Jun.20 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen says Ferrari has made some tweaks in the wake of his spin in Canada recently. The spin cost the Finn a sure podium, and incurred the wrath of his boss Maurizio Arrivabene, just as Raikkonen’s future in red is being hotly debated. “Ferrari has not said exactly what happened,” fellow Finn […]
Month: June 2015
Todt to watch Mick Schumacher race at Spa
Jun.20 (GMM) FIA president Jean Todt will reportedly watch Mick Schumacher race at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend. Mick, the 16-year-old son of F1 legend Michael Schumacher, is racing with a broken hand this weekend as his first season in single seaters continues in 2015. His father is synonymous with Spa, a fabled F1 circuit in Belgium, […]
Kimi loses cool amid pay-cut reports
Jun.19 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen lost his ice-cool on Thursday amid reports Ferrari is asking him to take a pay-cut. Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport claims the Maranello marque is interested in retaining the Finn for 2016 but only if his EUR 12 million retainer is dropped by 25 per cent. And the report said Ferrari […]
Ricciardo has ‘learned’ from Canada outburst
Jun.19 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo has admitted he is staying at Red Bull for now. Normally F1’s most laughing, grinning and carefree character, the Australian was uncharacteristically grim in Canada amid rumours he might be in the frame to switch to Ferrari. Ricciardo admits he let his emotions show. “Looking at where I was (in Montreal) […]
Gov’t would ‘support’ French GP return – minister
Jun.19 (GMM) A French official says he is “ready” to support the country’s return to the F1 calendar. That is despite F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone insisting “there isn’t a good circuit in France” to host it. “We left France because it didn’t work for anyone,” he told Britain’s Sky. The French broadcaster Canal Plus, however, […]
Haas’ Ferrari alliance ‘very clever’ – Wolff
Jun.19 (GMM) Toto Wolff has hailed as “clever” the approach to formula one being taken by the 2016 American entrant, Haas. Gene Haas, already a co-owner of a Nascar team, is entering F1 next year to promote his California based machine tool company Haas Automation. His technical alliance with Ferrari, however, has raised eyebrows up […]
F1 must be ‘spine-tingling’ again – Surer
Jun.19 (GMM) Former F1 driver Marc Surer has backed those who think the sport needs a re-injection of danger. Kimi Raikkonen, Sebastian Vettel, and even F1 legend Niki Lauda – although burned and almost killed in his fabled 1976 crash – think safety has given way to boredom in F1. But Felipe Massa, who was […]
Marko confirms engine ‘offer’ from Marchionne
Jun.19 (GMM) Ferrari has offered to supply the struggling Red Bull team with engines. Following a shock round of speculation, the energy drink company’s Dr Helmut Marko has now confirmed the news, even though his boss Dietrich Mateschitz played down the prospect of becoming a mere ‘customer’ team. “It is true that we received an […]
Grosjean says Palmer situation ‘not annoying’
Jun.19 (GMM) Romain Grosjean insists he is no longer annoyed about sitting out Friday practice sessions in 2015. With the lucratively PDVSA-backed Pastor Maldonado contractually guaranteed participation in every session, it means Lotus teammate Grosjean is the one sitting out FP1 sessions this year. That is because reserve and ‘Friday’ driver Jolyon Palmer is regularly […]
Mosley met with Ecclestone, Wolff in London – report
Jun.19 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone has met secretly with his old sparring partner Max Mosley, the German newspaper Bild reports. As the increasingly-troubled sport looks to take a sharp turn for the future, the meeting follows hot on the heels of Mosley, the former FIA president, wondering if F1 needs a “generational change”. “Bernie is unable […]
Alonso had 2015 talks with ‘everyone’
Jun.19 (GMM) Fernando Alonso insists he is staying the course with McLaren-Honda, as he very deliberately made the switch from Ferrari at the end of last year. Many F1 insiders still cannot believe the Spaniard, as arguably the best and highest paid driver on the grid, would leave the newly-resurgent Ferrari to struggle at the […]
Not ‘realistic’ to expect win – Vettel
Jun.18 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel on Thursday admitted he is not expecting to win the Austrian grand prix. Mercedes’ Toto Wolff headed into the weekend’s racing at the Red Bull Ring warning that Ferrari did not get the most from its upgraded engine in Canada. “The battle is far from over,” he said. Speaking in Spielberg, […]
Mercedes also fastest pit crew in 2015
Jun.18 (GMM) Mercedes may have the best car, but the German team’s pit crew is also formula one’s fastest. Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport has analysed the pitstops over the course of the seven races so far in 2015 and found that Mercedes’ average time is the shortest. It is a laudable achievement by the […]
Sainz smiling as he ‘suffers’ with Renault power
Jun.18 (GMM) Carlos Sainz has admitted he is having to “suffer” with an underpowered engine during his first season in formula one. The rookie Spaniard is one of four drivers on the 2015 grid struggling with the unreliable and uncompetitive Renault ‘power unit’. Asked if he ‘likes’ the French-made V6 in his Toro Rosso, Sainz […]
Alonso expected to struggle in 2015 – Sainz
Jun.18 (GMM) Fernando Alonso expected to struggle when he made the switch from Ferrari to McLaren-Honda for 2015. That is the claim of fellow Spaniard Carlos Sainz, the world rally legend and father of 2015 Toro Rosso rookie Carlos Sainz jr. Whilst recovering from an Achilles heel injury suffered whilst playing football, 53-year-old Sainz was […]
Michelin ‘disappointed’ with F1’s tyre situation
Jun.18 (GMM) Michelin has revealed it wants to improve F1’s tyre situation. While the sport’s current supplier Pirelli appears to retain the backing of Bernie Ecclestone and most teams, many drivers and spectators look back fondly on the days when it was possible to push throughout a race rather than ‘save tyres’. Michelin, last in […]
Juggling F1 with Le Mans ‘hardcore’ – Hulkenberg
Jun.18 (GMM) As he bounces back to earth and his day-job, Nico Hulkenberg has admitted the last two months have been “hardcore”. And he is referring not only to the euphoria of becoming the first driver since Johnny Herbert in 1991 to combine F1 with a winning Le Mans foray. He is also talking about […]
Hamilton has no interest in ‘mind games’
Jun.18 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton says he is not interested in playing “mind games” in formula one. The double world champion admits to having idolised Ayrton Senna as a boy, but he says he is not interested in the kind of ‘Senna versus Prost’ battle that also raged off the track. “Some people like to play […]
‘Nothing’ to Ferrari switch rumours – Mateschitz
Jun.18 (GMM) Dietrich Mateschitz has dismissed reports his two F1 teams may soon be powered by Ferrari. “There is nothing to it (the rumours),” the Austrian billionaire said on Thursday, as the world of formula one congregates at his ‘Red Bull Ring’ for the Austrian grand prix. The speculation of a switch to Ferrari was […]
Force India ‘B’ car only half finished
Jun.18 (GMM) Force India has travelled to Austria with only half the parts for its ‘B’ car. Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez will therefore use the less competitive, ‘old’ car once again this weekend. After the race, it is believed one of the chassis will be updated with only the new ‘B’ parts that are […]