Antonio Giovinazzi Tag

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The Sauber Formula 1 team has officially been renamed Alfa Romeo Racing ahead of the 2019 season. The announcement comes after the Italian company elected to extend the terms of their title sponsorship deal with the team. Alfa Romeo initially signed a technical and commercial partnership with Sauber ahead of the 2018 campaign. Sauber, who have competed in the sport since 1993, will not undergo any change in ownership or management despite the rebranding. The team’s driver lineup for the upcoming season will feature Kimi RäikkönenRead More

By Christopher DeHarde, Staff Writer Schmidt Peterson Motorsports today confirmed that Alfa Romeo Sauber Formula One driver Marcus Ericsson will join the team in the No. 7 Honda entry for the 2019 IndyCar season. Ericsson will partner James Hinchcliffe at SPM while Robert Wickens is recovering from his August incident at Pocono Raceway. Ericsson has 95 Formula One starts, recently finishing ninth at the Mexican Grand Prix. The 28-year-old Swedish driver will leave Sauber’s racing efforts after the 2018 Formula One season, with team deciding to use Antonio Giovinazzi and KimiRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Sauber reserve driver and Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi set the headline time today at the Hungaroring when he slapped a set of hypersofts on his SF71H and broke Sebastian Vettel’s track record by over half a second. His 1:15.648 lap was two and a half seconds faster than second place man Marcus Ericsson in the Sauber C37, but it was overshadowed by our first look at what the new 2019 front wings will look like. Red Bull, Force India and Williams all brought prototype front wingsRead More

By FIA Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas went quickest on the second and final day of Formula 1’s first in-season test, edging Ferrari’s Antonio Giovinazzi by six hundredths of a second. The Finn set his quickest time of the day shortly before lunchtime, lapping the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in a time of 1:16.904. The lap, delivered on supersoft Pirelli tyres, capped a period in which he had traded fastest laps with Giovinazzi, though the Ferrari driver’s times were set on hypersoft tyres, two steps further along the softness scale of Pirelli’s compounds.Read More

By FIA Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen topped the timesheet just three hundredths of a second ahead of Renault’s Carlos Sainz, as Formula 1’s first in-season test of 2018 got underway at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain. Verstappen used hypersoft Pirelli tyres to set the best time of the day, a laps of 1:17.528s in the final hour of the session, pipping Sainz, who had bolted on the pink-banded tyres an hour earlier to climb to the top of the order. Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel ended up third fastest with a timeRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Sauber and Alfa Romeo celebrated their new partnership today from the Alfa Romeo museum where they announced their 2018 driver lineup and unveiled a teaser of the 2018 livery that will adorn the cars that will be known as Alfa Romeo Saubers. Reigning F2 champion and Ferrari junior driver Charles Leclerc will make his much anticipated Formula One debut alongside Marcus Ericsson who returns for a fourth season with the team. Antonio Giovinazzi who contested the first two races for the Sauber earlier this year inRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor There is a red dawn rising at Sauber’s Hinwil Headquarters as the team announced a new partnership with historic car maker Alfa Romeo this morning. The Alfa Romeo name will return to Formula 1 in 2018 as part of a commercial and technical partnership with the Swiss outfit and be known as Alfa Romeo Sauber from 2018 onward. The multi-year deal is crucial for FCA Chairman Sergio Marchionne’s desire to put Alfa Romeo back on the world stage and is the first major step of creatingRead More

Valtteri Bottas beat Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton by almost half a second to top the timesheet in first practice for this weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix. The Finnish driver set a best time of 1:17.824s on Pirelli’s ultrasoft tyres with Hamilton 0.466s behind and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen a further tenth back in third place. Hamilton goes into this weekend’s race knowing that fifth place or better will seal his fourth Drivers’ title but the Briton has stated that he would like to claim the crown with a victory. That aimRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor Williams Martini Racing has narrowed down its driver search for Lance Stroll’s 2018 partner to three, according to Motorsport Magazine. Current pilot Felipe Massa, who has been with the team since 2014 despite an initial planned retirement prior to the team losing Valtteri Bottas to Mercedes, is said to still be a possibility for the Grove-based outfit. However, the plan is to test out Paul di Resta and Robert Kubica before settling on the 2018 seat. For di Resta, who serves as the team’s reserve driver,Read More

Just two days after the Bahrain Grand Prix, Formula One teams were back in action at the Sakhir Circuit, with Lewis Hamilton topping the timesheet for Mercedes as F1’s first in-season test of 2017 got underway. The session start was briefly delayed while shopping containers were removed from near to the pit lane exit and Hamilton too suffered an early setback as his Mercedes ground to a halt soon after running began. His car was recovered to the garage and after an electrical fault was identified and rectified last Sunday’sRead More