Pre-season is done, and the 2026 grid is taking shape in ways nobody quite expected.
Aston Martin is the disaster of the fortnight. Honda battery gremlins limited the AMR26 to six laps on the final day, leaving Lawrence Stroll's outfit flying blind into Melbourne — and vulnerable to being jumped by Cadillac out of the gate.
Cadillac, for its part, ran 266 laps and posted a time 3.3 seconds off the pace — well inside 107% and nowhere near cut-adrift. For a first-year American operation, that's a genuine win.
Haas keeps doing more with less. Sixth on the timesheet, third in mileage, and looking like the class of the midfield alongside Alpine. Not bad for F1's leanest budget.
Ferrari ended on top with a radical flip-upside-down rear wing in the bag. Williams underwhelmed. Mercedes won the compression-ratio fight.
Melbourne in a fortnight. Cadillac vs. Aston Martin is suddenly must-watch.
Read the full story at The Race