Formula 1
Formula 1
The Formula 1 desk, one answered question a day: the one the paddock and the fans keep coming back to.
The Wire
Headlines from other newsrooms, picked once a day. One story per source, linked to the publisher.
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Car washes, pub trips and pranks: How Kimi Antonelli is staying grounded on brink of F1 history (opens in a new tab)
Our note For Kimi Antonelli, ordinary routines keep fame and pressure in check as he closes on the youngest world title in F1 history.
- Tuesday · 22 September 2026Why are Formula 1 races getting shorter in 2027?The Formula 1 Commission agreed on Monday to cut a standard grand prix from 305km to 290km, because the 2027 power units will burn more fuel.
Monday · 21 September 2026Who was the last Italian Formula 1 world champion?Alberto Ascari won the drivers' title in 1952 and 1953, and Kimi Antonelli leads the 2026 championship with 9 rounds left.- Sunday · 20 September 2026Why is the Bahrain Grand Prix being held in Malaysia?Bahrain lost the race and kept the name. Conflict in the Middle East forced the round out of the country in April, and Sepang took it for 4 October.
- Saturday · 19 September 2026Is Fernando Alonso racing in Formula 1 in 2027?Fernando Alonso has not announced whether he will race for Aston Martin in 2027, and he told the FIA press conference in Madrid that news would come "Not soon".
- Friday · 18 September 2026When does the 2027 Formula 1 season start?The 2027 Formula 1 season starts at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday 14 March and ends in Abu Dhabi on 12 December, with 24 races and 10 Sprints.
- Thursday · 17 September 2026Why is the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix on a Saturday?The Formula 1 race in Baku runs on Saturday 26 September because Sunday 27 September is Azerbaijan's Remembrance Day, a national day of mourning.
Wednesday · 16 September 2026Why did Max Verstappen give back two places in Madrid?Red Bull told Max Verstappen to hand two places back at the Spanish Grand Prix to head off a stewards' penalty for leaving the track at Turn 1.- Tuesday · 15 September 2026How big is Kimi Antonelli's championship lead after the Spanish Grand Prix?Antonelli's win at the new Madring circuit stretched his championship lead over Mercedes team-mate George Russell to 81 points.
- Saturday · 12 September 2026Why has the FIA restricted active aero at the Madring?To two zones only, after a Formula 3 test at the new Madrid circuit produced 19 red flags in one session, 11 of them from cars hitting the concrete barriers.
- Friday · 11 September 2026When is the next F1 race?The 2026 Spanish Grand Prix at the Madring in Madrid, round 14, on Sunday 13 September. Kimi Antonelli arrives 66 points clear of George Russell.
- Thursday · 10 September 2026When did an Italian driver last win the Italian Grand Prix before Kimi Antonelli?Ludovico Scarfiotti, in 1966. Kimi Antonelli ended the 60-year wait at Monza on Sunday 6 September 2026, and he did it from 19th on the grid.
Friday · 4 September 2026Who has won the most Italian Grand Prix races at Monza?Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton, five each. Hamilton also holds the record for pole positions at the circuit, and Monza has staged every Italian Grand Prix but one since 1950.- Thursday · 3 September 2026Who leads the 2026 Formula 1 drivers' championship going into the Italian Grand Prix?Kimi Antonelli, by 59 points, with Lewis Hamilton joint-second on the same margin. Monza is round 13 of the 2026 season, and the championship leader takes a grid penalty at his home race.
- Wednesday · 2 September 2026Which drivers are sitting out first practice at the 2026 Italian Grand Prix?Sergio Perez, Pierre Gasly and a Williams driver step aside on Friday 4 September for Colton Herta, Paul Aron and Luke Browning under the rookie-session rule.
- Monza race week · 1 September 2026Why is Kimi Antonelli starting at the back of the grid at Monza?Mercedes are fitting a complete new power unit, which exceeds the season's allocation, and they picked the championship leader's home race to take the penalty.
- Monday · 31 August 2026Which team leads the 2026 Formula 1 constructors' championship going into Monza?Mercedes, on 425 points, 87 clear of Ferrari with the Italian Grand Prix next on 4 to 6 September. McLaren are third on 263 and Red Bull Racing fourth on 186.
Sunday · 30 August 2026How long is Lando Norris signed with McLaren for?To at least the end of 2030, under the extension announced on Saturday, with options beyond. The reigning world champion's previous deal ran to the end of 2027.- Saturday · 29 August 2026Who leads the Formula 1 drivers' championship going into the Italian Grand Prix?Kimi Antonelli on 242 points, with a 59-point cushion over his Mercedes team-mate George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, who sit level on 183. Max Verstappen is sixth on 112.
- Friday · 28 August 2026When is the 2026 Italian Grand Prix, and what time does the race start?Monza runs 4 to 6 September, a standard weekend with no sprint. The race starts Sunday 6 September at 15:00 local, 09:00 ET, over 53 laps.
- Monday · 24 August 2026Who won the last Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix?Lando Norris, from Kimi Antonelli and George Russell at Circuit Zandvoort. Max Verstappen crashed out of his home race, and the circuit leaves the calendar after 2026.
- Sunday · 23 August 2026Who is on pole for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix, and where does Max Verstappen start?Lando Norris is on pole with a 1:11.163, by 0.102 seconds from George Russell. Max Verstappen qualified seventh at his home circuit, for the last Dutch Grand Prix on the calendar.
- Friday · 21 August 2026Why is the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix the last one?Formula 1 returns from its summer break at Circuit Zandvoort this weekend, 21 to 23 August 2026, and then leaves for good. The promoter chose not to continue past 2026. It is also the first sprint weekend Zandvoort has ever held.
- Tuesday · 11 August 2026When does Formula 1 return, and what is new at the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix?Formula 1 returns at Zandvoort on 21 to 23 August 2026 with the first sprint ever held at the Dutch Grand Prix. Kimi Antonelli leads the drivers' championship by 50 points from Lewis Hamilton.
- Friday · 31 July 2026Why is there no Formula 1 race for the next three weeks?Formula 1 is in its summer break. The Hungarian Grand Prix on 26 July was round 11, and the season resumes at Zandvoort on 21 to 23 August with the Dutch Grand Prix.
Thursday · 30 July 2026Lando Norris won in Hungary without leading most of itLando Norris took pole and the win at the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix, but Oscar Piastri led most of the race for McLaren before retiring with a gearbox failure 14 laps from the end.- Wednesday · 29 July 2026Can anyone still catch Kimi Antonelli in the 2026 Formula 1 championship?Kimi Antonelli leads the 2026 Formula 1 drivers championship on 219 points after the Hungarian Grand Prix, 50 clear of Lewis Hamilton, with 12 of the 23 races still to run.
- Tuesday · 28 July 2026How did Oscar Piastri lose the Hungarian Grand Prix from the front?Oscar Piastri took the lead at the first corner in Hungary and led half the race. A collision while lapping Carlos Sainz and then a gearbox failure ended it, and Lando Norris won instead.
- Sunday · 26 July 2026Why is Lewis Hamilton starting fifth in Hungary?Lewis Hamilton qualified second at the Hungaroring, 0.012 seconds behind Lando Norris. A three-place penalty for impeding dropped him to fifth.
- Saturday · 25 July 2026Why has Max Verstappen not won a race in 2026?Max Verstappen is seventh in the 2026 drivers' championship after 10 rounds. Red Bull's RB22 is the reason, and his contract is the consequence.
- Friday · 24 July 2026Can anyone still catch Kimi Antonelli?Not comfortably. His lead is 45 points, under 2 wins, and Hungary is his chance to stretch it before the break.