Russell said in Melbourne that Red Bull has been “holding back” and not showing its full pace at the moment out of fear that rivals might find a way to rein it in through rule changes.Red Bull has won all three races held so far in 2023, with the first two events both resulting in 1-2 finishes.In the Australian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen stayed around 10-12 seconds clear of …Keep reading
Aston Martin has been the surprise package of 2023’s opening trio of races, with Fernando Alonso taking three consecutive podiums in a much improved car after the team struggled in 2022.While the Silverstone squad’s progress has been a blow to every other team that has been thumped down the pecking order, it has also shown them that it’s still possible to make a giant leap from one season to …Keep reading
After the disappointing start to life for the limited W14 machine, the successor to the porpoising 2022 car, there was speculation that Allison had resumed a more hands-on role at Brackley.The former Lotus and Ferrari technical boss joined Mercedes in 2017 and after four years at the helm of the design department, he stepped back from daily duty to occupy the more overarching role of chief …Keep reading
The widely predicted collapse of the optimistic plans to reinstate the Chinese Grand Prix for the first time since 2019 has created a protracted gap between the Australian and Azerbaijan rounds.Usually, a similarly sizable window between races that has allowed much of the paddock to take time off is reserved for the traditional August summer break.But as the calendar has grown to a record …Keep reading
AlphaTauri’s disappointing start to the 2023 season was reflected in team boss Franz Tost’s suggestion in Jeddah that he doesn’t trust his engineers after the car failed to meet expectations.A new floor introduced in Australia was the first major upgrade for the car as the team tries to find more speed, although after Yuki Tsunoda damaged his in FP1 only de Vries had it for the remainder …Keep reading
Perez was hailed as a perfect team player during the team’s 2021 campaign, including a stout defence against Lewis Hamilton in the controversial Abu Dhabi season finale.But as the Mexican became more competitive compared to Verstappen in 2022, the internal battle intensified.It culminated in Verstappen’s refusal to follow team orders and help Perez in Brazil, due to an earlier disagreement …Keep reading
Last season, after three races Leclerc led the world championship by a comfortable margin on 71 points, having scored two victories.This year, after round three he lies 10th with his only score a seventh place in Saudi Arabia, where he had to recover from a grid penalty.He stopped with an engine issue in Bahrain, and in Australia he retired after first-lap contact with Lance …Keep reading
Mercedes’ crippling 2022 porpoising issues are well documented, the team unable to run the W13 as low as it wanted to extract its ultimate performance.But over the second half of the season the Brackley team’s fortunes changed, and Lewis Hamilton and George Russell became more and more competitive.Certainly, the pair had grabbed a fair share of podiums already, but they were often helped …Keep reading
Hulkenberg returned with the US-owned F1 team after three years without a full-time seat.During his absence he kept his hand in with five reserve appearances with Racing Point/Aston Martin.The German has twice made Q3 in the first three races with his new team, and in Australia he scored his first points with a strong run to seventh place, although Haas felt he should have been a place …Keep reading
The Melbourne race was red-flagged for a third and final time on lap 57 of 58 after a chaotic restart, which prompted a 30-minute delay to work out how the event would finish.With just one lap remaining, the safety car led out the surviving cars across the line in order of the previous restart, which gave the race an anticlimactic end and was a blow to the drivers that were …Keep reading