Verstappen: Sim data for 2026 F1 cars 'looking pretty terrible'

Max Verstappen says he's sampled in Red Bull's simulator models of Formula 1's 2026 hybrid cars, and so far the Dutchman is far from impressed with what he has seen.

Formula 1's next-generation cars will evenly divide the power generated by the internal combustion engine and the increased battery and hybrid system.

However, worries have surfaced regarding the risk of drivers experiencing battery depletion halfway through a lap, or having to perform unconventional actions like downshifting on a straight.

In Austria last weekend, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner expressed his fears that the sport's next set of regulations could create a "technical Frankenstein" in F1, or a blend of chassis and power unit characteristic that could undermine the show on the track.

"Perhaps where we need to pay urgent attention before it's too late, is to look at the ratio between combustion power and electrical power to ensure that we're not creating a technical Frankenstein which will require the chassis to compensate to such a degree with movable aero and to reduce the drag to such a level that the racing will be affected," commented Horner.

Two-time world champion Max Verstappen says the next-generation models he's experienced in the simulator and the data derived from the latter don't look good.

"I've been talking about that as well with the team, and I've seen the data already on the simulator as well," he said. "To me, it looks pretty terrible.

"If you go flat out on the straight at Monza, and I don't know what it is, like four or five hundred [metres] before the end of the straight, you have to downshift flat out because that's faster. I think that's not the way forward. But of course, probably that's one of the worst tracks."

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Verstappen fears that F1's future regulations will put the emphasis on a manufacturer's ICE, which could lead to a disparity of performances among competitors.

"For me, the problem is it looks like it's going to be an ICE competition, so whoever has the strongest engine will have a big benefit," he said.

"I don't think that should be the intention of Formula 1, because then you will start a massive development war again, and it will become quite expensive to find, probably a few horsepower here and there.

"I think it actually should be opposite. Plus, the cars probably have a lot less drag. So, it will be even harder to overtake on the straight."

Verstappen's comment on cars having "a lot less drag" alludes to the idea of F1 using active aerodynamics, such as movable wings, to optimize a car's aero efficiency.

The Dutchman is skeptical of F1 relying on such an approach.

"You have the active aerodynamics, which you can't control, and the system will control it for you," he said. "Which then I think makes it very awkward to drive, because I prefer to control it myself.

"Of course, when you're behind someone, maybe you need more front or more rear. These kinds of things.

"But if the system starts to control that for you, I don't think that's the right way forward. Plus, the weight is going up again.

"So yeah, we have to seriously look at this because I mean, '26 is not that far away. And at the moment, to me, it looks very bad from all the numbers and what I see from the data already. So, it's not something I'm very excited about at the moment."

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