Valtteri Bottas’s performance in the Brazilian Grand Prix was “embarrassing” and the level of a “number two” driver, says 1997 Formula 1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve. Bottas claimed his third pole of the season at Interlagos but was passed by Sebastian Vettel into the first corner and failed to reclaim the position. GP ANALYSIS: The

Brazilian Grand Prix organisers are likely to face further questions regarding security during the Formula 1 race weekend after another attack on Sunday night. Less than 48 hours after Mercedes F1 personnel escaped uninjured following a gunpoint robery outside the Interlagos track, and despite promises of a heightened police presence around the venue, a car

Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton feels he was quickest “by a long way” in the Brazilian Grand Prix, as he fought his way through to fourth place from a pitlane start. Having crashed in the first segment of qualifying on Saturday, Hamilton started from the pits and scythed his way through the pack in the

Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff says Valterri Bottas’s Brazilian GP pole reflects the fact that the Finn is now getting more out of the W08 after his recent struggles. Bottas was carrying the hopes of the team after Lewis Hamilton crashed at the start of Q1, relegating the world champion to last on the

Brazilian Grand Prix organisers have arranged for “heavy police reinforcements” around the Interlagos track following the armed robbery against Mercedes Formula 1 team members on Friday night. A minibus carrying Mercedes personnel was held up at gunpoint after leaving the track, as robbers stole valuables. Fortunately no-one was hurt. With members of Williams, and officials

Felipe Massa claims Carlos Sainz Jr admitted that he disrupted his first Q3 lap in Brazilian Grand Prix Formula 1 qualifying deliberately – but Sainz has denied that suggestion. Williams driver Massa – who will start his final home grand prix on Sunday – starred in Q1 and Q2 with fourth and seventh-fastest times respectively,

Formula 1 teams are facing a fresh headache with their 2018 car designs after McLaren failed to back a proposal to retain the fin on the engine cover. One of the items discussed in this week’s F1 Strategy Group was a change to the regulations to retain a big engine fin, which could be used

McLaren thinks a significant programme alongside Formula 1 would be a “huge distraction” for Fernando Alonso amid speculation of a Toyota World Endurance Championship and Le Mans 24 Hours deal. Alonso is tipped to join Toyota for next week’s WEC rookie test at Bahrain, as discussions continue over a potential assault with the Japanese manufacturer

Lewis Hamilton pipped Mercedes Formula 1 team-mate Valtteri Bottas to the fastest time in second practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix. The four-time world champion clocked a 1m09.515s on the super-soft Pirelli tyres to finish 0.048 seconds clear of Bottas at Interlagos. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo offered the greatest threat to Mercedes, finishing 0.228s adrift

Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton admits he lost focus last time he clinched a title early, so he is determined to win the 2017 season’s remaining grands prix. In 2015 Hamilton secured the championship at the United States GP in October, and was then defeated by Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg in the season’s last

Formula 1 CEO Chase Carey insists Liberty Media has no wish to turn grand prix racing ‘into NASCAR’, as he responded to Ferrari’s criticism of the 2021 engine proposals. Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne last week complained about the increased focus on standardisation in the planned rules, claiming his team could pull out of F1 and

Toro Rosso Formula 1 drivers Brendon Hartley and Pierre Gasly will likely take grid penalties for the Brazilian Grand Prix, with Gasly calling his recent sequence “difficult to accept”. Although a final decision will be taken by the team on Friday morning, both drivers are bracing themselves for the worst – and could find themselves

Carlos Sainz Jr has admitted he did not expect “to be so competitive” with Renault after switching Formula 1 teams in the final third of the season. The Spaniard replaced Jolyon Palmer from the United States Grand Prix and immediately outqualified Nico Hulkenberg, who had not been beaten by Palmer in qualifying all year, then

Red Bull’s ability to turn its fortunes around over the course of the 2017 Formula 1 season was the main reason Max Verstappen signed a contract extension with the team. Windtunnel correlation problems meant the team started the season off the pace with its RB13, after a strong end to last year and the change

Ferrari has questioned Formula 1’s future direction after Liberty Media’s revealed its plans with new engine proposals for the 2021 season. The team has threatened to quit in the past, but is committed to the championship until the end of 2020 under bilateral agreements. That has led to the return of the old debate over

The Mercedes Formula 1 team will use the final two grands prix of 2017 to trial “new and interesting” concepts for next season. Mercedes has wrapped up its fourth consecutive constructors’ and drivers’ championship double early, despite an intense battle with Ferrari and Sebastian Vettel for the respective honours. This weekend’s Brazilian Grand Prix and

Newly-crowned GP3 champion George Russell will make his Formula 1 grand prix weekend debut in Friday’s opening practice session for the Brazilian Grand Prix. Russell, a Mercedes F1 protege, will drive the Force India VJM10 of team regular Sergio Perez in FP1 at Interlagos. He will then get a second Force India FP1 run-out ahead

Marseille will host a live Formula 1 street event in 2018 to promote the returning French Grand Prix. The event will be similar to the one held in London earlier this year ahead of the British GP at Silverstone. French GP organisers said the Marseille event will be a “big show” organised by Formula One

Reigning Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg says he found the internal dynamic with Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes “very positive” in 2016 and hints to the contrary are “a compliment”. Rosberg and Hamilton engaged in three consecutive internal fights for the F1 world championship between 2014 and ’16, which created a difficult relationship between them,

Haas Formula 1 team principal Gunther Steiner says the 2021 engine parameters announced by F1 and the FIA are “a good concept”, but acknowledges they will need substantial refinement. Manufacturers Ferrari, Mercedes and Renault all expressed their disappointment with the plans, which focus on less technology and more standardisation of parts. Steiner, who is keen

Jacques Villeneuve believes 2017 Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton initially “fell asleep” this season and woke up when he realised just how strong the challenge from Sebastian Vettel was. Villeneuve, who won his sole F1 title 20 years ago, says that Hamilton relaxed too much when Valtteri Bottas arrived as replacement for his previous

Red Bull thinks it now has a car that can win the final two Formula 1 races of the year. The RB13 has made big progress in recent races, and Max Verstappen added to his Malaysian Grand Prix victory with a dominant win in Mexico last time out. But Red Bull is mindful that engine

Valtteri Bottas admits he did not realise how hard four-time Formula 1 world champion Lewis Hamilton works until he partnered him for the first time at Mercedes this year. Bottas joined Hamilton at the title-winning F1 team for 2017 after the shock retirement of last year’s world champion Nico Rosberg. The pair have built a

McLaren says it is “giggling” with excitement about what it can achieve in Formula 1 next year, on the back of its engine switch and progress with its chassis. After securing a Renault customer supply to replace its Honda engine deal, the Woking-based team has been buoyed by the step forward in pace a new

Williams driver Felipe Massa will retire from Formula 1 at the end of the 2017 season. Massa, a veteran of 267 grand prix starts, had announced that he would quit F1 at the end of last year, but was enticed back by Williams to replace Mercedes-bound Valtteri Bottas ahead of the current campaign. The Brazilian

The true scale of the 2017 Formula 1 world championship winning Mercedes W08 is revealed in this video from Motorsport.tv’s weekly show The Flying Lap. The world premiere from our 3D team makes the F1 car appear in Motorsport Network’s UK office in Richmond-upon-Thames, allowing Peter Windsor and Craig Scarborough to take a close look

Fernando Alonso says he plans to continue to explore life beyond the “small world of Formula 1” by sampling different racing series. The Spaniard, who will follow up his Indianapolis 500 adventure by contesting the 2018 Daytona 24 Hours with McLaren chief Zak Brown’s United Autosports team, reiterated his desire to demonstrate his driving talent

Formula 1 made its first step towards its future earlier this week when the FIA and F1’s owner revealed its ideas for the post-2021 engine formula. But if there had been any hopes of a smooth introduction for what initially sounded like a subtle change to the current power units, they were quickly dashed. Less

Renault says it is working on a “completely new car” for the 2018 Formula 1 season, despite the relative stability in the technical regulations. Aside from the introduction of the halo cockpit protection device, there are only subtle changes to the aerodynamic rules following the 2017 overhaul. But as Renault bids to accelerate its push

Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne says the way his team lost the Formula 1 championship this year was “painful”, but believes it has delivered valuable lessons in exposing its shortcomings. Ferrari started the season strongly and led the standings for much of the year, but its campaign went into freefall after Sebastian Vettel’s crash in Singapore