Jun.9 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says his former team Ferrari has improved since 2014. The Spaniard left the fabled Maranello team for McLaren-Honda, declaring that he would rather build up a new project rather than finish second for more years. “Ferrari is better this year than last year,” he admitted to Germany’s Sport Bild. “The gap […]
Red Bull to stay ahead of Ferrari – Verstappen
Jun.9 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he is confident Red Bull will stay ahead of Ferrari for a third consecutive race this weekend in Canada. The teen Dutchman won in Barcelona and his teammate Daniel Ricciardo dominated almost all weekend in Monaco, despite Ferrari insisting it has not fallen behind Red Bull. “In speed we are […]
2017 ‘very important’ for Alonso, McLaren and F1
Jun.9 (GMM) Fernando Alonso says 2017 will be an “important year” for many reasons. We have already quoted the Spaniard this week as declaring that if he does not enjoy the faster and more aggressive next generation of cars in 2017, he may turn his attention to another challenge like winning Le Mans. “Next year […]
Grosjean admits to eyeing Raikkonen’s seat
Jun.9 (GMM) Romain Grosjean has admitted he would not turn down the chance to replace Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari. When asked by Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport to rate his chances, the Frenchman grinned: “If I had my way, the chance would be 100 per cent.” Grosjean gave himself the very best shot by switching […]
‘Sober’ F1 no longer ‘excessive’ – Villeneuve
Jun.9 (GMM) Jacques Villeneuve prefers the “excessive” F1 of the past, compared to today’s “sober” equivalent. “It’s not boring,” said the 1997 world champion, “but it’s not the same.” F1 has grown and evolved in the almost two decades since the French Canadian beat legend Michael Schumacher to the title, but the sport has found […]
Montreal ‘far from in decline’ – promoter
Jun.9 (GMM) Amid declining television and spectator numbers, Canada is one of F1’s exceptions. “As promoters, there are 21 different markets,” said Francois Dumontier, organiser of the popular annual Canadian grand prix in Montreal. “The reality in Sochi or Abu Dhabi is not the same as it is in Montreal,” he told La Presse ahead […]
Stroll says Bottas and Massa’s contracts expiring
Jun.9 (GMM) Lance Stroll has admitted to eyeing a potential vacancy at the Williams team for 2017. The 17-year-old, whose father is the Canadian fashion billionaire Lawrence Stroll, is already a development driver with the British F1 outfit. Stroll is also dominating this year’s European F3 championship for the top team Prema, but told La […]
Arrivabene hints Raikkonen to stay
Jun.8 (GMM) Maurizio Arrivabene has indicated Ferrari intends to keep Kimi Raikkonen at the team beyond 2016. The 36-year-old Finn’s contract is expiring, and names including Nico Rosberg and Daniel Ricciardo have been linked with the seat. Sebastian Vettel, however, publicly wants Raikkonen to stay. When asked to name the ideal teammate for German Vettel […]
Alonso to decide F1 future next year
Jun.8 (GMM) Fernando Alonso has admitted he is waiting to drive F1’s next-generation cars of 2017 before deciding if he wants to stay in the category. The Spaniard has made no secret that, after winning his titles in 2005 and 2006 with V10 and V8 power respectively, he enjoys the current ‘power unit’ and Pirelli-shod […]
Ferrari set for new engine and shorter nose – reports
Jun.8 (GMM) Ferrari has spent 3 of its remaining 6 engine performance ‘tokens’ in preparation for the Canadian grand prix this weekend. There have been rumours the Italian team, having struggled for results in the last couple of races, was working on an engine upgrade for Montreal. Reports suggest it will be in the form […]
F1 system ‘distorting competition’ – Kaltenborn
Jun.8 (GMM) Monisha Kaltenborn says she continues to campaign for a more level playing field in formula one. Together with her Force India counterparts, the Sauber co-owner and boss is waiting on the next steps after formally complaining about F1’s income and rule-making processes to the European Commission. “Yes, and this struggle continues,” the Indian-born […]
Ricciardo the best driver in F1 today – Marko
Jun.8 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo might be the best performing F1 driver at the moment, according to Dr Helmut Marko. The Australian driver was nothing short of livid after the Monaco grand prix, where a fouled-up pitstop by Red Bull cost him victory from pole position. And just two weeks earlier in Barcelona, when his new […]
Zetsche says Wehrlein is Mercedes ‘future’
Jun.8 (GMM) As Nico Rosberg’s expiring contract comes under the spotlight, Daimler chief Dieter Zetsche has revealed his vision for Mercedes’ F1 “future”. “Pascal (Wehrlein) is our future,” Zetsche is quoted by the Swiss newspaper Blick. He is referring to the Mercedes-backed Manor rookie, just a week after Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff agreed that […]
F1 ‘excited’ by Baku despite human rights pressure
Jun.8 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone is being asked to speak out about human rights, just over a week before formula one sets up camp for the first time in Azerbaijan. A year ago, just as the Azerbaijan capital Baku was added to the 2016 schedule, the Formula One Group unveiled a new policy vowing to respect […]
No Baku night race plans yet – promoter
Jun.7 (GMM) F1’s newest street venue has no immediate plans to step up to night race status. Although all eyes are on Montreal ahead of this weekend’s Canadian round, the sport will quickly move on to the Azerbaijan capital of Baku early next week for the second instalment of a hectic ‘flyaway’ double-header. FIA race […]
Dennis statements are ‘extra motivation’ – Boullier
Jun.7 (GMM) Eric Boullier has defended McLaren supremo Ron Dennis’ right to predict forthcoming F1 dominance for the Woking based team. While the team has improved markedly since its horror 2015, Honda-powered McLaren is still a long way from being able to challenge on merit for podiums, let alone take on the established dominance of […]
Mick Schumacher says F3 ‘the next step’
Jun.7 (GMM) Mick Schumacher is beginning to turn his mind to the next step in his race towards formula one. Under the intense spotlight not only of his surname but the fact his famous father Michael is still struggling to recover from serious injuries, teen Mick made the switch from karts to single seaters last […]
FIA’s Whiting tips Kvyat to bounce back
Jun.7 (GMM) Charlie Whiting has played down suggestions Daniil Kvyat has become the ‘bad boy’ of formula one. Russian Kvyat incurred Sebastian Vettel’s wrath in China, lost his Red Bull seat after a calamitous start in Russia, and will serve a grid penalty this weekend in Montreal after crashing with Kevin Magnussen in Monaco. “Yes […]
Moss says Magnussen ‘refreshingly different’
Jun.7 (GMM) F1 legend Sir Stirling Moss has hailed Kevin Magnussen for being a “refreshingly different” driver on today’s grid. 86-year-old Moss, widely regarded as the best driver never to have won the title, made the comments after a recent meeting in his home with the Danish racer. According to the Danish newspaper BT, the […]
F1’s next safety push is ‘biometrics’ – FIA
Jun.7 (GMM) The next step in safety for formula one will be biometrics, the FIA has revealed. In the latest edition of the governing body’s in-house magazine Auto, the FIA released some of the findings from the crash suffered by Fernando Alonso in Melbourne, based upon the new-in-2016 high speed cameras. That camera showed that […]