Hamilton won’t have ‘number two’ team mate at Ferrari like Schumacher – Domenicali

In brief

Leclerc “won’t accept domestic duties” when Hamilton arrives

Domenicali, who worked at Ferrari while Schumacher won five world championships with the team in the early noughties, praised Hamilton’s decision to join the team next year but pointed out he won’t have the same supremacy within the team his predecessor enjoyed.

“Schumi had absolute dominance,” Domenicali told Quotidiano. “Irvine was clearly a number two.

“Lewis will have to compete with someone like Leclerc, who will never accept domestic duties.”

The F1 CEO declined to comment on the ongoing controversy surrounding Red Bull team principal Christian Horner. “It’s a topic I’m completely unfamiliar with,” he said. “I don’t make comments.

“I simply hope that the image of Formula 1 is respected by everyone in our world.”

Aston Martin bringing upgrade for Suzuka

“We are introducing an update at Suzuka as part of our continuous development, including changes to the floor, some bodywork and a new beam wing,” he said.

However Blandin suspects their gains may be cancelled out by those of their rivals. “Other teams will bring upgrades,” he said. “We’re in a competitive development race, but hopefully our upgrades will be a step forward and help us to close the gap to the front.”

Changes coming for Drive to Survive season seven

“It’s not there’s anything wrong with the show, but it’s healthy on any of these shows to think of what can we do differently? You rarely throw the baby out with the bathwater.

“You might make some relatively subtle adjustments to it. We’re trying to tell the stories in a slightly different way this year, which will be dependent on maybe deeper access in certain situations.”

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Initial viewing figures fell for the sixth season of Drive to Survive when it debuted earlier this year. However Gay-Rees said interest in the series remains strong and they don’t plan to drastically change it.

“You always kind of have these radically exciting ideas and then you basically have to work with what you’ve got. We still love making it, I have to say, we still really enjoy it and we’re really excited to rethink it a little bit this year and try to make it fresh for the audience at the end of the day.

“They’ve been so loyal and they still turn up in their droves, so it warrants us to put as much effort into it as we can to make it the best possible show.”

Fame “takes a bit of getting used to” – Piastri

“A lot of things have changed,” he told 10 News. “Just people knowing who I am is probably the biggest thing.

“I think the way I’m going about my racing and trying to improve is still the same. I feel like I’ve improved in certain areas, which is always a nice thing, but definitely just the fandom, I guess, is something that takes a bit of getting used to and it’s not really something you can train for or prepare for. It’s kind of just thrust upon you.

“So that’s been the biggest thing to try and get used over 12 months, but it’s been a fun process, definitely.”

Pourchaire to IndyCar?

Formula 2 champion Theo Pourchaire posted a picture of himself arriving in Indianapolis yesterday. Speculation has linked him with a substitute role at McLaren, who may require a replacement for David Malukas again at Long Beach, but will not be able to call on Callum Ilott again as he is due to participate in the World Endurance Championship round at Imola.

Australia “not how we want to go racing” – Albon

Alexander Albon thanked his Williams crew for repairing the car he crashed in Australia, though the team will again be without a spare chassis this weekend.

“Australia was clearly not how we want to go racing as a team, and it did unfortunately highlight the journey that we’re on,” he said. “Despite this, the team trackside and back at Grove has really pulled together in an impressive way to repair the car and deliver it to the track on time, which we are all hugely thankful for.”

Links

Motor racing links of interest:

FIM Statement re: Acquisition of Dorna Sports SL by Liberty Media Corporation (FIM)

'The FIM is convinced that these World Championships will benefit from the strength and broadcast quality of Liberty Media Corporation and congratulates Greg Maffei and his team on these additions to their portfolio, which will undoubtedly help grow the sport for fans, teams, commercial partners and all related stakeholders. '

Kobayashi to race Supra GT4 Evo in NLS opener (Sportscar 365)

'Kobayashi is not the only top-level prototype driver to appear on the Nordschleife grid this weekend. IMSA SportsCar championship driver Jack Aitken will pilot a Hyundai i30N entered by Walkenhorst Motorsport, sharing driving duties with Micah Stanley and Joseph Warhurst.'

Aitken to make Formula E return with Envision (Formula E)

'After getting behind the wheel of a Formula E car for the first time in May at the Berlin Rookie Test last season, Aitken also had a further opportunity to test for the Silverstone-based outfit ahead of July’s double-header in the Italian capital.'

In profile: Laurens van Hoepen (Formula 3)

'My first racing memory is the first time I ever sat in a go-kart. It was when I was three-years-old, a friend of my dad’s called him to ask if I wanted to go drive a go-kart, I said yes and that was it, I loved it from the very first moment.'

In Barcelona Pedro Clerot clocks the best time on the first day of official testing (Formula Regional Europe)

'In the final session, Clerot marked the best time of the day with an impressive 1:36.281. In the early stages of the last afternoon session, where drivers could also use the push to pass, Prema Racing’s Camara and Wharton showed good pace, but were later surpassed by the Van Amersfoort Racing representatives, Badoer and Domingues, who finished the session in second and third.'

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Social media

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

It's a soaking wet setup day in Suzuka 🌧️🇯🇵#HaasF1 #JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/gfkRq6eEhH

— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) April 3, 2024

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

Comment of the day

With Istanbul Park joining the queue for a grand prix, will Formula 1 really stick to a maximum of 24 races if it gets a good enough offer?

We’ve heard talk of “limits” a million times, and we always get more races. The teams have signed a contract that agrees to 25 races max, so 25 is what we will get! I expect this!
@EuroBrun

Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to D_Omin!

On this day in motorsport

• 20 years ago today Michael Schumacher cruised to victory in the first Bahrain Grand Prix, leading a Ferrari one-two with team mate Rubens Barrichello