Formula One: 2026 Season News and Discussion Thread
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Beside pushrod front/rear suspensions, it also appears majority of teams are using a fairly substantial lateral bargeboard behind the front wheels. Assuming this is for front wheel wake flow management to the sidepod and top of rear diffuser. The mounting structure is pretty large on some of the cars (i.e. Ferrari)
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Beside pushrod front/rear suspensions, it also appears majority of teams are using a fairly substantial lateral bargeboard behind the front wheels. Assuming this is for front wheel wake flow management to the sidepod and top of rear diffuser. The mounting structure is pretty large on some of the cars (i.e. Ferrari)
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While I prefer the more svelte look without them, from the limited running so far, I think these look better than the prior cars. Even though the size difference is minimal, they look smaller on the screen.
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"n particular, one of the rear push-rod suspension arms is mounted unusually high on the support of the rear wing. It also boasts a front wing design that we're yet to see elsewhere, as well as underbite sidepods - something we saw on his incredibly successful RB19."
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/a...ewey/10794081/
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Will wait to see it next to the Audi and Mercedes on the grid.
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We'll call it grayscale 
Their team merch is a little underwhelming, so far. But seems lower priced than the stuff from the big teams
Actually...weird. The Cadillac polos were <$100 last I'd looked. Checked just now & they're matched to the other teams at $116-130
Direct through the Cadillac F1 team site, the same shirt is $99 & marked as a 'replica'
Their team merch is a little underwhelming, so far. But seems lower priced than the stuff from the big teams
Actually...weird. The Cadillac polos were <$100 last I'd looked. Checked just now & they're matched to the other teams at $116-130
Direct through the Cadillac F1 team site, the same shirt is $99 & marked as a 'replica'
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Watching some of the replay & the day 1 wrap up, seems most of the teams are using a DRS-like [upward separation on the main wing] actuation on the rear wing. Alpine, pivoting the entire wing downward. Guess we'll see as pace increases, which is better.
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2 days down, usual suspects at the front.
Haas & Alpine the surprises so far, Audi & Cadillac looking decent. Bottas put it in the top 10 at the end on the softer tires, after running last all day.
Haas & Alpine the surprises so far, Audi & Cadillac looking decent. Bottas put it in the top 10 at the end on the softer tires, after running last all day.
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Barcelona extension to 2032
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...B9vYVzFIwdEgf4
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...B9vYVzFIwdEgf4
F1 has announced a multi-year extension with the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya to host a Grand Prix in 2028, 2030, and 2032 in addition to the event scheduled in 2026. From this year the race will also be re-named as the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix.
The races in Barcelona will be in rotation with the Grand Prix at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, which will take place in 2026, 2027, 2029, and 2031.
The races in Barcelona will be in rotation with the Grand Prix at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, which will take place in 2026, 2027, 2029, and 2031.
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I might give a special allowance for USA because it is geographically so large. But there's no excuse for tiny Spain to have two races.
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Definitely odd, but in theory would generate lift when deployed. Seems overly complicated for its purpose.
Session 2 they were back to the DRS-style wing.
Also, seems like a bit of a waste of a session to run that just to troll the other teams?
Session 2 they were back to the DRS-style wing.
Also, seems like a bit of a waste of a session to run that just to troll the other teams?
Last edited by 00TL-P3.2; Feb 19, 2026 at 03:32 PM.
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Gotta give Ferrari credit for coming up with a innovative rear wing, pretty interesting analysis of it. They also found a way to exploit the rules with it acting as a airbrake going into turns. Curious how much lift/drag ration is considering not only is it upside down BUT backwards so it's lift may be mostly negated.
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https://www.grandprix.com/news/f1-to...crackdown.html
I'm surprised this wasn't the process last year.
According to reports including Italy's La Repubblica, the semi-automated technology - known internally as ECAT (Every Car All Turns) - will integrate with the FIA's existing race management software to detect when cars exceed circuit boundaries.
Track limits have become one of the sport's most contentious officiating flashpoints in recent seasons.
The new system uses computer vision and micro-sector lap data to compare a car's position against a reference model, automatically flagging incidents for review. It is understood that up to 95 percent of cases will now be filtered by software before reaching race control.
FIA Single-Seater Head of Information Systems Strategy Chris Bentley explained that the platform is built around a centralised camera controller.
The new system will allow us to set all distances from a single point and distribute the necessary calculations, Bentley said. We will be able to run the computer vision software on any machine on the network, send it the portion of the video to be processed, and receive the results - allowing us to process ever more data.
Stewards will still retain final authority, but the aim is to improve consistency and provide clearer visual evidence to teams.
Track limits have become one of the sport's most contentious officiating flashpoints in recent seasons.
The new system uses computer vision and micro-sector lap data to compare a car's position against a reference model, automatically flagging incidents for review. It is understood that up to 95 percent of cases will now be filtered by software before reaching race control.
FIA Single-Seater Head of Information Systems Strategy Chris Bentley explained that the platform is built around a centralised camera controller.
The new system will allow us to set all distances from a single point and distribute the necessary calculations, Bentley said. We will be able to run the computer vision software on any machine on the network, send it the portion of the video to be processed, and receive the results - allowing us to process ever more data.
Stewards will still retain final authority, but the aim is to improve consistency and provide clearer visual evidence to teams.
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Given how many cameras are around the track, surprised it wasn't more widespread.
Or, just add more of the gravel strips to the track limits & make them self-enforcing and punishing.
Or, just add more of the gravel strips to the track limits & make them self-enforcing and punishing.
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