Will Buxton calls Bearman’s Suzuka crash a warning for F1 over 2026 rules
· Yahoo Sports
Oliver Bearman’s crash at the Japanese Grand Prix has reignited concerns about Formula 1’s new safety regulations.
The 50G impact was a frightening moment in what was otherwise an exciting race weekend at Suzuka.
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Fans reacted quickly, expressing their anger and concern that the incident highlighted serious flaws in the new rules designed to protect drivers.
Damon Hill added his voice to the growing list of critics, labelling the 2026 cars “highly dangerous” and aligning with many drivers who have already spoken out against the changes.
Bearman was fortunate to avoid injury, but motorsport journalist Will Buxton believes this near miss should be enough to prompt action from FIA officials before a more serious outcome occurs.
Will Buxton believes Oliver Bearman’s crash should be a warning to FIA officials
Will Buxton addressed Oliver Bearman’s accident at Suzuka during his appearance on the Speed podcast, discussing the broader safety concerns linked to the new Formula 1 regulations.
He mentioned that the FIA plans to review the incident but emphasised the need for them to see it as a sign of potential issues if the current direction isn’t reconsidered.
“I think the argument for a lot of these guys was always going to be about safety. After Suzuka, it’s very, very real now. The FIA has actually gone on to state that the sport will use data from the first three race weekends to determine what changes, if any, need to be made.
“Because with races being cancelled, they’ve now got a month where they can sit down and look at it and think: ‘Have we got this right or have we got this wrong?’”
“A massive investment has been made in these engines… At the moment, they are deploying faster than they can harvest. That’s why they have this situation where they don’t have as much power as they need all of the time…”
“You’ve already had a warning shot with Bearman. All you need is somebody really start decelerating on straight because somebody gets caught unaware and goes over back and flies…
“They’re stuck with these power units now. Can they limit deployment? Increase fuel flow rate? Super-clipping limit? Something like that. But is it just going be lipstick on a pig?”
Will Buxton believes driver criticism of F1 regulations goes beyond performance issues
Will Buxton went on to clarify that, although competitiveness plays a role in the drivers’ frustration with the new rules, their main concern is safety.
He said: “This is the issue. This is the thing that the drivers have been talking about from day one. The drivers are calling for changes [and] have been from the first race of the season.
“The issue is teams, engine manufacturers, they’ve all got vested interests… It goes a lot deeper than this because it’s not about competitiveness.
“The teams are going to be allowed, the engine manufacturers are going to be allowed to change the power unit under the regulations if they’re a certain percentage off pace. But it’s not about competitiveness. It’s about safety.”
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