Apr.29 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has played down rumours that 2023 could be his final season in Formula 1. Many are sensing that the 33-year-old Finn’s interest in other projects is rising at the very same time that his competitiveness appears to be on the wane. “No limit has been reached,” Bottas insisted to Iltalehti newspaper. […]
Wolff denies contract talks with Leclerc
Apr.29 (GMM) Toto Wolff has backed Charles Leclerc’s claim that not even a “single conversation” about the Ferrari driver switching to Mercedes has taken place. “As he said, we didn’t have a single conversation, except maybe at the airport about whether to go to Starbucks,” Mercedes boss Wolff said. “I don’t know where this rumour […]
Allison ‘in his element’ back in F1 paddock
Apr.29 (GMM) James Allison is “in his element” back in the Formula 1 paddock. That is the view not only of 55-year-old Allison himself, who has returned to the top technical job at Mercedes after an absence, but also team driver George Russell. “Mike (Elliot) is absolutely in his element in his new role,” Russell […]
Bottas could buy Finnish F1 circuit
Apr.28 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas could be about to become the co-owner of a Formula 1-ready race circuit. Since leaving Mercedes at the end of 2021, the 33-year-old Finn has expanded his interests beyond the sport with investments in gin, coffee and property. It is clear Bottas is also expressing his personality more freely at Alfa […]
Verstappen reiterates F1 quit warning after 2028
Apr.28 (GMM) Max Verstappen insists he is still no fan of Formula 1’s sprint race format, even though he admits a second qualifying session debuting this weekend at Baku will make it “better”. However, the reigning back-to-back world champion doesn’t think it will fully succeed in making the short race on Saturday more enticing for […]
Leclerc not in Mercedes talks ‘at the moment’
Apr.28 (GMM) Charles Leclerc says he is not in talks with Mercedes “at the moment” about a move to the Brackley based team. The rumours have been bolstered by Ferrari’s poor start to 2023, but also Red Bull chief Dr Helmut Marko’s claim that Leclerc can probably escape his contract before the end of 2024. […]
Woman on F1 grid will take ’10 years’ – Wolff
Apr.28 (GMM) The new female-only ‘F1 Academy’ support series kicks off this weekend in Austria, but series chief Susie Wolff admits it could be a decade before a woman is on the Formula 1 grid. “I believe it’s eight to 10 years away from happening,” the wife of Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, and a […]
Schumacher should ‘forget’ F1 return – Ecclestone
Apr.28 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone thinks ousted Haas driver Mick Schumacher should “forget this dream” of returning to the Formula 1 grid. Heavily criticised by Haas boss Gunther Steiner last year, 24-year-old Schumacher subsequently accepted Toto Wolff’s offer to become Mercedes reserve driver this year. But Ecclestone, the former F1 supremo, told RTL: “He has to […]
Alpha Tauri ‘aggressive’ with Mekies news – Vasseur
Apr.28 (GMM) Red Bull-owned Alpha Tauri was “aggressive” in announcing Laurent Mekies’ departure from Ferrari, according to team boss Frederic Vasseur. As an exodus of top personnel continues at the Maranello-based team, Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz admits sporting director Mekies “obviously” would have been interested in an offer to replace Franz Tost. “We’re also hiring […]
F1 becoming more ‘show’ than sport – Lammers
Apr.27 (GMM) Formula 1 is moving “more and more” away from sport in the direction of pure entertainment and show, Dutch GP boss and former F1 driver Jan Lammers says. His Dutch countryman and back-to-back world champion Max Verstappen has not been shy to denounce the addition of a second qualifying session for the first […]
Deputy PM admits Italian GP ‘at risk’
Apr.27 (GMM) A top Italian government executive is reassuring the country’s Formula 1 fans about the future of the fabled annual race at Monza. On Wednesday, we reported that Ferrari’s current struggles are hurting ticket sales for both Italian rounds on the 2023 calendar at Monza as well as Imola. “We have to keep our […]
Red Bull rivals won’t win 2023 title – Marko
Apr.27 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko is perfectly willing to accept that Red Bull will win a third consecutive drivers’ championship in 2023. This weekend in Baku, a tweaked format for the first sprint weekend of the season will debut, featuring separate qualifying sessions for both the short and long races. Back-to-back title winner, and 2023 […]
Departure of Franz Tost ‘amicable’ – Marko
Apr.27 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko says the departure as long-time Alpha Tauri team boss Franz Tost was “amicable”. On Wednesday, we reported that Ferrari’s sporting director Laurent Mekies – a former top technical executive at Faenza – had signed up to leave Maranello and re-join Red Bull’s second Formula 1 team. The news then became […]
Magnussen has ‘five races’ to improve – Steiner
Apr.26 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen might struggle to hang onto his Haas race seat beyond 2023. The 30-year-old is no stranger to the American outfit, having first raced a Haas between 2017 and 2020 – before the team’s experiment with an all-rookie lineup in 2021. Magnussen, though, returned to the cockpit last year, when he shone […]
F1 seat remains ‘top priority’ – Shwartzman
Apr.26 (GMM) Robert Shwartzman insists his “top priority” is securing a race seat in Formula 1. However, the Russian – who switched to an Israeli racing license because of the Ukraine conflict – was in action at the Formula E test in Berlin. That is despite the fact that he is Ferrari’s F1 reserve driver. […]
Ferrari’s F1 struggles hurting Monza, Imola
Apr.26 (GMM) Ferrari’s performance struggles are hurting Formula 1 ticket sales for both Italian races on the 2023 calendar. The popularity of the sport is surging all over the world with record crowds – but according to Angelo Sticchi Damiani, that is not the case in Italy. “We have to keep our commitments to Formula […]
Mazepin admits F1 return ‘looks difficult’
Apr.26 (GMM) Nikita Mazepin says he will continue to take legal action until he is fully able to return to Formula 1. The 24-year-old and his sponsor Uralkali were expelled from Haas and Formula 1 at the outset of the Ukraine conflict, with the FIA now imposing restrictions on any Russian driver wanting to race. […]
Ferrari’s Mekies ‘has signed’ Alpha Tauri return
Apr.26 (GMM) Ferrari’s sporting director Laurent Mekies looks set to return to Faenza. The 45-year-old Frenchman worked initially for Minardi, which became Red Bull’s second Formula 1 team – where Mekies worked in prominent technical roles before he was poached by Ferrari in 2014. Now, according to Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport, Mekies is returning […]
Bottas says works Audi seat ‘possible’
Apr.26 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas admits he needs to perform “this season” if he stands a chance of racing a works Audi in 2026. So far in 2023, the former Mercedes driver has struggled at the wheel of his Alfa Romeo, with some insiders questioning whether the fire still burns within him. “Valtteri is significantly more […]
Alonso ‘closer to victory’ than Ferrari – Sainz
Apr.26 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says fellow Spaniard Fernando Alonso is “closer” to the top step of the podium than him so far in 2023. After Melbourne, Ferrari lost an appeal against Sainz’s penalty for a clash with Aston Martin driver Alonso, 41. Sainz said he was “too angry to talk” after the penalty, which dropped […]