Charles Leclerc has emerged as one of the rare voices on the grid willing to defend the 2026 cars on a sporting level, telling reporters in Suzuka that he genuinely enjoys racing them despite the wider chorus of driver complaints about the regulations.
The 2026 regulatory package has had a rough public reception. Drivers from McLaren, Williams and Aston Martin have criticised energy deployment systems that strip lap time and decision-making from their hands; Lando Norris and the GPDA have warned about dangerous closing speeds; and the FIA has been forced into a refinement package ahead of the Miami Grand Prix to head off the worst of the qualifying mess. Against that backdrop, Leclerc's view is genuinely striking.
"I don't know if I'm the only one. I don't think I'm the only one — speaking with other drivers, but it might be half-half," Leclerc said. "I actually enjoy those cars for the racing bit. I think for qualifying there are definitely tweaks that we need to make in order for us to push those cars to the limit and not having to think about too much about the energy."
The distinction Leclerc draws is important. He is not defending the regulations wholesale. He is differentiating between qualifying — where energy management has stripped the spectacle out of single-lap running and forced drivers into rolling math problems — and the race itself, where the variability of closing speeds and deployment strategy has produced genuinely chaotic, unpredictable wheel-to-wheel action.
It is a contrarian position, but it tracks with what television audiences have actually seen so far. The 2026 races have featured significantly more on-track overtakes than the previous regulatory cycle, with the energy management dynamic forcing drivers to make and defend moves at unconventional points on the lap. The Race's analysts have noted that crowds have responded enthusiastically to the increased overtaking, and there is a commercial dimension to the racing being seen as more entertaining.
Leclerc's preference for the new cars is not without context. Ferrari arrived in 2026 well behind Mercedes on raw power, and a fast-rotating, overtake-friendly format gives a driver who can race hard and clean a real chance to recover positions otherwise lost on Saturday afternoons. A Leclerc who genuinely enjoys mixing it up in traffic is a Leclerc who finds redeeming value in races that punish raw qualifying performance.
He also flagged the practical adjustment drivers are still making.
"I think for qualifying there are definitely tweaks that we need to make in order for us to push those cars to the limit," he reiterated, framing the FIA's deployment fix as necessary rather than excessive.
The split between Leclerc's view and Norris's is instructive. Both drivers raised concerns; both want regulatory action. But while Norris has emphasised the safety risk and the need for urgent change, Leclerc has signalled that the racing itself, once tidied up at the edges, is something he would happily keep. It is a more constructive note than has dominated the paddock conversation in recent weeks.
For Formula 1's commercial leadership, that kind of voice matters. The sport's modern selling proposition is built on close racing and unpredictable Sundays, and Leclerc's framing offers them a useful counterweight to the more apocalyptic critiques the regulations have attracted. If even half the grid privately agrees with him, the FIA's job becomes one of refinement rather than reinvention.
Leclerc was careful not to overstate his case — "it might be half-half," he acknowledged — but his willingness to speak publicly in defence of the racing, on a weekend dominated by Bearman's crash and Norris's blistering safety speech, was a sliver of optimism in an otherwise heavy debate.
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*Originally published on [News Formula One](https://newsformula.one/article/leclerc-actually-enjoy-2026-cars-racing-bit-contrarian-qualifying-tweaks). Visit for full coverage.*
