Jan.26 (GMM) Boss Cyril Abiteboul has admitted Renault was about 60 horse power down on dominant 2014 title winners Mercedes last year. “We estimate the gap between our engine and that of Mercedes at the end of the season to be about 60 horse power,” he revealed to the broadcaster Canal Plus. But Renault and […]
F1 on track for engine change after 2016
Jan.26 (GMM) F1 is on course for a sharp change of direction after 2016. Ferrari boss Maurizio Arrivabene is calling for a “revolution” on the technical front, as Bernie Ecclestone also looks to spice up the sport’s speed and sound just a year after the all-new turbo V6 era dawned. Renault, also trailing behind F1’s […]
Mexico on schedule for 2015 return
Jan.26 (GMM) Organisers of this year’s revived Mexican grand prix have announced they are on course to bounce back into formula one in November. The country has been missing from the calendar since 1992, but the very same Hermanos Rodriguez circuit in Mexico City is currently being rejuvenated for its 2015 return. “The demolition of […]
Rosberg predicts more Mercedes dominance
Jan.26 (GMM) Nico Rosberg has tipped another season of F1 superiority for Mercedes. Last year, as the turbo V6 era dawned, the German driver and his teammate, the new reigning champion Lewis Hamilton, duelled for the title in a battle rarely challenged by any rivals. And now, as the sport enters its second year under […]
F1 should think again as ‘myth’ tracks disappear – Imola
Jan.26 (GMM) F1’s historic venues are struggling to write the next chapters of the sport. Germany looks set to fall off the 2015 calendar, and other traditional hosts like France and also Imola, the former Italian venue of the annual San Marino grand prix, are no longer represented. That is despite Imola’s Enzo e Dino […]
Sauber set for blue and yellow livery – report
Jan.26 (GMM) Sauber looks set to swap its white and grey livery for prominent blue and yellow for the 2015 season. That is the claim of the Portuguese-language publication Universo, claiming the Swiss team’s colour choice is in deference to new driver Felipe Nasr’s major backer Banco do Brasil. Last year, 22-year-old rookie Brazilian and […]
Arrivabene backs Lauda for F1 ‘revolution’
Jan.24 (GMM) Ferrari has called for a rules “revolution” for formula one in 2017. Upset with the mild tone of the new V6 engines and a dwindling audience, Bernie Ecclestone wants a radical change and this week he earned the backing of Mercedes’ team chairman and F1 legend Niki Lauda. “I want a car for […]
Streiff apologises to Todt for Bianchi comments
Jan.24 (GMM) Philippe Streiff has apologised to FIA president Jean Todt. Todt, and the governing body’s medical commission chief Gerard Saillant, vowed to sue the wheelchair-bound former F1 driver after he criticised their handling of the investigation into Bianchi’s horror Suzuka crash. “I let myself get carried away in front of the camera,” Streiff, who […]
Hamilton signs with music PR agency
Jan.24 (GMM) World champion Lewis Hamilton has replaced one entertainment-based management agency with another, British newspapers the Daily Mail and Telegraph report. In November, despite not yet negotiating a new Mercedes contract beyond 2015, the Briton split with Spice Girls-famed Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment. The 30-year-old, whose girlfriend is Nicole Scherzinger, has never hidden his […]
Force India defends 2015 car delay
Jan.23 (GMM) Force India insists the decision not to debut its 2015 car at the opening Jerez test was deliberate. The Silverstone based team, having unveiled its new livery this week by using a show-car with a 2015-style nose, will instead run the 2014 car at Jerez before the VJM08 makes its bow in Barcelona […]
Illien says tweaks would make V6 engines louder
Jan.23 (GMM) Mario Illien says it is possible tweaks to the current generation of turbo V6 cars can produce a louder sound for formula one. The most controversial aspect of the new ‘power unit’ regulations, introduced last year, is their mild tone in comparison to the screaming V8 and V10s of the past. Bernie Ecclestone […]
Ecclestone involved in FIA’s Honda U-turn
Jan.23 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone has admitted he was involved in the FIA’s U-turn over allowing Honda into the new 2015 engine ‘unfreeze’. Initially, the governing body had locked McLaren’s new works partner out of the decision to let 2014 suppliers Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault deploy their development ‘tokens’ beyond a start-of-season deadline. But the FIA […]
Caterham boss admits ‘time running out’
Jan.23 (GMM) Caterham’s acting team boss and administrator has admitted time is running out to rescue the ailing backmarker. Although it was Caterham and not Marussia that successfully returned for the 2014 finale in Abu Dhabi, Bernie Ecclestone said this week that only Marussia appears able to survive into the 2015 season. “Caterham, I don’t […]
Dallara starts work on 2016 Haas car
Jan.23 (GMM) F1 newcomer Haas has begun to work on its first car for 2016, Omnicorse reports. While the team will be based alongside the Nascar arm in North Carolina, with a second HQ probably at the Marussia facility in Banbury, the Italian publication said the 2016 Haas car will be developed in Varano de […]
Vettel to debut new Ferrari – report
Jan.23 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is reportedly first in line to test Ferrari’s 2015 car. On Thursday, it emerged that McLaren-Honda newcomer Fernando Alonso will be the one bestowed the duty of debuting the all-new MP4-30 when official testing kicks off at Jerez next Sunday. And now, Ferrari’s plans are similarly beginning to emerge. Germany’s Sport […]
Montezemolo tipped to head Olympic bid
Jan.23 (GMM) Ousted former long-time Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo’s next project could be to secure the 2024 summer Olympics for Rome. Ansa news agency and La Repubblica newspaper said the 67-year-old Italian, now chief executive of the Alitalia airline, could be unveiled in the role shortly. “It’s not my job to (choose) but I […]
Rookie duo admits Hamilton favourite in 2015
Jan.23 (GMM) When it comes to two crucial questions about F1, Toro Rosso’s all-rookie lineup is unanimous. When asked to name the best current driver on the grid, Max Verstappen answered: “Alonso.” And his 2015 teammate, another grand prix debutant and a Spaniard, Carlos Sainz jr, agreed: “Fernando, of course.” But their answer, whilst also […]
Chilton eyes Indycar debut for 2016
Jan.23 (GMM) Max Chilton will this year keep his motor racing career alive in America. The 23-year-old Briton raced for Marussia in 2013 and 2014, but the backmarker team collapsed late last year and is now clinging to survival mere weeks before the new season. So it has been announced that Chilton will assist his […]
Nurburgring still in talks with Ecclestone
Jan.23 (GMM) The Nurburgring is still in talks with Bernie Ecclestone about hosting the 2015 German grand prix as scheduled. The F1 supremo has said that amid the circuit’s financial and ownership troubles, this year’s race in the country will either be held at Hockenheim or not at all. But a spokesman for the Nurburgring […]
Kubica forms own world rally team
Jan.23 (GMM) Robert Kubica has launched his own team to contest the world rally championship in 2015. The Pole’s F1 career ended when he almost severed his hand in a 2011 pre-season rallying crash. But he has since returned to driving, this time in the highest category in the world of rallying. And in 2015, […]