Lando Norris fears cars could ‘fly over fences’ under new Formula 1 rules

Lando Norris has warned that drivers are going to “fly over fences and do a lot of damage” in this new era of Formula 1 racing.

Red Bull’s four-time world champion, Max Verstappen, was also “very negative” about the new regulations after the 2026 season opener in Melbourne on Sunday.

The Dutchman described the grand prix, which began with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri crashing on his way to the grid, as “chaos” and warned again that there was only so much he could take.

Norris had described the new machines as “fun to drive” at pre-season testing in Bahrain last month, but the world champion appears to have changed his view completely. Norris cut a downbeat figure after beginning his title defence with a fifth place finish in Melbourne.

Not only were McLaren “a very long way off the cars ahead”, Norris said the racing was “artificial” and the closing speeds – the relative velocity at which two cars approach each other – was dangerous.

“Depending on what drivers do, you can have 30, 40, 50km/h [closing] speeds,” he said. “And when someone hits another driver at that speed you are going to fly and go over the fence, and do a lot of damage to yourself and maybe to others. And that is a pretty horrible thing to think about.

“It is way too much. It is chaos, and we are going to have a big accident, which is a shame because we are driving and the ones just waiting for something to happen and to go quite horribly wrong. That is not a nice position to be in.”

Piastri, who also crashed out of last year’s race, albeit in much worse conditions, lost control on the exit of turn four and speared into the barriers on his reconnaissance lap to the grid. It continued the so-called “Albert Park curse”, which refers to the fact that no Australian Formula 1 driver has managed to secure a podium finish since the race moved to the Melbourne circuit in 1996.

Later, Piastri said it had been difficult to deal with “100 kilowatts of extra power that I didn’t expect”, which is to do with how the engines function under the new rules.

Verstappen, who finished one place behind Norris in sixth, called for the sport’s rulers to take action. The Dutch driver criticised the cars last month, dismissing the new era as “Formula E on steroids” and “anti-racing”, warning he would not stay in the category if he was not enjoying it.

Asked whether the sport’s officials should be worried about him leaving, Verstappen replied: “What they should worry about is the rules. Focus on that. They ask questions and I give my opinion on what I would like to see, and I think it is better for the sport because I do care about it, I do love racing, and I want it to be better than this.

“Let’s see what we can do, and maybe even this year, I hope we can come up with some different solutions so it becomes more enjoyable for everyone.

“Like I said, I love racing, but you can only take so much, right? I think F1 and the [governing body] FIA are willing to listen, but I hope there is some action.”

Verstappen added: “It is not that I am the only one saying it, it is drivers, fans. We are not critical just to be critical. We are critical for a reason. We want it to be Formula 1. Proper Formula 1. On steroids. But today that wasn’t the case.”

F1 officials claimed after the race that there had been 120 overtakes compared with 45 last year. But Verstappen was unimpressed.

“It is not little tweaks,” he said. “I am very negative about the rules. But I do feel proud from the [Red Bull powertrains] engine side. I just wished I enjoyed it more from the driving side.”

Telegraph, London

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