Aug.28 (GMM) Pirelli has hit back at fierce criticism of its tyres this weekend at Spa. Up and down the pitlane, drivers are complaining about severe degradation and mandatory high tyre pressures that Felipe Massa says are “ridiculous”. “The super soft is just terrible — after two laps it’s gone,” said Lewis Hamilton. Jenson Button […]
Month: August 2016
Wolff denies Manor now ‘Toto Rosso’
Aug.28 (GMM) Toto Wolff has played down claims he is turning the F1 backmarker Manor into a Mercedes junior team. The outfit, already powered by a Mercedes engine, now has both of Mercedes’ junior drivers Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon in the cockpits. Referring cheekily to rival Red Bull’s own junior team, Bild newspaper said […]
Wolff plays down Vandoorne comments
Aug.28 (GMM) Toto Wolff has played down suggestions he is about to snap up McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne. The Mercedes boss caused a stir at Spa by reportedly telling the Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws that he rates Belgian Vandoorne as highly as his own chargers Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon. “I’ve been following his career […]
Belgian Grand Prix – Qualifying
Rosberg on Pole with a 1:46.744 from Verstappen (+0.149), Raikkonen (+0.166), Vettel (+0.364), Ricciardo (+0.472), Perez (+0.663), Hulkenberg (+0.799), Bottas (+0.868), Button (+1.370), Massa (+1.519). Knocked out of Q2: Grosjean, Magnussen, Gutierrez, Palmer, Sainz and Wehrlein (Rosberg quickest). Knocked out of Q1: Nasr, Ocon, Kvyat, Ericsson, Hamilton and Alonso. (Massa quickest). Both Hamilton and Alonso […]
Belgian Grand Prix – 3rd Free Practice
Raikkonen quickest with a 1:47.974 from Ricciardo (+0.215), Vettel (+0.323), Bottas (+0.530), Hamilton (0.661), Hulkenberg (0.765), Rosberg (+0.768), Massa (+0.809), Perez (+0.941) & Grosjean (+1.298). Alonso, Gutierrez, Button, Magnussen, Wehrlein, Kvyat, Sainz, Palmer, Nasr, Ocon and Ericsson. Verstappen didn’t set a time due to a gearbox issue. It is surprising not see Mercedes at the top […]
Pirelli back in the spotlight at Spa
Aug.27 (GMM) Pirelli’s tyres are back in the spotlight at Spa. Many drivers complained about tyres that are blistering within a single practice lap of the Belgian layout, including veteran Felipe Massa who described the pressures prescribed by Pirelli this weekend as “ridiculous”. “The (high) pressures are a joke,” the Williams driver told Brazil’s UOL. […]
Kvyat unmoved after Marko comments
Aug.27 (GMM) Daniil Kvyat says he is focused on the current season rather than any signs that he might have a future at Toro Rosso. Although Kvyat hit rock bottom in 2016 after being demoted from Red Bull’s senior team, Dr Helmut Marko said the 22-year-old only needs one or two races to regain his […]
Magnussen wants Renault decision in September
Aug.27 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen has urged Renault to make a fast decision over its driver lineup for 2017. The French works team is obviously assessing its options for next year, having flagged a decision to be made within September. But team boss Frederic Vasseur has now hinted it could take longer than that. “We are […]
Engineers say Raikkonen deserves 2017 seat
Aug.27 (GMM) Kimi Raikkonen’s former race engineers all say the Finn deserves to have kept his Ferrari seat for 2017. With younger chargers like Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Perez, Nico Hulkenberg and Carlos Sainz all pushing to step up, many were surprised when the Maranello team elected to keep Raikkonen, who in two months will turn […]
Honda plays down huge engine performance step
Aug.27 (GMM) A Honda official has played down claims Honda may now be ready to start taking on the top F1 teams. The Japanese marque has taken an engine upgrade to Spa that benefitted from no less than 7 development tokens. It is the latest step in what Honda chief Yusuke Hasegawa has called “incredible” […]
Vandoorne waiting for ‘quick’ Button decision
Aug.27 (GMM) Stoffel Vandoorne is waiting for the situation between McLaren and Jenson Button to unfold before he presses ahead with his 2017 plans. The young Belgian is pushing to make his debut next year for the Honda-powered team, but McLaren and Button are yet to announce if they are sticking together for an eighth […]
Sainz worried Toro Rosso being left behind
Aug.27 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he is worried Toro Rosso has suddenly become the F1 backmarker. The junior Red Bull team expected a hard weekend at Spa, but Spaniard Sainz said Toro Rosso is really “struggling” with its 2015-spec Ferrari engine. “It will not be like Hungary and Silverstone, getting in Q3, instead we try […]
Paddock split over Hamilton penalty recovery
Aug.27 (GMM) The F1 paddock is split over whether Lewis Hamilton can bounce back from his grid penalties to finish on the podium at Spa on Sunday. The world champion’s points lead is under threat as he takes multiple penalties for fitting new components during the Belgian grand prix weekend. Hamilton can expect to start […]
Belgian Grand Prix – 2nd Free Practice
Verstappen quickest with a 1:48.085 from Ricciardo (+0.256), Hulkenberg (+0.572), Vettel (+0.938), Perez (+1.015), Rosberg (+1.076), Raikkonen (+1.159), Grosjean (+1.334), Button (+1.334) & Gutierrez (+1.563) Wehrlein, Alonso, Hamilton, Kvyat, Ericsson, Bottas, Massa, Sainz, Magnussen, Palmer, Ocon and Nasr make the rest of the field Magnussen covered the most number of laps with 34 followed […]
Belgian Grand Prix – 1st Free Practice
Rosberg quickest with a 1:48.348 from Hamilton (+0.730), Raikkonen (+0.799), Perez (+0.926), Vettel (+1.420), Ricciardo (+1.434), Verstappen (+1.517), Hulkenberg (+1.740), Bottas (+2.046) and Guiterrez (+2.235). Grosjean, Massa, Ericsson, Sainz, Nasr, Ocon, Kvyat, Button, Wehrlein, Magnussen and Palmer make the rest of the field. Alonso didn’t set a time due to a technical issue. Ocon made […]
Perez plays down Renault sponsor clash
Aug.26 (GMM) Sergio Perez has played down suggestions a clash of sponsors could thwart his next move in formula one. It is believed the on-form Mexican is toying with a move from Force India to Renault for 2017. Perez is strongly backed by the Mexican billionaire Carlos Sainz, who promotes his Telmex-linked companies in F1. […]
Bottas not confirming Renault switch reports
Aug.26 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas has refused to confirm or deny reports he has received an offer to switch to Renault for 2017. Williams is openly re-thinking its current driver lineup but is thought to be keen to retain the 26-year-old Finn. So when asked about the Renault rumours, Bottas told the Finnish broadcaster MTV at […]
Haas unmoved over Gutierrez rumours
Aug.26 (GMM) Haas boss Gunther Steiner will not say if Esteban Gutierrez is staying at the new American team for its second season in 2017. At Spa, Steiner was asked about the fact that, when questioned by reporters, Gutierrez had replied somewhat cryptically that he will definitely still be on the grid next year. But […]
Vettel knows Ferrari form will take time
Aug.26 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel says he remains patient as Ferrari builds back up to winning form. Before the summer break, Red Bull overtook Ferrari as the second-fastest team behind Mercedes, just as news was confirmed that technical boss James Allison had left. “We have a lot of good people,” Kimi Raikkonen said at Spa. “That’s […]
Sainz impressed with McLaren progress
Aug.26 (GMM) Carlos Sainz says he has been impressed with the progress being made by McLaren-Honda. After a shocking 2015, the new Anglo-Japanese collaboration has been making gradual progress this year and has arrived at Spa with a new Honda engine that will benefit from a full 7 tokens of performance upgrades. “They are almost […]