Ralf Schumacher has seen a worrying change in McLaren boss Zak Brown since the end of last season.
Yes, they know full well that it’s not working, that they’ve unfortunately taken a wrong turn and are obviously too far behind over the winter.” Ralf Schumacher.
12 Mar 2026
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Ralf Schumacher thinks McLaren have been a ‘negative surprise’ at the start of the 2026 season. Schumacher was speaking about McLaren and Piastri’s crash in Melbourne on the Backstage Boxengasse Podcast and said: “Well, you could see that he drove over the kerb, and then I think he just didn’t expect that battery performance or the overall performance, and then, just like that, like a little schoolboy, it happened to him.

“Honestly, it can happen to experienced drivers, but it shouldn’t, no question about it. I feel a bit sorry for him. Maybe he could have shown that the McLaren is capable of better, because Lando Norris didn’t have an easy weekend, it has to be said, he was behind in his performance, he was never satisfied with the McLaren. I also think that this relaxed attitude, which you saw last year with Stella, OK, he was always a bit determined, but still had a smile on his lips, Zak Brown in particular, I think you can see the difference.”

Hardenacke replied: “He was very tense, wasn’t he?” Schumacher continued: “Yes, they know full well that it’s not working, that they’ve unfortunately taken a wrong turn and are obviously too far behind over the winter. “Then, I have to say, it’s a negative surprise when you see that Mercedes, Ferrari and, I would say, Red Bull are the strongest, with Ferrari and Red Bull behind Mercedes, and then there’s a big gap.”

“They know full well that it’s not working”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ral...f-last-season/


McLaren need to 'step it up as much as possible' in China, says Norris
After finishing more than 50 seconds behind race winner George Russell in Australia, Lando Norris has called for McLaren to do more.
12 Mar 2026
Formula One - Official Site

Despite there only being a week between the first two rounds of the season, Norris claims McLaren have been working hard to reduce the gap. "It’s been a busy week for the whole team, both the team that are here travelling but also the team back in MTC [McLaren Technology Centre], trying to step it up as much as possible," said Norris during Thursday's media day in Shanghai.”

"[It has been] full of learnings – some good things, some not so good things, but all things that we need to [and] we want to improve on... Learn what we could from others, learn what we could from ourselves, and do a much better job all-round here in Shanghai. It’s understanding of the power unit – we haven’t done as good of a job as we should have done, so our own understanding is not to the level we want it to be at and the team have worked very hard to improve that," said Norris.

"But I also said, the chassis is not to the level that we want it to be at. It’s certainly not bad and we’re certainly not miles away – I think we’re not as far as it almost looked in Melbourne. We need to improve it more, but we know that – we know where we’re stronger, we know where we’re weaker.”

‘Lando Norris has called for McLaren to do more’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...475KTSElMZ9X86


Reigning Formula 1 Champ Lando Norris Makes Hypocritical Claim About New Regulations
12 MAR 2026
CLAY SAUERTIEG
BroBible

Reigning Formula 1 world drivers’ champion Lando Norris has done a complete 180 on his view of the sport’s new regulations, and it comes just weeks after he criticized rival Max Verstappen over the same complaints. Verstappen, a four-time world champion in his own right, said that the sport’s current engine regulations, which divide power supply evenly between the car’s internal combustion engine and battery power, are “Not a lot of fun, to be honest…I would say the right word is management. As a driver, the feeling is not very Formula 1-like. It feels a bit more like Formula E on steroids. But the rules are the same for everyone, so you have to deal with that. And that’s also not my problem, because I’m all for that. Equal chances, I don’t mind that.”

Now, the McLaren driver says he’s not a fan of the new regulations prior to this weekend’s race in Shanghai. “You’re driving the power unit, you’re not driving the car to the same limit,” Norris said on Thursday. “It’s not like, ‘go and drive the car the quickest way possible.’ That’s not how it works. It’s a very different style of driving that’s needed. It’s basically forget everything you’ve ever done and reset.”

Norris noted that the current rules and regulations are nothing like what he dreamed of racing as a kid. “It’s just that’s not what any of us have ever grown up doing. Probably not something any of us grew up wanting to do either, but that’s the way it is now,” he said. Norris clearly isn’t enamored with the current state of Formula 1. But something tells us he won’t be stepping away from the sport anytime soon as he urged Verstappen to do.

‘Lando Norris Makes Hypocritical Claim’;

https://brobible.com/sports/article/...w-regulations/


Guenther Steiner suggests George Russell wasn’t even using Mercedes’ full potential in Melbourne
12 Mar 2026
Aaditya Krishnamurthy
F1 Oversteer

George Russell’s dominance at Albert Park was impressive, but we might not have seen his Mercedes’ true power just yet. Guenther Steiner believes George Russell was ‘monitoring’ during Australian GP, didn’t take any risks Speaking on the Red Flags podcast, Guenther Steiner was asked whether he felt George Russell was ‘managing’ his Mercedes en route to a win at Albert Park.

Without hesitating, the former Haas team principal explained why Russell did not break a sweat during the race, as his car and the system had everything under control to fend off any potential threats. “Yeah, for sure, he was monitoring. He didn’t need to do anything to take any risk as long as the distance stays the same. Why would you overuse anything? Why would you overuse your systems?”

“He gets the proper information. This is my data to him. It stays stable. The guy cannot catch me. He lapped everybody except six cars.” Outside of an entertaining battle in the first few laps, George Russell was never really threatened by either Ferrari or Kimi Antonelli after he took the lead in Australia. Even with a strong win at the Australian Grand Prix, George Russell has not managed to turn all his detractors into believers just yet.

‘Monitoring’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/gue...-in-melbourne/


Ecclestone predicts crash as fears over new regs grow
MARCH 11, 2026
GrandPrix.com

Bernie Ecclestone has warned that Formula 1's new regulations will eventually cause a serious accident, joining a growing chorus of voices - from drivers to team principals to former champions - expressing alarm about the safety and sporting character of the 2026 cars.

The 95-year-old former F1 supremo told Swiss newspaper Blick he was already convinced after just one race. "There's going to be a real crash soon. The speed differences during battery charging - braking on the straights - will eventually surprise the driver behind, and then we'll have a big accident, said Ecclestone. "I just hope I'm wrong this time.”

"There's going to be a real crash soon”;

https://www.grandprix.com/news/eccle...regs-grow.html


Adrian Newey accused of exaggerating Aston Martin issues to get ‘preferential treatment’ from FIA
12 Mar 2026
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Adrian Newey may be overstating the extent of Honda’s problems to prompt a reaction from the FIA, according to a report. Newey has made some remarkable statements about Aston Martin’s engine supplier in the past week or so. The latest rumour is that Newey is seeking early access to the ‘Additional Development Upgrade Opportunities’ (ADUO) afforded by the FIA. The scheme, introduced for the start of the new regulations, doesn’t kick in until after the first six races. Newey may hope that the FIA will offer ‘preferential treatment’ to Honda if the situation demands it, which gives him an incentive to ‘deliberately exaggerate’ the crisis they are facing.

Mercedes may already be manipulating the ADUO system. F1 engine suppliers have access to varying degrees of ADUO depending on their gap to the leader. There are two separate thresholds – 2-4% and over 4%. Honda are almost certain to fall into the latter category, but with the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian GPs likely to be cancelled, round six won’t arrive until the Monaco GP in early June. Until then, they will face the same restrictions as Mercedes.

One could argue that this is unfair and it would be in the interests of the championship to help Honda, raising the overall standard. But Mercedes are already gaming the ADUO system, according to a recent report, by keeping Ferrari and Red Bull within the 2% barrier. In such a competitive environment, it’s difficult to see the other four manufacturers making Honda’s life any easier.

‘ ‘Additional Development Upgrade Opportunities’ (ADUO) afforded by the FIA’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/adr...ment-from-fia/