Jan.16 (GMM) Pierre Gasly deserves “some of the blame” for the failure of his time at Red Bull’s top F1 team last year, according to Dr Helmut Marko. The Frenchman has expressed some unhappiness with the way his demotion to Toro Rosso was handled, revealing that “some promises were not kept”. But boss Marko told […]
Leclerc admits ‘still learning’ from Vettel
Jan.16 (GMM) Charles Leclerc has admitted to “tensions” with Sebastian Vettel last year, but he is hoping the Ferrari teammates can work well together in 2020. Last year, Vettel’s new and decade-younger teammate successfully challenged the quadruple world champion’s number 1 status at Ferrari. But Leclerc insists he respects the 32-year-old German. “I learned a […]
Hamilton lifestyle impossible in ‘normal’ car – Alonso
Jan.16 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton would not be able to indulge his extravagant character and lifestyle if he raced a “normal car” in Formula 1. That is the view of former F1 driver Fernando Alonso, who thinks Hamilton is able to match Michael Schumacher’s record seven titles in 2020. “Hamilton can win his seventh,” he said, […]
Florsch criticises Ferrari for seeking female driver
Jan.16 (GMM) Sophia Florsch, who made global headlines by surviving a horror Formula 3 crash at Macau in 2018, has dismissed Ferrari’s push to sign a female driver. Referring to Ferrari’s driver academy, whose star signing at present is Mick Schumacher, boss Mattia Binotto said recently that he would like some women on the roster. […]
Brundle thinks Claire Williams should step aside
Jan.16 (GMM) Former F1 driver and respected pundit Martin Brundle thinks it is time for Claire Williams to step down at the struggling British team. On Wednesday, Williams was in Tel Aviv, where Roy Nissany – an almost completely unknown driver but with key backing in Israel – was announced as a Friday and test […]
Haas ‘on schedule’ as 2020 car passes crash tests
Jan.15 (GMM) Romain Grosjean says he is keen to have a much better season at Haas this year. After finishing fifth overall in 2018, the small and now five-year-old American team only managed to beat Williams in 2019. “We blamed the tyres a lot at the start of the year,” Grosjean told the French source […]
Alonso plays down chances of 2021 Ferrari return
Jan.15 (GMM) Fernando Alonso does not think there is room at Ferrari for his potential return to Formula 1 in 2021. In recent days, as he tackles the off-road Dakar rally and contemplates a third attempt to win the Indy 500 in May, the 38-year-old has admitted he will soon give thought to returning to […]
Vettel can beat Leclerc in 2020 – Berger
Jan.15 (GMM) Gerhard Berger does not think Sebastian Vettel’s F1 career is in crisis. Some think that after losing clear number 1 status, and Ferrari extending Charles Leclerc’s contract for the long term but not his, the four-time world champion may be pushed into retirement. “We don’t know if it’s a decisive year for him […]
Insider senses trouble with Ferrari’s 2020 car
Jan.15 (GMM) A Ferrari insider has revealed that all may not be well with the Maranello team’s preparations for 2020. Leo Turrini, a long-time F1 journalist with key sources at Ferrari, wrote on his Quotidiano blog that he has heard alarming news from within the fabled team. “It seems to me that, so far, the […]
Leclerc ‘more political’ than Verstappen – Berger
Jan.14 (GMM) F1 legend Gerhard Berger says Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc are yet to overtake Lewis Hamilton as the best driver on the grid today. In F1 circles, a clear debate is taking place as to whether it will be feisty Dutchman Verstappen or the focused Leclerc who take over as the best. But […]
Bottas confident ahead of 2021 ‘silly season’
Jan.14 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas is not expecting to be weighed down by this year’s contractual uncertainty. Late last year, after securing another one-year deal for 2020 only, the Finn admitted he had been affected by constant rumours hinting at his Mercedes exit. “When that continues year after year, every single year of your career, at […]
F1 return ‘on the table’ after Indy 500 – Alonso
Jan.14 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says he will think about a possible return to Formula 1 for 2021 after his third attempt to win the Indianapolis 500 in May. The Spaniard, who quit F1 at the end of 2018 to pursue other challenges including the ‘triple crown’, finished second in a stage of the Dakar rally […]
Ferrari ‘angry’ about Leclerc skydiving
Jan.14 (GMM) Charles Leclerc doubts he can follow in Lewis Hamilton’s wheel tracks by testing a MotoGP bike. Before Christmas, six-time world champion Hamilton and MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi swapped their respective Mercedes and Yamaha machines at Valencia. 22-year-old Leclerc, who recently signed a long-term Ferrari contract extension through 2024, expressed interest in doing the […]
Marko surprised by F1 ‘two stroke’ engine idea
Jan.14 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko is not writing off the chances that Formula 1 will be powered by two-stroke engines from 2025. In 2014, the sport’s new V6 ‘power unit’ era began, but the cost, complexity, sound and Mercedes’ dominance have all been controversial. So Pat Symonds, an experienced engineer who is now Liberty Media’s […]
Bahrain would welcome Saudi Arabia to F1
Jan.14 (GMM) Bahrain says it would welcome the arrival of Saudi Arabia to the Formula 1 race calendar. Former F1 team boss Flavio Briatore, who some years ago helped to broker the deal that took the sport to Azerbaijan, said last week that he thinks Saudi officials are “already talking” to Formula 1 about a […]
Hulkenberg not ruling out F1 return
Jan.13 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg is not ruling out a return to Formula 1 in the future. After his 2010 debut with Williams, the German sat out 2011 as a reserve driver but has since raced for Force India, Sauber and Renault over eight consecutive seasons. But Renault have replaced him with the Mercedes-backed Esteban Ocon […]
Five Friday practice sessions for Kubica in 2020
Jan.13 (GMM) New reserve driver Robert Kubica will participate in five Friday morning practice sessions for Alfa Romeo in 2020. The Pole, whose sponsor PKN Orlen has also signed up with the Swiss based team, is expected to shortly sign a DTM race deal for 2020 with BMW. But Przeglad Sportowy, the major Polish sports […]
2019 tyres to make 2020 ‘predictable’ – Isola
Jan.13 (GMM) The racing could be “more predictable” in 2020, because teams voted against using Pirelli’s newly designed and tested tyres this year. That is the claim of Pirelli’s F1 boss Mario Isola, referring to the rejection of the intended 2020 tyre specification following two separate tests. “The advantage is that the teams are completely […]
Fittipaldi keeps job as Haas reserve
Jan.13 (GMM) Pietro Fittipaldi will remain a reserve driver at Haas in 2020. “If I continue with Haas, I want to have a bigger role,” the 23-year-old, who is the grandson of F1 legend Emerson Fittipaldi, said last month. Now, Denmark’s BT newspaper – with sources at the American team for whom Dane Kevin Magnussen […]
Ferrari’s 2020 car passes FIA crash tests
Jan.13 (GMM) Ferrari’s 2020 car, codenamed 671, has passed all 15 of the mandatory FIA crash tests. Sky Italia said that exactly a month before the red single seater is officially launched, the successful crash testing took place at the CSI facility in Bollate near Milan. At the same facility recently, Alfa Romeo’s 2020 car […]