2024 Formula 1 Preview & Review.

[Fortitude]

Leclerc hails Ferrari fightback from torrid Singapore GP qualifying.
Charles Leclerc hailed Ferrari's "really good race execution" that enabled him to claw his way up to fifth in the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday after a disastrous qualifying session 24 hours earlier.
22/09/2024
France 24

"We maximised our potential today and our race execution was really good," said Leclerc, who still has an outside shot at the drivers' title. He is third in the standings, 34 points behind second-placed Norris and 85 adrift of leader Max Verstappen with six races and three sprints to go.

"Overall, it isn't the most satisfying weekend for us, but as a team, we can be proud of turning things around and bringing home this P5 today."

‘Leclerc hails Ferrari fightback’;

https://www.france24.com/en/live-new...-gp-qualifying


Leclerc’s race “all about waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting”
23rd September 2024
Keith Collantine
RaceFans

Leclerc spent the first 28 laps of his race trying to find a way past Nico Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso. Once he finally broke free of them, he was able to secure a fifth-place finish. “It was very, very frustrating because I wished Nico and Fernando would pit earlier, but obviously they were doing their race and they have all the right to do so,” he told Viaplay.

“But that compromised ours because we were just stuck for 35 laps behind them and then it’s all about waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting and hoping that they don’t go too long on their stint, in order to then push on my tyres and come back towards the end. And that’s what we did. But we weren’t in a great position to do anything better.”

“All about waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/23/...nd-up-23-09-7/


Leclerc “loved” Singapore GP charge after early nightmare in traffic
23 Sep 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

Charles Leclerc says he “loved” the second part of a Singapore GP that saw him charge to fifth place from ninth on the grid after his frustrating Q3 session. “Yeah, I did,” he said when asked by this writer if he’d enjoyed the race. “From the end of the first stint to the last laps, I loved it. The first 25 laps were a nightmare, because I was just a sitting duck behind Fernando and Nico.”

“And I was just hoping that they had to box very soon because of [the cars] behind, but it never really happened, and they went very long. And I just had to wait. But overall, it’s been a good race from that moment onwards. As soon as they pitted, we maximised our points. We just paid a little bit price of a bad quali yesterday.”

‘Charles Leclerc says he “loved” the second part of a Singapore GP’;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/23/...re-in-traffic/


Leclerc looks to positives but Ferrari paid the price in Singapore
Leclerc managed to recover from P9 on the grid to finish fifth in Singapore
23 Sep 2024
Adriano Boin
Total Motorsport

Charles Leclerc managed to find the positives and believes Ferrari maximised their performance in the 2024 Singapore GP, with a fifth-place finish all they could have asked for after a disastrous showing in qualifying.

“The last laps I loved it. The first 25 laps were a nightmare because I was just a sitting duck behind Fernando and Nico,” Leclerc told accredited members of the press, including Total-Motosport.com.

“I was just hoping that they had to pit very soon because I was behind, but it never really happened. They went very long so I just had to wait. Overall, it was a good race from that moment onwards. As soon as they pit we maximised our points, we just paid a little bit of the price for our qualifying yesterday.”

‘Looks to positives’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/cha...-singapore-gp/


Charles Leclerc: Ferrari ‘paid the price’ for Singapore F1 qualifying setback
23 Sep 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Charles Leclerc has conceded that he “paid the price” in the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix for the qualifying setback which spoiled his and Ferrari‘s race prospects.

However, the marque’s hopes unravelled once the all-important Q3 session that determines the grid arrived as Carlos Sainz crashed while Leclerc propped up in ninth. Leclerc’s one attempt was deleted as he exceeded track limits at Turn 2, with the Ferrari driver incensed that low tyre temperatures had compromised his endeavours.

“Paid the price”;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...fying-setback/


Ferrari rue qualifying disaster in F1 Singapore GP
23 Sep 2024
Dan Lawrence
Motorsport Week

Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur rued a costly qualifying session that hurt Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz’s chances in the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix. “Friday we were in a better shape than fifth and seventh, so it means that we missed something during the weekend, it’s clear,” said Vasseur.

“But when you start in Singapore ninth and 10th, you know did something wrong on Saturday. It’s not the Sunday that we have to learn something. It’s more than to do a better job on Saturday.” Vasseur said that “the result of the weekend is not the one expected,” no doubt disappointed given Ferrari took victory in Singapore last year.

‘Ferrari rue qualifying disaster’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-singapore-gp/


Leclerc pinpoints key failing in Singapore ‘missed opportunity’
Charles Leclerc walked away from the Singapore Grand Prix with a fifth place result in a “missed opportunity” for Ferrari.
23 Sep 2024
Fergal Walsh & Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

When asked if Singapore was a missed opportunity for Ferrari, Leclerc told media including RacingNews365: “I would say yes. But looking back at the pace of the McLaren, and of Max, I’m not sure how many points have we missed today.”

“George definitely, I think we had the car in order to finish in front. I didn’t check again the pace of everybody, but what I’ve heard about Lando’s pace, I don’t think we quite had that in the car, and I don’t know where the others were behind him.”

‘Missed opportunity’;

https://racingnews365.com/leclerc-pi...ed-opportunity


Singapore GP data: How the power of the overcut was used against Mercedes at Marina Bay
23 Sep 2024
Pablo Hidalgo
PlanetF1.com

Still to make the epic comeback was Leclerc. On lap 42, after being blocked by Alonso for three laps, the Ferrari driver finally managed to overtake the Spaniard. Ahead, Carlos Sainz in P6 was in a very different race situation to the Monégasque driver.

Ferrari ordered Sainz to swap positions with Leclerc on lap 43 and the Spaniard put up no opposition. Leclerc then had almost 20 laps to catch Hamilton who was 15 seconds ahead on tyres 19 laps older. And just as in the case of McLaren, with a car also superior to Mercedes in race pace. In just eight laps, Leclerc hunted Hamilton down to reach P5. The Ferrari driver then had another 11 laps to try and catch Russell who was eight seconds ahead.

Leclerc pushed as hard as he could with the hard tyre which started to degrade quickly from lap 55 onwards. The Monégasque reached Russell’s DRS zone on lap 58, but due to the high tyre wear and the difficulty to overtake on track in Singapore, he didn’t make it to P4.

‘The power of the overcut’;

https://www.newsnow.co.uk/h/Sport/F1...harles+Leclerc

[Fortitude]

“Sometimes I wonder why I do this”: How Hamilton endured a slog to sixth in Singapore.
Toto Wolff: “Yeah Lewis sorry we gave the two of you a car that was just not good enough for you. And obviously we read the race wrong but I don’t think it would have made a difference, we were just too slow today.”
24th Sep 2024
Keith Collantine
RaceFans

Lewis Hamilton’s frustration with his strategy in the Singapore Grand Prix became clear shortly after he was overtaken by his team mate George Russell. The pair shared the second row of the grid at the start. But Mercedes opted to put Hamilton on soft tyres, which led him to pit earlier than most of his rivals, three of whom passed him before the end of the race. He later said he was “so angry” with the decision. Here’s how his race unfolded on his radio.

“It’s going to be a tough afternoon…”;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/24/...-in-singapore/


‘Perplexed, angry’ Lewis Hamilton reveals strategy 'battle' with Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton was left "perplexed" by Mercedes' decision to split strategies at the Singapore Grand Prix.
24 Sep 2024
Lewis Larkam
Crash.Net

But speaking at a Petronas sponsor event in Kuala Lumpur, Hamilton admitted Mercedes’ decision to start on softs “didn’t make sense to me”. “It wasn’t fun,” Hamilton said of the race. “We sat in our meeting in the morning ahead of the race and the night before they had already mentioned that they would like to split the cars.”

“I was a bit perplexed by it, because in the past when we’ve ever been in that position, if George has qualified well, like he normally does and I’m out of the top 10 or something, then we would split the strategies.”

“But when we were so close it didn’t make sense to me and so I battled as hard as I could to fight to go onto the medium tyre but the team continued to suggest that I start on the soft. When they took the tyre blankets off and everyone was on mediums…”

‘Perplexed, angry’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105644...attle-mercedes


Lewis Hamilton: Mercedes overruled plea to avoid Soft tyre in F1 Singapore GP
24 Sep 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Lewis Hamilton has revealed that Mercedes ignored his desperate plea to avoid starting the race on the Soft tyre at the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix last weekend. Hamilton has divulged that he argued against the pre-race discussion to split strategies between the two Mercedes cars, but the team opted to overrule his concerns.

“We sat in our meeting in the morning of the race – actually the night before they already mentioned that they would like to split the cars – and for me, I was a bit perplexed by it,” Hamilton said at an event in Kuala Lumpur with Mercedes sponsor Petronas.

‘Mercedes overruled plea’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-singapore-gp/


Lewis Hamilton tells Mercedes they are 'killing him' after bold Singapore GP tactic
Lewis Hamilton was unhappy with his Mercedes team at the Singapore Grand Prix.
Sep 22, 2024
Harry Smith
Daily and Sunday Express

Lewis Hamilton complained that his Mercedes team were 'killing him' with a bold Singapore Grand Prix tyre strategy. The seven-time world champion improved his qualifying form to set up a P3 start for the race around the Marina Bay Street Circuit, and Mercedes went extra aggressive with their tyre selection.

Starting on the soft compound tyres with almost all of their rivals beginning on mediums, Hamilton was handed an excellent opportunity to overtake second-placed Max Verstappen at the race start. Unfortunately for the seven-time world champion, he got a lot of wheelspin off the line and when he arrived at Turn One, he could only launch a half-hearted move on Verstappen, who held position.

‘Lewis Hamilton tells Mercedes they are 'killing him'!’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ore-Grand-Prix


Lewis Hamilton slams Mercedes decision that left him ‘perplexed’ in extremely awkward new interview after Singapore GP
The seven-time world champion was unimpressed...
24 Sep 2024
Tom Jenkins
SPORTbible

Lewis Hamilton has been left 'angry' and 'perplexed' by one decision Mercedes made during the Singapore GP where Hamilton saw himself slip from third on the grid to a sixth-placed finish. It was a disastrous grand prix for the man who lined up behind the leading two, as Hamilton saw Oscar Piastri, Charles Leclerc, and his teammate George Russell come past him in the race.

Hamilton was the outlier at the front of the grid as he started the race on the soft tires while those around him opted for the medium. This decision meant Hamilton had to pit significantly earlier than his competitors, meaning he was essentially hung out to dry in the later stages of the race against cars with much faster tires.

Speaking at a Petronas event following the race, Hamilton pulled no punches as he slammed Mercedes' strategy all while sitting next to Russell.

“The night before they had already mentioned they would like to split the cars, I was a bit perplexed by it," he explained. Hamilton has been convincingly beaten 13-5 by Russell in qualifying so far in 2024, so the fact the 39-year-old was actually ahead of his teammate on the grid made the decision even more baffling.

‘Lewis Hamilton slams Mercedes decision’;

https://www.sportbible.com/f1/lewis-...54106-20240924


Mercedes got Hamilton’s Singapore GP strategy wrong, Wolff admits
24 Sep 2024
Keith Collantine

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff described his team’s Singapore Grand Prix performance as “really painful” after they failed to capitalise on their second row lock-out. “Our strategy decisions in the race were determined by our experiences in the past here where track position is crucial,” Wolff explained. “We thought that the soft tyre would give Lewis an advantage at the start but that turned out to be the wrong decision.”

“With our challenges managing the rear surfaces, we went backwards. Overtaking proved possible, contrary to previous races here where it has been more processional, and in hindsight we should have started him on the medium.” However Wolff said the team’s core problem was its W15’s poor race pace. “We were too slow today,” he admitted.

“We are struggling at the moment with tracks that are hot and demanding on traction, like here and Baku, but that is no excuse. It is difficult for us to accept but we must do and find a way to improve.” Neither Mercedes driver spoke to the media after taking the chequered flag as the team said they needed time to “recover from the exertions of this evening’s race,” which is regularly one of the most punishing on the calendar.

‘Mercedes got Hamilton’s Singapore GP strategy wrong’;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/22/...-wolff-admits/


Toto Wolff reveals race-destroying Mercedes mistakes at Singapore GP
Mercedes started third and fourth but converted that to fourth and sixth at the 2024 Singapore GP
22 Sep 2024
Brandon Sutton
Total Motorsport

“That was a really painful evening for us,” Wolff told Mercedes in a press release of their mistakes in Singapore. “P4 and P6 is not a good result after starting P3 and P4.

‘Race-destroying Mercedes mistakes’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/tot...-singapore-gp/


‘We had the doctors with them’ – Lewis Hamilton and George Russell suffer ‘borderline heatstroke’ at Singapore GP
22 Sep 2024
Philip Duncan
The Irish Independent

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were both pulled from their planned media commitments following the Singapore Grand Prix with “borderline heatstroke”. “They would not have been able to go to the [television/print] pen. There were no bad feelings or any annoyance. It is just that we had the doctors with them. But they are all good.”

A Mercedes spokesperson added: “Unfortunately neither George or Lewis will be attending the media pen this evening as they recover from the exertions of this evening’s race.” Hamilton was later quoted in a Mercedes press release. “It is hard to describe the range of emotions you feel when we have a difficult race like that,” he said.

“This year continues to be a testing one for everyone, but we are all pushing as hard as we can. We don’t always get things right and that was the case today with our strategy. We all head into the weekend, and every decision we take, with the right intentions and sometimes it doesn’t work out. It can be frustrating, but we are all in this together.”

‘We had the doctors with them’;

https://www.independent.ie/sport/oth...900751253.html

[Fortitude]

Sainz: Singapore GP another “wasted opportunity” for Ferrari.
Carlos Sainz says that the Azerbaijan and Singapore GPs represented “a wasted opportunity” after he failed to capitalise on Ferrari’s strong form on street venues.
23 Sep 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

The Spaniard crashed while battling for the podium in Baku, and then went off again on cold tyres at the start of Q3 in Singapore. “I think in general, the last couple of races have been a bit of a wasted opportunity,” he said when asked by this writer about the outcome in Singapore.

“And I’m not happy with how the things have gone on these last two weekends. At the same time, you never know what there’s around the corner, and we might be surprised with how we can perform in Austin, Mexico, Vegas and these tracks.”

“So I’m going to keep myself optimistic six races left in this long year, but yeah, going to work on my weaknesses, and put myself in a better position for the last six races. So I’m hopeful that we can qualify a bit further up, like we were doing at the beginning of the year. And that makes the whole weekend a lot easier.”

“Wasted opportunity”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/23/...y-for-ferrari/


Carlos Sainz gives Red Bull ‘in our sights’ warning as Constructors’ battle tightens
23 Sep 2024
Sam Cooper
PlanetF1.com

Carlos Sainz said Ferrari have Red Bull “in our sights” as the team look to hunt down the reigning champions for second place in the table. With McLaren looking likely to extend their lead at the top, Sainz reckons their best shot is to go after Red Bull.

“McLaren definitely have the upper hand,” Sainz said. “They are the favourites for winning it. We still have Red Bull in our sights, and obviously McLaren, if they start going south or they start having problems we need to keep ourselves in.”

“I think it would show good resilience by the team,” Sainz said of a possible P2 finish. “After a tough part of the year where we gave up a lot of points and a lot of development curve. But Red Bull are going to come back strong with the upgrades, I think at the end of the season once they’ve understood what they got wrong. Also with their car it’s not going to be easy to beat them either.”

‘In our sights’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/carlos...ructors-battle


Sainz has regrets after another "wasted opportunity" for Ferrari
24 Sep 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

los Sainz is left rueing wasted chances for Ferrari after a worse-than-expected result in Azerbaijan and Singapore. In 2023, Red Bull won 21 out of 22 Grands Prix. Sainz was the driver to end that streak of wins at the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix, holding off McLaren and Mercedes in the final few laps of the race. In 2024, Ferrari looked strong during Friday practice in Singapore by competing with Norris' best times. The Italian team was leapfrogged overnight by Max Verstappen…

Sainz knows what he wants to improve on going into those final six events. "Just try and feel a bit more confident going into Turn 1 and qualifying, because clearly, these last few weekends haven't been the best approach. I'm hopeful that we can qualify a bit further up, like we were doing at the beginning of the year, and that makes the whole weekend a lot easier," he added.

"Wasted opportunity";

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30334...singapore.html


Carlos Sainz reveals scale of Ferrari tyre ‘homework’ amid Singapore F1 struggles
25 Sep 2024
James Phillips
Motorsport Week

Carlos Sainz has admitted that Ferrari has a lot of “homework” to do to get on top of the tyre problems that blighted its weekend at Formula 1‘s Singapore Grand Prix. Sainz has admitted that the narrow operating window of the current Pirelli compound is something that Ferrari must aim to get a handle on to avoid similar setbacks.

“I think what keeps being a bit of a trend this year is that we have a very narrow window for the tyres to perform in our car this year,” Sainz told media including Motorsport Week. “I think last year our car switched on the tyres whenever we wanted. This year seems to be a very fine line between getting them in the right window or not.”

“So, yeah, we’re trying to figure that out from my side. I’m gonna focus during these next few weeks to see what I can do for the last six races to make that less of a limitation or less of a weakness and put ourselves further up, because then the race pace is always strong. So some homework to do on that side.”

‘Lot of “homework” to do’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-f1-struggles/


FIGHTING BACK
22 Sep 2024
Ferrari - Official Site

Singapore 22 September 2024: The Scuderia Ferrari HP team and its drivers ran another perfectly executed race in Singapore. Charles managed to make up four places to finish fifth and Carlos Sainz, taking part today in his 200th Grand Prix, finished five places higher than he started, seventh after dropping down to 12th off the line.

Carlos Sainz #55 : “It was a challenging race. We took a risk by pitting very early, but we made it work to the end, gaining some positions. We knew our pace was solid and I enjoyed some good overtakes on track. Today was about damage limitation, but we leave Singapore with a sense of disappointment. Now there is a gap to reset and come back stronger for the last races of the season. There are still a lot of points in play and we need to maximise every weekend.”

Fred Vasseur, Team Principal Scuderia Ferrari HP: “I’m very pleased with how we performed today, less so with Saturday. We had a good strategy, good race management and we ran a very strong race on both sides of the garage. Carlos had a difficult start after which he showed good pace and in the closing stages.”

‘Ran another perfectly executed race’;

https://www.ferrari.com/en-GB/formul...ractice-report

[Fortitude]

Alonso smashes expectations again: 'Nothing showed it was possible'.
Fernando Alonso: "Today, finishing eighth is a bit better than our best dreams. We are just lucky we got points but it was possible to be P15. I think we should be 15th and 16th. We are eight, two seconds behind the Ferrari. I don't know if I can do more,"
25 Sep 2024
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

A regular issue in the 2024 season is also present at Aston Martin. The team have brought upgrades to tracks, but sometimes, it was for the better to take them off their car. "I think apart from one team, everybody's putting upgrades on, removing part of them or removing them all, going back to a previous pack. The subject is not an easy one. I wish we would be in a different position. But we are not. Maybe the others have also understood quicker than we did? We have to be self-critical. We cannot, these results that we have here should not hide the fact we are not where we want to be."

According to Krack, his Spanish driver was indeed correct, as he outperformed the numbers at the Asian circuit. "Yes, at the end of the day we have our numbers and we do our pre-race estimations. Now in Baku obviously he finished higher up because there was attrition. But today, and again, full transparency, none of our estimations were predicting that we could finish where we finished," he declared, praising the driver.

‘Alonso smashes expectations again’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30347...e-gp-2024.html


Alonso: ‘Eighth is better than we expected’
22 Sep 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Fernando Alonso finished P8 for Aston Martin in Singapore – but called on the team to find performance quickly to get them closer to the front runners.

‘Find performance quickly’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/al...09194385066065


Alonso: Singapore P8 finish “better than our best dreams”
24 Sep 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

Fernando Alonso says his eighth place for Aston Martin in the Singapore GP was “better than our best dreams,” while stressing that the Silverstone team has to “raise the level.” The Spaniard agreed that he couldn’t have done any better with the car he had. “Absolutely, I think behind the top four teams, just in front of Checo,” he said. “So normally it’s ninth and 10th available today.”

He added: “I just tried to follow Nico and tried to undercut him at one point. But the Ferraris should have won this race probably, they were the fastest car this weekend. So it wasn’t my race. I think now we need to raise the level,” he said. “We have some new parts coming in the next few races, hopefully they help us to come back to a stronger performance.”

“Better than our best dreams”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/24/...r-best-dreams/


Fernando Alonso did something none of Aston Martin’s ‘simulations’ predicted during Singapore Grand Prix
23 Sep 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

Aston Martin admitted that reaching Q3 might be a challenge, but Fernando Alonso took advantage of poor sessions for Mercedes and Ferrari to reach P7 on the grid. Alonso managed to hold off Charles Leclerc in the opening stages of the race, but the Ferrari driver passed him just before Aston Martin decided to pit him for his first stop.

The Spaniard would go on to lose positions to Carlos Sainz but managed to stay ahead of Sergio Perez and finish a few seconds off the Ferrari in P8. Team principal Mike Krack said he exceeded their expectations when speaking to Motorsport-Total. Aston Martin expected they would tumble down the order and outside of the points-paying positions, based on their simulations showing they were only the eighth fastest car over the weekend.

“We should have finished in P15 and P16. That’s what the simulations tell us, because we are passed out as the seventh or eighth team. But we are eight, two seconds behind a Ferrari,” said Alonso. Alonso took his team by surprise by holding off Leclerc in the early stages after overtaking Nico Hulkenberg at the start, which ultimately enabled him to stay inside the top ten and exceed their expectations.

‘Based on simulations, only the eighth fastest car’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/fer...re-grand-prix/


Street circuits ‘cannot hide lack of performance’ says Alonso as Aston Martin lose ground to rivals
24 Sep 2024
Formula One - Official Site

“Eighth is better than we expected coming here to Singapore,” the former world champion said. “Obviously the qualifying yesterday was very encouraging and starting P7, we were dreaming that P8/P9 was possible and at the end we achieved it.”

“Good strategy from the team – we were behind Nico, we undercut on Lap 23 and we managed to overtake him, so overall I think eighth was the maximum. Now we have a little break before Austin and we have to find some performance in the car. We’ve been losing a little bit of ground compared to the top teams and we are in the middle of the midfield. We want to change this situation.”

“Good strategy from the team”;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...z0I1VzDuj9NUdf


Aston Martin must improve before Newey arrives says Alonso
25 Sep 2024
GrandPrix.com

Newey's first Aston Martin will be the 2026 car for the all-new regulations. “I think 2026 is in our heads for everyone at Aston”, Alonso, 43, told DAZN. "The biggest hope is the arrival of Adrian Newey, Enrico Cardile and a few other names.”

“This is going to be great and the future looks bright, but what we are doing now is not good enough. We have to change the pace in 2025”, he insisted. “I'm currently putting all my effort in to overcome the lack of pace we have”, said Alonso.

"A lot of work was done between Baku and Singapore. After practice we left the computers at two in the morning. We have increased the workload to find answers more than ever before.”

‘Putting all my effort in’;

https://www.grandprix.com/news/aston...ys-alonso.html


Alonso hoping for 'nice surprise' with Newey influence
Adrian Newey will start working for Aston Martin at the start of March next year.
25 Sep 2024
Nick Golding
RacingNews365

When asked if Newey can influence next season's Aston Martin, Alonso told select media including RacingNews365: "I would like to say yes, but honestly, I don't think so. March ‘25, I think the focus for most of the teams will be the ‘26 projects and the change of regulations. You start in March, and until you know everybody, you take your place in the factories, it’s April or May.”

"And I don't think that it's worth spending too much [time] on the ‘25 campaign unless you are fighting for the championship. I hope we have a nice surprise, but I doubt it. So I think the ‘26 project should be the first car that he has an influence."

‘March ‘25, I think the focus for most of the teams will be the ‘26 projects’;

https://racingnews365.com/alonso-hop...ewey-influence


‘Time’ A Factor For Elusive Third Title Claims Alonso
Sep 26, 2024
F1 Chronicle

The Spaniard said he was so keen for Adrian Newey to sign for Aston Martin that he texted the 65-year-old, met with him, and even offered a chunk of his sizeable salary to potentially increase team owner Lawrence Stroll’s financial offer.

According to the team’s commercial and marketing director Jefferson Slack, 2026 will probably be too early for a championship challenge from Aston Martin. “Newey will certainly be a big help for 2026 to be fighting for wins, and I think in 2027 we will be fighting for world championships,” he is quoted as saying by Diario Sport newspaper.

Alonso, currently 43, will turn 46 in the middle of 2027. “Step by step,” he said, “we have all we need to have that first race win and hopefully fighting for championships in the future. But I’m aware that this takes time and I don’t have that time in a way.”

‘So keen for Adrian Newey to sign… … even offered a chunk of his sizeable salary’;

https://f1chronicle.com/time-a-facto.../?nowprocket=1

[Fortitude]

Lawson: RB told me two weeks ago I would replace Ricciardo.
Liam Lawson says he has known for the past two weeks he would make his return to Formula 1 in the next race in Austin.
26th Sep 2024
Keith Collantine
RaceFans

“It now finally does feel real, obviously I knew about it for the last, probably, two weeks, but until it’s out there to the world, it obviously doesn’t ever really feel set in stone,” he told the New Zealand Herald. “I couldn’t tell anybody.”

“It had been the plan for a long time now, where this was where I was leading,” he added. “Obviously I had a contract date that needed to be fulfilled so basically it was going towards this way, and then a couple of weeks ago they told me this is what was going to happen. And then basically not long after that, it was set in stone.”

“Singapore was definitely not an enjoyable weekend for me just because obviously we all knew what was coming,” he said. “At the same time, Daniel has always been very good to me in a lot of ways when I drove last year. Even this season, he’s always been somebody that I’ve never felt in competition with him or anything like that. He never made it feel like that.”

‘Known for the past two weeks’;

https://www.racefans.net/2024/09/26/...ace-ricciardo/


The rise and fall of Daniel Ricciardo: F1 title contender turned struggling star
26 Sep 2024
Cambridge Kisby
Motor Sport Magazine

For several years, Ricciardo was seen as a potential F1 world champion, with pace complemented by an uncanny sense of the braking limit, which enabled him to pull off impossible-looking banzai overtaking manoeuvres. The contrast between his cheery personality and aggressive on-track moves earned him the nickname ‘Honey Badger’

But after leaving Red Bull, where he gave Max Verstappen a run for his money, Ricciardo never again hit the same career highs, as he struggled with inferior cars and ultimately with questions over his competitiveness.

Eight race wins, three pole positions and 32 podium finishes to his name illustrate Ricciardo’s underlying ability, and close friendships with former team-mates, fellow drivers and team bosses demonstrate his unique likability. But now the 35 year old expected to be replaced by Liam Lawson at RB with six races remaining in the 2024 season. With little chance at a seat elsewhere, this looks to be Ricciardo’s final farewell.

‘Rise and fall’;

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...?nowprocket=1#


Crucial reason pinpointed for Daniel Ricciardo’s cruel F1 decline
New theory may explain Daniel Ricciardo's downfall in competitiveness
26 Sep 2024
James Dielhenn
Crash.Net

Daniel Ricciardo’s inability to cope with the latest generation of Formula 1 car has been cited as a major reason for his downfall. “The cars that he drove so unbelievably well were a different philosophy of car,” said journalist Sam Power from Australia’s Channel 10 on the F1 Nation podcast.

“The 2022 regs that came in are incredibly stiffly sprung, a very flat floor. Previously he was used to an Adrian Newey car which was high rake, quite a lot of roll. Very different. We have often heard about him trying to adapt his driving style. I’d hazard a guess that it’s a mismatch to the 2022 cars and their general philosophy, more than anything.”

Ricciardo’s pomp at Red Bull was never relived in stints at Renault, McLaren and AlphaTauri/RB. He originally lost his F1 drive when McLaren ditched him but missed only half-a-season before Red Bull rescued his career and threw him into their AlphaTauri seat. Ricciardo initially impressed but an injury allowed Lawson to briefly deputise - and show the world his obvious potential.

‘Crucial reason’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105643...uel-f1-decline


Marko reflects on Ricciardo's 'prodigal son' failure
Daniel Ricciardo had a Red Bull return in his sights but the "killer instinct" was gone, according to Helmut Marko.
26 Sep 2024
Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has accused Daniel Ricciardo of losing his "killer instinct" that resulted in the return of "the prodigal son" turning into a failure. Speaking to Motorsport-Total, Marko said. "Then he didn't have a winning car at either Renault or McLaren. He did win at Monza [2021 Italian GP], but those were special circumstances.”

"I don't know what exactly happened, because if we knew, we would have helped him. But the speed and, above all, this late braking, and then he goes left or right... in these last few years he tried but it was no longer there, the killer instinct was gone."

Explaining that the timing of Ricciardo's departure announcement was "related to a variety of factors and obligations," he added: "He was informed, and the worthy farewell performance was, I think, the fastest lap. "That still showed what potential he has, not continuously and not at the level that would have justified him coming to Red Bull Racing, but that was an impeccable performance.”

‘Ricciardo's 'prodigal son' failure’;

https://racingnews365.com/marko-refl...al-son-failure


‘We all have bad times’: Why Guenther Steiner wasn’t ‘happy’ after watching one of Daniel Ricciardo’s last interviews
26 Sep 2024
David Comerford
F1 Oversteer

Guenther Steiner was saddened by one Daniel Ricciardo interview at Singapore Grand Prix. Ricciardo saw any realistic hope of scoring points dashed in qualifying. He suffered a Q1 exit for the sixth time this season, taking P16 on the grid. Watching on from the garage, Liam Lawson knew Ricciardo would be knocked out. The car was quick enough for Q3, with Tsunoda qualifying eighth.

Ricciardo is an eight-time Grand Prix winner who has racked up 32 podiums. He’s also an immensely popular figure in the paddock, but it was clear to Steiner that he’d reached a low point. He told Champ1: “I saw the interview with him after qualifying on TV in Singapore and I wasn’t really happy anymore. We all have good times, we all have bad times, we’re all just human. You have to respect that he won races. I like him. Danny is a great guy. He’s done a lot.”

‘Saddened’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...st-interviews/


Christian Horner speaks out on Daniel Ricciardo as VCARB exit confirmed
26 Sep 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Christian Horner paid tribute to Daniel Ricciardo following the announcement he will be replaced at VCARB for the remainder of the season. “From the moment you arrived at Red Bull it was obvious you were so much more than just a driver,” Horner wrote on Instagram. “Your constant enthusiasm, sense of humour and attitude will leave an indelible legacy on the Team here in Milton Keynes and F1 as a whole.

“Thank you for the wins, smiles, songs (and I wish I could say the shoeys), you will always be a special part of the Red Bull Family. 8 wins, 32 podiums, 1329 points. These statistics and accolades are not the only measure of who you are and what you have achieved. Thank you Daniel.”

‘Tribute’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/christ...-exit-reaction


Daniel Ricciardo pens emotional F1 farewell message after brutal Red Bull axe
Daniel Ricciardo's F1 career is all but over after he was let go by Red Bull's junior team RB, with the Australian understandably emotional in the wake of his exit
26 Sep 2024
Jacob Leeks Senior Sports Reporter
The Mirror

"I’ve loved this sport my whole life. It’s wild and wonderful and been a journey. To the teams and individuals that have played their part, thank you," Ricciardo wrote in an Instagram post of himself in his racing overalls with his back to the camera.

"To the fans who love the sport sometimes more than me haha thank you. It’ll always have its highs and lows but it’s been fun and truth be told I wouldn’t change it. Until the next adventure.”

RB Team Principal, Laurent Mekies thanked the driver for his efforts. “Everyone here at VCARB would like to thank Daniel for his hard work across the last two seasons with us. He has brought a lot of experience and talent to the Team with a fantastic attitude, which has helped everyone to develop and foster a tight team spirit," Mekies said.

‘Farewell message’;

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...-exit-33762775


VCARB welcome Lawson after saying goodbye to 'gentleman Ricciardo'
26 Sep 2024
Jeroen Immink
GPblog.com

VCARB team principal Laurent Mekies reacted Daniel Ricciardo's departure and the arrival of Liam Lawson to his team, after the driver change was announced on Thursday afternoon, the team report. The Frenchman sympathises with Ricciardo, and welcomed Lawson's at the Faenza-based formation.

Mekies is delighted at the arrival of Lawson. The New Zealander will be Yuki Tsunoda 's teammate and will once again drive Formula One in Austin. " I’d also like to take this opportunity to welcome Liam. He already knows the Team well. He drove for us last season, and coped well under difficult circumstances, so it’ll be a natural transition."

"It’s great to see young talent from within the Red Bull family make the next step. We’re looking forward to getting our heads down and focusing on the rest of the season together," Mekies concluded.

‘VCARB welcome Lawson’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/30370...am-lawson.html