F1 News TheFoxPosts.com

Charles Leclerc was left feeling that Ferrari's competitors are "a step ahead" of them following the opening day of practice at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The Monegasque – who remains in a battle with Sergio Perez for P2 in the World Championship – finished P3 on the timesheets in both sessions on Friday. Meanwhile, Robert Shwartzman got behind the wheel of Carlos Sainz 's F1 -75 in FP1 before Sainz returned to action in FP2, where the Spaniard registered the sixth fastest time of the hour. Mercedes led a 1-2 in the opening session, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen set the pace later on. Leclerc reflects on Ferrari's struggles Speaking after Friday's running, Leclerc admitted that the areas in which Ferrari had faced difficulties had been expected, but also warned that their rivals seemed to have an edge over them. "Overall, our sessions were okay,...

Max Verstappen will start the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix from the front of the pack after claiming pole position in the final qualifying session of the year. Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez secured P2, ahead of Charles Leclerc in third, while Carlos Sainz will line up in fourth. Lewis Hamilton clinched fifth, with George Russell in sixth and Lando Norris seventh. Esteban Ocon, Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo complete the top 10. Perez narrowly missed out on provisional pole at the end of the first runs following a slight wobble, while Verstappen posted the fastest time ahead of Sainz. Vettel completed just one flying lap in the session for his final F1 qualifying before his impending retirement. Ricciardo, meanwhile, will take a three-place grid drop after being found at fault for a collision with Kevin Magnussen last time out in Brazil. Result Qualifi...

F1 Academy cars have hit the track for the first time ahead of the category's debut season getting underway. The 15 drivers and five teams set to compete in Formula 1's all-female driver category – which aims to help in preparing young female drivers to progress through the ranks of motorsport – are taking part in a two-day test session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from 11-12 April. Footage released on social media shows the number 2 car of Campos Racing's Lola Lovinfosse leaving the pits to take to the circuit. Other clips have also been shared from behind the scenes, with former W Series driver Abbi Pulling seen getting behind the wheel of her Rodin Carlin machine. The test will offer the teams and drivers a final chance to prepare ahead of the inaugural F1 Academy season beginning its seven-round schedule in Spielberg, Austria on the weekend of 28-29 April. From there, the category will race in locations such as Valencia, Zandvoort and Monza bef...

Williams Team Principal James Vowles has revealed talks remain ongoing over whether Formula 1 's Sprint format will change for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Baku City Circuit will host the first Sprint event of the season next weekend as the four-week spring break comes to a conclusion. Concerns have been aired over the validity of the Azeri capital hosting a Sprint race given the tendency for incident, with teams constrained financially by a stringent budget cap. But ahead of the event, teams are understood to have agreed to alterations to the format that sees a race take place on Saturday, with tweaks set to bring in a second qualifying session to split the 100km Sprint from the grand prix on Sunday. These changes must be ratified officially, however, with Vowles confirming the saga continues ahead of the sport's return to action. Viewed by others: ...

Nyck de Vries has been working hard to get himself into shape ahead of what will be the longest Formula 1 season in History . The Dutchman was pushed to the limit by his performance coach, Pyry Salmela, who worked with him on various exercises and training regimes to get fit for the new season . Salmela, who works with other drivers on the grid including Pierre Gasly, is a former ice hockey player. TheFOXposts.Com previously spoke to him about the demands on F1 drivers. De Vries will be racing with AlphaTauri in 2023, following his impressive debut at the Italian Grand Prix last year when he achieved points. Check out the video below. You must accept cookies to view this content You have not currently accepted all necessary cookies. You can change your cookie preferences here . Do you keep seeing this message? Disabl...

Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich has admitted his frustration at missing out on a Formula 1 race seat in 2023 as he embarks on a reserve programme. MP Motorsport racer Drugovich dominated the F2 season, claiming five wins and hauling 265 points, 101 ahead of runner-up Theo Pourchaire. However, despite his success, the Brazilian was unable to secure a promotion to Formula 1 - the second successive F2 champion to be in that position following Oscar Piastri's 2021 title win. Unlike Piastri, Drugovich was not part of any F1 junior squad, but did sign with Aston Martin after wrapping up his title. He made his first F1 appearance in first practice at the Abu Dhabi GP with more outings planned for 2023 - and although a race programme in another series has not been agreed, Drugovich has previously spoken of his desire for something to be arranged. Viewed by others: ...