With the performance of the modern Formula One cars so predictable, Formula One has been heading down the rabbit hole where races are becoming ever more predictable. Whilst not quite reaching the levels seen in the Schumacher era, the 2025 season has been described as becoming a “qualifying formula.”
This may well change in 2026, with bold new car designs which include driver operated moveable aero systems, previously banned in F1. The hope is by removing the large downforce rear wings along the straights, the turbulent air for the car behind will be reduced making following more closely possible.
The up coming race in Zandvoort will be the penultimate F1 event before the circuit retires from the calendar and the race around the sand dunes along the coast of the Netherlands has had its fair share of critics. The Grand Prix has typically been a one stop affair decided by the teams’ strategists, but Pirelli and the FIA hope this year’s edition will break that pattern. Two measures are in place to achieve this; firstly Pirelli are hoping to encourage the teams to use more sets of tyres on Sunday and the FIA are attempting to make each stop less punitive to the drivers’ overall race time.
Pirelli tyres much softer this year
Since becoming Formula 1’s sole tyre supplier in 2011, Pirelli has faced criticism from both ends of the spectrum. In its early years, drivers and engineers complained that the Italian rubber wore out too quickly. More recently, the opposite has been true: today’s tyres are so durable that the number of pit stops continues to decline.
The Hungarian Grand Prix before the summer break illustrated the issue. Lando Norris completed the race with just one stop, something once considered impossible at the Hungaroring. Half the grid ran a one-stopper, the rest opted for two, at least adding some tactical intrigue. Pirelli would like to see a similar situation at Zandvoort, where Formula 1 resumes on August 31. Like Budapest, overtaking is notoriously difficult at the tight, twisting dune circuit, with the DRS-assisted home straight offering the best chance for passes.
In 2024, Pirelli brought its hardest compounds to the Netherlands, but most drivers still leaned on the softer C4 and C5 in the race. This year, the selection moves one step softer, with C2, C3 and C4 nominated. The hope is that the compounds degrade quicker, pushing teams toward an extra stop. The 2025 Pirelli F1 tyre range itself is half a step softer than its predecessor, and so this decision should make it much tougher for a driver to make the distance on just two sets of tyres.
Overtaking difficult in Zandvoort
The history books show how hard it is to pass at Zandvoort. In 2021 and 2022, just 23 and 24 overtakes were recorded. Rain and chaos in 2023 produced a staggering 186 place changes, but by last year the numbers were back to normal. A total of 43 overtakes were logged, helped in part by Lewis Hamilton, who climbed from 14th on the grid after a penalty.
Still, the strategic baseline hasn’t shifted. On dry tracks, teams overwhelmingly rely on one-stop strategies — starting on mediums before switching to hards for a long second stint. Last year the harder C1, C2 and C3 were used, but the softer range may change the picture for the coming weekend.
A second tweak is designed to complement the softer tyres. In agreement with the FIA, the pit lane speed limit has been raised from 60 to 80 km/h. Zandvoort’s lane may only be 236 meters long and narrow, but the higher limit reduces the time loss of a stop by roughly two seconds. In theory, that will make a two-stop strategy less costly.
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Two stop now “slightly faster”
Even so, Pirelli admits it remains doubtful. On paper, a two-stopper might be slightly faster, but in practice, it only makes sense for those starting further back. The main stumbling block is overtaking. An early stop risks rejoining in traffic and losing time — as seen in Hungary, where Max Verstappen and others struggled to recover pace after extra visits to the pits.
Formula 1 organisers continue to search for ways to increase pit stop numbers. But it is unclear whether softer tyres and a faster pit lane alone will provide the desired variety. Given that the circuits themselves are difficult to evolve to the requirements of the modern F1 cars, hopefully the incoming 2026 new racing machines will improve the situation and create more strategic diversity.
Zandvoort will say goodbye to Formula One in 2026 having opted to retire from the calendar due to the financial demands. Dutch organiser van Overdijk admits this week though still feels like business as usual. The decision to drop off the calendar came after months of negotiations between the Dutch Grand Prix organisers and Formula 1, and was met with disappointment by the latter’s leadership.
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Only Zandvoort and Silverstone subsidy free
“Initially – and this also made us proud – [they felt] disappointment that we made this decision,” he said. “But from their side there was also understanding why we took this decision. They know better than anyone else, of course, that we, along with Silverstone, are the only Grand Prix that has to do without a single euro of subsidy.”
Despite the financial pressures, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has consistently praised Zandvoort for setting new standards in how races are organised. “They find it unfortunate, because of course Stefano Domenicali in particular has been shouting in recent years that we have set a new benchmark in the world of Formula 1,” van Overdijk said. “We are also proud of that.
When asked whether the long farewell would be felt by the Dutch fans attending this weekend he replied: “I don’t think so yet. If you ask me this next year, I’ll say absolutely yes,” he told Dutch website RacingNews365. “The final edition will, I think, maybe evoke the same emotions in a different way as the very first edition. Of course, we all know that this event is so big in the Netherlands.
“But if we soon stop after 2026, Formula 1 will shift its focus back to other continents. Everyone senses that next year will be a very special one. After that it won’t come back to the Netherlands for years. And maybe never again.”
Hamilton: “Never quite been the same since….”
Lewis Hamilton’s turbulent start to life at Ferrari has become one of Formula 1’s most debated storylines of 2025. Fourteen races into the season, the seven-time world champion has just a sprint victory in China to his name, and remains without a Grand Prix podium in Maranello red. For some observers, his struggles point to a deeper decline. For others, they are simply the painful growing pains of a driver adjusting to new machinery and new surroundings.
Among the more sobering assessments is that of former F1 driver and Sky analyst Anthony Davidson, who believes Hamilton’s difficulties stem back to the 2022 regulation reset. The introduction of ground-effect cars, with underfloor tunnels generating most of the downforce, has demanded a new style that Davidson feels Hamilton has never fully mastered.
“Since the new regulations came in, Lewis has never been quite the same,” Davidson reflected. “I sometimes see glimpses of the old Lewis, but he hasn’t had that instinctive control in the car anymore.” This is now evident following his much lauded move to Ferrari that was supposed to give Hamilton a reset….. READ MORE
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
