In the round-up: Former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat claims he had received a contract offer from Ferrari to replace Kimi Raikkonen in 2016 before Red Bull demoted him back to Toro Rosso
In brief
Ferrari offered me Raikkonen’s race seat before Red Bull demotion – Kvyat
Kvyat raced with Red Bull from 2015 following a single year at Toro Rosso. He finished on the podium in China the following year, but weeks later was demoted back to Toro Rosso. Max Verstappen took his place at the Spanish Grand Prix and scored a sensational win on his debut for the team.
“At the time I had also a proposal to race for Ferrari to replace Kimi at the time,” Kvyat told the Track Limits podcast. “Not many people know about it, but that’s what was going on behind the curtain.
“It was a very difficult situation also for me mentally to go back from being wanted by Ferrari and having seen the contract in front of you. And then you go back to Toro Rosso suddenly.” Kvyat eventually joined Ferrari as a development driver in 2018.
Use GPS to set race order during red flags – Steiner
Haas team principal Guenther Steiner wants the FIA to set the race position order under red flags using GPS positioning data to determine what order cars were in when the race is stopped.
The Australian Grand Prix’s final restart order was reset to the order under the penultimate restart after the race was red flagged before cars had entered sector two. Haas driver Nico Hulkenberg had risen to fourth by that time, but was moved back to eighth for the final Safety Car lap.
“With the technology that we have these days, GPS is accurate enough – we use GPS for the blue flag for example,” Steiner told Sky Sports. “They say it’s not accurate enough for a finishing position yet it’s accurate enough for a blue flag – we need to make our mind up what it is and what it isn’t.
“I really think there needs to be a lot of thinking. We could have frozen everything, via camera and via GPS, at the exact moment when the red flag came out.”
Indy 500 open test rained off
The second day of the Indianapolis 500 open test was called off after persistent rain fell over the speedway yesterday.
Friday was supposed to see a second full day of running, however consistent rain rendered any running impossible. Almost all the 34 entrants took to the track on Thursday’s opening day, with only RC Enerson not participating. Josef Newgarden set the fastest speed over the course of the opening day with an average speed of 227.686mph.
Teams will return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Friday, May 12th for practice and qualifying ahead of the grand prix the day after. The official opening of practice for the Indy 500 takes place on the following Tuesday.
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Links
Motor racing links of interest:
I won the F1 title then immediately quit aged 31 because I was scared (The Sun)
“Speaking to Men’s Health, the son of 1982 F1 world champion Keke, said: ”Sometimes, looking at the circuits, I think it’s good that I no longer compete. For example, in Baku you can reach 360km/h between walls. Yes, there were moments in which I was afraid, because, unlike other pilots, I am not a daredevil.”
Alex: ‘The steps we have made are huge’ (Williams)
“I don’t mind this break we currently find ourselves in, though it might have been nicer had it broken up some of the double and triple headers ahead of us. Weirdly, we’re still quite fresh after three races so I’d rather it have been a bit later on. In terms of being in a rhythm, it hasn’t really changed anything. I’ve been able to get away and now I’m back in the simulator, getting ready for the races ahead. Plenty of sim work plus some training and the odd bit of marketing.”
UBS invests in Sir Lewis Hamilton’s foundation, Mission 44, to scale impact (Mission 44)
“The partnership includes a contribution of over £1 million to directly support Mission 44’s Inclusive Education Programme, dedicated to disrupting the status quo and creating systemic change. Funding will be targeted towards grass-roots organisations with expertise in inclusive education that are predominantly led by people with lived experience of disadvantage and discrimination, including people of colour.”
Can F1 Stay Fueled? (Kansas City Star)
“Across the globe, cities, states and countries are phasing out fossil fuel vehicles. In the U.S., California banned their sales over the coming decades (with some other states following), and the Biden Administration has proposed aggressive plans to speed the country’s transition to plug-in vehicles. It begs the question, could F1 simply go electric?”
Former winner Alexander Rossi helped inspire a major change for the Indy 500 Open Test (NBC Sports)
“The rear-wing pillar was Alexander Rossi’s idea that came up at the driver’s meeting in December and we implemented pretty quickly. The stability wickers were started three years ago. The barge boards and trailing edge wicker were started within a month of last year’s Indianapolis 500.”
Frederik Vesti: A race in my words (Formula 2)
“I can’t explain with any words how it felt to take the win because it was the culmination of something I wanted for five years – I sacrificed everything, but also the culmination of having such a bad year where I went from being the biggest talent in Denmark to almost not racing the year after because it was such a hard year in the team I was in.”
Jaguar Racing’s all-electric journey to the Berlin E-Prix (Formula E)
“Ahead of World Earth Day, enjoy the sights and take a look at the 680-mile journey and the realities of road-tripping in an all-electric car.”
45 Questions with James Vowles part one (Williams)
“Join James Vowles as he answers a wide array of questions to help you get to know him better.”
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