Friday in Formula 1 saw important movements behind the scenes at Red Bull, statements from Charles Leclerc about Max Verstappen, and new chapters in the title fight. The drop in the category’s revenues and McLaren’s technical plans were also among the main topics published by F1MANIA.NET this Friday.
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Red Bull has moved forward with the hiring of Tom McCullough, currently Aston Martin’s performance director, to take on a strategic role following Gianpiero Lambiase’s departure. According to BILD, the Briton is tipped to become the new “Head of Racing,” coordinating track operations and engineers at the GPs. The move is part of a restructuring that also includes Gwen Lagrue, hired from Mercedes to lead the young drivers program, and Tom Hart, chosen to work as Verstappen’s race engineer.
Verstappen’s own future again gained prominence. Leclerc stated he would welcome a possible arrival of the four-time world champion at Ferrari and described the possibility of sharing the team with the Dutchman as a “great story.” The statement comes amid frequent speculation about the next steps of the Red Bull driver.
At Mercedes, Kimi Antonelli continued to receive recognition for the performance that led him to the top of the World Championship. Verstappen said he had seen the Italian’s talent since karting and highlighted his evolution in his second F1 season. Antonelli has six wins and entered the break with a 50-point lead over Lewis Hamilton.
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McLaren is also working to continue its recovery. The team revealed a new plan to extract more performance from the Mercedes power unit, while keeping alive the goal of fighting for a third consecutive constructors’ title, despite the disadvantage accumulated at the start of the season.
Off the track, the financial numbers drew attention. Revenue related to F1 fell 15% in the first half after changes caused by the cancellations of rounds in the 2026 calendar. Even so, Liberty Media has maintained a positive assessment of commercial growth and public engagement with the category.
Williams’ situation completed the day’s highlights. Alexander Albon showed pessimism about the rest of the season, while the team tries to react after losing ground under the new regulations. F1 remains on break and returns between August 21 and 23 for the Dutch GP in Zandvoort.
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