Author Archives: PressBox

Oliver Bearman suffered a reported 50G impact in a high-speed crash at the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. Bearman closed about 50 kph faster than Franco Colapinto into Spoon Curve, and took avoiding action that sent his Haas across the track and through gravel before it struck a barrier. Marshals assisted him and X-rays cleared him of major injury apart from a badly bruised knee.

Stefano Domenicali said he changed his mind about the planned 2026 rules after seeing the incident, and fans reacted angrily, accusing officials of not taking driver safety seriously. Some drivers and commentators cited the crash as confirmation of earlier warnings from drivers such as George Russell that cars built to the 2026 regulations “would be like planes.” The debate centers on whether the 2026 technical direction needs adjustments to reduce closing speeds and mitigate launch risk in wheel-to-wheel incidents.

The FIA concluded that high closing speeds contributed to the Bearman and Colapinto crash and said it will consider potential changes during April. Cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian grands prix have given F1 an unexpected window to evaluate the 2026 rule package, and drivers, teams and fans are expected to watch that review closely because any tweaks could alter the series’ safety and technical trajectory ahead of 2026. Drivers’ representatives proposed concrete fixes, with Grand Prix Drivers’ Association president Alex Wurz urging changes to power-unit software, a ban on sudden deployment spikes at top speed and a standard software solution that factors speed and distance to prevent abrupt energy deployment and so-called “super clipping.” Wurz linked the concern to this season’s shift toward a roughly 50/50 combustion-electric split and increased battery harvesting, which he and others say has produced dangerous closing-speed deltas. The incident has intensified scrutiny and raised questions about potential reputational and regulatory pressure on the FIA and F1.

Martin Brundle announced he will cut his on-site Sky F1 commentary commitments to a fixed slate of 16 races for the 2026 season, formally stepping back from full-time commentating while remaining on a regular but limited schedule. The 16 races are two fewer than the 18 rounds he attended in 2025, and Brundle confirmed he will return to the commentary booth for the Miami weekend in May 2026.

Brundle, 66, began commentating in F1 in 1997 after TV rights moved from the BBC to ITV, where he worked alongside Murray Walker. He joined Sky in 2012 and has built a 29-year broadcasting career in the sport, becoming known for memorable lines such as “Is that Glock?” and other signature remarks.

He has been gradually cutting back his trackside appearances, attending the 2025 season opener in Australia but missing the China and Japan rounds, where his customary grid walk was absent. On The F1 Show podcast and the Sky F1 podcast Brundle said he tends to skip races that fall in the very early hours for him and that he was “a bit sad” to miss Suzuka. He described the change as a personal scheduling reduction rather than a wholesale contractual shift. Sky declined to comment on whether Brundle’s reduced 2026 schedule resulted from contractual changes or from the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, which have reduced the 2026 calendar to a maximum of 22 rounds and produced a five-week midseason gap that Brundle expects the Miami Grand Prix to relaunch.

Reports say Gianpiero Lambiase will leave Red Bull at the end of 2027 to join McLaren in 2028. Lambiase has been Max Verstappen’s race engineer for years and is credited as a central technical and strategic figure across Verstappen’s four drivers’ championships and Red Bull’s 2022 and 2023 constructors’ wins. Multiple reports say he has agreed to a McLaren contract described by some sources as “astronomical” or “huge,” reportedly many times his current wage, and that he told reporters he will not serve as a race engineer for another driver.

Media outlets reporting the move say McLaren beat rival interest from teams including Aston Martin and Williams and would reunite Lambiase with former Red Bull colleagues Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay. De Telegraaf reported Lambiase recently received a promotion to head of racing at Red Bull and that he turned down an Aston Martin team principal role. Some coverage says McLaren could install Lambiase in a senior leadership post, raising questions about Andrea Stella’s future and prompting reports linking Stella with a possible switch to Ferrari.

The planned departure has been placed in the context of a wider senior-level exodus from Red Bull, with reports noting moves such as Adrian Newey to Aston Martin and Jonathan Wheatley to Audi, and references to the exit or dismissal of Christian Horner and mentions of Helmut Marko. Coverage and social-media reaction have prompted intense discussion about Verstappen’s future and McLaren’s leadership, with many outlets framing the move as a potential trigger for Verstappen to consider leaving Red Bull or retiring. At the time of publication, neither Red Bull, McLaren nor Max Verstappen had issued formal statements and the reports remain unconfirmed.

Reports say Gianpiero Lambiase will leave Red Bull at the end of 2027 to join McLaren in 2028. Multiple outlets credited Lambiase as a central technical and strategic figure across Max Verstappen’s four drivers’ championships and Red Bull’s 2022 and 2023 constructors’ wins, and say he has agreed to a McLaren contract described by some sources as an “astronomical” or “huge” sum, many times his current wage. Sources also report Lambiase told reporters he will not serve as a race engineer for another driver.

Media reports say McLaren beat rival interest from teams including Aston Martin and Williams to secure Lambiase, and that the team would reunite him with former Red Bull colleagues Rob Marshall and Will Courtenay. De Telegraaf reported Lambiase recently received a promotion to head of racing at Red Bull and that he turned down an Aston Martin team principal role. Some coverage speculates McLaren could install Lambiase in a senior leadership post, and that the move has raised questions about Andrea Stella’s future, with reports linking Stella to a possible switch to Ferrari.

The planned departure has been cast in the context of a wider exodus of senior Red Bull figures, with reporting naming moves such as Adrian Newey to Aston Martin and Jonathan Wheatley to Audi, along with the exit or dismissal of Christian Horner and references to Helmut Marko. The timing and reported financial terms prompted a strong social media reaction, with fans and commentators interpreting the news as having major implications for Verstappen and team dynamics. At the time of publication, neither Red Bull, McLaren nor Max Verstappen had issued formal statements and the reports remain unconfirmed.

Juan Pablo Montoya publicly urged Audi to hire “somebody like Christian,” praising Christian Horner’s record and warning that “people may underestimate what Horner achieved.” Sources credit Horner with eight drivers’ championships at Red Bull, and reports vary on his number of constructors’ titles (some outlets say six, others seven). Horner was sacked in July 2025 and replaced by Laurent Mekies after the British Grand Prix. He has publicly sought a comeback to F1 and is reportedly evaluating options, including buying the 24% Alpine stake controlled by Otro Capital. He has said he would only consider a role with full control and shareholding and is reluctant to relocate.

Jonathan Wheatley stepped down between the Chinese and Japanese Grands Prix after roughly a year overseeing the former Sauber/Audi operation and is reportedly set to join Aston Martin. His departure left Audi with an immediate leadership vacuum. Mattia Binotto, Audi’s project head, has taken interim team principal duties and said he will keep the role for now but needs extra support at race weekends while he focuses on a factory transformation program. Montoya argued Audi will still need a senior, hands-on leader to support Binotto.

Sources describe several possible routes for Horner’s return, including buying the Otro Capital stake, a target also said to interest Mercedes, and say Horner insists on full control and shareholding as part of any leadership role. He faced controversies in 2024–25 that he denied and was twice cleared of. Audi has presented leadership clarity and organizational alignment as immediate priorities as it aims to compete for world championships by 2030. The team has also flagged early-season power-unit issues and recorded a points finish on its Australia debut.