All posts by Joey Barnes

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nikita Mazepin will make his Formula 1 debut in the upcoming test at Silverstone with Sahara Force India. The 17-year-old Russian currently competes in the FIA European Formula 3 Championship with Hi-Tech Racing and will get some time in the VJM09 in both days of series testing. The opportunity wasn’t lost on Mazepin, who has already put time in the simulator at the team’s headquarters. “I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to test the VJM09 at Silverstone,” Mazepin said. “There’s no doubt it will beRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nico Hulkenberg saw one of the best qualifying efforts of his career turn into a rough day at the office in the Austrian Grand Prix. The Sahara Force India driver delighted on Saturday in qualifying and started the race in second alongside polesitter Lewis Hamilton. However, Hulkenberg had a slow start off the line and quickly faded to fourth in the opening laps, before strategy and pace pushed him further down the running order and eventually retiring in the closing laps of the race. “I’m prettyRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sergio Perez escaped injury after suffering brake failure on the final lap of the Austrian Grand Prix. The 26-year-old Mexican’s day ended while running comfortably in the points in eighth when his brakes failed heading into Turn 3, skidding across the gravel before a encountering head on collision with the wall. “It’s a big shame that we retired on the last lap of the race,” Perez said. “I’m feeling sad for the team because we really deserved some points. Yesterday and today we have been reallyRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nico Rosberg received a 10-second time penalty for his part in the final lap crash with teammate Lewis Hamilton in the Austrian Grand Prix. However, the penalty does not hinder the German’s finishing position of fourth. Rosberg also had two penalty points added to his superlicense. Stewards felt the Formula 1 championship points leader was to blame for the collision and was also reprimanded for continuing the race with a damaged car. “Having taken note of the extensive evidence given by both drivers and the videoRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nico Rosberg is under investigation for his collision with teammate Lewis Hamilton on the last lap of the Austrian Grand Prix. The Mercedes duo collided into Turn 2 while battling for the lead when Rosberg made a late entry into the corner, damaging his front wing and limping home fourth while Hamilton went on to score the victory. Shortly after parking in the pit lane, it was learned that the German is the subject of an investigation for causing a collision and failing to stop withRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Vettel became the victim of a strategic gamble by Ferrari that has led to the four-time champ crashing out of the Austrian Grand Prix. The German, who turned 29-years-old today, started the race in ninth and made his way up to the lead after many of the frontrunners pitted. The extended tire strategy came to an end on lap 27 when, while coming down the front straightaway, Vettel’s right rear tire blew out and sent him into the inside wall before coming back across track andRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Felipe Massa will start the Austrian Grand Prix from the pit lane due to a damaged front wing. The Brazilian was set to start from 10th, but his Williams team discovered a crack in the front wing and decided to not risk it and change it out for a new one. Massa was running a new spec of front wing, but with the change he left with reverting to the older spec. Massa’s spot on the grid will remain empty. The Brazilian joins Toro Rosso driverRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nico Rosberg has received a five-place grid penalty after a crash in FP3 forced the Mercedes team to change his gearbox. Rosberg enjoyed a banner Friday after dominating both the first and second practice sessions, but halfway through Saturday’s final practice he suffered suspension failure that sent him into the wall off the Turn 2 exit. The team confirmed that the mechanical failure happened at full throttle under “an unusually high load” on the exit of the curb. The German currently leads defending Formula 1 championRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Kimi Raikkonen remained unflappable in Thursday’s FIA press conference leading up to the Austrian Grand Prix, despite a mass of questions regarding rumors centering over his future at Ferrari. The 2007 Formula 1 champion’s contract with the Italian manufacturer expires at the end of the season. In the midst of a dogfight with Mercedes for F1 supremacy, neither Raikkonen or teammate Sebastian Vettel have won yet this season, with both amassing five runner-up finishes thus far. However, Ferrari president and CEO Sergio Marchionne warned that RaikkonenRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The Pro Mazda Championship presented by Cooper Tires has altered its schedule and will move its race date at Iowa Speedway to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as part of a tripleheader weekend season finale. The series scrapped its round at Iowa, which was set to take place on July 10, due a low amount of car entries in the field. “I want to thank [Iowa Speedway president] Jimmy Small for giving us the option to move our race off of next weekend’s schedule,” said Dan Andersen,Read More