2020

Hamilton delighted as Wolff commits to Mercedes ‘for life’Lewis Hamilton couldn’t hide his delight after Toto Wolff committed to remaining team boss at Mercedes for three more years at least. The announcement last week came after the Austrian had been indicating at, at least, partially altering his role within the Brackley-based team after seven years at the helm. That, in turn, had led to suggestions that Hamilton was holding off on signing a new deal until Wolff’s future plans had been decided. And now that his future is secure, Lewis has also confirmed attention will soon turn to his own “We haven’t started the conversation, Toto and I plan to do that over the coming days, we’ve been moving quite a bit over the past days, travel-wise,” he said. “But otherwise on the super, super plus side I’m really proud and grateful to see Toto signing, he’s such an important leading figure within this team, and the success that we have achieved would not have been possible without him. “He is such a great figurehead and I think that the team is better for it to have that longevity, and it’s great to see the commitment from Mercedes, and then the added bonus of having INEOS, who came in this year and have been a part of our success this year, it’s great to see they’re going to part of this team and help with the stability of this team moving forwards, in growing to be better. “It’s going to take a big push from us to continue to raise the bar in this organisation as I think we’ve done such a great job over these past years, but I think the right people are in the right place and it looks good, the future looks bright for this team I think.” Though the headlines from Wolff’s new deal focused on a three-year continuation in his current role, the Austrian suggested that had been misinterpreted. “That is a misunderstanding,” he said. “I haven’t committed to a further three years. I have committed for life. “We are three shareholders that own the company today, and irrespective of my own role, I could team principal, CEO, executive chairman, at any time.

Alexander Albon may temporarily look to a new employer. That is what Helmut Marko has said a week after it was announced that Sergio Perez will take his place next year alongside Max Verstappen at Red Bull Racing. The Austrian race team is open to relocating Albon in 2021. Marko and Albon have drawn up a contract for 2021 stating that he is the reserve and test driver. He will therefore be the permanent replacement when a Red Bull or AlphaTauri driver is unable to compete in a Grand Prix for whatever reason. The agreement also allows Albon to gain a year’s experience elsewhere. Marko said on Motorsport-Total.com: “We are open to lend him out if another team has a situation where they need a driver at short notice. That way he can make some racing kilometres.” If other teams are not interested in Albon’s services, the Milton Keynes-based team can still make good use of the knowledge and skills of the Thai driver. “We will use him a lot in testing and he will do a lot in the simulator. He will also be present at many races as a reserve driver. After all, that’s four cars for us.” Marko is still confident that Albon will come out on top and later become a fixed value for Red Bull. “This is not the end. We’ll see if we can stabilise him.”

Alex Albon collected the most penalty points of any driver during the 2020 season, with Lewis Hamilton and George Russell close behind. The system is designed to make sure drivers behave themselves on the track, and rules that once someone reaches 12 points over a 12-month period, then they receive a one-race ban. Come the end of the 2020 season it was Red Bull’s Albon who unfortunately led the way with seven penalty points for the campaign. A collision with Kevin Magnussen at Silverstone, pushing Romain Grosjean off the track at Monza, missing the bollard at Sochi and a Nurburgring incident with Daniil Kvyat did the damage for Albon. In equal second place was Hamilton and his one-off stand-in at the Sakhir GP Russell. Hamilton, who collected six points across the season, was actually very close to a race ban until the stewards decided to rescind the two points handed to the seven-time World Champion at the Russian Grand Prix for his practice starts in the pit exit. Prior to that he had picked up four in the season-opening Austrian Grand Prix for failing to slow under yellow flags and later crashing into Albon. The Briton moved on to six when he entered a closed pit lane during the Italian Grand Prix, with the resulting stop-go penalty costing Hamilton the race. Hamilton has said already that he will cut out the penalties in 2021. “With the FIA and with the stewards, I think there’s been a growth of respect between us and understanding,” Hamilton told RaceFans. “I still don’t think those penalties were the necessary penalties. But it is what it is and it’s not my job to come up with what the penalties should be. “I learnt a lesson from it and they won’t be able to catch me out for that again, that’s for sure. “I’m just going to be very vigilant and diligent moving forwards. And not only as an athlete, I’m always trying to find an edge. I’m always trying to find that extra bit. “It’s a fine line between being over the edge and beneath it. It’s fine if that one was over the edge. I learnt from it and it won’t happen again.”

Max Verstappen and his management team insist they have no regrets about committing to Red Bull in Formula 1, despite the interest Mercedes showed in him in 2014.The Dutchman’s decisions over what path to take in F1 are explored in a new documentary called ‘Whatever it takes’ that is being broadcast on Dutch channel Ziggo Sport. There, the show explores meetings that Verstappen’s management team had with both Red Bull and Mercedes representatives at the 2014 German Grand Prix to discuss an F1 seat for the following campaign. Following discussions with Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko at the team’s motorhome at Hockenheim, Verstappen’s management team were immediately approached by Mercedes boss Toto Wolff and Niki Lauda and invited for talks with them. In the end, Red Bull’s offer of a firm drive with Toro Rosso for 2015 trumped the fact that Mercedes could not offer anything in F1 – as it had no vacancy with both Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg under contract. At best, Mercedes could only have offered either a reserve role or a paid-for GP2 campaign, something that did not seem as attractive as an immediate step up to grand prix racing. Although Mercedes has gone on to dominate F1 and taken every title since, Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen and father Jos Verstappen are still adamant they did the right thing. Asked if there were any regrets about that key choice they made in 2014, Vermeulen told Motorsport.com: “No, I think we made the right choice at the time. “All three of us [Max, Jos and Vermeulen] still fully support that decision. I think at Red Bull, Max did get super guidance and also a super preparation for his F1 debut. “We are at Red Bull and feel really comfortable there. What the future brings, is the future. But for the time being we are very happy with the choices we have made.” Jos Verstappen added: “At that time, with the information we had, we have definitely made the right choice.”

Daniel Ricciardo has given his backing to George Russell. One of the biggest talking points in F1 is whether Lewis Hamilton would have had the same success if all of the cars were equal. Mercedes have dominated motorsport’s premier competition for the last seven years winning the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship. Hamilton levelled Michael Schumacher’s seven world titles this year without a substantial challenge to his throne. Max Verstappen claimed 90 per cent of the F1 field would be able to win the Championship if they had Hamilton’s car. His theory was put to the test when George Russell, who had not won a single point all season with Williams, stood in for Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix. Russell finished second in qualifying but quickly overtook team-mate Valtteri Bottas on the opening lap and led for the majority of the race. A devastatingly double-stacked pit stop and a late puncture denied the 22-year-old the first victory of his career. But Russell’s performance appeared to prove Verstappen right in that anybody can dominate in Hamilton’s car. However, Renault ace Daniel Ricciardo reckons a lot of Russell’s joy came from his own performance and not his machinery. “It’s hard to know how good they are until they step up towards the front of the grid – not only to see if they are fast enough but also if they can handle the pressure of being up at the front,” said Ricciardo on the In The Fast Lane podcast. “George didn’t need to get pole [in Bahrain] to kind of prove he’s got the talent, but he was so close. “I think the more impressive thing for him was to get a good start, get into the lead and control a big part of that race. That’s where he really earned his stripes. “I think he proved that yes, the car is amazing and whatnot, but he proved he is certainly the real deal. He’s one of those younger kids that I think has now proven himself.” Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted that Russell’s performance has catapulted him into the driving seat to replace Hamilton or Bottas in the future. Earlier this season Verstappen threw shade on Hamilton’s achievements. “I have a lot of respect for what they’ve achieved,” he said. “I’m not frustrated about Lewis in a Mercedes car. “To be honest, 90 percent of the field could win in that car. Nothing against Lewis, he’s a great driver, but the car is so dominant. “OK, maybe others wouldn’t be as dominant as Lewis is, but you accept the situation you are in and you just try to make the best of it. “I’m not frustrated, I’m more focused on what we can do to try and beat them.”

Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin will be team-mates at Haas for their debut season in Formula One. Despite Nikita Mazepin groping an Instagram model earlier this month, the Haas F1 Team has confirmed that he will partner Mick Schumacher at the team in 2021. While the #WeSayNoToMazepin campaign is continuing to try to exert pressure on Haas to drop Mazepin, it’s likely that the Russian racing driver will be on the F1 grid next season. Former Formula One driver David Coulthard has given his thoughts on how he thinks Mazepin will fare against 2020 Formula Two champion Mick Schumacher in equal machinery. “I’ve seen him progress from lower formulas. He is a focused, fit and hungry racing driver,” Coulthard said of Schumacher this week. “He has his own personality but he has put himself at the front of championships with all of the support and opportunity that has been put in front of him. “You know the classic thing about a horse to water? You can give someone a great car or a great team but if they don’t have the skill they won’t do anything with it. “Haas will be a safe place for him to learn. I don’t think he will struggle in beating Mazepin, if he does then he has a problem. If he doesn’t, then that’s exactly what I expect,” the ex-F1 racer added. Mazepin finished fifth in last season’s F2 standings, 51 points adrift of Schumacher and almost 40 points behind Callum Ilott, who finished second in the Championship. Despite Ilott having a considerably stronger season than Mazepin, the Russian landed the second seat at Haas as his father, Dmitry Mazepin, agreed to provide financial support to the team.

Several supporters of Nikita Mazepin have been abusing a vocal critic of the Russian racing driver on social media. The last couple of weeks have cast a dark shadow over Formula One, with the Haas F1 Team proving that money is more important than principals. In case you’ve been living under a rock, I’m referring to the fact that Nikita Mazepin groped an Instagram model earlier this month and has seemingly escaped without any real punishment. Specifically, the Haas F1 Team vowed to deal with the “abhorrent” incident internally and said his punishment may never be made public. And, they recently confirmed that Mazepin will still be driving for the team next season despite his shocking conduct. As if that wasn’t bad enough, I was shocked when I went onto Twitter this afternoon and discovered that fans of Nikita Mazepin had been abusing a vociferous critic of his. In fact, in a Twitter group chat, one user (@F1_center_real), who has a Nikita Mazepin profile picture and is clearly fond of him (for whatever reason), even joked that they should call the Russian racing driver to rape the aforementioned critic. As she pointed out, she is just 16 years old and is being targeted by Mazepin supporters for simply sharing her views on the incident and other F1-related matters. There are dozens of other instances of misogyny in the F1 social media community on a daily basis, and I really think it’s time to make a stand against this, especially as seeing how Mazepin getting let off the hook by Haas appears to be encouraging similarly disgusting behaviour in our community. I will be sharing this incident and my thoughts directly with the Haas F1 Team – and I really hope it causes them to consider the toxic impact that Nikita Mazepin is having on Formula One and to hopefully finally do what’s right.

Williams says it has no desire to become a Formula 1 B-team, despite the closer alliances some rivals are forming with the top outfits. As F1 heads to a new era of limited resources, thanks to tighter cost controls and the arrival of a budget cap, there has been a move for some outfits to co-operate more. Red Bull and AlphaTauri will work a lot closer from next year than before, while there are also strong ties between Ferrari, Haas and Alfa Romeo, as well as Mercedes and Racing Point. Williams has traditionally preferred to remain wholly independent, and that path looks unlikely to change despite the arrival of new owners Dorilton Capital. Team principal Simon Roberts said that while the Grove-based outfit understood the gains that could come from working with a manufacturer squad, it still felt there were benefits to doing its own thing. “We can see advantages but we don’t want to become a B-team,” he explained. “We want to retain our independence, but we want to be more competitive. So for us, looking forward, we’re open to extending a relationship but the specification of that would depend on what we think we’re strong at, internally, and where we think we need help and support. “In simple terms, if we’re good at something and we can do it – quicker to the market, quicker to the track – [then we] should focus on that. “If there’s something we can’t do very well, then we should be prepared to buy that from whoever’s got it available.” Roberts said Williams’ pragmatic approach to deciding in what areas it should look outside its own company for would be essential under the cost cap, because teams can no longer afford any wastage. “Under the cost cap, you can’t afford to be inefficient and that’s what we’re focusing on,” he said. “We need to make sure that if we’re making chassis, we’re really good at making our chassis and we apply that to everything in the car. But we are independent, we’re going to remain independent but there is scope for collaboration.” Roberts added that Williams is not planning a vastly different approach to how it attacks F1 from the previous era, with many of the historic characteristics of the team being carried forward. “From the cultural fit with the team, there’s a lot of synergy between the road map that Claire [Williams] had laid out and we’re staying very true to that,” he added. “We want to be a great place to work. “We want to make sure we’re caring and kind to all the people who work for us and we want to just do all the right things. “In terms of the technology though, we now have the opportunity to invest and that’s what we’re doing. That’s started already. There’s not much impact of that on the car we’re racing on now, but we will start to see that next year. “Really this year is part of a long-term strategy, and that will build slowly over the next five years. The main thing is, we want to invest wisely. We don’t want to make mistakes and we want to play the long game. That’s what we’re doing.”

Formula 1 team founder Frank Williams has been discharged from hospital and is now “on the mend at home”. Williams, who was team principal from the team’s creation in 1977 until this year, had been admitted to hospital – reported by the team on December 15 – and that statement said that “Frank’s medical condition is a private matter and therefore the family will not be releasing any further details at this time”. On December 24 the team released a statement to say that Williams had been released from hospital care. “We’re delighted to say that Sir Frank has been discharged from hospital and is now on the mend at home,” read the team’s statement. “The Williams family would like to thank everyone for their support during this difficult time, and to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.” Williams and his then deputy team principal and daughter Claire stepped down from the team at the Monza race following the purchase of the team by Dorilton Capital.

Sebastian Vettel has given a special mention to Maurizio Arrivabene among the most influential people during his Ferrari career. The German driver is moving on from the Scuderia after a six-year spell, during which he recorded 14 race victories but no more World Championships to add to the four he achieved with Red Bull from 2010-13. Aston Martin will be Vettel’s next port of call, replacing Sergio Perez who has subsequently found a place at Red Bull. In an interview with Sky Italia F1, the 33-year-old was asked who the most important person was in his time at Ferrari. Noticeably, given the nature of Vettel’s departure this year when he thought a new contract was in the offing, Mattia Binotto’s name was conspicuous by its absence. Instead, he spoke fondly of Ferrari’s previous team principal, as well as his race engineer with whom he had also teamed up at Toro Rosso. “Riccardo [Adami, track engineer] from my work group, without doubt,” said Vettel. “I travelled with him and it was important to have him as a pillar because we already knew each other. He understood me. In terms of track performance, he was the most important person. “In a larger picture, however, Maurizio Arrivabene. I think that from the outside he was not well understood.” Vettel also referred to the difficult relationship between Arrivabene and Sergio Marchionne, the Ferrari chairman and CEO who died in 2018. “It was not easy to work with Marchionnne,” said Vettel. “He was very particular, he put great pressure on people and with Maurizio he was not always kind. But I think Arrivabene really has a big heart.” Vettel has parted on good terms with his team-mate Charles Leclerc and had further positive words for the driver who, along with new recruit Carlos Sainz, will spearhead Ferrari’s challenge in 2021. “He is certainly very fast and talented,” said Vettel. “He is in a different phase of his career. I was able to learn from him too and it was interesting. I could see something of me in him, as I was 10 years ago. He’s a good guy and I can only say good things. “For sure, this last year has been difficult for me, there were other issues at stake besides having to drive. “But that shouldn’t take away any credit from Charles because everything that is said about him is true – he is strong and mature for his age. He has a bright future ahead of him and will do things right.”

Daniel Ricciardo thinks he has given Lewis Hamilton a gift which will be cherished more than the Brit’s seven world titles – his signed trainer. Ricciardo created the infamous ‘Shoey’ celebration in which he drinks champagne from his sweaty footwear every time he secures a podium place. However, top-three finishes have been hard to come by since Ricciardo left Red Bull for Renault. The charismatic Australian did secure third place twice in 2020 at the Eifel Grand Prix and Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. During the latter, Hamilton drank from Ricciardo’s shoe and he stepped down from top spot on the podium. Ricciardo later gifted his British counterpart the item as a present and he joked it was more valuable than the Championship. “What I do is I air them out,” Ricciardo explained to the In the Fast Lane podcast. “I keep those as little trophies. But I actually, because Lewis did his first, I signed the one he drank out of and gave it to him at the next race, so he’s now got something probably more meaningful than seven world titles.” Hamilton won his seventh world title this season to draw level with Michael Schumacher’s record. Ricciardo impressed in his final year with Renault as he ended the campaign fifth in the standings, ahead of his move to McLaren. The 31-year-old was delighted by his own performance but it was Hamilton who stole the majority of the headlines. “The consistency of him being able to do it, and the few mistakes as well, he’s normally nailing his starts, he’s clean, he just executes well when it counts and that’s really what separates the good and the great in this sport,” Ricciardo said. One of the Renault star’s former Red Bull team-mates Max Verstappen also had a solid year as he was the best of the rest. The pair were close allies during their time with the Austrian energy drink brand and Ricciardo is glad to see him doing well. “He definitely did a large step of his development through 2016 and then 2017,” Riccardo reflected.