2026 F1 Cars Feel More Fun To Drive With New Rules, Hamilton Says

The 2026 F1 season is already shaping a sharp split in the paddock, as Lewis Hamilton praises how the latest cars handle while rival teams raise doubts over Mercedes and the new engine regulations that are set to govern the championship from March.

The Australian Grand Prix on 8 March will open the 2026 F1 season, with Shanghai scheduled for the second race seven days later, and teams are still adjusting both to revised chassis rules and to power unit checks that have prompted questions behind closed doors.

One of the most sensitive topics concerns engine compression ratios, which have been reduced for 2026 to help new power unit manufacturers compete more fairly with existing suppliers, yet several rivals suspect that Mercedes and Red Bull are

finding extra performance once engines reach higher temperatures after the mandatory testing phase.

Ahead of Mercedes' season launch on Monday, team principal Toto Wolff dismissed suggestions that the engine regulations should be altered again, saying: "When it comes to the engine question, I just don't understand why some teams concentrate more on others and keep arguing a case that is very clear and transparent," Wolff said. "Communication with the FIA was very positive all along. and it's not only on compression ratio, but on other things too. And specifically in that area, it's very clear what the regulations say. It's very clear what the, let's say, standard procedures are on any motors, even outside of Formula One. So just get your s*** together, instead of doing secret meetings and sending secret letters and trying to invent ways of testing that just don't exist. At least from us here, we are trying to minimise distractions and minimising distractions is looking more at us than at everybody else, when it's pretty clear what the regs say. "

The 2026 F1 season also brings major aerodynamic changes, as teams move to a narrower chassis and more conventional floors that create less downforce, ending the 2022 to 2025 ground-effect era that matched the least successful stretch of Hamilton's Formula One career.

Hamilton joined Ferrari for 2025 but endured a demoralising first campaign with the team, yet the seven-time drivers' champion then posted the fastest lap during a week-long pre-season test in Barcelona, suggesting the revised car package has suited Hamilton far better than the previous generation.

Reflecting on how the new cars feel, Hamilton told Sky Sports: "The car generation is actually a little bit more fun to drive. It's oversteery and snappy and sliding, but it's a little bit easier to catch, and I would definitely say more enjoyable. "

Giving the people what they want pic.twitter.com/Rt0u28OxVPScuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) February 2, 2026

The blend of a refreshed technical rulebook and a heated discussion over engine regulations means the 2026 F1 season is set to begin with both sporting optimism and political tension, as Hamilton adjusts well to the latest cars while Mercedes and rivals continue to argue over how the power units are being interpreted.