Nicolas Lopes, Author at Motorsport | Pit Debrief

Wolff says Mercedes is in “observation mode” regarding 2025 F1 driver market: “We want to take our time”

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago05 mins

Mercedes F1 team principal and CEO Toto Wolff has made no secret of his wish to get reigning three-time world champion and current Red Bull driver Max Verstappen to join his squad in place of the departing seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, taking advantage of the unrest at Red Bull following the allegations of controlling behaviour…

Sainz: Lap for P3 was “not too bad” amid “very weird” conditions in Miami F1 GP qualifying

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago05 mins

In a similar tone to several drivers on the grid, Carlos Sainz felt the Miami Autodrome was offering some “very weird” conditions during the qualifying hour, with the tyre temperatures and wind direction and speed making it a “very challenging” proposition. Winner in Australia back in early April, Sainz’s form took a bit of a…

Perez “disappointed” with P4 in F1 Miami GP grid but “happy” with pace: “A couple of hundredths and it would’ve looked a lot different”

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago05 mins

Sergio Perez will start the 2024 Miami GP from fourth on the grid, after a strong qualifying session which saw the Mexican just over two tenths of a second back from his team-mate and reigning world champion Max Verstappen – but that small gap of 0.219s was enough to fit two scarlet Ferrari’s in between…

Stella: McLaren’s huge Miami F1 upgrades are worth “less” lap time than the package it brought to Austria in 2023

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago07 mins

McLaren’s extensive updates to the MCL38 ahead of the Miami GP caught the attention of the paddock, after the team transformed its fortunes with an in-season package in Austria last year, there’s a possibility this could happen again in 2024 – and much earlier this time around. The extent of the upgrades means the car…

Leclerc: Good to stop “talks” of recent qualifying slump with front row for F1 Sprint in Miami

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago05 mins

After missing the entirety of the first – and only – practice session in Miami due to a spin exiting turn 16 after hitting the kerb hard and losing control of his Ferrari. The tight space between the walls meant he couldn’t do a 360-turn, and the long time in which he was stopped overheated…

Verstappen says money is not a factor for him to move teams in F1: “It’s all about performance”

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago04 mins

Amid the tensions going on within the Red Bull team since Christian Horner’s scandal regarding his behaviour towards a female employee of the team became public earlier this year – and more recently the exit of the team’s Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey – there have been rumours that reigning three-time world champion Max Verstappen…

Stella praises Norris’ evolution in both qualifying and racecraft in F1 2024: “Credit to him”

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago04 mins

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has praised Lando Norris’s upturn in performance and consistency in both qualifying and race trim in the 2024 F1 season compared to 2023, pointing out how the young Briton is now capitalising on the areas where he needed to improve last season, especially during those critical qualifying laps. The Italian…

Wolff and Horner clash over Verstappen possibly joining Mercedes F1: “There’s no ambiguity”

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago010 mins

Toto Wolff and Christian Horner gave very different and conflicting views on what lies ahead for reigning three-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen. Whilst the Dutchman is locked in at Red Bull until the end of 2028 – as per his contract signed in early 2022 – question have arisen since team principal Christian Horner…

Verstappen admits he could do “whatever he wanted” on his way to a comfortable F1 Chinese GP win

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago06 mins

Max Verstappen has won again in Formula 1, this time at the 2024 Chinese GP, after an utterly dominant performance in which it never really looked in doubt that reigning three-time world champion would win the race. Despite many interruptions due to the safety car, the Dutchman controlled the race from the front, and admitted…

Norris “pleasantly surprised” with P2 he “wasn’t expecting” at the F1 Chinese GP after Sprint race struggles

Nicolas Lopes7 months ago7 months ago06 mins

Lando Norris drove a phenomenal race to secure second place at the 2024 Chinese Grand Prix and his second podium of the season, keeping pace with Sergio Perez’s Red Bull and comfortably beating both Ferrari drivers to the flag. But after a difficult Sprint race which saw the Briton finishing down in sixth after running…