Aston martin v8 volante

Max Verstappen says unlike some of his rivals he doesn’t have an issue with brake dust being blown into his face, but that’s thanks largely to the design of his RB18. Sebastian Vettel raised the issue after the Austrian Grand Prix as the four-time World Champion climbed out of his AMR22 to face the cameras with his face covered in black dust. He revealed it was the brake dust coming off his front brakes . He told Sky F1: “To be honest with you, that’s something I think they need to work on because you know, where the design of the brake ducts [is] this year, the front axle is blowing all the brake dust into our faces – and it’s not good. Obviously, carbon dust is not really something healthy to breathe in.” But while it is a problem for Aston Martin, Verstappen says he hasn’t experienced it with Red Bull which he puts down to the design of the front brakes. “Just depends how you design your drums, basically,” he said as per GPFans. “Some have it designed in a way … [Read more...] about Max Verstappen avoids brake dust problems thanks to Red Bull design

Team boss Otmar Szafnauer has “absolutely no worries” about Fernando Alonso mentally checking out of Alpine before the end of the season. Alonso shocked many in the paddock when he announced, as he headed off for his summer break, he would be leaving the team to take Sebastian Vettel’s vacant seat at Aston Martin. His decision surprised Alpine too as the team thought they had been closing in on a one-year extension with the double former World Champion, Szafnauer previously revealing he had no warning. But despite the untimely announcement, at least on Alpine’s part, the team are confident Alonso will be fully committed through to his very last lap as an Alpine driver. “I have absolutely no worries about the rest of the season,” Szafnauer said, quoted by Autosport. “Our goals are pretty clear. We want to finish at least fourth in the Constructors’ Championship. I think third is a step too far. “ Fernando realises that too. He’s a professional. He’s a … [Read more...] about Otmar Szafnauer has ‘absolutely no worries’ about Fernando Alonso’s focus

There’s always talk of which Formula 1 junior driver will be next in line for a promotion at their respective team, whether that be to a test, reverse or race driver role. And there is also plenty of attention drawn whenever juniors are dropped or part ways from their backers too. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Junior drivers don’t have to be realistic contenders for future F1 seats, they’re another tool in the marketing arsenal more than anything else (see Ferrari’s F1 struggles while their juniors swept everything before them). It’s only once you get to the highest level of junior single-seater racing when the expectation emerges to reward strong performances on track with F1 opportunities. Alpine have struggled in that regard with reigning Formula 2 champion Oscar Piastri. His private F1 test programme initially happened only because a fellow junior driver’s finances enabled it, then his free practice debut was held back for so long that he’s now on his … [Read more...] about Academy outsiders – the best young drivers who lack F1 team backing · RaceFans

The FIA’s World Motor Sport Council has today approved the first draft of the new Formula 1 power unit regulations due to come into effect in 2026. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The 2026 F1 season will see the introduction of a new power unit formula – the first since the FIA introduced the current V6 turbo hybrid engines that are still in place today back in 2014. The revised power units will increase the electrical power generated by up to 50% over current levels, with the FIA claiming the power units will maintain “similar performance” to existing engines. The power unit introduced for the 2026 season will continue to use the current 1.6 litre V6 internal combustion engine, but with a decreased fuel flow limit that will produce around 400kW of power. The current MGU-H component of the hybrid system will be entirely removed, as expected, while the total power generated by the power unit’s energy recovery system (ERS) will increase to around 350kW. … [Read more...] about F1’s 2026 power unit regulations approved by FIA’s World Motor Sport Council · RaceFans

While the raw numbers show a wide gap between Zhou Guanyu – the only rookie on the grid this year – and team mate Valtteri Bottas, this is far from the whole story. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free While Zhou wasn’t able to match the one-lap pace of his considerably more experienced team mate at first, he’s shown improvements on Saturdays and his race day performances have been solid. Unfortunately, it’s his car which has proved the weak link. Zhou’s C42 let him down in Miami, Catalunya, Baku and Paul Ricard, giving him the worst retirement rate due to technical failures of all 20 drivers. His only other retirement came at Silverstone, in a spectacular and terrifying crash for which he was completely blameless. It was also unfortunately-timed, as it came after he achieved his best starting position to date and in the third consecutive race in which he out-qualified Bottas. He hasn’t been able to recapture that form since his shunt. Zhou vs Bottas … [Read more...] about Poor luck limiting Zhou’s points-scoring in his F1 debut so far · RaceFans