F1 Madness

Tag: kimi raikkonen

  • F1 2017: Official Testing Day 2 Wrap-Up

    F1 2017: Official Testing Day 2 Wrap-Up

    Official testing entered its second day ahead of the start of the 2017 Formula 1 season.

    Three time champion Lewis Hamilton set the early morning pace with a quickest time of 1:20:983 on the red-walled Supersoft Pirelli compound tyres. It was a another difficult day for McLaren as this time Stoffel Vandoorne saw his running curtailed by engine/power unit issues. The McLaren team was forced to change the engine which cost several hours. Vandoorne managed to get back out and completed 40 laps before calling it a day.

    Meanwhile, Canadian rookie Lance Stroll stepped into the cockpit of the Williams for his first official day of testing but binned the FW40 shortly afterwards. While the driver walked away unscathed from the relatively minor crash the team announced an early end to their day’s running as they had no spare parts for the car. Stroll completed a total of twelve laps.

     

    “It is still early days and I have only done a handful of laps,” said Stroll.

    “I am just getting to grips with the FW40, and there is still a lot of time ahead of us. It was good to finally get behind the wheel to just get a feel for it.

    “Like I said, it is still early days, so I need to do a lot more running before I know exactly where I am and where the car is at. I will have a much better picture once we have more laps under our belts, but it was good to break the ice and I am looking forward to some more running.”

    Elsewhere, Haas F1’s Kevin Magnussen racked up a century of laps and a solid day of run for the American team. The dane ended the days running in fourth with a total of 118 laps under the belt. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen completed his running in third with 89 laps on the board.

    It was a slow start for Ferrari reserve driver Antonio Giovinazzi on his first outing for Sauber. He sat out most of the morning session with a power unit issue. The Sauber team were able to replace the engine and get him out for an installation lap just before the lunch break. He was back out after lunch and completed 67 laps in the Sauber C36.

     

    “It was a positive day for me, despite the issues we had in the morning,” said Giovinazzi.

    “In the afternoon I was able to get up to speed running a good amount of laps. I want to thank the Sauber F1 Team again for this opportunity. Now I am looking forward to being back in the car tomorrow.”

    Later in the afternoon Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen set the quickest lap of the day. His lap of 1:20:960 was set on the yellow-walled soft tyre. Reports were that Raikkonen was not feeling entirely healthy but the Finn nevertheless completed 108 laps for the day.

    Valtteri Bottas took over from teammate Lewis Hamilton in the afternoon and ran several race simulation stints in the W08. The Finnish driver clocked 102 laps by the end of the afternoon.

     

  • F1 2017: Ferrari Launch SF-70H

    F1 2017: Ferrari Launch SF-70H

    The Ferrari Formula 1 team has launched its car for the 2017 Formula 1 season, the SF70-H.

    Ferrari is celebrating its 70th year which is commemorated in the naming of their latest Formula 1 challenger. The video, streamed live on Facebook and the team’s website, laster roughly five minutes. The start of the video depicted the assembly of the car at the team’s Marnello factory. Further, the video depicted every single seater racer car built by the Italian mark before lifting the garage door on the 2017 car at Fiorano. The livery reveals that Ferrari has chosen to return to all red livery in 2017.

    On hand at the presentation, decked out in the 2017 gear, were team principal Maurizio Arrivabene, chief technical officer Mattia Binotto, and race drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel.

    From the brief view of the car during the live stream, and the images released it appears as if Ferrari has opted to, initially, run with a type of thinner wing in front of the main rear wing. In addition, the Ferrari nose is also sporting a stub-nose design already seen on several other 2017 cars. Unlike Mercedes, Ferrari’s SF70-H has a prevalent shark-fin engine cover as well as narrow side pod air intakes.

    The car will hit the Fiorano circuit later today to complete a few laps as part of a filming day.

    The SF-70H: 

  • F1 2017: Team-by-team Guide, Part 1

    F1 2017: Team-by-team Guide, Part 1

    Mercedes – Lewis Hamilton & Valtteri Bottas

    Given their ominous and unbeatable run since the start of the hybrid era Merc automatically start the new year as favourites. However, this ‘theory’ is based solely on what’s gone before. In reality, there is nothing to suggest that the Silver Arrows’ dominance will continue into the vastly different 2017 season. Nevertheless, even if they don’t brandish the same sort of advantage over the rest of the field there is a reasonable expectation that they’ll be mixing it at the front.

    The Silver Arrows enter an interesting period where its driver line-up is concerned too. In Lewis Hamilton they have a three-time world champion who is prodigiously fast and who still seems to have an incredible hunger for winning. However, Hamilton showed his fallibility through several costly errors on track and a few peppery statements off it.

    Red Bull Racing RB12 launchRed Bull – Daniel Ricciardo & Max Verstappen

    With the virtuoso Adrian Newey in the stable the new aero rules could play right into Red Bull’s hands. In 2016 the Austrian team proved that their power unit was the only hindrance to their competitiveness. If the Tag Heuer-branded Renault power unit can match its Merc counterpart the Red Bull will be exceptionally difficult to beat.

    Although Max Verstappen exploded onto the scene and electrified more than a few supporters Daniel Ricciardo still had the measure of the teenaged Dutchman. Verstappen’s biggest test this season will be to, firstly, consistently out-perform his Aussie teammate. What’s more, Verstappen’s biggest challenge will be to deal with the weight of expectation. In 2016 he had near free reign; if he performed well it was a bonus for the team, if he didn’t they would understand that he was dropped into the deep-end. Now he is expected to deliver every time he’s strapped into cockpit.

    Ferrari Kimi Raikkonen Canadian Grand PrixFerrari – Kimi Raikkonen & Sebastian Vettel

    There is such a thing as famous last words but Ferrari’s season could hardly be worse than in 2016. The team failed to win a single race and made several, embarrassing mistakes. Nevertheless, the Maranello-based team is keen to turn things around. They’re reportedly doing so with an innovative new multi-jet system for its internal combustion engine that will limit reliance on the turbocharger.

    It’s unlikely that there is a more harmonious driver pairing in the paddock than Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel. The two teammates work in perfect symmetry with the team with little to no ego getting in the way of the task at hand. Rumours of Raikkonen’s future will undoubtedly begin to swirl as soon as he hits the track that but as history has shown it couldn’t bother him any less. There is little question about the Ferrari drivers’ ability to deliver. Rather the question is about what they’ll be given to drive.

    Force India F1 Team Preview QuotesForce India – Sergio Perez & Esteban Ocon

    For a privately-owned team Force India’s likely expectation will be to finish fourth in the constructor’s championship as they did in 2016, perhaps to score a first win if the cards fall their way. They’re a team that regularly punches above its weight but is unlikely to do better than last season.

    It’s a big year for Sergio Perez and his future in F1. Several outstanding performances have proven his ability but he’s yet to translate it into a drive for a top team. With Bottas on a one-year deal at Mercedes a standout season from Perez could catapult him into the seat in 2018. Despite being favoured over Pascal Wehrlein Merc prodigy Esteban Ocon, who is still finding his feet in the sport, is highly unlikely to show Perez the way in 2017.

    Felipe Massa_Brazil 2016Williams – Felipe Massa & Lance Stroll

    The Claire Williams-run operation’s ambition is unlikely to be a title in 2017. However, the aim will be to restore the legendary team’s name to at least fourth in the standings. They’ve already completed a massive coup by snatching Paddy Lowe from Mercedes. While it’s unclear if Lowe will take up his new position immediately the Englishman is one of the most highly regarded leaders in F1.

    Valtteri Bottas’ departure to Merc has cut short Felipe Massa’s retirement and while the Brazilian’s stock in F1 isn’t nearly as high as it was in the mid-2000s his level of experience was attractive enough to Williams. Alongside the one-time runner-up will be Canadian teenager Lance Stroll. It will be a learning curve for Stroll but expect him to take the fight to his veteran teammate in terms of outright speed.

    Part 2 coming soon. 

  • F1 2017: The Case For Valtteri Bottas

    F1 2017: The Case For Valtteri Bottas

    By now the news has spread far and wide that Mercedes have, officially, picked Valtteri Bottas to partner Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes for the 2017 season. Instinctively, the dominant question will be how he will shape up against his three-time world champion teammate.

    It wasn’t the electrifying choice many were looking for but Bottas is a known quantity with a solid track record, literally. He isn’t considered as exciting as a Max Verstappen but that has more to do with his circumstances rather than his ability. For an independent mid-field team such as Williams the constructor’s championship is vitally important. Hence, Bottas could not afford to throw caution to the wind as Red Bull drivers often do. Williams needed a consistent driver and one that would convert his points-scoring opportunities and this is what Bottas delivered.

    Since it didn’t include flashy overtakes it’s easy to forget Bottas’ performances in 2014 and 2015 that ensured Williams finished ahead of significantly richer teams Ferrari and Red Bull respectively in the constructor’s standings. His four years at Williams has undoubtedly ensured that is much better prepared to step into the Merc seat, and into the limelight, than any younger driver would be.

    What’s more, over their three years as teammates Bottas regularly out-qualified his veteran teammate Felipe Massa. While Lewis Hamilton will undoubtedly be a much tougher benchmark Bottas has the potential to challenge his new teammate in this arena.

    Bottas_Barcelona 2015 - CopyNevertheless, while the Finnish driver has spent four seasons at Williams he remains somewhat unproven. At Williams his good performance were praised, but they were just that good. Not great, not awesome, never enough to induce a genuine thrill amongst those watching. What he has now is a golden opportunity to unleash all of his talent and show what he is truly capable of without inhibitions.

    There is no doubt that Mercedes’ first choice for Nico Rosberg’s replacement would have been either a Sebastian Vettel, or Fernando Alonso, or even Daniel Ricciardo. Since these drivers were all locked into contracts Valtteri Bottas was the next best option. However, the likes of Vettel and Alonso are only signed up with their respective teams until the end of 2017. Therefore, Bottas has signed a one-year deal with Mercedes and he’ll have twenty-one races to prove that he deserves to be signed ahead of them.

    The other aspect of being a driver in a top team is life outside the car. The media focus on Valtteri Bottas will be intense, unrelenting, with a microscopic level of interest. But he is Finnish and like most of the great Finns in Formula 1 history, like Kimi Raikkonen, Mika Hakkinen, Bottas will likely be unflustered by the pomp and circumstance.

    All this assumes that Mercedes’ 2017 car will be at the sharp-end of the grid. Given the comprehensive rule changes this prediction is impossible. But wherever Merc stack up in the pecking order Bottas’ performance against Hamilton will be one of the most fascinating developing stories of the season.

    Will Bottas beat Hamilton in 2017? Probably not, but he will be closer to Hamilton than many predict.

  • Top 10 F1 Overtakes of 2016

    Top 10 F1 Overtakes of 2016

    Have a look at this great compilation of the Top 10 F1 overtakes of 2016. Some absolutely fantastic overtaking here with Max Verstappen coming out at the top of the pack after fans voted in the official F1 website’s Twitter polls. Interesting to note how Lewis Hamilton must have spent so much time leading races that he doesn’t even feature.

  • F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp – Rosberg Holds Nerve To Win Title

    F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp – Rosberg Holds Nerve To Win Title

    Since that first weekend of the F1 season, back in mid-March, there has been a menacing steeliness about Nico Rosberg that seemed unbreakable. This steeliness, along with astonishing form, has, after eleven seasons and 206 grand prix, made Nico Rosberg the 2016 Formula 1 World Champion.

    The season-ending Abu Dhabi grand prix delivered a tension filled race from beginning to end. Lewis Hamilton, starting on pole, needed to win the race with Rosberg in fourth to take the title. Unfortunately for Hamilton Rosberg stayed in a close second for the majority of the race and as would be expected Hamilton tried all he could to win the championship. In fact, Hamilton attempted to back his teammate into the clutches of Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen by deliberately slowing his pace. Less than two seconds covered the top four by the chequered flag but just as in the other twenty races of this season Rosberg held his nerve and finished second.

    Ultimately, Hamilton won the Abu Dhabi Gp ahead of Rosberg and a late-charging Vettel. Meanwhile, the two Red Bulls of Verstappen and Ricciardo finished fourth and fifth, respectively, while Raikkonen brought his Ferrari home in sixth. Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez’ seventh and eighth capped a tremendous season for Force India who finished a superb fourth in the constructor’s championship. In his final F1 race Felipe Massa finished ninth ahead of McLaren’s Fernando Alonso. Jenson Button’s 17-year F1 career, sadly, came to a premature end with the failure of a wishbone on the right-front suspension.

    GP ABU DHABI F1/2016There will be those who question whether Nico Rosberg deserves to be the 2016 drivers champion but the answer to their question is an easy yes. He’s won nine grand prix this season and most vitally, delivered stunning qualifying performances under extreme pressure. His ability to absorb the pressure and not buckle under it has been the key to Rosberg’s success in 2016. In 2014, his inability to handle pressure from Hamilton was there for all to see as he buckled first in Russia and then in Italy and Texas while leading. He went away with the aim of coming back stronger, and he did. His heightened mental strength allowed him the ability to focus on one race at a time. While it seems an easy enough concept the mental strength required to successfully accomplish it, under extreme conditions, cannot be underestimated and must be commended.

    Some will crow about unreliability, specifically Hamilton’s failure in Malaysia. But unreliability has been a part of the sport for as long as it’s been in existence and it will be going forward. It’s as much a part of a grand prix season as changeable weather or safety cars. In context, the ‘unreliability-argument’ only goes so far though. For example, while the headlines after the Malaysian Gp screamed of Hamilton’s truly unfortunate failure it didn’t focus much on Rosberg’s drive in the same race. After all Rosberg was dead last after a collision with Sebastian Vettel and recovered brilliantly to ultimately finish third. What’s more Hamilton’s ‘finger-trouble’ off the start-line in Japan and Italy, and the crash in Baku, that prompted a gearbox penalty, were all his own doing. The simple, but telling, fact is that Hamilton was simply out-performed by Rosberg.

    GP ABU DHABI F1/2016Any world championship triumph depends on the consistency of the eventual winner and the proof of Rosberg deserved success is in the numbers. Of the 1268 laps in the 2016 season the German driver has spent 957, or 75%, in the top three. In addition, in all of the 21 races he never qualified outside the top two and only spent thirteen laps outside the top ten in the entire season.

    While all these numbers reveal an emphatically imposing season the only number that Nico Rosberg will care about is the 285 points which have made him the 2016 Formula 1 World Champion.

  • F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp Free Practice Three Report – Vettel Quickest

    F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp Free Practice Three Report – Vettel Quickest

    Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel set the quickest time overall in the third free practice session ahead of the Abu Dhabi grand prix.

    The Ferrari driver’s quickest time of 1:40:775 was a tenth and a half quicker than Red Bull’s Max Verstappen while the sister Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen rounded out the top three some tenths adrift. The first Mercedes, in the shape of Lewis Hamilton was fourth with championship leader Nico Rosberg in fifth.

    Daniel Ricciardo chose to run an alternate strategy to the rest of the frontrunners which saw not use the quickest ultrasoft tyre compound in the sixty minute session. The session ran uneventfully save for a few lazy spins and presented a potentially close battle amongst the mid-field; positions seven to thirteen were covered by only seven tenths of a second.

    While Mercedes did not dominate the final practice session all expectations are that it will be Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg who duke it out for pole in the all important final quali session of the season.

    Final Free Practice Three Standings:

    screen-shot-2016-11-26-at-1-13-44-pm

  • 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference (Part I)

    2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix: Thursday Press Conference (Part I)

    DRIVERS – PART ONE: Felipe MASSA (Williams), Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), Kimi RAIKKONEN (Ferrari), Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), Felipe NASR (Sauber). PART TWO: Lewis HAMILTON (Mercedes), Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes) 

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Q: Jenson, if we could start with you: officially you’re on option for 2018 but as there’s a chance this could be your last Formula One grand prix tell us about the adventure of the last 17 years?

    Jenson BUTTON: Wow, we could be here for a little while! First of all I go into this thinking it’s going to be my last race. I think that’s the best way to be and at this moment in time I don’t want to be racing Formula One past this race, and that’s the whole idea. Anyway, I think of this as my last race and hopefully everyone else does as well. Yeah, it’s been a long journey. Since eight years old until now I’ve been racing in motorsport and everything before Formula One was work to try and get to Formula One. You get to Formula One with many dreams and you aspire to be something and hopefully you leave the sport with memories. That’s something I definitely do have from my 17 years of racing in Formula One. Lots of amazing memories, lots of life-changing memories – some good, some bad – and also to walk away with the world championship is a very special feeling as well. To race with two of the teams that I dreamt of racing with when I was a kid – Williams and McLaren – and when I did win the world championship it was with a privateer team, which I think is also pretty special. Obviously a very memorable year of my life and in the future it’s something I’ll hopefully be telling my grandchildren all about, how we came from nothing and we ended up winning the world championship. There are so many memories that I can’t put them all out on the table right now, but that’s a small snippet of my career. Over 300 grands prix. I will definitely step away from Formula One happy with what I’ve achieved and knowing that my life really does start now.

    Q: Ok, well, huge changes going on at McLaren. Are these changes that will leave the team stronger for the future?

    JB: You always hope changes that you make for that reason do work of course. I think there’s still a lot more going on before next year. But of course I will still be working at McLaren-Honda, so yeah you hope that that the change will be positive. New outlook, fresh ideas and certain things that have changed the team definitely needs and hopefully we can put that to good use next year and in the future.

    Q: OK, thank you for that. Felipe coming to you: obviously in Brazil incredible emotions in the pit lane, incredible scenes, unprecedented really in Formula One. Rival teams such as Mercedes and Ferrari were coming out to applaud you as you walked back towards the garages. Describe the emotion of that moment? 

    Felipe MASSA: It’s difficult to describe. It was such an amazing feeling. The first moment after I crashed I was not happy because I wanted to finish the race. My last race at home… I even prepared a Brazilian flag in corner one to do the lap and I was so disappointed to finish like that. But then when I started to walk and I started to kind of talk with the grandstand I just had an amazing feeling. I started to cry, I couldn’t hold. That walk I was doing was like forever. It was an amazing feeling; it’s impossible to describe what I was feeling. And then when I get to the pit lane, I saw all the teams out, I couldn’t believe. It is still in the middle of the race and the race just stopped. For that… that feeling is just impossible to describe, how emotional it was and how thankful I am for everything that I pass through this year. The only thing is to say thank you for everybody, including you guys, including everybody that was around me for this period that I was racing Formula One. I really hope Jenson feels the same here in this race, because it’s a very special feeling and a very special emotion and I’m really thankful for everything that I passed through. And as Jenson said, I’m so happy and proud of my career, even if I couldn’t have the title like him, I was missing one point but anyway I’m so proud for everything I passed through, everything I worked with, or friends, incredible and difficult moments… it was really an amazing feeling.

    Q: Two hundred and fifty and out then this weekend, you are the only driver to have finished in the points in all of your races in Abu Dhabi? How do you want to sign off on Sunday?

    FM: With a good result! That’s what I wanted to finish with also in Brazil! I’m really looking forward that we can have a nice race here. I think a good result is what gives you more happiness. I managed to finish here second two years ago. I know it will be not easy to get the same this race, but if you can take the best out of the car, if you can do a good race that is when you feel happy.

    Q: Thank you for that. Coming to you Kimi, how are you feeling: two of your contemporaries are leaving the scene, are you going to miss them? 

    Kimi RAIKKONEN: I mean I left once already so I kind of know how it feels. Obviously, it’s their choice and I’m sure they will have a lot of fun and I wish them all the best for whatever they do in their lives. For sure, things will change in F1 in the future and all of us will leave one day and that’s just how it goes. They’ve both had a good long career in it and I’m sure they will have some other things to do now.

    Q: Your world title win in 2007 is a good example that anything can happen in a Formula One title showdown race. Hamilton needs something similar to what you got to win the title on Sunday. Tell us how you approach an ‘anything can happen’ mentality and what do you think will happen on Sunday?

    KR: I don’t know what will happen on Sunday obviously, we’ll see on Sunday and over the weekend. When I was in that situation obviously we had nothing to lose, so we go as any other race. We had a strong weekend and a strong last part of the year so obviously that helped. I don’t think there’s a point in doing anything different than you normally do. You always come to a race and try to do the maximum. Our only chance was to try to win and then see what happens to the other guys. As a team they did a very good job of it and then obviously had some luck involved and all things fell into place, so who knows what will happen on Sunday but whoever wins deserves it.

    Q: Thanks for that. Felipe, what story: the pressure on the team, no points for 19 race and then you go and score two of the most valuable points in Formula One history. Describe the emotion of the day and the emotion of the team?

    Felipe NASR: Well, first of all, nice words from these two guys here. I think they both achieved a lot and I definitely… when I was younger I saw them racing and to see them going now is something hard to see. But as I say they both achieved a lot. Talking about Brazil, I wouldn’t imagine a better way of doing it, in my home race, these two points really felt like a victory for us, for the whole team. We have been going through such a difficult year and it was looking like quite an impossible way of achieving those points. But with all the rain, the difficult conditions we had in Brazil, I knew there was going to be an opportunity. It was difficult for everybody. It was a tricky race and when I crossed that finish line and I saw these two points were ours it was an incredible feeling because I know how much we put ourselves in a position… of such hard work to overcome this situation. Saying that, nevertheless we have a last race here to confirm that so we go to keep focused on the weekend and make sure we get away with those points.

    Q: Has the result changed anything with respect to our future in Formula One?

    FN: I would expect that it does help for sure. If anything that a racing driver can do is to contribute to a team with points and I know how much these points are valuable. Let’s put it this way, we know how much these points mean in terms of the championship the points and the restructuring the team will take for ’17, so it’s the best, the best I could have given them.

    Q: Thanks for that. Finally to you Max, you were cast as the bad boy of Formula One not long ago and now you’re being billed, after Interlagos, as the new Senna. How do feel your image and the way you fit in here in Formula One has changed after Brazil?

    Max VERSTAPPEN: Difficult to say. I don’t think that’s up to me. I just try to do the best possible race I can. I was definitely enjoying myself in Brazil but I’m not sure if it has changed something for me personally in terms of my reputation.

    Q: Are you and Red Bull feeling fast enough and confident enough to mix it with the Mercedes on Saturday and Sunday and make those title contenders sweat a little bit? 

    MV: We’ll try. I think they will be very strong in the dry anyway, so it will be difficult to beat them but hopefully we can be very close. That would be very positive for us.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    Q: (Kate Walker – Motorsport.com) Max, since the Brazilian Grand Prix you’ve been quoted in an interview saying that part of what gave you the skills to perform the banzai drive that we saw in the wet were your years working your way up through karting and Formula 3. Could you elaborate on how the previous racing categories gave you the skills to impress as you did last week?

    MV: I think everybody here did go-karting so you always learn from that as well, but it’s just also when you are not in a competition and you are just having fun with friends, for example, you are driving on the snow or whatever. You are always trying something different; you’re sliding and you’re still competing against your friends, trying to have fun in one way but still trying to beat each other in something. That’s what I’ve always done in winter time for example and somehow in a fun way you are still improving your skills. I think that definitely helps a lot. Then, together with my dad we practice a lot in those circumstances, also in the wet, he was helping me a lot, especially when I was six or seven years old. He was even standing on the track showing me where to drive, trying to find different lines and that definitely helped me a lot our there in Brazil a lot.

    Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Jenson you have been pretty unequivocal now about your feelings about this being your last race, but it wasn’t quite presented in the same way initially. Why the change between Monza and here? 

    JB: Nothing’s changed. I’ve just gone into this last race thinking that it is my last. I don’t want to go into this race thinking that it’s not my last and it is my last. It is true that I have a contract for 2018 but at this moment in time I don’t want to be racing in 2018. But the whole idea about having a contract was that in three months’ time, when I’ve eaten myself stupid and I’m thinking of things to do in the future and I feel like I need Formula One back in my life, but at this moment in time that isn’t the case.  So this is my last race, that’s the way I think about it at the moment, but who knows that could change in six months, eight months, one year.

    Q: (Seff Harding – Xero Xone News) For Felipe and Jenson: as you two get ready to leave the sport there are a lot of changes coming in 2017, what are your hopes for the future of Formula One as you leave the sport?

    FM: Well, I hope to be honest what everybody hopes: to see Formula One more competitive; to see more than one team fighting for the championship; to see more drivers winning the races. That’s what everybody has hoped since a long time in Formula One. That’s what I hope to see when I am watching the television, to see these guys fighting, not to see only one guy winning the races or maybe only one team. So that’s what I hope.

    JB: Yeah, I totally agree. I think coming up through… starting in 2000 and racing here in 2016 the sport has changed quite a lot – a lot for the positive. There are always going to be negatives, especially when you are trying new trends and technologies and what have you. But the main reason why I think people turn on and watch Formula One is the fighting, seeing different teams and different drivers fight for every race. For sure we’ve had it in the past when the have only been two drivers fighting for the championship but it’s been with different teams. Basically Mercedes are doing too good a job and nobody else is doing a good enough job right now. We are all working hard to catch up but it’s tough, because they are very competitive. I think that is what’s going to attract people more next year, if there are more teams fighting at the front, different drivers winning more races, because at the moment if nothing goes wrong with Mercedes, if they don’t have any issues, they win the race and a bad result is finishing second to your team-mate. That’s something that needs to change but obviously we will see if it does. Hopefully the rule changes, which are very big, will help other teams find a new direction and close the gap, because that’s exactly what we want to watch, as Felipe said, and it’s the only reason I’ll be watching Formula One next year.

    Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) Felipe Nasr, you’re the only one up there whose future is not clear at the moment. What is the position? Are you taking to Manor? How\’s it going at Sauber?

    FN: There are still negotiations going on. The talks are with Sauber mainly. That’s our priority right now? As I said, I have a great relationship with the team. It’s been two great years. We saw the two sides of the coin. Then first year I had in Formula One I was able to do so much, to achieve so much in a very first year. The second, we had such a difficult time, the car being uncompetitive, but it was nice that we were able to get those two points in Brazil. I’m sure that has given a boost to the team. These two points mean a lot for myself, for the team and hopefully we will know it soon.

    Q: (Jerome Pugmire – AP) Question for Max. Given how well you’ve raced this year, especially the victory that you got and also the performance in Brazil, what are your objectives for next season? What do you see as realistic for you to achieve?

    MV: I think maybe that all depends on the package you get around you, you know? So if it’s the fastest car on track, for sure we can win races. So, we’ll see. I think we’re all very positive about next year but I think it’s important to just wait and see when the car gets to the track. Then we’ll know more. At the moment it’s a bit difficult to say what exactly what I want to achieve for next year because you don’t know what the packages are.

    Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesport.com) To Jenson and to Felipe. With 17 and 15 years of experience in Formula One, what would you do differently to what you did in the past?

    JB: It’s a good question but I think for both of us our job is not to look back. It’s to live in the moment right now. This our last race and I think we’re both looking forward to getting out on the track. There’s no point trying to change the past because you can’t. You’ve got to learn from your mistakes and move forwards. It’s living in the moment and looking forward to the future.

    FM: I think it’s the same. To be honest, you do so many things in this long time of your career. Maybe one or the other you would try to do different now – but I mean, to be honest, I’m really happy for everything I did, really happy for everything I learned. Even with a difficult situation, that it happens, maybe I would do it differently yes, but I was always professional and I gained more by doing that than by doing different, so I’m really happy for everything I passed through and everything I learnt.

    Q: (Abhishek Takle – Mid-Day) Question to Felipe. You spoke about the emotional send-off you got in Brazil. I wanted to ask you, at the end of the day, leaving with that sort of respect and regard, does it count for me than the trophies and the championships?

    FM: Definitely. I think that is what you represent in the human side. That’s really than a lot bigger than a simple trophy. That really represents a lot and the respect, how you are, I think that’s really important for me as a person. Definitely. People not just looking at you only as a driver, people looking at you as a person, as a driver, as everything. It really represents me massively for everything that happened.

  • F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp Preview – Season Finale, Title Decider

    F1 2016: Abu Dhabi Gp Preview – Season Finale, Title Decider

    There is much significance to the 2016 season finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend. For one, it is going to decide if Nico Rosberg or Lewis Hamilton walks away with the ultimate prize of driver’s champion.

    What’s more, Formula 1 bids farewell to two drivers who have left their indelible mark in the history books of the sport. Brazilian Felipe Massa entered the sport as an erratic Sauber driver but spectacularly found his feet as teammate to Michael Schumacher at Ferrari. It was during his time at the Italian team that he truly shone and put the best of his talent on display. At the peak of his powers there were few in the business that could’ve trumped Massa’s qualifying speed or his seemingly unbeatable form around Turkey’s Istanbul circuit. There is no reference to Felipe Massa without conjuring the images of the 2008 Brazilian grand prix. Though he felt heartbreakingly short of claiming the title his emotional response to the defeat revealed a man of great character and passion that will remain as one of the most successful Brazilians ever to be a Formula 1 driver.

    felipeJenson Button has not officially announced his retirement from F1 but it is unlikely that he will be seen in the cockpit after his 2017 sabbatical. A fresh-faced Button made his debut for Williams in 2000 before moving to Benneton and Renault for the next two seasons. By the mid-way point of 2002 team boss Flavio Briatore announced that Button would be replaced and called him a “lazy playboy” and said that “time will tell if I’m wrong”. It turns out that Briatore was wrong, categorically so. Button went on to perform solidly for BAR Honda and capped it with a first career win at the 2006 Hungarian grand prix. Four months before the 2009 season Honda announced a sudden departure from F1 and left JB without a drive. The Honda team, bought by Ross Brawn, morphed in Brawn Gp, trounced the field and delivered JB to his much-deserved world championship.

    He then boldly made the move to McLaren to partner a highly vaunted Hamilton. Button not only held his own against Hamilton but also showed him the way in 2012. Unfortunately JB exits the sport after two difficult seasons at McLaren-Honda but his super-smooth driving style, his incredible feel for conditions, great racing brain, and typically dry humour will be missed and remembered.

    Jenson Button grid penalty now 70 placesBesides the farewell parties that are sure to happen there will be a victory party for one of the Mercedes drivers after Sunday’s race. With a 12-point lead Rosberg and barring unreliability is standing in front of an open goal. The permutations for a Hamilton-championship win aren’t easy. Seeing that’s he’s pretty handy around this circuit lets, hypothetically, give him the win on Sunday. Still, he would need Rosberg to finish fourth or lower to win the title. Furthermore, if the drivers are tied on points at the end Rosberg will take the title as he has won more races in 2016.

    With all the permutations running rampant the expectations for the Abu Dhabi Gp are grand so spare a though for both Merc drivers amidst all of it. One is on the cusp of achieving everything he’s ever dreamt of. The other has a chance to join a very select list of drivers who have four world titles. Aint F1 grand?

  • WATCH: Lewis Hamilton answers some of life’s big questions

    WATCH: Lewis Hamilton answers some of life’s big questions

    Watch as this charming young girl gets answers to some of life’s biggest questions from Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.

    No repetitive questions and answers about his relationship with team mate Nico Rosberg, or whether he can win the next race – instead, we get to hear what he would want to do if he wasn’t a racing driver, and his answer to why a pit stop is called a pit stop.

    No snapchats, no boring business, just genuine human interaction filled with personality. This young lady needs to get hold of Kimi next!