The summer break has barely started, but Formula 1 is refusing to slow down. Lando Norris broke from the usual paddock diplomacy to deliver a pointed critique of the sport’s commercial direction, as Aston Martin’s Hungary upgrade faces precise statistical scrutiny from Mark Hughes.
Off the track, a significant calendar addition has brought Sepang back into the picture, while Red Bull’s restructure continues apace with two important personnel decisions now formalised.
Here’s the latest
Lando Norris has delivered an unusually candid verdict on the direction Formula 1 is heading, accusing the sport of prioritising commercial interests over competitive ones and suggesting it is no longer being run the way a sport should be.
Speaking ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, the reigning world champion used pointed language to describe his discomfort with a season dominated by criticism of the 2026 regulations. The new rules brought a complete overhaul of both chassis and power unit specifications, with a heavy emphasis on electrification. The transition has been widely unpopular among drivers and supporters, with complaints centred on the reduced role of raw mechanical feel and an increased dependence on energy management systems.
Norris acknowledged that the changes were necessary to attract commercially important partners, citing Audi and Cadillac as examples of manufacturers whose arrival required regulatory adjustments. But he argued the balance had tipped too far. “Formula 1’s gone too heavily led by the fact it’s a business, and not how can you make the sport the best possible,” he said. “That’s not how a sport should be run. It should never have been like that. And it is a shame.”
(Source: GPFans)
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has strongly implied that Isack Hadjar will be retained alongside Max Verstappen for the 2027 season, describing the young Frenchman’s impact as the best news the team has had in the second driver seat for a considerable time.
Hadjar joined Red Bull at the start of this season, filling a position that had proved troublesome across several recent campaigns, with predecessors struggling to score points consistently or match the expectations the team placed on them. The contrast has been stark. Hadjar secured his seventh consecutive top-six finish at the Hungarian Grand Prix, building a record of reliability that has drawn warm praise internally.
Speaking to Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, Mekies said the team now has “a strong second driver for the first time in quite a long time” and that Hadjar had “learned a lot from the team and from Max.” He also pointed out that having two cars running closer together in performance terms benefits Verstappen as much as it does the broader team effort.
(Source: RacingNews365)
Martin Brundle has described Carlos Sainz as keeping his options open for 2027 following a difficult first half of the season with Williams, suggesting the Spaniard has reached something of a dead end after declining a move to Audi before joining the Grove outfit.
Sainz moved to Williams ahead of 2025 after Ferrari confirmed Lewis Hamilton would be replacing him. At the time, the choice of available seats was limited: Alpine, Williams, and Sauber, the team transitioning into Audi. Speaking live on Sky Sports F1 ahead of Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying, Brundle noted that Sainz chose not to take the Audi route despite a strong family connection to the brand. His father, Carlos Sainz Senior, won the 2024 Dakar Rally with Audi support, and Brundle suggested the elder Sainz had favoured that option.
Sainz enjoyed a solid first year at Williams in 2025, claiming two podium finishes as the team cemented themselves as the best of the midfield and finished fifth in the constructors’ championship. The 2026 season has been considerably harder. Under the new regulations, Williams have struggled badly, and Sainz and team-mate Alex Albon have found points almost impossible to come by.
(Source: GPFans)
Red Bull have officially announced the appointment of Gwen Lagrue as director of the Red Bull Junior Programme, drawing a formal line under Helmut Marko’s departure at the end of last year and signalling the team’s ambitions for driver development in the years ahead.
Lagrue spent eleven years at Mercedes, leading their driver development operation and overseeing the progression of George Russell and Kimi Antonelli from junior talent to race winners and, in Antonelli’s case, this season’s championship leader. He will report directly to team principal Laurent Mekies and is set to join the Red Bull leadership structure in 2027 once his departure from Mercedes is finalised.
The appointment is one of the most consequential personnel decisions of the Mekies era at Red Bull. Marko held the junior programme role for more than two decades, overseeing the development of Sebastian Vettel, Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo and a host of other graduates who went on to race at the highest level. Filling that legacy is a considerable undertaking.
(Source: RacingNews365)
Formula 1 and the FIA have confirmed that the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia will host the Bahrain Grand Prix in October, rescuing a round that would otherwise have been dropped from the 2026 calendar entirely.
The event, formally titled the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix, is scheduled for 2 to 4 October, sitting between the Azerbaijan and Singapore Grands Prix. It came about through an agreement involving Formula 1, the FIA, and the governments of both Bahrain and Malaysia. The announcement remains subject to formal ratification by the World Motor Sport Council, though all parties appear firmly committed to seeing it through. The rest of the 2026 calendar is unchanged.
Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali praised the speed and willingness of both governments to reach a workable solution. “Once again, the sport has demonstrated its ability to adapt, find solutions, and deliver,” he said. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem highlighted the long-standing ties between Formula 1 and Malaysian motorsport as central to making the arrangement possible.
(Source: Formula1.com)
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