Aug.4 (GMM) Former F1 driver Stefan Johansson has urged Manor to consider following the lead of the 2016 entrant Haas. Manor, the former Marussia team and clear 2015 backmarker, has admitted in recent days it is wary of the threat posed by the incoming Haas’ novel approach to F1. Haas is pushing to the limit […]
Month: August 2015
Gutierrez keen to exploit 2016 ‘opportunities’
Aug.4 (GMM) Esteban Gutierrez has admitted there may be “opportunities” for him to return to the F1 grid next year. Last week, the new 2016 entrant Haas’ founder Gene Haas confirmed reports that the Mexican driver, as well as Jean-Eric Vergne and Nico Hulkenberg, may be in the running for a race seat. “Two of […]
Mercedes says Red Bull ‘faster than us’ in Hungary
Aug.4 (GMM) Red Bull is moving to end its slump and return consistently to the upper positions on the F1 grid. The former quadruple world champions have insisted all season that the base of the RB11 is solid, with fingers pointed squarely at engine supplier Renault. There is no doubt, however, that the actual car […]
Lowe backs August shutdown
Aug.4 (GMM) Mercedes technical chief Paddy Lowe has backed F1’s August shutdown. Tension is brewing between Bernie Ecclestone and the teams at present, as the four-week summer gap in the calendar has been shrunk to three weeks on the expanded calendar for 2016. For the past several seasons, the month-long hiatus has meant teams have […]
FIA’s Mouton plays down Carmen Jorda controversy
Aug.3 (GMM) An FIA official has played down a media row with Lotus’ female ‘development driver’ Carmen Jorda. Michele Mouton, a French female former driver who finished the world rally championship second in 1982, is now president of the FIA’s ‘women in motor sport’ commission. She said recently that while respecting drivers like Susie Wolff […]
Sauber eyes Renault engine switch – report
Aug.3 (GMM) Sauber could be set for a change of engine supplier for 2016. That is the news of the Swiss newspaper Blick, whose veteran and well-connected correspondent Roger Benoit claims that talks took place recently in Hungary. Currently, Hinwil based Sauber is supplied by its long-time partner Ferrari, but the ‘power unit’ market looks […]
Nasr says Williams talk was just ‘speculation’
Aug.3 (GMM) Felipe Nasr has played down earlier speculation that linked him with a potential switch to Williams for 2016. It was said the impressive Brazilian rookie and his Banco do Brasil sponsorship dollars could be headed to Grove to replace a potentially Ferrari-bound Valtteri Bottas. But Sauber then announced that both Nasr and his […]
Boss likens Verstappen to champion Vettel
Aug.3 (GMM) Franz Tost, the team boss at Toro Rosso, has compared F1 teen sensation Max Verstappen to quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel. “There are many parallels,” he told Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper. “Max has a similar way of thinking, working methods and the same focus as Sebastian,” Tost added. “Actually it’s more like […]
No summer shutdown for Honda and Renault
Aug.3 (GMM) F1’s teams and drivers may be packing their bags for the summer break, but there will be no such factory shutdown at Honda. Unlike the teams, the sport’s engine manufacturers are not subject to the mandatory, two-week ‘shutdown’ that must be served during the big gap in the race calendar between Hungary and […]
Haas admits trio head 2016 race seat shortlist
Aug.1 (GMM) A trio of drivers has emerged at the top of the shortlist to race for the new F1 team Haas in 2016. As Haas Factory Outlet Portugal’s new headquarters was inaugurated near Oporto, the outfit’s Californian founder Gene Haas confirmed that Jean-Eric Vergne, Esteban Gutierrez and Nico Hulkenberg have all been linked with […]