(Motorsport-Total.com) – Shortly before the summer break, the 2026 Formula 1 cars remain an important topic of discussion. Charles Leclerc and Kimi Antonelli, for example, describe their cars after the Belgian Grand Prix as “complicated” or “not so nice” in terms of handling.
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Specifically, these are answers to the question of whether the problems George Russell is currently struggling with are particularly unusual in this generation. The W13 of the third-placed driver in the World Championship is struggling with worse deployment than the car of World Championship leader Antonelli for previously unknown reasons.
“That can happen,” explains the Mercedes driver after his sixth win of the season. Antonelli himself, however, also admits he doesn’t understand much more about the matter. “For example, I had the same problem in Australia,” he said.
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“Sometimes it can be due to how you drive. Sometimes the system just does things a little differently. So, it’s really complicated.”
While Antonelli is sure that Mercedes will have solved the problem by the Hungarian Grand Prix, he repeatedly emphasizes the complexity that the power units bring this season.
Furthermore, Antonelli mentions a problem that Leclerc has also struggled with: “If you drive just a little differently, the system sometimes goes a bit crazy. It’s very difficult.”
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This impression is confirmed by the Ferrari driver, who adds: “Sometimes you scratch your head and ask yourself: ‘Why am I losing so much time on the straights?'”
“That was the case for me,” said Leclerc, “on Friday in FP3. In qualifying, it went really well again after a bit of fine-tuning. It’s just very difficult and sometimes really frustrating for us drivers. Even when you’re doing your best, things are constantly changing in the background. That’s not so nice.”
At least the Ferrari driver has been able to improve his performance in recent weeks. While drivers like Russell or Oscar Piastri continue to struggle with this generation of cars, the Monegasque was able to solve his problems before the British Grand Prix. Since then, he has been on the podium twice.
Driver criticism has gradually decreased compared to the start of the season. However, the silence does not indicate greater enthusiasm, but in many cases merely a certain resignation.
From time to time, drivers like Max Verstappen or Fernando Alonso continue to express extremely negative views. While the four-time world champion compares the 2026 generation to Formula 3, Alonso described iconic corner complexes at Silverstone as “charging stations” thanks to the new rules.
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