Charles Leclerc Tag

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton set the pace in a wet/dry opening practice session for the United States Grand Prix as he beat title rival Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari by more than half a second at the Circuit of the Americas. Championship leader Hamilton set a best time of 1:36.335s on the supersoft Pirelli compound tyres to finish 0.593 seconds clear of Vettel. Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas took third place five hundredths of a second further back. The session began in damp conditions after early morning abated shortly before the green lightRead 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

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Charles Leclerc is set to appear in four FP1 appearances this season with Sauber, beginning at the Malaysian Grand Prix. The 19-year-old Frenchman is a Ferrari junior driver and currently leads the F2 Championship by 59 points with four rounds remaining. He has been linked for a possible seat for the Swiss outfit for 2018 following the recent announcement of a continued technical partnership with Ferrari. “The Sauber F1 Team is pleased to confirm that Charles Leclerc will be in the cockpit of the Sauber C36-FerrariRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Formula 1 is set for its second in-season test of 2017, with the two-day event set to take place at the Hungaroring. Per regulations, a minimum of two of the four sessions must be run by a driver not currently competing for the championship. In several cases, teams go to reserve and/or test drivers, or also decide to try out young drivers from various junior formula categories. The test will also feature the highly-anticipated return of former Canadian Grand Prix winner Robert Kubica, who will beRead More

Lewis Hamilton went quickest in opening practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix, outpacing Red Bull Racing rival Max Verstappen by less than one tenth of a second. Third place went to Nico Rosberg, who could this weekend wrap up the Drivers’ Championship title if he outscores Hamilton by seven points. All three set their fastest times on the soft compound Pirelli, with Hamilton rising to the top with a lap of 1:11.895, 0.096 ahead of Verstappen. Rosberg finished the session 0.230s adrift of title rival Hamilton, with Daniel Ricciardo aRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Much has been made of Haas F1’s inaugural season in Formula 1. From scoring points in their debut in the Australian Grand Prix with Romain Grosjean to remaining within striking distance of Toro Rosso and McLaren-Honda in the Constructors’ championship battle, the US-based squad led by team principal Guenther Steiner has enjoyed a strong amount of success early. However, with the summer break nearly over the team must decide what to do about its driver lineup for next season. Grosjean has scored an astounding four timesRead More

Fernando Alonso set the fastest time the day as Formula One’s final in-season test got underway in mixed conditions at Silverstone. Alonso’s table-topping time of 1:31.290 was set on the supersoft tyres in the largely dry morning session and was good enough to see 1.5s clear of Mercedes’ Esteban Ocon on a day when just four Formula One race drivers took to the track. Ocon in turn finished over 1.5s ahead of third-placed Williams tester Alex Lynn. Alonso’s morning time was 0.450 quicker than his best time in qualifying forRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief The Haas F1 Team has confirmed that 18-year-old Charles Leclerc will make his Formula 1 debut in opening practice for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. The current ART Grand Prix driver in GP3 is set for other Friday sessions in the VF-16 at Hungary, Germany, Malaysia and Abu Dhabi, replacing Esteban Gutierrez. “This is a fantastic opportunity to get seat time in a Formula 1 car and I can’t thank Haas F1 Team and Esteban enough,” Leclerc said. “I’m honored by the faith Haas F1Read More