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  • Verstappen signs until 2028

    Verstappen signs until 2028

    World champion, Max Verstappen has signed a bumper five year contract extension with Red Bull, which keeps him with the team until at least the end of 2028.

    The Dutchman took the victory on the final lap of Abu Dhabi in which he clinched his maiden world championship, after a spectacular season fight with Lewis Hamilton.

    Red Bull, now enter a new era this year, as the team departed from engine partner, Honda and have taken over the intellectual property for the engine and set up their own division on their campus in Milton Keynes.

    Verstappen’s previous deal ran until the end of next season (2023), but both Max & Red Bull were keen to extend a successful partnership.

    The new contract is said to be worth in the region of €40-50m (£33.3 – 41.7m) a year, which would make it among the most lucrative in the history of F1.

    Verstappen said: “I really enjoy being part of Red Bull Racing, so choosing to stay to the 2028 season was an easy decision. I love this team and last year was simply incredible. Our goal since we came together in 2016 was to win the championship and we have done that, so now it’s about keeping the number one on the car long-term.”

    Red Bull boss Christian Horner added: “To have Max signed with Red Bull through to the end of ‘28 is a real statement of intent. Our immediate focus is on retaining Max’s world championship title, but this deal also shows he is part of the team’s long-term planning. With the Red Bull Powertrains division working towards the new engine regulations for 2026 we wanted to make sure we had the best driver on the grid secured for that car.”

    My Opinion-

    After, Max winning the championship last year we all knew a new contract would happen and to add 5 years on to his exisiting contract shows how much both Max & Red Bull have faith and trust in each other.

    I cannot see Max going to another team, as all his known is Red Bull, having been brought up by the junior team in his career, to then move to Toro Rosso and then RB, they seem like the perfect fit.

  • Mazepin banned from British GP

    Russian Formula 1 driver, Nikita Mazepin is banned from competing in the British Grand Prix after Motorsport UK announced their response to the situation in Ukraine.

    On Tuesday the 1st March, the Haas driver looked likely to be allowed to compete in the sport this season after the FIA confirmed Russian and Belarusian drivers could race under a neutral flag.

    However, the chair of Motorsport UK David Richards CBE along with the board of the organisation has confirmed in a statement released today, that Mazepin would not be able to race at Silverstone in the beginning of July, unless the situation changes.

    The decision was made in full consultation with the UK Government and national sports governing bodies to ensure there is a unilateral response.

    “The entire Motorsport UK community condemns the acts of war by Russia and Belarus in Ukraine and expresses its solidarity and support towards all those affected by the ongoing conflict.” Richards said. “We stand united with the people of Ukraine and the motorsport community following the invasion and the unacceptable actions that have unfolded. This is a time for the international motorsport community to act and show support for the people of Ukraine and our colleagues at the Federation Automobile d’Ukraine (FAU). Motorsport UK stands united with Leonid Kostyuchenko, the President of the FAU, the Ukrainian motorsport community and the Ukrainian people and calls for the violence to end with a peaceful resolution.”

    FIA president Mohammed bin Sulayem said in a statement on Tuesday: “The FIA is watching the developments in Ukraine with sadness and shock and I hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to the present situation. We condemn the Russian invasion of Ukraine and our thoughts are with all those suffering as a result of the events in Ukraine.”

    In the statement, the FIA added: “Russian/Belarusian drivers, individual competitors and officials to participate in international/zone competitions only in their neutral capacity and under the ‘FIA flag’, subject to specific commitment and adherence to the FIA’s principles of peace and political neutrality.”

  • Azman joins HiTech

    Nazim Azman, joins HiTech Grand Prix for the 2022 campaign, which makes him the first Malaysian driver to race in Formula 3. Azman completes HiTech’s line-up, joining Kaylen Frederick and Isack Hadjar.

    The Malaysian racer, spent the 2021 season in the Euroformula Open, where he won once and took seven podiums to finish 4th overall.

    He then spent all three days of post-season testing in Valencia, the first two with Jenzer Motorsport and the final with Charouz Racing System as he got his first taste of F3 machinery.

    Azman made his single seater debut in the 2016-17 season of Formula 4 SEA and has since gained further experience with races in Spanish F4, SMP F4, Formula Masters Asian Series and Italian f4.

    The 20 year old, then spent two season in BRDC British F3, where he finished third with Carlin in 2020, before making the move to Euroformula.

    “I’m really excited to be stepping up to the FIA F3 series with Hitech GP,” said Azman. “The team is an established race and championship winner in the F3 category and will provide me with the perfect platform from which to focus on racing against some of the best young talent in the world. I’m looking forward to racing in Bahrain again, visiting some of the most iconic circuits in Europe — some of which I am already familiar with and others that will be new to me. I can’t deny that this is a big step up for me but, having raced — and won — in both the British and EuroFormula Open series, I believe that I am ready for the challenge.”

    Team manager Jay Davenport added: “We are delighted to have Nazim join the team for the 2022 season, he has a competitive track record in the other series and we aim to give him a package to do the same this season. We have been working hard over the winter and we are keen to get back to business on track in Bahrain.”

  • Trulli completes Carlin line-up

    Enzo Trulli has complete the Carlin line-up for this season, with the racer set to join, Zak O’Sullivan and Brad Benavides.

    Trulli, debuted with Carlin in the second half of last season competing for the British team in Euroformula Open where he took three podiums in the final four races.

    He finished 7th overall, with spending the first nine races with Drivex School scoring one podium and nine top eight finishes before he made the switch to Carlin.

    The Italian, jumped into single seaters for the first time competitively in early 2021, Trulli’s first taster was in the UAE Formula 4 Championship, which he won with four victories and 13 podiums.

    “It is with great pleasure that I announce my commitment with Carlin for the 2022 FIA F3 Championship,” said Trulli. “I am so happy to stay in the Carlin family for this fantastic experience, after a very successful first season with them in the Euroformula. I am truly thankful to Trevor Carlin and the team for believing in me. Of course, it’s going to be a learning season for me, considering the limited experience I have and the limited mileage available in the car. Yet, I’m ready to work hard and to support the team’s work and progress, in order to bring Carlin on the top of the F3 list. It is such a fantastic opportunity and I look forward to starting the learning process!”

    Carlin Racing Director Trevor Carlin added: “Enzo has made a remarkable start to his single seater career. He impressed us greatly with his performances in Euroformula Open despite having extremely limited experience. His performance in the rain in Monza, his first ever wet single-seater race, was particularly indicative as to his mindset and approach. This season will be massive learning curve for him. FIA F3 is a hugely competitive series and a huge ask for a driver in only their second season of racing. Enzo needs to focus on learning and taking something from each weekend. We are thrilled to be working with him and look forward to helping him progress with each race.”

  • C42

    C42

    Alfa Romeo, are the last team to show the world their 2022 challenger with a new bold livery.

    The team, has run a special camouflage design during the three days of pre-season running in Barcelona, with Valtteri Bottas, rookie Guanyu Zhou and reserve Robert Kubica sharing driving duties.

    The Swiss team, had a series of mechanical glitches which confined the car to the garage for long periods, and they only managed 175 laps, putting them ninth out of 10 teams in the mileage charts.

    Alfa Romeo will have another chance alongside the other nine teams to gain more mileage as they head to Bahrain for the Official Pre Season Test which begins on March 10th.

    “The start of the season is always an exciting time, one in which we see the fruit of the work of hundreds of people over a long period of time,” said Team Principal Fred Vasseur. “The C42 is a car we look forward to seeing racing, not just because it is the first we built in this new regulations cycle, one in which racing should be closer and more thrilling, but because we have the utmost confidence in this car helping the team make a big step forward towards the front of the grid.”

    Bottas, who joined from Mercedes said: “What is exciting is that we have no idea how that first race is going to pan out. Testing helped us confirm our expectations of where we stand, the progress we have made with the car, but now we are getting closer to the moment that really matters. Since I joined, I have seen so much motivation within this team: everyone is pushing a lot, trying to work harder than the others to be competitive, and that in turn gives me that extra boost when I am in the cockpit.”

    Zhou, who finished third in F2 last year before stepping up to F1 with Alfa Romeo, said: “I am fully pumped up for the season and seeing the C42 in the livery in which I will race it definitely makes it real. We are at the beginning of a new era, with new cars and new regulations, and this creates an opportunity for all teams to make progress since we are all starting from scratch. Everyone at Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen has been incredibly helpful since I joined and seeing all the hard work, the commitment and motivation from everyone, in Hinwil and at the track, fills me with pride and excitement. I can’t wait to be on the grid with this car and work with my team to bring home the results we are targeting together.”

  • Andretti to be powered by Renault

    The name Andretti is well known in motorsport, with Andretti Autosport competing in the IndyCar Series, IndyCar Lights, Indy Pro 2000 and Formula E. The team also has a 37.5% stake in the Australian Supercars Championship, Walkinshaw Andretti United and a stake in the Extreme E team, Andretti United.

    Last year saw Michael Andretti in talks to buy Alfa Romeo but due to the main shareholder not wanting to sell this deal fell through. But, last week saw Andretti apply for his own Formula One team, to be entered for the 2024 season.

    Mario Andretti, the 1978 F1 World Champion took to twitter on Friday the 18th revealing the Andretti name wanting to enter F1 writing: “Michael has applied to the FIA to field a new F1 team starting in 2024. His entry Andretti Global, has the resources and checks every box. He is awaiting the FIA’s determination.”

    Following on from this a week later, it has been revealed by Mario Andretti that Andretti Global will be powered by Renault power units in 2024…

    Alpine CEO, Laurent Rossi has recently said that right now would not be good time for Renault to supply a second team, he did say though the company was “open” to do so down the line. Well could 2024 be that line, and that second team be Andretti Global?

    “We have a formal agreement now on the engine supplier and its out there, so its going to be Renault and I’m allowed to say that now” Mario Andretti said this to David Land in an interview.

    The engine supplier is not the only aspect that the team has decided, Andretti Globabl has even fount the premises for its UK base.

    “We’re not just new boys in town,” he said in an interview with David Land. “We know the prerequisites and also there’s a time factor here. Once we said go ahead, we’ve got to go. So a lot of work has been done. We know where the property, where the facility is going to be built. in the UK. We know we have people, prominent individuals that have done this type of work as far as start-ups. We have a lot of things in mind.”

    The 1978 World Champion added: “There’s a lot of steps to take here and I understand that, it’s a huge undertaking. But we’re ready for it. We have incredible partners on our side, Michael does, and we’re there for the duration. Myself, I’ve been at it for 67 years now so we know what goes on on all sides of the Atlantic. And this is a great undertaking, a wonderful undertaking on Michael’s part. This shows that he’s very, very ambitious in the sport. That’s his business, period.”

    My Opinion-

    I think if Andretti do get the approval from the FIA, this will be brilliant, we need another Formula One team as there is so many drivers slipping through and not getting to F1 when in fact they deserve a spot.

    As well as this, having a name like Andretti in the sport may get a higher reach of F1 in America and bring new fans not just to F1 but the feeder series too. It seems like only positives can come out of this if it gets accepted.

  • Pre-Season Barcelona

    The F1 2022 cars have finally hit the track as pre-season running in Barcelona started on Wednesday lets take a look on what has happened across the 3 days.

    Day 1-

    Morning Session-

    Leclerc set the early benchmark and then later improved, the conditions warming up after a chilly start to set the quickest lap of 1m 20,165s, the Ferrari driver went on to tally up near 80 laps and ended up three-tenths ahead of Lando Norris- the McLaren driver having improved to P2.

    The Mercedes of George Russell was therefore bumped to P3 as the 1pm deadline approached but completed 75 laps, with Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel in fourth. The reigning champ, enjoyed the highest lap count (8) as he finished sith behind Yuki Tsunoda in P5.

    Afternoon Session-

    Lando Norris set the fastest overall time in the opening pre-season session, Leclerc’s morning time of 1m 20.165s put him top before Norris improved to 1m 19.568s by the end of Day 1, that bumped Leclerc down to P2 and his teammate down to third.

    Every team bar Alfa Romeo and Haas completed a century of laps on the opening day.

    PositionDriverTimeLaps
    1Lando Norris1:19.951102
    2Charles Leclerc1:20.16580
    3Carlos Sainz1:20.41673
    4George Russell1:20.78477
    5Lewis Hamilton1:20.92950
    6Sebastian Vettel1:21.27652
    7Yuki Tsunoda1:21.638121
    8Fernando Alonso1:21.746127
    9Max Verstappen1:22.246147
    10Valtteri Bottas1:22.57223
    Top 10 from Day 1

    Day 2-

    Morning Session-

    Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest time of the morning on Day 2, with the benchmark being 1m 20.355s with 10 minutes remaining, eclipsing Carlos Sainz’s existing benchmark by two tenths of a second.

    Perez brought out the first red flag, having coasted to a halt at Turn 12, half an hour before lunch break, the stoppage was lifted with 15 minutes left, but Perez did not re-emerge to complete the morning session.

    Afternoon Session-

    Charles Leclerc topped the leader board on the afternoon session with a 1m 19.698s with Gasly taking P2 in which dropped McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo to P3.

    There was a second red flag of the day but first of the afternoon session, this time being Nikita Mazepin as he stopped with a damage fuel pump which caused a 15 minute stop. Sergio Perez’s afternoon was quite short as he didn’t emerge until late in the day.

    PositionDriverTimeLaps
    1Charles Leclerc1:19.68979
    2Pierre Gasly1:19.918147
    3Daniel Ricciardo1:20.288126
    4George Russell1:20.53766
    5Carlos Sainz1:20.54671
    6Sebastian Vettel1:20.78474
    7Sergio Perez1:21.43078
    8Nikita Mazepin1:21.51242
    9Alexander Albon1:21.53147
    10Guanyu Zhou1:21.88571
    Top 10 from Day 2

    Day 3-

    Morning Session-

    Mercedes topped the third morning session as George Russel led the leaderboard, with Max Verstappen in 2nd and Sebastian Vettel in 3rd, but five red flags, punctuated proceedings. All 10 cars emerged on a chilly Barcelona morning but the session was red-flagged before the hour mark when Alpine’s Alonso stopped with smoke emerging from the back of his car. Alpine then stated they would not be running again due to hydraulics issue.

    Gasly brought out the second pause when he crashed at Turn 5, causing front wing and suspension damage. Guanyu Zhou stopped in the gravel at Turn 10 after Gasly’s incident, but the session was once again stopped when he crawled to a halt on the main straight. The fifth red flag was when Vettel stopped with 5 minutes left

    Afternoon Session-

    Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time of the week with a 1m 19.138s as Pirelli conducted a wet weather tyre test. His team-mate then dropped with P2, with Sergio Perez jumped up the order to round of top 3.

    A few teams run into problem in which they was not able to run in the afternoon sessionWe are back in two weeks for the official pre-season test on March 10th to 12th, then set to return a week after that for the first round.

    PositionDriverTimeLaps
    1Lewis Hamilton1:19.13894
    2George Russell1:19.23366
    3Sergio Perez1:19.55674
    4Max Verstappen1:19.75659
    5Sebastian Vettel1:19.82448
    6Charles Leclerc1:19.83144
    7Carlos Sainz1:20.07292
    8Alex Albon1:20.31894
    9Nicholas Latifi1:20.69913
    10Daniel Ricciardo1:20.75086
    Top 10 from Day 3

  • Russian GP cancelled

    Formula One’s Russian Grand Prix, has been cancelled following the invasion of Ukraine, a military attack by Russia on Ukraine began on Thursday after a long period of escalating tensions.

    This was then met with unease in F1 paddock about the planned September race in Sochi, which was meant to be the final year racing their ahead of moving to a new venue next year near St Petersburg.

    Meanwhile Haas stripped its car of the branding of Russian sponsor Uralkali for the final day of testing in Barcelona, this comes ahead of meetings planned next week to resolve legal matters in the wake of the attack. Nikita Mazepin’s position at Haas “needs to be resolved”, team principle Guenther Steiner admitted.

    Formula 1 has released an announcement on the Russian GP saying: “The FIA Formula 1 World Championship visits countries all over the world with a positive vision to unite people, bringing nations together. We are watching the developments in Ukraine with sadness and shock and hope for a swift and peaceful resolution to the present situation.

    On Thursday evening Formula 1, the FIA, and the teams discussed the position of our sport, and the conclusion is, including the view of all relevant stakeholders, that it is impossible to hold the Russian Grand Prix in the current circumstances.” The statement appears to leave the door open to the race being held if the “current circumstances” change…

    My Opinion-

    Right decision and the only decision, which was justified after Vettel said he will not race their if F1 continues to. What I don’t understand is why are they leaving the door open, to possibly go to Sochi this year even after this statement? It is rumoured that Turkey is set to replace the Russian GP.

  • F2 2022 Drivers

    Formula 2 has now had all their drivers confirmed for this year. The 2022 season will see a 14 round calendar, and 28 races across the year.

    Half of the grid are rookies this year, with reigning Formula 3 Champion, Dennis Hauger making the step up into F2. As well as many different drivers from all different F1 team juniors, but 2022 their will be no Ferrari Driver Academy drivers, with the most recent drivers graduating to other roles…

    Which drivers should we look out for this season?

    Definitley both PREMA drivers, they will be want to go for both the drivers and teams championship for a third year running.

    Liam Lawson moving to Carlin, is definitely one to watch, he had a few reliability issues last year, so if he doesn’t have those this year hopefully he can be a title contender.

    ART Grand Prix, have a very strong line-up this year, Pourchaire will be wanting to go for the drivers championship, and Vesti will be wanting to help as the team and possibly fight for the team championship.

    Jack Doohan, Olli Caldwell, Jake Hughes and Clement Novalak all stepped into F2 seats last year with some scoring points rather quickly. These 4 are ones to look out for, with scoring points consistently.

    Formula 2 is back next Wednesday the 2nd of March in Sakhir, Bahrain for pre-season testing, then 2 weeks later is the first race of the season!

    TeamsDrivers
    PREMA RacingDennis Hauger (R)
    Jehan Daruvala
    VirtuosiJack Doohan (R)
    Marino Sato
    CarlinLogan Sargeant (R)
    Liam Lawson
    HiTech GPJuri Vips
    Marcus Armstrong
    ART Grand PrixThéo Pourchaire
    Frederik Vesti (R)
    MP MotorsportClément Novalak (R)
    Felipe Drugovich
    Charouz Racing SystemCem Bölükbasi (R)
    Enzo Fittipaldi (R)
    DAMSRoy Nissany
    Ayumu Iwasa (R)
    TridentCalan Williams (R)
    Richard Verschoor
    Campos RacingRalph Boschung
    Olli Caldwell (R)
    Van Amersfoort RacingJake Hughes
    Amaury Cordeel (R)
    (R)- Rookie

  • Vettel will not race in Russian GP

    Sebastian Vettel has said he will not race in the Russian Grand Prix if Formula 1 still visits there later in the year, following the countries invasion of Ukraine.

    F1 said today that it was monitoring the situation after Russia commenced a major military assault on Ukraine on Thursday morning after months of tension building.

    It has been reported that UEFA plans to strip St Petersburg of the Champions League final in June in reaction to the invasion, an has put F1’s plans for the grand prix in Sochi in the limelight.

    The four-time world champion is a GPDA director and has been one of the grids most vocal figures on social matters and human rights in recent years, while Vettel said he could not speak on behalf of the GPDA as the drivers had not discussed the issue yet, he revealed that his own mind was already made up and would not race in Russia.

    “In my personal opinion, obviously I woke up again after this morning’s news, shocked” Vettel said. “I think it’s horrible to see what is happening. Obviously if you look at the calendar, we have a race scheduled in Russia. For myself, my own opinion is I should not go, I will not go. I think it’s wrong to race in that country. I’m sorry for the people, innocent people who are losing their lives, getting killed for stupid reasons under a very strange and mad leadership. I’m sure it’s something we will talk about, but as I said as GPDA, we haven’t come together yet.”

    Max Verstappen also added: “When a country is at war, it is not right to race there.”

    My Opinion-

    First of all round of applause to Seb and Max, I completely agree with what both have said, and I think some other drivers will agree too. It will be interesting to see what the drivers association will say when they come together.

    For F1 to say they are ‘monitoring’ the situation closely I find wrong, its a simple yes or no if they are going to race there or not, they have plenty of time to find a replacement as it set to be in September.

  • Verschoor joins Trident

    With a little over a week to go until pre-season testing in Sakhir, Richard Verschoor has claimed the last seat on the grid as he signs for Trident for 2022.

    Verschoor competed in seven out of eight rounds in 2021 and finished 11th in the standings including his first victory with MP Motorsport in Sprint Race 2 at Silverstone.

    The racer left the team before round 7 in Jeddah, but returned to the gird for the finale at Yas Marina with Charouz Racing System, where he finished 10th in the Feature Race.

    In his first season of single-seaters in 2016, Verschoor won both the SMP and Spanish Formula 4 Championships. He then gained experience in ADAC F4, Italian F4, Formula Renault Eurocup and the Toyota Racing Series.

    Verschoor then spent two seasons in Formula 3 with MP Motorsport and won the 2019 Macau Grand Prix with the dutch team.

    “I’m extremely proud and motivated to join a highly-professional and winning team like Trident Motorsport for the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship,” said Verschoor. “I think we have all conditions needed to achieve important goals and experience a positive season. I cannot wait to get on track. I will give my best to take full advantage of this great opportunity.”

    Trident Team Manager Giacomo Ricci added: “We are proud to welcome a driver of undisputed value like Verschoor to our team. We are motivated by the prospect of working with such a talented and experienced racer, who already proved capable to achieve outstanding goals. I think Verschoor and Williams will be an extremely solid and promising combination, and they will keep pushing each other to the next level, laying the conditions for a successful season. We cannot wait to be back on track for the 2022 season with our new lineup.”

    My Opinion-

    Finally! I’m glad the last seat has gone to Verschoor, as I feel like he has got a lot more to give. Hopefully him going into a new team will give him the opportunities to show what his got.

  • Maini completes MP’s line-up

    Kush Maini completes MP Motorsport’s line-up for 2022, in which the rookie will line up with Caio Collet and Alex Smolyar.

    Maini began his single-seater career in 2016 racing in Italian Formula 4, he then continued to race in the series in 2017 where he finished eight overall.

    He switched to BRDC British Formula 3 in 2018, where he placed third with eight podiums and a win, before he stepped up to Formula Renault Eurocup, ending the year in sixth. Maini, then returned to BRDC British F3 in 2020 where he finished as vice-champion with 12 podiums and 3 wins.

    In 2021, the 21 year old began in Asian F3, partnering F2 racer Jehan Daruvala at Mumbai Falcons, he also made his FIA World Endurance Championship – LMP2 debut last season competing in 6 hours of Bahrain.

    “I’m excited to join MP Motorsport for my first year in FIA F3”, said Maini. “In 2021, MP proved to be race winners and in the final standings they were the only FIA F3 team to have two rookies finish in the top-ten. This shows their ability to coach rookie drivers on their way to immediately performing well in the series. I can’t wait to get going for pre-season testing and the first round at Bahrain!”

    MP Motorsport Team Principal Sander Dorsman added: “I’m pleased to welcome Kush to our FIA F3 team. In the past few years, Kush has proved himself extremely well at regional F3 levels, now it’s time for him to step up to FIA F3. I’m sure he will mix well with Alex and Caio, and we will do our best to help him shine during each of the nine race weekends coming up in the championship.”

  • A522

    A522

    Alpine are now the ninth team to launch their challenger for this season- the A522, in which they had a live show from Paris.

    The team secured their first victory under the Alpine banner, in Hungary last year when Esteban won. The same pairing as last year will continue, double world champion Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon. As well as this, they have Formula 2 Champion, Oscar Piastri fulfilling reserve duties.

    The French manufacturer, will be wanting to continue on with their climb up the grid after finishing sixth in the Constructors standings.

    Alpine is set to run a striking new livery that is predominantly blue that features pink highlights in a nod to their new title sponsor BWT, as well as this, they presented a ‘flipped’ the livery with pink becoming the most prominent colour. The special pink design will be used in the first two races of the year- Bahrain and Saudi Arabia before reverting back to the blue.

    “It’s with great pleasure that we launch our A522 to the world today, marking the next chapter in Alpine’s Formula 1 journey,” said Rossi. “We have a clear plan and vision in place at Alpine and we have some of the best people in the business to help drive us forward and realise our ambitions. Our team is stronger now and, we hope, future-proof.”

    Ocon said: “I’m very excited, of course, to not only see the A522 for the first time but to drive it for the first time this week. It’s always a privilege to drive a new Formula 1 car for the first time, as you know all the hard work that has gone on behind the scenes at both factories in Enstone and Viry from all of the many talented people working in the different departments there. That feeling and responsibility is truly unique and very special. I feel prepared, I feel ready physically, so let’s hit the track and see what we’ve got in our hands this year.”

    Alonso added: “It’s good to be back and I’ve been working hard to be ready for the new season. The build-up has been a long time coming after the rule change was delayed due to the pandemic. The car looks fantastic with the new regulations in place and I like the new livery. We have a new engine and we’re confident we had a good development in place for this new generation of car. We won’t know where everyone stands until Bahrain, but we’re excited to take the car for its first spin in testing this week. I hope the new regulations have worked and we get more exciting wheel to wheel racing this year.”

    My Opinion-

    We all knew the Alpine would have pink on it, as BWT are the title sponsor. But do I like it? I’m not actually sure as it is quite a lot which has changed from last year, but I do feel like it will grow on me once seeing it on track.

    But the car itself on the render pictures looks like a mixture between Ferrari and Aston Martin with the way they have designed, which could be a clever move but we will not know until it hits the track!

  • Benavides joins Carlin

    Brad Benavides will be making his Formula 3 debut with Carlin this year, alongside fellow rookie Zak O’Sullivan.

    The American-Spanish spent the first half of last season in the Formula Regional European Championship before switching to Euroformula Open in the second half of the year where he finished in the top 10 in eight out of nine races with Carlin.

    The British team then ran him in their Formula 3 machinery on Days 1 and 3 of post-season testing, where he impressed to earn a deal.

    The 20 year old, made his single-seater debut at the end of 2018, in the final two races of the Euroformula Open Championship at Barcelona, before opting to run in Formula Renault Eurocup in 2019, after a year out in 2020. Benavides returned to Europe with a seat in Formula Regional European in 2021.

    “I’ve been a die-hard fan of racing my whole life, and I now have in my hands the greatest opportunity I’ve ever had,” said Benavides. “I feel like, at the same time, my greatest achievements are closer than ever. I am going to give my maximum effort this season and make it one to be proud of.”

    Racing Director Trevor Carlin added: “Brad is still a very young driver at the start of his career. Making the step up to FIA F3 in only his second season in Europe will be a big learning curve but Brad has a fantastic attitude both in and out of the car. We’re delighted he has chosen to stay with the team for this next step in his career and we can’t wait to get started with testing later next month in Bahrain.”

  • Vidales completes Campos line-up

    David Vidales completes the Campos Racing line-up for 2022, with the team announcing he will be joining Hunter Yeany and Josep Maria Marti for this season.

    He steps up to Formula 3 on the back of a year in Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, he finished 10th overall with three podiums and a win. He took part in the post-season test in Valencia for day 1 and 2, he finished top 10 in both sessions on day 2.

    The Spanish driver, only made his single-seater debut in 2020, racing for JD Motorsport in Formula Renault Eurocup, he placed sixth with six podiums and a win to his name. Vidales then remained in the series as it merged with Formula Regional European Championship.

    On joining Campos, Vidales said: “It’s an honour for me to become part of the team founded by the late Adrian Campos, the man who, together with my manager Salvatore Gandolfo, helped me in my first steps in single-seater driving. Also, I am very proud to join a Spanish team and I can’t wait to start working with them to aim for wins in the 2022 FIA Formula 3 series!”

    “I would like to welcome David (Vidales) as new Campos Racing driver,” said Campos Racing Team Principal Adrián Campos. “He is a very competitive driver who got his first taste of single-seater racing with us. We all know his real potential and how well he is able to perform. Whenever we have the opportunity to work with Spanish talents, we definitely do it. Our goal this season is to hoist the Spanish flag at the top of the podium as much as possible.”

  • Fittipaldi returns!

    Enzo Fittipaldi will remain with Charouz Racing System for his first full campaign of Formula 2, he will be partnering up alongside Cem Bolukbasi.

    The Brazilian made his F2 debut with Charouz in Monza last year before scoring his first points in the penultimate round at Saudi Arabia. An injury suffered in Jeddah ruled Fittipaldi out of the finale in Abu Dhabi, but he is now set to return to action next month.

    As well as making his F2 debut last year, he was also an F3 podium finisher in Race 2 at Budapest.

    He first made his car racing debut in the 2016 Ginetta Junior Championship, Fittipaldi moved into single-seaters the following season before taking his first title in 2018, running a dual campaign where he won the Italian F4 and came third in ADAC F4.

    The 20 year old then went to join the Formula Regional European Championship for 2019, he finished as runner-up to Federik Vesti, the following year he went on to F3 with HWA Racelab before his switch to Charouz the year after.

    “For me, it’s a pleasure and an honour to be able to continue my adventure in Formula 2 with Charouz Racing System,” said Fittipaldi. “Last season they gave me the opportunity to debut in this category after a good first part of the season in Formula 3 and this will allow me and the team to work immediately on the performance as from the first test sessions. It will be a long and demanding championship and the level of competitiveness has never been as high as this year, so it’s a great advantage not to have to spend the first testing days to get familiar with the car. We definitely aim to be a regular presence in the top 10 positions, and we’ll certainly try to seize every opportunity to get some podium finishes and maybe some wins.”

    Team Owner Antonín Charouz added: “The team and I are delighted to be able to work again with Enzo for this coming season. Last year, he proved that he deserved the chance to step up from Formula 3 to Formula 2, despite the bad luck that hit him at Jeddah. Now that he’s back in shape I’m sure this will only motivate him further to show what he’s capable of. Starting the season in an environment with which he is already familiar is certainly an advantage for both the team and the driver, and we will try in every way to take advantage of this condition to find the speed and be in the top 10 right away.”

  • US GP renewed till 2026

    Formula 1 has announced an extension until 2026 with the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of The Americas.

    The announcement follows after continued momentum that Formula One has in the United States, the motorsport having returned to the USA following a break due to the global pandemic.

    Last year saw a record-breaking crowd of 400,000 witnessed the GP at Austin, where Verstappen took his maiden win on American soil. The very first race at COTA took place in 2012, with 100,000 fans in attendance to see Hamilton take victory with McLaren.

    Stefano Domenicali, President & CEO of Formula 1, said: “We are thrilled to be announcing the extension with the Circuit of The Americas ahead of the exciting new 2022 season. I want to thank the promoter for their ongoing dedication and enthusiasm for Formula 1 where together we are continuing to grow the excitement around our sport in the US following the huge success of Netflix, the work of ESPN, and the incredible season we had in 2021. Austin is a great city, and the track is a favourite for all the drivers, and we cannot wait to be back in October for more action and entertainment.”

    Bobby Epstein, Founding Partner at Circuit of The Americas, said: “The Formula 1 United States Grand Prix has become one of the biggest and greatest events in the world. We are extremely proud it has found a home in Texas – at Circuit of The Americas – and are grateful to the millions of fans who visited us over our first decade. We knew Austin, along with our neighbours in San Antonio and beyond, would be welcoming hosts – and they proved it! Thanks to everyone in the Formula 1 community for supporting our endeavours and rewarding our hard work. We are glad to have renewed our commitments and look forward to many more years of World Championship racing, entertainment, and fun.”

    My Opinion-

    I think after last years attendance at COTA, this is fully understandable why it has been renewed, as well as the USA now having 2 Grand Prix’s a year it will give fans the chance to go to COTA if they cannot go to Miami, so they are not missing out.

  • Szafnauer named as Alpine Team Principal

    Otmar Szafnauer has been appointed as Alpines new Team Principal, with former Deputy Sport Secretary General for the FIA Bruno Famin joining to head up the engine division.

    The duo will be reporting to CEO Laurent Rossi, who took over the running of the team last January and since then has been reviewing how the squad operates before making those important changes.

    During this period, long-time Renault employee Remi Taffin left his role heading up the power unit division whilst Executive Director, Marcin Budkowski parted ways with the team in January.

    Szafnauer left Aston Martin early in the new year and joins Alpine with 33 years of experience across motorsport, he was first linked to a move to the French team in November but shut down allegations rather quickly.

    “With Otmar and Bruno joining the team, we move to a new level for 2022,” said Rossi. “Otmar will bring his unique experience in motorsports and his uncompromising desire to win, while Bruno’s proven track record in building technologies that make a difference in competition and their subsequent transference to road cars is critical for our project as a sports team and as a brand.”

    Otmar Szafnauer said: “I am thrilled to join BWT Alpine F1 Team and ready to get to work with everyone to achieve our challenge: bring the team to fight for the Championship within the next 100 races. My attention is focused on preparing for the start of the season in Bahrain. As one of the three car manufacturers involved in Formula 1, Alpine is fully armed to achieve its ambition, I can’t wait to start the journey!”

    My Opinion-

    Not shocked at all, as we knew months ago this was going to happen, even more so after Alpine and BWT became partners, as Otmar has a good relationship with the company. But i’m glad that he will still be in F1.

  • W13

    W13

    The final car launch of the week is completed! The reigning world champions have revealed the car that Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will be driving this season- the W13.

    Mercedes have won the constructor’s title for eight successive seasons but didn’t manage the drivers title last year as it came down to a last lap battle.

    Mercedes junior, Russell has been promoted to a race seat, replacing Valtteri Bottas after three impressive seasons at Williams. He will be joining 7 time world champion, Lewis Hamilton where he enters his 16th season in F1.

    The launch, saw the team be joined by the Mercedes juniors (apart from Paul Aron), in which they were asked questions and as well them being allowed to ask Lewis, George & Toto questions too.

    “It just takes you back to being a kid,” said Hamilton at the launch. “I think it’s always exciting watching, I mean with this new era of car, we’ve never seen such a drastic change, right? So it’s such a huge change in so many ways, that it’s just been really interesting seeing the designers and everyone coming together to find the best ways of creating a masterpiece.”

    “It feels incredible, obviously Lewis and I have driven so many laps in the simulator of this. We’ve seen all the drawings, we’ve had so many meetings and presentations about it, but suddenly seeing it all come together, seeing all of the men and women who have put so much hard work and grit into making this, and coming together here, I think it looks incredible. And I think the silver [coming] back, we’ve had an incredible livery with the black in the past couple of years – but the silver back on track I think is going to look incredible,” said Russell.

    My Opinion-

    What a beast! We all had a feeling it would be silver and we were right! First of all the silver looks amazing, it is good to have the Silver Arrows back and I can’t wait to see it on track! The car looks clean, but again as I have said previously it may be this new design of the car.

    The actual launch itself was brilliant, I want to take my hat of to Mercedes and say what a brilliant idea to have the young drivers in their programme their and the fact they got to be asked questions and them themselves ask the drivers and Toto questions too is brilliantly thought out. It does show that the team is here to stay and their constantly thinking about the future!

  • Masi replaced as race director

    Michael Masi will be replaced as Formula 1 Race Director, and has been offered a new position within the FIA as a part of changes following the governing bodies analysis into last year’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

    Niels Wittich and Eduardo Freitas, who have both recently worked in the World Endurance Championship and DTM, they will alternate the Race Director role. As well as this, they will be assisted by Herbie Blash- who is returning to F1, having previously acted as deputy to Masi’s predecessor Charlie Whiting, as permanent senior advisor.

    The new race management trio will begin their new roles, in Barcelona next week when three days of pre-season running will take place.

    Regarding the structural changes, FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem said a Virtual Race Control Room will be created to assist the Race Director. See below to see his full statement.

    “Alike the Video Assistance Referee (VAR) in football, it will be positioned in one of the FIA Offices as a backup outside the circuit. In real-time connection with the FIA F1 race director, it will help to apply the sporting regulations using the most modern technological tools,” he said. “Direct radio communications during the race, currently broadcast live by all TVs, will be removed in order to protect the race director from any pressure and allow him to take decisions peacefully. It will still be possible to ask questions to the race director, according to a well-defined and non-intrusive process. Unlapping procedures behind Safety Car will be reassessed by the F1 Sporting Advisory Committee and presented to the next F1 Commission prior to the start of the season. I presented this complete plan to the members of the World Motor Sport Council and the Senate who gave their full support.”

    My Opinion-

    First of all I think it is 100% the right thing for Masi to be removed as Race Director, there was many occasions last year where fans/teams/drivers were not happy with decisions being made especially in Abu Dhabi.

    The radio communications I agree with too, at the beginning of the year they were good as it was a brilliant start to the amazing season we saw, but towards the end it just got silly and they just kept going back and forth from one team to the race director then another team.

    The new virtual race control room is interesting, unsure on how it will work especially on how many things happen in a race and/or qualifying. But saying this, hopefully it does work and help the race director.

  • F175

    F175

    Ferrari have shown the world the F1-75 for the first time with a digital launch. They are the seventh team to launch their car, with world champions Mercedes on Friday and Alpine on Monday.

    Last year, saw Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finish fifth and seventh in the drivers standings, with the pair making up this years driver line up.

    The Italian team, rebounded from their worst season for 40 years with a competitive campaign in 2021 that they managed to grab 3rd place in constructors of their rivals, McLaren.

    Ferrari switched their attention early to 2022, in which they introduced a hybrid system late last year that was originally embarked for its debut this season.

    The new livery features black front and rear wings, as well as a black halo and black numbering on both the nose and engine cover, the car also features a logo celebrating 75 years since the first Ferrari production car was released.

    My Opinion-

    What a car!! I love the darker red than last year, it looks a lot better especially with the black mixed in with it too. The race suits just top it off, with the black added into it to as well, it looks really good.

  • Simmons first full F3 campaign

    Charouz Racing System have completed their line up for Formula 3 2022 season, in which they announced that Ayrton Simmons will join Laszlo Toth and Francesco Pizzi.

    Simmons, first debuted in F3 with Charouz in the season finale at Sochi last year on the back of a season in GB3, where he finished as runner up to rookie Zak O’Sullivan. Simmons won four times, and finished on the podium on five occasions.

    The British driver arrives to F3 with 6 years of single-seater experience including title challenges in British F4 in 2018 and in BRDC British F3, as well as competing in Asian F3 and opening races of the Euroformula Open Championship.

    “I’m very grateful to Antonín and the whole Charouz Racing System team for this opportunity,” said Simmons. “Having my first full season in the FIA Formula 3 will be a demanding and exciting challenge for me, I can’t wait to get back behind the wheel and try immediately to find a good feeling with the Dallara in order to start off on the right foot from the first race in Bahrain. It will be interesting to race against some of the best young drivers in the world and to race on legendary tracks like those on the calendar, especially at Silverstone which will be my home race. A good result there would be a dream, but we’ll obviously try to give our best in every round and take every opportunity to end in the top positions.”

    Team owner Antonín Charouz added: “It’s a pleasure for us to be able to continue to have Ayrton in the team after last year’s positive debut, a first experience that I’m sure will be of enormous value for him as he approaches this new and demanding season. With his reconfirmation, our Formula 3 team can now count on three drivers of undoubted talent and potential, with whom we’ll aim to get into the points from the very first races. The guys are already working really hard to prepare for the first test sessions, we’ll do everything possible to make the most of the three days at our disposal and get to the first round in the right conditions to show a good level of competitiveness.”

  • Martins to Art GP

    Victor Martins will be spending his 2022 season with ART Grand Prix in Formula 3 for his second season. The French racer completes ART’s line up, as he joins rookie Gregoire Saucy and Juan Manuel Correa.

    Marts spent the 2021 campaign with MP Motorsport, finishing as the highest placed rookie in fifth. He took his first win in Zandvoort, and managed to score six podiums in total.

    The 20 year old, switched to ART for post-season testing, he finished second in the times in both sessions on Day 1.

    Martins made his single-seater debut in the final four races of the French Formula 4 series, before stepping up full time in 2017 and finishing as vice champion. The Alpine Academy driver then spent three seasons in Formula Renault Eurocup, finishing fifth in 2018, second in 2019 and then winning the title in 2020 with seven wins and 14 podiums.

    “I am very happy to be able to collaborate with ART Grand Prix once again,” said Martins. “This time for the 2022 FIA F3 Championship, following on from a 2020 season that was filled with common successes. I am excited for this opportunity and to start this new adventure together. Our goals are big, and we are ready to achieve them. I have already done a lot of work this winter to start the season well prepared from the first few laps behind the wheel. I can’t wait to get back in the car!”

    ART Grand Prix Team Principal Sébastien Philippe added: “We are delighted that Victor returns to the team. He has great qualities as a driver and of a man that were beneficial to us during the Formula Renault Team and Driver title in 2020. We have followed his progress very closely, last year. In 2022 we are hoping to harness both ART Grand Prix and Victor’s full potential so we can put our names on the Formula 3 charts.”

  • DTS date announced

    Netflix and F1 have announced the date in which Season 4 of Drive to Survive will be released… that being on the 11th March.

    The long-awaited fourth season, builds on the success of the first three seasons, as cameras once again go behind the scenes to capture the dramatic 2021 championship, which included one of the all-time-great title fights between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, a 22 race calendar, which went right down to the wire.

    But the intensity didn’t stop there, McLaren was the only team to take a one-two at Monza, Hamilton storming through the grid at Brazil, Ocon winning in Hungary, Perez winning in an dramatic Azerbaijan GP and of course Verstappen taking his maiden F1 title.

  • Collet sticks with MP Motorsport

    Caio Collet has been retained for his second season in Formula 3 by MP Motorsport, where he will join Alex Smolyar.

    The Brazilian driver, enjoyed a positive debut season with MP finishing as the second-highest rookie in ninth place, he managed to grab a podium in his very first race before adding a second in Round 2

    But after this, the 19 year old went through a tricky spell of one points’ finish in six races. He then went on to finish in the top 5 in six of the final eight races. Collet then remained with MP for post-season testing in Valencia and finished in the top 10 in five out of six sessions.

    In 2018, Collet made his debut in to single seaters, he went on to win the French Formula 4 title the same year, which saw him take seven wins and 11 podiums from 20 races.

    He then took a step up to Formula Renault Eurocup for 2019, placing fifth in his rookie year and second to Victor Martins in his second, before he made the jump to F3.

    “I’m very happy to continue in FIA F3 with MP Motorsport and the enduring support of the Alpine Academy”, said Collet. “We were strong in 2021 – and that was while taking on many accomplished drivers in an intensely competitive championship. With the knowledge that I have gained in my first season, I’m very much aiming to improve on last year’s results. I’m also looking forward to again racing in the special atmosphere of the Grand Prix weekends, and in front of the F1 teams.”

    MP Motorsport Team Principal Sander Dorsman added: “Caio staying with us for a second year is a massive coup. Last year, with three rookies, Caio being one of them, we showed that we were right on the pace with the longer-serving top runners in the series and took home a lot of points to bag a fighting fourth in the Team’s Championship. Building on Caio’s talent and increased experience, and teaming him up with Alex, hands us a very strong package for 2022. I can’t wait to attack the season with these guys.”

    My Opinion-

    Yesss! This is the right decision by far, if you look back at what his done so far and how well he has done including his rookie seasons it shows he is very talented and deserves a spot in F3 as well as the Alpine Academy.

  • Doohan joins Alpine Academy

    Doohan joins Alpine Academy

    Jack Doohan has been announced as a new member of the Alpine Academy, after leaving Red Bull’s Junior Team, the team he joined in 2017.

    The Virtuosi driver, enjoyed a stellar campaign in Formula 3 in 2021, winning four times and grabbing seven podiums as he finished as vice-champion to Dennis Hauger. This was an impressive turn around following on from a difficult rookie season with HWA Racelab, where he failed to take any points.

    The Australian said that a visit to the Alpine base in Enstone in October convinced him that their junior programme was the right place for him to continue his development.

    Alpine have moved to bolster their academy for 2022, with fellow F2 racer Olli Caldwell, while 2022 F3 races Caio Collet and Victor Martins having both been retained. The new line-up have just finished a training camp with the academy in Tenerife.

    2021 Alpine Academy duo, Oscar Piastri and Guanyu Zhou both fought for the title and have now graduated to Formula 1 roles, both drivers were heavily involved with the team behind the scenes, undertaking simulator work and testing F1 machinery.

    “The option came up for me to go to Alpine for the season and I had a bit of time to think about it and to decide what was going to be the best option for me moving forward,” explained Doohan. “The academy director Mia Sharizman invited me to go to the factory in late October last year. It wasn’t a certainty for me to join the academy then, it was just to go and get a feel for it, to do some physical tests and to see how I got on in that atmosphere. Within the first day, I felt at home. The relationship and the atmosphere was just what I needed and I was very happy with the structure that they’ve got going forward.”

    “We can basically go in there when we please,” said Doohan. “You have the whole team there to work with, whether that be engineers from the Formula 1 team or from the test team, so we have a huge base of knowledge that we can use going forward. I have got a really good trainer in David Thompson, who manages all things physical for us in the academy. There is on-track support as well from coaches and staff members to keep pushing us and to give us the confidence that we need to be able to get the results that they and we want, which is ultimately to win the Championship and to do as good as possible. The structure is only going to be beneficial for me going forward.”

  • FW44

    FW44

    Williams have revealed their 2022 livery on a showcar today, with the British team conducting a shakedown with their real car at Silverstone.

    Which means Williams used one of their two allocated filming days to run the FW44 with new driver Alex Albon and returning driver Nicholas Latifi splitting the duties. The teams ambassador and ’09 World Champion, Jenson Button was also in attendance to see the new car turn its first laps.

    The team founded by Sir Frank Williams and now owned by Dorilton Capitol enjoyed improved fortunes last season to finish 8th in the constructors championship.

    The team from Grove, is having an similar approach to Red Bull, with teams keep to keep their secrets hidden on the new cars for as long as possible.

    “Over its history as an iconic Formula 1 team, Williams Racing has shown great strength and sophistication,” said Team Principal Jost Capito. “The new visual identity of the 2022 car perfectly encapsulates these characteristics that the staff, drivers and fans have demonstrated time and time again. As we move into the new era of our sport, the FW44 highlights the transition to the future, as well as acknowledging the timeless qualities that make us who we are. Last season we were thrilled and proud to make such strong advancements as a team, with a number of well-earned points-scoring results in addition to a podium.”

    Latifi added: “I’m a fan of the new livery. Keeping the blue was important as it’s synonymous with Williams Racing, but it’s a pattern we’ve not seen before and the fluorescent red will pop on track which I really like. It’s a fresh new look to start off the new era of F1. I’m super excited for testing in Barcelona, to get back behind the wheel, push and see what the car can do. Pre-season always feels like quite a long time, but it’s been really busy and there’s been a nice build-up at the factory with lots of hard work from everyone. The new regulations should allow for much better racing so I’m excited for the challenge and we will aim to gather some good data from testing, to take us into the first few races.”

    Albon, who replaces George Russell after a year as reserve for Red Bull, said: “The FW44 livery is clean and simple. I like that we’ve gone for more blue with the dynamic diamond finish and a little bit of red; it looks really good and I’m looking forward to seeing it out on track. The upcoming Barcelona track session will be about making sure we’re efficient with our time to best ensure we have a competitive package heading into the season. We don’t have many days before our first race and so we quickly need to understand which areas of the car are strong and where we need to make improvements. I’m sure it will be a little bit of a learning curve as we all try to learn how to get the most out of the new regulations, but the objectives and the way that we focus on this car is very much the same as in previous years. Ultimately, we’re all still trying to get a racing car around a track as quickly as possible.”

    My Opinion-

    You know what I absolutley love the car & suits. The different shades of blue again look really good in the way they’ve designed it, as well as the splash of red on the car too. The car just looks so clean and fresh but also keeping the blue which is known to the Williams team.

    The race suits look really nice! I’m not really a fan of the white ones so having dark suits are a lot better!

  • Caldwell joins Campos & Alpine Academy

    Caldwell joins Campos & Alpine Academy

    British racing driver, Olli Caldwell has signed on the dotted line for the 2022 season, he will be competing in Formula 2 with Campos Racing. He also has joined the Alpine Academy!

    The 19 year old, race in Formula 3 in the 2021 season with Prema where he finished 8th overall, with four podiums including one win. He made his Formula 2 debut in the final two rounds of the season with Campos, his best finish being of 12th in Sprint Race 2 at Jeddah.

    Caldwell, then remained with the team for post-season testing and impressed enough to ear a full time deal for 2022.

    After a season competing in the Ginetta Junior Championship, Caldwell made the step up into single-seaters in 2017, competing on two fronts in the British and Italian Formula 4, he then remained in Formula 4 for a second season and finished third with Prema.

    Caldwell, then moved to Formula Regional European in 2019, and placed fifth in his rookie year which earned him a spot in F3, he was with Trident for his first season where he went on to score points on four occasions.

    “I’m very excited to be joining Campos Racing,” said Caldwell. “Especially after finishing the last two rounds and the post-season test with them. I get on really well with the team and especially with Ralph Boschung. The car is looking very strong and I think we can definitely achieve some very good results this year.”

    Campos Racing Sporting Director Adrián Campos added: “Despite the short time that we have been working together, the sensations cannot be better. Olli has adapted very well to the team and to the car and we are sure that a very good year awaits us. Olli has the instinct, perseverance and intelligence to continue growing as a driver and at Campos Racing we are going to give him all the tools to do so.”

    My Opinion-

    I think we all knew this was going to happen, especially with Campos! With Olli having already raced with the team in F2 machinery it gives him some what of a head start compared to some of the new rookies.

    I didn’t expect him to announce him joining the Alpine Academy, but it is a good thing! He deserves to be in an junior academy so lets see where it will take him!

  • Sprint Races confirmed

    The F1 commission has approved plans after talks with all key stakeholders including governing bodies at the FIA and all the teams, to run the F1 Sprint format at three Grand Prix weekends in 2022, those being at Imola, Austria and Brazil.

    F1 Sprint was introduced last year which involved a 100km dash with each lasting between 25-30 minutes, the result then determines the grid for the weekends main event on Sunday.

    With this being decided, the points system has been changed, with now the top eight driver scoring points, as before it was just the top 3 received points. The driver who finishes P1 will now receive 8 points, down to one point for the driver in 8th.

    As well as the points change, it has also been decided that the driver who sets the fastest time in qualifying, will be attributed ‘pole position’, last year it was the driver who won the Sprint. Qualifying will continue to determine the grid for Saturdays Sprint, with the result of the Sprint forming the line-up for Sundays Grand Prix.

    “Following a review of the three Sprint events that took place in 2021 and a recognition by all that the format created positive benefits for the sport, three Sprint events were proposed for 2022, acknowledging this as a sensible number in light of the pressures already on the teams for this season with the introduction of major changes to the regulations,” an FIA statement said. “The Commission unanimously approved the three Sprint events for the coming season, incorporating a number of updates to the format based on the feedback of fans, media and teams.”

    My Opinion-

    I’m glad they have chose new tracks for the sprint race and keeping Brazil, we all saw the masterclass in Brazil, but having Imola and Austria have a sprint race could potentially pay of, more Austria then Imola. But i’m not ruling anything out between the two new ones until they happen!

    At first when I saw the new points I was like oh no there isn’t going to be much action between top 5 but… this could change things with people starting anywhere from 6th to 14th to try and score points, we all saw how these points from the sprint race meant a lot to the top teams, so now with more points up for grabs they will mean a lot more for more teams.

    And finally, awarding the driver with pole position on the Friday is the right thing to do, as lots of fans felt like it should be awarded for qualifying and not the sprint, which I make them right.

  • AT03

    AT03

    Alpha Tauri have kicked of a new week with revealing their 2022 car, the AT03. They are the fifth team to launch their programme.

    The Italian team scored their highest points tally to date last year, with Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda picking up a total of 142 points which led them to finish 6th overall in the constructors championship.

    The AT03 is decked out in a revised blue and white livery, which shows that the new rules have brought a variety of designs to the 2022 grid. Gasly and Tsunoda will get the chance to run the AT03 during three days of running in Barcelona.

    “I am excited to finally reveal what our 2022 Formula 1 car will look like,” said Team Principal Franz Tost. “It is a completely new era for F1 and we hope that this package will be very strong, following last year’s success. Once again, we have worked closely with AlphaTauri (Red Bull’s clothing brand) to launch our new car and I think we’ve managed to deliver something very special.”

    Gasly, who scored a podium in Baku last season and finished ninth in the drivers’ standings, added: “This year sees a huge change to the car as, due to the new regulations, the look and design is completely different, so the team has had to start from a clean sheet of paper. We won’t know the true performance of the AT03 until we get it out on track at pre-season testing in Barcelona but so far, I think it looks great and I am very excited to get this new season started.”

    Tsunoda, who has been retained for a second season, said: “It really does look great. Of course we’ve not seen the real car on track yet, but the new shape and design are really cool, and I think the livery suits it really well and I hope everyone enjoys the launch video.”

    My Opinion-

    So with Alpha Tauri I wasn’t expecting much, but this car is wow. I definitely think the new style of the car makes everyone’s look a lot cleaner, but I think AT have hit the nail on the head with this livery compared to last years.

    https://www.instagram.com/p/CZ9KHPpquz5/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link