Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: USA

  • RND 22 – Las Vegas Grand Prix

    Round 22 is officially over and what a thrilling Las Vegas Grand Prix we had! From VSC to full Safety Car’s and penalties, it was all going on…

    But, Max Verstappen took the win in Sin City, with Charles Leclerc finishing second for Ferrari and Sergio Perez rounded out the top three.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Perez, P4: Ocon, P5: Stroll, P6: Sainz, P7: Hamilton, P8: Russell, P9: Alonso and P10: Piastri.

    A brilliant result from Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, seeing the Mexican come through the field and be fighting for podiums was nice to see and the battle with Charles towards the end of the race.

    Leclerc had a great race, I definitely think he could’ve won it if the second Safety Car didn’t come out. He will be hoping that he can hopefully get an even better result next week!
    His teammate had an okay race, obviously he had a bit of a tangle on lap 1 with Lewis Hamilton with a bit of under-steer, but he still managed to grab P6 after his penalty this weekend.

    Alpine have had a good weekend but it seems like their driver’s swapped places? Gasly started the race fourth but finished 11th just outside the points. And Ocon started 16th but finished fourth? In the end it’s a good haul of points for the team.

    Stroll has another good result! Two P5 finishes in two weeks, just what him and the team needs for their fight in the Constructors battle. As they look to fight for P4 against McLaren.

    Talking of McLaren a mixed day for them, Lando Norris crashed on lap 3 just after the VSC ended due to loosing control of his car through turn 11, he slammed into the barriers and was very close to taking his teammate out. Thankfully he is all okay and went to the hospital for extra precaution but the team has since confirmed his okay.

    With Perez finishing third and Lewis 7th this means Perez has claimed P2 in the standings and Hamilton third, as Sainz cannot score more than 32 points next weekend.
    However, there is a four way battle for P4, Sainz currently sits fourth on 200 points, Alonso in 5th on 200 points aswell, Norris on 195 points and Leclerc 188 points.

    Looking at the Constructors, Mercedes are still ahead of Ferrari and are on 392 whereas Ferrari is on 288 just 4 points between the teams.
    McLaren are still fourth on 284 points, and Aston Martin is on 273 points, just 11 points between the teams.

    But we don’t have too long to wait, as the season finale is next week and we close the season out in Abu Dhabi!

  • RND 22 – Las Vegas Qualifying

    Qualifying is done for the day, so let’s take a look at how it went in Sin City!

    Charles Leclerc stormed to pole position for the Las Vegas Grand Prix around the all new Strip Circuit, Carlos Sainz finished second and Max Verstappen third.
    However, Carlos Sainz has a 10 place grid penalty for the chaos from FP1, which forced Ferrari to change parts on his car so he will start 12th…

    The full top 10 after penalties are: P1: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Russell, P4: Gasly, P5: Albon, P6: Sargeant, P7: Bottas, P8: Magnussen, P9: Alonso and P10: Hamilton.

    Well, Charles and Ferrari had a feeling they were going to be okay here, so for them to get pole position I think they will be happy with that! Hopefully they can turn it into a win for Charles!

    George had a good result for Mercedes, however Lewis had a bit of a rough time he originally qualified 11th, due to not being able to go any faster and improve on his lap time, so he will have some work to do in the race!

    Gasly had a really good result! P4 and he will be hoping for points tomorrow and to keep out of trouble. Unfortunately his teammate, Esteban Ocon starts 16th which is a bit rough compared to Gasly.

    Now onto Williams! Albon P5 and Logan Sargeant in P6!! Wow, that is the teams best qualifying result in 7 years! Logan will be hoping to score points again this weekend so he can secure his seat for next season, could the points come again?

    A bit of a shocker for McLaren, P15 for Norris and P18 for Piastri, they both seemed to really struggle, i’m not sure whether it’s the track which doesn’t suit them or not being able to heat up tyres who knows? But the team will want to score points this weekend.

    But, we do have some drivers coming through the field including Hamilton 10th, Perez 11th and Sainz 12th and the McLaren’s, so we could have some drama…

  • Las Vegas Tyre Selection

    The tyres have been chosen for the Las Vegas Grand Prix this weekend!

    The tyres chosen are: C3 (Hard), C4 (Medium), and C5 (Soft), this is the softest selection of tyres in the range.

    For the first time in F1 history the sessions will overlap more than one day, with a different schedule for the night race weekend.

    The new Las Vegas street circuit consists of 17 corners and three straights, with two DRS zones. The lap is 6.12 kilometres long, with an estimated top speed of 342kph.
    The finish line is on the corner of Harmon Avenue and Koval Lane, with the layout stretching from Las Vegas Boulevard to Sands Avenue and a race distance of 50 laps.

    More than 30 different variants of the street track were designed before the final layout was selected. The main infrastructure, including the pit building in the shape of the F1 logo.

    Formula 1 previously raced at Las Vegas as the last round of the 1981 and 1982 seasons, with both events called the Caesars Palace Grand Prix.
    On each occasion the race decided the championship: Alan Jones won the Grand Prix for Williams in 1981 but the title went to Brabham driver Nelson Piquet.

    The podium finishers will wear a special edition Pirelli podium cap with gold braiding. The Stars and Stripes flag as well as “Las Vegas 2023” scrip will also appear on the cap.

    Formula 1 returns to the United States for the third time this year, following Miami and Austin. And it’s with one of the most-eagerly grands prix of the year, in Las Vegas, where the pinnacle of motorsport hasn’t been seen since 1982. This will be an incredible race, as every day is showtime in Las Vegas, and all of us working in Formula 1 want to put on the sort of spectacle that is worthy of this amazing city. 

    It will also be a major technical challenge for both the teams and us, as we head into this race with no real references apart from simulation. Nobody has ever actually driven the 6.12-kilometre Las Vegas Strip circuit before, which is second only to Spa in terms of overall length this year, characterised by three straights and 17 corners. The surface will be a mix of the usual street asphalt, especially on the actual Strip, as well as other parts that have been completely re-asphalted for the occasion; adding another unknown element. There won’t be any support races and the track will be opened again to normal traffic for long chunks of the day, which means that the surface won’t rubber in as usual and deliver improved grip. 

    We’re expecting the cars to run quite low levels of downforce, similar to Baku or indeed Monza: hitting a high top speed will be key to being competitive. All the sessions will take place at night, with unusual ambient and track temperatures for a race weekend; more similar to those found back when pre-season testing used to take place in Europe. Those long straights also make it harder to warm up tyres in qualifying, as well as keep them in the right window: the same challenge as seen in Baku, which will probably be more pronounced in Las Vegas. 

    Bearing all this in mind, we’ve selected the trio of softest compounds for this weekend: C3, C4, and C5, which should guarantee good grip. Minimum tyre pressures should be 27 psi at the front and 24.5 psi at the back, due to the expected low temperatures as well as the track layout. In cold conditions, the gap between cold tyre pressures and normal running pressures is greatly reduced – so when the car is moving, tyre pressure will increase a lot less than on other circuits due to the low asphalt temperatures. As a result, we think that running pressures will still be lower than on other circuits that are tough on tyres, such as Baku for example. 

    So all the elements are in place for an extraordinary race, packed with surprises and unpredictability. As the title of Elvis Presley’s famous racing film goes…Viva Las Vegas! 

    Mario Isola – Pirelli Head of Motorsport.

  • Ferrari unveil special livery for Las Vegas

    Ferrari have unveiled a special livery for the Las Vegas Grand Prix with the traditional red of the SF-23 cars featuring a hint of white.
    Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz’s race suits and helmets have also been given the same treatment to celebrate Ferrari’s look from the 70s.

    With Formula 1’s highly anticipated return to Las Vegas fast approaching, the Italian team’s design is a nod to the first golden age of the sport in the USA where Ferrari enjoyed some of the most memorable moments in its history.

    The great Niki Lauda won two world titles in that era – in 975 and 1977 with victory at Watkins Glen in 1975. Clay Regazzoni also won at Long Beach in 1976 while Carlos Reutemann triumphed at Watkins Glen in 1978.
    More success followed in 1979 when Gilles Villeneuve scored an American double with wins in Long Beach and Watkins Glen.

    Throughout that decade there was plenty of white alongside the Ferrari red on the livery, with the team deciding to reprise it for the unique spectacle that is this year’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.

  • RND 19 – United States Grand Prix

    Round 19 is done, the race did start off a little slow, but there was a little bit of drama, so let’s take a look at how it went.

    Max Verstappen recovered from sixth on the grid to take a nerve-wracking win as he held off a fast-approaching Lewis Hamilton in second and then Lando Norris in 3rd.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Hamilton, P3: Norris, P4: Sainz, P5: Perez, P6: Leclerc, P7: Russell, P8: Gasly, P9: Stroll and P10: Tsunoda.

    But, not everything stays the same in Formula 1, as Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, are disqualified from the Grand Prix for a technical breach. After the race, the cars were inspected and irregularities were spotted by the FIA Technical team after a plank wear inspection was carried out.

    So the new top 10 is- P1: Verstappen, P2: Norris, P3: Sainz, P4: Perez, P5: Russell, P6: Gasly, P7: Stroll, P8: Tsunoda, P9: Albon and P10: Sargeant.

    A great result from Max, he had a brake issue he was looking after, so he will be happy he got the win and especially as it’s his 50th Grand Prix win! Not only this, having his teammate in P4 aswell! A nice little result for Perez also.

    Stroll! Back in the points, he had recovered so well considering he had started from the pitlane. The team will be happy with the Canadian’s result especially because of Alonso having a DNF.

    Williams, a double points finish, which means… Logan Sargeant first points in F1!!! And on home soil also, the American driver will be very happy with that all important point. This makes him the first American in 30 years to score points.

    Looking at the fights in the Constructors championship, Mercedes currently sit in second on 344 points, Ferrari are only 22 points away in third. McLaren have now overtook Aston Martin in the standings as the papaya team have 242 points, and Aston are on 236.
    Alpha Tauri now have 10 points, meaning they are only two points away from Haas in P9, and 6 points away from Alfa Romeo in eighth.

    Looking at the Drivers Standings, Perez has now built up a little bit of gap to Lewis Hamilton in P3. Alonso has to be a bit wary as Carlos is closing in on him, a 12 point gap between them.
    Norris has overtook Leclerc for 6th, 8 points seperate them, so that could be an interesting little fight coming up.

    Now, we don’t have to wait for too long for the next race, as it’s this week! We head to Mexico, for Round 20 and Sergio Perez’s home race!

  • RND 19 – Austin Qualifying

    Qualifying is done, lets take a look at how it went down in the States, as there were laps being deleted due to track limits with the World Champion being affected also.

    Charles Leclerc came out on top as he flew to pole position, Lando Norris put in a late effort to make it P2 and rounding out the top three is Lewis Hamilton.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Norris, P3: Hamilton, P4: Sainz, P5: Russell, P6: Verstappen, P7: Gasly, P8: Ocon, P9: Perez and P10: Piastri.

    A great result for Ferrari! They have some pace here so they will be looking to go for the win on Sunday and get as many points as possible to close in on Mercedes in P2.

    Another great result for Lando, he predicted the McLaren wouldn’t be as good round COTA so I’m sure he will be happy with second position and look to grab big points again.

    Mercedes, P3 and P5, love to see it! Lewis was flying, so I think Leclerc and Norris may have to watch their back as the Mercedes man loves this track and will want to go for that win.

    Now onto Red Bull, Max Verstappen normally we are use to seeing him in P1 or P2 but his starting P6 on Sunday due to going over the white lines and having a lap time deleted but this means we get to see him coming through the field a little bit and give us some excitement for the race.
    Perez starts P9 for the Bulls, a bit of work to do on Sunday but I’m sure he will make up some places if he keeps out of trouble.

    Now one of the biggest shocks was Aston Martin, both cars out in Q1 which is definitely disappointing especially as they brought upgrades to the race this weekend, which at the moment hasn’t worked, a lot of work for them to do in the race but they have a second opportunity today in the Sprint.

    A decent result for Ricciardo, P15, it’s his first race weekend back, hopefully he can make up some positions in the race and maybe look at scoring some points.

    Predictions for the Sprint-

    My top five prediction for the Sprint race are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Norris, P3: Hamilton, P4: Leclerc and P5: Russell.

    I have a feeling we may get a bit of a crazy sprint race, there are normally a few lap 1 clashes here so we could see some drama occur!

  • Round 12 – Portland E-Prix

    FP1-

    NEOM McLaren’s Rene Rast finished the first free practice session of the Southwire Portland E-Prix fastest, as the Championship broke several records around the new stateside circuit.

    Rast who has not been in the top five in any practice session this season, set a time of 1m09.054s which put him quickest of the grid. The DS PENSKE of Jean-Eric Vergne was just 0.172s behind him to finish second, with the NIO 333 of Dan Ticktum completing the top three.

    As the grid got to grips with the 3.221km circuit, the times tumbled. Seconds were being taken off each lap, and just minutes into the session the McLaren of Rast become the first driver to break Sacha Fenestraz’s all time Formula E average speed record.

    Several drivers found the limits and exceeded them in this first practice, with the like of DS PENSKE’s Jean-Eric Vergne and NIO 333’s Dan Ticktum each taking a journey off the circuit over the 30 minute session.

    FP2-

    Nissan’s Norman Nato finished the final practice session before qualifying at the top of the timesheets, as the Frenchman set a time of 1m09.101s. The Nissan powertrain seems to be very happy in these hot conditions and on a traditional track.

    Maserati MSG Racing’s Maximilian Guenther finished FP2 in second with the young driver keen to replicate his victory last time out in Jakarta. Jaguar TCS Racing’s Sam Bird had a late start to the session but ended up third.

    Vergne had an unusual off at Turn 1 during the session, as he bailed on the corner and instead decided to venture down the escape road. He later did the same, kicking up dust in the DS PENSKE when finding the limits of the 3.221km circuit.

    He wasn’t alone as in the session the NIO 333 of Dan Ticktum had an identical incident and went on the grass, with Robin Frijns treating his ABT CUPRA like a lawnmower across the runoff.

    Qualifying-

    Avalanche Andretti’s Jake Dennis took Julius Baer Pole Position and the driver’s World Championship lead ahead of the Portland E-Prix Round 12, beating a flying Sacha Fenestraz in the final.

    Going up against the Nissan of Sacha Fenestraz was going to be tough, with the rapid French-Argentine a three-time Formula E record breaker. In addition, Dennis had lost all three final appearances this season, with this being his third consecutive final in a row, and finally managed to bag the all important P1.

    Despite learning that he was starting in the pit lane, as DS PENSKE had installed RFID scanning equipment at pit entry this morning that was able to collect live data from all cars, Vergne still took part in his quarters duel with Nato.

    In the Semi’s it was the battle of the Nissans, and there not strangers to a duel against one another, and the last time this happened was in Monaco when the French-Argentinean Fenestraz won, leaving Nato settling for third on the grid.

    Round 12-

    Envision Racing’s Nick Cassidy clambered from 10th to the top step of the podium in an enthralling inaugural Southwire Portland E-Prix Round 12, heading home the TAG Heuer Porsche of Antonio Felix da Costa and Jake Dennis. Just seven seconds split the first 17 runners, while the race produced some 403 overtakes.

    Cassidy measured his race to perfection from P10 on the grid as the 22-strong field jostled for superiority over the 32 lap encounter/

    Polesitter Jake Dennis led the opening stages but wouldn’t time his late-race charge as previsely as Cassidy managed to. The Avalanche Andretti driver would settle for second, though, as that proved to be enough for the Drivers’ World Championship lead as things stand.

    On his birthday, Mitch Evans recovered from 20th on the grid to fourth – ensuring his still in the fight for the title with four races left in Season 9.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Cassidy, P2: Dennis, P3: da Costa, P4: Evans, P5: Buemi, P6: Gunther, P7: Bird, P8: di Grassi, P9: Wehrlein and P10: Nato.

    We now have a few weeks break, as we head to Rome, Italy for Round 13 & 14 on the 14th to 16th of July.

  • RND 5 – Miami Grand Prix

    Well Round 5 is now complete, lets take a look on how it went in the States.

    Max Verstappen charged his way from 9th to take the win for a second time at the Miami Grand Prix. Sergio Perez comes in 2nd making it a 4th one-two this season for Red Bull Racing. Fernando Alonso joins them on the podium in P3.

    The full top 10 are: P1: Verstappen, P2: Perez, P3: Alonso, P4: Russell, P5: Sainz, P6: Hamilton, P7: Leclerc, P8: Gasly, P9: Ocon and P10: Magnussen.

    Another good result for the Bull’s, I personally thought it would’ve been harder for Verstappen to get through the field and Perez would’ve been hoping so to.

    A good result for the Mercedes considering how their Saturday went in qualifying, they’ve now closed the gap down to Aston Martin in the constructors with a decent points haul.

    A turning point for Alpine yesterday as they managed to get a double point finish, they just need to consistently manage that as they’ll then move up further in the constructors.

    A bad day for McLaren, both drivers having quiet races, with Norris getting hit from behind on lap 1 and then Piastri with brake issues it was just a disaster for the Woking team.

    It was a good race. I stayed out of trouble at the beginning and then just had a clean race, picked the cars off one by one. Then I could stay out really long on the hard tyres and that’s where I think we made the difference today. I had a good little battle with Checo at the end. We kept it clean and that’s the most important – it’s a great win today. Yesterday was of course a bit of a setback, today we just kept it calm, kept it clean, and for sure winning a race from P9 is always very satisfying.

    Verstappen on the win.

    Now we have a little break before we have a triple header, we will be back on track from the 19th to 21st May for Round 6 at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.

  • Miami Grand Prix

    Round 5 is here and we are in Miami for the 2nd Grand Prix, not only this it will be Logan’s first home race!

    Will it be another win for Red Bull this weekend? Or will the tension be rising between the Bulls? Will Ferrari, Aston Martin and Mercedes bring the fight this weekend?

    Can Aston and Mercedes make it back on the podium? Will Charles get another pole position?

    Who needs to shine?

    Nyck de Vries has got some making up to do, last weekend at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix he crashed out and he knows it was his fault and took full blame, so he will be wanting to make up for it this weekend, whether that’s a good qualifying result or race result.

    The Alfa Romeo’s are having a rough ride at the moment too, Zhou peeled into the pits during the last race and retired and Bottas finished 18th, hopefully this track this weekend will be a better fit for the team.

    The Alpine’s are not where they want to be either, two races in a row where no points have been scored for either driver. So this weekend, going back to the normal race format the drivers will be wanting to optimise on other drivers miss fortune and score some points.

    Predictions for Qualifying-

    My top five for qualifying are- Pole: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Perez, P4: Alonso and P5: Hamilton. I don’t believe there is any penalties to be taken this weekend.

    We could possibly see a McLaren in the top 10 and maybe an Alpine aswell, with a stop and start qualifying session to come.

  • Miami Tyre Selection

    The tyres have been selected for the Miami Grand Prix, which will be the first of three grand prix to be held in the United States this year.

    The chosen compounds are: C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), C4 (Soft). The track with 19 predominantly slow corners and three straights, is moderately demanding on tyres. The choice of three compounds from the middle of the range, rather than softer sets, is mainly due to the usually high track temperatures which reached 59 degrees celsius last year.

    The most used compounds in the 2022 race were medium and hard. Most of the drivers completed the grand prix with just one pit stop. With the race having been neutralised twice by a safety car and virtual safety car, which allowed some teams to make a second stop.

    The organisers of the grand prix have had the 5.41 kilometres of track resurfaced for 2023. The previous surface, composed of limestone and granite, had been treated with powerful jets of water.

    The weather on the coast of Miami is very changeable. In 2022, the race was spared by rain, which fell only when the starting grid was being assembled with the high temperatures meaning that the track died out before the race started. The possibility of downpours has to be taken into serious consideration.

    This weekend, Formula 1 will race in Miami for the first of three rounds in the United States on this year’s calendar, along with the now-traditional event in Austin and the much-awaited race in Las Vegas. It is not the first time that the championship has had three grands prix take place in the US in the same year, but never before have we seen our sport make such an impact with the American public, and this is largely thanks to the commitment made by Liberty Media. In the first race held on the track around the Hard Rock Stadium last year, the tyres behaved as expected on asphalt which had rather particular characteristics, above all due to a very high “micro-roughness”. We know that the track has now been completely resurfaced and we will have to check during the usual inspection that precedes the start of the weekend if there will be any significant changes in its characteristics. The Miami track requires average downforce levels, as it features a wide variety of corners but also a very long straight. We have brought the middle tyres in the range (C2, C3, and C4), also due to the fact that we can expect very high temperatures: last year the asphalt reached almost 60°C.

    Mario Isola, Motorsport Director.

  • F1 Academy Calendar Announced

    F1 Academy has revealed the calendar and format for its inaugural season of racing, with the all-women series set to feature seven events, with 21 races in total.

    Kicking off in Speilberg, Austria on April 28th-29th, the new series will then head to the Spanish cities of Valencia and Barcelona on May 5th-7th and May 19th-21st, respectively.

    From there, June 23rd-25th will see them pay a trip to the historic Zandvoort circuit in the Netherlands. After taking on Monza’s Temple of Speed from July 7th-9th they’ll head to Le Castellet in France for the penultimate round of the year.

    Finally, the 2023 season will draw to a close at Austin’s Circuit of The Americas, as a support event to the United States Grand Prix from October 20th-22nd.

    Designed to feature as many F1 tracks as possible, the calendar provides an opportunity for the 15 drivers to compete on a variety of challenging circuits, helping to develop their technical skills and prepare them to progress to higher levels of competition.

    The grid will take to the track for the first time at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from April 11th-12th whilst 13 additional days of testing throughout the season will also be revealed in the coming weeks.

    The race weekend format is as follows:

    • Two 40 minutes free practice sessions
    • Two 15 minute qualifying sessions
    • Three races per weekend.

    The first qualifying session will set the grid for Race 1, whilst the second will set the order for Race 3. Race 2’s grid will be set by reversing the top eight drivers from Qualifying 1, with ninth and below lining up in the positions they qualified in.

    Races 1 and 3 will be 30 minutes long and award 25 points to the winner. Whilst Race 2 will be a slightly shorter 20 minutes and offer 10 points. one point for the fastest lap will be up fr grabs in each race, provided the driver finishes in the top 10.

    Race 1 & 3Race 2
    1st – 25 points1st – 10 points
    2nd – 18 points2nd – 8 points
    3rd – 15 points3rd – 6 points
    4th – 12 points4th – 5 points
    5th – 10 points5th – 4 points
    6th – 8 points6th – 3 points
    7th – 6 points7th – 2 points
    8th – 4 points8th – 1 point
    9th – 2 points
    10th – 1 point

  • Portland added to Season 9 calendar

    The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is set to race for the first time in Portland, Oregon on 24th June next year, following approval at the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting.

    Portland will host Round 12 of the updated Season 9 calendar of 16 races in 11 cities, which also includes championship debuts in Hyderabad, India; Cape Town, South Africa and Sao Paulo, Brazil.

    Formula E has raced in the USA every year since Season 1 in 2015, with the exception of COVID-hit Season 6 in 2020. Long Beach, Miami and New York City have previously hosted races.

    Fans attending the race in Portland will see the USA debut of the Gen3 race car. New for Season 9, the Gen3 is the third generation of race car in Formula E and the fastest, lightest, most powerful and efficient electric race car ever built.

    The updated Season 9 calendar reflects the removal of an event previously shown as TBD in May 2023 and means the race programme is complete, subject to FIA circuit homologation of new venues.

    We are excited to bring the premier electric motorsport world championship to Portland for the first time in June next year. There is a big, passionate fanbase for professional sports in the city, together with strong ecological credentials which makes Portland a perfect host for the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. The USA remains an important market for Formula E. We are delighted to maintain that critical presence and engage a new audience in the Pacific Northwest region in all-electric motorsport.

    Alberto Longo, Co-Founder & Chief Championship Officer.

  • Round 19- US GP

    Wow, what a race! I was hoping for a mixed race due to the grid penalties and I think we got just that and more! However, on a weekend where Red Bull’s co-founder and owner, Dietrich Mateschitz has died, the team managed to take home their fifth Constructors title and the team made a tribute to him.

    Not only did they take the Constructors, they also took the win as Max Verstappen took home his 13th win this season, matching Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher. Hamilton comes home in 2nd after battling for the win and Charles Leclerc makes up ground and rounds out the podium.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen P2: Hamilton, P3: Leclerc, P4: Perez, P5: Russell, P6: Norris, P7: Alonso, P8: Vettel, P9: Magnussen and P10: Tsunoda.

    However, nothing stays the same as Fernando Alonso got given a 30 second time penalty which sees him drop out the points. The point scorers are: P1: Verstappen, P2: Hamilton, P3: Leclerc, P4: Perez, P5: Russell, P6: Norris, P7: Vettel, P8: Magnussen, P9: Tsunoda and P10: Ocon.

    Not a good day for Carlos, a what could’ve been for the Spaniard as he got spun round on the first lap by Russell and then having to go back to the pits and retire.

    It’s mostly a mixed result for most of the teams, but one team did look like they were having a promising race until lap 21, Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel were on fire this weekend and showed a lot of pace, with both drivers being in the top 10 during the race, until Alonso went to overtake Stroll and it all went wrong – Stroll has been penalised for the incident with a 3 place grid drop.

    A good weekend for Mercedes, they showed some pace in the race and those upgrades they brought definitely seem like it brought them closer to the front, as Lewis was battling for the win. I think if George didn’t get a 5 second time penalty for the lap 1 incident, he could’ve been a bit further up the grid.

    The Championship-

    With Max Verstappen taken his second Championship the focus turns to the rest of the drivers, Leclerc is now in 2nd as he leap frogs Perez, George builds on the gap between himself and Sainz in P4 and P5, and Lewis closes in on the Spaniard.

    Red Bull have managed to grab their fifth constructors title, Mercedes are closing in on Ferrari with only 53 points between them and 3 races remain! Alpine are still ahead in P4 on 144 points, McLaren on 138 points just six points between them.

  • Round 19- Austin Qualifying

    Qualifying for the United States Grand Prix is complete, but penalties once again shake up the grid a bit, however its all about what happens during the race…

    It was Carlos Sainz who took pole position, with Charles Leclerc in 2nd making it at 1-2 for the Italian team and Max Verstappen in 3rd.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Sainz, P2: Leclerc, P3: Verstappen, P4: Perez, P5: Hamilton, P6: Russell, P7: Stroll, P8: Norris, P9: Alonso and P10: Bottas.

    However the starting grid is: P1: Sainz, P2: Verstappen, P3: Hamilton, P4: Russell, P5: Stroll, P6: Norris, P7: Bottas, P8: Albon, P9: Perez, P10: Vettel, P11: Gasly, P12: Leclerc, P13: Tsunoda, P14: Alonso, P15: Magnussen, P16: Ricciardo, P17: Ocon, P18: Schumacher, P19: Zhou and P20: Latifi.

    A good result for Mercedes, its what they’ve needed after a few tough qualifying’s as well as weekends so the Silver Arrows will be hoping to get a good result on the board.

    What a day for Carlos Sainz, his second pole position and he will be wanting to take the win and hope for his teammate to get further up the grid so they can carry on with the Constructors fight.

    A stand-out qualifying from Stroll, originally qualifying P7 but starting P5 due to others penalties, it will be interesting to see how he does during the race and to hope that Aston have a good strategy and capitalise on the points.

    Predictions-

    My top five predictions are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Sainz, P3: Hamilton, P4: Perez and P5: Russell.

    It is most definitely going to be an interesting race with Perez and Leclerc coming through the field. There will be some drivers hoping to capitalize on there starting positions and hopefully score as many points as possible with four races left.

  • Austin Tyre Allocation

    The tyre allocation for Austin has been chosen and the middle of the compounds have been nominated: C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), C4 (Soft).

    The teams will need to be careful of the uneven track surface, as they may need to run a higher ride height – so studying the data carefully is key to find the best set-up.

    The 2021 United States Grand Prix, was a two-stopper but with a completely new range of tyres, it may be a different story – thanks to the new regulations, different weather conditions and other variables on track.

    As was the case in Japan, the second free practice session has been extended to 90 minutes to test the 2023 slick tyre prototypes, to help fine-tune the compounds for next season.

    The entire FP2 session will be devoted to the tyre test with Pirelli setting the run plan. If teams are running a rookie in FP1, it is allowed to run its own programme for some of FP2, before concentrating on the tyre test for the remainder of the session.

    The Circuit of The Americas is a balanced layout when it comes to the demands placed on cars and tyres in terms of traction, braking and lateral loads, but it’s mainly a flowing track that the drivers love, which nonetheless presents some challenging sections that shouldn’t be underestimated. The track was partially re-asphalted in 2020, with a ‘milling’ process also taking place last year to shave off the worst of the bumps that oblige teams to raise the ride height, which affects aerodynamics. In the first free practice session, there could be a high degree of track evolution so it’s going to be vital for the teams to maximise the data collected during FP3 to define the best strategy. The second free practice session will be dedicated to slick tyre testing for 2023, weather permitting. Weather conditions in Austin have been extremely variable in the past, so it’s a circuit where you have to be ready for anything!

    Mario Isla, Motorsport Director.

  • Pourchaire to make FP1 debut

    Sauber Academy driver, Theo Pourchaire will be making his F1 race weekend debut at the Circuit of the Americas during the United States Grand Prix. Where he will be driving in first practice for Alfa Romeo and he will also be one of the teams reserve drivers for 2023.

    Pourchaire, joined the Sauber Academy in 2019 and will be taking over Valtteri Bottas’s C42 on Friday in Texas. The Frenchman has previously driven for the team in a private test, he got to sample the C38 car at the Hungaroring in 2021.

    Currently 2nd in the Formula 2 standings, Pourchaire has taken home 3 wins and 3 further podiums, he currently has 164 points to his name and will be wanting to score more in the final round in Abu Dhabi.

    Theo has been delivering great performances over the course of this season, as well as during the previous years. We have been working closely with him for almost four years now, as a member of our Academy, and we have been impressed by his constant progress and development as a driver first and, equally importantly, as a person. We are delighted to give him his first Free Practice outing next week: it’s a well-deserved opportunity, and I’m confident he will once again impress us with his performances, as he will help the team gather valuable data ahead of the United States Grand Prix.

    Team Principal, Frederic Vasseur.

    I am thrilled to be making my Free Practice debut in Austin; it will be my second time behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car, but in some ways, it will feel like it’s the first time, as this time it will be during an official Grand Prix session. It feels like a dream coming true, and I want to thank Alfa Romeo F1 Team for putting their trust in me and granting me this amazing opportunity: I am looking forward to being on track, and I will make sure to get the most out of it and to do my best to support the team as they prepare for the United States Grand Prix.

    Theo Pourchaire on his FP1 debut.

    Ever since he joined the Sauber Academy back in 2019, Théo has shown impressive progress. He has been a title winner in 2019 and a contender in 2020 in F3; in F2, particularly this season, he’s given his all and was in the battle for the title for most of the championship. He is, without any doubt, one of the most promising young drivers coming through the ranks, and it’s a pleasure for us to finally see him stepping up and earning his first Formula One Free Practice outing. From the very beginning he impressed us with his professional approach and dedication to always give his very best on- and off-track, and we can’t wait to see him further unlocking his potential on track.

    Alfa Romeo’s Sporting Director, Beat Zehnder.

  • Shwartzman FP1 run

    Robert Shwartzman, Ferrari test driver will be taking part in FP1 for the Scuderia at the 2022 United States Grand Prix.

    Shwartzman will be getting his first stint at the wheel of the 2022 Ferrari F1-75, having drive the 2021 car this season at Mugello in July and at Fiorano in September alongside reserve driver Antonio Giovinazzi.

    The 22 year old, finished runner-up in the 2021 FIA Formula 2 Championship and will be taking part in two FP1 sessions for Ferrari, the first one being at the Circuit of the Americas on October 21st.

    In 2022, teams must run a driver who has taken part in two Grands Prix or fewer in at least two FP1 sessions.

    For us, it’s Robert Shwartzman that will do our two FP1s. You are right in saying that you would not pick races like Singapore or races where the race drivers need more running. I don’t think we have an issue in doing it during one of the weekends where we have Pirelli testing.

    Laurent Mekies, Racing Director.

  • Sargeant set for FP1 debut

    Williams have announced that their academy driver, Logan Sargeant will be making his Formula 1 race weekend debut at this years United States Grand Prix with the Formula 2 racer set to drive in the first practice session at the Circuit of The Americas.

    Sargeant, is currently competing in his first season of Formula 2 and has already impressed, notching up two wins and collecting a further two podiums to sit third in championship.

    The American, will now get his second taste of Formula 1 machinery this time on home soil in Austin having first run in a Williams at last years post season test in Abu Dhabi. He will drive Nicholas Latifi’s FW44 for the 60 minute session and will be helping the team with set up preparations, as well as getting his first Grand Prix weekend action under his belt.

    Logan joined the Williams Driver Academy,where they announced it at the last year at the US Grand Prix. The 21 year old is the first American to be on the grid.

    I’m super excited to be given this opportunity to drive my first Free Practice in Austin. To be given the chance at the US Grand Prix is something extremely special to me. A massive thank you to Williams for putting the trust and belief in me to do a good job. The goal for me will be to learn as much as possible in the new generation of cars. I’m looking forward to making the most of this experience and really enjoying it.

    Logan Sargeant on his FP1 session.

    Logan has demonstrated a great level of ability and maturity so far this season through his accomplishments both on and off the track. He’s delivered race winning performances in Formula 2 matched by his hard work during simulator sessions. It felt only right to reward these achievements with the opportunity for him to take part in a Free Practice session at Austin. We’re looking forward to seeing him get behind the wheel of the FW44 and seeing how his performance and feedback help the team’s preparations for the race in Austin.

    Sven Smeets, Williams Sporting Director.
  • Round 5- Miami GP

    Round 5- Miami GP

    The first Miami Grand Prix is officially over, and what a race it was! No-one really knew how it was going to go from tyres/pitstops to weather to VSC and Safety Cars, it was all unknown.

    But, Max Verstappen wins the Miami Grand Prix after getting the lead from Charles Leclerc early on in the race. 2nd place went to Charles Leclerc and the final podium spot going to Carlos Sainz, a good haul of points for Ferrari.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Sainz, P4: Perez, P5: Russell, P6: Hamilton, P7: Bottas, P8: Ocon, P9: Alonso and P10: Albon.

    There was quite a lot of overtakes throughout the race, but Mr Russell, seemed to make them stick as he was charging up the field after starting 12th! He took full advantage of going long and waiting for a VSC/Safety Car, and it ended up paying off.

    There was a few DRS trains during the race, but one which caused some drama, was where Pierre Gasly went wide, which allowed some cars to go through, but Lando Norris and Gasly made contact as Norris went to over take the Alpha Tauri driver. Lando’s race was therefore over, which caused a VSC and then a full safety car, Gasly retired into the pits just as the Safety Car went in.

    Another bit of contact late on in the race, was between Mick and Seb, both running in the points but as they made contact it saw the pair fall down the order, Seb retiring in the pitlane and Mick having to get a new front wing…

    An okay day for Alfa Romeo, they had Bottas score some points, and it could’ve been more if he didn’t go wide and have both Mercedes sat right behind him. But Guanyu Zhou had a technical issue which saw his race come to an end rather early.

    McLaren and Ricciardo are not having a good time at the moment, second race in a row, finishing outside the top 10. The Woking team now have time to the next race to understand a few things out about the car, as I’m sure they are not the only team who will be doing so.

    The Championship-

    Leclerc still leads the Championship by 19 points, the gap just keeps on coming down now… Max still in 2nd on 85 points, his teammate in third on 66 points. we then have Russell in 4th on 59 points and then Sainz rounding out the top 5 on 53 points.

    The gap between the top two teams are closing, Ferrari still leads with 157 points but Red Bull are just 6 points away from them. Mercedes sat comfortably in third on 95 points, with McLaren in 4th after not scoring any this weekend, and Alfa Romeo in 5th on 31 points.

    We are back again in two weeks, but this time we have a double header. Our first stop being to Barcelona, Spain on the 20th to 22nd May, the home Grand Prix of Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz!

  • Round 5- Miami Qualifying

    Round 5- Miami Qualifying

    The craziness continues in Miami, we only had 19 drivers take part in qualifying as Esteban Ocon had a crash in FP3 where his chassis broke, and wouldn’t of been fixed in time.

    But it was Ferrari who came out on top for the first ever Miami Qualifying, Charles Leclerc took pole position for the third time this season! With his teammate making it an all Ferrari front row lock out.

    The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Sainz, P3: Verstappen, P4: Perez, P5: Bottas, P6: Hamilton, P7: Gasly, P8: Norris, P9: Tsunoda, P10: Stroll.

    Bit of a mixed weekend for most teams really, some seem to improve a lot on Friday, but Saturday they went a little bit back down.

    Mercedes looked very strong in the two free practice sessions, so for GR to qualify out of the top 10 was bit strange, starting in the middle of the pack may not be good here, but it will be interesting to see if he can work his way up the field. Onto LH, much better weekend for him here, back in the top 10, and in a good position if anything happens today to make the most of it.

    Alpha Tauri, a big improvement for them as both drivers in the top 10, where as in Imola they were out in Q1! Lets see if they can keep it up today and score some good points for the team.

    McLaren had an okay day, Norris in the top 10 again, whereas 14th for Ricciardo. The Aussie had an issue with starting the car up in Q2, this then compromised his out lap as he was pushing to get heat in his tyres.

    Predictions-

    My top 5 for the race are- P1: Leclerc, P2: Sainz, P3: Perez, P4: Hamilton and P5: Norris.

    I feel like things aren’t going to go well for Max, his already had a few mechanical problems this weekend, so could this play apart?

    I’d love to see Mick get points, but with the track really only having 2 overtaking spots, can he make up 4 places as well as having to pit and then make up those positions again?…

    I could see a few DNF’s happening today, the track is so tight and there is no room for error, as we have seen from Ocon and Sainz both crashing.

    The race starts at 20:30pm (BST).

  • Miami Grand Prix

    The first Miami Grand Prix weekend is here! And what a crazy couple of days we’ve seen and there hasn’t even been any racing yet… A sign of things to come?

    Being at a new track, it is a fresh start for everyone but going into the weekend there is a lot of unknown aswell. Who will come out on top this weekend, Ferrari or Red Bull? Or will Mercedes new upgrades put them further up the field…

    Who needs a good weekend?

    Mercedes, even though George has been having a consistent season so far, they will be wanting both drivers to be doing well. Once they unlock the problems on the W13, they should have a decent car…

    Carlos will be wanting a good weekend, his been caught up in a few incidents which hasn’t been his fault. But it does seem like the pressure may be getting to him, he knows his got a car which can perform and he will want to get his first win and help the team get those points up for the Constructors.

    Alonso as well will be wanting a good weekend, another DNF in Imola which wasn’t his fault meant he hasn’t scored points in 3 out of 4 races. The Alpine has got pace so it should be up in that top 10 fighting for points with the McLaren and Mercedes.

    Mick, will he be getting his first points? It’s needed and the Haas does have pace, will be interesting to see how he handles the car on this track.

    Predictions for qualifying-

    My top 5 are- Pole: Verstappen, P2: Leclerc, P3: Perez, P4: Sainz and P5: Alonso. This track is a bit unknown on whose car it will suit, but we all know the battle will be between Ferrari and Red Bull for pole.

    A battle i’m not sure on is Mercedes, McLaren, Alpine and probably Haas, they all have strong cars which could make that final top 5 place, but it should be a good battle between the teams.

    Times for the weekend-

    Friday 6th-

    • Free Practice 1- 19:30pm – 20:30pm (BST)
    • Free Practice 2- 22:30pm – 23:30pm (BST)

    Saturday 7th-

    • Free Practice 3- 18:00pm – 19:00pm (BST)
    • Qualifying- 21:00pm – 22:00pm (BST)

    Sunday 8th-

    • Race- 20:30pm (BST).

  • Miami tyre allocation

    We are back this week, but no longer in Europe, as we have headed to Miami for the first ever Miami Grand Prix which is round number 5 of the 2022 season!

    Pirelli have chosen the middle of the range, C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium) and C4 (Soft), this combination is the most commonly used throughout the year as its the most versatile.

    The 5.41 kilometre Miami International Autodrome is set in the Hard Rock Stadium Complex in Miami Gardens with 19 corners, three straights, elevation changes and a chicane. Top speeds are expected to be in the region of 320kph with an average of around 22kph and drivers on full throttle for around 58% of the lap.

    The Miami track will be the 11th venue to host a grand prix in the USA, with it being brand new to everyone, Pirelli has had to rely on simulation data to come up with the tyre nominations.

    The brand new asphalt is likely to lead to a high degree of track evolution, especially at the start of the weekend, with the Porsche Challenge and W series as support events.

    The weather could be unpredictable aswell, with ambient temperatures of around 20 degrees and quite a high risk of rain and wind on the Florida coast at this time of year.

    There’s been a huge buzz of excitement around the first Miami Grand Prix, where the track has some similarities to Jeddah, although there are some parts that are slower and more technical than Saudi Arabia: especially the section from Turns 11 to 16. The rest is a very quick layout, running anti-clockwise, which puts the emphasis on the tyres on the right hand side of the car. We’re expecting the usual rapid track evolution and a smooth surface with the new asphalt, but the track has been jet-washed at high pressure, which means that it should offer quite good grip from the beginning. Because it’s a fast track the cars are likely to run a low to medium downforce set-up, which could lead to a bit of sliding in the high-speed corners on the hard compounds in particular. For any new track our choice tends to be on the conservative side, so it will be interest to confront the simulations with real data.

    Mario Isla, Head of Pirelli Motorsport.
  • Third US GP?

    Third US GP?

    Formula 1 seems to be looking at adding a third US race next season as F1 is getting closer to cracking America, with Austin already a staple on the calendar after the attendance last year, and Miami is set to make its debut in May.

    Liberty Media, F1 owners have been looking at ways to increase the sports popularity across the pond. Netflix’s Drive To Survive and more TV coverage there has been a boom in American fans, and the bosses are set to capitalise on this.

    According to the Sports Buisness Journal, talks are ongoing between F1 and the cities officals to bring the sport to the world-famous Las Vegas Strip. These talks are apparently well underway, with F1 executives having visited the city several times in recent months to assess how suitable it would be to host a race.

    It’s suggested that the track could pass by the iconic dancing fountains as the drivers would battle their way down a mile of the strip.

    F1 is still yet to comment/confirm anything on this but it is to be suggested the first race could be next year or the year after depending on when it gets confirmed etc.

    It wouldn’t be the first time the Caesars Palace Grand Prix will be featured on the calendar as it did back in 1981 and 1982, before being abandoned due to low popularity.

    But should it be in Las Vegas if they were to have a third? America has a lot of different tracks but could we possibly go to a different track which is already built?

  • 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.