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I can’t see Lando retiring at 28 years old. He’s still improving and last season despite mistakes, he looked a lot more focused and ruthless than we’ve seen before. I don’t think anyone expects him to be defending his title this coming season with so many reg changes. It’s up in the air right now for everybody. I think Lando is in this long term and very different to Nico who was married with a young family by 2016.

The papaya rules was the least of Oscar’s worries. He needs to understand why he started making mistakes and lost his pace once the pressure of the season increased. The suspension upgrade didn’t suit him and gave Lando the edge and I think he realises this failure cost him valuable points. He lost the most points to the championship challengers than his teammate and that must be a bitter pill to swallow. My worry for Oscar is he’s cool on the exterior but seems to hit out when things aren’t going his way. He fell out with Alpine and caused tension with McLaren. He doesn’t want to be the next Fernando Alonso this early in his career.
I think he’s a long way from being the next Alonso in terms of relationships.

I think if the McLaren is competitive this season, it will be interesting to see how McLaren deal with the situation. I’d say Lando wins again (and appears to have the team’s backing) I think Oscar will look at his options. But if they aren’t in the fight, then it could be quite different.
 
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I think he’s a long way from being the next Alonso in terms of relationships.

I think if the McLaren is competitive this season, it will be interesting to see how McLaren deal with the situation. I’d say Lando wins again (and appears to have the team’s backing) I think Oscar will look at his options. But if they aren’t in the fight, then it could be quite different.
Of course he’s a long way of Alonso in this respect, I’m just pointing out he’s been in the sport a short while and been frustrated at points with 2 teams. He should have finished second last season and I started off suggesting here that I thought he was the better driver of the two in the first third of last season. McLaren have a more difficult situation than most of their rivals where they have two drivers who are very close in ability, young and both hungry for success. If they end up maintaining their competitiveness into this season, I think Lando now has the edge as he’s got a title under his belt and some of that pressure is off.

Not sure what options Oscar will have after 2026 if he were to leave tbh. Ferrari if Hamilton retires? Ouch. Red Bull as a number 2? Mercedes if they decided to drop George and pay out his contract? I can’t see that happening if his performance continues the way it has been as he’s very marketable and on a par with Lando and Oscar in ability.
 
12 previous GP winners on the grid this season!

Only one rookie: Arvid Lindblad

LAUNCH/REVEALS*:

January 15 – Red Bull/Racing Bulls launch​


January 20 – Audi launch​


January 23 – Haas livery reveal


January 23 – Ferrari​


February 8 – Cadillac livery reveal


February 9 – Aston Martin launch​




*That is all the OS has listed so far.
 
While there is admittedly much waving about of the "Spanner of Speculation" and the "Foam of Doubt", LawVS's morning video has some interesting thought experiments.

The main focus is how Cadillac may replace Haas as the primary customer team as Haas and Toyota's orbits close. Toyota is said to want to have a say in Haas' driver line-up come 2027 - not in a "pay driver" schema like Honda and Yuki at Red Bull, but instead if Toyota has a viable rookie candidate available (likely one who will have had multiple FP1 appearances in the Haas during the 2026 season). And while there have been no hints of Toyota looking into launching their own PU - especially one ready by 2029 when the current Haas-Ferrari engine deal expires - Toyota could decide to enter the sport in 2031 with the next engine homologation rules and that would mean Ferrari and Haas would have to build a "firewall" between them like Sauber and Ferrari had to when Audi took full control of the team.

Cadillac, on the other hand, appears to be tightening their relationship with Ferrari, signing Zhou Guanyu as their Reserve Driver. This will give Cadillac a simulator driver with recent knowledge of Ferrari's engine. Cadillac also will have open seats available to test Ferrari Academy drivers like Rafael Câmara and Dino Beganovic. Law does note that Colton Herta might have chosen the wrong time to leave IndyCar for F2 now that the FIA has increased the Super License Points allocation for that series, but he does note that Herta would benefit from being able to race on F1 circuits for a year and experience F1 race weekends.

As we know, the FIA and Formula One are currently in initial discussions about the 2031 engine rules. While there has been talk about dropping the turbo-hybrids in favor of normally-aspirated V8s or V10s, with the cubic Euros the PU suppliers are spending on the current engine formula, there is some amount of doubt that any significant changes will happen. Audi are dead-set against it and I am sure GM's Board of Directors is not excited about the prospect of spending hundreds of millions on a THPU that might see only one or two seasons of operation on top of then spending scores of millions developing a NA V8/V10. And if Toyota expresses interest in becoming a PU supplier (and future Works Team), they're preference will play a major role, as well.

Law believes this may play into Ferrari's hands in regards of keeping Cadillac as a customer engine supplier beyond 2029. If the FIA/FOM decide to scrap the turbo-hybrids before GM's engine is ready, GM will likely cancel development and focus on 2031, in which case they would need to extend their Ferrari customer deal. And if the FOM/FIA decide to keep the turbo-hybrids and just refine them for 2031, that might convince GM to delay their own THPU entry into service until 2031 to continue to develop it and therefore they would also extend their customer deal with Ferrari.

 
Toyota showing an interest in F1 again now that a large chunk of the F1 fanbase since the DTS era began, have no knowledge of their previous failed stint lol. The largest budget in F1 with the slowest Board of Directors tasked with signing off on decisions. I wonder if things have changed in Tokyo?

I remember Ove Anderssen saying after Toyota pulled out in 2009 that decisions in other teams can be measured in minutes but in Japan it can be measured in weeks.
 
Ther is an article over at f1.com about Hamilton's best helmets, I love a good helmet - don't get me started.

I'll post a link, but I just wanted to say beforehand that the yellow helmet he wore most of this past season looked phenomenal with the Ferrari.
Screenshot 2026-01-08 050113.png


 
Toyota showing an interest in F1 again now that a large chunk of the F1 fanbase since the DTS era began, have no knowledge of their previous failed stint lol. The largest budget in F1 with the slowest Board of Directors tasked with signing off on decisions. I wonder if things have changed in Tokyo?

I remember Ove Anderssen saying after Toyota pulled out in 2009 that decisions in other teams can be measured in minutes but in Japan it can be measured in weeks.

Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda is a bonified petrol-head so at least the #1 man in the company will be behind the program should they decide to become an F1 PU supplier and/or full factory team and hopefully that will help reduce some of the friction and inertia.

It also did not help that Toyota entered F1 with no real understanding of how the sport worked. This time, they will be leveraging Haas' knowledge and experience. They also have all their years running WEC HyperCar and while that is not a true analog to F1, it still has given (and will continue to give) Toyota a high-level racing series to season their engineers.
 
Toyota showing an interest in F1 again now that a large chunk of the F1 fanbase since the DTS era began, have no knowledge of their previous failed stint lol. The largest budget in F1 with the slowest Board of Directors tasked with signing off on decisions. I wonder if things have changed in Tokyo?

I remember Ove Anderssen saying after Toyota pulled out in 2009 that decisions in other teams can be measured in minutes but in Japan it can be measured in weeks.

I’m really looking forward to see what Toyota can do in WEC this year. I’ve always been a fan of Toyota engines. Their 2.5L I4 that’s in much of their consumer vehicles is close to 40% Thermal Efficiency. Impressive.
 
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I’m really looking forward to see what Toyota can do in WEC this year. I’ve always been a fan of Toyota engines. Their 2.5L I4 that’s in much of their consumer vehicles is close to 40% Thermal Efficiency. Impressive.
Yeah they've always had a good racing pedigree, excluding F1. Its a new era though and hopefully they will have the experience of Haas as a good apprenticeship back into the sport to add to the PU race.
 
2026 looks less like an evolution and more like a reset button for F1. The new rules reshape the cars, put more emphasis on electric power and sustainable tech and introduce active aero to improve racing. A clear explanation of the 2026 F1 regulations helps lay it all out, and with Cadillac joining the grid, it adds another layer of excitement and engagement, especially for American fans.
 
2026 looks less like an evolution and more like a reset button for F1. The new rules reshape the cars, put more emphasis on electric power and sustainable tech and introduce active aero to improve racing. A clear explanation of the 2026 F1 regulations helps lay it all out, and with Cadillac joining the grid, it adds another layer of excitement and engagement, especially for American fans.

As an American fan I'm not that excited about any of this.
 
As a non American I’m probably less excited! Cadillac have less presence in Europe than McLaren on the roads!
The only Cadillacs I remember were about 18 or so years ago. My old boss had a Cadillac BLS which was really a Saab 97 with a different body styling. I don’t think Cadillacs have ever been properly sold in Europe and the Saab collab was very short lived. What I remember about the BLS was it was creaky, and all the interior felt quite cheap. Effectively the opposite of the Saab 97 lol.
 
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2026 looks less like an evolution and more like a reset button for F1. The new rules reshape the cars, put more emphasis on electric power and sustainable tech and introduce active aero to improve racing. A clear explanation of the 2026 F1 regulations helps lay it all out, and with Cadillac joining the grid, it adds another layer of excitement and engagement, especially for American fans.

When Audi dominates these new rules will be scrapped and a new set of rules will be introduced. 😉
 
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