Legend Tom Kristensen has been watching the 2026 season unfold, and he's got some spicy takes on who's impressing and who's frankly disappointing. The Le Mans icon reckons Aston Martin's been a shock underperformer this year, considering they've got all the pieces in place to be competitive. Carlos Sainz must be gutted that Williams isn't delivering better results either, and even Haas came out swinging before petering out. But Kristensen's more interested in celebrating the bright spots than dwelling on the struggles.

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When it comes to the standouts, Kimi Antonelli is running away with it as championship leader, and that's got Kristensen's full attention. He's also buzzing about Audi's first season with their own power unit, which has been genuinely impressive for a manufacturer making the jump into F1. Then there's Isack Hadjar holding his own as Max Verstappen's teammate at Red Bull Racing, and Lewis Hamilton rediscovering his winning form. Cadillac's maiden campaign is looking decent too, though they've been plagued by brake overheating issues that need sorting before their own General Motors engine arrives.

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Here's where it gets interesting. Before the season started, Kristensen was asked to predict the world champion for his ViaPlay work. Everyone was backing George Russell and Mercedes, so he deliberately went contrarian and picked Charles Leclerc. He even called Monaco as the best race of the season and predicted Audi would pull off a sensational win there. Monaco absolutely delivered with that mad pit lane penalty chaos, but he admits he should've backed Kimi, who's now clearly on top form and building a commanding lead.

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Looking at the bigger picture, Kristensen thinks F1 needs to nail the balance between keeping traditional racing nations like France and Germany on the calendar while still embracing new markets that are driving massive interest. He's not a fan of circuits that all look the same and believes tracks need character. On the sprint race debate, he gets it for trackside fans but worries about the toll on teams and drivers. And on the FIA's plans to return to naturally aspirated engines by 2031, Kristensen reckons there was some overreaction early on when teams struggled with the new power units, but F1 needs to stay relevant by keeping manufacturers invested in the sport.

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