Mar.8 (GMM) James Allison has emerged in the Barcelona paddock wearing Mercedes colours for the first time. The highly rated engineer missed much of the 2016 season after his wife suddenly died and his relationship with Ferrari soured. Now, he is basically replacing the Williams-bound Paddy Lowe as Mercedes’ technical chief. “His skills and personality […]
Overtaking much harder in 2017 – Massa
Mar.8 (GMM) Felipe Massa says overtaking will be harder for F1 drivers in 2017. Having called off his retirement to return with Williams this year, the Brazilian impressed with the fastest time and an incredible 168 laps as the final Barcelona test began on Tuesday. “Not bad for an old an ex-retired driver,” he joked […]
Too early to comment on Hamilton – Bottas
Mar.8 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has admitted there is currently no heat in the rivalry with his new Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton. In the past few years, the relationship between Hamilton and the now retired Nico Rosberg was strained at best and at times notably acrimonious. But triple world champion Hamilton said in Barcelona when asked […]
‘Intense’ midfield battle in 2017 – Haas
Mar.8 (GMM) Gene Haas thinks the F1 midfield will be a closely fought competition in 2017. The American team owner lends his surname to the small, Ferrari-linked F1 outfit, which for 2017 has replaced the hapless Esteban Gutierrez with Kevin Magnussen. “Kevin is a unique personality,” Haas said in Barcelona, according to Sportbox. “He is […]
Bottas not sure Ferrari 2017 ‘favourite’
Mar.8 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas is not willing to back new teammate Lewis Hamilton’s claim that Ferrari is the new “favourite” for 2017. “Just on times it looks like Ferrari might be the favourite, and maybe we’re very close with Red Bull behind,” Mercedes’ Hamilton said after the final test kicked off in Barcelona on Tuesday. […]
Late start could affect early races – Wehrlein
Mar.8 (GMM) Pascal Wehrlein started to put his back injury into the past as he got up and running with his new team Sauber in Barcelona. The German missed the opening test last week following his race of champions rollover crash, but he said he suffered “no pain” after returning to the wheel on Tuesday. […]
Hembery taking step back from F1
Mar.8 (GMM) Paul Hembery will be seen in the F1 paddock less often in 2017. Since Pirelli has been F1’s official tyre supplier, the Briton has been the Italian marque’s prominent chief. But he has now been named the new boss of Pirelli Latin America, although Pirelli said he will continue to oversee the “coordination […]
Toro Rosso still open to engine name change
Mar.7 (GMM) Toro Rosso is still open to the idea of changing the official name of its engine before the start of the 2017 season. After the acrimonious semi-works relationship between Red Bull and Renault ended, Red Bull stayed with the French supplier for 2016 but sold the naming rights of the power unit to […]
Red Bull could pass Mercedes, Ferrari – Sirotkin
Mar.7 (GMM) Red Bull cannot be written off after just one test. That is the view of Renault reserve driver Sergey Sirotkin, who was summarising the potential 2017 pecking-order in conversation with Russia’s Championat. “We don’t know the details, but from the first test Ferrari looked to be in equal first place with Mercedes, which […]
Rosberg trainer starts work with billionaire’s son
Mar.7 (GMM) Retired world champion Nico Rosberg’s trainer has found a new driver to work with. After Rosberg’s shock decision to quit F1, Daniel Schlosser admitted he was not sure what his next move would be. But Bild newspaper now reports that the 40-year-old is linking up with Nikita Mazepin, an 18-year-old Russian junior driver […]
Wehrlein gets green light for Sauber return
Mar.7 (GMM) Pascal Wehrlein has been given the green light to return to action with Sauber this week. Having switched to the Swiss team from Manor, the Mercedes junior had to sit out the first test in Barcelona last week with a back injury sustained at the race of champions event. “The problem was that […]
Massa unsure when Lowe to join Williams
Mar.7 (GMM) Felipe Massa has admitted that former Mercedes chief Paddy Lowe is heading to Williams. Actually, Lowe’s move is an open paddock secret, but it has not been officially announced by the team amid reports his actual role and potential team shareholding has not been fully agreed. Williams driver Massa told Brazil’s Globo: “I […]
Massa defends teenage Stroll after crashes
Mar.7 (GMM) Felipe Massa has jumped to the defence of his new young F1 teammate, teenager Lance Stroll. Canadian Stroll, 18, made not one but three significant mistakes in Barcelona last week, the last crash damaging the chassis and ending Williams’ run a day early. But even though Stroll has denied that Massa, 35, is […]
Petrobras in F1 talks with McLaren – report
Mar.7 (GMM) Petrobras could be about to re-emerge in formula one. We reported last November that the Brazilian oil multinational would leave Williams. Indeed, the Petrobras logo is now missing from the side of the 2017 car’s monocoque. Livio Oricchio, a respected Brazilian correspondent for the Globo broadcaster, said McLaren-Honda is now in talks about […]
Former F1 driver Sala doubts Alonso will quit
Mar.7 (GMM) Former F1 driver Luis Perez Sala doubts Fernando Alonso will quit the sport at the end of this year. Currently languishing at the uncompetitive McLaren-Honda project, Spaniard Alonso, 35, has indicated that unless the much faster cars this year deliver more fun for the drivers, he may switch to Le Mans for 2018. […]
Liberty scoffs at F1 TV deal in US
Mar.7 (GMM) Liberty Media chief executive Greg Maffei has scoffed at the amount paid for F1’s television rights by the American broadcaster NBC. Headed by US media tycoon John Malone, Liberty has talked about expanding F1 within America and borrowing from the successes of popular US sports events like the Super Bowl. But chief executive […]
Marchionne staying at Ferrari until 2021
Mar.6 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne will remain Ferrari’s president until at least 2021. That is the news in Italian reports including the authoritative La Gazzetta dello Sport. In January, we reported that the 64-year-old declared during a news conference that he will “undoubtedly” retire after 2018. But Gazzetta now reveals that Marchionne “will stay at Ferrari […]
No regrets about joining Renault – Hulkenberg
Mar.6 (GMM) Nico Hulkenberg says he has no regrets about being a works Renault driver in 2017 instead of moving right to the front of the grid with Mercedes. It is perhaps true that, had the German delayed instead of immediately signed the deal to switch to Renault from Force India, he may have been […]
Massa leaving F1 door open for 2018
Mar.6 (GMM) Felipe Massa is leaving the door open to staying in formula one even beyond the end of 2017. Although emotional, the Brazilian seemed to be happily entering retirement after the 2016 season, as Williams replaced him with teen rookie Lance Stroll. But Nico Rosberg’s sudden retirement and a complex turn of events means […]
Giovinazzi says 2017 priority is Ferrari
Mar.6 (GMM) Antonio Giovinazzi insists his priority for 2017 is his role as Ferrari’s reserve driver. That is despite the fact the Italian was drafted into the Sauber driver lineup for the first Barcelona test, because Pascal Wehrlein is currently sidelined with a back injury. Blick, a well-connected Swiss newspaper, says it should become clear […]