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Click here to read the full article. This spring, six months after a crowd rush at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival killed 10 people in Houston and injured hundreds of others, the live-music business is getting ready for another festival season — its first full-scale comeback since the pandemic sidelined concerts in 2020. While the specific legal ramifications of the tragedy remain mired in litigation at press time, several broader questions for the industry continue to loom. Chief among them: Are music festivals safe, and how does the festival business ensure such a tragedy never happens again? It will likely be years before the public gets the clearest picture of what exactly went wrong at Astroworld, but those in the live business have seen it as either a perfect storm of circumstances and bad luck that lined up for a one-off tragedy or a sign of deeper problems that could have happened at any other festival. The answer is complicated, and likely somewhere in … [Read more...] about Are Big Concerts Safe? Six Months After Astroworld, Questions Linger

LONDON (AP) — Britain's Metropolitan Police says it has concluded its investigation into breaches of COVID-19 regulations at British government offices, including Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s official residence, and has issued a total of 126 fines. Police said Thursday that they issued fixed-penalty notices to 53 men and 73 women for gatherings that took place on eight dates between May 2020, at the height of the first wave of the U.K.'s pandemic, and April 2021. Some people received multiple fines. The scandal, dubbed “partygate” by the media, has dealt a heavy blow to Johnson's leadership. The conclusion of the police investigation means that results from a separate probe by a senior civil servant, Sue Gray, can now be published. Government officials say the Gray report, which is being closely watched for the extent to which it censures Johnson and his Conservative government, will be published as soon as possible, though unlikely before next week. Johnson apologized … [Read more...] about UK police conclude probe into Johnson’s ‘partygate’ scandal

The Grand Prix Trust, an organisation which exists to help F1 team staff who have fallen on hard times, held a reunion lunch at Silverstone on Monday, bringing members together for the first time since the Covid-19 outbreak. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free The organisation was set up by Sir Jackie Stewart over three decades ago, when it was originally known as the Grand Prix Mechanics’ Charitable Trust. Among its 10 trustees are its chairman Martin Brundle , F1 motorsport director Ross Brawn, former Williams designer Sir Patrick Head and Red Bull’s sporting director Jonathan Wheatley. A registered charity, the trust provides help and advice to F1 team personnel and others directly involved in the sport, including those who have worked for companies in the F1 supply chain for at least two years. Over more than three decades it has helped hundreds of F1 team staff and their families who have been affected by injury, ill health or loss of income. The … [Read more...] about How the Grand Prix Trust is reaching out to F1 team staff seeking support · RaceFans

The FIA’s clampdown on drivers wearing jewellery and non-compliant underwear prompted a mixture of criticism and derision from competitors. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Lewis Hamilton turned up at an FIA press conference in Miami wearing every item of jewellery he could lay his hands on, while Sebastian Vettel briefly sported a pair of boxer shorts on the outside of his overalls before one session. However Grand Prix Drivers Association chairman Alexander Wurz recently gave his full backing to the FIA’s tough new line. He described how he learned the importance of following the rules after speaking to former sportscar racer Kris Nissen, who was badly burned in a crash in 1988. Nissen, now 61, told RaceFans he believes strongly that today’s drivers should follow the FIA’s requirements on fireproof clothing. He suffered burns to more than a third of his body when his Porsche 962 sports-prototype car crashed at Fuji and caught fire. He joined … [Read more...] about Interview: “Totally ridiculous” not to follow FIA underwear rules · RaceFans

The first team principal to run Max Verstappen in Formula 1 is “convinced” he will win the championship this weekend. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Franz Tost described how he had been impressed by Verstappen’s mental toughness from his first practice outing for his team, at the age of 17, at no less a track than the formidable Suzuka . “I knew him from the very beginning onwards and he was already mentally strong in those days,” Tost recalled in an exclusive interview for RaceFans. “Because if you remember right there were many people who criticised us to sit him in the Formula 1 car because he was only 17 years old, and even didn’t have a driver’s licence.” Ahead of Verstappen’s practice debut at the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix, Tost says some journalists told him he was “completely wrong” to put such a young driver in his car. “I said to them let’s talk in five years once more, I think it’s right. In the end it was right.” After Verstappen made … [Read more...] about Verstappen was mentally tough from his first day in an F1 car – Tost interview · RaceFans

Formula 1 drivers are optimistic the revised layout of the Yas Marina will improve overtaking opportunities during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free This weekend’s race is the first to take place on the significantly revised track, with a series of alterations at key points designed to improve overtaking opportunities. The old chicane of turns five and six leading to an acute hairpin has been replaced by a single, wider hairpin which will now have just a single braking zone and allow drivers to carry more speed. At the opposite end of the circuit, the previous sequence of turns 11, 12, 13 and 14 have been combined into a single, constant-radius corner now known as turn nine. The corner has been installed with positive camber, to encourage better mid-corner grip and provide more lines of attack for drivers to take. Furthermore, almost every corner in the final sector around the track’s hotel landmark has been made shallower, … [Read more...] about Yas Marina corner modifications earn early praise from drivers · RaceFans

No matter how many world championship title Lewis Hamilton wins, Sebastian Vettel will always consider Michael Schumacher the greatest Formula 1 driver of all time. Advert | Become a Supporter & go ad-free Hamilton could win a record eighth world championship this weekend, moving him past the record Schumacher established in 2004. The Mercedes driver has already broken Schumacher’s records for wins, poles, podiums and laps led. But even if he beats Max Verstappen to the title this weekend, it won’t change Vettel’s view on who ranks as the all-time greatest. “Michael is my hero. For that reason, I probably don’t want Lewis to win,” Vettel said of the title showdown. The four-times champion said Verstappen and Hamilton “both had a strong season and they are going into the last race with the opportunity to win the championship because they both deserve it. “In a way I’d be happy if Michael’s record still stands, but even if Lewis wins, to me Michael is … [Read more...] about Schumacher still the greatest even if Hamilton breaks his championships record – Vettel · RaceFans

[raceweekendpromotion] What did you think of today’s race? Share your verdict on the Sao Paulo Grand Prix. RaceFans has held polls on every F1 race since 2008 to find out which fans thought of each round of the season. Join in the latest poll and give your verdict on the race: 10 being the highest and 1 the lowest. Please vote based on how entertaining and exciting you thought the race was, not on how your preferred driver or team performed. What were the best and worst moments of the race? What was the main thing you’ll remember about it? Rate the race out of ten and leave a comment below: Rate the 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix out of 10 1 (2%) 2 (0%) 3 (1%) 4 (1%) 5 (1%) 6 (3%) 7 (11%) 8 (26%) 9 (33%) 10 (23%) Total Voters: 261 Loading ... 1 = ‘Terrible’, 10 = ‘Perfect’ A RaceFans account is required to vote. You can register an account here or read more about registering here . When this … [Read more...] about F1 Rate the Race: 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix | RaceFans

Join us to follow the 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix on RaceFans Live. RaceFans Live combines updates from the teams and drivers in real-time via Twitter with comments from RaceFans readers and more. Launch RaceFans Live: 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix Watch F1 live in the USA and other regions on F1 TV RaceFans readers in the USA, Mexico, France, Belgium and many other countries can watch all sessions live on F1 TV Pro . As well as access to the live world feed you can watch onboard cameras and hear live team radio from all 20 drivers. And when you buy using the link below you also make a contribution to RaceFans! Find out more and sign up here: Subscribe to watch all F1 sessions live on F1 TV Pro 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix Australian Grand Prix cancelled for second year in a row Drivers tip Yas Marina changes to stop ‘boring races’ MXGP 2020 – the official motocross game reviewed Track changes planned to improve racing in November’s Australian GP … [Read more...] about Live: 2021 Sao Paulo Grand Prix · RaceFans