F1 Fantasy No Negative Chip: When to Play It
If you still hold the F1 Fantasy No Negative chip in 2026, play it at Las Vegas (R21), or at São Paulo (R20) if heavy rain is forecast there. It sets every scoring category that ends negative to zero, so it is worth most where contact, retirements and penalties are likely. In 2026, street circuits averaged 41 negative points on the most-picked team against 30 at permanent tracks.
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Based on the official F1 Fantasy game rules for 2026 and 2026 Global League Top 500 chip usage from RaceStrategist.
Key picks
| Item | The call |
|---|---|
| Play it at | Las Vegas (R21) |
| Heavy rain forecast at São Paulo | Play it at São Paulo (R20) and move Autopilot to Las Vegas |
| What it covers | Non-classifications, disqualifications and penalties for positions lost |
| Not covered | The -10 penalty for an extra transfer |
| Remember | Any chip unused after Abu Dhabi is lost |
No Negative does not add points. It stops a bad weekend from taking them away, so the value is in picking the weekend where your team is most likely to lose them.
What the No Negative chip does
You set No Negative before the lock, which comes when qualifying starts, like your transfers and the Boost.
- Any scoring category that ends negative is set to zero. Each category is zeroed on its own, so a negative in one category does not cancel a positive score in another.
- What counts as a negative. A Grand Prix non-classification (-20), a Sprint non-classification (-10), a qualifying non-classification (-5), disqualifications and penalties for positions lost.
- What it does not cover. Each transfer beyond your free allowance still costs 10 points.
- The 2X Boost still applies. The Boost is not a chip, so you set it on one driver as usual.
No Negative is available from Race 1, and like every chip it can be played once a season, with only one chip per race, as the official chip rules set out.
Why Las Vegas suits No Negative
Four rounds are left, São Paulo (R20), Las Vegas (R21), Qatar (R22) and Abu Dhabi (R23), and none is a Sprint weekend.
- It is a street circuit. In 2026, street circuits averaged 41 negative points on the most-picked team against 30 at permanent tracks, according to our 2026 chip data.
- Its record. At Las Vegas in 2025, both McLarens were disqualified after the race for skid wear and three cars retired after collisions. The race reports behind this are listed in the sources of our chip data.
- A Grand Prix retirement is the big negative left. With no Sprints left, the main value now is the protection against a Grand Prix retirement, which can be worth up to 20 points per driver. Without a Sprint, expect less than the 2026 Sprint average of 52.
- The lock comes a day early. The race is on Saturday 21 November, so qualifying and the lock come on Friday. In the UK that is 04:00 GMT on Saturday 21 November, so check your local lock time in the official F1 Fantasy game.
If heavy rain is forecast at São Paulo
Interlagos has a record of weather swings: the 2024 race was wet, qualifying was stopped five times and Verstappen won from 17th on the grid. If heavy rain is forecast there, play No Negative at São Paulo and move Autopilot to Las Vegas.
The São Paulo forecast in the week of the race is the one thing that could move the call. Without heavy rain, Autopilot takes São Paulo and No Negative stays at Las Vegas.
No Negative vs Autopilot
| Item | No Negative | Autopilot |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Sets every scoring category that ends negative to zero | After the weekend is scored, moves your 2X Boost to your highest-scoring driver |
| Best for | A weekend where contact, retirements and penalties are likely | A weekend where several of your drivers could top the scoring |
| 2026 run-in | Las Vegas (R21), or São Paulo (R20) if heavy rain is forecast | São Paulo (R20), or Las Vegas (R21) if No Negative goes at São Paulo |
The rest of your chips fit around these two. Limitless goes at Qatar (R22) or Abu Dhabi (R23), whichever your other chips leave free. Final Fix is for the first post-qualifying problem from São Paulo, otherwise Abu Dhabi. Only one chip counts per race, so the weekend you play No Negative cannot also take Final Fix. The full plan, with every remaining chip given a round, is in where each remaining chip goes.
When to play No Negative in 2027
This assumes the 2027 chips and rules stay close to 2026. The 2027 calendar has 24 rounds and 10 Sprints, and the 2026 data points to three things to look for.
- A Sprint weekend. In 2026, No Negative would have removed an average of 52 negative points on the most-picked team on the six Sprint weekends, against 26 on the 12 standard weekends.
- A street or park circuit. Street and park circuits averaged 41 negative points on the most-picked team against 30 at permanent tracks.
- The kind of weekend that produced the most negatives. Across the whole grid, the three highest were China (372, a dry race with three retirements and four non-starters), Singapore (355, a wet Sprint before a dry race) and Canada (309, where a rain hazard was declared but no rain fell). Reliability and Sprints drove the 2026 negatives more than rain did.
The best 2026 round in hindsight was Miami (R4, a Sprint), with 77 negative points avoided on the most-picked team. The top 500's favourite round was Spain (R14, 39.2%), which was worth 26, 12th of 18. By round 19, only 5.8% of the top 500 still held No Negative, according to RaceStrategist, so few top players had it left for the run-in.
That points to a Sprint weekend at a street or park circuit, or with rain forecast: R3 Australia, R7 Canada or R8 Monaco. The 2026 negatives were driven by new-car reliability, which may improve in year two, so treat these rounds as a starting point and let the forecast and form decide. The round-by-round figures are in our 2026 chip data.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the No Negative chip in F1 Fantasy?
A chip that sets any scoring category that ends negative to zero for one race weekend. Each category is zeroed on its own, and it covers non-classifications, disqualifications and penalties for positions lost.
When should you play No Negative in the 2026 run-in?
At Las Vegas (R21), or at São Paulo (R20) if heavy rain is forecast there. Las Vegas is a street circuit, and in 2025 both McLarens were disqualified there after the race and three cars retired after collisions.
Does No Negative cover the transfer penalty?
No. The -10 penalty for each transfer beyond your free allowance is not covered, so extra transfers still cost points that weekend.
Does No Negative cover a disqualification?
Yes. Disqualifications are one of the negative categories it sets to zero, along with Grand Prix, Sprint and qualifying non-classifications and penalties for positions lost.
Can you use No Negative with another chip?
No. Only one chip can be played per race, so the weekend you play No Negative cannot also take Final Fix, Autopilot or any other chip. The standard 2X Boost is not a chip, so you still set it on one driver before the lock.
When should you play No Negative in 2027?
On a Sprint weekend, ideally at a street or park circuit or with rain forecast. In 2026 it would have removed 52 negative points on Sprint weekends against 26 on standard ones, which points to R3 Australia, R7 Canada or R8 Monaco in 2027.
For all six chips in one place, see what each F1 Fantasy chip does and when to use it. For the data behind these calls, see our 2026 chip data, and for the rest of the run-in see where each remaining chip goes.
Gridside sends one email before every race weekend with the exact call for your team: which transfer to make, who to Boost and whether to play a chip. £4.99 for the rest of the 2026 season at gridside.app.