Last Updated on December 2 2025, 11:41 pm
Welcome to TJ13’s daily rolling F1 news and comment. Here you’ll find all the latest stories, rumours and paddock whispers. We’ll be updating this page all day as the news breaks, so be sure to check back regularly for the latest updates straight from the F1 circus. And don’t forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page.
Red Bull boss reacts to Tsunoda demotion with Hadjar now Verstappen’s team mate – Updated 20:50 UK
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies paid a warm tribute to Yuki Tsunoda after confirming that the Japanese driver would be stepping out of a race seat in 2026. Tsunoda will be replaced in the senior Red Bull team by rising star Isack Hadjar, who will join Max Verstappen in the 2026 line-up. Meanwhile, Liam Lawson and British teenager Arvid Lindblad will race for the Racing Bulls team next season.
Tsunoda, promoted early in the 2025 season to partner Verstappen, struggled to match the Dutchman’s pace consistently. Despite this, Mekies praised the 24-year-old’s progress, personality and contribution to the organisation, having worked closely with him across both Red Bull-owned teams.
“Yuki has raced in Red Bull colours for seven years now. Through his five seasons in Formula 1 so far, he has matured into a complete racer,” said Mekies, highlighting Tsunoda’s one-lap speed, racing skill, and “infectious” personality. Tsunoda will contest one final race in Abu Dhabi before shifting into his new role.
Red Bull says he will remain an important part of its future, offering “invaluable support” to its 2026 projects as the team prepares for major regulatory changes.
Thieves raid Mercedes’ new £70m F1 base, stealing £60,000 worth of tools as the team hands CCTV footage to the police – Updated 17:15 UK
The brand-new £70 million Formula One base in Brackley has reportedly been hit by a major theft claims the Daily Mail, with around £60,000 worth of tools stolen from secure lock boxes. According to The Sun, the thieves broke into the storage units, which were supposedly safe, inside the soon-to-be library and boardroom area of the redeveloped hub. Team bosses have handed over CCTV footage to the police, who have begun an investigation.
A source described the impact on the more than 50 tradespeople working on the site, saying that many were left ‘devastated’ just weeks before Christmas as these tools are essential to their livelihoods. The break-in reportedly created enough noise for workers to question how on-site security failed to detect anything.
The theft occurred while Mercedes was continuing its extensive £70 million expansion, which was approved by West Northamptonshire Council last year. The upgraded campus, where the team designs and builds its F1 cars, will include facilities such as a gym, a yoga studio and a dedicated library, creating a more modern, collegiate environment for staff.
However, the project has faced criticism from local businesses on St James Road who fear that the projected increase in traffic from 57 to 528 cars during peak hours will cause major congestion. A local business leader said that companies on the road feel completely sidelined by the planning process, and warned that the expanded Mercedes campus will inevitably cause disruption.
McLaren boosts talent pipeline with F2 champion Fornaroli and rising stars – Updated 11:00 UK
Ahead of the 2025 season finale, McLaren has announced new signings for its Driver Development Programme, adding some of the brightest young talents in motorsport. Leading the intake is Leonardo Fornaroli, the Formula 2 champion who secured the title in Qatar with four wins and five podiums. He is only the third driver, after Oscar Piastri and Gabriel Bortoleto, to win consecutive F3 and F2 championships.
Also joining Fornaroli are F2 third-place finisher Richard Verschoor and European karting champion Christian Costoya. All three drivers will take part in McLaren’s testing and development sessions. The initiative aims to prepare these drivers for careers in Formula 1, IndyCar and McLaren’s upcoming World Endurance Championship.
Fornaroli expressed his excitement about joining the programme, saying: “After another successful year on the track, I am incredibly proud to be joining the McLaren Driver Development Programme. I am motivated to take the next step in my development through the programme as I work towards my ultimate goal of racing at the highest level.”
Jos Verstappen: “Without Max, this F1 title fight would be dull.” – Updated 10:05 UK
Verstappen has reignited discussion around his son’s impact on Formula 1, suggesting that rival teams — and even the sport itself — now fully understand Max’s decisive role in shaping the 2025 title battle. In an interview with Formule1.nl, he argued that the championship fight between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri ‘would be a bit duller’ without Max, and insisted that people are ‘now realising how special Max is’. His comments follow Max overturning a significant deficit in the standings, breathing new life into what would otherwise have been a straightforward McLaren duel.
Jos went further, suggesting that teams disregard Red Bull as a whole and prepare only for the threat posed by Max. “They don’t take Red Bull into account; they take Max into account,” he said, highlighting the perception that the three-time world champion is dragging his team into the title fight almost single-handedly.
The elder Verstappen also believes that McLaren will now be feeling the pressure. After Max’s win in Qatar — his fifth victory in the last eight races — he moved above Piastri in the championship standings for the first time since April and closed in on Norris. Jos says that both Norris and Piastri may be worried that their best chance at a world title is slipping away. “I can imagine there’s some nervousness at McLaren because this might be both drivers’ only chance at a world title. You never know if you’ll find yourself in that position again, right?”
You either become the champion or you don’t. If it doesn’t work out, we’ll try again next year.” With three drivers still in with a chance of winning the title, Max’s resurgence has guaranteed the first genuine three-way decider since 2010.
Brundle: McLaren’s Qatar gamble was a “grave error” that cost Piastri the victory – Updated 09:30 UK
Martin Brundle has criticised McLaren’s Qatar GP strategy, saying they made a “grave error” by failing to pit Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris under the early safety car. The Sky F1 pundit argues that McLaren “paid a heavy price” by gambling that their rivals would also stay out, that the flexibility of the tyres would be an advantage later on, and that the fresh tyres would enable them to overtake Max Verstappen in the final laps. However, none of these scenarios materialised, leaving Piastri having to chase down Verstappen after losing a free pit stop and ultimately falling eight seconds short.
Brundle noted that Piastri had been “sublime all weekend”, had been the fastest driver in both qualifying and the race, and had been denied victory due to the strategy call. He added that pitting both drivers would have been fairer to both drivers without compromising the team’s title fight.
McLaren boss Andrea Stella has acknowledged the misjudgement and confirmed that the team will conduct a “very thorough” internal review, including an investigation into whether any strategic “biases” affected the decision-making process. Despite the disappointment, Stella says the team will respond strongly ahead of the Abu Dhabi title decider.
Australian Senator ‘Debates’ About Piastri ‘Bias’ in Light-Hearted Parliamentary Exchange – Updated 09:00 UK
In a bizarre but humorous moment at Parliament House, Nationals Senator Matt Canavan used a committee hearing to discuss the Formula 1 title drama involving Oscar Piastri, asking whether McLaren was biased against the Australian driver, which cost him the championship. The light-hearted question, directed at Transport Department Secretary Jim Betts, drew laughter from across the room, before Assistant Minister Anthony Chisholm jokingly agreed that Piastri had endured ‘raw decisions’ this season.
This comes after McLaren was criticised again for its strategy at the Qatar Grand Prix, which many fans believe disadvantaged Piastri in favour of his teammate, Lando Norris. Piastri recovered to second place, but now sits in third position in the standings, four points behind Max Verstappen and 16 points behind the leader, Norris, heading into the Abu Dhabi title decider.
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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.
