George Russell has defended the new Formula 1 regulations, claiming “diehard” fans are enjoying the 2026 rules more than they thought they would.
F1 is debuting its latest regulation overhaul with changes to both the chassis and power unit, the latter of which is now more reliant on electrical energy so battery management is key.
It entails downshifting on a straight or lifting and coasting into a corner, and this is all contributing to a more ‘yo-yo’ style of racing, which has been witnessed across the opening two rounds of 2026.
In Melbourne there was an early to and fro between Charles Leclerc and eventual winner Russell, who enjoyed a similar battle in the China sprint with Lewis Hamilton on Saturday.
Russell has enjoyed this new style which goes against the more common opinion in the paddock, with Max Verstappen and Lando Norris being the two biggest critics of the ruleset.
So when asked if the ‘yo-yo’ battles will continue throughout 2026, Russell responded: “We’re not actually sure, to be honest, at this stage. There is still lots of learning to be had, and I think both in Melbourne and this morning in the sprint, I probably could have done things very slightly differently to have maintained that lead earlier on.
“But clearly with the overtake mode, the driver behind can use the boost button up to I think 330km/h, where the guy in the front can only use it to 290km/h. It seems to work quite well.
“It isn’t DRS, but it works in a similar pattern for the speed delta. So, I think it’s been quite interesting, quite fun, and I think some even with diehards maybe aren’t disliking it as much as they did maybe a week ago, but we just still need to give it a chance.”
George Russell, Mercedes
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
One of the predictions with the new cars was that they would be totally different to anything drivers have used before, as Esteban Ocon claimed in the off-season that “we can forget everything that we’ve learned since go-karts”.
But after a couple of races now, Russell actually thinks the opposite to the Haas driver due to how there’s yet to be one dominant winner of a race so far.
“Lewis last week, it felt like he was managing a bit and letting Charles and I tussle it out, and then he was ready to pounce,” said Russell, as the Ferrari pair finished third and fourth in Australia, before second and third in Saturday’s sprint.
“And then today. Lewis and I were tussling and Charles was ready to pounce, so there’s a lot going on, but it makes it quite fun and definitely feels more like a go-kart racing in the past – the top three, top four drivers are all in contention.
“I don’t ever remember Formula 1 being like that, where you can have three or four cars all fighting for the same position truly on track.”
Russell has qualified second behind team-mate Kimi Antonelli for Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix, which the Briton heads into with an 11-point championship lead after winning both the Australian GP and Shanghai sprint from pole.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
– The Motorsport.com Team
