After switching from multiple title winner Mercedes, Vowles has admitted some surprise regarding facilities that he said in certain areas were 20 years out of date. It was why he pushed hard, and achieved some success, in changing F1’s capital expenditure limits to free up the possibility for much-needed investment to help address Williams’ shortfalls. […]
Month: January 2024
Catalyst for shock F1 turnaround was French GP 2022 disappointment
The Woking-based squad was one of the surprises of 2023, as a mid-season revamp of its MCL-60 helped catapult Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri near the front of the field as they regularly battled for podium finishes. The leap came off the back of a management overhaul from the previous winter, with Andrea Stella taking […]
Haas F1 technical director Resta leaves team
Resta, who has long worked at Ferrari, had originally joined Haas in 2021 as part of an ongoing arrangement deal between the Italian manufacturer and its American-owned customer team. It came with Ferrari wanting to capitalise on stronger technical ties between the two organisations that have worked closely together ever since Haas entered F1 in […]
Steiner out of Haas as Komatsu takes F1 team principal role
The shock news was announced by the US-owned outfit on Wednesday in the wake of a poor 2023 season that saw it finish 10th and last in the constructors’ world championship. Steiner’s contract was up for renewal at the end of the year, and team owner Gene Haas opted not to extend it. As previously reported, […]
Marquez “never had feeling” Ducati MotoGP bosses didn’t want him
The eight-time grand prix world champion will race for Gresini on a year-old Ducati in 2024, after his 11-year partnership with Honda came to a premature end last season following a difficult 2023 campaign. FEATURE: The factors that show Marquez’s Ducati debut was a genuine success Marquez’s first test on the Ducati in Valencia last […]
I too have to “adapt to the car I get given”
Over the past two seasons Verstappen was able to get the most of out his Red Bull machinery, dominating the 2022 and 2023 seasons with 34 wins, while team-mate Sergio Perez struggled to keep up with the development of the car and its ideal set-ups. It led to suggestions the Red Bulls are built around […]
Mercedes to evaluate Luminar laser tech for F1 safety car
Luminar has already been working with Mercedes-Benz and other car manufacturers including Volvo and Nissan on honing its products for road use. The Florida-based company’s light, detection and ranging – or LiDAR – system uses lasers to create a 3D map of the environment around a vehicle, enabling accurate detection of objects ahead in bad […]
“No barriers” in Norris relationship essential for McLaren’s F1 progress
McLaren missed its winter development targets and failed to score a point in the opening two rounds of the 2023 season. This came as rookie Piastri acclimatised to life in the championship. Piastri settled and found his form while the MCL60 was heavily upgraded. He then ultimately beat Norris to winning his first F1 race […]
Devil still in the detail despite F1 downwash convergence
Since the current regulations were introduced in 2022, teams have gravitated towards the downwashing concept, following the lead of pacesetters Red Bull. However, Egginton says that taking that route comes with no guarantees and that teams have to understand how to fully exploit it. “People do converge in any regulation,” he told Autosport. “And Red […]
How Qatar is heralding a new age for motorsport in the Middle East
Marking the series’ first venture into the Middle East – doing so on the same year Formula 1 landed in Bahrain – the Qatar Grand Prix has become a mainstay on the calendar. In 2008, it made history by becoming the first ever night time grand prix to be held, as that year’s MotoGP campaign […]