Jun.17 (GMM) A well-known F1 tyre expert has slammed Pirelli’s explanation for the Baku blowouts as a “typical political reaction”. While Max Verstappen and former Bridgestone tyre engineer Kees van der Grint suspected technical failures were the cause, Pirelli ultimately concluded that both the Dutch driver and Lance Stroll’s teams had improperly used the tyres. […]
Month: June 2021
Williams not ruling out Russell-Bottas swap
Jun.16 (GMM) Valtteri Bottas’ future looks set to take centre stage this weekend at Paul Ricard. More and more authoritative sources are reporting that the decision to replace the Finn with Mercedes junior George Russell next year is all but made. RTL claims that Toto Wolff intends to kick off talks with Bottas in an […]
Russian driver says Haas favours Schumacher over Mazepin
Jun.16 (GMM) A Russian racing driver believes fellow drivers from his country are normally relegated to number 2 status when they enter Western motorsport categories like Formula 1. Viktor Kozankov, known in Russia as a leading former open-wheel racing driver who raced against David Coulthard and Rubens Barrichello, was asked to comment on the tumultuous […]
Italian press backs Pirelli over tyre blowouts
Jun.16 (GMM) The Italian press is siding with Pirelli against teams who are reportedly finding ways to run lower tyre pressures. Formula 1’s official tyre supplier says it has now completed its investigation into the left rear failures suffered by Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll at Baku. We reported on Monday that Pirelli suspected that […]
Hamilton hopes fans stay ‘loyal’ in pay TV era
Jun.15 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton hopes Formula 1 can ride the wave of its “transition” from free television coverage. Across the spectrum of the sport’s broadcast markets, the trend towards pay-TV coverage is growing by the month and year. “We used to have 8 million fans on TF1 in France,” said F1 legend Alain Prost. “Now […]
McLaren not ruling out Formula E for 2022
Jun.15 (GMM) McLaren is “observing” and “monitoring” the premier electric series Formula E. The Woking based Formula 1 outfit, already now in Indycar, surprised the motor racing world last Friday by revealing it is entering Extreme E – the off-road offshoot of Alejandro Agag’s Formula E concept. McLaren supremo Zak Brown admits he is also […]
Aston Martin wants title ‘within 5 years’
Jun.15 (GMM) Aston Martin is targeting world championship contention within “three to four years”. “If we could be a world championship contender in three to four years, it would be a success,” said team boss Otmar Szafnauer, according to Germany’s RTL. “I think we would consider winning the title within five years as a success,” […]
F1 must race away from pandemic – Steiner
Jun.15 (GMM) The “most important thing” at present is that Formula 1 is able to race past the current covid crisis. That is the view of Haas boss Gunther Steiner, even as some circuits are at least starting to look forward to welcoming spectators back to the grandstands. At Paul Ricard this weekend, three zones […]
Former F1 driver says Horner ‘not very friendly’
Jun.15 (GMM) Christian Horner is not “very friendly”, according to a former Formula 1 driver from the Red Bull camp. At the end of 2011, the then 21-year-old Jaime Alguersuari lost his Toro Rosso seat and walked away from Formula 1 – and eventually motor racing altogether. The Spaniard established a career in electronic music […]
Mazepin’s move on Schumacher ‘normal’ – Berger
Jun.15 (GMM) F1 legend Gerhard Berger has moved to downplay the latest controversy surrounding divisive Russian rookie Nikita Mazepin. At the end of their wheel-to-wheel run to the chequered flag at Baku, Mazepin’s similarly 22-year-old Haas teammate Mick Schumacher said a jink to the right at top speed by the Russian could have been fatal. […]
Hamilton making mistakes under pressure – Berger
Jun.15 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes are only making mistakes in 2021 because of how hard they are being pushed by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. That is the view of F1 legend Gerhard Berger, who hopes that the close head-to-head duel continues “all the way to the last race”. “Lewis has had no competition in […]
Williams is Bottas’ ‘only option’ for 2022 – Marko
Jun.15 (GMM) Rumours are gaining steam that George Russell is definitely set to replace Valtteri Bottas for 2022 and beyond. “We would like to keep George,” new Williams team principal Jost Capito admitted to Sky Deutschland. “But we all know that Mercedes will make the decision.” Indeed, Russell is a closely Toto Wolff-aligned Mercedes junior […]
Pirelli suspects Verstappen’s Baku tyres underinflated
Jun.14 (GMM) The analysis of Max Verstappen’s deflated Pirelli tyre showed no signs of a manufacturing or design fault, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. Although the investigation in Milan is not yet complete or published, the authoritative sports daily claims Pirelli officials are relieved that the Red Bull driver’s tyre failure was not the […]
Second US GP in Austin, not Indianapolis, ‘possible’
Jun.14 (GMM) Indianapolis may have shown a thumbs-down to the speculation, but a second US grand prix at Austin appears to be a possibility for 2021. As F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali struggles to maintain a full 23-race calendar amid the ongoing covid crisis, it emerged that more races in America could be part of a […]
Steiner confident for 2022 after Maranello visit
Jun.14 (GMM) Gunther Steiner has a “good feeling” after visiting Maranello to check on the progress of Haas’ 2022 car. Although with bases in the UK and US, the American team has also outsourced much of the design of its Formula 1 car to Dallara in Italy. However, Haas has now changed direction to align […]
Extreme E effort will not hurt McLaren – Brown
Jun.14 (GMM) McLaren supremo Zak Brown insists that expanding into the new electric off-road series Extreme E will not hurt the Formula 1 team. With the Woking based outfit locked in a tight battle for third place in the constructors’ championship with Ferrari, McLaren announced that it is expanding beyond F1 and Indycar into Extreme […]
Hamilton hopes to retire by 40
Jun.14 (GMM) Lewis Hamilton is hinting once again that his retirement from Formula 1 lies not too far around the next corner. “I really hope that I am no longer racing at the age of 40,” the seven time world champion, who turned 36 in January, told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera. “That would […]
No ‘retrospective’ penalty for Mazepin – Steiner
Jun.11 (GMM) Mick Schumacher has now calmed down after accusing his Haas teammate of a potentially fatal move at the chequered flag of the recent Baku race. After the controversial Nikita Mazepin jinked to the right at top speed just as the sister Haas was passing him on the last lap, Schumacher exclaimed on the […]
Mazepin hits back at Hamilton’s ‘billionaire’ jibe
Jun.11 (GMM) Nikita Mazepin has hit back at Lewis Hamilton’s complaint that Formula 1 has become a “billionaire kids’ club”. The seven time world champion was clearly referring to the likes of Mazepin, Lance Stroll, Nicholas Latifi and other current drivers whose fathers are all famously wealthy. When asked about his own privilege as the […]
Vettel ‘number 1 at Stroll’s team’ – Marko
Jun.11 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel has re-emerged as the ‘number 1’ at Aston Martin, according to the German’s former boss Dr Helmut Marko. As head of Red Bull’s notorious driver program, Marko actually brought Vettel into Formula 1 as a teenager before the now 33-year-old left for Ferrari as a quadruple world champion. The Ferrari adventure […]