Oct.6 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he would like to be excluded from “stupid” athlete of the year awards nominations. Formula 1’s dominant Dutchman won a prestigious Laureus award last year, and also the Dutch sports federation’s athlete of the year title in 2016, 2021 and 2022. But the newly-26-year-old says he doesn’t want to be […]
Lawson will be back on grid in 2025 ‘at the latest’
Oct.6 (GMM) Liam Lawson will be a full-time Formula 1 racer “by 2025 at the latest”. That is the news from Red Bull’s notorious driver program czar Dr Helmut Marko, after New Zealand rookie Lawson admitted that being left out of Alpha Tauri’s race lineup for 2024 was “disappointing”. For now, he will get at […]
Albon backs Sargeant for last seat on 2024 grid
Oct.6 (GMM) Alex Albon says he would be happy if Williams keeps struggling rookie Logan Sargeant onboard for 2024. 22-year-old American Sargeant’s seat is the final official vacancy on next year’s grid, but he has been having high-profile crashes recently. “It’s just about maybe dialling it back a little bit,” he said in Qatar, “making […]
F1 heading for ‘power struggle’ over Andretti bid
Oct.5 (GMM) Formula 1, the teams and the FIA are heading for a major dispute over the issue of green-lighting Andretti-Cadillac’s entry to the sport. The FIA has approved Andretti’s bid, but the matter is now passing into the hands of F1 owner Liberty Media for what are set to be thorny commercial negotiations. “Stefano […]
Leclerc at F1 ‘crossroads’ – Schumacher
Oct.5 (GMM) Charles Leclerc has reached a “crossroads” in his Formula 1 career. That is the view of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, referring to the way in which Leclerc’s teammate Carlos Sainz has emerged as the more impressive-looking Ferrari driver in 2023. For his part, Spaniard Sainz played down the perception that he and […]
Marko says no ‘rush’ for Ricciardo return
Oct.5 (GMM) A disappointed Liam Lawson will at least get one more outing at the wheel of injured Daniel Ricciardo’s Alpha Tauri. The team has now confirmed earlier reports suggesting Australian Ricciardo is not ready to return this weekend in Qatar – meaning Austin late this month is now the likely comeback date. Red Bull’s […]
Rejected bidder thinks Andretti will enter F1
Oct.4 (GMM) One well-placed insider thinks Formula 1 will add Andretti-Cadillac as the sport’s eleventh team. This week, the FIA finally announced that, out of several applications to become the eleventh and twelfth teams, only Andretti’s bid was given the green light. However, the final phase of the tender process is commercial negotiations with Liberty […]
F1 could scrap 18-inch tyres to reduce car weight
Oct.4 (GMM) Formula 1 could shrink the size of the wheels and tyres as part of an effort to get the rising height of the already-hefty cars down for 2026. With the electrical components of the new cars for 2026 set to add even more weight to the current 798kg minimum weight, the FIA recently […]
Bottas admits to stalled ‘progress’ at Alfa Romeo
Oct.4 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas admits “progress” at Alfa Romeo has been lacking for some time now. Last year, as the new ‘ground effect’ rules took effect, the Swiss-based team got an early advantage by getting closer to the minimum weight than most other outfits. “We overperformed and were much better than expected,” Finn Bottas, 34, […]
Red Bull dominance could last years – Sainz
Oct.4 (GMM) Carlos Sainz admits rival Formula 1 teams may not be able to end Red Bull’s dominance any time soon. Given how dominant Red Bull has been since the start of the new ‘ground effect’ regulations in 2022 and 2023, some are predicting the Max Verstappen could keep collecting titles at least until the […]
Horner ‘sure’ Wolff won’t suddenly quit F1
Oct.4 (GMM) Christian Horner has played down speculation his F1 nemesis Toto Wolff might quit Formula 1. Wolff, the team boss at Mercedes, sat out the recent Japanese GP – ostensibly for knee surgery – and was replaced by new deputy Jerome d’Ambrosio and communications boss Bradley Lord. At the same time, others in the […]
Williams vacancy for Lawson, not Schumacher – pundit
Oct.3 (GMM) Liam Lawson is on the way into Formula 1, whilst Mick Schumacher is on the way out. That’s the verdict of former F1 driver turned pundit Christian Danner, amid reports Haas refugee and current Mercedes reserve Schumacher looks likely to accept an offer to race in sportscars next year. “In the two years […]
Red Bull, Honda, at arm’s length until 2026
Oct.3 (GMM) Red Bull and Honda have both confirmed that their working relationship at present is quite awkward. Currently, their chassis-engine combination is utterly dominating Formula 1 – but it has a clear end-date. Red Bull is already working on its own engine in collaboration with Ford for the new rules in 2026, with Honda […]
Sainz future ‘will be decided’ over the winter
Oct.3 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he will sit down with Ferrari executives over the winter to negotiate a potential new deal beyond 2024. The on-form Spanish driver’s famous father and namesake recently confirmed speculation that Audi, entering F1 with Sauber for 2026, may be interested in Sainz. It seems like the perfect time for the […]
Mexico GP seeks to stop ‘racist comments’
Oct.3 (GMM) Organisers of the Mexican GP are calling for calm ahead of Sergio Perez’s home race later this month. There have been incidents involving verbal abuse and booing in recent years, while the Mexican GP even complained about the way Dr Helmut Marko recently criticised Red Bull’s Perez for his ‘South American’ lack of […]
Ricciardo admits aiming for Red Bull return
Oct.3 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo is not hiding that he is eyeing the cockpit alongside Max Verstappen. The Australian, currently recovering from a broken hand, dropped out of Formula 1 altogether at the end of last year after two years of struggling at McLaren. “I didn’t fall out with anyone in the team,” Ricciardo told the […]
Hamilton not ‘ready’ for Ferrari switch
Oct.3 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton says he has never felt “ready” to accept an offer to race for Formula 1’s most famous team – Ferrari. While the seven time world champion’s new two-year Mercedes deal was still being negotiated amid a long delay, there were rumours that Ferrari was interested. “Not really,” said the 38-year-old when […]
Liberty ‘notes’ FIA’s green-light for Andretti
Oct.3 (GMM) Formula 1’s owner Liberty Media will decide if Andretti-Cadillac is welcomed onto the grid. The sport’s separate governing body, the FIA, has now confirmed widespread speculation that former F1 driver Michael Andretti’s organisation has been successful in applying to enter Formula 1. The FIA, adding that all other applicants were rejected, said it […]
Renault CEO intervenes to stop F1 team ‘war’
Oct.2 (GMM) Luca de Meo, CEO of the Renault Group, has ordered the French carmaker’s Formula 1 team to end a years-long gulf between its British and French factions. L’Equipe sports newspaper reports that de Meo made an ultra-rare visit to the Alpine team’s overall UK headquarters at Enstone last Wednesday. The visit comes amid […]
Schumacher urged to keep Mercedes F1 job
Oct.2 (GMM) Two well-known German former F1 drivers are urging Mick Schumacher to hang onto his Mercedes reserve seat for 2024. Schumacher, who was dropped by Haas after two seasons on the Formula 1 grid in 2021 and 2022, is currently being linked with a place in Alpine’s new prototype Le Mans and world endurance […]