Autosport 4/7/2022

When can Mercedes get back into contention with Ferrari and Red Bull? Few doubt that the Silver Arrows will return to the battle at the front of Formula 1, the question is more about whether the progress can come soon enough to make it a three-way title fight. As James Allison and Andrew Shovlin show in our cover article on page 16, the technical problems of the team’s 2022 machine are more complex than those of its predecessor 12 months ago. And the scope for improvement is more limited thanks to the cost cap and windtunnel restrictions. Nevertheless, the squad’s record over the past decade, not to mention the strengths of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, suggests Mercedes will surely overcome the problems. F1’s new era has made a promising start –…

FORMULA 1 Formula 1 has doubled down on its newfound popularity in the United States by adding a third American round to the calendar. The championship will return to Las Vegas in 2023 as part of a three-year deal, only this time the grand prix will in-part be held on the iconic Strip rather than tucked away in a car park. To complement a race in Austin and the inaugural Miami GP in May, as of November next year F1 will dock in Vegas for a Saturday night round to ensure all three US time zones are represented on the schedule. The plan is to use a 3.8-mile street circuit (above) – shorter only than Jeddah and Spa – that will feature 14 corners and a long straight that should have drivers reach…

INQUEST Ex-FIA president Max Mosley’s death last year has been ruled as suicide. Westminster Coroner’s Court has heard that former FIA president Mosley died last May from “significant injuries consistent with a gunshot wound”. The 81-year-old was found dead at his home in London on 23 May 2021. British media has reported that WCC heard that Mosley “was receiving palliative care for lymphoma” after being diagnosed in 2019. It also heard that he had shared his plans. “It was obvious he had used the shotgun to himself and endured a life-ending injury,” said the coroner, who ruled that Mosley’s death was a suicide. Mosley had been receiving treatment for the lymphoma but the focus of the cancer treatment had switched to improving his quality of life from April 2021. The Mirror reported that Dr Christopher McNamara, a…

FORMULA 1 The Saudi Arabian government is open to talks with Lewis Hamilton to address concerns he has expressed about racing in the country. Seven-time F1 champion Hamilton commented at the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 2021 that he felt “uncomfortable” because of the nation’s human rights record. He reaffirmed his stance at the Jeddah race last month. Saudi’s minister of sport Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal has now publicly offered Hamilton the chance to air his reservations. Abdulaziz said: “I saw the comments that Lewis had, and that he had issues with some of the things in Saudi Arabia. I told him openly and frankly, ‘You can speak to me. Let’s sit down, discuss what are your issues, and understand where we are.’ “A lot of these things, you read a lot about…

DTM Nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb will make his DTM debut at the Algarve Circuit later this month, joining Felipe Fraga in Red Bull’s line-up. Loeb will replace Nick Cassidy in the opening round of the 2022 DTM season on 30 April/1 May, with the Kiwi unavailable due to his commitments with Envision Racing in the Monaco Formula E race. Loeb got his first taste of the AF Corse Ferrari 488 GT3 at Spa last month and is also expected to take part in this weekend’s official pre-season test at Hockenheim. With Cassidy also likely to miss the Norisring round in July due to Formula E clashes, and potentially the Spa DTM weekend due to a clash with the FIA World Endurance Championship’s Fuji round, Loeb could be in line for further DTM…

NURBURGRING 24 Aston Martin will make its first bid for outright honours in the Nurburgring 24 Hours since 2018 with a factory-supported effort from TF Sport in May. Works drivers Nicki Thiim, Marco Sorensen and Maxime Martin will share a Vantage GT3 in the Nurburgring-Nordschleife enduro on 28-29 May with lap record holder David Pittard. It will be the debut for the car in the 24-hour fixture as well as the maiden appearance for TF, runner-up in the World Endurance Championship GTE Am points in each of the past two seasons. TF will also take part in a trio of warm-up races as the British marque attempts to improve on its fourth-place finish from four years ago. Thiim, Sorensen and Pittard will compete in this weekend’s Nurburgring Langstrecken-Serie round, with Martin replacing Pittard for…