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Haas: Bad luck "pouring" on point-less Grosjean

Haas: Bad luck "pouring" on point-less Grosjean

Haas Formula 1 boss Gunther Steiner says he is convinced that Romain Grosjean will bounce back after admitting that bad luck is "pouring" down on the French driver currently.
Grosjean started his home race at Paul Ricard 10th after crashing in Q3, and then collided with countryman Esteban Ocon on the first lap of the race.

After receiving a five-second penalty he eventually finished 11th, continuing his point-less run that stretches back to last year's United States GP.

He has yet to earn a point in 2018, while teammate Kevin Magnussen has scored on four occasions, including a sixth place in France.

“It seems to be always a difficult one, a driver going for it and one not,” Steiner told Motorsport.com.

“We had it with Kevin last year, when he had a down period and people were picking on him. At the moment it’s Romain for whom it goes all wrong.

“It never seems to be raining, it’s always pouring. Then he’s trying to get back on his feet, then he gets a penalty, after a while it beats you down. But I think he’s strong enough to overcome it. “

Asked what Grosjean has to do to get his season back on track, Steiner said: “It’s just keep on doing it. His performance was all good until Q3.

"What can I say? He will be back. I guess one day we will get them both in the points. I don’t think the points are far away for him.”

Steiner was satisfied with Magnussen’s run to sixth and 'best of the rest' in France, helped by a late problem for Renault driver Carlos Sainz that moved him up a place.

“We’re happy with that," Steiner said. "You always want more, so we wanted to be seventh as well, but that wasn’t there.

"We got a bit of luck when Carlos had an issue at the end, but I think this is where we want to be. Hopefully it’s the start of collecting points.”

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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

Honda suspects different problems for two engine failures

Honda suspects different problems for two engine failures

Honda believes the problem Brendon Hartley had in France is different to Pierre Gasly’s in Canada, as it prepares to analyse a second failure for its upgraded Formula 1 engine.
The Japanese manufacturer was expecting to be able to start investigating Hartley’s replaced engine at its Sakura facility on Tuesday. 

Toro Rosso and Honda sent the engine back to Japan after Hartley was forced to stop in Friday practice. 

It comes two weeks after Gasly suffered a problem in Canada, where Honda introduced its new F1 engine specification that is based mainly around the combustion engine. 

Honda’s F1 technical director Toyoharu Tanabe told Motorsport.com: “We couldn’t tell anything specific from our inspection here, we needed to wait. 

“We will start analysing from Tuesday in Japan. The countermeasure depends on the type of the failure – quality, or spec. 

“We need to have a report from our base inspection, then we can understand how long it will take, or how difficult.

“We had two issues but it looks like they are slightly different. I cannot tell you if different is better, or if different is bad for us. 

ormula 1 engine.
The Japanese manufacturer was expecting to be able to start investigating Hartley’s replaced engine at its Sakura facility on Tuesday. 

Toro Rosso and Honda sent the engine back to Japan after Hartley was forced to stop in Friday practice. 

It comes two weeks after Gasly suffered a problem in Canada, where Honda introduced its new F1 engine specification that is based mainly around the combustion engine. 

Honda’s F1 technical director Toyoharu Tanabe told Motorsport.com: “We couldn’t tell anything specific from our inspection here, we needed to wait. 

“We will start analysing from Tuesday in Japan. The countermeasure depends on the type of the failure – quality, or spec. 

“We need to have a report from our base inspection, then we can understand how long it will take, or how difficult.

“We had two issues but it looks like they are slightly different. I cannot tell you if different is better, or if different is bad for us. 

“But we need to find the root cause of this weekend’s failure and try to fix it for the future.”

Hartley’s engine problem in France condemned him to a back-of-the-grid start and a difficult race, while team-mate Gasly retired on the first lap as Honda endured a “difficult and disappointing weekend”. 

Despite the second reliability concern in two race weekends Honda has been buoyed by the performance of its upgrade in Canada, which played a crucial role in convincing Red Bull to switch to its engines for 2019. 

Gasly reported after qualifying that the new engine had not felt as potent in France and added that reliability is “still a bit of a question mark” having run the old spec in practice. 

“I would have rather have full beans, maximum performance [all the time,” he said when asked by Autosport/Motorsport.com about reliability. 

“We still need to do a lot of races with that engine, that’s why we decided to save the mileage on Friday.” 

Tanabe said performance and reliability would remain equally important for Honda as it works on its final planned upgrade for this season before turning its attention to the 2019 specification. 

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Strategy Report: The consequences of a mistake-ridden race

Strategy Report: The consequences of a mistake-ridden race

James Allen analyses the French Grand Prix, as multiple collisions in the opening corners threw carefully-planned strategies into chaos – as cool heads ruled the day.
Going to a new circuit, or one that hasn’t been used during the Formula 1 racing life of most of the competitors, presents multiple challenges and the return of F1 to Paul Ricard was a good example, with strategists and engineers on the limit working out the tiny details that can add up to a lot of race time and positions won or lost.

For example, the fuel consumption. If you carry one lap more of fuel than you need for the whole race on this track, that adds up three seconds of race time lost.

In a tight battle that can be a place lost. With no data from previous races to fall back on, the top teams rely on their sophisticated simulators, but even these calculations can be thrown by an enigmatic Mistral wind and there are dozens more considerations that can add up to a lot of time. 

Trophy on the grid

Tyre life was another, with estimates of 20 laps for the ultrasoft, 30 for the super and over 40 for the soft.

Strategy was central to the key moment of the race: Sebastian Vettel, starting on ultrasoft tyres against the supersofts on the front row Mercedes, was desperate to capitalise on the extra grip to jump the Silver Arrows at the start, his best – and perhaps only – chance of getting control of the race. 

He tried to insist on a move on Valtteri Bottas for second place into Turn 1. He hit the Finn, both dropped to the back and gifted Lewis Hamilton one of the easiest of his 65 Grands Prix wins. 

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes-AMG F1 W09 leads at the start of the race as Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari SF71H locks up and hits Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes-AMG F1 W09

Lewis Hamilton leads at the start of the race as Sebastian Vettel locks up and hits Valtteri Bottas

In the melee behind, as cars dived left and right to avoid the two spinning title contenders, Max Verstappen was able to run wide and come out clearly in second place while Carlos Sainz in third set himself up for a strong result, as did Kevin Magnussen and Charles Leclerc in fifth and sixth respectively.

Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari’s sole remaining front runner, dropped to seventh and was on a recovery drive from there. Team strategy brought him a podium.

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37, leads Kimi Raikkonen on the opening lap

Leclerc doesn’t take the max from his chance

Leclerc scored points for Sauber for the fourth race out of five, something the team did not manage in 2016 and 2017 combined. The impressive rookie, who seems destined for a Ferrari drive sooner rather than later, had qualified eighth, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg’s Renault and both Force Indias, which would normally be fighting for top ten slots.

But he wasn’t able to take out as much as he would have liked from race day, after a mistake cost him the chance to deploy his Plan A strategy.

The Haas cars, also starting behind him, were half a second a lap faster than the Sauber in raw pace, so the outlook for the race was that he would do well to finish 11th, as he also had to contend with two team cars from Force India being able to work a pincer on strategy. You can keep one quick car behind you on a track like Paul Ricard, but not two.

Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team VF-18, leads Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37

Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Team VF-18, leads Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37

After profiting from the first corner chaos, which also eliminated Ocon’s Force India, Leclerc’s strategy path was made clearer. He was able to look forwards rather than backwards and the tactic was to try to undercut Magnussen at the pit stop.  

But as he approached the decisive moment, he made a mistake and ran off track, which allowed Hulkenberg to pass him. 

Hulkenberg was playing the long game on a reverse strategy, having started on the hardest of the three compounds, so now the Sauber strategy had to change to extending the stint as much as possible.

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37

This was because Leclerc no longer had a safe gap behind to Alonso and the Williams cars, which were particularly hard to overtake. So Leclerc went to Lap 31 and then pitted for supersofts, to maximise the pace and go for it. 

He cleared Brendon Hartley when Marcus Ericsson pitted and forced Toro Rosso to cover the stop and from then it was a run to the finish to stay ahead of Grosjean, whose wretched run continued with more incidents and penalties. 

Leclerc’s tenth place was hard fought and, against the pace of the cars around him, again very impressive. 

But he would have been even higher up without the mistake before the pitstops. 

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37 pit stop

Charles Leclerc, Sauber C37 pit stop

Red Bull choose to cover rather than attack
We have grown used to seeing Red Bull being one of the most aggressive teams when it comes to race strategy.  But in France it played a more passive game, with Max Verstappen’s strategy being more focussed on closing out second place and covering off Ferrari, rather than trying to find a way to attack the leader Hamilton. 

This is fair enough; the Mercedes was the fastest car on this track and Ferrari had lost its chance of victory with mistakes from Raikkonen in qualifying and Vettel at the start of the race. 

As we have said many times, only perfect execution will bring the title to Ferrari this season and they’ve left something on the table on several occasions, such as this one. Vettel slipped from a one-point championship lead over Hamilton to a 14-point deficit in their duel to be only the sport’s second five-time world champion. 

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 2nd position, arrives on the podium

As for Red Bull, Verstappen’s strategy was dictated by Vettel’s progress. He was brought in early on Lap 25 to go onto a set of softs to reach the finish, emerging just ahead of Vettel. 

This allowed Raikkonen to extend his stint on ultrasoft tyres and with Daniel Ricciardo unable to extract the maximum from his car’s performance due to some debris in the front wing, Raikkonen’s extended stint in clear air set him up for a chance to beat the second Red Bull to the podium. 

Red Bull avoided the ultrasoft tyre in the race, but having managed a long opening stint on it remarkably to Lap 34, Raikkonen was able to attack on supersofts for the second part of the race. 

Vettel, on worn tyres, was instructed to let Raikkonen through and he caught and passed Ricciardo in the final laps of the race for a podium finish.

The UBS Race Strategy Report is written by James Allen with input and data from several F1 team strategists and from Pirelli.

Race History Chart 

Kindly provided by Williams Martini Racing, click to enlarge

Race history

The number of laps is on the horizontal axis; the gap behind the leader is on the vertical axis. 

A positive sign is an upward curve as the fuel load burns off. A negative sign is the slope declining as the tyre degradation kicks in.

Look at Leclerc’s race, see how Hulkenberg gets passed and obliges him to extend the stint. 

Tyre Usage Chart

Tyre history

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Verstappen goes conservative in British GP tyre picks

Verstappen goes conservative in British GP tyre picks

Max Verstappen has opted for the most conservative tyre choice for Formula 1’s British Grand Prix, where Pirelli’s 2018 hard compound will make its debut.
The Red Bull driver has the fewest soft tyres of anyone, with just seven of the yellow-walled Pirellis in his Silverstone allocation. 

Verstappen has augmented his choice with four sets of mediums and two sets of the blue-walled hard.

He will have one fewer set of softs than his fellow frontrunners, with the majority of the rest of the grid opting for nine or 10 sets of the most grippy rubber available. 

Verstappen’s teammate Daniel Ricciardo has two sets of hard tyres, with three mediums and eight softs respectively.  

Title rivals Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have made the same choices. They will have one set of the blue-walled hard tyre, four sets of medium tyres and eight sets of softs. 

Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas has an extra set of hards and one fewer set of mediums, while at Ferrari Kimi Raikkonen has the same choices as Vettel.

The most aggressive choices have been made by the Renault and Toro Rosso teams, where all four drivers will have 10 sets of softs. 

Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg is the only driver taking just one set of mediums.

The blue-walled hard tyre is the same compound as last year’s medium, which was used for the British GP.

Pirelli’s 2017-spec hard tyre was deemed unsuitable for use after a troubled introduction in Spain, but has since made its tyres one step softer across the range for this year, which has brought the ‘hard’ compound back into play. 

Dgm-RsTVQAAjX08.jpg

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Revealed: Renault’s improved 2018 S-duct idea

Revealed: Renaultâs improved 2018 S-duct idea

The S-duct is not a new idea in Formula 1 but the ever-changing regulatory landscape does bring with it new opportunities for teams to fine-tune their ideas in the quest for added performance.

This year Renault has shown this through a much more aggressive solution to the placement of the front inlets of its design, which has improved the performance of the entire nose.

Having used a more conventional and compact ‘S’ duct design in 2017, Enstone design chiefs clearly eyed the opportunity to make changes for this season based on what they had learned from rivals over the course of last year.

Mercedes AMG F1 W08 S-duct overview

Mercedes AMG F1 W08 S-duct overview

In 2016, Mercedes and Toro Rosso gave this new S-duct style solution (above) its first official outing, although Mercedes had dipped its toe in the water in 2015 when it conducted a brief test during free practice for the Brazilian GP.

Red Bull Racing RB11 S duct comparsion

Red Bull Racing RB11 S duct comparsion

The solution cast aside what had been considered the conventional method of achieving the aerodynamicist’s objectives.

This was for a short S-shaped duct (see Red Bull from 2015, above) sat in a 150mm ‘free zone’ ahead of the chassis’ bulkhead.

But no matter the length of the pipework inside the nosecone, the intention of the S-duct remains the same: to reduce boundary layer separation under the nose and draw airflow back to the surface of the chassis that would ordinarily detach as it ramps over the nose incline.

Ferrari SF70H S-duct overview

Ferrari SF70H S-duct overview

Having elongated pipework not only allows for a more precise placement of the inlets, but also makes for a less tortuous route for the airflow to follow too.

This is something that has been capitalized on by Ferrari, which since 2017 has opted to crossover its pipework inside the nosecone to improve flow conditions further.

Renault R.S.18 inside nose

Renault R.S.18 inside nose

In the case of Renault, it has opted to further compartmentalise this flow with three distinct pipes inside the nosecone, separating flow left, right and centrally.

The small differences between design teams highlight once again that no matter how much design trends force teams to gravitate their best ideas towards one another, there are always subtle differences that ultimately add up to the lap time differences that we see on track.

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MCLAREN PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

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McLaren preview the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Round 9 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Red Bull Ring.

Fernando Alonso: “After a disappointing result, the best thing you can do is move on, so it’s good that we have another race this weekend. And the weekend after. I like this track – it’s a good mix of the new and the old. The big hills, the gradient and the compact nature of the paddock all remind you that this was once one of F1’s grand old venues; but the modern facilities are also a fantastic addition.

“The lap itself is great: it’s a place you have to constantly attack in order to get a good lap-time, and, while there are only really five corners, they’re always ready to bite if you over-commit.

“I think we go to Austria looking to deepen our understanding of the car. We’re making progress, and we will get there.”

Stoffel Vandoorne: “I really enjoy this track. I think Turn Three is a good corner for racing – you can out-brake another car here; and the addition of a third DRS zone along the straight between Turns One and Two should add a new element to the race. Hopefully, it will add to the spectacle.

“I also really enjoy the last corner. You come into before you’ve really finished with the previous corner, and the car is loaded and you’re already committed. It’s a place where you always think you can bite off more than you can chew – and sometimes you can, sometimes you can’t! I think that’s a good lesson for other circuits to take onboard.

“It’s a great track and a great weekend. For McLaren, we’ll be looking for more steady progress and an improvement over some of our recent races.”

Eric Boullier, Racing Director: “This is the second race of F1’s summer triple-header, and like Paul Ricard and Silverstone, one of the most fan-focused events on the calendar. For that reason, it’s always an enjoyable weekend, and one that’s good for the sport.

“The track is compact and relatively straightforward, but also a real driver’s circuit – you’re looking to extract the tiniest margins from car and driver around such a short, quick lap. And that’s not always easy, as a few of the corners sometimes look more inviting than they really are…

“After a couple of difficult races, we’ll be looking for a smooth and reliable weekend on both sides of the garage. Fernando’s recent retirements have been frustrating, so it would be good to see him get to the finish this weekend.”

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RED BULL DRIVERS PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

MaxVerstappenF1GrandPrixFranceBB8_UUBmzYIx.jpg

Red Bull drivers preview the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Round 9 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Red Bull Ring.

Daniel Ricciardo: “Austria is a short lap, but a very busy one. It’s pretty hectic, the middle and last sectors are really fast, in fact the final two corners are my favourite, especially in the current cars. The race is intense and feels high paced from start to finish so you have to concentrate hard. As the lap is so short there is no room for error, one little mistake will cost you, as all the times are very close. Austria also brings up one of my favourite dishes of the year, Wiener Schnitzel! A little bit of cranberry and fresh lemon on the side and I’m happy, I’ll probably put down between six and twelve over the weekend (laughs). It’s good to see all the Red Bull and Austrian fans out over the weekend as it’s the team’s home race. The stands are always packed and the hills are awesome once the sun is out, so good energy all around.”

Max Verstappen: “The Austrian GP is always a special one. It is, of course, the home of Red Bull so we have a good following of Austrian fans and also a lot of Dutch. Two years ago I was on the podium so it would be really nice to get back up there this year in front of all our supporters. Last year ended way too soon due to contact at turn one so I’ll be out to make up for that this year. The track is a fun lap, sector two is definitely my favourite part of the circuit. As you come into the infield you have back-to-back fast left hand corners which are really enjoyable. This year there will also be a stand full of Dutch fans there, so that will make it even more special. There is in fact a Dutch campsite just outside the circuit which I heard around 5.000 fans are attending, that sounds like it will be fun, certainly noisy! One of the highlights of coming to Austria for me is the food. I am a big fan of Schnitzel and Kartoffelsalat, so I’ll definitely try and get a few local meals in during the weekend.”

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FORCE INDIA PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

SergioPerezF1GrandPrixFranceQualifyingXg-QtS8GIf8x.jpg

Force India preview the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Round 9 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Red Bull Ring.

Sergio Perez: “200 races is a very special moment for the team and it’s been a big part of my life for five years now. I have a lot of memories here, including five podiums. When I look back to when I joined at the end of 2013, I never thought we would have had this kind of success together. We have grown a lot together and I have enjoyed the best years of the team.

“The circuit in Austria looks simple but in reality, it’s quite a difficult lap to get right. There are only a few corners, but each one is a challenge and can easily ruin your lap if you don’t hit your braking point or find the apex. With some long straights it’s important to carry good speed on the corner exits, especially on the exit of turn one, otherwise, you lap times will suffer.

“I think everybody loves the beautiful location of the track. When the weather is nice it’s a fantastic place to go racing. You’re in the hills with the countryside all around you, which is why there are so many elevation changes of the circuit. There is also an off-camber final corner, where you can easily run wide and lose time.”

Esteban Ocon: “Austria is always a fun event. It’s a cool track and very unique because of its layout and the mountains make a very unusual setting. I am looking forward to being there in the hills and the fresh air. The circuit is short and has only eight corners but that makes for a very tight grid. Qualifying is going to be decided by small details and any mistake will make a big difference. It’s not going to be easy.

“Turns four and five – the double left corners in the middle of the circuit – are my favourite parts of the track. The first left-hander is quite quick and you take the second almost flat out: you need to be brave getting into those corners quickly to get a good line. It’s definitely the most satisfying part of the lap.

“It’s a big weekend for the team – reaching 200 races in Formula One is a milestone. I’m proud to be part of this team’s history: we represent something special on the grid and I think the sport wouldn’t be the same without Force India. Hopefully, we can celebrate this occasion with a good result this weekend.”

Vijay Mallya, Team Principal: “After a challenging weekend in France we hope that Austria will bring better fortunes. It’s our 200th race weekend and it would be nice to celebrate the milestone with a special result. It’s been a long journey since 2008 and I’m very proud of the results we have achieved, especially in 2016 and 2017. It’s an incredibly busy time of the season with four races in five weeks and the fight in the middle of the grid remains very close. We will keep working hard to be at the front of the midfield as the season progresses.”

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WILLIAMS PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

LanceStrollF1GrandPrixFranceQualifyingS6SJApL1p4_x.jpg

Hot off the heels of France, we head to Austria for round nine of the Formula One World Championship. The team takes to the Red Bull Ring for the second leg of F1’s first ever triple-header, before returning to the UK for the team’s home race in Silverstone.

Located high in the hills, the Austrian circuit is a popular and familiar track amongst our drivers, including Robert Kubica, who returns to FP1 action this weekend.

For Austria, Pirelli has made available the soft, supersoft and ultrasoft tyres.

Paddy Lowe, Chief Technical Officer: “We head straight on from France to the Austrian GP, for the second race in the triple-header race weekends. The undulating track is surrounded by impressive scenery, and the circuit itself also tends to produce some great racing. The track is quite short, so sessions can feel quite busy, but it is a circuit where we have seen some good results as a team. We look forward to seeing Robert Kubica back behind the wheel for FP1, as we continue to push forward the development of the FW41. We are not where we need to be at the moment, but a lot of work is ongoing behind the scenes to address this and we will continue fighting hard throughout the rest of the season.”

Lance Stroll: “This is just a great track. I love it and everything about it – the scenery, the elevation, the whole thing is just fantastic. It is such a beautiful place and such a beautiful circuit, and definitely one of my favourites. When I got there last year it was very familiar as it was the first track we went to where I had already raced in Formula 3, and on top of that had a couple of wins.”

Sergey Sirotkin: “I like a lot of the Austria track. It’s not a long lap and it doesn’t have many corners, but I like the layout. I’m looking forward to it. The circuit suits some bits of our car better so overall, I can expect a good weekend there. It’s going to be important to keep it up before the summer break.”

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TORO ROSSO DRIVERS PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

BrendonHartleyCanadianF1GrandPrixPractice9z8-ox34JOXx.jpg

Toro Rosso drivers preview the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Round 9 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship, at Red Bull Ring.

Pierre Gasly: “This weekend, we follow up my home race with one of the team’s home races, because even if we are an Italian team, we are part of the Austrian Red Bull family. I’ve had a few podium finishes at this circuit in the junior categories. The track is really very fast with several straight sections. I remember racing there in GP2 as a Red Bull junior driver, I had a lot of support as it’s pretty much a Red Bull weekend. So now I’m looking forward to experiencing that as a Formula 1 driver. I think it’s going to be a special weekend, after experiencing all the support at my home race, I expect it will have a great atmosphere and a good vibe. I hope we will be competitive, because I really want to get a good result at this place. It’s a very short lap; you’re looking at a time of just under 1m 10 seconds. It’s a very quick race made up of a huge number of laps. I tend to prefer tracks with a lot of corners, but at least the straights provide passing opportunities. I like fast corners and there are plenty of those in the middle of the track so, given the levels of downforce we are running this year, and the fact we have seen the lap records broken at every track so far, I reckon it’s going to be a really impressive weekend from a driving point of view. I can appreciate that the location is really beautiful too, but I have to admit I am more of a city boy!”

Brendon Hartley: “This is a big race for us as it’s the home of Red Bull. It’s a track I’ve raced on in LMP2 and I really enjoy it. It’s a funny thing that, as a young kid, I used to play Grand Prix 3 and Grand Prix 4 on the computer and for whatever reason, it was this track that I would always play. It was known as the A1 Ring back then, so I know it well from being a 10-year-old playing computer games. Who knows, maybe it’s because kids have a short attention span and it’s a very short lap! I think it’s an exciting race for everyone involved at Red Bull as there will be plenty of home support, I’m looking forward to this weekend because we’ve got an upgrade to the front wing coming. The place has a lot of history and character and the setting itself is really beautiful. Although it’s short, it is still a challenging track, pretty fast through that middle section and the last couple of corners are quick as well. The straight sections are not very long here, so it’s a busy lap with not much chance of getting a breather and with so many laps, it’s a race that keeps you on your toes. Getting your braking right is also important here. A big part of our job as a driver is the braking phase. That sets up the whole corner, sets up the exit. That moment when we attack the brake pedal and the way we feed off the brake pedal sets the attitude of the car. All these things start from when you hit that brake pedal. There are a few tricky areas, notably turn five, where it’s downhill braking and very easy to lock the brakes, unlike the turn just before that where you are uphill braking, which gives you a lot more potential because you’ve got gravity on your side. It’s all part of the complexities of getting the most out of a Formula 1 car.”

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SAUBER DRIVERS PREVIEW THE AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX

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The Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team is heading to Austria for the second of three back-to-back races. After a successful weekend in France, the team goes into the next round with a total of 13 points to its tally feeling motivated and optimistic.

The continuous progress that has been made over the last race weekends gives the two drivers the confidence they need to tackle the Red Bull Ring.

The Austrian Grand Prix weekend is popular among drivers and fans alike, offering excitement, both on and off track. Being one of the shortest tracks on the calendar, the circuit, also known as the Spielberg Ring, offers good opportunities for overtaking and challenges drivers, especially with its interesting corner combinations.

Marcus Ericsson: “The Grand Prix in Austria is always a fun one to return to. It takes place on one of the shortest tracks on the calendar, with only a few corners. That makes the lap time margins very tight. It has some interesting parts – mainly, it is the second part of the lap that is challenging. There are some very fast corners that require good car balance, as well as commitment from us as drivers. The longer straights and hairpins offer some opportunities for overtaking. The atmosphere is always great, with many fans coming to support us at the track. I really look forward to going back.”

Charles Leclerc: “I really look forward to racing in Austria. The Red Bull Ring is my favourite track, next to the one in Monaco. It is very small, but has a special rhythm to it that I really like. There are a lot of fans there to support us and many events taking place around the track, which gives the weekend a special feel. In terms of driving, my favourite parts of the circuit are the two last corners. The team has been doing a great job in improving our performance week by week, and we are motivated by the progress we are making. It will be interesting to see what we can do during this upcoming Grand Prix weekend in Spielberg.”

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HAMILTON AND MERCEDES ON VERGE OF RECORD MEGA-DEAL

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton is on the verge of signing a mega $53-million per year deal which will see the Briton remain with Mercedes, until what should be the end of his Formula 1 career, while making him one of the highest earners in world sport.

The reigning Formula 1 World Champion and his Mercedes team have been in no rush to sign a new deal extension, insiders hint that there was a stumbling block over remuneration which is apparently now resolved.

The new mega-deal is likely to be announced between now and the eve of the British Grand Prix, most likely closer to Hamilton’s home race where the announcement will have the biggest impact.

Hamilton is already one of the highest paid Formula 1 drivers of all time, up there with sport’s biggest earners in recent years.

This weekend the Briton took the lead in the drivers’ championship standings after a commanding win at the French Grand Prix, watched by Mercedes uber-chief Dieter Zetsche.

Team chief Toto Wolff confirmed at Le Castellet, “We don’t want to drag it out much longer. I expect it to be done very, very soon. Maybe it is about choosing the right moment.”

For Hamilton, the extension deal is a no-brainer despite the delays and posturing between the two parties who both need one another more than they care to admit.

Hamilton has been powered only by Mercedes engines during his career in Formula 1. Over the past six years, he has won 44 times as a Silver Arrows driver and bagged three of his four world titles with the German team.

His teammates, Nico Rosberg (until the end of 2016) and Valtteri Bottas (current) have scored 25 victories collectively during the same period.

Mercedes could easily fill Hamilton’s shoes should he decide to quit the sport or move to another team, but they know that the Briton brings much more to the team than victories. His star power is unrivalled by his fellow drivers on the Formula 1 grid.

The identity of his teammate is expected to be resolved quickly after Hamilton puts pen to paper, with the smart money being on Valtteri Bottas remaining with the team.

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JOHN BARNARD: MCLAREN REVIVAL LIKE TURNING AN OIL TANKER

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Legendary McLaren designer John Barnard has weighed in on the current state of his former team, suggesting that matrix management structure at Woking presently, set up by ex-chief Martin Whitmarsh, is their biggest downfall and predicts revival will be a challenge.

McLaren are enduring another season of pain, their fourth dreadful year in a row. Victory eludes them for over five years and alarmingly there is no end in sight to their misery.

Speaking during the launch of his book ‘The Perfect Car’, Barnard broached the subject, “They’ve had this matrix management system installed by probably Martin Whitmarsh, and you’ve got to break that down, I don’t think that works. You have to change the thinking.”

“I don’t know how long that will take, whether the team can survive that kind of a fundamental turnaround. Considering that when we joined McLaren in 1980 the problems I had then trying to change the way things were done, we’re talking about a fairly small operation [in those days].

“If you take those problems to today with the numbers of people there, I wouldn’t relish that job. It’s like turning an oil tanker.”

The team’s roots and leadership under Ron Dennis are well documented. Over the decades from the success of the Formula 1 team the organisation also began producing sportscars and turned McLaren into the massive automotive operation it is today, where the race team is just one of several divisions at Woking.

Barnard believes that this may have triggered the downward spiral, “I was always very worried about diversifying. I know Ron’s idea was he wanted this big group of companies, this big mega operation and he would sit over the whole thing, and he achieved it. But I think he achieved it at the cost of the Formula 1 team.”

The team’s former designer recalled, “I kept saying to Ron, who is running the Formula 1 thing? You have to be back on the Formula 1 thing pulling it together; no one else can do it, just you.”

To which Dennis would reply: “I’ve got these guys and they’re this and they’re that.”

“I’m looking at McLaren today and thinking maybe if he’d taken a bit of that on board things might be different,” mused John Barnard who was the Adrian Newey of his time.

The Englishman spent six years at Woking from 1980 to 1986 – the Niki Lauda and Alain Prost era at the team – in which they won 27 grands prix and five Formula 1 world championship titles.

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RICCIARDO: I’VE GOT TO FIGURE OUT WHERE I CAN GAIN THE MOST

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Daniel Ricciardo has some big decisions to make as the deadline fast approaches for him to put pen to paper and either renew with Red Bull or pursue another path with an alternative team.

As much as Ricciardo is a ‘hot property‘ on the Formula 1 driver market, the truth is that Ferrari and Mercedes are not bashing the door down for his services. It appears that the timing of his availability is wrong for the two big teams.

Only the Big Two or Red Bull can give him a winning car which seems to be his priority, despite a $20-million buck offer from McLaren news of which emerged during the French Grand Prix weekend

“I said it from the start, the priority is to try and get a car that can win a world title because I really believe I can. So that’s the first thing in my mind.”

“If there was absolutely no possibility then you look into other things, but I think as a driver I think I’ve done enough now… even Lewis [Hamilton] touched on it, and I didn’t even need to really say it, your value as a driver is not ‘X’ amount of money it’s just what you feel your value is and what you bring to the sport.”

“I feel I hold a certain value so I just want to at least match that with my expectations and what also people value me as.”

Asked if he feared taking a step back with his eventual 2019 move, the Australian replied: “If I don’t win a title and whether I’m coming third or fifth, it’s probably no different to having a step back.

“The only way my career takes a step back is if I stop performing. Obviously, if I just came off three world titles and gone to a team that’s only coming fifth, that’s probably a step back.

“But because I’ve been floating around that top three, top five mark for the last few years, there’s probably not really a step to take back unless I stop performing.

“So I don’t really fear that, for me there’s only something to gain, I’ve just got to figure out what place that is to make that gain,” added Ricciardo who has won twice so far this season and lies third in the championship standings.

The 29-year-old Australian has been with Red Bull since his teens, in Formula1 they groomed Ricciardo starting with his debut with HRT, then a spell at Toro Rosso before a promotion to Red Bull.

 

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Renault form could prompt early focus on 2019 car

Renault form could prompt early focus on 2019 car

Renault Formula 1 boss Cyril Abiteboul hopes that the Enstone team’s current good form could let it make an early switch of R&D focus to its 2019 project, provided it can stay clear of its main rivals.
The team has put both its cars in the points at each of the last three races, and has gradually extended its advantage over McLaren, Force India and Haas.

Abiteboul believes that with less threat from behind in the championship battle, there will be less pressure to maintain a focus on developing the current car until the end of the year.

“I think it’s going to be mainly about defending our fourth place in the championship,” he told Motorsport.com. “But I’m not totally clear who we are going to have to defend that position against. Maybe Haas, or Force India? McLaren could be bouncing back.

“It’s not clear, but it’s something we have to monitor, because if we don’t have a clear opposition it may be diluted, which means we can have an easier end to the season.

"And that could mean we are able to quickly shift focus to next year, which has to be the next opportunity to make a step in the championship.”

Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg finished eighth and ninth in France, but the team was left frustrated because the Spaniard – who ran as high as third after the first-lap accidents – fell back from sixth place with a late MGU-K failure.

“It’s not a bad result, but two frustrations – the first one is that we were holding sixth position with Carlos, which would have been a fantastic reward for all the team effort during the weekend, and what seemed to us like a perfect weekend for Carlos.

“Irrespective of the end result, it was a weekend that showed the progress of Carlos, positioning him also a strong member and contributor to the team performance, in particular in front of such an amazing crowd and attendance.

“The other frustration is there’s still obviously a big gap, seeing that the leaders can have the biggest problem you can imagine at the start of the race, and still finish ahead of you – that’s frustrating.”

Abiteboul said recent upgrades had improved Renault’s race performance more than qualifying.

“We’ve not been lapped, like Canada. We were one second slower than the leaders, when we were two seconds from the pole, so we showed I think that our pace is actually pretty decent in the race, and that ties in with some upgrades that we’ve done to the car, in particular focussed on improving race pace.

“We need to understand the consequences that these developments may have had on qualifying pace, and see if we can overcome those issues as soon as next week in Austria.”

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WHO CAN STOP HAMILTON AND MERCEDES IN AUSTRIA?

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The Formula 1 lead has changed hands four times in eight grands prix so far this season but Lewis Hamilton hopes to put more daylight between himself and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel in Austria this weekend.

The Mercedes driver is 14 points clear of his rival and fellow four-times world champion after winning in France on Sunday and heads to Spielberg confident of continuing the momentum.

Mercedes have not been beaten at the scenic circuit, Red Bull’s home territory, since the race returned to the calendar in 2014 — four victories in a row.

Last year’s win went to Valtteri Bottas, who started from pole after his British teammate was demoted to eighth by a grid penalty for a gearbox change, though Hamilton triumphed in 2016.

That 2016 podium was exactly the same as last weekend’s at Le Castellet, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen second and Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen third.

Hamilton hopes it would be business as usual for Mercedes, boosted by a handy upgrade of their PUs to Spec 2.2 at Spielberg.

“I think Austria should be a fairly decent track. It’s been a decent track for us in the past, so I don’t see why it should be any different now,” the world champion told reporters after victory in France.

“I think the car should be good there. I think the Red Bulls have been particularly quick there in the past because it’s quite a good downforce circuit, so it’ll be interesting.”

Past performance only goes so far, however, with Ferrari already ending several Mercedes sequences this season, and pole position will again be crucial in the second of an unprecedented triple-header of races on successive weekends.

Hamilton has been fastest in qualifying three times so far in 2018 to Vettel’s four. Bottas is still waiting but was close in France.

Next up after Austria is Britain, where Mercedes have won the last five in a row, followed by Germany (Mercedes unbeaten in the V6 turbo hybrid era) and Hungary, where Ferrari and Red Bull have had recent success.

On past performance Hamilton could expect to lead the way into the August break, but this season has already seen the end of similarly dominant sequences for Mercedes in China and Canada.

Team boss Toto Wolff is certainly not about to lower his guard given the numerous changes to the championship lead, “It can swing so quickly.”

“A DNF (non-finish) and the other guy winning makes it swing in the other direction, so I don’t expect this to change in whatsoever way. This is going to be the story of the season,” added the Austrian.

Vettel finished a mere 0.6 behind Bottas in Austria last year, as the Mercedes man wrestled with blistered tyres, and he needs to make up for a costly collision with the Finn in France.

Red Bull will also be a threat, with Verstappen on a roll of three podiums in four races and Australian Daniel Ricciardo the winner in China and Monaco and looking for a third.

“We are a bit compromised on the straights but somehow it was always not too bad,” said Verstappen of his past experiences at Spielberg.

“I’m also looking forward to the weekend because I think a lot of Dutch fans are coming out so a lot of orange around, so that’s always good.”

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So, is there only one English based broadcast of F1 now via Sky or are there others?

What network (is it RAI) has the rights to interview Ferrari during the pre-race?  We've never seen a Ferrari grid walk interview in the States before (well at least the 20 years).

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4 hours ago, BrightonCorgi said:

So, is there only one English based broadcast of F1 now via Sky or are there others?

What network (is it RAI) has the rights to interview Ferrari during the pre-race?  We've never seen a Ferrari grid walk interview in the States before (well at least the 20 years).

I wouldn't know for the states but here in Australia, SKY have the bloody rights meaning, we can't get F1 TV here...

Saying this, I use Opera Browser and know of a few website links via VPN that allow me to view all FOX feeds.

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Lewis Hamilton excited to try Mercedes' 'first real serious upgrade'

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Lewis Hamilton says he's excited to finally try out Mercedes latest upgrade package which will debut this weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix.

Mercedes hasn't brought any major upgrades to its W09 this season other than its latest spec engine, which made its debut last weekend at the French GP following a small delay.

However this weekend will see a raft of changes including new sidepods, new mirror mounts and a new rear-wing, following the introduction of a small front suspension-mounted wing at Paul Ricard.

"The development race is always tight," said Hamilton. "Up until now we've not really had a lot of development parts on the car. I've been aware that the guys have been working increasingly harder to try and make sure we bring quality rather than quantity.

"It's great to see there are some new bits here this weekend and I'm excited to try them on track. It will undoubtedly help us in our battle to fight the other guys.

"I'm excited because when you bolt something to the car, which we haven't really bolted to the car this year, it's one of the first real, serious upgrades.

"It's great when you get out there, because you feel the first couple of points [of downforce] straight away in a certain corner, you feel those improvements.

"I'm looking forward to experiencing it tomorrow, and trying to figure out where those improvements are on the circuit."

Asked about the new power unit, Hamilton admitted he couldn't feel a huge amount of difference.

"It’s as least as good as the last one, which was already pretty special. It doesn’t feel much different, it pulls a little bit better in some areas, in parts of the power curve, and hopefully it is more reliable."

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Kimi Raikkonen addresses rumours he might re-join McLaren

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Kimi Raikkonen has addressed recent rumours regarding his future and a potential return to McLaren, hinting that it wouldn't be out of the question, before adding that he has "zero interest" in such talks at this stage in the season.

Raikkonen's future is often a point of discussion, particularly in recent seasons following his return to Ferrari in 2014 on a one-year rolling deal, and now with Ferrari-backed Charles Leclerc performing well for Sauber, the Italian squad could finally take the plunge and replace the Finn.

That's prompted further speculation including a report that McLaren have added Raikkonen to its shortlist of potential 2019 drivers, should Fernando Alonso move on.

Raikkonen, who raced for McLaren from 2002 to 2006, joined Ferrari and then 'retired' before returning to join Lotus and later Ferrari again, said "you never know" what could happen given he never expected he'd return to F1 following his departure in 2009.

"I don’t know really," he said of his future. "I said, I think it was 2007, that I would finish [my career] at Ferrari and obviously at some point it didn’t look like that [when he joined Lotus] and now it looks like that again.

"You never know what comes after this and that, but we will see."

Raikkonen however refused to go into any details on what his future might hold and called the constant speculation "nonsense".

"[It's the] same as always, every year. We'll see," he added. "As always a lot of talk and I’m not really happy to comment on those [rumours]. We’ll see at some point what happens, including me. Let’s wait and see."

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Feature: Force India's best moments as they hit 200 races

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After a tumultuous period under the guise of Jordan, Midland and Spyker, Formula 1’s Silverstone-based team was rebranded as Force India for 2008. The squad is celebrating its 200th Grand Prix at this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix. Let's reflect on some of the team’s standout moments.

Sutil shines in the rain (Monaco, 2008)

Force India’s maiden campaign was largely forgettable but in Monaco sophomore driver Adrian Sutil starred, making progress in wet conditions in the gold, white and red VJM01. Sutil was running in fourth position during the dry closing stages but the pursuing Kimi Raikkonen touched a wet patch of circuit on cold brakes as he approached the Nouvelle Chicane, and his Ferrari slithered into the rear of the Force India, causing terminal suspension damage. Sutil tearfully unleashed his emotions once back in the garage but his efforts would have been for nought anyway – he was set for a 25-second penalty for overtaking under yellow flags earlier in the race.

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Pole, podium, points (Belgium, 2009)

Force India overhauled its livery in favour of a patriotic colour scheme and gradually emerged as a lower midfield contender. But few expected Force India to take pole position – yet that’s exactly what happened at Spa-Francorchamps as Giancarlo Fisichella roared to top spot in the unpredictable 2009 campaign. Fisichella preserved the lead at the start but relinquished it to Raikkonen after five laps, yet the Finn was unable to escape, the pair separated by around a second for much of the race. Fisichella crossed the line just 0.939s behind Raikkonen to notch up both Force India’s first podium – and first points.

Another front row – and nearly a podium (Italy, 2009)

In the days of qualifying with race fuel onboard it undoubtedly affected the grid order – which was what happened at Monza in 2009. The two-stopping cars qualified on a lighter fuel load, a situation that aided Sutil, as he profited from Force India’s straight-line speed to put his VJM02 into second place. In race trim, Sutil – along with Lewis Hamilton – fell behind the one-stopping Brawn GP cars, while a mistake at his second stop cost him crucial time, allowing Raikkonen to move ahead. Hamilton’s last lap crash promoted both Raikkonen and Sutil, and the German agonisingly missed out on a podium place by just half a second. He did, though, bag the fastest lap.

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Hulkenberg makes a splash (Brazil, 2012)

Force India firmly established itself in the midfield in 2010/11, regularly scoring points, but it was at 2012’s swansong where the team came so close to glory. Nico Hulkenberg, two years after his stunning pole position, thrived in similarly slippery conditions at Brazilian Grand Prix venue Interlagos, battling for victory with McLaren pair Hamilton and Jenson Button. As rain intensified, Button and Hulkenberg stayed out on track – the correct call when a few laps later the Intermediate-shod drivers had to stop for slicks as the rain receded. Hulkenberg passed Button on lap 18 and maintained the lead until he half spun on lap 47, handing the advantage to Hamilton, whose large deficit to the front-running duo had been eliminated by a Safety Car period. Hulkenberg regrouped and sensed an opportunity for victory, but an attempt at passing Hamilton into the Senna S a few laps later backfired as they collided. Hamilton was out, while Hulkenberg continued, but classified fifth after a drive-through penalty.

Dancing in the dark (Bahrain, 2014)

Mercedes’ engine supremacy at the start of Formula 1’s hybrid era was good news its customer teams, and while Williams and the Renault-powered Red Bull team, as well as Ferrari, typicaly held an advantage over Force India, it still had its days in the sun. Or rather, twilight. While a fierce battle raged between Mercedes team-mates Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, the fight for third was also a frantic affair, involving Force India, Williams and the Red Bull drivers. Perez ultimately won out over team-mate Hulkenberg, and resisted a late charge from the recovering Daniel Ricciardo, to claim third by four-tenths of a second. It ended Force India’s five-year wait for another podium, and provided redemption for Perez after his McLaren stint.

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Party like a Russian (Russia, 2015)

Formula 1’s second visit to the semi-permanent Sochi Autodrom was substantially more frantic than its maiden sojourn – and Perez was in prime position to profit. Having qualified in seventh position, Perez pitted during an early Safety Car period, caused by Romain Grosjean cannoning his Lotus into the barriers, to hold third place. Perez valiantly tried to hold on to position on used tyres as he faced pressure from Ricciardo, Valtteri Bottas and Raikkonen. The Red Bull driver exited with suspension failure but both Finns overhauled the ailing Perez – only for them to collide on the final lap. Perez thus leapt from fifth to third to add to Force India’s trophy haul.

Street Fighting Man (Monaco, 2016)

Perez started from seventh in wet conditions in Monaco but gradually moved up the order – and the timing of his sole pit stop for dry tyres proved beneficial, overhauling Nico Hulkenberg and Nico Rosberg, having also profited from Kimi Raikkonen’s crash and Sebastian Vettel’s stop for Intermediates. It meant Perez emerged in third position once all of the front-runners were on slicks, and, with no more stops required and the weather remaining consistent, all he had to do was stroke the car home. And that’s what he did.

Azer bout that (Azerbaijan, 2016)

Both Force India drivers were rapid upon the sport’s first visit to Baku – a trait that has remained since – though Hulkenberg and Perez squandered chances, Hulkenberg by spinning in Q2 and Perez by crashing in FP3 that resulted in a gearbox change, relegating him from a front-row start to seventh. Perez made up two positions at the start and picked off Ricciardo through strategy to run fourth, and was set for third for close rival Raikkonen had an impeding five-second penalty. Perez, though, ensured he was third-on-the-road by completing a late move on Raikkonen, giving Force India a second podium in the space of just three events.

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Prickly pink panthers (Belgium, 2017)

Force India overhauled its livery for a striking pink look in 2017 and while it scored a record points haul and solidified fourth in the standings, it failed to take a podium finish – and much of the attention rested on the relationship between the experienced Sergio Perez and young upstart Esteban Ocon. The pair almost clashed in Canada, did collide in Azerbaijan (costing a potential podium) and brushed wheels in Hungary, though the infamous moment came in Belgium, hitting each other not once but twice on the run towards Eau Rouge. The second of those damaged both cars, compromised the result, and prompted a vitriolic war of words between the two. Force India, understandably, imposed team orders for a handful of events.

Baku on the podium (Azerbaijan, 2018)

Force India had scored only one point in the opening three rounds of 2018 but Perez stayed out of trouble in a race where several front-runners hit trouble. Team-mate Ocon scuppered his chances when he clashed with Raikkonen, while the Red Bull drivers famously eliminated each other after making contact under braking for Turn 1. That left Perez fifth and when Sebastian Vettel went wide into the first corner after a misjudged attempt at wrestling the lead from Bottas it drew him into the clutches of Perez, who moved into fourth. That became third when Bottas sustained a dramatic puncture with just three laps remaining and was forced out – Force India was back on the podium.

MIKA: I really admire this team, their fighting spirit and achievements. This is something that HAAS can emulate, they have the machinery, just need a decent driver.

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VETTEL: SOMETIMES IT WORKS OUT AND SOMETIMES IT DOESN’T

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Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel has hit back at suggestions he has been making too many mistakes to win this year’s Formula 1 championship, in the wake of another first lap incident involving the German.

Vettel, a four-times world champion like Lewis Hamilton, was penalised at last weekend’s French Grand Prix for colliding with his Mercedes rival’s Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas at the start.

He ended up fifth after coming back through the field. That left Vettel 14 points behind Hamilton after eight races, with both title contenders on three wins each and the German having started half the races from pole position.

Vettel, in good spirits despite criticism in the Italian media, told reporters ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, “It’s racing. There are some errors you shouldn’t do, some errors that happen. It depends on the type of error.”

“I’ve had a lot of races. It happens, unfortunately, at times. I try to minimise it, but I’m not worried. I don’t think there is something fundamentally wrong,” he added.

“I think we know what we are doing – I hope I know what I’m doing most of the time, so I should be fine.”

The German lost places in Azerbaijan in April, when he started on pole but finished fourth, after he made a bid for the lead, locked up and ran wide following a safety car re-start.

In China, a collision with Red Bull´s Max Verstappen dropped him down the order, after the pre-race favourite had initially made a good start from pole.

Hamilton has meanwhile gone 33 successive races in the points and his off days have been less costly than the Ferrari drivers.

“It’s a long way to go, and it’s normal some things happen along the way,” said Vettel.

“Obviously you are trying to push the limits. It didn’t cross my mind when I was in Baku to just stay behind, surrender, and maybe wave another person past, just to collect some points,” he added.

“That’s not how I define racing. I tried to go for the gap, I went for it, it was there, and I didn’t make it. It didn’t work. Sometimes it works out, and it’s great; sometimes it doesn’t.”

As for the weekend at Red Bull Ring, Vettel said, “I always enjoy coming down here, both in winter for skiing and now for the Grand Prix.”

“Our car is strong and this track should suit us in principle, although now it’s impossible to predict how competitive we will be, with the weather and all the variables of a racing weekend”.

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RICCIARDO: I AM STARTING TO KNOW WHAT’S WHAT

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Daniel Ricciardo hinted Thursday that Red Bull’s switch to Honda engines in 2019 might bring him closer to extending his contract with the energy drinks owned Formula 1 team.

With his contract expiring at the end of the year, the Australian driver has been at the center of speculation for weeks, with Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren reportedly showing interest in signing the seven-time Grand Prix winner.

But his current employer recently confirmed its long-anticipated break-up with engine-maker Renault, which could ease decision-making for Ricciardo.

“[Red Bull] have committed to Honda, so they’ve kind of got all the cards on the table, so I know what I’m getting there,” Ricciardo said. “Things are starting to get to a point where I know what’s what.”

While Ricciardo refrained from giving his opinion on the Honda deal last week, but did say that “I see the pros with the decision” as it would mean “obviously, the chance to start something new with Honda.”

The 12-year relationship between Red Bull and Renault became increasingly strained in recent seasons, after they had racked up four straight drivers’ and constructors’ championship with Sebastian Vettel from 2010-13.

Red Bull has won just 10 races since the start of the 2014 season, when Ricciardo joined the team.

Having won two of eight races this season, in Shanghai and Monaco, Ricciardo is third in the drivers’ championship. But the distance to Ferrari’s Vettel in second place is 35 points while Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton is another 14 points further ahead in the lead.

Over the last few weeks Ricciardo repeatedly denied being contacted by rival teams. Still, he didn’t rush to sign a new deal with Red Bull, either.

With its “home” race coming up this weekend on the energy-drink sponsored track and the driver celebrating his 29th birthday on race day, both the time and place would have been perfect for Red Bull to announce Ricciardo’s extended stay. But the Australian repeated he will take another “few weeks” to make his mind up.

“In a way, it’s a good thing that they have made a decision. It gives me a bit more clarity of the direction the team’s going,” Ricciardo said, adding he planned to announce his decision before Formula One goes into its three-week summer break following the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Ricciardo’s decision is the only box Red Bull still has to tick for next season, with the Honda deal sealed and the contract with its other driver, Max Verstappen, running until 2020.

MIKA: No brainer, stay will RBR. Get them to match the contract of Verstappen.

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GROSJEAN: I THINK THEY WERE DRINKING ROSÉ WINE

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Haas driver Romain Grosjean believes he was picked on by race stewards when he was handed a five seconds penalty during the French Grand Prix after a first lap incident which in the end eliminated two of the three Frenchman from their home race.

Grosjean banged wheels with the Force India of Esteban Ocon shortly after the start of the race, for which the Haas driver was penalised.

On the eve of the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Grosjean explained what happened by showing onboard footage to reporters, “That’s what you get a five-second penalty for. Did I move my steering wheel? Did I turn to the left? Did I do anything? It’s absolute nonsense.”

“I think they [the stewards] were drinking rosé wine. I couldn’t know he was there,” an angry Grosjean declared.

He also revealed that he apologised to Ocon, “He didn’t reply to my message. I flew in this morning here with him, an hour and a half on the plane, and he didn’t say anything. It’s a French GP and everybody wants to do well but, as I say, I think my penalty is nonsense.”

Haas have produced a handy car this year, perhaps even the Best of the Rest behind the top three teams, but the Frenchman has failed to score points while his teammate Kevin Magnussen is delivering on Sundays and is tenth in the standings with 27 points.

Grosjean acknowledged, “It’s obviously been a long stretch. Looking at the performance of the car, it’s painful. But it will come.”

He will hope that time is at this weekend’s Austrian GP, but the 32-year-old is also adamant that he has faced tougher periods in his career – such as a season in which he was handed a one-race ban.

The 32-year-old is no stranger to controversy, in 2012 he was labelled a first lap nutcase by Mark Webber after he caused a massive first turn pile-up at the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix.

Granted Grosjean has matured, but this season his waywardness has returned and an element of desperation seems to prevail when the going gets tough.

But he believes that this current ‘unlucky’ spell does not compare to his early days with Lotus, “It was harder in 2012. I was being criticised by other drivers badly, drivers that I respect and I was creating big safety problems.

“It’s not easy right now and obviously we want more for the team but if you look at all the races, some I could have done much better but some it’s just circumstances. I will drive as I have always been driving,” he added.

MIKA: Drinking ROSÉ wine? Is this a French insult of sorts? LOL!

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