Jan.24 (GMM) Embattled F1 backmarker Manor remains in talks with potential saviours. That is the claim of a spokesperson for FRP, the company that is overseeing the team that has been placed into administration. It is believed that if a buyer is not found in the remaining few days of January, Manor will close due […]
Month: January 2017
No regrets after saying ‘no’ to F1 – Rossi
Jan.24 (GMM) MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi says he has no regrets more than a decade after calling off his touted switch to formula one. Mid last decade, and when in his mid 20s, the multiple world champion on two-wheels tested extensively for Ferrari amid strong rumours he would debut for the fabled F1 team. Now […]
F1 supremo Ecclestone ‘dismissed’
Jan.24 (GMM) F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has been officially ousted. The news came as the sport’s new owner Liberty Media announced it has completed its F1 takeover, installing Chase Carey as Ecclestone’s successor. Long-time F1 ‘supremo’ Ecclestone, 86, confirmed the news via Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport. “I was dismissed today,” he said. “I’m […]
New Liberty era ‘good thing’ for F1 – Rosberg
Jan.23 (GMM) This week could mark the end of Bernie Ecclestone’s decades-long reign in formula one. It is believed that, after Liberty Media offered the 86-year-old a less hands-on role for the future as ‘life president’, Ecclestone turned it down. Liberty, the company headed by US media tycoon John Malone, is close to completing its […]
Life more than ‘driving in circles’ – Rosberg
Jan.23 (GMM) Almost two months after stunning the F1 world, Nico Rosberg says he has no regrets about sensationally quitting the sport as world champion. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, the German said retiring “at the absolute peak” was more important to him than racing on. “Life has more to offer […]
Sainz snr says Red Bull ‘not bad guys’
Jan.23 (GMM) Carlos Sainz’s father has hit back at any claims Red Bull are “the bad guys”. The two-time rally champion’s namesake and 22-year-old son had a great 2016 season, but Sainz jr was overlooked for a promotion to Red Bull Racing in deference to Max Verstappen. Then, Red Bull refused to relinquish his contract […]
Massa won’t hand back retirement F1 car
Jan.23 (GMM) Felipe Massa says he will not have to hand back the F1 car gifted to him by Williams for his retirement. Amid his emotional farewell to the sport late last year, the British team promised to give the Brazilian the ‘Massa’-branded car with which he raced at Interlagos. However, Massa’s eventual retirement was […]
Indycar says no to F1’s ‘Halo’
Jan.23 (GMM) Indycar, the major American open-wheeler series, says it will not be going down F1’s route of the ‘Halo’ device for cockpit protection. In 2015, former F1 driver Justin Wilson was killed by a flying wheel during an Indycar race, which was one factor that powered F1’s push to develop the Halo. ‘Halo’ is […]
Verstappen not eyeing youngest F1 champion record
Jan.23 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he has no interest in becoming F1’s youngest ever champion. But that doesn’t mean the 19-year-old Dutchman doesn’t want to win the 2017 title. “Definitely my goal is to win the title,” he told Italy’s La Stampa newspaper, as he attended the world cup skiing event in Kitzbuhel, Austria. “But […]
Doctors sideline Wehrlein after rollover crash
Jan.23 (GMM) One month before winter testing begins, Pascal Wehrlein was sidelined by doctors following a scary crash at the annual Race of Champions event. Held this year in Miami, the Race of Champions sees drivers from international series go head-to-head in various cars, including a bizarre three-wheeler. Racing with a passenger on board at […]
Liberty hints Ferrari to lose $100m bonus
Jan.23 (GMM) F1’s new owner Liberty Media has indicated it is serious about taking away the $100 million bonus received by Ferrari each year. Christian Sylt, an F1 business journalist, wrote in Forbes that the extra money received by the fabled Italian team on the basis of its status and history is double that given […]
Ecclestone offered ‘less hands-on role’ – report
Jan.21 (GMM) Rumours are growing by the day that the Bernie Ecclestone era is effectively almost over. We have reported that, as Liberty Media moves ever towards its full takeover of the sport, long-time F1 ‘supremo’ Ecclestone is being shuffled aside. Mark Kleinman, a renowned business journalist for British broadcaster Sky, said the 86-year-old’s decades-long […]
‘Exhausted’ Verstappen training hard for 2017 – father
Jan.21 (GMM) Jos Verstappen says his son Max is training harder than ever for 2017. Young Verstappen, 19, is touted as a potential title contender for 2017, when the cars will be much more physically demanding to drive. His father Jos, a former F1 driver, says that is why Max has been quiet in the […]
Silverstone denies GP axe decision made
Jan.21 (GMM) Silverstone has rejected reports it has already decided to drop the British grand prix after 2019. A report in the Sun newspaper this week quoted a source at the track-owning British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) as saying Silverstone “will definitely drop” the race. But the BRDC has now released an official statement saying […]
Manor asks to race 2016 car this year
Jan.20 (GMM) If Manor finds an eleventh-hour saviour, the embattled backmarker team would have to race its 2016 car early this season. That is the claim of Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport, as Manor reportedly enters its final 10 days before administrators move to close down the team. “One month before testing, no investor has […]
Haas ‘easier’ than McLaren, Renault – Magnussen
Jan.20 (GMM) Kevin Magnussen says he is already enjoying life at his new F1 home. After an abortive career so far, falling out with both McLaren and Renault after single seasons with the respective teams, the Dane has switched to the American outfit Haas for 2017 and beyond. “It’s a good team,” Magnussen told the […]
Vandoorne to ‘fight and work with’ Alonso
Jan.20 (GMM) F1 rookie Stoffel Vandoorne agrees with his McLaren teammate Fernando Alonso that their head-to-head fight will not be too intense in 2017. Some have likened the new pairing to Alonso and then rookie Lewis Hamilton in 2007, which ended spectacularly badly. But Alonso said of his new Belgian teammate: “He is not a […]
Wolff unsure Bottas can beat Hamilton
Jan.20 (GMM) Toto Wolff has admitted it is possible Valtteri Bottas could be replaced at Mercedes by a bigger name for 2018. Some expressed surprise when it emerged that, despite being prised out of his Williams contract, Finn Bottas has signed only a one-year deal for 2017. Mercedes chief Wolff admits it is to leave […]
Mercedes seat may have ‘destroyed’ Wehrlein – Wolff
Jan.20 (GMM) Toto Wolff says the retirement of Nico Rosberg was regarded as an “opportunity” for Mercedes rather than a problem. The world champion team has signed up long-time Williams driver Valtteri Bottas to replace Rosberg, with boss Wolff insisting he was never downbeat throughout the process. “Obviously it was a shock,” he told the […]
Marko would have taken Wehrlein ‘risk’
Jan.20 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko says that in Mercedes’ place, Red Bull would have taken a punt on a young driver rather than sign up someone like Valtteri Bottas. In the end, Mercedes weighed up between extracting Bottas from his Williams deal or taking a punt on its available youngster, 2016 Manor rookie Pascal Wehrlein. […]