Mercedes have shaken up their Formula 1 management team with key personnel James Alisson and Mike Elliott swapping jobs.
In a surprise turn of events, Elliott will take up the position of Chief Technical Officer while Allison will return to his role of technical director, 20 months after moving into the CTO position.
The shuffle, driven by Elliott, comes as Mercedes target a return to the top of the sport as they attempt to adapt to a change in regulations last year which left Lewis Hamilton and George Russell trailing behind Ferrari and, more prominently, Red Bull.
Elsewhere, Michael Schumacher’s family to take legal action over ‘stupid’ AI interview, Christian Horner believes as many as six teams could break the 2022 cost cap and Guenther Steiner reveals why he dropped German driver Mick Schumacher.
29 minutes ago
Christian Horner responds to Max Verstappen retirement talk
Christian Horner has downplayed retirement talk surrounding Max Verstappen after the double world champion raised the prospect of quitting Formula 1.
With modifications to the sprint weekend format likely to come into force next week in Azerbaijan, Verstappen said at the last race in Australia that he wasn’t sure how long he’d continue in the sport if modifications to the race weekend are made.
Verstappen, who has a £40m-a-year contract with Red Bull until 2028, has stated in the past his dislike of sprint races.
A two-time F1 world champion at 25, Verstappen currently leads this year’s World Championship by 15 points and while Horner admits the Dutchman is unlikely to continue in the sport as long as 41-year-old Fernando Alonso, the Red Bull team principal believes he will continue to race while that “passion burns within him.”
“Max is his own man and he’s very, very strong in his opinions and on his outlook on what he wants to do in his life,” Horner told Sky Sports News.
58 minutes ago
When is the next F1 2023 race?
When is the Azerbaijan Grand Prix?
The fourth race weekend of the 2023 season, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, takes place from Friday 28 April – Sunday 30 April.
Currently the schedule is as follows: first practice takes place at 10:30am (BST), before qualifying for the Saturday sprint race at 2pm (BST).
On Saturday, a second practice session is slated in for 10:30am before the sprint race at 2:30pm (BST). Currently, the grid for Sunday’s grand prix will be set by the finishing positions in the sprint, with points on offer to the top-eight.
The race on Sunday has a start time of midday (BST).
1 hour ago
Christian Horner suggests six teams have broken Formula 1 cost cap
As many as six teams could be in breach of the Formula 1 cost cap for 2022, according to Red Bull chiefs Christian Horner and Helmut Marko.
Controversy overshadowed Red Bull’s double world championship triumph last year when they were found to be guilty of a minor overspend breach of the 2021 F1 budget cap – the first year such regulations were enforced.
Red Bull were fined £6m and docked 10% of their car development time – yet there is now concern growing amongst the paddock about last year’s sums, which were submitted to the FIA on 31 March.
As a result of the tough economic climate and inflation, Horner revealed that as many as six teams have made it known at F1 Commission meetings that they are at risk of missing the 2022 cost-cap figure, which stands at £111m.
“A danger for 2022 is that there could be six teams in breach of the cap,” said Horner, as last season drew to a close. “Energy prices have been exponential, but thankfully we’ve been protected from that.
2 hours ago
Daniel Ricciardo ‘full steam ahead’ with scripted F1 show
Daniel Ricciardo revealed he is “full steam ahead” with a new scripted F1 series – and casting will begin “pretty soon.”
The Australian, who was dropped by McLaren at the end of last year, is not on the Formula 1 grid in 2023 and instead occupies a third driver role at world champions Red Bull. The 33-year-old is confident he can find a seat to return to the sport next year but admitted during numerous appearances at the Australian Grand Prix that he has enjoyed prioritising off-track endeavours so far in 2023.
One such activity has been the creation of a new scripted F1 series on American streaming service and Disney-owned platform Hulu, which was first announced last June.
2 hours ago
Mercedes shake up Formula 1 management team with unexpected job swap
Mercedes have shaken up their Formula 1 management team with key personnel James Alisson and Mike Elliott swapping jobs.
In a surprise turn of events, Elliott will take up the position of Chief Technical Officer while Allison will return to his role of technical director, 20 months after moving into the CTO position.
The shuffle, driven by Elliott, comes as Mercedes target a return to the top of the sport as they attempt to adapt to a change in regulations last year which left them trailing behind Ferrari and, more prominently, Red Bull.
‘We’ve reversed the roles’: Mercedes shake up F1 management team with shock job swap
Mercedes, who have endured a tricky start to the F1 season, have made a surprising shuffle at executive level
2 hours ago
Lewis Hamilton evaluates Mercedes’ chances of hauling in Red Bull
Lewis Hamilton admits it could be a “long time” until Mercedes catch Red Bull this season with the reigning world champions dominant in the opening three races of the 2023 campaign.
The seven-time F1 world champion, who has not won a race since December 2021 in Saudi Arabia, was on the podium for the first time this season in Australia three weeks’ ago.
Hamilton, whose contract at Mercedes expires at the end of the season, was not overly optimistic about Mercedes’ chances of hauling in Red Bill’s hefty advantage.