Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton says he and Mercedes are “not that far behind” at the Dutch Grand Prix after an encouraging Friday practice for the team. Hamilton ended the day third quickest, just 0.072 seconds off the pace set by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, whose team-mate Carlos Sainz was second fastest. Championship leader Max Verstappen was eighth in

Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso eased off to avoid a prolonged war of words on Monday following their acrimonious collision in Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix. Mercedes’ seven-time world champion and his one-time McLaren team-mate crashed on the opening lap with Hamilton forced to retire after an airborne ride over his rival’s Alpine car. In the

Ferrari have questioned the ability of Formula 1’s governing body to police the sport’s budget cap effectively. Team principal Mattia Binotto said the cap was “a very green regulation”, adding: “The number of people in the FIA monitoring it is very little.” He said: “It has to improve for the future because it would be

Lewis Hamilton said it was “nice to know how he feels about me” after being criticised by Fernando Alonso for a first-lap crash between the two. Alonso called fellow driver Hamilton “an idiot” who “only knows how to drive and start in first [place]”. The comments were heard on Alonso’s Alpine team radio after they

Max Verstappen wins the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix.© AFP Verstappen started 14th on the grid but scorched through the field to cruise to victory ahead of team-mate Sergio Perez with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who started on pole, in third. Charles Leclerc, Verstappen’s nearest challenger in the title race, struggled in the other Ferrari to

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is likely to win the Belgian Grand Prix despite starting 15th, Mercedes driver George Russell says. The world championship leader qualified fastest at historic Spa-Francorchamps, 0.632 seconds clear, but has a grid penalty for excessive engine usage. Russell, who will start fifth, said: “Max is probably going to slice through and

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz claimed pole for the Belgian Grand Prix despite finishing behind Red Bull’s world champion Max Verstappen in qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday. Verstappen stamped his authority on the session with a scintillating lap, but due to penalties for taking new power-unit components he and six other drivers will start from back of

Carlos Sainz topped the times ahead of team-mate Charles Leclerc as Ferrari delivered a resounding one-two ahead of Red Bull’s world champion and series leader Max Verstappen in Friday’s opening practice at the Belgian Grand Prix. The Spaniard clocked a best lap in one minute and 46.538 seconds to outpace his Monegasque partner by nearly

Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali says he does not expect a woman to race at the top level of the sport in the next five years. Domenicali said it was “crucial to give the maximum possibility for women to come to F1 – we are totally dedicated to that”. But he added: “Realistically speaking, unless

Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo will leave McLaren at the end of the season a year early than his contract runs to after both parties mutually agreed to it the Formula One outfit announced on Wednesday. The 33-year-old, who joined in 2021, said he will leave “proud of the effort and work I gave McLaren.” Ricciardo

Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone© AFP Former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone on Monday pleaded not guilty when he appeared in court in London on a multi-million-pound fraud charge. Ecclestone, 91, was charged in July over an alleged failure to declare more than £400 million ($473 million) of overseas assets to the UK government.

PA Media Bernie Ecclestone has denied fraud over an alleged failure to declare about $650m in overseas assets. The 91-year-old former Formula 1 boss indicated a not guilty plea to a charge of fraud by false representation at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. He is accused of failing to declare a trust in Singapore with a bank

Former F1 driver Stoffel Vandoorne clinched the Formula E title for the departing Mercedes team at the season’s final race in South Korea on Sunday. Jaguar’s Mitch Evans needed to win and hope Vandoorne finished no better than eighth but the Belgian made sure of the title by finishing second to Venturi’s Edoardo Mortara in

Turning down a role as a fighter pilot in Tom Cruise film Top Gun: Maverick was “the most upsetting call that I think I’ve ever had”, says Lewis Hamilton. The British seven-time Formula 1 world champion said he accepted a part in the hit sequel to the original 1986 film. However, he had to pull

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton has said he could continue in Formula One beyond the finish of his current contract with Mercedes. The 37-year-old Briton won six drivers’ world championships in seven years between 2014-2020 following a maiden title success with McLaren in 2008. But he was denied a record-breaking eighth title last year by

Charles Leclerc admits “emotions have run extremely high” in a tumultuous first part of the season for himself and his Ferrari team. “Whether it was in highs or lows, there was no race with no emotions,” Leclerc says. “It’s either win, or leading and then some problems occur or whatever. So it’s been a first

Williams have retained Alex Albon as their driver in Formula 1 for what they say is next season “and beyond”. The team announced on Tuesday that they had signed a “multi-year agreement” with the British-born Thai driver. Albon said: “The team are pushing hard to progress, and I am really motivated to continue on this

Oscar Piastri says he will not replace Fernando Alonso at Alpine next season – after the team said he would. Alpine announced on Tuesday afternoon that the 21-year-old would race “in line with the commitments made by the team to the young Australian”. But Piastri then tweeted that he had “not signed a contract with