Mar.30 (GMM) Late former FIA president Max Mosley took his own life with a firearm last May, a London inquest has found. At the time, it was thought the 81-year-old former F1 team boss and close associate of former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone had succumbed to cancer. But Westminster Coroner’s Court has in fact recorded […]
F1 must enforce budget cap for 2022 title race – Binotto
Mar.30 (GMM) Mattia Binotto says Formula 1 needs to ensure that top teams are sticking with the budget cap rules. After the opening two grands prix of the new rules era, it is clear that another new title duel is brewing up – this time between Red Bull and Ferrari while Mercedes tries to claw […]
Stroll just ‘burning money’ in F1 – Kolles
Mar.29 (GMM) Lawrence Stroll is simply “burning money” with a Formula 1 project that “won’t work”. That is the scathing prediction of Colin Kolles, who once ran the Silverstone based team prior to its ownership by the Canadian fashion billionaire. Now called Aston Martin, the team is languishing on the 2022 grid despite the injection […]
Magnussen ‘shows Schumacher how high the bar is’
Mar.29 (GMM) The “pressure” of matching up with Kevin Magnussen triggered Mick Schumacher’s high speed crash and hospitalisation in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian GP. The 23-year-old admitted he simply made a mistake that ultimately cost him his place on the Jeddah grid, just a week after being similarly humbled by eleventh-hour new teammate Magnussen […]
Red Bull to slash car weight for Imola
Mar.29 (GMM) Red Bull could speed ahead of Ferrari after next weekend’s Australian GP. That is the view of Dr Helmut Marko, after world champion Max Verstappen only managed to beat Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in Saudi Arabia after an intense battle. “Ferrari are fast in all conditions, regardless of track temperature or tyre. Our car […]
Top drivers say F1 not ready to scrap DRS
Mar.29 (GMM) Top Formula 1 drivers say the sport is not ready to drop the overtaking aid DRS. The opening two races of the 2022 ‘ground effect’ rules era kicked off with rave reviews, with chasing and passing a rival car made notably easier. Some have argued that the new rules are so effective that, […]
Villeneuve, Schumacher, write off Mercedes title
Mar.29 (GMM) 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve thinks Mercedes’ world title hopes are already over in 2022. Although only two races have passed, it is clear that Ferrari and Red Bull are significantly ahead – with other teams potentially also in front of the reigning constructors’ champions. “Are we among the top teams in any […]
Alonso eyes ‘two or three’ more F1 seasons
Mar.28 (GMM) It could be up to “seven years” before Renault-owned Alpine finally join the fight for the world championship at the very front of Formula 1. The French team has made much of Alonso’s so-called ‘El Plan’ for victories and titles, and the 2022 car does look to be one of the best at […]
Magnussen pushed to physical limits in Jeddah
Mar.28 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen pushed to the limit of his physical fitness last weekend in Saudi Arabia. It was the Dane’s second Formula 1 race in the space of a fortnight since losing his Haas race seat to Nikita Mazepin after the 2020 season. Jeddah was a particularly tough race on even the most seasoned […]
Schumacher ‘shocked’ over F1 CEO’s Saudi stance
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 […]
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 […]