Max Verstappen says changes to Formula 1’s contentious 2026 regulations are nothing more than “a tickle” as he continues to push for more substantial changes for next season.

Verstappen, the most vociferous and highest profile critic of the 2026 rule book, threatened after the previous round in Japan to walk away from Formula 1 at the end of the year if changes aren’t made.

The FIA had already agreed to review the regulations during the long April break and subsequently announced several rule tweaks aimed at allowing the drivers to push harder in qualifying in particular without having to worry about battery levels.

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Changes to the way the battery can be deployed in race conditions have also been made on safety grounds following Oliver Bearman’s 50g crash in Suzuka.

But the modifications haven’t been enough to satisfy Verstappen, who dismissed them as inconsequential.

“With the changes that are made, I think it’s more like a tickle,” he said, per Autosport. “At the end of the day, F1 is a very complex and political sport. I think everyone has tried their best to at least do something, but of course it won’t change the world.

“[This] is not what we need yet to really make it flat out, but like I said, it’s complicated to get everyone to agree. I just hope for next year we can make really big, big changes.”

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Verstappen sounded more optimistic, however, that the sport was receptive to driver feedback, with F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali in particular open to hearing complaints despite the Italian administrator’s claim that F1 has no problems.

“The positive thing about it is that we’ve had some nice meetings with Formula 1 and the FIA, and I think that’s hopefully a starting point for the future,” he said.

“Even in a few years time, maybe I’m not here anymore, but I really hope that for the future drivers as well there’s more input to come from the drivers to the organisers in general, because I do think that most of the drivers here, we have a good understanding and a good feel of what is needed to make Formula 1 a good product, a fun product.

“I think that’s already a huge step forward in terms of the communication.”

“I hope [they’ll listen to the drivers] more and more. I’m sure that we can have really good input about that.

“I think if we would have had that five or six years ago, then we probably wouldn’t have been in the state that we are in now. I just hope that it’s a lesson for the future.”

Australian Grand Prix pushed back | 00:54

BROADER RESPONSES MIXED

Though Verstappen’s comments have carried the most weight over the opening three rounds of the season, Lance Stroll made a play for most caustic criticism in Miami.

“I tested some F3 cars, and it’s like 1000 times more fun and better to drive, because you have your right foot, you give what you want and you get what you want,“ Stroll said, per The Race.

“Even the weight of the car, you know? Something, 550, 650 kilos, it’s just a lot nicer than 750 to 800-plus kilos. Things like that.

“I think we’re miles off of where we should be. We had time off in the break, I was randomly watching old races and stuff — I even had the Monaco Historics on the TV and I heard some cars, some Ferrari cars from early 2000s, and how good they sounded, how small and nimble [they looked].

“There were some onboards I saw from early or even mid-2000s, the V8 era, V10 era, and then what it looks like versus now — it came up on my phone and stuff, and I was watching it, and you hear what it’s like now, the character of the cars and how much more intense it looked, how much more exciting it looked back then compared to now.

“It’s sad, but hopefully we’re heading back in that direction.”

Stroll said he was hopeful the rule changes would make a difference but said drivers would likely have to wait years before significant improvements.

“Hopefully it’s a bit more normal to drive … but I think we’re still far away from proper F1 cars — pushing flat out, without thinking about batteries.

“I hear rumours about [the next rule set] … but now we’re going to have to live with these ones for the next three-four years.”

Most drivers were more measured in their response to the rule changes, with many hopeful that the formula can be improved significantly in 2027, even if that meant they were resigned to the engine’s flaws in 2026.

“You’re never going to fix the problems without changing the hardware of the power units, but I think it’s a step in the right direction,” Oscar Piastri said. “How much it helps, we’ll have to wait and see, but certainly some of the tweaks are a good step forward, which is good to see.

“I think everyone understands the limitations of what we have and is trying to adapt it to make things better for everybody.

“Some of those things we can tweak, like we have done. Some of those things you need to change in the medium term. Some of the things need a complete overhaul probably. But I think everyone’s aware of where we are at least, and we can make changes from there.”

Marc Marquez goes off in a HUGE crash | 00:39

Reigning champion Lando Norris said qualifying would be better, though the racing would likely be no different.

“We would all have liked more in the direction that they’ve gone,” he said, per the BBC. “The race really isn’t going to be that different, so some things are not going to change that much.

“The qualifying should be a bit more flat-out qualifying-style laps, which is a nice thing. It’s what we want [as] the drivers, so I think we have to be happy with the amount of changes that they’ve done.”

Sergio Pérez said the way the sport collaborated was positive for the direction of the category.

“It’s definitely something really good to see, seeing the teams, FIA, Formula 1, the drivers all trying to improve what we currently have, and I think it will be a really good step.

“I don’t know how much of a difference that will be because we obviously need to race it, but it’s good to see that we are trying to make good changes to improve in all areas and to improve the show and the feeling with the cars, with the qualifying.”

Carlos Sainz, a director of the Grand Prix Drivers Association, said things will be better this weekend, though he cautioned fans not to expect all the sport’s problems to have been solved.

“I don’t believe we will come up with a magic bullet here that will suddenly change everything, but I think all the changes are sensible and hopefully going to make things a bit more enjoyable from our part,” he said. “I’m just happy to see we’re collaborating, working together to make the sport better and more enjoyable.

“Whether it will make a big difference or not, we will obviously have the next few races to analyse, adapt and see if we need to do further changes.”

Isack Hadjar added, though, that the Miami track won’t be a good test of the changes given it’s rated as among the more energy-rich layout on the calendar.

“I don’t think it’s the most representative track,” he said. “I don’t think it’s a challenging track for the power units we have.

“I think it’s going to look good, but on some other tracks it’s definitely going to be harder. But let’s see tomorrow how it feels inside the car and we’ll know more.”

Alex Marquez wins as Marc crashes out | 01:40

HONDA RULE CHANGES SUSPENDED

Further to the regulation tweaks to improve the spectacle, the FIA, F1 and the teams had appeared to have thrown their weight behind concessions to help Honda recover from its disastrous start to the season.

Honda’s first engine under these rules has been brutally unreliable, vibrating so violently that the drivers feared permanent nerve damage in their hands. The shaking also caused spontaneous battery failures during pre-season testing.

Though Honda has since argued that the engine doesn’t vibrate on the test bench, suggesting the Aston Martin chassis is at least equally to blame, the power unit is also underpowered, with the Japanese brand having admitted before the season started that it was behind the curve with its combustion motor.

Despite F1’s usually cutthroat political climate, there appeared to be consensus that Aston Martin-Honda’s extreme struggles serve no-one, and rule changes to grant the engine manufacturer additional development opportunities and budget concessions this year had apparently been agreed in principle.

However, according to The Race, a vote on those rules changes has been suspended by the FIA despite the deadline for votes having passed earlier this week.

It further reports that the vote — held between engine manufacturers, including Cadillac, which will field its own engine in the coming years — didn’t receive sufficient support and that some brands had requested further review.

It’s a blow to Honda, though it may not end up being a setback.

There’s still debate over when the FIA will dole out the first concessions of the season. Engine performance is supposed to be measured after every six grands prix — every quarter of the original 24-race calendar. Miami was supposed to have been round 6, but the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian grands prix means engine assessments won’t be concluded until after the Monaco Grand Prix in early June.

If it’s moved, it’s likely to be shifted to after the Canadian Grand Prix later this month. Either way, there could be enough time to reach agreement on Honda’s additional concessions so that the Japanese marque can begin work as soon as possible.