Formula One 2019

[Chris2K]

Just to add some more fireworks to proceedings, this is the race that Mercedes chose for their one race coverage in the Netflix series.

[Katsuya]

The silly season after Hungary could be very interesting. No way are Haas gonna keep those two for the rest of the season now after they collided again. Similarly, do you put Gasly down and bring Kvyat back? Obviously it's only been one race, but Kvyat was arguably the only driver who didn't make a single mistake that race, and if you want a sign of maturity then I'd say that's it.

EDIT: Also; Lando Norris is the best meme machine: https://streamable.com/e2aec

Edited July 28, 2019 by Katsuya

[Katsuya]

Both Alfa's given a 30 second penalty, which moves Hamilton up to P9...

And KUBICA IS P10! Williams get a point!

[Lineker]

That was a fucking unbelievable race. Immense fun.

 

Haas should drop Grosjean and keep K-Mag.

[Chris2K]

A lot of people are saying Pascal Wehrlein is going to take Grosjean's seat after the summer break.

And of course Gasly's Red Bull seat could easily go to either of the Toro Rosso drivers with Gasly going the other way. He looked so impressive last year but just hasn''t been able to cut it at the front of the grid.

[LUKIE]

Hamilton: "Why has this gone terribly wrong?"

I don't know... you hit the wall, entered the pit lane incorrectly... *shrugs*

[Lineker]

 

Meanwhile, the Mexican GP has been saved, with a new deal confirmed and running until 2022.

[Lineker]

Red Bull have switched Gasly and Albon.

 

[Katsuya]

Feel bad for Kvyat; Marko clearly is never gonna give him another shot at RBR it seems.

Can't see how Albon can be any worse than Gasly, but it's a lot of pressure on him and no guarantee that he'll be a huge amount better. Still, good for him and always nice to see another (half) Brit in a top team.

[Chris2K]

I feel a bit sorry for Gasly, being compared to a team-mate like Max is an impossible situation. I hope Albon doesn't suffer the same fate.

[Lineker]

This is essentially a trial run of nine (or so) races to see whether they can coast by with him in 2020, or whether they need to go out and hope to pay for and land Ocon/Alonso.

[Lineker]

Quote

The Spanish Grand Prix will remain on the Formula 1 calendar after Barcelona next season after striking a fresh deal for 2020.

Spain's only F1 race was under serious threat but the Barcelona circuit has signed what appears to be a new one-year agreement to host the event again.

The circuit has announced it will implement a "strategic plan with the will to create a larger project for the facilities" and secure the "feasibility" of the event.

Its statement added: "The plan will serve as a framework to define the role that F1 shall have on a longer-term [basis]."

According to F1, more than half a million spectators have attended the race over the last three years and data from the circuit said that this year's grand prix generated €163million for the region.

F1 CEO Chase Carey said the parties would seek to agree a longer-term deal in the coming months and thanked Catalan president Quim Torra for "vital support" during the negotiations.

"The decision to continue to stage a round of the pinnacle of motorsport in Spain, a country with a great motor racing tradition, dating back to the start of the last century, is part of our strategy of maintaining Formula 1's European roots, while also currently expanding the championship into new territories," said Carey.

"The promoter's willingness to be part of Formula 1 going into 2020 is proof of the sport's ability to act as a catalyst for regions to hold world class events and also to have a positive impact on the area's economy.

"In the coming months, we will continue our discussions to see if we can further extend this advantageous relationship."

The new contract means Italy and Germany are the only remaining F1 races at risk for 2020.

Five races on the current 21-race calendar had deals that expired after this season: Spain, Germany, Britain, Italy and Mexico.

With the revived Dutch GP and a new race in Vietnam being added next year, and teams only agreeing to a 22-race schedule, F1 was prepared to lose one of the existing races.

Silverstone agreed a new multi-year deal for the British GP and Mexico's future without state funding has also been secured.

Monza bosses have been confident of a fresh Italian GP contract and have consistently called for government support to get that over the line to ensure it remains the only circuit to be part of every F1 season since 1950.

Circuit chiefs are keen to secure the race up to its centenary year in 2022 as well as get the funding required to overhaul the circuit, with plans including removing one of Monza's chicanes.

The German GP appears most at risk of dropping off the calendar.

Mercedes funded this year's race on a one-off deal but said it was not willing to continue with that arrangement longer-term.

The German GP has been held 64 times since 1951, with only the British, Italian and Monaco GPs appearing on the calendar more often.

[Katsuya]

As much as I weirdly love Catalunya, I’d much, much rather Hockenheim.

Also; new rumours are that Bottas stays at Merc, Ocon goes to Renault and Hulk takes Grosjean’s seat.

[Lineker]

Quote

Marcus Ericsson could return to the Formula 1 grid at the Belgian Grand Prix, and has travelled to Spa instead of heading to Portland for the next IndyCar round.

Ericsson will be at Spa on duty for the Alfa Romeo team, with which he is official third and reserve driver.

Sources have indicated there may be an issue that could prevent the team's regular race driver Kimi Raikkonen from competing and Ericsson was understood to be travelling to Belgium on Thursday morning.

The team's official position is that there is no plan for Ericsson to race but he is required as the reserve.

Ericsson lost his drive at the Sauber team after the 2018 season, while Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi formed an all-new line-up as the entry adopted the Alfa name for '19.

The Swede has remained associated with Alfa and dovetailed his reserve role with a full-time IndyCar programme for the Arrow Schmidt Peterson team in the United States.

Raikkonen and Giovinazzi were named on Alfa's official media schedule for the Belgian GP earlier this week, while Ericsson should be at Portland for the next round of his rookie Indy campaign.

But Ericsson was in Stockholm until early Thursday morning, when he would normally be out in the US ahead of the race weekend, and SPM then issued a statement saying he would be replaced by Conor Daly for Portland "following a request from Alfa Romeo Racing for Marcus Ericsson to be on the ground at this weekend's Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix".

Daly has completed a part-season with Carlin in IndyCar this year and also contested the Indianapolis 500 with Andretti Autosport. He raced at Indy with SPM in 2015.

Alfa released its official race preview on Thursday, with both normal race drivers quoted and no indication of an impending change.

F1's rules give teams until Friday to decide who will take part in practice, so a final call in the morning would give Alfa more time if Spa expert Raikkonen still wishes to take part.

Should Ericsson replace Raikkonen in Friday practice, the rules would still allow Raikkonen to return on Saturday and complete the remainder of the weekend, although such a scenario would be unlikely.

Ericsson has had a difficult first season in IndyCar, scoring a podium finish with second place in Detroit but lying only 17th in the championship after multiple missed opportunities.

His future in the series was thrown in doubt following the announcement of his Schmidt Peterson team's collaboration with McLaren for 2020.

Ericsson left F1 after his most competitive season to date, having scored points in six races, but also trailed rookie team-mate Charles Leclerc 39 points to nine in the final standings last year.

Should Ericsson return to F1 action he would have the opportunity to score points again immediately, as Alfa is one of the most competitive cars in the midfield.

He has already driven the car this year, in a Pirelli tyre test in Austria.

Alfa is locked in a fierce fight for fifth in the constructors' championship but the points disparity between its two drivers means the team is only seventh, eight points behind Renault and 12 points behind Toro Rosso.

Raikkonen has enjoyed a fine first season at Alfa since leaving Ferrari, scoring 31 points to lie eighth in the championship.

But Giovinazzi has struggled, and is 18th in the standings with just one point to his name.

Quote

Formula 1 has unveiled a record 22-race calendar for its 2020 season, with the German Grand Prix dropping off but the at-risk Italy event keeping its place.

The championship initially looked poised to keep its number of grands prix at 21 for next year, but the Spanish GP's one-year extension has led to teams approving the new longest-ever grand prix racing calendar.

The 2020 schedule, which includes the inaugural Vietnam GP and the return of the Dutch GP at Zandvoort, will retain a four-week summer break in August, but will include as many as seven pairs of back-to-back races.

"It's with great pleasure that today we publish the draft 2020 calendar," F1 CEO Chase Carey said.

"It's the year in which the series that is the pinnacle of motorsport celebrates its 70th anniversary with, for the first time, a 22 race calendar.

"It is significant for our sport and confirms our long-term strategy. Since we became involved in this sport in 2017, we have talked about developing new destination cities to broaden the appeal of Formula 1 and at the same time, consolidating our presence in Europe, the traditional home of the sport.

"The season with a record 22 grands prix has received unanimous support from the FIA and all the teams and clearly demonstrates the confidence that exists in the future of our sport."

The new Vietnam race will slot in as the third event of the season on April 5, coming on the heels of an Australia - Bahrain double-header in March.

Zandvoort's race is scheduled for May 3 and will be the Netherlands' first GP since 1985 (pictured above).

That event will kick off the European leg of the season - although this will be broken up by a June double-header made up of the moved Azerbaijan event and the Canadian GP.

The Canada race is now set to clash with the World Endurance Championship's flagship 24 Hours of Le Mans event.

The F1 2020 calendar remains subject to approval by the World Motor Sport Council, while the Italian round at Monza does yet not have a contract in place for next year - but according to F1's statement that is "currently being finalised".

[JasonM]

Bottas confirmed to continue at Mercedes for 2020. Ocon now expected to sign with Renault to pair up with Ricciardo.

That leaves Hulkenberg out of a seat. Haas are the expected team to pick him up, or possibly Red Bull if they're not sold on Albon by the end of the season.

Or if you believe the silliest rumours, Hulk to Ferrari for Vettel...

[JasonM]

And now Ocon has been confirmed for Renault. So that leaves Hulk without a drive for 2020.

[Lineker]

He'll end up at Haas with K-Mag.

[Gazz]

I can't have Hulk leaving F1 without a podium.

[Lineker]

Quote

Formula 1 plans to trial new race formats at some grand prix events in 2020, with the teams set to discuss the idea in the coming weeks.

Ahead of a major overhaul of F1's rules for 2021, F1 owner Liberty Media wants to evaluate different ideas - including Saturday qualifying races - at a number of events next season to see if they could be introduced on a permanent basis.

F1 managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn believes that the only way the championship can decide that changes would be better for future events would be to try them out in a series of experiments.

"I would like to see us in 2020 try a few things," Brawn told Sky F1. "In 2020 we have a stable platform with the cars and things aren't changing that much, and I think '20 could be a good opportunity at one or two races to try some variations.

"I don't see any other way that we logically progress the race format.

"The basic race format is good, but would a sprint race be interesting or some variation in qualifying be interesting?

"I think the teams are up for doing some variations during a Saturday to see if we can touch on a better solution."

Racing Point team principal Otmar Szafnauer said he was in favour of trying out new things to see if they are a hit with fans - with a final decision about what happens set to be made at a team meeting scheduled for September.

"The last time we got together, we did discuss about some formats on Saturday to be able to mix up the grids for Sunday," he said.

"We have got further discussions in between Monza and Singapore.

"If we are to improve the show there is nothing wrong with trying and seeing how it goes, get some fan feedback and if people like it and it improves the show, I am all for it."

But other teams are not convinced that the 2020 race format experiments are a good idea, especially in terms of the potential increase in costs.

Haas team boss Gunther Steiner said: "What we need to look at [making sure] that by changing the format the costs don't go up.

"If we change the format and it costs a lot more, because you do everything different, there is a point that is not sustainable."

When asked about the impact of a qualifying race, Steiner added: "That costs more money because you need more spare parts, as you have two races a weekend.

"You need more MGU-Ks because they can break, so we need to consider all this stuff."

[Lineker]

Huge crash into the barriers for Hamilton during FP3 - he could well miss qualifying now!