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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLance Stroll has unloaded on the 2026 F1 regulations. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLance Stroll has unloaded on the 2026 F1 regulations. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
The usually reserved Aston Martin driver did not hold back when reflecting on his experience during the enforced April break, where he sampled both GT3 and F3 cars, including making his GT3 race debut in France<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI drove other cars over the break, I tested some F3 cars, and it\u2019s like 1000 times more fun and better to drive because your right foot, you give what you want, and you get what you want,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cEven the weight of the car, 550-650 kilos are a lot nicer than 750-800 plus kilos.<\/p>\n \u201cThings like that just make cars fun to drive.\u201d<\/p>\n Stroll\u2019s frustration is centred on the current generation of F1 machinery, which he believes has drifted too far from what he considers \u201cproper\u201d grand prix cars.<\/p>\n \u201cAll the part throttle stuff is just destroying the racing, so hopefully it is more normal to drive, and we don\u2019t think so much about the management and the lift and coast and all this stuff,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I think we\u2019re so far away from proper F1 cars and pushing flat out, without thinking about batteries and all this stuff, it is just kind of a band-aid solution.\u201d<\/p>\n The Canadian also pointed to the lack of emotion and character in modern F1 compared to previous eras, having spent time watching historic races during the break.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are miles off where we should be, and during the break, I was randomly watching old races and the Monaco Historic, and I heard some early 2000s Ferraris and how good they sounded and how small and nimble they were,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI saw some onboards from the mid-2000s in the V10 era, and what it looks like versus now, you can hear the character of the cars, and just how much more intense and how much more exciting it looked back then, so it is a bit sad, but hopefully, we\u2019re heading back in that direction again.\u201d<\/p>\n He went further in his criticism of the package, even labelling aspects of it as artificial.<\/p>\n \u201cThen the sound, everyone hears the sound of the V8, V10 era and is going like: \u2018Wow, that is amazing, that is F1 when you hear it\u2019 and now, de-rating into a corner, I\u2019m downshifting going into a corner with no character or no noise.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is fake.\u201d<\/p>\n Despite recent tweaks aimed at improving drivability<\/a>, Stroll is sceptical meaningful gains will be made under the current rules cycle.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it is so fundamentally flawed, but I\u2019m not an engineer, but it is just sad that we\u2019re in this situation now, and I don\u2019t have all the answers,\u201d he admitted.<\/p>\n \u201cI hear rumours about it for the next regs, but now we\u2019re going to have to live with these ones for the next three, or four years.\u201d<\/p>\n Stroll also highlighted what he sees as a disconnect between the sport\u2019s leadership and those behind the wheel.<\/p>\n \u201cF1 is a business, and they want to protect their business and make it look good, and we\u2019re drivers, and we know what it feels like to drive good cars,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo there are two different perspectives on it, and people are watching the sport no matter what, and watching Netflix and turning on Formula 1, and so F1 is happy.<\/p>\n \u201cBut the drivers, the fans, the people that really know about racing, who know what it was like before, and the drivers who know what it is really like to drive really good, proper cars, there is no hiding behind the fact that right now, it is not as good as it can be.\u201d<\/p>\n While his criticism was unusually blunt, Stroll insisted he remained committed to Aston Martin\u2019s long-term project despite a difficult start to the new regulations era.<\/p>\n \u201cNo, because I still have a lot of belief in this project, and I think the project is so far from our potential,\u201d he said when asked if he was planning on walking away from the sport.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd two, three years\u2019 time, I\u2019m sitting on the sofa and I\u2019m watching two green cars at the front of the field, and I\u2019m not a part of it, it will bother me.<\/p>\n \u201cSo yeah, I want to be a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Stroll remains the only driver in 2026 yet to finish a full race distance, highlighting Aston Martin\u2019s troubled start under the new regulations and Honda power unit.<\/p>\n 2026 F1 Miami Grand Prix \u2013 Schedule, how to watch, TV times & more<\/a><\/p>\n
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