Mar.11 (GMM) Formula 1’s environmental credentials already outpace Formula E. That is the claim of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, who said carmakers have been “rushing” to the all-electric series. “If you look at the diesel generators they (Formula E) use to charge their high performance batteries, then I almost guarantee that the overall carbon […]
Category: Recent stories
Todt spoke to Carey about secret Ferrari settlement
Mar.11 (GMM) Jean Todt has revealed that he consulted with Chase Carey before agreeing the secret settlement with Ferrari over the legality of the Italian team’s 2019 engine. The seven non-Ferrari affiliated teams are threatening to sue over the controversy. “It looks like Ferrari cheated with its engine in 2019,” former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone […]
Gap to Mercedes must be within three tenths – Verstappen
Mar.11 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he hopes Red Bull’s 2020 car is within “two to three tenths” of Mercedes’ pace. Many are expecting Red Bull-Honda and the Dutchman to give the previously dominant Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton a run for their money this year. “I hope we can be there immediately,” Verstappen, 22, told De […]
Melbourne win ‘seems difficult’ for Ferrari – Leclerc
Mar.11 (GMM) Charles Leclerc says he isn’t sure how competitive Ferrari’s 2020 car is compared to its rivals. Team boss Mattia Binotto has warned publicly, and also in an internal letter to members of the race team, that the car is not fast enough to win in Melbourne. But Leclerc says he isn’t sure. “It […]
Red Bull to protest Mercedes’ DAS system in Melbourne
Mar.11 (GMM) Two teams could throw yet another cloud over the 2020 season opener in Melbourne, according to Germany’s Auto Bild. Correspondent Ralf Bach said there is a very real possibility that Red Bull will lodge an official protest against the legality of Mercedes’ new ‘DAS’ steering system. “From our perspective, the system does not […]
Designer doubts Vettel will switch helmet colours
Mar.11 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel will not immediately take advantage of the newly-axed rule restricting helmet livery changes. Before he joined Ferrari, Vettel’s habit of changing his helmet colours ahead of almost every race was one of the main reasons the FIA decided to ban the practice. But the rule has been scrapped for 2020. The […]
Coronavirus infection hits Albert Park
Mar.11 (GMM) The coronavirus threat continues to close in on the start of F1’s 2020 season. With preparations in full swing for the season opener and the teams and drivers already in Melbourne, news suddenly broke that a man confirmed to have coronavirus recently visited the Albert Park hotel. The hotel is now locked down. […]
Marko says Ferrari scandal ‘deadline’ looms
Mar.10 (GMM) An ultimatum for the FIA demanding answers to the Ferrari engine legality scandal is about to expire, Dr Helmut Marko has revealed. The seven teams not affiliated with Ferrari reacted with fury and threats of legal action when F1’s governing body announced it had reached a secret settlement with the Italian team over […]
Latifi ‘not good enough’ for F1 – van der Garde
Mar.10 (GMM) Former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde says he isn’t sure the sport’s only 2020 rookie – Nicholas Latifi – is “good enough” for Formula 1. Dutchman van der Garde, who raced in 2013 for Caterham, told the Dutch publication Formule 1 that he can imagine the 24-year-old Formula 2 veteran struggling alongside […]
Honda says Verstappen wants podium at every race
Mar.10 (GMM) Honda says it wants to help Max Verstappen finish on the podium at every race in 2020 so he can fight for the world championship. Red Bull-Honda had a conspicuously low profile winter period, but all the signs from the team indicate that a real challenge to Mercedes’ dominance may be posed. Masashi […]
Leclerc ‘happy’ if Ferrari keeps Vettel
Mar.10 (GMM) Charles Leclerc has admitted he is “not sure” if Sebastian Vettel will still be his Ferrari teammate in 2021. Quadruple world champion Vettel has lost his clear number 1 status and his contract expires at the end of the season, but reports indicate that the German and Ferrari are inching towards a new […]
Health official says Zandvoort race can ‘go ahead’
Mar.10 (GMM) Dutch public health chief Sjaak de Gouw says he is not worried that the first European race of F1’s 2020 season at Zandvoort will be cancelled. A dark cloud caused by the coronavirus crisis is now hanging over the first three flyaway races of the season in Australia, Bahrain and Vietnam. After that, […]
Marko slams coronavirus ‘scaremongering’
Mar.10 (GMM) The global coronavirus crisis is being portrayed “hysterically”, according to Red Bull’s top F1 official Dr Helmut Marko. On the face of it, the entire world – Formula 1 included – is becoming crippled by the disease outbreak, with China postponed, spectators locked out of Bahrain, and a giant question mark put alongside […]
Ferrari scandal could trigger Vettel exit – Glock
Mar.9 (GMM) The saga about the legality of Ferrari’s 2019 engine could trigger Sebastian Vettel’s exit from the team. That is the view of former F1 driver and fellow German Timo Glock, who was asked by ran.de about quadruple world champion Vettel’s expiring contract. “I think it will also depend on what happens with how […]
Magnussen admits no longer on top teams’ radar
Mar.9 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen has admitted he has fallen off the radar of the top teams in Formula 1. Now at Haas, the 27-year-old Dane actually made his debut in 2014 for the then top team McLaren. “I got into Formula 1 in the same way as Verstappen and Leclerc, who went straight into top […]
Ecclestone slams Ferrari-FIA ‘secret deal’
Mar.9 (GMM) Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone is siding with the seven teams who are furious with Ferrari and the FIA. Just before the 2020 season begins, a political war has broken out after the FIA agreed a secret settlement with Ferrari over the Italian team’s questionably-legal 2019 engine. After the seven non-Ferrari affiliated teams […]
F1 ‘looks down’ on US drivers – Newgarden
Mar.9 (GMM) Two-time and reigning Indycar champion Josef Newgarden thinks the world of Formula 1 “looks down” on America’s premier racing scene. The 29-year-old from Tennessee, who won the Indycar titles in 2017 and 2019, had an unsuccessful GP3 campaign in 2010 and after that began his rise through the Indy ranks. Newgarden admitted to […]
Latifi hints Williams close to Alfa Romeo pace
Mar.9 (GMM) With most of the attention on the top of the 2020 field, an interesting battle could be brewing at the very bottom. Williams was dead last in 2019, but rookie Nicholas Latifi – who was the reserve driver last year – says the new car is “much better”. “Have we made as much […]
Sainz denies suggesting Racing Point ‘illegal’
Mar.9 (GMM) Carlos Sainz has backed away from any suggestion that Racing Point’s 2020 car, dubbed the ‘pink Mercedes’ by many in the paddock, might be illegal. Spaniard Sainz, who drives for McLaren, hinted that the engineers he works with do not believe that Racing Point copied Mercedes simply by studying photos. “I asked my […]
Ecclestone says 2020 Ferrari ‘not good’
Mar.9 (GMM) Hopes are high that Red Bull can pose a challenge to Mercedes in 2020. What is clear after winter testing is that Mercedes remains at the front, while Ferrari is struggling. “The (Ferrari) car is obviously not good,” former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone told Blick newspaper. “But like millions of fans of the […]