 No matter how safe the teams "Bubbles" are, Sergio Perez has tested positive for COVID 19. The team issued the statement below saying firstly they wish him well and look forward to him being back in the car. Secondly they have said they will be looking to run 2 cars this race weekend. They will be issuing a statement shortly with their plans moving forward. What ever the team combo, we hope Perez a speedy recovery.
BWT Racing Statement Below: Sergio to miss British Grand Prix weekend Following the announcement that Sergio has tested positive for COVID-19 at the Silverstone Circuit ahead of the Formula 1 Pirelli British Grand Prix, the team regrets to announce that he will be unable to participate in this weekend’s race. Sergio is physically well and in good spirits, but he will continue to self-isolate under the guidelines of the relevant public health authorities, with safety the ultimate priority for the team and the sport. The entire team wishes Sergio well and looks forward to welcoming him back into the cockpit of the RP20 soon. Our intention is to race two cars on Sunday. We will communicate the next steps for our British Grand Prix weekend in due course.
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 Mental health we all know is something that needs to be addressed, and Daniel Ricciardo speaks with other team members as part of the Renault's Mental Health Champions. The video can be watched on the link below.
https://youtu.be/tH1rs9yhNTI Everyday people suffer with mental health and have no idea how to talk about it or work on it. It is so important more so now coming out of Lockdown that people open up about their worries and concerns. It is an incredible thing that Renault have come together to start the dialog with people and we hope in return others start opening up. Renault sent out the below Q&A with their driver following the chat. "Why did you speak with Renault UK’s Mental Health Champions? I feel it’s an important subject and everyone needs to speak up about mental health and feel happy to do so. It’s prevalent in all walks of life and it’s all about sharing experiences and knowledge. The discussion with Renault UK’s Mental Health Champions is a perfect example of this and that you don’t necessarily need to know each other to talk openly and confidently about the topic. When on the track, do you use any tips or tricks from everyday life that help your mindset or focus? I like to listen to music to help alleviate stress both at and away from the track. I find I can relate to the lyrics of certain songs and they sort of speak to you, which I enjoy. I also think it’s very important to be able to switch off and things like music help me to do that. In my job as a racing driver it can be easy to not switch off. The night before a race can be tricky for this, as you’ve had all that adrenaline going around for qualifying. To combat this, what I find helps is knowing within myself that if I’ve prepared the best I can, then it shouldn’t be occupying my mind during my rest time. Something else I find very useful at the track is getting away from your work and taking a break, whether it’s something simple like a five-minute time-out or spending some time in your own head space listening to music. For me this helps reset the mind and means I can have a clearer thought process. How has F1 and sports in general helped you and your experiences of your own mental health? In my job there are so many variables and that alone will create stress. For example, even after a good qualifying session it quickly shifts, and you can easily start experiencing doubts about how the race will go. In order to remove these doubts and added stress factors, you have to acknowledge these thoughts and then take action, which for me might be sharing thoughts or having a conversation with the team or engineers. Maintaining good levels of fitness is also important for me and helps me deal with stress. I think lockdown could have so easily gone the other way with me stopping exercise and training, but I didn’t and by maintaining a good fitness programme I felt mentally good during the break and still do now. It’s at a point now that I think even when I finish racing, I’ll still keep this level of fitness up as it really helps me. What did you find valuable about talking to Renault UK’s Mental Health Champions? What did you learn? We were all strangers to one another before this chat and the fact is, we were still able to discuss the topic of mental health so openly. It’s widened my eyes to think if we can do this with people who are strangers to us initially, then imagine what we can do for our nearest and dearest. I work in a fast paced, high pressured environment and so do many others, but I think no matter the job, the industry or your experience level, managing stress and mental health is important across the board. I hope by us talking about this it can lead to others doing the same and not feeling any guilt or shame about talking it out. Everyone is different, but is there anything you would suggest someone can do to promote or achieve more positive state of mental health? Nobody really knows what the other person is going through and it’s important to not judge a book by its cover. What you can do is make sure that you are always there for someone and most importantly listen. Being a good listener is key. And, being patient, as you might have the answers that they might not have found yet. Another important thing is to have perspective too. I make sure to bring perspective into my thought process regularly and can do this by remembering all the positives. For example, focusing on the positives of why I love my job, it’s my dream job after all. It’s important to be able to remind yourself of things like this and not lose sight of why you are doing it just because something stressful has happened."  Today McLaren and Gulf Oil International Ltd have announced a multi-year strategic partnership which will see the two pair off once again. The partnership reunites after a long successful history together to symbolise a united ambition for both Innovation and Leading capabilities to produce a winning formula, on and off the track.
The two started working together in 1968 until the end of the 1973 season, which saw success in both Formula 1 and the Can-Am Series where the partnership won over 40 races. They renewed their partnership in 1990 Le Mans 24 Hours with the McLaren F1 GTR. From 2021, Gulf will become the preferred lubricant supplier to McLaren Automotive which will see all cars to be filled with Gulf Oil and Fuel optimized for high performance engines. In addition to this, an exclusive number of customers will be given the opportunity to have their McLaren Supercar hand painted by McLaren Special Operations, the firms bespoke division, in Gulf liveries and colour's to echo the F1 GTR Le Mans Car. To celebrate the partnership the gulf brand will be integrated into the McLaren F1 team as from the British Grand Prix this weekend. The logo will be represented by the team throughout the 2020 season with the logo even appearing on the engine covers and wingmirrors of the MCL35. Below are the comments from the CEO's of all sides of the partnership. Mike Jones, CEO, Gulf Oil said: “This is a very exciting partnership that brings the Gulf brand back into elite motor racing. The history books are full of remarkable tales that tell of what Gulf and McLaren have achieved in the past. Now we are together once more to write the next chapter of this unique partnership. “We’re proud to be working alongside a brand that shares our future aspirations and our ambition for innovation both on the road and on the track. We look forward to working together and developing both Gulf and McLaren’s class-leading capabilities further.” Zak Brown, CEO, McLaren Racing said: “We’re delighted to welcome Gulf back to McLaren and reunite two iconic brands back together in a new and exciting partnership. Gulf is part of McLaren’s history and are well-known for their innovation and technical excellence in the industry, with which aligns with McLaren perfectly. We are looking forward to starting our partnership together this season.” Mike Flewitt, CEO, McLaren Automotive said: “It’s great to be able to welcome back Gulf after a long historical association which has seen the name adorn many McLaren road cars and race cars over the years. McLaren has a rich history of working with class-leading partners and we’re delighted to continue this trend via our renewed partnership with Gulf. Like McLaren, the Gulf name is synonymous around the world with technical excellence and innovation and the excitement of going racing and motoring. “Every supercar will have Gulf fuel and lubricants when it leaves the McLaren Production Centre and I know our customers will be thrilled to be able to work with our in-house bespoke team on the option of being one of the few to be able to personalise their McLaren supercar in the iconic Gulf livery.” ---  Image - McLaren Media
Round 4 of the Championship takes us to Silverstone for the First of its back to back Grand Prix Weekends. This race will see the drivers race over 52 laps on the circuit which is 3.660 Miles Long which over 52 laps means they will race a total distance of 190.263 miles. See below for the timings of each practice, Quali and the Race; Session start times:
McLaren have already given their views ahead of this weekends Race. Lando Norris “It’s great to be heading back to Silverstone for not one but two home races as we start the next triple-header. We’ve had the chance to reset and reflect on what we’ve learnt from our first three races of the season. I can’t wait to go racing again and want to ensure we maintain our progress going into the British Grand Prix. The track itself offers fast and exciting racing with great opportunities to overtake. We know the competition will be tough, but we’ve got to focus on ourselves, work hard and build on our promising start to the season. “My home race as an F1 driver is a very special occasion just like it was the first time around last year. Obviously, it’s going to be disappointing not to have the fans there, but for everyone's safety the best experience is to watch it from home. This weekend I’ll be running a very special helmet, following the competition I ran to design my home grand prix lid. Be sure to keep your eyes peeled for the reveal this week.” Carlos Sainz “We head to Silverstone for our next set of races and the home races for the team! After some sweet and sour moments during an intense first triple-header, we've had some extra time to review the first weekends and draw our conclusions more calmly. We’ve analysed our strengths and weaknesses, and I can't wait to drive this car on a third circuit with different challenges. Despite leaving some points on the table, overall it’s been a positive start to the season, finishing all three races in the top 10 and being consistent on track. Everyone in the team is pushing flat-out and we need to keep up the good work. I’m feeling recharged, prepared and ready to go again for another triple-header. “Silverstone is one of my favourite tracks due to the quick pace of the circuit and the numerous chances to overtake. I had a great race at the British Grand Prix last season, finishing P6 with plenty of overtakes on track and intensively defending my position during the last few laps! Silverstone always offers exciting moments and we're going to miss the immense support of the McLaren fans very much there. Even if they aren't at the track, they can be sure we're going to give our best to secure a good result and make them proud. Let’s g o! James Key - Technical Director “It’s been an exciting opening to the season that’s been closely fought between the teams around us. As it’s a compressed season, the pressure is on to make the most of every race weekend. “We have come away from the first triple-header recognising similar strengths and weaknesses in the car from those we saw back at testing in Barcelona. This is good because it allows us to keep our priorities for development consistent with what we had previously planned. “The British Grand Prix will see a continued evolution of the MCL35 with some developments that will be tested over the coming race weekend. We’ve got a unique challenge in balancing upgrades for this year while ensuring our 2021 car is moving ahead in parallel, as the only team to be changing engine partners between 2020 and 2021, our design work and planning for next year is more critical than for others. “Silverstone will be the first high-speed circuit this season and offers a mix of different corner types that give will another useful data point for our car. It is a fantastic circuit and the flowing nature of the high-speed corners, combined with long, technical low-speed turns and the need for good efficiency will be a new challenge compared to Austria and Hungary. “Looking ahead to the second grand prix at Silverstone and to Spain, we’ll have further test items to add to the car to provide new insight into potential development opportunities for the future. “It’s quite an intensive period at the moment and there has been some great work, by the design and production teams in particular, to push all these items through in a relatively short space of time after coming back from the shutdown and furlough periods. Thanks as always to our colleagues at Renault and our trackside team for enabling us to collect data and maximise our on-track performance.” Lando is currently 4th in the Championship while Carlos is down in 9th. While we are not ones to favour any particular driver we strongly hope that McLaren have an exceptional weekend so Lando can keep his place or even close that gap up to Max Verstappen who is only 7 points ahead of him. Just writing that seems soo strange but we have everything crossed for him to ensure his success in the championship.  Today Autosport have reported that the current leader of the championship, Valteri Bottas, is to stay at Mercedes for 2021.
Coming of the back to back races in Austria, Autosport have said that sources have told them Mercedes and Bottas have agreed terms for him to stay with the team in 2021, however the Contract is yet to be signed. The CEO of Mercedes, Ola Kallenius, has weighed in on this to German TV after visiting the the Austrian Grand Prix and saying "We'll stay with our two boys". Now this has happened it will open up time for the team and Hamilton to "Hammer" out the details of his contract as the terms are still yet to be agreed. This will also no doubt give Bottas the fire needed in his belly to continue racing like he has been, knowing that he still has his seat with the team. When he was asked about the potential to continue with the team before the GP he said, "I really hope so. "Obviously it's a very special season starting so late. So, the timing is not really relevant to other seats and we've only done one race. On the other hand there's no rush, but also yes, time will fly by quickly and as soon as we know it, it's going to be the end of the season. So yeah, hopefully we can do something with that and get that kind of out of my mind. "As we've seen, if things drag on, it's never a benefit. So, we can learn from that. We'll be taking actions based on what I learned." Toto was also asked before the race and he was still holding his cards close to his chest: "You know that always when I tell you about timings, I keep hearing every single week 'why isn't it done? Why isn't it signed?'" he said. "And that's why this year around, I wouldn't want to live comment about the status of our negotiations or discussions. They're happening. I don't know when we're going to announce." So with another seat confirmed this has closed yet another door for 4 time World Champion Sebastien Vettel. What does the future hold for him now?  IT has been announced this morning that the 9th round of the Formula 1 calendar will take place at the Ferrari owned track, the Mugello Circuit on September 13th. IT just so happens to be Ferrari's 1000 Grand Prix. The Tifosi will be out in huge numbers to celebrate this one.
 First round in Austria didn't go as planned for the Milton Keynes based team. First of all Verstappen ended with a DNF due to an electrical failure in Lap 11. Then "The Incident" with Hamilton and Albon. This has seen and had a lot of views on the matter so at this point we should move on and look forward to the next race.
Both Redbull drivers have had their say about the upcoming weekend. They know they had some weaknesses during qualifying but had good pace during the race. Verstappen said they had a team BBQ (in his bubble) where they discussed the upcoming race. He has also mentioned that there may be rain expected this week which will be interesting as no one has tested their 2020 car in the wet. This is looking to be a very exciting weekend. Albon: "I feel ok. In some ways I tried to switch off my thoughts after Sunday’s race and take the positives from the weekend. The car is in a good window, we’ve still got a bit of work to do but we’re there and we can fight – that’s the main thing. The biggest shame is we didn’t capitalise on the race and we didn’t get the points we deserved, but I’m going into the weekend confident. I feel like there are areas to improve on in myself and as a Team, but I’m feeling good and ticking down the days to Friday. There will be a slightly different atmosphere this weekend because we know the track and the car, nothing has really changed from the last race, so it will just be about fine tuning things and working on the areas in the car Max and I have been talking about. I think there’s less anticipation heading into this weekend now we’re in a rhythm. We know where the car is at, driving and set-up wise, we know what’s needed, so there are less unknowns and now it’s just time to do the business. Get into the weekend, fine tune things and close the gap to Mercedes." Verstappen: "I feel good but of course the result was not what we wanted" He reflected about last weekend "which was to score a good amount of points and fight for the win. I was looking good for a podium which I thought was easily possible because it was basically between Mercedes and myself on raw pace. But then you also look at how the whole race panned out, we could have scored a good amount of points against Lewis but it is what it is, we can’t change it and now I’m looking forward to hopefully having a more positive weekend. We were a bit down on pace compared to Mercedes in qualifying so we definitely need to close that gap to fight them in that area rather than on strategy. Our pace is usually a bit better in the race than in quali but there is still quite a bit of work to do which the engineers are flat out on. We have ideas and the direction to work on for this weekend so that’s positive. "I’m looking forward to racing on the same track again this weekend and it’s a good opportunity to get a better understanding of the car. Whatever we found wasn’t perfect last weekend we can improve this week. On the same track I always think it’s quite nice to do a direct comparison, depending on the weather, and hopefully we can do better this time. It looks like it could rain this week and I’m not sure anybody knows how competitive they are in the wet with these new cars so that could be interesting. I always enjoy driving in the wet, I don’t mind it, but to be quick you need both the car and driver to be 100%." The Syrian Grand Prix starts on Friday with Free Practice 1 at 10am. Lights out on Sunday is the same time as last weekend at 14:10. We had a lot of excitement about last weekend being the first race back, but i think that this will have even more of a buzz around it because of the unforseen circumstances of the last race. Plus Redbull will be back with a vengeance.  For the first ever time in formula one history, we find our selves back at the same track that we were a week before. However i don't think we will see the same race twice which was a concern by promotors.
We saw a lot happen last weekend, and in most part it was reliability issues. These engines don't like sitting around, they are more comfortable on track doing what they are supposed to do. I didnt expect that amount of unreliability though. For Ferrari, they struggled. No easy way of saying it, however for the young Charles Leclerc to fight his way through the pack and achieve a podium is worthy of everyone's praise. In this sport there is never the chance of a "Do over" but Ferrari have the chance to learn from this previous weekend and come out stronger. The updates they were looking to bring in for the Hungarian GP, they are "Hungry" to bring them into this next weekend (sorry not so sorry for the pun). Team Principle and Drivers had these comments about the up and coming "Styrian Grand Prix". Mattia Binotto Team Principal There’s hardly been time to pause for breath after a really busy race weekend and now we’re back on track, the same track in fact as last Sunday. It’s yet another unusual factor in this 2020 season, which began last week and is due to end not long before the end of the year. First of all, I want to congratulate the FIA, Formula 1 and the Spielberg circuit race promoter on their efforts in making the event happen. Formula 1 was the first global sport to get going again after the halt caused by the pandemic, so everyone who made a contribution should be given credit for this, as it was no easy task. The race team has stayed in Spielberg in between the first two races and back in Maranello, the factory is in full swing to try and come up with answers to the questions raised in the first Grand Prix. We knew we would have a tough start to the season and it was even more so than we had expected. That’s why we’re working flat out to try and already bring some of the updates due for Hungary to this next race. It’s a race against time but we’re doing our utmost. The fact we are racing again at the same track is a further reason to bring the updates here, so that we can confirm if they work and that our development direction is the right one. Our aim in the Styrian Grand Prix is to get all the potential out of our package and make the most of any opportunity to bring home as many points as possible. Sebastian Vettel #5 “In such a strange season, starting in the middle of summer, we now face another unusual factor, having two races at the same track in the same year and only one week apart. For me, that’s going to mean a chance to do better than last Sunday. We will have a lot more car data to work with and I think what we learned at the first race will be useful. As I have always maintained, this is one of my favorite tracks of the year because, even though it’s very short, it has a lot of nice corners and the Austrian mountain setting is fantastic.” quote Charles Leclerc #16 “It's certainly strange having two races in a row at the same track. It will be an unusual experience. Usually you arrive at the track with the previous year’s data and spend Friday understanding how your car is behaving. This time however, unless it’s wet, we will already have a lot of useful information as to how our car will behave. Last Sunday’s race here at Spielberg was very special and great fun. We had a bit of luck which helped us get on the podium and it won’t be easy to do the same this time. But we will certainly try our hardest to make it happen.”  Car number 77 had a driver at the wheel this weekend in Austria that was like a dog with a bone.... He wasn't letting go. He suffered several safety car restarts, managed to get the drop on everyone even though they all had DRS and were traveling in a pack that could have been detrimental to the race leader. Bottas showed his pace whilst both cars were suffering from gearbox issues due to the vibration of running over the kerbs. At one point it even became "Critical".
I would admit that during the lockdown period I thought that his seat was up for grabs, especially by the likes of George Russel. Now I'm not so sure. I think he has definitely worked incredibly hard to get the result he just got. Honestly it couldn't happen to a nicer guy. He is resilient and shown that during the lockdown he has trained like a champion and now is leading the Championship. Ok its only the first race in but I expect a lot more podiums are coming from his side of the garage now. Valtteri Bottas Winning an F1 race is never easy, but today was particularly challenging. There were so many things going on in the race and it would have been quite easy to make a small mistake and lose it all. When the Safety Car came out the last time, I was thinking 'Come on! Again!?' I guess it was my chance to really master the restarts here. When you're in the lead, you want things to be constant and trouble-free, but today felt more like dodging bullets, though things were never out of control. I could build a good margin in the first stint and look after the car and the tyres to make sure that we could stick to our planned strategy. In the second stint, there was more pressure, particularly after all the Safety Cars. We faced some reliability concerns during the race, which put quite a bit of pressure on us, but luckily we made it to the end with both cars. I think we've shown that we have a good package. We need to get on top of the reliability issues, but I have no doubts that our team can solve those. I'm looking forward to another race here next weekend. Lewis Hamilton The team did a really great job today and so did Valtteri. I drove my heart out in the race, I did everything I could - but it was just one of those weekends. There are lots of areas where I can improve. I didn't do a great job in Qualifying yesterday and there's only me to blame; then this morning was very unusual to get called up right before the race, but I just tried to keep my head down and drive hard. The scenario with Alex felt more like a racing incident to me. The time penalty meant that I lost the podium, but it is what it is. The car felt great, although reliability was a real issue for us today. But at least we finished, so we'll take those points. Obviously it's a loss from a potential 1-2, but I'll try to recover those in the coming races. Ultimately, this was not a good weekend for me, but it could be worse - I'll take what I've got, try to learn from it and be better next time. Toto Wolff What a great race for the fans who waited so long to see F1 back on TV. Congratulations to Valtteri and the entire for the win. It wasn't a good day for Lewis who was very unfortunate with the two penalties. The grid penalty is something you must take on the chin, but the five-second time penalty felt too harsh from my perspective. I looked at the video a couple of times: Lewis had full steering lock in the corner, Albon had track left to make the corner, so in my opinion this wasn't justified. But I recognise that the stewards have a very complex job of coming up with the right decisions and sometimes those decisions go for you, sometimes against. As a team, we faced some real challenges with our gearbox in the race. The situation was pretty serious; we saw issues on Valtteri's car early on and a little later on Lewis' car as well. It was something that could end your race instantly. We know that it was linked to the vibration of the car which is why we asked both drivers to keep off the kerbs. At a certain stage it looked like neither of our cars would finish the race, so we were trying to cruise home and really look after our cars. Both drivers showed strong pace, they were pretty evenly matched this weekend and it was really more the reliability that caused us headaches. Spielberg stresses some parts on the car more than any other track in the season, so we need to work hard to improve the situation for the next weekend, but we have some ideas on how to do that.  Wow, what an incredible race that was. First race of the season saw a total of 7 drivers who didn't think i am only just starting to come down off of all this excitment now, cant even begin to imagine how Lando is feeling.
Now Lando Norris raced the wheels off of his McLaren right to the last lap where all he had to do was lap faster than Hamilton. Hamilton got a 5 second penalty for a collision that spun Alex Albon, giving the young Brit/ Belgian his shot at his first podium. And he succeded. I dont think that there will be anyone out there who isn't extreamly happy for this young man. Next year with the Mercedes Power Unit and Ricciardo joining the team, it wont be long before they are racing consistently for podiums once again. The Drivers and Andreas Seidl's thoughts are below post race. Norris: “I’m over the moon, my best Formula One result and my first ever podium. “We’re all very happy, it’s a great achievement for race one. We did a bit more on merit this weekend: our pace has been very good here. It’s not been easy: we haven’t had the third-fastest car on the grid – but we put it all together pretty much every time. We limited the mistakes we made and took advantage of every opportunity that came our way. Because of that, we got a podium, so a big thanks goes to the team at home and at the track for all their hard work. "I would love to say we can achieve this next weekend again. We did have a little bit of luck but we have a good car and we’ve kicked the season off with a great result. We know we’ve got a lot of work to do but if we can maintain this momentum, we can hopefully have a great season.” Sainz: “First of all, congratulations to Lando for his first podium in F1 and to the whole team for a well-deserved strong first weekend in 2020! From my side, overall a good race and a good comeback on the last stint. In general it was an interesting race with several Safety Cars and many good battles on track. I'm looking forward to racing again here in seven days. There are good opportunities and it can be important for the rest of the championship. Time to keep focused, prepare well for next weekend and go again!” Andreas Seidl: “I’m really proud to be part of this team. What an incredible performance from Lando right from lights out and through to the final lap. To finish the first race of the new season with P3 and P5 is simply a great reward for all the hard work everyone has put in. Congratulations and a big thank you to the entire team, both here in Austria and back home at the factory as well as to our colleagues from Renault. “The team at the track worked very hard to get us to this point across a difficult week when we had many new protocols to work with. Thank you to the FIA, F1 and the promoter here in Austria for putting in place covid-19 protocols that allowed us to start the season in a safe manner and at the same time put on a great show for the fans. We had good reliability, the strategists made all the right calls with the Safety Cars, and hats off to Carlos and Lando for what they’ve done after that long break. “Today was very encouraging and a race we can still learn a lot from, giving us confirmation that we are heading in the right direction, with both the development of the car and the way we operate. We had some doubts after Friday’s running, and weren’t sure we would have the pace to fight our competitors. The race was a confirmation that we have a solid base in terms of performance over a grand prix distance as well as for one lap in qualifying. Heads down now. Let's make sure we don't get carried away with the good result today and come back strong again next week. |
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