Oct.4 (GMM) Mercedes and McLaren have denied reports about the management of Lando Norris. Italy’s Auto Moto claimed that a company headed by McLaren driver Norris’ wealthy father Adam was involved in brokering the team’s recently announced Mercedes engine deal. The report, which appears to have now been removed from the Auto Moto website, also […]
Ferrari’s engine advantage ‘unusual’ – Wolff
Oct.3 (GMM) Toto Wolff says Ferrari’s big engine advantage in 2019 is “unusual”. The Mercedes boss stopped short of joining those who are wondering if Ferrari might be pushing the boundaries of legality with its power unit. But he is quoted by France’s L’Equipe as describing the advantage as “an aberration”. “With stable regulations, it […]
2019 season has been ‘ok’ – Vettel
Oct.3 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel says his 2019 season has been “ok”. The quadruple world champion is currently embroiled in rising tension with his highly rated young teammate Charles Leclerc, who has won two races in 2019 compared to Vettel’s one. To the German magazine Sport Bild, Vettel said he gives his performance a rating of […]
Albon ‘very good’ so far at Red Bull – Marko
Oct.3 (GMM) Alex Albon looks set to keep his race seat at Red Bull Racing for 2020. Recently, Dr Helmut Marko said only Albon, who is Max Verstappen’s current teammate, and Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly are in the running. When asked to assess Albon’s first four races as a Red Bull Racing driver, Marko told […]
Montezemolo says he would rebuke Leclerc
Oct.3 (GMM) Former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo says he would rebuke Charles Leclerc. As the friction rises between the 21-year-old Monegasque and his quadruple world champion teammate Sebastian Vettel, Dr Helmut Marko said this week that Leclerc is “playing his part in the tension”. Former Ferrari president di Montezemolo thinks he would handle Leclerc’s […]
Marko slams ‘absurd’ qualifying race proposal
Oct.3 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has slammed Liberty Media’s plans to experiment with short qualifying sprint races in 2020. It is now clear that at two or three grands prix next year, the order of the grid for Sunday’s main race will be determined on the basis of a short sprint race held on Saturday. […]
Liberty should sign two teams for 2021 – Ecclestone
Oct.3 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone says he has a simple solution to end the gridlocked negotiations with teams over the 2021 rules. More meetings are set to be held over the coming days and weeks as it emerges that about half of the teams are not currently willing to sign up for the proposed regulations. The […]
Lando Norris to be managed by Mercedes – report
Oct.3 (GMM) McLaren driver Lando Norris is set to be managed by Mercedes. At Sochi, McLaren announced that from 2021, it will switch from Renault to Mercedes power on a long-term deal until at least 2024. Italy’s Auto Moto claims the deal was brokered by Horatio Investments. That company was founded by Adam Norris, who […]
Kvyat dismisses Alfa Romeo rumours
Oct.3 (GMM) Daniil Kvyat has dismissed rumours linking him with a potential move to Alfa Romeo. Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko recently said the Toro Rosso driver is not in the running to return to the energy drink company’s senior F1 team next year. It coincided with rumours at Sochi that Kvyat, who only returned […]
Assen better track for Dutch GP – Tilke
Oct.3 (GMM) F1 circuit designer Hermann Tilke thinks Assen would have been a better venue for the 2020 Dutch GP. Zandvoort will be a 100,000 spectator sellout next May, but race organisers have said they could actually have sold a million tickets in light of Max Verstappen’s popularity. The circuit is also having to upgrade […]
Mercedes drivers have ‘respect’ – Hamilton
Oct.2 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton has weighed into the crumbling relations between Ferrari duo Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc. The Mercedes driver won at Sochi, where Vettel had refused to obey a team order to let his teammate Leclerc through. Hamilton says he and teammate Valtteri Bottas have more respect than that. “I mean we work […]
Pundit urges Verstappen to quit Red Bull
Oct.2 (GMM) A Dutch pundit and racing driver thinks Max Verstappen should try to move to Ferrari. Verstappen’s father Jos this week warned that Red Bull’s current inability to beat Ferrari and Mercedes means that 2020 could be another “lost year” for Max. “Mercedes and Ferrari are much faster,” racing driver and Dutch pundit Tom […]
Ferrari to keep car concept in 2020 – Binotto
Oct.2 (GMM) Mattia Binotto says Ferrari’s 2020 car will be an evolution of the current one. The Maranello team had a difficult start to the season, but the latest aerodynamic and engine upgrades mean the SF90 is now often faster than the Mercedes. “We put a lot of effort into understanding the car’s weaknesses,” said […]
Tilke defends ‘boring’ F1 track designs
Oct.2 (GMM) Hermann Tilke has hit back at claims that he is the architect of today’s ‘boring’ Formula 1 circuits. The German and his company have been in charge of the design of newer circuits throughout the F1 calendar, including China, Sochi, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi. “We never had a clean sheet of paper to […]
Senna would hate F1 driver penalties – Ramirez
Oct.2 (GMM) Ayrton Senna would be “turning in his grave” if he knew what Formula 1 had become. That is the claim of Jo Ramirez, the long-time former McLaren team coordinator who worked closely with the late F1 legend. The Mexican said Senna would be most upset about the penalties given to drivers for risky […]
Current drivers ‘future of McLaren’ – Seidl
Oct.2 (GMM) McLaren boss Andreas Seidl says the British team is more than happy with its current race drivers. Having only started at Woking in May, by July Seidl had counted McLaren out of the ‘silly season’ by announcing that Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris are staying. “We have no doubts about seeing these two […]
Hulkenberg admits to F1 career ‘regrets’
Oct.2 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg has admitted to having some “regrets” about his Formula 1 career. It looks possible that after a decade in the sport, the 32-year-old Renault refugee will fail to find another race seat for 2020. German Hulkenberg has never even been on the podium, but he said he has even lost opportunities […]
Red Bull can still win five races – Marko
Oct.2 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has moved to play down Jos Verstappen’s concerns about progress at Red Bull. Jos, who is Max Verstappen’s father and co-manager, said after a string of uncompetitive races for the team: “They really need to change things otherwise next year will be lost as well.” But following Verstappen’s comments, Marko […]
Leclerc contributing to Ferrari tension – Marko
Oct.2 (GMM) Charles Leclerc is contributing to the tension at Ferrari. That is the view of Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko, at the same time as F1 sporting boss Ross Brawn said the Leclerc-Vettel driver pairing is “potentially explosive”. Marko thinks Ferrari is also to blame. “Vettel was ahead (at Sochi), so Leclerc complained and […]
Brawn can imagine Russian F1 team
Oct.2 (GMM) Ross Brawn can imagine there being a Russian team on the Formula 1 grid. At Sochi, Russia’s trade minister said a Russian F1 team is “not far off”. The man closest to making that happen is Boris Rotenberg, the billionaire behind the SMP Racing operation. “I think the more teams there are, the […]