FORMULA 1

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ARRIVABENE: WE’RE USED TO PUNCHES BUT MERCEDES ARE NOT

Maurizio Arrivabene has drawn an ‘iron curtain’ around his team, Ferrari’s media and PR department is derided by all the journos working in the Formula 1 paddock with the Maranello team chief saying very little if anything outside the few times he is summoned to the mandatory FIA team managers’ press conference.

During the F1 Fan Festival in Milan, Arrivabene was caught with his guard down when cornered by reporters and spoke about the team’s home race this weekend, while revealing that the Reds intend intensifying the pressure on Mercedes in the belief they will wilt.

After a couple of disappointing races before the summer break, Ferrari bounced back when F1 got back to work, in Belgium last weekend, with a very fast car throughout the three days which ended in victory for Vettel – the pendulum swinging back to the red side.

Arrivabene said of the triumph, “We were praised for our victory Spa-Francorchamps, so it is good for us – especially for our staff who work hard at the factory and at the racetrack.”

“But the fact is: we are behind. So I say to them head down, roll up your sleeves and carry on!”

“We must put pressure on Mercedes because they are not used to it. In the last few years, we were the ones with our heads hanging low, we took punches right and left, but we always got up.”

“We’re used to it. They are not, so the speech made to the boys is simple: let’s keep them under pressure.  Sooner or later, when we reach them we will have been the aggressors who took the punches and we know the feeling.”

“Now it’s time to give it to them,” added Arrivabene whose team trail Mercedes in the championship standings by 15 points with eight rounds remaining.

Of this Sunday’s 69th edition of the Italian Grand Prix (68th at Monza) Arrivabene said, “It’s nice to feel the warmth of the fans. In football jargon, I would say that the Tifosi are our twelfth man. ”

“The pressure in Monza is always great, especially if you’ve won the race before. We are slowly reaping the fruits of years of work,” added the Italian team chief whose team has not won their home race since Fernando Alonso triumphed at the temple of speed in 2010.

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RAIKKONEN: I AM THE SAME DRIVER I WAS 10 YEARS AGO

Formula 1 veteran Kimi Raikkonen believes he is as fast as he was a decade ago but is still unsure of his future with Ferrari despite reports he will remain with the Maranello outfit alongside Sebastian Vettel for at least another year.

Speaking to reporters during the drivers’ press conference on the eve of the Italian Grand Prix, 38-year-old Raikkonen said, “I enjoy the racing; I don’t think that’s a secret. The rest not, but that’s part of the job.”

“Do I want to race? Yes, otherwise I wouldn’t be here today. I don’t see that’s suddenly going to disappear. Who knows, it might be, but I doubt it. Like I said, I don’t know, so we’ll see what happens.”

“I don’t feel that I drive any differently than 10 years ago. I think I drive pretty well, in my books at least, and that’s enough for me. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t feel I can drive as well as I feel that I should.”

“That’s my tool to measure and decide when it’s enough. Who knows. I don’t know. Maybe I wake up one morning and I just don’t know how to go fast any more. I don’t think there is a time. It’s more feelings and how do you feel yourself doing it – good or bad.”

“People always say that the speed will disappear but until this day I feel that it hasn’t disappeared for me. But maybe there is a morning you wake up and it’s just not there anymore.”

“It could be like that but I don’t think you just put a date, you just turn this old or that and it’s just not there. If you have it, you have it and if not… that’s it.”

Asked about his future with the Italian team, Raikkonen replied, “You need to talk to the team. It’s not up to me. That’s about it. Not my decision in the end.”

Earlier in the year, impressive Sauber rookie Charles Leclerc was being tipped for a promotion to the Ferrari who have mentored the youngster through their driver development programme.

But in wake of Sergio Marchionne’s untimely passing and a new senior management at the helm, the consensus is the Reds will keep the stability and continuity they have with the Raikkonen-Vettel partnership which is in the throes of being confirmed.

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Haas refusing to sign Force India's prize money deal without further clarification

Haas team boss Guenther Steiner has revealed that the American-owned outfit has refused to sign a deal which will see Racing Point Force India retain its right to prize money.

Last week at the Belgian Grand Prix it was confirmed that all nine rival teams had signed a document allowing Force India the right to 'Column 1' prize money – this is a roughly $25m (£19.2m) annual payment made to teams which have finished inside the top ten in two consecutive seasons.

However as Racing Point Force India entered the Belgian GP as a new entrant, it would miss out on these payments until 2020 at the earliest, costing the team upwards of $50m (£38.4m). Liberty Media hoped to avoid this by having all nine teams agree a deal which would see the new entrant's financial deal continue under the previous entry.

"The remaining nine teams have signed, so to speak, a document that enables us to keep the money that Sahara Force India had earned in years past," commented team boss Otmar Szafnauer.

Yet this weekend, Steiner admitted Haas have refused to sign up to the deal until it receives further clarification from Liberty Media as to why Force India should receive special treatment.

"What we need to understand is with the new licence, why there is a reason not to be treated [like a team] with a new licence. That is what we want to understand and we cannot explain that to ourselves someone needs to explain it to us and that hasn’t happened yet.

When asked to confirm that Haas hadn't agreed to the deal, Steiner replied: "No. With the new licence we didn’t sign up for that. We still need to understand why it should be different."

It's believed Haas are the only team which has refused to sign, although Williams were also against the deal before eventually being convinced to agree.

MIKA: I like HAAS but not signing as a gesture of good sportsmanship is a bit trivial.

Completely different circumstances they are debating about stating they are the same, but they are not. Force India have already been in F1 longer than 2 years, they have changed their name. Everything else is the same.

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McLaren plans to announce second driver by end of September

McLaren intends to sort its 2019 Formula 1 driver line-up before the end of next month, Chief Operating Officer Jonathan Neale has confirmed.

McLaren currently fields Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne but the two-time World Champion announced last month that he will leave the championship at the end of the season.

McLaren swiftly announced current Renault driver Carlos Sainz Jr. as his replacement, sealing the Spaniard’s services on a two-year contract.

Vandoorne is under pressure to retain his seat after a subdued second season in the championship, while McLaren is evaluating reserve driver and F2 title contender Lando Norris.

The 18-year-old participated in the opening practice session for the team at the Belgian Grand Prix and will step into Vandoorne’s MCL33 at Monza on Friday.

“We’ve announced that Fernando will be stepping down from Formula 1 and we announced the planned changeover to Carlos Sainz, who will join us from the beginning of 2019,” said Neale in a conference call with McLaren investors.

“We’re in discussions about what we will do in the second seat and those announcements will be made in the third quarter.”

Neale also confirmed that McLaren hopes that James Key will be able to join “at some point during the course of next year.”

McLaren announced that it had recruited Key during the course of the Hungarian Grand Prix but he remains under contract with Toro Rosso.

Neale also stressed that it is up to McLaren to improve for next season, pointing to the performance this year of Red Bull, which also uses Renault power.

“Red Bull has demonstrated that with this engine it is possible to win a race and get cars on the podium,” he said.

“The issue that we have at the moment lies within our own control which is the chassis performance, its competitiveness is variable, depending on circuit parameters.

“We have a strong pipeline of engineering works and upgrades to address those issues throughout the course of this season, making sure we address the underlying issues before we get into 2019.”

McLaren currently holds sixth position in the Constructors’ Championship.

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Ferrari special: How Schumacher and Todt transformed the Scuderia

As we approach this weekend’s Italian GP, and renowned photographer Ercole Colombo’s 700th race, we bring you the full story of the Jean Todt and Michael Schumacher era – first published in F1 Racing & Motorsport Prime – featuring Ercole’s great images.

Boom and bust: that was Ferrari's way. From the peaks, the view was breathtaking. Ascari, Fangio, Hawthorn, Hill, Surtees, Lauda, Scheckter... these were the blessed members of Formula 1's most exclusive club, all having filled their lungs with the heady, rarefied air as Ferrari world champions.

Yet, almost to a man, the oxygen turned sour on the inevitable plummeting descent. Backstabbing turmoil, bitter disappointment and, yes, even death seemed to follow the apparent anointment of Italian immortality. This was the nature of life at Maranello, and it only made the Scuderia all the more alluring.

But there was something different about Jean Todt and Michael Schumacher's version of Ferrari. This team won... and then kept on winning, for years.

The team they forged, in harness with the clinical brilliance of Ross Brawn and Rory Byrne, were a Ferrari the like of which we'd never seen. And probably never will again.

Everything seemed weighted in their favour: politically, Ferrari carried more influence than other teams, and earned more money as a consequence; cynics liked to claim FIA stood for 'Ferrari International Assistance' when rulings and penalty appeals fell in the Scuderia's favour. Hell, even Bridgestone's tyres were moulded perfectly to its requirements. No wonder the wins kept on coming.

This wasn't Enzo's Ferrari, all flair and flaw in equal measure; this was a machine, a vision of F1 perfection designed to deliver the ultimate result, on repeat – no matter what. But the era that smashed the record books (and at times almost throttled the life out of F1) took time to cultivate.

Todt was into his sixth season at the helm before Ferrari claimed a constructors' title, and a seventh before Schumacher finally ended the drought to do what mattered most: to succeed Scheckter and join the Ferrari F1 canon.

It's easy to forget now how much pressure Todt faced in those early years, when the script appeared to repeat the same old yarn. After Luca di Montezemolo hired him in 1993, the initial plan called on familiar faces.

John Barnard's genius had taken Ferrari so close to a title with Alain Prost in '90, but the experiment to mastermind glory from Guildford fell apart long before Ayrton Senna's kamikaze move at Suzuka's Turn 1. Fiat politics and a lack of trust left the plan in tatters, yet within three years, Todt and di Montezemolo were trying it again.

Burnt by his experience at Benetton, Barnard returned for part two of his Ferrari revolution – and you could barely see the seam. FDD (Ferrari Design Department) replaced GTO (Guildford Technical Office), but it was based in the same Surrey town, and once again his ambition was to be left alone to design. Todt's job was to protect him from the distractions of day-to-day racing.

The svelte, low-drag 412T1 of 1994 certainly offered promise. But what had changed? Barnard met with the same old frustrations: an engine department not playing to his tune and the usual pull to fire-fight the latest trackside crisis. Gerhard Berger's win at Hockenheim ended a painful four-year drought, but one-off moments playing a bit-part to the starring role taken by Williams and, more significantly, Benetton – the team Barnard had just left - wasn't enough.

Gerhard Berger

In the face of Renault V10 dominance, Ferrari persevered with its beloved V12 for 1995. The reward this time? Another single victory, for Jean Alesi in Canada, in the handsome 412T2. Same old story. Then Todt signed Schumacher.

Schumacher's first title, in 1994, had been tainted by Senna's death at Imola, the clumsy clash with Damon Hill in Adelaide, and the persistent insinuations that Benetton were traction-control aided. But in '95, the evidence validated what was already blindingly obvious: Schumacher was in a class of his own.

Has there ever been a time when one driver was so much better than the rest? Fangio had Ascari, then Moss. Clark? Sure, he was head and shoulders above the rest in the mid-60s, but at least he had the likes of Surtees, Gurney, Brabham and Hill to contend with. Later, Stewart had Rindt and Fittipaldi; Lauda had Hunt and Andretti; Prost and Senna had each other, plus Piquet and Mansell.

Italian GP start action: Alain Prost leads Jean Alesi as Ayrton Senna flies over Damon Hill

But mid-90s Schumacher? Once Senna and Prost were gone, he had brave, valiant Hill (usually in a quicker car), second-tier talents such as Berger and Alesi, a yet-to-mature Mika Hakkinen... Todt knew this was his man, the only genuine game-changer on the grid.

And somehow, despite all he had at Benetton, Schumacher needed Ferrari, too. Williams might have offered instant titles; Mercedes, with whom he'd matured in sportscars, were becoming a growing force with McLaren; but Ferrari... here was a chance to build something meaningful.

Alain Prost

Prost, and apparently even Senna, had felt the draw of Maranello. Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel would subsequently heed the calling, too. Schumacher just couldn't resist – and the reputed $25m-a-year pay cheque might have helped.

But he knew what he was getting into. Todt's Barnard-era Ferrari was little changed from the misfiring behemoth of the 1980s. Unlocking those titles... this was a gamble, whatever the money. Still only 26, Schumacher was risking his best years on a team out of step with the times.

Still, the new marriage started well. After his first test, at Estoril, Schumacher proclaimed he could have won his 1995 title more easily in the 412T2 than he had in his Benetton. Oh, and he was a second a lap faster than Berger and Alesi.

Reality kicked in during '96, though, with Barnard's markedly unlovely F310. Three wins, including a wet one for the ages in Spain, wasn't bad – but by joining Ferrari, Schumacher knew he'd blown any hope of a title hat-trick. All yours, Hill...

In fairness, the gamble could have paid off in 1997, as Schumacher brilliantly kept Ferrari in the title hunt against Jacques Villeneuve's superior Williams. Then all his work was overshadowed by another horrendous professional foul. Jerez and that backfiring barge sealed Schumacher's arch-villain status. The FIA stripped him of his second place in the points, but he kept his five victories – a meaningless punishment.

That 1997 car, F310B, was Barnard's Ferrari swansong. Todt knew the great experiment was over, that it was time to galvanise Maranello. As lone gun Barnard exited stage left, Todt hired the men who'd made Schumacher.

Ross Brawn and Rory Byrne had witnessed up close how Schumacher's migration to Ferrari had punctured Benetton's bid for further titles. Neither Alesi nor Berger (transferring in the other direction) could claim a single victory in what surely would have been a winning car in Schumacher's hands in 1996. The technical director and chief designer changed course for a life in red.

In 1998, Byrne's purposeful F300 would set the template for the wondrous machines that would follow, but Adrian Newey's first McLaren, the MP4-13, would delay the start of Ferrari's winning streak. For such a firebrand talent, Hakkinen's rise to greatness was a surprising slow burner, but when he peaked in '98 and '99 Schumacher suddenly found himself with a worthy rival. Over one lap, the Finn was probably faster – and with Newey in his corner, he had a definable edge.

Italy was growing impatient, and the tension ratcheted further when Schumacher broke his leg at Silverstone in 1999. Here was another title gone. Or was it? Eddie Irvine had never offered more than solid number-two form, but there was grit beneath his swagger. 

As Hakkinen lost focus without Schumacher's threat, Irvine stepped up – and nearly stole the crown for himself. How galling for Schumacher, returning after six missed races, to play obedient tail-gunner to Irvine for the first Malaysian GP. Pole (by more than a second) telegraphed how plain weird it would have been had the spiky Irishman been the one to end two decades of hurt.

As it was, a first constructors' title since 1983 was salvaged, helped in no small part by a post-Sepang technical controversy. Irvine's victory, shaped almost entirely by his team-mate, appeared lost in parc ferme when his aerodynamic 'barge boards' (a suitably ungainly term for such ugly accoutrements) were found to be outside the regulatory parameters.

Ferrari appealed – and won. How? The governing body found the means of measurement, used by their own technical team throughout the season and before, to be untrustworthy... much like their verdict. When Irvine's challenge ended with a whimper in Japan and Hakkinen secured his second title, F1 sighed with collective relief.

How much longer would Todt have lasted had Schumacher, Brawn, Byrne and co failed to finally put the pieces together (quite brilliantly) in 2000? The superteam might have survived, but without his protection from Fiat interference – not to mention the meddling of President di Montezemolo, whom Todt always kept at a strict arm's length – for how long?

As it was, Schumacher defeated Hakkinen at the Suzuka finale with the aid of another perfectly executed Brawn strategic masterclass. This was how it would be from now on, as five consecutive drivers' titles and 72 GP victories attest. Added to what he'd already achieved at Benetton, Schumacher spent the first years of the new millennium re-writing F1's record books.

He didn't have everything his own way. The combination of canny Williams, monumental BMW V10 power, electrifying Juan Pablo Montoya and the determination of brother Ralf put the wind up Schumi and Ferrari from time to time, while a new threat from Finland almost derailed the run in 2003 – with the help of a new points system introduced directly to soften Ferrari's domination. Had Kimi Raikkonen's single win for McLaren proved enough to counter Schumacher's six that year, history would surely have recalled a title injustice.

Through it all, Schumacher remained a divisive figure. Aside from the questionable racing ethics, this was an essentially private man who shielded himself from his huge global fame by offering a mostly one-dimensional view of the character behind those boisterous podium jumps. For many, he could do no wrong; for many more, he was easier to admire than to love.

But surely it is Todt who is most responsible for how this Ferrari F1 team is remembered. Foremost, he deserves enormous credit for hiring the right people and creating a winning culture. What played against him was the blind devotion he brought to his task.

'Win at all costs' has never been so blatant: the team orders controversy of Austria 2002 and the Indy '05 incident were spectacular misjudgements. Todt appeared to have total disregard – all that mattered was the right result for Ferrari, and usually for Schumacher. Rubens Barrichello always knew his place in this team.

But did Todt care what anyone thought? Probably not. And Enzo Ferrari might well have approved: the founder, after all, was the master "agitator of men". So perhaps Todt's Ferrari wasn't that different after all.

That air of arrogance, of unquestionable superiority: Ascari, Fangio, Hawthorn, Hill, Surtees, Lauda, Scheckter... they'd have understood.

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Kvyat in frame for shock Toro Rosso return

Daniil Kvyat is in the frame for a shock return to Formula 1 with the Toro Rosso team that dropped him before the end of the 2017 season.
Kvyat was picked up by Ferrari to work as a development driver after losing Red Bull's support late last year.

Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene is understood to have met with his Red Bull counterpart Christian Horner and Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko during the Belgian Grand Prix weekend about the prospect of the 24-year-old rejoining Toro Rosso next year.

It would mark Kvyat's third stint at the Red Bull junior team, having raced there in 2014 and then again in 2016 and 2017 following a brief spell alongside Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull itself.

Kvyat's possible recall has emerged because Red Bull currently lacks options for its junior team.

Pierre Gasly will step up to the senior outfit to replace Renault-bound Ricciardo next season, with Brendon Hartley yet to convince Red Bull he is worth retaining for a second full year in F1 following his surprise call-up at Kvyat's expense in 2017.

Red Bull does not have any juniors either ready or qualified to step up to F1 and has been linked with left-field alternatives like McLaren protege Lando Norris or possible McLaren outcast Stoffel Vandoorne.

Last week, when asked by Motorsport.com about his team's options, Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost said: "There are different names which are being discussed but up to now no decision has been made.

"So therefore we just wait and Red Bull will announce it."

The possibility of another of Ferrari's development drivers, Antonio Giovinazzi, joining Toro Rosso is also understood to be of interest to Red Bull.

Giovinazzi's best shot of a proper F1 chance for 2019 was thought to be with Ferrari customer Sauber, as the Italian has tested for both teams this year.

However, it is not known if this has been discussed specifically with Ferrari, whereas Kvyat's shot appears more realistic.

Kvyat has had a rollercoaster relationship with Red Bull ever since he joined Toro Rosso for the 2014 season, aged just 19.

He was promoted to the Red Bull senior team as Sebastian Vettel's replacement the following year, but demoted to Toro Rosso again in early-2016.

That came after two high-profile clashes with Vettel, and amid pressure from Max Verstappen's camp to promote the young Dutchman from Toro Rosso.

Red Bull swapped the two drivers and Kvyat struggled to reverse his dip in form in his second spell at the junior team, scoring points in just six of the next 31 races.

He was replaced for the Malaysian and Japanese Grands Prix respectively, then scored a point in the United States before that turned out to be just a one-race reprieve.

Kvyat did not compete in the remaining three races of 2017, then secured a development role with Ferrari in January this year that has comprised simulator work and an outing at Fiorano in an SF71-H.

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F1's new ballistic-tested helmet revealed

The first race-ready version of Formula 1’s new ballistic-tested helmet concept that all drivers must use next season has been unveiled by Italian company Stilo.
The new design, which is the result of nearly a decade of research by the FIA since Felipe Massa’s crash in qualifying for the 2009 Hungarian Grand, is aimed at helping take driver head protection to the next level.

The helmet sees the current zylon forehead protection area replaced with a fully integrated extension of material – which results in the top edge of the helmet face opening moving down by 10mm.

These new toughened parts will increase energy absorption in the event of an accident by up to 25 percent, and have been tested to withstand a 225g projectile striking a driver at 250km/h. The helmet has also undergone extensive military ballistic testing.

With Stilo’s first version of the helmet having recently been completed, a visibility test was undertaken by Valtteri Bottas in first free practice for the Belgian Grand Prix.

Lance Stroll is expected to test it at Monza this weekend, but the trial may be delayed if poor weather conditions affect Friday running because of the need for different spec visors.

Bottas said it was important for helmet technology to continue to evolve as F1 focuses mainly on car safety developments like the halo. 

“The halo was very good protection in Spa for Charles, but there can still be cases that bits can hit you a lot,” said Bottas.

“The stronger the helmet is, it's always better. The regulations for the helmets have been still for a few years. 

“They want more safety and they need to take harder impacts than before. 

“It is very important that the helmets keep developing, there is always margin to improve."

Stilo’s managing director Guglielmo Belotti said that his company had managed to produce the helmet to the new stricter homologation characteristics without adding weight – and Bottas had reported no visibility consequences either.

“The feedback was absolutely identical to the old,” he told Motorsport.com. 

“The important thing is that even if this is absolutely safer than the old standard, we could get this result without increasing the weight. So the current helmet is the lightest in F1, and this one in racing conditions is identical.”

 

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Petronas working on "new chemistries" to boost Mercedes title bid

Mercedes fuel and oil supplier Petronas is turning to "new chemistries" - and even radical ideas from universities - in a bid to help the German car manufacturer strike back in its fight against Ferrari.
Sebastian Vettel's triumph at the Belgian Grand Prix left Mercedes in little doubt that its main rivals now have the fastest car in Formula 1, but it has not given up on closing the gap either on the engine or chassis front.

With both championship contenders having introduced their final specification of power unit for 2018 at Spa-Francorchamps last weekend, the onus for improvements on the engine front has fallen to their fuel and lubricants suppliers.

Now, locked in that increasingly tough battle for supremacy, Mercedes' partner Petronas says that it is having to turn to new chemistry solutions if it is to find the kind of gains the team wants to see.

Andy Holmes, Petronas' head of group research and technology, says that with traditional avenues of fuel and lubricant development having already been exhausted, more radical concepts are now being chased.

"We are in the game here to make improvements," he told Motorsport.com in an exclusive interview at Petronas' Turin research facility ahead of the Italian Grand Prix.

"For us, what is critical at the moment is a pipeline of new ideas, new chemistries, and tuning the fuel properties to meet the challenges that are coming. So the pressure is on us.

"For us that increasingly takes us in the direction of new chemistries. We are increasing our investment and innovation, looking to develop new components and new fluids that can keep giving us incremental gains.

"We think it is tough, but the reason we are in it is because we think those gains can be made."

Although Petronas employs highly skilled scientists to help its efforts, the company says it is also turning to university boffins to help find potentially more left-field ideas that could help it make a breakthrough in performance.

Eric Holthusen, Petronas' chief technology officer, said: "If you look into universities, a lot of research is done without the pressure that industries put on their own development teams.

"Andy and I are constantly under pressure and whatever we do we are asked: 'What is the value to the business?'. If you are at university you have a lot more degree of freedom and you can play with new chemistries.

"What we need to make sure is that we understand what is happening in universities and see what is going on there. And if we see something that is promising, go and ensure that we are part of the gang."

Power stakes

Although Ferrari's form in Belgium left Mercedes appearing to be on the back foot against Ferrari in the power stakes, the team is not convinced that its rival is that far ahead.

One factor is that the characteristics of Spa – which exposed Mercedes' traction weakness and straightline speed deficit to Ferrari - delivered a double whammy that left the team on the back foot.

Geoff Willis, Mercedes Director of Digital Engineering Transformation , told Motorsport.com that tyre performance was a more critical element in Belgium.

He also thinks that it is too simplistic to suggest that either Ferrari or Mercedes has an out-and-out better engine, because their characteristics are so different.

"If you look at the gaps we are seeing, a lot of them are dominated by tyre characteristics, and it is who is getting the tyre right on the day," he said.

"Clearly with the two top runners, they are neck and neck on power. They have got different characteristics and different deployment potential around the circuits. It is quite interesting to try to work out what it is that we are doing different from each other.

"The cars do behave differently and there is quite a lot of noise on the signal. But if you take the underlying relative performance of the two cars in terms of who has got the upper hand, it is quite tricky to say at the moment."

[skalls]

Well that was an interesting race.  Vettel is pissing down his leg again.  Dude needs to chill out and not push it too hard.

And Haas get's DQ'ed bc of a petition by Renault.  If what Haas said is right they've been using the same floor for multiple races.  If that's the case how'd the car get past scrutineering.  Smells fishy to me.

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ITALIAN GRAND PRIX: HAMILTON SPOILS FERRARI PARTY

Lewis Hamilton spoiled the planned Ferrari party when he triumphed against the odds to win the Italian Grand Prix, as the Reds tripped over themselves in what will go down as an epic race at the sport’s Temple of Speed.

Hamilton survived a first lap incident with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, to hunt down pole starting and early leader Kimi Raikkonen in the other Ferrari.

The veteran Finn fought hard but suffered the price for pitting too early – perhaps fooled by the Mercedes crew lining up for a ‘phantom’ pitstop before he peeled into the pitlane – and simply ran out of rubber as the race progreesed and when it mattered, Ferrari got the strategy call wrong.

Hamilton, in contrast, stayed out longer, delivered crucial fast laps on wasted rubber before his only pit stop and with help from teammate Valtteri Bottas was able to reel in Raikkonen before pouncing for the lead with a bold overtake into Turn 1 on lap 45 of the 53 laps, the Ferrari driver knew the battle was fought and spent the rest of the race nursing his no-grip car to finish second.

It was the Briton’s 68th grand prix victory and with it extended he extended the world championship points lead to 30 from 22 when he arrived in Italy, while matching F1 legend Michael Schumacher’s record five victories at the hallowed venue.

As he alighted the podium to a loud chorus of boos from the disappointed Tifosi, “Today was so difficult. We’ve got a great crowd here and although the negativity is never great, that’s what powered me along. I want to give it up to Ferrari who put up a great challenge and gave us a great fight. I want to thank the guys here and everyone back home; without their belief, it wouldn’t have been possible.”

“There’s been a lot of negativity but there were a lot of British flags out there today. They know who they are. In future, I only want to turn to a negative to a positive. Thanks to Valtteri too. We never give up,” added Hamilton.

From pole position Raikkonen took the lead where he stayed for the first half of the race, after a safety car period to clear debris on the track, Hamilton briefly took the lead after the restart but the Iceman snatched it back.

In retrospect, the Ferrari driver was called in far too early by his crew to change to the soft tyres and soon was in a Mercedes sandwich, Bottas backing the red car into his hard chasing teammate.

When Hamilton made his move Raikkonen made no attempt to defend, his race was run and securing second became the goal which he went on to achieve. It will hurt him that what should have been a famous return to victory was yet another second place.

Speaking on the occasion of his 100the F1 podium celebration, Raikkonen said, “I was quick enough but unfortunately our rear tyres went and it was a losing battle from that point. I tried but it was impossible, far from ideal. We did our best. For sure we tried, the rear tyres gave up before the race ended, at least we can take the second place.”

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen crossed the line third after a dogged afternoon spent battling off Bottas, the Mercedes driver stuck behind the ‘widest’ car in the field.

Verstappen pushed Bottas onto the grass verge as they entered Turn 1, forcing the Finn to take avoiding action and prompting the FIA race stewards to penalise the Dutchman, the Mercedes driver thus inherited third while the penalty dropped the Red Bull driver dropped to fifth.

Bottas reflected, “I was really trying to do everything I can to get to the podium. First, my mission was to hold off Kimi, and then I was challenging with Max. There was hard racing, and sometimes it was not as fair as I would hope, so he got a penalty and I am on the podium. As a team, we take this result. We got more points than Ferrari in their home. We hope next time we can be better.”

Vettel’s afternoon was compromised after the first lap incident with Hamilton, the FIA stewards looked at the incident and saw no need to act, as it was quite clear Vettel simply oversteered clumsily into the slow right-hand chicane and spun around, lucky not to tag the Mercedes and cause a shunt.

Credit to the German for recovering and storming through the field to claim fourth and limit the damage as best he could, but after locking out the front row, defeat when they were expected to win at Monza, will hurt at Maranello. This is one of those that will divide fans and opinions…

Best of the Rest was Romain Grosjean in the Haas in sixth after fending off a concerted attack from the Force India pair of Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez, the drivers in pink seventh and eighth.

Carlos Sainz delivered a solid race to claim ninth place ahead of Lance Stroll who claimed the final point in tenth, Williams enjoying their best weekend of the season with Sergey Sirotkin  in 11th

FIA Blow-By-Blow Report

At the start, pole position man Kimi Räikkonen held his advantage to take the lead through the opening two turns. Behind him, though, Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel, who started from P2, was being pressured by title rival Lewis Hamilton and there was brief contact in Turn 1.

Hamilton continued to press and launched an attack around the outside of Vettel’s Ferrari into the second chicane. There was minimal room for manoeuvre and the pair collided, with Vettel being sent into a spin.

Hamilton was able to continue in second place ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who had muscled his way past the second Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas as the start, but Vettel dropped to the back of the field.

At the back of the order there was also a collision at the start between Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson and Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley. The New Zealander suffered a blown tyres and he was forced to pull over at the side of the track.

That brought out the safety car and under the caution Vettel pitted for soft tyres.

Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo also pitted, taking on supersofts, and the pair were soon making their way through the field, with Ricciardo initially to the fore.

When the Safety Car left the track, Hamilton made the most of the re-start and passed Räikkönen into Turn 1. The Mercedes’ driver’s hold on the lead was brief, however, as Räikkönen fought back in the second chicane and muscled his way back to the front.

In the midfield, Vettel passed Ricciardo at the start of lap nine and by lap 17 he had hauled himself up to ninth place, but he was now 27.3s behind leading team-mate Räikkönen

Räikkönen made his sole stop, for soft tyres, on lap 20. Mercedes feinted a stop on the following lap but with his pace good Hamilton was told to stay out.

Behind them, Ricciardo’s race came to an end on lap 24 when smoke began to pour from the rear of his Red Bull. The Australian quickly pulled over and retired, his latest spec Renault engine appearing to let him down.

Ahead, Hamilton made his stop on lap 28, taking on soft tyres, but he emerged behind Räikkönen. Bottas was yet to pit, however, and as Hamilton rejoined over two seconds behind Räikkönen, Bottas was told to keep his fellow Finn behind him.

Bottas finally made his pit stop at the end of lap 35. He took on soft tyres and emerged some 3.5s behind Verstappen. Räikkönen now led again but with worn tyres that were beginning to cause the Finn problems. Hamilton, just half a second behind the Ferrari driver, was on much fresher rubber and began to exert heavy pressure.

Vettel, meanwhile, was busy making his way back towards the leaders after a second pit stop, for supersoft tyres, and on lap 39 he claimed fifth place. He was now 13.4s behind Bottas with 14 laps to go and lapping much quicker than the Mercedes man who was battling to get past Verstappen.

At the front, Hamilton made the decisive move on lap 45. He tucked in behind the Finn on the pit straight and then darted around the outside of the Finn’s Ferrari into Turn 1 to take a lead he would not relinquish.

Behind Räikkönen, third-placed Verstappen Max was now coming under pressure from Bottas. The Finn went to pass in Turn 1 but Verstappen took a very wide line and there was contact, with Bottas being forced to cut the chicane.

The incident was placed under investigation and Max was subsequently handed a five-second time penalty for causing the collision.

After Hamilton took his 68th career win ahead of Räikkönen, Verstappen crossed the line in third, but with Bottas and Vettel within five seconds of the Dutchman, the Red Bull man was classified in fifth place, from where he started the race.

Romain Grosjean took sixth place for Haas, while Racing Point Force India took their second double points finish in a row, with Esteban Ocon seventh and Sergio Pérez eighth. Ninth place was taken by Renault’s Carlos Sainz and the final point on offer went to Williams’ Lance Stroll.

[MIKA27]

GROSJEAN DISQUALIFIED FROM ITALIAN GRAND PRIX

Haas driver Romain Grosjean has been disqualified from sixth place at the Italian Grand Prix, after a protest by Renault the FIA race stewards found irregularities with the VF18 floor.

After an investigation by the stewards found “the reference plane of car number 08 is found not to be in compliance” and for that reason Grosjean was excluded.

Earlier FIA race director Charlie Whiting said that “a small detail on the leading edge of the floor” was the subject of Renault’s protest.

Haas team boss Gunether Steiner was perplexed by the protest and told Sky F1 at Monza, “I find it a bit bizarre. [Renault] have asked for clarifications but none have been particularly satisfying for them and they want to force an issue by putting a protest in now.”

Renault and Haas are locked in a Formula 1 World Championship battle for fourth place and this will have a profound effect on the standings. The American have the right to protest the ruling.

Italian Grand Prix FIA Race Stewards’ Statement:

Protest against Haas F1 Team car 8 (driver Romain Grosjean) by Renault Sport Formula One Team

The Stewards held a hearing at 1830 following the Protest lodged by Renault Sport Racing Ltd, the Entrant of the Renault Sport Formula One Team (“Renault”) against Car 8 of Haas Formula One Team (“Haas”.) The teams were each represented by their team representative and technical personnel. The Stewards have noted each name separately. The Stewards had previously instructed the Technical Delegate to keep Car 8 under Parc Fermé conditions.

The Stewards first heard evidence as to the admissibility of the Protest. Examining the protest document, the Stewards found that the protest met the requirements of Article 13 of the International Sporting Code, and admitted the Protest.

The Stewards then heard evidence from each team, which in summary was: Renault submitted that Art. 3.7.1.d of the Technical Regulations of the FIA Formula One World Championship state that a radius of 50mm (+/-2mm) must be applied to each front corner of the reference plane. (See Art.) The text of this Article was being applied differently by several different teams, and a clarification was sought. As a result, TD/033-18 was issued on the 25th of July, 2018 – which, in essence gave the teams until the Grand Prix of Monza to comply with the clarification indicated in the TD.

Renault provided a picture that they claimed was of Car 8, which they stated shows that the part in question, at the start of the Grand Prix of Monza was not in compliance with art. 3.7.1.d of the FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, as clarified with the TD, and therefore they protested against the compliance of Car 8.

Haas submitted that they understood the TD, and that they have been in contact with the FIA’s head of Single Seater Technical Matters. They submitted the email correspondence, which were also provided to the Stewards by the Technical Delegate. They provided details of their new solution and sought acceptance of that solution. In their final email in the chain, they provided both drawings of their solution and stated “Given the forthcoming summer break, we will endeavor to introduce this upgrade for the Singapore GP, but will be somewhat at the mercy of our suppliers so we would request some flexibility in this matter.”

The response from the FIA’s head of Technical Matters did not respond to this point, but did make some technical points, along with general acceptance of the technical solution. Haas submitted that it was their understanding, based on a lack of response on the matter of timing that their solution and timing were accepted.

The Stewards asked questions in clarification of the various points of the teams and permitted the teams to make concluding statements.

The Stewards ordered the Technical Delegate to inspect Car 8, and his report to them (document 40) specified that the car was not in compliance with Art. 3.7.1.d as clarified in the TD.

The Stewards contacted the FIA’s Head of Single Seater Technical Matters, who confirmed the email chain referred to by Haas, but he also stated that in a subsequent conversation with Haas’ Head of Aero and representative on this matter, that he had stated that while he understood their supply problem, that if the car was not corrected by Monza – that they would leave themselves open to protest by other teams.

Haas asked to be heard on additional points, and the Stewards re-convened the hearing.

Haas noted that in their Head of Aero’s email, he proposed a solution and noted that this was as a result of their discussions “on how to best interpret the ambiguity associated with defining the front of the T-Tray.” As such, they noted that until that clarification was given, TD/033-18 remained ambiguous, and that as the TD had not been updated, they did not believe that their car was in violation of the TD.

They further noted, that the time from the TD to the Grand Prix of Monza, taking into account the Summer Shutdown period was only three weeks, which is why it was not possible for them to come up with a solution within the time provided.

The Stewards closed the hearing and considered the matter.

The Stewards determined that, as per the Technical Delegate’s report, the car was not in compliance with Art. 3.7.1.d of the 2018 FIA Formula One Technical Regulations, as clarified by TD/033-18.

As has been noted in previous decisions of the FIA International Court of Appeal, Technical Directives are advisory in nature, but they provide a manner in which a competitor may satisfy the Technical Delegates and the Stewards with proof that their car is compliant. In this case the Competitor did not follow the Technical Directive, and the outboard front corner of the car does not have the requisite 50mm radius.

While the Stewards are also sympathetic to the difficulties of producing these parts, the Stewards noted that at least one other competitor was able to comply in the time provided. Further, it was made clear to the competitor from the outset that the FIA Technical Department did not consider their car to be in compliance, and further that they left themselves open to the circumstances they now find. It was therefore the obligation of the competitor to be in compliance, which they did not do.

The Stewards therefore find the Car to be in breach of the regulation Article 3.7.1.d of the 2018 FIA Technical Regulations as clarified in TD/033-18 and order that Car 8 be Disqualified from the results and that the classification be amended. The Stewards further order that the part in question be retained and sealed by the Technical Delegate until this decision is binding.

Competitors are reminded that they have the right to appeal the decisions of the Stewards (with the exception of those referred to in Article 12.2.4 of the FIA International Sporting Code), in accordance with Article 15 of the FIA International Sporting Code and Article 9.1.1 of the FIA Judicial and Disciplinary Rules, within the applicable time limits.

The Stewards

Tim Mayer Gerd Ennser

Danny Sullivan Paolo Longoni

MIKA: Karma..... it does catch up.

[MIKA27]

HAMILTON: I LEFT VETTEL SPACE

After upsetting the odds and winning the Italian Grand Prix, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton brushed off Sebastian Vettel’s first lap spin as a racing incident that worked amid accusations by the Ferrari driver that his rival left him no space.

On the opening lap title contenders, Hamilton and Vettel went side-by-side through the Variante della Roggia (second chicane) with the German coming out second best – video footage (screengrab above) shows the Ferrari, just before spinning, understeering dramatically when beside the Mercedes

Vettel spun and had to rejoin at the back of the field from then went on to limit the damage by finishing fourth, but it was another costly mistake in a championship battle that is slipping away from him and his team.

At the sharp end, Hamilton hunted down Kimi Raikkonen in the other Ferrari, to the audible dismay of the Tifosi the Mercedes driver took the lead on lap 45 of 53 and went on to claim his sixth win of the season, extending his championship lead over Vettel to 30 points with seven rounds remaining.

When asked during the post-race press conference about the incident, Hamilton replied, “It worked! I think it was a racing move. It’s pretty much the same move that Kimi did to me.”

“I don’t really know what to say about that. It was a racing manoeuvre, it’s what we’re supposed to do out there. We’re supposed to be racing. I left him space. I was still on track, so…”

After spinning, Vettel went on the radio immediately and said: “That was silly, where did he want to go.”

To which Hamilton responded, “I’m sure it’s a comment that was done in the heat of the moment. And it’s never a great feeling when you spin and you’re facing the other cars coming the other way. And then you get back up and you start from the back and you have to come through.”

“So, I don’t take anything from it. I know how it is to be in that emotion. I’m sure he really didn’t mean too much by it,” added Hamilton who now leads the championship standings by 30 points from Vettel with seven rounds remaining.

[MIKA27]

VERSTAPPEN: IT’S NOT FAIR

After an action-packed Italian Grand Prix, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen was aggrieved after being penalised five seconds for forcing the Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas off-track during their dogged battle for third place at Monza.

The incident on lap 44 immediately divided opinions, many siding with Verstappen’s version that there was enough room for Bottas as the pair dragged down the main straight into Turn 1 where they tangled, the Mercedes was forced down the escape road, losing several seconds, while the stubborn Red Bull remained in third.

FIA race stewards looked at the incident on the spot and handed Verstappen a five-second penalty. Thus, although the feisty Dutchman crossed the line in third, he was demoted to fifth for his antics.

Clearly, this did not go down well with him in the cockpit and he let everyone know as much when he said over the radio: “For what? Don’t worry about it? It’s [expletives]. I gave him space. They’re doing a great job of killing racing, honestly.”

Speaking after the race, Verstappen was still not happy when he told reporters, “We were in a position we didn’t expect to be. I think I gave him the car width and he clipped my wheel and he had to go straight. Maybe they accepted the penalty because early on I went a bit wide against Valtteri, but it’s not fair.”

“I don’t agree with it but maybe they took the penalty because when he first tried to attack me in the beginning of the race, I went a bit wide. Maybe that is why they gave it to me, but even then it is not fair because they gave it straight away.”

“It is a shame but looking at the positives, the car was working really well. Yeah, even though the lack of top speed that we have, the car was good on the tyres.”

“Of course, I have to push a bit harder under braking and in terms of acceleration to try to keep Valtteri behind so it also takes a bit out of your tyres but it was all under control.”

Later, in his post-race review, Verstappen added, “I think I gave Valtteri enough space on the left so he didn’t need to go off the track. The rule says that as long as you give the other driver a car width space, it should be enough. That’s what I did, but he clipped my wheel at Turn 1 and he had to go straight on.

“The decision is taken and we can’t do anything about it. Of course, after I heard about the penalty I was even more determined to keep my track position. I’ve tried to do the best race I could and I had to fight hard for it as we are so much slower on the straights.”

[MIKA27]

WOLFF: GIVE US A THIRD CAR FOR A YOUNG DRIVER

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has called for Formula 1 teams to be allowed to field a third ‘junior’ car in an effort to address the problem of too many good young drivers for too few seats on the grand prix grid which would also boost fields at very little extra cost.

Wolff told reporters at Monza, “I have a simple solution: Give us a third car. Make it mandatory to put a young driver with maximum two years [experience] in that car.

“The costs wouldn’t be huge. The grid would be packed and we would have fantastic shows of new kids on the block coming up and fighting hard with the Valtteris and Lewis’ of this world, and surprising us.”

Red Bull runs a junior team, while Ferrari has close partnerships with Haas and Sauber, while moves are afoot to align Force India (Racing Point) with Mercedes, Wolff argued, “Owning another team just to find a place for your young drivers doesn’t make sense for us.”

“I think the big teams are not going to take risks with young drivers. Now you can say that is boring. I think it is boring. I think we should take risks, we should put 18 or 19-year-old top talents in a top car and give them a chance.”

“But the problem is that if you lose a drivers’ championship or a constructors’ championship because they are on a learning curve, that is obviously not great. We have not done it and Ferrari have not done it in the past. So we need to question it,” added Wolff.

A scenario whereby all teams would have the option to run a junior programme with a third car would also boost the grid with more entries, 24 or 26 car fields would be a reality.

[MIKA27]

KIMI RAIKKONEN IS THE FASTEST DRIVER IN F1 HISTORY

Kimi Raikkonen’s record-breaking lap around Monza to claim pole position during qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix is the fastest ever recorded in Formula 1, officially making the Ferrari driver the fastest in the history of the sport.

Apart from sending the Tifosi into seventh heaven, a red one at that, it was also the first pole position for the Scuderia at their home track since 2010 with Fernando Alonso.

Eight years later, with Ferrari enjoying a slight edge over rivals Mercedes, all the ‘smart’ money would have been on Sebastian Vettel doing the business but, instead, it was his 38-year-old teammate Raikkonen who did the magic at the Pista Magica to claim his 18th top spot start.

Raikkonen’s best effort on his final run in Q3 was masterful while maximising the tow of his teammate ahead and in the end his best time of 1:19.119 was a tenth faster than anyone else could manage.

Typically understated, the veteran said of his achievement, “Obviously it’s great for the race, but it’s only half the job done and I think it couldn’t be a better place to be on pole position.”

“It’s our home grand prix, it’s in front of all the tifosi, so hopefully tomorrow everything goes smoothly and we end up in the same positions.”

The slipstream was key to finding that little extra and was employed by most teams with varying effectiveness during the session. In Raikkonen’s case, it worked well.

He explained, “Obviously there were a lot of games – who is going first, getting tows and this and that. But in the end, there was a train of cars and that’s enough.”

After qualifying, Raikkonen received the Pirelli Pole Position Award from Mick Schumacher, son of Ferrari legend Michael Schumacher.

The Iceman’s history-making lap compared to the previous best time of 1:19.525 set in 2004 by Juan Pablo Montoya in a Williams FW26 at an average speed of 262.242 km/h.

Thus, on the day Raikkonen’s average lap time of 263.588 km/h is the fastest ever recorded by a Formula 1 driver in an official session.

[MIKA27]

Car was 'completely broken' after unfair Alonso clash - Gasly

Pierre Gasly says his Toro Rosso STR13 was “completely broken” after a clash with Fernando Alonso early in the Italian Grand Prix, labelling the McLaren driver’s approach as “not fair”.

Gasly started from ninth on the grid but lost ground on the opening lap, and tried to reclaim the position against Alonso at the restart.

“Basically we came to Turn 1 after the Safety Car side-by-side and I went on the outside and he pushed me completely out of the track,” said Gasly, who came home in 14th.

“I tried to stay on track as much as I could but he didn’t leave me the space so I had to jump over the kerb and then he also touched me and completely damage the right side of my floor.

“From there on from lap eight or something the car was completely broken and I was sliding everywhere.

“I think his [Alonso’s] approach is a bit different because he knows he is not going to be in Formula 1 next year so it looks like he is behaving more aggressive than we was before.

“Today for me what he did was not fair and we know that if you is alongside you need to leave space for one car and today he didn’t.”

Gasly nonetheless reckons the clash did not affect his chance of scoring points, believing he and Toro Rosso exceeded expectations in qualifying before regressing to the norm.

“In the pit stop I lost a position to Charles [Leclerc] and Stoffel [Vandoorne] as well, five or six seconds there,” said Gasly.

“Without it P12 was the best we could have done.

“Yesterday was amazing but objectively we out-performed the potential we have and it was a bit better than what we would have been able to do with the package we have.

“Today P12 was more or less where we would have been.”

[MIKA27]

Valtteri Bottas: My race wasn't sacrificed for Lewis Hamilton

Valtteri Bottas has stressed that his race wasn’t “sacrificed” in order to aid Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton, after he came home third at the Italian Grand Prix, insisting his strategy was always to run long.

Bottas fell behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in the fight for the lower step of the podium as Hamilton remained close behind Kimi Raikkonen in the battle for the lead at Monza.

Bottas inherited the lead when his opponents stopped and was kept out by Mercedes, instructed to “keep Kimi behind”, as the Ferrari driver closed in.

Raikkonen remained behind Bottas, a situation that enabled Hamilton to reduce a five-second gap to his rival for victory; Bottas eventually came in on lap 36.

Hamilton went on to pass Raikkonen for victory while Bottas inherited third spot after Verstappen was handed a five-second time drop for causing a collision with the Finn.

“When we went through everything, all the scenarios for the race, we saw that with me starting fourth and Lewis from third behind the Ferrari, we saw no point for us to try and opt for the optimal strategy and saw an opportunity for me to go long,” said Bottas.

“I think, in the end, it was good for me to have fresh tyres to attack in the end and also, at the same time, it benefited Lewis, helping the team.

“I wouldn’t call it [a] sacrifice [of] my race, because the pit window here is so big with the tyres we had this weekend.”

Bottas backed the stewards’ decision to hand a five-second time drop to Verstappen, stressing that the regulations are “very clear” and that the Red Bull driver did not leave him room.

“I think there were a couple of proper overtaking opportunities for me, including that one,” said Bottas.

“The first time he went straight at the chicane and the second time,

“I think there’s a very clear rule that when you’re defending, if a car is there you need to leave room for that car and he didn’t, that’s why we touched because he moved and it was a very clear move.”

[MIKA27]

Engine not to blame for Ricciardo's retirement

Red Bull and Renault say Daniel Ricciardo's retirement from the Italian Grand Prix was caused by a suspected problem with his car's clutch, rather than an engine failure.
Ricciardo had just passed Sergey Sirotkin's Williams for 11th place, having worked his way up from a back-row start at Monza, when he was forced to pull off the circuit with smoke pouring out of his Red Bull.

The Australian driver had Renault's new Spec C engine fitted ahead of the weekend, which the French manufacturer said would be worth three tenths of a second in laptime but carried a reliability risk.

Although Ricciardo's failure looked initially like an engine problem, Renault said subsequent inspections indicated this was not the case.

"We can confirm, after studying the PU on Daniel Ricciardo's car, that his retirement was not linked to the engine," a Renault statement said. "It was rather a clutch issue."

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner added: "We are still not entirely sure on the cause but it is a suspected clutch issue."

Ricciardo is hoping for a turn in fortunes at the next race in Singapore, after recording his fourth retirement in the last six races.

"It's been another frustrating race for me," he said. "I passed Stroll [Sirotkin] and looked in the mirror to see if I was clear of him but I couldn't see that well.

"I then realised that was because there was a lot of smoke coming out the back of the car and when I reported it to my engineers they asked me to stop.

"I feared it could have been something to do with the power unit but after we got the car back to the garage and the guys investigated, they suspect it's a clutch issue.

"It's been a frustrating period of races but hopefully we can change some things on the car, improve the reliability and aim for the podium in Singapore."

[MIKA27]

Alonso believes McLaren reliability has gone "backwards"

Fernando Alonso believes the McLaren team's reliability has gone "backwards" in recent Formula 1 races following his retirement from the Italian Grand Prix.
Alonso pulled into the pits on the ninth lap at Monza after his electronics shut down while he was running in 10th position.

It was the Spaniard's sixth retirement of the season, with five of those caused by reliability issues.

"I think it's a shame because sometimes we were in the points, like we were in this grand prix, and the reliability of the team seems to have made a step backwards and we definitely need to improve that for the remainder of the season," said Alonso.

Speaking about the issue, he said: "We had a problem in an electrical part or something because the car was misfiring in Turn 7 and 8, so I had no power in those corners.

"Suddenly the car switched off and I came into the pitlane."

The two-time champion, who is retiring from Formula 1 at the end of the year, had also failed to finish in the previous race at Spa after being involved in the first-lap crash.

Alonso said the double DNF was especially painful as the team had decided not to replace his engine for a new one because the car had been more competitive than expected.

"It was two circuits where we didn't know if we should penalise or not, changing the engine, starting last and expect not to be very competitive," he said.

"But we were better than expected - we were already in the points on lap five or six, and that's why we didn't change the engine and in both races we had to retire very early.

"Now we'll have to change the engine in the next races so on top of these two zeroes, there are more to come."

The McLaren driver reckons the engine change will not come in the next race in Singapore, where overtaking is very hard.

"I hope not because in Singapore if you start last, you finish last, so we'll have to stretch it as much as possible."

[MIKA27]

Raikkonen: Ferrari pace means Monza defeat "hard to take"

Kimi Raikkonen said his defeat to Lewis Hamilton in Formula 1's Italian Grand Prix was “hard to take” because his Ferrari had the pace to win.
Raikkonen led a Ferrari 1-2 with teammate Sebastian Vettel in qualifying, but was left defending his lead from Mercedes driver Hamilton after Vettel spun while battling the Briton on the opening lap.

Mercedes crucially left Hamilton's sole stop eight laps later than Ferrari and Raikkonen, and then kept Valtteri Bottas out longer to impede the race leader and allow Hamilton to close in.

Raikkonen's soft-compound tyres dropped off towards the end, and he was passed by Hamilton with eight laps to go.

“For sure I think we had the speed [to win] but then the tyre went and there was nothing left in the end on the left rear,” Raikkonen said after the race. “It is hard to take.

“It was a losing battle since that point but I tried, but it was impossible in the end unfortunately.

“It is far from ideal but this is what we have got today, we did our maximum.”

Raikkonen admitted the laps spent behind Bottas contributed to his tyres going off at the end of the race.

“[It] didn’t help to be behind the other cars for some laps, and it wasn't really like you can save an awful lot of tyres, you are not in a position to start saving and taking it easy - well you can, but you let him [Hamilton] past,” he said.

“There was no moment we just could take it easy and relax, it wasn't really a case of 'let’s just go around and save the tyres for the last moment', we had to go, and unfortunately it didn’t pay off today.”

Raikkonen went on to finish nine seconds behind Hamilton, having had to drastically decrease his pace and nurse his tyres to the chequered flag.

“Luckily it lasted until the end of the race,” he said. “Not ideal but not much we can do.

“It wasn’t a disaster but for sure not what I want or what we want.”

[MIKA27]

NORRIS: EVERYONE TOLD ME PEREZ OR OCON WOULD GET THE SEAT

Lando Norris, who will debut for McLaren next year as Britain’s newest and youngest ever Formula 1 driver, is a man in a hurry but thought he was out of contention for the seat and admits the news caught him off guard.

“It happens to everyone, better own up to it than not,” he grinned in an interview with Reuters on Tuesday when the thorny subject was put to him.

Speaking a day after news broke that he will be replacing Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne next year in an all-new lineup with Spaniard Carlos Sainz, Norris relived the excitement of having a dream come true.

“I was smiling for the rest of my flight home,” after returning to the McLaren factory from the Italian Grand Prix. “I literally didn’t stop smiling. It’s been a long time coming, to finally make this step into Formula 1 with McLaren.”

The Formula 2 title contender was the frontrunner for the job, as a protege of team principal Zak Brown, who snapped him up after he won the McLaren BRDC young driver of the year award in 2016. But it was not an absolute certainty.

“I was told just before the race in Monza. Just as I was leaving I bumped into Zak, which I didn’t mean to do. He said he had something to tell me and I wasn’t expecting it at all, to be honest.”

“After everyone told me about Perez or Ocon who could get the seat, I was a bit more unsure. So it did come as a bit of a surprise, a bit of a shock, but at the same time I was more or less ready to hear that if it did come.”

While following in the footsteps of four-times world champion Lewis Hamilton, the compatriot who started with McLaren in 2007, it is Italian MotoGP great Valentino Rossi that Norris holds up as his boyhood idol.

“I was more into MotoGP before I started watching Formula One. and I loved his colour scheme basically,” he said. “The yellow, ‘The Doctor’. He was always a bit different and changed helmets and had different things.”

“My helmet design I have now is pretty much based off of his. He has the sun and the moon and mine is pretty much the sun and… I’ve adjusted it towards what I like a bit more but it originated from him.”

The youngster, who obtained his regular driving licence as a 17-year-old, has taken part in Friday practice sessions and tests for McLaren and the next step will not faze him, “I feel ready for it, McLaren obviously think I’m ready for it,” he said.

McLaren’s reputation with young drivers, Hamilton excepted, has been poor of late but Norris said he was not worried about what had befallen Perez, Denmark’s Kevin Magnussen and now Vandoorne at the under-performing team.

“I focus on my own job,” he said. “I think McLaren need a fresh start. That’s why I’m in. For the best progression of the team and getting the team back to where they need to be and winning I believe having two fresh drivers is the best thing. If we can, hopefully I’ll be the one winning.”

That prospect remains some way off, with Norris looking to score points and learn as much as he can once he gets into the cockpit.

“I’m not going to be aiming for a win,” he said of his rookie 2019 F1 season. “It’s going to be aiming on beating your teammate but working as a team, developing. Because I want to win and the only way I can do that is by helping the team altogether.”

“I don’t really know what to expect next year. It’s sunk in in terms of people saying ‘you’re a Formula 1racing driver’ but in terms of being one, and experiencing it, I don’t think it’s going to sink in until after the first race.”

Asked what kind of a driver he was, Norris smiled and replied, “I’m pretty calm. I change. Sometimes I’m a bit under-aggressive and sometimes a bit over. But I think it’s good to have both.”

[MIKA27]

WOLFF: IT WASN’T A PHANTOM PITSTOP

There was us thinking, during the Italian Grand Prix, that Mercedes sold Ferrari epic dummy by sending their crew out onto the pitlane suggesting they were stopping one of their drivers, shortly after on that lap Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari pitted early but for Lewis Hamilton, there was no pitstop, it was hammertime instead!

It looked like a clear case of Silver Arrows sucker punching the Prancing Horse and as it panned out Ferrari indeed did pit their driver far too early which made him easy meat for Hamilton with fresher rubber when it mattered, the Briton overtook with relative ease, left the Finn struggling in his dust and went on to score a major upset.

But Mercedes chief Toto Wolff and Hamilton denied that there was anything special about their pitstop tactics, but rather a strategic choice they made amid a list of alternative options.

Wolff revealed to reporters, “It wasn’t a phantom, we were prepared to do the opposite. If Kimi wouldn’t have pitted we would have done it. And insofar as we were prepared, it wasn’t a phantom.”

Race winner Hamilton was on the same page as his team chief, “Obviously I’d seen several different simulations of what could happen in the race. Communication was really on point between myself and the team, back and forth.”

“I was wondering if they were going to pull me in one lap before him, so I could undercut him, but that didn’t happen,” added Hamilton who extended his championship lead to 30 points as he claimed his sixth victory of the season.

[MIKA27]

PAT FRY RETURNS TO MCLAREN AS THEY WAIT ON KEY

Without a technical director, until Toro Rosso release James Key sometime next year, McLaren have contracted Pat Fry as Engineering Director with immediate effect to kick-start the team’s 2019 Formula 1 project.

Zak Brown confirmed to reporters, “Pat Fry is joining us.

“From a technical standpoint, Andrea Stella is leading the way and will work very closely with Pat Fry. Andrea will set direction, targets and performance criteria and Pat ultimately will work with him to execute that. When I told the team this morning that was extremely welcomed,” said Brown.

Fry is vastly experienced having started with Benetton in 1987 where he remained until 1993, whereupon he joined McLaren where he remained with them in various roles which culminated in Chief Engineer of Race Development.

In 2010 Fry departed Woking for Maranello where he started as assistant technical director and stayed with Ferrari until 2014. He surfaced again as a consultant for Manor Racing in 2016.

McLaren are in the throes of a major upheaval that has seen the Zak Brown led team sink to their lowest level in F1. Last year the blame was put squarely on their engine supplier Honda.

They claimed, with backing from their star driver Fernando Alonso, that their MCL32 chassis was the best on the grid and with a decent power unit they could win.

They ditched Honda and the massive perks that came with the works deal and instead dished out cash to be a Renault customer while erroneously believing the MCL33 was simply going to be a ‘rocket’ like the MCL32. They got it horribly wrong.

Instead, it is arguably the worst car on the grid and without a doubt the worst in the team’s history. Who to blame? Out the door went Eric Boullier, Tim Goss and Matt Morris.

Soon thereafter, Brown got out the chequebook and Toro Rosso’s ace designer James Key was now a McLaren man.

Problem is no one told Red Bull management about the scoop on their technical guru. Obviously upset they are holding the Englishman to his contract which could mean he will only be able to move into his office at Woking during the course of next year.

Meanwhile, McLaren have an F1 race car to build for 2019, already they are behind their rival’s with most teams already having done the groundwork.

Hence with no technical leadership, the team have brought in Fry to sort out the mess and kick-start the MCL34 project.

[MIKA27]

MONTEZEMOLO: TIFOSI BOOING HAMILTON IS DISGUSTING

In the wake of Lewis Hamilton snatching victory from Ferrari at the Italian Grand Prix, then being subject to a barrage of boos and expletives laden insults by the disappointed Tifosi, behaviour that has upset and disgusted former Ferrari chief Luca di Montezemolo.

Speaking to BBC after a thrilling Italian Grand Prix, Montezemolo said of the Mercedes driver and championship leader, “Lewis is a fantastic champion, has always been very correct, and he made a fantastic race. Full stop.”

With regards to the ‘boo brigade’ in the aftermath of the victory and subsequent podium ceremony, Montezemolo said, “What happened was very, very bad and I am really upset. It’s disgusting.”

After winning for a fifth time at the ‘Temple of Speed’, Hamilton took the boos and ‘Hamilton fuck you chants” in his stride, and told reporters, “I think it’s acceptable. It’s done in every sport. If I’m really honest, I don’t unerstand it because I’ve never…

And added of the negative energy, “It is also quite easy to harness it and use it and that gave me so much motivation today. I welcome it. If they want to continue to do it, that just empowers me.”

With regards to Mercedes team orders, which saw Valtteri Bottas come into play and assist Hamilton to hunt down Kimi Raikkonen, the former Maranello president saw no issue with the tactics.

He explained, “I can tell you we won a few championships [with team orders] when I was the chairman and CEO – with Kimi and Felipe Massa, with Rubens Barrichello and Michael Schumacher, with Michael and Eddie Irvine.”

“This is part of the history. And Bottas did not make anything incorrect or a foul. He made his race. When I have heard the criticism…”

“This is normal. In life it is difficult to win, but it is more difficult to accept when you don’t win. So, yesterday I was not happy for what I have seen, from the public.”

“Mercedes did its job. If I was in charge of Ferrari in the same condition as Mercedes, I would make exactly the same choice. So, finito.”

In the early seventies, Montezemolo saved and resurrected Ferrari’s Formula 1 programme when he was drafted in as team principal by Enzo Ferrari at the time.

Since then he masterminded the team’s highly successful Niki Lauda era in the seventies, was instrumental in building the Michael Schumacher, Ross Brawn, Jean Todt and Rory Byrne superteam that conquered all from 2000 to 2004, and was also in charge when Raikkonen won Ferrari’s last title back in 2007.

Montezemolo was ousted as team president by a Sergio Marchionne led coup d’equipe in 2014 and has since been appointed committee president of the Rome bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics. On 24 July 2015, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.

[MIKA27]

MARCHIONNE CALLING THE SHOTS FROM HIS GRAVE?

When alive Sergio Marchionne was a chap who got what he wanted, now it appears from the grave he will have a say on who drives for Ferrari next year and by all accounts, it will be young Charles Leclerc.

We know that the impressive Sauber rookie has ticked all the boxes and then some, but picking him would go against the mantra of hiring experienced drivers for the Scuderia. The 20-year-old has a mere 14 grand prix starts on his CV, but the abundance of talent is probably worth the risk.

Within the team and among the legions of Tifosi, a huge swathe of red want Kimi Raikkonen to remain for at least another year and some even until the end of 2020, the end of this version of the hybrid turbo era.

Among these are Ferrari’s new CEO Louis Camilleri who, during his first visit to the F1 paddock in his new role at Monza, had a whole lot of nice things to say about the Finn: “I know Kimi very well. He’s a dear friend.”

But at the same time was also quick to point out that there is no rush to make a decsision and that it would not be his call: “Maurizio is our team principal, ultimately he’ll take the decision.”

Which in the corporate speak is ‘the big boss passing the buck to the less big boss’ and smacks to me of an announcement in disguise.

But at the same time it is understood that Camilleri was all for confirming his ‘dear friend’ Kimi for another two years, but from the shadows emerged two men short in stature but huge in influence, namely FIA president Jean Todt and his son Nicolas Todt.

As this Silly Season legend unfolds, it emerges that Todt junior had in his hand a pre-agreement signed by himself, the late Mr Marchionne and young Mr Leclerc which guarantees the Monegasque driver a place on the grid with Ferrari in 2019. Todt senior was “just looking” when he visited the red garage.

Thus Camilleri has one of two big choices to make with regards to his team’s 2019 driver line-up:

Retain the 39-years-old-in-October veteran Kimi, pay huge compensation and piss off the Todt clan while Charlie does another year or two with Ferrari-powered Sauber or Haas;
OR
Promote their young protege Charles and put Kimi out to pasture with some sort of ambassadorial or GT racing programme to keep him in the familia.
Sebastian Vettel and Kimi have had a good partnership over the years, injected with mutual respect. Indeed much of the Italian Grand Prix weekend build-up had vignettes of the pair getting on famously amid a myriad of silly quizzes and challenges.

But I would venture to say that qualifying at Monza on Saturday has changed things a tad, perhaps deharmonised the status quo between the pair.

The first nail in the coffin of hitherto exemplary partnership?

There is no such thing as friendships among active F1 drivers or any professional race drivers, let alone teammates who are intent on beating one another every weekend. The buddy-buddy teammates invariably turn ugly.

Just recall Seb’s initial paly-paly relationship with Mark Webber. Remember how Christian used to brag who wonderful it was to have such harmony?

Well, we all know the love and harmony Seb and Mark went south suddenly and never ever recovered. Are there shades of the same manifesting in the dynamic between Kimi and Seb?

One would expect Seb to have matured over the past six or seven years, but the precocious obstinance is still there as he proved with some bizarre interviews after the race, including the “we talk after” radio message after qualifying when he realised he was celebrating prematurely when in fact it was Kimi in top spot. Priceless fail!

He also claimed that race winner Lewis Hamilton left him no space when the Mercedes and Ferrari clashed at the second chicane on the opening lap of the race. He recovered from near last to finish fourth, while Hamilton won.

Later the German followed with the childish or provocative [you pick] aftermath chirp to reporters: “Clearly I wasn’t happy but I don’t tell you why.”

Then, not done, he popped a condescending nod to his teammate’s record-breaking achievement, “If he is starting from pole I guess he is allowed to win.”

Come race day it got juicier as the pair hurtled into Turn 1 at the start, with Lewis Hamilton hounding them, Kimi got the ideal line through the Variante della Rettifilo and Seb had to get on the brakes to avoid a “silly mistake” as he put it, clearly hinting that his teammate had compromised him.

Sitting back in his Swiss mansion reflecting on what could have been in Italy, Seb will realise that Kimi’s help went AWOL on the afternoon when he needed it most and his team did not back him as they have done in the past.

If there was ever a time for team orders from Ferrari, who are never shy to dish them out when the need be, would have been to give the all-important last run tow to Vettel in Q3, instead they gave Kimi the benefit and he plonked it onto the top spot! Go figure.

Reason for the Monza tale, amid the Leclerc to Ferrari story, is that maybe Seb will not be so intent anymore on insisting that the Finn is the best teammate for him.

Up until now, it is no secret that Seb does not want young and eager Charlie giving him a wake-up call, instead, he would rather stick to Kimi who he has nicely packaged in a box he can beat and use, well at least that is what he thought until the Iceman went solo in Italy.

In closing and back to the title of this piece, word is that not Seb, not Louis, not John, not Maurizio, no one can prevent Leclerc getting the drive without a costly and unpleasant legal war versus young Todt.

With that in mind Camilleri, shrewdly and without ruffling too many feathers, will conveniently honour Mr Marchionne’s wish for the team.

Thus, this Silly Season legend ends with Charles Leclerc suiting up in red for Ferrari in 2019 and the Iceman melting into the sunset.