Author Archives: PressBox

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem met Christian Horner at the FIA headquarters in Paris earlier this month, with the governing body posting photos with the caption “Good to see you, my friend.” The FIA did not disclose the purpose of the encounter. Horner was officially in Paris to attend the Retromobile classic car show, which is marking its 50th anniversary and runs through February 1.

Horner has kept a low profile since his dismissal in July 2025 by Red Bull, ending a 20-year tenure that transformed the team. Since then, he has been working behind the scenes, contacting teams after the summer break, pursuing investors in the U.S. and the Middle East, and exploring two main routes back into Formula 1 (F1).

One route involves a consortium reportedly interested in buying Otro Capital’s stake in Alpine, widely reported as 24% (some sources say 26%). The negotiation has been publicly acknowledged by figures such as Flavio Briatore. The other is speculation that Horner could back a bid to add a new, 12th F1 team. Reports say early talks with Aston Martin showed promise before stalling.

Red Bull has agreed to shorten Horner’s gardening leave, meaning he will be free to take a new role from the end of April. Media reports have also cited a departure payout in the region of £52 million to £80 million under a contract that originally ran to 2030.

Journalists who covered the Paris meeting described it as cordial but offered no firm evidence of commercial or regulatory discussions. Sky Sports reporter Craig Slater said Horner did not raise the Alpine purchase or a new team plan during the conversation. Neither Horner, the FIA, Alpine, Otro Capital, nor Red Bull has provided official confirmation of any hiring, investment, or deal linked to the meeting. The combination of Horner’s low profile since July 2025, his involvement in investor talks around Alpine, and the publicized meeting with Ben Sulayem has renewed media and fan speculation about a possible F1 return, but no concrete proof has emerged.

McLaren’s MCL40 made its public debut at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya during the team’s pre-season shakedown, with Lando Norris taking the car out after McLaren skipped the first two days of running. Norris completed 77 laps and posted a best time of 1:18.307 to sit third on the timesheets behind Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, while Sky Sports’ Ted Kravitz and others noted the MCL40’s “more aggressive” appearance compared to Mercedes and Ferrari. Observers pointed to a detailed front wing, an expanded bargeboard region, and a strong floor–sidepod package, and McLaren chief designer Rob Marshall described the day as productive for systems data and driver feedback, reporting only minor gremlins during the outing.

Norris’s first impressions emphasized a marked improvement in straight-line acceleration under the 2026 regulations. The car reached around 340–350 km/h noticeably quicker than previous seasons, thanks to higher permitted electrical deployment, lower downforce, and lower wings in “straight mode.” He said cornering felt a bit slower and that the added battery and power‑unit management complexity made the car harder to fully understand initially, but that the MCL40 still “feels like a McLaren” with strong power delivery. The session was framed as an early learning exercise rather than a performance benchmark, giving the team baseline data on aerodynamic behavior, energy management demands, and reliability to carry into the remainder of testing.

Running with the traditional No. 1 was a symbolic milestone. Norris described seeing the number on his car, suit, and timing screens as “surreal,” and his run marked the first time McLaren had carried No. 1 since Jenson Button’s 2010 Abu Dhabi appearance. Norris acknowledged the extra scrutiny that comes with the championship number but said it had not changed his working approach. McLaren planned to continue its evaluation program with Oscar Piastri running the MCL40 the following day and further work scheduled in Bahrain. The team suggests that the shakedown provides an early technical direction, highlighting how drivers will adapt to altered handling and increased energy‑management responsibilities under the new rules.

During the Barcelona closed‑doors shakedown, Ferrari used wet conditions to evaluate a partial active aero mode on the SF‑26. The configuration kept the rear wing closed while flattening the second and third elements of the front wing. The team ran full‑wet Pirelli tires and logged telemetry to assess aerodynamic behaviour and hybrid energy trade‑offs. Charles Leclerc completed wet laps in the setup, and unofficial social‑media footage also showed Lewis Hamilton in the same configuration.

The partial mode was added in the December 2025 draft regulations, after earlier rules had barred active‑aero use in wet conditions. Under the 2026 technical package, active aerodynamic devices may change state on straights, close automatically when a driver lifts or brakes, and a separate Overtake Mode has replaced DRS. The FIA will publish circuit‑specific Activation Zones under Article B7.1.1 at least four weeks before each event, leaving teams with more activation zones than under the DRS regime. When fully enabled, those zones allow both front and rear wings to open and are usable every lap.

Drivers and teams said the 2026 cars already feel very different. They carry considerably less downforce, and the new systems increase cockpit workload by adding manual wing operation, Overtake Mode management, and a greater need to manage electrical power during races. The wet partial mode offers a degraded option that leaves only the front wing in its straight‑line configuration, giving teams a way to use active aero without opening the rear wing in wet conditions. Ferrari’s shakedown aimed to check hardware, tire behaviour, and the balance between aerodynamic gains and hybrid energy demand. An early test of how lighter cars and 50‑50 electric/biofuel power units will affect race operations.

On the third day of the closed-door Barcelona shakedown, Mercedes logged heavy mileage and topped the unofficial timesheets. George Russell set the morning benchmark with a 1:17.580, and teammate Kimi Antonelli lowered that to 1:17.382 in the afternoon. Russell had completed about 92 laps by lunchtime and Antonelli roughly 91 in the afternoon, resulting in around 183 laps between them. Mercedes reported no major reliability issues with the W17.

The session emphasized mileage and system validation rather than a straight performance shootout. The German-owned garage focused on long runs and setup work while repeatedly producing the day’s best times. Teams described the running as program-focused and treated the unofficial timings as indicative rather than definitive.

Six teams ran in drier Wednesday conditions. McLaren made the public debut of its black-liveried MCL40, with Lando Norris completing a 70-plus lap program and posting the third-fastest time. Alpine logged substantial miles through Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly. Haas’ Ollie Bearman posted the quickest lap outside Mercedes but was limited to roughly 40 laps after an early stoppage. Audi and Racing Bulls each triggered red flags, with the former’s Nico Hülkenberg stopped between Turns 9 and 10. Red Bull and Ferrari did not run, while Aston Martin was due to appear the following day, and Williams missed the shakedown entirely.

F1’s 2026 technical overhaul forced teams into an early, fundamental reshaping of chassis, aerodynamic packaging, and power units, and introduced substantially tougher crash and driver‑protection tests. Key rule changes include a lower minimum car mass (from 1763.7 to 1693.15 lbs), higher roll‑hoop static loads (from 105/140 kN to 129/172 kN), a survival‑cell fuel‑tank side‑load increase (from 50 kN to 110 kN), stiffer wheel‑contact, cockpit‑floor, and nose push‑off checks. The alterations for the upcoming session also include a new lateral push‑off‑to‑failure test that requires failure rearward of 650 mm at thresholds above 52.5 kN. Many early‑launch cars already show larger roll hoops, bulkier airboxes, and noses reinforced by stronger structures. Teams are expected to iterate designs throughout the season as they balance compliance with competitive pace.

Williams has faced early development setbacks. The team skipped a behind‑closed‑doors Barcelona shakedown to concentrate on its FW48. Initial reports said the car failed three mandatory FIA crash tests. However, an Italian outlet later reported the FW48 had passed the crash test required for homologation. Those accounts conflict, and the pass report has not been independently verified. Multiple sources place the FW48 roughly 44-66 lbs over the new 1693.15 lbs minimum, and missing the Barcelona running trimmed on‑track preparation time ahead of the opening races.

Any remedial chassis work to meet the new mass and safety limits will count against the sport’s cost cap, potentially reducing funds available for mid‑ and late‑season upgrades. Williams is reported to be shifting focus to aggressive weight‑reduction work before its next scheduled on‑track running in Bahrain. Whether those fixes restore on‑track competitiveness without creating further homologation or budget issues is a pivotal early‑season question.

The situation highlights the wider 2026 tension between much tougher mandatory safety requirements and the cost‑cap constraints that now shape development across the grid. This presents a particular challenge for teams that showed momentum in 2025, with Williams having finished fifth in the Constructors’ Championship on points from Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz.