WHEN THE LIGHTS STAYED RED
Another 3 weeks until we land in Miami and my page feels dry, so, here I am trying to piece together something other than my normal Grand Prix recaps. The lights have stayed red, and it’s been silence in the fast lane.
So, what actually are our favourite drivers and teams doing during April?
This break comes with plenty of advantages just as it comes with its disadvantages. Different from the usual summer and winter holidays, there is NO enforced ‘shutdown’ – usually where teams have to stop all work during this period of closure – this allows teams to run elements in their factories that relate to their car’s development and performance. April has given these F1 teams a great opportunity to analyse data from the first 3 races, in time they wouldn’t have had before; with the new 2026 regulations this is a perfectly timed moment for better understanding and to get the most out of the cars. However, with 2 races culled from the calendar, drivers now have to work harder for points having less track time.
Although this doesn’t have much in it for us fans, especially for those who were due to attend either the Sudai Arabian or Bahrain Grand Prix – from what I have heard those ticketholders received a full refund and the ticket will rollover to next years Grand Prix’s….what a wait!
I’ve used my spare time to start getting ahead and continue growing my social media (@pitlanepresss) and watching the new season of ‘Drive To Survive'. I’m not the biggest fan of DTS as I know the narrative can be spun and I’m aware many people have harsh opinions on in. I don’t agree with how they can over dramatize and exaggerate especially to drivers’ personalities and their behaviours so I will sit there nonstop saying ‘THAT’S SO NOT RIGHT!’ in Toto Wolff 2021 Abu Dhabi style. I do though like seeing behind the scenes footage and personally loved seeing the recap of Lando winning his World Champion title, also them bringing in Nico and the Brocades references!?
Some news that we’ve heard so far in the Formula series world is that F2 is coming to our screens in may! The cancellation of the Middle East races didn’t just leave a giant gap in the F1 calendar it also effected F2, even more than it did to the F1. Unlike Formula one, F2 does not race in Miami or Montreal this meant that their next race would be in Monaco, 2 months away! It was announced that F2 would join the Formula one boys in the first US race of the season, Miami, and then onto Canada.
In another news which came as a shock to the entire fandom, Max Verstappen’s race engineer, known as GP, will be moving to Mclaren! The announcement lit up F1 again, sparking debates everywhere online. Will Max go to Mclaren as well? Max retirement? Oscar or Lando with Max lineup? A video of Max from back in 2021 after he won his maiden WDC title has surfaced again with the Dutchman claiming that once GP retires, he’s done. Obviously, this statement has aged and things in F1 have changed since then, so only Max himself knows what he will do. Verstappen has had a rough start to the season this year, on multiple occasions hinting at retirement after bagging out the new regulations; ‘It’s like Formula E on steroids’ and describes them as ‘anti-racing’. As a Verstappen fan myself, I’m not sure where he will go after GP departs RedBull but I’m praying for him to continue racing!!
Let me know if there are any other topics you’d like me to cover over the break.
With love, T x
