Aug.3 (GMM) Hugo Boss, the well-known German fashion brand, could take over the naming rights of Red Bull’s second Formula 1 team Alpha Tauri. Dr Helmut Marko has already revealed that the Faenza based team will get a brand new name for 2024. “If a deal goes through, the team would likely start as Hugo […]
Hong Kong man ‘lies’ about F1 team ownership – Forbes
Aug.3 (GMM) Forbes, the renowned American business publication, has savaged a so-called billionaire who claims to be involved in Formula 1. As recently as late June, we reported that “Hong Kong billionaire Calvin Lo has been linked with the FIA’s tender process” for the potential eleventh and twelfth F1 teams for 2025 or 2026. And […]
‘Signs of improvement’ at Ferrari, says CEO
Aug.3 (GMM) Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna says he has seen “signs of improvement” at the fabled Formula 1 team recently. Fans, pundits and the Italian media have been highly critical recently as the Maranello based outfit struggled to make an impression in 2023. But Charles Leclerc, who is rumoured to have now inked a new […]
De Vries was given enough time in F1 – Alliot
Aug.3 (GMM) Nyck de Vries was given enough time to shine, according to former Formula 1 driver Philippe Alliot. The general paddock narrative is that Red Bull was in fact hasty in ousting the 28-year-old Dutch rookie after just ten races at Alpha Tauri. Alliot doesn’t agree. “You have to quickly make a strong impression,” […]
Renault not spending enough in F1 – Budkowski
Aug.3 (GMM) The problem at Alpine isn’t people – it’s money. That’s the view of highly respected Formula 1 engineer Marcin Budkowski, who left the Renault-owned team at the beginning of last year. He was asked about F1 legend Alain Prost’s recent words about the sad current moment taking place at Alpine, with upper management […]
Situation has ‘completely changed’ for Tsunoda
Aug.2 (GMM) Yuki Tsunoda admits his situation has “completely changed” at Red Bull-owned Alpha Tauri. Before teammate Nyck de Vries’ axing just prior to the Hungarian GP, Japanese Tsunoda was dominating at the junior Red Bull outfit – and clearly a contender for a future Red Bull Racing seat. But de Vries’ replacement, Daniel Ricciardo, […]
Mazepin may not be free to return to F1 – lawyer
Aug.2 (GMM) Nikita Mazepin is not necessarily free to start negotiating his return to Formula 1. That is the view of prominent Russian sports lawyer Anna Antseliovich, who was once director-general of the country’s anti-doping agency. Fellow Russian Mazepin and his father’s company Uralkali were ousted from Haas and Formula 1 at the onset of […]
Szafnauer not ruling out Aston Martin return
Aug.2 (GMM) One of Otmar Szafnauer’s last acts before leaving the F1 paddock and his role as Alpine team boss behind in Belgium was to stop in at the Aston Martin motorhome. He may, of course, have simply been saying farewell to his former colleagues, as only he moved from the Silverstone based team to […]
Andretti ‘optimistic’ as Renault link strengthens
Aug.2 (GMM) Michael Andretti says he is “optimistic” the FIA will green-light his organisation’s application to join the Formula 1 grid. The latest rumour in the Andretti-Cadillac saga is that the Spanish sports daily Marca reports that the former McLaren driver met with Renault CEO Luca de Meo at the Canadian GP recently. The revelation […]
Ferrari sides with Mercedes against Alpine power boost
Aug.1 (GMM) Frederic Vasseur admits he is not receptive to Renault’s push for special engine freeze dispensation to address its horsepower deficit. While the F1 Commission last week agreed that the works power unit in Alpine’s cars is about 30hp down, there is so far no agreement on how the FIA will allow the team […]
Abiteboul agrees Alpine ‘arrogance’ hurting F1 team
Aug.1 (GMM) “Arrogance” may explain the current management turmoil at Renault-owned Alpine, former team boss Cyril Abiteboul said. Already, since the sudden ousting of new boss Otmar Szafnauer, long-serving sporting boss Alan Permane and technical guru Pat Fry, another former Renault chief – Alain Prost – has blasted former Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi. “He is […]
D’Ambrosio is reserve Mercedes team boss – Wolff
Aug.1 (GMM) Former F1 driver Jerome d’Ambrosio has become the ‘reserve team boss’ at Mercedes, Toto Wolff has revealed. Recently, former Virgin and Lotus driver d’Ambrosio is usually spotted at Wolff’s shoulder during grands prix – in his new role as driver development director. Previously, he was team boss at the Formula E team Venturi, […]
Verstappen-Lambiase spat ‘great fun’ – Marko
Aug.1 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has played down a major narrative that emerged from the Belgian GP weekend – that Max Verstappen is increasingly at odds with his race engineer. Radio traffic between the pair as Verstappen dominated at Spa-Francorchamps indicated that the 25-year-old and Gianpiero Lambiase may be on a collision course to a […]
Court says Mazepin free to return to Formula 1
Aug.1 (GMM) A top European court has confirmed that sacked Nikita Mazepin is now free to race in Formula 1. Earlier this year, the same court temporarily lifted European sanctions on the Russian former Haas driver that had been imposed at the outset of the Ukraine conflict. “The court was not satisfied that the restrictive […]
Pirelli agrees full wet tyres now ‘useless’
Jul.31 (GMM) Pirelli’s F1 boss does not disagree with drivers who are calling the full wet tyres “useless”. A Formula 1 rule dictates that if a race starts behind the safety car, as it did in the Saturday sprint at Spa Francorchamps, then the drivers must have full wets fitted. But at Spa, almost the […]
Artificial Renault engine boost could ‘ruin F1’ – Wolff
Jul.31 (GMM) Allowing Renault to enjoy special rules to boost engine power could “ruin Formula 1”. That is the view of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, after the F1 Commission last Friday rejected Alpine’s proposal that it be allowed to run higher-than-allowed fuel flow rates in order to bridge the power gap. Renault has reportedly claimed […]
Szafnauer hopes to return to Alpine-like role ‘soon’
Jul.31 (GMM) There is “fake news everywhere” in Formula 1 these days, according to departing Alpine team boss Otmar Szafnauer. Sunday in Belgium was the Romanian-born American’s last race in the paddock for now, as together with long-serving sporting director Alan Permane he has been ousted with immediate effect. And according to some, Szafnauer did […]
2024 contract talks a ‘rollercoaster’ – Hamilton
Jul.31 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is continuing to insist that his “plan” is to still be a Mercedes driver in 2023. However, although team boss Toto Wolff says the pair have “emotionally” agreed a new deal, a signature is not yet on paper. “I think it’s definitely an emotional rollercoaster on both sides,” seven time world […]
Verstappen could still win ‘without a front wing’
Jul.31 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko is starting to wonder if Red Bull can complete an astonishing and unprecedented clean sweep of victories in 2023. Max Verstappen’s championship lead over his own teammate blew out to a whopping 125 points at Spa Francorchamps on Sunday – his eighth win on the trot. But Red Bull as […]
F1 auditors even reading Whatsapps – report
Jul.30 (GMM) F1’s budget cap inspectors are even digging into Whatsapp text messages as up to three top teams risk being found guilty of spending breaches. The Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reports that, like last year, Red Bull and Aston Martin are under the FIA’s spotlight once again. But this time, Mercedes is also reportedly […]