Long Eaton’s Ben Godfrey will be remaining in the National Superstock 1000 class for 2017, but this time he will be on a bigger and better than ever package, with big backing from LED Solutions, from Leicester.
Godfrey had a 2016 which saw him in and out of the Stock 1000 series, starting with Morello Racing, before rounding out the season with his own team, which was also led by LED Solutions sponsorship.
The 21 year old finished joint 18th in the series last year, although with just 5 races where he competed. For 2017, the team which is run by Godfrey himself, will feature a 7.5 tonne lorry which will be used for hospitality and garage space. The rule changes in the class for the upcoming season will allow the team to play around more with the settings of the bike. There will be a huge colour scheme change and will see the team with Bitubo suspension and on the BMW.
Godfrey is the development rider for Austin Racing, who are also supporting the team for the upcoming campaign. Other sponsors include: Signet signs, Vape HQ, Austin Racing Exhausts, Held Rider Equipment, Shark Helmets, Daytona Boots, RnG Crash Protection, Pro Fibre Fairings and MHP Engineering.
The team are also on a look out for a second rider, and are in talks with several; one of them is the very well known A Someone! As well as looking for a second rider, the team are always looking for new sponsors. The Pit Crew Online looks forward to keeping up with Ben and the team for the 2017 season, and wish him and everyone around him a very successful year.
When Nico Rosberg announced his shock retirement from Formula One at last week’s FIA gala, he left not only the sport’s fans scratching their heads as to the identity of his replacement, but also his former employers’.
After all, despite being the most attractive package on the 2017 grid, Rosberg’s cockpit will not prove an easy one to fill: his successor must be able to cope with the pressures of a frontrunning team, play an active part in defending Mercedes’ world titles from Red Bull et al, provide a worthy and motivational challenger to Lewis Hamilton without upsetting the team dynamic, and – most importantly – be contractually available at such short notice.
With such specific criteria to meet, it’s no wonder Toto Wolff, Paddy Lowe and Niki Lauda are currently bracing themselves for a stressful December that has nothing to do with Christmas shopping queues on Brackley High Street.
Do they stick to their driver development plan and hope Pascal Wehrlein’s inexperience is outweighed by his existing familiarity with the team? Try to lure a more established midfield talent like Bottas or Sainz into a number two role beside Hamilton? Or even chase a box office star like Fernando Alonso, knowing full well the results will come with their fair share of fireworks? Each one of the choices before them is far from ideal, with risks aplenty as well as benefits.
However, the flipside to Rosberg’s sudden retirement is that it presents the Mercedes management with a golden opportunity to resolve certain intra-team issues that have developed over the last few seasons.
With a free seat available, Toto Wolff and his peers now have a clean slate with which to approach their professional relationship with Lewis Hamilton. The free-to-race policy governing Hamilton’s and Rosberg’s time together was clearly a source of great anxiety for the Mercedes pitwall, but so long as the partnership remained a successful one for the Silver Arrows, there was no way Wolff could water down that policy without triggering an outcry from all camps of F1 fans.
But for 2017, the Mercedes rules of engagement are up for complete renegotiation. Wolff has already stated his lack of enthusiasm for replacing Rosberg like-for-like with another world champion – and with another world champion’s ego, of course – and hinted he would prefer a more defined driver hierarchy “a bit like Ferrari at the time of Schumacher and Massa”.
If that’s the new direction Wolff envisions for the Silver Arrows, now is the time to take it. Team orders are hardly what any F1 fan wants to see at the front of the grid, but at least for Mercedes next year there would be some justification to it, given the extraordinary circumstances into which Rosberg’s replacement is about to be thrown.
Indeed, 2017 could be billed as something of a trial period for a new, more cooperative Mercedes, allowing someone like Wehrlein or Bottas time to adjust to being parachuted into a team with everything to lose but without the added pressure of going toe-to-toe with Hamilton for the drivers’ championship. Then, at the end of the season, Wolff, Lowe and Lauda could meet again and decide if they want to return to the old way of parity or continue as they are.
Although many spectators – including Bernie Ecclestone himself – would rather see Fernando Alonso join the Silver Arrows for a fairytale tilt at a third world title, the likelihood is that Mercedes will steer towards calmer waters instead, leaving Formula One to look elsewhere along the grid for the box office battle of 2017.
Hyundai Motorsport 2017 Team Launch Monza, 1st December 2016 Hayden Paddon Photographer: Sarah Vessely Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Welcome to my end season catch up with the young, fast Kiwi, Hayden Paddon. After his best season at the top the rallying world, he took some time out of his busy end of season schedule to answer some questions about his year.
This year he showed much improved consistency securing three podiums which also included a first win! On all other events, he also improved his finishing position by one to two positions compared to the 2015 season.
Warren
Firstly, out of all of your drives this year, which one, other than your first victory are you most proud of?
Hayden
Poland – it was off the back of two very bad rally’s and was mentally very tough. To come back with a podium was a big relief.
Warren
Regarding your first victory, which was in Argentina, was it a surprise to take the win there, especially that you beat Seb in such a great way in the power stage?
2016 FIA World Rally Championship / Round 04 / Rally Argentina // April 21-24, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: Hyundai Motorsport
Hayden
Of course, to win in that matter was a dream come true. Even today it’s something that I’m very happy about, but of course 1 win is never enough and now that we have the taste – we want more.
Warren
Now a question about your use of Twitter. After each event, you hold an Ask Paddon session and reply to fans. Are you surprised how many fans ask questions and what is the most surprising question you’ve been asked?
Hayden
Yes, it’s great to interact with the fans and that people get involved – i really enjoy it. Generally, most questions are pretty straight forward but I don’t hide behind any questions or comments. I like being up front and honest.
Warren
This year at Rally de Catalunya, you showed much improved pace on tarmac, finishing in 4th compared to 6th the year before. What would you put this down to?
Hayden
During Corsica, we discovered we were going backwards with our tarmac driving. So, during that rally we reverted back to a way of driving the car that was more natural, and ever since that it has clicked a lot better. Still room for improvement, but to be ahead of Thierry and Dani on some of the tarmac stages in Spain was a good step
Warren
Right, comparing this year’s car, with the 2017 Hyundai, what are the main things that are most noticeable from behind the wheel?
Hayden
Obviously, the extra power is the first thing, and the extra width of the car. The active diffs are also very nice and allow us to tune the car more individually for different drivers, which is suiting my style quite nicely.
Warren
Recently, you answered one of my questions during your Ask Paddon twitter sessions regarding the amount of km’s of testing in the new car, and you answered at the time around 800km’s over tarmac and gravel. On which surface, have you done more than the other?
Hayden
I have only done 1 day of testing on tarmac – it has mostly been on gravel. We will have 2 more days before Monte, but not a lot.
Warren
How surprised were you when Volkswagen pulled out of the championship?
Hayden
Just like everyone else – very shocked. It come very suddenly and unexpectedly
Warren
Which driver do you get on with the most out of the current crop of drivers?
Hayden
I think most drivers get on well. I have a good friendship with our team mate Dani and it’s good to work with someone who is very open and not afraid to offer me advice and help. But generally, all drivers get on.
Warren
Now that you and John have won your first WRC event, what are your hopes for next year in regards to results?
Hayden
We need to keep making steps forward – the closer we get to the top the smaller and harder the steps get. We are searching for more speed in 2017 – more stage wins and of course many more podiums.
Warren
Have you been following any other motorsport championships through this year?
Hayden
I follow most forms of motorsport, although with how busy our schedules are its sometimes hard to follow closely. Formula 1 I have always enjoyed to keep an eye on and local rally championships back in NZ
Warren
Lastly, what is the latest news on the possibility of a return of in the next couple of years of the WRC to New Zealand?
Hayden
It’s looking promising and everyone in the service park is positive about this. Of course, there are a lot of formalities taking place behind the scenes but we have done everything we can. We are all hopeful for 2018.
I’d like to thank Hayden and Katie, his PR manager for taking the time to answer my questions. If you’re not already following him on Twitter, I recommend you do. Finally I wish him and his family a Happy Christmas and Great New Year.
Yesterday, Hyundai launched their new WRC car at the Cathedral of Speed in Autodromo Naz Monza!
Unlike last year’s car, it’s based on the three door i20. With completely new regulations, the car has been completely re-designed. More power, lighter and with new mechanicals as well, there is an air of anticipation as to what they could achieve with this car.
Hyundai says
‘The technical new regulations for 2017 have been introduced to enhance the overall spectacle of WRC even further than before, with cars sporting an aggressive new look. While changes have centred on improving aerodynamic and mechanical grip, there has been an increase in engine power from 300 to 380bhp, a reduction in the overall weight of the car, and the re-introduction of the active centre differential.’
The new car has done 6000km of testing this year! Hayden Paddon recently told me that he’d done 800km himself.
Last year saw the team take two victories in Rally Argentina with Hayden and also Thierry who won Rally Italia de Sardegna. The team also picked up a number of podiums, meaning that they’d finish second in the Manufacturers championship. 2016 was a very good year for the team.
The drivers said at the launch;
Hyundai Motorsport 2017 Team Launch Monza, 1st December 2016 Thierry Neuville Photographer: Sarah Vessely Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville said: “I have high hopes for our new Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, which is the product of a lot of hard work from everyone in the team. I am optimistic it will help us to continue our momentum in the competitive WRC. My initial impressions of the car in testing were very positive. The changes in regulations have allowed us to make improvements in key areas, such as aerodynamics and rear stability. The increase in power is incredible while the additional grip and driveability gives us more confidence to push. For the spectators, there will be a visibly marked difference in terms of the car’s speed. I can assure you we will be able to feel it in the car too! We had a very positive 2016 season, and I was delighted to finish the season second in the Championship. Of course, from here there is only one place to go, and we want to be firmly in the fight for the title in 2017.”
Hyundai Motorsport 2017 Team Launch Monza, 1st December 2016 Hayden Paddon Photographer: Sarah Vessely Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Hayden Paddon commented: “My target for 2017 is to continue the improvements we showed during this past season. I want to start challenging for more rally wins and demonstrate more consistent speed throughout the year. The Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC is enjoyable to drive and I think it will be more exciting for the spectators too. I like that the cars will be more tuneable to each driver and driving style. The new regulations will help to make the sport even more appealing to a new generation of motorsport fans. With more radical looking and sounding cars, I think we will be able to attract a younger fan base that may not have been so familiar with rallying before. On a personal note, I feel happy to remain part of the Hyundai Motorsport family. We all know each other very well and we grow stronger all the time. There is a great team spirit and it’s amazing to work with such a highly-motivated group of people.”
Hyundai Motorsport 2017 Team Launch Monza, 1st December 2016 Dani Sordo Photographer: Sarah Vessely Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Dani Sordo said: “We are all looking forward to this new season. It will be a fascinating one for everybody with the new technical and sporting regulations. With such a significant change, we will have to wait until the first rallies of the Championship to see how things develop, but I am confident. When I first tested the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC, I was taken aback by the speed of the car. The more powerful engine and increased grip from the aerodynamics are impressive. I am sure this will be an exciting season to be a WRC spectator as well as for us inside the car! It’s very special for me to remain part of the Hyundai Motorsport team. It’s more than just team; it really is like a family. We work very well together and the atmosphere is incredible. The people in this team are some of the best in the business, so we have everything we need for a competitive car and a successful 2017.”
Hyundai Motorsport 2017 Team Launch Monza, 1st December 2016 Hyundai Motorsport Team Principal Michel Nandan Photographer: Helena El Mokni Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Team Principal Michel Nandan said: “We are heading into a new era for the sport with the biggest change to the regulations for some time. It’s a great new technical challenge and one that we have tackled with enthusiasm. It’s an opportunity to put into practice everything we have learned and experienced in the past three seasons. All teams are starting from scratch so we are on equal footing. Having finished in second position in 2016, we want to demonstrate our ability to fight for the Championship in 2017 – and we are confident the Hyundai i20 Coupe WRC will help us do just that.”
So, can the team build on their success last year and challenge for both titles? With Citroen coming back full time and M-Sport WRT who will definitely be stronger next year, they will find it tough.
So, before I begin may I just get this out the way from the off.
The Formula One season this year, like the last few seasons was…well…pretty poor entertainment if I am being truthful. If you are a regular reader of any of my columns or features, you will know that as a 40 year Formula One and racing fan in general, that sentence causes me a lot of pain. Yes folks, I’m sorry to dampen your bonfire with bodily liquid, but F1 is just a processional damp squid in its current form. It’s boring. Let us hope the regulation changes next
season change all that. I live in hope.
Then we have what was essentially the talk of the season. Hamilton and Rosberg. As I type that sentence I am shaking my head.
I have sat there and seen on social media some fans of Hamilton and Rosberg swap insults and abuse. Most of them have not got an absolute clue what they are talking about, but it is not even worth trying to intervene or offer any kind of intelligent insight into the shenanigans this season because….well….some of these fans are morons and it just would be a big waste of time for any true racing fan to even get involved. Basically the fans I am referring to who just want to enter into some kind of “Jeremy Kyle” style rant need to get a grip of themselves. This is racing….if you don’t understand the basics of that, then I feel sorry for you. If you feel you are one of those fans who I am talking about then please go and sit down, do some reading and even educate yourself in motor racing. Once you have reached any decent level of “being a fan” you may return to talk with the adults.
The few pleasures and highlights of my season watching F1 were Pascal Wehrlein, Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen and before any bright sparks start throwing “Red Bull fan” assumptions in my direction, I can assure you I am certainly not. Verstappen, in my eyes is one of the most exciting, if not THEE most exciting thing to happen to F1 in the last 10 years. Formula One needs Max Verstappen.
Moving swiftly on. Where did my enjoyment come from? Where was the passion? What made my skin tingle in this gut busting, goosebumping and adrenaline fuelled world of motor racing?
I can’t start off any thoughts without first being extremely patriotic and saying a massive congratulations to a British world champion in Jonathan Rea who took back-to-back World Superbike titles with his nine race wins and only being off the podium three times. An immaculate defence of his title. Take a bow Mr. Rea, take a bow.
This brings me nicely on to another British rider, but this time in the world of MotoGP.
Mr Cal Crutchlow.
Now, this may have passed non-two wheeled by, but he is the first British rider to win a premier class Grand Prix race since the late, great Barry Sheene. Not only did he achieve this feat in the Czech Republic, he went and repeated it in Australia to add to the two second places he achieved in Germany and at his home GP in Great Britain. He finished 7th in the World Championship, he finished ahead of two “factory” riders in the shape of Iannone and Aleix Espargaro. Add to this that leading up to the German Grand Prix, he had retired four times and was nowhere to be seen in the top half of the points. Whether the birth of his child had anything to do with his change in form is subject to speculation, but my what a fantastic performance for the remainder of the season. Well done Cal, you did us proud.
British Superbikes – If you don’t follow British Superbikes you should. If you have no idea what the series is like. Find out. In 2016 it delivered, massively delivered. Entertainment wise it was on par with any racing series you will see on the planet, it delivered (take note Formula One) drama on the track, not off it.
The return to the championship of Leon Haslam, he eased himself back in after Laverty and Hickman won the first two races of the season, then the season bubbled and the ingredients were added and it was from here that the “Michelin Star” entertainment was delivered right up to the last race of the showdown as Shakey Byrne and Haslam went head-to-head. Outstanding entertainment.
We move from two wheels to four wheels.
The three series that gave me the most pleasure this season were (in no particular order), the British Touring Car Championship, World Endurance Championship and World Rallycross.
Again Formula One, please take note of above championships, they p**sed all over you for entertainment and value this season……again.
In BTCC it was just an epic battle at the top, Shedden, Tordoff, Jackson, Turkington, Collard and Neal and interesting to see how the Subaru’s developed over the season. On a personal level I was so chuffed to see one of my favourite racing drivers Rob Austin battling with big names, but for me it was the emergence of Michael Epps and Jake Hill who really impressed me this season, both of them fantastic racers, great craft and thoroughly nice blokes. Watch out for them both in the future, brilliant racing drivers.
My endurance season kicked off with that EPIC……and I use that word in all its meaning…..Corvette battle at the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The entire race itself was just brilliant, but that radio message from the team for both drivers, “You’re free to race, keep it clean” – Formula One, another note you need to take. That radio message itself made my skin bubble, I sat forward on my chair like an excited child on Christmas Eve and I found myself shouting at the television “Yes! Yes! Now that’s a radio message. Come On!!” – Again, I’m not even a Corvette fan, but my god as a racing fan that radio message was music to my ears. Those Corvettes certainly listened and OH MY GOD!!!! – What a finish to the race. Superb.
I move to Le Mans, again regular readers of any of my ramblings will know that I regard the 24 Hours of Le Mans as the greatest race in the world. Little did we know that this would be Mark Webber’s last Le Mans. As always the great race did not let its fans down. I was on live comms for The Pit Crew Online along with my band of fellow merry men and we enjoyed every single second of the race. What made it so special was interacting with the teams, drivers and some sponsors through the race itself. Then came the heartbreaking moment for Toyota. I watched opened mouth as the car came to a halt. I really felt for the team and its fans, the most emotional end to a race I have seen in a long time, if not ever. That hurt, that really hurt. As a great driver once said “To win Le Mans, first you have to finish.” – heartbreaking but oh so true.
For me, the most entertaining series of the entire year was World Rallycross. I can’t put into words how exciting it was. There was more action in one lap at any RX event than there was in an entire season of…….well you know what I was going to say (take note F1).
I had the absolute pleasure of attending RX Lydden and it was one of the most fantastic experiences of my racing life. Standing inches away from Ken Block as he spoke to his mechanic, the Ford Focus RS up on jacks. I interviewed Timmy Hansen, spoke to Niclas Gronholm, I even got my picture taken with him and his dad, two-time WRC champion Marcus. I bumped into Andrew Jordan (of BTCC fame), had a bit of a chat and wandered off. The big one was yet to come, yes…..my interview on top of the Monster Energy tower with Petter Solberg. The man is an absolute gentleman. Oh….I forgot….I even got involved (accidentally) in the scrutineering of cars before they went on track.
The action on track was mind-blowing, the turn-around in races is phenomenal and the access is unbelievable. The entire season was just breathtaking from start to finish and then there was the overtake of the century in any racing series. Yes THAT overtake, around the outside by Kevin Eriksson at Estering. It was audacious. It was spectacular. In fact the commentator on the race summed it up perfectly. “Outrageous!” If you haven’t seen it then I suggest you go on You Tube, it will just blow your mind!
It is on this note I have to say thank you for the memories to Mark Webber, Felipe Massa and to a certain extent in Formula One, Jenson Button. That said, with the news that Button, Webber and a certain Mr. Coulthard are allegedly setting up their own rallycross team, I am full of excitement. Welcome to the right side of racing.
That, ladies and gentleman, was an eventful year of racing. Some big pluses for me. My interviews took a huge turn as I got to interview the likes of Mario Andretti, Zak Brown and Bradley Smith. Next year is going to be even better.
But, Formula One, please try to keep up because you are being left behind and as my first love of motor racing I really don’t want you to be ridiculed as much as you are now. It’s time to fix up and look sharp because there are racing series out there that on action, entertainment and value are making you look silly.
Oh and those Hamilton and Rosberg fans I referred to earlier. Just grow up and have a word with yourselves.
There was not much optimism for Red Bull coming into the 2016 season as power unit problems forced them to slip down the pecking order and their partnership turned sour with Renault the previous year
“I didn’t expect to finish top five but you do the best you can and if the car is good enough obviously you can do better, “said Ricciardo.
The Australian finished fourth in his home grand prix but Red Bull’s reliability issues were again highlighted as Daniil Kvyat had to retire without completing a lap at Albert Park due to an electrical problem.
In Bahrain, Ricciardo ended the race in fourth for the second grand prix in succession whilst Kvyat completed his first race of the season to finish seventh.
The Russian Red Bull driver managed to grab his first podium of the season as he finished third behind Rosberg and Vettel in Shanghai. Ricciardo was in fourth place just ahead of Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen.
Russia was one of the worst performances for Red Bull in 2016. Daniil Kvyat crashed into Sebastian Vettel’s car twice during the race. Ricciardo finished the race in 11th due to Vettel hitting the Australian as a result of Kvyat actions. Subsequently the Russian did not complete the race and was demoted to Toro Rosso after bad incidents in China and Russia.
Max Verstappen took over from Kvyat and Red Bull never looked back. “You know when you get that opportunity you just go,” Verstappen said of the switch. “The media was saying about the move and it was now up to me to prove them wrong and yeah in one way it was a very relaxed weekend as well because it took a lot of pressure off. I approached it as a learning weekend and I think so far it has been going pretty well from there onwards.”
The Dutch driver won his first race in Barcelona and Ricciardo finished fourth. Verstappen said: “It is something, you know it helps a lot, I think, a victory, it’s not everything because I mean you have to prove yourself over a whole season and then again and again but it’s something you know you come into a new team and then you win the race it’s like ok well at least it’s a very good start.”
In Monaco. Ricciardo completed the race in second after securing his first career pole position but Verstappen crashed out. “One thing I hadn’t yet done was a pole,” said Ricciardo, “so to do that in Monaco made it probably more special to get my first pole.”
Verstappen and Ricciardo finished fourth and seventh place in Canada. Next time in Baku, Ricciardo pipped his team mate to seventh as the 19-year-old was eighth.
Max Verstappen showed he has years of driving nous above his tender years as he performed admirably to finish second in Austria. Ricciardo finished in fifth. The Dutchman was beginning to show signs of genius as he equalled his position in Austria at Silverstone. His team mate had to settle for fourth.
In Hungary, Ricciardo came out on top as he finished third whilst young Verstappen finished two places behind him in fifth. At Hockenheim, the Red Bull pair captured second and third ending Mercedes dominance.
Daniel Ricciardo split the Mercedes pair again as he finished second to Nico Rosberg in Belgium. Verstappen was 11th.
Monza was the next destination but neither driver could secure a podium finish as Ricciardo and Verstappen finished fifth and seventh respectively.
In Singapore, Red Bull bounced back from the disappointment at the Italian Grand Prix as Ricciardo finished second to Nico Rosberg. Verstappen was just behind Vettel in sixth.
Ricciardo won his first race of the season in Malaysia and Verstappen completed the first Red Bull 1-2 since the 2013 Brazilian Grand Prix. At the Japanese Grand Prix, Verstappen took his fourth second place of the year while Ricciardo ended the race in sixth.
United States was the next stop on the Formula One calendar and Ricciardo completed the race in third. Verstappen had to retire his car after 28 laps due to a problem which brought out the Virtual Safety Car.
In Mexico, Ricciardo finished in third as Red Bull locked out the second row with Verstappen in fourth. The 19-year-old then drove a stunning wet weather race in Brazil to finish third. Ricciardo had to settle with eighth.
At the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Red Bull signed off their brilliant season with Verstappen and Ricciardo finishing fourth and fifth respectively. Verstappen was just pipped to fourth in the standings by Abu Dhabi podium finisher Vettel, whilst Ricciardo’s strong season restored him to the overall third he enjoyed in 2014. Red Bull-TAG finished the year a marked improvement on 2015, soundly beating Ferrari to best of the rest.
As emotions soured and champagne flowed in the wake of Nico Rosberg’s world title glory on Sunday, the soap opera that is Formula One couldn’t resist blowing into the Mercedes garage one last note of bitterness to round out the year.
With a world championship on the line, the events and fallout from the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix were always going to be a talking point long after the chequered flag had fallen. But even I hardly expected to wake up on Monday morning to a global media aflame with reports that Hamilton was now facing the sack for his actions at the weekend.
The seed for these reports comes from comments made by Toto Wolff shortly after the race. When speaking to Channel 4, Wolff said that Hamilton’s public refusal to heed pitwall instructions to protect the race win risked setting a precedent for “anarchy” within the team: “Undermining a structure in public means you are putting yourself before the team. It is very simple. Anarchy does not work in any team.”
Wolff then added that he has not yet decided whether to let the matter lie given the circumstances of the championship battle, or to uphold the team rulebook as if Abu Dhabi were any other race in the season.
It is not the first time we have been here, of course. At the end of 2015 Wolff issued a stark warning to both of his drivers that if the tense dynamic of their championship rivalry showed signs of hurting the team, he would be forced to consider a change in lineup. Team unity is a key part of Wolff’s Mercedes philosophy – irrespective of stature, everyone must be prepared to play the team’s game before their own.
It’s worth remembering that Wolff’s “anarchy” comments on Sunday night were not just a reaction to a single isolated incident. Relations between Hamilton and the Mercedes hierarchy have been tenser than ever this season, with the Briton’s conduct in the media serving to drive a wedge between him and Wolff. Incidents such as Hamilton’s accusatory reaction to his early engine failures and “Snapgate” in Japan have left Mercedes fighting PR fires all year – even as late as the final press conference of the season, when Hamilton suggested there was a shady reason behind Mercedes shuffling his and Rosberg’s garage mechanics around that he would one day reveal in a tell-all memoir.
Add to that the torrent of social media abuse to which Mercedes has been subjected by Hamilton’s more hardcore fans each time the Briton suffers the slightest misfortune, and you can understand why Wolff might be beginning to tire of the turmoil that comes hand-in-hand with his star driver.
But although in the past rumours of shock changes to the Mercedes lineup have come to nothing, much of that was because of the relationship built on mutual need between Hamilton and the team – a relationship that has fundamentally changed this season.
When Hamilton signed with Mercedes back in 2012, he was very much a necessary asset for the team. The Silver Arrows had been operating as a full works team for three years, but for all their high hopes with Michael Schumacher had still not made their mark beyond one victory and a handful of podiums. Heavy investment was coming for the beginning of the V6 turbo era in 2014, but the team still needed a figure like Hamilton – a world champion and winner of multiple Grands Prix – who could inject the kind of momentum that Schumacher sadly couldn’t and become the team leader Rosberg was not yet ready to be.
But fast forward four years, and that situation is no longer present. With three constructors’ and drivers’ titles to its name, and not to mention fifty-four Grand Prix victories along the way, Mercedes is no longer in need of a star driver to galvanise its potential: indeed, by placing Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon into F1 this season, Mercedes has already shown it is eyeing up the next challenge of fostering a young talent through its ranks and preparing for a future without Hamilton or Rosberg.
Furthermore, Rosberg’s triumph in the world championship this year after being soundly beaten by Hamilton in 2015 has shown that Mercedes is not reliant on one driver for success, should a change in the lineup need to happen.
So, now possessed of both motive and opportunity, is Mercedes about to make its most surprising driver announcement since hiring Lewis Hamilton four years ago?
If you ask me, I doubt it. With a world title to defend amidst a radical regulations overhaul in 2017, the last thing Mercedes wants is to throw a brand-new driver into the mix. The team has everything to lose by doing so: especially when Ocon, however talented, only has nine Grand Prix starts to his name, and there are still serious question marks about Wehrlein’s ability to settle his ego into a Formula One team.
However, that won’t be the case for long: by the time Hamilton’s current contract runs out in 2018, both Wehrlein and Ocon will have put several seasons’ experience under their belts. And once that next generation is in place, Hamilton will find his platform for negotiating a renewed deal that much smaller, whilst Wolff will no doubt have a long list of incidents like those in Abu Dhabi compiled against him.
But whoever ends up driving the Mercedes over the next few years, I don’t think we’ll be done with the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix just yet.
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
The FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy has announced its draft calendar for 2017.
The calendar, which is subject to confirmation by the FIA World Motor Sport Council, consists of 12 rounds including an all-new race at Killarney race circuit in Cape Town, South Africa (11-12 November). The 2017 season will begin two weeks earlier than in previous years, with Barcelona forming the opening round for the first time (1-2 April).
The teams will then cross into neighbouring Portugal for round two at Montalegre which will take place on 22-23 April. A return to the legendary Hockenheimring follows, which will see World RX join the highly-acclaimed DTM series again for its season-opening weekend (5-7 May).
No date changes have been made to World RX rounds in Great Britain, Belgium, Norway, Sweden, Canada and France. The Latvian RX round will take place two weeks earlier next year, with the event scheduled on 16-17 September. Buxtehude in Germany will once again form the penultimate round of the World Championship, and will also take place two weeks earlier (30 September – 1 October).
The 2017 season will finish in Cape Town as rallycross visits the continent of Africa for the first time (11-12 November). Building on the success of this year, the FIA European Rallycross Championship will again run at five World RX rounds as it did in 2016, but with Loheac joining the series in place of Belgium (Spain, Norway, Sweden France and Latvia).
The Super1600 Championship will comprise of six rounds (Portugal, Belgium, Sweden, France, Latvia and Germany) while the competitive TouringCar series will be made up of five events (Spain, Belgium, Great Britain, Norway, and Germany). RX2 – the newly-branded RX Lites Cup – will follow a revised calendar in 2017 and include seven rounds, two of which will be held outside of Europe for the first time (Belgium, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Canada, France and South Africa).
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
Norway’s Andreas Bakkerud has won World RX of Argentina, the final round of the 2016 FIA World Rallycross Championship presented by Monster Energy at the wheel of his Hoonigan Racing Division Ford Focus RS RX Supercar. Volkswagen RX Sweden’s Johan Kristoffersson and EKS driver Topi Heikkinen finished second and third. EKS has clinched the 2016 World RX Teams’ Championship as team-mates Mattias Ekstrom and Topi Heikkinen racked up enough points during qualifying to scoop the coveted title ahead of Team Peugeot-Hansen.
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
Ekstrom was crowned this year’s World RX drivers’ champion at the previous round in Germany after scoring enough points to secure the accolade before Argentina. In the three-way battle for the 2016 World RX runner-up spot, it was Kristoffersson who came out top – only one point ahead of Bakkerud and Solberg who finished third and fourth respectively.
“Now that it’s been confirmed that I’m third in the driver standings, I’m feeling very emotional – I’ve had so many people supporting me on my route to be here today and it’s a great feeling,” explained Bakkerud, who also wins the Monster Energy Super Charge Award following his rapid start off the front row of the final. “I am very proud of myself and want to thank all my partners and fans for supporting me. Ever since Ken called me last year to confirm that I was his team-mate, it’s been an incredible journey. Today was a very hard race because there was so much on the line and I’m just so happy that I secured a podium in the Drivers’ World Championship.”
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
Second-placed Kristoffersson ends the year second in the standings – one better than his third place finish last year. He explained: “After the semi-final, I knew I had to finish P1 or P2 in the final to get second overall so the pressure was on. Once I got to turn three, I just focused on staying behind Andreas and keeping everything clean.”
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
Newly-crowned 2016 World RX Champion Mattias Ekstrom spoke highly of his team-mate Heikkinen, who finished second today, and EKS taking the 2016 teams’ title. The new 2016 World RX Champion commented: “We have always dreamed of this moment but with the level of competition in World RX, it hasn’t been easy. As a driver and team owner, this year has been fantastic – only three years ago we were starting out with a blank sheet of paper and now we are double champions, it is just the best feeling. For the driver it is nice, but for the team it is even better as everyone has worked so hard.”
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
Timo Scheider took the best result of the year for ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport after finishing fourth this weekend in a Seat Ibiza. The German DTM driver was delighted with his performance: “It felt awesome to make it through to the final after our issues with the power steering and we really found some pace this weekend.”
2016 FIA World RX Rallycross Championship / Round 12 / Rosario, Argentina / November 25 – 28, 2016 // Worldwide Copyright: IMG/McKlein
The 2015 Argentina RX winner Robin Larsson qualified for today’s final and finished sixth in his privately-run Audi A1. Last year’s World RX Champion Petter Solberg looked on course for a strong finish after completing a clean sweep of qualifying race victories – a feat only accomplished once before in World RX history. The Norwegian started on pole of today’s semi-final one but sustained steering damage at turn one and later hit a tyre barrier. Despite Solberg and Bakkerud being tied on points, Bakkerud beat his fellow Norwegian to third place because he has more event wins.
Timmy Hansen finished a difficult weekend in 13th place. Hansen’s team-mate Sebastien Loeb started on the front row of the second semi-final but failed to reach the final after getting stuck in race traffic. Germany RX winner Kevin Eriksson was unable to repeat his Estering performance and finished the event 16th in his OMSE-run Ford Fiesta RX Supercar.
World RX Managing Director for IMG, Paul Bellamy, concluded: “Congratulations to EKS which has made it a double victory this year by winning both the drivers’ and the teams’ championships which is an extraordinary achievement. Today we saw three Audis in the final for the first time with Mattias, Topi and Robin all representing the marque. We also witnessed a fiercely-fought battle for second and third place in the drivers’ standings – Andreas took the event win but it was Johan who edged ahead in the standings by a single point. It’s quite incredible to think that our second, third and fourth placed drivers are separated by only one point at the end of 12 events. Now we have a four-and-a-half month break before the 2017 season-opener in Barcelona next April but first we are off to the FIA prize-giving in Vienna where we will watch Mattias and EKS crowned the new drivers’ and teams’ champions after what has been a year of fantastic race action.”
(c) all photographs courtesy of FIA World Rallycross
After a thrilling season, Nico Rosberg finished second in Abu Dhabi and won his first world title of his career. Whilst, Lewis Hamilton started from the pole and won the race, but that was not enough for him to win his fourth title.
On Saturday, Lewis Hamilton was the quickest driver on the grid, followed by Nico Rosberg and Daniel Ricciardo.
The two Mercedes drivers could not wish for a better start on Sunday. A clear start for both drivers secured them the first two position. Kimi Raikkonen had another good start, passed Daniel Ricciardo and moved up to the third position. Max Verstappen had a spin at the start of the race and dropped at the back of the grid.
Red Bull decided to go for a one-stop strategy for Verstappen and after a long stint, Max placed second behind Lewis Hamilton after the first drivers had finished their pit-stops.
Rosberg re-joined third, behind Verstappen, where he decided not to attack for a few laps, Raikkonen and Ricciardo were closing to Nico, and Mercedes informed Rosberg that he had to pass Verstappen. The German responded and on lap 20, after a long battle he managed to pass the Dutch and secure the second position.
Red Bull with a smart strategy managed to give an advantage to their drivers and be placed ahead of the Ferraris. Scuderia decided to let Vettel on track for many laps in order to be able to finish the race with a fresh set of super-softs. At the final pit-stop Sebastian, switched to super-softs and he managed to do some flying laps, pass Verstappen and move up to the third position, behind Nico Rosberg.
From the begging of the race, Lewis knew that a victory was not enough for him. Nico Rosberg had to finish at least fourth, but that was not an easy task. It was difficult for the other teams to challenge Mercedes and stay close to the two drivers. Hence, the British had to use some “dirty tricks” as Vettel said.
“It was a tricky situation at the end with Lewis playing dirty tricks. It was tough out there. I didn’t want to be an issue. But at the end, I was thinking maybe to try to pass both of them but it didn’t work out.” The German reported to his team after the race.
Hamilton was trying to slow the race pace and allow to Vettel and Verstappen to catch Rosberg. Nico Rosberg was very close to Hamilton, but he didn’t want to risk any move, whilst the other two drivers behind were closing to him.
At the final laps, Mercedes gave orders to the British champion to pick up the pace, but Lewis said: “Let us race”.
A few moments later Paddy Lowe’s voice was heard from Mercedes radio and gave a direct order to Lewis: “Lewis, this is Paddy. We need you to pick up the pace to win this race.”, but again the Brit refused kindly by saying: “I’m in the lead right now. I’m quite comfortable where I am.”
Hamilton took the chequered flag, but Nico Rosberg was the big winner and wrote his name on the list with the F1 world champions. The Rosbergs family is the second where both father and son have won the F1 world title. The first family was Hills family.
“It’s a childhood dream come true, thank you for everything.” It was some of Rosberg’s words through Mercedes radio after the chequered flag.
The German deserved to win this title, he fought hard, scored more points and in the final races he simply had to manage the gap from Hamilton.
Lewis Hamilton’s tricks at the final laps were tricky, but it was his only chance to win the world title. So, I agree with his move to try to slow down the pace of the race and let the other drivers come closer to Rosberg.
All the F1 drivers/champions have to fight if they want the title and that is what Nico Rosberg did. He was calm and concentrate even when he was under heavy pressure.
Congratulation to both Nico Rosberg and Mercedes for what they achieved this season. Hopefully, 2017 will be a better year for the sport.
It was a long season, and I want to thank you for your support, and finally I want to thank the Crew for allowing me to cover the season and the races.
Stay tuned!
Victor Archakis F1 Editor
Follow me on Twitter: @FP_Passion
