Is Hamilton Really Out of the Title Fight?

Welcome to the first Driver61 F1 Newsletter and thank you so much for signing up.

With this newsletter, it's our intention to bring you the most interesting news from Formula 1 (that we don't manage to feature in our videos).

This week we take a look at Lewis Hamilton’s form and F1’s new rules for 2026. We’ll be randomly choosing the winner of our $1000 newsletter giveaway this weekend, so keep an eye on your inbox!

- Scott Mansell

Hamilton concedes he's "out of the championship"

After last weekend's Imola GP, a disconsolate Lewis Hamilton said "I'm out of the championship, for sure. There is no question about that. But I’ll still keep working as hard as I can, to try and pull it back together somehow."

However, Mercedes' Andrew Shovlin thinks they are getting closer to solving their issue. “Being realistic, we think this will be something we approach in steps rather than one big moment where the whole thing [porpoising] vanishes, but we are seeing encouraging signs."

You can see Shov's full Race Debrief here.

Our Take

There's no doubt Lewis is having a tough start to the season, but he is still a world-class driver. Plus, we all know what the Mercedes team are capable of.

We've seen fans online talking about Hamilton being 'spoilt' or 'not able to drive a bad car', but this simply isn't the case. Drivers at Lewis’ level are able to adapt their technique and driving style to new rule changes, constant car updates and different circuits.

I've seen data that shows how significant the porpoising is on the W13. The main issue is that it continues further and more violently into the faster turns, meaning the drivers just aren't getting the confidence they need from the car. As Mercedes begins to solve this, they'll get closer to the pace. It's very possible that we'll see the Merc winning again this season.

F1's radical 2026 car

The FIA has stated its aims to change rules again in 2026. The rule change will focus on reducing drag, reducing mass and using sustainable materials.

One of the most interesting aspects is that the cars will have active aero. The cars will have downforce in the corners, but aero parts will move flatter on the straights to reduce drag - like DRS, but over the whole car.

The 2026 cars will also be shorter. Over the last decade, F1 cars have grown in length and the new rules will focus on shorter cars. Speaking to MotorSport, Pat Symonds said “We’ve put a limitation on wheelbase for the 2022 car, which in my view was generous. Our aim is to make quite a significant [further] reduction in wheelbase [in 2026].”

Fuel tanks will also be made smaller, thanks to more efficient cars. “​​The power of the internal combustion engine is going down and the power of the electrical machines is going up,” says Symonds. However, the main improvement in efficiency will be due to lower drag on the straights. Driving high-downforce and high-drag cars through air at high speeds is simply bad for fuel-efficiency.

Press Worthy

• Leclerc and Verstappen share a mutual respect

• Mercedes' Miami update could unlock pace

• Why Leclerc spun in Imola

• Where McLaren’s pace came from

• Magnussen admits he was lucky in Imola qualifying

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