Reports of Red Bull’s reign of dominance over the 2023 season coming to an end have been greatly exaggerated. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free In a year when competition between their rivals behind has been as unpredictable as it has been gripping, Red Bull have routinely rocked up to paddocks across the globe only to crush all opposition with near-militaristic execution. Then, in Singapore, a rare stumble from the world champions offered hope that the Red Bull giant could indeed be toppled. Yet six days later, Red Bull and Max Verstappen reminded everyone just how powerful a combination they are when they stormed to pole position in Suzuka by one of the biggest margins of the season – and the largest for nearly 20 years at the famous Japanese circuit. Not that it was of any surprise to their opposition. “Our internal messaging was ‘expect them to be back out front when we get back to Suzuka’,” admitted Mercedes’ trackside engineering director Andrew … [Read more...] about Verstappen sitting pretty but unexpectedly hot track could cook up drama
Russell admits he “took a step backwards” after Friday practice
George Russell said he’s “taken a step backwards” from Friday practice after qualifying eighth for the Japanese Grand Prix. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The Mercedes driver qualified three tenths of a second behind team mate Lewis Hamilton . The pair will share the fourth row of the grid, but were over a second away from pole position. Russell comfortably led his team mate in both Friday practice sessions at Suzuka. Yesterday he appeared to be in the hunt for second place behind eventual pole winner Max Verstappen , lapping close to the times set by the McLaren drivers and Charles Leclerc. However he admitted he didn’t get the best out of his car on Saturday. “There’s a sweet spot when it comes to circuits like this, which is very difficult to find and when you’re not there you can be quite far off the pace,” Russell explained. “We saw yesterday I was more competitive, we were much closer yesterday to the rest of the pack than we were today. … [Read more...] about Russell admits he “took a step backwards” after Friday practice
Sainz blames late set-up change for qualifying performance at Japanese GP
Carlos Sainz Jnr believes a late change to his car’s set-up compromised his qualifying result for the Japanese Grand Prix. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The Ferrari driver who took pole position for the last two rounds qualified sixth at Suzuka. His Q3 lap time was almost a second slower than that of pole winner Max Verstappen . After finishing Friday’s practice sessions second and fourth, Sainz attempted a different set-up for Saturday which affected his preparation on a circuit where he expected Ferrari would struggle. “We knew before coming here that this track would expose us a bit more with the high-speed characteristics,” said Sainz. “It was never going to be easy. I took the approach yesterday and this morning to try different things on the car. “By quali I saw it was not quite working, and we had to go back to a more basic set-up which in the end probably ended up compromising my quali preparation and my weekend in general.” Sainz was … [Read more...] about Sainz blames late set-up change for qualifying performance at Japanese GP
Suzuka layout ‘punishes’ Mercedes’ weakness in high-speed corners
Suzuka’s high-speed corners amplified a weakness of Mercedes’ car and left their drivers on the fourth row of the grid over a second behind pole-winner Max Verstappen . Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Lewis Hamilton said he made strides with his car’s set-up after a difficult Friday but could not overcome the shortcoming of its lack of rear-end grip. “Yesterday was a nightmare, not the kind of balance that you want on a track like this,” said Hamilton. “But we did some great work overnight, the car was feeling much nicer to drive today like it’s as good a balance as we could possibly get. “It’s just massively down on rear downforce, so we can’t carry anywhere near the speeds as these guys are carrying through that first sector.” Mercedes have found it consistently difficult to dial their car in from track to track this year. “We have a very peaky car,” said Hamilton. “When we talk about knife-edge [handling], it’s literally like trying to balance … [Read more...] about Suzuka layout ‘punishes’ Mercedes’ weakness in high-speed corners
The “big step” AlphaTauri saw from Tsunoda which earned him a new deal
As Red Bull’s junior team, it’s unusual for AlphaTauri to give a new driver four consecutive seasons to prove themselves. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Whether in their current guise or previously as Toro Rosso, drivers either found themselves propelled upwards to Red Bull within a few seasons – as in the case of Max Verstappen , Sebastian Vettel and others – or quickly replaced, as Nyck de Vries discovered after less than half a season this year. The team has kept the faith with Yuki Tsunoda , however. This is despite a downward trend in his points-scoring which, of course, has more to do with the team’s decline in competitiveness than the quality of his efforts. Having scored 32 points on his debut in 2021 he took just 12 last year as the team fell behind several of its rivals in the first year knew technical regulations were introduced. That downward trajectory has continued so far this season, and Tsunoda has only scored three points from the … [Read more...] about The “big step” AlphaTauri saw from Tsunoda which earned him a new deal
2024 Nissan Sentra Priced From $21,725, Up $430 From Last Year
Nissan's Sentra gets several significant changes and a slight bump in price for the 2024 model year. Now in its eighth generation, the revisions include updated styling, improved fuel economy, and a price that's up $430 over the 2023 model. The Sentra lineup comprises three trim levels. The base S starts at $21,725, including $1,095 in destination fees. The mid-level SV begins at $22,655 and is available with an SV Premium Package that includes features like an eight-speaker Bose sound system and integrated side-mirror turn signals. At $24,815, the top-level SR gets dark chrome trim and 18-inch wheels. Inside, the SR includes heated front seats and a red-orange stitching accent similar to the Altima SR and Frontier PRO-X . Gallery: 2024 Nissan Sentra 43 Photos Most noticeably, the 2024 Sentra sports a revised front fascia with a revamped V-motion grille, new … [Read more...] about 2024 Nissan Sentra Priced From $21,725, Up $430 From Last Year
“Strong penalties” only way to stop constant MotoGP Turn 1 pile-ups
At the start of Saturday’s delayed 11-lap sprint at the Buddh International Circuit, five riders ended up tangling into Turn 1. VR46 Ducati duo Marco Bezzecchi and Luca Marini collided into Turn 1, with the latter suffering a broken collarbone while his polesitting team-mate dropped down the back before recovering to fifth. At the same time as this incident, LCR Honda’s Stefan Bradl touched the back of Tech3’s Augusto Fernandez , which sent the former crashing into the sister Tech3 GasGas of Pol Espargaro . This is the third time in four races that there has been a pile-up into Turn 1 in a race, after similar wrecks at the start of the Catalan GP and the Austrian GP sprint. Marini has since been handed a long lap penalty for his collision with Bezzecchi, which he will serve at the next grand prix in which he is fit enough to participate in, having been ruled out of the Indian GP. However, this punishment is the standard one for causing such an incident, with … [Read more...] about “Strong penalties” only way to stop constant MotoGP Turn 1 pile-ups
Hamilton: Lack of rear downforce leaves W14 on “knife-edge” at Suzuka
After a "nightmare" Friday, Hamilton was much happier with his W14 thanks to overnight changes, but he still faced a tricky balance come qualifying. As high as fourth in Q2, Hamilton took seventh place in Q3, immediately ahead of team-mate George Russell . The outcome clearly benchmarked the Mercedes as the fourth-best car at Suzuka after the Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari . Hamilton admitted that he couldn't have got any more out of the car after some set-up changes overnight. "I was really much, much happy with qualifying," he noted. "Yesterday, it started off looking like it was not going to be so great! But I think the set-up was in the right direction. And then from P3 to qualifying, I made another setup change. "And I was really happy with that. But just really hard to pull any more out of it. I'm already on the knife-edge with the rear end the whole way through the lap, all the way through." He added: "We have a very peaky car. When we talk about … [Read more...] about Hamilton: Lack of rear downforce leaves W14 on “knife-edge” at Suzuka
Marini fractures collarbone in MotoGP sprint race crash with team-mate
After a delay of almost two hours due to rain, the very first MotoGP race on Indian soil got underway on Saturday with the shortened sprint contest. Run in dry conditions over 11 laps, Pramac Ducati rider Jorge Martin dominated the race by 1.389 seconds over championship leader Francesco Bagnaia . It has cut the factory Ducati rider's lead down to 33 points and marked Martin's fourth sprint success of the 2023 season. It also allowed Martin to pull further clear of VR46 Ducati rider Marco Bezzecchi in second in the standings, with this gap up to 36 points. Read Also: MotoGP Indian GP: Martin dominates chaotic sprint, Marquez third Bezzecchi was forced into a recovery ride having gotten a bad launch from pole position in the sprint. Team-mate Marini got a better launch from fourth and was able to draw alongside Bezzecchi into Turn 1, but outbraked himself and collided with his team-mate. Marini was taken out of the race on the spot while Bezzecchi … [Read more...] about Marini fractures collarbone in MotoGP sprint race crash with team-mate