Brazilian Grand Prix retirement cost Bottas a power unit

In brief

Bottas loses Brazil power unit for final races

Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas says he has lost the use of the power unit he ran at the Brazilian Grand Prix before retiring.

Bottas was called in to retire after 39 laps in Interlagos with his team not disclosing the cause of his problem. His team mate, Zhou Guanyu, had also retired earlier in the race after Alfa Romeo detected a problem.

“They were different issues,” Bottas explained. “I had a technical issue and I can’t use the engine any more. That’s all I can say.”

Crawford leaves Red Bull junior team

The 18-year-old has competed in Red Bull colours since 2020 and currently sits 13th in the F2 standings with one round remaining, with five podium appearances. Crawford currently races with Hitech, however, he has not confirmed which team he will compete for 2024.

“I truly appreciate everyone at Red Bull, especially Rocky [Driver Academy chief Guillaume Rocquelin],” Crawford said. “I really enjoyed the last two years with him at the factory.”

Mini on provisional Macau pole

Gabriele Mini sits on provisional pole position for the Macau Grand Prix after the opening qualifying session.

The Prema driver posted a 2’05.521 to sit on provisional pole by almost half a second from Hitech’s Luke Browning, with Ferrari junior Dino Beganovic third and F2 racer Dennis Hauger in fourth. IndyCar racer Marcus Armstrong was seventh fastest, with two times grand prix winner Dan Ticktum tenth.

A second qualifying session takes place today before Saturday’s qualifying race sets the grid for the Formula 3 World Cup on Sunday.

Links

Motor racing links of interest:

Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll sells F1 team stake at £1 billion valuation (Bloomberg)

'The investment by Arctos, which has a stake in the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool Football Club owner Fenway Sports Group, values the F1 team at about a £1 billion ($1.2 billion) valuation, according to a person familiar with the deal.'

The architect of Red Bull’s amazing success turns 50 today, but who is the real Christian Horner? (F1)

'But while looking far forward there is key to the future, Horner has managed to juggle keeping his eye firmly on the present, too. It’s all about focussing on what you can control, prioritising, and keeping everyone focused on their objectives. About as restful as napping on a railway track. Surprisingly, the stresses of managing such a massive empire have yet to carve themselves on his face and he retains his boyish looks and usually manages, in Right Stuff parlance, ‘to maintain an even strain’ and a generally agreeable manner.'

Tsunoda is steering AlphaTauri in the right direction (Sports Illustrated)

'I tried to change our approach a bit last year, and I think also some of the team recognized it. From both sides, we will learn from each other and give our opinion on how we can improve each other. It’s a really good environment, and so far I think we’re happy with what I’ve done and also able to achieve. There are lots of places still to improve, but I’m happy so far.'

Bill Burr on overdrive as he mixes F1, stand-up show (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

'I’m an F1 fan, and to watch those cars come flying down the Strip it’s going to be sick. I’ll be in the grandstand, and I like hearing the cars and being with the fans. What’s really funny to me is the level of sophistication going on in the pits versus the animals in the crowd screaming, ‘Go faster! Go faster!’ and the guys in the pits are dealing with physics on an Einstein level.'

My night in an $18 hotel room on the F1-broken, traffic-choked Las Vegas Strip (The Messenger)

''This race has made our lives a living hell. They started road work in April. They’re telling us they might not be completely done with the teardown until just before New Year’s Eve. And then what? Las Vegas is going to be back to normal for a few months before they get ready for the next race? Is this our new reality?''

Will Andretti exit rejuvenate Grosjean's IndyCar career? (ESPN)

'I told Juncos, 'I'm not perfect. I'm someone that you need to manage like a racehorse. You can always slow down a racehorse, but you can never make a donkey faster. I say, strap yourself in. But if you get the right side of me, we are on for a good ride.''

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Social media

Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:

Huge congrats to Christian Horner 🎉 Happy 50th! pic.twitter.com/qObgoElOWw

— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) November 16, 2023

Looks like a funky podium design for the #LasVegasGP. They're using the same plinths from the launch ceremony, one has the podium steps on it but they work as lifts so they're hidden at first and can rise up with each driver standing on one.#F1 pic.twitter.com/BrCmAzDFFh

— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) November 16, 2023

Something very noticeable is that with The Strip now closed to regular traffic, it has fallen eerily silent. I’ve never experienced this level of quiet in Las Vegas before #LasVegasGP 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/hbljLvQT9S

— Sean Kelly (@virtualstatman) November 16, 2023

James previews this weekend's #LasVegasGP 🗣️👀

— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) November 16, 2023

Last month, we hosted our first international STEM inspiration event for young people at the United States Grand Prix. Here’s what we got up to… pic.twitter.com/E6RrKNjhSx

— Mission 44 (@mission44) November 16, 2023

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• Find more official F1 accounts to follow in the F1 Twitter Directory

Comment of the day

There is plenty of cynicism around this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, but HAL is not joining in…

Oh, come on… As an European, I 100% prefer F1 to be in Silverstone, Spa, Suzuka, etc. But with 23 races at the calendar, it’s nice to have some diversity and to have some ‘special events’ like this one. Even if the track is not very technical, it does not mean that the race cannot be fun.

As to Vegas… I enjoy hiking in nature more than city trips and I don’t like gambling, nor the glitz of this type of places. But I went to Vegas once for professional reasons and I have great memories of it. The city feels very fake during the day, but at night it is a special place. It has good and bad aspect, but very special. Event organisation is also absolutely mind-blowing, especially for big events.
HAL

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to Mujahid Rahman!

On this day in motorsport

• 10 years ago today Vettel took a record breaking eighth consecutive win at the Circuit of the Americas but Romain Grosjean denied Red Bull a one-two