George Russell suggests Lando Norris’s complaints about the 2026 F1 cars stem from McLaren’s lack of competitiveness this season.

MELBOURNE: George Russell has dismissed Lando Norris’s fierce criticism of Formula One’s new 2026 cars, suggesting his rival’s complaints are linked to McLaren’s early-season struggles.

The Mercedes driver, who won the Australian Grand Prix, responded to Norris labelling the new-generation cars as the “worst” in history and declaring the revised engine regulations “suck”.

Russell implied the criticism would not be forthcoming if Norris was winning, stating “if he was winning I don’t think he’d be saying the same”.

Norris had launched a scathing attack after qualifying, blaming the new 50% battery power units which require recharging through braking or lifting off the throttle.

The McLaren driver finished fifth in the race, more than 51 seconds behind winner Russell, while his teammate Oscar Piastri crashed out before the grand prix even started.

Russell pointed to the cyclical nature of Formula One performance, noting “last year we had the same engine as them and McLaren did a better job than us and they beat us”.

He added that drivers should give the new technical regulations more time before casting final judgement, stating “everyone’s very quick to criticise things, you need to give it a shot”.

Norris acknowledged a challenging season ahead for McLaren, saying “it’s looking like it’s going to be a long, tough season, but we’re in a reasonable place to start from”.

 The Sun Malaysia