After 11 rounds of the 2026 season, Racing Bulls leads the midfield both in the 2026 F1 Constructors’ Championship and in terms of consistency. As the championship reaches the mid-season, Racing Bulls sits in P5 with a total of 66 points. Following the 2026 F1 Hungarian GP, the Faenza outfit now has a 5-point lead ahead of its primary midfield rival, Alpine.
Carrying the strong momentum from the 2025 F1 season into the new technical-regulation era, the team has vastly exceeded pre-season expectations. Despite a challenging start to the 2026 F1 season, Racing Bulls quickly recovered. A rapid development cycle yielded the Faenza outfit a quick and reliable VCARB 03 package that transformed them into the benchmark of the tight midfield pack.
Racing Bulls Mid-Season Rating: 8/10
On top of the 2026 technical regulations overhaul, Racing Bulls had two other factors at play during the pre-season, which led many to predict they would be on the back foot. Not only did the team entrust a seat to 18-year-old British rookie Arvid Lindblad, but the team also had to navigate a brand new, unproven Red Bull Ford Powertrain.
After eight very successful years of collaboration, in line with the conclusion of the 2025 F1 season, it was the end of Honda’s partnership with Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls. While the Japanese manufacturer moved on to partner with Aston Martin, Red Bull partnered with Ford Motor Company to build its first in-house power unit for the 2026 regulations. Hence, marking the first time Red Bull and its sister team, Racing Bulls, would run their own engine instead of relying on an external supplier.
During pre-season testing, Racing Bulls’ Red Bull-Ford powertrains were plagued by erratic calibration issues and power-delivery glitches. These instabilities severely compromised the team’s understanding of the sweeping new technical regulations. Regardless, the underlying potential of the VCARB 03 was evident since the season-opener in Melbourne despite baseline balance struggles and set-up troubles. Lindblad had scored points in his debut race with a P8 finish, while Lawson had a more challenging weekend, finishing in P13 as he had gremlins at the start.
An early nudge in the right direction
Lawson scored his first points of the season with a P7 finish in the Sprint the following weekend at Shanghai. He later finished in the same position during the 2026 F1 Chinese GP. This pushed the team in the right direction as they began building momentum. The Kiwi went on to bag a P9 at Suzuka.
However, the suspension package was just a one-off solution. Racing Bull’s early-season momentum would come to a halt at the Miami International Autodrome. It was a weekend to forget for the Faenza outfit, with Lindblad finishing in P14, and Lawson suffering an early retirement due to a collision with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly caused by a gearbox failure on his VCARB 03. They lacked serious pace and looked ninth fastest across that event.
Nonetheless, it turned out to be the team’s only completely point-less weekend of the 2026 F1 season thus far.
Racing Bulls’ turning point of the 2026 F1 season came in Montreal
While the Faenza outfit did bring their first major upgrade package to Miami, the floor upgrades brought to the 2026 F1 Canadian GP set the stage for a crucial turning point in Racing Bulls’ campaign.
The team then executed a rapid development cycle with upgrades in Austria, Belgium, and Hungary. Since Monaco, not only have Racing Bulls scored points at every round, but they have also had a very impressive run with four consecutive double-point finishes spanning through Silverstone. The 2026 F1 Hungarian GP marked the team’s fifth double-point finish ahead of the summer break.
However, for all their consistency, a distinct glass ceiling remains. Racing Bulls’ highest on-track result this season is only a P6, which has them stuck behind the top teams. Unlike their primary rivals Alpine, who managed to snatch a dramatic podium finish in Monaco with Pierre Gasly, the Faenza-based team still lacks the raw pace to exploit front-running chaos.
Regardless, if Racing Bulls can build on the strong momentum entering the latter half of the 2026 F1 season and continue their aggressive development cycle, Lawson and Lindblad could have the potential and opportunities to fight for their maiden podium with some help from the top four.
Liam Lawson Mid-Season Review: 8/10
The 2026 F1 season has been an impressive comeback for Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson, serving as a strong redemption arc for the New Zealander. Following a challenging 2025 campaign that started with a brutal two-race stint with Red Bull, Lawson resoundingly bounced back after returning to Racing Bulls in the latter half of the 2025 season.
After 11 rounds of the 2026 F1 season, Lawson now sits P9 in the Drivers’ Championship with 43 points to his name, scoring the majority of the points that brought Racing Bulls to P5 in the Constructors’ Championship. The 24-year-old currently leads the midfield pack behind the top four constructors.
For the second season in a row, Lawson plays the role of the senior driver of the team. He plays an integral technical role within the Racing Bulls’ garage, as he provides the vast majority of the crucial car feedback and set-up development required for the team’s growth.
Consistency and maximising the car’s potential on race days
When it comes to qualifying, the New Zealander holds a 6-5 advantage over his rookie teammate Arvid Lindblad. The 24-year-old has made a total of five Q3 appearances in the first half of the season, but his single-lap execution is one of the main areas he has to refine coming into the second half.
Nonetheless, when his Racing Bulls has the reliability and the performance, Lawson has proven that he can extract the pace and maximise his potential on track. His racing pace and tyre management have proven to be even stronger than his qualifying performances.
Lawson has also only failed to score points on three occasions thus far in Australia, Miami and Spa-Francorchamps. However, at all three weekends, the New Zealander was plagued with issues which led to him finishing outside of points or retiring.
The 2026 F1 Hungarian GP is one such example. A difficult qualifying placed Lawson P11 on the starting grid, but a strong launch on the opening lap and an aggressive two-stop strategy had him taking the chequered flag in P8, ahead of teammate Lindblad in P10.
Lawson has been the driving force behind the team’s best results this season, single-handedly securing their highest finish of P6 twice. His stellar drives to P6 in Monaco and Silverstone proved his ability to maximise the car’s potential under pressure. While single-lap qualifying remains an area for improvement, his race craft and consistency have given him an edge over the majority of the midfield.
Arvid Lindblad Mid-Season Review: 7.5/10
As the sole newcomer on the 2026 F1 grid, Arvid Lindblad faced immense pressure, but he has already proven to be an incredibly strong midfield competitor.
The Briton sits P11 in the 2026 F1 Drivers’ Championship with 23 points to his name, just two positions below Lawson. While his teammate leads him in points, Lindblad currently holds an active six-race point-scoring streak that began with an impressive P7 finish in Monaco.
A major factor behind this consistency is Lindblad’s single-lap pace. As mentioned, he almost currently matches Lawson with a 5-6 margin in their qualifying head-to-head. When it comes to Q3 appearances, however, Lindblad actually leads Lawson with a 7-5 margin. An impressive feat for a rookie driver who has faced numerous unfamiliar circuits.
Furthermore, the 19-year-old has largely avoided any on-track collisions and other costly mistakes commonly associated with a debutant, displaying impressive maturity. The Racing Bulls rookie has zero DNFs recorded so far in the 2026 F1 season, proving his reliability.
Lindblad has also completed almost every single racing lap of the 2026 season, with the exception of the F1 Canadian GP, where a mechanical issue prevented him from taking the race start when he looked to be the fastest midfield driver that weekend.
Lindblad’s breakthrough weekend in Monaco
The 19-year-old’s most impressive weekend date was the 2026 F1 Monaco GP, where Racing Bulls took their first double-points finish of the season.
A disappointing qualifying session landed him P15 on the starting grid. Nonetheless, despite the Circuit de Monaco being notoriously difficult to overtake at, Lindblad was able to take the chequered flag in an impressive and career-best P6 finish as a red flag fell at the perfect time for him. A breakout performance from the Briton, even if Alpine’s successful post-race appeal to reinstate Gasly’s podium demoted him to P7 in the offical classification.
An aspect the Briton would have to focus on coming into the second half of the 2026 F1 season would be maximising his strong qualifying on race day. By mastering tyre managment over long stints, Lindblad will be able to unlock more potential and convert his speed into higher point finishes. Better first laps will also help the former F2 and F3 race winner.
