It may feel odd to discuss what’s in store for the remainder of the 2025 Formula 1 season when one team appears to have it all sewn up with 10 races to go.

McLaren harbours a commanding 299-point lead over Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship after 14 rounds, with back-to-back titles all but assured.

Still, it’s the intra-team duel between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri that is captivating, with a mere nine points dividing them before the Dutch Grand Prix.

The Papaya duo have been trading blows all season, each continuing to adapt and learn on their quest for a maiden championship victory.

There are, of course, other storylines unfolding alongside the title fight: Ferrari’s hunt for a first victory of the season – a worrying prospect given last year’s form – the ongoing midfield scrap, and the eyes on 2026 with Cadillac’s entry and its yet-to-be-confirmed driver line-up.

As the paddock gears up for the remainder of the season, we take a look at five narratives set to shape the championship battle.

Norris vs Piastri: A championship duel under one roof

Last season, the man standing in Norris’ way was the formidable Dutchman, as Max Verstappen denied the Briton’s crowning moment in a year when McLaren returned to the pinnacle.

Now, Piastri stands in his way – a team-mate who has grown tremendously this season, adding to his two victories from 2024 and elevating his game to a whole new level.

Norris may have taken the season opener, but in the stretch of races that followed, Piastri stamped his authority on the title fight with remarkable ease, looking every bit the champion in waiting.

The Briton fought back over the last few rounds, putting aside the qualifying demons that had haunted him earlier in the season and showing an improved mental resilience, refusing to dwell on his mistakes.

It sets up an exciting second half of the 2025 campaign: while Norris may appear to have the momentum, Piastri has proven this season that he is more than capable of claiming the World Championship.

Such fine margins have defined the fight so far. Norris’ strategic gamble against Piastri in Hungary went down to the wire, just as the chase in Belgium did – only this time, a few mistakes from Norris hindered his pursuit of victory.

Next up on the calendar is a return to Zandvoort, where Norris dominated last year, finishing over 20 seconds ahead of second-placed Verstappen – marking him as the favourite once again. But, as always, there are circuits that could play into Piastri’s hands, with Azerbaijan and Qatar among them. At this stage, you simply can’t predict the outcome of this title fight.

Red alert: Ferrari chasing a breakthrough

Mamma mia! This season has definitely not gone to plan for the Scuderia.

Charles Leclerc has been the lone beacon of hope in what was meant to be a defining campaign for the Italian marque.

The great Lewis Hamilton has struggled to adapt since his shock departure from Mercedes, with just a Sprint Race victory in China to show for his season so far.

Leclerc has earned multiple podium finishes, but a win has continually eluded him, with car troubles at the Hungaroring denying him the result his qualifying performance deserved. The Monegasque has been vocal, proclaiming that the team missed its only real opportunity for triumph.

Ferrari still has 10 rounds to prove him wrong, including its beloved home race at Monza, where Leclerc last season stunned the McLarens to take victory.

Whether the team can put behind the disappointment of this campaign and salvage what remains is still uncertain. You could argue that Budapest hinted at a possible shift in fortune, despite the disappointing outcome.

Ferrari can take some comfort in the fact that Red Bull and Mercedes have fared worse, but McLaren continues to look untouchable across all circuit configurations.

The American invasion: Who will drive for Cadillac in 2026?

Another American team is on the F1 horizon – Haas, beware. Cadillac enters as the 11th team next season, with two extra seats seemingly already filled.

Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez – both left without a drive in F1 at the end of last season – are the frontrunners to lead the line-up next season.

The Finn was dropped by Sauber but quickly snapped up by former team Mercedes to serve as its reserve driver. After a year on the sidelines, the 10-time Grand Prix winner is eager to get back into the groove.

Similarly, Perez has been forced to watch from afar this year, having been dropped by Red Bull after a tumultuous campaign that left him over 285 points adrift of his team-mate and World Champion, Verstappen.

But another opportunity is in the pipeline, with the 35-year-old determined to prove his worth once again. Other names such as Colton Herta, Zhou Guanyu and Mick Schumacher have also been linked to Cadillac’s 2026 line-up.

An official confirmation isn’t expected until after the Dutch GP, but an announcement is looming – one certain to keep fans on edge as the second half of the season gets underway.

The midfield mayhem: Who will come out on top?

Williams is in pole position to secure fifth in the standings, but the midfield chase remains fierce with Aston Martin, Sauber, Racing Bulls and Haas all close behind.

Alex Albon’s haul of 40 points from the opening seven rounds gave Williams a strong foothold in the midfield fight. But with Sauber and Aston Martin mounting a resurgence, the Grove-based squad suddenly finds its position under threat.

Racing Bulls and Haas remain within striking distance too, while Alpine languish at the foot of the standings despite collecting 20 points, 15 adrift of its nearest rival.

The Anglo-French outfit’s woes are compounded by Franco Colapinto’s struggles on his F1 return – with Alpine’s second driver dilemma becoming a story of its own – leaving Pierre Gasly to shoulder the team’s efforts almost entirely alone.

Silly season sparks: The 2026 seats still up for grabs

As the 2025 F1 season resumes, attention inevitably turns to the chaos of next year’s grid.

While some teams have already locked in their line-ups, others are still juggling options – leaving fans guessing who will be sitting where in 2026.

McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin, Williams, Haas, and Sauber – which becomes the Audi works team in 2026 – have all confirmed their driver pairings for next season.

Red Bull is guaranteed to Verstappen, despite interest from Mercedes, but remains undecided over the future of Yuki Tsunoda, who continues to struggle in the team’s second seat.

Meanwhile, after all the drama, Mercedes is poised to run George Russell alongside rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli for another season, though official confirmation is still pending.

Racing Bulls’ future depends on the main team, with Isack Hadjar enjoying an impressive debut season and seemingly destined to become Verstappen’s next team-mate. Liam Lawson is also waiting on clarity over his place in the Red Bull family, though the Kiwi, who has rebounded since his shock demotion two races into 2025, is set to continue next season.

Alpine may have Gasly’s future secured, but the second seat remains a headache. The Colapinto experiment looks increasingly short-lived, yet exactly what comes next is anyone’s guess.

READ MORE – Motorsport Week’s F1 2025 Mid-Season Team Ratings

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McLaren has signalled its intent for the second half of the Formula 1 season, with boss Andrea Stella confident the team can continue to assert dominance at next weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix.

After signing off before the summer break with four straight 1-2 finishes, Stella pointed to Zandvoort as a circuit where McLaren expects to be especially strong, having already excelled there last year with a less competitive car.

McLaren currently leads both championships, with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri delivering dominant performances at the Hungaroring, Spa-Francorchamps, Silverstone, and the Red Bull Ring.

The form has raised expectations for Zandvoort, where Norris claimed the second victory of his career in 2024 with one of the most commanding performances of the year, winning by over 22 seconds.

Asked whether he saw any threat from rivals after qualifying in Hungary – where McLaren missed out on pole but still converted it into a fourth straight victory on Sunday – Stella pointed to the team’s relentless upgrade programme and consistent pace as proof their advantage is real.

“I think we have seen a very positive trend in terms of our competitiveness, especially I would say over the last three events in which we have finished in 1-2,” he told media including Motorsport Week.

“And like I said in some other interviews, this is not only because we started with a competitive car, but actually, we have upgraded the car since Canada with what was in the past a single instrument upgrade, so it would have been very noticeable.”

“McLaren bring a new car and improves by a few tenths of a second, but in the recent races, we have upgraded the car with some parts at pretty much each race. I think here, the Hungaroring, despite the result in Q3, has actually proven that the car is faster.”

“In every single session, we will have a P1-P2 by a decent chunk compared to the next team. This makes us very positive about the remainder of the season. We look forward to starting racing again after the shutdown.

Stella warns rivals of McLaren dominance at Zandvoort

With the team’s pace and consistency established, Stella turned his attention to the circuits where McLaren anticipates performing at its best in the remainder of the season.

He highlighted Zandvoort as a track where the team could dominate again, while also pointing to targeted adaptations for Monza and Las Vegas to ensure competitiveness across a variety of challenges.

“I think we have some tracks that will be favourable to us again, like Zandvoort,” he added. “And we have also done some specific work for some tracks like Monza or Vegas, in which not necessarily last year we were dominant, and we knew that we needed to do some work for the performance of the whole track.

“So we definitely look forward to the second part of the season, and we expect to be competitive.”

Mercedes’ George Russell has already branded McLaren the “runaway force” of the season – a claim Stella was asked to respond to in Hungary.

The Spaniard seems to share Russell’s view, sending a clear warning to rivals that more Papaya dominance is on the way.

READ MORE – How McLaren survived the brink of bankruptcy to return to F1 pinnacle

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Nico Hulkenberg sees echoes of his 2013 debut season with Sauber in his return to the Swiss outfit for the 2025 Formula 1 campaign, noting a familiar pattern of steady development and gradual improvement.

Speaking ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, the experienced German drew parallels between the two periods. Rewind 12 years, and Hulkenberg was one of F1’s brightest young talents, eager to make his mark at a new team.

However, the start of the season did not go according to plan. Following a strong 2012 campaign in which Sauber secured sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, expectations were high for 2013, especially after four podiums were achieved the previous year by drivers Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi.

The early races proved challenging. In the first 11 rounds, Sauber collected just seven points — all scored by Hulkenberg. But the season wasn’t entirely bleak.

Things took a dramatic turn in the second half, starting with a standout performance in Italy, where Hulkenberg’s third-place qualifying — behind only the Red Bulls — marked a key moment in Sauber’s recovery and helped push the team up the standings. He finished fifth at Monza and scored points in six of the final eight races.

The revival was fueled by aerodynamic updates introduced at the Hungaroring and mid-season changes to Pirelli’s tyre strategy.

Reflecting on those parallels, Hulkenberg highlighted how both seasons required adaptation before the team could regain competitiveness.

“I think it took longer for us to turn it around,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “I think it started from here [Hungary] and the front tyres, the construction changed or something.

“And we picked up competitiveness again, but it has similar trends. Memories are blurry. I don’t know. It’s a long time ago.”

Hulkenberg leads another Sauber mid-season turnaround

The key difference this season is Sauber’s end-of-year transition into the Audi works team. Yet the 2025 campaign began in a familiar fashion. Despite a fortunate seventh-place finish in Melbourne, which earned him six points, the 38-year-old endured a dry spell until round nine in Spain.

Rookie team-mate Gabriel Bortoleto also failed to score during this period. But an upgrade introduced at the Circuit de Catalunya–Barcelona shifted the team’s momentum.

Sauber collected 35 points over the next four races, with 31 of those coming from Hulkenberg, who also secured a career-first podium at Silverstone. Meanwhile, Bortoleto contributed his first points in Austria with an eighth-place finish, as Sauber eventually climbed to seventh in the Constructors’ Championship.

While the turnaround bore similarities to 2013, as Hulkenberg noted, this season’s recovery arrived earlier. Another key difference is the stage of his career: more experienced and settled, he isn’t facing the same adjustment struggles that some drivers experience when switching teams.

When asked if he felt he was already at a peak, Hulkenberg explained: “I don’t know if you can say a peak. I think you’re always progressing. You’re always adjusting, learning as the season goes on.

“You see the cars change sometimes with updates. And you’re constantly working and fine-tuning your driving style, your technique. So it’s a constant work-in-progress situation for me.

“But it’s not like you’re struggling. Obviously, taking a step back, objectively looking at it, qualis have been challenging this year. Which is a bit unusual from my past.

“So I think there’s still some room for improvement there and some things we can clean up.”

READ MORE – Nico Hulkenberg raises situation Audi must avoid under 2026 F1 rules

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Giacomo Altoe set the pace in qualifying for the IMSA Michelin GT Challenge at Virginia International Raceway, putting the #81DragonSpeed Ferrari 296 GT3 on pole in the GTD Pro class.

The Italian capped a dominant weekend, with DragonSpeed topping both practice sessions and now claiming the top spot on the grid.

His co-driver, Albert Costa, set the benchmark in the opening 90-minute practice, guiding the #81 car to the top with a 1:45.032s to lead both GTD Pro and the overall order.

The #57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo followed closely, Russell Ward quickest of the GTD runners and second overall.

DragonSpeed maintained its grip in the second practice session, with Altoe lowering the pace to a 1:45.011s in the same Ferrari. That time was matched to the thousandth by Sebastian Priaulx in the Ford Multimatic Mustang, leaving the pair inseparable at the head of the timesheets.

In GTD, Onofrio Triarsi took the spotlight, putting the #021 Triarsi Competizione Ferrari on top of the class with a 1:45.324s effort.

Hawksworth secures GTD pole for Lexus

Heading into qualifying, the action got underway in the GTD class with plenty of warm-up laps, the Mercedes of Ward quickly storming out of the pits at the beginning of the session before returning to the pits at the end of the lap.

Jack Hawskworth in the #12 Vasser Sullivan Racing Lexus RC F GT3 set the early benchmark with a 1:45.833s before Patrick Gallagher in the #96 Turner Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 EVO quickly dispatched him with a 1:45.757s.

The British driver immediately replied to take back the fastest lap with Gallagher slotting in behind. Ward finally joined the fight with just over five minutes to go, setting a fastest lap time of 1:44.998s before Hawksworth went even quicker with a 1:44.860s.

Triarsi placed third in his Ferrari as Hawksworth rolled the dice, pitting with a minute and a half remaining and trusting his time would hold firm.

It worked as the 34-year-old held onto pole position for Vasser Sullivan Racing ahead of Ward and Triarsi, completing the top three.

Altoe fends off Verhagen for GTD Pro pole

Nicky Catsburg in the #4 Corvette Z06 GT3.R for Corvette Racing by Pratt Miller Motorsports headed out for the GTD Pro class with an engine change due to a suspected thermostat issue.

The #48 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 Evo, with Dan Harper at the wheel, vaulted to the top of the times with a 1:45.090s. But his spell in front was short-lived as Altoe fired the #81 DragonSpeed Ferrari to a 1:44.847s.

Even that effort didn’t last long, as Neil Verhagen in the #1 BMW quickly responded. The two exchanged blows at the head of the order, Altoe briefly regaining the advantage before Verhagen stamped authority with a 1:44.478s.

Yet the Italian hit back with a 1:44.433s in a tense qualifying affair at VIR, reclaiming the top spot by less than half a tenth as the battle for pole intensified.

The #3 Corvette Z06 GT3.R, driven by Antonio Garcia, occupied third as Altoe and Verhagen both pitted with just over two minutes left of the session.

However, the #48 BMBW of Harper snatched third at the death to make it a 2-3 finish for the German manufacturer. But it was DragonSpeed’s day as Altoe continued the dominance by taking pole position in qualifying.

READ MORE – Costa fastest for DragonSpeed at VIR in IMSA opening practice

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Williams has drawn a clear line under its 2025 campaign, with boss James Vowles revealing the precise moment development focus shifted entirely to Formula 1’s next regulation cycle.

The British outfit has continued its steady rise this season, holding the coveted fifth spot in the midfield battle at the summer break.

Alex Albon was instrumental in that charge, delivering a blistering start with 40 points from the opening seven rounds. Momentum stalled, however, with a dip in form from Monaco onwards, compounded by a string of cooling issues that hampered the team through Austria and Canada.

However, the team eventually overcame reliability issues and bounced back in style in the cooler conditions of Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps – another 15 points to its tally.

A disappointing weekend in Hungary, finishing in 14th and 15th, concluded the first part of the season for Williams. Yet there is no panic amongst the team to bring further upgrades to the FW47, as Vowles revealed development focus shifted to 2026 way before the season even began.

“Everything is switched off – it’s already done, it’s decided,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “And that was done in agreement with the shareholders.

“I really enjoy the fact [that] we’re fifth this year. I think it’s a fantastic element for ourselves, for our partners, for anyone that’s associated with us.

“But the goal of this team is to win world championships, and you’re simply not going to do that by continuing fighting for a position or two in a constructors’ championship. So that decision was taken in January.

“That’s it. We’re not doing anything more and won’t do anything more. And if that results in us being sixth in the championship or seventh, so be it.”

Vowles defines the day Williams turned to F1’s future

While short-term results remain valuable, Vowles has made it clear that Williams’ true priority lies further ahead. The team’s focus has already shifted away from the FW47 and onto the all-new era of regulations.

The British chief even defined the moment of transition to the exact date: “January 2nd, and the FW48 was in the wind tunnel for nearly every single hour that we could. Simple as that. It’s not that we didn’t do any work on the 47. There’s a little bit of work. But you get the idea.”

Looking further ahead, attention inevitably turns to 2026 and the balance of performance between chassis and power unit.

With many in the paddock fearing that engine performance alone could dictate the next championship fight, Vowles remains confident that there will still be significant gains to be made elsewhere.

“I don’t think we’re going to have the gaps we had in 2014 on power units to be completely clear,” he added.

“I don’t think it’s going to be anywhere near that amount – I think power units, up until probably the last three years, have probably dominated most championships, would be a second argument I bring to your attention.

“But in answering it, what you’re saying is, could the chassis be up to half a second difference? Yes, is the answer.

“That’s what we’re seeing at the moment. There’s still lots of goodness that you can consume in that area. Where it falls out, I don’t know yet. We’re just trying to do our best to get up there.”

READ MORE – Williams insists Alex Albon ‘a completely different animal’ from Red Bull F1 spell

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Toto Wolff has highlighted that Mercedes’ “inconsistent” car is making it tougher for rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli to adapt, describing the challenges as part of his learning curve in Formula 1.

The Italian earned a seat at the German squad for 2025 following Lewis Hamilton’s departure, after the now-Ferrari driver spent 12 years with the Silver Arrows, securing six World Championships.

Tasked with filling enormous shoes, the rookie started strongly, finishing fourth on his debut in Melbourne and taking multiple sixth-place finishes across the opening rounds.

However, trouble began with a revised rear suspension at Imola, marking a difficult start to the European leg and his home Grand Prix, where a mechanical failure led to a DNF.

Monaco proved frustrating with poor qualifying, followed by more reliability issues in Spain. Although the suspension update was reinstated in Montreal, Antonelli claimed his first F1 podium at the Canadian Grand Prix.

That high was short-lived, however, as back-to-back retirements in Austria and Silverstone — both from crashes — were followed by poor qualifying performances in Belgium and Hungary, leaving him with just a solitary point collected from the four races.

Yet Mercedes boss Wolff believes that his lack of form is not down to the driver, and stems from the W16’s problems.

“Kimi is a huge talent: he’s fast, he’s intelligent,” he told Gazetta dello Sport. “I said it right from the start: he’ll make mistakes, we know that, and we wouldn’t have taken him on if we weren’t aware of that,” Wolff continued.

“Unfortunately, we have an inconsistent car, which makes it more difficult for him to adapt. But going through these difficulties is also part of the process of becoming a champion.”

Wolff stresses rookie growth as Antonelli navigates F1 learning curve

Despite the challenging start to his rookie campaign, Wolff emphasised that Antonelli’s experience is part of a natural development process within the team.

“I think it’s a learning experience for all of us,” he added. “We’ve never had such a young driver on the team, and in general, F1 has never had an 18-year-old in a top team.

“We’re all trying to work together, including his family, to create an environment that will allow Kimi to give his best on the track.”

One-lap pace remains a challenge for Antonelli, something he explained to Auto Mundo und Sport.

“I’m still struggling to understand how much the car can deliver over a qualifying lap,” he said. “You’re so close to the limit that it’s very easy to go a little over it. I’m still trying to find that fine line.”

“The grip is extremely high in qualifying,” he added. “You go into the corners so much faster than in the race. And on every lap, you think: ‘I can go even faster through this corner.’ I’m not yet at the point where I’m at the absolute limit on the first lap.”

The four-week summer break should have provided the youngster with valuable time to recharge and tackle the second half of the season.

But Antonelli’s hopes of matching team-mate George Russell will remain on hold until he can better understand the car’s limits.

READ MORE – Helmut Marko takes aim at Mercedes for Kimi Antonelli ‘hype’

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Oscar Piastri insists he has the pace and consistency needed to beat McLaren team-mate Lando Norris for the 2025 Formula 1 championship, despite a few imperfect weekends so far.

The Australian driver will soon have to defend his lead in the standings after the end of the summer break, with the Dutch Grand Prix next week offering Norris the first opportunity to reassert his claim for glory this season.

After the British driver took the spoils in the season opener at Albert Park, Piastri delivered near-flawless performances to establish himself as the front-runner for the title. He claimed wins in China, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Miami before Norris eventually returned to the top step in Monaco.

However, Piastri needed a superb drive at Spa-Francorchamps to deny Norris a clean sweep in the last four races, as the championship fight remains tightly contested as a result.

After Budapest, Norris has five wins to Piastri’s six, with only nine points separating the pair after 14 rounds. Ahead of the weekend at the Hungaroring, despite holding a 16-point lead, the former Alpine Academy driver was asked if he felt he was still the fastest driver and confident in coming out on top in the intra-team battle.

“I think I have a lot of confidence in myself that I can do it, yes,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “Not every weekend has been perfect, but there’s not many weekends in my whole life that have been perfect.

“So I think just trying to put together a solid, consistent year is ultimately going to be an important thing. But I think the pace in the last few weekends, I think, especially Spa, I’ve been very confident in and very proud of.

“I think I’m more than capable of continuing that for the rest of the year. So, yeah, I’m confident that I can do it, but it’s not going to be easy.”

Piastri on the balance between speed and consistency in the 2025 title fight

Norris has faced challenges with consistency this season. Earlier in the year, he admitted to making “too many mistakes” during the Bahrain Grand Prix, despite finishing third.

He admitted these errors cost him valuable points and stressed the need to improve. In Austria, Norris also said that whoever makes fewer mistakes will win the title, highlighting the critical role of consistency in the championship battle.

Put to him what will ultimately decide the 2025 title — raw speed or minimising mistakes — Piastri was clear that both qualities will be essential.

“Both, ideally,” he replied. “Yeah, I mean, you can make an argument for either one. You can be consistent, but if you’re consistently coming second, then that’s not very useful for you. So you do need to have both.

“And the level of the field and the level of my team-mate, you need to bring your best. Inevitably, when you’re pushing that hard, there are going to be mistakes here and there because it doesn’t come without risk.

“But you can’t just afford to take things easy and try and be consistent. You need to be consistent – you need both to win the championship – you can’t just rely on one.”

READ MORE – Why Oscar Piastri is not prepared to play the percentages in 2025 F1 championship battle

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Oliver Bearman says Haas’ Silverstone upgrade has left him genuinely astonished, giving him a “crazy” boost in confidence for the second half of the Formula 1 season.

The British driver got off to a rocky start in Melbourne, crashing out of FP1 and ultimately qualifying last for the race.

He recovered in the next three rounds, scoring points in China, Japan, and Bahrain. But during the middle stretch of the European leg, Bearman endured a punishing seven-race points drought leading into the British Grand Prix.

However, Haas’ introduction of a revised floor and updated sidepod inlets had an immediate impact at Silverstone, helping the rookie secure his best qualifying result of the season, eighth.

A 10-place grid penalty for ignoring red flags in practice saw him start 18th, extending his pointless streak into Belgium.

The boost in confidence from the upgrade, however, helped him end that run in the Sprint at Spa-Francorchamps, finishing seventh.

In Budapest, he looked set for further points after outqualifying his experienced team-mate Esteban Ocon, only for a mechanical failure to dash those hopes.

The impact of the Haas upgrade was clear to Bearman, who described a dramatic shift in his confidence behind the wheel.

“I haven’t found my confidence until we brought the Silverstone upgrade to the car,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “Since then, I’ve had a really good feeling, and I’ve been able to replicate that feeling – and that’s crazy.

“You can’t describe it, but you chase it, you chase it, you chase it and when you can have it, it’s very special.

“It’s a car that I feel fully comfortable in. Of course, I tried to feel as comfortable as possible in the previous car, but it’s difficult when the balance is tough. Now we’ve managed to replicate that, and from now, I think we can do a lot with this car.”

Bearman eyes points surge after Silverstone upgrade

Despite his recent confidence boost, the 20-year-old has accumulated just eight points so far in 2025, the lowest total of any points-scoring driver, leaving him 19th in the Drivers’ Standings.

That hasn’t stopped Bearman from remaining cautiously optimistic that he can build on the momentum from the Silverstone upgrade and continue improving after the summer break, when F1 returns for the Dutch Grand Prix.

“I hope we can replicate the feeling that I’ve had in the previous two races,” said Bearman, who is 19 points behind Ocon. 

“In both qualifying and in the race, there’s been a few shortcomings from both sides: Silverstone I had a penalty, Spa we simply missed out on opportunities.

“But clearly, the car has pace, so there is a lot of potential there. Step by step, we’re going to improve and get better.

“I hope we can keep up this level of performance, and then I think we can score some good points going into the second half of the season.”

Next up on the calendar is Zandvoort, a circuit Bearman last tackled in 2023 during his Formula 2 days with PREMA Racing.

READ MORE – Why Haas recovery in F1 2025 is down to an ‘educated guess’

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The FIA has moved to calm fears over the performance of Formula 1’s 2026 cars, insisting that initial lap-time differences will not define the season.

Amid widespread debate and criticism from drivers, the governing body says teams and drivers will quickly adapt, and any slow start will be temporary as the cars evolve.

The upcoming 2026 regulations have sparked significant discussion within the paddock, with several drivers expressing concerns over the new car designs.

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, for instance, has voiced apprehension about the new cars being “less enjoyable” to drive, noting that they are “not the most enjoyable race car I’ve driven” during simulator tests.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri has also highlighted challenges, suggesting that some aspects of the new regulations might not add to the competition or spectacle.

Other concerns include claims that 2026 could become an “energy management championship” and worries over lap times. With less downforce, the new cars will be quicker on straights but notably slower through corners.

Despite these concerns, the FIA maintains that the initial performance differences will not be a significant issue. Single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis emphasised that while simulations indicate the new cars will be slower initially, this is not expected to be a long-term concern.

“First of all, I do get a bit surprised by how much emphasis is put on the actual lap times,” he told Autosport. “We’ve had various phases of the sport when cars have been slower or faster, and I think once you are used to it, it’s okay.

“If you walk out of a simulator or in real life go from one car to another car that is one second and a half slower, you initially think ‘this is not a good car’, because you feel that second and a half.

“But I think once you’ve driven that a bit, then it actually doesn’t matter.

FIA downplays lap time worries for 2026

Tombazis sought to calm concerns over lap times, stressing that initial differences will settle once drivers adapt to the new cars.

“I really don’t think the lap times are going to be a factor once people get used to these cars,” he added. “I think it’s a comment you make initially when you see the delta, but I don’t think it will be a factor frankly, nor will it be hugely different from now.

“In our simulations, the new cars will be between one and two-and-a-half seconds slower at the start of the regulations, and clearly there will be evolution that will make them gain speed.”

However, he acknowledged that, with limited data from teams, the FIA’s lap time predictions might not be entirely accurate.

“In fairness, we don’t have data from all the teams; we don’t know the exact levels of downforce from all the teams,” he explained.

“Potentially, some teams that don’t get it right initially may be a bit slower than our simulations, but we don’t expect lap times to be a talking point.”

The new overtaking system under next year’s regulations

Another major change for 2026 concerns overtaking, with the traditional DRS system being replaced. Drivers will have access to two main aerodynamic modes: X-mode, which reduces drag for higher straight-line speed, and Z-mode, which increases downforce for better cornering.

These modes are designed to be adjusted dynamically during a race, allowing drivers to optimise performance depending on track sections.

On top of this, a ‘Manual Override’ boost — similar in concept to IndyCar’s ‘push-to-pass’ — will give drivers an additional temporary power advantage.

Unlike the X and Z modes, this is intended specifically to aid overtaking, adding a tactical element that can be fine-tuned by the FIA and teams for each circuit.

“This is one of the things we are doing now, when drivers are testing these cars in the simulator,” Tombazis said when asked how powerful the boost will be. “It has got similarities with DRS but also differences depending on the tracks.

“What we are generally working on with the teams and the simulations is to make sure that the extra boost you get keeps overtaking always on the difficult side.

“Difficult but feasible, rather than too easy, where you just drive past somebody on the straights, or too difficult, where you don’t manage to get close enough at the braking point.

“The finetuning that is taking place at the moment is to ensure that this override boost gives you just about the right amount to be able to get to that point. It won’t be the same for each circuit, but that is exactly the work that is taking place at the moment.”

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McLaren CEO Zak Brown says the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic gave the team a crucial chance to push for a lower budget cap in Formula 1 and avoid bankruptcy.

By 2020, the Woking-based team’s future in F1 was precarious. Struggling to match the enormous budgets of rivals like Mercedes, McLaren lagged behind on track, with the demands of the hybrid era only amplifying the pressure.

Then COVID-19 hit. While the pandemic wreaked havoc across the sport, it also created a rare opportunity: a chance to push for tighter budget controls that would protect struggling teams. For McLaren, that window may have been the difference between survival and bankruptcy.

From languishing at the back of the grid, the team could now dream of returning to competitiveness with the new financial rules.

Brown has credited the timing of the pandemic with giving the team a critical lifeline that allowed McLaren to rebuild and aim for the top.

Speaking on the How Leaders Lead podcast, the American explained how the crisis created the perfect conditions to advocate for a lower budget cap — one that would prove vital for McLaren’s survival.

“That was huge,” he said of the budget cap conversation. “And we were lucky on timing from a COVID point of view.

“Obviously, COVID was a terrible thing, but it put the sport under an immense amount of pressure. And that was right when we were talking to the budget cap, which was actually going to be significantly higher.

“So we got a little bit lucky with the timing because it allowed me to push even harder to get the budget cap down.”

How the budget cap propelled McLaren back to the front of F1

According to the McLaren chief, the lower budget cap has transformed both the sport and his team’s prospects.

Before the pandemic, the British squad had not finished as high as third since 2012, but the team climbed back up the order amid the disruptions of the 2020 season.

After a brief slump, McLaren soared once again in 2024, securing its first Constructors’ Championship since 1998. This season, McLaren is on track for back-to-back success, with a strong chance of claiming a first Drivers’ Championship since Lewis Hamilton in 2008.

Brown believes last year’s results highlight just how much the cost cap has levelled the playing field.

“Last year we had seven multiple winners,” he added. “First time I ever recall that amount of winners in Formula 1.”

“Four different teams that won races. The top three teams swapped the Constructors’ Championship late in the year. And that’s because now we’re all playing with the same size bat.”

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