As the F1 season resumes, drivers feel things are moving in the right direction

A major talking point coming out of the last race in Japan revolved around Max Verstappen’s comments that he was considering his future in Formula 1, as he doesn’t enjoy driving the new generation of car.

He was far from alone in having complaints relating to the new regulations, but rivals also pointed to Verstappen’s far less competitive Red Bull as not helping matters. Through the first three rounds, he had a best finish of sixth in Melbourne, and had been fighting with Pierre Gasly’s Alpine for eighth place in Suzuka.

After qualifying on the front row in Miami, Verstappen was a far happier driver.

“So many things were not working up until this weekend,” Verstappen said. “So for us bringing the car back together, also for me in the car itself, a few things have changed and it made it a lot more comfortable to drive. I feel a lot more confident, and I don't feel like I'm a passenger anymore in the car.

“That was already quite evident yesterday. And then I think today the Sprint was not too bad - I could finally follow the cars ahead of me instead of them just pulling away and not seeing them again. And then some tiny changes for qualifying, and it seemed like that helped again a little bit.

“To be on the front row coming from over a second behind in the previous race is really incredible. I mean, it's a crazy thing.

“It's massive [the turnaround]. We were really not happy with what we were doing in the previous races, but you can see everyone was pushing flat out to try and understand the problems and they have come with solutions and that's just amazing to see.

“It's been an amazing team effort, and from my side, of course, when I get a car that is more together, I get more confidence and I can finally also push a bit more. Then I try to always extract the most out of it. That's what we've done.”

But Verstappen’s comments do not address the regulations, and should not be taken as displaying a greater enjoyment with the style of driving required at present. What they display is the fact that when there is greater competition at the front of the field – and particularly when Verstappen is part of it – there are far fewer questions directed at the regulations themselves, and more at the sporting competition.

When it comes to the bigger picture, the response has been relatively reserved from the drivers so far, even if they do see progress in the way they attack a qualifying lap.

“Not a lot [has changed] at the minute,” Sprint polesitter and winner Lando Norris said. “I think some things remain as expected. There are still certain points where the quicker you go, the more penalized you get, and still in the future that’s something we want to fix as drivers. I think as Formula 1, you just want to be going flat out everywhere and maximizing things.

“You don’t want to go quicker somewhere on a qualifying lap and get penalized for it. That’s just not how it should be. But it seems in the correct direction, and I think we’re more likely to see a bigger benefit of it in other tracks.

“I think the thing is, as drivers, you’re always going to probably see us complain a bit, because that’s what we always do, but at the same time I think it’s a step forward. It’s got better. For the majority of the laps yesterday in qualifying, you could push and you’re not really thinking, ‘I need to lift here earlier,’ or, ‘I need to not get on throttle as much.' So, it felt a little bit more normal, and I think that was a nice thing.

“In a Sprint race, nothing really changes at all, apart from the superclips and things like that. But otherwise, a step in the right direction is as much as we can really ask for at the minute, and the rest of it really has to come maybe later in the year but also into the future years.” 

Norris’ McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri had a less successful two qualifying sessions but still saw improvements in the driving challenge, despite offering similar warnings. 

“There’s a little bit less superclipping in qualifying, which is good,” Piastri said. “But some of the problems we’ve had in the start of the year are still there, especially in qualifying. So, it’s a step in the right direction, but more somehow is needed in the future.” 

There was a sensible viewpoint from Charles Leclerc, too, who says the drivers are understanding of how long it might take to implement bigger changes. 

“It’s also true we need to have realistic expectations, because we cannot change so much either,” Leclerc said. “I think some of those technical regulations and the issues we are facing will remain there somehow. We can minimize them, and I think the approach was right and the steps the FIA has taken for here made it better. Whether we’ll arrive into a situation where there won’t be any of those problems anymore, I’m not sure.” 

That final warning from Leclerc should not be overlooked, because not only does it highlight there will be ongoing dissatisfaction from the drivers even if they’re encouraged by the direction of travel, it serves as a reminder that problems can vary in scale. 

Miami is an energy-rich circuit, where it’s easier to harvest the required energy in time for key deployment areas. Other tracks might not be so well-suited to the updated regulations, and are likely to lead to greater frustrations for those behind the wheel. But as Verstappen’s qualifying performance proves, if there is exciting competition between multiple drivers, then there is less space for all of the headlines and discussions to be about the regulations themselves.