Oct.22 (GMM) Race sponsor Pirelli, and US GP organisers, had to hurriedly backtrack on its plans for novel designer trophies for the F1 winners in Austin. The Pirelli-commissioned trophies, penned and constructed by Italian designer Matteo Machiavelli and affectionately named ‘Heroo’, were revealed with much fanfare in the days before the US GP. To some, […]
Mexico will be ‘more difficult’ for Red Bull – Marko
Oct.22 (GMM) Red Bull is bracing for a “more difficult” task this weekend in Mexico. Amid a mid-season performance slump, the reigning champions worked hard over the three-week break between Singapore and Austin and even managed to extend Max Verstappen’s points gap over Lando Norris in the US GP. Dutch personality Tom Coronel thinks it […]
Audi allowed to spend more than F1 rivals from 2026
Oct.21 (GMM) Audi will be allowed to spend more under Formula 1’s budget cap provisions from 2026. Bosses at the Sauber team, now 100 percent owned by Audi ahead of the start of the German carmaker’s official F1 project from 2026, have argued they should be permitted to spend more because of higher wage bills […]
Austin wants new F1 race contract beyond 2026
Oct.21 (GMM) Organisers of the US GP in Austin want to safeguard their place on the Formula 1 calendar. The event at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) was first held in 2012, prior to the Liberty Media era and having ended the drought of American races in Formula 1. But since Liberty Media took […]
Verstappen not promising to attend FIA award gala
Oct.21 (GMM) Max Verstappen is not completely committing to attending December’s FIA awards ceremony in Kigali, Rwanda. Rwanda is not only a leading contender for a future African GP, it has been named as the scene of the end-of-season FIA prize giving – mandatory for high-achieving drivers like the triple world champion. Verstappen’s relationship with […]
Bottas could be Mercedes test driver in 2025
Oct.21 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas’ Formula 1 racing career may either be over, or it will be safeguarded for multiple more seasons. After Singapore, the Finn seemed to be heading for a new one-year deal with Audi-owned Sauber – but the situation changed dramatically over the subsequent three-weekend break. During that time, younger options Mick Schumacher, […]
Verstappen has ‘great relationship’ with Zak Brown
Oct.21 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he’s staying out of the escalating off-track battle between Red Bull and McLaren. As the triple world champion battles on track with his friend Lando Norris, their bosses are at war on the sidelines. Red Bull got McLaren’s ‘mini DRS’ rear wing banned after Baku, and McLaren returned fire with […]
Norris’ Austin penalty ‘strange and bizarre’ – Wolff
Oct.21 (GMM) Toto Wolff is siding strongly with McLaren, over the penalty that prevented Lando Norris from narrowing the championship points gap on Sunday. Norris and championship leader Max Verstappen were locked in a spectacular battle for the last podium place in Austin when the McLaren driver left the track limits as he overtook Verstappen. […]
Ricciardo wanted low-key final race, RB CEO insists
Oct.20 (GMM) The CEO of Red Bull-owned RB says Daniel Ricciardo actually asked for the news about his team axe to be delayed until after the Singapore GP weekend was over. Fans, rival drivers, and even Max Verstappen and RB team boss Laurent Mekies said the way Red Bull did not allow Ricciardo’s final race […]
Marko versus Brown ‘war of words’ rumbles on
Oct.20 (GMM) Red Bull versus McLaren is no longer just a wheel-to-wheel and technical battle – it’s descended into an ongoing war or words. Prior to the US GP weekend, Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko pointed out what he regards as Lando Norris’ mental weaknesses, culminating in bad race starts and pre-race nerves and […]
Marko admits Perez may be dropped at season’s end
Oct.20 (GMM) Red Bull is clearly contemplating dropping Sergio Perez at the end of the season. Both before and after the Mexican driver signed a new contract for 2025 and 2026, Perez’s ongoing place as teammate to Max Verstappen has been under a cloud. That cloud is now turning grey, as Liam Lawson has replaced […]
T-tray scandal ‘no longer a story’, declares FIA
Oct.20 (GMM) F1’s governing body has moved to draw a line under the ‘T-tray’ scandal at the US GP. It emerged in Austin that several teams, most prominently title rival McLaren, had questioned the way the ride height on Red Bull’s car could theoretically be adjusted from the cockpit even under parc ferme conditions. “Every […]
Red Bull upgrades restore ‘old times’ for Verstappen
Oct.20 (GMM) Red Bull’s critical car upgrades in Austin, powering Max Verstappen to sprint pole, sprint victory and P2 on the grid for the US GP, means the team is “racing again”. “It feels a bit like old times,” said the triple world champion on Saturday. “I think for us, finally, we’re racing again. Normally […]
Leclerc admits he wouldn’t ‘deserve’ 2024 title
Oct.19 (GMM) Charles Leclerc admits that if he wins the 2024 world championship, he won’t “deserve it”. Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, separated by 52 points with six races to go, are the obvious head-to-head contenders for the drivers’ title. But Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is only 34 points further behind that battle – meaning it’s […]
Alonso admits missing the F1 of the past
Oct.19 (GMM) As Fernando Alonso approaches the unprecedented milestone of 400 grands prix, he admits there is plenty he misses about the Formula 1 of the past. The Spaniard, now 43 and signed up at Aston Martin for 2025 and 2026, debuted all the way back in 2001, when he was still a teenager. He […]
Audi not bowing to Bottas decision ‘deadline’
Oct.19 (GMM) Audi-owned Sauber is not bowing to Valtteri Bottas’ pressure for a faster driver decision about 2025. The team’s Finnish incumbent declared ahead of the US GP that he needs boss Mattia Binotto to either give him a “yes” or “no” as soon as possible, as even alternative options outside of Formula 1 will […]
Red Bull admits mishandling Ricciardo exit
Oct.19 (GMM) Red Bull mishandled Daniel Ricciardo’s final race in Formula 1. That’s the claim not only of numerous pundits and fans, but also Ricciardo’s friend and former teammate Max Verstappen. Liam Lawson admits both he and Ricciardo knew about the looming RB seat change well prior to the Singapore GP weekend – but were […]
No FIA talks yet after F-word scandal – Verstappen
Oct.19 (GMM) Max Verstappen admits he is yet to speak to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem in the wake of the Singapore swearing affair. George Russell, senior director of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association, says the GPDA is standing behind the triple world champion, who must complete a day of unspecified community service for describing […]
Norris ‘mistakes’ to cost him world title – Trulli
Oct.19 (GMM) The “calm” and mature Max Verstappen should be able to hold off a charging Lando Norris for the 2024 world championship, according to former F1 driver Jarno Trulli. Although the ‘T-tray’ scandal is unfolding around Red Bull in Austin, the good news for championship leader Verstappen’s team is that new upgrades appear to […]
Red Bull scandal could be ‘more than cheating’ – Vasseur
Oct.19 (GMM) Red Bull may be guilty of “more than cheating” amid the ‘T-tray’ affair that is unfolding at the US GP. That’s according to Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur, who weighed into Formula 1’s latest technical scandal that is being pushed hardest by Red Bull’s title rival McLaren. Red Bull mechanics showed FIA inspectors how […]