Lando Norris has demanded Formula 1 “get rid of the battery” after testing the sport’s emergency regulation tweaks at the Miami Grand Prix, declaring the changes insufficient to address fundamental performance issues with the 2026 cars.
The reigning world champion finished second in Sunday’s race following the introduction of mid-season rule adjustments aimed at allowing drivers to push harder in qualifying and reduce lift-and-coast phases. The package came in response to widespread criticism after the opening three rounds of 2026.
While Norris acknowledged progress, his post-race assessment was blunt about the scale of work still required.
“It’s a small step in the right direction but it’s not to the level that F1 should be at, yet,” Norris said. “We said in qualifying if you go flat-out everywhere and you are pushing like you were in previous years you still just get penalised for it. You still can’t be flat-out everywhere. It’s not about being as early on throttle everywhere, you should never get penalised for it and you still do.”
The Briton went further, suggesting superficial fixes cannot solve the core issue with the heavily hybrid power units introduced this season.
“Honestly, I don’t think you can really fix that, you just have to get rid of the battery. So hopefully in a few years that’s the case.”
Race Conditions Show Little Improvement
Oscar Piastri, Norris’s McLaren team-mate, reported marginal gains in qualifying but said race conditions remain virtually unchanged — particularly concerning closing speed differentials that have raised serious safety questions.
“I think the reducing the harvest limit in qualifying has helped a bit. It’s not fixed the problem, or all the problems, but it’s helping with one,” the Australian said. “The races are basically exactly the same. Today was my first proper experience of overtaking people and having to defend and it’s pretty crazy, to be honest.”
Piastri cited a specific example involving George Russell during the Miami race where dramatic speed differences made defensive driving unpredictable.
“At one point on my dash I could see George [Russell] was one second behind me, and he managed to overtake me by the end of that straight. It’s just a bit random. All the closing speeds are huge and trying to anticipate that as the defending driver is incredibly tough to do, and for the overtaking driver.”
The McLaren driver admitted he found himself replicating aggressive moves he initially questioned, simply because the speed differentials forced such tactics. He acknowledged the limits of what can be achieved with the current hardware platform.
“I think the collaboration from the FIA and F1’s been good but there’s only so many things you can change with the hardware we have. So some changes for the future are still needed, for sure. How quickly we can do it is the big question.”
Safety Concerns Persist After Bearman Crash
The closing speed issue was flagged as a major safety concern following Ollie Bearman’s high-speed crash at the Japanese Grand Prix earlier this season. The Miami rule tweaks were partly intended to address those worries, but driver feedback suggests the problem remains largely unresolved.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who claimed his third consecutive victory to extend his early championship lead, supported his rivals’ assessments. The Mercedes driver noted qualifying improvements but stressed race conditions still pose challenges.
“Qualifying feels better, more natural,” Antonelli said. “Races, the closing speed is still massive. You also need to trust the guy who is defending because with this active aero the car is pretty lazy when you want to change direction. So you need to think in advance and you also need to trust as well, the driver who is defending. It was a small step in the right direction, let’s see what’s going to happen next.”
The German highlighted how the 2026 active aerodynamics make cars sluggish in directional changes, adding another layer of complexity to wheel-to-wheel racing and placing additional trust requirements on competitors during battles.
What Happens Next
Formula 1 now faces mounting pressure to implement more substantial changes for the remainder of the season or plan deeper revisions for 2027. The drivers’ consensus is clear: the current hardware — specifically the battery-heavy hybrid system — imposes limitations that minor rule tweaks cannot overcome.
The championship moves to Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix on May 18, where the paddock will continue assessing whether the Miami adjustments have any cumulative effect over multiple events.