After a five week break for F1, rules still head the agenda in Miami

Five weeks on from the Japanese Grand Prix, a lot has happened with regard to Formula 1 trying to address the shortcomings of the latest set of regulations. As explained in-depth last week, changes have been implemented that will be seen on track for the first time this weekend in Miami, with the intent to improve the qualifying spectacle as well as safety.

Yet the break in races and time out of the current cars has not completely satisfied the drivers, with Lewis Hamilton saying their lack of direct engagement with the decision-making process limits the lengths that the sport's regulators go to.

A telling moment occurred during the official press conference inside Miami's Hard Rock Stadium on Thursday, as Oscar Piastri pondered how to answer a question from NBC’s Sahil Kapur that requested that the drivers share their favorite and least favorite things about the new era of F1.

Piastri spent several seconds laughing to himself and sucking air through his teeth, admitting he was trying to work out what he could say. He’d already spoken about the recent changes being a step in the right direction – and that’s a positive – but he was also struggling to find something that he particularly enjoys.

“I still get to call myself an F1 driver! That’s always a cool thing to say. The least favorite thing? It’s hard to see any negative…” Piastri joked.

“In all seriousness, driving a car from 2008 yesterday [at a McLaren demonstration] and seeing some of the cool cars from the past, I think trying to recapture some of those things would be very cool for the future. As to the product, I think clearly, we’re making changes to try and improve it.”

The Australian is often considered in his answers, and toed the party line at McLaren well amid an intra-team title battle last year. On the few occasions he did feel compelled to speak critically, it meant the comments carry weight, so his response in Miami was already signaling a wider sentiment among the drivers that fundamental issues will take longer to fix.

Two drivers in particular were more outspoken, and both appear to have greater freedom to speak their minds within their respective teams. One – Max Verstappen – does so regularly, but the other – Lance Stroll – rarely does, often preferring to limit his media interactions.

Not so after the recent break.

“Hopefully it's better with all the part throttle and all this stuff, it's just destroying the racing, the qualifying laps,” Stroll said of the changes. “So, hopefully it's a bit more normal to drive, and we don't have to think so much about all the management, and lift and coast, and how much throttle we put and all this stuff.

“But I think we're still far away from proper F1 cars, and pushing flat out without thinking about batteries, and all this stuff.

“I think [it’s just a band-aid solution]. I think we're miles off of where we should be for … Actually in time off in the break, I was randomly watching old races and stuff, I even had the Monaco Historics on the TV, and I heard some Ferrari cars from early 2000s, and how good they sounded, and how small and nimble they were.

“And there was some onboards I saw from early or even mid-2000s, and the V8-era, the V10-era, and then what it looks like versus now, it came up on my phone and I was watching it, and you hear what it's like now, and the character of the cars, and just how much more intense it looked, and how much more exciting it looked back then compared to now.

“I think that it's sad, but hopefully we're heading back in that direction.

“I think it's fundamentally just so flawed. I'm not an engineer, but maybe there's a lot of things that can be done, and I heard the fuel flow didn't go with the combustion side of the engine we have now. I don't have all the answers, it's just sad that we're in this situation.”

World champion Lando Norris led his voice to the chorus of drivers asking for F1 cars that are more enjoyable to drive - and watch. Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Where Stroll really cut loose was in comparing driving an F1 car to something nowhere near as advanced, and yet finding it was far more rewarding for a driver.

“No, F1's not so fun to drive, I drove other cars over the break, I tested some F3 cars, and it's like a thousand times more fun and better to drive, because you have your right foot, you give what you want, and you get what you want," he said.

“Even the weight of the car, something 550, 650 kilos is still nicer than 750, 800 plus kilos. Things like that just make cars fun to drive. And then the sound and the noise. I know that everyone that hears a car from the V8 era, V10 era, it's more like, ‘Wow, that's amazing, that's F1’. And then you hear it now, and the derating going into a corner, downshifting going into a corner with no character and no noise, it's a bit…

“F1's a business, and they want to protect their business, and make it look good, and we're drivers, and we know what it feels like to drive good cars. So there's two different perspectives on it.

“People are watching the sport, no matter what, and watching the Netflix, and turning on Formula 1, and so F1 is happy. But the drivers, the fans, the people that really know about racing, and know what it was before, and the drivers that know what it's like to drive good, proper cars, there's no hiding behind the fact that right now, it's not as good as it could be. It’s far from as good as it could be.”

Verstappen was less critical, but still downplayed the changes that have been implemented, saying they will have limited impact in the wider scheme of things.

“I guess it's a tickle,” Verstappen said. “It's not what we need yet to really make it flat out. But it's complicated to get everyone to agree. I just hope for next year we can make really big, big changes.

“It's a tickle, but it needs to be more than a tickle for next year, that's for sure.”

With world champion Lando Norris saying he finds it “hard for anyone to say they enjoy driving these cars as much as previous generations”, it was hardly an outpouring of optimism from the drivers when it comes to how they will respond to what they feel out on track from Friday onward, but there were suggestions of hope for the future.

“The positive thing about it, is we had some nice meetings with Formula 1 and the FIA,” Verstappen was keen to stress. “And I think that's probably a starting point, hopefully for the future. Even in a few years' time, maybe I'm not here anymore, I really hope that for the future drivers as well there's more input to come from the drivers to the organizers in general.

“Because I do think that most of the drivers, we have a good understanding and a good feel of what is needed to make Formula 1 a good product, a fun product. And I think that's already a huge step forward in terms of the communication.

"With the changes that are made, I think it's more like a tickle. Because at the end of the day, F1 is a very complex and political sport, but I think everyone has tried their best to at least do something. But, of course, it won't change the world.”

After clear requests from the likes of Stefano Domenicali and Toto Wolff to limit the public criticism of F1’s latest set of regulations, and to highlight the positive aspects of the sport, its biggest stars don’t appear likely to be appeased by the latest changes.