Jul.24 (GMM) Renault is not yet committing to supplying customer engines to McLaren beyond 2020. At present, there are rumours that McLaren could switch to Mercedes power for 2021, with Williams inheriting the Renault deal. The two British-based F1 teams are denying it. “We have never talked to Renault,” Claire Williams is quoted by Auto […]
Month: July 2019
Teams must agree on tyre design for 2020 – Isola
Jul.23 (GMM) Mario Isola has defended Pirelli by denying that the official F1 tyre supplier favours Mercedes. The Italian company’s F1 boss said every team was happy with the proposed tyres for 2019 until Mercedes began to totally dominate. “Every team receives the same products and service,” Isola told the Dutch publication Formule 1. Led […]
Ocon not denying Haas, Williams rumours
Jul.23 (GMM) Esteban Ocon has not denied rumours that he is a top candidate for a seat at Haas or Williams for 2020. The Frenchman, who is still strongly backed by Mercedes, lost his seat at Mercedes-powered Force India (now Racing Point) at the end of last year. He is currently Mercedes’ reserve driver, but […]
Williams to take ‘three steps forward’ – Russell
Jul.23 (GMM) Williams is gearing up to take “three steps forward” after an abysmal first half of the 2019 season. That is the claim of George Russell, who says the fact he is driving clearly the slowest car during his rookie season is not spoiling the fun for him. “How can you not be happy […]
Ricciardo sued by former manager
Jul.23 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo is being sued by his former advisor, according to a media report published by La Gazzetta dello Sport. The report said the Australian will head to court in London for a EUR 11 million lawsuit brought by Glenn Beavis. La Gazzetta dello Sport said Beavis claims Ricciardo owes him the money […]
Binotto has ‘no doubt’ about Vettel future
Jul.23 (GMM) Ferrari’s team boss says Sebastian Vettel is not leaving the Maranello team. After the German’s latest significant mistake when he hit Max Verstappen at Silverstone, many in the partisan Italian media indicated they had lost faith in Vettel. It comes amid rampant rumours about the 32-year-old potentially quitting Formula 1 or returning to […]
Vettel enduring ‘difficult period’ – Prost
Jul.22 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is struggling through a “very difficult period”. That is the view of F1 legend Alain Prost, who today is an advisor at Renault. But Prost was asked by the French broadcaster Canal Plus to comment on Vettel’s high profile struggle on and off the track at Ferrari in 2019. The Italian […]
Bottas says title battle ‘between me and Lewis’
Jul.22 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas thinks he is in a head-to-head battle for the 2019 title with his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton. After a strong start to the season, the Finn has lost ground to Hamilton in recent races but he says he remains determined to win. “We’re not even halfway through the season. A lot […]
Mick Schumacher not giving up on F1
Jul.22 (GMM) Mick Schumacher says he is not disheartened even though his first Formula 2 season is not going to plan. Amid massive public interest in his road to F1, Michael Schumacher’s son is currently just 14th overall in the F2 points standings. “No star has fallen from the sky,” the 20-year-old told DPA news […]
A million people want Dutch GP tickets
Jul.22 (GMM) Over a million Dutch people want to attend Max Verstappen’s first home grand prix next year. Zandvoort will feature on the 2020 calendar, and race boss Jan Lammers says the interest in tickets for the event has been overwhelming. “We knew it was popular, but more than a million (requests) is insane,” he […]
Albers would return to F1 as team boss
Jul.22 (GMM) Christijan Albers says he would accept an offer to return to Formula 1 as a team boss. The former Minardi driver has already been a F1 team boss when for a short period of time in 2014 he was in charge at Caterham before Cyril Abiteboul took over. “Do you know that I […]
Ricciardo says he is not worse off at Renault
Jul.22 (GMM) Daniel Ricciardo says he has no regrets about leaving Red Bull. The Australian stunned the F1 world last year by announcing that he is leaving the top energy drink-owned team to join Renault. “I would not have been better off at Red Bull,” Ricciardo told the Dutch publication Formule 1. “I’m happy with […]
Racing Point title sponsor denies closing down
Jul.22 (GMM) Racing Point’s title sponsor has denied it could be about to fold. Kenyan sports betting platform Sportpesa has had its operating licence suspended by the country’s government. “We wish to refute claims that our business is closing down,” the company said. “We are in discussions with the government and relevant stakeholders and are […]
Binotto no longer Ferrari technical boss
Jul.22 (GMM) Mattia Binotto is no longer Ferrari’s technical director. With the ousting of Maurizio Arrivabene, Binotto was promoted from technical boss to also become the famous Maranello team’s new team principal in 2019. But some expressed doubts about whether the Italian could handle the dual role. Speed Week now reports that the technical director […]
No driver decision before summer break – Steiner
Jul.22 (GMM) Haas is not ready to consider its 2020 driver lineup. The issue of the American team’s drivers is a hot topic at present, after boss Gunther Steiner admitted his fury following the latest collision between Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen at Silverstone. It has been rumoured that Grosjean could be immediately ousted, but […]
DTM champ could get F1 test bonus
Jul.22 (GMM) A special prize could be awarded to this year’s DTM champion. The German touring car series is these days run by Gerhard Berger, who according to Speed Week is looking into arranging a Formula 1 test for the 2019 winner. Current points leader Rene Rast said: “He (Berger) has good contacts. Perhaps as […]
FIA not more lenient at Silverstone – Masi
Jul.22 (GMM) FIA stewards were not more lenient than usual during the recent British GP, according to race director Michael Masi. Hailed as one of the most exciting recent grands prix, it was notable that despite more wheel-to-wheel action than usual, less penalties were actually given to the duelling drivers. “It’s mainly the track characteristics […]
More trouble for 2021 Rio GP
Jul.22 (GMM) It is not smooth sailing for the new Formula 1 track in Rio de Janeiro. Last month, we reported that the proposed venue for the 2021 Brazilian GP was being accused of being embroiled in “one of the largest corruption cases in public tenders” ever seen in the city. Now, Rio’s justice department […]
Racing Point preparing 2019 ‘B’ car
Jul.22 (GMM) Racing Point is working hard on a ‘B’ car. Auto Motor und Sport reports that the much-needed upgrade for the former Force India team’s 2019 car will come in two parts before the summer break. Racing Point has struggled on track in 2019 in the wake of the team’s near 2018 collapse, takeover […]
Marko urges Vettel to leave Ferrari
Jul.19 (GMM) Dr Helmut Marko thinks Sebastian Vettel needs to “change the team” he drives for in order to get his Formula 1 career back on track. The German, who is nominally Ferrari’s number 1 driver, has lost the crucial backing of the Italian media after Silverstone following yet another fundamental mistake. “At Red Bull, […]