re: 2026 Formula 1 (F1) Season Thread

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Could there have been a situation where Kimi Antonelli was a Ferrari driver now rather than a Mercedes one?

Mark Hughes says no, because he was 'too small', according to then-team principal Maurizio Arrivabene

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In this case, it worked out better for Kimi, because he could not have resisted driving for Ferrari. Now he can go to Ferrari after he has won a couple of world championships with Mercedes and try to bring them back to glory.

I wonder how many team principals passed on supporting Lando because he was "too small."

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More data out of Japanese GP

Austria: Audience fell 36%.
Germany: Audience dropped 21%.
Italy: Grew by 36%.


Ferrari fans are like Cowboys fans, real hope there

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European F1 TV ratings fall sharply after Suzuka, raising alarm for the sport
Sofia BianchiApr 2, 2026

France and Spain experience the steepest declines

In France, broadcaster Canal+ reported only 404,000 viewers for the Suzuka race, a 43% drop compared to 705,000 viewers during the 2025 edition. Historically a strong F1 market, the sharp reduction in French viewership signals a growing disconnect between fans and the current season. Spain presents an even more alarming scenario: DAZN recorded just 63,000 viewers, down from 124,000 the previous year, representing a near 50% decline. These numbers underscore a significant challenge for the sport’s popularity in Southern Europe.

Liberty Media under pressure to respond

The drop in European viewership has not gone unnoticed by Liberty Media. Industry insiders suggest that the Suzuka ratings could influence strategic decisions regarding the promotion of Formula 1 in France and Spain. Executives are reportedly evaluating measures to make races more exciting and engaging, addressing competitive balance, race formats, and storytelling to recapture fan attention. These topics are expected to feature prominently at the upcoming April 9 meeting in London, where Liberty Media will discuss potential regulatory and sporting changes aimed at boosting global F1 interest.

Scuderiafans article LINK

If its that bad overseas you know its worse is USA. Those are non Apple carriers who report their numbers while Apple does not and any numbers whispered by Apple are propaganda. This is a world sport and the world is protesting these electric lawnmowers.

Just like Nascar when they came out with COT. Fans left in droves and never came back. Nascar lost all momentum they had gained. Sounds familiar to what F1 is going thru.

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Formula 1 has prepared 6 measures for the meeting that will take place next week, in order to solve the issues saw in the first 3 race

- Increse the power of super clipping (frmo 250kW to 350kW)
- Reduce energy consumption so that it does not run out so quickly
- Reduce the maximum recharge per lap to 6MJ
- Unrestricted use of active aerodynamics, meaning it can be activated at any point on the circuit
- Increase the ICE/MGU-K ratio (at the earliest from 2027 onwards)
- Simplify the rules to give the drivers more control

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The only one of those that does anything to truly address the shite racing and mario karting is the ratio piece and thats not til next year.

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Not at all. The battery discharge would be more helpful than the ratio in addressing the perceived Mario kart stuff.

They are just killing how we see/hear the fall off in power being deployed.

The ability for the cars to follow has taken another huge leap. Also it's nice to see the cars be on the edge to the point of losing grip and it not result in a major off.

The ground effect era meant the car attitude had to stay straight or else all grip was lost.

Also noticed the different lines through the last chicane in Japan. Some cars were taking the full kerb and some cars were staying off all together. Not sure if that is some underlying problem or some strategy.

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while doubts remain over the RBPT engine, which appears to be more powerful than initially thought

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Ouch

Are all regulation changes this bad for the first year?

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Are all regulation changes this bad for the first year?

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This is the worst that I remember. But as others have pointed out, it's just the PU rules that are bad. The other aspects of the new car design appear to be a success.

The last change in 2022 with the ground effects had the violent porpoising issue, so that was serious as well.

In 1993, the pinnacle of F1 development, they had automatic everything including active suspension. Incredible technology but it took the driver away from the driving challenge somewhat. Michael Andretti went to F1 at exactly the wrong time. He couldn't understand the feel of the car at all and had a disastrous season. But then in 1994 they banned active suspension, ABS, traction control, etc. That was great news, putting car control back in the hands of the drivers. In pre-season testing, young Damon Hill complained about some serious handling issues with the previously dominant Williams. Because he was young and inexperienced, the team did not take his feedback very seriously. It was only after they signed Senna kind of late and he tested the car and gave the same feedback, did they take it seriously. My point is that no one ever talks about whether the drastic car changes for 1994 might have contributed to the disastrous events of 1994. Aside from Ratzenburger and Senna, I also remember Barrichello's massive crash at Imola, and Wendlinger's brutal crash at Monaco just off the top of my head. Back then there wasn't social media to amplify driver whining, so maybe the 1994 cars had serious issues and we just didn't hear about it.