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☆ Verstappen leads Red Bull one-two on Sprint grid
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The double world champion lapped his team's home Red Bull Ring with a fastest time of one minute 04.440 seconds on a drying track to complete a qualifying double after securing pole on Friday for Sunday's main grand prix. Red Bull have won all of them, Verstappen six. "It's nice to have a lockout in the Red Bull Ring for the team," said the Mexican, who was 0.493 slower than his team mate. "The sprint race doesn't really matter anyway," said Hamilton, who had his fastest effort deleted for exceeding track limits and was then overtaken by Verstappen while trying to set a valid lap. The race will be the second standalone sprint of the season after Baku, won by Perez in April.

Persons: Bull, Perez Norris, McLaren Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, Sunday's, Perez, Red Bull, McLaren's Lando Norris, Haas, Nico Hulkenberg, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, Charles Leclerc, Sainz, Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, Lance, Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Hamilton, Verstappen, Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, Alan Baldwin, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Austrian, Prix, Baku, Thomson Locations: Dutch, London

☆ Verstappen runs away with Austrian F1 sprint race
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Verstappen runs away with Spielberg sprintPerez second in Red Bull one twoMexican forces team mate onto grass at startSainz third for FerrariJuly 1 (Reuters) - Double world champion Max Verstappen ran away with an Austrian Grand Prix sprint race in a Red Bull one-two on Saturday to increase his Formula One lead over Mexican team mate Sergio Perez to 70 points. Verstappen took the chequered flag a hefty 21.048 seconds clear of Perez on a drying track at Spielberg's Red Bull Ring with Ferrari's Carlos Sainz finishing third in the 24 lap 100km standalone race. Hulkenberg had held second place until lap 12, when his intermediate tyres went off and Perez muscled past, followed by Sainz. The top eight score points in the sprint, with Verstappen taking the maximum eight and Perez seven. Both Red Bulls and Sainz stayed on the intermediate tyres throughout the race while others pitted for slicks as conditions improved.

Persons: Spielberg, Perez, Red Bull, Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, Verstappen, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, Max, Aston, Lance, Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg, Haas, Esteban Ocon, George Russell, Mercedes, McLaren's Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, Hulkenberg, Sainz, Alan Baldwin, Toby Davis Organizations: Mexican, Sainz, Ferrari, Red Bulls, Alpine, Mercedes, slicks, Verstappen, Thomson Locations: Austrian, Dutch, London

☆ Verstappen on pole after wild Canadian GP qualifying
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-17 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] Formula One F1 - Canadian Grand Prix - Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal, Canada - June 17, 2023 Red Bull's Max Verstappen poses with former F1 driver Jean Alesia after qualifying in pole position REUTERS/Mathieu BelangerMONTREAL, June 17 (Reuters) - Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen put his Red Bull on pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix after heavy rain shook up qualifying on Saturday. Lewis Hamilton, a seven-times winner in Canada, will line up fourth with his Mercedes team mate George Russell fifth. The pole, in a time of one minute and 25.858 seconds, was the 25th of Verstappen's career. Verstappen started from pole last year and held off Ferrari's hard-charging Carlos Sainz for his 26th career win. Fast forward one year and Verstappen with another victory on Sunday can bring his career total to 41, matching Brazilian Ayrton Senna's haul.

Persons: Gilles Villeneuve, Max Verstappen, Jean Alesia, Mathieu Belanger MONTREAL, Bull, Germany's Nico Hulkenberg, Haas, Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin, Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, George Russell, Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Ayrton Senna's, Sergio Perez, Red Bull, Perez, Christian Horner, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, Aston, Lance, Williams Alex Albon, McLaren's Oscar Piastri, Hulkenberg, Pierre Gasly, Frenchman, Sainz, Steve Keating, Alan Baldwin, Ed Osmond Organizations: Prix, REUTERS, Canadian, Aston, Ferrari, Thomson Locations: Montreal, Canada, Holland, London

☆ Verstappen wins in Spain to continue Red Bull sweep
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Red Bull's Sergio Perez, Verstappen's closest rival in a season that looks sure to crown the dominant Dutch 25-year-old for a third time, finished fourth after fighting back from 11th at the start. The victory was Verstappen's fifth of the season, third in a row, third in Spain and the double world champion's 40th in Formula One. TALKING POINTThe form of the Mercedes drivers, with a re-designed car after a disappointing start to the season, provided a main talking point. Mercedes moved up to second in the championship on 152 points to runaway Red Bull's 287 and with Aston Martin dropping to third on 134. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who started from the pitlane after a nightmare in qualifying left him on the back row, finished 11th.

Persons: Max Verstappen, Albert Gea, Mercedes, Perez, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Bull's Sergio Perez, Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Max, Christian Horner, McLaren's Lando Norris, Aston Martin, Hamilton, Russell, Ferraris, Sainz, Aston Martins, Lance, Fernando Alonso, Alonso, Alpine's Esteban Ocon, Alfa Romeo's, Zhou, Pierre Gasly, Yuki Tsunoda, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, Alan Baldwin, Angus MacSwan, Pritha Sarkar, Ken Ferris Organizations: Prix, Spanish, Prix REUTERS, Spain Dutch, Mercedes, Barcelona's, Formula One, Hamilton, Aston, Alfa, Renault, Thomson Locations: Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain, Verstappen's, London

☆ Verstappen wins in Monaco to make it six out of six for Red Bull
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-28 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"That was a real Monaco," Verstappen said after a 78-lap race that lasted an hour and 48 minutes. CLOSEST RIVALThe win was Verstappen's fourth of the season, second in Monaco and 39th of his career. Mexican team mate Sergio Perez, his closest title rival, started in last position after a qualifying crash and finished two laps down in 16th. Alpine's Pierre Gasly, Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, McLaren's Lando Norris and team mate Oscar Piastri completed the points positions. While Alonso celebrated his fifth podium of the season, and best result yet for Aston Martin, Canadian team mate Lance Stroll retired after repeated tangles with rivals.

☆ Leclerc handed three-place grid drop at home Monaco GP
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MONACO, May 27 (Reuters) - Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was handed a three-place grid drop for his home Monaco Grand Prix for impeding McLaren's Lando Norris in qualifying on Saturday, meaning he will start sixth instead of third. The penalty means also that Alpine's Esteban Ocon moves up to third and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz will start fourth. "Norris was on a fast lap and caught Leclerc in the middle of the tunnel and was clearly impeded," stewards said in a statement. "Both drivers agreed that there was little that Leclerc could have safely done in the tunnel to avoid impeding Norris, given the difficulty in vision" they added. The stewards said, however, that Ferrari had not warned Leclerc about Norris' approach until the Briton was already directly behind.

☆ Verstappen takes first Monaco pole as Perez crashes
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-27 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who had been hoping for his third home pole in a row, had to settle for third while Verstappen's team mate and closest title rival Sergio Perez crashed and will start last. "I think that is one of the best laps he’s ever driven in qualifying," said Horner of his champion's 23rd career pole. Last year's winner Perez, 14 points behind Verstappen after five races, crashed at the Sainte Devote first corner in the opening session. The Mexican crashed in the final phase of qualifying last year but started third, and ahead of Verstappen. Aston Martin's Lance Stroll was only 14th on the grid and behind the Williams of Alex Albon in 13th.

☆ McLaren call for cost cap changes to promote sustainability
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - McLaren have urged Formula One to change the cost cap rules to help teams promote sustainability without compromising performance. McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown said on Thursday that teams should not have to choose between spending on car performance and sustainability initiatives that were currently included in the cost cap. "We strongly believe in the cost cap and wouldn't want to see anything that undermines its integrity," said the American in a statement as the team published their annual sustainability report. Formula One introduced a cost cap in 2021 to rein in spending and level the playing field between the big teams and smaller outfits. Brown said Formula One needed financial, technical and sporting regulations that enabled teams to innovate and invest in sustainability.

☆ Verstappen fastest in chaotic Baku practice
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 28 (Reuters) - Red Bull's Formula One leader Max Verstappen put in the fastest time right at the chequered flag on Friday in a chaotic sole practice for the new format Azerbaijan Grand Prix sprint weekend. The double world champion, last year's winner in Baku, lapped the fast street circuit with a best time of one minute 42.315 seconds with his final effort on the soft tyres. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who has never won in Baku but will be chasing his third successive pole in Azerbaijan in later qualifying for Sunday's grand prix, was second on the timesheets. The Monegasque ended up 0.037 seconds slower, after going top in the dying seconds, with Red Bull's Sergio Perez third and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz fourth. Perez has the best record of any driver on the starting grid in Baku with a victory in 2021, second last year and two third places.

MELBOURNE, April 2 (Reuters) - World champion Max Verstappen and team mate Sergio Perez were among drivers to criticise the officiating at a chaotic Formula One Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, which finished under a safety car after the race was restarted three times. Red Bull's Verstappen told reporters the decision to restart the race from the grid a second time, for what should have been a two-lap sprint to the finish, led to multiple collisions that took four cars out of the race. "They (race officials) created the problems themselves at the end of the day." F1 has boomed in popularity after a thrilling 2021 season was decided by a controversial officiating decision on the final lap of the last race. "The whole point of red flagging, it feels like it was just to put on a show," McLaren's Lando Norris, who finished sixth, told reporters.

☆ Verstappen wins Australian Grand Prix after red flag chaos
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Ian Ransom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Summary Verstappen wins his second race of the seasonHamilton finishes runner-up ahead of AlonsoRace interrupted by red flags, crashesMELBOURNE, April 2 (Reuters) - Max Verstappen was crowned Australian Grand Prix winner on Sunday after two late red flags and a slew of crashes threw the race into chaos before the Red Bull driver was allowed a processional victory lap around Albert Park. That allowed Verstappen to claim his second win of the season ahead of Hamilton with Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso third. Red Bull have now claimed all three grand prix wins in the new season, a record for the team, resuming their dominance after their runaway success in 2022. The Dutchman now has 69 points in the championship race, 15 ahead of team mate Sergio Perez. Verstappen opened up a big gap before the late red flags saw the race turn from procession to drama and back again.

☆ Piastri blames inexperience for qualifying setback
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, April 1 (Reuters) - McLaren's Formula One rookie Oscar Piastri blamed inexperience for a disappointing qualifying on Saturday ahead of his home Australian Grand Prix debut. The 21-year-old Melbourne-born driver will start 16th in Sunday's race, with British team mate Lando Norris set to line up 13th. Piastri had already been reprimanded, his first in Formula One, after final practice for a breach of the practice start procedures. "After he slowed down considerably, the team warned him to complete the lap before attempting a practice start and therefore he did not go through the full practice start procedure. "The driver candidly admitted his mistake and recognised that this could have resulted in a dangerous situation on the track."

☆ Verstappen fastest in first practice at Australian Grand Prix
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Ian Ransom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, March 31 (Reuters) - Formula One world champion Max Verstappen topped the timesheets for Red Bull before taking a late spin at Albert Park in an eventful first free practice at the Australian Grand Prix on Friday. The Dutchman lapped the lakeside circuit in one minute, 18.790 seconds, nearly half a second quicker than second fastest Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes, as two red flags disrupted the session. A second red flag cut the session short by a few minutes as Williams rookie Logan Sargeant came to a halt on track-side grass with an apparent power failure. Verstappen finished his session with a bit of drama, taking a big spin at turn four to ruin his tyres. But he squeezed in a fast lap between the red flags to sandwich himself between Verstappen and Perez's times.

☆ Verstappen completes practice sweep in Saudi Arabia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 18 (Reuters) - Formula One world champion Max Verstappen completed a dominant hat-trick of top times in practice for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on Saturday. Mexican team mate Sergio Perez was second fastest, but a considerable 0.613 seconds slower than Verstappen's best effort of one minute 28.485 on the soft tyres. Apart from Perez, Alonso was the only driver within a second of Verstappen. McLaren's Lando Norris was seventh, and Australian rookie team mate Oscar Piastri eighth, a mere 0.008 behind. Verstappen apologised after lifting off the throttle on track and forcing Norris, coming up fast behind, to swerve around him.

☆ Perez on pole in Saudi Arabia as Verstappen hits trouble
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"You really feel the Formula One cars coming alive in this place and maximising that lap was very important," said Perez of what was also his second career pole. "Every session was going really well, every time we were on the track the car was working really well. Mercedes' George Russell and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz will share the second row with Canadian Lance Stroll fifth for Aston Martin and Esteban Ocon sixth for Renault-owned Alpine. Seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton, winner in Saudi Arabia in 2021, will start seventh for Mercedes. "It was really, really on the limit," he said.

☆ FIA seeks to clarify free speech rules after driver backlash
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

read moreMcLaren's Lando Norris suggested the FIA was treating drivers like schoolchildren. "Participants can express their views on any political, religious or personal matter before, during and after the international competition, in their own space, and outside the scope of the international competition," it said. "On an exceptional and case-by-case basis, the FIA may authorise a participant to make a statement at an international competition that would otherwise be prohibited," it added. The FIA said drivers could not make political, religious and/or personal statements during the pre-race parade, anthem and post-race procedures. Examples included unapproved statements or comments relating to "any military conflict or political dispute between nations, regions, religions, or communities".

☆ Wehrlein takes the Formula E lead with a double in Diriyah
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 28 (Reuters) - Porsche's Pascal Wehrlein won his second Formula E race in two days in Saudi Arabia to take the lead in the electric world championship on Saturday. The German beat his British rival Jake Dennis, driving for Porsche-powered Avalanche Andretti and making more overtakes than anyone else, by 1.252 seconds in a repeat of Friday's top two at the Diriyah street circuit. "Our race pace is incredible, again today we had the perfect strategy," said Wehrlein, who started fifth on the grid and became only the fifth Formula E driver to win both races in one weekend. "This weekend will be one I will never forget," added the former Formula One driver, who finished second to Dennis in this month's Mexico City opener. Wehrlein now has 68 points to 62 for Dennis, with Envision Racing's Sebastien Buemi a distant third on 31.

☆ Magnussen takes stunning first F1 pole for Haas in Brazil
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Gabriel Araujo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

NO KIDDING"You're kidding," Magnussen had said over the team radio when told he was fastest as the red flags were waved. Saturday will be the third such race of the season, with Verstappen winning the two previous ones at Imola and in Austria. Seven-times world champion Hamilton suffered as a result of his team mate's spin and will start the sprint from eighth place. "I will speak to the team and understand what we can do better in those conditions," he said. "I accepted the decision to go on the inters and then I waited for the rain that never came."

☆ Perez fastest in Sao Paulo GP practice
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Gabriel Araujo | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SAO PAULO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Red Bull's Sergio Perez lapped fastest in first free practice for the Sao Paulo Formula One Grand Prix at Interlagos on Friday with the top three drivers separated by just 0.008 of a second. Double world champion Max Verstappen, Perez's team mate, was a further 0.004 adrift. Red Bull are chasing their 10th win in a row this weekend while Verstappen is seeking a record-extending 15th win of the season. Four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel, heading for retirement after the final race in Abu Dhabi, lapped seventh fastest for Aston Martin and fellow-German Mick Schumacher was eighth for Haas. McLaren's Lando Norris, who cancelled his media engagements due to suspected food poisoning on Thursday, took part in the session and was 15th fastest.

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