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Frustrated Stroll questions British GP two-stop

Frustrated Stroll questions British GP two-stop

Racing Point Formula 1 driver Lance Stroll says he was frustrated to finish 13th in the British Grand Prix, as he questioned the team's decision to pit him for a second time.
Stroll was running right outside the top 10 when he was called into the pits by the outfit, trading his set of hard tyres for fresh softs.

He rejoined the track in 14th and was only able to make up one place, getting past the Williams of George Russell, before the chequered flag flew.

“We did a two-stop, and the others did a one-stop, the guys we were fighting with - [Daniil] Kvyat and [Kimi] Raikkonen," Stroll said. "I was in front of Kvyat with 15 laps to go, and looks like his tyres hung on.

“I was pretty comfortable with my pace before we stopped, so I don't know what the objective was to stop on a set of qualis [softs] and come back at the end.

“The front left wasn't going for me; looking at the other guys, it seemed like they hung on and managed to score a point, so it’s a bit frustrating to look at their results.”

Racing Point team boss Otmar Szafnauer explained that the outfit didn't believe Stroll's set of hard tyres would last to the end, after the team was forced to originally pit him earlier than expected on lap 13.

"His race was compromised by a tear-off stuck in the right front brake duct," Szafnauer told Motorsport.com. "The temperatures went through the roof, and we had to pit him early. Once you pit him early, you can’t do the one-stop.”

Sergio Perez, Racing Point RP19, leaves the pits after a wing change

Szafnauer felt that Stroll's teammate Sergio Perez had been on course for a possible eighth-place finish, only to lose out after the safety car came out.

After the restart, Perez then had a problem with his brake balance control, which was stuck too far forward, and he slid into the back of Nico Hulkenberg, leading to a stop for a few nose and a new steering wheel that dropped him out of the points and an eventual 17th place.

“Before the safety car Checo were running in front of Raikkonen, who finished eighth,” said Szafnauer. “And we had the pace on him and were one-stopping just like him. So the safety car screwed us there.

“Then Checo had a brake balance issue after the safety car. You’re always changing brake balance, and after the safety car he wanted to go back a bit, and he couldn’t. It was too far forward, and he couldn’t stop like he wanted to stop. His race was done once the front wing was off."

MIKA: I can not stand this little prick.

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I have said it many times over the years, the FIA need to appoint stewards that are the same people for EVERY race. I have always felt that some stewards are biased toward "some" drivers (Of cour

F1 needs a Friday program including testing or the race tracks are going to lose a lot of ticket sales.  As a TV viewer, I find the Friday practice sessions quite enjoyable.   On par with the rest of

WILLIAMS CONFIRM SIROTKIN TO RACE AND KUBICA RESERVE Russian rookie Sergey Sirotkin will race for Williams this season after being chosen ahead of Polish rival Robert Kubica on Tuesday in wh

Wolff: "Borderline dirty" British GP racing good for F1

Wolff: "Borderline dirty" British GP racing good for F1

Toto Wolff says it is good for a “little dirtiness” to be part of Formula 1 racing but does not want it to happen within his Mercedes team.
After high-profile incidents and stewards investigations in Canada and France, aggressive fights between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc in Austria and Britain went unpunished. 

Mercedes team principal Wolff also watched his drivers Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas fight for the lead at Silverstone, although with more restraint than Verstappen and Leclerc. 

F1 officials appear to be showing more leniency to allow for harder racing, which Wolff is a fan of but says “I don't want to see anything of this in an intra-team battle”.

“I have no doubt that these guys know how to race each other,” said Wolff. 

“We've seen that now on many occasions between Valtteri and Lewis, they respect each other off-track and they respect each other on-track. 

“To take it another step is fair enough if you race another team. 

“But I thought it was very good racing between the two of them, certainly very entertaining, and nobody could say that there wasn't hard defending, but it wasn't dirty. 

“And I think what we've seen between some of the other drivers is borderline dirty. 

“There's always a little dirtiness in us that we want to see out there.

“In racing, it's good when it's drivers going against each other. But not in the team.”

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB15, collides with Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF90

Verstappen passed Leclerc for the win in Austria with a move that included wheel-to-wheel contact, but the stewards opted not to penalise that because they judged Leclerc played a part on the outside. 

In Britain, it was Verstappen who ran off-track after wheel-to-wheel contact with Leclerc, and he retained his position using the run-off – which was not looked at. 

Asked by Motorsport.com if the stewards’ decision in Austria was already enabling harder racing, Wolff said: “Yeah, you can clearly see that the Leclerc/Verstappen incident of Austria is being interpreted exactly in the way it was in Austria, and hard racing is permitted.

“You can push somebody out while exiting the corner.

“I think this is how it is allowed in most of the other formulas, and it needs to be between teams.

“I think that's what we all want to see. It is hard racing, but it's something we need to do.”

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Would Bottas have won without SC intervention?

Debate: Would Bottas have won without SC intervention?

Lewis Hamilton claimed a record-breaking sixth British Grand Prix victory on Sunday, but how close would the contest have been without the impact of a safety car?

The 2019 edition of the British Grand Prix will go down as one of it's feistiest of all time, and it served up one of this season's most entertaining battles for a race lead, picking up from where an engrossing Austrian Grand Prix left off.

With Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas taking pole position ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton by the finest of margins on Saturday, fans were left hoping for an equally-close contest on race day.

Bottas got the ideal start and fended off Hamilton for the opening stages of the race, a stint which included an accomplished re-pass on the inside of Copse corner.

However, with Bottas pitting first to go onto another set of medium tyres, he was committed to a two-stop strategy.

Hamilton extended his stint and stayed out for a few laps longer, which meant a pit stop in normal conditions would've put him back behind Bottas, albeit with fresher tyres.

A safety car intervention changed the complexion of the race, and gave Hamilton a 'cheap' pit stop to keep the lead of the race.

This was to be Hamilton's one-and-only pit stop of the event, whereas Bottas had to pit again for a different compound. The original aim was for both drivers to pit twice, but the extension of Hamilton's first stint enabled a one-stopper.

From there, he was in prime position to control the pace and take his seventh win of the season, and the 80th of his career. 

Speaking after the race, Bottas admitted that he thought a one-stop strategy was out of the question, with the Finn seemingly remorseful about not being able to hedge his bets with a middle stint on the hard tyres.

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The tiny change that is pushing Red Bull closer to pole

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Although Silverstone did not give as spectacular a result for Red Bull as their victory in Austria, Max Verstappen’s best qualifying lap for the British Grand Prix was, in percentage terms, the closest the car has been to pole position all season.

Coming straight after the Austrian win, it confirms not only the progress being made by Honda with the upgraded motor introduced in France, but also a significant aerodynamic breakthrough made by the team.

Verstappen reports that since the new front wing in Austria, he finally has a car that feels connected up between front and rear, which can carry the entry speed through the whole corner without the previous rear instability.

The visual changes between the old wing and the new are tiny, but disproportionally significant, and are similar to those which made for a big improvement on the Mercedes earlier in the season, in Spain. The two key changes are a small profile change at the inboard end of the elements and a reshaping of the endplate, with a downward sweep of its upper edge for the rear two-thirds of its length.

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Top: Verstappen's front wing in China. Bottom: Verstappen's updated front wing in Austria.

In combination, these changes seem targeted at increasing the airflow feed to the barge boards around where there's a tiny cut-out on the third element. This cut-out creates a vortex that speeds up that flow to the barge boards and the reshaping of the profile around there will be to make that vortex stronger. If that airflow doesn’t carry enough energy, it can be difficult to have enough to feed both the underfloor and the body sides. Increasing the power of that vortex may be just enough to get the airflow past a threshold that allows that without compromising either the underfloor or body-side flow.

The endplate change may be related to the inboard changes. Reducing the height of the endplate wall suggests that the outboard ends of the wing elements were being overloaded and this reduction in the height of the endplate will release some of the pressure on that part of the wing – and use it instead to enhance the outwash around the front wheel.

It could be that the small changes made to the profile of the elements took that pressure at the outboard ends past a threshold of efficiency. There is only so much airflow around the wing to be manipulated and where it’s best directed is determined by pressure resistance.

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The small vanes on the RB15's floor separate outwash airflow from airflow travelling to the diffuser.

Aerodynamicists try to ensure that the outwash airflow around the wheels remains outboard down the length of the car and doesn’t interfere with that downforce-producing airflow travelling down the sidepods on its way over the top and sides of the diffuser. The small vanes on the outer floor shown in the drawing are helping keep those two flows apart.

Red Bull have traditionally been very strong in building a lot of downforce from the front and underfloor. But the restriction of the under-wing turning vanes to three this year took that advantage away and they have taken this long to claw it back.

But now the breakthrough has been made, stand by for further gains.

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Renault ‘got to be pleased’ after ‘awesome recovery’ says Ricciardo

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Two races without a points finish for Daniel Ricciardo had left the Renault driver “suspicious” of his car’s balance in Austria, but the Australian was thrilled by Renault’s recovery at Silverstone as he finished seventh, leading a double points-haul for the team.

The man with the biggest grin on the grid brought smiles to the Renault garage on Saturday, qualifying seventh for the British Grand Prix – out-qualifying the McLaren pair for the first time since Canada.

And even though he ended up behind the orange MCL34 of Carlos Sainz in the race, Ricciardo did his best to give chase and maintained that Renault were ultimately quicker. The 0.739s gap to the Spaniard at the finish showed that Ricciardo was achingly close to P6.

“I could see Carlos right in front of me and we had a bit of pace on him, but it was actually one of those opens, I could follow relatively well, but it was that case of just getting that extra car length or two closer.

“Then I lost that extra bit of downforce, which I probably needed to have a proper attack on him. But I think with the Safety Car and how that turned out, he obviously gained.

“So from what we were two weeks ago I think the result is a big one for the team and an awesome recovery – we had pace on McLaren in qualifying and also in the race we could run with them, so we’ve got to be pleased.

“That’s encouraging for me and at the end of the day a sixth, a sixth or seventh – obviously I want to get as far up the grid [as possible] – but at the end up the day I feel fulfilled in myself and the team recognises that, that’s all we can ask for.

“This isn’t a championship year for us so we have to take those positives and I’m gelling with the guys and enjoying this little stepping stone in my career and it’s been good. We’re getting there, we’re working on it,” he concluded.

With Hockenheim on the horizon and a 21-point gap to close on McLaren for fourth in the standings, there are signs of a timely rally at Renault.

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Sainz: McLaren need low-speed performance gains to keep Renault at bay

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With Renault back in the points at Silverstone, Carlos Sainz has declared that McLaren aren’t clearly leading the tight midfield battle. Instead, as we approach the forthcoming German Grand Prix, he believes the team need a low-speed cornering boost to get an edge on their rivals.

After a disappointing qualifying session that left him 13th on the grid, Sainz recovered to P7 in the race having overtaken both Alfa Romeos at the start, then pitting under the Safety Car before Sebastian Vettel’s collision with Max Verstappen promoted him to P6.

“A strange Saturday, something that we need to analyse,” said the Spaniard. “But back to business on Sunday, back on it after a great start like the last few [races]. After a controlled first stint, managing tyre tyres allowing us to go as long as anyone else and then very fast towards the end.

"But unfortunately a yellow car was faster, which meant it was a very stressful end to the race, but at the same time good fun because we just held him back and made it to P6.”

The yellow car Sainz was referring to was seventh-place Daniel Ricciardo’s Renault, the catalyst of the “highlight” of Sainz’s race as the two produced an absorbing battle in the closing laps.

“[They] were fun because he was just that tiny bit quicker and that made him get into my DRS [range], and he was really catching me on the straights… with the headwinds, my clipping on the battery… and we were running more wing.

“It was flat out… These were proper qualifying laps the whole way through because the hard tyres allowed you to do so. And it was good fun.”

To stay ahead of the midfield and bat away the challenges of a resurgent Renault, McLaren need to work on their relative lack of pace in low-speed corners, explained Sainz.

“One race they will be quicker, another race we will be quicker and today they were quicker. We need to improve the car at low speed because that is what’s going to give us the edge, which at the moment we don’t have.

“The only thing that we know is that we haven’t cleared the midfield yet. Many people wanted us to be already clear of the midfield, but we haven’t. We still are with the Renaults, they are battling.”

As for the next races in Germany and Belgium, Sainz predicts that it will be similar to Silverstone for him, unless McLaren can address those low-speed cornering concerns.

“It’s going to be similar to here. I think Austria and Paul Ricard were definitely really good tracks for us, we were fourth fastest, no problem, but this last one was a bit of a realisation that we haven’t cleared the midfield yet.

“As I said before, we need to keep bringing little bits to the car to help at low speed. They both have a combination of high-speed/low-speed [corners] so we don’t know how we’re going to do, but it’s going to be interesting to see [how we compete] with the Renaults.”

Despite Sainz's wariness of the Renault threat, fourth-place McLaren still hold a 21-point advantage over their fifth-place rivals in the constructors' standings.

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Hamilton's ‘best last lap ever’ made team ‘nervous as hell’

This year, the addition of a point for fastest lap has added a new dimension to the end of races. At Silverstone, Lewis Hamilton capped his race victory with a last-gasp charge for the accolade, even if he admits his engineers were far from happy about him going for it...

“We’re always talking about tyres that don’t last and all those kind of things but it was really cool to still have tyres left at the end,” said Hamilton, who converted second on the grid into a record sixth British GP win.

“Basically it was like a qualifying lap – it was the qualifying lap that I was supposed to do [on Saturday], better late than never.” He added: “It was awesome. There’s no better way to finish a race just on the edge of your seat, and it was definitely the best last lap that I’ve ever had.”

Set on hard tyres, his time of 1m 27.369s was a tenth faster than team mate Valtteri Bottas’s soft-shod attempt.

Hamilton went on to explain that his engineers weren’t so ecstatic about his late dash for an extra championship point.

“They’re not happy with us doing it, they’re nervous as hell because you could spin or make a mistake but it’s acceptable within limits,” he said.

Regardless, Mercedes Technical Director James Allison was astonished by the attempt. “Well it’s quite breathtaking isn’t it? The old used hard tyre and fastest lap at the end there? It’s pretty impressive,” he said.

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff, meanwhile, referred to Hamilton's lap as “absurd”.

“There’s a funny context to that because since we have these new regulations with points for fastest lap, the engineers are showing on the Sunday morning briefing that it makes no point to go for fastest lap, there’s too much risk.

“And you can see the drivers and they’re like ‘yeah whatever’… This led to a totally absurd situation because on paper, a 32 [lap] old hard should never be good enough for fastest lap but they’re just able to pull it out.”

Silverstone is the second time this season Hamilton has claimed fastest lap. In the race for the DHL Fastest Lap Award, Bottas, Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly also have two, while Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen have one apiece.

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TODT: WE SHOULD GO FOR REFUELLING IN FORMULA 1

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Formula 1 is considering bringing back in-race refuelling as part of rule changes from 2021 and FIA President Jean Todt said on Friday he would be in favour of such a move.

Refuelling was banned in 2010 for cost and safety reasons and attempts to reintroduce it since then, to make the cars lighter and faster as well as give teams more strategy options, have failed.

“Cars are probably becoming a bit too heavy,” Todt told reporters at the British Grand Prix. “That is something we discussed. I am pushing for analysing what it would mean if we reintroduced refuelling.”

“Because if you reintroduce refuelling then you will have lighter cars at the start of the race and you can have smaller cars.”

Mercedes’s five-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, who recently attended a meeting of Formula 1 stakeholders to discuss rule changes, has often complained of the cars being too big and heavy.

Drivers also dislike having to ease off the throttle to save fuel rather than being able to go flat out.

Refuelling has in the past required heavy rigs and extra pit crew to operate them, with associated costs of flying the equipment around the world. There are also safety considerations, with pit lane flare-ups a danger.

Teams voted on the matter in 2015, with a proposed reintroduction from 2017, but decided collectively it would not be a good move.

“Sometimes I hear that it will be more expensive and honestly it makes me smile,” said Todt. “When I see the size of the (team) motorhomes, I don’t think that it’s really the price which will be a killer.”

Teams use lavish ‘motorhomes’, some of them glass fronted palaces that run to three tiers and are a long way from the original mobile homes, as their paddock headquarters and to wine and dine VIP guests.

When questioned further, on a personal capacity Todt said, “We should go for refuelling, but then I’m happy to have a very good investigation, with a plus and minus which we will do.”

In other comments, the former Ferrari team boss said he did not feel F1 needed any drastic reinvention for the future.

He said that while track testing had been cut back, there was now too much carried out back at the factories on simulators.

“Day and night people are putting gear-boxes and engines on simulator facilities. Then you have 40, 50, 60 people in the factory analysing… I think it’s not something we need,” he added.

Regarding a possible expansion of the calendar beyond 21 races, the Frenchman said it was “not so much a question of what is a good number but good venues.”

He welcomes a new five-year deal for Silverstone as a triumph of common sense and said he was “not so worried” about the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, another historic venue, for similar reasons.

MIKA: Best thing I have heard all day!

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ALFA ROMEO APPOINT JAN MONCHAUX AS NEW TECHNICAL DIRECTOR

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With Simone di Resta heading back to Ferrari after his brief spell with Alfa Romeo, the Swiss outfit have appointed Jan Monchaux as the team’s new technical director as from 1 August.

Monchaux previously worked for Audi Sort as aero boss from 2013 until 2017 when he joined Sauber, he also had a spell at Maranello as the aero department from 2010 to 2013.

Press Release

Sauber Motorsport AG, which operates and manages the Alfa Romeo Racing team in the Formula One World Championship, are pleased to announce that Head of Aerodynamics, Jan Monchaux, will be promoted to the position of Technical Director, starting from August 1st, 2019.

The move will follow the departure of current Technical Director, Simone Resta, at the end of the month.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal: “I want to thank Simone for his contribution to the progression of the team and I wish him all the best for his future appointments. As for Jan, I am delighted to have him step up to the role of Technical Director. He has done a brilliant job so far and I am confident he will be able to lead our technical group as the team continues its upward journey.”

Jan Monchaux, new Technical Director of Alfa Romeo Racing: “I am very excited about this new challenge and I am looking forward to starting in my new position. The owners, board and team principal are sending a simple but strong message to the whole company – they value continuity and believe in the existing team and the work we have been doing. It is now up to us to prove them right, but I am convinced our future is bright.”

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STEINER: GENE HAAS KNOWS THINGS DON’T ALWAYS GO BETTER AND BETTER

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Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner has played down suggestions the American outfit could close down amid its nightmarish 2019 season and claims his boss – Gene Haas – is not losing patience with the sport at the highest level.

The American outfit – and their wayward drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen – have been the most affected by Pirelli’s difficult-to-understand 2019 tyres.

When asked if the affair is getting him down, in the wake of the Grosjean-Magnussen shenanigans and subsequent collision at Silverstone, Steiner insisted to Ekstra Bladet: “I am no longer in kindergarten.”

But the bigger risk is that team owner Gene Haas could be tiring of how difficult 2019 is turning out to be.

Steiner was asked if there is a risk the American millionaire could pull the team out of the sport,
“Gene has been in racing for a long time. He knows things don’t always go better and better.

“I don’t want to say he is happy about the current situation. Why should he be? You can’t blame him for that. But he knows that as long as we make a comeback, everything will be fine,” he added.

Also adding misery to their campaign is the bizarre saga surrounding its controversial title sponsor, the latest installation in the Rich Energy soap-opera is that its bearded boss William Storey has been ousted, with the energy drink company renamed Lightning Volt.

Steiner explained: “The people that want to take over would like to continue with us. We will talk to them about this in the coming weeks. They must agree about what they are doing in the future.”

MIKA: Guenther Steiner should know better than anyone that half of the teams issues lies with Roman Grosjean. He can be an incredible talent on his best day as seen in the past, but sadly not many days, just a few every year. Its simply not enough and moments like the Baku wall shunt under the safety car and now the pit lane spin in Silverstone, not to mention him and Magnussen virtually side by side for a mile at the start of the Silverstone GP, refusing to give way and resulting in two punctures, makes it impossible to contract him again.

Magnussen himself is hardly squeaky clean, could there be a more unpopular driver in the F1 paddock? At least Kevin gives his all every race and then some, but doesn't do the stupid stuff as much or often as Grosjean. HAAS need to solve the Grosjean issue and replace him IMHO and fix their handling problems in order to remain a decent midfield team as they already are. 

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BOTTAS: IF I HAVE TO LEAVE MERCEDES THEN I WANT FERRARI

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Valtteri Bottas says he wants to remain Lewis Hamilton’s teammate at Mercedes in 2020, but if that fails the Finn wants a drive with Ferrari.

At the start of this season, the Finn’s chances of a new deal appeared slim, following his disappointing 2018 campaign but he has looked stronger and more consistent this season, and at Silverstone was genuinely a match for world champion Hamilton throughout the weekend.

Bottas says he would be happy to remain Hamilton’s teammate at Mercedes next year, “If it wasn’t for Lewis, perhaps I would have won more races.”

“But to be honest, I wouldn’t change anything, because the situation helps me to progress and achieve more. I want to challenge him. I would like to extend the contract for next season,” Bottas told Canal Plus.

Mercedes, however, is clearly looking around on the driver market, and already has the Toto Wolff-supported Esteban Ocon on the reserve bench while their other driver George Russell’s shares climb steadily.

But Bottas insisted, “I think I’ve proved to the team that I deserve to stay at Mercedes. But we will have to wait a few more races. Nothing has been signed yet, but I am trying to keep making progress so that everything should be fine.”

Notably, Bottas said he is setting his sights very high in the event that Mercedes does not keep him, “If I have to leave Mercedes, then I would like to be at the team that is in second place. At the moment that is Ferrari.”

While the Scuderia are fiercely loyal to their drivers Charles Leclerc and Sebastian Vettel, the German is living through a crisis of mistakes, prompting speculation he will quit the sport at the end of this season or, if not, take a sabbatical of sorts.

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WILLIAMS: OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH ROBERT IS AS GOOD AS EVER

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Speculation about Williams’ 2020 driver lineup – aka the Silly Season – has arrived too early claims team boss Claire Williams, amid suggestions the struggling Grove team is looking for a replacement for Robert Kubica.

On his return to F1 after eight years, Kubica has struggled alongside rookie George Russell, with some believing Williams could replace him with Esteban Ocon as early as Spa.

“We’re not thinking of replacing Robert this season,” Claire Williams is quoted by Spain’s El Mundo Deportivo. “The speculation is frustrating, because unless you really know what’s going on inside a team, you do not know what’s going on.”

“Our relationship with Robert is as good as ever. He is focused, doing what he has to do and we’re trying to help him by giving him a better car.

“We’re not frustrated at all,” Williams insisted. “I’m sure he is a little frustrated because he doesn’t have what he would like to have, but we’re only in the middle of the season.”

As for 2020, it is clear that Williams wants to keep the Mercedes development driver Russell next year, but may be looking at alternatives for his teammate.

One driver linked with Kubica’s 2020 seat is Sergio Sette Camara, a Formula 2 frontrunner who is strongly backed by former Williams sponsor Petrobras, while reserve and occasional FP1 driver for the team – Nicolas Latifi – is also being primed for the top flight.

But Williams insisted, “It’s too early to start talking about 2020. We are not yet in a position to make any decisions. And that won’t come until the third quarter of the season.”

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MAZZOLA: THE SF90 IS NOT SUITABLE TO VETTEL’S DRIVING STYLE

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Ferrari watcher and poet columnist Leo Turrini has done his post-mortem of Sebastian Vettel’s headling grabbing mistake during the British Grand Prix during an intense battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.

It was another glaring error by Ferrari’s four-time F1 World Champion which dropped him out of the points while his rival Lewis Hamilton bagged the max for his title bid with an easy victory.

Notably, the crash deemed Vettel’s fault by all, prompted an immediate apology by the German came after his first altercation with Verstappen on the day. Earlier the Dutchman had us all on the edge of our seats as he duelled wheel-to-wheel with Vettel’s teammate Charles Leclerc – with no damage or contact, just hard racing.

When a bunch of cars hurtle into a corner, or there is an incident, cue Vettel’s Ferrari to come out the worse for wear, in other words: a crash magnet.

In an effort to get to the bottom of Vettel’s problem, Turrini tapped into the opinion of Ferrari veteran Luigi Mazzola, head of Maranello’s test team during the Michael Schumacher golden era at the Scuderia.

Mazzola told Turrini, ” I do not agree that Seb is a driver at the end of the line in his F1 career. Yes, he is facing very real difficulties.”

Increasingly the question is whether Leclerc, in the sister car and ten years Vettel’s junior, is the problem he is having.

“The boy has the talent of the predestined,” said Mazzola of Leclerc “The German lives with the pain of the exponential growth of his younger teammate but this is part of the career of every driver ”.

Is that the one and only problem?

“Obviously not, there is more. The car,” reasoned Mazzola. “I’ll explain. It is clear that the technical features of the SF90 is not suitable to Vettel’s driving style. The car is unstable, taming it is not easy. Seb has a different sensitivity to that of Leclerc.

“I add another thing, even when he had Raikkonen beside him, the German sometimes had more trouble than Kimi to understand the car. This is nothing strange, they are dynamics that are part of a driver’s make-up. ”

There is an argument that Vettel is virtually unbeatable when he has a dominant car with the garage tilted in his favour, everyone working for his cause, as they did at Red Bull during that glorious four-year spell in which he won his quartet of titles.

Mazzola suggests that if you add those ingredients, coupled to a certain desperation of not being in the best car and going up against the mighty Mercedes, you have the reasons for Vettel’s problems.

The former Ferrari engineer continued, “Hamilton’s fastest lap on Sunday was shocking. At Ferrari, they have a lot of work to do and must be sure to find the right technical solutions.”

Shocking indeed as once again the silver cars dominated qualifying and disappeared into the distance for a comfortable and unchallenged one-two at Silverstone. Hamilton then added insult to injury by setting the fastest lap on the final lap of the race with tyres that were 32 laps old!

Post-race, Turrini summed up, ” It’s not Seb’s annus horribilis just yet, but the collision with Verstappen is like a black curtain falling. Simply, it’s up to him, to Vettel, to look for and give the right answers. I don’t believe in identity crisis or even sudden declines.

“However, no one can know the truth better than the person concerned. If it were Leclerc his problem, that would be a big problem,” added Turrini.

As for Leclerc, fantastic and he hasn’t won a race yet! And he won’t win, I presume until Binotto gives him and Vettel a car to take the fight to the Mercedes who can grab the fastest lap with worn rubber at the end of a race! That’s what we want,” concluded Turrini.

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SIR JACKIE STEWART: THE GREATEST CHALLENGE OF MY LIFE CONTINUES

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Sir Jackie Stewart shed light on the battle he and his family are enduring as his beloved wife Helen suffers from dementia, which is proving to be their greatest challenge.

The living Formula 1 legend, a triple World Champion and veteran of 99 Grand Prix races, and his wife were F1 royalty in their heyday. The pair the face of the sport in the early seventies.

But since Helen was afflicted by the disease five years ago Sir Jackie has previously labelled his current experience “the greatest challenge of my life” and clearly, that struggle continues to this day.

Sir Jackie launched his Race Against Dementia endurance race event and research programme and was at Larkhall Kart Circuit on Monday this week to open the revamped track.

Also present for support and to promote the cause were David Coulthard, Dario Franchitti, Lando Norris, George Russell and F1 World Champion Damon Hill along with academics from the University of Edinburgh.

Speaking to reporters att he event, Sir Jackie said, “Cancer and things like that seem to have got more attention but the pain and suffering of people with dementia and how it affects a family is absolutely horrendous.”

Currently, Lady Helen is cared for 24/7 by a team of eight neuroscience nurses at their mansion on the banks of Lake Geneva which is reportedly geared with state-of-the-art medical equipment for her treatment and survival.

“I’m lucky that I was a racing driver and I can afford to have nurses and the neuro nurses that I’ve got looking after Helen. We’ve been married for 57 years. She’s a fantastic woman, did all my timekeeping and everything else.

A really bright brain, and suddenly she gets dementia and she has no memory at all, hardly. [She finds it] very difficult to walk and has to have help all of the time, so I don’t know why [[people forget] but I suppose some people say it’s all because they’re getting old.

This past weekend Sir Jackie and Lady Helen attended the British Grand Prix as well as Wimbledon, and the sport’s elder statesman revealed, “Helen had a wonderful day at Silverstone on Friday, but she couldn’t remember being there on Saturday.

“She remembers our past, her long term memory is still there, but sadly I think that is going to disappear.’ Describing the care his wife receives, he said: ‘We have seven nurses looking after Helen. Only two at a time but 24 hours a day. Very few people can afford that.’

“I love Helen very deeply. She still loves to be cuddled and kissed and I’m very happy to be giving it,” added Sir Jackie, whose 27 grand prix victories from 99 races remains one of the sport’s most remarkable accomplishments.

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How Charles Leclerc is emerging as Ferrari's future

Ferrari F1 driver Charles Leclerc

Charles Leclerc's move to Ferrari provided the 2019 Formula 1 season with one of its most intriguing stories; as the sport nears the mid-point of the campaign Motorsport Week takes a look at how Leclerc has grown through the first half of the year.

If Charles Leclerc’s career progression was plotted on a graph it would be exponentially positive. In 2015 he was in Formula 3, in 2016 he emerged as GP3 Champion, in 2017 he stormed to the Formula 2 title, and in his rookie Formula 1 season with Sauber in 2018 he was sufficiently impressive to convince Ferrari of his suitability for a 2019 seat. It is, sometimes, easy to forget – particularly in the post-Max Verstappen trajectory era – that Leclerc’s rise has been quick. Very few drivers in history have had such growth in such a short spell.

After 10 rounds – almost the mid-point of the campaign – Leclerc has five podiums, two pole positions, has led the second-most laps, and is three points down on team-mate Sebastian Vettel. He should have won one race. He could have won two. Of greater interest than pure numbers has been the manner in which he has acclimatised among the front-running group and the progress, on- and off-track, that he has made through the year.

One big factor has been in qualifying. Leclerc spent 2018 competing with a team that gradually progressed – thus aiding his own personal development – but which still had limitations. It was a team that had Q3 aspirations but typically Q1/Q2 exits. When Leclerc did make it through to Q3 he was often on the backfoot on account of tyre restrictions. It meant he entered 2019 with little experience of the high-pressure Q3 and also the manner in which the track ramps up. Leclerc did take pole position in Bahrain, but his Saturdays included a Q2 crash (Baku), a Q1 exit (Ferrari’s fault), and after Canada he trailed Vettel 6-1. Baku and Montreal provided two important lessons for the youngster. Baku was the location of his 2018 turnaround and in 2019 he was again on form, but a crash at Turn 8 in Q2 proved costly.

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Leclerc's Baku Q2 error provided one important lesson for the youngster

“I [realised after Baku] that I was pushing too hard in Q2”, said Leclerc. “We definitely had an easy potential to go into Q3 with the car we had. To crash at that time was probably a bit stupid. Compared to a year like in 2018, when you have to give it all from Q1 to Q3… in Baku maybe it was not very important to give everything in Q2.” In Canada he was a front-runner in Q1 and Q2 but a similar theme reared its head in Q3: that of Leclerc drifting away from contention. Leclerc was 0.014s behind Vettel in Q1, 0.063s down in Q2, but 0.680s in Q3 as he found only minor gains. At the next race in France, while Mercedes dominated, Leclerc was third – ahead of Vettel for the first time since Baku – and in Austria he was fastest when it mattered. In Britain he comfortably bested Vettel and came close to pole position. “Overall, I think [I changed] the approach for the set-up to try and [to] anticipate the track evolution,” said Leclerc in Austria. “On some tracks, it's bigger than others, and I think most of the time when the track evolution was quite big, I was not in the best place, or not in the place I wanted to be for Q3. I felt quite good in Q1, Q2 was worse, Q3 was even worse. So now I just tried to analyse that to understand what I have to live with in Q1 to have the car I wanted in Q3, and it worked.” Considering the importance of track position the Q3 improvements, and pure experience, have been a key part in his recent run of results.

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Familiarity within the Ferrari environment has also been important; while his years as an Academy member, and running test days, provided a useful foundation Leclerc still had to get used to a different way of working, while forging and developing new relationships. Speaking fluent Italian ostensibly assisted this cause. Lewis Hamilton has been with Mercedes for seven years but still regularly talks about how the team can improve relationships, communication and approaches. It is the same as in any situation, be it personal or professional; the human element – particularly in sport – remains undervalued. Leclerc is also exceptionally mentally strong, having previously recognised that aspect as a potential weakness in his karting and nascent junior single-seater days. In an interview with ESPN earlier this year he explained how he and his team took a scientific approach to mental strength, using sensors and computers, which detailed how he could better control his emotions. He is not unflappable, as his aggressive Monaco race approach depicted, but in the spotlight of the high-pressure Ferrari environment he has thrived. There are plenty of examples of promising youngsters, or highly-rated veterans, failing to live up to expectations upon receiving their golden opportunity.

“I think first he is getting more used to the team, our way of working, knowing better his own engineers and mechanics, he's certainly fitting more into the team itself,” said team boss Mattia Binotto at Silverstone. “I think at the start of the season certainly everything was more new around him, his second season in F1 but with Ferrari, with the pressure to manage [the situation], with the strong drivers around him and in the same car. So it's a lot of things around him to manage and to understand and also not to distract him as well, and to focus on himself, and after several races he is getting more comfortable with the team.” Leclerc has perhaps, in a manner that seems contradictory, been aided by Ferrari so far missing its targets. There is – not yet anyway – not a title fight to get embroiled in, while the SF90 does not offer Vettel the rear stability his narrow driving style window craves. After 10 rounds of 2019 Vettel is 48 points down on his 2018 total; Leclerc, meanwhile, is four points up on where predecessor Kimi Raikkonen stood. As much as Leclerc has impressed, Vettel and Ferrari have also underperformed and underdelivered.  

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Leclerc emphatically answered questions about how he would cope with the pressure in just his second start for Ferrari, delivering a dominant display – which included a fantastic battle with Vettel – that was wrecked by an engine glitch. But it was in Austria that another lesson was served up and taken onboard, given out by ex-karting rival Verstappen. The Dutchman has been through the school of hard knocks in Formula 1 but has been exceptional for the last 12 months. He re-wrote the rule books with his racecraft and in Austria he out-foxed Leclerc with a move that was deemed robust but fair, much to Leclerc’s frustration in the immediacy. But Leclerc contemplated the situation, and on Thursday at Silverstone said: “As drivers, we always try to be as close as the rules limit us, so I will definitely change a little bit and adjust a little bit my aggression. If we can race in that way, then I’m more than happy to race that way. I think it’s good for Formula 1.” In Britain he and Verstappen were the architects of one of the hybrid era’s best wheel-to-wheel battles. Leclerc put up a full-bodied defence against the faster Red Bull car and, when Verstappen got ahead, banged wheels with his rival at the restart. Leclerc called the racing “borderline” but always acceptable, a stance with which Verstappen agreed post-race. “After Austria as I said I think if the stewards accept us to race that way I’m more than happy to race like this and that’s what I did for this weekend,” reiterated Leclerc. “Nothing special, I just raced harder than normal just because I feel like in the last two races, or maybe a bit before, Formula 1 wants hard racing. I think we are pushing as drivers to have hard racing, that’s what we enjoy the most to be like that and that’s what I did.” Leclerc also executed a sublime move around the outside of Pierre Gasly through Village that ultimately sealed his spot on the podium. Since 2016 Verstappen’s rivals know he is a tough cookie to pass; in Silverstone Leclerc’s opponents will have noted that he too is no pushover.

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Leclerc changed his approach for Britain and had a fierce fight with Verstappen

Leclerc’s arrival at Ferrari raised questions about the balance of power within Ferrari, and early on the team instructions – some might sway towards using the oft-maligned ‘team orders’ phrase – usually favoured Vettel. Leclerc was also on the receiving end of some less-than-stellar strategies, was embarrassingly shuffled out of Q1 in Monaco, while in Canada the team “forgot” to inform him of Vettel’s penalty, a situation for which Binotto apologised. On Friday at Silverstone Binotto stressed “we are here to get maximum points for the team. I think the team is first. The 50-50 situation really needs to happen and as I said Sebastian was in that case the one with priority.

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“But I think as the championship is going on, Charles is certainly proving that he is a very fast driver, he’s been on pole and he had plenty of opportunities to win races. We will never stop him.”

Leclerc is only 10 grands prix into his Ferrari tenure – and just 31 races into his Formula 1 career – and the talent and ability of Vettel means the four-time World Champion cannot be dismissed. But Leclerc is already firmly on the path that the team anticipated when it snapped him up in 2016.

 

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1 hour ago, MIKA27 said:

MIKA: Guenther Steiner should know better than anyone that half of the teams issues lies with Roman Grosjean. He can be an incredible talent on his best day as seen in the past, but sadly not many days, just a few every year. Its simply not enough and moments like the Baku wall shunt under the safety car and now the pit lane spin in Silverstone, not to mention him and Magnussen virtually side by side for a mile at the start of the Silverstone GP, refusing to give way and resulting in two punctures, makes it impossible to contract him again.

Magnussen himself is hardly squeaky clean, could there be a more unpopular driver in the F1 paddock? At least Kevin gives his all every race and then some, but doesn't do the stupid stuff as much or often as Grosjean. HAAS need to solve the Grosjean issue and replace him IMHO and fix their handling problems in order to remain a decent midfield team as they already are. 

You are spot on in this assessment, and I couldn't agree more.  This has been a very disappointing year for Haas, and the lack of results brings all aspects of the team further under the microscope.  Both drivers shortcomings have been on full display.  It is time for a change.  

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Having watched the Netflix show, I’m very surprised Haas kept Grosjean. I would think Ocon is a sure bet for next year. Steiner seemed to like Magnussen.

As for refueling...a thousand times YES! I don’t see the safety argument when cars have 500+ volt energy storage systems. They are already dangerous for the pit crew. And you can’t extinguish a Lithium fire.

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8 minutes ago, avaldes said:

Having watched the Netflix show, I’m very surprised Haas kept Grosjean. I would think Ocon is a sure bet for next year. Steiner seemed to like Magnussen.

As for refueling...a thousand times YES! I don’t see the safety argument when cars have 500+ volt energy storage systems. They are already dangerous for the pit crew. And you can’t extinguish a Lithium fire.

I have my fingers and toes crossed that refueling makes a comeback 

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Tech analysis: F1’s 2021 changes by the numbers

Tech analysis: F1âs 2021 changes by the numbers

Although the 2021 F1 rules have not yet been finalised, the ideas are advanced enough for Motorsport.com’s technical editor Giorgio Piola to imagine how the new generation of grand prix machinery will look.
Here, Giorgio offers more detail about the changes that will appear from 2021 as F1 bids to deliver cars that can follow each other much more closely.

1) The idea is to have a very low nose. This version is attached to the main plane as it was in the 1990s.

2) The mainplane is slightly arched upwards to improve the airflow underneath the car to help feed the ‘ground effect’ tunnels.

3) The endplates are rounded to help minimise the risk of punctures in the event of contact between cars, which is more likely due to the wide front wing.

4) The low nose without turning vanes shows the simplified aerodynamics.

5) The wheel rims could feature covers to help better manage airflow and make it less disruptive.

6) The brake ducts are simplified and have less of an aerodynamic influence.

2021 Formula 1 concept

7) The front wheels are covered with two deflectors, which help direct the wash from the front wheel underneath the floor rather than being lifted upwards and outwards causing turbulence for the cars behind.

? This is the start of a big Venturi channel, which begins where the current bargeboards are.

9) The halo has a better integration with the overall car design.

10) The stepped plane area is not totally flat because there is the chance to house Venturi channels in this area.

11) The taller diffuser is much more powerful than the current diffuser, meaning most of the downforce will be created from underneath the car.

12) The rear wing features a simple endplate to reduce the turbulence effect and helps divert airflow high up with a twin vortex.

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10 of the best images from Great Britain

2019 British GP

 Sergio Perez, Racing Point RP19, outside the garage with Racing Point mechanics during the British GP at Silverstone on July 12, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

2019 British GP

Tyre of Romain Grosjean, Haas VF-19 leaves his car during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

2019 British GP

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF90, pit stops behind Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB15 during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom.

2019 British GP

Lando Norris, McLaren MCL34, pit stop crew wait for him to enter the pit box during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

2019 British GP

Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF90 running into the back of Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB15 during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

2019 British GP

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1, 1st position during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

2019 British GP

Action under the dark skies at Silverstone during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom.

2019 British GP

The Red Arrows fly over the grid during the British GP at Silverstone on July 14, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom

2019 British GP

 Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo Racing C38 during the British GP at Silverstone on July 12, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom.

2019 British GP

Daniel Ricciardo, Renault R.S.19, runs onto the grass during the British GP at Silverstone on July 12, 2019 in Silverstone, United Kingdom. 

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BRAWN: NONSENSE THAT ALL CARS WILL LOOK THE SAME IN 2021

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Formula 1 motorsport chief Ross Brawn has brushed away suggestions that all F1 cars will look the same when the next edition of the sport’s rules come into play in 2021, as he and stakeholders – including drivers – plot the way forward in recent and forthcoming weeks.

During his presentation of the F1 roadmap, heading into the future, Brawn said, “There are complaints that all the cars are going to look the same and the other nonsense we have heard.

“As an exercise, Pat took all the existing cars and took the livery off them and put them up on a wall. You could not tell the difference between the cars we have now once the colours are taken off them.

“You need to be an extreme geek to pick them out, and even within our office, we managed to pick three out! So when you see the existing cars with the colours taken off, you wouldn’t know.

“We know with these very prescriptive regulations, the fertile minds of F1 will come up with different solutions. They will be prescriptive because we have to make sure we achieve these objectives, but there is enough latitude there.

“Undoubtedly from the relative freedom that the teams have had so far it is going to be frustrating but if they can take the approach that these regulations are the same for everyone and they will do a better job than anyone else, we just won’t be two seconds faster we will be two tenths faster, then that is what we want in F1,” affirmed Brawn.

This would be an ideal scenario, addressing the grossly imbalanced playing field where the Big Three teams gobble up the accolades, prize-money and airtime while the Small Seven are fed occasionally crumbs should any fall their way thanks to the failings of the pace-setters.

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FORMULA 1 AND MELBOURNE AGREE GRAND PRIX DATES UNTIL 2025

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The Australian Grand Prix will remain as the Formula 1 World Championship season opener until at least 2025 after the sport’s owners concluded a deal with the Melbourne race organisers today.

Silverstone last week signed a five-year deal keeping the British Grand Prix on the calendar until at least the end of 2024.

Next year’s season-opening race in Melbourne will be on March 15, with Formula 1 celebrating its 70th anniversary. The rest of the championship calendar has yet to be published.

Press Release

Formula 1 is delighted to announce that the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix will continue to be held in Melbourne until at least the end of 2025. The agreement between Formula 1 and the Australian Grand Prix Corporation has been recently signed in London.

Australia has an impressive motorsport history and has hosted a round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship since 1985. It was held in Adelaide up until 1995, moving to the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in the heart of the Victorian state capital as from 1996. Since then, apart from 2006 and 2010, the Australian Grand Prix has always been the World Championship season opener.

In the more than two decades since, the race in Melbourne has consistently proved to be one of the most popular on the calendar. In the last three years alone more than 900,000 fans have attended the Grands Prix at Albert Park, guaranteeing that the Formula 1 season kicks off in an incredible festival-like atmosphere at the heart of the one the world’s most exciting cities.

And next year, the race will once get the season underway, from 12 to 15 March. There’s no better place to start the Championship, and with the sport celebrating its 70th anniversary and its 25th visit to Albert Park next year, the Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix 2020 promises to be a spectacle unlike any other.

Chase Carey, Chairman and CEO, Formula 1, said: “We are pleased to have renewed our partnership with the city of Melbourne, which will now host the Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix until at least 2025.

“The decision to extend the current relationship for a further two years stems from the fact this event has proved to be a resounding success for the capital of Victoria, for Australia and indeed around the world, proving immensely popular with fans and those who work in Formula 1.

“Working along with our partner, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, we plan to make the Australian Grand Prix even more exciting and spectacular, as a sporting event and as a form of entertainment. Today’s announcement follows on from last week’s, relating to the British Grand Prix and is proof that more and more promoters are sharing our long-term vision for the future of Formula 1.

“We cannot wait to be back in Melbourne, from 12 to 15 March next year to celebrate the 25th anniversary of this race being held there and continuing a relationship which will also allow us to celebrate at least 30 years in the city in 2025.”

Martin Pakula MP, Victorian Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, said: “This is a fantastic vote of confidence from Formula 1 to continue racing in Melbourne until at least 2025.

“Victoria hosts major events better than anywhere else in the world and I’m excited that Formula 1 has chosen to exercise its option to extend the contract and enable the Victorian Government and the Australian Grand Prix Corporation (AGPC) to continue to deliver more world-class events for Victoria.

“The Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix has contributed significantly to Melbourne’s standing as a global sporting and major events capital and the event is a key pillar of Melbourne’s and Australia’s international sporting calendar.

“Beyond the direct benefits to Melbourne and Victoria arising out of Formula 1’s decision, the contract extension until 2025 also provides benefits and confidence for Victoria’s events industry and the associated supplier base to the AGPC. Additionally, it provides the AGPC with opportunities to further enhance and develop the event for the benefit of all fans and lovers of the sport of Formula 1.”

MIKA: YES!!

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BINOTTO: ARE RED BULL IN SECOND OR ARE WE SECOND?

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While Mercedes are firmly entrenched at the top of the Formula 1 pecking order midway through the 2019 World Championship season, it is a toss-up between Ferrari and Red Bull regarding who is the next best team on the grid.

While the Reds appeared to have the upperhand earlier in the season, they stagnated if not dropped back while the Blues have relentlessly improved their Honda-powered package, so much so that Max Verstappen scored the outfit’s first win of the season in Austria last month.

The Scuderia have yet to post a victory in this edition of the championship.

The battle for secondary honours has not gone unnoticed by Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto after their bittersweet British Grand Prix weekend, the one in which Sebastian Vettel crashed and Charles Leclerc finished second.

Asked about Red Bull’s rise after the race at Silverstone, Binotto replied, “They certainly improved and if I look at the last two races, as a matter of fact, they won in Austria and they have been very competitive here. I think our package and their package are very close and I think that the last two races have shown it.

“Are they in second or are we in second?” asked the Italian team chief of the pecking order behind the Silver Arrows.

While Mercedes remain ahead in the distance, Binotto believes battling with the Red Bulls is all the motivation his team needs, “We are pretty close… I think it’s given us even more of a boost as we need to further improve.

“We need to be capable of fighting for first place at every single race, whatever the circuit. This hasn’t been the case and in that respect, it’s no doubt disappointing. After qualifying [at Silverstone] I would say we were expecting a better result but the pace was not good enough and I think there is a lot to improve.”

Meanwhile, Red Bull are buoyant as their gamble to ditch Renault and partner with Honda is starting to pay dividends as team boss Christian Horner explained, “It’s really encouraging to be so close to Mercedes around this type of track, which we know is power-sensitive

“To be able to follow the Ferraris as closely as we were able to through Maggots, Becketts and Copse, Max was able to take some serious momentum behind the Ferraris there and that’s usually the sign of a pretty decent car.”

“I think the last few races we’ve been able to get some performance on the car and it’s been working well,” added Horner whose team is third in the constructors’ standings, 52 points adrift of Ferrari but the team’s top scorer – Verstappen – lies third in the drivers’ standings.

MIKA: IMO Ferrari still have a faster car but RBR have the better overall driver which makes the difference.

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BALDISSERRI: VETTEL OVERRATED AND HE IS NOT SCHUMACHER’S HEIR

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Ferrari should consider making Sebastian Vettel the number two driver behind Charles Leclerc, so suggests highly-experienced Ferrari engineer Luca Baldisserri, who was speaking after the German’s latest misadventures at Silverstone

“I think Vettel is an overrated driver and not Schumacher’s heir. He has made so many mistakes and must rediscover himself,” Baldisserri told the Italian podcast Pit-Talk and aligning himself with the majority of the Italian media who have called the Ferrari lead driver’s performance on Sunday a disaster.

“But he is still a driver who has won four titles,” added Baldisseri.

At the same time, the Italian media is heartily promoting the burgeoning talent of 21-year-old Leclerc, ordained the Little Prince by scribes who are clearly banking on the 21-year-old from Monaco to lead Ferrari sooner rather than later.

Baldisserri explained, “If Leclerc keeps maturing and becomes the top driver, he will still need a teammate who can support and help him. I believe from that point of view that Vettel has the experience to be a high-level teammate.”

Vettel did himself no favours with yet another glaring mistake in the heat of battle, this time with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen during the British Grand Prix.

The German is under fire, not only in Italy but from media across language barriers as they collectively question his capacity to lead the sport’s greatest team to glory once again while the young gun in the sister car is chomping at the bit to be unshackled.

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ROSBERG: VALTTERI MUST STOP BEING A NICE GUY TO BEAT LEWIS

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The only way Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas can beat his teammate Lewis Hamilton is for the Finn to work harder according to Nico Rosberg, who says he learned that lesson when he was with the Silver Arrows with the five-time Formula 1 World Champion from 2013 to 2016.

Rosberg actually won the 2016 title before immediately retiring, and he says he is now watching closely as Bottas also tries to beat Hamilton.

“In my case, Lewis is a slightly more naturally talented driver,” the German told Ilta Sanomat newspaper. “He’s the most talented driver in history together with Ayrton Senna, and so the only way to beat him was to do a tremendous amount of work.

“With Valtteri, it’s the same. You can see he is working very hard and is very dedicated. It’s his big strength. Last year he had a hard time, but he’s taken big steps this year. It’s because of all the small details. Even his beard bringing publicity was important” Rosberg added.

The 2016 F1 World champion said he also had to harden his personality in order to give himself the attitude necessary to take on a F1 great like Hamilton.

“It was difficult because I’m not naturally like that at all,” he revealed. “I’m a nice guy, and I think Valtteri is too. It’s really difficult to change yourself in that way.

“In the winter, I did two hours of psychological and philosophical exercises every other day. The workload was huge on top of everything else. I was doing the same thing for years, but in my last season I really pushed it,” recalled Rosberg.

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