Feb.26 (GMM) Formula 1 and the Bahrain circuit played down an incident that occurred at the tail-end of pre-season testing last week. Bild newspaper reported that team and other F1-associated personnel entering the venue were told by security staff that they could not display LGBT-style ‘rainbow flag’ logos on their clothing or bags. “This was […]
Williams said ‘no’ to 2024 Mercedes suspension
Feb.26 (GMM) James Vowles has admitted Williams opted against running the full 2024 specification of partner team Mercedes’ rear suspension layout this year. Auto Motor und Sport believes a main reason for the decision was because Mercedes only had the capacity to supply its new push-rod suspension to one customer – Aston Martin. But Williams […]
No Alpine F1 testing for Schumacher in 2024 – boss
Feb.26 (GMM) Bruno Famin has played down suggestions Mick Schumacher would be the obvious choice if Alpine loses one or both of its drivers at the end of 2024. The Renault-powered team has emerged as perhaps the worst performer of all in pre-season testing, raising big questions as Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon’s contracts expire. […]
Vettel eyeing Hamilton’s Mercedes seat – Schumacher
Feb.26 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel really might be contemplating a sensational return to Formula 1, according to fellow German Ralf Schumacher. Although quadruple world champion Vettel’s younger brother Fabian played down the rumours last week, former grand prix winner Schumacher told Sky Deutschland: “I heard that Sebastian wants to drive a car again. “Apparently he saw […]
Hamilton fell out over technical disagreements at Mercedes
Feb.23 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton’s decision to leave Mercedes might be traced back to technical disagreements last year. This week, former Ferrari driver Mika Salo said the seven time world champion’s decision to swap Mercedes for Maranello makes little sense to him. “I believe Hamilton knows something that the rest of us do not yet know,” […]
More management turmoil in Audi’s F1 project
Feb.23 (GMM) More talk of management turmoil at Audi has emerged, once again putting a cloud over the Volkswagen brand’s earlier decision to enter Formula 1 in 2026. Earlier, the removal as Audi CEO of Markus Duesmann – an architect of the decision to pair with and take over Sauber – raised questions about the […]
Brother plays down talk of Vettel’s F1 comeback
Feb.23 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel’s brother has played down suggestions the retired quadruple world champion might be eyeing a return to Formula 1. Having ended his F1 career over a year ago after a difficult stint at Aston Martin, 36-year-old Vettel has been subsequently linked with a sensational return to the sport with his old team, […]
Tsunoda plays down claims of 2024 Red Bull ‘clone’
Feb.23 (GMM) Yuki Tsunoda has played down suggestions the ever-closer relationship between the former Alpha Tauri team and its big-brother Red Bull Racing have ramped up expectations for 2024. Some staff of the newly-branded RB outfit, which is still mainly based in Italy, are now being housed in a dedicated building at Red Bull’s Milton-Keynes […]
Rivals back Alonso over ‘ridiculous’ F1 test rules
Feb.23 (GMM) Two more Formula 1 drivers have backed Fernando Alonso’s claim that a mere three days of pre-season testing with a single car per two-driver team is “ridiculous”. “We’re talking about the most demanding sport, with budgets of 200 million per team per year. It seems ridiculous,” said the Aston Martin driver. “It’s like […]
Lauda may have stopped Hamilton’s Ferrari move
Feb.23 (GMM) Although Formula 1 is always looking ahead, the Formula 1 paddock paused on Thursday to mark what would have been the 75th birthday of the great Niki Lauda. One of his friends and Austrian countrymen, fellow F1 legend Gerhard Berger, thinks Lauda’s absence at Mercedes since his 2019 death is being palpably felt […]
Scandals being ‘used’ by rivals to weaken Red Bull
Feb.23 (GMM) World champion Max Verstappen thinks Red Bull’s off-track controversies are being “used” by Formula 1 rivals to throw the dominant team off its game. “It’s always a tactic,” the Dutchman told De Telegraaf newspaper at the Bahrain test, where Red Bull’s very different new car for 2024 is turning heads with its apparent […]
Sainz not surprised at Red Bull’s early 2024 pace
Feb.23 (GMM) As Formula 1 gets to the end of the sole pre-season test, the feeling up and down the Bahrain pitlane is unanimous – Red Bull still has easily the fastest car. Most insiders believe the Ferrari, whose Carlos Sainz – with softer tyres – was quicker than Red Bull’s Sergio Perez on Thursday, […]
Ricciardo admits targeting Perez’s Red Bull seat
Feb.22 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo is still not denying that he is opening eyeing a return to Red Bull’s top Formula 1 team for 2025. Some insiders think the move could even happen mid-season this year, if Sergio Perez continues to struggle alongside Max Verstappen – which would open up Ricciardo’s current ‘RB’ seat at the […]
Two ex-F1 drivers tip Sainz to secure 2025 seat
Feb.22 (GMM) Carlos Sainz insists he has “no idea” what team he will be racing for beyond the looming Formula 1 season. The Spaniard had headed into the winter break insisting that he wants his future to be decided before the first race of 2024. Instead, he only learned that Lewis Hamilton will be replacing […]
Vowles plays down early Williams worries
Feb.22 (GMM) James Vowles has played down early worries about Williams’ 2024 season. The team was the last to be ready with a vastly-different car for the new world championship, having cancelled an earlier ‘shakedown’ run. It finally emerged at Bahrain just ahead of the start of official pre-season testing, but on Wednesday looked fragile […]
Magnussen defends owner’s decision to oust Steiner
Feb.22 (GMM) While Nico Hulkenberg sounded regretful about Haas boss Gunther Steiner’s pre-season sacking, teammate Kevin Magnussen is more upbeat about the new era. The American outfit finished dead last in 2023, prompting team owner Gene Haas to differ with Steiner’s assessment that the team needs more funding – and oust him. “I had a […]
Newey could be part of Hamilton bombshell – Salo
Feb.22 (GMM) Former Ferrari driver Mika Salo thinks there is more to the story when it comes to Lewis Hamilton’s shock move from Mercedes to Maranello for 2025. Hamilton, 39, triggered an exit clause in his newly-signed 2-year contract and stunned his boss Toto Wolff with the bombshell impending team switch. Finn Salo, who made […]
Horner all smiles despite F1 scandal that could topple him
Feb.22 (GMM) Red Bull was putting on an image of happy team unity as Christian Horner took up his usual place on the Red Bull pitwall in Bahrain. While the team’s energy drink parent continues to investigate the accusations of a female team member amid rumours of a power struggle, the long-time Red Bull boss […]
Binotto signed to new role outside F1
Feb.22 (GMM) Mattia Binotto, who has been out of the sport for a full year following his firing at Ferrari, will not be returning to Formula 1 for now. La Gazzetta dello Sport says the former team boss at Maranello has been snapped up by an Italian car components company called Texa, based not far […]
Wolff to decide Hamilton successor ‘around May’
Feb.22 (GMM) Toto Wolff had to put a brave face on the fact that Red Bull appears to have pulled off making the scrapped Mercedes-like car concept of 2022-2023 work. Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko admitted the radical move was a “risk” for the already-dominant Formula 1 team, but the team trusted in the wind […]