Jun.22 (GMM) Even if they’re banned from entering the circuit, plenty of fans are expected to descend on the region around Austria’s Red Bull Ring next weekend. Austrian reports quote the chief of Spielberg’s tourism body Tourismus am Spielberg, Manuela Machner, as confirming that hotel occupancies will be at an impressive 70-80 percent. “We don’t […]
Only 60pc of F1 drivers can win in Mercedes – Verstappen
Jun.22 (GMM) Only 60 percent of the current drivers in Formula 1 would be able to win the world championship in a dominant Mercedes car, according to Max Verstappen. Many are predicting that Red Bull driver Verstappen, 22, will be able to take on six time world champion Lewis Hamilton in 2020. The Dutchman admits […]
Sochi admits Portugal trying to take F1 race date
Jun.22 (GMM) Russia’s grand prix boss has played down reports that Portugal could be set to take the place of Sochi on the 2020 ‘corona calendar’. It has been reported that the Algarve circuit in Portimao, Portugal, is poised to take Russia’s currently-scheduled September 27 race date. “We are continuing to prepare for our race, […]
Renault used ‘new engines’ in F1 test – Marko
Jun.22 (GMM) This week, Ferrari and Red Bull will prepare on track for next weekend’s return to Formula 1 action after the long ‘corona crisis’ shutdown. Italian reports say Ferrari will run a two-year-old car on June 23 at Mugello, the circuit it owns and is slated to host a race one week after Monza. […]
RTL quits as rival bidder offers F1 ‘double’
Jun.22 (GMM) After 30 years in Formula 1, Germany’s free-to-air television broadcaster RTL is pulling out of the sport at the end of this year. Bild newspaper believes the pay-TV broadcaster Sky will take over with a lucrative exclusive deal. “If there are competitors in the game who are willing to offer double, you have […]
2021 cars to be slower despite ‘freeze’ – Green
Jun.22 (GMM) The cars of 2021 are likely to be slower than this year’s 2020 field, according to Racing Point technical boss Andy Green. That is despite the fact that large parts of the 2020 cars are being ‘frozen’ to keep costs down amid the corona crisis. A complex ‘token’ system is being set up […]
Doctor admits Zanardi at risk of brain damage
Jun.22 (GMM) Alex Zanardi is at risk of brain damage as a result of a head-on crash with a truck during a hand cycling race in Italy. The former F1 driver, who famously lost his legs in a horror American open-wheeler crash in 2001, crossed into the oncoming lane on a downhill bend and sustained […]
2020 to be Hamilton vs Verstappen – Webber
Jun.22 (GMM) F1’s 2020 world championship will be a two-man fight, according to former driver Mark Webber. “In reality, it will be between (Max) Verstappen and Lewis (Hamilton),” the Australian told Ziggo Sport. The sport’s ‘corona calendar’, set to kick off after a long shutdown, will begin next weekend with back-to-back races in Austria. “I […]
Ecclestone tried to lure Montoya back to F1
Jun.22 (GMM) Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone once tried to convince Juan Pablo Montoya to return to the sport. Out of favour at McLaren, the Colombian scrapped his six-year-old Formula 1 career in mid-2006 in favour of a long-term Nascar deal. Montoya, now 44, says he never regretted the move. “When I left, the matter […]
Hamilton apologised for fake news comments – Marko
Jun.19 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has confirmed that world champion Lewis Hamilton apologised for this week’s media misunderstanding. The Mercedes driver had slammed the top Red Bull official after Marko was quoted as suggesting Hamilton was “distracted” by the Black Lives Matter movement. The comments attributed to Marko, however, were false. Marko said Red Bull […]
‘No great pain’ after Renault test – Ocon
Jun.19 (GMM) Esteban Ocon says his test in Austria this week reassured him that he is ready for Formula 1’s post-corona crisis restart. Although the test irked Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko, Renault drivers Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo drove a two-year-old car at the scene of the forthcoming Austrian GP. “It was great. It only […]
Kvyat ‘often faster than Ricciardo’ – Tost
Jun.19 (GMM) Team boss Franz Tost says he is more than happy with Alpha Tauri’s two drivers. The Austrian suggested that both Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly were given premature call-ups to the senior Red Bull team in the past years. “We actually had no choice (about the promotions) with either of them,” Tost told […]
Leclerc, not Vettel, taking 2020 Ferrari pay-cut
Jun.19 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel did not join his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc in agreeing to reduce his pay during the 2020 corona crisis, according to Italian reports. The reports, suggesting that tensions between the quadruple world champion and the Maranello team are now likely to further escalate, emerged after boss Mattia Binotto revealed that Leclerc […]
Mugello ‘so close’ to 2020 F1 race deal – mayor
Jun.19 (GMM) It is “practically certain” that Italy will host a second grand prix in 2020. That is the word from Florence mayor Dario Nardella, who is optimistic about the local Ferrari-owned Mugello circuit being able to host the race one week after Monza. “A second grand prix this year is practically certain and would […]
Engine change to take ‘twice as long’ in 2020
Jun.19 (GMM) Crash repairs and engine changes will take significantly longer at grands prix in 2020, Racing Point technical boss Andy Green has warned. He said strict social distancing measures in the garages at the forthcoming ‘ghost races’ means work on the cars will “automatically take longer”. “We have a limited number of people who […]
Binotto hits back at Wolff over Vettel news
Jun.19 (GMM) Mattia Binotto has hit back at fellow F1 team boss Toto Wolff after the Mercedes chief expressed surprise about recent driver signings. Wolff said he was surprised that Ferrari announced so early that Sebastian Vettel will leave at the end of 2021 and be replaced by Carlos Sainz. “I’m glad that Mercedes always […]
Boss Steiner ‘not certain’ about Haas’ future in F1
Jun.19 (GMM) “Nothing is certain” about the future of the small American team Haas in Formula 1. That is the admission of team boss Gunther Steiner, who admits the outfit has been hit hard by the corona crisis and financial fall-out. Even driver Kevin Magnussen knows Haas is in trouble. “It’s a major crisis,” he […]
McLaren could sell 30 percent team stake – report
Jun.18 (GMM) Hot on the heels of news that Williams is for sale, another independent British team – McLaren – is reportedly also on the market amid the corona crisis. Mark Kleinman, the respected City editor for Sky News, says talks between McLaren officials and “advisers and lenders” have already taken place. A source said […]
Timing not right for Ferrari seat – Magnussen
Jun.18 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen says the “timing” just wasn’t right for him to be considered for the 2021 Ferrari race seat. Instead, McLaren’s Carlos Sainz got the nod to replace quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel. “I haven’t hidden that I would like that seat,” Magnussen told Ekstra Bladet newspaper. “It’s a lot to do with […]
Ricciardo ‘fits’ at McLaren – de Ferran
Jun.18 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo “fits” with the McLaren brand and team supremo Zak Brown. That is the view of Gil de Ferran, the former Indy 500 winner who now heads McLaren’s Indycar project. The Brazilian was recently also McLaren’s F1 sporting boss, and he told Globo Esporte’s Na Ponta dos Dedos podcast that he can […]