Formula One

[viper888]

Hamilton got the full Ferrari experience on his debut race with the team

[Dr.Kamiya]

RIP Eddie Jordan

[Dr.Kamiya]

HAM on pole for the Sprint!

[Dr.Kamiya]

What a race. Congrats to Nico Hulkenberg on his podium.

Oscar looked so grumpy the post-race proceedings.

[Dr.Kamiya]

Championship still alive thanks to McLaren double DSQ.

Also Oscar is probably the first F1 driver to be happy about getting DSQ'd.

[Dr.Kamiya]

Max has been outqualified (sprint) by Yuki.
What is going on???

[donbuggy]

Formula 1® and the LEGO Group bring extra flair to the Las Vegas Grand Prix 2025 | Formula1.com
November 23, 2025

After the race the top three drivers were chauffeured to the Winner’s Stage at the Bellagio for their post-race interviews by none other than iconic television host, actor and F1 fan Terry Crews in a full-sized, first-of-its kind drivable, pink, open-top LEGO Big Build 1950s Cadillac cool down car.

Inspired by the iconic 1950s Cadillac Fleetwood Sixty Special and built with over 418,000 bricks, weighing over 2 tonnes and measuring over 5m long, this special edition big build is a true statement of the LEGO Group’s innovative design and engineering. The big builds were crafted by 17 master builders, engineers and designers from the LEGO Group and took close to 4,000 combined hours to develop and construct the car.

[donbuggy]

A Legend Reborn: Bringing the record-breaking, life-size LEGO® Cadillac to the F1® Las Vegas Grand Prix™ | LEGO

Specs and Secrets

As the official ‘cool-down car’ for the Las Vegas Grand Prix podium drivers, this remarkable vehicle swaps the classic Cadillac overhead valve V8 engine for a modern electric-powered mechanism ‘racing’ at 12.4 mph.

This replica weighs a whopping 2 tons, which is the average weight of a real 1950s Cadillac. It also features …(drumroll please)… authentic whitewall tires and wire rims, a smaller retro steering wheel, working front and rear lights, turn signals and hazard lights, as well as an operational LEGO key to get the engine started.

Other highlights include a functioning trunk with a spare tire (the first life-size LEGO car to have luggage space!), a radio antenna made from a lever element, a single round plate exhaust and distinct wheel arches with both gray and pink trim.

The team also added a few tailor-made parts along the way, including a custom single-piece plexiglass windshield for added realism and lights for a Las Vegas-inspired neon underglow.

[Dr.Kamiya]

Lando Norris!

[Dr.Kamiya]

Ex -F1 driver Jack Doohan crashes three times at the same corner in Suzuka.
He also crashed in Suzuka in his last ever weekend in F1 after which he was immediately sacked by Flavio Briatore

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykFKNj-w-gY

[Verbl Kint]

After a year where McLaren dominated and Lando Norris finally achieving his potential (albeit by a hair), we are now into a new set of regulations and new cars + power units. 2026 marks one of the most significant regulatory overhauls since the banning of active suspension. The ground effect era is over but the time of "active aerodynamics" begins as cars now have X-mode and Z-mode. Also, the PU shift to a 50/50 power split with much more electrical dependency (and a manual override mode) can potentially shuffle the pecking order, in addition to introducing a new x-factor: F1's version of "range anxiety".

All the teams are in Bahrain now to do the last set of testing sessions before the season kicks off in Melbourne in March. So far, here's what the journos are saying:

• Mercedes AMG-Petronas - rumored to have THE BEST power unit in the field with the best energy management and reliability as well, and this extends to its customers, including...

• McLaren - as the defending champions, they have a winning mentality in addition to what looks like a really good implementation of active aero

• Ferrari - Lewis never really liked the ground effect cars and seems to have found his speed again in this new regulatory era, testing has also shown that the Scuderia has the best ICE in the field, nearly as reliable as Mercedes' but with better raw pace

• Red Bull-Ford - the chassis is said to be "a masterpiece" while the engine seems to be a work in progress, an experience that Red Bull is very familiar with throughout it existence -- this year, though, they will do it without Honda, Christian Horner, or Adrian Newey; what they still have, however, is a certain Max Verstappen

• Aston Martin Aramco - the arrival of Newey heralds a radical-looking car, and not always in a good way: "We are learning. The car is complex. Maybe too complex for Day 1.” - Fernando Alonso

• Cadillac - they are the 11th team in F1 but definitely were not last during testing at all; it seems GM's experience with hybrid powertrains in Le Mans has given them a considerable headstart

• Racing Bulls / Alpine / Audi / Williams - Racing Bulls had the best start of these 4 but will not be better than the midfield, the other 3 fared worse but it's hoped that Bahrain will show progress for each one

[Verbl Kint]

BBC's analysis of pre-season testing for 2026: Who are the winners and losers from F1 pre-season testing?

Lots to unpack in the above article but it does seem to echo a lot of what many other pundits are saying:

1. Mercedes and Ferrari (in that order) are the teams to beat, with McLaren and Red Bull close by.
2. It's a very competitive midfield (Haas and Alpine are bound to spring some surprises).
3. Williams do not look like they are going to challenge for a podium anytime soon.
4. Aston Martin, meanwhile, are in a world of misery as the Honda PU is nowhere near the competition.
5. Compression ratios are still a hot topic (pun intended) but it seems Merc is off the hook.


Fastest times by team in second pre-season test (copied from the BBC article, note this does not mean much in terms of actual race pace, Melbourne will show the true pecking order):

1. Ferrari (Charles Leclerc) one minute 31.992 seconds

2. Mercedes (Kimi Antonelli) Mercedes 1:32.803

3. McLaren (Oscar Piastri) 1:32.861

4, Red Bull (Max Verstappen) 1:33.109

5. Alpine (Pierre Gasly) 1:33.421

6. Haas (Oliver Bearman) Haas 1:33.487

7. Audi (Gabriel Bortoleto) 1:33.755

8. Racing Bulls (Arvid Lindblad) 1:34.149

9. Williams (Carlos Sainz) 1:34.342

10. Cadillac (Valtteri Bottas) 1:35.290

11. Aston Martin (Lance Stroll) 1:35.974

[Verbl Kint]

Kimi Antonelli gets pole position (for the first time) and also gets the win in Suzuka! We now have the youngest ever polesitter and the youngest WDC points leader in F1 history. Kimi also holds the record for the youngest ever to set a fastest lap - also in Suzuka last year.

Race Highlights: 2026 Japanese Grand Prix

It wasn't a straightforward race at all - quite a bit of overtaking until the very last lap. Kimi drove a nearly flawless race. Had it not been for a poor start, this would have been a perfect race for the 19-year old Bolognese wunderkind. There was a bit of good fortune involved, true, but champions know that one needs the help of lady luck every now and then.


F1 takes a break with the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Racing returns in Miami in the first weekend of May.

[Verbl Kint]

Kimi wins his fourth straight GP in Montreal after a tight wheel-to-wheel battle with his teammate. The next race is in Monaco. I wonder if Russel and Kimi will duke it out as aggressively as they did in a circuit as tight as the principality's.

Another thing to consider is the improvement of the Ferraris; they (Charles especially) truly have a solid chance of challenging for the top step in two weeks. McLaren seemed on equal footing to the leaders in Montreal but everything came undone no thanks to a series of blunders.

___________________________


Btw, the F1 goats of the 21st century all won their first Monaco GP when they were 23 years old: Sir Lewis (youngest ever at 23 years 4 months), Verstappen (23 years 7 months), and Vettel (23 years 10 months).

Kimi is 19.