- Isack Hadjar disagrees with Verstappen’s harsh criticism of the 2026 F1 rules
- Verstappen calls new racing style flawed, while Hadjar says races are still good
- The split reflects a wider debate across Formula 1, with teams and fans divided
At the Chinese Grand Prix, Isack Hadjar stepped out of the Red Bull garage with his first points of the season and a view that did not match his teammate’s. While Max Verstappen has called the 2026 Formula 1 rules “terrible,” Hadjar said the racing itself “is not too bad.”
The split came after the second race of the season in Shanghai. It showed a rare public difference inside Red Bull Racing. It also added a new perspective to a debate that has spread across the paddock.
Hadjar spoke to GPblog after the race. Verstappen had already made his stance clear. The two drivers now stand on opposite sides of how Formula 1 feels under its new rules.
Verstappen’s relentless criticism of the 2026 rules
From the first laps in testing, Max Verstappen made his view clear. The four-time world champion warned as far back as 2023 that the new rules could harm racing. Once the season began, he said those concerns had become real.
The 2026 rules depend heavily on battery power, which now makes up nearly half of a car’s output. Drivers can gain speed with a boost button, but they can also lose power when energy runs out. This creates a pattern where cars pass, then get passed again on the same straight.
In Shanghai, Verstappen retired from sixth place at the Chinese Grand Prix. He said the experience confirmed his fears. “It’s still terrible,” he said. “It’s not fun at all. This is not racing.”
He stressed that results did not shape his opinion. Even if he were winning, he said, he would still speak out. Verstappen called the rules “fundamentally flawed” and said only small fixes are possible, adding that a return to V-8 engines cannot come soon enough.
His stance has not gone unchallenged. Toto Wolff pushed back, saying the sport remains strong and widely liked. He also suggested Verstappen’s view may reflect Red Bull’s slow start, even as he admitted some areas, like lift-and-coast, could improve.
Isack Hadjar shares a contrasting view on racing
Hadjar sat in the same garage but saw a different race. When asked about Verstappen’s comments, he gave a calm answer. “To be fair, no. The racing is not too bad,” he told GPblog.
His tone stayed measured. He did not dismiss all concerns, but he drew a line between race day and other parts of the weekend. He focused on what he felt behind the wheel.
“It feels always a bit sad to arrive quite slow into some corners,” he said. He pointed to qualifying as the bigger issue, where drivers must lift off the throttle to save energy.
“I just think that a race car should be reaching its top speed at the end of the straight,” Hadjar added. He paused, then summed up his view: “It’s a bit of a shame, but the racing has been pretty good.”
The wider debate continues
The argument over the 2026 rules has not settled. The season opener in Australia saw 75 more overtakes than the year before. Some fans enjoy the close fights, even if they come from energy swings.
Others agree with Verstappen. They say the overtakes feel forced by tools like the boost button. The sport now faces a divide between what looks exciting and what feels natural.
Toto Wolff offered a middle view. He said the product is still strong and that most fans enjoy it. He also admitted that parts of the system, like lift-and-coast in qualifying, need work.
Formula 1 plans to wait before making changes. Any major updates may not come until after the Miami Grand Prix. Until then, the debate will travel from track to track.
Inside Red Bull, it already has. Hadjar and Verstappen now share more than just a car. They share a disagreement that may shape how this new era is judged.
