A lively Canadian Grand Prix did nothing to dampen criticism of Formula 1’s 2026 power units among the top finishers.
Early criticism of the new power units led the FIA to tweak its rules to reduce the extreme reductions in speed seen on straights. Those rules came into effect two races ago.
Despite this, Lewis Hamilton said the unusual characteristics of F1’s latest generation of cars “definitely [doesn’t feel] second nature” to him yet.
“It still continues to be a weird feeling,” said Hamilton, who finished second. “You go down the power, you open up the [Straight Mode], and then the power dies halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping.
“It doesn’t feel [like] what motorsport should be. The engine should be ringing its neck off right to the end of the straight and just pulling and pulling. That’s what they used to do in the V8 times or the V10 times, they would just pull and pull. It’s another element of racing that was never there before.”
However F1’s changes to its chassis rules for 2026 received more praise. The 2026 cars are narrower and lighter than their predecessors, and the floor designs have been simplified to generate less downforce.
“I think ultimately the car is fundamentally a better design, so we can race and get close and follow each other closely,” said Hamilton. “I think that’s the best part of it.
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“The power part, I think, is less exciting.”
Race winner Andrea Kimi Antonelli had few complaints about the performance of his power unit, as Mercedes’ engine has proved to be the class of the field. However he admitted the way cars deploy their power in racing situations can be frustrating.
“Sometimes it triggers you a little bit how the system works,” he said. “But definitely also with the changes that were made [before Miami], the FIA giving teams a bit more allowance on the system, has definitely helped quite a bit to make things a bit easier.”
Antonelli joined Hamilton in praising the changes to chassis under the new rules. “I think that the cars, to follow, at least for now, is much better than last year,” he said. “You can actually follow a lot closer and that definitely creates more racing.
“On the power unit side, definitely I cannot complain about my power unit because the team did an incredible job, but also they did great on the chassis side.
“I feel like with the PU obviously there’s still work to do and it will be interesting to see what’s going to happen in the next couple of years: if the regulation is going to change, if they’re going to give a bit more power to the combustion, a bit less to the electric, how it’s going to play out and if it’s going to happen. I think that will be a further step in the right direction.
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“But I think already now it’s a lot. System-wise it’s better than the start of the season and definitely also for me it’s becoming more natural compared to what it was in Melbourne, for example.”
Verstappen, who finished third, remains one of the most trenchant critics of F1’s 2026 power units. He said they have made F1 racing less pure compared to other championships.
“This season I’ve been racing different kinds of cars, especially last week, that remind me how pure motorsport can be and how great the racing can be. So when I come back into Formula 1 – the thing is of course, most of the drivers, we’re the best in the world, so even if you would give us a rental car, we’ll give you a good show and we’ll race each other very hard and well. So it has nothing to do in that sense with the rules.
“But for me, while driving, it’s all a bit confusing. It’s not what Formula 1 should be about. It’s way too complex, all of this.”
However he believes some F1 fans will be happy to see multiple position changes during races regardless of whether they occur because of the drivers making genuine passes or due to the quirks of the power unit rules.
“Most of the rules, the fans don’t even know what we are dealing with while driving: what is allowed when you’re behind or when you’re the car ahead, what we have to do on a formation lap or what we have to do in an out-lap, or how much battery that we’re allowed to charge. All these things are just such a shame that we have to deal with all these things.
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“For me, F1 just needs to be more pure and I really hope that what they try to do next year will go through because I think that is necessary, the minimum necessary, to make it a bit more natural and a bit more back to normal, or at least a bit more pure racing.
“But like I said, as drivers, give us any kind of car, we’ll always race and give a good entertainment or a good show. It doesn’t matter, people say, ‘Oh, but look now, the show is great, the cars were fighting.’ But it has nothing to do with the car. It just needs to be more pure.”
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2026 Canadian Grand Prix
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