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Category: Formula 1
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#WeRaceAsOne will become official Environment, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) platform for F1
Paris, 10 Feb 2021: Formula 1 confirmed on Wednesday, that the initiative “We Race As One” popularised with hashtag #WeRaceAsOne last year, will become the official Environment, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) platform for Formula 1 long into the future and will continue to be used across the sport
Formula 1 confirmed on Wednesday, that the initiative “We Race As One” popularised with hashtag #WeRaceAsOne last year, will become the official Environment, Social and Corporate (ESG) platform for Formula 1 long into the future and will continue to be used across the sport. The Initiative launched last year, supporting the #PurposeDriven Movement by the FIA will now continue.
The initiative was created in June last year ahead of our return to racing following the break in the Championship due to COVID-19. On our return to racing we wanted to show our determination to tackle the major issues that we as a sport, but also society, are facing. Those issues are important to the longer-term future of our sport, but equally have a major impact on the communities we race in and countries around the world.
On our return to racing in 2020 we wanted to recognise the two major issues dominating society’s consciousness during that time, COVID-19, and inequality.
Throughout the season we paid tribute to people around the world for the incredible strength and fortitude shown against the global pandemic. Rainbow was chosen by Formula 1 to sit alongside #WeRaceAsOne as it became a symbol used internationally to bring communities together. Equally we used our restart to show that we as a sporting community stand united against racism and are doing more to address inequality and diversity in Formula 1.
This was highlighted at every race with the 20 drivers uniting in their support of ending racism before the start of the race. We plan to include a moment before the start of each race this season to show our united support for important issues and will be discussing this with the drivers and the teams ahead of the start of the season.
This season the rainbow will no longer feature alongside the #WeRaceAsOne platform. While the COVID- 19 pandemic is still an ongoing battle, we are focussing the platform on the three core pillars of our ESG strategy. Those pillars are sustainability, diversity & inclusion, and community. These areas are a priority for the sport where progress has already been made but with more commitments to be delivered in coming months and years.
In 2019, Formula 1 set out its ambitious sustainability, diversity, and inclusion strategy to improve the long-term future of our sport. This included our commitment to be net zero carbon as a sport by 2030 and create a more inclusive and diverse culture across Formula 1, attracting more diverse talent across technical, commercial, corporate, and on-air roles. Additionally, the plan, in partnership with the FIA, looks at promoting a diverse driver talent pipeline by identifying and systematically eliminating barriers to entry from grass roots karting to Formula 1.
As set out in our #WeRaceAsOne announcement last year, recent events have reinforced the importance of those issues and the need for us to accelerate and take further action to make our sport better, improve opportunity and have a positive impact on the world we live in. Since 2019, we have put in place the necessary actions, reviews, and structures to ensure we deliver on our 2030 and other commitments. While work has been constant and important plans delivered*, we know we need to continue to deliver on this plan and show our fans, partners, and society that Formula 1 is committed to playing its part.
This year, Formula 1, the FIA, and the Teams will most notably focus on:
- Creating a clear path towards sustainably fuelled hybrid engines, something that will be of significant importance to not only the sport but the automotive sector.
- Reducing the amount of single-use plastic bottles and cutlery and food waste in the pit and paddock.
- Rolling out internships and apprenticeships within Formula 1 for under-represented groups to provide access to a promising career in the sport.
- Funding scholarships for talented engineering students from diverse and underprivileged backgrounds with work experience opportunities at F1 and the Teams during their studies.
- Growing F1 in Schools – already the world’s leading school-age STEM education challenge.
- Working with our promoters around the world to establish and deliver programmes that leave a positive and lasting community impact.
- Helping to grow awareness and support for the W Series, the FIA Women in Motorsport Inititiatives and all the talented young female drivers coming through the ranks.
- Moving towards new freight methods through adapting containers for use on modern aircraft and other modes of transport.
- Continuing to develop our remote operations capabilities where action to date has already eliminated c.70 tonnes of freight being taken to each race.
We have united as a sport in our firm commitment to make lasting change and Formula 1 together with the FIA, the teams and our partners will continue to push ahead with our plans.
Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO, Formula 1, said:
“Our WeRaceAsOne platform was very effective at raising the awareness of socially important issues and our steadfast commitment to make a positive change. We are very proud of it and the teams have embraced it fully. While our commitment through words to tackling issues like sustainability and diversity in our sport are important, it is our actions that we will be judged on. We have already made good progress on our sustainability plans and you will see strong actions being executed this year across all three of our WRAO pillars. We know we must continue to move forward on these issues and the whole sport is united in doing this in the months and years ahead.”
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Ferrari Driver Academy 2021 starts with 8 drivers
Maranello, 8 Feb 2021: This morning marked the twelfth year of courses for the Ferrari Driver Academy, the Prancing Horse programme established in 2009 with the aim of preparing talented youngsters to one day drive for Ferrari in Formula 1.
Seven young men and Maya. This year, there are eight young drivers that will be trained and supported by the Ferrari Driver Academy, six of whom were in Maranello this morning. Mick Schumacher was absent with the good reason that he is working with the Haas F1 Team with whom he will make his Formula 1 debut this season. Dino Beganovic will join his fellow students tomorrow as he is returning from Abu Dhabi, where he took part in the second and third rounds of the Formula 3 Asian Series. As at the start of any academic year, the more experienced drivers who, partly because of the pandemic, had not seen one another for a while, spent some time before the bell sounded to recount what they had been up to over the winter. For two of them, this was a more nerve wracking and serious moment: Australian James Wharton is just 14 and was selected at the FDA Scouting World Finals, as the best of the youngsters from around the world and 16 year-old Dutch girl Maya Weug, who very recently won the FIA “Girls on Track – Rising Stars” to become the first girl to join the FDA. They make up the 2021 intake.
Busy week. Welcoming the students was Head of FDA, Marco Matassa, Scuderia Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto and Sporting Director Laurent Mekies. This week the drivers will take part in the usual start of the year Camp, consisting of five demanding days of lessons on various topics, from technical matters to regulations, marketing and communications, as well as some physical and mental aptitude tests, as well as sports and two days of karting on the Lonato track, run by Tony Kart, a long time partner of Maranello’s young driver programme. Over the course of the year, the FDA will follow each driver personally with support on and off the track, organising specific activities, depending on their level of experience and the type of race category in which they will be competing.
Programmes. Mick Schumacher will continue his development in Formula 1, at the wheel of the Haas F1 Team car. The arrival of the German means there are now four FDA members past or present on the F1 grid: apart from Charles Leclerc, one must not forget Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll. Also on the scene and present at several races will be Callum Ilott in his role as the Scuderia test driver. The youngster from Cambridge will still enjoy the thrill of racing as he will also be taking part in a GT programme, at the wheel of a Ferrari for some of the most famous sports car races.
Formula 2. Robert Shwartzman and Marcus Armstrong will race in the junior category. The Russian stays with the Prema team and his clear goal is to win the title, given his 2020 performance in the category when he took four wins, the most of any driver, as well as proving to be very consistent. Marcus, who drove a Ferrari Formula 1 car for the first time two weeks ago in a test at Fiorano, has recently switched to the DAMS team and is more determined than ever to be a front runner.
Formula 3. Last year, Arthur Leclerc finished second in the Formula Regional championship, even though he took more poles and wins than anyone else. His performance has earned him a step up to Formula 3 for this year. Arthur can once again count on the support of the Prema team and right from the start he should be a protagonist.
Formula Regional. Last year, Ferrari Driver Academy students did very well in the European Formula Regional championship and this year, the Maranello marque can again count on a very quick driver in the shape of Dino Beganovic. The Swede, born in 2004, made his single-seater debut last year and made a very positive impression in the Italian F4 Championship certified by FIA, taking his first win at Imola and demonstrating consistency on his way to third in the championship. Over the past two weeks, as part of his training, Dino competed in the Formula 3 Asian Series, which uses the same car that he will race in Europe in Formula Regional. He has already demonstrated a clear affinity for the car, finishing on the podium four times from nine races.
Maya and James. Lastly, two new arrivals, Maya Weug and James Wharton. The Dutch girl had her first taste of a Formula 4 car during the FIA “Girls on Track – Rising Stars” programme and will continue in this category. As for James Wharton, his age means he has to continue racing in karts in 2021 and so the FDA has prepared a programme to get him ready for single-seaters, including a series of tests in the second part of the season. Have a good year guys!Mattia Binotto Team Principal & Managing Director Scuderia Ferrari Today marks the official start of the new season for the Ferrari Driver Academy. It’s an important moment, not just for the eight participants in the 2021 academic year but also for the whole Scuderia. We have always said that the FDA is not just a school that has to help the best youngsters make it to Formula 1, but that above all it must train those that one day will be the standard bearers for Scuderia Ferrari in the top level category of motor racing.
We achieved that with Charles Leclerc and we are pleased that this year, another driver who grew up with us, Mick Schumacher, will also make his F1 debut. Apart from the well known names of Callum, Robert, Marcus, Arthur and Dino, listed in order of their ages, I am very pleased to welcome the two new students, Maya Weug and James Wharton, who join the Academy this year. Their arrival is important because it also confirms the effort we are putting in when it comes to making motorsport more inclusive.
I wish all of them the very best of luck and hope that they will progress and be successful during this season which they should tackle with humility, determination and with a desire to learn, without ever forgetting that they are following their dream.Marco Matassa Head of Ferrari Driver Academy The start of a new year for us at the Ferrari Driver Academy is always a very special moment. We are pleased to see our drivers again and say welcome to our new intake knowing that we can expect an intense season. In 2020, our drivers got excellent results and that can only spur us on to try and do even better in 2021, because looking for continuous improvement is the basis of Ferrari’s and therefore also the FDA’s philosophy.
I want to extend a special welcome to our newcomers, James Wharton and Maya Weug, whose arrival signals new frontiers for the Academy. James is actually the winner of the first FDA Scouting World Finals. This event featured six finalists battling it out for a place on our programme, chosen from a large group of very young drivers from around the world, thanks to our collaboration with ACI, Tony Kart, Motorsport Australia and Escuderia Telmex.
Maya is the first girl to join the FDA through our partnership with the FIA Women in Motorsport Commission’s global programme to find the best young female drivers, a project we really believe in. We can’t wait to start working with all these youngsters to prepare the groundwork for another year of good results. -
Hamilton to continue with Mercedes for 9th year
- Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton will race together for a ninth season in 2021
- New agreement includes joint commitment for greater diversity and inclusion
- With six drivers’ championships and 74 race wins, Lewis is the most successful driver in the history of the Silver Arrows
Brackley, 8 Feb 2021: The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team announced that the reigning Formula One World Constructors’ Champion, Mercedes, and the reigning F1 World Drivers’ Champion, Lewis Hamilton, will continue together in 2021. The Mercedes works team and Lewis agreed a new contract which will see one of the sport’s most-successful collaborations will continue for a ninth consecutive season.
A press release on Monday said: “A significant part of the new agreement builds upon the joint commitment to greater diversity and inclusion in motorsport that was made last year by Lewis and Mercedes. This will take the form of a joint charitable foundation, which will have the mission of supporting greater diversity and inclusion in all its forms in motorsport.
“Lewis made his F1 debut with Mercedes F1 engine customer team McLaren in 2007 and has been powered in all his 266 Grands Prix by Mercedes-Benz engines. He joined the Mercedes works team in 2013 and has since won 74 F1 races as well as six Drivers’ Championships with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team. In 2020, he broke Michael Schumacher’s win record and is now all-time race win record holder in Formula One.
Lewis Hamilton
“I am excited to be heading into my ninth season with my Mercedes teammates. Our team has achieved incredible things together and we look forward to building on our success even further, while continuously looking to improve, both on and off the track.
“I’m equally determined to continue the journey we started to make motorsport more diverse for future generations and I am grateful that Mercedes has been extremely supportive of my call to address this issue. I’m proud to say we are taking that effort further this year by launching a foundation dedicated to diversity and inclusion in the sport. I am inspired by all that we can build together and can’t wait to get back on the track in March.”
Toto Wolff, CEO & Team Principal
“We have always been aligned with Lewis that we would continue, but the very unusual year we had in 2020 meant it took some time to finish the process. Together, we have decided to extend the sporting relationship for another season and to begin a longer-term project to take the next step in our shared commitment to greater diversity within our sport. Lewis’s competitive record stands alongside the best the sports world has ever seen, and he is a valued ambassador for our brand and our partners. The story of Mercedes and Lewis has written itself into the history books of our sport over the past eight seasons, and we are hungry to compete and to add more chapters to it.”
Markus Schäfer, Non-Executive Chairman
“We’re very happy to keep the most successful F1 driver of the current era in the most successful F1 team of the current era. Lewis is not only an incredibly talented driver; he also works very hard for his achievements and is extremely hungry. He shares his passion for performance with the entire team which is why this collaboration has become so successful. But Lewis is also a warm-hearted personality who cares deeply about the world around him and wants to make an impact. As a company, Mercedes-Benz shares this sense of responsibility and is proud to commit to a new, joint foundation to improve diversity in motorsport. Opening the sport to under-represented groups will be important for its development in the future and we’re determined to make a positive impact.” -
McLaren F1 team partnership with Coca-Cola to continue
Woking (England), 5 Feb 2021: McLaren Racing on Friday announced a partnership extension with The Coca-Cola Company, which will see the iconic beverage brand continue as the Official Soft Drinks Partner of the McLaren Formula 1 team.
Since McLaren and Coca-Cola first partnered in 2018, a range of commercial activations have engaged consumers globally through the McLaren Formula 1 team. Following the success of the ‘Coke Driven to Deliver’ campaign, in collaboration with Coke customer Amazon in 2020, the brands will continue to work together on new campaigns with the new McLaren F1 driver line-up of Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo.
As part of the partnership, Coca-Cola will maintain branding on the cockpit side of the McLaren MCL35M Formula 1 race cars and on the beverage bottles of Lando and Daniel.
Mark Waller, Chief Commercial Officer, McLaren Racing, said:“Coca-Cola is an iconic brand and one of the biggest consumer brands in the world. We introduced Coca-Cola to Formula 1 three seasons ago since then, our collaboration has created innovative campaigns and activations with fans around the world at their centre. We are delighted to extend our partnership in 2021 and continue to support Coca-Cola and its commercial partners in reaching consumers through McLaren and Formula 1.”
Matthew Tarallo, Global VP, Amazon, The Coca-Cola Company, said:
“We are excited to be extending our partnership with McLaren into the 2021 season. Since 2018, we’ve executed incredibly impactful global activations, leveraging Amazon’s total ecosystem, and providing direct engagement and exclusive offerings to our consumers around the world. I’m looking forward to continuing this powerful partnership to drive joint value and growth into 2021.”
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About McLaren Racing:
McLaren Racing was founded by New Zealand racing driver Bruce McLaren in 1963. The team entered its first Formula 1 race in 1966, since then McLaren has won 20 Formula 1 world championships, more than 180 Formula 1 grands prix, the Le Mans 24 Hours at its first attempt and the Indianapolis 500 three times.
McLaren Racing currently competes in Formula 1 globally and INDYCAR in the US. The team will contest the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship with Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo. In 2021 McLaren Racing will race in the INDYCAR Series with drivers Pato O’Ward and Felix Rosenqvist, while Juan Pablo Montoya will compete for the team at the 105th running of the Indy 500 in a third Arrow McLaren SP Chevrolet.
About The Coca-Cola Company:The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) is a total beverage company with products sold in more than 200 countries and territories. Our company’s purpose is to refresh the world and make a difference. Our portfolio of brands includes Coca-Cola, Sprite, Fanta and other sparkling soft drinks. Our hydration, sports, coffee and tea brands include Dasani, smartwater, vitaminwater, Topo Chico, Powerade, Costa, Georgia, Gold Peak, Honest and Ayataka. Our nutrition, juice, dairy and plant-based beverage brands include Minute Maid, Simply, innocent, Del Valle, fairlife and AdeS.
We’re constantly transforming our portfolio, from reducing sugar in our drinks to bringing innovative new products to market. We seek to positively impact people’s lives, communities and the planet through water replenishment, packaging recycling, sustainable sourcing practices and carbon emissions reductions across our value chain. Together with our bottling partners, we employ more than 700,000 people, helping bring economic opportunity to local communities worldwide.
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Mick Schumacher reunited with SF71H at Fiorano
Maranello, 28 Jan 2021: Mick Schumacher was back behind the wheel of the SF71H today, 120 days on from his first drive in that car. That took place at a test on 30 September 2020, when he drove the 2018 car on the same day as fellow Ferrari Driver Academy members Callum Ilott and Robert Shwartzman as part of the #RoadToF1 programme. This year the German will race in Formula 1 with the Haas F1 Team for which he drove a month and a half ago the Ferrari-powered VF20 at the Young Driver Test in Abu Dhabi, getting to know the team prior to his race debut in Bahrain at the end of March.
Useful mileage. Schumacher soon got to grips with the SF71H today, with a trouble-free run as he worked through the first part of the programme devised by the Scuderia engineers. Just like the other drivers who have been at the wheel over the past few days, he also did practice starts and racked up a good number of laps – more than 50 – to re-familiarise himself with a Formula 1 car.
Fifth time in a Ferrari. For the son of the seven-time World Champion Michael, it was his fifth outing at the wheel of a car made by the Maranello company. His overall debut came in 2019, when he lapped in the SF90 on the first of two days of a test session in Bahrain. Later that same year Mick drove an F2004 on a show run on the Saturday of the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim. That was an emotional journey both for him and the crowd, who paid tribute to him and his father. The 1999-born driver then had the chance to drive the same car again for a few laps at Mugello on Sunday 13 September 2020, just a few hours ahead of the start of the Scuderia Ferrari’s Grand Prix number 1000. Finally, on the 30th of the same month, he had his first chance to drive the SF71H with which he was reunited today.
Final day. Schumacher will also open proceedings tomorrow on the fifth and final day of this week of testing for Ferrari at the Fiorano track, before handing over the wheel to his fellow Academy member – not to mention his main rival for last year’s Formula 2 championship – Callum Ilott. The Englishman, who is now the Scuderia’s test driver, will run for the whole of the afternoon.Mich Schumacher at the FDA Test in Fiorano Photo by GIOVEDì Mick Schumacher said: “Finally sitting in a car again is a feeling I was missing a lot. I think today has definitely been a positive day at the track. We managed to get through the entire programme that we had scheduled without any problem and it was clearly very useful to be able to get through so much mileage at the wheel of a Formula 1 car in view of the coming season that will be starting in about a month and a half with the pre-season testing.
The SF71H is a car from 2018 but its behaviour on the track and the feelings that it gives to the driver are very similar, both in terms of how it behaves on the track and physical stress to a current car. That makes it an excellent base when it comes to preparation for the new season. Driving at Fiorano is always great anyway because the track is technical and demanding.
It’s been a pleasure to meet up once again with the engineers and mechanics I worked with last September and I can’t wait to get back into the car tomorrow.” -
China dropped; Australian GP in Nov, Bahrain to start F1 season on Mar 26: FIA F1 Calendar
Paris, 12 Jan 2021: Formula 1 can on Tuesdy confirmed that the 2021 FIA Formula One World Championship will open its season in Bahrain between from March 26 to 28. The ongoing situation regarding COVID-19 has meant it is not feasible to begin the season in Melbourne, but the good news is that the Australian Grand Prix will now take place from the November 18 t o 21, following an agreement between Formula 1 and the Australian authorities that shows the importance of the race in Australia to Formula 1 and our partners in Melbourne.
Due to the ongoing travel restrictions in place, the 2021 Chinese Grand Prix will not take place on its planned date. Discussions with the promoter and authorities in China are ongoing with the potential to reschedule the race later in the season if possible. With the scheduled date not being feasible for China, Imola will return to the Formula 1 calendar on the revised date of April 18. The TBC (to be confirmed) race in the calendar will be announced in due course and will take place on the new date of May 2. All revisions are subject to World Motor Sport Council approval.
As a result of these changes the number of races for 2021 will remain at 23 which is the largest ever Formula 1 calendar and we look forward to delivering this season through close collaboration with all our promoters. The season will start a week later than planned and end a week later with our season finale in Abu Dhabi. As stated previously, we expect fans to return to the grandstands and our exclusive Paddock Club for the 2021 season. We will continue to work closely with our promoters and partners to monitor the ongoing COVID-19 situation and look forward to the start of the season in March.
The revised 2021
Date Grand Prix Venue 28 March Bahrain Sakhir 18 April Italy Imola* 2 May TBC TBC 9 May Spain Barcelona 23 May Monaco Monaco 6 June Azerbaijan Baku 13 June Canada Montreal 27 June France Le Castellet 4 July Austria Spielberg 18 July United Kingdom Silverstone 1 August Hungary Budapest 29 August Belgium Spa 5 September Netherlands Zandvoort 12 September Italy Monza 26 September Russia Sochi 3 October Singapore Singapore 10 October Japan Suzuka 24 October USA Austin 31 October Mexico Mexico City 7 November Brazil Sao Paulo 21 November Australia Melbourne* 5 December Saudi Arabia Jeddah** 12 December Abu Dhabi Yas Island *Revisions to calendar are subject to World Motor Sport Council approval
**Subject to circuit homologation
Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1, said
“It has been a busy start to the year at Formula 1 and we are pleased to confirm that the number of races planned for the season remains unchanged. The global pandemic has not yet allowed life to return to normal, but we showed in 2020 that we can race safely as the first international sport to return and we have the experience and plans in place to deliver on our season. It is great news that we have already been able to agree a rescheduled date for the Australian Grand Prix in November and are continuing to work with our Chinese colleagues to find a solution to race there in 2021 if something changes. We are very excited to announce that Imola will return for the 2021 season and know our fans will be looking forward to the return of Formula 1 after the winter break and our revised season opener in Bahrain. Obviously, the virus situation remains fluid, but we have the experience from last season with all our partners and promoters to adapt accordingly and safely in 2021.”
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McLaren seals third place ahead of BWT Racing Point
https://xut.mzh.mybluehost.me//?s=malhaarBy Malhaar Khaladkar
Max Verstappen took victory as the sun set on the 2020 season at the twilight Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Valtteri Bottas finished P2, his first podium since the race held at Imola as returning champion Lewis Hamilton took P3 after recovering from Covid-19.
London, 13 December 2020: Max Verstappen dominated the Abu Dhabi GP to take his 10th career victory ahead of Valtteri Bottas and his fellow Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton- who achieved the 165th podium of his career. The second Red Bull driver, Alex Albon crossed the line in P4- who’s place at the Austrian squad remains in doubt for next year. McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz finished in P4 and P5 respectively, which sealed McLaren 3rd place in the constructor’s championship ahead of Racing Point and Renault. Racing Point- leading the trio of teams in the championship before the weekend- scored just one point as Sergio Perez retired due to a suspected gearbox failure and Lance Stroll finished in P10. Daniel Ricciardo finished a respectable P7 in his last race for Renault, meanwhile, teammate Esteban Ocon finished P9. AlphaTauri driver Pierre Gasly finished in P8.
Daniil Kvyat finished P11, who is most likely going to be out of a drive for next season. Finnish veteran Kimi Raikkonen crossed the line in P12 ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in P13 and outgoing Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel in P14. Last week’s Mercedes super-sub George Russell finished P15 for Williams, his teammate Nicholas Latifi finishing in P17. Antonio Giovinazzi was P16 as the Haas duo of Kevin Magnussen and Pietro Fittipaldi finished in P18 and P19 respectively. Sergio Perez was the sole retirement in the race.
Verstappen got a good start from pole, as did Bottas and Hamilton who maintained their positions. As the race settled, Verstappen maintained a lead of 2s to Bottas, who further maintained his gap to Hamilton at 2s. Behind, Norris who started P4 was overtaken by Albon with the help of DRS.
It was heartbreak for Sergio Perez in his last race for Racing Point and potentially in F1 as he retired with a gearbox issue. The Virtual Safety car was deployed as the stricken Racing Point was being cleared away. Meanwhile, the whole field pitted except the Renault of Ricciardo who started on the hard tyre and the two Ferraris. Further, the field bunched up as the full safety car was deployed this time.
Racing got underway on lap 14 as Verstappen pulled off into the lead. He had a 1.5s gap to Bottas who had a 2s gap to Hamilton in P3. It looked like Ferrari’s strategy to keep Leclerc out on medium tyres had backfired, as he was getting overtaken and finally pitted on lap 22 from P12. He emerged P19, in last place.
The Mercedes drivers were unable to challenge and match Verstappen’s pace. Albon was in P4, and just 5s behind Hamilton. Therefore, Mercedes could not do anything clever strategy wise too. Ricciardo pitted on lap 39 from P5 for medium tyres, emerging in P7, he overcut Stroll, who was stuck behind Gasly in P9.
By lap 45 Verstappen had almost a 10s lead over Bottas at the front. Meanwhile, Ocon overtook Stroll to claim P9 in the race. As the chequered flag dropped, Verstappen ended Mercedes’ six-year dominance at the Yas Marina circuit. In the constructor’s championship, McLaren achieved P3 thanks to a double points finish in P5 and P6.
The aftermath of the race was emotional as it consisted of thank you and goodbyes from drivers. Some drivers leaving the sport forever and some drivers changing teams as allies become foes next year. Of course, how can we forget the mandatory end of season donuts, as Hamilton and Bottas gave us a batch of freshly baked ones on the start/finish straight after the race.
Red Bull were dominant for the first time this season. They had pace over the silver arrows in qualifying as well as the race.Interesting to note, Red Bull tried out their 2021 spec floor in practice to get real life data. Mercedes lacked the pace to challenge Red Bull this weekend. It was down to their MGU-K issue, which they had to turn down due to reliability concerns. This meant that the W11 was slower than normal in qualifying and race. McLaren showed impressive qualifying and race pace as they finished best of the rest not only in the race, but as well as the championship. This bodes well for them next year, especially with the Mercedes engine in the back for 2021.
Renault showed good pace over the weekend. They struggled in qualifying and could not make it out of Q2. Good race pace and clever strategy propelled them to a double-points finish. AlphaTauri have shown improvement race by race this season with another points finish. Their qualifying pace has improved significantly, as evident from Abu Dhabi GP where both cars made it to Q3.Racing Point’s true pace was not evident this weekend as Perez started from the back of the grid due to engine penalties and later retired. Stroll struggled in the race with tyres and as a result could only finish P10. They managed P4 in the constructor’s standings. Had their 15 points not been deducted due to the controversial brake ducts at the start of the season, they would have finished P3 easily.
Alfa Romeo showed good race pace this weekend with Raikkonen beating both the Ferrari cars. Their weakness this season was the Ferrari power unit. Next year with a good baseline and an improved engine from Ferrari, Alfa Romeo could regularly challenge for points. Ferrari endured a miserable season as they finished P6 in the constructor’s championship. They had no qualifying or race pace this weekend as the engine was their main downfall, much like the whole season. The signs for next year look encouraging according to Ferrari themselves, with the 2021 power unit showing improved figures. Haas to struggled in the engine department being a Ferrari customer as well as some fundamental issues with the chassis.They did not have the pace to challenge either for Q3 or for points in the race. Williams ended the season on a high note as they beat both Haas cars in the race. They have improved their race pace over the 2020 season and the signs are positive for 2021 as they look to challenge for points. The only way is up from here.
Saturday Qualifying results were:
P1: Max Verstappen- 33 (Red Bull) P2: Valtteri Bottas- 77 (Mercedes) P3: Lewis Hamilton- 44 (Mercedes) P4: Lando Norris- 4 (McLaren) P5: Alex Albon- 23 (Red Bull) P6: Carlos Sainz- 55 (McLaren) P7: Daniil Kvyat- 26 (AlphaTauri) P8: Lance Stroll- 18 (Racing Point) P9: Charles Leclerc- 16 (Ferrari) P10: Pierre Gasly- 10 (AlphaTauri) P11: Esteban Ocon- 31 (Renault) P12: Daniel Ricciardo- 3 (Renault) P13: Sebastian Vettel- 5 (Ferrari) P14: Antonio Giovinazzi- 99 (Alfa Romeo) P15: Sergio Perez- 11 (Racing Point) P16: Kimi Raikkonen- 7 (Alfa Romeo) P17: Kevin Magnussen- 20 (Haas) P18: George Russell- 63 (Williams) P19: Pietro Fittipaldi- 51 (Haas) P20 Nicholas Latifi- 6 (Williams) Note – Leclerc penalised three grid places for causing a collision at the previous round. Perez and Magnussen required to start race from back of grid for use of additional power unit elements.
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Facile win for Verstappen as F1 season ends; BWT Racing Point loses 3rd by 7 points
Max Verstappen closed out his 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship campaign in style with a commanding light as to flag victory at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the Red Bull driver finishing more than 10 seconds clear of Mercedes Valtteri Bottas. The Finn’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton was third. When the lights went out at the start, Verstappen made a good getaway and comfortably took the lead ahead of Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas with Lewis Hamilton third.
The order changed though on lap six when, with the aid of DRS, Red Bull’s Alex Albon passed McLaren’s Lando Norris to claim fourth place. Meanwhile, at the front of the field, Verstappen was comfortable in the lead, 2.6s clear of Bottas with Hamilton a further 3.5s further back. Albon held fourth ahead of McLaren’s Norris and Carlos Sainz.
The race was reset on lap 10, however. Sergio Pérez pulled over at the side of the track between Turns 18 and 19 with a power unit issue. An initial VSC became a full Safety Car as marshals struggled to recover Pérez’s car and during the caution the leading drivers all pitted to take on hard tyres.
Verstappen rejoined in the lead ahead of Bottas, Hamilton and Albon but the pit stops vaulted hard-tyre starter Daniel Ricciardo to fifth ahead of Norris, though the Australian would need to pit later in the race.
As the race went edged past one-third distance the order began to settle as Verstappen again eked out a gap. By lap 20 he was 3.4s ahead of Bottas, with Hamilton two seconds further back. Albon was now 4.2s behind the seven-time champion but though he was losing ground to the Mercedes he was steadily pulling away from Ricciardo who was six seconds behind the Thai driver.
Verstappen though continued to build his comfort zone and by lap 32 he was 7.5 seconds clear of the lead Mercedes, with Hamilton also comfortable in third, six seconds ahead of Albon.
At the end of lap 39 Ricciardo was the last to shed his starting hard tyres and after taking on medium tyres he rejoined in P7, behind the McLarens of Norris and Sainz.
Verstappen was now totally dominant at the head of the field. On lap 48 he was 12 seconds clear of Bottas and telling his team on the radio that they could turn his engine down if required.
And seven laps later Verstappen eased across the line to take his and red Bull’s second win of the year after early-season victory at the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix.
Bottas settled for second place a little under 10 seconds behind Verstappen as the race winner throttled back in the closing stages. Hamilton claimed the final podium place ahead of Albon.
Fifth place for McLaren’s Lando Norris and sixth for team-mate Carlos Sainz handed the Renault-powered team third place in the Constructors’ Championship ahead of Racing Point, for whom Lance Stroll was tenth on the night. Ricciardo took seventh ahead of Gasly and the second Renault of Estaban Ocon.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Race
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 55 1:36’28.645
2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 55 1:36’44.621 15.976
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 55 1:36’47.060 18.415
4 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 55 1:36’48.632 19.987
5 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 55 1:37’29.374 1’00.729
6 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 55 1:37’34.307 1’05.662
7 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 55 1:37’42.393 1’13.748
8 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 55 1:37’58.363 1’29.718
9 Esteban Ocon Renault 55 1:38’09.714 1’41.069
10 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 55 1:38’11.383 1’42.738
11 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 54 1:36’31.445 1 Lap
12 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 54 1:36’34.174 1 Lap
13 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 54 1:36’42.721 1 Lap
14 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 54 1:36’51.876 1 Lap
15 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 54 1:37’01.030 1 Lap
16 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 54 1:37’02.381 1 Lap
17 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 54 1:37’11.562 1 Lap
18 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 54 1:38’00.387 1 Lap
19 Pietro Fittipaldi Haas/Ferrari 53 1:36’38.988 2 Laps
Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 8 14’13.035 Transmission -
Max Verstappen takes his first pole in the last race of the season
Abu Dhabi, 12 Dec 2020: Max Verstappen scored his first pole position of 2020 and the third of his career with in qualifying for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, with the Dutchman putting in a phenomenal final lap in Q3 to beat Mercedes Valtteri Bottas by 0.025s. Lewis Hamilton finished third ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris.
Bottas set the pace in the opening segment of qualifying, with the Finn setting an early benchmark of 1:35.699. Hamilton slotted into second place but his lap was swiftly deleted for violating track limits at Turn 20.
Verstappen, meanwhile, had a tricky start to the session when Williams released Nicholas Latifi into his path in the pit lane. The Dutchman was forced to lock-up and flat-spotted his tyres.
He went out and set a time but in the final minutes of the session he dropped to P10 and was forced to run again. He immediately vaulted to P2 behind Bottas with a lap of 1:35.993. Verstappen was eventually shuffled to P4 as Hamilton grabbed top spot in the final runs and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took third ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. Racing Point’s Sergio Pérez was sixth and Alex Albon in the second Red Bull progressed in seventh place with a lap of 1:36.106.
At the other end of the timesheet, Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Räikkönen was eliminated in 16th place after being beaten to P15 by team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi. The Italian eclipsed his Finnish team-mate by almost half a second to edge their private qualifying battle 9-8. Räikkönen was followed out of the session by Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, Williams’ George Russell, Haas’ Pietro Fittipaldi and Latifi.
In Q2 the Bulls and the Mercedes went out on medium tyres but Albonhad his opening lap deleted for a track limits infringement at Turn 21. He dropped to P13 on the timesheet in the closing stages and it meant that he needed a run on soft tyres to guarantee progress.
Verstappen, meanwhile, opened with a time of 1:36.236. That landed him P5 and he admitted dissatisfaction with the lap, saying the tyres had gone off in the final sector.
He went for another run, on mediums, and in the final moments he jumped to P3 behind Hamilton and Bottas with a lap of 1:35.641. Albonfollowed him across the line with a good lap of 1:35.654 to take P4.
Somewhat surprisingly Esteban Ocon and Daniel Ricciardo were eliminated in P10 and P11 respectively, with the Renault being edged out Q3 by the AlphaTauris of Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly. Also eliminated at this stage of the session were 13th-placed Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari followed by Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi and Pérez. Facing a back-of-the-grid start due an engine change, Pérez failed to set a time in Q2.
In the final top-10 shootout, Verstappen signalled his intent with his opening run as he posted a lap of 1:35.519 to split with the Mercedes as Bottas took provisional pole.
When the final runs began Hamilton was the first out and after setting purple times he took P1 with a lap of 1:35.332. That looked impressive but then Bottas snuck past the benchmark by six hundredths of a seconds and it looked like Mercedes might be heading towards another front row lock-out.
Verstappen, though, had other ideas and with a perfectly constructed lap the Dutch ace found the time required to edge past Bottas to claim his and the team’s first pole position of the year.
Behind the top three, McLaren’s Norris took an impressive fourth place to edge Albonby seven hundredths of a second. Sixth place went to Carlos Sainz in the second McLaren with Kvyat an excellent seventh for AlphaTauri’s ahead of Racing Point’s Lance Stroll, Leclerc and Gasly.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Qualifying
1 Verstappen Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:35.246 6 209.923
2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:35.271 0.025 0.026 6 209.868
3 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:35.332 0.086 0.090 6 209.734
4 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 1:35.497 0.251 0.264 6 209.372
5 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 1:35.571 0.325 0.341 6 209.209
6 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 1:35.815 0.569 0.597 6 208.677
7 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 1:35.963 0.717 0.753 6 208.355
8 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 1:36.046 0.800 0.840 6 208.175
9 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:36.065 0.819 0.860 6 208.134
10 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:36.242 0.996 1.046 6 207.751
11 Esteban Ocon Renault 1:36.359 0.893 0.935 6 207.499
12 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 1:36.406 0.940 0.985 6 207.397
13 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:36.631 1.165 1.220 6 206.914
14 Antonio Giovinazzi Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:38.248 2.782 2.914 6 203.509
Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 1
16 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:37.555 2.027 2.122 6 204.955
17 Kevin Magnussen Haas/Ferrari 1:37.863 2.335 2.444 9 204.310
18 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:38.045 2.517 2.635 8 203.930
19 Pietro Fittipaldi Haas/Ferrari 1:38.173 2.645 2.769 9 203.664
20 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:38.443 2.915 3.051 7 203.106 -
Hamilton returns but Verstappen fastest on Friday: F1 final round
Abu Dhabi, 11 Dec 2020: Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen set the fastest lap of the opening practice for the final round of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, as Lewis Hamilton finished fifth on the time-sheet as he returned to the cockpit for Mercedes following his recovery from COVID-19.
Hamilton completed his 10-day quarantine in Bahrain and after returning a number of negative tests was free to travel to Abu Dhabi following confirmation from the authorities that he could do so. Mercedes confirmed he returned a further negative test on arrival and thus he is eligible to compete this weekend.
However, despite the champion’s return, it was Verstappen who led the way in the daytime session at Yas Marina Circuit, with Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas second and last weekend’s first-time podium finisher Esteban Ocon of Renault third.
Bottas set early pace on soft compound Pirellis but when Verstappen eventually bolted on the red-banded compound after avoiding them early on he took top spot with around half an hour left in the session.
The Red Bull driver logged a best time of 1:37.378s to edge Bottas by just 0.034 seconds. Ocon who finished second at the Bahrain International Circuit last weekend continued his recent run of good form with a time 1.1 seconds off Verstappen’s time.
It was a less successful outing for the Frenchman’s team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, however. The Australian, who is making his final appearance for Renault before a switch to McLaren in 2021, suffered a fuel pressure problem early on and completed just four laps.
Second Red Bull driver Alex Albon took fourth place on the timesheet but he ended the session 1.169s behind team-mate Verstappen. The Thai driver also suffered a spin Turns 12/13 in an otherwise error-free session.
Hamilton took fifth spot with his best time coming on hard compound tyres. In all, he completed 20 laps on his return to duty for Mercedes.
Racing Point drivers Lance Stroll and Sergio Perez finished sixth and seventh respectively ahead of the AlphaTauri pair of Daniil Kvyat and Pierre Gasly, while Kimi Raikkonen completed the top 10 for Alfa Romeo.
Elsewhere, Mick Schumacher made his grand prix weekend debut with his 2021 team Haas. The FIA Formula 2 champion finished 18th with a best of 1:41.235, which put him almost 3 second clear of team-mate Pietro Fittipaldi who is again standing in for the injured Romain Grosjean this weekend.
2020 FIA Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – Free Practice 1
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda 1:37.378 26 205.327
2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:37.412 0.034 32 205.256
3 Esteban Ocon Renault 1:38.515 1.137 34 202.957
4 Alexander Albon Red Bull/Honda 1:38.547 1.169 25 202.892
5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:38.744 1.366 24 202.487
6 Lance Stroll Racing Point/Mercedes 1:38.831 1.453 25 202.308
7 Sergio Pérez Racing Point/Mercedes 1:38.956 1.578 25 202.053
8 Daniil Kvyat AlphaTauri/Honda 1:39.150 1.772 27 201.658
9 Pierre Gasly AlphaTauri/Honda 1:39.160 1.782 30 201.637
10 Kimi Räikkönen Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:39.199 1.821 22 201.558
11 Carlos Sainz McLaren/Renault 1:39.330 1.952 27 201.292
12 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 1:39.344 1.966 25 201.264
13 Lando Norris McLaren/Renault 1:39.352 1.974 28 201.248
14 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:39.670 2.292 19 200.605
15 Robert Kubica Alfa Romeo/Ferrari 1:39.905 2.527 19 200.134
16 George Russell Williams/Mercedes 1:40.446 3.068 24 199.056
17 Nicholas Latifi Williams/Mercedes 1:41.063 3.685 27 197.840
18 Mick Schumacher Haas/Ferrari 1:41.235 3.857 23 197.504
19 Pietro Fittipaldi Haas/Ferrari 1:44.069 6.691 24 192.126
20 Daniel Ricciardo Renault 3
Today marks the official start of the new season for the Ferrari Driver Academy. It’s an important moment, not just for the eight participants in the 2021 academic year but also for the whole Scuderia. We have always said that the FDA is not just a school that has to help the best youngsters make it to Formula 1, but that above all it must train those that one day will be the standard bearers for Scuderia Ferrari in the top level category of motor racing.
