- Pepe Marti rebukes Max Verstappen for using Formula E to attack F1’s 2026 rules.
- Marti says such comparisons dismiss Formula E’s identity and the work behind it.
- The dispute highlights growing strain between Formula 1 and Formula E.
Formula E driver Pepe Marti has urged Max Verstappen to stop using Formula E as a way to attack Formula 1’s new 2026 rules.
Marti said the remarks are unfair to the people who work long hours to build and grow the all-electric series. He made the comments to Soy Motor after Verstappen spent weeks blasting F1’s new cars and comparing them to Formula E.
The issue matters because Verstappen is not just any driver. He is a four-time world champion and one of the sport’s loudest voices. When he attacks Formula E in public, his words travel far beyond the F1 paddock.
The comment that started it all and Verstappen’s relentless criticism
The row began during F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain in Feb. 2026. Max Verstappen said the new cars felt “anti-racing” and compared them to “Formula E on steroids.” He argued that the 2026 rules force drivers to manage energy too much instead of racing flat out.
He said the cars were not fun to drive and did not reward pure racing. The big change is a near-even split between engine power and electric power, which has made battery use a major part of each weekend.
He did not stop there. As the season moved on, Verstappen said F1 must “stay away” from becoming like Formula E. When asked if Formula E drivers may be better set for F1 because of energy saving, he answered, “Well, let’s hope not.”
His anger rose again after the Chinese Grand Prix. Verstappen called the racing “terrible.” He said people who liked it “really don’t know what racing is about,” and mocked the action as “playing Mario Kart,” with drivers passing by using boosts and then running low on battery on the next straight.
Verstappen has been the clearest critic of the 2026 overhaul. He has called the rules “fundamentally flawed” and urged the FIA to act fast.
Still, some fans have started to warm to the new look of F1 after more wheel-to-wheel action, including 75 more overtakes in Australia than the year before and a strong battle between the Ferraris in China.
Marti responds: “There’s no need to be disrespectful”
Marti answered with a clear message. Criticise your own series if you want, he said, but do not drag another one into it.
Speaking to Soy Motor, Marti said Formula E and Formula 1 each have their own place. He pointed to Formula E co-founder Alberto Longo’s view that every championship has its own identity.
Marti said F1 may have moved away from what many expected. But he said that still does not justify using Formula E as a target.
“For example, in the case of comments from some teams or drivers, there’s no need to criticise another championship to compare it to the one you’re in,” Marti told Soy Motor.
He then shifted the focus to the people behind the cars. “There are many people working in the Formula E championship who put in a huge amount of effort, hours and hard work,” he said.
Marti knows Formula E is still growing. He said it is taking small steps and that matching Formula 1’s reach would be very hard. But he returned to the same point: “I believe there is no need to be disrespectful in that regard.”
He also urged patience. Marti said fans and drivers should remember the start of the V-6 hybrid era, when many people also complained. Over time, those engines powered the fastest F1 cars ever, and Marti’s point was simple: new rules can look bad at first and still improve.
Marti’s journey to Formula E
Marti’s defence of Formula E carries weight because he has lived on both sides of the ladder. Born on June 13, 2005, in Barcelona, Spain, he came through junior single-seater racing as part of the Red Bull Junior Team.
He raced in FIA Formula 2 for two seasons. During that time, he scored four wins and eight podiums. Those results marked him as one of the top young talents in the sport.
Midway through the 2025 season, he moved to Formula E with Cupra Kiro. The switch made him only the fifth Spanish driver to race in the series, after Jaime Alguersuari, Oriol Servia, Antonio Garcia and Roberto Merhi.
Marti is managed by A14 Management, the driver group co-founded by Fernando Alonso. His route to Formula E was not smooth. Even though he sat ahead of some rivals in F2, including Arvid Lindblad, Red Bull did not give him an F1 test before he left the junior setup.
His Formula E debut was wild. In the Sao Paulo E-Prix, he misread a full-course yellow and crashed hard. His car went into the air and rolled, but he got out without injury.
That first race could have broken his momentum. It did not. Marti later showed good speed and scored points in Jeddah, Miami and Mexico City.
The bigger picture
Marti’s stand shows a wider split in modern motorsport. Formula E has spent more than 10 years trying to build its own fan base, style and place in racing. People inside the series do not want it used as a lazy insult.
Verstappen’s view is easy to understand. He loves direct, hard racing and does not hide it. But Marti’s answer shows that tone matters as much as the point itself.
When stars like Max Verstappen speak, they shape how fans see the sport. Marti has now made his view plain. Attack the rules if you must, but do not dismiss another championship and the people behind it to make the point.
