Tag Archives: formula-1

November 21, 2024 · 6:16 pm

Norris has “less to lose” now given gap to Verstappen

Norris has accepted that the title is now a long shot

Lando Norris says he has “less to lose” now that the gap to Formula 1 World Championship leader Max Verstappen has grown to 62 points.

At the last race in Brazil Verstappen won while Norris fell back to sixth place, having started from pole.

The McLaren driver says that with his chances of beating the Dutchman now mathematically much slimmer he can “enjoy a little bit more” the final races of the season.

“I kind of know the position I’m in now, and probably I have less to lose now,” he said when asked about his mindset ahead of the Las Vegas GP.

“For the first time, probably when I’ve looked at the gap myself, and had the realisation of where things stand, and I think post-Brazil was a tough one for me because it was the first moment realistically when I’m like it’s tough to achieve first position now.

“We were on such a good run of form, little by little, you know, it’s hard to get any big points on Max, because he didn’t have any bad races, but I had a tough week, because things just didn’t go our way, and my kind of real fight for the championship was slimmed by the biggest margin of almost of the whole year, so a tricky one.

“But it doesn’t change my approach. My approach has been correct. My approach has been the right approach for the last few weekends. I’ve been performing well. I’ve been doing a good job.

“So from my side, I need to not change anything, but I think I can probably just go out and enjoy a little bit more.”

Norris insisted that whatever happens in this year’s championship he’s proved to himself that he’s capable of fighting for the title in the future.

“I think it’s the first time in the last six years of F1 when we’ve had a chance to fight at the front,” he said. “We’ve not been able to do that for the last six years.

“So this is our and my first opportunity to do so, and my first opportunity to see where I stand. And I definitely was not at the level I needed to be at the beginning of the year, and even the Miami point of the season.

“Since the summer break, I feel like I’ve done a very good job and performed very, very well, by far some of my best performances that I’ve done. So I’ve been very happy, actually, with how the last few months have gone, honestly. I wouldn’t change many things that have happened.

“But I still need to make tweaks. I still need to improve on things. That’s clear. I’m not completely satisfied with how I’ve done. I definitely know I need to make improvements.

“But for the first time, I’m confident to say that I have what I think I need to fight for a championship.

“Doesn’t mean I’m complete, doesn’t mean I’m perfect, that’s for sure. And when you’re competing against drivers who are close to that, like Max, you have to be close to perfect if you want to challenge him, you know, and challenge the teams we’re around.

“So I’m confident and I think the main thing I can take away is I have faith that I have got what it takes to fight for a championship.”

Norris admitted that while McLaren has a 36-point advantage in the constructors’ championship, it is still wide open.

“It’s close,” he said. “I mean, Ferrari have been strong for a long time. They have two very good drivers. They’re a very good team. They’ve clearly improved their car a good amount and found a better direction to head down.

“And they’ve become, probably with us, and some races a bit better, some races a little bit behind, some races the same, as a competitor.

“Red Bull are close at the same time. So it’s more who can just do a better performance on the weekend. But we do know that Vegas is probably a track that will suit the Ferraris a bit more. It suited them well last year. But Qatar we know maybe will be more favourable to us again.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 21, 2024 · 5:48 pm

Russell: No FIA reply so far to GPDA statement

Russell says that the FIA hasn’t yet replied to the GPDA statement

GPDA director George Russell says that the FIA has not responded to a statement that the organisation recently issued under the heading “driver misconduct.”

The statement focussed on the FIA’s reaction to issues such as swearing in press conferences, and the drivers’ interactions with President Mohammed ben Sulayem.

It also followed up on earlier queries regarding how fines collected by the FIA are spent.

“I think everybody felt with certain things that have happened over the course of this year that we wanted to sort of stand united,” said Russell.

“At the end of the day, we just want to be transparent with the FIA, and have this dialogue that is happening, and I think the departure of Niels [Wittich] is also a prime example of not being a part of these conversations.

“And ultimately, we only we want to work with the FIA to make the best for the sport that we all love.

“So, I think it’s kind of us now putting the pressure back on them to work with us and work with everyone, including F1 as well, just to maximise this opportunity, which F1 is in at the moment, which is an amazing time to be a part of.”

Asked if there had been a response from the FIA he said: “No. Not at the moment, which I’m a little bit surprised about, to be fair. But maybe there’ll be something to come. Who knows?”

Russell indicated that the drivers felt that going public was the best way to get their message across.

“I think we’ve probably learned from the past that whenever we have spoken up, let’s say internally, it hasn’t gone anywhere,” he admitted. “And as I said, as drivers, we only want the best for the sport.

“We want to improve it, especially on safety grounds, but whenever it comes to, you know, decisions in the race, we only want to help. And it’s been a couple of years now that not much has changed when we have sort of given some views forward.

“And I guess we all wanted to show that we are collectively united. And maybe that will show how seriously we feel as a whole on the subject.”

Regarding the Wittich firing Russell confirmed that the drivers hadn’t been informed before the media announcement.

“We definitely weren’t aware,” he said. “It was a bit of a surprise, I think, for everybody. And it’s a hell of a lot of pressure now onto the new race director. Just three races left.

“Often as drivers, we probably feel like we’re the last to find out this sort of information. And when it involves us kind of directly, it would be nice to be kept in the loop and just have an understanding of what decisions are being made.

“So, yeah, time will tell. I’m sure the new guy will handle the position just fine, but definitely not an easy race for a new race director.

Russell stressed that despite some dissatisfaction with decisions made by Wittich the drivers didn’t necessarily want to see him replaced.

“I can only talk on behalf of myself here as opposed to any of the other drivers, but I think there’s no secret that some were not happy with what was going on in terms of the decisions that were being made,” he said. 

“But at the end of the day, I think if they worked together with us, that we could have helped improve the matter.

“And I think sometimes just hiring and firing is not the solution. You kind of need to work together to improve the problem. So, let’s see what this new era is going to bring, but every time there is a change, you have to take one step back before you make the two steps forwards.”

Russell also said there has been no word from the FIA regarding the GPDA’s enquiry about where the money collected in fines is spent.

“I think ultimately for us, when we were hearing from the FIA a couple of years ago, when it came to the Presidential elections, they were talking about transparency, talking about where the money is going to be reinvested into grassroots racing, which we’re all in favour for,” he said.

“And of course, when it comes to some of these large fines, there’s a number of drivers on the grid who can comfortably afford these fines. There’s maybe some rookies on the grid that if they’re handed a $1 million fine, you know, they can’t afford this.

“But if we know where that’s being sort of reinvested and if it’s going into grassroots or into some training programs, then we get it. As I said, I think we just want the transparency and understanding of what was promised from the beginning.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 21, 2024 · 5:33 pm

Colapinto: Williams factory staff are “heroes of the week” after Brazil crashes

Franco Colapinto has paid tribute to the Grove staff

Franco Colapinto says that the Williams Formula 1 factory staff are “the heroes of the week” after they manged to get two FW46s ready for the Las Vegas GP following the team’s disastrous Interlagos weekend.

In Brazil Alex Albon failed to make the start after his crash in qualifying, while Colapinto went off in both qualifying and the race.

The damage sustained, which came right after two incidents for Albon in Mexico, left the team scrambling to get two race cars and spares ready for Vegas.

“It was a tough weekend in Brazil,” said Colapinto. “I think over these past six races, I have had five very good ones. It’s been full of new challenges, like every weekend I’ve had something new.

“Brazil was an exception. It’s just that I didn’t really manage well the race. In the wet it’s sometimes like a switch. The tyres were not fully in. There was a lot of aquaplaning, and the situation was always more tricky.

“Unfortunately for the team we left the race with a lot of damage. But the boys in the workshop have been working so hard to get the cars back here in Vegas in the latest spec. The cars are looking great.

“The guys did a fantastic job in the in the factory. So very proud of them. They are the heroes of the week by far. So, yeah, very grateful.”

Asked by this writer about the tight spares situation is he said: “You can imagine that after a triple header, where we had a lot of, a lot of damage in Mexico – Alex had a lot, in Brazil, we had a lot with both cars – it’s going to be tough. But I think the cars are fully ready for it, and the team is doing a great job to get the spares ready.

“And we are looking strong, we are looking strong as a team. Maybe it looks worse than what it is. I think we are in a good position, and we have to be aggressive.

“We lost eighth place in the championship, so we are going aggressive now, and trying to recover points, race to race, and until Abu Dhabi there is always an opportunity, so we’ll try until then to do our best.”

He added: “It is very important that both cars have a clean last few races. It is important always to close the year in a right way, to close the year with points, hopefully.

“You are only as good as your last race. And our last race was not great. So we have to recover from that. I’m sure we can do. We have a good car for this track as well. So looking forward to it.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 17, 2024 · 10:41 am

How Sauber lost “greatest opportunity” to end points drought in Brazil

Bottas wasn’t able to turn a good grid position into a result in Brazil

Sauber team representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi admits that the chaotic wet Sao Paulo GP represented the “greatest opportunity” that the Swiss Formula 1 outfit has had to score points this season.

Valtteri Bottas qualified 11th at Interlagos, and the Finn was ninth on the grid for the start as both Alex Albon and Lance Stroll were missing.

However rather than convert that into a priceless points finish Bottas slipped down the order due to the car’s inherent lack of pace and a struggle to get temperature into the tyres.

The team even made the right call under the VSC, keeping Bottas on track – but while others who made that choice made the podium the Finn slipped back to 13th at the flag. His team mate Zhou Guanyu finished 15th and last.

Sauber has yet to score a point in 2024, and remains last in the World Championship.

“It’s very difficult to say and to admit, but I think we lost the greatest opportunity that we had this season to score points,” Alunni Bravi told me. “Because of the excellent qualifying session done by Valtteri, and the position that was a P9 for us at the start.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t have the pace to keep the position. The biggest problem for us was to have proper temperatures in the tyres at the beginning of each stint.

“And this, of course, jeopardised all the opportunities and the possibility for Valtteri and Zhou to defend and attack any position.

“We have seen in the second part of each stint that the situation was improving, and when the tyres were working in the correct range of temperature, we were competitive.

“But this doesn’t cancel the big disappointment, because it was a very tough day for us. Of course, we have mixed feelings, qualifying was very positive, especially with Valtteri. But at the end what matters are points, and the race result on Sunday.”

Alunni Bravi admitted that it the outcome was even more frustrating after the team made a good strategy call.

“The only opportunity to recover position was to wait,” he said. “According to the weather forecast, the rain after this intense period that led to most of the car pitting would decrease significantly.

“So we opted to stay out with Valtteri and to wait for a possible red flag, because the situation was extremely critical. So we remained on track on inters, and as predicted that the red flag came out, because the conditions were simply too critical.

“So that was the right call. We recovered four positions, so Valtteri was P12, we could change tyres, and avoid the pit stop.

“But this was not enough, because at the restart, the pace was not there. So Valtteri immediately lost other positions. And for Zhou, it was even more difficult, because starting from qualifying, he didn’t have confidence with the car.

“We went to extreme wets, because for him, it was impossible to drive the car, and then he simply was never able to attack. So a difficult race in a difficult season.”

Regarding Alpine’s double podium he said: “I think that we need to pay tribute to what they’ve done. They were exactly on the same strategy as us. But of course, they showed have more performance.

“And I think that we knew that the track, in that condition, could bring us opportunity, and they’ve been able to grab everything and to maximise everything.

“I think this is what we need, a good result for the motivation of the people, because we have people that are working really hard back in Hinwil and at trackside, and they deserve like Alpine to have good results. It’s never easy to have such a season.

“We keep developing. We are we will have upgrades coming for the remaining three races. We don’t give up, but we have to do more.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 17, 2024 · 10:37 am

Komatsu: Haas has to “regroup” after losing place to Alpine

Haas had a difficult weekend in Brazil

Haas Formula 1 boss Ayao Komatsu says his team has to “regroup” and “refocus” after a frustrating weekend in Brazil saw it lose a place in the constructors’ championship lost to Alpine.

Haas had been consolidating its sixth position with good scoring relative to VCARB in recent races only for a double podium at Interlagos to propel Alpine up three spots from ninth.

Meanwhile Haas failed to score in the wet Sao Paulo GP, with Nico Hulkenberg disqualified after receiving outside assistance following a spin, and Oliver Bearman finishing 12th after an eventful race that included a penalty for hitting Franco Colapinto.

Komatsu accepted that a big score for a midfield team in a chaotic race was always a possibility.

“This can happen any time,” Komatsu told me. “Of course, I wasn’t expecting a double podium from any of our rival teams, as in Alpine, RB and Williams. But it happened, so it is what it is.

“We’ve got three races left, we’ve got to really regroup and refocus, and then just try to do the best job we can for the last three races. So congratulations to Alpine, they were quick, really quick.”

Komatsu admitted that wet weather doesn’t favour the Haas VF-24, although he admitted that the team had also made mistakes.

“Not making any excuses, but I would have preferred a dry weekend, because in the dry I’m sure we had pace,” he said. “We showed that in FP1, that we have pace.

“And we showed it in sprint qualifying as well. In SQ3, Ollie had low tyre temperatures, but we should have been fighting for P6, P7. So in the dry, I think we were decent.

“But this year we discovered whenever we run in wet condition, either inters or full wet, we’re not very competitive. But to be fair the race, in patches, it was actually better than expected.

“So even for that side we found some positives. But there were so many operational errors, so we need to improve as a team on that.”

Despite Bearman’s difficult race Komatsu praised his reserve driver after he replaced Kevin Magnussen at the last minute.

“If you talk about baptism on fire, our car is not the easiest car in those conditions,” he said. “So if he was driving, let’s say an Alpine, it would be a different story as well.

“Ollie made many mistakes. He was inconsistent, but he showed the potential. Of course if Kevin was driving, he would have been more consistent, I’m sure. But you throw somebody into the most difficult conditions.

“I had a good chat with Ollie already afterwards, and I said what I needed to say, but not in a bad way.

“He’s already proven that he’s such a fast learner, so he will learn from this, and he already learned from it, even during the race, his consistency got better, and the lap time was good as well.

“So put him in the same situation, if it was next weekend, he will do much better, there’s no doubt.

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 14, 2024 · 10:42 am

New June date for Monaco will allow F1 to move Canada to May


Monaco’s place on the F1 calendar is confirmed until 2031

Formula 1 has concluded a deal with the Monaco GP to keep the race on the calendar until 2031.

The news ensures that the race won’t become part of any rotation agreement that will see some European events running every two years.

However as part of the arrangement from 2026 Monaco will switch to a regular new date on the first full weekend in June.

F1 has tried hard to persuade the Monaco authorities to move the race from its familiar late May slot in order to create space in which to place Canada, so that the Montreal event can run after Miami. However that plan has yet to be officially confirmed.

The announcement made clear that making the calendar more efficient was a key part of the deal.

The Monaco GP has run occasionally run in June in the past, in 1962, 1973, 1984, 2000 and 2003.

“I’m delighted that F1 will continue to race in Monaco until 2031,” said F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali. “The streets of Monte Carlo are unique and a famous part of F1, and the Monaco GP remains a race that all drivers dream of winning.

“I would like to extend a special thanks to H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco, Michel Boeri, President of the Automobile Club of Monaco and everyone involved in the extension of this important partnership.

“This agreement signals a new era of partnership and innovation between Formula 1 and Monaco.

“It is the future focused leadership of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco which will allow us to create an optimised calendar, which reduces pressure on logistics, and to decrease the environmental impact of our global championship, as we continue the path towards our Net Zero goal by 2030.”

ACM boss Boeri said: “The signing of this new agreement with the Formula One Group until 2031 not only confirms the strength of our relationship but reaffirms our commitment to offering all visitors an unrivalled, first-class experience at race weekends.

“The Monaco GP is the most important sporting event here and continues to attract hundreds of thousands of spectators to the Principality and millions of global television viewers worldwide.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 13, 2024 · 10:21 am

Aston Martin: How bumpy Interlagos triggered “a difficult race”

Aston Martin experienced a tricky weekend in Brazil

Aston Martin Formula 1 performance director Tom McCullough says that the bumpy nature of the resurfaced Interlagos track contributed to “a difficult race” for the Silverstone team.

Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll both crashed in Sunday morning’s wet qualifying session after showing some good initial speed.

The cars were repaired for the race, but Stroll went off on the formation lap and Alonso finished 14th after struggling with bouncing and a painful back.

“It was a difficult race,” McCullough told this writer. “I think the consistency of the car, it’s not easy to drive, and we’ve seen that for a while now. Both drivers were really struggling.

“So yes, we had some reasonable pace at times with Fernando, but we were also struggling with locking both front and rear, and the very bumpy nature of the track didn’t play to our strengths.

“The track was resurfaced, and was by far the worst-riding track of the year. So we could make the car nicer from a ride perspective, but it costs performance, so we’re always playing that balance.”

Regarding Stroll’s pre-race off he said: “”The rundown to Turn 4 was particularly bumpy. We found that difficult all weekend. We tried working with setups to help that. But the car is struggling in those areas at the moment.

“It’s an old school track, it bites. It was wet, and it bit a lot of people, didn’t it? It’s got walls quite close by as well.”

Things were made more complicated in the race by a switch to an alternative floor spec for both drivers as a result of the qualifying accidents.

The initial pace in wet qualifying did at least provide some encouragement for the team.

“I think throughout qualifying ordering the cars were competitive, which was good,” said McCullough. “We made a lot of changes, and with the understanding of the tyres, and the wet setup that most people had gone to and that we went to, we were definitely more competitive.

“So it was disappointing to finish quali with damage to both cars, but good to get them both into the top 10.”

Regarding the remaining races of the 2024 season he said: “We don’t have any more updates coming. It’s about maximising the spec of the car for the three very different kinds of tracks. And we’ve got to score some points in those three races.

“I think that will maybe play a bit more to our strengths, based on what we’ve seen so far this year. So we go there trying to score some points.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 9, 2024 · 3:10 pm

How Bearman learned from “impressively strange” Interlagos F1 weekend

Bearman had a hectic weekend in Brazil

Oliver Bearman says he learned useful lessons from an “impressively strange” Formula 1 Sao Paulo GP weekend at Interlagos – and has no regrets about losing his Formula 1 rookie status.

The future Haas race driver was called in at the last minute when Kevin Magnussen was taken ill, having already contested the Azerbaijan for the team when the Dane was on a ban.

He not only had to go straight into a sprint but also then had the experience of Sunday wet qualifying followed by a wet race.

The VF-24 proved tricky to drive in the race, and after picking up a 10-second penalty for contact with Franco Colapinto he had a spin and a touch with the barrier. Despite that he still managed to finish in 12th place.

“It’s been a crazy weekend, that’s for sure,” he said. “Especially with the weather, with a different format, it’s been impressively strange.

“But that’s good for me to learn new things. And doing a race in the wet is very rare in F1, so I need to kind of make the most of all of them, and take all of the lapses as great experience.”

Having done three races Bearman can no longer be the rookie driver for Haas for a full day at the Abu Dhabi post-season test, although he can still share the Pirelli test car duties with Esteban Ocon.

However he admitted that a race weekend was actually more useful.

“Exactly,” he said when asked about the subject by this writer. “Racing in a race with other cars is much more useful than a test.

“And I got to learn the track, which I wasn’t going to be able to do without this race. And racing under these conditions is always tough. And I definitely learned a lot.”

On the in-lap at Interlagos Bearman apologised to the team for the mistakes he made, although he was reminded that it was probably the most difficult event he’s ever had do to.

“It’s tough because I didn’t deliver a very good race, and made a lot of mistakes,” he said. “But if you look at the grid and the amount of people that actually finished the race first of all, the amount of people that did mistakes was very low.

“So of course, to be the best and to score points today, I needed to stay on track the whole time. And unfortunately, I didn’t do that. I made too many mistakes. It’s definitely tough conditions, but I still wasn’t good enough today.”

He acknowledged that the Haas wasn’t easy to drive in the wet.

“I feel a bit less confident in the car on the inters,” he said. “Especially at high-speed, the car is a bit less predictable, which is never a nice feeling in these slippery conditions.

“But I think everyone has similar issues, and it’s tough to really say where we stand on wets, because it’s sometimes a bit less about the car, and a bit more about the whole package.

“Front-locking was an issue all of the day, even in qualifying, it was quite a limitation. And it’s really tough to get confidence in the car when the front tyres seem to lock at a tiny bit more brake pressure.

“So this is really difficult to manage, and difficult to get confidence in the car. And a lot of my mistakes today came from front locking, and once you lock the tyre, it’s really game over. You’re out of the track.”

Regarding the Colapinto penalty he said: “I thought that was a bit harsh. I hit him, he didn’t even feel me, like I hardly touched him, nothing happened to him.

“I lost 10 seconds, and then I got a 10-second penalty for losing 10 seconds. So it was really harsh, in my opinion.”

Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur agreed that Interlagos provided a good education for Bearman.

“For sure for a rookie this kind of weekend, it’s more than difficult,” he said when asked for his views by this writer. 

“You have no preparation, you jump into the car on Friday morning. But he did a very good job in FP1, SQ1, SQ2, I think SQ3 he had an issue.

“He did very well. And then [in the race] it was so chaotic for everybody. It’s not just about Ollie. But I think as you said, it’s a good lesson, a good experience, and this one is important to take.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 8, 2024 · 1:54 pm

Vasseur: Interlagos “not a dramatic weekend” for Ferrari despite poor result

Ferrari struggled in both wet qualifying and the race in Brazil

Ferrari Formula 1 boss Fred Vasseur insists that the Sao Paulo GP was “not a dramatic weekend” for the Italian team despite a poor overall result.

Following two superb performances in Austin and Mexico City Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finished fourth and fifth in the Saturday sprint, and then both really struggled in Sunday’s rain. 

Leclerc eventually claimed fifth, while Sainz crashed in both qualifying and the race.

Overall the team lost seven points relative to leaders McLaren in the constructors’ championship, and 12 to Red Bull, and it remains in second place.

Leclerc pitted early for new tyres, just before the VSC and subsequent red flag turned the race on its head, but the call didn’t pay off.

“It was a difficult Sunday, but I think overall it’s not a dramatic weekend,” said Vasseur when asked for his verdict by this writer.

“It’s more on some choices. It was quite difficult to anticipate the pit stop. And for sure, you can say at the end of the day if you stay on track and you are waiting for the red flag it’s the right call, but if you crash, you look stupid.

“Honestly, this kind of weekend is quite difficult and difficult to manage from the pit wall and from the car. It’s more the pace today and the setup, that it’s perhaps problematic.

“Probably we were six or seven tenths slower than Norris at the beginning of the stint, and probably six or seven tenths faster than him at the end of the stint!”

He acknowledged that Leclerc’s early stop in Brazil unexpectedly put him into traffic.

“We underestimated I think the loss in the pit exit,” he said. “It was very, very slippery, and he lost a couple of tenths. It was enough to lose the position.

“If you look at the race, I’m not sure that it’s a game changer, because at the end, we would have pit the lap after with the VSC or whatever, that it mean that there was not a game changer. The game changer on the strategy would have been to stay on track, and to bet for the red flag.”

Regarding Sainz’s costly accidents he said: “I’m not worried about this. I think he will be back in Vegas very strong.

“Last year, Vegas was a good example. He started on the wrong side of the weekend last year with that drain cover. And he had a very good recovery over the weekend. We have three weeks to do a full reset, and he will be back strong in Vegas.”

Regarding the constructors’ championship situation he added: “We knew that probably the track will be difficult, probably much more for McLaren, and at the end of the day on the weekend, we didn’t lose so many points.

“Okay, I don’t want to lose some points, I want to make points. It means that we have to have a better weekend than this weekend. But it’s not a drama, and we’ll have probably a much better weekend next race in Vegas, and it’s where we’ll have to score the big ones.”

He added: “We have the same approach for months now. We want to be focused race-by-race, because for me, it’s the best attitude, and just to be focused on what you can do, and not to try to think or to calculate, and we keep the same one for the next week.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

November 7, 2024 · 4:41 pm

Domenicali: F1 set to announce plans for rotating 2026 races “very soon”

Zandvoort and Spa have long been likely candidates to rotate a race date

Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali says that the organisation will announce “very soon” its plans to rotate some European races from as early as 2026.

While the trend has been for flyway races to sign long-term deals, in many cases heading into the 2030s, the contracts of several European events that are running out in 2025 have yet to be extended.

An alternating deal for Spa and Zandvoort has long been mooted. The future of Imola is also unclear, while Barcelona still hopes to secure a race date after Madrid arrives on the schedule in 2026, and the Spanish GP venue could also be part of an alternating package with another event.

“As you know we have Madrid that will be part of the calendar,” said Domenicali of plans for 2026. “We have long-term deals on the other side that are representing the vast majority of our situation today.

“And these allow us, of course, to work with them in order to promote better quality, to make sure that what we want to offer to our customers is to a level of the highest standard.

“In ‘26 and further beyond of course, we have some news to share very, very soon, with regard to the possibility in the mid-term to have some rotational European Grands Prix, and some other new options coming later. And this is something that, of course, will clarify in due course.

“It is true that we have a large demand of even new possible venues that wants to come in, and our choice will be always balanced between, the right economical benefits that we can have as a system, and also to leverage the growth from the market, that we can see potential that will be beneficial for us to grow even further our business.

“So it’s something that we are managing in the right way. And thank God today we have a quality problem to handle, that was not the case just a couple of years ago.”

Domenicali says there are no plans to go beyond the current total of 24 races, despite interest from multiple venues.

“We believe that the balance we have in terms of numbers is the right one, so 24 is the balanced number that we feel is right,” he noted. “And I do believe that all the propositions are coming on our table are just giving us the possibility to make even the better choice for our future.

“So as always, we need to be balanced, knowing that we cannot follow only the pure direct financial proposition, because that is different from region to region, but it’s up to us to propose to our stakeholders the right choice.

“And I think that we are in a good moment to make sure that the strategy for the future is even stronger, and that’s why we are so confident about the fact that this will help to enhance our platform on the sport, on social and business perspectives.”

Domenicali added that there is no urgency to sign a new Concorde Agreement.

“First of all, it’s very important to remember that we have still plenty of time under the existing Concorde, so there is no urgent rush,” he said. “Conversations are progressing very well. And as we’ve said before, very, very positive, because at this moment the ecosystem is very solid.

“And also all the teams and the wider sport have had a huge benefit for everyone in this moment. So the financial security for the future and stability that we have today, it’s underlining in the work we are preparing.

“And as soon as we have everything ready, of course, we will inform everyone. But as always, as I said, we want to do the right thing. And consider there is no rush. Everything is progressing well, as we said, and looking forward to confirm to you when we’re going to announce something concrete.”

Meanwhile Liberty Media boss Greg Maffei is bullish in prospects for the Concorde.

“The most important thing for everybody, including ourselves and the teams, is to get it right,” he said. “And so we’re progressing at a good pace – with the expectation that everyone will sign with glee on their face.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,