Jun.26 (GMM) Mercedes now appears ready to announce its 2018 driver lineup. At Paul Ricard, Lewis Hamilton gave the strongest indication yet that his long-delayed new contract with Mercedes may finally be ready to sign. “It’s going to be done and I think soon,” said the world championship leader. And although there have been rumours […]
F1 to consider axing Mistral chicane – Whiting
Jun.26 (GMM) Charlie Whiting says F1 will consider removing the unpopular chicane from the middle of Paul Ricard’s iconic Mistral straight for 2019. The topic was brought up by the drivers in the pre-race briefing, with others including Toto Wolff agreeing that the chicane spoiled the long straight and right-hand bend at the end of […]
Staying at Renault ‘would be a pleasure’ – Sainz
Jun.25 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he would be happy to stay at Renault in 2019. Actually, the Spaniard is merely ‘on loan’ to the French team this year, as Red Bull has contractual control of his career. And if Daniel Ricciardo leaves Red Bull for 2019, it will probably be Sainz who is appointed to […]
McLaren held ‘crisis meeting’ at Paul Ricard
Jun.25 (GMM) Stoffel Vandoorne has played down an apparent ‘crisis meeting’ that took place in the McLaren motor home on Sunday. Reports suggest the beleaguered team’s entire race crew met inside the motor home at Paul Ricard, amid reports some staff are planning a revolt. “I can’t tell you exactly what was said, but there […]
Vettel penalty too lenient – Lauda
Jun.25 (GMM) Niki Lauda thinks the FIA let Sebastian Vettel escape with a lenient penalty after a first lap crash at Paul Ricard. Vettel and Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas collided at the start of Sunday’s French grand prix, and the Ferrari driver was given a 5 second penalty. “Why did Vettel only get five seconds […]
Zak Brown wants Alonso to stay in F1
Jan.24 (GMM) Zak Brown says McLaren does not want to lose Fernando Alonso. Actually, the Spanish driver is already under contract beyond 2018, but that ties him only to McLaren as a brand. And McLaren is expected to enter a team in Indycar in alliance with former team driver Michael Andretti’s existing infrastructure. “It’s McLaren’s […]
McLaren ‘going backwards’ – Alonso
Jun.24 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says McLaren is going “backwards”. Even with the Honda era over, the once great British team remains in crisis. At Paul Ricard, there is talk of a staff revolt, the intervention of former boss Martin Whitmarsh, and a scandal farcically known as ‘Freddo-gate’. On top of that, Spaniard Alonso says the […]
Wolff supports calls to axe Paul Ricard chicane
Jun.24 (GMM) F1 management is under pressure to modify the Paul Ricard circuit before the sport’s return for the next French grand prix. There have been plenty of concerns about the new venue, but a big one discussed by drivers in the FIA briefing was about the chicane in the middle of the iconic Mistral […]
Leclerc-Raikkonen rumours heat up in France
Jun.24 (GMM) Charles Leclerc seems destined to move into a Ferrari seat for 2019. Speculation is now rife that the Italian team intends to part with 38-year-old Kimi Raikkonen at the end of the year and call up its junior driver from Sauber. At Paul Ricard, the highly rated rookie Leclerc, 20, qualified eighth in […]
British GP rescue talks scheduled for Monday
Jun.24 (GMM) Talks to save the British grand prix are set to take place. The Sun reports that a meeting will happen on Monday, after organisers of the Silverstone race last year triggered a break clause in the contract for cost reasons. As things stand, next year’s British grand prix is set to be the […]
Haas boss Steiner says Grosjean back on form
Jun.23 (GMM) Romain Grosjean has boosted his chances of staying at Haas for 2019. Earlier, the less handsomely paid Kevin Magnussen looked easily the best Haas driver of 2019, as Frenchman Grosjean struggled for pace and got involved in crashes. Both are out of contract this year and team boss Gunther Steiner says there will […]
New engine ‘two tenths’ faster – Lauda
Jun.23 (GMM) Mercedes’ new engine is worth up to two tenths per lap in extra speed. That is the news from Mercedes team chairman Niki Lauda, as the reigning champions confirmed that after a one-race delay, the ‘spec 2’ power unit is now ready to debut at Paul Ricard. “We are a race late but […]
Hamilton hints Mercedes deal now done
Jun.23 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton has given the strongest indication yet that his new contract with Mercedes may finally be ready. The new deal beyond this season has long been delayed, amid speculation the Briton is negotiating a particularly high fee. “I should think it’s such a grotesque amount of money it’s making Toto and Niki’s […]
Baptism of fire for France GP venue Paul Ricard
Jun.23 (GMM) Paul Ricard is having a baptism of fire as the first French grand prix venue in a decade. A big crowd descended on the Slavica Ecclestone-owned circuit on Friday, but many got stuck in huge traffic jams and missed the start of practice. One said she was stuck in exactly the same place […]
Alonso plays down ‘Freddo-gate’ impact
Jun.23 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has denied that ‘Freddo-gate’ threatens to further destabilise McLaren. An odd scandal has broken out after former team boss Martin Whitmarsh revealed that disgruntled staff members would like Eric Boullier and Zak Brown to step down. “He (Whitmarsh) has the right to his opinion, but he is poorly informed,” a McLaren […]
Ricciardo to ‘talk to Honda’ before decision
Jun.23 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo says he will “talk to Honda” as he makes his decision about which team to drive for in 2019. After Red Bull made the decision to swap Renault for Honda engines next year, Australian Ricciardo is now weighing up offers from Red Bull, McLaren and perhaps Ferrari and Mercedes. “Next week, […]
Raikkonen not denying Ferrari-Leclerc rumours
Jun.22 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen has not denied the latest rumours about his future. Recently, the Finn was linked with a full-time move to rallying for 2019. Now, the rumour in the Paul Ricard paddock is that Ferrari is moving towards replacing him with junior driver Charles Leclerc. Leclerc’s current boss, Sauber chief Frederic Vasseur, told […]
Whiting plays down Paul Ricard surface concerns
Jun.22 (GMM) Charlie Whiting has played down concerns about Paul Ricard’s ‘patchwork’ track surface. Although the French venue has prepared itself for the first grand prix in the country for a decade, drivers and engineers were alarmed when they inspected the surface on Thursday. What they found is patches and strips of mismatched and repaired […]
New Mercedes engine facing further delay
Jun.22 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton may be facing the next several grands prix without Mercedes’ new specification engine. That is despite the fact that, following the delay in Montreal, other Mercedes customers may already have the ‘spec 2’ power unit fitted for Paul Ricard. “Yes, we will have the updated engine,” Force India’s Sergio Perez said […]
‘No concerns’ about Honda switch – Verstappen
Jun.22 (GMM) Max Verstappen sounds enthused about Red Bull’s Honda-powered future. That is despite the fact that many in the paddock are wondering why a top team would sign up with a Japanese manufacturer whose recent three-year collaboration with McLaren failed so badly. “Yes I’m surprised,” said Sergio Perez in France. “I didn’t really think […]