Round-up: Wolff hails W16 gains, IndyCar tyre tweak, Shanghai resurfaced and more

Comment of the day

Andrea Kimi Antonelli was well-served by Lewis Hamilton’s former race engineer Peter Bonnington in Melbourne, says @Marcusw:

It seems to me that the information from Bono is generally more concise and clearer than that from Adami that Hamilton is now having to get a accustomed to. Kimi said comparatively little in reply to Bono. Definitely instilled confidence in his abilities despite the errors, which thankfully for him had relatively little consequence.

He will no doubt get more controlled and consistent as he properly settles in, and is clearly one to watch for the future.
@Marcusw

Social media and links

‘Clear we have taken a step forward’ – Toto’s Chinese GP preview (Mercedes)

Toto Wolff: 'The W16 provided a stable platform for the drivers, was less prone to swings in performance relative to the conditions than its predecessor, and at moments, showed strong enough pace to challenge at the front.'

IndyCar tweaks tyre allocations ahead of 'cheese grater' Thermal Club (Racer)

'With Thermal’s torturous track surface in mind, IndyCar is briefly stepping away from the new tyre distribution policy it introduced at St. Petersburg, where teams received five sets of the softer and less durable alternate tyres and five sets of the harder primaries. Thermal is back to an outlay of six primary sets and four alternates to give teams more of the longer-lasting tyre compounds.'

Will F1’s Las Vegas Grand Prix continue past 2025? (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

'If a new deal is struck, that could lead to improvements in the staging of the race, Hill said. A longer-term relationship could result in F1 further investing in infrastructure that would reduce the time it takes to set up and take down race-related elements.'

• One of these three races won’t be on next year’s F1 calendar

Net content: Portland International Raceway (iRacing via YouTube)

Pirelli will award a new trophy to the driver who takes pole position for the sprint race from the Chinese Grand Prix.

#F1 #RaceFans

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— RaceFans (@racefansdotnet.bsky.social) 18 March 2025 at 12:57

10 minutes into his first race as a Formula 1 driver, Andrea Kimi Antonelli had already corrected his race engineer and grassed up one of his rivals.

Yeah, he'll do fine.

www.racefans.net/2025/03/18/t…

#F1 #AustralianGP #RaceFans

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— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine.bsky.social) 18 March 2025 at 13:23

Retro advertising at the Shanghai track. #F1 pic.twitter.com/RRYMYR8yfA

— Jon Noble (@NobleF1) March 18, 2025

The Shanghai International Circuit has been completely resurfaced ahead of this year's race.

Last year drivers discovered inconsistent grip levels around the track after a new layer of bitumen was applied before the race, which tyre supplier Pirelli was not aware of until they arrived.

#F1

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— RaceFans (@racefansdotnet.bsky.social) 18 March 2025 at 14:15

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On this day in motorsport

• Born today in 1964: Future Ferrari Formula 1 driver Nicola Larini