Mar.27 (GMM) Intrigue surrounding Max Verstappen’s first technical DNF for a full two years is only swelling, after he retired early in Melbourne with a stuck rear brake and subsequent fire. Brembo, a leading F1 brake supplier, has come out to deny speculation it was a component failure, insisting it was “probably” caused by car […]
No two-race ultimatum for Ricciardo – Marko
Mar.27 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has denied rumours a two-race ultimatum has been imposed on Daniel Ricciardo to up his game or lose his RB seat to Liam Lawson by the Miami GP. According to German specialist reports, Red Bull’s top consultant Marko dismissed the rumours that had appeared in the New Zealand press, triggered […]
Alonso in ‘new’ talks to replace Verstappen at Red Bull
Mar.26 (GMM) “Completely new rumours” involving Fernando Alonso and Red Bull have begun to circulate among Formula 1 insiders. That is the claim of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, despite a much quieter weekend of intrigue and speculation in Melbourne surrounding the Christian Horner scandal and Red Bull power struggle. Nonetheless, some think what appears […]
Alpine drivers pin hopes on Suzuka upgrade
Mar.26 (GMM) Alpine is pinning its hopes on the next race in Japan to trigger a wave of momentum that begins to pull Renault’s once-great team off the back of the 2024 grid. Actually, following the disastrous pace seen in Bahrain and Jeddah, French duo Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly already looked happier in Melbourne […]
RB tells Ricciardo to ‘brake harder’ amid ultimatum rumours
Mar.26 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo’s Formula 1 career may now be in a two-race countdown to the end. Not one to be liberal with praise, Red Bull’s powerful F1 consultant Dr Helmut Marko has said several times in the past days that Yuki Tsunoda is doing enough to keep his place in the energy drink company’s […]
Alonso went ‘too far’ with Russell ‘brake test’
Mar.25 (GMM) Fernando Alonso went “too far” in “using his elbows” in the dying moments of the Australian GP. That is the view not only of expert pundits, but also the FIA – whose stewards put three penalty points on his F1 superlicense and a 20-second penalty for the scary incident that effectively ended the […]
Wolff admits questions about quitting F1 ‘fair’
Mar.25 (GMM) As Mercedes’ past successes fade into distant memory, team boss and co-owner Toto Wolff admits questions about his own future in Formula 1 are “fair”. Having badly faltered with the now-scrapped 2022-2023 car concept, hopes were high for a much better season this year – Lewis Hamilton’s last in silver. But Hamilton has […]
Bottas criticises Sauber as hopes of Audi future fade
Mar.25 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has issued some rare criticism of Sauber, amid rising rumours that he will be left out of the team’s plans for its works Audi future. The Swiss outfit, now 100 percent owned by Audi, went into the Melbourne weekend admitting that technical problems that have badly marred the pitstops so far […]
Marko hints ‘mature’ Tsunoda ready for top F1 seat
Mar.25 (GMM) Yuki Tsunoda’s star is continuing to rise rapidly, as Red Bull contemplates its next driver promotions and demotions in Formula 1. Experienced race winner Daniel Ricciardo, earlier the favourite to replace Sergio Perez at Red Bull next year, is pitted against Japanese 23-year-old Tsunoda at the junior F1 team RB this year. And […]
‘No panic’ at Red Bull after defeat to Ferrari – Marko
Mar.25 (GMM) Carlos Sainz won the Australian GP, but the jury is out as to whether Ferrari can now mount a sustained attack on Red Bull’s dominance. The Spaniard admits his red car “worked really well” in Melbourne, but he admits that a clear gap to Red Bull persists. “It’s going to be tough to […]
Sainz ‘in talks’ with four F1 teams for 2025
Mar.25 (GMM) Carlos Sainz is suddenly being linked with an increasing number of Formula 1 teams for 2025. The 29-year-old Spaniard, who in his own words is “still without a job for next year” after Ferrari decided to replace him with Lewis Hamilton, gave himself the best possible endorsement by winning Sunday’s Australian GP. The […]
Tsunoda eyes Red Bull, Ricciardo eyes F1 exit door
Mar.24 (GMM) While one driver is eyeing a move to Formula 1’s top seat, his teammate is facing the exit door. “That was a fantastic performance,” Dr Helmut Marko, the notoriously stormy and influential F1 consultant at Red Bull, told Servus TV in Melbourne. “He was there the whole time and he didn’t make any […]
Verstappen would ‘destroy’ car in Sargeant’s situation
Mar.24 (GMM) Williams is still taking fire for its lack of preparation for the 2024 season. Alex Albon crashed heavily in Melbourne practice, badly damaging the chassis. He was then shuffled into the sidelined teammate Logan Sargeant’s car for the remainder of the weekend – enraging his fans and puzzling Formula 1 experts. “I would […]
Pirelli choosing tyres for ‘better show’ in 2024
Mar.24 (GMM) Pirelli is trying to spice up Formula 1’s on-track action in 2024. At round three of the new world championship, it is already clear that Max Verstappen and Red Bull will almost certainly remain dominant for yet another season. But the good news is that Pirelli, the sport’s sole tyre supplier that works […]
Hamilton ‘done’ with struggles at Mercedes – Doornbos
Mar.24 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is “done” with his Mercedes, according to former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos. After full two years of struggling in the new ground-effect regulations era, the seven time world champion is not only still grappling with his Mercedes – he has been out-qualified by teammate George Russell 0-3 so far in […]
Wolff happy to ‘wait’ for Verstappen amid Red Bull chaos
Mar.23 (GMM) Toto Wolff says he will keep “waiting” for Max Verstappen, as the Red Bull power struggle and Christian Horner affair keeps bubbling in the background. Verstappen, under contract to Red Bull through 2028, said in Melbourne that it was “nice to hear” Mercedes boss Wolff admit that he would “love” to accommodate the […]
FIA president vows to fight on after F1 ‘attacks’
Mar.23 (GMM) FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem claims both he and F1’s governing body are being attacked by people trying to “destabilise me”. It has been clear for some time that, under Sulayem’s reign, a power struggle has emerged between the FIA, F1’s commercial rights holder Liberty Media, and many of the current teams. A […]
Bahrain buys McLaren, Brown stays as boss
Mar.23 (GMM) Zak Brown will continue to lead the McLaren team as it is 100 percent acquired by Bahrain’s state wealth fund Muntalakat. In a statement, the McLaren Group – taking in not only the famous Woking based Formula 1 team but its road car and other businesses – confirmed that Bahrain now has “full […]
Vettel not ruling out racing at Le Mans in 2024
Mar.23 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel may have launched his return to competitive motorsport. Porsche has announced that its works Penske team will give the quadruple world champion, who retired from Formula 1 at the end of 2022, a full endurance test in its Porsche 963 Le Mans hypercar at the Aragon circuit next week. “Vettel has […]
Leclerc ‘extremely strong’ in Melbourne – Marko
Mar.23 (GMM) Max Verstappen may have a fight on his hands to win a third consecutive grand prix in 2024 this weekend, admitting after practice that “Ferrari is certainly fast”. “But we can fine-tune a few things,” the triple world champion said in Melbourne. “I don’t see a reason to worry yet,” Red Bull’s Dutch […]