Home hero Quartararo took his third pole in a row by the narrowest of margins in a chaotic qualifying session held in damp but drying conditions, the Yamaha factory rider pipping team-mate Maverick Vinales by just 0.081s. Showing no signs of ill-effects after an operation to treat arm pump issues that cost him victory in […]
For years, teams have followed established routines through FP1, FP2 and FP3 as they prepare both for Saturday qualifying and the Sunday race that follows. The usual rhythm is broken only when bad weather wipes out sessions. A unique planned break with tradition came at Imola last year, when transport issues meant that there was […]
The Suzuki rider was denied direct entry to Q2 after a crash late on in Friday’s FP2, with wet conditions in FP3 ensuring there would be no lap time improvements on the combined order. Both Mir and team-mate Alex Rins set strong pace in the opening stages of Q1 in wet conditions, but were caught […]
F1 teams are currently preparing for the major upcoming car design changes, which were scheduled to come into force for the start of the 2021 campaign before being postponed because of the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. When Alonso announced his intention to return to F1 with what was then known as the Renault […]
Pole looked set to go to Marc Marquez as spots of rain appeared in the latter stages, but the top six changed right at the death as a number of riders found lap time improvements in the conditions. Meanwhile, Q1 claimed several big hitters including championship leader Francesco Bagnaia and Suzuki duo Joan Mir and […]
F1 raced on a tweaked layout of the track last weekend for the first time since the Turn 10 left-hander was reprofiled in a bid to improve overtaking and make the corner faster. But drivers remained more critical about the Turn 14-15 chicane in the final sector, which was introduced in 2007 and has long […]
Overnight rain left the Le Mans circuit soaked for the start of FP3, which meant already the qualifying groups for later this afternoon have been decided based on Friday’s times. Suzuki’s Alex Rins – who will face Q1 later – set the initial benchmark on wet tyres at 1m48.807s, though top spot rapidly changed over […]
Only tracks that gain the FIA’s top licence can host F1 races. But what’s needed for Grade 1 status? All races sanctioned by the FIA – from F1 to Rallycross – have to take place on circuits that have been granted a licence, with different levels of licence needed to host different series. These range […]
Rossi is in the midst of his worst-ever start to a grand prix season, having scored just four points from the opening four rounds with a solitary 12th in the Qatar GP. The Petronas SRT rider has come in for criticism for his form, but admitted on Thursday he was keen to prove correct Kevin […]
Reigning Formula 2 champion Schumacher hasn’t enjoyed the easiest rookie season so far, having been unable to finish higher than 16th in the lacklustre Haas VF-21 F1 car. With Haas deciding not to carry out any development work ahead of the 2022 rule changes, Schumacher’s fortunes are unlikely to improve this year. But despite not… […]