Formula 1, Sportrik Media - Lando Norris has warned that the new generation of Formula 1 cars introduced in 2026 could lead to a major accident due to dramatic speed differences in braking zones. The McLaren driver raised the concern after the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park in Melbourne.
The first race of the new technical era saw intense overtaking throughout the field, including a battle for the lead between George Russell and Charles Leclerc. Russell eventually won the race for Mercedes, finishing ahead of team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
Under the revised 2026 power unit regulations, electrical power now plays a much larger role in overall performance. Drivers must carefully manage battery harvesting and deployment during each lap, which can create significant speed differences between cars depending on how energy is being used at a given moment.
According to Norris, these variations in energy deployment are creating potentially dangerous situations when drivers are battling wheel-to-wheel on track.
“It’s chaos, you’re going to have a big accident,” Norris told media including RacingNews365.
“Which is a shame because we’re basically driving and waiting for something to happen and something to go horribly wrong.”
“That’s not a nice position to be in, but there’s nothing we can really do about it now.”
Norris also criticised what he described as an artificial element to the racing, where overtaking opportunities can depend heavily on how the power unit delivers energy rather than pure driving performance.
“It’s very artificial, depending on what the power unit decides to do and sometimes it feels random,” he explained.
“You can suddenly get overtaken by five cars and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
The British driver believes the issue is unlikely to be resolved quickly given the scale of investment teams and manufacturers have already made in the new power unit technology.
“There’s nothing we can change about it now, so there’s no point saying much more,” Norris added.
“You can see speed differences of 30, 40 or even 50 km/h.”
“If someone hits another car at that speed, you could go flying and even end up over the fence.”
“You could seriously hurt yourself and possibly others. It’s quite a horrible thing to think about.”
Norris’ comments highlight growing concerns among drivers regarding the racing characteristics of the new 2026 Formula 1 cars following the opening round of the season, with further discussions about safety and technical regulations expected ahead of the next race on the championship calendar.
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