Hamilton, Antonelli And Verstappen Voice Fresh Concerns Over F1 2026 Power Units

The Canadian Grand Prix podium finishers have all raised concerns about Formula 1’s 2026 power units, despite a race that produced plenty of on-track action.
Lewis Hamilton, who finished second in Montreal, described the sensation of driving the new-specification cars as still feeling unfamiliar and unnatural to him.
“It still continues to be a weird feeling,” said Hamilton. “You go down the power, you open up the [Straight Mode], and then the power dies halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping.”
Hamilton drew direct comparisons to earlier eras of the sport, pointing to the V8 and V10 generations as examples of what he believes engine delivery should feel like.
“It doesn’t feel [like] what motorsport should be. The engine should be ringing its neck off right to the end of the straight and just pulling and pulling,” Hamilton said.
The British driver did praise the revised chassis regulations for 2026, which have produced narrower, lighter cars with simplified floor designs generating less downforce than before.
“I think ultimately the car is fundamentally a better design, so we can race and get close and follow each other closely,” said Hamilton. “I think that’s the best part of it. The power part, I think, is less exciting.”
Race winner Andrea Kimi Antonelli acknowledged occasional frustration with power deployment but credited regulation adjustments made ahead of the Miami round for improving matters.
“Sometimes it triggers you a little bit how the system works,” Antonelli said. “But definitely also with the changes that were made [before Miami], the FIA giving teams a bit more allowance on the system, has definitely helped quite a bit.”
Antonelli also praised how closely drivers can now follow one another under the new chassis rules, stating the racing has improved significantly compared to the previous generation of cars.
“I think that the cars, to follow, at least for now, is much better than last year,” he said. “You can actually follow a lot closer and that definitely creates more racing.”
The Mercedes driver acknowledged there remains development work to do on the power unit side and expressed interest in potential future regulation changes affecting the combustion and electrical power balance.
“I feel like with the PU obviously there’s still work to do and it will be interesting to see what’s going to happen in the next couple of years,” Antonelli said.
Max Verstappen, who completed the podium in third place, delivered the sharpest criticism of the three drivers, describing the current Formula 1 power units as overly complex and impure.
The Dutchman referenced his recent experience in other categories, contrasting those cars with what he encounters each weekend in a modern Formula 1 machine.
“This season I’ve been racing different kinds of cars, especially last week, that remind me how pure motorsport can be and how great the racing can be,” Verstappen said.
Verstappen argued the quality of racing observed this season reflects the calibre of the drivers rather than the regulations themselves, and insisted the sport needs greater simplicity.
“For me, while driving, it’s all a bit confusing. It’s not what Formula 1 should be about. It’s way too complex, all of this,” he said.
The three-time world champion pointed to the many variables drivers must manage during a race weekend that remain invisible and unknown to the majority of spectators watching from home.
“Most of the rules, the fans don’t even know what we are dealing with while driving: what is allowed when you’re behind or when you’re the car ahead, what we have to do on a formation lap,” Verstappen said.
Verstappen expressed hope that planned changes for 2027 would address these issues, describing them as the minimum necessary to bring the sport closer to a purer form of racing.
“For me, F1 just needs to be more pure and I really hope that what they try to do next year will go through because I think that is necessary,” he said.
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