EXCLUSIVE: David Coulthard and Will Buxton on the season forward.
Who would be the standout star of 2026? (Picture: Getty)
The brand new Formulation 1 season is so shut you possibly can virtually odor it. And even after 9 days of pre-season testing throughout classes in Barcelona and Bahrain, it is nonetheless robust to foretell what the steadiness of energy will seem like on this new period. So robust that smelling drivers is the one technique David Coulthard can consider to attempt to determine who will begin on prime.
“It is all concerning the pheromones – it’s a must to sniff them,” the 13-time F1 race winner stated with a smirk. “You possibly can odor the success, and you may undoubtedly odor the concern.” The one factor the Scot can say for certain is: “There’s going to be a winner and there is going to be a loser.
“There shall be bounce-backs and comebacks – McLaren just a few years in the past had been final on the grid in Bahrain on the opening race however now they’re back-to-back world champions. Issues transfer shortly on this sport, so I am trying ahead to seeing who’s the quickest draw in the case of later in Melbourne.”
The bookies have Mercedes and their skilled crew chief George Russell because the pre-season favourites for glory. However he and boss Toto Wolff have spent the final month telling everybody who’ll hear that Crimson Bull, the truth is, have one of the best engines. Earlier than that, Russell had been on the Aston Martin hype prepare, till he noticed the primary indicators of their issues.
We’re additionally set for what appears prone to be a particularly tight battle within the midfield. However possibly not one involving Aston Martin, whose Adrian Newey-led undertaking is in full-blown disaster. And may newcomers Cadillac spring a shock?
We’re not often wanting storylines on this sport, however this 12 months it is particularly laborious to know the place to look. Or sniff.
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