Dec.12 (GMM) Nyck de Vries, a works Mercedes driver in Formula E, has defended 2021 Formula 1 rookie Nikita Mazepin. Mazepin, 21, is under fire from Haas, Formula 1 and the FIA for a social media video in which he allegedly groped a female friend. It may already have had repercussions for the Russian, as […]
Category: Recent stories
Perez had tequila with Red Bull bosses after Bahrain
Dec.12 (GMM) Sergio Perez shared a tequila with Red Bull bosses after his breakthrough Sakhir GP win – but he still isn’t sure if he will race for the team in 2021. Red Bull is insisting that it will not make a decision about retaining Alex Albon until after this weekend’s season finale. Alongside Nico […]
Magnussen unable to attend major court dates
Dec.12 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen says he would have liked to return to his native Denmark earlier this week – for a court case. The Dane is being sued by his former manager Dorte Riis Madsen, and the appeal trial took place over three days in Copenhagen. “I would very much like to have been there, […]
Fourth title loss to Hamilton ‘hard to accept’ – Bottas
Dec.12 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has confirmed team boss Toto Wolff’s suspicion that the Finn is not in top form after losing another world championship to Lewis Hamilton. Bottas said he had to avoid the press and social media all last week as the world of F1 wondered if Wolff will seize the moment and put […]
Car ‘not the same’ after Russell raced it – Hamilton
Dec.12 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton, who has now recovered from covid-19, says his Mercedes car felt different after George Russell substituted for him last weekend in Bahrain. The seven time world champion was fifth and second fastest respectively in Friday’s two practice sessions in Abu Dhabi. “It felt like I had spent a lot of time […]
Binotto, Camilleri stories not linked – Mekies
Dec.12 (GMM) The stories about Ferrari chiefs Mattia Binotto and Louis Camilleri are not linked. That is the word from acting Ferrari team boss Laurent Mekies, who is temporarily leading the Maranello outfit after Binotto returned to Italy feeling unwell. “I was with Binotto in Bahrain and he was not well after the grand prix,” […]
No final Haas test for Grosjean – Steiner
Dec.12 (GMM) Haas will not be giving Romain Grosjean a Formula 1 test over the winter. After it emerged that the Frenchman could not race in Abu Dhabi due to his burns, he said he would appreciate if any of the teams could give him one final test drive to round out his F1 career. […]
Alfa Romeo not joining Haas as next Ferrari ‘B team’
Dec.12 (GMM) Frederic Vasseur says Alfa Romeo won’t be following the lead of fellow Ferrari-powered team Haas in forging an even closer collaboration with Maranello. After it was announced that Ferrari designer Simone Resta will work for Haas next year, it now emerges that the Italian will actually work on the design and development of […]
Teammates say Grosjean ‘incredible’ on fast lap
Dec.11 (GMM) Two former teammates have farewelled Romain Grosjean from Formula 1 by saying the Frenchman was impressively fast over a single lap. Grosjean, who has revealed a photo on social media of the extent of the burns to his right hand, is unable to contest his final grand prix in Abu Dhabi this weekend. […]
Schumacher ‘treated’ to return to ‘normal life’ – Todt
Dec.11 (GMM) F1 legend Michael Schumacher is being “treated” so that he can “return to a more normal life”. That is the latest word from FIA president Jean Todt, who is now one of very few people who is able to personally visit his long-time friend at home. Almost nothing is known about 51-year-old Schumacher […]
‘No logic’ behind Ferrari test ban – Sainz
Dec.11 (GMM) There is “no logic” to the FIA’s decision to allow some experienced drivers to test after the Abu Dhabi finale but not others. That is the view of both Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel, who are annoyed that although 39-year-old Fernando Alonso has been given the green light for the ‘young drivers test’, […]
Ferrari stuns F1 paddock with management news
Dec.11 (GMM) Ferrari has stunned the F1 paddock in Abu Dhabi with the latest news about its upper management. First, it emerged that Mattia Binotto left the Arab island because he is unwell – although the Maranello team insists it is not covid-19. A source in the Italian media said Ferrari’s team boss is not […]
Kvyat unsure why Tsunoda announcement taking so long
Dec.11 (GMM) Several drivers are waiting for Red Bull to finally announce its Formula 1 driver lineups for 2021. It is known that Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly will lead the Red Bull and Alpha Tauri teams respectively – but the cockpits alongside them are officially still vacant. However, Daniil Kvyat strongly hints that he […]
No early Haas debut for Schumacher due to ‘pressure’
Dec.11 (GMM) Promoting Mick Schumacher to the race cockpit this weekend in Abu Dhabi would have put “too much pressure” on the new Formula 2 champion. That is the word from Gunther Steiner, as he explained why he decided to keep Pietro Fittipaldi in the injured Romain Grosjean’s Haas cockpit this weekend rather than promote […]
Ocon ‘not afraid’ of 2021 teammate Alonso
Dec.11 (GMM) Esteban Ocon insists he is “not afraid” of Fernando Alonso. This year, as he returned to F1 following a year on the bench, 24-year-old Ocon struggled to match up against teammate Daniel Ricciardo but he landed on the podium last time out in Bahrain. However, his next teammate will be the notoriously-difficult two-time […]
Montreal wants spectators at 2021 GP
Dec.11 (GMM) Race promoter Francois Dumontier says the plan is for spectators to attend next June’s Canadian GP. The Montreal race fell off the covid-affected 2020 calendar altogether, amid rumours of a spat with local health authorities who rejected Dumontier’s pandemic plan. “As much as I said in July that they did not read our […]
Wolff not stepping down as Mercedes team boss
Dec.11 (GMM) Toto Wolff has ended any lingering uncertainty about his role in Formula 1 by confirming that he is staying put for 2021. “Yes, I will stay in Formula 1,” he told Suddeutsche Zeitung newspaper. “Also as team boss.” With his existing contract with Mercedes parent Daimler expiring at the end of December, the […]
Russell, Bottas say 2021 contracts unchanged
Dec.11 (GMM) George Russell and Valtteri Bottas have bucked the speculation by suggesting their respective contracts for 2021 will proceed as planned. After impressing the F1 world with his performance in Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes, Russell suggested he had given Toto Wolff some thinking to do over the winter. “It was just a joking comment in […]
No ‘young driver’ test for Sainz or Vettel
Dec.10 (GMM) Current Formula 1 drivers have been told by the FIA that they are not eligible to do the ‘young driver test’ in Abu Dhabi after this weekend’s 2020 finale. The issue became a hot and controversial topic in the Bahrain paddock last week after it emerged that 39-year-old two-time world champion Fernando Alonso […]
Wolff ‘curious’ to see Ocon’s next steps in F1
Dec.10 (GMM) Toto Wolff says he is “curious” to observe the next developments in Esteban Ocon’s Formula 1 career. After the Mercedes junior driver lost his Force India seat at the end of 2018, Wolff made him reserve driver for the works team and for this year helped broker his return to the grid with […]