Max Verstappen renewed his Red Bull contract until the end of 2030. This is a two-year extension to his existing contract, which had already been extended until the end of 2028. This silences rumours that the Dutchman will leave the team he has been driving for since 2016. A general unhappiness with the modern era of cars and the RB22, as well as increased interests outside of Formula One, led some to believe a change was possible.
Williams has confirmed its 2027 driver lineup, renewing the contract of both its drivers. Alex Albon signed a one-year contract extension, which will see him race for the team for a sixth season. Carlos Sainz agreed to a multi-year contract with the team, although the exact duration is undisclosed. That will be the Spaniard’s third season with Williams. Despite making great strides last season, the new regulations have challenged Williams, which now sits ninth in the World Constructors’ Championship standings with only 11 points, having failed to score any points since Monaco. An overweight car at the beginning of the year left the team scrambling to regain form. The renewal of both contracts shows a mutual trust between the drivers and team.
The FIA will not take any action against the controversial “Macarena Wing” concept used by some teams on the grid. With the removal of DRS for this season, the teams were given more freedom over how the rear wing can open. While many teams stuck with the conventional DRS-like design, Ferrari, Red Bull, and now McLaren opted to use what has been dubbed the “Macarena Wing”. Rather than opening like the DRS, this wing design rotates roughly 180 degrees. The design caught the attention of the FIA after the design was blamed for causing Max Verstappen’s crashes in Austria and Britain, forcing the team to temporarily stop using the design. The FIA wanted to ensure the design complied with regulations and that it did not pose a safety risk. After analyzing the information provided by Ferrari and Red Bull, the FIA were satisfied that the design was safe, although it cautioned that Red Bull needed to do more work to address mechanical problems with the wing.
The FIA will review appeals from Red Bull and McLaren on August 25 regarding the results of the Monaco Grand Prix. The race was marred by a controversial string of penalties for speeding in the pit lane. Pierre Gasly was one of the drivers to receive penalties for this violation, dropping him off the podium when his penalty was applied after the race. Alpine successfully fought the decision, forcing Formula One to admit there was an error with the pit lane sensors. They restored Gasly’s podium. But because all of the other penalized drivers served their penalties during the race, their teams could not request a right of review against the penalty. In the aftermath, Red Bull and McLaren filed an appeal claiming they were unjustly disadvantaged for serving their penalties in the race. The matter will be reviewed at the FIA International Court of Appeal.
The pre-start procedure will remain in place for the 2027 season, despite the FIA saying race starts no longer pose a safety risk. The start of the season saw many drivers struggle to get their cars pulled off the starting grid, which posed a risk of slow cars being hit by faster cars. After discussion, the FIA implemented a pre-start procedure that gives drivers a five-second warning before the starting lights are set to start. This allows the drivers to spool up the turbochargers, making it less likely for them to bog down at the start. Although the FIA insists changes to the cars mean this is no longer a safety risk, it will keep the pre-start procedure in place for 2027.
American billionaire businessman and politician Woody Johnson has acquired a minority stake in Aston Martin and will join its board of directors. Johnson is the heir to the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company and owns the NFL’s New York Jets. More recently, he purchased a majority stake in the Crystal Palace football team. Johnson also served as US ambassador to the United Kingdom under Donald Trump’s first presidential term. Johnson will have no involvement in the day-to-day operations of the Aston Martin team, but will serve as vice chairman on its board of directors, where he will help grow the brand in the US market.
TWG, the owners of the Cadillac F1 team, have denied the team is up for sale. This comes after rumours that its CEO, Mark Walter, is under federal investigation in the United States for alleged fraud. The billionaire businessman is accused of using “self-loans” through his insurance companies to fund businesses owned by himself. Totalling as much as $20 billion, the money is believed to have flowed through a variety of other companies to avoid detection. Walter owns a stake in various sporting ventures. He recently sold his stake in the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers less than a year after buying it.
Isack Hadjar sat out the Dutch Grand Prix after suffering a wrist injury while boxing during the summer break. The 21-year-old, who is in his first season with Red Bull, was replaced by Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson. This was not Lawson’s first time driving for Red Bull, having raced in the first two races of 2025 for the team before being replaced. His replacement back then was Yuki Tsunoda. The Japanese driver also stepped in to fill the vacant seat at Racing Bulls. Tsunoda has been without a seat this season after being released from Red Bull. Hadjar will likely be ready to race again at Monza, having been present in the paddock at Zandvoort.
Kimi Antonelli resumed the season by topping the first and only free practice session of the Dutch Grand Prix sprint weekend. It was a busy start to the session as everyone worked to gather the data necessary before sprint qualifying in the afternoon, but it was damp, and the early runners had to use the intermediate tyres. But once the cars began circulating the track, it dried quickly, and everyone swapped to slick tyres. The threat of rain once again loomed overhead near the end of the session, but it remained dry. Lando Norris was second quickest, narrowly ahead of George Russell in the other Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton led the Ferrari duo to round out the top five, with Oscar Piastri being a distant P6.
George Russell was quickest in sprint qualifying, earning pole position for the 24-lap shootout. Lando Norris was again second-best, narrowly ahead of Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri, with just 0.1s covering the top four. Leclerc had been quickest in SQ1 before Piastri had led a McLaren 1-2 in SQ2. Liam Lawson was frustrated with his inability to advance into the final round of qualifying during his temporary return to the Red Bull squad.
George Russell converted his sprint pole into a sprint victory, earning some valuable points towards his World Drivers’ Championship hopes. He managed a great getaway from the top spot, while teammate Kimi Antonelli overtook Oscar Piastri in the opening corners. Much of the sprint was a holding pattern, proving just how challenging it can be to line up an overtake around Zandvoort. Charles Leclerc was the only other top driver to manage to promote himself up a position, overtaking Lando Norris in the closing laps for P2. Click here to read a full summary of the sprint race.
Lando Norris finally improved upon being the weekend’s second-best, earning pole position during qualifying on Saturday afternoon. It was close competition from the top competitors. Q1 was led by Oscar Piastri ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Norris by only 0.085s. It was again narrow margins in Q3, where the threat of rain made every lap important. Norris was quickest, beating both Mercedes in the closing minutes as rain began to fall. Piastri had to settle for P4 on the grid ahead of the two Ferraris and the two Red Bulls.
Lando Norris secured grand prix victory from pole position, although that was only part of the story. Pre-race rain left the circuit damp, which made for a difficult start on the slick tyres. Max Verstappen was caught out on the opening lap, slamming into the barriers in the final corner after losing grip. When the race resumed, Kimi Antonelli took the lead of the race in the first corner. Norris retook the lead after the second round of pit stops. This was also when Lewis Hamilton had inherited the lead after fighting with his team over swapping positions a few laps earlier. A virtual safety car for a broken-down Haas helped Hamilton with a cheap pit stop. The VSC would hurt his race later on, as the two Williams collided in the final laps, hindering Hamilton’s chances of moving up to the podium. He had to settle for P4 behind George Russell. Click here to read a full summary of the final Dutch Grand Prix.
Next on the calendar, the teams will head to the historic Monza circuit in Italy for the Italian Grand Prix on the weekend of September 6.
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.
