Oscar Piastri has failed to see the start of a race for the second time in the 2026 F1 season after McLaren pulled both cars from the grid due to electrical issues in the power unit.
It follows a disastrous home race at Albert Park for the Aussie when he spun out on the formation lap, failing to make it to the starting grid for lights out in the season opener.
In the second race following drastic rule changes, the Shanghai GP saw 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli harness his Mercedes to win his first GP.
Ferrari and Mercedes seem to be the two teams who’ve gotten their heads around the FIA’s modifications to the cars, with Lewis Hamilton earning his first podium in the Rosso securing P3, and Mercedes teammate George Russell taking P2.
One of the key changes made this year that is concerning racing lovers is the removal of the drag reduction system (DRS), and replacing it with a battery operated overtake button.
Motorsport expert Tim Hodges had a lot to say on the new rules, expressing his concerns to SportFM this morning.
“You can only go off the 22 blokes who are driving the cars, and they completely despise them… it’s the biggest change Formula 1 has ever made, season on season. I think for the most part everything they’ve changed has been wrong, so will they put their hand up and concede defeat? Will they try and change things on the run? Because I’m not sure you can cop another 20 races like we’ve had the last two weeks,” he said.
“It is a challenge right now for the sport… the drivers are harvesting and saving the battery and recharging the battery into the braking zone. It’s not real racing.”
“These cars are supposed to be the pinnacle of world motorsport, which Formula 1 should be in every single element of the sport.”
There are serious concerns within McLaren after taking out last year’s Constructors and Drivers Championship with Lando Norris, who now sit third on the team standings on only 18 points, behind Ferrari on 67 and Mercedes on 98.
Finishing third in the WDC in 2025, Piastri will struggle to compete to the level he did last year after two races without starting.
“It’s a complete disaster for his championship. It was over before he even started a race and it’s staggering to think that we’re two events into the season and he hasn’t started either.”
“I don’t think there’s any way for Oscar to bring it back across the course of the season off the back of the mess McLaren has made of their opening two races.”
After the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian GP’s, the silver lining to a tumultuous week of Formula 1 saw Antonelli secure his first F1 win.
In what Hodges regarded as a much needed story for the sport right now, Mercedes seem to have a bright future with the young talent they have in their seats.
“He had the biggest shoes to fill in the sports’ history when Lewis Hamilton left Mercedes to go to Ferrari… he got great confidence from the opening race of the year and then gets his first race win yesterday in Shanghai which is mega for him, and mega for the sport.”
“I think the Mercedes is the only car that’s going to be winning races anytime soon, which is probably one of the sad points of this new car… they’ve got their head around this car so much better than everyone else.”
“It was great for Hamilton who just made the massive move from Mercedes two years ago. It’s great for the sport to have a Ferrari on the podium, and great to have Lewis Hamilton on the podium. So there were a lot of good things out of the weekend when you look at Antonelli winning.”
Teams have a week off before heading to Suzuka Circuit for the Japanese GP on March 27-29.
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