May 29 (GMM) Renault is staying in Formula 1 for now. Amid serious financial problems for the French carmaker, interim CEO Clotilde Delbos on Friday announced that she will save EUR 2 billion by slashing 15,000 jobs. However, the Enstone and Viry-based works Formula 1 team will race on. “We have said publicly and confirm […]
Month: May 2020
Williams reveals it is for sale
May 29 (GMM) Backmarker Formula 1 team Williams has admitted it may be sold. On Friday, the former world champions admitted that after slumping to dead last in 2019, a $16 million profit has now become a similar sized loss. And that was before the corona crisis struck. In a statement of its disappointing annual […]
Sainz happy to be paired with ‘best’ drivers
May 29 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he is happy rather than intimidated at the thought of being paired with a driver of Charles Leclerc’s calibre at Ferrari next year. The Spaniard, who has been signed to replace Sebastian Vettel for 2021, says he has always dreamed of being paired with “the best” drivers. “It is […]
Government poised to announce Austria GP decision
May 29 (GMM) A decision about whether F1’s 2020 season can restart in Austria is now imminent. Formula 1, and race promoter Red Bull, have submitted a safety plan for the back-to-back ‘ghost races’ for July to the Austrian government. Health minister Rudolf Anschober now says that a decision should be made “immediately after Pentecost”. […]
Wehrlein not interested in midfield F1 return
May 29 (GMM) Pascal Wehrlein appears to have withdrawn his support for a potential new Formula 1 team. Even amid the corona crisis, a prospective new team called Panthera Team Asia that is set up near Silverstone insisted: “Our goal is Formula 1 in 2021.” And late last year, another potential new project headed by […]
No place at Haas for Vettel or Bottas – Steiner
May 29 (GMM) Gunther Steiner has counted Haas out of the running to capture the services of Sebastian Vettel or Valtteri Bottas for 2021. Vettel is leaving Ferrari at the end of the year, while Finn Bottas could be set to lose his seat at Mercedes to George Russell. Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone thinks […]
Races in 2020 ‘not good for anyone’ – Ecclestone
May 29 (GMM) The 2020 Dutch GP has been officially cancelled. The rejuvenated Zandvoort circuit was due to host its first grand prix for 35 years in May, but was postponed for the corona crisis. Talks took place about rescheduling it for a later date without spectators, but race boss Jan Lammers says that definitely […]
Ricciardo not sure why Ferrari overlooked him
May 29 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo says he isn’t sure why Ferrari overlooked him for the seat set to be vacated by Sebastian Vettel at the end of 2020. Admitting that talks with the Maranello team took place, Australian Ricciardo is instead moving from Renault to McLaren for 2021. “There have been discussions (with Ferrari) already […]
Alonso, not Bottas, favourite for Renault seat – Lehto
May 29 (GMM) A former F1 driver thinks Renault is more likely to sign Fernando Alonso for 2021 and beyond than Valtteri Bottas. The French team is looking for a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, with boss Cyril Abiteboul admitting losing the Australian to McLaren is “disappointing”. Bottas is clearly an option, former F1 driver JJ […]
Daimler hits back at Mercedes exit reports
May 29 (GMM) Mercedes parent Daimler has hit back at reports suggesting the works team could be pulled out of Formula 1. German publication Auto Bild also claims Toto Wolff is set to withdraw as boss, take up a Niki Lauda-style supervisory board position, and potentially even take over the team together with new Aston […]
Verstappen hailed for not becoming ‘arrogant’
May 28 (GMM) Dutch racing driver Arie Luyendyk has praised countryman Max Verstappen for remaining grounded amid skyrocketing fame, fortune and success. Verstappen’s new Red Bull deal makes him one of the highest paid drivers in Formula 1 history, with boss Dr Helmut Marko smiling that the 22-year-old “will not be happy” once the sport […]
Bottas, Alonso in line for Renault seat – report
May 28 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas is emerging as a leading figure in the next round of the 2021 ‘silly season’. Contrary to wishful speculation, it appears unlikely that Mercedes would pair Sebastian Vettel with Lewis Hamilton. A more likely scenario is that George Russell will line up with the six-time world champion next year. It […]
F1 ready to publish 8-race European calendar
May 28 (GMM) Formula 1 is preparing to publish an eight-race calendar that it hopes will restart the 2020 season amid the corona crisis. It comes just as the FIA confirmed that a $145 million budget cap, and a range of other measures including “linear” aero development restrictions for the better performing teams, are definitely […]
Maldonado predicting driver trouble at Ferrari
May 27 (GMM) Former F1 driver Pastor Maldonado is expecting trouble at Ferrari in 2020. The Italian team and Sebastian Vettel have announced their split – but that will only take effect from the 2021 season. It means that the tension seen between teammates Vettel and Charles Leclerc could even intensify once the racing finally […]
Leclerc admits to missing real racing ‘so much’
May 27 (GMM) Charles Leclerc has admitted he desperately misses racing in Formula 1. Although the Ferrari driver has become a star of at-home simulator racing and the streaming service Twitch during the corona crisis, he says his real love is the real race track. “The only thing I have in mind now is to […]
Aleshin says F1 more ‘show’ than sport
May 27 (GMM) Formula 1 is “more of a show” than a sport, according to a boss of the Russian program SMP Racing. SMP Racing, headed by SMP Bank chief and Russian oligarch Boris Rotenberg, is active in various motor racing categories and backs the former Williams driver Sergey Sirotkin. “I’m not a very big […]
Ferrari working on 20hp boost for Austria
May 27 (GMM) Ferrari is aiming to show up in Austria in July with an engine packing 20 more horsepower. When the Melbourne season opener was called off, most insiders were predicting at the time that the engine legality scandal of 2019 had hurt Ferrari in the power stakes. Ferrari’s Maranello HQ has been shut […]
Abiteboul disappointed and surprised to lose Ricciardo
May 27 (GMM) Cyril Abiteboul admits he is “disappointed” to lose Daniel Ricciardo for 2021. Earlier in May, the Renault team boss took a parting shot at Australian Ricciardo, saying that amid the corona crisis “reciprocated confidence, unity and commitment are, more than ever, critical values for a works team”. Ricciardo, widely regarded as having […]
Report names potential Renault F1 buyer
May 27 (GMM) A potential buyer for embattled Renault’s works Formula 1 team has emerged. On Tuesday, it emerged that about 75 members of the McLaren team are losing their jobs, with chairman Paul Walsh admitting it is a “challenging time for our company”. At the same time, reports suggest that Renault’s obvious financial problems […]
FIA to scrap complex ‘MGU-H’ for 2025
May 26 (GMM) F1’s governing FIA is preparing to scrap the ‘MGU-H’ element of the current engine formula for 2025. The news was broken by Spanish correspondent Albert Fabrega, who says the ‘motor generator unit – heat’ is ground-breaking technology that has obvious weaknesses in F1. For instance, he says the technology is expensive, complex, […]