{"id":349566,"date":"2026-03-26T23:15:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T23:15:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/349566\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T23:15:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T23:15:10","slug":"liam-lawson-on-new-f1-cars-ahead-of-japan-gp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/349566\/","title":{"rendered":"Liam Lawson on new F1 cars ahead of Japan GP"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kiwi Formula 1 driver Liam Lawson has warned the new technical regulations could be “quite punishing”, as drivers adjust to a major shift in how the sport’s cars are driven and managed.<\/p>\n

Under the controversial 2026 rules<\/a>, power is split evenly between combustion and electrical systems, placing a far greater emphasis on drivers’ energy harvesting and battery deployment during a race.<\/p>\n

Speaking to media ahead of this weekend\u2019s Japanese Grand Prix, Lawson said the change had transformed how drivers approach a race weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re very different for us to drive at the moment,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe big difference is we used to spend most of our time focusing on car setup and balance. Right now, it\u2019s really about energy management.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are just more consequences when you get it wrong. If you use too much energy, it can be quite punishing. You\u2019re doing a lot more thinking when driving,” <\/p>\n

Ahead of Japan’s race, Formula 1’s governing body (FIA) announced it was tweaking energy management rules so drivers were able to push harder during qualifying. <\/p>\n

The maximum energy teams can harvest from their power units to recharge their batteries was reduced from 9 megajoules (MJ) to 8 MJ, allowing drivers to push more during qualifying and focus less on energy management.<\/p>\n

Lawson said he expected another challenging weekend at Suzuka, a circuit known for demanding precision and efficiency.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m sure this weekend’s going to be tough. We have new changes to the car this weekend that we need to adapt to, but it\u2019s been a decent start,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The 24-year-old sits ninth in the drivers\u2019 standings after a mixed start to the season, finishing 13th in Melbourne<\/a> behind his rookie teammate before finishing seventh in Shanghai. <\/p>\n

Mercedes’ George Russell currently leads the standings, closely followed by teammate Kimi Antonelli who secured his maiden race victory<\/a> in China. <\/p>\n

The Japanese Grand Prix will take place Sunday (6pm NZT). <\/p>\n

\"Formula<\/p>\n

Formula 1 driver Max Verstappen of Oracle Red Bull Racing during the Formula 1 Japan Suzuka media day at the Suzuka Formula 1 circuit in Suzuka, Japan, on March 26, 2025. (Source: Getty)<\/p>\n

Verstappen ejects journalist from press conference<\/p>\n

Despite no on-track action yet in Japan, drama has already unfolded off it \u2014 with four-time world champion Max Verstappen ordering a journalist out of a press conference.<\/p>\n

The Dutch driver refused to begin speaking to print media at Suzuka after spotting Guardian journalist Giles Richards in the room, following an exchange between the pair last season.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne second \u2014 I\u2019m not speaking before he\u2019s leaving,\u201d Verstappen said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeriously? Because of that question last year?\u201d Richards replied.<\/p>\n

Richards asked if the issue stemmed from a question about his collision with Russell at the 2025 Spanish Grand Prix. Verstappen then responded tersely to subsequent questions before telling Richards to “get out”. <\/p>\n

\u201cNow we can start,\u201d Verstappen said after Richards left.<\/p>\n

The tension dates back to last season\u2019s finale in Abu Dhabi, where Richards asked whether Verstappen\u2019s clash with Russell in Spain had impacted the championship outcome.<\/p>\n

During that race in Barcelona, Verstappen intentionally drove into Russell while battling on track, receiving a 10-second time penalty and costing him nine points. At the end of the season, Verstappen was two points shy of winning the title. <\/p>\n

When asked in Abu Dhabi if he regretted the incident in Spain, the Dutch driver pushed back. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou forget all the other stuff that happened in my season,\u201d he said. \u201cThe only thing you mention is Barcelona. I knew that would come.\u201d<\/p>\n

Writing in The Guardian, Richards said he was \u201cdeeply disappointed\u201d by the Suzuka exchange.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still admire Verstappen and I hope we can enjoy a better relationship in the future,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes, difficult, awkward questions have to be asked. That\u2019s the job that comes with the privilege.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kiwi Formula 1 driver Liam Lawson has warned the new technical regulations could be “quite punishing”, as drivers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":349567,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[185609,185610,19552,185611,4752,3515,185612,185613,185614,120850,183581,185615,185616,111,43,139,127307,69,185617,185618,185619,3512,185620,185621,185622,185623],"class_list":["post-349566","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-automotive-competition","tag-competitive-driving","tag-driver","tag-eye4images","tag-f1","tag-formula-1","tag-formule-1","tag-grand-prix","tag-high-speed-racing","tag-international-event","tag-japanese-grand-prix","tag-marcel-van-dorst","tag-march-26","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nurphoto","tag-nz","tag-oracle-red-bull-racing","tag-professional-driver","tag-race-track","tag-racing","tag-racing-team","tag-sports-photography","tag-suzuka-international-racing-course","tag-suzuka-media"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349566","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=349566"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349566\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/349567"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=349566"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=349566"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=349566"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}