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Leclerc 'made it clear' he opposed Ferrari strategy.
"I made it clear that the medium [tyre] I wanted to keep it as long as possible, but we pitted very early for the hard, which we need to understand why," Leclerc said after the race.
31/07/2022, 18:32
ESPN.com
Nate Saunders F1 Associate Editor
The strategy Ferrari chose was not on any of the four projected fastest strategies Formula One tyre supplier Pirelli mapped out ahead of the race.
Ferrari must get better in every area after the team blundered its way through the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Ferrari's track record of poor strategy calls continued on Sunday as Leclerc went from leading the race to finishing 16 seconds behind Max Verstappen, who looks likely to wrap this year's championship up with a handful of races to spare.
‘Ferrari Strategy, different to the four Pirelli projected fastest strategies!’;
https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/3...t-better-whole
'Always something going wrong': Leclerc demands Ferrari answers
Issued on: 31/07/2022 - 19:42
France 24
Budapest (AFP) – Charles Leclerc said he pleaded with Ferrari to stay out on medium compound tyres while leading Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix before a pit-stop for hard tyres wrecked his victory hopes and claimed "there's always something going wrong."
"I said on the radio I was very comfortable with the mediums and that I wanted to go as long as possible with those tyres because the feeling was good, but I don't know why we took a different decision."
"It feels like there is always something going wrong -- reliability, mistakes, whatever. We need to be better at putting a weekend together. Now, we will try to use the few days we have to reset, but also try to analyse and understand where we need to be better and what we can do to be better because it is extremely important."
‘Always something going wrong -- reliability, mistakes, whatever’;
https://www.france24.com/en/live-new...errari-answers
Charles Leclerc all but concedes F1 title - 'The last part of the race was a disaster for me'
31/07/2022, 18:57
CHARLES LECLERC ALL but conceded the world championship to Max Verstappen after he admitted it is going to be “very difficult” to stop his rival following another Ferrari blunder at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Such was Leclerc’s dramatic loss of pace, Verstappen raced past his beleaguered rival with ease at the second corner five laps later. An extra pit stop saw him cross the line a desperate sixth.
“A race like this is frustrating and we need to get better as a whole,” said the 24-year-old, who crashed from the lead of last weekend’s French Grand Prix. It always feels like there is something going on, whether it is reliability or mistakes, so we need to get better at putting a weekend together.”
‘All but concedes F1 title’;
https://www.the42.ie/f1-championship...30292-Jul2022/
Leclerc: Ferrari ‘needs to get better’ at executing F1 weekends
31/07/2022, 17:33
The Race
By Edd Straw and Josh Suttill
When Verstappen opted for mediums that would get him to the end of the race, Ferrari called Leclerc in on the very next lap for a set of hard tyres. This proved to be a crucial error as, like the other cars such as the Alpines and the Haas that had fitted hard tyres, Leclerc couldn’t fire temperature into them, and his pace plummeted.
Leclerc said he felt “all over the place” on the hards and he was passed twice for the net race lead by Verstappen after the Red Bull driver spun shortly after completing his first overtake.
“I said I wanted to stay on the mediums as long as possible, so yeah we need to understand why we went on the hards because I made it clear that I wanted to keep the medium as long as possible so need to understand why,” Leclerc said after the race.
‘Crucial Error’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/lecle...g-f1-weekends/
Ferrari defend Leclerc error that will 'take days to analyse'
Sunday 31 July 2022 18:30
Ewan Gale
Mattia Binotto has conceded it may take days to analyse Ferrari's latest strategy blunder as F1's championships slipped further towards Red Bull and Max Verstappen at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc had made his way to the front with a move on George Russell's Mercedes but an early switch to hard tyres to cover an undercut attempt by Red Bull and Max Verstappen left the Monégasque a sitting duck.
The mistake was later underlined by a switch to softs, with the three-stopping Leclerc eventually finishing sixth. "What happened will take at least a few hours, or a few days, to analyse," Binotto told Sky Sports F1.
‘Days to Analyze… …Hard Tyre Strategy!’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...leclerc-error/
Mattia Binotto defends tyre strategy, claims car 'didn't behave well'
31/07/2022, 16:42
Sky Sports
Mattia Binotto was quick to defend Ferrari's strategy at the Hungarian GP and appeared unhappy with the car;
https://www.skysports.com/watch/vide...-what-happened
Ferrari: Lack of car performance forced defensive strategy in Hungarian GP
31/07/2022, 17:30
Hamilton Lyndon-Griffiths
Read Motorsport
Ferrari Formula 1 boss Mattia Binotto says the team’s lack of performance during the Hungarian Grand Prix didn’t give it the “freedom” on strategy it wanted.
“I think we were all expecting a different result today,” Binotto told Sky Italia. “Today the car was not performing the way we were expecting it to, and that was the issue more than the strategy. Carlos’ strategy was the same as Hamilton’s and it didn’t work either.”
“The performance of the car did not give us the freedom to do what we wanted and we were forced on the defensive,” Binotto said. “The pace was different from what we saw on Friday, we were not fast enough in the race today in these conditions. Something did not work on the car.”
‘All expecting a different result today’;
https://readmotorsport.com/2022/07/3...-hungarian-gp/
Binotto blames Ferrari woes on pace, not strategy
Date published: July 31 2022
Henry Valantine
Leclerc dubbed his doomed stint a “disaster”, but the Ferrari team boss felt it was the first race this season in which the Scuderia had not quite been on the pace. “Certainly we didn’t have today the performance we were expecting as in whatever the tyres we were using, soft, medium or hard,” Binotto told Sky F1.
“I think at the end, the performance of our car was not as expected and the car is not performing well. Whatever, because of maybe the weather conditions, it was a lot cooler today compared to Friday, so it is difficult somehow to try to have the right speed, the right pace and keep up the position on track.”
“So today the car was not behaving well. I think that’s the point that the first time this season, [in] 13 or 12 races, the first time it’s not working as we are hoping for. We’ll try to understand the reason of [it]. I think it was working but not as well as we were hoping or expecting for, so I think if I look at Friday at least, [and the] pace we’ve got, we had an edge, we had an advantage on the competitors, which was not the case today.”
‘Mattia Binotto: Today the car was not behaving well’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/mattia...-hungarian-gp/
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F1 trio caught on camera mocking rival says it all about fresh Ferrari shambles.
Ferrari’s constant strategy blunders this F1 season has their rivals amused after Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell shared a laugh at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
August 1st, 2022 11:45 am
Staff writers from Fox Sports
Leclerc was once again cruelled by a poor strategy decision from Ferrari, who pulled in their lead driver for hard tyres when he was comfortable on mediums. Leclerc’s preference was to stay out longer and complete a shorter final stint on the soft tyre, but was instead left to battle with the hards that struggled for grip.
In the end, he finished a distance sixth, his teammate Carlos Sainz was fourth, while Verstappen vaulted from 10th on the grid to claim the win. The podium was rounded out by Mercedes pair Hamilton and Russell.
In the podium green room, the trio were shocked to learn Ferrari put Leclerc on the hard tyre — a decision they clearly found amusing. Hamilton could be heard on the broadcast asking in surprise: “Ferrari were on the hards?” Both Russell and Verstappen snickered, and simply replied: “Yeah.”
“Ferrari were on the hards?” “Yeah.”;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...d8e26caf877eee
Time for Ferrari to ask hard questions of Binotto after yet another strategic blunder
01/08/2022, 05:16
David Tremayne
The Straits Times
When something just keeps going wrong so many times, it's natural to regard it as faulty no matter how much faith and affection one might have invested in it.
So why does Ferrari team principal and managing director Mattia Binotto, the man tasked with winning the most famous motor racing team in the history the 2022 World Championship, keep getting things so desperately wrong?
‘Just keeps going wrong’;
https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/f...ategic-blunder
F1 2022: ‘Crazy’ — Verstappen stunner rocks Ferrari after ANOTHER ‘incredible’ F1 ‘disaster’. Max spins but still wins in Hungary.
August 1st, 2022 6:54 am
AFP with staff writers from Afp
F1 world champion Max Verstappen fully exploited another Ferrari flop to pull 80 points clear of Charles Leclerc in this year’s title race with an emphatic Red Bull triumph at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Just a week after his crushing win at the French Grand Prix, where Leclerc crashed out of the lead, the 24-year-old Dutchman scored his first win at the Hungaroring on Sunday, his eighth this year, and the 28th of his career.
Starting from 10th on the grid, after engine problems in qualifying required a new power unit, he sliced through the field to finish 7.8 seconds ahead of Mercedes’ seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who had started from his maiden pole position. That was despite a 360 degree spin on lap 40 from which he managed to recover from. “When we woke up this morning who would have thought we would win this race?” said the Dutchman.
‘ANOTHER ‘incredible’ Ferrari F1 ‘disaster’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...3e666a03938405
Leclerc suggests "clear" wish ignored by Ferrari
Sunday 31 July 2022 17:15
Ewan Gale
Charles Leclerc has revealed he pleaded with Ferrari to remain on the medium tyre before the strategy error that cost him the Hungarian Grand Prix.
"I said I wanted to stay on the medium as long as possible and so yeah, we need to understand why we went to the hard," explained Leclerc.
"I made it clear I wanted to keep the medium as long as possible but we pitted very early for the hard, which we need to understand why.”
‘Pleaded with Ferrari, before the strategy error’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...clerc-ferrari/
What the teams said – Race day in Hungary
31 July 2022
Special contributor
Becky Hart
Formula 1.
Mattia Binotto, Team Principal Ferrari: "Today’s result is unsatisfactory. In general, we did not perform well, with the car unable to reproduce Friday’s pace and in terms of how we managed the strategy and pit stops. Analysing every aspect of this race is our top priority over the coming days, in order to prepare as well as possible for the remaining Grands Prix."
Christian Horner, Team Principal: “It was a fantastic race today. Everyone put in a top performance. Max was exceptional, even adding a little spin to his race as if coming back from 10th wasn’t hard enough. Equally, Checo had a brilliant race and I believe if it hadn’t been for the VSC he would have podiumed. Strategy played a big part in our victory. We were due to start on the hard tyre but switched things up as a result of the ambient conditions.”
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport: "George had a great qualifying session with pole and drove a solid race. He was in the fight utilising the tyres but ran out of them in the second stint. Lewis’ fight today was unbelievable, Budapest continues to be a success story for him. He came out of nowhere and was quicker than everyone else. I think we lost the race with him yesterday with the DRS failing.”
‘Feedback from the F1 teams’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...4Xng9J3hu.html
Max Verstappen takes grip on title race with victory in Hungary as Ferrari implode
August 01 2022 02:30 AM
Luke Slater
In a season when Ferrari’s and Charles Leclerc’s challenges for the title have consistently faltered, it should come as no surprise that their final act before the summer break would be to leave the Hungaroring with an even greater championship deficit.
Leclerc finishing a lowly sixth makes any chance of a Ferrari title turnaround almost impossible. Ferrari leave Hungary scratching their heads and licking their wounds, and the manner and frequency of their implosions must surely hurt, especially after they blew another opportunity to claw themselves back into contention.
With Leclerc starting third behind team-mate Carlos Sainz and Mercedes’ surprise pole-sitter George Russell, Ferrari looked like a decent bet to win and eat into Red Bull’s advantage. That was still the case with Leclerc leading at halfway. At the chequered flag, Ferrari did not even have a car on the podium, with their race falling apart through more strategy errors. The decision to put Leclerc on hard-compound tyres at his second pit stop seemed baffling and compromised his race.
‘No Ferrari Podium’;
https://www.independent.ie/sport/oth...-41881011.html
"It was a disaster for me," says Leclerc
31/07/2022
NEWS STORY
As he falls 80 points behind title rival Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc rues Ferrari's strategic error. While fans of a certain vintage have grown used to seeing the prancing horse shooting itself in the hoof, drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are slowly begin to see it for themselves.
If ever one needed an example of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, today's Hungarian Grand Prix was a perfect example. At a time rivals, Kevin Magnussen and Fernando Alonso were seeking to get off their hard tyres as soon as possible, Ferrari opted to put Leclerc, who was leading the race, on to the white-banded rubber.
Struggling on the hards, as other had done so before him, Leclerc suffered the indignity of being overtaken by Verstappen twice, the second time after the Dutchman had spun. In the final stages of the race, now under attack from Lewis Hamilton, Leclerc was forced to make a third stop, thereby dropping him to sixth. While Ferrari does its best to keep a lid on things, to wash its dirty linen behind closed doors, it was hard for the Monegasque to hide his frustration at race end.
‘Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory’;
https://www.pitpass.com/73288/It-was...e-says-Leclerc
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Podcast: Why Ferrari’s defence of its tactics doesn’t hold up.
The Ferrari Formula 1 team tried its best to explain how it got the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix so wrong, but did any of its arguments hold up?
01/08/2022, 07:08
The Race
Exactly how Ferrari went from such a strong position at the Hungaroring to not even getting a podium is analysed in forthright depth.
Every other team’s performance – including Red Bull’s brilliance and Mercedes’ latest important step – is discussed too, and as ever we also answer questions from The Race Members’ Club.
It’s fair to say Mark Hughes, Scott Mitchell and Edd Straw aren’t convinced, as they make clear in the latest episode of The Race F1 Podcast.
‘Ferrari’s defence of its tactics doesn’t hold up’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/podca...oesnt-hold-up/
Max and Lewis laugh at Ferrari Strategy | Cooldown room | 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
Jul 31, 2022
Lindsay Fennell
I have no idea how ferrari could be this incompetent unintentionally. It's really impressive how good they are at making the absolutely worst possible strategy decisions.
Alex Fu
"They were on hards?", this has now become the joke in the paddock. It is embarrassing. Binotto and the entire Ferrari strategy unit will have to go!! Enough is enough!!
TARKAS! TARKAS!
Happened with Mansell, with Prost, with Alesi, with Massa, with Alonso, with Vettel and Raikonnen, and now with Leclerc and Sainz. The Todt-Brawn-Schumacher era really was the exception and not the rule of the circus that is Ferrari.
memmener
What exactly was Ferrari's strategy switching to the hard? Were they expecting the front runners to go with a 3 stop strategy so they tried going with a 2 stop with the hard compound on the 2nd stop? Or they thought everyone was going with a 2 stop, and they thought the hard compound would perform better towards the end of the race?
philaw123
Ferrari strategy is the gift that keeps on giving.
Marcus Sarmiento
Ferrari going to fall to 3rd in constructors.
Samuel Kamoche
May Ferrari continue that way... so inspirational
greg izzo
As an Italian I think I am allowed to say this, but I feel Ferrari needs a little non-Italian brains in their team. A Ross Brawn for example.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HUvLdhO6hPo
RACE HIGHLIGHTS: Hungarian Grand Prix 2022! ����
Jul 31, 2022
Patrick Hodgen
I just spent an hour and a half of my life watching channel 4’s coverage for the first time in a few years and this is so much more worth it even though it’s a fraction of the length
Mansoor Hussain
Lec on hard is a Titanic Italian job & Strategic master class, should be on the payroll of Redbull
https://www.youtube.com/results?sear...i+hungary+2022
Charles Leclerc Team Radio After P6 in Hungarian Grand Prix
Jul 31, 2022
Smith Js
Charles: I am in the lead
Ferrari strategist: Hold my beer
Quiet_Ocelot
Ferrari Drivers : We can make big Points this Weekend!
Ferrari strategist : I feel a great disturbance in the Force!
Juliusz Kopczewski
Leclerc: Why did we go on the hard tire?
Ferrari: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Cleber Alves
Even the mechanics were shaking their heads in disapproval.
mgi 12321
I feel embarrassed to call myself a Ferrari fan. All the strategists need to be fired and the pit stop mechanics need a huge dressing down after today.
Nayan Mandala
How Kimi won the championship with Ferrari is unbelievable. He must have not spoken to anyone on the team and they prob just listened to Kimi cause they where scared. Charles might as well do his own strategies on the fly at this point he would probably have better chances than plan ABCDEFG or what ever the f### Ferrari comes up with.
Corvonix plays
I find incredible how they don't answer Charles right away, that shows how embarassed they were
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7r0fE3ar3os
Carlos Sainz “We clearly struggled as a team......"| Post Race Interview | 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
Jul 31, 2022
Fahhad
Leclerc was damn fast man.
Ferrari, reward? Hard tires
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7laGS9ILaE
Mattia Binotto comments about Ferrari Team strategy ���� in race F1 Hungary 2022
Jul 31, 2022
Bigali Begimovich
Yeah, very sorry for the team. He looks panic & nervous.(
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8PcBqhBjy0
Christian Horner “ No hard tyres for us…” | 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix | Post race interview
Jul 31, 2022
Russ Serpico
Glad to see Chris gives due credit to Sergio.
TheMrBennito
It was Max who made the call on the hard tyres, warming up on softs. Max is the boss, RB team superbly tuned to their top driverys input.
MadIIMike
RB: Takes off Hard Tyres last second because they figure they'd suck. Alpine (and some others): Struggles with hard tyres mid race. Charles' race engineer near the end of the race: HOLD MY BEER.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An1NhMliBWk
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The first cautious start of Verstappen’s F1 career?
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner says Max Verstappen’s start to the Hungarian Grand Prix was “the first time I’ve seen him being cautious” in the early seconds of a Formula 1 race.
01/08/2022, 07:39
The Race
By Edd Straw
Verstappen won the race at the Hungaroring despite starting only 10th on the grid, which is the lowest starting position he has won from in his grand prix career.
While you might usually expect a driver winning from the fifth row to be more attacking at the start, Verstappen’s approach to the first lap was conservative.
“I think it’s right up there,” said Horner when asked where this victory stands among Verstappen’s 28 F1 wins. “The start, you saw him, it’s the first time I’ve seen him being cautious. He got himself a little bit pinched in the middle of the pack there, but thereafter his pace, the way he managed the issues that he had was phenomenal.”
‘Max Cautious Start’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/the-f...ens-f1-career/
Conclusions from the Hungarian Grand Prix
Date published: August 1 2022 - Oliver Harden
Max Verstappen continued his march towards a second successive Formula 1 title with his eighth victory of the 2022 season at the Hungarian Grand Prix as Ferrari suffered another disastrous day. Ever get the feeling you’ve seen this all before? Here are our conclusions from Budapest… Verstappen is laughing all the way to a second title. And to think this was supposed to be one of Red Bull’s weaker races of the season…
Another day, another Ferrari disaster If it’s not reliability, it’s strategy; if it’s not strategy, it’s driver error. If there is a way to lose a grand prix in 2022, rest assured Ferrari will find it. Two cars on the podium again, but are Mercedes really here to stay? With two cars on the podium on consecutive weekends and a first pole position of 2022 in the bag, Mercedes have ended the first half of their most difficult season in a decade on a high.
Finally hints of tension at Alpine? But leopards, to continue the big cat theme, tend not to change their spots and one day short of a full year since Alonso helped Ocon to victory in Hungary, the team-mates turned on each other. Such is the way in the animal kingdom that is an F1 starting grid… Norris continues to shine for McLaren As the weeks have passed, Lando Norris’ podium finish at Imola in April has almost come to symbolise the end of his F1 adolescence.
‘Hungarian Grand Prix Conclusions’;
https://www.planetf1.com/features/co...an-grand-prix/
How did Alpine let its star driver slip through its fingers?
2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
Posted on 1st August 2022, 11:381st August 2022, 13:52
Written by Keith Collantine
After yesterday’s Hungarian Grand Prix Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer gave every indication the team’s star driver Fernando Alonso was going to sign a new contract to remain with them. Asked by RaceFans whether he was confident Alonso would stay at the team which lured him back to F1 last year, Szafnauer said: “Of course.” Did he expect a straightforward contract negotiation? “Very straightforward.” Were there any big sticking points in Alonso’s new contract left to resolve? “No, not really. We’ve gone through all that. It’s just a matter of time. Just details. Little stuff.”
Yet, less than 16 hours after Szafnauer spoke those words, Aston Martin issued a press release declaring the two-times world champion had signed a “multi-year” deal to join their team from 2023.
It wasn’t only Szafnauer who gave strong outwards signs that, despite Sebastian Vettel’s impending retirement opening up a seat at Aston Martin, Alonso intended to stay put. The man himself said as much after Vettel made his announcement on Thursday. “I would like to stay here,” he said in response to a question from RaceFans. “But there are two parties and I will not put a gun in the head of anyone.”
‘EL PLAN: Alpine to Aston Martin’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/01/...h-its-fingers/
F1 Hungarian GP 2022 race report: 5 things we learnt at the Hungaroring
Published: Today 12:28
Curtis Moldrich
The Hungarian GP always seems to deliver a classic race – despite how tricky it is to pass at the Hungaroring – and this year was no different. A damp qualifying session produced a relatively mixed grid, with George Russell’s Mercedes beating both Ferraris to pole. Sunday was equally chaotic, with the ongoing threat of rain and some very interesting strategy calls resulting in a race that was finely balanced on tyre management and robust overtakes.
So what were the key takeaways for the 2022 Hungarian GP, keep reading to find out. 1. Ferrari fumble. If Verstappen wins this year’s championship, it’ll surely be seen as the one gifted to him by Maranello. 2. Mercedes makes a step. If Ferrari are failing in every area but pace, it’s fair to say Mercedes are doing the exact opposite.
3. Alpine loses Alonso. But the biggest news? Just a day later, Alonso announced a move to Aston Martin. 4. Red Bull cleans up. Logistically Red Bull is the team to beat. 5. Life without Flexi-floors. First time we’ll see the effects of a new technical directive banning flexible floors.
‘5 things we learnt at the Hungaroring’;
https://www.carmagazine.co.uk/featur...y-race-report/
6 Winners and 5 Losers from the Hungarian Grand Prix – Who finished the first half of the season on a high?
01 August 2022
F1 Correspondent & Presenter
Lawrence Barretto
Max Verstappen made it eight wins in 2022 with a brilliant fight back at the Hungaroring to head into the summer break buzzing. The same can’t be said for some of his rivals, though. We’ve picked out six winners and five losers from the Hungarian Grand Prix…
‘6 Winners and 5 Losers’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...FcAoSeGm1.html
Paddock Diary: 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
2022 Hungarian Grand Prix
Posted on
1st August 2022, 16:051st August 2022, 16:05 | Written by Claire Cottingham
THURSDAY: The Hungarian Grand Prix weekend began with the bombshell news of Sebastian Vettel’s retirement and ended with a clue to his replacement.
SUNDAY; The day ended at Alpine with team principal Otmar Szafnauer. I and several other journalists quizzed him on Fernando Alonso’s future, which the driver had indicated would be sorted before the season resumes at Spa. I asked if he was confident Alonso would be staying at Alpine in 2023. He paused for three seconds, then answered: “Of course.”
A rainbow formed in the sky as the F1 teams began packing up for the break. By now Vettel’s impending retirement had been replaced as the main paddock talking point by Ferrari’s latest debacle. That had allowed Verstappen to take an 80-point lead into the next race at Spa, some four weeks away. As it turned out, we didn’t have to wait anything like as long as that to discover Alonso’s future.
‘Paddock Diary’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/01/...an-grand-prix/
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Verstappen took crucial strategic decision just before start of Hungarian GP.
In the final moments before the Hungarian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen – who went on to win the race – made what turned out to be a very important decision for the Red Bull team.
02/08/2022, 17:00
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Co-author Dieter Rencken
Max Verstappen has revealed that he made a last-minute decision to start on the Soft tyre for the Hungarian Grand Prix after originally planning to use the Hard, a compound that proved challenging for the likes of Ferrari.
The Dutchman went from the Soft to two stints on the Medium compound in the race, and was able to work his way from P10 on the grid to claim victory ahead of the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
"We were planning to start on the Hard tyre, but then I went to the grid on the Soft tyres, and I was already struggling for grip," Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365.com. "So I was like, 'No way we're going to start on the Hards'. So, it's also credit to the team, because we of course planned the strategy around that, with the Hard tyre, and then we were like, 'Okay, we're switching it to a Soft'. "We had a lot of confidence in just changing it around, then that's what we did."
‘Max Crucial Strategic Decision’;
https://racingnews365.com/verstappen...f-hungarian-gp
Verstappen credits 'reactive' Red Bull strategy for 'crazy' Hungarian GP win
01 August 2022
Ben Issatt
Max Verstappen credited Red Bull's "reactive" approach to strategy for his victory in a "crazy" Hungarian Grand Prix. “It was a crazy race and of course very happy that we won it," he said in parc ferme. "I was battling a lot of guys so it was a lot of fun out there."
With the Hungaroring historically a difficult circuit to overtake from, Verstappen admitted victory wasn't on his mind before the start. “I was of course hoping that I could get close to a podium, but [it was] very tricky conditions out there," he said.
“I think we had a really good strategy. We were really reactive and always pitting at the right time. I think we had some good out laps, and then at the end, even with a 360, we won the race.”
‘Max: Even with a 360, we won the race’;
https://www.insideracing.com/formula...ngarian-gp-win
How Verstappen was 12km from disaster — what you missed at the 2022 Hungarian GP
F1
August 1st 2022
Author Edward Hardy
In hindsight, it is a good job Verstappen had a disappointing Saturday because that’s what allowed him to win 24 hours later. During Q3, an engine-related problem struck which meant the world champion had to back out of his final flying lap, consigning him to P10.
Verstappen was fitted with a new engine for Sunday and had the problem not happened in qualifying, Christian Horner confirmed he wouldn’t have been able to race at all. “We changed the power unit because there’s a component that broke in Max’s car yesterday,” Red Bull’s team boss explained.
“Thankfully, sitting here now with 20-20 hindsight, we’re grateful that it did break yesterday because [with] another 12 kilometres it would have broken on the way to the grid. “So we elected to change the whole power unit rather than try a repair in the field. And as a precaution, we also changed Checo’s. Had the problem not struck on Saturday, we could be sat talking about Mercedes’ first one-two of the season.”
‘20-20 hindsight’;
https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...-hungarian-gp#
Is the F1 title Verstappen's already? - GPFans Stewards' Room Podcast
Monday 1 August 2022 16:30
GPFans Staff
Max Verstappen completed a stunning recovery drive from 10th to win the Hungarian Grand Prix but his path was eased by yet more errors from Ferrari. GPFans editor-in-chief Ian Parkes, deputy editor Sam Hall and F1 correspondent Ewan Gale join Oliver Wilson for this week's roundtable.
Ferrari was again its own worst enemy in Hungary as the team put Charles Leclerc on the dreadful hard tyres for the closing 30 laps of the race, dropping him from first to sixth. With the gap to Verstappen now 80 points, is the battle over?
The GPFans team also react to Monday's breaking news that Fernando Alonso will move from Alpine to Aston Martin for next season.
‘Is the F1 title Verstappen's already?’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...-room-podcast/
Verstappen survives spin to win 2022 F1 Hungarian Grand Prix
13:10 Mon, 01 Aug 2022
Motor Authority
Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen managed to overcome the odds on Sunday to take home victory in the 2022 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix. He finished ahead of the two Mercedes-Benz AMG drivers, with Lewis Hamilton crossing the finish line 7.8 seconds behind to claim second and George Russell crossing 12.3 seconds after Verstappen to claim third.
Both Verstappen and Perez slowly moved up the order, with Verstappen up to fourth by the end of lap 21 and Russell still in the lead at this point, ahead of Leclerc now in second and Sainz in third. Leclerc's attempts to overtake Russell caused both drivers to slow, allowing Verstappen to close the gap with the lead pack. Leclerc finally took the lead on lap 31 and would hold it comfortably until lap 39 when he switched to hard tires, a move that didn't suit the conditions. Leclerc was now third and Verstappen fourth. Ahead were Sainz and Hamilton who both needed to make another stop.
With Leclerc struggling for grip with the new tires, Verstappen put in a fastest lap to catch and was soon on Leclerc's tail. He powered past the Ferrari on lap 42 but then suffered a spin that allowed Leclerc to jump back in front. Fortunately he didn't end up in wall, and with some defensive help from Perez, Verstappen was soon able to catch up to Leclerc and pass him to move into third, with Sainz and Hamilton still head.
‘Verstappen survives spin to win’;
https://www.motorauthority.com/news/...d-prix-results
Jos Verstappen praises Max: He overtook them easily, like he always does
02/08/2022, 14:30
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Jos Verstappen has heaped praise on the Red Bull team for their strategy calls during the Hungarian Grand Prix, along with hailing the racing efforts of his race-winning son Max. Jos Verstappen was full of praise for his son and the Red Bull team following Max Verstappen's ninth victory of the season in Hungary.
Max's father – former Formula 1 driver Jos – commented that he didn't need to give any advice ahead of Max's against-the-odds victory from the fifth row of the grid. "He did a fantastic job," enthused Jos to Viaplay. "I don't need to tell him anything, the good thing is that he understands himself."
‘Max Overtook them Easily’;
https://racingnews365.com/jos-versta...he-always-does
Horner defends Perez following Marko criticism
02/08/2022
by Fergal Walsh
Christian Horner has defended Sergio Perez after the Mexican driver came under fire from Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko. “I made a joke to Helmut the other day, I said ‘I think Checo’s gone on holiday already’, and he went and told all you guys!” Horner laughed to Sky F1.
Horner commended Perez’s race in Hungary, after the former Racing Point driver crossed the line in fifth place. However, Horner is confident that Perez would’ve been challenging for a spot on the podium if not for the late Virtual Safety Car intervention following an on-track stoppage for Valtteri Bottas.
“Look at Checo’s race in the second half today,” Horner said. “Without that VSC, he would’ve been challenging for the podium in the closing stages of both George [Russell] and Carlos [Sainz]. He was coming very, very quickly.”
‘Very, Very Quickly’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...rko-criticism/
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Fernando Alonso to Aston Martin: Ted Kravitz reacts to bombshell F1 move as Alpine lose world champion.
Why is Alonso, at the age of 41, leaving a team for one that is five places and 79 points worse off in the championship? What's in it for Aston Martin? And what are the ramifications for Alpine?
Last Updated: 02/08/22 6:15am
Ted Kravitz
Ted Kravitz: "I don't think there's any shame in saying that this was a surprise to everybody! "Obviously Fernando is out of contract and has been looking around the big teams.”
"He admitted when I spoke to him before the Spanish Grand Prix that he would be happy to go to any big team and be a number two to Charles Leclerc or Max Verstappen, so his mind was clearly not with staying at Alpine. Or at best, staying at Alpine would be a second choice to joining a big team.”
Ted: "For Alonso, if his mind is not to stay at Alpine, and with other avenues closed, he might be looking at what Aston Martin are building up. They've got a lot of people in from Red Bull, Dan Fallows, for example, has arrived as technical director and has started coming to races, and Alonso will know about him and others. He will also know there is money there and he thought this was the best option. But what does this say about Alpine?”
‘Fernando Alonso bombshell F1 move’;
https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12...world-champion
Five Talking Points As F1 Takes A Break: From Ferrari's Problems To Mercedes' Recovery
Ferrari's team boss Mattia Binotto faced increasing pressure on Monday after Sunday's flop as the side started the Hungarian Grand Prix second and third but finished fourth and sixth.
• Updated: August 02, 2022 11:19 AM IST
• Agence France-Presse
Alonso move triggers 'silly season'. Fernando Alonso's swift move to take Sebastian Vettel's seat has triggered 'silly season' speculation forecasting more action in the driver market for 2023.
The first vacancy to fill will be at Alpine. Reserve driver Oscar Piastri, winner of the 2020 Formula Three and 2021 Formula Two titles, is an obvious candidate. The Australian, managed by former Red Bull driver and compatriot Mark Webber, is regarded as a major talent.
Another vacant seat could be at Williams, where Nicholas Latifi will be out of contract this year. Williams may be interested in Piastri, if he misses the Alpine seat, or Mercedes reserve Nyck de Vries.
‘Alonso move triggers 'silly season'.’;
https://sports.ndtv.com/formula-1/fi...covery-3216064
Felipe Massa points out "problem" Aston Martin face with ex-F1 team-mate Fernando Alonso
The surprising news broke on Monday that Fernando Alonso will leave Alpine at the end of the season to replace Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin, and his ex-Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa has given his verdict
21:22, 1 Aug 2022
By Daniel MoxonF1 Writer
Aston Martin have been warned that their new driver Fernando Alonso could "split the team in the middle" if the Spaniard becomes unhappy with how things are going.
Asked by Sky Sports' Any Driven Monday what the team will get from their newest recruit, Massa replied: "For me he is an amazing driver. He is talented, very intelligent in his driving and he understands how to be quick in qualifying – he is one of the quickest drivers.”
"But he is also very consistent in the race. He understands how to manage the tyres in the right way and to speak with the team. The problem he has is that he splits the team in the middle a little bit. I never had any problem working or talking with him, but he always managed to put everything on his side and split the team a little bit in the middle.”
"If he has a competitive car he definitely can help the team, but if he doesn't then he can be a problem by splitting the team in the middle. He could even decide to fight with the team. But as a driver, definitely one of the best in the history of Formula 1." He may have to be careful, though, considering at Aston Martin he will be in a position he has not experienced before. Team-mate Lance Stroll is the son of the team's billionaire owner, and so will have to watch what he does.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...massa-27633144
Podcast: Will Alonso’s final F1 switch gamble pay off?
16:28 Mon, 01 Aug 2022.
The Race
Fernando Alonso wasted no time in signing a deal to succeed Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin in 2023, a move that shocked the Formula 1 deal with its swiftness.
Scott Mitchell joins Edd Straw to explain how it happened and why, and whether or not it was the right decision for team and driver.
Alonso’s contract impasse with Alpine, which meant the door was still open for such a move, is also explained along with whether the team has any realistic alternatives to Oscar Piastri given it has yet to announce its replacement.
‘Fernando Alonso Switch’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/podca...amble-pay-off/
Four knock-on consequences of Alonso’s surprise Aston F1 move
13:35 Mon, 01 Aug 2022
The Race
By Scott Mitchell
News of Fernando Alonso’s shock move to Aston Martin in 2023 is a grenade launched into the plans of various Formula 1 teams. On the surface, it looks to have resolved some potential complications, chiefly what Alpine was going to do with Oscar Piastri. Its reserve driver is the red-hot favourite to succeed Alonso next year.
Aston Martin obviously had one. Alpine technically had one. Williams has one or two (depending on whether the belief it has an option on Alex Albon is correct). Haas has one. McLaren might have one too, subject to whether Daniel Ricciardo stands by his public declaration he will continue for 2023.
PIASTRI THE FAVOURITE – BUT NOT ANNOUNCED
RICCIARDO’S OPTIONS DWINDLE
WILLIAMS’ LOSES ITS IDEAL 2023 LINE-UP
‘Alonso’s shock grenade launched move’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/four-...aston-f1-move/
ANALYSIS: Why Alonso accepted Aston Martin’s advances and signed a shock deal – and why it could be a perfect match
01 August 2022
F1 Correspondent & Presenter
Lawrence Barretto
The timing of Aston Martin’s announcement that scooped the prized signing of Fernando Alonso was something of a shock – but the move itself makes a lot of sense, as F1 Correspondent Lawrence Barretto explains. When Sebastian Vettel revealed on Thursday ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix that he would be leaving Formula 1 at the end of the season, he sent the driver market silly season into overdrive.
His decision caught Aston Martin a little off guard. Sure, they knew there was a strong chance he would leave, but they had told the four-time world champion they wanted him to stay on for a third year and had thrown everything at convincing him to do so. When he told owner Lawrence Stroll last Wednesday night that he was off, the billionaire accepted Vettel’s decision and is believed to have got straight on the phone to Alonso, whom he has known for many years.
‘Perfect Match’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...Ja4chM7c4.html
Alpine salutes Alonso, says proud of collaboration
01/08/2022 at 12:12
Phillip van Osten
"We wish Fernando the best for his future in Formula 1," Alpine said in a message posted on social media.”
"Fernando has always been, and always will be, part of the Renault and Alpine family and we’re proud and privileged to have shared so many on-track moments together.”
"We look forward to finishing the remainder of the 2022 season with Fernando in blue, and we’ll keep pushing to the maximum until the final lap in November.
‘Alpine salutes Alonso’;
https://f1i.com/news/450335-alpine-s...aboration.html
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Mattia Binotto ‘in danger’ of getting fired by Ferrari in coming weeks.
Former Formula 1 driver, Ralf Schumacher, has indicated that Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto’s job is not safe after the team’s latest failures at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
1 August 2022
by James Clifford
Ferrari will go into the summer break with their tails between their legs following a horrible error on strategy in Hungary. Verstappen strolled to victory, and Ferrari were left wondering how they had let another victory slip from their grasp.
Such is the situation in the championship – after throwing away a handful of wins in 2022 – that Schumacher believes someone will have to go. “I see two people’s jobs in danger, Daniel [Ricciardo, who finished down in 15th] and also Mattia,” he told Sky Germany.
“When you get the gift of being able to go for the world championship with Ferrari and throw it away so carelessly, it should become difficult for you. So I see him in danger during the summer break, there are too many little things that are going wrong and too many technical problems.”
‘In danger’ of getting fired’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/mattia-bi...-coming-weeks/
Ferrari crew ‘not free or confident to make decisions’.
Former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley says a culture change is needed at Ferrari, based on what his ex-Scuderia friends told him.
Date published: August 2 2022
Jamie Woodhouse
During BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, it was suggested that the summer break which Formula 1 now enters is the perfect opportunity for Ferrari, offering a chance to reset. Priestley though says this will do Ferrari no good. Instead, they have deep-rooted flaws in the team which must be put right. Focusing on the strategy side, Priestley says he has spoken to friends who formerly worked at Ferrari, all of which told him that there is no freedom or confidence when it comes to making strategical decisions. The culture then must change in Priestley’s opinion, and some heads need to roll.
“I’m going to be honest, I don’t think the break is going to do them any good over the course of this particular season,” he said. “So for me, the summer break, that’s not what Ferrari need here. They need a total reset, heads are going to have to roll here and there’s no mistaking about that. I don’t know who’s going to take the fall, Mattia Binotto [team principal] clearly at the top of the tree, he’s going to have the biggest questions to answer, but this feels like a cultural problem that’s deep within Ferrari.”
“I’ve got a lot of friends who’ve worked there in the past, they all say the same thing. People can’t make decisions, they’re not free to make decisions, they don’t have the confidence to make decisions when it matters. And ultimately, that’s exactly what you have to be able to do. When you’re a Formula 1 team it’s all about making decisions on the fly. Red Bull got it right, Ferrari got it horribly wrong.”
‘Heads are going to have to roll here and there’s no mistaking about that’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/ferrar...ing-decisions/
Ferrari will not make F1 staff changes over summer
02/08/2022, 10:48 AM BST
Nate SaundersF1 Associate Editor
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto says there is no need for changes within the Formula One team despite its catalogue of blunders in the first half of this season. Binotto thinks Ferrari just needs to understand why it made mistakes in Budapest rather than make wholescale changes to its race-day operation.
"It's not a matter of bad luck, and there is nothing to change as well," Binotto said after the race on Sunday. "It's always a matter of continuous learning and building, building experience, building skills.”
"Certainly there is something that you need to look at [from the race] and understand why. But if I look again at the balance of the first half of the season, there is no reason why we should change.”
‘Not making F1 staff changes’;
https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/3...changes-summer
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto says there is ‘nothing to change’ at Scuderia this summer despite strategy calls
Charles Leclerc plummeted down the order at the Hungarian Grand Prix after some questionable strategy calls from the Ferrari pit wall.
02/08/2022, 12:07
Kieran Jackson
Formula 1 Correspondent
Mattia Binotto insists there is no need to change anything at Ferrari this summer despite Sunday’s Hungarian Grand Prix again being overshadowed by some questionable strategy calls on the Scuderia pit wall.
Ferrari’s Championship hopeful Charles Leclerc qualified in third place and led halfway through the race, but finished down in sixth after switching bizarrely to the hard compound tyre.
Verstappen Claims F1 Championship Lead ‘Bigger Than It Should Be’;
https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/fer...-b2136360.html
Ferrari strategy chief given vote of confidence by Mattia Binotto despite latest shocker
Some fans and pundits have called for Ferrari to make changes in their strategy department as they keep making costly mistakes, but team chief Binotto appears to be holding firm
07:34, 2 Aug 2022
By Daniel MoxonF1 Writer
Mattia Binotto insists his strategy team is "great" and dismissed the idea of bringing in fresh faces in the wake of Ferrari's latest blunder. Asked if he would consider bringing in new people to help his struggling strategy department, the Italian dismissed the idea and instead threw his support behind director Inaki Rueda. He added: "Sometimes we make mistakes, and the others are making mistakes, so not only Inaki but the entire team is great and I'm fully supporting them."
Just a few minutes before that interview, Leclerc spoke to the media and said he didn't understand why his team made him switch to the hard compound. "I said on the radio I was very comfortable with the medium and that I wanted to go as long as possible with those tyres because the feeling was good," said the Monegasque. "I don't know why we took a different decision."
Meanwhile, the Italian media's reports on Monday morning were scathing. Quotidiano Nazionale said Leclerc "deserves more" than what he is getting from the team, while Corriere dello Sport's headline described race winner Max Verstappen's performance as a "masterpiece".
‘Not only Inaki but the entire team is great and I'm fully supporting them’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...ngary-27633814
Ferrari could sack team boss Mattia Binotto over summer after Hungarian GP disaster
Mattia Binotto and his Ferrari strategists are under intense pressure after a series of tactical blunders left them needing a miracle to catch Red Bull and Max Verstappen
16:14, 2 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Ferrari may show up for the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of the summer break without team principal Mattia Binotto. That is according to Ralf Schumacher, who believes the Italian could be axed over the team's string of strategy screw-ups. The latest came at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where Charles Leclerc had his race ruined by the call to put him on hard tyres that would just not warm up.
All those errors, plus the team's ongoing reliability problems with their power units, have led to speculation that changes in personnel could be made. And former F1 racer Schumacher believes even team principal Binotto might not be immune to the axe.
Despite Leclerc publicly questioning his team's methods and the Italian press' scathing analysis of the situation, Binotto is holding firm. He insisted after the race in Hungary that "most of the time we are right", and gave his backing to chief strategist Inaki Rueda.
‘Ferrari may show up for the Belgian Grand Prix without Mattia Binotto’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...acher-27640167
Ralph Schumacher questions if Mattia Binotto’s job at Ferrari is “in danger”
2 Aug 2022
F1 Desk
Mattia Binotto could lose his job as Ferrari team principal over the F1 summer break, speculated Ralph Schumacher.
Ralph Schumacher, the brother of Ferrari legend Michael, told Sky Germany about Binotto: “I already see him in danger during the summer break.
“There are too many little things that went wrong and too many technical problems.
“If you get a gift like this, being able to drive for the World Championship and then you endangered it and throw it away, that’s already bitter.
Ralph Schumacher questions if Mattia Binotto’s job is “in danger” Crash.Net14:44
https://www.crash.net/f1/news/100931...o-s-job-danger
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Alpine/Piastri row makes possible McLaren/Ricciardo split clear.
Oscar Piastri and his management team would not go to war with Alpine and spurn a guaranteed F1 2023 race seat were they not pursuing another one AND extremely confident they will get it.
02/08/2022, 20:39
The Race, By Scott Mitchell.
As Alpine and Oscar Piastri provide us with a front row seat to a colossal Formula 1 contractual row, there’s another party being unwillingly dragged out alongside it. The implication of an extraordinary and brutally public dispute is simple: if Piastri’s camp gets its way, he will replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
That leads to another safe assumption, which is that Piastri’s management must have – or think it has – something very firm in place with McLaren. Piastri has clearly been advised it is OK to publicly denounce his current employer. To do so without a safety net would be extremely negligent.
But what about McLaren? Assuming that Piastri’s faith is not wildly misplaced, there are two scenarios here. Either Ricciardo has indicated to McLaren he is, in fact, planning to walk away from F1 or is willing to use his option to end his contract early and those talks have begun…. Or McLaren has gone behind Ricciardo’s back and lined up Piastri as his successor with the intention of doing what it takes to ‘convince’ (read: pay) Ricciardo to walk away.
‘Front row seat to a colossal Formula 1 contractual row’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/alpin...o-split-clear/
The F1 Drama Continues, Piastri Says He Won't Drive for Alpine in 2023
2 Aug 2022, 19:23 UTC ·
by Florin Amariei
The 2022 Formula 1 (F1) season remains very intriguing. Oscar Piastri was announced everywhere as Fernando Alonso’s replacement, but the young racing driver took it to social media to deny everything the Alpine F1 Team said. Here’s what’s going on.
But the young racing driver published a message on social media in which he said that Alpine F1 lied about his involvement with the French team. Piastri points out that the press release was sent out without his agreement and confirmed for everyone that there’s no contract signed between him and Alpine.
“I will not be driving for Alpine next year,” concluded Piastri. Now Alpine is in a tough spot. They have to clear this out, or they might have to start recruiting another F1 driver for the 2023 season that will match well with Esteban Ocon. Until then, fans have something to talk about.
‘Tough spot for Alpine’;
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/t...23-195063.html
Piastri makes shock announcement he will not debut in F1 with Alpine next year
2023 F1 season
Posted on 2nd August 2022, 19:172nd August 2022, 19:52
Written by Keith Collantine
Oscar Piastri has issued a statement denying he will make his Formula 1 debut for Alpine next year, hours after the team claimed he would.
Piastri, the reigning Formula 2 champion, seemed a logical choice of replacement for Alonso. However he has now issued a statement insisting he will not race for the team next year.
“I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year,” he posted on social media. “This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year.”
‘Shock Announcement’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/02/...ine-next-year/
Our verdict on Alpine’s extraordinary Piastri mess
02/08/2022, 20:18
The Race
A tumultuous start to the summer break for Alpine continued on Tuesday evening when, barely an hour after it had named Oscar Piastri as one of its drivers for the 2023 Formula 1 season, its current reserve driver emphatically rejected that announcement.
So what does this sorry mess say about Alpine’s handling of events and the damage to its public image that has been done? Our writers have their say.
An embarrassing situation for Alpine
Edd Straw
Piastri better have had good guidance on his actions
Scott Mitchell
A major, major cock up
Gary Anderson
Anything IndyCar can do, F1 can too
Glenn Freeman
Parallels on two wheels too, not just four
Valentin Khorounzhiy
A lot of mess for two drivers to potentially be worse off in 2023
Matt Beer
‘The Race Verdict’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/our-v...-piastri-mess/
How did Alpine end up in such a mess with its drivers?
In the space of a few days, the 2023 driver market has been turned upside down.
02/08/2022, 21:04
ESPN.com
Laurence EdmondsonF1 Editor
At 5.12 p.m. BST, Alpine issues a press release saying Piastri will be promoted to race driver alongside Esteban Ocon in 2023. The statement says the decision has been made "in line with the commitments made by the team to the young Australian" but there is no quote from Piastri himself and no confirmation of the news via his social media accounts.
At 7 p.m. BST, Piastri breaks his silence with a tweet that makes clear he has no intention to driver for Alpine next year. "I understand that, without my agreement, Alpine F1 have put out a press release late this afternoon that I am driving for them next year," he wrote. "This is wrong and I have not signed a contract with Alpine for 2023. I will not be driving for Alpine next year."
In the space of 48 hours, Alpine has lost Fernando Alonso beyond the end of this year and appears to have lost its promising junior driver Oscar Piastri. It is likely that Alpine and Piastri will now enter a legal dispute over the contract, which may also explain why Alpine issued its statement without consulting Piastri, so as to trigger a clause in his contract.
‘Alpine Trigger a Contract Clause’;
https://www.espn.com/f1/story/_/id/3...h-mess-drivers
The future of top F1 prospect Oscar Piastri descends into chaos as he refutes Alpine's announcement that he will drive for them in 2023
2022-08-02T19:56:14Z
Cork Gaines
• F1 team Alpine announced that Oscar Piastri would replace the outgoing Fernando Alonso in 2023.
• Piastri refuted this claim, saying he is not under contract and would not race for Alpine next season.
• The Australian has been linked to other teams and now his future is up in the air.
The 21-year-old Australian has been linked to both McLaren, as a potential replacement for Daniel Ricciardo, and Williams, where he would replace Nicholas Latifi. Several outlets have reported that Piastri and his agent, former F1 driver Mark Webber, have been working on a deal with McLaren. However, according to Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer, Piastri is still under contract with his team.
"I'm not privy to whatever pre-arrangements he has with McLaren, if any at all," Szafnauer told Motorsport.com. "But I hear the same rumors that you do in the pit lane. But what I do know is that he does have contractual obligations to us. And we do to him. And we've been honoring those obligations all year. And those obligations last through '23 and possibly in '24, if some options are taken up."
‘Descent into Chaos’;
https://www.insider.com/f1-2023-osca...mclaren-2022-8
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Alpine issue defiant response to Oscar Piastri's bombshell social media statement.
"We believe we are legally correct in our statement but don't have anything further to say", a spokesperson told F1 correspondent Andrew Benson.
2 Aug 2022, 21:29
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Piastri rocked the F1 world by publicly denying that he has signed a contract to replace Fernando Alonso at Alpine in 2023, not long after the team announced their reserve driver's new role.
The tone of Piastri's statement suggests that he too believes he is in the right. The whole fiasco comes after it was reported that his mentor and manager Mark Webber has been in negotiations to secure a seat with their midfield rivals McLaren.
Earlier in the day, Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer had claimed that Piastri is contracted to the team and therefore would not be able to leave for a rival. "I'm not privy to whatever pre-arrangements he has with McLaren, if any at all," he told Autosport.
‘We believe we are legally correct’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...tweet-27642887
Alpine: We are legally correct in our statement.
Alpine have said they are legally correct in their announcement of Oscar Piastri as their driver for the 2023 Formula 1 season, as the story continues to develop.
3 August, 2022
Reuters
Alpine believe they are legally correct. Alpine, as part of a major manufacturer, are unlikely to have taken the step of announcing a driver without feeling confident, however. “We believe we are legally correct in our statement,” the team said, without further comment.
Piastri heading to McLaren? Media reports suggested the Australian, managed by former F1 racer Mark Webber, had signed a pre-contract with McLaren – a team that officially does not have a vacancy but might be creating one. Alpine principal Otmar Szafnauer was asked about that in a Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday.
“We do have a legal contract with him (Piastri) into the future for ’23. And if an option is taken up, for ’24,” he said. “I don’t know what he’s done with McLaren… I’m not privy to that,” Szafnauer added.
‘Legally Correct’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...our-statement/
Aussie rising star Oscar Piastri insists he's NOT driving for Alpine next year in bombshell statement - as speculation mounts that his manager Mark Webber is trying to get him to replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren
• On Tuesday, Alpine announced Piastri would replace Fernando Alonso in 2023
• Piastri responded with a blunt statement insisting he won't drive for the team
• Rumours are rife that manager Mark Webber is getting Piastri a seat at McLaren
Published: 23:47, 2 August 2022
By Pa Sport Staff and Shayne Bugden For Daily Mail Australia
Oscar Piastri has insisted he will not be driving for Formula 1 team Alpine next season hours after his appointment as Fernando Alonso's replacement had been announced. In the Alpine announcement, team principal Otmar Szafnauer had praised Piastri as a 'rare talent' who is 'more than capable' of making the move into Formula 1. Szafnauer said: 'Oscar is a bright and rare talent. We are proud to have nurtured and supported him through the difficult pathways of the junior formulae.”
'I'm not privy to whatever prearrangements he (Webber) has with McLaren, if any at all,' Szafnauer told Autosport when he was asked about the speculation. 'But I hear the same rumours that you do in the pitlane. But what I do know is that he does have contractual obligations to us. And we do to him. And we've been honouring those obligations all year.”
'And those obligations, last through '23, and possibly in '24, if some options are taken up. 'So therefore we do have a legal contract with him into the future for '23. And if an option is taken up, for '24. So I don't know what he's done with McLaren. Like I said, I'm not privy to that. Oscar and his camp are considering their options, whatever that means.'
‘Considering Options!’
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...en-switch.html
Why Australia’s Renault racer Oscar Piastri is the hottest prospect in Formula One.
Alpine, McLaren, Williams and AlphaTauri are all potentially ready to take the 21-year-old into Formula One racing in 2023. A tug of love has developed over Oscar Piastri as the highly-rated young Australian prepares to make his Formula One race debut in 2023.
03 August 2022, 11:48
Paul Gover
Renault thought it had him locked in for next year with its Alpine team – even announcing its plans this week — but Piastri has responded that he has not signed any firm contract. Piastri and his manager – fellow Australian and retired Formula One race winner Mark Webber – are now believed to be in talks with McLaren, where fellow Aussie Daniel Ricciardo's future looks extremely shaky.
Piastri's graduation comes after an incredible run of success in junior single-seater racing, which saw him take three major championship wins — including the FIA Formula Three and Formula Two categories that race on some Formula One weekends — in consecutive years. He became a member of the Renault (Alpine) Academy for junior drivers at the start of 2020, where he first drove a Grand Prix car.
After missing out on a spot on the F1 grid for 2022, Piastri joined the Alpine squad this year as a reserve driver, with a program that includes regular Formula One testing time and work in the high-tech F1 simulator at Alpine's headquarters in the UK. Piastri has earned plenty of praise for his test and development work at Alpine, but it is his raw speed and commitment in races that has attracted the attention of other teams.
‘Tug of Love’;
https://www.drive.com.au/news/oscar-...claren-update/
Fernando Alonso in poorly-timed post as Oscar Piastri causes chaos with Alpine statement
OSCAR PIASTRI has denied he will replace Fernando Alonso at Alpine despite the team announcing that he would.
07:30, Wed, Aug 3, 2022
By Joshua Lees
Amid Oscar Piastri’s sensational claim that he would not be driving for Alpine next year, despite a statement from the team saying he would be doing so, the man he has replaced Fernando Alonso was seen uploading a poorly-timed post on his Instagram. Piastri was initially confirmed as one of Alpine's drivers for 2023 on Tuesday afternoon.
Alonso was criticised for a poorly-timed post on social media, after he uploaded a smiling selfie with his thumbs up on his Instagram story amid the saga surrounding his employers. The Spaniard’s switch to Aston Martin came after four-time Sebastian Vettel announced he would be retiring at the end of the current season.
‘EL PLAN: Uploaded a Smiling Selfie’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...Alpine-f1-news
‘Aston Martin pushed Vettel to decide after speaking with Alonso’
Date published: August 2 2022
Michelle Foster
Sebastian Vettel’s retirement announcement came after Aston Martin ‘requested’ he make a decision before the summer break as the team had already been in talks with Fernando Alonso for a ‘few weeks’. That’s according to a report from Auto Motor und Sport.
Vettel announced last Thursday that this season would be his last in Formula 1, the decision surprising many in the paddock. It was thought that it also surprised Aston Martin as team boss Mike Krack said they did not have a “Plan B” in mind should Vettel opt not to continue.
But, according to AMuS’s Tobias Gruner, it was with that Plan B in mind that Aston Martin urged Vettel to make a quick decision. According to the respected F1 journalist, the “negotiations between the team and the driver [Alonso] have apparently been taking place in the past few weeks”.
‘EL PLAN: Plan B’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/aston-...rnando-alonso/
Piastri stars as F1 ‘silly season’ explodes
AUGUST 3, 2022
ANDREW MAITLAND
Otmar Szafnauer admits Fernando Alonso’s decision to turn down a one-year deal and instead sign what is believed to be a $25 million per season multi-year contract with Aston Martin caught Renault-owned Alpine by surprise. “There were rumours in the paddock and I heard them,” the Alpine boss is quoted by L’Equipe. “But I learned of the signing through the press release.”
Szafnauer admits he also saw Alonso with Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll in Hungary last weekend, although he says the 41-year-old denied signing a deal. I couldn’t speak with Fernando on Monday as he is on a boat in the Greek islands,” Szafnauer added.
The best option for Alpine now may be a McLaren ‘swap’ with Ricciardo, but a source pointed out: “There’s so much chaos that Piastri may end up having nowhere to go.” When asked about Alpine’s embarrassing limbo, Szafnauer said: “We are not ready to think about what will happen after Piastri. What happened with Fernando is still too fresh.”
‘F1 ‘silly season’ explodes!’;
https://grandpx.news/piastri-stars-a...ason-explodes/
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Lando Norris: “Seventh was the best we could have done for the points” at Hungarian Grand Prix.
After a stellar qualifying result of fourth place, McLaren F1 Team’s Lando Norris ended up taking seventh place at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
August 3, 2022
By Ashley Cline
Though he would have wanted to finish higher up the grid, Norris admitted that his McLaren didn’t have the performance to stay ahead of the likes of Red Bull Racing and Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team.
“P7, happy with that. After yesterday, of course we’d all wished for a bit more, but we just didn’t have the pace today with the quicker cars behind. We just did an extremely good job yesterday. I’m happy with it, it’s the maximum we could do today with the cars ahead.”
Norris said that seventh place was likely the best possible result for the team this weekend, behind only the leading teams and ahead of their main competition, BWT Alpine F1 Team. The result sees McLaren sit just four points behind Alpine in the battle for fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. “Tough in places but seventh was the best we could have done for the points today, and we were ahead of our rivals.”
‘Seventh was the best we could have done for the points’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...an-grand-prix/
Norris outlines what McLaren need to work on after 'expecting more' in Hungary
03/08/2022, 07:50
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Lando Norris started the Hungarian Grand Prix from P4 on the grid, but finished the race in seventh, leaving him slightly disappointed with his result. Lando Norris admits that he had been "expecting more" from the Hungarian Grand Prix after dropping from P4 to P7. The McLaren driver had put in a strong qualifying performance to achieve fourth on the grid, and initially was able to fend off the challenge from Lewis Hamilton behind.
While Norris was pleased with his performance in relation to who he was racing, he was left feeling slightly disappointed by his end result. "We did [have a good performance] against the people we are racing, really," Norris said after the race.
"If you think of P4 as a grid position then you expect a little bit more on Sunday, and to end up 62 seconds behind just the next car ahead of me, it's a big challenge to do anything more from that, so therefore our race was against Alpine and the cars behind me."
‘Expect a little bit more’;
https://racingnews365.com/norris-out...ore-in-hungary
Norris finds positives in chastening McLaren gap
Tuesday 2 August 2022 13:45
Ewan Gale
Lando Norris has conceded that finishing '62 seconds off Charles Leclerc' was the best McLaren could achieve despite qualifying fourth at the Hungarian Grand Prix. The result, however, was still enough to beat both Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon in the race against Alpine for fourth in the constructors' championship.
But it exposed the mountain McLaren has to climb in order to cement itself at the top of F1's pecking order. Insisting the wind was as detrimental as the coolness to McLaren's pace, Norris explained: "That car, you have to drive it one way, which I like.
"But especially when the wind is involved, you drive it the same way and it has the same limitations so I think that is why we struggled with the same characteristic, same things, destroying the front-left tyre and everything. It is just how the car is. The quicker cars, you can play around a bit more, use different lines, [more] resistant to the wind and therefore it is better."
‘Finding positives’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...an-grand-prix/
McLaren’s Andreas Seidl: Understanding of recent upgrade “put us into position to be the fourth fastest team” at Hungaroring
August 3, 2022
By Ashley Cline
McLaren F1 Team Principal Andreas Seidl said that Lando Norris maximized his position to take seventh at the Hungarian Grand Prix, finishing behind only the top three teams. He was pleased to see their recent upgrade placed them ahead of their main rival in the standings, BWT Alpine F1 Team, when it comes to pace at the Hungaroring.
“With all six cars from the top three teams finishing the race, P7 was the best we could achieve today – and we did it. The upgrade we introduced at Paul Ricard – and improved our understanding of here – put us into position to be the fourth fastest team, which is a great achievement.”
Seidl said that despite running essentially the same tyre strategy on both cars, Daniel Ricciardo ended up struggling after his second stop on the hard tyres, a compound that ended up being difficult for other teams on the grid as well. Ultimately, Ricciardo’s race ended out of the points in fifteenth after starting ninth.
‘Understanding Recent Upgrade’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...t-hungaroring/
Is McLaren looking to axe Ricciardo after Piastri talks?
Tuesday 2 August 2022 16:49
Sam Hall
Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer has poured cold water on a possible move for reserve driver Oscar Piastri to replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
It is reported the driver and his race-winning agent, Mark Webber, agreed a pre-contract deal with McLaren to prevent this from happening, something that raises yet more questions over Ricciardo's future despite a contract for 2023.
‘Rumours’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...oscar-piastri/
Damage spotted on Landi Nozza Norris’ car at Hungarian GP
McLaren Lando Norris took P4 in qualifying for 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix.
1 August 2022
by James Clifford
Sky Sports reporter Ted Kravitz spotted an error in an official FIA document during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. When referring to Lando Norris in a document this weekend, the governing body made a typo, calling him “Landi” instead of Lando.
When speaking about Norris’ fantastic performance in qualifying that will see him start the race fourth, Kravitz called him Landi, and explained the hilarious mistake that the FIA had made.
“If you’re wondering why I’m calling him Landi Norris now, the FIA did a document where they misspelt Lando Norris and called him Landi,” he said on his Notebook show.
‘Ted Kravitz spotted an error’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/damage-sp...-hungarian-gp/
Daniel Ricciardo pulls off brilliant double Alpine overtake
Sun, 31 Jul 2022, 15:00
Sky Sports
https://www.skysports.com/watch/vide...lpine-overtake
The four options facing Ricciardo as rising Aussie star sends shockwaves through F1
August 3rd, 2022 10:28 am
Michael Lamonato from Fox Sports
Piastri’s social media protestation that he “will not be driving for Alpine next year” can only be a sign that Webber is confident he’s got the job done. But Piastri can claim a set of orange overalls only if F1’s other Aussie isn’t already in them. And so this latest — but not final — chapter of silly season shenanigans begs the question: what’s in store for Daniel Ricciardo?
OPTION 1: STATUS QUO The first alternative is what’s officially the case at the moment.
OPTION 2: RETURN TO ALPINE But with McLaren apparently clear in its intention to switch Ricciardo out for a younger alternative, the eight-time race winner may admit the writing is on the wall and seek employment elsewhere.
OPTION 3: TAKE A PUNT ON A SMALLER TEAM If returning to Alpine were too bitter a pill to swallow but Ricciardo definitely wanted to continue racing in Formula 1, there are several teams with openings for 2023.
OPTION 4: RETIRE The last option will be the most crushing to contemplate for fans of the forever likeable Aussie, but Ricciardo may decide to call time on his F1 career after 232 starts and at least eight wins and 32 podiums.
‘Four Options Facing Ricciardo’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...f87aa536000f03
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Ex-F1 champion asks Ferrari chief strategist if he was even ‘watching the race’.
Villeneuve questioned if strategist Inaki Rueda was even “watching the race” after he called Leclerc in for Hards, instead of leaving him out on Mediums to stick with the plan.
3 August 2022
by James Clifford
If Ferrari do not sort themselves out over the summer break, the former Williams driver fears that this title race could be an avalanche. “Nothing has been decided yet, there are still plenty of races to go, but if the trend continues, if Verstappen continues to drive at this level and Red Bull also continues to develop, it will be very difficult to stop them,” explained Villeneuve.
Verstappen won the Hungarian Grand Prix on Sunday from 10th on the grid after more strategical blunders from Ferrari cost Charles Leclerc the win. However, that takes nothing away from the reigning champion’s impressive recovery which, in Villeneuve’s eyes, is further proof that the Red Bull driver is simply out of this world.
“Max is a machine, he’s simply not normal!” he stated. “He wasn’t even tired yesterday, I don’t think he even needs to go on holiday! He is driving so incredibly strongly this year, and the team is not making any mistakes.
‘Watching the race’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/ex-f1-cha...hing-the-race/
Jacques Villeneuve lays into Ferrari: Are they not watching the race or what?
Wednesday 3rd August 2022 10:00 AM
Michelle Foster
Jacques Villeneuve is mystified as to how so many of F1’s strategists, said to be “top level”, could get it so horribly wrong at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Ferrari can count themselves on that list.
The Scuderia made headlines after the Hungaroring race, not because of a shining moment of glory as it should have been for Charles Leclerc but because of how badly wrong they got his strategy.
The team went for a medium-medium-hard tyre strategy for the Monégasque driver only to realise the hards were not working. However, you sense if they had been properly watching the race, they would have seen everyone else who tried the hard tyres struggled for pace.
‘Ferrari Mystified!’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/jacque...ts-hungary-gp/
Hakkinen: Red Bull will finish 1-2 in standings if Ferrari doesn’t respond soon
03/08/2022, 10:09
by Fergal Walsh
Two-time Formula 1 World Champion Mika Hakkinen has backed the Red Bull drivers to finish first and second in the Drivers’ standings this year if Ferrari don’t improve its form soon.
Writing in his column for Unibet, Hakkinen has warned Ferrari that it could lose out to both Red Bull drivers soon if it doesn’t better its performances.
“Of course Max Verstappen has the quickest, most consistent car, but the big picture on Sunday is that Russell, Leclerc, Sainz and Hamilton led at some point, and the way the cars can follow each other thanks to the ’22 regulations is very positive,” he said. “There was so much happening and, when you consider Max even had a spin, I think 3 or 4 drivers could have won this race.”
‘1 2 Red Bull’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...-respond-soon/
Binotto admits to frustration under his calm persona
Tuesday 2nd August 2022 5:00 PM
Michelle Foster
The Scuderia’s reliability and poor decision making has cost the driver 108 points in total while Leclerc’s own mistakes saw him drop a further 32.
Such was Leclerc’s exasperation after the Hungarian GP, a race he should have won but instead finished P6, that he told the media it feels “like there is always something going wrong” at Ferrari. He’s not the only one annoyed with the situation.
“I’m frustrated no doubt,” team boss Binotto insisted to Channel 4 after the Hungarian race, “even if I’m maybe not showing it too much, but I’m certainly frustrated. Because I know what is the potential of the car, what it has been so far, even if today it’s the first time in the first half of the season that the car was not so great.”
‘Frustration’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/mattia...-calm-persona/
SHOULD CHARLES LECLERC BE LEADING THE CHAMPIONSHIP?
We do the maths on a season of missed opportunities for Leclerc and Ferrari
03/08/2022
James Mackenzie
Once all those numbers are totted up, they would have left Verstappen on 289 points and Leclerc on 297. Of course, a championship is never going to go entirely your way, but it leaves a bitter taste in the mouth knowing how thrilling a title fight we could be experiencing without Ferrari’s operational and reliability issues.
Even with Leclerc’s two errors factored in he would only be 25 or so points back. As much as Binotto refuses to take responsibility for his team’s mistakes, repeatedly claiming they were never expecting to win the race and/or title, it is perfectly clear that it is Ferrari who have yet again thrown away a great shot at the championship.
‘Maths of Missed Opportunities’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/feature.../?nowprocket=1
Why Ferrari launched failed tyre gamble in Hungary
Tuesday 2 August 2022 18:30
Sam Hall
Explaining why, Binotto said: "When we fitted the hard, our simulation was that it would have been a difficult couple of laps of warm-up.”
"They would have been slower than the medium for 10, 11 laps but then they would have come back and would have been faster by the end of the stint and it was a 30-lap stint.”
“We fitted the hard tyres at the time because, with a 30-lap stint, we were trying to protect position on Max. It would have been too long for the soft and our choice and analysis [was that] yes, it would have been difficult at the start of the stint but we could have come back by the end."
‘Failed tyre gamble’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...-ferrari-tyre/
Italian media claim Max Verstappen has ‘secured his second title’
Max Verstappen won the Hungarian Grand Prix after Ferrari threw away a win for Charles Leclerc.
2 August 2022
by James Clifford
Verstappen had started the race down in 10th after engine troubles in qualifying, so his victory was labelled a “masterpiece” by Corriere dello Sport. Conversely, Quotidiano Nazionale affirmed that Leclerc “deserves more” from his team right now having been comfortably leading in Budapest.
Writer for the publication, Fluvio Solms, gave a stinging review of Ferrari’s handling of a race that they seemingly had in the bag, and suggested that Verstappen has all but wrapped up the title. “The wave of enthusiasm on which the entire Ferrari team was surfing, dreaming of an irresistible end of the season, has been completely shattered,” he wrote.
“It should never have happened at the Hungaroring, but it did. Right there, on the friendly circuit that requires a key quality of Ferrari – aerodynamic downforce. The Dutchman secured his second title with nine races to go.”
‘Surfing Dream Shattered’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/italian-m...-second-title/
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Mike Krack: “Taking home one world championship point is little reward for a job well done”.
“Both drivers were relentless, our race pace was strong and our strategy allowed us to pick off the cars ahead of us.” Principal Mike Krack
August 3, 2022
By Ashley Cline
Krack said that the single point the team earned isn’t quite representative of the great job they did, praising the drivers’ “relentless” performance at the Hungaroring and the competitiveness of their race package.
Heading into summer break, Krack said that he was proud of the team’s efforts throughout the beginning of the season and looks forward to returning to Belgium refreshed and ready to compete.
“We will take those positives into the summer break and come back stronger for the second half of the season. For now, I want to wish our whole team a well-deserved break over the summer. Everyone has worked tirelessly and I am extremely proud of our entire organisation. We will come back with fresh focus and look forward to the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of August.”
‘Relentless Drivers’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...job-well-done/
Sebastian Vettel: “Saturday performance needs to be a focus for the second half of the year”
August 3, 2022
By Ashley Cline
Vettel said that ninth place was in his sights near the end of the race after switching places with team-mate Lance Stroll, but ultimately wasn’t able to catch Esteban Ocon for the position with the Virtual Safety Car hindering his prospects. He ended up just over a tenth behind Ocon, narrowly missing an additional point.
“We had to fight hard for a point today and we came close to a second point when I was chasing down Esteban [Ocon] in the final laps. The team switched cars because I had a better opportunity to catch Esteban, but obviously the Virtual Safety Car hurt us and we ran out of time. I was very close on the final lap, but I needed just one more corner to make a move.”
Vettel enjoyed the race overall, having had good pace at the Hungaroring. He did, however, struggle with his second set of tyres, which were used mediums. Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Vettel said that improving the team’s qualifying needs to be a priority after summer break.
‘Performance Focus’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...f-of-the-year/
Vettel reveals Aston Martin weakness
Wednesday 3 August 2022 09:20
Sam Hall
Aston Martin sits ninth in the constructors' standings with 20 points, with only Williams below it in the constructors' standings. Results have marginally improved of late, with Aston Martin scoring better than Alfa Romeo, AlphaTauri and Williams over the last four races.
Despite this improvement, Vettel has identified an area where he feels his team can make further gains. "Our weakness is the Saturday, qualifying, because in the race I believe we can stay in the mix once we qualify a little bit higher up," said Vettel
"I was actually quite relieved on Friday. I had a good Friday. Saturday didn’t really go my way so I wasn’t happy in the night [he qualified 18th] but Sunday felt a lot better and I was able to get back in the race. The plan that we had worked [out] I’m pleased with that, but as I said, I generally tend to look forward.”
‘Aston Martin Weakness’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...rtin-weakness/
Feel the passion inside the Aston Martin F1 garage with 'Il Pitstop'
03.08.2022
Aston Martin F1
Multi-sensory experience from Peroni Nastro Azzuro 0.0% immerses fans in the sights, sounds and smells of F1.
The Formula One summer break sees a pause in the action on track but, off it, together with Peroni Nastro Azzuro 0.0%, we're continuing to bring the thrill of the sport to you as 'Il Pitstop' travels across Europe to give fans the chance to experience the passion inside the AMF1 garage.
‘Aston Martin Passion’;
https://www.astonmartinf1.com/en-GB/...ith-il-pitstop
Vettel sets Aston Martin target for rest of season
04/08/2022, 12:50
Author Michael Butterworth
Co-author Dieter Rencken
Having scored the final point in Hungary after rising from 18th on the grid, Sebastian Vettel says Aston Martin need to find more pace on Saturday in order to keep improving in 2022. Sebastian Vettel says Aston Martin need to improve on their qualifying performance in order to rise up the table in the second half of 2022.
‘Aston Martin target’;
https://racingnews365.com/vettel-set...rest-of-season
Brundle: Vettel’s burned the candle hard
3 August, 2022
Jad Mallak
Martin Brundle believes Sebastian Vettel has burned the candle hard, as the German decided to retire from Formula 1 at the young age of 35. Vettel announced ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix that he will not be racing in F1 any further after the end of the 2022 season, making the finale in Abu Dhabi, the Aston Martin driver’s final race, his 300th in top flight.
“It seems no time at all since he was a BMW Friday test driver and then on the grid for Toro Rosso looking like a fresh-faced uni student enjoying life some 15 years ago,” Brundle said of Vettel in his Sky Sports F1 column.
“He has won four world championships and 53 races, third on the all-time F1 list, and he remains the youngest-ever world champion. He may only be 35 but he’s burned the candle hard,” the Sky Sports pundit mused.
‘Candles Burning’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...e-candle-hard/
Sebastian Vettel's F1 history – all his highs and lows
AUGUST 2ND 2022
AUTHOR
Tony Dodgins
Sebastian Vettel's 16-year F1 career has had some incredible ups and downs – Tony Dodgins charts the progression of a grand prix legend. When a youthful-looking Vettel debuted at Indianapolis in 2007, substituting for Robert Kubica at BMW after the Pole’s huge shunt at the previous race in Canada, you knew you were watching an emerging talent. But not a four-time world champion just six seasons down the road!
Of his 53 Grand Prix victories – putting him third in the all-time list behind only Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher, and two up on that other four-time champion, Alain Prost – you can make a case for his first, at Monza in 2008 with the Ferrari-engined Toro Rosso, being the very best. It was certainly the most shocking. Qualifying was held in the rain and Vettel took a stunning pole. Nobody thought that he could possibly convert it into the first ever victory by a Red Bull-backed car, but that is precisely what happened. Toro Rosso’s technical director that day was ex-Ferrari / McLaren man Giorgio Ascanelli, who had worked with Ayrton Senna. Ascanelli, who had been around the block and was not a man prone to hyperbole, reckoned it was a drive of which Ayrton would have been proud.
In Hungary last weekend, team principal Christian Horner recalled the early days with Vettel. “The thing that stood out about Seb was that from the very beginning you could see that he was a very focused young man and his work ethic was totally Germanic. He worked late but he also had a great sense of humour. He fitted so well into a British team and embraced the culture immediately. “He endeared himself across all areas of the business, whether it was turning up with chocolates for secretaries or learning the lingo in the garage. His command of cockney slang became legendary. His ability to just relate to people and get the best out of them was great. And he was formidable in the cars that we produced in that period of time.”
‘Sebastian Vettel's F1 history’;
https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...highs-and-lows
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“We had mixed fortunes as a team” – AlphaTauri’s Jody Egginton Post Hungarian GP.
Jody Egginton, Technical Director at Scuderia AlphaTauri believes that, despite not getting into the points, the race pace shown in Pierre Gasly‘s race was promising, following his pitlane start on Sunday.
August 4, 2022
By Joe McCormick
AlphaTauri brought upgrades to their car in France, but Tsunoda claims that they are not ‘paying off’. Egginton did, however, explain that the Hungarian Grand Prix taught the team more about the update, which will also come with a lot of data.
“Looking at the bigger picture, although we have not achieved the target of getting back to scoring points again here in Hungary, the race pace shown today is positive and with a better starting position we could have potentially delivered points with Pierre, which is a good sign.”
“Equally as important though is the amount we have learned about the upgrade here which, when combined with the next updates, will hopefully move us forward another step. We now have a week back at base focused on analysis from this event and preparations for the next Grand Prix before everyone heads off for a well-earned break, ahead of the second half of the season, which we are all looking forward to.”
‘Mixed Fortunes’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...-hungarian-gp/
“I must say I’m happy with today” – Gasly After Impressive Hungarian Grand Prix Performance
August 4, 2022
By Joe McCormick
Having started the Hungarian Grand Prix from the pitlane, Pierre Gasly did a good job to recover to twelfth place in what was a chaotic race on strategy. In a year where Scuderia AlphaTauri have been struggling, recovering to a position near the points is certainly a good result.
“I must say I’m happy with today. Starting from the pitlane is never easy and we managed to recover to twelfth position. There were some changes made to the set-up of the car for the pitlane start, which showed a bit more pace and allowed us to make some good moves,” the Frenchman explained.
“The most important thing is that we use the upcoming three weeks to extract more from our package and finish inside the points consistently. I know the team and what we are capable of achieving, and with these new cars being difficult, we need time to understand how to get the best out of it,” the number ten driver concluded.
‘Impressive Hungarian Grand Prix Performance’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...x-performance/
Gasly had 'quite open' track limits discussion with F1 race directors
04/08/2022 at 15:07
Phillip van Osten
Pierre Gasly says he had a lengthy discussion in Hungary with F1's race directors over the thorny issue of track limits after a "very arguable" call by the stewards in qualifying deprived him of his fastest lap in Q1.
Track limits were once again at the center of many discussions among the drivers in Hungary where Gasly's teammate Yuki Tsunoda and Mick Schumacher were sanctioned for a track limit infraction while a penalty handed to Red Bull's Sergio Perez was rescinded by the stewards upon further examination.
Gasly failed to make the Q2 cut on Saturday as a result of a disputed transgression that took place at the Hungaroring's Turn 5, a decision that left the Frenchman a lowly P19 in the pecking order and very angry.
‘Track Limits Discussion’;
https://f1i.com/news/450534-gasly-ha...directors.html
Honda to Keep Open F1 Connection Through 2025
Aug 2, 2022
BY PHILLIP HORTON
Red Bull asked Honda Racing Corporation to extend the current power unit agreement, and HRC was happy to oblige.
Honda will retain a loose connection to Formula 1 through the end of 2025 after extending its technical support program with Red Bull.
Honda announced in October 2020 that it would officially leave Formula 1 after 2021, but eventually reached an agreement that Red Bull and sister team AlphaTauri could continue to use its power units.
‘Honda Keep Going’;
https://www.autoweek.com/racing/form...with-red-bull/
Marko praises Honda as agreement with Red Bull is extended
02 August 12:25
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Following the news that Red Bull and Honda have extended their technical support programme until the end of 2025, Helmut Marko and Christian Horner have given their reaction.
Red Bull advisor Marko has expressed his thanks to Honda for their continued support, and voiced his hopes that they can clinch both championships in 2022. "We thank Honda for their positive response to working together," Marko said.
"We are excited to continue our partnership in F1 until the end of 2025 with the PU supplied by Honda. We have had a successful relationship so far, winning the Drivers' championship in 2021 and currently leading the Drivers' and Teams' classifications, with the aim of securing both 2022 titles."
‘Honda Agreement Praised’;
https://racingnews365.com/marko-prai...ll-is-extended
‘It’s just politics’: Toto Wolff fires back at AlphaTauri team principal
1 August 2022
by Nick Golding
A number of teams are against new regulations being considered by the FIA for 2023 to eliminate porpoising. It is reported that six teams are against the rule changes for next year.
AlphaTauri team principal Franz Tost believes the proposed regulation changes have “nothing to do with safety”. “The last discussions and proposals for the changing of the floor has, in my opinion, nothing to do with safety,” Tost said in Hungary.
“It’s just politics,” he insisted. The main vocal behind the rules being changed is Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, who has watched his drivers, George Russell and Sir Lewis Hamilton, fall victim to substantial porpoising for the vast majority of the season so far.
‘Nothing to do with safety’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/its-just-...eam-principal/
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Steiner responds to 'white Ferrari' claims after Haas reveal updates.
"Our car has got the same engine as Ferrari, with the same gearbox. They've got the same suspension. Why would we be copying anything else? "And they're winning races, so it's one and one is still two."
05/08/2022, 10:40
Author Anna Francis
Co-author Dieter Rencken
After opting against any significant changes over the first half of the season, the team have applied a new floor, bodywork and suspension to the VF-22, among other items.
Haas ran a heavily-updated car at the Hungarian Grand Prix, which has drawn comparisons to the Ferrari. Team boss Guenther Steiner has given his response.
Steiner responds to 'white Ferrari' claims. When asked whether he expected to be accused of copying, Steiner told media, including RacingNews365.com: "I expect to be fast.”
‘1 + 1 = 2: I expect to be fast’;
https://racingnews365.com/steiner-re...reveal-updates
Steiner felt K-Mag black-and-orange flag was FIA ‘mistake’
Monday 1st August 2022 2:00 PM
Michelle Foster
Guenther Steiner says it was a “mistake” for the FIA to show Kevin Magnussen the black-and-orange flag in Hungary as his front wing was “clearly safe”.
Lining up P13 for the Hungarian Grand Prix, Magnussen made a great start and was already in a points-paying position at the end of the first lap. However, he was also running with a broken front wing endplate that was listing to the side.
While Haas initially kept the driver out, the FIA deemed the broken front wing to be a danger and showed him the black-and-orange flag which meant he had to pit for repairs. Steiner says that was a mistake.
‘Guenther Steiner: FIA ‘mistake’!’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/kevin-...stake-hungary/
Inside Haas decision to axe Nikita Mazepin as Guenther Steiner reveals new details.
Nikita Mazepin was axed swiftly by Haas in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine at the end of February, as the team also cut times with their main sponsor owned by the racer's oligarch father.
14:54, 31 Jul 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Reflecting on the team's actions a few months on, team principal Steiner revealed that the decision had been a simple one despite a lack of time to weigh up their options. "I was having breakfast with Gene when we both learned [of the invasion], so we knew what we needed to do and I knew that I had his backing," he told the Telegraph.
"The decision we had to make was defined by itself. We needed to make a change. We couldn't go on with this, what had happened with the invasion." Those comments are in sync with what he said back in March, when he said the situation has been untenable.
Axing Uralkali was a big decision for a Haas team which operates with a comparatively tiny budget, as it meant losing their main sponsor. But despite losing that important revenue stream, Steiner insists he never had any worries for the financial future of his team.
‘Axing Uralkali and Nikita Mazepin’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...einer-27622052
Guenther Steiner predicts Mick Schumacher will ‘become his own brand’
Thursday 4th August 2022 11:00 PM
Jamie Woodhouse
Haas principal Guenther Steiner believes his driver Mick Schumacher is on the way to creating his own brand. Mick was arguably the most closely followed junior racer of all time on his path towards Formula 1, understandable considering he is the son of seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher.
The scrutiny only increased once he joined the Formula 1 grid in 2021 with Haas, while remaining a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy. The pressure ramped up as the early rounds of 2022 passed without yielding a first Formula 1 point, despite Haas’ VF-22 proving to be a marked improvement on the VF-21.
But with back-to-back points scores, a P8 at Silverstone followed by a career-best P6 in Austria, Mick has now gone a long way to silencing the critics. Steiner though explains that Mick does not want to rely on his surname, but instead is building his own brand, something which he says the German racer is already “on his way” to doing.
‘The Mick Schumacher Brand’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/mick-s...ome-own-brand/
Mick Schumacher fears raised as 2023 seat under threat amid "difficult" Haas relationship
Schumacher had a good month in July as he finally broke his F1 points duck and held his own in battles with Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, but his Haas future is still not yet secure
17:12, 4 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Mick Schumacher fears raised as 2023 seat under threat amid "difficult" Haas relationship Mirror.co.uk17:20 Thu, 04 Aug
Given Schumacher is currently set to become a free agent at the end of the year, the retiring Sebastian Vettel sparked speculation when he suggested his fellow German could take his place at Aston Martin. But those rumours were quickly shut down when Fernando Alonso was chosen to fill that seat just a few days later. Of the situation, pundit Felix Gorner told RTL : "Sebastian's good words to Lawrence Stroll didn't help. That means there is only Haas for [Schumacher] next season. It's now important for him to negotiate well in the next few weeks to secure his seat."
But according to German newspaper Bild , Schumacher might even have trouble keeping hold of his own seat. "Initial talks" have taken place with Haas, but the report claims: "The relationship between the two parties is difficult. Guenther Steiner has been publicly critical of Mick in the past."
It goes on to say the young German may even be losing the support of Mattia Binotto, which would be disastrous for his dreams of following in his father's footsteps by one day racing for Ferrari. Schumacher's uncle Ralf, himself a former F1 driver, has been critical of both his nephew and the team in the past. Just last week he said the 23-year-old "should have delivered better results", and previously slammed Haas and Steiner for their own public criticism.
‘Mick Schumacher future is still not yet secure’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...-2023-27660761
“Guenther has a unique style…” Schumacher on points, pressure and his team principal
2022 F1 season
Posted on 4th August 2022, 14:284th August 2022, 14:43
Written by Will Wood and Claire Cottingham
Despite his apparent popularity, Schumacher remains one of the most enigmatic drivers on the grid. Perhaps understandably, given his family history, the second-year driver has always kept his cards close to his chest with the media. So when RaceFans had the opportunity to sit down with Schumacher and select media prior to the summer break, it was a rare chance to try and learn more about the Haas driver, who not long ago finally secured his first points in Formula 1.
Hhow would he assess his 2022 so far? “If I exclude [Britain and Austria], I think it has been a tough season so far,” admits Schumacher. “But, on the other hand, we had those two races which kind of turned it around. So I think that we’re quite confident that we have that pace. Also maybe we did before, but we were just a bit unlucky to show it at the time.”
How is it to have a team principal as eccentric as Steiner, who is not afraid to let the world know he needs more points and fewer shunts from Schumacher? “Obviously everybody is their own human and is their own person,” Schumacher says. “Guenther has a very unique style of doing things.” And is Steiner as straight-talking behind the scenes? “Yeah, I would say so,” Schumacher says. “I think he’s probably one of the people that has very little filter on and speaks their minds. But, at the end, it’s that thing of pressure – maybe sometimes I perform better under pressure than if I don’t have the pressure.”
‘Very little filter on and speaks their minds’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/04/...eam-principal/
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Alfa Romeo confirm ‘fuel system issue’ halted Bottas.
On Lap 68 of 70 at the Hungarian Grand Prix, Bottas brought his Alfa Romeo C42 to a stop, triggering the Virtual Safety Car.
Jamie Woodhouse
Sunday 31st July 2022 8:35 PM
“A day that promised much at its beginning left us disappointed in the end,” said Vasseur in an Alfa Romeo statement. “The start put us on the back foot, losing five places with both cars and setting up a tough afternoon to recover some points. Valtteri was able to break into the top ten and was there until the closing stages, but in the end a fuel system issue meant he had to retire with a couple of laps to go.”
Alfa Romeo had hoped to execute a one-stop strategy with Bottas, but as several other drivers found out, the hard tyre simply was not a good race tyre at the Hungaroring. “We committed to one-stop with the medium and hard [tyre],” Bottas told reporters.
“And towards the end of the race I felt it didn’t work as planned, but we tried, and it was tricky to back out, but I think ultimately the hard tyre didn’t work quite as well as I thought it should.”
‘Disappointment at the end’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/valtte...issue-hungary/
“We deserved a little more” Says Zhou After Disappointing Hungarian GP for Alfa Romeo
August 4, 2022
By Joe McCormick
The Hungarian Grand Prix was certainly one to forget for Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN, with Guanyu Zhou finishing thirteenth, and Valtteri Bottas retiring a handful of laps before the end of the race.
After the race, Zhou explained that a bad start and an attempted one-stop strategy didn’t work out for the Italian/Swiss team, which they also attempted with Bottas.
“Conditions today weren’t a threat per se, they were a bit mixed, especially a little more slippery on the last few laps, but overall okay,” said the Chinese driver. “I think our plan today didn’t really pay off, we struggled on lap one and on the first few laps losing ground to other cars, and as going for one stop didn’t work out, we had to do an extra one which put me on the back of the field. It was quite frustrating, as it compromised my chances.”
‘Deserved More’;
https://www.thecheckeredflag.co.uk/2...or-alfa-romeo/
Frustrated Bottas calls for resolution to Alfa Romeo's reliability issues
04/08/2022, 07:55
Author Luke Murphy
Co-author Dieter Rencken
Valtteri Bottas believes that Alfa Romeo should place a "high focus" on their reliability issues after his third retirement of the season in Hungary. Valtteri Bottas believes that there should be a "high focus" on Alfa Romeo's reliability issues, following his Hungarian Grand Prix retirement.
The Finn suffered his third race retirement of the season at the Hungaroring after encountering fuel system issues. Combined, Bottas and teammate Guanyu Zhou have failed to finish seven Grands Prix this season, owing to a variety of problems.
Speaking after the race, Bottas called on Alfa Romeo to get on top of their reliability issues before it costs them big points opportunities. "We had some pace this weekend, a bit more than the previous weekend, so that's getting there, but we need to finish the race," Bottas told media, including RacingNews365.com. "It's not consistent enough and we know it.”
‘High focus on their reliability issues’;
https://racingnews365.com/frustrated...ability-issues
Valtteri Bottas Shows Girlfriend Tiffany Cromwell a Day in the Life of a F1 Driver
4 Aug 2022, 12:08 UTC ·
by Monica Coman
Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas has just surprised his girlfriend, Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell, with a glimpse of his life as a Formula One driver, allowing her to try out a race car as a fun day out.
When they arrived, Tiffany embarked on a high-level intensive car driving course, with none other than Bottas as her instructor. He captioned the video “need for speed.” On her Instagram Stories, Tiffany wrote that she’s “finally getting a small taste of Valterri Bottas’ work.” Tiffany was in full racing gear, and we couldn’t help but notice the fact that she sported Bottas’ number and initials, of course.
Her “graduation” test was a real racing car, a model that former Finnish World Champion Nico Rosberg raced when he was at Williams. She seemed to handle the speed pretty well, and even got a Williams FW29 driving diploma at the end of her “training.”
‘Valtteri’s date with Tiffany’;
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/v...er-195214.html
Alfa Romeo reveal Bottas retirement cause
Thursday 4 August 2022 15:08
Sam Hall
Alfa Romeo head of trackside engineering Xevi Pujolar has confirmed the team had no warning before Valtteri Bottas' car suffered a race-ending failure in Hungary.
Asked as to the cause of the retirement, Pujolar said: “We had a technical issue in the fuel system that we are investigating, so it is not ideal.
"There was no warning. Everything was okay until that lap. The first we saw was as the guys reported it on the data, Valtteri reported straight away that he was losing power and that was it. We just had to stop straight away.”
‘Technical Fuel System Issue’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...as-retirement/
FIA set to finalise stricter F1 roll hoop tests for 2023
The FIA is set to finalise plans for stricter roll hoop tests for 2023 Formula 1 cars in a meeting with team technical directors on Wednesday.
Aug 3, 2022, 9:33 AM
By: Adam Cooper
The governing body has promised to impose stricter tests as a direct result of Zhou Guanyu’s accident at the British GP, which saw the Chinese driver's Alfa Romeo roll hoop fail after contact with the track with a force that exceeded anything that had previously been foreseen. Alfa Romeo has been working closely with the FIA ever since, while other teams have also been consulted and asked for feedback on potential changes to the wording of the regulations.
The subject will be discussed at a specially convened meeting of the FIA technical advisory committee led by head of single-seater matters Nikolas Tombazis. One possible outcome could be a move away from the "spike" hoop design that hitherto the rules allowed. Alfa Romeo is the only team using it in 2022.
Speaking at the recent French GP Alfa Romeo technical director Jan Monchaux confirmed the Swiss outfit has been co-operating closely with the FIA. “The analysis is still ongoing, we're working since the first day with the FIA to try to reconstruct the accident and assess as best as we can,” he said when asked by Motorsport.com about progress. Because it's not an easy task, the force involved. As yet the internal investigations are not completely finished, so I won't disclose anything. And if someone will disclose something, it's going to be the FIA.”
‘Alfa Romeo working closely with the FIA’;
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f...ests/10348028/
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Revealed: Piastri to replace Ricciardo at McLaren in 2023.
RacingNews365.com has learnt that the Australian will be racing for McLaren in 2023.
05/08/2022, 08:16
Author Dieter Rencken
RacingNews365.com understands that Piastri has a contract with Alpine for 2022, but not for 2023. His 2022 deal is said to contain an option on Piastri's services for 2023, but that option was not exercised within the required 30 days of signing that contract.
What now for Ricciardo? The FIA's contract recognition board ruled that there was no valid contract between Alpine and Piastri before 2023, leaving McLaren free to agree a deal with the Australian. Piastri's deal with McLaren was said to have been finalised on the evening of July 30, before Fernando Alonso's move to Aston Martin was confirmed on August 1.
Under Formula 1's regulations, Alpine cannot challenge the board's decision, as F1 teams have previously unanimously decided that it is the highest body that can rule on contractual matters. Piastri's move leaves Ricciardo's F1 future up in the air. The Australian's best bet may be replacing Alonso at Alpine, for whom he drove in 2019 and 2020 in its previous guise of Renault.
‘Piastri to replace Ricciardo’;
https://racingnews365.com/revealed-p...claren-in-2023
Opinion: How Alpine lost Piastri
05/08/2022, 09:45
Author Dieter Rencken
After learning that Oscar Piastri is set to replace Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren in 2023, RacingNews365.com Editorial Director Dieter Rencken explains how Alpine lost two drivers in 24 hours.
Before analysing how Alpine found itself in this state, allow me to stress that the information learned by RacingNews365.com concerning Piastri's move to McLaren was derived not from a single source, but three different parties - on two continents, in three countries – all with knowledge of the information. Crucially, all provided essentially the same details.
However, we have omitted items such as timelines for fear that these could jeopardise certain insiders in England and Australia. All I will say in this regard is: there is considerable dissent in the team's ranks, with some choice language peppering the details. Saliently, all pointed to a two- plus one-year deal.
‘RacingNews365.com Sources: Three different parties - on two continents, in three countries’;
https://racingnews365.com/opinion-ho...e-lost-piastri
Alpine boss open to re-signing Daniel Ricciardo amid Oscar Piastri dispute
Thursday 4 Aug 2022 7:03 pm
Callum McAvoy
Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer has hinted that the team could re-sign Daniel Ricciardo for 2023, amid the drama surrounding Oscar Piastri.
It has been a tumultuous week for the French Formula 1 team after their star driver Fernando Alonso revealed on Monday that he would joining Aston Martin next season, a move that completely blindsided Szafnauer.
Then on Tuesday, Alpine announced reserve driver Piastri would be taking Alonso’s seat for 2023, but just an hour later the Australian posted a statement claiming that this was not true, and he would not be racing for the team, prompting much confusion within the F1 community.
‘Alpine open to re-signing Daniel Ricciardo’;
https://metro.co.uk/2022/08/04/alpin...o=newsnow-feed
Who could fill Alonso-Piastri void at Alpine?
Friday 5 August 2022 12:50
Ewan Gale
So if Piastri isn't in the Alpine, who else could be? The obvious candidates; Daniel Ricciardo The man that holds the key to the whole saga is Daniel Ricciardo. In likelihood, if Piastri is on the grid next season then it will be at McLaren and leaving his compatriot without a drive. Pierre Gasly It would make sense from a commercial point of view for a French manufacturer to employ another French driver alongside Esteban Ocon.
The outsiders Nico Hulkenberg Out of a full-time race seat since 2019 but has impressed each time he has filled in for Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll or Sebastian Vettel in the past three seasons, Nico Hulkenberg is an outside bet for the seat. Zhou Guanyu Formerly part of the Alpine junior programme, Zhou Guanyu cut ties when moving across to Alfa Romeo this season.
Mick Schumacher Mick Schumacher's recent form has seen him linked to any seat that has come up - and if you ask Marcus Ericcson, the German could even end up at AlphaTauri! Théo Pourchaire From the Sauber Academy, F2 driver Théo Pourchaire is making a comeback against championship leader Felipe Drugovich. Antonio Giovinazzi A driver from way outside the box would be Antonio Giovinazzi, who has struggled to adapt to life in Formula E.
‘Who Could Fill Alpine Void?’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...i-replacement/
Insight: Dissecting the Alpine mess, and what could happen next
17:39 Thu, 04 Aug 2022.
by Phillip Horton
McLaren is also not entirely new territory for Piastri. While he is officially Alpine’s reserve, and they have first dibs, Piastri has also had a reserve arrangement with McLaren in 2022. That led to a seat fitting while he was placed on standby on a couple of occasions, in Bahrain (when Ricciardo ultimately recovered from Covid-19) and in Monaco (after Norris’ bout of tonsilitis during the preceding race and build-up). Seidl, meanwhile, was team boss at Porsche’s LMP1 team when Webber raced for the marque.
What happens next? Ricciardo may feel his time at McLaren is cooked, opening the path for Piastri, and potentially reuniting with a team he competed in 2019/20. Another outcome is that a financial settlement is reached between the respective parties, if Alpine does indeed have a valid contractual claim on Piastri, while accepting it cannot force itself on a driver who wishes out.
‘Dissecting the Alpine mess’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...d-happen-next/
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Alesi to Ferrari fans: ‘Criticising the team will do no good’.
Ferrari has come under scrutiny by a number of fans in the last several weeks, amid a series of questionable strategy calls at the team.
Fri, 05 Aug 2022, 11:17
by Fergal Walsh
Speaking to Corriere della Sera, Alesi, who spent five seasons racing for Ferrari, says fans shouldn’t add pressure to Ferrari amid a difficult period. “It’s a season that feels like a roller coaster, and this increases emotions and reactions,” Alesi said.
“Dreaming of a victory transforms a defeat into a sports drama with a passion that reminds me of football cheering. I also suffer thinking about Hungary. There have been mistakes even before the strategy. But going against Ferrari is not good for any fan, it does not bring any good to the team.”
“I say this understanding every outburst because passion is made up of strong feelings. We could analyse the race to try to understand the how and why but now it is not needed. Rather, it serves, on my part, an invitation to hold on, to make a bank, not to destroy. Because negativity does not bring anything good, ever.”
‘Adding Pressure To Ferrari’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...ll-do-no-good/
Jean Alesi calls on Tifosi to back Ferrari: Negativity doesn’t bring any good
Friday 5th August 2022 10:03 AM
Michelle Foster
Jean Alesi has called for an end to the criticism of Ferrari, the former F1 driver saying it does “not bring any good to the team”. Ferrari’s faithful, the Tifosi, have been left disappointed in their team in recent weeks as they have watched a double title challenge fade and history repeat itself too often.
Leclerc went into the summer break with just three wins on the board – one could say five fewer than he should have had – and trailing Verstappen by 80 points. Ferrari are 97 adrift of Red Bull in the race for the Constructors’ title.
Between poor reliability and strategy blunders, Ferrari have robbed the driver of 108 points while Leclerc is responsible for losing 32 through crashes. Ferrari’s last mistake came at the Hungarian Grand Prix where the team put Leclerc on the wrong tyres, the hards that nobody could get to work, and he fell from P1 to P6. But rather than criticise Ferrari, Alesi has called on the Tifosi to show them love.
‘Tifosi Love’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/jean-alesi-love-ferrari/
Charles Leclerc lost the win in Budapest due to a poor strategy call from Ferrari.
5 August 2022
by James Clifford
Former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa has told Charles Leclerc to “be patient” with the team after he was left frustrated by another strategy error in Hungary. The Monegasque had already been let down by the Scuderia in Monaco and Silverstone when bizarre calls on the pit wall saw him finish fourth having been leading in both races.
After the race, Leclerc was bemused as to why his team decided not to stick with the original plan of pitting for Softs towards the end of the race from the Mediums, as they did with his team-mate, who finished fourth behind third-placed Russell and Sir Lewis Hamilton, who took second.
“For some reason, I don’t know why, we went on the Hards,” he told Sky Sports after the race. “I said on the radio I was very comfortable with the medium and that I wanted to go as long as possible with those tyres because the feeling was good – I don’t know why we took a different decision.” Massa reminded Leclerc that he too had thrown away the win in France when he crashed from the lead, so told him to stay calm and avoid criticising his team in public.
‘Warned against ‘starting a fight’!’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/charles-l...o-and-ferrari/
‘This is my way of reacting’: Charles Leclerc opens up on costly mistakes
Ferrari racer Charles Leclerc sits 80 points behind Max Verstappen going into the summer break.
5 August 2022
by Nick Golding
After spinning out of the French GP he was heard screaming down the team radio, after being furious with his own mistake. Whilst most drivers fail to admit their own errors at first, Leclerc is the complete opposite. At times when he’s been at fault this season, he’s immediately apologised to the team, usually followed by him screaming and shouting at himself.
It’s been refreshing to hear a driver be so brutally honest, especially when there is so much at stake. Leclerc believes there is no point “hiding” his emotions, after revealing that he is always “honest”. “Every individual will react in a different way,” Leclerc continued. “This is my way of reacting to it. And I’ve always felt the benefit of being honest with yourself and just grow from it.”
“I really don’t see the point of hiding it. And sometimes it is so obvious to everybody that the mistake comes from driver, I just don’t understand the drivers that are trying to have excuses with the wind or whatsoever. I mean, sometimes it can happen. One out of 200 crashes, you’ll get something very strange happen. But I just don’t like to lose time with finding excuses, because that’s exactly when you start to lose time, and you just don’t go forward.”
‘My Way of Reacting’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/this-is-m...stly-mistakes/
Ferrari doing everything wrong in 2022 says Marko
AUGUST 5, 2022
GrandPrix.com
Ferrari is doing "pretty much everything wrong" in the battle for the world championship, according to Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko. Even though the Maranello-made car has arguably been quicker than Red Bull's overall so far this year, Charles Leclerc is a whopping 80 points behind reigning champion Max Verstappen.
When asked how that is possible, Marko told Osterreich newspaper: "By doing pretty much everything wrong. "In Budapest, for example, for the first time they didn't get the tyres in the right temperature window and also chose the wrong pit strategy."
Mercedes' Toto Wolff, however, defended Ferrari's Hungarian GP call by pointing out that Leclerc used all of his new medium tyres in practice. "Then I don't understand why they didn't use a used medium tyre, which would have been better than the hard. Instead we celebrate Toto and Mercedes as the big winners with places 2 and 3," Marko insisted.
‘Pretty Much Everything Wrong’;
https://www.grandprix.com/news/ferra...ays-marko.html
Hakkinen: Not first time Ferrari’s mid-race decisions questioned
5 August, 2022
Jad Mallak
Mika Hakkinen reflected on the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix and Ferrari’s strategy decisions claiming this hasn’t been the first time their mid-race decisions have been under question.
In his Unibet column, Hakkinen said: “Charles, Carlos and the Ferrari team management will hopefully use the summer break to discuss how they can take the fight to Red Bull more aggressively, and also defend against an improved Mercedes. “On Sunday we saw Charles using two sets of medium tyres, then the team move him onto a set of hard tyres which really were the wrong tyre to be on.”
“It was hard to understand that decision, and Charles knew it was the wrong way to go,” the Finn pointed out. “When the team finally put him onto a set of soft tyres on lap 54 the race was lost and he was not able to recover any positions. This is not the first time we have questioned Ferrari’s mid-race decision making, and it’s an area they will need to work on,” he warned.
‘Ferrari’s Mid-Race Decisions Questioned’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...ns-questioned/
Leclerc needs this F1 break more than any of his peers
Fri, 05 Aug 2022, 06:48
The Race
By Scott Mitchell
Of all the Formula 1 drivers taking a well-earned break over August, Charles Leclerc probably needs his time off more than most. Leclerc’s growing frustration as Ferrari’s title challenge has capitulated has been obvious.
He handled his first major setback, the engine problem in Spain in May, with diplomacy and faultless leadership. Leclerc made sure his first action was to return to the garage, console his team, and then face the media with a smile and plenty of restraint.
Leclerc said and did all the right things – something that has quite clearly become harder to do in the races that followed. The botched calls in Monaco, another engine failure in Azerbaijan, the choice of tyres under the safety car in Britain and then for the final stint in Hungary – they’ve all chipped away at Leclerc’s patience.
‘Needing This F1 Break’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/lecle...-of-his-peers/
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Jost Capito: Williams has failed to meet expectations for 2022.
Williams boss Jost Capito has admitted the team has failed to meet expectations for the 2022 Formula 1 season with it sitting bottom of the championship.
AUGUST 2ND 2022, 13:53
AUTHOR Edward Hardy
Motor Sport Magazine
Speaking in an exclusive interview for Motor Sport, the team principal said, “We are not where we wanted to be, and we didn’t achieve the objectives we set for the car.” After 13 races, Williams has only scored three points despite optimism for 2022 with the new era of F1 technical regulations.
The team hoped to build on its eighth-place finish in the 2021 championship, which featured a podium and was the first time in four years that it finished off the bottom of the standings. Grove’s expectations for this season was to be fighting towards the top of the midfield.
It has in fact digressed, and in order to get to where Williams wants to be, it has become apparent it needs a revamped management structure. “If we would have achieved our expectations, when we do that simulation, we would be in the upper midfield. And so it seems the objectives were right. We just didn’t have the processes yet in place to achieve these objectives, but we believe we know why we didn’t achieve them.”
‘Exclusive Interview for Motor Sport’;
https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...tions-for-2022
Williams want Albon to be ‘harder with the engineers’
Monday 1st August 2022 10:30 PM
Jamie Woodhouse
Capito feels that Albon can take another step if he takes that “fighter” attitude which he shows on the track, and also uses it with his engineers. “He’s a real fighter once he closes the sights,” said Capito, quoted by Motorsport.com.
“But we think he could be more combative outside the car as well. He could be a bit harder on the engineers, for example. I think it would also create a better bond with them.
“But all in all, we are impressed. His year as a reserve gave him a good understanding of how the dynamics between a driver and a team work. He has seen a team working with the drivers from the sidelines and I think that helps him a lot.”
‘Harder Want To Be Harder’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/willia...der-engineers/
'Good learnings' for Williams and Albon after 'tricky weekend' at Hungary
31 Jul 2022
Formula 1.
Following his P17 finish at the Hungaroring, Alex Albon feels "understanding of the strengths and weaknesses" of the 2022 Williams is increasing as F1 heads into the summer break after the Hungarian Grand Prix.
‘Good Learnings’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/v...230333875.html
Hungarian GP: Compromised race for Williams Racing
August 1 2022
By Williams Racing
The 2022 Hungarian GP would see the Williams Racing Team come away with a race that was compromised even before the end of the first lap. Both Williams drivers would suffer damage on the opening lap that would see Alex Albon forced to pit with front wing damage while team-mate Nicholas Latifi would suffer from a poorly balanced car after his front wing was also damaged. Alex and Nicholas would go on to finish well down the order in 17th and 18th, not the result for the team to see out their season prior to the summer break.
Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance: "Unfortunately, the rain was never enough to affect the race and with both cars suffering damage on the 1st lap, we were forced into a difficult race.” Nicholas Latifi: "Unfortunately, our race was compromised at the start through some front wing damage. It wasn't great as the damage set us back with much more tyre degradation than we were hoping for.”
Alex Albon: "The race was okay. We were a bit out of sequence with the early damage and there was a lot of tyre degradation and a lot of pitstops, which didn’t make it easy. It’s been a tricky weekend for us, but it has been a good learning weekend, continuing to understand the strengths and the weaknesses of the new package.”
‘Compromised race for Williams Racing’;
https://www.sportnetwork.net/main/s107/st203622.htm
Williams confirms multi-year agreement with Albon
03 Aug 2022, 18:00
By Balazs Szabo
Williams Racing has confirmed a new multi-year agreement with Alexander Albon, extending their partnership that started at the start of the current season.
Commenting on the contract extension, Albon said: "It’s really exciting to be staying with Williams Racing for 2023 and I look forward to seeing what we can achieve as a team in the remainder of this season and next year. "The team is pushing hard to progress, and I am really motivated to continue this journey and further develop our learnings together."
Williams Team Principal Jost Capito added: "Alex is a tremendous driver and valued member of Williams Racing, so we’re thrilled to be able to confirm we will be working with him on a long-term basis. Alex brings a great blend of skill and insightful learnings that will help bring the team greater success in the future. "He’s a fierce competitor, has proved a popular and loyal team member and we are delighted that he will provide a stable base for us to continue to develop in this new F1 car era.
‘Williams Confirms Multi-Year Agreement’;
https://www.f1technical.net/news/23805
Does Albon deserve more than a Williams F1 future? Our verdict
Aug 3 2022
The Race
Even so, the announcement prompts many questions: Is committing to Williams longer-term the right move for Albon? Did he deserve something higher up the grid? Is Williams heading there anyway? The Race’s writers attempt to answer those below.
Edd Straw: Albon’s earned the right to be a team leader. The Alex Albon racing for Williams this year is very different to the one who struggled at Red Bull. He’s seized his opportunity to be team leader and is a far more confident, assured and formidable competitor. Scott Mitchell: Right to show loyalty now. Williams has given Albon the chance to re-establish himself in F1. He is taking it but there is more to do. So a show of loyalty towards the team that picked up him up from the sidelines is only fair.
Gary Anderson: Both parties benefit from committing early. Formula 1 is going through a very strange period of driver market activity and I suspect Alex Albon wanted to make sure he wasn’t the one left with no seat when the music eventually stops. Matt Beer: Midfield hero, not top team target. There’s not a compelling case for Albon to be on a top team’s shopping list these days, but he can have a long future as a midfield hero and that may well involve more podiums one day.
‘Verdict’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/does-...e-our-verdict/
Albon a 'valuable surprise' to Williams
Saturday 6 August 2022 14:30
Ian Parkes & Ewan Gale
Williams CEO and team principal Jost Capito has revealed how Alex Albon has provided a 'valuable surprise' to the team. Albon signed with Williams to make his F1 comeback having been dropped from Red Bull's race seat at the end of 2020.
"He did very well beside Max [Verstappen] - you know how good Max is - he did very well, and the team is around Max, isn't it? It's very difficult for every second driver in Red Bull.”
"We expected quite a lot of him. We believed if he gets to us, the team where he's loved, where he has a major role, then he can even excel and can even get better. I think that is exactly what happened."
‘Valuable Surprise To Williams’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...lbon-williams/
Alex Albon: F1’s new rules could allow Williams to catch up very quickly
Saturday 6th August 2022 3:00 PM
Thomas Maher
Williams’ Alex Albon believes the regulation changes introduced for 2022 mean teams are never doomed to remain at the back.
Albon reckons the nature of F1’s new rules means a struggling team can always claw their way back upwards.
The regulations introduced for 2022 have seen a move to ground-effect machines, aimed at improving the show and allowing for closer racing. Aside from this, the sporting rules have been tweaked, as well as financial regulations imposed in the form of a budget cap.
‘Williams Could Catch Up Very Quickly’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/alex-a...help-williams/
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McLaren to drop their only Formula 1 winner since 2012.
McLaren have reportedly told Ricciardo that they plan to replace him with Oscar Piastri in 2023.
06/08/2022, 11:34
Beyond the Flag (Weblog)
by Asher Fair
McLaren plan to cut ties with Daniel Ricciardo, despite the fact that he is under contract with the team through the end of the 2023 Formula 1 season.
“Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” And that’s exactly what is happening at the McLaren Formula 1 team.
We finally know the truth, and it’s what many have speculated all along: McLaren have no plans to continue with Daniel Ricciardo as a part of their driver lineup for the 2023 season.
‘Daniel Ricciardo Out Of McLaren’;
https://beyondtheflag.com/2022/08/06...1-winner-2012/
Daniel Ricciardo told by McLaren he will be replaced for F1 2023 - what teams may fight for him?
5 Aug 2022
F1 Desk
Daniel Ricciardo has been informed by McLaren that they intend to end his contract early and replace him with Oscar Piastri next season, according to reports.
Ricciardo’s future has been a hot topic in an underwhelming campaign and, despite telling Crash.Net “I have not forgotten how to drive” several months ago, he is set to be ushered out of McLaren.
His current contract expires at the end of the 2023 season but Zak Brown, the McLaren CEO previously revealed that clauses existed to end it early. That option will be taken at the end of this season and Ricciardo has been informed, ESPN report.
‘ESPN Report Early Exit Option Exercised’;
https://www.crash.net/f1/news/100948...-may-fight-him
All-Aussie F1 bombshell: Daniel Ricciardo ‘told he’ll be replaced’ by Oscar Piastri at McLaren
August 6th, 2022 8:35 am
Michael Lamonato from Fox Sports
McLaren has reportedly told Daniel Ricciardo he will be replaced by compatriot Oscar Piastri next season.
Multiple outlets including Autosport are reporting Piastri has signed a deal with the Woking outfit for 2023, initially as a reserve driver, but then in the race seat to partner with Lando Norris once Ricciardo’s exit is arranged.
Ricciardo is contracted for next year after signing a three-year deal to prompt his exit from Renault (now Alpine) in 2020.
‘All-Aussie F1 bombshell’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...d18803295c19ac
F1 world reacts to McLaren sacking Daniel Ricciardo: ‘Done dirty’
REPORTS: Ricciardo shown door at McLaren | 00:38
August 6th, 2022 8:43 am
Staff Writers from News.com.au
The 33-year-old’s career has been on some what of a downward spiral since his days of outdriving Sebastian Vettel and regularly challenging Max Verstappen at Red Bull. But no one wants to see it end this way. ESPN’s Nate Saunders reported four teams have sounded Ricciardo out recently to “see where his head is at” and slammed McLaren for its treatment of the Aussie.
“It reflects very poorly on Brown and McLaren how they have treated Ricciardo over the past six months,” Saunders wrote. “Ricciardo, the only McLaren driver to have won an F1 race since 2012, has been the first to admit his performances have not been up to the standards he set at Red Bull and Renault but it feels as though he has been made as a scapegoat to deflect away from deeper problems at the team.”
He wasn’t alone in hailing the Aussie’s class during a turbulent season. “Amid all the rumpus and pressure you have to commend Ricciardo on his grace and professionalism over these last few months,” tweeted Tom Gaymor. “Says everything about him as a man, he is a class act and I hope he keeps smiling and doing it his way.”
‘Done Dirty’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...d18803295c19ac
Daniel Ricciardo's message to McLaren before learning of plans to sack him
DANIEL RICCIARDO had a defiant message for his McLaren team before learning they were planning to replace him
15:39, Sat, Aug 6, 2022
By LIAM LLEWELLYN
Daniel Ricciardo had issued a positive message to McLaren and his fans before reports surfaced the team would replace him for next season. The Australian's seat is set to be occupied by Oscar Piastri, the current reserve driver for Alpine.
“To be honest, switching off normally gives me like a natural reset,” said Ricciardo after the Hungarian GP, quoted by Motorsport.com. “To a point where I imagine in, say, 10 days, two weeks into the break, I would have kind of got the holiday out of my system and then I’ll build that hunger back again.”
‘Positive Message Before ‘Replacement’ News Struck’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ck-him-f1-news
Daniel Ricciardo to join Williams or Alpine as he faces McLaren sack
Daniel Ricciardo currently has a contract at McLaren until the end of next season.
6 August 2022
by James Clifford
The 33-year-old departed the Enstone-based team for McLaren at the end of 2020, and announced his departure from the then-Renault team after just one season with them. This was said to have irritated Renault CEO, Luca de Meo, but team principal Otmar Szafnauer, who joined the French side at the start of this season, indicated that he would not have a problem putting Ricciardo alongside Esteban Ocon next year.
“I mean, if you look at Fernando, for example, he comes and goes, and I think that happens to other drivers too,” he said before Piastri dropped his bombshell. “And I don’t think that’s an issue at all, I think what we need to focus on is, like I say, the plans that we have for the next eight or nine races.”
“We’ve got to make sure that we complement that plan with the best driver that we can, and there are some options out there for us. And we [need to] put the best driver in next to Esteban, so that we can move forward towards what we’ve been planning.” Another possibility is that Ricciardo moves to the team that Piastri was initially expected to be loaned out to – Williams.
‘Choices’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/daniel-ri...-mclaren-sack/
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F1 promise "exciting" 2023 calendar with latest update.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has claimed the sport is focused on producing "an exciting calendar" for the 2023 season.
Saturday 6 August 2022 16:01
Sam Hall
The majority of races that will feature on next year's schedule are already known with long-standing contracts in place for most venues, while Las Vegas and Qatar are set to join the roster. But the future remains uncertain for some venues with Monaco, Spa Francorchamps [Belgium] and Paul Ricard [France] all out of contract at the end of the current campaign.
Speaking on a call with Wall Street investors, Domenicali said: "As I have stated before, we will come back to this in early October due to the process of needing clearance from the World Motorsport Council.”
"Of course, there are discussions to make sure that the calendar is robust. It is following also the fact that we would like to keep the right flow in terms of efficiency around the world when you consider the need for a calendar to be spread around the world from March to November.”
‘Exciting 2023 calendar’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...2023-calendar/
Toto Wolff puts faith in F1 chief Stefano Domenicali over qualifying changes
MERCEDES chief Toto Wolff admitted the sprint race at the Austrian Grand Prix had "less entertainment".
17:57, Sun, Jul 17, 2022
By Matthew Cooper
F1 are planning to increase the number of sprint qualifying races to six next season and Mercedes chief Toto Wolff is confident that F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali will choose the right locations to stage the extra races.
The most recent sprint race took place at the Austrian Grand Prix, but was not as exciting as previous events as the top four drivers retained their positions. And Wolff admitted the sprint had "less entertainment" and believes F1 need to ensure they choose the best venues for future events.
"I think if I have trust in one person to choose the right sprint races, it's Stefano," Wolff said. "And Stefano will have seen [the Austria sprint race] and will take it into consideration.”
‘6 Sprint Races in 2022’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...hanges-F1-news
Insurance billionaire mulling over Formula 1 team bid
Saturday 6th August 2022 11:59 PM
Jamie Woodhouse
Williams were the team to most recently undergo a complete change of ownership, American investment firm Dorilton Capital purchasing the outfit from the Williams family in 2020.
Reuters report Dorilton Capital make investments for Lo, chief executive of insurance broker RE Lee International, with Lee confirming he has had “some sort of exposure” to Williams since Dorilton purchased the team.
And Lo is taking a look across the grid for teams he could invest in, adding he is not the only one in Asia to be doing this. In fact, Lo could envisage an Asian consortium soon swooping to invest in a Formula 1 team.
‘Formula 1 team bids’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/insura...ing-formula-1/
Toto Wolff predicts five Formula 1 teams capable of winning from 2024
Saturday 6th August 2022 6:00 AM
Jon Wilde
Toto Wolff believes five teams will be in the hunt for F1 race wins by 2024 as the budget cap does its job and levels the playing field.
“It is too early to judge,” Wolff told Gazzetta dello Sport. “I believe the spending cap will compact the group. “Within two years we will have five teams capable of winning races and after another three, as many fighting for the World Championship.”
Wolff also commented on the news that a partnership between Red Bull and Porsche will reportedly be imminently announced. Porsche are set to enter Formula 1 as an engine supplier in 2026, with their arrival likely to be confirmed when the power-unit regulations for that year are finalised in the near future.
‘Five Formula 1 teams capable of winning from 2024’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...eams-win-2024/
Tech Draft: Time for Formula 1 broadcasters to refocus on the sport
5 August, 2022
Mark Kay
As the wind blows the tumbleweed across the empty car parks of the ghost town Formula 1 factories emptied by the enforced annual leave of absence, it is a good opportunity to navel gaze and reflect on the season that has been to date, the good and the bad.
Regrettably for readers, what the break means is an arduous three weeks ahead for them void of interesting and exciting news that has been replaced with the typical and boringly generic mid-season reviews and rankings, the stuff that is usually so mind-blowing that it forces you to fall asleep.
I’m going to get the things that have peeved me so far this year off my chest in a series of whinges and gripes starting with my biggest issue so far in 2022, the broadcast feed available to me is appalling. When I watch an F1 broadcast I have two options, either to turn the audio off, or I am forced to endure what I find is the brain numbing tripe that is the Sky commentary. F1 has a big problem because the only feed available to me, the one that I am unwillingly forced to endure has an agenda of morals and politics that goes far beyond that which I find is necessary to provide a broadcast of an F1 weekend.
‘Time for Formula 1 broadcasters to refocus on the sport’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...-on-the-sport/
TIME IS RUNNING OUT FOR ANDRETTI’S FORMULA 1 BID
The American team's plan to join the grid in 2024 may be falling through
17:04 Thu, 04 Aug 2022.
Morgan Holiday
FormulaNerds
Andretti Autosport has been in talks to field a Formula 1 team by 2024, but they may be running out of time.
2024 deadlines. Andretti’s initial plan was to buy the majority of Sauber and claim ownership of the Alfa Romeo F1 team. These plans were meant to be finalised during the United States Grand Prix in 2021, but the deal fell through at the last minute.
From there, Michael Andretti, owner of the team, put in an application to join the Formula 1 grid in 2024. Despite the benefits of having the Andretti name back in Formula 1, they have received a lot of pushback from the current teams on the grid. Most of the backlash is due to teams having to split the prize money between yet another team, making the amount they would all receive smaller.
‘Running Out Of Time’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/ti.../?nowprocket=1
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Toto Wolff explains why Audi are better option than Andretti for 11th team.
Toto Wollf has hinted that he would be more favourable to Audi becoming Formula 1’s 11th team rather than Andretti Global.
Sunday 7th August 2022 10:00 AM
Sam Cooper
The Andretti family, led by Michael, has long been trying to find a way to get onto the grid. Last year, they came close after almost agreeing a deal to buy Sauber only for it to collapse at the 11th hour, and this year the 59-year-old American announced plans to launch his own Andretti Global team which would be an 11th constructor in the pit lane, hoping to do so for the 2024 season.
His plans have been met with a lukewarm response by the FIA and F1 as well as the current occupiers of the spots on the grid, most notably in the form of Mercedes boss Wolff.
In May, the Austrian said that any new team would need to show it can bring value as an 11th team would mean a “dilution” for the existing 10.
‘Toto Wollf Favours Audi’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...tion-andretti/
Wolff reins in Mercedes enthusiasm: 'We're still lacking to front-runners'
05/08/2022 at 09:47
Michael Delaney
Toto Wolff says Mercedes must remain cautious about its improved performance on the back of its strong display in Hungary, where the team may have just "landed in the perfect window".
"I think we need to be careful that it's not specific to Budapest that we just landed in the perfect window," Wolff suggested. "The other teams, Ferrari especially yesterday, complained about the tyre not being where it should have been.”
"So, in my personal opinion, we're still lacking to the front runners. You've seen that Leclerc on the right tyre is still a dominant force. But at least we were in the same race."
‘Mercedes Must Remain Cautious’;
https://f1i.com/news/450568-wolff-re...t-runners.html
Why Wolff has been enjoying Mercedes 'getting it wrong'
07/08/2022, 10:40
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Toto Wolff admits that a part of him is enjoying the process of Mercedes "getting it wrong" in 2022 as he believes this is the key to future success.
"I don't think it's challenging in a way because I've had much harder times in all of my life, not particularly in Formula 1, but this is actually within my comfort zone," Wolff told Square Mile.
"I would say that I'm enjoying getting it wrong at the moment, because it's the basis for long-term future success, I believe. We have had eight consecutive World Championships that hasn't been done in any other sport. And I think I know why.”
‘Within My Comfort Zone’;
https://racingnews365.com/why-wolff-...tting-it-wrong
Toto Wolff denies FIA technical directive will be a ‘silver bullet’ at Spa
Saturday 6th August 2022 11:00 AM
Jon Wilde
Toto Wolff does not see the FIA technical directive being introduced for the Belgian Grand Prix as a “silver bullet” that will fire Mercedes to the front.
“It will be very interesting to see what we see at Spa,” said Wolff, quoted by the German edition of Motorsport.com. “Let’s see if the difference in ride height makes a difference for the teams that ride so low.”
“But I no longer believe in the ‘silver bullet’, as they say, that we will then suddenly be three tenths faster than everyone else, but in any case it will be interesting.”
‘No Longer Believe in the ‘Silver Bullet’!’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...silver-bullet/
Wolff not interested in Constructors' P2 fight: Second means first loser!
03 August 12:00
Author Michael Butterworth
Co-author Dieter Rencken
Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff says he isn't concerned about whether his team finish second or third in the Constructors' Championship, saying he would rather Mercedes win races on merit.
"Second [is the] first loser," Wolff told media including RacingNews365.com.
"For me, whether it's second or third in the Constructors' Championship is not so relevant, compared to really racing and being at the front, developing the car so we can win races on merit, beat the Ferraris, beat the Red Bulls and prepare for next year, rather than really care about the championship position."
‘No Interest in Constructors' P2’.’;
https://racingnews365.com/wolff-not-...ns-first-loser
Mercedes ‘missing a few months’ in development race with Red Bull and Ferrari
Sunday 7th August 2022 7:00 PM
Sam Cooper
Toto Wolff has conceded that Mercedes are “a few months” behind Red Bull and Ferrari after their troubling start to the season.
“The start of the season wasn’t really any good,” Wolff said. “And there is no other way of describing it. Because if you win the Championship in December then four months on, you’re not competing with the guys in the front. That’s frustrating.”
“Since then we had a roller coaster, we’ve been on the podium, almost every single race. We were strong on the Sundays, but never quite there in qualifying and the gap was simply too large.”
‘Start of the season wasn’t really any good’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/merced...-bull-ferrari/
Wolff's bizarre Russell compliment
Sunday 7 August 2022 07:00
Sam Hall
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has revealed he complimented George Russell on his maiden F1 pole lap by saying over the radio it was "not s**t".
"I said 'not s**t' on my radio," said Wolff. "That is pretty high up in my scale by the way, that is not negative.”
"It was quite an interesting experience because we knew it was going quick. On our used soft, it was already quite competitive."
‘ 'Not S**t', is pretty high up in my scale by the way!’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...eorge-russell/
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Honda F1 chief surprised by Red Bull's huge lead over Ferrari.
Honda are pleased with Red Bull's performance so far in 2022, though remain realistic about why the points gap between the team and Ferrari is currently so substantial.
08/08/2022, 07:00
Author RacingNews365 Staff
Honda F1 chief Yasuaki Asaki admits that Red Bull's points advantage over Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship has come as something of a surprise. Red Bull have been aided in their success by Honda who, despite officially withdrawing from Formula 1 at the end of 2021, continue to support the team's Red Bull Powertrains operation in a partnership that was recently extended until the end of 2025.
As such, Honda's Asaki remains closely involved with the sport, and acknowledges that certain aspects of the season have not been what he expected. Asaki has praised Red Bull for their consistency, but has warned that their advantage over Ferrari in terms of points is not necessarily a realistic picture of their performances.
"Red Bull are making fewer mistakes than Ferrari at the moment," Asaki explained. "The difference in points between the two teams is greater than our true strength. We are now in a position where we are fighting for both championships, so we keep fighting. We had some problems at the start of the season, but we solved them. I think that's why we are where we are today."
‘Honda F1 chief surprised by Red Bull's huge lead’;
https://racingnews365.com/honda-f1-c...d-over-ferrari
Honda explain Charles Leclerc gap to Max Verstappen as Ferrari have themselves to blame
MAX VERSTAPPEN enjoys a healthy 80-point lead over Charles Leclerc in the Drivers Championship.
08:30, Mon, Aug 8, 2022
By Luke Chillingsworth
Red Bull are leading the championship because they “solved” their early season reliability issues compared to Ferrari, according to Honda boss Yasuaki Asaki. Asaki also claimed Red Bull are “making fewer mistakes” than Ferrari which has proven vital to Max Verstappen's success.
Victories for Charles Leclerc in two of the first three races, coupled with retirements for Max Verstappen, saw the Monegasque open up a commanding 46-point advantage over the Dutchman.
Red Bull boss Helmut Marko admits the team cannot relax despite their healthy championship lead. He said it was possible Ferrari could win the next nine races if they were to completely cut out their errors.
‘Red Bull Cannot Relax’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...-leclerc-honda
Red Bull taking nothing for granted in Ferrari battle
Monday 8 August 2022 07:00
Ewan Gale
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has insisted Red Bull will take "nothing for granted" in the remaining races of the season. The Milton Keynes-based team has opened up a 97-point gap over nearest rival Ferrari despite the Scuderia's challenge this season often seeing Charles Leclerc rush ahead of Max Verstappen on track.
But Horner has insisted complacency will not creep in for Red Bull in its quest for a first championship double since 2013. “The points tables look healthy and it’s a great way to sign off into the summer break but there is still a lot of racing to go," said Horner.
“Ferrari are quick, Mercedes are coming back into the game…there’s still a long, long way to go in this championship, plus a sprint race, so we don’t take anything for granted. “There is still a lot of racing to do and at very different venues.”
‘Red Bull Taking Nothing For Granted’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...-bull-ferrari/
Sergio Perez’s assessment of his ‘7/10’ season so far with Red Bull
Sunday 7th August 2022 4:00 PM
Sam Cooper
Perez, who was ranked sixth on our top 10 drivers of the season so far, was asked by his team to score his season so far out of 10 and replied “7/10.”
“I’m looking forward to some rest, it’s been an intense season,” the Mexican said. “But you can only disconnect for a week or so and then back into it. We’ve got a lot of work to do because the second half of the season is going to be very intense. We have to keep delivering.”
“I couldn’t have imagined we would be where we are at that point [following Red Bull’s double DNF at the start of the season]. It’s great to have the team where it is at the moment, but we cannot take anything for granted.”
‘Sergio Perez’s Assessment’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/sergio...ment-red-bull/
Has there been a ‘clear change’ in how Max Verstappen thinks and races?
Sunday 7th August 2022 12:59 PM
Jamie Woodhouse
Now a Formula 1 veteran at the tender age of only 24, has there been a “clear change” in Max Verstappen with his thinking and racing? “You see a clear change in how he thinks and how he races,” said Coronel of Verstappen on RacingNews365.com’s Formula 1 podcast.
“Everything is based on finishing. No longer that fierceness as we knew from him in the beginning. Very conservative and more like: ‘okay, my turn will come in a moment’. That also struck me: Max knows that if he is less fast, he has to take chances to get as many points as possible.”
“Even if he’s fourth or fifth… I think that was in his head during the race in Hungary. But then you get one gift after another gift. Everything was right!”
‘Clear Change In How Max Verstappen Thinks And Races’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/max-ve...driving-style/
How Red Bull piled back the downforce in Hungary
Red Bull initially feared it would be on the back foot at Formula 1’s Hungarian Grand Prix, with the team seemingly less comfortable at high downforce circuits than previous years.
Aug 7, 2022, 8:46 AM
By: Matt Somerfield
Co-author: Giorgio Piola
It’s clearly the consequence of a design direction that the team has taken with the new regulations though. For its drivers have often found themselves at the top of the speed trap figures in 2022, whereas in previous seasons they’d be at the bottom more often than not.
In order to tackle this issue in Hungary, Red Bull introduced a new beam wing layout, pairing it with its higher downforce rear wing offering. This new beam wing design is what most of the grid would consider the conventional layout for these regulations, with two elements mounted in series, one above the other.
And, just like its rivals, the design featured elements with a more loaded central section and tapered outer tip. Prior to this, Red Bull had bucked this trend, opting for a ‘stacked’ arrangement instead. Plus when it was required to reduce downforce and drag at higher speed circuits, it also ditched the upper of those two elements, as can be seen at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
‘Piled Back The Downforce’;
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/h...gary/10349601/
Christian Horner speaks out as Red Bull poach Lewis Hamilton's former Mercedes engineer.
RED BULL currently lead the F1 Constructors' Championship standings by nearly 100 points.
09:56, Sun, Aug 7, 2022
By Tom Parsons
Christian Horner has spoken out after Red Bull poached Lewis Hamilton’s former engineer Phil Prew from Mercedes. The Austrian team have been in imperious form on the track this season and are leading the Constructors’ Championship by 97 points, with Max Verstappen also at the top of the Drivers’ Championship standings.
Red Bull have been uncompromising in their recruitment drive recently as they look to become the powerhouse in F1 for years to come. And Horner believes Prew’s arrival is a “statement of intent.” He said: “I’m delighted that Phil is going to be joining the team and he has a phenomenal track record. He has been a key component of Mercedes’ recent success and, again, it is another statement of intent of where we want to be with the power unit.”
“I think we have assembled great strength and depth within the business and it’s fantastic to see it really coming together and coming to life. Phil’s one of a few key signings recently that add to the very talented group of people that we have already assembled.”
‘Statement Of Intent’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...Max-Verstappen
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Daniel Ricciardo posts for first time after McLaren 'inform Aussie they plan to axe him'.
It is believed Ricciardo was told the news by McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl after the Hungarian Grand Prix.
10:28, Mon, Aug 8, 2022
By Luke Chillingsworth
Daniel Ricciardo has broken his social media silence after reportedly being told he will lose his McLaren drive for next season. Ricciardo was photographed beaming while swimming on holiday, suggesting the Australian is not worried about his F1 future.
He posted the image alongside a caption which simply said “hello” with a sun emoji. It comes after a source close to Ricciardo reported he had already been told of McLaren’s decision to replace him with Oscar Piastri for next season, according to ESPN.
It is also understood Ricciardo was not interested in a seat at McLaren’s Formula E team in a bid to remain on the F1 grid. Ricciardo is tipped to sign for Alpine, securing the seat Piastri was expected to step into when Fernando Alonso announced his switch to Aston Martin.
‘Ricciardo was photographed beaming’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ct-news-latest
Daniel Ricciardo receives sponsorship boost despite McLaren saga
Monday 8th August 2022 3:15 PM
Michelle Foster
Despite rumours of his pending McLaren exit, Daniel Ricciardo has renewed a sponsorship deal with Singtel Optus for a further two years. The smiling Australian first partnered with the telecommunications company in 2020, Optus saying at the time he was the perfect brand ambassador as he “radiates positivity and optimism”.
However, there has not been much to be optimistic about of late with continued rumours this season will be Ricciardo’s final year with McLaren.
According to reports, the team have already told the 33-year-old he will not be racing for them next season, his seat going to fellow Australian driver Oscar Piastri.
‘Sponsorship Boost’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/daniel...sorship-boost/
The four contenders for Ricciardo’s signature — and the ‘long game’ twist that could sway his decision
August 8th, 2022 8:43 pm
Michael Lamonato from Fox Sports
In the wake of persistent rumours that Mark Webber was lining up Oscar Piastri to snatch Ricciardo’s seat from underneath him in 2023, rival teams have been probing the availability of the affable 33-year-old for his next chapter. As many as four rival constructors have sounded out Ricciardo, per ESPN, in the weeks leading up to McLaren reportedly issuing him its intention to break his contract.
Deducing which teams ought to be a simple case of arithmetic. Before Fernando Alonso’s bombshell move there were six teams with possible vacancies: Alpine, Alfa Romeo, Haas, AlphaTauri, Aston Martin and Williams. AlphaTauri is also moving closer to re-signing Yuki Tsunoda, who Franz Tost wants to give a third season to establish himself. Anyway, signing 33-year-old Ricciardo also doesn’t click with what’s supposed to be Red Bull’s development team.
Aston Martin has also removed itself from the list, but with Alpine seemingly sure to need new blood, the group possible suitors is stable at four, including Haas, Alfa Romeo and Williams. So which is most likely to be seriously pitching for Ricciardo’s services, and which has the best chance of attracting his attention.
‘Four contenders for Ricciardo’s signature’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...6beac7ee1430ba
Lando Norris squashes Daniel Ricciardo ‘mind games’ accusation
Lando Norris is currently seventh in the Drivers' Championship.
8 August 2022
by Nick Golding
With Norris performing so much better than Ricciardo on a Grand Prix basis, it’s led to accusations that Norris has been playing “mind games” on his team-mate, something he profoundly denies. “Mind games?” Norris questioned the media. “In what way? What mind games can I play? No, it’s the opposite,” Norris said.
“I’m trying to help him as much as I can. It’s for the benefit of us as a team, to try and beat Alpine at the end of the day.” It appears that Norris is doing everything he possibly can to aid Ricciardo’s improvement, after revealing that the 33-year-old is able to see all of his data.
The British driver explained that he’s sharing more of his own data with Ricciardo than he usually would for a team-mate, highlighting Norris’ desire to get the team higher up in the championship. “He sees everything that I see in terms of data and everything,” the Brit explained.
‘Mind Games Accusation Squashed’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/lando-nor...es-accusation/
The reasons behind Ricciardo’s McLaren Formula 1 struggles
Daniel Ricciardo’s pending Formula 1 exit from McLaren is set to end two difficult years for the eight-time grand prix winner.
Aug 8, 2022, 8:57 AM
By: Luke Smith
Co-author: Roberto Chinchero
So why has Ricciardo struggled so much with McLaren’s Formula 1 cars over the past two years? The important thing to bear in mind is that while the 2022 regulations may have heralded a technical overhaul for F1, they did not eradicate many of the characteristics of the McLaren car that made it so tricky to drive last year. The MCL36, just like the MCL35M, excels in high-speed corners but struggles more when it comes to the medium-speed stuff.
At the end of last year, McLaren technical director James Key spoke of a desire to attack the weaknesses and “account for them with a blank sheet of paper”, ensuring there were “no legacy built in behaviours in a new car like that.” But Ricciardo ended up encountering the same struggles with the new car. "The regulations make the car feel different, but the DNA of the car is still very similar,” Ricciardo told Motorsport.com in an interview ahead of F1’s summer break, before plans for him to be replaced by Piastri were set into motion.
“Some of the things from last year which I struggled with, they are still in this car. It's something I think we are starting to understand better what it is. Because obviously I tried to describe it, but to really understand, is it aero, is it is geometry, like… you know what I mean? We are starting to understand better what it is, and Lando also does complain about it. I think he's just used to it.”
‘Technical Overhaul for F1 did not eradicate many of the tricky characteristics of the McLaren car’;
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/r...gles/10350455/
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Petition for Mattia Binotto to be fired by Ferrari picks up steam.
As such, a petition that was started in 2019, when strategic mistakes also played a part in the Scuderia’s struggles to win races, has been brought back to life.
8 August 2022
by James Clifford
It was initially started by a fan from South Africa, and many more users on change.org have now spoken out against Binotto, urging Ferrari to sack him.
It is unknown exactly what they expect will happen as a result of the petition, as no one has any jurisdiction over whom Ferrari choose to lead their F1 team other than the board themselves.
Further, no governmental action can have a say in that unless anything unlawful has taken place and, while throwing away races in the manner Ferrari have could be labelled “criminal,” it is in fact not at all.
‘Petition Picks Up Steam’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/petition-...icks-up-steam/
Binotto admits Ferrari engine failures spark feelings of 'depression'
08/08/2022 at 16:18
Phillip van Osten
Ferrari's engine failures never go down well with team boss Mattia Binotto who admits that the breakdowns lead to feelings of despair although they are fortunately short lived.
The failures were gut-wrenching for both drivers but they were just as upsetting for Ferrari's head man on the pitwall. "It is very difficult for two reasons," Binotto told Italy's Motorsport.com franchise.
"When it comes to engine failures, well, I've run that department myself in the past, and seeing smoke coming out of the car is never cool. And this is more of a feeling of depression. "When you are leading the race, as Charles was leading in Baku but we can also mention Carlos in Austria, these are problems you would never want to see."
‘Seeing smoke coming out of the car is never cool’;
https://f1i.com/news/450726-binotto-...epression.html
Does Mattia Binotto really deserve his Red Bull ’employee of the month’ award?
Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have suffered no shortage of misfortune so far in 2022.
4 August 2022
by James Clifford
Formula 1 memers on social media have been praising Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto for the success that Red Bull have enjoyed in recent weeks, but does he deserve that? Light-hearted though the jokes may sometimes be, the criticism of the Scuderia will be painful enough for them, but the ridicule is difficult to bear watching them go through.
The same mistakes are being made almost every week by Ferrari, who have shown a susceptibility to panicking under pressure, and sometimes under no pressure at all. Blaming one person for the downfall of the entire team is never a wise approach, but changes are needed at Ferrari, and it is clear that Rueda needs some assistance on his side.
With the deficit as it is in the standings right now, Ferrari may be well-advised to start thinking about how to attack next year’s title challenge, because there appears to be no imminent let-up from Red Bull.
‘Red Bull Employee of the Month Award’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/does-matt...e-month-award/
Why Ferrari launched failed tyre gamble in Hungary
Tuesday 2 August 2022 18:30
Sam Hall
Mattia Binotto has revealed why Ferrari took its disastrous gamble with hard tyres for Charles Leclerc at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Binotto concedes data decided. Ferrari had not completed any running on the hard compound during the two dry practice sessions on Friday.
After the race, Verstappen and George Russell confirmed Red Bull and Mercedes had ruled out using that tyre in the race. “Overall, the tyres didn’t work," added Binotto.
"I know that they were not working as well on other cars but still, the analysis I made was based on all the data we had. Overall, as I said before, the main reason is not to look into the strategy but to look at why the car was not as good as we were hoping."
‘Failed Tyre Gamble’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/88...-ferrari-tyre/
Binotto denies Ferrari needs personnel shakeup
AUGUST 8, 2022, 08 Aug 2022.
GrandPrix.com
Mattia Binotto could end up paying for Ferrari's flagging championship hopes with his job. That is the view of former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, who worked with the Italian team's current team boss when he was still in charge of the engine program.
"He's a very good engineer - a very professional guy," the Brazilian said. "He understands a lot about it on the technical side. He's also a good guy, to be honest. But in the end, the result is not coming the way it should. So we cannot definitely blame him, but we need to say that he's part of it."
Indeed, although Binotto should be hailed for helping Ferrari field a truly competitive car in 2022, the team's title hopes are fading due to reliability and strategy errors. Another former Ferrari driver, Jean Alesi, says the critics should hold their tongues.
‘Ferrari Need Personnel Shakeup’;
https://www.grandprix.com/news/binot...l-shakeup.html
Ferrari 'won't change' approach despite mistakes in 2022
Published: 8 Aug 2022, 14:33
By George Dagless
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto has said that the team does not feel the need to change their approach despite some of the errors that have struck their championship challenge. The Scuderia started this season in great form and looked as though they were the team to beat in the title fight but as the campaign has worn on, Red Bull have grown stronger and stronger and the mistakes have crept in in red.
Despite that, though, Binotto is defiant that Ferrari just need to keep doing what they’re doing and not change anything drastically: “There’s nothing to change, I think it’s always a matter of confidence, learning, building, building experience, building skills.”
“But if I look again at the balance of the first half of the season there is no reason why we should change. I think we simply need to understand [Hungary] and address that and try to be competitive, as we have been in 12 races so far. There is no reason why we will not be [competitive] at the next.”
‘Ferrari Won't Change Approach’;
https://www.givemesport.com/88044992...stakes-in-2022
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Daniel Ricciardo demanding £17million pay-out to walkaway from his McLaren contract.
If the rumours are anything to go by, McLaren have agreed a deal with Formula 2 champion Piastri for next season, and with the thriving Lando Norris on a long-term contract with team, it is Ricciardo who will be asked to make way.
Tuesday 9 Aug 2022 4:59 pm
Callum McAvoy
According to Australian publication Speedcafe, Ricciardo has the option to terminate his own contract prematurely, but McLaren do not, and with the balls in his court, the eight-time race winner has asked for $21million (£17.3m) in compensation for him to walk away from the team.
A similar situation occurred in 2009, when Ferrari signed Alonso for the following season even though they already had Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen under contract, with the latter eventually being handed a pay-out of around £20m.
Save from the past season-and-a-half, Ricciardo is considered one of the quickest drivers on the grid, and certainly one of the most marketable and will not be short of suitors.
‘£17million pay-out’;
https://metro.co.uk/2022/08/09/danie...o=newsnow-feed
Daniel Ricciardo demands massive pay-off to end McLaren career amid Oscar Piastri fiasco.
McLaren have told Daniel Ricciardo they intend to replace him with wantaway Alpine reserve Oscar Piastri, but the former Red Bull racer will not leave early without a significant pay-off.
17:12, 9 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Daniel Ricciardo has told McLaren to give him an eight-figure pay-off if they want to replace him with Oscar Piastri for next season, according to a report.
The final fee is expected to be less if both sides strike a deal, but still Ricciardo will earn millions for stepping aside to allow Piastri to race alongside Lando Norris. And even if he does, his F1 future is likely to be secure with several teams waiting to pounce.
At least four teams have been in contact with the Aussie to get a sense of his intentions in recent weeks. One of them is believed to be Alpine, who would consider bringing Ricciardo back into the fold should they end up losing Piastri to McLaren.
‘Eight-figure pay-off’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...astri-27699025
Alpine F1 Team Preparing Lawsuit Against McLaren-Bound Oscar Piastri
The team spent millions of dollars preparing Piastri for Formula 1, and wants to get it back via legal action.
10/08/2022, 12:21PM
By Ryan Erik King
According to Reuters, Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer is all but certain that the team will seek compensation in the High Court of Justice in London if Piastri refuses to race for Alpine next season. The French manufacturer’s factory team announced last week that the 21-year-old Australian would replace the departing Fernando Alonso next season. The crux of the potential legal action is that Piastri bluntly stated on social media that he will not drive for Alpine next year.
Alpine has contacted the FIA’s in-house Contract Recognition Board to resolve the dispute of whether Piastri is contractually tied to the team or not. However, the Australian could still choose not to compete in F1 at all in 2023.
Szafnauer told Reuters, “Going to the High Court is over 90-percent certain that’s what we’ll do. If the CRB says ‘your license is only valid at Alpine’, and then he [Piastri] says ‘that’s great but I’m never driving for them, I’ll just sit out a year’, then you’ve got to go to the High Court for compensation.”
‘Preparing Lawsuit’;
https://jalopnik.com/alpine-f1-team-...und-1849389975
Daniel Ricciardo 'demands £12m to quit McLaren' as negotiations start over ending contract
DANIEL RICCIARDO will reportedly demand an eight-figure sum to end his McLaren contract early.
18:26, Tue, Aug 9, 2022
By Liam Llewellyn
Daniel Ricciardo has reportedly demanded £12m to quit McLaren as the negotiations to end his contract have commenced. Team boss Zak Brown is said to be trying to move the eight-time race winner on in order to create space to sign reigning Formula Two champion Oscar Piastri.
Ricciardo is contracted at the team until the end of 2023 and will need to be paid off to depart early. It is understood he is the only party to have the right to cancel his current deal, and it is expected Ricciardo’s asking fee may be reduced as McLaren haggles over a price.
Formula One expert Peter Windsor believes that the current situation leaves Brown in an uncomfortable position, with the American regretting the deal he initially gave the former Red Bull and Renault man. "What will take some time now is the deal that Zak Brown will make with Daniel,” he continued. “Daniel will be riding for him for the rest of this year, so it will not be a comfortable situation for Zak.”
‘Regretting The Deal’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...cLaren-f1-news
Daniel Ricciardo auditions to join ‘clowns at Ferrari’.
Ferrari's title challenge is starting to fall apart with nine rounds left in 2022.
9 August 2022
by James Clifford
A video of Daniel Ricciardo juggling tennis balls has resurfaced amid Ferrari’s continued struggles in 2022. Sadly for the Scuderia, they have become a laughing stock in recent weeks due to a series of strategic mistakes, driver errors and reliability failures.
Many have called into question Ferrari strategist Inaki Rueda, as well as team principal Mattia Binotto’s ability to lead the team. The ridicule has seen Maranello compared to a circus, and the juggling techniques of Ricciardo, as per a meme page on Instagram, would make him the ideal fit.
Indeed, it is possible that the 33-year-old might be looking for a seat next year, as Alpine reserve Oscar Piastri is reported to have secured a deal with McLaren for 2023.
‘Juggling techniques of Ricciardo, would make him the ideal fit, for the laughing stock of Ferrari!’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/daniel-ri...ns-at-ferrari/
Daniel Ricciardo was "expected to kick a**" as F1 star opens up on McLaren nightmare
Ricciardo has a contract with McLaren until the end of next season, but nevertheless his F1 future is shrouded in mystery with the team eager to replace him with wantaway Alpine racer Oscar Piastri
20:37, 9 Aug 2022
By Daniel MoxonF1 Writer
McLaren were puzzled by Daniel Ricciardo's slow start to life with the team as the driver claims the team expected him to "kick a**" from day one.
"This time last year there was probably a little more head-scratching from everyone," he told Racer. "I think that’s because... the truth is, I think they just expected me to get into the team and kick a**. So there was probably still some pure head-scratching, like, 'hmm, what’s happening?'
"And that was probably overriding what needs to happen – I'm just speculating, but maybe too much energy was put into the why's and this and that before it was, 'what do we need to do now to make him feel better?'" Ricciardo was speaking before the Piastri saga took off.
‘Expected to kick a**’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...atest-27700625
This is how much McLaren will need to pay Daniel Ricciardo to buy out his contract
Daniel Ricciardo will be owed a fair amount of money if he leaves McLaren at the end of this year.
by James Clifford
9 August 20229 August 2022
If the eight-time champions are to send their driver on his way, journalist Peter Windsor estimates that they will have to fork out an eyewatering sum to part ways. “It will be a hit in the region of twenty million,” he said in a YouTube video.
“Maybe more, or maybe less, maybe they can negotiate it down or they can finance a seat for him somewhere else. In any case, that will be the key before everything can fall into place.” Windsor also indicated that Brown has out himself in a difficult situation, firstly by negotiating with another driver behind Ricciardo’s back, but also by giving the former Red Bull driver leverage in the original contract.
“What will take some time now is the deal that Zak Brown will make with Daniel,” he added. “Daniel will be riding for him for the rest of this year, so it will not be a comfortable situation for Zak. He’s bound to regret the contract he drew up in the first place, which means Daniel now has so many options and he himself doesn’t.”
‘Not a comfortable situation for Zak Brown!’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/this-is-h...-his-contract/
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Question Mark: Is Toto Wolff too powerful for F1?
Has Wolff’s involvement in F1 been excessive? Conflicts of interest? How would or can all this impact the future of F1?
10 August, 2022
Mark Kay
Has Wolff’s involvement in F1 been excessive? Apart from being the public face of the team he runs, an important function of Wolff’s role as CEO and Team Principal is to have a strong voice in the advocacy of the best interests of his team, but is it not reasonable to question if his voice is louder than his peers, the other F1 team bosses? Consider that in recent times the 50-year-old motor racing veteran has been one of, if not the most vocal questioning the value that will be gained if the proposed Andretti F1 team entry happens, from the sidelines he certainly threw a hefty spanner in the works to keep the F1-pie down to ten teams, not the twelve which every real F1 fan wants.
Last year’s Michael Masi aftermath… Many saw it as a sore-loser campaign with Wolff using his position to attempt to discredit the FIA, in a show of solidarity with the manner Lewis Hamilton lost the title, by not attending the end-of-year prize-giving ceremony to accept the 2021 F1 World Constructors Championship award. Granted Abu Dhabi was a disaster, but his team had nabbed an incredible eighth F1 title long before that night, yet he neglected to use the event as a public demonstration of respect to the two thousand or so dedicated employees of the Mercedes F1 Team who deserved better from their boss who until that day was all about sportsmanship. Excessive? Selfish? Or both?
REACTION (See link below) from one poster to this article: M96/72 “I believe Wolf’s (and his Academy Award-worthy drivers) campaign to influence the floor rules (also utilizing his former employee now acting as mole and influencer within the FIA) will result in rules written that will return Mercedes to the 2-seconds faster top of the heap and hamstring RedBull and Ferrari or anyone else. This season is my last as a F1 fan and follower after 42 years. I will no longer watch ,read about or purchase any team or driver merchandise.”
‘Too Powerful For F1?’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...werful-for-f1/
Toto Wolff gets his wish as FIA president announces new 2023 rules changes.
TOTO WOLFF has called for rules changes to address porpoising as Mercedes continue to struggle.
10:32, Tue, Aug 9, 2022
By Luke Chillingsworth
Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton could benefit from new 2023 rule changes after the FIA announced a plan to battle porpoising issues in a major win for Mercedes. Wolff has called for urgent action to be taken on the bouncing issues which has plagued the Silver Arrows this season.
The team has demanded changes on safety grounds since Hamilton suffered severe back pains at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. However, Wolff has been met by opposition from rival team bosses who claimed his call for updates was purely a tactical one.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner and Ferrari chief Mattia Binotto have both denied the need for regulation changes to solve the issues. But, the FIA has now sided with Mercedes’ argument as president Mohammed ben Sulayem announced the rules would be tweaked for next season.
‘Toto Wolff gets his wish’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...poising-safety
Wolff explains Andretti F1 bid opposition
Tuesday 9 August 2022 16:01
Sam Hall
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has explained why he has been one of the loudest voices opposing the addition of Andretti Global to the F1 grid.
Former F1 champion Mario Andretti confirmed in February that his son, Michael, had applied to the FIA for a position in the F1 paddock in 2024.
Asked how the two are different, Wolff said: "I think whoever joins as an 11th team, whoever gets an entry needs to demonstrate how accretive they can be for the business. "Andretti is a great name, they have done exceptional things in the US but this is sport and this is business.”
‘Toto Wolff, one of the loudest voices opposing Andretti Global’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/89...olff-andretti/
Toto Wolff fires back after being accused of trying to manipulate the FIA
The FIA is considering a new set of regulations for 2023 to eliminate porpoising.
9 August 2022
by Nick Golding
Mercedes F1 Team boss Toto Wolff continues to fire back at rival teams who claim that nothing needs to be done about porpoising, despite new data which suggests that drivers are at a serious health risk.
Red Bull Racing and the Alpine F1 Team, for example, haven’t suffered from porpoising this season, with the pair being against any FIA intervention.
Some teams who are against the proposed regulation changes have argued that porpoising hasn’t been seen as severely at recent races, and that Mercedes have improved considerably.
‘Trying to manipulate the FIA Accusations’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/toto-wolf...ulate-the-fia/
Wolff says Mercedes are still ‘lacking’ against Red Bull and Ferrari
Toto Wolff downplays recent form and insists Mercedes are still ‘lacking’ up against Red Bull and Ferrari
Mercedes have earned double podiums in the last two races but Wolff is unsure their pace is up there with the leading contenders
12:35 Thu, 04 Aug 2022.
Kieran Jackson
Formula 1 Correspondent
The Independent
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has downplayed the recent form of the Constructors champions and insists his team are “still lacking to the frontrunners” of Red Bull and Ferrari.
Mercedes have earned double podiums in the last two races in France and Hungary, with George Russell a surprise pole sitter in Budapest - the Silver Arrows’ first pole position of the season.
Despite not being able to hold position as Max Verstappen’s surged through the pack, Russell still finished third with teammate Lewis Hamilton second and the seven-time world champion has now been on the podium in the last five races.
‘Mercedes are still ‘lacking’ up’;
https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/tot...-b2138082.html
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Sebastian Vettel: Ferrari’s F1 2022 errors show that he wasn’t the problem in his failed title bid.
Sebastian Vettel was often pinpointed as the main factor behind Ferrari not winning the title in either 2017 or 2018.
10 Aug 2022
Connor McDonagh
With four world titles, 53 grand prix victories and over 120 podium finishes, Vettel’s statistics put him among the very best drivers in F1 history. Despite these spectacular statistics, Vettel often doesn’t get the recognition he deserves with his failure to win the title with Ferrari often cited as to why. He got close in 2017 and 2018 but finished runner-up to Lewis Hamilton on both occasions.
His failure to topple Hamilton was ultimately his undoing as Ferrari’s rising star - Charles Leclerc - shone in his first year with the team in 2019 which led to Ferrari replacing him one year later in favour of Carlos Sainz. Fast forward to 2022, Ferrari have - on average - the fastest car this year but Leclerc trails Max Verstappen by a whopping 80 points, eight wins to three in the Dutchman’s favour.
Poor reliability and strategy errors have been all too common for 2022 but it was no different during Vettel’s years with the team, made worse by Mercedes often having a significant performance advantage (aside from the first half of 2018).
‘Ferrari’s F1 2022 errors show that Sebastian Vettel wasn’t the problem in his failed title bid’;
https://www.crash.net/f1/feature/100...wasn-t-problem
How Ferrari Fumbled Away Its F1 Title Hopes in 10 Races
Perfect storm of bad strategy, reliability issues, and driver blunders cost Ferrari chance at 2022 Formula 1 championship.
Aug 10, 2022
BY PHILLIP HORTON
F1 Drivers' Standings After 3 Races
1. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 71
2. George Russell, Mercedes, 37
3. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, 33
4. Sergio Perez, Red Bull, 30
5. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, 28
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 25
Current F1 Drivers' Standings After 13 Races
1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 258
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, 178
3. Sergio Perez, Red Bull, 173
4. George Russell, Mercedes, 158
5. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, 156
As Maranello’s title drought looks set to extend into a 14th year, Autoweek analyzes Ferrari’s dramatic drop, its weaknesses, and where it goes next.
‘Ferrari Fumbled Away Its F1 Title Hopes’;
https://www.autoweek.com/racing/form...1-title-hopes/
Ex-Ferrari boss urges Mattia Binotto to axe strategy chief with contract running down
According to reports, team chief Binotto's contract expires at the end of the season – but a former Ferrari boss believe he should stay and instead sack the team's lead strategist
16:43, 10 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
Mattia Binotto has been urged to sack under-fire Ferrari strategy chief Inaki Rueda by one of his predecessors. Cesare Fiorio, who led the team in the 1990s, does not share that view. Speaking to Italian magazine Autosprint, he said: "I certainly expected an intervention by [executive chairman] John Elkann after the events in Budapest.”
"Unfortunately, the mistakes have been numerous. The 2022 car is very competitive and you can see that the team has made progress compared to the last two years. The credit for that must be given to Binotto, who has always been very skilled on the technical side and is leading the engineers to build a winning machine.”
"Mattia was originally a designer and he knows how to do that job very well, as shown with the F1-75. He just needs people who fit better with the culture. Binotto needs to stay in place, but not Rueda – he has never positively influenced the different teams he has worked for."
‘Ex-Ferrari Boss Urges Strategy Chief Axe’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...rueda-27708806
Massa: At Ferrari the tide needs to turn quickly
10 August, 2022
Paul Velasco
With insider knowledge, Massa’s advice for Binotto and the great Italian team: “Ferrari need to be calmer when making decisions and understand what’s going on because the mistakes in strategy that were made at the beginning of the season are still being made today.
“The tide needs to turn quickly, otherwise they may have to pay the price,” added Massa, perhaps suggesting an alternative to the current boss.
History shows that Binotto popped into the top management position as part of a master plan of the late Sergio Marchionne who ejected Maurizio Arrivabene as team principal, putting Binotto in full charge in what at the time was reported as a powerplay for the helm of the F1 team at Maranello.
‘Ferrari tide needs to turn quickly’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...under-binotto/
Salo exclusive: Ferrari are not going to win titles this way
10/08/2022, 18:00
Author Ruud Dimmers
Co-author Jake Nichol
In the first months of the 2022 F1 season, it seemed to be the year of Charles Leclerc and Ferrari. In a few months, the legendary Italian team lost everything. Therefore, its former F1 driver Mika Salo is now critical. RacingNews365.com spoke extensively and exclusively with Salo, who made his debut in F1 in 1994 with the Tyrrell team, where he was a teammate to Jos Verstappen.
He would eventually end up at Scuderia Ferrari, as a replacement for the injured Michael Schumacher in 1999, coming very close to a race victory in Austria, but he had to let through teammate and leader Eddie Irvine. In the end, Irvine was three points short of denying Mika Hakkinen the world title.
Ferrari does not deserve to win F1 title, according to Salo. According to Salo, the pressure from the Italian media and the Tifosi should not be a reason for the series of mistakes and disappointments. He does not believe that a reorganisation is necessary and compliments team boss Mattia Binotto.
‘Ferrari does not deserve to win F1 title’;
https://racingnews365.com/salo-exclu...itles-this-way
Ferrari set for power unit upgrade at Spa
10/08/2022 at 13:21
Phillip van Osten
Ferrari will return to action at Spa-Francorchamps at the end of the month with a power unit that will feature an upgraded hybrid component.
But a second homologation date set for September 1 allows manufacturers to introduce a final update limited to the PU's control electronics, energy store (battery) and the MGU-K.
The Belgian Grand Prix will take place on August 28 which means that any updates limited to the specific hybrid elements will be within the September 1 deadline.
‘Ferrari PU Upgrade’;
https://f1i.com/news/450817-ferrari-...de-at-spa.html
Ferrari will beat engine upgrade deadline in boost to Charles Leclerc's slim title hopes.
Leclerc and Carlos Sainz desperately need a drama-free second half of the season, and more reliable power units would certainly go a long way in making that happen.
19:24, 10 Aug 2022
By Daniel MoxonF1 Writer
Ferrari are set to beat the looming engine freeze deadline to introduce power unit upgrades for the rest of the season and beyond.
Teams are working against the clock to finalise their engine plans for the next few years. It is not like with other areas of car performance, such as the aerodynamics, with teams allowed to continue tinkering with their designs whenever they want.
When it comes to the engines, manufacturers must submit their final specifications before September 1. After that, they will be unable to make any performance-related improvements until 2026, when new power unit regulations come into force.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...sainz-27710278
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2023 F1 driver market: Mick Schumacher contract talks delayed by Haas in a strategic power play.
Mick Schumacher’s contract talks over his future have been put on hold by Haas as the 2023 F1 driver market becomes a game of poker.
7 Aug 2022
F1 Desk
Schumacher was due to resolve his future during the summer break but Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has decided to delay talks, report German broadcaster RTL. That decision is because Haas believe they are Schumacher’s only hope of remaining in F1 in the 2023 season, so they are playing hard ball in contract negotiations.
This wave of movement in the 2023 F1 driver market has sent shockwaves through the entire grid and Haas’ decision to delay talks with Schumacher is a direct result. There are currently five unconfirmed seats among F1 teams for next season. Haas, AlphaTauri, Alfa Romeo, Alpine and Williams each have a spot yet to be decided.
Haas don’t believe that Schumacher is a realistic target for any of their rivals, so their hand in the negotiations has never been stronger. Schumacher is reportedly one of only four F1 drivers who earn less than £1 million per season. His only other option for 2023, apart from Haas, would be as a reserve driver for Ferrari, RTL report.
‘Strategic Power Play’;
https://www.crash.net/f1/news/100960...mes-game-poker
Haas concede Schumacher future "up in the air".
Schumacher is one of a number of drivers for whom the future remains unclear with F1 in its summer shutdown.
Wednesday 10 August 2022 13:58
Sam Hall
Former F2 champion Schumacher scored the first points of his F1 career by finishing eighth at Silverstone and immediately backed this up with a sixth in Austria.
Asked if ending his drought at the 32nd attempt had changed Schumacher, Steiner added: "Absolutely not. He is happy about it and it gives him a bit of confidence that he can do it.
“You don’t see that. I think he feels it but we don’t see it because he never really lacked confidence on the outside. What you portray and what you have got are two different things.”
‘Future up in the air’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/89...macher-future/
STEINER: “IF SCHUMACHER DECIDES TO GO SOMEWHERE ELSE…”
The Haas Team Principal discussed his drivers' contracts
19:35 Fri, 05 Aug 2022.
Dalila Zanardo
FormulaNerds
Haas Team Principal Gunther Steiner recently opened up to discuss Mick Schumacher’s future within the American team. Doubts still surround the German’s presence on the grid in 2023 but Steiner admits no announcement is to be expected during the summer break.
Mick Schumacher’s first season in Formula 1 was all but easy with a car that did not allow the rookie to fight for much. His second season, on the other side, had a difficult start but proceeded to then also show some sparkles of talent. Amid the negotiations with his current team Haas, however, Schumacher had also proceeded to enter talks with Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team to replace fellow German Sebastian Vettel in 2023, following the 4-times World Champion’s retirement at the end of the season.
Consequently to Aston Martin’s announcement that 2-times World Champion Fernando Alonso will take the seat left empty by Vettel, RTL now reports talks between Haas and Mick Schumacher have also suffered a halt. In particular, according to the German media: “Schumacher will not get a new contract with his Haas team during the summer break as team boss Guenther Steiner is no longer in a hurry to negotiate an extended contract with the driver”.
‘No longer in a hurry to negotiate’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/st.../?nowprocket=1
‘Mattia Binotto is not fully convinced by Mick Schumacher’
Monday 8th August 2022 11:00 AM
Michelle Foster
Guenther Steiner, though, says he had no intention of speaking with his drivers until after the summer break. He also will not wait to see what Ferrari have to say. “No, we don’t have to wait to see what Ferrari say,” the team boss told Racer. “We never decide the driver before the summer break and we will not do so this year. “Obviously I will start to speak with Gene [Haas] over the summer break and then you know how we do it — you will ask again at the next race in Europe and then we will tell you some time at the end of September or October what we are doing, and the same will be happening this year hopefully.”
However, unlike in the past two years when Schumacher could count on Ferrari’s support, Bild claims Ferrari’s team boss is no longer enamoured with the 23-year-old. “Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto is not fully convinced by Schumi Jr,” claims the German newspaper.
Steiner has no idea what Schumacher’s deal with Ferrari entails. “I don’t want to speak about our Ferrari deal because otherwise they get upset!” he joked. “At the end of the day I don’t know the real deal between Ferrari and Mick — and I don’t need to know. If he decides to go somewhere else, I cannot change it. Only Gene and me are involved in that process.”
‘Mattia Binotto not fully convinced by Mick Schumacher’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/mattia...ck-schumacher/
F1 driver Mick Schumacher expected to leave Haas in 2023.
Mick Schumacher is expected to be out at Haas for the 2023 season, per Motorsport's Adam Cooper. Why is Schumacher in this position and what is next for him?
17:04 Fri, 05 Aug 2022.
Austin Konenski
Young F1 star Mick Schumacher’s days at the Haas team look to be officially over. Mick Schumacher is expected to be out at Haas for the 2023 season, per Motorsport’s Adam Cooper. This was mentioned as a possibility in a story about Schumacher on Thursday morning also. So, why is Schumacher expected to be on the way out, and what’s next?
Things can change quickly in the business side of Motorsports, so unless something is announced during the summer break, Schumacher needs to prove he belongs and try to earn his ride at Haas. It has also been reported that Mattia Binotto, team principal of Ferrari, is no longer convinced of Schumacher’s potential at this point. The 23-year-old is a part of the Ferrari Driver Academy.
This opens the door for Schumacher to possibly jump ship to another driver academy, such as Red Bull, since Binotto might not see a future for the young driver at Ferrari. It was covered on Thursday that Helmut Marko, head of Red Bull’s driver development program, has a soft spot for Schumacher and it could work out in his favor.
‘Mick Schumacher expected to leave Haas in 2023’;
https://sportsnaut.com/f1-driver-mic...-leaving-haas/
Formula 1: Mick Schumacher to Red Bull for 2023?
Mon, 08 Aug 2022
by Asher Fair
If Haas move on from Mick Schumacher, could he end up making the switch from Ferrari to Red Bull for the 2023 Formula 1 season? Could that lead him to join Red Bull’s development program? Such a move could keep Schumacher in Formula 1 with Red Bull sister team AlphaTauri, as they have yet to confirm whether Yuki Tsunoda will be back for what would be a third season with the team in 2023.
There is also still the belief that Pierre Gasly isn’t exactly locked in for 2023, even though the team have him under contract through next year. We all know just how much “under contract” means anymore. After this year’s silly season, and not just in Formula 1, you’d be silly not to put it right on par with the promises of a career politician running for another term in public office.
It is also interesting to note that Vettel has long served as a mentor to the young Schumacher, just as Michael served as a mentor for Vettel. Vettel even backed Schumacher to take over his seat at Aston Martin before they signed Alonso. Is a move to the Red Bull organization, one with which Vettel won four consecutive world championships to open up the 2010s, now in the cards? Red Bull don’t currently have any F1-ready junior drivers in their development program, but the addition of Schumacher could change that.
‘Mick Schumacher to Red Bull for 2023’;
https://beyondtheflag.com/2022/08/08...red-bull-2023/
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Big decisions may await Williams in quest to shed unwanted tag.
F1’s new rules were designed to potentially shake up the order – but Williams still find themselves stuck at the bottom of the pile.
Tuesday 9th August 2022 8:00 AM.
Jon Wilde
Just like in every other season from 2018 onwards, they are propping up the table in 10th – and, despite returning to Spa with those happy memories straight after the summer break, look unlikely to improve on that position before the campaign draws to a close. So what has enabled Alfa Romeo and Haas to leapfrog Williams? (And AlphaTauri and Aston Martin too, for that matter.)
Redesigning the cars has to account for much of it. Like ninth-placed Aston Martin, who are 17 points ahead of them in the championship, Williams have already changed direction since they launched the FW44, aware that the original concept was not working as hoped. Technical director FX Demaison added of the revamp rolled out at Silverstone: “We can really call it a new car, because the list of parts we kept is much shorter than the ones we changed.”
“We saw many other cars going in other directions. We are not [so] stupid to not look somewhere else and not look at what the others do. For this, it took a bit of time and analysis before we were ready to go because we didn’t want to copy without understanding. That’s why it was only at race 10 we saw it because we first wanted to understand the concept.” Albon, however, has had the new spec for four races now without adding to the three points he scored in Australia (10th) and Miami (ninth).
‘Williams Big Decisions’;
https://www.planetf1.com/features/wi...season-review/
Williams chief makes bold Red Bull and Ferrari claim – "We can now compete"
22:20, 8 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
The Williams team remains a shadow of its former self despite being sold to new owners Dorilton Capital two years ago, though ambitious team boss Jost Capito is optimistic about the future.
Gone are the days, however, of competitive cars and world champion drivers. Instead, those famous blue and white cars have largely been making up the numbers in recent seasons. Capito is the man charged with the unenviable task of turning things around, and he insists there is still hope of what would be a much-welcomed resurgence.
Speaking to Speedweek, he continued: "That's a long process in Formula 1. You saw that at Red Bull Racing and also at Ferrari. The same goes for Williams. "Williams is a traditional racing team but has not been able to invest heavily in the last 10 years. If you look at the gap to the other teams at the beginning of the season, it has narrowed. We can now compete with other teams again and that's fun."
‘Williams F1 Can Now Compete’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...rrari-27690760
Hong Kong billionaire backer of Williams could expand investment in F1
08/08/2022 at 10:56
Michael Delaney
Hong Kong billionaire and life insurance tycoon Calvin Lo, the investor suspected to be behind Dorilton Capital's investment in Williams Racing, says he could expand his interests in Formula 1. Dorilton acquired Williams from the team's founding family in 2020, and speculation at the time pointed to Lo – the chief executive of insurance broker RE Lee International – as the man behind the US private equity firm's investment.
Lo has neither denied nor confirmed the speculation but has admitted to having "some sort of exposure" to Williams through Dorilton, although he declined to offer more detail on the level of his investment. However, speaking to Reuters recently, Lo says Formula 1's remarkable growth of late has caught Asian investors' attention, adding that investment opportunities in the sport are being considered.
"A lot of people, me included, are still looking to other teams, other opportunities, because...there are consistently good teams but they are not able to come up with the right car," Lo told Reuters.
‘Williams Racing Investment Speculation’;
https://f1i.com/news/450702-hong-kon...ent-in-f1.html
Nicholas Latifi felt ‘something was not right’, Williams couldn’t find an issue
Monday 8th August 2022 5:00 PM
Jon Wilde
Nicholas Latifi wonders if there was “something wrong” with his previous Williams chassis that was causing his poor results this season. The Canadian remains the only driver on the grid not to have scored a point in 2022, his highest finishing position being 12th in the British Grand Prix. Often significantly behind the pace of his team-mate Alex Albon, Latifi had to wait two races longer to receive the big upgrades Williams had developed for the FW44.
He got them for the French Grand Prix and while they brought no immediate improvement in terms of race results, Latifi did finish top of the FP3 standings in Hungary last time out and also set a purple fastest sector in Q1. Latifi now believes things are “on the right path” as he battles to extend his F1 racing career to a fourth campaign, needing a strong second half of the season to convince Williams to stick with him.
“There’s been a clear shift that’s factual,” the 27-year-old Montreal-born driver told The Race. “It’s not me and my feeling, it’s on track with numbers. I know [from] one race to the next I didn’t just all of a sudden improve my pace by three quarters of a second. So I feel I have some momentum now since Silverstone and especially since getting the upgrade package.”
‘Something wrong with his previous Williams chassis’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/nichol...chassis-issue/
Robert Kubica: People forget that it was I, not George Russell, who scored Williams’ point
Robert Kubica returned to Formula 1 in 2019 after suffering horrific injuries in 2011.
8 August 2022
by James Clifford
Alfa Romeo reserve driver Robert Kubica has emphasised that returning to Formula 1 after his 2011 crash was one of the most difficult challenges he has ever faced in his career. Kubica was back to a round of applause in the press conference ahead of that year’s Australian Grand Prix (2019 season), and returning after a life-threatening accident eight years prior was a magnificent personal achievement.
“It was a shame that the car was not good that year, as fans have few memories of my comeback because of that,” explained Kubica. However, at the crazy German Grand Prix that season, it was Kubica who would score the Grove-based team’s only podium of the season when both Alfa Romeo drivers were disqualified from the wet race. That point meant the world to Kubica, whose return had been vindicated after years of recovery.
“Similarly, people forget that I was the one who managed to get a World Championship point that year, and that was no easy task with that car,” he stated. “I am still proud of that point scored at the German Grand Prix, it was an important moment in my racing career. It was the culmination of the long road I had to travel to get back into an F1 car and to get back into life at all. A moment that unfortunately very few people remember, but that is how it works in Formula 1.”
‘People forget Robert Kubica scored Williams’ one and only point in 2019’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/robert-ku...illiams-point/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_F...d_Championship
Williams backed Alex Albon to excel at a team ‘where he is loved’
Sunday 7th August 2022 10:30 PM
Sam Cooper
Jost Capito believed he could get the best out of Alex Albon by bringing him to a Williams team “where he is loved.” Albon spent a year out of the sport having become the latest driver to find the second Red Bull hot-seat just a little too hot and, having served as Red Bull’s test and reserve driver for the 2021 season, he made the switch back into full-time F1 with Williams for the 2022 campaign.
The British-Thai driver has impressed since his return, producing a masterclass in tyre preservation to earn a point in Australia before following that up with a P9 in Miami two races later. While that remains the last of his point-scoring races this season, he has comfortably outperformed his team-mate Nicholas Latifi.
Capito said he always knew Albon had talent and that he just needed the right conditions to thrive. “I think it was clear that he’s good, otherwise, he would never been in the Red Bull,” Capito said, as per GPFans.com. “He did very well beside Max [Verstappen] – you know how good Max is – he did very well, and the team is around Max, isn’t it? It’s very difficult for every second driver in Red Bull.
‘Williams backed Alex Albon to excel’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/willia...e-he-is-loved/
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Bottas: 2022 probably my most enjoyable F1 season so far.
Valtteri Bottas believes 2022 is "probably the most enjoyable" season he has experienced to date in Formula 1 thanks to stability over his future with Alfa Romeo.
Aug 11, 2022, 9:57 AM
By: Luke Smith
Motorsport.com
Bottas joined Alfa Romeo at the beginning of the season following a five-year stint with Mercedes that saw him score 10 grand prix victories and twice finish as runner-up in the drivers' championship to teammate Lewis Hamilton. While the Finn has taken a step back from the regular front-running form he enjoyed at Mercedes, he has spearheaded Alfa Romeo's efforts in the midfield this season, scoring 41 of its 46 points so far.
Bottas signed a multi-year agreement with Alfa Romeo for this year, providing certainty over his future that he never previously enjoyed with either Williams or Mercedes, who opted for yearly contract renewals. "This is actually the first time for me, because even with Williams, it was always one year," Bottas told Motorsport.com in an interview.
"This season is probably the most enjoyable so far," Bottas said. "OK, maybe you don't know always remember things, but it really feels like I'm enjoying F1 more than ever. When it gets to the racing, it's a lot of good fun, especially like in the midfield and how different it is strategy-wise in the races. It's more like one decision can jump you many places. It's a different game.
‘Spearheading Alfa Romeo's Efforts’;
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/b...-far/10351584/
Bottas ready to plow through the field
12:07 Wed, 10 Aug 2022.
F1i.com
As a fan of big wheels, Valtteri Bottas couldn't resist saddling a tractor while enjoying his summer break in the beautiful American state of Wyoming.
And while most farm equipment is usually green, the Finn naturally opted for a red tractor whose color had a vague common trait with his Alfa Romeo F1 car.
While the machine was short on power and downforce compared to his C42, it did prove more reliable out in the field! Keep those big wheels spinning Val!
‘Tractor Plough’;
https://f1i.com/images/450813-bottas...the-field.html
ALFA ROMEO AND SAUBER PARTNERSHIP TO CONTINUE
Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo agree terms of new deal
30th July 2022, 18:38
James Phillips
Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo have agreed to continue their partnership. Alfa Romeo has been the title sponsor of the Swiss team since 2019. The agreement also sees the Italian manufacturer provide technical expertise.
Autosport is reporting that Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo have agreed a one-year extension to their existing deal. The agreement has seen the Italian car manufacturer return to the F1 grid, in a reduced capacity. Alfa Romeo has previously been a manufacturer team on the grid. Their last race was in 1985 before withdrawing.
When Alfa agreed to return in 2019, it struck a unique deal with Sauber. It supplies technical assistance and title sponsorship, but race under Ferrari engines. Confirming the extension, Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato revealed the deal is for one year only. “I have signed the renewal for 2023 this morning.
‘ALFA ROMEO RENEWAL’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/f1.../?nowprocket=1
Alfa Romeo’s ‘bet’ on Sauber and a unique F1 deal has paid off
Jul 29 2022
By Scott Mitchell
Sauber’s renewal of its Alfa Romeo title partnership deal – which Reuters reports has now been confirmed for 2023 – extends a unique Formula 1 arrangement for another season. Alfa Romeo is a ‘works’ F1 team in the loosest possible sense. It is an extreme interpretation of an advertising campaign – title sponsorship with the perks of that sponsor being a famous car brand rather than some cryptocurrency or NFT nonsense.
The purpose of the way this deal is structured is to keep the options open for both parties. While the Alfa Romeo money and prestige are obviously of importance to Sauber, it is not as though it shapes its entire infrastructure. And while being in F1 is of great interest to Alfa Romeo, that’s only the case while this cut-price approach remains valid.
The arrangement currently works well for both parties. Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato – whose reported remarks today come ahead of any planned official announcement – is particularly pleased with what he describes simply as a “fantastic return on investment” for his company. “It was very simple, the guide we had together with Fred [Vasseur] is I want to be ‘up’,” Imparato told The Race about the requirements from Alfa Romeo’s side for 2022. Progress. P8, P7, P6, P5, I don’t care. Up. And with the right level of return on investment in terms of exposure of Alfa Romeo, compared with the investment we make.”
‘Up’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/alfa-...-has-paid-off/
Two-horse race to be Bottas' 2023 teammate.
12/08/2022, 08:29
By GMM F1
The identity of Valtteri Bottas' teammate at Alfa Romeo in 2023 appears to be down to a two-horse race. Frederic Vasseur is personally championing the Sauber team's own junior Theo Pourchaire, the 18-year-old fellow Frenchman who is a title contender in Formula 2 this year.
Vasseur says Pourchaire will be making a Friday practice or tyre testing appearance in 2022. "We'll find the solution, don't worry," he said recently.
At the same time, Alfa Romeo is not yet ready to confirm that Guanyu Zhou will be keeping his seat next year - even though the team says it is impressed with the Chinese rookie. "I haven't spoken to any team yet," Zhou is quoted by the Dutch publication Formule 1. "I feel like I have already proven myself as a fast driver, now I have to show that I can perform consistently."
‘Two-Horse Race’;
https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/formula...7.html?newsnow
The painful deja vu undermining F1 2022’s early feel-good story
11th August 2022, 11:14
By Scott Mitchell
Before Formula 1 signed off for its summer break, Valtteri Bottas hoped the Hungarian Grand Prix would send a message to his Alfa Romeo team. It did. Just not the one Bottas intended. A long-awaited floor and diffuser upgrade in Hungary marked Alfa Romeo’s first major development for several races. Bottas felt it was no coincidence that he promptly secured his first top-10 qualifying result since May’s Spanish Grand Prix – ironically the previous race at which the car had a significant upgrade.
“It would be a good example for the whole team that once we bring new bits to this car, that is the key to keeping us fighting for the top 10 and in the points,” he said. Instead, though, the Hungarian GP sent another message to Alfa Romeo – and it was a very familiar one. Just when Bottas thought the team was about to correct one key 2022 limitation (a lack of development), an equally large limitation (reliability) bit him hard.
The deja vu was palpable: a third retirement of the season for Bottas and seventh for Alfa Romeo across its two cars. Throw into that an astonishing number of car problems in Friday practice sessions for Bottas and there’s a pretty concrete case for the Alfa Romeo C42 being F1 2022’s most unreliable car. “Where we probably have suffered most is in general is reliability, where we had a few setbacks,” says technical director Jan Monchaux.
‘Déjà vu’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/the-p...el-good-story/
How Zhou is silencing doubters: 'People have said racist stuff, I do my talking on track'
AUGUST 10TH 2022, 13:09
AUTHOR Chris Medland
Zhou's rookie season will be remembered for his crash at Silverstone and label as a pay driver, but that's unfair on an impressive young driver, says Chris Medland I defy anyone to hear the name Zhou Guanyu and not immediately recall an Alfa Romeo upside down hurtling towards the barrier at Silverstone, being somersaulted into the fence and landing on its side behind the tyres.
“Everything happened so quickly but it wasn’t a nice feeling,” Zhou recalls. “When I first went upside down it wasn’t a big deal for me because I felt like maybe I would stop in the gravel – Silverstone has gravel after the tarmac – and then when I was in the gravel I was still going at a constant speed and I was like ‘OK, I’m in big s*** now’.
The thing is, for Zhou, it’s not the crash that has been the hardest thing to shake. It was a tag that he was only in the sport due to his nationality, with the Chinese driver having finished third in his third full season of Formula 2 last year. “When I signed the contract I had a lot of people comment or say stuff about me, and some of them never followed Formula 2 or followed my career,” he recalls. “They just judged by where I’m coming from, so this sort of thing is not nice to have.”
‘I do my talking on track’;
https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...lking-on-track
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Legendary F1 circuit set to stay on the calendar in 2023 despite axe rumours.
The Belgian Grand Prix is set to retain its place on the Formula 1 in the 2023 season that is expected to run until the middle of December.
27 July 20222
by James Clifford
Due to the influx of new and returning venues in the pinnacle of motorsport, the calendar is changing significantly. F1 is set to make its return to South Africa next year, while Vegas will be added to the growing list of races in the United States – Austin and Miami also have a race on the schedule.
The Monaco, Austrian, French, Belgian and Mexican Grand Prix are all out of contract this season, and there has been genuine concern that Spa Francorchamps – the home of the Belgian Grand Prix and one of the most historic tracks in F1 – will disappear next season.
However, it is now set to stay, while the Circuit Paul Ricard’s fate is sealed, according to Auto Motor und Sport journalist, Michael Schmidt. “France is definitely out. South Africa looks more like it will be in 2024, and if that were the case then Spa would stay on the calendar for one more year,” he said.
‘Legendary F1 circuit set to stay’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/legendary...e-axe-rumours/
‘A shame’, ‘just about money’: F1 drivers fear Spa’s next grand prix will be its last
2022 Belgian Grand Prix
Posted on 5th August 2022, 8:145th August 2022, 10:09 |
Written by Ida Wood and Claire Cottingham
While the 2023 Formula 1 calendar has not yet been officially confirmed, many drivers have already expressed disappointment over the widely-expected loss of the Belgian Grand Prix. This year’s race at Spa-Francorchamps will be the first after F1’s summer break, by which point the event’s future may already be known. Excitement for this year’s race, following the one-lap washout of the 2021 edition, is coupled with uncertainty over whether it could be the last to be held at Spa for the foreseeable future.
When Lando Norris – who has Belgian heritage on his mother’s side – was asked at the French Grand Prix if he would prefer to keep the Belgian or French round at Paul Ricard on the 2023 calendar, it was an easy call for the McLaren driver. “Spa, easy,” he said. “My mum’s from Belgium, so I’m 50% Flemish. It’s as much a home race for me as it in Silverstone in a way.
“I personally have a lot more connections to it, of course, and I love the track and so on, I grew up a lot of the time or I grew up for many years going to Belgium and spending a lot of time there with my family.”
‘F1 drivers fear Spa’s next grand prix will be its last’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/05/...l-be-its-last/
2022 Belgian GP: Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to be handed boost with Ferrari PU upgrade
Ferrari trail Red Bull by 97 points in the Constructors' Standings.
12 August 2022
by James Clifford
Ferrari are set to rock up at the Belgian Grand Prix with an upgrades engine as they look to recover their deficit to Red Bull in the championship. The Scuderia came into the season with one of the best engines on the grid, but the power unit Honda made for Red Bull has generally eclipsed it.
Previously known for their superior downforce, the Red Bull has been a demon in a straight line this season, and Ferrari are trying their best to change that. This is not to say that they are far off; they are really not, but more power from the engine rarely hurts.
Plenty of points have been lost through reliability-related problems this year. This, in part, is due to the fact that Ferrari designed an engine to compete, so spent more of their allocated time on that than ensuring reliability as they endeavoured to close the gap to Mercedes and Red Bull. Changes will still be permitted to the engines after Spa, when Ferrari are set to being their final performance upgrade, but due to the impending freeze, any further changes can only be used for reliability reasons.
‘Ferrari Reliability-Related Problems’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/2022-belg...ri-pu-upgrade/
Mercedes intrigued to see impact of Spa floor changes on Red Bull & Ferrari
02 August 2022
Ben Issatt
Mercedes are intrigued to see how a technical directive coming at the Belgian Grand Prix will impact Red Bull and Ferrari. At Spa, the governing body will finally implement a new vertical oscillation metric that was created after the Canadian GP aimed at reducing the porpoising effect drivers are dealing with in the new ground effect 2022 Formula 1 cars.
During their investigation, however, it was discovered some teams, thought to be Ferrari and Red Bull, are using special floor tricks that allow the plank under the car to flex more than intended and also protect the skid blocks that are used by the FIA to ensure the plank doesn't wear more than permitted during a race.
The new checks are also a relief to Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who thinks they are long overdue. "There was a regulatory change or like a technical directive to make clear what the FIA wishes to not see anymore at Spa and in particular on the skids," the Austrian explained. I think it was a coincidence that the FIA spotted it in one of the races, and made it very clear that this was not on.”
‘Mercedes Intrigued’;
https://www.insideracing.com/formula...d-bull-ferrari
Mercedes could be quicker than Ferrari and Red Bull at 2022 Belgian Grand Prix
5 August 2022
by James Clifford
Mercedes trackside engineer, Andrew Shovlin, has confirmed that there are more upgrades on the way for the Silver Arrows are their impressive recent form.
A large part of the recent Mercedes success has been down to upgrades brought in to improve an underperforming W13, and they intend to continue in that vein beyond the Belgian Grand Prix after the summer break. “Well, we’ve got more coming. We are trying to bring some performance to Spa that will hopefully close that gap,” stated Shovlin.
“We haven’t got far to go now, but we’ll keep developing the car for a little while now. We’re quite excited though, the last few races have been the most fun we’ve had all year and we are just hoping that we can take that extra step because we definitely want to be winning races in the near future, so we are working hard to try and achieve that.”
‘More Upgrades on the way for the Silver Arrows’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/mercedes-...an-grand-prix/
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Fernando Alonso to stay at Aston Martin until 2025.
Fernando Alonso has signed with Aston Martin for the 2023 season, and is set to stay there until the end of 2025.
11 August 2022
by James Clifford
1996 world champion Damon Hill is amazed at Fernando Alonso’s ability to continue performing at the very highest athletic level even at his age. Now 41, Alonso scored his 98th career podium in Qatar last season, and might easily have added more to his tally had it not been for various moments of ill fortune so far in 2022.
If he has the talent, Hill sees no reason why the Spaniard cannot keep going into his mid-forties. “Fernando is firing on all cylinders, and looking very strong and incredible,” he told the F1 Nation Podcast. “And of course, remember that [Juan Manuel] Fangio, he didn’t start in Formula 1 until he was 38 and he went on until he was way into his mid-40s at a time when it was extremely dangerous.”
“So, he must have had nerves of steel and incredible skill, which is the same as Fernando Alonso. I think it’s down to whether you love it or not, if you’ve got enough energy, and you keep yourself in good shape, then why not? Why not keep going? I’m going to pick a number, when is he going to retire? I think he will retire when he’s 44.”
‘EL PLAN: 44’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/fernando-...in-until-2025/
Aston Martin admit Fernando Alonso will ‘demand a lot’
Fernando Alonso has been announced as Sebastian Vettel's Aston Martin replacement next year.
10 August 2022
by James Clifford
Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack is looking forward to his working relationship with Fernando Alonso when the Spaniard joins the team next season. It was thought that the 41-year-old had already made an agreement with billionaire owner Lawrence Stroll in advance even of this season; all he had to do was say yes.
It is indeed the sharpness of the double world champion’s mind, on top of a multitude of other things, that Krack is looking forward to next year. “[Fernando] just has that killer instinct, no matter what, you know that he will always give you everything,” he said, quoted by RacingNews365.com.
“[He will] always push 100 per cent, always extract the maximum from the car and the team, his racecraft is exceptional – a formidable combination of confidence, instinct and intelligence. He will demand a lot from us, but that’s to be expected from a multiple World Champion. “Fernando will be a driving force as we climb together and, like everyone in the team, I cannot wait to work with him.” Stroll has a five-year plan to earn the ultimate honour in motorsport – winning the Formula 1 title, but things have not gone Aston Martin’s way this year.
‘EL PLAN: Five-Year Plan’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/aston-mar...-demand-a-lot/
Brundle backs Alonso to push Aston Martin ‘very hard’
14:35 Sat, 06 Aug 2022.
by Fergal Walsh
Ex-Formula 1 driver-turned-pundit Martin Brundle says he expects Fernando Alonso to push Aston Martin “very hard” when he joins the team in 2023. It was a move that surprised many, however it is believed that Alpine only wanted to extend the 41-year-old on a one-year deal, opposed to the multi-season offer he received from Aston Martin.
Writing in his column for Sky F1, Brundle also suggested that Alonso wasn’t impressed by how he was treated on the track by team-mate Esteban Ocon. “The timing of his [Vettel’s] video retirement declaration made even more sense when Fernando Alonso was surprisingly announced as taking his seat on Monday morning.”
“It appears that Alpine couldn’t or wouldn’t offer Alonso a two-year deal, and his Aston Martin deal is officially described as multi-year. He’s also been fairly underwhelmed at how punchy his team-mate Esteban Ocon has been towards him in combat at Alpine rather than turning all their guns on their rivals.”
‘EL PLAN: Push Aston Martin Very Hard’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...tin-very-hard/
Krack: Alonso is a clear statement of our intent at Aston Martin
11 August, 2022
NewsDesk
Aston Martin have released a mid-term interview with team principal Mike Krack, in it, he says that signing Fernando Alonso to replace retiring Sebastian Vettel is a statement of intent by Lawrence Stroll’s outfit.
Topping the transcript of the interview with Krack was of course the team’s ‘acquisition’ of 41-year-old Alonso to lead the charge alongside Lance Stroll next year; the team boss explained the reasoning of a most unexpected move: “He just has that killer instinct. No matter what, you know that Fernando will always give you everything: always push 100 per cent, always extract the maximum from the car and the team.”
“His racecraft is exceptional – a formidable combination of confidence, instinct and intelligence. Signing Fernando is a clear statement of our intent at Aston Martin F1. We are not on the grid to make up the numbers. We are here to win. We are on a journey to the front of the grid and Fernando’s decided to join us on that journey To have a driver of his calibre believe in the Aston Martin F1 project,” Krack continued, “is a great compliment to our team and the work we are doing.”
‘EL PLAN: Clear Statement Of Our Intent At Aston Martin’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...-aston-martin/
Massa: Aston Martin has more to gain than Alonso
06/08/2022 at 14:03
Phillip van Osten
Felipe Massa admitted to being surprised by Fernando Alonso's move from Alpine to Aston Martin, insisting the British outfit has more to gain from the deal than his former Ferrari teammate. "First of all, Fernando is an amazing driver," Massa told Sky Sports' Any Driven Monday show. "I had the chance to be teammates with him [for a] long time [at] Ferrari. I learned a lot with him, so he's, in my view, one of the best drivers in Formula 1. It was a little bit strange to hear that decision from him to sign with Aston Martin."
Last year, Aston Martin embarked on a multi-year journey to build itself up as a genuine contender for the world title. But the prospect of moving significantly up the grid next year is remote, which has led many to questions Alonso's motives. "To be honest, if you want to hear what I have to say, I think Aston Martin has a lot to gain with Fernando there," Massa continued.
"I don't know if Fernando has a lot to gain by being there with Aston Martin, in my view. The most important thing for Fernando is to have a competitive car in order to show what he's able to. But, if things stay the way it is now, Fernando [could be] fighting for 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th position. So this, I don't think will be really interesting for him."
‘In My View, One Of The Best Drivers In Formula 1’;
https://f1i.com/news/450629-massa-as...an-alonso.html
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‘I found it laughable’: McLaren boss Zak Brown slammed for broken F1 promise.
McLaren boss Zak Brown is copping backlash from his own network of reserve drivers as the Daniel Ricciardo and Oscar Piastri contract saga rages.
August 13th, 2022 4:08 pm
Nic Savage and Matthew Sullivan from News.com.au
As the drama unfolds, the fallout has extended all the way to the United States. IndyCar drivers Pato O’Ward, Colton Herta and Alex Palou were each targeting the vacant Alpine seat, but the trio have seemingly been sidelined by Brown.
According to leading IndyCar driver O’Ward, Brown dangled the F1 carrot in front of the Americans before going all in on Piastri. “It’s not good for me to have that illusion. It’s a dream that’s very far away, because although I’m racing at a very high level, it’s still not enough to convince them,” O’Ward told ESPN.
“There are many things that come into play that are beyond me. “I found it laughable. I saw it and I laughed. The same prize has been put in front of many other drivers by Brown. In the end, there is only one seat and not five.”
Found It Laughable’;
https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...fd6f28bd98397d
McLaren star dubs Oscar Piastri farce "laughable" as chief Zak Brown stockpiles drivers
Among the many impacts of McLaren's attempts to snatch Piastri from Alpine is what it means for the swathe of talented racers they already have on their books, waiting for a chance in F1
18:58, 12 Aug 2022
By Daniel Moxon F1 Writer
McLaren driver Pato O'Ward said his Formula 1 dream is now "a very distant illusion" in the wake of the team's desire to sign wantaway Alpine driver Oscar Piastri.
But along with the impact on Ricciardo, the move would also have ramifications for an ever-growing list of drivers on McLaren's books. Many of their talents reside across the pond, with a hatful of IndyCar stars either in their stable or having been given a chance to test with the team, such as Colton Herta.
Mexican O'Ward races for McLaren's IndyCar outfit, and now appears to have written off his chances of a future switch to F1. "It doesn't do me any good to have that illusion," he told ESPN . "Up to that point I feel that I have matured in the aspect that the illusion is a very distant illusion.
‘Stockpiling Drivers!’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...astri-27728797
Inside Line: Piastri, Webber, Alonso and Flavio
13 August, 2022
Paul Velasco
The “I don’t want to drive for Alpine” Formula 1 Silly Season saga has taken so many twists and turns that it’s taken me a while to tackle this one and try to make some sense of it all. To sum up: the Silly Season really fired off in anger when Fernando Alonso defected from Alpine to replace retiring Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin which caught everyone off guard.
Among us esteemed F1 journo Joe Saward who wrote in his blog: “I was just a tad irritated when I heard that Fernando Alonso had signed for Aston Martin because it seemed before that came that he would be staying at Alpine in 2023. “It was a big surprise in that it is utterly illogical (except from a financial point of view) and it came as a shock to everyone, even Alpine boss Otmar Szafnauer.” Hard to argue about the logic of pitting Alonso in the same caravan as Lawrence Stroll but the Canadian billionaire – who calls the shots on the big stuff at AM – sees the benefits of signing the 41-year-old Spaniard.
Again, worth quoting Joe who sums it up as I see it too: “Will Alonso and Aston Martin be a match made in heaven? “Probably not. Fernando is not easy (although he is more relaxed these days). Lawrence Stroll is not known for being an easy companion. What he is known for is his belief that Lance is an undiscovered genius, capable of winning World Championships. Being a racing dad and a team owner is not a good combination and one wonders what will happen when Alonso beats Lance every weekend. Fernando is smart, but he is not ever going to say: After you Lance…” ventured Saward.
‘Utterly illogical (except from a financial point of view)’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...-silly-season/
FIA board backed to resolve Piastri dispute
Friday 12 August 2022 17:07
Sam Hall
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has backed the Contract Recognition Board to settle the dispute between Alpine and Oscar Piastri.
After Aston Martin surprised Alpine with its sudden announcement that Fernando Alonso would replace the retiring Sebastian Vettel next season, the French manufacturer moved quickly to confirm that reserve driver Piastri would step up in place of the Spaniard.
Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer believes the messy situation is destined for the high court but Ben Sulayem has backed the FIA system to sort the matter. "The FIA's Driver Contract Recognition Board [CRB] was set up to deal with contract priority issues between drivers and F1 teams," said Ben Sulayem on social media. "That's why we rely on their decision to resolve any conflict."
‘Contract Recognition Board’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/89248/fia-piastri/
FIA ANNOUNCES IT WILL LOOK INTO PIASTRI’S CONTRACT ISSUE
The controversy between Alpine, McLaren, and Piastri will be dealt with by the CRB
10:04, Fri, 12 August 2022.
Dalila Zanardo
A new page in the biggest controversy of the 2022 drivers’ market sees the FIA now getting involved in the dispute. The dilemma involving Oscar Piastri’s contracts for a seat in Formula 1 in 2023 will be dealt with by the CRB, as communicated yesterday by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem.
As both parties believe their contracts to be valid, the dispute has now been moved to the legal side with Alpine Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer declaring to Reuters he believes the matter will end up in front of the High Court to discuss compensation, as FIA’s Contract Recognition Board (CRB) might be ineffective in solving the issue: “Going to the High Court is over 90% certain that’s what we’ll do. If the CRB says ‘your licence is only valid at Alpine’, and then he (Piastri) says ‘that’s great but I’m never driving for them, I’ll just sit out a year’, then you’ve got to go to the High Court for compensation.”
Now, a brief statement from FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem clarified that the priority will now be to have the question being dealt with by the FIA’s internal institutions: “The FIA’s Driver Contract Recognition Board (CRB) was set up to deal with contract priority issues between drivers and F1 teams. That’s why we rely on their decision to resolve any conflict.”
‘FIA BRIEF STATEMENT’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/fi.../?nowprocket=1
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Horner heaps praise on Red Bull workforce for 'phenomenal' performance.
Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has hailed his workforce for dealing "phenomenally well" with the sport's recent change in technical regulations.
11 August 07:00
Author Dieter Rencken
Co-author RacingNews365 Staff
In an exclusive interview with RacingNews365.com, Christian Horner assesses Red Bull's efforts during the 2022 F1 season after a hard-fought battle for 2021 title glory. Reflecting on the season so far in an exclusive interview with RacingNews365.com, Horner offered up plenty of superlatives over his team's performance.
"It's been a remarkable first 13 races for us," he commented. "We came into the season off the back of last year, transitioning very late in the day compared to our opponents to this new set of regulations. I think the team has responded phenomenally well and for us to be in a competitive position from the first test is testament to the hard work that's gone on behind the scenes.”
"Obviously, the early races, we had some frustrations with reliability in Bahrain and in Australia. But we bounced back at race two in Jeddah, winning that race, and have had some epic fights [with Ferrari]. It seems to be working pretty well, these new regs, in terms of creating closer racing, and I think we've maximised our opportunities."
‘Phenomenal Red Bull Workforce’;
https://racingnews365.com/horner-hea...al-performance
Horner says Verstappen’s Hungary win was ‘one of his best drives’ and backs Perez to ‘come back stronger’
03 August 2022
Formula 1.
Red Bull ruled at the Hungaroring after Max Verstappen shrugged off a qualifying issue on Saturday and a spin on Sunday to win the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix – a result which left Team Principal Christian Horner singing the reigning champion’s praises. Verstappen pulled off a two-stop strategy in tough conditions in Budapest as he kept the pressure on the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, the Dutchman capitalising on poor pit stops for the Spaniard and a misjudged switch to hard tyres for the Monegasque.
“I can only focus on our performance and we did a great job today,” said Horner when asked whether Ferrari had made a mistake by putting Leclerc on hards rather than mediums for his second stint. “As soon as we saw Charles go onto the hard tyre, as soon as the white-walled tyres came out, we thought: OK, we’ve really got a chance now.”
And Checo [Perez] was fantastic because he was on a different strategy, he let Max immediately get onto the back of Charles to make that pass. "Max then had a spin, warmed his tyres up a bit more then had to do it all again. A phenomenal performance.”
‘Max Best Drives’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...TpuUJY2xE.html
Red Bull boss Horner: 2022 success 'beyond my wildest expectations'
11 August 2022
Ben Issatt
An increasingly dominant 2022 Formula 1 season is beyond Red Bull boss Christian Horner's "wildest expectations".
"Look, if you would have told me going into last year that with the biggest regulation change in 40 years, and with the effort we put into last year’s championship, we’d be sitting here with nine Grand Prix victories, two Sprint victories and leading both championships, that would have been beyond my wildest expectations," he said.
"I think it is really a testament to the determination, dedication and hard work that has gone on behind the scenes at the factory. Now, we've seen Ferrari are very competitive also this year, we’ve seen other teams – Mercedes for sure are gathering momentum – but considering that we were probably the last team to transition [development] fully onto this car it’s been a phenomenal job."
‘2022 Success Beyond My Wildest Expectations';
https://www.insideracing.com/formula...t-expectations
Christian Horner: 24-race F1 calendar is ‘right on the limit’
Saturday 13th August 2022 6:00 PM
Thomas Maher
Christian Horner reckons a 24-race Formula 1 calendar is right on the limits of what’s possible over the course of a year. F1 is expected to confirm a 24-race calendar for 2023, a record-breaking season that will see the return of the Chinese Grand Prix, as well as races in Las Vegas, Qatar and, possibly, South Africa.
However, F1’s rapidly-expanding calendar is putting more and more strain on the teams who, despite attempting to rotate operational staff between races, are finding it increasingly difficult to give their crews sufficient downtime away from travelling and racing.
A 24-race calendar will mean almost 50% of weekends during 2023 will have an F1 race, meaning plenty of back-to-backs and triple-headers are required in order to maintain the schedule between March and December, as well as including a mandatory summer shutdown.
‘24-Race F1 Calendar Is Right On The Limit’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/christ...-on-the-limit/
Horner respect for Verstappen-Leclerc racing conduct
Wednesday 10 August 2022 07:00
Sam Hall
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has admired how Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc have conducted themselves in the race for the F1 world championship. The Red Bull and Ferrari drivers have battled side-by-side on numerous occasions so far this season without a single touch between the two cars. This is in stark contrast to the tempestuous nature of the battle between Verstappen and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton last year.
Leclerc has dropped over 100 points to championship leader Max Verstappen this season through numerous reliability and strategic errors. After crashing through his own mistake in France, the Monégasque claimed that should he lose the title by 32 points or fewer, he would blame himself for the loss.
Even with the problems at Ferrari, Leclerc has remained calm when facing the media, something that has earned Horner's respect. Asked if he feels for Leclerc given Ferrari's struggles, Horner said: “I have a great deal of respect for the way he has conducted himself and the way that he is racing on track.”
‘Respect For Verstappen-Leclerc Racing Conduct’;
https://www.gpfans.com/en/f1-news/89...arles-leclerc/
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Andretti takes swipe at Wolff over F1 power.
1978 Formula 1 World Champion Mario Andretti has hit out at Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, suggesting the Austrian has too much influence in F1.
09:22 Sat, 13 Aug 2022.
by Fergal Walsh
Andretti was responding to an article from GrandPrix247, which argued that Wolff has too much power in the sport. Mario’s son Michael has been moving to form his own outfit in the F1 paddock to expand on his racing operations in IndyCar and Formula E.
However, the movement has been met with resistance from some parties, including Wolff. Wolff was one of the more vocal team bosses that questioned Andretti’s potential F1 entry and the value that they would add to the grid. “I think that whoever joins as the 11th team, whoever gets an entry, needs to demonstrate how creative they can be for the business.,” Wolff said recently.
“Andretti is a great name, and I think they have done exceptional things in the US. But this is sport and this is business and we need to understand what is it that you can provide to the sport.” The GrandPrix247 article questioned: “Is it not reasonable to question if his [Wolff’s] voice is louder than his peers, the other F1 team bosses?” Taking to Twitter, Andretti provided his agreement: “This needed to be said; it’s about time,” he said.
‘Mario Andretti Swipes Toto Wolff’;
https://www.motorsportweek.com/2022/...over-f1-power/
Ex-F1 champion claims Toto Wolff has too much influence over the FIA and Formula 1
13 August 2022
by James Clifford
1978 champion Mario Andretti has aimed another dig at Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after the Austrian’s latest protestations of the American entering a Formula 1 team in 2024.
Wolff is a former racing driver himself, as well as an entrepreneur and a shareholder in Mercedes. He holds power in various places, and his Mercedes team also hold power in F1 along with the other teams on the grid.
The teams work together with the FIA and Formula One Management (FOM) to help direct the sport, and an article was written recently asking if Wolff had too much power in the premier class of racing. Mario endorsed this viewpoint, tweeting: “This needed to be said; it’s about time.”
‘Toto Wolff has too much influence over the FIA and Formula 1’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/ex-f1-cha...and-formula-1/
Toto Wolff called out for being 'too powerful' as Lewis Hamilton's boss comes under fire
TOTO WOLFF has been slammed over his influence within Formula 1.
18:25, Sat, Aug 13, 2022
By Michael Gowler
Toto Wolff has been branded "too powerful" for Formula 1 as former world champion Mario Andretti has hit back at the Mercedes boss. Wolff has been critical of the American's attempts to see his Andretti Global outfit become the 11th team on the grid, which would provide extra challengers for Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
In response to a tweet from Grand Prix 247 which probed “Toto Wolff too powerful for F1? Is he? Worth asking questions in this age of transparency and boom times?” Andretti replied: “This needed to be said; it’s about time”.
Wolff is considered one of F1's most divisive and outspoken figures. Hamilton's boss has also seen his Mercedes team possess a stranglehold on the sport in recent times, with the Silver Arrows having claimed each of the last eight Constructors' Championship titles.
'Too Powerful'
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...on-Mercedes-F1
Mario Andretti Hits Back at Toto Wolff Over New F1 Team Drama.
Wolff and other F1 bosses aren’t convinced Andretti would add value to F1. The American dynasty ain’t happy about it.
Aug 12, 2022 3:54 PM
By Jerry Perez
"We have 10 franchises that we hope can increase the value and you are certainly not going to increase the value by issuing new franchises to people who cannot increase the overall value of Formula 1," Wolff added.
Following Wolff's comments, Andretti tweeted: "This needed to be said; it's about time." No, Andretti wasn't referring to the Wolff's comments, but someone's tweet asking if "Wolff was too powerful for F1?"
Given the gigantic $200 million “anti-dilution” fee Andretti would have to pay current F1 teams, it seems F1 bosses are whining about the very rules they've agreed to. But how could this happen?! (Sarcasm.) Also, any new team would be ineligible to receive any share of FIA money for several years—just ask Haas. The way it stands, teams are angry that F1 will have more teams to share its money with, even though they are the ones getting the $200,000,000 and the new team won't actually take any of their money for a long time.
‘Mario Andretti Hits Back at Toto Wolff’;
https://www.thedrive.com/accelerator...-f1-team-drama
Wolff: I’m not proud of smashing headphones
12 August, 2022
Paul Velasco
Toto Wolff is probably one of the most photographed and quoted personalities in Formula 1 today, and while he is not proud of some of his viral shenanigans and accepts it as the price he pays for wearing his heart on his sleeve.
But this year the streak has wobbled seriously this year, speaking to the Financial Times, Wolff revealed what went wrong with the radical but problematic Mercedes W13: “We got the physics wrong. F1 is physics. I often get the question: How hard is that?’
“I had so many periods, so many episodes in my life that I would judge as difficult, that this is not on the same scale. If you stop dreaming, you’ll run out of purpose, in my opinion. That is not some kind of Instagram bullshit. That is something that I learnt from Niki, that yesterday is irrelevant,” ventured the Mercedes team principal, who also admitted of his management style: “I can’t do aerodynamics but I know everything about the guy who can.”
‘Not Proud Of Smashing Headphones’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...cedes-f1-boss/
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Haas warned against sacking Mick Schumacher.
Former Formula 1 driver, Hans-Joachim Stuck, has told Haas that they will not be able to find a better driver than Mick Schumacher.
13 August 2022
by James Clifford
Hans-Joachim Stuck: “He needs to stick with it now, show himself and set an example, as he has already done this year, but not driving in Formula 1 for a year would be fatal,” he told Eurosport. Should Schumacher fail to find a drive elsewhere, Stuck suggested that it would be ill-advised from Haas not to keep him on board.
“If for some reason it doesn’t work out for him with another team, he’ll just have to do it with Haas for another year,” added the 71-year-old. “If Mick can’t find another cockpit, I wouldn’t understand it from Haas’ perspective, because they won’t get anyone better.”
“But I’d be surprised if Mick doesn’t find a job anywhere, he shows impeccable performances which the people in charge can see. He also has a great name. A team looking for a young driver can do no better than signing Mick Schumacher.”
‘Haas warned’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/haas-warn...ck-schumacher/
‘Mick Schumacher belongs somewhere better than Haas’
Saturday 13th August 2022 12:00 PM
Thomas Maher
Former F1 racer Hans-Joachim Stuck believes Mick Schumacher has now proven himself to be at a level deserving of a better F1 race seat.
But Schumacher does appear to have turned his form around in the middle part of the year, earning himself plenty of platitudes. Among his supporters is compatriot Hans-Joachim Stuck, who believes Schumacher is now at a higher level than the Haas team. “He has proven his skills this season,” he said, in an interview with Eurosport.
“He belongs in a car that’s better than the Haas. If it doesn’t work out with another team for any reason, he just has to do it with Haas for another year. But if Mick can’t find another cockpit, I wouldn’t understand Haas putting on a circus there. Because they won’t get any better.”
‘Hans-Joachim Stuck believes Mick Schumacher has now proven himself’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/mick-s...ter-than-haas/
Mick Schumacher told he deserves 'better' than Haas amid uncertainty over future
MICK SCHUMACHER is currently without a seat in 2023 amid an unclear future with his current team Haas.
16:17, Sat, Aug 13, 2022
By Andrew Gamble
Mick Schumacher has been told he has proven himself in Formula 1 and deserves better than Haas going forwards by former driver Hans-Joachim Stuck. Schumacher has enjoyed a season of ups and downs in 2022, and there are suggestions he could be without a drive for 2023 if he looks to join a rival team and move up the grid.
With only nine races remaining before the end of the season, Schumacher is still looking for a seat after he missed out on Aston Martin with Alonso replacing Sebastian Vettel. With the four-time world champion set to retire, Schumacher will be the only German on the grid - if he has a seat.
Haas team principal Guenther Steiner and Schumacher are at odds after a tense season following a number of errors, but the German has improved over the last few races. Compatriot Stuck believes Schumacher operates at a higher level than his current team.
‘Mick Schumacher told he deserves better’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...future-f1-news
Haas clarifies owner's stance on team's future
14/08/2022 at 09:21
Phillip van Osten
Haas team boss Guenther Steiner says the US outfit's owner Gene Haas remains committed to Formula 1 and has no intention of selling his team. Haas poor results in Formula 1 in recent seasons regularly sparked rumors that the beleaguered outfit could fold or change ownership.
Despite Haas' struggles and pointless campaign in 2021, the US outfit survived, not only to fight another season but also to significantly improve its level of performance as it exploited F1's regulations changes.
Haas currently stands seventh in F1's Constructors' standings with a tally of 34 points, or 17 points behind sixth-place team Alfa Romeo. And Steiner believes his outfit has a shot at snatching that position in the pecking order from Alfa if it gets "a good run" in the back half of the 2022 season.
‘Haas F1 Clarification’;
https://f1i.com/news/451001-haas-cla...ms-future.html
Mick Schumacher refutes question over legendary F1 father as Haas driver provides insight
MICK SCHUMACHER has insisted he only sees the positives from his famous racing surname.
11:00, Sat, Aug 13, 2022
By Fraser Watson
Mick Schumacher has claimed he sees sharing the same surname as his legendary F1 father as a good thing as he continues to improve at Haas. The German is in his second season with the American team, and finally has championship points to his name after top-10 finishes at both Silverstone and then the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
doubts remain over whether the youngster will have a seat in 2023, with Haas yet to offer him a new deal. He has thus far been outperformed by teammate Kevin Magnusson, with the Dane having racked up 22 points to his partner's 12.
Schumacher had been touted as a possible replacement for compatriot Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin. However, it has now been confirmed that Fernando Alonso will replace the four-time world champion.
‘Mick Schumacher refutes question’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...k-Haas-insight
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BARRETTO: Leclerc has the mentality to be world champion – but he'll need more than that to overhaul Verstappen.
“I will believe in the championship until the very end.” As Charles Leclerc left Budapest after another emotional weekend that has characterised his and his Ferrari team’s first half of the 2022 F1 campaign, the young Monegasque remained bullishly and refreshingly optimistic.
13 August 2022
F1 Correspondent & Presenter
Lawrence Barretto
That is a remarkable character trait for a driver who has endured a relentless run of frustrations that would test anyone’s patience. The 24-year-old, fighting for the title for the first time in his still young career, delivered the kind of performances that scream world champion material in the opening three races of the season.
He owned up to his error in France. He didn’t blame the wind or try to make another excuse. That’s not his style. But nor did he apologise for pushing to make a gap and searching for that extra tenth of a second because in his mind, if he isn’t doing that, he isn’t doing everything he can to win the championship and bring the title back to Ferrari for the first time in more than a decade.
“Many times it [the misfortune] was out of my control, which in those cases is very easy to put behind,” said Leclerc, whose mental toughness has emerged as one of his greatest strengths this year. “In some other cases it was in my control. In this particular case, I just go through the process of analysing why I did the mistake – and then you move on. Never been a person who stays too much on mistakes, I prefer to move on.”
‘Mentality To Be World Champion’;
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...USZuEvbfU.html
How Charles Leclerc can beat Max Verstappen to become new F1 world champion this year
CHARLES LECLERC is 80 points behind championship leader Max Verstappen, but the title race is not over yet.
09:26, Sun, Aug 14, 2022
By Joe Krishnan
Charles Leclerc will return from the summer break knowing that he will have to pull off one of the greatest comebacks in F1 history to beat Max Verstappen to become world champion. The Ferrari driver is 80 points adrift with nine races to go after a series of DNFs and strategy errors which have cost the Scuderia a chance of competing with Verstappen for the title.
There is also a scenario where Leclerc would have to win all nine races and Verstappen finishes second three times and third in the remaining races that would still see the Ferrari driver crowned champion. In the event that happens, Verstappen would have 402 points under his belt — meaning he would lose out by a single point. Again, this calculation would be altered if either driver wins the fastest lap.
To state it in simple terms, Verstappen only needs to take 155 points from the remaining nine races to mathematically confirm his second Drivers' Championship. Six wins with a fastest lap in each would be enough to get him to that milestone, meaning Verstappen could be crowned champion for a second time if he wins with the fastest lap at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka.
‘Simulated Scenarios’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ampion-F1-news
Away From the F1 Drama, Charles Leclerc Is on Vacation in Italy on His New Riva Yacht
10 Aug 2022, 09:26 UTC ·
by Monica Coman
There’s been a lot of drama going on in Formula One since the start of the summer break, but Charles Leclerc is not part of that. This means he can relax and charge his batteries before the upcoming race, doing that on his luxury Riva yacht with his girlfriend, Charlotte Sine.
Given Riva's partnership with Ferrari for over two years, it's no coincidence Charles Leclerc would go for a vessel from the Sarnico shipyard. Not long ago, for Riva’s 180th anniversary, the Monegasque driver appeared in a short film for the brand, alongside soccer star David Beckham and Italian actor Pierfrancesco Favino.
Although the video posted on his channel a week ago showed Leclerc chilling on his boat at the end of the day, he is now on a full-time holiday in Sardinia, Italy, with his girlfriend, influencer Charlotte Sine, docking the luxury yacht in Porto Cervo. The two have been officially dating since December 2019.
‘Away From the F1 Drama, Charles Leclerc Is on Vacation’;
https://www.autoevolution.com/news/a...ht-195640.html
Marcus Ericsson: There’s a lack of trust between Ferrari and the drivers
Sunday 14th August 2022 2:20 PM
Thomas Maher
IndyCar racer Marcus Ericsson, Charles Leclerc’s former team-mate, believes there’s a fundamental lack of trust between the two sides.
Ericsson, who won the Indy 500 earlier this year, was team-mates with Charles Leclerc during the Monegasque’s debut season in Formula 1 in 2018 as the pair raced for Sauber.
“I think he’s very frustrated. I think that he’s been fast this year, but it’s just been a lot of issues,” he said on Sky F1’s Any Driven Monday. Ericsson pointed to the example of Leclerc spinning off into retirement all by himself, while leading the French Grand Prix in July, as an example of those frustrations.
“What happened in Paul Ricard, one of the reasons why it happened, I think it’s because Charles is a bit frustrated – he wants to win races,” he said. “He wants to get back in the championship hunt and it just is not being the case. Then he’s pushing, maybe a bit too hard. So it’s not ideal. It’s gonna be tough for Charles because I think he’ll feel he has had the opportunity to really fight for a championship this year. And he hasn’t been able because of quite a few things out of his control.”
‘Lack of trust between Ferrari and the drivers’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/marcus...i-and-drivers/
The forgotten part of Ferrari’s failed F1 title bid
Aug 13 2022
By Scott Mitchell
The usual subject of focus in Ferrari’s wasteful 2022 Formula 1 season has been Charles Leclerc. So, spare a thought for the forgotten failed Ferrari title bid: Carlos Sainz’s.
Sainz has only won once this season, in Britain where he scored an unexpected pole position and then benefitted as Leclerc’s victory bid was wrecked by Ferrari’s strategic choice. He’s more than 100 points behind Max Verstappen and actually trails a Mercedes driver in the championship.
So, to suggest he is a lost title contender might be a stretch. But like Leclerc, Sainz has a frighteningly large tally of missed opportunities.
‘Forgotten part of Ferrari’s failed F1 title bid’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/the-f...led-title-bid/
Charles Leclerc’s French Grand Prix retirement is ‘still a mystery’
Sunday 14th August 2022 10:00 AM
Thomas Maher
Charles Leclerc’s spin into retirement at the French Grand Prix has been branded a “mystery” by former F1 racer Hans-Joachim Stuck. Leclerc retired from the lead of the French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard as he spun off into the barriers. However, on lap 18, Leclerc appeared to enter the Le Beausset corner with too much speed and simply lost control of the rear of his F1-75. Spinning off into the barriers, he screamed in frustration before climbing out of the car – a likely victory having slipped through his fingers.
Leclerc quickly held up his hands to admit to making a driving mistake, although some rumours have swirled since that race that he was covering for a potential issue related to the throttle. His error came just a week after holding on for victory in Austria after a strange late-race problem meant his car never fully disengaged the throttle as he braked for slower corners.
Former F1 racer and Le Mans winner Hans-Joachim Stuck has questioned Leclerc’s French GP retirement, and suspects Leclerc was following team instructions when he owned up to making a driving error. “For me, something is still a mystery – Charles Leclerc’s departure from Le Castellet,” said Stuck in an interview with Eurosport.
‘French Grand Prix retirement is ‘still a mystery’!’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/charle...ill-a-mystery/
Leclerc explains how mental training has helped him in title fight
15/08/2022, 10:40
Author Anna Francis
Leclerc credits mental training as helping him to develop his skills as a driver. "To put me exactly in the zone, to be able to always be at your 110 per cent whenever you get into the car whatever the other outside pressures or whatever is happening around you; this is where mental training is extremely helpful," Leclerc told the BBC.
Alongside this, Leclerc thinks that other changes he has made to his life have contributed towards his progression. "I think there has been a linear progression since I arrived in Formula 1 just by learning year after year and trying to modify some details," the Ferrari driver said.
"This year, I have changed quite a few things, especially in the way I prepare myself for races. In the way I relax after the races. But this comes from experience. "It's not like last year I was not careful to all of these details. Whenever you get older – I'm still 24, so it's fine – in a way you just feel different things.
‘Mental training has helped him in title fight’;
https://racingnews365.com/leclerc-ex...in-title-fight
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Cops hunt driver who stunned motorists by taking a Ferrari grand prix car for a joyride on a highway - and it's not the first time it's happened.
A bizarre video shows the moment a 'Formula One' car was spotted driving down a motorway in the Czech Republic.
• Mystery GP2 car filmed speeding along public roads in Czech Republic
• Driver escaped ban for similar stunt that occurred on motorway in 2019
• Driver of vehicle cannot be identified by police due to racing helmet
Published: 08:21, 15 August 2022
By James Cooney For Daily Mail Australia
The racing car with Ferrari livery was filmed speeding along a highway which runs out of Prague in the Czech Republic to the German border.
The vehicle appears to be a GP2 car and was decked out in the livery of the famous Ferrari F2004 model which was used by F1 legend Michael Schumacher when he won the world driver's championship in the 2004 season.
GP2 cars raced in the feeder competition that is one rung below Formula One, the pinnacle of the sport. A strikingly similar incident occurred in September 2019 when a seemingly identical car was sighted being driven on the same stretch of road.
‘a Ferrari grand prix car for a joyride on a highway’;
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...y-joyride.html
Ferrari ‘don’t have inner peace and confidence’ to be successful
Monday 15th August 2022 1:15 PM
Michelle Foster
Jan Lammers says Ferrari are making life difficult for themselves as even when they are in control of a race, they “try to be smarter than others” and that’s when it goes wrong.
The early-season pace-setters, it is still widely believed that Ferrari’s F1-75 is the fastest car on this year’s grid.
But its engine is the most unreliable, both Ferrari drivers already hit with engine penalties, while the strategists have not covered themselves in glory at all, so much so that pundits have called for heads to roll starting at the very top with team boss Mattia Binotto.
‘Ferrari Making Life Difficult For Themselves’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/ferrar...y-jan-lammers/
Fiorio: Something is wrong at Ferrari, too many mistakes
15 August, 2022
Paul Velasco
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto became the laughing stock of the Formula 1 paddock after he denied wrongdoing by his team, on a weekend Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz might have scored a one-two in Hungary last month.
In the wake of going bonkers in Budapest, it was easy to ask and many did: Are Ferrari strategists and pitwall gifting the 2022 F1 titles to Max and Red Bull? Not so if you asked Binotto who rather blamed the car, the brilliant F1-75 which has had title-winning potential from day one when the actual culprits were their ‘butter-fingers’ when it came to strategy and pitstops. But Binotto’s one-sided excuses, clearly intended to keep the staff at Maranello protected, are starting to wear thin among pundits beyond Italy where the mass media have been surprisingly quiet on the Ferrari shenanigans.
Former Ferrari team boss Cesare Fiorio, a respected F1 observer in Italy, told La Gazzetta dello Sport: “We must admit that this year Mattia Binotto has turned Ferrari into a team capable of winning every race. “Binotto is a great engineer, first as an engine specialist, then as a technical director, but his job today is very different to that. And as a result, something is wrong at Ferrari, too many mistakes are being made. Binotto has to go all the way, this is his biggest challenge right now. He has to find solutions to make the team work better,” insisted Fiorio.
‘Find Solutions’;
https://www.grandprix247.com/2022/08...es-f1-binotto/
Jean Alesi issues Ferrari defence despite 2022 mistakes
Published: 15 Aug 2022, 12:05
By George Dagless
Jean Alesi has called for some perspective around Ferrari this season, given the progress made by the Scuderia in recent years. “It’s not such a bad season for them,” Alesi said to Give Me Sport.
“Because the last few years they had a very bad car and a bad season. They hardly got on the podium, then last year, they recovered a bit. And now with these new regulations they came out with a rocket car [which is] very competitive everywhere.”
“But, of course, we are in the middle of the season, and now we can make the kind of judgement on what’s happened. And they have had the moments where they made the wrong decision on the wrong moment. And you see how much a small mistake can be a big effect on the bad side.
‘Jean Alesi has called for some perspective’;
https://www.givemesport.com/88047628...-2022-mistakes
Ferrari do not want ‘anything to change’ about Charles Leclerc
Monday 15th August 2022 11:00 AM
Michelle Foster
Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies has refuted suggestions that Charles Leclerc needs to change after two crashes this season cost him points in the championship.
While other teams would be calling for the driver to pull it back just a little bit, Ferrari’s Mekies says they want the 24-year-old to continue racing as he does even if it means mistakes “happen”.
“This year Leclerc has shown that he has such exceptional speed that it is an aspect that should not be touched,” Mekies told formulapassion.it. “Charles does not need us to understand, as a great driver, how far he has to push in terms of proximity to the limit. He is a master at this and mistakes can happen just as we do too.”
‘Suggestions Refuted That Charles Leclerc Needs To Change After Two Crashes’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/ferrar...arles-leclerc/
Mekies: Team orders discussed more outside Ferrari than inside
15/08/2022 at 09:54
Phillip van Osten
Ferrari sporting director Laurent Mekies says the topic of team orders at the Scuderia is one that has been discussed more outside the team than inside the Italian outfit this season.
In Hungary, Mekies reiterated Ferrari's stance on its drivers at the current stage of the season, insisting Leclerc and Sainz remain on equal footing while the topic of team orders is one that is especially discussed by pundits.
"You're right in saying that it is more discussed outside Ferrari than inside Ferrari," Mekies told the media. But more seriously, we have always been very clear. We target to have the best result for the team. Ferrari comes first.”
‘Topic of team orders at the Scuderia’;
https://f1i.com/news/451044-mekies-t...an-inside.html
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Red Bull open to Pierre Gasly exit: ‘Yuki Tsunoda already as quick over one lap’.
Red Bull appear to be opening the door for Pierre Gasly to pursue other opportunities when his contract expires at the end of the 2023 season.
Sunday 14th August 2022 4:00 PM
Mark Scott
Gasly finds himself bumping his head on a glass ceiling within the Red Bull programme, having worked his way up through the ranks and into the main senior team seat alongside Max Verstappen in 2019 only to be demoted to junior team again after just 12 races. The pathway back to the senior team for Gasly appears to be blocked as they have found a more solid option in the vastly experienced Sergio Perez and, even if Perez was no longer a Red Bull driver, it would not be a dead certainty that Gasly would have a second bite of the cherry.
Judging by comments made by Helmut Marko via the French branch of Motorsport.com, people may get their wish at the end of next season. When asked if Red Bull would let Gasly go to pursue other opportunities in Formula 1, he replied: “Yes. We have a good relationship. As a team leader, he has been very successful at AlphaTauri in recent years.
“But Yuki [Tsunoda] is already at his level in terms of lap speed. In the race, things are not going as well [as in previous seasons for the Frenchman]. Nevertheless, we improved Gasly’s contract financially, even though we didn’t have to do that. Perez’s contract prevents a move for Gasly to Red Bull Racing in 2023. From 2024, Gasly is free.”
‘Red Bull appear to be opening the door for Pierre Gasly’;
https://www.planetf1.com/news/red-bu...re-gasly-exit/
MARKO SAYS HAUGER IS NEXT IN LINE TO REPLACE GASLY
Red Bull's advisor has spoken about Vips' termination and who they're looking at now
20:42 Mon, 15 Aug 2022.
Morgan Holiday
FormulaNerds
Dennis Hauger is the next driver in line for an AlphaTauri seat following Juri Vips’ termination from the junior academy, according to Helmut Marko. Marko defends Vips. In an interview with Motorsport.com, Marko spoke about the decision to fire Vips. He stated that Red Bull had no choice but to remove the Estonian from their driver academy due to backlash from the media. “The English media unleashed such a sh*tstorm that Red Bull Racing had no choice but to remove him from office. I personally think he is 21 years old and has apologised.”
“Dennis Hauger has dominated Formula 3 in an incredible way,” said Marko. “He now has ups and downs in Formula 2, he is not constant. Performance and nothing else is the deciding factor. That is changeable. “People who we thought could do it suddenly couldn’t do it anymore and vice versa. That is why it is difficult to make predictions.”
Currently, Red Bull has four junior drivers in Formula 2. Jehan Daruvala, Liam Lawson, and Ayumu Iwasa race alongside Hauger in the category. Of the four, Hauger is actually the lowest in the standings, sitting 12th with 67 points. Daruvala, Hauger’s Prema Racing teammate, is the highest placed in fourth. Then it’s Iwasa in seventh and Lawson in eighth. Fortunately for Red Bull and Marko, Gasly has a contract with AlphaTauri for 2023 and will most likely remain with the team. That gives them at least another season to assess which, if any of those four drivers, is the most deserving of a Formula 1 seat.
‘Dennis Hauger has dominated Formula 3 in an incredible way’;
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/ma.../?nowprocket=1
What Tsunoda needs to do to keep his AlphaTauri F1 seat
Author Dieter Rencken
Co-author RacingNews365 Staff
16/08/2022, 12:30
In an exclusive interview with RacingNews365.com, Franz Tost reviews the progress made by Yuki Tsunoda and his chances of staying in F1 with Red Bull. AlphaTauri boss Franz Tost has given his assessment of Yuki Tsunoda's second F1 season so far, saying he has seen solid progress from the Japanese racer. Reviewing Tsunoda's season so far, Tost told RacingNews365.com: "Yuki is improving. I must say his learning gradient is going up.
"He made a fantastic qualifying at Paul Ricard, when he finished eighth. Unfortunately, in the race, [Esteban] Ocon crashed into him in the first lap. Therefore we had to call him in [to the pits], because the floor was damaged heavily, also the sidepod. This was a shame because I'm sure he would have finished good in the points, in seventh or eighth place. But anyway, this is racing, and we will see now what's going on in the second half of the season."
Tost added that given the demands of modern-day F1, drivers need to be given time to build up their experience and show their full potential. "I'm talking about three years, because the first season for such a young driver is just flying away," he said. "In the second year, he learns all these things a little bit. But to get really deep into the details, he needs a third year, and after three years you have a clear picture of whether a driver can do it or not."
‘Three Years For Experience And To Show Their Full Potential’;
https://racingnews365.com/what-tsuno...atauri-f1-seat
Why AlphaTauri's team boss has been left in a 'bad mood'
13 August 12:30
Author Dieter Rencken
Co-author Jake Nichol
It's been a below par season for the AlphaTauri squad in 2022, with team boss Franz Tost feeling grumpy about fine margins not going their way. Fine margins going against AlphaTauri. "We set out targets to achieve these goals [finishing fifth in the Constructors' standings] and currently we are far away. Therefore, I am in a bad mood," he exclusively told RacingNews365.com.
"It's always difficult if you can't match the expectations, and I hope that we get everything together for the second half of the season. We were sometimes a little bit unlucky with the Safety Car or Virtual Safety Car when we just had a pit-stop on [the] lap before. Two or three times [this was] the case.”
"[In] Formula 1, it always balances [out] during the season. Therefore, I hope that [during] the second half the season sometimes we'll be a little bit more lucky with such unforeseen things like the Safety Car and Virtual Safety Cars."
‘AlphaTauri's Team Boss Left In A Bad Mood’;
https://racingnews365.com/why-alphat...-in-a-bad-mood
Why a slumping F1 team is so certain it’s about to recover
Aug 13 2022
By Edd Straw
AlphaTauri headed into Formula 1’s August break eighth in the constructors’ championship after a run of five races without a point. But despite his team having only the eighth-fastest car on average and managing just six points finishes in 13 races – its worst run since 2018 – lead driver Pierre Gasly is optimistic.
Asked by The Race if he expected a stronger second half of the year given the promising signs shown by the upgrade, Gasly replied with an emphatic “100%”. The lack of results in the first two races with the upgrade has not shaken his belief that it can be game-changing. “We knew at the start of the season that this year is a race of development; new regulations, new cars, so people are going to develop,” Gasly continued.
“It doesn’t matter how you start, what matters is to have an upward curve through the year. We started in a decent place but got slowed down by the issues we had with porpoising etc. But it [the upgrade] is clearly bringing performance and when you see how tight the midfield is, it’s clearly going to put us back in that fight. We just need to make sure we maximise the full potential for the rest of the year.”
‘Certain To Recover’;
https://the-race.com/formula-1/why-a...ut-to-recover/
Gasly: No explanation for AlphaTauri’s midfield struggles
RaceFans Round-up
Posted on 13th August 2022, 0:01
Written by Will Wood
Gasly said he could not explain why the team appears to be struggling to score points compared to their rivals in the midfield.
“I don’t fully have the answer for why we seem to struggle more than than other teams in the midfield, because I don’t think we are missing something in the core of the team,” Gasly said.
“That’s why I think it needs a bit of a step back and look at the whole situation and the bigger picture, what we’re all doing, aero-wise, which direction we do, how we decided to use the budget cap because I know since the start of the year we were already quite on the edge early on in the season. Is that the main reason? I don’t fully know. We’ll keep pushing and hopefully find some more bigger development items over the next few weeks.”
‘Unexplained Midfield Struggles’;
https://www.racefans.net/2022/08/13/...nd-up-13-08-5/
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Toto Wolff accuses Mercedes employees of getting complacent as Daniel Ricciardo braced for F1 exit.
The Mercedes boss has incredibly revealed what is at the heart of the side’s success, and that it actually comes from studying “great teams” who became “complacent” when enjoying a run at the top.
16 August 2022
by Nick Golding
“I studied why great teams were not able to repeat great title [runs],” Wolff told the Financial Times.
“No sports team in any sport has ever won eight consecutive world championship titles, and there are many reasons for that, and what is at the core is the human.”
“The human gets complacent. You are not energised in the same way you were before. You are maybe not as ambitious.”
‘Complacent Mercedes Employees’;
https://formula1news.co.uk/toto-wolf...d-for-f1-exit/
Toto Wolff studied Manchester United to learn about Mercedes failings amid drop in form
Mercedes have struggled to compete with Red Bulla and Ferrari in the 2022 F1 season, while Manchester United have been thumped by both Brighton and Brentford already this season
15:24, 16 Aug 2022
By Fraser Watson Sports Trends Writer
Toto Wolff has admitted he analysed the recent history of Man United in a bid to keep Mercedes at the top of Formula 1.
Following an epic title duel between the Dutch star and Hamilton, it was the former who prevailed following a dramatic season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. But Wolff's team won't be gaining any kind of revenge this season, with the W13 cars being plagued by the issue of the porpoising. Despite improved showings in recent races, neither Hamilton or partner George Russell have recorded a Grand Prix win.
Although it could be argued that their situation appears blissful in comparison to United's. Since winning their last Premier League title in 2013, the Red Devils have managed to second-placed finishes in the EPL, and have started the 2022/23 campaign in awful form.
the Austrian has studied their dominant period under Sir Alex Ferguson, plus the struggles they've endured since the Scotsman's retirement. In an interview with the Financial Times, Wolff said: “I studied why great teams were not able to repeat great title [runs]," before citing United's spell under Ferguson.
‘Toto Wolff Studied Manchester United’;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...cedes-27754393
Formula 1 boss studied United’s failures following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement
16/08/2022, 18:14
by Dale O'Donnell
MANUNEWS.COM NEWS
Toto Wolff doesn’t want team Mercedes to suffer like Manchester United post-Sir Alex Ferguson. Formula 1 team principal Toto Wolff has revealed he studied Manchester United’s failures to help with his management of team Mercedes.
United haven’t come close to winning a Premier League title since Fergie announced his retirement in 2013. That’s something Wolff believes can be used as a lesson. “I studied why great teams were not able to repeat great title [runs],” Wolff told the Financial Times, in reference to Ferguson.
“The human gets complacent. You are not energised in the same way you were before. You are maybe not as ambitious. I often get the question: ‘How hard is that?”
‘United’s Failures Studied’;
https://strettynews.com/2022/08/16/f...ns-retirement/
'It's complete bull****'!: Toto Wolff quashes talk of replacing Lewis Hamilton with Sergio Perez - and insists he has had conversations with the 37-year-old about staying at Mercedes for another 'five or 10 YEARS'.
Mercedes team principle Toto Wolff has dismissed suggestions that he is looking to replace Lewis Hamilton with Sergio Perez.
• Mercedes' Toto Wolff has dismissed claims Lewis Hamilton is to leave the team
• It had been rumoured that Sergio Perez was being considered as a replacement
• Wolff rubbished the claims, saying Hamilton could stay for up to 10 more years
• Hamilton has struggled for form and consistency at the start of the 2022 season
Published: 12:47, 16 August 2022
By Lewis Browning For Mailonline
Several names have been brandished as possible replacements, including Verstappen's Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez, but Wolff has insisted he has never called the Mexican driver. 'I never called Sergio', said Wolff when questioned on the rumours in an interview with motorsport.com.
'He's a good guy and I respect him, but I never talked to him and I was not in contact with any other driver. It's complete bull****. 'Lewis and I, even in the face of a not-so-encouraging scenario like the beginning of this season, we are always aligned in wanting to try to make things better and be together next year.'
‘Toto Wolff Quashes Talk’;
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...gio-Perez.html
Toto Wolff breaks silence on Sergio Perez replacing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes
LEWIS HAMILTON and Mercedes have struggled to compete with Red Bull and Ferrari this season
07:03, Tue, Aug 16, 2022
By Luke Chillingsworth
Toto Wolff has revealed Sergio Perez will not replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes as he sets a retirement deadline for the seven-time champion. Wolff claims Mercedes have “never talked” to Perez or any other driver as a replacement for Hamilton.
Speaking to Motorsport.com Italy, he said: “It's complete b******. I've never called Sergio, he's a good guy and I respect him, but I've never talked to him and haven't been in contact with any other rider.
Wolff’s comments come after Dutch racing star Tom Coronel also claimed Mercedes were eyeing up Nyck de Vries as a possible successor to Hamilton. He claimed Formula E star De Vries was Wolff’s “insurance policy” should Hamilton walk away from the sport.
‘Toto Wolff Breaks Silence’;
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...t-sergio-perez
Toto Wolff: The forgotten story of when Mercedes F1 boss was a Red Bull driver
16 Aug 2022
Lewis Larkam
Toto Wolff is best known for being one of the most successful team principals in F1 history by spearheading Mercedes’ unprecedented winning streak, but there was a time he raced in Red Bull colours.
That’s right, Wolff, the man who has played a key role in helping Mercedes to claim a record eight consecutive constructors’ world championships and seven drivers’ titles across the past eight seasons, once donned the overalls of Mercedes’ F1 nemesis.
Between 2004 and 2006, Wolff raced in blue Red Bull overalls and a car splashed in the energy drinks firm’s branding. Alongside Karl Wendlinger, Dieter Quester and Stefano Zonca, Wolff took class victory in the 1000 Miles of Interlagos in 2004. Amid treacherously wet conditions, it was Wolff who posted the quickest lap time.
‘Toto Wolff The Forgotten Story’;
https://www.crash.net/f1/feature/100...ed-bull-driver
Wolff admits 2021 Abu Dhabi GP still on his mind 'every day'
16/08/2022 at 08:57
Michael Delaney
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says that eight months on from the events that marked F1's season finale in Abu Dhabi last year, he still thinks about the dramatic outcome of the race every single day.
"I think about it every day," he said. "But I have my peace with Max winning the championship, because he's a deserving champion.”
"How it panned out, I think I have values around fairness, and especially sporting fairness. This is what provides my fundamental love for the sport. And then that was kicked with the feet on that particular day."
‘On His Mind Every Day';
https://f1i.com/news/451087-wolff-ad...every-day.html
