Components 1 groups head off on their summer time break this week after a busy 11 races to begin a brand new period of the game.
F1 2026 has been filled with storylines – controversy over new guidelines, a brand new star rising, the rebirth of an outdated one, and calendar disruption attributable to a battle.
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Even now, as they head off on vacation for a few weeks, the groups nonetheless do not know what number of races are left this season.
However these thus far have revealed a lot. Listed here are 5 issues we’ve discovered thus far in F1 2026.
1. Antonelli is the actual deal
Kimi Antonelli began his Components 1 profession in 2025 hyped as the subsequent generational expertise – however didn’t reside as much as that billing in his maiden season.
How that has modified in 2026.
This was speculated to be his team-mate George Russell’s 12 months.
Mercedes have delivered on the expectation they might be the group to beat with eight wins and 10 pole positions within the first 11 grands prix, and Russell dominated his rookie team-mate in 2025.
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However Antonelli took a gargantuan step in growth over the winter and, whereas Russell began the season strongly with a win, the Italian quickly took management.
Initially, the aggressive image between the 2 was barely clouded by some poor luck for Russell within the opening races of the season.
However, as time has handed, it has turn out to be more and more clear that Antonelli is dominating his team-mate thus far this season in one of the best automotive.
Whereas Russell has floundered somewhat, much less comfy with the automotive, and remains to be bothered by dangerous luck, tempo appears to movement from Antonelli so simply. Together with devastating tempo, his driving is decisive, dedicated and funky.
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The 19-year-old can be powerful to cease within the second half of the season.
2. The brand new guidelines have been poorly thought-out
The ‘yo-yo racing’ of this season’s rules was notably felt by Charles Leclerc and George Russell in Australia, passing one another seven instances [Getty Images]
This 12 months’s F1 championship launched the most important rule change within the sport’s historical past, with new aerodynamic and engine rules.
Whereas the chassis guidelines have usually been successful – even when the automobiles are somewhat slower than final 12 months – the brand new engines most undoubtedly haven’t.
The nominal 50-50 break up between inside combustion and electrical energy (extra like 53-47 in actuality) mixed with the structure of the engines, has left them vitality starved.
And when the battery is empty, the automobiles have solely about 540bhp – much less energy than a Components 3 automotive, however with hundreds extra grip.
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The necessity to always cost the battery has neutered lots of the finest corners on a lot of F1’s best tracks, decreasing them to what Fernando Alonso has referred to as “charging stations”.
The flip aspect is the vitality hunger has led to some attention-grabbing battles, often called “yo-yo racing”, with automobiles swapping positions repeatedly over quite a few laps.
However the drivers level out that is synthetic, and that overtakes are sometimes taking place just because one driver all of a sudden has 350kW (470bhp) greater than the opposite.
As four-time champion Max Verstappen says: “Typically folks say: ‘Ah yeah, however this was a fantastic race.’ I say: ‘Yeah, however it’s probably not lifelike the best way we’re racing.’
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“And then you definitely arrive to some tracks and also you’re driving on not a whole lot of horsepower for F1 requirements. And it is somewhat bit painful, which I may see coming already for years. So, it is then, after all, not essentially the most thrilling.
“At one level I am additionally somewhat bit fed up with repeating myself, as a result of it is already onerous sufficient simply having to drive it.”
The drivers – particularly Verstappen and Fernando Alonso, however a lot of the others, too – have been very vocal about this from very early within the season. The game as an entire recognised there was an issue, and has reacted.
Tweaks to the foundations to reduce the issue have been made after simply three races, and the engine break up can be modified to turn out to be 60-40 by 2028, with an intermediate step for subsequent 12 months.
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That can considerably scale back these points, however not eradicate them utterly.
F1’s governing physique the FIA was warned repeatedly within the years main as much as 2026 that this vitality hunger situation would occur.
This has left a simple goal for FIA president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem, to suggest a return to naturally aspirated V8 engines for 2031.
It is an thought with distinctly restricted assist amongst F1’s stakeholders. It lacks creativeness and evaluation, comes with its personal set of issues, and is successfully turning the clock again 15 years.
The difficulty isn’t hybrid engines or turbos per se; it’s the lack of vitality restoration prospects.
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It is a state of affairs F1 compelled on itself by eradicating the MGU-H, which recovered vitality from the turbo and exhaust, and never permitting restoration from the entrance axle.
The game must take a pause, intelligently and rigorously analyse what it desires from its engines sooner or later.
Then it must give you a bundle that satisfies the producers, has road-relevance, embraces issues in regards to the local weather disaster, doesn’t create a noise-hazard risk to a number of the sport’s most high-profile races, is cheaper, permits the drivers to virtually complete entry to full energy, and provides a facility for overtaking.
3. The true Hamilton is (principally) again
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton secured his first Ferrari race win in Barcelona and at present sits second within the drivers championship [Getty Images]
Lewis Hamilton’s profession reached its lowest level in 2025, throughout a maiden season with Ferrari the seven-time champion himself described as a “nightmare”.
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Hamilton’s struggles – within the context of a troublesome closing season at Mercedes in 2024 – raised all kinds of questions.
He has admitted he doubted himself at instances final 12 months.
Hamilton stated: “There have been undoubtedly moments that I used to be like: ‘Sheesh, possibly it’s true that, you recognize, while you get to a sure level, you lose it.'”
These feedback got here within the wake of his victory on the Spanish Grand Prix – the zenith of a primary half-season that has undoubtedly proved he has not “misplaced it”.
Hamilton, 41, is rejuvenated this 12 months – again to one thing near his finest – and the battle with team-mate Charles Leclerc – just about fully one-sided in 2025 – is neck and neck.
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He is even sort-of within the championship combat – in second place, 50 factors behind Antonelli.
Is that this right down to the brand new automobiles behaving extra to his liking than the ground-effect ones of the previous 4 seasons, assiduous work behind the scenes to combine himself extra intently with Ferrari, or the group accommodating a few of his preferences into the automotive design this 12 months?
Maybe it is a mixture.
Even, as his former group boss Toto Wolff has stated, “possibly the brand new girlfriend helps” – a reference to Hamilton’s relationship with American media persona and businesswoman Kim Kardashian.
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There may be nonetheless some room for enchancment – 4 penalties previously three races may be very a lot not Hamilton-esque. However his revival is a aid – for him, and all those that have witnessed his unimaginable profession thus far.
4. Aston Martin lastly have some hope
There was a whole lot of speak earlier than the season began surrounding Aston Martin’s tempo, however thus far they’ve didn’t ship – scoring only one level [Getty Images]
On paper, Aston Martin have the components to be title contenders – design legend Adrian Newey in cost, a number of championship-winning engine producer Honda offering the power-units, the legendary Alonso within the cockpit, and ample funding from billionaire proprietor Lawrence Stroll and Saudi Arabian sponsorship.
However the first half-season of this much-vaunted bundle has been nothing lower than a humiliation.
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Each automotive and engine have been a good distance from competitiveness at the beginning of the season, Stroll was virtually in tears when the group’s predicament turned clear in pre-season testing, they usually spent the primary 10 races proper on the again.
The ultimate race earlier than the summer time break, nonetheless, supplied actual hope.
A large improve bundle primarily based on classes discovered within the early races – growing downforce and decreasing weight – has taken what seems like two seconds off the automotive’s lap instances.
Most significantly, the success of the bundle proved out the group’s growth instruments, which for the previous three years had produced upgrades that didn’t ship what the group anticipated.
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A brand new Honda engine is due for the subsequent race – the Dutch Grand Prix on 21-23 August – with expectations it ought to edge the group forwards somewhat extra.
After the group proved it may enhance the automotive, lots rests on that engine. “No strain,” as Alonso himself stated with a smile after Hungary. It was each a joke and never a joke.
Alonso, 44, is out of contract on the finish of the 12 months, and desires to see proof that Honda, which has lastly introduced all of the experience behind its championship-winning engines with Crimson Bull again into the F1 design group, is on the appropriate path.
If it is a step ahead, it ought to considerably enhance the probabilities of Alonso staying for one more 12 months – though he nonetheless has to persuade himself he can get pleasure from his racing with these engines he dislikes a lot.
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5. Williams have had a brutal actuality test
It has been a tricky 12 months for Williams boss James Vowles, right here with Carlos Sainz [Getty Images]
For 3 years after taking up as Williams group principal at the beginning of 2023, James Vowles had been speaking up 2026 because the 12 months the group would make a large leap in the direction of their ambition of returning to successful methods.
A surprisingly sturdy 2025 – wherein Williams completed fifth within the constructors’ championship – gave the impression to be proof the group weren’t solely heading in the right direction, however even forward of schedule.
This 12 months, they’ve had a brutal actuality test.
The automotive was late, obese by about 25kg, and lacked efficiency. Williams’ first half-season has proved them to be ninth quickest group and almost 0.4secs on common slower than the group simply forward of them – Haas.
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Solely troubled Aston Martin and newcomers Cadillac have been slower – and Aston Martin’s Hungary improve appears to have left Williams because the tenth finest group.
And all that with one of the best engine on the grid – the Mercedes.
Drivers Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon are undoubtedly not impressed – though they proceed to say the appropriate issues in public.
Vowles has defined the complexities of manufacturing a brand new automotive to a brand new rule set stress-tested the manufacturing unit and uncovered weaknesses that have been beforehand not obvious.
However he stated related issues when the 2024 automotive was late.
Vowles says he is “glad” they’ve gone by means of this and insists the group at the moment are making progress.
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“By no means let an excellent disaster go to waste,” he says. “The quantity of modifications we’ve made have put us into an excellent state of affairs sooner or later, and I do not assume we might have made them if we would partially succeeded this winter.
“So, as painful as it has been, I imagine we needed to undergo it as nicely.”
