Carlos Sainz Jnr set the pace for Ferrari in the only dry practice session on Friday at Silverstone. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Sainz’s best time on a 1’28.942 saw him go quickest overall ahead of Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes and Lando Norris in the McLaren. Max Verstappen was fourth fastest in the Red Butrll, just ahead of Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari. After earlier rain led to hardly any running in first practice, the sun had finally come out by the time that the second and final session of Formula 1 action got underway, with air temperature just over 19C and the track warming to over 31C. Unsurprisingly, there was a large rush at the green flag as all 20 drivers took to the circuit as soon as they were able to. All three compounds were on display as drivers enjoyed their first dry laps of the weekend, with Verstappen using the mediums to go immediately fastest of all ahead of team mate Sergio Perez . Red Bull were then replaced … [Read more...] about Sainz leads Hamilton and Norris in second practice at Silverstone · RaceFans
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BMW M4 GT3 has made “quantum leap” over M6 at Norisring
Listen to this article The tight and twisty confines of the Nuremberg street circuit exposed the weaknesses of the BMW M6 GT3 last year, with the best of the Bavarian brand’s four factory-supported cars placing a distant 15th out of 19 entries in second qualifying. The M6's race pace wasn’t much better around the short 2.3km circuit, ending any hopes of Marco Wittmann scoring a third title in the season finale from eventual champion Maximilian Gotz. Much of the development of the new M4 GT3, which entered service at the start of 2022, was focused on making it as versatile as possible to tackle a wide number of GT3 championships around the world. The M4 still remains a large car compared to its rivals and actually has a longer wheelbase than its predecessor, but Klingmann is upbeat about how the car will perform in its first appearance at the Norisring this weekend. "I don't think you have to go there with a headache," he told Motorsport.com’s sister title … [Read more...] about BMW M4 GT3 has made “quantum leap” over M6 at Norisring
Mercedes and McLaren gains raise prospect of closest qualifying yet – rain or shine · RaceFans
At last year’s British Grand Prix, as part of the first-ever running of Formula 1’s new sprint race structure, drivers only got a single hour of practice on Friday before a second hour on Saturday morning. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free In 2022, the British Grand Prix is not a sprint event (next weekend’s race in Austria will be). However, due to the rain falling at the worst possible time, teams effectively only enjoyed a single hour of practice again on Friday with the first practice session amounting to little more than a sodden shakedown. Thankfully, teams managed to make up for lost time in the evening’s second practice session and it was an hour that provided plenty of intrigue for the rest of the weekend – especially towards the front of the field. The only dry session of the day may not have seen any of the 20 drivers end up in the gravel or worse, but the wind and the jagged kerbs on the exit of the many fast corners around the Silverstone … [Read more...] about Mercedes and McLaren gains raise prospect of closest qualifying yet – rain or shine · RaceFans
DTM Norisring: Kelvin Van der Linde beats Preining to pole
Listen to this article With the DTM electing to split its 28-car field in half on the short 1.429-mile track, drivers in odd championship positions pre-weekend set their times in the first 20-minute session, with drivers in even championship positions following after a five-minute interval. Van der Linde pipped DTM series debutant Ayhancan Guven’s Ferrari by 0.023s in the faster of the two groups to snare pole position, his 49.236s lap ducking underneath Thomas Preining ’s earlier benchmark lap from Group A. After coming close to a maiden podium with the single car Team Bernhard 75 Porsche squad at Imola, Preining will therefore join van der Linde on the front row in his best qualifying effort to date. Guven, who is filling in for Nick Cassidy in the AF Corse-run Red Bull team while the Kiwi is on Formula E in Marrakech, will start third ahead of fellow newcomer Franck Perera, the factory Lamborghini driver 0.070s behind Preining as a last-minute replacement for an … [Read more...] about DTM Norisring: Kelvin Van der Linde beats Preining to pole
Lamborghini driver Bortolotti to lead Grasser’s DTM assault
Listen to this article Bortolotti made a major impression during a wildcard appearance with fellow Lamborghini squad T3 Motorsport at Assen last year, finishing second to Walkenhorst BMW’s Marco Wittmann in the opening race of the Dutch event. The Italian driver has now secured a full-time seat in the category with GRT, the squad with which he secured back-to-back GT Daytona wins at the Rolex 24 at Daytona in 2018-19. GRT’s DTM line-up will be completed by silver-rated Rolf Ineichen, who was also part of the team’s winning crew at the Daytona enduro, Formula 2 graduate Alessio Deledda and Clemens Schmid. “Stoked to be joining GRT in the DTM this year!” said Bortolotti. “It will be a privilege driving the Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO #63 in this iconic championship. “Grateful to Lamborghini and the team for their faith and pleased that the good work and consistency over the years haven’t gone unnoticed. “I’m sure we have a solid base and our long term partnership … [Read more...] about Lamborghini driver Bortolotti to lead Grasser’s DTM assault
Leclerc: Next four races ‘very important’ in title race
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc believes that the next four races will play a key role in shaping his title chances in 2022. Leclerc came storming out of the blocks at the start of the new era in Formula 1, but his comfortable Championship lead was quickly eroded with Max Verstappen now establishing a 49-point buffer over his rival. Having not won a race since taking the chequered flag in Australia back in April, power unit problems and strategy mishaps have cost Leclerc dearly. And with four races to go until the mid-season break, Leclerc has picked out this period of the calendar, which sees Formula 1 compete at Silverstone , the Red Bull Ring, Paul Ricard and the Hungaroring, as a crucial run if he is to remain in the title picture. Speaking to reporters at Silverstone ahead of the British Grand Prix, Leclerc said: “I love it here. I love the track. I love fast corners in general. “This year we’ve got a bit more of a competitive car compared to the last times we came … [Read more...] about Leclerc: Next four races ‘very important’ in title race
Steiner: Haas must stop ‘hesitating’ on strategy
Having dropped the ball a few times this season, Guenther Steiner admits Haas are “a little bit insecure” when it comes to strategy. The Italian, though, believes a few races where they get it right and their confidence will be bolstered. Haas’ 2022 championship began with three points-scoring results in the first four races. The points then dried up from Miami onwards. While part of that has been down to pace or reliability, Haas blighted by several Ferrari power unit issues, the pit wall has not always helped the situation. Two-stopping both cars in Spain where the rest of the field went with a three-stopper cost them late in the race, while in Canada the strategists got it wrong with Kevin Magnussen when they did not pit him under a VSC . “We always need to do something better,” Steiner conceded, quoted by Autosport. “We need to do that [strategy] better. We need to work on that. “It’s not that you don’t know the strategy and what to do, but we hesitate sometimes to … [Read more...] about Steiner: Haas must stop ‘hesitating’ on strategy
Mercedes banking on race pace at Silverstone
Although Lewis Hamilton was runner-up on Friday’s timesheet at Silverstone, it is Mercedes’ long-run pace that has the Brackley squad hopeful. After Friday’s opening damp squib of a practice hour, the Formula 1 teams laid down the laps in the afternoon when Hamilton was second quickest behind Carlos Sainz. The Briton, running his updated W13 with new front suspension, floor and sidepod inlets, was just 0.163s slower than the Ferrari driver . As for the long-run pace, F1.com’s data suggests Red Bull have the edge over Ferrari by 0.21s with Mercedes around 0.67s off the pace. The Brackley squad believe they are closer than that. “It felt pretty good,” said Hamilton, while George Russell described it as “pretty promising”. He added: “We were significantly faster than them [McLaren] and when the tyres were warm at the end, we were even faster than Ferrari. They dropped a bit at the end but we improved lap after lap.” https://t.co/42XicoYcrC 's data suggests that Red … [Read more...] about Mercedes banking on race pace at Silverstone
DTM Norisring: Kelvin van der Linde beats Preining to pole
With the DTM electing to split its 28-car field in half on the short 1.429-mile track, drivers in odd championship positions pre-weekend set their times in the first 20-minute session, with drivers in even championship positions following after a five-minute interval. Van der Linde pipped DTM series debutant Ayhancan Guven’s Ferrari by 0.023s in the faster of the two groups to snare pole position, his 49.236s lap ducking underneath Thomas Preining ’s earlier benchmark lap from Group A. After coming close to a maiden podium with the single car Team Bernhard 75 Porsche squad at Imola, Preining will therefore join van der Linde on the front row in his best qualifying effort to date. Guven, who is filling in for Nick Cassidy in the AF Corse-run Red Bull team while the Kiwi is on Formula E duty in Marrakech, will start third ahead of fellow newcomer Franck Perera, the factory Lamborghini driver 0.070s behind Preining as a last-minute replacement for an unwell Rolf Ineichen . … [Read more...] about DTM Norisring: Kelvin van der Linde beats Preining to pole