After years of stability, F1’s reliability can no longer be taken for granted

First, I apologize for missing the Canadian Grand Prix report earlier this week; Ferrari chose last week to show us its new electric car, and between that and Memorial Day, one thing led to another, and here we are.

Canada was another race week, meaning less practice time for teams looking to collect more on their various packages. The race, held on the island of Expo 67, is usually one of the biggest events of the season, and 2026 did not disappoint, with some of the best in the field.

Another 19-year-old Italian, Kimi Antonelli, now leads Mercedes team-mate George Russell by 43 points in the championship after four consecutive wins. With 25 points to spare, this means that Russell will soon win the entire race behind his young domestic rival; not a comfortable position when competing with someone with similar equipment.

Then again, you only have to look at last year’s competition to realize that it is too soon to inform; we’re about to run five races. Last year, Oscar Piastri led Max Verstappen by more than 100 points at the Dutch Grand Prix—the 15th race out of 24 that year—but finished the year 11 points behind.

It’s not that Russell doesn’t measure up to Antonelli; he would be dominating the race—just a little—when his battery went bad, ending his day on lap 30. As of late, the great British F1 commentator Murray Walker used to say, “To finish first, you must first finish,” which sounds obvious but has an important point, as Murray’s best words always do.

Credibility is rare in history

The fragility of current cars may make some odd, but if anything, it was the reliable hybrids that ran between 2017 and 2025 that are the leading ones. The last few seasons have been the most reliable in the history of the sport, and by a margin. Even in the 2000s, a driver went into every race knowing there was a 40 percent chance their car would break down before the checkered flag.