Formula 1

Traditionally, the sporting director has been the sole point of audio contact between the pit wall and race control should the need for communication arise during races. This year F1 and the FIA agreed to broadcast selected conversations between the teams and Michael Masi for the first time in order to give fans extra insight.

The comparative times may have been meaningless given that mule cars of varying vintages were in use, but the Pirelli 18-inch tyre test was a key session for teams and drivers as they prepare for the new era in 2022. All the teams taking part had already sampled the new tyres when they participated in

The manner in which F1 race director Michael Masi handled the late race safety car at the Yas Marina circuit last weekend has triggered a backlash for grand prix racing, and tarnished the image of both the sport and the FIA. While motor racing’s governing body is clear that lessons can be learned from what

They naturally saw the process as the last chance for the outcome of the 2021 world championship to be turned around, after the late call by race direction to allow the cars splitting Hamilton and Max Verstappen to unlap themselves under the safety car on the penultimate tour. As such there’s a widespread feeling on

Sainz replaced Sebastian Vettel at Ferrari on a two-year deal for this season, and enjoyed his strongest F1 campaign to date, scoring four podiums en route to fifth place in the drivers’ championship. Sainz managed to outscore Charles Leclerc in their first year as team-mates, helping Ferrari to secure third place in the constructors’ championship

The two drivers have dominated the rankings over recent years, finishing as the top two every year since 2016. But this is the first time that Verstappen has emerged ahead. In what has become a long-standing tradition created by Autosport, each of the F1 team bosses were asked to pick their top 10 drivers of

Hamilton was left upset by the way that a late race safety car restart call in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix cost him the world championship title on the final lap in Abu Dhabi last weekend. His Mercedes team has said that the Briton has been left ‘disillusioned’ by the way things were handled, and

Sulayem’s arrival at the helm of the FIA comes just days after F1 has found its image tarnished in the wake of the safety car restart that decided the world championship battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen. The FIA World Motor Sport Council has already announced plans for a probe into the events of

The Dutchman picked up his maiden F1 championship trophy at the FIA’s prize-giving gala in Paris on Thursday night, which came just days after his last-lap victory in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Verstappen’s current contract runs until the end of 2023, and he has said several times since his success at the weekend that

In the wake of the Hamilton’s defeat to Max Verstappen in Abu Dhabi, the result of the FIA’s safety car restart call which allowed Verstappen to make a final lap pass in their winner-takes-all showdown for the drivers’ championship, the Mercedes driver and his boss declined to take part in the annual prize-giving event. Hamilton’s

It is the second time this year that the Monegasque has tested positive, having also contracted the virus in January after coming into close contact with another case. According to a team statement posted on Twitter, Leclerc is suffering from mild symptoms but “feeling fine” and will self-isolate at home. The team tweeted: “Scuderia Ferrari

At the annual FIA Prize Gala event, Verstappen will be presented with the famous trophy that marks the culmination of a brilliant campaign for the Dutchman to secure his maiden title. But while he and his Red Bull team are set for a night to remember, F1 is still reeling from the scandal that has

The complicated technology, which generates electrical power from exhaust heat, has proven to be expensive and complex since it formed part of the new turbo hybrid rules that were introduced in 2014. With F1 eager to attract new manufacturers from 2026, the presence of the MGU-H was viewed as a key part of the discussions.

Arrow McLaren SP IndyCar driver O’Ward took part in the young driver test in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday as a reward for scoring his first victory earlier this year, having made a bet with McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown. O’Ward completed 92 laps in the McLaren MCL35M at the Yas Marina Circuit, and said afterwards

During the opening run of Wednesday’s test session at the Yas Marina Circuit, wheel covers were fitted to the rear wheels of Lando Norris’s McLaren car that featured LED lights. Norris completed only one flying lap using the LED light wheel covers before returning to the pits, after which they were removed for his subsequent

Born Hazel Williams, she met Chapman at a dance in 1944 and Chapman’s first car, what became known as the Lotus Mark 1, was built around an Austin 7 chassis in a lock-up garage at the rear of her parents’ house in Hornsey, North London, in 1948. She took over the development of the trials

Hamilton lost out in the Abu Dhabi finale after a late safety car cost him his advantage over Verstappen, and allowed the Dutchman to take fresh tyres and then jump ahead on the last lap dash to the flag after the green flag flew. Alonso and Vettel both have experience of last round showdowns, with

Verstappen benefited from a late safety car restart to overtake Hamilton for a victory that secured him the crown in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Sunday. And although the race ended in controversy, as Mercedes protested the result over its belief the FIA did not follow its own rule book in the timing of

Hamilton had looked on course to grab the win that he needed for an eighth title, before a late safety car was brought out following a crash for Williams driver Nicholas Latifi. A decision by F1 race director Michael Masi to restart the race with one lap to go gave Verstappen, who had pitted for

While Todt praised “all those who made it possible”, many fans could not hide their anger at what they felt had been a shambolic running of the final F1 race of the season.   Pouring through the messages, accusations of the FIA having rigged the event, manipulated its own rules and put the desire for

Max Verstappen clinched the F1 world championship title at the Yas Marina circuit after race director Michael Masi elected to restart the race with one lap to go following a brief safety car period triggered by a crash from Williams’ Nicholas Latifi. The Red Bull driver had been switched on to soft tyres for the

Mercedes filed two protests with the FIA stewards at the Yas Marina Circuit over the race restart after Max Verstappen passed Lewis Hamilton on the final lap of the race to win the world championship. The stewards dismissed both protests, including one of the resumption of the race with one lap remaining, but Mercedes has

Ahead of Sunday’s race, Leclerc lies in fifth place on 158 points, ahead of Lando Norris on 154 and Sainz on 149.5. Norris gave himself a good shot at jumping Leclerc by qualifying third at Yas Marina, while Sainz will start fifth, and Leclerc seventh. Although he has a two-place advantage on his teammate, Sainz

The Briton will enter his fourth F1 title decider at Abu Dhabi in Sunday’s race at Yas Marina, following the 2010 event that ended with Sebastian Vettel’s first championship triumph in a four-way scrap against Fernando Alonso, Mark Webber and Hamilton, then in 2014 and 2016 Hamilton and Rosberg had to-the-wire title battles decided at

The Red Bull driver produced a stunning lap to take his 10th pole position of the season, beating title rival Lewis Hamilton by 0.371s who will join him on the front row for the finale. With both drives on equal points going into the title decider, the simple equation is whoever finishes in front between

With Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton neck-and-neck on points ahead of this weekend’s Yas Marina event, there has been intense speculation about the risks of the championship being decided in a controversial incident. One week on from an ill-tempered Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Masi reminded teams ahead of the weekend that the FIA’s own International

Defending F1 world champion Hamilton grabbed top spot in FP2 after title rival Max Verstappen was fastest in the first practice session at the revamped Yas Marina Circuit, with both drivers going into the season finale level on points for a winner takes all race. With tensions still high between the two title fighters and

The Italian company has put an extra focus on kerbs since the Qatar GP, where four drivers suffered similar failures in the race. Pirelli later determined that the failures resulted from drivers consistently running over and back across kerbs during long stints in the race, which is why the problem hadn’t been apparent after practice.

Championship leader Verstappen started the race weekend on the right foot as he finished ahead of Mercedes duo Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton in FP1, lapping almost two-tenths of a second clear. Opening practice on Friday afternoon marked the first opportunity for drivers to sample the altered corners at Yas Marina, including the Turn 5

Once the 2021 Formula 1 season draws to a close, attention will immediately turn to preparations for 2022’s all-new rules. F1 will receive one of its biggest technical overhauls for next season, with a seismic shift in the aerodynamic regulations, which should act as a soft reset for all of the teams in the championship.