{"id":189399,"date":"2025-10-04T10:29:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-04T10:29:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/189399\/"},"modified":"2025-10-04T10:29:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-04T10:29:09","slug":"verstappen-slams-ridiculous-f1-cooling-vest-plan-for-2026-fia-responds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/189399\/","title":{"rendered":"Verstappen slams “ridiculous” F1 cooling vest plan for 2026, FIA responds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Max Verstappen<\/a> will not use the cooling vest during the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix<\/a> and says it is \u201cridiculous\u201d that the device could become mandatory next year \u2013 although the FIA clarifies that these discussions remain ongoing.<\/p>\n

In Singapore, the FIA issued an official heat hazard sign<\/a> for the first time ever in F1. The governing body can do this up to 24 hours before the official start of a competition if the forecast is 31C or higher. Once the warning is given, all teams are required to install the device for the cooling system.<\/p>\n

The feature came as a response to the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix, when several drivers became unwell due to the extreme heat.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The use of the cooling vest itself is not yet mandatory<\/a>, and drivers are free to choose, although the FIA has worked on the regulations to make sure that drivers who do wear the vest don\u2019t suffer from a weight handicap. This means drivers without the vest must carry an extra 500g of ballast in the car\u00a0to ensure a level playing field.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Opinion in the paddock is divided so far. George Russell<\/a> already used the vest in Bahrain and said he benefited from it on his way to second place in that race, but not all drivers are as positive, particularly about the comfort, and Verstappen is not convinced and has confirmed he will not wear the vest in Singapore.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I\u2019m not going to wear it. I don\u2019t really suffer from the heat that much, and it\u2019s going to be warm anyway. Sweating a bit is fine for me, and after 15 to 20 minutes the vest gets really hot as well. So, it doesn\u2019t help at all,\u201d Verstappen said.<\/p>\n

\"Max <\/p>\n

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing<\/p>\n

Photo by: Simon Galloway \/ LAT Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Verstappen\u2019s biggest objection is not so much that the vest doesn\u2019t work properly for him, but more that drivers may be forced to wear it in the future.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI just think it should be an option \u2013 that you can choose for yourself whether you want to wear it or not,\u201d he told Dutch broadcaster Viaplay.<\/p>\n

When pointed out that this is the case for now, Verstappen replied:\u00a0\u201cThis season it is, yes, but at the moment it won\u2019t be for next season. And I completely disagree with that. It\u2019s a bit ridiculous to be honest. In the end it\u2019s about your own safety and how you feel about it. I don\u2019t think they should make that mandatory at all.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The FIA clarified to Autosport that the obligation to use it in 2026 is not set in stone yet. The cooling vest was one of the topics during Friday night\u2019s drivers\u2019 briefing in Singapore, where opinions were split.<\/p>\n

Making the vest mandatory for 2026 is currently under consideration, but the FIA stressed that it is open to discussion with the drivers. It’s precisely the conversation Verstappen wants to have with the federation, with the four-time world champion strongly preferring that wearing the vest remains a free choice in the coming years.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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– The Autosport.com Team<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Max Verstappen will not use the cooling vest during the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix and says it…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":189400,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[64,63,817,120215,813,816,114904,825,946,37177,85,120214],"class_list":["post-189399","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-f1","tag-fia-responds","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-marina-bay-street-circuit","tag-max-verstappen","tag-red-bull-racing","tag-singapore-gp","tag-sports","tag-verstappen-slams-ridiculous-f1-cooling-vest-plan-for-2026"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=189399"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/189399\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/189400"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=189399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=189399"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=189399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}