{"id":520487,"date":"2026-03-07T13:39:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T13:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/520487\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T13:39:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T13:39:08","slug":"defending-champion-norris-slams-worst-f1-cars-after-torrid-australian-gp-qualifying-formula-one-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/520487\/","title":{"rendered":"Defending champion Norris slams \u2018worst\u2019 F1 cars after torrid Australian GP qualifying | Formula One 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

Three world champions \u2013 Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen<\/a> and Lando Norris \u2013 have delivered a damning verdict on Formula One\u2019s regulations overhaul after qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix.<\/p>\n

Norris, McLaren\u2019s defending champion, was scathing of the changes, saying that driving the car \u201csucks\u201d and they were probably the \u201cworst\u201d ever made, while Hamilton criticised the new engine and chassis rules as \u201ccompletely against\u201d F1\u2019s principles.<\/p>\n

Mercedes\u2019s George Russell took pole position<\/a> for the first race of the season with a dominant performance, more than eight-tenths of a second quicker than McLaren\u2019s Oscar Piastri, who qualified fifth. But with the new regulations requiring complex energy management across a lap, many drivers were dismissive.<\/p>\n

Norris, who won his first title last season but could manage only sixth on the grid in Melbourne on Saturday, was among those who doubled down on complaints that have been circulating throughout the pre-season and have reached a head at Albert Park.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve come from the best cars ever made in Formula One<\/a> and the nicest to drive, to probably the worst. It sucks,\u201d he said. \u201cEveryone knows what the issues are. It\u2019s just the fact it\u2019s a 50-50 split [between power from the combustion engine and electrical energy].\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked if he thought this was where F1 should be, Norris was unequivocal. \u201cNot really, no,\u201d he said. \u201cAs drivers, we have the interest of the sport in our minds better than others. The rules have been changed because that\u2019s what manufacturers want. But if you have 20 other drivers complaining, I don\u2019t know what\u2019s better for the sport or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

Norris was far from alone. Hamilton, seven-times a world champion, echoed his criticism, noting that the complex requirements to recharge energy across a lap were distracting from drivers demonstrating their racing skill.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe power\u2019s good when you\u2019ve got it, it\u2019s just it doesn\u2019t last,\u201d he said. \u201cWe start the lap, half throttle coming through the last corner, and a third, a quarter of a straight, and then you go to full throttle. It\u2019s completely against what Formula One is about\u2013 flat-out, full attack \u2013 and you\u2019re lifting and coasting and stuff. That element is not very good and I don\u2019t think the drivers particularly like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

McLaren\u2019s Lando Norris could only finish sixth in qualifying. Photograph: Mark Peterson\/Reuters<\/p>\n

Verstappen spun into a barrier when the rear of his car locked up under braking into turn one in qualifying, locking the rear axle as part of the energy regeneration process to which drivers are having to adapt. Others have been similarly caught out and the Red Bull<\/a> driver was left powerless as the car was spat out across the run-off and he finished in 20th place. Red Bull are investigating the cause.<\/p>\n

The four-time world champion has been outspoken in his dislike of the new regulations, warning he would quit the sport if he ceases to enjoy it. He joined the broad chorus of disapproval in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m definitely not having fun at all with these cars. You can make up your mind, but if you look at the onboard, you see enough, right?\u201d he said, referring to the drivers having to lift off the throttle to allow energy recovery on long straights. \u201cThe formula is just not correct, and that is something that is a bit harder to change, but we need to. It\u2019s going to be a long season, that\u2019s all I\u2019m telling you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Verstappen was later cleared by F1\u2019s medical team after X-rays on his hands following his crash. The Red Bull driver told Sky Sports: \u201cAll good. I just had to get some X-rays done to see if my hands were OK, but nothing was broken.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Three world champions \u2013 Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris \u2013 have delivered a damning verdict on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":520488,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[441],"tags":[49,48,578,576,577,82],"class_list":["post-520487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-f1","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=520487"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/520487\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/520488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=520487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=520487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=520487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}