Jake Dennis came to blows.
Porsche driver Wehrlein ran in the top five for the majority of the 35-lap race, but things came to a head inside the final 10 laps when outside title contender Mitch Evans finally worked his way onto the rear of Wehrlein's car and Evans's Jaguar team-mate Antonio Felix da Costa came into play.
Evans - who as on Saturday had spent much of the race frustrated behind the second works Porsche of Nico Mueller - took attack mode immediately and, in a brilliantly executed move, da Costa held Wehrlein up enough to allow Evans to swoop past the pair and into fourth place.
But da Costa's work was not done there and he resisted any attempt by Wehrlein to come back through, with that sequence coming to a head a lap later as his defensive driving allowed four cars to pass him and Wehrlein - one of which was crucially the customer Porsche of Dennis.
Andretti driver Dennis had qualified a lowly 16th and spent the majority of the race in that lower reach of the pack, conserving energy, but came alive in the closing stages and for a brief moment was ahead of Wehrlein by a point in the live drivers' standings while he ran seventh and Wehrlein sat frustrated still behind da Costa.
Yet the need for the majority of drivers to take attack mode for a second time ultimately brought the two title contenders together again.
With the pair running ninth and 10th, Dennis got delayed briefly behind Joel Eriksson and that gave Wehrlein enough of a gap to lunge around the outside through the Turn 16 right-hander. He and Dennis ran side-by-side down to Turn 17, where Wehrlein tagged the rear of Eriksson's car - sending the Envision-Jaguar into a spin and Dennis into the wall.
Dennis emerged from that ahead but now well outside the points, and pitted the following lap for a tyre change, with Wehrlein nursing his Porsche home to the finish via another da Costa run-in - with no love lost between those two former team-mates.
Wehrlein's radio message while they duelled, in which he called da Costa a "sore loser" and added "f\*\*\*ing beat him three years in a row", and a five-second penalty post-race (converted for a three-place grid drop for the first race of the Gen4 era) for colliding with Eriksson took some shine off the result, but he still ended up classified in 14th - winning the title by the five-point buffer he started the day with.
Evans's late charge to the front came a little too late - as he finished his final race with Jaguar in fourth, leaving him nine points short of Wehrlein in the standings in third place.
Ahead of him, the Mahindras had dominated proceedings after locking out the front row in qualifying but Taylor Barnard cycled through into the lead of the race unseen then held off Nyck de Vries on the final lap to give DS Penske victory in DS's final race as a Formula E brand.
De Vries was backed up by team-mate Edoardo Mortara in third, allowing Mahindra to jump ahead of Andretti to take third in the teams' championship - which Jaguar won by 17 points over Porsche.
### Can this upgrade save an F1 season in decline?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/alpines-about-to-face-most-critical-test-yet-of-new-era/
Last updated: 2026-08-16T12:20:36.000Z
What's happened to an Alpine team that started the 2026 Formula 1 season with designs on hunting down the big four, but has since slumped into the midfield?
In Hungary, a second non-score in four race weekends, on a day when McLaren picked up the first win of its F1 title defence, was as good a reminder as any of where this new engine customer sits in the Mercedes-powered pecking order.
If that seems like an odd point of comparison to make, well, it's not so long ago that the outlook was slightly different.
Here's Pierre Gasly after he beat Red Bull's Max Verstappen to seventh in the Japanese Grand Prix, where the Alpine was the fourth-fastest car and was 1.028% off the pace using The Race's supertimes metric.
"\[We can\] not forget that Shanghai with three tenths off the McLaren, \[it's\] a bit more here in Suzuka, but they're also world champion last year and we were last in the championship," Gasly said. "Overall, it's definitely a good progress and hopefully we can close that gap in the coming months."
Contrast that with the mood in Hungary, where Alpine had the seventh-fastest car, was 2.120% off the benchmark (which just so happened to be McLaren), and was overtaken by Racing Bulls for fifth in the constructors' championship right before the summer break.
Suddenly, those early-season performance peaks - that (eventual) Monaco podium - seem a distant memory.
"It's not the reality I want to see, but there's no hiding from it and there's been a couple of races where it's kind of the same story: in qualifying 12th, 13th behind Racing Bulls and Audi and in the race, it’s like somehow you think that maybe we're going to be there and then I can see them, but it's just pure pace, we're not there," said Gasly, when asked by The Race about Alpine’s competitive outlook.
Maybe it was never going to be the case this year that Alpine could break the frontrunning ranks; it would be unfair to fault a driver too much for showing some willingness and ambition too.
Still, it's important to have those targets as reference points. And what's happening right now is nowhere near Flavio Briatore's January declaration that a good job in 2026 would constitute "fighting every race to be in the points; to be in the first six, seven".
The deficit in Hungary actually wasn't dissimilar to other tracks. At Shanghai, for example, where Gasly should've been fifth with a perfect weekend, Alpine was 2.002% off pacesetter Mercedes.
The trouble is that the buffer to the chasing midfield pack hasn't just gone, but Alpine's been usurped by Racing Bulls in particular and Audi to a lesser extent. And that's been the case for three or four rounds now - with Gasly and Franco Colapinto both speaking of "damage limitation" at Silverstone in early July.
And so to the questions of why that's the case, and how it's rectified.
The first part, Gasly insisted, is less about any specific Alpine missteps and more to do with its rivals.
"I think it's just development," he said before the Hungaroring round, when asked whether that change in competitive order was down to the development race or Alpine's weaknesses being exposed. "They've \[Racing Bulls\] really brought a lot of upgrades.
"It seems to work well, and from what we hear, even slightly better than they would have anticipated.
"At the moment, it's credit to them for the work they're doing. It's up to us to deliver with the new parts that will come in the next races."
It's a well-made point by now that the laptime boost that upgrades offer, while this regulatory era remains so immature, can be up two or three tenths of a second; McLaren team principal Andrea Stella even said he has never seen a development race quite like this one in F1.
And it's the case as well that Racing Bulls has upgraded its car both effectively and extensively.
It's been bullish about its ["bring an upgrade and it works"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-a-failed-2024-upgrade-set-up-a-big-2026-f1-success-story/) hit rate and at the previous four rounds it has introduced 10 performance upgrades; Alpine has brought six in that same spell, five of which were at the Austrian GP at the start of that run of four races.
So let's consider that contrasting upgrade rate the 'why'. But how about arresting this trend?
There were no updates at the "load-sensitive" Hungaroring, as per Colapinto, and racing director Dave Greenwood accepted "we're slightly out of step with everyone else".
But even though Greenwood insisted Alpine has stayed "in the race" while it's held back on new parts, it will head into the second half of the season with much riding on an upgrade package being brought to the Dutch GP.
Alpine hasn't been forthcoming with what is changing on the car for Zandvoort, though an inconsistent aero balance - "a very loose rear end coming into the corners, going on power" - poor traction, and mid-corner understeer are the main issues Gasly has cited and expects to be fixed.
But in any case, there's been enough mention of its arrival among the drivers and team personnel that it's fair to say there's a degree of optimism - even expectation - that Alpine will benefit from the same performance step as others have when the package does arrive.
"It's the standard of Formula 1, I think if you bring upgrades, you expect it to definitely get better and on my side, I'm not doubting that it's going to do what the team expect, because Aston Martin improved by two seconds this weekend, they have another engine coming," said Gasly, when asked by The Race in Hungary about how critical the upgrade was.
"Racing Bulls improved by a second since the start of the year, Audi as well and we just didn't do much steps. So yeah, I think it's critical for us if we want to keep the hope for that fifth place in the championship."
The use of "critical" came from The Race first, so let's give Gasly some leeway for his use of it too. Still, what's coming will be an important proof of concept in a season that's meant to show what Alpine is capable of.
Let's return to Briatore's words from pre-season. Then, he reiterated that the "only one condition for me to join the team was to have a Mercedes engine". That move was all about putting Alpine in the most competitive position possible.
There's no doubt Alpine is a more competitive prospect than it was last year; probably than it has been since 2022\. And nobody was expecting victories this year - that just wasn't a realistic expectation, even if Briatore said in his [recent interview with The Race Business](https://www.the-race.com/business/read-our-full-exclusive-interview-with-flavio-briatore/) that Alpine now has "everything" it needs to become a race-winning force again.
At the same time, if you set out that you have "at least three, four months of advantage" over the opposition on car development, then anything other than fifth in the constructors' championship this year probably has to go down as a disappointment. Towards the end of last year, Gasly was referring to the combination of the rules reset, Alpine's development headstart and Mercedes engine move as offering "probably the best opportunity I've had as a driver but also for the team over the last couple of years to really make that step to the front of the grid".
So yes, it might seem like only one upgrade package, but there really is a lot more at stake for Alpine at Zandvoort.
Ditching its own, in-house engine in favour of Mercedes customer power was supposed to set it free. Clearly with half of the season still to run all is not lost but, if all 2026 amounts to is a strong start that gradually unravels, then you really do have to start questioning the merits of this project.
### Wehrlein win sets up Porsche Formula E title showdown
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/wehrlein-win-porsche-formula-e-title-showdown-dennis/
Last updated: 2026-08-15T15:20:11.000Z
Victory for Porsche driver Pascal Wehrlein sent him back to the head of the Formula E drivers' championship and set up what is effectively a title showdown with runner-up Jake Dennis in Sunday's season finale in London.
Wehrlein's win was never in doubt during the 39-lap race at the ExCeL; having taken pole and held the lead at the start, he cruised through the opening stages while works team-mate Nico Mueller backed up a chasing pack that featured another title contender, Mitch Evans (Jaguar), as well as the customer Porsches of Cupra Kiro's Dan Ticktum and Andretti's Dennis.
That position out in front allowed Wehrlein to play a patient game before taking his PitBoost and that paid dividends as a full course yellow period - for Lucas di Grassi's stranded Lola-Yamaha Abt car, which hit the wall just in front of Wehrlein when "the engine kept pushing" - allowed him to serve that stop and make a net gain on the chasing pack.
He ultimately won by 5.777s, with his 28-point Saturday haul for pole position and the win moving him into a five-point lead over Dennis as both go in search of a second Formula E title.
Dennis started fifth on the grid but was another of those to benefit from the full course yellow to make a cheap pitstop.
He also saved more energy in the opening phase of the race and used this to good effect with a pair of forceful moves at the first corner on Antonio Felix da Costa and Ticktum a lap later to clinch second place, with da Costa clinching the final podium position for Jagaur.
Nine drivers started the day in mathematical title contention but it will be essentially a straight fight for the championship between Wehrlein and Dennis on Sunday, with Evans now 21 points back in third.
Evans appeared to have the pace to clear Mueller early on but struggled for an opening around the tight confines of the ExCeL circuit.
He and Jaguar forced the issue by taking PitBoost earlier than any of the other frontrunners, and this combined with an attack mode activation on his outlap helped him to clear Mueller - but his race was undone by the full course yellow.
Evans was briefly repassed by Mueller once his attack mode ran out and although he did get back ahead of the Porsche, and resisted a late charge from former team-mate Nick Cassidy (Citroen), he was restricted to eighth, finishing half a minute behind Wehrlein in the end.
### The key F1 mistake McLaren can't correct until 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/key-f1-mistake-mclaren-cannot-correct-until-2027/
Last updated: 2026-08-15T08:27:21.000Z
McLaren has admitted it pitched the wheelbase for its 2026 Formula 1 car too short, which will limit the potential of its aerodynamic development until a longer car can be made for 2027.
McLaren has made several admissions over the past month or so that its 2026 car development paths have not been correct, with team principal Andrea Stella saying McLaren is running [three months behind](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-mclaren-2026-f1-car-has-ended-up-three-months-behind-mercedes/) its main rivals because of the fact the 2025 title battle went to the wire.
And it would seem one of those development paths relates to the length of the car.
As the team's technical director for engineering, Neil Houldey, explained to The Race in a semi-exclusive interview, McLaren prioritised the challenge of removing weight from the car under the 2026 rules - and felt a shorter car would be a neat way of achieving that objective - but it came with a cost to the size of floor the car can run with, which has limited the powerful aerodynamic potential of this area.
"Initially, we put a shorter car together because it's lighter and we knew that the weight regulations were going to be a big, big challenge so that gave us a nice head start and it allowed us to put performance in different areas," Houldey said.
"Focusing on every little bit of performance often adds a little bit of weight here and there and it allowed us to put a little bit more performance \[on the car\] because we'd saved that mass up front.
"As we've developed the car we've taken a little bit more weight out of it. I think for next year we'll end up with a longer car, because aerodynamically you give yourself a little bit more plan area on the floor.
"As we've developed the floor more and more it seems like we can manage that, which initially it looked like actually it wasn't much of a laptime penalty to shorten the car."
This isn't exactly a giant misstep, because after all this is the same length of car that won the recent Hungarian Grand Prix with Lando Norris.
But the fact it's taken 11 races to get the reigning champion back to winning ways suggests development of the 2026 car has proven more difficult than it might otherwise have been, and the length of the car is clearly part of that equation.
## What to expect next from McLaren
Over recent seasons this team has regularly brought big upgrade packages that have worked straight away, but this season it has had to spend more time testing parts in the real world before committing to racing them.
McLaren's version of the upside down, revolving 'macarena' rear wing has yet to race, while the front wing Norris used to win in Hungary was first trialled [way back in Monaco](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclaren-f1-2026-new-front-wing-removed-again/), in early June.
A floor update introduced for Hungary, aligned with that revised front wing, finally brought several months' worth of development together into a winning package.
McLaren readily admits its car lacked aerodynamic load early in the season, but the aerodynamicists needed to find that extra downforce without adding excessive drag to a car the team already felt was excessively draggy.
Efficiency is the name of the game here, which is why the underfloor is once again proving to be such a strong driver of performance - even though the extreme ground-effect designs of recent seasons have been cast aside by regulation changes.
McLaren plans to introduce a new, more efficient rear wing at the Dutch GP - the first race after the summer break - and that aforementioned 'macarena' design will probably reappear for the following race at the high-speed Monza.
Understanding the relationship between straight mode - where the car sheds its downforce to improve straightline speed - and corner mode - where the car regains its downforce for the turns - and "where to strike the balance" there "has modified a small amount" for McLaren as the season has progressed, according to Houldey.
"It looks like other teams are sometimes a little bit more efficient than us in cornering mode, in straight mode as well," Houldey admitted. "So we're looking at ways of how to make the car more efficient aerodynamically."
This suggests McLaren perhaps underestimated the importance of its drag targets going into this season, maybe anticipating the new straight mode would be more powerful in mitigating drag than has ultimately proved to be the case.
This new mode hasn't been enough to totally make up for the energy starvation inherent to the new 2026 power units, and so it follows that any extra aerodynamic efficiency you can find on the car is going to prove beneficial.
## Special ops to close Mercedes engine gap
The other part of McLaren's deficiency in straightline speed in 2026 is the Mercedes power unit - or rather McLaren's inability to both dictate how it should ideally be operated, and then actually operate it to its fullest extent.
McLaren has talked about this aspect extensively, and it basically amounts to a snowball effect created by a lack of visibility of how best to run the engine that directly results from being a customer team, rather than a works one that can dictate terms to itself.
The gear ratios on the 2026 McLaren are too short, and the reason for that is McLaren based that choice on a projected power curve received from Mercedes that didn't ultimately match what the power unit actually ended up producing.
As per the regulations, gear ratios are locked in from before the first race and teams are only permitted one (irreversible) change per season. So far, McLaren has opted against deploying this so-called 'joker' on the basis it derives benefits from having shorter gears on the slower, less energy-starved circuits.
"If we had our time again, we'd re-ratio to be closer to where Mercedes are," Houldey admitted. "There are some performance opportunities that we can't take because the ratios are shorter.
"HPP \[Mercedes\] won't know their final power curve until whatever date it might be, which is way beyond after we've chosen our ratios.
"We made a good decision with the information we had around us at the time; with the information that we have around us now the decision might be slightly different, but we're talking milliseconds, not tenths."
But as we all know, in F1 those milliseconds are worth chasing.
McLaren has invested extra effort into recovering some of the tyre management advantage it held previously but has lost under these rules, adjusting brake duct configurations to better control rear tyre temperatures while working to get the reluctant fronts to fire up quicker.
And on the power unit side, McLaren has created what its performance technical director Mark Temple calls a new 'power unit performance team' as it tries to close the gap created by [being a customer team](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-mclaren-is-suffering-more-as-a-customer-under-new-rules/) that has to work with whatever Mercedes has decided should be the optimum engine settings for a given weekend, without foresight of how those decisions have been reached.
"We have influence on what's happening within the main programme - but we don't have guarantees they'll accept things we request," Temple explains.
"We're a little out of the main loop in that respect, working in a side loop that feeds into the programme, but it means we don't always get the configurations we want and that would suit us.
"In the run-up to a race, we receive information from HPP, but there's decision-making and evolution we're not part of. When we find out what we've got, there's often not a huge amount of time to react and respond - so part of what we're trying to do this year is build and improve our process to make this less of a limitation.
"We have a power unit performance team now, which we didn't have before. They'll study track data and work with race engineering, but also use our simulator and offline tools to maximise our performance.
"It's definitely a new set of skills, and a new way of working - because these are things we didn't really need to worry about before."
### Lightning McQueen joins F1 as Disney deal expands
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/lightning-mcqueen-joins-f1-as-disney-deal-expands/
Last updated: 2026-08-14T12:05:50.000Z
Formula 1 has extended its commercial partnership with Disney through to the end of the 2028 season, with Pixar's Cars franchise set to become the latest addition to a collaboration.
The agreement builds on the "Fuel the Magic" programme that launched in 2025 and initially centred around Disney's Mickey & Friends characters. Since then, the partnership has expanded across race-weekend activations, merchandise collections, digital content and fan experiences at grands prix around the world.
The latest extension introduces Pixar's Cars universe to the relationship, bringing one of Disney's most recognisable motorsport-themed properties into F1's commercial ecosystem. As part of the announcement, Disney has revealed Lightning McQueen will head to Monza in an all-new look - although there is no indication what that will look will be.
While there are limited details of exactly how Lightning McQueen and the wider Cars cast will feature in the world of F1, merchandise is expected to form a major part of the expanded deal. After two decades of success across films, merchandise and Disney Parks, Cars has become one of Disney's most valuable franchises, making it a natural fit for F1's growing entertainment ambitions.
When the partnership was first announced in 2025, F1 chief commercial officer Emily Prazer described Disney's appeal as a way of helping the series move beyond traditional sports audiences. At the time, F1 highlighted the growth of its younger fanbase, noting strong engagement among children and under-25s across its social media channels.
That strategy has become increasingly visible over the past 18 months. The Disney collaboration has included trackside appearances, city-centre activations, limited-edition merchandise and a season-long digital comic series produced with Webtoon. Special events have appeared at grands prix including Las Vegas, Shanghai and Silverstone as F1 and Disney sought to create engagement opportunities beyond the racing itself.
The extension also underlines the commercial success both parties appear to see in the relationship. Earlier this year, Disney and F1 described the partnership as a way of combining storytelling, consumer products and live experiences while tapping into F1's global audience of more than 800 million fans.
For F1, adding Cars arguably feels like a natural next step.
Although Pixar's animated franchise is rooted more in NASCAR-style racing culture than F1, it remains one of the most successful motorsport-themed entertainment properties ever created.
The significance of the move extends beyond the racing connection, however. [As The Race Extra explored earlier this year](https://www.the-race.com/extra/an-ode-to-cars-the-movie/), Cars is one of Disney's most commercially successful franchises. Disney reported an estimated $10billion in global merchandise sales in the five years following the original film's 2006 release, while the franchise is estimated to have generated $21.5b in lifetime revenue, with roughly $19.1b coming from merchandise alone. That places *Cars* among Disney's biggest money-makers and ahead of Pixar stablemate Toy Story in overall franchise revenue.
As F1 continues its push into mainstream entertainment and lifestyle markets, the arrival of Lightning McQueen may prove to be one of the most obvious crossovers the sport has attempted yet.
### The Formula E pioneer who might never have raced in it
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/lucas-di-grassi-pioneer-might-never-have-raced-in-formula-e/
Last updated: 2026-08-14T10:40:52.000Z
Lucas di Grassi will take part in his final world championship-level race this weekend, which will call time on a professional career that spans 24 years.
At the Curitiba circuit in Brazil in April 2002, the then 17-year-old di Grassi finished an inauspicious 10th after an aggressive and eventful Brazilian Formula Renault race.
But by the end of that season he was a close runner-up to his future GP2 competitor, Sergio Jimenez. (Also taking part in his first professional race at that time was one Nelson Piquet Jr, a driver with whom di Grassi would have several future run-ins.)
A move to Europe at the end of 2003 led to di Grassi becoming a hot property in Formula 3 with Hitech and Manor, before he made an ill-fated move to F1 with the nascent and ill-prepared Virgin Racing squad in 2010.
But it was in sportscar racing and Formula E where he tasted his greatest successes, particularly in the all-electric series where he became well-known as not only a winner on track but also as an advocate and driving force off it.
The Race sat down with the now 42-year-old Lola-Yamaha Abt driver last month to chronicle some of the more dramatic and less-well-known stories from his 12-season Formula E career.
## He wasn't going to race Formula E
Di Grassi's 14th E-Prix win, at Shanghai last month, was perhaps his most unlikely. It is also highly likely to be his last. That it came in China, the scene of his first triumph in Beijing in 2014, in the series' first-ever race, feels like a neat and tidy bookend.
But remarkably, only 12 months before Formula E started, di Grassi wasn't planning on being in the cockpit at all.
Di Grassi initially did not see himself as a driver in the championship, which at the start in 2014 was quite rudimentary - with cars lapping Donington Park at Formula Ford 1600 pace.
"I considered not racing Formula E," di Grassi confirms. "I considered staying as a director in Formula E and racing in LMP only."
All that changed though when di Grassi’s lobbying of Abt and Audi Sport started to pay off in 2013 just as he was making inroads in a full-time World Endurance Championship role with the manufacturer.
When he made his decision to race with Abt, di Grassi was all-in. But he was still not confident the championship could remain solvent and active.
"The highest probability was the championship would not survive," he says starkly.
"But I believed in Alejandro \[Agag, Formula E co-founder\] and I thought he was a competent businessman and was going to make it happen somehow. That's why I committed to the championship.
"I saw F1 going hybrid, LMP1 going hybrid, so the tendency was definitely towards electric, and I was like, 'This makes sense'. I love that initial journey to go through the hassles and learn a lot, understand what decisions were made and why.
"That was very cool, and I needed to be a part of it on and off the track."
## Persuading Audi
Di Grassi made his first appearance for Audi in the WEC at Interlagos in 2012 but even as Formula E was forming in 2013 in readiness for a race start in 2014, di Grassi was still trying to establish himself fully at the four-ringed manufacturer.
Any lobbying for a potential future Formula E project had to be done subtly, something which di Grassi hasn't been too well known for in the past.
But there was a two-pronged approach because Hans-Jurgen Abt and Thomas Biermaier at Abt were aligned to di Grassi's enthusiasm for Formula E too. Still, it was a delicate process to get the Audi Sport name on board.
Di Grassi was integral to that process, but Abt and Biermaier played their parts too.
"Maybe if we got the \[Audi Sport\] name, it would be easier for us with Formula E with sponsors and partners, that is what we asked Dr \[Wolfgang\] Ulrich," Biermaier tells The Race.
"He gave us a handshake 12 years ago and said, 'Yes, guys, I like both sides. I like Abt and I like Lucas, so this could make sense. And I promise you can have the name'.
"We went home happy, but a day later he called us: I have big, big trouble now because I gave you a handshake and I promised, but I got many, many complaints internally of, 'Why are we doing this? How can you do this?'
"But Dr Ulrich stuck to his word and he was fighting for us."
## Di Grassi vs Buemi 2016 (and THAT shunt!)
In late June 2016, di Grassi and season-long title rival Sebastien Buemi were tooth-and-nail for the title, with di Grassi a point ahead of the Renault driver Buemi as they stepped into leafy Battersea Park.
What transpired was one of the most dramatic season finales that has ever been seen in international motorsport, let alone in Formula E.
Di Grassi finished fourth to Buemi's fifth in the first race, extending his points advantage slightly for the final Sunday event on the tight, bumpy and virtually impossible to overtake park perimeter roads around Wandsworth.
Buemi instantly retook the championship initiative with a blistering pole, which drew the pair level on points, while di Grassi lined up third with Buemi's team-mate Nicholas Prost between them on the grid.
At the start, di Grassi desperately wanted to clear Prost, and heading into the second corner di Grassi clipped Prost before spearing Buemi off and into the escape road.
“Can you believe it has happened immediately?” shrieked then commentator Jack Nicholls as it unfolded. No one could.
Di Grassi, momentarily perched atop the tyre wall and looking into the Prince Albert public house beer garden at startled drinkers, somehow regathered himself as both he and Buemi pitted for their second cars and a crack at taking the title via the two points available for fastest lap.
Unbelievably, it was Buemi who managed it, and as he soaked it all in at the Renault e.dams pit he wept uncontrollably as tears of frustration from a devastating penultimate-lap loss with Toyota at the Le Mans 24 Hours just two weeks earlier freed themselves from his wide and bloodshot eyes.
Di Grassi faced some difficult questions for his conduct that day and for some years after in fact. Today, he is still a little hesitant.
"I've said what I said already about that race incident," says di Grassi - who went on to beat Buemi to the title the following year at the final round in Montreal.
"I was very sad that I lost the championship by a fastest lap, but Renault was very dominant that race as well. They were more than almost half a second faster in quali.
"It was pretty much impossible to stop them at that point. We took our chances. It happened, and then we moved on."
## The Mahindra mistake
Di Grassi came on strong in what was ultimately his one-off season with Venturi in 2022 after Audi vacated its licence at the end of 2021.
A win at the ExCeL in July 2022 looked like the perfect way for him to continue in a strong team that would metamorphose into Maserati for the start of the Gen3 era. But unbeknown to most, di Grassi had agreed a deal with Mahindra.
"That was probably the biggest strategic mistake of my career, because when I signed with Venturi, I had already a verbal agreement with Mahindra for Gen3, and by the end of the year, I did such a good job that Maserati offered me a deal," says di Grassi.
"Jerome \[d'Ambrosio\] came to me and said, 'Look, we really want you to stay' and I haven't signed anything with Mahindra. It was just an agreement with Dilbagh \[Gill, the then Mahindra team principal\] and I really like it here \[at Venturi\]."
Di Grassi pontificated for weeks but elected to go to Mahindra because he wanted to be "truthful to my word". But there was a nasty surprise in waiting as he went to the factory as a Mahindra driver for the first time.
"Dilbagh picked me up at Heathrow airport, the first time going there and on the way from Heathrow, he said, 'I'm out' and I'm like, 'What? I just had to make this decision a few weeks ago, and now you're telling me you're out?'"
Frederic Bertrand replaced Gill and, while he and di Grassi held respect for each other, their characters clashed.
Allied to that, a poor initial Mahindra Gen3 car, and a withdrawal from the Cape Town E-Prix on safety grounds for a suspension issue, di Grassi - along with team-mate Oliver Rowland - left the team and headed back in to the grateful arms of Abt and its partnership with Cupra, albeit with a Mahindra car for the 2023-24 season.
## The future
Di Grassi is still not fully decided on what he will do after this weekend's London finale. But it will be no surprise to anyone that multiple projects are in the pipeline.
What he is sure of is that the Gen4 era, with a car he has helped to develop for Lola, will be an exciting one for Formula E.
"Now, Gen 4, it's a great statement time because they looked for performance, and for me, this will change the game, and not just because it will change the game for the drivers," he insists.
"For the public, it will be the real breakthrough, what I call the 'singularity moment', which is when we put out a statement that Formula E can be faster than F1 for a single lap to start with. That is when everybody will say, 'Whoa! So, the best drivers are driving the fastest cars?'
"We need to work very hard to make Formula E faster than F1 and it will come sooner than people think."
As ever, di Grassi finishes on looking forward rather than back; looking optimistic and the ambitious. Much like his career in Formula E he is on the front foot, insistent and restless.
### Why F1's top teams face a big $6million dilemma
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-top-f1-teams-face-a-big-six-million-dilemma/
Last updated: 2026-08-14T15:49:49.000Z
There's a $6million dilemma facing the top four Formula 1 teams that could be crucial to deciding this year's title fight.
The frontrunning teams know that the final championship outcome is going to rest on the development war.
And as we're only 11 races into this regulation cycle, teams are still finding big chunks of laptime when adding the latest developments to their cars.
There's clearly a pattern emerging of the competitive order being shuffled around when teams unleash major upgrades. Mercedes, McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull have all either won races or come close to doing so on weekends they have introduced big packages.
That doesn't mean the route to success is bringing upgrades every race because in the cost cap era there simply isn't the financial headroom to do that. That would risk an overspend and subsequent FIA penalties.
Teams therefore have to be strategic about how much they spend on upgrades and when they choose to bring them.
Being aggressive early in the season brings benefits in making your car faster early on - so you can bag some strong early results. But if you front-load your upgrades, you risk running out of development budget later on in the year.
And that means potentially being a sitting duck to other teams that may have saved up their money for late-year upgrades.
Each of the top four teams has made very different choices in that regard so far but, when it comes to making a decision over the timing of upgrades, there is a fresh complication.
This revolves around an extra $6m spending freedom that has been opened up to them as the result of changes being made to the F1 regulations to overcome some early problems with the 2026 rules.
## The fuel tank problem
Teams have agreed to some wide-sweeping rule changes over the next two years to overcome problems with the new 2026 rules that left F1 cars too energy-starved.
The idea is that by 2028, the current nominal 50/50 split between internal combustion engine and battery power will shift to 60/40.
This is being achieved primarily through an increase in the fuel-flow rate - and this has led to complications.
Lifting fuel flow by 5% in 2027 and by 13% by 2028 means that as well as needing to make power units more robust, the cars are going to burn through more fuel - so bigger fuel tanks are needed.
In a normal season that would not be a problem, but it soon emerged that many teams wanted to carry over their current chassis - and therefore fuel-tank sizes - into 2027 as a cost-saving measure.
Those that carried over the chassis, so could not add more fuel, would therefore be at risk of running out in some races next year.
Two areas of concessions were made to help get things across the line though - and it is here that this extra $6m has appeared.
First, some sporting rules tweaks were pushed through.
The first change is that for 2027 only, the FIA may reduce the distance of each grand prix by up to four laps - to make an allowance for those teams having a carry-over chassis that would struggle to finish the original distance.
Furthermore, the FIA may choose to impose limits on the number of reconnaissance laps that are done to the grid before the start of a race to further help reduce the distance a car needs to cover on a full tank of fuel.
On the second front, teams also won some extra cost-cap allowance to allow for any extra spending on a potential new chassis and integration with any new power unit.
## The $6million allowance
As part of the new 2027 financial regulations, teams now have access to an extra $3m of development spending for this year and 2027, plus another $3m for the 2027 and 2028 season.
There is an intriguing element to this extra allowance as teams have to decide how they want to split up the spending across the three seasons that are covered - 2026, 2027 and 2028.
The teams need to split the first $3m between this year and next, and then the second $3m across 2027 and 2028.
So there are different approaches that teams can take.
Those that want to be aggressive and make the most of opportunities this season could choose to spend the full $3m this year, and the other $3m next year.
But that would then leave them slightly on the backbfoot for 2028, when there could be the requirement for some extra car spending to accommodate the change in power units.
Equally, teams could play it conservative this season - hold fire on using that extra money for this year and instead backload it to unleash more money for the future.
The temptation to capitalise on the extra spending now is clear but, as McLaren team principal Andrea Stella said recently, teams could be playing with fire.
Because if teams burn through $3m this year and a big chunk in 2027, then they could find themselves short if suddenly they need to make bigger changes than anticipated for 2028\.
## What Mercedes' rivals have planned
Defending world champion McLaren looks set to keep up a pretty decent pace with its upgrades over the second half of this season.
"We wanted to leave enough overhead in our budget prediction such that we were in condition to spend money on upgrading the car," Stella said.
"So, independently of the extra allowance that is permitted by the power unit regulation changes for 2027, we were already in a good position in terms of being able to invest in upgrading the MCL40.
"My impression is that to stay consistently in this position \[at the front\] we will have to keep upgrading the car and we will have to add probably another half a second to the car from now to the end of the season.
"This is our objective honestly, because we don't want to give up on this season."
We already know the second part of the race-winning upgrade McLaren brought to Hungary will arrive at Zandvoort.
Ferrari has raised eyebrows among its rivals with the scale of its aggressive upgrade programme, which has been consistent throughout the start of 2026.
As Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said in Austria: "We're a little bit surprised that Ferrari can throw these huge updates at the car in the way they do. In my opinion, they need to be running out of money soon - cost cap money - because we can't do that."
But team principal Fred Vasseur thought that appearance was deceptive and that just because there have been a lot of *improved* parts, it does not mean Ferrari has spent a lot of money on *new* parts.
"If we can bring something at the beginning \[of the season\] we do it, and it's better to have a couple of tenths for five races than a couple of tenths for the last two," he said.
"But sometimes it's difficult to find performance, sometimes a bit less. Sometimes you can have the feeling that we are bringing a big upgrade, but this is just a modification of some parts, nothing else."
Ferrari wants to keep up its push to bring improvements every single race for as long as possible, as it sees this as a core element of its championship challenge.
So it could be a likely candidate to dip into that extra $3m if things close up early on.
Red Bull has been quite aggressive with its development programme over the first half of the season, as it has worked hard on closing down what was a one-second deficit at the start of the season to now be within a few tenths.
Team principal Laurent Mekies said it was unlikely that Red Bull will keep pushing with the same intensity for the rest of the season - especially as it is coming off the back of a 2025 campaign where it kept up work right until the final round as it fought for the championship.
Mekies suggested that a call will be made imminently to start devoting more resources to the 2027 Red Bull project and, considering the huge effort put in since the Melbourne season opener this year to catch up, he reckoned it is "probably difficult to imagine that we will continue at that rhythm".
## Mercedes has been holding back
While Mercedes has enjoyed the best form over the first half of the year, and leads both championships, it has done so without being so aggressive with its upgrade spending.
While there have been some minor updates and tweaks throughout, it has only introduced one major upgrade, which appeared at the Canadian Grand Prix.
Wolff said this was a deliberate strategy, which means it has left itself with a bit of extra money in its back pocket for the end of the campaign - when it could be more useful to bring development to help get a title over the line.
Wolff said Mercedes was "closely monitoring how much" it can bring but said it was in a "good spot" having an approach that is more weighted for the second half of the season.
Deputy technical director Simone Resta hinted that a major upgrade could be on the way, though, as he recently talked about ambitions for "something more sizeable on the car".
While deputy team principal Bradley Lord teased: "There's a decent amount of performance working its way through the production machinery at the moment, \[that will\] start coming to the car from the races after shutdown."
The upgrade situation with the top teams is certainly finely-poised.
And the winner may ultimately be decided not just by who has done the best job in the design office, but by who judged the $6m spending best.
### Formula E's defending champion faces a very different title decider
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-defending-champion-rowland-faces-a-very-different-title-decider/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T16:53:42.000Z
It is sometimes fun and disconcerting at the same time to think of that stretch of London Docklands real estate within and outside of the ExCeL halls of having a kind of special carbon-crunching licence once a year, for an hour each day, over the course of a summer's weekend.
Mix in the fact that in three of the previous five visits to that unique venue there has been a close title fight to play out and perhaps it is inevitable that a carpet of debris has more often than not covered its expansive halls.
Oliver Rowland was complicit in that last season. But then again, he was already proverbially tooting on a champion's cigar and shining his silverware.
This year is different and there will be none of that. This year, the last races of the Gen3 era have all the hallmarks of living up to classic ExCeL fodder of marshals armed with dustpan and brushes as the chequered flag drops and of team principals scattering to stop their drivers saying or doing something they might regret.
Remember 2024? That was when Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy were left haunted by failed title pushes, as Pascal Wehrlein stole in, and when a tearful Antonio Felix da Costa embraced his friend Cassidy to apologise for his unintended front-wing-to-tyre execution. Walking the paddock that afternoon was like walking the set of Eastenders mid-shoot.
One driver who was dislocated from the drama that day was Rowland. as he signed off a stellar first season upon his return to Nissan, he picked the title fighters' pockets to score his second win of the campaign. Had it not been for an ear infection that caused him to miss the penultimate event in Portland a few weeks before, Rowland might've been coming into this year's London weekend on a hat-trick of titles.
"I remember in 2024, I didn't want to get in the way of the championship fight, let's say, and I think it'd be quite interesting to see how others play it this time around," Rowland tells The Race.
"Historically, Formula E races are super aggressive from anyone and everyone and you can’t expect good treatment from one person in certain circumstances.
"It'll be interesting if the competition wants to let us go at it and not be a hindrance in that. Certainly, that was my mentality in London back in 2024, and I think also racing against those guys they knew I wasn't in it, so why put up a fight against me?"
It's a salient point Rowland raises here because he, points leader Jake Dennis, Evans, and Wehrlein are in truth the title-chasing quartet everyone is focusing on.
Edoardo Mortara, da Costa, Cassidy, Nico Mueller and Nyck de Vries all have mathematical title chances that require outrageous misfortune for others and big scores for themselves. The quartet at the top feel like a genuine breakaway group now.
---
### Title contenders going into London finale
1 Jake Dennis - **146**
2 Mitch Evans - **144**
3 Pascal Wehrlein - **141**
4 Oliver Rowland - **132**
5 Edoardo Mortara - **116**
6 Antonio Felix da Costa - **113**
7 Nick Cassidy - **104**
8 Nico Mueller - **100**
9 Nyck de Vries - **94**
---
"I do think it'll be different \[to 2024\]," adds Rowland. "I don't expect an easy time off the three guys in front but a lot of it depends on qualifying and who's around each other."
There is one other key difference to 2024, too. The cars are now much more likely to be able to overtake cleanly under the 350kW attack mode (all-wheel drive) that they will get six minutes of, in conjunction with PitBoost stops, on Saturday, and then eight minutes of without a pitstop on Sunday.
"Most people are like, 'You cannot overtake there' and, 'It's a pretty fixed race' but I got quite, let's say, experimental in Turns 2/3/4 in 2024 and took quite a lot of positions during the race," reckons Rowland.
"But I think everybody has quite a lot of experience now to understand that and understand how to defend against that. I think the biggest difference compared to 2024 is that the all-wheel drive is quite a lot more powerful, and having the energy during it means you can overtake during the attack mode.
"There's two races and \[they are\] two very different races to look ahead to, and I think depending on where you qualify, they can have completely different outcomes."
## Who's got the coolest head?
Wehrlein will be hoping for a very similar outcome to his 2024 ExCeL weekend. It was then that an excellent win on Saturday and following Rowland home while the Jaguars crumbled that he became champion, overturning a 12-point deficit coming into the weekend back then.
But two years on and Wehrlein, many people's pre-season favourite to become the 2025-26 world champion, has recently shown flashes of a previous incarnation of himself: the one that gets angry and makes mistakes.
Sanya and Tokyo accounted for three non-scores in five races, just at the time of the season when he should have been building on his once promising points lead. Last time out at Tokyo there was an irritable Wehrlein; does Rowland maybe think he might be susceptible in London too?
"The level that those guys are at, you might have a one-off weekend like that, but you quickly learn from it," he says.
"And I think, especially in his case \[Wehrlein's\], where he kind of probably threw away quite a lot of points over the course of the weekend, I fully expect that he won't allow the same to happen.
"What's quite tricky in Formula E is having that balance of being aggressive, but not overly aggressive. It's very easy to go over it and then lose your confidence, and then kind of be too under it and get beaten up a little bit.
"I've kind of had it to a small extent where I feel like everybody's gone more like I was the year before, and then I'm kind of trying to consolidate a bit. And actually, sometimes you just get pushed backwards like that.
"So, I think it'll just be interesting to see how, if what happened in Japan affects him, possibly on the opposite spectrum."
The fact is that all four of the championship protagonists have the capability to blow their lids clean off. Dennis, Wehrlein, Rowland and Evans have issued rants and volleys of ire that would fuse-out former football manager Alex Ferguson's hairdryer in an instant.
Staying cool and focused will again be a constituent part of who will take the crown this weekend and, in all bar Evans's case, become only Formula E's second double title winner.
### FIA lifts restrictions on Russian drivers and teams
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/fia-lifts-restrictions-russia-belarus-competition/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T16:10:27.000Z
The FIA has lifted restrictions on individuals from Russia and Belarus from participation in international motorsport competitions.
Those provisions had been in place since [March 2022](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/fia-opts-against-banning-russian-drivers-and-teams/), under emergency measures, in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and were revised in February 2023 - although the FIA has never implemented an outright ban on those drivers, competitors, or officials, who have instead been allowed to participate under the 'FIA flag'.
A signed commitment to neutrality had previously been required, with such participation "subject to specific commitment and adherence to the FIA's principles of peace and political neutrality, until further notice", while drivers holding dual citizenship could also compete under their other nationalities.
However, a letter issued on Thursday August 13 by the FIA Legal Office stated that the above previously adopted emergency measures would be lifted.
"Russian and Belarusian drivers, national teams, individual competitors and officials are allowed to participate in international/zone competitions without any restrictions," the communication stated. "The requirement of signing a commitment to neutrality no longer applies."
That was implemented and became binding at a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council on August 3, and will remain in force until further notice.
Additionally, Russian and Belarusian national symbols, colours, and flags can now be displayed again, while their national anthems can be played.
However, the FIA has upheld its ban on international competitions taking place on Russian or Belarusian territory.
The FIA also said it "continues to carefully monitor the events in Ukraine and reserves the right to take any further actions or implement further measures in the future, including any necessary actions required to comply with its obligations under any applicable sanctions regime and/or any contracts to which the FIA is a party".
The International Olympic Committee provisionally lifted Russia's suspension last month. In May it also recommended that a ban on Belarusian athletes be lifted to allow them to compete under their national identity - although this was rejected by the World Athletics governing body.
Unlike the FIA, motorcycle racing's governing body the FIM implemented and has upheld a full ban on Russian and Belarusian individuals from international motorcycle racing events.
### What we've learned about Cadillac's sudden F1 team boss axing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-we-learned-cadillac-sudden-f1-team-boss-axing/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T13:48:42.000Z
Formula 1's 2026 summer break delivered its first shock announcement on Wednesday as Cadillac axed its first F1 team principal, Graeme Lowdon, in favour of Marcin Budkowski.
But what prompted the surprise move? Here's what we've learned about the reasons behind the switch, as well as what it means for the rest of 2026.
## It wasn't a mutual decision
Some team leadership changes can be the result of the incumbent stepping away, like F1 2026's other team boss change, Jonathan Wheatley, who left his team principal role at Audi for "personal reasons".
But the decision for Lowdon to be removed wasn't a mutual one - and Lowdon was told just hours before a team statement announced the change.
"It was my decision; it wasn't a mutual decision," CEO of Cadillac F1 Dan Towriss explained to the media.
"The process started a few months ago to explore what, really thinking about what the next phase for Cadillac Formula 1 looks like, what's the right timing.
"How would that look and then, the capabilities of the various folks out there and obviously we were delighted in the conversation with Marcin and how that relationship evolved.
"Graeme and I spoke this morning, so I think it is a very recent conversation from that perspective, but there's no easy way to make this transition within Formula 1.
"Can you imagine the press if Marcin's strolling through for a tour of the factory or we're having these conversations? It becomes destabilising at that point and so it's important to respect the purview of the leadership that's in place at that time.
"So it does compress the decision-making, the timeline and how these things come together. It makes it feel more abrupt than it would be otherwise, but it's the nature of Formula 1 and it's the way it had to happen."
Lowdon was never likely to be the long-term Cadillac team principal, given his expertise revolved around starting up a race team and getting it functional, but the news was still a surprise to many inside the Cadillac team.
Wanting to protect against rumours destabilising the team is understandable, but you can't help but wonder: if this was a completely amicable transition of power, then why wasn't Lowdon quoted in the press release?
And given everything he's contributed to getting the team into F1 and to a respectable level, why not allow Lowdon to see out the year in a different management role while Budkowski finds his feet?
## Budkowski hasn't been to the factory yet
The abrupt nature of the change is underlined by the fact that Budkowski hasn't visited Cadillac's Silverstone factory yet.
It meant Budkowski had to respond with a lot of "very difficult for me to judge" responses in his first media appearance as Cadillac F1 team principal.
He's had several conversations with Towriss - and leading figures within General Motors, including CEO Mark Ruess - about taking on the role, his first in F1 competition since exiting his executive advisor post at Alpine in 2022.
So that would suggest General Motors has also been sold on what Budkowski can bring to the team and how he can take it beyond where Lowdon could.
"It's not that Dan called me out of the blue and said, 'I want you to be team principal'," Budkowski explained.
"We've had a number of exchanges with Dan and I think he was part of a reflection process that he was having.
"I don't want to put words in his mouth, it took a few discussions to get to this stage. I also had a few discussions with people at General Motors up to the very top, up to Mark Reuss, in the process.
"I've had discussions in the past years with more than half of the teams on the grid and some of them more advanced and some less advanced.
"But for me it was important if I come back to this kind of leadership role to be in a project that I believe in."
## What Budkowski's getting out of it
Budkowski's motivations for joining are clear, and you don't have to read too far between the lines to see what's different versus his first leadership position with Renault/Alpine.
Renault hired Budkowski from the FIA in late 2017, where he was signed with the mission of helping to "strengthen Enstone to enable Renault to join the top Formula 1 teams by 2020".
He remained with the team as it transitioned to Alpine in 2021 as its executive director in a somewhat odd management structure, but by January 2022 he was gone, having been unable to achieve that original aim.
Many of Budkowski's fellow ex-Renault/Alpine staff have spoken of Renault's reluctance to invest in its F1 team - something Budkowski has reason to believe will be different with General Motors' Cadillac team.
"\[Cadillac is\] backed by the TWG Group, which is extremely involved in motorsport, but General Motors is one of the biggest car companies in the world, with a lot of ambition with funding, which wasn't always the case in my previous ventures, if you want," Budkowski said in a likely reference to Renault/Alpine.
"Also, one thing that really made me very confident in joining is that all the people that I talk to and all people who effectively will be on the board of the team and in the top leadership of the team are motorsport people.
"They're all people who live motorsport, who understand motorsport, who've been very exposed to motorsport. That's very refreshing for me because the conversation is completely different from the get-go.
"There's the ambition, there's the desire to build a strong team and eventually a competitive team and a team that will be able to fight at the front, but there's a real understanding of how challenging it is, of the timelines, of the road ahead.
"I'm sure there will be expectations and that's logical and normal in this kind of role, but these expectations are not unreasonable and are not completely removed from the reality of Formula 1."
## What he can bring to the table
Budkowski's appointment continues the trend of teams moving towards picking engineers as team leaders - think McLaren's Andrea Stella, with CEO Towriss playing the Zak Brown-type role.
Towriss said he was looking for a "model with a very strong technical team principal and I think as you look at Marcin's background, what he's accomplished in Formula 1, he certainly fits the bill".
Budkowski started his F1 career at Prost, before stints at McLaren, Ferrari, the FIA and Renault/Alpine.
Towriss added: "Also combined with very strong leadership. I think as we're going through the track over a gruelling 24 races this season, leadership is important in setting the direction for a winning mindset across the organisation from the garage back to the factory and building those foundations."
Towriss also did not see Budkowski's four years away from F1 competition - he's been a TV pundit, tried to revive A1GP, and done consultancy work, among other things - as a negative.
"The time that Marcin's had away from F1, I think, provides him with a perspective to look at how Formula 1 has evolved and developed, and look at the resources across General Motors TWG and the like and really look at what a future vision of a Formula 1 team can look like the role of AI and those kinds of things.
"We've only scratched the surface of the toolset that GM has to offer in F1 through Cadillac F1, and so I think there's more work to be done there."
Budkowski also suggested he could add political power to Cadillac's F1 team, given he's seen both sides of the FIA and team competition.
"It's not going to be about this regulation or that regulation; it will be a slightly higher-level view of it is how do we steer the regulations in the future in our favour?" Budkowski explained.
"Because the regulatory process is for the good of the sport, but there's also a lot of self-interest in it, and I've got experience in that from my time at the FIA \[so it’s about\] building the team really in the long term to be the strongest."
## The biggest priority
Cadillac will also hope Budkowski's engineering background will help the team get on top of its Achilles' heel in 2026 so far: the brake issues that explain the majority of Cadillac's nine DNFs this year, despite the team bringing multiple fixes for it.
"In the case of the brake issues, I'm looking at it from the outside, but I'm sure a huge amount of money and resources have been spent on solving this issue at the moment," he said.
"Rightly so, because it's a serious issue, but that time and money is not invested in other aspects of the team, whether it's performance or in the short-term or long-term development of the team.
"So every decision has its consequences, and they're not only short-term consequences but long-term consequences, so I think a big part of the kind of leadership role that I will take from now on, with obviously the rest of the leadership team, is to make sure we make the right decisions in the long and in short term."
But there will have to be a fast-tracked bedding-in process for Budkowski, who will be trackside with Cadillac for the first time at Zandvoort next week. Cadillac's split US-UK organisation is certainly a lot for any employee to get their head around, let alone a new team boss.
Around that busy race schedule and learning about the organisation, Budkowski will also need to get the factory team working as one after what Towriss called "teething issues".
"In new organisations, communication is always going to be a focal point to improve making sure things are organised correctly, aligned correctly and maintaining morale through that building phase,” Towriss said.
"So those are really our issues that are to be expected; they do exist in different degrees, but I think Marcin's technical background does give him a unique perspective.
"Even away from his technical background, I think he does demonstrate he's a strong leader and he's a great communicator.
"That's going to really be an asset as we look to speed up the evolution of what are these early-stage business issues and really start to develop that and get to that next level as an organisation.
"The factory is a focal point, not because it's underperforming, but because it's just to be expected in a new organisation, and it's definitely one of the foundational points here that we're going to be focusing on in the coming months."
### Gary Anderson: Why I expected more from Cadillac
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-cadillac-underwhelming-f1-car-development-so-far/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T13:46:01.000Z
As the newest team on the block, Cadillac has got a lot of ground to make up. Yes, it's the team's first season in Formula 1, but I'm sure deep down more was expected. It's a big challenge for new team boss Marcin Budkowski and perhaps partly explains Graeme Lowdon's shock exit.
Not only has Cadillac's overall performance been at the rear end of the field (other than beating Aston Martin on a few occasions), its main weakness has been front brake cooling. On too many occasions it's had to retire cars when the front brakes caught fire.
Anyway, let's have a look at how the season's developments from Cadillac have changed the look of the car and what areas it has been focusing on - as usual, by starting at the front and moving rearwards as the actual airflow does, passing across the car's body surfaces.
These are versions of its front wing from Australia, Miami and Belgium. To be honest, I'm not seeing anything to get excited about.
The trim line on the trailing edge of the rear flap is slightly different but looks like it is from the same family of thinking, so there hasn't been a great airflow structure eureka moment. That could simply be a modification to achieve the required circuit-specific downforce level.
Cadillac still retains the very high outer mainplane to endplate intersection. Personally, I'd like it to be more integrated with the footplate of the endplate as we see on some (but not all) cars.
At Spa, Cadillac added the now customary horizontal vane on the outboard surface of the endplate (pinkish highlight) and altered the detail of the footplate tunnel (green highlight).
With that, it has also altered the detail and positioning of the small vertical vanes on the upper surface of footplate. This would be to optimise the outwash.
And now for Cadillac's most glaring problem: the front brakes that have caught fire through lack of cooling. As you can see, as the season has progressed, it has altered the size of the inlet for the front brakes. However, even with the largest version for Hungary, Valtteri Bottas still had to drive into the crash barrier just to stop the car after the front brakes caught fire once again in the race.
Cooling the brakes is not easy and it's not just about a bigger inlet opening. For a given speed, there is a positive pressure on that opening. So, yes, a bigger opening theoretically gives more flow, but it's what's happening behind that opening that is critical.
The exit needs to be matched to that opening to get a decent pressure drop across the duct system; that exit needs to be in a low-pressure area. Out the back of the duct and low down is a reasonable place to allow the low-pressure area behind the front tyre to generate that exit low-pressure area.
The exit also needsto be approximately three times the size of the inlet otherwise, as the speed increases, the duct system just blocks up and you don't get an increase in the flow going through the system. Then all the things internally - brake discs, brake pads and callipers - all need to have their own percentage of that mass flow; the internal ducting on these cars is a design feat in its own right.
Yes, cooling the front brakes is a performance compromise; however, them catching fire regularly is even worse.
Now ex-team principal Lowdon explained: "We've had a number of DNFs \[nine\] all fundamentally focused around things to do with cooling on brakes, and that is a really, really, really difficult area of a Formula 1 car to develop.
"It's an area where know-how and intangible IP is really important. And we're not allowed to get that from anywhere else, we can't take someone else's brake duct design.
"People have in the past, but you're not allowed to do it. You have to do that learning and you have to do it in public as well with a few hundred million people watching, so the task's not easy. I think the team has done a spectacular job."
My thoughts on that comment is that Pat Symonds, Cadillac's technical consultant, is by no means a new kid on the block, and Cadillac has various other staff members who have been with other teams, so their experience is there to tap into.
CFD is the ideal tool for optimising brake ducts; it is basically a closed duct with an inlet and an outlet and lots of brake bits in between that need decent airflow. Once you have modelled what you have (which is not easy), then increasing or decreasing the mass airflow or the percentage of what goes where is relatively simple.
Now we come to the leading edge of the central section of the underfloor. The main change here is the reduction of the volume of the floor tray (green highlight) support (magenta highlight).
Reducing this will allow for a simpler deflection mechanism, which is there to allow the floor tray to move upwards above a certain FIA test load to reduce the risk of chassis damage when the driver goes over kerbs.
It will also allow the airflow that is coming in through the gap created by the raised chassis to distribute itself to the left or right of the chassis bow as required by the suction levels created by the diffuser.
Further outboard on the floor sidepod leading edge, Cadillac has also revised the positioning of the small vertical-ish splitters. It has also gone from a four-pack to a five-pack; we all like a six-pack, perhaps that's next on the list?
Dividing the leading edge of the underfloor into smaller sections gives the opportunity to increase the outwash on the front corner of the floor. Having this area 'aerodynamically talking' to the bargeboard footplate allows this area to act like its own small diffuser.
This in turn means the main diffuser at the rear of the car is mainly focused on the airflow nearer the centre line of the car, which is coming in over that earlier tray section of the floor.
Then we get to the bargeboards and their footplate. The upper edge profile of the bargeboards (green highlight) has changed - not dramatically, but by being taller it will have more effect on tidying up the turbulent wake trying to fill that void behind the front tyre.
The horizontal vanes on the bargeboard footplate (yellow-ish highlight) have also been altered slightly, just through small profile and angle of attack changes to work more efficiently with the vertical vanes under the leading edge of the floor.
Now we move on to the sidepods. Again, Cadillac has had to increase the cooling inlet (red ellipse above and below), which, combined with the repositioning of the exit louvres (light blue highlight above) closer to the radiator cores, will make them more efficient.
It shows the team probably underestimated the cooling requirements around the complete car. It's not surprising as it's a new team, and I have done that myself; speaking from that experience, I would advise them to overdo the cooling. Getting to the finish line without too many compromises is all that can be expected from a team in its first year.
We then move on to the area just in front of the rear tyre contact patch. This area is important to how efficiently you can make the floor side sealing system work.
Basically, you are trying to reduce the amount of airflow that is being either forced under the floor by the rear tyre rotating onto the track surface and/or pulled in under the floor by the diffuser in this area.
The small horizontal turning vane (magenta highlight) in front of the rear tyre contact patch has had its angle of attack altered slightly. Also, its support is now further forward; the vanes in front of that area also look like they have been altered slightly.
I wouldn't get excited about either of these changes. Some of them may have just been for manufacturing and structural requirements.
Then we get to the rear wing packages, an area more to do with different circuit requirements.
Cadillac started the season with a fairly simple solution - nothing groundbreaking - and from that it added the small outer rear flap extension (magenta highlight) for Monaco where the teams were not allowed to use an active wing configuration.
It added a small extension to the rear flap in the area that *is* allowed for the active aero mechanism, and for the following races and Hungary that extension was gone and the active aero mechanism was refitted.
From the rear we can have a look at the various diffuser configurations. It's always difficult to really see in detail from one single shot, but it looks like there are quite a few small changes in this area.
The rear section of the gearbox shroud (highlighted with the red arrows) looks like it may have changed angle slightly, now longer at the floor section and more upright.
Cadillac has also added the small extensions on the sides of the rear crash structure (magenta highlight) and as the races have progressed through the season these extensions have got bigger.
The splitters, which are shaded in green, could be slightly different, as could the sides of the diffuser, which is shaded in orange. But as I have said before, from one shot it's difficult to see by how much or go into great detail.
## Underwhelming development?
So summing up, for a team in its first season I'm a little disappointed in what I am seeing. When you come in from the cold there should be more opportunities to exploit. What I'm seeing is simply what could be classified as small race-to-race developments, and in reality there should be a few eureka moments to exploit once all the other cars have shown their dirty laundry in public.
I don't want to be overcritical, and these cars are exceptionally complex. But the last new team, Haas, started its first campaign in 2016 on a much stronger footing. Both have a relationship with Ferrari and even though Haas took far more Ferrari components for its debut, I still expected more in-season progression from Cadillac.
Cadillac's season so far doesn't show much relative progress; in order of the races, this is the percentage gap to pole, with the team's lead qualifying position in brackets, and worst and best bolded.
Australia, **5.20%** (18th)
China, 4.26% (20th)
Japan, 3.86% (19th)
Miami, 4.36% **(17th)**
Canada, 3.92% (20th)
Monaco, 3.74% (18th)
Barcelona, 3.83% (19th)
Austria, 4.28% (19th)
Silverstone, 3.53% (18th)
Spa, **3.31%** (19th)
Hungary, 4.76% **(21st)**
As you can see, as far as percentage from pole is concerned, Hungary, the 11th race, was not too different to Australia, which was the first race of the season.
As far as the Lowdon-Budkowski swap goes, heads are going to roll when the ultimate performance or progress isn't there. Yes, this could mean more experienced people coming in, but it can also mean disruption.
For upper management, patience can run out. Promises run thin and Lowdon has paid the price for that given CEO of TWG Motorsports Dan Towriss said: "It wasn't a mutual decision. The process started a few months ago: really thinking about what the next phase for Cadillac Formula 1 looks like, what's the right timing, how would that look, and then the capabilities of the various folks out there."
Adding to and strengthening the management structure would have been a better solution, so perhaps he should have remembered the old saying: 'Patience is a virtue, possess it if you can'.
Let's see how Cadillac's patience holds up in the second half of 2026.
### 100 years of British Grand Prix history at Brooklands
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/100-years-of-british-grand-prix-history-at-brooklands/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T11:51:22.000Z
Last Friday (August 7) marked the 100-year anniversary of the first grand prix in Britain, which was held at Brooklands, the world's first purpose-built racetrack.
A celebration of that milestone at Brooklands included 120 grand prix cars, from 100-year-old Sunbeams and Bugattis to Ayrton Senna's 1991 Formula 1 championship-winning McLaren and modern-day machines.
Fans could also see F1 icons such as the six-wheeled Tyrell, Michael Schumacher's 1992 Benetton, the 1998 Benson & Hedges Jordan and the Brawn GP car to name a few.
The event held three key demos. The first involved 100-year-old grand prix cars launching up Brooklands' Finishing Straight two or three at a time, through a hay bale chicane, before turning around on the banking and heading back towards the start to loop around for a few more laps.
It was incredible to see these machines of all shapes and sizes being driven properly over the bumps of the now disused legendary start/finish straight. Some only had the driver but many had passengers riding along too, conforming to the regulations of the time where the mechanic would join the driver!
The second demo was the test hill climb. An uphill battle on foot (yes, The Race Extra walked up, but it was worth it to stand on the bridge crossing the banked circuit), this put the cars to the test as they launched upwards with the crowds cheering them on. These weren't modern cars but more of those of a 100-year-old vintage being pushed to their limits in celebration of what they helped create.
Lastly, there were demo runs on the Mercedes-Benz World test circuit - which was freely accessible to cross over to from Brooklands as the two venues partnered for this event.
Here, fans watched grand prix and F1 machinery open up and sing as they accelerated out of the 'wet circle' down the back straight. The sounds of the legendary Cosworth DFV, McLaren-Honda V12 and even the BRM V16 filled the area. Mighty impressive but, not to be outdone, the vintage GP cars were sliding around in front of the crowd showing just how much control it took to keep those pioneering cars under control.
And if watching the cars on track wasn't enough, there was the chance to get in on the action too. McLaren had a pitstop challenge set up allowing spectators to change a wheel on a McLaren F1 car, as well as simulators - allowing avid amateurs the chance to set the fastest lap - and an exhibit of the McLaren Senna, featuring the real thing and Lego versions of it.
And as if that wasn't enough, the cars weren't the only icons at Brooklands - as the Concorde was open for viewing, as well as the rest of the venue's aviation display.
The Brooklands centenary celebration was truly a fantastic event - one that definitely deserves to become an annual occurrence.
### Cadillac's shock F1 team boss sacking - our verdict
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cadillac-shock-f1-team-boss-sacking-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T10:30:53.000Z
Graeme Lowdon is [out at Cadillac, Marcin Budkowski isin](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cadillac-abrupt-f1-team-principal-change-lowdon-out-budkowski-in/) as the new team principal - a piece of news that caught everyone off-guard in the middle of Formula 1's summer break - and it wasn't a mutual decision either.
This is all part of Cadillac's planned leadership evolution, according to team CEO Dan Towriss, but was it the right call, at the right time, by F1's newest team?
Our experts have their say.
## Hints at trouble behind the scenes
There was always going to be a leadership transition at Cadillac, as I always had the impression that Lowdon was the start-up phase team principal. However, what has surprised me is the timing and how inelegantly this has played out. And that would indicate all is not well.
The fact that Lowdon was told by Towriss that he was out on the morning of the announcement, and the fact that he appears no longer to be involved at all, is indicative of that.
So, too, is the fact that Lowdon wasn't part of the online press conference in which Budkowski was presented, with Towriss admitting it was not a "mutual decision".
Budkowski hadn't even had the chance to visit the factory when the appointment was made. None of this is indicative of a well-handled passing over of the baton.
That's neither Budkowski's fault, nor a comment on his suitability for the job given he has a good CV, but it does suggest that there are fundamental disagreements about the direction of the Cadillac team.
Lowdon has done a phenomenal job not only to see this team through the troubled application process, but also deliver a level of performance on track that redefines what's possible for a new team that doesn't follow the Haas technical partnership model by relying on the maximum level of parts supplied by a partner team.
Lowdon is one of those people in F1 who it's easy to underestimate because he's kept a low profile, but before Cadillac he'd been involved in far more behind the scenes over the years than just the team that came into F1 as Virgin in 2010\.
That knowledge and skillset when it came to playing the politics and strategically building up a team that is still only in its prototype phase has been crucial to getting the team off the ground and able to perform so competitively.
That's what's concerning about the process. Were this announced in a more controlled way, presented as a well-executed strategic decision with Lowdon on board, then it would be a positive sign. The way it has played out suggests that all might not be well behind the scenes. - **Edd Straw**
## Budkowski's F1 CV is a clear upgrade
Tough, ruthless, this decision is certainly both of these things. But that's F1: you've got to take your chances and target relentless progression. There's not really any room for sentiment when you're trying to fast-track your way up the grid.
Lowdon did sterling work building the Cadillac team from scratch, but what next? Any way you slice it, Budkowski and the F1 CV he brings with him is an upgrade on Lowdon's.
Reading Towriss's explanation, you get the sense he wanted someone in place with broader F1 experience, more technical experience, and more of a hard edge in terms of leadership style. He used phrases such as "very strong technical team principal" and "very strong leadership", setting the direction for "a winning mindset across the organisation".
Budkowski has come from multiple winning F1 teams - Ferrari and McLaren in the distant past - and most recently has experience of *de facto* leading a proper works F1 operation in Alpine, whereas Lowdon's experience more closely aligns with back-of-the-grid startups and driver management.
You get the sense also that Towriss feels Cadillac is on the back foot in terms of understanding the F1 regulatory landscape and how to best utilise its resources under the budget cap, saying "we've only scratched the surface of the toolset GM has to offer".
Budkowski has a useful FIA background, and crucially brings experience of running Alpine's F1 team under the first year of the budget cap in 2021\. I think this, as well as his more varied and successful CV in F1, is probably the key driver in Cadillac's decision. - **Ben Anderson**
## Refreshing honesty in Cadillac's explanation
I used to struggle to put my finger on why, but I always had a suspicion that Lowdon might not be the long-term leader for Cadillac's F1 effort. He even suggested as much in Monaco earlier this year when he referred to his skillset being "incredibly narrow".
He effectively described himself as the ideal person to set a team up because of his prior experience with the cash-strapped Virgin/Marussia/Manor entity, and explained how that meant he wasn't "daunted by certain aspects of what you need to do". Then he went on to say "other people had experience of leading teams that are repeatedly winning world championships".
Cadillac is a long way off needing a team boss with title-winning experience, but you can see the logic that now the dirty work has been done to make the team a reality and give it a very credible start in F1, the leadership group above Lowdon believes it's time to move on from the guy who was ideal for the start-up phase.
It's a shame for Lowdon that he won't get to grow and move up the grid with Cadillac to broaden his self-described "incredibly narrow skillset". And it's fair to question if Budkowski is the right man to lead the next chapter.
But I understand why the change is being made. And I respect the team for being up front about the fact that it was always the plan to do something like this, and admitting that it "wasn't mutual". That kind of honesty is rare in F1! - **Glenn Freeman**
## Lowdon was a strange choice in the first place
I never understood Lowdon's appointment in the first place. Sure, he had experience with smaller teams, but not in the cost cap era, and he'd been out of F1 for nearly 10 years. That might not be long in some sports but it's centuries in F1's equivalent definition of time and space.
And if it was "always the plan" to hand the team over, what was the point in installing him there in the first place?
Cadillac would probably say he was key to building the team from the ground up, and I'd agree. But why did that have to be as team principal when someone like Budkowski with more relevant recent and technical knowledge could have been steering the day to day to free up Lowdon for things like staffing and logistics?
Senior advisor? Managing director? Chief consultant? All of these roles would have made sense, but not the team principal role given how much F1 changed in the period he was out.
And surely, if an engineering brain in charge is what they wanted as has become quite common in F1 and motorsport, surely the time to benefit from that would be in a long lead up to a new rules package? Maybe Budkowski could have foreseen some of Cadillac's issues or identified the weaknesses that led to them.
Lowdon speaks well and would have value for any team. But the timing and the role were never suited, backed up by the fact Cadillac was always going to move on from him and had decided that from the beginning. - **Jack Benyon**
## Uninspiring - from a team with wider problems
The best boss I ever had used to decry our company's internal promotion approach by saying people would be selected on the basis of the recruiting manager or HR 'looking out the window and seeing who walks past first'.
I sort of felt like that when I heard Lowdon was appointed team principal at Cadillac. It was an obvious if uninspired choice. Budkowski's announcement feels similar.
All the other teams are moving towards a team principal with a technical background, not a business or a generalist motorsport one as used to be the case. So Dan Towriss plays the Zak Brown role and Budkowski is his Andrea Stella.
Budkowski has a technical background, some senior F1 management experience, and was literally outside of the Cadillac motorhome window performing his role as a pundit for Polish TV.
But most importantly why now? It's only usually in retrospect we find out if two things that happen at a similar moment are coincidence, correlation or causation.
This week, Mark Walter, the main man behind the funding of Cadillac F1 via his TWG Global organisation, has unexpectedly agreed to sell the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5billion, just a year after acquiring the franchise.
The Financial Times reports that this sale is to raise liquidity amid federal scrutiny of Walter's wider business empire.
Even if the changing of Cadillac's F1 boss and the ongoing financial scrutiny surrounding TWG are indeed only coincidence, both will provide plenty of intrigue and storylines in the coming months. - **Darren Cox**
### Buemi to retire from Formula E this weekend
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/sebastien-buemi-formula-e-retirement-gen3-gen4-envision-racing/
Last updated: 2026-08-13T08:00:17.000Z
Sebastien Buemi’s 12-year Formula E career will end this weekend in London - after the 2016 champion has decided not to pursue the possibility of a drive in the Gen4 era of the all-electric world championship.
Envision announced today that both Buemi and current team-mate Joel Eriksson will leave the team after the London E-Prix.
The Race understands that Zak O’Sullivan tested the Jaguar Gen4 development car at Estoril last week and is a key driver of interest to join the already signed Maximilian Guenther at the Chinese owned/British based team next season.
The team will confirm its line-up after the London finale this weekend.
Buemi, who has competed in all but two of the 161 E-Prix held since 2014, will race in his final event this Sunday for the Envision team that he has competed with since 2023\.
Prior to that, the Swiss driver drove for Renault and Nissan between 2014 and the start of the Gen3 era.
Buemi has now taken the decision to concentrate on his successful endurance career with the Toyota Racing operation, with which he has won four Le Mans 24 Hours and four World Endurance Championship titles.
All bar one of Buemi’s 14 Formula E wins came with the e.dams’ iteration of the Renault and Nissan operations - and his single Gen3 win in his time with Envision came at the 2025 Monaco E-Prix.
Buemi was well beaten by Nick Cassidy in their single season together in 2023, a campaign in which Buemi appeared to struggle with the new pack racing that self-generated through the Gen3’s initial quirky technical set-up, especially with the fickle Hankook tyres.
But against Robin Frijns in 2024 and 2025 Buemi fared much better and was occasionally right at the front, as he has been this season.
Buemi will bow out of Formula E not at the top, as he so often was in the first era of Formula E.
He is still quick, competitive and retains a massive amount of respect from the paddock for both his achievements and his burning and unflinching commitment to motorsport, in which he has carved out a deserved reputation as the ultimate professional.
## What is Buemi’s FE legacy?
A tally of 14 wins, 36 podiums, 17 poles and one title tells only a small proportion of one of Formula E’s OG drivers and one of its most intensively driven operators.
Buemi has a strong case of being the most active, successful and, collectively, one of the best-paid drivers outside of Formula 1 since he left racing’s highest echelon at the end of 2011.
He is as fierce a competitor as has ever set foot in a Formula E car. But perhaps more impressive has been his staying power where he has remained competitive well into his 30s.
It says a great deal that he has every chance of signing off with at least a podium position in London this weekend, as the hands of time finally push through even beyond his power and tick from Gen3 to Gen4 and the start of a genuine new Formula E era.
It’s easy to forget now that he was just 23 when his F1 career petered out. There were at least a couple of occasions when he might have returned to it but instead he has become the most decorated endurance sportscar driver of modern times and a bona fide Formula E legend.
It is not so much how he does that, because it's genuinely come from hard work, intellect and skill. But it's the 'why?'.
Why did Buemi feel the need to take a chance on a nascent series like Formula E when in all reality it was little more than an ambitious, at first poorly-organised dream that looked as though it would die in its first season?
Intriguingly Buemi raced in A1GP when he was 17 and 18 years of age at the very start of his career. He didn’t do that for any altruistic reason. He did it just to race. But perhaps subconsciously he picked up the understanding that trying something new and soaking up experience via experienced hands such as Max Welti and former McLaren and Williams engineer James Robinson might actually lead somewhere.
Fast-forward six or seven years from the A1GP days and Buemi re-engaged with Jean-Paul Driot (below, left), the legendarily forceful and driven boss of the DAMS empire that was branching out into Formula E. Buemi had some other offers but Driot's was by far the most compelling.
Although the two had not worked together in GP2, they had talked extensively when they shared the A1GP paddock, with Buemi racing for Switzerland and Driot running the French squad. It quickly became apparent that they shared high ideals of professionalism and racing desire.
From there, the pair created early Formula E history with multiple victories and the 2015-16 title.
There is also some irony in that Buemi will take part in his last E-Prix this weekend in the same race as his former nemesis Lucas di Grassi, the driver with whom he clashed in the Gen1 era, retires as well.
That old bitterness has long since gone and Buemi was generous in his tribute to di Grassi earlier this year [when the Brazilian announced his own exit.](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-champion-di-grassi-announces-his-retirement-from-racing/)
“We’ve not always been good friends, even if I would say today we’re all good,” Buemi told The Race.
“He’s maybe the driver that has contributed the most to Formula E. We all need to acknowledge that he’s been there from the beginning and he came up with great ideas on how to build the championship initially.
"I think he was part of what made Formula E that good, especially in the first few years of the championship, so he deserves lots of credit for doing that.”
Di Grassi is expected to be as effusive in his praise for his former rival, too - and while it will come from a very different character, it will be genuine nonetheless.
### Cadillac makes abrupt F1 team principal change
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cadillac-abrupt-f1-team-principal-change-lowdon-out-budkowski-in/
Last updated: 2026-08-12T17:04:43.000Z
Formula 1's newest team Cadillac has suddenly announced a change of team principal, as Marcin Budkowski has replaced Graeme Lowdon.
Lowdon, the former chief of the now-defunct Manor F1 outfit, was a key player in the Cadillac F1 project from the very early stages - but has now stepped aside and seemingly left the team, as per a statement released by the General Motors-representing outfit.
"We're grateful to Graeme Lowdon for his leadership and the role he played in forming the Cadillac Formula 1 team from the ground up," said team CEO Dan Towriss.
"His contributions helped establish a strong foundation in our build-up phase, and we thank him for his commitment and wish him well."
Towriss told media later on Wednesday that he had made the decision himself and that Lowdon had been informed of that decision that morning.
Lowdon therefore hands over the reins to Budkowski, a long-time F1 operator best-known for his switch from an FIA/F1 technical role to a director position at Renault - a move that back in 2017 perturbed some of Renault's rivals.
Budkowski eventually left what became Alpine during one of its numerous leadership overhauls, but had remained in the F1 paddock as an analyst for Polish TV.
Towriss described his appointment as "another important step in the continued evolution" of Cadillac, while the team's release also insisted it "follows a planned leadership transition as the organisation evolves from its initial build phase into the next stage of racing performance".
Budkowski will assume his role publicly from the Dutch Grand Prix weekend already.
Cadillac is yet to score points in F1 but has performed at or above expectation with its fragile-but-fairly-competitive MAC-26, which for a good chunk of the season was even a clear step ahead of Aston Martin's 2026 car.
It is, however, likely to spend the rest of the campaign more or less by itself at the back, given its immediate rivals are introducing development steps that are expected to significantly eclipse its own plans for its 2026 car, with next year's attempt a bigger focus.
### 'Insane' Ducati tipped for early advantage in MotoGP 2027
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/insane-ducati-tipped-for-early-advantage-in-motogp-2027/
Last updated: 2026-08-12T13:34:10.000Z
Ducati is being tipped to enjoy a meaningful initial advantage over its MotoGP rivals at the outset of the championship's next rules era arriving in 2027.
MotoGP is switching to 850cc bikes (instead of the current 1,000cc machines) and Pirelli tyres (instead of Michelin rubber) next year, with the regulations also tightening aero restrictions and forbidding the use of ride height devices.
The 850cc prototypes are already testing extensively, and KTM tester Pol Espargaro - who also works as an analyst for Spanish broadcaster DAZN - is among the riders who have already accrued considerable mileage with the next-generation bikes.
Espargaro was testing at Mugello right before being called up to replace Maverick Vinales on the current bike in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. That Mugello test - which featured every manufacturer bar Yamaha - was headed up convincingly by Ducati and its test rider/World Superbike leader Nicolo Bulega.
"Apart from the beginning of the year, that maybe some manufacturers are gonna start faster than the others, \[but\] when everyone more or less is gonna be on the same level, even maybe second year, the competition is gonna be super close. But it will take time," Espargaro assessed - and he gave a clear hint that that assessment was based on what he'd seen from the 850cc Ducati so far.
His expectation is also that Ducati will benefit significantly from its current successes with the Panigale V4 R in the World Superbike championship, which currently uses Pirelli rubber.
"It's easy to think that Ducati is gonna be insane," Espargaro continued.
"It's gonna be fast from the first day because they have all the information from Superbike.
"At the end, it \[the 850cc bike\] is a kind of superbike - it's not changing much from Superbike.
"They \[Ducati\] are gonna have some advantage, especially how to treat the tyres, what they need to do on the tyres to make them better in the races, or to perform better over one lap.
"They have a lot of information that the other manufacturers don't, the others that are not in Superbike."
Of Ducati's MotoGP peers, Honda and Yamaha also have a presence in WorldSBK.
However, while Ducati has won all 24 races of the season so far (23 with Bulega and one with Iker Lecuona), and has locked out the podium in 18 races, Yamaha hasn't troubled the top three - while the Hondas have not finished better than 10th, once, at the time of writing.
### A new rider hierarchy?
Espargaro was really caught off-guard by how difficult he'd found adapting back to the current 1,000cc KTM RC16 after his 850cc development work.
He described himself as "feeling like a rookie" during the Silverstone weekend, and clearly struggled to extract the same kind of performance he had shown standing in for Vinales the year before.
And Espargaro went as far as to claim that riders coming out of Moto2 next year - with its less powerful bikes and Pirelli rubber - will have a "big advantage" at the outset.
The '27 rookie crop is set to include the aforementioned Bulega and Moto2 graduates Izan Guevara, Senna Agius, David Alonso and Dani Holgado, the latter of whom Espargaro mentors.
"You cannot believe how much the category will change next year and how many riders are going to struggle in this new category. It's insane," Espargaro mused, despite describing the switch from 1,000cc to the 850cc bike as "easy" compared to the opposite transition.
"I feel more ready to ride a Moto2 than MotoGP, you know? I was with Holgado (above, left, with Pol), before the start of his second \[Moto2 practice\] session in the afternoon, and I was talking to him, chatting - and it's what I felt, I felt a little bit closer, seeing how they ride and looking at some data, to the Moto2 than to the MotoGP, the actual MotoGP.
"The change is insane, and it's gonna be a challenge for the MotoGP current riders, that are on the 1,000cc bike with the Michelins, against the Moto2 guys that are gonna come next year.
"They are gonna be insanely fast, so it's gonna be a big challenge for them."
### Our verdict on F1 2026's biggest disappointments so far
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-on-f1-2026s-biggest-disappointments-so-far/
Last updated: 2026-08-12T07:25:19.000Z
Who or what has been the biggest disappointment of Formula 1's 2026 season so far?
That's what we asked our team; here's what they said...
**Edd Straw:** It has to be Aston Martin-Honda, given it wasn't long ago that it was seen as a team with the potential to emerge as a race-winning force thanks to the overhaul of the regulations. For it to have made it 11 races into the season with a grand total of one point to show for it is below even the lowest of realistic expectations.
The interesting question is whether the raft of car and power unit upgrades, which started promisingly in Hungary, can turn things around enough for Aston Martin to pass the baton over to Williams.
The current trajectory suggests this could be the case, which at least means there's some reason for encouragement at Aston Martin.
What makes it so disappointing is how so many promising elements have failed to fire - Newey, Honda, Alonso, the state-of-the-art factory.
The pieces are there for Aston Martin, and it has the potential to emerge as a powerhouse. For it to be scraping around at the back and only ahead of Cadillac thanks to a fluke point in Monaco is simply not good enough.
---
**Want to have your say?* Join* [*The Race Members' Club*](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) *now to tell us* [*your biggest disappointment under this post,*](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/what-do-you-is-166403780?ref=the-race.com) *and we'll react to some of your choices before Zandvoort in a Members'-exclusive podcast.*
---
**Gary Anderson:** There are three teams that I would like to classify as disappointments. You could add Cadillac into that, but I will give it more time to get on top of F1 before I make a judgement; it's a brand-new team after all.
1 - Williams. We have been hearing for far too long how it's regrouping, adding new people and new systems, and this year was going to be the season where that all came together. It missed the start of pre-season testing, started the actual season dismally and in reality has gone backwards from there.
2 - Haas. It now has the might of Toyota beside it, but I’m not completely sure what sort of a contribution it has made. I did think it would put it on a more stable footing, both financially and as far as R&D would be concerned, but in the end, like Williams, it has also gone backwards as the season has progressed.
3 - Aston Martin-Honda. I put Aston Martin and Honda together as, from my point of view, both are responsible for the dismal start to 2026\. Yes, Hungary showed a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel, but before Aston Martin gets to be a consistent Q3 participant, it has a lot more work to do. The Hungary B-spec took the car above Williams and Haas, but that’s partly because those also went backwards...
**Valentin Khorounzhiy:** From a working-in-media standpoint, in terms of personal preference, the biggest things have been F1's seeming reluctance to lean into incorporating more battery data into broadcasts (apparently through a misguided assumption that viewers don't want to understand the races they're watching) and the lack of clarity within many teams in which driver is actually performing better and how much better.
It's annoying that all our usual metrics have to be taken with a grain of salt because sometimes deployment won't work, sometimes the PU 'self-learning' won't play along, sometimes there is no parts consistency across the two cars (looking at you, Haas), et cetera, et cetera.
In terms of individual team or driver performance, while the likes of 'stealth title contender Aston Martin-Honda' and 'presumed championship winner George Russell' have absolutely been going through it the most, a word must be reserved for Williams and, to a much lesser extent, Alpine.
Clearly the Mercedes PU is a precious commodity in this early phase of the regs, but Alpine has only really exploited that advantage to the barest minimum and kind of just feels like it's settling into the role of a perennial midpacker with no greater prospects or aspirations, especially now that it's in some ways just another customer team.
And Williams's season has been catastrophic, and a clear squandering of the talents of Carlos Sainz in particular. Because of how far back it has started in these regs, I just don't see how its story in this regulations cycle is anything but a retread of the same steps that had already been trodden in the early years of the Dorilton era.
**Jack Benyon:** George Russell. I caveat by saying, I don’t necessarily think *he* is the disappointment. Clearly this formula has uncovered something in his driving that hasn’t been an issue earlier in his career.
When covering George in 2018 Formula 2, he had to fight against poor reliability and stuff going wrong with the notorious new cars that year, but the way he did it made me believe he has everything needed to be a world champion, and I still think he does.
It’s tragic that his opportunity has come just at the time he’s met with the least malleable F1 car of his career so far when it comes to how he drives.
**Mathew Somerfield:** The easiest candidate for this would be the new power units, as they have failed to move the needle forward when compared with the hybrid solution we had for just over a decade prior.
Regardless of the new manufacturer involvement, the regulatory framework has resulted in a subpar product that’s been damaging to the racing.
However, whilst this has been disappointing in a general sense, the real disappointment comes courtesy of Aston Martin and Williams, both of which had promise or momentum coming into 2026 that evaporated very quickly.
Aston Martin’s trials and tribulations are the consequence of a hard development pivot at a time when much of the car had already been signed off, whilst the struggles posed to rescaling for Honda have also clearly had their own repercussions.
Meanwhile, Williams missed essential deadlines and the pre-season shakedown, which inevitably put them on the back foot.
Their issues have been amplified by a car that’s overweight and what appears to have been a development U-turn for some of the car's design features, Williams having realised it had cornered itself with the previous solutions.
**Oliver Card:** Aston Martin for me has been the biggest disappointment of the season so far.
In some ways, it is reassuring to know that money can’t buy you everything, that even with sackfuls of cash, the most gleaming facilities, a dedicated engine partnership and the world’s greatest racing car designer, sometimes, the stars don’t align. But it has been a devastating start in this new era and hard to watch at times.
To get halfway through the season clutching a single point for a team with such technical calibre is bleak. The fact that it was inherited after a post-race penalty in Monaco, doubly so.
If you were to ask me the same question again at the end of the season, I suspect the answer might not be the same, as the green shoots of recovery seem to just be emerging.
Whilst Aston Martin is 10th out of 11 teams, it certainly cannot get any lower - and once the improved Honda engine arrives, it has the potential to become one of the most captivating comebacks since McLaren’s renaissance after its dire period in the mid-2010s.
**Jon Noble:** Team-wise, there is no doubt that it’s Aston Martin.
From that 20-minute spell at the Barcelona test where the AMR26 first appeared and looked amazing in black, and you wondered if Newey had done it again, its rapidly emerging problems and horrendous start to the year fell far short of what anyone expected.
Overall, everybody knew the 2026 rules were going to have their challenges, and actually some aspects of the cars and the racing have been better than I feared before the season got underway.
But what has not been so good to see is the repeated stance from F1 chiefs that everything has been perfect this year - and that any hint that there is something that isn't working simply gets the response that the fans love it.
Insisting that those who follow F1 do not care at all about the technical details – when almost everyone reading this has LOVED following the technical complexities for years – is a dismissive stance for your truly engaged audience that I do not quite understand.
### What Bagnaia's latest Ducati crisis really means
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/what-pecco-bagnaia-latest-ducati-crisis-really-means/
Last updated: 2026-08-11T15:59:10.000Z
Ducati's two-time MotoGP champion Pecco Bagnaia has had a very uneven 2026 campaign, with a particularly dreadful British Grand Prix at Silverstone that showed the worst of his Ducati tenure isn't yet behind him.
Bagnaia is a British GP winner, but his recent outing at Silverstone was eerily reminiscent in terms of results to the worst moments of his campaign last year - which was poor enough to get Ducati to prioritise the signing of Pedro Acosta instead of extending its MotoGP champion.
His current eighth place in the standings has also been conditioned by misfortune on the technical side - as well as being a direct byproduct of a significant rise in the competitiveness of Aprilia, his future employer.
But Bagnaia has been unspectacular. The Race's MotoGP post-weekend rankings have him as the 13th-best full-time rider in the field this season, with only one true standout weekend performance, coming at Brno.
Admittedly, Silverstone also "stood out" - but in a negative way.
---
**Pecco Bagnaia's British GP, gap to lead Ducati**
FP1: +0.954s
PR: +1.013s
FP2: +1.127s
Q: +1.476s
SPR: +16.766s
WUP: +1.374s
GP: N/A (DNF, was 10s off lead Ducati when he crashed on lap 7)
---
This was a brutal weekend for Bagnaia, partly foreshadowed by his arm pump surgery mid-July but not fully explained by this.
He said he "could not imagine" more than his 17th place in the sprint given his level of performance, and was bewildered and irritated about a "difficult to accept" crash on Sunday - as he tucked the front coming out of Luffield.
But Bagnaia has insisted for much of the season that his difficulties with the current factory-spec Ducati - the Ducati GP26 - are very different in nature to what troubled him with the Ducati GP25.
Then, it was a lack of confidence in the front, seemingly triggered by subtle changes in weight distribution on the bike. Here, it is a shortage of rear grip, triggered by a cause yet to be identified in any meaningful way.
The throughline is that when it's been bad, it's been *really* bad.
"I changed everything: set-up, electronics, but the problem is not that. From the first race of the season I don't have any grip, completely zero," Bagnaia lamented at Silverstone.
"And we don't know what to do because there are riders in Ducati that have a lot \[of rear grip\], so it's very difficult to understand."
This he had alluded to in the past, seemingly referencing Alex Marquez and Fabio Di Giannantonio - both also on GP26s this year, with their form patterns looking completely different to Bagnaia.
The way it's presented itself is with a Bagnaia limited on corner entries (once his ultimate calling card) and having to force the bike too much to actually get it to turn (which he's suggested was the cause of his arm pump).
He has also looked unable to stretch out tyre life again, like in 2025\. At Silverstone, though, this wasn't the biggest issue - his baseline performance was such that even stand-in Iker Lecuona posed a massive threat.
If a slight early-summer flourish revived, even for the briefest of moments, the idea of Pecco Bagnaia as a factor in this title race, Silverstone has removed him from the equation. And whatever the solution to his malaise now, it can't really be too high on Ducati's priority list, if we're being honest.
From now on, Bagnaia's season is about taking the most confidence and the fewest bad habits into the new world of 850cc bikes, Pirelli tyres and a four-year Aprilia deal.
### Formula E secures major Disney+ streaming deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-secures-major-disney-streaming-deal/
Last updated: 2026-08-11T13:00:36.000Z
Formula E will be streamed live on Disney+ and ESPN channels from the start of the Gen4 era onwards later this year, in what the all-electric world championship is heralding as a landmark broadcasting agreement.
Disney+ is set to be the global streaming home of Formula E across 144 territories – including the UK as well as the US, where it will also be shown on ESPN+. Each practice session, qualifying session and race will be shown live. The expanded streaming offering will sit alongside Formula E’s existing broadcast partnerships.
Formula E is therefore set to reach millions of new households while "complementing its established portfolio of free-to-air and linear broadcast partners around the world, ensuring fans continue to enjoy broad access across key markets", according to the announcement made today.
That was backed up by title protagonist Jake Dennis and Cupra Kiro driver Pepe Marti appearing live on Good Morning America today - where the deal was discussed and Formula E was showcased to millions of US consumers.
Speaking exclusively to The Race on the announcement of the plans, Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds said that the announcement was “a massive sign of intent” for Formula E as it enters its fourth era with by far its fastest and most technologically advanced car ever.
“There are a small group of organisations you can talk to about doing this, and what you want is global scale, you want somebody that's going to treat your product in a way that is conducive with what we think it is and what it's going to become in the future, something super premium and super exciting,” added Dodds.
“I think from their \[Disney+\] side, they understand the power of sports and how important sport is becoming for appointment-to-view television. Sports is one of the only categories and genres that continues to grow year on year on year, and they've seen the power of that.”
“They understand the tailwinds we've got around technology, around innovation, around sustainability, so they're very interested in being part of a growing sport.”
Disney+ is believed to have found Formula E’s agility and flexibility as a relatively new and ambitious start-up strand of motorsport attractive.
Part of that is likely to be Formula E’s slightly maverick nature in terms of trying reasonably radical sporting formats - which have included the attack mode concept and the energy top-up PitBoost pitstops, as well as the unique qualifying structure of duels.
“I think what they've experienced with us is that we have a willingness to test and learn along with them to produce the best product we can together,” said Dodds.
Joe Earley, co-president of direct-to-consumer at Disney Entertainment, added: “Formula E combines world-class competition, groundbreaking technology, and sustainability in a way that's unlike any other sport.
“We're excited to help power the championship's next chapter on Disney+ and to give fans around the globe front row access to every adrenaline-fueled race as it happens.”
## What this means
Clearly the Disney+ deal for Formula E is hugely significant - as it has been crying out for a spot on such a streaming service for many years.
Stakeholders in the world championship, including teams and manufacturers, have been yearning for such outreach for Formula E since they entered after struggling for return-on-investment in Formula E for since its inception.
Speaking to The Race earlier this year, Porsche’s head of factory motorsport Thomas Laudenbach said that broadcasting coverage for Formula E was “one of the first points that we need to improve”.
“We are talking to FEO, we are talking to Jeff \[Dodds\] and they're on it,” added Laudenbach.
“It’s for sure not easy, but very clear. Our home base is Germany and we want to have it available for everybody easily in Germany. It is for sure one of the core points that we would like to see at least improved in the next year.”
Formula E is rightly proud of such a significant deal. It has been cultivated across almost two years, led by Dodds, Liberty executives and in recent months by former F1 head of media rights Michaella Snoeck- who also has experience in the Olympics and in World Rugby.
Conversations between Formula E and Disney+ are understood by The Race to have begun in 2024, when CEO Dodds was introduced to Andre James, at the time Disney’s executive vice president and head of corporate strategy.
Negotiations between Liberty, Formula E and Disney+ continued as senior executives from Disney+ visited the Mexico City E-Prix in January this year and more concentrated talks began to solidify through the spring period, with a deal believed to have been outlined this May.
The head of Disney+ Japan attended the Tokyo E-Prix last month and an expansive engagement with local broadcasters has been ongoing since. Disney+ UK’s head office is less than a mile from Formula E Operations’ headquarters in Hammersmith, London, where additional meetings on the plans took place in recent months.
A full launch of the broadcasting of Formula E races, including the specifics of how Formula E will be presented via the new deal, is set to happen in the run-up to the official pre-season test at Jarama in November.
Commercial details regarding the deal between Formula E and Disney+/ESPN+ have not been disclosed by either party.
### Gary Anderson: Why F1 needs a traffic light system
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/gary-anderson-the-system-f1-really-needs-to-borrow/
Last updated: 2026-08-11T10:41:28.000Z
Whenever Sky Sports or any other Formula 1 broadcaster analyses controversial incidents involving trackside flags or the lightboard warning systems, it’s almost impossible for them to make out if it was stationary, waved or double yellow.
So just imagine what a driver goes through trying to work it out when traveling at 150mph or more.
Formula 1 is constantly trying to reinvent the wheel, but should more often simply look at solutions that already exist in the real world. Everyone is familiar with the red-yellow-green traffic light system - and this could be adopted as a warning system in F1 to improve safety across the board.
First, let’s take a look at how to use such a system to warn following cars about the state of deployment or harvesting a given car is running at. The rear wing and rear-impact structure lights already exist, but traffic light colours - green, green flashing, yellow, yellow flashing, red and red flashing - can improve their use dramatically. I would also add a blue light that would only appear on the rear-impact structure light.
---
This power mode warning system would apply to all cars at all times, and work as follows:
Rear wing lights **green** \- car is running with power from both combustion engine and defined electrical power level for that circuit.
Rear wing lights **green flashing** \- car is running with power from combustion engine and defined electrical power level for that circuit. However, the battery pack is at 10% or less of the 4MJ maximum useable capacity, so in other words there’s roughly one second of battery power left.
Rear wing lights **yellow** \- car is running with power from combustion engine but nothing from electrical power.
Rear wing lights **yellow flashing** \- car is in harvesting mode.
Rear wing lights **red** \- car is running as a generator, meaning the engine is running against the electrical motor, so basically maximum super-clipping so no forward propulsion.
Rear wing lights **red flashing** \- car has no propulsion, i.e. both the combustion engine and the electrical power have shut down.
Rear impact and dash **blue light flashing** \- as an extra warning, as drivers seem to struggle to see much in the rear-view mirrors. This light comes on as a warning when you are about to be lapped that a car is within one second of you and could attempt an overtake.
This dash light could also be incorporated into the driver-facing camera or the halo as that might further improve its visibility. This is a warning light that a car is close (within one second) behind and could attempt an overtake.
Rear impact and dash **blue light constant** \- this light comes on when you have had a flashing blue light for more than 10 seconds. At that point you must without fail allow the following car to overtake.
In wet conditions when vision is impaired, which we seldom run in currently, the complete rear light warning system can run as red flashing, changing only to the above colours when required.
---
Now for the track safety side of things. Recently, there has been uncertainty about how much of a lift is enough, with the non-penalty for George Russell in Austria and the grid drop for Kimi Antonelli in Hungary falling either side of this vague line.
When it comes to safety, especially when a car has stopped on track or been involved in an accident, there’s a straightforward solution using the above traffic-light system on the car.
To facilitate this, add another light to the front of the car. Again, this could be part of the camera system all cameras must carry, or incorporated into the halo, which would ensure the warning systems are in a defined position.
---
All car lights front, rear and side, **yellow flashing** \- if a car has gone off track but still moving.
Drivers are required to slow by a predetermined percentage, say, 10% of the speed at that point on the previous lap. It is the team’s responsibility to monitor the speed reduction and, if questioned, they need to show their compliance data to the FIA.
All car lights front, rear and side, **yellow** \- if a car has stopped, on track or off track with minimal impact, say less than 10g.
Drivers are required to slow by a predetermined percentage, say, 25% of the speed at that point on the previous lap. It is the team’s responsibility to monitor the speed reduction, and, if questioned, they need to show their compliance data to the FIA.
All car lights, front, rear and side, **red flashing** \- if a car has impact damage above 25g or so and requires a medical car. Track lights go red from start/finish line to that track position.
Drivers are required to return to the pits if they are in the red area of track, others past the scene of the incident can complete the lap.
All car lights, front, rear and side, **red** \- if a car has impact damage above 25g or so and requires a medical car, and the car is still live, meaning the car is unsafe for anyone (marshals and safety crew) to touch. Track lights go red from start/finish line to that track position.
Drivers are required to return to the pits if they are in the red area of track, others past the scene of the incident can complete the lap.
---
These are not just cars with an engine, a gearbox and a fuel tank. They have high-voltage systems, batteries, control electronics, all sorts of things going on, and whenever one of them is sitting there just stopped or damaged after an impact, perhaps with the driver still in it, sometimes the marshals need saving from themselves in trying to get to it too quickly. You don’t want anybody guessing what state the car is in.
If the system fails, it should fail to red. You never want a safety system failing in a way that tells you everything is fine when it isn’t. If the car doesn’t know what state it is in, then the default position should be 'don’t touch it'.
This system or something very similar should be standard and stipulated in the regulations with the same lights, same colours, same meaning on every car. You don’t want one team doing it one way and another team doing it slightly differently, so it has to be an FIA-controlled system, with the same logic and the same failsafe philosophy for everybody.
This isn’t something complicated that requires a committee of people to sit in a room for three years to decide what shade of red it should be. Just a simple, understandable, idiot-proof system that tells the marshals, the medical crew, the driver and race control what state that car is in - red, yellow, green.
Currently, safety improvements are about huge crash tests, big structures, stronger chassis and all the engineering that goes into protecting the driver. That is all essential.
Without the marshals and safety crew we wouldn’t be racing, but safety for these people is simply about communication.
Formula 1 spends a fortune on technology, but sometimes the best solutions are the simple ones. A traffic light system is about as clear as communication gets.
### Formula E's points leader feels like the 'underdog' in title-decider
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-points-leader-feels-like-the-underdog-ahead-of-finale/
Last updated: 2026-08-10T13:18:07.000Z
Let’s talk firsts and Jake Dennis.
The first winner of the Gen3 era. The first Gen3 champion. The first polesitter. The first winner of the current season in Sao Paulo. The first driver to win at the venue he heads to as championship leader this weekend – the London ExCeL arena.
But here’s the weird thing about Jake Dennis this season. He goes to that venue, the scene of two of his nine Formula E wins, as an outsider, in his own eyes, and indeed those of most observers.
### Formula E title picture
1 Dennis 146 points
2 Evans -2
3 Wehrlein -5
4 Rowland -14
5 Mortara -30
6 Da Costa -33
7 Cassidy -42
8 Mueller -44
9 De Vries -52
Mitch Evans and Pascal Wehrlein have felt like the two key drivers in the world championship scrap this season, yet they have stumbled in recent races, allowing Dennis in like the proverbial vampire with the scent of blood in their nostrils.
“I kind of still feel like the underdog,” Dennis told The Race.
“I feel like it's been Mitch's and Pascal's to lose, and I've just arrived at the party and am somehow still leading it.”
And it’s going to be some party. Especially if mind games start. Oh, wait, they have!
“Honestly, if I don't win it, I would love to see Mitch (Evans) win it,” says Dennis.
“I feel like that bloke has been the bridesmaid for so many years, and if there's one deserving champion out of a Gen3 era, I do feel like it's him because he's finished second so many times.
Dennis means this, and it's genuine, but there’s a nice wee by-product in saying that, especially when he knows that Porsche and Pascal Wehrlein will become aware of it pretty quickly.
Andretti and Porsche will have their last race together in London. It’s been an itching kind of relationship for large chunks of its four-season duration.
In 2023, his first championship season, Dennis enjoyed a 24-point lead heading into the last event. It was tense then, mostly due to some hostility from a non-title-challenging Wehrlein, something which famously saw a furious Michael Andretti confronting senior Porsche management.
It was ultimately all put to one side and hands were shaken, but it was a major milestone in the often less-than-cordial relationship.
There is respect there definitely, but there will also be a great desire to beat each other in the great halls of ExCeL later this week.
Dennis was largely diffident about what it all might mean when asked if it could have an impact along the way.
“Nothing's changed really from the last race in Tokyo and we won't be accepting any new software which comes our way,” he said.
“We're kind of going into it with the same car (as Tokyo) and yeah, there's no denying it, they'll be doing their race and we'll be doing our race."
Dennis added: "I think ultimately they (Porsche) would never send a call to help Pascal because they kind of know I would never do it, and vice versa. I would never ask Porsche to help me because Pascal will be like ‘no way.’
“May the best man win really, and obviously we've got Mitch in the mix as well, who has da Costa, who's not in the title fight really. So, he's definitely got a wingman there."
Dennis’ two-point advantage over Evans, his five over Wehrlein and 14 over Rowland, is a slender one when 59 points in total are available. But he could have had a much larger gap had misfortune not visited him in Tokyo last month.
It was there that a brief cut in his power via ailing energy on the final lap cost him seven points, and where 24 hours later a red flag cost him seven more. Yet, he still scored 37 points, his biggest double-header points haul since Rome in July 2023.
### Can Drugovich Assist?
Context is everything in a title fight. Leaving Monaco less than six races and just 12 weeks ago, Dennis was eighth in the standings and 62 points off Evans. A shot at a second title was as far away as his pair of 13th place grid positions.
It was in that first race that he also climbed from his wrecked Porsche after being blended into the Nouvelle Chicane wall. As he walked back, he was liable to think only of Gen4, for which he was recently secure with Andretti via a new multi-year mega deal.
“It's quite a monumental turnaround, and we deserve to be in the position we're in because we’ve performed better than everyone else, clearly,” reckoned Dennis.
“It's just a really upward trajectory lately over these past races in Asia. Did I expect to be leading it, heading into Sanya? Absolutely not. But here we are. We're in this position.”
And it’s a good one to be in, although with Jaguar and Porsche more often than not having both their factory cars at the front of the field, Dennis may need a little help from a friend. His team-mate Felipe Drugovich.
“A lot of people can manipulate the race and we've already seen tactics in Tokyo, where other guys are sort of placing themselves perfectly in that pit boost window to then slow the leaders down when we pit,” reckons Dennis.
“I could see a little bit of that again, but maybe manipulating the drivers' championship. I don't really want to see any of it, but London is chaos; I think the PitBoost will bring out a whole different element. The second race will be a little bit better, as you’re not dropping back so far.”
If Drugovich can assist, it will be an extra team-mate boost for Dennis, something he’s rarely had in his almost seven-season Formula E career.
“Ultimately, we need both cars up there. I need Felipe by my side to help me try and win this thing because I think definitely Jaguar and Porsche will have both their guys there," Dennis said.
“Felipe's been on good form. Tokyo was a rough one, but I think he'll bounce back well and be there for the team.”
### British Grand Prix 2026 MotoGP rider rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/british-grand-prix-motogp-rider-rankings/
Last updated: 2026-08-10T10:22:55.000Z
Aprilia was the dominant power in the 2026 British Grand Prix - but did any of its MotoGP riders separate themselves from their stablemates, or was someone else the 'MVP' of the round?
Here is our take on the performances at Silverstone.
**Qualifying:** 9th **Sprint:** 6th **Grand Prix:** 5th
A casual MotoGP fan could make it through this weekend without noticing Acosta or paying any mind to where he's finishing. And they'd be well within their rights to do so - but I have never based these rankings on 'time on TV' or 'best bike' and I'm not about to start.
The third-year star is the rider of the season so far, and the British GP was another arrow in his quiver, despite a ropey start.
---
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---
Acosta doesn't count Silverstone among his best tracks, nor was he spotless through the weekend (the two Friday crashes very nearly added up to a Q1 appearance, and things would've been very different).
But he was KTM's top man in every session, this time no less imperious in race pace than one-lap pace, and it amounted to as fine a return of sixth- and fifth-place finishes as you are going to see.
**Qualifying:** 5th **Sprint:** 3rd **Grand Prix:** 3rd
Very possibly wins both races if he's fit - considering he barely had the energy for a proper pole challenge, and looked completely spent at the conclusion of both races.
He lacked power in the shoulder after a "very complicated" collarbone injury and suffered with knee pain after doctors had to treat "a big, big hole" - so any kind of points return from Silverstone is already a bit of a win.
And hanging on for two podiums - which normally would've been the bare minimum here but was clearly an ordeal at such a physical track - just nudges him ahead for me as this weekend's Aprilia standout.
**Qualifying:** 1st **Sprint:** 1st **Grand Prix:** 2nd
Well, this'll do nicely.
Suddenly Martin has a lead of over 30 points, with some really favourable tracks - Red Bull Ring, Mandalika, Phillip Island, Sepang - coming up over the next 10.
Suddenly things look very good, in part also because Martin believes he has (at least part-)cured his issues with front confidence by reverting to a set-up from earlier in the season.
He was stellar in Q2 and the sprint, though made two Abbey mistakes on Sunday - one minor while chasing at Bezzecchi, one a bit more major earlier when he tried too hard to hang on to the lead at the start and failed to brake enough to disengage the rear ride height device.
Those combined to leave him with no chance of taking on Fernandez, but second place was still straightforward to get.
**Qualifying:** 7th **Sprint:** 4th **Grand Prix:** 4th
The younger Marquez lived up to his reputation as a Silverstone expert, in that he clearly had something more than the other Ducati riders - though this only came across in race pace rather than qualifying.
His weekend was hindered by three main moments. One was a lack of improvement on the second run of Q2 (consigning him to seventh on the grid, which he felt was a key disadvantage in his battle against the Aprilias); the second was choosing the soft rear over the medium for the sprint; and finally, a "stupid, unacceptable" mistake at Abbey after having just cleared Bezzecchi.
Clearly, he didn't maximise this weekend. But ranking any other Ducati rider above him feels impossible.
**Qualifying:** 2nd **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** 1st
Very-very strong, especially once he'd fixed whatever was ailing him in the final sector - more specifically at Stowe - on Friday.
The sprint crash was a disappointment, caused by over-eagerness trying to make up for a poor start - as he was sizing up a move on Bezzecchi but lost the bike.
But he deserves enormous credit for using the Sunday morning warm-up so well in understanding which pace he could push to in the race.
Cal Crutchlow said Fernandez "had more balls than everyone else" in how he approached the grand prix, and it meant he was in total control from the first metres.
**Qualifying:** 4th **Sprint:** 5th **Grand Prix:** 6th
Di Giannantonio should have probably beaten Acosta - who was among a few riders to pick his pocket on the opening lap of the grand prix.
That's the only mark against his weekend, which was strong otherwise, especially in the context of a couple of injuries he's still nursing.
Leading the Ducati camp over one lap - by over three tenths on Friday and by a tenth in Q2 - is a good return, but the races better reflected his true status as second-in-the-group within the Italian brand's ranks at Silverstone.
**Qualifying:** 11th **Sprint:** 13th **Grand Prix:** 12th
Fortunate to be the top Yamaha scorer coming out of the weekend - but also probably its best rider, though certainly not definitively the fastest.
Tucking in behind the Marquez brothers at the end of Friday launched Miller into Q2, which flattered his Yamaha. But he won the 'M1 race' with a well-prepared medium-tyre call on Saturday and with Fabio Quartararo's tyre sensor penalty on Sunday.
Ultimately a good effort.
**Qualifying:** 13th **Sprint:** 14th **Grand Prix:** 16th
Quartararo was probably the fastest Yamaha rider as usual, but others - and by others I specifically mean Miller - were close enough to where his Friday underperformance was actually a significant disadvantage.
His Q1 lap was probably the best action by a Yamaha rider all weekend, and he did his job in the grand prix - though "didn't have fun at all" and got chucked out of the points for a tyre infringement, a wrongly configured sensor that meant no readings from his front tyre.
That's obviously not his fault - and I suspect he would've finished top Yamaha in the sprint had he chosen the medium.
But, save for a delightful Q1 effort, this was no 'alien' performance, just a pretty good job on an outmatched package.
**Qualifying:** 14th **Sprint:** 10th **Grand Prix:** 10th
Moreira's weekends in his rookie season have been in big part conditioned by how successful he is in following someone for one lap. This time, it didn't go great - he ran behind the two KTMs on Friday (bad choice, and also both crashed), then behind Pecco Bagnaia in Q1 (very bad choice).
Both of his races were pretty good given the grid position, and have done nothing to dissuade me from the view that the factory Honda should be his next year.
**Qualifying:** 15th **Sprint:** 12th **Grand Prix:** 9th
A totally unremarkable weekend in an unremarkable season, but one that again underlined why Marini will stay on the grid in 2027 (by virtue of a Tech3 KTM deal).
A yellow flag didn't help on Friday, and navigating Q1 looked very unlikely for him.
And yet again he was dependable in both races, with Sunday a particularly convincing outing as he worked his way through into the top 10, as the top Honda, after a bad start.
**Qualifying:** 6th **Sprint:** 9th **Grand Prix:** 7th
Marquez made just one major mistake all weekend, in confusing a track contamination flag for a yellow flag during Q2 and rolling out of an important lap (this also tripped up Joan Mir).
But that anyway didn't appear to influence his final points tally on the weekend. And alarm bells are ringing. The 22-point loss to Martin, well, it could perhaps be undone at Aragon - but Marquez looked limited to an extent that can't definitively be waved away by Ducati's deficit versus the Aprilia or his own lack of affinity for Silverstone's layout.
The main limitation, he acknowledged after the race, was "myself". And he'd dropped hints all through the weekend that he still is far from being 'right' - and doesn't expect to be right any time soon.
**Qualifying:** 3rd **Sprint:** 2nd **Grand Prix:** DNF
Half a step behind the other Aprilias through the weekend, Ogura made the most of tucking in behind Acosta's KTM - a slower bike - in Q2 and converted that to a handy sprint podium.
But nothing went particularly right on Sunday. He aped Martin's suboptimal approach through the first corner, so had a lowered ride height device of his own to contend with, then just wasn't particularly fast in those early stages.
The Aprilia was surely going to take him back into the top five with ease, but he crashed at Vale - "a bit more \[lean\] angle with the same amount of brake pressure" - and left invaluable points on the ground.
**Qualifying:** 18th **Sprint:** 11th **Grand Prix:** 8th
Binder says he's been finding a better set-up and better groove with the RC16, and eighth place is a strong result for the way his season has gone so far. The medium-tyre gamble on Saturday was also a positive, even if it yielded no points.
He's also being let down operationally - with technical issues on both of his bikes in Q1, though that Q1 appearance in the first place was at least partly linked to the fact he crashed at Luffield on Friday while chasing a laptime behind Acosta.
But I find it really difficult to look past a 16-second gap to Acosta on Sunday. Binder said he was maybe "a bit too kind" on the rear tyre, but again his team-mate is just operating on a totally different level with this bike.
**Qualifying:** 8th **Sprint:** 8th **Grand Prix:** 11th
Morbidelli's verdict of "overall positive weekend" feels like a fair-ish assessment in relation to the rest of his season - though a final gap of 22 seconds to the best Ducati in the grand prix was fairly excruciating.
He also hadn't endeared himself to likely future Ducati WSBK team-mate Lecuona by divebombing him at Vale and triggering Lecuona's crash - though he had endeared himself to Lecuona by letting the stand-in tuck in behind him in Q1.
Ropey Friday, solid qualifying, solid sprint (outside of the divebomb), really poor grand prix.
**Qualifying:** 17th **Sprint:** 16th **Grand Prix:** DNF
The site of one of his greatest MotoGP moments, Silverstone came and went for Rins this time.
Pace-wise, he was stuck in no man's land between Quartararo/Miller and Razgatlioglu on one-lap, though he was probably more competitive in race pace.
But he was spooked out of running the medium rear in the sprint, which would've worked out better, then was helpless in the grand prix when Joan Mir crashed in front of him and caused him to fall, too.
**Qualifying:** 12th **Sprint:** 7th **Grand Prix:** DNF
I'm tired, boss.
**Qualifying:** 23rd **Sprint:** 19th **Grand Prix:** 15th
Yamaha's 1,000cc work has all but wrapped up and Fernandez confirmed this was his final wildcard of the season ahead of a full pivot to the 850cc bike - starting with three tests between now and Red Bull Ring.
This outing was also a way of keeping him at the level of "a real MotoGP rider", and considering he beat a struggling Toprak Razgatlioglu in the sprint and ran him close in the GP, it's mission accomplished.
**Qualifying:** 21st **Sprint:** 18th **Grand Prix:** 13th
Like Yamaha tester Fernandez above, but even to a greater extent given he hadn't raced the 1,000cc at all this season, Espargaro felt his brain scrambled by the experience of returning to the current-spec bike and the Michelins after all that 850cc Pirelli testing.
He was clearly red-faced about finishing so far back on Sunday, joking with Razgatlioglu that it was "embarrassing" to be fighting so far back and describing his weekend as a "disaster" - albeit with the positive that he avoided any mistakes that could compromise his main 850 work.
He is convinced a follow-up at Aragon would be much more competitive. But this depends on the cloudy situation around Maverick Vinales.
**Qualifying:** 10th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** DNF
This by and large had the pace of Lecuona's excellent previous stand-in effort at Balaton, but clearly not the execution.
The Q2 appearance was aided by a tow from Franco Morbidelli, but clearly hadn't come from nowhere.
But he was twice out early in the races due to crashing on the dirty part of the track - once because he was forced there by the Morbidelli divebomb, but the other time all of his own doing.
**Qualifying:** 19th **Sprint:** 15th **Grand Prix:** DNF
An 11th place on Friday - though still a quarter of a second off Q2 - was the high point of a weekend that really got away from Bastianini on Saturday and Sunday.
He said he was unable to perform due to the lack of front contact and stability - "too strange, I cannot ride like this" - and so was way out of the points in the sprint.
He then lost the front at Club trying to clear Lecuona on lap five, and admitted he was riding "too aggressive".
**Qualifying:** 20th **Sprint:** DNF **Grand Prix:** DNF
Johann Zarco's return looms on the horizon, but for now Crutchlow has kept up improving weekend after weekend. Unfortunately, at Silverstone he didn't show it when it counted - not making it to double-digit laps across the two races combined.
The sprint was ruined on the opening lap as he piled into Bastianini's KTM entering the Loop corner, which he felt was bad luck rather than a "mistake", though my hunch from the limited available footage is a different one.
Then the grand prix exit was a Brooklands fall triggered by a misestimation of how the front tyre was after running in the pack.
Full credit for lapping a quarter of a second off Marini in Q1 - that's proper good - but, like with Lecuona, there is only so much shine you can put on a pair of DNFs.
**Qualifying:** 16th **Sprint:** 17th **Grand Prix:** DNF
Bagnaia gets a bit of grace because there's good reason to believe he still isn't quite right after his arm pump surgery, even if he didn't really reference it for most of the weekend.
The results on paper were horrifying even before a "very strange" Luffield crash, losing the front on corner exit, ended his weekend.
But even when he'd stayed on, his performance stood out against the other Ducatis, in a bad way, with even stand-in Lecuona out of reach.
**Qualifying:** 22nd **Sprint:** 20th **Grand Prix:** 14th
Like with the Sachsenring, Razgatlioglu last raced at Silverstone in Red Bull Rookies Cup over a decade ago (he qualified third but finished no higher than ninth that weekend, as Martin won both races).
Maybe it's not a total coincidence, then, that his was another really poor weekend - though it can't be the full explanation either.
With the Woodcote corner a particular headache and tyre management in the long corners proving difficult, Razgatlioglu clearly wasn't fast enough in any session - and will hope that he gets on better with Silverstone when the Pirellis take over from the Michelins.
### Take Monza pressure off Antonelli? Mercedes' grid penalty dilemma
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-drivers-facing-almost-inevitable-f1-grid-penalties/
Last updated: 2026-08-10T07:58:31.000Z
The Formula 1 championship-leading Mercedes team is anticipating the need to take engine penalties with both George Russell and Kimi Antonelli in the upcoming second half of the season.
Mercedes is 72 points clear of Ferrari in the constructors' standings, and Antonelli has a 50-point buffer in the drivers' contest, but the Mercedes W17 had come under more pressure from rivals in more recent races - while earlier its bigger issue had simply been bringing its dominant package to the finish.
Antonelli is now on the cusp of a grid drop, which will come with his next introduction of an internal combustion engine and/or exhaust.
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said he "still very much hopes we don't need to take" penalties, but the balance of probabilities is not on Mercedes' side.
"There could be one \[race\] that can be very special for Kimi, but on paper looks like it's a good place to take an engine penalty," he admitted in reference to the Italian Grand Prix, with the Monza track layout particularly conducive to clearing slower traffic.
"So we need to speak to Marco \[Antonelli, Kimi's father\] when we want to take an engine penalty in Monza. Baku is also one.
"Yeah, maybe take the pressure off Monza, to start from the back."
Monza was the scene of Antonelli's F1 weekend debut in 2024, where he crashed out of his first flying lap of his maiden FP1 on home soil. He finished ninth at his first F1 race there in 2025.
---
**Engine component use 'leaders' in 2026**
**ICE (4 allowed)**
Isack Hadjar – 5
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** – 4
17 drivers – 3
**TC (4 allowed)**
Isack Hadjar – 5
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** and 17 other drivers – 3
**EXH (4 allowed)**
Isack Hadjar – 5
**Kimi Antonelli** – 4
**George Russell** and 9 other drivers – 3
**ES (3 allowed)**
Fernando Alonso – 5
Lance Stroll – 5
Isack Hadjar – 4
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** and 10 other drivers – 3
**PU-CE (3 allowed)**
Fernando Alonso – 5
Lance Stroll – 5
3 drivers – 4
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** and 9 other drivers – 3
**MGU-K (3 allowed)**
Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll – 4
8 drivers – 3
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** and 9 other drivers – 2
**PU-ANC (6 allowed)**
Fernando Alonso – 7
**Kimi Antonelli, George Russell** and 3 other drivers – 5
---
Russell, too, is not exactly sorted for the rest of the season - and deputy team principal Bradley Lord was firmer than Wolff in the expectation that penalties are coming for both cars.
"I think, looking at how many we've used in the first half of the season, it's almost inevitable that at some point there will be penalties to take," he conceded.
"Some of the strategy team and guys in Brixworth \[Mercedes powertrain headquarters\] will work to figure out what the optimum route is through the rest of the season.
"It's realistically going to be hard to get to the end of the season on the existing hardware that we've got.
"We've got half a season to do. Kimi's on his fourth set of bits, so the next ones incur penalties, and George is on his third, in the first half of the year.
"The probabilities and the maths would suggest that both at some point will need to take a form of penalty, size to be determined."
Mercedes said it switched Russell to [his fourth internal combustion engine](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cracked-engine-could-doom-george-russell-to-a-future-grid-penalty/) of the year in Hungary after the sump on his power unit was cracked in qualifying.
However, there is clearly confidence that, while Mercedes has struggled for reliability to start the season, issues that could cause a snowball of penalties have been contained.
"We had initially some challenges with the ERS, the pack that was closely related issues that were responsible for the failures in Canada and in Barcelona, that we believe are for the most part resolved with the reliability update we brought to Austria.
"On the chassis side, it's been different things. The wheel shield in Silverstone \[on Antonelli's car\], other elements elsewhere.
"Yeah, there have been a number of different elements for us to get on top of, but the most frequent one was the concern with the ERS pack, and we hope that's been... a lot of hard work went into the many, many fixes that were contained in that latest spec that we brought to Austria."
### Why factory Ducati was so weak at Silverstone
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marquez-bagnaia-british-gp-silverstone-struggles-factory-ducati/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T16:20:48.000Z
It was an arduous outing for the factory Ducati MotoGP team at Silverstone, scoring just 10 points - all of which came from Marc Marquez.
The Spaniard salvaged a single point in a difficult sprint on Saturday, before battling to seventh on Sunday. He was passed by Fabio Di Giannantonio late on to demote him to the third-best Ducati, with brother Alex narrowly off the podium in fourth after a mistake at Turn 1.
Team-mate Pecco Bagnaia struggled even more, limping to 17th on Saturday before crashing out of 15th on Sunday.
But why did the British Grand Prix prove so difficult for Ducati?
Its biggest problem was tyre wear.
Marquez suffered a severe drop of his rear tyre during the sprint race, which he put down to graining.
Having not been an issue in practice, the problem derailed the strong start Marquez had to his sprint, dropping him from fighting in the top four to finishing in the last points-paying place.
Speaking afterwards, he said: “I'm disappointed because we experienced a new feeling in the sprint race, that in the practice we never had that drop on the rear tyre.
“I was not the only one, many riders have it, but I was the one that suffered more because it started super early, already on the lap before I started to feel a massive drop and, yeah, then I just tried to survive and finish the race.
“Because when I was in that seventh-sixth-seventh position, I was suffering a lot, risking a lot to have a crash, and the difference in points between sixth or zero is only four points. "
Bagnaia, too, complained of a huge lack of rear grip as he struggled to finish the sprint, and said the team expected a drop in the tyre, just not to such a severe extent.
He was careful to clarify that the problem was not the tyre itself, but the effect the Ducati has on it, adding: “The factory team today struggled a lot. Me and Marc were the slowest riders in the last laps, so it's difficult to imagine what to do."
Aprilia’s relative strength made the situation look worse, with Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo speculating that the Noale factory’s bikes were able to keep the rear tyre temperature lower somehow.
Sunday’s race was better for Marquez - there was not the massive drop that he had experienced in the sprint, and he was able to “manage in a normal way.”
But in a rare showing, the nine-time world champion was still nowhere near the top Ducati - though he still retains that honour in the riders’ standings, where he is fourth after 12 rounds, albeit only one point ahead of Di Giannantonio.
Instead of tyres or the Desmosedici bike, Marquez said his biggest limitation on Sunday was himself.
While he continues to recover from another right arm surgery, Marquez said his physical condition is "what I have and I need to manage,” and conceded: “Endurance is where I need to try to improve.”
Marquez insists this is not a situation which concerns him, although he hinted this is because he's already won so much. Speaking about the championship, he said: “If not, it will not change my future life. So I keep saying that.
“Yesterday I had that big issue with the tyre ride that I didn't manage well, I finished ninth. Today I felt like it was not possible to fight with the others, I didn't fight, so it's like it is.
“I fought enough during my career, I will fight when I feel well, but if you don't feel well, I want to stay on the bike as well.”
For Bagnaia, Sunday’s race ended in the gravel - in the same spot at Luffield where his 2025 British Grand Prix finished.
It was a bizarre incident, with the circuit’s CCTV footage showing the two-time world champion losing the front and tipping off on corner exit.
He said it was “very strange, honestly. I never lose the front exiting from a corner, so very strange, and looking at the data, it's very difficult to see something”.
“The only thing is that the front steering completely closed. I completely lost the front in a matter of milliseconds, so, very strange, but it's what happened. Difficult also to accept because \[even before the crash\] it's already one of the hardest weekends of the season."
This, Bagnaia insisted, was due to a persistent issue with rear grip that has troubled him all through the year with the 2026-spec bike.
“I struggled to be fast, I struggled to be—no, not 'fast' because I never had been fast, but I struggled to be close to the top 10 on the weekend and today there was a little possibility of finishing in the top 10, but I struggled a lot.
“We need to rise from this situation because I don't want to do another weekend like this one.”
Save for Le Mans, where Marquez withdrew with injury, this marked the factory team's lowest-scoring weekend of the year.
Marquez is 40 points back from championship leader Jorge Martin, while Bagnaia is another 57 points behind his team-mate.
### Fernandez dominates crash-filled British GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/fernandez-dominates-crash-filled-british-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T15:55:00.000Z
Raul Fernandez put on a dominant display to win MotoGP’s British Grand Prix, leading an all-Aprilia podium he shared with Jorge Martin and Marco Bezzecchi.
The Trackhouse rider made it past Martin at Turn 1 as the latter’s rear ride height hadn't disengaged, and from there cruised clear of the field.
With a lead as high as four seconds at times, Fernandez went on to win by 2.5s from Martin.
Bezzecchi battled pain from his Sachsenring injuries to secure third in a hard-fought duel, fending off Alex Marquez - who was the best-finishing Ducati.
As Martin’s device became stuck, Fernandez pounced, with a strong start from Bezzecchi propelling him into second as Martin fell to third.
Behind, a strong getaway from Marc Marquez promoted him to fourth, with Trackhouse rider Ai Ogura losing two places to run fifth.
Soon after, as Alex Marquez took on Ogura, a bold move from Pedro Acosta got him past both on the Wellington straight.
Marc Marquez was just 0.6s behind Martin by lap three, while his brother made it back through on Acosta for fifth.
The younger Marquez then made it through his brother at Maggotts, with Acosta following him through at Abbey on lap seven.
By lap 9, the injured Bezzecchi was struggling, and Martin made it past into second at Turn 2 before Alex Marquez also passed him later in the lap.
But a moment for the Gresini rider at Turn 1 dropped him two places to fifth, promoting Bezzecchi back to third and Acosta to fourth.
Marquez retook fourth from Acosta on lap 12 at Stowe, and closed in on Bezzecchi, but was not close enough come the chequered flag.
Fabio Di Giannantonio made a late charge to catch Acosta, but was unable to pass him and finished sixth ahead of Marc Marquez.
Brad Binder, Luca Marini and Diogo Moreira rounded out the top 10.
Pecco Bagnaia’s difficult weekend ended with another crash, with the Ducati rider taking a strange fall at Luffield - the same place his 2025 outing here ended.
Joan Mir and Alex Rins both crashed out on lap one, as the former fell before the latter went down while taking evasive action.
Enea Bastianini crashed out on lap six at Vale, with Iker Lecuona’s race also ending soon after.
Cal Crutchlow crashed out at Turn 6 on lap seven, while Ogura, who was running fifth, slid into the gravel on lap 10.
## Race results
1 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
2 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +2.538s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +3.393s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +4.702s
5 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +6.256s
6 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +6.382s
7 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +9.550s
8 Brad Binder (KTM) +22.288s
9 Luca Marini (Honda) +23.845s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.411s
11 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +26.301s
12 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +29.458s
13 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +41.310s
14 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +41.492s
15 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +42.379s
16 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +42.883s\*
DNF Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda)
DNF Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati)
DNF Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM)
DNF Alex Rins (Yamaha)
DNF Joan Mir (Honda)
*\* Quartararo received 16-second penalty for incorrectly configured tyre pressure sensor*
### Silverstone MotoGP full race results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/silverstone-motogp-full-race-results-2026-british-gp/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T15:55:06.000Z
Raul Fernandez led an Aprilia 1-2-3 in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone after an early breakaway, as Jorge Martin extended his points lead to 31 points.
## Race results
1 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
2 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +2.538s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +3.393s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +4.702s
5 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +6.256s
6 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +6.382s
7 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +9.550s
8 Brad Binder (KTM) +22.288s
9 Luca Marini (Honda) +23.845s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.411s
11 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +26.301s
12 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +29.458s
13 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +41.310s
14 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +41.492s
15 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +42.379s
16 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +42.883s\*
DNF Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda)
DNF Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati)
DNF Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM)
DNF Alex Rins (Yamaha)
DNF Joan Mir (Honda)
*\* Quartararo received 16-second penalty for incorrectly configured tyre pressure sensor*
### British GP 2026: Silverstone MotoGP all session results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/british-gp-2026-silverstone-motogp-all-session-results/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T15:55:15.000Z
Find below all the session results from the MotoGP 2026 weekend at Silverstone.
## Grand Prix results
1 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
2 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +2.538s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +3.393s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +4.702s
5 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +6.256s
6 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +6.382s
7 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +9.550s
8 Brad Binder (KTM) +22.288s
9 Luca Marini (Honda) +23.845s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +25.411s
11 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +26.301s
12 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +29.458s
13 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +41.310s
14 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +41.492s
15 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +42.379s
16 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +42.883s\*
DNF Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati)
DNF Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda)
DNF Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati)
DNF Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM)
DNF Alex Rins (Yamaha)
DNF Joan Mir (Honda)
*\* Quartararo received 16-second penalty for incorrectly configured tyre pressure sensor*
## Warm-up results
1 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) 1m57.680s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.073s
3 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.474s
4 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.541s
5 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.604s
6 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +1.121s
7 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.179s
8 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.180s
9 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +1.218s
10 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +1.334s
11 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.374s
12 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.410s
13 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.444s
14 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.481s
15 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.563s
16 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.568s
17 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.778s
18 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.991s
19 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.046s
20 Joan Mir (Honda) +2.129s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.365s
22 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +2.837s
23 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +2.928s
## Sprint results
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.000s
2 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.530s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +2.444s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +2.982s
5 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +5.426s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +7.520s
7 Joan Mir (Honda) +7.601s
8 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +9.314s
9 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +10.740s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +10.767s
11 Brad Binder (KTM) +10.917s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +11.119s
13 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +11.315s
14 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +11.988s
15 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +13.667s
16 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +16.969s
17 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +20.497s
18 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +21.155s
19 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +24.368s
20 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +31.107s
DNF Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda)
DNF Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati)
## Q2 results
Jorge Martin claimed his second pole position as an Aprilia rider, denying Raul Fernandez by 0.021s.
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) 1m56.160s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.021s
3 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.189s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.255s
5 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.296s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.367s
7 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.379s
8 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.729s
9 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.772s
10 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.162s
11 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.334s
12 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.883s
## Q1 results
Franco Morbidelli and Iker Lecuona advanced into Q2, Lecuona following Morbidelli on his fastest lap.
**1 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) 1m57.173s**
**2 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +0.210s**
3 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.260s
4 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.423s
5 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.704s
6 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.718s
7 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +0.767s
8 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.908s
9 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.947s
10 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +0.967s
11 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.241s
12 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.417s
13 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +1.669s
## FP2 results
Fabio Di Giannantonio headed Raul Fernandez and Marco Bezzecchi in the 'race pace rehearsal' opening session on Saturday.
1 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) 1m57.885s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.117s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.184s
4 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.258s
5 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.446s
6 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.502s
7 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.540s
8 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.616s
9 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.827s
10 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.056s
11 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.109s
12 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.127s
13 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.214s
14 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +1.554s
15 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.618s
16 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.625s
17 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.878s
18 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +2.102s
19 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.132s
20 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +2.352s
21 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +2.374s
22 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.516s
23 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +2.555s
## PR results
Aprilia recorded a 1-2-4-5 in the Friday afternoon session, with Marco Bezzecchi comfortably clear.
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m56.280s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.335s
3 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.398s
4 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.500s
5 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.530s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.733s
7 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.750s
8 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.831s
9 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.042s
10 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +1.083s
11 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.312s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.325s
13 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.411s
14 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +1.473s
15 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.487s
16 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.494s
17 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.636s
18 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.640s
19 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.718s
20 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +1.900s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.042s
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.341s
23 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +2.550s
## FP1 results
Silverstone specialist Alex Marquez led injury returnee Marco Bezzecchi in the opening 45-minute session.
1 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) 1m58.692s
2 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.173s
3 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.282s
4 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.310s
5 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.364s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.488s
7 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.573s
8 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.680s
9 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.876s
10 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.954s
11 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.016s
12 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.105s
13 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.231s
14 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.260s
15 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.306s
16 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.316s
17 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.529s
18 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.601s
19 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.603s
20 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +1.877s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.060s
22 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +2.323s
23 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.351s
### Failed upgrade key to F1 midfield leader's rise
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-a-failed-2024-upgrade-set-up-a-big-2026-f1-success-story/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T15:04:41.000Z
It is often said in Formula 1 that you learn nothing from success. It's the days you stumble and fail that prove to be far more valuable in making you stronger.
So as Racing Bulls reflects on a robust first half to the 2026 season in which it has emerged at the top of that chasing pack behind the big four teams, it is no surprise to hear it credit an "awful" moment in its recent history for helping lay the foundations for where it is now.
A current key strength, in the momentum from a sustained upgrade push that is hitting targets each time, has its origins in a brutal lesson learned two years ago.
Back in 2024, the squad had been a consistent points scorer over the first part of the campaign and quickly established itself in a comfortable sixth in the constructors' championship. The then RB team had every reason to feel it could kick on, stay well clear of Haas and Alpine and keep that top six position.
It arrived at the Spanish Grand Prix that June with a hefty upgrade package which included a near rear wing, updated sidepods, engine covers and a reprofiled floor.
But rather than bring it further forward as all its windtunnel data had said it should do, the upgrade proved to be a flop.
Its run of strong form ended suddenly as Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo were eliminated in Q1 at Barcelona. They then failed to make any impression in the race as Ricciardo ended up 30 seconds adrift of the points in 15th while Tsunoda was only 19th.
The upgrade failure cost RB momentum, as it needed time to unpick what had gone wrong, and it took it until nearly the end of the season to have faith again in what it was bringing to the track. By then, Alpine and Haas had leapfrogged it in the standings as it ended the year eighth.
Team principal Alan Permane says that under-delivering with upgrades is one of the worst things that can happen for a team – as it can wipe out development for weeks at a time.
"It's a double penalty, isn't it?" he tells The Race in an exclusive interview.
"Let's say it's four weeks between updates, you put one on and it doesn't work. So you've lost that four weeks, but you've lost more because you don't understand it either. That's awful. That's the worst thing."
It was the pain of having experienced such an exact misstep that sowed the seeds of the understandings that are paying off this year.
"Honestly, one of the reasons we're in this decent shape we are now is because way back in 2024, we had a huge upgrade for Barcelona, and absolutely no part of it worked at all," he said.
"It was awful at the time, but we learned an awful lot about that car, what makes a car quick, where to focus on it. It really helped us.
"As painful as it was in 2025, we went to Barcelona and had a completely different car. And here this year we went to Barcelona, and again we were the fifth quickest."
Liam Lawson, who has enjoyed his strongest season in F1 to date, sees the nailing of upgrades as critical to Racing Bulls having delivered this year.
Having been with the team on and off for five years, he thinks it has never been as on top of things as now.
"On the development side, it's by far the strongest," he said. "So far I think everything we've been bringing has been working very, very well and that's something that is hard in Formula 1.
"Honestly, you have upgrades that are run through simulations and theoretically can be better, but they're not always exactly what they seem."
Permane concurs that it is the robustness of its upgrade programme, which includes an impressive step that first appeared in Belgium and helped it move up to its current fifth in the standings in Hungary, that is the thing he is most happy with.
"We always want more, and we always want to do better, but we're happy," he said.
"I think what we're certainly extremely happy with is our tunnel to track correlation. I think that's what everyone strives for.
"We bring an update and it works. Bring the next one it works. Bring the next one and it works. That's why the car is where it is. We've seen a big progression from winter testing to where we are now."
Permane is coy, however, about offering too many details about what Racing Bull has done to hit this rich seam of development gold.
He says that the details are more the domain of his key technical staff back at base – and the proper answer is something that other teams would be chasing too so he does not want to give too much away.
"I'm just here to support my staff and help them where they need it," he said. "Now I can't tell you exactly what that process is, and to be honest, I probably wouldn't tell you if I did know!
"In fairness, that's because we see other teams floundering around a little bit, and people going, 'Oh, we've got a new front wing this weekend. It's going to be fantastic.' And of course, it doesn't work.
"Or other teams bringing upgrades, and you hear drivers complaining that they haven't really done what they should have done."
There are some obvious factors contributing to things though. In chief technical officer Tim Goss and technical director Dan Fallows, Racing Bulls has two F1 stalwarts who know exactly what makes things tick and what the processes need to be from idea to track.
Furthermore, there has been an upgrade in Racing Bulls' UK operation as it shifted away at the start of last year from its former Bicester base to a state-of-the-art facility on the Red Bull campus in Milton Keynes.
And while F1's IP regulations means that being close to Red Bull does not offer any advantage to being in any other geographical location, what has been an improvement is the quality of the work environment that has helped staff get the best out of themselves.
"There's no benefits to being in Milton Keynes other than it's a much nicer facility, and it happens to have been built by Red Bull," said Permane.
"But if you saw our Bicester facility and you saw the MK facilities, it's night and day. It's F3 team to F1 team, so that's made a massive difference for the aerodynamicists and the model shop."
Permane sees no magic bullet in what Racing Bulls has achieved so far this year. It's just hard work and the implementations of lessons - some of them painful - from the past.
Key now though is pushing on and capitalising on where it is; which means bringing even more improvements to its car while being mindful that 2027 is also fast approaching.
"It is about doing more of the same," he said. "There's loads of things we can do to go faster, but the most effective one will be more load. So that's where we're focusing, and I know what we've got coming.
"We are already on '27, and there will be a mix, but there will be a point where we switch over completely.
"At the moment though there's still more stuff to come, which is great."
### Winners and losers from MotoGP's British GP sprint
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/winners-losers-british-gp-silverstone-sprint-motogp/
Last updated: 2026-08-08T18:16:08.000Z
Aprilia ran circles around Ducati in MotoGP's first race since the summer break, in the corner speed-prioritising confines of British Grand Prix venue Silverstone.
Here are our winners and losers from Saturday's 10-lap sprint.
## Winner: Jorge Martin (1st)
This is the best Martin has looked in a long time, which is worrying for his title rivals because even at his least performant he was scoring enough to somehow hang on to the championship lead.
A back-to-basics approach on the bike set-up - though one coupled with a new rear wheel winglet that only his RS-GP is carrying - has, by Martin's own assessment, reinvigorated him and gave him back "my feeling".
The result was a race coolly managed, even if he was at one point wary that Ai Ogura would trump him on tyre life.
## Loser: Ducati
It won't be feeling it too much in the points yet, but this was a real beating for Ducati - and there is reason to expect another tomorrow, which would bring with it a more heavily-felt points impact.
Yes, Silverstone was already a blip last year, but that weekend looked very different to this one (also because, before falling flat in the main race, Ducati delivered a 1-2-3 in the sprint).
As it stands, a challenge to the Aprilias looks totally out of reach for any of its riders bar the excellent Alex Marquez, and Alex Marquez isn't high up enough in the standings to worry Aprilia.
And as for his Ducati peers who do have tangible championship aspirations, they probably just need to grit their teeth and get through tomorrow without also dropping points to the stray KTM or Honda here and there, which on the basis of today's massive tyre fall-off is far from a given.
## Winner: Aprilia
The RS-GPs were always tipped to go fast here, but they are proving way, way too fast for their rivals.
If not for Raul Fernandez's crash this was pretty clearly going to be an Aprilia 1-2-3-4, and Alex Marquez - Ducati's leading rider and renowned Silverstone specialist - admitted there's no reason to expect anything different.
Of course, the high-speed Silverstone layout favours the Aprilia, but it also clearly enjoys an enormous edge on tyre life. Yamaha rider Fabio Quartararo theorised this may be more about temperature than wear: "I think that's where the Aprilia is stronger than anyone else, because they can keep lower temperature on the rear tyre."
In any case, the RS-GP has consistently been a more potent package this year on the harder tyres, so Aprilia holds all the cards going into Sunday.
## Loser: Raul Fernandez (DNF)
It doesn't take a genius analyst to appreciate that a return of 'DNF' is not good when the other Aprilia riders finished first, second and third.
Fernandez said he was wrong-footed by a "really bad" start tied to clutch vibrations, but also admitted that he misjudged his battle with Marco Bezzecchi - eyeing up an overtaking run through Aintree and so crashing a corner earlier at the Loop as he tried to set it up.
He said he was "disappointed" in himself and apologised to the Trackhouse team.
## Winner: Marco Bezzecchi (3rd)
Finishing behind two other Aprilias would normally be a really poor return for Bezzecchi at Silverstone - but not this weekend, with his Sachsenring injuries still placing a ceiling on his results.
He was worried coming into the sprint here after his Q2 effort had left him "destroyed", but the fundamental speed is there and any damage in the standings is being significantly mitigated.
## Loser: Marc Marquez (9th)
Marquez identified the issue that slowed him to a crawl in the sprint as graining rather than pure tyre deg - and that's a slightly surprising development given high track temperatures.
For him, the struggles began on lap four and never abated. The rear was in such poor shape that at one point a massive shake deployed his airbag.
Such was his pace decline that the fact he had only qualified sixth - hampered by mis-identifying a flag (seemingly a track surface flag) as a yellow and aborting his lap - didn't really seem to matter much to the outcome.
And there's a risk of the same playing out tomorrow, with Marquez unconvinced that switching the medium rear on Sunday will solve the issue, as it is not that different from the soft.
## Winner: Pedro Acosta (6th)
The Aprilia is totally out of reach (Acosta said he can only follow the RS-GPs "in the pitlane") and the Ducati is still better - so sixth is an exceptional result with all that in mind.
Acosta hasn't had the cleanest weekend and, like everyone, encountered some tyre troubles in the sprint, but he's dragging the (still power-limited) KTM as high as it will go.
## Loser: Pecco Bagnaia (17th)
Coming off an arm pump operation that is still almost certainly affecting him, Bagnaia is just all-round 'going through it' this weekend.
He said he "couldn't imagine" getting more out of the day given his performance level, which he described as "no performance, no speed".
Points looked a long shot on the basis of qualifying even before he totally ran out of rear tyre on the right side - and he, like Marquez, isn't convinced it'll be all that much better with the medium than with the soft.
## Winner: Jack Miller (13th)
OK, yes, the points return is the exact same as if Miller were to pull into the pits after the opening lap. But you play the cards you have, and the Australian was clearly canny - as was good friend Brad Binder over at KTM - in deciding to go for the medium rear over the soft.
From his previous experience in the weekend, he'd concluded the soft rear "looked like \[expletive\] and felt like \[expletive\]" at the end of a sprint distance - and so accepted some early-race grip struggles against the soft runners to end up as the top Yamaha at the finish.
## Loser: Toprak Razgatlioglu (20th)
Razgatlioglu is on course to have two of his worst weekends in MotoGP either side of the summer break. He struggled at the Sachsenring, and he's struggling again here.
He had lamented a lack of cornering through the weekend, but in the race was undone by rear tyre wear that he described as abnormal - and claimed he would've parked it in the pits if it were a full-distance race.
### Martin wins Silverstone MotoGP sprint, Marquez in strife
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-wins-silverstone-motogp-sprints-marquez-in-strife/
Last updated: 2026-08-09T05:06:17.000Z
Jorge Martin took a dominant lights-to-flag victory in MotoGP’s Silverstone sprint, leading an all-Aprilia podium as Ducati struggled.
The factory rider crossed the line 1.5s clear of Trackhouse’s Ai Ogura, equalling Marc Marquez’s sprint win record and extending his championship lead to 17 points.
Marco Bezzecchi was third on his return from injury, marking a brilliant day for the Noale factory.
Alex Marquez was fourth as the best Ducati after passing Fabio Di Giannantonio late on - the pair unable to mount a challenge against the Aprilias.
Second-place starter Raul Fernandez immediately fell back off the line to fifth, promoting his rivals as Bezzecchi moved into fourth with a bold start.
Marc Marquez made a close move on Bezzecchi at Brooklands, while ahead Di Giannantonio attempted the same on Ogura, though was unsuccessful.
Martin quickly escaped up front, leaving Ogura and Di Giannantonio to battle, while further behind them Marc Marquez, Bezzecchi and Alex Marquez fought for fourth.
Fernandez crashed soon after, and though he rejoined, he later entered the pits to retire.
Bezzecchi eventually made it back through on Marquez at Maggotts into fourth, with a good run out of Copse propelling him past the fading Ducati.
From there, the elder Marquez was a sitting duck, as his pace dropped fast.
The reigning world champion was passed first by his younger brother before KTM’s Pedro Acosta, Joan Mir and finally Franco Morbidelli all overtook him. He crossed the line ninth, just barely keeping the final point from the clutches of LCR rookie Diogo Moreira.
Bezzecchi passed Di Giannantonio with three laps remaining at Copse to take third, where he went on to finish, with Ogura 1.5s up the road.
Alex Marquez made it past Di Giannantonio on the penultimate lap to finish fourth.
Cal Crutchlow crashed his LCR Honda on the first lap at Turn 4, while Iker Lecuona was also a first-lap crasher in an incident involving Franco Morbidelli - which was investigated by the stewards but yielded no further action.
## Sprint results
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.000s
2 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +1.530s
3 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +2.444s
4 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +2.982s
5 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +5.426s
6 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +7.520s
7 Joan Mir (Honda) +7.601s
8 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +9.314s
9 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +10.740s
10 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +10.767s
11 Brad Binder (KTM) +10.917s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +11.119s
13 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +11.315s
14 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +11.988s
15 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +13.667s
16 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +16.969s
17 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +20.497s
18 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +21.155s
19 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +24.368s
20 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +31.107s
DNF Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia)
DNF Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda)
DNF Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati)
### Martin stuns fellow Aprilias for British GP pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/martin-stuns-fellow-aprilias-for-british-gp-pole/
Last updated: 2026-08-08T11:47:17.000Z
Jorge Martin secured pole position for MotoGP’s British Grand Prix with a new Silverstone lap record, locking out an all-Aprilia front row.
The factory rider set a 1m56.160s right at the end of Saturday’s qualifying session, 0.12s faster than the previous lap record set by his team-mate Marco Bezzecchi on Friday.
Trackhouse riders Raul Fernandez and Ai Ogura complete the front row, with the former having also gone quicker than the previous lap record.
It marks championship leader Martin’s second pole in the last three races, and his 22nd overall in MotoGP.
Fabio Di Giannantonio was the quickest Ducati in fourth, ahead of Bezzecchi. The Marquez brothers were sixth and seventh, with Marc ahead of Alex, both unable to improve on their second run.
An early upset came for Pecco Bagnaia, who failed to make it out of Q1 on his factory Ducati, and will line up 16th for this weekend’s races in his worst qualifying result of the season so far.
It was instead VR46’s Franco Morbidelli and Iker Lecuona, sitting in for Fermin Aldeguer at Gresini, who made it through to Q2.
Alex Marquez set the pace early on, with a 1m56.868s, before Fernandez shaved 0.25s off that time.
Though the younger Marquez brother improved to a 1m56.539s, it was Marc who led next, just 0.012s faster, after narrowly avoiding a crash earlier at Farm with a big wobble.
Fernandez’s quickest time came late in the session, a 1m56.181s, to set a new record, before Martin bettered it by 0.02s.
A large piece of seat aero fell from Bezzecchi’s Aprilia in the closing laps, but it was avoided by other bikes. Marc Marquez almost looked set to put in another quick lap at the end, but backed off in the final sector.
Morbidelli will line up eighth, with Pedro Acosta ninth for KTM. Lecuona, Jack Miller and Joan Mir complete the top 12.
## Qualifying results
1 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) 1m56.160s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.021s
3 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.189s
4 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.255s
5 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.296s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.367s
7 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.379s
8 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.729s
9 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.772s
10 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.162s
11 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.334s
12 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.883s
13 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +0.050s **to Q2**
14 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +0.213s
15 Luca Marini (Honda) +0.494s
16 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.508s
17 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +0.557s
18 Brad Binder (KTM) +0.698s
19 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +0.737s
20 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +0.757s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +1.031s
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +1.207s
23 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +1.459s
### Our verdict on the best and worst races of F1 2026 so far
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-best-and-worst-races-of-f1-2026-so-far/
Last updated: 2026-08-08T06:59:14.000Z
The 2026 Formula 1 season has delivered a real mix of races so far, eliciting plenty of positive and negative reactions.
But which have been the best and worst? Here's what our team thinks.
**Jon Noble:** You can divide the good and bad events this season into those where the cars are energy-rich and those where they are energy-starved.
The best, I would say, was the Barcelona Grand Prix. Energy management was not really a headache there and it was a weekend that came down to those more regular topics of aero, tyre management, driver execution and strategy.
And it delivered an absolute blinder of a race. Whenever the best strategy choice is marginal and teams are divided, the racing is better - so Lewis Hamilton's aggressive three-stopper versus Mercedes' two-stop plan was a joy to watch.
In terms of the worst, the early-season races before F1 got in place some better battery rules were not great.
But if I reflect on moments that really got me down, I’d have to pick the British GP - and it had nothing to do with the fact that a potentially thrilling finish was derailed by the [safety car confusion](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-british-gp-why-no-restart-final-lap-fia/) at the end.
Instead, after a run of races from Miami onwards that had been great, the horrible mix of energy starvation on a high-speed track exposed all that was wrong with these current rules.
To see Lewis Hamilton pull off a brilliant overtake around the outside of George Russell at Copse, defend robustly wheel-to-wheel into Maggotts, only for them to switch position back on the Hangar Straight thanks to a button press on the Mercedes showed the folly of passing in 2026.
Why bother racing hard and risking anything to pull off a great overtake if your rival is going to get you back without doing anything special?
---
***What do YOU think have been the best and worst races of F1 2026 so far? If you're in*** [***The Race Members' Club***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace?ref=the-race.com)***, let us know YOUR verdict in the comments*** [***on this post***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/what-have-been-166022693?ref=the-race.com) ***and we'll debate them in a special exclusive members-only mini-podcast***
---
**Gary Anderson:** I would have to say that Hungary was one of the best: the teams seem to have got on top of maximising the performance from these new-for-2026 cars. However, we need to remember that Hungary is one of the best circuits on the calendar as far as deployment and harvesting is concerned - there's still more room for improvement, but very soon most teams will be diverting their efforts into next season.
The worst was probably Suzuka; harvesting just doesn't exist around there. At the front it was a series of tit-for-tat overtakes which in reality had nothing to do with driver skills or bravery. We have had a few races like that, but I think this stood out as blatantly the worst, so I'm not looking forward to Monza.
**Jack Benyon:** If I take my disdain for how most of the most spectacular moments this year have been caused by silly battery recharge and deployment happenings, Canada has to go down as my favourite race.
It wasn’t quite clear at that point that Kimi Antonelli was going to push on in the way he has, asserting dominance in the Mercedes team, and the wheel-to-wheel battle felt proper until a mechanical issue for Russell intervened.
The worst races, take your pick: Spa, Suzuka, any of the ones where the drivers are just super clipping their way around the track and overtaking happens mostly by accident rather than because of any great skill.
**Edd Straw:** The Canadian GP stands out, with Russell and Antonelli going at it hard until the former was eliminated by a battery problem.
It was a classic duel, with two title protagonists battling and the difficulty keeping the tyres in the window, which often meant the driver ahead was more prone to errors, adding a fascinating extra dimension. That will make it genuinely memorable, with the only disappointment that Russell didn't make it to half distance.
Japan sticks in my memory as the worst. While Monaco, inevitably, lacked overtaking that's what's expected of Monaco - but Suzuka was a race that showcased the power units at their worst.
It was also a race that was simplified by the timing of the safety car, making it doubly disappointing for a race on arguably the best circuit on the calendar.
**Val Khorounzhiy:** Suzuka was really rough - as it tends to be regardless of the ruleset these days - and Monaco was Monaco. It is what it is.
Beyond that, I think I've generally liked all the races, though probably not 'loved' any of them. But I don't think that's the fault of the 2026 regs so much as happenstance.
F1 has had the ingredients several times for some proper grandstand finishes, but had them snatched away by reliability interference (on the Mercedes side primarily) or that restart situation at Silverstone, which even with that conclusion has probably been the standout of the season so far.
**Oliver Card:** The heartbreaking truth is that the current era is capable of robbing the 'classic' tracks of their wow factor. Spa and Suzuka felt hugely underwhelming but, fortunately, the British GP shone through as a glimmer of hope that heritage circuits can still offer compelling racing.
Despite the concluding shenanigans leading to an anti-climactic finish, Silverstone proved to be a thoroughly engaging race. It was at times unpredictable thanks to varied strategic approaches up and down the grid, with entertaining track action and a heightened emotional charge, thanks to the aforementioned Antonelli's dogged determination to finish, alongside Charles Leclerc finally ending his winless streak to take a much-needed victory for Ferrari.
**Josh Suttill:** The best and worst races took place back-to-back to round out the half-season for me with Belgium (the worst) and Hungary (the best).
Spa with these cars was so poor it left me wishing we could 'rest' these classic venues such as Spa, Suzuka and Silverstone until the next regulation cycle.
But just as I was losing faith in the racing product, Hungary delivered a really good weekend. It had probably had a tenth of the overtaking that Spa produced, but the quality was far higher that moves like Max Verstappen's brilliant pass on Hamilton at Turn 1 will stick in my mind for a long time and help numb the memory of endless drive-bys on the Kemmel Straight.
### Aprilia dominates practice, sets Silverstone MotoGP record
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/aprilia-dominates-practice-sets-silverstone-motogp-record/
Last updated: 2026-08-07T16:12:27.000Z
Marco Bezzecchi smashed the Silverstone lap record by almost a second to top the second MotoGP practice session of the British Grand Prix weekend.
The Aprilia rider set a 1m56.280s to go quickest, with the previous best time a 1m57.233s set by Fabio Quartararo last year.
It was another strong session for Aprilia, as Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez finished Friday’s running second-fastest, 0.335s behind Bezzecchi.
Returning from injury after his crash in qualifying for the German Grand Prix, Bezzecchi had been second-fastest in first practice before setting the new lap record as the chequered flag waved on the session.
Two more of the Noale factory’s bikes were in the top five, with championship leader Jorge Martin in fourth ahead of Ai Ogura, who also showed strong speed throughout.
Martin had led early on, but was unable to match his team-mate’s pace.
The sole Ducati presence in the top five was Fabio Di Giannantonio, with the VR46 rider in third, just shy of 0.4s off Bezzecchi’s best time.
The Marquez brothers were sixth and seventh, with Marc ahead of Alex. Joan Mir finished in eighth for Honda ahead of Pramac’s Jack Miller, the sole Yamaha representative in Q2.
It was a tough day for KTM, with Pedro Acosta crashing again after also sliding off in this morning’s practice, while team-mate Brad Binder also took a tumble at Turn 7.
Despite the crashes, Acosta snuck inside the top 10 to secure himself a place in Q2.
Pecco Bagnaia was another late faller, crashing in the same place and missing out on a place directly in the second part of qualifying.
## Session results
1 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) 1m56.280s
2 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.335s
3 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.398s
4 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.500s
5 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.530s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.733s
7 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) +0.750s
8 Joan Mir (Honda) +0.831s
9 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.042s
10 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +1.083s
---
11 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.312s
12 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.325s
13 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +1.411s
14 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +1.473s
15 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.487s
16 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.494s
17 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.636s
18 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.640s
19 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.718s
20 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +1.900s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.042s
22 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.341s
23 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +2.550s
### Alex Marquez fastest as MotoGP returns from summer break
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/alex-marquez-fastest-as-motogp-returns-from-summer-break/
Last updated: 2026-08-07T11:42:45.000Z
Alex Marquez topped the times in first practice for MotoGP’s British Grand Prix, leading the way from returning Aprilia rider Marco Bezzecchi.
The Gresini Ducati rider went quickest with a 1m58.692s 10 minutes into the session, and it remained the fastest time throughout.
Bezzecchi, who was ruled fit on Thursday after crashing during qualifying for the German Grand Prix, was second-fastest, 0.173s behind.
Third-fastest was KTM’s Pedro Acosta, who had a crash around the halfway mark, sliding off at Turn 15 into the gravel - so subsequently had his position boosted by coming out on fresh tyres.
Bezzecchi had set the fastest time early on, and was the first to set a sub-two-minute lap soon after before it was cancelled after he exceeded track limits.
Trackhouse rider Raul Fernandez was next to top the times, setting a 1m59.867s, before Acosta replicated the time.
Alex Marquez set his quickest time soon after, with Bezzecchi running second for the remainder of the session.
Fernandez finished fourth, ahead of VR46’s Fabio Di Giannantonio. Marc Marquez was sixth-quickest, ahead of Ai Ogura.
Championship leader Jorge Martin was eighth, narrowly avoiding a crash with Yamaha wildcard Augusto Fernandez in the later stages of the session.
The top 10 was rounded off by Franco Morbidelli and Pecco Bagnaia, returning from arm pump surgery over the summer break.
Stand-in appearances this weekend come courtesy of Iker Lecuona, who finished 16th and is racing for Gresini in place of Fermin Aldeguer, KTM’s Pol Espargaro replacing Maverick Vinales, and Cal Crutchlow - who continues his LCR Honda stint in place of Johann Zarco.
## Session results
1 Alex Marquez (Gresini Ducati) 1m58.692s
2 Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia) +0.173s
3 Pedro Acosta (KTM) +0.282s
4 Raul Fernandez (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.310s
5 Fabio Di Giannantonio (VR46 Ducati) +0.364s
6 Marc Marquez (Ducati) +0.488s
7 Ai Ogura (Trackhouse Aprilia) +0.573s
8 Jorge Martin (Aprilia) +0.680s
9 Franco Morbidelli (VR46 Ducati) +0.876s
10 Pecco Bagnaia (Ducati) +0.954s
11 Joan Mir (Honda) +1.016s
12 Brad Binder (KTM) +1.105s
13 Luca Marini (Honda) +1.231s
14 Enea Bastianini (Tech3 KTM) +1.260s
15 Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) +1.306s
16 Iker Lecuona (Gresini Ducati) +1.316s
17 Jack Miller (Pramac Yamaha) +1.529s
18 Alex Rins (Yamaha) +1.601s
19 Diogo Moreira (LCR Honda) +1.603s
20 Augusto Fernandez (Yamaha) +1.877s
21 Pol Espargaro (Tech3 KTM) +2.060s
22 Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) +2.323s
23 Toprak Razgatlioglu (Pramac Yamaha) +2.351s
### Edd Straw's mid-season 2026 F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-mid-season-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-08-07T08:51:41.000Z
Every weekend, I've ranked the Formula 1 drivers from first to 22nd based on my evaluation of their performances across each grand prix weekend.
The August break gives us the chance to take a look at how their performances stack up across the season so far.
The rankings are dictated by all aspects of each driver's performance: speed, consistency, racecraft, performance relative to team-mate, mistakes, luck, error rate and the countless other contributing factors that shape a race weekend. Averaging out the resulting positions dictates the order of the list, which is presented in reverse order.
Here's how the ranking order plays out based on the 11 grand prix weekends so far.
**Got a question or comment about the rankings and our decisions? Leave your thoughts in the** [**comments on this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/quiz-edd-on-his-165911685?ref=the-race.com) **in The Race Members' Club and Edd will tackle them next week**
**Average ranking**: 17.545
**Best ranking**: 10th (Miami)
**Worst ranking**: 21st (Australia, Monaco, Austria)
The primary problem Stroll has faced is the troubled Aston Martin limiting his performance potential. With little to race for and an inconsistent car in terms of behaviour, his poor average ranking reflects circumstances as much as his own performance level.
However, he has usually lacked Fernando Alonso's edge of pace, and while he's mostly kept things clean - Monaco shunt aside - he's not managed to produce the flashes his team-mate has to elevate his rankings.
**Average ranking**: 17.000
**Best ranking**: 10th (Hungary)
**Worst ranking**: 20th (Japan, Canada, Monaco)
The trajectory of Bottas's season is a positive one, and while he's been very much the second-best of Cadillac's experienced line-up his performance level has too often been undermined by the team's problems.
When things are running well, which has only occasionally happened, he's done exactly the job you would expect of him.
But while he's been held back at times there have also been some mistakes along the way that have compromised results.
**Average ranking**: 15.273
**Best ranking**: 7th (Monaco)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Britain)
Albon has been beset by problems this year and had precious few clean weekends, with Monaco arguably the only time he's been able to string together the level of performance we've become accustomed to at Williams.
He's usually been very much the second-best Williams driver in terms of performance, and doesn't seem as in tune with the challenges of the 2026 cars as team-mate Carlos Sainz.
**Average ranking**: 15.273
**Best ranking**: 5th (Japan)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (China)
The best weekends, with Japan and Hungary standing out, prove the Ocon of old is still in there, but he's in the perilous position of battling to hang onto his place at Haas for 2027 by his fingertips.
There have been plenty of problems with rear-end instability, poor tyre degradation and aerodynamic problems that emerge from the machinery, but at the same time there's frustration that he has too often not maximised the potential of the equipment even when it's not working as it should be.
**Average ranking**: 14.727
**Best ranking**: 7th (Japan)
**Worst ranking**: 20th (China, Belgium)
Perez has generally been Cadillac's reference, and shown admirable determination in dragging the best out of the machinery.
His relatively lowly place in the rankings is less a consequence of performance, and more just the unforced errors, such as the collision with Bottas in China and the parking errors on the Monaco grid that led to him losing what should have been Cadillac's first point.
But despite that, and the events when the Cadillac machinery wasn't working as it should be, this has been a more impressive comeback season than the average ranking suggests.
**Average ranking**: 14.455
**Best ranking**: 2nd (Hungary)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Canada)
It took until Hungary, the race before the summer break, for Hulkenberg to score his first points of 2026 after a patchy first half of the season culminating in a strong weekend at the Hungaroring.
Poor starts, primarily down to Audi's large turbo, and errors have dented his ranking positions, as have the weekends where team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto has had a pace advantage.
The result is too many weekends where the underlying performance was good, but Hulkenberg didn't piece together a rounded weekend.
**Average ranking**: 14.455
**Best ranking**: 2nd (Miami)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Austria)
Colapinto's Miami breakthrough and impressive recoveries in Canada and Belgium showed he got on top of the car after a difficult start, although his inconsistency is still a concern.
There have been weekends where he's had the measure of Pierre Gasly and there's no doubt about the quality of his best work, but the run of four races heading into the August break, comprising bad weekends in Austria and Hungary that sandwiched decent ones at Silverstone and Spa, underlines how mixed a bag he's been.
**Average ranking**: 13.273
**Best ranking**: 7th (Belgium)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Miami)
Hadjar's first Red Bull season has been impressive, but without troubling the top six in the rankings, which is an unusual combination.
Red Bull's difficulties haven't helped, nor has Max Verstappen's edge of pace, but too often he has found himself at the back of the group of the big four teams thanks to a collection of patchy weekends.
There's no doubt he's owed some big weekends in the second half of the year given how he's been driving.
**Average ranking**: 12.818
**Best ranking**: 3rd (Austria)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Monaco)
Bortoleto's peaks have been higher than those of his team-mate, and often his single-lap speed has caught the eye.
Mistakes in China, Monaco and Hungary qualifying, combined with the poor starts that are largely down to Audi's design choices, mean too many weekends where he's had points-threatening pace but not been able to use it. However, his best work remains hugely impressive.
**Average ranking**: 12.273
**Best ranking**: 6th (Miami, Monaco, Hungary)
**Worst ranking**: 21st (Barcelona)
Alonso has often been working within a rankings ceiling caused by the lack of pace of the Aston Martin, and more significantly the sheer inconsistency and difficulty of the car.
However, he's usually been the faster Aston Martin driver and frequently made storming starts to haul the car to positions it didn't deserve. Hungary, albeit with a poor strategy, was a reminder of what he can do in a car that should at least be a midfield force for the rest of the season.
**Average ranking**: 11.727
**Best ranking**: 3rd (China)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Japan, Hungary)
Bearman has been comfortably the stronger Haas driver, and even when the car has slipped back has generally managed to put up a good fight even when points aren't on the cards.
His average is dragged down by a couple of poor weekends in Japan and Hungary, albeit with the caveats about inconsistency of parts that both Haas drivers have faced, but despite his position here he has been a midfield standout.
**Average ranking**: 11.273
**Best ranking**: 2nd (Japan)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Australia)
This has been a difficult season for Piastri, who hasn't gelled as well with this generation of cars as Lando Norris and has had too many weekends where he's lacked pace.
The high points, leading in Hungary despite struggling for speed, and putting himself into a position to fight for victory in Suzuka, have been strong, but more often than not he's been the second-best McLaren driver. There's more to come here.
**Average ranking**: 10.818
**Best ranking**: 3rd (Australia)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Barcelona)
There have been the usual Leclerc high peaks, but also some major lows, particularly in the run from Montreal to Barcelona where he struggled badly before jumping from Brembo to Carbon Industrie brake discs.
The mistakes have crept in and he's had to play second fiddle to Lewis Hamilton too often as he's still not finding the 2026 generation cars to his liking, but at least he appears to have pulled out of the nosedive.
**Average ranking**: 10.455
**Best ranking**: 1st (Australia)
**Worst ranking**: 18th (China, Miami)
Lindblad's rookie season has been outstanding, kicking off with an exceptional debut weekend in Australia and regularly putting the Racing Bulls at or near the front of the midfield.
At times, he's had the measure of Liam Lawson, at others he's been a step behind, but you'd expect such a mixed bag from a newcomer. But overall, he's looked completely at home in F1.
**Average ranking**: 9.545
**Best ranking**: 1st (Canada, Austria)
**Worst ranking**: 22nd (Belgium)
Russell's best work has been good, with Canada and Austria standing out, but Kimi Antonelli has built what is so far a decisive pace advantage.
What drags down Russell's average is the number of weekends where he's lacked the edge of speed or fallen short in terms of execution. Not the season he was expecting in his first shot in a title-chasing car.
**Average ranking**: 9.364
**Best ranking**: 1st (Japan, Hungary)
**Worst ranking**: 16th (Britain, Belgium)
At his best, Gasly has produced stellar work, albeit some of it less obvious as Alpine has slipped deep into the midfield as the season progressed.
There have been times where he's not been at one with the car, for example when struggling for grip in Miami, but overall it's been another bankable Gasly season.
**Average ranking**: 8.545
**Best ranking**: 3rd (Monaco)
**Worst ranking**: 15th (Australia)
Lawson has been a dependable performer in races, even on occasions when he came up a little short in qualifying such as in Hungary.
In many ways, this has to be considered his first genuine 'proper' season in F1 as even last year he was ludicrously axed by Red Bull after two races. That has allowed him to show how dependable a performer he is in a car that has emerged as the class of the midfield.
**Average ranking**: 8.273
**Best ranking**: 1st (China)
**Worst ranking**: 21st (Hungary)
Sainz may have finished the first half of the season in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, but his work across 2026 as a whole has been outstanding.
He's usually maximised the potential of the Williams in a season when scraping into Q2 or finishing 15th is sometimes the equivalent of a pole position or win.
**Average ranking**: 8.273
**Best ranking**: 1st (Barcelona)
**Worst ranking**: 19th (Belgium)
The difference between the lost Hamilton of 2025 and the driver we've seen in the first half of this season is enormous. Not only did he bag his first Ferrari grand prix win, but he's often led the line for Ferrari.
There have been rough edges, where execution fell short in qualifying or penalties were accrued, but overall Hamilton has proved beyond doubt that he has still got it.
**Average ranking**: 6.636
**Best ranking**: 1st (Belgium)
**Worst ranking**: 21st (Miami)
Without Verstappen, Red Bull would be looking at an even bleaker season as he's shown time and again how valuable he is - most recently with second place in Hungary.
He hasn't been perfect, with an unusual number of untidy moments such as the spin on the opening lap in Miami, which have dragged down his average, but overall it's been another outstanding season.
**Average ranking**: 6.182
**Best ranking**: 1st (Miami, Britain)
**Worst ranking**: 13th (China)
Prior to his Hungary win, Norris's season was very much the sleeper hit of 2026.
While he spent most of the first half of the year battling for a podium finish at best, he more often than not was the stronger McLaren driver and produced consistently strong performance.
Even his low point, in China, was partly down to his rankings potential being limited by missing the grand prix.
**Average ranking**: 4.818
**Best ranking**: 1st (Monaco)
**Worst ranking**: 11th (Australia, Hungary)
Perhaps the standout quality of Antonelli's season is how consistent he's been, which added to his impressive pace that has often meant he's had the measure of Russell makes for a formidable average ranking position.
There have been rough edges on display, hence he's only once been ranked first, but overall it's been a massively impressive campaign.
### F1 reveals distorted 61% income loss in latest earnings report
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/f1-reveals-distorted-61-income-loss-in-latest-earnings-report/
Last updated: 2026-08-07T12:01:18.000Z
Formula 1’s revenue in the second quarter of 2026 dropped 38% compared with 12 months ago, with operating income down 61%, as the loss of four races hit its bottom line.
As F1 owner Liberty Media published its second quarter earnings report on Thursday, the figures showed significant reductions compared to 2025.
Its revenue between April and June dropped from $1.22billion in 2025 to $764million this year, with its operating income falling from $293m to $73m.
Its overall adjusted OIBDA figures (Operating income before depreciation and amortization) fell from $361m to $139m (a 61% drop).
But the Q2 figures are heavily distorted by the way the 2026 calendar has played out - with only five races taking place in the second quarter this year compared to nine in 2025.
This has been caused by both some date shuffling since last year and the tensions in the Middle East prompting the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix to be called off.
The Japanese GP shifted earlier into March (so counted in the first quarter this time around), the two Middle East races did not happen, while Imola fell off the calendar.
It means that there has been a 44% decline in the number of races for the second quarter of this year, and a 27% decline in the total for the first half of the year, with the number dropping from 11 to 8.
So a 38% drop in total motorsport revenue over Q1, and a 15% fall over the first six months of 2026 as a result, is no cause for huge alarm.
With F1 having agreed to get the [Bahrain GP back on the calendar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1s-bahrain-gp-to-be-held-in-malaysia/), albeit taking place in Malaysia in October, the second half of the year should get F1's finances back on a more even keel so it ends the year in a decent position.
The third quarter will feature seven races this year, including the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid, versus six in 2025, while the final quarter, should the Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix take place, will have eight races compared to seven last year.
If those final two races have to be called off, then F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has talked of the season finishing in Europe, with Imola remaining the lead contender for the finale in December.
This should ensure F1 has either 22 or 23 races this year, so minimising the financial hit from the Middle East situation.
The reduction in F1’s income through the loss of races has also hit team payments, with Liberty reporting that the current grid shared $316m in the last quarter compared to $513m in Q2 last year.
Over the first half of 2026, teams have been paid $500m compared to $627m in 2025.
## Calendar full but more sprints coming
While F1’s target is to increase revenues in the future, the option for more races is not on the cards in the short term with Domenicali saying that the calendar is now full until 2028.
However, sights are set on increasing the number of sprint races from next year.
Race promoters are willing to spend more on hosting sprints because they help drive increased attendances – especially on Fridays and Saturdays.
Domenicali said during an investors call on Thursday: “We are going to have more sprint races next year, and we will inform when we announce the \[2027\] calendar how many.
“The principle is simple. This is an opportunity to increment the revenue stream that we can really leverage from a commercial point of view.”
Domenicali has ruled out them being at every grand prix, though, as it's important for there to remain a “scarcity” element to them.
“If commercially we would go everywhere, that’s not any more a value that we can really produce from the commercial point of view,” he added.
“But definitely we’re going to move further up in terms of what the number is in the future. That’s 1000% what will happen already next year."
## More licensing and premium experiences
While F1 has attracted a younger and more female audience, and has boasted of a 13% increase in total hours watched in the US after the switch to AppleTV, Domenicali has talked of a push for more premium products at races to help drive income.
With F1’s Paddock Club hospitality offering sold out for this year, and team allocations already confirmed for 2027, the aim is to seek new opportunities outside this for high-end customers.
Domenicali said that “experiential opportunity is where we are focusing our future” with the aim to have more “money cannot buy” events.
An example includes the Outlap – a luxury dinner experience put on in conjunction with LVMH that allows 12 guests to enjoy a premium dinner in a bespoke container that is driven around the track.
It was launched at the Belgian Grand Prix and is being rolled out at other European venues next year, with a price tag of more than 10,000 Euros per head.
Domenicali also see growth opportunities from more licencing deals and the renewal of several current contracts.
He has, however, ruled out an official single AI partner for F1.
“We will never give it to anyone or a single partner that area because it’s too big,” he said. “Our ability to divide that area of business is creating for us a lot of opportunities.”
### Six things we learned from MotoGP's first day back
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/six-things-we-learned-motogp-first-day-back-silverstone/
Last updated: 2026-08-06T15:04:52.000Z
The MotoGP field partially reconvened at Silverstone on Thursday ahead of the British Grand Prix - with some of the riders in attendance at a media and fan event in London instead.
But across the two sites riders spoke for the first time since the July break, and many of those riders had new information to share - especially those whose 2027 situations remain unconfirmed.
Here are six things we learned on Thursday.
## Marini's Tech3 unveiling is imminent
While it's not yet official, the news of Luca Marini's new deal with Tech3 KTM should land at some point during the Silverstone weekend.
This is according to Marini himself - as he'll join the satellite team in place of the still-injured Maverick Vinales for 2027.
"Maybe this week, this weekend," he told journalists when asked about his future, "some announcements. Everything will become official this weekend. I don't know now, at the moment. But we will see."
The exact details of the contract are still to be confirmed, but it's likely he'll have a two-year deal directly with Tech3, rather than with KTM like his predecessors Vinales and Enea Bastianini, as part of the team's new focus on moving things in-house following former F1 team principal Guenther Steiner's takeover of the squad from Herve Poncharal.
On the other side of the garage, a final decision awaits as Tech3 picks out Marini's rookie team-mate between Moto2 title hopefuls Manu Gonzalez and Senna Agius.
## Miller closing in on deal
Pramac's Jack Miller looks increasingly likely to stay within the Yamaha family next season, with a move to its WorldSBK outfit.
Miller, who is set to vacate his current seat for rookie Izan Guevara and is making no secret of the fact his time in MotoGP is up, said he was "talking with everybody and trying to understand what is the best step for me going forward" and hopes to have an announcement within the next few weeks.
"I think we're all on a similar page. I've enjoyed working a lot with Yamaha, there's no denying that," he said - though Honda has also been mooted as a potential suitor in WorldSBK.
"I enjoy the company a lot, we were at Suzuka \[8 Hours\] a couple of weeks ago, I wouldn’t do that if I didn't like working with the people I'm working alongside, the Japanese and all of the management involved.
"I don't know who's leaking their things to the media but I think they've got a bug in their office! We'll see what we can do with them."
## Binder is moving on, too
A deal that sounds closer still to being confirmed is Brad Binder's move to BMW's WorldSBK team.
This looks likely to be announced this month - despite him remaining coy about it on media day at Silverstone.
"I think in the next couple of weeks we'll know a lot more," said Binder, while dodging all the other follow-up questions.
"At the moment we're working on things and trying to finish it all off, so when everything's done and dusted, I'll be happy to tell you what's happening."
Binder, [as per Speedweek.com](https://www.speedweek.com/a/superbike-wm/bmw-sbk-werksteam-2027-zweiter-fahrer?ref=the-race.com) and others, is to replace Danilo Petrucci in the BMW roster, so will recreate a past KTM factory line-up by teaming up with Miguel Oliveira.
## Honda/LCR call is no sweat for Alonso
Moto3 world champion David Alonso says he's unconcerned about where he's going to ride in 2027, as Honda continues to delay the decision about whether it will be him or current rookie rider Diogo Moreira who lands alongside Fabio Quartararo next year.
Alonso was confirmed over the summer break as a Honda racer for 2027 and 2028 - as was Quartararo. But unlike in Quartararo's case, the announcement on the Colombian racer's future didn't state where exactly he will ride - as the factory waits to measure the continuing success of Moreira in the coming months.
Speaking to The Race at Silverstone, Alonso insisted that he doesn't really care too much given the factory contract he's on and the support he's going to receive regardless of whether it's a factory ride or Moreira's current satellite seat at LCR.
"I am a factory rider and factory official bike, so no matter," he said. "Then both of them, people \[in those teams\] are professional, good teams, good human teams on both sides, so let's ride on the track and then let them decide."
Moreira was asked about it, too, at the London event and said he was simply waiting for Honda's call and that it was not the most important matter right now.
## Rins has variety in options
Despite not having yet secured a ride of any kind for next year, Alex Rins painted a calm figure at Silverstone on Thursday.
The Yamaha rider, left with no place in the roster for 2027 by Yamaha's preference for the all-new pairing of Jorge Martin and Ai Ogura, said he is "not only looking at Superbikes" as rumours swirl about his potential destination for 2027.
Though, [according to GPOne,](https://www.gpone.com/en/2026/08/03/motogp/rins-wants-to-race-in-superbike-and-has-set-his-sights-on-the-go-eleven-ducati?ref=the-race.com) Rins would like to ride a Ducati - the WSBK championship's dominant machine - he said there is "nothing proper on the table" as of yet.
Asked if the summer break was not as calm as he might have hoped, Rins said: "No, not at all. For sure I was quite calm, because I trust my people - my manager, for him it was a little more busy than for me.
"But for sure, I was quite calm. I will not lie to you, I will not say I was 100% calm because as a rider I also get involved a little bit, as you can imagine. But yeah, I was quite calm leaving him working on what we are working on."
He added: "We are not only looking at Superbikes. We don't have nothing clear, we just started to speak to some teams but nothing proper on the table."
## Quartararo never negotiated with Yamaha
Following his Honda announcement, Quartararo tried not to get too drawn into comparing his current employer Yamaha with his next - but not did he avoid his usual dose of bluntness.
Quartararo said that it was important for him to have a fresh start in all aspects in 2027 - only one mechanic will be accompanying him in the switch - but that primarily the move was dictated by the expected quality of machinery.
He said that he spoke to multiple teams in the off-season but that Honda gave him the best answers to the questions he had.
One team he didn't speak with, though? Yamaha. Draw your own conclusions.
### Silverstone and COTA team up for huge F1 fan giveaway
URL: https://www.the-race.com/all/silverstone-and-cota-team-up-for-huge-f1-fan-giveaway/
Last updated: 2026-08-06T14:30:31.000Z
The Circuit of The Americas and Silverstone have launched a joint competition that will give one winner the chance to experience two of Formula 1's biggest race weekends, the 2026 United States Grand Prix and 2027 British Grand Prix.
The winner will receive hospitality packages at both venues: a pair of Terrace Hospitality tickets for the 2026 United States GP in Austin, followed by Silverstone's three-day Circuit Explorer experience for two at the 2027 British GP!
Travel and accommodation are not included.
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/p/DbqauHHkVNv/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
> [A post shared by Circuit of The Americas (@cota\_official)](https://www.instagram.com/p/DbqauHHkVNv/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
The two circuits may be thousands of miles apart, but they're both among F1's most popular destinations. This new giveaway gives fans the chance to experience both race weekends, each known for their own unique atmosphere and appeal.
## How to enter
To enter, you'll need to complete the [online entry form](https://www.silverstone.co.uk/cota-x-silverstone-bgp-2027-giveaway?ref=the-race.com) accessible via Silverstone's website. The competition is free to enter and is open to UK and US residents aged 18 or over. Entries close at 11.59pm UK time on August 31, with the winner to be selected and contacted shortly afterwards.
### F1 teams rejected fix for a big 2026 driver complaint
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-rejected-fix-big-2026-driver-complaint-balloon-tyres/
Last updated: 2026-08-06T10:30:56.000Z
Formula 1 teams have rejected a rule change proposal that would have allowed Pirelli to address drivers' complaints and bring tyre pressures down.
One frequent complaint aired by drivers this year is that the minimum tyre pressures mandated by Pirelli for the 2026 cars are too high. This is making the cars more difficult to drive, as the tyres offer less grip, and drivers are more susceptible to locking up on corner entry.
The tyres are also both harder to fire up at times and more delicate to look after.
Earlier this year, Haas driver Ollie Bearman likened it to driving with "balloons".
"We have so much air in these tyres now, and it's just an absolute nightmare," he said at the Barcelona Grand Prix. "The deg is huge, a lot of overheating over a single lap.
"We have so much power under the right foot and so little grip with those huge balloons as tyres that we have."
## A consequence of active aero
The elevated tyre pressures, which are frequently around 3-4psi higher than last year depending on track configuration, are a consequence of F1's new active aero rules.
The change in downforce levels between straight mode and corner mode has an impact on the vertical load that the tyres have to endure.
And it is about being mindful of the consequences of active aero going wrong, and a car getting stuck in high downforce mode, that has triggered the current situation.
If a car's wings stay in corner mode down a straight then, with maximum downforce at high speed, there would be extreme loads placed on the tyres that could eventually risk failures if the pressures were too low.
The higher pressures are therefore a failsafe measure to avoid the possibility of things going wrong should active aero fail.
## The rule proposal
Pirelli is well aware of the driver complaints and it recently proposed an idea that would have allowed it to reduce pressures for the second half of this season.
It was for a rule to be introduced whereby if a car suffered a failure with its active aero and could not activate straight mode then it would be unable to stay out on track.
The proposal was that if a car was stuck in corner mode for five laps then it would be shown a black and orange flag, which is used to notify a driver that they have a dangerous problem or a mechanical issue.
The driver would then have to go into the pits and, if the problem could not be fixed, they would not be unable to continue in the race.
If this rule was in play, so there was no risk of cars ever running for an extended period in corner mode down the straights, then that would have been enough for Pirelli to reduce the tyre pressures to a level that would have made drivers happier.
Implementation of this rule could have come as early as the Dutch GP, the first race after the summer break.
The black and orange flag idea was viewed as workable by the FIA but, because of F1's governance processes, it required a super majority of support from teams to be approved.
Such backing was not forthcoming though, with teams feeling that the change was unnecessary and a majority not in favour when it was discussed.
It is understood some teams did not want to alter the tyre pressures mid-season because it could have impacted their competitive fortunes.
It is suggested others did not want to risk a good result automatically being ruined by an active aero failure that could potentially be battled through to still make the finish and score points.
## No change
The failure to get support for the change means that the current high pressures will remain in play until the end of the year - and most likely through to 2027 as well.
Pirelli chief engineer Simone Berra said he was not "particularly surprised" that teams voted against the plan, even though it was something drivers had called for.
"The majority decided to keep the higher pressure and for us, it's fine," he said.
"We have explained multiple times that the reason \[for the high pressures\] is the SM \[straight mode\] condition, which is not happening so often.
"It is just a matter for us to define which procedure to take into account \[when picking the tyre pressures\], and we are going to take the worst-case scenario."
Berra reckoned that if the black and orange flag rule had come into effect that tyre pressures could have been reduced back to where they were last year.
"It can be significant," he said, when asked about how differently pressures would be pitched if Pirelli did not need to be mindful of active aero failures.
"It depends on the circuit, basically. It can be a range of 1-3psi, more or less, on the front and rear axle. But it would be possible to lower more the rear axle."
### Why F1 can't just ban algorithms that drivers hate
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-cannot-remove-algorithms-drivers-hate/
Last updated: 2026-08-06T15:06:58.000Z
'Why can't Formula 1 drivers have 100% control of energy deployment?'
It's a question many have asked this year, especially when weekends such as the Belgian Grand Prix exposed how much influence [machine-learning algorithms](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-ai-engines-are-tripping-teams-up-so-much/) are having on energy deployment and a driver's result in qualifying or the race.
The likes of [Oscar Piastri](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/too-complicated-can-f1-drivers-regain-control-from-ai-engines/) have called it a ["pretty crap way of going racing"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-f1-drivers-have-become-hostages-to-ai-in-2026/) and there's been growing frustration that drivers have lost too much control of their destiny this year.
That's led some to wonder why drivers can't just have full control of where and when their energy is deployed - but this isn't realistic and could potentially make the glaring battery offsets even worse.
"\[The drivers'\] comments are understandable," FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis said. "I think their comments are a consequence of the fact that energy is limited, and therefore how you best manage it becomes super critical, and then the various strategies that need to be deployed to do it related to that now.
"I don't think you could go to that extreme \[of 100% driver control\] because first of all, if it was just really on-off for the driver whenever they want and as much as they like, then they would use all energy on corner exit for a very limited amount of time, and the effects that people are complaining about would be even more obvious.
"Secondly, there are limitations about how much energy you can deploy, or you can recover, or the so-called SOC or state of charge delta, things like that, that are \[limitations\] in order to prevent, let's say, an arms race and the teams to have an even bigger battery, for example.
"So, because we didn't want teams to have to make a battery twice the size, and then to have cars heavy again, etc \[and\] I don't think humans can rationally control all of these parameters."
Tombazis is hopeful that F1 readjusting its current 50/50 split between internal combustion engine and battery (which is more like 53/47 in reality) to 60/40 by 2028 will put more power back in the drivers' hands.
"When we go towards a slight readjustment of that balance, I think that will go towards a simplification in that area," he said.
"So I think what they're \[the drivers are\] complaining \[about\] now is a consequence of the energy management.
"It is complicated, I've no doubt, and it's more complicated than we would like. Absolutely, 100% I fully agree with them, but I think it's a consequence of the basic core issue."
## 'A step better'
Tombazis felt it is hard for drivers to see how things can be improved when they are in the midst of their current reality, driving energy-starved cars that are deciding a lot of things for them.
"Oscar is a very intelligent driver, but I think he's actually seeing what he feels currently is prevailing," Tombazis said.
"When we go to the rebalancing, I believe it will be a step better. Will it be eliminated completely? No, but I think it will be a step better."
Piastri has already accepted that, saying on Thursday in Hungary: "I don't expect it to ever fully go away, but as the manufacturers understand it more and work out the regulation restrictions more, in terms of what the code can and can't do, hopefully things will become a bit better."
Those algorithms existed long before the introduction of F1's new rules this year but, with the increased power of the electrical component of the power unit, they've become far more crucial.
That's why, in theory, when their potency is decreased from 47% to 40% by 2028, the algorithms that influence output will have decreased importance and be more accurate because manufacturers will understand the regulations better by then.
### A weird MotoGP career gets another extension
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/raul-fernandez-weird-motogp-career-gets-another-extension/
Last updated: 2026-08-05T08:23:37.000Z
Raul Fernandez's new two-year deal with Trackhouse Aprilia gives some stability to a MotoGP career still best described as inconclusive.
After a period when Fernandez appeared convinced that team boss Davide Brivio's [impending move to Honda](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/brivios-exit-as-trackhouse-motogp-boss-announced/) was [bad news for his future](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/three-contenders-for-one-of-motogp-best-seats/) \- and Fernandez was even linked to a shock return to the Tech3 KTM team in which he had such a miserable rookie season in 2022 - by the start of the summer break it seemed a foregone conclusion that the 25-year-old would in fact stay put.
That was confirmed by a Trackhouse announcement on Wednesday morning in which team owner Justin Marks said Fernandez had "grown as a rider both on the bike and with his preparation, approach and maturity".
Having won last year's Australian Grand Prix and the Mugello sprint this year, there's no doubt Fernandez has made huge strides from the shaky start to his MotoGP career.
His sole Moto2 season in 2021 was so astonishingly successful (second in the championship in his only crack at a category notoriously hard for rookies to quickly master) that KTM hurriedly triggered its right to promote him to MotoGP to fend off Yamaha interest - announcing both the Fernandez deal and the consequent Tech3 exits of Danilo Petrucci and Iker Lecuona while a practice session was happening. ()
Fernandez, KTM and Tech3 all had pretty much immediate regrets over that hurried promotion. In a fractious and miserable season, Fernandez only once qualified above 20th and never finished higher than 12th.
That incredible Moto2 season had bought Fernandez enough credit not to be written off - RNF Aprilia threw him a lifeline and he stayed for the team's transformation into Trackhouse. But it took until late 2025 for Fernandez to start consistently showing more than flashes of the form always expected of him, and the fact that uptick coincided with Aprilia's development into the benchmark MotoGP bike didn't feel coincidental. If he'd only come good when he had the best bike, was he really all that special?
Ai Ogura's arrival as his Trackhouse team-mate has done Fernandez's reputation no favours - Ogura's spectacular early rookie season form causing last year's doubts over Fernandez's future and then Ogura's step up into genuine title contention this year overshadowing Fernandez's own progress.
Yet it's Ogura who Fernandez probably owes his new contract to. If Ogura wasn't leaving for Yamaha, Fernandez would look somewhat expendable for 2027\. Instead, despite the lingering question marks, he's a very sensible continuity option alongside the expected arrival of Enea Bastianini from Tech3 (which now looks set to sign Luca Marini from Honda for its 'experienced rider' slot that Fernandez had been linked to a few months ago).
"We believe that this team and these bikes are poised to be a consistent championship threat in the years to come and that Raul can help carry us to great heights in this sport," Marks added in the contract renewal announcement.
The second part of that statement sounds more realistic than it did a year ago, but Fernandez still needs to do more, more consistently, for it to genuinely come true.
### Read our full exclusive interview with Flavio Briatore
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/read-our-full-exclusive-interview-with-flavio-briatore/
Last updated: 2026-08-04T15:36:02.000Z
Alpine Formula 1 team boss Flavio Briatore’s recent exclusive interview with The Race Business covered everything from enormous F1 team valuations to trying to set up new American grands prix with Donald Trump in the 2000s to the early years of the original Benetton team.
Here’s the full transcript of a conversation that Briatore kept running well beyond its planned slot:
**Darren Cox:** Flavio, thank you very much for taking the time in your busy schedule to talk to us here at The Race. The Enstone team has another name change for next year, it becomes the Gucci Racing Alpine Formula 1 team. That is a massive deal for Formula 1 and for Alpine, isn't it?
**Flavio Briatore:** Yeah, for Alpine especially, you know, we are upgrading the brand Alpine as well. And the idea to have Gucci really happened one day because we have a Louis Vuitton in Formula 1 to sponsor the events, but we never have a luxury brand on the car. So I had this idea, I started talking with Luca De Meo, you know Luca was in Enstone before, was in charge of Renault, was the chairman of Renault and Luca in the beginning believed it was a very bad idea.
**DC:** And this was while he had moved to Gucci already or was this before he'd moved?
**FB:** No, no, no, he had moved already to Gucci and we were talking, Luca is a very good friend of mine, we were talking all the time about all the brands. And I said, Luca, it would be fantastic if you have Eni, one of the big Italian companies, we have MSC, number one in the world. So why don't we put Gucci as well in the group? And the number one in the world, the name, you know, you're talking about a company doing six billion turnover. In the beginning he told me it was a very bad idea. OK, I never give up, I push him, push him, push him.
At one point he called me and told me maybe it's a good idea, but we need to convince Mr Pinault. And we had a few meetings with Mr \[Francois-Henri\] Pinault \[chairman of the board of directors of Gucci’s parent company\] and in the beginning it was difficult because Mr Pinault never followed Formula 1, had no idea what was going on, etc, etc. After that, he was convinced to do something with Alpine, we had a race in Monaco for him, it was the first race.
He was incredibly enthusiastic, you know, seeing all this, plus Monaco, it's an event, it's a big event. So all this together, Gucci decided to enjoy Alpine team like a major sponsor, a title sponsor brand. And I was very happy, happy for the team, but happy for Gucci as well because everybody in Gucci is very, very enthusiastic, very, very enthusiastic.
Two months ago when we formalised the contract, it was unbelievable in the way the Gucci people take this challenge to be in Formula 1 for the first time, a luxury brand, and in the end it's good for Formula 1 because you have the two best luxury brands in the world. You have Louis Vuitton on one side, you have Gucci on the other side, and the two groups managed both by the Italian people because Pietro \[Beccari, Louis Vuitton CEO\] is Italian and Luca is Italian, and the two big French luxury brands worldwide. So I believe it was a good deal for everybody and now we need to see, we need to see next year everything is Gucci, everybody is excited and we need to make sure the car is exciting as well.
**DC:** I've heard a lot already being said about how seriously Gucci are taking this and that they're going to revolutionise the way that F1 is marketed as a, as you say, first luxury brand on a car. Can you give us any insight into what sort of things you might be doing?
**FB:** Sure, now we work in the delivery of the car, we work on the delivery of the driver, the merchandising for Alpine is the biggest sponsor. I'm sure it'll be in every shop, Gucci, be one corner of the F1 merchandising and it's super. Plus the commitment of Gucci is 100%.
From the chairman to anybody working in the shop, you know. I was shopping in the shop in Milano in Gucci and everybody was so excited to have the news about Gucci Formula 1\. It's a moment exciting all group, exciting as well our team, our Alpine team, because we need to give stability to the team.
It's always a little bit shaking in Renault before, Alpine now and finally we look like we give a little bit of stability, a new sponsor. We reconfirm the sponsor, MSC stay with us another 1-3 years and Eni another 1-3 years, so we create a good base to develop the car in the right way as well.
**DC:** And do you think that Gucci will bring in other brands? They've got this halo effect over the whole company.
**FB:** 100% because we negotiated with three or four different brands in this moment to be associated. You know it's important when you're talking about the sponsor, it's always business to business. And it's important in our car, the association between Gucci, Eni, MSC is an incredible group of companies.
And all these companies, if you want, are Italian because with MSC, Mr \[Gianluigi\] Aponte is from Salerno and he lives in Geneva but MSC is Italian. Eni is one of the big European oil companies, the chairman is Italian and the other one is Gucci. So I believe we have an incredible quality of the brand in the car.
**DC:** I can not only see Gucci raising the profile of the sport but also Alpine as well. As you say with LVMH coming in, that has changed Formula 1 in terms of the respect of the group of sponsors that they've got around them.
**FB:** I don't think we've changed Formula 1, I think we're increasing the perception of Formula 1 as the place to be. Because now from the evaluation of the team and the sport, every race we go in this moment is sold out. In Silverstone it was 560,000 people, it was the record. In Spa it was 200,000 people. And the average of the support of Formula 1 has dropped dramatically, now you talk about 28, 30 \[years old\]. And what is incredible about 60% women and 40% men.
We never had this before, before it was really a man’s sport. So it's good for Stefano \[Domenicali\], it's good for Formula 1, it's good for us, it's good to be in competition as well with Luca and the chairman at Louis Vuitton, so it'll be great.
**DC:** As you say, things have grown in Formula 1, but some things stay the same. You came into the sport with a clothing brand, a high street clothing brand, not a luxury clothing brand, with Benetton. So it's sort of, the loop has turned round again.
**FB:** At the time Benetton was kind of a luxury brand as well, because at the time we had 7000 shops of Benetton. And it was the first real fashion brand in Formula 1\. In the beginning we had the car with the Benetton colour and everything, after that it was too expensive for Benetton only, when you put some yellow, some other one colour, some blue or whatever.
But Benetton was the first example. I remember at one point we were much more known about the racing team and not the shop. It was incredible.
To win the championship with the T-shirt maker was incredible. Nobody gave us one penny when we started in 1989-1990\. In 1995 we were ready to be world champions and it was really, really super.
Red Bull tried to do the same, with different finance, a completely different system. At the time our budget was very tight with respect to everybody. We did it.
Thank you to Michael Schumacher, he was a big asset of the team.
**DC:** You have been credited with revolutionising marketing for the teams via what you did with Benetton. You were the new guys on the block, you did things very differently from the boring, staid teams that were there that had been around for many, many years. How did that feel, coming in as an outsider and being, I think someone described you as a T-shirt manufacturer, and taking on these guys that thought they knew everything about Formula 1?
**FB:** We are the T-shirt manufacturer, really.
In the end you are managing people. After you have the final product, the car, the idea of Benetton to be in Formula 1 was always because it was a worldwide sport. Luciano \[Benetton\] liked Formula 1 a lot, one brother liked rugby, another brother liked volleyball, etc.
But the idea was in the beginning, really we tried to put Benetton to a different level with respect to the other teams. The other teams were very technical, talking about McLaren, Ferrari, Williams, Tyrrell, Brabham, etc. And with Patrizia we decided to have, instead of having Autosport, Autosprint, Auto-these, Auto-these, to have fashion, to have Vogue, to have a completely different approach.
We started with a model, we started with a picture, and everybody else. We were not competitive at the time with the car, but from a press point of view, image point of view, we were always the best. Everybody was looking for the Benetton team.
We were in the back of the grid, like we started last year with Alpine. Always we turned it around, always we started from the bottom. And at the time Benetton was really an incredible success because nobody believed a T-shirt maker or a sweater maker arriving in one business was so competitive, so technical.
So I mean, at the time, we understood as well it was not so difficult. Everybody put it very difficult, you know, but the more difficult was the people to be lucky to be in the right place at the right time. And Formula 1 already was a mirror for a lot of people.
But honestly, we saw the possibility to at least compete. After we found the possibility, not only to compete, but try to have some podiums. And after we see, OK, now we compete.
And our budget was always 30-40% less than the top team budget. I believe in 1995 we won the first championship with 50% of the budget of a Ferrari at the time, or McLaren, or this and that. And we make it because the strategy was good.
We pick up the incredible driver. We have a super group of engineers. Now all the engineers becoming a star, you know, from Ross Brawn to Pat Symonds, etc, etc.
So we discovered, I think so now in Formula 1, the team principal of us was with us. Pat was with us, the team principal of Racing Bulls \[Alan Permane\], Jonathan \[Wheatley\] was with us. So the school of Benetton. Sure, we are a fashion business, but we are very strong to create the right people in the technical side as well. You combine the spirit of the fashion, the spirit of the technology. So I put this together and it was super successful.
**DC:** I love the fact you say that Formula 1 is really simple. Actually, it's about people and it's about getting the right people around.
**FB:** It's like any other business. I think so. Is a business more difficult than Formula 1?
It's a business much easier than Formula 1 when you compete with the best people in the world, but it's not impossible to succeed.
**DC:** On the marketing side, you came up with things early on. In 1997, you had your own TV show. Now, of course, we have Drive to Survive. You were the first to do a paddock newsletter, which then Red Bull took over. So was it really useful being an outsider looking in and seeing that people had done the same thing on the engineering side, but also on the marketing side, the same way for so many years?
Could you just see that there was this massive opportunity there?
**FB:** Because I had no idea about Formula 1\. I arrived in Formula 1 by chance, by the decision of Luciano Benetton. Normally, it would be just for a few months to organise the commercial side.
I never believed I would stay so long in Formula 1\. And like you said, you could see Formula 1 for the eyes outside. Yeah, it's complicated.
Like any business, it's complicated, but it's possible to do a lot. At the time, we were using Formula 1 for Benetton. Completely, we were not Benetton using Formula 1.
And Luciano was quite happy to have all this coverage. It was an incredible success, the company. And Formula 1, we decided to be our ambassador. The Benetton ambassador was Formula 1.
And plus, when you are competitive, it's double, three times, four times. But when you see a new business, you see with different eyes. You're not every day.
A lot of people are doing stuff every day the same, because this is the way we're doing. But it's possible to do it a different way as well. And the fact that I was not involved with the motor race, really, sure I care about the race.
It's our team. But if I don't have the team, I don't know if I watch Formula 1, honestly.
**DC:** Did you still watch Formula 1 when you had your times out?
**FB:** No, sometimes, but never. For me, our car is our product. We need the quick car, it's possible.
Put together the package, it's possible. If you want, it's a business. Whatever business you do, you need to put the people together.
You need managing people. I know something, football, I like more football, if you want. And we had experience as well in England with QPR, with Bernie \[Ecclestone\].
We bought the football club and in the end, we finished in Premier League and we sold it.
**DC:** Did you enjoy the football side and the sport, owning a football club, more than you did running a F1 team?
**FB:** No, I couldn't, because sometimes, we played football, at the same time was the racing. So, I had to be, I have the Formula 1 and the racing, and the football. We watched a little bit one, a little bit the other one.
No, but this is just for telling you, when you come into the business, you used to have to be from engineering in Formula 1 to have success. It's possible the people from outside as well, arriving in the new business, have very good success.
**DC:** So, in my mind, you helped revolutionise marketing in Formula 1\. Who's doing a good job today in Formula 1? Who's taken some of your ideas, the other teams that are doing a good job?
**FB:** The team was Red Bull. Red Bull, when Red Bull started, was a little Benetton, if you want. Sure, Red Bull had incredible finance. We didn't have it, because we just had the finance in the sponsor, we found it, because Benetton never put a penny in the team. So, basically, we did a team, completely independent. And, again, there, you found a sponsor.
It was not easy, because you're not competitive. The name Benetton was not really the name to be associating with motorsport, etc, etc. But, after every sponsor arrived in Benetton, everybody was happy, because we were doing completely different marketing.
Everything was open. We have a driver talking all the time. We have a fashion shoot.
We have, basically, people watching us. At one point, we have a sponsor calling us, wanting to be associated with Benetton. Because we have a completely different marketing, commercial, we have a completely different approach.
Now, everybody's moving in this direction. You see a team of 40, 50 people in marketing, commercial. We have half of that.
But, now, everybody's moving in the direction, moving in the direction of the lifestyle, luxury brand, etc, etc, because Formula 1’s had a big step.
**DC:** I think you're right. You've lived in both eras, in a team environment of the Bernie Ecclestone era, and now the Liberty era. The sport is marketed completely differently now.
What's the biggest change you've seen between those two eras, in terms of the commercial side and the marketing side?
**FB:** So, Liberty is an American company. It brings in Formula 1, the American feel. And, Drive to Survive was the key.
You know, because before Drive to Survive, we survived. And, after Drive to Survive, we survived much better. And, Liberty has done an incredible job.
After that, Stefano was arriving six, seven years ago. Again, he’s done an incredible job. We have 24 races.
I don't know if you remember, but for us, it was impossible to race in America. Bernie tried. We had one stupid race in Phoenix, with zero spectators.
We had another one in Indianapolis, with a lot of trouble, you remember. We never raced, because it was between Bridgestone and Michelin, etc, etc. So, I tried, as well, with Donald Trump, to have the race in Jersey.
And, we didn't succeed, because the guy who wanted to build the track went into bankruptcy. So, it was impossible. Now, you go to America, you go to Miami, 500,000 people.
You go to Austin, full, you go to Vegas. You see, Formula 1 is changing dramatically. You see, every race is sold out, sold out, raining, not raining.
And, what has changed is really the commercial side. Liberty is much more open. Bernie was very strong, very restrictive in the business.
And, Liberty opened the commercial side, opened completely. Marketing opened completely. And, Liberty is working with the team in very good partnership, if you want.
And, this is for the benefit of everybody. Now, we have 24 races, and it's a lot. But, it's nice, as well, because every race you go, you see overbooking, you see it full, you see the enthusiasm of the people.
And, this is the new Formula 1\. I believe the position of Formula 1, in this moment, is very high, very high.
**DC:** You were friends with Bernie, you are friends with Bernie. You're a great marketing guy. If he'd have listened to you more, do you think that the value of the sport could have gone up, if you would have been more involved in helping him doing the marketing?
**FB:** It's not my job. My job is more managing the team. In one way or another, one way, I was in Formula 1 for many years.
After I stopped, after the trouble we have in Singapore, I stopped. Then, I stopped for one year, two years, after I decided to do different business. It's nice if you're doing different business, because you see the value of the money.
Because Formula 1, you come back in Formula 1, everything's a million. In our business, it was a dollar. We need to take care of the dollar.
You need to take care. But, it's good if you have the skill to do different investment, different business. We created a brand seven years ago. We created \[Crazy Pizza\].
Now, it's working a lot of money. So, it's the same. For me, creating \[Crazy Pizza\] or managing the team is the same.
I don't see any difference. OK, here you're dealing with the engineers, there you're dealing with the people who make the pizza. But, before you make the pizza, you need to find the right flavour, the right tomato, the right this, the right this.
And, always, it's the concept. This is the concept, it's racing. When you do another business, the concept is doing, creating something new.
The pizza, \[Crazy Pizza\] is great, because it's not a \[Crazy Pizza\]. It's not a pizza. It's something different.
It's experience. And, all the \[Crazy Pizza\] we have is doing fantastic, and this is very nice as well. Because it's the concept.
I changed the concept. In the beginning, I was criticised by all the stupid pizzaioli, normal, you know, and the people were criticised because my pizza was very expensive. Everything was very expensive.
But, the people don't understand. For me, the pizza was the excuse to go to \[Crazy Pizza\]. The pizza was the DJ, the rumour, the spinning pizza, and it's experience.
I don't care about the pizza, if it's good or bad. Sure, it's good, because it was the first pizza we know this, we started one year.
At the moment, you have the concept, creating the concept. Whatever product, final product is a pizza, is a car, it will be the same.
**DC:** So, it's all about the experience. I hear that one of your facilities in Monaco, people are turning up already, knowing about the Gucci deal, and starting to use that as a backdrop for…
**FB:** We're creating, we're creating. I have a place in the beach in Monaco, a few beaches in Monaco, and we've done the joint venture with Gucci this year. You know, Gucci has about 60 million followers.
You see the people arriving in front of the \[La Rose des Vents\] Powered by Gucci. It's sensational. The women arrive in Gucci dresses, because it's a Gucci place.
We created one movement, fantastic for us, for Gucci, for everybody. The shop in Monaco is doing 40% more respect last year. Because after, you need to go check in the bottom what you have.
**DC:** So, next time, when we come here to do this follow-up interview next year, I'm going to have to wear Gucci. I can't let the comment go, because I've not heard you talk about it before. You tried to put a New Jersey Grand Prix together with Donald Trump?
**FB:** Yeah, because it was done in The Apprentice with Donald Trump. I was The Apprentice from Italy. And we see all the time together, because it was the same time.
Sure, Donald had no idea as well about Formula 1\. But he's a great promoter. At the time, he promoted boxing, he promoted everything in Vegas, et cetera, et cetera.
And I made Donald to talk with Bernie. I was in the office of Donald. We put in video with Bernie to found what was the best place in New York to do the race.
And Donald tells us New York is very difficult for a million reasons, but Jersey was the place. So Bernie started negotiating Jersey with two or three different people. But we never succeeded, because Formula 1 was not...
In America, before Liberty arrived, Formula 1 really was not considered something special. You talk about the NASCAR, you talk about Indy, completely different business. And Formula 1 was not \[discussed\] at all.
So when Liberty arrived, everything was changed.
**DC:** I mean, Donald Trump now has got his dream. He's having an IndyCar race in Washington, DC, as part of the 250-year celebration.
**FB:** So Donald Trump now is looking for football, much more in television for football and not for president.
**DC:** And having a UFC event on his lawn as well, which is interesting. During my research, I did see that you were the boss of the Italian Apprentice. So you're used to nearly reality TV.
So the success of Drive to Survive maybe wasn't a surprise for you, because you saw how impactful the Apprentice was around the world, especially in Italy.
**FB:** Oh, yes. You know, one of the guys, the second Apprentice, is called Francesco \[**Menegazzo\]**. Still with us, he's basically outside of Formula 1.
He's the number one. He's the guy who takes care of all of our outside business around Formula 1\. So I mean, The Apprentice was something very serious.
And the quality of the competitor we have in The Apprentice was very high. Sometimes it was very difficult to decide to fire or not, et cetera, et cetera. But it was great.
After that, after two years, it was too much time, you know, because we use a lot of time. Basically, we had the boardroom. We had the meeting.
It was very demanding. But for me, it was a great experience. And we had a great experience in America as well. a lot of places, and it was a super success.
**DC:** And as we talked about, Drive to Survive has been a massive success. But that's not been the only thing, is it, that Liberty have done that have made Formula 1 so big? What are the other things you've seen that Liberty have done that Bernie didn't that have made Formula 1 so successful?
**FB:** You know, I think Bernie, was different timing. The world is moving very quickly now. A lot of the new sponsors as well enjoy Formula 1, the big sponsors to support the event, et cetera, et cetera.
And after, for one reason, I don't know if it's Drive to Survive, if it’s the way it was organised, the commercial side, the marketing side of Formula 1\. At one point, for everybody, it's the place to be. You know, when it's the place to be, everybody wants to go there.
And when you see the value of the team, you know, I sold my share in Benetton, and the value of the team was $80million. OK, now you're talking about $3.5, $4 billion. And everybody predicting, you're talking with these finance people, talking about, OK, Formula 1 in three, four years, the team is worth $10billion.
Well, I don't know. But if you see what is going on up and now.
**DC:** What's your view? What do you think? Are the valuations topped out, or are they?
**FB:** If the team was mine, I'd have sold already!
**DC:** Well, a lot of people that are watching this, because we have got a lot of new fans, won't know that at some point you've owned parts of three teams. So do you wish you still have one of those, or would the price be too high for you to hold?
**FB:** No question, too high. It depends if you buy something today, it will happen tomorrow, after tomorrow. The prediction of the people is the price of the team is still not expensive, but normal.
And the prediction of the people is that in three, four years, the team is worth much more. This is the reason why the people want to invest, especially the, you know, we have American, we have Chinese, we have any kind of people want to invest in Formula 1.
**DC:** I used to work for Renault a long time ago. I look at the market capitalisation of Renault, it's 8.5 billion. Forbes have said that the Alpine team here is worth 2 billion.
**FB:** No, no, we are more, because we have an offer, we have an offering for the 24% of Otro, the valuation 3.2\. So we have 40% of the valuation of Renault. All Renault is worth 8.3\. And we're working at this 3.5\. So we're representing 40% or 50%.
**DC:** You've read my questions. I mean, that is a crazy number, isn't it? Renault makes 2 million cars across all these different brands, you make two cars effectively, and it's worth 40%.
**FB:** Exactly, with a few people, because with respect to the employees of Renault, we have very few people. Because Renault, you talk about Renault, Dacia, you talk about Alpine, you talk about everything. It's completely crazy.
**DC:** Completely crazy. Your investors, Otro Capital, you mentioned have got 24%. The rumour is that they're allowed to sell it to anybody after September.
Who would be a good investor? Who would be someone that comes in and you go, that's great, that's great to have that part of the business?
**FB:** Not really my problem, this is more the issue of Renault. Sure, to have a partner, 24%, we're looking for somebody. I expect somebody to give not only the finance, give some help in technology or whatever, or whatever in finance.
But in September, I don’t think nothing \[will\] happen dramatically, because I see it was very difficult for somebody to buy 24% of one company, with no agreement with the majority. I never see somebody buy, spend 600 million to buy a minority, to be signed as partner, if you don't agree with the majority. See what happens.
Renault is negotiating. For the team point of view, for me, it makes no difference. We have Otro, now tomorrow we have somebody else.
But sure, we prepare somebody, bring something to the team. Renault know that.
**DC:** You've worked with Renault. I've been in the Renault machine at a much lower level than you're at. Big car companies traditionally haven't been very good at managing Formula 1 teams.
We've seen what Toyota did, the Jaguar story, everything else. Toto \[Wolff\] keeps Mercedes one arm away from that. Is that your approach to how you manage Renault, not letting the big corporate beast overtake this small, agile racing team?
**FB:** It's always the same story. I'm used to, because I've worked for Renault for many, many years. I used to, when we have the team Renault, to be completely independent.
But we are completely independent. A little bit, it takes a little bit of time, the moment you have the confidence with the group, you have a lot of compliance. Renault is in the stock market as well, and a lot of compliance.
In the beginning, we need to fill up a page, a page, a page every day. Now this is much better. I agree with you.
Formula 1, the big manufacturers, it's difficult to understand Formula 1\. Toto is very successful, because Toto has his partner, and Mercedes at 30%, and Toto is doing super. The moment you do super, nobody talks with you, and nobody complains about you.
And for us, honestly, it's a question of the people in charge of Renault at this moment. I worked with \[Louis\] Schweitzer, I worked with Carlos Ghosn, I worked with Luca de Meo, and now I'm working with Francois \[Provost\]. I think our relationship is very good, because in the end, the relationship is made by the two people who want to make success.
And I have pretty much a lot of freedom. Sure, I have a lot, I inform Renault what's going on, et cetera, et cetera. But really, you know something, two weeks, three weeks, we're talking with the assemblies.
In this moment, the team, we have a lot of freedom from Renault Group. Francois started to understand Formula 1, it was important for him to see the factory, and we're working much better together. I'm quite happy, I don't have any aggravation.
We have already a lot of aggravation, I don't have this one.
**DC:** That's good to hear, because as I said, history suggests that when car manufacturers get involved in Formula 1, they...
**FB:** We see, we see the factory, with Niki \[Lauda\], with Jaguar, with this and that.
**DC:** You've had a description of your time having Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso, as the same movie with two different leading actors.
**FB:** Two different actors.
**DC:** So for your third act, if you will, to take this Enstone team back to the top, do you need another Schumacher or Alonso to build the team around?
**FB:** I wish! In this moment, the driver is really not our priority. You need to fit the driver in the team the moment you believe the driver gives this two, three, ten, make a big difference. In this moment, we need to build the team.
We need to build the confidence between engineering, we need to build complicity between everybody. Today, my priority is to build a racing team. This is the priority.
OK, if you talk about the six top drivers, I believe Pierre \[Gasly\] is inside the six top drivers. I think so. We need just a better car, better confidence in people here in the factory.
And this is what we need to do now. Sure, the moment you need to do the big… The two tenths \[of a star driver\] make the big difference.
Why not Pierre? Why not the driver we have? Because at one point, as well for Franco \[Colapinto\], he's very young.
He's the first year in Formula 1, and from last year to this year, he's improving 100%. You don't know a young driver, the development of a young driver. Let's see.
Let's see the future. But it's not my priority at the moment. Really, the driver is not my priority.
**DC:** In the past, you've been great at talent spotting, so I was going to ask you if there's anyone on the junior ladder that excites you that could be the next Schumacher or Alonso. Unless you have someone's name, I won't ask you that question. You say it's not a priority.
The people here, have you got the right people now, Alpine? Are you ready on the engineering side to make that step that you've just described?
**FB:** No, you're never happy about that because including Toto, I think, so he's looking always to something better and better and better. Yeah, from zero to 10, we are about six and a half. Now, the more you go, the more it's difficult.
But we have a super relationship with Mercedes. We have the power unit from Mercedes, changing completely the feeling for everybody here. At least, we know one part of the team, we have the best.
We have a gearbox from Mercedes and now our people are working from the top of the nose to the driver because this is the problem we have. At the back, we are OK with the Mercedes engine, with the gearbox, we are OK. We lost a lot of good people in the factory because at one point it was not clear, a clear way to go.
It was not a strong management, people don't have confidence in Renault. Because Renault is something very strange, you know. Whatever you are doing with Renault, the press is always thinking about Renault as not serious in Formula 1.
I remember when we won the championship with Fernando, we had a conference with Carlos Ghosn and one journalist asked me, but do you think about your finances? I told him, I am the world champion. You know, we are the world champion, people put doubt in Renault.
You know, if you are pregnant for six months or you are pregnant for nine months. I told him, we are pregnant for nine months, you know, and we are the world champion. But it was always the rumour, not about, oh, Renault, you never know, you never put the money, this and that, you know.
I was talking about, all the money I asked from Renault Group, plus, you know, you need financing yourself with a sponsor as well. This was the difficult part. And afterwards, a lot of changes, you know. Lotus, at one point, people want to manage Renault from Paris. Somebody intelligent stopped all this. And now, you know, my wish is, in a few years, to have a podium.
I have to see what happens. I don't know how long I stay in Renault or in Alpine, but two, three years after that, somebody else is coming to my place.
**DC:** You say that people have got a strange opinion of Renault and they are always asking that question. At one point, you had this, people had an opinion about being a playboy. I've read that you used to sleep in the office, that you were here.
**FB:** Well, it was in this one, this was my room. This was my bedroom, sitting room, the union suite. I keep everybody honest, because when I was with him, everybody at nine o'clock still here, and in the morning at seven o'clock, everybody was here, you know.
We changed, we changed the spirit, you know. At the time, it was Ross Brawn, it was just the beginning. When we built this facility, I tell the architect, you do whatever you want with the engineering, because he did engineering design, not the architect.
Tell me, what I want from you is one bedroom in the facility. It was great. I was sleeping here, and there was a gym, in the middle of the country, it was not bad.
**DC:** I've heard you say that when you first got the job, Mr Benetton would say, you're going to move to London. You said, this is nowhere near London.
**FB:** I'd never been to London before. I spent a lot of time in America. I was in charge of the commercial side of the Caribbean and I was the assistant to Luciano Benetton, but I'd never been in the UK. For me, it was a shock to be in the UK.
**DC:** The weather and the food, right?
You talk about culture. I spoke to your receptionist here, as I was coming into the facility. She's been here many, many years.
She's been here through all of….
**FB:** Longer than me.
**DC:** Longer than you. We just happened to have a chat, and I said I used to work for Renault, and she, without me asking, said, it's great to have Flavio back because he brings a different culture. What is that culture that you bring?
Why do people keep coming back? Steve Nielsen's come back for a second time here. You've got the son of the guy that took over from you in 1997, Harry Richards.
**FB:** We have a lot of people.
At least we still have 80, 90 people from the old time, 100 people maybe. We have 40 Italians now, 40, 45 Italians now. And the culture is winning.
There's no f\*\*\*ing tourist thing around the world, you know? When I started with Benetton, Benetton was kind of the group that was managing Benetton. Benetton, I talk about the beginning, beginning, beginning.
These people had no idea about winning. The idea was to be in Formula 1, to go around the world, have fun at the barbecue. And I don't like barbecue and I don't like going around the world.
I want to win. The culture is to be competitive, to win. Doing anything is possible for me.
Moving people, try to have the best people around me for winning. This is the culture, to be first.
**DC:** So you've already said you might not be here in five years' time. Do you think that this team can win in the next five years?
**FB:** We have everything to win. Because, you know, the agreement we've done with Mercedes is a super agreement, because we picked up the right partner. And we're investing in CapEx a lot of money in the factory.
We have everything. We need to put the pieces together. To put the pieces together, you need to be a little bit more creative than what we are now, take more risk than what we take now.
But I'm sure this team, I don't know why we're not winning. I don't know why we don't beat McLaren. I don't know why we don't beat Ferrari.
We've done it before. It's only a question to believe what you're doing, you know? It's a question to compete with these people.
And surely, you need the first year. This is the first year we have a little bit of the pieces together. Last year, I promised to Renault, next year we are in the first six.
If we make it, maybe we are in the first five. But surely, the first six from P10 to P6 is already there. It is what I promised.
My bonus is in the first six. Anyway, at least I take the bonus. But it's…
**DC:** What's your bonus based on next year?
**FB:** No, no, this year. This year, next year, plenty of bonus.
I don’t see why not. I don't see what the other people have. Sure, maybe somebody has a better facility. But we see as well the example of Aston Martin, with the best facility in the world, and the best engineer in the world.
It's not so competitive, you know? It's only a question of the people need to believe it's possible to win. Put all the effort.
And maybe we have very good engineering here, but it's still in the bench. I think so. Our technical director needs to be really, really looking.
Now, we've done the first car all together. Now, all the technical part, we didn't understand who's good, who's bad, who's doing very good, very bad. But now we have a picture.
Before, there was no picture, because there were so many changes. Now we have stability. And we have people calling us to join the team, to join helping.
Before, everybody was taking opportunities, Cadillac, Aston Martin, et cetera, et cetera. Now, a lot of people want to come back.
For the moment, no. I don't want anybody, the people left, to say a word. I don't care.
**DC:** That's part of that culture thing that you talked about.
**FB:** We don't like the minestrone riscaldato. You know, the soup, that one.
**DC:** Reheated soup. We won't be getting that at Crazy Pizza, will we? The reheated minestrone.
I'm being told that we're out of time, but I wanted to ask you just two more questions. Where do you see the growth in Formula 1 coming from? Where do you see it's grown massively?
As you say, it's grown in America. Do you see more growth in America? Do you see growth elsewhere in the world?
**FB:** It's people. It's the people managing. Stefano has done a good job. We have a country like Rwanda. Not only America, it's Africa want to have the race. And from Singapore, Bangkok want to have the race. It's incredibly demanding.
We have Rwanda, I believe, and one day we have the race in Africa. And America's pushing very hard, you know, especially now with AI, artificial intelligence. Everybody wants to be in the team to do experiments, to do this and that and that and that.
We have, I know I'm going back, but we have 10, 15 calls every 10 days to the people who want to invest, want to propose technology. The world is changing completely. Formula 1 is not only a race. It's a big event. After, if you see the race, it's something. If you don't see the race, I don't care.
But the people need to be there because it's Formula 1\. It's like football, no? You see the World Cup, all the stadium was full.
And if you see the last people in the grandstand, I'm sure you see the player like this \[tiny\]. But it must be there because, OK, I was in the event. I was in Mexico to see the World Cup or whatever.
Formula 1 is the event. Everybody wants to be part of the event. And Liberty and Stefano are managing very well this demand of the, you know, how many, six, seven big groups want to buy a team? Want to buy us, want to buy whatever. Renault is not for sale. And the other one team, I know for Racing Bulls, there was a big offer. Racing Bulls, they know we want to stay. It's continuing like this. It's growing, Formula 1.
I don't know if you tell me how big it's growing from now to the future. We need to change a bit the race as well. I believe we need to do the sprint race.
If I was me, I'd do it every race. Because we need to give something more to the spectator. Because we do nothing for the spectator.
Because Friday morning is only technical. You go two laps, you come back, and the people, OK. After Saturday in the morning, after you have the qualifying, and that's the finito, you have the race.
With the sprint race, at least you have two races, two starts, and the driver is driving for something. He's not driving only for the engineering. And for me, we need to have the sprint race. For me, 24 races, 24 sprint races.
**DC:** That was one of the reasons why Silverstone had such a record crowd. It was because there were people there on the Friday and Saturday because of something competitive going on.
**FB:** Yeah, because you go to Thursday already. I arrived in Silverstone Thursday. Looked like what the Sunday was seven years ago.
**DC:** I said the same thing in one of our newsletters. Friday felt like Sunday.
**FB:** Because you never see so many people on Thursday. It's crazy. Thursday.
I remember in Silverstone, 10 years ago, there was nobody on Thursday. And a few people on Friday, full Saturday, Sunday. But now, Thursday was a lot of people, 20,000 or 30,000 people on Thursday.
**DC:** And a lot of people don't like the Americanisation of the sport. You and I have been around a little while. We can see the benefit of it.
And these changes that Stefano has made, and Liberty have made, have made that happen. Those numbers go up. The valuations of the team go up.
The amount of fans we've got goes up, which is incredible. And the fact that you've got Gucci coming. If I'd have said that to you in 2019, that you were going to have Gucci signing on to a Formula 1 team, you wouldn't have believed me.
**FB:** Impossible. Because one, I think so as well, to Gucci to decide to join the team as well, you have a Louis Vuitton group. You know, the two big luxury brands in the world. And if you're there, it's because your marketing people are thinking about three other times, and want to be there as well.
So we never had such a big brand sponsor Formula 1\. Not only the team, but sponsor the event, and sponsor the team. You see every car have a very well known brand.
Before there were some brands, Japanese sushi, you don't know where it's coming from, et cetera, et cetera. Now you see a big bank is there. Everybody.
Everybody is part of the whole sponsor. All the computer companies, this and this, and that, and that. It's unbelievable.
And you ask me if it's still growing. Surely it's still growing, because the movement is very strong in this moment. I don't see nothing to stop it.
We need to give more to the spectator, because the spectators are... Sometimes when you see the spectator, like that year in Spa, it was raining three days. Wet.
Not fair. The tent. The air of these people is fantastic, you know?
And we didn't race in the end, because it was too wet, it was foggy, what is, and that, and that. And nobody was complaining. I mean, our support, the press, our support, and you see the supporter of Alpine, next to the supporter of Ferrari, next to the supporter of whatever.
Every supporter is united. Football, if you go with the t-shirts of Real Madrid or Barcelona, people shoot you. This is where you want to go.
So the people love the sport. This is the competition, but all the fans are very friendly.
**DC:** For those fans, what can they look forward to with the Gucci racing brand next year? What's the big things you guys are going to do?
**FB:** I think we should impress everybody, because the programme we have in merchandising for Gucci will be amazing. So I think Gucci will be the place. Gucci, I believe in this moment, with all the excitement Gucci has, in the way they design the merchandise and stuff like that, Gucci will be the sponsor.
And I'm sure when we present the overalls of the driver, and the car of Gucci will be the number one photographed car in the world, because now it's very curious to the people. We've done very well, because we don't tell anybody about the livery of the car, about the livery of the driver.
**DC:** Thank you very much for giving us such insight. It's been great to talk to you about things that normally we don't hear you talking about. And I think everyone that's watched this is now going to be really keen on looking at how next year is developed with Gucci Racing.
**FB:** Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.
### Espargaro steps in for Silverstone amid Vinales intrigue
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/espargaro-steps-in-for-silverstone-amid-vinales-intrigue/
Last updated: 2026-08-04T13:53:29.000Z
KTM has announced Pol Espargaro will replace Maverick Vinales this upcoming MotoGP weekend at Silverstone.
The news comes against the backdrop of a report that KTM was looking to bench Vinales, who is now effectively certain to leave the KTM set-up at the end of the year, before the season was out - due to a lack of results and a deteriorated relationship between the rider and the factory.
But Vinales ardently disputed this on social media, instead hinting that any kind of absence would be on purely medical grounds - and that he had every intention to see out his contract and return to racing in MotoGP 2026 if his body allows him to.
Vinales had already admitted before the summer break that, despite all the time that had passed since his initial injury in 2025 and the mixed signals he's given (and himself received) since over his condition, his recovery had stalled out.
As part of KTM's latest announcement, he said: "During the summer break, we kept looking for the reason why I wasn't getting the strength back in external rotation in my left arm, while the internal rotation had a significant improvement over the last few months.
"Further medical tests showed that, although my supraspinatus has fully healed, I also have a small tear in the infraspinatus that we didn't realise until last week. We're now working on the best recovery plan."
Both the supraspinatus and the infraspinatus are muscles in the shoulder blade area, the latter being the bigger of the two.
Vinales said he "doesn't know how long" the recovery will take. Tech3 team manager Nico Goyon was quoted as saying: "It's obviously not the news we wanted to be announcing after the summer break, and the whole team feel very sad for Maverick.
"We wish Maverick a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on the bike at the next race in Aragon \[August 28-30\]."
In the meantime, however, test rider Espargaro will be called up to race at Silverstone - having acquitted himself excellently in his appearances as stand-in for Vinales last year.
Espargaro has focused on KTM's 850cc 2027 prototype this year - and even suffered an injury in testing that stopped him from racing in lieu of Vinales at Le Mans.
"I have mixed feelings about this," he said. "On one hand, I feel sad, it's never nice to jump on the bike in this situation, when a rider is injured and can't race, especially when it's Maverick. That's a real shame. On the other hand, racing is in my blood. I've been racing all my life, and I miss it so much, so this is a great opportunity for me too."
### Past F2 champion Pourchaire seals Formula E move
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/theo-pourchaire-opel-formulae-announcement/
Last updated: 2026-08-04T08:00:17.000Z
Theo Pourchaire will race for the new Opel GSE Formula E team next season.
The 2023 Formula 2 champion has secured a seat at the German-flagged team alongside Mitch Evans, who is set to be announced after the end of the present season, after already communicating [his impending exit from Jaguar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/evans-and-jaguar-to-split-after-10-years/).
Pourchaire has tested several times for a range of different outfits since 2022, when he did several runs in the early development of the present Gen3 car, which will give way to the Gen4 car later this year.
He completed three tests for the Maserati MSG team, eventually signing a Stellantis Motorsport contract that has seen him become a full-time driver in the FIA WEC with the Peugeot 9X8 programme.
“It’s the next step in my career and the biggest single-seater opportunity I’ve had so far," said Pourchaire.
"The new Gen4 generation is a perfect fit for my transition from Formula 2: more power, all-wheel drive and incredible acceleration – that’s exactly the kind of car I love. I want to learn, continue developing further and I will give my all from day one to ensure Opel’s success.”
In addition to Pourchaire's MSG testing, he also completed two public tests for Citroen at Miami and Jarama this year, while concurrently doing some Gen4 development running, including at Paul Ricard in April - when the Stellantis development car was run in an Opel test livery.
He continued to be a key contributor to the ongoing Stellantis test programme last month when he and Citroen driver Jean-Eric Vergne put the development car through its paces at Guadix in Spain.
Pourchaire also undertakes simulator work for the Mercedes Formula 1 team as an official development driver. While there is no official technical link between Mercedes and Stellantis, it has been recognised for some time that the three-pointed star marque has been assisting Stellantis with motor technology via the former's High Performance Powertrains technology arm.
Nick Cassidy (Vergne's team-mate at Citroen) is also known to have sim-tested for Mercedes F1, while Citroen development driver Doriane Pin holds roles between Mercedes F1 and Stellantis, after signing with the latter earlier this year as part of its young driver development project.
## Why Pourchaire?
Opel is believed to have looked at several available German drivers, notably former Formula 3 driver Tim Tramnitz, who tested the Gen4 car earlier this year alongside Pourchaire. Tramnitz had previously got an opportunity with a Gen3 car via the Cupra Abt team in 2024.
But Opel is known to have been much more impressed with Pourchaire at that test and shortly after it Tramnitz signed a deal to become a factory BMW sportscar driver instead.
Opel Motorsport chief Joerg Schrott is unequivocal when it comes to the signing of Pourchaire, who he says is “top young talent” with “championship pedigree”.
“He has a high racing intelligence,” added Schrott.
“He also has the ability to deliver under championship pressure, and he has this proven winner mindset.
But clearly there is a secondary plan for Pourchaire - and that is the long-term one of building him into a future team leader.
“This is what we have also in mind a bit,” confirmed Schrott (pictured below with Citroen driver Cassidy).
“We can build on him into a long-term factory driver. He has the potential one day to become a team leader, which is pretty cool. We were looking from the very beginning to have a drivers' line-up with an experienced driver and, on the other hand, a young talent, and I think this is our first step.
“Theo is fitting in well. He's a very strong guy. He is fitting very well to all the engineering work. And he's doing a good job also in the simulator.”
## Why Opel and not Citroen?
Stellantis has invested heavily in drivers over the last two years across the likes of Evans, Cassidy and, of course, Pourchaire himself.
Preparing itself for the Gen4 era, it has quietly gone about arming itself with some of the best established, and also future, Formula E talent.
It is clear that Pourchaire has been primed for a crack at Formula E since 2024, and while the move is not a huge surprise, some within the paddock expected Pourchaire, as a Frenchman, to race for Citroen rather than Opel next season.
A potential shifting of Nick Cassidy to Opel would have ensured a reprising of the Kiwi superteam of 2023-25 at Jaguar, while Pourchaire joining Vergne could have formed essentially two ‘superteams’ of sorts.
But Stellantis is understood by The Race to have not seriously considered this option, largely due to keeping continuity at Citroen, but also for Opel’s willingness to have both experience and new talent under one roof with its own entry license and a degree of independence.
Opel had also spoken to a number of other established drivers in the lead-up to its announcement of entering Formula E earlier this year. The Race understands that both Oliver Rowland and Nyck de Vries had some talks with Opel - but these ultimately were not taken any further.
*Image of Joerg Schrott and Nick Cassidy courtesy of Andreas Beil*
### Red Bull is losing the traits that made it an F1 giant
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-2026-concerns-exits-verstappen-horner-mekies/
Last updated: 2026-08-04T07:35:18.000Z
Red Bull’s [‘car degradation’ problems](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-is-detecting-issues-with-car-deg-that-red-bull-cant/) are well-publicised thanks to Max Verstappen’s Hungaroring complaints, but there’s a wider concern that’s difficult to pin down.
That’s what might be called team degradation and the very real possibility that Red Bull’s Formula 1 empire is slowly crumbling before our eyes.
Red Bull is not having a bad season, particularly when you consider the remarkable start made by the new Red Bull Powertrains division - but Verstappen’s frustration is entirely understandable.
There were struggles last year even though Red Bull recovered and Verstappen hauled himself to within two points of the title, but this year is a new level of difficulty for what is currently the weakest of the ‘big four’ teams in F1\.
This could just be a blip, a temporary downturn before it re-emerges as a title-winning force, but it might also be a sign of decline for what could be called Red Bull 2.0 thanks to how much has changed over the past couple of years.
That doesn’t just mean the drip-feed of departures of leading personnel such as Adrian Newey, Christian Horner, Jonathan Wheatley, Helmut Marko, Paul Monaghan, who is understood to be Cadillac-bound, among others, but also a fundamental change in the way the team works from the top down.
Key to Red Bull’s success was the ability, despite its size, to function as a closely-knit team to the point where Horner described it as “like a big Formula 3000 team”.
That was a key advantage of the Red Bull culture, which made it fast-moving and able to react immediately, setting new standards for design, development, production and on-track execution that left rivals playing catch-up.
The position Horner occupied was key to that, and the positives of having a team boss with the autonomy and power he had cannot be ignored regardless of your position on the man himself. His unique position meant he was ‘only’ an employee, but had the authority to run the team the way he wanted with minimal intervention from Red Bull co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz.
One of the keys to Mateschitz’s success with the phenomenon that is Red Bull as a company was appointing the right people and empowering them to do their job. It wasn’t that he stood back completely, but instead focused on the big picture rather than being interventionist for the sake of it. He stepped in when necessary, wielding his power sparingly but with surgical precision, leaving the day-to-day detail to others.
But things began to change when Mateschitz died in October 2022.
It was perhaps inevitable that Red Bull as a corporate entity would want to assert its control over a very visible part of its empire that was largely autonomous. Horner’s ousting last year was a consequence of the desire to assert that control, but while corporate oversight is necessary for various reasons - for example ensuring proper financial management, imposing conduct standards, legal compliance, brand values, etc. - it’s detrimental for that to be done with anything other than a light touch when it comes to operations.
One of the strengths Horner had was how he played paddock politics, both publicly and behind the scenes, to his team’s advantage. This is an area where the team is now noticeably weaker.
Laurent Mekies has done a good job over the past year, but his power is vastly reduced compared to Horner. He’s not necessarily any less capable, but he lacks the autonomy of his predecessor. Oliver Mintzlaff, the CEO of corporate projects at Red Bull, has yet to prove how sharp a paddock operator he really is or that he can wield the power Mateschitz did sparingly to good effect.
It’s difficult to imagine that the politically astute Horner would have played the ADUO game as poorly as Red Bull has, after all. That was a classic F1 political battleground, and one where Red Bull has been comprehensively outmanoeuvred.
This isn’t an argument for Red Bull having Horner specifically, but for the need for a successor with something akin to the management control Horner had when working for Mateschitz. This doesn’t even have to be one person, as there were others working with Horner at the leadership level at Red Bull in the past, and McLaren’s Zak Brown/Andrea Stella axis is also a good model.
Like all F1 teams, Red Bull requires on-the-ground leadership with sufficient control to do the job without being restricted by corporate overlords. That doesn’t mean total freedom to do whatever you want, but the ability to operate in the way required to thrive in so competitive and esoteric environment as F1\.
Red Bull’s success is thanks to thinking outside the box, being edgy, doing things differently, but of late it has become one of the most bland and ‘ordinary’ teams in the paddock in terms of how it operates publicly. There are also question marks about the team technically, with persistent balance problems and erratic performance of the RB22.
It’s not that Red Bull is failing technically, but it has slipped backwards and struggles to have a firm grasp on the development direction and characteristics needed for a consistent car.
It’s important to note that problems arose even before last year, indicating that there are concerns about more than just the style of leadership. Even when it comes to race-weekend execution, there are signs of deterioration.
Red Bull was once the gold standard for pitstops, but now it’s slipped back. In DHL’s pitstop championship, it’s still ranked fourth. That’s respectable, but it’s behind junior team Racing Bulls. And to add insult to injury, Racing Bulls has three of the fastest five in-race pitstops of the season, with the best Red Bull turnaround ranked only eighth.
---
## DHL F1 pitstop standings
1 Mercedes 233
2 Ferrari 183
**3 Racing Bulls 177**
**4 Red Bull 134**
5 McLaren 117
6 Audi 101
7 Williams 58
8 Alpine 49
9 Aston Martin 40
10 Cadillac 10
11 Haas 9
---
It’s impossible to draw a definitive conclusion, but there are reasons to be concerned - and there is an early-warning system for the outside world. Verstappen is the canary in the coal mine, because if he has faith in what he sees and experiences behind the scenes then he should be content to carry on in the long term - not just for 2027 but beyond.
What will decide whether Red Bull can rise again to the remarkable heights it has scaled is whether it can continue to operate as a razor-sharp, performance-focused organisation that isn’t slowed down by lumbering corporate leadership. It still has class-leading facilities and some of the best people in F1 throughout its organisation, but does it have the connective tissue of the right culture and autonomy to make the most of that?
It’s impossible to answer this question definitively now, because these ebbs and flows play out over years rather than months even in so fast-moving a sporting competition as F1\. However, there are concerning signs, and success could hinge on the wider Red Bull company recognising where good and necessary oversight ends and limiting interventionism begins.
The raw materials are still there, but for Red Bull to rise again, it’s essential for the wider company to understand the magic formula that made it a great team in the first place.
### What's behind F1's set of 2027 aero bans
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/whats-behind-f1s-set-of-2027-aero-bans/
Last updated: 2026-08-03T16:25:17.000Z
Key aerodynamic developments have been banned for 2027, but the FIA remains confident Formula 1 teams haven't found a way to break its rules concept as they did with the previous generation of cars.
In a bid to both cut downforce levels and stop development spending wars, the FIA has made changes to next year’s regulations that head off some areas that teams pushed hard on in 2026.
This includes bans on exhaust wings (pictured below) and hanger extensions on the rear wing, plus a clampdown on the actuator fairing winglets that first appeared on cars from the Monaco Grand Prix.
But while the FIA has moved to restrict some key areas, it believes that the current regulations have succeeded in preventing teams pursuing aero development paths that make it harder for cars to follow each other closely.
The FIA’s single seater director Nikolas Tombazis thinks that the 2026 cars are in the same ballpark of downforce losses as at the start of 2022.
However, back then teams ruined the ability of cars to follow each other through their exploitation of some freedoms within the regulations that disturbed the car wake.
This meant that the original 15% loss of downforce at 10 metres fell away to a 35% loss over the following years, with the 5% loss at 20 metres opening up to 15%.
Right now, Tombazis believes the lessons the FIA learned in what went wrong last time have helped ensured that the ability of cars to follow each other right now should carry forward as the new rules continue.
“I believe we are similar to where we were at the start of the ‘22 championship, but I think it's a bit more robust this year,” said Tombazis, when asked by The Race about if the current aero rules have achieved what was hoped for.
“The various aerodynamic solutions they've had, they haven't found something that has broken the concept.
“In the previous regulations, there were a few things that actually did significantly compromise the concept, mainly the front wing endplate, the floor edges, and all the furniture on the front wheel.
“All of those things made the wake characteristics significantly worse. We learned from that, and I think hopefully there isn't any equivalent issue.”
### Design freedoms still there
Tombazis acknowledges that some key 2026 aero battlegrounds did take the FIA by surprise, but he says action taken to shut these down for next year will work to keep things in check but still allow teams enough design freedom.
For example, a more restricted legality box surrounding the rear wing actuator area that was exploited by teams since the Monaco Grand Prix for extra winglets could still allow some clever ideas with the allowances still left.
“We didn't expect, for example, the exhaust solutions to be there,” said Tombazis. “There are a few solutions on bodywork that we have already corrected for next year. Overall, we did try to make it still an interesting challenge for the teams to develop the cars.
“We didn't go to the fully restrictive option, let's say, and I think it's probably not in a bad place where it is in terms of level of freedom on the one hand, but gradual performance convergence.
“I think there is still some reasonable performance differentiation there, and I think it will gradually converge in the next six months, I would say.”
### The right challenge
Although drivers have been widely frustrated with the new 2026 power unit regulations, they have generally liked how the cars have behaved this year.
The new regulations have got rid of the brutal stiffness and low ride heights of the previous ground effect era, while the reduction in downforce has left them more of a challenge in corners.
Tombazis thinks that the FIA pitched things at the right level to avoid the elements that were so disliked beforehand.
“They are still, I think, quite difficult cars to drive for the drivers,” he said. “I think it is good that they're not just cars that anybody can drive.
“Some of the aerodynamic regulations push towards teams not being able to address every single aspect of a car through a corner, and therefore they do have challenges.
“So when we have the 22 best drivers in the world, we should also have cars that are not exactly easy for my grandma to drive.
“We have also raised the ride heights a bit, which means that they are not quite as brutal as last year. And they are a bit lighter and smaller, which the drivers have appreciated.”
### Longer term changes
While Tombazis is happy with where the current car rules concept is, he is clear that he wants a step change for the next generation of rules.
One area that he is targeting is weight – as he sets sights on a hefty cutback in this area.
“Are we where I would like us to be? No,” he said. “I would like us to be another 80 kilos lighter, and maybe still a bit shorter, a little bit smaller.
“That's the sort of target - that we go another big step from what it was possible to do for now.”
### What explains Honda's 2026 MotoGP decline
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/has-honda-given-up-on-its-2026-motogp-season/
Last updated: 2026-08-04T15:10:00.000Z
Honda has high hopes for its next generation of MotoGP bike being prepared for the 2027 regulations - but its progress under the current ruleset appears to have stalled out significantly.
Its competitive decline in 2026 is illustrated by the fact its results have returned it to the lowest concessions tier, Rank D, where it has rejoined fellow Japanese manufacturer Yamaha.
Escaping Rank D had been a point of pride at the end of last season. The return to it has gone under the radar, also because it does not carry with it a significant competitive effect.
Honda will now be permitted an unfreezing of its 1000cc engine spec, extra Michelin test tyres and testing with its full-time riders, but none of those are particularly relevant development tools - as MotoGP is pivoting wholesale to the testing of 850cc prototypes for 2027 and the Pirelli rubber those prototypes will be competing on.
This is also why Honda's stagnation is at least partially by design, even though concession status is being reset next year.
It will have a significantly refreshed 2027 rider line-up (Fabio Quartararo and most likely David Alonso in, Joan Mir and Luca Marini out) and a new bike currently being developed by a group headed up by ex-Aprilia tech chief Romano Albesiano and, on the mileage accrual side, test rider Taka Nakagami.
But that could mean a long season for the current set-up holding the fort for the remainder of this campaign with an increasingly outmatched RC213V.
Have a look at how the gap to the front has changed from across the first six rounds from Thailand to Catalunya, then over the next six from Italy to Germany.
---
## Top Honda's gap to front (average)
**Friday practice**
THA-CAT: +0.387s
ITA-GER: +0.655s
**Saturday qualifying**
THA-CAT: +0.431s
ITA-GER: +0.705s
**Saturday sprint**
THA-CAT: +7.448s
ITA-GER: +11.082s
**Sunday GP**
THA-CAT: +13.251s
ITA-GER: +18.439s
---
Though it's still putting up some respectable results (occasionally with the aid of substantial attrition), the data points to an overall decline in competitiveness. And it's no coincidence that Honda scored in five of the six first sprints of the season, but just one in the last five.
The mid-season injury to Johann Zarco, one of Honda's top men, is also inevitably a significant factor in the struggle for results - though it's been at least partially offset by the competitive development of rookie Diogo Moreira.
But at the last round at the Sachsenring, a famed happy hunting ground for Honda in the past (in the Marc Marquez years, yes, but not just for Marquez himself), neither Moreira nor any of his peers could do much at all.
"We don't have any new upgrades from nowhere, and we have our package, and we are trying to give our 150% with it," said Mir.
"We improved a bit compared to last season, the bike is a little bit better, but it looks like all the others put the limit much higher," lamented Marini.
"I think in this first half of the season, we tried really everything. Every detail, every setting, everything that we can try we tried. So at the end, the problems still always are the same.
"The feeling of the rider is always the same and we need to keep pushing a little bit more the engineers and the Japanese to bring us some more spicy pieces for the future."
But would they? Is there any real reason to expect that, given the competitive yield from the 1000s is now a true afterthought for Honda (which won't be winning conventional races and is highly unlikely to change its position in the manufacturers' standings)?
Marini believes there can still be enough of an incentive.
"Maybe. We are talking of it - because if you bring something for this season that also you can use in 2027, it's just collecting more data.
"So why waste the time and wait for the future if we can try something this year and maybe improve our performance?
"We are not happy with P8\. This is for sure because last year we were used to this position and we wanted to achieve a little bit better, but in this first half of the season it was not possible. We just keep pushing and doing our maximum every weekend - as we did here."
The likeliest scenario, however, sure appears to be more of the same for the remaining 11 rounds - before the next era of Honda begins in earnest and expectations balloon again.
### Ticktum feels he deserves better from his Formula E team
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/ticktum-feels-he-deserves-better-from-his-formula-e-team/
Last updated: 2026-08-03T08:09:27.000Z
Radio: "Can I have a job now, please?"
Reality: "I wouldn't call it a jibe; it was just a bit of a joke. There's no secret that things haven't been particularly plain sailing in the relationship with the team."
Later this year the Cupra Kiro Formula E team will feature in a behind-the-scenes documentary. It will be intriguing viewing and some of it might just be viewable through flattened palms in front of faces. It will be a hell of a ride.
Was Dan Ticktum's radio comment [just after taking the chequered flag to win in Tokyo](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/big-twist-in-formula-e-title-fight-with-three-races-left/) simply classic Ticktum, or serious, insightful Ticktum? It's sometimes hard to know, such is the playful tone he often adopts. It's often interwoven by unsubtle barbs, maybe not even deliberately just Ticktum-y.
The Kiro driver seemed to be, as ever, dealing in that unique forthright manner when The Race spoke with him at a media roundtable last week after he had sealed his second E-Prix win in the stolidly humid air of Tokyo Big Sight.
Ticktum is in an intriguing position right now. His current season has finally ignited just when it is coming to a close, but the fuse was short and a bit damp heading into this phase of the season. And that's left his drive in jeopardy.
---
## Formula E 2025-26 standings
1 Jake Dennis 146
2 Mitch Evans 144
3 Pascal Wehrlein 141
4 Oliver Rowland 132
5 Edoardo Mortara 116
...
12 Pepe Marti (Cupra Kiro) 62
...
14 Dan Ticktum (Cupra Kiro) 54
---
The majority of that was not solely down to Ticktum. But the results were hard to come by, although a large caveat was that he had been swiped out of the first two races by others.
By Monaco in May, things were snowballing a bit. Two poles were not converted into results for varying reasons, but the main trigger of being shot in both feet had been an emotional response to his Saturday race falling apart and then getting a penalty for contact with a chasing Antonio Felix da Costa.
Twenty-four hours later he also couldn't convert a second consecutive pole amid similar tyre overheating frustration. That might not have been the case had he not thrown his helmet, stormed off and missed the formal debrief the day before.
It was a muddled time and it turned into a second official reprimand of the season.
While Ticktum clearly isn't best pleased by what he feels is some poor treatment by team management, he has been consistent in his praise for the majority of the Kiro team.
"Everyone in the garage I get on very well with, work very well with, I have absolutely no issues at all with any of the personnel in the garage," he said.
"It was just how the \[post-Monaco\] reprimand was dealt with and then it went public - which is quite defamatory. I was told that I would be able to renegotiate my contract in the off-season at the end of last season and I was just sort of effectively lied to, which left quite a bitter taste in my mouth, obviously.
"The reality is my contract, for what I believe or what I know I am in the market for in Formula E, is not very strong."
True, there are some big earners in Formula E - and Ticktum isn't one of them. That's really what he's part reflecting here and in his head he clearly thinks he deserves to be in that high-paying echelon.
Ticktum has also consistently suggested that he was part of the process for getting the Forest Road company to buy the ailing Electric Racing Technology outfit in the late summer of 2024 and create what's now Cupra Kiro.
"I feel like I've obviously done a lot for the team over the past five years - the first three of which were in a bad car, and constantly trying to pick myself up and pick everyone else up and keep going," argued Ticktum.
"There's bigger things going on in the team than me, I'm just a cog in the machine. We won't go too much into that now, but ultimately I haven't felt like I've been treated as well as I should be really - and I feel like there's been too much energy focused on the 1% of the job and not the job I'm actually pretty good at: which is driving the car quickly."
## What options does Ticktum actually have?
"I think there's still an option to remain with the team and I'd like to continue the journey, to be honest. Especially into Gen4 with Porsche, it's going to be a strong car, I'm sure, and I'm sure we can win. And it would be a very nice chapter of my career, to win consistently or finish in the top three of the championship, or win the thing."
Hear that? It's a shop window being opened, nice and wide…and loudly.
"I had a good meeting with Russell \[team principal O'Hagan\] a couple of months ago, around the time of the reprimand letter, and things have been a lot more positive since then, I would say.
"They haven't told me if they want to sign me or not. They're sort of waiting until the end of the season - and I don't feel like whatever I've done wrong has justified leaving me hanging while all the other drivers are being signed."
Interestingly Ticktum has also inadvertently gauged the temperature of the Formula E paddock, too.
"I asked other drivers, or they asked me, 'are you sorted for next year?', 'no' - and they say, 'what are that team without you?'. I don't think like that, but that's the sort of general consensus.
"All the social media stuff I do for them. The Americans and the team in general encourage me to be a character, maybe even more than I am, as do FE, which is fine, but when it goes slightly wrong or results aren't there on paper they can't just immediately use me as a scapegoat for team's morale or all these other bullshit things that I've heard.
"If I stay with the team I want to all go forward in a much more positive way, and if I am to leave the team, I want to obviously end the season as well as I can, finish on a high and close the chapter nicely."
So, if not Cupra Kiro, which could be offered DTM champion Ayhancan Güven this autumn by supplier Porsche as its new driver, what is on the menu for Ticktum?
Mahindra, Porsche, Jaguar, Envision, Citroen, Opel, Nissan and Andretti are believed to be either locked or 99.9% locked. That leaves Lola, Penske and the new second factory Porsche team.
There are some options there but the same old question of whether board members and decision-makers at some of those entities want the spikiness that sometimes goes with Ticktum.
"There's a few plates spinning at the moment, options-wise. I don't know where I'm going to be yet. There's a couple of exciting options, let's just say that," reckoned Ticktum.
Plates can spin; plates can smash. An almost perfect analogy for Daniel Charles Anthony Ticktum.
### FIA blames manufacturer resistance for F1 2026 problems
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/fia-blames-manufacturer-resistance-for-f1-2026-problems/
Last updated: 2026-08-03T12:45:57.000Z
The FIA has pushed back at driver criticisms that it did not do its homework properly and failed to anticipate the scale of problems with Formula 1's 2026 rules.
Instead it says it knew the potential pitfalls well in advance, but that its attempts to head off trouble by making rule changes before the cars began racing were derailed by resistance for change from manufacturers.
## Drivers unhappy
The recent challenges experienced with the energy starved cars at the Belgian Grand Prix triggered outspoken remarks from several drivers about how F1 had ended up in a situation where a classic track had lost its magic.
Grand Prix Drivers' Association director Carlos Sainz said: "Whoever saw these simulations in 2022, 2023 and didn't look at it and say, 'how can we even accept that?' needs to review what happened there because it should have never happened."
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton later added: "I don't know who made the decision, but whoever it is, they've still got their job."
The FIA's single seater director Nikolas Tombazis accepts drivers have been unhappy about many aspects of the 2026 rules, but claims the governing body's hands were tied by F1's governance process in being unable to force through rule tweaks that it wanted done in advance.
[As The Race revealed last year](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-could-ditch-a-core-part-of-its-2026-engine-plan/), a last-ditch effort in early 2026 to reduce maximum deployment in races to 200kW with the new rules was dismissed.
Tombazis said about drivers' criticisms: "I think drivers are, by definition, quite demanding clients. So I don't think we expect them to have a sugar coat or to not speak their mind.
"We did anticipate a lot of these things they have complained about in the two years before the launch of the season, and we did try to make some adjustments.
"But we failed with the governance that was in place. So I think it was realistically only to be expected."
## Manufacturer support required
As part of an agreement reached to look after the interests of both current and new manufacturers in the build-up to 2026, a Power Unit Advisory Committee was set up, which dictated how rules could be changed.
For major tweaks to be made, it required backing from the FIA, FOM and four of the five manufacturers at the time – which was quite a high bar.
Tombazis insisted that such a framework was essential to keep things equal between old and new entrants, but it did mean compromises.
"If a PU manufacturer who was not participating in F1, let's say Audi for example, they still had to be bound by regulations.
"They could not come to us and say, 'well, you know we're not participating, hence we can spend five times the money, for example'. That would have been unfair.
"So that's why there was a governance agreement that, on the one hand, forced them to be bound by the regulations, including the financial and operational, and all of that.
"But on the other hand, it puts limitations as to how much we can change things unilaterally as the FIA.
"Therefore any change had to be approved by a significant number of the PU manufacturers, and so for the sort of changes we did, we needed at least four of them to agree.
"Quite simply, four of them did not agree during the years when we discussed adjustments."
## Missed opportunities
F1 did eventually react at the start of the season to the issues that were encountered in the early races, with a host of emergency measures to improve energy management introduced from the Miami Grand Prix in May.
Furthermore, a roadmap has been agreed whereby F1 will shift away from its nominal 50/50 power split between internal combustion engine and battery power towards 60/40 by 2028.
But even though change has now received support, Tombazis says there is an element of disappointment that these things were not in place before 2026 started.
"I think it's a bit of a shame that we had to wait until then. We discussed things in May to get the package for '27 and for '28.
"I think we could have ideally done that a couple of years before, and then there wouldn't have been all of this discussion."
## Not all bad
While there have been issues with the rules, Tombazis does not think that the spectacle has suffered much.
And he senses encouragement from the fact that, unlike in previous rules era, there has not been a total whitewash of dominance from one team or manufacturer.
"Most races have been pretty exciting, I would say," he said. "There's been quite a lot of fighting.
"While we do have a clear advantage for one manufacturer, in the past when we've had this at an early start of regulations it has been very processional.
"And now I think, despite the fact Mercedes has been doing most of the winning, the races have nonetheless been quite exciting, with quite a lot of \[position\] changes and so on.
"So we need to look at the balance of things. Clearly, drivers are important stakeholders in the sport. So, therefore, I think we've done the right thing by listening to them a lot and taking actions.
"But I think we also need to think about the spectators as well, and that they want to see changes and exciting races and so on."
### Briatore says he and Trump instigated New Jersey F1 bid
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/briatore-says-he-and-trump-instigated-new-jersey-f1-bid/
Last updated: 2026-08-02T18:05:02.000Z
Alpine team boss Flavio Briatore says he and now United States president Donald Trump were the instigators of the ultimately unsuccessful plan for a Formula 1 grand prix on a New Jersey street track in the 2010s.
Briatore recalled his story in The Race Business’s ‘In Conversation With…" series with Darren Cox.
He said that after the demise of the Indianapolis/F1 partnership in 2007, he joined forces with Trump to pitch a new US GP to F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone.
"Sure, Donald had no idea as well about Formula 1 - but he's a great promoter," said Briatore, who would later emulate Trump by presenting the Italian version of The Apprentice TV franchise, as Trump had in the US.
"At the time, he promoted boxing, he promoted everything in Vegas, etc, etc…"
"And I made Donald talk with Bernie. I was in the office of Donald. We put in \[a\] video with Bernie to \[find\], what was the best place in New York to do the race.
"And Donald \[told\] us New York is very difficult for a million reasons, but Jersey was the place. So Bernie started negotiating Jersey with two or three different people.
"But we never succeeded, because Formula 1 was not… considered something special. You talk about… NASCAR, you talk about Indy\[Car\], completely different business. And Formula 1 was not \[valued\] at all."
By the time the New Jersey plan progressed, F1 had already secured a new US home at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas from 2012 onwards, but it still committed to adding a second US race - under the Grand Prix of America title - from 2013 on the Port Imperial street track in New Jersey.
Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel and grand prix winner David Coulthard sampled the track layout in road cars as part of a Red Bull and Infiniti promotion, but the actual race never became a reality - its F1 calendar debut repeatedly postponed before ultimately being largely forgotten.
Briatore adds that Liberty Media - who purchased F1 from Ecclestone in 2017 - has changed how F1 is valued in the US.
"Now, you go to America, you go to Miami, 500,000 people \[attend\].
"You go to Austin, full, you go to Vegas. You see, Formula 1 is changing dramatically. You see, every race is sold out, sold out, \[whether it’s\] raining, not raining.
"And, what has changed is really the commercial side. Liberty is much more open. Bernie was very strong, very restrictive in the business.
"And, Liberty opened the commercial side, opened completely. Marketing opened completely. And, Liberty is working with the team in \[a\] very good partnership, if you want."
You can watch the full 'In Conversation With...' interview from The Race Business in which Flavio Briatore talks to Darren Cox about all things Gucci, Benetton, F1, Alpine, and more, below or [listen to it here](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/race-business-how-flavio-briatore-turned-a-very-bad-idea-int?ref=the-race.com).
### There's no point in Vinales and KTM finishing MotoGP 2026 together
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/instant-vinales-ktm-motogp-split-would-be-best-all-round/
Last updated: 2026-08-02T17:59:46.000Z
Tech3 KTM rider Maverick Vinales may have already contested his final MotoGP race with the squad - and it's probably for the best if he has.
After Vinales's extreme candour in discussing his contract situation and airing out his disappointment with KTM before the summer break, and with his competitive form non-existent as he remains limited by his shoulder injury, KTM is exploring options to sideline him effective immediately - [according to Motorsport.com's German Garcia Casanova](https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/news/ktm-making-plans-to-drop-maverick-vinales-with-immediate-effect/10843670/?ref=the-race.com).
The report states that Vinales will be replaced at the upcoming British Grand Prix by KTM test rider Pol Espargaro, who has proven an extremely capable stand-in during Vinales's ongoing injury struggles.
Vinales subsequently went on his personal Instagram page to dispute at least part of the report, decrying "articles without sense" - while also specifying that there were new medical developments in his situation.
"Last week I’ve been in the APC \[Red Bull Athlete Performance Center\] and we start to understand why I’m not able to recover. I’m contrasting all this information with my doctors to check if this is the problem and what is the way to improve.
"Stop writing stupid articles about me, I will not race in \[World\]SBK and I will finish the year as my contract says."
It would be a remarkable move for KTM to try to cut Vinales loose now - given its established reputation in MotoGP for handling rider contracts with what many perceive as a particular ruthlessness, with the likes of Remy Gardner, Iker Lecuona, Danilo Petrucci and Espargaro himself cited as examples.
KTM also has a prior for parking a rider mid-season. It did so to Johann Zarco in 2019, not long after Zarco requested - and was granted - the termination of an initial two-year commitment after just one year.
But there was nothing particularly ruthless or unreasonable in how the Zarco situation played out. And, in fact, it may well be the perfect blueprint for what should happen with Vinales.
The 10-time MotoGP race winner showed himself unwilling before the summer break to extend any kind of public olive branch to KTM or 'peacefully' serve out his current contract. That, of course, is very much Vinales's right - he has felt short-changed and accused KTM of breaking contract promises, and claims he has accepted the impending end of his MotoGP career, so has no reason to remain cordial.
He is also clearly not completely right physically so is currently unable to provide KTM any on-track value.
So if KTM knows it is not keeping Vinales, Tech3 knows it is not keeping Vinales (it is expected to sign up Luca Marini instead on an in-house contract rather than a KTM deal) and Vinales knows he is not staying and holds a grudge over it, continuing with this charade for another 11 rounds seems fairly counter-productive to everyone involved.
There is some hypothetical benefit. Vinales believes that only by riding a MotoGP bike can he restore himself to former MotoGP-level fitness, though that kind of approach clearly hasn't done very much at all over the past 12 months, as he remains a shadow of his former explosive (in a good way, in this case) self.
And both he and KTM would avoid the embarrassment of a mid-season divorce, the kind that KTM already underwent with Zarco and Vinales already underwent with Yamaha when he got effectively fired for trying to break an engine mid-race.
But tugging on this particular Band-Aid, pulling it off hair-by-hair, across the remaining five months of the season sounds a completely intolerable proposition. Vinales is no longer happy to be here, and keeps making it known, and KTM would surely rather not have to deal with the headlines.
If they go their separate ways now, everybody can start to move on sooner. Maybe it's not ideal for KTM to lean on Espargaro for a prolonged stretch of races, especially as he needs to stay healthy and surely needs to prioritise 850cc bike development, but Espargaro is one of the few testers in MotoGP who is an obvious competitive asset on-track even when racing against series regulars. And his general sunshine disposition will be good for the atmosphere.
And Vinales just needs to get away from this. He sounded last time out at the Sachsenring [like someone who desperately needs a break](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/burned-out-vinales-done-with-ktm-expects-to-leave-motogp/) of more than a handful of weeks, who is struggling to understand his body and who hasn't had the chance to really evaluate what he wants to do going forward. All the while, with every race, he is certainly not making himself any more hire-able for whatever prospective employer might appeal to him down the line.
The mid-season firing worked out for Zarco. Maybe he didn't *need* it - but he parlayed it into a superb Ducati stint and an eventual fruitful move to Honda.
Whatever awaits Vinales down the line, whether in MotoGP or more likely in other racing, he's better off pivoting to that now - and KTM would be better off, too.
### Who is F1 2026's best driver so far? Our verdict
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/who-is-f1-2026-best-driver-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-08-02T07:57:10.000Z
Eleven races into the 2026 Formula 1 season, which of the 22 drivers has done the best job?
Here's what our team thinks...
## Kimi Antonelli
**Edd Straw:** A predictable choice, but Kimi Antonelli has consistently delivered a high level of performance and matched that to actual consistency in results too.
In particular, his race pace has often been relentless. His ceiling, exemplified by a dominant Monaco weekend, is sky-high, while his basement has also been higher than most as he's kept major errors to a minimum.
There are rough edges, which he's all too aware of. The FP3 crash in Australia, which meant his car wasn't set up as he wanted for qualifying, the regular track-limits violations, some poor starts and occasionally over-reaching in battle are all negatives but never to the extent where they've torpedoed his whole weekend.
Perhaps the most impressive statistic is that whenever he's finished, he's been in the top three.
Antonelli's best work, exemplified by six wins, is outstanding, but it's the fact that even the 'bad' weekends have been at least decent. He's got the best car, but he's used it brilliantly, especially when you consider his age and experience.
**Valentin Khorounzhiy:** There's half a shout for an Ollie Bearman here, a Max Verstappen there, a Lewis Hamilton in the mix - but I cannot look past Antonelli. Whatever the exact mechanics of the shift, whatever he is doing better now than he wasn't 12 months ago, whatever is really bothering George Russell, the fact is that Antonelli was outmatched by Russell for 80-90% of last season and completely broke that trend over the course of one off-season.
There has been a qualifying head-to-head swing of something like four tenths of a second, and for months now he has been Russell's superior in race trim. You can split hairs over whether 50 points is too big a lead, or just right for his performance level, or even flatters the opposition slightly. I see the case for all three - but it's clear to me he's looked like he's going to be champion this year.
**Oliver Card:** Whilst there isn’t a single driver having a truly perfect season, one driver who is hardest to ignore in 2026 is Kimi Antonelli.
It doesn’t seem that long ago that the young Italian was sending the 2024 W15 into the gravel trap of the Parabolica at Monza in his first-ever FP1\.
It was a flash of pace that demonstrated a fearless talent that was still a little rough around the edges. It could have gone one of two ways, but flash forward two years and Antonelli has taken the leap forward from promising, peaky rookie to a truly dangerous package.
Mercedes has honed his rawness into a blend of barnstorming pace and a complete lack of intimidation from more experienced competitors, including his team-mate Russell, whom many assumed would cakewalk this year’s championship.
Whilst ultimately futile, his determination to finish the British Grand Prix in a severely crippled car demonstrates the hunger of a driver who has that relentless streak, one that aligns him to almost all multiple world champions. He has been impressive and entertaining, which is exactly what I want from my F1 drivers.
**Gary Anderson:** Unfortunately (for champions of variety), I have to join the club with this one and vote for Antonelli.
For a 19-year-old, he has had an exceptional start to the season. Yes, he has the tools to achieve this, but in reality his team-mate Russell in basically the same car is struggling for any sort of consistency.
In the races coming up post-mid-season, he has the difficult task of closing it out.
McLaren and Ferrari and now gunning at Mercedes’s heels, and you can never count out Red Bull getting on top of its situation, so it’s going to be about keeping your cool and taking the most from each weekend, throwing nothing away and accepting that it’s pretty difficult to keep winning all of the time.
## Max Verstappen
**Jack Benyon**: Hard to argue against Antonelli here, as he’s the one who’s won out in the benchmark car. With every driver in every other team, it’s much harder to tell because they don’t have the same opportunities to impress or convince.
But as The Race never shies away from big opinions, I’ll go for Max Verstappen. He may have made a couple of errors, but considering he’s driving the car equivalent of the horrendously aerodynamically [unstable Jabulani ball](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/adidas-jabulani-2010-world-cup-ball-south-africa-a9563616.html?ref=the-race.com) from the 2010 World Cup, the fact he’s delivered anywhere near the performance he has is outrageous.
Had things gone slightly differently in Monaco or Miami, he could be a race winner in F1’s fourth fastest car, even if it was slightly better than that on those weekends. He’s regularly punched above the car’s weight and proved himself to be F1’s best once again.
That move on Lewis Hamilton in Hungary, completely catching out the seven-time champion, was immense and a great example of the level Verstappen’s still operating at.
---
***Who do YOU think has been F1 2026's best driver so far? If you're in*** [***The Race Members' Club***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace?ref=the-race.com)***, let us know YOUR verdict*** [***in the comments on this post***](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/who-do-you-think-165528786?ref=the-race.com) ***and we'll debate them in a special exclusive members-only mini-podcast***
---
## Overlooked drivers?
**Josh Suttill:** Verstappen and Antonelli are *the best* drivers of the season so far, but I think **Lando Norris** deserves a mention for what's been a more impressive season than his title-winning year so far.
While he and Oscar Piastri were closely matched last year with Piastri making a big year-on-year leap, this time I feel it's Norris who has made a step forward over the winter.
He earned McLaren's sole victory of the year, he's winning the intra-team qualifying battle 11-4, he's making fewer mistakes and looks a driver more in control. Maybe that's helped by not driving under the pressure of a title fight, but maybe winning that title has also helped him gain a little more self-assurance behind the wheel.
If McLaren's Hungaroring upgrade was a sign it could still enter the 2026 title fight, then it looks to be Norris who will be leading that charge.
**Mathew Somerfield:** The obvious answer here is Antonelli, as the Mercedes driver has adapted exceptionally well to the current regulations and perhaps more specifically the often counterintuitive operation of this generation of power unit.
However, I think there are two other drivers who’ve also done a great job in the first half of 2026, especially if you consider they’re up against team-mates with more experience too.
**Gabriel Bortoleto** is the first of those, as he has managed to best his veteran Audi team-mate 10 points to two at this stage, with Nico Hulkenberg only scoring his first points of the season last time out in Hungary. Bortoleto had already notched up a ninth place finish in Australia and eighth places in both Britain and Belgium.
The other would be **Arvid Lindblad**, as the rookie has worked alongside his more seasoned team-mate Liam Lawson to deliver Racing Bulls the 'best of the rest’ moniker, as it lies fifth in the constructors’ championship heading into the summer break.
**Jon Noble:** You would be hard pressed to give anyone other than Antonelli this accolade based on the first half of the season.
Has he been perfect? No. But nobody has in a season that has thrown a ton of challenges at the drivers.
The way that Antonelli has adapted so brilliantly to the rules, unlocked a way of driving that is maximising what these cars need and has looked so assured as he grew from a potential race winner early in the season to now be championship favourite is impressive.
But it would be amiss to also not give a nod of the hat to **Pierre Gasly** too, as he has been so consistently good in an Alpine car whose competitive fortunes have been up and down this year.
It’s been an emotional rollercoaster for Gasly – with even his joyous podium finish in Monaco coming after the heartbreak of a post-event penalty that was turned around (for now).
But there is no doubt he has shown himself to be at his very best throughout, even if there is not always the reward of points each time he has done it.
### What Briatore wants from Alpine's next F1 co-owner
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/10billion-f1-teams-briatores-take-on-teams-spiralling-values/
Last updated: 2026-08-02T07:54:56.000Z
Will Formula 1 teams soon be worth $10billion?
Flavio Briatore reckons so, and thinks nothing proves the huge escalation in teams’ values better than the potential selling price of minority shareholder Otro Capital’s 24% stake in the Alpine F1 team he runs.
Who'll buy that stake, and their potential relationship with majority owner Renault, has been subject of plenty of speculation this season.
Speaking in an exclusive interview for The Race Business’s ‘In Conversation With…’ series, Briatore give his own take on the team value question as someone who has made repeated returns to F1 team management since first winning championships with Benetton in the 1990s - during a period when at one point he part-owned not just Benetton but also Ligier and Minardi.
"I sold my share in Benetton, and the value of the team was $80million," said Briatore. "OK, now you're talking about $3.5billion, $4billion. And everybody’s predicting, you're talking with these finance people, talking about, "OK, Formula 1 in three, four years, the team is worth $10billion."
Asked if he felt F1 team valuations had "topped out", Briatore joked "if the team was mine, I'd have sold already!"
Part of Alpine is, of course, for sale right now.
Otro Capital - an investor group that includes NFL players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, golfer Rory McIlroy and boxer Anthony Joshua - purchased its 24% stake in Alpine for €200million in June 2023.
In recent months, Otro has sought to sell its stake in Alpine - with Renault having intervened in talks to sell the share to Mercedes at the end of May 2026.
When Forbes’s valuation of Alpine at $2.45bn/€2bn was put to Briatore, he used the talks over the Otro shareholding sale to argue that actually the Alpine F1 team was now worth almost half the value of parent brand Renault itself.
"No, no, we are more, because we have an offer, we have an \[offer\] for the 24% of Otro, the valuation \[is\] 3.2\. So we have 40% of the valuation of Renault.
"All \[of\] Renault is worth 8.3 \[billion\]. And we're working at this 3.5 \[billion\] valuation. So we're representing 40% or 50%."
Renault has a right of veto over any change of ownership of the Otro shares until September, and the firm’s CEO Francois Provost told The Race last month that Renault regarded its relationship with Otro as "not successful".
But Briatore played down the relevance of the September deadline on the Otro share sale decision, pointing out that given the likely massive asking price, it would be foolish for an investor to spend that much on what would only be a minority shareholding if it wasn’t actually aligned with the majority partner that held all the power.
"Not really my problem, this is more the issue of Renault. Sure, to have a partner, of 24%, I expect somebody to give not only the finance, \[but to\] give some help in technology or whatever, or whatever in finance," said Briatore.
"But in September, I don't think nothing \[will\] happen dramatically, because I see it as very difficult for somebody to buy 24% of one company, with no agreement with the majority. I never see somebody spend 600 million to buy a minority, to be signed as partner, if you don't agree with the majority. See what happens.
"Renault is negotiating. For the team point of view, for me, it makes no difference. We have Otro, now tomorrow we have somebody else."
Briatore spoke about numerous topics in the exclusive and highly revelatory interview - including Benetton’s rise in F1, an astonishing F1 story involving Donald Trump, and his opinions on how to further grow F1.
Watch the full interview below or [listen to it here](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/race-business-how-flavio-briatore-turned-a-very-bad-idea-int?ref=the-race.com), and read interviewer [Darren Cox’s behind the scenes take](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-i-learned-from-interviewing-f1-alpine-flavio-briatore/).
### F1's blue flag rules are too extreme
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/are-f1s-blue-flag-rules-too-extreme/
Last updated: 2026-08-01T13:33:23.000Z
The suitability of Formula 1's blue flag rules has been a big talking point since [Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz's collision](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dumb-driving-or-a-good-excuse-piastris-rage-at-sainz/) at the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend.
While Sainz was punished for an incident he could have avoided - even with the caveat of the malfunctioning of the automatic blue flag system - it has raised interesting questions about F1's blue flag rules themselves.
The FIA's International Sporting Code currently requires drivers to move out of the way when being lapped at "the first available opportunity".
The marshalling system gives a pre-warning when the faster car is within three seconds of the car it's lapping - teams can then warn their drivers - and then the car is within 1.2 seconds, lapped blue light panels will be displayed to the slower car.
Plus, blue cockpit lights (when the system functions, unlike in Hungary) will be displayed on the slower driver's steering wheel.
Conor Daly, who's used to very different, more relaxed blue flag rules in IndyCar where drivers fight hard to stay on the lead lap in case a caution brings them back into play later in the race, joined Edd Straw and Glenn Freeman on the latest episode of The Race F1 Podcast to discuss all things blue flags and driver etiquette.
Below is a taste of what they said but make sure you [listen to the full episode here](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/scripted-for-tv-f1s-driver-radio-moaning-problem?ref=the-race.com) or watch it below.
"I don't think you can eliminate it, but I do think that you can't expect everyone to give up," Daly said.
"You can't eliminate the blue flags because you do want to see the best battle possible for the win. But you can't expect people to not want to race."
Drivers having to make way at the "first available opportunity" usually equates to passing around three blue flags.
That prompted Freeman to ponder whether "F1 has just maybe gone too far, like you have to get out of the way too quickly now.
"Three blue flags…I wonder if that's a bit too much. But obviously, like most things in F1, it's become more prescribed because people complained about the way it was before.
"\[Before\] the blue flag was just kind of advising you that a faster car is behind. That's why some drivers became almost famous for being a bit rubbish at getting out of the way. There was an art form to making your way through traffic.
"Now there isn't really. But it's because the lead drivers, \[if\] they got held up for five corners or half a lap, they'd be complaining massively afterwards.
"I feel that maybe F1 overreacted and has now got to the point where, yeah, you see a handful of blue flags, you basically have to give up, let the leader by. Then you've kind of got to hope that someone else in front of you has to give up to let the leader by so you can get back on with your race."
Daly has a theory for how things can be improved.
"I can't picture racing without \[blue flags\] because certainly if I'm in the lead, I don't want to have to deal with any of that," he said.
"I don't want to have to deal with any lapped traffic. I want them to get out of the way as soon as possible. Don't ever want to see him again.
"I'll never forget, one of my very first chances to maybe win a race. 2016 IndyCar race \[on the\] Indy road course. I lost the race lead essentially, from trying to use my overtake button to pass a lapped car. And I'm like, 'how is this guy still in the way?' But that was just kind of part of our sport. He was able to defend because he didn't want to go a lap down.
"We didn't win the race because we lost too much time in traffic but it's not really comparable to Formula 1 because of how fast the lead cars are compared to the backmarkers.
"I do think that three marshals posts can come by very fast. \[Maybe better if it's\] 'hey, if you don't get by him in a lap, we're going to start getting very aggressive with this blue flag'.
"Three marshals posts and you're trying to battle a car in front of you. I don't know. I still think that there has to be an element of it's still a motor race for everyone that has to be thought about.
"If the leader can't get by in one lap within two seconds, I mean, the leader's got more problems than that."
[***Listen to***](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/scripted-for-tv-f1s-driver-radio-moaning-problem?ref=the-race.com) ***or*** [***watch***](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls3KQC1PjyI&ref=the-race.com) ***the full The Race F1 Podcast episode to hear the panel's full thoughts on blue flag, the Sainz/Piastri incident and whether F1 drivers complain too much over the team radio.***
### What we learned from interviewing Flavio Briatore
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-i-learned-from-interviewing-f1-alpine-flavio-briatore/
Last updated: 2026-08-02T07:41:21.000Z
***Alpine's executive advisor and de facto team boss Flavio Briatore, is the latest guest on The Race Business's 'In Conversation With...' series with The Race co-founder Darren Cox.***
***In the full interview - which you can watch further down the page - Briatore talks about how 'Team Enstone' has gone from an $80million valuation to a $3.5billion valuation, how highly he rates Pierre Gasly, why he thinks there needs to be 24 sprint races and explains how he turned a 'very bad idea' into a $150million title sponsorship deal.***
***And here's Darren's take on the experience of having this rare one-on-one access to arguably F1's most outspoken team boss:***
"With Flavio here it feels like we are a racing team again."
A chance encounter with the long-serving receptionist at Team Enstone gave me some extra insight into the man and some more context for the conversation I was about to have.
A conversation that touched predictably on Schumacher and Alonso and Bernie and ‘T-Shirt manufacturers’ and winning but also somewhat surprisingly on Donald Trump, team valuations, pizzas and reheated soup.
In the age of 1000-employee F1 teams owned by faceless corporations or investment ‘vehicles’ and run by very straight-laced engineers, the feeling of the staff in the factory that they are employed by a race team can be very tenuous at times.
Having been an employee at Renault, I also know how the senior French leadership can be perceived.
And they wouldn’t be seen as racers.
The receptionists, the machinists, the administrators, the windtunnel engineer, even HR (OK, maybe not HR) can add big incremental value to a business if they feel that they are involved in an actual race team.
Clearly that is the first thing Flavio brings to Enstone.
In his own words, the outcome should always be “winning, not touristing around the f\*\*\*ing world”.
He also brings clarity of thought. Whether you like those thoughts or not, he won’t care, and he is clear and confident about them. That was the biggest thing that struck me during our nearly one-hour conversation. One that we were told would be unlikely to last more than 30 minutes.
I went away thinking that with age my own clarity of thought and conviction has been diminished. Maybe because I know more than I did so therefore have more to process and also am very aware of the downsides of my bad decisions. Whatever the inputs, the subconscious career bravado of my youth has been lost.
Despite Flavio being 24 years older than me and clearly not as physically mobile as he once was, there is no lack of confidence, no confusion in his opinions and a very clear direction he wants to take Alpine in.
With those years of ‘experience’ in F1, you could be forgiven for thinking his days of being the innovator in the paddock, as he was in the Benetton days, are over. As you will hear from our conversation, nothing could be further from the truth.
Indeed, the groundbreaking, industry-leading Gucci deal was absolutely his idea.
The parallels between Benetton and Gucci in F1 are an obvious topic and one we explored. Flavio was keen to make those connections with one exception. This iteration of his team doesn't have an Michael Schumacher- or Fernando Alonso-style driver. At least, not so far.
He heaps praise on Pierre Gasly, but as I have reflected on the conversation, I feel it’s an unanswered question. Not in the context of the interview because Flavio gave an answer, but perhaps unanswered in his mind and absolutely not yet on track.
I have no doubt after this conversation that Flavio will recreate the Benetton Marketing magic with Gucci, but I don’t know yet whether the receptionist’s feeling that Team Enstone is truly a racing team again will come to pass on track next year.
As always, it’s going to be fascinating to observe Flavio navigate both elements of this ongoing story.
### Why are F1 ticket sales booming?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/us-gp-chief-theory-for-f1-ticket-sales-boom/
Last updated: 2026-07-31T13:13:49.000Z
United States Grand Prix boss Bobby Epstein says he has seen no evidence of fans being turned off by the 2026 rules – and has a fascinating theory about why Formula 1’s ticket sales are still booming.
Despite this year’s new regulations being controversial off the back of criticism from drivers, they do not appear to have dimmed interest from those wanting to attend races.
Epstein, who is chairman and founder of the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), says ticket sales for the US GP on October 25 are tracking towards a record crowd at Austin that could be its biggest ever.
This follows a trend this season of six of the 11 races held so far having broken their all-time records.
As well as Australia (484,000), Canada (360,000), Austria (320,000), Belgium (400,000) and Hungary (310,000) all hitting their best ever figures, the British Grand Prix established a new all-time record for the most attended F1 race in history with 564,000 people through the gates.
With 11 sell-out crowds, overall race attendance so far is tracking at 3.7 million – which is 6% up on the similar period last year.
Epstein believes there could be a simple explanation for what F1 has over other sports when it comes to bringing more fans in year on year.
It is that there is a lack of the kind of physical capacity restriction that typical sports stadiums have.
“Because we're not confined by the boundaries of a sports field, we're able to continue to grow the on-site experience,” he said, when asked by The Race about the secrets to F1’s ongoing boom in sales.
“We can add more programming and more things for people to do, and I think that then allows the fan to bring a friend, and that friend can get engaged, and that just continues to work.
“It's much harder to do just in a seated arena or stadium.”
Epstein suggests the upper limit ultimately just depends on how many people a track can get in and out without the logistics breaking down.
That is why he thinks planned highway improvements around COTA will allow it to ramp up ticket sales even more over the next few years.
“We've had good meetings with the highway department, and they've assured us within two years they're improving the roads to get out of here, which would allow us to add 15-30,000 more people per day with additional lanes," he explained.
“We'd love to see that happen because we've got the demand. We're already the most well-attended, largest single weekend sporting event in America annually, and so we'd be happy to extend that lead.”
Part of COTA’s efforts to increase interest this year is the addition of a new Grand PrixView Thursday – which will allow fans to experience a pitlane walk for $20, watch F1 Academy and explore attractions around the venue.
### Action matters more than rules
While F1’s 2026 regulations have not been a hit with all fans, especially the more hardcore audience, Epstein says that there has been no sign of a reluctance by people to attend the US GP – which he says would be a first indication of concern for him.
“It hasn't hurt our ticket sales this year,” he said about the impact of the new regulations. “We're actually on pace for a record year. We are seeing massive demand, and could easily break our prior year record.
“So, from that standpoint, that's the first place I'd look and say, how are the fans responding?
“I think a lot of our fans are fans of our event as much as they are of the sport itself, so some of that \[criticism\] is probably anticipated noise that you have from a year where you have a major overhaul in the rules.
“You're going to have that noise and it'll level itself out. I think most fans are aware of that.
“From the promoter standpoint, if suddenly I saw our ticket sales had fallen off, I would sound some bells and alarms and wonder what's going on.
“But I think what we're seeing is massive interest in the event, and so I'm not as focused on the rules and regs that affect the competition.”
Epstein felt that the top line element that fans wanted to see was action – and that the best driver and car came out on top rather than results being too ‘quirky'.”
“For the majority of the crowd, they want to see on-track action,” he said.
“I think for the long-term health of the sport, it can't be quirky.
“I think F1 and the FIA are aware of that, and I think they continue to make adjustments to ensure that the competition stays genuine.”
### Why an F1 return after Vegas wasn’t on cards
Despite rumours circulating at the Hungarian GP that Austin was one of the options for F1 to finish the season if the final races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi cannot happen, that has been ruled out.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali made clear on Wednesday that speculation over Austin was wide of the mark because the idea is to finish in Europe after the race in Las Vegas.
Epstein said that the idea of a return to Austin after Las Vegas had never been broached with him – and was not something that he would have been particularly interested in.
“I wouldn't want to see our track host an F1 race and not have the massive crowds in the scene,” he said.
“I think it's part of what makes it so special, and I don't think logistically you can put that together in such a short back-to-back with our US Grand Prix. I wouldn't want people to have to choose between the weekends.
“I'm very happy with our mega, mega weekend as it is, and that's the way it should always be. I don't want it to be less than that.
“But I would say if it helped F1, we'd be here to do that, and we want to do whatever we can to make them a success. I understand that sometimes, just as we saw during COVID, circumstances dictate you do things a little differently than you otherwise think ideal.”
### Review: The story of an F1 legend through a multiplayer VR experience
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/review-black-cats-chequered-flags-alberto-ascari-f1-immersive-experience/
Last updated: 2026-07-31T10:57:30.000Z
Alberto Ascari belongs among Formula 1's all-time greats, even if he isn't as instantly recognisable these days as Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher or Lewis Hamilton. Perhaps that's because his success came so long ago, or because his remarkable career was tragically cut short. Yet despite recording his final Formula 1 victory in 1953, Ascari remains Italy's most recent Formula 1 World Champion.
His legacy lives on, but many modern F1 fans know little about the man behind the records. That's where *Black Cats & Chequered Flags* comes in.
Created by the Multiverse Institute for Arts and Technology in 2025, the mixed-reality experience debuted at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival before making its way to British soil. The experience will be on show at the Silverstone Museum until June 2027.
## What the experience is
Black Cats & Chequered Flags tells the story of Alberto Ascari, from his childhood and the influence of his father Antonio through to his rise as one of Formula 1's earliest world champions.
Ascari, who tragically lost his life at Monza in 1955, was immortalised by the circuit's Variante Ascari, named that way in his honour in 1972 - with the chicane you know as Variante Ascari these days replacing the corner where he had lost his life.
What makes Black Cats & Chequered Flags particularly cool is the way it brings Ascari's story to life. Rather than presenting a straightforward documentary, the experience combines animation, archival footage, interviews, and interactive elements to guide visitors through the key moments of his life and career. Along the way, it also explores the personal side of Ascari - including the superstitions that became synonymous with him, from his fear of the number 26 to his trademark blue helmet, and, of course, the black cats referenced in the name.
Before that journey begins, however, the four participants are thrown straight into the world of 1950s Grand Prix racing. Players are fitted with a comfortable headset and headphones. If you are a glasses-wearer, don’t fret. The headsets also fit comfortably over a pair of specs.
Although the experience is mainly done solo, at the beginning, you and three others are tasked with a virtual pitstop a la 1950s F1\. This was possibly the most fun part of the experience - as you work together to change the tires, fill up the oil and gas and clean the windshield for the racing Ascari.
The CEO and marketing department of the museum were roped in to complete our four-person pit crew. A cool side of it was, although you have a headset on and are seeing a car that actually isn’t there, what you can also see is the other people in the room running around like headless chickens servicing this invisible car. The aim is to be the fastest team to complete the pit stop and our team achieved a respectable 1:52 - far off the times of modern F1 but not too shabby for 70 years ago.
**Credit: The Cahier Archive - Alberto Ascari at the 1953 Swiss Grand Prix*
Once the pit stop is complete, the experience shifts into a solo journey through Ascari's life and career.
From there, visitors are guided through key moments in his story using a combination of animation, archival footage, photographs, and interviews. Along the way, participants interact with the environment: patting a black cat, reading newspapers, taking photographs, and engaging with various objects that help bring the story to life.
One of the most interesting aspects of the experience is its exploration of Ascari's superstitions. You learn about his fear of the number 26, his attachment to his distinctive blue helmet, and the beliefs that followed him throughout his career - hence the "Black Cats" in the title.
## The technical side
For many people, the mention of virtual reality immediately brings motion sickness to mind. As someone who suffers from it quite badly, I was curious to see how well I would cope.
Thankfully, I can report it wasn’t bad at all. There was only one moment where I felt slightly unsteady, during a sequence featuring Ascari's daughter Patrizia. However, I quickly regained my bearings by looking down and orientating myself by focusing at the actual floor, using a small gap between the headset and my face.
One thing I was worried about with the experience was accidentally walking into someone else or, worse, a wall. When you've got a headset on and you're focused on what's happening around you in the virtual world, it's easy to lose track of where you actually are.
Fortunately, that wasn't much of a problem. When you start the experience, you are placed on a numbered spot on the floor that feels slightly different to the carpet. I spent most of the experience standing in roughly the same place, able to feel the spot under my feet and just turn around to see what was happening around me.
For those technophobes that worry the experience may be beyond them, don't worry. Before the experience begins, visitors are given a thorough introduction by Catherine, who runs the attraction. From explaining how the headset works to demonstrating the hand-tracking controls and outlining what to expect, the briefing does a good job of putting first-time VR users at ease.
One feature I particularly enjoyed was the hand tracking. Rather than relying on controllers, the experience uses your own hands to interact with the world around you. By making a small pinching gesture with your fingers, a bit like a crab claw, your virtual hands appear, allowing you to pick up and interact with objects and take part in different moments throughout the story. It's a simple addition, but one that helps make the experience feel far more natural and immersive.
The 360-degree aspect is one of the best parts of Black Cats & Chequered Flags. Instead of feeling like you're *watching* Ascari's story, you feel like you're *inside* it, making the story even more engaging.
## The verdict
Black Cats & Chequered Flags is an imaginative way to learn about a fascinating chapter of F1 history. Few fans can be expected to know every story from the sport's early years, and this experience succeeds in making Ascari's story accessible, memorable, and entertaining.
Before doing the experience, thoughts from the office about it were along the lines of 'why Ascari?', 'Ascari is an odd choice'. But I now know his story is one worth knowing.
**Credit: The Cahier Archive - a colourised image of Ascari at the 1953 French Grand Prix*
What makes it especially compelling is that Ascari's status as Italy's most recent Formula 1 World Champion could soon come under threat, making his story feel surprisingly timely.
Whether you're a dedicated F1 fan, a motorsport enthusiast, or part of the Tifosi, Black Cats & Chequered Flags is well worth experiencing.
## Some key details
- Tickets cost £20 per person or £65 for a group of four. A valid Silverstone Museum admission ticket is also required
- The run-time of the experience is approximately 45 minutes but the time passes remarkably quickly thanks to the variety of storytelling techniques and constant interaction
- The experience is recommended for visitors aged 13 and over due to themes surrounding death and loss
- For Italian-speaking visitors, the experience can also be enjoyed in Ascari's native language
- The experience is wheelchair-accessible, although there are a variety of conditions that this experience is not recommended for so make sure to check the [website](https://www.silverstonemuseum.co.uk/faq-listings/black-cats-chequered-flags-faq/?%5Fgl=1%2A1gymgdf%2A%5Fgcl%5Fau%2AMjg2MzEzNzk2LjE3ODQ2MjkwMzU.%2A%5Fga%2AMTkwOTMzNTA0Ni4xNzg0NjI5MDMz%2A%5Fga%5F75YM02EK9W%2AczE3ODU0MDkyNjUkbzUkZzEkdDE3ODU0MTAwMTQkajYwJGwwJGgyMTE1NjkyNTUy&ref=the-race.com)
### MotoGP 2026 star sub gets another race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-2026-standout-stand-in-rider-gets-another-outing/
Last updated: 2026-07-31T10:58:21.000Z
World Superbike frontrunner and factory Ducati racer Iker Lecuona will replace Gresini Racing’s Fermin Aldeguer for MotoGP's British Grand Prix.
The 2025 rookie of the year Aldeguer remains sidelined while recovering from the injuries he sustained at the Dutch TT in Assen last month.
Aldeguer crashed at the Duikersloot corner during Friday practise at Assen, breaking his T7 vertebra in the process. Recovering well since then and given clearance by his medical team to return to riding on August 15, it’s nonetheless too late for Silverstone and will instead see him targeting a home return at Aragon in one month’s time.
He’ll be replaced at Gresini by former MotoGP racer Lecuona, who steps in for the team for the second time this season after replacing Alex Marquez on the other side of the team’s box at the Hungarian Grand Prix, as Marquez himself recovered from a broken vertebra sustained in Barcelona.
Lecuona had a standout MotoGP return at Balaton Park, qualifying P16 before finishing a very impressive seventh place in Sunday’s main race.
Since his appearance in Hungary, he’s also had success elsewhere, finally breaking team-mate Nicolo Bulega’s stunning 25-race winning streak in World Superbikes by taking victory at Donington Park earlier this month.
Aldeguer's second MotoGP season had already been compromised by a broken leg suffered in a training accident at the start of January, which ruled him out of all of pre-season testing and the opening round.
### Guenther set for surprise Formula E team switch
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/guenther-set-for-surprise-formula-e-team-switch/
Last updated: 2026-07-31T08:02:50.000Z
Maximilian Guenther is set to race for the Envision Racing team next Formula E season.
Talks between Guenther and the Chinese-owned team are believed by The Race to have recently concluded with an agreement reached earlier this month.
The seven-time E-Prix winner, who has raced for the past two campaigns for DS Penske, is to link up with a squad that recently confirmed continuation of its customer status with Jaguar.
Guenther is known to have initially had conversations with the Penske organisation about his future there, which could have stretched to a third season. But ambiguity on Penske's plans for the Gen4 period, after the withdrawal of DS and no concrete details yet on what car it will run, are believed to have been defining factors in his decision to join the Envision project.
Guenther's seven wins in the series have come with BMW i Andretti, Maserati MSG and DS Penske, his first arriving at the 2020 Santiago E-Prix.
This season has seen Guenther endure one of his toughest campaigns so far via generally poor powertrain efficiency and suboptimal strategic outcomes compromising his results.
Envision has been in a holding pattern of sorts with regard to its drivers lately. This is largely due to the clashes between two E-Prix events and the FIA World Endurance Championship calendar, which has led to a confused picture as to whether Sebastien Buemi could continue with the team.
Recently, though, the prospect of the Monaco E-Prix being likely brought forward a few weeks next May has emerged as a key positive for whether Buemi extends his Formula E career into a fourth rules set.
Buemi’s team-mate this season, Joel Eriksson, has had an impressive re-introduction to the all-electric world championship after a three-and-a-half-year gap from his last appearance with Penske in 2022.
His podium at the Shanghai E-Prix earlier this month was his best result to date, but it remains unclear whether it will be the Swede or Buemi who will ultimately make way for Guenther.
Both Envision and DS Penske would not comment on the matter of Guenther’s future when contacted by The Race this week.
## Penske’s Gen4 plans baffle paddock
Guenther’s exit from Penske at the end of the present season was not on anyone’s radar until very recently - precisely when it became clear that Penske was still to firm up a Gen4 deal, which as of today is believed to still be the case.
The lateness in the American-owned/British-based team's plans has baffled the paddock because it has been known for over six months that Penske would have to either seek a new manufacturer partner or strike out on its own.
Penske has long since also entered into discussions with several manufacturers about the possibility of a customer supply at the start of the present year.
Phil Charles, Penske deputy team principal, would not comment when approached by The Race in Tokyo last week about the direction of the team's plans, saying only that the team is “gearing up for the Gen4 period and will be on the grid”.
### Don't expect Williams's upgrade to make it competitive
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dont-expect-williamss-upgrade-to-make-it-competitive/
Last updated: 2026-08-01T12:59:45.000Z
It's hard to know whether the Formula 1 summer break comes as welcome relief to Williams, or is simply four weeks away from the track that only prolongs its pain.
Williams surely heads into this gap in the worst mood of any team.
Cadillac, though now on its own at the back, has made an assured fist of its first half-season in F1; Aston Martin is far from out of the woods but boy did its Hungarian Grand Prix upgrade provide a boost; and Haas, or at least whichever of the VF-26s that team can get working on any given weekend, does have the measure of what’s now its closest rival.
This team is not where it wants to be, that is plain to see. It would be tempting to conclude that the picture is exacerbated by the taunting that the Hungaroring's long, 180-degree corners seem to expose multiple generations of Williams cars to; see the common complaint of the car "three-wheeling", which reared its head throughout that weekend.
Don't be tempted by that narrative. This is a humbling season that might've long since passed its competitive peak.
Because Williams didn't just have its worst weekend of the season (an "awfully painful" one, in the words of team principal James Vowles) relative to the front in Hungary, where it was 4.422% off the leaders using supertimes - the fastest lap set on a weekend expressed as a percentage of the fastest time overall.
It made big admissions about the state of play for the rest of the year that even suggest its current baseline might be its new reality.
This seemed to dawn in real time last weekend. Aston Martin's leap, which had plenty of midfield rivals running scared, also served to underline just how far behind Williams is.
Witness Alex Albon's fatigue as the weekend wore on.
While accepting that the pace of the upgraded Aston Martin meant "Q1 is going to be challenging", he was resolute on Friday that "Aston are ones that we need to try to beat".
The way that particular contest was settled, convincingly in Fernando Alonso's favour, offered a reality check. "We could only dream of an upgrade like that," said Albon. "It's eye-opening because, also for us, we know what our Baku upgrade is. It's not that."
And by Sunday, the tone was as beleaguered as it was accepting. "If it's cured \[Williams’s weaknesses\] by Baku, I doubt it. I think a lot of the Baku stuff has happened; that upgrade was planned quite a long time ago," he said. "A lot of what we're really, unfortunately, biting into is making sure next year's car doesn't have these traits. Yeah. Frustrating."
It was much the same post-weekend from Vowles. He acknowledged that as Williams has "focused on really undoing some of the harm that happened this winter" - the car arriving late, and overweight, to testing - and turning attention to 2027, "we've fallen behind our competitors".
"And in part, I think that we have to improve, full stop, the rate that we're bringing performance to the track, i.e. \[the\] time it takes for the idea, to actually bring it," he added.
"But just the idea rate that we're having behind the scenes is not at the right level. And what's happening in and around us is a number of competitors are showing us that they have higher levels than we can achieve today."
What optimism did exist centred around the Azerbaijan GP upgrade that Albon referred to, described overtly by Vowles previously as a B-spec car: a sizeable revision, with a redesigned chassis and other parts, that should take weight out of the FW48 and cure some of its aerodynamic deficit and the vices Albon and Carlos Sainz are experiencing.
But the modicum of positivity surrounding that seems to have vanished.
"Aston obviously brought a very large upgrade in the form of a much lighter car, and a car that's been aerodynamically upgraded," said Vowles.
"We have a package, but it's not coming until later in the year. And more importantly, it's more about \[the\] focus on getting the foundations right for next year to be upgraded."
So, the tone has shifted. What does that mean from a competitive standpoint?
"What I can say is the Baku upgrade will not be enough to put us in a points-scoring position regularly," added Vowles. "And that's what we need to review and understand what else we can do this season."
In this, the first year of a new F1 rules cycle where packages can regularly offer multiple tenths of a second, that feels like a damning indictment of Williams's competitive prospects.
In describing the September upgrade as a B-spec, back at Silverstone at the start of July, Vowles said the British GP would set the baseline for the car's performance; that Williams had to, "as a business, prove to ourselves that we can do the engineering to the right level of quality and build a car to the right level of quality in a season".
There's no two ways about this: that referred to development in the here and now, and on that score Williams is failing badly.
None of this is to underestimate that challenge; Vowles compared that to "flying the plane and rebuilding it at the same time".
It's just that right now, it's hard to argue that's being achieved. And when competitively that resets expectations back to zero, that's when any positive spin begins to wear thin.
### Another classic track approaches F1 about calendar return
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hockenheim-approaches-f1-german-gp-revival/
Last updated: 2026-07-31T08:43:33.000Z
Hockenheim has approached Formula 1 about the idea of resurrecting the German Grand Prix.
The venue, which hosted F1 races on and off from the 1970s until its most recent race in 2019, came under the control of new investors in 2024, with an expansion of the track's facilities now on the cards.
The emodrom group, which holds 74.99% of the shares in Hockenheim, has earmarked €250million of investment to expand its Porsche Experience Centre, plus construct a new hotel and what it calls a 'Motorworld' facility.
Some consideration has been given to attracting F1 back, with its last event there having been won by Max Verstappen.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has acknowledged those talks but said that, with other countries ready to pay high hosting fees, Hockenheim's chiefs know well the cost needed to secure a spot on the calendar.
"It was Hockenheim that connected with us, and they had the first discussion," he said.
"As you know, they are developing the motorsport park there with a different objective.
"If they want to discuss a possible F1 event, of course the investment needs to be different - because our platform needs to have a different kind of investment. But we have discussed that."
## F1's new market plans
While F1's trend over recent years has been away from European races, Domenicali has hinted that the continent could become increasingly important again based on fan interest - which could boost the hopes of venues such as Hockenheim.
"We are watching, of course, the growth of the United States," he said. "We are watching the growth of Europe, because it's becoming an important market again, because the growth, the numbers, are there."
But Europe faces major competition, with Domenicali saying there are a queue of other candidates in the mix. Races on the African continent, Asia and South America are all possibilities when future slots in the schedule allow.
In terms of specific countries in Africa, Rwanda and South Africa have expressed interest, while on the Asian side, Thailand, South Korea and second races in China and Japan are options.
In South America, Argentina is a logical place for an F1 return based on the interest fuelled by Franco Colapinto.
Domenicali said that "negotiations are progressing very well in Africa" but there seems to be no rush to get things over the line, with F1's schedule quite well-sorted in the short term.
He did, in particular, feel that it is too early for an extra event in China.
"We have more requests in China and Japan," he said. "But for the moment, we want to stay with one race in China because we need to consolidate the market stronger, before thinking to have another option there."
## The naming issue
One intriguing aspect of [Malaysia's surprise return](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1s-bahrain-gp-to-be-held-in-malaysia/) to the F1 calendar this year is that it is taking place under the moniker of the 'Bahrain Grand Prix'.
That has happened because Bahrain has helped fund the Sepang race as it is unable to hold its own race at Sakhir because of ongoing tensions in the Middle East.
The 'Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia' solution is an unusual one and has prompted some questions about whether such arrangements could be repeated in the future - but Domenicali made it clear he is not keen on this.
"I don't think that this could be a long-term approach because we need to be credible and consistent," he said.
"But I really hope that the situation of the world would allow us to go back to a normal situation with the right country in which we would like to hold the grand prix.
"What we did with Bahrain and Malaysia was fantastic because we really wanted to allow the Bahrain Grand Prix to be part of \[the schedule\]."
### What a day at McLaren HQ taught us about F1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/what-a-day-at-mclaren-hq-taught-us-about-f1/
Last updated: 2026-07-30T16:15:53.000Z
If sitting in the viewing gallery of McLaren's Technology Centre (MTC) and watching the team's engineers work through a qualifying session is anything to go by, anticipation and preparation are two of Formula 1’s defining characteristics.
Every scenario is considered. Engineers monitor live data, strategists weigh up their options, and plans A-Z are put into place for whatever may eventuate, whether that's an unexpected yellow flag, evolving track conditions or the possibility of squeezing in one final run before the chequered flag falls.
I visited the MTC on the same weekend that Lando Norris claimed his first victory of the season at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Alongside a tour of the Technology Centre, the visit offered a chance to watch Saturday qualifying from the team's headquarters and gain an insight into the processes that go into a winning F1 operation.
What quickly becomes apparent is that preparation at McLaren extends far beyond the engineers and strategists working behind the scenes. Drivers, too, have their own routines. Current world champion Lando Norris has spoken previously about the habits and rituals that form part of his race-day preparation.
For Norris, making sure he fist-bumps each of his mechanics before climbing into the car is a well-established part of his routine. Ahead of Sunday's race in Hungary, though, he appeared to take things a step further, adding a playful slap on a mechanic's backside to the pre-race ritual. Considering he went on to win later that day, there may now be a debate within the garage over which gesture is actually the lucky one.
**Norris and Piastri at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix*
Meanwhile Oscar Piastri hasn’t let on if he does anything out of the ordinary when it comes to preparation before a race. Although the Australian is all about staying calm, he has joked about a €5 note handed to him by a fan at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix becoming something of a lucky charm after he went on to secure his maiden F1 victory that weekend.
Whether driven by data, routine or superstition, those habits all stem from the same desire to be as ready as possible when the decisive moments arrive.
Part of the day also involved trying the Allwyn League prediction game on the F1 Predict platform. The game allows fans to predict the outcome of qualifying and races throughout the season, testing their own ability to anticipate how a weekend might unfold and possibly win a prize. With Allwyn, the multi-national lottery and gaming company and a partner of McLaren, better known for turning hopeful predictions into big wins, I fancied my chances of spotting a winner or two myself. My selections proved less successful than hoped after opting for championship leader Kimi Antonelli over McLaren's Norris, who went on to enjoy a winning weekend at the Hungaroring.
Watching qualifying unfold from the MTC added a different dimension to a session that is compelling enough from the grandstands. Every lap was followed by a flurry of activity as engineers assessed performance and considered their next move, while the prestige displayed through trophies and cars around the building served as a reminder of McLaren's long history in the sport.
For all the technological sophistication on display, F1 remains a sport built on people, and their best methods for staying one step ahead. Spending an afternoon at the MTC offered a rare glimpse into that process, revealing just how much work goes into preparing for the moments that ultimately decide a race weekend.
### Marquez's MotoGP 2026 title threats ranked
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/marc-marquez-motogp-2026-title-threats-ranked/
Last updated: 2026-07-30T12:13:39.000Z
Marc Marquez's double win at the Sachsenring earlier this month established him as the 2026 MotoGP title favourite again - even if he's only third in the standings, 18 points off the championship lead.
But with the standings remaining highly compact at the top and question marks still remaining over Marquez's ultimate fitness level, his eighth MotoGP crown is no foregone conclusion.
Perhaps the biggest threat to Marquez's crown is Marquez himself - staying fit, riding within his limits, scoring the points available. So far, he has proven extremely adept at this, arguably more so than in the past, but there's still such a long season to go.
But as for the opposition, here is how the seven other riders who can realistically be termed as title contenders rank in our eyes - by the likelihood that they can be the one to stop Marquez from being champion.
## 7 Pedro Acosta
**42 points back from Marquez**
**The case for:** Marquez's future factory team-mate at Ducati is maybe the rider of the season so far.
**The case against:** Acosta has scored just 16 points across the last three rounds through primarily three kinds of reasons.
Reason number one is physical limitations, specifically the need to withdraw from the Assen race due to a flare-up of carpal tunnel syndrome that subsequently required surgery. That will hopefully not be a factor for the remaining rounds.
Reason number two is the KTM's ongoing reliability struggles, which have apparently triggered a KTM request to unseal its engines to make a fix.
Reason number three is the big one, though: the RC16 is not particularly competitive right now and not getting any better. Most weekends it will be simply incapable of beating the Ducatis and the Aprilias.
Acosta, realistically, has no chance.
## 6 Raul Fernandez
**31 points back from Marquez**
**The case for:** Fernandez is riding what should still be the best bike in MotoGP, and riding it for what is, on recent form, the best team in MotoGP at Trackhouse.
**The case against:** Fernandez is too far back in the standings already, and has never been in anything anywhere near a title-contending situation in MotoGP.
His campaign has been increasingly convincing, featuring consistent round-to-round production that he really just hadn't been capable of in earlier years, but usually at least one of the other Aprilias is either faster than him or has a trump card they can beat him with.
## 5 Pecco Bagnaia
**47 points back from Marquez**
**The case for:** Bagnaia has been here, done that in terms of a big title comeback, and seems to have been settled mentally by the knowledge - from early on this year - that his future lies away from Ducati.
And his true performance level has, generally, been higher than the points situation suggests. "If I just consider the points lost between Jerez, Le Mans and Assen, it's more than 40 points," he lamented at the Sachsenring, with all of those losses coming independently of anything he'd done.
**The case against:** That Sachsenring round exposed that Bagnaia's 'floor' of performance is still just a little too low - he was a very distant fourth in a five-rider Ducati hierarchy there, and continued to decry an ongoing shortage of rear grip that he says other Desmosedici riders simply don't encounter.
And the 47-point deficit to Marquez is simply too big.
## 4 Fabio Di Giannantonio
**6 points back from Marquez**
**The case for:** Di Giannantonio has been quick - a pace frontrunner - at virtually every track this season. Whatever troughs there have been in his performance have been much less than that of any of his Ducati peers, including Marquez.
**The case against:** Di Giannantonio virtually never looks like actually winning races. While he's often a practice standout, others tend to make bigger steps come race time and, while he's a used-tyre specialist, bad starts are consistently leaving him with too much work to do.
It feels like he'd have to assemble this championship challenge out of fourth- and third-place finishes.
## 3 Jorge Martin
**18 points ahead of Marquez**
**The case for:** Martin is the championship leader who has won a MotoGP championship before. The 'nominal' threat of Acosta aside, there's an argument to be made that Martin is the most purely talented of Marquez's rivals for the title this year.
Though it backfired spectacularly at Balaton, by and large his work on opening laps is superb and reliably buys him extra points.
**The case against:** Martin has looked off his game for a prolonged stretch of this season now, struggling with the front of his RS-GP.
On current form, he himself has openly admitted he cannot fight for the title, so any title challenge rests on banishing whatever the current malaise is.
And his qualifying record versus team-mate Marco Bezzecchi is still exceptionally poor.
## 2 Ai Ogura
**4 points ahead of Marquez**
**The case for:** For someone who has maybe won fewer titles than he should have done (he did absolutely squander that 2022 Moto2 title shot), Ogura is almost tailor-made to be a title contender.
He finishes races at a rate that bellies his status as a second-year rider. He overtakes with panache. And he is currently the grid's best rider in the second phase of the race.
**The case against:** Ogura is still very new to competition at this top level in MotoGP and while his recent qualifying form has been a massive improvement, we need a bigger sample size to know it has stuck.
And he has been consistently poor in the wet in MotoGP, so any intervention from the weather creates the conditions for massive negative points swings against Marquez in particular.
## 1 Marco Bezzecchi
**4 points back from Marquez**
**The case for:** Bezzecchi has squandered a remarkable points lead - but he had to be fast enough to establish that lead in the first place.
He has a higher proven peak of performance this year than any of his Aprilia peers, and is the only one of them who you would back to have a chance against Marquez in wet or mixed conditions.
**The case against:** Much of his points lead loss has been situational, probably unrepeatable - he definitely won't go striking a marshal again and he probably won't get collected by team-mate Martin in Turn 1 again.
But there have been other incidents more alarming in terms of how they project forward. Bezzecchi has made a habit of crashing at considerable speed, and of underperforming in the sprint contest even when he stays on.
His collarbone injury should be a temporary setback, and a relatively well-timed one at that, but anything short of a clean bill of health starting from Aragon at the end of August will make it difficult for him to even see off the Trackhouse bikes, much less Marquez.
### The inconvenient truth behind F1's battery graphics stance
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-logic-for-no-battery-graphics-is-absurd/
Last updated: 2026-07-30T12:44:26.000Z
One of the most persistent questions we receive for our Sunday night grand prix review podcasts is what happened to the on-screen battery graphics that turned up in Formula 1’s live coverage early in the season.
It is an absurd shortcoming given how crucial the state of charge is to understanding not only the moment of the overtake, but the context around it in the build-up and aftermath.
F1 is rightly targeting further growth in the American market. This is a mature, demanding audience that demands a data-rich viewing experience, yet it’s being poorly served by omitting this crucial information. It doesn’t need to be there for every car throughout the race, but it’s essential when tracking close battles and therefore absurd that it's neglected.
I put this to F1 boss Stefano Domenicali this week: “As you say, the races have been fascinating this year with the way the regulations are, but one thing that has often been missing has been battery state-of-charge information. I don't mean for all cars live, but for selected battles when it's important context. Why is this not being pushed as much as it should, particularly considering the desire to grow in the USA, where there is a very clear demand and trend for data-rich viewing experiences, because that would seem to be inhibiting your own product.”
Domenicali’s response followed the previous pattern of arguing that the majority of those watching the coverage are not interested in this. “The truth is exactly the other way around, because no one is interested in how you drive your car,” said Domenicali.
“People are interested if you're overtaking or not. That's the vast majority of the people. I agree with you that certain people are focused on this thing that is very important. It's like when you were opening the DRS, people were not interested in what was the \[cause of\] the pass.
“I had an incredible and interesting discussion with \[Star Wars creator\] George Lucas on Saturday. He was in Hungary and gave me an incredible view on how the new fans are watching Formula 1, and he gave us \[an\] incredible \[perspective\] to see how we can really simplify things because the new fans are not understanding the truth \[of\] what is behind the scenes. They are fascinated by the fact that there is a lot of action.
“There is definitely the need for the ones that are so focused on that to have the right information, but for the vast majority of the people, trust me, they just want to see what is happening on the track. \[They are\] not interested in the angle of throttle or the brake pressure in how you can overtake.
“If you think \[of\] an incredible overtake of Max \[Verstappen\] and Lewis \[Hamilton\], at Turn 1 in Hungary, this is a piece of art that people just want to see, and \[is\] just connected to the quality of the drivers.
“At the end of the day, this is a scheme that the driver can have on how you can maximise the performance of your car, no matter if it's braking, accelerating power that is done by the electrification. That's what I think is happening. Of course, for a niche of our fans, this data is relevant and of course it is available. But as I said, for the vast majority, that's what we receive as information.”
Lucas’s argument is the right one for a filmmaker, but it is not what I want to see from sporting coverage. Domenicali argues he has the data to support his position, and F1 may very well have that, yet this line of reasoning doesn’t seem to apply to other aspects of F1.
After all, this is something F1 generally excels at with its F1 TV offering, the live feed and social media output. There’s great depth of graphical visualisations, telemetry data, F1 Insights with AWS content such as the newly launched strategy insight you’ll have seen in Hungary.
Why does all of this matter, but the battery data doesn’t? Why do viewers want to know these other details, but not the parameter that is critical to performance and facilitating overtakes - the battery?
Those watching can decide whether or not they want to absorb the data or not. It’s true there is only so much real estate on the screen and it would be a mistake to overly-clutter it, but this data is at the heart of everything. Some watching won’t want to see how the sausage is made, but plenty of others will.
What’s more, there’s no better way to convert your more casual fans than to hook them in by showing these hidden depths, which will make them engage with F1 even more often. That can only be good for business, and to showcase it in the TV coverage would show confidence in the product.
Perhaps the inconvenient truth is that F1 is all too aware of the negatives of illusory overtaking moves when they are achieved by a power offset of hundreds of horsepower?
### Verstappen should favour Aston Martin if he leaves Red Bull
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-should-favour-aston-martin-if-he-leaves-red-bull/
Last updated: 2026-07-30T11:36:31.000Z
Max Verstappen should favour Aston Martin over McLaren if he chooses to leave the Red Bull Formula 1 team.
That's what F1 insider Mark Hughes reckons, and with good reason, in a new Wednesday column, The Long Run, sent directly and exclusively to your inbox.
Here's a sneak peek - if you want more you'll need to sign up to our newsletter, [which you can do here](https://theracemedia.beehiiv.com/?ref=the-race.com). Enjoy!
---
"If I were Fernando Alonso I'd get my signature on another Aston contract ASAP and if I were Max Verstappen I'd fancy the challenge of that way more than just plugging myself into a fast McLaren," says Hughes, having explained that Adrian Newey is the reason the Aston Martin project is and should be so attractive.
Hughes explains: "The fact that Newey, even before the season had begun, had insisted they were not going to piecemeal develop the race-one car and instead concentrate on the mid-season 'B' version we've just seen tells you a lot about his mentality.
"Showing a total indifference to perception, knowing the initial car was going to be miles off, he decided he'd just let it run like that for half-a-season while he worked at attacking the fundamentals of the deficit.
"You might also have noticed that the car has run so far with a visibly greater rake angle than any other on the grid. Newey has always been a high-rake fan and it was he who initiated the trend and took it to the greatest extremes in his Red Bull days, before ground effect regs extinguished the practice.
"The others haven't followed because they cannot yet adequately feed that rake angle with enough airflow to the rear to keep the airflow attached at low speeds.
"For sure, it won't have been attached at low speeds on the Aston either. Yet he's retained the feature anyway. Because he has faith that's where the potential is and the more data they can get from running the car like that, the sooner he is going to be able to feed it.
"He doesn't think like the others. He's sometimes wrong but when he is the knowledge he gains usually enables him to come back with something devastating. That's what history suggests."
---
**This is a small excerpt from Mark's in-depth column, which also investigates the speed of the McLaren after its Hungary upgrade. To get future editions,** [**sign up here**](https://theracemedia.beehiiv.com/?ref=the-race.com)**.**
### Gary Anderson's verdict on a major 2026 development battle
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/rear-wings-major-2026-development-battle-explained/
Last updated: 2026-07-30T06:04:57.000Z
I’m surprised more teams didn’t appear in Hungary with the Monaco rear wing add-on (in green above) that we saw earlier in the season.
Although the Hungaroring is a bit faster, the long corners and likely high temperatures mean that downforce is key to keeping the tyres alive for longer, and with drag not such a big penalty here, it’s a chance to bolt on some less efficient downforce.
Ferrari made good use of its copy of the McLaren Monaco version, which, together with a few invisible modifications to the flip-flop wing that have been successful, seemed to suit its package, even if the end result underdelivered.
You can see the add-ons. The three-element upper winglet (highlighted in green) acts as an airflow turning vane to set up the airflow direction that is being pulled up around the undersurface of the rear wing.
The rear flap extensions (highlighted in purple above) optimise the chord length available in the area of the active wing mechanism and the flap supports.
You can see the added winglet structure is very similar to what McLaren ran in Monaco.
As for Red Bull, it had to carry out some serious modifications to its version of the flip-flop rear wing system. It had a couple of races where Verstappen either went off or crashed due to the airflow not re-attaching quickly enough when the wing was closed from straight mode to cornering mode.
The team said this was caused by a mechanical problem, and you can see some differences in the profiling of the active wing mechanism shroud.
Also, a small turning vane has been added on the leading upper corner of that shroud. This is small relative to what Ferrari has, but still attempting to achieve the same turning moment in the airflow.
You can also see the small V-shaped cutout on the trailing edge of the upper flap. This is positioned just behind that actuator and its shroud.
The reason for this is that the actuator and its shroud will affect the airflow in that area and reduce its velocity.
This, in turn, will affect the assistance that airflow velocity will have on the airflow on the undersurface of the wing, potentially leading to flow separation on the underside.
If you have a small pocket of airflow separation, it very quickly gets much bigger as the airflow around it is already highly stressed.
Red Bull has also altered the profile of the wing support pillars as they are now longer cord where they attach to the underside of the rear wing. So basically a more sympathetic intersection, which will reduce the risk of airflow separation in that area.
As we have seen over previous seasons, you would use a horseshoe-style wing pillar system mounting the wing to the pillars on the top surface, which is less critical to airflow separation - that is, if the rules allowed it. This would mean that the critical airflow on the undersurface wasn’t affected by the pillar-to-undersurface intersection.
McLaren also tested its version of the flip-flop rear wing in Hungary, but didn't race it. However, the team suggested it was very happy with its potential.
When it comes to McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull’s versions of the flip-flop rear wings, that features the flap assembly rotating upside down and, in turn, backwards, the airflow over the flap surfaces when the wing is open is actually travelling backwards relative to its design criteria and (red arrows above) to its normal flow direction.
When the flaps are shut for corner mode, that flow has to be stalled and then reversed before you could say it has fully reattached.
With the more standard DRS-concept version, the flaps are actually still producing some downforce, even if it’s a small amount.
More importantly, the airflow on the flap surface is heading in the correct direction to what it will be when the wing is closed.
That potentially means a little less drag reduction, but also a faster and more consistent full airflow reattachment.
Unless you are 100% confident of that instant airflow reattachment on the rear wing, you could very easily lose more than you gain by going to the flip-flop system. To find this confidence and consistency, you need track testing in various different track conditions; this reattachment can very easily be influenced by running in traffic, turbulence, air density, temperature, wind conditions and direction.
So these are the decisions that have to be made; the question is, does the advantage outweigh the risk?
For me, if I were making that decision at the moment, the evidence I would have at the moment is no better than 50/50.
### Rotating F1 venue wants to fill gap with Formula E race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/rotating-f1-venue-wants-to-fill-gap-with-formula-e-race/
Last updated: 2026-07-29T12:57:21.000Z
Formula E has started early-stage consultation with teams about the possibility of adding a race to its 2026-27 calendar, held at Formula 1 venue Barcelona.
The possibility of adding a race was tabled at a meeting of team principals in Tokyo last Friday after what The Race believes was an approach from the Barcelona circuit to open a discussion about the feasibility of staging a race.
The all-electric world championship [issued its ratified calendar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/brands-hatch-one-of-three-new-additions-to-formula-es-next-calendar/) last month, which is the biggest it's ever announced with 21 races at 13 venues spanning December 2026 to July 2027\.
The possibility of going to Barcelona, which was first reported by the German website e-formel.de last week, is not an overt contingency for the possibility of Formula E not being able to open the Gen4 era in Jeddah because of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
The possibility of a race at Barcelona was deemed "very low" by Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds last week, but further discussions between Formula E Operations (FEO) and the circuit are set to continue in the coming weeks.
Barcelona is not set to host an F1 race in 2027; it will [enter into rotation](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/barcelona-and-spa-to-rotate-with-each-other-on-f1-calendar-from-2027/) with Belgian Grand Prix venue Spa-Francorchamps, with the Barcelona GP due to take place in 2028, 2030 and 2032.
The Spanish GP name that Barcelona previously held has for 2026 gone to race at the Madring in the Spanish capital, which will host its first grand prix this September.
"The true picture is that we had a live, quite early-stage conversation with that location\[Barcelona\]," Dodds told The Race in Tokyo.
"We're talking to people the whole time and with that particular location, there was just a genuine question of: would we be able to do something? And if it were to be next year, the process for that means we've announced a calendar, so it would require unilateral approval by all the teams.
"So, all Alberto \[Longo, Formula E co-founder\] did in that meeting was say, 'Look, I think this is unlikely, but in the event that it was proposed, what do people think?' Because we already have 21 races in the calendar, so it's a 13-location, 21-race calendar, it's a big calendar, and there's a couple of back-to-backs already, so what do people think?"
Dodds added that the discussions with the teams were "just a temperature check" and said: "Actually, we talked about that location, but we could have been talking about any location, because we actually have a couple of other live conversations that we are talking about next year.
"I think the likelihood of a new race coming into the calendar that's already been announced is actually very low. Personally, I think it's very low - not impossible, but very low - but we needed to understand where the teams' heads were before we know whether there's any point having the conversations with locations or not."
## Threat to opener being monitored
The possibility of the Gen4 era of Formula E not being able to begin until the Mexico City E-Prix in January 2027 remains but will ultimately not be decided until the end of October at the earliest.
That was the message sent out by Formula E in Tokyo last weekend, after further incidents between Iran and the US began to flare up and escalate again this month, casting doubt on the planned season-opener in Jeddah on December 18/19 later this year.
Several strikes on surrounding countries such as Qatar and Bahrain, which border Saudi Arabia, occurred, and are of concern for manufacturers in particular due to insurance and staff-welfare concerns.
Formula E uses specialist threat assessment companies, which liaise with some of FEO's senior executive staff and management teams across all venues. These are being utilised regularly ahead of races.
"We use some pretty big organisations to do threat assessments for us, some of the best out there, and we also talk to some of our manufacturing partners, because they're generally bigger businesses, to say: what are your policies around travelling to the Middle East at the moment, and where are your levels of threat assessment?" confirmed Dodds.
"I'm not sure there's any point sitting here in July, updating teams on threat assessments for the Middle East, when literally it's changing weekly there at the moment.
"What we've agreed is, maybe end of September, beginning of October, we'll do a proper dip in again and look at where the threat levels are, and then we're going to have to make a call, kind of end of October, beginning of November, because we'll have testing, and from testing the cars will get shipped out to the first race."
### The latest on F1 calendar chaos and 2027 season opener
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-calendar-chaos-2027-2026-middle-east-imola-planned-dates/
Last updated: 2026-07-29T11:59:23.000Z
Formula 1 is to delay an announcement over its 2027 calendar until the autumn, amid uncertainty over whether plans to start next season in the Middle East can go ahead.
The Iran war has already had a major impact on this year’s schedule – with the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia having been called off, and no guarantee yet that the final events in Qatar and Abu Dhabi can go ahead.
While F1 has a contingency plan in place for this year if things need to change, the situation for next season is more critical because it revolves around the season-opening events.
The Race understands that, as part of ongoing contractual commitments, the plan is for Bahrain to take the 2027 season-opening slot on March 14, followed by the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on March 21.
A single pre-season test is also set to take place in Bahrain on February 25-27.
The Race has spoken to sources in the paddock to piece together what the 2027 calendar may look like (below).
---
## F1 2027 calendar plan
Feb 25-27 **Bahrain testing**
**\*\*\***
Mar 12-14 **Bahrain GP**
Mar 19-21 **Saudi Arabian GP**
Apr 2-4 **Australian GP**
Apr 9-11 **Japanese GP**
Apr 16-18 **Chinese GP**
Apr 30 - May 2 **Miami GP**
May 21-23 **Canadian GP**
Jun 4-6 **Monaco GP**
Jun 18-20 **Portuguese GP**
Jul 2-4 **British GP**
Jul 9-11 **Austrian GP**
Jul 23-25 **Belgian GP**
Jul 30 - Aug 1 **Hungarian GP**
Sep 3-5 **Italian GP (Monza)**
Sep 10-12 **Spanish GP (Madring)**
Sep 24-26 **Azerbaijan GP**
Oct 1-3 **Turkish GP**
Oct 8-10 **Singapore GP**
Oct 22-24 **US GP (COTA)**
Oct 29-31 **Mexican GP**
Nov 12-14 **Brazilian GP**
Nov 19-21 **Las Vegas GP**
Dec 3-5 **Qatar GP**
Dec 10-12 **Abu Dhabi GP**
---
The placement of these races at the start of the season means that decisions on if they go ahead or not are more critical for teams, as it will have major impacts on car build, freight and cost cap.
Teams need to know as early as possible when and where testing and the first race will take place – as they will want to give themselves as much headway as possible in terms of preparation.
Speaking on Wednesday, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said that F1 would present an official calendar plan after the summer break based on the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix being ready to run.
However, F1 was mindful that there could be no guarantees that happens, which is why Plan B consideration was being put in place.
“The calendar that will be presented, let's say in autumn, will be as a sort of normal plan,” he said.
“But of course, in case the situation in the Middle East would be not solved, we have options, a different plan.
“The trigger for that, of course, is at the end of the year, so we have still a lot of time, if I may say, to adjust.
“We have different plans with different options ready in place that will accommodate the fact that we will keep, in any case, the target of 24 grand prix also for next year.”
F1 would not be short of options should running in Bahrain and Saudi not be possible.
Pre-season testing could be switched to Barcelona, for example.
In terms of the season opener, F1 would be unlikely to want to wait until the Australian GP slot on April 4 for its first race, so a replacement would be on the cards for March.
Logistically for freight and planning reasons, a return to Malaysia – which is hosting the Bahrain GP this year – would make a lot of sense.
F1 would not necessarily need to put two replacement races in March as its provisional 2027 schedule appears to have suitable slots later in the year where extra events could be put in.
There are big gaps around the Miami and Canadian Grands Prix where an extra event could take place, for example.
In terms of timing, F1 tyre supplier Pirelli has said that the minimum notice it needs to ship tyres is seven weeks.
So it means that it will need to know about the location of pre-season testing by the start of 2027, with a call on the opening race around the middle of January.
## Europe only option for 2026 finale replacement
While the start of the 2027 season is up in the air, F1 has shed some more light on its decision-making process regarding the end of this campaign.
Domenicali has said that a call on what happens with the Qatar and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix will not be made before the middle of September.
And if those events do not happen, then F1 is committed to a season finale in Europe – which would most likely be in Imola.
“I just want to confirm to you that if this \[racing in the Middle East\] will not be possible, the end of the season will be in Europe, because we cannot go in other places. There are some possibilities on the table.”
He added: “Considering the constraints that we have, we need to go back to close all the Brexit-connected documentation from abroad in the UK and then go to another place.
“Therefore, as I said, the only possibility is to finish in in Europe within the same framework of the time, hoping that there will be no snow.”
While Portimao in Portugal would make a lot of sense, especially because snow there would be unlikely, it may not be able to accommodate a race without compromising works being done for its proper F1 return in 2027.
And while Imola will be cold, Domenicali has played down worries about things being too extreme – especially as average temperatures show it still warmer than F1 experiences in Las Vegas.
“It's definitely something that no one knows, where the temperature will go or how will be weather like,” he said.
Domenicali said that F1 did consider a potential double-header in Las Vegas, but this was ruled out because of problems associated with it being Thanksgiving weekend, which is also a big one for US domestic sport.
“There was a possibility of having two races in Las Vegas, but we don't want to ruin a jewel that is growing by undervaluing what we are doing there,” he said.
“Of course we don't have to forget that in that period of the year we are fighting in the US against NFL. That is a major sport and we need to avoid any kind of situation that will put us in front of something that, of course, is quite still very big in the US.”
### F1 says Apple partnership's thriving - but not how many are watching
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/f1-says-apple-partnership-thriving-but-not-how-many-watch/
Last updated: 2026-07-29T11:25:28.000Z
Formula 1 wants everyone to know its Apple deal is working - but what it still won't say is how many people are actually watching.
F1 has on Wednesday released its 2026 season half-year review, describing the Apple TV partnership as delivering "excellent viewership and engagement".
Yet it has provided no audience figures to support that claim, despite publishing detailed viewing data from several other major markets. The absence of any Apple-specific data stands out in a report otherwise full of numbers designed to showcase the health of the sport.
F1 has said that TV audiences have continued to grow globally, highlighting significant gains in Brazil, Italy and China. The British Grand Prix attracted a record audience of 18 million viewers across Brazil's TV Globo and SportTV3 channels, while Italian audiences are up 27% through Silverstone compared to the same stage of 2025\. In China, audiences for the Chinese GP more than doubled year-on-year.
The Monaco GP, meanwhile, reached nearly 80 million viewers worldwide, according to F1's figures.
Yet when it comes to Apple, the F1 offers only broad statements.
The report states that F1's US broadcast partnership with Apple - which started this year - is "already delivering excellent viewership and engagement across its entire portfolio of platforms". It also points to Apple's first simulcast with Netflix for the Canadian GP and says the partnership is attracting a younger and more diverse audience.
When asked about the lack of publicly available audience data, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said Apple was reporting strong performance internally but remained reluctant to release numbers externally.
"Apple, as you know, is confirming that the numbers are very, very good," Domenicali said.
"In their policy, they are not really the ones that are able to share their numbers with everyone."
Domenicali added that F1 was "pushing them respectfully" to release more information and suggested audience figures could become public in the future.
"I think that soon you will have a good surprise because we are pushing them to do it," he said.
The comments underline a growing challenge for sports rights holders as audiences migrate from traditional broadcasters to streaming platforms. While conventional television partners routinely publish ratings data, streaming services often retain much tighter control over performance metrics.
That is particularly relevant given the strategic importance of the Apple partnership, which represents one of the biggest shifts in F1's media strategy in recent years.
Away from the unanswered questions around viewership, the report presents a picture of a championship that continues to expand commercially.
F1 says it has signed 20 new consumer-product licensing partners during the first half of 2026, with launches involving Disney, Fanatec, Hasbro, DK Books and LEGO already announced. A Topps trading card collection sold out in three minutes, while premium apparel collaborations with Off Season and Nahmias formed part of the F1's growing lifestyle push.
It has also continued to add major commercial partners. New agreements with Standard Chartered, Marsh, Flexjet and Fever were announced during the first half of the year, while existing relationships with Pirelli, Allwyn and Salesforce have all been extended.
The demographic trends remain equally encouraging for F1.
According to the report, F1's global fanbase has now surpassed 830 million people, with growth of 64% since Liberty Media's first full year in charge in 2018\. Women now account for 42% of the fanbase and three-quarters of new fans, while 43% of all followers are under the age of 35.
Together these figures support F1's long-standing argument that it continues to broaden its reach beyond its traditional audience and attract new commercial opportunities as a result.
But while F1's half-year review offers proof for growth across almost every area of the business, its biggest media move still goes unmeasured.
### Verstappen is detecting issues with 'car deg' that Red Bull can't
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-is-detecting-issues-with-car-deg-that-red-bull-cant/
Last updated: 2026-07-29T06:21:56.000Z
Max Verstappen is heading into the Formula 1 summer break frustrated by an unusual problem of "car degradation" with his fragile Red Bull, detecting issues that even his team's own data analysis doesn't pick up.
Verstappen's half-season ended with the overachievement of a second-place finish in Hungary despite having what really looked like the fourth-fastest car.
"I was just like, 'How the hell did I end up here?' I was shocked. I'm actually still shocked," was Verstappen's reaction on Sunday.
It was explained by what's best described as a classic, opportunistic Verstappen masterclass: an elbows-out start, followed by a brilliant move down the inside of his old title rival Lewis Hamilton at Turn 1, earned him a podium in a car few others could do so in.
But as soon as Verstappen hopped out of his Red Bull in parc ferme, he immediately noticed evidence of an issue that irritated him all weekend.
"When I jumped out of the car, there was damage on the car for whatever reason," Verstappen said.
That issue was that his RB22 had been falling apart while he was driving it, with it highly susceptible to the Hungaroring's harsh kerbs, rough track surface and any touches with the gravel.
It had led to an explosive outburst during qualifying, with Verstappen telling his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase over team radio: "Mate, the car is just completely broken aerodynamically, it's just getting worse and worse.
"What a joke. What a joke, honestly. What a s\*\*t weekend."
Verstappen subsequently spun at the final corner on his last attempt in Q3, though even if he had avoided that, bettering his time would have been difficult.
This didn't have anything to do with the faulty flip-over wing that contributed to crashes at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, as that's been modified and fixed. But Verstappen did say the rear-end became "non-existent" before his spin at the final corner and had hopes it would be fixed for Sunday's grand prix.
A damaged floor vane extension piece was changed under parc ferme with FIA approval, but the issues didn't go away as Verstappen endured what he described as "one of the hardest races of the year".
Worst of all? It's not actually a new issue and instead has become a big unresolved problem of the 2026 Red Bull.
## A 'very sensitive' car
The Red Bull has never been the outright quickest car in 2026 but, after an early-season spell where it was vulnerable to the midfield, it's bounced around being the second-, third- and fourth-fastest car.
Verstappen could have won the Austrian GP, where Red Bull debuted an extensive upgrade, but it hasn't been a victory contender since then because its car is very susceptible to being knocked out of the right operating window.
Team principal Laurent Mekies accepted the RB22 has been "very sensitive" to a number of small factors since the start of the season, which is often putting the car "on the edge".
As well as picking up minor damage on the kerbs or gravel, the car can struggle with a particularly nasty gust of wind, losing laptime and driver confidence. It's an area that Mekies admitted Red Bull has to improve on.
But he also said in an interview with De Telegraaf, of Red Bull cars having a narrow working window: "I don't want to say that it is a trademark of Red Bull, but you have a point that this is not unique.
"But we also have to be honest; Red Bull Racing has won many championships with this type of car as well. It just stands out more now because we are the hunter and not the prey."
Mekies also revealed he thinks Verstappen's sensitivity and capacity means he identifies car problems that others wouldn't - and that other teams' data wouldn't pick up either, intimating that maybe Red Bull doesn't have any bigger car degradation problems than rivals; it just has a driver more attuned to spotting them.
"It is a fact that Max senses things we cannot measure with our current data analysis and sensors in the car. I will be very honest about that," Mekies told De Telegraaf.
"That is the result of his extraordinary sensitivity in the car and the technical level he possesses. I do not see that as a worrying factor, but rather as a great strength.
"To give an example: Max already felt at the beginning of this year that there was a problem with the steering rack, and we couldn't see it. But thanks to him, we were able to solve it. As a team, we have only benefited from that."
### The unlikely best driver of F1's Hungarian GP weekend
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/unlikely-best-f1-driver-hungarian-gp-we-debate-our-rankings/
Last updated: 2026-07-28T15:22:20.000Z
A driver who qualified and finished 12th appears on the surface to be a strange pick for the best Formula 1 driver of the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend.
But Edd Straw's driver rankings have never been about the results on paper; instead, they look beyond the machinery to pick out the real best performers across the whole weekend.
It's why they always create so much discussion, and as ever, Edd tackled questions from [The Race Members' Club](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) in a Q&A podcast episode this week with Val Khorounzhiy - The Race's own MotoGP rider rankings chief.
You can [listen to the full podcast](https://shows.acast.com/the-race-f1-podcast/episodes/driver-rankings-which-surprise-name-did-we-rank-as-p1-for-hu?ref=the-race.com), or [watch it if you prefer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxh4cCe5V2Y&ref=the-race.com), but below you'll find a taste of Edd's explanations for his most contentious choices.
Remember, if you'd like to ask questions about his rankings during the second half of the 2026 F1 season, make sure you're signed up to The Race Members' Club.
## Why was Gasly first?
Edd ranked Pierre Gasly the best driver of the weekend, after he outqualified Franco Colapinto by just under two tenths on Saturday then finished three places ahead of his Alpine team-mate in 12th on Sunday.
So what was Edd's logic?
"Gasly wasn't that large on the radar in terms of #1 ranking, but there were a lot of people this weekend, and partly that's just the nature of the Hungaroring as a track, who had little errors and blemishes that held them back," Edd explained.
"Gasly didn't outdrive the car, but \[then\] you can't outdrive cars. It was the seventh-fastest car by some margin, by which I mean it wasn't up there with Racing Bulls and Audi.
"He finished relatively close to that group \[1.4 seconds behind Gabriel Bortoleto's 11th-place Audi\], battling for Class B victory ahead of him in a slower car. He did have that cheap VSC \[virtual safety car\] pitstop later on, but it was the seventh-fastest car, and he put it at the ceiling of what it was.
"He's one of the only drivers you can look at and say, 'Yeah, there's no way he could have qualified higher, no way he could have finished higher', and he was closer to the quicker cars ahead than maybe he should have been, and drove a clean race.
"He sort of worked his way to the front as others found reasons and blemishes not to be there.
"So, it was a surprise one for me in the end, but often you are looking at that - who is at the ceiling of their car, and not doing things to make life harder for them - and it seemed to point to Gasly in the end."
Edd added: "If you translate his performance into the best car, then it's a win from pole."
## Did Piastri deserve fifth?
Oscar Piastri's weekend was a tough one to judge.
On the one hand, he was clearly slower than Lando Norris throughout. But on the other, he was denied a victory shot because of the contact with Carlos Sainz and then the gearbox issue that forced him to retire.
Edd placed him fifth, two spots behind McLaren team-mate Norris, and ahead of the likes of Fernando Alonso (sixth) and Kimi Antonelli (11th).
"You factor in the pace, and Norris was a step forward. But I do value that thing of being able to, on a bad weekend, put yourself in a position to win the race," Edd said.
"Piastri was really hanging on. Particularly the first stint, he was sort of relatively happy. Norris behind was still quicker, but he felt he had it covered. Then on the hard, he was really struggling.
"I do value that ability to win when you are struggling and Piastri did do a lot of what he needed to do to be in a position to win. Now, if the Sainz thing hadn't happened, you can only guess how it might have played out.
"It was still close in terms of that overcut happening, and that would change it. But the fact is it didn't. Not only did he have the contact with Sainz, but also Sainz then held him up all the way to the chicane as well. So it was a significant time loss that made a difference.
"But I think if you're taking a driver, you're saying you are a step slower than your team-mate, and he still manages to get into the lead, to outthink him on the first lap, and to lead 25 laps of the race. He effectively had control of the race until that Sainz incident. I think that counts for something.
"Yes, it's not as impressive as if you're in a slower car and doing it. But the Piastri-McLaren combination was slower. There were also a few circumstances contributing to that.
"Five of them missed FP1 \[Leonardo Fornaroli drove in Piastri's place, for example\]. Most of them said it was quite a big disadvantage given the conditions, etc.
"I did give Piastri a bump for how well he executed in really difficult circumstances. You cannot underline how uncomfortable a position it is for a competitor to be at the front, knowing they're struggling, knowing they're slower, and trying to hang on for dear life.
"Yes, it's not the ideal way. Ideally, you want them to come to be quickest, absolute maximum of the car, nailing everything. But that wasn't what Piastri was doing.
"Until the Sainz moment, he was on a trajectory where he could just, by the skin of his teeth, have won that grand prix, and that does carry weight for me."
## How our Champions ranked the drivers
The Champions tier of The Race Members' Club, as ever, had the chance to rank the drivers. Here's the top 10 they produced for Hungary (with Edd's ranking in brackets).
10 Isack Hadjar (14th)
9 Fernando Alonso (6th)
8 Arvid Lindblad (9th)
7 Charles Leclerc (12th)
6 Oscar Piastri (5th)
5 Liam Lawson (8th)
4 Kimi Antonelli (11th)
3 Nico Hulkenberg (2nd)
2 Lando Norris (3rd)
1 Max Verstappen (4th)
Their votes gave first place to Max Verstappen, who was only fourth in Edd's ranking.
For Edd, both Verstappen and Norris's rankings suffered from errors they made. Verstappen spun at the final corner in Q3 on Saturday while Norris's error was going off at Turn 4 while trying to chase down Piastri - whom he'd lost the lead to at the start - in the second stint.
"Verstappen was ahead of Norris till quite late on \[in Edd's rankings process\]. I was just trying to work out how much you punished that," Edd explained.
"There was one small aero part that was changed overnight after qualifying because it had a little bit of damage on it \[a floor vane extension piece\] and that car is quite sensitive to that sort of thing.
"But in the end, it is still \[a question of\]: you've got the car you've got, haven't you? And if there's an area that's not 100% down to something that has outright failed and you can't account for, then that does cost you.
"Verstappen had lost time on that lap. So I think he was doing a little bit of a Hail Mary in the last corner to see what happened and he paid the price for it.
"\[It was a case of\] balancing up that - Norris, who was phenomenally quick, just as Verstappen was - with how much you do weigh up Norris losing the lead and having to labour a little bit to try to win that race despite his pace versus Verstappen in that area, and then Verstappen having a great race and then passing \[Lewis\] Hamilton?
"It was almost impossible to split them really. I swapped them around a few times later on and in the end, you just have to make the decision. I just decided the spin ultimately was sort of a very, very clear and clear and obvious error \[to borrow\] the VAR football phraseology.
"What was significant is both Norris and Verstappen did weaken their candidacy to be first, with those respective errors."
---
**Want to ask questions of Edd's next driver rankings? Make sure you're signed up to** [**The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com)**.**
**Edd will also be releasing a special follow-up podcast, exclusive to** [**The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com)**, where he tackles questions from Champions on his rankings**
### Ferrari's begun trial of Mercedes F1 qualifying trick
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-begun-trial-of-mercedes-f1-qualifying-trick/
Last updated: 2026-07-28T14:50:51.000Z
Ferrari has begun testing Mercedes' Formula 1 qualifying lift-off trick in a bid to help boost its challenge for pole positions.
As first [revealed by The Race](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-finds-legal-way-to-revive-banned-f1-qualifying-trick/), Mercedes has found a clever way to get around F1's ramp down rates to unleash maximum energy deployment across the timing line on qualifying laps.
This means its drivers can enjoy a brief top speed boost at the end of a lap because they are able to run at maximum 350kW battery power while rivals must start reducing deployment in a cascade of steps of at least 50kW per second.
An alternative way of using this trick earlier in the season, through an emergency shutdown of the MGU-K, was banned by the FIA after the Japanese Grand Prix, but Mercedes found a way to resurrect it from the British GP.
That has been done through an allowance in the rules that says drivers do not have to comply with the ramp down rate if they lift off the throttle before the battery hits 0%.
After a lot of fine-tuning and practice in the Mercedes simulator, Mercedes perfected a system whereby Kimi Antonelli and George Russell are given a warning tone through their earpieces about when they need to lift off the throttle.
Antonelli used the trick as he secured pole position at the British and Belgian GPs.
The tactic can be clearly seen in use from the telemetry traces of his pole position lap from the British GP below.
## Ferrari follows suit
With rivals alerted to what Mercedes was doing, and the FIA happy that the tactics complied with the rules and did not pose any safety risks, it was inevitable that other teams would look to copy it.
And, as telemetry traces from the Hungarian GP show above, Ferrari trialled it out during practice last weekend with both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
Leclerc can be seen lifting off the throttle as he approaches the timing line on Friday, with his speed rolling over.
On Friday, both drivers employed the tactic as part of an evaluation of the potential benefits it can bring.
However, with Ferrari concluding that the energy-rich Hungaroring layout did not bring sufficient gains to risk bringing the technique into play for qualifying, it elected not to carry its use into the fight for pole position.
The differences in approach between practice on Friday and Saturday can be seen in the way the speeds contrast on the run to the line in the below trace. Ferrari did not appear to lose any time by staying flat to the line.
## Small gain, big risk
The lift-off trick does not work everywhere, and very much depends on the track layout and how much energy there is available to deploy across the timing line.
At venues such as Hungary, that are energy-rich and have quite a long run to the line, the benefits are not as great as they are at energy-starved tracks with a short distance between the final corner and the line - such as Melbourne, Silverstone and Spa.
Its benefit also depends on whether the ramp down rate is set by the FIA at 100kW per second or 50kW per second. The decision to use the trick is very much taken on a race-by-race basis; Mercedes also did not use it in Hungary.
While the gain from employing the extra deployment across the line is said to be only worth around 0.050 seconds, it was not lost on Ferrari's engineers that grid slots can be decided by less than that.
At the Hungarian GP, for example, prior to his three-place grid drop for impeding Oscar Piastri, Hamilton had missed out on pole position to Lando Norris by just 0.012 seconds.
The increasingly tight fight at the front between the top four teams, especially with the world championship still up for grabs, makes it likely that Ferrari's tests in Hungary are a precursor to it attempting to use it in qualifying at future events.
One of the key considerations in giving its use a green light is that it comes with a major risk if it goes wrong.
If a driver fails to lift off the throttle before their battery is empty, then that will be a breach of F1's ramp down regulations and that would result in disqualification.
So teams need to evaluate whether the upside of a laptime boost outweighs any jeopardy from not executing it properly.
### Staple of Formula E's Gen3 grids set to lose his seat
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/staple-of-formula-e-gen3-grids-set-to-lose-his-seat/
Last updated: 2026-07-28T07:44:02.000Z
Norman Nato’s racing future in Formula E looks uncertain, as he is set to be replaced by Victor Martins for the Gen4 era of Formula E at Nissan next season.
The Race understands that Nato was recently informed there would be no race seat available to him for the 2026-27 season, having spent three seasons with the team in the Gen3 era.
Nato, who drove one of his best races of the season to sixth on Sunday in Tokyo, told The Race last Thursday that he was likely to concentrate on his WEC programme with the Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA squad in 2027, although a reserve and development role, possibly with Jaguar, could also be on the cards.
“I'm not closing the door to anything; first was to see if I could be on the grid next year, with Nissan, which is unlikely to happen, but the calendar doesn't help,” Nato told The Race in Tokyo last weekend.
“Two clashes already \[with the World Endurance Championship\], it's quite a lot. If it's four \[races\], it's too much and you have a look at both calendars, so it's going to be a lot of back-to-backs \[if\] you're going to have to do two programmes,” he added.
Nato has endured a difficult season results-wise at Nissan. A fifth place in Berlin is his only real result of note, although he has been quick and in occasional strong positions, only for either strategic difficulties or being taken out of contention by competitors to spoil his races.
“I would say that I would love to continue in Formula E, but step by step, there's more races, and on my side, it's been clear that for the last two years, I've been having priority in WEC, and I don't regret it, because I'm doing great there,” he added.
“I'm not going to take any decision anytime soon, because in this position, you have a bit more time to decide what you want to do.”
Nato is known to be interested in IMSA for next season in addition to his WEC role, which he is set to continue with his present team, Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA.
When asked by The Race about Nato’s future, his team boss at Nissan, Tommaso Volpe, said that “we haven't decided yet, and now we want to enjoy this result, and hopefully we will decide very soon".
### Could Nato rejoin Jaguar?
Nato could return to the team he briefly raced for in 2022 when he deputised for an injured Sam Bird at the season-closing Seoul E-Prix.
He worked that season, the last of the Gen2 era of Formula E, as a test and reserve driver prior to him getting his initial one-season deal with Nissan for the start of Gen3, before another single season only at Andretti in 2024.
Nato is known to have impressed Jaguar, which initially sim tested him back in 2017 when he was recommended to then sporting manager Gary Ekerold by current Ferrari F1 team principal Fred Vasseur.
Jaguar may need a new development and reserve driver for 2027 should it elect to replace the departing Evans with its current development driver, Stoffel Vandoorne, who is considered the favourite to race alongside Antonio Felix da Costa next season.
Speaking to The Race in Tokyo, Jaguar team principal Ian James said that he thought Nato “would be a boon for any team up and down the paddock.
“I think the experience that he's got, his racecraft, but also his ability to work with the team is incredibly strong,” added James.
“I've said it since my first days here in Formula E that role is so crucial to the overall performance of the team. I've been fortunate enough to work with some great drivers in the past as development and reserve drivers as well.
“I suppose that camaraderie, that collaboration, but also the technical know-how to be able to communicate in a succinct and informative manner with the engineers is super important. Norman has that in spades.”
### Martins primed for Nissan seat
The Race understands that Nissan is close to an agreement with current Williams F1 development and Alpine WEC driver Victor Martins to race alongside the already contracted Oliver Rowland.
The F2 race winner recently took part in a Gen4 test at the Navarra circuit in Spain and has also spent time in the Nissan simulator recently. He is considered the clear favourite to replace the outgoing Nato.
Martins has tested several times for Nissan in the past with the Gen3 car and is known to have impressed the team and developed key relationships at the Paris-based squad.
He is set to get more Gen4 seat time next month and could be announced as a race driver shortly after the finish of the present season.
Nissan would not be drawn on its future driver selection for Gen4 when approached by The Race in Tokyo.
### Gary Anderson on McLaren's 2026 race-winning F1 upgrade
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclaren-race-winning-f1-upgrade-explained/
Last updated: 2026-07-28T07:41:20.000Z
The upgrade that helped Lando Norris win Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix is part of what McLaren team principal Andrea Stella characterises as the need to “correct the course” with its 2026 car.
The team is playing catch-up as pushing to the end of last year to ensure it won both the drivers’ and constructors’ championship put it on the back foot. On the positive side, it has also allowed them to see rivals’ designs and understand the direction of development others have taken and possibly the reasons for their deficit.
It would be tempting to say pole position and victory at the Hungaroring proves McLaren is right on top of the regulations, but as Norris himself said, it’s going to be different at other types of tracks with different compromises.
However, this gives McLaren much-needed momentum, and confirmation that the development direction is the right one, with more parts due for the next race at Zandvoort.
So let’s have a look at what McLaren has been working on, as normal, starting with the front wing.
This was not actually a new part for Hungary, having actually been introduced at Monaco. It’s a revised version of the new wing first trialled even before that in Canada, but because the front wing conditions set up the airflow structures that the rest of the car has to work with, it is essentially the first part to optimise and then follow that airflow structure, optimising everything in its wake.
The wing featured a significant change to the loading across the span. You could say it’s more uniform as the airflow comes off the trailing edge of the rear flap. This means that the leading edge of the sidepods and the bargeboards will need attention to get the best out of them.
The leading edge of the floor is not new either, it has been run since Silverstone, the leading edge of the vertical splitters and there intersection with the actual floor leading edge is in light green, the inboard vertical splitter and its intersection is in light blue and the outboard one in white, all of these assisted by the floor footplate and bargeboards help turn the airflow outwards, they will produce vortices along there lower edge improving there work load.
The red-highlighted horizontal aerodynamic section is an airflow conditioner; it is designed to optimise the direction of the airflow coming off the front wishbone legs, preparing it for the actual floor leading edge.
In Hungary, there were revisions to the bargeboards. Visually, you can only see small changes to the trailing edge (red highlight line), although the slot gap curvature on the second vertical element (green ellipse) looks more curved. This vertical section mainly controls the turbulent airflow wake as it tries to fill the void left behind the front tyre.
The horizontal section is actually called the floor footplate. This acts as a small diffuser pulling airflow out from underneath the front corner of the floor, but it doesn’t seem to feature any changes.
The detail in front of the rear tyres has altered to reduce the amount of airflow that is being introduced as inboard tyre squirt. The light green vanes are narrower and more sympathetic to the airflow in that area.
Also, the dark green outboard vane has been reduced in size and length. This allows these vanes to generate a more powerful flow, which will help the sealing of the underfloor in that area as the rear tyre displaces airflow when the car is travelling in a forward direction (which hopefully it does most of the time)
The turning vanes mounted on the inboard face of the rear brake ducts have also been altered. You also see the rear brake duct exits are divided into sections, which are connected to various different areas of the brakes that need cooling.
These components serve three positive functions.
Firstly, they help extract the hot air from the brake ducts.
Secondly, they improve the performance of the diffuser by extracting more of that inner tyre squirt and pulling it upwards.
Thirdly, they add load directly on the unsprung rear corner assembly.
Any load that can be produced by these components doesn’t have to go through the suspension medium, so that means it is applying load directly to the rear tyre contact patch.
This helps the stability of the rear of the car, especially when you hit the brake pedal and the rear of the car rises with the weight transfer and the speed reduces.
Because of the damping trying to reduce the speed and inertia of that rise in rear ride height, downforce that is being produced by the sprung mass, underfloor and/or rear wing is momentarily less than it would be at that given speed if there were no longitudinal forces involved.
McLaren has also tidied up the main cooling exit at the rear of the engine cover. Airflow used for cooling will increase the overall drag of the car and is wasted as far as producing downforce is concerned.
The airflow structure coming off the front wing being more uniform has probably allowed McLaren to achieve this exit area reduction, which in turn will improve the efficiency of the complete package.
With hindsight, I should have written this analysis before the cars turned a wheel in Hungary as I could then have looked like a hero - if I had been positive about them, that is.
However, as far as I am concerned, none of these developments are Hungary-specific developments, so with more bits and pieces to come in Zandvoort, that should put McLaren in a good position for the second half of the season.
As an engineer, the heroes in my eyes are the men and women back at base coming up with these levels of developments, as well as those at the track extracting that performance.
The drivers should get a small mention there. However, just a small one, as this season has shown the best car is a winning car; the driver just needs to use it to its maximum. Simples!
### Winners and losers as Tokyo transforms Formula E's title race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/winners-losers-formula-e-title-race-transformed-tokyo/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T16:51:31.000Z
Formula E's title fight appeared to have settled into a recognisable narrative - before this past weekend's penultimate round in Tokyo turned everything upside down.
As controversy reigned supreme in the Saturday race and tyre pressures and rain strategies dominated Sunday's, the driver in fifth coming into Tokyo left it as the championship leader - while the series' top squads, the Jaguar and Porsche works teams, face-planted.
Here are our winners and losers from the second-to-last Gen3 weekend ever, and definitely one of its wildest.
## Winner: Jake Dennis (2nd & 3rd)
Dennis was a big winner in Tokyo, without actually being one, although he was within an ace of doing a famous double. So, in some irony, part of him would have felt like a loser at the end of one of his and Andretti's strongest weekends.
Hooked up from the very first laps in free practice, Dennis found a strong rhythm whatever the track conditions, and he claimed his third pole position of the season.
The race was mostly controlled by Dennis - who looked nailed on for a ninth Formula E win until a power cut halfway around the final lap allowed a grateful Dan Ticktum, who had already given notice of his intent to settle for second place via a radio message, to steal in.
Had Dennis lifted 20 metres earlier over a corner in the last few laps of Saturday's race, he would have had a relative cruise to the chequered flag in a race that he seemed to have in complete control.
"We ran it mega close and we just went too close," was Andretti team principal Roger Griffiths's appraisal of the situation.
A day later Dennis again looked certain to win, until a crueller twist of fate turned his and Andretti's plans for a third win of the season inside out.
A poor qualifying session left him 17th on the grid but Dennis and his side of the Andretti garage had done their homework in Friday's first, slightly damp practice session, which was held at a similar time of the evening as the race start.
That, combined with an energy-saving first half of the race, allowed Dennis to build up at one stage a 5% energy advantage over the leading 'wet pressure' group. Using his attack modes shrewdly, Dennis asserted himself in the top three after quickly dispatching Oliver Rowland and Jean-Eric Vergne. Then came Edoardo Mortara's tipping of Joel Eriksson into the barriers and an instant red flag. Dreams dashed.
"Had we had one more lap, I think we'd have been good," reckoned Griffiths, who still had reason to rationalise the weekend as a whole.
"If you'd have asked me coming into this weekend, would we be leading the drivers' championship \[by two points from Mitch Evans\] when you came away, I would have said, 'I'd love to say that, but I doubt it'."
## Loser: Porsche
**Pascal Wehrlein (DNF & 13th); Nico Mueller (18th & 7th)**
How does a factory that secured a world championship with two races remaining end up being a net loser?
It seems ridiculous to come to that judgement but Porsche left Tokyo with just six points gathered in the teams' title race - and the manufacturers' coronation only happened because Jaguar was equally as profligate.
Porsche had seemed to put to bed a poor run of form in Monaco and Sanya with a win and a very healthy points accrual in Shanghai earlier this month. But a fractious, incident-filled, set-up-error-affected pair of races in Tokyo means it is making heavy work of the drivers' and teams' title challenges as the season finale approaches.
It said a lot that Wehrlein appeared to go from clear favourite after Shanghai, where he reclaimed the points lead from Evans, down to third place in the twinkling of an eye in Japan.
A clash with persistent nemesis Antonio Felix da Costa on Saturday and then a depressing fall down the order due to mostly dry settings on Sunday underlined a difficult weekend for Wehrlein.
His team-mate Mueller fared little better with a tub-wrecking shunt in Saturday's qualifying semi-final duel, then damage on the first lap of the race via Da Costa's Jaguar.
Sunday could have brought a podium as Mueller was the only driver to pit for a new set of tyres under full course yellow, which at the time appeared to be a masterstroke.
But a botched pitstop, in which the right rear tyre was not prepared for being applied, cost him 12 seconds and a likely charge to the front of the field.
The fact that he and Wehrlein were on wet settings ultimately came down to a decision on the grid after a light rain shower spooked some teams, including Porsche, into going for the wet-condition tyre pressures.
Porsche Formula E chief Florian Modlinger struggled to hide his disappointment on Sunday evening, especially in light of Mueller's spoiled strategic plan.
"We saw the first opportunity with the full course yellow and were the only car directly there making the call and using the opportunity," Modlinger told The Race.
"A pity, really a pity, but we win and lose as a team. We lost 12 seconds in the pitstop due to a procedural issue you can see on TV and without these 12 seconds Nico Mueller would be completely in the game for a win or for a podium and this would have been mega."
## Loser: Jaguar
**Mitch Evans (4th & DNF); Antonio Felix da Costa (9th & 14th)**
Jaguar's hoodoo in Tokyo continued - with only Evans's excellent run from 16th to fourth place on Saturday bringing any joy to an otherwise lacklustre weekend.
Having said that, at least Jaguar had genuine pace at the sinuous and bumpy Big Sight track this year, something it had failed to show on its three previous outings.
Da Costa claimed just two points after his challenge for a crack at the win on Saturday was derailed by Wehrlein. He recovered to a very angry ninth place, with his ire initially directed at [Envision - and, inevitably, Wehrlein](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-tokyo-fury-explained-porsche-jaguar-envision-da-costa-wehrlein/).
On Sunday, da Costa, who qualified an excellent second, got cut adrift in the second phase of the race as the track dried, as his wet-settings car spiralled swiftly down the order, as did that of team-mate Evans.
Da Costa came in last on the road, while Evans retired on the final lap when his rear suspension broke after a kerb strike and he elected to park it rather than inflict more damage upon the driveshaft and gearbox.
The overriding question after the race was why Jaguar had not used the full course yellow period to switch at least one of its cars to a set of dry-pressured Hankooks.
"Hindsight, it's a wonderful thing," said team principal Ian James. "We would definitely \[have changed\] would we have known what we know now. It is what is."
"The initial call to have both cars on essentially the same wet settings was made due to the \[weather\] information that we had," added James.
"I have zero criticism for the team or for the decisions that were taken and we took them collectively. There's always a lot of discussion in these situations; you look like a hero when you get it right and an idiot when you get it wrong."
Whatever sheen James tried to put on the Tokyo weekend, there was no hiding the fact that Jaguar missed a major opportunity to head to London in three weeks' time in much more better shape in the title fights.
Fourteen points from three races at the business end of the season is a worrying haul.
## Winner: Mahindra
**Edoardo Mortara (5th & DNF); Nyck de Vries (17th & 1st)**
After a very average Shanghai, Mahindra was back in the thick of the action with a pole position and a win, the first time since London in 2021 that it has achieved such a feat over a Formula E double-header weekend, courtesy of Alex Lynn back then.
Here, Mortara looked again to be the fastest driver over one lap, with a second place and pole position in the two qualifying sessions. But, as has happened too often this season, he came unstuck in the races - particularly on Sunday when he needlessly shunted Eriksson out of contention, triggering the red flag and earning himself a five-place grid drop for next month's London E-Prix.
It seems remarkable that while Mortara still has a win drought in Formula E stretching back almost four years, to Seoul in August 2022, Mahindra's two wins have come from De Vries - who has largely been in Mortara's shadow this season.
But the 2021 champion pulled off a sublime win on Sunday after a classic energy-saving strategy and clever late attack mode plan paid off handsomely.
"Nyck was very wise in the way he used his attack modes because he has been able each time to really get advantage of them," said team principal Frederic Bertrand.
"I think all together Nyck has now developed a very good understanding of the racing. That's what we were missing probably last season, beginning of the season people were saying, 'Ahh, but it was mostly our fault because we never gave him a good car' but now he's fully in and once he switches properly on, he's a very good student, he's delivering exactly to the plan."
A difficult start from De Vries yielded just 14 points from the first eight races. Seven races later he's on 94\. Come London, a circuit where he took a brace of second places last July, De Vries could easily finish in the top six this season.
## Winner: Dan Ticktum (1st & 12th)
A second E-Prix win was just a small part of Ticktum's Tokyo story last weekend, and for once any eccentric antics on or off the track were not even close to surfacing.
Well, there *was* the obligatory message for 'the haters' on Instagram but he could be allowed that because on Saturday he had been the model of a calm, collected winner.
While his maiden win at Jakarta last June was a breakthrough for the then-new Cupra Kiro squad, this one felt much more grown-up, in the sense that it was built upon a great strategy - with Ticktum nailing his attack mode laps as he painted the timing screens purple.
That essentially got him the undercut on his direct opposition and when the chance to pounce came with Dennis's last-lap drama, Ticktum gratefully accepted.
Ticktum's career, which has seen more flashpoints than a lighthouse, is currently in the balance as his seat at Kiro is believed to be up for grabs next season. Could a win and a strong end to the current campaign, one in which any histrionics or flip-outs are quashed, save his seat?
It feels like it may be too far gone already - and it may not be in Ticktum's hands.
Alternatives are being looked at on his side, but are they realistic? We'll find out in the next months or so as one of racing's rough diamonds gets ready to be either cut or polished.
## Loser: Felipe Drugovich (13th & 16th)
Drugovich had built up some impressive momentum in the last four events with a podium, a pole and six consecutive points scores.
But upon his first visit to Tokyo Big Sight, Drugovich left with nothing other than a destroyed car and never really showed any sign of continuing his excellent form.
The double-impact shunt at Turn 16 in FP2 on Saturday morning triggered a Herculean effort by the Andretti team to turn around a new survival cell, which was made all the more remarkable by the fact it was denied the official Porsche spare that was dressed with wiring looms and other key ancillary parts. Instead, it turned to one of the 'pool' spare tubs supplied by official parts provider Spark Racing Technologies, which was just a bare monocoque.
Any notion of a fairytale fightback result from there simply never looked on, as Drugovich's confidence appeared to take a dive around the tight confines of the track.
A slightly concerned Griffiths admitted that Drugovich "struggled a little bit" in Tokyo.
That may have been due to Andretti being forced, by the shunt, to change back to a powertrain previously used earlier in the season, when Drugovich struggled.
"We sort of found ourselves a little bit back where we started," reckoned Griffiths.
"So, we need to look into that going into London and make some decisions and decide how we want to approach London for him.
"For me, it's really important - as we want him to contribute, because the reason that we're in third place in the championship is because he was able to get really solid points on the board for us and take the fight to the Mahindra team.
"But also, I don't want him to finish the season on a downer. I want him to finish it on a high because that means, when he goes into Gen4, he's fired up and ready to go."
Compounding a poor weekend, Drugovich's initial 10th-place finish in Sunday's race was snatched away when he was given a post-race five-second penalty for a full course yellow speeding infraction.
## Winner: Citroen
**Nick Cassidy (3rd & 2nd); Jean-Eric Vergne (6th & 5th)**
A second and a third place for Nick Cassidy and a fifth and a sixth for Vergne ensured that Citroen had by far its best collective weekend since it entered the all-electric world championship at the end of 2025.
While that was a nice milestone, it meant so much more because of the tragic backdrop to the event, with the announcement of the passing of its team principal, [Cyril Blais](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-drivers-pay-tribute-to-sensitive-and-wonderful-blais/), a week before the weekend began.
Emotions naturally ran high as Blais' memory was honoured. It was an immensely difficult and distressing time for Citroen and, while the paddock rallied around it, team members conducted themselves with a professionalism and grace that was humbling just to witness in extraordinarily difficult and emotionally demanding circumstances.
Every member of the team should be proud of what they accomplished in the memory of their former colleague, who would have been justifiably delighted and proud for what they achieved.
"It means a huge, huge amount," Cassidy told The Race. "Honestly, it's been a really tough few months, not even the last couple of weeks. And so, it was really needed in many ways."
## Loser: Taylor Barnard (10th & 8th)
Barnard has been as quick as ever this season and, despite a few fraught races in which he has been unnecessarily brutal in battle, his performances have been top-drawer.
Tokyo was no exception - but a familiar pattern was followed via a bitter combination of technical frailty, poor efficiency compared to others, and a slice of genuine bad luck.
The technical issue came on Saturday when both he and team-mate Maximilian Guenther were hamstrung by a systems issue and had to drive blind on energy targets, which rooted Barnard to a single point for 10th.
A day later there was another strong qualifying performance. He lined up fourth, one place better off than on Saturday, and was the quickest of the drivers in the wettest element of the race, where he took the lead briefly.
But as the track dried, like so many others he watched helplessly as his pace dropped away.
As a result, through zero fault of his own, Barnard has to be considered a loser because he was actually tantalisingly close to winning the race on Sunday.
DS Penske prepared for Barnard to pit, as Mueller, under the FCY, but it was officially deployed just as Barnard went past the pitlane.
"We missed doing it by just under 10 seconds," a rueful Phil Charles, DS Penske deputy team principal, told The Race.
"We calculated we'd have won the race if we'd have done that. We just can't get a break."
## Winner: The title fight
The Race previewed the weekend's action by assuming that the title fight would be a three-way bare-knuckle contest between Evans, Wehrlein, and da Costa, with Dennis as a possible interloper.
While some of that still rings true, it is remarkably Dennis who will head to his home race with a slender two-point lead over Evans, while Wehrlein and Rowland place third and fourth, still very much in contention.
Mortara, da Costa and Cassidy are rank outsiders now, while Mueller and De Vries have only mathematical chances that need ludicrously freakish scenarios to play out.
What all that means is that Formula E will say farewell to the Gen3 era with a true epic of a finale at the ExCeL. (Which itself will pass the British electric racing baton on to [Brands Hatch](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/why-formula-e-chose-brands-hatch-over-silverstone/) next season.)
For the neutrals this is a dream scenario, one in which each driver has a milestone to aim for: Dennis is going for a second title in four seasons; Evans is aiming for his long-awaited first title in his last outings with Jaguar; Wehrlein aims to reprise his 2024 heroics for a second championship; Rowland aims to be the first back-to-back champion since Vergne in 2019.
Whichever way you look there is a great tale to be told, and as ever Formula E will tell it with inevitable chaos and controversy.
### Everything we learned from F1's Hungarian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-hungarian-grand-prix-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-28T18:25:10.000Z
All the main Formula 1 title contenders tripped up in one way or another in this year's Hungarian Grand Prix, while Aston Martin's 'B-spec' chassis made a big impression despite not really fighting for points.
Here's what we learned from the final race before the summer break.
## Ferrari's had its most painful 2026 miss
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur [could not hide his disappointment](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-big-opportunity-wasted-f1-hungarian-gp/) after the Hungarian Grand Prix when, on a weekend where his squad had the potential to finish 1-2 (and had been in those positions after Friday), it came away without a place on the podium.
Just as success in F1 is about getting a lot of details correct, so too can failure be the result of myriad small errors cascading a team into deeper trouble.
It was this story of its Hungaroring weekend that perhaps made it Ferrari's most painful defeat of all this season - because it had everything in its hands to do so well. The SF-26 looked to be super-fast and would likely have given race winner Lando Norris a tough time if it had found some clean air.
When Ferrari does its post-weekend analysis, it will know that its alternative run plan in qualifying, the communication error that earned Lewis Hamilton an impeding penalty, poor starts, giving up track position, tardy pitstops and a pitlane speed limit offence were all things that it should have done better with.
If Ferrari wants to win the championship this year, it cannot let opportunities like this slip through its fingers.
## Russell can't catch a break despite glimmer of hope
While a [rev control problem on the grid](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/george-russell-hungarian-gp-f1-start-mercedes/) triggered George Russell's nightmare start that continued his run of disappointments, there was at least a small glimmer of hope about one issue that has dogged him.
Off the back of the dark place he found himself in after the Belgian GP, where deployment problems had left him despondent, some software tweaks by Mercedes plus running on a more energy-rich circuit meant he was no longer scratching his head about straightline-speed deficits.
Whether those energy woes are fully put to bed won't be known in full until F1 next goes to a properly energy-starved track (Monza is not so far away), but there is at least more hope now that the worst may be behind him.
However, as that start showed, this seems to be a year where if something can go wrong for Russell it inevitably will.
Reflecting after the race about his level of exasperation, he said: "I've never had a season like this in my whole career, let alone my F1 career."
## Why Red Bull has a 'degradation' issue
When we talk about 'degradation' in F1 it is often linked to tyres and how best to manage temperatures or wear over the course of a race.
Red Bull found out the hard way in Hungary that its RB22 is susceptible to a bit of aerodynamic degradation, too, after Max Verstappen bemoaned how its worse and worse handling had left him battling something "completely undriveable" before his Q3 spin.
Speaking on the team radio immediately after the session, Verstappen had said: "Mate, the car is just completely broken aerodynamically, it's just getting worse and worse. What a joke. What. A. Joke, honestly. What a s\*\*t weekend."
The root cause of his problem appears to be that the RB22 is very sensitive aerodynamically, so anything that affects how the airflow is manipulated around the car can have big consequences in terms of its balance and feel.
Verstappen - who of course went on to finish second - appeared to have picked up some damage through qualifying as part of the kerb abuse that is key to a quick lap around the Hungaroring, with those broken parts affecting the aero and putting the performance out of kilter.
While Red Bull was able to make repairs for the race that made things better, a more permanent solution is either to make parts strong so they do not break or to adjust the aerodynamic mapping so it's not so sensitive and can operate at its peak around a wider operating window.
One of those solutions is much easier than the other - but comes with a weight penalty.
## Aston Martin is putting the fear into the midfield
Aston Martin's main rival up to now, Cadillac, was certainly well aware coming into the weekend of the threat posed by the green team's 'B-spec' upgrade. But the Hungarian GP laid bare the fact that it's not just Cadillac that needs to worry.
"We have to give respect to Aston Martin; I don't think our \[upcoming\] Baku upgrade is at the level of what they were able to put on the car," said Williams driver Alex Albon.
"Unfortunately, it feels like the Aston is going to be fastest for the rest of the year now. I think we're going to be helped out by some circuits down the straights but otherwise, if it's a corner-focused circuit, we're going to be on the back foot."
Team-mate Carlos Sainz also mentioned it at various points during the weekend, as did both Haas drivers. But Aston Martin's infusion of downforce is even giving Alpine something to think about.
"They look really strong in the corners," said Alpine driver Franco Colapinto. "Then on the straights, they are really slow and they are losing a lot of laptime. But in the corners, they are definitely a lot quicker than us."
All these teams were fighting well out of the points this weekend - and all need to improve. But suddenly Aston Martin looks the likeliest to actually do it.
## It's Honda's turn now
As is clear even from above, almost every conversation about the Aston upgrade has come with the caveat of 'it's still terrible on the straight'.
This is supposed to be addressed, at least partly, by a highly anticipated Honda upgrade that will run for the first time during a [filming day in Hungary](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-new-f1-engine-debut-summer-break-hungary/) before competing at Zandvoort after the summer break.
Fernando Alonso joked there was now "some pressure" on Honda to make a step, and it was clearly only half a joke.
"Nah, I mean, we are one team, we work together," he then insisted. "We know our weakness and we try to help each other.
"It's a long way to go. We understand that, we are aware of that. But this hopefully is the first step and both factories are gaining confidence and trust in what they do."
A step in power will go a long way in helping reinforce that "confidence and trust".
## Cadillac's biggest 2026 weakness isn't solved
A second reliability-related double-DNF in a four-race span was difficult to swallow, even if - as Sergio Perez reiterated - "obviously, being a new team, you kind of expect all these issues".
---
### 2026 DNFs or non-starts
**Aston Martin** \- 11
**Cadillac** \- 9
**Rest of field** \- 6 or fewer
---
What will be a little more alarming is that the problems appear to be concentrated in specific areas.
On Perez's end, it was a second suspension-related exit in two weekends. For Valtteri Bottas, he said pre-weekend that the Cadillacs probably weren't going to be able to finish without their Hungaroring brake cooling upgrade, then still retired because of brakes.
"The brake issue started, we had to start doing lift and coast. Then we thought we kind of recovered, the team told me to reduce the lift and coast, and then suddenly everything was on fire," he recounted.
"That new front duct was trying to address this issue, trying to prevent it from happening. But clearly we still need more airflow in the brakes."
## Haas is consigning itself to one-car weekends
Up until this weekend, though team principal Ayao Komatsu kept emphasising it was happening to both drivers, the Haas car parts consistency issue was much more of a talking point on Esteban Ocon's side. And team-mate Ollie Bearman cautioned on Thursday that his evident performance advantage over Ocon through 2026 was perhaps flattering to whatever the real gap is.
Bearman's graciousness was well-timed because it was he who toiled badly at the Hungaroring while Ocon suddenly felt at ease.
"Getting the car healthy, getting the maximum out of the car this weekend felt good," said Ocon. "There is a lot of stuff on my side that took long, but they are finally on my car as well, which I'm very happy about."
But Ocon also conceded that Bearman was suddenly having "exactly similar problems" as he had had before. "We know that's an ongoing issue."
"We're seeing that the car is not performing as it should," Bearman said. "I feel like I've done a good job, I've done my maximum and tried to get the most out of the car, but the feeling has been, like I said, nothing like what I had in Spa and we're measuring big deltas in terms of loads compared to that event and compared to the other car.
"It's been a horrible, horrible weekend and it's just a sign of how poor we are in terms of consistencies, because if it's not me - which it has been this weekend, and maybe one or two others - it's Esteban's car that is suddenly missing 10-15 points of load.
"So you're kind of just hoping you're going to be on the good side and if you are, you're going to have a decent weekend, and if you're not, you're going to have a really, really long one. We had the long one."
### Edd Straw's 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-hungarian-grand-prix-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T14:15:43.000Z
The first half of the 2026 Formula 1 season finished with a Hungarian Grand Prix where the form book looked a little different to normal - and it's the same story with Edd Straw's driver rankings, albeit to an even more exaggerated extent.
Take a look at a surprising top-three order below, and which two of F1 2026's midfield overachievers ended up right at the bottom of the order.
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and ask your questions** [**in reply to this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/ask-edd-about-f1-164962201?ref=the-race.com)**.**
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-164886548?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to in a separate feature!**
---
How do the rankings work? The 22 drivers will be ranked in order of performance from best to worst on each grand prix weekend. This will be based on the full range of criteria, ranging from pace and racecraft to consistency and whether they made key mistakes. How close each driver got to delivering on the maximum performance potential of the car will be an essential consideration.
It’s important to note both that this reflects performance across the entire weekend, cognisant of the fact that qualifying is effectively ‘lap 0’ of the race and key to laying the foundations to the race, and that it is not a ranking of the all-round qualities of each driver. It’s simply about how they performed on a given weekend. Therefore, the ranking will fluctuate significantly from weekend to weekend.
And with each of the 11 cars fundamentally having different performance potential and ‘luck’ (ie factors outside of a driver’s control) contributing to the way the weekend plays out, this ranking will also differ significantly from the overall results.
**Started**: 12th **Finished**: 12th
**PROS**
\- Given the pace of the Alpine, 12th place in qualifying, lapping 0.183s faster than team-mate Franco Colapinto, was as good as it was going to get.
\- Executed the race well on what turned into a three-stopper thanks to his VSC pitstop opportunity.
\- Finished behind only clearly faster cars, keeping the Aston Martins and the rest behind.
**CONS**
\- The problems of the Alpine meant he couldn't drive naturally, but given he extracted what potential the car had there wasn't anything he could have done to change that.
**Verdict**: Maximised the Alpine package and had a clear advantage over his team-mate.
**Started**: 10th **Finished**: 9th
**PROS**
\- Showed good pace throughout practice and couldn't have qualified any higher in terms of position.
\- Race speed meant he was a threat to Liam Lawson, and was able to split the Racing Bulls, albeit with Arvid Lindblad's one-stopper playing a part in that.
\- Executed the weekend, qualifying in particular, better than Gabriel Bortoleto.
**CONS**
\- Left perhaps a tenth on the table in Q3, although given the 0.4s gap to Lindblad there's no chance he could have challenged him for ninth on the grid.
\- There might have been a way to finish a place higher, although Audi's lack of qualifying pace relative to Racing Bulls meant that would have required him to find a way past Lawson, so it's hardly a big negative.
**Verdict**: Close to the maximum of what was possible with the Audi.
**Started**: 1st **Finished**: 1st
**PROS**
\- Although he felt it "wasn't my finest" qualifying lap, in tricky conditions he put the McLaren ahead of two Ferraris that had a higher ceiling.
\- Was impressively quick, a clear step ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri, and was mighty on heavily used hards at the end of his second stint.
\- Even if he had not jumped Piastri in the second round of stops, it's possible he could have passed him on track.
**CONS**
\- Ran off the road at Turn 4 while chasing Piastri in the second stint.
\- Lost the lead on the opening lap.
\- Needed the Piastri/Carlos Sainz collision to make sure he got ahead of his team-mate.
**Verdict**: Stunningly quick, but had a slice of fortune in the race.
**Started**: 4th **Finished**: 2nd
**PROS**
\- Was the quicker Red Bull driver through the weekend, lapping 0.131s faster than Isack Hadjar in Q3.
\- The opportunistic pass on Lewis Hamilton for third place was arguably the overtaking move of the season.
\- Given the pace of the car, certainly couldn't have finished higher than he did and probably couldn't have been better than fourth on the grid.
**CONS**
\- Spun on his final Q3 lap, although he was already slower than his first attempt and struggling with what he characterised as aerodynamic degradation.
\- Struggled with the car, but this is hardly a big negative given his team-mate also did.
**Verdict**: Dragged the Red Bull to a better result than it deserved, but Q3 spin is a small blemish.
**Started**: 3rd **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Piastri's qualifying deficit of 0.477s to Norris was not representative given his final Q3 attempt was ruined by Hamilton being parked on the apex at Turn 1 - although he would still have been behind.
\- Wasn't at fault for the contact with Sainz, as there was a reasonable expectation that he would not be driven into.
\- Given Piastri's pace deficit, to make the pass at Turn 2 on the opening lap then lead for the first couple of stints before Sainz hit him was a masterclass in making the best of a difficult situation.
**CONS**
\- Struggled to get on top of the McLaren, with the mitigating factor that he sat out FP1 for rookie Leonardo Fornaroli and didn't get the McLaren floor upgrade until Saturday.
\- Simply did not have Norris's pace, which meant he was more threatened by the overcut than he should have been.
**Verdict**: Hauling yourself into a potential winning position while struggling for pace takes a rare kind of magic.
**Started**: 16th **Finished**: 14th
**PROS**
\- Acclimatised well to the dramatically overhauled Aston Martin and did a good job to reach Q2.
\- The improvements to the car at least meant Alonso was able to show his competitive edge after spending recent races with nothing to fight for.
\- Defeat to Lance Stroll in the race was largely down to strategy, in particular his marathon 34-lap opening stint on softs.
**CONS**
\- Left perhaps a fraction on the table in Q2 with an over-aggressive Turn 13, perhaps enough to have pipped Esteban Ocon.
\- Had a pace advantage in the final stint, but ran out of time to catch Stroll.
**Verdict**: Made the most of the improved Aston Martin, which finally let him go racing.
**Started**: 15th **Finished**: 16th
**PROS**
\- Parts changes, and the switch to a new steering rack that gave him improved feel, meant that he was delighted with the consistency of the car, which was reflected in his performance.
\- Outqualified Ollie Bearman by 0.223s and put what was the eight-fastest car 15th in qualifying, which was realistically as high as it was going to get.
\- A good first lap meant he ran 12th in the early laps, before being shuffled back.
**CONS**
\- Advantage over Bearman was partly down to Bearman having problem parts, but Ocon's been on the wrong side of that more often than not.
\- Had an off-track moment at the first corner after an overly aggressive around-the-outside attempt to gain more ground.
**Verdict**: At one with the car for the first time in a while and reminded everyone what he can do.
**Started**: 11th **Finished**: 8th
**PROS**
\- Decisive dive on Lindblad at the first corner meant he got himself to the front of the midfield and was able to stay there.
\- Did a good job to catch and clear one-stopping Bortoleto and Lindblad to make sure of eighth place.
**CONS**
\- Described Q2 as "terribly executed", with a lockup on his first lap then a "really bad" second attempt that meant he failed to make Q3 and qualified behind the slower Audi of Hulkenberg.
**Verdict**: Although he recovered in the race, Q2 underachievement counts against him.
**Started**: 9th **Finished**: 10th
**PROS**
\- Showed good pace and got the best-possible qualifying position, even if he did feel he left a little time on the table in Q3.
\- Executed a one-stopper well, even though it inevitably cost him a position to Hulkenberg having run ahead of him initially.
**CONS**
\- Slipped behind his team-mate to a first-corner move, which ultimately cost him two places in the final result because it put him on the wrong side of the one/two-stop split Racing Bulls opted for.
**Verdict**: Qualifying was strong, the race decent but was ultimately one in which he could have finished eighth.
**Started**: 21st **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Of the five drivers who sat out FP1 to allow rookies to drive, Bottas was the one who dealt best with the loss of track time.
\- Had the intra-team advantage over Sergio Perez throughout the weekend.
\- Brake overheating problem was down to problems outside of his control.
**CONS**
\- Perez's problems make a fair comparison with his team-mate inconclusive.
\- Cadillac being cast adrift at the back meant he had little to race for.
**Verdict**: Difficult to benchmark him, but showed good pace and execution.
**Started**: 7th **Finished**: 3rd
**PROS**
\- Once again had the measure of George Russell in terms of pace throughout the weekend.
\- Drove a decent race, although climbing from seventh to third was largely thanks to Russell's disastrous start, Ferrari floundering, and Piastri's retirement.
**CONS**
\- The way he tried to deal with the yellow flag for Verstappen showed he had learned from what happened in Austria, but his execution - lifting early but then being 3km/h faster than previously when he passed the spun car - wasn't quite right.
\- Attempted one stopper didn't work, as the wear rate meant he'd have come up short.
**Verdict**: Yellow flag misjudgement counts against him.
**Started**: 2nd **Finished**: 4th
**PROS**
\- While he wasn't as quick as Hamilton, he did have a cleaner weekend overall.
\- Did what he could on a strategy that wasn't ideal.
**CONS**
\- Was the slower Ferrari driver.
\- Seemed not to deal well with the patches of relayed asphalt at Turn 1 and Turn 12, which consistently cost him time in qualifying.
\- Dropped three places at the start, but that was largely down to the team misjudging the grip available on the dirty side of the grid.
**Verdict**: Slower than Hamilton, but ahead because of his team-mate's errors.
**Started**: 8th **Finished**: 6th
**PROS**
\- Although he wasn't satisfied with Q3, lapping 0.131s off Verstappen was a decent effort.
\- Drove two good race stints once onto the hards.
\- Kept Russell at arm's length in the closing stages.
**CONS**
\- Struggled in the first stint with degradation on mediums, which meant the pace delta to Verstappen was significant.
\- Ultimately, the fact he finished sixth in a car that Verstappen took second place in shows there was more performance to extract.
**Verdict**: A solid weekend in tricky circumstances, but not at Verstappen's level.
**Started**: 6th **Finished**: 7th
**PROS**
\- Recovered well from dropping to 21st in the race, and it's unlikely he could have done much more.
\- Was unfortunate to have the cracked sump in qualifying that led to water being fired onto his tyres, ruining his final qualifying lap.
**CONS**
\- Although he had a part in the car slipping into anti-stall at the start, the team took most of the responsibility.
\- Didn't have Antonelli's pace, despite there being no deployment troubles this weekend.
**Verdict**: Had plenty of misfortune, but again a step behind Antonelli.
**Started**: 19th **Finished**: 17th
**PROS**
\- Made good progress through Friday, including making gains with suspension set-up, and initially had the edge on Sainz in terms of pace.
\- Drove a good, clean race in difficult circumstances given the car's erratic behaviour, suggesting there were only six laps when the wind stabilised and he could push.
**CONS**
\- Was marginally the slower Williams driver in qualifying, albeit by just 0.037s.
\- Forced to "underdrive" because of the inconsistencies of the Williams that impacted both drivers.
**Verdict**: Fundamentally limited by the problems of the Williams that made driving more about survival than pushing.
**Started**: 20th **Finished**: 13th
**PROS**
\- A mitigating factor is that he lost much of Friday practice to the rear-left suspension failure that struck in FP1, meaning he had only 31 practice laps in total compared to Alonso's 61.
\- His underlying pace was better than the 0.533s gap to Alonso in qualifying suggests.
\- Drove a good race and managed to keep the rapidly-closing Alonso behind in the final stint.
**CONS**
\- A tailwind approaching Turn 12, combined with braking too late, ruined his final qualifying lap, and as before that error he was around a tenth-and-a-half slower than Alonso's Q1 lap it's unlikely he would have made Q2.
\- Strategy allowed him to beat Alonso, who did have a slight pace advantage.
**Verdict**: Not quite at Alonso's level, but had a solid, clean weekend.
**Started**: 22nd (pits) **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Suspension failure that eliminated him from the race, and general car troubles, weren't down to anything Perez did wrong.
\- No self-inflicted errors on a difficult weekend.
**CONS**
\- Struggled with the car, particularly in the high-speed corners, although suspension set-up changes were made in parc ferme, forcing a pitlane start, to tackle this.
\- Lacked pace compared to Bottas in qualifying and race conditions, but with evidence of car troubles.
**Verdict**: Factors outside of his control made this a wasted weekend on which he didn't have the chance to impress.
**Started**: 5th **Finished**: 5th
**PROS**
\- Had the edge over Leclerc on single-lap pace, beating him by 0.226s despite a difficult Q3.
\- Overall, he had higher potential than Leclerc and would likely still have been on the podium but for taking the late pitstop.
**CONS**
\- While impeding Piastri at the end of Q3 was largely down to the pitwall's poor communication, and he told stewards he couldn't see the McLaren in his mirrors, there's always something the driver could have done to avoid such a mistake.
\- Although his pitlane speeding violation was by the tiniest of margins, it was ultimately down to him releasing the speed limiter a fraction earlier than he should have done.
\- Was caught napping by Verstappen at Turn 1 after gaining the position in the pitstops.
**Verdict**: Good pace, but made several errors that cost him a much better result.
**Started**: 14th **Finished**: 11th
**PROS**
\- His underlying pace was good enough to have been in the top 10 in qualifying and the race.
\- Made a good fist of trying to hang onto a points position having made gains to a one-stopper, before slipping to 11th with 11 laps remaining.
**CONS**
\- Qualifying got away from him in Q2, and while on the first run that was because of the yellow flag caused by Hadjar's spin, on the final run he made errors.
\- Floor damage contributed to that poor final Q2 run, but it was caused by his wide moment at Turn 4 on the first lap of that segment.
\- Time lost behind Ocon in the early laps made his race more difficult, although the Audi's start troubles contributed to that situation.
**Verdict**: Poor Q2 swung the weekend against him and ultimately cost him points.
**Started**: 13th **Finished**: 15th
**PROS**
\- Missing FP1 is a mitigating factor in his struggles.
\- After lap-one error, had a clean race, just not an especially quick one, on his way to finishing behind the Aston Martins.
**CONS**
\- Turn 14 crash on only his fourth push lap of the weekend in FP2 was doubly costly given he sat out FP1 for Paul Aron.
\- Middle-sector struggles were responsible for much of the 0.183s gap to Gasly in qualifying.
\- First-lap off at Turn 4 cost him two places and was the main reason for the divergence between his and Gasly's races.
**Verdict**: A step behind Gasly, which combined with practice crash and lap-one off added up to a disappointing weekend.
**Started**: 18th **Finished**: 18th
**PROS**
\- Turned around his weekend well after struggling in practice, particularly with a gearbox-related rear end problem, to shade Albon in qualifying.
\- Pace in the race was strong relative to the machinery, and he would have finished higher but for the penalty for the Piastri collision and what he called an "unnecessary" third pitstop.
**CONS**
\- While there were mitigating factors in the blue flag system problems and the fact he was battling with Alonso, clattering into Piastri - then continuing to hold him up for several more corners - was a blunder that also compromised his finishing position thanks to the resulting penalty.
\- There was a little more pace in the car in qualifying, although extracting it would have been difficult given how inconsistent both Williams drivers found the machinery.
**Verdict**: Pace was good, but the Piastri collision was careless and led to his race result being compromised.
**Started**: 17th **Finished**: 19th
**PROS**
\- By way of mitigation, missing FP1 and practice troubles meant he only logged 42 laps before qualifying, the third-lowest tally in the field.
\- Being on the wrong side of Haas's parts inconsistency made the weekend one of survival, which he at least achieved.
**CONS**
\- Spin at Turn 2 and penalty for ignoring blue flags, albeit with the mitigation of system problems that caused blue-flag confusion, compromised his race.
\- Lacked pace relative to Ocon, but given he described the car as a "nightmare" this was down to the machinery.
**Verdict**: Car troubles explain lack of pace, but the race errors count against him.
### Red Bull's poached its new Marko from Mercedes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-poaches-f1-talent-scout-from-mercedes-gwen-lagrue/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T14:34:39.000Z
Red Bull has captured the Mercedes talent scout who helped discover Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli, in a move that team sources say is an important step in its bid to return to the top.
As first revealed by [BBC Sport](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/formula1/articles/cvg7kdnv4p2o?ref=the-race.com), Gwen Lagrue has agreed to leave Mercedes and join rival Red Bull. The move was officially announced by Red Bull on July 27, one week after that report and The Race's subsequent corroboration.
Lagrue, who has been with Mercedes for a decade and helped guide several drivers into F1, is to become the director of Red Bull's junior driver programme.
At Red Bull, Lagrue will take on a lot of the responsibilities that were under the remit of its former motorsport advisor Helmut Marko before he left at the end of last season.
Discussions were taking place between the teams about a timeline for the transition, but Red Bull has now confirmed Lagrue will join its leadership team in 2027.
Mercedes also needs to work out who best to take over the running of its own successful young driver programme, with its current line-up of Antonelli and George Russell having come through it.
One possibility is that Bradley Lord, who stepped up earlier this year to become deputy team principal, will take on more responsibility on this front.
The capture of Lagrue comes with the Frenchman having known compatriot Laurent Mekies for a long time, with their paths having crossed many times in F1.
Having now had a full year in charge of Red Bull to fully understand its workings, Mekies is focused on strengthening the team in areas he thinks are critical for the future.
Lagrue's signing is viewed as important in showing how serious Red Bull is in laying foundations for the long term, and is a demonstration that it is attractive to high-quality people who have helped win championships elsewhere.
One source said Mekies was determined to pull together the right people with the right mindset and spirit to push the team on.
Lagrue's arrival will also counter an impression from the outside that Red Bull has only been losing people, following the departures of several leading figures over the past 12 months.
So while there have been some high-profile recent exits, including Max Verstappen's race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase agreeing to join McLaren and chief engineer Paul Monaghan's future in doubt amid links to Cadillac, the signing of someone such as Lagrue will demonstrate conviction from a respected paddock figure that Red Bull has a strong future.
This could act as an important signal in convincing other senior personnel to have faith in joining the Red Bull project too.
### Russell's start problem wasn't actually what Antonelli thought
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/george-russell-hungarian-gp-f1-start-mercedes/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T12:25:46.000Z
George Russell's world championship hopes took another dent in Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix after a disastrous start left him briefly at the back of the field.
His Mercedes had failed to get away when the lights went out, as he hit anti-stall before managing to finally get going.
Straight after the race, Russell had no immediate explanation for what had gone wrong - as he suggested his car had not responded properly to his throttle inputs during the start sequence.
"I was on the throttle holding the revs and then all of a sudden, about four seconds before the lights went out, the engine just started revving all over the place," he said.
"I was reacting with my throttle, and it was doing nothing. So, the engine wasn't reacting to the throttle."
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff also suggested something strange had taken place.
"It looks like that he gave about 10% throttle and the whole thing revved maximum," explained Wolff. "He went off the throttle, and it bogged down.
"So, I'm really not happy about too many mistakes that happen."
## The top of the pack theory
Despite no immediate answers for Russell's problems while the race was going on, initial suspicions pointed to Russell having hit the top of the battery pack and subsequently suffered the consequences of this.
This was a suspicion that team-mate Kimi Antonelli had when he watched it for the first time in the post-race cool down room.
This top-of-the-pack issue relates to one of the big challenges that drivers have faced in trying to master the art of getting the 2026 turbo hybrid engines off the start line.
As part of the start sequence for the complicated 2026 cars, drivers need to hold high revs for several seconds to help build exhaust energy, spin the turbine and reduce turbo lag before launch.
The aim is to maximise turbo boost before the start for that critical initial launch phase, where extra battery power from the MGU-K is not allowed until the car is at 50km/h.
Drivers have to carefully manage the timing of this process because high revving charges the battery - and if it hits the top of the pack, then that can have a consequence in the MGU-K then not providing any resistance, turbo boost falling off, the revs going sky high and the fuel flow and throttle opening being cut off.
As McLaren's technical director of performance Mark Temple explained earlier this year: "The turbo spools better when there is load on the engine; free revving it while stationary doesn't provide much load.
"The MGU-K can provide a load against the engine, recharging the battery in the process, but if the battery is already full, then it can't provide a load, and the turbo won't spool well."
## Rev control problem
Mercedes had appeared to be well on top of this matter since it faced issues on this front in pre-season testing, so it was unusual that this would suddenly strike halfway through the campaign.
Analysis done by the team overnight has now ruled out this being a top of the pack problem, with Russell's poor start actually being caused by an issue with the car's rev control management on the grid.
This major fluctuation in revs was something Russell had referenced and he was trying to manage it by adjusting his throttle application during the start sequence.
In manipulating the throttle to try to get things lined up for the start, Russell had the misfortune of being at 10% throttle when the lights went out.
That meant there was not enough power for a successful launch and instead the car went into anti-stall.
One factor that may have had an influence in the problem striking was that the start sequence in Hungary was longer than it typically is.
The time from the pre-start blue lights flashing to the five starting red lights going out in Hungary was around 13 seconds, which is at the upper end of the normal window.
At last weekend's Belgian GP, it was little more than 10 seconds between the blue lights flashing and the red lights going out.
Russell said that Mercedes was doing all it could to try to get a better understanding of where things were going wrong and what needed to be done to make things better.
"Obviously the problems are happening, but the whole team feels it as well," he said after recovering to seventh. "They're as pissed off as I am with how it's unfolded.
"We need to look at ourselves and ensure there's nothing we're doing wrong that is contributing to these errors.
"I've never had a season like this in my whole career, let alone my F1 career."
---
\*The original version of this story was based on the latest information Mercedes had on Sunday, post-race - which had tallied with Antonelli's initial assessment of a top-of-the-pack issue.
### Why is Hamilton picking up so many penalties?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-f1-2026-penalties-stewards/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T09:17:48.000Z
Lewis Hamilton says he must stop giving the FIA stewards "any reason" to give him penalties, after his fourth sanction in three Formula 1 weekends at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Hamilton was handed a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane late on, which meant he dropped from fourth on the road to fifth in the classification behind Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Off the back of having been on the receiving end of punishments in Britain and Belgium, plus having had a grid drop in Hungary, Hamilton came on team radio when informed of his speeding penalty and said: "Ay, handing out penalties like crazy."
Later, just after he crossed the finish line, Hamilton added another pointed reference.
"Every opportunity I give those stewards…every single time they give me a penalty," he said over the radio.
But is there any significance to this run of sanctions?
## The Hungary penalty
Hamilton's penalty for speeding in the pitlane came during a late tyre change under the virtual safety car at the Hungaroring.
The official stewards' document stated that Hamilton had broken the 80km/h limit by just 0.1km/h.
Team principal Fred Vasseur hinted that the breach could have been even smaller than that though, as he suggested there is a tiny amount of leeway allowed that Hamilton had crept over.
"The limit was 80\[km/h\], but the FIA agree to 80.05 and we did 80.06," said Vasseur, with the speeds likely then rounded up to give the 0.1km/h disparity.
Vasseur added: "When the weekend is going in the wrong direction, 0.1\[km/h\] is a big delta."
Until a few years ago the FIA used to allow a tolerance up to 80.9km/h before deeming cars to have broken the speed limit.
However, this had simply resulted in teams pushing the boundaries even more and targeting that upper allowance as the standard – so it was cut back to the zero tolerance approach used now.
It is up to teams to ensure that their systems are perfectly calibrated so the speed stays below 80km/h during all the mini-sectors where timings are taken.
It is also up to the driver to ensure they hit the pit limiter button at the right point on the entry and release it perfectly on the exit.
In Hamilton's case, Vasseur suggests that, in the seven-time champion's eagerness to get out ahead of Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli, he had released the limiter too early on the way out of the pits.
The push to get back up to speed was a potential consequence of Hamilton having felt he had lost time slightly when he locked up as he stopped in the pit box – costing him and his mechanics time as they had to readjust slightly.
"It's probably a succession of mistakes," said Vasseur about what happened. "He locked the wheel on the pitstop, and we lost a couple of tenths during the pitstop.
"Then he probably was trying to be optimal with the pit lane release, but he was a bit too early.
"I think when you start to do a mistake, it's quite easy to do more than one - and this weekend is a good example.
"We are trying to push during the pitstop and so we are losing something. At the pit exit, we are two tenths of a second behind someone, and it's a succession of faults."
## Four in four races
Hamilton's post-chequered flag comment was in reference to a run of FIA stewards decisions going against him.
At the British Grand Prix, he was given a five-second penalty for a jump start after his car crept forward before the lights went out.
At last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix, he was handed a five-second penalty for a first-lap collision with George Russell that his Mercedes rival felt was just a racing incident.
And then in Hungary, prior to his speeding offence, Hamilton was handed a three-place grid drop for impeding Oscar Piastri in qualifying.
But while he has noted the run of decisions going against him, Hamilton does not sense a campaign against him – as he accepts he must take responsibility for some of them.
"Ultimately, I think the last three races have been pretty bad from my side," he said. "Silverstone was my fault with the start.
"The last race, even the driver that I collided with \[Russell\] said that it was just a racing incident. That one they dished out. I think that one was not needed, but that's cost me a lot of points.
"Then the one yesterday \[with Piastri\] was really just unfortunate. I take responsibility ultimately, being on track, I should have looked in my mirrors.
"I thought everyone would have been on the end of the fast lap. And the information I got was right at the end, right by the time he was behind me. So that was a communication error."
Hamilton said that what was essential was not putting himself in situations where the FIA stewards are looking into punishments in the first place.
"I've got to try and make sure I don't give them any reason to give me any penalties moving forwards," he said.
Hamilton finds himself in a title battle for the first time in half a decade, but this too looks unrelated to the situation at hand. The Hungary grid drop was a procedural error, and while you could connect penalties in the British GP and Belgian GP to competitive eagerness, the case looks tenuous.
Only the speeding penalty this Sunday looks to be a clear consequence of over-ambition.
"It's difficult to put all the penalties in the same basket," Vasseur insisted when asked whether the sanctions were a reflection of the title situation. "For me, the accident with Russell \[in Spa\], it's a race incident. I think if he has to do it again, I would ask him to do exactly the same, because he can't go on the kerb."
Hamilton says that the FIA is looking into tweaking the way that jump starts are judged in the wake of what happened to him at Silverstone.
"We did talk in the drivers' briefing about the fact that they're inconsistent with this start \[situation\]," he said.
"There's been drivers in the past that have moved and haven't been penalised. We discussed with them the fact that as long as you're not moving when the last lights are on, you shouldn't be penalised.
"I wasn't out of my box, and they agreed. So they're looking into that for the future."
### 'Poor' Ferrari just wasted a big opportunity
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-big-opportunity-wasted-f1-hungarian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-27T03:50:09.000Z
Ferrari Formula 1 team principal Fred Vasseur said "poor" execution reflected in "too many mistakes" was the reason for his team's disappointing Hungarian Grand Prix.
Vasseur was keen to stress Ferrari outscored main constructors' championship rival Mercedes (albeit by just one point), but much more was expected from the SF-26 around the twisty confines of the Hungaroring - and allowing Kimi Antonelli to extend his points lead over Lewis Hamilton in the drivers' standings from 45 to 50 was a difficult pill to swallow.
So Vasseur, who has usually preached calmness and the avoidance of race-by-race emotional whiplash in his time as the chief of Ferrari, seemed more openly frustrated than usual.
## The 'uncorrelated' pace
While the Ferraris looked competitive on the C5 softs but limited on the C4 mediums in the race, and eventual race winner Lando Norris appeared out of reach, Vasseur indicated there wasn't enough of a clean-air sample to know whether his two drivers could've challenged for the win.
Charles Leclerc, who was classified fourth, argued that the SF-26 proved too erratic. "We weren't particularly stellar at any point of the race," he insisted. "The first stint on hards wasn't bad. The last stint on softs was pretty good.
"But then there were too many ups and downs. And I think that's really where we need to work, is try and find that consistency with this car - because it's just been very, very tricky on some stints for Lewis and some other stints with me. And it's just a little bit strange how uncorrelated everything is."
But Vasseur said "it's difficult to clearly understand the pace" and that "a different race" was on the cards had Leclerc stayed second off the line, between the two McLarens.
"It's not a good Sunday, because when you are 1-2 on Friday you expect much more than P4-P5," he said. "And on top of that we made too many mistakes, starting with the start, with the \[pitlane speeding\] penalty, with the fact that Max \[Verstappen\] overtook us on track, that each time that we were doing a pitstop we are losing a position for 0.2 or 0.3 seconds.
"Everything went wrong, but for sure we have to do a much better job on Sunday.
"I think the pace was better, the pure pace; the pure pace of the team was probably better this weekend than Spa or Silverstone. We were in front in FP1, in FP2, we were able to fight for pole with Lewis. I think the execution was very poor. It's more the execution."
That included what Vasseur described as "a succession of mistakes" on Hamilton's side, from a loss of time during the final pitstop that allowed Antonelli to squeeze past on the run to the timing line, to a pitlane speeding transgression by 0.1km/h that Vasseur indicated was the result of Hamilton switching off the limiter a fraction too early.
## A blown strategy chance?
Hamilton, for his part, described the race as "pretty bad, pretty frustrating".
The speeding penalty dropped him behind Leclerc in the classification, but track position had been lost already to Antonelli with the pitstop during the virtual safety car for Oscar Piastri's issue. Hamilton believed in hindsight he should have stayed out - like Verstappen behind him did on fresher but softer tyres.
"I'm not really sure why we stopped at the end," Hamilton said. "I got the call right before the pitlane entry, so I didn't have time to debate it.
"I would never have stopped if it meant that I was giving up track position. So, I thought that that would not be the case.
"I think \[staying out\] we probably would have lost out to Max, probably. He was on fresher tyres. I would imagine. Maybe in that last stint. I may have been able to hold on to P2\. He was catching me. But most likely it would have been P3\. It would have \[still\] been much better."
Staying out would've required Hamilton to see out a 40-lap stint on the hard tyre instead of switching to softs. In hindsight, this was proven possible by less-performant cars, as in 10th and 11th Arvid Lindblad and Gabriel Bortoleto ended the race with 49 and 40 laps on their sets of the C3 respectively (though neither driver was happy about this).
Vasseur was defensive of the decision to pit. "We realised that the soft was not that bad, we used the stint of Max \[as reference\] and we decided to go for the soft because we had the oldest hard of the field \[at that moment\].
"As we had a poor start, we tried to do the undercut, we put the \[new\] tyres very early \[in each stint\] - and you have to take decisions before the results. I think if I had to do the same, I would do the same today, try to push with the soft."
### Winners and losers from F1's 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-f1-2026-hungarian-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T18:56:40.000Z
The reigning world champion won the Hungarian Grand Prix, and a Formula 1 superteam full of great technical minds finished ahead of a number of other cars.
Normally neither of those things would be very surprising, but this is the 2026 F1 season, so actually the Hungaroring produced quite a few form flips.
Here's our take on the stars and flops.
## Winner: Max Verstappen (2nd)
Credit to Red Bull for its part in Verstappen's strategy, particularly for clocking that the soft was a viable tyre for Verstappen to take for 29 laps in the final stint. (As a couple of cars, including Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin, had proved earlier in the race.)
But you have to give so much credit to Verstappen, too. The Red Bull was, on balance, the fourth-fastest car at the Hungaroring and while the top teams were more evenly-matched in race trim than at arguably any other track so far in this rules cycle, the RB22 really didn't have any right being on the podium.
Had it not been for his late-race retirement at Silverstone, Verstappen would in all likelihood now have four podium finishes in a row. Not bad in a car that again, on balance, has probably been fourth-best across that span of weekends.
Yet more evidence (as if it were necessary) of the level he's operating at, and why F1 needs him to stay put. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Loser: Oscar Piastri (DNF)
Taking the lead at the start of the race was "definitely the highlight" for Piastri, but "it went pretty downhill from there".
It was clear Lando Norris had the pace advantage on him despite Piastri's opportunistic first lap. Piastri's pace on the hard tyre was "nowhere", and then "obviously getting [taken out by a backmarker](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dumb-driving-or-a-good-excuse-piastris-rage-at-sainz/) is never really one of the things you think can go wrong, but I was proven wrong".
In a season where race-winning competitiveness has been absent for McLaren, this was a massive missed opportunity for team and driver to seal a 1-2 - even if that was ultimately down to a technical issue.
You can tell how much this hurt Piastri considering how aggressively he's gone after Carlos Sainz in the post-race interviews, telling Viaplay the way the lapped Williams veered into him was "one of the dumbest things I've ever seen on a racetrack". **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner: Lando Norris (1st)
"I think today was some of the best pace I've had," was Norris's immediate assessment after his victory, and he was pretty spot on given he was undoubtedly the fastest driver on track.
Of course, it didn't all go the McLaren driver's way. He was overtaken after a small moment at Turn 2 on the first lap by Piastri, but was pretty unfazed barring a couple of typical "I'm faster" radio messages. A few more off-track moments followed, but Norris admitted he never once lost the belief that he could win the race.
Insistent on proving that he had that pace by going a bit off-course with his strategy, he eventually got to do just that with the overcut. After getting out ahead of Piastri and feeling "so much more confident" in his McLaren following the introduction of its first major upgrades, Norris was simply able to pull away to a first victory of 2026.
"There was luck on my side," Norris admitted after his team-mate's late misfortune. However, it wasn't just luck, but the sheer pace and confidence he had that got him over the line. **\- Eden Hannigan**
## Loser: Ferrari (4th & 5th)
"There were two races where we were expecting to struggle and we finished first and second. And in the race where we expected to do well, we finished fourth and fifth."
Charles Leclerc neatly summed up the baffling missed opportunity of the low-on-power, great-in-corners Ferrari going from its commanding Friday at the twisty, short-on-straights Hungaroring to not even getting a car on the podium. Having of course just won and been a close second at the power-hungry Silverstone and Spa.
This wasn't Ferrari's smoothest weekend for execution or tactics, of course. But it wasn't just that. On paper this was a golden chance to take a gouge out of Mercedes' championship advantages - and instead it lost ground in the drivers' title race and only nibbled one point back in the constructors'. **\- MB**
## Loser: George Russell (7th)
There's no point really trying to sugarcoat this, is there?
"I'm sort of past the point of disappointment now," said Russell after his seventh-place finish which, if we are to clutch at straws, did at least mark a decent recovery considering he dropped to 22nd off the line.
He said of another "technical issue" at the start, reported as anti-stall at the time, that four seconds before the lights went out "the engine just started revving all over the place" and "I was reacting with my throttle and it was doing nothing".
But let's not pretend that without that this was going to arrest the trend of Kimi Antonelli simply looking the faster of the two Mercedes drivers.
As Russell said of his race, "the result was s\*\*\*. But the things that I could have controlled, they were just OK" - and in truth he's probably slightly fortunate that Mercedes' relative pace this weekend meant Antonelli couldn't inflict a bigger defeat on him.
All in all, a pretty flat way to end the first half of the season. "I usually don't feel like I need a break; this year I definitely feel like I need one." **\- JC**
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (3rd)
With Russell starting pretty much in reverse and Ferrari finding all kinds of ways to score fewer points than it should, this always had the potential to be a great title bid day for Antonelli whatever he did.
There was a point when it looked like he might be able to pull the one-stop strategy off and victory from seventh on the grid looked achievable. And other phases where it looked like an anonymous, but not very costly, edge-of-top-six result would be his limit.
In the end a podium and a championship lead five points bigger than he arrived with counts as a very decent day's work. **\- MB**
## Winner: Aston Martin (13th & 14th)
Another excellent day at the office - by its 2026 standards - for Aston Martin, which appeared to run smoothly and beat plenty of other cars. The only surprise was that Lance Stroll finished ahead of Alonso despite starting four places behind him!
A very early stop to get rid of the softs for Stroll while Alonso did over 30 laps on his first set of them was the key in that change-around. However, which one of them was ahead doesn't really matter too much when they're still outside the points.
The takeaways are clear: the team now needs an [engine upgrade from Honda](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-new-f1-engine-debut-summer-break-hungary/) looking at its performance on the straights, and, while it not be the case at every track, this weekend at least that first upgrade put it straight ahead of Williams, Haas and Cadillac in very impressive fashion. **\- JB**
## Loser: Cadillac (DNF & DNF)
On a weekend Aston Martin brought its big upgrade, it looked more like the other teams at the back of the pack floundered more than usual, and none epitomised that more than the on-fire and broken Cadillacs.
Valtteri Bottas was the first to retire with brake issues. Just as the team suggested things were improving and he could reduce the lift and coast he and Sergio Perez had been doing to guard against Cadillac's habitual problem, "suddenly, everything was on fire".
It's doubly painful as the team's new brake ducts were brought to Hungary to solve this exact issue.
Perez's race-ending issue is yet to be fully diagnosed but is not the same as the suspension issue that you may remember took him out in Canada, and is "internal".
Cadillac can be forgiven for being slower than its rivals given the team's newness, but its apparent inability to solve some of its fundamental reliability weaknesses has to remain a worry. **\- JB**
## Winner: Nico Hulkenberg (9th)
There was a brief bit of debate over Nico Hulkenberg's place in this list. After all, without Piastri's retirement this would only have been 10th - if that, as he was 12th and pursuing Liam Lawson's Racing Bulls at the time of the VSC deployment.
But Hulkenberg does get the nod for being generally the stronger of the two Audi drivers across the weekend, and of course for landing his first points of the 2026 season - which he felt was "very overdue".
The only slight regret might be that best-of-the rest status was achievable - but considering that place to Lawson was lost at the start, and the Audi's generally been difficult to get off the line this season, it hardly feels as though that can be held against Hulkenberg. **\- JC**
## Loser: Williams (17th & 18th)
Sainz felt this might be the worst weekend of the season and so that proved, with Williams mired at the back and actually even closer to Cadillac behind than Haas ahead of it in the pecking order.
What it really didn't need to make that performance look even more galling, then, was Aston Martin's "eye-opening" performance step that took it firmly into the midfield and well ahead of Williams - where Alex Albon thought it will stay for the remainder of the season.
Sainz, who's come in for plenty of praise this season for his performances, didn't help himself either by hitting Piastri. He insisted the McLaren that was trying to lap him was in his blindspot, but this was a clumsy clash that completed one of his messier F1 weekends - having in FP1 alone twice been noted for erratic driving and also been shown a black and white flag for impeding.
Still, it's the competitive picture that caused both drivers most pain. "If we were not so slow, there wouldn't be so many blue flags," Sainz reckoned, while Albon offered a warning over the rest of the season and Williams's upgrade plan: "A lot of what we're really, unfortunately, biting into is making sure next year's car doesn't have these traits." **\- JC**
## Winner: Liam Lawson (8th)
It might look like the hard work for Lawson was done at the start when he made up for his [self-admitted poor qualifying performance](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-f1-2026-hungarian-gp-qualifying/) to leap into the top 10.
But on top of that, he had to deal with an unexpected two-stop when he'd been heavily saving tyres anticipating a one-stop in the early stages, losing loads of time behind Verstappen's huge overtake on Lewis Hamilton, and a late wheel-to-wheel fight with Racing Bulls team-mate Arvid Lindblad as their strategies came back together.
The reward was another triumph over his team-mate, another instance of Racing Bulls leading the midfield, enough points to steal fifth in the constructors' from Alpine, and all at a track where Audi was expected to lead the fight.
A very, very good day at the office for driver and team - with Lindblad still scoring too in 10th. **\- JB**
## Loser: Haas (16th & 19th)
It still feels like there's a mountain to climb for Haas to actually look competitive in F1 2026 again, and the Hungarian GP offered more evidence.
Another of the teams leapfrogged by a heavily upgraded Aston Martin package, Haas just had an inconsistent weekend across its garage that reflected in the final results after a tussle with Williams.
Esteban Ocon finished 16th and saved Haas from being the worst-performing team that finished the race - actually sounding semi-positive about his own performance: "Getting the car healthy, getting the maximum out of the car this weekend felt good."
But "honestly, it was a bit of a nightmare" was Ollie Bearman's assessment, as he picked up a penalty amid the blue-flag system failure and finished 19th and last.
"Generally it's just been a horrible weekend. From the first lap that I've done until now, I've not been able to find any confidence. It's like all that progress we've made over the last two events maybe has been erased, and we're back to square one."
That doesn't make for positive reading for Haas going into the summer break. **\- EH**
### 'Dumb' driving or a 'good excuse'? Piastri's rage at Sainz
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/dumb-driving-or-a-good-excuse-piastris-rage-at-sainz/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T17:28:49.000Z
A malfunctioning blue flag system at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix gave Carlos Sainz what he felt was a "good excuse" for his clash with Oscar Piastri - but Piastri felt Sainz's driving was "unacceptable" and hypocritical.
And Piastri wasn’t the only member of a frontrunning team livid with not the system failure but backmarkers’ handling of it - with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff comparing midfield teams’ pitwall staff to “Teletubbies engineers that sit on the pitwalls of these teams, not telling the drivers what's happening behind” in a Sky interview.
The automatic blue flag system failed around nine laps into the 70-lap race, leading to some erroneous automatic blue flag signals being sent, even though no driver was actually being lapped.
The Race understands that when this technical malfunction was spotted, the automatic system was quickly paused so that marshals (at their posts) and drivers (on their steering wheels) wouldn't get incorrect blue flag prompts.
It meant things were done manually with marshals blue-flagging the drivers, who needed to observe the flags displayed, instead of also being notified on their steering wheel. That also put more onus on teams to notify their drivers of blue flags.
This was part of Sainz's logic for why he made contact with Piastri while being lapped - something that incited fury from Piastri, who had been battling his McLaren team-mate Lando Norris for the win and felt the time lost in the incident with Sainz was crucial to Norris jumping him in the second pitstop sequence.
"We didn't have blue lights on the steering \[wheel\] which normally, when we are in fights like that one where we are fighting for position, it helps us to understand whether we're getting lapped or not," Sainz explained.
"So at this stage, I had no idea I was about to get lapped. On top of that, I was in a big fight with Fernando \[Alonso\] trying to undercut him into the corner and I wouldn't have expected Oscar to be there.
"And even if he was there, or I would have expected \[him to be there\], he was in my dead spot on the angle. It was impossible, honestly, from my side to avoid it.
"Probably a bit better communication would have helped. But at the same time, sometimes it happens."
Sainz said there are "very clear" blue flag rules, though also used it as a chance to criticise his Williams car's lack of pace, saying "if we were not so slow, there wouldn't be so many blue flags. So we know what the solution is".
The stewards handed Sainz a five-second time penalty, which was downgraded from a 10-second time penalty because of what the officials felt were mitigating circumstances of "the limited visibility" of blue flags, which "reduced the degree of culpability".
Asked by The Race if the system problem should have been factored in, Sainz said: "To be honest, I'm really sorry for Oscar but this time I think I have a pretty good excuse for what happened.
"I don't know if he could also have been a bit more careful given that he's the one fighting for podiums and positioned himself a bit more cautiously because with all the issues that we were all having with the blue flags.
"It's a shame. I took the five seconds. I'm OK with it. I don't care when I'm fighting for P18\. But yeah, it's what it is."
Asked if he'd spoken to Piastri yet, Sainz said: "No, no, I don't need this. It's a racing incident, he probably understands what happened just by knowing what happened, he didn't retire due to me or my fault.
"It was just a contact and I'm glad it didn't disturb his race too much. But yeah, it's tough when we're all having these issues."
## Sainz should 'look in the mirror'
Sainz's hopes of Piastri being understanding might fall flat based on the McLaren driver's post-race comments.
"I knew there were blue flags, but there were blue flags on all the marshal signals. I was right behind him for a sector. I couldn't believe what happened," said Piastri, who later retired from second with a reported gearbox failure.
"Getting crashed into by a lapped car is never one of the things you expect that can go wrong in your race. Today, it was. I don't really care if he didn't see me.
"The fact that he didn't and no one told him or there was a lack of complete awareness, is unacceptable."
When it was put to him that Sainz was focused on Alonso, he replied: "He was fighting Fernando for last place like it was the world championship.
"It cost me the lead of the race. He's quite critical of others, and others have given him some stick before for being frustrating on track.
"When you go and do something like that, I think maybe you should look in the mirror a bit."
When ViaPlay asked him about the blue flag malfunction, Piastri replied: "For me that's no excuse at all, that's got to be one of the dumbest things I've seen in a race track. I don't really care what excuse he gave."
## 'Teletubby engineers' at fault?
Wolff was critical of the teams of the lapped drivers who got in the way of Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton's fight for third place late in the race.
"The marshalling system not functioning and cars in the back defending on Lewis and Kimi's fight is just disgraceful from some of the Teletubbies engineers that sit on the pitwalls of these teams, not telling the drivers what's happening behind," Wolff told DAZN Espana.
Ollie Bearman picked up a five-second time penalty for ignoring blue flags while being lapped by Isack Hadjar's Red Bull.
"I feel bad about the blue flag penalty with Hadjar, because honestly it was a bit of a nightmare," Bearman said.
"You go through basically the infield, you don't have time to check in the mirrors. And basically every lap I did, I had blue flag screens coming up.
"This race, they weren't working properly, so it was tough to know if it was you or the car behind or the car ahead or whatever getting the blue flag.
"Obviously it wasn't malicious; I'm a lap down, I'm not trying to do anything bad, but obviously I feel bad for anyone's race that I may have compromised."
He added: "At the start of the race I was getting blue flags after six laps, and I thought, wow, that's strange.
"We're not that slow to be lapped in six laps. So like I said, from lap six, basically until lap 70, there were some blue flags every single lap. "It was really tough to know what was real, what was fake, what was for me, what wasn't, because normally you have your number, this time it was just a blue.
"I had to really rely on the team to help me through those blue flags."
### Honda's new F1 engine to make debut next week
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/honda-new-f1-engine-debut-summer-break-hungary/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T16:11:28.000Z
Honda’s new Formula 1 engine for Aston Martin will make its track debut during a filming day in Hungary on Wednesday.
The first phase of the package of changes that Aston Martin and Honda hope will rescue their awful 2026 season arrived for the Hungarian Grand Prix, in the form of a substantial set of chassis upgrades.
That allowed Fernando Alonso to reach Q2 and qualify a season-high 16th.
In the race, Lance Stroll and Alonso - who have recently struggled to even run with the all-new Cadillac team - finished 13th and 14th, beating an Alpine and both Haas and Williams cars.
Honda's trackside general manager and chief engineer Shintaro Orihara revealed after the race that the filming day at the start of the summer break would be used to try the engine upgrade that Aston Martin is now counting on for further progress.
“That is a good opportunity to check how our new engine works on the chassis,” Orihara said of the filming day, in which teams are limited to 200km of running and must use special ‘demonstration’ tyres.
Aston Martin chief trackside officer Mike Krack said the pace gain the team had showed in Hungary was in line with its hopes.
“We came here and we said the main objective is to go back racing,” he said, in reference to having spent the year so far mostly cut adrift at the back.
“I think we achieved that. I think the upgrade package works. And now we need to bring the next steps.”
Orihara agreed that specifically meant the new engine.
“Now we are back to racing the field. Then all improvement is very important to catch up to others,” he said.
“To introduce the new power unit in Zandvoort is quite important now the chassis is working well. So our power unit should bring some laptime.”
The engine vibrations that had been such a big part of Aston Martin and Honda’s initial 2026 woes appeared to return in Hungary on Friday, although both team and engine supplier said [those were not the same](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-flying-spare-parts-to-f1-hungarian-gp-for-upgraded-car/) ones experienced at the start of the season.
And Alonso said they were “fixed completely” when a new engine was fitted for the rest of the weekend from Saturday, suggesting “maybe that's the old power unit that is a bit at the end of its life”.
Asked by The Race how important it now was for Honda to improve given the clear Aston Martin chassis gain, Alonso initially replied “some pressure, isn't it?” then emphasised that both sides of the partnership were helping to tackle each others’ weaknesses.
“We are one team, we work together,” he said. “We know our weakness and we try to help each other.
“Honda was trying to help some of the weaknesses of the car at the beginning of the year. Now with the chassis, we try to help Honda as much as we can.
“It's a long way to go. We understand that, we are aware of that.
“But this hopefully is the first step and both factories are gaining confidence and trust in what they do. So, that probably will be more important than anything else for the next few months.”
### Norris takes first win of F1 title defence in tense Hungarian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-takes-first-win-of-f1-title-defence-in-tense-hungarian-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T17:26:15.000Z
Lando Norris took the first victory of his and McLaren's Formula 1 world championship defence in the Hungarian Grand Prix.
There was some intra-team angst along the way, as Norris ran wide at Turn 2 on the first lap and his team-mate Oscar Piastri grabbed the lead.
As they ran 1-2 thereafter, Norris made no secret on team radio of his belief that he could run much faster if ahead, and sounded frustrated at McLaren's reluctance to make that possible for him.
But Norris got his chance during the second pitstop sequence, when he stayed out and, helped by Piastri losing time when Carlos Sainz's Williams pushed him off the road while being lapped, finally jumped his team-mate then stormed away in the lead.
McLaren lost its 1-2 when Piastri retired with 14 laps to go, reporting a gearbox failure - after which the team urged Norris to avoid exit kerbs.
A virtual safety car to clear the parked McLaren gave Max Verstappen chance to snatch second for Red Bull as he was rare among the frontrunners in not pitting at that point - and he then stayed far enough clear of the new-tyred cars behind him.
Mercedes never looked like a realistic winner. Kimi Antonelli led for a spell on what rivals thought was a one-stop strategy but turned out to be a two-stop with very late stops.
That at least meant he didn't need to pit under the VSC, which gained him places over both of the disappointing Ferraris and meant he finished third. Lewis Hamilton picked up a pitlane speeding penalty at that VSC stop which dropped him from fourth to fifth behind team-mate Charles Leclerc.
George Russell's title hopes took another hit as his Mercedes' anti-stall kicked in at the start and he fell all the way to last into the first corner. Seventh, just behind Isack Hadjar's Red Bull, was the limit of his comeback drive.
Racing Bulls and Audi battled for the final points, with two-stoppers Liam Lawson and Nico Hulkenberg prevailing over their one-stopping team-mates Arvid Lindblad and Gabriel Bortoleto across eighth through 11th.
Aston Martin showed its progress with its upgraded car again in the race, Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso coming through to a relatively lofty 13th and 14th as they beat Franco Colapinto's Alpine as well as the Haas and Williams.
### F1 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-hungarian-grand-prix-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T15:31:16.000Z
Lando Norris took the first grand prix victory of his Formula 1 title defence with victory in the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Below you'll find the full result from the 70-lap race, accounting for a five-second penalty for Lewis Hamilton.
## Hungarian Grand Prix race result
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 70 laps
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +15s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +18.7s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +23.8s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +24.5s
6 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +55.4s
7 George Russell (Mercedes) +57.5s
8 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
9 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1 lap
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1 lap
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1 lap
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1 lap
13 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +1 lap
14 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1 lap
15 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2 laps
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2 laps
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +2 laps
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2 laps
19 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2 laps
DNF Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
DNF Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
DNF Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
### Porsche and Jaguar collapse as Formula E gets new points leader
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/nine-driver-formula-e-title-decider-set-up-by-wild-tokyo-race/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T13:16:46.000Z
Nyck de Vries took victory in a last-lap dash to the finish in the second Tokyo E-Prix, as the championship order was reshuffled with just one round remaining.
A late red flag after a multi-car crash meant the final result was decided by just one racing lap, with the Mahindra driver leading from the restart to the chequered flag.
Citroen’s Nick Cassidy was second ahead of Andretti driver Jake Dennis, who now leads the championship after a torrid weekend for title rivals Mitch Evans and Pascal Wehrlein.
As the London double-header finale will pay out a maximum of 58 points, nine drivers remain in with a mathematical chance of the title.
---
## Title contenders going into London finale
1 Jake Dennis - 146
2 Mitch Evans - 144
3 Pascal Wehrlein - 141
4 Oliver Rowland - 132
5 Edoardo Mortara - 116
6 Antonio Felix da Costa - 113
7 Nick Cassidy - 104
8 Nico Mueller - 100
9 Nyck de Vries - 94
---
With mixed conditions heading into the race, the result was largely decided late on as those who had set their tyre pressures for the wet faded and their dry-pressure rivals forged ahead.
De Vries had lined up fifth, and was running in the midfield for much of the race. But a well-timed late Attack Mode saw him blast up the order to take the lead from Oliver Rowland on lap 28.
Rowland was then second, but his final Attack Mode deployment came too late, dropping him off the podium as Cassidy and Dennis surged ahead.
The Andretti driver had looked in close contention for second, if not victory, when the late pile-up came on lap 32.
Early leader Edoardo Mortara turned Envision’s Joel Eriksson into the wall, blocking the track and causing a concertina effect which also trapped Jaguar driver Antonio Felix da Costa.
After a brief red flag, action resumed with a rolling start, led by De Vries, with Cassidy and Dennis behind.
That remained the order across the line, with Rowland in fourth and Citroen’s Jean-Eric Vergne in fifth.
Evans, already out of the points, stopped on the last lap with suspension damage, while Porsche driver Wehrlein was 15th to also score no points.
With Dennis’s podium on Saturday, he now heads to the season finale in London with a two-point lead to Evans, with Wehrlein a further one point behind in third.
## Race results
1 Nyck de Vries 1h01m13.217s
2 Nick Cassidy +0.683s
3 Jake Dennis +0.958s
4 Oliver Rowland +2.662s
5 Jean-Eric Vergne +2.960s
6 Norman Nato +3.430s
7 Sebastien Buemi +3.799s
8 Nico Mueller +4.194s
9 Taylor Barnard +4.702s
10 Max Gunther +5.140s
11 Felipe Drugovich +5.604s
12 Zane Maloney +6.049s
13 Lucas Di Grassi +6.349s
14 Dan Ticktum +6.826s
15 Pascal Wehrlein +8.375s
16 Antonio Felix da Costa +8.535s
DNF Mitch Evans
DNF Edoardo Mortara
DNF Joel Eriksson
DNF Pepe Marti
### F1's 'Bahrain GP' to be held in Malaysia
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1s-bahrain-gp-to-be-held-in-malaysia/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T10:30:13.000Z
Malaysia will return to the Formula 1 calendar with a one-off race this season, but the event will be called the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The bizarre naming of the event, which will take place at the Sepang circuit that is 6000km from Bahrain, is the result of the Middle Eastern kingdom helping cover a lot of the costs of putting on the race.
This comes with a recent escalation of tensions in the Middle East meaning that Bahrain’s hopes of having its own grand prix return to the schedule have been dashed because of safety concerns.
The original idea had been for a Bahrain GP in Bahrain to take place on October 4 to help form a triple header that included the Azerbaijan GP on September 27 and the Singapore GP on October 11.
However, as first revealed by The Race earlier this week, while hopes of Bahrain’s return had faded, this did not stop F1 chiefs wanting to slot an event in that gap to ensure that the schedule did not lose any more races.
Following discussions over recent days that have involved F1, the FIA, and the governments of Bahrain and Malaysia, a deal has been struck to secure the slot.
With Bahrain helping fund the temporary return of Malaysia, its national airline will take title sponsorship of the race that will be named after itself too.
The official title of the race will be the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia.
Malaysia hosted F1 races at Sepang from 1999 to 2017.
Despite the track being well liked by drivers and teams, it fell off the calendar because it could not justify the huge race hosting fees demanded at the time.
Its return this time has only happened because of Bahrain’s willingness to assist in putting together a deal.
Speaking about the addition of the race, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said: “Once again, the sport has demonstrated its ability to adapt, find solutions, and deliver, creating an exciting moment for everyone who follows Formula 1.”
He added: “This is fantastic news for our fans. They will continue to enjoy a full and exciting Formula 1 calendar, while also seeing the sport return to a great venue.”
The return of a race in Malaysia still needs to be signed off by the FIA’s World Sport Council, but this is expected to be a formality.
### What's next for the calendar?
Despite having committed to a race in Bahrain not happening, F1 is to hold fire on what happens with the end of season races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
The situation in the Middle East will dictate whether or not those events can go ahead, but F1’s current target for now is that they will take place – meaning the schedule is currently set at 23 races.
F1 will need to make a call by September about whether or not to commit to them though, because teams will need to know about freight and cost cap planning, while Pirelli will need to arrange tyres.
If the two final races do not happen, then F1 is looking at plans to hold a standalone season finale as replacement – potentially in December two weeks after Las Vegas.
One idea being considered for this is for it to take place at Imola, which fell off the calendar this year but would be happy to put on an event at such short notice.
### F1 drivers concerned over 'lottery' track surface at Hungarian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-drivers-concerned-over-lottery-track-surface-at-hungarian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T10:02:22.000Z
A "lottery" track surface that includes a "huge bump" at Turn 1 could produce chaos in Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Track conditions have been tricky from the start of the weekend with George Russell saying on Friday: “They've resurfaced a third of the track and unfortunately they've done a really bad job”.
Drivers raised their concerns about bumps and the quality of the asphalt in the Friday night drivers’ briefing and work was undertaken to try and smooth some of these bumps out.
There were also concerns about the asphalt opening up too, in places like the final corner where many drivers have struggled for grip this weekend.
Those struggles continued on Saturday with polesitter Lando Norris saying, “Honestly, just difficult to put a lap together here, with the new Tarmac and it being grippy in places and not grippy in others.
“At times, it feels like a bit of a lottery in certain corners.”
Williams driver Carlos Sainz was critical of the resurfacing job too and how it differed from the resurfacing 10 years ago. He said overnight grinding work had improved things but “not to F1 standards”.
Sainz continued: “Having said that, the circuit acknowledged they were a bit caught by surprise by it when they resurfaced it.
“My message to them is, back in 2016 there was a full resurface of the track and the tarmac was the best Tarmac resurface I've seen in a long time. Similar to Silverstone, similar to Jeddah, very high grip.
“Whatever resurfacing they've done on this Turn 1, Turn 2, it is not the same quality. So they need to go back and analyse what difference there is from the 2016 tarmac to the one laid down a few months ago.”
Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto called it “very bad, if I'm honest”, while Valtteri Bottas said: “they did some grinding work last night, but they didn't seem to do much.
“It’s still there. It's quite easy to lock up. I had a big lock-up today. And \[Turn\] 13 is quite bumpy as well, so I think the track has got the feedback. The last resurface was 10 years ago.”
### The Turn 1 bump
There are particular fears over a sizeable bump at Turn 1 which could add an extra dimension of chaos for the first lap.
That Turn 1 bump appears to be the result of the transition between the old and new surface not being completely flat - and there has been visible repair work completed at the corner ahead of the weekend.
Haas driver Ollie Bearman said: “They've resurfaced it really, really badly to be honest and we're all in agreement that they've done a really poor job.
“I think we're better off leaving it as it was because before it was much better. And now we have this huge bump in Turn 1, which could be interesting tomorrow, and also through Turn 13.
“It's super strange. And then the track is also breaking up a lot. So the grip is poor. It's weird.”
### What's riding on Mercedes repairing cracked Russell engine
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/cracked-engine-could-doom-george-russell-to-a-future-grid-penalty/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T16:12:33.000Z
Mercedes will evaluate whether George Russell’s damaged engine from the Hungarian Grand Prix can be repaired to help him avoid an early grid penalty after the summer break.
Russell is understood to have cracked the sump on his Mercedes power unit after running across the kerbs at Turn 4 on his final run in Q3 at the Hungaroring.
The sump damage triggered a water leak that sprayed on to his rear tyres, and thus compromised his end to the lap before the team told him to stop as they noticed a drop in pressure.
Speaking afterwards Russell had said: “The lap was feeling good until then and then suddenly the lap wasn't.
“I didn't think much of it and the team told me the water was spraying over my tyres because as soon as we saw it in the data, the water leak, suddenly my tyre temperatures got really cold on the rear.”
Once Mercedes got Russell’s car back to the garage, an initial inspection revealed the crack and left the squad with no choice but to fit a fresh power unit to his car for the race. The power unit that was swapped out was only fitted in Austria, and included a raft of reliability improvements.
This has taken place without a grid penalty as Russell is still within his allowance for the year, but the Hungarian GP version will be the fourth and final power unit he can take before a punishment.
The early shift to the fourth engine, just one race after team-mate Kimi Antonelli also had to do the same, has left both Mercedes drivers facing almost certain grid penalties over the second half of the season – which could have a big impact on the title battle.
Russell could get a temporary reprieve though with Mercedes set to ship his damaged engine back to its Brixworth factory for a more detailed analysis to see if it can be brought back into action.
While a damaged sump sounds quite serious, manufacturers are able to implement repairs that can bring power units back into the rotation.
Many have good experience of having done this during the previous ground effect era when engines took a major battering from the super stiff cars and regularly had to be repaired after being taken out of action.
Much will depend on how big and extensive the crack is and whether or not any extra internal damage has been caused to the power unit.
But even if the damaged power unit can be repaired, taking a fresh engine at a tight and twisty track like the Hungaroring is not ideal for Russell, as the benefits from a new power unit will not be felt as much as they would be if it was introduced at somewhere like Monza.
### F1 2026 Hungarian GP starting grid after penalties and pitlane start
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-hungarian-gp-starting-grid-after-hamilton-antonelli-penalties/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T10:47:35.000Z
Lewis Hamilton had been the driver to beat in Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying, until Q3, where he was beaten, and then, to add insult to injury, penalised.
He was [deemed to have 0bstructed Oscar Piastri](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-oscar-piastri-hungarian-gp-qualifying-incident/) in Q3, and was given a three-place penalty by F1's stewards.
Meanwhile, championship leader Kimi Antonelli was also been handed a three-place penalty, for [failing to slow sufficiently](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-penalised-for-failing-to-slow-enough-after-verstappen-spin/) for the yellow flags brought out by Max Verstappen's spin at the final corner in Q3
Sergio Perez, who qualified 22nd and slowest of all, will start from the pitlane after his team broke parc ferme to make changes to his Cadillac.
Here's the starting grid as it stands:
1 Lando Norris (McLaren)
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
4 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
6 George Russell (Mercedes)
7 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
14 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
16 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
17 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
19 Alex Albon (Williams)
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
Pitlane: Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
### Antonelli penalised for failing to slow enough after Verstappen spin
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-penalised-for-failing-to-slow-enough-after-verstappen-spin/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T18:20:20.000Z
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli has been given a three-place grid penalty for slowing “less than 1%” for yellow flags in Q3 for Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen spun his Red Bull at the final corner in Q3 and, while Antonelli lifted off the throttle, the stewards found that he did not slow enough.
Antonelli did however escape a five-place grid penalty.
The stewards said a drop of five grid positions was the “recommended” penalty but they “considered that the driver did make a reduction in speed, albeit, in our determination, an insufficient and unsustained one.
“Further, the driver had limited time and distance to react. Hence a lower penalty is applied.”
Antonelli qualified fourth at the Hungaroring and would have been promoted to third due to Ferrari’s [Lewis Hamilton receiving a penalty](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-oscar-piastri-hungarian-gp-qualifying-incident/) for impeding McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.
However, the Mercedes driver will instead be demoted to seventh on the grid.
After qualifying, Antonelli told media including The Race that he had to “coast all the way into the apex” on a lap that he called “terrible” before he reached the last corner.
## ‘Less than 1%’ slower
According to the stewards’ document, Antonelli reasoned that he “lifted off the throttle earlier than his previous push lap. This was verified by the telemetry.”
The stewards found that his mini sector time was only 0.030s slower than his best time for that mini sector, however.
Its telemetry showed that Antonelli had lifted 16 metres earlier than usual and was 14km/h slower entering the yellow flag sector - but he was 3km/h faster passing the site of Verstappen’s spin “due to less application of brakes” entering the final turn.
The FIA found that his speed reduction was “less than 1%” in the mini sector.
The stewards added that, unlike cases in which the driver escaped penalty, “there was no significant speed delta through the mini sector compared to the driver’s previous fastest time under similar circumstances”.
Antonelli also received one penalty point on his superlicence, taking his total to four for the 12-month period.
### 'Unsporting'? 'Crashed on purpose'? - Formula E Tokyo fury explained
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-tokyo-fury-explained-porsche-jaguar-envision-da-costa-wehrlein/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T19:04:58.000Z
A frantic first Tokyo E-Prix race yielded a major disagreement between Formula E title rivals Antonio Felix da Costa and Pascal Wehrlein - and the Envision team that both felt was in the wrong.
Envision adapted its race strategy after Sebastien Buemi was given a five-second penalty for contact with Nyck de Vries on the first lap of the race when the field bunched up into Turn 7.
It then went for an early six-minute attack mode hit on lap 14, and Buemi climbed from 13th to second place by lap 18 of the race.
But when the regular pit window opened up and cars started to take regular stops, Buemi dropped his pace - allowing Edoardo Mortara, Da Costa and Wehrlein in third, fourth and fifth positions to close up on the Envision rapidly going into Turns 6 and 7.
> The former teammates collided at Turn 8 😅
>
> A collision between DAC and Wehrlein sends the former into the wall [#TDKTokyoEPrix](https://x.com/hashtag/TDKTokyoEPrix?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [#FormulaE](https://x.com/hashtag/FormulaE?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/2iHEnHbIdA](https://t.co/2iHEnHbIdA?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) [July 25, 2026](https://x.com/FIAFormulaE/status/2081028151740612775?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
The resulting chaos saw Wehrlein and Da Costa make contact several times, with the Porsche breaking its wing and suspension, while the Jaguar ace ended up in the TecPro barrier.
“I’m very disappointed because I think we did the perfect race, we had more than two percent on the leaders,” said Da Costa.
“We had the perfect strategy to win it. Maybe we would have had a bit of a fight with Ticktum, but I thought this one could be ours. For some reason that I can’t understand, when the pit window opened, Buemi pulled the handbrake and lost four seconds in three corners. It’s very unsporting.
“I can’t be mad at Seb because he is only following orders from his team, but I am very disappointed. Especially them being a Jaguar \[customer\] team, I would have hoped for some sort of comms or a warning.
“When Buemi does that, it opens the chance for people to come alongside you and we were two, three wide. And when you have a guy \[Wehrlein\] that is a direct competitor in the championship, and what Pascal did was very unsporting.
“He crashed me out on purpose. He had damage from the corner before and I think he decided that if he is out, I am out, too.
Da Costa emphasised that his issue was not with Buemi per se, but more with his engineering and strategy team - and his own in terms of specific communication on how and why the pace dropped.
“My problem is not with Buemi, it is with his team and his strategy team,” said Da Costa.
“We also have to blame ourselves a bit as well, because we should have been able to spot that and avoid it.
“But if there’s one team we try to race with more respect, it’s the other Jaguar powertrain team. We try not to trip over each other, but today we did the opposite. The one car that doesn’t have the same colour as mine that I am hoping to get a slightly easier time from, they put my race in the bin today.”
## Buemi’s view
Buemi, who was nursing a badly-bruised hand after his penalty-inducing first lap hit on De Vries, told The Race that his drop in pace was an attempt to help team-mate Joel Eriksson come through the field.
“It \[the strategy\] was on the go, and I think the team realised that obviously me slowing everyone down would obviously help massively, which it did, it did ultimately,” said Buemi.
When asked if that was a fair method of running a race, knowing he had a five-second penalty, Buemi said that “whether that's totally fair or not, it's another discussion”.
“I got instructed to do that and I just did what the team told me to do.
“But yeah, you may think it's correct or not, obviously it's not forbidden to do that. That's it. I just did that and obviously I don't think I made lots of friends.”
Buemi was not aware of the chaos that unfolded behind him, saying that he “got told after because obviously we were trying to work hard with Jaguar and obviously when you compromise the races of the other guys you're not very happy with that.”
## Wehrlein’s Take
“I don't know what the plan was with Buemi, why he was trying to hold up this whole group,” a clearly unhappy Wehrlein told The Race.
The Porsche driver also opined that when the pit window opened he expected the pace to increase before scheduled pitstops because “usually you push and increase the pace, to virtually overtake or not be overtaken by other guys”.
“He \[Buemi\] did exactly the opposite, so there was for sure a strategy behind it. Depends on from whom he was giving that call,” said Wehrlein, hinting at collusion between Jaguar and Envision.
“I think if that was the case - and it really looked like that - it goes way too far to use your customer team to back off the group, which didn't work.
“There's always a bit of a game that towards the end of the season, you're supporting the best guy in the standings, that you're not driving super hard against him or that you swapped a position or whatever.
“But to actively change the race, we've never done that. I'm just surprised how it was and what the reason was.”
The Race understands the question of why the race played out the way it did was hashed out more cordially between Envision and Porsche after the fact.
On his incident with Da Costa, for which he received a 10-second penalty, Wehrlein said that he went “side by side with Antonio, so I overtook almost two cars”.
> Muller picked up a puncture after going wheel-to-wheel with da Costa 🛞[#TDKTokyoEPrix](https://x.com/hashtag/TDKTokyoEPrix?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [#FormulaE](https://x.com/hashtag/FormulaE?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/epaKpqJY7Q](https://t.co/epaKpqJY7Q?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) [July 25, 2026](https://x.com/FIAFormulaE/status/2081066951347261948?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
“In that sequence of corners \[T6 and T7\] then I was on the inside, there's a rule in that sequence of corners where you need to be given space on the inside if you are side by side the corner before.
“I wasn't being given that. I got pushed into the inside wall and that destroyed my race,” concluded Wehrlein, who lost his nine-point advantage to rival Mitch Evans, who came through from 16th to fourth to now hold a three-point buffer over Wehrlein.
Adding to Porsche's miserable day was that Nico Mueller had suffered damage to his car after contact with Da Costa's Jaguar on the first lap. That came after the team rebuilt the Swiss driver’s car around a new survival cell after an accident in the semi-final stage of qualifying when he went up against eventual polesitter Jake Dennis.
### Winners and losers from F1 2026 Hungarian GP qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-f1-2026-hungarian-gp-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T10:02:00.000Z
The first non-Mercedes works team pole of the season, a proper improvement from Aston Martin upsetting its rivals and a very angry Max Verstappen.
That hasn't even begun to scratch the surface of the depth of storylines our winners and losers from Hungaroring qualifying delves into today...
## Winner: Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin (16th)
OK, it used three sets of tyres, and OK, the circuit was always likely to suit the power-unit-troubled car, but however you cut this, a first Q2 of the year when Aston Martin was as much as two seconds off its closest rivals as recently as the previous race is a massive, massive win.
And to counter the provisos above, it did it having lost a lot of time and parts with Lance Stroll’s truncated practice yesterday. Luckily Alonso was there to strike at the crucial moment in Q1.
The team knows there’s a long way to go, but the misery of its competitors shows Aston is considered a real threat to the likes of Haas and Williams - both of which it beat today - as well as Cadillac.
Perhaps its biggest win, reckons Alonso, is that it is no longer chasing something it “doesn’t know”, because “we know exactly what we are looking for” in the short, medium and long term. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner: Lando Norris (1st)
“It wasn't my finest,” said Norris as, with some superficial modesty, he unpacked just how difficult the lap was to execute on a newly-resurfaced and intractable Hungaroring.
The reigning champion is surely elated with his first pole position of 2026, particularly given the aforementioned factors which caught out Verstappen and Isack Hadjar among others.
Norris then admitted he was confident of McLaren’s pace - the team having delivered the first tranche of its major upgrade package to Hungary - throughout the weekend.
He explained that, after Friday practice, the team “pretty much changed nothing” for Saturday despite suffering compared to Ferrari in sectors two and three.
The change in wind direction “limited our losses”, he added. That could go some way to explaining why he was top in FP3 before taking pole position.
On a Saturday where Mercedes faltered and Ferrari let an opportunity to take pole slip, Norris emerged to capitalise. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Loser: Mercedes (6th & 7th)
This was Mercedes’ worst qualifying result of the season so far, and the first time neither Kimi Antonelli nor George Russell has taken pole in 2026\. It got worse as Antonelli was [given a three-place grid penalty](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-penalised-for-failing-to-slow-enough-after-verstappen-spin/) for failing to slow for yellow flags, demoting him from fourth fastest to seventh on the grid.
Russell was a lowly seventh in Q3, 0.553s off pole, and will need a new engine for the race after suffering a water leak that was “spraying water over my tyres”. Even with a clean session, though, he felt pole was beyond Mercedes here.
Antonelli concurred, saying Mercedes is now maybe suffering for lack of significant aero upgrades compared to Ferrari and McLaren, which have both brought updated rear wings to this race and, in McLaren’s case, what looks to be a powerful new floor.
“Already in the warm-up \[lap\] we were going over the peak of the tyres, so already from Turn 1 you could feel the grip was not there,” Antonelli said, “and there was a lot of four-wheel sliding, especially in the last sector, just really no traction.”
The bright spot is that both drivers feel the car’s race pace is far stronger, so if overtaking is possible here they’ll be looking to progress towards the podium.
“Our assessment after FP2 yesterday was we were seven tenths off in qually pace and we had the quickest race pace,” Russell said. “So that tells you it's not a car problem, it's a tyre problem.
“And I guess we'll answer the question tomorrow if we've struck the right balance between the tyre heating for qually versus the race.” **\- Ben Anderson**
## Loser: Lewis Hamilton (5th)
Another qualifying session that got away from Ferrari and this one was all the more painful for the Scuderia, given Mercedes was out of the fight.
Hamilton lamented his team’s choice to deploy his car so early, while McLaren was the last team to send its cars out, for that final Q3 run.
He didn’t improve on his last Q3 run with a snap of oversteer in Turn 1 and a pretty messy run thereafter, leaving Hamilton 0.012s slower than polesitter Norris.
After the session, the seven-time champion then picked up a three-place grid penalty for [impeding Oscar Piastri](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-oscar-piastri-hungarian-gp-qualifying-incident/).
Hamilton told stewards that he didn’t receive a radio message to alert him until Piastri arrived, and Piastri was not visible in his mirrors.
Yet, the stewards found that the Ferrari driver had forced Piastri to take “avoiding action by running wide and being obliged to abort the lap”. **\- SK**
## Loser: Max Verstappen (4th)
Both Verstappen and team-mate Isack Hadjar had spins during qualifying, and Verstappen lamented what he felt was an actual physical ["degradation"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-degrading-red-bull-getting-worse-and-worse-in-hungary/) of his RB22, triggering a loss of aero load.
It will be interesting to know whether he means components reacting badly to temperature, or actual wear-and-tear, or something else, and what Red Bull's data shows. But even at its peaks the RB22 has been pretty unremarkable this weekend, in his or Hadjar's hands.
The fastest Red Bull was 0.484s off in FP1, 0.692s off in FP2, 0.717s off in FP3, 0.379s off in Q1, 0.416s off in Q2 and 0.518s off in Q3\.
As far as the Hungaroring goes, it is an unremarkable car here - and unlikely to give Verstappen many opportunities on Sunday, in what continues to feel like a particularly long season on his end. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Winner: Esteban Ocon (15th)
Esteban Ocon’s been having what he described on Thursday as the “most difficult first half of the season that I've ever had”, struggling with parts inconsistencies that have hurt both Haas drivers at different points this year.
Prior to Hungary, Ocon felt like he’s only had “normal car performance” at Japan and Silverstone this year, so he had hopes a switch to a different rear wing, floor and engine (from Saturday) in the pool for Hungary would help.
The early signs were good on Friday, but Ocon was cautious that a good Friday hasn’t always translated into a strong Saturday.
However, it did translate as Ocon outqualified Ollie Bearman for the first time since Monaco, outpacing him by 0.223s in Q1 and then pipping Alonso to 15th in Q2 - the limit of what the Haas VF-26 looks capable of at the Hungaroring.
“We put the car down in FP1, we didn't have to cycle through any parts. It was working straight away, didn't seem to have any straightline speed issues,” Ocon said.
“We recovered the rear downforce loss that we had from Spa, and the imbalance with too much front downforce that we had there.
“Everything was working normally from delta to map, and we could build from there. Just fine-tune here and there, get the set-up ready.” **\- Josh Suttill**
## Loser: Ollie Bearman (17th)
“Really painful,” was Bearman’s response to having to fight Aston Martins, and it was a rare defeat to his team-mate Ocon as well as a Q1 exit for Bearman to boot.
Given he was fifth in the championship after the first two races and has been in Q3 this year, it’s easy to see why Bearman is frustrated with Haas’s current situation.
But despite all of that, he’s still been beaten by the one person you have to beat when the team is struggling: your team-mate. **\- JB**
## Loser: Williams (18th & 19th)
Williams’s weekend has worsened with Alonso putting the B-spec Aston Martin into Q2.
Carlos Sainz (P18) said Hungary could prove to be the “worst one of the season” given the balance issues and lack of downforce.
To add to the Spaniard’s woes, he’s been grappling with a gearbox issue - that the team hasn’t been able to solve yet - making the car “unpredictable”.
No two laps felt the same, he said, as he pointed to Aston Martin’s upgrade and asked why his team wasn’t “doing the same”. He added that he’s not convinced that his team can match the Silverstone team’s rate of development.
Alex Albon said that his car had become “a different machine” overnight as he underlined the chaotic nature of Williams’s issues, echoing team-mate Sainz in saying that Williams “could only dream” of an Aston Martin-style upgrade.
The pair wait anxiously for the upgrade to land in Azerbaijan, while weathering the storm in Hungary. **\- SK**
## Loser: Liam Lawson (11th)
Liam Lawson reckoned he “just drove really badly in Q2” which gave his rookie team-mate Arvid Lindblad the chance to outshine him.
It’s Lawson’s first race with the new Racing Bulls upgrade, but clearly he wasn’t able to extract the maximum out of it - suffering understeer in sector one and oversteer in sector three, according to his team.
It means a fast start will be necessary to get up to the fight for the lead of the midfield between Lindblad and Nico Hulkenberg ahead.
While the race and sprint head-to-head remains strongly in Lawson’s favour, Lindblad has closed the gap to 6-5 in grand prix qualifying, still in Lawson’s favour, but mighty close. **\- JB**
## Loser: Gabriel Bortoleto (14th)
Bortoleto’s qualifying began on the wrong foot as he had a lap chalked off for track limits at Turn 4\. His second attempt was a safe one - and he achieved what he said was essentially the bare minimum in getting to Q2.
He said that the weekend has unravelled from FP2 onwards with a loss of confidence and feeling in the car.
Worse is the gap to Hulkenberg, who managed to qualify 10th, having been half a second faster than Bortoleto in Q2 alone, where the Brazilian had “no grip” and went wide twice at Turn 4.
The veteran Hulkenberg is in contention for his first point of 2026: consolation to him and Audi, but little comfort to Bortoleto. **\- SK**
### Rivals envious of Aston Martin's big F1 leap
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-rivals-envious-of-aston-martin-upgrade-gains/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T06:51:50.000Z
The step Aston Martin has made with its overhauled Formula 1 car has been “eye-opening” for its rivals who can “only dream” of making such a big performance gain.
Aston Martin has delivered a huge upgrade to its ill-born AMR26 at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which showed “promising” signs on Friday and got Fernando Alonso out of grand prix Q1 for the first time this season.
It’s also been a huge wake-up call for rival teams.
Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas admitted to being “a bit scared” that Aston Martin’s upgrade would leave it as the slowest team, having done well to pull away from Aston Martin in recent rounds.
He’d heard rumours of a two-second improvement from Aston Martin’s Hungaroring upgrade and Bottas reckoned, after qualifying 21st, over seven tenths off Alonso in Q1, that “I don't think \[Aston Martin's upgrade\] is far off" the rumoured gain.
Team-mate Sergio Perez isn’t sure his car was put back together completely right after the issue that forced him to stop in FP3, which might necessitate a pitlane start. So Perez being 1.2s off Alonso can’t be taken as fully representative, but Cadillac has clearly been leapfrogged in Hungary.
But it wasn't the only one convincingly beaten by Alonso’s Aston Martin, as the faster Williams - of Carlos Sainz - was half a second slower.
Sainz expected the Hungaroring to be Williams’s “worst track of the season”, but he was still impressed by the margin Aston Martin has pulled ahead by.
He hopes Williams will take the Aston Martin step forward as motivation to do the same, rather than be beaten down by the disappointment of being surpassed by it.
But team-mate Alex Albon called it “eye-opening” - as he is convinced it’s the kind of step Williams won’t be able to replicate with its own upcoming major upgrade at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in September.
“I don't know what kind of upgrade that Aston had, but I could only dream of that,” Albon said.
“We could only dream of an upgrade like that, - was it net, possibly, the gain, one and a half, two seconds? I mean, fair play to them.
“We're going to be fighting with them in some races purely because of the straightline speed, but I can tell you in the corners they're considerably faster than us.
“It's eye-opening because, also for us, we know what our Baku upgrade is. It's not that. So we have work to do.”
Alonso also beat the second Haas of Ollie Bearman, who was knocked out of Q1 for the first time since Monaco. Even if Aston Martin used three sets of softs to Bearman's two, he admitted it's "really painful" to be fighting with and losing to the AMR26.
"It shows that we're really fighting and struggling at the moment,” Bearman said.
He'd had to sit out FP1 so Ryo Hirakawa could drive and in FP2 he struggled with a “really poor through-corner balance” that put him on the back foot.
Team-mate Esteban Ocon called Aston Martin’s upgrade “quite impressive” and admitted “they are a threat”.
## More to come
Alonso was pleased the upgrade had delivered what the team expected, without any “nasty surprise”.
He added: “We're still not on top of the package. Now in qualifying we again relearn something on the balance of the car so if we have another session I think we will change the set-up again and we go with a different set-up - so I think it's still early days.
“There is more potential to unlock in the car but, you know, it's normal when you have such a big package, and unfortunately [we lost one car \[Lance Stroll\] yesterday](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lance-stroll-hungarian-gp-fp1-mechanical-failure-gary-anderson/) on the free practice as well so we're still down on experience in this part.”
He said the car was “a little bit more forgiving so it's a little bit easier to drive” and a little bit more consistent from corner to corner.
“This package, obviously it didn't change many positions but it changed a lot,” Alonso added.
“The momentum of everyone in the factory's not anymore that we are chasing something that we don't know.
“We know exactly what we are looking for and we know exactly the targets for the next package or the target for next year so that's, I think, for me the biggest change of this weekend.”
As well as optimising this major upgrade, Aston Martin has another chassis upgrade planned for the first race after the summer break, at Zandvoort, which will coincide with Honda’s sole engine upgrade.
The team will then bring another chassis upgrade to Baku one month later.
## An important caveat
Lance Stroll was knocked out of Q1 in 20th and half a second down on Alonso, having missed vital track time on Friday to the suspension failure in FP1\.
He felt Q2 was possible without a tailwind at Turn 12 that meant “the car just didn’t turn”. He was around a tenth and a half down on Alonso before then, so he’d have had to find a big improvement in the final corners.
Stroll said: “I think we're missing a lot on engine. We're definitely much better on grip levels, so we just need to find more power.”
Therein lies the caveat laid down by a few other drivers, including Bearman, who said: “It's probably the track that's suits them the most with the shortest straights. I don't think it will remain like that, let's say, forever, but it's a reminder for us that we need to up our game.”
Bottas said: “This is probably one of their better tracks. I still think on tracks with longer straights they might be in trouble, but at least here in the case now we are at the back, but not by a big margin. This time it's Williams that is really close to us.”
That does mean it’s important Aston Martin’s second chassis upgrade adds further performance and Honda’s engine upgrade delivers.
But there’s no doubt it’s already delivered an upgrade many others in the midfield are envious of.
### Verstappen: 'Degrading' Red Bull getting worse and worse in Hungary
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-degrading-red-bull-getting-worse-and-worse-in-hungary/
Last updated: 2026-07-26T09:59:49.000Z
Max Verstappen says Red Bull suffered "car degradation" during Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying, and that his RB22 was rendered "completely undriveable" by the end of Q3.
Verstappen spun at the final corner on his last attempt in Q3, though was already labouring at that point to improve on his previous best.
He told race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase over team radio: "Mate, the car is just completely broken aerodynamically, it's just getting worse and worse. What a joke. What. A. Joke, honestly. What a s\*\*t weekend."
He then later continued to vent on the in-lap, saying that "massive degradations in qualifying" caused the car to become "completely undriveable".
Team-mate Isack Hadjar had also spun in the RB22, albiet in the second qualifying segment.
"The weekend in general has been difficult, but when, instead of the tyres degrading, the car is degrading, then you have a big problem. So that's what's happened," Verstappen said afterwards - though he was still just five tenths off pole, which was in line with where he had been through practice.
"The car just kept getting worse and worse, lap after lap. So the more laps I did, it was just more and more difficult to put a lap together. For tomorrow as well, we need to fix that, because the car is not driveable like this.
"As you can see in the final corner, I mean, it just turned in, the car is, like, non-existent in the rear. So it's really crazy."
Verstappen said it's not the first time this year he's tracked this kind of trend but "I always feel it's a different problem, and that's why we think it's harder to control".
"I firstly need to look into the data myself. We can see a loss in aero, and it kept getting worse. So that's not good," he added.
"Normally it \[the car\] gets better. But my car just kept oversteering more and more. I think I'm quite good at understanding when there is a problem, or when I feel something is not right.
"The car just became uncontrollable in some corners in entry, the feeling that you have \[of\] the car just not sticking anymore. I've felt it before, but this, again, it's not good."
Hadjar made no reference to any physical deterioration of the machinery, but did say that "we made no progress this weekend" and that the outcome - eighth for him, two places behind Verstappen - was "very disappointing".
### Hamilton loses Hungarian GP front row start
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-oscar-piastri-hungarian-gp-qualifying-incident/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T18:38:20.000Z
Lewis Hamilton has lost his front row starting position for Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix for impeding Oscar Piastri in Q3.
A three-place grid penalty has relegated the seven-time champion to fifth on the grid, while team-mate Charles Leclerc will join poleman Lando Norris on the front row instead.
Hamilton, who had been quickest in Q3 after the first runs, was baffled why Ferrari sent him and Leclerc out for their final Q3 laps earlier than their rivals.
That led to a messy final Q3 lap which wasn’t enough to stop Lando Norris’s McLaren from wrestling pole position off him. "We clearly had the car to be on pole today and I just didn't deliver. So that’s…tough to swallow," Hamilton lamented.
Once that lap was complete, though, Hamilton inadvertently got in the way of Piastri at Turn 1, as the McLaren driver had just started his lap - and had to abort it immediately.
As Hamilton pulled into the pits at the end of his inlap, his race engineer Carlo Santi appeared to suggest he was caught out by Piastri's push lap start coinciding with the yellow flag for Max Verstappen’s spin at the final corner.
“Yeah, I was told literally when he \[Piastri\] was at the apex behind me,” Hamilton said when The Race asked him about the incident.
“So I had no idea he was coming. I thought everyone came out behind me, I was the first out, so I thought everyone had finished their lap.
“I think Charles was the car that was behind me when I left the pitlane, as far as I was aware.
“So, crazy, because it had been clean \[prior to that\] and obviously it wasn't intentional.”
When The Race asked Piastri about the incident, he said “it was pretty bad” as he “saw \[Hamilton\] from the start line and kind of watched him, expecting him to get out of the way".
“I watched him basically all the way up until I nearly hit him. So, a shame.”
The stewards indeed ruled that Piastri was "unnecessarily impeded", and said a three-place penalty follows "the established penalty guidelines for this type of infringement".
The incident was doubly frustrating for Piastri as while Norris showed McLaren had the pace for pole position, Piastri had to settle for fifth place, but now starts Sunday's race in third.
Championship leader [Kimi Antonelli has also been penalised](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-penalised-for-failing-to-slow-enough-after-verstappen-spin/) three places and demoted to seventh for failing to slow for yellow flags that were flown when Max Verstappen spun in Q3.
Antonelli claims he had to “coast all the way to the apex” of the final corner and it likely cost him a chance to split the Ferraris.
### Norris snatches pole from Hamilton in F1 Hungarian GP qualifying
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-snatches-pole-from-hamilton-in-f1-hungarian-gp-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T18:37:26.000Z
Reigning Formula 1 champion Lando Norris snatched Hungarian Grand Prix pole position from Lewis Hamilton by just 0.012 seconds.
Hamilton was a tenth clear after the opening Q3 runs, and looked in good shape for his 10th Hungaroring pole in F1 as many drivers, including himself, struggled unexpectedly on the second runs.
But Norris was not among those - and after Hamilton came across the line with no improvement, Norris clocked in a tenth and a bit quicker than he had gone before, which was just enough to pick off the seven-time champion and become the first driver not racing for Mercedes to bag a pole position this season.
Hamilton was however [penalised three grid places](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lewis-hamilton-oscar-piastri-hungarian-gp-qualifying-incident/) for impeding the other McLaren of Oscar Piastri at Turn 1, Piastri's lap an immediate write-off as a result of their encounter.
There was no second-run improvement either for Hamilton's Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc, but that initial effort - two tenths off Hamilton's - was enough for third.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen spun on his final try, so both Mercedes drivers encountered yellow flags - with Kimi Antonelli fourth in the end and George Russell only seventh, though Russell's car stopped shortly after crossing the line with a loss of water pressure, while [Antonelli was then dropped three grid places](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-penalised-for-failing-to-slow-enough-after-verstappen-spin/) for failing to slow sufficiently for those yellow flags.
As a result of the post-session penalties, Hamilton starts fifth and Antonelli seventh for Sunday's race.
Verstappen himself placed sixth - one place behind Piastri and two ahead of Red Bull team-mate Isack Hadjar, who - having spun during Q2 but subsequently advanced with ease - couldn't improve on his initial used-tyre time with new rubber.
Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) and Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) completed the Q3 order.
After placing in the top 10 in every practice, Liam Lawson was on the wrong end of the Q3 cut-off, but did at least pick up 11th over the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto (two tenths apart).
Gabriel Bortoleto lost his first lap in Q2 to yellow flags for the Hadjar spin, then struggled in his final attempt, apologising to Audi for a "very bad lap" that put him 14th.
Esteban Ocon was the lead Haas in 15th, though told his Haas team there was "a high chance I broke the floor in Turn 3" at the conclusion of Q2.
He ended up 0.07s up on Fernando Alonso, who made his and Aston Martin's first appearance in any Q2 session this season.
Alonso had made a sprint Q2 back in Canada, but this came after he'd crashed in sprint Q1, so he took no part in the actual running.
Ocon's Haas team-mate Ollie Bearman was the driver eliminated by Alonso's late Q1 improvement, consigned to 17th place as he'd lapped two tenths off Ocon.
The two Williams drivers were nowhere near making the second segment, as Carlos Sainz squeaked past Alex Albon by 0.04s, the latter ranting on team radio after his elimination about the wayward Williams car balance.
The Cadillacs slotted onto the last row of the grid, behind Lance Stroll, as Valtteri Bottas outpaced team-mate Sergio Perez for the third race in a row.
## Results
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m17.207s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.012s\*
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.238s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.272s\*
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.477s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) +0.518s
7 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.553s
8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull Racing) +0.649s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.074s
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.479s
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +0.126s to Q3
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.205s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.388s
14 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.466s
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.095s
16 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +1.169s
17 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.107s to Q2
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +0.495s
19 Alex Albon (Williams) +0.532s
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +0.533s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +0.760s
22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +1.196s
\*Three-place grid penalty
### Hungarian Grand Prix 2026 F1 qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/hungarian-grand-prix-2026-f1-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T15:04:28.000Z
Full results from qualifying for the F1 Belgian Grand Prix at the Hungaroring.
**Q3**
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m17.207s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.012s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.238s
4 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.272s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.477s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.518s
7 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.553s
8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.649s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.074s
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.479s
**Q2**
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.309s
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.388s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.571s
14 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.649s
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.278s
16 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.352s
**Q3**
17 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.956s
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.344s
19 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.381s
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.382s
21 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.609s
22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.045s
### Big twist in Formula E title fight with three races left
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/big-twist-in-formula-e-title-fight-with-three-races-left/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T12:13:53.000Z
Dan Ticktum took a sensational second Formula E win in the first Tokyo E-Prix, passing Jake Dennis just two corners from the end of the race.
The Cupra Kiro driver passed his Andretti rival up the inside of Turn 16 on the final lap for his second career victory, his first since Jakarta last season.
The Brit had earlier told his team he wouldn’t pass poleman Dennis - but snatched victory after the latter struggled with a power issue at the end of the race.
Citroen’s Nick Cassidy completed the podium, having started eighth, on an emotional occasion for the team - the first race [since the sudden passing of team principal Cyril Blais.](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/citroen-formula-e-team-principal-cyril-blais-dies/)
Dennis had led for much of the race, but an early pitstop from Ticktum allowed him to undercut Dennis and hold the advantage heading into the final 10 laps.
A strong late charge from the Andretti driver using Attack Mode put him back in contention, and he retook the lead on lap 29.
Once Dennis had passed Ticktum, the latter said over the radio that he would not fight his rival. But Dennis’s final-lap power cut meant Ticktum dived up the inside of Turn 16 to clinch victory.
Jaguar TCS Racing driver Mitch Evans finished fourth to reclaim the championship lead by three points, as title rival Pascal Wehrlein failed to score.
---
## Top six in standings
1 Mitch Evans - 144
2 Pascal Wehrlein - 141
3 Jake Dennis - 130
4 Oliver Rowland - 120
5 Antonio Felix da Costa - 113
6 Edoardo Mortara - 113
---
The Porsche driver was forced into retirement after contact with former team-mate Antonio Felix da Costa while the pair battled at Turn 7.
Wehrlein attempted to continue, but a broken front wing forced him back into the garage and left him without any points at a crucial point of the championship fight.
## Results
1 Dan Ticktum 47m41.746s
2 Jake Dennis +0.380s
3 Nick Cassidy +0.617s
4 Mitch Evans +4.763s
5 Edoardo Mortara +6.223s
6 Jean-Eric Vergne +6.619s
7 Oliver Rowland +7.159s
8 Pepe Marti +7.516s
9 Antonio Felix da Costa +7.765s
10 Taylor Barnard +10.456s
11 Lucas Di Grassi +11.411s
12 Joel Eriksson +14.380s
13 Felipe Drugovich +15.391s
14 Sebastien Buemi +15.808s
15 Max Guenther +19.028s
16 Norman Nato +36.804s
17 Nyck de Vries +46.973s
18 Nico Mueller +1m04.205s
19 Zane Maloney +1m11.524s
DNF Pascal Wehrlein
### Everything that happened in F1 2026 Hungarian GP final practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-that-happened-in-f1-2026-hungarian-gp-final-practice/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T11:44:40.000Z
McLaren driver Lando Norris ended Ferrari's run leading Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix practice sessions by outpacing Lewis Hamilton by 0.117s for the top spot.
Norris's upgraded MCL40 shipped three tenths to Hamilton in the low-speed final sector, but was potent enough through the rest of the lap to secure the top spot - and deny Ferrari a practice clean sweep after it had headed both Friday sessions.
After a muted Friday, 2026's dominant team Mercedes was back in the game - at least with its championship leader Kimi Antonelli, who was just 0.129s off the pace in third.
The leading trio's team-mates duly filled out the spots between fourth and sixth, with Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) - who headed the field after the runs on the first tyre sets - ahead of Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and George Russell (Mercedes).
After an encouraging Friday, which reaffirmed Russell's confidence that his deployment issues were sorted, he was nearly half a second back from Antonelli - and had a major lock-up at Turn 1.
The Red Bulls struggled to keep up with the other 'big four' teams, with Max Verstappen only seventh and Isack Hadjar three tenths back in eighth, his run on the second set compromised by a Turn 12 error.
The battle for whichever top-10 spots will be available to the midfield appears wholly monopolised by Racing Bulls and Audi, with Liam Lawson coming out narrowly ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in the fight for ninth.
Lawson's Racing Bulls team-mate Arvid Lindblad sat out most of the session due to a precautionary engine change, but two flying laps were enough to lift him into 13th - despite being eight tenths down on Lawson.
It was another gently encouraging performance for the upgraded Aston Martin, 2.454s off the pace and 17th in the hands of Fernando Alonso - and 18th in the hands of Lance Stroll, who rejoined the action after missing much of Friday following a suspension failure.
The Aston Martin B-spec appears a step ahead of Cadillac - which spent the session down to just one car after Sergio Perez's car broke down immediately on his first outlap and his rear brakes caught fire - and of Williams, which was slowest with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
## FP3 result
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m17.939s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.117s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.129s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.352s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.499s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.602s
7 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.717s
8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.004s
9 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.149s
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.221s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.399s
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.784s
13 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.956s
14 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.116s
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.356s
16 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2.373s
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.454s
18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.994s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.360s
20 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +3.467s
21 Alex Albon (Williams) +3.574s
22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) no time
### F1 monitoring 'bad' Hungary track surface after driver complaints
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/badly-resurfaced-hungary-track-is-breaking-up-and-f1-is-worried/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T09:35:53.000Z
The FIA is monitoring problems with the Hungaroring track surface opening up, but hopes that Formula 1 can avoid a repeat of what happened in Monaco when the race was red-flagged because of a similar problem.
The first day of running in Hungary witnessed plenty of lurid slides, lock-ups and weird lines being chosen as drivers battled against an uneven and dirty track surface.
While some of the headaches were caused by bumps, another key concern has emerged with the track surface also deteriorating – as The Race’s exclusive photograph of the last corner shows.
The stones appear to be coming loose and this is causing problems with both a rough surface for the cars to run across and also making things extra dirty off-line.
Drivers have been far from impressed with the state of the asphalt – with concern about the bumps and the asphalt raised during the FIA in Friday night drivers’ briefing.
Mercedes driver George Russell was one of several drivers who bemoaned the state of the track.
"It's a bit of a shame, because Budapest is one of the most enjoyable circuits to drive,” he said. "They've resurfaced a third of the track and unfortunately they've done a really bad job.
"It's really bumpy. You saw loads of people locking up at Turn 1, and the track's breaking up in the last corner. People are sort of driving around the middle of the corner and not actually hitting the apex, which is just a bit odd."
Following concerns raised in the drivers’ briefing, F1 race director Rui Marques and other officials conducted a track inspection on Friday night (above).
The bump at Turn 1 appeared to have been a consequence of the transition between an old and new surface not being completely flat.
Following the track inspection, Hungarian GP organisers worked to compress the bumps as much as possible to try to help make things better for the cars.
This focused on two areas – one on the racing line itself and another in the area on the inside where an overtaking car would likely be.
In terms of the asphalt breaking up, The Race understands that issues had already emerged in recent weeks as other categories ran on the track that had been resurfaced at Turns 1 and 12.
Pirelli chief engineer Simone Berra said: "I had feedback from the circuit before this event some weeks ago that the track was opening up from other championships running here."
Some repair work had been completed ahead of this weekend – like at Turn 1 as seen above – which appears to have held up so far.
However, there is an impact from these patches as they do not offer the same amount of grip as the normal asphalt.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri said that it made things very tricky for drivers.
"The track surface is quite bizarre in a couple of places," he said. "In the new bits, where it's worn away and they've added in some strips of tarmac, it's quite inconsistent."
The bigger issue is at the final corner though where the surface is coming away on the racing line so forcing drivers wide.
While the FIA will need to carefully observe how the surface is impacted by more running over the rest of the weekend, even if it holds together there will still be consequences for drivers.
Berra suggested that the main concern here was that the rough surface would have consequences for tyre degradation.
"The risk is to reduce the grip level and to slide more in this area," he said.
"You generate more overheating in the end because you slide more. And obviously, it can get worse lap by lap, especially I would expect for a race where all the cars are running together, especially if the temperatures will be hotter in the next couple of days."
In Monaco, a resurfaced area of track on the approach to the final corner deteriorated over the weekend and eventually forced the race to be stopped so emergency repairs could be completed.
### Final Gen4 manufacturer finally starts testing - will it suffer?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-final-gen4-breaks-cover-will-it-suffer-for-being-last/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T08:17:19.000Z
The new Mahindra Gen4 development car broke cover on Thursday and completed its first laps ahead of the manufacturer's fourth Formula E era.
The Race has learned that Jake Hughes conducted the running at the Abingdon Airfield facility in Oxfordshire, UK, which was a shakedown on Thursday before more concentrated testing begins next month.
Both current drivers Edoardo Mortara and Nyck de Vries are set to get seat time in the car in addition to Hughes as Mahindra attempts to make up for lost time after a late confirmation of its Gen4 entry, which came in [the autumn of 2025](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formulae-gen4-manufacturer-entry-mahindra/).
Stellantis, Nissan, Jaguar, Porsche and Lola are believed to have completed between four and eight days each of Gen4 testing so far, with reliability and performance running well advanced.
Speaking to The Race in Tokyo this week, Mahindra team principal Frederic Bertrand said that the fact Mahindra is running behind its rivals does not necessarily mean it will be massively on the back foot after the homologation of its challenger in early October.
"I think it's easier to say \[if there will be a competitive hierarchy\] when you have the track time, but on our side we don't feel we would suffer so much on that side," said Bertrand.
"Right now, simulation tools are helping a lot. What we are doing on Gen3 Evo is also helping a lot, because at the end what we do on the four-wheel drive is very close to what will be needed in the Gen4, in some areas like software, etc.
"Maybe we are hopeful that we will have a gap which is, if not fully compensated, very much closer than what we have today in the efficiency, in the way we deal with the car globally in terms of performance.
"We cannot touch the hardware, but we can go a bit deeper on some small areas. So, at the end, I don't think we will suffer so much on that side. The only risk would be if we have a problem with reliability.
"If we have an issue on the reliability side when we hit the track, then it would create a lot of delay on the performance development. And what we hope is that what we have done on simulation will give us enough knowledge and confidence in the reliability to make sure that we start very quickly to focus on performance."
## The driver situation
Mortara and De Vries are set to bring what Bertrand described as 'strong stability' to Mahindra, which looks almost certain to retain the pair for a fourth season together.
Mortara is having one of his best Formula E seasons in his eighth full campaign, having so far scored two podium positions and a brace of pole positions. He is still in title contention in sixth place in the standings, albeit now 38 points adrift of championship leader Pascal Wehrlein.
Addressing the question of keeping his two present drivers, Bertrand went short of absolutely confirming they would stay, citing the present clashes of races between Formula E and the World Endurance Championship in 2027.
"There's always reason to change and reason not to change," said Bertrand.
"Right now, the point is more that I like strong stability. But nothing is really yet fully fixed, because there are plenty of question marks on the calendar still."
That alluded to De Vries' dual role with his Toyota WEC programme. As it stands there are two clashes next season with the Spa WEC and Monaco Formula E date in May, as well as congestion with the Interlagos and Shanghai races in early July.
"There are some hopes that we can get maybe fewer clashes, but we don't have confirmation," said Bertrand, touching on the possibility that the Monaco race can be [brought forward to early-May](https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/monaco-date-change-could-save-sebastien-buemi-formula-e-career/).
### New contender emerges as F1's 2026 season finale back-up
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/new-contender-emerges-as-f1-2026-season-finale-back-up/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T07:58:52.000Z
Imola has entered the frame as one of the lead candidates to be slotted in as this year’s Formula 1 season finale if currently scheduled events in the Middle East have to be called off, The Race has learned.
The recent escalation of tensions between the United States and Iran appears to have not only scuppered any hope Bahrain had of returning to the calendar, but has also prompted doubt about whether the final races of the year in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will be able to go ahead too.
While F1 chiefs are edging closer a green light for a [Malaysian GP on October 4](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/malaysian-gp-sepang-f1-2026-option-return-bahrain-gp/) to fill in the gap that Bahrain would have taken, the end-of-year plans are a bit more up in the air right now as a decision on the Qatar and Abu Dhabi races will be made as late as possible.
However, F1 needs to have a fallback plan in place should the tensions in the Middle East not ease and it is forced to arrange something quickly.
If Qatar and Abu Dhabi are called off, F1 is eager to add another race after the Las Vegas Grand Prix on November 21 - with the original Abu Dhabi date of December 6 the most likely slot for it.
With the Malaysian GP in play, this December finale would then ensure that the 2026 season has had 22 races, which ensures it will have fulfilled various contractual commitments on the commercial front.
It had previously been thought that Portimao, which has hosted two editions of the Portuguese Grand Prix, appeared to be the [most likely candidate](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-season-finale-alternative-portimao-that-it-might-not-need/) due to its readiness and the climate being suitable for a race in December.
However, The Race has learned that in recent days there is some doubt about whether or not a Portimao race in December would make sense.
The Algarve International Circuit has a [two-year deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/portugal-secures-shock-f1-calendar-return-portimao-algarve/) to host the Portuguese GP in 2027 and 2028, but it is understood that it wants to complete some extra work on the facility and its infrastructure ahead of those events.
Such work may be delayed too much if it hosts a race in December, which is why there is some doubt now about whether or not it is realistic for F1 to go there if needed.
Amid F1’s search for an alternative, it has emerged that Imola is now on the shortlist to stage a grand prix once again, having originally fallen off the calendar this year.
It hosted F1 for the first time in 14 years in November 2020 when the first Emilia Romagna GP was run during the COVID pandemic and held the second round of the following year's championship.
Imola also appeared on the 2022 schedule when lingering COVID restrictions meant the Chinese GP required a replacement, and that same year it secured a [three-year deal](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/imola-gets-multi-year-f1-deal-until-2025/) that kept it on the calendar through to 2025, although the 2023 edition was [cancelled due to devastating flooding](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/emilia-romagna-gp-imola-cancelled-floods/) in the region.
Hosting a race in December would be a different prospect to Imola's previous late-in-the-year slot; the average daily high temperature for December is 7°C, while the mean temperature is 4°C, which would make it very difficult to generate tyre temperature.
But there is also logic to the season-ending race taking place in Italy in a year where Kimi Antonelli is favourite to win the F1 drivers' championship and Ferrari is in contention to win the constructors' championship. Imola is also the home town of F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali.
Calendar developments are expected imminently, with a decision on Bahrain’s fate expected to be fast-tracked by what is expected to be a decision this weekend by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council about two of its World Endurance Championship rounds.
The WEC season is currently due to end in the Middle East with a race in Qatar on October 24 - [pushed back](https://www.the-race.com/endurance/wec-first-series-to-postpone-race-amid-middle-east-crisis/) from its original March 28 date as a consequence of the outbreak of war between the US-Israel and Iran - and Bahrain on November 7.
This weekend's WMSC decision on those races, which will be primarily made on safety grounds, is set to influence the direction that F1 will take with its Middle Eastern races.
### COTA expands United States GP access with new Thursday ticket
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/cota-expands-united-states-gp-access-with-new-thursday-ticket/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T20:19:24.000Z
The Circuit of The Americas is expanding its United States Grand Prix offering with a new Thursday ticket that will give Formula 1 fans access to the venue before the race weekend officially begins.
The new 'Grand PrixView Thursday' event will debut this year on October 22 ahead of the Austin race weekend and will be available as a standalone ticket priced from $20.
Fans attending on Thursday will be able to take part in an F1 pitlane walk, watch F1 Academy on-track activity, visit the F1 Academy paddock and explore fan attractions around the circuit before the arrival of the main weekend crowds.
The ticket will also provide access to the circuit's fan villages, merchandise outlets and the Formula 1 Fan Zone, while COTA's theme park will be open separately.
> [ View this post on Instagram ](https://www.instagram.com/reel/DbI8Y5kkwoC/?utm%5Fsource=ig%5Fembed&utm%5Fcampaign=loading)
>
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Existing three-day grandstand, general admission and hospitality ticket holders will receive Thursday access at no additional cost.
COTA chairman and founder Bobby Epstein said the initiative was designed to encourage local fans to experience F1 up close.
"We're always looking for ways to make F1 more accessible," Epstein said. "Grand PrixView Thursday is like an open house for our Central Texas community. For just $20, you can come, get up close with F1 and see what all the excitement is about."
The move effectively turns the US GP into a four-day event as F1's popularity in Austin continues to grow.
The Austin race has become one of the best-attended events on the F1 calendar since joining the championship in 2012, with COTA increasingly expanding the off-track entertainment and fan experience alongside the grand prix itself.
### Winners and losers from Hungarian GP F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-f1-2026-hungarian-gp-practice/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T19:02:29.000Z
Aston Martin's rollercoaster 'new upgrade day' dominated the headlines at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Friday - so that means all the more reason to delve a little deeper in how the rest of the Formula 1 field fared.
Here are our pick of winners and losers from Friday at the Hungaroring.
## Loser: Mercedes
Mercedes' position as a loser has to come with the caveat that Kimi Antonelli couldn't get a flying lap in on the softs when it counted in FP2, the most representative session.
However, the Ferraris and Max Verstappen in FP1/Lando Norris in FP2 have locked out the top three in both practice sessions; for Mercedes, George Russell was its top driver in both sessions in fifth.
Russell is unhappy with the Hungaroring's resurfacing, which is bumpy and interrupted braking zones, especially at Turn 1, while Antonelli sat out FP1 for Frederik Vesti and then fought rear-locking for most of FP2.
Mercedes has come back from similar days before to win, but this feels like a real uphil battle, especially given Verstappen's form at the last slow-speed circuit similar to this, in Monaco, where he qualified on the front row of the grid. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner: Ferrari
Charles Leclerc topped FP1 before Lewis Hamilton topped FP2, and Ferrari seems well set for the weekend ahead.
Mercedes' George Russell felt that Ferrari is the team to beat, "a good step ahead of everyone".
Fred Vasseur's summary of Friday in Hungary was "so far, so good", with the team having also brought upgrades to Hungary.
Yet he quipped that this place doesn't offer any more points than Silverstone or Spa, and pointed to the elephant in the room: Ferrari must first ace qualifying - something it hasn't yet been able to do in 2026 - around the narrow confines of the Hungaroring. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Loser: Lance Stroll
Aston Martin gets what this year feels like a customary spot in our losers section, but this one's slightly different.
Stroll can only end up here; not for anything he did wrong, simply for the track time lost to a suspension failure - one that, in the context of the interest surrounding the upgraded AMR26, made the package's introduction look like a flop.
The on-track performance suggests something more positive than that, though it's inescapably true that Stroll's weekend has been affected; Aston Martin team representative Pedro de la Rosa acknowledged as much: "We've lost a lot of track time with that, but also Lance has lost a lot of track time, because it's just a new feeling, a different characteristic to drive this car, so drivers also need to adapt.
"It's not only about adapting the set-up, but also the drivers to this car."
Parts are being transported from Silverstone to the Hungaroring so Stroll can have the latest-spec car - but that still serves to underline how fragile things are for Aston Martin right now. **\- Jack Cozens**
## Winner: Aston Martin
As The Race's resident ex-F1 technical director Gary Anderson put it, the Hungaroring weekend effectively marks the start of Aston Martin's season.
It didn't start auspiciously: unusual vibrations were clearly audible from the engine at speed from Fernando Alonso's onboard in FP1; then of course there was Stroll's suspension failure (though this was not an upgraded part).
Still, Alonso's 13th place in (a somewhat unrepresentative) FP1 was gently encouraging, and even 19th in FP2 came with the caveat that without a track-limits violation, he'd have been 17th.
If that all feels a bit 'ifs, buts and maybes', the in-house and external reviews lend a bit more credit to the theory that this was an encouraging Friday.
Team principal Adrian Newey said "the provisional results are promising" and Alonso felt there were no "big surprises" nor "any big deficit on the corners now to the top of the midfield" - something rivals, notably Williams's Alex Albon, agreed with.
So Aston Martin at least appears to have a car that it can go racing with, rather than disappearing off the back of the field. **\- JC**
## Winner: Lando Norris
Ferrari's nearest challenger?
With Mercedes out of sorts (but maybe not by as much as it seems) and Verstappen probably up at the ceiling of what the Red Bull can do (based on his FP1 and FP2 deficits, and margin over Isack Hadjar), there's a vacuum to be filled up at the front - one that Norris, in third, occupied nicely on Friday at least.
And there was a handy margin over Oscar Piastri, too, albeit one partly explained by Norris's track time advantage (Piastri sat out FP1) and their spec offset (Piastri will get McLaren's new parts on Saturday).
Still, after weekends where the result was good but the pace wasn't (Silverstone), or the pace was good but the result wasn't (Spa), maybe things are aligning nicely enough for Norris to aim for only a third podium of his title-defending season. **\- JC**
## Winner: Racing Bulls
Audi has bagged two eighth-place finishes in a row and its upgrades have put it back in the midfield leaders' fight, but Racing Bulls hasn't rested on its laurels.
The team's one Spa upgrade went to Arvid Lindblad but, with Liam Lawson now sporting the flashy upgrade as well, both cars look to have what they need to fight and beat Audi once again here.
So in the context of this being a less power-sensitive circuit than the likes of Spa, which should play into Audi's hands a little more, and with the track evolution so dramatic between sessions, Lawson leading the midfield (and being ahead of Piastri!) is a good sign. **\- JB**
## Loser: Alpine
Alpine was the only team not to declare an upgrade for the Hungarian GP, and it may find itself towards the back of the midfield throughout the weekend.
Pierre Gasly, who was 14th in both Friday practice sessions, called this "one of the toughest Fridays so far" with a lack of grip and feeling in the car.
The team is lacking downforce and "really, really struggling" as Gasly said - but the windy conditions and green track also contributed to that.
Franco Colapinto's FP2 crash added to Alpine's woes, with the team facing a long night at the Hungaroring, particularly if the gearbox is damaged.
Alpine engineer Dave Greenwood said that Colapinto was adapting to and wrestling with the winds before being "caught out" at the final corner, while maintaining that the team is "still in the race" despite a wait for its upgrade package.
Some consolation will come in the form of Paul Aron, who stepped into the car in Colapinto's place for FP1.
Having previously driven the Audi in Spanish GP FP1, Aron will provide Alpine with some useful comparisons - something Aron said he is allowed to do. **\- SK**
## Loser: Williams
Williams expected a challenge in Hungary, a track that puts excessive heat into the rear tyres, while the wind causes extra instability. Williams engineer Richard Frith said both were factors that will hurt the team's chances this weekend.
Alex Albon was 15th in FP1 and 16th in FP2.
Carlos Sainz was meanwhile twice-noted for driving erratically in FP1 (but only warned for one of the incidents) before suffering a huge lock-up late in first practice and then being shown a black-and-white flag for impeding.
Williams is essentially waiting for a major upgrade package to land at Baku in September, with the rear-limited layout of the Hungaroring proving punishing already.
It's early days, but the team was 3.426% off the pace - worse than any of its final race-weekend figures from the 10 events so far this season (3.235% in Austria being its previous worst). **\- SK**
### Aston Martin flying in spares for 'promising' upgraded car
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-flying-spare-parts-to-f1-hungarian-gp-for-upgraded-car/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T19:39:44.000Z
Aston Martin is flying spare parts out to Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix so both drivers can have the heavily upgraded AMR26 for qualifying.
The overhauled Aston Martin showed promising pace on debut, but Lance Stroll's FP1 lasted less than 40 minutes as the left-rear suspension failed on his Aston Martin and he spun approaching the Turn 3 right-hand kink.
That prematurely ended his practice day as the car could not be repaired for FP2 due to a lack of spare parts. The team was already pushed for those given it had put everything towards debuting the new package before the summer break.
Team representative Pedro de la Rosa confirmed after FP2 that Stroll's issue had been a suspension failure, but said the team had been confident it would not happen on Fernando Alonso's car.
"That's the reason why he went out and he continued in the second session, so we were safe on that," he said.
"However, it meant that because of the lack of spares, we couldn't repair the car on time with Lance. He will be out tomorrow \[Saturday\], but we couldn't do it for the second session, unfortunately.
"We've lost a lot of track time with that, but also Lance has lost a lot of track time, because it's just a new feeling, a different characteristic to drive this car, so drivers also need to adapt. It's not only about adapting the set-up, but also the drivers to this car."
De la Rosa confirmed it was a "combination" of parts at the track and others being flown in from Aston Martin's Silverstone base that needed replacing on Stroll's car.
## Alonso's upgrade verdict
Alonso said the upgrade "felt good" and that "in general we had what we expected in terms of numbers and correlation, which is obviously very encouraging for the future as well, for next year's car and the future upgrades into this year".
"Still a long way to go for us, obviously starting so far behind, but this is the first step hopefully of good ones coming," he said.
Alonso felt confident he should at least be racing other cars with midfield rivals, including Williams driver Alex Albon, expecting Aston Martin to be a Q2 threat.
"We need to study more the data and see a little bit of overlays, but I don't think there is any big surprises there or any big deficit on the corners now to the top of the midfield, which is obviously the first of our ambitions: to be top of the midfield," Alonso said.
"I think on the corners we are matching that kind of pace, so we just need to keep up the work.
"Obviously there are still some steps to go to the top of the chassis side and some steps to go to the engine side as well.
"This is the first of many, but I think there is a positive atmosphere in the team, knowing that we deliver what we expect."
That tallied with team principal Adrian Newey's view in-between practice sessions that the "provisional results are promising".
The only snag was the reemergence of audible vibrations aboard the Aston Martin.
"We had some vibrations on the main straight, especially in FP1," Alonso said. "I think the guys fixed it more or less for FP2, so there are no concerns for tomorrow."
There were still complaints over the team radio of the vibrations in FP2, although de la Rosa said these were "something that Honda is on top of" and that they were not of the kind the team experienced at the start of the season.
"We observed some oscillation on the engine, and we know the cause, which is different from the previous vibrations," said Honda's trackside general manager and chief engineer, Shintaro Orihara.
"We were fine-tuning the countermeasures through the sessions, and we can confirm improvements."
Regardless, things are undoubtedly looking better for Aston Martin. Alonso's fastest laptime in FP2 was deleted for a track-limits breach, but that lap would have put him 17th and ahead of cars he was more than two seconds adrift of at Spa last weekend.
Rivals put Aston Martin's corner performance as being in the thick of the midfield fight, hence the team's keenness to have two cars running the upgrade on Saturday.
### The F1 performance factor that's still undervalued - and which drivers excel
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/the-f1-performance-factor-thats-still-undervalued-and-which-drivers-excel/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T16:49:37.000Z
Formula 1 has never been more obsessed with performance.
Teams spend millions to make marginal gains. Drivers dedicate their lives to becoming faster, fitter and more precise. Every detail is scrutinised in pursuit of a win, or better yet, a world championship.
Yet some of the most important data in modern F1 doesn’t come from telemetry screens or engineering briefings, but from driver reactions.
[Recent events](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-was-behind-russells-radio-rant-and-why-it-was-muted/) have once again shone a spotlight on the emotional pressure elite sportspeople operate under. In a sport where expectations are sky high, frustration can surface quickly when results fail to match ambition.
**George Russell after his lap one exit from the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix*
For Monaco-based mental performance coach Caroli Remmlinger, those moments are not signs of weakness. They are windows into the psychological demands of competing at the highest level.
"The short sentences that you say when you are angry, frustrated, sad - this is like a book of your brain for me," she said, speaking generally.
It is why Remmlinger spends so much time focusing not simply on how drivers perform, but on how they think.
While F1 teams routinely invest in physical preparation, simulator work and technical development, she believes the mental side of performance remains one of the sport's most undervalued advantages.
"Exactly as you work on your body, you work in the simulator... Why don't you work on your brain?"
Remmlinger is quick to distinguish mental performance coaching from the way many people think about sports psychology.
"For me sports psychology is the basics," she explained. "But mental performance is really advanced."
**Caroli Remmlinger*
While sports psychology often focuses on understanding behaviour and helping athletes work through challenges, Remmlinger's approach is centred on performance itself. Drawing on her qualifications in psychology, sport psychology and neuroscience and years of business coaching experience, she combines elements of psychology, coaching, behavioural analysis and trackside observation to understand how drivers think under pressure and how those thought patterns affect what happens when they get behind the wheel.
For her, the goal is not simply to understand why an athlete thinks a certain way, but to actively change the habits and emotional responses that influence performance.
That belief that our brain is trainable throughout our lives has shaped her work with drivers across the motorsport ladder - from karting to potential champions - and informs everything from the exercises she sets away from the track to the observations she makes in the heat of competition.
The importance of that work becomes most visible when things are not going to plan.
"We can be so angry and frustrated," she said. "It will not help us getting to our goal."
That idea sits at the centre of her philosophy.
Drivers spend their entire careers chasing success. They are conditioned to believe they can win.
Yet, as Caroli explained, motorsport guarantees disappointment as much as triumph. Cars are uncompetitive. Team-mates outperform expectations. Championships slip away. Opportunities disappear. This naturally leads to emotional responses.
## The mentality of F1
The challenge, according to Remmlinger, is preventing emotion from taking control.
What frustrates her most is a persistent misunderstanding of what mental coaching actually is. Many athletes still associate psychology with having a problem to solve rather than a skill to develop.
Remmlinger said that too often mental support is sought only when a problem arises and it’s almost too late to turn it around for the end of the season.
Mental performance, she argued, should be approached in the same way as fitness, or technical preparation: as an element that is consistently worked on.
That philosophy shapes her coaching process.
One of the first exercises she introduces is journaling. Not in a ‘dear diary’ way but more akin to a database.
The data collected about the car alone is extraordinary, everything can be tracked to the most minute of details. Yet many have no equivalent system for tracking emotions, thought patterns or psychological triggers.
Without that information improvement becomes guesswork, Remmlinger said.
"They have no database. And without a database, how can we improve anything?"
Alongside journaling, visualisation plays a key role in her work.
For Remmlinger, visualisation is not about wishful thinking or positive affirmations. It is a form of preparation.
By repeatedly rehearsing situations mentally before they happen, drivers can create familiarity, build confidence and develop responses before they find themselves under pressure.
"You can tell me during our calls whatever you want… On the racetrack, I see your raw emotions."
Viewed through that lens, F1's radio messages become something more than entertainment. They become evidence - not evidence of weakness, but evidence of how the mind responds to pressure and disappointment.
Which is why she finds certain drivers particularly fascinating. Among the champions she admires most is Mika Häkkinen.
## The mindset of champions
Long before mindset became a fashionable topic in motorsport, Häkkinen embraced many of the principles that underpin modern mental performance coaching. His commitment to preparation, his ability to remain composed under pressure and his willingness to engage with the psychological side of performance made him a standout example for her.
She sees Häkkinen as one of a small number of drivers who understand that success is shaped as much by what happens inside the helmet as outside it.
Among today's F1 grid, Oscar Piastri stands out for similar reasons.
Remmlinger has frequently pointed to Piastri as an example of emotional discipline. During periods where outside observers questioned circumstances around him or speculated about internal team dynamics, she was struck by how little his behaviour appeared to change.
"This guy was so poised," she said. "He was so calm on the outside. He was still so diplomatic."
For Remmlinger, that composure is not accidental. Piastri has worked with a mental performance coach, Emma Murray, from the early days of his motorsport career.
Just as telling, she argues, is what does not happen.
In an era where every action is scrutinised, Piastri rarely generates headlines for emotional outbursts or off-track distractions. The focus remains firmly on performance.
If Piastri represents one form of mental resilience, Carlos Sainz represents another.
"I think Carlos Sainz is very advanced," she explained. "The way he speaks, even when he is angry, you see that he doesn't have chaos in his mind."
What fascinates her is not the absence of emotion, but the ability to remain clear-headed while experiencing it.
Sainz, she believed, demonstrates a level of emotional control that allows him to continue making effective decisions even when circumstances are difficult.
In a sport where careers are shaped by pressure, uncertainty and constant evaluation, that stability can become a competitive advantage.
Looking beyond the current grid, she finds a similar quality in one of F1's most iconic champions.
**Credit: The Cahier Archive*
When asked which former drivers stood out mentally, she answered immediately: "Senna."
Listening to Ayrton Senna's interviews decades later, Remmlinger hears ideas that feel remarkably modern. Long before mental performance coaching became commonplace in elite sport, he was already speaking about responsibility, self-awareness and mindset in ways that resonate today.
"This guy was not a champion by accident," she said.
## The evolution of pressure
For Remmlinger, the common thread linking Häkkinen, Senna, Sainz and Piastri is not talent alone, but their relationship with pressure.
And as Remmlinger pointed out, only strengthening her point on the importance of consistent mental preparation, pressure continually changes and evolves.
"New level, new devil."
As drivers progress through their careers, the pressures around them change. A young driver moving into single-seaters faces different expectations to someone fighting for wins in F1, just as a race winner faces a different challenge again when a championship becomes a realistic target.
"One season everything can be okay and then something changes in the next season."
That, she believes, explains why even the world's best drivers can look different from one year to the next. The demands placed upon them are constantly evolving, whether that comes in the form of a new team-mate, a more competitive car, greater expectations or simply a different stage of their career.
Throughout our conversation, Remmlinger returns to the same themes: self-awareness, responsibility and the importance of treating mental performance as something that can be developed rather than something athletes either possess or lack.
It is a philosophy she sees reflected in the drivers she admires most. Häkkinen's commitment to preparation, Piastri's composure, Sainz's emotional control and Senna's self-awareness all point to the same underlying principle: success at the highest level is not just about how drivers perform when everything is going well, but how they respond when they are challenged.
In a sport where so much attention is placed on machinery, strategy and execution, Remmlinger's focus remains firmly on the person behind the wheel.
It is perhaps best summed up by Henry Ford, of all people, and Remmlinger’s favourite quote: "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you're right."
### What happened in red-flagged second Hungarian GP practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-red-flagged-second-hungary-gp-practice/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T16:13:19.000Z
Ferrari set the fastest times of FP2 for the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton setting the benchmark ahead of Charles Leclerc, as Franco Colapinto crashed.
Hamilton’s fastest time of 1m18.729s was 0.148s faster than team-mate and FP1 leader Leclerc’s.
McLaren’s Lando Norris was third-fastest and almost half a second off the pace.
The session was red-flagged just before the halfway point as Alpine’s Colapinto (P21) spun on entry to the final corner and hit the barriers with the rear of his car.
Colapinto was ahead of Lance Stroll in 22nd by default as Aston Martin - arriving with a B-spec upgrade - could not repair the suspension damage that brought his first practice session to an end prematurely.
After Colapinto's crash, FP2 resumed with 26 minutes left, with a train of cars waiting to leave the pits for qualifying simulations on soft tyres - a few drivers having been interrupted by the red flag.
Max Verstappen finished fourth and almost seven-tenths off for Red Bull.
He complained of a “super stiff” rear axle and a lack of rear grip on his medium-tyre long run. Verstappen collected debris on track with around 20 minutes left - but no major damage was reported.
George Russell rounded out the top five for Mercedes, 0.933s off the pace. His team-mate and championship leader Kimi Antonelli was 13th and the only driver to have set their fastest lap on mediums rather than softs.
Antonelli, who was almost two seconds off the pace, complained of rear lockups under braking as he chased a better set-up throughout FP2.
Isack Hadjar finished sixth for Red Bull, 1.071s off the pace, while Liam Lawson was three-tenths behind for Racing Bulls - in an upgraded car.
Oscar Piastri was 1.372s off the benchmark in eighth with McLaren having replaced its 'Macarena' rear wing on both cars for this session.
Nico Hulkenberg was two-hundredths behind Piastri in ninth and Arvid Lindblad was 1.524s off the pace in 10th.
Gabriel Bortoleto was 11th for Audi and Esteban Ocon was 12th for Haas, the pair split by under a tenth.
Pierre Gasly was 14th to his stricken team-mate’s 21st. Behind was the Haas of Ollie Bearman then the Williams pair of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz respectively.
Valtteri Bottas, 18th for Cadillac, was almost three-tenths faster than 19th-place Fernando Alonso - who complained of vibrations from the Honda power unit - as the Spaniard's car was almost bathed in green flow-vis paint late in the afternoon.
### F1 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-hungarian-grand-prix-practice-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-25T11:34:35.000Z
Below you'll find the practice results for this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix.
## FP3 result
1 Lando Norris (McLaren) 1m17.939s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.117s
3 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.129s
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.352s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.499s
6 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.602s
7 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.717s
8 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.004s
9 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.149s
10 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.221s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.399s
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.784s
13 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.956s
14 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.116s
15 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.356s
16 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2.373s
17 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.454s
18 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +2.994s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.360s
20 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +3.467s
21 Alex Albon (Williams) +3.574s
22 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) no time
## FP2 result
1 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 1m18.729s
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.148s
3 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.499s
4 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.692s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.933s
6 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.071s
7 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.312s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1.372s
9 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.396s
10 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.524s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.745s
12 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.828s
13 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +1.964s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +2.087s
15 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +2.221s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.244s
17 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.697s
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.713s
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.990s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.063s
21 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +3.802s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) no time
## FP1 result
1 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 1m19.075s
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing) +0.484s
3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.543s
4 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.922s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.991s
6 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.285s
7 Frederik Vesti (Mercedes) +1.392s
8 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.548s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.685s
10 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.791s
11 Lando Norris (McLaren) +1.949s
12 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1.976s
13 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2.475s
14 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +2.629s
15 Alexander Albon (Williams) +2.744s
16 Leonardo Fornaroli (McLaren) +2.815s
17 Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) +2.926s
18 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.014s
19 Paul Aron (Alpine) +3.093s
20 Colton Herta (Cadillac) +4.043s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +4.396s
22 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +4.659s
### Gary Anderson on failure that ended Stroll's practice day early
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/lance-stroll-hungarian-gp-fp1-mechanical-failure-gary-anderson/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T15:17:17.000Z
**While there has been no formal conclusion yet on the nature of the mechanical failure that Lance Stroll experienced in his upgraded Aston Martin Formula 1 car in first practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix, the overwhelming suggestion is it was a suspension failure - with the team** [**expressing such a suspicion**](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/b-spec-aston-martin-causes-red-flag-in-f1-practice-debut/)**.**
**What we do know for certain is it was enough to keep Stroll out of FP2, as Aston Martin stated before the session: "There has not been enough time to repair the damage from FP1."**
**Here's Gary Anderson's verdict from what we've been able to see:**
It's not certain, because we're judging it from photos rather than a proper inspection of the part, but it looks like this shows the area of the rear suspension that failed on Lance Stroll's car during FP1.
As far as I am aware, it's not a new or repositioned component, but in reality going faster and using more of the kerbs will increase the loading on some of these components.
The forward leg of the rear suspension is the component that takes the load under braking. If the anti-lift has increased, it means the objective would be to keep the rear of the car lower under braking and potentially increase that load. It is in tension and combined with the pushrod loads, which also puts a tension load on that component, so makes for a highly loaded component.
As with most of these failures, it never happens immediately so the damage could easily be done going over the kerbs somewhere else on the track.
Normally, these components are made up of pieces: the aerofoil section and the end machinings are then bonded together. It looks like a bonding delamination caused the failure to me.
### Newey on 'unexpected' failure, upgrade plan and new Honda vibrations
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/newey-on-unexpected-failure-upgrade-plan-and-new-honda-vibrations/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T14:49:02.000Z
Aston Martin team boss Adrian Newey faced the media an hour after his much anticipated B-spec car debuted at the Hungaroring on Friday.
[Lance Stroll suffered a mechanical failure](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/b-spec-aston-martin-causes-red-flag-in-f1-practice-debut/) (a suspected suspension failure according to the team) less than 40 minutes into AMR26’s debut in FP1, although team-mate Fernando Alonso did show some [respectable pace](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-hungarian-grand-prix-practice-results/) in the sister car.
The team is still working to understand the unexpected failure on Stroll’s car, but it wasn’t related to the upgrade according to Newey.
“So the area involved was actually not being changed,” Newey said.
“We are short on spares because the cladding and so forth is different. So there are some minor changes in that area, but in that sense it's very unexpected.
“Until we have an understanding it's difficult to comment further.”
Craig Evans / Spacesuit Media
## Returning Honda oscillations are a concern
Alonso was reminded over the team radio to stay away from the kerbs while on his push laps in practice, but this was all about ensuring sufficient aero data acquisition, rather than an issue with the upgrade.
“Staying away from the kerbs, that's purely because we are acquiring aero data and when you're trying to acquire aero data, you don't want the disruption of kerbs thrown in, the inconsistency that corrupts the data,” Newey said when The Race asked him about the messages.
Oscillations were visible on both drivers’ onboard cameras during FP1, which suggested the return of the Honda engine-related vibrations that the team struggled with at the start of the year.
When The Race put that to him, Newey said: “The oscillations, yes, that's really a question for Honda. They can see it on the data and they are working on the solution.”
## There’s more to come…
Hungary was always going to be part one of the Aston Martin chassis overhaul with a second part planned for arrival after the summer break at Zandvoort, coinciding with Honda’s sole engine upgrade.
But Newey revealed a third phase of the chassis upgrade will arrive at either Monza, or Baku in September.
“The provisional results are promising,” Newey said. “It's only part of the package so we'll have some more steps in Zandvoort and then further steps in Monza/Baku.
“So it's the first part of our planned upgrade, and \[we are\] very short on parts so we've been careful with it and trying to learn all about it.”
He added: “We're clearly on a big catch-up game, so is it going to make us the quickest car? Unfortunately, not. Does it represent a good step forward from where we were? Yes, I believe it does.”
## Respectability is the target after 'nightmare' start
Newey was asked whether the debut of Aston Martin’s B-spec car was the end of a nightmare, and the first day of a dream.
“Hopefully, yes, these first races have been a complete nightmare, you're absolutely right,” Newey admitted.
“Hopefully, we can get at least to a point of respectability now - I think that is the immediate goal - and then from there we can try to keep moving forwards.”
The team has been an average of 4.670% off the pace prior to Hungary, with the next-best team, brand-new outfit Cadillac, 3.993% adrift.
In FP1, Alonso’s best time put him 3.123% off the pace, but the first part of the upgrade package will be far from optimised yet. Judged on Alonso’s best sectors, Aston Martin’s best first sector was slowest of all teams, but its second and third sectors were seventh best.
This upgrade's performance is a key part of Aston Martin convincing Alonso to remain aboard for 2027.
“Fernando is an amazing driver, brings a huge amount to the team, both in his feedback and his ability,” Newey said.
“So for us it's of course it's important, but I'm pretty confident that Fernando is enjoying his time with us and that we will continue with our relationship.”
### Everything we can see that's changed on 'B-spec' Aston Martin
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-b-spec-f1-2026-car-gary-anderson-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T15:22:38.000Z
Aston Martin's major Formula 1 upgrade package effectively makes the Hungarian Grand Prix, the 11th round of the year, the real start of it and Honda's season.
The combination of the car upgrades, and the Honda power unit step that's to come after the August break, must add up to a big performance gain.
The team has admitted the car was overweight, so that’s been a priority to fix because extra weight is a time penalty and makes everything worse - braking, cornering forces, acceleration, tyre degradation, the lot - and that costs you significant laptime.
The question is: what has Aston Martin learned from its dismal start to 2026? Delaying the update to late July has given it the chance to study the directions taken by other teams, and that shows up in some of the upgrades.
The front wing is the first thing that creates the airflow structure that the rest of the car has to work with. Aston Martin has paid a lot of attention to this area. It is actually a very different concept, with very different loading across its span and through the three permissible elements.
The pictures are from a different angle, but it does look like the chord length of the front element is shorter, the chord length of the second element longer, and the third element is similar to the previous package.
The V-section just inside the front tyre inner face has been replaced with more of a crowned profile. This is the area that will alter the airflow structure significantly.
Increasing the airflow under the wing will mean more flow is pulled around the inside of the front tyre. However, across its span the airflow will be more uniform, so its velocity, which is what the rest of the car has to work with, will also be more uniform and therefore less sensitive to wind direction and turbulence when following another car. That should be a positive given the front wing airflow separation problems that Aston Martin suffered with the old version of the car.
The endplates have also been revised. The horizontal outer vane has been moved forward, requiring the upper endplate edge profile to be altered. This repositioning and reprofiling are intended to exert greater influence on the airflow that is being directed downwards towards the outer-tyre squish. If possible, you want to maximise this to minimise the negative effect that inner-tyre squish has on the following downforce producing devices.
The bargeboards are about small detail changes. The overall height, highlighted with the blue line, has been reduced. The double-ended orange arrow shows this, so it is a significant difference.
Also, the two horizontal flaps highlighted with the red lines are now less aggressive at the trailing edge. They still retain their chord curvature further rearwards, so in effect are still doing the same job on that front corner of the floor just further rearward.
However, by starting further rearward, they have less effect on the airflow that is created by tyre squirt coming around the inside of the front tyre. This will have less of a detrimental effect on the mass airflow coming through between the inside of the front tyres and the chassis sides, which is the airflow that the underfloor has to work with.
The radiator sidepod inlet has been reprofiled. The outer corner leading to the outer sidepod top corner radius has been 'blended' more, and the inlet split line profile highlighted with the red line has also been altered. The inlet itself looks slightly smaller on the inboard side, as the orange double-ended arrow from the top of the chassis looks shorter on the new version.
All of those modifications will lead to Aston Martin's approach to the 'double floor' arrangement.
Above is the new version of the body profile, and below is the pre-Hungary version.
From these pictures, the only thing I can see is that it looks like Aston Martin has gone for an even more aggressive double floor package. The light blue line is to represent the floor, the green line is to represent the body profile. Yes, again, the pictures are at very different angles, but I think the differences are enough to highlight there is a change in this area.
The aim of generating greater mass airflow through this area is to improve the performance of the diffuser. That will improve the performance of the rear of the car as a whole, meaning the diffuser, beam wing and rear wing.
With these cars being what is loosely called flat-bottom cars, all these components at the rear of the car will work best if the mass airflow to them is maximised and that looks like what Aston Martin is focusing on.
It will also be interesting to see how this develops considering Newey's old Red Bull philosophy of high rake on his flat-bottomed cars. Aston Martin started the season using that concept but others seemed to adopt a more flat approach to rake. However, we know Adrian is pretty confident in his vision.
The package also includes a revised engine cover and cooling outlets. It's always difficult to comment on whether it's a development or simply to suit the circuit requirements, but in Aston Martin's case I'm sure it's a bit of both.
On the new system, these are slightly repositioned to fit in with the new engine cover and sidepod profiles. There are fewer louvres but they are bigger - in particular the outlet of the last one.
In general, more cooling equals more drag, so it's the efficiency of the overall cooling package that is critical to overall performance.
This sidepod comparison doesn't really show in great detail what I have highlighted when it comes to the double floor concept, which I believe to be one of the prime movers in this development package. However, it shows that the undercut below the decals looks deeper.
The detail in front of the rear tyre highlighted with the red ellipse has also been revised. I would describe it as coming from the same family of thinking, but it is now less aggressive.
The white circle highlighting the rear flap in this area is less cambered and its trailing-edge profile is reducing the level of inner tyre squirt from the earlier design. Aston Martin has also removed the second element highlighted with the blue arrow.
The rear wing actuator has also been revised. Some of that might be for weight reduction and we will have to see what style of actuation it will use, but from these pictures with the new one minus its aerodynamic shroud I would expect it would retain the previous operating system, similar to the outdated DRS larger slot gap that most teams have stuck with.
As with the front wing, the rear wing element profiles and chord lengths have been altered. Either it is part of Aston Martin's development package, or optimised to suit this higher-downforce circuit. Either way it is different.
The forward element has a shorter chord over its span. The second element has a longer chord outboard and the third element a slightly longer chord over its span. These changes will alter the chord-wide loading across its span and in some areas improve the performance of the diffuser; getting the upper wing airflow to talk to the diffuser is very powerful.
However, more importantly it should help with the downforce recovery across its span as the wing goes from straight mode to cornering mode.
The rear of the car has also been revised. The white arrows point to modified parts, added parts or more powerful parts. However, one of the main changes is the rear suspension geometry and, with that, inner pick-up positions.
The rear leg inboard pick-up point, which had been uniquely mounted on the rear wing pillars, has been moved upwards. This will increase the anti-lift on the rear suspension and also reduce the camber change between low and high speed. It will also probably raise the rear roll centre.
I'm not sure which of these would be the primary motivation, but for me it would probably be the roll centre and anti-lift, and the camber change would be a consequence of those changes.
However, nothing comes for free. That inboard point is mounted higher on the wing pillars. This is highlighted with the double-ended orange arrows coming up from the top of the crashbox, which is highlighted with the red line. This brings the potential for more flexing in that area.
To counter this, Aston Martin has added a small horizontal strut between the wing pillars, highlighted in purple inside the green ellipse. This strut goes across the gap, basically connecting them both together.
This will help when the load is equal across the upper wishbone under acceleration and possibly braking, but that seldom happens when the car is in a corner and it is then that the loads are at their highest.
Overall, this major upgrade should be a step forward, but that will mainly come from the weight reduction. Yes, what we are seeing aerodynamically is also a step in the right direction, but the problem there is that the others are also taking race-by-race steps.
With these regulations being so restrictive, long gone are the days of introducing something aerodynamic that gives you seconds as opposed to tenths if you're lucky. Usually it actually ends up being hundredths.
I'm not really seeing any major differences compared to when the car was first introduced at Barcelona back in late-January. Yes, aerodynamically it is different - Aston Martin has had time to optimised its package around the same concept - but the front suspension that I questioned at the time in terms of how much anti-dive it has remains, which suggests Aston Martin either believes in it or found it too difficult to change mid-season.
Aerodynamically, the airflow structure coming off the front wing is quite different, and this will lead to the developments we are seeing further downstream. There is also plenty of time to relearn what these new regulations require, while on top of that if Aston Martin has reduced the weight significantly then that is simply free laptime.
I would expect Aston Martin to leapfrog the new-for-2026 Cadillac team, maybe Williams and perhaps the Haas team, which seems to be struggling this season. But after that, the next step or next steps become much more difficult.
### B-spec Aston Martin breaks down in F1 practice debut
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/b-spec-aston-martin-causes-red-flag-in-f1-practice-debut/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T15:22:25.000Z
The new Aston Martin suffered a suspected rear suspension failure in the first practice session at Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
All eyes were on Adrian Newey’s [B-spec](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/first-clues-of-aston-martin-f1-b-spec-revealed-hungarian-gp/) in FP1 at the Hungaroring with a nearly-completely revised car, as the team [declared a 16-part upgrade](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-unveils-16-part-upgrade-for-hungarian-gp/) on Friday morning.
But Lance Stroll’s overhauled AMR26 lasted 11 laps before what he reported as a rear suspension failure, spinning between Turns 2 and 3.
That brought Stroll’s session to a premature end with just over 20 minutes still on the clock and caused a red flag.
Team-mate Fernando Alonso had been told to keep his Aston Martin off the kerbs prior to the incident.
Alonso rejoined the track immediately when the session resumed with 17 minutes left on the clock and finished FP1 in 13th, 2.475s off the pace, having also avoided the kerbs on those soft-tyre runs.
But it was not smooth on his side either, Alonso reporting vibrations throughout the session.
> Lance had to stop the car due to a suspected rear left suspension issue.[#HungarianGP](https://x.com/hashtag/HungarianGP?src=hash&ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com) [pic.twitter.com/8D1V8W6VkK](https://t.co/8D1V8W6VkK?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) [July 24, 2026](https://x.com/AstonMartinF1/status/2080627495330529349?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
## What else happened in FP1
Charles Leclerc ended first practice fastest by the best part of half a second for Ferrari, though he too also hit trouble before the 60 minutes were up.
He had been fastest on the medium/hard tyre runs at the start of the session, and produced comfortably the best soft-tyre run of all with a 1m19.075s, which left him 0.484s ahead of Max Verstappen's Red Bull and more than half a second clear of Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
But Leclerc was restricted to 19 laps - Stroll aside, the lowest tally of anyone in FP1 - when he limped back to the pits inside the final 10 minutes of the session.
Replays showed a host of lights flashing on his steering wheel as he entered the Turn 13 left-hand hairpin, after which the car lost speed.
Isack Hadjar made it two Red Bulls in the top four, albeit 0.922s off Leclerc as a mixture of differing runplans, upgrades, and FP1 rookie stand-ins made it difficult to get a true read on the competitive order.
Mercedes' George Russell was the last driver within a second of Leclerc's Ferrari in fifth, with the second W17 of Fred Vesti - one of five FP1 rookies at the Hungaroring, as he took the place of championship leader Kimi Antonelli - seventh having set his best time on mediums.
He and Russell were split by Gabriel Bortoleto's Audi, who was a quarter of a second clear of eighth-placed team-mate Nico Hulkenberg.
The two Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson completed the top 10.
The other four rookies ended up towards the bottom of the order, with Leonardo Fornaroli (McLaren) and Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) 16th and 17th, and Paul Aron (Alpine) and Colton Herta (Cadillac) 19th and 20th.
Stroll ended up 21st, 4.396s off the pace, having set his best time on hard tyres.
He still ended up ahead of Carlos Sainz, who had a wild session; he was twice noted for driving erratically - for which he, as well as Verstappen, will visit the stewards - suffered a huge lock-up at Turn 1 late in the session, then after the chequered flag was shown a black and white flag for impeding.
### Aston Martin unveils 16-part F1 car upgrade for Hungarian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-unveils-16-part-upgrade-for-hungarian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T10:46:14.000Z
Aston Martin’s long-awaited B-spec F1 car upgrade has been outlined ahead of the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix.
The team’s upgrade descriptions essentially herald the arrival of a brand-new car with another extensive upgrade package set to land at Zandvoort.
There were 16 upgrades declared at the Hungaroring. The nose and front wing were grouped as “a package to improve the performance of the front end of the car in combination with the other car updates”: a reshaped front wing and front wing endplates plus a “longer, thinner nose”.
External front brake ducts have been shaped to complement the front wing to manage flow around the front wings.
Four floor updates were categorised together “as a package to increase the load on the floor”. The floor body has seen changes to “all of the permitted surfaces” while floor leading edge vanes and the floor edge ahead of the rear tyre have also been modified. The diffuser has also undergone a holistic update.
Next, Aston Martin declared upgrades to the sidepod inlet - “revised in line with the bodywork package” - and the coke section and engine cover, which have undergone “subtle changes”. The sidepod and engine cover have been updated to enhance airflow to the rear of the car and complement the new floor.
The team described its new cooling louvres as “conceptually similar” - presumably to the rest of its car. The rear suspension and rear corner have seen “subtle changes” and were developed in tandem.
As for the rear wing, its dimensions have been "redistributed between the three elements” with winglets added to the trailing edge of the rear wing’s flap. That forms part of the rear wing updates that “increase corner mode load while reducing straight mode drag” as well as aligning with the rest of the car’s updates.
The rear wing brace and rear wing endplates have been completely redesigned.
## McLaren upgrade part one
McLaren’s list of declared upgrades was smaller - but also represents the first of a two-part development package that will carry over to Zandvoort.
The team brought revisions to the rear wing endplate, as well as a new floor and board. Furthermore, it revised “front corner furniture” to improve airflow around the front tyre and improve brake cooling - with a larger front brake cooling exit - as well as a revised rear corner to improve aerodynamic load.
## Further rear wing overhauls
Given Hungary’s layout, numerous teams brought rear wing updates.
Mercedes added an additional central winglet and tail winglet - the latter merged into its rear wing brace - for extra downforce and drag as well as a wider engine cover exit for better cooling.
Red Bull revised the camber and chord of its rear wing flaps and revised the rear wing pylon for more load and stability. The Red Bull’s diffuser has also been expanded for more local load.
Ferrari has added trailing edge devices to its rear wing, reshaped the endplates, and given itself an “optional winglet cascade” for more downforce if needed.
Williams (above) has introduced new flap geometries and modified floor winglets near the rear corner.
Racing Bulls meanwhile has added rollhoop winglets as well as updating rear wing flaps and geometry.
Haas has modified its straight mode fairing and added an “aggressive” Gurney flap to the rear wing.
Audi’s rear wing endplates have been changed and Cadillac has enlarged front brake cooling ducts.
Alpine, meanwhile, has not declared any circuit-specific or general updates.
### F1 stewards would judge Leclerc-Piastri incident differently now
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-stewards-admit-error-in-leclerc-piastri-spa-collision/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T15:25:16.000Z
The FIA stewards have agreed with drivers that any future repeat of Charles Leclerc’s squeezing of Oscar Piastri in Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix will likely trigger a penalty.
The controversial incident became a major talking point during a long-planned meeting between drivers and FIA stewards at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Thursday night.
The Hungaroring get-together was the first of two annual gatherings that the FIA has with drivers to discuss how incidents are policed and whether tweaks need to be made to F1’s driving guidelines for improved consistency.
Leclerc had squeezed Piastri on the entry to Les Combes and they made contact, with the McLaren suffering floor damage.
The stewards felt at the time that it was nothing more than a racing incident.
They suggested that Piastri had had no realistic hope of pulling off the move and that Leclerc had just been taking his normal racing line.
That call triggered some unease among drivers about a precedent being set for more robust defence in braking zones – which can be a dangerous place for cars to make contact.
As Piastri said ahead of the weekend: “If we think that that's fine, it's one thing having touches like that, but even just the incentive of knowing that you can leave everyone the absolute bare minimum space and get away with it, that's not the nicest place to be.”
Following some lengthy debate in the meeting about the Leclerc call, it is understood that the FIA stewards took on board the driver feedback and agreed that in the future a similar incident would almost certainly trigger a sanction.
The consensus was that if any driver acted in this way in squeezing a rival on the corner entry it would likely earn them a five-second penalty.
While Leclerc is understood to have argued that the situation in Belgium was not entirely black-and-white, he had conceded earlier in the day that perhaps his move had been a bit over the limit.
“At the end of the day my view in the car is that I try to push the things to the limit," he said.
“I think with Oscar it was a bit on the other side - so that's probably not the way I want to race all the time. It's also risky for me at the end of the day.
“You're always trying to leave the smallest place available. That was maybe a bit too sketchy.”
## Restart leniency
It is understood that the Hungary meeting included discussions over some minor tweaks to the driving guidelines for 2027.
These will likely be finalised in a follow-up meeting that typically takes place towards the end of the season.
One decision that was agreed for immediate implementation was for the stewards to show more leniency when it came to incidents that take place at safety car restarts – just as happens on the opening lap of races.
Drivers have long argued that low tyre pressures and complications caused by energy deployment patterns had made things harder to judge after restarts, and this was taken on board by the stewards.
## Hamilton missed meeting
Lewis Hamilton was one of five drivers that missed the meeting – despite being on the receiving end of a controversial sanction in Belgium last weekend.
Hamilton got what many felt was a harsh punishment for a first lap clash with George Russell, with neither he nor his Mercedes rival thinking it was anything other than a racing incident.
But despite the FIA meeting having been a good opportunity to get some clarity on the thinking behind the call, Hamilton joined several of his rivals in not attending the FIA get together.
It is not clear whether Hamilton’s absence from the meeting was a deliberate choice or if he had a clashing commitment that meant he was unable to attend.
The others who missed the meeting were Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll, Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.
### 'Too complicated' - Can F1 drivers regain control from AI engines?
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/too-complicated-can-f1-drivers-regain-control-from-ai-engines/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T08:31:44.000Z
The key theme among drivers in the build-up to Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix so far has been concerns about how much results in 2026 are out of their hands.
Last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix exposed how forward-thinking algorithms that dictate where and when energy should be deployed are causing frustration among the majority of drivers.
It led to baffling straightline speed deficits between identical cars and drivers feeling like what the algorithm decided was a key factor in deciding qualifying and the race.
Oscar Piastri complained at Spa that when qualifying is being “decided by computers behaving or misbehaving, it's a pretty crap way of going racing.”
Asked in Hungary if it “sometimes feels like you’re the passenger of an AI programme that still has to be trained?”, Piastri replied: “Sometimes, yes. At a track like Spa or a track like Silverstone, it’s going to be worse.
“Here \[at the Hungaroring\], I really don’t expect there to be many problems at all with that kind of thing, because the straights are so much shorter, so even if there are differences, they should be a lot less.
“But the principle of driving a race car that loses effectively half of its power before the end of the straight is hard to get your head around sometimes.
“Even in Spa, a lot of the middle sector we were doing it just on the combustion engine, with no battery assistance at all, which is a weird feeling in itself, having some corners with a certain amount of power and others with full power.
“Spa was particularly frustrating, not just for me but for quite a lot of others, because those small differences in the code and what the engines did made quite a big difference in laptime.
“Especially at the front of the field, I think there were still only nine hundredths or something separating four positions \[0.094s covered third to sixth\], and there were definitely more than nine hundredths on the table for quite a few drivers from things they could not control.”
These forward-thinking algorithms have existed for a long-time before 2026, but as Piastri highlighted, knowledge of the previous power units was so mature, the impact was minimal.
“When I joined Formula 1 \[in 2023\], those engines were incredibly mature, but also the penalty of things being slightly wrong or slightly out of place was significantly less, because it was such a small percentage of the overall power you got,” Piastri said.
“Whereas this year, it’s basically half your power, so any small differences or anything that doesn’t quite go right has a massive impact, especially at a track like Spa.
“We’ve got no control over where the deployment happens, more or less. You can push the boost button, but that’s more for overtaking than in qualifying, especially.
“When you’ve got those differences there that you have no control over, it can be frustrating.”
## ‘Less raw’ a challenge
Charles Leclerc has long bemoaned the reduced challenge of qualifying in 2026 and how you can actually be punished for the kind of all-out qualifying laps he’s become renowned for. He gave the example of doing a “very good” La Source Turn 1 at Spa, only to be punished for it as he then consequently lacks power on the Kemmel Straight.
He explained "I feel like we all get surprised here and there on different tracks, because it's never always always the same reason why a problem has occurred, which makes it quite complicated.”
As Max Verstappen summed up: “Sometimes you cannot make a difference. You're not allowed to make a difference because it will just penalise you on the next straight.”
Asked if fast drivers were still being rewarded, Leclerc said: “The characteristics of a fast driver is to adapt, constantly and quickly.
“To be a fast driver only on one car- I mean, it is not great, and I don't think it exists so much either. I think a fast driver is fast in any car.
“Does it add a little bit more unpredictability with these cars? Yes, it does, and I think pushing the absolute limit is probably less rewarding than it was in the past because whenever you go over, whenever you have a wheelspin, you waste energy on a wheelspin because you're not going forward but you're using the battery.
“So all these kinds of things are making it a bit- it's less raw and it's a little bit more of a thinking game and of restraining yourself from going to the absolute limit, which is not my favourite exercise but again it's the way it is and I've got to optimise whatever I have.”
## ‘Too complicated’ - but will it change?
Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu (left) and Mercedes deputy team principal Bradley Lord
It’s not just drivers calling for change either as Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu thinks F1’s formula is “just too complicated” currently as “it relies on a tiny detail of driver operation that has an unintended or secondary consequence.
“I think we all identify the need to avoid \[it\] and improve as a sport to bring the control back to the driver and also just simplify for everyone.
“It's very important that everyone understands the sport regardless of what your interests are. To be able to do that, I think the sport has to be a bit more simplified.”
But whether it will change before F1’s likely switch to simpler V8 engines remains to be seen.
There are 2027 and 2028 rule changes planned that will shift F1 from its current 53-47 internal combustion engine to electrical power split to 60-40 in favour of the internal combustion engine.
But that won’t eliminate the predictive algorithms, just reduce their importance as the electrical deployment is lessened.
Piastri does think that teams’ growing understanding of how to exploit these power units will help too.
“I’m sure it’ll get better. I don’t expect it to ever fully go away, but as the manufacturers understand it more and work out the regulation restrictions more, in terms of what the code can and can’t do, hopefully things will become a bit better,” Piastri said.
That will lead to fewer mistakes with the algorithms but won’t necessarily mean more power back in the driver’s hands.
## A counter view
Not everyone is aligned that things need to be simplified in the first place, however.
When asked about the predictive algorithms, Audi F1 driver Gabriel Bortoleto said: “We are in Formula 1\. We are developing the future technology.
“If we are not using all the tools that are available in the world for us, in our favour, then I don't know what Formula 1 is about.
“People used to complain because ‘nowadays the drivers have too much things to do’, now that there is things doing it for us, we are complaining now that they are doing it for us - so I'm happy with the way it's going.
“It's nice that the software is able to adapt itself and understand what and how much energy you are deploying through the lap and how to evolve through the laps, next laps you are doing. I don't think it should change, if I'm very honest, that's my opinion.”
He thinks adapting to such a challenge is just part of being an F1 driver.
“I don't think I changed much my way of driving, but again I don't like the sentence 'driving style', because I don't believe that a F1 driver should ever say that, because we should be able to adapt, even if it's not natural maybe.
“But we should be able to adapt to any type of car and the way you need to drive, that's why we do what we do and that's why we are the 22 drivers in the world doing F1.”
On the subject of whether the fastest drivers are still able to stand out, Bortoleto said: “Well, do you see Verstappen being slow? Do you see a seven-time world champion being slow this year? Do you see Leclerc being slow? I don't see them being slow, I still see them very competitive, so I wouldn't say fast drivers are slow.
“Actually Lewis \[Hamilton\] is a bit better than he was doing last year, Max is still performing like crazy, putting that car on the top, Lando \[Norris\], the world champion, the reigning world champion, is still quick when his thing doesn't break...
“I don't think we have seen slow drivers last year becoming quick and the quick guys slow, I think it's still racing.”
When Bortoleto’s comments were put to Max Verstappen, having clarified *who* said it, the Red Bull driver said: “Yeah, he's right. I mean, your driving style always needs to change to whatever is fastest.
“I can drive the cars just saying, ‘this is how I drive it’. Well, I can tell you in Spa, you lose half a second. That shows you how weird it is at the moment.“He’s right, you need to adapt. Adaptability is super important. But that goes for any, like all the series that you've raced in, all the way to F1, I think you always need to adapt to what is best for that car that you are driving.”
And when The Race put the question of whether F1 needs to move to put more power back in F1 drivers’ hands, Fernando Alonso - who may well feel there’s already plenty out of his control in F1 2026 so far in the slowest car - said: “I don’t know. It depends. I think F1 has always been a little bit like that.
“I don’t think the drivers were deciding everything, even when we had traction control and some of the other aids. It was very specific to each team, developed by each team in a different way, with different philosophies.
“You were pressing the throttle at the exit of the corners, and some cars were much better than the others. It’s not pure driver talent or input on some of the exits.
“It’s the same with the starts. I’ve been doing starts for 25 years, and we’ve had many different regulations. At the end of the day, there were always some cars and some teams starting better than the others, with both cars. It’s not just that someone was doing something differently with the clutch, with a technique or with the throttle application. Both cars from that team were extremely good or extremely bad.
“I think the team is always bringing the performance to everything. But yes, I think with these current regulations and the battery deployment, there is something that has to be fixed and improved. I think that’s well understood.
“We are in the first half of this set of regulations, in the first year, and there are already talks about 2030 or 2031 and the V8\.
“Next year, there is already approval for the change to the combustion versus electrical part of the engine. There are things moving forward, and it’s well understood by the sport, by the teams and by everyone.
“I’m optimistic for the future that it will get better and that it will be better understood what the rules and what the cars need to be.”
### First clues of Aston Martin's B-spec F1 car at Hungarian GP emerge
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/first-clues-of-aston-martin-f1-b-spec-revealed-hungarian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-24T08:37:58.000Z
The first clues of Aston Martin’s much-anticipated B-spec car have emerged on Friday at Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
The team is overhauling its initial 2026 car with a huge two-step upgrade split across Hungary and Zandvoort, the latter of which will debut alongside Honda’s sole 2026 engine upgrade.
On Thursday, very few details of the new Aston Martin could be seen, but by Friday morning at the Hungaroring, the new-look sidepod, floor and rear wing were present on the cars in the garage.
There appeared to be a bigger 'mouse hole' on the floor and a different rear wing actuator.
There had been, in the words of Aston Martin’s chief trackside officer Mike Krack, a “$1million question” over whether Aston Martin would have enough parts to run the upgrade on both cars, but on Thursday in Hungary he said he was “quite confident that we will be ready”
He suggested Aston Martin would “move in a different direction” from some of its more extreme design choices such as the aggressive rear ride height of the car.
There are clear modifications to the bargeboard area and sidepod profile too.
Krack also said the Aston Martin B-spec’s debut would be a big test of the team’s data and simulations tools.
“When you bring substantial upgrades, it's something that the track team will have to learn as quick as possible,” he explained.
“We have no winter testing where you can just do some runs on back-to-backs and all that. So it puts obviously a lot of emphasis on the quality of your data, on the quality of understanding your simulations.
“But we do not expect that we get everything out of it in the first run tomorrow. We need to learn how to manage this and how to get the best out of it.
“The tests that we will have to do, basic tests, be it right height, be it rakes and these kinds of things will come over the next events.”
### Everything we learned on day one at F1's 2026 Hungarian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-on-day-one-at-f1s-2026-hungarian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T17:48:13.000Z
Formula 1 is on the cusp of its 2026 summer break - but there is no 'last day of school' feeling at the Hungarian Grand Prix so far, with teams and drivers up and down pitlane still having much to work through and much to confirm.
From a new Aston Martin to software tweaks that can have an outsized influence on the title battle, here is what we learned during F1's Hungaroring media day.
## Russell confident deployment drama is behind him
George Russell believes that [the deployment problems that held him back at Spa](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-makes-software-fix-after-spa-problems/) and Silverstone, which he described as “effectively numbers on the screen that were not quite calibrated properly”, have been solved.
Not only does that mean he shouldn't be held back on the straights, but also he can concentrate on being able to drive more naturally rather than constantly thinking about finding a solution purely through driving technique.
“It’s a huge load off my mind, also while I’m driving because throughout some laps in Silverstone and then throughout the majority of Friday and Saturday in Spa, I was thinking about how I needed to drive to make the power unit fast in the straight, how I pick up the throttle, the gear usage, how early I am before throttle. The data was telling us that was probably the reason \[I was lacking speed\] but it turned out it wasn't the reason.
“All of that effort over the course of three sessions trying to re-optimise my driving around a new technique was kind of for nothing. So, I'm looking forward now to going into a weekend where I can just try to focus on driving fast, focus on the simple things.” **\- Edd Straw**
## Leclerc agrees with Piastri over clash
The stewards' inaction during the Belgian Grand Prix over the contact between Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri was a source of surprise for many, including Piastri himself.
But even Leclerc looked a little sheepish at the time over having got away without sanction - and his take on the incident four days later supported this impression.
"I kind of agree with Oscar, I think," Leclerc admitted when Piastri's reaction to the clash was put to him.
"At the end of the day my view in the car is that I try to push the things to the limit. I think with Oscar it was a bit on the other side \[of the limit\] - so that's probably not the way I want to race all the time.
"It's also risky for me at the end of the day, so, yeah. You're always trying to leave the smallest place available. That was maybe a bit too 'sketchy'." **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Cadillac ‘a bit scared’ of Aston Martin upgrade
Cadillac has managed to pull well clear of Aston Martin in recent rounds, even enjoying an advantage in excess of two seconds per lap at Spa.
But Valtteri Bottas said he’s “a little bit scared in a way that if \[Aston Martin\] makes a big step, then we're at the back”.
That’s because while Cadillac has further development planned for 2026, it’s bringing “no magic, nothing huge”, so a big Aston Martin improvement would likely leave it cast adrift.
And, incidentally, Sergio Perez and Bottas have very differing opinions on the success of Cadillac’s development this year.
Perez believes “we haven't developed enough”, albeit with the caveat that Cadillac is a new team, while Bottas thinks “compared to the top teams, our development rate has been good”.
Cadillac has its own important update at the Hungarian GP as it has a bolstered brakes package. Without it, Bottas said “most likely we would have not” finished the race, given how tough the Hungaroring is on brakes and how much Cadillac suffered at the Red Bull Ring (where neither car made it past lap four). **\- Josh Suttill**
## Bortoleto sticking up for F1's 'AI' engines
The particularities of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend - and the heightened attention to the role of machine learning in managing deployment - meant another round of heavy driver criticism towards the 2026 formula from drivers.
"What I saw was not Formula 1," said Perez, reduced to a spectator by a lap 13 suspension failure. "And I don't want to keep going on it, but definitely it wasn't nice."
But Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto, the most vocal proponent of the '26 cars for a while now, insisted he doesn’t see a problem with the growing prevalence of these forward-thinking algorithms.
“We are in Formula 1\. We are developing the future technology. If we are not using all the tools that are available in the world for us, in our favour, then I don't know what F1 is about,” Bortoleto argued.
“People used to complain because nowadays the drivers have too much things to do. Now that there are things doing it for us, we are complaining now that they are doing it for us - so, I'm happy with the way it's going.
“It's nice that the software is able to adapt itself and understand what and how much energy you are deploying through the lap and how to evolve through the laps, next laps you are doing.
“I don't think it should change, if I'm very honest, that's my opinion.” **\- JS**
## Racing Bulls pair get on better than it seemed
The Racing Bulls drivers have already had their fair share of on-track battles in 2026, and Spa was no different, where Arvid Lindblad, aided by a full upgrades package, eventually got the better of Liam Lawson - but not before a tense run through Eau Rouge and braking into Les Combes.
This came just weeks after Lawson was irritated by Lindblad actively spurning a team order - but while it's clear the pair are consistently in each other's way and under heightened (even by F1 standards) pressure to beat one another, things are more cordial between them than you might assume.
Lindblad has hailed the team for letting them “race hard but fair” and lifted the lid on the good relationship between the two drivers.
“I think for me, I've honestly been positively surprised in that sense,” Lindblad said. “When you're younger, you see so much, so many stories \[about team-mate rivalries\]. I think Netflix also make it a bit worse than it sometimes is, but there's lots of this sort of stuff.
“But honestly we get along really well, and I have a lot of respect for Liam for that. We raced hard in Spa, and as soon as we saw each other after the race he told me 'well done and a good race' - and I think that was really impressive from him, and I've always tried to do the same.”
Lawson added: “I don't know many cars that have gone side-by-side through Eau Rouge and carried on down the whole straight like we did. So yeah, it was good, honestly.”
Racing Bulls can also thank a two-hour-delayed easyJet flight to Budapest for reinforcing the pair's relationship.
“Arvid was sat in the middle, so I got the window, so it was alright,” was Lawson’s assessment. **\- Eden Hannigan**
## A different kind of Mercedes upgrade
A new-look Mercedes safety car will be deployed at Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix if required: an all-wheel-drive variant of the Mercedes-AMG GT.
It marks the 14th different variant of the Mercedes safety car, which debuted with the Mercedes-Benz C36 AMG in 1996\.
The original 1996 safety car was present alongside the new Mercedes safety car (or the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 PRO 4MATIC+ to give it its full title) for a photo opportunity with the Mercedes drivers on the Hungaroring start/finish straight on Thursday.
Veteran safety car driver Bernd Maylander said the new safety car “combines the highest levels of safety with impressive sportiness and driving pleasure”.
He said it “really comes into its own when cornering and accelerating” with the active suspension.
The car is powered by a 612hp engine and has a top speed of 317km/h with a nine-speed AMG Speedshift MCT 9G transmission.
Mercedes had shared responsibility with Aston Martin between 2021 and 2025 but became the sole supplier again from the start of 2026.
It's covered in a red 30th anniversary livery this weekend. **\- JS**
## Antonelli needs to curb his track limits addiction
One of Kimi Antonelli’s strengths is analysing where to improve, and even after taking his sixth win of the season at Spa he accepted the criticism from his father, Marco, that he takes too many liberties with track limits.
“I like to use the track sometimes a bit too much, so it’s something that I’m trying to work on. I look back at Spa and the track limits \[violations\] I did were very stupid, I was like ‘what the heck am I doing?’”
Antonelli twice exceeded track limits during the race at Spa, both at Raidillon, which made him the only driver to have more than one offence during the race.
While that’s two short of the number that triggers a penalty, Antonelli knows that it’s not just about the risk of losing time but also the opportunity cost of exceeding track limits when he doesn’t need to.
“It’ssomething I need to work on because sometimes in a race I might need to use them. But if I use them when I don't need to, then I might find myself in trouble,” he said.
“My dad, \[after the race\] said, ‘congrats, but if I see you doing another track limits \[breach\] for nothing, I'm going to stretch your neck like a chicken!'”. **\- ES**
## One-sided Haas battle hasn’t been a ‘fair fight’
Ollie Bearman has comprehensively outperformed his Haas team-mate Esteban Ocon over the first 10 rounds of F1 2026, beating him 11-3 in qualifying (including sprints) and 'outpointing' him 18-3\.
But when Bearman was asked whether he expected to be so far ahead, he cautioned it hasn’t always been a “fair fight” at Haas this year because of the parts inconsistency issues that have plagued both drivers.
“I've been on the bad side of \[it\], I've also been on the good side of that, but it's a shame because it means that you're always chasing a moving target and overnight we can have changes to our car balance without expecting that,” Bearman explained.
“All of that to say it's not always a fair fight, the one that we are having, and sometimes we feel like we're fighting with our hands almost tied behind our back.”
While Bearman said he’s “happy with what I’m doing”, he added “the story is not necessarily what you see on the headline”.
Ocon said at Spa that he only felt like he had “normal car performance” at two of the 10 rounds so far.
Haas has changed a lot of his parts for the Hungarian GP, swapping him onto a different floor, different rear wing and different engine.
Ocon said in Hungary: “I am sure we will come out of this. It is true that it has been persisting for some time now, which is difficult, but we are sticking together, and we will fix it.” **\- JS**
## Albon eyed engineer expected to work with Verstappen
Alex Albon is on the lookout for a new race engineer for 2026 because James Urwin, who has worked with him since the start of 2022, is moving to a factory-based role next year.
Albon had agreed a move with Tom Hart, who was his performance engineer at Red Bull in 2020, but this move is not going to happen as Hart ultimately decided to stay at Red Bull.
That’s partly because Hart is expected to take over from Gianpiero Lambiase as Max Verstappen's race engineer, having already stood in on a number of occasions. But it is not clear exactly what stage any talks with Williams had progressed to.
Fortunately, despite missing out, Albon and Williams have some other accomplished targets.
"We obviously went for Tom. I think Tom's a great guy, a great engineer, but we've also got ideas in place," Albon said.
"James, my current race engineer, he's going to go more towards a factory-based role, which I think he's going to be amazing at.
"For us, it's now just trying to find someone who can take that process on, take the engineering role from James next year. We have a few people in mind, but I think every person that we've gone out to is someone that I've also had an involvement in." **\- ES**
### How Ferrari's Macarena wing upgrade borrows from McLaren
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/ferrari-macarena-rear-wing-upgrade-mclaren-hungary/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T14:18:50.000Z
Ferrari has given us a first glimpse of its upgraded 'Macarena' rear wing, as it takes a leaf out of Formula 1 rival McLaren’s book with some new winglet cascades.
As part of an effort to increase downforce for the Hungarian Grand Prix, Ferrari has seized on the opportunity to add some extra aerodynamic elements in the legality box where the rear wing activator normally sits.
This was a move that many teams had opted for at the Monaco Grand Prix – but Ferrari had not - where they swapped out actuators for winglets.
Perhaps well aware of the missed opportunity in Monaco, Ferrari has now joined the trend for a Hungaroring track where downforce is more important than reducing drag down the straights.
As part of its upgrade, it has introduced a triple-element series of wings in the central area – which is very similar to the version that McLaren used in Monaco.
As well as this winglet, Ferrari has also introduced some extra hangars above the rear wing upper element, which will also help increase downforce.
Ferrari is not alone in upgrading this area of the car, with McLaren getting ready to run its own Macarena wing on track at a race weekend for the first time.
The squad had planned to trial its lower-drag wing at the Austrian Grand Prix but it was removed from the MCL40 before the car even left the garage after some early problems were discovered.
Following modifications that have been worked on at its Woking factory, a revised version of the design has been fitted to Oscar Piastri’s car ahead of opening practice.
While no images have yet appeared of the wing in action, it features a different attachment to the activator, which will allow it to flip over completely.
McLaren only plans to test the wing in Hungary this weekend before reverting to its regular design for qualifying.
If the idea works, then it will most likely appear for the first time at the Italian Grand Prix.
Mercedes is also set to run with a new specification of rear wing in Hungary, which features extra winglets on top of the upper flap.
### F1 could return to Sepang for 2026 stand-in race
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/malaysian-gp-sepang-f1-2026-option-return-bahrain-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T14:11:52.000Z
The Malaysian Grand Prix is in the mix to make a surprise return to the Formula 1 calendar later this season, as championship bosses consider alternatives if its Middle Eastern races cannot go ahead because of war in the region.
Only a few weeks ago it had appeared that Bahrain, which was called off earlier this year, was close to getting a green light for an October 4 slot between races in Baku and Singapore.
However, an escalation in the conflict between America and Iran has seen the chances of a reprieve fall away.
The ongoing uncertainty about how the situation in the Middle East will pan out, especially in light of missile strikes out of Iran, means committing to a Bahrain race now looks extremely unlikely.
A decision on Bahrain's fate is expected imminently and could be fast-tracked by what is expected to be a decision this weekend by the FIA’s World Motor Sport Council about its World Endurance Championship races in the Middle East.
Earlier this year, when the Iran war broke out, the FIA postponed WEC’s Qatar race until October 24 - with its season finale due to take place in Bahrain on November 7.
This weekend’s decision by the WMSC on those races, which will be primarily made on safety grounds, is set to open the door for F1 to follow suit in terms of it either cancelling or committing to its Middle Eastern races.
Although it is anticipated that any final call on the grands prix in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will be delayed for as long as possible, so could wait for several weeks, it is thought that F1 wants to commit to a Bahrain decision before the summer shutdown.
Even if it is decided that Bahrain cannot happen, it has emerged that there is some eagerness for F1 to use that October weekend between Baku and Singapore to host a race.
The desire to do this has increased because there is no certainty that the final events in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will take place, which then poses the risk of F1 getting cut back from its current 22 scheduled race weekends.
Potential locations for a race to fill that gap are limited, though, because of the logistical problems of finding somewhere suitable that works in terms of transporting freight in and out.
A return to Europe, for example, would not be possible. Turkey could be an option - as it is not too far from Baku.
Sources have revealed, however, that Malaysia’s Sepang circuit is one of the leading contenders – as it is geographically near Singapore and, because it is right by an airport, would be capable of pulling off a quick turnaround event.
Malaysia hosted F1 races at Sepang from 1999 to 2017\. Despite the track being well-liked by drivers and teams, it fell off the calendar because it could not justify the huge race hosting fees demanded at the time. It remains in regular use by MotoGP and other international series.
While F1 is set to wait a bit before deciding on the fate of the Qatar and Abu Dhabi races, it is evaluating end-of-season options for a replacement event.
Portimao in Portugal remains the most likely candidate for this, and could potentially slot in as the season finale on December 6, a fortnight after the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
### Mercedes makes software fix after Spa problems
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-makes-software-fix-after-spa-problems/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T11:02:08.000Z
The Mercedes Formula 1 team has made deployment software modifications ahead of this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix to help address a problem it found deep in the code on George Russell’s car in Belgium.
Russell’s Spa weekend was overshadowed by him struggling for a lack of straightline speed compared to team-mate Kimi Antonelli, which was costing him several tenths of a second per lap in qualifying.
The cause of this was that he was running out of battery power earlier on the run to the final chicane – although there was no obvious answer as to why he was suffering more there.
Russell’s frustrations about deployment then boiled over in the race when a lack of power coming out of Raidillon on the opening lap led to him getting swallowed up by the chasing pack.
This helped contribute to his tangle with Lewis Hamilton at Les Combes.
In [an angry radio message](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-was-behind-russells-radio-rant-and-why-it-was-muted/) as he sat in the gravel trap after his early retirement, Russell had labelled what he faced all weekend as “unacceptable”.
Speaking after the race, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff had explained that analysis by the team had uncovered an unspecified problem on Russell’s engine that had contributed to a lack of deployment on the final run.
Wolff suggested that this problem accounted for around half the deficit to his team-mate – with a different driving style also having an impact.
Ahead of the Hungarian GP, more details of what Mercedes found have emerged – as well as a more detailed explanation of what went wrong on lap one.
The problem that Russell faced in qualifying was related to an element deep in the code on his power unit that meant his deployment was being front-loaded around the lap.
This meant that, as part of the adjustments that are made by the algorithms to manage energy around the lap, it was more biased to using extra energy on the run to Les Combes.
This, allied to some differences in how he and Antonelli then impacted harvesting and battery usage around the middle sector, meant he was short of power for the run to the final chicane.
Having uncovered the issue in the code that got exposed in Belgium, Mercedes has put countermeasures in place from this weekend to try to make sure that there are no repeat problems.
Deployment should also not be too big a factor in Hungary as it is a much more energy-rich circuit layout.
### The lap one issue
Mercedes has also got to the bottom of what went wrong on the opening lap as well, with both Russell and Antonelli lacking deployment on the run to Les Combes.
The issue was triggered by a software error, meaning that neither car harvested as much energy as anticipated on the entry to La Source.
Then, with extra battery power being drained on the way out of the hairpin to help fill in a gap for turbo lag, it meant neither driver had the energy they had hoped for on the run down the Kemmel Straight.
With F1’s regulations restricting the ramp down rate for both drivers when batteries are being deployed, this meant that neither had the kind of extra kiloWatts available they had expected when hitting the boost button.
But the outcome for both drivers was not the same because they had taken Eau Rouge differently, which meant they were not in the same energy restricted modes.
Russell had taken Eau Rouge flat, which meant that he was locked into a ramp down rate that left him stuck at a speed of 308km/h (191mph) for a time.
Antonelli, meanwhile, had to lift off the throttle through Eau Rouge after Max Verstappen had overtaken him, which put him into a slightly different engine mode with a bit more power available.
While still down on what Mercedes had hoped for, he got locked into ramp down slightly later, so was at a higher top speed compared to Russell – which was enough to allow him to draft past Verstappen for the lead.
### Porsche vs Jaguar - Our title showdown verdict
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/porsche-vs-jaguar-our-title-showdown-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T13:53:33.000Z
A Jaguar versus Porsche title fight on all three fronts in drivers, manufacturers and teams has felt, if not quite inevitable, quite likely from even before the first race of the 2025-26 Formula E season had taken place last December.
Although Nick Cassidy, Oliver Rowland, Nyck de Vries and Lucas di Grassi have each also scored victories, it is Jaguar and Porsche drivers Mitch Evans, Antonio Felix da Costa, Pascal Wehrlein and Jake Dennis (in the Andretti Porsche) that are the double winners - and with Nico Mueller’s Berlin victory for Porsche too it means that Formula E’s two heavyweight manufacturers have taken 62% of the winners’ trophies.
Of the four non-Jaguar or Porsche winners there looks to be just one just about credible potential last gasp interloper that could ensure a fifth challenger heading to London ExCeL next month. That’s reigning champion Rowland. But it says a lot about the Nissan driver's jagged season that he feels like nothing other than an outsider at the moment. A dangerous one admittedly but an outsider, nonetheless.
**Current standings:**
1 Wehrlein 141
2 Evans 132
3 Rowland 114
4 Da Costa 111
5 Dennis 109
So, taking it as an Evans vs Wehrlein vs da Costa vs Dennis grapple for the title, who - in a ‘Top Trumps’ style - has the best cards to play heading into the final four races in Tokyo and London?
## The drivers
**Pascal Wehrlein – 9/10**
Wehrlein has had another very strong season with Porsche. It’s one he has mostly maximised particularly in consideration of the inevitable slings and arrows of Gen3 pack racing.
His one lap pace has mostly been exceptional and his reading of races - alongside a new engineer for the season in the experienced Robert Sattler - has been diligent and rightly rewarded with strong scores and a championship lead.
While his wins at Jeddah and Shanghai were fully controlled, perhaps it will be Wehrlein’s capacity to improve his points scores by guile that could mean he joins Jean-Eric Vergne as a double champion come mid-August.
A case study in point was his mugging of Dan Ticktum at the final chicane at Jarama in March, which brought him 15 points instead of 12\. That was also a day in which his luck was ridden after Nyck de Vries’ early race assault that left the Porsche 99X Electric’s rear bodywork hanging off precariously.
Wehrlein has very few weaknesses in his armoury. He and Porsche won’t like the tag, but he, with a nine points advantage, is the favourite right now and will be tough to beat.
**Mitch Evans - 9/10**
If Evans does not win a title with Jaguar it will feel like an aberration. A weirdly fated anomaly that will be hard to rationalise.
The last lap of Gen3 for Evans will also be his last for Jaguar before leaving for the new Opel project. It is set to be a momentous occasion, filled with emotion after a decade with the Big Cat. Should that emotion be washed down with champion’s champagne and title platitudes, perhaps a lot of the past heartache will be dulled.
This season, amid a poor start when he ended the first race in the barriers and the second was spoiled by technical issues allied to missing the attack mode loops in Mexico City, Evans didn’t initially look like he would be in the hunt.
At this time, actually probably well before this, in his heart he knew he needed a new challenge, and so perhaps did Jaguar.
But never underestimate or rule out Mitch Evans. Because when he’s down, he isn’t out. In fact, he’s at his most dangerous. It’s like that moment of quiet before the Haka begins.
Evans has been mostly unhappy with his one lap pace this season and there have been reliability issues too. But, knowing that he is off to pastures new for Gen4 has, to some extent, freed him up driving wise.
That could be supercharged for the final four races and if it acts as an extra spur then Evans could sign off from Jaguar in the perfect manner and lay to rest the ghosts of 2021, 2022 and 2024, when he could have claimed the crown had it not been for technical and strategic wrong turns.
**Antonio Felix da Costa – 8/10**
Da Costa scores a slightly lower score on the Top Trumps scale. Not because of his skill or pace, far from it, but simply because of the points deficit and the fact it may just be a season too early for him to become Jaguar’s first ever Formula E champion.
He pleasantly surprised himself and the team with the pace and progress he made in races from the very start of the season. His feeling for the braking performance of the Jaguar Gen3 Evo took some getting used to. But by round four in Jeddah it was fully licked and he took his first win there and then his second a few weeks later at Jarama.
But costly incidents at Berlin (via Mueller) and Monaco (via Ticktum) – both of which majorly pissed him off – mean that he’s on the back foot points wise and perhaps those lost points will be telling.
There was also Sanya, where he should have got a podium but was denied via a controversially harsh penalty for contact with his great friend Norman Nato. Such things are title challenges broken upon.
Yet, da Costa has always had the feeling of a driver still finding his full way at Jaguar, although it has to be said he is by far a happier soul there than he was at Porsche. That could be a telling fact, but only in time, meaning a second title for da Costa may have to wait until the Gen4 period.
## Team and car
**Porsche 9/10**
Consistency wise, Porsche has had a short blip across Monaco and Sanya, yet this was mostly self-inflicted by the drivers, Mueller at the former and Wehrlein at the latter.
The bounce back at Shanghai was strong with Wehrlein and Mueller slamming in 47 points, 40 of which came Wehrlein’s way. This was a strong riposte by Porsche - which is hungry to get the hat-trick of titles this season. As well as leading the drivers’ standings with Wehrlein, it’s 50 points clear of Jaguar in the manufacturers’ championship and its works squad is within six points of Jaguar’s teams’ points lead.
Porsche has a strong leadership, technical, sporting and mechanical team. Florian Modlinger leads but James Lindesay – team manager, and an intensely competitive organisational force - propels the team greatly too, as does softly spoken technical project leader, Oliver Champenois.
There was a key engineering change with the aforementioned Saddler took over from Alpine bound Fabrice Roussel as Wehrlein’s engineer at the start of the season. It was seamless.
Porsche has top of the range technical capabilities, as has Jaguar. It juggles the cost cap, as does Jaguar but in a very different way, largely due to the unique set-ups of each of the manufacturers.
The key difference for Porsche this season, as last, is that it has two more cars on the grid than its rival. Cupra Kiro has been a useful addition, particularly for the manufacturers’ title chase, in which Kiro feels to have been much more pliable than Andretti - which is about to switch allegiance to Nissan for next season.
**Jaguar TCS Racing – 9/10**
Jaguar has a very tight and organised team, one which has proved time and time again it can come back from adversity. Think of the start of the present season when after round two at Mexico City it had zero points.
From an organisational and practical standpoint, it has two of the most solid and committed racers around – Gary Ekerold (race director) and Garth Harradine (chief mechanic). You have to get up very early on race day to get one over this pair.
New team boss Ian James appears to have been able to help manage some continuity in how the team is positioned after a tricky time over the last year as his predecessor James Barclay departed, Theo Gouzin started as technical director and da Costa had to be integrated into the team efficiently.
As complete entities there is little to choose between Porsche and Jaguar. Each has very healthy resources and each uses them very well. It’s now all about the tiny competitive increments.
**Andretti - 8/10**
Andretti has been erratic in Gen3\. Occasionally brilliant, often not quite there in challenging Porsche, Jaguar and Nissan over the course of a season.
It is a leaner team in resource no doubt, yet Dennis and the Andretti top brass will likely feel they should have more to show for their efforts.
This season has brought two wins and two poles, a very decent haul for a customer team, especially one that has a complex relationship with its soon to be ex-supplier Porsche.
Will that play out in a final fitful and fractious finale in London? It could, although it all depends, realistically, on whether Dennis can stay no more than 20 points off Wehrlein heading into his home race next month.
## Circuit form
**Jaguar 3/10**
**Porsche 6/10**
**Andretti 6/10**
Neither Jaguar nor Porsche has won a race in Tokyo, and indeed the best finish there by either is only Wehrlein’s second place last season.
Evans in particular has had two absolute stinkers in the Japanese capital. He slashed into Robin Frijns’ Envision recklessly in 2024 and then had another shunt in 2025 qualifying forcing his team to withdraw him for the race.
Da Costa has fared better, but of course that was with Porsche, with a fighting fourth place in ’24 and a seventh place last May.
Wehrlein has been steady in results at the Big Sight track with a solid fifth in 2024 and a swashbuckling second behind Rowland last season.
So, it has been clear that the Porsche 99X Electric historically works much better at the Big Sight track than the Jaguar. Why that is, is something of a mystery because the Jaguar has fared well on other sinuous tracks such as Sao Paulo, London and Sanya.
Andretti meanwhile has also had ups and downs in Tokyo, but has generally been quick. Dennis snatched a podium, rudely but justifiably, from da Costa in 2024\. Last season he could have grabbed another podium had it not been for a harsh, not to say dubious disqualification, for entering the pitlane when it was closed (but open if you read the timing screen!).
The conclusion has to be that Jaguar has the most to prove this weekend if historical results are anything to go by. Porsche appears to have collected itself after the misery of Monaco and Sanya, while Andretti, now with a bona fide competitive team-mate for Dennis in Felipe Drugovich to possibly cause some chaos, could creep into real contention for an unlikely London ExCeL outsider attempt.
### A big test of Audi's bold F1 claim
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/a-big-test-of-audis-bold-f1-claim/
Last updated: 2026-07-23T06:25:23.000Z
Audi had a bit of a stuttering start to its Formula 1 journey, with debut points in Australia, followed by seven races where neither of its drivers got in the top 10.
But off the back of an engine upgrade at the Spanish Grand Prix in June, aimed at improving its major drivability weakness, there has been a marked turnaround in form from F1's big new manufacturer.
It's been buoyed by back-to-back points finishes in Britain and Belgium, helped by strong performances from Gabriel Bortoleto and a good strategy call under the VSC at Spa. It's now eager for more.
This weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix could well prove to be a litmus test for what we can expect from Audi over the second half of the campaign – as it will be a chance for it to show whether some claimed strengths can overcome its known Achilles heel.
The messaging for much of the season is that Audi's first power unit is well adrift of the opposition – at least 4% off according to the FIA's own ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) rankings.
However, on the chassis front, Audi is far from downbeat. In fact, the messaging from both team management and drivers has been pretty clear about how strong its R26 is.
Audi F1 project leader Mattia Binotto remarked earlier this year that he felt Audi had a top four chassis, while at the Austrian GP in late June, Bortoleto reckoned that sights could have been set on a major giant-killing performance if he had more top speed.
"If we had the same top speed as Mercedes or Red Bull, we would have been fighting for top three," he remarked about Audi's form at the power-sensitive Red Bull Ring.
It was a bold claim but one that Audi's bosses suggest may not be too far wrong.
Racing director Allan McNish said: "I think it's quite clear in the numbers where we are on medium-high speed - and we're very good. Very efficient as well. We can still improve a little bit in the low speed."
## Shifting form
Audi's closest rivals are certainly starting to sit up and take notice of how things seem to be clicking more.
Just as Racing Bulls seemed to have picked up momentum in the fight to be best of the rest behind the top four teams, Audi is starting to stretch its legs and causing it some headaches.
As Arvid Lindblad said after being beaten by Bortoleto in the Belgian GP: "They're fast, the Audis. They're faster than us in the corners. We're very aware of that.
"They have a little bit of a better car. We're a bit more competitive on the straights, plus I think we're less draggy.
"Overall, in quali, we're able to be faster than them. In the race, we're very similar pace."
Bortoleto thinks that the midfield fight has evolved since the start of the year, with early headline acts Haas and Alpine having now slipped back.
"I think we are ahead of Alpine for sure, but when we are fighting with them we cannot overtake in the middle of the corners because that's impossible," he said.
"And on the straights, they are able to pull away. So, unless we manage to stay ahead of them and create a gap, it's difficult to race against them.
"In tracks where you have less straights, it's a bit easier. But I would say Racing Bulls, for now it's a little bit ahead of us, but we are catching.
"We are coming closer and we are coming out of the tracks that \[expose a bit more of\] our weaknesses."
These clear characteristics differences between the cars – of Audi being better in the corners while Racing Bulls seems stronger on the straights – could well shape how the midfield battle will play out over the rest of 2026.
That is why this weekend will be a fascinating one. The tight and twisty Hungaroring is nowhere near as power sensitive as Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps, and much more of the lap time is shaped by how well the car handles in the turns.
So now that Audi has cured some of the drivability issues that hurt it earlier in the campaign – and meant that its chassis advantage could not be utilised well at venues like Monaco where engine responsiveness is key – we should finally get a clear picture of where it stacks up.
In fact, based on McNish's view on where it excels, the Hungaroring's prevalence of medium and high-speed corners, without too much slow stuff, seems perfect for the R26.
## Still not enough
But even if Audi has a feel-good factor about its car and Hungary delivers on the high hopes, the team also fully understands that success in F1 is about more than just being happy with your car.
And for all the positive chatter about how strong its car is, and what the GPS is saying about its performances through the turns, it can't just be strong in one element if it wants to actually achieve results.
McNish added: "It is a car and a power unit. That's the important thing.
"Separating them off is, in theory, a way to do it. But in practice, you need the power unit to make the car go around the corner. As well as the chassis itself. It's the complete package."
Audi isn't sitting still. Drivability has improved, thanks in part to a smaller turbo that it introduced in Spain last month, but it still needs to make its engine less peaky.
Bortoleto says Audi fully understands there is still an awful lot to do to find more power as well.
"It's still down, but it's something we know," he said. "I don't think there is a need to be talking all the time about it.
"I think it's clear, everyone can see it, but I'm sure the team is doing a great job trying to bring performance on the engine.
"I can see when I go to the factory that they are doing a very good job in that sense."
Binotto has already talked about a new engine concept being in the works, but potentially not coming until 2028, so there remains a long way to go before the squad can excel on all tracks.
But that doesn't mean there aren't good opportunities to be had at the right venues for its car - starting in Hungary this weekend.
### Farewell to the worst car of F1 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/farewell-to-the-worst-car-of-f1-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-22T16:06:26.000Z
Aston Martin said a final farewell to this iteration of the worst Formula 1 car of 2026 with a typically awful performance at last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix.
Now comes the first major test of the Adrian Newey-led team that desperately needs to restore its battered reputation - and try to hang on to star driver Fernando Alonso.
We know Alonso has a big decision to make about his future in the coming weeks, having said he will consider his next steps during F1's August break.
But he insisted the debut of Aston Martin’s B-spec 2026 car - one the team refuses to call a B-spec but is in fact a B-spec because it will require a new, lighter, crash-tested chassis - will not be a major driver in that decision.
Alonso has been consistently clear that he dislikes this energy-starved version of F1, and revealed in Belgium that he has turned to driving old F1 cars from his personal museum as a way to maintain his love for the sport while current F1 disappoints him so greatly. (And in case you were wondering which cars they are: "I have old cars, 2007, 2012, my own Formula 1 cars that I drive from time to time and I do enjoy it a lot.")
The nuance in Alonso's position is that he doesn't enjoy driving 2026 F1 cars but he does still enjoy racing at the highest level. The clear implication here is that Aston Martin, so far cut adrift at the very back of the field, needs to haul itself into a place where it can at least fight with the midfield teams or else Alonso will probably consider this whole thing a lost cause.
He said he is trying to disassociate his decision from the team's underperformance, because he recognises Aston Martin began 2026 behind and feels this isn't a true representation of the team's potential.
After running around at the back all weekend at Spa, four seconds or more off the pace, and enduring one of the worst tracks of all for chronic energy starvation, Alonso is more concerned about whether he can stand much more of driving these underwhelming cars - even with staged modifications coming to the balance the split between electrical energy and combustion power for 2027 and 2028.
"My decision is not about the performance of this year," Alonso explained.
"This year we started \[on\] the wrong foot and I cannot base my decision for next year, on a performance that is not realistic. This is not the true potential of the team."
But even if the bias in the decision is more towards the rules and less about the competitive situation, that second part still has to be a significant factor for Alonso.
The Race understands internal targets are suggesting Aston Martin's upgrade to be worth in the region of several seconds' worth of laptime - maybe as much as two seconds. but this covers the entirety of the new aero package and car revisions - of which only the first phase is planned for Hungary this coming weekend - plus the single Honda engine upgrade that is due to arrive for the Dutch GP, the first race after the summer break.
Even if absolutely all of that best-case-scenario total pace had been available to Alonso at Spa, it wouldn't have transformed his weekend. He felt Aston Martin executed its qualifying session pretty well, not leaving obvious time on the table, and yet he exited Q1 in 21st place, 4.137 seconds off the pace and 2.031s behind the car directly ahead: the Cadillac of Sergio Perez.
So an extra two seconds of performance would have left him fractionally trailing the slowest of the two Cadillacs.
In the race, he finished two laps down - and more than 70 seconds behind the Cadillac of Valtteri Bottas.
This is why pre-weekend, Alonso was urging everyone to "remain calm" about the potential of the coming upgrades, because he clearly knows the underlying weakness of the Honda power unit - even if it's improved slightly - will still hold Aston Martin back on energy-starved circuits such as Monza.
And Alonso isn't getting carried away with whatever Aston Martin thinks it can deliver either, given how poor it's shown itself to be at car development outside of an impressive start to 2023\. He also must be seriously concerned about Honda's capacity to improve, given his awful past experiences and the similarities between his current situation with the McLaren-Honda nightmare he endured a decade ago.
What Alonso wants to see this time is evidence the team has understood its problems and begun to fix them, what he calls "a gain in trust on what we are doing".
Alonso will undoubtedly feel he is still capable of competing at the highest level, and so even if the Aston Martin-Honda two-phase upgrade delivers everything that's promised, and Alonso is suddenly capable of fighting for the final spot in Q2 with straggling Williamses or Haases at certain tracks that aren't so power sensitive as Spa, so what? That's clearly beneath a driver of his standing and ability, and so he may decide he's done with it all regardless.
He's in a sticky spot here because alternative options in F1 are basically non-existent. The top four teams are all locked down for next season, with Max Verstappen's McLaren flirtations more about what happens the year after, so the best Alonso can realistically target is a sideways move to a midfield team such as Alpine - one he's already had three spells at.
But again, what's the point in that? It's not going to create a path back to the front of the grid. And having waited all his career to work with a car designed by Newey - who has a history of his concepts coming good eventually even if they start off in difficulty - why jack that in immediately unless it's for a guaranteed winning car?
That said, if Newey's first Aston Martin can't be fixed in fairly short order, Alonso - about to turn 45 the Wednesday after the Hungarian GP - might run out of time to see this project come good.
## Stroll exposes aerodynamic problems
Should Alonso decide he's done with Aston Martin-Honda, and therefore F1 itself in all likelihood, whoever steps into that seat - perhaps an ambitious and resurgent Sergio Perez, or soon-to-be ex-Haas driver Esteban Ocon - will have to accept the fact that even a much-improved version of the car is going to be significantly off the pace.
At least until the team's pace of development starts exceeding those teams, such as Cadillac, Williams and Haas, who are further up the road.
Ocon's good friend Lance Stroll is locked in at Aston Martin basically in perpetuity because of the unique ownership structure at that team, but that doesn't mean he isn't just as frustrated with the current uncompetitive situation as his team-mate is.
Stroll said at Spa: "It's been pretty terrible - there's nothing we like about our car, there's no strengths, so we can only get better."
Asked about the viral onboards of him applying full lock at Silverstone, Stroll said he was deliberately provoking the car into that extreme state to show the team how badly it's performing.
## F1's worst car for a decade
To put the woeful performance of the 2026 Aston Martin into context, it ranks comfortably among the absolute slowest F1 cars since 2010, when an influx of new - and perennially cash-strapped - teams joined the grid.
To be further off the pace, in relative terms, than the woeful 2019 Williams - which arrived to pre-season testing late and featured illegal front suspension - is a damning indictment of how poorly Aston Martin-Honda is performing so far in 2026.
As well as the high-speed aero stalls and understeer, Stroll lists medium- and low-speed corner entry instability and braking, poor driveability, lack of power, car balance issues, and an overall lack of downforce as weaknesses in this current package.
There's a lot of pressure on the single engine update Honda plans to introduce for Zandvoort. The Race understands Honda's battling detonation problems in the combustion chamber and struggling to achieve the lower maximum compression ratio permitted in the regulations.
Trying to find solutions in a cost-capped era is not something Honda is used to, and so that could further slow the rate at which it is able to chip away at its power deficit.
The Race asked Honda at Spa if it also needs to work on ancillary components of the power unit, such as the battery or the MGU-K, but trackside manager Shintaro Orihara indicated the internal combustion engine is his team's only focus right now.
## Will the chassis upgrade be ready?
The twisty nature of the Hungaroring compared to Spa should reduce the car's sensitivity to the Honda power unit's lack of performance and better allow Aston Martin to judge whether it really has improved its car with these planned aero revisions, suspension changes and lighter components - if they're ready in time.
Last Thursday at Spa, Aston Martin's chief trackside officer Mike Krack said the team was working "flat-out to get the parts ready" for Hungary but whether everything would be in place was "the $1million question" because the schedules are "tight".
But he said after the Belgian GP that he'd been monitoring screens showing the upgraded car coming together in the race bays in the factory and now felt "quite confident that we have everything that we need".
Krack admitted some of the current-spec parts on Aston Martin's car are "very tired" now that it's prioritised this new specification, but said the team has been working hard to remain focused on extracting as much as it can from the current package in order to be ready for when the car does take a step forward.
Alonso indicated the team has finally found consistency over the past three races "in terms of deployment and things that are normal for everyone else", and Krack said the mood inside the team is "improving" now it can see "this tough time is coming to end".
But whether that tough time is really about to come to an end all depends on how powerful this much-anticipated upgrade really is.
### The reality of funding the world's oldest racetrack
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/brooklands-the-reality-of-funding-world-oldest-racetrack/
Last updated: 2026-07-22T15:36:44.000Z
How does the world's oldest purpose-built racetrack stay relevant, interesting and, most importantly, financially stable after 119 years?
Brooklands Museum celebrates 100 years since it hosted the first British Grand Prix in 1926 with a new exhibition and a landmark event in August.
The Grand Prix Centenary event, set to take place on August 8, is sold out - which is an impressive accomplishment for a circuit that hosted its last race in 1939.
However, Brooklands hosts a museum detailing Britain's motorsport history - plus a new exhibit on the first British GP - within the banks of its old circuit, as well as a collection of aircraft and numerous exhibits charting the history of Brooklands as a crucial aircraft construction facility during the World Wars and then an airfield.
Its relevance to British history is clear, but Brooklands could well have faded into obscurity if not for the work of the Brooklands Museum Trust.
"The museum was set up in the mid-1980s but it really opened to the public in 1991, and it's run by a charity," explains Brooklands vice president Allan Winn.
"We have to remind people on a constant basis that we're a receiving charity, not a giving charity, so we have always had the challenge of raising enough money to keep the place going and more importantly keep on improving it."
In 1999, for example, the building that holds the new British GP exhibition (the Jackson Shed) was derelict.
Winn adds that the clubhouse at Brooklands was the only restored building when the museum first opened, and one-by-one the trust has secured funding to restore other buildings including the hangars that hold its Hawker Harrier and Vickers Wellington aircrafts, the second of which was designed at Brooklands in the 1930s.
More buildings are set to be restored, but, as Winn says: "It's always been challenging. We can cover the running costs through people coming in through admissions, through an enormously successful membership programme where people are effectively buying an annual ticket, but they're also supporting the museum by doing that in a direct way."
Trading profits from Brooklands's on-site events space also helps fund the site, but Winn says that Brooklands has to go further.
"Yes, people say, 'Go to the lottery'; we do go to the National Lottery.
"The lottery has been absolutely brilliant, and also they've been really adventurous in seeing new ways of supporting heritage so, for instance, the Napier-Railton \[racing car built in 1933\] was the first moving object that the lottery ever funded. Until then they thought heritage was buildings, and so they had to rewrite their internal rules."
In 2015, the National Lottery's heritage lottery fund (HLF) granted £4.681million to Brooklands Museum to revamp its aircraft factory and racetrack.
"They've helped us buy aeroplanes and they helped massively, but every time you raise money from the lottery you've got to provide the matching funding from other sources," says Winn.
That's because the National Lottery grants typically come with such match-funding requirements. The recipient must match - to a specified ratio - the money received from the National Lottery to receive the money.
"And that's the biggest single challenge we have is attracting the other half of whatever capital fund you're trying to raise: getting that from the private sector, from individual donors, or from industry. It’s very difficult to actually get money directly from industry these days but that's what we have to do," says Winn.
The Arts Council and the local Surrey Council have also donated to Brooklands while the National Lottery's HLF has continued to grant money - with £194,500 donated to Brooklands most recently this year.
Winn's tone is constructive rather than frustrated.
He says that when he took over as chief executive in 2003, Brooklands had an "established corporate giving programme" with around six automotive and aviation manufacturers paying an annual sponsorship fee.
"Now, that all dropped away in the early years of this century," he adds.
"That had dropped away well before COVID and it certainly wasn't helped by things like the 2008 \[financial\] crash.
"So we went into COVID in a fairly strong position; we'd had 20 years of rising attendances every year, breaking the record."
The pandemic added uncertainty, as it did for almost every business, but Brooklands bounced back well with support from the National Lottery - which granted £250,000 through its Heritage Emergency Fund - the Arts Council, and private donors.
The Brooklands Museum Trust's most recent filing to the charity commission of England and Wales shows that, in 2024, it had a total income of £5.74m but a total expenditure of £5.92m.
Of that income, £816,280 was from donations and legacies, and a massive £3.02m from charitable activities; of its expenditure, £4.36m was spent on achieving its objectives as a charity (charitable expenditure) and £1.57m was spent on raising funds and other expenditure.
Chief executive of Brooklands Museum, Alex Patterson, says that a limited budget is a positive, "because it pushes you to do the best you can, and you have to make choices on that side of it".
"But it's difficult. As a charity, running a 32-acre site, 20-plus buildings, a car collection of over 40,000 collection items, an archive of over 40,000 \[items\], seven large aircraft liners, your money's tight, and you can't manage to spend it on absolutely everything. So you have to make choices and do it.
"Our visitors are very loyal. We're slowly building our visitor numbers, but we need to give them something new, a reason to come back."
Brooklands's responses come in the form of that new British GP exhibition and its following centenary celebration in August.
"For us, to be able to update our story and show relevance and connection to the future is so important as a business, to be able to bring people back and give them that exposure and understanding," concludes Patterson.
### Albon to visit South Africa as Williams expands fan outreach
URL: https://www.the-race.com/extra/albon-to-visit-south-africa-as-williams-expands-fan-outreach/
Last updated: 2026-07-22T11:15:36.000Z
Alex Albon will visit South Africa at the end of July as part of a Williams initiative aimed at bringing Formula 1 closer to fans in markets that remain outside the championship's race calendar.
The Williams F1 driver will make his visit in partnership with team sponsor Super Group, following a month-long roadshow that has taken a Williams showcar across Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg.
The activation gives members of the South African public the opportunity to see an F1 car up close and compete for VIP experiences during his visit.
While F1 has not raced in South Africa since 1993, the country remains one of the sport's strongest fan markets on the African continent. Albon's trip will mark the first official visit by an active Williams driver to South Africa since Alain Prost won the last South African Grand Prix at Kyalami in the championship-winning FW15C more than three decades ago.
The visit also comes at a time when the prospect of [F1 returning to Africa](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/south-african-gp-f1-return-hope-boosted-by-approved-kyalami-upgrade/) continues to be discussed. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has repeatedly stated his desire to add an African race to the calendar, though efforts to secure a viable event have yet to produce a concrete agreement.
Williams says the initiative forms part of a broader strategy to engage fans beyond race weekends. As F1's global audience continues to grow, teams are increasingly investing in off-track activations and fan events in key commercial markets.
According to Williams, only around 1% of F1 fans worldwide will ever attend a grand prix in person. The team has sought to bridge that gap through fan zones and public events, including activations in Melbourne, Austin and Las Vegas that have attracted more than 340,000 visitors over the last two years.
Albon said the opportunity to visit South Africa and engage directly with fans was particularly meaningful.
"I've always wanted to go to South Africa - it's a beautiful country, and South African fans are some of the most passionate in motorsport," he said.
"Bringing F1 to the fans, and doing things a bit differently, is what the Atlassian Williams F1 Team is all about, so this is exactly the kind of moment we love being part of.
"It is incredible to be the first Williams driver here since Alain Prost won in 1993 and I'd love to see a race in Africa one day."
The event is being delivered alongside Super Group, owner of betting and gaming brands Betway and Jackpot City, both of which have significant operations in South Africa.
Super Group chief executive Neal Menashe said the response to the nationwide roadshow highlighted the appetite for F1 in the country.
"F1 has an incredibly passionate following in South Africa, and we are proud to help bring the sport closer to fans through our partnership with Atlassian Williams F1 Team," said Menashe.
"Seeing the excitement generated by the roadshow across the country has been remarkable, and Alex's visit is a fitting culmination of that journey."
### MotoGP cameo star secures major new Ducati deal
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/motogp-cameo-star-iker-lecuona-major-new-ducati-deal/
Last updated: 2026-07-22T10:25:43.000Z
Sometime MotoGP rider Iker Lecuona has secured his medium-term future with a new factory Ducati deal in World Superbike.
Lecuona had got his big breakthrough for 2026 with a one-year deal at Ducati (which he's described as "life-changing") after four mixed, injury-complicated seasons as a Honda works rider.
Though he was relatively unfancied as a signing, he quickly proved his worth, finishing second to team-mate Nicolo Bulega in a surreal 18 consecutive races, before finally beating him to victory at Donington (and then crashing in the next race to end the 1-2 streak).
Bulega, who was left standing as WorldSBK's unquestionable top rider following the MotoGP switch for Toprak Razgatlioglu, should claim the 2026 title - but is then expected to join the VR46 Ducati team in MotoGP.
It means Lecuona could be positioned to lead WorldSBK's top factory instead. His continuation at Ducati was in little doubt for months now - and it was thought some sort of option covered 2027 anyway - but a new two-year commitment represents a show of faith.
"From the very beginning, we believed in his talent, but what truly won us over was the way he became part of the group: he adapted to the bike and to the team with surprising naturalness, always bringing the same passion, dedication and team spirit that define our garage," raved team boss Stefano Cecconi.
It won't have hurt that Lecuona was superb in his single MotoGP appearance in 2026.
His full-time career in MotoGP had fizzled out half a decade prior as he struggled to kick on at Tech3 KTM, but as injury stand-in for Alex Marquez at the Hungarian Grand Prix this year - donning Gresini colours and riding a 2026-spec Ducati Desmosedici - Lecuona delivered what may well be the best MotoGP weekend of his career so far, taking seventh place in the grand prix.
There is no mention of any MotoGP duties in his deal but, with Bulega switching over full-time and Ducati MotoGP tester Michele Pirro increasingly ageing out of stand-in viability, Lecuona may well become one of the go-to options for Ducati as a MotoGP replacement rider.
In the meantime, Ducati will need to complete its factory line-up in WorldSBK.
There is though to be interest from several MotoGP veterans who are finding themselves without a premier-class seat, but also rumours that Ducati is more interested in youth - which tally with a Speedweek.com report that it is targeting Moto2 points leader Manu Gonzalez.
### Why F1's AI engines are tripping teams up so much
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-ai-engines-are-tripping-teams-up-so-much/
Last updated: 2026-07-22T07:40:35.000Z
The complex interaction between energy-starved, AI-integrated power units, new-for-2026 tyres and wheels, lower downforce cars, constantly shifting circuit conditions and microscopically variable driving inputs is making it very difficult for anyone inside the Formula 1 paddock to clearly understand where performance is coming from and where it’s being lost.
We’ve heard in recent days how frustrated the drivers have become with what are loosely called ‘deployment problems’ but can range anywhere from ‘driver pushes button at the wrong time’ to ‘driver makes a mistake that makes the MGU-K fill in a power gap’ to ‘AI got confused and made my power unit deploy energy in an unexpected way’.
When some of the finest engineering minds in F1, with all the data and computing power and experience at their disposal, can’t easily figure out what’s going on, it’s almost impossible to expect the drivers to know the right course of action to take.
McLaren team boss Andrea Stella has repeatedly said for a while, in a somewhat enigmatic way, that McLaren is behind the factory Mercedes team on understanding how to best exploit the 2026 engines.
And what he means by this is that McLaren has lacked the sophisticated simulation models needed to pre-programme the power units in the best way, before they begin their AI-assisted learning process at the track.
“When you operate a power unit that is so complicated, and this is complicated because of the regulations, not because the HPP \[Mercedes\] is particularly complicated, you need models of the power unit itself to be able to test different parameters, and see how the power unit would respond,” Stella says. “But also to optimise the deployment, optimise the driving, and optimise the gears, and so on.
“Some of these tools were not available, just because of a timeline. So we have worked together to make sure that they have become available as soon as possible, and as a matter of fact, now they are starting to be available, and we are definitely taking great benefit.”
But even though McLaren is getting better at predictions, thus allowing Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to start their weekends more on the front foot, the complicated nature of the way the power units operate, coupled with their incredible sensitivity to external inputs, has made the process of understanding what’s going on in-weekend incredibly challenging.
“Models are a representation in the engineering world of the physical world, or of the physical machines that you use, but these machines include a level of complication that sometimes you don't capture entirely in the modelling,” Stella explains.
“Like you may capture over time, because you sophisticate your models and they become more and more precise. But we are all learning, and I'm sure every power unit manufacturer, they are also learning, as to how to represent from an engineering point of view, the physical machines that they have made. So I think this is one element, the modelling.
“This would not be a problem if the power units themselves wouldn't be so sensitive to lack of fidelity. Because we said already that there's an effect such that a little change of a driving input would have a big change in terms of outcome. Likewise, a little change from the physical behaviour of the power unit parts may lead to big changes in outcome.
“That's where the modelling comes into \[play\]. Like representation of the physics, and representation of driving input, or even wind.
“I think we have heard, especially from the Mercedes drivers, that they kind of make adaptations to the grip. They adjust, they set things to the grip through qualifying.
“This means that things are so sensitive to some parameters, that you should represent all this in your models. And this is very difficult, and it will take some more time.”
These three factors: wind, track/tyre grip and driving input have always been crucial in F1, of course, but the way they can influence the performance of these 2026 power units - and in particular the machine learning they are now doing - is unprecedented.
An increased headwind on a straight between sessions or between qualifying runs, for example, can effectively increase the length of that straight by forcing a given car to spend longer on it, which then can impact the distance-based deployment equation.
The drivers are then having to adjust their inputs dynamically to compensate. Again, not something new in itself, but the way these AI power units respond is so unpredictable that many drivers are struggling to make those adjustments correctly, feel them, or even know the degree of adjustment required.
According to Stella, “you need to be able to anticipate and make sure the operation of the power unit unfolds as expected, because this is not only for the influence it has in the power-limited sections, in the straights, but also because it affects the braking points, because if you have an additional amount of harvest with a super clip before braking then you are approaching the braking 10km/h slower, and your braking point changes.
“This is quite difficult to master, I would say, for the drivers, and it's one of the reasons why I'm sure the drivers as well, they talk about the difficulties from a driving point of view to exploit the power unit.
“It's not only to get the most out of the power unit, but also because the variations of the power unit affect the references as you approach a corner.”
There are further complications in terms of required driving style this season too, because downforce levels have dramatically reduced and the Pirelli tyres (and the wheel sizes they attach to) are also different.
By default the drivers have much less front grip available, and the past way of countering this as a driver - by braking hard and late, forcing the front of the car to pitch forward, and then achieve rotation in the slow and medium speed corners - is not so readily available.
Braking distances are longer, the speed at which the cars approach corners tends to be reducing already because of the need to harvest energy into the battery, and drivers are also often shifting down additional gears to help recycle energy into the battery and keep the engine RPM at the correct level to keep the turbo spinning to avoid lag. This ‘engine braking’ effect can both slow down and unsettle the car.
Drivers able to find a way around this chronic understeer - something that was present in the previous generation ground-effect cars until Pirelli modified the front tyres - are probably at an advantage. And it's no wonder plenty of teams - most recently Haas at Spa - have introduced front wing updates to try to counter this understeer.
Corner speed is still important, but it’s no longer really about bravery in the fast corners and dexterity and ability to handle rear instability in the slower ones. It seems more like walking a tightrope, using all the tools you have available as a driver to try to keep the engine revs at the right level to keep the turbo spinning at the right level, trying to prevent the MGU-K from automatically compensating for any imprecision.
“To operate these power units, you don't operate them in an open-loop way, whereby I would be able to have an offline simulation and say, ‘oh, that's how the electrical power will be deployed, and it will always be identical to itself’,” Stella says.
“There's a large component of the controller that operates the power unit that happens with live calculations, and the power unit kind of forward thinks, forward calculates what it has to do.
“It definitely kind of learns, but the variations that are significantly relevant are so small that they may happen from one lap to the other, even if you have learned from the previous laps.”
And so even if you think you have correctly judged the prevailing wind, and the grip levels, and you think your driver has driven the right way to make the power unit deploy its energy correctly, the machine inside the power unit may anyway decide it has a different opinion.
### How F1 drivers have become hostages to AI in 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-f1-drivers-have-become-hostages-to-ai-in-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T17:01:05.000Z
Formula 1 drivers have become hostages to the AI underpinning the 2026 power units, with results being decided by computers either behaving or misbehaving.
Nowhere was this more exposed than at Spa. Everyone knew that this was a worst-case scenario type of circuit for these regulations, as energy-starved 2026 F1 cars mixed with long straights and high-speed corners is a painful combination.
But the extreme energy demands of the circuit exposed a wider issue with the current rules that is more alarming for drivers, as they're fearing they're becoming beholden to algorithms that are deciding when and where to deploy energy around the lap.
Those algorithms are forward-thinking and shifting around deployment based on predictions.
Big straightline speed differences across identical cars over the weekend often prove baffling for drivers and teams.
Just look at George Russell's crisis of confidence at Spa, as he was almost brought to tears at how a mysterious straightline-speed deficit was ruining his weekend.
His Mercedes team estimated a power unit deployment problem into the Bus Stop chicane was costing him at least two tenths of a second to team-mate Kimi Antonelli.
And a separate deployment issue out of La Source for allMercedes-powered cars was a major contributor to Russell being swallowed up by the lead pack on the Kemmel Straight on the opening lap and his subsequent race-ending collision with Lewis Hamilton.
The problem is these issues are often only found after sessions, so drivers have to toil with them, not knowing if it's their driving costing them time or an underlying issue out of their hands.
## Down to luck?
Drivers are suffering through quirks of the machine-learning algorithms that can't be predicted in real time.
So there can be post-session explanations like too much wheelspin in one corner wasting energy, or a driver hitting more than 60% throttle out of a corner so they burned their battery there, and these tiny details are becoming ever-more influential and have overtaken the typical skills of being better and quicker through corners.
McLaren's Lando Norris suggested there were too many random things - such as happening to hit the boost button in the right place - deciding if a driver does well or not.
"It's not down to the driver," he said. "It's just down to hoping you get lucky that the power unit does what it should do and doesn't do something silly."
He says it's "been costing him the whole year".
Worst of all perhaps is the importance of self-learning computers that are being used to maximise the energy deployment around the lap.
They help calculate how much power should be used where and when on the track, and they shift it around based on a host of parameters aimed at predicting how the lap will play out.
It sounds like a very efficient way of doing things, but it is incredibly complex and has potential to go wrong - leaving drivers completely powerless to do anything about it.
When teams talk about software problems - such as the one that befell Russell on the opening lap at Spa or that Oscar Piastri suffered in qualifying, as he had a confusing top speed deficit to Lando Norris on the run to the final chicane - it is often these algorithms they are talking about.
Piastri's McLaren team principal Andrea Stella explained that the power units are "forward thinking" while being driven around the lap and constantly adapting to the inputs they get from the driver.
Those inputs are never going to be identical from lap to lap and also the simulations used to prepare them ahead of the weekend can't account for changes in wind, track grip and differing inputs from the very human drivers.
So teams are very much learning about how the power units are operating *during* the weekend and sometimes can only spot issues when it's too late.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff even admitted it was somewhat fortunate Russell's issue was spotted at Spa, as it would be far harder to spot at an energy-richer Hungaroring circuit that's next up on the F1 calendar.
Russell could have simply sounded like a paranoid driver, when in fact he had a genuine issue with his power unit. It might make other drivers wonder if they too have an undiagnosed issue.
It doesn't just affect a driver in a straight line either because if a driver harvests more with a super clip before braking, then you can be braking 10km/h slower, and so your braking point changes.
Piastri spoke on behalf of several drivers after the Spa weekend, criticising the prevalence of the computers' influence on the power unit. He called it "nuts" and said he's spoken to other drivers who have a "similar story" to Russell's problems.
"When you've got qualifying decided by computers behaving or misbehaving, it's a pretty crap way of going racing," he said.
What seems to annoy the drivers most is that all their efforts to be quick in the corners and do a job in the area where skill is supposed to shine are being wiped away by a computer deciding they cannot have power when they want it.
It's a problem that has been in the background all season - and we understand some teams even turn these self-learningalgorithms off for qualifying to avoid these kinds of issues.
## The problem won't go away
While these self-learning problems are not so prevalent at energy-rich tracks, so this issue is unlikely to rear its head at the Hungaroring, for example, it does not mean the issue will go away totally.
But what of the 2027 and 2028 power unit rule changes, where F1 is going to do a two-step shift from the current 53/47 split between internal combustion and battery power towards 60/40 in 2028?
That's going to ease some of the complaints to do with super clipping and downshifts in high-speed corners, but it's not going to take away the machine-learning algorithms.
As Piastri said, the same computer systems and self-learning tools are going to be present on the cars no matter how much extra fuel is being pumped into the engine or how much energy is available.
He does think it will get better when the manufacturers understand the engines more, as there's still so much being learned weekend to weekend - hence the current difference between the factory Mercedes team's exploitation of its power unit and customer McLaren's understanding.
Just look at the new [Mercedes qualifying trick we revealed](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-finds-legal-way-to-revive-banned-f1-qualifying-trick/) at Silverstone that caught everyone, including McLaren, by surprise, as Antonelli and Russell were unusually lifting off before the line - something they also did at Spa.
There's bound to be more tricks that emerge as there's so much the teams still don't know about these power units and howthe autonomous parts of them think and "forward plan".
Whether F1's chiefs share the drivers' concerns remains to be seen, but you can't imagine fans are going to like knowing how much influence is outside of the drivers' hands. F1 is, after all, all about the drivers.
But in 2026 it's never been harder to actually tell who is doing the best job. Has one driver outqualified another by two tenths on merit, or was there simply a weird, self-learning algorithm quirk that denied a driver deployment on a particular straight?
Was that an amazing pass into Eau Rouge/Radillion, or is it simply the algorithm deciding to save that energy so a driver can easily get the position back on the Kemmel Straight?
F1 risks robbing drivers of their star power, and knowing a popular switch to V8 engines isn't likely to happen until 2030 or even 2031 could leave everyone with four and a half more years of this.
Nobody wins if the drivers stay hostage for that length of time.
After all, the sporting regulations have long carried an important clause that has got rid of many driving assists in the past.
Article B1.8.1 of those regulations states: "The driver must drive the F1 car alone and unaided."
Considering that "forward-thinking" algorithms are deciding important results right now, it's hard to see how that regulation isn't being strained to its limit.
The drivers would love nothing more than actually being able to drive the F1 cars alone and unaided.
But right now, qualifying and races are being too heavily influenced by self-learning computers, not drivers.
### McLaren tries again with flip-over wing design
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mclarens-flip-over-wing-reappears-but-still-wont-race/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T18:19:04.000Z
McLaren will introduce a modified version of its flip-over rear wing at Formula 1's Hungarian Grand Prix, but it doesn't plan to race it until at least September.
McLaren brought its own version of the flip-over rear wings popularised by Ferrari and Red Bull to the Austrian GP at the end of June to test, but it had to abandon that plan, and it never left the garage.
The team has since made modifications and will now attempt to debut it during first practice in Hungary - where reigning Formula 2 champion Leonardo Fornaroli will get his second F1 practice outing of the year.
However, McLaren says "this item is not scheduled to be introduced fully at this or the following race in the Netherlands" - the first race after F1's summer break.
That would suggest the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, where such a wing would be particularly useful, will be the earliest McLaren will race with it, should the tests prove successful.
Ferrari conducted a lengthy on-track testing programme with its ‘Macarena' wing - including an eye-catching debut in Bahrain's pre-season test - before it raced with it from Miami in May.
[Italian media reports](https://autoracer.it/ferrari-la-macarena-evoluta-e-pronta-e-puo-arrivare-in-ungheria/?ref=the-race.com) that Ferrari will have a modified version of its Macarena wing, potentially for introduction in Hungary.
Red Bull had to park its flip-over rear wing for the Belgian GP, after back-to-back high-speed crashes for Max Verstappen in Austria and Britain, but it says it's found a fix and it will return.
McLaren's updated flip-over wing will debut alongside a raft of upgrades, including a new floor and "further other aerodynamic parts".
That's all part of McLaren's plan to, in the words of team boss Andrea Stella, "redirect" car development from some of its original concept choices.
### The under-the-radar F1 'rookie' with 10,000km of testing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-under-the-radar-f1-rookie-with-10-000km-of-testing/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T15:59:24.000Z
Alpine reserve driver Paul Aron’s FP1 outing at the Hungarian Grand Prix means another feather in his cap in experiencing something nobody else has in Formula 1 this year.
When he heads out of the pits on Friday, he will become the first driver, off the back of the two sessions he did for Audi earlier this year at Barcelona and the Red Bull Ring, to have tasted two totally different 2026 cars and power units on F1 weekends. Ayumu Iwasa has driven a Red Bull and Racing Bulls this season, but they have the same engine.
Aron’s double strike is the latest example of him being an experienced head on young shoulders - as he is arguably F1’s most diversely experienced FP1 rookie.
Having notched up around 10,000km of testing so far in F1 since a first run for Alpine in the post-Abu Dhabi rookie test in 2024, there has been no shortage of variety for him.
He’s driven a 2023, 2024 and 2025 Alpine-Renault, a 2025 Sauber-Ferrari, a 2026 Audi and, this weekend, adds the current Alpine-Mercedes to his roster.
It’s an impressive tally of different machinery and engines for someone who isn’t full time competing.
“I think it's clearly fair to say that, as a non-full-time F1 driver, I'm the most experienced on the grid,” he tells The Race in an exclusive interview.
“I've never really heard of reserve drivers, especially in this era, who have been able to drive two different cars over two different years and with two different teams.
“And with all the testing I’ve done with Alpine I don't feel like a rookie anymore."
### Wanting more
While all this testing experience is good for his CV, Aron knows that his mission is not to just get as much mileage as possible: it’s to be out there racing on Sundays.
He needs no reminding that some of his former rivals – including those he has finished ahead of in F2 in 2024 like Kimi Antonelli, Franco Colapinto and Oliver Bearman – have all moved up to F1 race seats while he is still waiting for that first opportunity.
“I grew up loving to race, and I came into this sport because I wanted to be racing against the best of the world at the top of motorsport,” he said.
“I didn't come into this world to sit behind a computer screen weekend after weekend listening and watching. I think it's as simple as that.
“I've got so much mileage with testing now. I'm so well prepared. I just feel like I need an outlet to show that.
“For that you need to be in the car, and these FP1s give you that possibility. In Barcelona we nailed it, but it’s only over a full race weekend where you can build up your weekend and really show what you can do.”
That reference to Barcelona relates to that very impressive Friday performance for Audi in Spain that strangely went a bit below the radar.
Aron ended up sixth quickest in FP1 in Barcelona, having been on a similar run programme to team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto.
While Bortoleto’s time deficit of nearly one second at the end was not fully representative, as the Brazilian was not in a happy place with his car set-up in a happy place straight away, that takes nothing away from what Aron did that day.
As Audi racing director Allan McNish said after Aron’s performances for the squad in Barcelona and Austria: “He got in, delivered, did the job, was quick, was clean was tidy.
“He delivered in every way. Also his feedback was very good. We are so very pleased with him.”
Audi F1 CEO and team boss Mattia Binotto said of Aron's FP1: "He has proved that he's a capable driver.
"He's a fast driver. He never tested that car on track. Immediately fast since the very first lap, the very first run.
"So, well deserved from him. Happy that somehow he could show what he's capable of, because at the end he's a great driver".
### Showing off your best
Despite Barcelona being yet another occasion where Aron has shone for his bosses, he well knows that, for a youngster in his position, when you are not racing every weekend, convincing team bosses about what you can offer is complicated.
FP1 outings are not just about bolting on soft tyres and gunning for low fuel quali sims to grab some headlines.
There is a job to be done in helping the team and engineers prepare for a race weekend.
Insiders say Aron’s performances in TPC running for Alpine over the past few years have impressed those he has worked with – especially considering he has often been up against some talented other youngsters including Colapinto, Jack Doohan, Alex Dunne and Ugo Ugochukwu.
That Aron has come through every time for Alpine, and remains a central part of the squad, says an awful lot about what the bosses see in him.
The strong pace he shows in testing is something that is hard for the outside world to understand though – especially because timing sheets do not always tell the full story even on race weekends.
Engine modes, fuel levels and tyres have such a big influence on the final outcome – whether that be testing or FP1s.
In Barcelona, everything clicked perfectly to deliver that P6, while in Austria the final time was influenced by deployment strategy and red flag interruptions – things outside his control. It’s not always easy to make a brilliant impression.
“Those FP1s are judged very bluntly,” he said. “No one really looks into the details; they just look at the laptime.”
A classic example of details not being obvious to the outside world is Aron’s first ever F1 outing at the 2024 post-Abu Dhabi GP rookie test.
Aron had just cracked open his first beer at the F2 prize-giving ceremony – he had finished third in the standings behind Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar – when he got a call from Alpine saying he needed to be at the track at 8am the following morning to prepare for the rookie test.
He put the beer down; went back to his hotel and the next morning he reported for duty in the Alpine pits. At that point he had never held an F1 steering wheel in his hands, let alone even been in the simulator.
Aron completed that rookie test and ended up just seven hundredths of a second slower than Doohan in the other car – which seemed impressive already considering the exceptional circumstances of effectively being thrown in at the deep end.
But what the timing sheets did not show was that Aron had been on a super quick run at the end of the day that did not get seen through to the end.
He was two tenths up on his best time when a red flag came out – meaning he had to abort.
### Being there for yourself
Aron admits that in the past he had perhaps not fully understood how perceptions of a good job done inside the team do not necessarily travel easily to those outside.
It is why he has been a bit more aggressive with his approach to FP1s this year,
“When I first did these FP1s last year, I was very conservative on the driving,” he said.
“I just wanted to make sure that I get the job done for the team and I keep the car intact and so on.
“But I very quickly realised that once the session's done, no one cares that you were conservative. Suddenly everyone's comparing your laptime. And I learned that very quickly.
“So, I learned that you do have to get the run plan done, and you do have to do what the team wants you to do.
“But you also need to be there for yourself, and you need to push, and you need to show what you can do because the moment that laptime is on the board, everyone is comparing it.
“I think that was a bit of a 'welcome to F1' moment for me, where I think, in the beginning I was very blue-eyed, thinking that I'll do the run plan, give the team the info, keep the car safe, and finish the session.
“But then everyone's comparing the lap time! So, I realised that next time I need to push more.”
Getting the message out about strong performances isn’t simple.
Not every driver can follow the George Russell example and take PowerPoint presentations to team bosses in the hopes of getting a job.
Similarly rival teams never get to see a good job done on the simulator, nor the willingness to jump in at every opportunity.
They also do not get to witness the appreciation of Alpine factory floor staff in some departments who say that Aron is the only driver they have seen come down and visit them.
There are so many aspects of shining for a team that do not get out.
Aron accepts that part of the job of a young driver these days is being a salesman for your own talents, because F1 teams are not charities in freely giving out race seats.
Drivers need not only to get themselves a hype train, they also need to be driving it themselves.
“I think one thing I've ultimately learned in F1 is that the hype doesn't come out of nowhere,” he said,
“It comes from the people who create it, and I think, frankly, from my side, I just didn't work on that side enough to create the hype.”
Now is the time to change that as Aron seeks a much-coveted race seat.
His latest Alpine outing is another chance to remind the world about just what he is capable of, and then make sure everyone knows about it.
### What time is F1's 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix? Full weekend schedule
URL: https://www.the-race.com/promoted/what-time-is-f1s-2026-hungarian-grand-prix-full-weekend-schedule/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T13:46:48.000Z
**Presented by** [**Apple TV**](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)
There's just one more race before the 2026 Formula 1**®** season pauses for the summer break: the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Notorious for sweltering temperatures and its sinuous layout, the Hungaroring is one last stern tests for the new cars and regulations before teams can take their brief mid-season holiday.
Below you'll find the all-important session times for the weekend, as well as all the information on where to watch the action on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com).
## Hungarian GP schedule (US times)
*PDT = Pacific daylight time, EDT = US Eastern daylight time*
**Friday July 24**
**Practice 1**: 4.30am (PDT), 7.30am (EDT)
**Practice 2:** 8am (PDT), 11am (EDT)
**Saturday July 25**
**Practice 3**: 3.30am (PDT), 6.30am (EDT)
**Qualifying**: 7am (PDT), 10am (EDT)
**Sunday July 26**
**Hungarian Grand Prix**: 6am (PDT), 9am (EDT)
---
Watch The AWS Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), July 24-26\. U.S. only.
---
## Hungarian GP schedule (local time)
**Friday July 24**
**Practice 1**: 1.30pm
**Practice 2:** 5pm
**Saturday July 25**
**Practice 3**: 12.30pm
**Qualifying**: 4pm
**Sunday July 26**
**Hungarian Grand Prix**: 3pm
## Hungarian GP schedule (UK time)
**Friday July 24**
**Practice 1**: 12.30pm
**Practice 2:** 4pm
**Saturday July 25**
**Practice 3**: 11.30am
**Qualifying**: 3pm
**Sunday July 26**
**Hungarian Grand Prix**: 2pm
## How to watch the Hungarian GP
[Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) is the new home of F1 in the US from 2026\.
Fans can view every minute of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend live by signing up to [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) and accessing [Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com)'s new dedicated F1 channel.
[Apple](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com) has every F1 2026 practice, qualifying and race live, as well as a full catch-up and highlights catalogue in case you miss any of the action live.
As well as pre and post-race programming, there are additional live feeds to follow the action, including 22 onboard driver cameras, live timing, driver trackers and more.
---
Watch The AWS Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix 2026™ on [Apple TV](https://tv.apple.com/channel/tvs.sbd.241000?itscg=30200&itsct=therace%5Fformula%5F1&at=1010l3dvX&ref=the-race.com), July 24-26\. U.S. only.
### Quartararo finally fills Honda's post-Marquez MotoGP void
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/quartararo-finally-fills-hondas-post-marquez-motogp-void/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T09:46:29.000Z
MotoGP’s 2021 world champion Fabio Quartararo is officially making the switch from Yamaha to Honda in 2027, on what has been announced as a two-year deal.
The 27-year-old Frenchman has spent the entirety of his premier-class career on Yamaha machinery so far, proving an instant success in the satellite Petronas SRT team before replacing Valentino Rossi at the factory Yamaha outfit - where he became champion at the first time of asking.
But the Quartararo-Yamaha relationship frayed with the 2022 title defence collapse and the continued competitive degradation of the inline-four-engined Yamaha M1 from there, and the pivot to the V4 engine Yamaha has made for this year has proven insufficient to convince Quartararo to stick around.
Quartararo, whose Yamaha-to-Honda move for '27 has been open secret for months but wasn't being publicly announced amid the commercial terms standstill between MotoGP and its manufacturers (now resolved), is 14th in the standings this year.
Despite a lack of meaningful results in the last years - he didn't make the top eight in the standings in each of the last three seasons, and won't do so again this year - he is widely regarded as a massive coup for Honda, a blockbuster rider signing to finally fill the star rider gap created in 2024 by the exit of Marc Marquez.
Honda is believed to have tried to land Jorge Martin in the time since, but appeared to prioritise Quartararo for 2027 - while also having exploratory talks with Marquez, according to the man himself, with Marquez ultimately happy to stay at Ducati.
Honda still isn't in a position to name Quartararo's team-mate.
It announced the [MotoGP graduation of David Alonso on a Honda deal](https://www.the-race.com/motogp/the-2027-motogp-rider-decision-honda-should-take-now/) a few hours earlier, but whereas Quartararo's announcement specifies that he will "race for the factory Honda HRC team", that same wording is absent from the Alonso news.
This is because no such commitment has been made, with Honda seemingly yet to decide whether it's Alonso or 2026 MotoGP rookie Diogo Moreira who will be Quartararo's team-mate.
But it will, in any case, have four Honda-contracted riders across the factory team and satellite team LCR in 2027, pending a successful return from a complicated knee injury for Moreira's team-mate Johann Zarco, whose current Honda deal expires at the end of 2027.
## The Race says
A lot of spoken word and digital ink has been dedicated to the question of whether Quartararo has been giving Yamaha his best this season and whether Honda should be wary of commitment issues from the Frenchman, or his uncertain development acumen, or his general propensity to publicly air any grievances he has when it comes to the technical package.
Those are secondary, for there's too much baggage in the Yamaha situation for Honda to really take much out of it. The bigger question is whether a pivot to another manufacturer's bikes for the first time in his MotoGP career can stump Quartararo somehow, or whether his natural style could be less-suited to the 850cc bikes - as has been suggested to this author by a reputable source.
But there's a serious risk over assigning undue importance to any of those considerations.
Fact of the matter is, Quartararo was an immediate sensation arriving into MotoGP and even in Yamaha's recent fallow period it never required too close a look to recognise him as performing at a top level.
Riders who wound up matched against him as a team-mate, whether that happened by choice or career circumstance, have by and large come to regret it. This year, Maverick Vinales, Alex Rins, Jack Miller and Franco Morbidelli are four of the five riders expected to leave the MotoGP grid - and for all of them you can point to Quartararo as a major factor in their career declines.
Honda has not had a rider like this since Marquez's exit. Joan Mir, Luca Marini, Johann Zarco have all done intermittent great work (Zarco in particular offering up way more than expected when he signed) but neither were A-tier, all with glaring weaknesses, all leaving room to doubt whether the peak of Honda's package was being concealed and under-exploited.
But if Honda is confident now in its technical and leadership structure, headed up by Mikihiko Kawase as new team manager and Romano Albesiano as the ex-Aprilia design guru and featuring two top-tier test riders in Aleix Espargaro and Taka Nakagami, then someone like Quartararo wasn't just an ambitious addition, but a necessity.
But it also means the Honda 'rebuild' is over, and wins become a must again from race one of 2027.
### The 2027 MotoGP rider decision Honda should take now
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/the-2027-motogp-rider-decision-honda-should-take-now/
Last updated: 2026-07-21T08:34:39.000Z
The last MotoGP manufacturer yet to name a factory line-up for 2027, Honda still faces a rider dilemma - but its choice is easy.
Though there's been no announcement yet, it is common knowledge 2021 champion Fabio Quartararo, arriving from Yamaha, will spearhead the programme.
Quartararo said at the Sachsenring the official confirmation shouldn't take "super long", adding: "I mean, I think I have nothing to hide. It's just that I cannot say \[it officially\]."
Two other riders, Diogo Moreira and Johann Zarco (currently the LCR line-up), have existing contracts from before covering 2027\.
And just today (Tuesday, July 21) Honda has announced a "multi-year deal" for Moto2's David Alonso to race in MotoGP starting in 2027.
It was a short announcement - three paragraphs, no quotes, no official contract length besides "multi-year". And, most notably, no specific MotoGP team for Alonso to race in.
That last part strongly suggests Honda is still actively deliberating between Alonso and Moreira for the second factory team slot (as team-mate to Quartararo), with the 'loser' ending up at LCR.
Alonso is probably the most hyped MotoGP prospect since Pedro Acosta, courtesy of an extraordinarily dominant 2024 Moto3 season in which he proved both really fast and incredibly cerebral in managing the chaotic race situations that the lightweight class throws up on a consistent basis.
He was metronomic in how he would manoeuvre himself to the front and play his cards in late-race pack racing for the win. This has showed up in Moto2, too, even if the adaptation to the intermediate class has not been totally straightforward through 2025-26 - because Alonso hasn't always been fully fit but also because learning the ropes in Moto2 is notoriously hard anyway.
Alonso isn't *really* in the Moto2 title fight this year - there potentially isn't a title fight given the buffer established by Manu Gonzalez, and Alonso's crash at the Sachsenring didn't help matters - but his 4.367s median gap to winner is the second best in the series.
He is performing at a sufficient level for MotoGP consideration (which coupled with his Moto3 excellence makes a premier-class promotion a no-brainer). But he has not done enough to leapfrog Moreira in the queue, and there is no competitive incentive to send that message to the pair.
This has been a strong first season in MotoGP for Moreira, who needed just a few rounds to become a regular competitor with fellow Honda riders Joan Mir, Luca Marini and Johann Zarco (albeit with the latter out through injury for a prolonged spell).
### Average The Race rating per round for Honda riders, 2026
Diogo Moreira - 6.9/10
Johann Zarco - 6.6/10
Luca Marini - 6.3/10
Cal Crutchlow - 6.3/10
Joan Mir - 6.0/10
Much of his success has been propped up by good track position in qualifying - something that feels particularly essential to exploit for Honda riders - but the raw pace appears just half a step behind and increasingly he has been able to hold his own against more experienced riders in race trim.
Though Alonso is a more-heralded prospect, Moreira is more advanced, both in terms of Moto2 accomplishment and in terms of established MotoGP experience.
He has avoided publicly professing a preference for whether he rides for LCR or the factory team next season, but reading between the lines the opportunity to make the switch seems to appeal.
LCR would accept it. "First and foremost, we are extremely grateful to work with Honda - this is our 21st MotoGP season with Honda, and we are extremely grateful because we receive the same material," team owner Lucio Cecchinello told The Race.
"We have a factory bike, we have a bunch of engineers that work for HRC inside our team - and other performance engineers, that are taking care of the factory team, they are also taking care of LCR.
"Within this collaboration, I think that is also one of the, let's say, natural things - that a satellite team should act as a platform to develop young riders' generations and also to eventually select and provide to the factory team if requested.
"I hope that HRC will not make this request - because, of course, we enjoy very much to work with Diogo Moreira. But if the day will arrive that they will ask Diogo or Johann or whoever in the future - we have no problem to accept that this is part of the game - or, let's say it's a part of the deal, part of the collaboration.
"And if it will happen, of course personally and thinking about just ourselves, we are not happy - but on the other hand, it means that we have done our job well."
LCR would get a great sweetener in Alonso. Alonso - as reported by multiple sources - will have the sweetener of working with Santi Hernandez, the crew chief associated with most of Marc Marquez's wins and titles.
Yes, there is a case, too, for just pairing up Alonso with Quartararo right away - but that just risks burning Moreira as a Honda asset, by effectively cutting off his medium-term route to the factory team (given Quartararo and Alonso would surely be intended to last as a partnership).
Moreira has been productive enough to warrant more consideration for his ambitions. And yes, assuming all three work out as expected, Honda will face a Quartararo-Alonso-Moreira three-into-two problem sooner or later - but it's better not to pre-judge that situation.
It should commit to Moreira in the factory team, and it should do it now instead of having the uncertainty hanging over the rest of Moreira's MotoGP campaign and Alonso's Moto2 graduation push.
### What was behind Russell's radio rant - and why it wasn't broadcast live
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-was-behind-russells-radio-rant-and-why-it-was-muted/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T16:37:51.000Z
An angry radio message from George Russell after his lap one exit from Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix became a post-race talking point on two fronts.
First, for what he said, and secondly for how his words got out because they had not been broadcast on the normal international television and onboard feeds.
Russell was spun out on the opening lap of the Spa-Francorchamps race in a collision with Lewis Hamilton at Les Combes.
While Hamilton was penalised by the FIA stewards for his part in the crash, Russell said the real catalyst for the incident lay in him having been left a sitting duck on the run up to the corner because his Mercedes lacked deployment.
While his rivals enjoyed a speed boost down the Kemmel Straight, Russell found himself without the power he hoped for – losing track position and getting swallowed up by the cars behind.
Russell's onboard camera as he sat in the gravel trap at Les Combes showed some animated hand movements that suggested he was talking – but the international feed and F1 TV's own onboard feed were silent as they did not register any radio message.
However, German TV coverage – which was broadcast on F1 TV's own language channel - later revealed the angry words that Russell had uttered as his frustrations boiled over.
A few minutes after Russell's crash, and just before the safety car restart, it replayed his radio message.
"I'm out," declared Russell. "What the f\*\*\* happened with the SoC \[State of Charge\] down the straight?
"I had no f\*\*\*ing battery down the straight! Guys, unacceptable. Un-f\*\*\*ing-acceptable this whole weekend."
Russell's comments referenced the lack of deployment both on the opening lap and that he had suffered throughout a weekend where his top speed had been down on team-mate Kimi Antonelli.
## What happened after the first corner
Russell's complaints about no battery related to him lacking deployment as he exited Raidillon on the long run up to Les Combes.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff claimed that "all Mercedes cars" had suffered a lack of energy out of the opening corner La Source, although there was no initial explanation at the time about what had triggered this.
The Race understands that the cause appears to have been some sort of software error that prevented the cars from unleashing maximum power for top speed down the straight.
The issue was not related to the kind of problems that Mercedes had suffered at the start of the season when its cars had hit recharge limits on the formation lap so had been unable to fill their batteries enough.
On the grid, Russell had been assured that his state of charge had looked in perfect shape.
Analysis of the telemetry data from Russell and Antonelli's cars show they both encountered problems once they came out of La Source, though, as shown below on the graph from F1 TEL.
On the way out of first corner La Source, Antonelli's car stopped accelerating around the 300km/h (186mph) area as they headed to Eau Rouge – which allowed Max Verstappen to pass him.
Russell's pace here had already shown some signs of trailing off as he was 10km/h (6mph) slower than his team-mate, before he enjoyed a lift in speed from 277km/h (172mph) that meant he entered Eau Rouge at 310km/h (193mph) – fastest out of the frontrunners.
On the way out of Raidillon, however, Rusell ran into much bigger trouble.
Despite being full on the throttle and having followed a request from his engineer to use the boost button on the corner exit, his speed capped at 308km/h (191mph) for several seconds,
It then climbed steadily up to 315km/h (196mph) at the entry to Les Combes to pull him back into the pack of cars ahead, as he aimed to regain positions.
Antonelli appeared to run in two speed stages down the Kemmel Straight.
He was first capped momentarily at 313km/h (195mph), and then later at 318km/h (198mph), but this was enough to allow him to draft past Verstappen - who was low on power and had been steadily drifting down from a peak of 306km/h (190mph).
McLaren's Oscar Piastri had been slow out of La Source – up to 10km/h (6mph) adrift of Antonelli before Eau Rouge – but appears to have had good deployment up to Les Combes as he got up to 337km/h (209mph) before he started to derate.
The telemetry data of Ferrari does not appear reliable enough on the opening lap to judge exactly how Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were doing against Mercedes - but both clearly enjoyed good deployment.
## The broadcast intrigue
Russell's radio message highlighted his anger at both what happened on lap one as well as throughout the entire Belgian weekend.
What prompted some intrigue though is why that radio message was muted in the official broadcast – and only appeared on the German feed.
This has triggered some conspiracy theories about a potential deliberate censorship move over deployment criticisms, and even that the radio message that emerged was AI-generated and not real.
The Race has confirmed that any suggestion about it being a fake are incorrect, with the radio message indeed being real.
In terms of why it did not appear on the broadcast nor F1 TV's radio channels, The Race understands it was muted because of the bad language that Russell used.
As part of a move that it is understood former managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn put in place when at F1 to save drivers from themselves, any extremely angry messages and bad language broadcast over team radio do get filtered out.
All radio messages get listened through by a team of eight editors and producers at F1's Biggin Hill broadcast centre before being committed to being played by F1.
- [**Behind the scenes of F1's broadcast HQ**](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/behind-the-scenes-most-advanced-sport-broadcast-hq-f1/)
This allows any troublesome messages to be filtered out as F1 primarily puts radio messages into three tiers: fully transcribed with audio; audio-only; and text-only.
This process explains why there is often an offset of up to 15 seconds between the live images and the radio messages being shown.
Sometimes on-the-edge messages will get broadcast with the addition of a bleep to hide any swear words.
There are occasions, however, where the radio message is so emotional or expletive laden that it never makes the broadcast.
Speaking during an event at Biggin Hill last year, F1's director of broadcast and media Dean Locke explained that there was a duty to sometimes not broadcast radio messages at all if it was felt they would compromise drivers.
"There is a responsibility," he said. "Is there something they may regret? We have to sort of protect them a little bit from that.
"So we have a function that we can deal with that: mute it, bleep it occasionally."
Russell's choice language after his Spa crash is understood to have led F1's editors to decide that it should not be broadcast – either in full or even with bleeps.
So that is why it was muted on the international feed and F1 TV boards.
However, it is understood that some television channels can get direct access to unfiltered radio messages and are not just beholden to what makes the official internal broadcast.
With 22 drivers and engineers all talking to themselves for two hours, finding radio messages that are muted so they do not make the final cut is far from simple, though.
But it could be possible that Russell's incident was such an obvious one to listen in to, that his in-car rant was straightforward to find, which is how the German channels uncovered it and committed to broadcasting it.
### Everything we learned from F1's Belgian Grand Prix
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-f1-belgian-grand-prix-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T15:00:32.000Z
From details being revealed of a serious problem for one 2026 Formula 1 title contender to a driver's "best race" in the eyes of his team, the Belgian Grand Prix weekend taught us plenty.
Here's everything we learned from Spa:
## Russell's power issue only 50% of his problems
George Russell will have felt somewhat vindicated that Mercedes discovered two separate issues with his power unit at the Belgian GP - a deployment deficiency into the final chicane that was costing him 0.2-0.25s in qualifying, and another out of Turn 1 in the race that contributed to him being "swallowed" by the pack and colliding with Lewis Hamilton.
While that Turn 1 exit weakness was shared across all eight Mercedes-powered cars, Russell's deployment issue into the final chicane was unique to him and explained *some* of the half-a-second gap he had to team-mate Kimi Antonelli in qualifying.
But it didn't explain all of it, as his team principal Toto Wolff told Sky Sports F1 "probably half of \[the deficit\] is to be attributed to the power unit that wasn't as good as it should have been on his side, and the other side maybe on the driving".
Russell felt that without a solution to the power unit issues, it will be "impossible" to fight with Antonelli for the title. But even if they're resolved, it's clearly not going to be easy to resolve the other 50% of the deficit.
Miami, Monaco, Silverstone and now Spa are all weekends where Antonelli's had a decisive advantage (even accounting for Russell's Spa power unit problem). Russell hasn't had a weekend like that since the season opener.
He was unlucky to be wiped out by Hamilton and Russell says he's simply "numb to the disappointment now" as "when it happens so often you just get used to it".
But he can only focus on the things that are under his control. And right now those are decidedly lacking compared to Antonelli, a potentially terminal problem for his title ambitions. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Worst 2026 circuits are behind us (hopefully)
It didn't take long this year (at round one in Melbourne, to be exact) to find out that F1's 2026 cars are at their worst in the flowing, high-speed corners that fans and drivers so relish.
The combination of not enough energy triggering top speeds to roll over, allied to corner mode piling on a heap of drag to slow them down even more, does not make for a good look when cars go from long straights to fast bends.
It is why Turn 9 in Melbourne was a damp squib, 130R at Suzuka was tamed; why Becketts at Silverstone was not as good as in the past, and why Spa was always going to be, in the words of Oscar Piastri, "sad".
Although the driver experiences and onboards from Spa left a lot of people underwhelmed, the good news is that F1's worst of 2026 may be behind us now.
Yes, there are some energy-starved tracks coming up - Monza and Las Vegas are going to be quite difficult - but their characteristics are of just long straights where the speed drops won't be so in your face, as the super-clipping is done in a straight line.
Montreal proved that losing speed on the straights looks nowhere near as bad as cars being neutered under braking and in the turns, so at least now we can look forward to fewer moans (until we come back to these tracks in 2027). **\- Jon Noble**
## Piastri alarmed by handling of Leclerc incident
Charles Leclerc didn't appear too keen after the Belgian GP to discuss his run-in with Piastri at Les Combes - and generally had the air of someone who suspected he may have got away with one, or at least that it was truly marginal.
Piastri, having positioned his McLaren on the outside of Leclerc's Ferrari entering Les Combes and taken a hit as Leclerc shifted towards the conventional racing line, lost 0.2-0.3s per lap via the resulting damage, which compromised his ability to preserve tyre life.
And he could scarcely hide his bewilderment at how the stewards - who ruled no further action as they felt that Leclerc wasn't 'crowding' and that Piastri wasn't far enough alongside and had no realistic chance of completing a move - viewed the incident.
"From where I was at, I was on the white line and got squeezed," Piastri said. "I think we were very lucky not to have a bigger crash because we touched wheels in the start of the braking zone, basically.
"I don't really know where I was supposed to go so the fact that was no...I'm not saying it needed to be a penalty necessary, but at least a black and white flag or something like that.
"Because if we think that that's fine...even just the incentive of knowing that you can leave everyone the absolute bare minimum space and get away with it, that's not the nicest place to be." **\- Valentin Vhorounzhiy**
## Racing Bulls duel will need management
The very nature of the Racing Bulls team (a Red Bull talent farm with high line-up turnover historically) encourages significant needle between its two drivers, and in Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson it has a strong-headed pair with incentives to make each other's lives difficult.
They had a good go at each other in Austria, Lindblad flying [under the radar](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/the-unseen-ignored-team-order-that-caused-austrian-gp-angst/) with some flaunting of team orders, and on this occasion, it was a duel featuring a side-by-side run through Eau Rouge - though without the defiance of instructions or frustration on the radio.
Lawson, on the back foot through the weekend in part due to running the less-upgraded car, tried to sneak past Lindblad on the latter's outlap, first through Eau Rouge, then at Les Combes, where the pair made questionable use of the available track space and Lawson had to hop over the kerb and cut the left-hander.
It ultimately yielded what was probably the better outcome for Racing Bulls, the faster car ahead and able to get on with its race. Lawson made reference to an "aggressive" run-in at Les Combes after the fact, but clearly wasn't interested in making too big a deal out of it.
No harm, no foul - but signs of potential further trouble up ahead, especially given the car's status as a midfield-leader and Lindblad's assured start to life in F1\. As team principal Alan Permane said earlier in the weekend: "It's good to have two quick guys, that's for sure. I'm sure there'll be some management needed. They're incredibly close."
And it doesn't feel like the team is particularly fussed about dulling that competitive edge between its two drivers - if the [Silverstone shootout-for-the-full-upgrade](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-midfield-leaders-unusual-upgrade-shootout-explained/) is anything to go by. **\- VK**
## Norris thinks McLaren might've had pace to win
After finishing seventh at Spa, Lando Norris described the pace of the McLaren as "incredible". He even went as far as saying that it "was good enough for a podium, or even to win", but for his 10-place grid penalty for taking a new energy store.
The speed was certainly eye-catching; even Mercedes spotted it while focused on its own race. Norris started on the hards, was inconvenienced by the timing of the virtual safety car and, by his own reckoning, had 16 seconds added onto his race time thanks to not stopping under the VSC and losing time in the stop when he did pit. He finished 24 seconds behind race winner Kimi Antonelli.
And while McLaren team principal Andrea Stella didn't go as far as suggesting beating Antonelli and Mercedes on pace would have been possible, he was positive about the speed of the car - albeit cautioning that the characteristics of Spa helped it rather than it being indicative of a breakthrough.
"We are very encouraged by the pace that Lando was able to deliver," said Stella.
"The car had the pace in qualifying, and based on what we saw, it had the pace to contend for podiums.
"At the same time, the car adapted well to Belgium. And it's not like if we go back to Silverstone we are in condition to compete for podiums." **\- Edd Straw**
## Hadjar really impressed Red Bull
A weekend that began for Isack Hadjar with the knowledge of a massive grid penalty ended with what Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies raved was "his best race with us, no question".
Hadjar had already proven his dedication to the cause with a very tidy execution of a slipstream to Verstappen in Q3, which Verstappen estimated as being worth around 0.3s.
But the grand prix drive certainly carried more weight, as after Red Bull used the early safety car to fulfil the mandatory two-compound requirement, Hadjar scythed his way through the field, then got a 'cheap' pitstop under the VSC that set up a chance to even beat Norris - which he duly capitalised on.
Hadjar admitted to mixed feelings afterwards. "I feel like if I do the weekend without any penalties, we are fighting for the podium considering the pace. A shame," he mused.
"Surprising, as I didn't believe a track like that would suit us, but not really surprised at my own performance and delivering finally a strong race pace. Clean air at Silverstone was super frustrating for me, not being able to show the pace."
A cursory glance at his race suggests the bullish assessment is not misplaced. His end-of-race stint on hards stacks up really well against Verstappen's on the same compound, an average of 1m49.974s to Verstappen's 1m50.083s.
"Honestly, it's not only a spike," Mekies said. "He has been just a little bit better every single race for speed. So he's bringing some speed every time he's driving.
"His pace was top-three pace. So very, very happy with his progress." **\- VK**
## Audi's finally making most of decent car
Audi has long accepted that, despite a strong chassis, its performance this year is being held back a bit by its power unit.
The manufacturer's first-ever F1 engine has faced a double-whammy of being down on power *and* not having great driveability. It is too peaky, which is not ideal for this current generation of cars.
But Audi has been chipping away to improve the engine situation - which included a slightly smaller turbo design from the Spanish GP - plus it has been making further gains with its chassis.
That combination appears to have helped it chip away in the midfield to now capitalise better on opportunities such as the one presented at the Belgian GP, where a good call to pit under the VSC helped Gabriel Bortoleto secure Audi's first back-to-back points of the season.
It has left the team thinking that it is now in a tussle with Racing Bulls for best-of-the-rest status behind the top four teams.
And while Spa's long straights were not ideal for it, there are venues coming up where things should be better.
As Bortoleto said: "Racing Bulls for now is a little bit ahead of us, but we are catching, we are coming closer and we are coming out of the tracks that \[expose more\] of our weaknesses." **\- JN**
## Haas solved one problem, but not its biggest
Haas introduced a new front wing at Spa, described by head of car engineering Hoagy Nidd as "quite a big change". The focus was on improving the characteristics of the tricky Haas VF-26 in terms of consistency.
While the Haas didn't show stunning midfield pace at Spa, it had the measure of the Williams, which had been a closer battle in the preceding events.
"It \[the race pace\] shows that we're in a better place," said Ollie Bearman after finishing 14th.
"The positive is that the car feels much better to drive. I can lean on it more, I can push it more to the limit and do less mistakes because it's much more consistent, and that's good. But we still need to find more performance."
That chase for downforce will continue with upgrades down the line, while Esteban Ocon in the other car continues to battle with a rear downforce deficit compared to the sister car and a straightline speed problem. **\- ES**
### Formula E drivers pay tribute to 'sensitive and wonderful' Blais
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/formula-e-drivers-pay-tribute-to-sensitive-and-wonderful-blais/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T13:55:42.000Z
The shock of Citroen team principal Cyril Blais’ death will be hitting the Formula E paddock hard this week. His passing has, in the words of the drivers he worked with, saddened and shocked them to their collective cores.
One of those, Alex Lynn, whom Blais engineered at Mahindra for a season and a half across 2020 and 2021, said that Blais had the ability to change the way drivers thought and handled themselves.
“He was the kind of man that if you were feeling like you weren't having the best day or not very motivated for any particular facet of your life, you’d spend half an hour with him and you would come out ready to run through a brick wall,” Lynn, pictured below embracing Blais after their podium at Valencia in 2021, told The Race.
“He was just such an infectious personality. Just a brilliant human being all round.”
Blais also worked with Maximilian Guenther extensively, both in Formula 2 with Arden (in 2018) and at Maserati MSG in Formula E. They had a clear bond and strong relationship on and off the track, each of those aspects very precious to the current DS Penske driver.
"Cyril was a truly remarkable person and an incredibly special character," Guenther told The Race.
"He was a sensitive and wonderful person, while always remaining an exceptional professional. You knew with Cyril that he would always have your back.
"We achieved great things together and shared many beautiful experiences on and off the track. Those moments, and the memories we created, are something I will carry in my heart for the rest of my life."
There is a sizeable collective of drivers that Blais worked with who are utterly and genuinely devastated by his passing. Of course, there is the professional grief for an engineer who gave so much commitment to them and the teams they each worked for. But it seems actually to be a lot more than that. A kind of special reverence clearly exists for a man who did them right, whatever the circumstances.
“Cyril was very passionate about motorsport, and sometimes in those racing environments where everything can get quite complicated, he was quite good at just having common sense sometimes and like a racing mentality,” said former Maserati MSG driver and winner of last year’s Tokyo E-Prix with Blais, Stoffel Vandoorne.
His team-mate that season, Jake Hughes, was equally unequivocal about Blais’ nature, and his positive attributes both professionally and personally.
“He would always tell you how he saw it in the most honest and respectful way possible,” remembered Hughes.
“He was always someone you could bounce ideas off at any time at all. He was just a top human being, and he wanted to win as much as anyone I've ever seen in the sport before.”
Alongside the racing desire, Blais was a very private man. His outward personality was all about the racing. But of course, his life away from the track would have been just as precious, especially when it came to his family, who will be utterly reeling from his sudden loss.
“I hope his family truly knows what he meant to some of us, and because he worked extremely hard, and I was so grateful for so much,” added Lynn.
"You'd message him at any time of the day, then he'd get his laptop out. He was always there for us. It was so rare to meet an engineer who is almost riding shotgun with you in the car."
Blais was a rarity in racing, in that this most pressurised and quite often politicised of sports never changed him outwardly.
It is usually a given that the higher up the ladder people go in motorsport, the more disjointed and diluted they get compared to their pure racer self. It is when quite often the ego, politics and ambition almost inevitably colour a person. Not Cyril Blais. He was an atypical find in that getting to the top as a team principal never changed him.
“He was so rare because he was willing to take the heat for the driver to help them out, whenever he could,” added Lynn.
“There was zero ego there. You never wanted to let him down because of that, as you knew he would do that for you without even thinking about it.”
### Piastri's concern over 'crowding' precedent + our verdict
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/oscar-piastri-concern-over-crowding-precedent-our-verdict/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T12:57:31.000Z
Oscar Piastri says he is concerned that a precedent has been set after Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix stewards declined to penalise Charles Leclerc for their contact.
On lap eight of 44, Piastri found himself on the outside of Leclerc on the run down to Les Combes before the Ferrari driver moved across under braking to cover off a potential overtake.
The late move left Piastri with no real place to go and led to contact and damage to his car, described by McLaren as being to the floor.
Leclerc was investigated for the incident, but ultimately escaped without a penalty while Piastri was left unhappy after deeming the pair "very lucky not to have a bigger crash".
In choosing not to penalise Leclerc, the stewards determined that while Piastri "had achieved some overlap with car #16", his front axle was not ahead of Leclerc's and reasoned that from their perspective "there was no realistic possibility of car #81 completing the overtake from that position".
They also felt that Leclerc had not crowded Piastri off the track and had followed the normal racing line "by moving slightly to the left to open up the corner" - with contact occurring "as a result of both cars' positions".
But Piastri contested the decision to take no action, saying: "I don't really know where I was supposed to go.
"I'm not saying it needed to be a penalty necessary, but at least a black and white flag or something like that.
"Because if we think that that's fine, it's one thing having touches like that, but even just the incentive of knowing that you can leave everyone the absolute bare minimum space and get away with it, that's not the nicest place to be."
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella echoed Piastri's sentiments and called to make sure that if a car is "defending the inside \[it\] does leave enough space" as it could cause a major incident.
Leclerc finished the race in second and said: "Luckily, it didn't have any consequences for either my race or his race \[Piastri's\], so that’s good."
But Stella later revealed that Piastri, who was passed late on by Lewis Hamilton and finished fifth, had lost "between two to three tenths" per lap due to the loss of downforce after the collision.
"The main way in which this manifested itself, this damage, was actually the fact that he needed to use the tyres more than the competitors to stay with them in the first part of the stint, and then he had very high degradation in the second part of the stint," said Stella.
"Apart from that, I think Oscar has actually learned quite a bit through the weekend… and I think today, without the damage, he would have been there."
## Our verdict
There was shared puzzlement between Edd Straw, Ben Anderson and Val Khorounzhiy on the post-race edition of The Race F1 Podcast at the decision not to award Leclerc a penalty.
Their main area of confusion was around the stewards' justification, which appeared to deem Piastri partly at fault for going for an overtaking opportunity that may not have existed.
"I don't necessarily get it and I didn't particularly understand the explanation," said Khorounzhiy. "Piastri's tyre is firmly on the white line, you can trace the straight nature of it.
“And for some reason the stewards have decided that, at that point, Leclerc was entitled to take up the racing line through the corner because, in their words, Piastri wasn't far enough alongside and he had no hope of completing the overtaking move.”
Anderson felt the stewards had "treated it like the straight is the outside of the corner" and in doing so "it seems like they've applied a rule that should apply further round to Les Combes, kind of where \[George\] Russell was with \[Lewis\] Hamilton".
"To me they do not apply the same," he added.
Straw felt it was "ridiculous" and said "motor racing doesn't work if you can do that", with he and Anderson in agreement that Leclerc's move constituted crowding - which the stewards' agreement specifically said he had not done.
"As a general rule, if you're on a straight and someone is doing something to you when you are driving straight, on a straight, that requires you to move out the way, they are in the wrong in every case, because otherwise, racing doesn’t work," said Straw.
"If you're heading into a bit of track that's narrowing and there's not space, you've got to think about it and do something. But I just don't see how racing works if you allow that."
He added that was "really concerning for me" and suspected the issue would be raised in future drivers' briefings.
That line of discussion was prompted by a question from Njenga in [The Race Members' Club](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com), on whether Leclerc has been allowed to get away with late movements under braking.
"I was interested by the aspect that Charles does this all the time because I hadn't really picked up on that," said Anderson. "But when it was being discussed live, both of you said, 'Oh yeah, he's got a bit of a tendency to do that'."
Straw felt Leclerc has "got it in him, but he gets away with it so I don't blame him".
"That's fine, isn't it?" he said. "There's always this thing of trying to move just to open up a little bit into the corner or squeeze people and if you don't clamp down on it, if you don't say, 'No, you can't do that', then that's a problem.
“It basically said that Piastri almost deserved to be hit because he was never going to complete the overtaking manoeuvre. Well, how do you know he was never going to? There was nothing wrong with him being there."
Khorounzhiy agreed. "There's just value in positioning your car into a corner \[in the way Piastri did\], so that if it's legal that it compromises the other driver's line: you do want to force them to go more inside and more tight into the corner, just in terms of the momentum that they're going to carry.
"Is that illegal now? Do you deserve to be hit then? Can you be elbowed out of the way? It's bad. It's so bad it makes me think I've missed something. It makes me think that I've missed some crucial, obvious smoking gun piece of evidence."
### Edd Straw's 2026 Belgian Grand Prix F1 driver rankings
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-belgian-grand-prix-driver-rankings-edd-straw/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T12:45:46.000Z
There was a high standard throughout the Formula 1 field at the Belgian Grand Prix - which meant any small shortcomings cost drivers dearly in Edd Straw's rankings.
Some drivers, of course, had far bigger issues - and ended up being marked down accordingly.
**Want to quiz Edd on his driver rankings?** [**Sign up to The Race Members' Club**](https://www.patreon.com/cw/TheRace/membership?ref=the-race.com) **to do exactly that - and ask your questions in reply to** [**this post**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/ask-edd-about-f1-164333120?pr=true&ref=the-race.com)**.**
**Champions-tier members can also try their hand at** [**putting their own driver rankings together**](https://www.patreon.com/TheRace/posts/champions-tell-164245834?ref=the-race.com) **for Edd to react to in a separate feature!**
---
How do the rankings work? The 22 drivers will be ranked in order of performance from best to worst on each grand prix weekend. This will be based on the full range of criteria, ranging from pace and racecraft to consistency and whether they made key mistakes. How close each driver got to delivering on the maximum performance potential of the car will be an essential consideration.
It’s important to note both that this reflects performance across the entire weekend, cognisant of the fact that qualifying is effectively ‘lap 0’ of the race and key to laying the foundations to the race, and that it is not a ranking of the all-round qualities of each driver. It’s simply about how they performed on a given weekend. Therefore, the ranking will fluctuate significantly from weekend to weekend.
And with each of the 11 cars fundamentally having different performance potential and ‘luck’ (ie factors outside of a driver’s control) contributing to the way the weekend plays out, this ranking will also differ significantly from the overall results.
**Started**: 2nd **Finished**: 3rd
**PROS**
\- Made the most of the tow Isack Hadjar provided in Q3 in service of him to put the Red Bull on the front row against the run of play.
\- Having very briefly led, then slipped to third, he got back ahead of Leclerc and only lost the position because of the VSC timing.
\- Got everything he could out of the Red Bull.
**CONS**
\- Uniquely, had the assistance of a team-mate with nothing to compete for in Q3, an opportunity that slightly simplified his weekend.
**Verdict**: Had put himself in position to finish second in what wasn't the second-best car.
**Started**: 1st **Finished**: 1st
**PROS**
\- Dominated team-mate George Russell all weekend.
\- Didn't get impatient when he lost the lead because of the VSC, pacing his reeling in of Leclerc well before making a clean pass.
**CONS**
\- Nothing more than a couple of track-limits violations in the race.
**Verdict**: Imperious, even when misfortune complicated his race.
**Started**: 19th **Finished**: 16th
**PROS**
\- Made a good recovery just in time for qualifying having lagged behind Albon throughout practice, chasing down a problem that cost him chunks of time for "downforce related" reasons.
\- Realistically, outqualifying team-mate Alex Albon and both Haas drivers was the ceiling of what was achievable in the Williams.
\- Grid penalty and slow pitstop for a front wing change compromised his race result, but his pace was strong.
**CONS**
\- Clipping the back of Ocon at La Source perhaps could have been avoided.
**Verdict**: Another strong weekend, with only very minor negatives.
**Started**: 8th **Finished**: 8th
**PROS**
\- Even allowing for Nico Hulkenberg's problems, Bortoleto was the faster Audi driver on underlying single-lap pace.
\- Did a great job to keep Arvid Lindblad at arm's length in the second stint once he'd jumped from 11th to eighth.
**CONS**
\- Needed the fortune of the VSC timing, having run longer than the Racing Bulls, to jump to the front of the midfield.
\- Initially held 10th but did lose a position to Gasly during the first stint.
**Verdict**: A strong weekend, but needed fortune on his side to get the result he did.
**Started**: 13th **Finished**: 7th
**PROS**
\- Seemed more on top of the McLaren than Oscar Piastri from the start of the weekend.
\- Showed strong pace both in qualifying and the race.
\- Without the 10-place grid penalty that he wasn't responsible for, he would likely have been on the podium.
**CONS**
\- Small error on his final Q3 lap meant his final run was aborted.
**Verdict**: Another strong weekend, with the Q3 error the only significant negative.
**Started**: 11th **Finished**: 10th
**PROS**
\- Made a strong start to the weekend, initially having the edge on pace over Pierre Gasly even if that didn't carry through to qualifying.
\- Drove a strong race, jumping Gasly and Liam Lawson in one opportunistic move on the Kemmel Straight.
\- Winning the four-car scrap for the final point required a strong race drive.
**CONS**
\- Lapped marginally slower than Gasly in qualifying, but only by 0.061s and put the second Alpine where it should be.
**Verdict**: Bounced back to something like his best after a couple of more difficult weekends.
**Started**: 21st **Finished**: 6th
**PROS**
\- Back-of-the-grid penalty meant that reaching Q3 then towing Verstappen effectively constituted a successful qualifying session.
\- Felt he was the most at one with the Red Bull as he had been all season, and had decent underlying pace.
\- Produced a strong first lap to climb to 15th before the safety car meant he had to pit.
**CONS**
\- Climb to sixth was not quite as dramatic as the 15 places gained suggested.
**Verdict**: Podium was potentially on the cards without the grid penalty that shaped his weekend.
**Started**: 7th **Finished**: 9th
**PROS**
\- Had one of his strongest weekends pace-wise, likening it to his comfort levels to Montreal and Barcelona, where he also excelled on pace.
\- Would have won the 'Class B' race after qualifying at the front of the midfield pack but for the VSC timing, which allowed Bortoleto to jump him.
**CONS**
\- By his own reckoning, left maybe a tenth on the table in Q3 thanks to being too conservative on the brakes into Bus Stop, and he thought a lap in the 1m44s might have been possible.
\- In terms of the comparison with Lawson, part, but not all, of that was down to having the cooling upgrade package that Racing Bulls will have on both cars in Hungary.
\- Couldn't find the consistent pace to close the gap to Bortoleto once he'd lost track position.
**Verdict**: Among his best work of the season so far.
**Started**: 4th **Finished**: 2nd
**PROS**
\- Had the edge on Lewis Hamilton in qualifying by a minuscule margin, despite losing a tenth or two to a yellow flag erroneously shown at the pit entry covering the formation of parc ferme.
\- Did everything he could to stay clear of Antonelli, but realistically the Ferrari didn't have the pace to do so.
**CONS**
\- Moving over on Piastri and hitting the McLaren was needless and he was fortunate to escape penalty.
\- VSC timing helped him in his battle for second with Verstappen.
**Verdict**: Strong performance, but Piastri clash he caused could easily have hurt him.
**Started**: 14th **Finished**: 14th
**PROS**
\- Outpaced Ocon throughout the weekend.
\- Was at or close to the maximum of the car throughout, beating everyone he realistically could have done in the race despite the first-lap puncture.
**CONS**
\- It would only have taken finding a few thousandths to have outqualified Sainz, and as he knocked a switch and compromised deployment he really should have been a place higher on the grid.
\- While the clash between the Haas drivers was unfortunate, Bearman was perhaps the one who could have done more to avoid it.
**Verdict**: A largely strong weekend, with only a few rough edges.
**Started**: 9th **Finished**: 12th
**PROS**
\- The comparison with Lindblad is better than it looks, as Lawson didn't have the cooling package upgrade - although he did have the new front brake ducts and rear wing.
\- VSC timing and Lindblad's aggressive driving when he emerged from the pits didn't help his race.
**CONS**
\- The gap to Lindblad didn't appear to be entirely explained by the difference in spec, especially as Lawson struggled particularly in the second stint of the race - with the team not suggesting he had any damage to explain it.
\- Despite deployment struggles in the race, it could have been possible to take the final point, had he not slipped to third in the group of four cars battling for it.
**Verdict**: Spec offset made life harder for him than Lindblad, but he didn't appear to extract absolutely everything.
**Started**: 22nd **Finished**: 19th
**PROS**
\- Prevailed in the intra-team battle with Lance Stroll, outqualifying him by 0.175s then running ahead for the vast majority of the race.
\- Given how difficult it has been to shine in an inconsistent and difficult Aston Martin that's well off the rest, will at least be relieved that this should have been the last weekend with struggles at their worst.
**CONS**
\- Did briefly fall behind Stroll when he was overtaken by his team-mate and Bearman on the Kemmel Straight on the lap-five restart, then losing another position on that lap to Hadjar.
**Verdict**: Troubled Aston Martin continues to make it impossible to fairly judge his performance, beyond it being better than Stroll's.
**Started**: 17th **Finished**: 18th
**PROS**
\- Had one of his more "straightforward" weekends for Cadillac, meaning he made good progress through practice and qualifying.
\- Lapped 0.148s faster than team-mate Sergio Perez in qualifying.
\- Drove a clean race, but with the Cadillac in no-man's land between Williams and Aston Martin there wasn't a huge amount to race for.
**CONS**
\- Perez's deployment problems in qualifying and early demise means there wasn't a clean pace comparison
**Verdict**: Bottas's most straightforward weekend, and one in which he showed he has good pace.
**Started**: 6th **Finished**: 5th
**PROS**
\- The track time lost during Friday thanks to the FP1 hydraulic problem, and resulting late start for FP2, are a small mitigating factor when comparing him to Norris.
\- Battled on well in the race after suffering damage when he was hit by Leclerc, an incident he was in no way at fault for.
\- Unexpected power unit behaviour contributed to his deficit in qualifying to Norris.
**CONS**
\- Struggled for confidence with the rear end, which made him more inconsistent and, overall, slower than Norris on single-lap pace.
\- Never managed to get as on top of the car as Norris did.
**Verdict**: A middling weekend by F1 driver standards.
**Started**: 12th **Finished**: 13th
**PROS**
\- Audi felt his race pace was similar to Bortoleto's, it was purely the race situation of spending much of the grand prix in battle that added up to the 29-second deficit at the finish.
\- Gearbox problems in qualifying meant he didn't have the chance to match Bortoleto and make Q3.
**CONS**
\- Being hyper-critical, you could argue there was a way to get the final point given he was in the four-car scrap. But given Audi's straightline speed weakness and the fact that he didn't get as much of a gain from the VSC pitstop thanks to a slower stop in the double stack, he never had track position.
\- Even factoring in the mitigations, he didn't appear to be quite as quick as Bortoleto on single-lap pace.
**Verdict**: Marginally the second-best Audi driver.
**Started**: 10th **Finished**: 11th
**PROS**
\- Outqualified Colapinto by 0.061s.
\- Drove a good first stint to climb into the points after passing Bortoleto.
**CONS**
\- FP2 crash at the exit of Fagnes did substantial damage and cost laps, even though he recovered well.
\- Second stint turned a points shot into just missing out, which wasn't a disaster given the car pace - but 10th was possible.
**Verdict**: Similar on pace to Colapinto, but Friday crash and losing out in the race cost him.
**Started**: 15th **Finished**: 15th
**PROS**
\- Beat team-mate Sainz in the race, although that was more down to circumstances with his team-mate's grid penalty and slow pitstop.
\- The Williams was the ninth-fastest car, so there wasn't a huge amount left on the table and he did what he could to keep the quicker Bearman behind for a spell.
**CONS**
\- Qualified 0.040s off Sainz having looked quicker throughout practice thanks to going the wrong way on set-up, saying "I regret that but that was on me".
\- His underlying pace, once into the business end of the weekend, was slightly off Sainz's.
**Verdict**: Again, he was the second-best of the Williams drivers.
**Started**: 20th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Had a solid enough race, and spent a few laps ahead of Alonso after passing him on the Kemmel Straight after the early restart.
\- Wasn't to blame for the gearbox problem that put him out.
**CONS**
\- Lapped 0.175s slower than Alonso in qualifying.
\- Had a similar race pace disadvantage to Alonso to his qualifying deficit.
**Verdict**: Lost the only battle he had to fight, which was with his team-mate.
**Started**: 5th **Finished**: 4th
**PROS**
\- Prior to his FP3 crash, his pace suggested that he might be able to beat Leclerc.
\- Dealt well in the race with the damage he was carrying, and the Ferrari error that meant he didn't get the increased front wing flap he had requested to rebalance the car.
**CONS**
\- FP3 crash at Fagnes meant the car didn't feel the same in qualifying, which Hamilton put down to "something \[that\] wasn't the same on the rear suspension".
\- While the five-second penalty he earned for the Turn 5 collision with Russell was extremely harsh, ultimately he has a stake in what should have been considered a racing incident.
**Verdict**: Saturday crash had a knock-on effect to qualifying and the race.
**Started**: 18th **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- The mitigation of a drag problem meant the comparison with Bottas wasn't a fair one.
\- Wasn't in any way responsible for his elimination from the race.
**CONS**
\- Although there was little chance to compare in the race given he retired with an inboard suspension problem, Perez was the second-fastest Cadillac driver - albeit with the caveat of the drag problem.
**Verdict**: Ranking is low more through lack of opportunity than any shortcomings on his part.
**Started**: 16th **Finished**: 17th
**PROS**
\- Had deployment problems that cost straightline speed, contributing to the unrepresentative 0.688s deficit to his team-mate.
\- Considering the car problems he complained of, he produced relatively consistent performance even if he didn't appear to get the most out of what performance that was there.
**CONS**
\- While there were deployment problems in qualifying, the gap to Bearman was, according to team principal Ayao Komatsu, " bigger than it should’ve been, even without that".
\- Was in the wars on the first lap - getting tapped at La Source by Sainz and then clashing with Bearman later in the lap, but that was more circumstantial than through misadventure.
**Verdict**: Felt stuck in the spiral of car problems that have characterised his season.
**Started**: 3rd **Finished**: DNF
**PROS**
\- Russell's underlying qualifying pace deficit to Antonelli wasn't the half-second that the Q3 gap suggested owing to it being partly (but not entirely, given the team attributed it 50/50 to him and the power unit) down to the deployment troubles.
\- There's a mitigating factor for his first-lap clash, given the Mercedes deployment problem that impacted all of its cars to varying degrees - with the team saying it was "more extreme" for Russell than Antonelli.
**CONS**
\- Simply wasn't at Antonelli's level.
\- First lap move on Hamilton was perfectly legitimate, but came with a level of risk that ultimately bit him.
**Verdict**: Although there were mitigating factors, Russell couldn't get close to Antonelli.
### Death of Citroen Formula E team principal Cyril Blais announced
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-e/citroen-formula-e-team-principal-cyril-blais-dies/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T08:04:55.000Z
The team principal for the Citroen Formula E team, Cyril Blais, died suddenly last week.
His passing was confirmed by Formula E Operations to all teams on Sunday morning, with the all-electric world championship's promoter then stating publicly on Monday: "Monaco Sports Group (MSG), operator of the Citroen Racing Formula E Team, Citroen, Stellantis Motorsport, the FIA, and the entire Formula E community are deeply saddened to confirm the passing of Team Principal Cyril Blais."
Blais, the head of the Monaco Sports Group company that operationally ran the Maserati and Citroen teams over the last three seasons, was a popular and well-respected member of the Formula E paddock. He had worked in it for almost a decade, having previously worked at Mahindra between 2019 and 2021 before joining the MSG organisation as an engineer.
Prior to his work in Formula E, Blais was a well-known face in the junior categories, having worked for Manor Motorsport and Arden in Formula 3 and Formula 2 after gaining a masters degree in vehicle dynamics at Kingston University.
It was in F2 that Blais engineered his future Formula E driver, Maximilian Guenther, during his one F2 campaign with Arden.
Blais was made team principal of the Maserati MSG operation in the autumn of 2023, replacing the outgoing James Rossiter after a difficult first Gen3 season.
Though Guenther won a race, in Jakarta, three cars were also destroyed that campaign in Cape Town, Diriyah and Rome, in what was the start of Maserati MSG's difficulties and uncertainties in ownership and management.
With Blais at the helm, Guenther added another win with victory in Formula E's first ever race in Tokyo - one that was repeated last May in remarkable circumstances, when the Maserati MSG team gambled on pitting Stoffel Vandoorne early for his PitBoost stop and then capitalised on a red flag to pull off an unlikely strategic victory.
Blais led the MSG team through the Maserati to Citroen change this season and was believed to be overseeing the preparations for the majority of the operational side of the business ultimately moving from its existing Monaco base to the Stellantis facility in Satory, France.
Formula E's Jeff Dodds was among those to pay tribute.
"We are heartbroken by the loss of our colleague and friend, Cyril, and our heartfelt thoughts and condolences are with his family, loved ones and all those who knew him," said Dodds.
"Cyril's passing is a devastating loss for his family, for MSG, Citroën Racing, and for our entire Formula E community.
"We have lost an extraordinary colleague, and someone many of us were proud to call a friend.
"The entire Formula E paddock is supporting one another through this incredibly difficult period.
"To honour his immense contribution to the sport, the Citroën Racing Formula E Team and the wider Formula E community will pay tribute to Cyril’s memory and incredible legacy during this weekend’s Tokyo E-Prix."
## A quietly impressive leader
The wryest of smiles and a calm, quiet intent and focus were among the memorable traits of one of Formula E's most universally liked and respected figures.
You could tell that Cyril Blais was a talented engineer simply by his manner. That calm, authoritative and unflappable demeanour was never forced, practised or honed.
Blais was a rock of a man, one who held steady in some very challenging scenarios over the last few years in his time at the helm of the MSG operation.
As an engineer, Blais was often praised to the hilt by his drivers, who not only appreciated his forthright approach, but also shared his inherent passion for motorsport.
A racer and genuine enthusiast of the sport, Blais loved nothing more than just the pure competition within all aspects of his chosen vocation, which had deservedly taken him to one of the most senior positions in Formula E.
As a team principal, Blais had a huge baptism of fire at Maserati MSG, which had massive complexities within its ownership and even just pure survival. But Blais was exactly what was needed at that stage of the team's history, and by September 2025 it had matured into Citroen Racing. He remained in charge, leading the team to a wonderful victory with Nick Cassidy at Mexico City in January of this year.
While Blais tasted great success in motorsport, it was his overall easy-going manner that shone through much more.
This writer had a particularly challenging encounter with Blais at the Jeddah E-Prix in February 2025, regarding the aborted takeover of the Maserati MSG team. Some heated words were exchanged that day. But within an hour we'd shaken hands on the grid and had accepted each other's apologies.
That was all part of the nature of Cyril Blais. You always got the impression that it was the sport rather than the inevitable politics and business of the paddock that he was really there for.
Blais will be very much missed in the paddocks and pitlanes of the world. That's because it was precisely in these places he so thrived, and where he gained maximum respect from those he interacted with.
### Why Ferrari escaped with fine for Hamilton pitstop error
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-ferrari-escaped-with-fine-for-hamilton-pitstop-error/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T18:28:24.000Z
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari have escaped the 2026 Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix with a fine rather than a time penalty after being investigated for an unsafe release.
Ferrari elected to double-stack Hamilton and Charles Leclerc under the second virtual safety car in Sunday’s race, and while Leclerc got away with no issue, Hamilton had a problem on his release.
Hamilton had been asking for a tweak to his front wing to complement his hard compounds, but Ferrari mechanics had to wait five seconds for the pitstop after Hamilton was penalised for his [first lap collision with George Russell](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-antonelli-win-russell-big-title-blow-f1-belgian-gp/).
After a lack of communication meant no adjustment was made, a mechanic tried to make a late effort to change the balance of the front wing but was instead struck by Hamilton’s front right tyre as he left the box.
The mechanic escaped injury, but the stewards triggered a post-race investigation over an unsafe release.
Both Hamilton and Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur were strong in the belief that if there was any sanction applied, it should not have impacted his race result as he was focused on the green light above his pitbox.
“I didn't do it. I went when the light was green,” Hamilton said. “I think \[an\] unsafe release is usually unsafe when it's to the other cars, and that's not necessarily \[towards\] the team.”
Vasseur added: “The confusion came from the fact that we had a double pitstop, and the front wing adjustment just for the second, and we didn't want to speak during the five seconds.
“If we start to speak, the mechanics could have jumped on the car. It's not the mistake of Lewis.”
The stewards factored in the confusion over the front wing tweak as they issued a fine over a sporting penalty, stating the “unusual combination of circumstances” had played a part in the incident and had “brought about a sporting disadvantage for Car 44 which was delayed in its pitstop.”
Hamilton was also considered “not at fault” by the panel, while it justified giving Ferrari a part-suspended fine “on condition that the team conduct a review of their procedures and submit a report to the FIA outlining remedial steps to be taken” due to putting one of its mechanics at risk.
### Winners and losers from the 2026 Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-and-losers-from-the-2026-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T15:03:09.000Z
Kimi Antonelli's 2026 Belgian Formula 1 Grand Prix victory put him almost 50 points clear in the drivers' standings as [Lewis Hamilton and George Russell tangled at the start](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-antonelli-win-russell-big-title-blow-f1-belgian-gp/).
But all of that attention on the many events unfolding at the front means there's plenty of stories which went under the radar at Spa.
Here's our list of winners and losers from the race.
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (1st)
There was such a great sense of inevitability about Antonelli’s Belgian GP win that meant even a virtual safety car assist for Ferrari, which vaulted Leclerc into the lead, never felt like it was going to stop him.
He now has a 45-point championship lead, but more than that, Antonelli just looks so comfortable right now. The laptime looks to be coming to him so much easier than his team-mate George Russell, and if that doesn’t change, it’s hard to see how he isn’t the massively overwhelming title favourite now. **\- Josh Suttill**
## Loser: George Russell (DNF)
50% power unit problem, 50% driver. That was team boss Toto Wolff’s view of where Russell’s sizeable deficit to Antonelli was at Spa.
Both are an issue for Russell who yet again was comprehensively a step behind Antonelli, even before he was the unfortunate victim of his opening lap clash with Lewis Hamilton.
A clash that simply meant Russell lost 25 points to Antonelli rather than the 7-13 he’d have probably lost if he survived lap one. **\- JS**
## Winner - Charles Leclerc (2nd)
A more-than-solid effort from Leclerc to get onto the podium after a race Ferrari anticipated would be a difficult one.
Getting the start and managing to pass Max Verstappen into second place on the opening lap was crucial to the final outcome for Leclerc and once he managed to achieve that, it seemed third was realistic. Perhaps more crucially, however, was escaping without a penalty after his “unfortunate” contact with Oscar Piastri was deemed a racing incident.
It was ultimately another fantastic bit of teamwork that helped seal second place after Ferrari’s call to pit under the second VSC. Although it was almost impossible for Leclerc to stay ahead of Antonelli given Ferrari’s straight line speed deficiency and the general pace of the Mercedes driver, Leclerc still kept him honest in the final few laps of the race and could have capitalised should there have been a mistake or reliability issue.
Leclerc absolutely achieved the maximum result available, and Sunday proved he was without a doubt the stronger of the two Ferrari drivers across the whole weekend. **\- Eden Hannigan**
## Loser - Lewis Hamilton (4th)
Hamilton enjoyed a net gain of one position but this was a poorly-executed race from Ferrari.
A harsh - but not unprecedented - five-second time penalty for the lap one incident with George Russell set Hamilton back.
More egregious was the pitstop for hard tyres after that penalty was served, in which a Ferrari team member escaped serious injury when Hamilton was given the signal to go - and the team forgot to tweak his front wing angle.
Clumsy, not catastrophic, but this could have been a podium for the seven-time champion. **\- Samarth Kanal**
## Winner - Isack Hadjar (6th)
Hadjar finished sixth and only 12 seconds off Red Bull team-mate Verstappen despite starting at the back of the grid with engine penalties.
The Frenchman started on hards but pitted twice during the early safety car, once to complete a lap on mediums, and again to continue on hards. By lap 17 he was seventh, which soon became sixth as Lando Norris endured a slow pitstop - and ultimately couldn’t catch up to the Red Bull.
A great return for Hadjar - whose race pace was on par with that of the McLarens - and Red Bull, who gained seven points on McLaren in the chase for third in the constructors’. **\- SK**
## Loser: Liam Lawson (12th)
Liam Lawson’s race was going pretty well. Despite being without the upgrade that allowed Arvid Lindblad to qualify eighth versus Lawson’s 11th, he got ahead of Lindblad in the early stages with an excellent start.
But not long after that it all went downhill as he said “we were just too slow” and they were “fighting a losing battle”.
Lawson was vaulted by Franco Colapinto at Les Combes while Lawson himself was fighting Pierre Gasly for the last points position in 10th. In recent weeks the Racing Bulls has been the class of the midfield, so being beaten by both Alpines will be a tough pill to swallow.
It all added up to Lawson being desperate to leave Spa and start afresh next week in Hungary, when he’ll get the upgrade Lindblad used to great effect at Spa. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Winner - Gabriel Bortoleto (8th)
Two points-scores in a row for Audi, and this one puts it one point behind Williams.
Having started eighth, Bortoleto finished just ahead of Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad to keep the four points - having delivered all 10 of Audi’s points this season so far.
The Brazilian was appropriately (and quite lengthily) praised for doing a “fantastic job” by race engineer Jose Manuel Lopez Garcia on the radio after the race and it is no surprise that his stock is sky high right now. **\- SK**
## Winner: Franco Colapinto (10th)
Franco Colapinto has been struggling in recent races compared to Pierre Gasly in qualifying, but in today’s race there was no sign of any deficit as he pulled off one of the moves of the event to round Gasly and Liam Lawson at the same time into Les Combes.
It may well have mostly been down to battery levels depending on what Gasly and Lawson had - but you can’t question the commitment it took to execute the move.
It meant at least one of the Alpines grabbed points - but while this is ultimately a reason to celebrate, two eighth-place finishes in a row for Audi and a very tidy-looking upgrade on the Racing Bulls means Alpine needs more pace, and fast.
However, Colapinto rightly pointed out he had finished ahead of one Audi and one Racing Bulls, which he said at the moment was “more than what we can do”, emphasising the positive nature of the result. **\- JB**
## Loser - Esteban Ocon (17th)
In many ways Ocon deserves plenty of credit for how he managed to keep the car going despite two bits of contact on the first lap that led to him skating across the gravel. However, given the second contact hampered both his and team-mate Ollie Bearman’s races, he lost a few brownie points on that one.
“Wrong place, wrong time” was how Ocon described the incident, suggesting that Bearman had been struggling with a deployment issue ahead that caused both he and Nico Hulkenberg to take avoiding action. However, Ocon also refused to say it hindered any potential progress he could’ve made given Haas’s complete lack of straight-line speed across the weekend.
“It was always going to be difficult” to climb higher than his actual 17th place finish, Ocon conceded, given Haas’ issues with rear downforce. However, fairly or unfairly, he also made that almost impossible after his own lap one problems. **\- EH**
### Mercedes reveals power unit problem across all cars
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/every-mercedes-powered-car-had-issue-in-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T16:53:35.000Z
George Russell was not alone in suffering a major deployment problem out of the opening corner of the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix as it emerged that every Mercedes engine suffered from the issue.
While Russell paid the biggest price, due to a lack of deployment up the Kemmel Straight that [triggered his tangle with Lewis Hamilton at Les Combes](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-antonelli-win-russell-big-title-blow-f1-belgian-gp/), his team explained how every Mercedes-engined car suffered at Spa-Francorchamps.
“I came out of Turn 1 \[and\] for whatever reason, I was 30-40% down on my battery and I just got totally swamped up by three cars,” said Russell.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff added: “All Mercedes engines had a lack of energy out of Turn 1, so it wasn't only George.
“It affected him more than Kimi \[Antonelli\], but also Kimi had that issue to a certain degree. That meant that he \[Russell\] didn't come out at the end of the straight in P3, but P5\. So he lost his two positions, and then obviously \[had\] the accident with Lewis.
“It's unfortunate, losing points for him, losing points in the constructors’ championship, and it's like every weekend we have one car that doesn't finish."
Race-winner Antonelli called it "crazy" as he recalled the first lap in which Max Verstappen passed him at Eau Rouge before the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc caught up.
"It was crazy. To be fair, I was so confused about what was happening because Max came flying past me before Eau Rouge, and then I passed him back.
"But then I saw Charles almost come alongside me, and I was like: “What the heck is happening?” I had no clue."
Antonelli hung onto the lead despite the Mercedes deployment issues and ended up winning the race by two seconds over Leclerc.
He continued: "I was just trying to hold the position on track, and I was looking in my mirror the whole time because I just saw so many cars coming. But it was a crazy start. Luckily, we got away cleanly."
Verstappen, meanwhile, quipped that he had "too much deployment from Turn 1 to Turn 2" as he looked back on the start and that Eau Rouge pass.
After overtaking Antonelli through Eau Rouge and Radillon, Verstappen said he was expecting a "difficult run" to Les Combes.
"I expected Kimi to come by, and then I looked in my mirror and just saw a red rocket coming. I was like, 'Oh, I’ll just hold my line because if I move here, we’re going to have an airplane shunt.'
"So, it was pretty incredible, the differences."
### Mercedes deployment issues uncovered
Russell’s early exit from the Belgian GP came after a weekend where he has [struggled with energy management](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mystery-mercedes-f1-problem-infuriating-george-russell/) compared to team-mate Kimi Antonelli - losing several tenths of a second per lap in practice and qualifying down the straights.
While there was no immediate answer as to the cause of his problem ahead of race day, Wolff has now revealed that the issue appeared to have been triggered by a combination of a power unit setting and some driving inputs from Russell himself.
“There was definitely something on the engine that we have identified that meant he only had less energy to deploy into Turn 18,” explained Wolff.
“It's good that we spotted it here, because in Budapest, which is not energy-starved, it would have been more difficult to identify.
“It still doesn't make it better for him, and that probably accounted for half the gap, or a little bit more, that he had to Kimi.”
Wolff said that the issue that Russell encountered was "a completely new thing" and resulted in his deployment being greater at the start of the lap than the end.
“The impact was that he had more energy available at the beginning of the lap, and then less energy at the end of the lap,” he said.
“In terms of optimisation, it was a deficit. And we believe that the deficit was about two, two and a half tenths, in qualifying modes, much less on the long runs.”
### Our verdict on Antonelli's win and Russell's big title blow
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/our-verdict-antonelli-win-russell-big-title-blow-f1-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T15:45:10.000Z
A Belgian Grand Prix weekend that extends Kimi Antonelli's lead from 25 to 45 points, and one where George Russell's season arguably hit a new low.
Those Mercedes Formula 1 team-mates are perfectly opposite right now: one looks to have everything working in perfect, polished harmony; the other can't work out where his issues are, if it's him or the car, if he should be doing better, or he's being robbed.
With so much to talk about between the Mercedes drivers, they occupy most of our attention in our post-race Spa verdict.
## Some soul-crushing battles
**Josh Suttill**
Full credit to Kimi Antonelli. Another superb victory that's felt inevitable ever since Friday practice. It's absolutely his championship to lose.
But my biggest takeaway was what the 2026 regulations have done to races at Spa.
We know qualifying was...well, just look at the replies under the pole lap onboard that F1's own account shared on various social media channels.
But I had higher hopes for the race. Unfortunately, it was deeply underwhelming.
Lap one, we had the usual exciting run-up to the Kemmel Straight, but it almost felt ridiculously random with multiple drivers running out of energy before the braking zone.
As we've seen before in 2026, the pass for the lead was a simple drive-by on the straight. Yes, there were plenty of DRS drive-bys before this year, particularly at Spa, but it feels even more limp now.
Plus, the passes into Eau Rouge/Raidillon - previously a sign of immense bravery; think Mark Webber on Fernando Alonso in 2011 - are now just an easy overtake on an energy-starved car.
And we're still sorely missing proper battery graphics. So many of these battles would be far more interesting if we actually knew how much battery each driver had.
Right now, at tracks like Spa, fans are being left with an underwhelming racing product without the proper information they need to understand what's underpinning it.
## There's a relentless consistency to Antonelli
**Jon Noble**
F1 may have become (for better or worse) a battery world championship, but that should take nothing away from the job Antonelli is doing right now.
As his rivals - and especially team-mate Russell - often struggle to understand exactly what they are missing to get themselves fully on top of energy-management quirks, Antonelli is getting on with it in his own quiet way.
After a run where mechanical problems in Spain and Britain cost him a chunk of points, his stellar Spa weekend was the perfect example of how well he is executing what he has underneath him.
Yes, the 2026 cars may not be as fun to drive as their predecessors, and some counterintuitive approaches are needed to get around deployment strangeness and tricky on-board algorithms, but Antonelli's job is not to be thrilled by the car nor rate his job on how good the current ruleset is.
His role is to go out there and make whatever he is given go as fast as it possibly can.
The way Antonelli is delivering and adapting on the hoof is impressive, and being so in control of an overly complicated and baffling ruleset points to a second half of the season that should be just as strong as the first.
The title is not won yet; especially as those reliability niggles cannot be guaranteed to have been sorted.
But there seems to be such a relentless consistency to Antonelli's ability to maximise pace now that, if his car can hold itself together, it is going to be very hard for anyone else to stop him ending the year as champion.
## Picture-in-picture doesn't work
**Samarth Kanal**
Antonelli cruised to that Belgian GP win after an unfortunate lap-one incident that took out Russell, albeit this was a racing incident that shouldn't have resulted in a penalty for Lewis Hamilton.
There were some fun-looking overtakes through Eau Rouge and Raidillon and a couple of VSCs, but nothing to vindicate this set of F1 regulations.
Most egregious of all was the race-long Alpine vs Racing Bulls battle being relegated to that picture-in-picture view, which is way too small to be useful.
F1 needs to let that tiny screen in the leaderboard go - no matter how much time it might have taken to design - and split the screen into two, or just regain the courage to show replays during the race.
## Feel sorry for Russell
**Jack Benyon**
I know Russell isn't the most popular driver in the world, and I also know as a driver, it's up to him to maximise his chances to beat his team-mate.
But, ultimately, I can't help but feel sorry for him. A driver who has been patient, paid his dues, waited for this moment and then has been presented with a formula that is not all about driver talent, and he's being beaten by drivers who, partly, can game the formula better. (Unless he does have an undiagnosed issue with his car, which is another mitigating factor and even Mercedes can't work out the answer to.)
Don't get me wrong, if the FIA decides the drivers will swap to tractors for the next race, then it's up to the teams and drivers to extract the maximum out of them.
But, are you really telling me that Antonelli is driving better than Russell this year in a traditional way we would all recognise pre-2026? I don't think anyone can know that, because all of the drivers are driving with the computer game assists turned on and ChatGPT sat in the passenger seat.
I think drivers should have to adapt, but they should have to do so with elements of driving, not elements of pointless technology.
And by the way, none of this is a slight on Antonelli. But what if Antonelli is driving as good as or better than Russell? Again, we don't know, and we're being robbed of that knowledge because of these awful rules which are especially exposed at tracks like Spa.
## This wasn't really a fight
**Eden Hannigan**
I’m almost at the point where I feel like it's a foregone conclusion that Antonelli will turn up and be the fastest driver on track every single weekend.
Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean he will run out victorious - as we saw in Silverstone - but it's a pretty good indicator of just how in control he looks.
Let's make one thing clear: there was never going to be a fight for the victory here. Even when Leclerc was leading by two and a half seconds thanks to good Ferrari strategy, it felt obvious that the Mercedes would swoop in and power past one way or another.
Antonelli did just that, in an underwhelming race-winning manoeuvre that highlighted exactly why the drivers have been less-than-enthused with driving on this track with these regulations.
I just feel disappointed and slightly naive in thinking that Spa might have been different from the rest. Other than a messy first lap where George Russell had his title hopes dealt another blow (on a weekend that left him even more confused by his struggles), I didn't find myself getting too animated about anything else.
It's a shame. The only thing that makes it stand out from the other races this season is just how beloved Spa has been, but these rules have done this circuit no favours at all.
### Antonelli wins as Hamilton and Russell collide at Spa
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/antonelli-wins-as-hamilton-crash-takes-russell-out-at-spa-f1-belgian-grand-prix/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T16:49:02.000Z
Kimi Antonelli resisted a spirited challenge from Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to win the Belgian Grand Prix, almost doubling his Formula 1 championship lead in the process as Mercedes team-mate George Russell retired after a lap-one clash with Lewis Hamilton.
Despite briefly losing the lead to fellow front-row starter Max Verstappen at the start and spending seven laps chasing down Leclerc, who was assisted by stopping under a virtual safety car, Antonelli always looked like the favourite and ended up winning by 1.9 seconds.
He had reclaimed the lead from Verstappen by the time the field reached Les Combes on the opening lap, where Russell's race came to an abrupt end.
Russell was, in his own words, "swallowed up" by the cars around him on the run along the Kemmel Straight where he claimed he was ["slower than an F2 car"](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/russell-going-slower-than-f2-car-before-hamilton-incident/), and was hit by Hamilton mid-corner - which sent him off into the gravel and brought out the safety car.
Replays showed Hamilton having a snap of oversteer mid-corner and running into the side of the Mercedes, and though he was quick to report to Ferrari that he was "right behind another car so I had no front end" and even Russell felt it was a "racing incident", the stewards ultimately gave Hamilton a five-second penalty.
Antonelli largely controlled the opening stint when racing did resume, albeit with Verstappen giving chase gamely once the Red Bull driver had passed Leclerc into Les Combes - the Ferrari having slingshotted ahead at the same corner on the opening lap.
Verstappen was the first of the frontrunners to pit on lap 17 of 44, swapping from mediums to hards, with Mercedes bringing Antonelli in a lap later to cover off any threat of the undercut - having just missed the window to pit under a brief virtual safety car.
But a second virtual safety car period did change the complexion of the race, as it stayed in play for long enough to allow both Leclerc and Hamilton to pit. Leclerc duly jumped ahead of Antonelli at this point, and took the lead once he'd cleared the long-running McLaren of Lando Norris on lap 23.
It took Antonelli another three laps to pass the McLaren but once he'd found a way through he began to chip away at Leclerc's advantage, and moved for the lead on lap 34 with a big straightline speed advantage on the run to Les Combes.
Leclerc stayed with Antonelli for three laps after that, but started lap 39 more than a second behind the Mercedes and despite being encouraged to adjust his engine braking setting and that the race was "not over", he ultimately never got back within a second.
Victory was Antonelli's sixth of the season but his first since the Monaco GP at the start of May, and provisionally extended his lead to 45 points over Hamilton.
Verstappen was never a factor in the closing stages but still brought his Red Bull home in third, comfortably ahead of Hamilton - who did in the closing stages pass Oscar Piastri but who ended the race with the threat of another investigation hanging over him.
That was for an unsafe release, Hamilton having clipped a mechanic on his way out of the Ferrari pitbox. Hamilton claimed he was given a green light to leave the pitbox, and had to do the following stint without the wing change which should have been done in that stop.
Behind Piastri, who'd been squeezed by Leclerc at Les Combes in the first stint and picked up some damage, Norris's offset strategy yielded seventh.
He set the fastest lap on the final tour, but ran out of time to overtake Isack Hadjar, who moved up from 21st on the grid to finish sixth.
Hadjar started on hard tyres, with Red Bull using the early safety car to cycle him onto mediums and then back to hards and then taking advantage of the virtual safety car period to make a third stop, where he again took hard tyres.
Having scored just two points in its first eight races as a manufacturer, Audi secured a second eighth-place finish in a row as Gabriel Bortoleto was another driver to take advantage of the virtual safety car for a cheap pitstop.
That meant Racing Bulls - which had been the class of the midfield through the weekend - was restricted to ninth place only through Arvid Lindblad, who finished 1.2s behind Bortoleto.
Liam Lawson had run in the points with Lindblad and they even had a dicey run-in as his rookie team-mate exited the pits, but he ended up embroiled in a scrap with the Alpines and Audi's Nico Hulkenberg and ended up 12th.
The final point ultimately went to Franco Colapinto, who took advantage of Lawson's attempt to overtake Pierre Gasly on the Kemmel Straight to pass both the Racing Bulls driver and his Alpine team-mate for 10th.
### Why Hamilton was penalised for Belgian GP clash + why Leclerc wasn't
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-lewis-hamilton-was-penalised-for-belgian-gp-clash-why-charles-leclerc-wasnt/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T11:43:45.000Z
The Belgian Grand Prix Formula 1 stewards have explained why Lewis Hamilton was penalised for his incident with George Russell - and why team-mate Charles Leclerc avoided sanction for clashing with Oscar Piastri.
Hamilton had to serve a five-second penalty during a pitstop under a virtual safety car after opening-lap contact with Russell through Les Combes - which put Russell out of the race.
But speaking after his retirement from the event, Russell said that while Hamilton carried more of the blame for the collision, it was more of a "racing incident" and he didn't feel Hamilton should have been penalised.
The stewards' panel - which this weekend includes former 1990s grand prix driver Pedro Lamy as the driver steward - agreed that there was significant mitigation to Hamilton's role in the collision, but did not feel he was absolved of blame, arguing that he was still "wholly at fault for the collision".
"During the corner, car #44 \[Hamilton\] experienced understeer and, despite attempting to avoid car #63 \[Russell\] by applying corrective steering, made contact with the right-hand side of Car 63 with its left-front wheel," the verdict read.
"The stewards determined that car #63 remained within the available racing room and that the collision was caused by car #44 being unable to maintain sufficient separation.
"The stewards recognise several mitigating circumstances. Car #44 acknowledged the presence of car #63, attempted to leave appropriate racing room and made a genuine attempt to avoid contact. The collision resulted from a loss of front-end grip rather than from an aggressive or deliberate manoeuvre. In addition, the incident occurred on the opening lap, where reduced grip and compressed racing conditions are recognised."
Those "mitigating circumstances" turned, as per the stewards, what would've been a 10-second penalty into a five-second penalty - and Hamilton has not been assessed penalty points.
But the decision to penalise him still appeared in contrast with no action against Leclerc - for what was admittedly an incident of a totally different nature, though in the same part of the track.
Piastri was on the outside of Leclerc entering Les Combes when the Ferrari appeared to shift towards the McLaren entering the braking phase, leading to contact and damage to Piastri's car.
That incident then prompted Mercedes to warn Antonelli about "Leclerc squeezing cars outside of Turn 5" as the Italian prepared his eventual race-winning move. But the stewards felt Leclerc hadn't done anything untoward, and that Piastri had "no realistic possibility" of completing a move from his position at the time.
"On the approach to Turn 5, car #81 \[Piastri\] moved to overtake car #16 \[Leclerc\] on the outside," they wrote.
"Although car #81 had achieved some overlap with car #16, its front axle was not ahead of the front axle of #car 16\. From the stewards' perspective, there was no realistic possibility of car #81 completing the overtake from that position.
"The stewards also determined that car #16 did not deliberately force car #81 off the edge of the track. Instead, car #16 followed the normal racing line before the entry to Turn 5 by moving slightly to the left to open up the corner. As a result of both cars' positions, side-to-side contact occurred between them."
Leclerc finished the grand prix in second, 1.9s behind Antonelli and 17s ahead of Piastri.
Hamilton took the chequered flag in fourth - but remains under additional investigation, which is being carried out post-race, into a potential unsafe release during his sole pitstop.
### F1 2026 Belgian Grand Prix results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-belgian-grand-prix-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T17:07:34.000Z
Kimi Antonelli overhauled Charles Leclerc to win Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix and double his championship lead.
Below you'll find the full race results from the 44-lap race.
### Race results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.9s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +11.5s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +17.2s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +18.9s
6 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +23.3s
7 Lando Norris (McLaren) +24.0s
8 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +49.1s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +50.4s
10 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1m16.0s
11 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1m16.9s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1m17.5s
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1m18.3s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1m34.4s
15 Alex Albon (Williams) +1m44.6s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1m45.8s
17 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +1m50.9s
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1 lap
19 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +2 laps
DNF: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), Sergio Perez (Cadillac), George Russell (Mercedes)
### Russell 'going slower than F2 car' before Hamilton incident
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/russell-going-slower-than-f2-car-before-hamilton-incident/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T14:38:12.000Z
Mercedes Formula 1 driver George Russell has blamed running "slower than an F2 car" on the straight for his costly early exit from the Belgian Grand Prix, after contact with Lewis Hamilton.
Russell had laboured with an [unspecified lack of straightline performance](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mystery-mercedes-f1-problem-infuriating-george-russell/) \- which in the final segment of qualifying showed up in the second and final sector rather than the first - all weekend relative to Kimi Antonelli.
It had followed a pattern of underperformance relative to Antonelli for a considerable stretch of the F1 season, but while coming into the weekend Russell said he was working on his driving to reduce the gap, he said after Saturday that there was something fundamental and unrelated to driving style that was costing him against Antonelli.
Mercedes was in alignment, and ahead of the race team boss Toto Wolff said: "I really hope we've found the root cause on the engine. There is something we saw, hopefully should be gone today."
But Russell never got far enough in the race to offer a hint one way or another.
He struggled for speed on the Kemmel Straight after starting third, and ended up side-by-side with Lewis Hamilton for fourth coming through Les Combes - which resulted in contact and ended Russell's race in the gravel.
Hamilton was given a five-second penalty for the collision - but Russell made it clear he blamed the power loss rather than his former team-mate for what's transpired.
And he described it as "something totally different" to the power issues that had been plaguing him through the weekend.
"I made a good start. I made a great first corner and I was tucked up right behind Verstappen, but for whatever reason the battery decided not to recharge at Turn 1," said Russell.
"So I went round the first corner, the battery didn't charge and I exited the first corner and I was 35% down - and because of that, because it didn't charge, I also had a boost problem. The turbo didn't sort itself out, so I had no power.
"I got to the top of Eau Rouge with 0% on the battery. Quite frankly, it was dangerous.
"I got swamped by three cars. I shouldn't have been in that position in the first place, that's why I'm most angry."
He also told Viaplay: "I was going slower than an F2 car, I got overtaken by three drivers. Left me vulnerable."
On the Hamilton clash, Russell said: "Honestly, I think was a racing incident. He didn't do it on purpose.
"Yeah, he was more to blame than I am, but he didn't do anything reckless. That was one of those things, I'm just most angry with that I was in that position in the first place. I was in a great position out of Turn 1 and I was ready to fight the two guys ahead of me up to Turn 5\.
"Instead I get swamped by three drivers."
Russell described himself as "numb to disappointment" at the conclusion of the race, with his deficit to the championship lead increasing from 25 to 45 after Antonelli's win.
Asked about the work to solve the issue from eariler in the weekend, he told Sky Sports F1: "Appreciate everyone is working hard to solve the problem - I'm stood here on lap five of the race and felt like I was in a good position to fight for the lead in Turn 1, and then suddenly no power and it's all gone."
### F1 2026 Belgian GP starting grid after five penalties
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-belgian-gp-starting-grid-after-four-grid-penalties/
Last updated: 2026-07-19T10:28:17.000Z
Five grid penalties mean the starting grid for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix looks quite different from the qualifying result at Spa.
Lando Norris, who qualified third, drops 10 places to 13th place because he's taken his fourth battery of the season.
Lance Stroll has a 10-place grid penalty, so even though he qualified 22nd and last, he's set to actually start 20th, as Fernando Alonso (20 places) and Isack Hadjar (30 places) both have bigger penalties.
Carlos Sainz's Williams needed a battery pack change after qualifying so as a result took a 10-place grid penalty that drops him from 14th to 19th.
So here's the starting grid as it stands, once those penalties have been applied.
### Belgian GP starting grid
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
3 George Russell (Mercedes)
4 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
7 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)
8 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
9 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
10 Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
11 Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi)
13 Lando Norris (McLaren)
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas)
15 Alex Albon (Williams)
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas)
17 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
18 Sergio Perez (Cadillac)
19 Carlos Sainz (Williams)
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
21 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)
22 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
### 'You feel powerless' - Russell's mystery Mercedes F1 problem
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mystery-mercedes-f1-problem-infuriating-george-russell/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T19:24:08.000Z
George Russell has labelled mystery speed losses on the straights compared to team-mate Kimi Antonelli as “infuriating”, with Mercedes still chasing an answer as to what is going on.
Russell has been on the back foot throughout the Belgian Grand Prix weekend, as he has had no response to the impressive pace Antonelli has shown.
Although there is a sense of damage limitation after qualifying, as he lines up third on the grid at Spa-Francorchamps behind Antonelli and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, Russell is well aware that a 0.508-second deficit is not something he can simply brush aside.
What is triggering most angst for Russell is that a lot of the gap to Antonelli seems to be out of his hands, as he is losing most of his time on the straights.
It is a theme that has run throughout the last few grands prix, and was exposed already in Friday practice in Belgium when Russell was a whopping 1.285 seconds slower.
But the quest for an answer as to what is happening has not been successful yet – and has left Russell obsessing over trying to work out what is happening.
“My whole focus for the last 36 hours has been on straightline speed,” he said. “It hasn't been focused on the set-up, tyres, or anything, because we're all trying to solve what is going on.
“Even my last lap, for some reason, I lost another tenth and a half to myself, just on the straight. And you're watching on your steering wheel, \[you're\] losing speed when you're full gas on the straight.
“You feel powerless. We don't know what's going on. I don't think it's the power unit, to be honest. My team are really, really on it now, to try and solve it.”
### What the data says
Despite Russell and Mercedes having been trying to get to the bottom of things, a particularly confusing picture in qualifying in Belgium has only served to add to the mystery.
Looking at a comparison of telemetry data between Antonelli and Russell’s best laps in qualifying, the top speed differences between them is not exhibited on all parts of the track.
Russell’s top speed is nearly identical to his team-mate on the run up the Kemmel Straight to Les Combes – with him having been quicker through Eau Rouge.
Carrying higher top speed in the corners, Russell is even ahead of his team-mate for a bit – and they have virtually identical lap times as they exit Turn 8.
It is from here onwards, however, where Antonelli is able to stretch his legs as he gets more deployment on the run down to Pouhon and then carries more speed through to the Fagnes Chicane.
By this stage – over what is essentially a flat-out section of track - Russell has lost more than two tenths of a second.
He then loses a further two tenths on the long run down through Blanchimont and to the final chicane, where the speed difference between them opens up to as much as 10km/h at times.
Russell recovers a bit of time through the chicane, but loses what he gains as both drivers perform their qualifying trick in lifting off before the line – with Russell coming off the throttle slightly later than his team-mate today.
### A question of energy
The Race understands that Mercedes is not planning any component changes to see if there is a problem with a specific part on Russell's car, as it believes the answer lies somewhere in deployment management.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff told Sky: “I think the cars are so on the edge to drive in terms of how you deploy the energy, but also the tyres.
“You can see that sometimes it's just a few hundredths between the cars, like it was in at the end of Q2\. And then the gaps are a little bit bigger again in Q3.
“But fundamentally, whoever drives faster, whoever is able to manage the energy more clever, is going to be ahead.”
This idea of deployment usage being the root cause has been strengthened by the fact that Russell’s top speed down the Kemmel Straight was so strong – so there cannot be a problem that manifests itself around the whole lap.
While there is no firm answer yet as to what is going on for Russell, the chase for a conclusion could be helped by the fact there was also such top speed variation between Russell’s own laps in qualifying.
In particular, his first effort in Q3, a 1m45.156 seconds lap that was slower than his final effort of 1m44.869s, resulted in him having a top speed on that run to the final chicane that was only a couple of kilometres behind Antonelli.
Getting to the bottom of what the difference was between Russell's own laps that resulted in such a speed difference could be key – and may well lie in how he took the previous corners.
Russell says previous suspicions of it being related to his braking style or how he treats the throttle have proved to be wide of the mark - something confirmed by trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin as he reflected on what was happening.
"We're investigating what's causing this as a priority, as there is a clear loss that we cannot explain by driving style," he explained.
Russell suggests that something else is likely in play.
“We saw this from Silverstone, we thought we found the problem,” he said. “We thought it was something with the brakes, it wasn't the brakes. Then we thought it was my driving style, with the throttle.
“I convinced myself that it was something with me, the driving style. Now we're very confident it's not the driving style, and that there's a serious issue at play here.
“The team are working so hard to resolve it. But, you know, every lap I do I see I'm down anywhere from two tenths to six tenths on the straights. It's pretty infuriating.”
Some of the answers could come from the way that the computer algorithms used by teams to manage deployment self-learn over a lap - so they adjust energy management patterns based on how the car is being driven.
McLaren team boss Andrea Stella, who saw a similar top speed deficit pattern as Mercedes between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, felt that live adjustments were a big factor in what was being witnessed.
"To operate these power units, you don't operate them in an open-loop way, whereby I would be able to have an offline simulation and say, ‘oh, that's how the electrical power will be deployed, and it will always be identical to itself’," he said.
"There's a large component of the controller that operates the power unit that happens with live calculations, and the power unit kind of forwards thinks, forward calculates what it has to do based on some… I don't want to get into too much technical description or technical IP…but there's a lot that happens as the car goes. This is why it's not so easy to understand what kind of calculations have been made as the car was going."
He added: "This is not only for the influence it has in the power-limited sections, on the straights, but also because it affects the braking points, because if you have an additional amount of harvest with a super clip before braking, then you are approaching the braking 10km/h slower, and your braking point changes. So this is quite difficult to master, I would say, for the drivers."
### Praying for a solution
While deployment variation seems to not be as big in races, so Russell should not suffer as much on Sunday, he admits he is “praying” that a solution comes in time for the next event in Hungary.
If he gets on top of what is happening then he maintains faith he can properly challenge his team-mate.
He told Sky: “The truth is, battling against my team-mate, who's such an incredible driver, doing such a great job at the moment, in the best of times is a tall order. But I feel confident head-to-head I can achieve it.
“But when it feels like you're battling with one hand behind your back, it's a challenge. But we had the issue in Silverstone and we ended up P2 on the podium.
“So I pray I'm going to try and endure the pain of this issue tomorrow and hope for a great result and try to find a solution for next weekend.”
### F1 drivers left with 'F3 power' at Spa - Verstappen
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/max-verstappen-says-f1-drivers-left-with-f3-power-at-spa/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T17:19:07.000Z
Max Verstappen feels the 2026 Formula 1 drivers have comparable levels of horsepower to Formula 3 drivers in the middle sector at the Belgian Grand Prix.
Verstappen, who has been critical of this year's rules, wasn't dramatically lambasting the regulations at Spa - even saying he didn't want to keep saying negative things about them - but couldn't hide his displeasure when asked what they've done to one of his favourite circuits.
As has been the case previously in 2026, a strong result - second in qualifying at Spa - did little to soften Verstappen's view of the regulations.
"For most of sector two, you run just on the engine. So, what is that? 450bhp, 500bhp? Something like that, which is, I guess, less or more or less what a Formula 3 car has but with F1 downforce," Verstappen said. "So, you can imagine, of course, that that is not very exciting to drive.
"But honestly, I don't want to sit here and complain again, because probably someone will shoot me outside the door.
"But like I said before, I'm mentally just adjusting to it. I'm trying to make the best out of it.
"Even though, of course, it's not what I like, not what I love to do in Formula 1\. But I can also sit at home and drive nothing. But that also doesn't do anything.
"So, I'm just trying my best."
The 2026 F1 cars can theoretically produce around 1000bhp in ideal conditions, though when energy-starved, as they are for much of the lap at Spa, they are more akin to Formula 2 (620bhp) cars. Verstappen's F3 car comparison - they have around 380bhp - would be on the extreme end.
Ahead of the weekend, Lando Norris said "you are not even driving a Formula 2 car, you are driving a Formula 4 car" when the F1 cars transition from straight mode to corner mode at Spa, unrelated to the power unit.
That makes the active aero wings closing at Blanchimont particularly painful for the drivers, as there's a sudden speed drop between the two straight mode zones that sandwich it despite there being no braking zone.
Norris's team-mate Oscar Piastri was asked about Blanchimont after qualifying but he pointed to another corner that he felt had been ruined.
"Pouhon was pretty nasty as well, or it's probably more appropriate calling it 'the bend in the straight' because it's not a corner anymore," Piastri said.
"\[It's\] a shame because one, it's always been a great corner, and \[two\] it's always been a good corner for me as well.
"It's strange just with how different things are this year, and also the power you have out of the corners.
"A lot of the places now, we only have the combustion engine giving us power, so you come out of some corners with close to 1000bhp, you come out of others with 550bhp, 600bhp, whatever it is, so getting your head around that is pretty tough.
"So it's definitely been more challenging in some ways, but it's been a pretty different Spa to years \[previously\]."
Ollie Bearman was more diplomatic, saying: "It was a classic and fun track \[previously\], this year it's a bit less interesting and fun to drive, but that's what we have."
## Sainz wonders how F1 got here
Grand Prix Drivers' Association director Carlos Sainz said "no one out there is enjoying the qualifying lap as much as we did last year".
Like Verstappen he expressed restraint: "Having said that, I don't want to keep belittling my own sport because it's not going to do any good.
"I think we all know this is not good enough. That needs to change. It will change. It will evolve. But yeah, hopefully next year is a step better and the year after another step better.
"But whoever saw these simulations in 2022, 2023 and didn’t look at it and say, 'How can we even accept that?' needs to review what happened there because it should have never happened.
"But now we're here, we're having some exciting races, the sport is still growing, so time to move on."
### Winners and losers from F1 qualifying at Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-from-f1-qualifying-at-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T17:58:02.000Z
Even if it's a verydifferent challenge with the 2026 cars, Formula 1 qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix remains a fascinating spectacle.
And it was a spectacle that produced a broad mix of winners and losers.
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli (1st)
Antonelli has had his share of challenging(-ish) moments this weekend - FP1, Q1, first run of Q3 - but always looked to have plenty of spare capacity to restore himself in his increasingly familiar first place before too long.
The Red Bull tow strategy means this is, on pure performance, an even more imperious pole than the 0.317s gap to Max Verstappen suggests. After an underwhelming run through the downforce-y sector two at his first Q3 attempt, he ran riot in that section the second time by, matter-of-factly telling media afterwards that he simply carried more speed through every corner.
Expect the run to Les Combes tomorrow to be another challenge to overcome, but even if he's second or third coming out of it, Antonelli will remain a monumental favourite to take the chequered flag first. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Loser: George Russell (4th)
Russell has looked a step behind Antonelli all weekend really. On Friday, Mercedes trackside engineering chief Andrew Shovlin was saying Russell "might have underestimated the grip level" in a few of Spa's corners.
Come Q3 on Saturday that pattern appears to have repeated to an extent, with Antonelli gaining a chunk of time on Russell, particularly through the dog leg after Pouhon and at Stavelot, where the cars are super clipping and running only on the combustion engine. Antonelli appears to have carried superior speed through these corners.
But the straight-line deficit is more stark - particularly along the short stretch from Pouhon to the dog leg, and also again on the run from Stavelot to the final chicane. Russell appears to be spiking his engine's rpm more than Antonelli here, and also through the section after Les Combes.
Russell has recently pointed to a straightline speed deficit on his car, and that does appear to be present, but it's not really there in sector one, only in sectors two and three.
Is this a function of downforce levels/drag or Antonelli's different technique giving him superior deployment at the end of the lap? Or is it simply a case that Russell's power unit is not working as it should?
"Yesterday, I was losing eight tenths in the straights, today I'm losing four tenths," said Russell, who also added: "I don't think it's the power unit, to be honest.
“We saw this from Silverstone, we thought we found the problem. We thought it was something with the brakes, it wasn't the brakes. Then we thought it was my driving style, with the throttle. I convinced myself that it was something with me, the driving style.
"Now we're very confident it's not the driving style, and that there's a serious issue at play here. And the team are working so hard to resolve it. Every lap I do and I see I'm down anywhere from two tenths to six tenths, straights, it's pretty infuriating.
"I was pleased with my lap. When I look at the corners, there's a lot of corners that I was faster. There were definitely corners that we needed to improve. The corners look like a normal fight you'd have for a pole. The straights... it's not. I don't know what the solution is. But I'm praying ahead of Budapest \[next week's Hungarian GP\], we'll find it." **\- Ben Anderson**
## Winner: Red Bull (2nd & 10th)
Thanks to the major grid penalty Isack Hadjar has for numerous power unit component changes for Sunday's grand prix, Red Bull (rightly) used him to tow Max Verstappen around in Q3\.
The drivers and Red Bull absolutely nailed this - we've seen it mismanaged in F1 many times before - to give Verstappen what he reckoned was an advantage of three tenths, which is the difference between being second instead of sixth.
Fundamentally, like McLaren, there hasn't been a magic bullet that has turned the Red Bull into a victory threat. But the execution on show here shows why this team has been so successful in the past, and Hadjar played the dutiful number two role perfectly as well. **\- Jack Benyon**
## Loser: Nico Hulkenberg (14th)
With Hulkenberg's team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto scoring ninth in Q3 while he could only qualify 14th, whether it was his fault or the car's, it was an opportunity missed.
Hulkenberg reckoned it was the latter as he felt an issue earlier in qualifying where his gearshifts weren't syncing up correctly. It was also a messy session by his own admission across the board, as he stopped on track on his way back to the pits.
Even if Bortoleto's pace is encouraging, with the knowledge that Racing Bulls' new upgrade looks like it's pushing that team even further forward at the head of the midfield, this was seemingly a missed chance to pile the pressure on. **\- JB**
## Winner: Arvid Lindblad (8th)
Lindblad hailed his lap at Spa as "definitely our best qualifying of the year” and even after all the highlights he's already had in his short career, it's hard to disagree.
The Racing Bulls driver posted the fastest first sector on his final flying run, after which he was just a whisker away from outqualifying McLaren's Oscar Piastri. Being self-critical, Lindblad conceded "maybe there was a tiny bit left" after braking a bit early into the final corner, but it was nonetheless still another impressive performance in the bank.
Lindblad also admitted to "dreaming a little bit" about picking off some of the big hitters despite Racing Bulls not quite being at the level of the top teams just yet. Dreaming or not, being just over a tenth away from a McLaren is still a mega feat for a rookie in their first F1 experience at a track like Spa. **\- Eden Hannigan**
## Loser: Esteban Ocon (18th)
This was another heavy qualifying defeat for Ocon against team-mate Ollie Bearman, and again one he attributed to Haas's lingering parts inconsistency issues - which have been acknowledged by the team (with the caveat that it doesn't generally seem to believe they are affecting one side of the garage more than the other).
Ocon said there was both a loss of rear downforce - that had been tackled at Silverstone but returned here - and a deficit on the straights that more than doubled compared to Friday, from "0.2-0.25s" to "0.45-0.5s".
The gap to Bearman was seven tenths in the end. And Ocon insisted the laptime loss in the straights was neither connected to the intended drag level of the set-up nor any deployment difference to Bearman.
"If the car is healthy, we are \[still\] missing some performance. We want to get closer to the top 10," Ocon said.
"But \[first\] we are just looking on my side for car consistency, getting the maximum out of the package. We have big inconsistencies from race to race.
"The cars are the same \[in spec\]. But it's not the same parts, obviously. It's the same config. But one car is 4km/h faster than the other one in the straight line, you know what I mean?" **\- VK**
## Winner: Gabriel Bortoleto (9th)
A "we don't give up" mentality was the difference between Q2 and Q3, according to Bortoleto, who was rather downbeat despite finishing inside the top 10 in qualifying.
Admittedly an unsuspecting competitor in Q3, Bortoleto insisted Audi was missing the top speed, brake temperature and just the general idea of being "put together" to fight at the front.
Whether this is a bizarre way of making his session sound even better or not, he was still one of the standout performers by outqualifying team-mate Hulkenberg and sneaking into ninth in the final part of qualifying.
Bortoleto's performance has undoubtedly been a boost to Audi's chances of points this weekend. He admitted "it's not going to be easy, but we \[will\] try" to stay inside the top 10.
If the mentality helps in the same way as it did in qualifying, that should bode well for his chances in the race. **\- EH**
## Loser: Ferrari (5th & 6th)
Even without the yellow-flag issue at the last corner, which clearly irked Charles Leclerc, that didn't explain why Ferrari was half a second off Antonelli's pace and behind a Red Bull and a McLaren, respectively - even if Verstappen's time comes with the caveat of the tow he got.
Ferrari hopes it will be competitive in race trim, and Leclerc feels grateful after Ferrari finally solved a power unit issue which had been perplexing the team earlier in the weekend.
Lewis Hamilton felt his rear suspension wasn't quite the same as before his big crash in FP3, and that he did decent laps in qualifying but the balance wasn't quite the same.
All in all, Ferrari will be disappointed, but at least its drivers immediately move up to behind Max Verstappen and George Russell with Norris's penalty, and presumably expect to be able to challenge for a podium on Sunday.
Looking at Kimi Antonelli's form, everything is damage limitation versus him, as things stand. **\- JB**
## Loser: Aston Martin (21st & 22nd)
We're accustomed to Aston Martin being at the back of the grid by now, and even the drivers admit their position is "not surprising". But to finish over two seconds away from its nearest rivals surely still has to sting a little?
Lance Stroll admitted he "didn’t get the perfect tow" he was looking for to gain a few tenths, but no amount of slipstream was ever going to wipe out that gap to the cars ahead.
Alonso was slightly more positive, insisting the team will stick to its "professionalism" despite its difficult situation and that he will try to "nail the start, the strategy, the first lap, driving side, pitstops" as he has done in the grands prix before this one.
If both drivers can make that work, it will be a relatively positive end to the weekend given the circumstances - with the only missing piece being the speed of the car. Based on the accounts of both drivers, however, they unsurprisingly don't expect to find those extra two seconds in another day's work. **\- EH**
### Antonelli smashes opposition to take Belgian GP pole
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/kimi-antonelli-pole-position-belgian-gp-f1-qualifying/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T15:24:00.000Z
Kimi Antonelli smashed the opposition in qualifying to take pole position for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.
Antonelli was the clear pole favourite, having topped FP2 and FP3, but it was the McLaren of Lando Norris that led the way after the first runs in Q3.
Norris wouldn't have taken pole position had he remained fastest because he's taking a 10-place grid penalty for Sunday's race for taking his fourth battery of the season.
But Antonelli got it done on the road anyway with an impressive 1m44.361s, taking pole position by 0.317s ahead of his closest competitor, Max Verstappen.
Verstappen benefitted from a tow from his Red Bull team-mate Isack Hadjar, who sacrificed his Q3 as he has a 30-place grid penalty for multiple engine component changes.
Norris qualified third as he made a mistake at the Turn 13 left-hander and had to abandon his final run (which wouldn't have beaten Antonelli's lap anyway), but he'll start 13th with his penalty.
That means George Russell should start third in the second Mercedes, although he was 0.508s slower than Antonelli.
Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were fifth and sixth in qualifying ahead of Oscar Piastri's McLaren and Arvid Lindblad, who led the midfield for Racing Bulls in eighth.
Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto was ninth ahead of Hadjar and Liam Lawson, who was the quickest driver knocked out in Q2.
The Alpines of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto qualified behind him in 12th and 13th.
Nico Hulkenberg couldn't match Bortoleto's pace in Q2 in 14th and stopped on track on his way back to the pits because of a suspected hydraulic problem aboard his Audi.
Carlos Sainz was 15th for Williams, just 0.002s ahead of Ollie Bearman's Haas.
Albon and Ocon out in Q1 with usual suspects
Bearman pipped the Williams of Alex Albon by just 0.007s for the final place in Q2, marking Albon's sixth Q1 elimination in 10 weekends.
"You’ve been pretty strong all weekend; we just need to give you a better car," James Vowles told Albon over the team radio.
Esteban Ocon was almost seven tenths slower than Bearman in 18th, and only 0.022s faster than Valtteri Bottas's Cadillac.
Bottas's team-mate Sergio Perez was 20th, two seconds clear of Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, who were split by 0.175s.
Stroll has a 10-place grid penalty but is set to start 20th - ahead of Alonso, who has a 20-place grid penalty, and Hadjar, who has a 30-place grid penalty.
### Belgian Grand Prix 2026 F1 qualifying results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/belgian-grand-prix-2026-f1-qualifying-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T15:19:13.000Z
Full results from qualifying for the F1 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.
### Result
**Q3**
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m04.361s
2 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.317s
3 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.440s
4 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.508s
5 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.532s
6 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.534s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.655s
8 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.782s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.267s
10 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) No Time
**Q2**
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +0.978s
12 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.189s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.250s
14 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.529s
15 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.635s
16 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.637s
**Q1**
17 Alex Albon (Williams) +1.255s
18 Esteban Ocon (Haas) + 1.936s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1.958s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +2.106s
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +4.137s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +4.312s
### Three more drivers get grid penalties for F1's Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/two-more-drivers-get-grid-penalties-for-f1-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T12:32:01.000Z
Isack Hadjar and Aston Martin drivers Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll will both take grid penalties at Spa for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Hadjar has taken a new internal combustion engine, turbocharger and exhaust, meaning his penalty is the most severe of the drivers in Spa so far as he'll start from the back of the grid, unless the team elects to start him from the pitlane and make more changes.
Like Lando Norris, who has taken a fourth battery of the season, which was confirmed on Thursday, Aston Martin’s Stroll will get a 10-place penalty from where he qualifies.
He has a new MGU-K for the weekend, although his penalty is perhaps less severe than Norris’s given Aston Martin’s combined lack of pace and expectation that Spa will be the toughest event of the year for the team. Stroll's best qualifying so far this season is 18th in Miami.
His team-mate Fernando Alonso has a back-of-the-grid penalty drop like Hadjar as he took multiple new engine components on Saturday morning.
### What happened in final F1 practice at Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-happened-in-final-f1-practice-at-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T11:46:22.000Z
Kimi Antonelli laid down a huge marker in final practice ahead of qualifying at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix while Lewis Hamilton crashed his Ferrari into the barriers in the dying moments of the session.
In an almost carbon copy of Pierre Gasly’s incident at the Turn 13 left-hander on Friday, Hamilton ran wide through the gravel and, by his own admission, “destroyed” the rear of his Ferrari against the barriers.
> Crash for Hamilton!
>
> He’s ok - it’s a very similar incident to Gasly yesterday. [pic.twitter.com/aOYGDlQYbv](https://t.co/aOYGDlQYbv?ref=the-race.com)
>
> — The Race (@wearetherace) [July 18, 2026](https://x.com/wearetherace/status/2078442724529701042?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw&ref=the-race.com)
Hamilton briefly continued before stopping his wrecked Ferrari on track a few corners later, giving his team a time-pressured repair job before qualifying starts two and a half hours later.
Antonelli topped FP2 on Friday and continued his strong Spa form on Saturday by setting a 1m45.990s, which was over seven tenths quicker than the next-best car at the midway point in the session.
No driver on their final qualifying runs could beat Antonelli’s benchmark with Lando Norris’s McLaren the closest, as he was in FP2, this time 0.139 seconds adrift of Antonelli.
He won’t be a threat for pole position as he has to take a 10-place grid penalty for taking a fourth battery of the season.
Max Verstappen was third quickest for Red Bull, 0.148s slower than Antonelli’s best.
Even Antonelli couldn’t beat his earlier benchmark as he had to abandon his first lap of his final run because he “didn't get the gear in”, and he then had a moment out of Les Combes on his second tour and had his laptime deleted for track limits, one that was over two tenths off his best anyway.
George Russell struggled to match the pace of his team-mate, initially over 1.2s off before he improved to being 0.367s behind Antonelli.
Before his late-session crash, Hamilton was the faster Ferrari in fifth place, 0.392s off the pace but 0.368s faster than Charles Leclerc in sixth.
Oscar Piastri was seventh for McLaren, six tenths adrift of Norris and just ahead of Audi drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto, who led the midfield battle.
Isack Hadjar, who will start the Belgian GP from the back of the grid due to multiple engine component changes, rounded out the top 10 ahead of the Racing Bulls of Arvid Lindblad and Liam Lawson.
### FP3 result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m45.090s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.119s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.148s
4 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.367s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.392s
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.760s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.795s
8 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.934s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.059s
10 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.106s
11 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.186s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.700s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.914s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.930s
15 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.959s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.000s
17 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.654s
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.702s
19 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.740s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.000s
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +4.165s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +4.641s
### What F1 2026 has actually done to Spa's best corners
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/what-f1-2026-has-actually-done-to-spas-best-corners/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T08:46:07.000Z
These past two circuits, Silverstone and Spa, are completely iconic and so there's been a fair bit of working through gritted teeth as energy-starved Formula 1 has overlapped with the sort of long, fast track layouts that most expose its weaknesses.
Pre-Silverstone there was a lot of driver chat about how bad the cars were in the simulators, and then the reality - they later claimed - was not quite as bad as they feared.
I wasn't sure myself if this wasn't just a bit of the F1 PR machine at work, telling Lewis Hamilton et al to back off a bit with the criticism and put on a brave face. Others, like Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri, continued to maintain it was a bit rubbish and that Spa would be "painful" (Max) and "sad" (Piastri).
---
*Get more trackside analysis and paddock insight in* [*The Race Members' Club*](https://www.patreon.com/c/TheRace?ref=the-race.com) *\- and listen to a sample episode of our exclusive Members' Club F1 weekend podcast In-Car Insights from Spa below for more from Ben, Edd and Val on their Belgian GP practice learnings*
---
And then Gabi Bortoleto basically told us all to shut the f\*\*\* up: "I don't think it lost the magic of the sport. We are still driving f\*\*\*ing quick through Copse. It's 280km/h \[174mph\], so I'm still lifting to do that corner. It's not that easy flat that you are like, oh, you are not using up the grip we have."
This quote was on my mind at Spa as I ventured trackside for my first up close and personal experience of F1 2026\. Having been a consistent and vociferous critic of its battery-dominated car performance profile, I wanted to know if the In Real Life experience would defeat what I've seen - and hated - of the cars on TV and watching onboards.
My conclusion after spending two sessions wandering one of the very best F1 circuits ever made, is that… I'm conflicted.
They do look properly quick through Eau Rouge. I saw Verstappen hit 316km/h (196mph) here in FP1, and Kimi Antonelli was topping out at 327km/h (203mph) in FP2! - and they have this very cool skittish look to them as they change direction up the hill. If this was your only snapshot, you would leave Spa thinking this is easily the best F1 you've ever seen.
But then you walk around Raidillon and up the hill to the Kemmel Straight and you're met with the underwhelming bit: rear lights flashing, the dimmer switch engine note winding down, drivers decelerating a car running on less than full power - and then doing the weird thing Valtteri Bottas mentioned to me of needing to downshift to lower gears than you'd ideally want in order to help recharge the battery.
Through Les Combes they're disappointing things to watch. They've arrived doing nearly 20km/h (12mph) less than they were the last time I was here - and that was in 2019! The following left-right sequence is fine, but doesn't look as on-the-limit as it used to.
Everything just feels a bit contained by the MGU-K being deliberately under powered for sector two. The drivers are able to alter their lines almost at will and don't ever seem properly limited by the grip level.
"We're obviously out of energy already, pretty much just past Eau Rouge," confirmed Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson. "And then we have to charge through the whole middle part of the lap so we just have no power from turn five \[Les Combes\] to turn eight \[the right-hand hairpin\]."
That said, if you stand on the outside of the no-name left-hander before Pouhon, the cars are only briefly fully off-throttle through here as the track grips up for FP2\. They are about 10km/h (6mph) down on last year but you can't tell that from the outside. Watching them here, up close to the barrier, is genuinely impressive and exhilarating.
These cars change direction so well and it's the same story at Pouhon - a fearsome corner that we thought might be ruined by this formula.
I'm almost certain it doesn't feel as challenging to the drivers as it once did, because again they're not using full power when they arrive, but Antonelli on his quickest lap was entering not far off the speed Lando Norris was doing in last year's ground-effect McLaren. To the watching eye, to the spectator, they look incredibly fast as they turn in here - with only a partial lift off the throttle and maybe a snatched lower gear for battery recharging. Again, the direction change and sense of speed is really truly impressive.
"We have no power from turn nine to turn 10 (between no-name and Pouhon) and we have no power from 11 to turn 12 (between Pouhon and the right/left where Pierre Gasly crashed in FP2) just to make sure we get as much battery as we can," added Lawson.
"And then we obviously run it down again towards Blanchimont and then we're out of energy again. It's a very different Spa to previous years, this one feels for me the worst so far even compared to Silverstone.
"It's just not the same Spa to any other year that I've driven here, even in junior categories and stuff like that, it's a track that you can attack and this year it's very hard to do that."
So that disconnect remains - between how F1 looks from the outside and how it feels from the inside; and between those parts of a circuit where the car performance is being sacrificed to battery harvesting and those other parts where all that power is being fully unleashed (as it is when the cars approach Eau Rouge).
As Hamilton said after Friday practice: "It's still amazing to drive, through corners and everything, it's good. It's just the straights where the engine dies."
And so I'm left with a strange feeling ultimately: isolated moments of genuine exhilaration and joy, interspersed with snapshots of frustration and disappointment.
This is F1 2026 in a nutshell I suppose: divisive, imperfect, annoying, but at the same time still incredible and capable of taking your breath away.
And it's safe to say Spa is not completely ruined for F1, but it certainly is different.
### How Mercedes' qualifying trick exposes where Russell is losing
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/how-mercedes-qualifying-trick-exposes-where-russell-is-losing/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T08:39:33.000Z
Even taking into account that the current generation of Formula 1 cars do not suit George Russell's driving style, the 1.285-second gap to Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli in Belgian Grand Prix practice was unusual.
While Russell has benefitted recently from some misfortune on the other side of the garage to close the championship points deficit to his team-mate from 68 points to 25, he is well aware that unless he starts putting himself at the front of the field there is little hope of marching on to the crown.
So to face such a sizeable pace gap on the opening day of practice in Belgium, especially at a venue where 12 months ago Antonelli himself had appeared to be totally lost, was not the start to the weekend Russell needed.
While wiping away such a deficit in pace is never the work of the moment in F1, a dive into the data of the two Mercedes cars from Friday has offered some insight into what may be going on.
And a potential clue about just where Russell may be losing out the most to Antonelli has come thanks to the team continuing to use its much talked about [qualifying trick to maximise deployment](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-finds-legal-way-to-revive-banned-f1-qualifying-trick/) across the timing line.
## Maximum deployment
Just like at Silverstone a fortnight ago, both Russell and Antonelli were lifting off the throttle at Spa-Francorchamps before the end of their quickest laps to avoid the need to follow the typical ramp down rates.
Analysis of their fastest laps from free practice, however, shows a huge divergence in when the pair of them come off the throttle – which is at a point when their battery pack is as close to 0% as Mercedes is comfortable with.
As this graph from GP Tempo shows, Russell comes off the gas around 70 metres before Antonelli – which costs him heavily as the gap between them expands by 0.4 seconds (which is one third of the overall deficit around the whole lap) in the remaining time it takes them to cross the line.
The offset here is interesting because of the circumstances in play.
Because both drivers will have arrived at the final chicane with empty batteries, and run at the full 350kW coming out, their points of lift off before the line are directly related to how much energy they have managed to harvest through the final chicane – so it is clear Antonelli has done a better job here.
And that snapshot given to us by the exit from the final corner may well explain what is going on around the rest of the lap where Russell is clearly losing time on the straights.
## Straightline losses
If we look at Russell and Antonelli's fastest laps using the F1TEL graph below, Antonelli's top speed is a step ahead – and most of Russell's time is lost when at full throttle.
From the exit of La Source up to Les Combe, Russell goes from being three tenths up to 0.175s down. Is a clue to this the wheelspin that Russell encounters on his way out of the hairpin at the start of the lap?
Another 0.175s is lost between Turns 6 and the entry to Turn 8 (where again there seems to be a lift off correction), and then between the entry of Pouhon and the entry of the Fagnes Chicane, where a speed deficit of up to 8km/h loses him nearly 0.2 seconds.
More time then bleeds on the run down through Blanchimont and towards the chicane where again the speed differences are notable.
That so much time is lost on the straights fits in with what we saw out of the final corner – that Russell has less energy at his disposal because he has not harvested as much as Antonelli.
This was made clear in radio conversations with his engineer Marcus Dudley who pointed out that Russell had not got to the top of his battery pack at Turn 14 – the final chance to harvest before the long run down to Blanchimont where a lack of energy gets punished with a lack of top speed.
The key then is for Russell and Mercedes to understand why the difference is there?
In FP1, Mercedes discovered a problem with one Russell's fuel flow meters, which had left him down on power compared to Antonelli. That matter was sorted for second practice.
The FP2 deficit appears more to be down to something else – which could be related to the characteristics of the current generation of cars that Russell does not like.
## Judging the grip
Thanks to F1 2026's rules, energy deployment on straights is so interlinked with how a car performs in a corner. The cars do not like sliding around a lot, with wheelspin and an aggressive driving approach. All that does is needlessly waste energy.
Being smooth and consistent is the key, and that requires a mastery of perfectly judging grip levels to maximise energy harvesting. Fall outside the window, you don't recover as much or you deploy too much on the way out and the lap is ruined.
Shovlin admits this was an area that Mercedes had got wrong across both cars in FP1\. The team had anticipated there being more grip than there was in reality – and contributed to its struggles as it was not running as much downforce as it needed.
In the afternoon, Russell was not as on top of the change of grip as Antonelli, which helped compound some of the problems he was facing.
Straight after his soft tyre run, Russell complained about sliding a lot. Shovlin explained: "If the corners are slower, it affects the deployment. And, when you're at an energy-starved track like this one, like Silverstone, those differences are really magnified."
Get those corners more under control with the entries and exits and then the straights that follow after will be better too.
## Context matters too
There is another important element in play in putting that 1.2 seconds deficit into context as well.
It is that Russell's sizable deficit to Antonelli is based on just a single soft tyre run that had gone wrong even before it had really got going – so was not properly representative.
Shovlin said: "It was only one lap - so if that doesn't go well, you look like you're off the pace.
"He felt he didn't have the tyres ready for the start of the lap, which leads to a bit of a loss.
"There's a few corners where it looks like he might have underestimated the grip level - but given the first session that we had it's not a big surprise."
The answers then to Russell's straightline deficit and the top speed gap to his team-mate may well then come in how he approaches the corners and getting on top of the changing grip levels.
And the perfect snapshot for us to see if he has mastered it on Saturday will be in spotting just where both Mercedes drivers lift off the throttle at the end of their laps.
### Winners and losers from Belgian GP F1 practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/winners-losers-belgian-gp-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T18:02:03.000Z
Formula 1 returns to Spa-Francorchamps for the 71st Belgian Grand Prix but 2026 brings harvesting woes and worries.
Friday practice was therefore prime time to test harvesting strategies - and trial new parts, of which [there were many declared](https://www.the-race.com/404/) in Belgium.
Here's who we thought won - and lost - over Friday's pair of practice sessions.
## Winner: Kimi Antonelli
Mercedes' relatively low-key performance in FP1 hinted at a harder weekend than anticipated, but certainly on Antonelli's side of the garage, there was already a major course correction come the second session.
"It was a messy first session where we didn't have the car in the right place, we thought there'd be a bit more grip than there was - but it looks like other people pitched theirs a bit better. But then we had a chance between sessions to reposition it all and drivers were a lot happier with the car in the afternoon," explained Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin.
But it's very obvious Antonelli was the happier of the two drivers. He was in the expected spot in the qualifying simulations, and the [standout in long runs](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/belgian-grand-prix-f1-long-run-friday-practice-analysis/) \- at least as far as can be gleaned from the red flag-limited data.
There was a strange - needless - [bit of angst against Williams driver Carlos Sainz](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sainz-lambasts-antonelli-over-idiot-spa-practice-spat/), but it seemed more evidence of youthful hot-headedness rather than any sort of title pressure.
"Long run felt very strong as well \[as the single lap\], but obviously the car changed quite a bit between the two sessions so a lot of work to do overnight in order to be ready for tomorrow and on Sunday," Antonelli summed up. **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
## Loser - George Russell
Well off the pace in both practice sessions, the Mercedes driver is set for a long Sunday if this pace continues.
He was three-tenths behind Antonelli as Mercedes took P6 and P8 in FP1 - where a power unit was partly to blame for that deficit. In FP2, Russell was 1.285s off his leading team-mate even though that FP1 issue was fixed.
Our long-run analysis implies that Russell might be suffering on the straights compared to Antonelli, and it's an issue he needs to get on top of swiftly, given Spa-Francorchamps's long straights. **\- SK**
## Winner: Max Verstappen
Verstappen topped a practice session for the first time in 2026 with his FP1 performance, and then finished third in FP2\.
The Dutchman had his usual gearbox gripes but the positives were clear: long run pace sufficient to put him in contention with Mercedes, at least at this early stage, and short runs that could put him in pole contention too.
"The car has been in a good window. Probably in FP2 you see a little bit more of the real gap still, but that's nothing shocking, just expected," Verstappen said, alluding to the half-second gap between him and FP2 leader Antonelli.
Although he was a respectable margin off Verstappen, team-mate Isack Hadjar has a back-of-grid engine penalty to contend with. **\- SK**
## Loser: Aston Martin
Aston Martin knew it was in for one more humbling weekend at Spa before its B-spec car, and so it's proving.
Team representative Mike Krack insists the pace is not worse than expected, and he may well be right, but it's still quite something to see the timesheets so merciless, both cars over five seconds adrift in both sessions and both the regular drivers aware they're fighting for nothing.
"We knew this track was going to be probably the hardest of all, but we did not get demotivated by that," Krack said.
But he also said: "We need to be realistic. We are quite far off. The positions you gain are from attrition, but there's nothing to fight for in terms of result. I think it would be quite naive to think you can do something. For that, we are too far off.
"But we still have two cars. We try to do our best, try to execute well, make the right decisions." **\- VK**
## Winner - Franco Colapinto
Alpine’s Colapinto sprung the biggest surprise in FP2 as he went seventh for Alpine, ahead of Mercedes’s struggling George Russell.
Colapinto was 0.15s ahead of the fastest Racing Bull, and more reassuring will be the six-tenths gap to next-best midfielder, Haas’s Ollie Bearman in 12th.
The Argentinian also beat team-mate Pierre Gasly in both practice sessions, by three-tenths in FP1 and then by 1.8s in FP2 - where Gasly had a big crash before Stavelot and had his fastest laptime deleted (which was slower than Colapinto's best anyway).
“I think generally I've been feeling comfortable with the car this year. In general I felt much better than last season and it's showing in the results and showing on track,” said Colapinto.
He attributed his turn of pace to the cooler conditions and to some of the “lower-speed” corners at Spa-Francorchamps. **\- SK**
## Loser - Pierre Gasly
A crash exiting the Fagnes chicane tore off Gasly’s rear wing and damaged his tyres at the end of FP2, while the fate of the gearbox and drivetrain is unknown.
A snap of oversteer exiting the chicane led Gasly to lose the rear and smash the barriers.
Perhaps it was a more spectacular-looking crash than the mistake deserved, but Alpine now have a long evening ahead - and Gasly has to work out why he’s behind Colapinto. **\- SK**
## Winner - Haas
A decent showing from Haas, with Ollie Bearman saying the car “felt strong” on Friday.
The [team back-to-back tested a new front wing](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-declare-21-upgrades-for-belgian-gp/) with Bearman and the Briton said it represented a slight improvement - despite conceding the team was “nowhere near” Racing Bulls and Alpine.
Better balance and behaviour represent a good foundation to build on for Haas as it seeks to close that gap to Williams.
Esteban Ocon was under two-tenths off Bearman in FP2, after being four-tenths off in FP1 where the Frenchman finished 16th to Bearman’s 13th.
Q3 and points might be a stretch, but Haas is set to capitalise if any of the usual top-10 runners falter. **\- SK**
### What we took from disrupted Belgian GP long run picture
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/belgian-grand-prix-f1-long-run-friday-practice-analysis/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T18:06:33.000Z
Pierre Gasly sliding off the track into the gravel and into the barriers at Spa ruined many drivers’ long runs during second practice at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix.
That’s led to an incomplete long-run picture, but there are still some clues we can take from Friday’s running…
## Single-lap pace
Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m45.944s
Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.190s
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.472s
Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.747s
Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.770s
Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.982s
Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.203s
George Russell (Mercedes) +1.285s
Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.350s
Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.490s
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.524s
## FP2 long runs
Antonelli 1m51.511s (4 laps)
Verstappen 1m51.876s (7 laps)
Russell 1m51.980s (3 laps)
Hadjar 1m52.449s (6 laps)
Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes continues to look in fine form with a short but consistent long run, with all four laps separated by less than three tenths of a second.
He was complaining of an edgy car in FP1, but Mercedes made “massive changes” between sessions and he felt much better in FP2.
Team-mate George Russell looked a step behind on both single-lap and long-run pace. He was down on power because of an issue in FP1, which was fixed for FP2.
The Mercedes deployment trick The Race revealed at Silverstone appears to be back at Spa with both drivers lifting off just before the start/finish line - but Russell’s lift on his quickest FP2 lap was much bigger than Antonelli’s, and he lost half a second there.
Russell is shipping much of that 1.285s laptime loss on the straights versus Antonelli, in line with a straightline deficit he’s previously complained of, and something that would suggest he’s not harvesting energy as efficiently as Antonelli.
Red Bull might have had to park its flamboyant ‘Macarena’ rear wing this weekend, but the RB22 looked solid in the hands of Max Verstappen, despite complaints of “unacceptable” gear shifts.
Verstappen explained those complaints after FP2: “I'm always very sensitive to these things because I want to work on that and improve it.
“There was a software update, or downgrade, that took a bit of time for the shifts to learn, and it got a bit better again at the end.”
Verstappen completed the longest long run, yet he split the Mercedes duo and looked solid over a single lap too.
Team-mate Isack Hadjar was a clear step behind, although his weekend’s already been massively compromised by a back-of-the-grid penalty for multiple engine component changes that exceed his 2026 allowance.
Lando Norris says the McLaren is “still very, very difficult to drive” and said while McLaren seems “relatively competitive” at Spa “we shouldn’t expect anything different from normal”.
Norris faces a 10-place grid penalty for Sunday anyway due to taking his fourth battery of the season.
Ferrari remains the big unknown as Charles Leclerc was only a lap into his long run when the red flag was flown, while Lewis Hamilton hadn’t even properly started his. Its single-lap pace wasn’t great, but there have been plenty of underwhelming Fridays that have turned into very good Saturdays and Sundays for Ferrari.
Team boss Fred Vasseur also pointed to another big variable on Friday at Spa - vastly different energy deployment strategies.
“Without disclosing any secret, but if you have a look on the race trace, we were 20km/h slower than some of our competitors before Les Combes, but we were 20km/h faster in the last straight line,” Vasseur said.
“It's a trade-off for sure. It's not that you can do a plus 20\[km/h\] and plus 20\[km/h\].”
The run to Les Combes is the perfect example of how differently Mercedes and Ferrari are approaching those deployment strategies right now (as this intertwining GP Tempo shows, with Hamilton’s fastest FP2 lap in red and Antonelli’s FP2 benchmark in green).
You’d expect strategies to converge more by Saturday, and that means there’s plenty of room for the pecking order to shift.
As McLaren said in its post-Friday summary: "At a circuit where differences in energy deployment and maximum performance extraction play a key role, the current pecking order remains far from fixed, and today's result does not portray the true competitive standing."
The midfield long runs were disrupted too, so it’s hard to validate whether Alpine is back in the fight with a Racing Bulls team that’s now only one point behind it for fifth in the constructors’ championship.
Franco Colapinto certainly feels Alpine has “found a little bit of performance this weekend” and is benefitting from the cooler Spa conditions.
### Red Bull finds fix for Macarena wing it ditched for Spa
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-has-fix-for-its-parked-macarena-wing/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T15:35:38.000Z
Red Bull expects to have mechanical fixes for its Macarena rear wing in play in time for it to return at next weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
Following the crashes suffered by Max Verstappen at the British GP and in qualifying in Austria that were linked to problems with the squad’s trick rear wing, Red Bull [elected to remove it](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-ditches-macarena-revolving-wing-spa-verstappen-crashes/) for this weekend’s event in Belgium.
This also followed intervention by the FIA, which sought assurances from Red Bull and Ferrari that there were no wider safety concerns with their upside-down wings.
Speaking at Spa-Francorchamps on Friday, Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache said that the issues had been traced back to a mechanical problem with its wing design.
Work was now ongoing at its Milton Keynes factory to implement solutions that would ensure no repeat trouble in the future, with hopes high that the revamped design would be ready for next weekend’s race at the Hungaroring.
“It's a mechanical problem that we spotted after the accident in Silverstone,” said Wache.
“We fix it. We are trying to prove that we are bulletproof before we put on the car, and it should be ready for Budapest.”
Wache was clear that Red Bull would not bring the wing back until it was convinced that it would be problem-free, although he did not elaborate on the specifics of what had caused the issues at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone.
However, he said some elements of the wing – most likely related to the activation mechanism – were being made “stronger” and that its discussions with the FIA had left the governing body happy with what it was planning to do.
“We’ve proved it to them, what we've done,” added Wache. “I think it's on our side that we make it cautious now. We don't want to take any risk, and we want to be 100% sure.”
### Ferrari: no problems in 10,000km
While Red Bull chose to remove its Macarena wing for Belgium, Ferrari has continued with its design, which has not caused it any trouble this year.
While there were talks with the FIA that wanted to check on the robustness of its concept, Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur insisted his squad has never had any doubts over what it is doing – especially because its design works in a slightly different way to Red Bull’s.
“It's not a similar concept, because it's not rotating in the same way,” he said. “We didn't have any issue.
“We were a bit slow at the beginning \[to get it to work\]. It's why we didn't race the wing in the first two or three events. And we raced it after race four.
“So far we did 10,000km without any issue.”
### 'That's forbidden' - Why Sainz wants Antonelli to 'calm down'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/sainz-lambasts-antonelli-over-idiot-spa-practice-spat/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T08:52:59.000Z
Carlos Sainz says Formula 1 championship leader Kimi Antonelli needs to "calm down" after being branded an "idiot" by the Mercedes driver during Belgian Grand Prix practice.
Antonelli felt compromised by Sainz on the run out of Stavelot and rolled off the throttle before cutting in front of the Williams, while saying "Sainz, what an idiot!" over team radio.
For his part, Sainz said Antonelli "threw the car into me". He then got back ahead of Antonelli on the run down to Bus Stop, where it briefly looked like the pair might have another side-by-side encounter before Antonelli pulled into the pits instead.
Sainz was unimpressed with Antonelli's comment on the radio.
"I think he felt like I impeded him - I don't feel like I did," he said afterwards.
"I guess nowadays with the SM \[Straight Mode\], if you don't get out of the way exactly like \[the other driver wants\]- you cannot turn because you have no downforce with the wings open.
"Maybe he felt like I could have got out of the way in a better way.
"But I don't think he should call me an idiot either, on the radio, I think that's forbidden, to swear and insult a rival - so I think he should calm down a bit."
There was no investigation into the matter - and no specifically profane comment from Antonelli that would be expected to trigger some sort of inquest.
"I mean, he backed off out of a fast corner, you exit in seventh gear, and I had to abort and it was quite risky," Antonelli said afterwards.
"So of course I was not happy with it and of course what I said probably, in the heat of the moment, is not the best - but it was quite dangerous."
### Two red flags disrupt Belgian GP second practice
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-that-happened-in-disrupted-second-spa-f1-practice/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T18:05:15.000Z
Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli took the top spot in second practice for the 2026 Belgian Formula 1 Grand Prix with Lando Norris second for McLaren and Red Bull's Max Verstappen third.
All of the fastest times were set on soft tyres after a red flag flew for gravel at Stavelot around 20 minutes into the session. A longer stoppage came with 14 minutes left when Alpine's Pierre Gasly hit the barriers on the exit of Turn 13.
Gasly went wide exiting the corner and then slid, hitting the barriers just before Stavelot.
Second-place Norris was 0.190s behind Antonelli while Verstappen, who led FP1, was just under half a second off the leading Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton was fourth for Ferrari and Isack Hadjar, who faces a grid penalty on Sunday, was fifth for Red Bull. Oscar Piastri was kept in the McLaren garage with a technical issue but emerged after the first red flag to go sixth overall, ahead of surprise top-10 inclusion Franco Colapinto.
Colapinto's Alpine team-mate Gasly finished 18th and 1.8s away, as his team now having to rebuild the car overnight.
George Russell struggled to put a flying lap in and finished eighth. The Racing Bulls pair rounded out the top 10 with Arvid Lindblad around a tenth ahead of team-mate Liam Lawson.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was an anonymous 11th ahead of Haas's Ollie Bearman, who was in turn 0.15s ahead of team-mate Esteban Ocon in 14th.
Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto was 13th and just over three tenths ahead of his team-mate Nico Hulkenberg, 17th.
Alex Albon was just over two-tenths ahead of team-mate Carlos Sainz as the Williams finished 15th and 16th.
Also lining up in pairs on the leaderboard were Cadillac - with Valtteri Bottas 19th and four tenths ahead of Sergio Perez - and Aston Martin, whose 21st-placed driver Lance Stroll was just under 0.3s ahead of Fernando Alonso.
The 22 drivers were covered by 5.474 seconds.
## FP2 results
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m45.944s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.190s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.472s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.747s
5 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.770s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.982s
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.203s
8 George Russell (Mercedes) +1.285s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.350s
10 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.490s
11 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.524s
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.848s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +2.008s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.014s
15 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.075s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.312s
17 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +2.389s
18 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +3.011s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.255s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.652s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +5.187s
22 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +5.474s
### F1 2026 Belgian Grand Prix practice results
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-belgian-grand-prix-practice-results/
Last updated: 2026-07-18T11:37:40.000Z
Below you'll find the practice results for this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix.
### FP3 result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m45.090s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.119s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.148s
4 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.367s
5 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.392s
6 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.760s
7 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.795s
8 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +0.934s
9 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.059s
10 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +1.106s
11 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.186s
12 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.700s
13 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.914s
14 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.930s
15 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +1.959s
16 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.000s
17 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.654s
18 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.702s
19 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.740s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.000s
21 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +4.165s
22 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +4.641s
### FP2 result
1 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) 1m45.944s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.190s
3 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.472s
4 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.747s
5 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.770s
6 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.982s
7 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +1.203s
8 George Russell (Mercedes) +1.285s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.350s
10 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.430s
11 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +1.524s
12 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.848s
13 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +2.008s
14 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.014s
15 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.075s
16 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +2.312s
17 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +2.389s
18 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +3.011s
19 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +3.255s
20 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.652s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +5.187s
22 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +5.474s
### FP1 result
1 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1m47.070s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) +0.145s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.207s
4 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.252s
5 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.452s
6 Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.533s
7 Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.861s
8 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.889s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +1.164s
10 Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +1.336s
11 Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) +1.362s
12 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) +1.892s
13 Ollie Bearman (Haas) +1.940s
14 Alex Albon (Williams) +2.267s
15 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +2.333s
16 Esteban Ocon (Haas) +2.379s
17 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +2.642s
18 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +2.769s
19 Sergio Perez (Cadillac) +3.156s
20 Carlos Sainz (Williams) +3.792s
21 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +5.738s
22 Jak Crawford (Aston Martin) +6.129s
### The unusual way a Belgian GP car spec split was decided
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-midfield-leaders-unusual-upgrade-shootout-explained/
Last updated: 2026-07-20T13:30:09.000Z
Racing Bulls has a brand-new upgrade package at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix, but only Arvid Lindblad has the full package because he won an unusual shootout for it.
Racing Bulls currently has the standout car in the midfield and is the only team to score points with both drivers in each of the last four grands prix. It’s now only one point behind Alpine, which it has outscored 24-5 in the last three weekends.
In an effort to strengthen its position, Racing Bulls has introduced another upgrade package at Spa, including a revised engine cover, roll hoop, updated brake drum assembly and new upper rear wing assembly.
But, specifically on the cooling side of the package (that visibly smaller roll hoop), Racing Bulls only had enough parts to introduce it to just one of its cars. It will have the capacity to get both cars level on spec again at the Hungaroring one week later.
Lindblad, despite being 19 points behind Liam Lawson in the drivers’ championship, received the full upgrade, while Lawson has to wait until the Hungarian GP.
Racing Bulls team boss Alan Permane explained he sat down with both drivers to discuss the matter on Saturday evening after qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix, where Lawson and Lindblad qualified ninth and 10th, a ‘one-two’ in F1’s midfield.
“Honestly, we don't like bringing updates for just one car. It was impossible for us to do it to two cars \[as\] it's a chassis modification, we had to shrink the roll hoop,” Permane explained.
“I sat down with both drivers in Austria on Saturday evening. We had a very good qualifying. So OK, while everyone's in a good mood. I'll give some bad news: ‘We got a good update coming but we can only do one car for Spa, and the next car will be done for the race after in Budapest’.
“So I first suggested the very simple option that makes it fair is we upgrade no cars for Spa and then both of them for Budapest. Of course, they looked at me like I was crazy - and I wouldn't have ever done that \[anyway\]. We didn't really seriously consider that.
"The next thing we can do is flip a coin - or we can make it a little bit of fun and we'll say whoever qualifies in front in Silverstone gets the upgrade, and they both signed up for that. That's what we did.”
Lindblad beat Lawson in Q3 to qualify ninth at Silverstone and earned the right to have the full upgrade package at Spa.
But that shootout won’t occur if Racing Bulls finds itself in a similar situation later in the year.
“I think what we'll do if it happens again later in the season, and it may happen later \[as\] we've got another big thing coming at some point, it will go to Liam,” Permane added. “So we won't do that again.”
### F1's 2027 under-the-radar car changes explained
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/significant-aero-rule-changes-for-f1-2027-explained/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T14:48:57.000Z
Formula 1 teams are bracing themselves for what has been called a “significant” change to car aerodynamics next year as a result of what initially appeared to be minor rule tweaks.
The revisions that are coming for 2027 are the consequence of a push by the FIA, and [first revealed by The Race](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-already-pursuing-downforce-reduction-plan-for-2027-cars/), to keep downforce levels under control in a bid to help minimise forces being put through the tyres as well as improve energy management.
Early analysis with the new 2026 cars has shown that how much energy cars have down the straights can be heavily influenced by how fast they go through corners.
So any progress being made by teams in improving downforce to lift speed through turns means more energy starvation to make the racing worse.
Following talks with teams over recent months, tweaks were approved to the chassis regulations that will go hand-in-hand with a shift away from the 50/50 split between internal combustion engine and battery power.
The changes are mainly in three key areas of the car – the floor edge, the plank and the rear wing – and all appear to be relatively minor in terms of a few dimensional changes.
But as teams have begun to dig into the details, they have realised that there are some wider consequences playing out.
Speaking to Sky F1 at the Belgian Grand Prix on Friday, Williams team boss James Vowles said the fallout from the rules was playing into his team’s consideration of its chassis design plans over both this year and next.
“They are fairly significant,” said Vowles about the rule tweaks.
“As a result of that, it isn't really as \[much of a\] carryover as I think everyone would like.
“We've already said we're doing a new chassis, and the purpose behind that is it will form part of next year's chassis allocation, but it's a very different way of doing chassis, a very different way of digging into the roots and getting into the performance of the car.”
## What is changing
Several areas of the car have been targeted as areas where tweaks can be made.
At the back of the car, the rear wing dimensions are changing to make them less effective.
The wing will be slightly shallower by around 20mm, while the ‘rotation brackets’ that a host of teams are running above the upper element will no longer be allowed.
Not everything is being taken away though, with a new rear wing pylon brace allowed for next year that will sit between the supports.
This will likely be used to create some monkey seat-style wings.
Included as part of the changes for 2027, although not directly related to improving energy management, is a ban on exhaust wings as well as some tidying up of the diffuser rules.
The exhaust wing concept was pioneered by Ferrari and copied in a different way by other teams over the course of this season.
Towards the front of the car, the FIA is also reducing the maximum allowance of what is known as floor leading edge devices from five to three.
Underneath the car, there is going to be a big reduction in the length of the plank – with the front section being reduced from 900mm in length to 600mm.
This change has been partly fuelled by concerns the FIA had about the length of the bibs underneath the nose section this year, which it felt risked penetrating the area inside the halo if a car was lifted up in a crash.
### Why the changes have such an impact
While the revisions to the rear wing and the floor leading edge devices will involve new design work, it is the change that cannot be seen – to the plank – that could trigger the biggest headache for teams.
The reduction of the leading area of the plank will result in the bib tray being pulled back – and that will have implications when it comes to ride height.
The plank is used as a means of dictating ride heights, as teams know they cannot run too low in case they risk wearing it out.
So under the current rules, with a long front plank area and bib tray, teams have to be relatively conservative in terms of how they pitch things.
That may not be the case next year when the plank is shorter and Aston Martin technical director Adrian Newey recently used the same “significant” word when referencing the rule change's impact.
“The leading edge has been moved by about 300 millimetres, which allows you to run the front of the car lower,” he said. “That brings a different set of aerodynamic characteristics.
"The key one for us is that front‑of‑floor change. It gives everyone a different aero challenge to solve.”
With Aston Martin not having got things spot on with its 2026 car, Newey sees some clear opportunity for his team in potentially exploiting a different aero window for next year.
“Because we've effectively been forced to grow up quickly as a team over the last 12 months, we're in a much better place to capitalise on the regulation changes than we would have been a year ago,” he said.
### What happened in F1's Belgian Grand Prix FP1
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/verstappen-tops-f1-practice-at-spa-for-first-time-in-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T13:49:39.000Z
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen set the pace in opening practice at Formula 1’s Belgian Grand Prix ahead of the two Ferraris.
Red Bull parked its ‘Macarena’-spec rear wing for the Spa weekend after back-to-back crashes for Verstappen in Austria and Silverstone.
But it made a strong start to Spa as Verstappen and team-mate Isack Hadjar took turns at leading FP1.
Verstappen ultimately ended up on top with a 1m47.070s, the first time he’s topped a practice session in 2026.
He was 0.145s clear of his closest competition, Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari. The British GP winner Charles Leclerc was third, 0.207s off Verstappen.
Hadjar, who will [start from the back of the field](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/two-more-drivers-get-grid-penalties-for-f1-belgian-gp/) due to multiple engine component changes beyond his allowance, was fourth fastest ahead of Oscar Piastri’s McLaren.
Piastri hit drama in the closing moments of FP1 as he had to tour very slowly back to the garage, having suddenly encountered an issue on the Kemmel Straight.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli was sixth fastest for Mercedes ahead of Lando Norris’s McLaren, another driver facing a [10-place grid penalty](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-gets-f1-grid-penalty-for-belgian-gp-spa/) this weekend for taking a new battery.
George Russell was eighth quickest ahead of the midfield leaders, Arvid Lindblad’s Racing Bulls and Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi.
Jak Crawford took Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin for the session and ended up with a fastest lap 6.129s off the pace, but was within four tenths of Lance Stroll's best effort.
### F1 teams declare 21 upgrades for Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-teams-declare-21-upgrades-for-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T13:38:50.000Z
Formula 1 teams have brought a combined 21 upgrades to Spa as the relentless development of the new 2026 cars continues.
Ferrari, unusually for the 2026 season, and Aston Martin, *very* typically for the 2026 season, are the only teams not to bring upgrades.
Mercedes has an interesting tweak to keep an eye on, while the midfield-leading Racing Bulls might have the most intriguing package to view, and Haas has a very unusual-looking development.
Starting at the front with Mercedes, it’s brought a tweaked front wing endplate with increased top-edge camber, with the aim of improving airflow to the rear of the car.
Cadillac has also made a similar change - but has also revised the footplate surfaces and added the typical horizontal vane that sticks out from the endplate - to its front wing, the team’s sole change here.
Back to Mercedes, it has also tweaked its rear drum winglets to help those work in a wider performance window, and it's one of many teams to make a Spa-specific rear-wing change to reduce downforce and drag for Spa’s long straights.
All four of the Racing Bulls tweaks are not labelled as circuit-specific. These include modified sidepod bodywork, a revision to its bulbous roll hoop inlet, front brake drum changes for airflow purposes and a new upper rear wing assembly. The latter is aimed at improving the efficiency of downforce on the car.
Two of Haas’s four changes are also not labelled as circuit-specific.
The front wing gets a revised endplate, pylon geometry and changes to the actual profile of the wing are all aimed at improving downforce efficiency across its operating window.
It's a very unusual-looking upgrade with an intricate design where the nose meets the wing assembly, with a sort of J-shaped assembly that rival teams will surely be looking to investigate, as it looks like a unique development as far as these rules go.
A geometry change to the deflector on the front end is also available, and a lower downforce rear wing, which are both aimed at Spa.
Haas appears to have removed the exhaust wing tip cover.
Williams has a rear brake duct winglet tweak and a trim for the floor, which are both Spa-specific, but it has also altered the floor profile generally, adding volume to the central part of the diffuser.
We already knew McLaren would have a new rear wing assembly to try at this race, and it has also made a revision to the endplate to improve airflow.
Audi has tweaked a diffuser winglet as part of what it calls an “ongoing aerodynamic development programme”. It also has the customary Spa rear wing tweaks.
That leaves Alpine, Cadillac and Red Bull with one update apiece.
Red Bull had already confirmed its ‘Macarena’ wing would be dropped for this event. It has also revised the pylons to extract more load.
Alpine is the only team to make a halo change, adding a winglet to improve airflow to the rear of the car.
### Number of declared changes
Haas 4
Racing Bulls 4
Mercedes 3
Williams 3
Audi 2
McLaren 2
Alpine 1
Cadillac 1
Red Bull 1
Ferrari 0
Aston Martin 0
### F1's painful cost cap odd one out
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/haas-has-now-become-a-painful-f1-odd-one-out/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T11:06:23.000Z
Haas is a budget cap outlier in Formula 1 and it's "not fair on our guys", according to team principal Ayao Komatsu.
The American outfit is widely recognised as F1's smallest team and Komatsu said it is now "absolutely" the only F1 squad not spending at the budget cap but below it.
"I wish we could," he said at the Belgian Grand Prix media day. "We're not.
"It's one of the top priorities on my job list. To be able to fund this team so that we can operate at the budget cap. Because that's the baseline, right? We should be achieving that first off."
Haas's status and spending level is a topic of conversation again as its lively start to the season with its VF-26 has cooled off considerably as midfield rivals brought more upgrades and more potent upgrades.
"If you looked at last year, the regulations were incredibly mature - and across the year, we didn't really add much performance to the car, but we brought them \[the upgrades\] at the right time and everybody was adding small amounts," said driver Ollie Bearman.
"But now if you look at the gradient of development, it's much higher. People are bringing massive overhauls to their cars almost on a weekly basis. If you look at the front teams, it's quite impressive how much they're able to bring and the rate of development they're able to achieve.
"First of all, that's something that we simply couldn't do. But second of all, I think looking compared to our competition, we've just been overtaken in terms of development. We haven't bought enough to the car compared to them. On top of that, what we've bought to the car hasn't really worked, let's say.
"I think this type of new era, where the \[development\] rate is very high, it exposes us a little bit in terms of our weaknesses. Last year, that wasn't the case, because the development rate was not even a quarter of what it is now."
Komatsu disputed Bearman's suggestion that the upgrades haven't worked - but not the wider point that Haas is being outdeveloped.
"That's not a reflection of, let's say, the incapability of our guys. I think our guys are doing, honestly, a fantastic job," he stressed. "Anybody who knows about Formula 1, knowing our size and resource of the team, and then producing what we are producing, I think they will understand this statement.
"I think they \[Haas staff\] are very capable. They work as a team. The communication is clear. No-blame culture. I think the culture is getting there and the capability is there.
"But I'm not, so far, being able to give them enough ammunition for our guys to show what they're capable of.
"What they produced at the beginning of this year is completely… what's the right word? 'Unexpected'. You cannot expect the smallest team to be performing the way that we've been performing at the beginning of the season in the year of the biggest regulation change.
"And that's not sustainable for us. So it's not a reflection of our guys. It's more a reflection on my side. I need to be able to get better revenue to this team and provide a better environment for our guys. Then once we've done that, we've got the guys to do it. We've got the drivers to do it. So I'm sure we can come back. But those things take time."
The biggest question surrounding Haas, which debuted in 2016 under a slimmed-down model of taking as many components as permissible from Ferrari, had long been whether team owner Gene Haas was investing enough.
It was the catalyst for Haas's split with previous team principal Guenther Steiner, who Komatsu succeeded.
Komatsu said he planned for the team to operate at the budget cap "as soon as possible".
"It's not like I just started working on it. We've been working on it. So we're having some very good conversations. But really, honestly, it's not fair on our guys to have that constraint.
"It's like they're fighting with both hands tied. But then when they see our lack of performance or struggles in places like Miami, Barcelona, Spielberg, Silverstone, nobody's hiding from it. Everybody's just talking, 'OK, what's the problem? How have we missed it? How have we got into this situation? How are we going to improve?’ And that's something I really respect.
"So I'm really just determined just to give them the environment they deserve."
### Verstappen's curious McLaren junior signing is a big statement
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/team-verstappen-actual-mclaren-signing-is-a-big-statement/
Last updated: 2026-07-17T07:30:48.000Z
Amid all the hullabaloo about a theoretical future with McLaren and meetings with Zak Brown, Max Verstappen has signed up for co-patronage of maybe the highest-upside driver asset McLaren has in its Formula 1 junior programme.
The timing is surely a coincidence, but the announcement is fascinating - and unusual - all the same.
Dries Van Langendonck, a 15-year-old Belgian who currently races in Formula 4, is now a member of 'Verstappen Racing' in addition to being part of McLaren's junior programme.
Van Langendonck is as prized an asset as drivers get at that phase of their career - a ludicrously prolific and highly successful karter (world champion and European champion) turned immediate success in car racing (he won the F4-spec Formula Winter Series in the off-season and is currently on track to be this year's British F4 champion).
His entry under the Verstappen Racing umbrella is intended to offer him "additional support and guidance" from Verstappen himself, complementing his McLaren-led development.
"He has been a big talent for a long time already in go-karting, and I think you can spot quite quickly when someone is a little bit more special than someone else," Verstappen said of Van Langendonck during the Belgian Grand Prix media day.
"That has carried on with what he’s doing right now in Formula 4, and that’s why it’s just very exciting to try and help him and guide him, of course hand in hand with McLaren’s side as well, to make the right decisions for his future.
"He wants to get to Formula 1, and I’m just trying to make sure that will happen in the future. It’s honestly a very exciting project to be part of."
This kind of co-operation over a protege between a top F1 driver and a team they're not part of is not unprecedented in recent F1 memory, as Gabriel Bortoleto was a McLaren junior and then signed with Audi while remaining part of Fernando Alonso's A14 Management stable (with Alonso himself not affiliated with McLaren nor Audi).
But it is a new venture for Verstappen, as part of a continued expansion of his Verstappen Racing efforts.
Its driver roster otherwise comprises the simracer squad, simracer-turned-GT3 driver Chris Lulham, GT3 driver (and son of Verstappen's manager) Thierry Vermeulen and Verstappen's father Jos (specifically his rally efforts).
In Van Langendonck, for the first time, Verstappen has taken a driver under his wing whose sole career ambition is clearly to make F1.
"We're just going to try and help him achieve that," Verstappen added, "by making, hopefully, the right calls and decisions in terms of where he has to race, what he has to do, help him on the simulator side as well, and just try to give him more and more experience.
"He’s only 15, so there’s still a lot to learn naturally, but luckily, I think, in terms of raw speed, that’s there."
It is important to note this will not have been a McLaren-led initiative, so it in no way reflects anything about Verstappen's future aside from the apparent growing independence of his overall racing ambitions from Red Bull and specifically Red Bull's F1 team.
There is thought to have been a connection between the families before this announcement. However, there is no indication that McLaren is in any way unhappy about this - as Van Langendonck is getting the added benefit of access to the Verstappen Racing Pro Simulation resources.
"He’s very good for a 15-year-old," Verstappen said of Van Langendonck's simulator prowess. "Compared to myself when I was 15, he’s very, very good."
### Leclerc and Russell have bonded over struggle confusion
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/charles-leclerc-george-russell-have-bonded-over-struggle-confusion/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T18:07:27.000Z
George Russell and Charles Leclerc have been relating to each other over their performance struggles during the 2026 Formula 1 season.
Leclerc and Russell finished one-two in the British Grand Prix and were visibly laughing with surprise in the post-race cooldown room.
Leclerc said “Who would've thought?" to which Russell replied: “Who would've thought? Not me!”
Russell revealed at the Belgian GP the exchange had its roots in conversations with Leclerc earlier in the weekend about their predicament.
“Charles and I were texting after FP1 on Friday ahead of sprint qualifying,” Russell explained.
“So I'm not going to go into detail about our conversation, but then when we finished 1-2, and it was like ‘who would have thought \[it\] not us’, and that was sort of in reference back to what we were talking about on the Friday.
“Our lives are just constantly being filmed, and it just feels like quite an organic moment, to be honest, in that cooldown room, because there are just so many emotions, and even though you know there's a camera there, you are just quite open and free.”
Leclerc has faced far stiffer intra-team competition from Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari this year, and his Silverstone victory marked a much-needed turnaround in an otherwise tricky season.
Russell is 25 points behind his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli in the championship, having finally got the title-challenging Mercedes he’d wanted since he joined in 2022.
Despite finishing second and gaining 18 points on Antonelli, Russell admitted after the race, "I'm not going to fight for a championship if the performances continue like that”.
On Thursday at the Belgian GP, Russell was asked to expand on what he has to improve. Russell replied: “Just going faster. To be honest, it's as simple as that.
“The good thing is I've not left a single tough weekend confused where the pace is. It's been so clear on the data. Sometimes it's been so obvious that our chief engineer, almost called it a car problem. It's so clear on the data and it can be solved.
“Whereas I've seen in the past from other drivers or previous team-mates where if you're off the pace, it's kind of like scratching your head to understand why.
"I know exactly why. If I don't win or if I'm not on pole, it's clear on the data why that is and what I need to do to improve that.
“When I am on pole, it's clear why that is. It's not a case of I've forgotten how to drive one day and I'll remember the next. It's just not getting the car in that sweet spot.
“Last year, I felt I had a very high hit rate of how often I could get the full potential for the car, the set-up, the tyres with my engineers. This year, that hit rate is far lower and that's what I'm working on to make it more consistent.”
If the reasons for Russell’s struggles are so clear, then why can’t they be rectified?
“It's like if somebody asked you to draw the Mona Lisa and you've got the Mona Lisa next to you, do you think you could achieve it straight away? Maybe with practice, you will,” Russell explained when The Race asked him that.
“With these new power units, with these new tyres, with these new cars, I'm having to set the car up in a way that is not suited to my driving.
“I'm having to drive in a way that I haven't driven in my whole career and I'm having to adapt to this.
“I know exactly what I need to do, but going out and then achieving it when I've driven for 20 years in a certain way, and even more so, it's been working for 20 years and now suddenly it's working 50% of the time, but 50% of the other time it's not working.
“Trying to recognise, ‘OK, is it going to work this weekend my normal way or do I need to adapt my approach?’.
"If I need to adapt my approach, ‘how do I do that and how do I do it and be quick?’.
“When I've performed at my very best, I've just been performing subconsciously, not even been thinking about driving and now you're having to think, trying to make these new techniques become subconscious techniques and that is the challenge.
“Everyone here is at the top of their game and it goes back to this conversation with Leclerc and also some of the challenges he's having.
“It doesn't make a lot of sense one day why we’re so competitive and the next day we’re not?”
### Leclerc wants to validate breakthrough
Leclerc remains understandably guarded on exactly what changed during the Silverstone weekend, but he clearly found something mid-weekend.
He alluded to "a moment on Friday night at Silverstone where I saw a detail and I was like, 'OK, this is very difficult to quantify, but if I happen to change that and make it more to my liking, then my feeling will most likely be a lot better'."
He said: "There were just a few things that I changed at Silverstone to try and fit this generation of cars and to try and help my driving with it, that made it quite a lot better.
"But as I said at Silverstone, this is something I want to prove on multiple racetracks. It’s not only with one race win - and I’m very happy with the race win - but it’s not only with one race win that now everything is fine and I’m relaxed.
"There’s a lot of work in order to try and keep that form and keep that feeling, most of all, because if the feeling is there, as I was saying earlier, it has been the case that when I feel good with a car, normally the laptimes and the performance come.
"So I’ll just try and work as hard as possible to try and keep that feeling for the rest of the season and on different track layouts."
### Everything we learned from day one at F1's Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/everything-we-learned-from-thursday-at-f1-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T18:11:44.000Z
Formula 1's penultimate race before the summer break has already told us plenty.
Here's everything we learned from Thursday's media day at the Belgian Grand Prix.
### Bearman 'flattered' by Red Bull rumours
Sky F1 commentator David Croft's highly-publicised claim that Red Bull was keeping an eye out on Ollie Bearman as a potential signing took, as expected, about 0.05s to come up during Bearman's Thursday debrief.
"I mean, first of all, it's quite flattering to hear things like that, with a team like Red Bull who are incredibly successful," Bearman said.
"And to be connected with them in any way, even if it's just rumours, is very nice. But like I said, it's just rumours and I'm fully focused on what I'm doing here with Haas at the moment."
It wasn't exactly 'come and get me' but wasn't the opposite of that.
Bearman subsequently said he "hopes" it's long-time benefactor Ferrari that he makes the next step with as "Ferrari have trusted me from the very beginning in Formula 3 and put me in \[Carlos Sainz's\] car in \[Jeddah\] 2024 as well, really the reason that I'm here right now".
But he acknowledged, with Ferrari's line-up potentially set for the medium term with Charles Leclerc and a resurgent Lewis Hamilton, that he doesn't "have a full say" in ensuring his future is with Ferrari.
"At the moment I don't have a contract for next year. So, yeah, just waiting in the dark."
Asked by The Race whether he was a true free agent for 2027, he quickly corrected: "No-no, that's not what I said." **\- Valentin Khorounzhiy**
### Why Verstappen isn't engaging future rumours
Max Verstappen took just 30 seconds and 16 words to kill off the latest wild rumours that had got ahead of themselves in the build-up to the Belgian Grand Prix.
There had been a fair bit of stabbing in the dark from some quarters since the British GP that the Dutchman was on the verge of a shock switch to McLaren next year.
But in Belgium on Thursday, Verstappen showed himself not in the mood to engage with all that had been whipped up about him being Woking-bound.
“No”, he said when asked if there had been any update.
His thoughts on the speculation? “Nothing.”
A date for a decision? “Nope. There’s nothing to say from my side.”
And then asked if that means he is fully committed to Red Bull for 2027, he added: “I said there’s nothing to say.”
Verstappen’s situation has really not changed since Austrian GP time.
Yes, the four-time champion does have an exit clause in his current Red Bull contract that could make him a free agent at year’s end; but he wants nothing more than to stay at the team with a quick car.
If the latter element cannot be achieved, then options are obviously going to be looked at elsewhere.
However, competitive options are shut for next year, whereas 2028 could be a more open book (which is why the original approach to McLaren happened).
In the meantime, Verstappen won’t commit fully to Red Bull as it is important to keep the pressure on the squad to deliver him the quality of car he so wants.
The speculation probably won’t stop, even if McLaren’s Oscar Piastri – whose seat Verstappen was most strongly linked with – backed up the view that nothing is going to happen.
“I’m very comfortable with where I am and where I sit,” he said.
“Zak \[Brown\] and Andrea \[Stella\] and the whole team have been great through all that. Very reassuring – and I’ve been the same to them!” **\- Jon Noble**
### Yo-yo racing might not feature
Heading into Spa, the likelihood of rapidly draining batteries meant the prevailing view was that there would be a lot of yo-yo racing, with cars blasting past one another when the other had used its battery power, as had been the case before in F1 2026.
However, for those who are not fans of these motorway-style overtakes and this kind of racing, there's a glimmer of hope in the shape of George Russell. Despite the track seemingly offering the opportunity for different strategies with high speeds in sectors 1 and 3 sandwiching the tight and twisty sector 2, Russell reckons we’ll see convergence in energy strategy.
“No, to be honest, simple answer,” said Russell when asked about the prospect of different energy strategies.
“Because a circuit like Silverstone, with four straights, kind of split evenly across the circuit, you could divide your energy across different straights, and it would work out maybe laptime neutral.
“Here, you go from the top of the battery at Turn 1, to the bottom at Turn 5, and then again the top at Turn 14, to the bottom into Turn 18, so everybody's going to be on that same strategy, which actually means it's not going to be that straightforward to make the overtakes.
“Similar to Japan, in a way, that everyone is on the same strategy, but maybe I'm wrong, but that's my thought.”
A glimmer of hope then, that we could see some proper, opportunistic overtaking at this classic venue...if Russell is right. **\- Jack Benyon**
### Cadillac has one more race to 'survive' brake issue
Cadillac may have impressed with many aspects of the job it has done in its debut Formula 1 season, but there are still some areas where it has fallen short.
One of these is in mastering its brake cooling, with both its drivers having struggled with overheating problems during the early part of the campaign.
The nadir came at the roasting hot Austrian Grand Prix when Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez both retired because brake temperatures had gotten out of control.
Efforts have gone on to improve things since, but Bottas admitted in Belgium that a proper upgrade solution is not going to come until the next race in Hungary.
It means one final race weekend of having to manage things as best as possible from the cockpit – although at least the temperatures and track layout of Spa-Francorchamps should mean it is not too much of a headache.
“We knew it would be an issue in Budapest if we didn’t have updates, so that is why we are going to have them there,” added Bottas.
It’s all part of the learning experience that every team has to go through, and you cannot be expected to get everything spot on at the first attempt.
“Some things we've had to learn the hard way,” admitted Bottas. “We’ll survive with it \[for now\].” **\- JN**
### ...and it has revived an upgrade
Cadillac has a new front wing for Spa, expected to confer a small increase in downforce. However, it's not entirely new.
During pre-season testing in Bahrain, Cadillac first trialled a version of the wing but found it required some more work. That's led to the new front wing introduced here, which will include a reprofiled vane on the outside of the endplates on both sides.
While it won't transform the performance of the car, provided it works, it should mean a useful bump in performance.
"Yeah," said Perez when asked by The Race if the new front wing was a version of the one previously tried. "I think we are all in a similar boat where things don't work as much as expected, so you try a different concept and hope that it will make the difference."
Cadillac has one new wing available for each driver, meaning any wing-crunching exploits would likely mean reverting to the old spec. **\- Edd Straw**
### Williams is turning to 2027 already
While Williams still has hopes that an upgraded and (more importantly) lighter B-spec car due to arrive at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix can turn its season around, the first hint of thoughts turning more long-term has emerged.
Off the back of a campaign that so far has fallen short of expectations, driver Alex Albon retains faith that the ingredients are there for the squad to move forward from its eighth spot in the constructors’ standings.
But equally, there is a realism emerging that keeping the sole focus on rescuing 2026 may not be worth it – and instead, bigger returns could come from getting a head start on next season.
Speaking in the official FIA press conference on Thursday, Albon said that early work on the 2027 car had begun at Grove – although there was no sense yet of it abandoning its current challenger.
“We are already transitioning quite early into next year's car,” he said. “We're starting to do more and more simulator work on next year's car.
“That’s not to say that we'll leave this car behind, but we are thinking long term as well for the best of the team.” **\- JN**
### Where F1 drivers stand on safety car change
After the disappointing ending of the safety car finish at the British GP, there was plenty of talk on media day about whether a rule change was needed to avoid it.
Asked about whether the race director should have more freedom to throw a red flag to ensure there’s a racing finish, Hamilton said: “Yeah definitely. It happened in Australia I think one year \[in 2023\] it was one of the best races.
“In those experiences, ideally when you're in the lead it's not a great thing, but it really gives the fans the maximum experience.
“I think they have the power to do it and they've done it before. Definitely finishing under the safety car, I would be disappointed - I am disappointed as being in the car and as an athlete so I can only imagine how the fans would feel.”
Pierre Gasly sarcastically clapped inside his Alpine cockpit when the British GP didn’t restart.
“I was a little frustrated with the situation. I didn't have all the information at the time,” Gasly explained at Spa.
“Afterwards, I think I understood why all the events \[happened\] and why things happened that way.
“But I think we will agree in the future, ideally, we don't have a safety car ending the race in that fashion.”
He said it’s likely to be discussed in the drivers’ briefing on Friday night but Grand Prix Drivers’ Association director George Russell said there’s “no major conversations as yet”, so this is something very much still in the ideas phase.
Russell said he has “conflicted views” as he doesn’t think it’s fair if a driver has done everything right until a last-minute red flag, but he doesn’t like the anti-climax of finishing under the safety car.
He called it a “niche” issue that doesn’t happen all that often so it is unlikely to even be a topic again for a while. **\- Josh Suttill**
### There’s parts fears for Aston Martin’s crucial B-spec car
There’s a lot riding on the arrival of Aston Martin’s huge upgrade at the Hungarian Grand Prix, but whether it has [enough spare parts](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-b-spec-2026-f1-car-spare-parts-concern/) for its arrival is "the $1million question" for Aston Martin right now.
That’s according to chief trackside officer Mike Krack, who said “you always try to push the deadlines as far as you can”, especially when the team is in such dire need of a leap forward.
He said “everybody has done a good job in trying to put mitigations in place, but also have plan Bs for if one or two components can't make it”.
Lance Stroll hopes Spa will be “hopefully the last painful weekend for us” before that upgrade arrives.
Asked by The Race if there’s any strengths from the ‘A-spec’ that need to carry into the ‘B-spec’, Stroll said: “It’s been pretty terrible: there's nothing we like about our car, there's no strengths, so we can only get better”. **\- JS**
### ...meanwhile, Alonso's finding joy elsewhere
Fernando Alonso is among the loudest critics of the current, battery-dominated version of F1\. He says he’s trying to find and cling to any positives where he can, but ultimately is having to turn to museum pieces to find pure joy in driving again.
Much of this depends on your frame of reference, of course. For a rookie like Arvid Lindblad, this is the only F1 he’s ever really known. It’s still a significant step up from what came before and that’s probably enough for him.
But Alonso has experienced so many different versions of F1 over the past quarter century that he can’t help but hold the underwhelming current version against the harsh light of what came before.
He described the most recent ground-effect cars as “pure attacking mode and driving to the limit of the cars and the physics and pushing the tyres to the limit, all these kind of things. We don't do that anymore” and said the joy left for him in F1 is that “I do enjoy competing and I do enjoy racing against the rest of the field. So when I close the visor, I don't really notice anything new on the rules. I'm just fighting against the car alongside and I'm still having fun and I'm still enjoying what I do”.
“If I was alone on track, I probably would not enjoy much driving these \[2026\] cars.”
Of course Aston Martin is currently cut adrift at the back, so the clear implication here is that Alonso isn’t enjoying F1 at all right now, and probably won’t want to stick around unless the team can haul itself into the midfield fight soon, so he can actually race with those other cars.
Alonso had a few stabs at trying to be positive about this generation of F1, mentioning the loss of weight, added dexterity in slow speed corners and across kerbs, and setup directions that have moved away from the excessively low and stiff requirements of ground-effect.
But in terms of pure driving satisfaction, he revealed he dips into his personal collection of old F1 cars to find that feeling.
“Apart from all the cars that I have in my museum, I have old cars, 2007, 2012,” he said. “I have my own Formula 1 cars that I drive from time to time and I do enjoy it a lot.” **\- Ben Anderson**
### Only Lindblad has full Racing Bulls upgrade
Racing Bulls is looking to strengthen its position at the head of F1’s midfield with the debut of another upgrade package at Spa - but the full package will only be on Arvid Lindblad’s car.
That’s despite Liam Lawson being the highest Racing Bulls driver in the championship in 10th place, with 39 points to Lindblad’s 20\.
Chief technical officer Tim Goss explained an upgraded “cooling system will feature on one car here in Spa, with the second car converted for Budapest.
“If it all goes well, we are capable of continuing our recent run of top 10 finishes."
Lawson said of Racing Bull’s Spa prospects, “There’s no reason why we shouldn’t be strong. Obviously, we have new parts on the car, more on Arvid’s side, but let’s see what they do. Hopefully they work for us.” **\- JS**
### Red Bull ditches 'Macarena' wing for Spa after Verstappen's crashes
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/red-bull-ditches-macarena-revolving-wing-spa-verstappen-crashes/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T11:49:55.000Z
Red Bull has removed its version of the revolving 'Macarena' wing for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix after back-to-back high-speed crashes for Max Verstappen.
Verstappen was critical of the "super dangerous" rear wing issues that led to him crashing in qualifying for the Austrian GP and out of a potential podium finish at the British GP.
The problems occur when the moveable Red Bull rear wing switches from straight mode to corner mode, although exactly what's been going wrong with the design isn't yet clear.
Red Bull debuted its revolving rear wing at the Miami GP alongside the race debut of Ferrari's version, which had raised so many eyebrows when it first broke cover during pre-season testing.
But in the wake of Verstappen's British GP crash at Copse, Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies promised Red Bull would conduct a thorough analysis of the issues and did not rule out ditching that wing solution.
On Thursday at Spa it emerged that Red Bull has parked its revolving wing for this weekend.
The Race understands it could return after modifications are made to it.
Ferrari's version wing needed extensive on-track testing before it was raced on the car - it has since stayed on since that Miami debut - while McLaren had to abandon plans to trial its own version of the wing in Austria.
McLaren has a new rear wing assembly for the Belgian GP, but it has nothing to do with its revolving flap, which could also reappear in a modified form later this year.
### Aston Martin's parts fear for its 'B-spec' 2026 F1 car
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/aston-martin-b-spec-2026-f1-car-spare-parts-concern/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T10:44:21.000Z
Aston Martin has admitted that it is going to be tight on spare parts for its 'B-spec' 2026 Formula 1 car's debut at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The team will unleash an overhauled AMR26 at the Hungaroring next weekend, which it hopes will help it move off the back of the grid.
As well as the new car featuring changes to the rear suspension, nose, and other aerodynamic surfaces, there has been a big effort to reduce car weight too.
With team principal and technical director Adrian Newey throwing everything at ensuring the revised car is as good as it can be, Aston Martin has been aggressive in terms of waiting for as long as possible before signing off on parts production.
That has resulted in deadlines being pushed to the limit, which means it may not be in as comfortable a spot as it wants to be in terms of having the necessary spare parts ready for the car's first outing.
Speaking ahead of the Belgian GP, chief trackside officer Mike Krack said that confirmation over whether it would have enough spares for both cars was "the $1million question" for Aston Martin right now.
"Everybody works flat out to get the parts, to get the cars ready," he said.
"It is a big undertaking if you decide to do it like that, because you always try to push the deadlines as far as you can.
"So it's a big effort going on at AMRTC \[Aston Martin's factory\] at the moment, and I'm a positive thinker, so I think we will have two cars ready to go. Now I don't think we will have five spares of each, to be honest."
Krack's comments suggest that there is a degree of uncertainty about how complete its package may be, which is why he said that there was some contingency planning in place to ensure that the whole upgrade effort was not derailed by a few parts not making it.
The Hungary package is the first part of a two-step plan, with the second due to arrive at the Dutch GP after the summer break, alongside engine partner Honda's sole 2026 upgrade.
"You always have to put scenarios in place or if you have this \[part\] but not this \[part\]," he said. "You cannot make yourself dependent on one part missing and then you cannot do it.
"So there are plans in place. It is like: if we don't have that, can we run this?
"Again, you will not have the full back-up for everything. But I think everybody has done a good job in trying to put mitigations in place, but also have plan Bs for if one or two components can't make it."
### Norris gets grid penalty for Belgian GP
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/norris-gets-f1-grid-penalty-for-belgian-gp-spa/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T11:29:30.000Z
Lando Norris will have to take a 10-place grid penalty for this weekend’s Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix for taking his fourth battery of the season.
Two different battery failures meant neither McLaren driver could start the Chinese GP and Norris's next battery then failed during practice at the Japanese Grand Prix, putting him on his third and final allowed battery before triggering an automatic grid penalty. The Japan battery was repaired but then failed during second practice in Monaco.
So a grid penalty was essentially inevitable, but by taking the fourth battery now, it's been delayed to Spa and the hope is this fourth battery will last the rest of the season.
"We have chosen to do this in Belgium, a circuit where overtaking is relatively more prevalent, as opposed to the following two events in Hungary and Zandvoort," McLaren said.
"We now plan to use this fourth power electronics unit for the remainder of the season, in order to maximise reliability while minimising sporting penalties on Lando."
That fourth battery is the first time Norris will get the benefit of the updated battery that [debuted on the factory Mercedes](https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/mercedes-brings-f1-battery-upgrade-to-austria-after-reliability-woes/) and Oscar Piastri's McLaren in Austria. It has reliability fixes after the early-season issues.
The McLaren drivers are also both switching to a new specification of Mercedes power unit this weekend, which has a number of reliability improvements and debuted on the factory Mercedes cars in Austria - with Alpine and Williams receiving it one week later at Silverstone.
The McLaren drivers weren’t swapped onto the new power units there as they still had mileage available on many of their components, having faced multiple reliability issues early in the season.
Norris will be moved back 10 places from wherever he qualifies this weekend.
McLaren also has a new upgraded rear wing to trial in practice at Spa.
### Ducati loses top concession status for first time
URL: https://www.the-race.com/motogp/ducati-loses-top-concession-status-for-first-time/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T09:21:06.000Z
Ducati has lost its top-rank place in the MotoGP concession status system for the first time since the current model's introduction at the end of 2023.
It has dropped back to a 'rank B' grading, only just missing out on scoring enough points across the past 12 months to remain in the top A tier for the final six months of the current iteration of the series' rules.
Ducati has scored 657 points since last year's summer break out of a total available of 777, meaning it enters this year's break with 84.56% of the total available, just four points and 0.44% shy of the 85% rank A cutoff.
Joining Aprilia in the second rank until the end of the 2026 season, Ducati is now able to gain a few minor benefits that are unlikely to give it a significant advantage as much of the development focus moves onto next year’s new 850cc machines.
Able to benefit from an extra 20 Michelin tyres for private testing, that's likely to be of minor concern to technical boss Gigi Dall'Igna given MotoGP's looming Pirelli switch.
But rank B status does give Ducati the opportunity to make three wildcard appearances, something that could well be utilised to help get likely 2027 VR46 Ducati racer Niccolo Bulega up to speed if and when he secures the World Superbike title for the manufacturer's factory production racing effort.
---
### Mid-season concession status
**Ducati**: ≈ 657 points (84.56%; rank B)
**Aprilia**: ≈ 561 points (72.20%; rank B)
**KTM**: ≈ 387 points (49.81%; rank C)
**Honda**: ≈ 247 points (31.79%; rank D)
**Yamaha**: ≈ 183 points (23.55%; rank D)
**Concession ranks**
A: 85% or more of total points available
B: Between 60% and 85% of total points available
C: Between 35% and 60% of total points available
D: Less than 35% of total points available
---
Behind Ducati, Aprilia's strong end to 2025 and even more impressive start to 2026 means it has moved from rank C up to rank B, reducing the number of tyres it has available for testing.
More importantly, it also cuts its number of available wildcards from six to three, a move that is likely to affect test rider Lorenzo Savadori's plans for the remainder of the year. He has already made one appearance in 2026, at Jerez, and is potentially planning another when the series returns to action at Silverstone after the summer break.
KTM remains at rank C, while Honda drops back to D, where it rejoins fellow Japanese brand Yamaha.
Honda's promotion at the end of last season was lauded by the team but, after a less-strong-than-expected start to 2026 it has now regained its bottom-rung status.
That will however give Honda the opportunity to both use its racers in a testing role (a move likely to help ease Johann Zarco's return from injury) and allow it to continue to make changes to the current bike's aerodynamic package ahead of the introduction of smaller wing packages and frozen rear aero rules next season.
### Best challenge ruined? Why F1 drivers fear Spa will be 'painful'
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1-drivers-feat-spa-will-be-awful-belgian-gp/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T09:43:25.000Z
Many Formula 1 drivers have been raising concerns about how the 2026 regulations will affect the driving challenge at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend.
Spa is a concern partly because of its length as, at 4.352 miles, it's the longest track on the calendar. But its configuration is also a problem, with heavily power-dependent first and third sectors sapping the battery. It means that the middle sector, which runs from Les Combes to Stavelot, is effectively a part of the track where you will deploy little or no electrical power.
Accordingly, that's going to be a power-limited part of the track where the maximum 350kW electric power isn't accessible even if you wanted to use it.
"If you deploy in those two straights, which is the optimal deployment, then there is a one-minute sector two with no deployment at all," said Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso.
"And with no deployment at all, we have significantly less power than last year, and less power than F2 \[because\] that is the case when you cut the deployment."
Max Verstappen said "I love Spa, but Spa is going to be another painful one just because of the energy", while Oscar Piastri predicted that both "Spa and Monza are going to be sad".
In particular, the no deployment concern is for Turn 10/11 - the famous Phouon double left-hander - which now creates an opportunity to harvest.
The impact on that corner could stand or fall on the overall downforce limits, and while there's a risk that drivers may end up sat within the limit of grip thanks to harvesting there, if the downforce levels are at the low end of what is expected at Spa, as has been the trend in recent years, then it's less of a concern.
However, the active aero package introduced this year may allow more downforce to be carried given the drag can be shed on straights.
Regardless, the fundamental problem is that there is, as always, not enough energy to go round. A fully charged battery is spent in 11.5s if deploying at the maximum 350kW, and this track is simply too long and power-sensitive to have the maximum power available for all of the lap. This was a known problem going into the season, but accommodations have been made to mitigate the problem.
First, the per-lap energy harvest limit in qualifying has dropped from the planned 8MJ to 7MJ. That should ensure that the amount of lift-off of superclipping charging is kept to a minimum, perhaps as little as two seconds. Around 12% of the lap is spent on the brakes, so dropping that limit reduces the deficit between the amount that needs to be harvested and how much of that can be done on the brakes.
It's a sensible move, one that has been made following feedback from teams, but it does sacrifice a little laptime with the pole pace expected to be up to four seconds slower than in 2025.
That limit increases to 8.5MJ for the race, meaning there will be more such harvesting in those conditions. That means there could be plenty of yo-yo racing on Sunday, with this track particularly punishing for anyone being too profligate in spending energy.
The second measure is the fact that there are five straight modes: the start/finish straight, the run from La Source to Eau Rouge, the Kemmel Straight, then two zones on the run from Stavelot to the Bus Stop with the Turns 16 and 17 - which encompasses the famous Blanchimont corner - separating those two zones. There had been talk pre-season about there being no active aero deployable on the run from Stavelot, which would have made that part of the lap particularly painful.
While none of this is ideal, the changes made for the Spa weekend do mitigate the problems. And longer term, the FIA has already put in place measures to change the balance of electric to conventional power in two distinct steps, with the potential switch to V8s for the next-generation engine, currently in 2031, offering the reset F1 ideally needs to eliminate all the limitations of the power units.
Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto think it's time to move beyond the complaints when he was asked if the magic of special circuits had been lost.
"I don't think it lost the magic of the sport," Bortoleto said. "I think we should turn the page. We cannot spend three years talking about the same problem. The cars are still fun to drive. It's different. We need to adapt to that."
Ultimately, Spa won't be as painful as the worst predictions from teams and drivers would have it, even though it will be a race weekend where performance is dominated by energy management.
### Williams's transformation from $200m takeover to $2.5b valuation
URL: https://www.the-race.com/business/williams-f1-transformation-dorilton-200-million-dollar-takeover-two-billion-value/
Last updated: 2026-07-15T12:29:42.000Z
When Dorilton Capital purchased Williams in the middle of the COVID pandemic, Formula 1 was in a completely different place. So was Williams.
Dorilton's chairman, Matthew Savage, spearheaded the purchase of the Williams F1 team for around $200million back then. Five years on, it's valued at around $2.5billion. And Savage insists it's not for sale.
"This has always been a long-term investment for us," Savage tells The Race co-founder Darren Cox in an exclusive interview at the Williams Heritage Centre.
"We recognised it would be a long road...it was always a 10- to 20- to 30-year investment horizon for us, and we're still on that pathway."
That patience is being tested by suitors. Savage says he fields calls something like twice a week from parties keen to buy in - institutional investors, high-net-worth families, and the occasional car manufacturer - drawn by a sport he believes now sits alongside the NFL, NBA, Premier League football and Indian Premier League cricket as one of global sport's five biggest league properties.
In Savage's words, Williams was "up against the wall" in terms of finances, which made for a daunting prospect. He says that 154 teams have folded across F1's history.
Without the F1 cost cap - which was ratified in the Concorde Agreement just days before Williams announced the buyout - Dorilton's takeover might never have happened.
Savage estimates the gap between a midfield team such as Williams and the big spenders once ran to roughly $5bn over a decade - a deficit no amount of investment could realistically close. The cap, he reasons, did narrow the field: at certain tracks last season the grid was covered by under a second.
Off the track, another deficit was laid bare. Williams was lacking "basic processes and systems", and Savage says that it wasn't even immediately clear what the F1 car cost to build.
He estimates around two-thirds of a modern F1 team's revenue comes from partnerships, forcing Williams to compete for sponsorship dollars not just with rival teams but with Goliaths from franchises often in other sports.
But the one thing that has stayed the same is Williams's identity. Savage says he was adamant about keeping the team's name, regardless of who was to run it. It was a commitment he made directly to then team principal Claire Williams.
The performance is still unworthy of such an illustrious team - Williams is currently eighth in this year's standings with just 11 points - but Savage and Dorilton are hoping it returns to some sort of form. With constructors' points comes sponsorship.
"If you're in the top three, or Mercedes right now, you're structuring five-year-plus deals at top dollar," he says.
On valuation, Savage sees further upside. With NFL and NBA franchises trading at 10-12 times revenue against roughly seven or eight for F1 teams currently, he expects Williams and its rivals to close that gap in the future.
The on-track performance rears its head repeatedly - and, ultimately, The Race Business asks: how many championships does Savage expect Williams to win in the next six years?
Savage's reply? "Great question. Two."
---
***Listen to the latest, honest, and exclusive, 'In Conversation With...' podcast from The Race Business in which Dorilton Capital chairman Matthew Savage uncovers the business strategy behind transforming the Williams F1 Team, laying bare the team's fortunes then and now.***
[On Apple Podcasts](https://podcasts.apple.com/nl/podcast/race-business-how-williams-went-from-%24200-million-sale/id1495557562?i=1000776453686&l=en-GB&ref=the-race.com)
[On Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/episode/4c49M3N5bpXoIzbW7mrHwT?si=07e9a445302f4050&ref=the-race.com)
[On The Athletic](https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/podcast/269-the-race-f1-podcast/episode-498/?ref=the-race.com)
### The $215million war that will decide F1 2026
URL: https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/why-f1s-upgrade-war-is-so-unusual-in-2026/
Last updated: 2026-07-16T07:40:18.000Z
Formula 1's top teams agree on one thing: that the outcome of this year's title battle is going to be decided by the car upgrade war.
But there are several reasons why this year's development race is shaping up to be quite different from what F1 fans have grown used to.
The evidence from the first half of the season points to teams finding huge chunks of performance when they upgrade their cars.
Under the previous ruleset, diminishing returns at the end of the cycle meant new parts were bringing a few hundredths of a second each time. In 2026, the laptime boost, in a regulatory era that is still so immature, is proving much more powerful - delivering "two to three tenths of a second", according to McLaren team principal Andrea Stella.
Steps of that magnitude are proving to be decisive in the fight for podiums and wins.
Ferrari's Barcelona upgrade helped Lewis Hamilton beat George Russell to victory, while an extensive Red Bull revamp for Austria put Max Verstappen in the thick of the battle there.
Coming out on top in F1's development war has always been crucial to success, and has never been easy - but in 2026 is made extra difficult with a cost cap in place, plus complex technical regulations where the performance of the chassis and the power unit have never been so closely intertwined.
It's even led to a fresh war of words between Ferrari and Mercedes, over the impressive rate at which Ferrari has brought upgrades to its car - which led Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur to call out his Mercedes counterpart Toto Wolff for insinuating that Ferrari is somehow cheating.
Wolff has described Ferrari as being a team that "seems to be limitless" in the way it delivers upgrades, a remark Vasseur interpreted as a suggestion his team is somehow circumventing F1's cost cap.
Vasseur said Ferrari is employing a deliberate strategy of upgrading its car aggressively early in the season so it can enjoy the uplift in performance for the greatest number of races.
Some teams, such as Aston Martin and Williams, are taking the opposite approach, because their initial cars are so slow and overweight that they need more time to develop the right parts at the right cost efficiency to make a material difference to their competitive situation.
Vasseur also feels the way the FIA classifies car upgrades officially in its documentation to the media can create a false impression of how much a car is actually changing based on how the different teams interpret that documenting process.
Since 2022, teams have been required to declare any changes to the shape of any aerodynamic surfaces publicly to the media, and it could be this has potentially created a system whereby different teams classify their changes differently and can give the impression they are either upgrading more parts than they are in reality or vice versa.
## Cost cap domination
F1's cost cap means teams have to come up with a detailed upgrade plan before the start of the season: there's a finite amount of money to spend on improving the car, and it has to last the whole year.
Teams have to work to a $215million spending limit in 2026 and need to figure out how best to spread their resources over the full campaign.
You could opt to front-load your spending and develop the car aggressively early on, as Ferrari is doing, but then have to accept a reduction in upgrade frequency later in the season. Or, much like with the approach Aston Martin and Williams are taking with their overweight cars, hold off spending money early in the season to 'back-load' the spending on what basically amounts to a B-spec car.
Aston Martin's is due to arrive at the Hungarian Grand Prix, just before F1's summer break. Williams will bring its to September's Azerbaijan GP.
The budgetary considerations go hand-in-hand with performance gain targets, so it's now literally about how much bang for your buck you can get. Efficiency is the name of the game, and a successful upgrade plan requires a detailed understanding of the car and how specific parts will influence others.
Top teams used to be able to spend their way out of aerodynamic cul-de-sacs, as they once operated on budgets two or three times the value of the current cost cap. Now, you have to be much more considered and sure of yourself in the development path you choose. There's almost no space left anymore for trial and error, and so teams ruthlessly target specific areas where they estimate the most laptime can come from the least amount of money spent.
Bigger teams have still gained from investing heavily in their infrastructure and processes before the cost cap came in, but now all the teams have to trade off car development against factory development - as both are capped.
For a team such as Williams, which is still trying to recover from decades of underinvestment, the cost cap is critical for ongoing survival but makes the process of actually clawing back the ground lost to the top teams quite challenging.
As Williams chairman Matthew Savage told The Race Business in a rare interview: "We're still making trade-offs between: do we put in a new accounting system or parts of an accounting system, or do we put an upgrade on the car?"
When it comes to car upgrades specifically, there is a key performance indicator used that is based on cost versus performance. In simple terms, a formula will decide how much every dollar of spending should be worth in terms of laptime gain - and any aerodynamic, mechanical and weight-saving changes that fall on the right side of this equation are pursued.
So a super-expensive lighter floor that delivers one tenth of a second performance boost might have to be sacrificed for three minor winglet modifications that deliver four hundredths of a second each, because those three smaller developments adding up to 0.12s might prove more cost-effective.
Smaller teams might also be boxed in by their lack of relative sophistication and have to target smaller, incremental updates. Haas team boss Ayao Komastu said the scale of the upgrade Red Bull brought to Austria would be totally beyond his team.
But whether your F1 team is big or small, the ultra-discipline that comes as a result of this cost versus performance metric means you have to be strategic when it comes to choosing how to unleash upgrades - and especially what to spend the money on.
## Simulators more crucial than ever
Simulation still doesn't beat testing in the real world, but simulators and dynos have progressed to such a degree that the cost efficiency of precise simulation far outweighs whatever inaccuracy remains compared to cost-intensive real-world testing.
Simulators are improving day by day, especially in this era of artificial intelligence that is helping teams make gains in finding more accurate models. They are also increasingly useful for assessing driveability and the real-world impact of tyre degradation. (Though some F1 drivers, such as seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, will tell you simulators are still not as good as the engineers think they are.)
But there is a growing view that technological advancements, particularly in computational fluid dynamics \[CFD\], mean simulation is becoming even more accurate than windtunnels - especially because CFD can more accurately mimic the behaviour of cars when they are transitioning through corners, or experiencing changed tyre dynamics.
Though it must be said, even though CFD has taken on an increasing burden in F1 car development, teams are still committing to building new windtunnels.
McLaren and Aston Martin have both recently opened new facilities on their campuses, while Red Bull is in the process of replacing the ex-Arrows and Jaguar facility it's used throughout its life as an F1 team for an all-new tunnel at its Milton Keynes base.
## Correlation matters more than laptime
What F1 teams dread most is an upgrade that hasn't produced what the simulation models said it would - because that means the correlation is off.
That is something engineers do not like at all. And we've seen teams run into trouble in this regard in 2026, with McLaren and Williams both bringing front wing updates that haven't delivered an immediate performance boost.
Correlation problems mean a mismatch somewhere in your development process that is leading to car parts promising more than they deliver or vice versa. Either way, that fault must be traced or else you will end up lost.
As one team member told The Race: "The main reason why something isn't working as expected is normally as the result of the accuracy of CFD, windtunnel and simulator.
"The priority then will be to go back and work out what has happened. You need to urgently understand what went wrong, fix it, and then you start again.
"If you keep going then you can end up walking blind. If you lose trust in your process, you are done."
This process can be further complicated by how you decide to implement your upgrades: either bringing incremental developments on a race-by-race basis to keep chipping away at improving the car, or hanging fire and delivering a major development package that brings a sizeable performance step in one move.
On face value you'd think the small incremental upgrades would be the low-risk approach, as a team can evaluate every new part that comes on the car to better judge if it's an improvement or not. But this approach has some big downsides, one of which is that bringing lots of new parts frequently is not that cost-efficient.
It also creates the risk of drift. Smaller upgrades are much harder to measure in terms of the amount of performance they can bring to the car, so you can end up changing too much in a short space of time and then lose a proper sense of what's working and what isn't.
As one F1 team member told us: "If you change things little by little, there is a risk you end up slower compared to the others than you were originally - and you don't know why.
"Do a big step all at once, you know if you are slower or faster. Do something 10 times that you cannot assess properly, it's a slow drift."
## Energy starvation complication
There's a different reality F1 teams are facing in 2026 too, in that the speed profile of the cars through corners can have a direct impact on energy deployment on the following straight.
So a through-corner gain in taking a turn flat-out rather than with a small lift could end up costing you more laptime if it means you have not been able to harvest energy into the battery.
That means chasing downforce isn't only about the drag penalty it might bring, but also how it might change your entire power unit energy deployment strategy. Is spending money chasing that extra downforce actually going to be worth it?
The pre-season upgrade plan is only a starting point, and teams need to build in a degree of flexibility. Some of this will be linked to how quickly competitors have come out of the starting blocks and the usual thing in F1 of needing to evaluate alternative concepts or brilliant ideas from rivals that need studying.
Just think of how teams have subsequently introduced exhaust wings this season after Ferrari caught everyone by surprise with the design that appeared in pre-season testing.
Novel ideas are always more likely at the start of a brand new rules cycle, and the FIA will ban these particular exhaust appendages for 2027, so for some teams it won't be worth pursuing at all. But for those in the championship fight, it might become an essential unplanned spend that has to be given the green light even though it only offers a short-term benefit.
There can also be some unexpected external developments, like this year when the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian GPs were called off because of the US/Israel-Iran war. That forced a reshuffle of upgrade plans for a lot of teams.
The living process of the upgrade plan will also need to be adjusted heavily if a team starts the year with a clear and obvious problem. If the car is not working and has a particular issue, then the priority moves away from upgrading and instead shifts to sorting it.
As one engineer told us: "Until you fix it, the rest is irrelevant."
It's a complicated picture at the best of times, but uniquely so with the added complexities of F1 2026.
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