Max Verstappen laughed after trying Silverstone on simulator, Fernando Alonso not amused

Tweaks to the charging/deployment/super-clipping parameters in the 2026 regulations have done nothing in reality to fix them, and it was only the nature of tracks of recent races that has masked the problem a bit while drama from other aspects of the racing has been a welcome distraction from the horrid current power units.

But that is about to change as we head to Silverstone, a classic F1 track that requires power from the cars as well as chassis performance.

Speaking ahead of this weekend's race, Max Verstappen said: “Silverstone, I love the track, but I did a few laps on the simulator, and I just started laughing. It felt like a different track, to be honest."

Fernando Alonso, on the other hand, is not laughing, and when asked how he expected the cars to behave in Silverstone, he said: "I think the next two races are going to be a different experience than what we've been used to driving in Silverstone and Spa.

"Beautiful circuits in the past, especially with the ground-effect cars. I think Silverstone was probably the best of the circuits, suiting that car perfectly.

"This year is going to be very different and not fun to drive the cars. Looking at the simulator laps and things like that, it's going to be quite sad, I think, for the drivers but also for the spectators," he explained.

Silverstone is known for the famous high-speed Maggotts, Becketts, and Chapel sequence, but Alonso said they will be reduced to "charging stations" in 2026.

Explaining further, the Spaniard said: "When you have the de-rate on the corner, it is a little bit worse experience than just at the end of the straights.

"Because you used to have, in your memory, you used to remember those corners being very challenging, and you feel the G-forces—it was physically demanding into those corners. And now it is just much slower.

"The problem when you de-rate on the corners is also that your drag level is higher. You have the rolling resistance from the tyres turning the wheels.

"So, you lose the speed by the pure drag of the car, but you lose extra speed because you are turning the car. So, it doubles the effect on the corner," Alonso concluded.

The dire situation with Aston Martin and Honda will surely frustrate Alonso even more... (Reporting by Agnes Carlier)