Racetrackmasters

Formula 1’s 2021 season is set to begin in Bahrain with the Australian Grand Prix likely to be postponed due to quarantine requirements making a March race unviable. Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic Melbourne was announced in its traditional season opener slot in F1’s provisional 2021 calendar last year and remained in that place when the schedule was rubber-stamped by the FIA. Initially, F1 was confident the grand prix would be possible due to the local government’s handling of the pandemic thus far and the plans it hoped would be sufficient for the race to be held safely. F1 pulled off 17 races from July through to December last year with strict procedures in place and a repeat of the biosphere-based protocols that had to be implemented in the Abu Dhabi season finale was understood to be at the centre of F1’s plan for Australia. This would have meant F1 personnel travelling to Australia and staying in accommodation separately to the public, with movements restricted between hotels and the circuit. That concept allowed F1 to circumvent 14-day quarantine requirements in Abu Dhabi last year and it was hoped this would avoid having to spend two weeks in isolation in Australia as well. However, the Victorian government has made a two-week quarantine mandatory for personnel around the Australian Open tennis tournament and it is believed that F1 would be subject to the same rules. This would mean personnel travelling to Melbourne almost three weeks before the grand prix, to allow enough time for the usual activities before the race to take place after the quarantine period. That is not feasible. In addition to the problems caused by the amount of time F1 personnel would have to spend in Australia to make the race happen, F1’s sole three-day pre-season test is currently scheduled for March 2-4. Personnel would need to be in Australia by this point and moving testing forward by more than a week would be a big disruption. As such, the race is likely to be postponed. A decision, first reported by Racefans, will be officially made and communicated shortly as preparations for the grand prix must begin no later than January. However, the race is not expected to be cancelled, with the hope of rescheduling it to later in the year with a place among the end-of-year flyaways in Asia, the Americas, and the Middle-East. “In 2020 we proved that we could return to racing safely and delivered what many thought was impossible in March,” said F1 in a statement. “We have set out our 2021 calendar and look forward to the return of F1 in March this year.” ‘March’ is set to mean the Bahrain Grand Prix, which is scheduled for March 28. It was originally planned as the second part of a double-header after Australia. Bahrain facilitated two grands prix at the end of 2020 amid the pandemic, including one race on the ‘Outer’ circuit. Its date will not move if it does become the season opener as expected. However, the change could mean pre-season testing shifts to the Sakhir circuit. Presently the pre-season plan is for Barcelona to host the three days of testing, but Bahrain was in the running initially and could become the venue after all to tie in with the opener. It is unclear if the dates would be changed. An expansion of the three-day test seems unlikely given it was reduced for cost reasons not because of timing restrictions. Moving the test closer to the season opener might appeal but would be subject to a vote between stakeholders.

First Max Verstappen took Daniil Kvyat’s seat at Red Bull now he’s dating his ex-girlfriend. Verstappen, 23, has gone public with his new romance with Kelly Piquet, a 32-year-old Brazilian model who is the daughter of three-time F1 world champion Nelson Piquet. Kvyat and Piquet dated for three years before ending their relationship in late-2019 but share a one-year-old daughter, Penelope. Verstappen, who only separated from long-time girlfriend Dilara Sanlik in October, has now swooped in. He posted a photograph of himself sitting with Piquet on a beach on New Year’s Day. “Happy New Year everyone!” he wrote. “Let’s make 2021 a year to remember in many ways. Wishing you all success, love and happiness just as I found mine.” Piquet also posted a picture of the new couple, writing: “Love is what makes the world go round. Happy new year and much love.” Verstappen replaced Kvyat as Daniel Ricciardo’s teammate at Red Bull in 2016. He has gone on to become one of the biggest stars in the sport, while Russia’s Kvyat finds himself without a seat for 2021. Kvyat was first spotted with Piquet in 2016 but they split just before Christmas in 2019, less than five months after the birth of their daughter. “It’s not a good thing, but Daniil seems balanced,” Red Bull boss Helmut Marko said at the time. “Therefore, we do not want to interfere, because private matters should remain private.” F1 fans first started getting curious about a potential relationship between Verstappen and Piquet in early November when he commented on one of her Instagram posts. After Piquet wrote “Darker than the ocean, deeper than the sea, you got everything, you got what I need”, Verstappen replied “Together we can face challenges as deep as the sea and as high as the sky”.

Lewis Hamilton has reportedly made four demands during contract talks with Mercedes and the Silver Arrows are weighing up whether to pander to the Brit or turn their attentions to George Russell, who is set to race for Williams. Hamilton has dragged out contract talks with Mercedes all year and Motorsport’s Italian branch claims he has a list of requests. The first is that his salary rises to £35.5million a year, which would ensure he remains as the highest paid driver on the grid. A second demand is that Hamilton apparently wants a 10 per cent share of Mercedes’ prize money should they win the Championship. Mercedes earned around £130million for winning a seventh consecutive world title in 2020 – so that would mean Hamilton could take home a £13m bonus. A third request is that Mercedes gift the seven-time world champion one of their upcoming, limited-production AMG One cars. The two-door coupe is set to feature F1-derived technology and only 250 will be manufactured. Motorsport.com adds that Hamilton also wants to be offered a role that ‘goes beyond being a driver and more than a mere testimonial’. That means the 35-year-old is apparently desperate for a hands-on job where he can help drive the Silver Arrows’ approach into electric transition. It is yet to be seen if Toto Wolff and his co-owners will give in to Hamilton’s request but Daimler are using George Russell as a threat, the report adds.

Lewis Hamilton is officially unemployed at the moment. The seven-time world champion’s contract with Mercedes expired on 1st January and a renewal has still not been signed. In the background, a lot seems to be happening at the moment. Toto Wolff has been arguing for months that the extension of Hamilton’s contract should not be a problem, but the Italian branch of Motorsport.com know otherwise on Sunday. According to the reliable medium, the British driver’s salary requirements are too high for its parent company Daimler. Hamilton could earn 40 million a year, on top of which there would be a 10% bonus for winning the world championship. Reportedly, the 35-year-old driver has rejected that offer. We do not know what Hamilton’s counter-proposal was. Wolff would be prepared to wait for Lewis’ decision until the winter tests in Barcelona. However, Ola Kallenius, Chairman of Daimler, is not of the same opinion and is putting pressure on Wolff to close the deal as soon as possible. The Swedish top man also thinks it is fine to promote Russell and would threaten to do so. Taking the young driver away from Williams is no problem, as Russell is still a Mercedes junior. The problem seems to be that Hamilton’s attitude cannot count on the approval of Daimler’s board of directors. Mercedes’ parent company has given Wolff a full mandate to close the deal as soon as possible, but the Austrian team boss has been given a list of conditions and restrictions. Mercedes, too, is suffering from the coronavirus crisis. The German brand has therefore announced heavy cuts and it would therefore be illogical to reward Hamilton for a hefty salary increase.

Mercedes owners Daimler are reportedly willing to give George Russell a shot in 2021. Lewis Hamilton is technically a free agent as he has no F1 contract for the 2021 campaign. The Brit is still negotiating with Mercedes but their co-owners Daimler are reportedly not keen on giving in to Hamilton’s demands. Hamilton is apparently holding out for a deal worth £35.5million-a-year, which will ensure he remains as the best paid driver on the grid. The 35-year-old will create history next year if he surpasses Michael Schumacher’s record with an eighth world title. Mercedes are expected to continue their dominance which has seen them scoop the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships for the past seven seasons. Hamilton is keen to drive the best car on the field to help strengthen his claim of being the greatest of all time. But Motorsport.com’s Italian branch reports that Mercedes co-owners Daimler, who have a third of the shares, are not happy with Hamilton’s attitude. Their board of directors are apparently keen to go ahead with offering Williams ace George Russell the position. Russell stepped in for Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix and would have won the race had it not been for a horrific double-stacked pit stop and late puncture. Daimler president Ola Kallenius has given Toto Wolff a mandate to close the deal as soon as possible, but with a series of constraints, according to Motorsport.com. Wolff committed his future to Mercedes last month when he penned a three-year contract extension to remain as team principal. Valtteri Bottas is also under contract until the end of next season, but talks with Hamilton are continuing to rumble on. “We are not worried about eventually getting it done,” Wolff said last month. “We are not putting a special date to it because we don’t want to be under pressure. “Sooner or later it needs to be done and at the latest before we go testing [ahead of the 2021 season].” Meanwhile, former F1 star Mark Webber believes Wolff holds the stronger hand at the negotiating table because of how he used Russell at the Sakhir Grand Prix. “The timing [of the positive coronavirus test] for Lewis was just horrible,” Webber told At The Controls podcast. “I think we all thought during the season ‘imagine if Lewis or someone in the Championship battle got Covid and missed a few races’. “I think I drove 1,000 days in a Formula 1 car with testing, practice, Grand Prix weekends, the whole thing put together over 12 or 13 years, and I think I had three days off. “That’s because I don’t want anyone near my car. You try to look after your own share price, you don’t want people to have exposure to your material, your people. “It’s such a cut-throat industry, even someone like Lewis that was all downside for him. “George drove well. It was the easiest track in the world – it wasn’t exactly Suzuka – but he still drove brilliantly in a compromised ergonomic environment in the car. “Toto certainly likes the tightrope in terms of playing the game with lots of different things in the pit lane, and that was another one where it looks like it’s come out in his favour.”

Daimler, the parent company of Mercedes and a shareholder of the Silver Arrows, reportedly blocked a new $50 million per year deal that Lewis Hamilton was set to sign during the 2020 F1 season. “In November, when Formula 1 went to Turkey, a contract was ready that meets Hamilton’s requirements: a four-year contract with a salary of 50 million a year. Daimler, however, put a stop to that,” Italy’s Corriere Dello Sport has reported. Daimler currently owns just a third of the Mercedes F1 Team following restructuring last month which resulted in Ineos purchasing a third of the team and Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff increasing his shareholding to 33.33 percent. Hamilton and Wolff have repeatedly insisted that the only reason a new deal hasn’t been inked is because they have had other priorities to manage. “If you refer to why haven’t we got a signed contract? The reason is simple. We always prioritised getting this Championship done, and not being distracted by sometimes difficult discussions, as is the nature of negotiation. But then COVID struck,” Wolff said last month. “So it has delayed us a little bit, but we are not worried in eventually getting it done,” the Austrian added, saying he expects a new contract to be inked “sooner or later.” Specifically, Wolff said it could take until just before pre-season testing in March for a contract extension to be agreed.

Nikita Mazepin, in 2021 one of the new drivers at Haas, hasn’t ridden a single meter during an official Grand Prix, but came into disrepute last month anyway. After posting a video in which he touched a woman, a call was made on the internet to keep the Russian out of Formula 1. This does not seem to be happening, but the first sponsor has now spoken out. It concerns Jack&Jones, the personal sponsor of Kevin Magnussen. The clothing brand won’t be a sponsor of the team from 2021 onwards and therefore now feels free to distance itself from Mazepin and Haas. It can’t be said this statement and its timing is very heroic, as they have waited for their contract to officially expire, yet the company’s position is welcomed by a number of F1 journalists and followers.

As part of his training, Haas’ Nikita Mazepin is using the same sensors as seen in lie detector tests to help control stress. The Russian racer is set to make his Formula 1 debut in 2021 with Haas, where he will partner fellow Formula 2 graduate and 2020 champion Mick Schumacher. Mazepin finished P5 in the 2020 F2 standings, picking up two race wins and a further four P2 finishes, a vast improvement on his 2019 efforts when he finished that F2 season with only 11 points. And Mazepin credited his coaches with picking him up off his knees in 2019, and will continue working with them in Formula 1. “After I had an absolute complete failure in 2019, we decided to regroup 90 per cent of my entourage,” Mazepin told Match TV, as quoted by Motorsport.com. “I changed from two coaches: now I have one, a physiotherapist, who is a professional in his field, and one coach, who is responsible for my physical training. “And I plan to move to F1 with them – the people who raised me from my knees in motorsport, I really need to try to succeed in the next years too.” Mazepin has also been working with a member of the Ferrari team – they train using the same sensors as seen in lie detector tests to measure Mazepin’s reaction to different situations and control stress. “I’ve been working with an Italian for the last three years, who also works with the Ferrari team. We prepare with the same kind of sensors that are used in lie detector tests,” he said. “That is, you collect a lot of information from your body and try to control them [certain indicators] with your breathing and other things to reduce stress in moments of heavy pressure at the beginning of the race – or at the end of the race when you’re defending your position.” Mazepin has tested Formula 1 machinery in the past with Force India and Mercedes, and the Russian driver said he is working on his neck ahead of his debut Formula 1 campaign in 2021, remembering how in his first test back in 2016 with Force India he had to stop early due to the pain. “My focus is on my neck. We were talking about my first Formula 1 tests – and I had to end them early because I hurt it,” he said. “The feeling you get when you hit the brakes after a long straight… it feels like you’re hitting the wall. Because the cars are so good at braking.”

The first day of 2021 means that from now on Racing Point will be known as Aston Martin. The team immediately shared a preview of the livery colours for the upcoming Formula 1 season. The team started the day with a tweet that reads: “New year, new me,” with a picture of their new logo. In addition, they posted a video on their YouTube channel, containing an animation in style of the Formula 1 intro video. The animation consists of green stripes with yellow accents, and it is expected that these will be their livery colors for 2021.

It’s finally happened. After years of speculation and waiting, though admittedly not on his part, Lewis Hamilton has finally been knighted. Arise, Sir Lewis Hamilton. The Formula One champion was made a knight in the New Year Honors list just hours ago, both Sky Sports and the Daily Mail confirm. The distinction was only possible after Prime Minister Boris Johnson, admittedly “under pressure” to make it happen, moved Hamilton to the Diplomatic and Overseas list, which meant he could be granted the title even though he’s no longer a UK resident. “The 2021 New Year Honors offer us an opportunity to salute their dedication and recognize many who have gone above and beyond in their contribution to our country,” PM Johnson said in a statement. Hamilton was presented with an MBE (Member Of The Most Excellent Order Of The British Empire) in 2009, and many believed it was high time his title was “upgraded” to knight, especially considering his accomplishments in the sports, his activism and his charitable work. However, the fact that he moved residence from the UK to Monaco and Switzerland, so he wouldn’t have to pay taxes back home, worked against him in receiving said upgrade earlier. For his part, Hamilton always said the move was a necessary one because he spends most of his time overseas anyway. During this time, he still paid taxes in the UK, but they only covered a fraction of the money he made. Even so, according to a recent report, the HMRC’s UK income Tax Liabilities Statistics for 2019 ranks him among the highest 5,000 taxpayers in the country. By being included in the Diplomatic and Overseas list (Hamilton is the first sports figure to have had this accommodation made for him), Hamilton’s knighthood means he’s being awarded for work done abroad to give “exceptional service to the UK.” It also means a technicality was used to sidestep the fact that he’s not paying full taxes here. In short, the backstory to Hamilton’s road to knighthood is a convoluted and, some would say, typically complicated for the Brits. The recognition is way overdue, his supporters believe, but that’s not stopping “haters” from claiming he shouldn’t be given the highest distinction possible for a civilian in a country he no longer calls home. Even one the publications confirming the news does so with the headline “Arise, Sir Tax Exile,” which may be typical of a tabloid but is also indicative of how many must be feeling right now.

Red Bull driver programme boss Dr Helmut Marko said his team are “done” with the Daniil Kvyat topic, suggesting no prospect of a third stint. The Russian driver was recalled to the Red Bull fold ahead of the 2019 season and placed in the Toro Rosso team alongside Alex Albon. But after two seasons with the outfit now known as AlphaTauri, Kvyat was dropped from the programme completely again with Yuki Tsunoda brought in to replace him at AlphaTauri for 2021. And Marko said that another return for Kvyat down the line was out of the question, saying Red Bull are “done” with that topic. “The topic is done for us,” Marko told Motorsport-Total.com. “In the last two or three races, he showed some speed.” However, with Kvyat “always behind” former team-mate Pierre Gasly in Marko’s words, the boss felt that “with all the routine and experience he has, that’s too little.” Kvyat admitted that it was frustrating for him in the early stages of 2020 since the AT01 didn’t work well with his driving style, but ultimately Kvyat got on top of the car and inspired some changes which allowed him to improve his overall performance. Ultimately P4 at Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was Kvyat’s best result and performance of the season. “When that happens, you get frustrated very quickly,” said Kvyat about his struggle to become comfortable in the AlphaTauri early in the season. That being said, he didn’t want that to become an excuse, praising the performances that team-mate Gasly delivered on the other side of the garage. “Of course it would have helped. You always want to start the season well. But I don’t want to talk too much about that because Pierre also drove a fantastic year. We just would have been closer together from the start,” said Kvyat. “Sometimes he made it into Q3 and I was eliminated in Q2. That’s when I often thought to myself, ‘Sh*t!’ I would have liked to be able to fight with him in Q3.” But, with Kvyat’s performances following a generally upward curve in the latter stages of the season, he “proved that it worked,” referring to the updates which he pushed for. Kvyat is now of course familiar with the feeling of being ditched by Red Bull, so this time around he made sure that the uncertainty didn’t influence his performances. “Maybe a few years ago it would have frustrated me a lot more, which would have affected my performance and motivation a lot. But this year, I still stayed cool and worked hard,” he explained.

Lewis Hamilton will be knighted after Boris Johnson bypassed concerns over the world champion’s tax status by placing him on the ‘Diplomatic and Overseas List’. It is understood that no previous British sporting figure has been accommodated in this controversial way — a measure of the Prime Minister’s desire to see Hamilton recognised in the New Year Honours on Thursday after the Mercedes star won his seventh Formula One title in November. The 35-year-old was born in Stevenage, Hertfordshire and grew up on a council estate before becoming grand prix racing’s first black driver. He has spent this year campaigning for greater diversity in his sport. Hamilton, who is worth more than £250million, has lived in tax exile in Monaco for a decade, having first moved from the UK to Switzerland after completing his debut season in 2007. Former Labour Cabinet minister Lord Hain, vice-chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Formula One, has twice written to Downing Street with evidence that Hamilton is among the top 5,000 UK taxpayers. But the sport honours committee did not believe this clinched the argument because Hamilton’s Monaco residency meant HMRC could not adequately vet his tax affairs — a prerequisite for all domestic awards. The Prime Minister has since sidestepped this concern by using the ‘Overseas’ designation that ‘recognises people who have given exceptional service to the UK abroad and internationally’. Hamilton, who was awarded the MBE in 2008 after his first world title, will become the fourth F1 driver to be knighted, following Sir Jack Brabham, Sir Stirling Moss and Sir Jackie Stewart. Hamilton won BBC Sports Personality of the Year for a second time last weekend. A source close to the Government told Sportsmail: ‘Boris made it clear he wanted Lewis knighted so everyone was backed into a corner.

Nico Hulkenberg was given only 10 minutes’ notice that Sergio Perez would be announced instead of him as a Red Bull driver next year. The German was in the reckoning to replace Alex Albon for 2021 after putting his name in the frame with impressive performances in the Racing Point when deputising for Perez and Lance Stroll while they were sidelined due to illness. Those were Hulkenberg’s only F1 drives of 2020 having been dropped by Renault at the end of the previous season to make way for Esteban Ocon. Although the 33-year-old former Williams, Force India and Sauber driver had reportedly been Max Verstappen’s first choice as his next team-mate, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner claimed talks had never got beyond a “brief discussion”. However, in an interview with Motorsport-total.com, Dr Helmut Marko, Red Bull’s head of driver development, admitted Hulkenberg had only been informed just before the official confirmation of Perez’s signing that he would not be getting the job. Reminded that Albon had been told shortly before the announcement that he was being demoted to reserve driver for 2021, Marko was asked whether Hulkenberg knew earlier that he would be passed over. “No. I called him 10 minutes beforehand and told him that unfortunately it wouldn’t work,” said the 77-year-old Austrian. Marko also revealed that Perez and Hulkenberg had each approached Red Bull rather than vice versa, just after the time when the Mexican was informed by Racing Point that his contract for 2021 was being ripped up and Sebastian Vettel coming in to replace him. “Both of them asked us,” said Marko. “In autumn, at the races in Italy [Monza and Mugello in September] it got more intense.” Ultimately, as well as Perez’s superb form throughout 2020, his recent knowledge of driving a car with a Mercedes engine swung the decision his way, according to Marko. Red Bull are keen to tap in to what Perez has learned about the Mercedes power unit as they aim to launch a World Championship challenge next year. “It spoke for him [Perez] that he had driven the Mercedes engine for many seasons and knew about drivability, responsiveness and all these things,” said Marko. “’Hülki was last at Renault. The three races he drove [for Racing Point] with the Mercedes engine, you probably can’t take it because he was more busy adjusting to the car than collecting data.”