Tag: McLaren

Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle delivers his expert verdict on the Miami GP weekend as Max Verstappen continued Red Bull’s perfect start to 2023 and Sir Jackie Stewart starred as a chaperone on another chaotic grid walk…

I enjoyed the Miami Grand Prix. There was an (almost) race-long intrigue as to which Red Bull driver would take victory, at least until Max Verstappen put in a blistering stint to ensure he won the race for the team’s fourth one-two of this season in five races.

Further down we saw great wheel-to-wheel action including some very decent overtakes, not least George Russell in the Mercedes on Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari.

Throughout the rest of the field the competition is so close that it looks desperate at times in both Qualifying and the race, and also so entertaining. Of course, if it’s not for victory or even the podium then we lose some of that impact.

Kevin Magnussen, my driver of the day, started a remarkable fourth in his Haas team’s home country and finished 10th in an aggressive style not least when counter-attacking the works Ferrari of Charles Leclerc.

There were lots of lunges and overtakes offline into turns one, 11 and 17, and the fact that despite the 210+ mph top speeds and the confines of a street circuit, all 20 cars and drivers finished the race is something to celebrate rather than criticise. Having no Safety Car or red flag of any kind did rather take away a key variable I must concede.

Verstappen makes most of Red Bull’s irresistible speed

It’s a pity that Red Bull breached the cost cap regulations last year because it’s too easy for some to try to minimise what they are achieving now. They are dominant, and it’s for the other teams and drivers to do a better job.

With the DRS rear wing open the Red Bull is fundamentally much faster in top speed than the other nine teams, so much so that I suspect that wherever they start on the grid, and given no outside factors, they can finish one-two. Their speed is simply irresistible and that’s where the other teams must focus. It won’t be easy, that’s an overall car design philosophy rather than an update, and even then, only after they’ve understood what Red Bull are doing to dump so much drag.

A cautious Verstappen even lost a place on the opening lap, dropping to 10th, fully aware that he’d cruise past the pack in relatively short order as soon as DRS was enabled, and using his prodigious, metronomic speed and tyre management thereafter.

Of course, I’d rather there were at least two teams fighting for the victories, that would be much better, but believe me when I say that Murray Walker and I would have killed for that much race action 25 years ago in the commentary box on many occasions.

That doesn’t mean to say we shouldn’t focus on improving the racing and I am concerned that the 2023 cars, loaded with ever more downforce, are not helping in that respect.

The Red Bull DRS success creates another fundamental issue in that they simply breeze past the opposition as I’ve described above, but shortening the length of the DRS zones (based on 2022 data) is not helping the rest of the field make passes. Quite a dilemma but nothing the FIA can really do there, the other teams simply must catch up.

Alonso stars on Sunday again | Leclerc must stop crashing

Saving the day to an extent is Aston Martin in general and Fernando Alonso in particular. His fourth podium of the season was a gem, and a classy performance to be comfortably the best of the rest after the Red Bull bandits. And who doesn’t like a happy and on-form Alonso?

George Russell was another contender for driver of the day in my book, he really raced well, and Mercedes found some race form to underline his performance.

Ferrari are struggling for race pace and a distant fifth and seventh was a poor result for them. Leclerc must stop crashing his car, it’s holding him and the team back. There are always knock-on effects during a race weekend from those incidents, and he needed a new aero underfloor after the Qualifying crash which may have contributed to the bouncing and issues he reported in the race.

He is unbelievably fast and committed, and he can afford to trade a fraction of that to build a better race weekend, and so a better season. He must lead the team to higher things and not keep the repair shop so busy.

The Alpine team had a solid weekend in eighth and ninth which was a light relief for them after so much damage in Australia and Azerbaijan, and not least after the Alpine CEO Laurent Rossi gave them all a massive public lashing. There’s an awful lot of pressure in all the teams which are not Red Bull, and that’s how it will remain.

Let’s politely ignore McLaren’s horrendous weekend, I really don’t know what’s going on with that car and clearly nor do they currently. Lando Norris is outwardly handling it very well and with great loyalty, and Oscar Piastri is doing the only thing he can in chasing Lando hard.

Sir Jackie’s starring role on grid walk

The new grid procedure introducing the drivers one by one didn’t do much for me, but then it’s not aimed at me. We have an incremental and new audience in F1 from an altogether different demographic, and F1 is right to try new things. It must be said that the drivers had already been on a parade lap by then in open-top cars.

Also, I felt the long preamble took away from the compulsive energy as 20 cars leave the pit lane at the green light at the same time hundreds of skilled people and piles of high-tech equipment head to the crucible of the grid. We need to keep that at fever pitch where possible until the race starts.

The grid walk was the usual chaos, I really don’t know how that happens as nothing is planned, but Sir Jackie Stewart was the absolute star. He’s 83 but decided that he personally would immediately get Roger Federer out of a roped-off zone for an interview with me. I became rather concerned for him as the saga unfolded and security guards and George Russell got dragged into it too.

Meanwhile, I was getting a ‘hard countdown’ in my ear to throw to the LL Cool J driver introductions, but we got our man Roger in the end, and he was pure quality.

MB

Max Verstappen produced a stunning recovery from ninth on the grid to beat team-mate Sergio Perez to victory as Red Bull’s dominance continued at the Miami Grand Prix.

A Verstappen error in Qualifying saw pole-sitter Perez gifted a chance to claim a victory that would have given him the world championship lead, but the Dutchman produced a scintillating drive to win by five seconds and extend his advantage to 14 points.

Verstappen took just 15 laps to charge into second, and was able to outpace Perez as the pair drove on opposite strategies, eventually passing the Mexican with nine laps remaining.

“It was a good race,” Verstappen said. “I stayed out of trouble at the beginning, had a clean race, picked off the cars one by one and I could stay out really long on the hard tyre.

“I think that’s where we made the difference today and then a good little battle with Checo at the end.

“Yesterday was a bit of a setback, but today we kept it calm and clean, and winning a race from P9 is always very satisfying.”

Fernando Alonso, who started second, drove a solid yet lonely race to claim his fourth third-place in five outings for Aston Martin.

George Russell was fourth as Mercedes showed improved race pace after a disappointing Saturday, finishing ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz.

Having started in 13th after a poor Qualifying display, Lewis Hamilton also took advantage of the improved W14 to take sixth, completing a late pass on the other Ferrari of Charles Leclerc to seal the position.

Alpine completed a solid weekend as Pierre Gasly finished eighth, a place ahead of team-mate Esteban Ocon, while Kevin Magnussen took the final point for Haas after starting fourth.

Red Bull have now won all five races of the 2023 season, with one-twos in four of them, and lead Aston Martin by 122 points at the top of the constructors’ standings.

Miami GP Race Result
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2) Sergio Perez, Red Bull
3) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
4) George Russell, Mercedes
5) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
6) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
7) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
8) Pierre Gasly, Alpine
9) Esteban Ocon, Alpine
10) Kevin Magnussen, Haas

Verstappen offers reminder of class

Verstappen had made an error on his first flying lap attempt in the final part of Qualifying on Saturday, before being denied the chance to complete his second as Leclerc crashed out.

Up until that point, the Dutchman had appeared in a league of his own at the Miami International Autodrome, and that form returned on Sunday as he produced a faultless display.

Starting from ninth, Verstappen was careful to avoid danger in the opening stages, before producing a brilliant double-overtake on Magnussen and Leclerc to jump up to sixth.

From there, he eased past Russell, Gasly, Sainz and Alonso to move into second on lap 15, and crucially was just four seconds behind Perez, who had failed to open up a more significant advantage as Verstappen made his way through the field.

While it was apparent that Verstappen was simply quicker than Perez all weekend, the Dutchman appeared to benefit from the team’s decision to split their drivers’ strategies.

While Perez, along with the rest of the top seven, started on medium tyres, Verstappen was one of seven drivers to start on the harder compound, leaving the pair to run their one-stop strategies in reverse order.

That meant that Perez, who was struggling to take care of his mediums early in the race, pitted on lap 20 to switch to hard tyres, giving up the lead to Verstappen.

For a long period the race seemed set for a grandstand finish as the margin remained around 16 seconds, four seconds less than the time Verstappen would need to complete his pit stop.

The pendulum seemed to be swinging in Perez’s favour as he closed to inside 14 seconds, but an error from the Mexican that saw him go off track at Turn 7 opened up the gap once more.

That meant when Verstappen eventually came in at the end of the 45th circuit of the 57-lap contest, he was immediately on the tail of Perez, and armed with fresh medium tyres.

Perez was powerless to hold off his team-mate, and despite his best efforts, Verstappen completed a move into the first corner of lap 48, before easing into the distance.

A sprint and race double for Perez in Azerbaijan last weekend had left the Mexican convinced he was ready to sustain a season-long title battle with his team-mate, but Verstappen’s performance on Sunday offered a reminder of who the clear top dog at Red Bull is.

“I gave it all,” Perez said. “I think the first stint was really poor with the graining we had and that compromised quite a lot of the race because we didn’t have too much of a difference.

“It is a well deserved win (for Max).

“I think the medium initially was really poor and that was unexpected. That really compromised our pace and I also think Max had tremendous pace on the hard tyres.”

Alonso scores podium, Mercedes improve, Ferrari struggle

With the battle between Verstappen and Perez understandably stealing the show, Alonso’s typically composed display snuck somewhat under the radar.

Early in the race he appeared to be in a tussle with fellow Spaniard Sainz for third.

They were closely matched until Sainz came in on lap 18 in an attempt to pull off an undercut, but the plan was ruined by the fact a lock up the way in meant he was guilty of breaking the pit lane speed limit, and consequently given a five-second penalty.

As it was, on the hard tyres they switched to, Alonso had far too much pace and soon eased past Sainz, whose undercut had been successful, before simply managing his tyres to the end as he came home 20 seconds behind Perez.

Alonso remains third in the drivers’ standings, 19 points clear of Hamilton, his nearest challenger to be best of the rest behind Red Bull.

“The car is amazing and it was a bit of a lonely race today,” Alonso said. “It’s never easy, but it was a lonely race.

“Everything was fine, we take the podium, and going into Imola, Monaco and Barcelona we hope to keep going.

“At the beginning of the year a podium was amazing, but now we want more.”

For Sainz, it turned out that he didn’t have enough pace to stay in front of Russell either, with the Mercedes passing the Ferrari on lap 38.

Mercedes’ speed advantage over Ferrari would be emphasised once more as Hamilton passed Leclerc to move up to sixth with two laps remaining.

While it was Mercedes who had been left downcast after a poor Qualifying showing, it’s Ferrari who will leave Miami more disappointed.

The new floor they brought to Miami appears to have failed to make a significant impact, and there will be huge pressure on the team when they return home to Italy for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in two weeks’ time.

Hamilton, who like Verstappen began the race on hard tyres, produced a patient drive to reap the rewards of being on the medium compound in the closing stages, producing several late passes to minimise the damage of his Qualifying display.

Imola is also set to be a significant race for Mercedes, who will bring major upgrades that they hope will at least close the gap to Red Bull.

After a disastrous weekend in Baku, Alpine were finally able to take advantage of the updates they brought to Azerbaijan, with Gasly and Ocon point-scoring performances offering some respite for team principal Otmar Szafnauer following heavy criticism from chief executive Laurent Rossi.

There was no such let up for McLaren, with Lando Norris 17th and rookie team-mate Oscar Piastri 19th as their hugely disappointing campaign continued.

Also disappointed to miss out on points was Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, who was unable to recover from Qualifying 18th as he finished 12th.

Star-studded Miami here to stay on F1 calendar

If there was any shortage of drama in the race, with no Safety Cars, red flags or retirements, the star-studded build-up more than made up for it.

Some of the biggest names in sport flocked to Florida as Miami hosted F1 for the second time after debuting last year, with Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Patrick Mahomes just a few of those in attendance.

While traditionalists might not have loved it, musician LL Cool J’s pre-race introductions were certainly something different and embraced by the thousands in attendance.

Formula 1 continues to search for the right balance between adding new venues and keeping historic circuits on the calendar, but Miami looks to have established itself as one of the sport’s destination races.

What’s next?

There’s a brief pause for breath before Formula 1 returns to Europe for a triple-header of back-to-back races.

The first of those is the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola from May 19-21, with Mercedes and Ferrari expected to bring significant upgrades which they hope will move them closer to Red Bull.

All eyes will be on Ferrari at the first of their two home races this season, with the team’s inconsistent start to the campaign likely to come under major scrutiny in front of the tifosi.

Lewis Hamilton to start Miami GP from 13th after suffering Q2 exit; Hamilton unhappy with timing of when Mercedes sent him out to do final qualifying lap; Toto Wolff labels W14 a nasty piece of work; watch Miami GP live on Sky Sports F1 at 8:30pm Sunday

Lewis Hamilton says Mercedes need to get better with their qualifying strategy decisions after suffering a Q2 exit at the Miami GP on Saturday.

The seven-time world champion suffered his worst qualifying result on American soil and will start 13th on Sunday.

Both Hamilton and George Russell had found themselves in the drop zone for long periods of Q1 and Q2 and while Russell scraped into the top-10 shootout by 0.052s and will start sixth, Hamilton faced an early exit.

The Briton had a scruffy start to his final attempt and Hamilton said being sent out as one of the final cars to cross the line meant he was unable to prepare his car and tyres as required and believes Mercedes need to react better to not having a car guaranteed of reaching the final stages.

“When you’re fast you can be more sat back, more relaxed, you can go at the last minute and take your time. You know you’re likely to make it easily into Q3,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.

“We knew it was very hard and there was a 50:50 chance we could get into Q3 so we need to be better with our timing.

“It’s done, I’ll try and get my head down [on Sunday] and see what I can do – 13th to God knows where.”

Hamilton had entered qualifying day with “no expectations” after being disheartened by how far off Mercedes were to Red Bull on Friday.

His qualifying session began strangely when he hit the wall and damaged his front wing on a slow lap when taking evasive action to avoid Kevin Magnussen’s Haas.

“It was a difficult session. We’re not that quick so we really needed perfect laps but it was difficult to get into a rhythm, at the beginning I had that issue with the car gong slow in the last corner,” Hamilton continued.

“It was a couple of decent moments in there where I thought the car was good – the Q1 end of the run time was not too bad.

“We were at the back end of the top 10 of course and the last run I was the last of the pack and trying to get the temperatures into the tyres. I was at the back of the queue and everyone slowed into the last corner and I lost all temperatures and couldn’t do the lap.”

Wolff: This car is a nasty piece of work

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff conceded the team had made a mistake sending Hamilton out for his final Q2 lap when they did.

He said they cannot understand what is making the W14 such a “nasty piece of work”.

“There is not a lot to say [to Lewis]. The car is simply not fast enough and putting him in a situation on his out lap where the driver isn’t able to prepare their tyres makes it even worse,” said Wolff.

“Nobody makes a mistake on purpose, we’re trying to give them the best position. We have in the past got it wrong many times and got it right many times. Today [Saturday] for George and Lewis that really went south and you can see in his first sector that the car simply wasn’t there.

“If things go bad, they compound bad. This happened for him and for all of us as a team. I take no enjoyment from finishing sixth because probably it was eighth or seventh. And even if it was fifth I took no enjoyment either because it’s a lack of comprehension of what it is that makes this car such a nasty piece of work.”

Russell: Sixth place flatters us

Russell’s sixth position was helped by Max Verstappen failing to set a time in the final segment after a mistake on his first run and Charles Leclerc also making a mistake on his first run before crashing out which prevented anyone completing a second attempt.

He was outqualified by Haas’ Kevin Magnussen and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Russell admitted P6 was more than Mercedes’ performance deserved.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say quite pleased, of course I’ll take the result, it’s a very flattering result for the performance that we showed,” Russell told Sky Sports F1.

“I did a really decent lap in Q2 to just scrape through, just to get into Q3 and that’s not where we should be.

“Everybody is working so, so hard to bring more performance to the car, it’s definitely not for a lack of effort and it’s just not coming to us at the moment.

“Lots to think about, a few questions that need answering, tomorrow is a new day and we’ll see what we can do.”

Russell is hoping Mercedes’ trend of having a stronger race car will continue on Sunday, where rain could also be a factor in Miami.

“I hope so, it’s a theme of us that we generally have a better Sunday than Saturday,” Russell said.

“Obviously got the Alpine and Haas around us, hopefully we can get past them, Ferrari tend to struggle a bit more on Sunday.

“We’ll focus on [Sunday], but we need to think about the bigger picture and how we’re gonna bring that fight to the guys at the top.”

The Formula 1 season continues with the Miami GP – watch Sunday’s race live on Sky Sports F1 from 7pm, lights out at 8.30pm. Get Sky Sports

Lewis Hamilton says it was a “kick in the guts” for Mercedes to be so far behind Red Bull at the end of Friday practice and is going into qualifying day at the Miami GP with no expectations.

Signs had initially looked promising for Mercedes after George Russell led Hamilton in a surprise one-two in Practice One, albeit their times being set when track conditions were at their best.

But Friday afternoon saw Mercedes’ difficulties return as Hamilton finished the session seventh, 0.928s off Max Verstappen’s leading time and behind Fernando Alonso and Lando Norris as well as the two Ferraris and Red Bulls. Russell, meanwhile, ended up 15th.

“We’re not particularly quick and it’s a struggle out there,” Hamilton said on Friday evening.

“We’re trying lots of different things. P1 looked quite good and then to come into P2 and the true pace came out – it’s a kick in the guts.

“It’s difficult to take sometimes but it’s OK, we’ll keep on working on it and we’ll regroup tonight and see if we can make some set-up changes and get the car in a sweeter spot.”

He added: “I’m trying to stay positive with it and we’re working as hard as we can. It’s just we’re dying, desperately need those upgrades for sure.

“Just got to keep our head down for one more race and then hopefully we’ll start a new path next race.”

A year ago, Mercedes topped a Friday practice session at the inaugural Miami GP before Russell suffered a Q2 exit and Hamilton could only manage sixth in qualifying on Saturday.

And the seven-time world champion is just hoping to be part of Q3 given the difficulty he is having with the W14 this weekend.

“I don’t have expectation. The car I just hope I can get it into a better place tomorrow. I hope we can be in Q3 and if we can be mid-bunch of that top 10 that would be great,” Hamilton said.

“Melbourne was night and day difference, much much nicer to drive there. Baku felt better than here also. Maybe it’s the heat or maybe it’s the balance we have at the moment.

“I’m going to stay optimistic and I’m going to stay hopeful that we can get the car in a better place tomorrow and maybe be a couple of steps up.

“But it feels like, apart from last year we had large-scale bouncing, it generally feels like we’re racing pretty much the same car and that’s the difficult thing.”

Russell: We can still get ahead of Ferraris, Astons

Russell’s difficult second session saw him at one point complain that his car felt like it was “three-wheeling” through Turn Two.

The 25-year-old believes he and the team understand why he struggled on his soft tyre attempts on Friday and retains hope that Mercedes can still get ahead of the Ferraris and Aston Martins come race day.

“It’s fine margins,” Russell said.

“If we get things right, there’s no reason why we can’t be ahead of Ferrari and Aston Martin – that’s the aim.

“I think we’ve seen in these first four races now it’s really tight between those three teams, so if only that was for the win and pole position, it would be exciting. But it’s good because it shows if we can get things right, we can be rewarded and jump ahead of them.

“I think we need to make some improvements overnight. We know we’ve got the potential because we saw it in FP1 and we saw it at the start of FP2, but for sure we just need to get things aligned.”

Max: I always felt good | Perez: I’ve not driven well

Friday saw contrasting fortunes for the two Red Bull drivers and title rivals.

Verstappen, who leads Sergio Perez by six points in the championship heading into the weekend, had dominated Practice One until the late laps from the two Mercedes and Charles Leclerc usurped him, but still finished over a second ahead of his team-mate.

The Dutchman was then nearly half a second ahead of Perez in the afternoon session as he stamped his authority on the weekend.

“I think it was a good day. Initially I think it was getting used to the track a bit with the new tarmac, I think it was ramping up a lot throughout the day,” Verstappen said.

“I always felt good in the car and we had good balance.

“Most importantly today I think we had a good balance in the car to start with, so I felt happy. There’s still a few little things we want to look at.”

Perez admitted he needed to improve over the remainder of the weekend.

“I haven’t had the greatest of Fridays but my lap was also pretty bad where I locked up on the final corner,” Perez said.

“I think there is quite a bit to come together with my driving. I don’t think I drove well today, so if I can improve my driving and get myself a bit more comfortable I’ll be all right.”

Leclerc on P2 crash: I pushed too much

Leclerc finished third in both of Friday’s practice sessions, but his afternoon running was curtailed 10 minutes early in the second of those when he crashed into the barriers after losing control at Turn Seven, bringing out the red flag.

Ferrari are running an upgraded floor and diffuser in Miami but the rear of the car escaped undamaged in the crash.

Leclerc said the crash was due to pushing too hard and struck a defeatist tone about the chances of reeling in Red Bull on Sunday.

“I pushed a bit too much lost the rear, tried to recover from it, but I had no grip to recover the car. There was no damage to the rear of the car, which is the most important, and tomorrow is another day,” Leclerc said.

“Apart from that I think the feeling is pretty good over one lap, but over the race we are so far behind. Red Bull is again in a league of it’s own, but very far in front so in the race we have a lot of time to find. In qualifying, we are more or less there.”

Sky Sports F1’s live Miami GP schedule

Saturday
5.15pm: Miami GP Practice Three (session starts 5.30pm)
8pm: Miami GP Qualifying build-up
9pm: Miami GP Qualifying
10.45pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook

Sunday
7pm: Grand Prix Sunday Miami GP build-up
8.30pm: THE MIAMI GRAND PRIX
10.30pm: Chequered Flag Miami GP reaction
11.30pm: Ted’s Notebook

The Formula 1 season continues with the Miami GP this weekend. Watch qualifying at 9pm on Saturday with lights out at 8.30pm on Sunday. Get Sky Sports

Sergio Perez produced a flawless drive to beat Max Verstappen to victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix after an intense battle between the Red Bull team-mates.

After both Red Bulls made light work of passing the Ferrari of pole-sitter Charles Leclerc – who finished third – in the opening stages, an early Safety Car caused by Nyck de Vries crashing enabled Perez to leapfrog Verstappen as both made pit stops.

Red Bull pitted Verstappen, who was under heavy pressure from Perez, while De Vries was stranded on the track, but the Safety Car being sent out moments later meant Perez gained timed – and the lead – when he stopped a lap later.

The victory reignites Perez’s hopes of denying Verstappen a third successive drivers’ title, with the dominant RB19 appearing to be in league of its own in 2023, with the pair having now claimed two victories apiece across the first four races of the season.

Perez, who also won Saturday’s Sprint as Formula 1 debuted its new format for 2023, now trails Verstappen by just six points going into next weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

Despite having taken a stunning pole on Friday – and on Saturday for the Sprint – Leclerc was never expected to be able to compete with the Red Bulls on Sunday, and produced a strong drive to keep Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso behind him to claim a first podium of the season.

Carlos Sainz completed an improved weekend for Ferrari by finishing fifth, ahead of Lewis Hamilton who recovered from losing several places when pitting before the early Safety Car to take sixth.

Lance Stroll got away with making significant contact with the wall with his Aston Martin to take seventh ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell, whose early progress was ruined by a poor restart after the Safety Car.

Lando Norris, who like Hamilton lost places after pitting early, fought back to finish ninth for McLaren, while Yuki Tsunoda finished in the points for a second successive race by taking 10th for AlphaTauri.

Azerbaijan GP Race Result
1) Sergio Perez, Red Bull
2) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
3) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
4) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
5) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
6) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
7) Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
8) George Russell, Mercedes
9) Lando Norris, McLaren
10) Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri

Perez takes control after early drama

Despite Leclerc starting on pole, the feeling before the race was that the real battle would be between the Red Bulls lining up behind him.

That did not take long to come to fruition, with Verstappen easing past the Ferrari at the end of the third lap once Red Bull’s dominant DRS was unleashed.

Perez followed his team-mate through at the same spot two laps later, before setting about chasing down Verstappen.

The Mexican’s street-circuit pedigree was on display as he immediately closed within a second of Verstappen, and was right on his team-mate’s rear wing when De Vries’ incident occurred on lap 10.

The AlphaTauri struck the inside wall as he took on Turn 5 and damage to his left-front tyre left him stranded at Turn 6.

With yellow flags waving, Red Bull called Verstappen in, but no sooner had he emerged from the pits, the Safety Car was sent out, benefitting all the cars that had yet to stop.

Perez would come out in the lead after his stop a lap later, while Leclerc also got back in front of Verstappen, providing the Mexican with an extra cushion at the rolling restart.

It would not last long, as Verstappen immediately got past Leclerc, but Perez quickly opened up a second gap to move out of DRS range, and then maintained the advantage for the rest of the race.

There was a momentary scare as Perez hit the wall at Turn 15 on the 34th circuit of the 51-lap contest, but he escaped any damage and was able to comfortably bring the RB19 home with a two-second lead.

Perez’s victory makes him the first driver to win twice at the Baku City Circuit in F1, while also furthering his reputation around street tracks, where five of his six wins in the sport have now come.

Leclerc seals Ferrari podium | Ocon has terrifying near miss

While the rest of the action was somewhat secondary as the key battle played out up front between the Red Bulls, Leclerc backed up his second in Saturday’s Sprint to claim a first podium of the season for Ferrari.

Having come into the season expecting to challenge Red Bull and Verstappen for titles, Ferrari endured a torrid start to the campaign in the first three races, with Leclerc retiring in two of them.

While their race pace – along with the rest of the field – remains some way off Red Bull’s, they will take encouragement and hope significant upgrades planned for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola later this month can move them closer to contention.

Alonso did his best to make it four podiums in as many races for 2023’s surprise package Aston Martin, as he pressured Hamilton into an early pit stop before passing Sainz at the restart to gain two places from his starting position.

Hamilton recovered well after a slow start to pass Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon having dropped to 10th at the restart, before then making moves on team-mate Russell and Stroll to take sixth.

Ocon, who started from the pit-lane after breaching parc ferme by changing his set-up on Saturday, was involved in a near-disastrous accident in the pit-lane in the closing stages.

Alpine somewhat strangely waited until the final lap of the race to bring Ocon in for a mandatory change of tyres, but race organisers had not realised and allowed photographers to gather at the start of the pit-lane where they were awaiting the top three.

Thankfully, the photographers managed to get out of Ocon’s way at the last moment, avoiding a potentially terrible accident.

Despite the near-miss, serious questions will be asked as to how such a dangerous situation was allowed to occur.

Global warming is becoming an ever-pressing issue, and it sometimes feels like a guilty pleasure to watch Formula 1. But, actually, this is the sport that is moving the world to a more sustainable place – here’s how.

As part of its commitment to being carbon neutral by 2030, F1’s rule-makers have made 2026 the year that the rule changes to the engines and fuels will lead the way for sustainable fuels to power the sport.

These regulations are clearly a hit in the car industry – Audi and Ford have joined the F1 party while other manufacturers are looking for a way in.

But what is actually happening? Sky Sports F1 takes a look, with Formula 1’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds…

What is happening in 2026?

The rule changes in 2026 are aimed at making Formula 1 even more sustainable, driving forward innovation to make the car industry as a whole better for the world in the race against global warming.

The regulations will look to ensure the following:

• No new carbon from fossil fuels will be released into the atmosphere
• There will be three times the electric power – the aim is for the MGU-K to produce around 350kW in 2026 (the electrical component of the power unit currently produces 120kW of energy)
• More than 1,000 horsepower engines with less fuel used – in 2026, F1 is aiming for each car to use just 70kg of fuel during a Grand Prix, compared with 100kg in 2020
• Cheaper engines – There will be an engine-specific cost cap to encourage more car manufacturers to get involved in finding innovative solutions

Symonds explains that the fuels used will be a mixture of alcohol and a more complex fuel, made by the manufacturer.

“Putting something in [the fuel mixture] like ethanol is actually quite good because it’s cheap,” said Symonds, speaking during 2023 pre-season testing.

“We anticipate that 20 per cent of the fuel is going to be one of these oxygen-type fuels like ethanol and the rest is going to be the more complex molecules that give you the very high energy.”

“The important thing is that it is a ‘drop-in’ fuel, so we can show the world that you can actually synthesis this fuel, you can put it in your car and drive off.”

Could algae power F1 cars of the future?

A ‘drop-in’ fuel is a sustainable fuel that is similar enough to conventional fuel that it can be mixed in and still be used in an engine.

It’s a little bit like adding water to squash – while you may not get quite as much sugar as a glass full without water, you still get a tasty drink which doesn’t use up the bottle of the sugary bit quite as much.

Symonds explained that for the teams, “the real trick is where you get your carbon from. You can get that from algae, from air carbon-capture, from waste”.

Fuels are made of hydrocarbon, which as the name suggests, is made up of hydrogen and carbon atoms.

“The quality of the fuel that you make depends on how you mix up your hydrogen and your carbon atoms,” explains Symonds.

“You start building up these long carbon chains into good fuels, the gasolines, the things like that.

“The great thing with things like gasoline, when you get eight carbon atoms and even above that is that you get an awful lot of energy in them.”

One kilogram of gasoline has 43 megajoules of energy in it – that’s the equivalent energy to about 2.6 million glasses of orange squash.

“When you go to your ethanol and smaller hydrocarbons, they don’t have that amount of energy, so you’re going to have more volume of fuel going into your engine,” says Symonds.

These shorter hydrocarbons are easier to get your hands on, and like water with squash, top up the rest of the engine while the car industry tries to make enough sustainable fuels for cars across the world to eventually use purely sustainable fuels.

How will it work in F1?

Rather than the amount of fuel being limited, F1 will instead limit teams on the amount of energy in the engine during a race.

This means that teams will gain performance on the track by making their fuels more efficient, so that they can use less of it – the lighter the car, the faster it goes.

“We’re saying 33,000 MJ of energy an hour, that’s what you can flow into the engine,” explained Symonds.

“If you have a fuel that requires 70 kilograms of that particular fuel per hour, and another fuel, 72 kilograms per hour – it doesn’t matter, the fact is that everyone has got the same energy.

“It’s how you use that energy that matters.”

Why will this help the environment?

F1 will be encouraging the manufacturers and Mercedes, Ferrari, Ford, Renault and Audi will all be incentivised to find the best way of fuelling cars with sustainable fuel.

Quite often, the technology involved in F1 makes its way to road cars after a few years – effectively Formula 1 is one of the most famous and glamourous test benches in the world.

The kinetic energy recovery system (KERS) was a system which stored up an electrical boost for the engine by recycling the heat energy created from braking at corners.

This technology came into F1 in 2009 and now many modern cars use this system to help use fewer fossil fuels.

The aim is that the use of sustainable fuels in one of the most exciting sports in the world will help lead the way as the motor industry moves away from fossil fuels and towards a cleaner future.

The Formula 1 season resumes with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from April 28-30, with the first Sprint weekend of 2023 shown in full live on Sky Sports F1. Watch Saturday’s Sprint at 2:30pm and Sunday’s race at 12pm. Get Sky Sports

Formula 1 finally returns next weekend at the often dramatic Azerbaijan GP.

The cancellation of the Chinese GP means F1 fans will have had to wait four weeks to see cars on track again following the Australian GP.

Max Verstappen entered the break with a 15-point lead at the top of the drivers’ championship, with Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton the three drivers behind. Meanwhile, Red Bull hold a 58-point advantage over Aston Martin in the constructors’ championship, with Mercedes third and Ferrari fourth.

An action-packed weekend lies ahead with the first Sprint of the season taking place. Watch the Sprint at 2.30pm next Saturday, with lights out for the Grand Prix at 12pm on Sunday.

Here Sky Sports F1 examines the talking points ahead of the weekend…

F1 Sprint returns! And with a new format?

The first of 2023’s six Sprint weekends will also be the first time Saturday’s shorter race has been contested on a street circuit.

The decision to hold the Sprint early in the season, at the beginning of a double-header at a track with walls close by, has been much debated by the team principals, with Red Bull boss Christian Horner particularly outspoken.

“The reality is it’s absolutely ludicrous to be doing the first sprint race of the year in a street race like Azerbaijan,” Horner said in Australia last time out. “I think from a spectacle point of view, from a fan point of view, it is probably going to be one of the most exciting sprint races of the year.

“From a cost-cap perspective, all you can do is trash your car and it costs a lot of money around there. So one race is enough in Baku. The fact that we’ve got two… yeah, there could well be some action there.”

Aston Martin team principal Mike Krack admitted there was a “nervousness”, while Alpine boss Otmar Szafnauer said teams would likely have been using the unintended break to build up spare parts.

Next weekend is also expected to feature a new format for Sprint weekends. The proposed plans are to have just one practice session on the Friday morning, with Friday afternoon’s qualifying session now setting the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

The Sprint will then have its own standalone events on Saturday, with a separate, shorter qualifying session replacing Practice Two in the morning before the Sprint itself on Saturday afternoon. The result of the Sprint will no longer determine the order of Sunday’s grid.

The F1 Commission is meeting in the week to vote on the plans.

Will anyone stop Red Bull?

Three races, three pole positions, three wins, two 1-2s – Red Bull have been in a league of their own so far in 2023.

Given their form, it is little wonder why Horner does not want the added jeopardy of a street-race Sprint.

The RB19’s superiority saw the first non-Red Bull car come home over 38 seconds and 20 seconds behind the winners in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, while Verstappen was comfortably ahead of Hamilton’s Mercedes before the late red flags in Australia wiped out his advantage.

But could this extended break possibly have hurt Red Bull?

Given their development penalty this year, Red Bull will have wanted to keep their momentum going and claim as many points as possible while they had their car advantage. “We need to make hay while the sun shines,” Horner told Sky News last month.

The Chinese GP cancellation has meant their rivals have now had four uninterrupted weeks to work on upgrades to try and close that gap.

Unlike over the summer break when F1 teams must shut down for 14 consecutive days, factories have been able to continue to operate as normal.

Toto Wolff said on Thursday that Mercedes have been working at a fast pace with the intention of “consistently bringing upgrades” over the coming races, with James Allison explaining after the Australian GP that the focus would be on finding downforce and delivering different suspension components to improve the balance and driveability of the W14 in Baku.

The former champions have also reshuffled their technical team in a bid to close the gap to Red Bull.

Aston Martin are also set to add their first real upgrades to the AMR23, including a new rear wing, as they seek to build on their impressive start to the year which has made them the closest challengers at the front.

Red Bull are seeking a third consecutive win in Azerbaijan and will be favourites to do just that given their DRS advantage in the event they find themselves behind on Baku’s long straights, but a closer battle at the front could be on the cards.

Can Perez, Ferrari recover from Australia woe?

After a poor Australian GP weekend, Perez is probably glad to be heading back to a street circuit as he seeks to close Verstappen’s championship lead and reignite his own title challenge.

The Mexican already finds himself 15 points behind his team-mate after his fifth place in Melbourne, but four of his five victories in F1 have come on street circuits, including in Saudi Arabia this year.

Perez was victorious in Baku in 2021 and also finished on the podium in 2022, 2018 and 2016. Given Verstappen’s form, Perez cannot afford to fall much further behind in the standings even so early in the season. Can he make the most of the extra points on offer next weekend?

In the garage next door, Ferrari will be hoping their fortunes in 2023 and in Baku are about to change. Azerbaijan has not been a happy hunting ground over the years for the Scuderia, with just three podium finishes returned and last year seeing a double retirement.

Red Bull’s closest rivals last year, Ferrari have endured a difficult start to the new season with Charles Leclerc suffering two DNFs and a grid penalty for engine parts already, and they failed to collect points in Australia. Another poor weekend will almost certainly mean Ferrari’s wait for another world title will go on for another year.

Will updated MCL60 revive McLaren?

McLaren have been one of the biggest disappointments so far in F1 2023. They may be sitting in fifth place in the constructors’ championship, and just 14 points behind Ferrari ahead, but Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were among the biggest gainers from the chaotic finish in Melbourne.

The pair finished sixth and eighth respectively to get McLaren off the mark with 12 points, but when Kevin Magnussen caused the second red flag of the race, Norris had been running eighth with Piastri outside the points.

Zak Brown admitted ahead of the season that the team had missed their development targets with their initial car so a slow start was expected.

Baku will see McLaren unveil the first of three major upgrades the team is planning for the MCL60 through the season.

Team principal Andrea Stella said earlier in the season that the data looked “promising” for the update and the team hope it will ensure they are indeed the fifth-fastest car on track.

It will take more than just this upgrade to get McLaren back to where they want to be in the top four, but it is hoped it will sow the seeds of a 2023 revival that their new technical executive team can build from.

Baku to deliver more incredible drama?

The Azerbaijan GP weekend has a history of delivering season-defining drama with thrilling moments every year it has been held (we will quietly ignore F1’s first running in Baku – the rather dull 2016 European GP).

Think Sebastian Vettel’s bumper cars with Hamilton behind the Safety Car in 2017, Daniel Ricciardo and Verstappen wiping each other out as Red Bull team-mates in 2018, Leclerc’s “I am stupid!” qualifying crash in 2019.

And then there was 2021 when Verstappen suffered a tyre blowout on the main straight when leading with just five laps remaining before Hamilton botched the subsequent race restart and also finished out of the points.

Even last year’s relatively tame Grand Prix featured Leclerc suffering an engine blowout when leading.

What will Baku’s streets conjure up across two races this year? Find out on Sky Sports F1 next weekend!

The Formula 1 season resumes with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from April 28-30, with the first Sprint weekend of 2023 shown in full live on Sky Sports F1. Watch Saturday’s Sprint at 2:30pm and Sunday’s race at 12pm. Get Sky Sports

After Daniel Ricciardo attended a Grand Prix for the first time in his role as Red Bull’s third driver, Sky Sports F1 assess the likelihood of the Australian making a permanent return to the grid in 2024.  

Ricciardo was let go by McLaren at the end of last season after a hugely disappointing two-year spell with the team, and rather than take a 2023 seat towards the back of the grid, he opted for a year out of sorts by re-joining Red Bull.

The Australian established himself as one of the sport’s top drivers by winning seven races for Red Bull between 2014-2018, but decided to leave for Renault, before moving onto McLaren two years later.

While there have been flashes of brilliance, most notably a victory for McLaren at Monza in 2021, Ricciardo’s stock has gradually fallen.

His popularity and commercial value alone could almost guarantee him a seat at some teams, but with Ricciardo holding out for a drive in a competitive car, it remains unclear whether an offer to tempt him back onto the grid will be forthcoming.

Ricciardo, along with several team principals who have worked – or in some cases tried to work – with him, spoke about his future during the Australian Grand Prix weekend.

Horner: ‘Unrecognisable’ Ricciardo getting his mojo back

Red Bull chief Christian Horner, who oversaw Ricciardo’s development with the team earlier in his career, made a quite stunning admission about the Australian.

“When he first turned up after (the final race of 2022 in) Abu Dhabi…” Horner said. “I think the problem is when you drive a car that obviously has its limitations, you adapt and you try and adjust to extract the maximum out of that car.

“And it was clear when he came back, that he picked up some habits that were not… that we didn’t recognise as the Daniel that that had left us two or three years earlier.”

Despite their initial concerns, Horner insists that after some time off during the winter, Ricciardo swiftly began to resemble the driver that won seven races in five seasons with Red Bull.

“Having had time off over Christmas, and so on and a chance to reset, when he’s come back and got into the 2023 work, he’s hit the ground running,” Horner said in Australia.

“We’re certainly seeing him getting back to being far more reminiscent of the Daniel that we knew.

“It’s great to have him back in blue and be back in the team. This is the first Grand Prix he’s attending this year, and he’s really throwing himself into it, sitting in all the briefings, he’s been working hard on the simulator as well in the UK doing some race support and some development work on that.

“And Daniel’s just a positive energy to have around and it’s great to see him getting his mojo back, to see that big smile on his face and he lights up a room when he walks in.

‘Itches have been scratched’

Ricciardo put on a brave face as he attended his home Grand Prix as somewhat of an outsider, sat on the Red Bull pit wall watching Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez driving the RB19.

It would have undoubtedly been painful for the 33-year-old to be on the fringes in front of a passionate Australian crowd, but he says it’s actually been time away from the track that has clarified his desire to return.

“The signs are pointing towards getting back on the grid,” Ricciardo said in Australia. “I feel like that’s where I’m tracking in my head and a few of the habits that I’m having or doing is pointing towards that.

“It’s only been a few months (out of F1) but I think some itches have been scratched, so to speak. I’ve actually weirdly found that the days that I’ve had no schedule are the days when I’ve actually done training, and I’ve done things like I would before.

“So I don’t know, being my own boss, writing my own schedule has actually brought out a lot of the things in me, when I thought I might just sit on the couch and watch movies all day and eat junk food, I’m just not. That’s not me.

“So even these things have made me realise how much I do care about it.”

Return ‘not at any cost’ | Target remains ‘top team’

The reason Ricciardo is on the pit wall rather than in a car is that he decided against taking up offers to drive for teams unlikely to be competing for point, and his mindset doesn’t appear to have changed.

“I still am at a point where it’s not at any cost, it’s not just to be back on the grid,” Ricciardo said.

“A lot of the reason for taking this year off was that I didn’t want to just jump back into a car, any car just to be one of the F1 drivers. And I still don’t see myself starting from scratch and rebuilding a career and going at it for another decade.

The reality is that Ricciardo being comprehensively outperformed by Lando Norris at McLaren has damaged his stock, but the Australian believes he can be reinvigorated by the chance to drive a competitive car.

“I appreciate I might not have every opportunity under the sun, but I want to win,” he added. “I want to be back with a with a top team and obviously a team where I have my confidence back and my mojo.

“I think also that’s where, maybe when I look back that’s a weakness of mine, but in a way it’s a strength as I feel better at the front of the grid. I feel like I perform in those situations with a bit more pressure and a bit more emphasis on a podium.

“So to go back and try to put myself in just any seat or something that’s fighting at best for a top-10 finish, I don’t think that’s going to bring the best out of me. So yeah, I see myself, at least in my head, wanting to go back on the grid, but there’s still some terms and conditions, so to speak.”

Is a Red Bull return realistic?

Red Bull have made a dominant start to the season, winning all three races – with one-twos in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia – and the RB19 is undoubtedly the car that every driver on the grid would want to be in at the moment.

Ricciardo is no different, and admitted: “Truthfully Red Bull is the number one seat, that’s what I would love.”

However, Verstappen looks to be on his way to a third successive world championship and will be going nowhere, while Perez’s contract runs until the end of 2024, creating a couple of major obstacles for Ricciardo.

There has also been speculation that in the event Verstappen or Perez were unavailable to drive in a race this season, Red Bull would promote Yuki Tsunoda from AlphaTauri rather than put Ricciardo in the seat.

While that could be related to contractual obligations rather than performance expectations, it feels like Ricciardo is a long way from driving a Red Bull in competitive circumstances.

What does appear likely to happen is some sort of testing of practice run-out for the veteran, who according to Horner, has been enjoying driving the RB19 in the simulator.

“I think he likes the feel of the car in the virtual world which seems to correlate well with what we’re seeing in the actual world and I think he’s desperate to get a run in the car at some point to validate that,” Horner said.

“I think that he’s training hard and he’s ready to go given the chance.”

Where else could Ricciardo go?

While Ricciardo appears to be adamant he will only return in a competitive car, the chances of a seat becoming available at Red Bull or one of their main challengers – Mercedes, Ferrari and Aston Martin – appears highly unlikely.

Even if a desirable slot opened up, Norris, for one, would undoubtedly be ahead of Ricciardo in the queue for it.

Therefore, the most realistic scenario for a permanent Ricciardo return would appear to be a team convincing him that they can follow in the footsteps of Aston Martin and take a big step forward to contend at the front.

Haas were repeatedly linked with Ricciardo last season, but a deal failed to materialise before Guenther Steiner filled his second seat with Nico Hulkenberg.

The Germany veteran has made a hugely impressive return to F1, perhaps providing inspiration for Ricciardo, but it also means another opening might have closed.

“It’s a little bit early to speak about a driver change already for next year,” Steiner said when asked about Ricciardo in Australia. “So let’s see how we are doing with these drivers and, for sure, at some point maybe I speak with him but I cannot promise anything because if our two guys do a good job…”

“But for sure, everybody is wanting to speak with Danny after a year off, maybe he knows again what he wants to do and he will be interesting for everybody in Formula 1. But at the moment I have a new driver this year that has done only two races, so I need to give him a little bit of a chance.”

After Oscar Piastri was confirmed as Ricciardo’s McLaren replacement, there were talks over a possible return to Alpine, the team (formerly known as Renault) that Ricciardo had ditched two years earlier.

They ended up signing Pierre Gasly from AlphaTauri, who is contracted until the end of the 2024 season, along with team-mate Esteban Ocon.

“So we had discussions with Daniel, ended up with Pierre when he became available and he’s signed with Red Bull no,” Alpine team principal Otmar Szafnauer said in Australia.

“But I think, like Guenther does, he’s a fantastic racing driver, he’s still young and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s back racing in the future.”

The Formula 1 season resumes with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix from April 28-30, with the first Sprint weekend of the 2023 shown in full live on Sky Sports F1. Watch Saturday’s Sprint at 2:30pm and Sunday’s race at 12pm. Get Sky Sports

McLaren chief Zak Brown has revealed Lando Norris does not have an exit clause from his contract and believes the Briton will be “along for the journey” as the team look to improve.

The 23-year-old has established himself as one of most highly-rated drivers in the sport but he is yet to claim a race win, and looks further away than ever from doing so with McLaren struggling at the start of the 2023 season.

Having signed a contract extension in February 2022, Norris is tied to the team until the end of the 2025 campaign, but his future remains a major talking point with McLaren’s woes continuing.

Despite near-constant chatter surrounding Norris’ future, McLaren chief executive Brown insists the driver’s current focus is on the team’s goal to build a “championship winning car” over the next two years.

“He has zero exit clauses,” Brown told Sky Sports F1 on Thursday in Melbourne ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

“Ultimately, when his contract is next up, if we are not performing and he doesn’t feel he can win races and can compete for the championship, then I think anybody, driver or team member for that matter [would be considering leaving], we are all here to win.

“He has got a contract with us and, most importantly, he is very happy here and he sees the progress that we are making, and he is a team player.

“So, even contracts aside, it is about that he is in a happy environment, he is along for the journey, and we have got some time to prove to him that we are going to give him a car capable of winning.

“Right now it is pretty easy but if we are sitting here in two years’ time and his contract is nearing the end, then it is a different situation if we are not performing and I would understand him going ‘I need to get into a winning race car’.

“But, right now, I think we are all focused on working together to get that car so I think it is too early to be worried about anything other than having a good weekend.”

Brown also praised Norris’ rookie team-mate Oscar Piastri, who will make his home F1 debut at Albert Park.

“I am very happy with our driver line-up. I think Lando has a tremendous amount of experience,” Brown added. “It is now his fifth season which is crazy to think given how young he is.

“Oscar looks to be a sensational rookie and we are very excited and he did a great job in Saudi and he has done through testing.

“I think our driver line-up is one of our big strengths right now and I am excited to all work together to give them the car that they need to get to the front because I think we have two drivers who are championship calibre.”

‘Stella has right qualities to oversee new structure’

The renewed vision at McLaren to build “a winning race car” comes off the back of structural changes, with executive technical director James Key departing and three new specialised technical director roles introduced, all reporting directly to team principal Andrea Stella.

The technical executive team will include Peter Prodromou, who has been promoted into the role of technical director of aerodynamics, David Sanchez, who will be responsible for the car concept and performance after a decade with Ferrari, and Neil Houldey, who has been with McLaren since 2006, and is promoted into the newly-created role of technical director of engineering and design.

Despite the shake-up being perceived by many as a response to a poor start to the season, Brown insists they are changes that have long been in the works.

“I would characterise the start of the year as things aren’t as bad as they look, but not as good as they should be,” Brown added.

“We had some issues in testing for a second year in a row, which is unacceptable.

“Bahrain, we weren’t nearly as competitive as we would like to be. We had two technical issues, one within our control, one not.

“Then in Saudi, we were pretty competitive in practice and qualifying. Lando had a small and unusual incident for him and Oscar had a great qualifying run, which was great to see how competitive he is.

“So, that means the changes are not in response to a poor start to the year, they actually date back to the second half of last year when I saw some things I wasn’t happy with.

“The progression of our race car and our performance, we had a team principal change, and then as soon as Andrea started, who is very technical, the first thing I asked him to do was review where we were and why we weren’t performing at a higher level.

“He set about doing a lot of consulting and fortunately he had been with the team for some time and ultimately he decided we needed a new model and so we went forward with putting that in place.

“We announced it last week, but these things are always a little bit in the works.”

A lot of faith is being placed into Stella but, for Brown, his technical ability coupled with his “rich racing history” leaves no doubt he is the best man for the job.

“He has got a lot of great qualities. One, he already knows what winning looks like,” Brown said.

“He has got a rich history with some of the best racing drivers in the world.

“He is very much a people culture driven individual so he really knows how to rally a team and we are a big team of people and he is very technical.

“So, I thought he had the best combination of technically understanding what changes we needed to make and how to bring a high performance team together.

“We are at the start of that journey of Andrea’s vision which I fully support and there is a lot of excitement inside the racing team.”

Watch the Australian Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend, with Sunday’s race live at 6am. Get Sky Sports