F1 Pickings

Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert has been killed in a crash at the Belgian Grand Prix, motorsport's governing body the FIA says.

Lewis Hamilton says the slow speeds Formula 1 drivers needed to run at to prepare for their Belgian Grand Prix Q3 qualifying laps left them in a "dangerous" situation

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The Formula 2 support race at the Belgian Grand Prix is cancelled following a serious crash.

Leclerc had a comfortable advantage after the first runs at Spa and eventually qualified on pole by 0.7s after improving on his second attempt, while teammate Sebastian Vettel had to battle to join him on the front row. After securing his third pole of the season, Leclerc said the improvement was down to changing strategy after his first run. "At first I really targeted the perfect ... Keep reading

With drivers eager to stay close to the cars in front of them so they could benefit from a tow, as well as keep their tyres in the right operating window, a number of cars bunched up ahead of the first runs in Q1. Hamilton nearly ran into the back of teammate Valtteri Bottas at one point as they slowed to avoid faster cars approaching them, while Bottas later locked up to avoid hitting Nico ... Keep reading

Charles Leclerc takes pole for Belgian Grand Prix as Ferrari locks-out front row for first time since Bahrain.

Latifi joined Williams as reserve driver for 2019 and has taken part in three Friday practice sessions so far. He is fighting for the Formula 2 title and is on course qualify for a superlicence as he has won four races and is currently second in the standings. Latifi believes that testing for Force India and Williams, plus his Friday practice outings, has made him ready for F1 in 2020 and ... Keep reading

Charles Leclerc claimed pole position for Formula 1's Belgian Grand Prix with a huge advantage of 0.748 seconds over Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel

Full times from today's qualifying session for the Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix.

Leclerc set the pace on the first runs in the Q3 top-10 shootout with a lap of 1m42.644s, which would have been enough to be sure of pole position. But he improved to a 1m42.519s on his second run to make certain of starting from the front. Vettel had to work hard to get a place on the front row, setting the third fastest time on the first run behind Mercedes driver Lewis ... Keep reading

Charles Leclerc takes pole position with Lewis Hamilton third during eventful Belgian Grand Prix qualifying.

Ferrari has confirmed it intends to run its latest specification Formula 1 engine at its home race at Monza next weekend

Mercedes confident that Lewis Hamilton will be able to participate in qualifying despite extensive damage incurred in FP3 crash.

The Renault Formula 1 team will kickstart Pirelli's 18-inch tyre test programme for 2021 when it runs a mule car at Paul Ricard on September 12-13

Best times from all three practice sessions for the Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix.

With the Italian car manufacturer’s customer teams Haas and Alfa Romeo having given a debut outing for the third power unit of the year in Belgium this weekend, Ferrari has said it preferred to wait until Monza. Speaking at Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday, Ferrari’s sporting director Laurent Meckies was clear that the power sensitivity of Monza – where an extra 10bhp is worth around 0.2 ... Keep reading

Mercedes are hopeful Lewis Hamilton's car will be ready in time for qualifying after a heavy crash in practice at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc continued Ferrari's perfect start to the Belgian Grand Prix weekend as world championship leader Lewis Hamilton crashed heavily in final practice

Already under pressure to keep pace with Ferrari, Mercedes task is made even more difficult as Lewis Hamilton crashes out of FP3.

The world champion lost control of his car on the kerbs at the Fagnes chicanes just after the halfway point of FP3 and speared into the tyre barriers – badly smashing up the left-front side of the car. Although the impact could have been enough to damage the chassis, which would force Hamilton to miss qualifying, the initial indications from Mercedes are that his monocoque is intact. A ... Keep reading

Hamilton’s rare mistake triggered a red flag just after the halfway mark in Saturday’s one-hour session when, after setting a personal best first sector, he ploughed into the tyre barrier at the Fagnes chicane. The Mercedes driver lost the rear of his car as he turned in on the outside kerb, then wrestled to catch the slide only to lose the rear again as he ran deeper into the run-off ... Keep reading

Lewis Hamilton has a heavy crash in final practice at the Belgian Grand Prix, raising questions about his participation in qualifying.

Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg plus McLaren's Carlos Sainz Jr have reverted to Renault's Spec B engine despite taking Belgian Grand Prix grid penalties for an upgraded power unit

The two Renault works men, as well as McLaren’s Spanish driver, have all taken five-place grid drops for having run with an upgraded C-spec in Friday practice. But despite the improvements in reliability and performance from the engine, the French car manufacturer and McLaren removed the power units and fitted their race cars with B-specs overnight. Renault says that the change is not ... Keep reading

Alex Albon's shot with the Red Bull Formula 1 team begins with neither party likely to get a clear judgement of his true performance at the Belgian Grand Prix

Sergey Sirotkin is currently scheduled to do the test as part of his deal to be the Enstone outfit’s reserve driver this year, although the team is yet to officially confirm that the Russian will take part. Renault is one of three teams that has volunteered to help with the initial 18-inch testing, along with McLaren and Mercedes. All three have created mule cars based on 2018 chassis ... Keep reading

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Renault Formula 1 boss Cyril Abiteboul says the team needs a "restart" internally and that played a part in the decision to replace Nico Hulkenberg with Esteban Ocon

Red Bull Formula 1 team boss Christian Horner has defended the nature of his company's young driver programme after Pierre Gasly's demotion to Toro Rosso

The Milton Keynes-based team elected to make a mid-season driver swap after feeling that it could not afford to continue with Gasly, who had a disappointing first half to the campaign. While the latest Red Bull driver shuffle has again prompted questions about whether the company’s young driver programme justifies the investment, Horner is adamant the strategy is right because it is  the ... Keep reading

When Renault confirmed Ocon would join Daniel Ricciardo in its line-up for 2020, Hulkenberg said many factors had played a part and suspected the team’s slump in form this year tipped it “over the edge”. "I’ve been here three years now," Hulkenberg explained. "2017 was good progress, 2018 was still good. “This year we have a very tough year. And with the difficult year we’re ... Keep reading

Racing Point driver Sergio Perez has been forced to switch back to Mercedes' older specification Formula 1 engine following a failure in Belgian Grand Prix practice

Renault boss, Cyril Abiteboul, makes clear that Esteban Ocon is not on loan from Mercedes and is now a "fully-fledged" member of the French team.

Six drivers face grid demotion as engine component penalties start to bite.

Ferrari continues to set the pace in Belgium, as second session sees FP1 order reversed and Charles Leclerc leading teammate Sebastian Vettel.

Charles Leclerc sets an eye-opening lap to head a Ferrari one-two in second practice at the Belgian Grand Prix.

Esteban Ocon will be back on the Formula 1 grid in the 2020 season, but with Renault rather than champion team Mercedes

While it's a step down for the Frenchman in terms of competitiveness to what he was hoping for, that doesn't mean his move back into the F1 midfield will come without pressure and attention. Scott Mitchell and Edd Straw outline the reasons both Ocon and his new team will be under intense scrutiny next season, and they explain what this renewed partnership will need to achieve to prevent too ... Keep reading

Some teams and power unit manufacturers who have been picking up penalties window with the current level of 21 races had been pushing for an across-the-board increase in allocation of elements for F1's longest-ever calendar next year - but those more confident in their reliability were resisting any change. In the end it has been agreed that a third MGU-K, putting its allocation on a par with ... Keep reading

Formula 1 teams have reached a compromised agreement on an increased allocation of MGU-K parts to help cope with the addition of a 22nd race in 2020

Formula 1's managing director of motorsports Ross Brawn says potential new teams have been told to expect to wait until at least 2022 for an opportunity to join the grid

Mercedes will have no right to recall Esteban Ocon from the Renault Formula 1 team before 2022, despite continuing to manage him during his contract with it.

Ocon, who is a Mercedes reserve, has just signed a two-year deal to join Renault as Daniel Ricciardo’s teammate from 2020. But while Ocon’s career will still be managed by Mercedes, Renault managing director Cyril Abiteboul says that the Frenchman will be fully under his control from next year. “He is a Renault driver,” said Abiteboul ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. “That is very ... Keep reading

Brawn says there has been a "surprising" amount of interest from potential new teams. However, given the huge changes to the technical and sporting regulations and commercial arrangements for 2021, Brawn says he would prefer to stabilise the situation before allowing any new entrants to join. Brawn also made it clear that he believes that 10 teams is a good number, and that F1 will only ... Keep reading

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

An expanded calendar next year will mean a cut back in testing with no in-season tests.

Ferrari used its customer teams to give its latest specification Formula 1 engine its debut in Belgian Grand Prix practice

Ferrari conducted back-to-back running of its two Formula 1 front wing concepts in preparation for the Belgian Grand Prix during the opening free practice session

The works Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc are expected to take the new unit in Monza next weekend. All three drivers who changed today took a new V6, turbo and MGU-H. None of them will receive any penalties, as they are still within their season allocation of three elements, and the works cars will also be penalty free when they change to the new unit. However, Alfa's Kimi ... Keep reading

Confirmation of Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes and Esteban Ocon at Renault has put Nico Hulkenberg on the market, making the German favourite to replace Grosjean should Haas opt to make a change. Read Also: Haas sees no issues with Hulkenberg/Magnussen line-up However, Grosjean insisted that the changes had no direct impact on his situation. "I don't think so," said the ... Keep reading

Sebastian Vettel headed a Ferrari one-two as the Formula 1 season resumed with the opening practice for the Belgian Grand Prix

Full times from today's opening free practice session for the Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix.

Vettel outpaced his teammate Charles Leclerc by 0.214s to top FP1 at Spa, where championship leader Lewis Hamilton had a disjointed start to his weekend. Hamilton finished sixth fastest after a difficult session that started with a pedal problem, was further disrupted by a telemetry issue and featured some scruffy moments on his flying laps. Ferrari has been tipped as a pre-event favourite ... Keep reading

Sebastian Vettel heads a Ferrari 1-2 in opening session at Spa-Francorchamps, as Lewis Hamilton's weekend gets off to a difficult start.

Sebastian Vettel leads a Ferrari one-two in first practice at the Belgian Grand Prix as Lewis Hamilton struggles.

The Thai driver has been moved up from Toro Rosso to replace Pierre Gasly, who was dropped after a disappointing first half to the campaign against Max Verstappen. And while the driver swap has offered Albon a golden opportunity to prove he deserves a seat at Red Bull in 2020, he is well aware of how out of the ordinary his ascent to a top team in F1 has been. "Yes, it is quite laughable ... Keep reading

Romain Grosjean says the Haas Formula 1 team could still revert to its original spec car later in 2019 despite settling on a revised Belgian and Italian Grands Prix package

After experimenting with old and new specs before the summer break, the team is running the latest iteration for both Grosjean and teammate Kevin Magnussen in low-downforce configuration at both Spa and Monza. However, Grosjean, who has always preferred the original version, says that Haas had no choice as the Spa/Monza wings could not be used on the Melbourne spec car. “It’s not a ... Keep reading

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Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg will both take grid penalties at Spa, as Renault opts to introduce latest upgrade.

Renault has elected to introduce its new Spec C Formula 1 engine for the Belgian Grand Prix, meaning both Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg will take grid penalties

With the French car manufacturer bidding to bounce back from a disappointing first half to the season, it hopes the minor upgrades to reliability and performance with the new power unit will help boost its competitiveness. Renault had already taken grid penalties for using new components earlier in the season, and the changes to the ICE will thus mean a five-place grid drop for both ... Keep reading

Gasly was drafted in by Red Bull as Ricciardo's replacement for this season, but endured a disappointing first half to the season. With the team having lost faith in his ability to turn things around, it demoted Gasly to Toro Rosso for the remainder of the campaign, with Alex Albon getting moved up. While Ricciardo is not happy at seeing Gasly get dropped, he reckons that it was not a ... Keep reading

Daniel Ricciardo thinks the Red Bull Formula 1 team was not unfair to drop Pierre Gasly because he had been given enough time to show what he was capable of

As the latest issue of F1 Racing magazine hits the streets ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, the Flat Chat with Codders podcast tackles Formula 1's burning issues

With the highly-anticipated Mercedes vs Ferrari championship fight gradually fading over the first half of the season, the onus is on Ferrari to salvage race victories from their stuttering 2019 campaign. Their early-season missed opportunities, coupled with Mercedes producing a car capable of challenging for victories at all venues, means that Ferrari are closer to finishing behind Red Bull in ... Keep reading

Today's press conference with Valtteri Bottas, Sergio Perez, Alexander Albon, Max Verstappen and George Russell.

The Racing Point Formula 1 team has overhauled its distinctive front end design for a more conventional nose ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, abandoning its previous nostril design

Nico Hulkenberg has revealed he had "hints" he was going to be replaced by the Renault Formula 1 team after a "change of dynamic" during the summer break

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport reserve driver Esteban Ocon says he's ready to return to F1 after his behind the scenes role with the team this season. So what has he been doing

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport had a dominant start to the season, but the run up to the summer break was not without its challenges. As Formula 1 prepares to return after the summer break, fans are keen to see how far that challenge will develop as Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas and the Silver Arrows seek a record-equalling sixth consecutive Constructors’ Championship title. But ... Keep reading

Changes to the track, DRS locations, tyre choices, power unit requirements and stats for this year's Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix.

Formula 1 drivers have been told that practice and qualifying times will be deleted if they are found to have abused track limits at the Belgian Grand Prix's Raidillon corner

The Formula 1 driver market burst back into action on Thursday at the Belgian Grand Prix, beginning with the announcement that Valtteri Bottas will remain at Mercedes for 2020

The FIA has been tough on drivers trying to straight-line the track at the top of Eau Rouge, and a detection loop was brought into play a few years ago to help better police matters. Ahead of the Belgian GP, F1 race director Michael Masi issued revised event notes that confirmed that lap times in practice as well as qualifying would now be erased He wrote: "A laptime achieved during any ... Keep reading

Pierre Gasly admits to being shocked when he received an early morning phone call from Helmut Marko telling him he had been dropped by Red Bull.

Formula 1 teams have agreed to a significant reduction in testing for 2020 as part of a trade-off for the addition of a 22nd race to the calendar

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Kvyat raced for Red Bull in 2015 and the first part of 2016, before being demoted to Toro Rosso then dropped from the programme entirely before the end of the 2017 season. He was re-signed by Red Bull to rejoin Toro Rosso for 2019, and scored a shock podium in the rain-hit German Grand Prix during a strong first half of the season. However, when Red Bull opted to drop Gasly to Toro Rosso, it ... Keep reading

Alfa Romeo drafts in reserve driver Marcus Ericsson amidst doubts over Kimi Raikkonen injury.

Pierre Gasly says his demotion from the Red Bull Formula 1 team came as a shock because he was told he would keep his drive until the end of 2019

Daniil Kvyat says he understands why Red Bull picked Alex Albon to replace Pierre Gasly at its senior Formula 1 team instead of him

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said immediately after the Hungarian Grand Prix, the final race before the summer break, that it was the “intention” to keep Gasly in the car for the rest of the year. However, one week after the race Red Bull announced Alex Albon would replace Gasly as it assesses who should partner Max Verstappen in 2020. Speaking for the first time since his ... Keep reading

During the summer break, team bosses backed an email vote which confirmed both their acceptance of the extra event, and the cut in testing. Various permutations for pre-season testing have been discussed in recent months, but the teams have now agreed on six rather than the current eight days, with two three-day sessions split by a four-day break. The tests, which are planned as usual for ... Keep reading

Nico Hulkenberg says a "whole bundle of factors" beyond performance were behind the Renault Formula 1 team's decision to replace him with Esteban Ocon for 2020

Multiple Formula 1 teams have been seen with customary low-downforce packages ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix as they react to the demands of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit

The German’s future at the team had been in doubt since earlier in the campaign, with Renault admitting that it was looking at options elsewhere. Ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, Renault confirmed that it had done a deal with Mercedes to take Ocon as Daniel Ricciardo’s teammate on a two-year deal. The decision leaves Hulkenberg chasing a seat elsewhere for 2020, with Haas confirming that ... Keep reading

F1 returns with a trip to Spa for the Belgium GP that sees Alexander Albon now at Red Bull and Sebastian Vettel seeking his first win in 12 months.

Esteban Ocon will replace Nico Hulkenberg at Renault for 2020, returning to the sport after a year on the sidelines.

Esteban Ocon will return to the Formula 1 grid in 2020 by replacing Nico Hulkenberg at Renault

Mercedes protege Ocon drove for Manor and Force India/Racing Point since stepping up to grand prix racing midway through 2016, but was left off the grid this year after his Racing Point seat was taken by Lance Stroll and a mooted switch to Renault fell through when the French outfit signed Daniel Ricciardo. A contender to join Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes in 2020 before the team confirmed it was ... Keep reading

Renault has confirmed that Esteban Ocon will partner Daniel Ricciardo in 2020 as the French team aims to make further progress during its fifth season back in F1.

Details of drivers power unit elements used prior to the Johnnie Walker Belgian Grand Prix weekend.

Esteban Ocon will replace Nico Hulkenberg at Renault for 2020, returning to the sport after a year on the sidelines.

Kimi Raikkonen says a pulled muscle led to the Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team calling up Marcus Ericsson as a potential Belgian Grand Prix stand-in but he expects to race

Mercedes plans to introduce its upgraded Formula 1 engine for the works team and its customers at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix

Team principal Toto Wolff said ahead of this weekend's race at Spa that its High Performance Powertrains team at Brixworth had worked through the summer break to improve reliability and performance. Validation work at the factory on the team's second upgrade of the season has produced encouraging signs. Mercedes therefore plans to give use of the "new phase" engine to works drivers Lewis ... Keep reading

Ericsson, who has remained Alfa's reserve after losing his race seat with what was then Sauber at the end of last season, is skipping this weekend's Portland IndyCar round to be present at Spa. Read Also: Ericsson on standby for Alfa Romeo at Belgian GP Sources had suggested this was due to a specific concern over whether Raikkonen would be available for the race. The ... Keep reading

Haas Formula 1 team principal Gunther Steiner has revealed that Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon and current driver Romain Grosjean are in contention to partner Kevin Magnussen in 2020

Haas Formula 1 team boss Gunther Steiner expects a final decision on the future of its title sponsorship deal with Rich Energy to be made before the Singapore Grand Prix

Although the energy drinks company announced on the eve of the British GP that it had terminated its contract with Haas, the situation remained unclear amid a boardroom battle between major shareholders for control. Read Also: The astonishing story behind the Rich Energy saga Haas sponsor saga takes fresh twist as Rich Energy is renamed Steiner met with Rich Energy ... Keep reading

Valtteri Bottas will stay at Mercedes alongside Lewis Hamilton for the 2020 F1 season, the German team announce.

Valtteri Bottas will remain at the Mercedes Formula 1 team in 2020, with Esteban Ocon tipped to rejoin the grid at Renault in place of Nico Hulkenberg

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said a decision on who would partner Lewis Hamilton next season would be made during the summer break, and admitted it was not easy to pick between Bottas and Ocon. The team announced Bottas would stay for a fourth season on Thursday morning ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix. Bottas has won five races since replacing retired world champion Nico Rosberg in ... Keep reading

Mercedes has confirmed that Valtteri Bottas will remain as Lewis Hamilton's teammate in 2020, the Finn's fourth season with the German outfit.

Alexander Albon admits to being shocked when he received the news from Helmut Marko telling him he was to replace Pierre Gasly at Red Bull.

Formula 1 has revealed that the German Grand Prix could return to the calendar at a different venue in the future, following confirmation Hockenheim has lost its place

Although Hockenheim officials had hoped that a deal could be put in place to rescue the event for next year, it was absent from the draft 2020 schedule that was released by F1 on Thursday. Read Also: F1 unveils record 22-race calendar for 2020 While a swift return to the calendar is unlikely, F1 has revealed that other tracks and cities have expressed interest in getting ... Keep reading

Alexander Albon will start his career with Red Bull's senior team from the back of the grid due to an engine upgrade penalty.

F1 has released the provisional calendar for the 2020 world championship season, and as expected it comprises 22 races, the most ever in the sport's 71 years.

The Jim Clark Museum will be formally opened in the Borders town of Duns on Thursday.

Formula 1 will have a record 22-race season in 2020, including grands prix in the Netherlands and Vietnam.

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 ... Keep reading

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

Motorsport.com understands 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. Ericsson lost his drive at the Sauber team after the ... Keep reading

Honda is to introduce its latest upgrade at Spa this weekend, however, the new unit will only be available to Alexander Albon and Daniil Kvyat.

As the 2019 Formula 1 season resumes, The Autosport Podcast tackles the major talking points going into the Belgian Grand Prix weekend

Honda will introduce its third engine upgrade of the Formula 1 season at the Belgian Grand Prix, but Max Verstappen will not have use of it for strategic reasons

The new ‘Spec 4’ engine will force Verstappen’s new Red Bull teammate Alex Albon and Toro Rosso driver Daniil Kvyat to start at the back of the grid for the power-sensitive Belgian circuit. However, Verstappen and Pierre Gasly, who has been demoted from Red Bull to Toro Rosso as of this weekend, will not use the upgraded engine. "We are introducing the Spec 4 version of our engine at ... Keep reading

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George Russell believes the challenging circumstances of his rookie Formula 1 season could be similar to the "almost laughable" contrast between his results and the reality back in Formula 3

Verstappen has won two races with Honda power so far in 2019, scoring victory in Austria and Germany, but also had the pace to finish on the podium in Britain as Red Bull enjoyed comfortably its most competitive race at Silverstone for several years. Read Also: Verstappen: Honda progress is testing Red Bull's durability Red Bull's new engine partner Honda is offering ... Keep reading

COTA boss, Bobby Epstein believes American F1 fans deserve better than a race in a parking lot, insisting that the sport must build on what his track has created.

Briton Norris is renowned for the amount of time he spends in his home simulator, revealing he had learned about Red Bull driver Max Verstappen's approach to racing from competing online with the Dutchman. The two F1 rivals have even teamed up for a number of high-profile online events, and have won the iRacing 24 Hours of Spa earlier this year. While Sainz says he spends "plenty" of time in ... Keep reading

The Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team believes its group management strength has enabled it to shrug off its multiple changes of technical chief in recent years

Pierre Gasly and Daniil Kvyat, refreshed from the summer break, look ahead to Belgium.

Prior to a short stint in charge of Renault's revived works team and being named Sauber F1 team principal and CEO back in 2017, Vasseur was best-known for running the ASM and ART Grand Prix teams that worked with many leading F1 drivers during their careers. Though Sauber's F1 team has been renamed Alfa Romeo Racing for 2019 to strengthen its ties with the famous Italian company, it is still ... Keep reading

Max Verstappen believes Red Bull is moving away from "quite painful" performances at power-sensitive Formula 1 tracks, while Honda's negative feeling towards such circuits is also disappearing

Rumoured to be at the heart of an intriguing edition of driver musical chairs, Nico Hulkenberg admits that the next two races are "make or break" for Renault.