Apr.1 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is still struggling with pressure, according to his first Formula 1 team boss Gerhard Berger. The quadruple world champion was ousted by Ferrari but switched to Aston Martin for 2021 and beyond – and had a dire pre-season test and first race in Bahrain. “At Ferrari it was the same thing,” […]
Category: Recent stories
No spectators at Imola again in 2021
Mar.31 (GMM) The next grand prix of 2021 will be a ‘ghost race’, Emilia Romagna regional president Stefano Bonaccini has revealed. Last year, the covid-19 substitute race at Imola was also held behind closed doors, and Bonaccini said the situation must remain the same for 2021 as well. “The grand prix on April 18 will […]
First Ferrari race not time to ‘attack’ – Sainz
Mar.31 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he took a calmer than usual approach to his first race with Ferrari in Bahrain. The Spaniard, who switched from McLaren to replace the ousted Sebastian Vettel for 2021, qualified four places behind new teammate Charles Leclerc and also finished his first grand prix wearing red in eighth place. “In […]
Mercedes may not be ‘good enough’ to win at Imola
Mar.31 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton may have won in Bahrain, but his Mercedes team is worried the situation could be different once the racing resumes next month at Imola. “It was awfully hard work and we had quite a tough time,” admitted engineering boss Andrew Shovlin after the 2021 season opener. “If you look at Red […]
No technical boss at Williams was ‘crazy’ – Russell
Mar.31 (GMM) George Russell thinks Williams is finally moving in the right direction in Formula 1. The once-great British team has been the sport’s permanent backmarker in the recent past, but in 2021 appears to have moved away from the very rear of the grid. It comes after the Williams family departed Formula 1 last […]
Steward says Verstappen could have won in Bahrain
Mar.31 (GMM) Bahrain GP steward and former F1 driver Emanuele Pirro says Max Verstappen may have won last Sunday’s race if he had refused to hand back the lead to Lewis Hamilton. The ‘tracks limits’ issue is back with a bang early in 2021, after Mercedes’ Hamilton ran wide at turn four on 30 different […]
‘Criticism’ may have hurt Mazepin in Bahrain – boss
Mar.30 (GMM) Gunther Steiner has admitted Nikita Mazepin’s tumultuous pre-season could have contributed to his horror first race weekend in Formula 1. The 22-year-old Russian rookie was one of the most prominent figures of the 2021 pre-season, as he was the subject of a vitriolic and constant social media hate campaign. Then, as the season […]
Vettel ‘won’t be on the grid in 2022’ – Watt
Mar.30 (GMM) “Time has run out” for Sebastian Vettel in Formula 1, according to former racing driver Jason Watt. After losing his Ferrari seat, the quadruple world champion switched to Aston Martin for 2021 but had a miserable pre-season test and first race in Bahrain. Team boss Otmar Szafnauer defended the beleaguered 33-year-old. “The car […]
F1 putting ‘finishing touches’ on sprint races – CEO
Mar.30 (GMM) Formula 1 is putting “the finishing touches” on its plan for the three-race sprint qualifying format trial in 2021. “In the coming days, we will be putting the finishing touches on the sprint race plan,” confirmed F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali. The teams have agreed to experiment with the 30-minute Saturday sprint qualifying race […]
Hamilton can win in ‘inferior car’ – Albers
Mar.30 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton proved that he doesn’t need the best car to win grands prix. That is the view of Christijan Albers, a Dutch former Formula 1 driver who admits that “I think we all wanted Max (Verstappen) to win” the Bahrain season opener. “To be honest, Hamilton ruined that party by himself,” he […]
Wolff ‘knew’ Honda would ace final F1 engine
Mar.30 (GMM) Mercedes’ Toto Wolff has hailed Red Bull engine partner Honda for producing a more potent power unit than the reigning champion team for 2021. Although Lewis Hamilton pipped Max Verstappen at the post in Bahrain, it was the Red Bull-Honda that dominated with pace throughout the season opening weekend. Wolff gives much of […]
Red Bull could win ‘a lot more’ in 2021 – Hamilton
Mar.29 (GMM) Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton may have pipped Max Verstappen at the post after the Red Bull otherwise dominated the 2021 season opener in Bahrain. But the Dutch driver’s boss Christian Horner was looking on the bright side late on Sunday. “There were a few rule changes this winter that apparently brought the teams at […]
Ferrari can ‘finally’ rely on both drivers – Binotto
Mar.29 (GMM) Ferrari can “finally” rely on two competitive drivers in Formula 1. That is the controversial claim after Bahrain of team boss Mattia Binotto, having decided to oust Sebastian Vettel and replace him for 2021 with Carlos Sainz. “It’s a good starting point,” Binotto told Sky Italia, after Charles Leclerc and Sainz finished sixth […]
Mazepin ‘doesn’t belong’ in F1 – Salo
Mar.29 (GMM) Nikita Mazepin “just doesn’t belong” in Formula 1. That is the blunt assessment of a former F1 driver and regular FIA steward, after Russian rookie Mazepin’s tumultuous pre-season period spilled into the 2021 season opener in Bahrain. Indeed, the 22-year-old repeatedly spun during qualifying, was consistently outpaced by teammate Mick Schumacher, and he […]
F1 talks with new manufacturers taking place – CEO
Mar.29 (GMM) “Many conversations” are taking place behind closed doors as Stefano Domenicali admits manufacturers other than Porsche are looking into Formula 1. While many worry about how many of the 23 scheduled races will fall victim to covid-19 this season, new F1 CEO Domenicali is sounding upbeat. “We have a contract with the teams, […]
Vettel’s Aston Martin ‘not that good’ – Tost
Mar.29 (GMM) Aston Martin’s 2021 car is “not that good”, according to rival Alpha Tauri’s team boss Franz Tost. Sebastian Vettel joining the former Racing Point outfit after being ousted by Ferrari had been billed as a return to a happy environment for the beleaguered quadruple world champion to thrive in. But Vettel struggled massively […]
Alonso denies saying he’s ‘better’ than Hamilton
Mar.29 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has denied declaring that he is “better” than 2021 title chargers Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. Earlier in Bahrain, the returning two-time world champion was asked if he is still as good after two years away from Formula 1 as when he was racing Hamilton and Verstappen in 2018. “I’m better,” […]
Vettel sees five more years in F1 ahead of him
Mar.28 (GMM) Despite a horror start to his new tenure at Aston Martin, Sebastian Vettel thinks he still has five years of Formula 1 ahead of him. The 33-year-old former Ferrari driver and quadruple world champion opened his Aston Martin account in questionable style in Bahrain by qualifying just 18th. But he repeated his earlier […]
FIA to ‘disassemble’ F1 cars for rules checks
Mar.28 (GMM) Formula 1 is moving to ensure compliance with the technical rules this year by promising to randomly seize one full car at every race weekend for “disassembly” and “deeper checks”. The stewards in Bahrain announced that if irregularities are then found, the FIA may then ‘impound’ and ‘seal’ any components and information for […]
Trulli no fan of F1’s ‘power unit’ era
Mar.28 (GMM) Former driver Jarno Trulli has revealed he is no fan of modern Formula 1 – and all because of the turbo ‘power units’. Now 46, the Italian raced for no fewer than six teams in the naturally-aspirated V10 and V8 eras. “I don’t like this Formula 1 – it’s not for me,” Trulli, […]