Category Archives: Grand Prix News

Alexander Rossi will make his F1 race debut for Marussia at Spa this weekend in place of Max Chilton, who is being rested while what the team calls “contractual issues” are resolved.

A statement on behalf of Chilton said that he had stepped out of the seat in order to allow the team to raise funds by selling it.

Rossi was recently picked up by Marussia as third driver after being dropped by Caterham, for whom he drove in FP1 in Canada.

Team boss John Booth said: “Although it was not our intention to offer Alexander the possibility to race this season, in light of the circumstances we are pleased to be providing him with the opportunity to make his Grand Prix debut at this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Franchorchamps. Naturally we hope to resume normal service with respect to our established race driver line-up as soon as possible, but for now we wish Alexander well for the weekend ahead and we look forward to seeing him in action.”

“It goes without saying that I am thrilled to be given the opportunity to race in Formula 1 for the first time and I cannot thank the Marussia F1 Team enough for the faith they are demonstrating in me,” said Rossi. “It’s a very big moment for me and there’s a lot to prepare in a short space of time, but on the other hand I have felt ready for this for quite a while now. It is also exciting to be given this opportunity at such a fantastic and historical circuit as Spa-Francorchamps. I can’t wait to drive the MR03 from tomorrow and I hope to reward the team with a solid race weekend.”

As predicted here yesterday Caterham has confirmed that Audi WEC star Andre Lotterer will drive in this weekend’s Belgian GP.

The 32-year-old will stand in for Kamui Kobayashi, who Caterham insists “still remains part of the team.”

In explaining the decision Caterham says that it “will benefit from having another experienced driver at the wheel of the car throughout the weekend and the German’s feedback will contribute to improve the performance of the car. The weather also plays a big role at Spa-Francorchamps and Lotterer is one of the most experienced drivers racing under mixed conditions.”

Lotterer, who was Jaguar’s test driver in 2000-2 before forging a new career in Japan, is in his 17th year of car racing.

“I’m ready for this challenge and I cannot wait to jump in the car and make the most out of the weekend ahead,” he said. “I will need to get settled and used to the car quickly, as the team has worked on a number of updates and we will need to have as much time as possible out on track to optimise the car’s performance. I really enjoy racing at the legendary circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, it’s one of my favourite tracks and it’s very close to where I grew up, so this makes the weekend even more special and one to remember.”

Charlie Whiting led an FIA inspection of the Sochi Autodrom yesterday, and the F1 race director has said that all is well with the venue and thus the Russian GP is firmly on schedule.

“The circuit is in extremely good condition and – yes – it will be issued with a licence,” he said in a Sochi news release. “Everything has been done according to the plans – the kerbs are very good, the verges, the guardrails, the walls – everything is in an extremely good condition. Everything has been done to the highest standards and I’m extremely pleased. I can say without hesitation that the circuit is ready 60 days in advance, which is very rare really.”

Regarding race control he said: “Well, it’s state of the art, it’s very good, and I was very impressed when I walked in to the Race Control building. It really does look extremely impressive. Fundamentally, all Race Control buildings are the same, but in this particular case it’s been done with very latest high-tech equipment. The images we see at race control are absolutely superb.”

Whiting said that he probably wouldn’t need to make another visit before October’s race.

“I don’t know at the moment, but it should not be necessary. What I’ve seen today gives me complete comfort that the circuit will be entirely ready when I come back for the Grand Prix.”

Meanwhile promoter Sergey Vorobyev said: “We were ready for Mr Whiting’s visit and we want to congratulate our builders who have made this positive verdict happen. We were confident that FIA would appreciate the efforts made by our team to implement the technical details that have been so highly reviewed by Mr Whiting today.

“Now that Sochi Autodrom has received a licence, everything else is up to the organizers of the events and as such we are working intensely on ensuring that all aspects of the event are fully prepared. It is our aim to make this a truly unforgettable event with the comfort and enjoyment of our guests at the forefront of all our efforts.”

Bernie Ecclestone’s trial on bribery charges looks set to end with the Munich prosecutor accepting a payment of $100m from the F1 boss.

German law allows cases to be settled with such an agreement, while taking into factors such as Ecclestone’s age.

The trial, which began in April, related to allegations that Ecclestone bribed banker Gerhard Gribkowsy with a $44m payment.

Caterham has reacted to a statement from the legal representatives of a group of employees who have parted company with the team since the new owners took over.

The statement outlined their grievances and their intention to pursue legal action.

In reply the team said today: “Caterham F1 Team has read with great concern recent reports about a group of individuals who are claiming unfair dismissal from the Formula 1 team following its takeover by new owners.

“The team is now taking legal action against those parties representing the individuals concerned, and each person involved, seeking compensation for the damages suffered by the team due to the gross misrepresentation of the facts made by all those concerned.

“These claims include the statement that they have been released from Caterham F1 Team – this is incorrect. Caterham F1 Team’s staff are employed by a company that is a supplier to the company that holds its F1 licence, the licence that allows it to compete in the Formula 1 World Championship.

“Additionally, the team has read claims that its staff were not paid in July – again, this is wholly untrue. Every individual currently employed by Caterham F1 Team was paid their July salary in full on 25th July, one week before it is formally due on the last day of the month, in this case 31st July.

“A formal request for the withdrawal of the relevant press statement issued on 28th July has been made by Caterham F1 Team and the team will vigorously pursue its action against all those concerned. However, it will not allow its core focus to be distracted from achieving tenth place in the 2014 Formula 1 World Championship, and building for the 2015 campaign and beyond.”

Daniel Ricciardo’s superb win in Hungary was a result of both the irrepressible Aussie’s driving, and a unique strategy that proved to be just the ticket.

For the second time this year Ricciardo and his team were able to take advantage on a day when things did not go entirely to plan for the usually dominant Mercedes team.

“I think this is even more satisfying than Montreal because we actually beat them without problems,” said Horner when asked about that double by this writer. “We got the strategy right, a great performance by Daniel today, the pit stops were good, overtaking moves were excellent, and I think we beat two Mercedes that didn’t have any problems today.”

Ricciardo did of course gain ground on those ahead when he was able to duck into the pits at the first safety car, but the key was coming in under the second safety car. Only three drivers opted to do that, and while Daniel went for soft tyres, with the intention of stopping again and thus having reasonably fresh rubber for as long as possible, the two Williams drivers went for mediums.

It was that third stint, before he put on fresh tyres for the final charge that saw him pass Hamilton and Alonso, that proved critical.

“Obviously starting on the inters the circuit in sector one was taking quite a bit of time to dry up. The safety car then came out after the Caterham had a big shunt, we immediately knew it was going to be a safety car, so we called both the boys, ‘box, box, box.’ Seb being a bit further up the road was half way up the last turn, Daniel being a bit further back managed to make the pit lane.

“The first four cars didn’t make the pitlane, the group behind, the ones that did, were then in the pound seats Jenson then stayed out on the inters, which were the right tyre for half a lap of the restart, and then Daniel was able to get into an aggressive strategy.

“The bit that really made it work for him was his penultimate stint, he was able to go so long on the option. We were looking at Massa thinking he was going to try to get to the end, and we were trying to get a pit window to him, then it was a question of we’ve got to stop again, we’ll stop as late as we can to have as fresh a tyre as we can for the last 10-15 laps.

“And it didn’t look like it was going to work, because he closed up very quickly, the guys were fighting so hard, it looked like we were going to cook our tyres, and we’ve not been quick on the straight all weekend, and it didn’t look like it was going to happen. Then obviously as they started to get more and more into deg, Daniel just paced himself, and then a fantastic move on Lewis round the outside at Turn 2, and a pretty straightforward move on Fernando, and job done.”

Horner was full of praise for his driver: “The guy is riding the crest of a confidence wave at the moment. You probably heard his radio message after he passed two World Champions. He’s driving the car with such ease at the moment, and things are just falling right for him as well. Being able to get in at the right time for that first stop was a critical element of the race.

“We then had a problem with one of the cylinders on the engine in that penultimate stint, but again the Renault guys were able to find a way around it and disable the sensor, and then his passing moves in the last five laps just topped a fantastic race really.”

Fernando Alonso was one of the stars of the Hungarian GP, the Spaniard making a set of soft tyres last for the final 32 laps of the race and holding off Lewis Hamilton at the flag.

Along with leaders Rosberg, Bottas and Vettel he lost out by not making it into the pits when the first safety car came out, but he alone managed to recover to the podium.

“It means a lot,” said Alonso. “Obviously we had some tough races recently, and to see one Ferrari again on the podium is the best news. We took the opportunity after a difficult race, with a wet start and then some difficult decisions to make around the safety cars – if we pitted or not. Unfortunately at the first safety car we went a little bit out of position, because the safety car went out and we were in the last corners, so we missed the opportunity to stop.

“We stopped the lap afterwards and we lost a couple of places. We have to attack, we have to overtake a couple of people and just 10 laps to the end we were discussing if we stop and secure the fourth place that we really needed, those points, so just tried to defend the position as much as you can and maybe finish in fourth, so at the end it’s the same result but at least you have the chance to fight for the podium positions.

“So we were in that position 10 laps to the end and at the end we chose the right thing – stay out, defend the position as best we could and secure this second place that, for sure, it tastes like a victory for us at the moment.

“I don’t think that is one of the best in my career. It has been a good and a complex race, let’s say, to execute and perform – because there were some difficulties around the race that make the 70 laps not straight forward. You just need to make decisions during the race and all of them were, together with the team, and I think we did the best we could.”

Alonso admitted that circumstances had helped him.

“This circuit didn’t change much our performance, our position but today we had a little bit of a chaotic race and we took every opportunity we had in front of us. I think cars from behind also had some issues, with Rosberg, with Hamilton yesterday, with the issues in qualifying, we get this position for free. Vettel had a problem in the last corner today, the Force India [crashed]. We had some cars out of the way let’s say and we took benefit from this and we secured some very strong points for the team.”