FORMULA 1

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WOLFF: NOTHING COMPARES TO THE INTENSITY OF THIS YEAR’S BATTLE

It would be fair to say that Mercedes are on the backfoot this season, for the first time since 2013 they have not won one of the first three races on the calendar, but team chief Toto Wolff is relishing the challenge and as an F1 fan is enjoying the unpredictable nature of the championship thus far.

Speaking ahead of round four, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Wolff said, “The 2018 Formula 1  season is set to be a celebration of everything we love about motor racing. Three teams are fighting fiercely for race wins. We’ve witnessed exciting races with nail-biting overtakes.”

“The fastest F1 cars in history, driven by some of the best drivers this sport has seen. So far, this year has all the ingredients for one of those legendary F1 seasons – a season that fans will look back on with smiles on their faces in years to come. ”

“And it’s not just the fans at home or at the race track who are excited – we feel the same. And we know that we have a massive challenge on our hands. Last year, we were in a tough fight with Ferrari. However, it was nothing compared to the intensity of this year’s battle.”

“Both Red Bull and Ferrari will do everything they can to beat us. Their cars, their teams, their drivers – all of them operate at a high level and will continue to put us under pressure. Not everyone likes this kind of challenge – but we love it.”

“Each member of our team joined this sport for these moments. We’re all together in an amazing battle in which every detail counts and with an outcome no-one can predict.

“We’re going into the race weekend in Baku feeling excited about that unpredictability. It will be the first time the Azerbaijan Grand Prix takes place in April, with completely different conditions to the previous years when we went to the Caspian Sea in June.”

“This is a demanding circuit where the drivers need confidence in the car to find the right rhythm – and you want to hit the ground running on Friday morning. Last year’s race threw up a podium that nobody could have predicted and, as is the way with street courses, we can once again expect the unexpected,” added Wolff.

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Stoffel Vandoorne eyes start improvements after recent setbacks

McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne says he wants to improve his start performance off the back of a couple of compromised first-lap displays in 2018.

Vandoorne maintained his grid position in Australia but dropped from 14th to 18th in Bahrain and lost two places on the opening lap in China.

Vandoorne recouped the lost ground but is aware he must avoid another first-lap loss if he is to maximise his prospects in Formula 1’s closely-matched midfield group.

“As well as making sure we set ourselves up on the right strategy, for me the start will be crucial on Sunday,” said Vandoorne.

“I’ve not had the best starts over the last couple of races and with overtaking tough here we need to try to maximise our starting position.

“In China, we fought hard but I picked up some floor damage which made pushing ahead very difficult, so I’m looking forward to a tight battle in the midfield and progressing as much as we can in the race.”

Expanding further on the upcoming Azerbaijan GP weekend, Vandoorne said: “Baku City Circuit is a pretty tough but also enjoyable track, and it’s quite challenging for the drivers.

“You literally drive through the historic centre of the old town which was a really cool experience last year, and overtaking is tricky on the narrow streets.

“Saying that, we saw anything but a processional race last year and hopefully we can take advantage of any drama that this track throws at us next weekend.

“Last year was tough as the only real overtaking opportunity is at the end of the long straight, and it’ll be tricky for us again, but we’ll see what’s possible with the MCL33.”

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COTA announces Bruno Mars, Britney Spears to headline concerts

The Circuit of the Americas, host of the United States Grand Prix, has confirmed that both Bruno Mars and Britney Spears will headline its grand prix weekend concerts.

27-time Grammy Award winner Mars will headline Saturday's post-qualifying concert as part of his 24K Magic World show.

International pop icon Spears will close out the weekend's celebration with a hit-packed post-race concert on Sunday evening.

Circuit founder and chairman Bobby Epstein said he hopes to deliver the "greatest sports and entertainment celebration of the year".

"We’re excited to welcome Bruno Mars and Britney Spears to this year’s United States Grand Prix stage," he said.

"The pinnacle of motorsports, two global superstar musicians and all of the festive entertainment that comes with the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix defines the weekend as the greatest sports and entertainment celebration of the year.

"We are proud to host such an incredible weekend for race and music fans alike."

Access to the concerts is available to all fans attending the circuit on the respective days. Tickets go on sale April 27.

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Fernando Alonso not expecting 'radical' McLaren gains for F1 Azerbaijan GP

Fernando Alonso says he isn’t expecting a “radical change” in McLaren’s performance level at this weekend’s Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

McLaren has returned to the midfield this season after switching from Honda to Renault power, and currently holds fourth place in the Constructors’ standings, three points clear of the French manufacturer.

Alonso has scored points in each Grand Prix – a fifth and a pair of sevenths – but neither he nor Stoffel Vandoorne have escaped Q2, with one-lap gains a key area of focus for the team.

Alonso, though, is not expecting the performance of the MCL33 to be significantly improved this weekend, with more substantial gains anticipated when the sport returns to Spain in May.

“Last year’s race in Baku was certainly a memorable one for us,” said Alonso.

“It was a crazy grand prix and we scored our first points of the season there, so we’ll naturally be looking to repeat that this weekend. 

“We know our limitations and where we need to improve our package, and, although we bring parts to test to every race weekend, we aren’t anticipating a radical change in our performance in Baku.

“However, we’re learning more and more about the behaviour of our car each time we step into the cockpit, and in Azerbaijan we’ll be maximising everything we have as usual to score as many points as possible.”

McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier added: “We know our package tends to deliver more on Sundays, so the important thing will be to react quickly to anything that happens. 

“We must keep our heads down, push hard and take any and every opportunity that comes our way.

“Both of our drivers have raced brilliantly in the first grands prix of the season and I know they’ll be relishing the opportunity to maximise what they have underneath them in Baku.”

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Tough questions need to be asked if McLaren fail to make 'big step' in Spain - Pat Symonds

McLaren faces tough questions if they fail to make a big step forward at the Spanish Grand Prix in May according to Formula 1’s Chief Technical Officer of Motorsports Pat Symonds.

The British outfit made bold claims during the 2017 season that its chassis was amongst the best on the grid and that it was being held back by engine partner Honda. However a switch to Renault for 2018 hasn't seen it able to match the likes of Renault customer Red Bull and it's only somewhat on a par with the works Renault team.

Symonds says he's surprised by McLaren's lack of pace and reckons they're only the third quickest Renault team – which would put them sixth out of ten teams overall.

"To me, McLaren's performance is as unexpected as that of Haas, but unfortunately in the other direction," he said in Formula 1's pre-Azerbaijan GP guide.

"I think last year we believed the McLaren chassis and aerodynamics were very good but that they were being held back by the Honda power unit. However, I think we're seeing now that they are the third most competitive Renault team and that's surprising.

"Their straight-line speed is low and therefore they've probably taken a higher drag solution."

McLaren came out last week admitting their current car is in fact a modified version of the MCL32 from last year and said their true 2018 car won't be unveiled until the Spanish GP following development delays due to the switch from Honda to Renault.

If they fail to make a step forward in Barcelona, Symonds says the team must start asking difficult questions as to how it's gotten into the predicament it finds itself.

"They've said that with a late decision on the engine change they haven't managed to produce the car they wanted to produce. They are now saying that in Barcelona they'll make a big step forward.

"Therefore, I think that it's very binary with McLaren – if they make that big step forward in Barcelona then great, we've got another team in the mix. If they don't, then I think they need to question where they are – and how they got there."

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Ferrari already backing Vettel over Raikkonen - Symonds

Formula 1's chief technical officer Pat Symonds believes that Ferrari has already decided to back Sebastian Vettel over Kimi Rakkonen in this year's title fight, based on the strategy handed to the Finn in China.
Raikkonen was kept out of the pits in an attempt to help his teammate's race, a ploy that the Maranello team has used on occasion in the recent past.

Ironically in Shanghai the safety car and subsequent incidents resulted in Raikkonen finishing third, while Vettel was only eighth.

Former Benetton and Renault technical director Symonds says that such strategies will not help Ferrari's chances of winning the constructors' title.

"I think they need to decide how they're going to go racing," Symonds said in an F1 interview.

"I think that the way they used Raikkonen in China was unfortunate – leaving him out for so long and trying to slow down other cars.

"And to be honest, it didn't really work. By the time his rivals reached him, his tyres were shot and they could easily overtake, so it wasn't a great strategic decision.

"I don't think that's the way to get a constructors' championship. They obviously feel that the drivers' championship is more important, and they've made their decision as to where that will go."

Symonds believes that the team is in better shape than it has been since the hybrid era began.

"In pre-season I think we hoped that Ferrari would be close to Mercedes but we felt that Mercedes had something in hand," he added. "Well, the first few races haven't really shown that.

"Ferrari have had had consistent performance. They have a reasonable qualifying performance and a very good race pace. They are looking stronger than they've looked for many years and I think they've got every chance of a really good season."

Symonds also reckons that stronger competition has put a spotlight on a long-time weakness in tyre management at Mercedes.

He pointed out that it was apparent in the last days of the V8 era, and was hidden by the overall form of the package after the current hybrid power units were introduced in 2014.

"If you look back at the recent history of Mercedes, one thing that they've never quite got on top of is tyre management," he explained.

"We saw it a lot in the pre-hybrid era when they didn't have the engine advantage they enjoy now. Then, if they didn't get their tyre quite right, they didn't have great races.

"I think things were masked from 2014 to 2016, simply because they had this big power advantage.

"Then, last year we started to hear the car being called a 'diva'. What's that about? In my mind, the difference in performance you get from one weekend to the next is not really explainable in aerodynamics or vehicle dynamics or anything like that.

"With an aero/chassis package, getting your set-up just right might mean you're hoping to pick up a tenth or so from Friday to Saturday qualifying.

"But when you get a big shift, when suddenly you're not competitive, it has to be down to tyres. And if it's down to tyres it's down to not using them well and not getting the temperatures correct."

Symonds also pinpointed strategy as a weakness that the stronger opposition has revealed at the Brackley team.

"Strategically, they've also had troubles," he said. "When you have a fast car and you're controlling the race, the strategy comes to you.

"But recently with Mercedes we've seen some... I won't call them wrong, but I would say some imperfect strategy calls. I think that's because there may have been imperfect calls before, but with such a performance advantage you don't really see them."

 

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AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX TECHNICAL PREVIEW

Venue of the 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix – the Baku City Circuit – provides teams with a test similar to that seen at Spa, where the first and third sectors place a great emphasis on top speed, whereas, the middle sector is much more dependent on downforce and mechanical grip.

Unlike both Monaco and Singapore, this street circuit features very high-speed stretches but has the similarity of requiring a good amount of running for the track to rubber in properly.

Downforce vs Drag

Low angle of attack rear wings are necessary for a high top speed in the first and last thirds of the lap, especially for the 24-second flat-out section that spans most of the final sector. This is the first opportunity for teams to introduce their 2018-spec low downforce kit, so expect a raft of modified wings, both front and rear. Extra devices such as monkey seats and t-wings will most likely be omitted, especially for those cars with a Renault/Honda power unit, who will have to compromise the middle sector more than others.

Car Strengths Needed

Good Aerodynamic efficiency is rewarded here, as those cars with this attribute will have to remove less downforce. Mercedes, with their lower rake set-up, are strong in this regard, whereas, Red Bull are at the other end of the spectrum. Mechanical grip is rewarded given the low downforce set-up required, with good traction also being of importance in the many acceleration zones from slow corners.

Key Corners

Turn 1 provides a good opportunity for overtaking and also rewards those confident on the brakes given the high entry speed. Strong exits from Turns 2 and 16 are also critical to allow the opportunity for passing moves. Between Turns 8 and 12 the track is very tight, and this is an area where the driver can make a significant difference to lap time.

Tyres and Strategy

This year, Pirelli is bringing the UltraSoft, SuperSoft and Soft, in contrast to the SuperSoft, Soft and Medium from 2017. Last season, the Medium was un-driveable, the Soft difficult to get in the correct working range, while the SuperSoft was a good race tyre, but difficult to heat up for qualifying.

Given the compound changes for 2018, the 2017 SuperSoft corresponds to the 2018 Soft, with the SuperSoft and UltraSoft a step softer respectively.

However, the big unknown for this year is how the different conditions, thanks to the race being held in April compared to June, will affect the compounds. In 2017, the track temperature was as high as 50 degrees Celsius, whereas, it could be as much as 25-30 degrees Celsius lower this year.

This could perhaps make the 2018 Soft, capable of at least 40 laps last year, a difficult tyre, especially given the UltraSoft and SuperSoft have a lower temperature working range. Even if this is the case, a one-stop using the two softest compounds will be the most likely strategy, safety cars aside.

Overtaking/DRS

DRS zones heading towards Turns 1 and 3 provide very good overtaking opportunities, while the long full throttle zone from Turn 16 to Turn 1 can result in good racing even without DRS, after safety car restarts, as seen in 2017. Due to the slow-speed, tight nature of the middle part of the track, decisive overtakes are key to avoid being stuck behind slower cars for much of the lap.

Weather

All three days are forecast to be dry, with Friday seeing sunny, light wind conditions. However, for the weekend, winds will pick up considerably, perhaps up to 40 mph on Sunday, when temperatures will plummet to around 15 degrees Celsius for the race. The benign Friday conditions will therefore be less useful than desired in terms of gathering transferrable data on car stability in the wind and on tyre temperatures.

Form Guide

Over the last two races, the top three teams have been closely matched on race pace, and that may again prove to be the case in Baku. However, it remains to be seen how much of a gain Ferrari have made in the energy deployment area along the main straight, as this was part of the reason for the one second gap to Mercedes in qualifying last year.

The midfield will most likely remain tight, although Renault’s chassis upgrades (in addition to their low downforce kit) could edge them clearly ahead. McLaren may experience a more challenging weekend, even in the race, given the long straights and slow corners are weaknesses for the MCL33. Williams and Force India will look to benefit from the strong Mercedes power unit to score points on Sunday.

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RAIKKONEN: I WOULDN’T BE HERE IF I FELT I COULDN’T BE CHAMPION AGAIN

Amid suspicions to the contrary, Kimi Raikkonen is adamant that he can fight for this year’s Formula 1 World Championship title despite the fact that he lags 24 points behind his teammate Sebastian Vettel who many believe is the outright number one priority for Ferrari.

Speaking to journalists ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend in Baku, Raikkonen played down suggestions he was sacrificed to help Vettel’s cause during the , “It’s one of those things – it’s always easy after the race to say what we should have done. Once you know the final result it’s easy to say this and that, but no one knows it during the races.”

“You try to do the best you can, sometimes it’s ok, sometimes it’s not, but that’s a normal case in any racing conditions. As far as know I have 100 percent the same chances as everybody else, we try to make the best out of it.”

Asked if he felt he could win the world title again, as he did for Ferrari in 2007, he replied, “I’m here to do my best and I want to fight as hard as I can. I wouldn’t be here if I wouldn’t feel that’s possible.”

This year Raikkonen has shown good pace, qualifying second for all three races so far this season from where he has scored two third places and a DNF that has cost him in the points standings early on in the season.

The 38-year-old Finn conceded, “For sure we could have done better but this is what we’ve got right now. I think speed-wise we’ve been pretty ok, so we need to make sure we take the maximum points we can and have no issues.

“I think we improved the car since the first tests, but I don’t think that it has massively changed and suddenly there is more of this or that. I think [we are] both pretty happy with things.

“For sure there are always things we can improve, but that’s the never-ending story in Formula 1. It’s not too bad, we’ve been pretty fast and for sure we try to improve here and there. The set-up then is to make it better for each driver, but they are small things that can make a difference.”

With regards to the race weekend ahead, Raikkonen said, “To be good here in Baku you don’t need anything more than at any other track. Obviously, it’s a different layout, a kind of street circuit, but quite an open one, apart from the very tight area around turn 9 and 10.”

“For a street circuit, it requires quite a low downforce level, probably the first one of this kind we run this season.”

“We need to be stronger everywhere, but I think that our car has been good so far. Speed wise we have been pretty ok, It would be a surprise if we cannot fight at the front. The feeling with the car has been pretty straightforward so far this season.”

“I think we improved since the first test; tires played a big part in it, with better and stronger front ones. For sure there are always things to improve, but that’s a never-ending story in Formula 1. We need to tidy up certain elements and do things in a stronger way.”

“But if we keep working the way we are, I’m sure things will go in the right direction. Let’s see how this weekend goes. It’s a long way to the end of the season, and I want to do well,” added Raikkonen who has been winless since the 2013 Australian Grand Prix.

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HAS GOSS BEEN MADE SCAPEGOAT FOR MCLAREN MCL33 FLOP?

McLaren have moved aside technical head Tim Goss after the Formula One team’s new car failed to live up to expectations in the opening races of the season.

McLaren issued a statement at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Thursday, without mentioning Goss, confirming a review of technical operations was being carried out as part of a programme “to return the team to success”.

The BBC earlier reported that Goss, who had overall responsibility for the chassis side, had been removed from his position. Reuters confirmed the details independently.

Goss was one of three top engineers at the team, along with aerodynamics head Peter Prodromou and chief engineering officer Matt Morris.

McLaren said the review “addresses a broad range of factors across the organisation.”

“More details will be given in due course. Until that time there will be no further comment,” they added.

The once-dominant former champions have not won a race since 2012 and finished ninth overall of 10 teams last season, the last of a failed three-year partnership with Honda.

During that time it was a widely-held belief at Woking that the team had one of the best chassis in the sport and was being held back by their under-performing and unreliable Japanese engine.

McLaren switched to Renault power at the end of last year, the same engines that powered Red Bull to three wins in 2017, with Spain’s double world champion Fernando Alonso not alone in having high expectations.

The aim was to challenge Red Bull and return to the top three.

While currently fourth in the championship, they are only three points ahead of Renault’s factory team and 27 behind Red Bull, who triumphed in China two weeks ago with Australian Daniel Ricciardo.

To rub salt in the wounds, Honda’s engine has shown notable improvement with new partners Toro Rosso.

French rookie Pierre Gasly finished in fourth place for the Red Bull-owned team in Bahrain this month, a better result than anything McLaren achieved in their three years with Honda.

Although Alonso has scored more points in three races (22) than in all of last year (17), McLaren’s best result so far in 2018 is a fifth place.

Alonso, still regarded as one of the sport’s fastest drivers, has also yet to qualify in the top 10 this season.

McLaren announced a management shake-up earlier in April with Zak Brown appointed chief executive with overall responsibility for the team.

MIKA: I think McLaren can't place all their woes on one man. Last season it was Goss who engineered their chassis and Zak Brown all but praised Goss and even went as far as saying their chassis was the best on the grid in his opinion.

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RICCIARDO: THAT’S NOT TRUE

Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo has dismissed media speculation of a pre-agreement with Ferrari that could see him switch from his current team to the Italian Formula 1 team next season.

The Australian has only talked about his future with Red Bull, he told reporters during a  in Baku on Thursday ahead of Sunday’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

“I’m aware of other reports, but there hasn’t been anything else, so they’re not true,” said Ricciardo, winner in China two weeks ago and of last year’s chaotic Baku race.

Asked specifically about reports of a pre-agreement with Ferrari for an exclusive negotiating period, the 28-year-old replied: “That’s not true”.

He is out of contract at the end of the season, as is Kimi Raikkonen, who partners four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel — Ricciardo’s previous Red Bull team mate — at Ferrari.

Ricciardo’s next move is a hot topic in the paddock, with the Australian showing signs of “contract fatigue” in the face of constant questions. He has also been linked to Mercedes as a possible team mate for Britain’s four-times world champion Lewis Hamilton.

The Perth-born driver said he would not accept a subservient role at any team and expected clarity and fairness.

Raikkonen, the 2007 world champion, has played a back-up role to Vettel at Ferrari, who faced criticism after China for a strategy that favoured the German over the Finn.

“I wouldn’t want to go somewhere where I didn’t feel I had a chance,” Ricciardo said. “At the moment what I’m chasing is to try and be world champion. That’s my goal, my dream, something I really believe I’m capable of.”

“So if someone said ‘we’ll let you come here but you can’t do this’, that’s not an attractive option to me. At Red Bull there’s always been really good clarity and I would say fairness, since 2014, since I’ve been there.”

Being in a team with Hamilton would be a “good challenge”, he added.

Asked whether he was curious to see whether the “grass was greener” elsewhere, Ricciardo said his decision would be based on facts.

“I wouldn’t go somewhere else just for a change,” he said, recognising also that he felt lingering loyalty to Red Bull who have said they want a decision by the August break.

“I guess I don’t really fear not having a seat next year so I don’t feel that I need to sign something tomorrow or I will have nothing,” Ricciardo said. “So I guess for that reason I feel like I can see until the summer what’s happening. If nothing has happened since then…if it’s only then Red Bull, then that’s where I am.”

 

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Full Drivers Press Conference Azerbaijan GP Ricciardo/Hulkenberg/Magnussen

 

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BRATCHES: HANOI STREET RACE AND SECOND CHINA RACE ON THE CARDS

Formula 1 is expected to add more grand prix races in Asia including a street circuit in the capital of Vietnam, a country with little motorsport history that is on the verge of getting a marquee event.

“We think Hanoi could come on in the next couple of years, and we’re working with the Hanoi government to that end,” Sean Bratches, Formula 1’s managing director of commercial operations, told the Associated Press.

Vietnam would join countries like Azerbaijan, Russia and Bahrain, which have grand prix races, who also have little history in the sport, and authoritarian governments with deep pockets that serve F1 as it tries to expand into new markets.

“This [Hanoi] is a street race where we can go downtown, where we can activate a large fan base,” Bratches said. “And you have extraordinary iconography from a television standpoint.”

A second race in China is also likely and would join Shanghai on the F1 calendar. Bratches said deciding where to stage the grand prix will “be left to local Chinese partners” — Beijing is a strong candidate.

Bratches runs the commercial side of Formula One, which was acquired last year by U.S.-based Liberty Media from long-time operator Bernie Ecclestone.

Formula One’s long-term goal is to have 24-25 races — up from the present 21 — and arrange them in three geographical segments: Asia, Europe and the Americas. Bratches said the Europe-based races would stay in middle of the calendar, with Asia or the Americas opening or ending the season.

He said their positioning had not been decided, and getting this done will be slowed by current contracts that mandate specific places on the calendar for several races. This means eventually that all the races in Asia would be run together, as would races in Europe and the Americas.

The F1 schedule is now an inefficient jumble, allowing Bratches to take a good-natured poke at how the sport was run under Ecclestone.

“We’ve acquired an undermanaged asset that’s 67-years-old, but effectively a start-up,” Bratches said.

Early-season races in Australia and China this year were conducted either side of a trip to Bahrain in the Middle East. Late in the season Formula 1 returns to Asia with races in Japan and Singapore.

The Canadian Grand Prix this season is run in the middle of the European swing, separated by four months from the other races in the Americas — the United States, Mexico and Brazil. These three are followed by the season-ending race in Abu Dhabi, which means another trip across the globe.

“With the right economics, with the right structure and cadence of events across territories, 24 or 25 is probably where we’d like to be from a longer-term standpoint,” Bratches said.

Big changes are not likely to happen until the 2020 season ends. This is when many current rules and contracts expire as F1’s new owners try to redistribute some income to allow smaller teams to compete.

“There’s more interest than we have capacity in the schedule,” Bratches said, firing off Berlin, Paris or London as potentially attractive venues. “We want to be very selective.”

“Those cites from an economic impact standpoint would find us value, as do others around the world,” Bratches added. “It’s very important for us as we move forward to go to locations that are a credit to the Formula One brand.”

An expanded schedule would have to be approved by the teams, which will be stretched by the travel and the wear-and-tear on their crews. The burden will fall on the smaller teams, which have significantly smaller revenue compared with Ferrari, Mercedes or Red Bull.

Bratches also envisions another race in the U.S., joining the United States Grand Prix held annually in Austin, Texas. A street race in Miami is a strong candidate, as are possible venues like Las Vegas or New York.

“We see the United States and China as countries that could support two races,” he said.

Liberty Media has reported Formula One’s total annual revenue at $1.8 billion, generated by fees paid by promoters, broadcast rights, advertising and sponsorship. Race promotion fees also tend to be higher in Asia, which makes the area attractive — along with a largely untapped fan base.

In a four-year cycle, F1 generates more revenue than FIFA or the International Olympic Committee, which rely almost entirely on one-time showcase events.

Reports suggest Vietnamese promoters may pay between $50-60 million annually as a race fee, with those fees paid by the government. Bratches said 19 of 21 Formula One races are supported by government payments.

“The race promotion fee being derived from the government … is a model that has worked historically,” Bratches said.

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MERCEDES TALK ABOUT TEMPERATURES

For many of us, minimal changes in temperature will go unnoticed. In Formula 1, however, small increases or decreases of even one or two degrees have a considerable impact on how teams approach a race or session.

With the upcoming Azerbaijan Grand Prix shifting from the heat of June to its new spot on the calendar in the cooler climes of April, we’re investigating what temperature changes mean for the teams.

Two temperatures play an important role in F1: air temperature and track temperature. While the two are connected, they’re not the same. On a beautiful, sunny day, for example, both air and track temperatures will rise. As soon as cloud cover arrives, the air temperature will drop immediately. However, the track will retain the heat over a longer period of time and cool down slowly.

Depending on the surface materials, tracks might heat up faster or slower. If the track surface features a high level of bitumen, it will be darker – and thus absorb more sunlight and heat up quicker.

Variations in temperature impact many parts of the car, but the biggest influence is usually on the tyres. The track temperature impacts how hot the tyres will run which will, in turn, impact the grip level and the degradation rate.

F1 tyres have a very narrow operating window – the sweet spot being where they are at the peak of their performance in terms of grip levels. Operating below this window doesn’t produce the same levels of mechanical grip or performance while being above it can cause performance to drop and increase tyre wear. Missing the optimum tyre operating window by a few degrees can cost a tenth of a second in a lap time.

As the front and the rear tyres don’t operate at the same temperatures, a change in track temperature will impact them differently and increase or reduce their grip levels unevenly. Varying track temperatures will therefore also affect the balance of the car. So, teams will be regularly altering the car set-up to react to these changes.

But it’s not just the teams who react to those changes. It’s the drivers, too. Their driving style has an impact on tyre temperatures. Drivers will push harder if they want to put heat in the tyres, especially in high-speed corners.

If the track temperature changes considerably during a race, drivers have several ways to deal with this. In addition to how hard they push the tyres, they can alter their driving lines to suit the balance of the car, adjust the differential – the amount of torque transfer between the rear wheels – or the brake balance to the front or the rear of the car.

While the tyres are mostly impacted by the track temperature, the brakes, cooling and Power Unit are more heavily influenced by the air temperature. Therefore, teams are constantly monitoring both the air and track temperatures as well as the temperatures of the components within the cars themselves. This will allow the teams to see how those components are evolving and changing over the course of sessions or races.

Temperature swings will change the amount of cooling required to keep the Power Unit running in the optimum window, providing the teams with the best power output. If the ambient air is hot, more airflow is required to get it back to the optimum temperatures – so the teams will open up the bodywork in order to increase airflow through the radiators.

Teams may run different cooling configurations across a race weekend in order to adapt to the expected conditions. This is especially true for race weekends such as Bahrain, where sessions take place in both hot daytime hours and the cooler temperatures of twilight.

It gets a little trickier when there is a large difference between conditions on Saturday and Sunday because the regulations don’t allow for changes to be made to cars between qualifying and the race.

Even without temperature variations, the set-up of the car on Saturday is always a balance between single lap performance and race competitiveness. The most aggressive set-up might produce great grip levels on a single lap in qualifying, but increase tyre wear in the race, so the teams have to find a compromise.

A forecasted temperature swing between Saturday and Sunday makes this process a bit more challenging as the teams have to keep Sunday’s conditions in mind as they prepare the car for qualifying on Saturday.

Alongside influencing parts of the car, temperature also has a physical impact on the drivers. They may be incredibly fit athletes and focus heavily on training, but driving F1 cars is a physically demanding task. Therefore, they can lose around one kilogram of bodyweight during races from fluid loss.

This figure increases in warmer temperatures, so the amount they drink is dependent on how warm or cool it is. Each driver has a drinks system in their car, with up to one litre of fluids being available to drink throughout the race.

Looking at the race weekend ahead, the new position on the calendar brings about an interesting challenge: having shifted from a late June spot on the calendar to late April, the conditions of the Azerbaijan GP will be considerably different compared to last year. The difference in average temperatures from April to June in Baku can be around 10 degrees, which is a significant step when it comes to F1 cars.

When teams go to races with varying conditions, they’ll complete a sweep of simulations with different ambient and track temperatures in order to arm them with the set-up and cooling configuration changes required. Therefore, teams will be busy in the simulator ahead of F1’s return to Baku in order to understand how the tyres and balance will be influenced by changes in track temperature.

This helps the teams anticipate the necessary set-up changes. It’s a crucial element of the pre-race preparations, allowing the teams to have a general understanding how to set-up the car when they hit the track for real on Friday. They will then use the practice sessions to fine-tune the set-up and make sure the drivers are happy with the resultant car balance.

Of course, with Baku’s street track being one of the newest additions on the calendar, there isn’t as much historical data from past years to know what happens when conditions change. So, simulators are relied on more heavily in order to best prepare teams with the information and options when temperatures do vary.

[MIKA27]

Sainz’s focus is only on the ‘Renault project’

Billed by Christian Horner as the driver most likely to replace Daniel Ricciardo should he leave, Carlos Sainz insists he’s not yet thinking about 2019.

Ricciardo’s future in Formula 1 remains uncertain with the Aussie linked to a move to Ferrari while other reports claim he could even replace Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes.

Red Bull have set him a deadline of August to decide his future with team boss Horner stating that Red Bull will most likely draft in Sainz as his replacement.

“The most obvious is Carlos Sainz,” Horner told Auto Motor und Sport. “He is under contract with us.”

But while Sainz says he has been chatting to Red Bull, he insists his focus is firmly on Renault and this year’s championship.

“I’m obviously still having some contact with them,” he said.

“It’s a good thing to be in contact with the whole paddock and especially the guys who have given you your opportunity to be in Formula 1.

“But from my side I’m still in the Renault project and working here like I was going to be here for ever and not thinking about 2019.

“When the right moment comes about talking about 2019, don’t worry, I will be the first one to start talking about it.

“But I just owe Renault and this team 100 per cent focus in Baku and put some focus on the first half, 75 per cent of the season so that they are pushing flat out for me to keep climbing up the ladder.”

[MIKA27]

Horner: Red Bull have engine options for 2019

Red Bull could swap engine suppliers next season with Christian Horner acknowledging that they have “options” for the future.

Although Red Bull won the Chinese Grand Prix with Renault power, the team’s weekend in Shanghai was not without engine dramas.

Ricciardo’s engine went up in smoke in final practice leaving Red Bull in a race against time to get him into qualifying.

They made it by two minutes and a day later he won the grand prix.

However, it was just the latest engine issue that had befallen Red Bull with Horner conceding they could look elsewhere for 2019.

“Luckily we have options,” he told Auto Motor und Sport.

“Renault wishes to continue working with us, and we have a front row seat with regards to Honda.

“We can observe how they develop.”

As of the start of this season, Honda are powering Red Bull junior team Toro Rosso and have shown vast improvements compared to their time with McLaren.

Horner added that Red Bull would make their decision “in the summer break.”

[MIKA27]

Mercedes to implement "short-term" fixes in Baku

Mercedes has implemented "short-term" fixes to its Formula 1 car for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in the light of its struggles in recent races.
Mercedes has suffered tyre management problems in the first races of the season relative to main rivals Ferrari and Red Bull, especially on Pirelli's softer compounds.

The team has also lost the qualifying speed advantage that it has long enjoyed, and Lewis Hamilton said Mercedes will introduce "short-term" solutions this weekend in Baku.

"We've sat and understood where we've gone wrong but we're still implementing the changes because there could be five or 10 different solutions for that particular problem," Hamilton said.

"Now I'm just hoping that we've implemented the right equation to get the right answer. I won't know till tomorrow."

Hamilton, who is yet to win a race this year, is eager to see if real progress has been made.

"It's been really interesting having the meetings that we've had, a lot of work's gone in," he said. "I'm hoping that coming here this weekend we can implement the things that we've learned.

"But we know it's going to be close, the Ferraris and Red Bulls were really quick here last year, I anticipate that will be the same. We have no idea where we're going to be this weekend."

Hamilton says that the real potential of the Mercedes W09 has been masked by the team's struggles with tyre management.

He added: "We believe [the car] is sound, that's not been the biggest issue. The tyres have been something that we're still learning about. One weekend we've got it, and the next weekend we haven't. The tyres are having a big effect I think for everyone.

"The car has been great, but in the last race it definitely wasn't performing the way it normally does. But again, I think that's also the tyres that really came into play. I'm hoping that if we can really get on top of the tyre situation we'll be able to show the true performance of the car.

The Briton said the team struggled to understand why it was so competitive in Australia, but less so in the subsequent races.

"I wouldn't say we lucked in in Melbourne, but we were more naturally on top of it," he said. "We put the car on track and it worked well. It was definitely easier to work the tyres. But the engineers could not explain why I was so quick in qualifying and why I was quick in the race and why others weren't.

"The Ferraris were slow in the corners and at the next race they were quick so they found something and it's most likely in the tyres.

"If you look at all the drivers, there's different speeds of out-laps, some drivers are taking two laps to get the tyres to work, some people are taking longer, some people are doing it on the out-laps, so there's different experiments people are doing."

Hamilton admitted that it was not easy to improve the situation given the limited track running available.

"It's very difficult to do it on the weekend, the sessions are quite short," he continued. "I definitely think that's an area that we need to improve on. And people can't blame it on the fact that we haven't done tyre testing, because we did tyre testing in the last year and we gave it just as much time and effort as everyone else.

"Some things you learn faster than others. This weekend I think our understanding is already better, and I hope that won't be the masking factor of our performance and I hope it won't hinder us as it did in the last race."

[MIKA27]

Ricciardo underwent lip surgery before Baku

Daniel Ricciardo has revealed he underwent minor surgery on his lip in between the China and Baku Formula 1 races.
Following his unexpected Chinese GP triumph, the Australian travelled back to England, where he first spent some time in the Red Bull Racing simulator, before heading to London for a surgical procedure on an infected wound on his lip.

It wasn't until the end of the week that he finally returned home to Monaco to continue his recovery.

"It took me five days to get back to Monaco after winning in Shanghai, and it seriously felt like I was on the go for all five," he wrote in a column on the Red Bull website.

"I wish I had some decent stories of crazy three-day parties and that sort of thing to share with you, but it was about as uneventful as celebrations get.

"I was on multiple flights connecting the night after the race, went straight into the Red Bull Racing factory at Milton Keynes, had time in the simulator, and then I had to get some minor surgery.

"I had this weird thing with my lip happen in Bahrain the weekend before where I bit it, and it must have got infected or something because I kept biting it over and over.

"So I had to get that taken out and stitched back up in London, so that – and a fair bit of talking about China – was basically the week after Shanghai.

"I got back to Monaco last Friday, where I could finally put my feet up."

Ricciardo also reflected on that unlikely win in China, admitting that he spent the final few laps of the race incredibly nervous that his Renault engine would suffer another failure.

"I'd been pretty quiet on the radio until that time as I was passing people, so I asked [race engineer] Simon [Rennie] how far we had to go once I'd taken the lead, and couldn't believe it was still 11 laps or so," he added.

"What was I supposed to do with 11 laps? I pushed initially to create a gap, but then started managing it, and that's when your mind can start to wander.

"You have all this adrenaline after a carrot like a race win gets dangled in front of you, and then it's like 'what now?'

"Driving on the limit is easier. You're much more present. The day before, we'd had the turbo failure, so every time I started on that long back straight in China on those last 11 laps I was thinking 'I hope I don't hear any funny noises like yesterday …'.

"When you start to cruise and manage a gap, you think about that sort of thing."

MIKA: Drinking from a sweaty shoe probably doesn't help much? 

[MIKA27]

Williams lost straightline speed edge with 2018 F1 car

Williams's push to give its Formula 1 car more downforce has eliminated its previous straightline speed advantage without gaining enough cornering speed, say its drivers.
The British team adopted a more aggressive design philosophy for 2018 but has zero points after the first three races of the season.

Williams had the slowest top speed of any team in qualifying for China, continuing a trend of being much worse through the speed traps this year than last in both qualifying and the race.

"This year the ideology changed a little bit," rookie Sergey Sirotkin told Motorsport.com. "Nobody was, of course, planning to completely flip this balance, but we wanted to move it to maybe a bit 50-50.

"I won't say that we were really planning to lose on the straights, but we knew ahead of time and were expecting that we wouldn't be the fastest.

"But of course in turn we expected to get something that we so far didn't get."

Top speeds have fallen for all teams in 2018 because the addition of the halo driver protection device to the cockpit has made the cars heavier.

However, Williams has the worst drop and in qualifying has fallen from 5.98km/h above the average top speed in Australia, Bahrain and China last year to 2.4km/h below.

Its top speed compares slightly better to other teams in the races at 1.84km/h above the average, but this is still down compared to last year when it was 8.64km/h higher than the mean.

Lance Stroll said "we've lost a good chunk in our strong point and we haven't gained enough in our weak point", adding: "We don't have the handling benefits that we were looking for of the direction change that we made over the winter.

"That straightline performance was really good last year, especially in the race, for overtaking and for maintaining position, and having competitive races. That cornering speed is not where we want it to be."

Both drivers have identified entry stability as a weakness, among other handling problems.

This weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix features the longest start-finish straight of the season and Stroll is expecting a tough return to the race he took his maiden F1 podium in last year.

However, a longer-term fix appears on the horizon as Sirotkin said the team had identified the for that and knows "what we can do, by fixing a few things, to make the car work again".

Sirotkin also explained that Williams is facing more of a challenge to avoid overheating than it expected.

He said that last year's cooling package was "not at all sensitive", so Williams opted to be more aggressive this year by trying to use more of the airflow to generate downforce instead of cooling parts of the car.

However, Sirotkin admitted that "where we are now, we don't see the result of it all".

[MIKA27]

McLaren to trial fix for top speed deficit

McLaren will try a "different philosophy" in Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice to try to reduce its top speed deficit at one of Formula 1's fastest circuits, according to Fernando Alonso.
Despite switching to Renault engines, McLaren had the worst top speed in qualifying in Australia and Bahrain this year, although fared better in China by getting Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne to tow each other down the back straight.

Last year, McLaren had a top speed deficit of 15km/h to the fastest car in Baku, which has four flat-out kinks before the start-finish straight, as both drivers both failed to make it out of the first part of qualifying.

"Here was quite a difficult grand prix for us in the past years," Alonso said. "We had some limitations on the power side.

"It seems this year we still have quite a slow car on the straights but hopefully here we can improve that.

"We have a different philosophy, a different test, to do on Friday to gain some extra speed and hopefully we can minimise that deficit.

"We've not been in Q3 so far this year and I think it's going to be difficult again, but hopefully we are a little bit closer."

Baku is mostly a traditional street circuit but poses a unique set-up challenge for teams because the start-finish straight, the longest in F1, means they also need a high top speed.

Alonso said any experimenting done on Friday was a reaction to the specific needs of the Baku circuit but said it would also be good for future races like Canada, where straightline speed is also more significant.

Asked by Motorsport.com if the risk of sacrificing the rest of the lap made it harder for McLaren to minimise its top-speed deficit, he replied: "In a way yes, there are very different parts of the circuits here.

"The compromises you make on one part will be quite bad for the other parts. We need to think carefully about that, tomorrow's just a test day so we will test different solutions.

"Overnight it's up to us to balance all of those solutions and make a decision.

"In a way in a race situation, there are not many overtaking manoeuvres on the slow part of the circuit because it's a narrow street circuit, so normally here to be faster on the straights would be a winning situation."

[MIKA27]

Ferrari, Mercedes offer glimpse of unique Baku wings

Formula 1 heads to one its outlier circuits in Baku this weekend – with the demands of the super long straight and twisty city section throwing up a unique challenge.
Over the past two years, teams have quickly realised that straight line speed is essential for success in Baku, which means taking off the downforce levels and trying to find low-drag solutions.

The recent Chinese Grand Prix offered us a first glimpse of how F1's main title protagonists Ferrari and Mercedes will be approaching this year's race in Azerbaijan – as they devoted some practice time in Shanghai to evaluating parts for the next race.

Ferrari and Mercedes both trialled their own versions of spoon-shaped rear wings in China, which are designed to deliver a significant reduction in drag while maintaining as much downforce as possible.

This is achieved by maximising the central section of the wing, recovering downforce, whilst the shorter chord height of each element at the outer section induces less drag. 

It is worth noting that while Ferrari does not ordinarily utilise the open-end style endplate louvres, this wing has been designed with them in mind as the aerodynamicists look to work differently the vortex created at the wing tips.

Mercedes, already a champion of the open-end style louvres, also looked at a solution that it has used in the past.

It attached a serrated strip that was affixed to the trailing edge of the mainplane.

The team played around with this style of serrated tape on the rear wing towards the end of 2015, before a full blown installation as part of its mainplane's trailing edge in 2016.

The solution is used in order to improve the efficiency of both rear wing elements, giving them more options in terms of the angle that the wing is run at.

How the serrated tape works

This strip, with the saw-tooth facing rearwards, is placed just behind the throat of the wing where the airflow is starting to get a little lazy. The small vortices that this sawtooth sets up will re-energise the airflow, making the main plane of the wing perform more consistently when the DRS is opened.

It will also help to get the airflow to re-attach faster to the flap section when the DRS is closed. This is vitally important to get driver confidence in the braking areas when you are running reduced downforce levels.

Mercedes tried something similar in 2016, but this was in the slot-gap area to improve the airflow reattachment on the flap section of a much larger-section rear wing.

[LLC]

Drinking from a sweaty shoe probably doesn't help much? 

Exactly!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MIKA27]

AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX: HAMILTON SURVIVES COMEDY OF ERRORS

Lewis Hamilton won an incident-packed Azerbaijan Grand Prix, to open his victory account in 2018 and take the lead in the championship after surviving a comedy of errors that led to an unlikely victory in Baku, his first at the venue.

Sebastian Vettel led for much of the race, but was stuck in second behind Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas when a crash between the two Red Bulls brought out the safety car.

On the restart, Vettel lunged for the lead but could not keep his car on the racing line at the exit of the next corner and instead lost places. Soon afterward, Bottas’ right-rear tire picked up a puncture, ending his race and elevating Hamilton to first.

“Really quite an emotional race to be honest,” Hamilton said. “Valtteri did such an exceptional job today and really deserved to have the win. It’s really quite a humbling experience. Valtteri really deserved to win and drove an exceptional race.”

“It was a real struggle today so to come out with the win I’m extremely grateful. Straight away after the car after the interviews I went to see Valtteri straight away. That’s why I was late to the podium.”

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen claimed second place after having dropped to 14th following an early collision with Esteban Ocon, which ended the Force India driver’s race on the spot. His teammate Sergio Perez held off Vettel for third to claim Force India’s first podium since 2016.

Raikkonen told reporters, “I was inside and I think Ocon didn’t see me, it’s pretty difficult sometimes. he just turned in and I was there. It wasn’t ideal the start for me. It was a difficult race after that, I tried to come back.”

“At certain moments I felt good but in others I struggled to keep the tyres warm enough. I just played the long game and expecting issues. It paid off but it wasn’t very easy,” added the veteran Finn.

Perez added, “Today I think I did the best two laps of my whole career. The last two laps, with Sebastian behind, with cold tyres. It was so difficult. I was on the superosft tyres and I had to keep a very strong rhythm and try and keep close to Raikkonen so Sebastian didn’t get close enough. I’m speechless.”

The two Red Bulls of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo battled all race for fourth place. After several dramatic near-misses,  on lap 40 when Ricciardo ran into the back of Verstappen under braking at the first corner, sending them both off the track.

Bottas had been left in the lead when first Hamilton, then Vettel, stopped for fresh tires. He would have had to stop soon but for the Red Bull crash, which allowed Bottas to pit and keep the lead.

Romain Grosjean crashed under the safety car on lap 42, sliding into the wall while weaving in an attempt to heat up his tires. That delayed the restart, and when it came Vettel charged down the inside of Bottas but couldn’t slow enough to make the corner and went onto a runoff area.

After a start in cool, windy conditions, the safety car was out almost immediately on lap 1 as several cars collided in the middle of the pack.

Sergei Sirotkin ran into the back of Perez, causing contact between several other cars. That in turn left Sirotkin out of the race and Fernando Alonso limping back to the pits with two punctures.

The drama continued at the next turn, where Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen’s aggressive lunge at Force India’s Esteban Ocon plunged Ocon into the wall and out of the race. Raikkonen needed a new nose and dropped to 14th.

Renault’s Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg briefly stormed past both Red Bulls into fourth and fifth, but Sainz lost his spot when he pitted, while Hulkenberg’s race ended with a slide into the wall on lap 11.

Blow-By-Blow Report

The 2018 Azerbaijan Grand Prix was full of drama right from the start. Pole position man Vettel held his advantage when the lights went out, taking the lead ahead of Hamilton, Bottas and the Red Bulls of Ricciardo and Verstappen.

Behind them there was drama as Räikkönen and Force India’s Ocon collided in Turn 1. The impact pushed the French driver into the barriers and out of the race, but the Finn was able to make his way back to the pits for a new front wing and a set of soft tyres.

More incidents were to follow soon after, when Williams’ Sirotkin tagged the front right wheel of  Alonso’s McLaren. The Russian driver was forced to retire, but the Spaniard was able to limp back to the pits, though by the time he had reached the McLaren pit box he had shed both right side tyres. He too took a new front wing and soft tyres. With debris strewn across the track, the Safety Car was deployed.

When the action resumed, Vettel again held his advantage, demonstrably backing the field up to shorten the run to Turn 1. He quickly opened up a gap to the Mercedes and it was further back in the battle for fourth to sixth that the big battles began to happen.

Verstappen passed team-mate Ricciardo but in doing so Renault’s Sainz pounced and managed to slot between the two Red Bulls. The Spaniard then began to exert pressure on the Dutch driver and quickly made a decisive move past the Red Bull.

Behind them, Ricciardo was also a target for Renault.  Hulkenberg swiftly passed the Australian and then got past Verstappen as both Red Bull drivers complained of battery charging problems.

Hulkenberg’s stay in fifth place was brief, however, as on lap 11 he made an error in Turn 4. The German lost the back end of his Renault and the rear left of hit the wall. He drove straight down the escape road at Turn 5 and retired.

The Red Bull drivers appeared to now be recovering from their woes and as Verstappen began to push back towards Sainz, the Spaniard opted to pit, shedding his ultrasoft starting tyres for a set of softs.

At the front, Vettel was busy constructing a comfort zone back to Hamilton, and by lap 20 the Ferrari driver had built a four second cushion over the Mercedes man. Hamilton was in turn six seconds clear of team-mate Bottas.

Vettel’s advantage was stretched on lap 21 when Hamilton suffered a huge lock-up into Turn 1, flat-spotting both front tyres. He dropped three seconds to Vettel and immediately headed for the pit lane were he took on a set of soft tyres. He rejoined in P3.

The race then settled until Vettel, with a 4.8s lead over Bottas and 23.6s in hand over Hamilton, made his pit stop at the end of lap 30, taking on soft tyres. And when they crossed the line next, the German found himself 11.7s behind new leader Bottas (who needed to make a pit stop) and 7.9s ahead of Hamilton who was going to the end on older soft tyres.

Behind them, the Red Bulls, who had been duelling fiercely throughout the race, traded positions once more. Fourth-placed Verstappen complained of waning grip from his ageing supersoft tyres and Ricciardo, spotting the opportunity, pounced at Turn 1, using a good two from his team-mate to overtake around the outside. The Australian did well to keep his car out of the wall on exit as he locked up. It was all in vain, however, as when they pair pitted the Dutchman jumped his team-mate and re-took fourth place.

Ricciardo was urged by his engineer to “get it all done again” but in doing the Red Bulls set the pattern for the end of the race.

Ricciardo tried to pass his team-mate into Turn 1. The interplay between the cars was hard to judge, as Verstappen moved marginally right and then more decisively defended to his left, but the result was that Ricciardo slammed into back of Verstappen’s car and both crashed out of the race.

The safety car was deployed, but as it dictated the pace, sixth-placed Grosjean lost control as he weaved to keep heat in his tyres and he hit the wall.

The medical car was sent on track, the safety car stayed out and it took a number of laps before the Frenchman’s Haas was lifted off track.

Racing finally resumed on lap 48, after all of the leading drivers had pitted for ultrasoft tyres, and Vettel desperately tried to get past Bottas. The German locked up though and went wide, allowing Hamilton and Räikkönen to get past.

The race took and even more dramatic turn later in the lap as Bottas suddenly suffered a punctured rear left, caused by debris, that dropped him out of the race. Further back Vettel was struggling with his tyres and he was passed by Pérez.

And that was how the podium shaped up, with Hamilton taking a somewhat fortunate 63rd career victory ahead of Räikkönen and Perez. Vettel was left with fourth place ahead of Sainz, while Sauber’s Leclerc collected his first F1 points with sixth place.

Alonso brought his damaged McLaren home in seventh place ahead of Williams’ Stroll, the second McLaren of Vandoorne and the final point, for 10th place, went to Toro Rosso’s Hartley.

[MIKA27]

SIROTKIN HANDED PENALTY FOR CAUSING COLLISION

Russian rookie Sergey Sirotkin will have a three-place grid penalty for Spain after Formula 1 race stewards ruled the Williams driver was wholly to blame for an Azerbaijan Grand Prix collision on Sunday.

He was also handed two penalty points, his first of the season.

Sirotkin, now one of just two drivers yet to score a point this year, drove into the back of Force India’s Mexican Sergio Perez on the opening lap.

There were then knock-on collisions involving Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg and McLaren’s Fernando Alonso.

Perez, who later collected a five-second time penalty for overtaking before the safety car line, went on to take third place in the race.

“It was such a mess in the first few corners. I was between two cars heading into turn three and I was just slowly and progressively squeezed between the two cars, as I was in the middle,” Sirotkin said.

“At a point I saw I was not going to avoid a crash so I just lifted, hoping they would squeeze me but not hit me that much, but then already there was nothing I could do.”

“We touched, my car jumped and when I landed, I broke my front suspension and my wing,” he added in a team statement.

[MIKA27]

GROSJEAN: I THINK ERICSSON HIT US

Romain Grosjean made a gross misjudgement when aggressively trying to get heat into the tyres on his Haas during a second safety car period and as a result slammed the wall when he lost control, prompting him to immediately blame Sauber driver Marcus Ericsson.

“I think Ericsson hit us,” hollered Grosjean into the team radio.

But replays show the Frenchman swerving from right to left in an effort to generate heat into his tyres, but it is clear he lost control all by himself with blameless Ericsson at least fifty metres behind the Haas when it slammed the wall.

It was an amateur mistake by Grosjean who added afterwards, This hurts a lot and I want to apologize to the team.”

“We were in the middle of an amazing race, starting last and running P6. Seeing (Sergio) Perez on the podium, knowing I was fighting with him, is very painful for all of us. It was going very well. The conditions were tricky, there was a lot of wind, the car was going left and right, pushing then not pushing.”

“I was warming up my tyres and bumped into a switch that I’d moved by two positions. When I touched the brakes, the brake balance was locked rearward – it just locked the rear wheels and I spun,” explained Grosjean with no mention of Ericsson.

[MIKA27]

RED BULL DRIVERS REPRIMANDED AFTER BAKU CRASH

Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo wrecked Red Bull’s  hopes by taking each other out of the race with a collision that angered and dismayed team boss Christian Horner.

Formula 1 stewards said both men, who had been running fourth and fifth, shared the blame and issued them with reprimands.

Australian Ricciardo, race winner in China two weekends ago and in Baku last year, smashed into the back of his 20-year-old Dutch team mate’s car while attempting to overtake on the 40th of 51 laps.

The incident, which had looked more and more likely as the pair went wheel-to-wheel and passed and re-passed over the previous laps, brought out the safety car for the second time in the race.

“I have watched a few replays and the only thing we can both say is sorry to the team. This is the last thing we wanted,” said Ricciardo. “This was the worst case scenario and everyone is pretty heartbroken.”

Verstappen, who has had an accident-packed season so far, said both would make sure it did not happen again, “I don’t think not letting us race anymore is the way forward but of course we will talk this over as a team and learn from it.”

Retired triple world champion Niki Lauda, now non-executive chairman of rivals Mercedes, said the collision was 70 percent Verstappen and 30 percent Ricciardo because the Dutchman had twice changed his line.

“If you move on him all the time, where does the poor guy have to go?,” the Austrian told reporters.

Lauda added that, in Horner’s shoes, he would “go home and cry” and then summon the pair to his office to tell them how much less they would get paid for the damage done.

Red Bull have been in such a situation before — most notably in Turkey in 2010 when Australian Mark Webber and Germany’s Sebastian Vettel collided when set for a one-two finish.

Horner said it was a racing accident, and he wanted to continue allowing the current pair to race freely, but they had to recognise that making contact was “unacceptable”.

“Unfortunately today has resulted in the worst possible scenario where you’ve had both drivers make contact and retire from the grand prix, which is enormously disappointing.

“There’s no blame apportioned more in one direction to the other, they are both equally responsible,” he said, adding that the drivers had been urged before the race to allow each other space.

“What is obviously annoying is that we’ve given away an awfully large amount of points today so both drivers will be apologising to all the members of staff that work so hard to put these cars together,” added Horner.