Liam Lawson completed his initial experience with the new 2026 Formula 1 car during Racing Bulls’ closed test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The three-day event offered teams their first chance to gather vital data on cars redesigned under the latest regulations, which feature smaller sizes, reduced weight, no DRS, and increased reliance on electrical power.
Lawson’s debut with the VCARB03 was marked by a steep learning curve as he adapted to these new technical demands.
Progress Made Over the Course of the Test
Although Lawson described his early laps as “very, very different,” he showed consistent improvement throughout the week. By Thursday morning, he completed 64 laps in a single session and amassed more than 150 laps over the full test period, signaling growing familiarity with the car’s dynamics.
The New Zealander improved his lap time notably from 1 minute 21.513 seconds to a best of 1 minute 18.840 seconds, cutting over two and a half seconds off his earlier benchmark.
We just keep learning. We are obviously making big gains, but so is everybody else,
Lawson said.
Very, very different cars but in a much better place than we were on Monday, which is the main thing. We just need to keep learning and improving the car.
Challenges in Assessing Competitiveness Early On
At this stage, actual lap times hold little meaning due to variations in team programs, fuel loads, and testing strategies. Lawson emphasized that the precise competitive order remains unclear.
In terms of mileage, we have honestly had a pretty strong test in terms of reliability, so that’s been a box ticked,
he noted.
In terms of expectations, it’s very hard [to know], we don’t know where anybody else is.
That will still be unknown for a while, but the main thing is we’re getting the laps down that we want to and learning what we need to about our car.
Afternoon track sessions proved consistently faster due to improved conditions, as demonstrated by teammate Arvid Lindblad, who took over the car on Thursday afternoon, completing 47 laps and setting a quicker lap time of 1 minute 18.451 seconds.
Adjusting to the New 2026 Car’s Unique Feel
Lawson highlighted how significant the driving experience has shifted with the 2026 regulations. The reduced downforce and new power management demands require drivers to adapt considerably.
There’s a lot to learn for all of us as the 2026 car is very different to drive, so I just tried to adapt as much as I could,
Lawson remarked.
The car has less downforce compared to the past, so it moves around quite a bit; there’s a lot of power when the battery is fully deployed, but the way in which you have to manage it is something completely new.
Reliability Focus Yields Positive Outcomes for Racing Bulls
Throughout the test, Racing Bulls concentrated on reliability and validating new systems rather than outright performance. This approach resulted in smooth running of the car and its power unit across all sessions.
We’ve been trying several things on the car, and it’s been great to keep building mileage on the new power unit,
Lawson said.
We had a pretty strong test in terms of reliability, but in terms of expectations, it’s very hard to say at this point, as we don’t know where everyone else is.
Looking Ahead to Bahrain and the Upcoming Season
With the Barcelona shakedown concluded and Aston Martin appearing during the final stages, teams are now preparing for the next crucial phase in Bahrain. Two official pre-season test blocks will take place there in February before the 2026 championship officially begins in Melbourne on March 8.
I think that will stay quite unknown for a while, but we’re focused on our own job and want to keep improving in order to be in the best shape possible for the first race in Melbourne,
Lawson said.
He added that the team ended the Barcelona test
“in a much better place than where we started on Monday.”
The next test in Bahrain is in less than two weeks, so we’ll keep collecting data, but it’s a completely different track from here, so I’ll be curious to see how the car performs in those conditions.
