FIA expands Spa straight-line mode zones
The FIA has expanded the use of straight-line mode for this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, adding activation on the downhill run from La Source towards Eau Rouge and taking the circuit to five SM zones in total. Drivers will still have to close the movable wings before Raidillon, while Overtake Mode will be available on the pit straight. Fernando Alonso warned the layout will sharpen the energy-management trade-offs, saying: “Silverstone and Spa, they are very thirsty on energy and you cannot deploy on all the straights.”
FIA expands straight-line mode at Spa – as Alonso sounds warning
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Bearman drives Senna's Lotus 97T
Haas driver Ollie Bearman was moved to tears after driving Ayrton Senna’s race-winning Lotus 97T at Silverstone. Guided by Sky Sports F1’s Karun Chandhok, Bearman took the car – which Senna drove to his first grand prix victory at Estoril in 1985 – for a handful of laps at his home circuit and described it as “quite an emotional moment” and “an incredibly special experience”, adding: “Sometimes you have these days in racing where it reminds you of why you fell in love with the sport.”
Bearman moved to tears after driving Senna's iconic Lotus
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Verstappen on Ferrari's Austria upgrade and typical 2026 gains
Max Verstappen says most upgrade packages in the F1 2026 development race are worth “two to three” tenths, as he pointed to Ferrari’s “power related” update introduced in Austria. Verstappen said: "Yeah, but everyone keeps bringing upgrades. I mean, Ferrari had a big performance upgrade [in Austria] with, I think, power related mainly, so it just shifts all the time with whoever brings an upgrade. Because I guess most of the upgrades that are brought all the time is two to three tenths, which, of course, is quite big."
Max Verstappen spots ‘two to three' tenths trend in F1 2026 development race
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Russell on qualifying yellow-flag rule of thumb
George Russell said Formula 1’s “rule of thumb” in qualifying is that an incident should usually trigger a single yellow flag, with the FIA able to upgrade it if needed, as he discussed Carlos Sainz’s proposal for grid penalties when drivers cause yellow or red flags. Russell said: "I think it stemmed from Baku, when a lot of drivers would lock up and run down the escape road, and the drivers felt that it should not be a double yellow, because it completely ruined the lap of another driver, but that a single yellow would be sufficient, unless the FIA thought otherwise. That was the rule of thumb that has been taken forward, which is that whenever there is an incident in qualifying, it would be a single yellow, but we also have to remember the person putting out a single yellow is a volunteer, the marshal."
George Russell reveals F1 'rule of thumb' after radical Carlos Sainz proposal
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Bortoleto on accepting the 2026 regulations
Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto said drivers should “turn the page” on complaints about the 2026 regulations and accept that the current rules are in place until the end of 2030, adding that the cars are still fun to drive. Bortoleto said: "If there are still people complaining about it, just move the page. That's the regulations we have until 2030, if I understood correctly. And then in 2031, when we go to the new regulations, we talk about it again. But we cannot spend three years talking about the same problem every time, you know, because that's what we have. The cars are still fun to drive. It's different. We need to adapt to that and it's life."
Gabriel Bortoleto: F1 hasn't lost its 'magic'; drivers need to "turn the page" on 2026 complaints
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How F1 drivers and strategists tackle the Belgian Grand Prix
Fears Belgian GP will highlight biggest F1 2026 headache
Colapinto on Las Vegas crash aftermath during seat fight
Franco Colapinto says the aftermath of his heavy 2024 Las Vegas crash was the toughest moment of his Formula 1 career because he was trying to secure a seat. Colapinto said: "I'm sharing this example now because it has been the most difficult one for me. My time was running out, I didn't have a new contract yet and then you want to do well to prove yourself. But suddenly you know that you can't because you have a car that is three tenths slower. That was tricky for me, I think the trickiest experience so far, but all those things make you really strong."
Franco Colapinto opens up about the toughest moment of his F1 career
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Vasseur on Leclerc's confidence in Silverstone win
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur said Charles Leclerc’s British Grand Prix win at Silverstone was driven more by restoring confidence than by Ferrari suddenly finding a big jump in performance. Vasseur said: "He found the confidence. That's it. Each step of setup is not making a proper difference in terms of lap time, but sometimes, it's giving them confidence to push a bit more. And for race pace, it's crucial. He was very consistent all throughout the race. If you have a look at the first 20 laps, he was within one or two tenths, and he was key for us to be in the fight with Mercedes."
Vasseur reveals real story behind Leclerc's Silverstone revival
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Norris on feeling relaxed during the 2025 title decider
Lando Norris says he “surprised” himself with how relaxed he felt during the final two rounds of the 2025 season, even with Max Verstappen having closed to within two points of him after McLaren’s double disqualification in Las Vegas. Norris said: "I surprised myself with how not nervous I was. I was never that confident, but I just wasn't nervous going into Abu Dhabi on Sunday, or even going into the Abu Dhabi or Qatar weekends. It wasn't like I was thinking, 'Oh, they're hot on our heels,' or whatever it was, you know. I was surprised at how relaxed I was on Sunday in Abu Dhabi when, at the end of the day, it was only two points."
Lando Norris addresses unimaginable Max Verstappen pressure: 'I surprised myself'
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