Friday 24 August 2018

2018 Belgian GP: FIA Team Principals Press Conference.

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA.com
PART ONE - TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Cyril ABITEBOUL (Renault), Christian HORNER (Red Bull), Gil DE FERRAN (McLaren)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Cyril, we had Daniel Ricciardo in here yesterday explaining his decision to join Renault. When did you start talks with Daniel and just how did that deal come about from a Renault point of view.

Cyril ABITEBOUL: Obviously, we have known Daniel since a while for the collaboration we naturally have on the engine side with Red Bull since 12 years. We’ve had random discussions – jokes – with Daniel since a while. It would be hard to put an exact date on the first joke about this type of switch. But I’d say that’s it’s a while since we’ve expressed our interest in him, the fact that we liked him, his style, his skills, his talent, his leadership and the fact that there could be an opportunity for him at Renault. We’ve always been clear with what we are, what we are not yet, that we are still in the making. That if he was interested in a turnkey organisation, in a turnkey team with a turnkey car that would not be with us – but if he was interested in a project in construction where he could play a role, we would be interested. So, you know, that’s where we left it and we accepted also since day one it would take him a bit of time to digest and to consider because it was an important decision, you know such a switch is complex. It’s complex in life and in the career of a driver, which is short – but it’s also complex in the life of a team, both for all organisations involved. So, we accepted that. We accepted he would be sort-of making and controlling the timing and obviously we had to look at alternative options in parallel in case it would not happen. And yeah, I think he sort of digested the proposal and eventually made his decision.

Q: It seemed to come quite late. Daniel said it was over a 48-hour period that he finally made his call. Did it come as a surprise to you as well when he finally gave you the news?

CA: Yeah, it came both as a surprise but also as a relief because it’s positive news. It’s great news for Renault, for the team – but it’s also news that carrying not just lots of… not just emotions but also responsibility and some obligation to deliver. To deliver cars that are in-line with his expectations, with his talent. We were already obliged to our shareholders, to our sponsors, to our fans, towards the legacy of Renault. Now we are also obliged towards him, and we want this charismatic driver finds what he’s come to find and to look for with our organisation. So, we just have a bit more pressure – but it’s healthy pressure.

Q: Christian, it’s basically the same question to you. When Daniel turned around and said he was leaving Red Bull, he said that that came over a short period, that he made the final decision. Did it catch you out?

Christian HORNER: I suppose the whole process with Daniel has dragged on this year. Y’know, we started talking really in February, initially aiming to have something done by Australia and then obviously, that got postponed until after Monaco, and then Monaco got postponed. The whole process has been fairly drawn out. Obviously in recent weeks, Dietrich Mateschitz was involved in the discussions with him in the discussions from Barcelona, in Austria and all indications were that he was going to stay. Certainly, that was the intent from the team’s point of view. Obviously, Daniel, when he called on the Thursday, when he landed in the US, having had everything in front of him that he wanted and had required, financially, technically, duration etcetera, etcetera, there was something in him that he still felt he wanted a change. Certainly, that’s how he’s explained it to us and that he felt the timing was right to do something different. So, of course it was a surprise. We’d expected if he were to leave it would be a for a Mercedes or a Ferrari – but that’s obviously his decision and we fully respect that. We’ve had ten great years. Red Bull invested in him as a junior in Formula Renault. He then went on to win the [British] Formula 3 Championship. I remember going watch him at Silverstone in Formula 3 and seeing even at that stage his talent was very clear. He then obviously graduated through the Renault World Series into Formula One with HRT and from there into Toro Rosso and then from there was selected to partner Sebastian Vettel when Mark Webber retired. We’ve seen him grow during that time, evolve as a personality and as a driver. He’s been a pleasure to have in the team at Red Bull Racing the last five years. He’s driven some great races. He’s a big character. We’ve given him a platform to express that and we wish him well for the next journey in his career.

Q: Gil, welcome to the press conference. Fernando was sitting next to Daniel yesterday and spoke a lot about his decision to move on, so we’re going to look to the future. You ran Lando Norris in your car this morning. It’s unusual for McLaren to run a different driver in FP1, so why that decision?

Gil DE FERRAN: We’ve I think been investing in Lando for a fair few years now. We’re trying to give him as much exposure as possible. This was an opportunity for him to drive the car at a grand prix weekend, which is a different situation, more people on the track and a lot of track evolution and also a completely different level of downforce – so I think we keep walking the development road.

Q: Looking to the future from a personal point of view, you’ve now been in the role for couple of months. What are your priorities at McLaren?

GdF: Look, to your point, I’ve been here two or three months. It feels like a lifetime already! It’s been many long hours and I took the first phase of this appointment to really assess what goes on in the team and try to get to know the people better and understand what everybody else does in the team. And one of the things that is clear to me is that there’s a lot of talent within the team, up and down the organisation, so I guess my main priority is really to unlock that talent and hopefully turn that into better results.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsport-Magazin.com) There’s been a lot of confusion about Fernando. He said that he had an offer from Red Bull Racing to race for you next season. Can you clarify that please?

Christian HORNER: Just to be totally clear, there was no offer to Fernando Alonso for next year. Fernando is a fantastic driver, he’s a great talent in Formula One. He’s obviously chosen his path. We had an enquiry from Flavio Briatore, and from Liberty Media, but the position within Red Bull has always been very clear that we invest in youth and have a talent pool through the Red Bull Junior Programme. And as has been the case with Sebastian Vettel, Kvyat, Daniel Ricciardo, Max Verstappen, we’re always going to draw upon the talent pool that we have. We have offered Fernando a contract in the past, but that was back in 2007.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Christian, what was the criteria to choose Gasly instead of Carlos Sainz Jr? And also, the same question I did yesterday to Max – if you see the numbers of both Toro Rosso drivers concerning the engine combustion internal MGU-K, MGU-H, they are over the limit for long and we still have nine races to go. Are you confident that Honda will solve all of these problems from the middle of the season to the next one, and also provide performance?

CH: To deal with the fist part of your question, we selected Pierre Gasly based on what we see performance-wise the job he’s doing within Toro Rosso. Obviously we’d selected Max Verstappen prior to that having had the choice of either Carlos or Max at the time. To allow Carlos’ career to continue to develop we effectively leased him out to Renault to continue that career development. We had the option to bring him back, but faced with the options that we had and looking at relative performances that we chose, Pierre Gasly was the right guy to fill the seat and graduate into Red Bull Racing. Therefore we released Carlos immediately to pursue other options in Formula One. He had an offer on the table from McLaren that we didn’t want to in any way impede, make sure that he was free to be able to take that up, and it’s great to see that he’s now in a good team like McLaren. Regarding Honda, obviously the changes that you talk about – some of which are tactical, not purely based on reliability, in a development phase – they are pushing hard; we have confidence in what we see, in the investment that we see going into the programme, in the quality of personnel that are involved in the programme. Things are very much moving in the right direction; only time will tell, but I think that you’ll see inevitably more changes again this year, but it’s all part of a development process for 2019 and beyond.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Cyril, after Hungary with the Force India situation you expressed concern that its salvation could turn it into a Mercedes B-team or satellite team type situation, yet I believe that you signed your approval for the team to get its money, et cetera. So what changed your mind? Have you had assurances that this won’t happen, or what was the situation?

CA: No, to be extremely clear we did not change our mind in the sense that we never wanted to cause any more difficulty for Force India. We are already at ten teams, which I think is the minimum for a sustainable Formula One. If you look at also, by the way, opportunities for young drivers obviously more teams would be better than less teams – or at least more cars – so clearly we would not want to have caused anything bad for Force India. Having said that, it is true that we have seeked reassurance from the commercial rights holder that in future it will not be a requirement to be part of a group of teams in order to be able to fight for championships or to fight for wins. That’s definitely our ambition, to be in that position, but we don’t have right now the capacity or the strategy to form any particular alliance such that we would have a junior team or a partner team. We have a partnership with the gentleman on my left on the engine side, which could be expanded with more technology, but that’s not really something that we want should be imposed on us as a model in order to be successful. So that’s the sort of clarity that we are seeking from the commercial rights holder, that could not be obviously obtained through some new regulations in the interim of time necessary for Force India way forward and survival, but particularly in the context of the work on the budget cap and the restriction on resources, that debate, that discussion, is going to become even more important. We’ve had discussions, I believe that we share the same vision as Ross Brawn, as Chase Carey, for the future of the sport, we don’t have any guarantee, but we understand that we see the world in the same way.

Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) Christian, you said that Liberty approached you after Daniel’s decision was made known. Are you suggesting that Liberty were somehow trying to place Fernando with you, or were taking an active role in trying to change his mind to stay in the sport?

CH: There was just an enquiry as to whether we would consider Fernando. Which you can understand from a promoter’s point of view: Fernando Alonso is a great asset to Formula One; if he could be in a competitive car I’m sure they would prefer him staying than pursuing his triple crown. I wouldn’t expect them to do anything different.

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Question for Christian and Gil after Cyril’s comments about the Force India situation and the prospect of teams buddying up. Could I just get your comments on the prospect of the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari having that potential increased political power within F1?

GdF: Look, I think that for us at McLaren the highest priority is to have Formula One that is entertaining, that is healthy, that is competitive, and sustainable -- where all the competitors are on a level playing field. I think throughout this whole negotiation that has been our main priority. Beyond that I’m probably not the right guy to comment. You should pass that question to Zak, I guess.

CH: I think there’s obvious economic benefits, particularly for the smaller teams. We have Toro Rosso under the same ownership as Red Bull Racing, there are obvious economies of scale, but one has to be careful. Certainly something that we’ve never pursued is utilising wind tunnel time, other technical tools, to the benefit of one team. I think if there can be financial gain through the exchange of technology, that’s absolutely fine and something that should be looked at and included moving forward. But what we don’t want is that potentially Ferrari have two customer teams, that their capacity is effectively funding research and development of the lead team. That’s something I’m sure will get tidied up as we move forwards with the regulations, and particularly I think the golden opportunity to deal with that is the new Concorde Agreement or whatever it chooses to be called after 2020.

Q: (Walter Koster – Saabrücker Zeitung) Mr Horner, you said in a German magazine some weeks ago that ‘drivers must be more important. Engines are too significant, they represent 70 percent of performance. That means that 30 percent remains for the chassis, tyres, and pilot. Do you have the impression that constructors and engineers moved the pilots into the background and that Formula One is particularly a championship of constructors and engineers?

CH: I think Formula One today is a little out of balance. My personal view is that the engine within these current regulations plays too prominent a role. I think Formula One needs to be a combination of three factors in equal measure -- driver, team/chassis, and engine. If you have two of three of those elements that you can still be in a competitive position, and I think that at the moment we’re a little bit out of kilter because the engine is such a dominating factor that you can’t compensate if you have two of the other elements. Hopefully, within regulations that are being under discussion and appraisal for 2021, there is the perfect opportunity to try and redress some of that balance, At the end of the day, Formula One -- of course it’s a team sport, but the most prolific thing is the drivers, and we want to see the best drivers competing against each other more frequently.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Christian and Cyril, picking up on that particular point, and I think it’s timely because it was my plan to ask about the engines. Since you were last there, it seems as though the plans to introduce some form of different technology for engines from 2021, that there’s been a bit of a U-turn, and in fact in this week’s race programme Ross Brawn is saying that possibly the timing of 2021 should be looked at in any event, and that we may in fact keep the current units beyond that. How do you two feel about that, you as a customer and Cyril, you as one of the engine companies?

CA: No, I would agree that I think what Formula One is trying to do for 2021 is extremely ambitious. It may be required, but it’s extremely ambitious, and what I mean by that is basically it will be the first time in F1 history I believe that we would at the same time change chassis regulations, engine regulations, Concorde Agreement, governance structure, new budget cap. That’s a lot. That’s a lot. There might be the risk of trying to embrace too much and not produce and deliver anything. Our view would be to try and be a bit more pragmatic and focus on what is the main emergency for Formula One, and I’m thinking really of the show, of the disparity between the teams, the disparity in the revenue. We think that this is really the main priority. I think some clarity on budget cap or not, because the costs are certainly too high. We don’t think that the engine regulations are at that level of priority. Am I satisfied with the engine situation? No. The answer is no, and we need to improve that, but that’s mainly by working and by working harder. I think that we’ve done investment and organisation change, and there is more to come so that we can overcome our deficit, but that’s our problem – that’s a Renault problem; it shouldn’t be a problem for the sport. That’s why I believe that we should reduce maybe the weight of that topic, of that issue, within all the list of priorities of Formula One. Stability should be, by definition and by default, the prevailing scenario in this circumstance.

Q: Christian, your thoughts on those changes?

CH: I think I understood what Cyril said! There are broad similarities. I think at the moment our situation is different to where it was two or three months ago. Stability is important. There's no new manufacturers coming in, these regulations are impossible for a new manufacturer, should they come in. I think that rather than making a half-hearted change and getting it half right, I think it’s better to take a little bit more time to really consider what is the right engine for Formula One moving forward. If that needs a bit more time, or a couple more years to achieve that, then that’s the sensible approach.

Q: How long do you think it would take to plan that out?

CH: I think at the moment now I can’t see anything changing before the 2023 season, to be honest with you.

Q: (Luke Smith – Crash.net) Gil, are you able to give any updates on McLaren’s Indycar plans for next season. Zak previously said that a decision would need to be made over the summer and we’re getting towards the end of the summer and obviously that factors in with Fernando’s future as well?

GdF: As you know, IndyCar is still under serious consideration, but we have not made any decisions of yet and I think when we have, we will let you know.

Q: (Arjan Schouten – AD Sport) – A question for Cyril and Christian. We talked a lot about the future and next season, but the fact is this season is not finished yet. You already signed the divorce papers, but there are nine races to go. I don’t think that’s a very simple position to perform. How do you two look at the last races of this season.

CA: With Red Bull? Frankly, things don’t change. We’ve had 11 years and a half of collaboration and we are not going to run that down for the last six months. I think Red Bull is still in the position to have good results, to secure some podiums, maybe some wins – they have done that already this season, so why not more. We need to have a discussion this weekend regarding the introduction of a new-spec engine, an upgraded spec of engine, which could come as soon as Monza, but we need to have that conversation based on their assessment of reliability risk versus extra performance. That’s the type of discussion we are prepared to have, to me in an air of the great of collaboration that we’ve had, so absolutely no change of philosophy or position on our side.

Q: And Christian, your thoughts on that relationship and also the fact that Daniel is leaving? Is it a tricky situation for you between now and the end of the year?

CH: It’s very much business as normal. We’ve got nine races to go. We go for it every weekend, we try to get the best results we can between now and the end of the year and that obviously includes with Daniel. I sat down with him earlier in the week, after he came back from his holiday and said ‘look, we’re not going to talk to you about what’s going on in 2019, but our objective is to do the best we can between now and the end of the year. The same rules apply as for the past four-and-a-half years. You’ll get equal opportunity and we just want them to give their very best until the end of the year, which I’ve got absolutely no doubt that he will do, but obviously things like simulator time and so on will now become much more restricted.

Q: (Oliver Brown – The Telegraph) Max said yesterday, when asked about Daniel’s move, quite pointedly, that it’s a change of scenery, but he doesn’t think it’s the best scenery. You were obviuously, during the heat of battle in Hungary, very critical, saying Renault were supplying you with a sub-standard engine. Given the loss of Daniel is very significant, is there any added frustration in losing him to an organisation of which you have been very publicly critical?

CH: I think the decision is Daniel’s choice, and as long as he’s comfortable looking at himself in the mirror with the choices that he’s made, you have to respect that. He is a free spirit. It’s the first time in his Formula 1 career that he has been out of contract. He doesn't have a management group around him or anything like that; He comes to his own decisions, and this is a decision he’s come to on his own, and you have to respect that at the end of the day. I’m grateful for what he has done for us and for the team. He’s driven some phenomenal races. There have been some iconic moments where he’s been making people drink out of shoes or whatever else on the podium. The decision to make that change, that life change, is purely his decision, and he has his own reasoning behind that. All he can explain is that he feels he needs a change. It wasn’t, as I say, due to any fiscal reason, or contractual reason, or feeling the team was treating him any differently to the other driver, so this is purely his decision, that he feels it is time to try something different.

Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC) On the subject of the sport: Eau Rouge is flat, has been for a while now, Blanchimont’s flat, and this morning two of the cars, one of them being yours Christian, appeared to be flat through Pouhon as well. These are iconic corners that aren’t corners anymore. Is the grip power ratio wrong in Formula 1?

GDF: My personal belief is that the faster the car, typically the more difficult it is to drive, because you have to perform all the same things in a shorter period of time. That makes it more difficult for you to accomplish that in a very precise way. Having said that, to your point, there are a few corners that were very difficult corners. When I was here, God knows, 20 years ago, Eau Rouge was a very difficult corner and it doesn’t appear to be that way any more, so I think the balance between tyre grip, car weight, downforce, and power are really the big knobs you can turn to affect that and maybe they should be looked.

CA: No, I fully agree that power to weight and power to drag are probably not what we need in order to have spectacular races. Not necessarily races, but to have aspirational drivers, because we need to be able to see the drivers fighting against their car, fighting as they enter into every single corner, and we don’t see much o that any more. I think this is distorting our image of the drivers, who are still doing a remarkable job, but we don’t get the same sensation, emotion, as spectators. So I think that should be one of the priorities of future chassis and engine regulation, because you could increase the power also.

Q: Anything to add, Christian? And were you flat at Pouhon?

CH: If you look at our car and the amount of downforce wer are running on the car, some of those corners are pretty exciting for the driver. Some of the corners here, if you look at Eau Rouge, with kerbs being moved around a bit, run-offs being included nowm there is no penalty, ultimately, for getting it wrong now, You’ve got safety versus performance discussions there. Some of the corners are perhaps made a little bit too easy as well and it’s when you get a variable condition here that then things become really exciting. You get a little bit of rain, and suddenly Eau Rouge becomes a big corner, Blanchimont becomes a big corner. So it’s that balance.

Q: (Louis Dekker – NOS) Christian, can you give an indication about the competitiveness Red Bull have on this circuit, knowing you problems with speed etc?

CH: We understand that Mercedes and Ferrari are introducing upgrades this weekend on the power unit, and I think this weekend and next weekend are going to be difficult races for us. But you know there inclement weather around at this circuit, so anything can happen but I think you have to say that Ferrari and Mercedes very much have the upper hand at these two venues. Hopefully when we get to the likes of Singapore and Mexico we’ll be able to give them a harder time.

Q: (Dieter Rencken - Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Cyril, Christian has just said and it has also been reported that they were willing to accede to all Daniel’s demand. That would have included some sort of substantial fiscal demands. Obviously, to get him you must have matched it or come very close, whichever way. It’s no secret that Renault doesn’t exactly have the biggest budget in the paddock, so from a commercial perspective, have you had an increase in budget to cover it next year, do you get more money from Renault, are you going to cut back on some of your expenditures or how do you commercially afford him?

CA: Two comments: First, in my opinion, Renault can afford pretty much anything. Renault is the largest car maker involved in Formula 1 – full stop. So we can afford anything as long as it makes sense. Then it’s just a question of value for money and whether it makes sense to spend that given where we are in the development of our team. Second, I don’t think we were the highest bidder in obtaining Daniel, without going into details. He bought into the project not necessarily because of the money. I don’t think it would be great to put this sort of light on Daniel. And lastly, it would not make any sense to bring a driver by having to make some concession on our capacity to finance the development of the engine or the chassis. So, in shorthand, obviously it means an increase of our budget.

PART TWO - TEAM REPRESENTATIVES – Otmar SZAFNAUER (Racing Point Force India), Franz TOST (Toro Rosso), Claire WILLIAMS (Williams)

Q: Otmar, not much of a summer break for you, I’m sure it was very busy. But now you are the Team Principal of Racing Point Force India. Can you just talk us through the past few weeks from your perspective?

Otmar SZAFNAUER: It was a busy few weeks for myself and mainly for the administrator who was trying to find a solution for our administration. I was busy basically informing all of our team members who were on holiday of the goings on and trying to communicate what was happening. It’s not an everyday thing, administration, and a lot of people didn’t understand the process and when you don’t have a good understanding of the process it creates anxiety, so I was just trying to keep everyone together and informed. But well worth it in the end.

Q: And then more specifically, this past week and especially the last 48 hours since arriving at Spa, what’s been going on behind the scenes?

OS: I think, from what I understand, it started of as a share sale that then transferred into an asset sale, for reasons I don’t quite understand. But once that happened we needed a new entry into Formula 1 and to gain a new entry in a short period of time takes a lot of work, so the last 48 hours was working towards Racing Point Formula 1 Team gain its new entry, and that was a lot of work to do that. But fortunately with the support of the FIA, FOM, our fellow competitors and colleagues within our community, we got it done. I’ve got to thank the teams as well for supporting us.

Q: Speaking of the other teams, we’ll move on to Claire. Force India’s future has been closely intertwined with yours based on Lawrence Stroll’s involvement. Can you let us know where this leaves Williams going forward?

Claire WILLIAMS: First of all, I think this is obviously a great story for Formula 1. Prior to the shutdown we were all slightly concerned as to Force India’s fate, and I think Lawrence stepping in and securing the team’s future is a great thing, not just for our sport but obviously for the employees, so at Williams we are delighted. I think probably the biggest knock-on effect for us will be the lack of Lawrence’s presence in our motorhome. I know that he has spent a bit of time in the Force India motorhome this weekend already. But for us at the moment, it’s business as usual. Lance still has a contract to drive for us until the end of the season, he’s racing for us here in Spa and Lawrence is still in our motorhome.

Q: You mention Lance. He was sitting in that seat in yesterday’s press conference and said that he’ll wait to see what his dad wants him to do in the future and hopes he’ll take him to Force India. Can you just clarify: will Lance race the rest of the season for you? Is that what you expect?

CW: There are a lot of twists and turns on Formula 1 aren’t there? I think we’ve seen that over the past few weeks alone. I think it might be slightly odd if Lawrence owns one team and his son is another, but hey, this is Formula 1! At the moment, as I said, Lance is contracted to drive for us, he’s driving here this weekend and as soon as we have more information, when we know, then we will share that.

Q: Thank you. Franz, a confirmed move in the driver market is that Pierre Gasly will leave yourselves next season and move up to Red Bull. Just what are Red Bull getting in terms of a driver in Pierre?

Franz TOST: They will get a high-skilled, very fast, experienced driver, because Gasly is a good example of how to build up a driver. He was very successful in all the lower categories, where he won races, where he won championships, and when he came to Toro Rosso at the beginning of the season, he was already quite experienced. He is fast, he has a good technical understand, he has a good understanding for the tyre management and therefore I am convinced that he will do a very good at Red Bull Racing.

Q: With Pierre moving up that means there is at least one space available at Toro Rosso next season, but there is not a huge amount of drivers ready at the moment within the Red Bull Junior Programme, so what do you do for 2019?

FT: We will see. Red Bull is discussing different names and I am convinced in the close future they will come up with a name.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Otmar, the situation around the team means that there are quite a few consequences for you guys. So could you just explain what the resolution is on things like championship prize money and where you stand with engine allocations and that sort of thing, and what it means for the team as well?

OS: Well, the biggest consequence is the fact that we start from zero points, so we forego the 49 points, because those belong to Sahara Force India, which is not an entrant anymore. We are a new entrant and we start from zero. We’ll do the best we can to score as many points as we can in the remaining race and we’ll see where we end up at the end of the season, and that will determine some of the prize fund for the following year. As far as engine allocation goes, we had confirmation today from Charlie that we will continue with the engine allocation and gearbox allocation as if we never ceased racing. I think in his eyes he thought that was the most fair thing to do vis-à-vis the other teams, so that’s how we’re going to go forward.

Can we just clarify, Otmar, that if you are foregoing the championship points that you had already earned this season, you are having to forego the prize money earned in previous years by Force India?

OS: No. The remaining nine teams have signed, so to speak, a document that enables us to keep the money that Sahara Force India had earned in years past.

Q: (Luke Smith – Crash.net) Otmar, we know that Force India was considering a name change both for this season and looking ahead to 2019 as well. As a new entrant, now would have seemed like a perfect time to get rid of the Force India name. What were the reasons behind keeping that in the new team name?

OS: Isn’t that ironic: we wanted to change it, we didn’t, then we could have changed it and we didn’t? The reason is we started the year with Force India as our chassis name. Formula One, the FIA, they don’t like chassis name changes and I understand why, because it confuses the fans. And we thought it was prudent to keep Force India for the fans. The cars’ are still pink, we still have the same sponsors, we still have the same drivers, we have the same motorhome, we have the same employees. You look at us, we’re exactly the same. I think it would have been confusing to remove Force India. Racing Point was added in front of Force India instead of Sahara – we were Sahara Force India before – that was just so we can distinguish between the old and the new and Racing Point just happens to be the name of the company in the United Kingdom that owns the assets to that’s the only reason for Racing Point being there, but the chassis name still remains Force India and I think from a fan point perspective that’s the right thing to do.

Q: (Oliver Brown – The Telegraph) For both Otmar and Claire: a lot of people in F1 like to talk about this sport being a meritocracy and yet the conjecture which now links Lance with Force India arises purely from the fact that his father is part of the consortium that controls the team. This doesn’t have to be referencing Lance specifically as I know it’s sensitive but how much do you feel that F1 genuinely is governed by ability or is it still governed by who you know?

CW: I’ve talked about this point a lot over the past 18 months. I think the crux of it for us is that as a team, as you would expect, we wouldn’t put a driver in our car for a variety of different reasons if we didn’t feel that they had the ability to race a Formula One car. These machines are not easy to drive, they’re dangerous, you want to make sure you’ve got somebody who’s competent enough to be in that race car and Lance has proved that. I also believe that over the time that he’s spent with us at Williams, that he’s demonstrated that he’s got talent and that he deserves to be in this sport. He had a season last year in his rookie year where he took the first row of the grid in Monza, I think it was. He took a podium, one of the only drivers to do so last year outside of the top three teams. So I don’t think that you can say that Lance is only in this sport because of his father.

OS: I tend to agree with Claire. Lance, for sure, especially in the lower formulas, has proven to be a race winner, a winner of championships. We’ve been watching him too because he’s a competitor of ours and the one thing Claire didn’t add is that every time it rains it seems like his talent shines and that’s usually the sign of a driver that has great car control so we don’t know him intimately but for sure he deserves to be in this sport, not just because of his Dad.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Otmar, the situation of yourself is that you’ve gone from COO to CEO and also team principal. Could you also confirm that you were given a shareholding up to 25% of the revised company please?

OS: Wow. Wouldn’t that be great? Haha. Yeah, I can confirm that that isn’t the case but I like your suggestion. I’m going to go… before the ink’s dry, I’d better go talk to Lawrence and the consortium. That’s a good idea, that’s a good idea!

Q: (Julien Billiotte – Autohebdo) Otmar, will you keep the same driver line-up for the remainder of the season or could we see changes at Racing Point Force India from Monza onwards?

OS: Yes, for the short term, it’s the same two. What happens thereafter it’s not impossible to change, that’s for sure, but a lot of agreements would have to happen so I don’t know, it’s hard for me to predict that in the future.

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Franz, I know that you mentioned that Red Bull are speaking to some drivers about next season and hopefully there will be an announcement soon. What do you think of the prospect of a driver from outside the Red Bull pool currently coming into the team next season? Obviously the likes of someone like Stoffel Vandoorne might be available next year if McLaren doesn’t chose to stick with him

FT: As I mentioned before there are different names which are being discussed but up to now no decision has been made so therefore we just wait and Red Bull will announce it.

Q: (Luke Smith – Crash.net) Franz, are you able to give any updates on James Key’s status? McLaren said they had a plan to get him out of his contract early if possible. Do you see that happening any time soon?

FT: I don’t care about the plans from McLaren. Fact is that he has a Toro Rosso contract.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Franz, with the main team, Red Bull Racing, taking on Honda engines next year, are there any plans for yourselves to have a far far closer technical operation in terms of listed parts etc or how do you see that evolving?

FT: We will have a very close cooperation with Red Bull Technology next year because we will have the same rear part, which means the power unit, gearbox and the suspension, everything within the regulations, because we want to use this much.

Yeah, the front suspension as well, the inner parts, not the outer parts, that’s all, but that’s a lot, because you know the complete rear part means also the hydraulics, the electronics, all this kind of stuff.

Q: (Pierre van Vliet – F1i.com) Otmar, about the name thing, is it going to stay the same? The team name? The chassis name for 2019?

OS: Yeah, we’ve got some time to decide that but I believe now that we are a new entrant with Force India as a chassis name. For us to change, we will have to get approval from the Formula One Commission, so we’ve got to come up with a name that will be lasting and appropriate and also be approved by the Formula One Commission so I don’t know what that is, this is brand new, but the good news is that we’ve got a few months to think about it before we have to enter next year or for next year.

Thursday 23 August 2018

PART 2 - 2018 Belgian GP: FIA Drivers' Press Conference.

PART TWO: DRIVERS - Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing), Stoffel VANDOORNE (McLaren), Marcus ERICSSON (Sauber), Lance STROLL (Williams)

Q: Max, we’ve just had Daniel in here fielding a number of questions.  Can we get your opinion? Were you surprised that Daniel has opted to leave Red Bull and you’ll have Pierre as your teammate next season?

Max VERSTAPPEN: Well, I think everyone was surprised but at the end of the day, he has to feel good about his decision, I think that’s the most important (thing).

Q: And what are your thoughts on having Pierre as your teammate in 2019?

MV: He’s a great guy. I know him already since we were go-karting together. Even at the beginning of this year he was one week in Monaco, he stayed in my apartment so playing FIFA in the evenings so we have a good relationship and I’m sure he is very quick as well, so I think it’s good for the team.

Q: Stoffel, your future is still unclear with McLaren but you know that Carlos Sainz will be in one of those seats so are you hopeful of being his teammate in 2019?

Stoffel VANDOORNE: Yeah, I’m confident although at the moment there is nothing guaranteed for next year. I’m feeling positive, obviously, after the summer break to come to Spa and have your home race with all the friends, family and fans that are here is always an extra… that gives you an extra boost so I think the main focus is on this weekend to really give the best performance we can and then we see what the future brings.

Q: Your form picked up in Hungary at the last race so are you confident that you’ll continue on stronger footing this weekend here in Spa?

SV: Yeah, very confident. I know we had a difficult run in the last couple of races before the summer break where we had the problems with the car which we couldn’t really explain and then whenever we changed everything got ourselves back to a normal competitiveness and I think we really showed in Hungary that the performance was back to where it should have been. Yeah, unfortunately we had a retirement there and yeah, I’m just looking to carry forward that momentum into this race.

Q: Lance, moving on to you: there’s been movement in the driver market, movement in the team ownership market over the last few weeks. Just how has the summer break impacted on your future?

Lance STROLL: Well, for the moment nothing’s changed on my side. I’m still wearing a Williams polo, we’ve got a race this weekend and I’m going to be 100 percent focused and committed on my job, yeah. On the other side, things have happened, really pleased for my father. He saw a great financial opportunity with Force India. They’ve been struggling for a long time, he sees a lot of potential in the company and he’s a businessman. He’s passionate about cars, Formula One, always has been. He’s saved 400 jobs and he believes that he can build a very competitive and healthy company for the future so I’m happy for him.

Q: And do you have a timeline for your own future and what to expect and when we should expect news about what you’ll do in 2019?

LS: Like I said, for the moment I’m here at Williams, I’m not sure what I’ll be doing in the future. We’ll see what my father decides to do with me. He’s a nice guy. I hope he’ll take me.

Q: Marcus, moving on to you, as these two press conferences have shown, it’s been a very volatile driver market over the summer. What does that mean for a driver like yourself who’s also still waiting to see what he does next season?

Marcus ERICSSON: No, for me it’s the same like the other guys say: you need to focus on your job and deliver on track. For me, I need to prove that I should be in F1 for next year. That’s what we’re all trying to do. It’s no secret that I want to stay in Sauber, I think that’s been part of that scene for a long time now and we’ve made some great progress this year so I would like to continue that over next season as well but I know the coming races will be very important for me so I need to really focus and deliver on track.

Q: Does the fact that there’s been so much movement elsewhere change the fact that you’re focused on Sauber?

ME: No, I think there’s always been things happening in Formula One and you never know what’s happening the next day so I think you as a driver, you really need to focus on driving and deliver on track and then you have your management focusing on the other things so for me it hasn’t changed anything for me. I still have the same focus on the driving and the upcoming races and that’s where I will put my attention.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Oana Popoiu – Fanzone.net) Max, Red Bull will be using new fuel this race which apparently seems to be a little bit more faster in lap times. Where do you think this will take you in qualifying and afterwards in the race?

MV: I think we need a little bit more than just new fuel to be beating Ferrari and Mercedes. It’s always good to get upgrades. We always have to push ourselves and we are not getting the updates from the engine but yeah, we’ll see. Hopefully a little bit closer.

Q: (Arjan Schouten – AD) Max, Daniel talked a lot about his move. He said it wasn’t about the money, it wasn’t about you, it wasn’t about his position in the team but it was about a need for a change of scenery. Have you seen any signs of that because he talked also a bit about frustration with his position in the team and sort of stuff? Is it something you have already noticed, maybe?

MV: I don’t know. I don’t think so. Of course I think everybody has moments in their careers when you’re frustrated or you’re not happy with the current situation. I think everybody here wants to win races or wants to win championships but sometimes it’s not like that and you have to really be patient and work hard for it and yeah, sometimes you need the whole package to come together and I think that’s what Red Bull is working on at the moment and I’m confident that they can deliver a car that is capable of winning every race. We just need the whole package and we’re working towards that so that’s why it was also a little bit of a surprise for me that he left. If it then is a change of scenery, I’m not sure if it’s the best scenery to go to but yeah…

Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Max, if you see the numbers of Honda, Toro Rosso this year, Gasly and his teammate, they overtake a lot of… they went over all the limits of the power unit, of the six elements that comprise the power unit. Do you think Honda will be able, from one season to another, to solve all these problems and also make a competitive power unit?

MV: Well, they took those parts mainly because they were either at the back of the grid or something happened which is not engine related so… I think at the moment they’re really comfortable and all the parts that they have that they wouldn’t take any other penalties so I’m not too worried.

Q: (Christian Menarth – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Stoffel, you said earlier in Formula One nothing’s guaranteed for next year. Sorry to ask the question at your home Grand Prix but would you say it’s guaranteed you’re driving next weekend for McLaren, because there are rumours that you won’t be?

SV: I don’t have any doubt. I think these days there’s always a lot of rumours and a lot of question marks in the press but from my side I’m 100 percent confident. The only thing I can do is to focus on my job and I think I’ve shown that I’m very very close to Fernando. I think some of your colleagues have made up some statistics to show how close teammates have been with Fernando and I think I’ve been pretty much right up there.

Q: (Edd Straw – Autosport) Stoffel, obviously McLaren could have confirmed you for next year at the same time as they confirmed the other driver. The fact they haven’t clearly shows there’s still some doubt or question marks so why are you so confident about next year and what exactly has McLaren told you about what you need to do in order to be still there next year? Is it dependent on them not getting other drivers, is there a danger of fallback or have they said ‘look, if you keep performing at say Hungary levels for the next X races you’ll be fine’?

SV: I think the only thing I have in my own control is the performances on track and like I said before, I know I had a difficult run of races before Hungary with the problems we had on the car but then we showed that everything was back to normal in Hungary so I’m very confident for the next couple of races that the results are going to be back to where they belong. It’s still not going to be a miracle in the position we are in at the moment but I’m feeling positive.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Max, when you came into Red Bull from Toro Rosso it was effectively a similar step to the one that Pierre Gasly is doing now. At that stage, Daniel was the more senior driver in the team and then of course you grew up within that team. Next year you’ll be the team leader, based on experience and race wins etc in the team. Do you believe that you’re ready to actually lead that team with Pierre as your number two so to speak?

MV: I think, within Red Bull, I think we’ve always been treated equally so I don’t really see a difference in that now coming up and I also don’t really feel like a leader, I just try to do the best possible job for the team and for myself and of course I have more experience than him so I just try to use that to my advantage.

Q: (Inaudible) Max, in Hungary, you were very upset and Christian Horner as well about Renault. How do you feel now and have you spoken to Renault and Red Bull during the summer break about it?

MV: Yeah, I was not allowed to swear but after four years, I think at one point it’s really getting really annoying but yeah, we try to make the best of it for the rest of the season and hopefully we’ll still be able to fight for podiums or maybe a victory at one track.

Q: (Rene Outman – Racing News 365) To all of you: there are a lot of fans here because of you Max and reports suggest that a Dutch Grand Prix could return to the calendar in the future. If you guys had the power to change the calendar, which specific track would you add?

ME: Anderstorp in Sweden. Not up to F1 standards. I think a race in the northern countries would be really good for Formula One because we have a lot of motorsport history there and a lot of fans so I think a race in Sweden, Denmark, Finland would be really good for Formula One so I would probably do that.

LS: I think a street circuit. Miami, that sounded really exciting. I know that kind of fell through but another street circuit could be pretty fun.

SV: I’d like to have a go at Imola. I think it’s always been a circuit I’ve enjoyed playing computer games on and always one I liked so it’s a shame that we’re not going there now.

MV: I would chose Macau but then we need to make it a bit wider, even though that’s a bit hard but that would be great.

Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) Lance, just picking up on what you were saying earlier, is there no link whatsoever between your father’s investment in Force India and your future driving career? Is the speculation that you’ll be driving for Force India next season then completely wide of the mark?

LS: Right now, I’m committed to Williams,  the contract with Williams.  We’ve achieved some good success in the past, last year, so right now I’m going to try and beat ‘em.

Q: (Sara Monterian – Motorlat.com) Max, since we already touched upon the question of the Dutch Grand Prix, there have been a lot of rumours where it could actually be organised. For example, there have been a lot of talks about either a street circuit either in Rotterdam or Amsterdam or a possible comeback for Zandvoort. If you would have the possibility to chose, which one would you chose?

MV: I would chose a permanent track. I think we already have enough street circuits on the calendar and anyway I like permanent tracks more. And then I don’t care where it is.

Q: (Rene Outman – Racing News 365) Max, a permanent track, obviously we’ve got another permanent track in the Netherlands, the TT circuit. If you had to chose between Zandvoort and the TT circuit in Assen, which one would you pick?

MV: Like I said, I don’t care.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Ericsson, your teammate has numbers better than you this season until now. How do you think it will interfere in your future in Formula One?

ME: I think you’re always compared to your teammate in Formula One, it’s natural. I think me and Charles have been very close in the races but in the qualifying he’s been stronger than me in the first half of the year so it’s important for me to improve there and that’s my main target for the second half, to make improvements in qualifying because I feel like I said, in the races we’ve been very similar. So of course it’s important, Charles is a very good driver but if I can show that I can beat him that would be very important for my future. So starting this weekend I need to try and step that up.

Q: (Inaudible) Max, you get along very well with Daniel over the past years. What’s your relationship with Pierre because I saw you at the skiing event this year.

MV: Yeah, it’s all good. He’s a really nice guy, I’ve known him from go-karting already, like I said before, so I don’t expect any troubles.

Q: (Inaudible) Lance, are you sure you will be finishing the year with Williams?

LS: Well, nothing’s guaranteed but right now I’m really just focused on this weekend and I’m going to give it my all like I always do and we’ll see what the future holds. Right now I’m just taking it weekend by weekend and we’ll see what happens.

Q: (Christian Menarth – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Lance, are you discussing something like that with your Dad or is it just a business thing he’s doing on his own or is he asking what you think about Force India, how are they on track or…?

LS: No, he’s done his due diligence and he sees that they currently punch above their weight. They do a really good job with what they have so like I said earlier, he sees a lot of opportunity and a lot of potential so he sees a great financial opportunity buying them in a very difficult position and he believes he can help grow the company and make them as competitive as they can be. At the moment I’m at Williams, we’ll see what happens with me in the future and I wish him all the best with Force India. It’s definitely a very exciting future for him but like I said, right now I’m really just focused on this weekend and what I’m doing the rest of this year.

Q: (Jaap de Groot – De Telegraaf) Max, after Hungary there were some doubts about the motor. It was planned to change it next week in Italy and then there were some doubts that maybe you were forced to change it here in Belgium and take the grid penalty here. How’s the situation?

MV: From our side it was never a doubt because I still have enough parts so it’s all OK.

PART 1 - 2018 Belgian GP: FIA Drivers' Press Conference.

PART ONE: DRIVERS – Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull Racing), Fernando ALONSO (McLaren), Pierre GASLY (Toro Rosso), Carlos SAINZ (Renault)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Fernando, I’m going to start with you. I’ve just introduced all four of you with your current teams, but all four of you will be racing elsewhere next year. You’ve said you won’t race in Formula 1 in 2019. Can you just tell us how you came to that decision?

Fernando ALONSO: Well, it was a decision that probably I started thinking about last year, probably, and then this year, in 2018, there were a lot of changes into the team, with the engine manufacturer changes and things like that, so I thought it was worth staying one more year. I enjoy driving these cars, with the new regulations, with the big tyres, the big downforce, I was having fun and I think this year it was some kind of joy to keep racing and to have another go. But at the same time I made some changes and some priorities into this year, with the Super Season and the WEC championship and other things also, towards this direction and yeah, this year, a couple of months ago I decided that it was the right time, because I feel strong, I feel I’m driving at a good level and I want to say bye-bye to this sport when I feel strong, not when I feel not competitive or I don’t have any place to go and then you say bye-bye. I prefer to take my own decision and find new challenges that maybe Formula 1 cannot offer me at the moment.

Q: Thank you. Daniel, you will also have a new challenge next year, swapping Red Bull for Renault. Tell us how you came to make that decision to move teams next year?

Daniel RICCIARDO: Yeah, it was a long thought process, for sure. I guess I’ve been kind of bombarded with the question already at the end of last year. When Max announced his extension with the team then it kind of turned a bit of spotlight onto me. I obviously took my time with it. By no means an easy decision at all. I guess I got to a point where I felt I was ready for a change. I guess that was the long and short of it. I’m ready for a new challenge and I think just for me personally just some fresh motivation. That sounds easy saying it like that but it wasn’t easy. A few sleepless nights, for sure, trying to come up with the best conclusion for myself but once I made that decision and pulled the trigger I felt comfortable with it and it feels right moving forward for next year.

Q: Thank you. Carlos, coming to you, obviously you are going to replace Fernando at McLaren in 2019, but there was a Red Bull seat available at one stage, so can you talk us through the timeline for what happened with your future?

Carlos SAINZ: As soon as Daniel was announced in Renault, there was obviously a period of time where I didn’t know where I was going to go. I had been preparing my options and McLaren has been one of them for a long time now. I have been in touch with the McLaren management for a year or two now. Because of that I was very calm about the situation. I just had to wait to see what happened and take my own decision. In the end it turned out to be good. I’m about to leave the Red Bull family in a good way. I owe pretty much my Formula 1 career to them. Thanks to them at the moment I am going to McLaren, because they put me into Formula 1 and I have been able to do a career thanks to them. I think I am opening a new chapter next year; my first two-year deal with the team and I just cannot wait.

Q: Thank you. Pierre, you probably had the least stressful break in terms of not having a decision to make, but you will be promoted to Red Bull next year. Twelve months ago you weren’t even racing in Formula 1. Can you believe the progress and how quick it’s been?

Pierre GASLY: Yeah, it’s pretty amazing how quick things go in Formula 1, so for sure super excited about this new challenge. Yeah, pretty much I was surprised, like everyone, when I heard the news about Daniel. I had Helmut on the phone, who told me that they would take their time to make the decision. Difficult to disconnect when you know there is a seat available in Red Bull but I just tried to enjoy my break. I was just waiting for a phone call just to know if I will stay with Toro Rosso or jump into the Red Bull seat and Helmut called me to tell me that they made the decision and they want me to race for the team from 2019 onwards. Just super excited about it and it’s a massive step in my career and now I need to stay focused on the coming races, because we are talking about next year but there are still nine races to go with Toro Rosso but for sure it’s going to be a massive jump for me in my career.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Scott Mitchell – Autosport) Daniel, with the decision to leave Red Bull, how much of that is down to maybe doubting the potential of that partnership with Honda. Obviously it’s a big change for the team and they obviously needed to do a bit of convincing for you, so how much of a factor was that in the call?

DR: There are a lot of unknowns with everything. Obviously even the move where I am going to be next year. There is still a certain amount of risk or unknowns. Nothing was really that clear cut. Sure, Honda still really need to prove themselves at the front. But honestly there wasn’t really one key factor other than really myself and wanting to have a change of scenery I guess. That was probably the biggest, overpowering thing but it wasn’t necessarily the engine deal or this or that or the financials or whatever. It was really just me coming to a point… it’s been five years with Red Bull Racing, or will be at the end of this year, ten years with the company and obviously it’s been amazing and great but it just felt like now is the time to take on something new. So that’s pretty much how my decision came.

Q: (Edd Straw – Autosport) Another question for Daniel. Was Max Verstappen’s presence in the team part of it, in terms of obviously Red Bull have thrown a lot behind him, he’s becoming a bit of a focal point, there were various troubles earlier in the year. Do you feel that for your new challenge you needed to get out of an environment where there was a team that seemed to be building up around Max?

DR: No, is the short answer. I think externally around media and maybe some fans’ perspective as well that might be seen as the case, but honestly, internally, yeah in Baku and that we had an incident and a couple of on-track things, more round ourselves, but as far as equality went within the team, as I said, probably from the outside sometimes people thought that, but honestly hand on heart there was never any concern with that or any sign of that. So it wasn’t, I guess, is the answer.

Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsport-Magazin.com) Daniel, can you talk us through the timing of your decision-making, because there has been some confusion about that? Helmut Marko said he was quite sure you were going to sign the contract with Red Bull but then you didn’t.

DR: Yeah, it was all tight with deadlines. It’s not something I knew for weeks or months. It was all pretty much… when it got announced right before the break… obviously Renault was part of my considerations for some time; they didn’t come out of nowhere at the last hour, but yeah, I was really torn, obviously, with what to do and that process took time. At the end, still on the race weekend in Budapest I wasn’t sure what I was going to be doing. Did the test on Tuesday and took some time to think about it over the next 48 hours and then came to my decision. It wasn’t easy and there were a lot of factors, variable that I had to try to weigh up, but I think as I said, in my mind the key thing for me personally was that I felt it was time to make a change. This year, particularly the first part of the year, up until Monaco for sure, it was an amazing start to the year for me. There were so many positives. So there was a lot of like good momentum and energy but I guess still at times I was feeling, for whatever reason, I felt personally a little bit frustrated – within myself, not necessarily with things that were happening in the team – and I was just trying to understand why and I guess when I weighed it up a change of setting, a new challenge was probably the answer I need.

Q: (Jerome Pugmire – Associated Press) Fernando, would you at some point in the future consider returning to Formula 1 or is this definitively goodbye?

FA: Right now, I’m thinking it’s a goodbye. But, you know, life changes very quickly. Life has also taught me in the past how things may change, in a couple of months’ time or in a years’ time. As I said in the press release, when we announced the retirement, it’s to leave the door open, because I don’t have the crystal ball to know what is going to happen in the future. As I said, for me it’s a bye-bye, but who knows in the future.

Q: (Jacquelin Magnay – The Australian) Daniel, you’ve talked about needing a new challenge and wanting a new challenge, what was happening in Red Bull that made you so unloved, and in terms of the contract negotiations, did they have a right of reply at all and did you go back to them?

DR: I never said I was unloved. That wasn’t the case. As I said, there was no real highlight other than probably the routine sometimes if you… we don’t have a nine-to-five job and we’re not going to the same office everyday. But I guess many years of more or less going to the same factory or whatever, that kind of routine, I felt like at time my enjoyment of the sport was becoming a little bit, I don’t know, dulled down, a bit numb at times, and I just thought part of the routine was causing that. I’m still… I think Fernando just touched on it, I’m discovering myself in life and it’s changing pretty rapidly. How maybe I thought 12 months ago is not how I think now but I guess part of that process and touching a little bit on the routine I think was something that I felt was… I don’t want to say getting the best of me, but was having a little effect on me. I think to be clear, and I’m probably going to get asked loads of questions about it, there was no falling out, no bad blood or anything with anyone in the team, with the bosses, or anyone at all. I know the contract stuff, I think people assumed I was pretty much done with Red Bull and ready to sign, but I’m pretty sure I always just said I was close to doing something but I never really said it was going to be 100% with Red Bull, so there wasn’t anything that changed overnight that caused this decision and that’s pretty much where it was. And there was another part?

Q: (Jacquelin Magnay – The Australian) The right of reply?

DR: There was like back and forth over the last few months. In the end, the deal and that, I think we had all come to a happy place with and it was then just up to me. I knew what was in front of me so…

Q: (Livio Oricchio – Globoesporte.com) Carlos, are you disappointed that Red Bull chose Pierre instead of you. Pierre, how do you think you will be in battle with Max next year ?

CS: Yeah, I think it’s impossible to be disappointed to be leaving a team to go to McLaren. It’s one of the dreams I had as a kid and to be joining McLaren in the future, it’s impossible to be unhappy. Yes, I’ve been part of the Red Bull family for a very long time and I always said that Red Bull was one of my main objectives but as a racing driver, the McLaren family pushes you a lot to that and it is impossible to be disappointed with that and I think that pretty much covers it.

And Pierre, going up against Max next year?

PG: I think it’s pretty exciting. I think Max is one of the best drivers on the grid at the moment. Of course I am only in my first season in Formula 1 and I’m still taking experience, but I think there is a great opportunity ahead of me. I have a really good relationship with Max. I know him a really long time; we raced together in karting. I think as a team we have the potential to do great things together and yeah, I’ve worked with the team for a couple of years now. For sure, I will have things to learn in the first few races and the first months, because I’m still quite new in Formula 1. But my long-term target is to be the best in the sport and if I want to be the best I will have to fight against the best. I think Max is one of the best drivers on the grid at the moment, so I take it as an amazing opportunity to drive next to him.

Q: (Abhishek Takle – Mid-day) A question for Daniel again. You were talking about the routine and about needing a change in environment. You were obviously earlier in the season linked to drives at either Mercedes or Ferrari so you had begun to think about life beyond Red Bull. Then when that didn’t happen… when you think about life outside the environment you are in, does that make the environment you are in a little less appealing and you want that change more?

DR: I don’t know. I feel like… I don’t feel my presence in the team this year has changed. I think it’s probably shown particularly on Sundays. The desire and everything is still 100% there. The desire to race and be the best – that certainly hasn’t diminished. I don’t think so. I don’t think anything changed, really, over the process. It was more me, when I was away from the track, away from the sport, just laying in bed at night, more things were running through my head. I think just asking myself more questions; what I want and where I see myself… something like that!

Q: (Marco Conseco - Marca) Question for Fernando. What kind of car are you going to leave for Carlos at the end of the season?

FA: Well, I think he will drive next year’s car so I guess that hopefully there is going to be more performance in it and a better car to achieve better results. That’s our aim at the moment in the remaining nine races with the team; prepare the 2019 car the best way we can and so I don’t know exactly how the car will be or what performance Carlos will find – but what is 100 per cent sure is the team is an amazing team, as Carlos touched on before. McLaren is an amazing organisation, the second-best team in the history of the sport. This is something you will feel immediately when you come to the factory, when you enter the MTC, you meet the people, the engineers, the design office, the mechanics. Everyone is committed and determined to put McLaren back on the top. That’s something that, you know, if quite special when you join this kind of organisation. That will be the first feeling; the first moment of joy and hopefully the second will be in the Barcelona test.

Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Question for Fernando. Fernando, you talk about new challenges that Formula One can’t offer you. Do you mean winning? Winning one particular race? Would you have stayed if you could have had a competitive car, and what do you feel about the fact you’ve not been able to get a competitive car despite your obvious abilities?

FA: I think the challenges are, year, probably bigger than the challenge that I can find here for next year. The triple crown is something that I’ve been saying for a couple of months now – or years – that to be the best driver in the world there are two possibilities: winning eight World Championships in Formula One – quite unlikely now for me – or the second is to master different series and different cars. The sportscars, I think I’m doing quite OK at the moment; so I’m happy with the performance we’re seeing there, and in the Indy 500 I felt competitive also last year, and there are other series that can put you in a different level in motorsport if you can win with different cars and in different series. The possibilities for next year here. They’ve been a few, or a lot. It depends on how you look at it. I did not stay because, as I said also last week, winning now, there are probably only two teams which they can win. They continue with their drivers for the following years. And the Formula One we are seeing now maybe is not the Formula One I dream of when I was a kid, or when I joined in 2001. That’s a bigger reason. As Daniel said before, when you come to the same place for many years and you repeat the same thing, see the same people, there is one day that maybe you don’t get so emotional about the challenges. That’s the reason why.

Q: (Oliver Brown – The Telegraph) Question for Daniel. Daniel, this week, Helmut Marko’s quotes seemed to indicate that the team felt rather blindsided in the negotiations. That you had indicated to him and Mr Mateschitz that you would sign on the Tuesday after Hungary, and you called on the Thursday. I just wondered if you could convey how difficult a conversation that was in the circumstances – and how he took the news?

DR: Yeah. I wasn’t laughing, trust me. It wasn’t like that. It’s tough. I mean they’re not calls that… I don’t like letting anyone down, you know what I mean? So, it’s like… not many people get satisfaction, I guess, out of letting others down. It was OK. It was a call I had to make. One which for sure made me a little nervous. It went OK. When speaking to Helmut he was understanding, I think, in many ways of course. He’s known me for ten years and I think he’d sensed at times some frustration or maybe something changing in me, so I don’t think it completely surprised him, but sure, he was a little bit disappointed that I was moving on. From my side, of course, it makes me sad to move on but it was nice to know that I was wanted there and they wanted to keep me – but it was all very calm and respectful. So it was all I could ask for.

Q: (Dieter Rencken – Racing Lines, Racefans.net) Question for Fernando. Fernando, you say the fact that only two teams currently really have a chance of winning influenced your decision, and that Formula One today isn’t what it was in 2001 when you joined – but if you have a look at the record books, your first six years in Formula One, there were only two teams capable of winning, namely Ferrari and then after that Renault with yourself – so how much of a factor was it that you aren’t in a winning team? How much of a role did that play in your decision?

FA: Well, I think definitely it plays a part of it. If you are in one of those two teams, probably you keep going, even if you don’t enjoy or if you enjoy the races or the trips or the amount of years you’ve been doing the same thing, that’s for sure. Yeah, Formula One has always been a sport that dominates with one team or two teams and the package is way more important – but yeah, there have been different seasons and different years where we had a little bit more freedom of strategy, of choices, or tyres. Even if one team was clearly dominant that season and World Champion at whatever part of the year, there have always been some races with heat, with cold, with wet, with Inters, it provides some action. Same with strategy. In 2004 I think I won zero grand prix but I was in a couple of pole positions, or podiums of whatever because we chose to run light fuel on Saturday, so a gamble for the race. There has been always a little bit of action. Maybe now it’s not the same. It’s nothing to compare. All my comments are not to compare those seasons against these years recently, or other series compared to this series because normally my words have been taken to compare different series, or different seasons and say that I’m wrong. Probably I’m wrong. It’s my decision and I’m happy with that.

Q: (Inaudible) Question for Daniel, and also a bit for Pierre. Daniel, Max called you a lot of times the best team-mate he ever had. I think you two were very happy together – at least in the Red Bull movies – are you going to miss him next year and do you have any advice for your neighbour how to treat the Dutch boy?

DR: Well, if he starts calling Pierre the best team-mate he’s ever had then my heart will be broken. I’ve said it a few times, for how competitive we are as people, I think we managed very well this team-mate rivalry. I guess out of X amount of races we came together twice, so not perfect but also not bad. It’s been good. I’ve enjoyed certainly having a strong team-mate and everyone here who knows racing knows that I’ve got also a strong team-mate next year with Nico. And with Pierre, I think firstly he owes Helmut a drink – but he also owes me a drink. Even two. But look, it’s a similar position to where I was in 2014, coming from Toro Rosso into the big team. It’s exciting, it’s fun. I know what he’s feeling and it’s an awesome feeling, so just role with it. He’s been doing very well this year. The boys are quite mature at young ages these days, so I think he’s going to be fine.

Q: (Inaudible) Question for everyone but Fernando. To touch on the predictability to leave Formula One as well. I was wondering if you three agree with him on some level and if it would ever be a reason for you to quit the sport?

CS: yeah, well, I think at my age and with the motivation I have, it’s extremely unlikely. I feel at home in Formula One. It’s a dream come true to be racing in Formula One, first in a team like Renault and then moving to McLaren. About the predictability, I think it is predictable, Formula One, probably too predictable, as Fernando has said. I truly believe the new bosses, Liberty Media, are going to make an effort to change that. I think it should be more down to the driver and what the driver can make as a difference. I’m not here to compare to any other sport but I think that would make Formula One a lot more attractive and a lot more fair also on the sportsmen that we are sitting down here. I’m going to put a vote of confidence in Liberty because I really believe they are going to do an effort on that and maybe one day that might attract Fernando back. I’m going to trust that.

Pierre, your thoughts on Formula One at the moment?

PG: Pretty similar to Carlos. I mean I’m still really young, exciting and super happy to be in Formula One – but it’s true at the moment it’s a bit too predictable. Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull, top six most of the time and then after we battle for the seventh place and that’s the best we can do every weekend. I think definitely for all drivers will like to fight all with each other and also for the show, I think people at home like to see 20 cars. I think it’s probably impossible but at least ten cars fighting for the podium or the win. As Carlos said, I think Liberty Media knows there is something to do there and they are trying whatever they can to improve it. I think it’s quite a long process, so we need to give them time – but on my side I’m just super excited. I’m just starting my career in Formula One and I’m living an amazing moment at the moment, and amazing time at the moment. Yeah. Bit different to Fernando but definitely if they can do something to close a bit the pack altogether, that will be great.

Daniel, you’re clearly further into your career than either of those guys. What are your thoughts?

DR: They said it well, for sure. We’d all love more cars to be fighting up at the front. That’s the truth. I think as well, if you’re in a winning car now it makes it harder to win but it also gives you more satisfaction to win. If you’re overcoming eight opponents as opposed to two or three, I think the joy and all that would be emphasised. It would be welcome, and I know it’s easier said than done but for sure if we’re asking for what we’d like, then if all of us could battle it out, because we all got here with talent and whatever and we’re all, I’m sure, pretty close so it would just be nice to see really who is the best.

Q: (Jerome Bourret - L'Équipe) Question for Pierre. As you mentioned, switching to Red Bull is a massive step in your career. What is the biggest challenge you will face there next year and how are you going to prepare for it?

PG: Well, for sure next year I’ll be in a top team, so fighting for much better positions that I am at the moment. It means more pressure from the team, more responsibilities, and I think that will be the main thing. I will have a really strong team-mate also next to me – but yeah, you know I’m always excited with challenges. As I said, I think all of us in Formula One, we all want to be the best in the sport and to be the best you need to fight against the best. So, I’m happy to take the challenge. It’s a fantastic opportunity for me and I think the most important thing. As I said, I’m still in my first season in Formula One so I still need to take experience, still need to learn a few things and I know I can improve myself in a couple of areas so I just need to focus on myself, keep developing myself and after just be fast on track. That’s the most important thing. As long as you’re fast and competitive and delivering what the team expects you to do on track then everything is fine. I know my goals and I don’t really need anyone to tell me what I need to do. I know I need to deliver on track, and I’m a competitive guy, I’m not satisfied if I don’t perform well, so I just need to focus on myself and deliver next year.

Q: (David Croft – Sky Sports F1) To Daniel – because you’ve been left out for a while – you said in an FIA press conference a couple of years ago that it was about championships for you, you were ready to win championships. What have Renault sold you and said to you that make you feel that you’re still a man that can win championships in Formula One?

DR: I know exactly the interview that was. I think it was after Monaco 2016. I remember it clearly and it’s still the case. Look. Obviously next year, begin realistic, it’s unlikely. Unlikely, I think, is a fair word. Mercedes and Ferrari are the ones doing it consistently, obviously we’ve been able to win some races this year but in terms of really fighting for a championship it’s hard to deny Mercedes and Ferrari looking at next year. So, yeah, their short to medium-term plan looked really encouraging. I think what they’ve done in the last two years, the progress they’ve made, it encouraged me and developments they’re making at the factory, and yeah, I think what they’re doing with their finances, where they’re spending basically, and the way they’re doing it, showed me that they want to win and they want to try to get there as soon as possible. Obviously, every team wants to win, or try to make it happen – but I saw some really good signs with what they showed me in their presentation and the way they… also their honesty as well. Not telling me we’re going to win in Melbourne next year – as much as I’d like that – but the reality of that, it’s still going to be a bit of a process but a process which is moving forwards pretty rapidly.

Thursday 16 August 2018

FIA World Rallycross Championship postpones the introduction of electric cars until 2021

PHOTO CREDIT: FIA World Rallycross Media 
The FIA World Rallycross Championship has postponed the introduction of electric cars until 2021. The decision has been taken to allow adequate time for all manufacturers the possibility of competing to develop their plans. 

The series will continue to run the current internal combustion engine (ICE) Supercars in 2019 and 2020. Beyond 2020, these ICE Supercars will remain an important part of the rallycross weekends, as the World Championship becomes an electric series.

Manufacturers will now have until 29th March 2019 to confirm their commitment to the electric format.

“We are on the verge of an exciting new era for motorsport. Electric cars are increasingly important to all areas of mobility, and rallycross is the perfect platform to demonstrate the incredible performance capabilities of electric cars in a fun, competitive and cost effective environment,” said Paul Bellamy, Senior Vice President, Motorsports at IMG. “A huge amount has been accomplished in a relatively short time since the first formal meeting in June 2017. A completely new type of rallycross car has been conceived and defined, and so it is worth waiting a little longer to secure the best possible field of competitors. We believe that fans new and old will love what will be a thrilling addition to their favourite events.”

The cars will be based on a carbon fibre monocoque chassis supplied by Oreca and will use batteries from Williams Advanced Engineering. Each car will be powered by two 250kW motors which manufacturers will develop. Manufacturers will homologate their own bodies for the cars which are designed to accept scaled versions of B or C segment production vehicles.

Independent teams can also enter the championship, either with cars supplied by manufacturers or using their own drivetrains and bodies developed from an FIA approved base design.

There will be opportunities at a number of 2020 World RX events for manufacturers and independent teams to showcase their electric vehicles.

Friday 10 August 2018

Petter Solberg: "Nothing really worked for me on Sunday."

PHOTO CREDIT: PSRX Volkswagen Sweden. 
The 2018 World Rallycross Championship has not been the easiest by any stretch of the imagination, with Petter Solberg having all the bad luck imaginable. Engine issues, incidents with fellow competitors and mechanical failures. 

Can the Norwegian turn around his luck in the second half of the championship? 

Solberg showed exceptional speed on Saturday qualifying and was third quickest in both qualifying rounds – but it was in Q2 where we saw the Norwegian smash the lap record in Canada. His new lap record of 46.959s.

Petter troubled the final top spot at the first corner, but ultimately lost out on the joker and came home a frustrated fifth. 

“Fantastic weekend for PSRX Volkswagen Sweden. Fantastic." said Solberg“But… I’ve got to admit, I do feel a little bit frustrated with this weekend. I felt I could have come away from Canada with a little bit more. But the big thing is the performance of the team and, of course, Johan. It was a great job." 

Solberg was happy with the pace of his Polo R Supercar, but rues his position in the immediate classification on Saturday. "We were maybe a little bit unlucky not to be higher up in the standings on Saturday night, but I was confident for Sunday," he adds.

The Norwegian lined-up alongside his teammate in semi-final 1 and finished in third place, which booked him a place in the final. He would have to start on the back row alongside Sebastien Loeb. Petter opted for a fast strategy, but taking the joker lap on the opening lap, did not pay off for him. He finished the final in fifth place, a mammoth 4.038s behind his teammate and race winner Kristoffersson.

“In the end, nothing really worked for me on Sunday. I took the joker and just missed out on the position coming out; I got half a look up the inside of a car and it just didn’t work," explains Solberg. “But, you know we work as a team and it’s a big congratulations to Johan. He was fantastic today (Sunday) and, of course, it’s a very big congratulations to Volkswagen Motorsport – the Polo R Supercar was on incredible form."

Teamwork makes Kristoffersson's dreamwork.

PHOTO CREDIT: PSRX Volkswagen Sweden.
It was all to play for at the 2018 World RX of Canada, with fellow competitors bring rafts of upgrades. Could Johan Kristoffersson claim his fourth straight win? It was all to play for! 

On Saturday, Johan struggled with traffic and qualifying position, and ended the day in ninth overall. 

The Super Swede turned it all around on Sunday to further strengthen his World Rallycross Championship defense at the Trois-Rivieres circuit.

“Did you think I’d left my race pace on the beach? Me too! Seriously, Saturday was tough. I had bad traffic, I couldn’t really make things work for me. I was so frustrated on Saturday night," said Kristoffersson.

In order to improve on Sunday, Johan took advice from teammate Petter Solberg. The Swede was able to unlock more speed and went on to claim the top qualifier spot after Q4 [Qualifying 4].

"But, you know, that’s where having a team-mate like Petter Solberg really comes good. I felt I was losing a little bit in the gravel sections, so I sat down with my team-mate and we talked through everything in the car and in the driving. He helped me and on Sunday morning I did what he told me, came off the beach and back to the races!"

The Swede was wary of his rival Team Peugeot Total's Timmy Hansen starting alongside him in the final. Hansen put in quick starts in qualifying and the semi-final rounds, and Johan knew that he would have to be perfect.

"Sunday was fantastic. I had to push really hard in the semi-final, I knew the Peugeots would be right there and quick again," the Swede said. "The final was good, there was a bit of a challenge at the first corner, but once we got through there in front then I knew things were looking good."

“I won here last year and I’m so glad to be able to leave Canada with that winning feeling again. This is a great result for me and for PSRX Volkswagen Sweden and thanks again to Petter.” 

Kristoffersson leads the championship by an eye watering 55 points from his nearest rival Sébastien Loeb.

Thursday 9 August 2018

Timmy Hansen: "We’ve still got a lot of work to do"

PHOTO CREDIT: Peugeot Sport. 
Timmy Hansen and Sébastien Loeb both stepped onto the podium for Team Peugeot Total in Canada, with Timmy securing second place. 

It has only been the second outing for the Peugeot 208 WRX Evo, which had made its debut in Sweden last month. 

“This was only the 2nd time that we were driving this car after introducing it in Sweden and I have to say I was much more comfortable with it here this weekend; we did some good work at the test in Riga, so I felt a lot more confident," said Hansen. "We had a good weekend generally."

The Swede qualified in second place for the final behind Johan Kristoffersson. The Peugeot 208 WRX Evo Supercar looked to be the car to beat in Canada. The overall speed and starts were a strong point for the Team Peugeot Total squad. 

"During the final I didn’t make a perfect start. Despite that, we still managed to end up 2nd out of the 1st corner,"  he explains. "After that I didn’t want to take any big risks, because it’s been a while since we’ve been on the podium." 

Hansen admits to driving cautiously in the final to ensure that he finishes on the podium. "I really didn’t want to have a puncture or anything, so through Turn 5 in particular I was really safe every lap!," he explained. "We got through the race well and I don’t think Johan, who won, managed to pull out too big a gap in front of us so we can see that this new car is starting to get faster."

"We’ve still got a lot of work to do and it’s only going to move forwards from here.”

Kevin Hansen: "I’m growing in confidence all the time and my feeling with the car is great."

PHOTO CREDIT: Peugeot Sport 
Kevin Hansen, an independent FIA World Rallycross entry with Team Peugeot Total backing has been incredibly impressive this season. His performance in a older spec (specification cars) 208 RX Supercar has been nothing short of superb. 

The young Swede received an upgraded Peugeot 208 RX Supercar (raced by his brother and Loeb at the start of the season) in Sweden, and he is learning to set-up the new car. 

Kevin ended the opening day at the World Rallycross of Canada in fifth place behind his brother Timmy Hansen. On Sunday morning, the Swedes pace was strong and he secured a place in the second semi-final.

“I had a really good start in the semi-final, I was almost first down to Turn 1, but then I tried to get through on the outside and I got stuck there: it’s not easy!," Hansen explains. "So I was bumped down and then I jokered and came back into the middle of another big fight, where I was starting to make some progress."

Kevin later retired from the semi-final with engine issues. "Unfortunately, on the next lap my car began to slow down with an engine problem and then I had to stop, so it was game over," he adds.

"From my point of view I’m very happy with my driving: I’m growing in confidence all the time and my feeling with the car is great.”