2021 F1

Hamilton: British GP upgrade won’t be enough, Mercedes ‘miles away’ from Red Bull

Published

2 years ago

July 5, 2021

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Lewis Hamilton for 2021 Austrian GP

Seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton says that upcoming British Grand Prix upgrade will not enough to compete with Red Bull Racing, who encountered third straight defeat to championship leader Max Verstappen at Red Bull Ring for Austrian Grand Prix.

Yesterday Austrian Grand Prix clearly shows that, another disappointing race for Silver-Arrows, especially Hamilton, who struggled with floor damage. The Brit already too much struggled with race pace, who trapped behind the Lando Norris in the initial part of the race.

After overtaking the Norris, Lewis was unable to keep better pace against team-mate Valtteri Bottas and Norris behind, as the Brit struggled to finish with his damaged Mercedes.

“We have a little bit coming [British GP] but it’s not going to close the gap enough,” Hamilton said. “So, we’ve got to do some more work.”

“I already said before the race that it would be very hard to beat Max. It was frustrating to lose so much downforce on the rear of the car and not to be able to hold on to second. It is a lot of points lost today.

“I wasn’t going over the kerbs more than anybody else so I have no idea where the damage happened but there was a lot of damage. I would have finished an easy second and all of a sudden it broke.”

Hamilton added: “We are miles away from them (Red Bull) so we have a lot of work to do. We need all hands-on deck.

“We have got to bring some upgrades and find some performance otherwise this will most often be the result.”

We’ve not been strong enough at Red Bull Ring – Shovlin

“A disappointing one for Lewis after he lost a lot of downforce with some bodywork damage before the stop. Our task today was made harder by our poor qualifying but second and third was realistically our best result and around half distance it looked like we were on track to achieve that.” Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes trackside engineering director said

“Lewis took a lot out of his tyres trying to pass in the first stint but once he’d got through on lap 20, Max was too far up the road for us to mount a challenge so we were just looking for any opportunities with safety cars.”

“It looks like the bodywork damage for Lewis was at the end of lap 29 just before we came in. The downforce loss was around six or seven tenths but as it was all from the rear, the balance become difficult and we were damaging the rears with sliding. That dropped Lewis from second to fourth but at least we had Valtteri up there to pick up the position.”

“We know we’ve not been strong enough at this track over a range of conditions so we need to go away and work hard to understand that. For the British Grand Prix we’ll bring an update package and it’s also a track that has suited our car in recent years. We really missed the fans in 2020 but we’ll be working hard over the next few days to recover our form and hopefully can give them something to cheer about on race day.” He concluded

2021 F1

What penalty do Red Bull face for breaching F1 cost cap?

Published

6 months ago

October 10, 2022

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FIA recently confirmed that, Red Bull Racing have been found guilty of violating Formula 1 budget cap for 2021.

The Official confirmation by FIA said that a “minor” breaking of the budget cap. As resulted exceeding the budget by less than 5% or $7.25m – could have big consequences if the FIA decide to punish them.

Max Verstappen, who won a second F1 championship in weird conditions in Japan on Sunday, clinched the 2021 F1 title after late and controversial drama involving the safety car in Abu Dhabi.

The cost cap breaches penalty ranges from a public reprimand to a financial penalty or secondary level sporting penalties.

• Public reprimand
• Deduction of Constructors’ Championship points awarded for the Championship that took place within the Reporting Period of the breach;
• Deduction of Drivers’ Championship points awarded for the Championship that took place within the Reporting Period of the breach;
• Suspension from one or more stages of a Competition or Competitions, excluding for the avoidance of doubt the race itself;
• Limitations on ability to conduct aerodynamic or other Testing; and/or
• Reduction of the Cost Cap

Red Bull hint they will appeal FIA decision

The statement, released on their social meadi page read: “We note the findings with surprise and disappointment. Our 2021 submission was below the cost cap limit so we need to carefully review the FIA’s findings as our belief remains that the relevant costs are under the 2021 cost cap amount.

“Despite the conjecture and positioning of others, there is of course a process under the regulations with the FIA which we will respectfully follow while we consider all the options available to us.”

2022 F1

Verstappen won his second F1 World Championship

Published

6 months ago

October 9, 2022

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Max Verstappen won the rain hit Japanese Grand Prix and he secure his second world title as well. The Dutchman takes the full 19 points and his teammate Sergio Perez made second place, following the Charles Leclerc receives five seconds penalty, who crossed the line just ahead of Perez… but final corner cutting was given his time penalty.

Verstappen: It’s crazy

“It’s crazy. Very mixed emotions,” he said.

“Looking back, what a year we’ve had so far. It’s been incredible. It’s something I could never have imagined. After last year, fighting until the end, and then having such a good car again this year. I’m so thankful to everyone who has been contributing to this success.”

… More to follow

2023 F1

Nyck de Vries secures 2023 AlphaTauri F1 race seat

Published

6 months ago

October 8, 2022

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The Dutch racing driver Nyck de Vries sealed AlphaTauri F1 racing seat as replaced the Alpine-moved Pierre Gasly for 2023 F1 season.

27 years old, former F2 and Formula E world Champion’s demand has been raised, after he made an extraordinary performance at Monza for Williams racing team, who finished ninth on his F1 debut.

“I’m extremely excited to be joining Scuderia AlphaTauri for 2023 and I want to thank both Red Bull and the team for giving me the opportunity to drive in F1,” the Dutchman said.

“After Formula 2, I took a slightly different path with motorsport, but F1 has always been my dream and I’m grateful to be able to fulfil it.

“I’ve had a lot of chances to experience the 2022 car this year and I think that has put me in a great position for the upcoming season, I hope this has helped to prepare me for what is to come.”

“After Formula 2, I took a slightly different path with motorsport, but F1 has always been my dream and I’m grateful to be able to fulfil it.

“Having spent most of my teenage years in Italy for karting, I’ve always felt at home there, so for me, it’s great to be joining an Italian team, that already has a real family feel,” he added.

“I’m looking forward to meeting everyone and to start to build our relationship before the next season.”

AlphaTauri team head Franz Tost also gave his full care to De Vries, point out: “We are pleased to start a new chapter with Nyck, who’s very much welcome at Scuderia AlphaTauri.

“He is a very highly skilled driver, as he won in all the categories he competed in, with many races and championships under his belt.

“His last big success was winning the Formula E World Championship, and this is clear evidence that he is a very competitive driver, who deserves a seat in F1.

“I am looking forward to seeing him in our car and I’m confident that with Yuki and Nyck we will have a very strong driver lineup for 2023.”

The Austrian also paid praise to Gasly, who has spent at least part of every season at the team since his debut in 2017.

“AlphaTauri had a very successful time with Pierre,” he said.

“We will never forget his fantastic victory in Monza and his podium finishes in Brazil and Azerbaijan.

“I want to thank Pierre for all the effort he’s put into the team in the last years, and I wish him all the best for his future.”