Racetrackmasters

Lewis Hamilton can seal a record-equalling seventh drivers’ world title on Sunday (Nov 15), position himself to be “best of the best” and set up long-awaited negotiations for a new Mercedes contract at this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix. The Briton needs only to prevent his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas outscoring him by eight points to retain his crown and, in the eyes of many including former Ferrari rival Felipe Massa, move on to become the most successful in F1 history. A seventh championship would draw him level with Massa’s erstwhile Ferrari team-mate Michael Schumacher for titles, but with the record for wins, poles and podiums, as well as consecutive points finishes, he will in many eyes already be the “greatest of all time”. Brazilian Massa, who himself missed out on a title triumph when Hamilton claimed his first in Sao Paulo in 2008, has no doubt that the Englishman, whose contract expires later this year, will deserve that sobriquet and a salary to match it. “Lewis can really be the best of the best and everybody will say that for years and years, or maybe decades, or whatever,” he told the F1 Nation podcast. “So, I think he is just preparing his two or three-year contract, which I think he deserves. “What he is doing… He shows that he definitely deserves it – to be different to all of the other drivers in terms of everything and even in terms of salary.” Hamilton departed the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola earlier this month with an enigmatic suggestion, after his record-increasing 93rd win had secured Mercedes’ unparalleled seventh consecutive constructors’ championship, that he may not return to racing in 2021. Notions of retirement were rejected by his team chief Toto Wolff, who is also out of contract this year. Massa suggested Hamilton is set for a bumper new deal ahead of any confirmed “salary cap” in the sport. “I remember when Michael was my team-mate and he was like that,” he recalled. “Michael was completely different to everybody in terms of everything – in records, numbers and salary. “For sure, Michael helped many other drivers to increase their salary. That’s what Lewis is, in my view, trying to do. I think he is ‘doing right’ and he deserves it.” In the simplest terms, Hamilton will be champion again if he beats Bottas, who trails him by 85 points with four races remaining. For the Finn to keep alive his own title bid, he must out-score Hamilton by nine points or more. Given that Hamilton has beaten him at 10 of this year’s 13 races to date and has been in the points at a record 46 consecutive races, Bottas faces a daunting challenge. Even if he wins on Sunday at the Istanbul Park Circuit, returning to the calendar for the first time since 2011, Hamilton can still take the title by finishing second and clocking the fastest lap. With the title race reduced to a duel between the two ‘silver arrows’ drivers, many other teams have turned already to plans for next season – Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto deciding to stay in Italy to concentrate on car development. Sporting director Laurent Mekies will take charge, but maintain close contact with Binotto, missing his first race since taking over last year. “He has taken an innovative approach so his voice and input will be heard loud and clear,” he said.

Frédéric Vasseur, the Team Principal of the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN team, says this weekend’s Turkish Grand Prix represents an important milestone for the Hinwil-based team, with the outfit celebrating five-hundred races in Formula 1. The Sauber F1 Team made its debut in Formula 1 at the 1993 South African Grand Prix and scored points that day with JJ Lehto, and although they are now named Alfa Romeo, Sauber are still an integral part of the DNA of the squad. “The 500th race for the team is an important milestone, one that shows the incredible heritage of this outfit: we are now in a very small group in the company of some of the most historical teams in the sport and that shows the strength of our project,” said Vasseur. “As an independent team for most of our history, we have shown that it’s possible to build a long-term project and we are confident the best is yet to come – the next 500 races will be even better.” Vasseur says it would be great to celebrate five hundred races with another good performance, especially on the back of their first two-car points finish of 2020 last time out in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. “It would be nice to celebrate this occasion in style with another good performance, especially after the double points finish we scored in Imola, which was a big confidence boost for the team,” he said. “The progress we have made is a positive, as is scoring points in three of the last five races, but we know there is a lot more work to do before we are where we expect us to be. Returning to Turkey will be another chance to continue on this path: it is another track on which there is not a lot of information available and we can use it to our advantage.” Kimi Räikkönen is renowned for not paying attention to milestones, but the Finn says it is a big milestone for the team, especially those who have been a part of Sauber/Alfa Romeo for the long term, “I am not very interested in numbers, but it’s a big milestone” says Kimi Räikkönen. Räikkönen made his own Formula 1 debut with Sauber back in the 2001 Australian Grand Prix and scored a point that day (after the penalisation of Olivier Panis ahead of him), so has played a part in the team’s history. “This weekend’s event will be race 500 for the team: I am not very interested in numbers, but it’s a big milestone, especially for all the people who have been working for the team in all these years,” commented Räikkönen. Räikkönen is a former winner of the Turkish Grand Prix having won the inaugural race back in 2005, and he is excited to see what a modern-day car can do around Intercity Istanbul Park. However, he does doubt whether or not turn eight will be as exciting in 2020 as it was in previous years. “As for the race, it’s nice to come back to a place like Turkey,” said the Finn. “It’s a track that made for good racing in the past, so it will be interesting to see how the modern Formula One cars do on it. “Everyone talks about turn eight but, with the performance cars have now, it may not be as impressive from within the cockpit: of course, it will be nice to watch, but there are many other corners where a driver can make the difference there.” Team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi says the team can be proud of reaching the five-hundred race milestone, and he hopes they can celebrate by returning to the points this Sunday, “I am sure everyone is really proud of our history,” says Antonio Giovinazzi. Points have been hard to get this year with Alfa Romeo having scored only eight points across the opening thirteen races, with Giovinazzi having scored four of those thanks to a ninth place finish in the Austrian Grand Prix and tenth place finishes in the Eifel and Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Giovinazzi has never raced before at Istanbul Park, although he is eager to get the weekend underway on Friday having watched footage from the circuit of previous races there. “It’s going to be a special weekend for the team, 500 races is an incredible milestone and the fact only three other teams ever made it to this number before shows just how impressive an achievement this is,” said Giovinazzi. “This is a team that feels like a family and I am sure everyone is really proud of our history, so hopefully we will have a good race to celebrate in the best way. “I have never raced in Turkey, it’s going to be a completely new experience for me but I’ve been watching footage of the last events there and it seems like a great track: I can’t wait to be in the car on Friday.”

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff is wary that Honda, their biggest engine rival will ‘give it a big go’ in its final engine supply partnership with Redbull in 2021. The Mercedes boss has put a huge emphasis that his team cannot afford to let their guard down for the 2021 Formula 1 Season because their hugest engine rival, Honda will ‘give it a big go’ in its final campaign supplying redbull with power units. The fifth 1-2 finish for the Mercedes team at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix sealed a seventh title for the Constructors championship for Mercedes despite four more races remaining in the 2020 Formula 1 Season. The team also has guarantee to win the driver’s championship with Lewis Hamilton as he has dominated by winning all but two of the 13 races held so far. It will be expected that Mercedes will carry on their performance advantage to 2021 as the Formula 1 teams will be expected to continue using their current cars after development was restricted in a bid to cut costs due to the financial impacts of the Corona virus pandemic. Mercedes have already stopped developing their 2020 W11 car as Redbull on the other hand have recently made improvements that have made Max Verstappen step up his challenge. Honda have also admitted working on developing a new power unit as a part of a bid to top the charts on its final Formula 1 journey in 2021. Wolff was asked if he was worried about Redbull’s rise in performance and he replied, “We always worry, because you can say that this season was probably our strongest and with the biggest gap, but there was rarely more than three cars in front.” “Max is also doing a fantastic job. He’s probably driving better than the car is actually capable of bringing. It’s like a deja vu every single weekend where you have these three amigos out in front and he’s just clinging on with his finger tips to the Mercedes.” “Therefore next year, Honda is going to give it a big go I guess in the last season, and everybody at Red Bull is going to be motivated. Last but not least, Max.” Toto Wolff also added that everything is being done to try and stop the Mercedes dominance when the next major regulations overhaul will come in to force from 2022. It includes an all-new car, budget cap and revised prize money structure. “Next year will be a transitional year with the same machines,” he explained. “As I’ve said before, I expect Honda to give it a big push. “And then obviously this big challenge of 2022 is on the doorstep. That will motivate us. “Everything has been done to stop us. We will all fight on a level playing field financially and everything is pretty much capped. “I’d like to see us continue to perform well, even through this most dramatic regulatory change that has ever happened in F1.”

Formula 1 has unveiled its provisional 2021 calendar, featuring 22 confirmed rounds and a TBC slot in April. As expected, the Vietnamese Grand Prix has been cut from the schedule, leaving a gap between the Chinese and Spanish races. However, it is still technically a 23-round calendar, with the April 25 date listed a TBC. The season will start in Melbourne on March 21, followed by Bahrain a week later and China on April 11. That’s followed by the TBC event on April 25, the Spanish Grand Prix – which is still subject to contract – the first European round on May 9. Monaco (May 23), Baku (June 6) and Montreal (June 13) are next, before trips to Paul Ricard (June 27), the Red Bull Ring (July 4), Silverstone (July 18), and the Hungaroring (August 1). Most of August is then soaked up by the summer break, action returning with Spa-Francorchamps (August 29) and the long-awaited return of the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort on September 5. That’s followed by Monza (September 12), Sochi (September 26), Singapore (October 3), Suzuka (October 10), Circuit of the Americas (October 24), and Mexico (October 31). The Brazilian Grand Prix on November 14 is still listed as Interlagos, although that too is subject to contract. The season then concludes with the new Jeddah race in Saudi Arabia on November 28 followed by Abu Dhabi on December 5. F1’s chairman and CEO Chase Carey said that he hopes the, despite the pandemic, events will be “close to normal” next year, including having fans through the gates. “We are pleased to announce the 2021 Formula 1 provisional calendar after extensive conversations with our promoters, the teams and the FIA,” said . “We are planning for 2021 events with fans that provide an experience close to normal and expect our agreements to be honoured. We have proven that we can safely travel and operate our races and our promoters increasingly recognise the need to move forward and manage the virus. “In fact, many hosts actually want to use our event as a platform to show the world they are moving forward. “We are delighted to see Saudi Arabia become part of the schedule and are equally excited to return to the venues we hoped to race at in 2020. “We want to thank all our promoters and partners for their ongoing enthusiasm and collaboration and look forward to giving our fans an exciting season on the track.”

Lewis Hamilton has been backed to extend his stay with Mercedes because Valtteri Bottas is the only F1 driver who can get anywhere near him. The Brit is on the cusp of winning a seventh F1 Drivers Championship. He’s way ahead of his Finnish team-mate and former Formula One star Max Chilton can’t see him leaving. Hamilton has been coy about what the future holds, with the Brit refusing to commit to Mercedes for the time being. He’s been with them ever since 2013, where he left McLaren, while Bottas has been with them since quitting Williams back in 2017. Hamilton has been dominant of F1 in recent years and Chilton thinks that, with Bottas the only driver who can near him at present, there’s no chance of him jumping ship and he also believes the 35-year-old will retire once he’s won the crown for an eighth time. “In short, I can’t see Lewis leaving Mercedes,” Chilton wrote in his column for GQ Magazine, “Lewis clearly wants a record 8th world title, and the best place for that to happen is with Mercedes.” “They have the best car, so why would he want to bring this record-breaking partnership to an end? “We have seen this season that the only driver who has put him under pressure is his teammate Valtteri Bottas, so why give up that advantage? “What I can see happening is Lewis doing one more year with Mercedes, winning that record-breaking 8th title, and then retiring.” “I can’t see him following Fernando Alonso in trying to win the triple crown and competing in Le Mans, Dakar and the Indy 500. I also can’t see him going to Ferrari like so many champions before him.” “What drives Lewis on, race after race, season after season, is an unmatched competitive spirit – and if the car is not performing to his expectations, it could quickly turn into a nightmare.”

Vietnam’s first Formula One Grand Prix in Hanoi, cancelled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, has been dropped from next year’s calendar, following the arrest of a key officials responsible for organising the race. The BBC said the move followed the arrest in August of Hanoi People’s Committee chairman Nguyen Duc Chung. A source with knowledge of next year’s calendar confirmed to Reuters that the race was not listed. Chung was arrested in August for alleged appropriation of documents containing state secrets. The case is not related to his involvement in the grand prix. However, Chung was the key figure in the race being introduced and championed it with the national government. Formula One said the draft schedule would be issued on Tuesday. The calendar will still have to be approved by the governing FIA’s World Motor Sport Council, usually a formality, and will include at least one new race with a stop off in Jeddah for the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in November. It is expected to be the penultimate race of the year, with the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix bringing the curtain down on 2021. The calendar could extend to 23 Grands Prix – a new record – if F1 bosses can find a replacement for Vietnam. The return of some of the circuits used this year to patch gaps left by cancellations due to the pandemic. Portugal’s Algarve circuit, Imola in Italy and Turkey’s Istanbul track would be the leading contenders to take Vietnam’s April 25 slot. Brazil is also set to remain on the calendar, despite earlier doubts, with South America’s only race returning to Sao Paulo’s Interlagos circuit in November rather than one yet to be built in Rio de Janeiro.

Romain Grosjean says George Russell was the only driver on the grid to send him a message of support after Haas announced the Frenchman’s exit from its team for 2021. Grosjean and teammate Kevin Magnussen have both been dismissed by Haas, a decision that could signal the end of the pair’s career in Formula 1. There’s obviously little compassion among F1 drivers when a rival is forced to head to the unemployment line, but Russell felt compelled to offer a few words of support to Grosjean. “I’ve had a good relationship with George,” said the 34-year-old Frenchman. “When the announcement was made that I wasn’t going to be with the team next season, he was the first and only one to send me a WhatsApp message. That really shows that he’s a great guy.” Grosjean returned the support recently when Russell crashed behind the Safety Car at the Emilia Romagna GP, a blunder that reminded him of an embarrassing and costly mistake of his own at the Azerbaijan GP in 2018. “I know how painful it is to crash under a Safety Car period, especially when it’s going to be your first point of the season,” he said. “I believe it was the same for me at Baku in 2018.” “In the lower part of the field, you really need to work the tyres a lot. I’ve said it many times, if I was doing Baku again, I’d probably do the same thing as I did three seasons ago.” “George didn’t do anything crazy, but he just lost the car. It was a tough day for him, but he’ll have plenty more [good days] to come.”

Redbull driver Alexander Albon has made it clear that he wouldn’t be happy returning to AlphaTauri should he lose his Red Bull race seat. Albon is in a race against time to save his current job as number two driver to Max Verstappen. Although Red Bull initially set a two-race target for Albon to save his seat, Portugal and Imola, that has been extended to the final lap of the very last race of the season. However, calls to put Nico Hulkenberg or Sergio Perez in the car continue to grow with even Max Verstappen reportedly wanting Hulkenberg as his 2021 team-mate. Albon is doing his best not to listen to the rumours. “There’s talk, there’ll always be talk,” said the Thai driver, “but at the end of the day, I know listening to whatever has to be said doesn’t change anything on-track.” “My focus is more on driving and the results more than anything else.” “I know that if I focus on that, all the other stuff will quiet down a bit. These things happen, but I focus on the job and that’s all that matters.” Should he fail to keep his Red Bull seat there are three options: he would return to AlphaTauri to partner Pierre Gasly, he could take up a test driver role or he could be out of Formula 1 entirely. Asked if he’d accept a demotion to AlphaTauri, he replied: “No, not at all.” “I think it’s every driver’s dream to race for a top team like Red Bull, and my intention is to stay here.” Red Bull meanwhile have made it clear that they want Albon to succeed and continue at the team next season. “It’s Alex’s seat,” said team boss Christian Horner. “He’s got his bum in the car and everyone wants to see him retain that seat.” “I think he has to block out the outside noise, get his head down, just have a good weekend.” While AlphaTauri waits on Red Bull to decide its 2021 line up, the junior team is preparing Yuki Tsunoda should a seat be available.

Daniel Ricciardo says his personal helmet collection is “coming on”, boosted by the trades he does with other drivers every year. But the Aussie is eager to add one special lid to his lot in the future. F1 drivers who are avid collectors often exchange helmets at the end of a campaign, with Fernando Alonso a leading proponent of the practice. Every season, the Spaniard adds a few more prestigious pieces of memorabilia to the vast exhibit housed at his museum at Llanera in the Asturias and Ricciardo is now slowly building up a collection of his own. “The helmet collection is coming on. Each year, I will try to do a couple of swaps and it is cool,” he said,” quoted by Motorsport.com. “I like to keep a collection for myself with my designs, but I also like to trade with another driver. “For a driver it is the biggest sign of respect, so that is always fun. So we will see who we will do swaps with this year.“But helmets take up a lot of space, so I need to start organising a proper room to keep them all in. But it is a nice problem to have.” And whose precious lid is the future McLaren driver hoping to get his hands on next? “To be honest, Sebastian,” replied Ricciardo. “I haven’t done a swap with Sebastian and, because he was a teammate, it would be nice to do that. “Maybe I have a bit more time as he is staying in the sport a little longer, but if he retired this year I had better get in quick. I’ll have to ask Sebastian as I am yet to do that yet.” Last month, after Lewis Hamilton’s milestone win at the Eifel GP that allowed him to match the 91-win record in F1 of Michael Schumacher, the Briton was presented by the great German’s son Mick with a helmet that the seven-time world champion had used during the 2012 season. Ricciardo thought the gift was “one of the coolest” he’s ever seen in the sport, although the seven-time Grand Prix winner admitted to being rewarded with a few great bonuses of his own in the past. “I’ve got some nice gifts for sure,” he said. “Leaving Toro Rosso, now AlphaTauri, they gave me a steering wheel which I thought was really awesome. “And then Red Bull gave me a dirt bike, so that was pretty awesome as well. I feel quite spoilt with these gifts.”