Very negative opinions
Formula 1 was awaited in Australia by fans and insiders to verify the new 2026 rules on track. There were those who asked for time and trust for the category – especially because after China there could be corrections from the FIA -, but the negative opinions were the most numerous.
The most significant statements came from Gary Anderson, Helmut Marko and Ralf Schumacher.
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Gary Anderson’s criticisms of the 2026 regulations
Former F1 designer Gary Anderson explained to the Telegraph : “Harvesting energy and distributing it correctly is more important than ever. The problem is that this reduces the importance of driver skills in both qualifying and the race. The driver, apart from using boost and overtake modes, does not choose when to harvest energy or when to distribute it: it is all programmed in the software. We want the driver to remain an integral part of the race, not a driver on autopilot”.
Marko and Ralf Schumacher ruthless
Same opinion for Helmut Marko, as he told F1-Insider: “Some welcomed the overtakes between Leclerc and Russell with euphoria, but it was just smoke and mirrors. In reality, it was the batteries overtaking each other. Once the battery was exhausted, the driver was just a passenger. I’ll provoke: at the end-of-year awards ceremony, the FIA should hand the champion’s trophy to the best programmer. The driver can no longer make the difference”.
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Finally, there was a jab from Ralf Schumacher, on the Backstage Boxengasse podcast, referring to Lewis Hamilton’s regained competitiveness: “The cars seem smaller and narrower, more agile. However, I believe that all this lift and coast before the corners is ideal for those approaching the end of their career, because naturally they take fewer risks”.
