Mercedes yet to understand problem that nearly ruined Russell’s qualifying
Qualifying in China went anything but smoothly for George Russell after he suffered a front-wing breakage in Q2 and then briefly halted on track at Turn 5 during Q3. Russell had won the earlier sprint race from pole position but looked far less assured during what proved to be a fraught qualifying session. Mercedes says […]
Decision imminent on F1 Bahrain and Saudi races as time runs out
Following talks at last weekend’s Australian Grand Prix, F1 had set itself a 10-day deadline to make a final call on the fate of April’s Bahrain and Saudi Grands Prix, a timeline largely dictated by freight logistics to the Gulf as the US and Israeli war on Iran continues to engulf the region. The two […]
Why Mercedes is playing down rift with F1 engine customers
In the aftermath of George Russell securing pole position for the sprint race in China by 0.289s from Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli, and a substantial 0.621s from third-placed Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has moved to quell talk of a schism with its customer teams. After qualifying for last weekend’s Australian Grand […]
Briatore confirms Mercedes hoping to buy Alpine F1 team share
The Mercedes Formula 1 team intends to acquire a stake in the rival Alpine outfit, Flavio Briatore has confirmed. Recent reports about the potential transaction – which Autosport clarified on Thursday involves Mercedes itself, not just Toto Wolff – have been corroborated by the Alpine team boss in Friday’s press conference at the Chinese Grand […]
Lowdon on what’s next for Cadillac after short F1 honeymoon
Cadillac’s rocky road to an eventually accepted Formula 1 entry has been well documented, but it is hard to underestimate the challenge the series’ first bona fide start-up team in a decade has faced as it rapidly built up its workforce across its UK headquarters in Silverstone and its various US bases. Appreciating the challenge […]
Why it’s Mercedes, not Wolff, that wants to acquire Alpine F1 team shares
It has long been known that a minority stake in the Alpine Formula 1 team is up for sale to the highest bidder. The share in question – 24% – is currently owned by Otro Capital, an investment group involving Hollywood celebrities Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenny, and golfer Rory McIlroy. Otro paid $233million for […]
Engineers already love «impressive» Lindblad, says Racing Bulls chief
As Formula 1 2026’s only rookie, the Australian Grand Prix weekend presented Arvid Lindblad with plenty of potential pitfalls to navigate as he made his debut in the new season’s complex machinery. But if the 18-year-old was fazed by anything, he did well to hide it from view. Lindblad strung together a faultless weekend, and […]
From the Archive: The day F1 alienated its US audience
“Hey, F1. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.” The headline in The Indianapolis Star on Monday 20 June 2005 summed up the post-race feeling after Formula 1 had trashed a marketplace it desperately wished to cultivate. That irony had seemed lost on those in power, specifically FIA president Max Mosley, as […]
Counting the cost of F1’s controversial new engine formula
In 1954, the world championship adopted a 2.5-litre engine formula whose cack-handed introduction had led directly to grands prix having to be opened to Formula 2 cars only for the preceding two seasons. The idea behind advertising the new rules well in advance, in late 1951, had been to give manufacturers time to prepare; instead, […]