Mar.22 (GMM) Mick Schumacher will not be the most impressive rookie in Formula 1 this year, according to former team owner and boss Giancarlo Minardi. Although he says he will also keep an eye on the great Michael Schumacher’s son this year, he has no doubt who will emerge as the most successful rookie. “That […]
Perez to be up to speed ‘right away’ – Verstappen
Mar.22 (GMM) Sergio Perez is wise to “take some pressure off” ahead of his first season with Red Bull, according to his high-profile teammate Max Verstappen. The highly experienced Mexican has been drafted into the lineup to push Verstappen harder, but Perez has notably been playing down his expectations. When asked where he thinks 31-year-old […]
Mercedes fast even with ‘worst floor’ – Verstappen
Mar.22 (GMM) Mercedes is trying to “push” Red Bull into the role of title favourite for 2021. That is the view of Max Verstappen, who others think is genuinely most likely to win this season given Mercedes’ high-profile testing problems. But the Dutchman thinks Mercedes still shone. “You can see what Mercedes did from the […]
Ecclestone hopes Hamilton not too distracted
Mar.22 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone thinks Lewis Hamilton’s off-track activities may affect his “racing skills” in 2021. In addition to his interests in music, fashion and pop culture, the seven time world champion has more recently been championing political issues and activism. His most recent distraction was the conclusion of his new one-year Mercedes contract. Team […]
Sprint races about ‘making money’ – Verstappen
Mar.22 (GMM) One of the biggest problems in Formula 1 is the width of the cars, according to Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver said he was surprised recently when he came across a video from the 2016 season – just before the cars became much faster and wider. “I was amazed how much racing […]
Portugal to be 2021 ‘ghost race’
Mar.22 (GMM) Spectators will not be permitted to attend round three of this year’s world championship in Portugal in early May. Earlier in March, when Portimao was unveiled as a last-minute replacement race, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said he was “working with the promoter” because he hoped to “welcome fans in a safe way”. However, […]
Mazepin denies ‘attacking’ in Bahrain test
Mar.19 (GMM) Nikita Mazepin admits he and fellow rookie Mick Schumacher may struggle to shine at the wheel of their Haas cars in 2021. It has been a rocky prelude to the season for the American team and its new Russian driver, amid controversy over the ‘Russian flag’ livery and Mazepin’s off-track incident and reputation. […]
Seidl thinks rivals may copy McLaren diffuser
Mar.19 (GMM) McLaren is hoping to kick off the 2021 season with a podium. Many analysts believe that the famous British team could have its nose slightly in front of an extremely tight midfield this season. The 2021 McLaren’s clever exploitation of a loophole in the new diffuser rules have also received praise. “It will […]
F1 debut ‘ten times more difficult’ for Schumacher
Mar.19 (GMM) Nico Rosberg thinks Mick Schumacher’s Formula 1 debut will be “ten times more difficult” than his own was back in 2006. “It’s not easy to be the ‘son of’,” the now retired 2016 world champion, whose father Keke Rosberg won the world championship in 1982, told Sport1. “And it will be ten times […]
Alonso said 2021 Alpine ‘a little slow’
Mar.19 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has admitted his Alpine car for 2021 is “a little slow”. That is the claim of Antonio Lobato, a well-known and respected Spanish F1 broadcaster. He told Marca sports newspaper: “Regardless of his recent accident, his age and whatever else is being said, Alonso looks like a bull. The Alpine machine […]
Wooing Andy Cowell to Red Bull ‘difficult’ – Marko
Mar.19 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has once again played down Red Bull’s chances of enticing Andy Cowell back to Formula 1 to lead the new engine operations at Milton Keynes. The Austrian told motorsport-magazin.com that Red Bull is already busily preparing the in-house engine facilities ahead of Honda’s official departure at the end of the […]
Mercedes made ‘worst start to season in seven years’
Mar.19 (GMM) Williams’ new CEO Jost Capito hopes Formula 1 steers away from “artificial restrictions on competition”. He was speaking as most analysts agree that Mercedes, having dominated every championship of the hybrid era since 2014, is suddenly suffering with the mandatory aerodynamic rule tweaks ahead of the 2021 season. “If we talk about the […]
Boss admits Tsunoda used DRS too early
Mar.19 (GMM) Yuki Tsunoda’s boss has admitted the Japanese rookie was activating DRS too early en route to his impressive laptimes in the official Bahrain test. “Yuki is still a beginner,” Alpha Tauri team principal Franz Tost told Sky Deutschland. “DRS is usually automatic and he activated it too early during the tests. He won’t […]
Red Bull reserve seat ‘never an option’ – Hulkenberg
Mar.18 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg says becoming reserve driver at Red Bull this season was “never an option”. Actually, the German is expected to sign up as Mercedes’ works reserve driver, to potentially also be on standby for Aston Martin and McLaren. The 33-year-old admits he was really chasing the Red Bull race seat, which ultimately […]
McLaren’s Seidl doesn’t ‘feel sorry’ for Vettel
Mar.18 (GMM) McLaren boss Andreas Seidl has played down the need to feel “sorry” for Sebastian Vettel. After losing his Ferrari seat and moving to Aston Martin, the quadruple world champion notably struggled for pace and reliability in the Bahrain test. Ralf Schumacher said afterwards that he feels “a little sorry” for the German. “Poor […]
Norris could ‘surprise’ in 2021 – Russell
Mar.18 (GMM) Lando Norris could be a “surprise” of the 2021 season. That is the prediction of his friend and countryman George Russell, who races for Williams but is obviously eyeing Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes seat for 2022. “I think Lewis will stay, but the question is whether he wants to,” Russell said. So for the […]
Mercedes has ‘aerodynamic problem’ – Schumacher
Mar.18 (GMM) Mercedes’ 2021 car has an “aerodynamic problem” that could be difficult to solve, according to former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher. Most analysts agree that Red Bull is now clearly the favourite to become the first team since the hybrid era began to beat Mercedes to a title. “Mercedes is definitely struggling with an […]
Alpine rebrand kept Renault in F1 – CEO
Mar.18 (GMM) Rebranding as Alpine justified the Renault group remaining in Formula 1, according to the Enstone based team’s new CEO Laurent Rossi. “The thinking behind Renault and F1 was constantly questioned within the company, for various reasons,” Rossi, who will report directly to Renault CEO Luca de Meo, told Auto Hebdo. “Whenever we encountered […]
Ferrari has improved ‘a bit’ for 2021 – Leclerc
Mar.18 (GMM) Ferrari has only caught up “a bit” since 2020, so fans should not “expect miracles” this season. That is the news from Charles Leclerc, amid reports that the Maranello team may have recovered up to 40-50 horsepower with its new engine for 2021. “No, I don’t think we have made up all the […]
2021 McLaren ‘pretty impressive’ so far – Leclerc
Mar.18 (GMM) McLaren looks set to enter the 2021 season as the third force behind Red Bull and Mercedes. “I have the impression that Red Bull will be a very good competitor for Mercedes this year,” Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc told Codesport Monaco. “The McLaren was also pretty impressive.” McLaren’s 2021 car has also impressed whilst […]