Feb.11 (GMM) Arguably the biggest question mark heading into the 2015 season is the form of McLaren-Honda. Team management are hailing the tight packaging of their “size-zero” MP4-30, but problems with the returning Honda’s first turbo V6 effort meant McLaren left Jerez with low mileage and uncompetitive laptimes. Matt Morris, McLaren designer, admits Jerez was […]
Category: Recent stories
Wolff wants new Hamilton deal before Melbourne
Feb.11 (GMM) Toto Wolff has admitted he would like to agree a new deal with world champion Lewis Hamilton before the season begins. The Briton remains under contract for the full 2015 season, but at the Jerez test recently he was spotted in intense negotiations with boss Wolff and team chairman Niki Lauda. Last week, […]
No ‘explosion’ as Alonso’s Ferrari tenure ended – Briatore
Feb.11 (GMM) Flavio Briatore has hit back at claims Fernando Alonso’s relationship with Ferrari was in ruins when he left the fabled team. One of the Spaniard’s former contemporaries, David Coulthard, this week repeated the paddock perception of Alonso as perhaps the very best driver but with a fiery character. And now, more fireworks might […]
Marchionne not expecting ‘miracles’ from Ferrari
Feb.11 (GMM) Sergio Marchionne insists he is not getting carried away with Ferrari’s winter test form. The fabled Maranello marque struggled in 2014, prompting Fiat Chrysler chief Marchionne to take over from long-time president Luca di Montezemolo amid a radical personnel shakeup. The Italian-Canadian has warned that Ferrari’s return to winning form will not happen […]
Williams backs Marussia’s 2014-car plan
Feb.11 (GMM) Williams on Wednesday said it would welcome Marussia back to the F1 grid — even if the struggling backmarker has to field a 2014 car. Marussia, now called Manor, is bidding to exit administration and rejoin the paddock this year. But at last week’s strategy group meeting, rival Force India blocked the dispensation […]
Ecclestone not worried as TV ratings decline
Feb.11 (GMM) Television ratings and major car manufacturers would appear to be ingredients Bernie Ecclestone cannot do without. F1, however, shed no fewer than 25 million viewers last year, but the sport’s supremo insists he is not worried because it “reflects the move FOM has made towards pay TV in several markets over the last […]
Ferrari tester says Mercedes is 2015 ‘favourite’
Feb.10 (GMM) Ferrari tester Marc Gene has acknowledged that Mercedes remains the favourite for the 2015 season. After Jerez, where the formerly struggling Maranello team surprised the F1 world with its headline test times, many predicted Ferrari might be in a position to challenge the ultra-dominant 2014 champions Mercedes this year. Also vastly improved at […]
Alonso vows to sue over tax evasion reports
Feb.10 (GMM) Fernando Alonso is threatening legal action after being named on a list of those suspected of tax evasion. The so-called ‘Falciani list’, named after a whistleblower, features thousands of names of those with Swiss accounts who reportedly used the HSBC bank to evade tax by placing money offshore. Also on the list are […]
Nurburgring makes proposal to save German GP
Feb.10 (GMM) The Nurburgring has tabled an offer in the hope of keeping the German grand prix alive in 2015. The F1 paddock – and particularly Germany’s prominent representatives including Mercedes, Nico Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel – has reacted with concern to Bernie Ecclestone’s news that it is possible neither the Nurburgring or Hockenheim can […]
McLaren designer says race finish in Melbourne ‘realistic’
Feb.10 (GMM) McLaren-Honda is confident it will see the chequered flag in Melbourne. Together again after more than two decades, the famous British team and the returning Japanese manufacturer notably struggled at the opening winter test at Jerez. “I thought they would be on the same level as Renault and Ferrari,” said former McLaren driver […]
Vettel camp denies copying Schumacher helmet
Feb.10 (GMM) The Sebastian Vettel camp has denied claims the quadruple world champion’s 2015 helmet livery is based on a design once worn by the great Michael Schumacher. Publications including La Gazzetta dello Sport (Italy) and Germany’s Sport Bild had made the link between Vettel’s new white design and an almost identical one reportedly worn […]
Ecclestone eyes ‘second division’ with old Red Bull
Feb.10 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone is working on a contingency plan in case the F1 grid continues to dwindle. If Marussia’s bid to return this year should fail, the pitlane looks set to house just nine teams in 2015. And with other teams including Force India, Sauber and even Lotus thought to be stretched financially, there […]
Question mark over Red Bull’s 2015 form
Feb.10 (GMM) 2014 runner-up Red Bull has emerged as a big question-mark ahead of the new season. Last year, Daniel Ricciardo was the only driver other than the occupant of a Mercedes to see the view from the top of the podium. But after the first official test of the 2015 pre-season, the Australian’s best […]
Some teens can be ready for F1 – Verstappen
Feb.10 (GMM) Max Verstappen says he understands the FIA’s decision to clamp down on the age and inexperience of future rookies in formula one. In just over a month, the Dutchman will smash the all-time record for the youngest ever race driver on the grid, when he hits the throttle in Melbourne at the controversial […]
Qatar now close to F1 race deal – official
Feb.9 (GMM) Qatar claims it is about to join the F1 calendar. Earlier, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone said that despite the oil-rich Arab state’s interest, Qatar’s grand prix aspirations were being blocked by Bahrain. “They (Bahrain) said to me would I give them a guarantee I wouldn’t stage another race in the Gulf, and I […]
Van der Garde to test GP2 car on Monday
Feb.9 (GMM) Giedo van der Garde will return to the cockpit of a GP2 car this week. The Dutchman, who debuted for Caterham in 2013, spent last year as Sauber’s reserve and was disappointed not to secure a race seat with the Swiss team for 2015. Now, the Dutch daily De Telegraaf is reporting that […]
Good Lotus puts smile back on Grosjean
Feb.9 (GMM) Romain Grosjean is once again wearing his customary smile. Having emerged from his personal ‘crash-kid’ crisis of 2012, the Frenchman’s F1 career gathered momentum in 2013 before he spent last season racing the woeful black and gold Lotus. Now, as the Enstone team looks to get back on track, Grosjean has confirmed that […]
Mercedes to dominate again in 2015 – Briatore
Feb.9 (GMM) Flavio Briatore does not think any F1 rivals are ready to challenge Mercedes’ dominance in 2015. Ferrari set the pace at the Jerez test last week, while Red Bull and Williams are expected to have taken steps forward since 2014. But former Renault chief Briatore insisted: “The one constant in formula one at […]
Vettel back to ‘naughty’ old self – Marko
Feb.9 (GMM) Sebastian Vettel is back to his old self, Red Bull official Dr Helmut Marko has admitted. Recently, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner claimed that amid Vettel’s struggle to keep up with the new F1 rules and teammate Daniel Ricciardo last year, the quadruple world champion contemplated quitting the sport. Ultimately, he switched […]
Ecclestone tells F1 chiefs German GP not dead yet
Feb.9 (GMM) The 2015 German grand prix is not dead yet. One week ago, Bernie Ecclestone told a German correspondent that the country will fall off this year’s schedule. He quickly backtracked, but it is true that neither the embattled Nurburgring nor Hockenheim currently have a deal in place to host the July race. “I […]