What did the Barcelona Grand Prix reveal about Formula 1 in 2026?

That, even his bad luck aside, George Russell is not currently performing at the level needed to become world champion. He was quicker than Kimi all weekend until it really mattered, in the race where his tyre management left a lot to be desired. Gained 18 points on Kimi but only because of his late DNF. Improvement needed from GR!

rebecca.braybrook3mo ago

I completely agree! Mercedes' strategy left him vulnerable to Lewis, who was in a class of his own, but George's overall performance and the messages to the team felt like those of a driver under immense pressure to prove himself. It's a stark contrast to Lando last season and I'm not sure GR is showing he can be a champion...YET!

seanfisher3mo ago

That Ferrari are developing… and quickly 🏎️

walkercharlie8283mo ago

The biggest lesson should be for pirelli. Softer tyres, higher deg= brilliant races

seanfisher3mo ago

Yeah that’s an interesting point, it did work much better with 2/3 stops being forced

gramorris3mo ago

Do you know what, nobody was talking about the power units, no harvesting issues, yadda, yadda, just really decent racing, the cars are running close to each other. This could be warming up to being an all time great season. It’s even somewhat enhanced by the weirdly increasing risk of engines blowing up

seanfisher3mo ago

Just as the FIA have scrambled to U-turn on the regs… we realise that maybe they’re not that bad 😂

matth3mo ago

That is actually true. Free from all the moaning and distractions we’ve seen so far this season. Be interesting to see if Red Bull can pull the rest of their car together around ‘the benchmark engine of the grid’

aaditya.krishnamurthy3mo ago

If Ferrari can stick the landing on their upgrades going forward, there is nothing anyone can do to stop them from at least pushing, if not threatening Mercedes' dominance this year. Could we get #8 for Hamilton? I sure hope so.

david.comerford3mo ago

Ferrari can deliver an upgrade that works! Going to be absolutely crucial to their championship chances

seanfisher3mo ago

elizablackstock3mo ago

For me, it was George Russell! We kicked off the weekend with what looked set to be a strong weekend, but it just never felt like he maximized, right from the start of the race. He is, theoretically, the backbone of Mercedes, but it seems like he's lacking in a little bit of the agility of Antonelli, which could end up playing a big role this year!

taniles1313mo ago

How do you give Russell DOD, when he started on pole and was being beaten on track by 2 other drivers before Kimi's car died? SMH.