F1 2019
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Limejuice
Well-Known Member
Limejuice
Well-Known Member
Limejuice
Well-Known Member
Love those stewards. Love their decision. Somewhat tepid feelings towards the FIA. Liberty can still go examine its prostate with a garden rake.
Wonder if Vettel/Ferrari will try to reopen their appeal?
*tail between legs*Would Mr Badgers please report to the headmaster's correctional suite!
Limejuice
Well-Known Member
Taken in completely!
Nice one. It finished off my race with a double take and an unexpected explosion of venom from Mrs Limejuice.
For that alone...
MrCurry
right after this urgent rest
I loved that race - what a contrast to the France GP dullfest. Anyone who paid to visit the French GP was probably green with envy for the spectacle the Austrian circuit’s crowd had.
Quite right not to penalise VER. There’s a pretty well established precedent for drivers running their opposition out of road on the exit of corners and AFAIK the FIA dictat about leaving a car’s width refers to corner entry and straights. I might have just made that up though.
Now can someone please find out who keeps hiring Tilke to design boring tracks and point to this race as an example of how a non-Tilke “optimised” track actually produces great racing?
Quite right not to penalise VER. There’s a pretty well established precedent for drivers running their opposition out of road on the exit of corners and AFAIK the FIA dictat about leaving a car’s width refers to corner entry and straights. I might have just made that up though.
Now can someone please find out who keeps hiring Tilke to design boring tracks and point to this race as an example of how a non-Tilke “optimised” track actually produces great racing?
beesonthewhatnow
going deaf for a living
Can’t wait for them to drop Silverstone - still one of the greatest tracks in the world, in spite of the recent “improvements” - for a dull street circuit in London. Yippee.
Limejuice
Well-Known Member
Yup.
Street circuits promote tourism, and so secure taxpayers' money to sub the promoter's fees. They're often pretty and attract viewers who would otherwise be watching tourism videos on YT.
The racing, however, is execrable.
So, conflict: F1 wants exciting racing and devotees; Liberty wants viewers' eyeballs, no matter how temporarily.
MrCurry
right after this urgent rest
1%er
Well-Known Member
Formula 1 world champion, Lewis Hamilton, last night launched a bitter attack on the four drivers who pushed him back into a disappointing 5th place finish in yesterday's thrilling Austrian Grand Prix, which was eventually won by Red Bull's Max Verstappen. A visibly enraged Hamilton hit out at his rivals in a highly-charged post-race press conference.was refreshing not to listen to him complain about it mind
"If these other four guys hadn't finished in front of me, I'm absolutely convinced I could have got the win," he raged. "My car wasn't really dialled-in to the race conditions, and the team's strategy was extremely poor, but I have no doubt in my mind that I would have still taken the chequered flag if these guys hadn't pushed me back into fifth. If this is what F1 is coming to, then I will seriously consider retirement at the end of the season. People, and my fellow racers, in particular, need to understand that I'm Lewis Hamilton, and if they're not prepared to slow down in order to hand me the win, I shall report them to the FIA and continue to kick up fuck at post-race interviews until they do."
Hamilton then stormed out of the room and was spotted minutes later outside the building, screaming and screaming until he was sick
.
1%er
Well-Known Member
Pat Fry to leave McLaren with immediate effect
Pat Fry, who led the design team of this year’s McLaren MCL34, is to leave the team with immediate effect, but it seems there is no controversy about the move as Fry was brought in last year to take the role after Matt Morris left and James Key was not able to join because of gardening leave that had to be served after deciding to leave Scuderia Toro Rosso.
Fry may end up going elsewhere because a number of teams could use an engineer of his caliber, but for the moment it looks like he is going back into semi-retirement, which is why McLaren was able to get him as a stop-gap last year. So it looks like the 2020 McLaren will largely be the work of James Key.
Robert Kubica Driver of the Day glitch
A technical glitched in the systems saw Williams Robert Kubica crowned the winner of the fan vote concept, in which the fans vote for the driver they believed performed best. Verstappen won the race after dropping down to eighth place on the opening lap, as his car kicked into anti-stall on the front row when the lights went out. Formula 1 was investigating the issue and has now revealed that Verstappen received a massive 74% of the public vote, with Charles Leclerc in second with 11% and Carlos Sainz in third with 7%.
Rich Energy hit with a number of court orders
Haas sponsor Rich Energy has been hit with several UK court orders, one of which compels the energy drink company to provide clarity on its financial situation and its dealings with Haas F1. As mentioned above, Rich Energy was brought to court by British bicycle company Whyte Bikes for a copyright infringement involving its stag logo which appeared as almost an exact copy of the cycling company's emblem. A ruling by the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, which declared Rich Energy's stag logo as invalid, forbids the company from using its logo in the United Kingdom after July 18.
However, digging deeper into the Court order reveals the full extent of Rich Energy's liabilities, some of which should entail some interesting information. Rich Energy has been ordered to pay costs of £35,416 to Whyte Bikes within 14 days. Damages for copyright infringement must be agreed by the two parties or they shall be assessed by a court at a later date. The company must also deliver to Whyte Bikes all its infringing products or choose to destroy the products or "render them non-infringing" by 1 August 2019 [that's a lot of cans of drink to be destroy]. Rich Energy must disclose to Whyte Bikes the total UK and global sales of cans of its product bearing the stag logo and the total sums received from the sales. The disclosed numbers will either validate the claims of Rick Energy CEO William Storey who insists his company's sales skyrocketing, or they will blow his allegations into oblivion.
Finally, in relation to Whyte Bikes' ability to assess the damages linked to the copyright infringement, Rich Energy must divulge to Whyte the following: "Any sums of money invested by third parties in any other company or entity controlled by the Second Defendant in connection with and/or pursuant to the First Defendant’s sponsorship of the Haas F1 Team; Full details of any sums of money paid or payable to the Haas F1 Team pursuant to the First Defendant’s sponsorship of the Haas F1 Team, indicating in each case whether such sums were paid or payable by the First Defendant or by any other entity". In normal language that means, Whyte Bikes will learn how much Rich Energy paid for its Haas sponsorship and who paid the team.
I'd also like to know where them money behind Rich Energy has come from. Limejuice iirc you know a bit about accounting, the accounts for Rich Energy look suspect to me for a company that is the title sponsor for an F1 team.
Rich Energy Ltd
2017 fillings
Other documents
Rich Energy Racing Ltd with only one director, also William Storey was almost struck off the register, but was reprieved on the 9th April 2019 as Storey has said he will send in the required documents, this Rich Energy has been suspect to me since I first heard they were going to get into F1 in some way, by buying a team or becoming a sponsor. They just don't appear to have the funds for either.
Pat Fry, who led the design team of this year’s McLaren MCL34, is to leave the team with immediate effect, but it seems there is no controversy about the move as Fry was brought in last year to take the role after Matt Morris left and James Key was not able to join because of gardening leave that had to be served after deciding to leave Scuderia Toro Rosso.
Fry may end up going elsewhere because a number of teams could use an engineer of his caliber, but for the moment it looks like he is going back into semi-retirement, which is why McLaren was able to get him as a stop-gap last year. So it looks like the 2020 McLaren will largely be the work of James Key.
Robert Kubica Driver of the Day glitch
A technical glitched in the systems saw Williams Robert Kubica crowned the winner of the fan vote concept, in which the fans vote for the driver they believed performed best. Verstappen won the race after dropping down to eighth place on the opening lap, as his car kicked into anti-stall on the front row when the lights went out. Formula 1 was investigating the issue and has now revealed that Verstappen received a massive 74% of the public vote, with Charles Leclerc in second with 11% and Carlos Sainz in third with 7%.
Rich Energy hit with a number of court orders
Haas sponsor Rich Energy has been hit with several UK court orders, one of which compels the energy drink company to provide clarity on its financial situation and its dealings with Haas F1. As mentioned above, Rich Energy was brought to court by British bicycle company Whyte Bikes for a copyright infringement involving its stag logo which appeared as almost an exact copy of the cycling company's emblem. A ruling by the Intellectual Property Enterprise Court, which declared Rich Energy's stag logo as invalid, forbids the company from using its logo in the United Kingdom after July 18.
However, digging deeper into the Court order reveals the full extent of Rich Energy's liabilities, some of which should entail some interesting information. Rich Energy has been ordered to pay costs of £35,416 to Whyte Bikes within 14 days. Damages for copyright infringement must be agreed by the two parties or they shall be assessed by a court at a later date. The company must also deliver to Whyte Bikes all its infringing products or choose to destroy the products or "render them non-infringing" by 1 August 2019 [that's a lot of cans of drink to be destroy]. Rich Energy must disclose to Whyte Bikes the total UK and global sales of cans of its product bearing the stag logo and the total sums received from the sales. The disclosed numbers will either validate the claims of Rick Energy CEO William Storey who insists his company's sales skyrocketing, or they will blow his allegations into oblivion.
Finally, in relation to Whyte Bikes' ability to assess the damages linked to the copyright infringement, Rich Energy must divulge to Whyte the following: "Any sums of money invested by third parties in any other company or entity controlled by the Second Defendant in connection with and/or pursuant to the First Defendant’s sponsorship of the Haas F1 Team; Full details of any sums of money paid or payable to the Haas F1 Team pursuant to the First Defendant’s sponsorship of the Haas F1 Team, indicating in each case whether such sums were paid or payable by the First Defendant or by any other entity". In normal language that means, Whyte Bikes will learn how much Rich Energy paid for its Haas sponsorship and who paid the team.
I'd also like to know where them money behind Rich Energy has come from. Limejuice iirc you know a bit about accounting, the accounts for Rich Energy look suspect to me for a company that is the title sponsor for an F1 team.
Rich Energy Ltd
2017 fillings
Other documents
Rich Energy Racing Ltd with only one director, also William Storey was almost struck off the register, but was reprieved on the 9th April 2019 as Storey has said he will send in the required documents, this Rich Energy has been suspect to me since I first heard they were going to get into F1 in some way, by buying a team or becoming a sponsor. They just don't appear to have the funds for either.
Limejuice
Well-Known Member
1%er Legal stuff is closer to my field, but the documents don't portray a big, thriving company. In fact, filing small company accounts (without sales figures, inter alia) pretty much says it's not a big player, not one in a league of title sponsors for F1.
It seems (from balance sheet, etc., 2017):
Most of the assets are "intangible" - IP, rights, software, brand name, that sort of thing. The tangible assets of 17k could be a car and a laptop. Cash in bank was £500 - roughly the value of a well-filled piggy bank. Eight grand's worth of stock - that's a sweet shop. Pushing a million in debtors, with half being trade. It reflects payment terms. It could show 30 days trade terms or 90 days. It's not a huge amount though. If 90 days terms, the turnover is about 2 million. Trade debt doubled in size from 2016 to 2017, so maybe the boss can call that 'skyrocketing'. Really it's the illusion of small numbers.
The accounts of small businesses are always a bit misleading, because they're prepared specifically to show as little as possible and incur the minimum tax liability. It looks like a working business, but Apple it ain't.
I'd say it's a small firm talking big, like a Potemkin Village. Disclaimer: I know nothing about anything and all views expressed are personal opinions, not statements of fact.
It seems (from balance sheet, etc., 2017):
Most of the assets are "intangible" - IP, rights, software, brand name, that sort of thing. The tangible assets of 17k could be a car and a laptop. Cash in bank was £500 - roughly the value of a well-filled piggy bank. Eight grand's worth of stock - that's a sweet shop. Pushing a million in debtors, with half being trade. It reflects payment terms. It could show 30 days trade terms or 90 days. It's not a huge amount though. If 90 days terms, the turnover is about 2 million. Trade debt doubled in size from 2016 to 2017, so maybe the boss can call that 'skyrocketing'. Really it's the illusion of small numbers.
The accounts of small businesses are always a bit misleading, because they're prepared specifically to show as little as possible and incur the minimum tax liability. It looks like a working business, but Apple it ain't.
I'd say it's a small firm talking big, like a Potemkin Village. Disclaimer: I know nothing about anything and all views expressed are personal opinions, not statements of fact.
1%er
Well-Known Member
I wrote this yesterday [Thursday] but it appears I didn't press post 
Could Pat Fry be on his way to Williams
Pat Fry is one of the most experienced engineers in Formula 1 and as engineering director for the McLaren he appears to have sorted out some of the teams problems from the last few years, if the last few races are anything to go by. So why leave now and why leave with immediate effect?
Well it could be that he is going to join Williams and needs to leave now so he can get his gardening leave over before the start of the 2020 season. It was only in the last week or two that Paddy Lowe confirmed he would not be returning to Williams so they have an opening for an engineering director. Fry has loads of experience having held positions with Ferrari, Manor Racing, Benetton teams and now two stints at McLaren.
It should be remembered that Fry only came back to McLaren because Toro Rosso insisted that James Key took gardening leave before joining McLaren and that James Key joined the team because McLaren made a big mistake employing Matt Morris who came from Sauber but didn't turnout to be what McLaren needed (I think McLaren sacked Morris if the truth be told).
I would put money on him going to Williams if anyone fancy's a small wager
Why are drivers crying over rules they asked for
I'm kinda getting fed-up with the drivers crying in the press over the rules that the stewards have to enforce. If we look at the current rules and how they came to be, we can see that it was the teams and drivers who asked for them. It was drivers and teams who pushed for the rule about returning to the track safely and also leaving a cars width. Yes it was a different time when drivers were being killed with monotonous regularity, but these rules were brought in after teams and drivers wanted better safety in the sport. If they want to change these rules they should lobby to remove them in the same way they lobbied to have them put in place.
Could Pat Fry be on his way to Williams
Pat Fry is one of the most experienced engineers in Formula 1 and as engineering director for the McLaren he appears to have sorted out some of the teams problems from the last few years, if the last few races are anything to go by. So why leave now and why leave with immediate effect?
Well it could be that he is going to join Williams and needs to leave now so he can get his gardening leave over before the start of the 2020 season. It was only in the last week or two that Paddy Lowe confirmed he would not be returning to Williams so they have an opening for an engineering director. Fry has loads of experience having held positions with Ferrari, Manor Racing, Benetton teams and now two stints at McLaren.
It should be remembered that Fry only came back to McLaren because Toro Rosso insisted that James Key took gardening leave before joining McLaren and that James Key joined the team because McLaren made a big mistake employing Matt Morris who came from Sauber but didn't turnout to be what McLaren needed (I think McLaren sacked Morris if the truth be told).
I would put money on him going to Williams if anyone fancy's a small wager
Why are drivers crying over rules they asked for
I'm kinda getting fed-up with the drivers crying in the press over the rules that the stewards have to enforce. If we look at the current rules and how they came to be, we can see that it was the teams and drivers who asked for them. It was drivers and teams who pushed for the rule about returning to the track safely and also leaving a cars width. Yes it was a different time when drivers were being killed with monotonous regularity, but these rules were brought in after teams and drivers wanted better safety in the sport. If they want to change these rules they should lobby to remove them in the same way they lobbied to have them put in place.
1%er
Well-Known Member
Hot off the press
It seems that Alonso and McLaren have parted company, news story coming through at the moment says, Fernando Alonso is no longer partnered with McLaren in either Formula 1 or Indy 500 racing after the two parties decided to amicably part ways.
Some gossip and rumors as the silly season starts
Lets start with Williams, the word is that they are looking for a new CEO. It isn't really clear yet if that is a CEO for the group or for the F1 team. Pat Fry I believe will be going to Williams but I'd be surprised if his post was CEO as he is an engineer, so I think will take up the the role of Chief technical officer. I think with their current problems Williams have to look for someone from with-in the sport. they could look outside as there are not many people from with-in the sport available, but personally I think that would be a bad choice.
They could go for someone like Jost Capito, he was CEO at McLaren but only lasted 5 months, it was never really made clear why they parted company so quickly. He has 30 years experience in the motor industry. He has had some success with BMW, Porsche, Sauber, Ford and also Volkswagen, during his time at Volkswagen they dominated in the WRC, winning a hat-trick of both Drivers and Constructors Championships.
Also currently available is Eric Boullier. He suddenly appeared in F1 back in 2009, having been the CEO of Gravity Sport Management (owned by Genii Capital who brought into Renault F1) and was named team principal of the team. Renault then became Lotus and he remained team principal. He them moved to McLaren as racing director, leaving therm in 2018.
Someone else I heard who was whispered about is Otmar Szafnauer, but he seems settled at Force India. But as a new team with new owners who knows what the real situation is behind the scenes.
Tracks
It seems that it is Spain and Germany who will be dropping of the calendar to allow space for Vietnam and Holland next season. Word is that Silverstone have done a deal (I'm sure we will hear more about that next weekend) and the Italian press are claiming that a deal has been done for Monza. There are reported to be 12 new tracks bidding to become part of the F1 circus from 10 countries, so it seems that F1 are not short of expansion plans and can keep hosting fees high. While Barcelona is odds on to drop off for 2020, two other Spanish cities are looking to replace it, Jerez de la Frontera is one city but Madrid is a more likely venue (Carlos Sainz Sr has a lot of political pull in Madrid).
US TV
It is being reported that NBC are bidding for the rights to show F1 in the USA. Currently ESPN hold the rights. Both are big media companies in the US, NBC is part of Comcast (who also now own Sky, so you are not paying Murdoch anymore) and ESPN are part of ABC/Disney. The thing with the US market is that Liberty Media have a direct streaming service there (they also have it on offer in many other places now), so the cost of the rights will not be like it was. It will be interesting to see how this pans out, as Liberty Media may well want to offer their streaming service in Europe when the current Sky contract is up for renewal. iirc Liberty Media are just using the Sky feed for their services at the moment.
Driver movement
Some of this I have covered in other posts but he goes Still lots of stories about Pierre Gasly, despite Helmut Marko telling anyone who'll listen that Gasly is safe, he has a long track record of removing drivers mid-season. Remember Christian Klien, Scott Speed, Sebastien Bourdais and lets not forget Dany Kvyat. They also let Carlos Sainz go to Renault so started the season with two drivers and finished it with two different drivers.
Marko has decimated Red Bulls young driver programme over the last couple of years, so they may well have to look outside their stable for some drivers, I think this is why Nico Hulkenberg came into the frame, also with Hulkenberg there is a good chance he may be replaced at Renault by Ocon, who it is rumored could be released by Mercedes very soon.
I think everyone is waiting to see what happens with Bottas, he would be crazy to leave Mercedes, but Mercedes may well not extend his contract. I think they will unless they can sign Max, which they may not be able to do until after 2020.
It seems that Alonso and McLaren have parted company, news story coming through at the moment says, Fernando Alonso is no longer partnered with McLaren in either Formula 1 or Indy 500 racing after the two parties decided to amicably part ways.
Some gossip and rumors as the silly season starts
Lets start with Williams, the word is that they are looking for a new CEO. It isn't really clear yet if that is a CEO for the group or for the F1 team. Pat Fry I believe will be going to Williams but I'd be surprised if his post was CEO as he is an engineer, so I think will take up the the role of Chief technical officer. I think with their current problems Williams have to look for someone from with-in the sport. they could look outside as there are not many people from with-in the sport available, but personally I think that would be a bad choice.
They could go for someone like Jost Capito, he was CEO at McLaren but only lasted 5 months, it was never really made clear why they parted company so quickly. He has 30 years experience in the motor industry. He has had some success with BMW, Porsche, Sauber, Ford and also Volkswagen, during his time at Volkswagen they dominated in the WRC, winning a hat-trick of both Drivers and Constructors Championships.
Also currently available is Eric Boullier. He suddenly appeared in F1 back in 2009, having been the CEO of Gravity Sport Management (owned by Genii Capital who brought into Renault F1) and was named team principal of the team. Renault then became Lotus and he remained team principal. He them moved to McLaren as racing director, leaving therm in 2018.
Someone else I heard who was whispered about is Otmar Szafnauer, but he seems settled at Force India. But as a new team with new owners who knows what the real situation is behind the scenes.
Tracks
It seems that it is Spain and Germany who will be dropping of the calendar to allow space for Vietnam and Holland next season. Word is that Silverstone have done a deal (I'm sure we will hear more about that next weekend) and the Italian press are claiming that a deal has been done for Monza. There are reported to be 12 new tracks bidding to become part of the F1 circus from 10 countries, so it seems that F1 are not short of expansion plans and can keep hosting fees high. While Barcelona is odds on to drop off for 2020, two other Spanish cities are looking to replace it, Jerez de la Frontera is one city but Madrid is a more likely venue (Carlos Sainz Sr has a lot of political pull in Madrid).
US TV
It is being reported that NBC are bidding for the rights to show F1 in the USA. Currently ESPN hold the rights. Both are big media companies in the US, NBC is part of Comcast (who also now own Sky, so you are not paying Murdoch anymore) and ESPN are part of ABC/Disney. The thing with the US market is that Liberty Media have a direct streaming service there (they also have it on offer in many other places now), so the cost of the rights will not be like it was. It will be interesting to see how this pans out, as Liberty Media may well want to offer their streaming service in Europe when the current Sky contract is up for renewal. iirc Liberty Media are just using the Sky feed for their services at the moment.
Driver movement
Some of this I have covered in other posts but he goes
Still lots of stories about Pierre Gasly, despite Helmut Marko telling anyone who'll listen that Gasly is safe, he has a long track record of removing drivers mid-season. Remember Christian Klien, Scott Speed, Sebastien Bourdais and lets not forget Dany Kvyat. They also let Carlos Sainz go to Renault so started the season with two drivers and finished it with two different drivers.Marko has decimated Red Bulls young driver programme over the last couple of years, so they may well have to look outside their stable for some drivers, I think this is why Nico Hulkenberg came into the frame, also with Hulkenberg there is a good chance he may be replaced at Renault by Ocon, who it is rumored could be released by Mercedes very soon.
I think everyone is waiting to see what happens with Bottas, he would be crazy to leave Mercedes, but Mercedes may well not extend his contract. I think they will unless they can sign Max, which they may not be able to do until after 2020.
1%er
Well-Known Member
Alonso and McLaren what's going on
Yesterday I mentioned that Alonso and McLaren had parted company, this story was starting to appear in a couple of F1 news sites and also sports newspapers on-line pages. But now both Alonso and McLaren are claiming this story is "fake news". Alonso says "it is just for clicks on news sites" and tweeted;
Vaya día!!! Y no es 28 de diciembre ni nada !
What a day!!! And is not April fools or anything!!! #inventing #clicks 
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) July 5, 2019
(Vaya día!!! Y no es 28 de diciembre ni nada! translates as What a day!!! And it's not December 28th or anything!. That is because in Spanish speaking countries they don't really know about April fools day, but they have a day called "el Día de los Santos Inocentes" (Day of the Holy Innocents) which falls on December 28th and is their version of "April fools day").
McLaren CEO Zak Brown has also denied reports that the team have split with Fernando Alonso. He said is was "fake news" and told Associated Press "We definitely still have a strong and contractual relationship with Fernando”.
So what is going on? Well looking back to try and find the source of yesterdays story, it appears to have come from a statement made by McLaren themselves to MotorSport Magazine. McLaren gave this statement to MotorSport Magazine having been asked, what their future plans were for Fernando Alonso, McLaren responded with this statement; “Fernando, like all McLaren drivers past and present, will always be part of the McLaren family and we have a strong relationship with him. We have no plans to run him in any further F1 test sessions this year as our focus remains on both Carlos and Lando. He is free to pursue other opportunities in motorsport and we would support him in doing so”.
I"m guessing that MotorSport Magazine read the line I have underlined as saying "Alonso is no longer contracted to us" a leap but not a massive one.
Are Williams switching to Renault power
According to Germany's AutoBild magazine "The Williams team is actively pursuing a change to Renault power units next year as a way of shaking things up". The Williams team has been using Mercedes power units since 2014. It has very close ties to the German manufacturer, whose team principal Toto Wolff was formerly an investor in Williams. But the team has been struggling in recent seasons, and so far in 2019 has failed to score a single point in the first nine races of the current season. Williams have shown a lack of power during races despite running the same race engine as Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, it appears to be down to their determination to use key components of their own construction, such as in the drivetrain and gearbox. With the team having recently parted company with its former technical director Paddy Lowe, it appears that the team is seeking a fresh new direction to help it fight its way back from a fallow few years.
If Williams were to switch camps, could this push McLaren to consider a move in the opposite direction and dump their current power units for the latest Mercedes technology. McLaren and Mercedes have a long history together in the sport. The Silver Arrows were investors in McLaren for a decade and a half until returning to the series in their own right in 2010 with the takeover of Brawn GP.
I'm not sure there is much substance to this story, but AutoBild do break a number of F1 news stories and seem to have good contacts and many teams. Something to watch for in the future maybe
Other news
The 2020 F1 season will start on Friday 13th March 2020, the first race will again be in Australian at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Albert Park.
Italian GP is a done deal apparently, it is a 5 year deal and will run from 2020 to 2024. It will be officially announced towards the end of the summer break.
Yesterday I mentioned that Alonso and McLaren had parted company, this story was starting to appear in a couple of F1 news sites and also sports newspapers on-line pages. But now both Alonso and McLaren are claiming this story is "fake news". Alonso says "it is just for clicks on news sites" and tweeted;
Vaya día!!! Y no es 28 de diciembre ni nada !
What a day!!! And is not April fools or anything!!! #inventing #clicks
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) July 5, 2019
(Vaya día!!! Y no es 28 de diciembre ni nada! translates as What a day!!! And it's not December 28th or anything!. That is because in Spanish speaking countries they don't really know about April fools day, but they have a day called "el Día de los Santos Inocentes" (Day of the Holy Innocents) which falls on December 28th and is their version of "April fools day").
McLaren CEO Zak Brown has also denied reports that the team have split with Fernando Alonso. He said is was "fake news" and told Associated Press "We definitely still have a strong and contractual relationship with Fernando”.
So what is going on? Well looking back to try and find the source of yesterdays story, it appears to have come from a statement made by McLaren themselves to MotorSport Magazine. McLaren gave this statement to MotorSport Magazine having been asked, what their future plans were for Fernando Alonso, McLaren responded with this statement; “Fernando, like all McLaren drivers past and present, will always be part of the McLaren family and we have a strong relationship with him. We have no plans to run him in any further F1 test sessions this year as our focus remains on both Carlos and Lando. He is free to pursue other opportunities in motorsport and we would support him in doing so”.
I"m guessing that MotorSport Magazine read the line I have underlined as saying "Alonso is no longer contracted to us" a leap but not a massive one.
Are Williams switching to Renault power
According to Germany's AutoBild magazine "The Williams team is actively pursuing a change to Renault power units next year as a way of shaking things up". The Williams team has been using Mercedes power units since 2014. It has very close ties to the German manufacturer, whose team principal Toto Wolff was formerly an investor in Williams. But the team has been struggling in recent seasons, and so far in 2019 has failed to score a single point in the first nine races of the current season. Williams have shown a lack of power during races despite running the same race engine as Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, it appears to be down to their determination to use key components of their own construction, such as in the drivetrain and gearbox. With the team having recently parted company with its former technical director Paddy Lowe, it appears that the team is seeking a fresh new direction to help it fight its way back from a fallow few years.
If Williams were to switch camps, could this push McLaren to consider a move in the opposite direction and dump their current power units for the latest Mercedes technology. McLaren and Mercedes have a long history together in the sport. The Silver Arrows were investors in McLaren for a decade and a half until returning to the series in their own right in 2010 with the takeover of Brawn GP.
I'm not sure there is much substance to this story, but AutoBild do break a number of F1 news stories and seem to have good contacts and many teams. Something to watch for in the future maybe
Other news
The 2020 F1 season will start on Friday 13th March 2020, the first race will again be in Australian at the Melbourne Grand Prix Circuit in Albert Park.
Italian GP is a done deal apparently, it is a 5 year deal and will run from 2020 to 2024. It will be officially announced towards the end of the summer break.
1%er
Well-Known Member
Someone is bullshitting
2 posts above I wrote that news was breaking that Alonso is no longer partnered with McLaren, then McLaren and Alonso both claimed this was "faker news", which I posted just above this post. Today we have stories in the press claiming that Alonso's people have contacted Red Bull looking for a drive for 2020. Helmut Marko is quoted as telling the Dutch version of Motorsport.com “Alonso’s representatives have let us know that he is available for a drive in 2020”. What is interesting about the timing of this story is that yesterday McLaren confirmed both Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris as their drivers for 2020, so no chance of Alonso returning there for next season.
This story is really strange for two reasons, the first is I can't see Honda wanting to have Alonso in any car powered by their power-unit after the things he said when he was driving for McLaren-Honda. The second is what happened between Alonso and Red Bull last season, I'm sure you will remember the public argument between them, after Alonso claimed that he had been offered Daniel Ricciardo's seat and went on to say Red Bull had offered him a drive 5 or 6 times over the years. To which Horner then sparked controversy when he admitted that Alonso wouldn’t fit into the team dynamic at Red Bull.
I have gone back to look up the Sky interview with Alonso from last September and these are the word reported at the time; “I said no to offers, including one from Red Bull, because the projects weren’t winning ones,” Alonso said last September. “My goals are no longer in Formula 1 at this point. I made my decision two months ago and I’m happy.” concluded Alonso. Regarding Horner's comments Alonso said “There hasn’t been any confusion, I was disappointed with his comments in the summer about my way of working and my character, he never worked with me and I don’t think the people who have will say they’ve had any problems. It was strange to read this from someone who has never worked with me and has also tried to hire me several times in my career”.
Is Alonso looking for a seat or is Helmut Marko just shit stirring, I don't think we have heard the last of this story.
Silverstone announcement
At around 2pm UK time there is meant to be a news conference at the circuit, attended by Formula One Chairman Chase Carey, along with Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle and British Racing Drivers Club Chairman John Grant. I predict they will confirm what I have been saying for a few months now, that a new contract has been signed. Silverstone and a British Grand Prix are very important to F1 as 7 of the 10 teams call the UK their home. Also Silverstone was the best attended of any grand prix last season with 140,500 on race day.
The big problem for the circuit was the hosting fee and the clause in the contract that meant it went up by around 5% every year. In 2010 the fee was £11.5M by 2017 it had grown to £16.2M, by 2026, it would have risen to £25 million had the break clause not been invoked, with Grant saying in 2017 that it was “not financially viable”.
Other Silverstone news is, the track will revert back to having just two DRS zones this year. Last season a third zone was added starting on the pit straight and covering the first two sweeps through Abbey and Farm. however, this additional stretch proved problematic, with drivers running through Abbey's fast right-hander with minimum downforce, which caught out Marcus Ericsson and Romain Grosjean who crashed after failing to disengage their DRS in time. The controversial DRS section has therefore been dropped for this weekend's event, with Silverstone going back to its two original zones located on the Wellington and Hanger straights.
Edit to add, there is a rumor doing the rounds that John Cooper the CFO at McLaren is on his way out, what is significant about this is that he is the last of the Ron Dennis appointed senior members of staff left at the team, the end of a era I guess.
2 posts above I wrote that news was breaking that Alonso is no longer partnered with McLaren, then McLaren and Alonso both claimed this was "faker news", which I posted just above this post. Today we have stories in the press claiming that Alonso's people have contacted Red Bull looking for a drive for 2020. Helmut Marko is quoted as telling the Dutch version of Motorsport.com “Alonso’s representatives have let us know that he is available for a drive in 2020”. What is interesting about the timing of this story is that yesterday McLaren confirmed both Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris as their drivers for 2020, so no chance of Alonso returning there for next season.
This story is really strange for two reasons, the first is I can't see Honda wanting to have Alonso in any car powered by their power-unit after the things he said when he was driving for McLaren-Honda. The second is what happened between Alonso and Red Bull last season, I'm sure you will remember the public argument between them, after Alonso claimed that he had been offered Daniel Ricciardo's seat and went on to say Red Bull had offered him a drive 5 or 6 times over the years. To which Horner then sparked controversy when he admitted that Alonso wouldn’t fit into the team dynamic at Red Bull.
I have gone back to look up the Sky interview with Alonso from last September and these are the word reported at the time; “I said no to offers, including one from Red Bull, because the projects weren’t winning ones,” Alonso said last September. “My goals are no longer in Formula 1 at this point. I made my decision two months ago and I’m happy.” concluded Alonso. Regarding Horner's comments Alonso said “There hasn’t been any confusion, I was disappointed with his comments in the summer about my way of working and my character, he never worked with me and I don’t think the people who have will say they’ve had any problems. It was strange to read this from someone who has never worked with me and has also tried to hire me several times in my career”.
Is Alonso looking for a seat or is Helmut Marko just shit stirring, I don't think we have heard the last of this story.
Silverstone announcement
At around 2pm UK time there is meant to be a news conference at the circuit, attended by Formula One Chairman Chase Carey, along with Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle and British Racing Drivers Club Chairman John Grant. I predict they will confirm what I have been saying for a few months now, that a new contract has been signed. Silverstone and a British Grand Prix are very important to F1 as 7 of the 10 teams call the UK their home. Also Silverstone was the best attended of any grand prix last season with 140,500 on race day.
The big problem for the circuit was the hosting fee and the clause in the contract that meant it went up by around 5% every year. In 2010 the fee was £11.5M by 2017 it had grown to £16.2M, by 2026, it would have risen to £25 million had the break clause not been invoked, with Grant saying in 2017 that it was “not financially viable”.
Other Silverstone news is, the track will revert back to having just two DRS zones this year. Last season a third zone was added starting on the pit straight and covering the first two sweeps through Abbey and Farm. however, this additional stretch proved problematic, with drivers running through Abbey's fast right-hander with minimum downforce, which caught out Marcus Ericsson and Romain Grosjean who crashed after failing to disengage their DRS in time. The controversial DRS section has therefore been dropped for this weekend's event, with Silverstone going back to its two original zones located on the Wellington and Hanger straights.
Edit to add, there is a rumor doing the rounds that John Cooper the CFO at McLaren is on his way out, what is significant about this is that he is the last of the Ron Dennis appointed senior members of staff left at the team, the end of a era I guess.
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1%er
Well-Known Member
Are Rich Energy the Del Boy of F1
For some time now I have said I think there is something very dodgy about Rich Energy's tie-up with Haas, I just can't see how such a small company (accounts posted in a link above) have the money or wherewithal to be the title sponsor of an F1 team. I have looked at sponsorship cost over the years and to be the title sponsor of an F1 team is going to cost in the region of $20M. Last year at the Mexican GP Guenther Steiner said while announcing the deal with Rich Energy “It’s our biggest deal up to now”.
But yesterday it appeared to all go tits-up, after a tweeted message either written or authorised by CEO William Storey, without the knowledge of the drinks firm's investors that read “Today @rich_energy terminated our contract with @HaasF1Team for poor performance. We aim to beat @redbullracing & being behind @WilliamsRacing in Austria is unacceptable. The politics and PC attitude in @F1 is also inhibiting our business. We wish the team well”. Other investors in the company have told different news outlets that "The deal is not terminated and William Storey has no authority to do so. The investors are trying to clear up the PR mess, but it's business as usual".
After my post above #921 I have done some digging into Rich Energy as I believe they are just a front company for a group who are still looking to buy an F1 team (last season they made a bid for Force India). A company called Brandsellers Holdings Ltd and another separate holding company appear to be the power behind the throne, with the directors listed as Robert Lee, Charlie Simpson, Neville Weston and Lloyd Tunicliffe. This group seem to be very serious and have employed former Sainsbury's boss Justin King as an advisor to take the company forward.
So what is really going on? It seems that Rich Energy logos are still on the cars and the Haas motor home at Silverstone (they were this morning Thursday anyway) and Haas have issued a statement claiming “Rich Energy is currently the title partner of Haas F1 Team. I cannot comment further on the contractual relationship between our two parties due to commercial confidentiality”.
I guess we will hear more about this over the weekend as it is a big story.
While we are on the subject of sponsorship, it seems that Rokit has extended its deal to remain the title sponsor of Williams until 2023. The telecommunications company joined the Grove squad in 2019, joining as its title sponsor following the end of the partnership between Williams and former title sponsor Martini. Williams deputy team prinicpal Claire Williams said "We are delighted to announce this extension to our partnership with ROKiT, as I said in February, this is a natural partnership based on shared values of innovation, engineering excellence and trust. ROKiT joined the team at a challenging time and it means a great deal to us that they believe in our vision and are committed to helping us achieve it. I’ve personally enjoyed working with the team at ROKiT and look forward to continuing this work in the years ahead”.
Red Bull go all James Bond
Red Bull will run a James Bond-branded livery this weekend at the British Grand Prix, in celebration of Formula 1's 1,007th race (a tenuous link at best). The energy drink squad is teaming up with Aston Martin and EON Productions for the weekend, with '007' branding being featured on the side of the car and on the rear wing. Both Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly will run the one-off livery, as it arrives in Silverstone fresh from its first victory of the season last time out in Austria. “Celebrating Bond at F1’s 1007th race was too good an opportunity to miss given our title partnership with Aston Martin,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. “Showcasing the world of James Bond here at the British Grand Prix, our second home race of the season, is really exciting. Aston Martin is inextricably linked to Bond and his cars have become truly iconic so we’re really looking forward to this weekend at Silverstone." On the back of the rear wings, Verstappen's car will sport the number plate from the Aston Martin DB5 used in Goldfinger (1964), while teammate Gasly will use the Aston Martin V8 plate from The Living Daylights (1987).
A bit of gossip, speaking on the "Missed Apex podcast" ex-Lotus F1 chief executive Matthew Carter claims he heard from sources that Ocon will be driving at Mercedes next year. Ocon had to sit out 2019 as Mercedes reserve driver, having lost his Force India seat. Toto Wolff slammed Renault for supposedly reneging on a deal to accommodate Ocon this season. Matthew Carter claims “Esteban 100 per cent was supposed to go to Renault, 100 per cent I heard that he will be racing next year. I heard from sources that he will be driving at Mercedes next year". If true it is bad news for Bottas as he only has a 1 year deal with Mercedes and they haven't taken up their option to extend that deal with Bottas yet.
For some time now I have said I think there is something very dodgy about Rich Energy's tie-up with Haas, I just can't see how such a small company (accounts posted in a link above) have the money or wherewithal to be the title sponsor of an F1 team. I have looked at sponsorship cost over the years and to be the title sponsor of an F1 team is going to cost in the region of $20M. Last year at the Mexican GP Guenther Steiner said while announcing the deal with Rich Energy “It’s our biggest deal up to now”.
But yesterday it appeared to all go tits-up, after a tweeted message either written or authorised by CEO William Storey, without the knowledge of the drinks firm's investors that read “Today @rich_energy terminated our contract with @HaasF1Team for poor performance. We aim to beat @redbullracing & being behind @WilliamsRacing in Austria is unacceptable. The politics and PC attitude in @F1 is also inhibiting our business. We wish the team well”. Other investors in the company have told different news outlets that "The deal is not terminated and William Storey has no authority to do so. The investors are trying to clear up the PR mess, but it's business as usual".
After my post above #921 I have done some digging into Rich Energy as I believe they are just a front company for a group who are still looking to buy an F1 team (last season they made a bid for Force India). A company called Brandsellers Holdings Ltd and another separate holding company appear to be the power behind the throne, with the directors listed as Robert Lee, Charlie Simpson, Neville Weston and Lloyd Tunicliffe. This group seem to be very serious and have employed former Sainsbury's boss Justin King as an advisor to take the company forward.
So what is really going on? It seems that Rich Energy logos are still on the cars and the Haas motor home at Silverstone (they were this morning Thursday anyway) and Haas have issued a statement claiming “Rich Energy is currently the title partner of Haas F1 Team. I cannot comment further on the contractual relationship between our two parties due to commercial confidentiality”.
I guess we will hear more about this over the weekend as it is a big story.
While we are on the subject of sponsorship, it seems that Rokit has extended its deal to remain the title sponsor of Williams until 2023. The telecommunications company joined the Grove squad in 2019, joining as its title sponsor following the end of the partnership between Williams and former title sponsor Martini. Williams deputy team prinicpal Claire Williams said "We are delighted to announce this extension to our partnership with ROKiT, as I said in February, this is a natural partnership based on shared values of innovation, engineering excellence and trust. ROKiT joined the team at a challenging time and it means a great deal to us that they believe in our vision and are committed to helping us achieve it. I’ve personally enjoyed working with the team at ROKiT and look forward to continuing this work in the years ahead”.
Red Bull go all James Bond
Red Bull will run a James Bond-branded livery this weekend at the British Grand Prix, in celebration of Formula 1's 1,007th race (a tenuous link at best). The energy drink squad is teaming up with Aston Martin and EON Productions for the weekend, with '007' branding being featured on the side of the car and on the rear wing. Both Max Verstappen and Pierre Gasly will run the one-off livery, as it arrives in Silverstone fresh from its first victory of the season last time out in Austria. “Celebrating Bond at F1’s 1007th race was too good an opportunity to miss given our title partnership with Aston Martin,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. “Showcasing the world of James Bond here at the British Grand Prix, our second home race of the season, is really exciting. Aston Martin is inextricably linked to Bond and his cars have become truly iconic so we’re really looking forward to this weekend at Silverstone." On the back of the rear wings, Verstappen's car will sport the number plate from the Aston Martin DB5 used in Goldfinger (1964), while teammate Gasly will use the Aston Martin V8 plate from The Living Daylights (1987).
A bit of gossip, speaking on the "Missed Apex podcast" ex-Lotus F1 chief executive Matthew Carter claims he heard from sources that Ocon will be driving at Mercedes next year. Ocon had to sit out 2019 as Mercedes reserve driver, having lost his Force India seat. Toto Wolff slammed Renault for supposedly reneging on a deal to accommodate Ocon this season. Matthew Carter claims “Esteban 100 per cent was supposed to go to Renault, 100 per cent I heard that he will be racing next year. I heard from sources that he will be driving at Mercedes next year". If true it is bad news for Bottas as he only has a 1 year deal with Mercedes and they haven't taken up their option to extend that deal with Bottas yet.
