Lewis Hamilton admits there are times where he does not want to climb into the cockpit, but his intra-team battles with Mercedes team-mate George Russell provides that shot of motivation. The union of Hamilton and Russell is now into its second season, Russell having been brought in for the start of F1 2022 to replace Valtteri Bottas as Hamilton’s team-mate. And while a pairing which is yet to produce any major flashpoints, the tensions are starting to heat up somewhat. Lewis Hamilton has days where does not want to compete Speculation over Hamilton’s Formula 1 career has rumbled on for several years between contract extensions, though his latest has put such talk to bed for now with the seven-time World Champion signed up at Mercedes until the end of F1 2025. Now at the age of 38, it is safe to say Hamilton did not always expect to still be a Formula 1 driver as he closed in on 40 years of age, though he admitted that he “underestimated” his love for the sport. That being … [Read more...] about Lewis Hamilton reveals George Russell role in his F1 ‘love-hate story’
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George Russell, Lando Norris or Charles Leclerc to win the most titles? Their ex-coach tells all
Le Mans winner and driver coach Matt Howson told the On Track GP Podcast about the connection he has to multiple drivers on the current Formula 1 grid, having coached several of them through their days in Formula Renault. Howson, who counts himself as Lewis Hamilton’s first ever team-mate in car racing, going alongside him in the same series back in 2001, coached the likes of Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Lando Norris when they made the step up from karting, and has been able to assess their natural talent first-hand. He went into detail about the “alien” talent these drivers in particular possessed, even at a young age, and was put on the spot about who he feels will eventually end up with the most titles come the end of their Formula 1 careers. Matt Howson joins On Track GP Podcast for intriguing conversation Howson, who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMP2 class alongside On Track GP regular Richard Bradley, joined the podcast to discuss his career to date, as well … [Read more...] about George Russell, Lando Norris or Charles Leclerc to win the most titles? Their ex-coach tells all
Sergio Perez points to George Russell crash as evidence of nationality bias
Sergio Perez believes the fact he’s Mexican plays a part in how he is perceived and treated by the F1 media. Perez’s nationality has made headlines in recent weeks, due to the Mexican driver being singled out by Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko, in which the 80-year-old Austrian alluded to his nationality playing a part in his failure to match Max Verstappen this season. Perez was damned with faint praise by Marko, who told ServusTV: “Let’s remember that he is South American and so his head is not as focused as Max Verstappen or as Sebastian Vettel was, but racing is his forte and he had a very good race.” Helmut Marko apologises for Sergio Perez comments Marko came forward to issue an apology through ServusTV, stating, “Concerning my remark about Sergio Perez, ServusTV Sport and Talk, Monday September 4: I would like to apologise for my offensive remark. “I want to make it absolutely clear that I do not believe that we can generalise about the people from any … [Read more...] about Sergio Perez points to George Russell crash as evidence of nationality bias
2022 F1 driver rankings #5: George Russell
From the moment George Russell stepped into Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes for the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix and almost drove it to victory, his Mercedes future became inevitable. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Finally, in 2022, Russell received his highly-anticipated promotion into the factory Mercedes seat alongside one of the greatest drivers of all time. Now he could finally fight at the front and be in contention for poles, wins and possibly even a championship title. At least, that was how it was supposed to be. Even Russell had to admit that he expected to have more success than he and Mercedes were able to achieve over the start of the 2022 season. The team’s W13 was radical, rigid but not rapid. And as Russell prepared for his first weekend as a full-time Mercedes driver, he and the team knew they would likely not be fighting for the win, for the first time in almost a decade. Valtteri Bottas qualifying ninth in a Mercedes at Imola in 2021 after … [Read more...] about 2022 F1 driver rankings #5: George Russell
Andretti application approved as Lewis Hamilton talks F1 ‘love-hate story’ – F1 news round-up
It is Qatar race week everyone! And we kick things off with another busy day full of talking points from the world of Formula 1. Lewis Hamilton admitted that his relationship with Formula 1 is “love-hate” these days, though battling team-mate George Russell plays a positive role, while Hamilton also offered insight as to why “casual” Ferrari talks have never resulted in a signed deal. All this and much more, so let us dive into the action… Andretti F1 application approved by the FIA The biggest news of the day came as Andretti Formula Racing saw their application to join the F1 grid accepted by the FIA, but that does not mean they are becoming the 11th team just yet. Andretti, who have secured an engine partnership with General Motors through Cadillac, now face another arguably even bigger hurdle to overcome, as they enter commercial talks with FOM and try to convince Formula 1 officials that they deserve to expand the grid. The FIA said Andretti’s was the only application … [Read more...] about Andretti application approved as Lewis Hamilton talks F1 ‘love-hate story’ – F1 news round-up
Helmet rows, hot mics and more forgotten motorsport stories from 2022
The 2022 Formula 1 season was full of drama on track and in the paddock, some of it leftover from the previous year’s controversies. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free With all that going on, it was easy to overlook some of the strange and surprising stories of the last 12 months. Red Bull ‘launched’ a show car Formula 1 car launches always attract huge interest as they can give the first indication of how the teams will compare against each other for the season ahead with any innovative designs. That was especially the case this year as teams produced their first designs for radically new regulations. Preferring not to give the opposition an early peek at their real RB18, Red Bull instead presented a repainted show car at their launch on February 9th. The real thing, which appeared in testing two weeks later, looked very different. Red Bull presents first images of new car for 2022 F1 season Magnussen’s F1 return has big repercussions After … [Read more...] about Helmet rows, hot mics and more forgotten motorsport stories from 2022
Records smashed and winning runs wrecked: The 2022 F1 season in stats
The 73rd season in the Formula 1 world championship was a record-setting one in a variety of ways with new all-time benchmarks set and some long-running sequences coming to an end. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free A 15-year continuous run ended for Lewis Hamilton , as did a peculiar record held by Daniel Ricciardo. And something happened in 2022 that has not occurred in Formula 1 since the 1979 season. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but these are some of the most outstanding records that were either set, broken or ended in the 2022 season… Record breakers Max Verstappen soared to unparalleled heights in 2022. As well as successfully defending his world championship title from 2021, he set a new all-time record for most wins in a single season with 15, breaking clear of Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher’s previous record of 13. Despite the incredible achievement, Verstappen’s season win percentage (68.18%) was actually lower than both … [Read more...] about Records smashed and winning runs wrecked: The 2022 F1 season in stats
Leclerc frustrated by “DRS trains” and slow pit stop in climb from back row to fifth
Charles Leclerc said his efforts to make progress in the Canadian Grand Prix were frustrated by a series of “DRS trains” and a slow pit stop. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free He started the race on the back row of the grid after collecting a series of penalties for power unit parts changes. He finished in fifth, having predicted fourth was the best he could expect heading into the race. Having spent many laps stuck behind other drivers, a slow tyre change cost him an opportunity to run in clear air. “Unfortunately with the pit stop this put us a bit in a bad situation because we had cleared the DRS train and we got another DRS train after the slow pit stop,” he explained. “I had to push on the tyres and that cost me a little bit at the end. But overall it was just a race where I had to be patient. “At the beginning I was stuck behind a DRS train. In the middle part of the race I was stuck behind Esteban [Ocon], who had much newer tyres and was very … [Read more...] about Leclerc frustrated by “DRS trains” and slow pit stop in climb from back row to fifth
Hamilton’s success not just due to his car, say rivals, as he nears Schumacher’s record
Lewis Hamilton’s rivals say his success is fully deserved, as he makes his first attempt to equal Michael Schumacher’s record of career victories today. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Hamilton’s next win will put him level with Schumacher’s all-time record of 91 grand prix victories, which was set in 2006. Like Schumacher, Hamilton has been able to achieved sustained success and win multiple championships due to the quality of equipment he’s driven. But his rivals say that does not diminish his achievement. “I think what Lewis is on course to achieve, and I’m sure he will overtake all of these stats, it is incredible,” said George Russell . “He’s obviously a fantastic driver. He’s been on it from the first day he jumped in a Formula 1 car and I’ve got a huge amount of respect for him. “I’ve got a huge amount of respect for Michael Schumacher, I’ve a huge amount of respect for Lewis Hamilton, they’re both greats, but I’ll be pleased for Lewis to … [Read more...] about Hamilton’s success not just due to his car, say rivals, as he nears Schumacher’s record