F1 news LIVE: Max Verstappen skips media day due to health issue ahead of Saudi Arabia Grand Prix while Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes target return to form

Can Mercedes challenge Red Bull in new F1 season? | You Ask The Questions

Max Verstappen has cancelled his media commitments at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix because of a stomach illness.

The double world champion, who dominated Formula One’s season-opening race in Bahrain a fortnight ago, said he has been battling with the bug this week. However, he expects to be in his Red Bull for practice in Jeddah on Friday.

“Feeling fine again, after not being fit for a few days because of a stomach bug,” wrote the Dutchman, 25, on Twitter. “Therefore, I unfortunately had to postpone my flight for a day, so I won’t be on the track until Friday.”

Elsewhere, F1 extends its deal with the Austrian Grand Prix until 2027, Fernando Alonso insists there’s “more to come” from Aston Martin this season while Charles Leclerc will take a 10-place grid penalty this weekend in Jeddah.

Follow all the latest F1 news as the drivers speak to the press in Jeddah this afternoon

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F1 news: Valtteri Bottas in the drivers’ press conference…

“It was a good solid race for the first race of the season, wasn’t my best. Race start was a weak point last year, we’ve showed we made some good progress.

“There’s always more to come in this sport. This track is so different and not easy to predict how the performance will be. Every year can be different, many question marks.”

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 15:12

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F1 news: Alex Albon in the drivers’ press conference…

“We were slightly on the back foot in testing and on Friday in Bahrain, but we turned it around. A point was something to be very proud of.

“In terms of a feeling with the car, it feels quite similar to last year and we’ve made some small steps. We’re in a much better place, we know there’s room for improvement which excites me a lot.

On James Vowles: “He’s got the knowledge from Mercedes, a smart guy, winning mentality, he knows what it takes to win and that’s something we need right now. There’s all aspects to look at. A lot of it is more long-term than short-term.”

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 15:09

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F1 news: Lando Norris in the drivers’ press conference…

“I believe we should’ve been in the top-10 in Bahrain if we didn’t have any issues.

“It’s not possible to be in Q3 in Bahrain – for pace we have a lot of work to do. We’re in the middle but I believe we should have had a fight with Alex, he was ahead of me before the issues, so tough to say but different track layout…”

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 15:07

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F1 news: Carlos Sainz in the drivers’ press conference…

On Bahrain: “It was a tough weekend for the team. We got the maximum, Charles’ penalty here is not ideal. We’re going to try and build from there, improve the car as much as possible, try to improve.

“I have a few misfires in my voice! Had a cold at the weekend, I don’t know why but my voice has decided to leave me and hasn’t come back yet!”

“The track is completely different to Bahrain. Tarmac, high-speed nature, everything’s a bit different. I have a feeling we will be more competitive – to beat the Red Bulls will be extremely difficult but I want to be more optimistic.”

(Getty Images)

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 15:04

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F1 news: Can Mercedes even build a ‘Plan B’ car in time to salvage season?

Comment by Kieran Jackson

Never mind waiting for the first race of the Formula 1 season. A weekend of testing, three practice sessions and qualifying in Bahrain has told Toto Wolff everything he needed to know.

No sandbagging. No magic fix. No hiding. Mere hours into the 2023 campaign the Mercedes boss – once the unflappable executive titan of the sport – cut a despondent figure speaking to the press in the late hours on Saturday. Acknowledging that his team’s persistence, bordering on stubbornness, had been a mistake, he revealed a change of tack is already in the pipeline.

Speaking after George Russell and Lewis Hamilton qualified sixth and seventh respectively, the Austrian stated: “I don’t think that this package is going to be competitive eventually.

“We gave it our best go over the winter and now we all just need to regroup, sit down with the engineers, be totally non-dogmatic and ask what is the development direction we want to pursue in order to be able to win races.”

As sporting U-turns go, this is pretty seismic. Race weekend No 1 of 23: rip it up and start over.

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 14:59

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F1 news LIVE: Drivers’ press conferences!

We’ll be hearing from the drivers in the Jeddah paddock shortly!

The first press conference is scheduled to start at 2:30pm (GMT)…

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 14:29

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F1 news LIVE: Max Verstappen misses media day in Saudi Arabia

The double world champion, who dominated Formula One’s season-opening race in Bahrain a fortnight ago, said he has been battling with the bug this week.

However, he expects to be in his Red Bull for practice in Jeddah on Friday.

“Feeling fine again, after not being fit for a few days because of a stomach bug,” wrote the Dutchman, 25, on Twitter.

“Therefore, I unfortunately had to postpone my flight for a day, so I won’t be on the track until Friday.”

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 14:14

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F1 news LIVE: Driver press conferences!

The driver press conferences at media day in Jeddah starts at 2:30pm (GMT)!

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 13:59

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F1 news LIVE: Austrian Grand Prix to remain on F1 calendar until 2027

The Austrian Grand Prix will remain on the F1 calendar until at least 2027 after a new deal was signed between the sport and circuit owners Red Bull. Its previous deal was set to expire after this summer.

Having returned to the schedule in 2014 after an eleven-year absence, the Austrian Grand Prix currently takes place at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg. This year, it will be one of six events to host the ‘sprint’ format, in which a shorter race is used on Saturday’s qualifying in order to set the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc passed Max Verstappen to claim victory in 2022 with the Dutchman previously winning the race in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

The Austrian Grand Prix is part of F1’s core European circuits, along with the likes of Monaco, Spa and Monza, which are coming under increased pressure as F1 continues its global expansion.

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 13:47

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F1 news: Exclusive interview – Sky F1’s Rachel Brookes on paddock life and a run-in with Bernie Ecclestone

A report published last week by Females in Motorsport revealed women spoke for just 1.54 per cent of the run time in the new season of Drive to Survive on Netflix, totalling six minutes and seven seconds out of more than six-and-a-half hours. Curious, too, when you consider the emphasis throughout Formula 1 on increasing opportunities and visibility for women, despite a woman not competing in the sport since 1976.

Yet look in the paddock or on your screens and women are present. Not enough yet, as Drive to Survive’s inadequate representation infers, but they’re in attendance. Rachel Brookes, heading into her 12th year as a reporter and presenter for Sky Sports F1, is one such face, refreshingly familiar for all UK fans of the sport.

Swapping duties with Natalie Pinkham and Simon Lazenby, the 48-year-old is a well-respected and trusted voice not just for the viewers at home, but for the drivers in the paddock too. This year, she will be at 19 out of a record 23 races, starting with Saudi Arabia next week. Speaking with passion about a job she adores, Brookes is insistent that F1 is improving when it comes to female representation.

“I have seen it change – there’s a lot more women now working in all sports as well as Formula 1,” she says.

“It’s been really positive. One of the first things Sky did was send me out to cover cricket, they’d never had a women on the boundary edge before doing live match updates but I loved it.”

Kieran Jackson16 March 2023 13:29

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