Mar.23 (GMM) “There’s something going on” behind closed doors at Mercedes. That is the suspicion of former F1 driver and UK television pundit Karun Chandhok, referring to Lewis Hamilton’s protracted negotiations that culminated in a mere one-year contract for 2021. Chandhok’s colleague Martin Brundle said he met the seven time world champion recently and found […]
Boss confident Australian GP will go ahead
Mar.23 (GMM) Australian GP boss Andrew Westacott is confident the rescheduled Melbourne race will go ahead as planned in late November. It was the government’s insistence of two-week quarantines for all international travellers that meant the 2021 season opener could not go ahead as originally scheduled this month. But Westacott told Australia’s Nine Network that […]
Dutch GP not giving up on F1 spectators
Mar.23 (GMM) Zandvoort is still not giving up on hosting a full house of spectators for the Dutch GP in September. The inaugural race at the rejuvenated circuit could not take place last year as a ‘ghost race’ as it totally contradicted the organisers’ financial model. F1 has scheduled the 2021 Dutch GP for September, […]
Schumacher debuting with wrong F1 team – Ecclestone
Mar.23 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone thinks Mick Schumacher is making his Formula 1 debut for the wrong team. Schumacher, the 21-year-old son of F1 legend Michael, has been placed with Ferrari’s support at the small American team Haas for 2021. “It is a name that has to be in Formula 1,” former F1 supremo Ecclestone told […]
Ferrari, Leclerc ‘hiding’ true 2021 pace – Gasly
Mar.22 (GMM) Ferrari and Charles Leclerc are keeping their cards close to their chests ahead of the 2021 season. That is the view of Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly, who is friends with fellow Frenchman Leclerc. “I think Ferrari is hiding and not showing too much,” Gasly told Spain’s Marca. “Compared to last year, I think […]
Bottas has ‘no chance’ of beating Hamilton
Mar.22 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has “no chance” of beating his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton in 2021. That is the view of former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher, who does think Finn Bottas has the ability to be “at eye-level” with the seven time world champion at “some races”. “But in terms of the whole season, he […]
Porsche CEO says F1 wants carmaker to enter sport
Mar.22 (GMM) Porsche CEO Oliver Blume has confirmed that Formula 1 approached the Volkswagen-owned German sports car maker about entering the sport in the near future. Rumours that Porsche could enter F1 have intensified in the past weeks, with Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko admitting he has been in talks. “Motorsport is in the DNA […]
Tsunoda ‘a better driver’ than Schumacher – Minardi
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 […]