Jun.18 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has hit back at suggestions he is experiencing “difficulties” on his return to Formula 1. The 39-year-old Spaniard said he expected that his comeback after a two-year sabbatical would not be plain sailing. “Of the six grands prix so far, two were new circuits for me and two were street circuits,” […]
Bottas, Russell not confirming 2022 rumours
Jun.18 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas and George Russell are giving little away at Paul Ricard amid swirling rumours about their future. According to authoritative sources, Russell looks set to replace Bottas at Mercedes next year, with the Finn potentially returning to Williams or perhaps considering a move to Alfa Romeo. “No one in the team has […]
Magnussen to make Indycar debut
Jun.17 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen will step up into Indycar this weekend. As he lost his Formula 1 seat with Haas at the end of last year, the Dane said he would hopefully use his move into US sports cars as a springboard to the country’s premier open-wheel category. “My father has been racing in the […]
Austria wins ‘more realistic’ for Verstappen
Jun.17 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko admits a win for championship leader Max Verstappen might be out of reach this weekend at Paul Ricard. Indeed, both Mercedes and Red Bull are expecting that after strong form for the Dutch driver on the Baku and Monaco street circuits, Lewis Hamilton could be back on song on the […]
Honda admits F1 staff could switch to Red Bull
Jun.17 (GMM) Honda is considering a final technological push to set up Red Bull’s two Formula 1 teams for life without works manufacturer support from 2022 and beyond. Masashi Yamamoto, Honda F1’s general manager, told the French weekly Auto Hebdo that the Japanese marque is currently thinking about finalising a new engine to supply to […]
Pirelli’s ‘typical political reaction’ slammed
Jun.17 (GMM) A well-known F1 tyre expert has slammed Pirelli’s explanation for the Baku blowouts as a “typical political reaction”. While Max Verstappen and former Bridgestone tyre engineer Kees van der Grint suspected technical failures were the cause, Pirelli ultimately concluded that both the Dutch driver and Lance Stroll’s teams had improperly used the tyres. […]
Williams not ruling out Russell-Bottas swap
Jun.16 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas’ future looks set to take centre stage this weekend at Paul Ricard. More and more authoritative sources are reporting that the decision to replace the Finn with Mercedes junior George Russell next year is all but made. RTL claims that Toto Wolff intends to kick off talks with Bottas in an […]
Russian driver says Haas favours Schumacher over Mazepin
Jun.16 (GMM) A Russian racing driver believes fellow drivers from his country are normally relegated to number 2 status when they enter Western motorsport categories like Formula 1. Viktor Kozankov, known in Russia as a leading former open-wheel racing driver who raced against David Coulthard and Rubens Barrichello, was asked to comment on the tumultuous […]
Italian press backs Pirelli over tyre blowouts
Jun.16 (GMM) The Italian press is siding with Pirelli against teams who are reportedly finding ways to run lower tyre pressures. Formula 1’s official tyre supplier says it has now completed its investigation into the left rear failures suffered by Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll at Baku. We reported on Monday that Pirelli suspected that […]
Hamilton hopes fans stay ‘loyal’ in pay TV era
Jun.15 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton hopes Formula 1 can ride the wave of its “transition” from free television coverage. Across the spectrum of the sport’s broadcast markets, the trend towards pay-TV coverage is growing by the month and year. “We used to have 8 million fans on TF1 in France,” said F1 legend Alain Prost. “Now […]
McLaren not ruling out Formula E for 2022
Jun.15 (GMM) McLaren is “observing” and “monitoring” the premier electric series Formula E. The Woking based Formula 1 outfit, already now in Indycar, surprised the motor racing world last Friday by revealing it is entering Extreme E – the off-road offshoot of Alejandro Agag’s Formula E concept. McLaren supremo Zak Brown admits he is also […]
Aston Martin wants title ‘within 5 years’
Jun.15 (GMM) Aston Martin is targeting world championship contention within “three to four years”. “If we could be a world championship contender in three to four years, it would be a success,” said team boss Otmar Szafnauer, according to Germany’s RTL. “I think we would consider winning the title within five years as a success,” […]
F1 must race away from pandemic – Steiner
Jun.15 (GMM) The “most important thing” at present is that Formula 1 is able to race past the current covid crisis. That is the view of Haas boss Gunther Steiner, even as some circuits are at least starting to look forward to welcoming spectators back to the grandstands. At Paul Ricard this weekend, three zones […]
Former F1 driver says Horner ‘not very friendly’
Jun.15 (GMM) Christian Horner is not “very friendly”, according to a former Formula 1 driver from the Red Bull camp. At the end of 2011, the then 21-year-old Jaime Alguersuari lost his Toro Rosso seat and walked away from Formula 1 – and eventually motor racing altogether. The Spaniard established a career in electronic music […]
Mazepin’s move on Schumacher ‘normal’ – Berger
Jun.15 (GMM) F1 legend Gerhard Berger has moved to downplay the latest controversy surrounding divisive Russian rookie Nikita Mazepin. At the end of their wheel-to-wheel run to the chequered flag at Baku, Mazepin’s similarly 22-year-old Haas teammate Mick Schumacher said a jink to the right at top speed by the Russian could have been fatal. […]
Hamilton making mistakes under pressure – Berger
Jun.15 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are only making mistakes in 2021 because of how hard they are being pushed by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. That is the view of F1 legend Gerhard Berger, who hopes that the close head-to-head duel continues “all the way to the last race”. “Lewis has had no competition in […]
Williams is Bottas’ ‘only option’ for 2022 – Marko
Jun.15 (GMM) Rumours are gaining steam that George Russell is definitely set to replace Valtteri Bottas for 2022 and beyond. “We would like to keep George,” new Williams team principal Jost Capito admitted to Sky Deutschland. “But we all know that Mercedes will make the decision.” Indeed, Russell is a closely Toto Wolff-aligned Mercedes junior […]
Pirelli suspects Verstappen’s Baku tyres underinflated
Jun.14 (GMM) The analysis of Max Verstappen’s deflated Pirelli tyre showed no signs of a manufacturing or design fault, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. Although the investigation in Milan is not yet complete or published, the authoritative sports daily claims Pirelli officials are relieved that the Red Bull driver’s tyre failure was not the […]
Second US GP in Austin, not Indianapolis, ‘possible’
Jun.14 (GMM) Indianapolis may have shown a thumbs-down to the speculation, but a second US grand prix at Austin appears to be a possibility for 2021. As F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali struggles to maintain a full 23-race calendar amid the ongoing covid crisis, it emerged that more races in America could be part of a […]
Steiner confident for 2022 after Maranello visit
Jun.14 (GMM) Gunther Steiner has a “good feeling” after visiting Maranello to check on the progress of Haas’ 2022 car. Although with bases in the UK and US, the American team has also outsourced much of the design of its Formula 1 car to Dallara in Italy. However, Haas has now changed direction to align […]