Michael Schumacher’s daughter speaks out as Max Verstappen told ‘shut up’

Formula 1 news round-up from this week’s headlines as Max Verstappen is put in his place and Michael Schumacher’s daughter speaks out

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Max Verstappen has threatened to quit F1(Image: Jayce Illman, Getty Images)

Talking points aplenty have emerged from the opening three rounds of the 2026 F1 season. Mercedes have delivered on their tag of pre-season favourites, with George Russell winning the season opener in Australia and Kimi Antonelli taking victory in China and Japan.

Ferrari have been giving the Silver Arrows a run for their money, with Lewis Hamilton finally securing his first podium for the iconic Italian team, while it’s been a tough start for world champion Lando Norris, who sits fifth in the standings. However, it’s Max Verstappen who has been grabbing most of the headlines following his repeated criticism of the sport’s new regulations.

The four-time world champion has made it clear he isn’t enjoying the changes, which require constant management of the car’s electrical energy, and that he is ready to quit. With the sport in the midst of a month-long hiatus following the cancellation of the Saudi Arabia and Bahrain Grands Prix, here’s a round-up of the latest F1 news…

Verstappen told to shut it

Verstappen, who has described the current regulations as like “Formula E on steroids,” has been told to quit moaning or quit the sport. That message has come from another straight-talking F1 figure in Juan Pablo Montoya.

The Colombian, who raced for Williams and McLaren in the first half of the 2000s, told Casinostugan: “If you’re unhappy with being in Formula 1, you should leave. Have the courage of your convictions. If you’re unhappy with the rules, then talk to people instead of threatening that you’re going to leave.

“If I were him, I’d shut up, deal with it and admit that he’s in a s**** car and admit he’s frustrated because his car is a piece of c*** that is 20 kilos over and it’s going to be uncompetitive all year. At the end of the day, nobody’s bigger than the sport.”

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Verstappen is deeply unhappy with F1’s new rules(Image: TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA, AFP via Getty Images)

Schumacher’s daughter speaks out

Michael Schumacher’s daughter has opened up about how she threw herself into horse riding following her father’s devastating skiing accident. The seven-time F1 king hasn’t been seen in public since being left with life-altering head injuries following a fall in late 2013.

While Schumacher’s son, Mick, pursued a career in motorsport, spending two seasons in F1 with Haas, his daughter, Gina, followed her passion for equestrianism.

Gina revealed in her upcoming documentary, Horsepower: The World of Gina Schumacher, how her dad’s accident affected her. She said: “After dad’s accident, I really threw myself into it because I had to do something.

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Gina Schumacher has opened up about how she dealt with her father’s accident(Image: Gisela Schober/Getty Images)

“The horses have always been important. But since then they’ve really been… I couldn’t do without horses. They helped me get through everything.

“She [my mother] used to have a horse, and when we were younger, she wanted to start again. But she wanted a safe horse. Then she was in Dubai with dad, and they rode Arabians. Dad fell off one.

“There was a Quarter Horse next to it, and he was there to calm the others down. Mum said she wanted a horse like that.”

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Michael Schumacher hasn’t been seen in public since his skiing crash(Image: Clive Mason, Getty Images)

Ferrari snubbed Antonelli

Ferrari had the chance to sign Antonelli in his youth, but passed on him because of his size. Given his nationality, many would have expected the Italian team to be at the front of the queue to land the racing prodigy.

Ferrari did have the chance to sign an 11-year-old Antonelli, only for former Scuderia chief Maurizio Arrivabene to let him slip through his fingers. According to The Race, Massimo Rivola, then director of Ferrari’s driving academy, believed he had found “the special one” for the future.

However, Arrivabene felt Antonelli was “too small” and decided against adding him to Ferrari’s young driver stable. That allowed Mercedes, who had missed out on signing a young Verstappen, to swoop in and sign him.