Red Bull Technical Director Pierre Waché and Max Verstappen reflected on a productive but challenging Friday at round 16 of the 2026 F1 season at Malaysia, with high temperatures, tyre degradation, and a new circuit creating a steep learning curve.
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Waché and Verstappen reflect on positive but demanding first day for Red Bull at 2026 F1 Malaysia round

Max Verstappen topped FP1 at round 16 of the 2026 F1 season in Malaysia, with Charles Leclerc going fastest in FP2. Red Bull Technical Director Pierre Waché and Verstappen spoke to the media after the day’s running. Waché on Red Bull’s first day at 2026 F1 Malaysia round Waché described the conditions as among the…

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2026 F1 Malaysia FP1 report
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F1 | 2026 Malaysia | FP1 | Verstappen sets the pace as drivers adapt to the Sepang circuit

Max Verstappen topped the FP1 timesheets, marking the start of Formula 1’s return to Malaysia for Round 16 of the 2026 F1 season. Last visited in 2017, Sepang International Circuit welcomed the F1 grid back to Malaysia after a nine-year absence. The championship arrived following a chaotic Azerbaijan GP, where George Russell claimed victory, closing…

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Max Verstappen confirms his GTWC Europe debut at the 2026 Portimão finale, joining Chris Lulham and Ben Barnicoat in the No. 3 Mercedes-AMG.
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Verstappen confirms 2026 GTWC Europe Portimão debut as WEC clash rules out Juncadella and Gounon

Max Verstappen has confirmed that he will make his GT World Challenge (GTWC) Europe powered by AWS debut at the 2026 Portimão finale, stepping into the No. 3 Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing entry for the Endurance Cup season finale. His appearance comes as the GTWC Europe finale clashes directly with the FIA World Endurance Championship’s…

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Laurent Mekies discusses why Red Bull opted to not swap positions between Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar in the first half of the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP
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Mekies explains why Red Bull didn’t ask Verstappen and Hadjar to swap positions at 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP

Team Principal Laurent Mekies shared his thoughts on Max Verstappen’s chances of securing a win with a cleaner qualifying and why they decided not to swap positions between the Dutchman and Isack Hadjar following Red Bull’s double F1 podium at the 2026 Azerbaijan GP on Saturday.  What went down in Baku With the internal combustion…

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Red Bull's Max Verstappen will start 8th after qualifying for the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP.
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Verstappen frustrated with power issues after P8 in Qualifying for 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP

Power unit issues thwarted Max Verstappen’s qualifying session at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP. Despite leading FP3 earlier in the day, the Red Bull driver will line up 8th for the race on Saturday. Teammate Isack Hadjar impressed with P4. Speaking in the print media pen after qualifying, the four-time World Champion explained how he was…

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Max Verstappen topped FP3 at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP, beating George Russell by 0.099s to deny the Mercedes driver a full practice sweep.
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F1 | 2026 Azerbaijan GP | FP3 | Verstappen tops as Russell misses practice sweep

Max Verstappen topped FP3 at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP, denying George Russell a clean sweep of the practice sessions before Qualifying in Baku. The final practice session began quietly, with no immediate movement when the pit lane opened. Conditions had changed from Thursday’s running, with the track temperature at 42 degrees Celsius and stronger…

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Isack Hadjar for Red Bull on track on Thursday at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP.
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Hadjar and Waché assess upgrades and Red Bull’s pace following FP2 at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP

Following Thursday‘s Free Practice 2, Isack Hadjar and Red Bull technical director Pierre Waché shared their insights on the Frenchman driver’s recovery, upgrades and car pace at the 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP. Max Verstappen got third place while teammate Isack Hadjar returned to action in ninth place following his injury. Hadjar reports positive return to…

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Max Verstappen identifies the Nürburgring and Spa 24 Hours as possible 2027 endurance outings but rules out a Le Mans appearance for now.
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Verstappen identifies Nürburgring and Spa as serious 2027 endurance options

Max Verstappen has identified the Nürburgring 24 Hours and CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa as serious possibilities for his 2027 endurance racing programme, with the newly confirmed Formula 1 calendar leaving space for the four-time World Champion to contest both endurance classics. The Dutchman has ruled out a 2027 appearance at the 24 Hours of…

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Heading into the Azerbaijan GP weekend, Kimi Antonelli discusses what could prevent him from securing the F1 Drivers' Championship in 2026 and Mercedes's upgrades for Sepang
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Antonelli discusses potential threats to championship bid and Mercedes’s Sepang upgrades ahead of 2026 F1 Azerbaijan GP

Kimi Antonelli has opened up about who poses the biggest threat to his maiden Drivers’ Championship bid going forward, his approach to take each race as it comes, whether Mercedes still have an edge over the rest of the F1 grid, and their Sepang upgrades heading into the 2026 Azerbaijan GP weekend. Climbing onto the…

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