Formula One 2026

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Cadillac have removed their founding team principal Graeme Lowdon and replaced him with former Alpine boss Marcin Budkowski.

Lowdon, 61, had set up the American team from scratch for its Formula 1 debut this year.

Cadillac chief executive officer Dan Towriss said removing Lowdon had been his decision, and was based on the future direction of the team.

He said it was not directly related to the repeated reliability problems, especially with overheating brakes, that have afflicted Cadillac in recent races.

Full story HERE
 
McLaren's Lando Norris beat Mercedes' George Russell to pole position at the Dutch Grand Prix during a frantic scramble to complete laps before a late shower of rain.

Norris pipped Russell by 0.102 seconds as raindrops began to appear on the drivers' visors. They completed their runs earlier than they would normally do because of the weather.

Russell's team-mate Kimi Antonelli was the first to improve on his final lap, briefly rising to the top of the times.

However, he was beaten to first by Norris, who consolidated the first place he had picked up on the first laps in the final session, and then Russell.

Antonelli, the championship leader, was 0.031secs behind Russell and 0.009secs faster than the second McLaren of Oscar Piastri.
 

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Alpine's Pierre Gasly upstages the title contenders to deliver his first pole in F1 after almost 200 races; Mercedes' George Russell second with Ferraris promoted by Oscar Piastri penalty.​


Italian GP Qualifying: Top 10​

1) Pierre Gasly, Alpine
2) George Russell, Mercedes
3) Oscar Piastri, McLaren*
4) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
5) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
6) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
7) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes**
8) Franco Colapinto, Alpine
9) Lando Norris, McLaren
10) Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls

*3-place grid penalty to be applied

**will drop to back of grid for engine penalties
 
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Championship leader Kimi Antonelli became the first Italian to win at Monza since 1966 after an incredible drive from 19th to first.

Italian GP Result: Top 10​

1) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
2) George Russell, Mercedes
3) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
4) Lando Norris, McLaren
5) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
6) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
7) Pierre Gasly, Alpine
8) Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls
9) Franco Colapinto, Alpine
10) Yuki Tsuoda, Racing Bulls
 
Bernie Ecclestone, formerly the boss of F1, has reportedly been arrested at Tires Aerodrome in Portugal after his private jet landed there.

The 95-year-old has been accused of having a shotgun when he landed, though he has not yet been formally charged, with Portugese outlet Correio de Manha reporting that police at the airport apprehended Ecclestone. They add that it's not currently clear whether he'll end up in front of a judge or not.

It's the second time that Ecclestone has been arrested for possessing a firearm, as it has happened before when he was boarding a private plane in Brazil in 2022.

At the time Ecclestone admitted that he owned the gun which had been found in his luggage, but he insisted he didn't know it was there. After paying bail, he was allowed to get on his flight to Switzerland.

He later said it was a 'silly, tiny little incident' and denied having been formally arrested, though Sao Paulo's state public security office said they'd arrested an unnamed businessman for possession of a firearm.

Ecclestone had claimed he'd bought a handgun in Brazil some time ago as a deterrent, and didn't have bullets.

He'd said: "They said you need something like this. It might work if someone tried to mug you or something. So I bought it from the guy.

"I had it in the house and used to muck around with it if people came to visit me or something, we would joke around."

The former F1 boss travels between Brazil, Portugal and Switzerland regularly as he has homes in all three countries, and has a private jet he uses to travel around.

Ecclestone was previously arrested in 2022 for having a firearm at an airport, which he says was a 'tiny little incident'
 
Robin Raikkonen, son of former F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen, has signed with Red Bull at just 11 years of age.

Red Bull have secured one of the most coveted young drivers in the sport, with Raikkonen set to join the Red Bull Junior Team and become part of the team's development programme from 2027.

Raikkonen has been a sensation in karting throughout his childhood, with success following in national and international Rotax and WSK championships.

Robin will hope to follow in the footsteps of his father, Kimi, who landed the 2007 title and can boast a massive 21 Grand Prix victories and 103 podium finishes in 19 F1 seasons from 2001 to 2021.

"We are all thrilled and excited that Robin has been chosen to further his racing path as a member of the Red Bull Junior Team," Kimi Raikkonen said. "Laurent and everyone else at Red Bull have been incredibly supportive throughout all our discussions. They offer a compelling and comprehensive programme to develop and nurture Robin's progress over the coming years and provide him with all the experience required to develop his natural talent, which has amply been displayed in all his karting endeavours to date.

"Red Bull's Junior Team has had years of incredible success. Its alumni include Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen amongst many others. It is thus with great humility that Robin joins this illustrious programme, and he will dedicate all his efforts to warrant the trust that Red Bull is placing in him."

While team principal Laurent Mekies added: "Robin has already demonstrated exceptional ability in karting. His speed, racecraft and natural talent have established him as one of the most promising young drivers in his age group. At the same time, he impresses with his maturity, his calm approach and his clear focus on driving.

"Our goal is to develop him step by step, without placing any unnecessary pressure on his shoulders. The path through motorsport is a long one, and we will give him the time, support and resources he needs to maximise his potential. We strongly believe that talent can thrive when supported by the right people, the right culture and the right environment. That is what we are committed to providing Robin as he continues his development. We are very much looking forward to taking the next steps in his journey together with Robin and his family."
 
All reported to be ok but there's potential issue for drivers.

The Madring track has 22 corners, but the one that has a 45,000 capacity grandstand installed to watch over is called La Monumental; a 550-metre semicircular banked corner inspired by the shape of a traditional Spanish bullring.

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This will become the longest corner on the F1 calendar which features a 24% gradient, with drivers expected to spend around six seconds navigating it.

Williams driver Carlos Sainz got a first taste of the corner earlier this year and highlighted its blind nature.

"This is what has impressed me the most," Sainz said. "All you can see is the sky."
 
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Lando Norris produced a stunning lap to beat Kimi Antonelli to the first pole position at Formula 1's all-new Madring circuit in a thrilling Spanish Grand Prix Qualifying.

The McLaren driver hadn't appeared to be in contention for pole at any point of the session, but found a huge amount of pace on his final run to edge out championship leader Antonelli by 11 thousandths of a second.

Spanish GP Qualifying: Top 10​

1) Lando Norris, McLaren
2) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
3) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
4) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
5) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
6) George Russell, Mercedes
7) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
8) Liam Lawson, Red Bull
9) Franco Colapinto, Alpine
10) Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls
 

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Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli won the Spanish Grand Prix after McLaren's Lando Norris lost out because of the timing of a virtual safety car.

Norris was leading comfortably from pole position when the VSC was called on lap 15. The timing was terrible for the world champion - he had already passed the pit entry when the VSC was called.

That meant Antonelli and Red Bull's Max Verstappen were able to pit under the VSC, saving time, while the caution period ended before Norris could make it around to the pits again.

He did then come in but, to make matters worse, the stop was slow and he rejoined in fifth place.

Norris was able to recover only to third around the new Madring track in Madrid where overtaking is next to impossible.

Spanish GP Result: Top 10​

1) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
2) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
3) Lando Norris, McLaren
4) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
5) George Russell, Mercedes
6) Liam Lawson, Red Bull
7) Franco Colapinto, Alpine
8) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
9) Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls
10) Nico Hulkenberg, Audi
 
Organisers of the Spanish Grand Prix are poised to make changes to the new Madrid circuit after criticism of its inaugural race at the weekend.

Drivers pointed out the lack of overtaking opportunities on the new Madring, with Williams' Alex Albon claiming the race was "pretty boring" and Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto saying he "almost fell asleep".

Drivers praised the track's challenge over a single lap, but world champion Lando Norris said one section was "useless" and it was "not a great racetrack".

But team bosses praised the new facility at the Ifema exhibition centre near Madrid's international airport.

And the organisers have told commercial rights holder F1 and governing body the FIA that they are prepared to make changes to the venue for next year.
 
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