Formula 1 - 2017

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Strategy Report: How Red Bull made Mercedes jump to its tune

James Allen takes a strategic review of the Japanese Grand Prix, and analyses the battle for the win and some midfield team orders.

It is easy for fans to assume that a one-stop race is straightforward for all teams concerned, but in the case of the 2017 Japanese Grand Prix, nothing could be further from the truth.

The teams went into the race with four laps of data on which to base key strategic decisions around 25-lap stints. Suzuka is a track to be aggressive on, it often brings results and Red Bull has benefitted from that many times down the years.

We saw Red Bull taking lots of risks to try to win the race with Max Verstappen, and he almost succeeded by forcing Mercedes into a sub-optimal strategy with Lewis Hamilton. But the Englishman managed to hold on, just, to win the race.

Further back we will look at how two midfield teams imposed team orders, refusing drivers’ requests to switch the cars, how Valtteri Bottas’ role as a rear gunner for Hamilton cost him a podium and whether the fast-starting Sebastian Vettel could have won the race if he had not suffered power loss due to a spark plug failure. 

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1 W08, leads Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen at Suzuka

Pre-race expectations

With very limited dry running before the race, teams had little data to work on for race strategy planning. The soft and supersoft tyres would be the main sets and Vettel opined that the lack of data didn’t matter too much as they know the tyres well by now. But memories of Silverstone, where Vettel’s blistered front tyre failed due to going on too long, were still vivid in people’s minds.

The expectation was that this would be a one-stop race, but there was quite a set of unknowns, and the Plan B of a switch to two stops was ready to be deployed.

The uncertainty about what to do creates a dilemma for teams; because the tyres are a bit too resilient to be ideal this year – last year, one stoppers used medium and hard tyres! – teams default to the minimum stop solution, in this case one stop.

But it leads to two things: lots of risk taking at the start, as it’s one of few opportunities to make up places and also it leads to a ‘group mentality’, which means making copycat moves.

Underlying these one-stop races this year is a great tension; what to do if a rival attacks with an early stop on Lap 16? Do you cover it or copy the move?

Two stop strategies create gaps in the traffic, while one-stop races create doubt, especially for the drivers. This is why you often hear Lewis Hamilton questioning a strategy decision; he’s picking up on that mood of uncertainty. What swung it towards one stop this year was the Virtual Safety Car periods, which gave the tyres a breather.

Last year in Suzuka, everyone finished and there were no VSCs. But this year with faster cars it was clear that the track punished mistakes, which is as it should be in F1.

So against that backdrop of tension and doubt, a team like Red Bull – with nothing to lose in the drivers’ championship – could afford to take big risks.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull, second place, with race winner Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1, on the podium

How Verstappen almost made it back-to-back wins

Verstappen won in Malaysia by making an aggressive overtaking move for the lead on Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton respects Verstappen, you can tell. And he respected him even more after that, even though he was dealing with a de-rate problem on his engine at the time.

So when the Dutchman forced his way past team mate Daniel Ricciardo at the start at Suzuka on Sunday, he was in the fight for the win again, and Red Bull was on a war footing.

On the first set of supersoft tyres, he had similar pace to Hamilton, but lost the front tyres as the stint evolved and struggled to keep the gap. But team boss Christian Horner had predicted that Verstappen would have a say in the final part of the race on the soft tyres and so it proved.

Red Bull took a huge risk on the timing of Verstappen’s stop; Raikkonen had started the race on soft tyres and was coming through the field as cars on supersofts peeled into the pits. Verstappen was pulled in on Lap 21, in order to provoke Mercedes into stopping Hamilton to cover.

Verstappen exited the pits only just ahead of Raikkonen. This forced Verstappen to push the tyres on the outlap, which may have cost him later in the race.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB13 and Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari SF70H battle for position

Hamilton had to stop the following lap, leaving 31 laps to go to the flag. His supersofts still had life in them; in a race where he was not under pressure he would have gone on to Lap 26, which would have given a more even balance to the stints.

Mercedes was under pressure, but had another piece to play in the chess game; Valtteri Bottas was on a similar strategy to Raikkonen, having taken a five-place grid penalty. He was left out for a couple of laps once Hamilton had passed him on Lap 28, to hold Verstappen, in order to create a breathing space for Hamilton.

The judgement now was how long to leave Bottas out in order for his new supersoft tyres to be in perfect shape for attacking Ricciardo at the end for the podium.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1 W08, Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes AMG F1 W08, Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB13

The problem for Bottas is that he lost two seconds of race time in the process of letting Hamilton through and spent two extra laps in the 1m35s compared to the 1m33s he was able to do on supersofts after his stop.

The consequence was that he didn’t have quite enough time on the supersoft tyre set to catch Ricciardo.

Raikkonen was a distant fifth, and didn’t seem to have the underlying pace in the car that we have seen of late from Ferrari. It wasn’t fuel and it wasn’t that the engine was turned down particularly after the recent reliability issues.

In Malaysia one could say with some certainty that had Raikkonen or Vettel had a clean weekend they could have won the race. In Suzuka that is less clear-cut, judging by the pace deficit Raikkonen had to Hamilton coming through the field.

Esteban Ocon, Sahara Force India F1 VJM10, Sergio Perez, Sahara Force India F1 VJM10

Team orders imposed in midfield

Both Force India and Haas F1 teams imposed team orders on their drivers, refusing requests from the supposedly senior driver in each team to be allowed through. Both teams got away with it because of other drivers’ outcomes, so there was no controversy, but it is worth examining.

Force India had warned their drivers that they would not tolerate any more collisions; Esteban Ocon had a better qualifying and a better start than his teammate and was a contender in the early stages. Sergio Perez caught him and requested to be allowed to pass.

The team refused to allow it, but in this case the result would not have changed if they had done so. And so Perez was able to accept the decision.

Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team VF-17, leads teammate Romain Grosjean

At Haas it was more finely balanced. There was a queue of cars behind eighth placed Felipe Massa, who was struggling on his tyres. The danger man for Haas was Nico Hulkenberg, who had run an extremely long first stint on softs and who stopped on Lap 38 for supersofts. He would be catching quickly and had Massa’s position in his sights.

Romain Grosjean was on tyres that were four laps fresher than teammate Kevin Magnussen’s and he wanted to be allowed through to attack Massa.

The team declined to swap. Fortunately for them Hulkenberg had to retire soon afterwards, with his DRS wing stuck open, and both Magnussen and Grosjean cleared Massa for a decent afternoon’s work for Haas in eighth and ninth places. 

The UBS Race Strategy Report is written by James Allen with input and data from several of the leading teams’ strategists and from Pirelli.

Race history and tyre usage graphs

Intended to show the relative performance of the cars and the gaps between them. Upward curve is positive. Lap time and gaps down the vertical axis, lap number on the horizontal.

Look at the pace (above) of Raikkonen in the second stint compared to Bottas on the same strategy or Hamilton who is managing his tyres.

Look also at how close Verstappen comes to getting stuck behind Raikkonen on Lap 22, which would have blown his challenge for the win.

After the final VSC Hamilton’s pace declines steeply as his tyres are on the limit, but he holds on.

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F1 begins talks to hold Dutch street race

Formula 1 chiefs have begun talks to get the Dutch Grand Prix back on the calendar – with ambitious plans being considered for a street race in one of the country’s major cities.

Motorsport.com can reveal that F1’s commercial boss Sean Bratches recently visited Holland for talks with local representatives to work out what needs to be done to make the event a reality.

It is understood that Holland is high on the list of countries that F1’s new owners want added to the grand prix schedule, with the country’s booming interest thanks to Max Verstappen meaning it would be hugely popular.

While it had previously been thought that Holland’s best hopes of winning an F1 race would be for it to take place at permanent track Zandvoort, which last hosted a GP in 1985, sources have revealed that Bratches is actually looking at bolder plans.

With F1’s new vision to make grands prix festival events, Bratches is targetting a street race in one of Holland’s major cities – most likely either Amsterdam or Rotterdam.

All options are currently being considered, with F1 well aware that it will have to balance out the attraction of Amsterdam being a more well-known destination city against the likely more difficult logistical problems that could come from hosting an event there.

Rotterdam has regularly held F1 street demos in the past (pictured above), so the city does at least have some experience of the complications that can come from hosting an event there.

It is not clear what timeframe Bratches is looking at to make a Dutch GP city race get on the calendar, but his recent visit highlights that he is eager to get the ball rolling.

Verstappen’s Red Bull boss Christian Horner believed that a Dutch Grand Prix in one of the big cities would be phenomenally successful.

“Street races are always fun – they always have big crowds and big atmospheres, Horner told Motorport.com.

“Obviously the amount of support there is behind Max in Holland at the moment means it would bring the country to a stop, so you can only imagine it being something huge.

“So as long as the venue and the track layout work, then why not?”

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Haas F1 team: Renault/Toro Rosso driver changes could help us

Mid-season driver changes for Toro Rosso and Renault can boost the Haas Formula 1 team's chances of a strong constructors' championship finish, says its team principal Gunther Steiner.

Haas is locked in a tight battle for fifth in the standings, with Renault one point behind, Toro Rosso nine clear and Williams a further 14 ahead with four races to go.

The American team boosted its chances with only its second double-points finish of the season in Japan as Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean finished eighth and ninth respectively.

Steiner believes with Sainz - who has scored 48 of Toro Rosso's 52 points - taking Jolyon Palmer's seat at Renault and Toro Rosso's line-up still uncertain for the upcoming United States Grand Prix, Haas could benefit.

"I hope it helps," he said. "It could because Sainz is a good driver and he scored almost all of Toro Rosso's points.

"It's not a disadvantage for us.

"I wouldn't say we've got confident [of holding on to seventh in the constructors' championship], but we will try.

"We will work hard. We've got closer to Toro Rosso. The battle is not over in there, it just started in my opinion.

"It's tough. I'd rather be ahead, than behind. It's the same for Toro Rosso.

"They would rather be nine points ahead than nine behind. It keeps it interesting for the fans."

Haas plans to bring its final update of the season to its home race in Austin but is not expecting dramatic gains in lap time, as the majority if its focus is on next year's challenger.

"We have small updates for Austin, the last one for this car," said Steiner.

"It's a small modification for the floor but it's small, it's not something that will make us go half a second faster, nothing near it.

"You need to try and do what you can do so we do it."

Haas has struggled with a peaky car this season, struggling to understand its performance from one race weekend to another and from qualifying to the race.

It struggled in the heat of Malaysia but faired much better as temperatures dropped last time out in Japan.

"There's a lot of teams here who don't know why they are fast or slow," Steiner added.

"It has a lot to do with tyres. It seems when it's colder, it's easier to work with the tyres. I think that's part of it. "On high downforce tracks, our aero is not the best."

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US GP: Ferrari/Mercedes diverge slightly on tyre choices

Formula 1's top teams have decided against an aggressive tyre selection for the United States Grand Prix, as title rivals Mercedes and Ferrari opted for marginally different choices.

Pirelli has made the soft, supersoft and ultrasoft tyres available for the Austin race, which is one step softer than last year.

While Mercedes and Ferrari have chosen seven sets of the ultrasoft tyre for each of their drivers, Ferrari has favoured more of the supersofts.

Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel have five and four sets of the red-walled rubber respectively, while Lewis Hamilton has three and Valtteri Bottas four.

That leaves Raikkonen with just one set of softs, while Vettel and Bottas have two sets and championship leader Hamilton three.

Red Bull duo Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen's selections match that of Vettel and Bottas with two sets of softs, four supersofts and seven ultrasofts.

McLaren and Williams have opted for the most sets of ultrasofts with Fernando Alonso, Stoffel Vandoorne, Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll having nine apiece.

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TORO ROSSO CONSIDERING HARTLEY AND BUEMI FOR US GP

Toro Rosso team could be facing yet another driver change amid uncertainty about Pierre Gasly’s availability for next week’s United States Grand Prix, thrusting former Red Bull backed drivers Brendon Hartley and Sebastien Buemi into the Formula 1 limelight as possible contenders to be on the grid in Austin.

Young Frenchman Gasly made his debut in Malaysia and competed in last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix alongside Spaniard Carlos Sainz, with Russian Daniil Kvyat dropped for those races.

Sainz is racing for Renault next season and that switch has now been brought forward, with both teams announcing at Suzuka that he would be driving for the French outfit from Austin onwards.

That has opened up the door for the under-performing Kvyat to return but Gasly may now miss Texas because the United States Grand Prix clashes with the decisive round of the Japanese Super Formula series at Suzuka.

Gasly can win that title for Team Mugen who are powered by Honda, Toro Rosso’s engine partners next year. The Frenchman is half a point behind Toyota-powered Hiroaki Ishiura in a battle of Japanese brands.

The rookie, who is set to return for the last three rounds of the season after Austin, has said he would rather stay with Toro Rosso and the team indicated that would be the case when he arrived.

However, Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko suggested last weekend that the Japanese race might be given priority, a view that has since been firmed up according to media reports.

A Toro Rosso spokesperson was unable to clarify the situation on Thursday and did not know who would be driving in Austin.

Should Gasly’s absence be confirmed, Toro Rosso’s options appear limited given the shortage of available drivers with the necessary super licence.

Former Toro Rosso driver Buemi, who has won the Formula E electric title since he last competed in Formula 1 in 2011, has emerged as an option.

As has Le Mans winner Hartley who also has enough points to qualify for a super licence and it is now believed that the New Zealander has become the leading contender.

Hartley is a former Red Bull reserve driver who also tested for Toro Rosso in 2009 but has never raced in Formula 1 and has not been in an F1 car since 2012, before the new generation of turbo hybrid engines.

The 27-year-old won at Le Mans with Porsche this year and is competing in the World Endurance Championship, a sportscar title he won in 2015.

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BOULLIER: IN TERMS OF RACING WE HAVE NOTHING FOR JENSON

McLaren team chief Eric Boullier has all bit confirmed that Jenson Button will not be driving for the team in Formula 1 again, as the team seek to promote highly rated Lando Norris to the role of reserve.

Jenson Button made an appearance at the Japanese Grand Prix in his role as McLaren ambassador, during a sit down with journalists he conceded that he is done with Formula 1

But admitted that he was looking for alternatives, “Next year I will race something. I don’t know what yet whether it be in America, Europe or Japan. There are a few options but I want to do a full season.”

Just as well because Boullier made it blatantly clear when he told Sky Sport, “I think Jenson is looking for a full-time racing seat, and obviously we don’t have any.”

“But he is an ambassador and we would be happy to keep working with him in a role that suits both parties. But as far as racing is concerned we have nothing to offer to him.”

“If Jenson has no role here then of course we need a new driver. We have to prepare,” explained Boullier.

McLaren have been grooming Norris since they signed him as a junior driver in February 2017. Since then the 17 year old drove for the team during official in-season testing at Hungaroring where he impressed all, setting the second best lap time during the second day of testing.

Boullier said, “Lando could be one of them. If he wins Formula 3, which is very likely, then he will have enough points to get a superlicence.”

Norris is set to claim the European F3 Championship, all he needs is to score three points in the three remaining rounds to be held at Hockenheim on the weekend of 14-15 October.

In September, McLaren executive director Zak Brown made it clear that his team have Norris’ future mapped out, “Our current plan is to put him in Formula 2. I certainly think he’s fast enough to be in Formula 1 but we don’t want to rush things.”

“He’s definitely our star of the future and we won’t put him in another Formula 1 team at this point,” added Brown.

Button meanwhile admitted that he fell out of love with the sport at the highest level, “Do I miss F1? No. I miss racing but I’ve sort of fallen out of love a little bit with motorsport. I think that maybe I left it a year too long racing in Formula 1.”

Button scored McLaren’s last victory at the 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix.

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KUBICA COMPLETES SUCCESSFUL FIRST TEST WITH WILLIAMS

Robert Kubica has completed a first day of testing with Williams at Silverstone in an all white FW36, as the team begin a process of assessing drivers who may replace Felipe Massa in the team for 2018 and beyond.

Under cloudy skies Kubica “completed a successful day with the team” according to a spokesperson who did not divulge any further information, thus lap times and the amount of laps covered by the Polish driver are not known.

It is believed that the car used was the same one driven by the team’s rookie driver Lance Stroll during his intensive testing programme last year.

Kubica is being evaluated by Williams in the wake of successful tests he had with Renault in August. The French team flirted with the idea of giving him a full-time drive in 2018 but in the end opted to sign Carlos Sainz on loan from Red Bull.

Also in contention is Paul di Resta who stood in for Felipe Massa when the Brazilian was taken ill during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. The Scot gave a good account of himself despite minimal preparation and running before getting the call up.

Williams technical chief Paddy Lowe said last week, “We will test those two drivers. We won’t give away any information around what we do within those tests, that’s a private matter for us and I would stress that doesn’t mean that they’re the only drivers under consideration.”

Both Di Resta and Kubica are expected to test for Williams at Hungaroring next week, ahead of the United States Grand Prix weekend, for further evaluation and to help the Grove outfit make a decision about their drivers for next season.

Stroll is expected to remain with the team, but the future of Felipe Massa is uncertain although the Brazilian veteran is keen to remain for another season, while Mercedes backed Pascal Wehrlein is reportedly also a candidate being considered.

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DE VILLOTA FAMILY REACH AGREEMENT WITH MANOR OVER CRASH

The family of Maria de Villota have reached agreement in their ongoing dispute with the Manor Formula 1 team over her crash in 2012.

De Villota was a test driver for the then-Marussia team when she crashed into a support truck at Duxford Airfield in Cambridgeshire and lost her right eye.

The Spaniard died in Seville in October 2013, aged 33, “as a consequence of the neurological injuries she suffered” her family said at the time.

De Villota, the daughter of former F1 racer Emilio de Villota, had experience as a World Touring Car Championship and Superleague Formula driver.

An internal Marussia investigation at the time concluded there was no issue with the car and a subsequent 2015 probe by the Health and Safety Executive decided “no enforcement action will be taken” against the British F1 team.

Wednesday’s joint statement, issued on behalf of the family of Maria de Villota and the Manor F1 team, brings to an end a lengthy ligation process.

“The family of Maria de Villota are pleased to say that they have reached agreement in their dispute with the Manor F1 Team following Maria’s accident on the 3 July 2012,” the statement read.

“The accident happened for a number of reasons, one of which was that a lorry was parked in the pit area with its tail lift projecting, for which Maria was not at fault.”

A spokesperson for Manor added: “It was a tragic accident which shocked the team and all who knew her. She is sorely missed.”

Following her death, Maria’s Legacy was established, solidarity programmes which focus primarily on children with neurodegenerative diseases and people with limited financial resources.

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LAUDA: IF WE GO TOO FAR WITH SAFETY FORMULA 1 DESTROYS ITSELF

Niki Lauda is one of Formula1’s elder statesmen, it is well known that he survived a near death experience after crashing his Ferrari horrifically on the second lap of the 1976 German Grand Prix at the notorious Nurburgring Nordschleife, thus when he talks about Formula 1 safety it’s worth listening.

During an interview with Graham Bensinger, Lauda spoke about the state of safety in the modern era, “Don’t continue trying to make Formula 1 completely safe, because people will lose interest in the end…”

“These Formula 1 drivers should be the best drivers in the world. This is what people aim for… People sometimes like to see accidents to see where the limits are… If we go too far, I think Formula 1 destroys itself.”

In his book, Lauda recalled how while in intensive care a priest was at his bedside administering last rites, yet six weeks later he was back in the cockpit wearing a special helmet as a result of his raw wounds caused by the fire ball that engulfed him on the day of the crash. The rest is history…

To this day the triple F1 World Champion wears a trademark cap to hide the burn scars he still carries from that fateful day.

He explained, “I had the cap on because the cap is my protection for stupid people looking at me stupidly. They always want to see what the hell’s going on under the cap, and to protect myself – feeling more comfortable, I put a cap on…”

“So there have been incidents where I was hurt by people… They treated me so bad that the only interest they had in me was to look what happens under the cap and that really annoyed me. So when people came and I felt this – look at my eyes if you wanna talk to me for Christ’s sake!”

“And by the way I have an accident as an excuse to look ugly. Some people don’t have this excuse – they are ugly,” he added in his typical frank style.

During the long and varied interview Lauda also had an indirect dig at Nico Rosberg, the Mercedes driver who became world champion last year – after winning his first and only title – but abruptly quit the sport much to the great Austrian’s chagrin at the time.

Lauda said on the subject, “I think winning one world championship – it’s easy in a way because you could have had the best car and you could do it. But winning more championships – then you see the difference between the drivers.”

“When you win more championships you have to be better every year. You have to improve your driving; you have to understand the cars. You’re driving different cars, different areas of technical rules and regulations. So the more-time world champions are the real good ones,” he added.

Lauda himself won three two F1 world championship titles, two with Ferrari in 1975 and 1977, and a third in 1984 with McLaren.

Bensinger spent two days with F1 icon Niki Lauda taping an episode of In Depth with Graham Bensinger, which will air across the United States this weekend.

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ALLISON: FRUSTRATING TO COMPARE HAMILTON, VETTEL AND ALONSO

James Allison has worked closely with the three best Formula 1 drivers of this generation – Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso – and although he finds it frustrating to compare the trio, he does admit that working with Hamilton is special.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Allison said of the triple F1 World Champion with whom he works with at Mercedes, “I’ve found a racing driver or the sort of excellence that all of us can see from his statistics and the way he goes about his job”

“What has been particularly good is that I’ve found a guy that conducts himself as a man in a way that makes you happy to work alongside him. And that’s been an enjoyable and good thing about joining Mercedes.”

Prior to that Allison reveals that contact between him and Hamilton had been scarce, “I think I’d only ever said hello to him once in all the years prior to that and the experience of working with him is very different to what I imagined it would be.”

Before joining Mercedes in February this year, Allison was with Renault from 2005 to 2009, and then with Ferrari from 2013 to 2016.

He thus knows Alonso well, having worked with the Spaniard at Renault and also at Ferrari. The Englishman was also at Maranello when Vettel arrived in 2015.

Invariably he is asked to compare Hamilton, Vettel and Alonso, but pragmatically he refuses to be drawn into making any such conclusions, “I get asked this question a lot!”

“It’s a frustrating question because, first of all, there’s an impossibility of answering it because there’s only one way to know for sure and it’s to line them all up in exactly the same equipment on the same days and have a championship where you find out exactly.”

“All I can tell you is that all three of them have got the victories and the achievements that they have, not by good fortune but by being brilliantly skillful racing drivers,” added Allison.

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Robert Kubica would 'wake' Williams up claims Bernie Ecclestone

Bernie Ecclestone has urged Williams to sign Robert Kubica, claiming the Polish driver will deliver and will "wake the team up".

Kubica completed a "successful" one-day test with Williams on Wednesday as part of an assessment plan to see whether he is capable of a full-time race seat alongside Lance Stroll.

Whilst others are in the running, including Felipe Massa, Paul di Resta and Pascal Wehrlein, Ecclestone believes Kubica would be their best bet.

"I think he can come back even stronger then before," the former F1 boss told Motorsport. "Mentally, I think probably he will be more aggressive: so I can only see good, good things for him."

Ecclestone believes he would be an asset for Williams and would boost their position which has fallen into a lull in recent years.

"If I were Williams, I would definitely try to persuade him to join. Maybe they are going to lose Felipe Massa at the end of the year, I should think he has probably had enough, and if Robert is on board then he might wake up a lot of people there.

"The team hasn't been performing as well as it should have done, and whether it is because of drivers or the team in general, I don't know. Nobody knows. So it would be nice to get a guy who should be quick in the car to find out."

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Fans will lose interest if Formula 1 becomes 'too safe' - Niki Lauda

Niki Lauda claims Formula 1 fans will begin to lose interest in the sport if the FIA's push for safety continues, claiming fans like an element of danger.

Lauda, who was involved in a near-fatal accident at the 1976 German Grand Prix, is a strong critic of the Halo head protection device, claiming it is a step too far and one that will deter some of the sport's fan from tuning in.

"Don’t continue trying to make Formula 1 completely safe, because people will lose interest in the end…" he said in an interview with Graham Bensinger, which is due to be aired in the US over the weekend.

"These Formula 1 drivers should be the best drivers in the world. This is what people aim for… People sometimes like to see accidents to see where the limits are… If we go too far, I think Formula 1 destroys itself," added Lauda.

The Austrian believs the sport has reached a point where it is already safe enough and had he had his accident in the modern era, he would simply have walked away from it without a scratch,

"The drivers of today they come with their wife and kids, with the dog, and watch the race because there is no more this danger.

"We were always alone, basically, because we didn’t want our wife to come to the race and bring us home in a coffin. This was a different era and thank god Formula 1 got much safer, that this problem is reduced to nothing and I think it’s good for the sport.

"[Today] I would not have burned my ear, I would not have damaged myself at all, and I would have 50 times more money. I would prefer to race today if I had the option, but I don’t have the option."

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Vamos! – Carlos Sainz Jr. on Fernando Alonso & why he owes everything to Scuderia Toro Rosso

Having recently announced his move to Renault Sport, Carlos Sainz Jr. is in no doubt that he owes everything to his former team, Scuderia Toro Rosso. Mobil 1 The Grid spoke to the Spaniard to find out more about his time with STR, as well as the impact compatriot Fernando Alonso has had on his career to date.

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HARTLEY: I’VE GROWN A LOT AS DRIVER

Brendon Harley will be making his Formula 1 debut when he lines up on the grid for Toro Rosso at the United States Grand Prix, and it comes at one of his busiest times in his season.

Since he was ejected from the Red Bull young driver programme and he has made a hugely successful career in the World Endurance Championship as a works Porsche driver with whom he was 2015 sportscar world champion.

Before heading to Austin, Hartley was at Fuji this weekend, contesting Round 7 of the WEC, where he finished fourth and took a step closer to the drivers title along with teammates Earl Bamber and Timo Bernhard, while Porsche creep towards another title in the premier sportscar series.

Speaking from Japan, Hartley admitted, “It’s been a pretty crazy week. It happened quite quickly. As soon as this weekend is over, full focus goes onto a big and new challenge next week.”

“I’ve got a lot to learn in one week but I feel ready for it, honestly. This programme’s taught me a lot, working guys like Mark [Webber], Timo [Bernhard], Earl [Bamber], it’s such a good project where we’re at the forefront of technology and part of development.”

Hartley is no stranger to hybrid technology and the gizmos drivers have to master before they even step into a modern race car, after all the LMP1 Porsche is a state-of-the-art piece of kit – a Formula 1 car with a roof.

He is also well familiar with Circuit of the Americas where in September he powered to victory with teammates Bernhard and Bamber.

In 2009, Hartley was appointed as official reserve driver for both the Red Bull and Scuderia Toro Rosso teams, a role he had on and off until the energy drinks outfit became disenchanted with him, thanks to a below par 2010 Formula Renault 3.5 campaign, and sent him packing.

Hartley acknowledges, “I’ve grown a lot as driver. It’s an amazing opportunity. It’s going to be a dream come true, I’ve thought about that moment since I was a little kid. I’m looking forward to it, I’m going to embrace it and most of all I’m going to try and enjoy it.”

Hartley won the legendary Le Mans 24 hours earlier this year with fellow Kiwi driver Bamber, the two drivers sharing a similar karting background.

Bamber said of his teammate, “He’s been giving the numbers for the last couple of years, he’s been the reference driver in my eyes. He deserves the opportunity and I think it’s awesome for Kiwi motor racing.”

The opportunity could well catapult Hartley into contention for a Toro Rosso seat next year. The team have confirmed Pierre Gasly as one of their drivers. The young Frenchman was handed his debut at the Malaysian Grand Prix in place of under performing Daniil Kvyat.

But the weekend in Texas coincides with the season finale of the Japanese Super Formula, where he is a title contender for the Honda backed Team Mugen – next year Toro Rosso will be powered by Honda. 

His minders have logically decided that a championship is more important than one grand prix. Gasly will be at Suzuka to try and win the series. Step in Mr Hartley.

A driver of Hartley’s experience, with hybrid technology, would be a great asset for the Toro Rosso-Honda project, thus a deal to drive for the team in 2018 may be more than a pipe dream for the New Zealander.

Thus the three days at the United States Grand Prix can be considered a showdown between Kvyat and Hartley. The latter needing just to outshine the beleaguered Russian to become a serious contender for the Toro Rosso drive next season.

It will be a tall order for the New Zealander who has never sat in a new era F1 car, let alone drive it while Kvyat has.

Nevertheless this will be an intriguing sideshow to keep an eye on during the weekend at COTA. Watch this space…

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STEINER: FERRARI ASKED US TO TAKE ON A JUNIOR AND WE SAID NO

Haas F1 team chief Guenther Steiner revealed that the American team remained loyal to their drivers – Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean – when Ferrari were shopping for a race seat to place one of their juniors on the grid for next season.

Ferrari are keen to promote their highly regarded academy drivers, Charles Leclerc and Antonio Giovinazzi, to the Formula 1 grid as they groom them for the future.

As a Ferrari customer team Haas were an obvious team to approach, as a discount on engines for a seat is a common strategy used by big teams with their customers.

Steiner told Racer, “We work very closely with Ferrari together on things but they respect our decisions. Sure, they asked us if we can do something, and we said no. It’s fine. I think we work with both of our drivers very well so at the moment for us there is nothing to be changed.”

Grosjean and Magnussen have long been confirmed as the team’s drivers for 2018, “We know we have got these two drivers. Sometimes you need to look after the long term, because next year is short term.”

“We make our plans and try to plan as well as possible. When we signed these drivers we had to make the plans together. We need to be consistent. I think we are pretty stable and for sure the drivers are helping to grow the team.”

“I cannot say if it would have been different if we had someone else in the car. We don’t have the years of experience to say: With this guy we did better than that one.”

“We’re only in our second year  and sometimes you forget that. It looks like we’ve been here forever now but we’ve not. Everything is new for us. While consistency sometimes goes against you – sometimes fresh blood helps you do better – we need to build a base. For that, consistency is important,” added Steiner.

Meanwhile it seems more than likely that either Leclerc or Giovinazzi will be Sauber drivers next year. The latter has already driven for the Swiss team, earlier this year, in place of injured Pascal Wehrlein.

Leclerc was handed four FP1 sessions with Sauber and was on duty in Malaysia and will also be in the car in the USA, Mexico and Brazil.

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ABU DHABI NOT WORRIED TITLE MAY BE DECIDED BEFORE FINAL RACE

Lewis Hamilton is fast closing in on his fourth Formula 1 World Championship, which could mean that the title will be done and dusted before the circus sets up tent at the season finale Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but such a scenario does not bother the venue’s boss.

 Yas Marina Circuit CEO Tareq Al Ameri told Gulf News, “We have seen it happen before as well when the title was already decided. I don’t think it took anything away from our race. People still came in and enjoyed and watched their favourite driver compete.”

It is believed that the race organisers paid a substantial sum, during the Bernie Ecclestone reign, to ensure that their race remained the last one on the grand prix calendar. 

But Al Ameri is comfortable if the race in Abu Dhabi is not the decider, “We have been in both positions when the race went to the wire and when it was already decided and on both occasions, the response was pretty much the same. It did not take anything away from the event itself.”

“The motorsport element, management side and rivalry between drivers — everything has been great and the new management at the helm of the sport has tried to shake things and add new elements into it. I would say there are exciting days ahead for Formula 1″

For these reasons remaining the final destination of each season is still an attractive proposition, “We are happy to keep the last race slot and we are also in discussion with the Liberty Group. So far, both of us think this is the right thing to do.”

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ALONSO TO WEAR INDY 500 TRIBUTE HELMET FOR USGP

Fernando Alonso will wear an alternative helmet for the United States Grand Prix, based on the same colours and design as the helmet he used during the week in which he competed at the Indianapolis 500 in May.

Alonso posted on Instagram:

The helmet is predominantly black with red and yellow stripes representing the national colours of Spain, as well as a stripe in the blue of the Asturian flag, where the Spaniard hails from.

The only difference in design, between the helmet Alonso wore at the Indy 500 and the one he will use in Austin, is the number 29 which he used at the Brickyard will be replaced with 14, his permanent Formula 1 race number.

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VERSTAPPEN: LEWIS IS ONLY HAPPY WHEN HE WINS

After the Japanese Grand Prix Lewis Hamilton was clearly impressed with Max Verstappen who finished second at the race in Suzuka, prompting the Mercedes driver to put the young Dutchman on a pedestal of sorts.

A week earlier Verstappen scored a tremendous victory at the Malaysian Grand Prix, beating Hamilton fair and square in the process.

In Japan, after the race, Hamilton said of Verstappen who stalked him all the way to the chequered flag, “In Malaysia he was just too quick. I think [in Japan] he was quicker – maybe just a little bit quicker – but I think I was able to match the times we were doing at the time. Yeah, we’re quicker in qualifying but they are at least within a tenth or so of us in the race. We all know how quick Max is, he’s doing a great job, very consistent.”

And recalled his thought process during the race, “I was kind of like – he won the last race, I’m not letting you have this one. I’ve [had to] make sure I kind of man up and show my age and make sure that I stay ahead. Show that I’m actually still very young at heart. That was kind of my thought process for you behind.”

To which Verstappen interjected with a quip, “I was thinking: this guy’s so old in front of me.”

Hamilton continued, “I’m enjoying being in an era with such great young talent coming through. He’ll be here far beyond after I stop. But until then, I will try and not give him too many poles or too many wins.”

There is no doubt that Verstappen is a champion of the future provided he is provided with a car and engine capable of winning races on a regular basis.

As for Hamilton’s admiration, Verstappen was wary of the kind words, “Lewis is only happy when he wins. Not when he comes in second or third. So we are going to have to change that. I hope that I can be a bit more on the podium next to him and of course on the top step.”

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HAMILTON TO MENTOR DRIVERS IN GRAN TURISMO SPORT

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton will be appearing in ‘Gran Turismo Sport’ as the mentor who will teach and guide players on the art of racing and race-craft.

Creators of the title, Polyphony Digital, announced: “Lewis Hamilton will reveal his driving philosophy, techniques, and his way of life through driving images and interviews for the players of Gran Turismo Sport.”

“His driving footage, theories and episodes will provide valuable advice to many players who strive to be just as fast and strong as the Maestro himself.”

Hamilton said of the project, “I have been playing Gran Turismo since I was a child, so to actually be part of the gameplay design has been an incredible experience.”

Gran Turismo series producer Kazunori Yamauchi added, “From watching Lewis drive on TV all these years, I had an idea of how he might drive, but the experience of watching him drive in person was well beyond my wildest expectations. And I’m really glad to be able to share his driving philosophy with all Gran Turismo players.”

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THE $12-MILLION DOLLAR BATTLE GETS SUPER SERIOUS

With four races to go in the 2017 Formula 1 world championship season, the fight out front is largely done-and-dusted in the constructor’s championship – Mercedes will be first, Ferrari second, Red Bull third and Force India fourth.

However, behind that quartet is one hell of a midfield battle, with just 24 points separating fifth from eighth.

No, fifth place isn’t normally something you’d pop the champers about, but for (in order) Williams, Toro Rosso, Haas and Renault, the significance is huge – it all comes down to money.

Employing the sort of labyrinthine, massively-complicated payout structure that only Ron Dennis could appreciate, it’s not easy to figure out just how much each team takes home in prize money, but the gist is this: of the approximately $324.5-million up for grabs for performances this season, the fifth-placed team takes home 10% which is $32.45-million and the P8 team gets 6% namely $19.47-million. That’s a $12.98-million difference, which for teams in the midfield is a fairly significant sum, potentially representing as much as 10% of their annual budget.

Especially these days, nothing comes cheap in F1. Even a team like Renault needs to watch their budget (why else would you take on Jolyon Palmer?) but especially for the Haas’ and Toro Rosso’s of the sport, that money goes a long way. Sponsors are hard to come by when the best you can hope for is a points finish, and those that do sign on aren’t shelling out anything close to the reported $200m plus Ferrari receives annually from Phillip Morris.

In any case, teams are shelling out for a few hundred personnel – from mechanics and engineers, to the people who work in the hospitality suites – as well as R&D, engine supplies, travel and even the unexpected. Case-in-point, Romain Grosjean’s incident with the loose drain cover in Malaysia is rumoured to have cost Haas upwards of $650,000, and while they might get that back from the Sepang circuit’s owners, the same can’t be said for every incident that a team inevitably finds themselves in over a season.

Truly it’s impossible to understate the importance of the remaining races for these four teams, and competitively, they could hardly be closer. In the five races since the summer break, each has managed to outscore the others in at least one race (Williams have taken two), with Haas the most recent leaders with their double-points finish in Japan.

Also considering Force India and the considerably improved McLaren contest those final points-paying positions, the chances of a team missing the points entirely have gone up significantly, and that means every race could swing the battle. One driver could make the difference, and that is certainly something worth getting excited about.

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INSIDE LINE: BATTLES TO KEEP US ENTERTAINED UNTIL SEASON END

Barring the unlikely event he retires right now to pursue his music career, the 2017 Formula 1 driver’s world championship is Lewis Hamilton’s, once, his duel with Sebastian Vettel looked like it would go down to the wire, but then Ferrari lodged a .303 Magnum cartridge into its own foot and the fight was no more.

Thankfully, it’s not the only fight on the grid, and while Hamilton-Vettel has cooled off with four races remaining, but these teammate battles are still heating up and remain ones to watch as the season winds down.

Williams: Felipe Massa v Lance Stroll – Massa leads 34-32

One of the more surprising facts so far this season, Stroll is just two points behind Massa despite the Brazilian regularly embarrassing him for outright pace. Obviously helped by the improbable podium in Baku, Stroll has nevertheless improved his composure in races, and has managed better finishes in three of the five races since the summer break. No, it might not quite be to 2008-levels of importance, but with Massa expected to re-retire at the end of this season, you can bet he doesn’t want to ride off into the sunset having lost to a driver still in the throes of puberty, and that could see the tension ramp up considerably. Also it’s worth mentioning the possibility of preferential treatment for the youngster courtesy of Stroll Sr., and you can bet Massa won’t kowtow to that.

Force India: Esteban Ocon v Sergio Perez – Perez leads 82-65

It might not be the closest rivalry out there, but it’s certainly the hottest. The two have come together multiple times this season, and as a result have absolutely no love lost for one-another, with Force India having to actually step-in and disallowed on-track fighting as they did in Suzuka. Currently Perez has a 17 point lead over Ocon, but the Mexican can’t afford to ease up with his teammate having out-qualified him at 4 of the last 6 races, while splitting the race head-to-head over that span. In any case, expect matters to only get tenser over the remaining races, with a flare-up definitely on the cards.

McLaren: Fernando Alonso v Stoffel Vandoorne – Vandoorne leads 13-10

Not only is this surprisingly close, but it’s actually three points in Vandoorne’s favour. Certainly Alonso’s cause hasn’t been helped by McLaren’s early-season struggles, when he was undoubtedly superior, but credit has to be given to Vandoorne for what is still a considerable turnaround. Since the break, Vandoorne has taken three of the five qualifying battles, and seems rejuvenated from the almost shellshocked figure he cast in the first half of the year. Conversely, it’s hard to gauge if Alonso still possesses motivation at this point in the season, but considering he’s only lost to one teammate before (and never stops hearing about it), it’s unlikely he’s content to let things be.

Ferrari: Kimi Raikkonen v Sebastian Vettel – Vettel leads 247-148

One of these is not like the others… No, Raikkonen-Vettel is not close, but the reason it’s on this list is that it’s not even respectable. Finishing 26 points behind Vettel last year, Raikkonen was more-or-less a solid no. 2 driver, this year that lead has nearly quadrupled to 99 points, and it’s getting increasingly more difficult to justify Ferrari’s decision to bring him back for next season. Now more than ever, Kimi needs to remind us he has the potential to win races, lest we write him off, and the Scuderia’s 2018 constructor’s chances with it.

 

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Non-listed Ferrari parts would be “huge step" for Sauber

Team boss Fred Vasseur says taking non-listed parts from Ferrari would help Sauber make a "huge" step, as he weighs up the extent to which the two outfits will collaborate.

Sauber agreed a deal with Ferrari that gives the Swiss team the latest specification engine and its gearbox for 2018 and is now in discussions over running Ferrari junior drivers and extending the technical collaboration.

Vasseur is targeting a return to the midfield next year for Sauber, currently 10th in the constructors' championship, and feels taking non-listed parts would help make a step in the short term.

But in doing so it would mean not making the most of the team's Hinwil factory, enhanced during its years as BMW's factory team and capable of producing an F1 car in-house.

"It would be a huge support to Sauber to have this kind of partnership with Ferrari," Vasseur told Motorsport.com when asked about whether the relationship will extend to non-listed parts.

"It would be the fastest way to improve because it's a huge step in three months. It's a good way to improve quickly and come back onto the pace and catch the midfield, and then we can see what will be the next step.

"First we need to think about the close future, next year. On the other hand, you need to keep in house the skills and the technology and the know-how and I don't want to give up on this.

  

"I don't want to just wait just for Ferrari to have the next step of the evolution of the car. It would make no sense.

"We have a very good facility, the wind tunnel is a good one, we have to manage that asset and push that asset. We have to find the right balance."

Vasseur, who plans further talks with Ferrari in the coming weeks, adds that once the details of the technical collaboration are sorted out, attention can turn to the drivers.

Ferrari junior Charles Leclerc, who won the F2 championship at the weekend, is favourite to get a seat with Sauber next year, but it remains unclear whether fellow junior Antonio Giovinazzi will get the second seat.

"We are discussing that we could extend the parameter on the technical side and we will do it," said Vasseur. "Then we have the next topic, which is the drivers. It's part of the collaboration with them."

 

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Amsterdam and Rotterdam not interested in Dutch GP idea

Local government officials in Amsterdam and Rotterdam have said there is little interest in their cities hosting a Dutch Grand Prix street race.

As Motorsport.com revealed earlier this week, F1’s commercial boss Sean Bratches recently paid a visit to the Netherlands to talk about the possibility of holding a street race in one of the country’s major cities.

While the idea of a city race is still in its early stages, the size and populations of Amsterdam and Rotterdam made them obvious candidates if the plan moved forward.

But both cities have told Motorsport.com that there had not yet been any formal contact with F1’s owners – and that they were not too keen on exploiting the growing popularity of Max Verstappen by holding an event on their streets.

A spokesperson for the city of Amsterdam told Motorsport.com: “A car race should take place on a circuit, not in an old city centre.”

The official comment backed a statement from Eric van der Burg, who handles sports affairs within the municipal executive of Amsterdam, earlier this week on Twitter.

On the possibility of a F1 race in the streets of the Dutch capital, Van der Burg tweeted: “In Amsterdam? That’s fine, but in Amsterdam Beach [Zandvoort], where they have a beautiful track. Not in the city centre of Amsterdam.”

Rotterdam already has some experience with running F1 cars, having hosted the City Racing events from 2005 until 2014.

But a spokesperson for the city of Rotterdam went as far as saying that holding a grand prix there within three years would be almost impossible due to city centre works.

“Rotterdam has not been approached regarding a Formula 1 event, so there have also been no discussions about this," she told Motorsport.com.

“In the coming three years this would be unthinkable anyway due to a renovation of the Maastunnel and a refurbishment of the Coolsingel.

“This aside, with the City Racing events that were held earlier, there were already many who had their doubts in relation to the environmental impact and noise disturbance.”

The last time a Dutch Grand Prix took place was at Zandvoort in 1985, with three-time world champion Niki Lauda winning the event.

Zandvoort is currently conducting a feasibility study to see if an F1 return is possible – with the results expected soon.

The Assen TT Circuit, which hosts MotoGP, is also seen as a possible location for a Dutch Grand Prix by a local promoter, who organizes the annual Gamma Racing Day events.

The track hosted the Champ Car World Series and Superleague Formula in the past.

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Horner: Verstappen can build team around him at Red Bull

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner believes that Max Verstappen should consider the benefits of a long-term future with the Milton Keynes outfit, as the Dutchman has the opportunity to build a team around him.

Verstappen has been linked with both Ferrari and Mercedes beyond 2018, but Horner suggests that rather than joining Sebastian Vettel or Lewis Hamilton, he would be better off staying put.

“I think he can see the strength and depth of the team,” Horner told Motorsport.com. “He feels comfortable in the team. He’s the youngest grand prix winner, he’s the youngest double winner, he’s the youngest points scorer.

"And Lewis is pretty set at Mercedes, Seb has signed for three years at Ferrari. The obvious thing is to build a team around you. But it’s down to us to provide him with a competitive car.”

Asked if he thought Verstappen would really want to go head-to-head in the same team as Vettel or Hamilton, Horner said: “That’s a question only he can really answer.

"We all want to be in a competitive position, and I think that the way we’ve developed this chassis this year, we’ve put a serious amount of performance on the car, and we’ve out-developed our opposition from our starting point to being grand prix winners on merit. We need to keep that trajectory going.”

  

Three places higher

Horner believes that Verstappen will gain from enduring a character-building 2017 season that has seen him retire seven times in 16 races. 

He reckons that, without the mechanical issues and the first-lap incidents, the Dutchman would now be lying third rather than sixth in the world championship.

“There were so many races this year when he was in a fantastic position to achieve big results.

“He’s had four mechanical issues, all engine problems. If you look at the points lost, he should be sitting a pretty close third in the championship at the moment.”

“Credit to him that at such a young age he hasn’t let frustration boil over, he’s kept his head down, he’s kept plugging away, and as I always said, when it comes right for him, it’s going to come right in a big way. And that’s exactly what happened in Malaysia. He drove a great race there, with no issues."

With Verstappen only in his third year in grand prix racing, Horner feels his performances have been "phenomenal" for his level of experience.

“It’s quite astounding that he’s only just turned 20. Just look at the following he has in F1 now. He’s one of the most, if not the most popular driver in F1.

"I think he’s growing in all areas. He has so little experience in car racing per se that every weekend he’s learning and getting stronger.

“There’s no shortcut to experience. He’s now close to completing his third grand prix season, and you look at the level he’s performing at, it’s phenomenal, and what’s exciting is what the future holds for him.”

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Vettel: Apolitical Raikkonen my best-ever F1 teammate

Sebastian Vettel says Kimi Raikkonen is the best teammate he has ever had in Formula 1 – because the Finn does not try to play political games.

The German has not always got on well with teammates – having famously clashed several times with Mark Webber at Red Bull – but has formed a strong working relationship with Raikkonen during their three years together at Maranello.

Asked by Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview what sort of teammate he prefers, Vettel said: “It’s not your decision - and I don’t think it should be. So I don’t mind.

“Obviously it makes it a lot easier if you have somebody who you are working with that you feel the respect.

"You know, many times people tend to make things much more complicated than they are, especially in Formula 1, so it’s good if you can work with somebody where there are no politics or no confusions or anything.

“In this regard, Kimi is probably the best teammate that I had. He is pretty straightforward, but I also got along well with Daniel [Ricciardo].

  

“Then with Mark [Webber], obviously at times we had our differences. Also I have to say we were different generations, so we probably from the start were not that close. But that is how it is.”

Having relished his switch to Ferrari since joining at the start of 2015, Vettel says that satisfaction for him these goes beyond pure results.

“I am very happy and honoured to race for Ferrari,” he said. “But I want to win. Do I measure happiness in success? Probably not.

"But what makes me happy is if I can get out of the car and say that I’ve done everything I could and I’m happy with my own performance

“I think it makes me extremely happy to see that, to have the team behind me, to see that we are all together as one team. And apart from the racing side, obviously all the challenges that I have at home.”