Leclerc Confirmed For Ferrari

LECLERC CONFIRMED FOR FERRARI IN 2019 WHILE RAIKKONEN HEADS TO SAUBER

    Charles Leclerc will replace Kimi Raikkonen at Ferrari as the 2007 champion switches to Sauber for the 2019 Formula 1 championship.

    With just a year’s F1 experience under his belt, Leclerc will become the first Ferrari Driver Academy member to make it to the senior team and the second youngest driver to ever race for Ferrari in F1.

    “[I’m] eternally grateful to Scuderia Ferrari for the opportunity give,” Leclerc said on Twitter.

    “To Nicolas Todt for supporting me since 2011. To my family.

    “To a person that is not part of this world anymore but to whom I owe everything of what is happening to me, Papa.

    “To Jules [Bianchi], thank you for all the things you learnt me, we will never forget you.

    “And to all the persons that supported me and believed in me. I will work harder than ever to not disappoint you. But first, there is a season to finish with an amazing team that gave me the opportunity to fight and to show my potential.”

    Leclerc made his F1 debut at the start of the year after winning back to back GP3 and Formula 2 championships.

    The Monogasque racer claimed his first F1 points with a sixth place finish at the Azerbaijan GP, where he scored more points than the entire Sauber team managed in 2017. He’s since taken top 10 finishes in four further places and lies 15th in the drivers’ championship.

    Leclerc will spend 2019 racing alongside Sebastian Vettel, while Raikkonen switches to the 20-year-old’s current team, Sauber.

    Almost 18 years after he made his F1 debut with the team, Raikkonen will return to Sauber with a two year contract.

    In his first year at the team, the Finn took 10 top 10 finishes and finished 10th in the championship standings. Since then, he’s taken 20 victories and 100 podium finishes, and team boss Frederic Vasseur hopes that experience will help his team grow next season.

    “Signing Kimi Raikkonen as our driver represents an important pillar of our project and brings us closer to our target of making significant progress as a team in the near future,” he said.

    “Kimi’s undoubted talent and immense experience in Formula 1 will not only contribute to the development of our car, but will also accelerate the growth and development of our team as a whole.

    "Together, we will start the 2019 season with a strong foundation, driven by the determination to fight for results that count.”

    Sauber has since confirmed that Kimi will be partnered with Antonio Giovinazzi from Italy.

    The news leaves six 2019 seats undecided. Haas, Toro Rosso, and Williams are yet to confirm their line ups for next season.

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Ferrari Launch 2018 Car

(Image credit to: Scuderia Ferrari)

    Ferrari has revealed its latest Formula 1 car, the SF71H, ahead of preseason testing.

    Its unchanged driver line-up of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, as well as development driver Daniil Kvyat and Antonio Giovinazzi, were at the launch at the team’s base in Maranello.

    One year into the current set of technical regulations, Ferrari’s 2018 challenger is built on what the team learned last season. It is similar to its predecessor, the most successful Ferrari in recent years, but has a longer wheel base and a revised cooling system.

    Unsurprisingly, Ferrari has stuck with the traditional red livery, including on the mandatory halo head protection device, with the absence of white features differentiating it from its immediate predecessors.

    Also absent is the Santander branding – which has featured on Ferrari machines since 2009 – as the Spanish bank has opted to end its F1 sponsorship deals.

    Like all engine manufacturers, Ferrari has focused on durability this winter as drivers are limited to just three power units this season.

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Brazilian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

BRAZILIAN GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    Sebastian Vettel won the Brazilian Grand Prix after passing pole-sitter Valtteri Bottas off of the line.

    The Ferrari driver managed a safety car restart on the way to his fifth win of the season, finishing 2.762s ahead of Bottas.

    Newly crowned champion Lewis Hamilton battled his way up through the order to take fourth after starting from the pit lane.

    Vettel was already building up a gap to Bottas when a number of opening lap collisions bunched up the field again.

    Kevin Magnussen collided with Stoffel Vandoorne and Daniel Ricciardo. Vandoorne and Magnussen both retired, though Ricciardo was able to continue after a pit stop.

    A little later in the lap, Romain Grosjean had spun into Esteban Ocon at the start of the lap, causing the Force India to retire and leaving debris strewn over the start-finish straight. Grosjean was handed a 10-second penalty and two penalty points for the incident.

    A poor restart from Bottas allowed Vettel to get away again. The Mercedes tried to stay on terms with the race leader, but there was no catching up. Bottas later tried to undercut Vettel in the pit stops, but Vettel came out just ahead of the silver Mercedes. He managed the distance back to second and Bottas was unable to challenge again.

    Meanwhile, Hamilton was on the move again. The Brit was up into eighth in only a handful of laps and soon looking to find a way past Sergio Perez. The Force India tried to make the move hard for Hamilton, pushing him to the outside of turn one as Hamilton passed. Perez tried to fight back for a number of corners, but Hamilton eventually pulled away.

    His next target was the battling Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa. The Mercedes flew past Alonso’s Honda powered McLaren, but passing Massa proved a little harder. A late move up the inside was enough to put him ahead of the Williams, though, and he set about closing the gap to Max Verstappen in fourth.

    A number of backmarkers and a pitstop for fresh tyres meant catching Verstappen had to wait until the closing stages of the race. With less than 15 laps of the 71 lap race remaining, Hamilton was on Verstappen’s gearbox, trying to pressure the Red Bull into making a mistake. Verstappen held firm, but couldn’t stay ahead when Hamilton pulled a move around the outside of turn three to take fourth with just 12 laps remaining.

    Five seconds behind Kimi Raikkonen, taking a podium after starting from the pit lane seemed like a realistic goal in the closing laps. Hamilton was in DRS range of Raikkonen when a small lock up meant he fell away from the Ferrari a little. Right up until the chequered flag, Hamilton searched for a way past Raikkonen, but Raikkonen kept the Ferrari ahead to take his third consecutive third place finish.

    Ricciardo had an equally exciting climb up through the field after the early pit stop to take sixth, just behind team-mate Verstappen.

    The Massa-Alonso battle continued throughout the race, albeit paused at various moments to allow front runners to pass. In the closing stages of the race, Alonso was right on the back of Massa but he couldn’t find a way through and, with Perez not too far behind, the Spaniard didn’t want to attempt anything too risky.

    Even as the leaders took the chequered flag, Alonso was still all over the back of Massa, forcing the Brazilian to defend hard in front of his home crown. The Williams was sliding all over the track as it approached the finish line, but it was just enough for Massa to take seventh – best of the rest – at his home GP. It moves Massa ahead of team-mate Stroll in the drivers’ championship, and marks his best result since Bahrain early in the season.

    Alonso also moved ahead of his team-mate in the championship. Eighth place and the four points that comes with it moves him ahead of Vandoorne and just four points behind Magnussen with one race remaining.

    Perez took ninth, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg, Carlos Sainz, and Pierre Gasly.

    Brendon Hartley suffered another retirement when he was called into the pits midway through the race.

    Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein finished 13th and 14th, ahead of Grosjean and Stroll, who spent the entire race battling to not finish last, often to the frustration of those trying to lap them. Stroll was forced to pit on the penultimate lap after a series of lock-ups caused a puncture.

RESULTS:

1. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 25 Points
2. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / + 18 Points
3. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 15 Points
4. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 12 Points
5. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / + 10 Points
6. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia / + 8 Points
7. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 6 Points
8. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / + 4 Points
9. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 2 Points
10. Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany / + 1 Point
11. Carlos Sainz / Renault-Renault / Spain
12. Pierre Gasly / Toro Rosso-Renault / France
13. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
14. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany
15. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France
16. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada

RETIRED - Brendon Hartley / Toro Rosso-Renault / New Zealand / Engine
RETIRED - Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium / Collision
RETIRED - Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark / Collision
RETIRED - Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / Collision

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Mexican GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Ferrari

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - SCUDERIA FERRARI F1 TEAM

Kimi Raikkonen - “Because of the altitude, this track is quite slippery, with very little grip, so it’s easy to lose lap time. In the first part you have a long straight where it’s possible to overtake, while the rest of the track is more similar to a street circuit and there it gets more difficult to pass. But for sure, if you have the speed it should be possible to gain positions. This year we have been pretty strong in most places, so I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be the same here. Let’s see how it is tomorrow: with the new cars, given the increased down force they generate, it should be a bit better. In these last three races we are aiming to do the best we can, hopefully fighting for wins.”

Sebastian Vettel - “We are still here to fight and we want to do it till the end. We are trying to do our best and win and then we’ll go from there. Everything that we can learn today will help us for the future, this is the thinking inside the whole team. We need to keep going and push on our development. Last year, the start for us was important as it gave us the best opportunity to attack, but this year, we should have better chances during the race. We have had a mixed year with ups and downs, which I think is normal for a team. There were races we couldn’t finish and that hurts. But we have a good car and on paper we should be more competitive here, so let’s see what happens.”

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Ferrari Retains Raikkonen

FERRARI RETAINS RAIKKONEN FOR 2018

    Kimi Raikkonen will race at Ferrari in the 2018 Formula One championship, the Italian team has confirmed.

    Raikkonen’s contract was due to run out at the end of the season, and there was speculation the 2007 champion would retire, 17 years after making his F1 debut with Sauber.

    But Ferrari confirmed in the build up to the Belgian Grand Prix the 37-year-old has extended his contract for another season.

    Raikkonen rejoined Ferrari in 2014, having left the team in 2009. Since then, he has taken 10 podium finishes, including four this season, but hasn’t taken a race win with the Italian team. His last F1 win was with Lotus in 2013.

    Team-mate Sebastian Vettel’s contract is also due to finish this season. It’s expected Ferrari will retain the championship leader, but no announcement has been made.

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Hungarian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

HUNGARIAN GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    It was a Ferrari 1-2 on the podium as Vettel brought the Italian team another win this season. It didn't come easy either. He struggled throughout the race with the steering and towards the final laps it was suggested that he even let Raikkonen pass as it appeared he was going faster.

    Going back to Lap 1, it was all chaos at the Red Bull garage following first lap contact between Verstappen and Ricciardo. The two had collided and Ricciardo was sent into a spin that ended his race before it could even really begin. Verstappen was found guilty of causing the collision and was handed a 10-Second-Time-Penalty which was added to his final race time. Following the accident, Ricciardo had some choice words about his younger team-mate. Verstappen, however, apologized to Ricciardo.

    More contact was also happening in the beginning of the race and this time it was between Romain Grosjean and Nico Hulkenberg. The two bumped wheels more than once throughout the race and Grosjean eventually retired after a failed pit-stop that left him with a loose tyre. He ended up having to pull over and stop the car before things became any more unsafe for the other drivers. The team ended up being fine for the unsafe release.

    Hulkenberg was also involved in a minor incident with other Haas driver, Kevin Magnussen, While Magnussen was clear to put the blame on Hulkenberg, even going as far as telling him to "Suck my b***s", the stewards found Magnussen responsible for forcing Hulkenberg off track and he was handed a 5-Second-Time-Penalty.

    Paul di Resta, who replaced an unwell Felipe Massa, was having a decent race considering it was the first time he'd driven a 2017 F1 car outside of the simulator. However, his race ended early due to an oil leak. Stroll was unable to get into the points this time around as he finished in 14th.

    Both Force India drivers were able to keep things clean on the track and managed to score another double-points finish. Perez in 8th, grabbed 4 points while Ocon finished 9th and got 2 points for the team. Force India still stand strong in 4th in the constructors championship and it doesn't look like Williams will be catching them anytime soon.

    There was a tight battle for third place between the two Mercedes drivers and Lewis Hamilton proved to be faster on his tyres. Early on in the race he suffered from a radio malfunction that left him unable to contact his engineer and the team. He could hear them, but for the team it was silence. 

    The team eventually decided to ask Bottas to let Hamilton past and that if he could not pass Raikkonen or catch either Ferrari within 5 laps, he was to give 3rd back to Bottas and at the final lap, Hamilton did as he was told. While he lost out on a podium, he still got 12 points for his 4th place finish.

    Hungary proved to be one of McLaren's best performances so far this season with both drivers scoring points and managing to finish the race without any engine failures. Fernando Alonso finished in 6th place and Vandoorne in 10th, grabbing the last championship point. This could be a sign of better things yet to come for the struggling team.

    Nico Hulkenberg ended up being the last retirement of the race due to brake issues but still qualified as finished as he completed over 90% of the race distance. His team-mate, Palmer, finished in 12th, just ahead of Magnussen, Stroll, Wehrlein and Ericsson.

    Formula 1 now heads on to its Summer Break but not everyone gets to go on vacation so quickly. The teams and a handful of drivers from F1, F2 and GP3 will stick around to complete a 2-Day in-season test at the Hungaroring. 

RESULTS:

1. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 25 Points

2. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 18 Points

3. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / + 15 Points

4. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 12 Points

5. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / + 10 Points*

6. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / + 8 Points

7. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain / + 6 Points

8. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 4 Points

9. Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / + 2 Points

10. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium / + 1 Point

11. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Renault / Russia

12. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain

13. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark**

14. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada

15. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

16. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

RETIRED - Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany / Brakes***

RETIRED - Paul di Resta / Williams-Mercedes / Great Britain / Oi Leak****

RETIRED - Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / Wheel Nut

RETIRED - Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia / Collision Damage

* - Notes Verstappen had 10 seconds added to his final race time

** - Notes Magnussen had 5 seconds added to his final race time

*** - Notes Hulkenberg retired on lap 69 but qualified as finishing the race as he had completed over 90% of the race distance

**** - Notes Paul di Resta replaced Felipe Massa (Illness)

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British GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

BRITISH GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    Lewis Hamilton took a dominant victory at Silverstone whilst Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen suffered tyre failures late in the race.

    Hamilton led from lights to flag to take his fourth win of the season and fourth consecutive British GP victory. He was challenged at the start of the race by Kimi Raikkonen, who started second, but defended well and was able to keep the Finn behind.

    After an early safety car to recover the stranded Toro Rosso Carlos Sainz after he was hit by Daniil Kvyat, Hamilton was able to pull away from Raikkonen, building up enough of a lead to pit and emerge in first. He finished more than 14 seconds ahead of second place.

    Championship rival Sebastian Vettel spent the opening part of the race struggling to pass the Red Bull of Max Verstappen. Vettel tried a move up the inside at Stowe, pulling alongside Verstappen. The pair pushed one another hard, both complaining about the other’s driving standings, but Verstappen managed to stay ahead.

    Vettel was only able to pass Verstappen in the pits, where Verstappen suffered a slow stop and exited behind the Ferrari.

    Running second and third in the final stages of the race, Ferrari looked set for a double podium, but both drivers suffered punctures in the closing laps. Raikkonen dropped to third, behind Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas, who had started ninth. Vettel had further to drive on his deflated tyre, and finished seventh, behind Nico Hulkenberg.

    Verstappen took fourth, ahead of Daniel Ricciardo, who climbed from 19th on the grid after a turbo failure in qualifying.

    The Force India duo of Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez took eighth and ninth. The pair spent the majority of the race battling one another and Nico Hulkenberg, but were able to keep it clean and avoid contact. The double points finish, takes them to more than 50 points clear of Williams.

    Felipe Massa rounded off the top 10, whilst team-mate Lance Stroll took 16th.

    Stoffel Vandoorne finished just outside the points. Having made it into the final qualifying session, he lost out to Ricciardo, Bottas, and Massa.

    Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean took 12th and 13th, ahead of Marcus Ericsson and Daniil Kvyat, who was handed a drive through penalty for the collision with Sainz.

    Pascal Wehrlein in 17th was the final finisher.

    Fernando Alonso retired just after the half way stage with a fuel pressure drop, and Jolyon Palmer failed to make it to the grid.

RESULTS:

1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 25 Points
2. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / + 18 Points
3. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 15 Points
4. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / +12 Points
5. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia / + 10 Points
6. Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany / + 8 Points
7. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 6 Points
8. Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / + 4 Points
9. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 2 Points
10. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 1 Point
11. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium
12. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark
13. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France
14. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
15. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Renault / Russia
16. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada /
17. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

RETIRED - Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / Fuel Pump
RETIRED - Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain / Collision

DID NOT START - Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain / Hydraulics

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Russian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

RUSSIAN GP - RACE - RE-CAP & RESULTS

    Valtteri Bottas took his first Formula 1 victory after a lightening start in Russia.

    The Finn started the race from the second row of the grid, but shot past the leading Ferraris on the way to the first corner.

    Team mate Lewis Hamilton wasn’t quite as quick off of the line, unable to find a way past Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen.

    Before Bottas had a chance to race off into the distance, the safety car paused the action. Romain Grosjean and Jolyon Palmer had come together, leaving both cars stranded on track. Just as the safety car boards were brought out, Lance Stroll was sent into a spin, but the teenager managed to continue.

    McLaren’s Stoffel Vandoorne ran wide to avoid the incident, earning himself a five second penalty for running outside the track limits. Kevin Magnussen also received a penalty. Vandoorne’s team mate Fernando Alonso was already out of the race. The Spaniard hadn’t made it to 
the start line, a problem with the engine bringing him to a halt on the formation lap.

    On the restart, Bottas managed to pull away a little from Vettel behind him, starting to build up a gap. Meanwhile, Hamilton was stuck behind Raikkonen and struggling to keep the engine cool enough. The problem appeared to be Mercedes specific. Hamilton’s engineer told him Bottas also had temperature problems, but running in dirty air meant Hamilton was really struggling.

    After the single pit stop, there was no change to the top four’s order, even with Vettel staying out seven laps longer than Bottas. If Vettel wanted his third win of the season, he’d have to take it on track.

    Vettel rose to the challenge, chasing after Bottas and slowly closing the gap to the Mercedes. In the closing laps, back markers began to play a factor, slowing down both drivers in turn as Bottas and Vettel both raced to the flag.

    Bottas’ Williams team mate Felipe Massa was the last man to be lapped. The Mercedes managed to get past the Brazilian easily enough, but Vettel had a little more trouble. The German was stuck behind Massa through turn three on the final lap of the race, though he managed to get past on the following corner. The time lost may have cost Vettel the win, as he crossed the line just six tenths of a second behind Bottas, though Massa said he was “sure” Vettel wouldn’t have passed Bottas.

    Kimi Raikkonen finished the race in a lonely third, 11 seconds behind Vettel but 25 seconds ahead of Hamilton in fourth.

    Max Verstappen took fifth. The Red Bull driver shot off of the line, challenging Hamilton and the Ferrari’s on the run up to the front corner, but he fell away through the rest of the race. He finished a further 25 seconds behind Hamilton.

    His Red Bull team mate had a little less luck. Daniel Ricciardo retired early in the race, his brakes on fire. He managed to make it to the pits before coming to a stop.

    Behind Verstappen, Nico Hulkenberg was set to take sixth after starting eighth, but a slow puncture forced him to pit late. He emerged from the pits in eighth.

    Force India took advantage of that late stop to take sixth and seventh, Sergio Perez leading Esteban Ocon across the line.

    Massa finished the race ninth, with Carlos taking the final points paying position.

RESULTS: 

1. Valtteri Bottas / Mercedes-Mercedes / Finland / + 25 points
2. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 18 Points
3. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 15 Points
4. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 12 Points
5. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Netherlands / + 10 Points
6. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 8 Points
7. Esteban Ocon / Force India-Mercedes / France / + 6 Points
8. Nico Hulkenberg / Renault-Renault / Germany / + 4 Points
9. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 2 Points
10. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain / + 1 Point
11. Lance Stroll / Williams-Mercedes / Canada
12. Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Renault / Russia
13. Kevin Magnussen / Haas-Ferrari / Denmark
14. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium
15. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
16. Pascal Wehrlein / Sauber-Ferrari / Germany

RETIRED - Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-Heuer / Australia / Brake Failure
RETIRED - Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / Collision
RETIRED - Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain / Collision

DNS - Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / Power Unit

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Ferrari Unveil SF70H

FERRARI UNVEIL SF70H

    Ferrari’s 2017 challenger, the SF70H, has hit the track for the first time at the team’s test track at Fiorano.

    The Italian team launched live online only just over an hour before Kimi Raikkonen got behind the wheel of the 2017 specification car for the first time. The Finn was only shaking it down, but he reported no problems with the car he’ll be racing this season.

    Nobody at the team has set any expectations for the season ahead, though they’ll inevitably be trying to catch up with Mercedes, who are the favourites to lead the championship again this season.

    Due to regulation changes, the SF70H has a fin above the engine cover, like most cars launched so far this year, and a lengthened nose, as well as a completely redesigned roll hoop.

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European GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Ferrari

DRIVER PREVIEW QUOTES - SCUDERIA FERRARI F1 TEAM

Sebastian Vettel - "I don't know much about Azerbaijan. I'm really looking forward to getting there, as I've heard a lot of good things about it. I've heard that the track is very exciting, with parts leading through the whole town and narrow in places. So, I think it should be exciting. I am a big fan of street circuits. Usually, they are very tricky, bumpy, rough, very narrow places. So, hopefully Baku fulfills these expectations and goes in line with other street circuit classics."

Kimi Raikkonen - N/A

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Bahrain GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX - RACE

   Before the start of the race, things went downhill for Vettel during the installation lap when he experienced a complete engine failure. Smoke plumed from the back of his Ferrari and he was forced to pull over at a run-off area. His race was over before it could even begin. Vettel wasn't the only one to experience pre-race mechanical issues. Jolyon Palmer was also unable to start the race due to a hydraulics issue.

    When the lights went out, it was a slow start from Lewis Hamilton, leaving room for both Massa and Bottas to quickly move up front with Rosberg and the remaining Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen. However, Bottas went for a gap that was a bit too small and he collided with Hamilton, sending him spinning on track. Both drivers had damage to their cars but were able to continue. Bottas was given a Drive-Through-Penalty for causing the collision.

    Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz also collided early on in the race, forcing Perez to pit for a new front wing/nose set-up. His team-mate, Hulkenberg, also suffered from car damage due to first-lap mishaps. The two held on and managed to finish the race, although it was outside of the top 10. 

    Jenson Button was the first retirement of the race and only 8 laps in. It was a Power Unit failure that caused him the loss of possible points. Stoffel Vandoorne, who was filling in for an injured Alonso, managed to score McLaren's first point of the season by bringing home the car in 10th.

    Haas also had their ups and downs of the race with Gutierrez retiring 10 laps in due to a brake disc issue. He also retired in Australia after his accident with Alonso. Grosjean once again scored a good amount of points for the team by finishing in 5th. No doubt Haas will continue to bring points home and hopefully it will be both drivers finishing the race at the Chinese GP.

    Carlos Sainz was the final retirement of the race and it was accident damage that caused it. Despite his efforts to keep racing, the car was just not in good enough shape to make it to the end.

    Up at the front, Nico Rosberg took home his second win of the season and Kimi Raikkonen finished just behind him in 2nd. After a tough race and having to play catch-up, Lewis Hamilton finished in 3rd, managing to stay ahead of Ricciardo in the final laps to grab that last spot on the podium. 

RACE RESULTS:

1. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes-Mercedes / Germany / + 25 Points

2. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 18 Points

3. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 15 Points

4. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Australia / + 12 Points

5. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / + 10 Points

6. Max Verstappen / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Netherlands / + 8 Points

7. Daniil Kvyat / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Russia / + 6 Points

8. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 4 Points

9. Valtteri Bottas / Williams-Mercedes / Finland / + 2 Points

10. Stoffel Vandoorne / McLaren-Honda / Belgium / + 1 Point

11. Kevin Magnussen / Renault-Renault / Denmark

12. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

13. Pascal Wehrlein / Manor-Mercedes / Germany

14. Felipe Nasr / Sauber-Ferrari / Brazil

15. Nico Hulkenberg / Force India-Mercedes / Germany

16. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico

17. Rio Haryanto / Manor-Mercedes / Indonesia

RETIRED - Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Spain / Accident Damage

RETIRED - Esteban Gutierrez / Haas-Ferrari / Mexico / Brakes

RETIRED - Jenson Button / McLaren-Honda / Great Britain / Power Unit

DID NOT START - Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain / Hydraulics

DID NOT START - Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / Engine Failure

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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Ferrari's 2016 Car Launch

Around 130,000 people turned to the Ferrari website to watch the unveiling of their 2016 challenger. The 62^nd Ferrari built single seater has a shorter nose and a tapered rear end.

Of course, the thing that immediately caught most fans’ eyes is the new livery. The traditional Ferrari red is, as always, the dominate colour, but striking white features have been getting fans excited. It’s a throwback to the seventies.

The move away from pull-rod front suspension might be what gets the fans excited once the car gets onto the track. The team has moved to a more conventional push-rod suspension, which should lead to a sharper front end, complementing the driving styles of both Vettel and Räikkönen. Changes to the power unit, making it more compact, may also make a difference on track.

But will it be enough to pass Mercedes?

“Our competitors are strong,” said technical director James Allison. “We have to go forward and improve. We are very confident that we can achieve good results this season.”

“We would like to fight until the end of the championship,” said Team Principal Maurizio Arrivabene. “I know it’s not going to be easy because our competitors are not sleeping, but we are all committed to do our best.”

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Article Written By: Bethonie Waring

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Feature: Star Drivers Of The Bahrain GP

Frances Fry (Assistant writer) - "My driver of the weekend is none other than Ferrari's Kimi Raikonnen. Kimi performed fantastically and kept to his tradition of podium finishes in Bahrain. Finishing second gave Ferrari another boost in addition to Sebastian Vettel's win. It's good to see the red horses feeling good and back near the top!

Kimi drove with continuous skill and stayed focused throughout the entire race, his concentration didn't waver once. The Finn didn't miss any opportunities and as soon as the chance arose, he overtook who was ahead of him, which for a majority of the race was Rosberg. As we know, overtaking a Mercedes is like winning a battle (much like achieving any overtake). Ferrari have managed to do it now not only with Vettel but also will Raikonnen! If that doesn't prove their progress, I don't know what will.
Kimi deserves the points that he won in the race and it was great to see him back on the podium. Now he's gotten second I can't wait for him to get first. There's nothing like an array of winners in a Formula 1 season."

Amy Hawk (Lead writer & Editor) - "My driver of the weekend is also Kimi Raikkonen as I can't get over how thrilling it was to watch him battle with Nico Rosberg during the race. It's been awhile since we've seen Kimi on the podium and I was very happy for both him and Ferrari, who are just doing an incredible job so far this year, with multiple podiums and a win from Sebastian.

Kimi's had quite the career so far, with many wins and many podiums. There will definitely be more to come from him this year in the next GP's."

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Bahrain GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

We hope everyone enjoyed the 4th race of the 2014 F1 Season. This was the last fly-away race of the beginning of the season and it's time for the Europe portion. Teams will be heading to Barcelona next for the Spanish Grand Prix.

Things were off to a rocky start for McLaren before the race even started, with the team confirming that Jenson Button would not start due to mechanical issues that could not he fixed in time. The British driver had suffered from car issues all weekend, stopping multiple times on track during the Free Practice sessions and then not being able to set a proper time during Q1 in Qualifying.

Carlos Sainz received a 5-second-time-penalty for exceeding the speed limit during the pre-race installation lap. Meanwhile, Felipe Massa stalled on the grid and did not even complete the lap. The Williams team was quick to roll him off and fix the problem. He started from pit-lane as a result of the issue.

It was clear throughout the race that Ferrari's top-shape form was still consistent as they battled alongside both Mercedes AMG drivers. Lewis Hamilton had an advantage, starting on Pole Position.

Toro Rosso had an unlucky ending to their weekend with both drivers retiring with car problems. It was Carlos Sainz first due to handling issues and then Verstappen retired later on due to an electric problem. The rookie-duo will be looking forward to moving on to the next race in Barcelona.

Force India was able to retrieve a handful of points, courtesy of Sergio Perez, who finished the race in 8th after a tricky weekend. His team-mate, Nico Hulkenberg finished outside of the points in 13th.

Kimi Raikkonen lead the race for quite awhile until he was called in for a pit-stop. Hamilton regained the lead quickly with Rosberg and Vettel following. However, Kimi was able to sneak up and pass Rosberg in order to retain that second place finish, while Vettel fell back to 5th after a phenomenal pass by Williams driver Valtteri Bottas.

Hamilton brought home his 3rd win of the season, while it was the 1st time this season that Vettel was not on the podium, but his team-mate Raikkonen instead. Raikkonen held up the 2nd place trophy, his first since the 2013 Korean GP. Rosberg finished 3rd after struggling with brake issues. Mercedes confirmed after the race that in the final laps, neither Hamilton or Rosberg had working breaks.

Daniel Ricciardo was lucky to finish 6th and finish the race at all. Once he passed over the finish line, a loud boom and a cloud of smoke popped from the back of his Red Bull. An engine failure. He has now used 3 of his 5 engines and there's still 15 races left this season. 

RACE RESULTS:

1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 25 Points

2. Kimi Raikkonen - Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 18 Points

3. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes-Mercedes / Germany / + 15 Points

4. Valtteri Bottas / Williams-Mercedes / Finland / + 12 Points

5. Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / + 10 Points

6. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-Renault / Australia / + 8 Points

7. Romain Grosjean / Lotus-Mercedes / France / + 6 Points

8. Sergio Perez / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / + 4 Points

9. Daniil Kvyat / Red Bull-Renault / Russia / + 2 Points

10. Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / + 1 Point

11. Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain 

12. Felipe Nasr / Sauber-Ferrari / Brazil

13. Nico Hulkenberg / Force India-Mercedes / Germany

14. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden

15. Pastor Maldonado / Lotus-Mercedes / Venezuela 

16. Will Stevens / Manor-Ferrari / Great Britain

17. Roberto Merhi / Manor-Ferrari / Spain

RETIRED - Max Verstappen / Toro Rosso-Renault / Electrical

RETIRED - Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Renault / Spain / Handling

DID NOT START - Jenson Button / McLaren-Honda / Great Britain / Mechanical Issues

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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Belgian GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Ferrari

Preview Quotes - Ferrari

Kimi Raikkonen - “Spa is probably my favourite circuit because it’s an old-style track which climbs and drops through the forest and I like the fact it’s fast and flowing. Also, it usually provides good racing to watch for the spectators. I think you can make a difference as a driver at every part of the circuit, but as with every track, it’s a combination of factors. At Turn 1, the hairpin, you can actually lose or gain a lot of time and you need good speed out of it because after it comes the very long straight including Eau Rouge. That corner has been easily flat out for quite a long time now, although actually, with this year’s cars, that might not be the case. Last time I drove here in a Ferrari (in 2009) I won, and that was in a year when we had been struggling since the start. But in Spa we managed to get things going a bit more in the right direction and it would be good if the same thing could happen this year. That would hopefully mean the racing would be a bit more fun. It’s always more fun when we get the results!”

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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British GP: Driver Preview Quotes - Ferrari

Preview Quotes - Ferrari

Fernando Alonso - “I think Silverstone is a very challenging circuit, very demanding with its high-speed corners and the whole track is tough on the car and for the driver too. There’s a great sense of tradition here, so all the drivers want to do well at this event in front of the English fans. Not only are they very passionate about the sport, they also know their Formula One.”

Kimi Raikkonen - “Silverstone is a track with a great tradition and on top of that, the fans are very knowledgeable and they are happy to support you whatever team you drive for. The track has changed a bit in recent years, but I like it a lot, as all the very fast corners make it very challenging. It often rains, which means it can all become a lottery, but it’s the same for everyone. All I can say is that, as usual, we will be trying our best.”

Article Written By: Amy Hawk

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