Jan.11 (GMM) Toto Wolff says he can understand the criticisms being made by F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone. When asked by the Tiroler Tageszeitung newspaper if he enjoyed Christmas, the Mercedes team boss smiled: “You mean the one on the 25th or the one on the 26th?” It is an allusion to Ecclestone’s recently-reported remark that, […]
F1 waters down plans for faster cars – report
Jan.11 (GMM) F1’s plan to radically speed up the cars for 2017 has been watered down. That is the claim on Monday of the authoritative German magazine Auto Motor und Sport. It said that at the last meeting of the technical working group, a majority vote decided that the chassis bodywork should not be widened […]
Mercedes to be strong again in 2016 – Hamilton
Jan.11 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton has tipped another year of strong form from himself and the Mercedes team. While Ferrari made progress in 2015 and is now targeting a full championship tilt this year, reigning triple world champion Hamilton thinks the silver-coloured camp can stay on top. Mercedes and Hamilton dominated in 2014 and 2015 and […]
Renault adds new director to F1 team
Jan.11 (GMM) Renault’s Lotus takeover is continuing to race ahead, even though an official name change for the Enstone team is yet to be announced. But the big Lotus team sign on the main building at Enstone has now been taken down, while another director has been added to the management board. Just before Christmas, […]
Three teams named for Pirelli test
Jan.11 (GMM) Only three teams will be in action later this month as Pirelli develops its wet-weather F1 tyres. F1’s official supplier on Monday announced that Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren have been selected to run at Paul Ricard on January 25 and 26. “More details on the drivers participating as well as the test […]
Wolff races up Swiss rich list
Jan.11 (GMM) Toto Wolff has leapt up the rankings in an annual list of the richest people in Switzerland. Every year, it is the F1 supremo and billionaire Bernie Ecclestone who tops the sport’s representation in the rakings published by the Swiss business magazine Bilanz. The offices of Ecclestone, 85, are in London, but his […]
Coulthard company to produce F1 coverage
Jan.11 (GMM) A company co-owned by David Coulthard will produce the new free-to-air coverage of formula one in Britain this year. Whisper Films is co-owned by the former McLaren and Red Bull driver, as well as former F1 presenter Jake Humphrey. And with the BBC dropping its F1 coverage ahead of the 2016 season and […]
Hungary F1 track to be resurfaced
Jan.11 (GMM) Upgrade work on the Hungarian grand prix venue near Budapest is to take place. It emerged last month that some minor construction tweaks at the twisty Hungaroring circuit are being done, carried out by a company called Swietelsky Magyarorszag. One of the tasks is to re-asphalt the entire track. “This is a huge […]
Grosjean feels like ‘citizen of the world’
Jan.11 (GMM) Romain Grosjean says he feels more European than French or Swiss. Although identifying in F1 as a Frenchman, the 29-year-old was actually born in Geneva and still lives in Switzerland today with his young family. “I was born in Geneva but I feel more of a French driver, because in sport my whole […]
Ferrari boost worth one second per lap – Verstappen
Jan.11 (GMM) Max Verstappen has marked the end of his New Year holiday by predicting a big power boost for Toro Rosso this year. “I’m back in Monaco to train,” the 18-year-old told his website verstappen.nl, “and next week I’m off to Austria for more training.” While Toro Rosso’s big brother Red Bull is staying […]
F1 drivers should speak their minds – Surer
Jan.11 (GMM) F1 would be improved if the drivers were given more freedom to speak their minds, according to pundit Marc Surer. With the sport acknowledging the need for more noise, power and faster cars for the future, former F1 racer and Swiss Surer says attention should also be directed towards the actual drivers. “The […]
Haas F1 car passes FIA crash tests
Jan.9 (GMM) Haas, F1’s new Ferrari-linked American team, is on track to make its testing debut in February. The team, based in North Carolina and also the old Marussia facility in Banbury (UK), announced late on Friday that its car has passed the mandatory FIA crash tests. “Next up: testing at Circuit de Catalunya,” Haas […]
Barcelona slashes funding for Spanish GP
Dec.31 (GMM) Barcelona’s city council has slashed funding for the Spanish grand prix. Local reports including by the El Confidencial and Diario Sport newspapers say the council’s contribution towards the annual race at the Circuit de Catalunya has been halved from EUR 4 million per year to just two. It comes after new mayor Ada […]
Renault wants Alonso at new works team – Minardi
Dec.31 (GMM) Gian Carlo Minardi, a former team owner and boss, believes Renault is making plans to have Fernando Alonso lead the French carmaker’s new works effort. Spaniard Alonso, one of the best and highest paid drivers in F1, has failed to win a title since his back-to-back triumphs at Renault a decade ago. He […]
Verstappen sees Vettel as model for F1 success
Dec.31 (GMM) In the space of a year, Max Verstappen has set himself apart as a future F1 great. “I myself am surprised by the overtakes he does. He surprises me every time,” father Jos, a former F1 driver and once the great Michael Schumacher’s teammate, said. For 43-year-old Dutchman Jos, however, victory never came […]
F1 ‘a bad product’ in 2015 – de la Rosa
Dec.31 (GMM) Former race and test driver Pedro de la Rosa thinks 2016 will be a better year for formula one. “Let’s be realistic,” the 44-year-old, most recently a test driver for Ferrari, told the Spanish sports daily AS. “The (F1) product this year was bad. “There has been nothing to raise passions. It was […]
Schumacher played part in Mercedes success – Brawn
Dec.31 (GMM) Michael Schumacher played a major role in the success enjoyed today by the Mercedes team. That is the view of Ross Brawn, a long-time close friend and colleague of the beleaguered seven time world champion. As Mercedes returned to full works status in F1 between 2010 and 2012, Brawn and Schumacher worked together […]
F1 must be ‘sensible’ over future rule changes – Wolff
Dec.30 (GMM) F1 should be careful about making knee-jerk rule changes to stop Mercedes’ utter dominance. That is the view of Toto Wolff, Mercedes’ team boss, even though he has freely admitted that the silver team’s perpetual winning is “bad for the sport”. Christian Horner, Wolff’s counterpart at Red Bull, worries that 2016 will once […]
Coulthard tips Wurz for ‘major role’ in future
Dec.30 (GMM) Alex Wurz has been tipped for a prominent management role in motor sport for the future. Although recently announcing his retirement from actual racing, the former Benetton and Williams driver will shortly return to the cockpit in Daytona. “They (Chip Ganassi) called me on the day I announced I was retiring,” the 41-year-old […]
Lawyer defends silence on Schumacher condition
Dec.29 (GMM) Michael Schumacher’s media lawyer has defended the right of the great German’s family to fiercely defend his privacy. Tuesday is the two-year anniversary of the F1 legend’s tragic skiing fall in the French Alps, in which he was left with apparently severe brain damage. To date, however, the public is completely in the […]