Motorsports Racing News & Blog Articles

Monte-Carlo TV Festival celebrated its 60th anniversary. We sat down with Jimmy Jean Louis & Edi Gathegi to talk about their challenging careers, streaming services and representation of minorities in Hollywood.

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Jimmy, how would you describe your career from Haiti to Europe and then to Los Angeles?

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It’s been fantastic because I didn’t know what I was doing. In Spain, I did theatre, and in Italy, I worked as a model. Then, I moved to the United States. All that moving around gave me enough material to play different characters.

It was not planned, mainly a search for something more exciting than what I was doing. It was an eagerness and motivation but with key meetings that were a turning point like meeting Nelson Mandela that solidified that I had something to offer in life.

And how was the meeting with Nelson Mandela like?

Following Valtteri Bottas’ departure to Alfa Romeo Racing, George Russell will be a teammate to Lewis Hamilton from 2022.

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The Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team today confirmed that George Russell will become team-mate to reigning seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, beginning from the 2022 Formula One season as the sport enters a new era of technical regulations.

This confirmation follows the news that Valtteri Bottas will join Alfa Romeo Racing next year, after five highly successful seasons with Mercedes. Valtteri joined Mercedes in 2017, scoring 9 race wins, 54 podiums and 17 pole positions to date with the team. He has played a pivotal role in Mercedes winning four Constructors’ World Championships since 2017, and his partnership with Lewis Hamilton will be recorded as one of the most successful in the sport’s history.

Valtteri will be succeeded by 23-year-old George Russell, who joined the Mercedes Young Driver Programme in 2017. George won that season’s GP3 Series championship, and became FIA Formula 2 champion the following year, before graduating to Formula One with Williams in 2019. His work ethic and performance have continued to impress during his three seasons with Williams; he is now ready to make the step to Mercedes and to continue his career development alongside Lewis Hamilton, after signing a long-term contract with the team.

Following what seems to be a successful season this year so far, with Gasly and Tsunoda, in which the pairing have shown a positive working relationship on-and-off track, Scuderia AlphaTauri is pleased to announce that they will retain both drivers for the 2022 FIA Formula 1 season.

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Consistency and stability are crucial heading into the new era of F1, with the introduction of the 2022 regulations. The team believes that the current duo will be able to deliver good results, having already worked well together in 2021. Pierre has shown a very strong performance whilst undertaking a team leader role this season, having already achieved a podium finish and remaining within the top 10 in the drivers’ standings.

Meanwhile, Yuki, who became the first Japanese driver to score points in their debut Formula 1 race, has stepped up to the new challenge and is continuing the steep learning curve during his rookie season. Focussing on the remainder of the 2021 season Scuderia AlphaTauri, who continues to be the only outfit to score points in every race so far, will focus on the tight battle for the fifth position in the standings.

Pierre Gasly

I am very happy to be moving forward with Scuderia AlphaTauri for another season in Formula 1, especially after seeing the progress that we’ve made as a team since I first joined in 2017. Seeing the performance we’ve shown so far this season, I think there are great things to achieve for the rest of this season and for next year, especially with the upcoming changes to the championship in 2022. I’m very excited to see what we can accomplish in the new era of F1 and to keep working with the team as best as I can to bring us forward in the team standings. This year has been very successful so far and I really believe we can work well together to do even better in 2022.

Valtteri Bottas joins Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN for the 2022 season and beyond, the Finnish driver signing a multi-year deal with the Hinwil-based team. Bottas, a nine-time Grand Prix winner, joins the team as it embarks on the crucial transition to the new era of Formula One, with sweeping regulation changes providing a unique opportunity to move towards the front of the grid.

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Born in Nastola, Finland, on August 28th, 1989, Valtteri had a distinguished career in the junior formulas, becoming only the second driver to win both the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Formula Renault Northern European Cup in the same year, in 2008, and following this by winning the Masters of Formula 3 in both 2009 and 2010 – the first to achieve this double-triumph feat. Promotion to the GP3 Series saw Valtteri win four races and claim the title, demonstrating his readiness for the biggest stage of motorsport.

Debut in Formula One duly took place in 2013, with Williams, where Valtteri emerged as one of the brightest talents in the sport, before a promotion to Mercedes for 2017. There, the Finn would play a crucial role in securing four constructors’ titles, winning his first race in Sochi in 2017 and adding eight more first places to his tally, alongside a total of 54 podiums for the Brackley team.

Nine wins, 17 pole positions and 63 podiums are a strong introduction for Valtteri, World Championship runner-up in 2019 and 2020. Next year will bring a new page for the talent from Nastola. Joining Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN will allow Valtteri to put his experience at the competitive end of Formula One to use as he helps the team move up the rankings. With new regulations providing a great reset in the sport, the opportunity is there for the team and driver to write a new, successful story together.

Introduction

 

Max Verstappen has moved back to the head of the drivers’ standings, after winning the 2021 Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort over title rival Lewis Hamilton, sending his home fans into ecstasy, as the second Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas completed the podium.

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2021 Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix as the first race since 1985. Verstappen led away from the pole, keeping Hamilton at bay throughout the 72-lap encounter around the sweeping Zandvoort track, to bring home his seventh win of the season, as Hamilton had to settle for second, the seven-time champion stopping with two laps to go for softs.

Bottas was a comfortable third, despite his own late stop for soft tyres, with Bottas appearing to then ignore team orders not to attempt to take the fastest lap bonus point away from Hamilton – only for Hamilton to claim it anyway on the final lap.

After Romain Grosjean left Formula 1, he embarked on a new life in America and now he’s as happy as he can be. He tells us about this journey in his own words…

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Paddock Magazine: Romain, how is your new life after F1?

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Romain Grosjean: I was lucky to be almost ten years in Formula 1. I had a great time there, but the last few years were not so fun in terms of performance, the car was just not good. When you are a racer, you want to win races. After I’ve finished with a big accident in F1, obviously it changed the way I see life and the way I live life.

Also, I wanted a new challenge. I came to IndyCar not really knowing what I was going to have, and I can tell you, it may be a lot of fun… a lot of pleasure. It’s hard work and it’s very tough competition, but it’s great. Once you get the chance, it’s a great atmosphere, and much more I’d be right now than I was in the last few years.

PM: How was your life before living in Europe and how it has changed in America? I’ve heard that you live in a coach or something like that?

Romain Grosjean: This year was a little bit strange, because I came to the US, but I didn’t know what to expect. My family still lives back in Europe and I’m travelling back and forth. When I live here in the US, I live on a bus. It’s been a great experience. It’s something I’ve never done before. I enjoyed it a lot.

Formula 1 continues to grow in popularity among a new generation of fans, this is thanks to the Netflix series Drive to Survive and the Twitch quartet keeping us all entertained during the lockdown.

With this their Instagram accounts are continuing to grow, Grange has taken a look at the engagement rate, potential earnings from sponsored posts and average likes of the current Formula 1 drivers to analyse their social activity.

The lists are fully searchable by the number of followers, likes, engagement rate and earnings. Click on the names or photos for each Instagram profile and most importantly, enjoy!

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Formula 1 Drivers Instagram rankings 

Picture	Pos	Driver	Followers	Following	Average likes	Engagement rate	Average earnings per post
	1.	Lewis Hamilton	23,623,153	785	777,696	3.33%	$46,649 - $77,748
	2.	Max Verstappen	5,665,066	669	467,159	8.27%	$11,249 - $18,748
	3.	Charles Leclerc	5,294,355	919	571,330	10.82%	$10,517 - $17,529
	4.	Daniel Ricciardo	5,233,483	438	447,488	8.57%	$10,402 - $17,336
	5.	Lando Norris	3,837,521	167	508,139	13.31%	$7,610 - $12,683
	6.	Fernando Alonso	3,479,578	220	78,926	2.28%	$6,914 - $11,523
	7.	Carlos Sainz	3,267,198	573	311,595	9.58%	$6,483 - $10,805
	8.	Kimi Räikkönen	2,515,804	34	254,334	10.25%	$4,9445 - $8,241
	9.	Sergio Perez	2,436,838	206	222,429	9.16%	$4,845.75 - $8,076.25
	10.	Valtteri Bottas	2,351,696	464	103,059	4.39%	$4,674 - $7,791
	11.	Pierre Gasly	2,189,585	1,017	307,608	14.07%	$4,355 - $7,259
	12.	George Russell	2,136,959	495	380,664	17.92%	$4,235 - $7,059
	13.	Mick Schumacher	1,965,258	52	108,779	5.56%	$3,896 - $6,493
	14.	Esteban Ocon	1,093,641	810	92,984	8.54%	$2,173 - $3,621
	15.	Antonio Giovinazzi	691,939	712	46,914	6.82%	$2,060 - $3,434
	16.	Yuki Tsunoda	595,816	327	44,317	7.47%	$1,778 - $2,963
	17.	Lance Stroll	594,637	323	32,064	5.41%	$1,776 - $2,960
	18.	Nikita Mazepin	394,481	453	31,387	8.02%	$1,181 - $1,969
	19.	Nicholas Latifi	271,476	430	26,482	9.80%	$813.75 - $1,357
	20.	Sebastian Vettel	0	0	0	0	0

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Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN will take a step forward in the field of composites as it announces a new partnership with Virtek. The Canadian company will provide advanced vision-based laser technologies and engineering services to assist with the composite assembly and carbon fibre layup of parts for the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN cars. Improving composites processes, reducing time to assembly and improving accuracy to boost performance will further aid in producing the highest quality race cars.

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The Virtek Iris 3D Vision Positioning System, which will be used by the team’s composites specialists, locates parts in 3D space and then boldly and precisely projects a laser template onto the mould or part to guide operators through the fabrication process. Virtek’s integrated FlashAlign technology eliminates the need for technicians to align laser targets manually, thereby streamlining the initial set-up process and improving productivity and further reducing costs for materials by helping to eliminate scrap.

Dietmar Wennemer, CEO & President, Virtek Vision International Inc:

We are very excited to win the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN team as a customer in the very innovative world of Formula One racing. We continue to innovate in the carbon fibre overlay and semi-automated assembly space that offers faster and higher quality prototyping and manufacturing capabilities. This capability will allow the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN team to optimize their race cars and tune them quickly for enhanced aerodynamic performance while keeping the drivers safe. We are looking forward to working with the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN team to utilize our future product enhancements, like our newest innovation ‘Iris ActiveTrack’ that will make the work of the Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN technicians even easier.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN:

The regulation changes in 2022 will be a pivotal moment in the history of Formula One, and our new partnership with Virtek will allow us to take this step with confidence. Their innovative systems will make the production of C42 parts more streamlined, precise and efficient, reducing any waste of time, materials and resources. In a world where every marginal gain is crucial, this is a big help – especially as we embark on such an ambitious project as our 2022 contender is.

A very interesting and truly impressive company within motorsports, Mrk1 Consulting was established to fill a gap in the market for business consultants experienced in the operation of racing venues.

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Historically, investors planning to build a race track, drag strip, vehicle testing facility, high-speed oval, or any other motoring activity venue, would either turn to traditional, generic business consultants for advice or they would simply go ahead without understanding the best practices in the industry or how to create a sustainable venue. Using over twenty years of experience and the knowledge attained whilst operating tracks in multiple countries, Mrk1 are able to guide their clients through the challenges associated with planning, implementing, operating, and sustaining a new motorsport venue.

We at Paddock magazine are thrilled to have Mark Hughes, founder and Managing Director of Mrk1, talking to us about the racing world’s most exciting projects today.

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Mark, first of all, happy to have you here. How would you describe Mrk1 Consulting today to someone unfamiliar with the business world of racing?

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Kimi Räikkönen to retire from Formula One at the end of the 2021 season. The Finn, currently the most experienced driver on the grid with 344 Grand Prix entries, will leave the sport after a record 19 seasons, in which he won 21 races, one World Championship and the hearts and admiration of millions of fans worldwide.

Date of birth:	17th of October 1979
Nationality:

Introduction

 

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Max Verstappen won a heavily rain-shortened 2021 Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix that finished late into the evening amid torrential conditions at Spa-Francorchamps. Half points were awarded as more than two laps – but less than 75% of the race – were completed.

The 1500 scheduled start time came 30 minutes after Sergio Perez crashed on the way to his grid spot in the wet weather, with the rain showing no signs of relenting. After a 25 minute delay, a brace of formation laps behind the Safety Car followed, before Race Director Michael Masi threw the red flag.

After many more delays, the race finally resumed at 1817 local time – more than three hours after it was set to start – with the clock to tick down from one hour as Masi did everything in his control to try to get a race up and running.

Many years have passed since the Formula 1 community hoped for an exciting and tight season. It has arrived this year. Tyres blowing up in Azerbaijan, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton fighting wheel-to-wheel, Valtteri Bottas bowling his rivals, Esteban Ocon winning his first Grand Prix… The season has had all the ingredients to serve a delicious hot meal though it got cold under the Belgian sky.

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It is always easier to say what could have been done differently after the storm; however, the image of confusion offered by the organisation does not represent a sport that aims to expand its fan and sponsor base worldwide.

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Clarity was like the sun, invisible

Miscommunication was apparent from the very start. There is no doubt the situation was tricky for both the drivers and the organisation. People at the pinnacle of motorsport must have an ability to react and, therefore, give solutions or alternatives to its stakeholders and fans. That hardly happened during the Belgian GP, and such circumstance is simply unacceptable. There were thousands of fans soaked and cold but also televisions and media had to reschedule their broadcasting with little or no information, not to mention the mayhem it caused to the teams.

There was such a level of confusion that for a moment Red Bull was not sure if they could take out Checo Pérez car (not even the stewards knew it at first). It’s also worthwhile pointing out the havoc regarding the duration of the race, the sudden stop of the clock, or the maths to count the number of laps completed from the start to the end.

Sergio Perez re-signed contract extension with Red Bull Racing Honda for the 2022 Formula 1 season. Sergio ‘Checo’ Perez joined Red Bull Racing Honda for the 2021 season and was immediately impressed after qualifying on the front row in only his second race for the Team at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

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Having taken four top-five finishes over the first five races, Checo was quick to demonstrate his experienced race-craft and consistency in scoring regular points before taking his first victory for the team in just his sixth race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Checo has and continues to play a key role in the closely fought 2021 Constructors’ Championship battle.

With Max Verstappen having already committed to Red Bull until the end of 2023, the team fields a consistent driver line-up which is crucial as we embark on a new era of Formula One.

Red Bull Racing Honda CEO and Team Principal, Christian Horner, said:

“Checo is a highly respected Team member and his experience and race-craft are invaluable as we fight for the Constructors’ Championship. His integration into the wider Team has been seamless and we have been impressed by his performances during the first half of the season which demonstrates what he’s capable of in our car.

Alpine F1 Team and Fernando Alonso re-confirm partnership for 2022 FIA Formula 1 World Championship. Fernando will race alongside Esteban Ocon for a second term following the Frenchman’s three-year deal confirmed earlier this season.

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Fernando’s excellent teamwork, unparalleled experience and racecraft will be strong foundations for Alpine F1 Team’s continued progress. The extension of Fernando’s contract marks another exciting chapter under Alpine, with a first win now under its belt following its sensational Hungarian Grand Prix four weeks ago.

Alpine F1 Team is pleased to announce that two-time Formula 1 World Champion Fernando Alonso will continue in its colours for the 2022 season alongside Esteban Ocon. The extension of Fernando’s contract signals the continuation of an already strong collaboration, fresh off the back of its historic maiden victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix, in which Fernando played a pivotal role.

In just six months following his two-year sabbatical from Formula 1, Fernando has shown equal measures of race craft, guile, and speed. His season-best fourth-place finish at the Hungarian Grand Prix was not only his best result in Formula 1 since 2014 but a display of resilience and skill, which contributed richly to ensuring the team took its first win in Formula 1 under Alpine colours.

Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix will see Red Bull Racing and Honda celebrate their 50th race together. Honda’s Technical Director, Toyoharu Tanabe, gives us his thoughts below along with Christian Horner, Team Principal at Red Bull Racing.

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Toyoharu Tanabe, Technical Director, Honda Racing F1

“It’s always good to be racing at Spa and this weekend also marks a special moment for us, as Sunday’s race will be Honda’s 50th in partnership with Red Bull Racing. In a short space of time, we have achieved some great results in this hybrid era, such as our first win in Austria in 2019 and first pole in Hungary that same year, as well as our first double podium with Red Bull in Bahrain 2020 and, most recently, the fact we have taken five consecutive wins so far this year.

Honda had been back in Formula 1 for four years before joining up with Red Bull and we had not even scored a podium finish, so we have come a long way to be now fighting for the championship together with Red Bull. This is down to a lot of hard work and excellent communication from everyone at Honda and Red Bull. On the eve of our 50th race, I want to thank Red Bull Racing for their open and fair approach and the trust they showed in us, sharing the same goal. In addition, we must not forget the contribution from the drivers in that time.