Key voices at Mercedes want to ‘get rid’ of world champions McLaren as an engine customer.
“There are voices in Stuttgart saying that ‘we actually have to get rid of them so that we can become world champions again.” F1-Insider’s Ralf Bach.
8 January 2026
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

According to F1-Insider’s Ralf Bach, some at the Mercedes HQ in Stuttgart are pushing for the F1 team to split with McLaren when the current contract concludes. There is a feeling that McLaren are standing in the way of Mercedes ‘becoming world champions again’. The HPP division has been regarded as the benchmark since the start of the turbo/hybrid era in 2014 and is widely believed to have built the best engine for the 2026 regulations.

If McLaren outclass Mercedes in the aerodynamics department, the horsepower advantage over the rest of the field may count for little. “How long can Mercedes afford to keep supplying McLaren?” Bach asked. “They also have the Mercedes engine. There are voices in Stuttgart saying that ‘we actually have to get rid of them so that we can become world champions again.” Toto Wolff has indicated that Mercedes plan to cut down the number of teams they supply in the next rules cycle, which will begin in 2030.

‘Voices in Stuttgart’.

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/key...gine-customer/


Zak Brown outlines how Red Bull ‘pleasantly surprised’ him during 2026 Barcelona shakedown
5 February 2026
Tyler Rowlinson
F1 Oversteer

Zak Brown was left ‘pleasantly surprised’ by Red Bull’s progress with their 2026 engine. The Milton Keynes outfit are entering a new era in 2026, becoming a power unit supplier for the first time in their history. Red Bull have come a long way to get the engine up and running, leaving many to wonder where they will end up on the grid.

Talking about the shakedown in a media press conference, via journalist David Land’s YouTube channel, Zak Brown said: “So early to tell, but it kind of looks like the usual suspects, but too hard to tell in what order. The Red Bull engine was very strong. I think everyone was, let’s say, pleasantly surprised. I’d rather them not be as competitive! But, impressed with what they’ve done because they came out, they did a lot of miles and they seem to be very competitive.”

“Bull engine was very strong”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/zak...ona-shakedown/


Lando Norris says 2026 F1 cars ‘feel like F2 in some ways’
Reigning F1 champion Lando Norris gives his feedback on the new 2026 cars
5 Feb 2026
Lewis Duncan
Crash.Net

Reigning Formula 1 world champion Lando Norris admits the 2026 machines “feel like an F2 car in some ways”, which “I don’t know if I like that or not”. The 2026 F1 season marks the first of its radical new car regulations, with the ground effect machinery replaced by smaller and lighter ones.

“It certainly feels like an F2 car in some ways with how you have to drive it,” he said, talking about the challenges facing the teams and drivers coming into 2026. “I don’t know if I like that or not for the time being. But I think we understood quite a few things already from Barcelona on how you had to drive the car, but Barcelona, you’re talking about fourth-gear corners, third-gear corners, quite open, quite wide.”

“And when you get to a street track or bumpier tracks, slower tracks, that’s a question we’re yet to answer. And Bahrain will answer some of those questions. It will be a learning curve. But I have strong confidence in myself and strong confidence in my team. But it will be a learning curve for both of us as it will for everyone on the grid.”

‘2026 machines feel like an F2 car’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/108896...l-f2-some-ways


Lando Norris issues sarcastic response when told George Russell is favourite for the 2026 F1 title
5 February 2026
Ashley Hambly
F1 Oversteer

Martin Brundle believes Russell will fancy his chances of securing a maiden title this season, and according to Sky Sports F1’s Craig Slater, the British driver is the ‘bookmaker’s favourite’. When asked for his thoughts on this by Slater during an interview at McLaren’s Woking-based headquarters, Norris couldn’t help but laugh.

He sarcastically responded to the journalist with, “He is the massive favourite, to be honest with you. I completely agree with the bookmakers.” Mercedes are regarded as the benchmark in the upcoming season largely due to their impressive reliability at last week’s shakedown in Barcelona.

“I completely agree with the bookmakers”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/lan...2026-f1-title/


‘You’re going to see more chaos in races where…’: Formula One champion Lando Norris on new rules in F1
5 Feb 2026
Express News Service
Indian Express

The defending champion Lando Norris spoke about how the driver’s main challenge will be battery management as well as knowing how to utilise the battery energy. “The biggest challenge at the minute is battery management and knowing how to utilise that in the best way. It’s not simple. You can explain it in quite simple terms. It’s just that you have a very powerful battery that doesn’t last very long, so knowing how to use it at the right times, how much energy, how much of that power you use, how you split it up around the lap…”

“The biggest challenge is how you can recover the batteries as well as possible, and that’s when it comes down to using the gears, hitting the right revs. Obviously, you’ve got some turbo lag now, which we’ve never really had before. All of these little things have crept back in, but I don’t think that changes too much. In a perfect world, I probably wouldn’t have [all] that in a race car, but it’s just F1. Sometimes you have these different challenges,” said Norris.

‘More chaos in races’;

https://indianexpress.com/article/sp...haos-10515988/


Norris demands to be 'punched' on one condition after life-changing success
5 Feb 2026
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

Lando Norris wants to be reminded of his 2025 title if he is not smiling this year. He said: "I still have many more years in Formula 1 and I will still try and get as many more championships as possible. If I never do, I'm still happy. If you ever see me not smiling or something, just punch me or something, Remind me. I achieved my goal in life and I'm very happy, I'm proud. That's something I'll always take with me."

"I still achieved one. The 20 years I spent from starting karting to last year, trying to achieve what I achieved and what we all achieved as a team and my group and my family, what we achieved last year... So it's a lot of time and effort and singular focus and then it's done. I guess not many people in life get to achieve that end goal or their life goal, but that was it."

‘If he is not smiling this year’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/norri...anging-success


Why Lando Norris isn’t worried by rival innovations in F1 2026
5 Feb 2026
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Reigning World Champion Norris says the teams have to accept that someone has done a better job and then set about reeling them in. “There’s always that element of looking at others, that’s also just part of the sport,” he told F1TV during the Barcelona shakedown. “You look at others, see what other great minds have come up with, what ideas they’ve come up with, see how you can learn from it, incorporate it, avoid it, whatever it may be.”

“You always have to be willing to accept that sometimes people can do a better job and you want to learn from them. I’m happy with the team’s efforts and everything we’ve done so far this year, but yeah, it’s going to be a long year, so we’ll keep working hard, we’ll make sure everyone’s happy and take it from there.”

“Sometimes people can do a better job”;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/f1-202...al-innovations