Five weeks is a long time in any sport, but in Formula One, it has felt like an eternity. The scheduled races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were cancelled due to the conflict engulfing the Middle East, leaving teams with an unexpected break in the middle of the season.
Unlike the summer shutdown, when factories are forced to close, this gap was open season for engineers, meaning every team has been working around the clock, redesigning components, rethinking strategies and preparing upgrade packages to improve their machines.
Add to that a set of revised technical regulations agreed between the FIA, the teams and F1's commercial bosses, and what awaits fans in Florida this weekend is essentially the beginning of an entirely new championship.
Here are the five major talking points heading into the Miami Grand Prix.
The rules have been adjusted but is it enough?
The opening three races of 2026 produced exciting racing but also genuine causes for concern. The new hybrid power units, which split energy equally between the combustion engine and electric motor, created situations where one car was deploying power at full force while the car ahead was harvesting energy and slowing down unexpectedly.
The result was dangerously unpredictable closing speeds on the straights, a problem that contributed to a horrifying crash in Japan involving Ollie Bearman, who closed on Franco Colapinto's Alpine at a terrifying rate and was left with nowhere to go.
A series of meetings between drivers, engineers and officials produced a package of changes for Miami, designed to reduce the need for drivers to manage energy so aggressively and make it safer to push.
Qualifying in particular has provoked countless frustrations. Charles Leclerc was left livid in Japan. “This is very frustrating, because qualifying is all about us trying to find the limit and to play with the limits. At the moment, whenever you play with the limit, you get destroyed in the straights, so you've got to stay right underneath the limit, which is an art in itself.”
These changes will not transform things overnight, but hopefully are a step in the right direction.
Mercedes dominance and the battle between the drivers
George Russell won the opening race in Australia before his younger teammate Kimi Antonelli took back-to-back victories in China and Japan. The Italian teenager, just 19 years old and in only his second season, is now the championship leader and the youngest driver in the sport's history to hold that position.
Russell may be the more experienced driver but he trails by nine points and the paddock is now openly questioning whether that gap reflects bad luck or the emergence of a genuinely world-class rival sitting right beside him.
Russell was unfortunate with safety car timing in Japan that aided Antonelli’s victory. But the Italian was quick, consistent and increasingly confident across all three rounds. Toto Wolff, who has navigated fierce intra-team battles before, is treading carefully. “The oddity in Formula One is that the two teammates are also the biggest competitors,” he said. “And we've learnt a lot over the last 10-plus years in how to best handle these situations.”
Is Antonelli ready to usurp his more experienced teammate, the man deemed the favourite to win the title?
Ferrari and McLaren are bringing their biggest upgrades yet
Both teams have used the break to essentially rebuild their cars ahead of Miami. McLaren principal Andrea Stella confirmed the scale of their effort without hesitation, saying they will arrive with “an entirely new MCL40.” McLaren have won the past two races held at this circuit and Lando Norris believes history could work in their favour.
“It's obviously a track where we've performed very well, as well as a team, not just as drivers, over the past couple of years. Last year, it was one of our best tracks of the season in terms of pace compared to others,” he said.
Ferrari, meanwhile, conducted a full filming day at Monza last week with both Lewis Hamilton and Leclerc running the updated car on track for the first time.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Ferrari have brought forward key power unit upgrades originally planned for much later in the season, and their “Macarena” rear wing, which opens in reverse at high speed to reduce drag on the straights, is expected to race for the first time this weekend. Leclerc and Hamilton have collected podiums without yet threatening Mercedes for victory.
Verstappen and Red Bull are fighting for survival
Red Bull arrive in Miami sitting sixth in the constructors' championship with just 16 points, while Mercedes have accumulated 135. Their car has been overweight, unstable through corners and somewhat difficult to set up, with both Max erstappen and rookie teammate Isack Hadjar struggling. At Suzuka, Verstappen told his engineer over the radio, “I think there's something wrong with the car, mate. It's completely undriveable.”
Red Bull conducted a secret filming day at Silverstone before Miami, running a significantly updated car with a new floor, new sidepods and a redesigned front wing, leading to team principal Laurent Mekies describing Miami as “a second season launch.”
Looming in the background is the departure of Verstappen's long-serving race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase, who is set to leave for McLaren in 2028. Verstappen once said publicly that when Lambiase goes, he goes too. This week he softened his tone, telling a gathering in a Viaplay event in Amsterdam that he had actively encouraged his engineer to take the offer.
“He asked me for a sort of permission and I said that he absolutely had to do it.” Mekies made it clear that Verstappen is devoted to the Red Bull project, but questions surrounding Verstappen's own future will continue to arise.
Aston Martin need a miracle
The most anticipated new project in F1 has encountered too many problems. Aston Martin have scored zero points from the first three races. Persistent vibrations from the power unit have been problematic for Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
Honda have worked intensively with the team throughout the break, but trackside chief Shintaro Orihara was candid about what Miami will realistically bring.
“We have made some progress, allowing us to implement further countermeasures in Miami and later in the season. Realistically, this progress will not have a visible impact on the power unit performance on track, so we shouldn't be expecting big jumps forward here.”
If Aston Martin can simply get both cars to the finish line in Miami, that would be a vast improvement.
