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F1 2024

Let's all pack our lightweight rain-ponchos, and stash bottles of mayo for our chips. Here comes Belgium.

I see the current forecast is dull, cool and wet on Saturday, but race-day is fair and mild.

Telly times for UK devotees will be:

Fri 26 Jul
FP1 - 12:30
FP2 - 16:00

Sat 27 Jul
FP3 - 11:30
Qual - 15:00

Sun 28 Jul
Race - 14:00

I'll be happy to see the shake-up in podium positions continue!
 
spitfire said:
Couldn't find anything on Xitter, just loads of porn bots when you search "Max". Nothing on Grauniad either.
Click to expand...
It seems the stewards copped out again:

www.skysports.com

Hungarian GP: Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton escape stewards' penalty for dramatic F1 collision

Budapest stewards rule neither Lewis Hamilton nor Max Verstappen were clearly at fault for the lap-63 crash in which the Red Bull briefly went airborne; Hamilton found not to have moved under braking as rival claimed, but Mercedes driver could have done more to avoid the collision
www.skysports.com www.skysports.com
 
I know that the record books will show Piastri as winner but it wasn't a race win, he was given that win, he did not earn it on pure merit
 
If Mclaren want to become a team that wins DCs again they should have just used the pit strategy to put Lando ahead and told Piastri to take (another) one for the team.
Somehow they made a total fuckup of a 1-2 total victory.
 
dessiato said:
I know that the record books will show Piastri as winner but it wasn't a race win, he was given that win, he did not earn it on pure merit
Click to expand...
He'd argue that he "won" it on the basis the team made the wrong tyre piority call, after he had stormed ahead after the start.

Personally, the concept of entitlement in F1 is, to me, a bust. But I know nothing.
 
Richard46 said:
If Mclaren want to become a team that wins DCs again they should have just used the pit strategy to put Lando ahead and told Piastri to take (another) one for the team.
Somehow they made a total fuckup of a 1-2 total victory.
Click to expand...
They're not the only team that puts race strategy in the hands of a Magic 8-ball.

:(
 
yes his name is max

he spent the first 4 laps complaining about lando running him off the track .. the only reason lando did not collect him.on the next corner was because he was busy running Lewis off the track

oddly the FIA golden boy does not like the rules applying equally
 

Verstappen set to start Belgian Grand Prix from the back of the grid​

Championship runaway leader Max Verstappen might face a grid drop penalty for this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix after his reliability woes earlier this season. For the 11th year running, the 2024 F1 cars are powered by V6 hybrid turbo power units with 1.6-litre engines. This season represents the penultimate year the current engine configuration appears before being replaced by a new power unit formula in 2026. Current F1 power units feature seven elements: the internal combustion engine (ICE), motor generator unit-heat (MGU-H), motor generator unit-kinetic (MGU-K), turbocharger, energy store (ES), control electronics (CE) and exhaust.

Over the course of the 2024 season, a driver may use no more than four ICEs, MGU-Hs, MGU-Ks and turbochargers, two energy stores and control electronics, and eight of each of the four elements that make up a set of exhaust systems (comprising primaries left-hand side, primaries right-hand side, secondary LHS and secondary RHS). Championship runaway leader Max Verstappen is on the brink of a penalty for excessive use of power unit elements, since he has already used all four permitted engines in the first ten races of the season. In the second practice session at the Canadian Grand Prix, the Dutchman encountered a problem with the electrical part of the power unit, which was being inspected at Honda’s Japanese headquarters in Sakura. At the forthcoming Spanish Grand Prix, the three-time world champion took the fourth and final permitted engine while the fifth engine will also mean a ten-place penalty, as well as any first excessive use of any element.

It has now emerged that Red Bull will equip Verstappen's car with a fresh internal combustion engine at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix which will be his fifth ICE for the season. Although Red Bull have lost its enormous competitive advantage in recent weeks with McLaren having closed in on the reigning world champion team, the Milton Keynes-team might base its decision on the last two years when Verstappen easily overcame grid penalties to win the Belgian Grand Prix. Last year, the Dutchman recovered from a five-place gearbox penalty to claim his eighth successive victory at Spa. Two years ago, he made light work of his grid penalties to win the 2022 Belgian Grand Prix from P14 on the grid in a Red Bull one-two.
 

New Audi boss Mattia Binotto​

Audi won’t be officially on a Formula 1 grid for another 18 months, but they’re already making big moves behind the scenes to prepare for their eventual entry. Andreas Seidl was brought in to lead their Formula 1 project but he’s already been replaced by Audi. Although the form of the current Sauber team can’t be laid at Seidl’s feet, they’re so far off the pace that action needed to be taken. Seidl and the chairman of the board of directors Oliver Hoffmann have both been let go, with concerns over the direction of the team with both men in charge.

Former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has been appointed in his place and will start work on August 1. Binotto has a lot of work ahead of him and seeing as Audi have already completed a 100% takeover of the Sauber team, he’ll be carefully assessing whether they’re heading in the right direction. Another decision that Binotto has to make is who is going to drive for the team in 2025. A report from Autosport suggests that Binotto may already be thinking about reaching out to one driver on the grid.

Nico Hulkenberg has already been signed up for 2025 and they’ll be delighted to have brought in a driver who is in such good form with Haas this season. However, Audi’s pursuit of a second driver has stumbled as their current on-track form is so poor. Binotto may reach out to Carlos Sainz once again to see if he can convince the ‘incredible’ driver – as per Flavio Briatore in an interview with La Politica Nel Pallone – that he should follow in his father’s footsteps by driving for Audi.

Binotto has to make some difficult personnel decisions at Audi very quickly. With Seidl and Hoffmann now gone, technical director James Key is also under pressure within the Audi setup. While these are vital positions that need to be filled with work on their first 2026 car set to start very soon, the most pressing issue is Sauber’s 2025 driver line-up. Nico Hulkenberg was signed up so quickly that it felt like the project was off to a strong start given his willingness to join a team who looked sluggish at the start of 2024.

Unfortunately, Sauber have been left behind by the rest of the grid and look nowhere near scoring their first point of the campaign. The report from Autosport suggests that it can’t be ruled out seeing Binotto try and renew Audi’s interest in Sainz. Binotto was the team principal who recruited Sainz to Ferrari in 2021 and was a big fan of the Spaniard during their time working together.
 

Aston Martin executive gives cryptic update on Adrian Newey deal​

Aston Martin’s technical director Dan Fallows has admitted Adrian Newey would be “a great asset” to any team but was cryptic discussing the legendary designer’s future despite strong links to Lawrence Stroll‘s team. Fallows finds his job security in a difficult place at the 2024 Hungarian GP with Aston Martin lagging significantly behind who they view as their rivals in Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes through the Formula 1 season. Not only is their car lacking pace, but it also seems as though the team is unsure of the development direction and Fernando Alonso has criticised the driveability of the AMR24, including in Free Practice 1 at the Hungaroring on July 19.

As a result, the billionaire father of Lance Stroll, Alonso’s teammate, has responded by seeking to hire key personnel to bolster Fallows’ technical team with the recruitments of Andy Cowell (ex-Mercedes HPP director) and Enrico Cardile (Ferrari’s chassis director). Aston Martin are strongly linked to Adrian Newey, who quit Red Bull after 20 years in early 2024 and is thought to be keen on remaining within the British countryside. They are said to have offered a substantial package, which could include company shares, ahead of the 2026 F1 regulations change. “I worked with Adrian for a long time, as has my colleague next to me [Pierre Wache, Red Bull],

” Fallows said of Newey’s links to Aston Martin. “He’s a great asset to any team. Who knows where he’s going to end up. I think the thing for us is we’re a team that’s grown incredibly quickly and we’re carrying on growing. As we get into a state which is closer to being able to challenge for race wins and championships, we can start to see as we’re on that journey that there are gaps in our expertise or where certain people could bring something to us. And with the announcements of Andy Cowell recently and Enrico Cardile, these are people with a huge amount of experience. The fact that we’re able to attract talent like that to the team is a testament to what an exciting project it is, and they can really see something and the potential in it, which is why we’re excited to have them along.”

Is Aston Martin’s Newey interest good for Fallows?
The recruitment appears to see Aston Martin following the modern McLaren structure of F1 car-building, with several technical officers in charge of their respective divisions instead of one man accountable as was traditional in the past. The aim of the structure is to help spread the load of the stress and demands of building a competitive car whilst ensuring that if key personnel do leave, the impact of that departure is compartmentalised and less severe than if one brain behind everything left.

This can be both a good and a bad thing for Fallows in his duties as technical director. Whilst it will no doubt help take pressure off him and allow him to focus on his tasks and the weaknesses of the team with greater precision, it also puts his job at risk too. Aston Martin will now be aware they have a series of personnel who can all slot into his role, especially if they successfully hire Newey in the near future, which could mean Lawrence Stroll would be far more likely to pull the trigger and fire Fallows if he falls below perceived standards.
 
The US-based Haas team have signed Alpine driver Esteban Ocon on a multi-year contract for the 2025 Formula 1 season.

BBC
 
Got to feel for Oliver Bearman but at least now he knows who will trying to kill him every other week next year
 

Alpine to replace Bruno Famin​

Alpine are preparing to announce a new team principal with current boss Bruno Famin stepping down at the end of August. The Frenchman has been in charge of the Enstone-based team for a year, having assumed control after last year's Belgian Grand Prix after a dramatic turn of events which saw an announcement that predecessor Otmar Szafnauer and former sporting director Alan Permane had been axed. Famin, who is also the vice-president of Alpine Motorsport, took over as TP on an interim basis. But he continued in the role this year as Renault struggled to recruit a new leader. Now, though, is the time for Alpine to bring in someone new. Former Renault leader Flavio Briatore, who returned to the team as an advisor, has been pushing hard to make big changes within the team to improve their competitiveness.

Alpine said a new team principal "will be announced in due course", but numerous reports suggest Oliver Oakes is set to be appointed as Famin's replacement. The 36-year-old British former racer was once a Red Bull junior but has since worked his way up to become team principal of successful feeder series outfit Hitech GP. Hitech run teams in F2, F3, GB3 and British F4, among other championships, and last year registered its interest with the FIA in entering the Formula 1 championship. However, that application did not make it to the final stage of the process.

A new team principal is not the only change likely to be confirmed in the coming months at Alpine. This week The Race reported that Renault are likely to drop their long-running F1 engine programme and instead sign with Mercedes to become a customer team. Since the start of F1's hybrid era, Renault have been off the pace with their engines and even now, a decade later, they still have a power deficit to other manufacturers. And McLaren, who currently have arguably the quickest cars on the grid while using Mercedes-supplied engines, are proving that it is possible to win as a customer. But, by switching to a supplier, Renault would have to shut down its current power unit programme. Engines are currently designed, built and maintained at Alpine's Viry-Chatillon factory and, if that programme were to be terminated, hundreds of jobs could potentially be at risk. Plus, the new 2026 engines have been in development for some time and, if the team were to abandon them, then all the time, money and manhours that have been put into that project will go completely to waste.
 

Verstappen and Perez fined after Belgian GP first practice​


Red Bull has had to pay out €200 in fines after both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez exceeded the pit lane speed limit by 0.1 km/h during FP1 for the Belgian Grand Prix. The speed limit in the pit lane at Spa-Francorchamps is set at 80 km/h - which is the standard approach over F1 weekends. However, both Red Bull drivers fell foul of that limit during the weekend-opening practice session. Therefore the FIA has handed their team €100 fines for each offence, which constitutes a breach of Article 34.7 of the F1 sporting regulations.
 

2024 Belgian Grand Prix first practice (FP1) results​

  1. 1. Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:43.372
  2. 2. Oscar Piastri McLaren +0.531
  3. 3. Alex Albon Williams +0.727
  4. 4. George Russell Mercedes +0.853
  5. 5. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +0.907
  6. 6. Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.934
  7. 7. Sergio Perez Red Bull +0.957
  8. 8. Lando Norris McLaren +1.043
  9. 9. Carlos Sainz Ferrari +1.202
  10. 10. Lance Stroll Aston Martin +1.327
  11. 11. Pierre Gasly Alpine +1.461
  12. 12. Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +1.549
  13. 13. Daniel Ricciardo VCARB +1.578
  14. 14. Valtteri Bottas Sauber +1.783
  15. 15. Logan Sargeant Williams +1.939
  16. 16. Yuki Tsunoda VCARB +2.192
  17. 17. Nico Hulkenberg Haas +2.273
  18. 18. Kevin Magnussen Haas +2.440
  19. 19. Zhou Guanyu Sauber +2.623
  20. 20. Esteban Ocon Alpine No time
 

Second practice (FP2) F1 results – 2024 Belgian Grand Prix​

1 Lando Norris McLaren 1:42.260
2 Oscar Piastri McLaren +0.215
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull +0.217
4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.577
5 Carlos Sainz Ferrari +0.838
6 George Russell Mercedes +1.030
7 Esteban Ocon Alpine +1.141
8 Kevin Magnussen Haas +1.225
9 Sergio Perez Red Bull +1.244
10 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +1.259
11 Lance Stroll Aston Martin +1.272
12 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +1.278
13 Valtteri Bottas Sauber +1.415
14 Daniel Ricciardo VCARB +1.563
15 Pierre Gasly Alpine +1.569
16 Nico Hulkenberg Haas +1.586
17 Alexander Albon Williams +1.632
18 Logan Sargeant Williams +1.966
19 Guanyu Zhou Sauber +2.042
20 Yuki Tsunoda VCARB +2.088
 

Red Bull break F1 curfew over Belgian GP weekend​

Red Bull broke F1's regulated curfew ahead of this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix. Team Personnel are not permitted to be within the confines of a circuit during a mandated period, a regulation that was introduced to ensure staff did not work throughout the night on a car and burn themselves out. A team is allowed two exceptions to the rule throughout a campaign, with Red Bull staff doing so for the first time this year overnight going into the qualifying day at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit.

Max Verstappen struggled for race pace during Friday practice, finishing third quickest behind McLaren duo Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Sergio Perez was again slow overall, finishing a second behind his three-time F1 champion team-mate. A statement from the FIA confirmed the curfew breach. It read: "Last night team personnel of the Oracle Red Bull Racing team, who are associated with the operation of the car, were within the confines of the circuit during the eleven-and-a-half-hour period which commenced at 22:00 on 26 July, fourteen and a half hours before the scheduled start time of P3 and ends three hours before the scheduled start time of P3 at 09:30 on 27 July. :This was the first of the two individual exceptions permitted for the Oracle Red Bull Racing team during the 2024 Formula One Championship season and therefore no action should be taken."
 

Sergio Perez warned of qualifying scenario that would be ‘curtains’ for Red Bull career​

With Max Verstappen taking a 10-place grid penalty at the Belgian Grand Prix, Sergio Perez has been warned if he isn’t ahead of his Red Bull team-mate on the grid it is “curtains”. Perez is gearing up for what could be his final qualifying session ever as a Red Bull driver, a shocking situation given just two months ago he was handed a new two-year contract.

Never mind the Belgian GP race, qualifying could decide Sergio Perez’s Red Bull future
But failing to perform in the ensuing races, he’s gone from being a driver who is confident in his future to one who may not even see out the season. PlanetF1.com understands a clause in Perez’s contract allowed Red Bull to demote him to VCARB or even drop him entirely from their line-up if he’s 100 points behind Verstappen at the summer break. Today, with a maximum of 26 points in place at Spa, he’s 141 points behind and therefore cannot reach that safety zone.

And even if the math said he could, his pace in Friday’s practice wasn’t encouraging with Perez over a second down on Verstappen after FP2. It was a session that was topped by a McLaren 1-2 and it’s that pressure from the Woking team, who have two drivers scoring points and even winning races, that has put pressure on Red Bull to axe the Mexican driver.

F1 journalist Buxton reckons the decision could be made as early as Saturday if Perez finds himself behind Verstappen on the Belgian GP grid, given the triple World Champion has a 10-place grid penalty. Speaking on the BBC Sport’s Chequered Flag podcast, he said: “Max takes a 10-place grid penalty, Perez has to get the job done. He’s under massive pressure right now because Red Bull’s operating a one-car team. Imagine a scenario where Checo doesn’t out-qualify Max even with Max’s 10-place grid penalty. It’s curtains!”

Perez finished Friday’s running in seventh place, Verstappen P3, and the gap between the team-mates 1.027s. Perez later told the media that the cars were “quite different” during the practice sessions, adding: “We’ve been playing around. We’ve been doing some stuff with it and we just haven’t been able to fully extract everything out of it, so some bits [to improve].” But with the driver complaining during the sessions that at “all speeds, low speed and medium” he did “not have the feeling of what’s going on”, Sky Sports Ted Kravitz declared: “That’s not positive.” His fellow pundit Karun Chandhok replied: “That’s what it looked like. He was so tentative with the wheel trying to turn in.”

Red Bull will sit down during the summer break to discuss their driver situation with Liam Lawson and Daniel Ricciardo the favourites to replace Perez at the Dutch Grand Prix. Should Ricciardo take the seat, Lawson will then be jettisoned in at VCARB alongside Yuki Tsunoda.
 
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