2024 Formula 1 Preview & Review.

Why the 'persuasive' Lawrence Stroll is actually a strength of Aston Martin.
Since the arrival of Lawrence Stroll, Aston Martin has been making improvements. The owner of the Formula 1 team was perhaps the main reason that Adrian Newey decided to join the British team. What makes Stroll so special? Mike Krack explained it in an exclusive interview with GPblog.com.
02 Oct 2024
Tim Kraaij
GPblog.com

"Lawrence's passion and commitment and enthusiasm is very endearing. It's very persuasive. The reality is if you go back 20 years, then what we now call team principles are actually the owners of the teams. Frank Williams, Ron Dennis, Eddie Jordan etc. In this modern era, then Lawrence is actually unique in being the only properly active team owner. It's a different feeling when you have somebody like Lawrence involved like that. It's back to the old school model," Newey revealed at the press conference at Silverstone.

"It's fantastic. Especially as I have worked in the corporate world for a couple of years and when you see how quickly we can make decisions without having to prepare a pack or whatever. You can just go there and say this is what we want to do, and within ten seconds, you can go and do it or not," Krack stated in a conversation with GPblog.

"This flexibility came to light when we started a collaboration with Fernando [Alonso]. It was a matter of hours where other structures might take three months to decide. I think in the case of Fernando, his situation was dragging, dragging, dragging and we just made facts. This is only possible with someone at the top like Lawrence, who has a clear mind, a clear vision and he's a strong leader. He just says this is what we're going to do and this is what is an asset of this team."

'Persuasive Lawrence Stroll is actually a strength of Aston Martin’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30439...on-martin.html


‘In my career’: Fernando Alonso has ‘never seen before’ in F1 what’s happened at Aston Martin
Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Fernando Alonso had ‘never’ seen an owner like Lawrence Stroll in F1 before joining Aston Martin. While Alonso won two titles with Renault, won races with Ferrari and drove for McLaren as a title-contending team and as a recovering outfit, the Oviedo native had never seen the same commitment from a team’s ownership as he has with Lawrence Stroll at Aston Martin.

“I think Aston Martin are the most determined team I have been in in my career,” he stated, via quotes by AS. “The commitment of this team, the vision of our leader Lawrence Stroll, is something I have never seen before. And probably the results that Aston Martin have achieved in three years since it has existed are also unprecedented with eight podiums last year, and now the signing of Adrian Newey.”

“Most determined team I have been in in my career”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fer...-aston-martin/


Alonso urges Aston Martin shake-up despite Newey arrival
29 Sep 2024
Nick Golding & Aaron Deckers
RacingNews365

Fernando Alonso has urged Aston Martin to make changes for the 2025 F1 season despite the upcoming arrival of Adrian Newey. Aston Martin is fifth in the table, over 200 points adrift of fourth-placed Mercedes, and a comfortable 52 points clear of RB. It is a shadow of the team which claimed eight podiums last season, alerting Alonso that the Silverstone-based outfit needs a boost for next year before Newey's arrival, albeit with his primary focus on 2026.

"I think 2026 is in our hands for everyone at Aston Martin," Alonso told media including RacingNews365. "The biggest hope with Adrian [Newey] coming, Enrico [Cardile], some of the names. So this is going to be great. The future looks bright, but for 2025 we need to shake things a little bit. I mean, it's not good enough what we are doing right now. 2025 we need to change."

‘Make changes for the 2025 F1 season’;

https://racingnews365.com/alonso-urg...-newey-arrival


Alonso: Third F1 title my "only priority", wants Dakar return over Indy 500
Oct 2, 2024
Filip Cleeren
Motorsport.com

"I attempted Indy 500 three times and didn't succeed. It's the only one missing [from the triple crown]. But at the moment, it's not in my plan," Alonso said at an event of Aston's sponsor Cognizant. "I'm very, very focused [on] Formula 1 now. For the next two or three years, I want to win the third world title. This is my first and only priority at the moment.”

"Only priority";

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/a...-500/10659734/


Villeneuve says "exceptional drivers" can only drive cars designed by Newey
3 Oct 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

Jacques Villeneuve believes that only "exceptional drivers" can properly compete in cars designed by Adrian Newey. "From my experience, Newey has always built cars that need to be driven very precisely," started the 1997 world champion. "His cars have always had a narrow operating window, but if you found that operating window, the cars were super fast. It is not a car for everyone. He makes cars for exceptional drivers and the exceptional drivers will make a big difference in these cars; the ordinary driver will suffer," Villeneuve indicated to Marca.

"The key now for Fernando [Alonso] is to 'survive' long enough to get a winning car," Villeneuve continues, knowing that 2026 will be the season that Aston Martin are looking towards. "You don't do that by beating [Lance] Stroll by a second a lap. Part of Fernando's job there is to help Lance improve. His job there is not necessarily to become champion himself, he has to make Aston Martin champion. That's why Newey is joining the team."

"Exceptional drivers";

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30462...gulations.html


Newey explains why he opted for 'old school' Aston Martin, rather than joining Hamilton in 2025 move to Ferrari
4 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Adrian Newey has given a revealing insight into why he chose to join Aston Martin for next year, despite having been linked with a move to Ferrari where he could have teamed up with Lewis Hamilton in 2025. Indeed, Hamilton himself stated that it would be a “privilege” to work with Newey, comments that the Briton admitted he was “very flattered” by.

Newey was asked how seriously he had entertained the prospect of signing with Ferrari, as well as being quizzed on why he ultimately plumped for the Silverstone outfit instead. “I think from my part, I was very flattered by the number of teams that did approach me,” Newey explained. “I had discussions with some of those teams, not all of them. In the end, it became a very clear and natural choice, for all the reasons I stated earlier in the conference.”

“Towards the end of April, I decided that I needed to do something different,” the 65-year-old conceded. “I spent a lot of time with Mandy, my wife, kind of discussing what’s next… What do we do? Do we go off and sail around the world? Do I do something different? We took a bit of time out. I felt that I’ve been lucky enough to have achieved what I aspired to from the age of 10 or 12, which was simply to be a designer – I didn’t even know the word engineer – in motor racing.”

‘Opted for 'old school' Aston Martin’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...0Fxi4Uy3neiTqk


Aston Martin 'encouraged' by Honda collaboration: 'They are really pushing'
29 Sep 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Japanese manufacturer Honda will supply engines for Aston Martin from 2026. Mike Krack, Aston Martin's team boss, ran media through the latest updates in the project, as he is very excited by the progress that has been made between his team and champion engine supplier Honda. "No, no, the meetings that are coming up are just a sequence of meetings that have been planned since we started the collaboration. There is no, this is not a kick-off or a start, this has been, this goes on for long already," he revealed after the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Aston Martin team boss is very pleased with how things have been going so far. "Very well, very well. It's very encouraging, they are really, they are racers. They are pushing, pushing, pushing and the same goes for the collaboration with Aramco, so we have like a tripartite collaboration there, which works really well", the team principal concluded.

Mike Krack: "But again, you know, it's not the collaboration that matters, it's the result at the end of the day." Concluded Krack. Currently, Aston Martin finds itself in fifth place in the constructors standings with 86 points. The British team are 243 points behind fourth-placed Mercedes but still sits 52 points ahead of closest challengers VCARB.

'They are really pushing';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30406...-for-2026.html


Cycling sprint legend Sir Mark Cavendish KBE named Aston Martin’s first High Performance Ambassador
2 Oct 2024
Aston Martin (Press Release)

British sporting legend, Sir Mark Cavendish becomes the first person to take on the new role of Global High Performance ambassador at Aston Martin

‘High Performance Ambassador’;

https://www.astonmartin.com/en-gb/ou...nce-ambassador

Lawson reflects on terrible Singapore weekend.
Having just been confirmed as a replacement for Daniel Ricciardo at the Visa Cash App RB outfit, Liam Lawson has reflected on the "terrible" race weekend at the Singapore Grand Prix.
2 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Speaking to New Zealand's radio station Newstalk ZB, Lawson has opened up on the atmosphere at the Faenza-based outfit during the Singapore Grand Prix weekend, revealing that it was strange given the looming announcement. "The weekend in Singapore was not pleasant at all because obviously we all knew what was going to happen.”

“At the same time, Daniel has always been very good to me when I drove in his place last year. And even this season he was a person with whom I never felt that I was in competition for the seat. So, on the weekend the feelings were terrible. On the other hand, the opportunity to drive in Formula 1 comes only once, and for me, it has come now.”

"So I can only be grateful to Red Bull for the opportunity and feel the need to take it with both hands. He also told me the same thing, he told me that I have to get the most out of this chance that was given to me."

“Not pleasant at all”;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25556


Marko: Red Bull will consider its juniors, not Russell, for the future
Despite Russell’s Mercedes contract ending in a year’s time, Marko says Red Bull is focusing on its proteges
4 Oct 2024
Ben Vinel
Motorsport.com

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko says the Austrian brand will mainly look at its junior drivers for the future, rather than established Formula 1 stars. "George Russell is on a par with [Lewis] Hamilton in qualifying, if not faster," Marko admitted in an interview with Motorsport.com's sister publication Formel1.de. "But Russell is Mercedes-Benz-affiliated, and now we are focusing on our juniors.”

"We see this with [Franco] Colapinto, for example, he was relatively inexperienced and not very successful in the junior series, although it has to be said that he never had the best teams, but what an incredible performance he is putting in now.”

"And now let's see what our juniors or even a Yuki Tsunoda can do. He can also be described as a junior. But as I mentioned earlier, how does he compare to a Lawson?"

‘Mainly look at its junior drivers for the future’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/m...ture/10660016/


Report: Why Pierre Gasly had a ‘reputation for being difficult’ within Red Bull before Helmut Marko sacked him
4 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Pierre Gasly felt the full force of Red Bull’s notorious ruthlessness in 2019. He would last just half a season alongside Max Verstappen before a demotion back to Toro Rosso. The Frenchman had impressed at the junior team, scoring 29 of their 33 points in 2018 – his first full season. With Daniel Ricciardo making a shock move to Renault, Red Bull continued their policy of promoting from within.

The ‘excessive’ requests Pierre Gasly made that annoyed Red Bull management. According to The Race, Red Bull staff found it ‘difficult’ to work with Gasly during his brief stay. This may have contributed to his swift exit. He apparently demanded extremely specific tweaks to the configuration of his car. And perhaps most significantly, he ‘publicly’ challenged the team’s leadership over their issues.

‘Extremely specific tweaks to the configuration of his car’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...ko-sacked-him/


Tsunoda forced to end his demo run in Taiwan with engine issues
05 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Completing his first demonstration run in Taiwan last weekend, Visa Cash RB driver Yuki Tsunoda was forced to end his on-track activity with engine issues.

Tsunoda's day took a premature end as he was forced to abandon his donuts in the Red Bull early in a fiery moment. The Red Bull crew needed to run over to extinguish the smoke and flames which were emerging from the RB8. Speaking of his experience behind the wheel of an V8-powered F1 car, Tsunoda noted: "That was amazing. Thank you for a lot of support.”

“I saw a lot of people waving their flags, waving their hands. Definitely I saw every single moment and I hope you guys enjoyed the first Formula 1 [event] in Taiwan. I tried my best. I’m sure you guys enjoyed V6 [sic] sound! Actually first time me as well driving a V8, so yeah, it was amazing. Thank you for the support. It was a nice, successful event.”

‘Extinguish the smoke and flames’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25564


Marko slates 'outdated' philosophy of F1 rivals
Red Bull has made a habit of promoting its junior drivers. Why, questions Helmut Marko, have other teams not done the same?
4 Oct 2024
RacingNews365 Staff
RacingNews365

Helmut Marko has derided the philosophy of Red Bull's F1 rivals as 'outdated' when it comes to the promotion of junior drivers. Red Bull has made a habit over the years of giving drivers who have climbed the ladder via its Red Bull Academy an opportunity in F1, with some notable examples such as Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo, amongst others.

It has to be said, however, that Red Bull has long been in the fortuitous position of having its 'sister' team - Toro Rosso, AlphaTauri, and now RB - to trial young blood before promoting to the senior outfit, unlike other teams. Nevertheless, Marko has applauded Mercedes boss Toto Wolff for giving Kimi Antonelli a shot at F1 next year after his remarkable rise, whilst Williams has blooded Franco Colapinto this season after axing Logan Sargeant, although the Argentinian does not have a full-time drive for next year.

Marko's comments stem from the fact Liam Lawson is being given the final six grands prix of this year to prove himself after a decision was taken to drop veteran Daniel Ricciardo. "We will evaluate how he compares to Yuki Tsunoda and then we will see what happens," said Marko, via his Speedweek column.

'Outdated';

https://racingnews365.com/marko-slat...y-of-f1-rivals

“Unfiltered”: Guenther Steiner’s tales of life in charge of Haas reviewed.
Drive to Survive had already given Guenther Steiner sufficient celebrity status to allow him to put out a book, 2023’s Surviving to Drive, which covered the team’s 2022 season.
29 Sep 2024
Keith Collantine
RaceFans

The opening sections on how Haas entered F1 therefore prove the most engaging... Why did Haas gain a place at the table eight years ago when F1 is now so hostile to new entrants? Don’t expect to gain any useful perspective reading this.

Prolific swearing is still very much key to Steiner’s schtick, so Mohammed Ben Sulayem should look away now. Actually, the FIA president might be best advised to avoid it altogether, as Steiner has some choice words about his performance in the role compared to his predecessor.

Steiner is unequivocal about where he places the blame for Haas’s slump to last-place finishes in 2021 and 2023: a lack of investment by Gene Haas beyond the initial entry into F1, in particular the mothballing of the team’s facilities during the pandemic.

“Unfiltered”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/29/...haas-reviewed/


Steiner victorious after Haas copyright lawsuit gets dismissed in court
Despite leaving the team at the start of the season, an ongoing legal battle has been going on between Steiner and his former team Haas...
The Californian court rules in favour of Guenther Steiner after legal battle with former team Haas over his book.
28 Sep 2024
Caitlyn Gordon
FormulaNerds

At the start of May, it was revealed that Steiner had launched a lawsuit against his former team Haas due to unpaid commissions spanning from 1st January 2021 to 31st December 2023. Steiner claimed that Haas owed him money he had not received, breaching his employment agreement. Just 12 days later, Haas’ parent company Haas Automation launched a lawsuit against Steiner, suing the Italian for trademark infringements in his autobiography, “Surviving to Drive.”

Haas Automation claimed Steiner had used trademarks and Haas branding without consent, and with no response from the Italian on the matter Haas took things to court in California. The main issue had to do with photography used throughout the book, with the front cover being a particular issue for Haas Automation who claimed the photos breached federally registered trademarks involving its CNC machine tools business and motorsports activity.

Four months later the California judge has ruled in favour of Steiner, claiming that the logos used throughout the book had been relevant to the book and had not been misleading. The court documents stated: “The Book recounts Steiner’s experiences as team principal of the Haas F1 Team during the 2022 season. Using photos that include the Haas marks is an artistic choice to provide additional context about the 2022 season with the Haas F1 Team. Here, there is no explicit indication, overt claim, or explicit misstatement that the ‘source of the work’ is Haas Automation.

‘Steiner victorious’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/st.../?nowprocket=1


Gene Haas adds F1 investment to ‘increase the ceiling’ as on-track performance improves
28 Sep 2024
Elizabeth Blackstock
PlanetF1.com

Haas Formula 1 team principal Ayao Komatsu has revealed that owner Gene Haas is willing to continue investing ample funds into his Formula 1 team — particularly as the team has one of its most successful seasons in years.

The authors of Racing with Rich Energy: How a Rogue Sponsor Took Formula 1 for a Ride discovered from Haas team members that Gene Haas requested the outfit begin operating on a limited budget even before Formula 1 officially introduced a cost cap. The goal was to prepare for the cost cap implementation, though it also unfortunately meant the team couldn’t grow quite as quickly as others.

That strategy could be criticized for effectively limiting the team’s ability to score points during a season, but after Haas released Guenther Steiner from his team principal role and hired Ayao Komatsu instead, the outfit has seen a significant improvement in performance. Per Komatsu’s interview with Crash.net, that’s because Haas has already begun bulking up his investments.

‘Gene Haas requested the outfit begin operating on a limited budget’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/gene-h...mance-improves


Haas Eyeing $100m Windfall For 2024 F1 Progress
26 Sep 2024
F1 Chronicle

Haas is making impressive steps forward in its new post-Gunther Steiner era. After Steiner’s long reign, Ayao Komatsu took over at the helm of the American team in 2024 – and already the better results are racing in. Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport believes Komatsu, a long-serving senior engineer at Haas prior to his promotion, has successfully changed the team culture.

“Every good idea is followed up now, no matter who it comes from,” he confirmed. “In the past, the direction was set from above.” Car upgrades used to be rare and often hit-and-miss for Haas, but all three major development steps so far this season have moved the pace forwards.

“The first only worked 50 percent, the second delivered more than the numbers predicted, and the third was delayed by one race,” Komatsu said. “With the first one, several of our guys immediately came up with ideas about how we could still get the most out of the package. There was no blame – everyone just pulled together.”

‘Eyeing $100m Windfall’;

https://f1chronicle.com/haas-eyeing-.../?nowprocket=1


‘How painful is that’: Haas F1 boss Ayao Komatsu opens up on the ‘very difficult’ reality Nico Hulkenberg had to admit
4 Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Nico Hulkenberg is leading Haas in the Formula 1 team’s best season since 2018, but team principal Ayao Komatsu had to point out a ‘difficult’ truth to unlock his results.

Komatsu never felt Hulkenberg shone at managing his tyres and had to accept that. “You’re telling the driver, ‘You’ve got to, let’s say, lose tenths in certain corners’. How painful is that?,” Komatsu told Motorsport.com. “But then you’ve got to understand that, ‘If you do this, you see the payback in a good way – if you don’t do it, this is the result of it’.”

“But unless you experience it and see on the data, feel it back-to-back, it’s very difficult to accept it black and white. I don’t think tyre management was ever his strength. If you look at the previous races he used to do with Renault, I don’t think it was his strength and, obviously, these tyres are so sensitive.”

‘Difficult truth’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/haa...-had-to-admit/


The critical element Haas needed for Hulkenberg to crack an old F1 weakness
The American team’s much improved form in F1 2024 goes back to a distinct change of tact in pre-season testing
3 Oct 2024
Alex Kalinauckas
Motorsport.com

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu says convincing Nico Hulkenberg to buy into a different approach to winter testing is behind their much-improved results in the 2024 Formula 1 season. In an exclusive interview with Motorsport.com, Komatsu explains that he feels Hulkenberg has been “better” overall compared to the driver who restarted his career with Haas last year, but “not better in terms of giving us reference in qualifying, in terms of tyre management, race management”.

“It doesn't just come from him,” Komatsu added. “Just the whole team, the way that we work together from pre-season testing, involving drivers in the centre to understand how he needs to manage tyres. “We had to do that race practice – tyre management – in pre-season testing,” Komatsu says – explaining that Haas’s plan was to do this to get a full understanding on its tyre wear over longer stints.”

“But this winter, for me, there was no option. It's not optional. It's not conditional. “It's just: ‘No, we've got to understand this one. We've got to get the drivers to experience it – the consequences, positive or negative – then they will buy into it.’ Then they know why they're doing what they're doing’.”

‘Distinct change in pre-season testing’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/t...ness/10660045/


Nico Hulkenberg: Haas has the ‘momentum’ in RB F1 fight
28 Sep 2024
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

Nico Hulkenberg has thrown down the gauntlet to rivals RB. as he and Haas target snatching sixth place in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship from the Faenza outfit. The German also reiterated his belief that sixth place in the constructors’ championship is achievable for Haas.

“I think everyone in the team firmly believes that we can challenge and fight them. We scored a point last weekend [with Bearman]. We should have scored more, and now six races to go, it’s all to play for. Obviously, they’re not going to hand it to us. They’ll try to fight back, but it’s just a race till the end. But I think we have good momentum.”

“Now there’s a bit of a break, but the next triple header, I really look forward to probably my favourite time of the season. We’re competitive in the races, and in Austin, we actually get further upgrades. So that’s encouraging, but I think some good circuits coming for us and our package, and I look forward to hopefully a couple more points.”

‘Thrown down the gauntlet’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...n-rb-f1-fight/

James Vowles claims Williams will have “best driver line up on the grid” in F1 2025.
James Vowles has made a surprising claim that Williams will have the best F1 driver line-up on the grid in 2025.
3 Oct 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Speaking on the Beyond the Grid podcast, Vowels said: “In ’25, I think we will have the best driver lineup on the grid. I mean, Franco’s doing a brilliant job. What he doesn’t have is the experience that Carlos will come with, but he’s doing an outstanding job. I think from the perspective of not just driving the car, but leading the team forward, we’ll have the best line-up on the grid. That will help motivate and push us forward.”

“There’s good developments ongoing, just as a continuation of ’24 to ’25.” Vowels’ claim stems from Sainz’s respectable record against strong teammates. “That’s my opinion of it. And I’ll explain some of the reasons behind it to a certain extent,” Vowles added. “A, they’re both performing at a very high level. I mean, Carlos has driven against all of the drivers we’ve just discussed.”

“Against Lando, he was successful. Against Charles, up and down. But he’s there or thereabouts. There’s hardly anything between those two drivers. Against Max, in that first year in Toro Rosso, [he] was exceptional against him.”

‘James Vowles has made a surprising claim’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105711...e-grid-f1-2025


James Vowles was ‘taken aback’ by what Franco Colapinto did weeks before landing Williams seat
2 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
Crash.Net

James Vowles impressed by Franco Colapinto after Silverstone outing. Colapinto ran with Williams during FP1 at Silverstone owing to the rules around rookie drivers without a super licence being given at least two outings at teams during the year. It was the first time he drove the car and was just four-tenths off Albon at the end of the session, which raised a few eyebrows in the paddock. Vowles recalls how he felt after the session and the influence it had on appointing him to the seat later in the season.

“I was a little bit taken aback how quick he was immediately out of the post. I spoke to him about it, he was very relaxed. He said ‘Yeah, it may never happen again’ So I was just enjoying the moment,” said Vowles. Although he has impressed so far this season, it is unlikely that Colapinto will get a seat for the near future with Williams owing to them signing Carlos Sainz alongside Alex Albon for 2025. Sainz and Albon are seen as a strong pairing for the future but there is ambiguity over whether either could stay at the team in the long term.

‘Franco Colapinto: ‘Yeah, it may never happen again, so I was just enjoying the moment’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/jam...williams-seat/


Williams records £84 million loss after 2023 Formula 1 season
4 Oct 2024
Jack Oliver Smith
Motorsport Week

Williams has recorded a financial loss of £84 million after the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship, in which the team finished seventh in the Constructors’ standings. The company accounts of Williams Grand Prix Engineering reveal a loss of £84.2 million for the financial year of 2023, up from £17.9 million in 2022.

Revenue fell from £142.8 million to £127 million, with the team saying in a statement: “Whilst losses have increased compared with 2022, this is in line with expectations and the company’s strategy to continue investing in all areas of the business to drive both on-track and commercial performance in pursuit of success in the medium and long-term.

The team, owned by Dorilton Capital after purchasing it from the Williams family in 2020, said its assets of £67.3 million proves “a sound financial base on which to continue the team’s long term strategy of returning to the front of the grid and being financially sustainable.”

‘Financial loss of £84 million’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...mula-1-season/


Williams losses spiralled 344% to UK£80.3m in 2023
Grove-based outfit claims significant losses are in line with expectations after investments on and off the track.
October 4, 2024
Cian Brittle
BlackBook Motorsport

Confirmed:
• Williams experience huge 344 per cent year-over-year (YoY) increase in losses, rising from UK£17.9 million (US$23.6 million) to UK£84.3 million
• Revenue dropped from UK£142.8 million (US$188 million) to UK£127 million (US$167.2 million)
• Emissions rose marginally from 3,111 tCO2e in 2022 to 3,232 tCO2e in 2023

Context: Despite their alarming financial performance, Williams have claimed that their results fell in line with expectations, given that the Grove-based outfit has undertaken significant investment in all areas of the business to drive both on-track and commercial growth. Revenue was also hit by the team finishing bottom of the constructors’ championship in 2022, meaning it received less prize money.

Commercially, the team has started heading in the right direction, with sponsorship deals agreed with the likes of Gulf Oil, Globant, MyProtein, Stephens, Michelob Ultra and Kraken. However, the full impact of those agreements will only be reflected in future financial reports. The team will hope that the investments it has made will start to bring results as it won’t be able to stomach heavy losses over a prolonged period of time. At the very least, revenue should benefit from a seventh-placed finish in the 2023 standings.

‘Williams losses spiralled 344%’;

https://www.blackbookmotorsport.com/...-results-2023/


The Colapinto effect: Argentina's yearning for its next sporting hero
Oct 4, 2024
Filip Cleeren
Motorsport.com

Williams driver Franco Colapinto's successful Formula 1 debut with Williams has triggered his nation's sense of pride. Franco Colapinto's confident performances haven't just surprised the Formula 1 paddock: the Williams rookie has also awakened a nation's yearning for its next sporting hero.

The country has a rich history with F1, with a grand prix held intermittently in Buenos Aires between 1953 and 1998. Four of those were won by Argentina's original F1 superstar Juan Manuel Fangio, with the late Carlos Reutemann the last Argentine to win a grand prix in 1981. Since a brief intermezzo by Gaston Mazzacane in 2000 and 2001, motor racing fans have had to wait another 23 years to cheer on one of their own until Williams protege Colapinto was surprisingly parachuted into Logan Sargeant's seat at September's Italian Grand Prix.

While Colapinto's unexpected promotion already made headlines back home, the Buenos Aires native's strong performances generated an even bigger buzz. TV audiences and social media numbers soared in recent weeks, with FOX Sports Argentina's broadcast figures tripling since Colapinto's arrival. FOX, which is just one of several ways to watch F1 in the country, enjoyed even bigger peaks during the Singapore Grand Prix, which drew around 600,000 viewers up from an average of 150,000 on the subscription channel, rivalling primetime numbers on a Sunday morning. In local newspapers, numerous articles popped up highlighting his every move, down to journalists even tracking down his birthplace Pilar on the outer edge of Buenos Aires' sprawling metropolis.

‘The Colapinto effect’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/t...hero/10660333/


‘Always been painful’: Alex Albon identifies his best chance to banish ‘painful’ Williams memories
5 Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Alex Albon and Williams have largely been unable to replicate their great results from 2023 this year, but he sees one race as their best chance to banish ‘painful’ memories. Albon shared, via Motorsport-Total: “When I think about the remaining races this year, Brazil stands out for me as the race where there are the most opportunities. If you want to score points against a midfield team, you should try here.”

The London-born Thai is convinced that the Sao Paulo GP will offer Williams’ best chance for points as Interlagos has similar characteristics to the streets of Monaco and Singapore. They were ‘painful’ tracks for Williams in the past, but Albon feels they suit tight circuits this year. “These are tracks that have always been painful for us,” Albon continued. “And this year, we were actually pretty good on them.”

‘Always been painful’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ale...iams-memories/

Renault boss blasts F1 team for 'looking like jokers!'
Renault CEO Luca de Meo has delivered a scathing verdict as to the French manufacturer will be pulling out of F1 after almost a 50-year involvement.
4 Oct 2024
RacingNews365 Staff
RacingNews365

"Fans - except the real enthusiasts, I agree - and sponsors come for a team, not for an engine," said De Meo, speaking to L'Equipe. "Partners sign with McLaren, not with a Mercedes under the hood. The F1 public has changed. It has expanded to include young people, women. This new clientele has a different interpretation of this sport.”

"We support a driver, a colour, a brand. Not an engine. Alpine, given our ranking [ninth in the constructors' Championship] is losing bonuses. Sponsors are rare. We have a hole in the air. My shareholders know how to count. Alpine has to make money." Suggested to De Meo that accountancy goes out of the window when a team is performing, he concurred but added: "Now, with our P16, P17, we look like jokers. We are nowhere. The famous 'marketing returns' have vanished. Even though they are not quantifiable in money."

"It's a very emotional subject," said De Meo. "This decision is the result of months and months of observations. I would first of all like to say that I admire the commitment and tenacity of the people at Viry-Châtillon. I know they will tomorrow imprint this state of mind in the forthcoming projects. They are optimistic, and that's good news. I like to see them so disappointed with this decision, but unfortunately, in my job, I can't think like a fan. That's to say, I am a manager. I run a listed company, and I have to rethink the F1 project to finally win, so I am looking for shortcuts to achieve it.”

'Looking like jokers!';

https://racingnews365.com/renault-bo...ng-like-jokers


Viry staff "deplore" Renault's F1 withdrawal
2 Oct 2024
Pitpass

Staff at Renault's Viry-Chatillon engine manufacturing facility have accused the company of shunning its heritage. "All staff representatives, representing the voice of employees and a majority of stakeholders, regret and deplore the decision to stop F1 engines in 2026," said the Viry Social and Economic Committee (CSE) in a statement.

"This choice is endorsed by the group, which wishes to reduce the financial risk surrounding F1, even though no serious study has been conducted to assess the impact on future sales and the prestige of the brand.”

"Partnership solutions were rejected by the group, even though they would have made it possible to meet several objectives: maintaining F1 activity, reducing development and operating costs, maintaining all skills, and the possibility of bringing an already largely developed and promising RE26 engine to the 2026 season."

‘Accused the company of shunning its heritage’;

https://www.pitpass.com/78822/Viry-s...oogle_vignette


Blunt conclusion from Renault's CEO: 'We've become invisible in F1'
5 Oct 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

On Monday, Renault announced that it would cease production of its Formula 1 power trains at the end of the 2025 season. This, of course, was a severe blow to the workers in Viry-Châtillon, where Renault's engines are made. These staff members will now be transferred to another project. "It is a very emotional subject, first of all for me," CEO De Meo stated in conversation with l'Equipe. "I am very passionate about it. It is heartbreaking. This decision has not been taken lightly."

Renault has enjoyed very successful periods in Formula 1, most recently with Red Bull from 2010-2013. Since the hybrid era, the French manufacturer has been unable to return to its former glory. "I am a manager. I manage a listed company. And I have to rethink the F1 project to finally win," he explains.

'We've become invisible in F1';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30482...s-engines.html


How corporate mismanagement has killed off Renault in F1
4 Oct 2024
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

Pulling the plug on a modern disaster of corporate interference. Watching Renault since introducing the turbo hybrid power units in 2014 has been a painful experience for fans and pundits alike. The results are well documented. A disastrous first year in 2014 saw Red Bull lose the Constructors’ title due to poor reliability. Toro Rosso (now RB), Caterham, and Lotus all saw dramatic drop-offs in performance.

The power unit regulations remained stable for several years after their introduction, mainly due to Honda’s arrival in 2015 with McLaren. However, Renault did not take advantage of this; instead, it invested in buying Lotus ahead of the 2016 season. Renault has existed as a works team several times in the last 20 years, but its final iteration is one of the worst examples of corporate interference in modern times.

From the start of its journey, unrealistic timelines were flaunted, such as the five-year plan for achieving title wins from its inception. This was Renault’s first mistake. Given Lotus’s underfunded state, race wins, let alone title wins, could never be a short—to medium-term goal. Enstone needed significant investment, and the Viry-Châtillon engine facility was required to build more powerful power units and integrate with its British base.

‘Modern disaster of corporate interference’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...renault-in-f1/


‘Invisible’ Alpine ‘put ourselves to shame’ as Renault CEO speaks out on controversial engine axe
6 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Renault CEO Luca de Meo gave a very frank assessment of the Alpine F1 team predicament, claiming “something needed to be done”, as the engine division took the bullet. “It is a very emotional subject, also for me,” De Meo told L’Équipe. “It saddens me a lot, but this is the result of months of observation.”

“In my work, however, I cannot think like a fan. I am a manager. I head a listed company. Unfortunately, that means I have to rethink the Formula One project in order to win. So then you have to start looking at what you can change in the short term.”

“The team has become invisible in recent years. Two more years like this and the whole project was out of control. We have been in decline for three seasons. Something really needed to be done about that. And fortunately, most fans end up coming for the race team, not the engine.”

‘Put ourselves to shame’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/alpine...ne-axe-verdict


Renault CEO justifies F1 exit: “Alpine has to make money”
Oct 4, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Finances played decisive role in ending Renault’s F1 partnership with Alpine. For many years, there was huge optimism surrounding the Renault/Alpine project. Even big-name drivers like Daniel Ricciardo and Fernando Alonso were convinced by their project.

However, the last two years have seen Alpine plummet down the pecking order. After finishing the first season of the 2022 regulations in 4th, they are now 9th in the standings – struggling to score points. In a bid to reverse their fortunes, many changes have been considered.

Three team principals have been at the helm at Alpine over the last twelve months – perhaps the most obvious example of their instability. Most recently, the team concluded that continuing with Renault engines was no longer worth the trouble.

‘Renault CEO justifies F1 exit’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...to-make-money/


Alpine F1 team principal responds to Renault engine scrap
Oct 4, 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Alpine Team Principal Oliver Oakes welcomes the Renault Group’s decision to abandon its Formula 1 engine project, saying “I want the best engine.”

“I want the best engine”;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-engine-scrap/


'Emotional subject': Renault boss speaks out after axeing F1 engine project amid staff disputes
6 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Luca de Meo ‘saddened’ by Renault F1 engine project closure. Renault had been producing engines for the last three decades at their Viry Chatillon plant, which meant it was steeped in rich history.

French F1 driver Romain Grosjean branded the decision to shut the plant ‘sad’ on social media, having previously raced for them between 2012 and 2015.

‘Saddened’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ren...taff-disputes/

Bottas confident he’s ‘driving better than at Mercedes’ as he aims to seal Sauber deal for 2025.
Valtteri Bottas believes that he is now driving better than he did during his five-year stint with Mercedes, but the Finn acknowledges that his level of performance is “not that visible” on the outside given the challenging season that Kick Sauber have faced so far.
3 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

With Bottas’s future yet to be decided – as one seat remains at Kick Sauber, with Nico Hulkenberg the only driver confirmed at the team for 2025 – the 35-year-old was asked during the Singapore Grand Prix weekend if the team’s struggles have complicated matters in terms of securing his seat.

“Yeah, it's how the sport is,” Bottas responded. “I think it's not just this season, but if you look at this season and the last season, when you're fighting towards the back, obviously, it's much less visible on what you can do and what kind of performances are you having.”

“It's pretty much against your team mate that you can have a comparison so, for sure, you're more out there if you're fighting within the points and towards the front end. That's just how it goes so, for sure, it has not been helping the situation.”

‘Future yet to be decided’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...4vTVpgulu5puS6


Is the Sauber seat Schumacher’s last shot at an F1 return?
Sauber have one seat remaining for 2025 that has yet to be announced. Is it a realistic prospect for Schumacher, or has his last chance already passed him by?
October 4, 2024
Hannah May
FormulaNerds

Schumacher may be overlooked again if the rumours regarding Valtteri Bottas are true. Bottas currently drives for Sauber. News has been circulated that Bottas will retain his seat with the team. Not known for holding back his opinions about experienced drivers getting opportunities over younger talent, Marko spoke out on the topic. He shared:

“If the situation is really that Valtteri Bottas gets the chance, then the whole thing is even more incomprehensible to me.” He continued: “I think if Schumacher doesn’t get this seat, then Formula 1 history is over for him.”

Marko expanded on his honest and, perhaps, blunt assessment of Schumacher’s prospects. He clarified: “He should then concentrate on the long-distance races, where he was very successful, and do that. If he stays in motorsport, then he has to find something that he enjoys, but where he also has a chance of winning.”

‘Schumacher’s last shot’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/is.../?nowprocket=1


Report: Mick Schumacher set to lose out on 2025 Sauber seat as Mattia Binotto makes his decision
5 Oct 2024
Tyler Rowlinson
F1 Oversteer

Mattia Binotto has ‘decided against’ Mick Schumacher and gone for Valtteri Bottas. According to a report from Bild, Schumacher will ‘not get a permanent cockpit in a Formula 1 car in 2025’. Valtteri Bottas has been the favourite to retain his seat at Sauber, and Mattia Binotto has reportedly ‘decided against’ Schumacher and opted to keep Bottas with the team for next season.

Their form will present a huge concern for Audi for when they join the sport. With not much expected to change in 2025 for Sauber, the German manufacturer will have a lot of work to do to get up the field, if that was not already apparent. The signing of Hulkenberg is a good addition to the project, given his impressive performances with Haas this year. The 37-year-old is currently sat 10th in the drivers’ standings with 24 points.

Bottas is still an able driver and offers a bit of continuity for Sauber if they do in fact choose to retain him for 2025. The Finn is also a 10-time Grand Prix winner from his time at Mercedes, which also yielded 58 podiums and 20 pole positions. Whatever the case, it is clear the team is in dire need of good fortunes before the 2026 regulations come into effect.

‘Set to lose out’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mic...-his-decision/


Helmut Marko: Sauber choosing Valtteri Bottas over Mick Schumacher would be ‘incomprehensible’
4 Oct 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Helmut Marko believes that Sauber, which will transition into a works Audi setup in 2026, would be well-advised to grant Schumacher a second chance in the series. Schumacher, now a reserve driver at Mercedes, has been unable to secure a permanent drive since Haas opted to drop him at the end of his sophomore term in 2022.

“I think Audi’s car will definitely not be a winning car next year,” Marko told Sport.de. “That means there will be no pressure for Audi or its drivers. It would be a good comparison with Nico Hulkenberg. If the performance is not right, you can always replace him for 2026.”

Marko has contended that it would be ungraspable should Sauber choose to retain the Finn, who has been with the side since departing Mercedes at the end of 2021. “If the situation is really that Valtteri Bottas gets the chance, then the whole thing is even more incomprehensible to me,” he continued.

‘Ungraspable’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...comprehensive/


Audi's starkest F1 warning lies in Sauber's past
Oct 6, 2024
Edd Straw
The Race

Sauber may be just 15 months away from becoming Audi’s works Formula 1 team, but the process of 'Audification' started back in 2022. Not that you would know it given its dismal results. Sauber has failed to score a point so far this season, suggesting the team hasn’t heeded a lesson from the past when it was BMW's works team.

With just 16 points across its last 50 grands prix, this is a team that gives the impression it is drifting. But any expectation that Audi's illustrious record in other forms of motorsport - whether that's rallying, sportscars or tin-tops - and the prodigious investment level means success is guaranteed is misplaced.

This is F1 and Sauber must maximise the next 18 months before Audi's debut. It needs to become a sharper racing organisation, improve its development rate and exhibit the ruthless pursuit of results any F1 team needs to have even a chance of getting to the front. As Binotto recently said: "We need to train our muscles for the future." In F1 if you work on the basis of success coming at some point in the future without being aggressive enough with short-term objectives, then tomorrow never comes. Just as that glorious championship-winning tomorrow never came for BMW Sauber.

"We need to train our muscles for the future";

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/a...auber-history/

Mercedes PR ‘fell a bit short’ after Toto Wolff’s Kimi Antonelli slip-up in recent interview.
Mercedes finally confirmed the signing of Kimi Antonelli ahead of the Italian Grand Prix last time out. It had been clear for months that Antonelli was the favourite to replace Lewis Hamilton.
10 Sep 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Mercedes’ PR team didn’t react effectively after Toto Wolff accidentally confirmed Kimi Antonelli. According to Ronald Vording, a journalist at Motorsport.com Netherlands, Mercedes’ impending move for Antonelli had become one of F1’s ‘worst-kept secrets’. In fact, Wolff accidentally confirmed it even before the official announcement. During a media session at the Dutch Grand Prix last month, the team principal said he ‘wants it to work with George and Kimi in 2025’ (via The Mirror).

This pre-empted Mercedes’ planned unveiling in Italy. The PR team at Brackley weren’t able to deal with this ‘slip of the tongue’. They had been trying to keep things under wraps until qualifying day at Monza. “The announcement of Andrea Kimi Antonelli was one of the worst-kept secrets of the Formula 1 paddock,” Vording wrote.

Eddie Jordan says Toto Wolff has already made a mistake with Kimi Antonelli’s career. Antonelli has signed a one-year deal at Mercedes, which indicates that Wolff is aware of the risk. The teenager must prove that he merits their long-term faith. Former F1 team boss Eddie Jordan says Wolff has made a mistake with Antonelli. It would have been better for his development, he says, if he’d spent a year or two on ‘loan’ at a team further down the grid.

‘Toto Wolff’s Kimi Antonelli slip-up’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mer...ent-interview/


Why Jacques Villeneuve is fuming with Toto Wolff’s treatment of Kimi Antonelli
13 Sep 2024
David Comerford
RacingNews365

Jacques Villeneuve says ‘it’s obviously too early’ for Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes. In his eyes, the ‘overdriving’ that led to the Monza crash was a telling indication. When it was put to him that the Italian had clearly impressed Mercedes engineers in a testing programme, he countered that this wasn’t a representative challenge. It didn’t come with the ‘pressure’ of a Grand Prix weekend. “It’s testing. It’s not the same mindset. You have nothing to compare. There’s no pressure, no stress.”

Lead commentator Harry Benjamin then asked whether Wolff should have placed him at Williams instead. George Russell spent three years with the Mercedes engine customers before stepping up to be Hamilton’s teammate. Villeneuve reckons that James Vowles would have turned down the opportunity to sign the youngster to avoid becoming a de facto Mercedes b team. The Grove outfit have instead captured three-time race-winner Carlos Sainz, who was snubbed by Wolff.

‘It’s obviously too early’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...imi-antonelli/


Wolff “fully conscious” of pressure Mercedes is placing on rookie Antonelli
8 Sep 2024
Will Wood
RaceFans

Despite Antonelli’s accident so soon into his first outing in an official F1 session, Wolff insisted that his team is mindful of the pressure they were asking their young future driver to contend with. “At the end, it’s the team that takes the decisions whether to hire a driver or not and who to put in FP1 and not,” Wolff said.

“We are running fully conscious into these driver decisions, fully conscious of what can happen, what to expect and managing the expectations. Clearly with everything piling up on him in Monza, that’s very difficult to cope with. Is that the reason why he put it in the wall? Maybe. I look at driving performance. Like I said before, I’d rather slow somebody down than make him fast, because the second one is impossible.”

“In our industry, we perfectly understand who is capable and not,” he said. “I think how it’s all panned out here, he’s jumped F3, he’s pretty much won everything beforehand then it’s clear you start to become a Mercedes driver, you test in FP1, and at the same time you’re under the magnifying glass because it all happens in Monza. And it has been a while that an Italian driver was in a top team. So I’m sure that this can be a lot for an 18-year-old.”

“Fully conscious”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/08/...kie-antonelli/


Toto Wolff admits Mercedes ‘wouldn’t have found’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli without key figure after 2025 announcement
7 Sept 2024
Tyler Rowlinson
F1 Oversteer

Andrea Kimi Antonelli will become the youngest driver on the Formula 1 grid for the 2025 season. The 18-year-old Italian was confirmed as Lewis Hamilton’s replacement at Mercedes during his home Grand Prix weekend at Monza.

Speaking after the Italian Grand Prix, team principal Toto Wolff hailed one key figure at Mercedes for scoping out Antonelli for the team’s young driver programme. “Antonelli was signed to Mercedes in 2019 having been first noticed when he was 11 years old by Gwen Lagrue, who runs the junior programme. Since being affiliated with Mercedes, Antonelli has won four junior titles, including the FRECA and Formula Regional Middle East Championship last season."

“I think most of the credit needs to go to Gwen and his team, who manages our Academy because they are able to scout from a very early age onwards. We, as Mercedes, wouldn’t have found Kimi. He was 11 years old, and we saw the results on the track and obviously working with the karting teams, but it’s amazing to see. With George, he actually found us, put his best suit on, and went to see me in my office with a PowerPoint presentation!”

“Most of the credit needs to go to Gwen and his team”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/tot...-announcement/


Wolff to follow 'Hamilton blueprint' with Antonelli
6 Oct 2024
Jake Nichol
RacingNews365

Toto Wolff believes a Lewis Hamilton-style blueprint will help Andrea Kimi Antonelli cope with the "different animal" that is F1. "I think the project that inspired me more is the one that is more similar to Hamilton's career," Wolff told Autosprint when Verstappen's career path was also put to him.

"[Hamilton's] growth in the junior categories and his impact in Formula 1 came at a time when you could test a lot more than Kimi has been able to do now. Ron at the time said Lewis needed to take it easy to get used to F1, also because [Fernando] Alonso was at McLaren. However, that never happened, Lewis was immediately competitive and a success. With the current preparation, Kimi can jump into our car and be competitive.”

"However, F1 now is a different animal than it was at the time of Hamilton's debut. There are a lot more dimensions and facets compared to the past. There is more pressure and social media, so I think it is important to keep everything moving in the right direction, keep the right priorities and avoid what is not essential. The goal is to create a new success story as happened with Hamilton."

'Hamilton blueprint';

https://racingnews365.com/wolff-to-f...with-antonelli


Toto Wolff explains Mercedes Kimi Antonelli strategy in ‘contaminated’ Williams claim
4 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

For Wolff, the methodology is clear. “Now is the time to make a change in terms of generation after the departure of Lewis, because nothing will be as it was before,” Wolff explained to Autosprint.

“We will be dealing with a young team next year. Going into the season with George and Antonelli means we are opening a new era. The previous era was great and now is the time to turn a page and make a new start. The reason Antonelli is driving immediately for Mercedes, and will not first make his debut at Williams is because you want him fresh, not contaminated – if you can put it that way – by external experiences.”

“If he went to another team first, he would learn different things, behaviours, have different notions about technical things than us. We want to avoid that. I think it only brings advantages to have a young driver with you right away.”

‘Very clear tactic to that’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...nated-williams


Kimi Antonelli theory emerges as Max Verstappen and Toto Wolff claim is made
Sep 11, 2024
Tom Sunderland
Daily and Sunday Express

Guenther Steiner believes Mercedes chief Toto Wolff is attempting to 'clone' Max Verstappen by focusing his efforts on Kimi Antonelli.

It's no secret Wolff has also been working hard to recruit Verstappen from Red Bull, though the Dutchman is tied down in Milton Keynes on a contract until 2028. And the next best thing behind signing the three-time world champion themselves would be for Mercedes to unearth the next best thing in motorsport. "I don't know, but I think he missed out on Max and wanted to create his own little Maxi," said Steiner on a recent episode of The Red Flags Podcast.

"And that’s Kimi." "But maybe, you asked why is he so hung up on Kimi," added the Italian as he threw up a hilarious hypothetical. "Maybe he went to therapy, and the therapist told him, 'You need to find something which makes you happy, [so] you can get over having lost Max.'"

‘Toto Wolff is attempting to 'clone' Max Verstappen’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...appen-mercedes

‘Even more excited’: Jock Clear tells F1 fans why they should be ‘even more excited’ about Oliver Bearman in 2025.
Ferrari senior performance engineer Jock Clear has revealed what he is most excited about for Bearman when he makes his full-time F1 debut with Haas next season when speaking on the F1 Nation podcast.
7 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Jock Clear is excited to see what Oliver Bearman learned from F1 outings. There is no doubt that Bearman will have learned a heap from his outings this year for next season, despite the Briton looking like he had always been on the grid in both cases. Clear works as a driver coach for Charles Leclerc at Ferrari and formerly as the performance engineer to Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton when he worked at Mercedes, and believes Bearman will be one to watch next season.

“I would say Ollie is a bit of slow burner. That’s why I’m even more excited about him in the medium term than short term,” said Clear. “Somebody said to me straight after Saudi, it will be interesting to see if Carlos doesn’t recover for Australia, maybe Ollie will get another go and I thought ‘I hope he doesn’t’ because Saudi was so good, it would be good for him to consolidate that.”

‘Excited’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/joc...arman-in-2025/


How Oliver Bearman nearly 'MISSED' his F1 debut with Ferrari
5 Oct 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Bearman: 'My manager couldn't take the call!': "My manager ran out of credit on his phone or something, so he couldn't take the call. I almost missed the race because my manager didn't top his minutes!" Bearman revealed. The Brit then took matters into his own hands and spoke to Ferrari's team principal, Fred Vasseur, briefly over the phone. "Then I called right back because I had enough data, thank god, and he (Vasseur) told me the news that I would be racing for Ferrari this weekend."

Fred Vasseur 'knew' Bearman was nervous: Rationally, the rookie was nervous at the time. He was just about to jump into FErrari's SF-24 for his first Grand Prix on a few hours' notice. "I think he understood pretty quickly that I was getting really nervous from the way I was speaking to him. He was like, Ollie, calm down, it's gonna be okay. I remember telling him that I'll be at the track in 10 minutes, and my hotel was like half an hour away from the track, but I didn't want to miss it," the talented youngster reveals.

“Ollie, calm down, it's gonna be okay”;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30480...h-ferrari.html


Oliver Bearman almost ‘missed’ Ferrari F1 debut after phone credit mishap
04 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Oliver Bearman reflected on his shock Ferrari debut at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which was not helped by his manager running out of phone credit! Asked what Vasseur said, Bearman responded: “Well, first of all, he called my manager, but my manager ran out of credit on this phone or something. So I almost missed the race because my manager didn’t top up his minutes!

“But then I called Fred back, because I had enough data thank God, and he told me the news. He told me that I would be racing for Ferrari this weekend. And I think he understood pretty quickly that I was getting really nervous from the way I was speaking to him. He was like, ‘Ollie, calm down. It’s going be okay’.”

“I remember telling him that ‘I’ll be at the track, I’ll be there in like 10 minutes Fred!’ And my hotel was like half an hour away from the track. But I didn’t want to miss it, you know, like, I wanted to get there and make sure I could do it. So, yeah, those like three hours between getting the call and jumping in the car for FP3 [snaps fingers], went by like this.”

‘I’ll be there in like 10 minutes Fred!’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/oliver...t-phone-credit


BEYOND THE GRID: Ollie Bearman on his flying start to F1 and how he's just getting started
25 Sep 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Bearman also delves into the surprise chances he's had this year, including how he handled the pressure when he got the last-minute call to race for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia, the advice Charles Leclerc gave him, and how his race for Haas in Azerbaijan felt different.

He also remembers moving from the UK to go racing in Italy, and how he's looking forward to starting his first full F1 season in 2025.

‘BEYOND THE GRID’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...fGcNCwfaW9xrly


Esteban Ocon labels 2025 Haas F1 teammate Ollie Bearman “a remarkable talent”
"I think everyone in the paddock knew that he’s a remarkable talent and what he’s done was very impressive..."
26 Sep 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Speaking about Bearman’s drive in Azerbaijan, Ocon said: “What he's done in Baku was really remarkable and I knew it. I think everyone in the paddock knew that he’s a remarkable talent and what he’s done was very impressive, to be on pace straightaway at such a technical track.”

“I’ve been looking at his lap in F2 when he had the steering bent and he was on pole, and that tells you everything. It tells you that he’s at ease straight away whatever car he’s driving. It’s great for him, for the team, for myself, that he’s going to have some good experience before heading into the full season next year.”

“A remarkable talent”;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105649...arkable-talent


'A great guy': Oliver Bearman names the 53-win F1 legend who was ‘one of the first’ to message him after Ferrari debut
25 Sep 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Oliver Bearman shares Sebastian Vettel interaction after Formula 1 debut. During an appearance on F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast, Bearman was asked to name the F1 personality with whom he’d like to be stuck in a lift. He went for four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Bearman revealed that Vettel, who won 53 Grands Prix and took 57 pole positions in an iconic career, was among the first people to congratulate him on his Jeddah showing. But he hasn’t yet had a full face-to-face conversation with the German.

‘One of the first’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/oli...ferrari-debut/


Mark Webber questions Oliver Bearman deal with missing Haas team dynamic claimed
7 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Although Haas have made great strides forward in Ayao Komatsu’s first year as team boss, Mark Webber has questioned whether the engineer is the right person to guide Oliver Bearman in his debut campaign. “Bearman, Haas? I don’t like that team for me,” the eight-time Grand Prix winner told the Formula For Success podcast.

“Like that’s in terms of an EJ, Andreas Stella, these people, even Christian [Horner] and Toto [Wolff], they’re racers. You need that. The leadership when you’re losing your virginity in F1 is a really important role, I think, who your management is at the team.”

“So Bearman and Haas, I hope it… He looks seriously rapid. Did well in Saudi in the Ferrari and obviously [Kimi] Antonelli is in good shape with Toto there. But young, let’s see, not a finishing school. They take the oxygen mask off top of Everest, see how they go.”

‘Questioned whether the engineer is the right person’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/mark-w...ynamic-claimed


'Thanks a lot': Oliver Bearman reveals what his manager told him minutes before F1 debut with Ferrari
25 Sep 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

With just an hour of track preparation, it does not get more pressurised than Oliver Bearman’s debut with Ferrari at this year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. His father, David, nervously watched on from the Ferrari garage in what is one of the most physically difficult races on the calendar.

“I knew that it was going to be the most important weekend of my life. And actually, just before getting in the car for the race, my manager, he didn’t tell me good luck. He didn’t say have fun,” said Bearman. “He just said ‘These next two hours are the most important two hours of your life’ And I was like, thanks a lot!”

‘Pressurised’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/oli...-with-ferrari/

This is why Lawson will be racing in Formula 1 with number 30!
The New Zealander revealed his number some time ago, but he has now explained why he made the choice to run with the #30 starting from the US Grand Prix next weekend on his team's Instagram.
8 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

"I’m going to be racing with number 30, because it’s the number that I’ve raced with since I was 8 years old. It wasn’t actually the very first number I drove with, that was 18, but my first year of gokart racing I moved into a team and there was a guy who looked after me," Lawson began.

"He was my idol back in the day," Lawson continued. "He became like my hero, my idol when I was a kid in gokarts, and he ran with number 30, so I picked number 30 because of him. He taught me everything about gokart racing when I was younger, and then basically I held that number all the way through until today. And I’ve told him as well that I’m bringing our number into Formula One and he was f****** stoked!"

‘#30’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30524...ere-s-why.html


‘Adaptable, mentally strong, and fast in everything he drives’ – F2 expert Alex Jacques on why RB have put their faith in Lawson
6 Oct 2024
Alex Jacques
Formula One - Official Site

It was announced after the Singapore Grand Prix that Daniel Ricciardo had left the RB team with immediate effect, with his seat going to young reserve driver Liam Lawson. It’s a bold move to make for the Faenza team, so we asked F2 commentator Alex Jacques exactly why they’ve put their faith in the young New Zealander…

It is rare to see a multiple Grand Prix winner replaced by a 22-year-old. Rarer still to see it happen mid-season but such is the combination of Liam Lawson’s potential and Red Bull’s ever confusing driver situation, it’s exactly where the organisation and driver find themselves ahead of the 19th Grand Prix of the year.

‘Why RB have put their faith in Lawson’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...fyXv0YOmHxzbB7


Helmut Marko sets clear Liam Lawson goal with Tsunoda to play key role
6 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Lawson goes into this six-round audition armed with clear orders from Marko. “Liam Lawson can now contest the last six rounds of the World Championship for the Racing Bulls team, we will evaluate how he compares to Yuki Tsunoda and then we will see,” Marko wrote in his column for Speedweek.

“He has to deliver a Formula 1 worthy performance, as he has already done in his previous GP appearances. We have other strong juniors in the junior squad, such as Ayumu Iwasa and Isack Hadjar. We will use them in the rookie sprint, which will be held on the junior test day after the season finale in Abu Dhabi. Then we’ll see what happens next.”

“The GP appearances of Oliver Bearman and especially Franco Colapinto have shown that the youngsters are ready for the step up and that the old philosophy of some team bosses that only drivers with three or four years’ experience can be promoted to a top team is outdated. Mercedes has now proven this with its driver decision, just as Red Bull Racing has done several times in the past.”

‘We will evaluate’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/helmut...-tsunoda-gauge


Liam Lawson playing catch-up in F1 return
Liam Lawson will be battling to make up for lost time against rivals with significantly more experience with their machinery when he makes his F1 return later this month.
3 Oct 2024
Mat Coch
Speedcafe

“It’s six rounds left of the season, so I’ve come in at a, you know, difficult time,” Lawson told Newstalk ZB. “It’s going to be a very challenging point. Obviously, all these guys have done three quarters of a season now, so I have to try and try and compete with that now at tracks that I haven’t done as well. It’s going to be challenging.”

“I need to perform,” Lawson asserted of the coming half dozen races. Basically, I need to try and obviously show my worth in F1 and, I would say do a similar job to what I did last year. What’s given me the shot now is what happened last year, so I just need to do enough to stay in the seat next year.”

‘Playing catch-up’;

https://speedcafe.com/liam-lawson-f1-return-pressure/


Marko immediately puts pressure on Lawson: 'We have more strong drivers'
3 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Helmut Marko has confirmed Red Bull Junior drivers Ayumu Iwasa and Isack Hadjar will get a chance to drive the F1 car on the rookie test day, which follows the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The external advisor was keen to highlight how Red Bull have talent waiting in the wings should it be required.

Daniel Ricciardo was ousted from his Visa Cash App RB seat after the Singapore Grand Prix. Liam Lawson will replace him and finish the season at VCARB. Marko stresses they want to compare the New Zealander to Yuki Tsunoda, but warns Lawson there is more talent waiting in the wings. The 81-year-old Austrian believes the FIA also has a role to play in creating opportunities for young drivers. "You can rely on youth. It is certainly a risk, but it is a manageable risk and worthwhile," Marko explained.

"You have to give the youngsters a chance to prove themselves in a GP car after they have worked their way up in the junior classes. In itself, this whole route is good, but unfortunately far too expensive. It starts in karting and continues in all classes. The FIA should start there and see how they can get the costs under control."

‘Red Bull have talent waiting in the wings should it be required’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30453...habi-test.html


Lawson reveals advice Ricciardo gave him after RB seat swap was confirmed
4 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Liam Lawson has opened up on the words of advice Daniel Ricciardo shared with him following confirmation that the New Zealander would replace the Australian at RB for the remainder of the season.

“I get one shot at F1 and it’s come now and I’m obviously grateful for that opportunity, but I now need to take it with both hands. At the same time, he’s said the same thing to me, and he said, ‘You need to make the most of it’.”

‘Ricciardo advice’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...DeCa02pzNQRWSI


'On the record': Christian Horner said something ‘bewildering’ about Liam Lawson before United States Grand Prix return
4 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Alex Jacques can’t get his head around Liam Lawson’s 2025 Red Bull audition. Speaking on the Formula For Success podcast, F1 commentator Alex Jacques reflected on a recent Christian Horner interview. Horner confirmed that Lawson was in the running for a 2025 Red Bull seat.

Jacques feels it’s remarkable that his future is so open-ended, particularly at this stage of the driver market. He could also miss out on a drive altogether if he falls short of expectations. Indeed, Red Bull may call upon Isack Hadjar, the academy driver who’s competing for the F2 title, to partner Yuki Tsunoda. Helmut Marko is also an admirer of Franco Colapinto, who won’t be able to race for Williams next year.

“It’s really intriguing,” Jacques said. “I was also really interested to hear Christian Horner’s comments that it’s part of a wider, not audition, but there’s an opportunity for him to put himself, not just in the discussion for a V-CARB or RB seat, but the actual senior team as well. And this is Christian Horner on the record. This isn’t any insider goss. This was on the record, public comments, to Formula One, saying it’s part of a wider picture. So, he’s got this strange thing, DC, where he’s got six Grand Prix. He’s worked for this his entire life.”

‘Liam Lawson’s 2025 Red Bull audition’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/chr...d-prix-return/

Franco Colapinto on pace with Alex Albon in Williams F1 simulator.
Williams Formula 1 boss James Vowles has revealed Franco Colapinto has been matching the pace of Alex Albon on the team’s simulator this season.
6 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

“The reason why we put him in the car is, A, he’s part of our academy, and I believe in investing in our academy,” Vowles explained on the F1 Beyond the Grid podcast. Vowles went on to explain that limited budgets have always hampered Colapinto, but he has been able to excel regardless on his rise through the single-seater ranks.

“If I ask everyone to dig back through his career properly in the detail that we did, which is why he’s here, you’ll see that he never had testing or sometimes not even simulator work that went with it,” the Williams Team Principal said.

“He went wherever finance led him to and when he was in those teams he did an incredible job without any kilometres under his belt. [In 2024] he started really developing in Formula 2, which is why we rewarded him with the Silverstone [FP1] drive.”

‘Matching the pace of Alex Albon’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-f1-simulator/


Williams boss ‘taken aback’ by Franco Colapinto with Albon sim comparison revealed
6 Oct 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Williams team principal James Vowles admitted to being “taken aback” by the pace of Franco Colapinto in his FP1 outing at Silverstone in July, and revealed his pace in the simulator is equal to that of Alex Albon.

Another of Colapinto’s qualities that has been evident in his dealings with the media so far is his openness and willingness to engage, which has extended to members of his team, as Vowles elaborated further upon.

“We had a team talk for the first time with him in Monza, and he said, ‘Well, what should I say?’ I said: ‘Speak from your heart, you’re good at it, just talk to people.’” he explained.

“Taken aback”;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/willia...colapinto-pace


Argentina eyeing potential home F1 race for Franco Colapinto
3 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Argentina last hosted a GP in 1998 at the Autódromo Oscar y Juan Gálvez in Buenos Aries, with Michael Schumacher winning for Ferrari. That circuit is currently a long way off the FIA Grade 1 Status required of an F1 venue and a significant investment will be required for an Argentine GP to become a reality.

To get the ball rolling, Scioli will head to Sao Paulo in November to meet with F1 representatives to initiate the process of hosting an Argentine GP. The one other snag that could foil plans is that Colapinto doesn’t have an immediate future set in F1.

Williams has already secured Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz on multi-year deals for 2025 and beyond, meaning Colapinto’s stint is resigned to just a 2024 cameo. However, Williams, keen to develop its prospect, is open to loaning Colapinto to Sauber/Audi in 2025.

‘Argentina GP’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...nco-colapinto/


Vowles: Colapinto can ‘drive the socks off’ of Williams’ FW46
The Argentinian has massively impressed since his Formula 1 race debut in Monza
Oct 7, 2024
Freddie Cotton
FormulaNerds

Quick out of the blocks. Of those to have been impressed with Colapinto’s start to life in F1 is Vowles, who has publicly commended the 21-year-old. Speaking on F1’s Beyond The Grid podcast, Williams’ Team Principal said:

“What I didn’t expect to happen is how quickly he’s got up to speed – I thought it would take him another few races to be there, so we’d be in the Americas before he picked up. Where his strengths are, him personally, he can take all of this pressure, thousands of things that come at you, and just deal with it in his stride. He’s never flustered, he’s never panicked, he’s never overloaded. He’s just, ‘give me more, and I can give you more back’.”

When he was then asked if keeping Colapinto would have been a possibility if Carlos Sainz’s signing had not been in place, Vowles added: “What Franco brings is to give us this pure performance – no doubt about it, he can drive the socks off this car. But there’s pros and cons to both, which is what we have to be clear about. What I would say is Franco is deserving of a place in Formula 1.”

‘Quick out of the blocks’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/vo.../?nowprocket=1


‘Couldn’t even go straight’: Why confused Franco Colapinto ‘couldn’t even go straight’ on his Williams F1 debut
8 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Franco Colapinto baffled by Williams steering wheel on first outing. Colapinto featured in a Formula 1 session for the first time at Silverstone back in July. He replaced Sargeant in FP1 and impressively lapped just over four-tenths slower than Albon.

He then completed his first full weekend at Monza after Sargeant left for good. The 21-year-old was disappointed to qualify 18th but recovered well to finish 12th. Speaking to El Hormiguero, he recalled his struggles with the Williams steering wheel. He couldn’t ‘figure out’ which buttons he needed to press.

Colapinto said: “There are many red buttons that are better not to touch and there are other buttons that you have to touch. The thing is that you go very fast and at the beginning, since I was not used to the speed at which things happen, it was difficult for me to focus on which button to touch. And then I had a guy on the radio who was talking to me every 5 seconds and at the beginning I couldn’t even go straight because of the grey, I would go into the grass. It took me a couple of minutes to figure out which button to touch.”

‘Baffled by Williams steering wheel’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...iams-f1-debut/


Colapinto interview: "I know what I can do, I was expecting to be quick"
Williams sensation Franco Colapinto sits down with Motorsport.com to talk about his rapid rise as a Formula 1 driver
Oct 9, 2024
Filip Cleeren Ronald Vording
Motorsport.com

For all the hoo-ha around his rapid ascent, Colapinto has taken to F1 like a duck to water and doesn't seem at all fazed by the extra attention on him, or surprised by how he has been able to get closer to his experienced team-mate Alex Albon in three races than his predecessor has been able to do.

"No, I know what I can do, and I was expecting to be quick," a relaxed and quietly self-assured Colapinto told Motorsport.com during an interview in Singapore. "Even though I didn't have a lot of experience with the car, that was the idea of the team and why they put me in the car, so I'm happy to be helping the team."

"I think we are doing a good job together as a team," he said about his learning process. It's tough. There are a lot of things you can do in the car with the tools and so much stuff that you can change. But I am learning every time I'm going out and I'm just getting a bit more used to the car, a bit more used to how I can extract the maximum performance of the car, and that's going well."

‘Taken to F1 like a duck to water’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/c...uick/10661570/


‘Does not care’: What Franco Colapinto has done at Williams that shows he’s already inside Alex Albon’s head
9 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Alex Albon’s comments about Williams teammate Franco Colapinto ‘made no sense’. Speaking to Motorsport.com, Colapinto’s former boss Sander Dorsman raved about his ‘fantastic’ move at the start of the Singapore GP. Dorsman runs the MP Motorsport team who worked with Colapinto in FRECA, Formula 3 and Formula 2.

Colapinto overtook three cars in one go after the lights went out in Marina Bay, bravely diving down the inside but slowing his car down enough to make the apex. An angry Albon, one of the victims, called it a ‘divebomb’ over the radio and asked what he was doing. But Dorsman feels that these remarks ‘made no sense’. Far from legitimate criticism, they instead show that the team’s new arrival is ‘in his head’.

“I especially thought that action at the start was fantastic of course,” he said. “That is exactly how we know Franco, he goes all out. He simply does not care about reputations and what really struck me there was that Albon immediately came on the radio. Something that actually made no sense at all, but it does show that it seems that Franco was already a bit in his head. So that is interesting.”

‘Already inside Alex Albon’s head’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/wha...x-albons-head/

Adrian Newey reveals concerns over F1 2026 regulations ahead of Aston Martin move.
“They’re a huge change, I mean, I can’t remember – it probably has happened at some time in the distant past – but I can’t remember the last time we had completely new power unit and chassis regulations at the same time.”
9 Oct 2024
Thomas Maher
PlanetF1.com

“In reality, the power unit regulations because there’s a much longer lead time associated with power unit research than there is with the chassis side. Then the power unit regulations were fixed quite a few years ago without, in truth, properly, considering what chassis regulations were then needed to suit those PU regs. That’s something that the FIA, with support from teams, has been battling with since. How it will work out is, in truth, still not clear.”

“The original idea that the FIA wanted was 400 kilowatts from the PU and 400 kilowatts from the hybrid side – the electric machine,” he said. “They then started to realise that 400 from the electric was too much to be sustainable, in terms of sustainable from lap to lap, so they’ve reduced that to 350 but even now there is still a lot of concern that, actually, the cars will be going significantly slower at the end of straight than at the start of the straight because they just run out of battery.”

“It was a regulation that was brought in really, I think, primarily to keep the existing OEMs, the manufacturers in, and hopefully attract new ones. In that sense, you can argue it’s been successful. Audi is coming in. Honda has reversed their decision to exit and are staying in but what the show and the spectacle will be, I think it’s a concern. But Formula 1, somehow, seems to have a habit of being all right on the night!”

‘Significantly slower at the end of straight than at the start of the straight!’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/adrian...erned-outlined


Mateschitz Death Triggered Newey’s Red Bull Exit – Marko
9 Oct 2024
F1 Chronicle

The late 2022 death of Dietrich Mateschitz was the leading cause of Adrian Newey’s decision to leave Red Bull. That is the suspicion of team advisor Dr Helmut Marko, although he admits that other top departing names including Jonathan Wheatley and Will Courtenay were attracted by big-money offers and more powerful positions.

“When you win, and we have won a lot in the last three years, it is normal that your employees are coveted by other teams,” Marko told ORF Tirol. “That is the normal game in Formula 1. What surprised me a bit are the amounts that are offered. We are always struggling with the budget cap, but these people are often being offered double. That means we couldn’t keep some of them.”

“Newey was with us for 17 years, Wheatley for 19. They were part of the team, part of the group and part of the club. They were a big part of our success,” the 81-year-old admits. “That hurts, but whether they leave for financial reasons or career reasons, it makes no difference if we cannot offer the same.”

‘Leading cause of Adrian Newey’s decision’;

https://f1chronicle.com/mateschitz-d.../?nowprocket=1


Lid lifted on Adrian Newey contract negotiations with two key attractions revealed
9 Oct 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Eddie Jordan spoke about the professionalism of Aston Martin in their negotiations with Adrian Newey, alongside citing having Honda and Andy Cowell on side as two key factors in his arrival.

Jordan confirmed that talks had taken place with Ferrari, Alpine and Williams in the process of deciding Newey’s next step, but the design great ultimately plumped for Aston Martin – citing team owner Lawrence Stroll’s “infectious” passion and commitment to the project that is being put in place at Silverstone.

With a new factory having been built, Jordan added that two other factors also helped Newey reach his verdict – with Aston Martin having a works power unit deal with Honda from 2026 onwards, and the highly-successful former Mercedes High Performance Powertrains managing director Andy Cowell being in place as Aston Martin’s group CEO.

‘Lid lifted’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/adrian...n-negotiations


Alonso went all out to 'persuade' Newey to join Aston Martin
8 Oct 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

Alonso was asked how he, along with his team, 'persuade' Newey to the Lawrence Stroll-owned team. "That's a question for him," started Alonso. "I texted him, for sure, like everybody probably did who wanted to work with him."

The Spaniard continued, "I saw him at the Monaco historic Grand Prix that he was racing that week as well. We spent half an hour chatting as well. We all tried to persuade him. Ultimately, Lawrence and, as I said, his vision, the new factory and what Aston Martin wants for the future together with Honda as well, were probably key factors listening to what Adrian said yesterday [after his announcement]."

‘Went all out’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30518...on-martin.html


‘Short-sighted’ and ‘politics’-driven Ferrari accused of making major Adrian Newey mistake
7 Oct 2024
Oliver Harden
PlanetF1.com

Asked if he was surprised that Ferrari did not move for Newey, having completed the shock signing of seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes last winter, Mansell added: “No, not really.”

“As soon as I heard that Ferrari were baulking at possibly the wage bill that Adrian wanted. I think that was short-sighted of them. They lost an opportunity because whoever gets Adrian Newey is almost assured of having a fantastic few years and I think Aston Martin have done something very special in securing his services.”

“I think people have underestimated as well that I don’t think Adrian was totally happy in the last few years with Red Bull and what a fantastic job he’s done and I think now being in the UK, being with Aston Martin.”

‘ ‘Short-sighted’ and ‘politics’-driven Ferrari’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/adrian...martin-verdict


Ferrari 'licking its wounds' after 'short-sighted' Newey failure
Adrian Newey won't be heading to Ferrari - something one driver who won a world championship in one of his cars feels is "short-sighted."
6 Oct 2024
Jake Nichol
RacingNews365

Nigel Mansell has blasted Ferrari for its "short-sighted" failure to sign Adrian Newey, and feels the team should be 'licking its wounds.' Mansell delivered Newey his first taste of world championship glory with the dominant FW14B in 1992, but believes his former Ferrari team has made a major mistake in not signing Newey.

"The fact that he’s gone to Aston Martin is so wise because he won’t get caught up in the politics of Ferrari and the hype that goes with that," Mansell told Top Offshore Sportsbooks. "I think Ferrari should be licking their wounds a little bit because they should have got him, but all credit to Aston Martin.”

‘Won’t get caught with Ferrari politics';

https://racingnews365.com/ferrari-li...-newey-failure


Newey reveals why he’ll still be helping Red Bull with ‘passion project’ after his Aston Martin start date
7 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Adrian Newey has revealed that he will continue to work on the Red Bull RB17 hypercar project even after his time with the Formula 1 team has come to an end, with the famed designer set to join Aston Martin in 2025. It was announced back in May that Newey would depart Red Bull in the first quarter of next year, bringing his nearly 20-year stint at the Milton Keynes squad to a close, and much speculation then followed over where the Briton’s next destination would be.

“But I’ve still been working hard on the RB17 track car, which has been a sort of side project/passion project really, which I’ve hugely enjoyed because it’s something just a little bit different to Formula 1. It’s applying all the same principles that I’ve learned from Formula 1, but to a different application. So I’m still working on that and I will still be working on that until the 1st of March, and then I will still be working on that after that 1st of March date but not from the factory as much.”

‘Red Bull passion project’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...EBbCnvvSx9tBjD


Newey to continue working on a Red Bull project 'after 1 March 2025'
7 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Aston Martin are looking forward to Newey's arrival. His announcement at the Silverstone-based factory was greeted with cheers from the staff members. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll are also excited to be working with Newey.

Newey is still getting paid by Red Bull, but he no longer has any influence over the Austrians' F1 team. In fact, since April this year, the Brit has not been involved in the development of the RB20 and its successor for the 2025 season. However, Newey still worked on the RB17, the high-speed hypercar he developed himself.

Although the RB17 has been presented and is ready, Newey has been thinking lately about developing the car further. In the podcast, he also revealed that he is hugely looking forward to his new adventure at Aston Martin. His focus there will be on developing the car for 2026 when the new technical regulations in F1 take effect.

‘Developing the car further’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30508...-hypercar.html

Felipe Massa issues update as Lewis Hamilton F1 2008 title legal challenge continues.
Felipe Massa is hoping for a swift resolution to the legal case over his F1 2008 title defeat to Lewis Hamilton due to the “very expensive” financial burden.
2 Oct 2024
Oliver Harden
PlanetF1.com

In an update on the case, Massa has reiterated his desire for “justice” to be done having “definitely paid” for missing out on the title to Hamilton. He told RN365: “I hope the correct thing happens, for justice, for something that was not part of the sport that punished me big time.

“This is what we are fighting for, which I believe is correct, especially after 16 years and on hearing things which you never thought it was really like that. After that, I decided to put a big team together, professional people, divided by many different countries.”

“They really believe it was not fair what happened, for the sport, and I definitely paid. When we heard Bernie’s comment last year, after that we started to put things together and we started to fight, to analyse things in the professional, legal way because it was not part of the sport.”

“Very expensive”;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/felipe...egal-challenge


Felipe Massa reveals ‘expensive wait for justice’ challenging 2008 Lewis Hamilton F1 title
2 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Felipe Massa has revealed that his legal challenge against Formula 1, the FIA, and former series rights holder Bernie Ecclestone over his lost 2008 title to Lewis Hamilton is ongoing. Massa launched legal proceedings with the Brazilian law firm Vieira Rezende Advogas in March this year, seeking retribution for his lost 2008 crown.

A lawsuit was filed in London’s High Court, seeking damages as “the FIA breached its regulations by failing to promptly investigate Nelson Piquet Junior’s crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, and that had it acted properly, Mr Massa would have won the drivers’ championship that year.”

‘Expensive wait for justice’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...lton-f1-title/


Former Driver Opens Up On Legal Battle Against F1 Over Lewis Hamilton’s 2008 Title
Oct 02, 2024
Saajan Jogia
News & Observer, North Carolina

This misfortune would prove pivotal, as Massa ultimately lost the 2008 title to Hamilton by a single point in the season finale in São Paulo. The 'Crashgate' scandal only came to light after Renault dismissed Piquet Jr. midway through the 2009 season. Hoping for justice to prevail after the nearly five-month-long legal battle, which is draining Massa's financial resources, the 43-year-old former driver told the media:

"I hope the correct thing happens, for justice, for something that was not part of the sport that punished me big time. This is what we are fighting for, which I believe is correct, especially after 16 years and on hearing things which you never thought it was really like that. After that, I decided to put a big team together, professional people, divided by many different countries. They really believe it was not fair what happened, for the sport, and I definitely paid.”

"When we heard Bernie's comment last year, after that we started to put things together, and we started to fight, to analyse things in the professional, legal way because it was not part of the sport. I never thought I was going to be part of such a thing in my life. It's not easy. It's also very expensive, a lot of money, so I really hope things finish soon. But we've been waiting so long now for justice, we have to hope the truth comes out and there will be justice."

‘Former Driver Opens Up On Legal Battle’;

https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/...mainstage_card


Felipe Massa upset with Daniel Ricciardo after he made Crashgate joke that wasn’t ‘right’
3 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Felipe Massa has responded to a joke made by Daniel Ricciardo during the Singapore Grand Prix that was in reference to the 2008 Crashgate scandal. The incident was one of the worst cases of cheating in sporting history when Renault driver Nelson Piquet Jr was told to deliberately crash his car to bring out a Safety Car and benefit teammate Fernando Alonso.

During the recent Singapore Grand Prix, after qualifying at the back of the grid Daniel Ricciardo joked that he would need a cheap Safety Car to get back to the front and score points before quipping: “Bring Piquet back, and let’s make it happen.” When speaking to the media after the Singapore GP about the comments, Massa did not take the joke well according to Motorsport-Total.

“I think jokes are jokes. But that might not be a particularly nice joke. Making jokes about something that wasn’t right for the sport is not so nice,” said Massa. “But I wasn’t there, I didn’t hear the exact wording, and I understand that jokes are jokes. But it’s definitely not a nice joke, and of course it’s not a nice thing that this happened to me.”

‘Not a particularly nice joke’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fel...t-wasnt-right/


Former Ferrari engineer shares ‘uncontrollable’ reaction after Felipe Massa lost 2008 title to Lewis Hamilton
2 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

The 2008 title showdown between Felipe Massa and Lewis Hamilton was one of the most memorable in Formula 1 history. Lewis Hamilton came into the race with a seven-point lead over Felipe Massa and with a maximum of 10 points on offer, the Ferrari driver could still win the championship if Hamilton finished in sixth or lower.

Rob Smedley cried ‘uncontrollably’ in aftermath of Felipe Massa 2008 title loss. Massa has won the race in front of his home crowd in Brazil and took to the podium with a display of emotion, having lost the title in the final moments of the race. Smedley was on the pit wall when it all happened and recalled watching the screens as the action unfolded, while the scenes showed the Ferrari mechanics celebrating moments before Hamilton made the last-lap move.

“When Felipe crosses the line I was trying to intently watch. Everyone thinks we’ve won and starts to pull me off the pit wall and I was like ‘Stop! Stop! I’m still working!’ They’re basically dragging me right off the pit wall and I just managed to turn to the side and saw the silver car in front of the white and red car,” said Smedley. “At that point, you just accept it. But I took myself off and went behind the hospitality buildings and cried for about an hour, uncontrollably. Just on my own, there was nobody else there. For just 30 minutes, then sorted myself out and that was the end of it. I’ve always been a person that never looks back, I was like ‘Right, that’s the end of it. It’s done.’”

‘Uncontrollable’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fer...ewis-hamilton/


Massa reveals financial strain of legal fight for Hamilton's first F1 title
Given the cost of legal fees, this must be eye-watering for Felipe Massa!
1 Oct 2024
Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

Felipe Massa is hopeful his fight for justice against F1, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone will conclude soon given the extraordinary financial burden. In March, Massa and his Brazilian legal team announced it had filed a lawsuit against the sport, motorsport's governing body, and former F1 supremo Ecclestone relating to Lewis Hamilton's first F1 title in 2008.

The Brazilian law firm representing Massa, Vieira Rezende Advogados, filed its lawsuit in London's High Court seeking declarations that "the FIA breached its regulations by failing to promptly investigate Nelson Piquet Junior’s crash at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, and that had it acted properly, Mr Massa would have won the drivers’ championship that year".

Damages are also being sought to compensate Massa for the fact he is not an F1 champion but should have been acknowledged as such for the past 16 years. Speaking in an exclusive interview with RacingNews365, Massa confirmed the case has been ongoing for "four, five months". "I hope the correct thing happens, for justice, for something that was not part of the sport that punished me big time," said Massa.

‘Financial strain’;

https://racingnews365.com/massa-reve...first-f1-title


Lewis Hamilton gets rare update on legal case that could strip him of F1 title
Lewis Hamilton is currently a seven-time world champion, but that could soon change.
Oct 1, 2024
Harry Smith
Daily and Sunday Express

Lewis Hamilton is facing a nervous wait about his maiden World Championship. Felipe Massa has offered a rare update about his lawsuit against F1, the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone, citing the mental and financial toll that it is having on his life.

The Brazilian ended his career without a World Championship to his name, having come closest in 2008 when he finished a single point behind Lewis Hamilton in his sophomore year in the sport.

Massa would have won the title had he converted the lead of the Singapore Grand Prix into victory, but that triumph instead went to Fernando Alonso, who benefitted from a deliberate crash from team-mate Nelson Piquet Jr.

‘Lewis Hamilton is facing a nervous wait’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ssa-F1-lawsuit

Horner expects a turnaround from Austin upgrades.
Ahead of the United States Grand Prix, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner hopes that the upgrade package that will arrive for the Austin round will significantly improve the RB's 20 balance.
8 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

With Formula One enjoying a long four-week gap between the Singapore and the United States Grands Prix, several teams have been busy with developing some upgrades for the closing leg of the current season. Red Bull is also set to hit the track with an upgrade package from which team boss Christian Horner hopes a lot.

“I think for all teams, Austin will be a natural time of the year to bring some news. We have something important, but I think Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren will also have updates.”

"Our goal is to build on the basis of what we began to understand clearly after Monza and bring a car that is well balanced between the two axles to give confidence to the driver, but it will not be easy. The first sector of the Circuit of the Americas is fast, but part of the track has also been resurfaced, so variables are added.

‘Will significantly improve the RB's 20 balance’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25580


Red Bull hope to ‘inspire confidence’ with Austin F1 upgrade ‘remedies’
Christian Horner details Red Bull's upgrade plan for the United States Grand Prix later this month.
3 Oct 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Speaking on the F1 Nation podcast, Horner revealed that Red Bull’s latest update is centered on making the RB20 easier to drive in a bid to instill confidence in both drivers. “Well I think for all of the teams it’s a natural point in time in the year that all teams will bring something for Austin,” Horner explained.

“I think we’ve seen some issues that have been aerodynamic issues that actually when you really peel the layers of the onion back they actually go back to 2023,” he added. “I think that Max due to his uncanny ability to drive around problems has been able to deal with it whereas it affected Checo much more. Almost to the point where it was a little like the Benetton in the early ‘90s.”

“Michael [Schumacher] could drive that car but whoever else got in it seemed to really struggle with it. Max has that ability to just drive around a car with these sensitivities. We were seeing signs of it in the build of it in Monza but when you took the downforce of, how much it highlighted the disconnect there was between the front and rear axles. The numbers we were expecting to see on track were just miles out from where our simulation tools were.”

‘Red Bull's upgrade plan’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105709...grade-remedies


Horner details "grief" from F1 boss who applied pressure: 'Stop dominating'
10 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Christian Horner revealed that he experienced "grief" and "pressure" from F1 CEO Stefano Domenicalli during Red Bull's period of dominance in Formula 1. "If you were sceptic, you'd say something's changed because we went from winning races as a canter," the Red Bull team boss said in a conversation with Motorsport. "I was getting grief from Stefano [Domenicali] every weekend that the TV figures are dwindling because we're set for another year of Max Verstappen and Red Bull dominance. There was a lot of pressure coming, saying: ‘Stop winning races by 20 seconds!’"

"If one was a sceptic and somewhat paranoid, you say something's changed. Because even when we've gone back to the configuration of the car that, for example, we had in China, we still have some of the same issues that we have experienced," continued Horner, who also admitted other teams have made steps forward.

Horner expressed that he has never seen big swings before, from Red Bull or any other team. Lando Norris is hunting down Max Verstappen in the Drivers' World Championship. With six race weekends remaining, Norris has a 52-point gap to bridge. In the Constructors' Championship, Red Bull will need to make some improvements if they are to cut the 41-point gap to the Woking-based team.

‘Grief from F1 boss who applied pressure’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30547...menicalli.html


Christian Horner names ‘low point’ in Red Bull’s F1 2024 struggles
7 Oct 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Red Bull’s decline reached a nadir at Monza as Verstappen lamented balance issues having made the RB20 into a “monster” as he came home in a distant sixth place. Horner considers Red Bull’s experimental showing on Italian soil as a critical moment, though, as it helped to discover where the side had gone wrong in development.

“We already could see the issues, but I think what Monza really exposed was perhaps some of the root cause, or helped to identify the root cause of the issue,” he said. “So I’m taking Monza as the low point and we’re starting to build out of that.”

“The [22-second] gap to Lando [Norris in Singapore] was significant in the first part of the race and we’ve now got the best part of a month to work hard and try and bring some performance to the car in Austin,” he added. “When you consider where we were a couple of weeks ago, I think we have made some real progress. We’ve got a vein of development, and we’ve understood some of the issues with the car. I think we’re starting to address them.”

‘Low point’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...024-struggles/


Horner makes Ronaldo comparison as Newey gets set for switch from Red Bull to Aston Martin
10 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Christian Horner has reiterated his belief that Red Bull have enough “strength and depth” in the squad to remain successful without Adrian Newey, the team boss having compared the situation to Manchester United continuing to win when Cristiano Ronaldo left the club.

“We’ve got great strength and depth. Manchester United didn’t stop winning when Eric Cantona left – everything has to evolve, and I think we have that strength and depth to pick and carry on that baton.” When Kravitz raised the point that Cantona retired after leaving the club rather than moving to another team, Horner added: “Alright, Cristiano Ronaldo! I’m not a football analogy specialist!”

“If they [Aston] come up with a rocket ship and Lance Stroll wins the world championship in 2026, then you’ll say that it was the right thing!” the Team Principal joked. “But, look, all we can do is wish him the best of luck for the future. It’s a team with huge ambition – Lawrence Stroll’s a very motivated guy. But Aston aren’t the only competitor – Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren, they’re all very strong teams, so we’re focused on ourselves.”

‘Eric Cantona’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...rTpAJOqE73q9Ps


Jos Verstappen Comments ‘Didn’t Help’ In 2024 – Marko
Oct 10, 2024
F1 Chronicle

Dr Helmut Marko is calling for unity amid a tumultuous period for Red Bull Racing. Although Max Verstappen is now more confident the team is starting to “understand” the reasons for its recent performance slump, the parallel turmoil has resulted in the loss of several high-profile figures.

“Let’s put it this way – it didn’t help either,” he told ORF Tirol, having already admitted that founder Dietrich Mateschitz’s 2022 death and the Horner scandal early this year were all part of the 2024 turmoil. But we sat down together and agreed that we have to pull together – we have to work together in all areas to win this championship,” Marko, 81, added.

“This is the direction to follow for the future as well, because it’s clear that if we don’t give Max a car that he can win with, there could be complications in the longer term. All the top drivers have exit options in their contracts, and in this case, Max can also look for another option,” the Austrian continued. “He will drive where the package will be the best.”

‘Max Verstappen is now more confident’;

https://f1chronicle.com/jos-verstapp.../?nowprocket=1


Verstappen could leave RB, warns Marko
10 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Red Bull's motorsport advisor Dr. Helmut Marko told Sport.de that the reigning world champion might leave the team if he is unhappy with the competitiveness of his car. “The danger is there. Max is not a guy who wants to beat the records of [Michael] Schumacher or [Lewis] Hamilton. When he’s in the car, he wants to win, but the environment has to be right.”

"If the whole thing no longer suits him, you can expect him to say from one day to the next: that’s it." Pushed on to reveal how Verstappen could leave Red Bull despite having a valid contract with the team until the end of the 2028 season, Marko Marko noted that the Dutch driver has performance-related exit clauses in his contract.

“Most top drivers have exit clauses that are performance-related. Max has one too. This means that if we can’t provide him with a car in which he can drive at the front, [leaving] is certainly something he will consider.”

‘IF he is unhappy with the competitiveness of his car’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25585

McLaren prepare critical upgrades for final phase of 2024.
Mid-season development has turned this year’s Championship on its head. McLaren have comprehensively out-developed Red Bull this year, introducing a series of highly effective updates to the MCL38 to leapfrog the Austrian team in the standings. Despite McLaren becoming the undisputed benchmark in F1, team principal Andrea Stella wants to see further progress.
Oct 2, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

At the beginning of the year, McLaren were the third or fourth-fastest team. Prior to the Miami GP, McLaren were generally fighting with Mercedes and Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin. However, the upgrades introduced in Miami provided a huge step forward in performance. In an ideal scenario, the improvements introduced in Florida would have been introduced earlier.

Unfortunately for Andrea Stella’s personnel, missed targets at the start of 2023 interrupted their development. Partly because of this, their recovery and rapid ascendancy is even more impressive. Not only were their initial upgrades slightly delayed, but their upgrade philosophy has been very restrained. Despite this, they are achieving devastating results.

To add further insult to injury to their rivals, McLaren still have more updates in the pipeline. In fact, they have intentionally held back in recent months – opting against implementing some of their new components.

‘Achieving devastating results’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...phase-of-2024/


McLaren bosses share secret to championship-leading car pace
McLaren bosses Andrea Stella and Rob Marshall have explained how the team has been able to produce a consistently fast car when rivals haven’t.
30 Sep 2024
Mat Coch
Speedcafe

McLaren has chased down a 115-point deficit in the constructors’ championship to now head the competition by 41 points with six races remaining. It has also remained at the front of the field across a variety of tracks and in a variety of conditions, another feat rivals have struggled with.

“I would like to answer that yes, big engineering behind it, it’s all clear, I know exactly why we stay in the window despite the change of conditions,” Stella began. “The reality is that I think it’s a very complicated kind of science, very difficult to put in objective engineering terms.
“What we’re trying to do is study the data, historical data, on tyre conditioning and temperature and try to do our best with engineering solutions. Likewise, we want to make sure that the car has a good balance, [and] overall good aerodynamic characteristics. And what we have seen is that, when you try and pursue these directions, normally the car responds well.”

‘Produce a consistently fast car’;

https://speedcafe.com/f1-news-mclare...ace-explained/


Andrea Stella: The Man Who Saved McLaren
Sep 26, 2024
Erika Di Guido
Last Word On Sports

Back when McLaren announced the Italian, Andrea Stella as their Team Principal back in 2022, some expressed their doubts. And yet, Stella has proved all of them wrong. For sure, it took some time and a lot of hard work. Last season, at the beginning of 2023, the papaya team was still struggling to get in the points. The disappointment for the project of the MCL60 was already clear during the tests in Bahrain.

However, already during the Grand Prix in Austria in 2023, the results started to show with Lando Norris close to the podium. Heading to Silverstone, progress showed when Norris was on the second step of the podium and Oscar Piastri was in P4. In order to secure the young talents of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris were both given multi-year contracts, tying their future to the Papaya team. Rob Marshall, ex-Chief Engineering Officer for Red Bull, also signed with McLaren for the 2024 season. At Woking, Marshall became the new Technical Director.

Stella helped to resolve the issues on the MCL60, working to resolve the problems with the downforce, but also increasing the aerodynamic load. He also made the car competitive in low-speed corners and improved the top speed. At the end of the 2023 F1 season, McLaren was back in the fight with Mercedes and Ferrari. Red Bull was way ahead, but it was obvious that Stella’s team was on the right track with 2024 coming up.

‘Results started to show’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...saved-mclaren/


McLaren’s impressive form leading to ‘cautious approach’ with F1 upgrades
Andrea Stella details McLaren's approach to upgrades ahead of the final six rounds in 2024.
26 Sep 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Speaking after the race at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, Stella reiterated McLaren’s desire to take their time with car upgrades amid their strong run of results. “In fairness, that was one of my thoughts after the race,” Stella said as quoted by Motorsport Week. “Because we do have some stuff in the pipeline and obviously when you have this kind of performance on track you always may approach things from a cautious point of view in terms of development.”

“At the same time, we need to trust the process, we need to trust the way we’ve been working so far. I’ve said already that we have taken our time to make sure that once we deliver trackside we have done the due diligence. So I don’t think this will change our plans.” While McLaren dominated the Singapore GP, Stella suggested the margin was “flattering”.

‘Need to trust the way we’ve been working so far’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105647...ch-f1-upgrades


Stella: McLaren can’t back off on MCL38 development
24 Sep 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

McLaren Formula 1 boss Andrea Stella says that his team can’t back off on its development plans for the MCL38 despite its current advantage. Stela cited Red Bull’s return to form in Singapore as an example of how quickly things can change. “In Red Bull we see that in a track in which they thought they would have not been very competitive, ultimately, they were potentially second best,” he said.

“I think we haven’t seen Ferrari today very well, but even Ferrari, FP1/FP2 they seem to be as fast as us. And the final stint of Leclerc was very competitive. So I think the race may give us a little bit of maybe flattering. I think you say like this. The situation from a competitiveness point of view, I would say we need to keep being aggressive in terms of development.”

‘Can’t back off’;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/24/...8-development/


‘The mission is on’ – Stella targeting both championships following Norris’s dominant Singapore GP win
23 Sep 2024
Formula One - Official Site

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella had some fighting talk for rivals Red Bull in the wake of Lando Norris’ emphatic Singapore win, declaring the mission is on in the quest for both championships.

“It’s not always going to be that easy in the next few races but it’s very promising and it is also promising that Oscar [Piastri] found a way to beat the two Mercedes today, got back on the podium, many points for the championship and definitely the drivers’ championship is still on, the mission is on,” Stella said in the aftermath of Singapore, while the fireworks were still lighting up the night sky.

“Hopefully we’ll have a few more [wins] in the next six races. Yeah, fully deserved by Lando. In fairness he’s been very quick throughout the weekend. I think yesterday, he was very conscious in his Q3 lap, we thought that by pushing 100% we could have gone even faster, so just everything came together this weekend.”

‘The mission is on’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...eY0UbEOfxkuheX


McLaren boss Stella: Mission is for Norris championship win
22 Sep 2024
Matt Hardy
City AM

Andrea Stella, whose Papaya outfit sits clear at the top of the team title standings, said a Norris title is still possible. “Hopefully we will have a few more in the next six races,” the McLaren team principal said of Lando’s dominant performance.

“It was fully deserved by Lando, he has been very quick throughout the weekend. Everything came together, it’s not going to be easy over the next races but it’s very promising. It’s also promising that Oscar [Piastri, teammate] found a way to beat the two Mercedes’ to get on the podium. The mission is still on for the drivers’ championship.”

‘Mission is for Norris championship win’;

https://www.cityam.com/mclaren-boss-...mpionship-win/

Vasseur reveals key reason for proof of Ferrari’s upwards trajectory.
The Scuderia have won two races this season, making the step-up from last year becoming race-winning contenders. Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur believes Lewis Hamilton joining the Scuderia proves the team’s upwards trajectory.
Oct 11, 2024
Nathan Hartley
FormulaNerds

The Ferrari boss previously worked with seven-time world champion in the junior categories in GP2 and the F3 Euro Series. Vasseur said it was “not that difficult to convince” Hamilton to join Ferrari. The Frenchman said: “Yes, it was not that difficult to convince Lewis. I remember that in 2004 we were together (in the European F3 championship) he at the time was tied to McLaren-Mercedes, but he already had in mind that sooner or later he would go to Ferrari.”

‘Ferrari’s upwards trajectory’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/va.../?nowprocket=1


Why Vasseur feels Hamilton deal validates the success of his Ferrari plan
11 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Vasseur arrived at Ferrari for the start of the 2023 Formula 1 season with the aim of making the Italian team championship contenders again. The Frenchman has made changes in various areas, including strategy and technical areas. Under Vasseur's watch, Ferrari has won four races. The 2024 Italian Grand Prix win put them within 39 points of the Championship leaders, but the gap has since increased.

Vasseur spoke about Hamilton at the Festival dello Sport in Trento, organised by Gazzetta dello Sport. "We talked about it some time ago, he always had this desire in mind, but of course, he is a driver who wants to have guarantees in terms of performance. For him this aspect is always in the first place. If he chose to join Ferrari, it confirms to me that we can have the right car. A driver like Hamilton does not come to us on vacation. I think we are in the right place in terms of performance," the Ferrari boss said.

‘Validates the success’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30564...g-ferrari.html


'Just don’t seem able to': Frederic Vasseur told the ‘bigger picture’ decision Ferrari must make to catch McLaren
5 Oct 2024
Luke-John Buckle
F1 Oversteer

Performance engineer Jock Clear explained the key decision Ferrari and team principal Frederic Vasseur needs to make when speaking to RacingNews365. Clear explained that he doesn’t know if McLaren have taken a step forward due to their wind tunnel and Ferrari have narrowed the gap in recent races. He said: “Honestly, I have no idea [why McLaren have improved] and wouldn’t like to say that that is where McLaren’s performance is coming from, they’ve just done a good job this season.”

“But actually, we’ve closed the gap to a large extent, there are still circuits which suit them, but certainly, you’ve seen over the past couple of races, we’ve closed the gap again. It is just the push and pull of everyone’s development, and if we see over a period of time there seems to be something coming back to our processes and with what we’re doing we just don’t seem able to keep up, then that is a bigger picture decision Fred has to make, with some big money behind it.”

‘Frederic Vasseur told’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fre...catch-mclaren/


Ferrari reveal 2025 F1 car plan ahead of Lewis Hamilton move
Hamilton will leave Mercedes at the end of the season to team up with Charles Leclerc at the Scuderia
03 October 2024
Kieran Jackson
The Independent

Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur confirmed that development on this year’s car will stop after the next F1 race in Austin – as key figures started their roles at the Scuderia this week ahead of Lewis Hamilton’s impending arrival. Hamilton, 39, will leave Mercedes – where he has won six of his seven F1 world championships – at the end of the 2024 season following 12 years with the Silver Arrows.

The British driver will replace Carlos Sainz at Ferrari, teaming up with Charles Leclerc as he bids to land a record-breaking eighth title with the sport’s most prestigious outfit. Ferrari team principal Vasseur, who worked with Hamilton in junior formula in the mid-2000s, revealed that work on the 2025 car – codenamed project 677 – has already started, with Italian press reporting the design concept will focus on suspension changes to aid Hamilton’s driving style.

“We all know that we already started the development of the next car and we try to do our best to have small upgrades at the next [race],” Vasseur said, after the last grand prix in Singapore.

‘Development on this year’s car will stop after the next F1 race in Austin’;

https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/f1-...-b2623336.html


Success is built on stability in F1, claims Vasseur as he praises Jean Todt's approach
28 Sep 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur insists that performing changes to the structure of an F1 outfit does not work in the long-term, stating that stablity led to the Scuderia's last dominant period under the leadership of Jean Todt. In an interview with Rtbf, the Frenchman outlined Ferrari’s future plans, claiming that Jean Todt also built on stability during Ferrari's most recent dominant era in Formula One.

“There is no magic formula in our work, it takes time. It must be emphasized that recruitment takes a lot of time. The procedure to identify the reinforcement consists first in understanding what we need, then in choosing the right person. And all this takes several months. Not to mention that this person may still have a contract elsewhere and we have to wait.”

“Changing every six months doesn’t work. Success stories in Formula 1 have been built on stability. The best example is Jean Todt, who had some difficult years before achieving victory, but the winning period lasted a long time.”

‘Success is built on stability’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25287


Vasseur: Hamilton's arrival proves Ferrari is on the right track
As Ferrari prepares to welcome Hamilton into the team, Vasseur reckons it shows it is making progress
11 Oct 2024
Ben Hunt
Motorsport.com

Speaking at the Festival dello Sport organised in Trento by the Gazzetta dello Sport, the Scuderia team principal added: "We talked about it some time ago, he always had this desire in mind, but of course, he is a driver who wants to have guarantees in terms of performance, for him this aspect is always in the first place.”

"If he chose to join Ferrari, it confirms to me that we can have the right car. This is the ultimate goal, a driver like Lewis does not come to us on vacation and from my side, I think we are in the right place in terms of performance. We need a step forward and I can say that we are devoting a lot of resources to our next project."

“Lewis does not come to us on vacation”;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/v...rack/10662098/


Four power units a season still the “right limit” despite 24 rounds – Vasseur
7th Oct 2024
Will Wood
RaceFans

Despite there being 24 rounds in this year’s world championship – the longest ever F1 season, Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur believes that the four power units limit per car, per season is still at the right level.

“I think each case is different, but if you have a look now, we are at race 18 and I’m not sure that a lot of drivers took a penalty just for the comfort or for performance interest for the future,” Vasseur said. “We are all on our path to do the season with four engines. Perhaps we won’t achieve it, but it’s the right limit.”

“Right limit”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/10/07/...nd-up-07-10-7/


Leclerc Did Not Try To Stop Hamilton Deal – Vasseur
11 Oct 2024
F1 Chronicle

Charles Leclerc did not try to stop Lewis Hamilton from joining Ferrari, team boss Frederic Vasseur has revealed. “Sometimes he (Leclerc) has made mistakes,” Vasseur said at the same festival, “but it is part of his growth process.” He admits that pitching the idea of installing Hamilton, 39, as Leclerc’s next teammate was slightly awkward.

“Charles has always agreed on this (Hamilton’s arrival), and that led me to push hard for it to happen. But, strangely enough, it was not difficult to bring him to Maranello. And when I understood that Charles has always been positive towards Hamilton, because he understood that it is an opportunity for him, I pushed even harder.”

‘Pitching the idea’;

https://f1chronicle.com/leclerc-did-.../?nowprocket=1


Leclerc jokes about Verstappen's penalty: 'I'd like to avoid that!'
11 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Charles Leclerc has joked about Max Verstappen's community service penalty when appearing on an Italian talk show with his Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur. Despite the incident now being several weeks ago, it remains a talking point in the world of Formula 1. It cropped up again on an Italian talk show. Leclerc appeared with his team boss Fred Vasseur and was warned by the presenter: "If you say a wrong word, you will get a community service penalty like Verstappen." To which Leclerc replied, "Exactly, and I would like to avoid that

‘Community service penalty’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30563...s-penalty.html

Allison's return an "immense benefit" for Mercedes.
George Russell cites James Allison's return as Mercedes technical director as the driving force behind the German team's turnaround.
07/10/2024
Pitpass

George Russell, who, at the Red Bull Ring earlier this year, claimed Mercedes first win since Jeddah 2021, cites Allison as the man responsible for the team's return to the front of the grid.

"I think James Allison's re-involvement with the project has been an immense benefit for us," said the youngster. "We've always had this talent within the squad, but just having that clear leadership and clear direction to maximise the talent of the designers and the aerodynamicists has been vital.”

"The experience he's got is huge as well," he continued, "so I think that has been a big factor. The upturn in performance from us and McLaren has definitely been quite a pleasant surprise," the Briton admitted, "and maybe a bit exaggerated with Red Bull's loss as well.

"Immense benefit";

https://www.pitpass.com/78829/Alliso...t-for-Mercedes


Mercedes issue they ‘couldn’t control’ in Singapore affected them all year
30 Sep 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

James Allison says ‘weakness’ in W15 has impacted Mercedes throughout the year. Mercedes entered the summer break with three wins between Hamilton and Russell, but things began to take a downturn at Zandvoort. Russell blamed the car setup while Hamilton was limited due to a grid penalty, but at the following race in Monza they still struggled to break into the top three.

While Mercedes has produced a car that is fast over one lap, this pace is impacting them during the races according to Allison. “We found a very good setup for a lap, which did us no favours in the race,” said Allison. “A weakness became visible again, which has been impacting us all year round. We couldn’t control the temperatures of the rear tyres.”

‘Couldn’t control’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mer...them-all-year/


Toto Wolff: Mercedes’ inconsistent F1 pace ‘difficult to compute’
8 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff revealed that the team is finding its fluctuating form throughout the 2024 Formula 1 season to date “difficult to compute.” “This variance in performance from race to race, or over a few races, is very difficult to compute, because what looks like an unchanged car can go from race winning to P6,” Wolff told Autosport.

Wolff acknowledged that McLaren is “the only team that is not a victim” of fluctuating performance issues. “[They] have such a solid baseline and a less narrow window than all of us, that they’re able to keep the performance stable,” Wolff exclaimed.

“All of the others bounce between exuberance and depression. Before the summer, everyone wrote off Ferrari. But they have come back very strong. Before the summer, it was Mercedes who was the leading team, and clearly not today anymore. So it is so intricate to identify those performance contributors that at times even that most clever people are lost.”

‘Fluctuating form’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...lt-to-compute/


Wolff confused over performance changes: 'But McLaren are not victims'
7 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Toto Wolff is aware that a small gap has opened up between Mercedes and the other top teams Red Bull Racing, Ferrari and McLaren. Mercedes was the inform team before the summer break, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell both picking up wins. Mercedes even finished one-two across the finish line in Belgium, but a disqualification for Russell took that away from them.

"This variance in performance from race to race, or over a few races, is very difficult to compute, because what looks like an unchanged car can go from race winning to P6," Wolff explained to Motorsport.com.

"The only team that is not a victim of that is McLaren, who I think have such a solid baseline and a less narrow window than all of us, that they're able to keep the performance stable," the Austrian added. "All of the others bounce between exuberance and depression. Before the summer, everyone wrote off Ferrari. But they have come back very strong."

‘Wolff confused’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30503...d-mclaren.html


Wolff wary of 'package to be reckoned with' from surprise F1 rival
The fight at the front of the F1 field already contains several teams - but another challenger could soon join the mix, according to Toto Wolff.
12 Oct 2024
Fergal Walsh & Aaron Deckers
RacingNews365

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has stated Aston Martin has created a “package to be reckoned with” after adding Adrian Newey to its arsenal. “The track record that Adrian has in F1 speaks for itself,” Wolff told media including RacingNews365.

“He is the greatest designer in Formula 1 when you look at the stats. If you combine it with someone like Andy Cowell, who is for me, one of the strongest leaders I've ever met in any industry, they can make that work. I think it's a package to be reckoned with.”

Wolff has backed Aston Martin to join the fight at the front of the field, a situation he states would be “fantastic” for the sport. “It's good, more teams are competitive in the front,” Wolff said. “You're having four drivers now that race for a driver world championship as it stands.”

'Package to be reckoned with';

https://racingnews365.com/wolff-wary...prise-f1-rival


‘He says’: Toto Wolff cites Niki Lauda advice when asked about switching focus to 2026 F1 cars
7 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Despite requiring resources to be allocated to two different car design concepts, Wolff believes developing both in tandem without compromises will be possible. “This is the crux of the matter every year, and especially if you have such a big regulatory change, are you going to compromise one year or the other?” said Wolff.

“But I’d like to take it from Niki’s [Lauda] motto, when being asked. ‘Would you rather win this one or the next one?’ And he says, ‘Both.’

“Sometimes it is much less complex than one thinks. Probably the transition of people and capability into the 2026 regulations is going to happen a bit earlier than it would under stable regulations, but it’s not going to be game-changing. Nobody’s going to switch the machines off in January, unless you are really nowhere.”

‘Both’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/tot...-2026-f1-cars/


Toto Wolff insists Mercedes won’t sacrifice 2025 F1 title hopes for 2026 gains
7 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Mercedes is a team expected to challenge for victories on a consistent basis and as shareholder, CEO and Team Principal, Wolff has to think differently. “Nobody’s going to switch the machines off in January, unless you are really nowhere,” Wolff explained.

“But there is nothing to gain, because between P10 and P7 doesn’t make a difference for us anyway. We are fighting for victories and podiums, and cannot write it off.”

Wolff did admit that “the transition of people and capability into the 2026 regulations is going to happen a bit earlier than it would under stable regulations, but it’s not going to be game-changing.”

‘Challenge for victories on a consistent basis’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...or-2026-gains/


Toto Wolff makes clear ‘nothing to gain’ verdict for Mercedes as 2026 reset looms
8 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Mercedes “cannot write off” the F1 2025 championship, Toto Wolff ruling out talk of compromising next season to get a march on 2026 when all-new cars will be on the grid.

‘Nothing to gain’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...26-reset-looms

Krack praises Alonso performance despite struggles with car.
Team Principal Mike Krack admits that the lack of points scored this season has been due to the current state of the car. Despite these challenges, Fernando Alonso has managed to earn some points in recent races.
6 Oct 2024
Jenny Garnett
GPblog.com

"At the end of the day we have our numbers and we do our pre-race estimations. Now in Baku obviously he finished higher up because there was attrition. But today, and again, full transparency, none of our estimations were predicting that we could finish where we finished," Krack stated after the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Aston Martin team boss has been satisfied with the team's strategic decisions which have contributed to Alonso's success. "Now we could say the predictions are bad. Normally they work out pretty well, and we had I think good calls today, not getting disrupted by others, and very good management in a phase where we didn't build a gap. And then this was sufficient to hold, obviously, if you are very similar, it's also difficult for others to pass you, but first of all you have to maintain that position and we also passed Hulkenberg on strategy."

‘Current state of the car’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30496...rformance.html


Alonso hints at F1 stay into late-40s
Fernando Alonso is by far the most experienced driver in F1 - however he could add considerably to that tally before he retires.
10 Oct 2024
Fergal Walsh
RacingNews365

Alonso has extended his F1 contract with Aston Martin, and will race when the new technical regulations come into play in 2026, with Newey taking a leading role in the construction of the Aston Martin challenger. "I would be lying if I said I didn't think about that,” said Alonso, when asked whether Newey's arrival altered his thinking as to how long he would continue in F1.

Alonso, who will be 45 when he drives the first Newey-designed Aston Martin in 2026, added: “Adrian will arrive in March next year and dedicate his time to 2026 so let's see how I feel at the end of '26 and if I can keep going. It will be a decision we make together as a team, with Lawrence [Stroll], with Adrian."

‘Keep going’;

https://racingnews365.com/alonso-hin...tended-f1-stay


Proud Mike Krack on 'opportunity of a lifetime': 'Anything goes at Aston Martin'
3 Oct 2024
Tim Kraaij
GPblog.com

Mike Krack was surprisingly appointed as Aston Martin's new team boss in 2022. Under Lawrence Stroll's wing, the calm Luxembourger is making a good impression in his role, but how does he view it himself? In an exclusive interview with GPblog.com, Krack proudly explains how a dream came true for him.

On a busy day, there was no time to waste, but the first question, which was not about Newey, put a smile on Mike's face. Mike Krack: "That's a good question (laughs). It's a fantastic job to do. I've been asked to do this. I was at BMW Motorsport before and when I got contacted, I thought it was for a technical role because I was in technical roles for many, many years. I was quite surprised that this role came up. But then I did not have to think long about it."

"I knew about Lawrence [Stroll's] ambitions. In many, many teams or many, many areas you go in and you get ‘this we don't have or this we don't do’ and with Lawrence it's just full in. The main reason why I wanted to do this is that this is an opportunity of a lifetime. In such a structure, with that timing, I think it's something that you have to just do."

'Opportunity of a lifetime';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30452...on-martin.html


Rosberg compares Aston to PSG: ‘Talent alone isn’t enough’
11 Oct 2024
Michael Delaney
F1i.com

F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg has issued a stark warning to Aston Martin, drawing parallels between the Formula 1 team and French football giant Paris Saint-Germain. Rosberg likened Team Silverstone’s strategy of making high-profile signings to PSG’s expensive acquisitions of football superstars, cautioning that talent alone is not enough to guarantee success.

“Look at PSG, in soccer,” Rosberg told Sky Sports. “They had Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe, all three at the same time. Three of the best soccer players of all time, and all the others were very good as well. And they never won the Champions League. Because, of course, it’s great to bring the greatest geniuses, the best managers on board. Adrian Newey on his own is not going to be able to make that car a World Championship-winning car.”

“He needs the rest of the team. Of course, he can give them a good direction, he can give very good guidance, but he still needs the team to excel with him.” For Rosberg, the PSG comparison highlights the importance of team synergy. Aston Martin must ensure that its star signings work together seamlessly, rather than relying solely on individual brilliance to achieve success.

‘Team synergy’;

https://f1i.com/news/521223-rosberg-...nt-enough.html


Horner's painful conclusion: 'Couldn't match Aston Martin's Newey offer'
11 Oct 2024
Nicole Mulder
GPblog.com

With Adrian Newey's departure to Aston Martin, a long partnership between the engineering mastermind and Red Bull Racing will end. Team boss Christian Horner reveals that Red Bull initially had other plans for Newey but simply could not match the deal offered to him by the Silverstone-based Formula One team.

This is what the Red Bull team boss told Motorsport.com. Initially, the team had other plans for when Newey would step down. "The agreement that we had was at the end of '25 he was going to step back from F1 and really just be a mentor. Otherwise, I was going to lose the other [technical] guys to some rival teams," Horner explained. At the same time, he says he understands that Newey still wanted to continue in Formula 1 and decided to leave the team.

Moreover, according to Horner, Red Bull could not match Aston Martin's offer. "The deal he's got from Aston with equity and so on, is something that quite simply wasn't on the table here. I can understand, Adrian wants another run around the block in F1, and as a shareholder and partner in a team, I certainly don't blame him for that," said the team boss, stressing that the budget cap played a big part in this.

‘Could not match the deal’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30565...ian-newey.html


Recent F1 Commission ‘Started Badly’, Says Mike Krack
Oct 11, 2024
F1 Chronicle

Mike Krack has given the thumbs-up to the latest tweaks that have been made to Formula 1’s all-new technical regulations for 2026. Krack told Nailing The Apex podcast that the meeting at Faenza actually “started badly” because two team bosses were late.

“I’m not calling out anyone, but the meeting ran two hours too long,” he said. “I think you should be professional and structured.” More importantly, the Aston Martin team boss said he thinks his colleagues ultimately came to a good compromise.

“There are areas where we still have some work to do but, all in all, I think we will find a sensible compromise,” he said. “I say compromise because a set of regulations is always a compromise.”

‘Started Badly’;

https://f1chronicle.com/recent-f1-co.../?nowprocket=1

Laurent Mekies: Red Bull/RB have been ‘too public’ on potential F1 driver changes.
RB boss Laurent Mekies has admitted Red Bull has been “too public” on possible mid-season Formula 1 driver swaps amid rumours Daniel Ricciardo will be replaced.
25 Sep 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Red Bull conducted a similar practice earlier this season during the summer shutdown when it was touted that Sergio Perez‘s wretched streak could see him be axed. However, Mekies has acknowledged that Red Bull’s openness about those conversations might have been delivering heightened pressure onto drivers like Ricciardo.

“There is nothing wrong with reviewing your drivers’ performance every few races, and I think we have perhaps been too public about it,” Mekies told SiriusXM. “We have done it in the first part of the season, we have done it quite famously just before the summer break.”

“I guess at some stage we have said we will see after Singapore as well to discuss! So it’s part of the game. Certainly sometimes you can see it’s probably going a bit too far in terms of pressure, above all for Daniel in that case.”

‘Too public’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...river-changes/


Marko speaks out again: Why does the Red Bull advisor do that?
12 Oct 2024
Ludo van Denderen
GPblog.com

At Red Bull Racing's office in Milton Keynes, an interview that Helmut Marko gave to a German website last week must undoubtedly have caused some surprise. There, the Austrian team's external advisor stated that Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson are candidates for the seat next to Max Verstappen in '25. A striking statement, given surely Sergio Perez has a contract for the upcoming season?

Why does Marko keep doing that, making such remarkable statements? After all, it is by no means the first time. Is it to put and keep all the drivers on edge? That is a possibility, although Marko also knows that the pressure on them can become so great that it actually paralyses them. Especially in Perez's case and with an eye on the battle for the world title in the constructors, that is not desirable.

Or is it to irritate Horner over and over again - the team principal who, after months of turmoil, is currently doing all he can to establish a calm environment? And Marko giving high-profile interviews here and there certainly doesn't help that. It is all conjecture. The fact is that Marko dominated the headlines again last week, in a way that undoubtedly, not everyone within Red Bull is happy about.

‘Why does Helmut Marko do that?’

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30576...oing-that.html


‘With hindsight’: Guenther Steiner tells RB the ‘wrong’ decision they made with Daniel Ricciardo last year
7 October 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Guenther Steiner highlights key mistake RB made when hiring Daniel Ricciardo last year. Talking about the Australian’s return to F1, Steiner said: “It was the same with Daniel when he replaced Nyck de Vries mid-season last year. He impressed them in the reserve role and then a Pirelli tyre test. It wasn’t 100% that he would be better, but the hope was there.

“It’s all about your gut instinct. Yes, you have the information, but in the end it’s down to the gut to make the decision. They put Daniel in instead of Nyck, but obviously it wasn’t the right choice as they took him out mid-season. Someone made a wrong decision there. They could have put Liam in then.”

“With hindsight, you know. I’m not trying to blame someone who made a bad decision. It’s just one of those things. It’s a gut feeling. At the time, I think they thought Daniel has won races and that he should have recovered from his years when he was unhappy at McLaren – but it didn’t work out like you think it works out. It’s one of those things.”

“It’s all about your gut instinct”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/gue...rdo-last-year/


VCARB welcome Lawson after saying goodbye to 'gentleman Ricciardo'
6 Sep 2024
Jeroen Immink
GPblog.com

Laurent Mekies has reacted to the departure of Daniel Ricciardo and the arrival of Liam Lawson at Visa Cash App RB. The Frenchman sympathises with Ricciardo having to leave Red Bull Racing's sister team, but welcomes Lawson's arrival at the Formula 1 team.

"Everyone here at VCARB would like to thank Daniel for his hard work across the last two seasons with us. He has brought a lot of experience and talent to the Team with a fantastic attitude, which has helped everyone to develop and foster a tight team spirit. Daniel has been a true gentleman both on and off the track and never without that smile. He will be missed, but will always hold a special place within the Red Bull family,"

Mekies said of Ricciardo, who drove his last F1 race in Singapore last weekend. The Australian could also set the fastest lap of the race, taking a point away from Lando Norris in the Asian country. In doing so, Mekies is delighted at the arrival of Lawson. The New Zealander will be Yuki Tsunoda 's teammate and will once again drive Formula One in Austin. " I’d also like to take this opportunity to welcome Liam. He already knows the Team well. He drove for us last season, and coped well under difficult circumstances, so it’ll be a natural transition."

‘Sympathises, but welcomes’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30370...am-lawson.html


Admission made about Ricciardo: 'Maybe went too far in terms of pressure'
24 Sep 2024
Nicole Mulder
GPblog.com

Red Bull Racing has highlighted throughout the 2024 Formula 1 season that their drivers from both Red Bull and VCARB are under constant evaluation. "There is nothing wrong with reviewing your drivers’ performance every few races, and I think we have perhaps been too public about it," Mekies admitted in a conversation with SiriusXM. "We have done it in the first part of the season, we have done it quite famously just before the summer break. I guess at some stage we have said we will see after Singapore as well to discuss!"

"So it’s part of the game," assures the Visa Cash App RB team boss. "Certainly sometimes you can see it’s probably going a bit too far in terms of pressure, above all for Daniel in that case. He has had a lot of that this season. Some races it’s been quiet, some races it’s been very difficult, this is for sure one of the very difficult races. Of course, these guys are high level athletes and they know how to deal with it, but sometimes it’s a bit unnecessary."

'Maybe went too far in terms of pressure';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30335...ricciardo.html


Exclusive: New RB aero headquarters key to fighting top F1 teams
3 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

RB is set to move into its new aero department at Milton Keynes from Bicester towards the end of 2024. The Red Bull ‘sister’ squad has long since “outgrown” the Bicester facility it moved into 15 years ago. Such is its outdated nature, the team no longer uses the wind tunnel within the Bicester site, instead utilising Red Bull’s facility.

“Now the facility is simply not good enough,” Mekies told Motorsport Week. “We are building something at an incredible standard in Milton Keynes for our people. For sure it’s going to be instrumental in working in better conditions, being even more attractive on the job market for the next challenges.”

“We have a good headquarters in Faenza. We had a suboptimal headquarters in Bicester and now we have an excellent headquarters in Milton Keynes. So, yes, it is absolutely a must in that path to challenge the bigger guys.” Back in August, Mekies’ target for RB in 2024 was to finish “top of the midfield” and he has grander designs for the Faenza-based F1 squad moving forward

“Path to challenge the bigger guys”;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-top-f1-teams/


Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari complete test: These were the lap times
10 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Red Bull Racing, McLaren and Ferrari have completed the second day of Pirelli's tyre test at the Mugello Circuit in Italy. After the previous day was curtailed due to heavy rain and poor weather conditions, Lando Norris, Liam Lawson, Charles Leclerc (morning) and Carlos Sainz (afternoon) were able to take to the track and record data for the tyre suppliers in Formula 1.

Red Bull and Ferrari focused on testing the tyres for the 2025 Formula 1 season, while McLaren were equipped with prototype tyres for the 2026 Formula 1 season. Norris used a modified car as the 2026 tyres are narrower. The tyres are just one of many parts that will change in 2026 when the new rules and regulations are introduced.

The track was still wet in the first hour of the session, so the drivers started with intermediate tyres. As planned, they switched to dry-weather tyres for the rest of the test session. Unlike some of the previous days of testing which were affected by bad weather, Pirelli were able to gather lots of data. A lot of 390 laps were recorded. Lando Norris completed the most laps (118 with a best time of 1.21.302), followed by Liam Lawson (116 laps, 1.23.219), Charles Leclerc (79 laps, 1.21.053) and Carlos Sainz (77 laps, 1.21.'890).

‘Pirelli's tyre test’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30542...n-mugello.html

Guenther Steiner hits out at ‘cheap’ Gene Haas axe as baked beans ‘story’ told.
“I told the ghostwriter that story, and he said, ‘Are you f****** making this s*** up?’ I said, ‘No, this is true! This is what I lived for 10 years!’”
13 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Guenther Steiner said a baked beans tale involving Gene Haas for his book is true, one that the ghostwriter could not believe. And reflecting on that Gene Haas phone call to relieve him of his duties, Steiner called it a “cheap” way of going about things, considering the work he had put in.

“Doing it like this [through a phone call] is a little bit cheap if you build up a company for somebody and make him half a billion dollars,” said Steiner. It was the final phone call between them. “The last thing I want is to speak with him,” Steiner added. “I don’t need him anymore.”

Since leaving Haas, Steiner has moved into media work, while his second book ‘Unfiltered’ has just hit the shelves, during which Steiner recalls being served baked beans on a private jet, with Gene Haas asking that they are taken back to the factory for use after Steiner refused to eat them. And Steiner revealed that the ghostwriter for his second book could barely believe this story which Steiner had told him. “This is real,” Steiner confirmed to The Athletic.

‘Baked beans on a private jet: Taken back to the factory for use’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/guenth...ans-story-true


EXCLUSIVE: Guenther Steiner interview: 'I should have left Haas F1 earlier - I was shown no respect'
EXCLUSIVE: Former Haas Formula 1 team principal Guenther Steiner sits down with Mirror Sport to discuss his new book 'Unfiltered' his exit from the sport and why he is in a legal fight with his old boss Gene Haas
12 Oct 2024
Daniel Moxon
The Mirror

There is a bite to his words. Guenther Steiner has always been a straight-talker - he's famous for it, and also his pronunciation of the word "f**k" - and that doesn't change as he reflects on his acrimonious split from Haas. "I should have left earlier," he says. "I was fighting an uphill struggle where I had no chance to win."

"We started off, we had nothing. We worked our way in to be respected in F1. We achieved a lot of things. But then, after Covid was over, there was no traction anymore," he laments. "We were spinning our wheels, you know? It's more of the same. I want to have success. And what is success? Going on the podium, trying to win, at least to have a fair chance to go on the podium.”

"But if you yourself think, 'It's not going to happen with how we are doing it, the best we can hope for is getting sixth or in a fantastic year, fifth'... I've done that, got the T-shirt. But when you're in the trenches, you don't realise it anymore. You keep on going. But when you're out, you realise, 'Wow, should I not have left before?' Yes."

‘Bite to his words’;

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...suits-33873367


Ralf considers whether Steiner held Haas back
11 Oct 2024
GrandPrix.com

Gunther Steiner's absence is not necessarily the reason for the drastic improvement made by the small American team Haas in 2024. But when Steiner was in charge in 2021 and 2022, Ralf's nephew Mick drove for the team until - following a long period of public criticism by Steiner - he was dropped.

“I don't want to say that Gunther had so much influence that he was preventing or slowing down the process that we are seeing now”, Ralf Schumacher told formel1.de. “I think it's the core of the team - the technical group that makes the technical decisions - that has done a good job. Whether that also would have been the case with or without Steiner's strategy as team boss, I don't know. I can't judge that”, the German and former F1 driver added.

‘Not necessarily the reason for the drastic improvement’;

https://www.grandprix.com/news/ralf-...haas-back.html


‘Still a huge fan’: What Gene Haas was spotted doing to rival F1 cars in the pit lane during the Dutch Grand Prix
10 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Gene Haas spotted photographing rivals’ cars at Dutch Grand Prix. Teams try to copy each other by taking photos of rivals’ cars, particularly when it comes to front wing designs, floors, and other cosmetic parts on the car. In a piece that explored the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, the Haas team owner was spotted in the pit lane taking photos of rivals cars.

“Team owner Gene Haas looks on as the car receives its final pampering ahead of the race start,” wrote Edmondson. He doesn’t attend every grand prix, but in Zandvoort, the 71-year-old is keen to pore over every detail of the car’s new front wing and takes photos of rival cars leaving the pits. Clearly he’s still a huge fan of the sport at heart.”

‘Taking photos of rivals cars’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/wha...ch-grand-prix/


Haas: Outscoring RB and Williams is “our primary objective”
10 Oct 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

“Just to avoid any confusion or unnecessary discussion in real time we just said to ourselves our race is against RB and Williams,” Komatsu told this writer. “We’ve got to take points away from RB. That’s the primary aim. And secondary is points away from Williams."

"So we thought, are we racing again Alonso? If he tries to undercut us, are we going to do it? Our philosophy was, no. It was good communication and alignment. The thing is because of the safety car risk, if we tried to cover Alonso, pit early, and then two laps later the safety car comes, Williams can take points away from us. That was the worst scenario.”

“Our primary objective”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/10/10/...ary-objective/


‘Be the first’: What Toyota’s new F1 deal will offer Haas that Gene Haas ‘didn’t want to invest in’
13 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Toyota to allow Haas to run F1 testing program for the first time. Talking about the benefits of the Haas-Toyota partnership, Mitchell-Malm said: “The timeline of it is really interesting because as you said, it’s not something that’s going to result in instant performance. “Those stickers that will be on the car from Austin don’t mean that there will be Toyota advancements for Haas this season or maybe not even next season in real terms. There’ll be other tangible benefits next year in likely the creation of that testing program, the testing of previous cars that we often hear other teams do, pretty much all, but not every team is engaged in that.”

“Haas has been nowhere near having that kind of program. It hasn’t had the cash because it’s not something that Gene Haas wants to invest in. Crucially, it hasn’t had the personnel. The Haas engineering team is basically what it takes trackside. There’s not really any backup there. I think Komatsu described it as no reinforcement. So, Toyota will basically be funding and helping staff a testing program.”

‘Gene Haas ‘didn’t want to invest in’ ’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/wha...-to-invest-in/


Komatsu: Toyota deal will boost Haas’ midfield ambitions
13 Oct 2024
Michael Delaney
F1i.com

Haas F1 Team has taken a significant step towards strengthening its competitiveness by announcing a new partnership with Toyota Gazoo Racing, a collaboration that will address the US outfit’s resource gaps and boost performance according to team boss Ayao Komatsu. “We are the smallest team on the grid and we are lacking certain resources and hardware capability to understand certain things,” Komatsu explained after last Friday’s announcement in Fuji.

“In terms of being more competitive in the midfield, we are looking for somebody who can give us more resource and [manpower] and also have the hardware and the know-how to use that hardware,” he added. “Toyota Gazoo Racing gives exactly that. They have a great facility in Cologne so we’ll be able to utilise that.”

‘Boost Haas’ midfield ambitions’;

https://f1i.com/news/521302-komatsu-...ambitions.html


‘Really struggling’: Ayao Komatsu admits Haas ‘survival’ problem Toyota F1 tie-up should help to remove
12 Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu is desperate for the Formula 1 team’s technical link-up with Toyota to help the American outfit start a Testing of Previous Cars programme (TPC). Currently, Haas do not have a TPC team and are always in ‘survival’ mode as a result of that.

The TPC programme allows F1 teams to drive modern Formula 1 cars in private tests as long as the cars are at least two years old. Each part fitted to a TPC car must have also been used in either an official test session or a Grand Prix event to avoid any overlaps with current cars. “TPC is very important in terms of training our personnel,” Komatsu said, via RaceFans. “We have just over 300 people. We have no contingency in personnel.”

“So, if one race engineer or one performance engineer decides to leave or is having a problem and not able to attend a race, we are really struggling. We’re on the limit all the time. In order to improve the organisation, you cannot be at the kind of survival stage as a baseline. We’ve got to build up the organisation. So, through TPC, we can start training our engineers, our mechanics [and] having back-up people.”

‘Really struggling’:

https://www.newsnow.co.uk/h/Sport/F1/Haas/Ayao+Komatsu

Williams set to ‘compromise' in 2025 in pursuit of 2026 success.
“It’s the message that Alex and Carlos both know: 2025 will be a struggle, I think,” Vowles told Motorsport.com. “It’s not that you’re going to see us moving forward, we’re going to move back a little bit.”
12 Oct 2024
Phillip van Osten
F1i.com

Although Williams is evidently on a more stable footing, Vowles is looking beyond immediate improvements, determined to rely on a bold approach, accepting that some failures are inevitable as the team pushes the envelope in preparation for 2026.

“We are trying to do leaps – not steps forward, not inching forward, not minimal gains, or marginal gains even, but leaps in the technology and what we’re doing,” the Briton explained. And in doing so, we’re going to trip ourselves up. And I’m comfortable with that, because we can’t unlearn what we’ve learned.”

“I give you almost a guarantee: unfortunately, we’re going to trip ourselves again. I don’t think it’d be in ‘25, for what it’s worth. I think we’ve got enough of a good pathway to lead us there. I think in ’26, what we’re asking of the organisation is more than we can deliver. So we’ve got to make it fit or perhaps trip up a little bit along the way.”

‘Compromise';

https://f1i.com/news/521258-williams...6-success.html


“Williams is a project that’s going up” - Carlos Sainz’s father explains Audi rejection
Carlos Sainz Sr breaks his silence on Carlos Sainz's switch to Williams rather than Sauber/Audi in 2025.
9 Oct 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

Carlos Sainz Sr has described Williams as a “project that is going up” when explaining his son’s decision to reject Audi. Speaking to Marca, Sainz Sr conceded it “wasn’t an easy decision” for his son to make.

“It’s his decision and we have to respect it,” Sainz Sr said. “It wasn’t an easy decision, nor a clear one. There were three or four options and in the end he is the one who has to decide his future and we support him as much as possible. And that’s what we’ve done. Williams is a project that is going up, at the end of this year it has started to go better and we have to hope, and we trust in it, that next year it will continue on an upward trend.”

“Carlos has left a good impression on the teams he has been with, with his work and his know-how,” he added.. “The teams have improved when he has arrived and that is what is important for a professional and what should always be demanded of him. I think that in this respect Carlos is a serious driver and that he is very clear about where he is going. I’ve always been by his side in this.”

“Wasn’t an easy decision”;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105746...audi-rejection


Williams will ‘struggle’ next year amid focus on 2026 F1 rule changes
12 Oct 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Williams want to make ‘leaps forward’ in F1. Vowles has admitted that Williams’ desire to make substantial steps over the coming seasons is going to see the team endure occasional slip-ups with the new rules.

“We are trying to do leaps – not steps forward, not inching forward, not minimal gains, or marginal gains even, but leaps in the technology and what we’re doing,” he said. “And in doing so, we’re going to trip ourselves up. And I’m comfortable with that, because we can’t unlearn what we’ve learned.”

“I give you almost a guarantee: unfortunately, we’re going to trip ourselves again. [It won’t] be in ‘25, for what it’s worth. I think we’ve got enough of a good pathway to lead us there. In ’26, what we’re asking of the organisation is more than we can deliver. So we’ve got to make it fit or perhaps trip up a little bit along the way.”

‘Going to see the team endure occasional slip-ups’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-rule-changes/


Williams Racing and Kraken Reveal Fan-Designed Rear Wing for Austin Race
October 11, 2024
Business Wire (Press Release)

The FW46 cars driven by Alex Albon and Franco Colapinto will feature six fan digital alter egos from the pioneering Williams Racing Cosmos Collection after tens of thousands of fans around the world voted in our second Rear Wing Takeover contest.

James Bower, Commercial Director, Williams Racing: “We are always looking for innovative ways to showcase our proud F1 history and bold ambition to our growing global fanbase and the Williams Racing Cosmos Collection is a perfect example of that. Combining iconic Williams Racing branding with leading Web3 technology has proven hugely popular and we are looking forward to seeing this eye-catching design out on track.”

‘Showcase our proud F1 history’;

https://www.businesswire.com/news/ho...41011105065/en


'I spoke': Felipe Massa shares what Williams mechanics have now told him about Franco
9 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Felipe Massa shares what Williams mechanics have told him about Franco Colapinto. Massa was asked about how people within the Williams team see Colapinto and he said: “I spoke to some mechanics, not all of them because they were in the air as so many Williams mechanics were in Singapore.”

“They were impressed with him, first of all, how brave he is as a person, how nice he is as a person. He works professionally but quickly; this is absolutely very important for a team to embrace the driver and for working as a team.”

‘Impressed’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fel...nco-colapinto/


Alpine Set To Swoop For Sainz In 2026
October 10, 2024
F1 Chronicle

Flavio Briatore says he will keep the door open at Alpine for Carlos Sainz. Briatore, de Meo’s new F1 advisor, admits he made an approach to 30-year-old Sainz for 2025 and beyond. “No disappointment,” he is quoted as saying by motorsport-magazin.com. “Carlos was an opportunity, but it was too early.”

“Before we talk about drivers, we first have to talk about a competitive car. Because if the car doesn’t perform, it makes no difference which driver you put behind the wheel. So first we have to clean up the house with Oli (Oakes) and motivate the system and everyone at Alpine again.”

“One year ago, he (Max Verstappen) won every race and now that other cars are competitive, other young drivers win the races,” the famous 74-year-old Italian said. “I don’t want to spend X million (on a driver) at the moment because it makes no difference to us,” he said. “We are very happy with (Pierre) Gasly, and now we have a young driver,” added Briatore, referring to Jack Doohan. “But if Carlos wants to come to us in 2026, we will be here.”

‘Set To Swoop For Sainz’;

https://f1chronicle.com/alpine-set-t.../?nowprocket=1

Briatore furious when he realised Alpine crisis.
“And when I arrived at Alpine, many things made me furious”, he admits. "There was neither presence of mind nor motivation.”
16 Sep 2024
GrandPrix.com

The 74-year-old Italian guided the team to world championship glory no less than four times - twice with Michael Schumacher as Benetton in the mid-90s, and again with back-to-back glory with Fernando Alonso at the wheel of the works Renault a decade later.

Flavio Briatore says he was "furious" when he realised just a few months ago just how far Formula 1's Enstone based team had fallen. “Now I'm here I will keep everyone on their toes, even if it's impossible to do worse than this. We are in the process of restructuring”, said Briatore, who was instrumental in selecting 36-year-old Oliver Oakes, known for leading the Hitech F2 team, to be the new Alpine team boss.

Briatore has denied that he was behind the decision to probably scrap Renault's F1 engine program to save costs, but he emphasised: “I have always won world championships with 30 percent less budget than the competition and I have not forgotten the magic formula.”

‘Briatore furious’;

https://www.grandprix.com/news/briat...ne-crisis.html


Alpine reveal crucial F1 advantage with controversial Briatore hire
Hardly surprising that working with Flavio Briatore has been described as "intense".
14 Oct 2024
Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

New Alpine team principal Oliver Oakes has described working with Flavio Briatore as "intense" but has quickly realised why the former boss has been hired. Briatore, who was the managing director of Benetton in the 1990s and team principal of Renault from 2000 to 2009, returned to Enstone as executive advisor in June, shortly before Oakes' appointment.

As to what he feels Briatore has brought to the party over the past few years, Oakes was complimentary. "He was a winner in F1, he's successful with his businesses out of F1 so you very quickly know he's somebody who's committed, who's pushing, and I wouldn't say doesn't accept a compromise, but you've got to be on it," said Oakes, in an interview with RacingNews365.

"For me, I like that. At the end of the day, day-to-day working with him is intense, but it's good because I've got someone there who thinks the same, who challenges ideas. He brings a lot more than people realise, purely because he's got so much vested interest in Enstone, and it's great for me because you've always got someone by your side, helping you, I wouldn't say, fight battles, but just pushing things along with you, which I think is important.”

“Intense";

https://racingnews365.com/alpine-rev...-briatore-hire


‘Did not go well’: Flavio Briatore reveals what happened when he ‘tried to sign’ Adrian Newey and Carlos Sainz
19 Sep 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Alpine talks with Carlos Sainz and Adrian Newey ‘did not go well’. Briatore is known for being a businessman in the F1 paddock and is said to be one of the main instigators behind abandoning Alpine’s engine project at Viry Chatillon in favour of a switch to Mercedes power units for 2026.

Having successfully negotiated driver contracts before, including working alongside Fernando Alonso, it was slightly harder to convince both Newey and Sainz that Alpine would be a worthwhile gamble in the short term.

“We already have good and fast drivers, the problem is the car. I’m not one to buy drivers, I always like them to grow up at home. I did that with Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso,” said Briatore. “I believe and hope that Doohan can give us guarantees in 2025. I tried to hire Carlos Sainz and Adrian Newey, but the negotiations did not go well.”

‘Did not go well’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fla...-carlos-sainz/


Eddie Jordan reveals Flavio Briatore ‘promise’ for Alpine success in ‘magic wand’ verdict
26 Sep 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Former F1 team principal Eddie Jordan revealed Flavio Briatore’s “promise” that Alpine will be back on the podium by the 2026 or 2027 season, having struggled in 2024 so far. “No doubt about Alpine,” Jordan told the Formula For Success podcast when asked about which teams could be in among the front-runners in the coming seasons.

“I could be having a meeting with one of my major sponsors, or my bank manager or whoever, and Flavio just burst in. That’s the way he was – but that was reciprocated, I would do the same, and that doesn’t happen now, but Flavio was a very special man in my time in Formula 1.”

“Some things I hated him for, and some things I loved him for, but you know what he will do, and he gave me his word: ‘I promise you, Eddie, by ’26 or ’27, Alpine will be on the podium.’ I’m not going to stand up and say I disagree, because I actually do agree. He has a magic wand that is able to make things happen.”

‘Flavio was a very special man’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/eddie-...uccess-promise


‘Band back together’: Ted Kravitz says Flavio Briatore has just signed a former key Bernie Ecclestone ally for Alpine
24 Sep 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Flavio Briatore recruits David Warren for Alpine. Speaking about the Alpine F1 team, Kravitz said: “Flavio Briatore is well and truly putting the band back together because David Warren, who if you’re a sort of lifer in or know about the commercial side of Formula 1 was a guy who was a key Bernie Ecclestone lieutenant. He was actually a Team GB athlete in the Moscow Olympics, friend of Frank Williams.”

“David Warren, a sort of long-time key commercial guy in F1 history is back and he’s back with Flav at Alpine. So, Flav is really getting some of the old big names back together.” Warren started life as a middle-distanced runner and as Kravitz alluded to, competed for Great Britain at the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. He then went into sponsorship and worked for Camel and Canon – the latter being a principal partner of Williams – before being recruited by Benetton.

Warren went into the team as their new director of marketing and happened to be working with Briatore from 1997 onwards. Benetton were still a strong force within Formula 1 but had just lost world champion Michael Schumacher to Ferrari. It created a partnership between Briatore and Warren that the Italian is now calling upon once again. Alpine need all the help they can get both on the track and off it and if Warren can help bring in some extra cash to fund the necessary improvements to the car – and Alpine’s potential engine deal with Mercedes – then that would be very beneficial.

‘Band back together’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ted...ly-for-alpine/


‘We’ll be there’: Flavio Briatore hints Alpine could axe Pierre Gasly or Jack Doohan if one driver is available for 2026
10 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Flavio Briatore says Alpine door remains open for Carlos Sainz. Briatore’s top target had been Carlos Sainz, who lost his Ferrari seat to Lewis Hamilton. Alpine were involved in a three-team battle with Williams and Sauber/Audi. It briefly looked like Alpine were set to sign Sainz, but Williams eventually prevailed. The Spaniard may have been put off by the instability at his former team.

But if the 21-year-old impresses, then he could leave Briatore and co. with a dilemma. Gasly is a proven performer but Doohan could have a higher ceiling. “We are very happy with Gasly,” Briatore said, as quoted by Motorsport-Magazin. “And now we have a young driver [in Doohan]. If Carlos wants to in 2026, we’ll be there.”

‘Alpine door remains open for Carlos Sainz’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fla...able-for-2026/


Alpine sale and Briatore exit theory met with emphatic Renault response
8 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

The Alpine Formula 1 team is not for sale and reports claiming that former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore was brought back to facilitate a sale are “completely false”. That’s according to Renault chief executive Luca de Meo, who said the French manufacturer would be “stupid” to sell the Formula 1 team.

De Meo said reports of selling the team weren’t true in July, and they’re not true today either. “I read that he [Briatore] was supposed to repackage the project in order to sell the team in the end,” de Meo told L’Equipe. “It’s completely false. I didn’t bring him in to get out of Formula 1.”

“I see the advantages for us of being in Formula 1. Flavio is at the heart of this revitalisation of the project. We are reorganising the team and we are focusing on Enstone. Every fortnight I get calls from financiers, eccentrics, who want to enter F1. They know that after 2026 it will be much more expensive.”

‘Emphatic Renault response: ‘Non’!’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/alpine...theory-quashed

This team cannot afford another disastrous year: 'We want to win'.
It has been a year since Sauber scored a point in Formula 1. For now, it doesn't look like Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou's team will be picking up any points anytime soon, such is the gap with the teams ahead of them.
14 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Binotto didn't have to think long about whether Sauber can afford another season languishing at the back of the grid. "Certainly not. We cannot afford it," said the Italian. "This is the team that has to become in the future, the winning team. And the only way to do that is starting moving up, progressing. We need to train our muscles for the future."

Binotto went on to list some reasons why success in the short term is necessary: "That's important for ourselves. That's important for the team. It's important for the brand. It's important for our partners. We cannot not somehow accept the current position. But that's a matter of fact where we are and we can not even hide behind the finger."

‘Train our muscles for the future’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30603...ad-season.html


Binotto admits turning Audi into F1 winners will be ‘like climbing Everest’ as he sets out timeline for success
15 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

“It’s not only climbing a big mountain, it’s climbing Everest,” Binotto told BBC Sport. “It will take several years. Our objective is by the end of the decade to be able to fight for the championships.” Binotto served as Ferrari’s team boss until 2019, after three years in the job, having been with the Scuderia since the mid-1990s and gradually worked his way up the ranks.

“Certainly the gap and the differences are many and the gap is big. It’s big because of dimensions, because of number of people, because of mindset, because of tools, facilities. Whatever you look around, it is really comparing a small team to a top team. When Audi bought some shares and had the programme to become the full owner in the future, internally some plans have been done, some strategic plans have been discussed and established but not yet come to execution,” he commented.

“So Sauber have been remaining in a limbo for a while. Second, certainly let’s say some of the focus and energies were put towards 2026, to try to make sure Audi was ready to start in 2026, and that took off some energy on the normal development path for 2024 and 2025.”

‘Like climbing Everest’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...Q0ctpIlq95FOW5


'Clearly state': Mattia Binotto makes Audi F1 ‘commitment’ claim amid Volkswagen conflict
14 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Mattia Binotto assures that Audi wants to win championships. Nobody expects Audi to be competitive out of the box when they produce a new engine and chassis for the 2026 regulations. This is due to Sauber’s ageing facilities and overall lack of competitiveness in the last few years, with it unlikely to score any points this season on merit.

Audi could pull the plug if they continue this form, but Binotto has claimed they are in F1 in the long haul and want to win titles. “We can clearly state there are no risks and the F1 programmes really fit with the Audi brand and vision,” said Binotto. “We are in F1 until we win and after. It is a long-term commitment.”

“We have joined F1 to be here and stay here. We intend to become a winning team and set the benchmark and stay then. It is not a joining and leaving. F1 is the pinnacle of the motorsport, it is great Audi is part of it finally and they are simply committed to stay.”

‘Audi F1 ‘commitment’ claim’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mat...agen-conflict/


Mick Schumacher still in contention for 2025 Sauber seat
Oct 12, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Sauber are the only team without a confirmed driver line-up for next season. Since announcing Nico Hulkenberg’s contract in April, the Hinwil-based squad have assessed many drivers that could drive alongside him 2025. According to Mattia Binotto (Chief Technical Officer) discussions have taken place with Mick Schumacher about a potential deal.

In a recent interview, Mattia Binotto told Corriere that Mick Schumacher is also being looked at: “[Is Mick Schumacher] an option? Definitely, we are evaluating it. I met him and spoke with him. I have known him for a long time, having been part of the Ferrari Driver Academy – I know his strengths and weaknesses. He is one of the names we have in mind.”

‘Still in contention’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...5-sauber-seat/


Binotto confirms Schumacher option for Audi F1 seat
Mick Schumacher has been absent from the F1 grid since the end of the 2022 campaign - however Mattia Binotto has suggested he could make a return next year.
13 Oct 2024
Fergal Walsh
RacingNews365

Audi chief operating officer and chief technical officer Mattia Binotto has confirmed Mick Schumacher is still an option for the team. With the eight other teams teams already making their decisions, Binotto asserted it is in no rush to decide on its second driver.

“We have the luxury of not being in a hurry, as all the other teams have decided on their line-up,” he said. “There are two essential aspects: on the one hand, experience to set the course for growth. On the other, a young, talented player to accompany us on the path to the top.”

‘Schumacher option’;

https://racingnews365.com/binotto-co...r-audi-f1-seat


Mick Schumacher could be handed F1 lifeline: ‘We are evaluating him’
Schumacher has been on the sidelines for two years but still has hope of securing a seat next year
15 Oct 2024
Kieran Jackson
The Independent

Mick Schumacher is being “evaluated” for the second seat at Sauber next year and is on Mattia Binotto’s shortlist.

Binotto, who knows Schumacher well from his time at Ferrari, revealed to Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport that Schumacher is on his shortlist to be Nico Hulkenberg’s team-mate next year.

‘Shortlist’;

https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/mic...-b2629460.html


Zhou Guanyu wants to keep the door to F1 open
With doubts surrounding whether he will still have a place for 2025, Zhou Guanyu wants to keep his options open.
October 12, 2024
Fleur Rogerson
FormulaNerds

2024 has not been the season Zhou Guanyu expected. Joining F1 with Alfa Romeo soon to be Stake F1 in 2022, there were high hopes surrounding the Chinese driver. However, the last three years have not been easy. Stake F1 has struggled and left Zhou without many options for his future in F1.

Zhou Guanyu told media: “Yeah, it’s really difficult because I feel like at the beginning year, the car was performing reasonably quite good in that midfield battle,” claimed Zhou. “Obviously, we had this issue during the [pit]stops, which affects massively the timings. I think otherwise, it would – at least two times we could score. I think Valtteri would score in Australia. I would probably score in Jeddah and vice versa. So, things like that can easily bring us some points, which then on the table, it won’t look as bad as where we have been struggling now. But in fact, it just seems in the wrong time that it happens that we are losing one performance on the others.”

Although F1 might not be a possibility for the Chinese driver for 2025 he has admitted he’s open to heading to another series, even admitting to receiving offers from some. He said, “At the moment, all I can say is that there are already several very good, let’s say, chances teams in other series for a drive for next year” However, He doesn’t want to give up on the Sauber seat, with that remaining his priority. Zhou also admitted even if he leaves he wants to keep the door open for F1. He said, “But at the moment, of course, I want to still get the Sauber seat. And if by any chance I don’t have that, we have to think about the rest.”

‘Wants to keep the door to F1 open’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/zh.../?nowprocket=1

'It is allowed': The changes Red Bull are bringing to the US Grand Prix as part of ‘magical’ RB20 upgrade.
The paddock has been aware for weeks that Red Bull would be bringing upgrades after the mini-autumn break to the United States Grand Prix.
15 Oct 2024
Shay Rogers
F1 Oversteer

Red Bull will change ‘just about everything’ in COTA. Speaking on the RacingNews365 F1 podcast, journalist Ruud Dimmers revealed that the team is bringing an effective B-Spec car to COTA.

“It’s starting to go six races finally, a little more than 50-point lead. Will it work [an upgrade] or will it not. The magical update from Red Bull. “This is the moment in the season coming, maybe this weekend though everything can change in the next three weeks. They have just about everything I think, it is now becoming an RB20-B.”

What will Red Bull change on the RB20 for the rest of the 2024 season? Dimmers among colleague Tom Coronel also pointed out that both the floor and front wing of the Red Bull will be upgraded. It’s a major development for the Milton Keynes-based outfit who are bringing their car more in line with their papaya rivals.

‘An effective B-Spec car: RB20-B’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/the...-rb20-upgrade/


Max previews GP in Austin: 'Worked hard on our performance'
15 Oct 2024
Niels Hendrix
Verstappen.nl

“We have had a few weeks away from racing, giving us time to refocus and to work hard on our performance ahead of the United States Grand Prix. We have made some changes to the car to hopefully better suit this circuit, so will see if this makes us more competitive when we head out on track.”

“This week will be another hectic sprint race weekend, with a lot planned over the weekend. Austin is a really cool city and the atmosphere at the track is like no other. I will be back in my US helmet for this race, which is a tribute to the passionate fans here and features the skyline of all three US cities that we are racing in. We have a lot of good memories here, so we are looking forward to heading back and racing there this week.”

‘Worked hard on our performance';

https://news.verstappen.com/en/article/5619/


Perez "training hard" to perform well at his 'home race'
15 Oct 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

Sergio Perez is looking forward to one of his "favourite races" of the season at the United States Grand Prix. In what has been another tricky season for the Mexican at Red Bull, he will be hoping to put in a good performance to help his team cut the 41-point deficit to McLaren in the constructors' championship, saying he has been putting in the work back home in Mexico to prepare for this weekend.

"It feels like we have had a long time away from racing! It’s nice to be back and to be heading to one of our favourite races of the season," started Perez. "It’s a special race for me, everyone jokes I have so many home races, but Austin always feels like one for me and the support is really nice. I have been training hard back home in Mexico and in regular touch with the Team back in the UK."

"We are looking to come into Austin in a better place with the car," continued Perez. "We have made some changes in the break, aimed at improving the pace and we will see how competitive we are in Austin. It being a Sprint race makes things a little tricky, because we have one practice session to get the car right before it counts but that’s where working as a Team comes in and that’s what we excel at."

‘Training hard back home in Mexico’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30624...rand-prix.html


‘He’s learned’: Martin Brundle suggests Lando Norris ‘underestimated’ one thing when fighting Max Verstappen this season
15 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

The Austrian Grand Prix highlighted what happens when Norris and Verstappen get too close on track. Frustratingly for Norris, he was forced to retire and missed out on scoring points entirely, while Verstappen overcame a ten-second penalty to further extend his lead over the Brit.

Asked how important the experience is that Norris has gained this season, Brundle said: “[It’s] massive, I think. In Austria, we saw they tripped over each other. Lando underestimated his mate Max as to how aggressive he would be in combat. I think he’s learned from that. He’s still on a slope like that [goes upwards] I think in terms of his learning.”

“So, winning races consistently, he’s just started to do that now, leading from pole at the end of the first lap, he’s got that sorted out and just the way he won in Holland [at Zandvoort] and the way he won in Singapore was just incredible. So, all of those things will give him confidence.”

‘Underestimated’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mar...n-this-season/


Jenson Button tells McLaren how to use Oscar Piastri to help Lando Norris beat Verstappen
Jenson Button has urged McLaren to change their approach to help Lando Norris.
Oct 15, 2024
Archie Griggs
Daily and Sunday Express

Jenson Button believes McLaren need to start using team orders to give Lando Norris the best chance of winning this year's Drivers' Championship title. "If Lando has any opportunity of becoming a world champion, he needs every single point.”

“That's even using Oscar to grab the fastest lap if Max has got it. It's a really tricky situation for drivers and teams but it's got to happen. That's the reason why Ferrari won so many world championships with Michael Schumacher and, in a way, it was why [Sebastian] Vettel was able to win so many championships [at Red Bull].”

"I think sometimes you've got to bite the bullet and favour one driver, especially at this point in the season. Oscar has done an amazing job this year but Lando has more points. If the team want to win, that is what is going to have to happen."

‘Needs every single point’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...Max-Verstappen


McLaren to run ‘fan-favourite’ Chrome livery for F1 US GP
15 Oct 2024
Jack Oliver Smith
Motorsport Week

McLaren has announced that it will once again run its “fan-favourite” Chrome livery on its Formula 1 cars at this weekend’s United States Grand Prix. McLaren says that the livery embraces “a modern twist to represent the team’s enduring legacy, with the enhanced chrome representing the two brands’ pursuit of innovative design.” “Touches” of chrome will also feature on the race suits worn by its drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

It is the fourth special livery the team has used in 2024, with special one-offs used for Japan [designed by Japanese artist MILTZ], Singapore [which referenced McLaren’s much-loved Marlboro livery of the 1970s, 80s and 90s] and, in Monaco, which used the colours of the helmet worn by one of its most notable drivers, Ayrton Senna.

‘CEO Zak Brown: “Racing fans absolutely love McLaren’s classic chrome livery”.’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-for-f1-us-gp/


Ferrari: Leclerc will deliver once given a title pedigree F1 car
Charles Leclerc's Ferrari coach Jock Clear thinks his driver has shaken off his 'unfair' reputation of having a race performance weakness
15 Oct 2024
Filip Cleeren
Motorsport.com

Ferrari driver coach Jock Clear is adamant Charles Leclerc is ready to deliver a world championship as soon as the team gives him the car to do it.
"He's got what it takes to be a world champion," Clear said. "He's got the qualifying pace. My god, I honestly think he's the best qualifier we've seen. It's difficult to go back as far as Michael [Schumacher] and Mika [Hakkinen] and people like that, but he is the best qualifier for sure.”

“And his race management, if you look at Monza, it's just exceptional. When everything's lined up, he can deliver. "Charles hasn't been in that situation yet. Was 2022 genuinely a chance for Ferrari to win a world championship? You have to say it was, because at one point we were 40 points ahead. But we weren't ready as a team and Red Bull outdeveloped us by the end of the year.”

"Certainly, there were things that Charles would say were not at championship level during that year, but that is exactly the point. You're not going to win a championship until all of you are at that level.”

‘Leclerc will deliver’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f...-car/10662768/


Mercedes gearing up for final upgrade of 2024 at US GP
15/10/2024
Phillip van Osten
F1i.com

As the Formula 1 season enters its final stretch, Mercedes is pulling out all the stops, with the Brackley squad introducing at this week’s US Grand Prix in Austin its final upgrade package of the year. “Although we are not in contention for the championships, there is still plenty to fight for and the opportunity to create a few highlights along the way,” Wolff said.

“We want to end this year as strongly as possible, build momentum for 2025, and bid farewell to Lewis in the best way possible. We have therefore been hard at work since Singapore analysing our performance and how we can improve. We bring our final update package of the season to Texas and our aim is to close the gap to the front,” the Austrian added.

‘Final upgrade’;

https://f1i.com/news/521402-mercedes...-at-us-gp.html

‘Totally new’: COTA boss shares why track changes have been made after ‘pretty poor’ Max Verstappen review.
Track limits were a hot topic at last year’s race after several instances of drivers going all four wheels off track, with Haas filing a right to review multiple drivers that should have been sanctioned.
8 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Organisers for the United States Grand Prix have made several changes to the Circuit of the Americas in a bid to help reduce problems that led to Max Verstappen branding it ‘pretty poor’ last year. Circuit of the Americas organisers detail track changes for the US GP.

After the situation that occurred last year, a series of modifications have been made to prevent a repeat including the narrowing of the asphalt verges by 1.5 metres and replaced with astro turf. Changes have also been made at the exit of Turn 11, which have now been fitted with ‘fake gravel’ to act as a deterrent for drivers without risking stones from being brought back onto the track and potentially damaging tyres.

The track has also been resurfaced which should smoothen the surfaces, after Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton were both disqualified due to their cars hitting the bumps and wearing down the skid blocks.

‘Track changes’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/cot...tappen-review/


Adjustments will be made to COTA for the US GP after previous problems
8 Oct 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Formula One's next Grand Prix will be in Austin, Texas, at the Circuit of the Americas. It has undergone some modifications to improve the quality of racing after many issues with track limits in 2023. As well as these modifications, the track has also been resurfaced due to previous complaints from drivers. See the full list of the changes made here.

Last season, many drivers made track limits infringements. The corner cuts were so frequent that Haas requested a 'right to review', which meant that drivers' specific breaches would be looked at in detail. This was necessary, according to the American team, because several drivers had to be penalised due to their infringements during the race. In the end, other teams also complained about the lack of action from the race management and the stewards.

Last season's problems, therefore, have led the circuit itself to make adjustments, reports Motorsport.com. For example, the asphalt verges at Turn 6, Turn 13, Turn 14 and Turn 15 have been narrowed by 1.5 metres and replaced with turf. The hope is that drivers are no longer tempted to go over the white line due to the turf. Cameras have also been installed in 'strategic places' to help check for potential track limits issues.

‘Turn 6, Turn 13, Turn 14 and Turn 15 narrowed’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30510...for-us-gp.html


Last Time Out In COTA
October 15, 2024
Nicole Powell
15 Oct 2024
Last Word On Sports

Miami Grand Prix 2023: Hamilton and Leclerc’s cars breached Article 3.5.9 e) of the 2023 FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, which states that: “The thickness of the plank assembly measured normal to the lower surface must be 10mm ± 0.2mm [plus or minus 0.2 millimetres] and must be uniform when new. A minimum thickness of 9mm will be accepted due to wear, and conformity to this provision will be checked at the peripheries of the designated holes.”

COTA’s bumpy nature alongside the Sprint weekend’s complicated schedule definitely played a part, but the FIA did not make a move to check other cars and decided to stick to the “standard penalty” – disqualification for both drivers.
“Talking of this season and Max and Lando, it’s unfolding. We’re entering a really crucial phase in the USA and Mexico and Vegas.” – former Williams and McLaren driver Juan Pablo Montoya speaking to Gambling Zone.

McLaren are expected to be the fastest, as they have been since Miami. However, a battle is still expected. Red Bull and Verstappen are still capable of winning races, should the car handle well enough for the Dutchman. Ferrari are also capable of winning races, with a few surprise boosts in pace at some rounds this season. Ferrari and Red Bull may manage a miracle in a few days time.

‘Last Time Out’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...e-out-in-cota/


Miami GP circuit announces dramatic expansion to appeal beyond F1
27 Sep 2024
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

The Miami International Autodrome, home of the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, has announced significant changes as it seeks to become a circuit for other motorsport ventures. The circuit has now announced four new configurations, varying in length from a 19-turn 2.8-mile version to a shorter 1.43-mile loop. Negating the need for road closures, the new configurations are designed to attract more local events to the circuit, while not impacting local businesses.

“Our investment into the facility and construction of the inner loop creates five track configurations worthy of the world’s most elite drivers and allows us to engage with the growing motorsports community of South Florida while also respecting the impact to local residents and businesses.”

“There’s a thriving car culture here in South Florida and this investment enables us to better serve this growing group of automotive enthusiasts, as well as utilizing our campus for more community programming, including education and career opportunities for local youth and students.”

‘Appeal beyond F1’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...eal-beyond-f1/


F1 Today | Steiner exclusive, and Red Bull make changes for US GP
15 Oct 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

The anticipation for the first race since the month-long autumn break is building up, with teams saying changes have been made to their cars for the United States Grand Prix, includuing Red Bull and Mercedes. New liveries will also be seen on the grid for the race weekend at the Circuit of The Americas, and there is also more from GPblog's exclusive interview with former Haas team boss Guenther Steiner.

Both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez have said in their preview of this weekend that 'changes have been made' to their cars for the sprint weekend, hoping to take advantage of the extra points on offer. But it is not just Red Bull that are changing their car for this weekend, as Mercedes look to be bringing upgrades to Austin, Texas to try and add to their three wins this season. "We bring our final update package of the season to Texas and our aim is to close the gap to the front," said team boss Toto Wolff.

GPblog spoke exclusively with former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner, and the Italian has spoken about the tough year that Red Bull and Christian Horner have had in 2024. After dominating in 2023, 2024 has been a major disaster. But Steiner quickly dismisses the idea of getting rid of Horner: "I would not suggest that Christian has done a bad job... I think let's see if they can recover."

‘The anticipation’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30624...the-us-gp.html


Verstappen comes to Austin with "changes made" to his RB20
15 Oct 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

Max Verstappen will be hoping to make the most of the added points coming from the sprint race weekend, hoping to increase his 52-point gap over Lando Norris in the drivers' championship. However, Norris and McLaren dominated proceedings last time out at the Singapore Grand Prix, with the Brit winning by nearly 21 seconds around the Marina Bay Street Circuit, highlighting the pace the papaya-coloured team have at the moment.

The consistency from McLaren has also allowed them to pull a 41-point gap over Red Bull in the constructors' championship, a lead that has continued to grow since being overtaken. Norris will be looking for another victory to close the gap to Verstappen, while also taking a big step towards securing McLaren's first team title since 1998.

‘Hoping to make the most of the added points comin’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30623...rand-prix.html

McLaren could have another nightmare, like 2007, with Norris and Piastri.
In 2007, the same kind of scenario happened to the Woking-based team with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, resulting in them coming up empty-handed at the end of the season. Could this nightmare scenario be repeated?
16 Oct 2024
Jeroen Immink
GPblog.com

In 2007, Alonso and Hamilton both joined McLaren. Alonso was the champion in Formula 1 at the time, having knocked Michael Schumacher off the throne with Renault. Hamilton was a rookie with high expectations. The two drivers put the heat on each other from the first race in Australia. Tensions continued to rise, resulting in Alonso stopping Hamilton in the pit lane during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix. From then on, the two drivers didn't get on.

In the final race of the season in Brazil, there were three drivers left who could become F1 world champions: Hamilton, Alonso and Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen. Some mechanical problems deprived Hamilton of his first title in his debut year; Alonso came third, and Raikkonen won the race and took the title. Ferrari became the constructors' champion in the process, and McLaren was disqualified with spy gate. Alonso left McLaren after a year, as the relationship with Hamilton was no longer tenable.

McLaren's situation in 2007 seems similar to 2024. Lando Norris has been driving for the British team for almost six years. But Piastri is an up-and-coming talent who has previously indicated he would not shy away from a title battle. McLaren forced Norris to let Piastri overtake him in Hungary to take his first F1 win. Has McLaren learned from the past, though? Or is the same scenario as in 2007 hanging over the British team? This weekend, the F1 season resumes in the United States, where Verstappen, Norris, and Piastri will race for their own interests.

‘Another nightmare, like 2007’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30634...r-piastri.html


'Very simple': McLaren boss Zak Brown is now getting ‘increasingly fed up’ every time he’s asked one question
16 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Journalist Ian Parkes was speaking to the RacingNews365 Podcast and admitted recently speaking to Brown about McLaren’s championship credentials. He suggested that Brown was getting more and more annoyed about the constant questioning about whether McLaren felt they were going to win the title. His answer tells us a lot about the mindset within McLaren heading into the final six races of the year.

Zak Brown ‘increasingly fed up’ with questions about McLaren’s title hopes. Talking about how McLaren are now the favourites to win their first championship this century, Parkes said: “I spoke to Zak Brown recently the McLaren chief executive and he mentioned to me that he was becoming increasingly fed up with people pretty much saying that to him.”

“It’s a case, a very simple case and one adopted by the team principal Andrea Stella that, and we hear it in football as well, one game at a time, this is simply one Grand Prix at a time. As we’ve just discussed, right now, we do not know how that Red Bull is going to perform with its new floor in Austin. It holds a huge significant key to unlocking what is going to follow over the five Grand Prix that will then take place after Austin.”

‘Zak Brown is now getting increasingly fed up’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mcl...-one-question/


Dr Marko Accelerates Red Bull-McLaren Rivalry Ahead Of US GP
Oct 16, 2024
F1 Chronicle

This weekend, Red Bull Racing’s 2024 car will have a significant upgrade, including a new floor, and Marko said: “The circuits coming up now clearly suit him (Perez) better and we hope that he will stabilise.” But could another driver also be in the running to potentially replace the Mexican? “I do not think it’s impossible that Oscar Piastri will go to Red Bull next year to replace Sergio Perez,” former F1 driver Christian Fittipaldi said on the Pelas Pistas podcast.

“Piastri may be getting a bit tired of the situation at McLaren,” he added. Indeed, Marko has been openly talking about “all top drivers” having exit clauses in their contracts lately – and Piastri, 23, is managed by Mark Webber – who remains close to the Red Bull family. This week, Marko questioned the “mental” strength of Piastri’s teammate Lando Norris, who is Max Verstappen’s closest rival for the 2024 title.

Marko admits that Piastri’s role in supporting Norris is a disadvantage for Red Bull and Verstappen. “Unfortunately, that is true,” said the 81-year-old Austrian. “He can take a lot of points from Max, while people expect less from Checo. But I am not so sure that Piastri is very happy with his role as second driver and whether he wants to simply accept that,” added Marko.

‘Red Bull-McLaren Rivalry’;

https://f1chronicle.com/dr-marko-acc.../?nowprocket=1


Former McLaren driver sees issue with the team: 'They might regret that'
16 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

Entering the final six Grands Prix of the season, it's make it or break it for Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in terms of the drivers' championship, with the latter chasing the Dutchman in the standings. Former Formula One driver Gerhard Berger also believes it will be a tight battle, but favours the Red Bull driver to come out on top.

The gap between the two drivers currently stands at 52 points, with two tripleheaders remaining on the calendar. Berger believes the Formula One will have another title decider in Abu Dhabi, similarly to the 2021 season. "I expect a very close championship and I think Norris will be a contender for the world title with Verstappen until the last race," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"There will be no room for error. Max has a lot of potential and experience, and Red Bull are only focusing on him, so I have a feeling that he can save this world championship in the end," the Austrian continued. "If the drivers' championship is decided by a few points, McLaren might [as] well regret [their previous] decisions," Berger concluded his verdict.

"There will be no room for error”;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30637...does-know.html


F1 returns with a massive, and unexpected, battle for the world championship
Formula 1 returns as Max Verstappen and Lando Norris battle for the world championship
16 Oct 2024
Michael Doyle
ABC Online

When Max Verstappen claimed four of the opening five races of this year's Formula 1 championship, it appeared all but certain that the flying Dutchman was going to win four world titles in a row. The triple-world champion heads into the final quarter of the season with a genuine challenger and the United States Grand Prix is a race that Norris is highlighting as a massive opportunity for points.

"It's a great race to start the final leg of the season after a few weeks off," he said. "It's also a sprint weekend, which means there are more points on the table. I've spent some time back at the [team facility] in the sim preparing for the upcoming triple header. The next two months are going to be incredibly busy, but also exciting."

There is a maximum of 180 points to be won for a driver in the remaining six grands prix, and three sprint races, with Norris needing to score an average of 8.66 points more than Verstappen each weekend. While Norris is a genuine challenger, he will need to be near-perfect and have Verstappen falter in the season's final quarter.

‘Massive, and unexpected, battle’;

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-10-...ship/104338022


'That moment': Martin Brundle shares what we still ‘don’t know’ about Lando Norris’s F1 championship credentials
15 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Martin Brundle highlights ‘unknown’ for Lando Norris. The Briton has forfeited a lot of points this season after making mistakes either during starts or when racing wheel-to-wheel with Verstappen on track. Norris admitted that starts are the ‘number one’ thing he wants to improve after the summer break, while former driver Damon Hill believes much of Norris’ mistakes are down to the pressure from Piastri.

Brundle thinks there is still an unknown aspect of Norris on track in how he deals with pressure when trying to win a title, having not been in the position before in his F1 career. “He’s got the speed; the team has certainly got a great car. I think Lando is growing and learning and getting more confident,” said Brundle. “Chasing and being chased are two completely different stories in sport. So if he gets near to winning a world championship, how strong is his head going to be? We don’t know yet until that moment arrives.”

Helmut Marko shared ‘certain weakness’ he’s seen in Lando Norris. Although Red Bull’s car upgrades may end up playing a role in Verstappen’s late title defence, given McLaren is reluctant to make any significant changes to their car, Helmut Marko believes the Dutchman is superior to Norris. Marko identified several ‘weaknesses’ that he thinks Norris has which Verstappen can exploit in the final six races of the season. He believes Verstappen’s mental strength is stronger than Norris and that his ‘rituals’ pre-race get him into the zone better than the Briton, who always seems to fumble at starts.

‘Lando Norris: How strong is his head going to be?’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mar...p-credentials/

Why Austin will reveal if Ferrari's progress is real or fake.
Ferrari’s United States Grand Prix performance will be a key indicator on whether it’s on the right track technically, even though it doesn’t have any significant upgrades to introduce.
Oct 17, 2024
Edd Straw
The Race

“Since Singapore, we have been working flat out and the high-speed turns at this track will provide a useful test for the upgrades we introduced at previous races,” said Vasseur. “As is always the case at a sprint weekend, the work carried out at the factory prior to the event takes on greater importance, with only one hour of free practice before immediately going into the competitive part of the event.”

Ferrari’s main weakness this season has been on high-downforce tracks, particularly those with longer corners – especially faster ones. However, it has also struggled when there has been a wide range of corner speeds. That makes Austin a good test of its car as although it’s a track with plenty of faster turns, there’s also some slower content.

There’s a very interesting pattern in Ferrari’s single-lap pace across the season. The Race’s supertimes metric, which utilises each car’s fastest single lap of a race weekend expressed as a percentage, shows a clear pattern when you arrange the tracks visited so far this season in pace order.

‘Key indicator’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f...es-grand-prix/


Vasseur warns Verstappen and Norris: 'Leclerc and Sainz are prepared'
16 Oct 2024
Estéban den Toom
GPblog.com

Much of the attention is on Red Bull and McLaren in the Constructors' Championship, but Ferrari are still knocking on the door. Team boss Fred Vasseur believes the gap is bridgeable. The team boss looks ahead to the US Grand Prix.

Leclerc and Sainz prepared for COTA: In any case, Vasseur is already warning the competition. "Charles and Carlos and the whole team are well prepared and keen to go racing again, as always, looking to get every last bit of performance out of our package. We have to be on top of our game, as the leading teams are very evenly matched and there is still everything to play for in the championship," the French team boss of the Italian Scuderia concluded.

'Leclerc and Sainz are prepared';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30635...rand-prix.html


Charles Leclerc: The Monegasque Marvel’s Relentless Pursuit of Excellence
Oct 16, 2024
F1 Chronicle

The year was 2018… Just when his team asked him to return to the pits during the fading moments of Q3, the then 21-year-old was unbothered by the team’s instruction. It wasn’t arrogance. Anything but; it was pure confidence that Charles Leclerc had in himself. He relented and said, “No.. no.. no one more lap. Let’s see what we get!” The result was a fighting P8, and that too, in a Sauber, a team that, with much due respect to its illustrious past in Formula 1 racing, had been a backmarker.

Perhaps Brundle was echoing the sentiment of hundreds of thousands of Ferrari fans. A few months later, having switched from his white and red racing overalls at Sauber to fully red racing colors at Maranello, Charles Leclerc welcomed a new chapter of his life. Many, you’d think, would love to part with any luxury of life to simply get an opportunity to become a Formula 1 driver. But here was a young driver, not yet 22, who had signed a long-term contract with Ferrari.

A great future beckons: And one shall also wait for that day when F1’s Iceman, the king of laconic expressions known as Kimi Raikkonen, will sport a broad smile to congratulate Charles Marc Hervé Perceval Leclerc upon breaking his record by lifting the world title for Ferrari and thereby becoming the first since Kimi in 2007 to do so. It’s been a long time. It’s been more than a while. But truth also is that the future belongs to those who persist today. Leclerc certainly is. May he go and win many a mile. Happy 27th Charles Leclerc from the F1 Chronicle family.

‘Relentless Pursuit of Excellence’;

https://f1chronicle.com/charles-lecl.../?nowprocket=1


'Makes a difference': Carlos Sainz names which race is Ferrari’s next ‘big chance’ to win a Grand Prix
16 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Formula 1 teams head into the final six races with everything to play for, with Ferrari now close to leapfrogging Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship. A strong finish for the Ferrari in the last few races has put them to within 34 points of Red Bull, who are banking on an upgrade in Austin to keep their Constructors’ title chances alive.

Helmut Marko is optimistic they will be able to produce a better car in Austin, following their disaster weekends in Monza and Azerbaijan whereby both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez missed out on crucial points. Ferrari’s most recent car upgrade came at the Singapore Grand Prix with a tweak to their front wing, having introduced most of them at their home race in Monza.

Sainz is cautious about Ferrari’s chances until he sees their new package on normal circuits, but expects Vegas to be the next big opportunity for them. “What we need to see is if it makes a difference in Austin and Brazil, all the more old-school normal tracks, basically. And then Vegas I think is our next big chance.”

‘Las Vegas’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/car...-a-grand-prix/


Sainz quiet over explosive Binotto comments
16 Oct 2024
GrandPrix.com

Carlos Sainz is keeping his lips zipped after a prominent Formula 1 personality said he would not have replaced the Spaniard with Lewis Hamilton.

“No”, said former Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto when asked if he would have ousted Sainz for 2025 and instead paired Charles Leclerc with seven time world champion Hamilton. “If Leclerc is the talent, then in my opinion he should be the driver that is supported to achieve the goal and take the credit”, added the Italian, who is now in charge of Audi in F1.

When asked about Binotto's explosive opinion that he would have stuck with Sainz instead of signing up Hamilton, Sainz opted to maintain a strategic silence. “Binotto said he wouldn't sign Lewis? I don't interfere in that”, Sainz responded. I'll keep my opinion to myself and tell you over dinner one day. Lewis and Charles are two great drivers, and I'm sure they will do well.”

‘Lips zipped’;

https://www.grandprix.com/news/sainz...-comments.html


What Mattia Binotto really thinks of Fred Vasseur’s impact at Ferrari
14 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Ferrari may be on the up under Fred Vasseur’s leadership but former team principal Mattia Binotto does not believe the Frenchman has “revolutionised” the team, rather he’s built on what Binotto left behind. According to Binotto, today’s performance isn’t Vasseur’s success story alone.

Asked by Corriere dello Sport what he sees in ‘Vasseur’s Ferrari’,” Binotto replied: “I would rather say what I saw in Ferrari. “Fred was able to continue the project in the name of continuity, he did not revolutionise a structured and functional organisation. He also made his own choices.”

“If Ferrari wins I am happy because I know the team and I know how much effort was spent to bring it to a certain level. Since I was a child I have supported Ferrari. At home I still have many photos and objects, the past cannot be erased,” he said. “Then there are professional choices, things must remain separate. Today I am still happy when I see the Reds win, I am happy above all for that team that I know thoroughly and to which I believe I have made a contribution.”

‘Today’s performance isn’t Vasseur’s success story alone’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/what-m...impact-ferrari


‘Focus on other drivers’: Former Ferrari boss says Hamilton move risks destabilising Maranello
Oct 17, 2024
Michael Lamonato
Fox Sports (Australia)

Former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto wouldn’t have signed Lewis Hamilton had he still been in charge, believing the Briton risks destabilising the team’s long-term championship plan centred around Charles Leclerc. The allure of Hamilton’s statement signing proved too great for Vasseur, whose team will boast arguably the strongest line-up on the grid next season.

Binotto, who has since taken the reins at Sauber ahead of its transition to the Audi works team, doesn’t see the same appeal, telling Italy’s Corriere della Sera that bringing Hamilton into the team risks disempowering Leclerc as Ferrari’s long-term leader. “Ferrari must focus on other drivers,” he said. “And if the talent is Leclerc, he is the one who in some way I believe should be accompanied to the goal.”

The former boss said he wouldn’t have pursued Hamilton, though he thinks the seven-time champion has made the right call by moving to Maranello. “No [I wouldn’t have signed him],” he said. “But he did very well to go to Ferrari. I agree with his decision.”

‘Disempowering Leclerc’;

https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...ea0afd9a228c3e

US GP Preview | Who will make the most out of the extraordinary weekend at COTA?
What makes the US GP stand out? After the summer break, McLaren could have the biggest smile on their faces. Red Bull is eager to finally fix its issues with the RB20, which especially hurt Verstappen at the Italian and Azerbaijan Grands Prix.
16 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

After a four-week break, the 2024 Formula One season is now entering the final two tripleheaders on its calendar. With a Sprint on the schedule, the US Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas could turn out to be either the most exciting, or the most feared event of the year.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri won three out of the four Grands Prix from Zandvoort until Singapore. Moreover, when Lando Norris won in the Netherlands and on the Asian street circuit, on both occasions he finished more than 20 seconds ahead of his title rival Max Verstappen. Since then, teams have had the autumn break to work on their cars, with all four of the top teams expecting to improve. McLaren is not laying back for now and will come with an updated package for the weekend, Norris' team announced in Singapore.

Toto Wolff said leading up to the weekend that Mercedes will bring their final updates for the current season in Austin, Texas. Moreover, Frederic Vasseur's Ferrari has previously made changes to its cars, but it now hopes to fully understand how those changes work on track in order to maximise its performance.

‘Who will make out the most?’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30638...ip-battle.html


Will new-look COTA help or hinder Norris? 2024 US GP preview
October 17th 2024
Cambridge Kisby
Motor Sport Magazine

A resurfaced Circuit of the Americas could play a part in the drivers' title battle. Here's everything to watch out for at the 2024 United States Grand Prix and sprint race. The Circuit of the Americas (COTA) is renowned for its undulating topography and overtaking opportunities, which have staged many a battle in previous seasons.

This year, it should reveal what’s in store for the rest of the season, as all of the teams are expected to bring upgrades. Will the McLaren remain at the head of the pack, or will Norris and Oscar Piastri face a closer fight for the top honours on the recently resurfaces asphalt? The smoother track surface will demand a different set-up to previous years, and with just a single practice session to adapt before the competitive action begins with sprint qualifying, teams could easily get it wrong.

Verstappen is also not only driver Norris needs to be wary of. Ferrari has been a thorn in McLaren’s side in recent races and its drivers, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz are in the hunt for more race wins — particularly as Ferrari still has a chance of winning the constructors’ championship. With Mercedes also looking to return to the front, could we see another four-way battle for victory?

‘2024 US GP preview’;

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...?nowprocket=1#


F1 News: Red Bull “optimistic” about COTA upgrades
Oct 17, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

COTA the first litmus test for RB20 upgrades: Speaking ahead of F1’s return this weekend, Helmut Marko said Red Bull are optimistic about their next updates: “We are clearly on an upward trend,” he told OE24.

“However, I have to admit, we have recently had the same problems as Ferrari and Mercedes. Sometimes it [the upgrade package] works, then it doesn’t – although we don’t know why that is.”

“McLaren is consistently fast. But they probably waited too long to make a clear commitment to Norris. So he is still far behind Max, who we hope will now be able to give a car that he has more confidence in. Our technicians have new parts, and are optimistic.”

“Optimistic”;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...cota-upgrades/


‘Must not forget’: F1 expert ‘very sceptical’ about what Red Bull plan to do at the US Grand Prix
17 Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Christian Danner is ‘very sceptical’ about Red Bull’s upgrades for the US Grand Prix. Verstappen has also been increasingly frustrated with Red Bull’s car at recent races, dubbing it an ‘undrivable monster’ at the Italian Grand Prix. The Dutchman would not bite his tongue over the RB20’s balance problems at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix or Singapore Grand Prix, too. So, Red Bull utilised the autumn break to produce upgrades for the US Grand Prix they hope will help bring the front-end bite Verstappen craves back.

Christian Danner, who entered 47 Grand Prix between 1985 and 1989, is sceptical about the gains the upgrades will offer Red Bull and Verstappen at COTA. So, the ex-Arrows F1 ace feels Red Bull need to split their set-ups in practice with the US Grand Prix a Sprint weekend. “I am very sceptical as to whether Red Bull’s upgrade for Austin, the changes to the car, will bring any results,” the RTL commentator told sport.de.

“You must not forget – in Austin, you only have an hour to set up the car in practice and then you have to qualify for the Sprint. Actually, Red Bull need to split things up. But whether you can change that in two hours between practice and Sprint qualifying [is uncertain]. If the driver’s feedback doesn’t match the data, the driver is of course right because he is ultimately driving the car. To understand that in one hour, you have to look very closely.”

‘Very sceptical’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/f1-...us-grand-prix/


Max Verstappen confirms Red Bull ‘changes’ on the way in US Grand Prix update
16 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Team boss Christian Horner had previously called the update “something important”, saying Red Bull had “worked hard to understand the problems and solve them and, if everything goes well, to remedy the situation already from Austin.” The new package is expected to include a revised floor, Red Bull having learnt from their wayward Hungarian Grand Prix floor that unsettled the balance of the RB20.

‘Red Bull ‘changes’ on the way’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/max-ve...nd-prix-update


F1 2024 race schedule: Start time and how to watch US Grand Prix
F1 heads to the Circuit of the Americas in Austin after a four-week break for round 19 of the 2024 season
17 Oct 2024
Kieran Jackson
The Independent

Friday 18 October
All times BST

• Free practice 1: 6:30pm
• Sprint qualifying: 10:30pm

https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/f1-...-b2631083.html

US GP FP1 Results | Ferraris lead, Verstappen ahead of Norris.
The US Grand Prix weekend begins positively for the Tifosi in Austin, Texas. Carlos Sainz managed to top FP1 on the soft tyres with a lap time 1:33.602, with Charles Leclerc just finishing behind his teammate. Max Verstappen rounded off the Top 3 in the only practice session of the day.
18 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

McLaren opted for using the soft tyres late in the session only, and Lando Norris finished in P4. The Briton has struggled so far in Turn 12, making errors twice in that corner. It has also been a challenging day for the Mercedes drivers. Lewis Hamilton has spun in Turn 4 but had enough space not to crash his car, while George Russell made mistakes into Turn 1. The two-time Grand Prix winner has also spun in the aforementioned corner.

‘Positive for the Tifosi’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30686...of-norris.html


United States GP: Free Practice 1 Results
19 Oct 2024
Mat Coch
Speedcafe

Full results from Free Practice 1 from the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas.

Pos Num Driver Team Laps Best Diff
1 55 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 24 1:33.602
2 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 26 1:33.623 0.021
3 1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 22 1:33.855 0.253
4 4 Lando Norris McLaren 24 1:33.868 0.266
5 81 Oscar Piastri McLaren 25 1:33.908 0.306
6 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 21 1:33.963 0.361
7 63 George Russell Mercedes 26 1:34.093 0.491
8 20 Kevin Magnussen Haas 24 1:34.096 0.494
9 14 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 23 1:34.112 0.510
10 22 Yuki Tsunoda RB 20 1:34.313 0.711

‘Full results’;

https://speedcafe.com/united-states-...ice-1-results/


Verstappen pleased with upgrades in P3, as Norris finishes just behind
18 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Carlos Sainz and Ferrari impressed by securing the fastest time in the first free practice session for the United States Grand Prix. Max Verstappen will be pleased with his Red Bull updates as he beat Lando Norris in the opening session.

‘Verstappen pleased’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30685...ts-norris.html


F1 - 2024 United States Grand Prix - Thursday Press conference transcript.
PART ONE – Carlos SAINZ (Ferrari), Esteban OCON (Alpine), Kevin MAGNUSSEN (Haas)
PART TWO – Alex ALBON (Williams), Liam LAWSON (RB), Lando NORRIS (McLaren)
17.10.24
FIA (Press Release)

Q: Carlos, why don't we start with you? how was the break? I gather you've been comparing yourself on a bike to the world number one? Carlos SAINZ: Comparing, I don't think it's the right word. I've been suffering next to the world number one, that by the way is in incredible form and an incredible moment for Tadej Pogacar, now that he's killing it in cycling. And I had the brilliant idea to go on a recovery ride for him. For me, it was the toughest ride of my life. He was on recovery mode after winning the world champs. And yeah, his recovery ride is still my zone five heart rate, zone four, zone five. So it just shows the difference. I mean, we are athletes in our sport. Obviously what we do is special in terms of reflexes and car handling and skills, but what he does on top of a bike is just incredible. And anyone who's been on a bike before, I cannot imagine how much this guy pushes on a bike.

Q: Alright, well, good luck with that. Thank you. Esteban, let's come to you now. First of all, how was the break? Are you feeling refreshed? Any cycling for you? Esteban OCON: It was good, thank you. Cycling, not as hard probably as Carlos, but, yeah, trained well, rested well, spent time with family and friends and, yeah, ready to go again. I mean, it can sound silly, but, you know, it makes a difference to how ready and how much energy all the team have coming into these last races and we'll see hopefully how that goes for us.

Q: Now, Haas has new parts here this weekend. It seems that medium downforce tracks suit your car as well. So do you enter this weekend with quite a lot of confidence? Kevin MAGNUSSEN: I think this year we've been pretty strong at most circuits. There has been a little bit more of a competitive edge at medium downforce tracks. This one is kind of close to high downforce, so we're not so sure what we're going to run. It's not a bad track for us, I think. There's some upgrades on the car and we're excited to see if they're going to be good again. I think this year we've brought a few upgrades that have been working, so that's been a really good trend. We're in a tight fight with RB for P6 in the Constructors’ and we're very motivated to take that battle to them and see if we can. If we can beat them, you know, Williams are not that far behind us as well. So there's, you know, we're focused both in front and behind. So it's pretty interesting.

Q: Liam, let's start with you. Welcome back to the FIA Press Conference. Good to see you again. Now, how has the past month been for you since it was announced that you were going to replace Daniel Ricciardo? Full of anticipation, I would imagine. Liam LAWSON: Yeah, it's just been busy, I would say. It was strange to have a gap at this point of the year, I think. Obviously, the gap for me was filled up with quite a lot of stuff. So yeah, it's just preparing as much as possible. It's a difficult time to come into the season. Obviously, Sprint weekend this weekend, new track, end of the season. So yeah, just trying to be as ready as possible.

Q: Alex, why don't we come to you next? The tonne is up. 100 races in Formula 1. Many congratulations. Lots of memories, I'm sure. Is there one race or two races that... stand out? Alex ALBON: Not really. The first race. The first race is always a big moment. And then my first podium is always nice. But yeah, it's strange. I feel like 100 races. when we do so many races a year now, it doesn't actually take a lot. It's four years now in Formula 1, four and a half. It's gone by very quickly. I think somebody told me that I've overtaken Sir Jackie Stewart, which is a pretty strange feeling.

Q: Lando, I'll bring it on to you now. Can I ask you about the break, first of all, the long break, the four weeks that we've had since Singapore? How did you use that time? Was it a frustrating time? You just wanted to keep the momentum going from the last race? Or did you use it for a time for reflection or improving the car? Just tell us a little bit about what you've been doing. Lando NORRIS: A little bit of everything, honestly. I mean, after Singapore, I just wanted to keep going. We were in a good rhythm. I think we still are in a good rhythm and have been for quite a while. So a little bit of that. But everyone needs a break. And it's not just for me, but for my whole team, the whole team around me, everyone back in the factory. It's nice to kind of regroup and put our heads down again. Yeah, a mixture of things. Obviously, getting ready for the next few races and the end of the season, but also getting some time to relax and spending some time with my friends.

‘Press conference’;

https://www.fia.com/news/f1-2024-uni...nce-transcript


Max Verstappen protest to continue at F1 US GP, hints how FIA can end it
18.10.24
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

Max Verstappen will continue his vow of silence during FIA Formula 1 media sessions at the United States Grand Prix – but he has implied a way out of the situation. Verstappen has since confirmed he will continue to speak less and hold his own private roundtables, in a further blow to the governing body’s credibility.

He also revealed how his standoff with the FIA could end, calling on President Mohammed Ben Sulayem to contact him for a conversation, which has yet to happen. “I have not heard anything [from the FIA], so for me it doesn’t really change anything,” Verstappen told media including Motorsport Week. “With the situation. I mean, I also have to talk less, so it is fine for me,” said Verstappen.

“At the end of the day, everyone has their own opinion, but it is quite clear that, like I said already it was silly stuff.”

“Talk less, fine for me”;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...ia-can-end-it/


Sergio Perez comes out swinging to shut down 'false information'
Sergio Perez's Red Bull future has been in doubt after an underwhelming season.
Oct 18, 2024
Jack McEachen
Daily and Sunday Express

Sergio Perez has furiously claimed that he will “100 per cent” be at Red Bull next season and shut down "false information" suggesting otherwise, despite a host of young drivers vying for his spot alongside Max Verstappen. There had even been whispers around the paddock that Perez would retire from F1 this season and announce his intentions to do so at his home race, the Mexican GP at the end of the month.

But he has hit back at the suggestion that he is going anywhere. “Sometimes people just link these rumours and a lot of people pick it up, especially back in Mexico, with the Mexican Grand Prix coming up I didn’t want my fans to be misled into false information,” he said. “I just wanted to make it clear that I 100 per cent will be here next year. I have my contract and I will fulfil it and that’s not in my mind. In my mind is to sort out the issues we have for the moment with the car.”

“100% will be here next year”;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...future-F1-news

Verstappen: 'It's been a while' as woeful six-month run finally ends.
Max Verstappen could afford a smile and a quip that "it's been a while' after landing his first pole position in any format in F1 for the first time in six months.
19 Oct 2024
Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

Verstappen will lead away the field in the sprint for the United States Grand Prix weekend after setting the fastest time around the Circuit of the Americas with a lap of 1:32.833s, beating Mercedes' George Russell by 0.012s.

"We had a good day," said Verstappen, who has won the last three United States Grands Prix, and all three sprints this season. Of course, sprint quali is always very difficult. You do medium, medium and then the soft [in SQ1, SQ2, and then SQ3].”

"You never really know how much you can push. But I'm happy with today. I think the whole day, the car was working quite well. And, of course, very happy to be first. It's been a while. So, yeah, very pleased."

‘Verstappen will lead away the field’;

https://racingnews365.com/verstappen...n-finally-ends


2024 US Grand Prix – Sprint qualifying F1 results (COTA)
18 Oct 2024
Thomas Maher
PlanetF1.com

Results from the Sprint qualifying session at COTA ahead of the United States Grand Prix.

1. 1. Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:32.833
2. 2. George Russell Mercedes +0.012
3. 3. Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.226
4. 4. Lando Norris McLaren +0.250
5. 5. Carlos Sainz Ferrari +0.256
6. 6. Nico Hulkenberg Haas +0.350
7. 7. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.545
8. 8. Kevin Magnussen Haas +0.565
9. 9. Yuki Tsunoda VCARB +0.969
10. 10. Franco Colapinto Williams +1.573

‘Sprint qualifying F1 results’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/f1-res...int-qualifying


F1 US GP: Verstappen beats Russell to sprint pole by 0.012s, Norris fourth
A confident lap late in the session marks an end to a 'challenging' session for the Red Bull Racing driver.
Oct 18, 2024
Alex Kalinauckas
Motorsport.com

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen topped sprint qualifying at Formula 1’s 2024 United States Grand Prix ahead of George Russell, Charles Leclerc and his title rival Lando Norris.

On a tricky day for Red Bull given the controversy over its front bib ride height adjuster, Verstappen scored his first pole (sprint or GP) since the Austria round back in June.

But there was disappointment for Red Bull elsewhere, as Sergio Perez was knocked out in SQ2, while it was a similar story for McLaren, as Oscar Piastri failed to make it through the other session where the drivers were obliged to run medium tyres.

‘A confident late lap’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/s...port/10664110/


Mark Hughes: Why McLaren's suddenly struggling
Oct 19, 2024
Mark Hughes
The Race

From being the Formula 1 car that was fast everywhere, on any day, on any track, the McLaren looked a little ordinary around the Circuit of The Americas on Friday. From being an inconsistent car which Max Verstappen even termed a ‘monster’ (in the bad sense) a few races ago, the Red Bull was good enough for Max to take the sprint pole.

This circuit requires careful management of the soft tyres even on a qualifying lap, and Verstappen seemed to have a great handle on that. He wasn’t the fastest everywhere, but he kept the tyres in shape perfectly, with only a small run-wide at Turn 13 making it a less-than-perfect lap.

“Looking at the lap, there are a few little balance issues to sort out,” said Verstappen, “but to be ahead of the others is really positive. I’m aware that there are a lot of fast cars around me but I’m happy and it’s definitely a positive return. Looking to the rest of the weekend, we just want to make the car a bit more driveable and that we are all good on the tyres in the race.”

‘McLaren looked a little ordinary’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/m...ghes-analysis/


FIA boss declares Red Bull bib row a 'non-story' as Christian Horner calls out 'paranoia'
The build-up to the United States Grand Prix has been dominated by controversy over a device on the Red Bull cars which rivals worry could allow them to circumvent F1's parc ferme rules
18 Oct 2024
Daniel Moxon
The Mirror

The governing body's single seater director Nikolas Tombazis told Sky Sports: "It is a tight championship and people get excited about each others' cars. So we cannot definitively close the previous races or any insinuations there may be between teams in a very competitive environment, but in the present situation we believe it is a non-story, yes."

Tombazis insisted there is no evidence that Red Bull did anything wrong and said the FIA had felt the need to intervene to shut down such suggestions from other teams. He explained: "At the previous race, it was pointed out to us that certain designs could allow a change of the height at the front of the car, which some people call a bib, in parc ferme.

"We did not have any indication or any proof that anybody was doing something like that - that would clearly be illegal under parc ferme regulations. So we said that from this race onwards, there must be no possibility of doing such a thing at all. So if a team had a design that would allow a quick change of that height, it would have to be sealed so they could not have access in parc ferme.”

'Non-story';

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...t-fia-33925782


Horner: McLaren 'moaning' to distract from own F1 car legality issues
Oct 18, 2024
Josh Suttill
The Race

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner thinks “moaning” Formula 1 title rival McLaren is “lighting fires” with its criticism of RB20’s front bib adjusting device to distract from its own legality issues. When asked to respond to the criticism, Horner told Sky Sports F1 the device has been there for “over three years” and can only be accessed when the pedals and other panels are removed.

“Because there’s been a bit of moaning from one of our rivals,” Horner said when asked why the FIA was sealing an area it had no issue with. “It’s the FIA’s job to look into these things. It’s on a list of the open source components so it’s been publicly available for the last three years.”

“The FIA is happy with it, just to satisfy some paranoia elsewhere in the paddock. I feel it’s sometimes to distract from perhaps what’s going on in your own house, [so] you try to light a fire somewhere else.” He pointed out there’s been “an awful lot of noise about rear wings” and that McLaren has had to adapt its mini-DRS rear wing trick.

“Lighting fires”;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/h...f1-device-bib/


Perez baffled after he ‘took a step back from SQ1 to SQ2’
Oct 18, 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Sergio Perez was unable to make it through to SQ3 in Austin after finishing P11 in Sprint Qualifying for Red Bull.

‘Step back from SQ1 to SQ2’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/pe...91677831241913


Painful moment for McLaren: Piastri fails to escape SQ1
18 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Oscar Piastri failed to escape SQ1 session. The Australian made a mistake on his second run by exceeding a track limit at turn 19. He will start from 16th on the grid. It will make scoring points difficult in the 100km dash.

It's a setback for McLaren, who are looking to fight Red Bull Racing in the Constructors' Championship. They are trying to extend their lead over the Austrian team, but will struggle to add points with Piastri in Saturday's sprint race.

Piastri and McLaren had the car to make it through to the final part of sprint qualifying, but Piastri exceeded track limits, causing his time to be deleted. His team asked him to remain in the car in case any other driver made a similar mistake, but it wasn't to be.

‘Piastri fails to escape SQ1’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30692...ualifying.html


Hamilton’s lap was “more than enough for pole” before yellow flag
19th October 2024
Keith Collantine

“I just got unlucky with a yellow flag and that’s what it is,” Hamilton said after the sprint race qualifying session. “I was four-tenths up.” He briefly encountered the yellow flag as he reached the braking zone for turn 12. Hamilton backed off early, but the yellow flag quickly turned green as the driver whose spin caused it, Franco Colapinto, pulled away.

“The good thing is the team has made a step with the car,” he said. “The upgrade has clearly worked and I’m really grateful to everyone back at the factory for all the hard work over this period of time, because it’s been a tough slog for everyone to get the upgrades and make sure that they’re working. So it’s not the end. Tomorrow we got another chance.”

“I was four-tenths up”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/10/19/...e-yellow-flag/

Verstappen keeps his calm and wins COTA Sprint, Norris P3.
Max Verstappen has won the Sprint at the Circuit of the Americas. Carlos Sainz finished in second place, while Lando Norris rounded off the Top 3 ahead of qualifying later this evening in the United States.
19 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

Max Verstappen was only briefly under pressure by Lando Norris, but the Dutchman could keep his rival out of DRS distance, and managed to win the fourth Sprint of the year comfortably. On the final lap, Lando Norris made a mistake into Turn 1, and lost second place to his former teammate, Carlos Sainz. Charles Leclerc finished fourth ahead of the two Mercedes drivers, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.

It was a positive day for the two Haas drivers, as Kevin Magnussen finished in P7, and Nico Hulkenberg finished in P8. Starting from P16, Oscar Piastri could get up to P10, while Sergio Perez also missed out on points this Saturday, finishing in ninth position at COTA.

‘Calm and wins COTA Sprint’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30715...norris-p2.html


United States GP: F1 Sprint Results
20 Oct 2024
Mat Coch
Speedcafe

Full results from the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix Sprint at Circuit of The Americas.

Pos Num Driver Team Laps/Diff

1 1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 19

2 55 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 3.882

3 4 Lando Norris McLaren 6.24

4 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 6.956

5 63 George Russell Mercedes 15.766

6 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 18.724

7 20 Kevin Magnussen Haas 25.161

8 27 Nico Hulkenberg Haas 26.588

9 11 Sergio Perez Red Bull Racing 29.95

10 81 Oscar Piastri McLaren 37.059

‘Full results’;

https://speedcafe.com/united-states-...print-results/


Last lap drama! Lando Norris passed before almost hitting Charles Leclerc; Max Verstappen wins Sprint
19 Oct 2024
Sky Sports

‘Last lap drama!’;

https://www.newsnow.co.uk/h/Sport/F1


Red Bull’s Max Verstappen cruises to F1 US GP Sprint victory
19 Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen cruised to victory in Saturday’s Sprint at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix.

Taking the chequered flag at the head of the field, the Dutchman took the number one spot in a race situation for the first time since the Austria Sprint.

A 3.8s margin signed off a fine Saturday afternoon performance for Verstappen and extended his championship lead to 54 points over Lando Norris, who finished third.

‘Max Verstappen cruises’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...print-victory/


Lando Norris placed under investigation: Crucial points in doubt
19 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Lando Norris has been placed under investigation for "driving erratically" in his battle with Charles Leclerc on the final lap. The British driver lost P2 at the start of the lap and then came under pressure from Charles Leclerc. The two drivers nearly crashed into each other, with the Ferrari driver having to take averting action to avoid the incident.

Norris placed under investigation. Norris needs to maximise every weekend to bridge the gap to Max Verstappen in the World Championship. After the sprint, his gap to Verstappen was already extended to 54 points, but it might be more if he has to take a penalty. Leclerc reported that Norris moved under braking.

Norris was told about the investigation during the press conference. "Okay. I don't know where. The one where you have to turn and brake all the way around? You brake in the corner, so makes sense to be honest," Norris reacted.

‘Under investigation’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30719...states-gp.html


Norris under investigation after Leclerc complaint
Lando Norris finished third in the F1 Sprint at the Circuit of the Americas.
19 Oct 2024
Nick Golding
RacingNews365

Norris struggled with his tyres in the closing laps and was caught by Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc. On the final lap, Norris was overtaken by Sainz after locking-up into the first corner. Towards the end of the lap at Turn 15, Norris and Leclerc almost made contact, with the McLaren driver under investigation for driving erratically in that battle.

Leclerc quickly complained over the radio about Norris' defence. When asked in the post-sprint press conference about the investigation, Norris accepted that it made sense. "Oh, the one where you have to brake and turn the whole way round. Makes sense to be honest," he said.

‘Norris under investigation’;

https://racingnews365.com/norris-und...lerc-complaint

F1 US GP: Norris beats Verstappen to pole as Russell crash curtails qualifying.
Lando Norris scored pole position for Formula 1’s 2024 United States Grand Prix as a George Russell crash prevented Max Verstappen and co from completing their final Q3 fliers.
Oct 20, 2024
Alex Kalinauckas
Motorsport.com

Lando Norris scored pole position for Formula 1’s 2024 United States Grand Prix as a George Russell crash prevented Max Verstappen and co from completing their final Q3 fliers. The session was already a shocker for Mercedes with Lewis Hamilton having been eliminated in Q1.

Norris and McLaren will head the grid at Austin in a stunning turnaround from the sprint race, where Verstappen and the Ferrari drivers seemed to have a clear edge. After the first runs in Q3, Norris lead Verstappen by 0.031s – staying ahead despite a massive snap through the penultimate corner largely thanks to a strong middle sector.

On the second attempt on new softs late in the final segment, Verstappen ran ahead of his title rival, having only just avoided a pitlane collision with Pierre Gasly exiting his Alpine garage. But Verstappen’s attempt to topple Norris was thwarted when Russell crashed at the penultimate corner – the Mercedes heading the pack for the final tours. Russell lost the rear of his W15 through the rapid, plunging left-hander and spun off through the gravel trap on the outside to hit the barriers hard, with the resulting double yellow flags meaning no drivers were able to complete their laps.

‘Russell crash curtails qualifying’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/f...pole/10664648/


United States GP: Qualifying Results
20 Oct 2024
Mat Coch
Speedcafe

Full results from Qualifying from the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas.

Pos Num Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Diff
1 4 Lando Norris McLaren 1:33.616 1:32.851 1:32.330
2 1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:33.046 1:32.584 1:32.361 0.031
3 55 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 1:33.556 1:32.836 1:32.652 0.322
4 16 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:33.241 1:32.962 1:32.740 0.410
5 81 Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:33.864 1:33.057 1:32.950 0.620
6 63 George Russell Mercedes 1:33.536 1:33.142 1:32.974 0.644
7 10 Pierre Gasly Alpine 1:33.550 1:33.162 1:33.018 0.688
8 14 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:33.973 1:33.429 1:33.309 0.979
9 20 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:33.564 1:33.474 1:33.481 1.151
10 11 Sergio Perez Red Bull Racing 1:33.611 1:33.020

‘Full results from Qualifying’;

https://speedcafe.com/united-states-...fying-results/


Norris delighted after beating Verstappen for US pole
20 Oct 2024
France 24

Austin (AFP) – Lando Norris oozed satisfaction on Saturday after beating series leader and three-time champion Max Verstappen to pole position for Sunday’s United States Grand Prix.

"It was a beautiful lap," said Norris, after claiming his first American pole and his fourth pole in five races as he seeks to overhaul Verstappen. "I was not going to go much quicker than I did. When you just do a lap and you think 'damn, it's going to be tough to beat that' ... I put everything out on the line and it's what we needed to do.”

"We've been on the back foot pretty much the whole weekend. We've not had the pace of the Ferraris or the Red Bulls, so I had to do something and today I did that so yeah, a cool lap and a nice way to start the race!"

‘Oozed satisfaction’;

https://www.france24.com/en/live-new...en-for-us-pole


'These things happen' - Verstappen upbeat despite yellow flags denying him a shot at US GP pole
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

‘Verstappen upbeat’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/th...88229864263058


FIA post-qualifying press conference – United States
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

(Conducted by James Hinchcliffe)
Q: Our second-place starter for tomorrow's US Grand Prix, Max Verstappen. Max, it all came down to that first run a little mistake, it looked like, in Turn 19. Do you think that's maybe where the difference was? Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, on the first lap in Q3, I lost quite a bit of time there. So, yeah, that's unfortunate. But then, I knew that we had another run, but unfortunately I couldn't finish the lap. Otherwise, I think we had a really good shot. But that's how it goes. We're still on the front row at least. The potential was there, you know, to be first so that's very good.

Q: Carlos. A very competitive weekend so far for Ferrari. Competitive session for you as well. You said after the Sprint race, if you could just start a little bit higher than you did in the Sprint, you had a good shot at the win. P3 is a little bit higher. How are you feeling for tomorrow? Carlos SAINZ: Yeah, I mean, that was the target, to do a step in qualifying compared to yesterday. Yesterday we were P5, today we are P3, so we've done a good step in the right direction. A bit gutted for that last lap because I was three tenths up on my lap, the 32.6, going into Turn 16, with only two corners left. But yeah, easy to say now. Anyway, I think we've done some good progress and we should be in the fight tomorrow if we get a clean start and then with the two guys in front, it should be a fun one.

Q: And now your pole sitter for the US Grand Prix, Lando Norris. What a run. It was three poles in the last four races coming in here. Make it four out of the last five. Just talk us through the lap and that first run that got it done. Lando NORRIS: It was a beautiful lap. I was not going to go much quicker than what I did. You know when you just do a lap, well you know… When you just do a lap and you think, ‘damn, it's going to be tough to beat that’. But I put everything out on the line. And it's what we needed to do. We've been on the back foot pretty much the whole weekend. We've not had the pace of the Ferraris or the Red Bulls. So I had to do something. And today, I did that. So yeah, a cool lap and a nice way to start the race tomorrow.

‘FIA press conference’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...aipyu6mGP2sxRd


Horner after Austin's qualifying: 'Positive couple of days'
20 Oct 2024
Niels Hendrix
Verstappen.nl

Oracle Red Bull Racing team principal and CEO Christian Horner said, looking back at the Saturday in Austin, after the sprint race and qualifying: “The sprint was a good up lift for the team and our first win since June. Max managed the race beautifully, he just went out and did his thing. Max rode that wave into qualifying and we were quick today.”

“It wasn’t his cleanest lap on the first run in Q3 but the second lap was up, much better and I think he would have been away and got the job done had the yellow flag not come. It’s just one of those things. We are still on the front row and hopefully can fight for the win tomorrow. It’s been a positive couple of days so far.”

'Positive couple of days';

https://news.verstappen.com/en/article/5627/


David Croft shares striking reaction from US Grand Prix crowd after Lewis Hamilton Q1 exit
20 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Lewis Hamilton was the second-slowest driver in the session after a costly mistake. The two Mercedes drivers set their first laps on used tyres and both found themselves in the bottom five heading into the final moments. George Russell, who’s already sealed the intra-team qualifying battle, comfortably cleared the bar.

There was still time left in the session but he wasn’t in a position to push. The seven-time world champion wouldn’t have had the battery power, tyre life or fuel for another run. Hamilton would drop to 19th, suffering the embarrassment of being outqualified by former teammate Valtteri Bottas. Bottas’ Sauber team haven’t scored a single point this year.

He’ll start Sunday’s race from 18th due to Liam Lawson’s engine penalties. For the second time in three races, he’ll have to fight his way through from the back of the pack after a pitlane start in Azerbaijan. Lewis Hamilton’s Q1 exit at US Grand Prix stuns the crowd. To underline his following in the US, presidential candidate Kamala Harris said she cheers for Hamilton. But if the Democratic VP found time to tune in on Saturday, she would have been stunned.

‘Stunned’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/dav...ilton-q1-exit/


Mercedes ‘keep finding ourselves in this position’ as George Russell airs ‘story of season’ verdict
20 Oct 2024
Elizabeth Blackstock
PlanetF1.com

Russell seemed perplexed by the car’s behaviour. “I mean, all season when the car’s in the sweet spot, we’re fighting for poles and wins,” he said.

“Yesterday, we were both fighting for pole, and today we were both almost out in Q1 and you know, I really pushed it on that last lap, ultimately trying to find performance that wasn’t there — and paid the price. I’m really just disappointed with myself, because everyone’s worked so hard to bring the upgrades.”

He went on to elaborate that Mercedes keeps “finding ourselves in this position. It’s how the cars [are] interacting with the tires, the temperature, small changes, the wind. But, it has been the story of the season — old upgrades, new upgrades. Either we’re there, or we’re half second [or] six tenths off.”

‘Keep finding ourselves in this position’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/merced...-us-grand-prix

F1 microphones pick up Lando Norris’ ‘unbelievable’ verdict on his US Grand Prix performance.
As Norris stepped out of his car in parc ferme, the microphones picked up the 24-year-old saying ‘my lap was unbelievable’ as that time secured him his sixth pole position of the season.
20 Oct 2024
Tyler Rowlinson
F1 Oversteer

The United States Grand Prix is set for an exciting race after the final part of qualifying was affected by a late crash for George Russell. Lando Norris will line up on pole position for the race in Austin, with championship rival Max Verstappen lining up alongside him. Ferrari continued to show their pace as Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc line up third and fourth, with Russell completing the top five.

Can Lando Norris hold on for victory at the United States Grand Prix? Sunday’s race is anticipated to be an exciting and dramatic fight at the front given the race pace shown by Norris, Verstappen and the Ferraris across the weekend so far.

Verstappen held on to victory in the Sprint race but it was clear how quick his rivals were during those 19 laps. The charge up the hill into the sharp left-hander of turn one will be tantalisingly close between the frontrunners.

‘My lap was unbelievable’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/f1-...x-performance/


'I got everything out of the car' - Norris happy after 'very, very good lap' for pole in Austin
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

"Things came together perfectly on this one lap" is Lando Norris's reaction to his pole lap in Qualifying for the 2024 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.

'I got everything out of the car';

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/i-...87516717201079


Norris vs Verstappen into Turn 1, Ferrari’s threat, and Hamilton fighting back – What To Watch For in the US Grand Prix
20 Oct 2024
Chris Medland
Formula One - Official Site

From Lando Norris and Max Verstappen’s latest battle at the start to Ferrari aiming to capitalise on impressive pace, and from Lewis Hamilton needing to deliver a recovery drive to Haas targeting more home success, here are a few areas to keep an eye on when the lights go out on race day in Austin…

‘What To Watch For in the US Grand Prix’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...DVKd1d5mYMD6li


Verstappen 'really doesn't care' about Red Bull's recent controversy
20 Oct 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Reigning world champion Max Verstappen is unbothered by the controversy surrounding Red Bull this weekend. McLaren's CEO, Zak Brown, demanded a further investigation by the FIA into the case. The papaya-coloured team now sit 39 points in front of Red Bull at the top of the constructor's standings, having battled with the Milton Keynes-based squad all year.

Verstappen, who won Saturday's spirit race, said that he is by no means alarmed. "No, it doesn't interest me at all," the Dutchman told De Telegraaf and others before explaining that the device was only a tool to adjust the ride height practically when the car was not fully assembled.

The Dutchman, who's won four of four sprints this year, explained that both team bosses aren't fond of each other, hence the war of words after the fallout at the start of the weekend in Texas. "It's not necessarily McLaren, it's more Zak. He doesn't like Christian, and vice versa, I think. But the fact that they don't like each other is not my problem. I have a fine relationship with Zak. It's not that we call each other, but I just saw him, and then it's all good," he adds.

'Really doesn't care';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30736...m-mclaren.html


Sergio Perez: “I don’t have the same upgrades as Verstappen”
Oct 20, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Sergio Perez: I don’t have the same upgrades. When speaking to the media post-qualifying, Perez revealed that he is not using the same upgrades as Verstappen: “We made lots of changes, which will undoubtedly help tomorrow,” he told DAZN.

“And no, I haven’t got the same upgrades as Max. We see that a lot in the high-speed corners, there are a lot of those here. But in the end, the car is working well. I think we’ve progressed, and with the upgrades we’ve made it was all more positive.” Should this be true, it is unsurprising that Red Bull would give Max Verstappen preference with their new upgrades.

After all, it is the Dutchman who is fighting for the World Championship. Based on Verstappen’s stellar performance throughout the weekend – including a commanding Sprint Race win – updates have made the RB20 more competitive.

‘Sergio Perez: “I don’t have the same upgrades as Verstappen”.’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...as-verstappen/


Lewis Hamilton retires early, Charles Leclerc leaves – Fred Vasseur's Ferrari F1 nightmare
Ferrari are enjoying a strong second half of the 2024 F1 season - but whether that continues after Lewis Hamilton's arrival is another story.
Oct 18, 2024
Dan Burnham
Daily and Sunday Express

Ferrari's fortunes have been on the rise in the second half of the F1 season. Charles Leclerc, after securing four podiums in the last five races, still has a fighting chance to surpass Lando Norris and Max Verstappen in the drivers' championship. The Italian team also remain in contention for clinching the constructors' title. The future appears promising with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton set to replace Carlos Sainz next year.

However, sometimes even the best-laid plans can go wrong. Leclerc and Hamilton could form a formidable partnership but if that doesn't turn out to be the case, this could be the nightmare awaiting Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur. Earlier this year, Hamilton told Esquire: "There are days I'm like, 'shoot, I don't know how much longer I can go'. There are days I'm like, 'shoot, I'd love a break' because you don't get a real big break in the season like other sports. You're not really getting a huge amount of downtime.”

Leclerc calls it quits: Being the No. 1 driver is all Leclerc has known for most of his Ferrari career but that dynamic could be shifting with Hamilton's impending arrival. It remains to be seen who - if either - will be prioritised in the pecking order. Being the vastly more experienced driver, it wouldn't be a surprise if it's Hamilton. And a secondary role may not suit Leclerc, who's remained patient with his employers while they've struggled but may run out of tolerance if not top dog.

‘Fred Vasseur's Ferrari F1 nightmare’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...c-fred-vasseur


Mercedes Lewis Hamilton ‘experience’ admission as huge Ferrari F1 2025 switch looms
19 Oct 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Despite predicting a shot of “momentum” to arrive with Kimi Antonelli, Toto Wolff admits Mercedes will miss the experience of Lewis Hamilton at times. I think we have had a great experience with Lewis over the last 12 years. He will always be part of the family,” Wolff is quoted by the Italian arm of Motorsport.com.

“But of course, as a competitor, when we try to beat him next year, Kimi will join George, bringing with him a momentum as well as youth and freshness. You can feel the smile in the team when you have an 18-year-old on board a car.”

“But having said that, of course, there will be times when Lewis’ experience would benefit the team. Kimi will have a steep learning curve, but it is absolutely the right thing to do for the team and there is no one who would have done otherwise.”

‘Toto Wolff admits Mercedes will miss the experience of Lewis Hamilton at times’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...issed-mercedes

Charles Leclerc wins United States Grand Prix after passing Lando Norris and Max Verstappen on the first corner - as Lewis Hamilton fails to finish following early crash in Austin.
It was a Ferrari one-two on Sunday as Carlos Sainz Jnr finished 8.562 seconds behind his team-mate. Verstappen was third, ahead of Norris in fourth.
20 Oct 2024
Robert Summerscales
MailOnline

Charles Leclerc won the United States Grand Prix at Austin's Circuit of the Americas on Sunday. The Ferrarri ace started the race fourth on the grid, but overtook Lando Norris and Max Verstappen on the very first corner after they both went wide.

Leclerc has now won eight grand prix during his Formula One career, including three in 2024. Meanwhile, it was a day to forget for Lewis Hamilton, who failed to finish after crashing out during his third lap.

‘Ferrari one-two’;

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...sh-Austin.html


F1 United States GP 2024 – Race Results
Charles Leclerc led Carlos Sainz across the finish line to ensure a Ferrari one-two at the Circuit of the Americas
20 Oct 2024
John Smith
Total Motorsport

F1 2024 United States GP – Race Results

Pos Driver Team Gap
1 Charles Leclerc Ferrari Leader
2 Carlos Sainz Ferrari +8.562
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull +19.412
4 Lando Norris McLaren +20.354
5 Oscar Piastri McLaren +21.921
6 George Russell Mercedes +56.295
7 Sergio Perez Red Bull +59.072
8 Nico Hulkenberg Haas +62.957
9 Liam Lawson RB +70.563
10 Franco Colapinto Williams +71.979

‘Race Results’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/f1-...-race-results/


Charles Leclerc wins United States GP as Norris punished in epic Verstappen fight
Charles Leclerc was untouchable as he claimed a third Grand Prix victory of the season.
Oct 20, 2024
Harry Smith
Daily and Sunday Express

Charles Leclerc produced an exceptional drive to win the United States Grand Prix as Lando Norris and Max Verstappen enjoyed an epic battle for third place. Heading into Turn One Verstappen made an aggressive move to the inside. Norris covered him off, but not hard enough - the Dutchman wriggled through, pushing his title rival onto the run-off area.

Norris started to come alive during the latter stages of the stint, and so McLaren’s strategists opted to run him long, using his superior pace to create a tyre offset to Verstappen ahead. He eventually pitted on lap 31 and rapidly began eating into the six-second deficit to his championship rival.

‘Charles Leclerc was untouchable, Norris punished’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...tes-Grand-Prix


US Grand Prix: F1 Race Results
If he can challenge Lando Norris off the line, will we seen a return of multiple weekend wins for Max Verstappen after his Sprint Race victory yesterday?
Oct 20, 2024
Hannah May
FormulaNerds

In the lead-up to the US Grand Prix, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren’s Lando Norris traded dominance. Verstappen took pole position during Sprint Qualifying and claimed victory in the Sprint Race. However, after a late crash from Mercedes’ George Russell during Q3 of Qualifying, Verstappen was forced to abandon his final flying lap. Therefore, Norris took pole position for today’s US Grand Prix.

Lights out: As the race got underway, Norris had an excellent start off the line. Norris was forced wide into Turn 1 by Verstappen, allowing Charles Leclerc through from P4 to P1 down the inside. Norris moved down to P4.
Closing stages: By lap 45, Norris was within DRS range of Verstappen. Verstappen had some oversteer out of the Turn 11 hairpin. While this battle was taking place, Russell overtook Hulkenberg for P7 and Colapinto overtook Gasly for P10. On lap 52 down the back straight, Verstappen went deep into the corner, forcing Norris wide off the track as the McLaren driver attempted his overtake.

Norris rejoined ahead of Verstappen for the final podium position. Verstappen complained that Norris left the track to gain position and the incident was noted. However, McLaren believed Norris was ahead into the apex. On the last lap, Norris was handed a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. He was currently 3.5 seconds ahead of Verstappen. Leclerc crossed the line to win the US Grand Prix, followed by his teammate Sainz for a 1-2 finish for Ferrari. Norris crossed the line four seconds ahead of Verstappen, promoting the Red Bull driver to P3.

‘US Grand Prix’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/us.../?nowprocket=1


‘He simply’: Martin Brundle’s verdict on what was to blame for Lewis Hamilton’s US Grand Prix DNF
20 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Watching the incident back, Croft said: “Now, this is Lewis Hamilton, what happened to him? Through turn 18 we go, we know where the car ends up, how did it get there? All by himself!” Brundle replied: “Nothing he could do about that, just turned in normally” Hamilton’s team radio then started and he simply said: “Yeah sorry guys.” Brundle continued and said: “Just turned in normally and he simply hadn’t got enough rear grip.”

Croft concluded: “And it’s like, why, what happened? How did that happen say the fans who were chanting Lewis, Lewis as he got out of the car but that is a very disappointing end to a very disappointing weekend for Lewis Hamilton.” Hamilton was always going to have his work cut out after being eliminated so early in qualifying. He joined Valtteri Bottas at the back of the grid having not lined up alongside the Finn since they were teammates at Mercedes.

He started fantastically and was up to P12 after navigating the ultra-wide first corner where Esteban Ocon was spun by Alex Albon. Brundle suggested that Hamilton should have changed his power unit after his early elimination and started from the pit lane alongside his teammate. It could have benefitted him in the long run but he wouldn’t have seen this error coming even if was exactly the same mistake Russell made on Saturday.

“Just turned in normally and he simply hadn’t got enough rear grip”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mar...rand-prix-dnf/


Verstappen Norris run-in overshadows Ferrari 1-2 at US GP
Oct 20, 2024
Samarth Kanal
The Race

Charles Leclerc led Carlos Sainz in a Ferrari 1-2 at the 2024 United States Grand Prix while Max Verstappen completed the podium after Formula 1 title rival Lando Norris was penalised late in the race. Leclerc took the lead when McLaren’s title contender Norris was forced wide by drivers’ championship leader Max Verstappen into Turn 1 on the opening lap. Leclerc led comfortably until the chequered flag and beat team-mate Sainz to victory by 8.5 seconds.

The battle for the final podium spot came down to the title rivals. McLaren decided to keep its drivers out longer than the Ferraris and Verstappen to offer them an offset. On Lap 52, Norris braked late and went around the outside of Verstappen at Turn 12 - and the Dutchman claimed that the McLaren had passed him off the track. The battle raged on as Verstappen attempted a pass around the outside of Turn 1 on Lap 53, while the incident at Turn 12 was noted. That incident later turned into a five-second penalty for Norris, as the stewards had deemed him to have gone off track and gained an advantage.

‘Ferrari 1-2 at US GP’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/m...ari-1-2-us-gp/


Verstappen lets USGP stewards do the talking after latest Norris fight
It was another titanic scrap between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris - and the Briton was again on the receiving end.
20 Oct 2024
Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

Max Verstappen decided to let the United States Grand Prix stewards do the talking for him following another titanic tussle with F1 title rival Lando Norris. Asked about the manoeuvre after the race, Verstappen said: "I have my opinion. I don't need to say it here. I'll let the stewards do their thing. For us, it was a race where we learned a lot and we will just analyse that."

Verstappen described his race overall as "difficult", in stark contrast to the comfort of his sprint win a day before. "I never had the pace to attack, so a bit different compared to yesterday, just understeering a lot, struggling under braking," he said.

"That also made the defending quite difficult because every time someone wanted to go for a move I couldn't brake that late. It was a tough battle. I tried everything I could, of course, to keep him [Norris] behind. At the end, to be on the podium is still a great result for us."

Another titanic scrap’;

https://racingnews365.com/verstappen...t-norris-fight

Ferrari drivers confident Scuderia now in the hunt for world title.
Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz believe their dominant 1-2 finish at the US Grand Prix signals the Italian outfit’s firm entry into the battle for Formula 1’s 2024 Constructors' Championship.
21/10/2024
Michael Delaney
F1i.com

Charles Leclerc: "It hasn't been an easy weekend until now, I struggled a little bit with the feeling in the car, but I had the confidence that in race the feeling was better, and it was the case," explained the Monegasque.

"We thought that the others would improve a lot more, but we still had the upper hand. I'm really happy with today's 1-2 - we couldn't have dreamed of better. It was a pretty good Turn 1, that's exactly what I wanted to do, we had a really good launch. In the second stint, it was all about managing behind, but we did a great job, the pace of the car was really good and that's mostly thanks to the engineers.”

‘Hunt for world title’;

https://f1i.com/news/522113-ferrari-...rld-title.html


Vasseur reveals the reason for Ferrari's commanding pace in Austin
21 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

The Scuderia's team boss Fred Vasseur: "It was the perfect Sunday. We have done a very good job this weekend, scoring a lot of points but we have to stay focussed and not think we are champions just because of today’s result.”

"Our pace was always under control as was the strategy with both drivers and when you have the slight advantage we had today, it is much easier to do a good job. The car has improved a lot in terms of its driveability compared to where we were a few races ago and that has contributed to the result.”

"Charles had a perfect start and managed the tyres well, while with Carlos we had to pit him earlier than planned in order to undercut Max (Verstappen). Once he was in free air he was able to set his pace and he was able to secure second place."

"It was the perfect Sunday”;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25661


Mark Hughes: How Verstappen opened up Ferrari's route to US GP 1-2
Oct 21, 2024
Mark Hughes
The Race

The signs were there about Ferrari at the United States Grand Prix. Especially Ferrari on the mediums. While the focus was on the revitalised Red Bull of Max Verstappen and the starring Lando Norris and his stunning pole, the red cars had been consistently faster than either when on the medium tyre. That didn’t help Ferrari much in qualifying. But with the medium the starting tyre, in what developed into a one-stop race, it was fantastically valuable.

The complication was always going to be getting track position, given that Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc had qualified only on the second row. That problem was solved by Norris as he fought out the lead with Verstappen into Turn 1. In the McLaren allowing the Red Bull down its inside with too generous a gap after having initially beaten it off the line, it put Verstappen in position to run Norris out wide.

But so far wide did Verstappen need to go on the exit in order to drive the McLaren off track that it opened a gap down his inside wide enough for a Ferrari - that of Leclerc. Sainz had been alongside him but had to back off to avoid hitting the Red Bull - thereby releasing Leclerc.

‘The signs were there about Ferrari’;

https://www.the-race.com/all/mark-hu...s-gp-analysis/


‘What a race’: Martin Brundle shares why he felt sorry for Charles Leclerc despite ‘brilliant’ US Grand Prix win
21 Oct 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Ferrari will be wondering what’s possible for the rest of the season after an incredible United States Grand Prix. Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz recorded Ferrari’s first one-two finish at the US Grand Prix since 2005.

Why Martin Brundle felt ‘sorry’ for Charles Leclerc after winning the United States Grand Prix. As the race was coming to an end, Croft said: “While we’re talking fabulous drives [after watching George Russell overtake Sergio Perez], we’ve barely seen him for the second half of the race.”

Brundle replied: “I feel sorry for Ferrari and Leclerc because we’ve barely noticed them or talked about them but a brilliant result.” Leclerc’s race engineer then came on the team radio and said: “Well, that’s my boy! Another win, let’s go!” Brundle continued: “Yeah, an absolutely sensational performance from Ferrari.”

“Well, that’s my boy! Another win, let’s go!”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mar...rand-prix-win/


Sainz ‘lost too much time at the beginning’ with PU issue to challenge for win
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Carlos Sainz finished second behind team mate Charles Leclerc to seal a Ferrari 1-2 in Austin, and was left with mixed feelings after the race.

‘Lost too much time at the beginning’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/sa...70815907119255


Leclerc insists Ferrari are ‘still targeting the title’ after superb Austin triumph
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

“[I’m] very happy,” Leclerc said after jumping out of the car. “It hasn’t been an easy weekend, until now I have been struggling a bit with the feeling with the car, but I had the confidence that in the race the feeling was better and it was the case. We’ve seen it yesterday in the Sprint race, we were a bit… not scared, but we thought the others would improve a lot more today but we still had the upper hand, so [I’m] really happy with today. A one-two for the team, we couldn’t have dreamed for better.”

Asked to describe what happened into the first corner when he took the lead, Leclerc responded: “Well it was a pretty good Turn 1! That’s exactly what I wanted to do. We had a really good lunge. I knew that it was going to be very tight into Turn 1. Yesterday I was a little bit the victim of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Today I gained from it and that obviously helped quite a lot our first stint because we had a mega pace, and then in the second stint it was all about managing behind. We did a great job.”

‘Still targeting the title’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...msHPKhZqcKic9l


Leclerc says F1 title is an 'optimistic' goal for Ferrari
Oct 21, 2024
The Straits Times

"We've got to target winning the constructors’ title. It's an optimistic goal, but that's what we are here for," Leclerc told reporters. "It's been a really good weekend for the team...hopefully at the end of the year, when we do the math, we will have won the constructors’ title. If we do everything perfect until the end of the season, no matter what McLaren does, if we do better than them, I think we can still clinch that title."

Team mate Carlos Sainz, who finished second at the Circuit of the Americas, said the next race in Mexico and the Las Vegas round in November should both be good for Ferrari. "I'm basing myself a bit on last year. This year everything seems a bit different," he added. "I think Qatar is going to be a bit our bogey track...and then Abu Dhabi I'm not sure. I just hope this pace shows itself again before the end of the season and gives me another chance of going at it,"

‘F1 title is an 'optimistic' goal for Ferrari’;

https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/f...al-for-ferrari


Leclerc explains ‘winning bet’ that was key to victory in the US Grand Prix
Oct 21, 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Charles Leclerc started from P4 in Austin but took the lead out of Turn 1 after a mega move that saw him pass three other drivers at the start.

‘Winning bet’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/le...71488103143399


Are Ferrari back in F1 constructors battle? Leclerc and Vasseur deliver verdict
Charles Leclerc led Ferrari to a one-two victory at the 2024 United States GP
20 Oct 2024
Adriano Boin
Total Motorsport

Charles Leclerc says he couldn’t have asked for more on Sunday given things didn’t go to plan in Saturday’s Sprint or qualfiying. “It hasn’t been an easy weekend until now, I struggled a little bit with the feeling in the car, but I had the confidence that in race the feeling was better, and it was the case,” Leclerc stated. “We thought that the others would improve a lot more, but we still had the upper hand. I’m really happy with today’s 1-2 – we couldn’t have dreamed of better.”

Vasseur keeping feet on the ground. Team principal Frederic Vasseur couldn’t hide his delight after the race, stating that Ferrari made a conscious decision to focus on their race setup after failing to win the Sprint or claim pole on Saturday. “The whole weekend went well,” Vasseur told Sky Sport F1. “We struggled a bit in qualifying, but that was also a question of setup.

“We focused on the race because it’s possible to overtake here. We took a big step forward. It’s a tight battle and at times it’s the details that can make you faster or slower than the others. We have to remain focused. There are still five races remaining and around 200 points. We have to remain focused on delivering more good results, we can’ think that it ends here. We must remain calm,” he added.

‘Vasseur keeping feet on the ground’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/fer...liver-verdict/

FIA Breaks Silence on Why Lando Norris Was Handed Controversial F1 Penalty.
Oct 20, 2024
Alex Harrington
Bellingham Herald

The FIA, the authoritative body in international motorsport, immediately reviewed the move. They determined Norris' actions breached Article 33.3 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations. This regulation stipulates that an overtaking car must be level with the vehicle it is overtaking by the apex of the corner. Failing to meet this standard, the overtaker forfeits the right to the corner. According to the official FIA report:

"Car 4 was overtaking Car 1 on the outside but was not level with Car 1 at the apex. Therefore under the Driving Standards Guidelines, Car 4 had lost the 'right' to the corner." The five-second penalty, while less severe than the typical ten-second penalty indicated in the guidelines, was meted out acknowledging unique circumstances.

"A 5-second penalty is imposed instead of the 10-second penalty recommended in the guidelines because, having committed to the overtaking move on the outside, the driver of Car 4 had little alternative other than to leave the track because of the proximity of Car 1, which had also left the track." The stewards concluded that Norris' actions warranted a penalty but took mitigating factors into account, reducing the severity of the penalty in consideration of the challenging race conditions.

‘FIA Breaks Silence’;

https://www.bellinghamherald.com/spo...mainstage_card


FIA reveal real reason for Lando Norris’ five-second penalty as official document released
Lando Norris’ title hopes took a knock at the United States Grand Prix.
21 Oct 2024
Marcus Chan
SPORTbible

After the race, the FIA released an official document explaining the decision. It said: “Car 4 left the track at turn 12 and gained a lasting advantage. Breach of Article 33.3 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations. The Stewards reviewed positioning/marshalling system data, video and in-car video evidence. Car 4 was overtaking Car 1 on the outside, but was not level with Car 1 at the apex. Therefore under the Driving Standards Guidelines, Car 4 had lost the "right" to the corner.
“Accordingly, as Car 4 left the track and returned in front of Car 1, it is deemed to be a case of leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage. A 5 second penalty is imposed instead of the 10 second penalty recommended in the guidelines because having committed to the overtaking move on the outside the driver of Car 4 had little alternative other than to leave the track because of the proximity of Car 1 which had also left the track.”

The document continued: “In view of the above, we determine that this will not count as a track limit "strike" for Car 4. Competitors are reminded that they have the right to appeal certain decisions of the Stewards, in accordance with Article 15 of the FIA International Sporting Code and Chapter 4 of the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary Rules, within the applicable time limits. “Decisions of the Stewards are taken independently of the FIA and are based solely on the relevant regulations, guidelines and evidence presented.” Speaking on his team radio after the incident, Verstappen said: “My god, that was a hard race. I tried everything with the defending. That was fun. It's just a bit weird that you can overtake outside the track.”

‘Lando Norris’ title hopes took a knock’;

https://www.sportbible.com/f1/lando-...78262-20241021


Windsor slams McLaren for 'ludicrous' mistakes: 'On a different planet'
21 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Windsor finds McLaren mistake 'ridiculous'. Norris checked on the radio whether he needed to give the place back to Verstappen, but the McLaren team were adamant he didn't need to. Windsor, therefore, believes McLaren made a mistake: "There was always going to be argument about that [overtake]. Lando had the quicker car, his tyres were newer by six laps. He still had a couple of laps to go. He was in DRS all the time. Lando would have got him, I'm sure, by the end of the race. I'm absolutely shocked that McLaren didn't do that," Windsor said.

In fact, it was such a weird situation that Oscar Piastri also got a message in his ear, according to Windsor: "Even Oscar Piastri's engineer was saying to Oscar 'oh they've told Max to speed up because obviously they think he's going to get a penalty'. Just ludicrous stuff. Red Bull didn't think that. Red Bull was saying, speed up, Max, because he's got a five-second penalty and we want to make sure within the five seconds or he's likely to get it. That's what was going on. It seemed like they weren't even on the same planet."

'Ludicrous' mistakes: 'On a different planet';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30781...rand-prix.html


Horner delivers 'illegal' verdict on Norris
Max Verstappen was promoted to third at the United States Grand Prix following a time penalty for Lando Norris.
21 Oct 2024
Nick Golding
RacingNews365

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has insisted that Lando Norris' overtake on Max Verstappen was "illegal" in the closing laps of the United States Grand Prix. "Obviously, it was hard racing between them," Horner told Sky Sports F1. "They've gone off the circuit, Lando passed off the circuit. The rules are very, very clear. Max was obviously straight on the radio, the race director was pretty clear."

"I can understand the frustration, but at the end of the day, the rules are the rules," insisted Horner. "The drivers know that they're driving accordingly. Max was acutely aware that as soon as Lando went over that white line off track and overtook, that's illegal."

‘Horner delivers 'illegal' verdict’;

https://racingnews365.com/horner-del...dict-on-norris


Expert judgement backs stewards and deals a blow to Lando Norris
Anthony Davidson masterclass analyses key incident at F1 United States GP
21 Oct 2024
James Dielhenn
Crash.Net

Sky Sports’ Anthony Davidson rewatched the slo-mo highlights and explained why the stewards were correct. Davidson first analysed a previous Norris v Verstappen battle, saying: “We have been seeing this happen all weekend, particularly at Turn 12. “On Lap 51, one of Norris’ earlier attempts on Verstappen. Verstappen covers the inside - that’s what you hope to do to the attacking car, put them off the racing line.

“Nothing he can really do. There is no significant part of his car alongside. The only thing he can do is switch the line and appear on the outside, or try to attack the inside of Turn 13. But Max had that covered. “He slips up around Turn 13 and runs wide. It gives Lando the opportunity to have a clear track in front of him.

“He almost has too good of a run, in many ways. Now he’s forced to go around the outside around Turn 14 into 15. It’s not really ideal. If you’re a little further behind the car in front, you can pop on the inside of 15, and the element of surprise is there. Max was driving brilliantly defensively. How to defend properly? It was such a good example, and went on for many laps.”

‘Anthony Davidson masterclass’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105850...w-lando-norris


'A shame': Andrea Stella furious with ‘inappropriate’ stewards decision after Lando Norris US Grand Prix penalty
21 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella was furious with the US Grand Prix stewards after they ‘interfered’ with the race between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. Norris had been battling with Verstappen for the final podium spot in the closing stages of the race, utilising the tyre offset he had after McLaren elected to go longer before their sole pit stop.

Andrea Stella explains why F1 stewards should not have intervened in Lando Norris and Max Verstappen’s battle. Stella felt the stewards wrongfully intervened in the battle between Norris and Verstappen, believing they should have let the two race because the latter also ran off the road. “My view is that the way the stewards interfered with a beautiful piece of motorsport was inappropriate because both cars went off track, so both cars gained an advantage,” said Stella.

“It’s a shame because it cost us a podium and a race where we stayed passionate after we were pushed off at the first corner – we accepted it. Having said that, this kind of decision by the stewards cannot be appealed, for us the chapter is now closed.”

‘Andrea Stella furious’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/and...-prix-penalty/


Ridiculous or right? Our verdict on Norris's US GP penalty
Oct 20, 2024
The Race

Ben Anderson: Norris hadn't done enough to demand room. The problem with the late-race move by Norris on Verstappen is that Norris wasn't far enough alongside the Red Bull by the time they reached the apex. The rules now say that, if you're overtaking on the outside, being anything less than level with the other car's front axle is not enough to demand to be given space.

Josh Suttill: McLaren should've acted. McLaren is going to regret not asking Norris to give that place back. Regardless of whether it was right or wrong, based on the race we'd had and the other incidents at Turn 12 that resulted in five-second time penalties, this always felt like it was going to go the same way and McLaren could have stopped that.

‘Our verdict’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/l...s-our-verdict/

Lando Norris’ Penalty Hands Max Verstappen The Edge In Title Race.
After a tumultuous summer, Max Verstappen and Red Bull finally found some solace in the Texas autumn and the steely edge of old was back.
21 Oct 2024
Dan Cancian
Forbes

“It’s a momentum killer,” the Briton said after the race. “The one guy I need to beat is Max, and that’s the guy I didn’t beat today. So, it was an unsuccessful weekend all in all. But we gave it a good shot. I tried. It wasn’t good enough, and we have work to do, and I have work to do on myself.”

Max Verstappen: “They [McLaren] complain a lot lately,” he said. “But it is very clear and it is in the rules. If you are outside the white line you cannot pass and I’ve been penalised for that in the past, too.”

The stewards’ decision to penalise Norris ultimately meant a six-point swing in the race for the title. The Briton lost two points to Verstappen after finishing third in the sprint race, which the reigning world champion won. Had Norris finished third on Sunday, he would have gained back three points, instead he finds himself 57 behind his rival.

‘Hands Max Verstappen The Edge’;

https://www.forbes.com/sites/dancanc...in-title-race/


Horner reveals setup issue for Max Verstappen
21 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Christian Horner: “Firstly congratulations to Ferrari, they drove a great race from the get go and it was a well deserved win for them. For us, we lost pace compared to yesterday, so we need to take a look at and understand that. Pushed on to reflect on the incident between Verstappen and Norris, Horner noted:

"We got front limited rather than rear limited. It changed round and whether that was temperature or a set up change we made after the Sprint, I am unsure. We will, as I say, need to look into it. Max drove brilliantly today I thought, he defended well. There was obviously the issue at the end of the race but the rules are very clear about that situation and the stewards acted quickly, as all teams have been asking of them.”

“All in all there are a lot of positives to take from today, the Team did a good job at turning things around from Singapore but we still have a long way to go. But to out score our main rival in the Drivers Championship by five points over the weekend, that’s okay! Now we look to Mexico; Checo's home race, where we hope to build on what we have achieved here and continue to push in the right direction.”

‘Setup issue for Max Verstappen’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25664


Red Bull explains reason behind struggles in F1 US GP race
21 Oct 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Red Bull boss Christian Horner has revealed that extreme understeer was behind the struggle that Max Verstappen endured in the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. Horner has attributed Red Bull’s speed not translating to the race to an understeering balance on the RB20 accentuating the degradation that Verstappen experienced.

Verstappen’s mid-race ‘issue’ explained. Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase was heard telling his driver in the first stint that Red Bull had “found an issue” that would be solved at his sole pit stop. The three-time F1 champion conceded post-race that he had “no clue” about the problem that saw him drop close to 10 seconds down on race leader Charles Leclerc.

However, Horner has disclosed that Lambiase’s radio was related to a planned change to the front wing angle on Verstappen’s RB20 to temper the chronic understeer. “That was relative to the understeer he had in the car,” Horner added when asked about the reported hitch on Verstappen’s car. So, it was, you know, really about how much front wing to put into the car, you know, for the Hard tyre.”

‘Understeering balance on the RB20 accentuating the degradation’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...f1-us-gp-race/


Horner sees the pressure growing on Red Bull: 'We really need him'
21 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Christian Horner has stressed that Red Bull racing "really needs" Sergio Perez to perform to stop a slide in the F1 Constructors' World Championship. The Austrian team is now under serious pressure from Ferrari for second place.

Horner acknowledged the impressive performance from the Italian team. "Ferrari, again, congratulations to them this weekend. They've been very, very strong. They've got two drivers that are competing at the front. McLaren likewise, their drivers, there's not a big deficit between them," Horner said in the paddock.

He sees the pressure growing on Red Bull. "So that's where we really need for the constructors to have Checo come into play," Horner added. "Hopefully, with the support he will receive in Mexico, it will give him that boost. Obviously when you qualify out of position, you lose so much time coming through tail end cars in the top ten that you've then lost contact with the rest of the race," the Red Bull Racing boss concluded.

‘Support he will receive in Mexico, it will give him that boost’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30772...gio-perez.html


Sergio Perez claims he had different package to Max Verstappen after ‘poor’ US GP
Sergio Perez says he did not have the same package as Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen in Austin.
21 Oct 2024
Lewis Larkam
Crash.Net

“We don’t have quite the same package, but I don’t know exactly how much was that. It was just quite far away,” Perez told Sky Sports F1. “It was a weekend where we did struggle. Nothing really came together during the weekend. We did progress with the set-up but still the pace was quite poor. So we have to analyse quite a bit the set-up.”

Asked if the floor edge and engine cover updates were missing on his car, Perez replied: “Yeah correct.” Perez admitted he does not know whether he will get the parts for his home race at this weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix. “We don’t know yet,” he said.

“We are quite tight on parts and as we are still learning on this new spec of floor, we might have to wait a little bit longer until I can get it. I’m just doing the best I can and that’s what really matters.” Perez has now fallen 204 points behind Verstappen in the drivers’ championship, while his lack of big scores continue to hurt Red Bull in the constructors’ standings.

“We are quite tight on parts”;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105853...ter-poor-us-gp


Perez admits he ‘lacked pace all weekend’
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Sergio Perez finished seventh at the Circuit of The Americas, but admitted after the race he has “plenty of work to do” before his home Grand Prix in Mexico next weekend.

“Plenty of work to do”;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/pe...71171083995216


‘I hear’… How Sergio Perez’s crashes have ‘held back’ Red Bull’s US Grand Prix upgrades
18 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Robert Doornbos says Sergio Perez repair bills have hurt Red Bull. Perez has also crashed out of three different races in 2024. Before the incident in Baku, he was involved in a shunt with the two Haas drivers at the start of the Monaco GP that completely destroyed his car.

He also spun into the barriers during a wet race in Canada before another off in tricky conditions during qualifying in Hungary. According to former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos, the resulting repair bills have hampered the team’s car development. They were having to spend their funds (which are now limited by the budget cap) on fixing his RB20 rather than improving it. Doornbos says the team have used up almost five percent of their funds on damage.

‘Five percent’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/i-h...prix-upgrades/

Hamilton blames "large gust of wind" and upgrade for spin into the gravel trap.
Hamilton himself insisted that a gust of wind may have contributed to the spin, but he also suggested that the comprehensive upgrade package Mercedes introduced at Austin could have also played a part in unsettling the W15's balance.
21 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Lewis Hamilton: "I had a great start, and I thought we were in for a positive race. I was just bringing the tyres in when I had the accident, which was a really strange moment. I wasn’t pushing too hard but the car bounced a little into turn 19, I lost the back end and that was that.”

"We measured a large gust of wind, up to 40 kph, as I turned in which likely didn’t help. George had a similar spin to me yesterday so we will work hard to analyse both incidents and see what we can learn from them.”

"I am sorry to the whole team who have worked so hard to bring these updates but onwards and upwards from here. Hopefully we can get the car in a better place for next week in Mexico. We will all be working incredibly hard to do so," concluded Hamilton.

"Large gust of wind";

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...ilton-concern/


Wolff believes DNF at COTA was '100% not Hamilton's fault'.
"Today, an incident in that corner that came out of nowhere. He was not pushing. So where I sit at the moment, it's 100% not Lewis's fault. And that is not to say that I'm protecting him. It's clear. It was gusty. There was a slipstream," Toto Wolff said about Hamilton's DNF in Austin.
21 Oct 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

Lewis Hamilton had a challenging weekend at the 2024 US Grand Prix…

Toto Wolff: "We're keen on that (having a great result with Hamilton before he leaves for Ferrari), but how his mindset and how the relationships are in the team is as good as we ever had. First thing he said, he apologised for the incident. As I said before, I don't think it was his fault. Something caught him out."

The Austrian believes they can say goodbye to Hamilton with a positive result. "We want to celebrate it and finish it on a high. And I'm sure we will. Whether we can do it with great performance in the car, that would be fantastic. But if not, then we'll give it our best shot. And I think he will be looking at what they are and we think that red car is quick," he concluded.

‘Challenging weekend’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30780...rand-prix.html


Mercedes denies ‘fundamental issue’ with F1 upgrades amid Lewis Hamilton concern
21 Oct 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Mercedes has denied that there is a “fundamental issue” with the upgrades it introduced at the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, despite Lewis Hamilton’s concern.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff: “I don’t think we have a fundamental issue on the upgrade, very much,” the Austrian stressed. “I think it’s more interaction on aero and on mechanical stuff and therefore, I mean, we’re going to continue with the upgrade.”

“Makes no sense to not because there’s a lot of time you leave on the table but on the other side you need to be very open-minded. I mean, George drove the July upgrade today because we didn’t have the floor and that seemed pretty competitive in the race.”

‘No fundamental issue on the upgrade’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...ilton-concern/


Toto Wolff slams ‘biased’ F1 stewards before cryptic interview at US Grand Prix
21 Oct 2024
Kieran Jackson
The Independent

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff slammed the decision-making from the FIA stewards as “biased” during the US Grand Prix on Sunday.

In an eventful race which saw numerous five-second penalties, Mercedes driver George Russell was penalised for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in a tussle with Valtteri Bottas – a decision Wolff at the time described as a “total joke.”

‘Toto Wolff slammed the decision-making from the FIA stewards’;

https://www.independent.co.uk/f1/f1-...-b2632528.html


Toto Wolff hints at FIA steward ‘correlations’ after ‘bizarre’ US Grand Prix penalties
21 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Wolff reiterated his points when he sat down for his post-race briefing with the media, including PlanetF1.com. “I think the stewards are in a really difficult situation. There’s always going to be one that’s happy and the other one unhappy,” he started by saying.

“But,” he continued, “we need to try to understand whether there are certain patterns in stewarding decisions, and whether that correlates to some of the you know, situations. Everybody’s racing hard, but for me the decision against George was inexplicable.”

“We’ve seen plenty of these situations in Turn 12, not one of them was penalised until it hit George and then obviously there was another one of those. I don’t want to comment on the Max/Lando situation, because it’s not my race. Zak and Andrea [McLaren bosses] will look at that. Everybody’s giving their best… I need to hold myself back.”

“Decision against George was inexplicable”;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...prix-penalties


‘Odd and bizarre’: Mercedes boss Toto Wolff takes veiled swipe at stewards in awkward interview
October 21st, 2024
Fox Sports (Australia)

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has taken a veiled swipe at the FIA stewards following the United States Grand Prix, accusing them of inconsistency. When quizzed by Sky Sports’ Ted Kravitz on the penalties, Wolf provided a cryptic answer in a painfully awkward interview.

“It’s inconsistent,” Wolf declared. “Yesterday, we’ve seen a few of those incidents which were exactly the same but weren’t penalised — racing for positions actually, real positions and receiving that penalty is just completely odd and bizarre.”

“I think we know why, but obviously you can’t say that on television.” After Kravitz sought clarification, Wolff continued: “Some of that decision making at the end. Sometimes, there’s correlations between when there is decision-making that is a bit interesting.”

‘Odd and bizarre’;

https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...a5747706994765


‘Miffed’ Toto Wolff declines Ted Kravitz interview after US GP ‘disappointment’ [after qualifying in Austin on Saturday]
20 Oct 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Ted Kravitz: “So they both didn’t make it easy for themselves by languishing P17 and P18 until the last runs in Q1, then only had one chance. George got through, but Lewis was really nowhere near after that mistake, six tenths of a second off George Russell and out in Q1, bit of a shocker. Then Lewis said, ‘What happened to this car, guys?’ George completely agreed. ‘I don’t know where what we’re missing since yesterday’.”

“They gave it one more go. George got into Q3, gave it one more go from sixth on the grid and then crashed. And Toto Wolff is as miffed tonight, or was [as] miffed tonight after qualifying as I’ve ever seen him, declined the opportunity to do an interview with yours truly, and just wants to sort of lick his wounds.”

“Listen, it’s only motor racing, Toto, you know, don’t worry about it, the race is tomorrow, but sixth on the grid and a crashed car with lots of work for the mechanics to do tomorrow morning [Sunday] and Lewis Hamilton starting 18th is not what they came to a big race like Austin, Texas, to do, obviously speaking. So that’s a disappointment from Mercedes.”

“It’s only motor racing, Toto”;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...kravitz-sky-f1


Ted Kravitz hits back at Wolff and Stella in ‘all so boring’ FIA response
22 Oct 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Between Andrea Stella calling out “inappropriate stewards” and Toto Wolff sticking his “oar in”, Sky F1 reporter Ted Kravitz says criticism of the stewards is “all so boring” as the rules are the rules. According to Kravitz, the drivers involved have only themselves to blame as they not only know the regulations, but “agreed” to them. “Lando overtook by going off the track,” he said in his post-race Sky F1 Notebook show, “and Lando picked up the five-second penalty because that’s the way the rules are.

“You’re always going to get a five-second penalty for that because that’s the rule. These are the rules that have been agreed to. You might not like the rules. As I said at the time on air, it’s such a shame it had to end that way and that’s basically McLaren’s point as well, although they say it’s a shame because they came out the bad side of it. But as a neutral observer watching it, a great piece of motor racing.”

“To quote Andrea Stella, does it have to end with a stewards’ five-second penalty? Can they not just fight it out again? And that was Lando’s point, and where I think Lando will be most frustrated: he should have just let Max go and then have a go, let him pass again and then have another go, so it can be clean. Then we don’t have to get into all this kerfuffle with the stewards again. It’s all so boring, the steward stuff.”

‘All so boring’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/ted-kr...g-fia-response

Hulkenberg ‘maximised’ his race in the US but Magnussen left frustrated by ‘messy’ strategy calls.
Haas had a very strong weekend in Austin with both cars scoring in the Sprint and Nico Hulkenberg adding more points to the team’s tally in the Grand Prix.
22 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

“I think I maximised what was possible, even at the end, like not chasing down but getting closer to Checo [Perez] in a Red Bull,” Hulkenberg said. “So, very positive all in all. A solid one-stop that kind of halfway through the first stint felt very poor and difficult but suddenly it recovered and the tyres came back to me. Going long there opened the door for this race and this result.”

But his team mate wasn’t left with the same sort of satisfaction. After running as high as seventh in the opening stages, Magnussen was two seconds behind Pierre Gasly in the battle for sixth and the team decided to pull him in for an aggressive early stop to try and undercut his rival.

With higher-than-expected tyre degradation in the Sprint, Pirelli had predicted that a two-stop race was at hand – and Haas pitted Magnussen early under this assumption. But he then came out in traffic and had to work hard to climb back up the order, only to receive the call to pit again – despite most cars having opted to switch to a one-stop strategy by that point.

‘Maximised’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...vLcAdYqbpFMryN


Haas leave home race with a decent point haul
22 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Haas displayed a strong performance in the Austin F1 Sprint on Saturday, with Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg finishing seventh and eighth to collect some vital points for the American outfit. On Sunday, things have changed slightly, but the Kannapolis-based outfit was still quick. Hulkenberg finished the 56-lap race in P8 to secure four points. His team-mate Magnussen, looked for a long time like he might score points, but he was forced into a second pit stop late on, which cost him any chance of scoring.

“I’m very pleased with that, we maximised what was possible and at the end we were actually getting closer to Perez in a Red Bull. I had a suspicion it could be a one-stop race, and it was, although halfway through the first stint it felt really poor and horrible. The tyres recovered and came back to me, and going long opened the door for this race and this result. That was key, so two lots of points this weekend and two points in front of RB, it’s been a good weekend.”

After an impressive showing in the sprint race, his team-mate Kevin Magnussen failed to score any points in the 56-lap race, suggesting that higher than anticipated tyre wear deprived him of committing himself to a single-stop strategy. “We didn’t get any points today although we had a good chance of getting some. We were talking about a one-stopper, but we didn’t manage that.”

‘Decent point haul’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25668


Hulkenberg: Haas ‘maximised what was possible’ in US Grand Prix
20 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Nico Hulkenberg grabbed more points for Haas with a P8 finish at the Circuit of The Americas.

‘Maximised what was possible’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/hu...69131504984249


United States Grand Prix: Race Recap
Oct 20, 2024
Haas F1 Team - Official Site

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: “It was bit of a mixed result, but it was good to get P8 with Nico. He executed a very good one-stop strategy, and considering the situation he managed the tires very well and communicated well. On Kevin’s side, it was almost the opposite as our baseline was a two-stop strategy and then there was some messy communication towards the end of the race.”

“I feel that we should’ve scored points with both cars today, although Kevin may have struggled to hang on top P10, at least he would’ve had a chance. If we had come away from here with P8 and P10, that would’ve been the best result, but unfortunately only Nico scored today. We got seven points out of the weekend, and two ahead of RB so that’s the positive. We’re now P6 in the Constructors’ Championship with five events to go, and we’re competitive, so we’ll go for more.”

“That’s the positive”;

https://www.haasf1team.com/news/unit...x-race-recap-4


Haas admit “messy communication” spoiled Magnussen’s race after extra stop
21st October 2024
Keith Collantine
RaceFans

Magnussen was called in for his second pit stop by racing engineer Mark Slade on lap 38, at short notice:
Slade So, Kev, the situation is we are concerned about the drop-off on your tyres at the end and that’s why we were making the suggestion we did. We think it will be the same or a better outcome. We’re going to have to swap with Nico when he gets in your DRS. He’s not quite there yet.
Slade Lawson 12 seconds behind on fresh tyres.
Magnussen What’s his lap time?
Slade He’s only just come out of the pits.
Slade Sector two was three tenths quicker than yours. Correction, five tenths quicker than yours.
Slade Box, Kev box, you must box now. Box. Box.
Magnussen Box, box.
Slade Mode…
Magnussen What happened?
Slade It’s okay. We’re in good shape. Mode RS, mode RS for the start. You’re in good shape, Kev.


Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu admitted the team had slipped up when Magnussen was summoned in for a second stop, suggesting they should have left him out. Magnussen’s exchanges with his race engineer later on in the race bear that out:
Magnussen Can you just explain what you mean by ‘good shape’?
Slade Sorry Kev, that was earlier.

As does their post-race chat, in which they were keen not to give too much away about what had gone wrong:
Slade Okay, Kev. Leclerc…
Magnussen Interrupting
No, no, no. It’s okay. It’s okay.
Slade Yeah. I was going to give you the run-down.
Slade I’m sure you’re confused about what happened at the end. We will obviously go through it with you at the end when you get back.

“Messy communication”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/10/21/...er-extra-stop/


FACTS AND STATS: Ferrari’s first US one-two since 2006 and a best-ever home result for Haas
20 Oct 2024
Sean Kelly
Formula One - Official Site

• P8 for Nico Hulkenberg gave Haas their best-ever finish in a home Grand Prix.
• Haas have scored in four consecutive races for first time since midway through 2018.
• Kevin Magnussen was 11th in the second Haas, meaning the team finished 11th in a Grand Prix for the eighth time this year.

‘Best-ever home result for Haas’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...MT24QRMvI4OLvf


Business: Haas announce new sponsor after Toyota-deal
22 Oct 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Haas has announced a new partnership with American insurance innovator, Orion180. The insurance trailblazer and America’s Formula 1 team commenced their multi-year partnership at last weekend's United States Grand Prix.

As part of the partnership with Haas F1 team, Orion180’s logo will adorn the VF-24 as well as race suits, and team kit from the 2025 FIA Formula 1 World Championship. Moreover, the American team has confirmed that its new partner "will engage in cross-team collaborations and events, and a host of dynamic activations in marquee races across the United States."

‘New partnership’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25624


Mexico City Grand Prix: Race Preview
Oct 22, 2024
Haas F1 Team - Official Site

MoneyGram Haas F1 Team has headed straight from the United States to Mexico, for Round 20 of the 2024 FIA Formula 1 World Championship, the Mexico City Grand Prix at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Ayao Komatsu, Team Principal: “Mexico provides a unique challenge due to its high altitude, the thin air means it’s tough on cooling and reduces downforce significantly. The circuit has plenty of low-speed corners with some heavy braking.”

“We normally have very poor grip levels in FP1, combined with a lack of downforce, so it’s a big challenge for both drivers and engineers to get on top of it quickly. Following on from our strong performance in Austin, we’re looking forward to this challenge and for another top 10 finish.”

‘Race Preview’;

https://www.haasf1team.com/news/mexi...x-race-preview

Back in the big time: Liam Lawson’s F1 return at the US GP.
Liam Lawson is fresh from his first outing back in Formula 1 at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas is done and dusted.
23rd Oct 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Liam Lawson, replacing Daniel Ricciardo at RB, was thrown in at a deep end with a Sprint at a track he’d never raced at before. No surprise then that Tsunoda out-qualified him in the first of two quali sessions on Friday. Starting the Sprint from 15th, there was little Lawson could do, but he did end up in a tasty spat with Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.

It was on Sunday when Lawson really starred. Starting in 19th thanks to George Russell’s pit-lane start – the New Zealander shod hard tyres for a lengthy opening stint and methodically picked his way through the field. He passed Alonso en route through the pack, quipping post-race that the Spaniard “was nice to me today.” Ultimately, Lawson’s drive saw him climb 10 places and score two points for RB on his first race back in the Grand Prix big time.

‘Back in the big time’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-at-the-us-gp/


'Excellent work': Why RB boss Peter Bayer thanked Helmut Marko after Liam Lawson’s ‘incredibly fast’ US Grand Prix
22 Oct 2024
Shay Rogers
F1 Oversteer

Liam Lawson’s United States Grand Prix performance was justification that the Red Bull hierarchy made the right decision to promote him to Formula 1. The only problem is, that they could have done it a whole lot sooner, especially considering his stellar results as a stand-in last year.

Peter Bayer delighted with Liam Lawson’s ‘excellent work’ for RB. It’s in everyone’s best interests down at VCARB for Lawson to maximise his return across the rest of the season.

“I was just downstairs to Helmut Marko, and I thanked him for his excellent work and of course the pressure he put on us to create a place for young talent,” he told ServusTV. “At the same time, he was incredibly fast yesterday as Liam of course benefitted a little from it today that we started on the hard tyre and that the overcut was much stronger than we expected.”

'Excellent work';

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...us-grand-prix/


Horner and Marko hail Lawson’s US GP drive: 'A man for the future’
23/10/2024
Phillip van Osten
F1i.com

Liam Lawson enjoyed a very impressive return to F1 at last weekend’s US Grand Prix, and the RB charger’s fantastic run to P9 did not go unnoticed by Red Bull’s top brass. Given the race’s Sprint format, Lawson only had a single practice session to get up to speed before heading into Friday’s qualifying at The Circuit of the Americas, a track he was not familiar with.

“I think if you're getting into a spat and getting your elbows out with Fernando on your first race back in, you're doing alright,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, reflecting on Lawson’s intense duel with Alonso in Saturday’s Sprint. “I think that he drove an exceptional race today from 19th to ninth. He was fast, he was courageous and I thought it was an excellent comeback for him.”

‘Very impressive return’;

https://f1i.com/news/522336-horner-a...he-future.html


RB boss Laurent Mekies shares the unusual thing Liam Lawson did in the garage at US Grand Prix
19 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Liam Lawson is back in Formula 1 action for RB at the US Grand Prix. Karun Chandhok was concerned about Lawson ahead of the race in Austin. He only had one hour-long practice session on Friday before his first qualifying, of sorts, in the VCARB 01.

During the team principals’ press conference on Friday, RB’s Laurent Mekies commented on how Lawson was ‘settling in’. His eagerness was evident in the garage as he climbed into his cockpit a full 20 minutes before the start of FP1. Mekies was pleased to see him ‘on the right pace’ from the outset.

“He has been waiting for that moment for a very long time, so he was all smiling this morning, and I think he was sitting in the car 20 minutes before the session started,” Mekies said. “So he was certainly very keen. Look, he did all the sessions in a very smooth way. We had this very refreshing, typical day-one comments from drivers when they complained about too much grip. It normally doesn’t last very long, but he was on the right pace straight away, quite close to Yuki. It’s a difficult track, he has never driven here, so it’s the right way to put the first foot into the weekend.”

‘Sitting in the car 20 minutes before the session started’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/rb-...us-grand-prix/


Liam Lawson, the Kiwi Formula 1 driver racing like 'a veteran'
21 Oct 2024
Radio New Zealand

Liam Lawson thought he was rusty, but Red Bull principal Christian Horner felt he drove like a veteran. The 22-year-old New Zealander matched his best finish in a Formula 1 race with a ninth placing in the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, on Monday, in his first drive at the elite level this year.

And he did in style, starting from the back of the grid but making inroads on the first lap to get to 14th. After 30 of the 56 laps he was seventh, but dropped back a couple of spots after a pit stop. His RB team is the development arm for Red Bull, and Lawson had his sights on a spot in their main team, alongside world champion Max Verstappen.

"I thought he jumped in and he looked like a veteran,'' Horner, who makes the big decisions on drivers, told Sky Sport. "I think he can be very happy with that drive today. He drove a great Grand Prix. Starting 19th, finishing in the points, some great overtakes. He should be pleased with that," he said. "He's a tough, hard racer."

‘Thought he was rusty’;

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/sport/531...like-a-veteran


'Super proactive': Liam Lawson admits he ‘forgot’ one thing about racing in F1 during US Grand Prix return
22 Oct 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Liam Lawson forgot about ‘busy’ F1 cockpit. Drivers are known for making a lot of setup changes to their cars and adjustments while in the cockpit through the steering wheel throughout a race, and Lawson had only realised just how frantic it can be upon his return.

“I forgot how busy it is. The race is very long and you could be super proactive with the tools on the wheel,” said Lawson. “The stint we did yesterday with the car was the key going into qualifying. We showed in Q1 the potential of the car but couldn’t show it in Q2, but we had an idea if it was strong but you never know in a race if it will be the same.”

“I forgot how busy it is”;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/lia...d-prix-return/


Beaming Lawson ‘definitely didn’t’ expect points on F1 return after massive grid penalty
21 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

When it was put to Lawson after the race that he probably was not expecting to come away from the Circuit of The Americas with points given his hefty grid penalty, the RB driver said “Yeah, I definitely didn’t, honestly, not after where we were starting and also just after yesterday’s Sprint race.”

“I think we struggled a lot and although we made a big step with the car yesterday, you never know – in a race it’s completely different, we don’t know if it’s going to work out exactly as we planned. So to have a clear step in quali and in the race with the car is really positive for me. I felt really comfortable which was the main target this weekend, to get to the end of it and to feel confident with the car.”

“It’s always nice when you’re the overtaking car as well, which today we were, and I think it was just that hard stint at the start that really put us in a great position.” In terms of where the progression in pace came from, Lawson credited the RB team with helping him to continue to gel with the VCARB 01 during his first full race weekend in the car.

“We made a big step with the car”;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...JLCTrDOBybfxZS


Rarer than landing on the moon: Kiwi rookie F1 driver relishes stepping into Ricciardo's ride
20 Oct 2024
Ben Waterworth
The Roar

More men have walked on the moon than there have been Formula 1 drivers from New Zealand and for Liam Lawson, he takes this as a badge of honour of his unique place in the sport. Lawson said he is proud to represent New Zealand on the world stage and understands what it means to people back home.

“It’s something I felt for a long time, especially the last couple of years getting closer to Formula 1,” he said. “The support from home has been very positive, especially after I drove last year. To see and feel that, especially for the last couple of weeks, the messages and support I’ve seen is pretty cool.”

“It’s obviously tough from New Zealand. It’s very, very hard. And it’s an unrealistic dream that a lot of people don’t think is possible. So as much as I want to do this for my dream, I also want to prove to everybody home that it is possible.”

“Support from home has been very positive”;

https://www.theroar.com.au/2024/10/2...cciardos-ride/

IT'S RACE WEEK: 5 storylines we're excited about ahead of the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix.
Two triple-headers will close out the 2024 season and we’re into the middle of the first of those after a massive weekend in the United States. As the races come thick and fast, here are some of the hot topics after the short trip from Austin to Mexico City.
23 Oct 2024
Chris Medland
Formula One - Official Site

One driver who will be particularly keen to perform well this weekend is Sergio Perez, who returns to race in front of his incredible home fans in Mexico City. There was a stage in the season when Perez’s future was uncertain but Red Bull have stuck by him, and were very nearly rewarded with a big result in Azerbaijan before a final lap crash with Carlos Sainz ended both of their races.

Those missed points have proven costly as Perez has scored just 47 points since the Miami Grand Prix – a run of 13 races – compared to 103 in the first six rounds. That return means the pressure is remaining on his seat in the face of the mounting challenge from McLaren and Ferrari in the constructors’ standings.

Perez will have enormous support to draw upon this weekend but that also comes with added distractions and expectations. Having retired on the opening lap of this race last year, it would be the perfect time to replicate the form from Baku and score some big points.

‘Incredible home fans in Mexico City’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...Mqk8Nq093VMJjl


Perez comments on Mexican GP retirement rumour: 'Two years is a long time'
22 Oct 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Sergio Perez is not yet thinking about retirement in Formula 1. The Mexican's viral Wolf of Wall Street meme on his X-account highlighted his desire to stay in the sport. Now, he reiterated once again in an interview with Mexican outlet Esto that he has no intention of leaving Formula 1 any time soon, despite his critics.

He is the only driver from the top four teams not to win a race this season, which is a slightly alarming statistic for the Red Bull driver. "It's complicated to understand that Formula 1 as a Latino is always very difficult to achieve. I don't know, two years is a long time. I don't know how long I will continue after this contract, it depends on the new generations," he began. Perez's contract with Red Bull runs to 2026, but whether or not he will see it out remains to be seen.

Perez is hopeful for another Mexican driver in F1". "I've always said it, they have to be very young in Europe to have a chance, and we see more and more Mexican drivers coming up. I hope we have another Mexican driver soon," the Guadalajara-born driver added.

'Two years is a long time';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30805...-red-bull.html


‘I will 100% be here next year’ – Perez scotches rumours he will retire at Mexico City GP as he references The Wolf of Wall Street
18 Oct 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Rumours of Sergio Perez’s retirement have been exaggerated, according to the Mexican driver himself, with Perez moving to scotch any notion that he would announce the end of his F1 career at his home race next week. A rumour that Red Bull driver Perez would announce his retirement at the Mexico City Grand Prix had been circulating after the Singapore Grand Prix back in September – where Perez finished a disappointing P10.

Asked about the rumours at the Circuit of The Americas, and why he’d felt compelled to repel them on social media, Perez replied: “It’s just that sometimes people link these rumours and a lot of people pick it up.”

“Especially back in Mexico, with the Mexican Grand Prix coming up, I didn’t want my fans to be misled into false information. I just want to make it clear that I 100% will be here next year; I have a contract and I will fulfil it, and that’s not in my mind. In my mind is to sort out the issues that we have in the car.”

‘I will 100% be here next year’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...MMamgwF5trAZAd


Sergio Perez’s father has just dropped ‘very excited’ hint about where he’ll be racing in 2025
23 Oct 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Sergio Perez’s father has just addressed Mexican GP retirement rumours. Speaking to Mexican outlet Record, Sergio Perez’s father, Antonio Perez Garibay, defiantly predicted that his son would still become a world champion. He remains ‘very excited’ about his future.

“The best of Checo Perez is yet to come,” he said. “I am sure that in due time, Checo will have the weapons and tools to fight for the world championship. I am very excited and I can say that Checo will be world champion.” Whether or not you agree with his assessment – and many F1 fans may justifiably ridicule it – he appears to have dropped a clear hint about his son’s future. He would only be this confident if he believed Perez was staying at Red Bull.

Should he lose that seat, it’s unlikely that another contending team would pick him up. Indeed, Sauber have shown interest in Perez, but they’re currently bottom of the constructors’ championship. Antonio Perez is adamant that the six-time Grand Prix winner will have the ‘tools’ to fight for the title. And that can only realistically happen at Red Bull.

‘Dropped ‘very excited’ hint’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ser...acing-in-2025/


Perez ambitious for home race: 'A podium finish would be special'
23 Oct 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Sergio Perez is prepared for a "crazy" Mexican Grand Prix weekend but knows he must "shut out the noise" and perform well for Red Bull Racing. The Mexican driver will get the support from his fans in the grandstand this weekend as he aims for a return to the podium. "Mexico is the biggest weekend of the season for me and every year it seems to get bigger. Even in Austin I felt like I was at home, so I think this week might be a little crazy! The important thing is to be able to shut out the noise off track and focus on the job in hand," Perez said.

Perez has clear aims: "Ultimately, the special thing for me would be to deliver another podium for my fans and my country, at home. The car was coming to us a little over the weekend in the US, but there’s still a lot we need to understand." In the United States, Perez came no further than seventh place, well behind teammate Max Verstappen. "I was struggling a little with balance and we need to iron out those issues to be competitive on a very different track in Mexico City. I will do everything I can to make my country smile come Sunday evening."

‘Must "shut out the noise" and perform well for Red Bull Racing’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30817...ts-podium.html


Red Bull’s Verstappen seeks to end winless run in Mexico GP after beating McLaren’s Norris in US Formula One
24 Oct 2024
Malay Mail

After scrapping to a hard-fought podium ahead of title rival Lando Norris last Sunday, Max Verstappen will seek to end a nine-race winless run on a favourite circuit at this weekend’s Mexico Grand Prix. Red Bull’s series leader beat McLaren’s Norris into third for the first time in five outings, albeit with the aid of some controversial stewards’ decisions in Texas, to enlarge his lead to 57 points with five rounds of the 24-race Formula One championship remaining.

If that was not sufficient encouragement for him and Red Bull, who enjoyed an upswing in form as Ferrari dominated with a commanding one-two at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Verstappen’s impressive and breathless Mexican record should be. The Dutchman has reeled off five wins from his last six visits to the high-altitude (2,250-metres above sea level) Autodromo Hermano Rodriguez and is the only current driver, apart from seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, twice, to have won in the capital city.

“We made good steps in Austin and I saw some promising improvement with the car,” said Verstappen who won last Saturday’s sprint race. “Historically, we have always gone well here too and I always enjoy driving this track. So now it is about keeping the momentum going forwards and for us to continue picking up points.”

‘Red Bull, who enjoyed an upswing in form’;

https://www.malaymail.com/news/sport...ula-one/154637


‘An isolated case’: Frederic Vasseur fires McLaren and Red Bull warning despite bleak Mexico City Grand Prix prediction
22 Oct 2024
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Frederic Vasseur doubts Ferrari will dominate the Mexico City GP like the US Grand Prix. Yet despite Leclerc winning the US Grand Prix by nearly 20 seconds to the best non-Ferrari racer, Team Principal Vasseur doubts they will dictate the Mexico City GP. Instead, he eagerly awaits the Sao Paulo Grand Prix as Interlagos is ‘more similar’ to the Circuit of the Americas.

Vasseur has warned their constructors’ championship rivals McLaren and Red Bull that they should expect Ferrari will be more competitive at the Sao Paulo GP than the Mexico City GP owing to the unusual nature of this weekend’s round taking place over 2km above sea level.

‘Frederic Vasseur fires McLaren and Red Bull warning’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fre...ix-prediction/