Overview
- F1 and the FIA approved rule tweaks for Miami to curb energy‑management quirks and reduce dangerous speed gaps seen in Japan, following weeks of driver complaints about the near 50/50 engine‑battery format.
- Sebastian Vettel echoed the grid’s criticism, saying the cars may be fun to drive but not to race and warning that F1 must not lose the sport’s core of the fastest driver in the fastest machine.
- Jos Verstappen said he sometimes switches off F1 broadcasts because the rules blunt driver influence, aligning with Max Verstappen’s public disenchantment and talk of walking away.
- Jenson Button predicted Max Verstappen would quit rather than take a sabbatical, a debate sharpened by race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase’s confirmed move to McLaren in 2028.
- Mercedes still sets the pace and Toto Wolff warned he would park a car if the Russell–Antonelli title fight crossed team lines, underscoring management’s push to keep control of a two‑car contest.