Lando Norris has offered an intriguing first verdict on Formula 1’s all-new 2026 machinery, suggesting the next-generation cars feel “more like an F2 car” following his first on-track experience at Barcelona.
The reigning world champion sampled McLaren’s MCL40 during the closed-door pre-season shakedown at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya last week, but admitted he remains undecided on whether he enjoys the new driving characteristics.
“It certainly feels more like an F2 car in some ways with how you have to drive it,” Norris explained. “I don’t know if I like that or not for the time being.”
A very different driving challenge
Formula 1’s 2026 regulations represent one of the biggest technical resets in decades. Cars are smaller, lighter, and feature active aerodynamics, while the power unit now delivers close to a 50-50 split between internal combustion and electric power via the MGU-K.
While Formula 2 cars lack hybrid systems entirely, Norris’ comparison appears rooted in chassis behaviour rather than outright performance.
“In Barcelona, you’re talking about fourth-gear corners, third-gear corners, quite open and wide,” Norris said. “When you get to street tracks, bumpy tracks, slower tracks, that’s still a question we need to answer. Bahrain will tell us more.”
The emphasis on energy deployment, lift-and-coast management, and altered cornering balance has already forced drivers to rethink long-established habits.
Drivers divided on the new feel
Norris isn’t alone in drawing parallels with junior-category machinery. Several drivers had already raised similar points during simulator work in late 2025.
Aston Martin reserve Jak Crawford previously described the 2026 cars as “quite similar to drive to an F2 car”, while Isack Hadjar noted they felt “closer to an F2 car performance-wise”. Gabriel Bortoleto echoed that sentiment during the first day of Barcelona running, citing reduced overall pace compared to previous F1 regulations.
However, the FIA has been keen to push back against suggestions that Formula 1 risks losing its identity.
“I think comments about Formula 2 pace are way off the mark,” said FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis. “Lap times are one or two seconds slower than current cars depending on conditions, but that’s natural at the start of a regulation cycle.”
Tombazis also stressed that slower early performance is deliberate, allowing development headroom across the lifespan of the rules.
Early lap times tell only part of the story
Lewis Hamilton’s unofficial benchmark of 1m16.348s at Barcelona was around five seconds slower than last year’s pole time, but that gap is expected to shrink significantly as teams unlock performance and track conditions improve.
For context, last year’s F2 pole lap at the same circuit was over nine seconds slower, underlining that the new F1 cars remain in a different performance league.
Several drivers, including Esteban Ocon, Oliver Bearman and Oscar Piastri, have described the 2026 cars as “more nimble”, suggesting agility may improve even if outright speed initially drops.
Adaptation will be key
For Norris, the focus is now on learning how to extract the most from a fundamentally different package.
“It’s still a racing car,” Bortoleto said. “It’s not another world. You just need to adapt your way of driving.”
The upcoming Bahrain tests will provide the first real opportunity to understand how the 2026 cars behave across different corner types, surfaces, and energy demands — and whether Norris’ F2 comparison holds up once teams start pushing harder.
One thing is already clear: Formula 1 drivers are being challenged in new and unfamiliar ways, and adapting fastest may prove just as important as outright car performance when the new era begins.
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