Jul.24 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has no regrets after making what has been described as the “brutal” decision to axe Alpha Tauri rookie Nyck de Vries. The Red Bull official said he made the call because Dutchman de Vries, and the rest of the energy drink company’s struggling junior team, were “stagnating”. “Nyck de Vries […]
Category: Recent stories
Marko admits ‘relief’ after Hungary challenge
Jul.24 (GMM) Any hopes that Red Bull may be at risk of being caught by its rivals disappeared with Max Verstappen’s win by a huge 33 seconds on Sunday. The only real glitch for the Dutchman, who just a day earlier had complained about “terrible” car handling as he missed pole to Lewis Hamilton, was […]
Perez slams ‘crazy’ Red Bull sabotage claims
Jul.23 (GMM) Sergio Perez has slammed online suggestions that Red Bull is sabotaging his Formula 1 car. Fans on social media have claimed the energy drink-owned team must be somehow disadvantaging the now-struggling Mexican after he presented an early challenge to teammate Max Verstappen’s dominance in 2023. “The cars are the same,” Perez told El […]
Marko denies he will quit after 2023 season
Jul.23 (GMM) Rumours are swirling in the Hungaroring paddock that Dr Helmut Marko may step down at the end of 2023. At the age of 80, the former Formula 1 driver and 1971 Le Mans winner is still at full throttle as a key official in Red Bull’s successful F1 program. It was believed that […]
Red Bull eyeing Ricciardo for Perez’s seat – Wolff
Jul.23 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo is being auditioned by Red Bull as a potential successor for Sergio Perez. That is not the claim of a Formula 1 insider or broadcaster pundit, but rather Mercedes boss Toto Wolff. Earlier in Hungary, Mercedes’ engineering boss Andrew Shovlin indicated that there may be room at the team for axed […]
Aston Martin needs to improve update game – Alonso
Jul.23 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says it is clear that Aston Martin needs to get better at in-season car developments. The Spaniard has almost single-handedly propelled the vastly improved team to third overall in the constructors’ championship. He is almost 100 points ahead of the team owner’s son Lance Stroll, meaning that if his teammate had […]
‘Both’ Haas drivers set for new F1 contracts
Jul.23 (GMM) Haas appears to be heading towards new contracts for “both” of its current drivers. With Haas owner Gene Haas making a rare visit to the Formula 1 paddock this weekend, it is clear that both he and team boss Gunther Steiner are ready to ink a new deal with Nico Hulkenberg. So with […]
New qualifying format ‘horrible’ – Alonso
Jul.23 (GMM) The tweaked qualifying format trialled this weekend, and set to be repeated again later this season, may not survive the post-Hungary debut. “It’s been horrible,” said Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso. Plenty of others in the F1 paddock agree that taking away two sets of tyres per driver, and compelling certain compounds choices in […]
‘Updates work’ despite Hamilton pole – Marko
Jul.23 (GMM) After Lewis Hamilton’s breakthrough return to pole position in Hungary, Toto Wolff hinted that the next step is a signature on a 2024 contract. “It’s not signed but we’ve done it emotionally,” the Mercedes boss said. Hamilton agreed: “It’s taking more time than we all thought to get to where we want to […]
‘No better place’ for Sainz than Ferrari
Jul.22 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he will push hard to secure a new contract to keep racing at Ferrari beyond 2024. The Spaniard has been outspoken about wanting a new deal to be secured as soon as possible – but in Hungary agreed with his team boss Frederic Vasseur’s decision to delay talks for now. […]
F1 filming continues despite Hollywood strike
Jul.22 (GMM) Filming of the new Formula 1 movie starring Brad Pitt is continuing this weekend in Hungary – despite the highly publicised Hollywood production strike. “All filming is cancelled, for now,” a source for the film’s production team told NBC last week. “Brad Pitt really had fun, but he’s definitely a very loyal member […]
‘Wrong’ to replace de Vries with rookie Lawson – Marko
Jul.22 (GMM) Liam Lawson is still in the running for a future in Formula 1. That is the despite the fact that the 21-year-old New Zealander, now the most prominent driver in Red Bull’s junior ranks, was overlooked for axed Nyck de Vries’ Alpha Tauri seat. “We were in contact with Liam,” Dr Helmut Marko, […]
Alpine never made offer for 2023 – Alonso
Jul.22 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has revealed that Alpine never actually made him an offer to stay with the Renault-owned team last year. Alpine is in the Formula 1 headlines at the moment, but mainly because of lagging progress and sweeping management shakeups. “It shouldn’t have an impact whatsoever,” said team boss Otmar Szafnauer in Hungary, […]
Jury out on Red Bull upgrade, qualifying tweak
Jul.22 (GMM) The jury is out as to how successful Red Bull’s rare-in-2023 car upgrade is in Hungary. Sergio Perez crashed one version of the package in FP1, with Dr Helmut Marko revealing the Mexican is now out of spare parts. As for Max Verstappen, he was out of the top ten in the later […]
Perez ‘will lose his place’ at Red Bull
Jul.22 (GMM) Sergio Perez’s future at Red Bull became even more clouded on Friday when he crashed during his opening practice laps at the Hungaroring. With Daniel Ricciardo back in racing action in the Red Bull family this weekend and Yuki Tsunoda also still shining in the sister Alpha Tauri, former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher […]
First F1 ‘mudguard’ test ‘a failure’ – report
Jul.22 (GMM) The first test of anti-rain ‘mudguards’ to improve drivers’ visibility did not go well. Following the death of a junior category driver at the treacherous Spa-Francorchamps circuit recently, Formula 1 vowed to trial an innovation designed to minimise spray that has only worsened in the ground-effect era. Mercedes and McLaren took part in […]
Mercedes open to reuniting with sacked de Vries
Jul.22 (GMM) Mercedes could be open to welcoming out-of-work Nyck de Vries back to Formula 1. Prior to impressing in his one-off Williams ride last year, the rookie Dutchman – fresh from victory in the Formula E championship – was Mercedes’ official reserve driver. But as de Vries was subsequently snapped up by Red Bull […]
FIA plays down budget cap breach rumours
Jul.21 (GMM) F1’s governing body has played down rumours up to three teams may be set to be punished for breaching the sport’s budget cap. Last year, Red Bull and Aston Martin were found to have overspent in 2021 – but Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali wants future breaches to be “sporting” rather than merely […]
Drivers cautious on mid-season qualifying tweak
Jul.21 (GMM) Two top Formula 1 drivers aren’t too sure how keen they are on the latest mid-season rule changes in 2023. Fernando Alonso says he isn’t sure if Pirelli’s fundamentally different tyre construction introduced at Silverstone contributed to Aston Martin’s more difficult weekend. “Obviously it is still one factor that we still need to […]
Haas not ready to extend Magnussen’s contract
Jul.21 (GMM) As Nico Hulkenberg cruises towards a new contract with Haas, the American team is not quite ready to decide if Kevin Magnussen will also stay in 2024. Team owner Gene Haas is making a rare paddock visit this weekend in Hungary, with team boss Gunther Steiner admitting a new deal for new arrival […]