LANDO NORRIS and Max Verstappen have ripped into their “worst ever” cars at the Australian GP.
Verstappen crashed out of qualifying, while Norris could only finish 6th on the grid.
Norris, 26, was slowed in Q3 as he ran over a piece of debris that was shed by Mercedes star Kimi Antonelli.
The British driver claimed that the extra focus he has been puttingon his dashboard took away his reaction time.
The increased split in attention is due to the new designs of the 2026 cars.
The vehicles need to be driven carefully in order to optimise the power unit’s electric energy harvesting needs.
Norris believes that the new system is having an effect on the cars as they are slowing down more before corners.
He has insisted that the change has seen the cars be nowhere near as good as previously.
He said: “I think everyone knows what the issues are.
“It’s just the fact it’s a 50-50 split and it just doesn’t work. Straight mode means you’ve got a lot of other issues at hand.
BEST ONLINE CASINOS – TOP SITES IN THE UK
“You decelerate so much before corners, you have to lift everywhere to make sure the [battery] pack’s at the top.
“If the pack’s too high, you’re also screwed. It’s just difficult, but it’s what we have. It doesn’t feel good as a driver, but I’m sure George is smiling.
“We’ve come from the best cars ever made in Formula 1 and the nicest to drive to probably the worst. It sucks, but you have to live with it.”
Verstappen, 28, had already admitted that he was “not a fan” of the power unit side of the regulations.
His views on the cars are not going to have improved, having been sent into the wall after an apparent technical problem.
The Dutch-Belgian driver admitted that he is “not having fun” in the cars as he hit out.
He said: “I said how I thought about it. I mean, I’m definitely not having fun at all with these cars.
“I don’t know, you can make up your mind – but I think if you look at the onboard, you see enough, right?
“You can only make it slower and then of course you get a bit more of a normal speed trace – but it’s a slower speed trace.
“The formula is just not correct. And that is something that is a bit harder to change. But I think we need to.”
Verstappen will start the race in 20th, having failed to post a time but Red Bull Racing will be happy with his team-mate Isack Hadjar’s efforts.
The French-Algerian ace claimed third place on the grid as he looks to make an impression.
F1 2026 RACE CALENDAR: ALL THE INFO YOU NEED
