Formula 1 - 2017

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FORMULA 1 BOSSES WANT TWO MORE STREET RACES IN ASIA

Formula 1 is looking to stage two more street races in Asia as part of a drive to win new fans, one of the sport’s most senior officials told AFP on Tuesday.

F1 is reinventing itself under US-based Liberty Media, who completed their takeover of motorsport’s most prestigious brand in January in a deal valued at about $8 billion, ending the four-decade reign of Bernie Ecclestone as Formula One’s colourful ringmaster.

Singapore’s night street circuit has proved particularly popular with fans and drivers since making its debut in 2008 and managing director of commercial operations, Sean Bratches, says F1 enthusiasts can expect to see more street races in future.

“I’m spending a lot of time reaching out proactively to cities … and think ultimately we will realise more street races than we have seen historically,” he said, speaking in Shanghai, a race in the current calendar.

“We will go to iconic cities where there are large fan bases, particularly new fan bases that we can activate.”

He added: “From a fan standpoint the backdrops of these city centres … can really make compelling television and pictures.”

Asked if that meant more street circuits in Asia, he said: “Yes, two.”

In the last five years the Indian and Korean grands prix have both fallen off the race calendar, while Malaysia has announced that this year’s race will be the last due to rising costs and low returns. Talks are ongoing about extending Singapore’s contract.

Bratches said that in terms of sheer fan numbers Asia is Formula One’s biggest market and they are in negotiations for races in “entirely new places”.

“We are very focused on bringing additional GPs to the continent here. We’re in talks with a couple of cities to that end,” he said, declining to give further details.

The plan is to have a third of the season each in the Americas, Europe and Asia, said Bratches. Unlike at present, when races jump from region to region, they will take place one continent at a time, he added, benefiting fans, sponsors, teams and organisers.

The Monaco Grand Prix remains the blue-riband event and Bratches believes fans want to see more such high-octane street racing, “We think there is a lot of vibrancy to having a few more street races to the calendar.”

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CHINESE GRAND PRIX LONG TERM DEAL AGREED

A new deal to keep the Chinese Grand Prix in the Formula One calendar has been agreed in principle and will likely be sealed within weeks, a senior F1 official said Tuesday.

The sport, under ambitious new US-based owners, released its 2018 race schedule in June and Shanghai was only listed as provisional, along with Singapore. That prompted speculation that both races might be axed from the roster.

But Sean Bratches, F1 managing director of commercial operations, told AFP in Shanghai: “We’ve been working hard with Juss Event, the promoter, and we’ve got an agreement in principle. My suspicion is that it will be executed by the end of next month, fully executed.”

Bratches said that F1 chiefs released next year’s race schedule earlier than previously as part of efforts to make Formula One more fan- and sponsor-friendly.

“Next year the schedule will be released and there will be nothing provisional about Shanghai because we will have a long-term deal,” he added, following talks in the city that pushed the agreement along.

The current deal for the Chinese Grand Prix is due to finish at the end of this year. The Shanghai International Circuit held its first race in 2004.

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WILLIAMS PREVIEW THE BELGIAN GRAND PRIX

The Belgian Grand Prix, held at Spa-Francorchamps circuit, is a firm favourite among Formula One drivers, teams and fans, and for good reason.

The prestigious race holds a rich history of over 60 years of Formula One racing, with a long list of Formula One legends having won the Belgian GP.

The Spa-Francorchamps circuit lies within a triangle formed by the Belgian towns of Francorchamps, Malmedy and Stavelot. Despite being part of the circuit’s name, the town of Spa is actually located slightly to the northwest. The track’s location in the Ardennes forest is picturesque, but it has its own mind when it comes to the weather.

With the possibility of rain showers occurring almost out of nowhere, it can be raining in one section of the track but dry in another – a common feature of long circuits.

The circuit has an old-style design, which offers great challenges for the drivers, including “Eau Rouge”, the famous corner that so many drivers relish driving at full speed. The original layout of the Spa track was over 14 kilometres long, but during a redesign in the late seventies the lap was shortened by half the length. The new design now features a 7.004 kilometres long lap, the longest on this year’s 20-race calendar.

Williams has won three times at Spa with Nigel Mansell claiming the 1986 race, followed by Damon Hill in 1993 and 1994.

For Belgium, Pirelli has made available the soft, supersoft and ultrasoft tyres.

Paddy Lowe: “Spa is one of the greatest tracks on earth, in my opinion. It is one of the longest standing venues on the Formula One calendar and has been the setting of many dramatic races in the past. It has a fast characteristic, with a lot of changes in elevation, rewarding power and downforce. The most famous Eau Rouge corner is now generally taken flat, so actually not really a limiting corner. Eau Rouge leads onto a long uphill straight. The combination makes overtaking relatively frequent, with cars able to trade corner exit speed, slipstream effects and, with the current hybrid power units, the remaining energy in the battery. The weather in the Ardennes is notoriously tricky and can change from sun to rain and back again in a matter of minutes. The very long lap makes the timing of tyre changes from wet to dry, or back again, either look particularly heroic or disastrous. For Williams, this track should play to the strengths of the FW40 car. Felipe is very experienced at Spa and Lance has also won the race here in F3, so we look forward to getting the very best from this weekend.”

Felipe Massa: “Spa is one of the best tracks in Formula One. I think it will be incredible to drive there with this new car, with more downforce. Eau Rouge will feel like a straight but so many other corners will also be amazing to drive. I am also going to be wearing a special ‘Joy of Racing’ helmet designed by a great Spanish artist called Kenor. It will look great, and a lucky fan will also get the chance to win it thanks to Martini. I’m really looking forward to a great race at Spa.”

Lance Stroll: “In Spa, I am heading to my second home race of the year. I am half Belgian, as this is where my mother was born, so I do have an affinity with the country. However, I have to admit that, unlike most Formula One drivers, Spa is not my absolute favourite. Having said that, I did win there last year in Formula 3, so I can’t complain about it too much. It is a very interesting track with some amazing sections and also there is always that air of uncertainty regarding the weather. You can have it raining in sector three and dry in sector one.”

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Porsche to Formula 1 with Williams - it makes sense

Mercedes and Porsche have both recently announced that they are going to become involved in Formula E in 2019. 

This decision comes because both companies want to be involved in the technical development of electrical systems, while also benefiting from the green image that Formula E likes to portray. The fact that Formula E is currently economically unsustainable and has a very small audience is not deemed to be important.

The two German companies will join Renault, Audi, DS, Mahindra, Jaguar, BMW, China's NIO, which is developing a drive-train for the NextEV team, Venturi which is working a power unit from Germany's ZF and Penske, which is to provide motors for the Faraday Future Dragon Racing operation. Audi will take over direct control of the ABT team, while BMW is expected to enter the series as an official manufacturer for Season 5, which will kick off in the autumn of 2018.

There are rumours that by then Renault will have handed over its entry in the series to sister company Nissan, as part of a streamlining of the sporting activities of the Renault Nissan alliance brands. Mercedes and Porsche will enter the series in the autumn of 2019, when the numbers of teams will increase to 12 - if all goes to plan.

The series will reach an important milestone in the autumn of 2018 when there will be a futuristic new chassis, built by Frédéric Vasseur's Spark Racing Technology. At the same time the series will switch away from the mid-race car switch as the technology reaches a point that will allow the cars to run a full race distance. 

Despite all of this Formula E remains of limited marketing value as it is still not attracting large numbers of fans. Nonetheless, it provides manufacturers with a platform to show and develop their electric car technology.

"The growing freedom for in-house technology developments makes Formula E attractive to us,” says Porsche's Michael Steiner. “For us, Formula E is the ultimate competitive environment for driving forward the development of high-performance vehicles in areas such as environmental friendliness, efficiency and sustainability.” 

With Mercedes set to quit DTM at the end of 2018 and Porsche leaving the WEC at the end of this year, both championships will need to have a rethink about the future. What is interesting is that Wolff's recent remarks that the combination of Formula 1 and Formula E suit Mercedes’ motorsport ambitions are just as valid for Porsche as they are for Mercedes! 

In other words, Porsche's announcement that it is quitting the WEC to join Formula E in 2019 is also part of a "new strategy and realignment" of the company's motorsport programmes.

And while the FIA and Formula E can be happy to have landed both Mercedes and Porsche, it is expected in F1 circles that another shoe is yet to drop. 

Porsche will quit the FIA World Endurance Championship's LMP1 class at the end of this season, but the signs are that the ultimate goal is not to rely only on Formula E and that Porsche's next stop will be an F1 deal. 

The company already has all the technology required to create a current F1 engine and while it is unlikely to win anything before the new F1 rules come into place in 2021, there is a very obvious strategy which it could take to be in a great position for the next F1 era. 

The word in Budapest before the summer break was that Porsche will come to F1 - perhaps with other VW brands following as well - and that the obvious deal would be to go into partnership with an established team, in order to avoid having to invest in expensive chassis technology and infrastructure. 

While it is assumed by most people that this would involve a deal with Red Bull Racing, it is much more likely that Porsche will go to a team which is a little bit more manufacturer-friendly. McLaren has its own agenda with engines while Sauber and Toro Rosso are in the wrong places. Haas is a Ferrari satellite. Force India might be a possible partner, but while it has a great group of engineers it needs a huge amount of capital investment..

All of this means that the best available choice is clearly Williams F1, not only because the team has a great heritage and decent facilities, but also because it needs a manufacturer to get it back to winning, which a customer Mercedes engine deal will not do. 

There are also other elements that make Williams the obvious choice, not least the fact that it is sponsored by Porsche's traditional motorsport partner Martini & Rossi and the various brands fit very neatly together. The Martini Porsche relationship goes back nearly 50 years and is a brand that is instantly recognised outside the confines of F1. 

Williams is also a company that is listed on the stock exchange in Germany, which means that the potential for a full takeover of the Williams group exists, if the family wants to sell out to Porsche at some point in the future. This need not all happen tomorrow, but there is a great deal of long term logic in such a relationship. 
As they say, watch this space!

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Mercedes dismisses 'dangerous' assumptions over Spa chances

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says the team cannot be swayed by “dangerous” assumptions amid suggestions that the upcoming Belgian Grand Prix should play to the strengths of its W08.

Mercedes has typically held the upper hand over Ferrari at venues where aerodynamic efficiency is prioritised, most prominently at Silverstone, where Lewis Hamilton led a 1-2, with its Italian rivals off the pace.

The characteristics of Spa-Francorchamps – with long straights and fast, sweeping corners – have led to suggestions that Mercedes should perform strongly this weekend.

Wolff, though, has stressed that Mercedes must remain grounded if it is to extend its lead over Ferrari in the standings.

“From what we have seen in the first half of the season, the competitive balance will swing one way and another from circuit to circuit,” Wolff commented.

“On paper, people will assume that Spa should suit our car because it is a circuit where aerodynamic efficiency is extremely important.

“But assumptions are dangerous – we have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next.

“So we will be making no assumptions; we have to tick off the items on our work list and make sure we do the best job to maximise our potential points score.”

Wolff also noted the increasing risk posed by Red Bull, which has gradually made progress after languishing behind the Mercedes/Ferrari fight during the early stages of the campaign.
“Red Bull will be a threat if they can build on the performance they showed in Hungary,” Wolff commented.

“So we need to keep our heads down, stay humble regarding our strengths, diligent about our weaknesses and take the season weekend by weekend.”

Mercedes, which has won six of this year’s 11 Grands Prix, holds a 39-point advantage over Ferrari in the Constructors’ Championship.

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Renault says return to points 'vital' in Belgium

Renault chief Cyril Abiteboul says it is “vital” that the manufacturer returns to the points-paying positions in Belgium as it strives to end the season fifth in the championship.

Renault has scored points only once in the past four events – courtesy of Nico Hülkenberg’s sixth-place finish in Britain – and occupies eighth in the standings.

Renault’s pre-season target was to finish fifth in the classification and Abiteboul is hopeful the team can kick on when the sport returns from its summer break this weekend.

“The Belgian Grand Prix marks the beginning of the home stretch of the season and it’s vital that we hit the ground running by making a return to the points,” said Abiteboul.

“Hungary could have been a very strong weekend for us but the results failed to materialise.

“This was frustrating given we proved throughout the weekend in Budapest that we had the pace to be competitive and be in contention for a good haul of points from both drivers.

“This highlighted the progress we have made in 2017.

“We have proved, on a number of occasions, that we have the ability to comfortably run inside the top 10 and have shown we are well in the mix to be the best of the rest behind the top three teams.

“Weekends such as China, Bahrain, Spain and Great Britain showed what we are capable of doing, and there are nine more races to really underline our progression and make a mark.

“We are focusing on the areas needing attention, and making the necessary improvements and changes.

“Clear steps are being made and we are heading in the right direction in terms of pace and reliability.

“Finishing the season in fifth is our objective, but it will take resilience and determination from everyone at Renault.”

Renault will introduce new software and hardware updates during the course of the next two events as it bids to move up the midfield order.

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Schumacher Jr "amazed" by father's Benetton

Mick Schumacher said he was "amazed" to drive his seven-time Formula 1 world champion father Michael's title-winning Benetton ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix.

European Formula 3 Championship podium finisher Mick drove one lap in the Benetton B194, in which his father won eight races on the way to his first world championship crown.

Schumacher wore a special helmet that incorporated his usual design on one side and half of Michael's original design on the other.

The run was organised to commemorate Schumacher Sr's 1992 win, his first in F1.

Schumacher told Channel 4 it was "great" to drive the 1994 machine, and added: "I'm just amazed by the car."

The Spa-Francorchamps circuit is synonymous with Schumacher's F1 career.

He made his grand prix debut at the track in 1991 for Jordan, qualifying seventh but retiring with a clutch failure.

One year later Schumacher took the first of his record 91 victories at Spa, beating Nigel Mansell through a combination of strategy and the Williams developing a misfire.

Another Schumacher landmark, his record number of 68 pole positions, was matched by Lewis Hamilton in qualifying for Sunday's grand prix.

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FERRARI AND VETTEL AGREE THREE YEAR EXTENSION

Four-times Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel has extended his Ferrari contract for three more years to the end of 2020.

The Italian team released a statement on Saturday: “Scuderia Ferrari has extended its technical and racing agreement with driver Sebastian Vettel for the 2018, 2019 and 2020 racing seasons of the Formula One World Championship.”

The parties agreed to a record deal which will see the German bank €150-million, excluding bonuses for victories and championships which could lob another €100-million onto his earnings over the next three years.

The deal will make him the highest paid F1 driver right now, and put him up with the world’s top five earning sportsmen.

On Thursday, a day before the new deal was inked in the Ferrari motorhome at Spa, Vettel told reporters that he doubted a deal would be struck and announced before Monza, perhaps a final tactical ploy in his negotiations with the team..

No doubt helping to trigger announcement was the fact that Mercedes are said to have concluded a multi-year extension to Valtteri Bottas’ one year contract with the team. This news is also set to be announced soon by the Silver Arrows.

While it is being reported that Lewis Hamilton is keen to extend his stay with Mercedes for another three years, suggesting that the Briton will end his career with the team.

Although unconfirmed, there have been reports suggesting that Vettel and Mercedes signed an option for 2018 which is now obviously nullified.

Vettel’s commitment to the team will provide an extra boost the morale of staff at Maranello, as they seek to bring home a Formula 1 World Championship trophy for the first time since 2007 when Raikkonen bagged their last title.

Finnish team mate Kimi Raikkonen has already agreed a contract extension for 2018 – a move which Vettel applauded – and also means that the Reds will field an unchanged driver line-up for a fourth consecutive season.

 

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BELGIAN GRAND PRIX: HAMILTON FENDS OF VETTEL

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton fended off incessant race long pressure from Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel to win the Belgian Grand Prix on the occasion of his 200th Formula 1 race, which he will remember as one of the toughest victories of his career.

Hamilton led from the moment the lights went off, but Vettel stalked him throughout the 44 lap race – the Ferrari always a second or so in the Mercedes’ mirrors. A high-pressure stalemate until a dozen laps to go when the safety car was deployed after Force India duo Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez collided.

When the pink debris was finally removed and the field unleashed there were ten laps to go. Intriguingly Hamilton had Pirelli yellow band softs bolted on to his car, while Vettel opted for the quicker purple band ultrasofts with clear intent to attack.

However Hamilton stood fast, keeping Vettel behind him and, crucially, out of DRS range. The Ferrari driver simply did not have the pace to do anything other than follow the silver car, a second or so adrift. The pair swapping fastest laps and breaking the race lap record in the process.

It was a show of two of this era’s finest drivers in an intense duel with the biggest prize in motorsport on the line. More a game of chess than a boxing match this time around.

It was an impressive showing by Hamilton to keep Vettel at bay during the tense final stages. In the end he did enough to claim victory and reduce the gap in the championship standings from 14 to seven with eight races remaining.

Hamilton looked back on his 200th race, ” It’s been a strong weekend for myself and the team. The team have done a great job and I’m really grateful for all the hard work. Sebastian put a great fight on but this is what I said I was coming to do so I did it.”

“There are probably kids here who dream of doing what we are doing one day. I came here in 1996 with my dad and I hope this does show that dreams come true,” added the triple F1 World Champion.

Vettel said, “It was good fun. It was really intense because every lap I was waiting for Lewis to do a mistake – he didn’t – he was probably waiting for me to do a mistake – I didn’t.”

“The restart – that’s why I’m not entirely happy. I was fearing that I was not close enough and then I was probably too close. Then I was on the outside with nowhere really to go. I think we had good pace, if you compare this track to Silverstone, I think it was a lot better here,” added the Ferrari driver.

It was a day of mixed fortunes for Red Bull with Daniel Ricciardo . biggest winner during the safety car period, finishing third after yet another steady and opportunistic drive that has become his trademark.

His overtake on Valtteri Bottas after the safety car restart was one of the best moves of the race, and thereafter he did well to stay in third place on the ultrasofts with the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen chasing but to no avail. The Finn was fourth despite receiving a 10-second stop and go penalty for ignoring double waved yellow flags.

Ricciardo reflected, “I knew we’d been given a bit of an opportunity so it was good to take advantage of that with Valtteri on the restart.”

Although unable to match the leaders, Bottas was in a solid third place until the restart and was gobbled up on the run up to Les Combes by Ricciardo and Raikkonen. On softs for the final ten laps he had no answer to the Red Bull and the Ferrari ahead and had to settle for fifth.

For the multitude Max Verstappen fans who cut an impressive swathe of orange through the grandstands it was a day of disappointment as their hero parked his car with an engine problem, his sixth DNF of the season.

Nico Hulkenberg drove a solid race in the Renault to finish sixth ahead of the Haas of Romain Grosjean, while Williams driver Felipe Massa turned around a trouble packed weekend to finish eighth.

Ocon survived the Force India civil war to finish ninth, crossing the finish line ahead of Carlos Sainz who claimed the final point in tenth.

It was another woeful race for McLaren despite Fernando Alonso making a good start and running as high up as seventh early on. But the joy was short-lived as he was quickly gobbled up by those behind him at which he point he described the pace of his car as embarrassing. The team retired the car on lap 25.

Stoffel Vandoorne, who started his home race from the back of the grid thanks to 65 place grid penalty, soldiered on to finish 14th.

With the dust settled the biggest talking point from another dramatic race at Spa-Francorchamps is the clash between the two Force India drivers. The fact that the stewards saw no harm in Perez’s cynical block at one of the most dangerous points on the daunting track will no doubt fuel the debate.

Mercedes chief Toto Wolff summed up: “Very good for his championship. Really brilliant. Lewis Hamilton’s drive was really fantastic all weekend. Bottas’ restart was unfortunate. We need to go away and analyse properly. This is somewhere we should be doing better but the Ferraris are up there second with their championship driver still leading.”

Blow-by-Blow Report

At the start Hamilton held P1 when the lights went out and a clean start saw the top six cars exit La Source in grid order, with the Briton being followed by Vettel, Bottas, Raikkonen and the Red Bulls of Verstappen and Ricciardo.

Alonso made an excellent start and picked up three places in the first two laps, rising from P10 on the grid to seventh. However the Spaniard’s time in seventh was short-lived as first Hulkenberg retook his starting position and then Alonso was passed by the Force Indias of Ocon and Perez.

Lap one was the high-point of the McLaren driver’s afternoon, however. Lacking power he was easily bypassed by rivals and after terse radio messages that it was “embarrassing” the Spaniard told his team to avoid radio contact for the remainder of the race. His pain ended on lap 27, however, when he pulled into the pit lane and retired from the race.

At the front of the field the settled order of the first few laps was disrupted on lap seven. Exiting the Bus Stop chicane, Verstappen cycled through the gears but as he hit sixth he suddenly lost power. As his engineers radioed through possible solutions, Verstappen trundled through Eau Rouge and up to Raidillon but with as the fixes evaporated so to did the Dutchman’s hopes and he pulled over halfway down the Kemmel straight to retire.

Hamilton pitted from the lead at the end of lap 12, taking on soft tyres in a quick, 2.3s stop. That dropped him to fourth place behind Räikkönen and left Vettel in the lead and chasing lap time.

Vettel’s stop eventually came at the end of lap 14 but the German was unable to make an impression on Hamilton’s lead and he once again slotted in just over a second behind his title rival.

Behind him Räikkönen was now chasing Bottas, but his race hopes were dented when he was handed a 10-second stop/go penalty for failing to slow for the yellow flags displayed when Verstappen halted at the side of the track.

Ricciardo was just a couple of seconds behind and when Räikkönen took his penalty the Australian moved up to fourth behind Bottas. Räikkönen dropped to sixth, 4.6 seconds behind Hulkenberg.

At the midway point of the race Vettel was an ominous presence in the mirrors of Hamilton and the Briton’s race engineers was telling him to maintain track position as the German appeared to find better pace out of the soft compound Pirelli tyres.

Hamilton responded and extended his lead to 1.7 seconds by lap 28 but the battle was nullified on lap 30 when the two Force India drivers, battling over 10th place collided.

Ocon pressured Perez as they exited La Source but the Mexican held firm with his team-mate on the inside. The result was a broken front wing for Ocon, a puncture for Perez and debris across the track.

That brought out the safety car and most of the field pitted for new tyres. Hamilton opted for soft compound Pirellis, but Vettel had a set of ultrasofts in reserve. Bottas was now also on softs, but like Vettel, fifth-placed Ricciardo chose ultrasofts.

When racing resumed Vettel attacked Hamilton as the pair ran down the long Kemmel Straight, but the Briton defended well and just managed to hold off a the German’s determined charge.

Bottas, in the other Mercedes, was not so lucky. He was passed by Ricciardo on the outside on the run towards Les Combes and to make matters worse was also ambushed by Räikkönen, who snuck past down the inside under braking.

Vettel set about trying to find another avenue of attack but Hamilton managed to find more pace and slowly worked a 1.3s advantage with four laps to go. Behind them Ricciardo was also making his position safe, holding a 2.2s lead over Raikkonen  lap 42.

And that was how it finished with Hamilton holding Vettel at bay to take his fifth win of the season and the 58th of his career. Ricciardo took his sixth podium of the year ahead of Raikkonen while fifth-placed Bottas was left to rue the re-start.

Hulkenberg took sixth for Renault ahead Grosjean and Massa. The last two points places went to Ocon and  Sainz.

Hamilton’s win means he heads to next weekend’s Italian Grand Prix just seven points adrift of Vettel who leads the title race with 220 points. 

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ALONSO: EMBARRASSING REALLY EMBARRASSING

Fernando Alonso blitzed off the line the moments the lights went out to start the Belgian Grand Prix, the Spaniard muscling his way up to seventh in the opening laps, but it was a short-lived cameo on an afternoon he spent going backwards, until the team retired the car after 25 laps.

Shortly after claiming seventh place within the first four laps, things started going pear shaped for the McLaren driver as a string of cars passel him down the Kemmel Straight and Blanchimont.

At which point he shouted in exasperation to his team over the radio: “Embarrassing, really embarrassing.”

A lap later his engineer informed him of where he was in the order and he replied, “I really don’t care too much about the gaps. This is just a test.”

On lap 17 his engineer was back on the radio proffering settings advice to which Alonso said, “No more radio, the rest of the race.”

Then shortly before retiring from the race, the Spaniard himself broke the radio silence, “Every car I overtake, they pass me on the next lap. I have no protection now… anyway, it doesn’t change my life.”

After his race was over, Alonso was back in PR mode when he summed up his day to the media, “In general, it’s been a good weekend. We played a good team game in qualifying, we had a great start – taking the outside lane was the right decision – and we were seventh after the first lap.”

“It was fun for the first three or four laps! Then we tried to defend our position, but in the middle of the straights some cars passed us without even activating the DRS. The situation is what it is and we need to improve it as soon as we can. I know the team is working day and night improving the car, and we hope we can see the results soon,” added Alonso.

Reports have emerged this weekend suggesting he is in advanced talks with a deal to join Williams next year, while a return to Renault has also featured among the speculation surrounding the double F1 World Champion.

What Alonso has made clear is that he will not countenance another season with McLaren-Honda under the current conditions and will make a decision on his future next month..

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VERSTAPPEN: I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen said he felt frustrated by his early exit from the Belgian Grand Prix and technical issues such as the one he experienced on the day should not happen to a top team.

Verstappen, who drew a sell-out crowd of orange-clad fans from his nearby home country, started from fifth on the grid but had to retire on lap eight when his Red Bull car spluttered to a halt at the famous Eau Rouge corner.

Shaking his head, Verstappen yelled “unbelievable” into the team radio before leaving his car and riding back to the pits on a quad bike.

He told reporters afterwards, “Frustrated, disappointed and just really not happy. For a top team, this can’t happen. At the beginning you can say bad luck, these things happen. But if it’s happening again for the sixth time this year, you can’t call it bad luck any more.”

“I lost power and everything was done. It is really frustrating. The fans buy very expensive tickets to come and watch the race and then after eight laps it’s finished. That cannot happen with a top team.”

“Also it’s just really demotivating because you work hard all weekend, you have a great qualifying and you’re looking forward to the race but then you retire after eight laps. I don’t know what to say – it’s just a very tough year,” lamented the teenager.

In the 12 races so far this season, Verstappen has failed to make it to the chequered flag six times, often sidelined by technical issues with his car.

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OCON: RISKING MY LIFE, RISKING HIS LIFE FOR NO REASON

Force India duo Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez clashed dramatically during the Belgian Grand Prix, the third incident between the two teammates in pink, which is sure to further sour a partnership that is becoming increasingly volatile and even dangerous.

On the opening lap Perez claims he was unsighted when he squeezed his teammate Ocon into the wall as the field rushed towards Eau Rouge at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps Circuit.

Ocon’s car clattered into the wall as he was forced into a fast reducing gap by his teammate. Fortunately for both there was no damage despite the force of the impact.

On lap 30 the pair again tussled exiting the hairpin and on the same stretch to Eau Rouge. This time Perez knew Ocon was trying to pass on his right, but when the pair were almost side-by-side the Mexican appeared to close the door on the Frenchman, they collided again with Ocon losing his front wing.

But it was Perez who got off worst as the contact punctured his right rear. He nearly lost it through Eay Rouge but kept it together and drove around to his pit for new rubber while the safety car was deployed to clear the pink debris and bits of tyre.

It was clearly a cynical move by Perez, as it could be argued that even if he had not closed the door on his teammate would still have been better positioned for Eau Rouge than Ocon.

Ocon was livid as he screamed into the team radio: “Guys what the f*ck is he doing? Honestly, what the f*ck is this guy doing?”

Speaking to journalists afterwards, Ocon said, “The first incident, I accept it even if I think he saw me in the mirror. We were three wide, but I accept that one even if he squeezed me into the wall and that’s very dangerous and not professional.”

“But the second one is one too much. What is the point of doing that? He just squeezed me into the wall at 300kph risking my life, risking his life, for no reason and costing a lot of points for the team. He’s supposed to be a professional driver and he didn’t show it today.”

He also said he would confront Perez, “I will tell him the truth. I will not be scared of him, I will go and talk to him. If it needs to be mean words it will be. How many points have we lost today?”

“We are running in great positions, it’s just a stupid move and there was no need to do that. It’s even worse for him – he’s 28, he’s been in F1 for seven years, so I guess he has to think about what he does,” added

Perez accepted the blame for the lap one incident, “The first one was 100 per cent my fault. I have to accept that one and I put my hand up for that one. My mistake came at the start. I selected the start too late and I didn’t have the right mode for that so I had 50 per cent less power. I totally didn’t see him at all him at all.”

“The second incident I think Esteban was really optimistic there because there was no room for two cars. He had the whole straight to do the manouvere so it’s a shame that we touched. We ruined our race. I’m very disappointed with myself today. It’s the first time that I do something wrong that I have to say it. This is the day with the first collision.”

But with regards to the contentious second incident, Perez was unrepentant, “The second one was too much on the limit, there was no room for Esteban to go. The other one would have been quite avoidable.”

“We just have to talk and if we look back everything started in Baku. But now we have to move forwards as a team. Today we lost many points, people are closing the gap to us, to very important,” added Perez.

Ocon went on to finish ninth, while Perez was classified 17th om a day where both were capable of a top ten finish higher up the order.

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Raikkonen says stop/go penalty was "pointless"

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen believes his 10-second stop/go penalty for failing to slow under double waved yellow flags in the Belgian Grand Prix was "pointless".

The stewards deemed Raikkonen "made no attempt to significantly reduce his speed" when he passed Max Verstappen's stricken Red Bull on the Kemmel Straight.

Raikkonen said he didn't lift but he didn't think it was necessary as the car was behind the barrier.

"I knew there was a yellow flag but the car was at least halfway behind the barrier on the straight," he said.

"I didn't go faster but I didn't lift on the straight. In my view it was pointless to get penalised for that.

"I completely understand if he was by the side of the circuit, on the proper side and there is people working on it. But this is what happened and I would be surprised if everybody else lifted…

"Luckily there was a safety car and we could recover something, but it was not the easiest end of the weekend but it's what happened."

Raikkonen dropped from fourth to seventh after taking the penalty but was able to easily pass Esteban Ocon and then Nico Hulkenberg.

He then went three-wide on the Kemmel Straight with Daniel Ricciardo and Valtteri Bottas after the safety car restart, with Ricciardo and Raikkonen passing Bottas for third and fourth respectively.

"On the restart I got a really good tow from two cars and then Ricciardo was on one side, Bottas was in the middle and I just had just enough speed to get next to Bottas, I managed to go on the inside," he said.

"I got one car. After that I never really had the speed advantage over the Red Bull. They were surprisingly strong in race conditions compared to what they have been the whole weekend.

"They had good speed in the right places always and good laptimes but at least I got one place back."

 

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Palmer believes Alonso deserved a penalty

Jolyon Palmer believes that Fernando Alonso's bold move during the Belgian Grand Prix was "identical" to Kevin Magnussen's move on teammate Nico Hulkenberg at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The pair went side-by-side into Rivage midway through the race, with Alonso taking the inside line.

Palmer held the outside line but quickly ran out of track as Alonso forced him out wide.

This allowed Alonso, and the Toro Rosso of Carlos Sainz, to pass.

The incident was reported by Renault immediately after Palmer said on team radio: "Come on, Alonso just forced me straight off the track."

Palmer believes the incident is identical to the clash between Magnussen and teammate Hulkenberg in Hungary, for which the Dane was given a penalty.

"We got stuck behind Alonso, who forced me off the track pretty clearly," said Palmer. "If you ask me there's nothing between that and what Kevin (Magnussen) did to Hulk (Hulkenberg). It was identical.

"I don't know if he'll get a penalty. We'll see - but that cost me two places. If halfway round the corner he just decides he's going to force me off the track, it's exactly the same. It's up to the stewards to decide.

"But if Magnussen gets a penalty for sure Alonso has to get a penalty as well."

The incident between Magnussen and Hulkenberg, which led to a war of words between the two in the post-race TV pen, resulted in a five-second penalty for Magnussen.

Despite the incident with Alonso, Palmer was happy to find some form following a tough start to the season.

"I felt confidence in the car that I haven't felt all season really," said Palmer. "I could attack, I could push and I could chuck it around without think it's going to put me in the wall at some moment.

"It was a nice change compared to pretty much most of the season."

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Hamilton: NASCAR-style safety car was unnecessary

Lewis Hamilton felt the Belgian Grand Prix’s safety car was “a bit like NASCAR” and designed to create a fight for the win with Formula 1 title rival Sebastian Vettel.

Hamilton held a two-second lead over Vettel when the safety car was deployed after a clash between Force India drivers Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon that scattered debris from the exit of La Source to the exit of Raidillon.

Hamilton complained over the team radio that “there’s no debris anywhere” and it was a “BS call from the stewards” to deploy the safety car, which remained on track for three laps.

After beating Vettel in the eight-lap sprint at the end, Hamilton likened the safety car appearance to NASCAR, where the organisers are sometimes accused of throwing unnecessary caution periods for debris to enliven races.

"Well I felt it was a bit like NASCAR, where they keep pulling out the safety cars for no reason," said Hamilton.

"The wing was cleared, after we’d slowed down they could have done a VSC but I guess they wanted to see a race, so that’s for sure the reason they did that, because there was hardly any debris, if at all, they cleaned it so well."

Vettel admitted that without the safety car it would have been “difficult to get in range”.

“I was fairly healthy – 15 laps to go, I would probably have finished like that,” he said.

“With the safety car I felt a chance but it wasn’t good enough chance.”

Vettel: I got too close

The safety car allowed the field to switch tyres, with Hamilton’s Mercedes taking softs and Ferrari putting Vettel onto the ultrasofts.

Vettel was tucked up underneath the Mercedes’ rear wing through Eau Rouge and Raidillon at the restart and forced Hamilton to defend on the run to Les Combes.

Hamilton resisted the attack, which proved to be Vettel’s only opportunity as Hamilton gradually extended his lead to win by 2.3s.

“You could see exiting Turn 1 I was all over Lewis, it was not so hard to follow close,” said Vettel, who said he was not helped by Hamilton lifting on the run to Eau Rouge.

“Maybe that was problem, my restart was too good. If I had to do it again, maybe I would try something different.”

Hamilton said his “front tyres were not switched on initially”, which handed Vettel the chance to attack at the restart.

He agreed Vettel “was a bit too close” out of La Source, adding: “He had to lift off, as he could have gone by on run to Eau Rouge.”

[skalls]

Highlight of the race was Force India wrecking themselves again lol.

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1 hour ago, skalls said:

Highlight of the race was Force India wrecking themselves again lol.

Indeed.

Where do you sit on these two?

Personally for me, I think Checo Perez really needs to pull his head in. He's the most "Seasoned" compared to his rookie team mate and I think whilst Perez has achieved some great results, he undoes all that with dim witted driving such as this and a couple others. I feel he somehow feels he has a right to try forcing an upper hand on Ocon and thus far, it never seems to end well for the team.

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HOW LEWIS HAMILTON COULD CATCH SCHUMACHER’S WIN TOTAL AND THOSE CARELESS FORCE INDIAS

The Belgian Grand Prix set the pulse racing at several points, despite being another race with a serious lull in the middle.

Highlights were Fernando Alonso’s opening lap, the pass by Daniel Ricciardo on Valtteri Bottas at the restart after the late Safety Car, Vettel’s attempt to do the same with Lewis Hamilton in the other Mercedes and the two collisions between the Force India drivers.

We will look at that in a moment, but we have to consider first of all Lewis Hamilton’s history making this weekend, equalling Michael Schumacher’s 68 pole positions and winning his 200th Grand Prix.

It was a fantastically open contest on race day, with Hamilton put under real pressure at the end when a Safety Car for the Force India collision debris, meant a late stop for new tyres for most drivers. With no new ultrasofts to fit (as he had used them for a second run in Q2 on Saturday) Hamilton had to fit softs. Vettel had a new set of Ultrasofts available, so on paper he was much better set up for the final sprint. The Ultra softs should be in excess of 1 second per lap faster.

Vettel misjudged his run into La Source and got too close to Hamilton on the run down the hill, losing momentum by pulling out of the slipstream too early. It was his one chance of the race to get the lead and he didn’t execute properly, unlike Ricciardo, who in exactly the same circumstances against Bottas did make the pass stick.

But credit to Hamilton for very crafty defending, as well as coping with a wrong power mode immediately after the restart, adding in a slight lift that forced Vettel into doing the same at the foot of Eau Rouge. It was very subtle and very effective, as Vettel conceded after the race.

For Hamilton to take the all time pole record is entirely appropriate; he has been one of the fastest drivers in F1 history and an exceptional qualifier.

However another, previously unimaginable record is now conceivable. No-one thought that Schumacher’s 91 Grands Prix wins would ever be matched, but with Hamilton on 58 now and likely to take that to at least 61 or 62 by the end of the year, he has conceivably three more seasons with Mercedes ahead if he mirrors Vettel’s deal at Ferrari to the end of 2020, as we expect him to do. At 10 wins a season, which he has been easily doing these last three years, that takes him to the magic 91.

Now F1 is supposed to get more competitive and it’s hard to imagine three more years for Hamilton like the ones he has just enjoyed. In all probability he will still be some way short at the end of 2020, but it makes you wonder.

Another fascinating stat is that for the first time since 1974, we have now gone 12 races without any one driver winning back to back Grands Prix. It’s a good indication of how open things are between Mercedes and Ferrari.

Ferrari thumped Mercedes at Budapest much as Mercedes had thumped Ferrari at Silverstone. We all expected a repeat today of Silverstone and it didn’t happen. That gives huge encouragement to Vettel and Ferrari and means that they will be competitive everywhere. As long as they don’t have to take an engine penalty somewhere as the early season turbo usage catches up, then they are in a strong position for this championship.

Force India civil war; “He (Perez) should get a one race ban”

All season we have been discussing the story of the fantastic battle between the team mates at Force India, Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon. This has provided great entertainment at every round as the pair are so closely matched and occasionally that has led to conflict.

In Montreal there was a case for the team to intervene to let Ocon, who was faster, have a crack at the car in front of Perez. In Baku, the following race, the aftermath of that feud spilled over as the pair collided. As they were ahead of eventual race winner Daniel Ricciardo at the time, the conclusion was that at least a double podium had gone begging, perhaps a victory.

And now we have had Perez twice putting Ocon into the wall on the run down from La Source to Eau Rouge. Ocon forgave Perez the first but said the second was the Mexican ‘trying to kill me” and on the slow down lap he called for his team mate to receive a one-race ban.

“The second one is one too many. What is the point of doing that? He just squeezed me into the wall at 300kph risking my life, risking his life, for no reason and costing a lot of points for the team,” he told reporters after the race.

“He’s supposed to be a professional driver and he didn’t show it today.”

Perez, in contrast, said the first was 100% his fault as he’d made a poor start but the second was Ocon being far too ambitious. Ocon scored points, Perez didn’t.

Team boss Otmar Szafnauer told Sky Sports immediately after the incident that if they couldn’t be trusted then they would not be allowed to race each other in future, “We let them race up until now and if they can’t do it in a manner which is good for the team, then they won’t be racing anymore,” he said.

One of them is therefore looking increasingly likely to end up moving to Renault next season. For Mercedes boss Toto Wolff it would make more sense if it were Ocon, as he could place Pascal Wehrlein at Force India. But there are forces at the Silverstone based team that are not keen on Wehrlein. Meanwhile Perez had a good offer from Renault last year but renewed for a year with Force India so he could be available if a Ferrari or Renault drive came up.

[skalls]

My thoughts that both are responsible but it's a 65/35 split on Perez being more responsible for the incidents.

The two things that I'm left with is that team orders will be too be enforced (later confirmed by someone at force India) but I'm not sure the orders will be listened too.  The second is that one of these guys will be without a seat at force India.

So the silly season will involve the following.

Wherlein to force India.

Perez to McLaren (only spot available).

Alonso to Williams

I just don't see those two sticking around as teammates after this season.

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10 hours ago, skalls said:

My thoughts that both are responsible but it's a 65/35 split on Perez being more responsible for the incidents.

The two things that I'm left with is that team orders will be too be enforced (later confirmed by someone at force India) but I'm not sure the orders will be listened too.  The second is that one of these guys will be without a seat at force India.

So the silly season will involve the following.

Wherlein to force India.

Perez to McLaren (only spot available).

Alonso to Williams

I just don't see those two sticking around as teammates after this season.

I'm with you on all points other than the McLaren for Perez considering he had a VERY below par season with the team back in 2013.

Without Ron Dennis at the helm of that team, I suppose it is conceivable. 

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AND ON THAT NOTE: MALLYA: NO CHOICE BUT TO IMPLEMENT TEAM ORDERS

Force India big boss Vijay Mallya has finally acted to put a stop to the costly on-track antics between his team’s two drivers Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez.

Mallya said in a team press release, “I have been very happy with our overall performance during the 2017 season with both drivers scoring points for the team and racing freely.

“However, as much as I support competitive racing, the repeated incidents between both our cars are now becoming very concerning.”

“Under these circumstances I have no choice but to implement a policy of team orders in the interest of safety and to protect the team’s position in the constructors’ championship,” added Mallya.

Ocon and Perez clashed on two occasions during the Belgian Grand Prix, there third coming together of this nature so far this season.

After the first collision, on the opening lap of the race at Spa-Francorchamps, the pair were lucky to continue without harm to their cars despite the substantial impact.

On lap 30 the pair collided again, on virtually the same piece of tarmac as earlier on, but this time Ocon’s wing was damaged and Perez suffered a puncture. At this point the pair looked set for a solid double points finish for their team.

But from then on Perez’s race was compromised as he suffered a puncture and was out of contention when he was told to retire the car late on in the race. Ocon survived to finish ninth, but much more was in their grasp.

Afterwards Perez accepted responsibility for the first incident and apologised, but of the second coming together he said that Ocon had been too ambitious.

The Frenchman questioned if the Mexican was intent on killing them both.

Quote

Damage limitation today, we were having a good race until Perez tried to kill me 2 times! Anyway he didn't manage to do so ending up P9?!

Today [Monday] he toned down his accusations and explained that he was quoted said in the heat of the moment after the race when his emotions were running high, and posted the following Tweet:

The teams COO Otmar Szafnauer said, “It wasn’t the result we wanted and we left behind a lot of points after a collision between our drivers. This is what you get when you have two very competitive drivers who are fairly equal in performance in a decent car.”

“It has happened to others in the past and it is happening to us now. However, we cannot afford to see this in the future, so we will ensure the team controls what happens on the track.”

“We gave our drivers the chance to sort it out by themselves, but if they cannot do it, we will have to put some more rules in place and take the situation in our control,” added Szafnauer.

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VERSTAPPEN: I AM VERY ANGRY

Max Verstappen is set to pick up the ‘award’ for the unluckiest driver of the year as he picked up yet another DNF – the sixth of his season so far – this time while running in fifth place during the Belgian Grand Prix.

Spa Francorchamps was packed to capacity with Dutch fans made the pilgrimage to the Ardennes to support their driver. But it was a cruel day for them and Verstappen as his Red Bull coasted to a halt with no power, stopping in front of the bright orange spectator bank along the Kemmel Straight. His race was over after only seven laps.

The teenager got out of his car waved to the crowd and hopped on the back of a scooter for a ride back to the paddock. 

Later he wrote on his website, “I am very angry with the whole situation: we are just too slow, so you get yourself psyched up to go for it and try to score some points. But that doesn’t happen in this way either. It is very disappointing, that it’s being going this way all year long and me dropping out so often, actually always in good positions.”

Adversity makes you stronger, some say…

“You can keep saying that, but at a certain point that stops. I don’t need this to make me stronger, you saw that Saturday during qualifying.”

Verstappen hinted that his team are unable to pinpoint why he has suffered so many technical issues, relative to his teammate Daniel Ricciardo – the Australian finishing third in Belgium.

“If we knew what the problem was, it wouldn’t happen again. For a top team like this, something like this should absolutely not be happening. If we knew what the issue was we could fix it. But every time it’s something different. It’s very frustrating that the problems only affect me, but I am not saying there is more to that.”

“To be out of the race after just eight laps is just not right for a top team. You can say: it’s bad luck, but this hasn’t got anything to do with luck, this is plain bad. I didn’t have any power. I tried some things on the straight but it didn’t work.”

As for dealing with the inevitable disappointment, he said, “I usually don’t talk too much. I am just going to do my own thing.”

2017 is fast becoming a forgettable season for the 19 year old with six DNFs in 12 starts on his scorecard, and only one podium to show for his efforts. He is sixth in the championship standings, 65 points adrift of his teammate.

In contrast teammate Ricciardo is fourth in the standings, with three DNFs, but has six podiums including a win thus far.

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INSIDE LINE: SAVOUR WHAT IS A TITLE BATTLE FOR THE AGES

In the wake of the Belgian Grand Prix I am confused by some of the reaction of some Formula 1 fans, and even media, who thought the race was boring and also questioned the need for a safety car.

I for one felt that it was an tense and intriguing race with a proper duel for top honours between the two title favourites – Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel – both at the very top of their game while peddling some pretty thrifty race cars.

The pair were glued to each other throughout the race. I recall few occasions where the gap was not under two seconds. Vettel in the Ferrari stalked Hamilton throughout the race, while the Mercedes driver had to dig into every bit of his arsenal to keep him at bay.

I must be honest and admit that after the safety car, with Vettel on the Pirelli ultrasofts and Hamilton on the more conservative softs, I believed Mercedes had erred and expected the Ferrari to make use of the stickier rubber to reel-in and beat Hamilton.

That Vettel was unable to do so is testament to Hamilton delivering the type of drive that only he can. Digging deep to keep that gap above a second and prevent Vettel from having the luxury of DRS. The pair swapping fastest laps, and lap records for that matter, in the process.

At the same time it was clear that Mercedes had dialed the power on the Merc to maximum, which in the end probably made the difference between victory and second place.

In my mind the afternoon, it also confirms that on the fast tracks such as Spa-Francorchamps the Silver Arrows horsepower has the legs over the Prancing Horse… for now. But the gap has narrowed considerably, even when compared to Silverstone (in July) where Ferrari seemed to be in far deeper trouble than Mercedes at low-downforce venues.

Ferrari have made obvious progress since then, but are still lacking a bit when the power is maxed out as it was on Sunday and a day earlier in qualifying at Spa.

Nevertheless you feel that Vettel can compete, and if they can find an extra bit in qualifying things could pan out differently for the Reds in the remaining races.

All-in-all we could not have asked for a better scrap than we had on the day. This is what Formula 1 should be and is about. Sure there are times when they will slug it out wheel-to-wheel, but this time out it was more a chess match than a boxing bout. To me the contests are equally enthralling.

And this is only talking about the top two guys.

Down the order there was so much to enjoy from the boys in pink turning their civil war into a contact sport, Daniel Ricciardo making the most of opportunities presented to him, Fernando Alonso always providing good value even if it is only briefly while his radio these days is priceless.

Throw in Kimi and Valtteri chasing and trying to keep up with their teammates, the Toro Rosso feud, will Lance bin it,  what now for Jolyon, etc etc and we have not only a main event but also a myriad of highly entertaining sideshows.

Perhaps the only downside is the wretched luck young Max Verstappen is enduring at the moment. I always anticipate something magical or dramatic from the Red Bull driver, but right now luck has deserted him totally – but it will come to him again and inevitably he will provide a special ingredient to proceedings.

Formula 1 at the moment is as good as it gets in my book.

As for questioning the safety car period on the day, as mentioned I find that confusing too. Granted even Hamilton had a dig at the timing of the deployment, and of course this helped ignite some silly conspiracy theories.

The facts are that the shenanigans between the Force India duo resulted in a broken wing and an immediate puncture for Sergio Perez, plus substantial debris on the racing line.

In the aftermath of their coming together, carbon fibre shards and splinters littered the track on the run down and entry to Eau Rouge. Although the marshals bravely got rid of the big pieces, there was still the danger of uncleared fragments being picked up had racing been allowed to continue unrestricted.

At this daunting point on the track a puncture is the last thing one wants and could have had catastrophic results had someone driven over a sharp piece of sharp pink stuff. As far as I am concerned, it was a good call to send the safety car out and allow marshals to clear the track of any potential danger. 

The Belgian Grand Prix, Round 12 of this championship, was a fitting return from the holidays for the Formula 1 circus. The race set the tone for what will be eight more fascinating episodes, including the last race of the season in Abu Dhabi where I predict the title will be decided.

Right now I cannot ask for more of Formula 1 and I think fans should relish what they are witnessing, this is a title battle for the ages between two of the top drivers of this generation plying their trade with two of the sport’s most iconic teams.

Antone who does not appreciate and savour this might be following the wrong sport…

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Record attendance for Belgian GP weekend

The Belgian Grand Prix achieved a record attendance in 2017, aided by the presence of local drivers Max Verstappen and Stoffel Vandoorne.

Official figures issued by Formula 1 revealed that 265,000 people visited Spa-Francorchamps across the course of the four-day weekend, a rise of 11.6 per cent on 2016.

A large contingency of spectators travelled from the nearby Netherlands to support Verstappen, while home racer Vandoorne also had his own grandstand at the iconic venue.

“The record number of spectators that came to Spa-Francorchamps is very pleasing and shows that Formula 1 can really energise and grow audiences,” said F1 commercial chief Sean Bratches.

“It was also great to see the spectators’ enthusiasm for the initiatives in the Fan Zone: here in Belgium, mainly thanks to our collaboration with the Grand Prix organisers, the general public had even more to enjoy.

“As we have said right from the start of the season, we want to carry on down this path, as Formula 1 must get ever closer to the fans.

“Right from this week, we will be in Monza, another historic venue on the calendar and we will put even more effort into initiatives aimed at the fans, both at the track and off it.”

Formula 1 plans to hold several events, including a kart race on the start/finish line on Thursday – featuring five to-be-confirmed drivers and football stars.

There will also be a ‘Milano Drivers Parade’ on Thursday evening, which is set to start from the Castello Sforzesco and end at the Old Fashion Café.

Around a dozen drivers, including Kimi Räikkönen, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas, are set to be present, with Mille Miglia machinery also in action.

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Felipe Massa says eighth 'like a victory' after tough weekend

Felipe Massa has compared his eighth place finish in the Belgian Grand Prix to a race victory, after the Williams team suffered a difficult weekend which saw both cars fail to escape Q1 in qualifying.

Massa's weekend started with a first practice crash, which also ruled him out of FP2 due to the extensive damage and a chassis change, which meant he completed minimal running before qualifying, which made things even harder given he skipped the previous race due to illness.

But Massa made up ground in the race and although admitting eighth isn't a particularly great result, he believes the way he drove to move up the order was comparable to winning the race.

"I’m very happy with the race, it was like a victory," said the Brazilian.

"Great start, great overtakes, good pace for the car we struggled with [in qualifying], so I’m really happy and also to be able to keep the cars behind at the end.

"I think it was a very intense race, but I’m so happy. I know eighth place is not a nice position, looking at everything I have achieved in my career, but today the way I drove the car and the way I drove in this race, it was definitely like a victory and I’m so happy.

"For sure there’s a lot to understand and improve in the car, like what wasn’t working in the last two races, but I’m happy with the perfect race I had."