Former F1 driver turned FIA steward, Derek Warwick, was suspended from his duties following comments made to the media after the Spanish Grand Prix. The 70-year-old was set to work as a steward at the Canadian Grand Prix. “Following recent unauthorised media comments, the FIA has taken the decision to suspend Derek Warwick from his duties as driver steward for this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix,” a statement from the FIA read. The quotes came from a PR agency that offers quotes to media outlets in exchange for promotion of a gambling website. In one quote, Warwick openly discussed the penalty against Max Verstappen at the Spanish Grand Prix for his collision with George Russell. Other quotes have criticized some drivers, including Lance Stroll and Yuki Tsunoda. Warwick will return to action in Austria, working as a steward.
Former F1 Sporting Director Steve Nielsen has been linked to Alpine, although neither party has officially confirmed this. Nielsen has worked in the sport since the ’80s, working with teams like Lotus, Tyrrell, Honda, and Benetton in various capacities. He also worked as F1 sporting director, joining the FIA in 2023. He was the second high-profile departure from the FIA, leaving after only 11 months at the organization. His role at Benetton was under Flavio Briatore, the controversial figure who began working as Alpine’s executive advisor last year. The team is currently looking for a new team principal following the bizarre departure of Oliver Oakes last month. Reports suggest that Nielsen will become the team manager of Alpine.
Renault Group CEO Luca de Meo announced he will step down. This shocking move will allow him “to pursue new challenges” outside of the automotive sector. He is rumoured to be eying a leadership role at the Italian luxury fashion brand Gucci. He played an instrumental role in overseeing the strategic direction of the Alpine F1 Team since joining the company in 2020. De Meo will continue to serve as CEO until July 15.
Las Vegas signed a two-year contract extension with Formula One, keeping the venue on the calendar until at least 2027. The city has hosted the race since 2023, quickly becoming the city’s largest recurring event. Last year’s race generated more than $900 million in revenue, making it a significant financial success for the region.
The 2026 calendar was revealed this week, featuring 24 races across 5 continents. The venues on the calendar remain relatively unchanged, although Madrid takes over hosting the Spanish Grand Prix while Imola has been dropped from the schedule. The dates of the events are also mostly the same compared to 2025, although the Canadian Grand Prix has been moved to the end of May, placing it after the Miami Grand Prix instead of breaking up the European leg of the season. However, this does mean the race will have to compete with the iconic Indianapolis 500, which is held at the same time, something that Monaco never had an issue with previously, because the races are held several hours apart. Madrid has been slotted between the races in Italy and Azerbaijan, creating a back-to-back weekend in the fall.
| March 8 | Melbourne, Australia |
| March 15 | Shanghai, China |
| March 29 | Suzuka, Japan |
| April 12 | Sakhir, Bahrain |
| April 19 | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |
| May 3 | Miami, USA |
| May 24 | Montreal, Canada |
| June 7 | Monaco |
| June 14 | Barcelona, Spain |
| June 28 | Spielberg, Austria |
| July 5 | Silverstone, UK |
| July 19 | Spa, Belgium |
| July 26 | Budapest, Hungary |
| August 23 | Zandvoort, Netherlands |
| September 6 | Monza, Italy |
| September 13 | Madrid, Spain |
| September 27 | Baku, Azerbaijan |
| October 11 | Singapore |
| October 25 | Austin, USA |
| November 1 | Mexico City, Mexico |
| November 8 | Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| November 21 | Las Vegas, USA |
| November 29 | Lusail, Qatar |
| December 6 | Yas Marina, Abu Dhabi |
Gabriel Bortoleto had a chaotic start to his Canadian Grand Prix week, falling victim to a robbery in Switzerland. While eating at a restaurant in Switzerland, a thief broke into his car, stealing a backpack that contained Bortoleto’s travel documents, a laptop, and other racing equipment. Swiss authorities have since apprehended those involved and have returned some items to Bortoleto. The incident did not impede the Brazilian’s ability to travel to Canada, thanks to a backup passport.
Max Verstappen was strong out of the gates on Friday, topping the Canadian Grand Prix’s first free practice session of the weekend. McLaren got to work early, testing some upgrades to Oscar Piastri’s car. Charles Leclerc brought out an early red flag, locking up into turn three and sliding through the grass into the barrier. The Monegasque had been on top of the timing sheets. Verstappen ended the session on top, with Williams putting in a brilliant showing to finish P2 and P3, both within a tenth of a second of the Red Bull’s pace.
Free practice two saw George Russell set the pace narrowly ahead of Lando Norris. There was early drama for Lance Stroll when the Canadian grazed the barrier on the outside of turn seven when attempting to overtake the slow-moving Nico Hulkenberg. His Aston Martin’s suspension was heavily damaged, forcing him to sit out the rest of the session after only five minutes of running. Charles Leclerc was also forced to skip FP2 as his team worked to repair the damage to his Ferrari from FP1. Russell set the early pace, with no other driver managing to top his effort.
It was Lando Norris’ turn at the top of the scoreboard on Saturday, setting the time to beat in the final free practice session. Charles Leclerc rebounded from his trouble in FP1, finishing a very close second to Norris. The session saw some brushes with the iconic Wall of Champions. Oscar Piastri clipped the famous barrier, suffering a puncture, while Nico Hulkenberg spun into the final corner. There was a brief red flag to allow marshals to clear debris.
George Russell returned to the top in qualifying, beating out Max Verstappen for his first pole position of the season. It was at this circuit only a year ago that the pair set identical lap times to claim pole. Lando Norris resumed his FP3 performance in Q1, setting the fastest time in the session. But Russell would top both Q2 and Q3. Russell raised some eyebrows at the Red Bull pit wall when he overtook Yuki Tsunoda at the pit exit in Q2, but no punishment came. Tsunoda failed to make it out of the session, ensuring he would start at the back of the grid due to a 10-place grid penalty for overtaking under the red flags in FP3. Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris both struggled in Q3, making mistakes on their flying lap, putting themselves out of position for the race.
George Russell managed to convert his pole into a victory in the race on Sunday afternoon. He started strong off the grid, while his teammate Kimi Antonelli also had a great start to promote himself to P3 ahead of Oscar Piastri. Max Verstappen immediately piled on the pressure, only to drop back into the clutches of Antonelli. Before he could be overtaken, the Dutchman made his first of two pit stops. Mercedes responded to cover off the undercut, unleashing Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc into the lead of the race, both of which having started on the alternate hard tyre. Although Leclerc had wanted to attempt the one-stop strategy, the Ferrari pit wall called him into the pits shortly after the first pit stop, and Norris followed suit a few laps later. By the second round of pit stops, Russell had built a gap out front, but it slowly closed as the laps ticked down. Soon, there was a three-car battle for P3 between Antonelli and the two McLarens. This ended when Norris collided with his teammate down the straight, ending his race. The safety car was deployed to clear the damaged McLaren, but there were not enough laps remaining to get any racing action. Click here to read the full summary of this race.
After the race, Red Bull attempted to overturn George Russell’s race victory, filing an appeal against the result. The core issue stems from an incident behind the safety car in the closing laps of the race. Russell’s Mercedes appeared to slow suddenly, causing Verstappen to briefly overtake him. Russell immediately radioed the team to complain that Verstappen had overtaken him behind the safety car. Red Bull filed a flurry of claims with the stewards after the race, alleging Russell had braked erratically, dropped more than 10 car lengths behind the safety car, and shown “unsportsmanlike” behaviour by complaining to his team. After a lengthy deliberation, the stewards dismissed Red Bull’s claims as unfounded, saying, “We accept the driver of Car 63’s explanation of the incident and we are satisfied that the driver of Car 63 did not drive erratically by braking where he did or to the extent he did. We are not satisfied that by simply reporting to his team that Car 1 had overtaken that he engaged in unsportsmanlike conduct.”
Next on the calendar, the F1 show will return to Europe. First up will be the Austrian Grand Prix around the Red Bull Ring. The race will be on June 29.
It can be challenging for even the most avid fans to keep up with the fast-paced world of Formula One. The Weekly F1 Recap is a series published each Monday that breaks down the action, both on and off the circuit, into bit-sized pieces. It's perfect for casual and experienced fans alike.
