F1 2026

I stopped at “This is not racing. I mean we were slower this weekend, so we were fighting Haas and Alpine the whole race.”
This whole article is just a Verstappen echo chamber.
Verstappen echo chamber you say? Lando reckons there are at least 18, possibly 20, drivers in that same chamber. Here are some quotes from the other drivers...

Lando Norris has said it will no longer be possible to judge who Formula 1's ballsiest racer is because the sport has created cars which need a style of racing "none of us grew up wanting to do."

"There were always curves where the driver had to be brave and push their limits," Alonso said, when asked specifically about Japan's legendary high-speed left-hander corner known as 130R. "That doesn't exist anymore; you use Suzuka's Esses to charge the battery. Different challenge, still fun -- you love racing -- but I grew up in the other one, the one about risking it in the curves, and I prefer that."

After their battle for the win in Melbourne, both Russell and Leclerc had said the newest element of the cars had created a racing style that has traded bravery for strategy.

Like Sergio Perez, who said ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix that he “found it very fake, to be honest.”


“It’s just we’ve come from the best cars ever made in Formula 1, and the nicest to drive to probably the worst, and it sucks, but you have to live with it, and then just maximise what you what you get given.

Asked if this is what F1 ‘is meant to be’, he simply replied: “Not really, no.”

Norris isn’t the only driver who feels that way.

“The rules have been changed because that’s what manufacturers want. But if you have probably 18 other drivers complaining, actually it’s 20, I don’t know what’s better for the sport or not.”

 
Verstappen echo chamber you say? Lando reckons there are at least 18, possibly 20, drivers in that same chamber. Here are some quotes from the other drivers...

Lando Norris has said it will no longer be possible to judge who Formula 1's ballsiest racer is because the sport has created cars which need a style of racing "none of us grew up wanting to do."

"There were always curves where the driver had to be brave and push their limits," Alonso said, when asked specifically about Japan's legendary high-speed left-hander corner known as 130R. "That doesn't exist anymore; you use Suzuka's Esses to charge the battery. Different challenge, still fun -- you love racing -- but I grew up in the other one, the one about risking it in the curves, and I prefer that."

After their battle for the win in Melbourne, both Russell and Leclerc had said the newest element of the cars had created a racing style that has traded bravery for strategy.

Like Sergio Perez, who said ahead of this weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix that he “found it very fake, to be honest.”


“It’s just we’ve come from the best cars ever made in Formula 1, and the nicest to drive to probably the worst, and it sucks, but you have to live with it, and then just maximise what you what you get given.

Asked if this is what F1 ‘is meant to be’, he simply replied: “Not really, no.”

Norris isn’t the only driver who feels that way.

“The rules have been changed because that’s what manufacturers want. But if you have probably 18 other drivers complaining, actually it’s 20, I don’t know what’s better for the sport or not.”

The people moaning are in cars that are running poorly, if they run at all.

The drivers moaned as hard about the groundeffect when first hit, except for Max and Redbull, and all the Max and RB fans said shut it, fix your cars/learn how to drive...

So now...?
 
The people moaning are in cars that are running poorly, if they run at all.

The drivers moaned as hard about the groundeffect when first hit, except for Max and Redbull, and all the Max and RB fans said shut it, fix your cars/learn how to drive...

So now...?

Exactly this.
 
But Max would win in a Minardi starting from the back.
Thats is the point. There is little driver skills involved.
Its a bit early to get proper stats but after 2 races you can already see a tendency.
Go look at the qualifying times. Teammates qualify next to each other, Whether is 1st and 2nd or 14th and 15th.
 
Thats is the point. There is little driver skills involved.
Its a bit early to get proper stats but after 2 races you can already see a tendency.
Go look at the qualifying times. Teammates qualify next to each other, Whether is 1st and 2nd or 14th and 15th.
You can’t argue “there’s little driver skill involved” and promote Max as a “wizard capable of dragging a tractor to victory.” Pick a lane.
 
I think we should go back and look at what the people who are complaining about the cars now were saying in 2022.
regs changed
Max beat Lewis and ended the Lewis Domination era.
and now we have:
Regs changed, Lando beat Max ending the Max Domination era.

so can we all now say Max is washed?
Max should retire he has lost his competative edge.
Max can only win in a dominant car (this is actually true for EVERY driver)


with every regulation change people are unhappy. and people complain.
and people always view their favorite drivers as some sort of step above the rest and then makes claims that driver can do things no other driver can
 
I am a big Max fan, I still think he is the best on the grid but I do wonder what is the issues with the starts? Is it the car, is it him not getting to grips with car setup yet? Seeing him fall so far back on sprint and race, it is crazy to see.

So happy for Kimmi, man everybody liked that!
 
Max is only good when he is in a car designed for this driving style.
I am NOT saying he can only win in a dominant car.
what I am saying is he can only drive one kind of car.
kind of like Riccardo.
Max and Riccardo both liked cars that were front heavy pointy cars to drive.
move Ricardo to Alpine he fails.
Move Ricardo to Mclaren he fails.
Move Albon, Gastly, Perez, Lawson, Tsunoda into the redbull and they fail because they dont drive pointy cars the way Max does.


suddenly we have a new set of regulations that are rear heavy and not at all pointy but rather slide at the back because of the way the harvesting works almost locking the rear up before a corner and Max fails, while Hajar is at least surving.


I am not saying Max is washed.
I am not saying Max should retire.
I am not saying Max will never win again.

I AM saying Max in this regulation is going to be like Lewis in the last regulations. not on top of the regulations at all.

and I would Love to be proven wrong.
but we are going to see a 2 team fight with one team dominate (Mercedes) for the rest of the year (like 2022, 2014, 2009, 2004,2000,1996 and every other first year of regulations
 
But Max would win in a Minardi starting from the back.
Well, who says you wrong, he's not in a Minardi🤣
I think we should go back and look at what the people who are complaining about the cars now were saying in 2022.
regs changed
Max beat Lewis and ended the Lewis Domination era.
and now we have:
Regs changed, Lando beat Max ending the Max Domination era.

so can we all now say Max is washed?
Max should retire he has lost his competative edge.
Max can only win in a dominant car (this is actually true for EVERY driver)


with every regulation change people are unhappy. and people complain.
and people always view their favorite drivers as some sort of step above the rest and then makes claims that driver can do things no other driver can

Ah, Lando didn't beat Max with reg changes, he beat Max in the same regs? Newey leaving RB isn't a reg change haha.
 
After two races, this is what I am seeing:

I think Merc will have this under the belt for the next 2-3 years.

Ferrari to be their main competition during this phase?

Mclaren is a little unknown factor at this point in time. They will either get it together during the latter part of the year or fall off again for a few years.

I don't see RB being able to fight for wins this year. It will probably take them a year or two to understand the engine and rebuild their brain drain they have had the last two years.

5th place on WC standings is looking realistic as even Alpine looks like a better car.

Max might score a podium here or there due to dnf's or just him being able to get the best out of the car.

I also don't think Mazx will be in F1 in 2027. Perhaps go do 24 hour Le Mans etc and come back in 2028 when RB has caught up or perhaps jump into a Merc or Ferrari... Crazy thing is he will only be 30 in 2 years. Both Hamilton and Schumacher had their dominant runs in their 30's.

Alonso surely will retire this year and who knows perhaps Honda and Newey will figure it out and with the tech and money in that team, surely it must click at some point?

I think Audi is a dark horse.... Something brewing there I think.
 
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