Apr.25 (GMM) Mick Schumacher may not experience as smooth a journey towards formula one as did F1 teen sensation Max Verstappen. That is the view of Max’s father Jos, who was the F1 legend Michael Schumacher’s teammate at Benetton back in the mid-90s. Verstappen’s 18-year-old son, however, made it to formula one before Mick, who […]
Bottas admits to eyeing Mercedes seat
Apr.25 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has admitted he would not say no if a seat opened up for him at the works Mercedes team. The Finn has driven throughout his four-season F1 career for Williams, but last year he was strongly linked with a potential move to Ferrari. Now, the 26-year-old could once again play a […]
Ferrari to race upgraded engine in Russia
Apr.23 (GMM) Ferrari will bid to breathe life into its 2016 championship charge by unveiling a key engine upgrade for Russia next weekend. Germany’s Auto Bild reports that the Maranello team will trade in three of its in-season development ‘tokens’ following reliability problems in Australia and Bahrain and a troubled race in China. It has […]
Vergne hopes to test 2017 tyres
Apr.23 (GMM) Jean-Eric Vergne thinks the additional testing allocated for Pirelli’s 2017 tyre development will give him a chance to return to F1 action. After threatening to quit the sport if it cannot prepare properly for the new regulations featuring wider tyres, Pirelli has now been granted 25 days of running. Five top teams, including […]
Ecclestone in Milan for Monza talks
Apr.23 (GMM) Monza’s F1 future may have come to a head during a meeting in Milan late this week. Amid Monza’s troubled negotiations with Bernie Ecclestone, La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that the F1 supremo travelled to Milan late this week to meet with Lombardy president Roberto Maroni. The report added that, at the regional […]
McLaren explains Magnussen company car story
Apr.22 (GMM) McLaren says there is a simple explanation as to why Kevin Magnussen never received a $500,000 company car whilst driving for the British team. The Dane, who now drives for Renault after being dropped by McLaren, revealed to local broadcaster TV2 this week that he never received his McLaren 650S road car even […]
Super Formula ‘more demanding’ than F1 – Vandoorne
Apr.22 (GMM) Stoffel Vandoorne says he is looking forward to the first race in his new Japanese racing adventure this weekend. The McLaren-Honda reserve, who scored the team’s first point of 2016 whilst deputising for Fernando Alonso in Bahrain, is now in Japan to prepare for the opening round of the Super Formula series at […]
India asks Britain to deport Mallya
Apr.22 (GMM) Force India chief Vijay Mallya’s legal troubles are continuing to deepen. Already, the Indian government was moving against the former billionaire over huge debts from the collapse of his airline Kingfisher. Mallya, the Force India team principal and co-owner, has been absent from all three grands prix so far in 2016, and his […]
Corners tweaked at Malaysian F1 track
Apr.22 (GMM) Sepang, the long-time host of the Malaysian grand prix, has undergone some layout tweaks ahead of its October race. The track near Kuala Lumpur was designed and built by Hermann Tilke, but an Italian company called Dromo Circuit Design has been working on the 2016 tweaks, including a full resurfacing. The first race […]
Wolff ‘afraid’ of 2017 rule changes – Marko
Apr.21 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has slammed a “paranoid” Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff for trying to spoil F1’s charge towards faster cars for 2017. It is Wolff who has been leading the charge verbally amid speculation many teams are in fact now opposed to the technical changes that should result in faster and more […]
Uncertain future for China GP
Apr.21 (GMM) A cloud is hanging over the future of the Chinese grand prix. The Shanghai race at the imposing Hermann Tilke-penned facility has been on the calendar since 2004, shortly after it was built at a cost of $240 million. F1 drivers say it is one of the better Tilke creations. “Yes, it’s a […]
Manor racing with Sauber, Renault – Wehrlein
Apr.21 (GMM) Pascal Wehrlein claims Manor is no longer alone at the bottom of the F1 pecking order. Last year, the team was clearly the sport’s backmarker, but German rookie Wehrlein finished 18th in China, ahead of a Haas, Sauber and Renault in a race in which there was not a single retirement. “I beat […]
Magnussen never received McLaren road car
Apr.21 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen claims he never received his company car, after racing and testing for the McLaren team for more than two years. The Dane had to apologise to McLaren fans last week after posting on Instagram a ‘meme’ of a three wheeled Ferrari with the caption: “Still faster than a McLaren”. And now […]
F1 must look beyond Ecclestone era – Marchionne
Apr.21 (GMM) F1 needs to be looking ahead to the post-Bernie Ecclestone era. That is the view of Sergio Marchionne, the Ferrari and Fiat president, amid rumours the powerful manufacturers including Mercedes may be pushing for the retirement of the F1 supremo in the coming months. “There is much work to do,” said Marchionne when […]
‘Pressure’ also hurting Mercedes reliability – Marchionne
Apr.21 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne says the 2016 title is still within Ferrari’s reach. “Absolutely,” the Ferrari and Fiat president told Bild newspaper. “Of course I still believe in the title.” The Maranello team has come out this year with a competitive car, but race incidents and also problems with the engine mean Mercedes is still […]
Marko hints at Red Bull seat for Verstappen
Apr.21 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has dropped the biggest hint yet that Max Verstappen will be promoted to Red Bull Racing for 2017. It has been reported that unless the energy drink stable opens up a race seat for the teenage sensation, he and father Jos will be free to negotiate with fellow grandees like […]
Mayor ‘certain’ Italy GP has future
Apr.21 (GMM) The mayor of Monza says he is sure September’s Italian grand prix will not be the last at the fabled Autodromo Nazionale. Strained negotiations between race organisers and Bernie Ecclestone are still taking place. Monza mayor Roberto Scanagatti is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport: “September will not be the last F1 race […]
Too soon for contract talks – Raikkonen
Apr.20 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen says it is too early to get involved in the 2016 driver ‘silly season’. Many experts are predicting a frenzied round of negotiations later this year, as key potential vacancies at Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren, Williams and elsewhere open up. 2007 world champion Raikkonen could be central to those moves as his […]
No motivation charge ‘absurd’ – Alonso
Apr.20 (GMM) Fernando Alonso insists he is still fully motivated for motor racing. The Spaniard said a career goal is to add wins at the iconic sports car race Le Mans, and also the Indianapolis 500, to his two world championships. “Yes,” he told the Spanish newspaper AS, “there are three competitions at the top […]
Monza contract talks still on – official
Apr.20 (GMM) Talks over the future of the embattled Italian grand prix at Monza are still taking place. That is the latest news from Angelo Sticchi Damiani, the president of the Italian automobile club Aci, amid the troubled negotiations with Bernie Ecclestone over a contract beyond 2016. “The negotiations for the grand prix at Monza […]