Month: November 2019

Lewis Hamilton says he “felt quite disrespected” by Mercedes bosses Toto Wolff and Paddy Lowe over their handling of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

With the championship on the line, Hamilton backed up Nico Rosberg during the latter stages of the race in an attempt to leave his team-mate under threat from Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen behind. Hamilton’s approach was due to him needing to win the race and have Rosberg finish outside the top three in order to defend his title.

Lowe informed Hamilton to speed up during the race – something Wolff called the highest escalation of the Mercedes team order – before Wolff himself suggested the Briton could be punished for ignoring the call. While he won the race but lost the championship, Hamilton cites the situation as one he remains unhappy with.

“That was one of many uncomfortable moments of the year,” Hamilton told Channel 4. “Ultimately, seeing what had been said afterwards, I felt quite disrespected by the individuals who had spoken. You don’t expect that from those who are in charge of so many people.”

Although Wolff has since admitted Mercedes should have let the two drivers race, when asked if the situation has since been resolved, Hamilton replied: “No, it hasn’t.”

And the triple world champion admits he is still struggling to come to terms with suffering reliability problems in 2016, such as when he retired from the lead of the Malaysian Grand Prix.

“When you have something in your head, it’s there. You think it can’t be a coincidence that all these things have happened.”

When Hamilton’s comments were put to Rosberg himself, the retiring drivers’ champion added: “So he felt disrespected? OK, interesting. That’s a new one.”

Silbermann says … Stay away Felipe

Romain Grosjean column: 2016 showed exciting Haas potential

TECHNICAL: Under the skin of the Williams FW38

Jorge Lorenzo: When a two-wheel champion tests a Mercedes

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Williams rookie Lance Stroll views team mate Felipe Massa as just another rival, but one from which he hopes to learn.

The 18-year-old Canadian got off to a rocky start in Barcelona last week, beaching his new Williams FW40 three times in the Circuit de Catalonia gravel trap, inflicting damage which prevented the team from running on Day 4 of pre-season testing.

Stroll, who enjoyed the benefits of a huge preparation and testing programme in 2016, is paired with a man whose vast  F1 experience represents a valuable asset in the junior driver’s learning curve.

But while he is eager to learn, he does not see Massa as a mentor.

“I think mentor is the wrong word,” Stroll said.

“He’s here pushing for himself as much as anyone is pushing for themselves.

“I think it’s just great to have him in the team, helping the team move forwards, bringing a lot of experience to the team and there’s a lot definitely that I can pick up from him.

” Him and myself are going to help the team move forwards as much as possible.”

Lance Stroll was introduced to the Brazilian when he was enrolled by Ferrari in its driver academy program.

“I know him from our days in Ferrari and he’s an open guy, he’s a team player?” Stroll added.

“He’s an honest guy and that’s kind of all you really ask for when you have a team-mate. It’s a positive spirit and a positive attitude in the team and everyone is really looking forward to the season and the rest of the tests, to get some more running.”

GALLERY: F1 drivers’ wives and girlfriends

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Felipe Massa has been offered £5million to return to Williams next season as a replacement for Valtteri Bottas, according to a report.

Having originally retired from F1 at the end of last season, Massa’s name emerged as a candidate to return to the grid following Mercedes’ approach for Bottas. Williams wants an experienced driver in its team for 2017 alongside rookie Lance Stroll, and deputy team principal Claire Williams named Massa as the type of driver the team would need if it allowed Bottas to leave.

Brazil’s Grande Premio claims Massa has now had a formal offer made to him which equates to £5m, with the 35-year-old having been identified due to his knowledge of the team and ability to satisfy sponsors. Williams title sponsor Martini is understood to not be able to market two drivers under the age of 25, ruling out a young team-mate for the 18-year-old Stroll.

Massa has now departed on holiday for the Christmas period – posting a somewhat cryptic tweet on his departure – and an announcement about his future is not expected until after the New Year.

Mercedes has already stated it will not be making any announcements regarding next year’s driver line-up until January 3 at the earliest.

Silbermann says … Stay away Felipe

Romain Grosjean column: 2016 showed exciting Haas potential

TECHNICAL: Under the skin of the Williams FW38

Jorge Lorenzo: When a two-wheel champion tests a Mercedes

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Sergio Perez proved he is very much his own man when it comes to defending Mexico’s reputation and the honor of its citizens.

The Force India driver targeted a controversial message on Twitter by sunglasses brand Hawkers -a recently contracted personal sponsor of Perez – which mocked Mexicans in the wake of Donald Trump’s win in the US presidential election.

Hawkers suggested that Perez’ countrymen could now use a good pair of shades to hide their “crying eyes tomorrow when you are building the wall.”

Needless to say, the ill-fated tweet, which admittedly was a case of very poor humor and which the company has since deleted, did not go down well with Perez who immediately announced that he was severing all ties with the sunglasses maker.

Que mal comentario, Hoy mismo acabo mi relación con @HawkersMX .Nunca voy a dejar que nadie se burle de mi País! #MexicoUnido

— Sergio Pérez (@SChecoPerez) November 9, 2016

Chris Medland’s 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix

FEATURE: What Rosberg need to do to win the title in Brazil

INTERVIEW: Fernando Alonso: Why F1 is no longer just for heroes

TECHNICAL: Under the skin of the Ferrari SF16-H

F1i Classic: Brazil 1991 – Senna’s pain and glory

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Sebastian Vettel got hot under the collar in the closing laps of the Mexican Grand Prix, going as far as telling FIA race director Charlie Whiting to ‘f*ck off! Honestly f*ck off!” over the Ferrari team radio.

Running in fourth at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Vettel put third-placed Max Verstappen under increasing pressure, which led the Red Bull driver to locking up on the approach of Turn One and cutting through the grass.

Vettel immediately felt Verstappen should give him third position but the 19-year-old refused to yield, which angered the four-time world champion.

“Move, move, for f*ck’s sake!” Vettel erupted on the Ferrari team radio.

The Scuderia did try to calm its driver down but when told that the incident will be investigated after the race by the FIA, Vettel lost his temper and shouted: “Here is a message for Charlie: “F**k off. Honestly f**k off.”

The German crossed the line in fourth and quickly drew alongside Verstappen to wave his finger in anger.

However, the stewards promptly investigated the case and handed the Dutchman a five-second time penalty, which promoted Vettel to the podium.

REPORT: Hamilton keeps title hopes alive with Mexico win

Breakfast with Stefan Johansson

15 minutes with … Nico Rosberg

Silbermann says … Masked in Mexico

Chris Medland’s 2016 Mexican Grand Prix preview

2017 driver line-ups so far

Formula One drivers, past and present, were quick to wish their fans a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays over the weekend.

While most current racers already had a drive secured for 2017, some were hoping for Santa Claus to bring good news, with Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes seat featuring at the top of the gift list.

Take a look at pictures of them celebrating with friends and family, starting with the recently-retired 2016 world champion.

the Rosbergs are wishing you all loads of fun for christmas!!!

Renault’s technical boss Bob Bell has underlined Jolyon Palmer’s steady progress during the Brit’s maiden Formula 1 season.

Palmer endured a difficult first half of the season, marked by a few crashes and a series of missed opportunities before stabilizing himself mid-season and turning his fortunes around in the last leg of the championship.

Palmer succeeded in finishing in the points in Malaysia and displayed good relative performance thereafter, earning him the opportunity to remain with the French squad for a second season.

“I don’t know if it took him a while to get his head around Formula 1 in a full-on season, get used to the cars and get used to this car, and how to get the best out of it,” Bell told Autosport.

“I don’t know if it was just a learning thing for him. It quite possibly was but either way he’s shown real progress.

“That’s the important thing, whatever the reason behind it is. I don’t think he’s finished with that yet, he’s going to keep improving.”

Bell commended Palmer for his will to learn and believes he will only benefit from the presence of Nico Hulkenberg on the other side of the Renault garage next season.

“He’ll learn from someone like Nico, which is another important factor, and he’s prepared to learn which is good.

“He’s got an open mind and he’s gaining in stature all the time. If he keeps developing as he has done in the latter half of the season then he’ll do well.”

With the introduction of new regulations in 2017, Renault was eager to maintain a minimum amount of consistency for next year. To that end, it was important for the French manufacturer to keep at least one of its drivers with its team.

“To keep one of them is good for consistency and we’re very pleased to have Jolyon with us. Honestly from an engineering perspective, it was a very difficult decision between Jo and Kev,” confirmed Bell.

“Jo has certainly improved a lot, particularly in the latter part of the season. You can see him gaining confidence and he’s just improving all the time.

“It will be a good pairing next year because they are quite different and will bring different things to what we’re trying to achieve.”

2016 team-by-team review: Part two

2016 team-by-team review: Part one

Andrew Green: Force India’s smooth operator

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The future of the Malaysian Grand Prix has been thrown into further doubt with a government minister claiming the race contract will not be renewed.

Sepang CEO Razlan Razali said the race was under threat back in October due to poor returns and low ticket sales, with television viewership also falling. Now, the government’s tourism and culture minister Nazri Abdul Aziz has told local media the current contract will be the last in Malaysia as race hosting fees rise year-on-year.

“The current agreement is from 2016 to 2018,”  Aziz said. “So once that ends, there will be no more [Formula One race].

“F1 attendance is dropping and there is less attraction now. We are spending RM 300 million a year [£54.5 million].

“The cost of hosting F1 has increased 10-fold compared to the first time it was held.”

The news follows claims from Bernie Ecclestone that Singapore wants to end its spell on the F1 calendar, with the Singapore Grand Prix set to host the last race of its current contract in 2017.

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The Malaysian Grand Prix had been held in March or April in recent years, but this season saw Singapore and Malaysia paired on the calendar for the first time, albeit two weeks apart.

INTERVIEW: Rob Smedley on Felipe Massa

2017 driver line-ups so far

FEATURE: When F1 team-mates fight for the title

SILBERMANN: A long-winded tribute to an often long-winded man

From the cockpit: Felipe Nasr on two precious points in Brazil

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Red Bull junior Pierre Gasly, who was snubbed by the energy drinks maker for a seat at Toro Rosso in 2017, is determined to race in F1 in 2018.

Much to many people’s surprise, Red Bull extended Daniil Kvyat’s contract for next season, leaving the 20-year-old Frenchman and winner of this year’s GP2 series out in the cold for 2017.

Gasly reacted to Monday’s news of the return of the French GP in 2018 by hoping he would be on the grid.

“I aim to be involved from 2018 because my goal, even more so today with this announcement, is to get into F1 as soon as possible,” he told French newspaper Le Figaro on Monday.

“Anyway, this is a fabulous motivation and I am ready to give everything for it.”

“I will try to suggest it to Helmut (Marko). I will devote all my energy to being on the grid in 2018. This objective is very clear in my mind and the announcement of the return of the French Grand Prix is a boost.”

In order to keep its driver active next season, Red Bull is currently negotiating a deal to place Gasly in the Japanese Super Formula series, where Stoffel Vandoorne raced successfully this year.

Speaking in Abu Dhabu, Christian Horner insisted that Gasly remains firmly in Red Bull’s stable, praising his achievement of winning the GP2 series this year.

“He has done important work for us with tests and development work,” Horner said.

” There isn’t a seat available in F1 for him at the moment, but he is the most senior member of the junior team and is being retained by us because we rate him extremely highly.

“Whatever the future holds for him, F1 can still very much be part of that future.”

Mercedes: The candidates to replace Rosberg

From the cockpit: Felipe Nasr on his second set in F1

F1i Classic – Bowing out on a high

Silbermann says… Respect to Rosberg

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Follow live coverage of the championship-deciding 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from the Yas Marina Circuit with F1i’s live commentary page

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