F1 2026 season

[mr.bluesky]

Here is the race schedule for the 2026 season

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No real surprises, Australia opens the season and Abu Dhabi closes it
New car specifications but the grid is very much like last year. Lando will have the number 1 on his car.
.

[bigden40]

2026 car launch dates:
15 January - Red Bull and Racing Bulls (Michigan, USA)
19 January - Haas (online)
20 January - Audi (Berlin, Germany)
20 January - Honda power unit (Tokyo, Japan)
23 January - Alpine (Barcelona, Spain)
23 January - Ferrari (Maranello, Italy)
2 February - Mercedes (online)
3 February - Williams (online)
8 February - Cadillac (Super Bowl, California)
9 February - Aston Martin (to be announced)
9 February - McLaren (Bahrain international Circuit)

[webpunter]

Hadjar a rising star hope that partnering MV he's given a chance to succeed with the car set up making him able to drive it
I was pleased for him & posted on the same that better that Tsunoda got the drive last year
Influenced with the far east races coming up & Honda the engine supplier - apparently huge amounts of Yen heading in RB's direction
Me thinks RB have one eye mid longer term gettiing Hadjar with MVs future there far from certain beyond 2026

Sooo many drivers have failed partnering MV
Perez tamed the car but faced other challenges
Especially after he spun up the rears & spun out in Q3 in Monaco in P1 2022 bringing this to a close MV not a happy chappy, oh dear
See attached ⬇️
I find Perez very likeable & lets see what happens in the Caddy

Quite the pairing with mullet man porn star looky likey Bottas
One of my fave drivers he does loads of stuff rallying ice driving & was LH's incredibly brilliant wingman

CBA to see what all the car changes are Sky F1 will be all over it will watch it on the 1st race build up

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[timsussex]

Will the Cadillac be 5 foot longer than the rest of the cars ?

[bigden40]

Will the Cadillac be 5 foot longer than the rest of the cars ?

And steers like a boat

[webpunter]

The thread has kicked off 

[Coriniumstud]

Will the Cadillac be 5 foot longer than the rest of the cars ?

And like American cars, can’t go round corners

[mr.bluesky]

Hadjar a rising star hope that partnering MV he's given a chance to succeed with the car set up making him able to drive it
I was pleased for him & posted on the same that better that Tsunoda got the drive last year
Influenced with the far east races coming up & Honda the engine supplier - apparently huge amounts of Yen heading in RB's direction
Me thinks RB have one eye mid longer term gettiing Hadjar with MVs future there far from certain beyond 2026

Sooo many drivers have failed partnering MV
Perez tamed the car but faced other challenges
Especially after he spun up the rears & spun out in Q3 in Monaco in P1 2022 bringing this to a close MV not a happy chappy, oh dear
See attached ⬇️
I find Perez very likeable & lets see what happens in the Caddy

Quite the pairing with mullet man porn star looky likey Bottas
One of my fave drivers he does loads of stuff rallying ice driving & was LH's incredibly brilliant wingman

CBA to see what all the car changes are Sky F1 will be all over it will watch it on the 1st race build up

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Good to see Hamilton's old wing man Valtteri Bottas back on the grid in the new Cadillac team. It will be interesting to see how they go first season in F1.
A shame " smiler" Daniel  Ricciardo is not back. Another of my favourite drivers ( even if he is an Aussie)

[Iamforreal]

Hadjar a rising star hope that partnering MV he's given a chance to succeed with the car set up making him able to drive it
I was pleased for him & posted on the same that better that Tsunoda got the drive last year
Influenced with the far east races coming up & Honda the engine supplier - apparently huge amounts of Yen heading in RB's direction
Me thinks RB have one eye mid longer term gettiing Hadjar with MVs future there far from certain beyond 2026

Sooo many drivers have failed partnering MV
Perez tamed the car but faced other challenges
Especially after he spun up the rears & spun out in Q3 in Monaco in P1 2022 bringing this to a close MV not a happy chappy, oh dear
See attached ⬇️
I find Perez very likeable & lets see what happens in the Caddy

Quite the pairing with mullet man porn star looky likey Bottas
One of my fave drivers he does loads of stuff rallying ice driving & was LH's incredibly brilliant wingman

CBA to see what all the car changes are Sky F1 will be all over it will watch it on the 1st race build up

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When Perez was in last season with Red Bull there was jokes online that Red Bull can't get rid of him due to Mexican Cartels   
Good to see him and Bottas back.
My team is McLaren, hopefully they can keep up.
MV showed a bit of class last season at the end, started to like him a bit, something which I thought won't be possible.
Let's see if Ferrari and LH can have a better season...they do in F1 like Man United in football   
Bring on 1st race 

[Steve2]

It'll be intersting to see how Bottas and Perez get on at Cadillac. I wonder who will get the bright pink on with fluffy dice

[mr.bluesky]

When Perez was in last season with Red Bull there was jokes online that Red Bull can't get rid of him due to Mexican Cartels   
Good to see him and Bottas back.
My team is McLaren, hopefully they can keep up.
MV showed a bit of class last season at the end, started to like him a bit, something which I thought won't be possible.
Let's see if Ferrari and LH can have a better season...they do in F1 like Man United in football   
Bring on 1st race 

Verstappen does seem to have calmed down a bit now, no wreckless overtaking maneuvers last season, driving with a bit more maturity now. Despite taking it to a last race decider it was almost as though he accepted he wasn't going to win the World championship and was quite cool about it. A good comparison with Ferrari and Manchester Utd. Two teams living off past glories but both in turmoil. I can't see Hamilton winning his 8th Word title driving for them. I think he will call it a day at the end of this season. With new regulations and new specifications regarding car design everyteam will be starting from scratch. Will there be a surprise team emerge like the Brawn team in 2009 season with Jenson Button.  Looking forward to the new season. More importantly I hope Sky have signed the lovely  Naomi Schiff again for the new season. 
I don't think Lando Norris got the credit he deserved for winning the title last season from a lot of people, hopefully all the Brits have good seasons, not forgetting British newcomer Arvid Lindblad ( despite his foreign name he is British !)
Five Brits on the grid to root for , more than any other country.

[Blackpool Rock]

It'll be intersting to see how Bottas and Perez get on at Cadillac. I wonder who will get the bright pink on with fluffy dice

And who gets the one with pneumatic suspension that makes the front of the car bounce up and down 



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[chrishornx]

Here is the race schedule for the 2026 season

Hidden Image/Members Only

No real surprises, Australia opens the season and Abu Dhabi closes it
New car specifications but the grid is very much like last year. Lando will have the number 1 on his car.
.

5 North America venues shows increasing popularity in that area of the world

[mr.bluesky]

5 North America venues shows increasing popularity in that area of the world

 More to do with the Americans now running the sport ( Liberty media corporation) who now own the media and commercial rights to the sport and trying to make it more popular than Indycar and Nascar racing which are the two main motor sports in America. I don't know what sort of attendance figures they get at the Grand Prix's but I bet it's less than Nascar racing. No doubt the aquisition by Liberty media put a few more billions into Bernie Ecclestons bank account

[chrishornx]

 More to do with the Americans now running the sport ( Liberty media corporation) who now own the media and commercial rights to the sport and trying to make it more popular than Indycar and Nascar racing which are the two main motor sports in America. I don't know what sort of attendence figures they get at the Grand Prix's but I bet it's less than Nascar racing

surely Liberty's willingness to get involved running the sport is indicative of an increasing popularity in the sport.


the Brickyard 400 gets a crowd of 70,000 for raceday whilst the Indy 500 can touch 350,000 so figures vary tremendously for Nascar events. the Austin GP got 440,000 over 3 days with similar figures for Mexico so attendance figures are already comparable to Nascar before Liberty develop things further

[bigden40]

 More to do with the Americans now running the sport ( Liberty media corporation) who now own the media and commercial rights to the sport and trying to make it more popular than Indycar and Nascar racing which are the two main motor sports in America. I don't know what sort of attendance figures they get at the Grand Prix's but I bet it's less than Nascar racing. No doubt the aquisition by Liberty media put a few more billions into Bernie Ecclestons bank account

We can’t really complain though.  We have 4 venues in the Middle East, including utterly shit circuits in Qatar and Saudi, which are purely financially driven.

Personally I’d like to see them Bring back Hockenheim, Istanbul, Sepang

And I don’t know if it’s a controversial opinion but I’d get rid of Monaco.  I know there’s a lot of tradition with it but it’s long been a borefest.

[chrishornx]

We can’t really complain though.  We have 4 venues in the Middle East, including utterly shit circuits in Qatar and Saudi, which are purely financially driven.

Personally I’d like to see them Bring back Hockenheim, Istanbul, Sepang

And I don’t know if it’s a controversial opinion but I’d get rid of Monaco.  I know there’s a lot of tradition with it but it’s long been a borefest.

Many would get rid of Monaco but I don't see it happening

[Blackpool Rock]

Many would get rid of Monaco but I don't see it happening

A home race for an awful lot of drivers

[chrishornx]

A home race for an awful lot of drivers

precisely.

[mr.bluesky]

We can’t really complain though.  We have 4 venues in the Middle East, including utterly shit circuits in Qatar and Saudi, which are purely financially driven.

Personally I’d like to see them Bring back Hockenheim, Istanbul, Sepang

And I don’t know if it’s a controversial opinion but I’d get rid of Monaco.  I know there’s a lot of tradition with it but it’s long been a borefest.

I agree about Monaco. They will never axe it from the calendar as it is the jewel in F1's crown but as a racing circuit it is shit. Very little opportunities for overtaking. Races are won by pit stop strategy at Monaco. Always the dullest race of the year unless Senna was driving. He was the master of Monaco

[mr.bluesky]

A home race for an awful lot of drivers

There is a clip from years ago of Mika Hakkinnen retiring from the Monaco grand prix, getting out of his car, stepping over a few barriers and walking to his Yacht anchored in the harbour 

[bigden40]

I agree about Monaco. They will never axe it from the calendar as it is the jewel in F1's crown but as a racing circuit it is shit. Very little opportunities for ovettaking. Races are won by pit stop strategy at Monaco

Exactly, it’s not a new problem.  I don’t think there’s been a meaningful overtaking manoeuvre at Monaco since Damon Hill took Jean Alesi …. in 1996.

Monaco is just not a suitable circuit for modern F1

[bigden40]

Exactly, it’s not a new problem.  I don’t think there’s been a meaningful overtaking manoeuvre at Monaco since Damon Hill took Jean Alesi …. in 1996.

Monaco is just not a suitable circuit for modern F1

Not that it helped.  Hill (and Alesi) retired and only 3 cars finished - Panis, Coulthard and Herbert.

[stampjones]

Im torn about Monaco. Its definitely the most biring race but it is pretty cool to watch the cars drive round the circuit. Maybe if they could get a decent race track nearby and then just have an SQ and sprint on the street circuit. Never happen obviously but it would be a better weekend

[chrishornx]

Im torn about Monaco. Its definitely the most biring race but it is pretty cool to watch the cars drive round the circuit. Maybe if they could get a decent race track nearby and then just have an SQ and sprint on the street circuit. Never happen obviously but it would be a better weekend

or change/extend the routs pf the current course to give opportunity for overtaking

[mrwhite]

Will the Cadillac be 5 foot longer than the rest of the cars ?

And steers like a boat

And have half the fuel economy of all the other cars?

[mrwhite]

Im torn about Monaco. Its definitely the most biring race but it is pretty cool to watch the cars drive round the circuit. Maybe if they could get a decent race track nearby and then just have an SQ and sprint on the street circuit. Never happen obviously but it would be a better weekend

The circuit is too tied to tradition, looking at street maps of the city there are ways to improve the circuit, but one of them is to get rid of the hairpin which some deem to be too iconic.

[mrwhite]

We can’t really complain though.  We have 4 venues in the Middle East, including utterly shit circuits in Qatar and Saudi, which are purely financially driven.

Personally I’d like to see them Bring back Hockenheim, Istanbul, Sepang

And I don’t know if it’s a controversial opinion but I’d get rid of Monaco.  I know there’s a lot of tradition with it but it’s long been a borefest.

Been to Hockenheim and Sepang, they were both great.  Sepang was the cheapest GP on the calendar - but getting there was a trek.

[Monaco]

Im torn about Monaco. Its definitely the most biring race but it is pretty cool to watch the cars drive round the circuit. Maybe if they could get a decent race track nearby and then just have an SQ and sprint on the street circuit. Never happen obviously but it would be a better weekend

It's a shit race these days unless you are there in which case it is fantastic,it's all about business.
Without the cars being much smaller or the circuit being drastically altered (which it could be) it will remain so.
However you can stay in Nice and get the train for 15 euros into town and have cheap ticket on the hillside on a budget.
Just being in town for the GP weekend is an eye opener.

[webpunter]

No doubt the aquisition by Liberty media put a few more billions into Bernie Ecclestons bank account

I do hope he paid the appropriate tax on this 

[webpunter]

We have 4 venues in the Middle East, including utterly shit circuits in Qatar and Saudi, which are purely financially driven.

Yep
Qatar the worst of the two

One of my fave tracks is Imola brought back into fold in the virus year & the last race 2025
An ages old designed track with high speed bends makes for late braking
Limited run off areas meaning there can be big 'offs'
One of the few tracks which is anticlockwise [AC] adding a different element

[threechilliman]

Yep
Qatar the worst of the two

One of my fave tracks is Imola brought back into fold in the virus year & the last race 2025
An ages old designed track with high speed bends makes for late braking
Limited run off areas meaning there can be big 'offs'
One of the few tracks which is anticlockwise [AC] adding a different element

Not sure about Imola, too sanitized for me these days. The old circuit provided much better racing but it carried risks, as we know.

[chrishornx]

Not sure about Imola, too sanitized for me these days. The old circuit provided much better racing but it carried risks, as we know.

HNY Chilliman not seen you on here this year

[scouting]

My favourite circuit is Spa. Eau Rouge is just awesome, especially when the regs of the day mean it is a real gamble to take it flat. Don't know what the new regs will bring to that spectacle. There's also 90% chance of rain in the Ardennes adding further unpredictability.

Back in the 90's/00's I knew a guy who was Race Engineer to a few drivers. He worked for 3 different teams over a dozen years, has moved on now. When I asked him about drivers' favourite circuits he would reckon Monza. Simply because they like speed.

The modern circuits are over sanitised. Sure we want safety, but the run off areas offer little jeopardy.

[webpunter]

At Monza i was in the stands after the start finish & just before the sharp right left
You dont really see it on the TV the braking & deceleration really is incredible
From about 200mph to 50mph in what appears to be 100m ish
Having a geeky moment just looked up nearly 6g on the driver

Have been to Spa you don't get that good a view more just the cars going past
A mate of mine has driven there [saloon & GT racing] he said its blind as you come to the top [edit - oops - of eau rouge]
Crap yourself every lap
They have radios however not sure how fast the comms will be if there is a problem ahead
The f1 cars will be going a fuck of a lot faster tho they have 110% attention from their Race Engineer & pretty much constant tv coverage

IMO Silverstone one of the best as a spectator if you pick the right spot with longer views of the track

[ratedj]

Exactly, it’s not a new problem.  I don’t think there’s been a meaningful overtaking manoeuvre at Monaco since Damon Hill took Jean Alesi …. in 1996.

Monaco is just not a suitable circuit for modern F1

Monaco isn't going anywhere. It's too tied to tradition, and while Sunday is dull Saturday qualifying is one of the highlights of the season.

One track I would absolutely bring back in a heartbeat is Sepang. That track has everything to produce good racing.

[ratedj]

I like what Red Bull have done with the livery. From listening to comments from them they more or less confirmed that they have utilised the compression ratio loophole along with Mercedes. Cadillac were testing at Silverstone today, which is a positive sign for them considering that Ferrari had only fired up its engine today. On another note, Hamilton will have a new race engineer this season.

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[webpunter]

I like what Red Bull have done with the livery. From listening to comments from them they more or less confirmed that they have utilised the compression ratio loophole along with Mercedes. Cadillac were testing at Silverstone today, which is a positive sign for them considering that Ferrari had only fired up its engine today. On another note, Hamilton will have a new race engineer this season.

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Thanks for the heads up 

Interesting stuff on the CRL stuff & FIA meeting will decide the outcome - lets see who wins Mercedes + RedBull or Audi + Ferrari + Honda
The best loophole design must be the Brawn double diffuser
In more recent times Mercedes dual axis steering, brilliant [especially with Karen going off at the deep end making it even more worthwhile a win win ]

On LH's RE Ferrari's choice for 2025 couldn't have gone any worse
LH must have felt at times [quite a lot] that he was out on the track on his own
Ferrari have posted that the departing RE has moved to another part of the motor racing set-up, yeah right spanish archer
His new RE to be announced, will Bono be offered a king's ransom ?

[mr.bluesky]

Thanks for the heads up 



On LH's RE Ferrari's choice for 2025 couldn't have gone any worse
LH must have felt at times [quite a lot] that he was out on the track on his own
Ferrari have posted that the departing RE has moved to another part of the motor racing set-up, yeah right spanish archer
His new RE to be announced, will Bono be offered a king's ransom ?

Ferrari are the Manchester Utd of F1 , I don't think it makes any difference who they have in charge. Can't make a silk purse out of a pig's ear 

[Blackpool Rock]

Ferrari are the Manchester Utd of F1 , I don't think it makes any difference who they have in charge. Can't make a silk purse out of a pig's ear 

I've always joked the same as they both seemed to attract the hanger'oners and glory boys back in the day when they were winning, in the early 00's the joke was they were both red and sponsored by Vodafone so you only had to buy 1 shirt to support both teams 

[Iamforreal]

I've always joked the same as they both seemed to attract the hanger'oners and glory boys back in the day when they were winning, in the early 00's the joke was they were both red and sponsored by Vodafone so you only had to buy 1 shirt to support both teams 

Indeed, I said this also in my post however in F1 I am with McLaren.
Who do you guys support? Do you have a favourite team or drivers?
Obviously loads of British drivers, but do you have some who's favourite?

[webpunter]

LH, obvs
GR
Up & coming driver: Hadjar
Most entertaining likeable drivers:  Bottas & Danny Ric
I'm experiencing some (global) warming towards MV WTF 🙃

[mr.bluesky]

Indeed, I said this also in my post however in F1 I am with McLaren.
Who do you guys support? Do you have a favourite team or drivers?
Obviously loads of British drivers, but do you have some who's favourite?

The British drivers first and foremost irrespective of team, also have a soft spot for Bottas and Carlos Sainz ( thought he was treated unfairly when dropped by Ferrari ) he comes across as a decent bloke. He was one of the first drivers to come up to Lando and congratulate him on becoming World champion .They got on really well when they were team mates at McLaren As regards teams it's McLaren * and a soft spot for Williams because of the Mansell connection. Hoping Hamilton wins his eighth World title this season so he can retire as the undisputed greatest of all time but I cannot see it happening at Ferrari who are a shambles of a team. I can also see Leclerc leaving them if they have another under achieving season.
Like webbie points out  I'm also begining to warm to MV. He wasn't such a dickhead last season with his over forceful driving but seems to have calmed down a lot.
* Zac Brown comes across as the most likeable and level headed team boss in F1. I hope the Haas team go well as team principle Ayao Komatso is a keen Coventry City fan and has supported the club from his university study days.

[Blackpool Rock]

Indeed, I said this also in my post however in F1 I am with McLaren.
Who do you guys support? Do you have a favourite team or drivers?
Obviously loads of British drivers, but do you have some who's favourite?

I don't really have a team but tend to not want Ferrari to win on the basis so many glory hunters have always rooted for them, more recently I don't want RB to win after all the shit where Sir LH was denied a title, combine that with Karen and Max Brat constantly whining and the development overspend giving them an unfair advantage for however many seasons 

I always support all the Brits

[Blackpool Rock]

The British drivers first and foremost irrespective of team, also have a soft spot for Bottas and Carlos Sainz ( thought he was treated unfairly when dropped by Ferrari ) he comes across as a decent bloke. He was one of the first drivers to come up to Lando and congratulate him on becoming World champion .They got on really well when they were team mates at McLaren As regards teams it's McLaren and a soft spot for Williams because of the Mansell connection. Hoping Hamilton wins his eighth World title this season so he can retire as the undisputed greatest of all time but I cannot see it happening at Ferrari who are a shambles of a team. I can also see Leclerc leaving them if they have another under achieving season.
Like webbie points out  I'm also begining to warm to MV. He wasn't such a dickhead last season with his over forceful driving but seems to have calmed down a lot.

He wasn't quite such a dickhead however i'm thinking if he was fighting for a title throughout the whole season his elbows would come out again and he'd revert to type 
Perhaps we'll see soon enough 

[ratedj]

Indeed, I said this also in my post however in F1 I am with McLaren.
Who do you guys support? Do you have a favourite team or drivers?
Obviously loads of British drivers, but do you have some who's favourite?

Always been a Ferrari fan since I started watching F1, but on a personal level I have a strong affection for Leclerc, having followed his progression from GP3. He's the most talented driver to drive for Ferrari since Schumacher and Alonso, and it will be a travesty if he doesn't win at leat one title. This year is make or break for several people in the team.

[ratedj]

I don't really have a team but tend to not want Ferrari to win on the basis so many glory hunters have always rooted for them, more recently I don't want RB to win after all the shit where Sir LH was denied a title, combine that with Karen and Max Brat constantly whining and the development overspend giving them an unfair advantage for however many seasons 

I always support all the Brits

If you want to glory hunt then Ferrari is not the team to choose. Six drivers titles since 1979 and some extremely horrible periods. Red Bull only exceeded the budget cap in 2021.

[Blackpool Rock]

If you want to glory hunt then Ferrari is not the team to choose. Six drivers titles since 1979 and some extremely horrible periods. Red Bull only exceeded the budget cap in 2021.

But there's something about Ferrari that draw these people in and then there's the constant talk about "The Tifosi" it's like a bit of mystique or something and the constant talk keeps people coming in, perhaps because they have been in F1 since the early days and not taken a break 

Red Bull may have officially only exceeded the budget cap in 1 year however when that advantage puts you at the front of the pack by so far the benefit lasts for seasons until others finally catch up, the main point however is that their punishment was effectively a slap on the wrist 

[ratedj]

But there's something about Ferrari that draw these people in and then there's the constant talk about "The Tifosi" it's like a bit of mystique or something and the constant talk keeps people coming in, perhaps because they have been in F1 since the early days and not taken a break 

Red Bull may have officially only exceeded the budget cap in 1 year however when that advantage puts you at the front of the pack by so far the benefit lasts for seasons until others finally catch up, the main point however is that their punishment was effectively a slap on the wrist 

It's the history, the heritage, the fact that Ferrari are essentially a national team. Ferrari are as important to F1 as F1 is to Ferrari.

Red Bull exceeded the budget cap in 2021, and considering that a new car was introduced in 2022, with a completely different aerodynamic profile, they would have been unable to benefit from any technical advantage from their 2021 car.

[ratedj]

From looking at early iterations of the 2026 cars it’s already clear that the FIA were asleep at the wheel between 2022 and 2025 because this is what an F1 car should look like.

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