Motorsport News June 23, 2022

Max Verstappen has strengthened his grip on the Formula 1 points table by taking his fifth win in six races in a hard-fought Canadian Grand Prix on Sunday. The Red Bull driver came under attack from Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz over the closing stages in Montreal but held on to cross the line just under one second ahead of the Italian machine. Verstappen now has a 46-point lead in the table as team-mate Sergio Perez retired and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc fought from the back to finish fifth. Lewis Hamilton took third for Mercedes and was delighted. He said: “I didn’t expect this coming into the weekend. It’s my second podium of the year. So this feels really special, especially where I got my first grand prix win.”…

While the Canadian Grand Prix might not have exploded into the drama that the wet qualifying session suggested it could have done, it was a shining example of how far Max Verstappen has come in his 150-race career. And his rivals should fear the fact that even though the reigning World champion is only 24 years old, he is in his eighth season in the top-flight and there is plenty more to come. Take into account, Damon Hill was 36 when he claimed his World title. What was evident in the race in Montreal was just how mature he has become and how comfortable he is leading a grand prix, even when he is under the most stern examination. One tiny slip on the Ile Notre Dame would have meant Carlos Sainz…

After recent disappointments, this was a race in which Ferrari needed a dash of good luck. As the two scarlet machines lined up for the start of the Canadian Grand Prix, they found their grid markings had been painted red overnight. Both Carlos Sainz (third) and Charles Leclerc – who was a lowly 19th, after a penalty for power unit changes – lined up next to a special tribute to home hero Gilles Villeneuve. In the 40th anniversary of the Ferrari legend’s death, they needed to channel the spirit of the driver who gives his name to the Montreal circuit and achieve something special in front of the many Ferrari fans in the capacity crowd. Leclerc did a fine job of claiming fifth after starting on the back row, while Sainz did his…

11 Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren-Mercedes) +43.047s; 12 Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin-Mercedes) +44.245s; 13 Alexander Albon (Williams-Mercedes) +44.893s; 14 Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) +45.183s; 15 Lando Norris (McLaren-Mercedes) +52.145s; 16 Nicholas Latifi (Williams-Mercedes) +59.978s; 17 Kevin Magnussen (Haas-Ferrari) +1m08.180s; 18 Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) -47 laps/accident; 19 Mick Schumacher (Haas-Ferrari) -18 laps/engine; 20 Sergio Perez (Red Bull) -7 laps/ transmission. Drivers’ Championship: 1 Verstappen 175pts; 2 Perez 129; 3 Leclerc 126; 4 Russell 111; 5 Sainz 102; 6 Hamilton 77. Constructors’ Championship: 1 Red Bull 304pts; 2 Ferrari 228; 3 Mercedes 188; 4 McLaren-Mercedes 65; 5 Alpine-Renault 57; 6 Alfa Romeo-Ferrari 51.…

Bosses of Formula 1’s governor the FIAhave said they will tackle the porpoising issues of the current generation of ground-effect grand prix machines that has impacted on drivers’health. The revamped aerodynamic regulations have led to many chassis bouncing as they struggle to fully employ the airflow under the cars. Mercedes has been the most high-profile victim of this porpoising effect, while Ferrari and several others have also experienced the problem. The FIAissued a statement ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix saying it would take measures to make sure that the cars were safer to drive. The statement read: “Following the eighth round of this year’s FIAFormula One World Championship [theAzerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku], during which the phenomenon of aerodynamic oscillations (‘porpoising’) of the new generation of F1 cars, and the effect of…

Ferrari star Charles Leclerc says that the FIA’s new guidelines on porpoising grand prix cars would negate all the work done by engineers. The Monegasque driver, whose team has overcome many of the bouncing issues with its F1-75, said that he thought the Italian squad should not be penalised for the effort it has already put in. The 24-year-old said: “All of the work that we’ve done, [do we] just put it in the bin because obviously there’s maybe one team that is struggling more than others? I obviously understand that on Mercedes it’s very bad, but I also think that there are maybe fixes for this.” Max Verstappen also spoke out against the plan to introduce new regulations to stop the phenomenon. The Red Bull Racing driver said: “I understand the…