Feb 13, 2026
3 min read
Max Verstappen says driving the new F1 cars is "no fun" and sweeping changes for 2026 mean the series no longer feels like F1.Regulation changes for 2026 have made cars smaller and lighter, with onboard battery charging strategies and electric harnesses to increase speed playing a key role."It's not really fun to drive," he said.The four-time champion told broadcaster Sky Sports in a German-language interview during Thursday's test, comparing it to the all-electric Formula E series, where energy management is crucial to the strategy.
Max Verstappen says new F1 cars are 'no fun' as Leclerc leads second day of testing in Bahrain
SAHIR, Bahrain (AP) — Max Verstappen says it's not "fun" to drive the new cars in Formula One and big changes for 2026 mean the series no longer looks like F1.
The regulatory changes for 2026 will make cars smaller and lighter, with a key role in the strategy of using electric power to charge the car's battery and accelerate.
"It's not really fun to drive," the four-time champion told Sky Sport in a German-language interview during the test on Thursday, comparing it to the Formula E series, where energy management is critical."What can you say about that? It's a bit like Formula E on steroids."
Verstappen predicted it would be difficult to control the car's power at tracks like Melbourne, which hosts the season-opening Australian Grand Prix next month.
“I don’t know what to do, it’s not the original feel of Formula 1 anymore,” said Verstappen, who was second fastest on the opening day of testing on Wednesday and sat out Thursday.
Day 2 was fastest Leclerc
Charles Leclerc made his way to Ferrari on Thursday and set the fastest time, half a second ahead of champion Lando Norris.
While some rivals have struggled with reliability issues, Leclerc's performance was an encouraging sign for Ferrari after a winless 2025 season.
McLaren's Norris, who was fastest on Wednesday, completed the most laps on Thursday with 149, almost three times the entire distance of the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Oliver Bearman was third fastest behind Haas, who had another strong day after Esteban Ocon was fourth on Wednesday.
There were problems at Mercedes, where Kimi Antonelli could only complete three laps in the morning before handing over to George Russell, and at Red Bull, where Issac Hajar spent a lot of time waiting for the team to run his car.
Teams can only run one car on the track in the test.In addition to Verstappen, seven-time Ferrari champion Lewis Hamilton was among those who sat out that day.
There are three days this week and three more next week.
AP Formula 1: https://apnews.com/hub/formula-one
