Apr.8 (GMM) Ferrari has been cleared of wrongdoing in the wake of reports Sebastian Vettel was shown an illegal ‘coded’ message on his pit board in Australia. Although it is the radio rules that have been severely limited for 2016, Charlie Whiting said recently they also apply to pit boards “so if we see anything […]
Month: April 2016
Teams vow to reconsider qualifying change for 2017
Apr.8 (GMM) F1 teams have promised to revisit the possibility of spicing up the qualifying hour ahead of the 2017 season. The pledge has been made in return for the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone finally agreeing the scrap the hated ‘musical chairs’ format that took place in Australia and Bahrain. Although tasked with considering an […]
Toro Rosso duo poses Red Bull promotion ‘dilemma’
Apr.8 (GMM) Red Bull is facing a “dilemma” as it ponders the future of its young F1 stars Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz. That is the view of David Coulthard, a veteran F1 driver who knows Red Bull well, having spent the last four seasons of his racing career with the energy drink marque. In […]
Imola takes position as Monza alternative
Apr.7 (GMM) Imola is ramping up its bid to keep Italy on the F1 calendar. Amid historic Monza’s troubled negotiations with F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, the former San Marino GP venue Imola has put its hand up as a potential alternative. Uberto Selvatico Estense, boss of Formula Imola, travelled to Bahrain last week for talks […]
Verstappen could be at Mercedes or Ferrari in 2017 – father
Apr.7 (GMM) Max Verstappen’s father and manager has ramped up his bid for a top seat in formula one for 2017. In the past days and weeks, bosses for Mercedes and Ferrari have admitted their interest in the 18-year-old Dutch sensation. It comes amid speculation Verstappen could be a free agent for 2017 unless Red […]
Vettel’s Bahrain engine cannot be fixed – reports
Apr.7 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is down to four power units for the remaining 19 races this year, following his smoky retirement on the parade lap in Bahrain. Earlier, the Ferrari media insider Leo Turrini said the problem had been traced to an injector, but he now clarifies that the fault was actually caused by “a […]
Bosses write letter urging 2015 qualifying return
Apr.7 (GMM) F1’s qualifying debacle of 2016 continues, as team bosses on Thursday pleaded with authorities to revert to last year’s successful format. With the ‘musical chairs’ system slammed on all sides after Australia and Bahrain, the teams made clear their desire to scrap it but the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone have ruled out simply […]
Sauber late with staff payments again
Apr.7 (GMM) Sauber has fallen behind once again with its full salary payments to its 300 staff in Switzerland. Boss Monisha Kaltenborn was not in Bahrain last weekend, amid reported talks with potential buyers and rumours cashflow problems could shortly end the struggling Hinwil based team’s 23-year F1 adventure. Now, a month after similar reports […]
Amid political tension, F1 to meet on Thursday
Apr.7 (GMM) Amid a poisonously political climate in F1, the sport’s stakeholders will get together on Thursday in yet another bid to fix the 2016 qualifying format debacle. The meeting was scheduled last Sunday in Bahrain, where the teams were told by the governing FIA to consider an all-new ‘aggregate’ format for China and beyond. […]
Vandoorne preparing for possible second race in China
Apr.7 (GMM) Stoffel Vandoorne says he will remain race-ready ahead of next weekend’s Chinese grand prix. Although Fernando Alonso was getting CT scans done early last week, the Spaniard’s chest injuries clearly caught McLaren by surprise once in Bahrain. That is because when the FIA ruled him out of action on Thursday, reserve driver Vandoorne […]
‘Too late’ to call off 2017 revolution – teams
Apr.7 (GMM) Speculation the touted rules revolution for 2017 could be called off at the eleventh hour are being played down on all sides. Amid suggestions in Bahrain that eight of the eleven teams are in fact now opposed, FIA president Jean Todt insisted that the April 30 decision deadline will be met. Two of […]
Schumacher to contest two F4 series in 2016
Apr.6 (GMM) Mick Schumacher is taking on a busy calendar in 2016 as he continues his push towards formula one. Now 17, F1 legend Michael Schumacher’s son began his open wheel adventure last year in German Formula 4, but Bild reports that the young German will also race in parallel in the Italian series this […]
Ecclestone says European Commission talks underway
Apr.6 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone says “discussions” with the European Commission are currently taking place. Last September, midfield teams Force India and Sauber lodged an official complaint to the European Union’s anti-competition unit about F1’s allegedly “unlawful” governance and income-distribution systems. The complaint was pointed specifically at Ecclestone, but the F1 supremo – also frustrated by […]
FIA investigating Ferrari coded message
Apr.6 (GMM) F1’s governing body is looking into whether Ferrari stretched the new radio clampdown rules, according to a report in Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport. While the new rules severely limit what can be said on the radio, the FIA’s Charlie Whiting said in Melbourne that they also apply to dashboard displays and pit […]
Ferrari working to fix injector problem – insider
Apr.6 (GMM) Ferrari is confident it will quickly solve the engine flaw that stopped Sebastian Vettel from even starting Sunday’s Bahrain grand prix. Kimi Raikkonen’s failure was with the turbo in Australia, and so teammate Vettel’s smoky exit on the parade lap in Bahrain had ramped up speculation the Italian team is grappling with fundamental […]
‘Best driver’ Alonso resumes training
Apr.6 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has resumed training as he fights to be fit to return to the cockpit of his McLaren-Honda in China. On the Bahrain grid last Sunday, with Stoffel Vandoorne filling in, Alonso said he was “99 per cent” sure his chest injuries would not stop him from racing in China in two […]
Lawyer says Rosberg not evading tax
Apr.6 (GMM) Nico Rosberg’s lawyer has denied claims the Mercedes driver is evading tax. The 2016 championship leader’s name was mentioned among the millions of leaked financial documents known globally as the ‘Panama Papers’, amid suggestions countless prominent people are hiding wealth and evading tax. German reports alleged that the documents, originating from a Panama […]
Sauber in talks with investors – reports
Apr.6 (GMM) Amid Sauber’s obvious financial problems early in 2016, new media reports suggest the struggling Swiss team could soon be sold. Co-owner and boss Monisha Kaltenborn was not in Bahrain last weekend, with sources reporting she stayed at Hinwil for crucial talks over the team’s future. But alarming speculation that Sauber’s 23-year F1 adventure […]
Hamilton calm, Ferrari ‘fragile as glass’
Apr.5 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is keeping calm, even though he is already 17 points behind at the start of his 2016 championship defence. Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg has extended his late 2015 winning streak into the start of the new season, winning both in Australia and Bahrain. Hamilton’s Bahrain race was marred by another bad […]
Vandoorne ‘the next Alonso’ – Boullier
Apr.5 (GMM) Stoffel Vandoorne appears to have put his F1 career on the fast track after making an impressive race debut in Bahrain. Although Fernando Alonso says he is “99 per cent” sure his chest injuries will be in the past by China in ten days, McLaren now sounds more convinced than ever that it […]