Bernie Ecclestone Backs Max Verstappen’s ‘Anti-Racing’ Concerns Over 2026 Rules

Ex-F1 Supremo Bernie Ecclestone has backed Max Verstappen in his overly critical claims of the 2026 regulations of Formula 1.

Bernie Ecclestone Backs Max Verstappen’s ‘Anti-Racing’ Concerns Over 2026 Rules

Max Verstappen (via Red Bull), Bernie Ecclestone (via Getty)

In Short
  • Max Verstappen criticizes the 2026 F1 regulations, calling them "anti-racing" and detrimental to the racing experience.
  • Bernie Ecclestone supports Verstappen's concerns, predicting confusion for teams and drivers due to the new rules.
  • Ecclestone warns that the regulations may alienate fans, as they complicate the sport and shift focus towards electrification.

Max Verstappen has remained one of the biggest critics of the 2026 regulations. The Dutchman had even claimed that the new rules felt like anti-racing, as they could ruin the racing experience for many drivers on track. Now, even ex-F1 Supremo Bernie Ecclestone backs the four-time champion’s claim and points out the negatives of the new regulations.

Many drivers have remained critical of the 2026 regulations, primarily Max Verstappen, who even went as far as to claim that the regulations felt “Formula E on steroids.” Meanwhile, Lando Norris refuted these claims and believed that the drivers needed to simply get used to the challenge. However, the Briton even backtracked on his claims and noted that he simply made those comments for the sake of it.

Bernie Ecclestone was not sugarcoating the current situation of Formula 1 and how the new regulations were certainly not helping it. The 95-year-old asserted that there will be confusion for the teams and drivers at the start of the season. Ecclestone had similar claims to Esteban Ocon, who also believed that the drivers had to re-learn F1 from scratch.

Further, Bernie Ecclestone highlighted that the rules did not favor Max Verstappen and his driving style either. Drivers now needed to be more careful and conservative with the battery component in the power unit. Verstappen couldn’t attack and divebomb overtakes as simply as he used to in the previous regulations. Moreover, the removal of the MGU-H component meant that the race starts were yet another point of discussion in the paddock.

There will be confusion at the start of the season because everyone has to relearn Formula 1. And the rules certainly don’t favour Max Verstappen and his style of driving.

Bernie Ecclestone said in an interview with RTL/ntv and sport.de.

Bernie Ecclestone predicts “losing fans” with 2026 F1 regulations

Given that the new regulations are so difficult for the drivers and teams, they will be even harder for the fans. Those sitting at home and spectating the race live could have to go through a steep learning curve of the new components in the car. As such, Bernie Ecclestone believes that the sport risks losing fans because of the sheer difficulty of the new rules.

Max Verstappen (via Red Bull)
Max Verstappen (via Red Bull)

Bernie Ecclestone stated that the new regulations were less about racing. The new regulations meant more rules and limitations for the drivers as they couldn’t race as hard as they could before. He even added that Formula 1 was now seemingly competing with Formula E because of the increase in electrification. Ecclestone reckoned that the fans might like the new components, but the ugly side of it was that the sport lost the fans over the season.

It’s less about racing, But that’s how things are developing: more regulations, more rules for the drivers, don’t do this, don’t do that. Formula 1 is now competing more with Formula E. Maybe the fans like that, but I don’t think so. The danger is that we’ll lose the fans. I sincerely hope I’m wrong.

Bernie Ecclestone noted.

Despite the skepticism early on, the teams and drivers will adapt well to the regulations. Certainly, the first year of a regulation change seems difficult. Regardless, Formula 1 is a sport about evolution, and teams will quickly take in crucial learnings from the races and apply them to the challenger. It will be interesting to see which team manages to remain at the forefront of development.

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