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The contracts of most drivers in the leading teams - including Red Bull's own Max Verstappen - expire at the end of 2020.<br>Mercedes' world champion Lewis Hamilton has been linked with Ferrari, with his team boss Toto Wolff suggesting that there’s only a 75% chance of Hamilton staying.<br>If Hamilton goes elsewhere or even retires, Verstappen is regarded as the obvious target for Mercedes ...

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Norris has enjoyed success before at the Autosport Awards, winning the McLaren Autosport BRDC Award in 2016, and securing National Driver of the Year honours in ‘17. He stepped up to F1 this year after a sole year in Formula 2, in which he finished runner-up while also carrying out FP1 duties with McLaren at numerous races.<br>The 20-year-old vindicated McLaren’s belief in him by showcasing ...

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Hamilton's Mercedes team was expected to start the 2019 season behind Ferrari in the F1 pecking order, but Hamilton stormed to pole position for the first race in Australia and, though he was beaten there by team-mate Valtteri Bottas, he would win six of the next seven grands prix as he stormed into the championship lead.<br>After wrapping up his sixth title with two races to spare, Hamilton went ...

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A computer server problem early in the Yas Marina race prompted the FIA to disable DRS until lap 18 of the F1 season finale – with it working flawlessly from then on.<br>Although some fans have long argued for DRS to be dropped because it is too much of a gimmick, F1 drivers say that the Abu Dhabi experience of proof of why it is required at the moment.<br>Asked by Motorsport.com about the ...

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Running in seventh place, as the best of the midfield cars, Norris came under pressure from Racing Point's Perez in the final laps of the season finale, with the Mexican on much fresher tyres of the same hard compound.<br>And though Norris managed to keep him at bay until the final lap, Perez ultimately got the move done around the outside of the Turn 11 left-hander after the second long ...

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2020 Formula 1 testing dates<br><br><br><br><br>Dates<br>Venue<br><br><br><br><br>19-21 February<br> Barcelona<br><br><br>26-28 February<br> Barcelona<br><br><br>TBA (3 days post-season)<br> Yas Marina<br><br><br><br><br>2020 Formula 1 calendar<br><br><br><br><br>Date<br>Grand Prix<br>Venue<br><br><br>15th March<br> Australia<br>Melbourne<br><br><br>22nd March<br> Bahrain<br>Sakhir<br><br><br>5th ...

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The driver market silly season kicked off over the Abu Dhabi weekend as speculation in the Italian media suggested that Ferrari chairman John Elkann had already made contact with Hamilton.<br>That prompted a response from Wolff, who said that his outfit was "totally okay" if Hamilton had spoken to Ferrari, and explained it was important that future talks were approached in a transparent ...

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Vettel was repassing Leclerc for fourth during their late-race battle at Interlagos when they made contact on the straight approaching the Descida do Lago.<br>Both retired as a result of damage from the incident, and they were summoned to the stewards shortly after the race.<br>After discussing the collision with the two drivers and a team representative, the stewards decided no penalty was ...

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While Alonso has not had time to watch every grand prix since he quit F1 at the end of last season, the Spaniard has revealed that he likes to watch Verstappen’s progress when he does tune in.<br>Asked during a press conference in Buenos Aires about who he rates the best in F1, Alonso said: “There's a reason why the drivers in the series are up there. It is not by chance, it is because they ...

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Albon, who has made F1 debut this season after graduating from Formula 2, was promoted from Red Bull's junior team Toro Rosso to its main F1 outfit ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix.<br>The Anglo-Thai racer replaced Pierre Gasly, who had been struggling as Verstappen's teammate in the early stages of the season, and has now successfully convinced the energy drink to make the switch permanent for ...

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We've selected eight of the most intriguing tales for this video rundown. <br>Jake Boxall-Legge explains the stories behind the man whose F1 career lasted just 800 metres, the one-hit wonder who ended up leading on his debut, the non-qualifier who talked his way onto the starting grid, the one-off who took out the race leader and more. Some very well-known names who had much greater success ...

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All drivers were given two sets of C4 compound 2020 tyres to be used in either session, with most teams focussing on running in the morning.<br>The general aim of the exercise was to give them a chance to sample the new construction ahead of a proper two-day test with a range of compounds after the Abu Dhabi GP. On a green track in very cold conditions most drivers offered negative feedback, with ...

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World champion Lewis Hamilton said he was left with a “massive headache” after Friday’s opening practice session at the Circuit of the Americas, as others lambasted a “completely unacceptable” track surface that appears to be much bumpier this year.<br>The pitlane exit, entry to Turn 2 and rise at Turn 9 have been cited as the worst places, but Ricciardo said he did not have a problem ...

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The Austin circuit caused some major headaches for teams and drivers on Friday when a series of bumps caught them by surprise.<br>With several spins as a result of the undulating track surface, they have voiced fears that there could be consequences as the F1 weekend progresses.<br>Racing Point's Sergio Perez was very unhappy about the situation and said he was especially concerned for the race ...

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Hamilton got a strong start from the second row of the grid and looked to draw alongside Vettel, but had to back off to avoid hitting the Ferrari driver, saying afterwards there could have been a "big collision".<br>Vettel – who went on to finish the race in second place behind Hamilton after the latter stopped earlier and gained track position – said Hamilton had been in his blind spot during ...

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Hamilton and Verstappen came together on the opening lap of the Mexican Grand Prix, with Hamilton oversteering at Turn 2 in response to being forced wide by Verstappen and edging both drivers off the track and onto the grass. <br>Five laps in, Verstappen then made a lunge into the stadium section on Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas, but was hit in the right rear by Bottas after the latter ...

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Tony Stewart, co-owner of the sister Stewart-Haas Racing NASCAR outfit, is to drive them around COTA on the Thursday before the race in the number 14 Ford Mustang, equipped with a passenger seat. The F1 drivers will then both have a chance to take the wheel.<br>Stewart has previously given Magnussen a run in a sprint car, as captured in the Netflix Drive to Survive series.<br>Magnussen has never ...

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Since its return to the calendar the Mexican race has been notable for its spectacular podium ceremonies, held in the stadium section rather than on the pit straight as is the case at other venues.<br>In co-operation with the F1 organisation for this race a hidden elevating platform has been built in front of the podium. The plan is that while the top three drivers are being interviewed on the ...

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Current Renault driver Hulkenberg is fighting to keep himself on the F1 grid next year after his bosses elected to replace him with Esteban Ocon for next season.<br>Options elsewhere appear very limited, especially since Hulkenberg does not bring big sponsorship backers with him.<br>For Perez, who partnered Hulkenberg at Force India from 2014 to 2016, the plight of the German is something that he ...

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The American outfit has struggled to get its tyres working properly this year, but only recently realised that this was linked to an aero problem with updates rather than a design or concept issue.<br>It took experiments with using its Melbourne-specification aero package to get to the bottom of what has gone wrong, and it is only now that it has found the right hybrid combination of parts that it ...

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Ricciardo and Hulkenberg finished FP2 in 17th and 18th places respectively, which will become their grid positions for the Japanese GP if qualifying is not run as scheduled at 10am on Sunday following the cancellation of Saturday's track action.<br>Renault has enjoyed a strong run since the summer break, consistently getting both cars into Q3.<br>But on Friday afternoon, the team opted to go for ...

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Reigning SUPER GT and Super Formula champion Yamamoto, a Honda-backed driver, stepped into Gasly’s car for FP1 at Suzuka.<br>Yamamoto lapped 17th-fastest, 3.2s off the pace and one tenth slower than Kvyat albeit on a different programme, and was the busiest driver in the session as he racked up 30 laps.<br>Asked by Motorsport.com to assess Yamamoto’s performance, Kvyat said: “I think he did ...

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The typhoon is approaching Japan from the south after a rapid intensification in the Pacific ocean and though its exact path is difficult to define it is due to impact Suzuka heavily on Saturday afternoon.<br>Extreme winds and rainfall would render track activity and fan attendance unsafe, with F1 and its governing body monitoring the situation.<br><br>Read Also:<br><br>F1 hopes to minimise ...

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Kubica also distanced himself from sponsor PKN Orlen, who last week issued a statement saying that it had asked Williams for clarification on Kubica's retirement in Sochi, and hinting at potential contractual issues.<br>Russell crashed in the race due to a wheel retention issue, and because the Englishman had also suffered damage to two front wings the previous weekend in Singapore, Williams ...

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