Lewis Hamilton believes Formula 1’s new regulations have delivered “what racing should be” so far in 2026 – a very different stance to Max Verstappen’s.
Verstappen has been perhaps F1’s most vocal critic this year, likening the energy management aspect to “Formula E on steroids” as lift-and-coast becomes preponderant.
“It’s terrible, if someone likes this, then you really don’t know what racing is about,” the Red Bull driver said at the Chinese Grand Prix. “It’s not fun at all. It’s playing Mario Kart. This is not racing.
“You are boosting past, then you run out of battery the next straight, they boost past you again. For me, it’s just a joke.”
Hamilton suggested Verstappen was struggling to appreciate the new regulations due to Red Bull dropping down the pecking order and insisted the ‘yo-yo’ style of racing that has been on display so far – with many more overtakes, including numerous lead changes – was far more enjoyable.
“If you go back to karting, it’s the same thing,” the Ferrari driver argued. “People are going back and forth, back and forth, you can never pull away. No one has ever referred to go-karting as yo-yo racing. It’s the best form of racing.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Photo by: Lars Baron / Getty Images
“And Formula 1 has not been the best form of racing in a long, long time. Out of all the cars that I’ve driven in 20 years, this is the only car that you can actually follow through high-speed [corners] and not completely lose everything that you have. You can stay behind.
“We had the DRS before, which I think was a bit of a band-aid for that issue that you can’t get close enough through the corners. Now we have the power difference [Overtake Mode], but it’s so small, the power difference.
“But when you get ahead and the car behind can keep up with you, I personally find it much more fun because that’s the most overtaking and best battle I’ve had maybe since Bahrain, years and years ago with Nico,” he added, referring to a now legendary battle for victory in the 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix with Mercedes team-mate and title rival Nico Rosberg.
“That’s how racing should be. It should be back and forth, back and forth. It shouldn’t be like one move is done and that’s it.
“So I personally like that sort of racing. We just need all the rest of the teams to close up so we have more of those battles amongst the teams.”
Hamilton did clarify that he didn’t actually love every aspect of the 2026 rules.
“It’s definitely a lot different,” he commented. “I think a lot of the drivers are not enjoying it, but I don’t really know. I’m just personally enjoying it. It’s a lighter car. It’s a bit more nimble, a bit more bizarre, more fun to drive.
“Do I love the power of deployment? Absolutely not. I’m actually really disappointed. Do I love the SM [straight mode with active aero]? Not particularly. But as a whole, I think it’s exciting for the sport.”
Going into this weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, Suzuka was expected to be a suboptimal track in terms of energy management, so the FIA has reduced the maximum energy recharge for qualifying – meaning there will be less of an incentive for the likes of super clipping, which is early energy harvesting by the MGU-K.
“Coming into the weekend, we were going to have to do a ton of lift-and-coast which is really, really not enjoyable to do for a qualifying lap. So we’ve changed that,” Hamilton commented.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
Photo by: Steven Tee / LAT Images via Getty Images
Additionally, active aerodynamics’ straight mode will be used in just two sections, which might play in Ferrari’s favour, according to the seven-time world champion: “Maybe that’s a positive for us, because every time Mercedes open up their SM, they get away. So maybe there’s less chance for them to do that here – maybe. I don’t know. And maybe we can keep up with them more through the high-speed section, potentially.”
Regardless, Hamilton hopes the 2026 event will do justice to Suzuka, where the racing has often been more processional than on most other tracks, on a layout featuring many high-speed corners and few straights.
“This has always been one of the favourite driver circuits, but not necessarily great racing, because there’s a struggle to [overtake],” he said. “So I’m hoping it changes that and really highlights just how incredible this circuit is to drive. And if we have racing on top of that, then it will be the best track in the world.”
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– The Autosport.com Team
