March 2021

Seven-time world champion Sir Lewis Hamilton has revealed that his future with Mercedes will be determined by only one year as he insists that there is no need to plan too far ahead. The 36-year-old recently signed a contract with Mercedes after a long wait and the contract only covers the 2021 F1 season making it his ninth year with the German outfit. His 2022 campaign with Mercedes will be determined in the 2021 season as he targets to take an eighth driver’s title beating Michael Schumacher’s record. There have been suggestions that if the Briton does not take the 2021 championship, it would be the best time for him to retire as he holds very many interests out of Formula 1. With the launch of the W12 in which he will be campaigning for the 2021 world title, Hamilton aired his insights that he was not intending on strapping himself down with Mercedes on a multi-year deal. However, the Briton was non-commital on how long he intends to continue driving. “I’m kind of in a fortunate position where I’ve achieved most of the stuff I’ve wanted to achieve up until this point, so there’s no real need necessarily to plan too far ahead in the future,” said Hamilton. “I think we live in quite an unusual period of time in life and I just wanted one year – then we can talk about if we do more and keep adding [to] it if we have to.” Team principal and Mercedes F1 co-owner Toto Wolff was also quizzed about Hamilton’s new deal, but more so on why it took so long to sign the contract. “It is very simple, the explanation,” Wolff commented. “With Lewis there was a particular media attention on our contract negotiations.” “It was actually quite funny because him and me, we are so aligned. While we were in the season we just didn’t have scope to spend enough time with each other to have that conversation.” “We thought about doing it between the two Bahrain races, but then he fell ill and then we both went into our holidays. We talked, and then I had Covid so that delayed it.” “Our conversations are really partners discussing, but it’s down to the details and then we felt now we have to close this conversation because the season is right in front of us.” “We had been talking a lot about the future, about Lewis driving the car in the future, but also about our partnership going forward.” “So we felt ‘let’s discuss this during the season when we can find more time.”

Reigning world champions Mercedes have unveiled the first images of its 2021 contender, the W12, with which the Brackley squad will defend its Constructors’ title in Formula 1. Mercedes, which will formally present its 2021 team later today, has retained the base black livery that it introduced last year in the wake of its anti-racism message. However, contrary to its predecessor, the new car engine cover no longer features a constellation of three-point stars but includes the visible presence of its AMG brand. The W12’s design, which will be entrusted once again to Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas, is obviously based on last year’s W11 as teams were forced to carry over their 2020 chassis while implementing a series of aero changes mandated by this season’s regulations. But Mercedes tech boss James Allison has yet to reveal where the team has spent its two development tokens. News emerged over the winter that Mercedes HPP engine unit department in Brixworth had encountered a few problems with the German manufacturer’s latest power unit development. However, engine boss Hywel Thomas said that plans had been put in place to solve all of the new unit’s issues. “Our scepticism and hunger drive us and get us fired up for every new season – because the scoreboard goes to zero and there’s always more performance to be found. And that’s exciting,” said Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff who has remained at the helm of the championship winning team. The W12 will complete its first laps on the opening day of pre-season testing in Bahrain, on Friday 12 March.

Jost Capito, the new Williams CEO, admits the British team could lose George Russell to Mercedes for 2022. 2021 is 23-year-old Russell’s third season in Formula 1 with Williams, but he got a taste of life in the fastest lane late last year when Lewis Hamilton had covid-19. “When he drove the Mercedes last year, that catapulted his self-confidence up even more,” Capito told the German broadcaster n-tv. “He is a very open guy and a demanding driver for the team. He’s a true professional, which is rarely seen at his age. I am sure he will become champion one day.” Seven time world champion Hamilton has only signed a new one-year deal with Mercedes, with team boss Toto Wolff openly admitting Russell is a clear option for the future. When asked if Williams needs to be prepared to lose Russell, Capito answered: “Let’s see how the situation develops and whether he will remain at Williams next year. “It depends largely on the prospects at Mercedes for 2022, when the regulations will change a lot, but also on the development within our own team.” As for Capito himself, he said returning to Formula 1 with Williams was an offer he “couldn’t say no to”. “Williams is the greatest challenge for me – and the greatest honour,” said the 62-year-old German. “Taking over the team from the (Williams) family is a special task.”

Formula 1 has turned down an offer to get closer to its pre-covid days by getting vaccinated by the Bahraini government. Officials of the season opening grand prix at Sakhir, who will also host pre-season testing this month, have written to the sport offering members of the travelling circus the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. “As a UK-based organisation, Formula 1 has no plans to get vaccinated as a travelling group ahead of the planned rollout of vaccines through the UK health system,” a F1 spokesperson told international publications. F1’s ‘no’ to Bahrain comes despite Liberty Media admitting it recorded an almost $400 million loss in 2020. The sport is at least hoping that spectators can return to the grandstands this year. “At this point, I am still optimistic that we will see spectators at the majority of the races,” F1 marketing boss Chloe Targett-Adams is quoted by Salzburger Nachrichten newspaper. F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali agrees: “Obviously we would like to welcome fans back to the track and we will still work closely with local governments to understand any possibilities. “However, we are grateful for the efforts made by various governments to allow Formula 1 to continue to travel during a period of global quarantine,” he is quoted by Corriere dello Sport. Silverstone boss Stuart Pringle said one option for a full crowd to return for the British GP could be the introduction of so-called ‘vaccine passports’. “There have been discussions between myself, other sports and the government as to whether our electronic ticketing systems could be linked to the passport,” he said. Formula 1 says it is not worried about its survival in the long-term as a result of the pandemic. Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei said: “All of our businesses will be ready to turn a profit once Covid-19 is over. F1’s balance sheet and agreements are fine, so I’m not really worried about it. “If I’m optimistic, I think we’ll be back at 100 percent by the end of the year.”