In the round-up: Porsche begins buy-in to Red Bull’s F1 operation • Szafnauer: “more to come” for close racing from 2022 rules • Bouncing may have contributed to Leclerc crash – Russell
Hazel Southwell's articles on RaceFans

Hazel is a motorsport and automotive journalist with a particular interest in hybrid systems, electrification, batteries and new fuel technologies.
Mercedes expect Hungarian GP will ‘expose our qualifying weakness’
2022 French Grand Prix
Posted onMercedes expect they will find it difficult to replicate the double podium finish they scored at Paul Ricard when Formula 1 moves to the Hungaroring this weekend.
W Series swaps Suzuka round for Singapore
W Series
Posted onW Series has changed the venue of the seventh round on its 2022 calendar due to what it says are “unforeseeable operational challenges”.
Hamilton and Russell ‘out-performing a car that’s not good enough’ – Wolff
2022 French Grand Prix
Posted onMercedes team principal Toto Wolff said his drivers are out-performing their car after they scored their first double podium finish of the season in France.
Sausage kerbs removed at Paul Ricard “shouldn’t ever come back” – Vettel
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the round-up: Sausage kerbs removed at Paul Ricard “shouldn’t ever come back” – Vettel • F1 tests 39 sustainable fuel blends • Goethe replaces injured Yeany in F3
French GP is ‘part of our DNA and clearly deserves a place on the calendar’ – Gasly
2022 French Grand Prix
Posted onPierre Gasly says he “tried to enjoy every second” of last week’s French Grand Prix, which is expected to be the last for the foreseeable future.
Drinks failure caused Hamilton to lose “around 3kg” in hot French Grand Prix
2022 French Grand Prix
Posted onLewis Hamilton’s drinks bottle system failed during a French Grand Prix that was among one of the hottest races of the season.
Iwasa takes dominant victory as pole winner Sargeant’s race ends in pits
Formula 2
Posted onAyumu Iwasa won the Formula 2 feature race at Le Castellet, his first Sunday victory in the series and a home win for his Dams team.
Drugovich promoted to podium as Pourchaire and others take penalties
Formula 2
Posted onFormula 2 championship leader Felipe Drugovich has been promoted to the podium in today’s sprint race after the stewards handed down a series of penalties.
Lawson muscles past Daruvala to win Paul Ricard F2 sprint race
Formula 2
Posted onRed Bull test and reserve driver Liam Lawson won his first Formula 2 race since Jeddah in the Paul Ricard sprint race.
Leclerc: Pole fight “would have been much more close” without Sainz’s help
2022 French Grand Prix
Posted onCharles Leclerc praised Ferrari’s “amazing team work” after Carlos Sainz Jnr helped him claim pole position for the French Grand Prix.
Chadwick takes seventh consecutive W Series win despite grid penalty
W Series
Posted onJamie Chadwick claimed her fifth win of the W Series season at Paul Ricard, retaining her perfect record in 2022.
Sainz indicates he has more grid penalties to come in France
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the round-up: Sainz expects more PU penalties • Chadwick loses pole after crossing white line • VW Group CEO ousted
Sargeant denies Iwasa his first F2 pole by six thousandths of a second
Formula 2
Posted onLogan Sargeant denied Ayumu Iwasa his first pole position in Formula 2 with a last-gasp run which deposed the DAMS driver by just six thousandths of a second.
Vettel to demonstrate 100-year-old Aston Martin GP car running on sustainable fuel
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the round-up: Vettel to demonstrate 100-year-old Aston Martin GP car running on sustainable fuel • Ricciardo feared spacehopper incident would put Norris out of race
How F1 Manager 22’s driver ratings compare to F1 22’s
Gaming
Posted onThe producers of upcoming new Formula 1 management simulator F1 Manager 22 have revealed how the game ranks the current 20 drivers.
F1 should consult drivers on which tracks suit sprint races – Bottas
2022 F1 Season
Posted onValtteri Bottas says driver input would help pick which tracks are best suited to Formula 1’s sprint race format, which the series intends to expand to six rounds next year.
Haas’s Hungarian Grand Prix upgrade will be their last this year
RaceFans Round-up
Posted onIn the round-up: Haas’s Hungarian Grand Prix upgrade will be their last this year • Latifi finally gets Williams upgrade • IndyCar test for Blomqvist
Ferrari believe their performance deficit to Red Bull is now “negligible”
2022 Austrian Grand Prix
Posted onFerrari believe the performance deficit they had to the Red Bull cars earlier in the season has been effectively neutralised by a rear wing update.
Why McLaren believe Formula E’s champions can keep on winning after their takeover
Formula E
Posted onMercedes won the Formula E championship last year and are in the thick of the title fight again. Next year they will become McLaren – and CEO Zak Brown expects them to keep on winning.