Jul.24 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko is confident Red Bull will be ready to challenge Mercedes for the title in 2017. The energy drink-owned team has taken over from Ferrari as F1’s second-fastest team and now Marko is looking ahead to a proper title charge next year. “It is crucial that for next year Renault brings […]
Wolff plays down threat to Bottas’ F1 future
Jul.24 (GMM) Toto Wolff has played down the uncertainty surrounding Valtteri Bottas’ future on the F1 grid. According to rumours, Williams is considering a full shake-up of its current driver lineup for 2017, with development driver Lance Stroll’s billionaire father said to have put together $35 million in backing. And Jenson Button is currently the […]
Wolff thinks F1 ‘over cautious’ on safety
Jul.24 (GMM) Toto Wolff thinks F1 has become “a little over-cautious” in the wake of Jules Bianchi’s death. After a stewards enquiry on Saturday, Nico Rosberg was able to keep his pole position although some rivals – including teammate Lewis Hamilton – questioned whether he had slowed sufficiently for a yellow flag. “Nico only lost […]
Hungarian Grand Prix – Qualifying
Rosberg on Pole with a 1:19.965 from Hamilton (+0.143), Ricciardo (+0.315), Verstappen (+0.592), Vettel (+0.909), Sainz (+1.166), Alonso (+1.246), Button (+1.632), Hulkenberg (+1.858) & Bottas (+2.217) Hamilton looked set to improve his time on the final run but Alonso spun in front of him and had to abort. Rosberg didn’t seem to be affected and […]
Hungarian Grand Prix – 3rd Free Practice
Rosberg quickest with a 1:20.261 from Verstappen (+0.002), Ricciardo (+0.465), Hamilton (+0.508), Raikkonen (+0.598), Vettel (+0.924), Alonso (+1.323), Bottas (+1.388), Perez (+1.411) & Palmer (+1.674). Massa, Magnussen, Button, Gutierrez, Grosjean, Sainz, Hulkenberg, Kvyat, Nasr, Ericsson, Wehrlein and Haryanto make the rest of the field. Massa did the most number of laps with 28 followed by […]
Alonso still suffering pain from Melbourne crash
Jul.23 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has admitted he still feels the effects of his huge crash in Australia. The Spaniard walked away from the rollover smash but missed the following race in Bahrain with broken ribs and a partially collapsed lung. He has since declared that he is back to 100 per cent, but 34-year-old Alonso […]
Wehrlein not surprised about Rosberg news
Jul.23 (GMM) Pascal Wehrlein says he was not surprised when he heard in Hungary that Nico Rosberg is staying at Mercedes for the next two years. Asked by the German website motorsport-magazin.com how he heard the news, Manor driver Wehrlein answered in Budapest: “This (Friday) morning. Just like everybody else.” Wehrlein, 21, is strongly supported […]
Perez admits Renault ‘interesting option’
Jul.23 (GMM) Renault has emerged as Sergio Perez’s main alternative in the event that he does not stay at Force India in 2017. Force India supremo Vijay Mallya moved to end speculation when he said recently that Mexican Perez is definitely under contract for next year. The Indian’s comments had followed rumours that Perez was […]
F1 to vote on ‘Halo’ next week
Jul.23 (GMM) F1 is preparing to vote on the issue of whether or not to introduce the ‘Halo’ cockpit protection for 2017. In the drivers’ briefing in Hungary, Charlie Whiting and FIA officials showed a presentation that included shocking images and figures that said survival chances increase by 17 per cent with the controversial system […]
Mercedes eyes ‘next generation’ after Rosberg
Jul.22 (GMM) Mercedes could be ready to look to the “next generation” of drivers by the time Nico Rosberg’s new two-year deal ends. That was the claim on Friday of Toto Wolff, as he played down claims Mercedes may have made a mistake by setting up both Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton’s deals to both expire […]
Hungarian Grand Prix – 2nd Free Practice
Rosberg quickest with a 1:20.435 from Ricciardo (+0.595), Vettel (+0.913), Verstappen (+1.335), Hamilton (+1.525), Raikkonen (+1.623), Alonso (+1.893), Button (+1.952), Hulkenberg (+2.014) & Perez (+2.218). Gutierrez, Massa, Sainz, Bottas, Grosjean, Kvyat, Magnussen, Ericssion, Palmer, Nasr, Wehrlein and Haryanto make the rest of the field. It appears that Mercedes have around half a second over Red […]
Hungarian Grand Prix – 1st Free Practice
Hamilton quickest with a 1:21.347 from Rosberg (+0.237), Vettel (+1.644), Raikkonen (+1.735), Ricciardo (+1.827), Verstappen (+2.110), Alonso (+2.588), Button (+2.614), Grosjean (+2.666), Perez (+2.726). Hulkenberg, Massa, Bottas, Sainz, Ericsson, Leclerc (test driver), Nasr, Ocon (test driver), Kvyat, Haryanto, Wehrlein and Palmer make the rest of the field. Mercedes and Ferrari did set their best times […]
Rosberg signs new two-year, EUR 45m deal
Jul.22 (GMM) Nico Rosberg travelled to the Hungaroring with a new two-year contract in his back pocket. The team and the German driver announced the news with a video on Twitter showing Rosberg, 31, and Mercedes chief Toto Wolff signing a piece of paper. And Bild newspaper said the deal including bonuses will be worth […]
Ricciardo ‘not scared’ of Verstappen
Jul.22 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo insists he is not “scared” of his teammate Max Verstappen. Just like he burst into F1 with Toro Rosso last year, the 18-year-old teenager has made a similarly meteoric mid-season switch to Red Bull. Many believe the Dutchman already has the upper hand on Australian Ricciardo, particularly on the basis of […]
F1 to revive grid starts for wet races – report
Jul.22 (GMM) Following a spate of recent criticism, F1 could revive the old concept of starting wet grands prix from the grid. Although not an explicit rule, a normal standing-start now rarely occurs on a wet track, such as last time out at Silverstone for the British grand prix. That rolling start attracted a lot […]
Haas looks set to keep same drivers
Jul.22 (GMM) Esteban Gutierrez says his future is secure. Actually, Haas’ team boss says it is leaving the driver question open for now, so when asked about 2017, Romain Grosjean smiled: “Ask Gunther (Steiner)!” But the Frenchman dropped a big hint that he sees Haas as a long-term project, even though he admits there had […]
Bottas admits F1 future not secure yet
Jul.22 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas says he still does not know if he will be staying at Williams in 2017. The British team is currently keeping its options open, amid links with Jenson Button and also Lance Stroll, a Canadian rookie who is said to have $35 million in backing behind him thanks to his billionaire […]
Staying at Sauber an option after buyout – Nasr
Jul.22 (GMM) Felipe Nasr is not ruling out staying at Sauber in the wake of the Swiss team’s buyout by an investment group. Marcus Ericsson in Hungary joined boss Monisha Kaltenborn in not commenting on speculation that the buyers are linked to the Swedish driver’s sponsors. Nasr, meanwhile, brings backing from the Banco do Brasil, […]
Vettel blames media amid Ferrari ‘crisis’
Jul.22 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel has pointed a finger at the media as talk of a Ferrari ‘crisis’ swirls in Hungary. Overtaken in recent races by Red Bull, Ferrari has also been struggling with reliability problems. Now, there are rumours that technical director James Allison is departing, that Ross Brawn could replace him, and that Vettel […]
Button not sure McLaren can win in 2017
Jul.22 (GMM) Jenson Button is not so sure McLaren-Honda can be in a winning position as soon as 2017. His teammate, Fernando Alonso, is already under contract for next year and he says the target is not only wins but the world championship. Button’s situation is much less clear, with Williams apparently interested in signing […]