March 2021

Last year, at the Bahrain Grand Prix, Romain Grosjean collided hard with the wall, causing a huge fireball. To prevent future start crashes, the FIA has taken new measures. Michael Masi will take stricter action against incidents that take place in the opening phase of the race. “We looked at some feedback and the discussions we had with drivers. There was a feeling that we needed to let them race more, but we need to start taking that back a little bit around the incidents on the first lap,” Masi acknowledged in conversation with Motorsport.com. “We will still treat it differently than an incident during another round.” With nineteen cars surrounding a driver, the chance of an incident is always a lot higher and Masi takes that into account as well. “We still take a free position in that, but it won’t be as free as last year. After feedback from teams and drivers we have decided that we have to be a bit stricter”. So that’s what fans will see next season. “When it’s a group of drivers, it’s difficult to assign blame. If it’s two drivers clashing, there’s a chance we’ll look at it more quickly and not be so easy on them.” The FIA will also be paying more attention to other incidents. “Movement during braking is also something we’re going to pay more attention to, that’s something we’ve heard from the drivers several times”, Masi explains. We can therefore expect stricter measures from the FIA in the event of on-track incidents next season.

Lewis Hamilton said Mercedes will rise to the challenge of coping with the Formula One rule changes designed to “peg us back” after he was beaten to pole at the Bahrain Grand Prix by Max Verstappen on Saturday. The defending seven-time champion, bidding this year for an unprecedented eighth drivers’ title, said it was “no secret” that the revised aerodynamic regulations were introduced to hold Mercedes back. “I mean it’s no secret that the changes, of course, they’ve been done to peg us back,” he told reporters on Saturday. “We had the changes, of course, last year – to our engine – to do the same thing. “But that’s ok. We love a challenge and we don’t look down on these things. We just work hard to do the best we can and that’s what we’ll do.” His team-mate Valtteri Bottas, who was third on Saturday, said he had no answer to give on the same subject. “I like aero stuff,” he said. “I’m a bit of a geek, in some ways. I like aerodynamics, I’m really interested, but I don’t know the facts.” Hamilton said he was buoyed by Mercedes’ reaction since struggling to match Red Bull at a pre-season test earlier in the month. “We’ve worked very hard over the last week to try and understand the package that we have,” he said. “We made some steps forward, but we couldn’t compete with that last lap Max did today, but P2 puts us in a position to cause Red Bull trouble tomorrow. “Max did a great lap and nearly 0.4 seconds is a big gap so we have some work to do. We pushed, but just at the end I couldn’t get any more out of the car. “Still, it was exciting and I am immensely proud of everyone.”

Lewis Hamilton has explained why he’ll keep taking the knee before races, saying “it sparks an uncomfortable conversation”, as well detailing the steps he has taken to help alleged Bahraini torture victims. Since the Black Lives Matter movement came to the fore last year, Hamilton has been particularly vocal in his support, taking a knee as a demonstration against racism and inequality before races as well as wearing t-shirts in support of BLM. F1 also responded with its #WeRaceAsOne initiative, which focused on tackling inequalities and racism as well as showing solidarity with frontline workers in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic. Whilst there was no obligation for any to do so, the majority of drivers joined the Mercedes driver in taking a knee pre-race, but several did not. Protocol has now been changed to give drivers a “moment to show united support for important issues” however they wish to do so before each race. Hamilton says his stance remains unchanged. “I plan to continue to take the knee, because I think what’s really important is that when young children are watching what we’re doing here in this sport, and when they see us take the knee, they will sit and ask their parents or their teachers: ‘Why are they doing that? What are they taking the knee for?’ – and it sparks an uncomfortable conversation,” he said. “It means parents have to educate themselves and the kids are getting educated, so I think it’s a fight that’s not won. “It’s a fight that will continue on for a long time I’m sure, but I think we’re in a good time where conversation is healthy.” Hamilton also expanded on his view on F1’s relationship with human rights, owing to the fact the grand prix calendar has often visited countries with questionable human rights records. Bahrain, where the F1 season kicks off this weekend, is one of these countries, and last year Hamilton was sent personally addressed letters by three alledged Bahraini torture victims. In response, the Mercedes driver said he hoped discuss the issue with the Salman, the Crown Prince of Bahrain. Whilst this has not yet occurred, Hamilton has still put great efforts into meetings and discussions with organisations in Bahrain to address the issue. “I received those letters last year, which weighed quite heavily on me,” he said. “It’s the first time I’ve received letters like that along my travels. “These last few months I’ve taken the time to try and educate myself, because coming here all these years I wasn’t aware of all of the detail the human rights issues. “So I’ve spent time speaking to legal human rights experts, organisations like Amnesty, I’ve seen the UK ambassador here in Bahrain and I’ve spoken to Bahrain officials also. “At the moment, I think the steps that I’ve taken really have been in private and I think that’s the right way to go about it. “So I don’t really want to say too much that may jeopardise any progress. That’s the position we’re in, but I’m definitely committed to helping in any way I can.” The reigning world champion said this represents a wider stance for him on F1’s interaction with the places it races. “As a sport, we do go to a lot of different places we visit lots of different beautiful countries and cultures and naturally there are issues all around the world,” he commented. “But I don’t think that we should be going to these countries and just ignoring what is happening in those places and arriving, having a great time, and then leave.” This attitude mirrors the approach in the new Extreme E series, in which Hamilton owns a team. Although its bent has been primarily environmental, it also seeks to promote equality by having one male and one female driver in each team. The series’ broad mission statement is to highlight areas of environmental fragility by racing there, but for Hamilton, the idea of promoting gender equality at a location such as Saudi Arabia, where the series will visit, might have extra appeal. The seven-time champion has frequently been lobbied by various human rights groups to take a stand against F1 and/or the locations it goes to, due to the way several countries on the calendar treat their own citizens. He suggested F1 could theoretically have some influence on the human rights stance of countries it races in, but ultimately stopped short of saying whether FOM should take a position on the matter. “It’s not in my power to choose where we go and race,” he said. “I think the powerful position that we are in terms of the responsibility… human rights – I don’t think – should be a political issue. We all deserve equal rights. “In terms of what, whether it’s Formula 1’s responsibility, I don’t know if that’s for me to say.”

Ferrari is unlikely to rebound quickly from its poor campaign in 2020, Charles Leclerc said ahead of the first race of the new season. Leclerc salvaged two podium finishes from an otherwise poor campaign for Ferrari last year, in which they slumped to a 40-year low in the constructors’ championship. With limited changes permitted to the cars for the 2021 F1 season, Leclerc doubts the team will perform significantly better this year.“I know that, being realistic, it’s going to be a very difficult season,” said Leclerc in Bahrain yesterday. “But that doesn’t change my motivation. “For me, if I’ve got a car where I feel like sixth is the best place we can do – I’m not saying it’s the case for this year it’s just an example – but if sixth is the best I can do, I’m extremely motivated to try and do third, second or first. “So whatever we expect from us, I’m always finding the motivation to try to exceed those expectations, and that’s the way I will approach the season.” Like its rivals, Ferrari had just three days of pre-season testing to ready its revised car for the new championship. “We are as ready as we can be,” said Leclerc. “It’s only been three days, which is quite a lot shorter than what we have been used to in the past, but I think we did everything we wanted during these three days, or at least everything we could and everything that was programmed. So I think it was a nice preparation and now it’s up to the track to see our real performance.” Ferrari’s sporting director Laurent Mekies told RaceFans their new power unit is “a large step forward” compared to last year. Leclerc, however, would not be drawn on what gains the team has made. “I think we’ll just have to wait for for qualifying once we’ve put everything flat out to see how much of a step we did,” he said. However he admitted some of the car’s handling characteristics are an improvement on what they had last year. “I think in the balance itself, in the way it behaves in the different parts of the corners, from entry to exit, I think this is a little bit better. So it’s a bit easier to drive and this is nice already. “We’ve had some positive signs, but again, it’s quite difficult to judge until we put everything on the limit in qualifying.”

Red Bull’s senior advisor, Helmut Marko has often said in recent years that they had the best winter break ever, but in 2021 that really seems to be the case. The winter test for Red Bull Racing went very well, whereas for Mercedes it was a lot less. Marko isn’t ready to celebrate just yet. Mercedes has been dominating Formula 1 since 2014 and every year there is hope that someone can close the gap to the Germans. In 2017 and 2018 Ferrari came somewhat close, but despite big words from Marko and Horner, Red Bull Racing never really came close. In 2021, however, there seems to be the ideal opportunity there. ‘We know Mercedes bluffed during the winter test, we just don’t know how much. The fact is that their car is a bit unsettled at the back, and if they haven’t solved that yet then we will be in front of them. Mercedes now have to play catch-up and that’s a fine situation for us. Mercedes has to find a solution now, where we can optimise our package,” Marko told the Kronen Zeitung. ”There are circuits where our aerodynamic concept will work perfectly, but if you want to compete for the title you have to be competitive everywhere. The RB16B is the best car Max has ever had from us”, said the Austrian. In Bahrain, the Red Bull chief believes conditions are also in his team’s favour. ”It is very changeable and there is a lot of wind. If you have an unstable car then it’s not advantageous. I’m very happy to see that”, smiles Marko with a beaming confidence.

Toto Wolff has hinted that Mercedes is about to unleash a new technical innovation on the world of Formula 1. The narrative heading into this weekend’s season opener in Bahrain is that the previously dominant team has fallen behind Red Bull over the winter. “Honestly, I think so,” seven time world champion Lewis Hamilton told the Belgian broadcaster RTBF. “For the moment it looks like they are faster than us. We don’t yet know by how much, and at the same time other teams look really good as well – Alpha Tauri and McLaren among others.” Team boss Wolff agreed, telling Kronen Zeitung: “We are definitely not the strongest force now. “If we take everything there was before, including the seven world championship titles, and turn it to zero, then Red Bull will certainly have the fastest car. “That doesn’t mean it will stay that way. We will defend ourselves with everything we have,” he added. However, he warns that Mercedes is yet to find the “silver bullet”. “The car is very sensitive, the rear is unstable,” Wolff explained. “By trimming the floor, the airflow that is directed around the tyres is disturbed. Downforce is lost,” the Austrian explained. “Cars with a steeper rake, like the Red Bull, seem to suffer less than we do.” But he admitted that a lot of “deception and disguise” always characterises the pre-season period. And so he hinted that Mercedes is about to begin its clawback with a new innovation, after the ‘DAS’ pull-and-push steering system was banned for 2021. “You haven’t seen what we intend to install on the car,” Wolff told Canal Plus. “Thankfully there is still room for innovation, which always makes me happy. “Every day we are trying to do something a little different. I’m not sure if it will make a big difference in the speed of the car, but it will be good if it works.”

Four time world champion has chosen to name his Aston Martin Formula 1 car after the first James Bond girl, Honey Ryder. The 33-year-old who has joined the rebranded Aston Martin squad for the 2021 season following his departure from Ferrari, revealed ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix the name he has given to his first Aston Martin F1 car – the AMR21. Vettel’s name choice pays homage to Swiss actress Ursula Andress’s portrayal of the first ‘Bond girl’ in the 1962 film Dr. No, which starred Sean Connery as James Bond. “Favourite movie? Favourite Bond? I think Sean Connery and to be fair Piers Brosnan. That’s my youth but yeah, Sean Connery. I think just very good style. “And which movie? I quite like the first one. It kicked it off, obviously because of Honey Ryder.” Although Vettel admitted he felt around “100 laps” short of the mileage he would have hoped to have completed during a troubled pre-season test in Bahrain, the German remains confident he can still get up to speed quickly. “Obviously we didn’t get maybe the amount of laps we’re looking for but it is what it is,” he explained. “I don’t think that any anyone is really fully prepared for what’s coming. “We have a lot of races and we didn’t have a great amount of testing, but yeah that’s what it is. So I’m confident that we should be in a reasonable position. Hopefully we can use the track time that we have, and get on top of it straight away to get ready for qualifying and then the race.” Speaking about adjusting to Aston Martin’s 2021 challenger, Vettel added: “I’m quite happy. I think I felt quite comfortable straightaway despite the little running, I think I think I got along with the car. “There’s some things that I still need to work on and I need to get used to, but I think time will take care of these things. Even with more laps in the test, there will still be some things that would need some getting used to. So, yeah, I’m pretty relaxed. I think it will be okay.”

Haas boss Guenther Steiner says new components planned for next month’s Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix will be the last brought to the VF-21. Haas has previously outlined its decision to all but abandon development of its 2021 car with a view to focusing its resources on overhauled 2022 regulations. Steiner emphasised earlier in the week that scoring one or two points would be a “fantastic” achievement for Haas in 2021, suggesting that it is braced for a year marooned at the rear of the field. On the Bahrain-spec VF21 Steiner said: “Everything we planned to have here is here. We had a late development which we will introduce at Imola but that’s the last step of this car. “There will be some smaller parts for Imola, no big changes to be honest. It’s just some small parts which we didn’t get ready in time but we knew that since some months that they wouldn’t be ready. “It’s not that they were late or anything. We will have some parts for Imola and then we don’t change the car anymore as I said before.” Haas is entering 2021 with a revised driver line-up of Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher, marking the first time that the team has run a rookie pairing. Haas previously fielded Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean for four successive seasons. “After the second and third season with Kevin and Romain we knew each other very well and everything gets a little bit automatic,” said Steiner. “Now, everything is new, they’re putting a lot of time in with the engineers just to try and get ready as best as possible. “For sure the excitement is high because if you think about it these guys since they were 10 years old this is the moment they worked for and now it’s coming. They’re starting their first Formula 1 race on Sunday. “I think there’s a lot of excitement and they’re getting anxious to go and nervous on the other side but that’s a good thing. They will grow. The whole team is in good spirits.”

Lewis Hamilton is no longer the approachable chap of yesteryear with Martin Brundle saying he is “confused” by the champ’s demeanour during interviews. Brundle has had a front row seat for Hamilton’s Formula 1 career, commentating on it from lap 1 in 2007 all the way through to the Briton’s seventh World title. However, during that time he has noticed a change in the 36-year-old who is no longer so open with the media. Brundle, however, does not hold it against Hamilton, acknowledging that after 14 years on the Formula 1 grid the Mercedes driver is probably “a little bit fatigued” by it all. He told PA Sport: “He is not as approachable as he used to be but he is a global megastar and he is a little bit fatigued by all the demands we have to make on him. “I don’t always feel good when I sit down to interview him. I sometimes feel like saying ‘hey, Lewis, it’s me, we have made a lot of TV together over the years and we have known each other for a long time’. “I get confused by his initial demeanour. Then I find that he settles down and off we go. “But who have I had the most enjoyment commentating on? Lewis. Watching him from the first corner of his first lap in Melbourne to winning seven World Championships last year in Turkey has been extraordinary.” Brundle recently stated he also felt Hamilton was “grumpy” after his Mercedes negotiations only led to a new one-year deal.

Claire Williams’ husband Mark Harris has called Williams Racing’s omission from Season 3 of ‘Drive to Survive’ a “disgrace” and “a total lack of respect” to F1 legend Sir Frank Williams. Netflix premiered the third season of its popular docu-series dedicated to F1 on March 18, and the ten-episode saga covering the eventful 2020 campaign is already hitting new viewing records. ‘Drive to Survive’ producers covered a lot of ground in the series’ latest installment, with compelling and behind-the-scenes stories involving every team on the grid, except for Williams. Yet the British outfit was at the forefront of headlines last summer when Sir Frank bowed out of the sport after an over 50-year presence following Williams’ sale to Dorilton Capital. Also, George Russell’s sensational interim with Mercedes at Sakhir went undocumented by the ‘DtS’ crews, an omission that wasn’t lost on the British driver who tweeted a photo of himself and an unequivocal caption: “Getting to episode 10 and realising you’re not in Drive to Survive”. But an angry Harris went a step further on Instagram, taking issue with the inexcusable oversight. “It is impossible to hide the level of frustration and upset I feel around the latest season of Netflix’s Drive to Survive,” wrote the husband of former team boss Claire Williams. “It is hard to believe that there was a more important story (other than covid-19) than the sale of one of the most historic, successful and treasured teams the sport has ever seen. “Over 50 years in the sport, 16 world championships and the legendary team principal Sir Frank Williams and the family leaving a sport that they helped make what it is today, and barely a mention. What a disgrace,” added Harris. “It feels like a total lack of respect to SFW, Claire and the team itself.” While COVID-19 restrictions last year clearly complicated the task of production and filming crews who had to work within a team’s bubble, Harris says the stringent sanitary measures are no excuse to justify Williams’ absence from a single episode of ‘Drive to Survive’. “It’s easy to say there wasn’t access granted,” he said. “No, access wasn’t granted to any film crew other than Williams’ own to the very private moments when Claire had to tell the team that the family were having to sell and leave the sport they love and breathe for. “But an abundance of footage was made available by the team and all crews had access at all other times. What a shame it wasn’t used.”