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Defending champion Norris slams 'worst' F1 cars
Lando Norris criticizes 2026 F1 cars for power loss and energy management issues amid widespread driver discontent and FIA interventions during Melbourne weekend.
- Lando Norris, McLaren's defending champion, publicly condemned the 2026 cars as a major downgrade after qualifying sixth at Albert Park on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
- The 2026 rule changes introduced an almost 50:50 split between combustion and electrical power, causing drivers and teams to blame the half-and-half engine rules for frustration and handling quirks.
- During sessions, drivers experienced incidents including Norris damaging his front wing after hitting a cooling fan, Verstappen crashing in qualifying, and viral footage showing 'super clipping' at Turn 10 causing sudden power loss.
- The FIA's Saturday U-turn showed regulatory confusion after removing then restoring a 'straight mode' section, while F1 announced a longer race start and Zak Brown urged rule tweaks if spectacle suffers.
- Looking beyond Albert Park, Mercedes' strong pace and driver warnings suggest fixes may take weeks in the coming weeks, impacting championship prospects.
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37 Articles
37 Articles
The new season in the Formula 1 championship has (finally) started. George Russell will start the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday from pole position, Kimi Antonelli from second place and Isack Hadjar from third. Max Verstappen, who crashed into the guardrail, will attack from 20th place. But just like before the start of the season, the new rules and with them the new racing cars are the main topic of discussion among the drivers. Many are dissa…
·Ljubljana, Slovenia
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Welcome to the new Formula One world. The pilots must be not only drivers, but also energy managers in the new cars. World champion Lando Norris is fully serviced. The Brit gets support from Max Verstappen.
·Dortmund, Germany
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Total News Sources37
Leaning Left9Leaning Right4Center6Last UpdatedBias Distribution47% Left
Bias Distribution
- 47% of the sources lean Left
47% Left
L 47%
C 32%
R 21%
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