Mar.28 (GMM) Stefano Domenicali has issued a strident defence of Formula 1’s controversial decision to race on in Saudi Arabia after the events of Friday. Within mere kilometres of the Jeddah street circuit, Iran-backed rebels attacked Saudi oil interests with drones and missiles, prompting emergency meetings for the F1 circus and a near-boycott from the […]
Category: Recent stories
Schumacher was ‘ready to drive’ after crash
Mar.28 (GMM) Mick Schumacher was “ready to drive” on Sunday, despite spending time in hospital after being airlifted from the Jeddah circuit the day before. The German had been manually extracted from his split-in-half Haas car by doctors, put into an ambulance and ultimately taken by helicopter for hospital checks in a 33G smash on […]
Marko doubts Mercedes can catch up in 2022
Mar.28 (GMM) Mercedes will struggle to intervene in the new Max Verstappen versus Charles Leclerc head-to-head for the 2022 title. “It’s a new rivalry now,” claims Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko, outlining his view that Ferrari’s Leclerc has picked up where Lewis Hamilton left off at the end of last season. “Mercedes is at least […]
F1’s new rules hailed for ‘spectacular’ racing
Mar.28 (GMM) After F1 drivers considered a boycott over the nearby explosions, the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association said it hoped the Saudi Arabian GP would be “remembered as a good race”. Sunday at the high speed and treacherous Jeddah street circuit most certainly delivered. “This was one of the best races I’ve seen in the […]
Hamilton on Saudi Arabia – ‘I can’t wait to leave’
Mar.27 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is looking forward to one thing in Saudi Arabia – going “home”. It has been a nightmare weekend for the seven time world champion, as he failed to even get out of Q1 a day after all-night meetings in which he reportedly called for a race boycott. “I think the word […]
F1 must discuss Saudi GP future – Verstappen
Mar.27 (GMM) World champion Max Verstappen says Sunday’s chequered flag will not end the conversation about Saudi Arabia and its place on the Formula 1 calendar. Valtteri Bottas says the political and security situation in Jeddah – the scene of 16 missile and drone strikes on Friday including on the Aramco oil facility – feels […]
Five drivers pushed for Saudi boycott – report
Mar.27 (GMM) Qualifying day may have been explosion-free, but it is clear that the discussions about whether Saudi Arabia should even be on the F1 calendar will run and run. After Friday’s attacks, in which the number of missiles and drones within a long camera lens of the Jeddah circuit ultimately counted 16, the whispered […]
Vettel admits he’s ‘not popular’ with F1 bosses
Mar.26 (GMM) As the nearby missile strikes thrust Formula 1 into yet another crisis, there was one driver in the paddock who did not need his television interviews cancelled. Sebastian Vettel, who drives for Aramco-sponsored Aston Martin, is still missing in action, having reportedly failed to return a negative covid test. Notably, just a few […]
Zandvoort, Spa, face uncertain F1 futures
Mar.26 (GMM) As Formula 1 stands firmly with Saudi Arabia following Friday’s nearby missile attacks, two of the sport’s most popular venues face a less certain future. Zandvoort has instantly become one of the most loved venues for the renewed Dutch GP, but F1 is yet to pick up a two-year ‘option’ on the current […]
Magnussen, Hulkenberg end five-year silence
Mar.26 (GMM) After five years of refusing to speak, it was Nico Hulkenberg who broke the ice this year with his old nemesis Kevin Magnussen. It was in 2017 when Dane Magnussen told his German rival to “suck my balls” after an on-track run-in, after Hulkenberg accused him of repeated poor sportsmanship. They did not […]
F1 credibility ‘evaporated like black smoke’
Mar.26 (GMM) The smell of oil dollars was mixed with Formula 1 exhaust fumes on Friday after a missile and drone attack on a nearby oil facility operated by race title sponsor Aramco. Dramatic scenes as emergency F1 meetings convened and re-convened unfolded late into the night in the Saudi capital Jeddah – but ultimately […]
Ralf Schumacher leaves Jeddah after attack
Mar.26 (GMM) Even life in the Formula 1 paddock is no longer “fun”. That was the downbeat assessment of Red Bull’s 78-year-old Austrian official Dr Helmut Marko after hours of meetings that ultimately cleared the Saudi Arabian GP to be “safe” despite nearby missile strikes. “We have the pandemic, we have the war in Europe […]
F1 banned driver comments after missile attack
Mar.26 (GMM) Formula 1 banned drivers from making comment after a nearby Aramco oil facility was attacked by missiles and drones during free practice in Saudi Arabia. The second session was delayed after world champion Max Verstappen noticed a burning smell from his cockpit that turned out to be a huge explosion at the facility […]
Russell can’t see F1’s Netflix ‘problem’
Mar.25 (GMM) George Russell has broken ranks with those Formula 1 drivers who blast the official Netflix series Drive To Survive. Max Verstappen and some of his peers are reportedly now snubbing producers as they begin filming for the 2022 series, with the reigning world champion calling some narratives “fake”. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali acknowledges […]
Sainz denies Ferrari engine is ‘superior’
Mar.25 (GMM) Carlos Sainz has hit back at the early 2022 theory about Ferrari’s all-new power unit. After focusing all last season on the new set of revolutionary regulations, and then finishing 1-2 from pole in Bahrain, most agree that Ferrari is now leading the field with its 1000-plus horsepower engine. Carlos Sainz disagrees. “Our […]
Schumacher to ‘talk’ to other ‘top teams’
Mar.25 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen’s pace is good news, not bad news, for Mick Schumacher. That is the view of former driver Christian Danner, even though the experienced Dane Magnussen’s eleventh-hour return to replace Nikita Mazepin at Haas appears to have threatened Schumacher’s top-dog status. Indeed, the newly 23-year-old Schumacher is out of contract at the […]
Alonso ‘not worried’ about F1’s covid outbreak
Mar.25 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says he’s “not worried” that covid could be about to wreak havoc on Formula 1 once again. Just as restrictions are easing across the world, including in the F1 paddock, the sport has been struck by two prominent covid-19 infections. First, Daniel Ricciardo missed the Bahrain test, and now Sebastian Vettel […]
‘No more emotion’ in Wolff-Horner rivalry
Mar.24 (GMM) Toto Wolff says his intense personal rivalry with his Red Bull counterpart Christian Horner is now over. Last year during the intense Red Bull versus Mercedes title battle, but even before that, the pair were often at bitter loggerheads via the media. Horner called the Mercedes boss a “tax evader” for moving to […]
Domenicali expects Imola crowd ‘like the old days’
Mar.24 (GMM) The world of Formula 1 should be bracing for even longer race schedules, according to the sport’s CEO Stefano Domenicali. This year, an unprecedented 23 grands prix are scheduled – and the Italian says F1 is not done yet. “I think there’s potential to get to 24,” Domenicali is quoted by Sky Deutschland. […]
Sainz, Binotto say Ferrari not 2022 favourite
Mar.24 (GMM) Ferrari must not believe it is favourite to win the 2022 world championship, according to Carlos Sainz. It’s advice that the Spanish driver’s boss Mattia Binotto doesn’t need to hear, because he is keeping his feet firmly planted despite the impressive 1-2 finish in Bahrain last weekend. The Italian has his eyes firmly […]