Author Archives: PressBox

Red Bull has signed 11-year-old Robin “Ace” Raikkonen, the son of 2007 Formula 1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen, to its junior driver development programme. The team said he will officially begin working with Red Bull in 2027 and that the programme is designed to support his racing career as he develops gradually and without added pressure.

Raikkonen already races in professional karting and has won races in national and international Rotax and WSK championships. He also won the seventh round of the Rotax Max Challenge Italia at Laghi and sat second in the championship on net points after dropped scores were applied. Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies said the youngster had shown “exceptional ability, speed, racecraft and maturity,” while the team described him as one of the most promising drivers in his age group.

Kimi Raikkonen said the family was thrilled by the move and that Red Bull offered a strong development path. He said the family was excited by the opportunity, and Mekies said the team would provide the time, support and resources needed to help Raikkonen progress. The Raikkonen family attended the Italian Grand Prix at Monza last weekend and were seen in the Red Bull motorhome, while reports said Ace had also spoken with other junior programmes before choosing Red Bull.

Lewis Hamilton urged Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur to set clear rules of engagement after his opening-lap clash with Charles Leclerc at Monza exposed what he said was a lack of direction inside the team. Hamilton, who started third with Leclerc fourth, tried to pass at the Variante Del Rettifilo chicane, ran off into the gravel when Leclerc closed the door, and dropped to 10th. He later said, “Charles pushed me off,” added that Ferrari had “no rules” for situations like that, and said he did not see it as a cultural problem. Hamilton also said he had raced cleanly and respectfully since joining Ferrari and called the incident “very bad for the team.”

Hamilton recovered to finish sixth, but he apologized to Ferrari’s tifosi and the garage after the race, with untelevised team radio capturing him saying, “that one hurts.” He said the result “definitely hurts” and told supporters, “Sorry we didn’t give you what you need.” Hamilton said Ferrari had missed its chance to prioritize him over Leclerc, that there was no “we” in the discussion over the start, and that it was now too late for him to catch Kimi Antonelli in the title race. He finished more than 24 seconds behind Antonelli, who won for Mercedes after starting 19th.

Leclerc stayed in third after the clash but crashed out at Parabolica on the following lap, with Hamilton saying Ferrari’s lack of straight-line pace and its decision not to pit him for fresh tires under the virtual safety car also hurt his race. Ferrari scored only eight points at its home grand prix, and former driver Davide Valsecchi said Hamilton and Leclerc “acted like children” in their first-chicane fight in front of an estimated 400,000 fans. Reports also said senior Ferrari figures were unhappy with Vasseur’s management.

Max Verstappen said Formula 1’s 2026 regulations have made the cars feel unnatural and less rewarding for the most committed drivers, arguing that the current machinery is so numb to driver input that it leaves them held back. Speaking to BBC Sport, he said the rules create a choke hold on driving, forcing competitors to think more about lifting off, braking earlier and managing top speed than about maximizing corner performance.

Verstappen pointed to Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson as examples of how quickly drivers can become competitive in different cars, adding, “No disrespect” as he made the comparison. He cited Tsunoda’s immediate pace in the Racing Bulls car at the Dutch Grand Prix and Lawson’s quick adaptation after moving from Racing Bulls to Red Bull, including Lawson getting within a tenth of Verstappen in Dutch Grand Prix qualifying and Tsunoda scoring a point in his second outing at Monza.

The Red Bull driver said the regulations do not separate the best drivers enough and leave the sport feeling too unnatural. He said the 2026 season had been difficult for him, with Verstappen sixth in the drivers’ standings, winless and 140 points behind leader Kimi Antonelli with 10 races left. Verstappen also said he still loves Formula 1, said he had recently signed a new Red Bull contract, and hoped the regulations would improve toward 2030.

McLaren’s decision to let Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri race each other for position in the closing laps of the Italian Grand Prix drew fresh scrutiny after the two teammates fought over fourth place at Monza. Broadcaster David Croft questioned the team’s equal-treatment approach, arguing McLaren should have backed Norris if it wanted the best chance of helping his championship bid. He also said the team could have scored more points if the drivers had worked together instead of racing wheel to wheel, even as McLaren stayed with a long-standing philosophy of treating both drivers the same.

Team principal Andrea Stella defended the call not to intervene, saying both cars were on the same tires and McLaren wanted to let them race because Norris had to pass Piastri before he could chase Max Verstappen. Norris first got by on lap 48, Piastri countered, and Norris reclaimed fourth on the final lap after briefly putting two wheels on the grass. Norris complained over the radio that he had been pushed off, but Stella later said a review found the incident was much more benign than it felt at the time. Norris later said he no longer believed Piastri had done anything wrong and called it a good, tough fight.

Stella said McLaren would review whether it could have handled the battle in a better way while still giving its drivers freedom to race and improve its chance against Verstappen, who passed both McLarens and finished third. The team also told Norris and Piastri to stop racing each other and bring both cars home safely. McLaren left Monza with fourth and fifth place, and Stella said the race was executed better than qualifying. Piastri said the weekend was still a positive step, with Stella pointing to progress in his adaptation to the 2026-era car and noting that Norris now leads him by 55 points in the standings.

Williams unveiled a one-off retro livery for Formula 1’s return to Madrid, dressing its cars in a white base with green and blue accents inspired by the team’s 1981 championship-winning FW07C. Created with title partner Atlassian, the FW48 tribute car is set for the inaugural Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring and marks F1’s first race in Madrid since 1981.

The team revealed the special edition at a Fan Zone event in Madrid’s Plaza de Callao, with Carlos Sainz presenting the livery. Williams said the look paid homage to the last Formula 1 race in the Spanish capital at Jarama, where Alan Jones and Carlos Reutemann raced the FW07C. Reutemann finished fourth in the 1981 race won by Gilles Villeneuve, and Sainz said he was proud to race his first Madrid Grand Prix in the city where he was born and raised.

Team principal James Vowles said the throwback connected Williams’ history with its effort to return to the front of the grid. Atlassian co-founder and CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes said the partnership reflected the idea of using a team’s accumulated knowledge to improve future work. Williams entered the weekend ninth in the constructors’ standings on 11 points, five behind Audi. It was also seeking its first points since Alex Albon finished eighth in Monaco eight race weekends earlier.