Norris out front, paddock on fire: Russell’s Williams scare, Brown vs Verstappen, Wolff’s title call, and Button’s message to Ferrari
Lando Norris punched clear off the line in São Paulo, but the real sprint on Wednesday came in the paddock, where old wounds and fresh jabs were flying.
George Russell pulled back the curtain on his Williams debut season, Zak Brown lit another flare under Red Bull’s tent, Toto Wolff called time on Max Verstappen’s title chase, and Jenson Button offered Ferrari’s chairman some pointed advice. Elsewhere, EA Sports confirmed there’ll be no annual F1 game in 2026. Quiet day? Not even close.
Russell: Williams were “on the verge of bankruptcy”
It’s easy to forget how fragile Williams looked when Russell arrived. The Mercedes driver says the Grove team were “on the verge of bankruptcy” when he made his debut at the 2019 Australian Grand Prix — and believes his first points finish for them, finally bagged in Hungary more than two years later, was a genuine sliding-doors moment for the operation: “the difference between survival and no survival.”
Russell spent three seasons heaving that blue rocket up the grid before stepping into Mercedes in 2022. It tracks with the vibe at the time — shoestring budgets, a car off the pace, and a once-mighty team fighting to stay afloat. The Hungary points felt seismic that day; now we know why.
Zak vs Max, round… we’ve lost count
McLaren CEO Zak Brown isn’t exactly on the Max Verstappen Christmas card list, and he won’t be now. Brown claims “everyone seems to be afraid” of Verstappen inside Red Bull and that the four-time champion has turned the team into his “own little empire,” leaving the organisation “subservient to him.”
Strong words, even by Zak’s standards. The political heat around Verstappen and Red Bull has been simmering for years, and this is a fresh boil. From the outside, Red Bull still operates like a win machine — but it’s no secret Verstappen’s orbit dictates plenty within the garage. Whether that’s culture or simply consequence of a generational talent depends on where your garage pass gets you.
Wolff: “Ship has sailed” for Verstappen’s 2025 title bid
Toto Wolff didn’t spin the numbers. With three races left — Las Vegas, Qatar and Abu Dhabi — he reckons “that ship has sailed” for Verstappen’s championship hopes. The math backs him up: Lando Norris holds a 24-point cushion over Oscar Piastri, with Verstappen 49 adrift of the McLaren lead. Three rounds isn’t nothing, but it’s a tight alley when the papaya pair keep trading body blows at the front.
Norris’s form since the autumn has been relentless, and McLaren’s execution tidy enough to make this a two-horse race in the same stable. Verstappen’s not out of reach on pure pace, but he needs chaos — and McLaren haven’t served much lately.
Button to Elkann: pick up the phone, not the megaphone
Ferrari chairman John Elkann used his platform after a bruising Interlagos weekend to tell Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to “focus on driving” and “talk less.” Jenson Button, never shy with a paddock truth, didn’t care for that. His advice: don’t air it, sort it. “Just go and have a chat” with your drivers rather than rebuking them in public.
Ferrari’s season has had highs, but the rough ones still feel very Ferrari — costly, loud, and instantly magnified. Button’s nudge is simple leadership 101: lead by example and keep the debrief internal. Whether Maranello takes that to heart is another matter.
EA Sports hits pause on 2026
A curveball from the virtual world: there won’t be a new, standalone F1 game launching with the 2026 rules reset. EA Sports will roll out a premium content update to F1 25 instead, before pivoting to a full rebuild for 2027. It’s a sensible call if it means the studio can retool properly for the new regs — though it’ll sting for players who live for that annual fresh start. Expect the esports calendar to adapt in step.
Where this leaves the title fight
As it stands, it’s Norris with the target on his back, Piastri refusing to blink, and Verstappen stalking with longer odds than he’s used to. McLaren look composed, quick on Saturdays, mean on Sundays. If there’s a wobble coming, it hasn’t shown up yet.
Mercedes, for their part, have momentum but not the points to play kingmaker. Ferrari need a clean weekend more than a press release. And Red Bull face the very modern problem of being very good and still not quite good enough when it counts.
We’ve seen late-season swings before. But with 24 points between teammates and only three to go, the real race might be inside the orange walls. McLaren have handled that dynamic well to this point. Hold firm for three more, and the story writes itself.
Final laps ahead: Las Vegas glitz, Qatar grit, Abu Dhabi’s floodlit decider. Norris leads. Piastri chases. Verstappen needs a miracle. The paddock, meanwhile, has plenty to say.
