Dec.15 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne pulled no punches when asked about an apparent ‘war’ with Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA. Recently, the F1 supremo as well as Jean Todt questioned Ferrari’s historic ‘veto’. And the latest exchange is that the Marchionne-led Ferrari is now challenging a “mandate” given to the FIA president and Ecclestone to fix […]
Toro Rosso could beat Red Bull in 2016 – Marko
Dec.15 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has admitted Red Bull could be outpaced by the energy drink team’s secondary team in 2016. Carlos Sainz said recently he thinks it is possible Toro Rosso’s switch to 2015-spec Ferrari engines could mean the Faenza team outpaces the still Renault-powered premier outfit Red Bull Racing next year. “In theory,” […]
Ferrari ‘nothing to do’ with spy story – Marchionne
Dec.15 (GMM) Ferrari has continued to distance itself from the new ‘spy story’ in formula one. Recently, it emerged that Mercedes is suing a member of its engine team for trying to take confidential data with him ahead of a reported move to Ferrari. But a Ferrari spokesman insisted recently: “There were talks but it’s […]
Vettel ‘more Ferrarista’ than Alonso ever was – Marchionne
Dec.15 (GMM) In assessing Sebastian Vettel’s first year at Ferrari, president Sergio Marchionne aimed a pointed barb at Fernando Alonso. Vettel replaced the McLaren-Honda bound Alonso at the fabled Maranello team this year, and Marchionne sounds more than happy with the move. “Vettel is fantastic. Last Saturday here in Maranello he made a speech in […]
Ecclestone wrong to say F1 ‘boring’ – Hamilton
Dec.15 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone has no reason to be “bored” by today’s formula one, back-to-back world champion Lewis Hamilton insists. F1 supremo Ecclestone said recently that urgent rule changes are necessary due to Mercedes’ unprecedented dominance. But Hamilton told the Chinese news agency Xinhua: “Why should he be bored? “I am definitely not bored at […]
Teams need more money for 21 races – Marchionne
Dec.15 (GMM) Ferrari has backed Mercedes in worrying about next year’s unprecedentedly-long race calendar. The FIA recently approved an increase in the maximum number of races per season from 20 to 21, as Germany returns and Azerbaijan joins the calendar. But Mercedes chief Toto Wolff thinks the new schedule pushes teams beyond what is “feasible” […]
Marko hopes ‘watch will not stop’ in 2016
Dec.15 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko said he is hopeful changes at Renault will help Red Bull to charge back towards the front in F1. The energy drink company tried to dump Renault and switch to an alternative supplier for 2016, but instead will simply re-brand its French units as ‘Tag Heuer’. “Tag Heuer is the […]
Floatation will not hurt Ferrari in F1 – Marchionne
Dec.15 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne has denied that Ferrari’s floatation will affect the fabled F1 team. Earlier, owner Fiat Chrysler floated 10 per cent of the Maranello marque’s shares. And now president Marchionne has confirmed that the bulk of the remainder will be listed on the Milan Stock Exchange on January 4. It is said the […]
Vettel not sure Verstappen ready for Ferrari
Dec.14 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is not sure F1 teen sensation Max Verstappen is ready for a Ferrari seat. Showered with praise and awards at the end of his exciting and impressive rookie season, 18-year-old Dutchman Verstappen has also been linked with a move to a top team. Max will stay at Toro Rosso next year, […]
Mercedes drivers understand team axe warning – Wolff
Dec.14 (GMM) Mercedes chief Toto Wolff thinks the dominant team’s two drivers have heard his warning about the intensity of their feud. As the 2015 season ended recently with the silver camp sweeping 16 of the 19 wins, Wolff nonetheless warned that if Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg’s bickering spills into the overall “team spirit”, […]
Prost also worried about F1’s downforce plan
Dec.14 (GMM) Alain Prost has backed Lewis Hamilton in worrying about F1’s plans for the future. With the sport acknowledging the need to speed up, world champion Hamilton nonetheless blasted an apparent plan to slash laptimes simply by adding downforce to the cars. “That’s the worst idea and just shows people don’t know what they […]
Marchionne targets Melbourne win for Ferrari
Dec.14 (GMM) Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne says the Maranello team should start 2016 with an immediate win. After a tumultuous 2014 campaign, the Italian outfit regrouped impressively this year, but Sebastian Vettel only won three times versus Mercedes’ combined 16. “Mercedes will continue to be strong next year,” F1 legend Alain Prost predicted in an […]
Manor talks about Wehrlein to last ‘weeks’ – Wolff
Dec.14 (GMM) It will be “weeks” before Manor is ready to announce its drivers for 2016. That is the claim of Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, who is privy to the British backmarker’s apparent timescale because of his negotiations over the future of Pascal Wehrlein. German Wehrlein, 21, is waiting patiently for news but says […]
21-race calendar ‘not feasible’ for F1 teams – Wolff
Dec.14 (GMM) F1 is pushing teams beyond breaking point by expanding the calendar to an unprecedented 21 races in 2016. That is the warning of Toto Wolff, who said that although Mercedes once again dominated this year, the 19-race calendar pushed some team members to the brink. “We have already seen that 19 races is […]
Rosberg ‘extraordinarily good’ late in 2015 – Prost
Dec.13 (GMM) Alain Prost does not think Nico Rosberg needs to leave Mercedes in order to take his next step in formula one. In recent days, Mercedes’ lineup has been the subject of speculation, with boss Toto Wolff saying the bitterness of the feud between Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton needs to stop. “I am good […]
Rosberg sympathises with Mick Schumacher hype
Dec.13 (GMM) Nico Rosberg has sympathised with Mick Schumacher, amid the hype surrounding the 16-year-old son of F1 legend Michael. Fellow German Rosberg, Mercedes’ runner-up driver of 2015 and Michael Schumacher’s former teammate, witnessed the hype first-hand this weekend as young Mick also attended the end-of-year Stars and Cars event in Stuttgart. “I hope that […]
Ricciardo misses scream of ‘real’ F1 sound
Dec.13 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo this weekend got a stark reminder of something he misses about formula one — the noise. In his native Perth, the Red Bull driver was demonstrating Sebastian Vettel’s title-winning car from 2011, and admitted that the sound its V8 makes compared to the current ‘power units’ of 2015 is striking. “I […]
Haas to have yellow livery – report
Dec.13 (GMM) Haas looks set to use a yellow livery in formula one next year. In recent days, the new American team has been practicing pitstops at its factory with a black-liveried show car. But La Gazzetta dello Sport, the authoritative Italian source, says the actual race livery next year will be yellow, like the […]
Wurz stays at Le Mans as advisor
Dec.12 (GMM) Former F1 driver Alex Wurz’s next move in the world of motor racing is now clear. Recently, the Austrian turned down an offer to become the new team principal at Manor, having decided to retire from competitive racing. 41-year-old Wurz’s latest seat has been with Toyota’s premier LMP1 project in Le Mans racing, […]
Renault ‘must change drivers’ for 2016 – Briatore
Dec.9 (GMM) Former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore has urged the French carmaker to look carefully at its contracted driver lineup for 2016. Amid Lotus’ struggle for survival late this season, it re-signed the lucratively PDVSA-backed Pastor Maldonado and announced that Friday driver Jolyon Palmer will make his race debut for the Enstone team next […]