Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo announced earlier this week that it had signed Formula 2 title contender Guanyu Zhou for next season, partnering the incoming Valtteri Bottas.<br>It ended the hopes of Sauber junior Pourchaire, who also races in F2 and currently sits fifth in the championship in his rookie season, of making the leap up to F1 for next year.<br>Speaking on Friday in Qatar, Alfa Romeo team boss Vasseur ...

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In so doing so, the 22-year-old becomes China's first driver at the top level of motor racing, providing the championship with a boost the ultimate scale of which we can only guess at.<br>It's no coincidence that the announcement came a few weeks after F1 confirmed that the Chinese GP will return in 2023 after a three-year pandemic hiatus, with a deal that now runs until 2025.<br>Former F1 CEO ...

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FIA F2 frontrunner Zhou has been favourite to land the job for some months, helped by the commercial support that he brings with him.<br>The 22-year-old replaces Antonio Giovinazzi, who has been dropped after three seasons with the team, but may retain a reserve role via his links with Ferrari.<br>The Hinwil outfit was given a free hand on driver choice when it renewed its sponsorship deal with ...

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The Italian squad has the only seat left available for the 2022 season, and Giovinazzi was still hopeful of securing another year at the Hinwil-based squad.<br>However, on Tuesday morning the team made the announcement that it will not retain Giovinazzi.<br>"Saying goodbye to a driver is never easy, especially so in the case of Antonio, who has been part of the team for so long," said team boss ...

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Bottas has already visited the Hinwil factory and had a seat fitting in anticipation of a deal being reached.<br>Usually in such situations, complex commercial arrangements have to be addressed. However, the date of the 18-inch tyre test – on December 14-15 – is so late in the calendar year that it falls close to the end of any relevant contracts.<br>A Mercedes spokesperson told Motorsport.com ...

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While the Swiss-based squad has already signed Valtteri Bottas for 2022, a decision on who the Finn’s teammate would be has dragged on for several weeks.<br>While Formula 2 front runner Guanyu Zhou had been favourite for a while, the possibility of a buy-in by the Andretti organisation had put the driver matter on pause as IndyCar's Colton Herta emerged as a contender.<br>But with Andretti’s ...

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Speaking at the announcement that Devlin DeFrancesco will complete the team's four-entry IndyCar line-up for 2022, the Andretti Autosport CEO said: "I'd just like to put an end to some of these rumors that the deal fell through because of financial reasons. That couldn't be further from the truth. It had nothing to do with that.<br>"It basically came down to control issues in the final hours of ...

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Giovinazzi was given the call to let Raikkonen pass him in the closing stages of the race two weeks ago at Istanbul Park after being quickly caught by his Alfa Romeo teammate.<br>But Giovinazzi did not move aside for Raikkonen as he pushed to catch Esteban Ocon for the final point in P10, falling 0.8 seconds short at the chequered flag. Alfa Romeo head of track engineering Xevi Pujolar said after ...

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Bottas will leave Mercedes after the manufacturer decided to replace him as Lewis Hamilton’s team-mate with George Russell and will join Alfa for next season after being selected by team boss Fred Vasseur as “the leader of the team”.<br>The move will extend the Finn's nine-year F1 career so far, but before long his new team could have a new owner.<br>PRIME: Why Alfa Romeo has picked ...

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Zhou’s pace in F2 this season, allied to some healthy backing from Chinese sponsors, has left the Alpine Academy driver as the most likely candidate to step up and race alongside Valtteri Bottas at Alfa Romeo in 2022.<br>Sources have suggested that a deal is all but agreed, and now just needs to be signed off.<br>However, Vasseur insists that Alfa Romeo remains open minded about what ...

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One-time grand prix winner Kubica has made two appearances for Alfa Romeo this season, deputising for Kimi Raikkonen at Zandvoort and Monza after the Finn contracted COVID-19.<br>Kubica linked up with Alfa Romeo as its reserve driver in 2020, having spent the previous season racing full-time with Williams, and his primary backer, Orlen, is the team’s title sponsor.<br>Alfa Romeo appears to have ...

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The team announced Valtteri Bottas for next year on Monday and, with the announcements of George Russell at Mercedes and Alex Albon's move to Williams following that, the second Alfa seat remains the biggest question mark of the silly season.<br>Vasseur is no longer contractually committed to take a Ferrari Driver Academy member and, while incumbent Antonio Giovinazzi could still retain the seat ...

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Alfa Romeo announced on Saturday morning ahead of final practice for the Dutch Grand Prix that Raikkonen had tested positive for COVID-19, ruling him out of the remainder of the weekend.<br>Reserve driver Kubica stepped in to make his first F1 start since the end of his season with Williams in 2019, finishing in 15th place despite limited practice running.<br>Raikkonen returned home to Switzerland ...

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Raikkonen announced his retirement from F1 ahead of last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, shortly before he tested positive for coronavirus and had to miss the Zandvoort race weekend.<br>While the Finn has not yet made any plans about what he will do in the future, beyond spending more time with his family, Alfa Romeo is keen to tap into his experience and insight.<br>Team boss Fred Vasseur, who ...

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The Finn's departure from Mercedes has been expected for some weeks, and a return to Williams was also a potential option before it became clear that his destination was Alfa Romeo.<br>Kimi Raikkonen's retirement announcement on Wednesday was the first in a series as the pieces of the driver market puzzle fall into place.<br>Confirmation from Mercedes that George Russell is to join the world ...

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Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas is expected to be announced as a replacement for the retired Kimi Raikkonen over the next week, but the Swiss outfit's other seat remains open.<br>Incumbent Antonio Giovinazzi still has a chance to retain his place in the team, but his chances have not been helped by the change in contractual arrangements which means that a slot for a Ferrari Driver Academy member ...

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The Swiss outfit was one of the big losers from the way that half points were awarded for the small number of laps that were completed behind the safety car as rain hit Spa-Francorchamps.<br>Its mains rival in the constructors' championship, Williams, managed to take away 10 points from proceedings, with George Russell being classified second and Nicholas Latifi taking ninth. That double score ...

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Both Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi have Alfa Romeo deals until the end of the current season, and the Finn is believed to be unlikely to be retained for next year as the Italian squad targets Valtteri Bottas should he not be retained by Mercedes.<br>Vasseur said earlier this year the team was not ruling out replacing both Raikkonen and Giovinazzi, but insisted "everything is ...

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For with it well entrenched in that ultra-close midfield pack, any small pace advantage that rivals gained as they pushed on with their current cars risked shuffling the Hinwil-based operation down the order.<br>Sure enough, with most of the grid bringing at least some major developments early in the campaign, it's been perhaps a tougher than expected year on track for Alfa's chiefs<br>For despite ...

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Alfa Romeo was dealt a blow in its fight with Williams for P8 after an eventful wet-dry Hungarian Grand Prix, in which Williams driver Nicholas Latifi and George Russell not only got their first points of the season on the board but grabbed a 10-point haul to move firmly ahead of Alfa in the constructors' championship.<br>Latifi's and Russell's seventh and eighth place respectively ...

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The Formula 2 driver, a member of the Sauber Academy affiliated to the Alfa Romeo, will be joining the team for an outing in a 2019 specification C38 at the Hungarian Grand Prix venue on Wednesday.<br>Pourchaire will share the track with Ferrari and McLaren, all taking part in a 2022 Pirelli 18-inch tyre test.<br>This will be the 17-year-old first experience of F1 machinery and the latest ...

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Mercedes will decide over the summer break if it is to keep hold of Bottas as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate for next year, or it will take George Russell instead.<br>The team insists no decision has been made yet, and Bottas is fully focused on convincing his bosses to hand him a fresh contract. But if Mercedes does opt for Russell, then Bottas has been clear that he wants to remain in F1 rather ...

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In the wake of the Swiss-based team’s new deal with the Italian car manufacturer, boss Fred Vasseur has been given carte blanche to make a call on who he wants at the team in 2022.<br>But despite Raikkonen’s star attraction, and Giovinazzi’s improving form, he has not dismissed the idea of looking completely elsewhere.<br>Asked at the British Grand Prix if it was essential to retain at least ...

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Since Sauber’s Alfa Romeo deal began in 2018, one seat in the team has been reserved for a driver nominated by engine partner Ferrari from its pool of young talent.<br>Charles Leclerc occupied it in 2018, before current incumbent Antonio Giovinazzi took over the following year.<br>On Tuesday, Sauber announced that it has extended its partnership with Alfa in a multi-year deal that is believed to ...

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The Italian car manufacturer announced on Wednesday that it had signed a new multi-year partnership to keep its brand in F1, with it understanding the arrangement runs until at least 2024.<br>However, it was clear in its announcement that the deal was subject to 'yearly assessments.' This prompted speculation that these could provide the company with a quick way out of F1 if it chose.<br>Speaking ...

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