Ahead of this weekend's Nürburgring 24 Hours, ESPN is resharing an exclusive interview from 2020 with Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who rewinds the clock to April 15, 2009, and the day he nearly died attempting a new lap record at the Nürburgring's legendary Nordschleife...

The Porsche 911 RSR was doing 189mph when the right rear tyre exploded and spat the car into the steel guardrail at the Fuchsröhre compression.

Toto Wolff had eased off the throttle at that point of the circuit earlier in the day, but for this lap -- the hot lap to end all hot laps -- he had made a pact with his right foot not to lift.

The Nurburgring Nordschleife is a 12.9-mile circuit next to the current Grand Prix circuit. Daimler

Similar acts of bravery would be necessary at a number of points around the Nurburgring's 12.9-mile Nordschleife layout in order to achieve a sub seven-minute lap time, but Fuchsröhre was always going to be one of the most testing corners for both car and driver.

"In today's GT3 cars it would be easy flat, but back then, in that car, it was not easy flat," the Austrian tells ESPN over a Zoom call 11 years later.

"You really have to put your balls on the dashboard ... is that how they say it in English?

"You had to squeeze your arse cheeks and commit."

But when the tyre let go, there was no level of bravery or skill that could save Wolff.

In less than a second, the car spun through 180 degrees, smashed into the steel barriers lining the circuit and recorded an impact of 27G.

Inside the cockpit, all but one of the screws holding the driver's seat in place were ripped from their fixings and the forces involved scrambled the onboard cameras that had been filming the record attempt.

Following the initial hit, the car ricocheted back across the track, turned on its roof and scraped along the opposing guardrail.

Had it breached the barriers and launched into the trees beyond, Toto Wolff's name would have gone no further than the obituary pages of the next day's Wiener Zeitung, but fortunately the car corrected itself and slid back across the track.

Such were the forces involved, that it continued to ping-pong from barrier to barrier for a distance of 250 metres on an uphill section of track before finally coming to a rest near the next chicane.

With no marshals at that part of the circuit, the first news of the mangled Porsche came when the only other car on track, an Audi R8 GT3, radioed to report a stretch of debris and mud littering the track for 100 metres after the Fuchsröhre.

Wolff has no memory of what happened next but when the sole-surviving onboard camera flickered back into life, it recorded him turning off the engine, unclipping his belts, removing the steering wheel and clambering out of the car. He briefly stood by the Porsche's open door and removed his gloves before hauling himself over a nearby crash barrier and collapsing unconscious.

The paramedics were initially confused when they arrived at the scene of the accident and found no driver in the wreckage. It was only when they thought to look on the other side of the barriers that they discovered Wolff lying there with his helmet and HANS device still on.

As the 37-year-old regained consciousness it immediately became clear that he needed to go to hospital. One of his eyes was pointing inward while the other gazed forward and he was displaying multiple symptoms of a heavy concussion.

But to really understand how Wolff -- at that time a successful businessman on the brink of making his name in Formula One -- found himself in the back of an ambulance questioning whether he could still feel his legs, you have to travel back a further 20 years to 1989.

That was when Wolff's love affair with the Nurburgring began, and when one of the most successful team principals in F1 history first experienced motorsport.

"The drivers looked like gladiators to me"

Sebastian Gollnow/picture alliance via Getty Images

In 1989, a 17-year-old Toto Wolff made a stop at the Nurburgring as he drove home from Amsterdam with a couple of school friends. He had no real interest in motorsport, but another friend was racing in Formula 3 and the German circuit made for a useful overnight stop on the way back to Vienna.

"I had no idea about motor racing, to be honest," Wolff says 31 years and six F1 world championships later. "I only knew that a friend of mine, who lived in Switzerland but was an Austrian guy, was doing really well in the junior formulas.

"So on the way back from Amsterdam with a couple of friends we decided to stop at the Nurburgring for one night and watch his race. It was a Saturday when we arrived, but then going into the paddock on Sunday changed my life.

"It was just fantastic to see the atmosphere, the adrenaline -- those drivers in German Formula 3 looked like gladiators to me.

"From then on, it didn't let me go."

Not long after his trip, Wolff saved up two birthday and Christmas presents to pay for a place at the Walter Lechner Racing School at the Osterreichring (now the Red Bull Ring). Showing a decent level of talent and with his foot in the door, he ended up working for the school and living in a nearby farmhouse.

Although his dream of becoming a professional racing driver was never realised, his career behind the wheel still spanned a couple of decades and is best understood by splitting it into two sections.

The first section -- between 1992 and 1994 -- was characterised by lots of ambition but very little money, and saw him compete for three years in Formula Ford at a national level. He showed glimpses of talent throughout, but in mid-1994 his main sponsor pulled the plug on his career after witnessing the worldwide shock caused by a series of nasty accidents in Formula One, including the on-track deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger.

With the dream of a racing career over, Wolff went to work for a bank in Vienna and used that experience to build up his own investment firm, Marchfifteen. By the early 2000s, his success in the world of finance allowed him to return to the track as an amateur racer, mainly in GT cars, which forms the second section of his racing career.

One of the main links connecting Wolff's two racing careers was the Nurburgring 24 Hours, an annual endurance race that takes place on the Nordschleife layout, that he first entered in 1994. He didn't know it at the time, but it was at that 1994 event that the seed was sown for his record attempt in 2009, or as he now calls it "the stupidest thing I've ever done".

"It's the last warzone for racing cars"

A rare photo of Toto Wolff in action at Silverstone in 2002. Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Prior to the 1994 edition of the Nurburging 24 Hours, Wolff had no practical knowledge of the Nordschleife. With no budget to go testing, he decided to arrive several days early at the circuit and join the chaos of a public track day -- or "touristenfahrten" -- when the Nordschleife essentially operates as a toll road.

"The car was an Opel Calibra and I rented it from Hertz at Frankfurt Airport," he recalls. "I drove up there and in the build up to the race I must have done 50 laps in the Opel Calibra when the circuit was open to the public.

"There were some scary moments when you overtake motorbikes or they overtake you and then they get out of the throttle and suddenly you are about to hit them. Then you would come over a crest fast and there would be a tourist bus in the middle of the circuit! I think this is the most dangerous part of Nordschleife.

"Hertz wasn't happy because when I gave the car back it had four bald tyres."

Wolff had an accident in official practice for the 24 Hours, but his shared car still went on to win its class during the race -- one of the crowing achievements of his early racing career.

What's more, the Nordschleife had cast its spell on Wolff. Its crests and corners now occupied a significant part of his mind and would refuse to budge until he returned.

It was unlike any other circuit Wolff had raced on; a rare track where skill counted for nothing if it wasn't matched by an equal dose of bravery. For a racing driver who didn't quite make the grade, it's easy to see the appeal...

"It's the last warzone for racing cars," Wolff says. "I remember people saying that only someone from the Eifel was able to go fast there.

"That's because it was a totally different level of performance and many people who would go fast on the Nordschleife wouldn't be particularly fast on normal tracks and the opposite way round.

"There were many great drivers who were caught out there and there were many who were several seconds off the pace compared to the specialists.

"Obviously my racing career ended and I went into finance and stayed there, but after eight years a friend of mine invited me to a touring car race and that went pretty well, so I started racing as a hobby again.

"Eventually the Nordschleife came back into my mind and there was still something open between me and the Nordschleife. So I started planning to do the 24-hour race in a top car in 2009.

"And in the preparation for that, someone had the funny idea of trying to break the lap record for GT cars there. And I thought, that's a fun idea, I like a challenge."

"No one is interested in the lap record of the Nordschleife"

Niki Lauda warned Toto Wolff against attempting the record. Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team

At the start of 2009, the record for GT cars at the Nordschleife was held by Nuburgring legend Sabine Schmitz and stood at 7:07. There were only two records that were faster at the time; the ultimate record of 6:11, held by Stefan Bellof in a Porsche 956 during qualifying for the 1983 Nurburgring 1000km, and Niki Lauda's Formula One record of 6:58 set during qualifying for the 1975 German Grand Prix (albeit on a longer layout).

Wolff knew he wouldn't get close to Bellof, but a sub seven-minute time was a genuine target.

Lauda, who had nearly lost his life at the circuit in a fiery accident in 1976, was the cousin of Wolff's ex-wife, and naturally the aspiring record holder asked the three-time world champion what he thought of the daring attempt.

"Why would you do that?" Lauda responded. "No one is interested in the lap record of the Nordschleife."

Wolff tried to explain that there was this inextricable bond -- "this open thing" -- between him and the circuit.

Lauda: "Well do what you like, but I think it's idiotic."

"I think I thought he was boring!" Wolff says when he is now asked why he ignored Lauda's advice. "I thought: he's not up for any fun anymore!"

Regardless of Lauda's warning, Wolff was set on the idea of becoming a Nordschleife record holder and on a sunny day in April 2009 he arrived at the circuit ready to put his name in the history books.

"We had a fantastic car -- one of those GT3 Porsches on steroids -- and we went there and straight away from the get go I just loved to drive this crazy fast car around the Nordschleife," Wolff recalls.

"There's a bump called Schwedenkreuz and I had wheelspin over the bump at 285km/h because the car was lifting off over the crest.

"And on the back straight -- the Döttinger Höhe -- where now they do 260 or 265km/h [in a modern GT3 car], there is a kink under the bridge, which is usually easily flat, but it was different when you arrived there at 315km/h!

"Suddenly the kink becomes a little bit more than a kink, but it was still easily flat in that car."

As Wolff refamiliarised himself with the circuit, the lap times started to come down. But while the track conditions were as good as he could have hoped for, it felt like there was something wrong at the rear of the car.

"When we started to do more spicy laps, I felt that the car was not stable in the rear. We tried to work it out because it felt like I had a problem with the rear suspension and it felt like the car was driving too much with the rear. Not oversteer, but it felt like the car wasn't driving straight.

"We checked everything and couldn't find anything. Then we did one test lap before turning the car fully up and attempting the record, and the test lap was a 7:03."

The 7:03 was a new lap record for a GT car and just five seconds off Lauda's F1 record. With the fastest laps yet to come, Wolff was clearly capable of dipping under seven minutes, although the car's handling still wasn't right.

"Again, it felt awkward like there was something wrong with the car. But there was only one run left and I had got used to driving with it, and we just said, let's do it!

"So off I went and already at the beginning of the lap, if you look at the onboard in one of the first corners, I have a massive snap at the rear. I thought, that feels strange but I kept pushing.

"About a minute into the lap, I could see on my dash that I was already five seconds quicker than my last lap, so the time was on target to be a 6:40 -- massively fast!

"So I was driving through what was, back in the day, one of the toughest sections, one of the scariest corners, which is Fuchsröhre, into the compression.

"In today's car with the restricters and with the downforce and the grip level they have, it's flat at about 260km/h, no doubt. But back then it wasn't flat because my car was doing 290km/h down there!

"I didn't do it flat in the test laps, but I was absolutely flat and committed on this lap and from the onboard you can see that I was not lifting.

"But when I was in the compression, the rear right just went.

"It all happened so fast, but I remember exactly that my first impact into the guard rail was at 289km/h, which is an incredible speed to hit the guardrail. I just remember thinking, 'what is that?'

"Then I didn't think about anything anymore, I just hoped to stay on the track and not go over the barrier.

"It took ages until the car came to standstill. I didn't know whether I was upside down or on my wheels, but there was a bit of a moment of relief when I came to a halt.

"And then on the video you can see I unplugged myself, but I don't remember any of that, or jumping over the barrier. Zero.

"Only the people who found me on the other side of the barrier told me what they found -- all the cameras capturing the onboard video were destroyed from the first impact."

"This is when I realised I should probably stop"

Wolff was taken to the same hospital in Adenau where Lauda had been given the last rites in 1976, and while he rode in the ambulance he had something of an epiphany.

"This is when I realised I should probably stop doing these things, because I was struggling to feel my legs a little bit and I had a massive concussion.

"They put me into an MRI at Adenau and I asked them, 'is the spine fine?' The nurse said, 'I'm not authorised to tell you', so that was the worst 15 minutes I can remember as I waited for the doctor to arrive and tell me my spine was fine."

The doctors at Adenau wanted to transfer Wolff to a neurological clinic in Frankfurt, but his personal doctor suggested a better course of action would be to return to Vienna and see the specialists there. An air ambulance was arranged and, due to concerns about his intracranial pressure, it was ordered to fly below 10,000 feet all the way to Austria to protect his brain.

He was diagnosed with heavy concussion and lost his sense of taste and smell for six months while his torn olfactory nerves reconnected. He also struggled lying down for a period of time -- "it felt like I was drunk and the world started to spin round" -- so had to sleep sitting up in bed for nearly a month.

Wolff eventually made a full recovery and, perhaps most importantly for his long-term health, was cured of his obsession with the Nurburgring.

"I was fine but I decided not to return to the Nordschleife anymore," he said. "I love this track and I don't regret a thing, but then I met Niki again -- who before had said that the record attempt was idiotic -- and when I came back and we had dinner again, he simply said 'I told you so'.

"So that was my experience of the Nordschleife."

"I found my peace"

Toto and Susie Wolff have been married since 2011. Steve Etherington

But while one love slipped out of Wolff's life with the accident, another entered.

At the time of the record attempt, Wolff owned 49 percent of HWA, which ran Mercedes' DTM programme, and news of his condition soon reached the team while it was testing in Spain. On hearing the news, the DTM drivers felt they should get in touch with their boss to wish him well and it fell to Wolff's future wife, Susie Stoddart, to pick up the phone and check he was OK.

"Paul di Resta, Gary Paffett and the whole gang were there, and when they heard I'd had a pretty bad accident on the Nordschleife they decided Susie should call me," Wolff says. "So Susie called me and said, 'are you all right? Have you had an accident?' And that was the start of our romance."

Just over two years later, Susie and Toto were married, seemingly ruling out any chance of a competitive return to the Nordschleife.

"Susie holds the veto and she says she won't allow this," Wolff says with a grin creeping across his face. "She's not driven the circuit because she knows what's sensible ... but maybe one day secretly I will go back there."

It's hard to tell if he's joking ...

"I found my peace with the Nordschleife, somehow," he adds.

"This is a story I like to talk about, but my wife doesn't allow me to say I love the Nordschleife. When I say that she says, 'no, you love me and you like the Nordschleife'.

"But, to be honest with you, I still love the Nordschleife."

Verstappen is using one of his weekends free of F1 races to take part in one of the most chaotic endurance races on the planet, driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with teammates Dani Juncadella, Jules Gounon and Lucas Auer.

The event takes place at the legendary 12.9-mile German circuit, nicknamed "The Green Hell," considered one of the most dangerous in all of racing. In preparation for this weekend's event, Verstappen has already taken part in -- and won -- shorter events at the circuit over the past year.

The debut of the four-time world champion -- arguably the most gifted driver of the modern era of motor racing -- has prompted a sellout of the race for the first time ever.

Verstappen's participation in sports car racing has ramped up in recent years as his enjoyment of F1 has gone in the other direction -- his distaste for F1's new cars has fuelled talk that he might walk away from the world championship at the end of 2026, rumours only accelerated by events such as this weekend's.

It isn't just racing fans who are in awe of the Dutchman -- his contemporaries on the F1 grid are amazed at what he's doing, too.

Here's a selection of some of the most standout reactions to his Nürburgring 24 Hours debut so far.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen congratulating Kimi Antonelli after winning the Miami Grand Prix. Photo by James Sutton/LAT Images

Kimi Antonelli

Formula 1's teen sensation and early 2026 championship leader Kimi Antonelli clearly has a long career ahead of him -- he's also formed an early friendship with Verstappen in his short time on the grid.

Antonelli, who's father was a racing driver, would love to double up with the Red Bull driver in some capacity down the line.

"I would love to do an endurance race with Max together," Antonelli said in March. "I think that would be pretty awesome. It's cool because we both have passion for GTs. On my side it came from my dad with the GT team. Occasionally, I go and test when I can."

The 19-year-old revealed that fans can expect to see him trying out the circuit in the near future, too.

"I think it would be a really cool pairing and a really cool experience, but it's something that I've been considering as well. I've already asked for a test at the Nordschleife, for example, because it's a track that I love, and I would love to be able to try it in the real world as well."

Lando Norris

Reigning world champion Lando Norris denied Verstappen a fifth F1 title at last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He said his rival's willingness to do the event says a lot about him as a competitor.

"The fact he can go into any series and be probably the best, I think does show how good he is and how great he is," Norris said about Verstappen's earlier forays into racing there. "I respect a lot what Max does, and I respect Max a lot, like I've always said."

On top of his new status as F1 world champion, Norris shares something else in common with Verstappen -- he loathes F1's new cars and the battery-powered racing that has come with them.

Ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, where Norris finished the race in second, he had a chance to drive a McLaren 720S on the legendary circuit. The "Green Hell" gave him the feeling he's been missing in 2026.

"It was the most fun I've had all year to be honest," Norris said of that experience. "It's a circuit I've driven on Gran Turismo and iRacing. It's one of those tracks that everyone just wants to drive.

"Whether you're a racing driver or not it's just always cool to go and do that because it's so unique. I felt I was lucky. I feel like you can do it in any car and probably have a lot of fun. In the McLaren it's scary and fun. But it was cool that I got to do one of those things.

"As much as I've been in Formula 1 for years and been to the Nürburgring countless times, it was my first opportunity to actually go on the Nordschleife and drive."

The event is being live-streamed online this week. Norris will be among the worldwide audience.

"It's the 24 Hours of Nordschleife, one of the best races in the world," he said. "I'll definitely be tuning in, maybe not for the entire 24 hours, but as much as possible. And of course, I'll be supporting Max because he's a driver I greatly respect."

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George Russell

Verstappen has impressed old friends and foes alike -- even Mercedes driver George Russell, known for having a frosty relationship with the Dutchman from their on-and off-track clashes over the years. "I think it's incredible, to be honest," Russell said last year. "I think we're all pretty jealous of it."

Russell, who came into the season as title favourite but trails teammate Antonelli after four races, said Verstappen's recent sports car participation got the cogs whirring inside his own brain about whether he could attempt similar in the future.

"I did watch Max's race in the Nordschleife. I'd love to do it, without a doubt," he said in China. "I have driven it before; I've driven hundreds of laps on the sim around the Nordschleife. I don't know when the day will be.

"I did once try having a conversation with Toto [Wolff] about putting the [Mercedes] Formula 1 car around there and breaking the all-time lap record.

"Right now, I'm focused on trying to win a Formula 1 world championship and hopefully, when I've got four under my belt, I'll go and race the Nordschleife and during my Formula 1 season too."

Russell's boss Wolff has previous experience at the circuit -- the Austrian crashed at the Nordschleife while attempting to break the lap record in April 2009. "You really have to put your balls on the dashboard," Wolff told ESPN about the challenge facing any driver trying to attempt it.

Max Verstappen will be making his debut at the Nürburgring. Gruppe C Photography // Gruppe C GmbH / Red Bull Content Pool

Pierre Gasly

Speaking last year, after Verstappen's first run at the circuit, former Red Bull teammate Pierre Gasly suggested he wouldn't mind rekindling their partnership in some form down the line.

"I think it's just incredible," the Frenchman said of Verstappen's sports car debut. "Nordschleife is an iconic race track. I think it's just insane. There's nothing that comes close to it, really.

"It's great for Max to have the opportunity to sort of organise these things. I think ultimately it's great. He got to a point where he's got his team, he's got his cars. He's got a nice setup to just go around and actually do this type of racing. I think it's great for the sport. Ultimately, I wouldn't mind joining him in the future on some of this racing."

Esteban Ocon

Haas driver Esteban Ocon is another who wants to do the race in future. Speaking last year, he offered a reminder why so few of Verstappen's peers have found the time to do it.

"To have seen Max going there and winning the race was obviously incredible. No doubt of how good he is," Ocon said. "Remarkable to say the least because we have a very busy schedule -- he's [fighting for] a world championship potentially.

"He's won already four, which helps in his decision on going or not to do other things. But yeah, if I was in his position, I would probably do the same, definitely. But it is not the case!"

Oliver Bearman

Speaking during his rookie season, Oliver Bearman was in awe of Verstappen's first foray into sports car racing last year. "I'm a big fan of Max," the Haas driver said afterwards.

"That was really cool to see. I watched some highlights and I also watched his pole lap where he had to overtake a car on the grass. It was so cool."

Verstappen's appearance at this weekend's race has led to unprecedented interest and a sellout of tickets for the first time the German circuit has held the race.

The four-time Formula 1 world champion is competing with his own team, Verstappen Racing, in a Mercedes-AMG GT3, sharing racing duties with co-drivers Dani Juncadella, Jules Gounon and Lucas Auer.

He does not intend it to be a one-time thing, for him or for his new team.

"One of the biggest races of the year is of course the 24 hours of the Nürburgring, that's why we are here," Verstappen said in an interview on his official website.

"We are entering with a pro lineup and with myself in the lineup, that is really cool. It's also something I want to do every single year, with one car or multiple cars. The main objective and goal is to win races."

Max Verstappen will make his debut this weekend. Photo by Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Verstappen's increasing interest in activities away from F1 come amid growing interest and uncertainty over his participation beyond 2026 in the world championship series.

He hinted after the Japanese Grand Prix at the end of March that he is seriously considering leaving F1 at the end of 2026.

Verstappen has been the most outspoken critic of F1's new cars, which he has likened to Mario Kart and said are "anti-racing," which has only fuelled speculation about his future.

In contrast to his current views on F1, he's said his forays into sports car racing at the Nürburgring (including an event this year to prepare for the 24 Hours) have felt more like the real racing he craves.

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Despite the growing speculation, Verstappen will be in no rush to decide his F1 future.

His Red Bull contract runs until the end of 2028, but multiple sources have told ESPN that he has clauses in his deal which would help him leave this year should certain performance criteria not be met.

Given Red Bull's slow start to the season and its poor performance relative to its main rivals, it seems likely Verstappen will be able to trigger those should he want to. Sources have told ESPN that a decision does not need to be made until October this year.

For now, his focus will be on the iconic race, which will include forays into racing in overnight stints.

"What inspired me the most is that it's one of the best tracks in the world, or the craziest track in the world, in a good way, that you can race at. It is one of these special races that you just want to compete in and win," Verstappen said about the event.

"It's probably going to be the best feeling [racing in the dark]. You're by yourself, pushing in the night. The car is normally fastest in the night, so I'm looking forward to it."

The Nürburgring 24 Hours starts at 3 p.m. local time on Saturday and finishes on Sunday at the same time.

They ran in packs, created long, snaking lines through the two long straightaways and mostly avoided trouble over the frantic final 75 minutes on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5-mile oval.

Conor Daly and Álex Palou took advantage of the cool, overcast conditions to post the fastest laps on the second practice day. Daly posted the best lap of the day at 228.080 mph with Palou just a fraction slower at 228.026. They were the only drivers to top 228, while Palou had the fastest trap speed of the day at 237.220.

"We have, we think, found some speed in other areas," said Jack Harvey, Daly's teammate with Dreyer & Reinbold Racing. "So, generally, they're just all excited to try and I think, I mean I think we were good the last month of May, but I think we can be a lot better this year."

Harvey has been fast all month, though he finished 14th on Wednesday at 225.100.

The weather created ideal conditions for speed and the drivers didn't disappoint.

Daly, the stepson of speedway president Doug Boles, seems to be making the most of his first and possibly only IndyCar start of the season. He was one of five drivers to top 225 on Tuesday, then backed that up with an even better performance Wednesday.

David Malukas was the strongest of Team Penske's drivers, finishing third at 227.139, just behind Palou, the Spaniard who has won four series crowns and is the defending 500 champ. Graham Rahal and France's Romain Grosjean rounded out the top five.

Though most of the 33 drivers stayed on the track as long as they could over the final 75 minutes, crew members for three previous race winners -- Ryan Hunter-Reay, Helio Castroneves and Alexander Rossi -- were also busy trying to fix problems.

Hunter-Reay, of Arrow McLaren, had a radio issue. Castroneves, of Meyer Shank Racing, had an issue with the car's balance, while Rossi's Ed Carpenter Racing crew worked on the engine.

Drivers return to the track Thursday then will receive a turbocharge boost Friday before making four-lap qualification runs on Saturday and Sunday. The race is scheduled for May 24.

It hasn't just been busy on the track.

One day after series officials announced their second rule change of the month, race organizers announced all reserved seats have been sold for the second straight year and the third time since 2016. That also means fans in central Indiana will be able to watch the telecast live.

And NASCAR team BRANDed Management announced it would give 45-year-old British driver Katherine Legge a chance to qualify for the Coca-Cola 600. If Legge qualifies for both races, she'll become the first woman to attempt racing's "double" -- 1,100 miles of racing in one day -- a half century after Janet Guthrie arrived at the Brickyard with the hope of qualifying for the 33-car starting grid. When that didn't happen, Guthrie wound up starting NASCAR's World 600, which is now known as the Coca-Cola 600.

Hey, it's worth a shot.

Grosjean insisted he never intended to fight Armstrong when he said he wanted to hit him during a postrace dust-up on pit lane after the two IndyCar drivers collided during the Indianapolis Grand Prix. Instead, Grosjean called Saturday's clash a misunderstanding in the heat of the moment.

"I'm Swiss," he said when asked if he'd ever punched someone. "I think the whole thing got misinterpreted because some people that had no right to be involved got involved. Marcus crashed into me, got a drive through (penalty) for it, and it ruined my race. It was a top five easy, if not better. So we had the discussion, and I said, 'I want to punch you,' like as a joke, and that's when mechanics got involved and started pushing me back. All I wanted was to speak with Marcus."

But when Grosjean started yelling at Armstrong, his Meyer Shank Racing team members tried to deescalate the situation by stepping between the drivers.

Armstrong still seemed taken aback when he spoke with reporters Tuesday, saying he only wanted to address it one time.

Armstrong acknowledged he'd "dive-bombed" Grosjean's car on the speedway's 14-turn, 2.439-mile road course and suspected Grosjean might be upset by what Armstrong called a clean move. He still seemed surprised someone he considers a friend confronted him in that manner, which caused an unnecessary distraction with this season's biggest race looming on May 24.

So Armstrong made light of the situation, too.

"I'm thinking about taking up boxing," he joked. "But in all seriousness, it's not a problem. We just had a bit of a kerfuffle on track. We kind of made contact and I was fully up alongside him and we made contact, which happens in IndyCar racing, and afterward, he was pretty angry."

Grosjean's frustration is understandable.

The former Formula One driver switched to IndyCars in 2021 and made the podium six times in his first three seasons, including a career-best second four times. He hasn't been in the top three since.

Last year, he made no starts as a reserve driver for Prema Racing, which captured the Indianapolis 500 pole with Robert Shwartzman. This year, Grosjean has started all six races with Dale Coyne Racing with his best finish, eighth, coming in IndyCar's season opener. He's had just one top-20 finish in the last five races and wound up 21st courtesy of Saturday's crash.

"As I say, it's past. I would have just liked (Armstrong to say) 'I apologize, made a mistake. Better drive through. Sorry, I ruined your day.' End of the story."

But the ramifications haven't appeared to linger during this week's practices. Grosjean and Armstrong each seem more concerned with finding speed and preparing for the turbocharged boost of power they'll get Friday, the final practice before this weekend's two qualifying sessions.

Then they'll focus on getting ready for the 500 on May 24 and perhaps the drama of this episode will be forgiven, forgotten and neutralized.

"We're not saving the world, we're entertaining," said Grosjean, who also hit a bird in open testing on Indianapolis Motor Speedway's 2.5-mile oval in late April. "We are passionate. We do things that we're very lucky to do. But if there's no emotion in sports, what's the point of sports?"

After all, with power unit manufacturers operating under a cost cap, such extra funding is enough to not only get Honda back in the mix but also give it the momentum needed for a push to the front over the next few years.

Let's not forget that Honda went from a disastrous modern era return with McLaren from 2015 to 2017 to powering Max Verstappen's first drivers' title win with Red Bull in 2021.

But don't think for a second that Honda's rivals have ignored history and agreed, for the good of F1, to give the Japanese manufacturer a blank chequebook so it can become dominant.

Instead, there are complications and compromises laid down for Honda to get some of the extra cash - plus it will involve some big strategic calls that will impact long-term fortunes.

Honda's helping hand

The changes agreed to help Honda come as part of F1's regulations related to Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO).

This catch-up mechanism was integrated into the 2026 rules to help any manufacturer with a new power unit that was well adrift of the benchmark.

Any manufacturer deemed to be 2% adrift after a defined segment of the 2026 campaign would be allowed an additional engine upgrade for this season and one for the next one.

If any marque was 4% adrift or more, then it would get two development chances this year and two in 2027.

To help make the upgrades for new specification engines, those manufacturers deemed to be qualifying for additional development also get more testing hours and more money.

In terms of test-bench running, manufacturers 2-4% behind get an extra 70 hours, those 4-6% behind get 110 hours, 6-8% behind gets 150 hours and there had been a previous cap of 190 hours for anyone more than 8% off.

That cap has now been lifted, meaning that any manufacturer that is more than 10% off, as Honda appears to be, gets 230 hours extra.

There is a similar sliding scale on cost cap spending too, with two elements making up the potential for Honda to get the total of $19m extra spending.

The first $11m relates to adjustments allowed in the cost cap, which means more spending power for any manufacturer that is granted upgrade concessions.

Previously, the extra cash on hand had been a $3m boost for manufacturers who were deemed to be 2-4% adrift over the season.

It then went all the way up to $8m for manufacturers that were deemed to be behind by more than 8%.

Now what has been agreed is that any manufacturer over 10% off will get an extra $11m.

But there is now also a second element of the cash boost that is a lot more interesting, as it is not a simple hand out.

Instead, it is a type of loan - and Honda is going to have to borrow money off itself from the future.

Borrowing against the future

Worth a maximum of $8m, revised rules allow for a performance-based loan-style system for any manufacturer that is deemed to be behind by more than 10% in its first season.

This available extra spending "on paper" is classified as relief rather than a gift, so has to be paid back.

That is done through reducing the declared cost cap expenditure over the two seasons it is claimed - but it then gets added on to future years beyond that.

In simple terms, spend an extra $8m in 2026 and 2027, and you need to pull back your spending by $8m over the following three years as a consequence.

In theory you are front-loading extra development spending, rather than holding it back for future years when cost cap limits have reset.

How it gets paid back

The rules allow a manufacturer granted this relief the choice of how much extra they want to spend and how it gets split across this season and next.

It must then repay 100% of whatever relief is taken - although there is a degree of freedom in how that repayment is split.

The repayment is spread over the three seasons after it has been spent, but each of those three years must have at least one payment that is somewhere between 20% and 50% of the total amount.

The flexibility of how much a manufacturer chooses to take, and how it then decides to pay it back, means there are many options in terms of how aggressive it wants to be.

It could choose to be balanced and split both the $4m and the payback over the maximum duration.

Here is one example - with N being the current season:

Downward adjustment (relief they take now)

Inaugural season: $4m (50%)
N+1 season: $4m (50%)

Upward adjustment (pay back later)

The manufacturer must spread the full $8m across N+2, N+3, and N+4, with each year getting between 20% and 50%. One possible split:

N+2: $3m (37.5%)
N+3: $2.5m (31.25%)
N+4: $2.5m (31.25%)

Or it could front load the relief and backload paying it back:

Downward adjustment

Inaugural season: $6m (75%)
N+1 season: $2m (25%)

(This gives it more cost-cap breathing room in its very first season.)

Upward adjustment

N+2: $2m (25%)
N+3: $4m (50%)
N+4: $2m (25%)

The rules are explicit that a manufacturer taking the extra spending freedom cannot repay the whole amount in a single year, and that no more than 50% can be paid back in a single season.

So it would not be allowed to use 60% one year and then slash that back to 10% the next.

There will be a price to pay for extra development now that will last for a considerable time - and not be worked around by some clever financial tinkering over a single season.

The choice is then clear for Honda in terms of how much it wants to invest now to make big gains, and how much it wants to hold back so it isn’t left without any development budget in the future.

It could choose to throw everything it can at the present, so it gets itself into a better position as soon as possible, but equally it may conclude that it is better to take things slow and steady and not burn through the cash immediately.

The call on that will first of all depend on how far adrift the FIA deems Honda to be when it makes its first ruling on where each manufacturer stacks up after the Canadian Grand Prix next week.

Only then will Honda know what its real options are.

The new partnership will be the first time that Intel has been directly involved with a team since its tie-up with BMW-Sauber between 2006 and 2009.

Back then its deal involved it not only being a corporate partner but also the integration of its technology through the entire BMW Group. The deal ended when BMW pulled out of F1 at the end of 2009.

Prior to that, Intel had also been involved in smaller deals, which included tie-ups with both Toyota and Williams.

As part of this deal, Intel has become the official compute partner of McLaren's F1 and IndyCar teams with immediate effect.

Intel's logos will appear on the cars of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri from the Canadian Grand Prix next weekend, and will appear on one of its IndyCar entries at the Freedom 250 in Washington in August and at the Indianapolis 500 from next year.

Lip-Bu Tan, Intel's CEO, said the tie-up with McLaren would be beneficial for both parties.

"Formula 1 racing and IndyCar are some of the ultimate proving grounds for high-performance computing," he said.

"Together, Intel and McLaren will push the boundaries of what's possible, transforming data into competitive advantage at every turn."

Intel plans to support McLaren with its data capabilities, as well as provide extra computing power for race-weekend operations.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown added: "Intel has already been an important part of our technology ecosystem, and their leadership in computing will play a critical role in how we design, build, and race our cars. We're excited to deepen this relationship even further."

Planning officers have approved updated work on the new building, with an application having been submitted for the test rig and the provision of an external condenser.

In documents that McLaren submitted to Woking Borough Council as part of the process, architects tor&co stated that the aim of the test rig was to continue to support the F1 team's operations - with expansion needed because the current McLaren Technology Centre factory was full.

It stated: "To ensure the continued success and diversification of the McLaren Group into new markets, new facilities and testing equipment like this test rig need to be accommodated on campus to help facilitate continued growth and to deliver the technical and operational requirements of the group."

The plans are tweaked from ones that had been approved in 2025 as they include a "modest increase in the depth of the test rig extension beneath the existing roof canopy and the relocation of associated condenser plant to a discrete compound adjacent to but physically separate from the extension".

The new test rig area, which measures 143 square metres, will be built beneath the existing south-east roof canopy. The condenser element is required to serve the test rig operations.

Woking Borough Council says work on the new test rig facility must begin within three years.

With on-track running heavily restricted, the use of test rigs has become increasingly important in F1.

Earlier this year, McLaren shipped its new MCL40 to specialist AVL's test rig facilities in Austria for running prior to its debut at the first pre-season test at Barcelona.

Speaking at the time about that decision, team principal Andrea Stella said: "This is common practice now in F1, such that you can sign off some fundamental systems of the car much more than what you can do when you run some of these subsystems like the gearbox in the gearbox rig and dyno that we may have here at MTC [McLaren Technology Centre].

"It's a facility, AVL, that we have been using for some time."

Having more test rig facilities will mean that McLaren has much easier access to tools that can help it improve its car on-site rather than needing to transport things to external partners.

It’s part of F1’s recently announced multi-year deal with Marsh to become its first ‘official risk partner and official insurance brokering partner’. To many, insurance brokering and risk management is far from the most dynamic or exciting industry, meaning ‘The Risk Perspective’ series is a little more innovative than simply putting the name to something that will attract eyeballs. This unusually good fit between sponsor and content concept hints at one of Marsh’s objectives.

“Well, we are quite excited about the work we do,” said John Q Doyle, president and CEO of Marsh, when asked by The Race whether one of the appeals of F1 was to connect an industry that might be perceived as staid to the dynamism of F1. “But this is a great way for us to showcase how important the work that we do is. “Really, no investment happens without advisory work around risk, sometimes risk financing behind it, so the work we do really underpins the economy all over the world. So while it may be underappreciated by some, it is certainly appreciated by us.”

“But it is a great time for us to showcase what it is we do and how important it is, not just to businesses, but to governments and to communities all over the world. We really don't just make companies thrive, we make economies and society a better place too.”Inevitably, there’s more to this partnership, with last month’s announcement referring to “prominent trackside branding and the ability to create curated guest experiences at races around the world”. As F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali says, the Marsh deal is a “sign that Formula 1 is attractive to new categories [of business], new products that before were not even thinking about Formula 1”. That’s part of the Liberty Media success story commercially. 

“We love the brand of F1, the globality of it,” said Doyle. “It’s really a cultural phenomenon all over the world, the growth of the sport. And what you all stand for, we see a lot of parallels from our company, data, insights, the competitive spirit of the racing, managing risk. And from my point of view, I see a relentless pursuit of excellence from F1, and that's how I want Marsh to operate, and that's what we aspire to be.

“It's as complex a macro-operating environment as I've experienced in my career. And so, partnering with F1 is a great way for us to showcase some of the great work that we do on behalf of our clients.”

It is significant that Marsh, the new brand name adopted by Marsh McLennan from January 2026 as part of a wider staged consolidation of its businesses, chose F1 for what it calls its first enterprise-wide global sports partnership. So, too, is the fact it joined the burgeoning ranks of F1 partners over and above either another sport or linking up directly with one of the 11 F1 teams.

“We considered a wide range of possibilities, not just with F1 but other sporting events and other types of sponsorships as well,” said Doyle when asked by The Race about the possibility of a team partnership and what drove the decision. “But we felt like, at the end of the day, all of those attributes, and the community that F1 is, was most attractive for us.”

While ‘The Risk Perspective’ is just a small part of the overall deal, which will have significant B2B benefits in particular with using the F1 environment to connect with clients and decision makers, it’s a B2C element that aimed at tapping into F1’s many fans. And from F1’s perspective, it also demonstrates what it can offer.

“We don’t have to invent the wheel, but we need to make sure that we are connected to what we are really as a product, as a sport,” said Domenicali. “We need to take on so many new customers today and so many new fans that you need to be supportive, to speak the language that you need to be connected with.”

The subject of collaboration between teams has become a hot topic again in F1 with Mercedes interested in taking a financial stake in the Alpine squad.

While Brown’s criticisms of the situation are not aimed directly at Mercedes, he has made clear that his stance against closer ties between squads counts for all parties.

Speaking at the McLaren factory recently, Brown said: "It applies to anybody and everybody. So A/B teams, co-ownership, regardless of who it is, I frown upon it.

"I don't think it's healthy for the sport. But it's not personal or towards any one team or individual."

Now Brown has made his stance more formal in writing a lengthy letter to Ben Sulayem asking him to take action to protect the integrity of F1.

In the six-page letter, a copy of which has been seen by The Race, Brown argues that the financial health of F1 now means that single entities owning multiple squads is not necessary and is unfair on independents.

The letter makes no direct reference to Mercedes and Alpine, and is instead focused entirely on the concept of team partnerships.

"There is a real concern that the sport risks taking a step backwards in terms of integrity and fairness, at a time when the regulatory framework has been designed – with significant collective effort – to move in the opposite direction," wrote Brown.

He cited several examples of circumstances where he believes sporting integrity has been damaged by teams working in alliance – such as Daniel Ricciardo taking the fastest lap for Racing Bulls at the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix to deny McLaren a point there when its driver Lando Norris was fighting Red Bull’s Max Verstappen for the title, and Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson being asked to move aside for Verstappen in the recent Miami GP.

There are also arguments put forward that shared resources, including windtunnels and software, can provide benefits if used across teams that are not available to those working alone.

Furthermore, he questions why McLaren had to wait nine months, and pay compensation for Rob Marshall to move from Red Bull in 2024, while Laurent Mekies was able to switch being team boss from Racing Bulls to Red Bull in a matter of days.

He also says that Andrea Landi’s move from Racing Bulls to Red Bull that will take place on July 1, having been announced on April 17, "reinforces" perception that internal firewalls are not operating in a way that would be accepted between "genuinely independent competitors."

Brown argued that it was a matter of "fairness" that teams had no formal ties.

He wrote: "We need to eliminate any further alliances, whether through ownership, strategic participation or any other equivalent form of control or influence, and we need to work together quickly to start the process of unwinding those already established to ensure that the future integrity of the sport is not compromised."

Brown said in the letter that he would welcome the opportunity to discuss the matter with Ben Sulayem and that McLaren will start working on recommendations for how governance can address issues through changes in the regulations.

The letter finished: "I think the work that the FIA and Liberty have done to create 11 healthy teams, in a cost-controlled environment, has created the most competitive era of Formula 1 ever.

"We believe that, by addressing this remaining structural issue, Formula 1 will be set on an even stronger course, will continue to thrive and be the best the sport has ever been, we just need to make sure we bring total parity and integrity to the sport in every aspect. I am confident we can achieve that together."

Ben Sulayem has already been aware of the concerns expressed by Brown about co-operation between teams. Speaking to media at the Miami Grand Prix he made clear that it was a matter he was looking into.

"I do believe that owning two [teams] is not the right way – this is my personal point of view – but we are looking into that because it’s a complicated area," he was quoted as saying by Reuters.

"We put our people to see, is it possible? Is it allowed? Is it the right thing? There is something called a sporting side. If we lose the sporting spirit, I believe that there will not be any more support [from F1 fans]. So to me, I’m not with it 100%."

The limited-edition collaboration, announced today, includes two different Crocs designs that can be paired with a set of team-themed Jibbitz charms

At the core of the collection is the Crocband Clog which has found inspiration from the team’s Formula One car. The shoe features a front and rear-wing, a raised halo with a helmet, soft tire detailing and finished off with classic Red Bull branding.

The Classic Runner however has been designed more for function, with cushioned comfort, and a gum rubber outsole built for extra grip.

In true Crocs style, fans can also adorn their own pair with Red Bull-themed Jibbitz charms to add an extra layer of personalisation. 

The Red Bull Racing x Crocs Collection will be available for purchase starting May 21st, ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix.

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff has emphasised that Kimi Antonelli will have to play the “long game” by remaining calm in the battle for the Drivers' Championship, after the 19-year-old won three consecutive Grands Prix in China, Japan and Miami.

Following an intense rookie season for Antonelli, the initial expectation ahead of the 2026 season was that the more experienced George Russell would outperform his younger Mercedes team mate, but the Italian has gone on to convert three pole positions – his first coming in China to become the youngest-ever Grand Prix polesitter – into an equal number of victories.

Wolff previously admitted that no one at the team expected such a successful run from Antonelli, as he currently leads the standings with 100 points from the opening four rounds, 20 clear of Russell.

Although Mercedes are eager to celebrate the teenager’s achievements, they also remain acutely aware that it would be easy for him to give into the pressure that comes with finding himself as the one to beat.

“I think all of us collectively that are close to him, we need to keep re-emphasising and repeating the message: this is a long game,” Wolff said after Antonelli’s victory at the Miami Grand Prix. “He has a killer of a team mate that is extremely fast.

“The others are catching up in performance, and we want to play the long game. He can hopefully win many Championships over 10 years, 15 years. We don't want to stumble now with these huge expectations that will sit on him because the moment he has a bad race – which will happen, where he makes a mistake – people will say maybe Kimi is not the one superstar that we thought.

“Let's keep that trajectory. It's a share price that's going up. He's 19 years old. I don't think I was able to take my own flight when I was 19 and slide my way to the terminal of the airport, so it's incredible what he's doing.”

Wolff praised Antonelli for his mature drive to victory in Miami

He also recognised Antonelli’s significant progress since his first campaign in F1, even though none of the youngster’s victories have been entirely straightforward amid tight competition – he has had to recover lost positions throughout several races, and has experienced near-misses such as running deep whilst leading the Chinese Grand Prix.

Wolff explained: “When you think about what we said last year, it's exactly how his performance, how his development happened. We had these great ups and moments of brilliance and then moments where he was allowed to make mistakes.

“We needed to calibrate and continue to mentor him whilst having pressure on him. He's able to analyse it, but then don't overthink it. He compartmentalises it – okay, I made a mistake, I put it away.

“This year we start the season, he's done Grands Prix, he's worked with the team, he knows the pressure that the media puts upon him. Nevertheless, we just really need to stay kind here because such a success for such a young man at that stage, all of Italy will be on him.

"The family and us, we are really the first ones actually to calm [him] down. Marco [Antonelli's father] is pretty good at keeping his son grounded, even when he's winning.”

Formula 1 is many things – the pinnacle of motorsport, a worldwide travelling circus, and even a technological arms race. But every so often, a surprise guest wanders onto the circuit and reminds us that we’re just guests in the natural world.

May is 'Be Kind to Animals Month', so we've rounded up some of the most memorable animal encounters in F1 over the years. From lizards with a strong affinity for the Marina Bay Circuit to the groundhogs that have become the unofficial mascot for the Canadian Grand Prix, here are some of our favourite animals who stole the show during race weekend...

The Canadian groundhogs

Canada's groundhogs have made themselves very much at home at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, with dozens of the furry locals regularly popping up in the grass areas surrounding the track, getting even closer to the action than the ticketholders!

It's quite the lifestyle upgrade for groundhogs over the race weekend. For the other 51 weeks of the year, Ile Notre-Dame – a man-made island – is one of the more peaceful corners of Montreal, a quiet stretch of parkland frequented by joggers, cyclists... and apparently plenty of groundhogs with a taste for motorsport!

The Singapore lizards

Where better to start than with the most famous track invaders of them all – the Singapore lizards. These scaly circuit-crashers have become such a fixture on the Marina Bay street track that drivers have gifted them the nickname 'Godzilla'. Frankly, it's well earned.

The 2024 race weekend provided one of the most memorable moments of them all. With the track marshals in hot pursuit, one particularly rapid lizard put in a shift to set purple sectors of their own.

The Bahrain dog

F1 drivers are a famously dog-loving bunch – walk through any paddock during the season and you're likely to come across one of the drivers’ beloved furry companions. But these devoted dog dads wouldn't hope to find one on a live race circuit...

During the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix weekend, a stray dog managed to find its way onto the track during FP2, bringing the session to a halt with a red flag.

The drivers, however, were rather less panicked, with Sebastian Vettel even breaking into a rendition of Who Let the Dogs Out. Hamilton was understandably a touch more concerned – when his engineer Bono informed him over the radio that there was a dog on track, Hamilton's immediate reply was: "Hope it's not Roscoe" – referring to his beloved late companion.

The Baku cats

If you've ever visited Azerbaijan, you'll know that cats are cherished residents, particularly in Baku – and the F1 paddock is no exception. The furry creatures are often seen roaming around like VIPs, to the delight of drivers – although maybe not track staff!

During the 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, however, there was one particularly adventurous feline that decided the track looked inviting and gave Charles Leclerc a brief scare as it darted out in front of his car. Fortunately, it had the good sense (and speed) to bolt straight back off the circuit again.

And in the 2025 edition of the Grand Prix, another resident stole the show as the Paddock Cat became a social media star in its own right.

The Zandvoort fox

It seems Leclerc has a bit of a habit of attracting unexpected company on track. At the 2025 Dutch Grand Prix, the Ferrari driver had another close encounter during Qualifying, but this time with a fox casually crossing the circuit before disappearing down the escape road.

The dunes surrounding the Zandvoort circuit are natural fox territory, and with the noise and spectacle of an F1 Qualifying session right on their doorstep, who could really blame it for wanting to get up close for a look?

Brave birds

Birds, perhaps unsurprisingly, have very little respect for a Qualifying lap. Over the years, a number of fearless feathered friends have made their presence felt in and around the circuit – and it’s clear that the drivers haven't always known quite what to make of their stunts.

At Zandvoort in 2022, a group of pigeons set up camp on the apex of Turn 7, and despite F1 cars flying past them at close range, they appeared entirely unbothered – George Russell and Alex Albon were less so.

A few years earlier at the 2016 Canadian Grand Prix, Vettel had his reactions tested when some seagulls decided the track was an acceptable place to relax, avoiding the birds with a flick of the steering wheel.

Perhaps the boldest bird of the lot was a francolin bird during Bahrain testing in 2025, who squared up to Esteban Ocon's car in what seemed to be a game of chicken. Spoiler – the bird blinked first...

The Styrian deer

It seems that not every driver needs a moment to compose themselves after a wildlife encounter on track. At the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix, when Juan Pablo Montoya's engineer warned the Colombian over the radio that a deer was on the circuit, his response came with a giggle as he remarked: "Oh deer."

Whether the pit wall appreciated the wordplay quite as much as Montoya did is up for debate, but at least he found himself funny...

The Hungary hare

It's not just F1 that has had its share of unexpected guests either. During a 2022 F2 session at the Hungaroring, a hare found its way onto the circuit – and if there was any doubt about just how quick these animals are, the footage puts that to bed immediately.

The little sprinter kept pace with the cars before eventually diving to safety off track, not before registering what we can only assume was a purple sector. Considering the competition, that's no mean feat.

It's time for Round 8 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship as the drivers prepare to battle for glory in Qualifying for the Dutch Grand Prix.

After yesterday's exhilarating event saw the sim racers compete around the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, they've had a short period of time to reset ahead of the next challenge at the Circuit Zandvoort.

With reigning Drivers' Champion Jarno Opmeer tackling his home race with Red Bull, fans can expect another close-fought session as he and his rivals set their sights on pole position.

Click on the video player above to watch all of the action from Qualifying.

But any fears of being so slow that they wouldn’t reach the 107% cut-off time to make Qualifying, or get lapped several times in a Grand Prix, evaporated quickly. Instead Cadillac hit the ground running in testing and have never looked back to the point that, after just four Grands Prix, the black and white machines have proved strong enough to get in the fight at the back of the midfield.

Their cars have seen the chequered flag seven times in eight attempts – only Mercedes and Ferrari have a better record – and they have started all four Grands Prix with both cars (McLaren, Williams and Audi can't say the same). There have been a fair few little reliability niggles but that is to be expected for a team doing everything from tightening a bolt to running a software system to building a car made up of millions of components for the first time.

Catch all the action from Round 8 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship.

May 14, 2026 12:31pm UTC

Round 8 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship gets underway on Thursday with drivers set to race at the Circuit Zandvoort.

The best sim racers from across the globe will compete against each other over 50% race distance in the Dutch Grand Prix, with reigning Drivers' Champion Jarno Opmeer chasing down victory at his home track.

Representing teams like Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes, he and his rivals are spending the season racing on state-of-the-art simulators to secure the acclaimed title, as well as a share of the $750,000 prize pool.

To watch the livestream of Round 8, click on the video player above.

The 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship continues with Round 9, where the racers will take on the United States Grand Prix.

May 14, 2026 3:32pm UTC

An entertaining two-day event at the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship reaches its conclusion today as the sim racers embark on Round 9, the United States Grand Prix.

After taking on the challenges of Belgium and the Netherlands, the drivers now face the technical layout of the Circuit of The Americas as they bid to finish Event 3 on a high by netting as many points as possible.

They must tackle Qualifying before completing 50% race distance later on Thursday, bringing Round 9 to a close. The next event will take place across May 27-28 at the F1 Media & Technology Centre in Biggin Hill, where this season's champion will be crowned.

To follow along with the action from Qualifying for Round 9, click go on the video player above.

Catch all the action from Round 9 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship.

May 13, 2026 12:51pm UTC

The ninth round of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship gets underway on Thursday with drivers set to race at the Circuit of The Americas.

After competing in two blockbuster races in Belgium and the Netherlands, the best sim racers from around the world must switch their focus to the United States Grand Prix, marking the conclusion of Event 3.

With the Championship and a share of the $750,000 prize pool on the line, Event 4 – the last of the season – is scheduled to take place from May 27-28.

Click on the video player above to follow the action from Round 9.

Verstappen will race at the legendary Nordschleife layout of the circuit this week for CP Racing, driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with teammates Dani Juncadella, Jules Gounon and Lucas Auer.

The event confirmed this week that it has completely sold out of weekend tickets for the first time -- with only limited individual-day tickets remaining for Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Verstappen's participation in the event has dramatically increased interest in the event.

The Dutchman has been a vocal critic of F1's new cars and said that his recent forays into sports car racing at the Nürburgring have reminded him of "what real motorsport is like" and that he was jumping out of the car feeling "happy."

This is the first time Max Verstappen will be competing in the 24 Hours race. Gruppe C Photography // Gruppe C GmbH / Red Bull Content Pool

By contrast, he has compared F1's new cars to Mario Kart and said they are "anti-racing," given the unprecedented focus on battery harvesting and deployment.

Verstappen's F1 future is up in the air. The Red Bull driver has openly talked about the prospect of quitting F1 at the end of the current season.

Sources have told ESPN he does not need to make a decision until October of this year -- it seems likely given Red Bull's poor start to the year and performance relative to its rivals that he will be able to activate performance-related clauses should he want to leave or take a sabbatical.

Red Bull allowed Verstappen to race in a sports car event at the Nürburgring last year to keep him happy at a time when he was already growing frustrated with the state of things in F1.

- 'I'm happy': Verstappen finding joy in his Nürburgring side quest
- Max Verstappen at the Nürburgring 24 Hours 2026: Race and session start times, how to watch, full schedule
- Max Verstappen sees 'light at the end of the tunnel' after qualifying 2nd for Miami GP

The Nürburgring event was first held in 1970.

The circuit used to host F1 races -- the Nordschleife is where Niki Lauda had his infamous nearly fatal crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix.

Due to safety concerns, F1 races at the Nürburgring in recent years were held on the Grand Prix layout. The circuit stood in during the 2020 pandemic-shortened season as the Eifel Grand Prix.

INDIANAPOLIS -- Alex Palou keeps finding ways to reach the top of the IndyCar speed chart -- even when mechanical issues get in the way.

After spending the first four hours of Indianapolis 500 practice struggling to find speed Tuesday, he radioed his crew about a problem on the rear end of the car, then watched his crew members tear apart the No. 10 Honda in Gasoline Alley, searching for a solution.

When the Spaniard returned to the track for the final 30 minutes of work, the defending Indy 500 champion and four-time series champ reclaimed the top spot with a fast lap of 225.937 mph. Just like that, Palou reasserted himself as the race favorite.

"It's good, it's good now," said Palou, who has won three of six races this season and leads the points race. "We had a few little issues, but we found something and it was good to go back out. It was just a shame we had those few little issues."

Palou wouldn't elaborate on exactly what his Chip Ganassi Racing crew members found.

The good news for Palou was that Tuesday's hot, slick, sometimes breezy conditions could serve as a barometer for the expected weather in Sunday's pole qualifying and again on race day, May 24.

The bad news: Palou now will have to test those adjustments in potentially much cooler temperatures Wednesday and Thursday in practice and Friday, when there's a chance of rain on the first day each car receives a turbocharge boost for qualifying weekend. There's also rain in the forecast Saturday's first round of four-lap qualifications.

As usual, the four-time series champ left the track unsatisfied.

"You always want to do a little more," he said.

Palou's fellow drivers would have liked to have done a little more, too.

Marcus Armstrong of Meyer Shank Racing spent most of the six-hour practice session atop the leaderboard with a fast lap of 225.895 - only to watch Palou pass him in the final 30 minutes.

Conor Daly, two-time Indy champ Josef Newgarden and six-time IndyCar champ Scott Dixon, the 2008 race winner, were the only other drivers to top 225 mph on a day the biggest obstacle, at times, seemed to be finding people to run with in traffic.

"Like (Alexander) Rossi sent out an angry group text and was like 'Why is everyone not going out,'" Daly said. "So we were all, there were a lot of us trying to figure out what's going on? But we're going to prioritize more single-car running probably Thursday, once we get closer to Fast Friday."

Andretti Global teammates Kyle Kirkwood and Will Power, the 2018 Indy champ, posted the fastest no-tow speeds at 222.062 and 221.455.

"It was, honestly, almost ideal conditions to qualifying here, a little breezy," Kirkwood said. "I don't know what it's going to look like Saturday. But yeah, it seems like we have something for all conditions."

Helio Castroneves began his fifth attempt to become Indy's first five-time winner with a problematic day. The Brazilian cut a tire about two hours into practice, bringing out an early yellow flag, wound up 15th on the speed chart at 233.332 and posted the slowest no-tow speed among the 33 drivers attempting to make the field at 216.898.

Dennis Hauger's team spent most of the practice session trying to fix a mechanical problem, but the rookie finally made it onto the track and turned six laps, finishing 26th at 221.583.

But it was no accident that some of the fastest drivers two weeks ago in an open test - Palou, Daly, Newgarden and Dixon - were fast again on opening day at Indianapolis.

"The wind is really making things interesting," Daly said. "It seems like over the last couple of years that's the changed the race a lot. I think the fact that the cars are completely different from (turn) one and two and (turn) three and four, I think that creates a really interesting equation for us as drivers."

Official attendance figures for "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing" are not announced, but there are an estimated 275,000 grandstand seats around the 2.5-mile oval and the total crowd, which includes general admission tickets on the infield, reaches an estimated 350,000.

Four-time IndyCar champion Álex Palou is the defending race winner and posted the fastest speed in Tuesday's first practice session.

Race organizers said they believed the final reserved seats for the May 24 race would be sold later Tuesday, marking the second straight year and the third time since 2016 that the grandstands will be full. All badges and passes providing access to pit lane and Gasoline Alley also are sold out.

General admission tickets and a limited number of hospitality tickets are still available and race organizers said reserved seats can still be purchase on the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's official resale marketplace through 4 p.m. on May 20.

Legge's agency, BRANDed Management, announced that she would add the May 24 NASCAR race -- competing in the No. 78 for Live Fast Motorsports -- to her entry in the Indy 500 with A.J. Foyt Motorsports' No. 11 car.

But Legge, 45, also doesn't seem eager to overplay her role as either the first woman or first non-American to make the effort.

"I don't want to be like the first woman, because at the end of the day, I always say I just want to be a race car driver," she said Wednesday. "It doesn't matter whether I'm Black, white, female, male, whatever it may be. I think I'm probably getting the opportunity to do this because I'm female, so that does not escape me and I'm very grateful for it.

"I think being the first to do anything is cool. Being one of the very few who gets to attempt to race at Indy and at Charlotte and then do both on the same day, like looking back in 10, 20 years, like yeah."

Legge is set to enter her fifth Indianapolis 500. Her best finish has been 22nd in 2012; she was 29th last year. She has appeared in eight NASCAR Cup races over the past two years and finished 35th last week at Watkins Glen.

She had been exploring the possibility of trying for the double for the past couple of years, she said.

"I knew that at some point it would be something we looked at doing, but I didn't anticipate it being this year," she said. "I think it's just a very cool opportunity that kind of came up. Obviously, Indianapolis was first, and when that domino fell, there was a lot of talk about it and we thought, why not?"

But nothing is certain. While Legge is one of 33 drivers trying to make the 33-car field in Indy (qualifying will focus on the pole), she will be one of 41 attempting to make the 40-car Coca-Cola 600 field. Yet she is willing to take her chance on making history.

"It might be the only opportunity I get," she said. "It might not be, but I might as well take it while the iron is hot, and it's one of those really cool things not many people get to do."

Five drivers have competed in both races since 1994, with Tony Stewart the only one to complete all 1,100 miles while finishing in the top six in both races in 2001.

In 1976, Janet Guthrie attempted to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 but failed. She then traveled to Charlotte and made her Cup Series debut in the World 600, which is now the Coca-Cola 600, becoming the first woman to compete on a NASCAR superspeedway. She would go on the next year to become the first woman to qualify and race in the Indy 500.

Kyle Larson was the most recent driver to attempt the double. He missed out on starting the NASCAR race in 2024 after the Indy 500 was delayed by rain then crashed out of both races in 2025.

NASCAR changed its guidelines on playoff waivers before the 2025 season, making it more difficult for a full-time driver to attempt the Indianapolis 500 in case they missed making it to the Coca-Cola 600.

We have had the ‘Macarena’ rear wing and the exhaust wing. And it was also the first to run winglets on its halo.

On each of those counts, Ferrari has pushed the boundaries of the regulations to unlock pockets of performance that have left rivals both inquisitive and ready to jump on board with their own imitations.

While none of the ideas are magic bullet solutions that alone will push the team to the front of the grid, they do shine a light on a change of mindset at Maranello under the watch of team boss Fred Vasseur.

Gone is a conservatism where staff often played it safe to not put their head above the parapet for fear of a failure that would expose them.

In came an approach of seeking marginal gains in every area, which has further thrived since the arrival of technical director Loic Serra in October 2024.

In an exclusive interview with The Race, Vasseur says this shift of approach is something that stands out for him – as he had indeed discovered on his arrival that there was too much playing it safe before.

“It's not that there was a culture of fear or blame or whatever - but maybe it was a bit on the back foot,” he said.

“The first thing that shocked me when I joined was the gap that we had on every single topic, just because we didn't want to be exposed.

“Add a kilo more weight [to be safe with the limit], half or litre or more [of fuel], open the sidepod more, one step more. At the end of the day, when you put everything on the table, it was two tenths.

“You can't be at zero [margin]. But between zero and two tenths there is one tenth. And if you consider the average between us and the guy in front of us last year was three hundredths of a second, you can imagine the impact of one tenth on the season.

“This mindset, I'm pushing like hell to convince everybody that they are all a performance contributor. It’s the mindset of Loic, too.”

Vasseur says his push to get everyone to take things closer to the limit includes being open to more extreme ideas that deliver performance in areas that others have not thought of.

“In terms of innovation, it's a message that we have to push everything, all day, to say ‘don't be shy,’” he said.

“If you have something to propose, be open. We never blame someone if you have something to propose and it's not working.

“You’ve seen some examples in the car - and some others will come. They have this mindset that we are pushing them to innovate, and it's of great help.”

Bigger-picture thinking

Vasseur is also a pragmatist, though, and is clear that the success of the mindset at the team is not based on how much innovation is on his car compared to others. What matters is laptime.

“Don't overestimate what I said,” he smiles. “Sometimes you have innovation that you can see, sometimes you have innovation that you will never see because you can see only the aero side.

“Also, the target is not to innovate. The target is to win. Innovation makes sense only if it works. I don't want the wings doing the things [Vasseur flaps hands to imitate the Macarena wing movement] if it’s not paying off.

“I'm quite happy with the job done on this and the mindset, too, because I have the feeling that they feel more free.”

The change of mindset counts also for judging the success of the various departments. It’s no longer simply a case of the engine department coming up with the most horsepower, and the chassis department delivering the most downforce points, and bringing those two elements together.

“As a race team, you could imagine that it's obvious - but it's never obvious. The only KPI [key performance indicator] of the team has to be laptime.

“Too often in a racing team, KPI is [downforce] load for the guys of aero, it's horsepower for the guys of the engine, and they don't care about the weight or the cooling.

“I'm trying to push the message that, collectively, the only KPI is laptime. Innovation is the same.”

Gauging Serra’s impact

Ferrari’s ability to be at the forefront of design tricks in F1 has been helped by Serra joining.

His October 2024 arrival was too late for him to have much of a role in sorting out the fundamentals of the SF-25 – with its direction having been set by predecessor Enrico Cardile, who had left for Aston Martin (via some gardening leave) months before.

Vasseur concedes that Ferrari was “put in the corner” at the start of last year by the ride height problems that triggered its disqualification in China. That prompted conservatism in set-up approaches thereafter and the call to abandon development early and focus everything on 2026.

Serra’s impact was therefore limited in terms of the here and now for 2025.

Vasseur concedes it was not an easy situation for Serra to find himself in, especially with last year’s car having some critical issues.

“When you join an F1 team you need a couple of months,” he said. “It went quite quickly, but it’s difficult also to take care of a project when you are not at the beginning, when decisions have been made and you have to jump on something when you have other projects coming down the pipeline.

“Honestly, the situation was not easy, but he was able to put some focus on operations. And I think it was important for us.

“Sometimes we did a very good job last year at the end of the season, in terms of operation. And it was the best preparation for this year."

The quality that Vasseur says has stood out the most is Serra’s competitiveness – in never accepting anything less than pushing everything to the limit.

“Loic is a competitor with huge experience from racing, from the track, from operation also, with the past at Michelin [Serra was a Michelin engineer until its F1 exit in 2006].

“I think this is a step forward for us. I don’t want to make bad comparisons or whatever. But he's a proper racer, chasing the last fractions of seconds everywhere. It was a good push for the team.”

The development war ahead

Ferrari’s step forward this season has seen it in the fight for podiums, but not yet in a position to win races. But Vasseur is aware the development race will be very aggressive.

“We need to have the mindset this season that we have room [to improve] everywhere,” he said.

“Honestly, I don't know about the others, but we will bring upgrades that, when last year they brought us hundredths of seconds, now it will be by tenths of seconds this year. For me the ratio is one to 10.

“So more than the picture [on track], it will be the capacity of the team to develop, the capacity of the team to understand where we can improve, where the others are doing a better job, why they are doing a better job. It is to be very open-minded on this and to have the capacity to develop.”

And there is one element that rings true about Ferrari being able to capitalise and make the necessary steps: it’s having the right mindset, and the willingness to embrace leftfield ideas that can contribute to progress.

Vasseur adds: “If each time that you are bringing two or three tenths, you are able to anticipate [get ahead] by one race over the season, [it's very beneficial].

"To have the capacity to develop, you need to have the ideas, you need to have the capacity of production. The time to market will be key.”

Ideas is something Ferrari is no longer lacking.

The Pop-Up Hotel will introduce a trackside swimming pool as a part of an expanded Formula 1 hospitality offering at Silverstone this year.

The company, which is best known for their luxury accommodation experiences at Glastonbury Festival, will create a temporary hotel village inside the Silverstone circuit grounds for the F1 weekend, adding a swimming pool and swim-up bar overlooking the track for 2026.

The concept reflects the continued growth of premium hospitality and entertainment-focused experiences around Formula 1 events.

Located close to the paddock, The Pop-Up Hotel’s Silverstone site will include accommodation, restaurants, bars and live programming across the weekend. Guests will be able to watch on-track action from the pool area while remaining within the circuit complex.

The company’s 2025 Silverstone debut attracted guests including Lando Norris, Isack Hadjar and Jenson Button. In 2026, 1992 Formula 1 world champion Nigel Mansell will stay on-site during the weekend and take part in several live events.

“The Pop-Up Hotel is bringing something genuinely different to Silverstone, and I’m really looking forward to staying there this year,” Mansell said.

“To have that level of comfort and hospitality right inside the circuit, with great food, a relaxed atmosphere and everything taken care of, makes a huge difference across a race weekend.”

The Silverstone programme will include a live recording of The Fast and the Curious podcast with Greg James, Betty Glover and Christian Hewgill, alongside appearances from Mansell and former F1 driver Johnny Herbert - co-host of The Race's Stay on Track podcast.

The Pop-Up Hotel founder Mark Sorrill said Formula 1’s continued commercial growth had created opportunities for new forms of race-weekend hospitality.

“Formula 1 is evolving rapidly, and we see a huge opportunity to contribute to that shift,” he said.

“What we’re building at Silverstone isn’t just somewhere to stay, it’s a fully immersive experience.”

For the cheapest offering, fans staying with the Pop-Up Hotel will be looking to spend £3799 for two people, for four nights across the weekend. 

Although general admission GP tickets are not included, the price is inclusive of hospitality parking (plus chauffeur service from the car park), 24-hour reception, concierge, private security, premium bathroom facilities and access to trackside dining.

Ferrari’s has been seen on and off since pre-season testing and has appeared in official practice sessions before being discarded awaiting further development. However, Red Bull has been working on its own version since long before the Ferrari wing appeared. Miami was simply the first time it had been seen in public.

The relevant regulation which has made for this new innovation is around the new-for-2026 straightline mode (SLM), which has replaced the previous Drag Reduction System (DRS). The DRS regulations prescribed how the gap between the mainplane and flap could open.

A moment long overdue after multiple podiums, Button admits he did get to a point where he thought a win might never happen.

So, how did he feel when he finally did cross the finish line and take the chequered flag first?

Speaking to Beyond The Grid host Tom Clarkson, Button talks through the race in great detail, before describing the emotions of that huge milestone, how he celebrated and why it changed him as a driver.

Plus, the 2009 World Champion reflects on when he was at his best in Formula 1, which driver on the current grid he relates to the most, and why drivers are more insecure than we might think.

To listen to this week’s episode, simply hit go on the audio player above or click here to listen via your preferred podcasting platform.

You can also check out a huge selection of previous episodes – spanning every decade of F1 – in our dedicated Beyond The Grid library here.

After tackling events at tracks including China, Japan and Spain, the competitors will head to the F1 Media & Technology Centre in Biggin Hill and set their sights on success at the iconic Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.

With plenty still at stake, the round will begin with Qualifying at 17:30 which – just like in its real-life counterpart – will decide the grid before the race gets underway just a couple of hours later.

To follow Qualifying from Round 7 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship, click on the video player above.

Catch all the action from Round 7 of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship.

May 13, 2026 6:07pm UTC

The seventh round of the 2026 F1 Sim Racing World Championship gets underway on Wednesday, with drivers set to tackle the Belgian Grand Prix.

With an exhilarating season shaping up, the globe's greatest sim racers will continue to represent a selection of F1 teams including Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari in their mission to secure the title and a share of the $750,000 prize pool.

Like the previous event in April, the round will take place at the F1 Media & Technology Centre in Biggin Hill as the esports competitors seek to build their championship points tally over the remaining six rounds.

Click on the video player above to watch the livestream of Round 7.

The 19-year-old Italian clinched his third consecutive career race win from three back-to-back pole positions at the Miami Grand Prix for Mercedes, and he made history in doing so.

He now leads his teammate George Russell by 20 points in the drivers' championship after four races.

Reigning world champion Lando Norris finished second after a clean race in Miami and his teammate Oscar Piastri battled for the final spot on the podium in a heavily upgraded McLaren.

The return of racing action was a chaotic one to say the least, but let's see if Antonelli can continue his winning ways, or if another driver will come into the fight.

So you don't miss a thing, here's everything you need to know for the fifth race of the season.

- Mercedes' Toto Wolff calls on F1 critics to 'hide' after 'great' Miami GP
- Lewis Hamilton to 'back away' from simulator for Canadian GP after Miami struggle
- Juan Pablo Montoya calls for driver penalties amid Max Verstappen's F1 criticism

Kimi Antonelli won the fourth race of the season in Miami. Photo by Luca Martini/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Canadian Grand Prix schedule

All times in BST

Friday, May 22
Practice One: 5.30 p.m. - 6.30 p.m.
Sprint Qualifying: 9.30 p.m. - 10.14 p.m.

Saturday, May 23
Sprint: 5 p.m. - 6 p.m.
Qualifying: 9 p.m. - 10 p.m.

Sunday, May 24
Canadian Grand Prix: 9 p.m.

The start time for Sunday's race was pushed back to 4 p.m. local, 9 p.m. (BST) in an attempt to avoid a clash with the Indianapolis 500, which will take place on the same day.

How to watch

Sky Sports has exclusive F1 rights again in 2026 in the U.K., with every session live on Sky Sports F1. Canada's sessions are also on Sky Sports Main Event.

For non-subscribers, highlights of the Canadian Grand Prix will be on free-to-air television on Channel 4.

In the U.S., subscribers can watch every session on Apple TV, via a new F1 channel on the platform.

The groundhogs always make an appearance in Canada. Rudy Carezzevoli/Getty Images

Canadian GP track: Circuit Gilles Villeneuve

The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is named after the Canadian driver, who tragically lost his life in qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix in 1982. The home hero won the first race held here four years earlier.

The man-made Notre Dame Island is in the middle of the St Lawrence River and was purpose-built for the 1967 Expo 67 World's Fair and was later used for the Montreal Summer Olympics in 1976.

This track tends to be one of the drivers' favourites with two long straights, very tight hairpins and few run off areas. The famous "Wall of Champions" is located at the exit of Turn 14 and was nicknamed in 1999 after the race because three world champions Damon Hill, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve all crashed there in a single weekend.

You can't forget about our wildlife friends. Groundhogs are native to the island and are often seen wandering around the circuit minding their business and having front-row seats to the racing action.

Previous winners

2014: Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull
2015: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2016: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2017: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2018: Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari
2019: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2022: Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2023: Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2024: Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2025: George Russell, Mercedes

Other key stats

First race: 1978

Laps: 70 laps of 4.361km. Total race distance 305km.

Lap record: 1:13.078 Valtteri Bottas (2019)

Most wins: Hamilton and Michael Schumacher with seven wins each. From the current grid, Hamilton (2007, 2010, 2012, 2015-2017, 2019), Fernando Alonso (2006), Verstappen (2022, 2023 and 2024) and Russell (2025) have also won in Canada.

Most poles: Hamilton and Schumacher with six poles each. From the current grid, Fernando Alonso (2006), Hamilton (2007-2008, 2010, 2015-2017), Max Verstappen (2022-2023) and Russell (2024 and 2025).

Weather forecast

The weather is always unpredictable at this circuit and rain always tends to come and it's looking like it will. On Friday through to Sunday the forecast is showing as light rain and winds, with temperatures reaching up to 22 °C.

What happened last year?

Lando Norris walking away from his damaged McLaren. Clive Rose/Getty Images

Mercedes' Russell won the race in Canada after a controlled drive throughout at the front.

Title rivals Norris and Piastri came together for the first time in the season after Norris misjudged an overtake on his McLaren teammate with four laps to go.

Norris retired as a result with front suspension damage and Piastri finished in fourth. The result meant that Piastri extended his lead over the Brit in the drivers' championship to 22 points.

Straight after the incident Norris said over the team radio that it's "all my bad, all my fault" and that it was "stupid."

Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished in second, with Antonelli behind in third.

Who will win this year?

Mercedes has been strong at this circuit for the last few years and it's a track that suits Russell particularly well. The Brit got pole position in 2024, but finished the race in third and said afterwards that it was a "missed opportunity."

He redeemed himself a year later and managed to convert his pole into a race victory. This year, he will be heading to Canada on the back foot, but this could be his chance to close the gap to Antonelli and score some decent points.

Mercedes are also bringing its first major upgrade package, while Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull made some notable improvements last time out in Miami.

- Formula 1 in 2026: Race calendar

Verstappen will race at the legendary Nordschleife layout of the circuit this week for CP Racing, driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with teammates Dani Juncadella, Jules Gounon and Lucas Auer.

The event confirmed this week that it has completely sold out of weekend tickets for the first time -- with only limited individual-day tickets remaining for Thursday, Friday and Sunday.

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Verstappen's participation in the event has dramatically increased interest in the event.

The Dutchman has been a vocal critic of F1's new cars and said that his recent forays into sports car racing at the Nürburgring have reminded him of "what real motorsport is like" and that he was jumping out of the car feeling "happy."

This is the first time Max Verstappen will be competing in the 24 Hours race. Gruppe C Photography // Gruppe C GmbH / Red Bull Content Pool

By contrast, he has compared F1's new cars to Mario Kart and said they are "anti-racing," given the unprecedented focus on battery harvesting and deployment.

Verstappen's F1 future is up in the air. The Red Bull driver has openly talked about the prospect of quitting F1 at the end of the current season.

Sources have told ESPN he does not need to make a decision until October of this year -- it seems likely given Red Bull's poor start to the year and performance relative to its rivals that he will be able to activate performance-related clauses should he want to leave or take a sabbatical.

Red Bull allowed Verstappen to race in a sports car event at the Nürburgring last year to keep him happy at a time when he was already growing frustrated with the state of things in F1.

- 'I'm happy': Verstappen finding joy in his Nürburgring side quest
- Max Verstappen at the Nürburgring 24 Hours 2026: Race and session start times, how to watch, full schedule
- Max Verstappen sees 'light at the end of the tunnel' after qualifying 2nd for Miami GP

The Nürburgring event was first held in 1970.

The circuit used to host F1 races -- the Nordschleife is where Niki Lauda had his infamous nearly fatal crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix.

Due to safety concerns, F1 races at the Nürburgring in recent years were held on the Grand Prix layout. The circuit stood in during the 2020 pandemic-shortened season as the Eifel Grand Prix.

As Ferrari's F1 rivals - McLaren and Red Bull in particular - enjoyed a step forward thanks to major upgrades that arrived as the season resumed in Miami, Hamilton reckoned that an explanation of the shifts in performance came down to choices made in one particular area of the car.

"They - Mercedes, McLaren, and Red Bull - are doing something different with their front wing [compared to us]," he said.

"So we need to look into that to see whether or not there's something we can improve on."

Asked by The Race if this was about the differences between straight and corner mode, or more an overall question of concept, Hamilton replied: "Concept, I think.

"If you just look at everyone else's wing and look at us, you'll see it looks different. So, I don't know if that's necessarily the whole thing, but I wonder what that's doing, because the others seem to have it and they've improved..."

So what has Hamilton spotted and could it be an area in which Ferrari needs to catch up?

It's always very difficult to assess the effects on airflow from what can be seen visually, but what that can do is generate some thoughts about what certain components might do.

Ultimately, every part of an F1 car is important to the performance of the complete package, but the front wing carries just that little bit of a higher priority.

It's the first thing to meet up with the airflow, plus the wake coming off the rear of it is what the rest of the car has to work with. Get it wrong and the rest of the car suffers.

Hamilton may well be correct in his suggestions that Ferrari has missed something with its front wing design, but teams also need to be careful as it's easy to waste your valuable windtunnel and CFD time on blind-alley visual impressions.

So let's look at the top four teams as a comparison, and I have added some highlight lines onto the images to show better where the differences are.

The yellow line is the separation point of the leading edge of the main plane and how it runs into the leading edge of the endplate.

The green line is the trailing edge of the flap assembly.

The small magenta line is the small area between the end of the flaps and the inside of the endplate.

The red is the leading edge of the more-or-less-horizontal vane, commonly known as the diveplane, on the outer surface of the endplate. Ferrari doesn't have one so I have added a red ellipse.

The yellow line is the flow's separation point. This is where the flow decides if it is going under the wing surface or over the top. It is the same with the endplate, where it also decides if it is going around the inside or the outside.

Red Bull has done a lot of detailed work on the integration of the front wing and endplate, and it has also got these two small raised profile sections further inboard. These will influence the airflow in that area to optimise it before it gets to the leading edge of the floor.

Mercedes and the McLaren are very similar, with a reasonable step to the inner lower corner of the endplates. So in reality they have a higher section wing profile further outboard, which should reduce sensitivity mid-corner when the car is in roll.

As for Ferrari, its design is basically the 'simplest' and, as the gap in the yellow highlight line shows, the leading edge of the endplate is further forward than the leading edge of the wing.

It's not as high as the Mercedes or the McLaren and it's not as integrated as the Red Bull, so it is in a bit of no-man's land.

This flow separation point is also influenced by the green highlighted trailing edge. The more aggressive the wing is, the higher that leading edge separation point will be, and basically the more flow will be pulled under the wing with higher flap angles.

McLaren is the most aggressive in this area followed by Ferrari. However, I'm not sure the Ferrari's leading edge and trailing edge complement each other - so the car could be aerodynamically quite sensitive to mid-corner roll.

Mercedes is probably the most benign. The flow structure coming off the trailing edge of its wing will probably be fairly uniform and, with that, it is probably in the best place for finding improvements further rearward.

You could add Red Bull to that category as well, with nothing too dramatic in profile change to instigate any dramatic crossflow.

The small magenta highlight line is there on all of them and this area works in conjunction with the front brake duct. However, it is the smallest on the Ferrari. On the McLaren it is more inclined and integrated with the flap trailing edge.

As for the outer, horizontal-ish vane on the endplates, Red Bull's has more curvature in it - as highlighted by the orange trailing edge line. McLaren and Mercedes are again very similar and Ferrari doesn't have one.

So is this the main element that Ferrari is missing and that Hamilton is referring to, and could that be making a difference?

The answer to that can only come from understanding what the diveplane does.

As the front tyre tries to force its way through the air at speed, that air has to go somewhere. It either goes inside, outside or over the top, and this vane helps it make that decision as it separates the different pressures around the tyre.

Depending on those pressures, below that vane, the air will go inside or outside. Above it, some will do the same and some will be pulled over the top.

If you didn't have it, more of that flow would be pulled around the inside of the tyre, which is not good for flow management to the rest of the car.

This could then be a contributing factor to some weaknesses that have shown up on the Ferrari, especially with Hamilton having referred to the SF-26 having too much drag. But it's not a full answer for the overall package.

I'm not saying Hamilton is correct in his visual assessment, but looking at these four cars I would say that there is more room for improvement on the Ferrari front wing assembly than on the others.

However, as mentioned earlier in this column, it's the flow structure of the complete car that needs to work in harmony. No individual component will turn a sow's ear into a silk purse.

The Italian then sealed another record with his latest triumph in Miami, which marked the first time that a driver has converted their first three pole positions into three consecutive wins.

With 100 points to his name, Antonelli has also enjoyed the strongest points-scoring start to an F1 season in 10 years – and, incidentally, the last time such a feat occurred was via another Mercedes driver…

Antonelli matches Rosberg’s achievement

Antonelli is the first name to record this tally of points after the fourth round of the championship since Nico Rosberg’s succession of victories at the start of 2016.

Having missed out on the title to team mate Lewis Hamilton for two years prior, Rosberg appeared in determined form when the 2016 campaign got underway, earning 100 points by claiming back-to-back wins in Australia, Bahrain, China and Russia.

While Antonelli has taken one fewer Grand Prix victory on a total of three, the youngster’s P2 in Australia coupled with a P5 and P6 in the China and Miami Sprints respectively, brings his total score up to the same number.

Antonelli's run of form has seen him convert his first three pole positions into consecutive victories

Rosberg’s run was disrupted one round later in 2016 after an infamous first-lap collision with Hamilton in Barcelona put both out of the race – and opened the door for a certain Max Verstappen to claim his maiden F1 victory – the Dutchman becoming the youngest-ever race winner at 18 years old.

Fast-forward 10 years and Antonelli just missed out on snatching that particular accolade himself, having to settle for being the second-youngest Grand Prix victor instead when he took his debut win in Shanghai.

But if the statistics in 2026 were to continue to match the rest of Rosberg’s campaign – in which the German went on to clinch the title – the teenager would make history by becoming the sport’s youngest-ever World Champion.

Like Antonelli, Rosberg had scored 100 points after the opening four rounds of the season back in 2016

Mirroring Hamilton’s scoring pattern

In terms of his race finishes across the opening four rounds, Antonelli has matched a pattern achieved by Lewis Hamilton back in 2021.

Kicking off his title defence following his seventh Drivers’ crown in 2020, Hamilton took victory in the Bahrain season-opener – and while he finished second to title rival Max Verstappen at the next round in Imola, Hamilton returned to winning ways in Portugal and Spain.

Holding three victories and one second place from the first four rounds mirrors what Antonelli has achieved in 2026 – but with there having been no Sprints at that stage of the 2021 season, Hamilton’s points total stood at 94, meaning that he held fewer than Antonelli’s tally.

Antonelli singles out 'big point that needs to be improved'Internal link

While Rosberg went on to win the championship in that aforementioned 2016 campaign with a total of nine wins, Hamilton would go on to score eight victories in 2021 but missed out on the World Championship to Verstappen in a dramatic Abu Dhabi finale.

As such, in this instance, if Antonelli continued to match Hamilton’s season then he would not take the title at the end.

Hamilton mirrored Antonelli's pattern of scoring three wins and a second place in the opening stages of 2021, but missed out on the title to Verstappen

Other strong starts to a season

Going back a little further, Hamilton also experienced the same pattern across the opening four rounds of 2015, claiming three Grand Prix victories in Australia, China and Bahrain along with a second place in Malaysia, a race that marked Sebastian Vettel’s maiden win for Ferrari.

This gave the Briton 93 points after those first four races – and ultimately he would beat Rosberg to the World Championship in that campaign, notching up a total of 10 wins.

Similarly, the same results were achieved by Vettel during the first four rounds back in 2011, the Red Bull driver taking 93 points from wins in Australia, Malaysia and Türkiye plus a P2 finish in China.

Antonelli has also matched Vettel's race results from the start of 2011

Again, Vettel went on to clinch what would be the second of his four Drivers’ Championships with a total of 11 victories.

Now, many years later, all eyes are on Antonelli as fans wait to see whether or not the youngster can follow in the footsteps of these illustrious names…

She will represent Standard Chartered – the series’ Official Wealth Management Partner and Official Corporate & Investment Banking Partner – with a specially designed race suit and brand livery on the #77 car.

The 18-year-old previously competed in F1 ACADEMY’s inaugural rookie test last season and will now make her debut, demonstrating Standard Chartered’s commitment to championing female talent and helping develop the next generation in motorsport.

The Wild Card initiative was introduced in 2024 to strengthen the talent pool and provide drivers with experience of race weekends. It has so far produced eight drivers who have gone on to earn full- time seats on the 2026 grid, forming a clear step on the F1 ACADEMY pathway.

Speaking about the opportunity to race as a Wild Card in Canada, Fisher said: “I’m incredibly excited to be joining the F1 ACADEMY grid in Montreal.

“This is a huge moment for me, and I’m grateful to F1 ACADEMY and Standard Chartered for the opportunity. I can’t wait to get on track and make the most of the weekend.”

Susie Wolff, Managing Director of F1 ACADEMY, added: “We were proud to welcome Standard Chartered to F1 ACADEMY earlier this year, and their support of our Wild Card entry in Montreal shows that commitment in action.

“Creating opportunities that expand the pathway is at the heart of what we are building, and partnerships like this help turn ambition into access.

"The Wild Card initiative exists to give emerging talent the platform to step up, and we look forward to seeing Autumn make the most of her debut weekend on the F1 ACADEMY stage.”

Tanuj Kapilashrami, Chief Strategy & Talent Officer at Standard Chartered, added: “We’re incredibly proud to support Autumn as the Standard Chartered Wild Card for Montreal, leveraging our global brand to champion female talent in motorsport through F1 ACADEMY.

“When we invest in women and girls through sport, we’re reshaping what leadership, performance and possibility look like for the next generation. Now is her time! I look forward to joining my Standard Chartered colleagues globally in cheering her on.”

He made his debut last year at the Nürburgring Endurance Series in Germany in the GT3 race and won it in a Ferrari 296 entered by Emil Frey Racing.

Verstappen, 28, will head back to the Nürburgring and compete in the 24-hour race that takes place this weekend. He will race for CP Racing driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo.

It is one of motor racing's toughest endurance tests, and he will be in a team alongside Dani Juncadella, Jules Gounon and Lucas Auer.

So you don't miss a thing, here's everything you need to know for the Nürburgring 24 Hour race.

- 'I'm happy': Verstappen finding joy in his Nürburgring side quest
- Max Verstappen vs. F1's new rules: Every complaint -- and what it means for his future
- In Antonelli, Russell might have met his match -- and F1 might have its new superstar

Max Verstappen will be competing at the Nürburgring 24 Hours for the first time. Photo by Jack Brekelmans/EYE4IMAGES/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Why is Verstappen racing this weekend?

Verstappen has made it known that he is unhappy with F1's controversial new regulations, calling them "anti-racing" and referencing Mario Kart.

He has also recently reflected on his previous experiences at the Nürburgring and said that it reminded him of "what real motorsport is like" and that he was jumping out of the car feeling "happy."

Despite being outspoken this season, he acknowledged that there is "light at the end of the tunnel" for Red Bull after he qualified second last time out at the Miami Grand Prix.

Nürburgring 24 Hours schedule

All times in BST

Thursday, May 14
Qualifying 1: 12.15 p.m. - 2.15 p.m.
Qualifying 2: 7 p.m. - 10.30 p.m.

Friday, May 15
Top Qualifying 1: 9.15 a.m - 9.45 a.m.
Top Qualifying 2: 10.05 a.m. - 10.35 a.m.
Qualifying 3: 11 a.m. - 12.05 p.m.
Top Qualifying 3: 12.35 p.m. - 1.35 p.m.

Saturday, May 16
Warm-up: 9 a.m. - 10 a.m.
Starting Lineup: 11.45 a.m. - 1.40 p.m.
Open Grid: 12.10 p.m. - 1.10 p.m.
Formation Round: 1.40 p.m.
Race Start: 2 p.m.

Sunday, May 17
Race Finish: 2 p.m.

How to watch

The official Nürburgring and Red Bull TV YouTube channels will be covering the weekend live for free.

Nürburgring track

The Nürburgring features two main circuits -- the Nordschleife and the GP-Strecke track. For this race, both circuits will be combined into one big circuit that is 25km long filled with unforgiving blind corners and hills.

In 1968, British driver Jackie Stewart nicknamed the Nordschleife "The Green Hell" after winning the German Grand Prix in horrific weather conditions.

The modern GP-Strecke used to host the German Grand Prix, but it hasn't been on the calendar since 2020.

Previous winners

2020: Rowe Racing, BMW M6 GT3
2021: Manthey Racing, Porsche 911 GT3 R
2022: Audi Sport Team Phoenix, Audi R8 LMS Evo II
2023: Frikadelli Racing Team, Ferrari 296 GT3
2024: Scherer Sport PHX, Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II
2025: ROWE Racing, BMW M Motorsport

Max Verstappen took part last month's NLS2 race, which is a key preparation event ahead of the 24 hour race. Gruppe C Photography // Gruppe C GmbH / Red Bull Content Pool

Other key stats

First race: 1970

Track Length: 25.378km

Lap record: Daniel Keilwitz, 8:08.006 minutes (2023)

Most wins: Timo Bernhard, Pedro Lamy and Marcel Tiemann with five wins each.

Most Laps Completed: 162 laps, Frikadelli Racing Team in 2023.

Weather forecast

To kick-off the weekend, the weather from Thursday through to Saturday is forecast to have highs of 16°C, with light rain on Thursday morning.

On Sunday for the race, the current forecast is showing similar highs as the previous days with cloudy conditions.

Verstappen's other racing ventures

Over the last year, Verstappen has competed in several other racing disciplines aside from F1.

During his debut GT3 race in the Nürburgring Endurance Series in September last year he landed a stunning victory in a Ferrari 296 entered by Emil Frey Racing.

In March, he drove a Mercedes-AMG GT3 through his own team Verstappen Racing in the preliminary NLS2 race which is a four-hour endurance race. He won the race but was later disqualified over a tyre error.

Unfortunately, in F1 speed alone is not enough and there are other problems that mean what’s been the seventh-fastest car on average has produced nothing more than Gabriel Bortoleto’s ninth place in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. That leaves it ninth in the constructors’ championship - rather than in the mix for sixth with Haas and Racing Bulls.

The recent Miami Grand Prix weekend encapsulated the problem, with the Audi R26 leading the four-team midfield gaggle behind the big four and Alpine in both qualifying sessions yet leaving the USA with nothing more than a 12th place in the grand prix.

Unreliability has been the biggest problem. Nico Hulkenberg failed to start the sprint race in Miami after his car caught fire on the way to the grid - the third time in 12 races this year that an Audi has failed to start. Racing director Allan McNish indicated that was more a simple operational error than a fundamental reliability one, with a fluid leak the cause. 

"There was fluid and that went onto the exhaust and [caused] the fire," said McNish when asked by The Race to explain what happened. "There was a problem prior to going out. We thought it had actually been sorted out but it hadn’t been and there was more fluid in there. It’s quite a simplistic explanation."

That’s the kind of mistake that needs to be eliminated. The same applies to the spike in intake air pressure exceeding the 4.8 barA limit that led to Bortoleto being excluded from 11th in the sprint race. This was attributed to high temperatures and described by McNish as "not performance-beneficial", but he also accepted that "the penalty is in or out and that’s the rules".

There were also reliability problems related to the main event. Bortoleto was late starting qualifying, managing only to get one slow lap in thanks to a brake problem that subsequently led to a small fire, after a gearbox-related problem was detected late on. That was partly down to the distraction of Audi having to repair Hulkenberg’s car after his fire. 

The grand prix was short-lived for Hulkenberg, who suffered front wing damage after leaving his nose in on the inside of Carlos Sainz at the first corner, pitted for a new one and then retired after seven laps. This was unrelated to the contact, instead the result of getting stuck in first gear under the safety car, a problem referred to by McNish as a "drivetrain overheating situation".

Bortoleto, meanwhile, drove a strong race but was always up against it when it came to being able to score points. He recovered to 12th place - but as McNish pointed out his performance indicated he would likely have scored points had he started where he should have done on the periphery of the top 10.

"If he had started normally from where he could have qualified, in and around that 11th place, he would have finished in the points. Same with Nico, if we had a clean race there," said McNish.

"Performance-wise, it’s clear that through that first sector we were looking strong. When we came up on traffic, it was not as easy to get past people as we’d like, but hopefully we’re not in the position where we have to overtake them. Gabi drove a really good race, a balanced race, and managed everything pretty well, and I don't really see him being able to finish any higher."

This also showcases problems with what might be called the raceability of the Audi. It’s well-known that the car has start problems thanks to having what is understood to be the largest turbo of the engine manufacturers in F1. That’s good for power, but not for responsiveness. That might also play a part in the difficulty in overtaking, although that’s also related to the characteristics of its ERS that mean it doesn’t have the most efficient deployment. 

While work has been done to improve the starts, with plenty of practice starts in the Monza filming day that took place before Miami and tweaks being worked on within what is permitted to mitigate the problem, it’s characterised as a long-term project to solve this and likely something that will hinder Audi throughout 2026.

However, reliability and operational errors are a more pressing concern. 

"Obviously, we don’t want them, that’s for sure," said McNish when asked by The Race if these aspects are at a lower level than anticipated even for a new engine manufacturer. "But a lot of PU manufacturers are having some issues, it’s not just hitting us. If I look at the starts of Kimi Antonelli, for example, if I look at a few other deployments, there are a lot of areas that everybody is trying to manage and control and also learn about.

"And certainly, we learn about a lot more than some of the others because they are already in the system [of F1] understanding 75% of it. Definitely, we need to tidy up those, there’s no question about it."

Audi can partly be excused for this given it’s new to F1 power unit manufacturing, although given Sauber was a well-established team operational errors in the garage are less excusable. However, some of these problems are likely legacy ones for a team still rebuilding, and that didn’t make the most of its runway into becoming Audi in a deal originally agreed back in 2022.

What’s noticeable is that the problems are generally not recurring ones, which supports the notion that it’s more about Audi hitting troubles it has not encountered before and must learn about. And as Bortoleto pointed out in Miami, that’s partly down to Audi’s accumulation of data relative to some rivals being slowed by not having any customer teams. 

"I don't think we had a single issue that was similar," said Bortoleto when asked by The Race about Audi’s litany of problems. "We had many this weekend, but we haven't had one that was the same. It's just that the first weekend of the year I had zero problems, and then you go to the second weekend, you have three, and then you go and you have zero again. And it keeps going like this.

"Until everyone gets mature with the new regulations, it's not easy to start the season in a good position, and then people create a lot of expectations. But things like this, they are going to happen.

"We are a new manufacturer of engines. We only have two cars. There are teams that are running eight cars with a power unit, so imagine the amount of learning you can get by having that amount of cars. We have only me and Nico, and sometimes one of us is not finishing the race. So we just need to be patient - and when it will be fixed, I'm sure it will be good."

There have been positives for Audi. Its pace has been impressive at times, making it a consistent Q2 car that has also appeared in the final stage of qualifying twice. The power unit performance is credible for a first attempt, and there are upgrades coming in Canada after only introducing some minor updates in Miami to the front brake ducts, front suspension shrouds and the floor edge/diffuser.  

With improved operations and reliability gains, the Audi R26 is a car that has the potential to emerge as a consistent points-scorer as the season progresses.

The scale of the impact of its disrupted start to 2026 became clear in Miami when it was revealed that the major overhaul that appeared on the FW48 was what it had originally intended to bring to the season opener in Melbourne.

As team principal James Vowles explained, failed crash tests that put Williams on the back foot to be ready for the start of the season prompted it to abandon its original-specification plan for the campaign.

That instead meant pulling together an interim solution, albeit one that had weight compromises, and it has taken until now to start getting things back on track.

Speaking to The Race about Williams's early-season decisions, Vowles said: "As we started to fall further and further behind, frankly we just needed to get a car together. So we had to forego this [Miami] update, which was the Melbourne update.

"It's often difficult to fully understand why we couldn't just turn it around. But at the point where you start to fall late, by a few weeks, things catastrophically fall apart.

"You've got to basically create a research point - and this last five weeks has been that - to bring the performance with sufficient quantities and spares that we can make a step forward.

"It would have been a very different start of the season [if the Miami-spec car had made it to Melbourne]. The car still would have been heavy, but there is performance in it.

"Now though there's a backlog of performance items that we have to deliver in a timely fashion."

'Nowhere near' but 'directionally correct'

The Miami package did deliver a clear step in performance, as Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon secured a double-points finish, and Williams is now ready to unleash a series of steps that it hopes can further boost its position in the midfield.

Vowles explained that there will be further development parts for the next race in Canada and then a "larger step" at the Monaco GP.

"There'll then be little dribs and drabs that most people won't see," he added. "And then you'll get to the odd event every four races, where there'll be something tangible."

But while feeling that progress is finally being made, Vowles accepted that Williams has not met the high expectations it set for itself in 2026.

"We're not fools," he said. "We're nowhere near where we want to be. Alpine is still, at this point, a few tenths ahead of us, and that midfield battle is very, very tight.

"But it's directionally correct. And what I'm pleased with is it's not one output, which is Miami. There's a scope of work that goes across pretty much most races, all the way up until post the August break, that will bring performance.

"I have confidence that we'll deliver on that. It's a shame where we started. But I think what it shows me is we're not the same team that we used to be. We're able to dig ourselves out and bring ourselves back to the front."

A game of patience

The step forward Williams made in Miami has been encouraging in the first instance, as the double-points finish highlighted that the team has planted itself firmly in the midfield.

And with it clear that major gains are still to come from reducing weight, there appears to be potential for Williams to close in on Alpine - a fellow Mercedes customer squad, and the clear midfield benchmark right now.

Sainz viewed Miami as something of a reset of ambitions for Williams and a performance that it now needs to build upon.

"We know we still have a lot of weight to shed off the car, so when you look at that then it’s a positive," he said.

"The team has done a great effort over the last few weeks to bring this and it shows that when you do things right, things start to come away a bit better.

"But to Alpine there's still a big gap and to the frontrunners, I cannot even tell you. So we need to put our heads down and from here make this the new baseline and start improving."

Sainz was realistic though that it may take until the closing stages of the year before Williams is where it thinks it can be.

"It's going to take some months to finish the turnaround," he said. "I think we're going to need to get to the last third of the season to see a proper turnaround. But at least the upgrade worked.

"The weight of the car came a bit off but we still know there's a bit to go. We have a few bits and pieces coming for the next couple of races. So we're going to keep the positives and make sure we keep focusing on [improving] the negatives."

Red Bull Racing has launched a new initiative to take fans into the heart of the brand.

Best Seats In The House offers fans the chance to win once-in-a-lifetime experiences, where they won't just be watching the action, they'll become part of it.

The experiences will be available via My Paddock - the freshly redesigned version of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team's fan engagement and digital loyalty programme.

Through a variety of activities such as quizzes, prediction games and engagements, fans can earn points that they can then use to enter competitions for exclusive experiences.

From front-row race viewing and pitlane access to driving experiences, exclusive events, meet-and-greets with F1 drivers Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar and Red Bull parties, Best Seats In The House aims to give the average fan the VIP treatment.

The first experience will take place in Madrid, from June 26-28, where the winner will be flown in for a major Red Bull showrun as the team gears up to take over the city months before it plays host to its first F1 race since 1981.

Future drops will continue throughout 2026, including the Spanish Grand Prix itself in Madrid in September, the Goodwood Festival of Speed and the British GP.

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Paul Gandolfi, chief commercial officer at Red Bull Racing, said: "The energy our fans bring is unmatched. They turn up every race weekend, line the streets at our showruns around the world, and follow every moment on and off track. They give this team so much, and this is our way of giving something back.

"We want to bring fans closer to the team than ever before with experiences only Oracle Red Bull Racing can offer, giving them a way to step inside the action in the craziest ways possible - whether it's racing behind the wheel or getting involved in one of our amazing stunts."

Full details on how to enter each competition will be announced across Red Bull Racing channels and via My Paddock.

Indeed, a quick look at how the order stood at the end of 2025 highlights just how much has changed during the first four rounds of the current campaign, from the shifting positions of the top four through to some dramatic leaps – and falls – in the midfield.

Let’s take a deep dive into the key differences between the 2026 Teams’ Championship so far and the final order just five months ago…

Mercedes topple McLaren as the new leaders

Perhaps the most obvious change is that a new name heads the standings, with Mercedes taking over at the top – and while it might only be one step up from their 2025 finishing position of second, moving into P1 is arguably the most crucial step of all.

The Silver Arrows have racked up a tally of 180 points, having achieved wins at all four rounds so far courtesy of George Russell’s triumph in Australia followed by three on the bounce for Antonelli (who has also become the sport’s youngest-ever leader in the Drivers’ Championship).

Antonelli has led Mercedes' charge, with the Italian sitting at the top of the Drivers' Championship

This performance has given the squad a 70-point lead over closest challengers Ferrari (more on whom shortly), with last year’s champions McLaren now down to third on 94 points. It was not the easiest start for the papaya outfit, marking quite a contrast from the dominance in 2025 that saw them wrap up their second consecutive Teams’ crown with six rounds to spare.

However, signs of promise emerged in Japan and Miami; Oscar Piastri found himself in contention for the win at the former, while Lando Norris battled for victory at the latter as well as returning to the top step in Saturday’s Sprint.

All of which hints that there could be more to come from McLaren, as might be the case for their rivals in the top four…

Last year's champions McLaren enjoyed a stronger weekend in Miami, with Piastri and Norris both reaching the podium

Ferrari go up and Red Bull slip back

While McLaren have dropped two positions, Ferrari have gained two. The Scuderia slipped to fourth at the end of 2025 – their lowest position since 2020 – and were amongst those to switch their focus to preparing for 2026 at an early stage in last year’s campaign.

That decision looks to have paid off, with Ferrari climbing up to P2 following podium finishes across the opening three rounds. However, the outfit faced what boss Fred Vasseur labelled as a “mega tough” Sunday in Miami, a day in which Charles Leclerc also dropped from sixth to eighth post-race due to a penalty.

This suggests that the Scuderia could potentially have their work cut out when it comes to holding onto that P2, what with McLaren’s good showing as well as a much stronger weekend for Max Verstappen in Miami.

The transformative upgrades behind Red Bull's turnaroundInternal link

Which brings us onto another big change at the top of the standings – that being Red Bull’s drop from third to fourth since the end of 2025. In perhaps an opposite case to Ferrari, the Milton Keynes-based squad continued to focus on last year’s campaign through to the end, with Verstappen remaining in the fight for the Drivers' title.

The start of 2026 proved challenging for the team, leaving them down in P6 following Round 3 in Japan. However, significant upgrades in Miami appeared to reap rewards as Verstappen moved closer to the front of the pack, leaving him to suggest that there was “light at the end of the tunnel” going forward.

Alpine the biggest climbers

The greatest leap in the early stages of 2026 has been achieved by Alpine, who ended 2025 at the bottom of the pack with just 22 points to their name – bringing to a close a difficult year for the Enstone-based outfit.

However, like Ferrari, Alpine opted to prioritise 2026 preparations early on last season, leading to them somewhat sacrificing the 2025 campaign in the hopes of being much better placed for the sport’s new era.

The team have certainly found themselves in a much stronger position so far, climbing an impressive five positions to hold the ‘best of the rest’ slot in fifth – and their current total of 23 points is already more than their entire points score from 2025.

Pierre Gasly has had a particularly eye-catching run across the opening rounds, having been responsible for 16 of Alpine’s points tally, while team mate Franco Colapinto is also enjoying better fortunes this year, claiming P7 in Miami to equal his best-ever finish in F1.

Bearing in mind that the total could potentially have been higher had it not been for Gasly’s early crash out of Sunday’s race, it marks a very noteworthy turnaround for the team within the space of a few months.

Gasly and Colapinto have had more to smile about in 2026 amid a solid start to the campaign for Alpine

Haas make gains

Prior to the 2026 season getting underway, Haas were tipped by many as ones to watch in the midfield battle alongside the likes of Alpine.

The campaign has indeed started well for the American squad, who ended 2025 in eighth but are now holding P6 in the standings – and were even placed as high as fourth after the Japanese Grand Prix.

Given that the team continued to bring upgrades until the latter stages of last season, their performance this time around is all the more impressive. Ollie Bearman has also caught the eye on the driver front, delivering several solid results including a P5 in China.

Miami was not such a strong outing for Haas, marking the first weekend so far in which the squad have failed to score points. Similarly, Racing Bulls – another midfield outfit that had enjoyed a good start and now sit just behind Haas in P7 – also faced their first point-less event of 2026.

This all suggests that there could be plenty to keep an eye on as the midfield battle unfolds going forward.

Haas are currently sixth in the standings, having ended 2025 in eighth place

Williams and Aston Martin both lose out

When it comes to those that have made the biggest losses across the opening four rounds of 2026, Williams and Aston Martin are the two main candidates.

The 2025 season had been Williams’ strongest in some time, having claimed an assured fifth in the Teams’ Championship to mark their best finish since 2017. This ascent also saw them collect two podiums along the way via P3 results for Carlos Sainz in Azerbaijan and Qatar.

But things got off to a challenging start for the Grove-based outfit in 2026 when they were forced to miss the Barcelona Shakedown, while the fact that their car arrived overweight into the campaign cost them time once the season got underway – and with only five points so far, they have dropped down to eighth in the standings.

Williams want to live up to 'higher expectations' – SainzInternal link

Aston Martin have also experienced multiple issues so far, including vibrations from their Honda engine and reliability problems. The green-liveried team are yet to score a point and were not classified as finishing a race until Fernando Alonso’s P18 in Japan, meaning that they sit 11th and last in the Teams’ Championship.

However, with both Alonso and Lance Stroll seeing the chequered flag last time out in Miami, the squad will be hoping to build on this improved reliability and start to work on their pace.

In-between Williams and Aston Martin, meanwhile, are Audi and Cadillac, with the former holding P9 – where the former Kick Sauber operation ended 2025 – while the latter outfit are keeping their expectations modest for their debut campaign.

Williams and Aston Martin have slipped backwards following a tough start to 2026 for both

Following a tricky start to the campaign – which, amongst other challenging moments, saw both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri fail to start the Chinese Grand Prix – McLaren hinted at more to come in Japan, where Piastri sealed their first podium of 2026 in second place.

Their fortunes improved further when the campaign resumed in Miami, with Norris winning the Sprint at the wheel of the newly-upgraded MCL40 before both drivers shared the rostrum via a P2 and P3 result in Sunday’s race.

However, when asked if he had seen enough from the team’s performance at the Miami International Autodrome to suggest that they could successfully defend both the Drivers’ and Teams’ titles, Stella exercised caution whilst admitting that this remains the target.

“I think if we now start to consider championships at the end of the season, then I think we need to be a bit careful because we are just at the fourth race,” he explained.

“We have just delivered our first upgrade, we are in Miami and McLaren looks like they traditionally have done very well in Miami, so it could be that the way we develop our cars kind of suits this circuit, so we will have to see more.

Norris and Piastri both returned to the podium at the Miami Grand Prix, finishing second and third behind Antonelli

“But at the same time, because it's only the fourth race and we have scored a good chunk of points even compared to Mercedes, we know that we can further develop our car.

“We have said already before Miami that the championship is not a sign-off, so our logic is to look at the long term, try and defend the championship, but as soon as we say that, we come back in the present and we do the right thing today because there's really not much point in thinking so far forward, but definitely we want to defend the championship.”

Stella went on to praise championship leader Kimi Antonelli, before suggesting that McLaren are “probably the strongest pair” in terms of their driver line-up.

“I think we should really pay credit to the quality of the driving, the consistency, the speed in both a single lap in the race and overall execution. We should pay credit to what Kimi is showing and is actually delivering on track,” said Stella.

“I would have said after testing that George [Russell] was in a stronger position, which was the case until Australia, but for some reason things seem to have turned around. Once again, I think this is thanks to the good work that Kimi must be doing with his engineers and with the people around him.

Stella is confident that McLaren can further develop their car going forward

“There's always a group of people around the driver, and success comes because this synergy works. I think Kimi must be having all these conditions in place. Well done to Kimi, well done to Mercedes.

“At the same time, I think we have seen for McLaren that in Japan, with a car that wasn't competitive yet, Oscar was in condition to fight for the win again and score a podium. Oscar, confirming a podium finish here, and Lando, one win in the Sprint and in the fight for the victory here.

“I think when we look in particular at the Constructors’ Championship, I think we are, from a driver's point of view, probably the strongest pair. We want to capitalise on this strength that we have at McLaren, but we need to make the car a little bit faster.”

After the opening four rounds, McLaren currently sit in third place of the Teams’ Championship on 94 points, while Norris and Piastri are fourth and sixth in the Drivers’ standings with 51 and 43 points respectively.

With the action in Baku (24-26 September) starting a day earlier than usual, internationally acclaimed producer, DJ and songwriter Harris will kick off the anniversary celebrations following the Free Practice sessions on Thursday September 24 with a selection of hits, which include collaborations with Rihanna, The Weeknd and Frank Ocean.

Perry, with over 115 billion streams globally to her name, will join Harris on the entertainment schedule – headlining entertainment in front of racegoers on Friday evening after Qualifying has wrapped up.

“One of the highlights of the landmark program will be a live performance by global superstar Perry in Baku,” organisers said. “As one of the most influential and dynamic figures in the global music scene, the artist will deliver an unforgettable show for thousands of Formula 1 fans during a special evening on September 25.

“The 10th anniversary of the Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix will be remembered not only for the on-track excitement but also for an extraordinary music program in Baku. Perry’s performance will bring unforgettable atmosphere, emotion, and a true festival spirit to thousands of fans throughout the race weekend.”

An award-winning DJ and songwriter, Harris will entertain crowds on the opening day in Baku

Last season’s thrilling round in Baku saw Carlos Sainz narrowly miss out on pole position before achieving his first podium with Williams, crossing the line behind winner Max Verstappen and Mercedes’ George Russell.

With so many other memorable moments to look back on from the last 10 years of racing in Azerbaijan, Thursday’s performance by Harris promises to encompass the event's celebratory atmosphere.

A statement by the race organisers added: “In addition to his commercial success, Harris has received major industry recognition over the course of his career. He is a Grammy Award winner for “We Found Love”, has received six Grammy nominations in total, and has also earned multiple BRIT Awards and MTV Video Music Awards nominations.

“His appearance adds significant international profile to Thursday night’s entertainment program and further strengthens the overall fan experience of this anniversary edition in Baku.”

In the years since, McLaren have gone from struggles towards the back of the grid to winning multiple world titles, with Stella committed to the Woking-based outfit under a long-term contract extension that he signed midway through the 2024 season.

From Max Verstappen to Lewis Hamilton – how long do the drivers’ current deals last?Internal link

“His excellent leadership, expertise and the respect he holds within the team and Formula 1 means we could not have a better person in place to continue the pursuit of consistently fighting at the front of the grid,” said Brown after the renewal.

“His impact on McLaren F1 in his role as Team Principal has been profound, not only through our results on track and the trajectory of the team but also in his development of our culture and mindset.”

Mercedes

Toto Wolff

After a spell at Williams, former racing driver Toto Wolff became a Managing Partner of Mercedes in 2013, as well as acquiring a 30% stake in the outfit. Still at the helm today, he is now the longest-serving current team boss in the sport.

Wolff oversaw an incredible run of success under F1’s turbo-hybrid regulations, with the Silver Arrows winning both the Drivers’ and Teams’ Championships every season from 2014 to 2020, and earning the Teams’ crown in 2021.

In January 2024, Wolff agreed a new three-year deal to remain in charge at Mercedes, keeping him in place for the start of F1’s latest rules reset, which the team have so far aced to lead the Drivers’ and Teams’ Championships once more.

Referencing fellow team co-owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe (of Ineos) and Ola Kallenius (of Mercedes-Benz) upon signing that extension, Wolff said: “I think the most important thing between the three of us is that we trust each other. At the end of the day, as a shareholder myself, I want the best return on investment. And the best return on investment is winning.

“I’m not going to try to hang on to a position that I think somebody is going to do better than me. I make sure that I have people around who can tell me otherwise. In the end the three of us decided: ‘Let’s do it again’.”

Wolff is also supported by long-time Mercedes F1 communications chief Bradley Lord, who recently assumed the role of Deputy Team Principal.

Red Bull

Laurent Mekies

Laurent Mekies took on team boss duties at Red Bull midway through 2025, in place of Christian Horner, having carried out the same role with their sister team, Racing Bulls, up until that point. He previously held roles at Arrows, Minardi/Toro Rosso, F1 governing body the FIA, and Ferrari.

Mekies steadied the ship after Red Bull’s difficult start to the aforementioned campaign, resulting in a second-half resurgence with Max Verstappen that came just two points shy of a remarkable title win, and then guided the team into their first term without Horner at the helm.

While Red Bull have seen several key figures leave for rival outfits in recent times, and are due to lose another in Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase by 2028, Mekies has been tasked with writing a new chapter of success in the years to come.

“There is only one desire at Red Bull, and it goes from the board to anybody – they are here to fight for wins and fight for championships, so that’s what naturally the target is,” said Mekies shortly after he was installed as Team Principal.

“It’s not the new target, it’s just a renewed commitment from the team and from the group, to say, ‘We’ll do everything we need to do to continue doing so in the future’.”

Ferrari

Fred Vasseur

Fred Vasseur arrived as Ferrari’s team boss in 2023, building on periods in charge with Renault in 2016 and Sauber/Alfa Romeo between 2017 and 2022, as well as the junior championship-winning ART Grand Prix outfit he co-founded with Nicolas Todt.

While the Scuderia are still yet to end a title drought stretching back to 2008, which has led to occasional speculation over Vasseur’s future, the famous marque reiterated their belief in the Frenchman by handing him a new multi-year contract last summer.

“His ability to lead under pressure, embrace innovation and pursue performance aligns fully with Ferrari’s values and long-term ambitions,” read a statement from Ferrari announcing Vasseur’s new deal.

“Under Fred’s leadership, Ferrari is united, focused and committed to continuous improvement. The trust placed in him reflects the team’s confidence in its strategic direction and reinforces a shared determination to deliver the results that Ferrari’s fans, drivers and team members expect and deserve.”

Vasseur himself added: “We know what’s expected, and we’re all fully committed to meeting those expectations and taking the next step forward together.”

Williams

James Vowles

James Vowles became a Team Principal for the first time with Williams in 2023 – making the step after some two decades at ‘Team Brackley’, where he started out as an engineer for BAR and steadily climbed the ranks through their Honda, Brawn GP and Mercedes guises.

After years of disappointing results for Williams, Vowles worked hard behind the scenes to get them back on a path to race- and title-winning ways, with 2025 bringing an impressive rise to fifth in the Teams’ Championship behind the ‘big four’ squads of McLaren, Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari.

Before that position was secured, Vowles signed a new long-term contract to continue as team boss, commenting: “This iconic team has already given me some incredible memories and we are all united in our ambition to build on our legacy and win World Championships again.

“Over the past two years we have focused on fixing the foundations, and now have a platform to go for glory in the years to come.”

Matthew Savage, Chairman of Williams and owners Dorilton Capital, added that Vowles “has brought experience, energy and strategic leadership to the task of restoring Williams to the top step of the podium.

“We aren’t there yet but you can sense the momentum we are building at Grove and are excited about what lies ahead.”

Racing Bulls

Alan Permane

Alan Permane was handed the reins at Racing Bulls following Mekies’ promotion to the senior Red Bull team. A hugely experienced F1 figure, he previously spent more than 30 years at Enstone under the various Benetton, Renault, Lotus and Alpine monikers.

“Alan is the perfect man to take over now and continue our path,” said Mekies during their Racing Bulls/Red Bull handover. “He knows the team inside out and has always been an important pillar of our early successes.”

“It’s not something that’s ever been on my radar, but when Red Bull come knocking, you can’t say no, and it’s a fantastic opportunity, of course, for me,” Permane smiled after stepping into hot seat.

Half a year on, via a strong sixth-place classification in the 2025 Teams’ Championship, Permane said of his developing role: “I’m loving it. It’s certainly a little bit easier now that I’ve had some time under my belt, let’s say, after the shock of it all happening so quickly!”

Aston Martin

Adrian Newey

The latest in a long line of managerial changes at Aston Martin over recent seasons, F1 design guru Adrian Newey added Team Principal duties to his existing role of Managing Technical Partner just a few months after joining the squad last March.

Newey boasts more than 200 Grand Prix victories, and 14 Drivers’ and 12 Constructors’ titles, across stints at Williams, McLaren and Red Bull, but like Vowles and Permane above, it is the first time he has led an F1 operation.

“I’m looking forward to taking on this additional role as we put ourselves in the best possible position to compete in 2026, where we will face an entirely new position with Aston Martin now a works team combined with the considerable challenge faced by the new regulations,” said the Briton, who took over from previous team boss Andy Cowell.

Despite this excitement, and plenty of hype around his potential impact at the team, Newey has faced significant challenges since taking on the position, with Aston Martin and new power unit partners Honda struggling to adapt to F1’s new regulations.

Haas

Ayao Komatsu

Haas dropped a bombshell on the eve of the 2024 season when they announced that Guenther Steiner – who had led the team since their F1 debut in 2016 – was leaving with immediate effect, and would be replaced by Ayao Komatsu.

Komatsu had also worked with Haas since they arrived on the F1 grid, starting as Chief Race Engineer and progressing to Director of Engineering – the Japanese previously holding roles with BAR and Renault across some 20 years in the sport.

“Moving forward as an organisation, it was clear we need to improve our on-track performances,” said team owner Gene Haas after the change was made. “In appointing Ayao Komatsu as Team Principal, we fundamentally have engineering at the heart of our management.

“We have had some successes, but we need to be consistent in delivering results that help us reach our wider goals as an organisation. We need to be efficient with the resources we have, but improving our design and engineering capability is key to our success as a team.

“I’m looking forward to working with Ayao and fundamentally ensuring that we maximise our potential – this truly reflects my desire to compete properly in Formula 1.”

Haas moved from the bottom of the Teams’ Championship to seventh in Komatsu’s first season, followed by eighth in 2025, and a particularly strong start to 2026 – under F1’s new regulations – saw them hold P4 after the first three rounds.

Audi

Mattia Binotto / Allan McNish

Audi headed into their first F1 season – after taking over the Kick Sauber entry – with Jonathan Wheatley as Team Principal, but a shock announcement after the opening double-header in Australia and China earlier this year confirmed his sudden exit from the operation.

“It has been very fast, very unexpected for the entire team,” admitted Head of Audi F1 Project Mattia Binotto. “It has been really a sudden departure, a sudden change. I don’t think there is much we can say. He [Wheatley] has spoken to our CEO, the board of the team, mentioning that he couldn’t commit to the long-term for private reasons that we cannot judge or comment on.

“We decided as Audi, given that he couldn’t commit, to release him from duties. I don’t think that as a team we have realised it yet. When such changes are happening, big changes, you certainly first need to realise and to understand the impact and organise yourself.”

Binotto and Wheatley had been operating a dual leadership structure at Audi, with Binotto in charge of the overall project, including the chassis and power unit factories in Switzerland and Germany respectively, while Wheatley ran the race team at track.

Binotto confirmed that Audi would need to find a replacement Team Principal to take over trackside duties and enable him to focus on factory work – with former F1 driver and long-time associate of the brand Allan McNish subsequently being appointed as their new Racing Director.

Alpine

Flavio Briatore / Steve Nielsen

Flavio Briatore returned to F1 as Alpine’s Executive Advisor in 2024 and, following the exit of Oliver Oakes in early 2025, also took on Team Principal duties. Steve Nielsen joined as Managing Director last September to run the squad on a day-to-day basis.

Both were previously involved at Enstone, with Nielsen describing the factory as “the key ingredient” to success in the future. “It’s got all the infrastructure it needs and it’s our job to focus that and make sure the product we put on the track is the best it can be,” he said after his arrival.

Boasting experience at a host of other teams, as well as the FIA and F1, Nielsen added: “It was always a people business and it still is a people business now. You have to have the right people in the right places. You have to make them understand where their role fits in the projects. You have to give them consistent and coherent management, and then you have to be patient.

“A lot of people imagine there’s a silver bullet to something – tinker with the suspension or something and the car will go quicker. It’s not like that. It’s a very slow grinding process in the wind tunnel and the design offices, and gradually you iterate towards a better car, but it takes time.”

Alpine made a strong start under F1’s new-for-2026 regulations, climbing from the foot of the standings to fifth over the first four rounds, marking the first step in Briatore and Nielsen’s long-term plan of ‘Team Enstone’ fighting for more wins and titles.

Cadillac

Graeme Lowdon

Cadillac became F1’s 11th team in 2026, with the American automotive brand – who sit under the General Motors umbrella – arriving as an all-new entry, and putting their trust in former Virgin Racing/Marussia team boss Graeme Lowdon to lead them through their adaptation to the sport.

“I believe that Formula 1 is the greatest team sport in the world, and teams are all about people,” said Lowdon upon his arrival. “This is a team with a real love for, and desire to go, racing, and we have the experience and expertise to do just that. Racing is at the very heart of everything that we do.

“This is what I want to see in a team, and I really want to be part of it. I don’t underestimate the task ahead and I have the utmost respect for the competition. I look forward to the challenge of racing. In the meantime, our work continues at pace.”

General Motors President Mark Reuss added that Lowdon “has great racing expertise, he knows how to assemble a high-performing team, and he embodies the values the Cadillac Formula 1 Team will represent in all its endeavours, on or off the track.”

Lowdon is supported by Dan Towriss, CEO of the TWG Motorsports division who partnered with General Motors to create the Cadillac F1 project.

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said he would force the change through by 2031 if needed, but remains optimistic he will gain agreement from power unit manufacturers to make the switch a year earlier.

The plans have received early backing from current championship leaders Mercedes.

"It's coming. At the end of the day, it's a matter of time," Ben Sulayem told Reuters ahead of Sunday's Miami Grand Prix.

"In ​2031, the V8, the FIA will have the power to do it, without any votes from the PUMs [Power ​Unit Manufacturers]. That's the regulations.

"But we want to bring it one year earlier, which everyone ⁠now is asking for."

Mohammed Ben Sulayem is hoping to implement the engine change by 2030. Photo by Reginald Mathalone/NurPhoto via Getty Images

F1 cars have been powered by V6 turbo-hybrids since 2014, but this year the sport upped the amount of electrical power on offer to nearly 50% of the peak power output.

The latest generation of hybrid engines have proved controversial, with four-time champion Max Verstappen labelling them "anti-racing" and multiple drivers comparing the battery-boosted racing to Mario Kart.

The need to recharge the battery multiple times on qualifying laps has also proved unpopular, and world champion Lando Norris said changes made ahead of the Miami Grand Prix to address the issue had not gone far enough.

Even before the introduction of the current power units, Ben Sulayem floated the idea of a return to either naturally aspirated V10s or V8s that would be more in line with the high-revving engines of the 2000s.

He has since settled on the idea of V8s, and while he said some hybrid element would remain, he promised the return of better sounding, simpler engines.

"You get the sound, less complexity, lightweight," Ben ⁠Sulayem said of V8s. "You will hear about it very soon and it will be ​with a very, very minor electrification.

"I'm positive, they [power unit manufacturers] want it to happen. But let's say the manufacturers don't approve it [for 2030]. The next year, it ​will happen. In 2031 its done anyway. It will be done. V8 is coming."

Ben Sulayem said a change would be possible before 2031 if four of the six power unit manufacturers in F1 [which includes future engine manufacturer Cadillac] agree.

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Toto Wolff, whose Mercedes team has made the strongest start under the latest set of regulations, said he was open to change, but warned F1 might look "ridiculous" if it completely ditches an electrical element heading into the next decade.

"From a Mercedes standpoint, we are open to new engine regulations," Wolff said after Sunday's race. "We love V8s, it has only great memories, and from our perspective, it's a pure Mercedes engine, it revs high.

"But how do we give it enough energy from the battery side to not lose connection to the real world? Because if we swing 100% combustion, it might be looking a bit ridiculous in 2031 or 2030.

"We need to consider that, make it simpler and make it a mega engine. Maybe we can extract 800 horsepower out of the ICE [Internal Combustion Engine] and put 400 on top of it, or more, in terms of electric energy.

"We are absolutely up for it as long as those discussions happen in a structured way, with people's consideration being taken on board.

"We recognise the financial realities of OEMs [Original Equipment Manufacturers] these days. We don't have it easy. But if it's well planned and executed, we Mercedes are happy to come back with a real racing engine."

Zanardi's handbike was placed near the altar inside the basilica in Padua where the service was held Tuesday, and his hand cycling teammates sat in the front row near his wife, Daniela, and son, Niccolò.

Also in attendance were Stefano Domenicali, the president and CEO of Formula 1, skier Alberto Tomba, Paralympian Bebe Vio and a host of politicians and other officials.

A moment of silence in Alex Zanardi's memory was held Monday before a Serie A match in Rome. Photo by Silvia Lore/Getty Images

In 2020, Zanardi was seriously injured in a handbike accident after crashing into an oncoming truck during a relay event in Tuscany. Zanardi suffered serious facial and cranial trauma in the crash and was put in a medically induced coma.

Nearly 20 years earlier, Zanardi lost both of his legs in an auto racing crash.

One fan inside the church held up a sign that said, "Farewell Alex, your legend will never die."

Zanardi won two championships in CART -- 1997 and 1998 -- in the United States, and also competed in F1.

He won four gold medals and two silvers at the 2012 and 2016 Paralympics, competed in the New York City Marathon and set an Ironman record.

While understandably not on Messi's level yet, Colapinto has emerged as a new national icon after breaking through in Formula 1 -- and made the most of being in the United States last week by visiting his "hero" for the first time at Inter Miami's training ground before the race in Miami.

A few days later, eight-time Ballon d'Or winner Messi then made the trip to the grand prix, where they spent some more time together.

"The truth is, I'd never had any contact with him. He did give me a helmet, and he was also eager to meet me someday," Messi told local podcast Lo del Pollo.

"We have mutual acquaintances, and the other day it finally happened; he was able to stop by training and we met. He's truly amazing."

Lionel Messi and Franco Colapinto at the Miami Grand Prix. Photo by James Sutton/LAT Images

Colapinto finished seventh in Miami, his best result in F1, and scored six points for Alpine.

When asked if he had any advice for the 22-year-old, Messi said: "I think he has to live his own story. And be prepared for a lot of things, because when you're in the public eye, things come at you from all sides, the good and the bad, and especially in the bad times, he needs support, with those close to him, his family, his circle, because in the end, that's what helps him get through difficult times.

"Because when things are going well, it's much easier and people get closer to you, but the important thing is knowing who's there when things are going badly."

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After meeting Messi, Colapinto said: "Many dreams have come true in the last seven days. I'm happy and enjoying the moment, seeing Leo here visiting. All the drivers were ready for the race, and I was with him in jeans.

"The fact that he came to support me with his whole family is very special. Seeing my idol and the hero of all Argentinians again was great.

"It's a great result, and it's good to give something positive to Argentinians. I'm very optimistic; this is a good start, and we're going for more."

Alpine has had a positive start to its 2026 campaign and is competing at the higher end of the midfield pack. It currently sits fifth behind Red Bull in the constructors' championship.

Formula 1's new cars have been controversial this year, with the new emphasis on battery power boosts creating a new style of "yo-yo racing" featuring an increased number of overtakes.

Some critics have called that artificial -- four-time world champion Max Verstappen, one of the most outspoken of the drivers, said in March that anyone who enjoys the new style of Formula 1 does not really understand what racing is about.

Miami's dramatic race -- won by Mercedes driver and championship leader Kimi Antonelli -- featured multiple lead changes and numerous back-and-forth battles for position.

Mercedes are currently leading the constructors' championship. Photo by Stephanie Tacy/NurPhoto via Getty Images

"If there's one single person that complains about the race today, I think they should hide, honestly," Wolff told reporters after the Miami Grand Prix. "Now, obviously this track is a little bit easier, it's not so energy stuffed. There's good games and there's bad games, so I think that was great, great advertising for Formula 1."

Formula 1 had agreed on a package of minor rules tweaks in April ahead of the Miami Grand Prix to address some of the most pressing concerns of the new regulations.

Most of those were centered around qualifying, but there were tweaks addressed at lessening the affect known as "super-clipping" and to lessen the dramatic closing speeds drivers were encountering.

It is understood F1's major stakeholders will consider wider changes for 2027 down the line.

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Most in the paddock expect F1 to move away from the near 50/50 split in the new V6 hybrid engines between combustion and electric power, likely to a 60/40 or 70/30 split in favour of the internal combustion engine [ICE].

Wolff said he is open to bigger changes if teams are given enough time to implement them.

"Whoever talks about changing engine regs in the short-term should question his way of assessing Formula 1 at that stage," he said

"So spectacular race. Fight for the lead, fight in the midfield. It's splendid. Can we tweak it and optimise it in the midterm? I think absolutely. We would never be against making the show even better. I'm thinking about SM modes [straightline modes]. I think we need much more straightline speed with the SM modes. We need to be courageous on doing that.

"In the midterm we are not opposed. Whether we could extract a bit more performance out of the ICE ... Great. Give us enough lead time so we can actually do it."

Hamilton had a disappointing Miami weekend, finishing the sprint race in seventh place and the grand prix in sixth after damage from a collision with Franco Colapinto on the opening lap cost him performance.

Simulators have become a crucial tool in teams' preparation for F1 races, with drivers spending hours assessing different setup options in the virtual world in order to arrive at a circuit with a clear setup direction.

However, the results from the simulator are only as good as the correlation between the virtual world and reality, and Hamilton claims the setup he started the weekend with in Miami did not work in the real world.

"I'm going to have a different approach in the next race because the way we're preparing at the moment is not helping, and so we'll see how that goes for the next race," Hamilton said.

Asked if the correlation between simulator and track was the issue, he added: "Ultimately it's always correlation, but we go on it and then we get to the track and the car feels different when it gets on track."

Lewis Hamilton is fifth in the drivers' championship. Photo by Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images

Hamilton, who started racing in F1 when simulator technology was in its infancy, believes his time between races can be better spent talking with engineers at Ferrari's factory in Maranello than using the simulator.

"You know I don't like simulators in general, but I sit at the simulator every week on the build up to this race, working on correlation constantly and you go on it, you prepare for the track, you drive it and you get the car setup to a certain place and then you come to the track and that set up doesn't work," he explained.

"And on the sprint weekend, for example, you've only got practice one, you don't really want to veer off from your setup too far, like with a big suspension change and so you stay with it and then you make a change going to qualifying and then you've only got six laps to get on top of it.

"In an ideal world I should have started where Charles [Leclerc] was at the beginning of the weekend on P1 and I think we would have just had a stronger weekend from there.

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"So I'm not going to go on the simulator between now and the next race. I'll still go and hold meetings at the factory and stuff, but I'm just going to back away from it for a little bit and see. Because when we went to China I had the best weekend without sim."

Hamilton has a strong record at the Canadian Grand Prix, winning seven times in Montreal, but is not convinced this year's Ferrari will be well suited to the circuit's long straights.

"I'm looking forward to it, but we need to see if we can cut some drag before the next race," he said. "Because on the straight line we've got that deficit and so we've got to have a look into that."

Although he hasn't directly called any particular driver out, his comments seem to be directed at four-time world champion Max Verstappen, who has been heavily critical of F1.

The Dutchman has compared the new controversial regulations to "Mario Kart" and has openly voiced his frustration labelling it "anti-racing."

"You've got to respect the sport," Montoya said on BBC's Chequered Flag Podcast. "For me, what the drivers are doing, I'm okay with you not liking the regulations, but the way you were speaking about what you're living off and your own sport, there should be consequences for that."

Pressed on what those consequences could be, Montoya suggested stewards should take a tougher stance.

"Park him. Add seven points to the licence, eight points to the licence," he said.

Juan Pablo Montoya has been outspoken on the penalties drivers should be given. Photo by Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images

"Whatever you do after, you're going to be parked. I guarantee you all the messaging would be different."

The Colombian, who raced in F1 from 2001 to 2006, said drivers should feel free to voice criticism -- but within reason.

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"I'm not saying, 'Don't say that you don't like the regulations,' because if you don't like it, you have the complete right to an opinion," he added.

"It's okay to be outspoken. I'm not saying don't be outspoken, but don't come and call an F1 car a Mario Kart."

F1 bosses agreed on Friday with the teams to move more towards a 60-40 split in favour of the internal combustion engine (ICE) by making hardware tweaks to the engines.

The mooted changes are aimed at addressing driver concerns about the amount of lifting-and-coasting the new engines have required to fill the battery.

Drivers have been outspoken about that new focus on battery power.

Max Verstappen has likened F1's new cars to Mario Kart and said the new style of battery-boosted passing is "anti-racing." Fernando Alonso has rechristened Formula 1 as the "battery world championship."

Reigning world champion Lando Norris said during the Miami Grand Prix that he still did not believe any driver could enjoy the current cars -- even though small tweaks had been made ahead of that race to improve the qualifying spectacle.

The Miami Grand Prix was the first race of the year that featured the new tweaks. Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images

The proposed 2027 change will not remove the battery element entirely, but F1 hopes it will lessen some of the more unpopular elements while still staying true to the aim of making the sport road-relevant by increasing the focus on electrical power in the first place.

While major changes cannot be made this year due to the existing designs of engines, Friday's agreement signalled a willingness to address the concerns that have dogged the new F1 era so far.

An FIA statement on Friday said: "Turning to the longer-term measures, there was unanimous commitment to introduce changes which further enhanced fair and safe competition, that were intuitive for drivers and teams and were in the best interests of the sport."

It added: "It was agreed that further detailed discussion in technical groups comprising teams and Power Unit Manufacturers was required before the final package was decided."

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Manufacturers will likely need to consider the ramifications of making the change -- any accommodating change to fuel-flow limits might well need a rethink about existing designs.

The new package of rules will need to be ratified by the World Motorsport Council later in the year.

While F1 had moved to a nearly 50-50 split this year, the previous set of V-6 turbo engines had been closer to 80-20 in terms of how the importance of the two elements was weighted.

Ferrari turned heads in pre-season testing back in February with a rear wing that did not simply open on the straights but fully rotated the top part to create a bigger opening and theoretically greater drag reduction.

It was rightly lauded as innovative, novel and creative. But, as it turns out, it was not unique.

As Ferrari's broke cover more than two months ago, spawning names like the 'Macarena' or 'flip-flop wing', and nothing like it had been seen since, the emergence of a Red Bull equivalent seemed like a clear case of one team taking inspiration from another.

The order in which they appeared meant nothing more than simple chronology, though. What transpired in Miami - two different teams racing rear wings that turn upside-down, for the first time, in the same grand prix - was a remarkable coincidence.

Ferrari had spent a long time trying to get its design ready to race, in the public eye. The wing appeared in testing and again in China, where it was withdrawn from the car. Ferrari's issue was getting the upper part of the wing to complete its revolution in 0.4 seconds, as stipulated in the regulations. It seemed to cause at least one notable issue for Lewis Hamilton in practice when re-attaching too slowly under braking.

The Japanese Grand Prix came and went without the wing being raced, before Ferrari tested a revised version at Monza during F1's April break. This provided ample time for Ferrari to complete its troubleshooting, and so the wing was finally ready to be raced in Miami.

Amazingly, Red Bull had been going through the same process at the same time, just in the background.

There were hints of Red Bull seemingly running its version of Ferrari's wing during a Silverstone filming day with the RB22, where its major Miami upgrade package was trialled on-track for the first time.

When it was finally shown off to the world in Miami, it turned out to be a different interpretation to Ferrari's.

Whereas Ferrari's rotates front to back, flipping round quite dramatically, Red Bull's rotates up and over from the rear - a simpler motion but resulting in a visibly greater opening.

Red Bull's also utilises a centre-mounted actuator on the mainplane itself, rather than in the corners like Ferrari, which the trailing edge of the wing sits on top of when inverted.

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies was keen to give his designers credit.

"As much as you will not believe me, I have to say, in fairness to the guys, they came up with that concept far, far before we hit the track and we saw what everybody else had been doing," he said.

There are no points for being first to show a design off to the world - at least if that design doesn't make it onto the car early enough to deliver an actual performance advantage in the races.

And rather than be annoyed that Ferrari beat it to the punch, internally Red Bull was reassured that someone else had pursued a similar design, as it underlined the merit in the idea beyond its own observations from windtunnel testing.

The Race understands that Red Bull first started working on its version of the wing in November last year when conversations with the FIA made it clear the new regulations around a different kind of movable rear wing for the 2026 cars invited such an interpretation.

The old drag reduction system rules, as they existed through to 2025, meant the only aerodynamic motion available was a gap cracking open between the mainplane and the flap, like a letterbox. Teams had a permitted slot gap range of between 10mm and 85mm - the latter setting a clearly defined maximum.

The 2026 rules are different. One key Red Bull figure said that the critical part of what makes this design possible is the rules stipulate that, when viewed from below, the axis of rotation must be fully obscured by the flap. The wing must also switch between the two fixed positions in no more than 0.4s, and have a minimum distance between the two rear wing profiles of 8-12mm.

In other words, the rules have changed from defining how the rear wing must open to defining the open and closed positions. How they get there, and what size gap they create, is free for greater interpretation.

Red Bull worked on this for months and had planned to introduce the system well before Miami. It targeted pre-season testing, and as recently as Suzuka, but could not get it to work reliably. The only difference to Ferrari is nobody saw that - plus, Red Bull had other car problems emerge very early, even back in the January shakedown at Barcelona. So there were other priorities ahead of getting this rear wing to work.

Even when it was ready, there was still a degree of risk in what Red Bull opted to do once it was confident in the design.

Miami featured a comprehensive upgrade package for the RB22, including updates to the floor, sidepods, and top bodywork. Bringing that many changes simultaneously, alongside an entirely novel rear wing mechanism, was an acknowledged risk.

But Red Bull was evidently satisfied by its work behind the scenes and what Silverstone validated - and Miami's track layout meant the benefits would be immediately felt, with two extremely long back stretches where better drag reduction would be most welcome.

The package worked. Max Verstappen was immediately competitive and Red Bull found itself right back in the thick of pole and podium fights. And the wing was part of that.

It might even have proven immediately more beneficial than Ferrari's - which, while potentially better when in cornering mode because the wing flaps are clear from any disruption from the actuator, does not shed as much drag.

Though engine performance has a clear impact on straightline speed, it could be telling that Hamilton seemed perturbed by a perceived deficit to other cars on the straights. Given Ferrari's rear wing should confer a bigger drag reduction than the nine teams with conventional designs, that is slightly surprising.

Looking ahead to the next race in Canada, Hamilton said: "We're going to another track with long straights and we're losing three-to-four tenths just on straightline speed.

"We need to see if we can cut some drag before the next race because on the straight we've got that deficit, so we've got to have a look into that."

After the understandable initial assumption that Red Bull copied Ferrari, could it be that the opposite happens now the designs have been raced and their relative effectiveness has provisionally been measured?

After all, with an omni-presence around the world allied to an ambitious company mindset, there was some logic towards both Apple and F1 embarking on a path that expanded far beyond the United States coastline.

As Apple’s Eddy Cue, senior vice president of services who leads its F1 activities, told Reuters in Miami: “Do I hope that we are able to grow into other areas and markets? Yeah, I do.”

All that seemed missing was a bit of time for current contracts in other countries to come up for grabs - and then the door would be open for Apple to step in and start widening its influence...

The suggestion of a global deal happening any time soon fell away this week, though, with the announcement of a new TV deal between F1 and Sky until 2034.

That long-term lock up (in Italy until 2032 and UK/Ireland until 2034) has shed a light on what the priorities are when it comes to F1 finding the right broadcast partners.

What was most fascinating about the Sky deal was not its size – believed to be worth around $1.35 billion over five years – but instead that it was completed with three years still to run on the current arrangement.

This was far from the kind of last-minute bidding war timeframe that some may think is the best approach if the ultimate ambition is about simply getting the biggest cheque in the bank.

Instead, while the Sky deal is a big one and could almost certainly have been matched by Apple – which is believed to have paid $750 million for its five-year US contract – there are other important factors in play that go beyond the bottom line.

The value of committing early

One of the tactics that F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali and Liberty Media have pursued since being in charge of F1 is to commit early to deals - be it with sponsors, race venues or TV companies.

While holding out until the last minute and playing interested parties off each other can be used to up the price in the end, there are bigger-picture benefits that come into play when going early with established parties.

There is no better example than what happens with race promoters.

With a queue of countries lined up wanting to host races, F1 could play venues off against each other to go with the biggest cash deal on offer.

But this ends up being a short-term tactic because tracks only then think of getting the next deal over the line – rather than creating the best event for the long term.

Instead, handing long-term contracts to established race promoters gives them the security needed to make the kind of major investments needed – like new pit buildings, hospitality areas or circuit infrastructure - that elevate the experience for fans, guests and teams.

This same go-early policy applies just as much to TV contracts – because in doing the deal with Sky now, F1 knows that investments the broadcaster makes today will bring gains over many years.

The alternative of no security would be a Sky not wanting to push on with doing things better or spending money to elevate the watching experience for its subscribers.

As Liberty CEO Derek Chang said during a Liberty Media investors' call this week: “What we're really asking a lot of these guys to do, as they partner with us, is to invest in the product.

"In order to do that, you want them sort of confident with the relationship and where things are going to be on a longer-term basis. So sometimes we are entering into these discussions early to facilitate exactly that.

“As these guys continue to work with us to build, sort of, the next gen of what the viewing experience is like, it's on both of us to walk up in a manner like this.”

Different markets

F1 has never done a global deal for coverage because it understands well that the requirements of individual markets can vary so much.

What works in one region does not fit another, and F1 has been very good at being agile in moving with the times and having agreements that suit best.

One of the key considerations right now is how people are consuming content – and there is a market transition going on between linear channels and streaming.

In America, streaming is accepted much more than in Europe for the demographic F1 is chasing – which is why the Apple deal was so important.

But things are different in Europe, where network channels like Sky retain huge influence and audience.

As Domenicali said: “We have the privilege of being a worldwide sport, where we can really understand where the shifting between traditional broadcast versus streaming is moving.

“We do believe that in the market that we have signed the deal, as an extended agreement with Sky, it will be the best, even medium-, long-term.”

It must not be forgotten, too, that Sky has huge experience of F1, and its broadcasts are taken by Apple – which is just starting its journey. Having this mixture of youth and experience means two big broadcasters bring benefits to the F1 ecosystem.

An Apple deal also probably works better in the USA than Europe right now because the company is much more ingrained there.

As Chang admitted, new deals come with the danger of losing those who have loyally followed things somewhere else.

“Anytime you change broadcast partners, you always run the risk of having a lot of fan outlash that they can't find it, or things like that, or it's not as good,” he said.

“We haven't had any of that - in fact, it has been to the positive in terms of how consumers have been interacting with the product.”

The element of competition

F1 thrives on competition, and it’s what helps teams and drivers to get the very best out of themselves.

The same is true off track, and it is fair to say that F1 is not blind to the fact that having a host of different broadcasters under its umbrella can help push everyone on as they try to set the benchmark.

It means no complacency from a single channel that has a monopoly, plus any technology advancement made by one can be shared around the ecosystem to make things better.

One of Apple’s early ambitions is to raise the sophistications of F1’s offering – which means higher-quality broadcasts, innovations in what is offered to fans and a wider offering on different touch points.

This is something that Chang has referenced: “Our partnership with Apple and its tech-forward platform is already delivering early innovative enhancements to our F1 product, with multi-view data feeds and onboard features, creating a more engaging viewing experience for our fans.”

The multi-view aspect, for example, is something Apple has successfully rolled out and that could lay the ground for it to be adopted elsewhere - including Sky.

Audience behaviour

It is fair to say that one of the aims for F1 with the Apple deal is to open the series to a new wave of fans in the United States.

In one way, this is achieved through the numbers that actually subscribe and watch.

The technology company’s policy of not releasing viewership figures has inevitably prompted intrigue about the American audience being lower than expected after the move across from ESPN - but both F1 and Apple insist everything is on track.

Speaking at the Autosport Business Exchange in Miami, Cue said: “We are thrilled. The ratings were way up over where they were last year on linear for the first three races, significantly. Not only did we see more viewers, but we also saw more viewers throughout the weekend.”

Of note, too, is that early analysis points to the Apple coverage attracting a younger and more female audience – something that F1 in particular has chased.

As Domenicali said: “Our fan base is younger, and there are a lot of females, around 40% in the US. That’s why we do believe that Apple will guarantee to them a much more suitable way to live that experience.”

There are wider benefits to be had for F1 through Apple’s wider penetration of the US market.

Apple’s deal has triggered it to launch some prolific marketing campaigns to amplify F1 in the United States – including in its stores, on Apple Apps and with its own original programming, too.

It recently sold out shows of the Miami Grand Prix at its IMAX theatres, too.

It is the exact same gain that F1 gets from Sky – which is one of the few broadcasters in the UK and Europe that has the financial might to go big on promoting its coverage, which only further helps to promote grand prix racing itself.

A train journey anywhere around the UK will highlight countless F1-branded Sky billboards at stations that are all ramming home its coverage - and raising awareness of the ongoing season.

For F1, with both Apple and Sky, it is very much about picking the right partner for the right place. It is not a one-size-fits-all situation.