Jul.25 (GMM) Maurizio Arrivabene has broken his silence to play down speculation Ferrari could be about to lose Sebastian Vettel and James Allison. Team boss Arrivabene had a low-profile Hungarian grand prix, refusing to speak to the English speaking media amid reports the Maranello team is in crisis. One rumour was sparked by Red Bull […]
Button undecided over next career step
Jul.25 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen could be left as the clear elder statesman of F1 should Jenson Button retire at the end of the season. While the Finn has signed on for another year with Ferrari, the similarly 36-year-old Button says he is not yet decided whether to keep racing beyond 2016. Asked if he was […]
McLaren plays down ‘Vandoorne to Manor’ rumour
Jul.25 (GMM) McLaren has played down rumours Stoffel Vandoorne could be on the verge of returning to the F1 grid. The McLaren-backed junior made his grand prix debut this year when Fernando Alonso was injured, but he is now being linked with Rio Haryanto’s place at Manor. International publications De Telegraaf (The Netherlands) and Marca […]
Hungarian Grand Prix – Hamilton wins!
Hamiton wins from Rosberg (+1.977), Ricciardo (+27.539), Vettel (+28.213), Verstappen (+48.659), Raikkonen (+49.044), Alonso (+1 lap), Sainz (+1 lap), Bottas (+1 lap) & Hulkenberg (+1 lap). Perez, Palmer, Gutierrez, Grosjean, Magnussen, Kvyat, Nasr, Massa, Wehrlein, Ericsson and Haryanto make the rest of the field Retirements: Button Full Race results & commentary
Ferrari racing heavier car in Hungary
Jul.24 (GMM) Ferrari’s car became 2 kilograms heavier ahead of the Hungarian grand prix weekend. Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport reports that a turbocharger failure at the Silverstone test resulted in the housing being penetrated. Reportedly, the FIA demanded that – on safety grounds – Ferrari must beef up the housing for Hungary, resulting in […]
Red Bull well-positioned for future – Marko
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 […]