The Formula 1 season is just days away from getting underway, with teams preparing to fly to Melbourne for next weekend’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix on 6–8 March.

With most drivers out of contract this year, every race and every result will be important for 2027. No one can afford a slow start.

Liam Lawson is one of the drivers in pursuit of a new deal, and in the lead-up to 2026 he’s been reflecting on his complicated arrival on the grid.

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Australia’s next F1 star could be on the horizon, with Mercedes doubling down on its backing of a young Melburnian karting ace.

And F1 boss Stefano Domenicali is already looking ahead to 2027.

LAWSON REFLECTS ON RICCIARDO ROLE IN F1 DEBUT

Liam Lawson has praised Daniel Ricciardo for his professionalism during the awkward handover of their Racing Bulls seat between 2023 and 2024.

Lawson got his Formula 1 debut replacing the injured Ricciardo at the 2024 Dutch Grand Prix, where the Australian broke his hand in a practice accident that would keep him sidelined for five grands prix.

Though it didn’t immediately translate into a full-time seat, the Kiwi was sufficiently impressive to keep himself in the mix as a reserve driver in 2024, when he would have the chance to pick off either Yuki Tsunoda or Ricciardo.

The matter came to a head at that year’s Singapore Grand Prix, where Ricciardo was sacked to make room for Lawson ahead of the Kiwi’s maiden full-time campaign in 2025.

The situation was uncomfortable for both drivers, with rumours of Ricciardo’s axing spreading through the paddock long before it was confirmed by the team via press release the following week.

“That whole week of Singapore sucked for me,” Lawson told the Gypsy Tales podcast. “Obviously it sucked so much more for him, and through all of it, he just never said a bad word.

“He was always just good to me through it, which shows the kind of person he is.

“I went there not knowing if he thought I was the worst guy ever, and straight away he spoke to me and said, ‘I want you to know there’s nothing against you through this. I know that it’s obviously got nothing to do with you and it’s completely separate from that’.

“Since then, every time I’ve called for advice, the guy is completely open to talk and give advice on everything that I’ve asked in the last couple of years.

“It shows what type of guy he is.”

Ricciardo subsequently announced his retirement from Formula 1.

Lawson was re-signed with Racing Bulls for 2026, where he will partner rookie Arvid Lindblad this season.

Jack Miller: 2026 Starts Now | 07:52

AUSSIE JAMES ANAGNOSTIADIS RETAINS MERCEDES PLACE

Melbourne-born James Anagnostiadis will continue with the Mercedes junior driver program in 2026 as he continues climbing the European karting ranks.

Anagnostiadis, 15, joined the Mercedes program during 2024, his first season in Europe, after having won multiple karting championships in Australia during the preceding season.

He finished runner-up at the FIA Karting World Championship in the junior OK karting class, which precipitated a move to the senior class in 2025.

A strong campaign saw him finish runner-up in the European karting championship and fourth in the world championship race in Kristianstad, Sweden, earning him a nomination for FIA rookie of the year.

He will continue racing in the senior karting classes this year as one of just nine drivers in the Mercedes junior driver program.

His 2026 campaign has already started, with the Australian currently sixth in the WSK Super Master Series and the highest placed non-European driver in the championship.

“Being part of the Mercedes-AMG F1 junior team is a huge honour for me and a big motivation to keep pushing every day,” he said. “Racing in [karting classes] OK senior and KZ2 with Kart Republic gives me the perfect environment to develop, learn and compete at the highest level.

“I’m proud to represent Mercedes and can’t wait for the year ahead.”

Anagnostiadis is the younger brother of Aiva Anagnostiadis, who competed in the F1 Academy series for Hitech last season.

The Mercedes junior program has delivered both George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli to Formula 1 as well as Esteban Ocon and former Manor and Sauber driver Pascal Wehrlein.

Feeney visibly distressed after victory | 01:39

F1 CONSIDERING STADIUM-STYLE 2027 LAUNCH EVENT

Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali says the sport is considering hosting an all-in stadium-style season launch event again next season.

The sport condensed the 2025 launch season into a single event at London’s O2 arena, where all 10 teams were given a few minutes to present a video package and then reveal their liveries. The drivers and team principals also appeared briefly on stage to answer questions.

The event was run as part of F1’s 75th anniversary celebrations, but a repeat was always going to be off the cards for 2026 given the effort required by teams to prepare this year’s all-new cars, with the first test having been scheduled for the end of January.

But Domenicali has suggested next year will see the sport’s pre-season calendar return to its usually slimmed-down state, which would allow for another stadium-style spectacular to get the year underway.

“Next year, we will go back to one single test before the season,” he said, per The Race.

“We are also thinking about, as we did [last year], a potential global launch with all the teams together.

“It was a big effect, a sort of a 25th race in terms of impact of communication around the world.

“But it’s still work in progress on that.”

Testing was beefed up to nine days for each team this year given the scale of the regulatory changes, but unexpectedly strong reliability for every team but Aston Martin and stable regulations mean a similarly long campaign won’t be required ahead of 2027.

With more than half the grid out of contract at the end of the season, such an event would likely give teams a chance to show off any new driving acquisitions to the largest possible audience.

The 2025 event was headlined by Lewis Hamilton’s first appearance in Ferrari overalls, to a rapturous reception from the partisan English crowd.

Christian Horner, however, wasn’t so favoured by his home audience, the sport’s erstwhile pantomime villain heartily booed when he made his appearance on stage.