Haas System 1 driver has labelled the Chinese language dash race as “optimistic” because the drivers and groups work to regulate to the brand new 2026 rules.
The second spherical of the 2026 season in China will characteristic the primary dash race of the 12 months, which means the drivers will solely have one follow session to organize.
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Whereas the groups may participate within the Barcelona shakedown from 26-30 January along with the 2 three-day blocks of testing in Bahrain, the British driver defined that having a dash race so early within the season places much more significance on being on the ball after they arrive on the season opener in Australia.
“Precisely. That is everybody’s worry, I believe, heading into the beginning of the 12 months. I believe a Dash weekend in Spherical 2 of such an enormous regulation overhaul is a bit optimistic, however we’ll see what we give you,” Bearman instructed the media in Bahrain when requested by Motorsport.com how way more difficult a dash race weekend shall be.
“Much more necessary to guarantee that we’re on the ball already from Australia initially, and in order that we will put these learnings into follow, and positively the simulator shall be vital to guarantee that we’re on it from the get-go in China, in any other case the gaps are going to be big in dash qualifying.”
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Haas workforce chief Ayao Komatsu additionally claimed that the dash race weekend shall be a “big problem”.
“Oh, that is going to be an enormous problem, man,” he mentioned in Bahrain. “Yeah, Shanghai, I am not trying ahead to that, I am unable to say I am trying ahead to that. One hour follow, prepare for dash quali, that is going to be an enormous problem.
Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Group
Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Group
“It is the identical for everybody, but it surely’s step-by-step. So like I mentioned, I believe we had respectable preparation, studying issues, then now we have to compress every thing, refine the procedures, accuracy of every thing, to get ready for the conventional race weekend.
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“We do one regular race weekend in Melbourne, hopefully it is dry, then going to Shanghai, it is dash weekend, so it is a steep studying curve, however similar for everybody.”
Further reporting by Jake Boxall-Legge.
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