F1 Tag

Kimi Räikkönen set the quickest lap of opening practice for the Belgian Grand Prix, the Finn edging title contender Lewis Hamilton by five hundredths of a second. Räikkönen, who earlier this weekend was handed a new contract with Ferrari for the 2018 season, set a lap of 1:45.502  to beat Hamilton by 0.053s, though the Finn had to bolt on a set of ultrasoft Pirelli tyres to shade Hamilton, whose best time was set on the soft compound tyre on offer this weekend. Räikkönen’s championship-leading team-mate Sebastian Vettel was thirdRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief In what is the first domino to fall amongst the ‘silly season’ rumors, Ferrari have announced that Kimi Raikkonen will return for the 2018 Formula 1 season. The agreement is set as another one-year deal, which has continued each season since 2015. The 37-year-old Finn is the Italian squad’s last F1 World Champion, a decade ago in 2007. However, this season Raikkonen, who sits fifth in the championship, has been outscored by teammate Sebastian Vettel by 86 points and currently leads the championship standings. The statementRead More

By Adam Tate, Associate Editor IndyCar officials are close to producing an aeroscreen for the new 2018 IR12 bodywork with the goal of testing the device this fall. The screen will be similar to the aeroscreen concept Red Bull pushed for in Formula One and the shield concept that Sebastian Vettel tested during practice for the British Grand Prix. Speaking to Racer, Tino Belli IndyCar’s Director of Aerodynamics said that a prototype is due to be produced soon, after extensive CFD work and testing with Dallara’s simulator. “First and foremost, thereRead More

The final day of testing in Budapest was a tale of a remarkable return and an impressive arrival, as Robert Kubica returned to F1 testing for the first time in six years to set the day’s fourth fastest time, while 17-year-old Lando Norris finished in second place, just two tenths of a second behind pacesetter Sebastian Vettel. Driving for Renault, Kubica, who had not driven a contemporary F1 car since suffering serious arm injuries in a 2011 rallying accident, set a best time of 1m18.572s to finish fourth on theRead More

FIA Formula 2 Championship leader Charles Leclerc edged McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne to top the timesheet on day one of the final in-season test of the 2017 Formula One campaign. Ferrari Academy driver Leclerc set a time of 1:17.746 in the closing moments of the session to beat Vandoorne’s best time by 0.088s. However, while the McLaren driver used purple-banded ultrasoft tyres to set his personal best, Leclerc’s P1 time came on soft compound Pirelli rubber. Vandoorne had run quicker than the Ferrari driver in the morning session but the afternoon was notRead 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

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Vettel believes his steering issue that attempted to plague his victory began prior to the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix. The 30-year-old German started the race from pole and held over a 3.5 second gap on Scuderia Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen in the early stages following a brief safety car period. However, Vettel cited a problem with his steering in the lead-up to his first pit stop. This allowed Raikkonen to close the gap and play as a buffer the remainder of the race toRead More

Sebastian Vettel took his fourth victory of the season at the Hungarian Grand Prix ahead of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen to establish a 14-point lead over Lewis Hamilton as the Briton finished fourth, behind team-mate Valtteri Bottas. While the result reflected the quartet’s starting positions, the 70 laps were not without drama, however. Midway through, race leader Vettel began to report handling problems and his pace flagged. Raikkonen, in second, was forced to sit behind the slower Vettel and act as a bulwark to Mercedes as the Silver Arrows attacked duringRead More

Sebastian Vettel took his second pole position of the season with a blistering lap at the Hungaroring that smashed the track record by more than two seconds. The Ferrari driver set a time of 1:16.276 to power past the mark set by Rubens Barrichello in qualifying for the 2004 race here. Vettel’s time put him two tenths clear of team-mate Kimi Raikkonen as Ferrari annexed the front row. Valtteri Bottas was third for Mercedes but it was a disappointing Q3 for Lewis Hamilton. The Briton made a mistake on hisRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Williams F1 Team have elected to go forward with Paul di Resta in replacement duty for an unwell Felipe Massa for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The 31-year-old last raced for Force India in 2013, but was brought in last year as a reserve driver with the Grove-squad. Massa complained of dizziness after FP2 on Friday and sought medical treatment, but the symptoms returns on Saturday and he prematurely ended his FP3 session. Williams released the following statement: “Felipe visited the medical centre and the MH EKRead More