March 2021

World champion Lewis Hamilton says rivals Red Bull will be a “different animal” in this year’s title after the conclusion of pre-season testing. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen was fastest after testing in Bahrain, which hosts the first race on 26-28 March. Mercedes driver Hamilton said: “Red Bull have had some really good running. Both drivers have been looking strong. “They are going to be a different animal this year. A strong line-up with the two drivers and a really good car.” Hamilton had a spin on the final day of testing and set the fourth fastest time, also behind Alpha Tauri’s Japanese rookie Yuki Tsunoda and new Ferrari signing Carlos Sainz. Verstappen’s new team-mate Sergio Perez set the fastest time of the morning session before handing over to the Dutchman for the afternoon one, in which track conditions were faster. Headline times in pre-season testing are notoriously unreliable as indicators of competitiveness as it is impossible to know the specification in which cars are running, and fuel loads and engine modes make significant differences to lap time. Nevertheless, Red Bull have looked more convincing than Mercedes, whose test has been hampered by reliability problems and concerns over the balance and stability of their car. Hamilton also pointed to the fact that Verstappen won the final race of last season, a more relevant point than usual as teams have been forced to carry over large parts of their cars from last year as a cost-saving move in the pandemic. Hamilton said: “Having won the last race, you can only assume they are going to be right there if not at the front at the first race and it is going to be a great long battle with them through the year.” Verstappen said: “I had positive feelings in the car but we will find out at the first race where we are. It has been a good few days now but we always improve and try to be better.” Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas said Mercedes had made progress with their car after a difficult first day, when the Finn lost running with a gearbox problem and Hamilton suffered handling problems. “It feels like we have made made some steps forward,” Bottas said. “We went in the right direction and it felt better. Still not 100% happy with the car, as you would never be at this early stage of the season. “We keep working and trying to get the balance better and the car behaving nicer and that way be faster. It is completely unknown where we are at the moment after three days of testing. With the first day being compromised, it is so hard to say. “I have a feeling it is going to be close.” The Aston Martin team, formerly known as Racing Point, had a difficult test, with new signing Sebastian Vettel particularly badly hit by reliability problems, and an engine issue on the final day restricting him to a total of just 117 laps over three days.

Max Verstappen set the pace at the end of pre-season testing as Red Bull suggested it is the benchmark team ahead of the Formula 1 campaign. As teams ran close to their qualifying simulations in the optimal evening conditions at the Bahrain International Circuit and fastest laps were traded, it was Verstappen who emerged as the frontrunner. On the C4 Pirelli tyres, the second softest of the five compounds available for the teams, the Dutch driver posted a superb time of one minute 28.960secs. Red Bull appears to have asserted itself as the team to beat if its performance across the three days is anything to go by, usurping reigning champions Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton again struggled with the rear of his W12. About to embark on a flying lap late in the session, Hamilton spun his car through 360 degrees coming out of the final corner, adding to his Saturday spin into the gravel. Hamilton eventually finished fifth quickest on the softest compound, the C5, 1.065s adrift with AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda, Carlos Sainz in his Ferrari and the Alfa Romeo of Kimi Raikkonen sandwiching the seven-time champion from Verstappen. At this stage, there is a possibility of a strong championship fight on the cards from Red Bull, with Verstappen looking assured with the RB16B after team-mate Sergio Perez’s fastest time of the morning that eventually left him eighth. Japanese rookie Tsunoda impressed throughout the afternoon before pumping out fastest lap after fastest lap in the final hour of the test on the C5, with AlphaTauri likely getting him up to speed with his first qualifying session just a fortnight away. Raikkonen, meanwhile, clocked a staggering 166 laps – almost three race distances – although was involved in a skirmish with Sainz on the closing in-lap that saw the duo touch and run wide off track. In terms of laps, Raikkonen was closely matched by Williams’ George Russell [158] who finished sixth quickest ahead of McLaren, who again impressed. Daniel Ricciardo shadowed Lando Norris’ progress from the morning session with consistently fast lap times to end the day seventh on the timesheet, 1.184s adrift. Behind Perez, Alpine’s Fernando Alonso added 78 laps and was ninth quickest, while the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc completed the top 10, 1.526s behind Verstappen, albeit on the C3 medium compound. Sebastian Vettel lost more running time with a “boost pressure” issue that banished his Aston Martin to the garage for the last 90 minutes and led to him sitting 17th of 18 drivers on the timesheet, with only team-mate Lance Stroll behind him, although the Canadian did focus more on long-run work and with his lap on the hard C4 compound. Sunday Test Times1 Max Verstappen [Red Bull] 1:28.960 – 64 laps 2 Yuki Tsunoda [Alpha Tauri] 1:29.053 – 91 laps 3 Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] 1:29.611 – 79 laps 4 Kimi Raikkonen [Alfa Romeo] 1:29.766 – 165 laps 5 Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] 1:30.025 – 54 laps 6 George Russell [Williams] 1:30.117 – 158 laps 7 Daniel Ricciardo [McLaren] 1:30.144 – 75 laps 8 Sergio Perez [Red Bull] 1:30.187 – 49 laps 9 Fernando Alonso [McLaren] 1:30.318 – 77 laps 10 Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] 1:30.486 – 80 laps 11 Lando Norris [McLaren] 1:30.661 – 56 laps 12 Pierre Gasly [AlphaTauri] 1:30.828 – 76 laps 13 Esteban Ocon [Alpine] 1:31.310 – 61 laps 14 Nikita Mazepin [Haas] 1:31.531 – 67 laps 15 Mick Schumacher [Haas] 1:32.053 – 78 laps 16 Valtteri Bottas [Mercedes] 1:32.406 – 86 laps 17 Sebastian Vettel [Aston Martin] 1:35.041 – 56 laps 18 Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] 1:36.100 – 80 laps

The Mercedes team has to be worried after Sebastian Vettel and Valtteri Bottas both suffered gear box issues during pre-season testing in Bahrain. Lewis Hamilton also encountered trouble in the morning session on Saturday when he spun onto the gravel and his car had to be lifted back to the garage. The first sign of problems at Mercedes came to light on Friday morning when Bottas was called back into the pits after his first lap. The Silver Arrows discovered a transmission error between the gear box and the engine and had to make changes, which cut short the Finn’s session. Mercedes supply Aston Martin with engines and their new driver Vettel was frustrated by similar gear box problems on day two. The four-time world champion was limited to just six laps before being called back to the pits to have the problem fixed. Testing has been reduced to three days this season which is an even greater cause for concern to those who cannot maximise time out on the track. Vettel admitted it was not ideal to be leaving most of his testing until the Sunday session. “We would have liked more data and mileage, but that’s just the way it is. It’s a long year and this is just the starting point”, the German told Formule1.nl. “It’s all little things I have to get used to. This morning I would have liked to drive more – as everyone always wants – but hopefully this afternoon and tomorrow it will go well and we can make up ground. “You do need more than a day and a half to get back into your rhythm. But we have a long year ahead of us and I’m sure the more we drive the better it will be.” Hamilton’s Friday afternoon testing was heavily disrupted by a sandstorm which swept across the track. “Yeah, these things are sent to try us,” said Hamilton. “I think today definitely wasn’t the cleanest of days that we’ve had. “Everyone’s worked incredibly hard to get us here and to be where we are and to have the car with us and obviously, we had the mishap in the morning; really unfortunate for Valtteri in terms of losing time on track. “Definitely wasn’t without its challenges, but we exist to find the solutions to the problems that we’re faced with. So we just had a debrief and we’ll keep churning away. “We have to take positives out of every day but Of course we’ve all got our heads down; I don’t think anyone’s down about today.”

McLaren Formula 1 driver Daniel Ricciardo topped a second successive morning session in pre-season testing in Bahrain, as Lewis Hamilton suffered a spin that caused a red-flag stoppage. On the heels of what was a clearly under-par opening day of pre-season testing for the usually-dominant Mercedes team, Hamilton kept the lap count ticking over at a steady pace from the start of the day. But he spun at the Turn 13 right-hander at relatively low speed soon after the halfway point and his W12 slid through the asphalt run-off rear-first, before ending up beached in the gravel trap. This necessitated a 15-minute red flag for the Mercedes to be removed. Hamilton’s spin came right after a pair of more violent-looking moments for both the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz Jr and the Williams of Nicholas Latifi at Turn 7. Sainz had a half-spin but held on to the car through the run-off, while Latifi went around on the kerb on corner exit and was forced to crawl back to the pits with a shredded front-right tyre. Outside of that brief period, the session largely elapsed without incident, with Ricciardo and the returning Fernando Alonso swapping first place on several occasions. Ricciardo’s 1m32.215s on C3s eventually proved sufficient to keep him in the top spot until the chequered flag, with Alonso a tenth slower on C2s – yet being unable to match that time on C3s when he fitted them later. Also on C2s and just a quarter of a second down on Ricciardo was Red Bull driver Sergio Perez, while Latifi and Yuki Tsunoda (both using C4s) completed a top five split by just 0.469s. Latifi also gave the softest compound, C5, a brief runout, but his push lap on the tyre was ruined by an error at Turn 11. Sainz and Haas driver Nikita Mazepin were the only others within a second of Ricciardo, with Sainz’s time coming on the C3s and Mazepin’s on the C4s. Hamilton did return to the track soon after the red flag he’d caused was lifted, and ended the session in eighth place with a best time set on C2 tyres. Despite the off, his overall morning tally of 58 laps was already more than Mercedes had managed as a whole on Friday. But it was one of Mercedes’ engine customers – Aston Martin – that came up well short of running in the session instead. Sebastian Vettel managed just six early laps before returning to the pits and being kept there for most of the session by a “gearbox-related” issue. He did return to the track in the very final minutes, setting a personal best first sector on his first flying lap on C3s, before going wide at Turn 11 and then having the red flag come out for an FIA test. This meant he ended the session in last place, 6.6s off the pace and nearly three seconds down on the Alfa Romeo of Antonio Giovinazzi. The Italian focused entirely on race running in the session and logged 73 laps – the second-highest tally in the field, fewer only than Mazepin’s 76. SATURDAY AM TIMES1 Ricciardo (McLaren) 1m32.215s2 Alonso (Alpine) 1m32.339s3 Perez (Red Bull) 1m32.478s4 Latifi (Williams) 1m32.541s5 Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) 1m32.684s6 Sainz (Ferrari) 1m33.072s7 Mazepin (Haas) 1m33.101s8 Hamilton (Mercedes) 1m33.399s9 Giovinazzi (AlfaRomeo) 1m36.018s10 Vettel (Aston Martin) 1m38.849s

Mercedes has a rather complex system of wings and curves at the front of the floor. Auto Motor und Sport also spotted a very similar undulation in the floor at Aston Martin. The purpose of these waves is to increase the floor area. In this way they hope to compensate for the part of the floor that has been cut away (due to the new regulations). Next to this curve, the floor in front of the rear wheel bends upwards at the outside. This also slightly increases the surface of the floor, although the effect will be marginal. Also at Red Bull the floor isn’t completely flat, but we don’t see the curvature of Mercedes and Aston Martin here. The number of flaps on top of the floor is also limited in the RB16. It could be that a simplistic approach has been chosen here, but perhaps the team doesn’t want to give away all their secrets just yet.

Fernando Alonso says he is ready to return to action in testing tomorrow following his cycling crash last month. The Alpine driver, who spent a weekend in hospital following an accident in February, said his injuries have not significantly affected his preparations to return.“After the accident three weeks or four weeks ago, I had 10 days to relax at home,” said Alonso. “After the surgery I had to relax a little bit. But after I think nine, 10 days, I went back to a very normal routine and fitness preparation. “I don’t expect any issues training. For now, I think three weeks or two weeks, [it’s been] absolutely normal. I have been in the simulator as well, Monday and Tuesday. So the preparations were not affected too much.” The two-time world champion did reveal that he still has at least one further operation remaining on his jaw, which he fractured in the crash. “One thing is the professional side and driving side, which is 100%. “On the personal, I will have to remove two titanium plates that I have from the upper jaw that we get removed at the end of the season. So still something going on after the championship finishes. “But as I said, it will not be affecting my professional life.” Alonso missed the Alpine car launch last month due to his first procedure but reiterated he is prepared and eager to be in the car tomorrow. “And then I missed the team launch because of the restrictions, at that time, they were quite tough between Switzerland and UK. But I was feeling fine and ready to go tomorrow in the car. I missed only a couple of marketing days and filming days. And then I covered over everything yesterday afternoon so I had a very intense day yesterday on marketing activities. But I feel fine.”

Mick Schumacher has picked 47 as his race number in Formula 1, with Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle calling it “ugly”. The German took to the Bahrain International Circuit on Friday in the new Haas 2021 challenger, the VF-21, after joining the team in December 2020. Fans of Formula 1 are always curious to see the numbers which drivers opt for, and there was some surprise and confusion when Mick chose 47. And, during commentary on pre-season testing, Brundle said: “Mick Schumacher has had to take an ugly number. All of the best numbers are taken.” He added: “It doesn’t feel like a Formula 1 number.” But, it turns out, it was not Mick’s first choice. He said in an interview with Sky Italy: “The number 47, I’ve been thinking about it. I wasn’t really sure what number I wanted. I wanted number 4, then I wanted number 7, but obviously they were taken. “And then I was thinking, why not combine them? So at first I was like, okay, maybe 74, but then I was like maybe not, and then we kind of came up with 47, which is the same and has so many coincidences which were just too big to oversee. “If you take all the birthdays of my family, that equals 47. If you think that 4 and 7 are both the numbers that I wanted, so it’s great to have them like this. “Some fans actually said 4 and 7, as in ‘For Michael’, which is also very nice and great to have and great to be able to drive, and therefore we chose number 47.” The connection with the number seven and Mick’s father Michael Schumacher is, of course, the number of Drivers’ Championships he won – a record which was equalled last year by Lewis Hamilton, and the Mercedes driver is in search of making himself the sole record holder in 2021. Schumacher is part of the an all-new rookie line-up at Haas, alongside Nikita Mazepin, and they are sharing the responsibilities over the testing weekend, with Mick taking Friday AM, Saturday PM and Sunday AM.

Daniel Ricciardo enjoyed the ideal start to his McLaren career as he went fastest on the opening morning of Formula 1 pre-season testing in Bahrain.The Australian’s time of 1.32.203 was good enough to see him finish 0.028 clear of AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly in second, who completed a session-leading 74 laps, with Max Verstappen ending the session in third for Red Bull. Speaking after session, Ricciardo said: “I feel like I just jumped out and all I can really think about is some lunch. “It was really good. It was a nice half a day. Everything went pretty smooth. It’s nice to see your name up at the top but really testing day one is about reliability and making sure everything runs. “It was nice to get back into it. All good and happy.” With the conditions tricky in Bahrain and the wind causing issues, Verstappen was one of a number of drivers to go off-track as he looked to get to grips with his new RB16B. The forecast suggests that the winds are unlikely to die down, presenting further challenges to the drivers taking to the track for the afternoon session. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was fourth fastest, ahead of the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc and Alfa Romeo of Kimi Raikkonen in fifth and sixth respectively. Leclerc led to the session being red flagged with 10 minutes remaining after his SF21 became beached at Turn 4. Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel had his running limited after the German was forced to park in the pit lane. The four-time champion completed 51 laps in total, with a best time of 1.33.742 which was good enough for seventh. Mercedes missed most of the morning session after a transmission issue forced them to replace the gear box on their W12 E Performance. Valtteri Bottas only completed an installation lap during the first three and a half hours, before managing six laps in the final 30 minutes of the session. The team confirmed he would not be afforded extra running this afternoon, with Lewis Hamilton still scheduled to drive. Bottas posted the slowest time of the session with a 1.36.850. Mick Schumacher and Haas also saw their running impacted because of a gear box change, with the 2020 F2 champion managing to complete just 15 laps. Roy Nissany was eighth in the Williams.

Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz are the first Formula 1 drivers to reveal they have accepted Bahrain’s offer to receive COVID-19 vaccinations. Prior to the start of pre-season testing in Bahrain this week, the national government announced it would be offering both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to those attending both testing and the grand prix at the end of the month. F1 said that it would be turning down the offer as an organisation, and expected teams to do similar, but a number of personnel opted to accept the vaccine ahead of testing, including those from Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin. Drivers were also offered the chance to get vaccinated as part of the programme, with Red Bull driver Perez and Ferrari’s Sainz confirming they have received their first dose. “Yeah, we got offered it, and I took the decision to take it,” said Perez when asked by Motorsport.com if he had accepted the vaccine. “For me, back in Mexico, I don’t know when I will be able to get it. So I think [it] was very nice from Bahrain to offer that to us. I took it myself.” “Same as Checo, I did take it,” said Sainz. “I think it was a great opportunity and obviously I’m thankful to the Bahrain government for offering it to so many people that travel around the world and, yeah, I’m happy with it.” McLaren driver Lando Norris said his personal decision was “yet to be made”. “It is obviously private information with what everyone does within a team and for myself,” Norris said. “For now, I’m healthy and I’m staying where I am.” Six F1 drivers to date have tested positive for COVID-19, including Norris, who contracted the virus over the winter while in Dubai. Lewis Hamilton, Perez and Lance Stroll were all forced to miss races last year after contracting the virus, while Charles Leclerc and Pierre Gasly also tested positive over the winter. Bahrain has already announced that it will allow fans to attend the 2021 season-opening grand prix from 26-28 March if they have received both COVID-19 doses or if they are fully recovered from the virus.

Red Bull advisor, Helmut Marko Reveals that Alexander Albon who lost the opportunity to fight for the world championship title with Red Bull in 2021 was not consistent enough to keep his seat with the team. He is very sure that Sergio Perez will be very consistent when he races with the team this year. Albon’s nervousness and lack of consistency worried the team as they put on their fight to take the world championship and the team had to seek another F1 driver who would give better results for the team in 2021. Red Bull later went ahead to pick Sergio Perez, who was previously racing for Racing Point now Aston Martin and this move alone took the F1 paddock by surprise. This is because Red Bull does not source for drivers outside its young drivers academy since 2007, when Mark Webber joined the team from Williams. However, Marko explained their reason for the move to take perez. “Despite all our efforts with Alex Albon, no consistency could be achieved and he became nervous, for example, with dismantling tires”, Marko outlined to German website Speedweek. According to the Austrian, talks with the Thai driver’s replacement, Sergio Perez, didn’t begin until very late in the season – though when they did, the deal was very easy to finalise. “We only talked more closely in Bahrain during a longer break between two races. Everyone lived together, so that wasn’t very noticeable”, Marko stated. “Then it went quickly to the signature “Perez has been in Formula 1 for 10 years and experienced all the ups and downs. He is aware of the great opportunity, no-nonsense will come [from him].”