Jun.13 (GMM) Ticket sales for next weekend’s French GP are reportedly 50 per cent down on last year. It could be because of the traffic chaos of 2018, when Paul Ricard returned to the F1 calendar. But Eric Boullier, the former McLaren boss who is now involved in the organisation of the French GP, said […]
Category: Recent stories
Not enough support for tyre change – Marko
Jun.13 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has admitted he cannot get enough support to force Pirelli to change its controversial tyres. The Red Bull official has now played down his earlier comments, in which he hinted Pirelli designed its 2019 tyres especially for Mercedes. “It cannot be proved that Mercedes got the tyre specification earlier than […]
No penalty for post-race Vettel tantrum – steward
Jun.13 (GMM) One of the three Canadian GP stewards said they decided not to penalise Sebastian Vettel for his post-race antics of last Sunday in Montreal. Hans-Gerd Ennser, under fire for the time penalty that cost Ferrari’s Vettel victory, says the FIA panel actually gave the German as lenient a punishment as possible. “It could […]
Politician wants grid girls on Dutch GP grid
Jun.13 (GMM) A Dutch parliamentarian wants grid girls to be on the Zandvoort grid next year. Early last year, F1 owner Liberty Media controversially banned grid girls from every grand prix on the calendar. But Party for Freedom politician Roy van Aalst, a member of the house of representatives in the Netherlands, said Liberty’s decision […]
Kvyat ‘much more mature’ in 2019 – Tost
Jun.13 (GMM) In his third stint at Toro Rosso, Daniil Kvyat is a better driver than before. That is the view of the Russian driver’s team boss Franz Tost. Kvyat debuted at Toro Rosso in 2014, swiftly getting the call-up to the senior team Red Bull. But he was demoted back to Toro Rosso in […]
No ‘B spec’ car for Paul Ricard – Abiteboul
Jun.13 (GMM) Cyril Abiteboul has denied that Renault’s upgrade for its home race in France next weekend amounts to a ‘B spec’ car. “Please keep the ball flat,” he told Auto Motor und Sport. “It’s part two of our recovery plan.” The German report said Renault’s Paul Ricard upgrade includes a new front wing, nose, […]
Honda to race second engine upgrade in France
Jun.12 (GMM) Honda will take its second engine upgrade of the 2019 season to Paul Ricard next weekend. In April, just a few races into the long season, the Japanese manufacturer introduced its first upgrade of 2019 for partner teams Red Bull and Toro Rosso. Dr Helmut Marko had said at the time that the […]
Bottas calls Canada GP a ‘wake-up call’
Jun.12 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has described the Canadian GP race weekend as a personal “wake-up call”. With his new beard on show after a lacklustre 2018, the Finnish driver came out of the box with surprisingly strong form early in 2019. But more recently, his championship lead has become a 29-point deficit to Mercedes teammate […]
Binotto admits Ferrari made another strategy error
Jun.12 (GMM) Ferrari has admitted to making yet another strategy error in 2019. Already criticised by the Italian press for a range of strategy mistakes this year, boss Mattia Binotto has confirmed that another oversight took place last Sunday in Canada. When Sebastian Vettel was given his now highly controversial five second penalty, Charles Leclerc […]
Grosjean scared off home intruders – wife
Jun.12 (GMM) Romain Grosjean endured an ordeal at home after returning from the Canadian GP. On social media, his wife Marion – a former F1 presenter for French television – declared the Haas driver a “hero” for scaring off two intruders who had broken into their home at night in Geneva. “Sportsmen are often called […]
Signs of reliability trouble at Mercedes
Jun.12 (GMM) There are signs of reliability trouble coming out of the Mercedes camp. On Saturday in Montreal, the brand new Mercedes engine fitted to Lance Stroll’s Racing Point failed spectacularly. The following day, before the Sebastian Vettel penalty controversy erupted, Lewis Hamilton’s grand prix was almost spoiled by a pre-race problem. He said afterwards: […]
Marko hints Mercedes getting preferential treatment
Jun.12 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has admitted he wonders if Mercedes is being unfairly favoured by F1’s authorities. The Red Bull official hit out at the penalty that cost Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel victory in Montreal. He even defended Vettel, who won all of his four titles at Red Bull, for what is being described as […]
Ferrari pushing ahead with Vettel penalty appeal
Jun.12 (GMM) Ferrari is pushing ahead with its appeal against the controversial stewards decision that cost Sebastian Vettel victory in Canada. There has been uncertainty about whether an appeal against the verdict would be heard by the FIA unless new evidence emerges. But ahead of the Thursday deadline for the appeal being formally lodged, a […]
Team order left Hulkenberg ‘angry’ – Abiteboul
Jun.11 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg left Canada “quite angry,” Renault team boss Cyril Abiteboul has admitted. In Montreal, it was German Hulkenberg’s teammate Daniel Ricciardo in the limelight, having qualified fourth and then finishing sixth. But boss Abiteboul revealed after the race that he issued a team order to Hulkenberg to remain behind Ricciardo to the […]
Bottas’ performance slump ‘strange’ – Salo
Jun.11 (GMM) Former F1 driver Mika Salo has admitted he is worried about the flagging form of his fellow Finn Valtteri Bottas. With his new beard on show after a lacklustre 2018, Bottas came out of the box with surprisingly strong form early this year. But more recently he has slipped behind Lewis Hamilton once […]
‘So much politics’ over F1 rules debate – Verstappen
Jun.11 (GMM) Max Verstappen says “so much politics” is floating around in the F1 paddock at present. That was particularly noticeable in Canada last weekend, when the draft 2021 regulations started doing the rounds. The FIA has now summoned the major players, reportedly also including the drivers, to a summit in Paris this week to […]
Kubica ‘clearly slower’ than Russell – Villeneuve
Jun.11 (GMM) Jacques Villeneuve has not changed his controversial view about Robert Kubica’s return to Formula 1. Just after the Pole’s return race in Melbourne, 1997 world champion Villeneuve called it “terrible” for the sport. “Formula 1 should be the pinnacle of racing, so it’s not good for the sport if someone with a disability […]
Raikkonen admits Alfa Romeo ‘lack speed’
Jun.11 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen has admitted Alfa Romeo “lack speed” as the 2019 championship races towards mid-season. After a good start for the former Sauber team with its new Ferrari-linked branding, Alfa Romeo has slumped and is currently ahead only of struggling Williams. “Hopefully we will be back to a more normal position here,” Raikkonen […]
F1 remains split over Vettel penalty controversy
Jun.11 (GMM) Two days after the Canadian GP, Formula 1 remains split over whether the penalty that cost Sebastian Vettel victory was right or wrong. Nico Rosberg, who had a difficult relationship with his fellow German during his career, has fiercely sided with the stewards and backed Lewis Hamilton’s win. “He (Vettel) always think he […]
Father ‘retweets’ article about Verstappen leaving Red Bull
Jun.10 (GMM) Max Verstappen’s father has ‘retweeted’ a news article about the Dutchman potentially leaving Red Bull. On Sunday, we reported Dr Helmut Marko’s quote in La Gazzetta dello Sport that said the Red Bull boss was “worried” about losing Verstappen to a rival. “At the moment there is only one car that is winning […]