Apple TV has secured exclusive U.S. broadcasting rights for Formula 1 from the 2026 season onward. The deal includes every race and session, integrated live updates across Apple apps, and a free trial, launching alongside the new American Cadillac team.
Ahead of his record 20th F1 season, Lewis Hamilton vows to hold nothing back with Ferrari. After a podium-less 2025, a refreshed Hamilton and a fast Ferrari car from testing create high expectations for a championship challenge starting in Australia.
The 2026 F1 season begins in Australia under radically new technical regulations, resetting the competitive field. With major broadcast changes in the US and revised driver lineups, the opening round will reveal which teams have best adapted to the new era of car design.
McLaren's chief designer Rob Marshall discusses the team's approach to the 2026 F1 season, highlighting the complexity of the new cars and the intense focus on mastering the hybrid power unit. He predicts an eventual convergence in car designs across the grid but expects a fiercely competitive and unpredictable development war in the meantime.
Ex-F1 engineer Rob Smedley attributes Lewis Hamilton's tough first year at Ferrari to the difficulty of leaving Mercedes' familiar 'old slipper' environment. He highlights the stress of adapting to new processes and a new race engineer as key performance hurdles, but is optimistic for better synergy in Hamilton's second season.
The 2026 F1 technical regulations will transform race starts into a complex high-wire act. Safety concerns have led to a ban on the new low-drag 'Straight Mode' until the first corner, while the removal of the MGU-H brings back significant turbo lag, forcing drivers to master a delicate and timed engine procedure to avoid being stranded on the grid.
New F1 world champion Lando Norris and his McLaren team have earned nominations for the 2026 Laureus World Sports Awards. Norris is up for the Breakthrough of the Year award following his title-winning season, while McLaren is in the running for World Team of the Year, highlighting their dominant performance in 2025.
Jos Verstappen claims his son Max was laughed at years ago for criticizing early data on the 2026 F1 cars, warnings that have now proven prescient as drivers grapple with the new regulations' complex energy management. Max Verstappen argues that greater driver input during the rule-making process could have prevented current "anti-racing" concerns.
Jolyon Palmer notes Mercedes is brimming with confidence ahead of the Australian GP, but their unusual testing program and pre-season reliability issues leave a key question unanswered. The race will reveal if their optimism is justified or if durability problems will hamper their title defense from the start.
The 2026 Australian Grand Prix, set to be the season opener under new F1 regulations, is targeting another attendance record fueled by Oscar Piastri's stardom. Organizers are upgrading infrastructure to handle the crowds and an 11th team, viewing the regulatory unknowns as an intriguing draw rather than a risk for the event's spectacle.
Mercedes is radiating confidence after testing with a seemingly improved car, but multiple power unit changes during pre-season running have raised serious reliability questions that could threaten their status as pre-season favorites.
Fox Sports is launching a new weekly motorsport talk show in Australia, modeled after its successful AFL and NRL 360 programs. The show will cover F1, Supercars, and MotoGP with analysis and driver panels, featuring presenters like Paul Murray and Mark Skaife, and begins after the F1 season opener.
