Road Relevant Regulations, Sassy Comments, and Comedy Nuggets!
Hi there! Welcome to Track Limits, a weekly F1 newsletter where we break down the major headlines and dive into the questions, trends, and topics that spark our collective curiosity. Nothing is off-topic and a little fun is always part of the mix!
Good afternoon!! If in Monaco, we jumped to our feet due to amazing storytelling. Montreal’s wet and wild race had us sitting on the edge of our seats. We had multiple race leaders, ferocious battles up and down the grid, ever-changing track conditions, numerous DNFs, and intra-team fighting!
Some might say one of these Grand Prixs is better than the other. I'd argue we need both the romance of Monaco's storytelling and the thrill of Montreal's action! It's this duality that makes F1, and sports in general, so captivating.
The weekend in Montréal didn’t start with a sunny disposition, quite literally! The rain and hail disrupted several on-track sessions causing local police to mistakenly turn away fans. This also affected team personnel, including Russell, who reportedly had a tense exchange with a police officer.
As such, given the challenging weekend he had both on and off the track, it was no surprise that the Brit chose to keep a low profile during the break. Only popping up on social media to reveal that he enjoys free diving as a form of meditation. Which is so Russell-like that I’m not even surprised by it!!
What did surprise me, was how social media teams completely dropped the ball on the perfect TikTok trend for Formula One. Thankfully, motorsport creator Toni Cowan-Brown stepped in to bring us the Watch My Toddler/Boss content we needed! Sainz was his usual self, so utterly confused. Piastri didn’t care and continued his breakfast as if no one was watching, while Wolff gave us his signature intimidating stare!!
Unfortunately, this wasn't the only instance where Admins found themselves in hot water. Mercedes posted a picture of Russel’s 3rd place trophy with the caption “Heading home with our first trophy of the season”. This isn't just incorrect - Hamilton finished P2 in the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix - but it added fuel to an already disgruntled fanbase. Not even the Hamilton-centric content posted afterward saved them from some savage hate comments. Although I have to say, I really enjoyed watching Hamilton poke fun at a team member’s Spotify playlist!!
Several of the teams finally got the message that the best content comes from having drivers compete against each other in silly contests. So we got the Red Bull drivers racing in soapbox cars - of course, Verstappen won! The McLaren boys played some Pictionary - with Norris cheating his way into a victory - and C² finally came back with two new challenges. The Ferrari boys are so entertaining in these videos, that I don’t know how the team will top them when Hamilton replaces Sainz. Honestly, I’m scared Ferrari will return to their boring corporate self!! Also, if you have Bottas on a Zamboni why for the life of me don’t you make him race someone?!
Verstappen found himself amid some drama involving his long-term girlfriend Kelly Piquet. While she's never been particularly popular among fans, the situation escalated in the last couple of weeks. Leading to hate comments flooding her posts and the creation of several social media accounts with the sole purpose of bashing her. It got so bad it prompted Piquet to release a statement addressing the whole ordeal. Curiously, just a few weeks ago, McLaren had to share the team's social media community guidelines with fans and drop one of their IndyCar partners in response to a driver receiving death threats. This recurring dynamic between fans, drivers, and WAGs suggests that the sport clearly needs to address online harassment with a more coordinated and proactive approach than initially anticipated.
On a far more positive note, Leclerc once again provided us with some comedy nuggets in his new vlog. He gave us a fabulous montage of some bad but confident surfing! We saw him go hangry shopping in a huge electronic store in Tokyo and not be able to hail a taxi. But the most quintessentially Leclerc moment was when he got sunburned, turned to the camera, and said “I think I took a little bit too much sun…I have always loved Ferrari red.” I’m sorry, what?! Get this man a suncream sponsor, it’s clearly the only way someone can make him use it!
Finally, we have to discuss the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Ferrari won the race for the second year in a row! Sure it’s not the WEC championship, but as one of the commentators stated during the long broadcast, “Does anyone really care about that?!” Either way, the race was exciting, the Tifosi were happy and we saw many familiar faces both on the grid and in the paddock. The only ones who continue to get the short end of the stick are Alpine! Not only did none of their cars finish the race, but they made Ocon and Gasly pose for pictures and talk to the press. Even Schumacher - a member of the Alpine WEC team - seemed uncomfortable and desperately looking for a way out! Somehow I can’t help but think about the Stop trying to make fetch happen meme every time Alpine parades their driver pairing!!
Ohh! I almost forgot, Leclerc carried the Olympic torch through the streets of Monaco yesterday as part of the ceremonial events leading up to the Paris Games. Despite motorsport not being part of the Olympics he is not the first F1 driver to do so. Hamilton was the most recent torchbearer during the London Summer Olympics in 2012.
Road Relevant Regulations
Following the publication of the power unit regulations two years ago, the FIA has finally revealed the technical regulations for the 2026 chassis. The key goal was to develop smaller, lighter, and nimbler cars which seems to have been accomplished - if we consider a 10cm width and 20cm length reduction a significant change!
When asked about the regulations over the weekend, teams and drivers voiced their concerns about the potential negative impact on performance, drivability, and each team's design freedom. Additionally, teams were unhappy with the FIA's public release of the regulations before discussions amongst stakeholders were concluded and the World Motorsport Council approved them.
Despite this, the FIA is confident it will secure approval for the regulations, even if it has to make some adjustments.
ZOOMING OUT:
Sponsorship has been a big part of how teams secure funding for their racing efforts ever since teams were allowed to display sponsor logos on their liveries in 1968. Initially, the oil and gas industry was the big player but when they decided to cut back the door was left open for the tobacco industry to make Formula One its playground.
By the early 1970s, every major brand from Marlboro to Camel was funneling absurd amounts of money into the sport. It got so out of control, that some claimed the industry was effectively running the sport.
This all changed in 2003 when the European Parliament banned the advertisement of tobacco. Now all of a sudden, the sport had to leave its tobacco dependency behind and find other ways to fund its multimillion-dollar operations.
The solution teams found was to adopt a business model that took advantage of their unique research and development capabilities. Although several racing innovations have been trickling down to our road cars for years - such as regenerative braking and the rearview mirror - the technology transfer model ushered in an era in which teams are intentionally transforming their expertise into services, goods, and technology to sell to third parties or transfer to the automotive manufacturers that finance them.
The widespread adoption of this model, however, meant that from that point on the technical regulations needed to be aligned with industry trends to keep these manufacturers interested in the championship. Which brings us to the 2026 technical regulations and their major selling point.
Despite the initial hype about the electrification of road transportation, the EV adoption rate has been below expectation and sales have been fluctuating in several major markets. Making manufacturers worldwide pull back on EVs and pursue plug-in hybrids and alternative fuels instead.
Something that’s reflected in the 2026 regulations with the hybrid power unit run on fully sustainable fuel and with a 50/50 split in power output from the internal combustion engine and the MGU-K. Successfully resulting in a record number of car manufacturers committing to the sport from 2026 onwards.
The problem, however, is that the focus on the PU regulations created constraints - such as the need for bigger batteries, and less fuel flow - that the chassis regulations now needed to fix to get the cars to be nimble enough for the desired wheel-to-wheel racing. A crucial element in achieving this is the introduction of the controversial active aerodynamics systems and the abandonment of the DRS.
Given that teams are only permitted to start developing the car in 2025, the main takeaway, for now, is that the new regulations will significantly increase drivers' workload in the car and shift strategic battles to be primarily energy-based.
Whether that will turn out into exciting racing, I don’t know. But what seems to be clear from the initial feedback from key stakeholders, is that as much as there was a commercial necessity to develop the PU regulations as quickly as possible. The lack of a holistic approach to the technical regulations may have created the circumstances for some Frankenstein cars to show up on the track in 2026!
Sassy Comments!
In the week leading up to the Canadian Grand Prix, several driver market announcements were made. Ocon and Alpine decided to part ways, Perez renewed his contract with Red Bull for two more years, and Tsunoda will stay with the Racing Bulls for one more season.
Some of these lineup updates weren’t met with widespread excitement, but the prospect of several future announcements sparked a far stronger reaction! In particular, Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 World Champion, delivered one of his recurring rants about Ricciardo on Sky Sports.
THE REASONING:
From karting to Formula One, athletes have to pay for their seats. While drivers are given a salary for the first time in their careers upon reaching F1, their seat still remains closely linked to the financial contributions they can bring to the team.
Typically, this comes in the form of championship points - which equates to prize money - a backer’s check, or family wealth. However with the recent surge in popularity of the sport and its ability to position itself as a unique global marketing platform, Formula One has captured the attention of sponsors and business partners like never before. Making a driver’s marketability an increasingly valuable asset to teams. Especially when it allows them to tap into new markets and audiences.
This is the case of Ricciardo and Perez. Not only do they enjoy strong personal brands that enable them to connect with young and diverse audiences, but their commercial appeal, especially in North America, is significant. A quick check on Google Trends’ search data for 2023 reveals that after Hamilton and Verstappen, the most popular drivers in the region are by far Perez and Ricciardo.
With over half of team sponsorship deals in 2023 involving U.S.-based companies and five North American races on the calendar, it's clear that F1 is making a significant effort to solidify its presence in the region. This, amongst many other things, means having drivers on the grid who resonate with both American C-level executives and casual fans. One of the reasons why Red Bull was willing to hire Ricciardo in 2023 as their third driver even though they don’t have a third car!
This added value to Red Bull and Formula 1’s expansion strategy, along with being a great return on investment for sponsors, has allowed drivers like Ricciardo and Perez to stay in the sport even when their athletic achievements haven't been up to par. Another driver would probably have gotten the boot long ago, which is why their presence ruffles feathers.
It marks a clear shift in how drivers are deemed deserving of a place in the sport, indicating that it no longer solely hinges on industry relationships, on-track performance, and socioeconomic background. The economic power of fans now plays a significant role in these decisions, which is a sore topic for some!
The question that remains to be answered, however, is how much time does marketability afford a driver if they consistently underperform.
This week’s recommended content!!
🗞 READ
At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Iron Dames bring the power of pink | Red Bull’s Paying the Price for its Era-Defining Verstappen Swoop | Is William’s Bold Sainz 2025 Claim Right? | Beauty mogul Charlotte Tilbury wants to give F1 a makeover | Mad Dog Jones on Making F1's Coolest Collab With The Help Of Lewis Hamilton | I Don’t Give a S**t - Don’t Tell Drugovich to Give Up on F1 | Draw to Survive: The emerging South Korean artist capturing the human moments of F1 | Why Cadillac’s Le Mans experience proves it’s absolutely ready for F1
🎧 LISTEN
Around the World with Charles Leclerc | Chris Medland: Talking to a top F1 Journalist | Inside the Safety Car: Bern Maylander | What Makes Barcelona -Catalunya F1’s Most Sustainable Circuit | Is George Russell ready for the No.1 seat at Mercedes?
Photo Credit: FIA, Mens Health