F1 2026 season best and worst races ranked by motorsport writers

The recurring theme across every verdict here is the same: when energy management dominates, the racing suffers, and when it recedes into the background, the sport reminds you why you watch. Barcelona and Canada earn praise precisely because conventional racing variables — strategy, tyres, driver error — were allowed to decide outcomes. Suzuka and Spa draw near-universal criticism not because the circuits failed, but because the 2026 power unit characteristics exposed those layouts in the worst possible way, turning high-speed venues into showcases for button-press position swaps rather than earned overtakes. The British GP sits uncomfortably in the middle: genuinely compelling racing undermined by both the energy starvation problem and a safety car conclusion that robbed it of a proper finish, which makes it the most frustrating entry on the list rather than simply the worst.