The Monte Carlo race, besides producing dull racing, posed the question: ‘When is a grid girl not a grid girl?’ The answer: ‘When she’s a female sponsorship representative’Before the weekend a representative from Formula One management had been insistent that the race would not host the return of grid girls. In January when they were dropped the commercial director, Sean Bratches, said grid girls were “at odds with modern day societal norms” and “not appropriate or relevant to F1”. Monaco’s “female sponsorship representatives” would not be standing in front of grid slots nor holding boards identifying drivers, therefore they were not, F1 avowed, grid girls. Which on Sunday transpired to be arrant nonsense. Monaco most definitely had grid girls. Standing...
Red Bull driver looks to make amends for team’s blunder two years ago and may succeed after being fastest on the first day of practicePerhaps the most personable driver in the Formula One paddock, even in adversity, Daniel Ricciardo usually has the ability to ease the pain of setbacks with an endearing, self-deprecating humour. Little wonder then that the Red Bull driver’s thunderous disappointment and anger at the pit-stop error that cost him a win at Monaco in 2016 was so arresting and of such import that two years on, back in Monte Carlo, he is still seeking redemption. This weekend he may just find it.In 2016, Mercedes had been dominant in the turbo-hybrid era for three years and Red...
Silverstone organisers quiet over the British Grand Prix’s future and Williams identify the root cause of their difficultiesLewis Hamilton’s dominant win from the front proved he and his car were the class of the field in Barcelona. There is no sense, however, that Mercedes have solved their problems nor that they will necessarily enjoy such an advantage again. This season it is all still to play for. Related: Lewis Hamilton wins Spanish Grand Prix to stretch lead in F1 title race Continue reading...
How Mercedes fare in Barcelona will be telling – they must work the tyres at the correct temperature to unlock performanceLewis Hamilton was absolutely honest after his unlikely victory in Baku. He knew he had inherited a win that with three laps to go was looking like a third place and a further deficit to Sebastian Vettel in the world championship. He came out of it on top and rightly did not opt to celebrate as he might have were it a harder won victory. He is four points ahead of Vettel but made it clear that relying on good fortune would not be enough in what is shaping up to be a highly contested season. The reality, Hamilton knows,...
Ferrari driver’s quiet confidence is ominous going into the Azerbaijan GP and it will only grow if he can win at a Mercedes-friendly track where the red mist came down last yearLast season the Azerbaijan Grand Prix produced a dramatic end to what had been a good-natured rivalry in battle for the championship between Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel.When Vettel lost his temper and barged the British driver his lack of control exposed a weakness from which Hamilton emerged psychologically with the upper hand. A year on in Baku, however, the German could not be exhibiting a calmer, more controlled disposition and his quiet confidence is ominous for Hamilton. Related: Max Verstappen will need to learn fast from Shanghai overtaking...