Johnny Herbert On F1 2026

Speaking exclusively with JeffBet, three-time Grand Prix winner Johnny Herbert has given his Formula 1 2026 predictions. 

The 61-year-old believes Lando Norris could evolve even further as a driver now he’s won the World Drivers’ Championship, and could be the main rival to Max Verstappen again. 

Herbert does believe Verstappen will have more competition this season from his new teammate, Isack Hadjar, but he also believes the Dutchman is capable of breaking the record of winning eight WDCs if Red Bull construct a competitive car.”

Read the full interview below: 

Q. Have you heard any whispers of confidence from any teams ahead of the 2026 season?

JH: “I’ve not heard anything from any teams as of yet, but I have heard issues with Mercedes when they’ve tried putting the power units in the back of their car and it didn’t start. After rumours that Mercedes were in the strongest position for 2026, it doesn’t seem to be the case.”

“It’s generally been quiet from the factories, teams are putting their heads down and preparingas best as they can. I’m sure there will be a lot of little problems, as there always are when coming into a new year with a new car with new rules. There are a lot of unknowns. It’s different when the car is being tested in a factory and when it’s racing on track.”

Q. Who will compete for and win the championships?

JH: “I’m going into this blind. We don’t know who will win the championship yet. I’ve heard Ford is struggling with Red Bull. Audi have had a lot of time to prepare for this year. Ferrari are expected to improve every year, especially after the disaster last year.”

“Let’s start with the world champion, Lando Norris. He’s grown so much during the 2025 season, now he’ll be a stronger and more complete driver this season. Oscar Piastri will need to rebuild his confidence and prove he’s the stronger driver of the pair, and Lando knows that. It’s down to McLaren to give them the tools to be able to show the same speed they showed last year. McLaren have to start the season strong like they did before, but they know teams will be a lot closer this year.”

“Max Verstappen will always be pushing himself, but more importantly, pushing Red Bull, making sure they’re heading in the right direction. We saw that mid-way of last season, Red Bull were good at certain circuits, but they became very strong towards the end. Max drove beautifully in Abu Dhabi, he was very comfortable in the car.”

“George Russell will be very important in the resurgence of Mercedes. They want to be right at the very front again. George can improve by being pushed by Kimi Antonelli too. Consistency is the main thing dividing their competitiveness at the moment, George is very consistent, whereas Antonelli is not. It’s a good mix of experience and the young. It will benefit them both at the end of the day. George will be aware that Antonelli will improve and has Toto Wolff’s backing, but I
think with the right car, George can compete for the championship.”

“Charles Leclerc has been very impressive with his consistency and control over Ferrari in the last couple of years. He’s shown raw speed and podium positions, but it hasn’t quite worked out yet. The biggest unknown is Lewis Hamilton. Can he find his mojo? Can he find that something special he used to have? He had that one sprint win last year, but everything else was a struggle for him. I’ve never seen Lewis so emotional before last year. Everything was a struggle and he was lost, lost for words too. It was awkward to watch, I didn’t enjoy seeing it. I hope his mindset has reset over the winter and that Ferrari can give Lewis and Charles a car to compete with.”

“Things are so different now, it’s not a given that McLaren will be the same. The active-aero, MGU-H not being part of it anymore, the fifty-fifty split with the battery and combustion engine too. It’s about how you make the battery last, because that’s been an issue in the simulators they’ve used. Technology has advanced so much in recent years that it’s going to be the main emphasis on how to be more efficient with the battery. I’ve heard that Formula E engineers, who are really good with configuring the efficiency of batteries and software, are being brought into Formula 1 to help with that aspect. Battery depletion will be the biggest issue this year. I hope it doesn’t interfere with the racing too much, to the point where drivers back off from each other and try to charge their batteries to overtake.”

Q. Who will be the most disappointing driver or team?

JH: “Cadillac will have a massive challenge ahead of them. The experience of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez will be useful. They’re a little older but that doesn’t matter as long as they have the motivation. The best example of that is Fernando Alonso. Cadillac will be the ones at the tail end, because they’re the new team. In this modern world of technology and factories which teams have, Cadillac will have to start fresh and find their way. Current F1 teams are already settled and know what they’re doing. I think they’ll be the most disappointing team.”

“Alpine also need to step up, they can’t get much more disappointing than last season. They have to show what they can do, especially with challengers like Cadillac and Audi joining the grid.”

Q. Who will be the biggest surprise of 2026?

JH: “Arvid Lindblad’s journey into Formula 1 has always been very strong. He is one who is very exciting to watch, and what Racing Bulls can give him. As a British driver, he’s one of the more exciting additions to the grid. There’s obviously Ollie Bearman, George Russell, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, but Arvid has a lot of excitement around him.”

“I met Arvid when he 14, he was a very confident lad even from a young age. He came up to me when I was karting at Shenington and he said ‘are you Johnny Herbert? I’m Arvid Lindblad!”

“I know Helmut Marko was very impressed with his confidence when he talks. Arvid always asks questions, always tries to find solutions to a problem, he’s a perfect driver for the Red Bull family. He was born with confidence, and karting probably brought it out of me. Karting brought the confidence out of me when I was a young age. Arvid will be very exciting to watch this year.”

Q. Will we see another level to Lando Norris’ racing now that the pressure is finally off of him?

JH: “Lando Norris has learnt how to deal with pressure in 2025. The pressure will still be on now that he’s heading into the season as the world champion. The expectations are there and will always be there. Anyone else who has gone up against Max Verstappen hasn’t succeeded, but Lando was able to beat him and Oscar Piastri at the same time. The maturity really started to come through during last season, but as a sportsman, he’ll be trying to push his limits yet again this season. Lando is a more complete driver because of the experiences he had in 2025, whether they were good or bad. I think he can mature even more, too, he can reach another level.”

Q. How will Oscar Piastri need to respond? Is there a worry that he could not be the same after a mentally tough season?

JH: “Just missing out on the championship will have a positive effect on Oscar Piastri. Yes, he’ll be disappointed, and it was an opportunity that got away, but that’s sport. There are good and bad times. Things can change, Formula 1 always has that ability to test the drivers. Even Max Verstappen made a comeback, anything can happen. Piastri didn’t have the consistency to win the championship despite having the winning car, he had a window where his performances were poor. Lando Norris was able to overcome his issues quickly. His main problem was his starts, but he was able to sort that out and put himself in a stronger position. Piastri needed to find that little weakness and fix it if he wanted to win the championship. He was very comfortable at the start of the season, but he struggled when it didn’t go his way. Piastri will have learnt that and will look to improve his weaknesses.”

Q. Is this Lewis Hamilton’s final season?

JH: “Lewis Hamilton will need a positive start to 2026 to stop people speculating it’s his last season.”

“Sebastian Vettel was really impressive in the Toro Rosso before he got into the Red Bull, but he came alive when he had the blown floor. He used it in such a powerful way, better than anyone else in that period. Then, when the blown floor was taken away, Vettel struggled. He joined Ferrari, then he went into a downward spiral.”

“These 2026 cars can suit certain drivers and bring drivers back into the mix. I think Lewis could be one of those drivers who benefit from the 2026 regulations. The motivation is there, if it were gone, he wouldn’t be on the grid. I remember Ayrton Senna would go away during the winter, reboot and refresh, come back as motivated as ever. That is what Lewis needs to do this year. It’s down to Ferrari to give them the right car to compete with, and for the drivers to adapt to the new changes. The greats of Formula 1 are able to adapt to new cars, this is an opportunity for Hamilton to start fresh at Ferrari and become a big threat.”

“Racing speed and craft never disappear, it will always be part of the likes of Lewis and Fernando Alonso. If they have that race craft, the right car and the motivation, either of them can compete for the championship.”

Q. Can Fernando Alonso compete for the 2026 championship?

JH: “Fernando Alonso showed on occasion last year that he had performances which got points for Aston Martin, but we haven’t seen him at the top of the grid for a few seasons now. All the changes over the last year have been positive for Aston Martin, but they’re still being challenged by the likes of McLaren and Red Bull. Audi will be coming in with fresh ideas, they’ve always been successful in other motorsports. Aston Martin will be sharing the same bit of tarmac with the toughest of teams, they have the desire to come out on top, but Aston Martin need the right elements. Could that be Adrian Newey, his team and Honda? I think they’ll have a better car and package than last year, but other teams may still be ahead. It will be a challenge for Alonso and Aston Martin to win the championship, a challenge that’s tougher than it ever has been.”

Q. Will Max Verstappen adapt to the new regulations the best, due to his natural racing talent?

JH: “There is always a chance that you don’t quite fit a new car. Max Verstappen is only human. Yes, he’s the best on the grid at this current time, but it doesn’t always mean he’s the fastest on the race track. That’s down to the performance of the car, or if you don’t fit the car. Like with Lewis Hamilton last year, he didn’t fit his car and lost his speed. There is a chance that new regulations could favour a certain type of driver. Lando Norris could benefit from the new car and grow even more as a driver, similar to Max after 2021. There’s always a chance of a driver maturing and becoming more complete if a new car suits their style. Can I see the new regulations not benefiting Max? Yes, because there is a human element to Formula 1, there are inconsistencies, and the best drivers try to reduce those inconsistencies. The likes of Max, Lewis and Lando will have to adapt this year and external influences can affect the championship.”

Q. If he starts well, can you imagine Max Verstappen comfortably winning eight or more world championships?

JH: “As we go into 2026, the one person who has really improved since his debut is Isack Hadjar. Now, can Hadjar challenge Max Verstappen? There will be eventually be someone who can challenge Max at Red Bull. And when there is someone challenging you in your own team, the dynamic can shift. If Hadjar can come out of the blocks very strong and give Max a headache, that’s a twist. Max will fight harder to keep himself ahead of his teammate. I haven’t seen Max pushed since he had Daniel Ricciardo as his teammate, but he’s a much stronger and complete Formula 1 driver now.”

“Hadjar has a tough opportunity that he can’t wait to take. If he waited, another generation of Formula 1 drivers could have taken that second Red Bull seat. Hadjar will need to be at his very best and needs to beat his four-time world champion teammate. This could be the first time in a while that Max has to fight his teammate and the likes of Lando Norris. There could be a little twist at Red Bull.”

Q. If Isack Hadjar is not able to compete with Max Verstappen, then could you see him go on to win eight world championships?

JH: “There is definitely a chance for Max Verstappen to win the record-breaking eighth world championship. I do think Lewis Hamilton should have done that, but it hasn’t happened, and I don’t think it will happen at Ferrari. Verstappen can win even more than eight, but he needs the right equipment to do that. With all the technology coming into 2026, it may not be Max’s year. Another team could become dominant, and then Max could be stuck at four. A prime example of someone who should have won more championships is Fernando Alonso, but he did a lot of moving around, and he was never in the right place. It just proves that even if he is one of the best drivers Formula 1 has ever seen, Alonso only has two and he could have won more. You just need that luck to be in the right place at the right time.”

“Sometimes you have to engineer that luck by yourself. Max made a decision not to go to Mercedes for 2026. If George Russell or Kimi Antonelli wins the world championship, then it will be very hard for Toto Wolff to let either of them go, even if Max is free. Wolff might not want to rock the boat by bringing in Max, he won’t want another Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton partnership again.”

“But, teams would be foolish not to take Max, because it takes him away from signing for other teams. It will be interesting to see what Max decides and how the other teams will approach him ahead of 2027. All the other drivers know their seats are up for grabs, because Max might become available.”