Formula 1 - 2017

[MIKA27]

5 hours ago, Ferrero said:

Mika,

Not sure if you have ever been to the Singapore GP or not but it is a must see event. I just got home from Singapore myself and the experience was amazing. Probably the best sporting event I have been too and so well organised. A night time street race with the Singapore skyline in the background is truly an unbelievable spectacle.

 

I've never been to the Singapore GP but it is on my bucket list for sure mate!

I agree, it certainly looks amazing at night, all the lights etc that only Singapore can pull off.

[xtcat9k]

13 hours ago, Ferrero said:

Mika,

Not sure if you have ever been to the Singapore GP or not but it is a must see event. I just got home from Singapore myself and the experience was amazing. Probably the best sporting event I have been too and so well organised. A night time street race with the Singapore skyline in the background is truly an unbelievable spectacle.

 

I went to the race a few years ago and it was an amazing experience. I agree that they surely know how to organize and manage the event like no other. 

[MIKA27]

INSIDE LINE: WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON INSIDE MCLAREN?

In the wake of the announcement that McLaren will split from Honda, the Japanese company’s head of motorsport has accused the Woking outfit of being resistant to change which was met with much derision as this appears to be a clear case of the pot calling the kettle black.

However for Masashi Yamamoto, in his role as Honda motorsport chief, claiming this is unlikely to be a tit-for-tat criticism, but rather based on experience over the past three years. For many it evoked laughter, for me it did so too until I started thinking about it…

For the record I have a soft spot for McLaren, I happened to work for a photo agency that serviced Marlboro during the team’s heyday. Indirectly they gave me my ‘F1 break’ at the time.

Irrespective of this I believe that their presence in Formula 1 is as important as Ferrari being there. 

Invariably I have kept contact with McLaren staff of that period, and in the wake of Yamamoto’s statement was approached by a former employee to write a piece about the shenanigans at the team they once worked for and still love, but are shocked by what has been happening. Last year we were given insight into the ‘climate of fear‘, that endured at Maranello. 

But now no one is reporting about the apparent dissatisfaction among staff at McLaren. After all the massive Motorsport Network (they have colonised just about every motorsport website) is unlikely to touch the subject of dissent and dissatisfaction at Woking because McLaren chief Zak Brown is their Non-Executive Chairman.

Which screams conflict of interest. Something like Sergio Marchionne being boss of Autosprint or Dietrich Mateschitz being chief of Speedweek… oops he is, scratch that! Yes nepotism among F1 teams and media exists but that’s another story for another time.

Back to where we were…

Now we have suggestions, even evidence, of ‘chaos at Woking’ and my sources are not disgruntled former employees but rather from written evidence, available to all, through a website called Glassdoor.

The website describes itself as: “Glassdoor holds a growing database of millions of company reviews, CEO approval ratings, salary reports, interview reviews and questions, benefits reviews, office photos and more. Unlike other jobs sites, all of this information is entirely shared by those who know a company best — the employees. Add to that millions of the latest jobs — no other site allows you to see which employers are hiring, what it’s really like to work or interview there according to employees, and how much you could earn.”

The Glassdoor thread entitled “McLaren Technology Group” was a major eye opener for me.

First and foremost McLaren have to do something about their parking! 

But this is a relatively minor element, perhaps contributing to the spirit within the workplace, but the real rot appears to be at management level. Some (not all) have indicated how long they have been working at the company.

The reviews include feedback from current and past employees, for obvious reasons I filtered out the latter and present first hand insight into what is going on behind the doors of the MTC in the words staff that work there.

Principal Engineer

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than 3 years)

Pros: “Young flexible company, a lot of opportunities to grow. Fast pace and huge responsibility at any level makes the job interesting and exciting”

Cons: “Lack of directions from management, chaotic management, lack of resources.”

Design Engineer

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than 5 years)

Pros: “The working environment is great. Fantastic building. Small teams mean hard work but lots of exposure to different areas.”

Cons: “Building is now too small for the amount of employees. HR rarely have a clue what’s going on.

Advice to Management: Keep the engineering and technical expertise within the company. Keep the building up to its original standard.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than a year)”

Pros: “Fascinating business, great location, lots of clever people.”

Cons: “Broken Management, crowded workplace, non competitive salaries.”

Advice to Management: “Look after your people better.”

Logistics Team Leader

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than a year)”

Pros: “Passion for cars. Clean place to work. Ambitious if your (sic) lucky to progress. Good benefits tickets to car shows etc.”

Cons: “No teamwork. No meal variety in Restaurant. Employees unqualified out of there depth. Seems anyone can be a group leader. Certain departments run riot. Worst logistics I’ve ever seen. Production made up of boy racers. Car parks completely overrun. Employees constantly shouting. Horrible shift hours.

Advice to Management: “Need to get a grip on the needs of the business. Be more understanding with staff. Promote staff who deserve it from hard work and not just being someone’s mate. Group leaders are too young need more experience. Stop employees shouting around the warehouse as it was never allowed once upon a time in McLaren. Drastically improve sap users as they are useless never reply to emails.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than a year)”

Pros: “Lovely building. Great restaurant. Wonderful history on display.”

Cons: “Parking is a nightmare, with a complete lack of courtesy and consideration for others coming to the fore.”

The majority of people that work here (especially the women and the management) are “up” themselves. They don’t even possess basic manners and courtesy. They really think there “it” when, in fact, they’re not! Very cliquey.”

“Staff who have been there a long time are allowed to treat other people like dirt; they also get away with bullying people. I have heard terrible stories of what happens when people complain, so I haven’t bothered, but I am looking around for another job. Visitors (not just the millionaires that can afford the cars) are treated like gods, whilst the staff are treated like dirt!”

“Difficult to transfer internally if your manager wants to be awkward. Terrible communication, both within my own company and also inter-company.”
Advice to Management: “Wise up. Follow your own disciplinary system! Treat people with respect and as adult rather than treating them like they are five years old!”

Anonymous Employee

Status: I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time.”

Pros: “Fantastic product. Clean working environment.”

Cons: “The stress starts before you arrive. Most employees have to leave for work up to an hour before you need to be there because the parking on site is a joke. Reason being if you arrive 30 mins before shift start you stand a chance of being blocked in or blocking someone in so all in all just the start of the day is part of the stress. On the work side you are confronted by skilled people with vast trade experience and unskilled which causes quality related concerns.”

“Another thing is alot of people are contractors who get £15 plus an hour and many of them are unskilled against the full timers whom have been through an interview and employed based on skills experience and content of cv, most productìon full timers are on about £ 11.50 an hour so straight away theres a massive pay divide which causes psychological injustice to the point where you think can you idiots not see this is wrong?”

“Most production staff are expected to work 26 days a month some 6 days a week some 7 days and up to and beyond midnight 5 days a week for less than 25k a year. The work life ballance is not countered by good wages. If you complain about any of this you are soon told where the door is and formal complaints to HR is a waste of time because they bow down to the management.”

“As for promotion it is exactly as i say its mates rates and whos backside you are prepared to kiss and many people get overlooked because someone who knows someone gets the job. All in all McLaren is a very difficult place to work out it is very up itself it is in love with its own self immàge and believe me the car is the star not the management. There are lots of people there who are making good money that they do not deserve. Finally i heard a manager say if an employees complaint becomes a problem the best waý to solve that problem is to remove the problem ie the employee and that just about sums up the place.”

Advice to Management: “Can not say more than listen but they wont. There is none so blind as those who do not listen.”

Systems Engineer

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than a year)”

Pros: “Interesting projects, cutting edge technology to work with. The facility is clean and high quality, and it must be noted that the staff is really high level, both in terms of skill and intelligence. A pleasure to work here.”

Cons: “Days can get long. Hard to see a clear career path currently. Parking space is an issue, however a new parking lot is in the works.”

Advice to Management: “Focus more on people development and career plans/guidance to motivate your staff.”

Engineer

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than 3 years)”

Pros: “Canteen (cost and quality are big positives). A lot of skill and knowledge to absorb from experienced and older employees who had the perseverance to stay since SLR days.

Cars themselves are actually really good and apparently MAT is not as bad as Automotive if you do want to work at McLaren.”

Cons: “Engineering company run by finance and HR with a very short sighted attitude. Complete disappointment on several fronts – poor remuneration, poorly managed with a lot of so called managers having no clue what they are meant to do, including some very senior managers/directors.”

“Plenty cases of nepotism and favouritism, especially among Italian employees who generally are paid a lot better.

Complete disparity between pay and expectations for what’s meant to be accomplished in timescales and with no budget – this is not racing on a cheap! Unclear promotion and progression, unless you know the right people.”

“Salary/bonus/promotion put on hold for selected, who don’t share the ‘correct’ management opinions. No budget and limited training opportunities for development, even crucial to your role. A lot of young, inexperienced engineers left without support and guidance, leading to some poorly designed systems, which have issues over and over again – costing the business on every project.”

“The business must have upset almost all quality suppliers by now as finance simply does not want to pay the bills – meaning a lot of quality issues from tier suppliers with poor process control. Expectation are completely unrealistic with some key decision makers having no clue and understanding on what’s sensible and achievable.”

Advice to Management: “Become transparent and concise across the business when it comes to pay, promotion, bonus and other crucial areas, listen to your employees and get a reality check – match your targets to something achievable – nothing wrong with aiming high – just understand what it takes to do it!”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time.”

Pros: “Flexible hours, work from home scheme, various discounts, on site restaurant and gym. Great people!”

Cons: “McLaren automotive is a disruptor not only for the automotive market but for it self due to the ambitious growth plan. The facilities and processes are not ready to accommodate this and is causing a lot of chaos. However, I do believe that in couple of years the growth pains will pass and will prove to be an even more exciting place to be.

Advice to Management: “Pay more attention to the facts and figures rather than perceptions. Also, personal grudges have no place in a professional environment.”

Engineer

Pros: “Intelligent and generally enthusiastic colleagues. Interesting technology and projects to work on. Generally direct line-managers are good to learn from and will develop you. Beautiful building.”

Cons: “Doesn’t always feel like management care about employees – if you’re in real trouble I think they actually tend to be very sympathetic and help you out. But for the most part it feels like they don’t consider daily issues or inefficiencies, which strikes me as short-sighted as fixing small issues (and generally improving morale) would likely improve productivity.”

Advice to Management: “It is already starting to happen, but showing your employees that they are valued will go a long way to helping morale and staff retention.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (Less than a year)”

Pros: “Free coffee during lunch and at specific hours. Low prices for food. Interesting products. A job at McLaren looks good on your CV.”

Cons: “Cold and impersonal enviroment. Total lack of life-work balance. Not worth the stress and lack of personal life for a job at McLaren – a pat on the shoulder is not compensating for all the other negative aspects.”

Advice to Management: “Consider the human side of the employees, don’t just see them as resources.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (Less than a year)”

Pros: “Canteen, nice building, fantastic products.”

Cons: “No life/work balance, long hours, overloading with work, stressful place. Poor respect of employees, extremely high expectations, unpleasant atmosphere at work. More managers than employees.”

Advice to Management: “Learn to respect the employees, they are the true asset of the company.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (Less than a year).”

Pros: “A few great individuals on the ground. Brand opens doors to interesting potential customers and technical challenges, and is a great talking point for your CV. Nice building.

Cons: “Zero vision or strategy from management. Horrendously low salaries relative to the market (“we don’t pay London wages, we’re not in London!”). A real culture of people succeeding based on who they know, not via any kind of merit – which is also true of the hiring process. Zero transparency, bordering on underhand at times. Company is struggling to retain staff like a bucket with a hole in it.”

Advice to Management: “Stop losing great engineering talent – recognise it, reward it, and it might stop walking out the door. As Ron would say, “cut the fat” from the management team. Other companies are striving for flat organisational structures, but McLaren is adding more and more levels of reporting. Decide what direction you actually want the company to go in – something more specific than growth!.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: I have been working at McLaren Technology Group (More than a year)

Pros: “Clean, warm environment. Canteen is usually very good. The people on the shop floor make the place bearable. Top class facility.”

Cons: “I have worked for McLaren for over 2 years. In this time the company has changed dramatically and not in my opinion for the better. Since my start the upper management in automotive has changed. The remit of the company has been to employ management mostly from a mass production company (Honda) and with that employ staff with experience in doing so to expand the company rapidly with a dynamic and aggressive strategy.”

“Thats when the problems started. So far it has been as about as competent as the managers that run the place. The management that came in come with the attitude of what Honda was. For the most part non skilled workers with little or no experience needed to do a 90 second process on a car. Such minions were seen as easily expendable and even more easily replaced. Within a short time the values of Mclaren have eroded as the cancer of senior Honda management has seeded itself and infested all levels of management in the Automotive sector of McLaren.”

“Staff are now treated with absolutely no respect what so ever. It is very much a Honda boys club with former Honda staff coming into the business and within a no time at all taking team leader roles. Most career progressions going to former Honda employees with no regard or consideration for the “old” Mclaren staff who are usually a lot more knowledgable and skilled for the roles. All middle management have come in from Honda (all hired by their friends higher up) and have come with the same arrogant and distasteful attitude of “if you dont like it the door is there” even one of the most senior managers who you see on the shop floor comes onto the line bullying staff and trying to play the bully role and speaking to staff like they are sub human.”

“The irony is non of the management know anything about the cars or how they are put together. And they know even less on how to run the place. You end up repeating answers to non relevant questions and discussing topics that are not important considering the dire straits the company is in. Staff morale is at its lowest since i have been here and they are at breaking point. We have also expanded rapidly and brought in non skilled workers to put their hands on 200,000 – 700,000 pound cars with minimal or no training what so ever. The place is understaffed with the droves of people leaving due to the management, lack of career progression (unless your in the boys club) and with the direction the company is going.”

“There is a clear lack of direction involved in how we are going to achieve building a quality car that is enjoyable and more importantly safe for the customer. The quality of the cars in my opinion has dropped dramatically and that is reflected in what goes out the door and the results we get back (when info is leaked to us) It has got to a point where we don’t get told about the quality now such is the decline. McLaren has turned from making a quality slow built car to making cars as fast as possible with little emphasis on quality.”

“I leave this now with a sadness that the soul of the company has been ripped out of the company. And its on a road of no return! I believe another 18 months and that will be the end of what i loved about McLaren. RIP.”

Advice to Management: “Listen to the staff on the shop floor. Realise our importance as without us you have nothing. Treat us with dignity and respect and most importantly, value us! Concentrate on the quality and brand of what we are building and stop concentrating on numbers!”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than 3 years)”

Pros: “Saying that you work from McLaren brings a lot of interest.”

Cons: “An awful company with terrible leadership, no vision, no direction. They exaggerate their capabilities but there isn’t a whole lot under the hood. Aggressive blame culture and no transparency.”

Anonymous Employee

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (More than a year)”

Pros: “Strong leadership with a clear three year strategy in place which gives.”

staff an understanding of upcoming work and new technologies. IT now has good relationships with other areas of the business allowing the team to work collaboratively.”

Cons: “Facilities such as the car parking and restaurant are over crowded however i know this is something that is being looked at.”

Advice to Management: “Continue to provide good leadership and communication.”

Production Team Member

Status: “I have been working at McLaren Technology Group full-time (Less than a year)”

Pros: “Name on a CV. Good people on the line. Canteen is decent.”

Cons: “Blame culture. No parts on time. Wasteful. Honda and Lotus middle and upper management. HR lie, don’t listen and are more interested in talking to each other about last nights Eastenders. Implementation of SAP is going belly up. Quality of the cars are abysmal. Culture of move the car onto the next process regardless of how complete the process is. The McLaren values are completely out of the window.”

Advice to Management: “Sack all of the middle to upper management and start again. Get rid of the Honda of culture of moving cars on.”

Note: The above is a selection from 53 McLaren staff reviews on Glassdoor, written this year people whoe were by staff there at the time of writing

Information: The McLaren Technology Centre is the headquarters of the McLaren Technology Group Ltd and all of its companies, located on a 500,000 m² site in Woking, Surrey, England. The complex consists of four buildings, two of which are open. The main building is the McLaren Technology Centre (Home of McLaren Group). The Norman Foster designed building was short-listed for the 2005 Stirling Prize. About 1,000 people work at the Technology Centre. It is home to the McLaren Racing Formula One team and McLaren Automotive, as well as other companies of the McLaren Group.

So there we have it as they say: straight from the horse’s mouth.

At the beginning of this year long time supremo Ron Dennis was ousted and a new regime, headed by Zak Brown, installed to lead the organisation into the future.

Whatever the case McLaren appear to have much more than problem an engine change from Honda to Renault on their plate and begs the question: What’s really going on inside McLaren?

It would be unfair to blame Brown for what appears to be dissatisfaction among some of the troops in the trenches as he may have inherited the rot, nevertheless it also suggests that Yamamoto might have a point.

King Arthur summed it up in the movie: “Don’t let it be forgot that once there was a spot, for one brief shining moment, that was known as Camelot!”

[MIKA27]

VILLENEUVE: VETTEL HAS ONLY HIMSELF TO BLAME

Jacques Villeneuve has pointed a finger of blame at Sebastian Vettel by accusing the Ferrari driver of triggering the pile-up, at the start of the Singapore Grand Prix, that eliminated the German, his teammate Kimi Raikkonen, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and eventually Fernando Alonso had to park his McLaren due to damage incurred as a result of the first turn chaos.

The headline grabbing incident resulted in DNF for the four drivers, with Vettel paying the highest price as he was out of the race which he was expected to win seconds after it started. Instead he had to watch Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton power to victory and increase his championship lead to 28 points, when the gap before the race was a mere three points.

Villeneuve said of the incident, “Vettel has only himself to blame. If you take a start and move across the line, the chances are something might happen because you don’t know what is happening behind.”

“They all do that at every start, you see that in Formula 4, Formula 3, they move across the line. Well if you do that, you pay the price. When you fight for a championship, you cannot take a risk like that.”

Despite the fact that Villeneuve does not condone defensive tactics of this nature, he does not think that Vettel should have faced further sanctions for his rle in the collision.

“I think he has penalised himself already enough. That was a track where the Ferrari should have taken a lot of points, so yes, it’s very heavy.”

“But there are still six races, anything can happen. Lewis will do something. Just relax. It’s annoying, but that’s the way it is,” added Villeneuve.

[MIKA27]

Late switch to Renault power hasn't compromised McLaren for 2018

Eric Boullier has confirmed that McLaren's late switch to Renault power for 2018 has not compromised its plans for next season, although the team is two weeks behind its original schedule.

Following months of speculation, it was confirmed at last weekend's Singapore Grand Prix that McLaren had divorced Honda for 2018 and that the team would instead use Renault power for next season for the first time.

This triggered a number of deals, with Toro Rosso announcing a three year partnership with Honda and Renault signing Carlos Sainz Jr on a loan deal for 2018. 

Although McLaren will have to work hard to catch up on its original schedule following a number of delays caused by other parties, Boullier believes that the Woking-based team will be able to enter 2018 at full speed and with full strength. 

"Obviously it's a challenge," said Boullier. "Now we have to be [working] 24/7 I would say to try recover a couple of weeks where an ideal decision could've been taken. But, two weeks is recoverable.

"It won't be any compromise next year. Of course, we don't have the same experience as some of the costumers, so we have to discover the package.

"But, I think we can trust our engineers to do a very good job and two weeks are recoverable, but this is going to be a huge load of work and I'm glad to see there's a lot of energy going inside McLaren to try and recover as fast as possible."

Despite next season's McLaren having a different power unit, Boullier believes that the team will not need a dramatic change in chassis design and has said that the car will follow the path of this season's MCL32.

Boullier also denied that being behind schedule will mean that McLaren will have to end the development on this season's car with six races remaining: "No. It doesn't mean that at all," he said.

"It just means we are increasing the workload to make sure we can recover, and once we recover we will go back to the standard way to work and we have a different process today about work, because next year's car, despite the change of power unit, it's an evolution so there will be no revolutions. That doesn't change the way we work."

[MIKA27]

Toro Rosso chief Franz Tost convinced Honda can flourish in F1

Toro Rosso Team Principal Franz Tost has expressed his conviction that future engine partner Honda can flourish in Formula 1 under the current regulations, despite its current struggles.

Honda returned to Formula 1 in 2015 as McLaren’s exclusive partner but the operation has taken a best race result of only fifth, and title placing of sixth, amid ongoing reliability and performance issues.

McLaren and Honda will split at the end of the year, with McLaren picking up Toro Rosso’s supply of Renault engines, while Toro Rosso in turn will align itself with Honda, on a multi-year deal.

Despite Honda’s sub-par form since its comeback three years ago, Tost says he is “100 per cent convinced” that the Japanese manufacturer will make substantial short-term progress.
“Four years ago, it was in October, before the Suzuka Grand Prix, I visited the Honda factory,” Tost said.

“They have a fantastic infrastructure and I think in the meantime I think they have learned a lot about the new power unit.

“I am convinced within the next three years, also within the short term, Honda will improve their performance dramatically.

“They have already come up with really good upgrades during this season – unfortunately, because McLaren is very close to us.

“I am 100 per cent convinced that Honda will make big steps forward in the near future and within the next three years and we are more than happy to work together with such a fantastic partner.

“I am looking forward to next year because I think that Honda and Toro Rosso will have a successful season.”

Toro Rosso has yet to determine its driver line-up for 2018, with current racer Carlos Sainz Jr. already having secured a Renault seat for next year, on loan from Red Bull’s stable.

On the driver front, Tost said: “Well currently we have two quite successful and competitive drivers with Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz.

“I assume that they will finish the season with us and regarding the drivers for next year, then Red Bull will decide who is driving with us and of course we will also take into consideration any request from our partners.”

[MIKA27]

Stoffel Vandoorne thrilled to grab best F1 result in Singapore

McLaren-Honda driver Stoffel Vandoorne revelled in his best ever Formula 1 finish after placing seventh at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Vandoorne started from ninth place but made gains on the dramatic opening lap, and ran inside the top 10 throughout on his first visit to the Marina Bay venue.

Vandoorne lost time due to a slow left-front tyre change at his second stop and attempted to overhaul Jolyon Palmer for sixth, but the Renault racer held firm, leaving Vandoorne seventh.

“To race under the rain at the beginning was definitely not easy, so my main focus was just to stay out of trouble, which we managed to do,” said Vandoorne.

“From that point on, I just managed my own race, and I think seventh place was really the best it was going to get for me.

“Sixth was perhaps on the cards at one point, but it didn’t work out at my second pit-stop.

“After that, I just focused on getting everything I could from the car and maximising the performance.

“Getting a couple of points meant we finished our weekend on a high.”

Racing Director Eric Boullier that a front jack failure was to blame for Vandoorne’s six-second delay in the pits.

“Stoffel finished a magnificent seventh, battling throughout and really maximising the potential of our car whether he was running Full Wets, Intermediates or Option tyres,” said Boullier.
“We think sixth was within our reach had he not been delayed at his second pit-stop.

“The front jack failed to engage properly, which meant the left-front wheel wasn’t lifted off the floor properly, which resulted in a slow removal.

“That delay meant he wasn’t able to close on Palmer despite a spirited chase.”

Vandoorne was the only McLaren driver to reach the chequered flag, after team-mate Fernando Alonso retired in the wake of damage sustained on the opening lap.

McLaren still holds ninth in the Constructors’ Championship, with its points tally now boosted to 17.

[MIKA27]

Leading teams split on Malaysia compound choices

Title rivals Mercedes and Ferrari have taken a different approach to tyre compound choices for next weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix.

Pirelli has nominated the Supersoft, Soft and Medium compounds in order to deal with the demands posed by the Sepang Circuit.

Each driver has 13 sets of tyres available for the weekend’s action, and are permitted free choice of compound for 10 of the allocated sets.

Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas will both have seven sets of Supersofts available, with Hamilton having five sets of Soft and one Medium, as opposed to Bottas’ five Softs and two Mediums.

Ferrari, meanwhile, has plumped for nine sets of Supersofts, three sets of Softs and just a solitary set of Mediums.

Williams has taken the most aggressive approach, with both Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll in receipt of 10 sets of Supersoft tyres.

Next weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix will be the last, with circuit chiefs and Formula 1 officials mutually agreeing to terminating the contract one year early.

[MIKA27]

Sainz insists Red Bull's control over his career not a negative

Carlos Sainz says he has no issues with Red Bull remaining in control of his Formula 1 career, conceding that he owes it to the company.

Earlier this season there was some tension between Toro Rosso driver Sainz and Red Bull bosses after he expressed his desire to move on, and a potential move to Renault appeared to be blocked.

However, the negotiations behind the change of engine for 2018 subsequently created an opportunity for him to join the French manufacturer on a one-year loan.

Speaking in an exclusive interview for this week's GP Gazette, Sainz said he sees no issue with being in Red Bull's hands.

"Without Red Bull I wouldn't be in F1, and without Red Bull I wouldn't have been able to take the step I've taken now in my career, going up to Renault," he said.

"In a way I understand how they deal with you, you are actually in their hands, and I've been in their hands these last couple of months, and they've dealt with it perfectly.

"It's something to be very thankful about, and I've already expressed that to Helmut Marko."

Sainz insisted that his ambition to move up the grid should be seen as a positive.

  

"I've never had frustration at Toro Rosso," said the Spaniard. "And I think my results this year prove it. A frustrated driver would never have done the results I've done this year.

"I was just ambitious, very ambitious I think, and Red Bull also wants to see ambition in their drivers, as they've seen with me.

"From that point onwards, after all the situation in June, I've left it up to Red Bull, and they've done exactly the best for themselves and for me.

"That's why I'm always going to be so thankful about it. They're happy, I'm happy, and I'm still a Red Bull guy."

Sainz added it was simply time to move on after three years with the Faenza outfit, which was always designed as a training ground for rookies.

"I think Toro Rosso was created to build young drivers, to make them become experienced enough to jump to the Red Bull team," he said.

"The opportunity never came for me to jump to the Red Bull team, but another opportunity came, with the same power unit, with someone they have a relationship with, and they took this decision.

"It's nice for me, it's nice for them, it's nice for Renault."

[MIKA27]

Analysis: The 2019 F1 silly season heats up early

The past week produced some very significant driver announcements in Formula 1, and tucked in among them were confirmations that helped to fill the gaps on the 2018 entry list.

And while there's still a long way to go before there's a complete picture, attention has already turned to 2019, when all hell is likely to break loose on the driver market.

The news that Renault doesn't want to supply Red Bull beyond next season, leaving Honda as the only option for the Milton Keynes team, has only added to the fun.

Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo are now more motivated than ever to look further afield. Team boss Christian Horner is still hoping to keep Renault, even if its hand has to be forced.

A couple of years ago, the French manufacturer signed a new and lucrative deal with Bernie Ecclestone to help pay for its return as a works team, and one of the conditions was that Red Bull continued to have an engine supply for five years.

Sources who should know suggest that there's no way out of the commitment for Renault.

Contract extensions were confirmed for Valtteri Bottas at Mercedes and Sergio Perez at Force India, while the temporary loan of Carlos Sainz by Red Bull to Renault was finally sorted out.

In all three cases the deals are for 2018 only, adding to the list of drivers who will be free to move, and teams that might have vacancies, in 2019.

Perhaps the most intriguing situation is that of Bottas, who has only been given one more year by Mercedes. Clearly the team that is top of every driver's wish list wants to keep its options open, but it's a two-way street – Bottas also has the freedom to move.

Toto Wolff has been instrumental in building Bottas' career, and obviously he will be torn if Verstappen or Ricciardo are ready to sign up with Mercedes for 2019, and – assuming that Lewis Hamilton is staying – that means he can't keep the Finn.

However, if Bottas can parachute into Ferrari, everyone wins. Would Sebastian Vettel see Ricciardo, Verstappen or Bottas as the most acceptable teammate? Bottas has to be on the Scuderia's list. He's shown both on-track performance and a team player attitude, and the latter is certainly a priority at Ferrari.

  

Alonso is next

But all that is a long way off still. The next piece in the 2018 puzzle that will fall into place is Fernando Alonso extending his stay at McLaren.

Zak Brown made it clear over the Singapore GP weekend that a deal is not far away, and there's also a belief that it might be good form to wait until after Honda's home race in Suzuka before any announcement on Alonso's future.

Deals for top-line drivers on mega money are always complicated, and this one more so, because it looks likely that Renault will also be involved, and will perhaps in effect pay part of his salary.

Alonso has been a Renault man twice previously, so it's logical that he now becomes an ambassador for the company, figuring in Spanish TV ads and so on, even though he's not actually driving for the works team.

McLaren aside, three other teams still have seats open for 2018.

The consensus is that Daniil Kvyat will stay at Toro Rosso and be joined by Pierre Gasly, but neither has been 100 percent confirmed.

Gasly's prospects would have been enhanced had he been able to do the last few races of 2017, assuming that Sainz gone early to Renault. There remains a chance that STR could spring a surprise and take someone from outside the Red Bull programme, but it looks unlikely at this stage.

  

Kubica's Williams chance

The most attractive seat still open is that at Williams. Felipe Massa made it clear in Singapore that he would he happy to stay, but only if the team shows that it wants him and makes an early decision; he doesn't want to be a last resort, but the list of possible replacements is growing.

Robert Kubica remains the most serious, but like Renault, the team wants to give him track mileage in a hybrid car to properly assess him – and fortunately it has the 2014 car used by Lance Stroll with which to do that running, if the logistical issues can be addressed and a date arranged.

Reserve driver Paul di Resta remains a genuine contender, but he's joined now by Renault outcast Jolyon Palmer, who is available, has funding, and did himself a power of good with a solid weekend in Singapore.

Also in the frame is Marcus Ericsson, whose backers want to place him elsewhere, a move that would free up a seat at Sauber.

All of these drivers are above the 25-year-old age limit that Martini requires of at least one driver in order to properly activate its sponsorship. Mercedes still harbours hopes of placing Pascal Wehrlein at Williams, but unless that rule can be overcome, the German looks set to be on the sidelines in 2018.

The problem Williams faces is one of credibility. When the Stroll project started, the team expected to have Bottas, one of the stars of the younger generation, as the Canadian's teammate.

Consider too that next year the team's obvious midfield rivals - McLaren, Renault, Force India - will be fielding line-ups such as Alonso/Vandoorne, Hulkenberg/Sainz, and Perez/Ocon.

Taking a second driver who brings sponsorship and has achieved little in the way of results will send out the wrong message to the world, to sponsors, and internally at Grove. Technical staff are motivated by working with the best available drivers, and if you have a compromised line-up, you risk losing some of your best guys.

That helps to explain why Kubica is such an enticing prospect for the Williams management, assuming that the Pole can prove that he can get the job done.

Renault had some doubts after the Hungarian test, despite the obvious pace that Kubica showed, and they eventually chose Sainz. Kubica now has to convince another set of engineers he is capable of a return.

  

The Ferrari B-team

Ericsson looking for another home opens up the possibility of Sauber becoming a Ferrari B-team and running both Charles Leclerc and Antonio Giovinazzi.

The former has long been mentioned as a likely Sauber driver for 2018, especially once the Honda plan was dropped and the Ferrari engine deal confirmed. However, Maranello is keen to find a seat for Giovinazzi as well.

Ericsson's backers and Sauber's owners are in effect one and the same, but those involved have long been keen to point out that there are two different deals – in other words, Sauber wasn't bought just to guarantee Ericsson a job for life. It has to be a business.

Nevertheless, after years of supporting him it's unlikely that they will leave him hung out to dry, hence the urgency to get him into Williams.

That would create the opportunity to place both Ferrari drivers at Hinwil, and obviously there will be a commercial imperative if Sauber further strengthened its ties with the Italian team.

Leclerc vs Giovinazzi would be a face-off between two young stars, not unlike that involving Mercedes proteges Wehrlein and Ocon at Manor. The stakes are high, as Leclerc is a genuine contender for a 2019 Ferrari seat, but he'll have to get the job done at Sauber first.

If there's only one Sauber seat for a Ferrari protege, then Leclerc is the man with the momentum at the moment thanks to his Formula 2 results (and Giovinazzi's unfortunate crashes). He also has canny manager Nicolas Todt fighting his corner.

All other seats have been confirmed, but there remain whispers to the effect that Ferrari would like to see one of its young guns in a Haas next year, and is pushing hard behind the scenes to make that happen.

Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen are under contract, of course, and Gene Haas said recently that he didn't want to be in a position where he had to take a driver with money, or in this case one who generates a discount on the huge bills the team pays to Ferrari.

However, this is F1, and as we know, anything can happen...

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Max Power – Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen On Fitness In F1 | M1TG

The cars are faster and the test on track is more physical than ever before… This is F1 2017, where fitness and the right preparation can make the difference between winning and losing. Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen explains why a rigorous and meticulous training regime plays such a crucial role in the making of a modern day Formula One driver.

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Singapore GP crash reminded Mercedes' Wolff of Spain 2016 wipeout

Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff felt a bit of sympathy for the nightmare scenario Ferrari faced at the Singapore Grand Prix, given some of his team's past experiences.

Both Ferraris were wiped out on the first lap of the Marina Bay F1 race when Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen sandwiched Max Verstappen's Red Bull.

That left the door open for Lewis Hamilton to seize a win that has given him a 28-point lead in the drivers' championship with six races to go.

Rather than being overjoyed at Mercedes' main rival's disaster, Wolff said it brought back memories of incidents such as 2016 Spanish GP when his own drivers Hamilton and Nico Rosberg came together on the opening lap.

"In the morning we were talking about damage limitation, and we go away from Singapore with a one and three - so from our perspective it's a great result," Wolff said when asked by Autosport for his feelings on seeing the Ferraris crash.

"Once that happens you can kind of feel for Ferrari.

"I've been in the situation of losing both cars, and you can relate how awful that feels for them.

"But I guess we're not here to make prisoners. From that moment on it was clear we were in the lead with Lewis. It was about delivering the best possible race."

The startline crash was investigated by the FIA stewards afterwards but it was ruled that no driver was predominantly to blame for what happened.

Hamilton reckoned Vettel had been unable to see Verstappen and Raikkonen as he moved across, and Wolff concurred with his driver.

"I think what happened was Sebastian didn't see that Kimi was on the inside," he said.

"It was about defending against Max who was there.

"I guess it is very difficult to see if there's a third car on the left and this is what caused the collision."

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F1 Podcast: Did Vettel lose the F1 title in Singapore?

The Singapore Grand Prix start collision, and the damage it has done to Sebastian Vettel's Formula 1 title hopes, are the focus of the latest edition of The Autosport Podcast.

Anthony Rowlinson and Lawrence Barretto join Edd Straw to look at the collision that led to the end of the race for Vettel, Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen.

There's also a look at how Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton turned the tables on Red Bull to win the race, and at some of the standout performers lower down the order.

Off-track, Honda's switch to Toro Rosso - and its bold suggestion that it is aiming for the top three in the championship next season - are analysed.

And with Carlos Sainz Jr moving to Renault and completing one piece of the driver market puzzle, the possibility of Robert Kubica joining Williams is also a talking point.

 

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‘A LONG TIME COMING’ – JOLYON PALMER SCORES FIRST POINTS OF F1 SEASON IN SINGAPORE

Jolyon Palmer scored his first points for Renault in 2017 with a sixth place result – his best Formula 1 career finish – at the Singapore Grand Prix, with six races remaining before Carlos Sainz Jr replaces him.

The 26-year-old Briton equalled Nico Hulkenberg’s best finish of the season to propel himself from 19th in the drivers’ standings to 16th with eight points, which were all gained from the Singapore GP.

“I’m so happy, it’s been a long time coming but today everything fell into place,” said Palmer.

“It was a tricky race with the drama at the start and the heavy rain but the circumstances put us in a good place to score some points.

“We had a good strategy, good pit stops and the car was good in the wet conditions. The next race should be even better”

On a two-stop strategy, Palmer swept past five cars on the opening lap equipped with the intermediate tyre, losing just one place as he stopped for inters on lap 12.

He ran as high as third before his lap 29 pitstop for ultra-softs, and when team-mate Nico Hulkenberg retired from fourth place on lap 38 due to an oil leak, Palmer was set for sixth.

Though he was speculated for replacement as early as the Malaysian GP, Palmer has stood firm and expressed his doubts that Toro Rosso’s Sainz could replace him so quickly.

With his first points of the season, Palmer told Sky Sports F1 that he rued the Renault’s poor reliability at the start of the season and wants to build on his first points score of the season in the final six races.

“The result this weekend is finally a bit of good luck,” said Palmer.

“This result could have come earlier in Baku, Silverstone or Spa. I hope we can build from this confidence and push for more. The car is competitive, and I’m going to be competitive.

“At the moment the news is obviously quite fresh about Renault, I’ve just been concentrating about the weekend. From my side I just want to go out with six of the best races.

“Of course I want to stay in F1 and there are other options but I’m just focused on the performance side and I want to at least do myself proud in these last six races.

“It’s Renault’s prerogative, they can decide who they put in the car for next year.

“I’ve had a tough season, no doubt about it. We’ve had some reliability problems but I’ve made mistakes as well, and the performance hasn’t been there often enough.

“I’ll be pushing like hell and hopefully it comes out for the best.”

Only two days prior to that had Renault announced that Palmer had lost his Renault seat – but Palmer had learned it a few days earlier on Autosport.

“I knew when I read it on Autosport,” he said.

“And then I knew it was true as well, I spoke to some people. That was it.

“Of course I knew that with the job I’ve done this year, the team is looking for other people, because it’s been a tough year.

“But you never know until it’s over. I could have felt the same way at times last year as well.”

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BRAWN: NO NEED FOR FERRARI OR VETTEL TO PANIC

In the wake of Ferrari’s torrid Singapore Grand Prix, many are already writing off Sebastian Vettel’s world championship chances but F1’s motorsport chief Ross Brawn is confident that the title battle is by no means over and predicts it will only be resolved at the season finale..

In his look back on the race weekend at Marina Bay Circuit, Brawn summed up, “It was nothing short of a nightmare race for Ferrari. The points lost could yet prove costly – especially for Sebastian, who is now 28 points adrift of Hamilton.”

But he added, “There’s no reason to panic, though, as I know well from my time as the Ferrari’s Technical Director when we experienced similar situations.”

“There are still six races to go, a lot of points up for grabs, and Ferrari has a competitive package at its disposal. I have a feeling there’s plenty more drama to come before we get to Abu Dhabi.”

The big winner on the night was Mercedes and championship leader Lewis Hamilton. The Briton arrived in Singapore with a slender three points lead in the standings over Vettel.

With Vettel starting from pole and Hamilton from fifth, the Briton expected it to be a case of damage control but instead Vettel was eliminated along with Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in a headline grabbing collision. Three podium contenders out of contention moments after the race started. 

Hamilton grabbed the opportunity with both hands and powered to a well controlled victory, on a track that was not supposed to suit the Silver Arrows. He departed Singapore leading the championship by 28 points.

Brawn reflected, “Lewis Hamilton’s performance lit up the night in Singapore, though few would have banked on a Lewis win after FP2 in which the championship leader finished seven tenths of a second off Daniel Ricciardo’s pace. With Valtteri Bottas 1.2 seconds adrift at that point it looked as if the Silver Arrows were in for a repeat of their 2015 nightmare at Marina Bay.”

“However, they managed to turn things around in superb style. Of course, the carnage at the start helped, removing three of the four drivers who had started ahead of Hamilton from the equation.”

“Lewis was in imperious form. He was exceptionally quick in the wet, managing the intermediate tyres better than his rivals. At the restarts he was sure-footed and controlled the gap to Daniel well, while in the dry he was untouchable, again managing the ultrasoft tyres better than his rivals,” added Brawn.

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BOULLIER: WE WILL HAVE THE SAME ENGINE AS RED BULL

McLaren chief Eric Boullier is upbeat about his team’s future as a Renault customer from 2018 and beyond, and believes that with the French manufacturer the Woking outfit can again be a force in Formula 1 while admitting that parting ways with Honda was tough.

Boullier, a former Renault team principal, told the official F1 website, “We are ‘privileged customers’ with Renault. We will have the same engine and access to information as Enstone or Red Bull Racing, so this is a real partnership with Renault.”

“We also have the possibility to work with them – to put ideas in the box for the future that might be taken into consideration. That will allow us to influence in the future. But yes, a full works team is different from our situation in 2018.”

“But it is like in school: you look at the pluses and the minuses – and looking at all the pluses and minuses we made our decision, which we believe will be the best one for McLaren for at least the next three years.”

The McLaren-Honda saga is well documented, and although the final break came during the Singapore Grand Prix weekend, mortal damage was done to the partnership months earlier during pre-season testing in Spain.

Boullier explained, “The crucial moment was after the Barcelona testing, when we tried to work and help Honda to improve the situation in a very short time, including having discussions with the other engine manufacturers, and without going into details.”

“It became obvious that they again would miss the target that we had agreed for the season. Then by the summer we knew that we had to take a decision, to stay or not to stay.”

By ditching Honda power McLaren will also forfeit a substantial chunk of income provided by the Japanese manufacturer.

But Boullier believes that when the team becomes successful again they will be able to attract more sponsors, “Well, when you look at the last three years it’s been a proper disaster for us in terms of credibility and getting new sponsors.”

“And then you have to take the long-term view: in the next five years I am absolutely sure that we will go back to where McLaren belongs. And with this bouncing back we get our credibility back and it will rebuild our sponsor portfolio.”

“It might take two to three years. We are ninth in the championship – with a top engine I think we would be fourth right now and just on the FOM money we could cover the engine side, so it will not be a big risk on the monetary side.”

“Thanks to the shareholders who have been brave enough to take a sporting choice and not hurt McLaren. They could have said: Let’s wait until Honda wakes up.”

Asked if Fernando Alonso was a factor in the new deal, Boullier responded, “Yes and no. But to be honest, I don’t think he is in that stage right now. He is only interested – and he’s been saying this for months – in a competitive car. That is for him.”

“For us – McLaren – we are happy that the shareholders have made a sporting choice and not a business choice and changed the engine. McLaren’s DNA is to be competitive – the team has always been in the top three and we belong there again.”

“Today we know that we have a decent chassis, which would allow us to be in the top three again with an equal level engine, so for us as a business it is important to be competitive, no matter what role Fernando plays.”

“We had to make this decision for us. But if you want to be competitive you not only need an engine, you also need a driver. That is when Fernando comes into the picture. We did what we did for McLaren first – but the package includes also the driver.”

It is no secret that it was McLaren who ‘filed for divorce’ from Honda, but Boullier revealed that it was a painful process for both organisations.

Asked if parting was was hard he replied, “Very hard. The whole story for them, as it was for us, was to recreate the legacy of the past. On paper everything looked right. Just the way it’s been done was not right, obviously.”

“Luckily we managed to make it an amicable settlement and they understood that all the investment that they have made, they should get a reward from that at some stage. We can’t wait – but they can get the reward with somebody else.”

“I am so glad that they have decided to stay in Formula 1 and commit to another team. Personally I feel a bit sad that it didn’t work, but these have been very intense three years,” added Boullier.

Honda will power Toro Rosso from 2018, and there is speculation suggesting that Red Bull may shift from TAG Heuer (Renault) power in 2019 if Honda are competitive by then.

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PEREZ DONATES TO VICTIMS OF MEXICAN EARTHQUAKE

Force India driver Sergio Perez has donated $170,000 to the victims of Tuesday’s Mexico earthquake in which nearly 250 people have been killed.

Buildings have been reduced to rubble in Mexico City, while many have been killed in the surrounding areas, following the country’s deadliest quake in more than three decades.

Perez is currently the only Mexican driver on the Formula 1 grid and the poster boy for his home race which is due to be staged in the capital next month.

Perez, who finished fifth at Sunday’s Singapore Grand Prix, also revealed that Carlos Slim – the Mexican telecommunications billionaire who has been heavily involved in his motor racing career – will contribute to the disaster fund.

“I’m deeply concerned for what my country is living,” Perez said in a message on his Instagram account. “It’s time to be united.”

“I’ve made an alliance with @fund-carlosslim and for each one that @fundacionchecoperez receives, they will donate five. I’d like to kick off this initiative by donating three million pesos. Please join us!”

Perez, who announced in Singapore that he is to continue with the British-based Force India team for a fifth successive season next year, is deeply proud of his Mexican heritage.

MIKA: Wow that is pretty generous. Makes my 715.00 MXN look trifle

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OCON: IT’S OFFICIAL I AM STAYING WITH FORCE INDIA

Esteban Ocon announced on Tuesday that he would remain with Force India for next season.

“It’s official, and I can say that I’m very happy to stay with @forceindiaF1 @mercedesamg for 2018!” the 21-year-old tweeted.

It's official, and I can say that I'm very happy to stay with @forceindiaf1 @mercedesamg for 2018!????Let's go for more!?? #EO31

Ocon is part of the Mercedes junior driver programme, his seat with the Silverstone based team is financed by the German marque.

The Frenchman made his Formula 1 debut at the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix with Manor alongside fellow Mercedes junior Pascal Wehrlein. Ocon impressed enough to be chosen, ahead of Wehrlein, to join Force India

Ocon will again be partnered at Force India next year by Sergio Perez, who extended his own contract on the Sunday of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend.

Perez and Ocon have had their differences and this season they became embroiled in a row over team orders, and collided at both Azerbaijan and Belgium, before burying the hatchet.

This season Ocon has finished in the points in 13 of the 14 races run so far, and lies eighth in the world championship standings with 56 points and six races remaining.

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Haas will 'fight hard' to reclaim seventh from Renault

Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner says the squad will “fight hard” to recapture seventh position in the Constructors’ Championship, after slipping behind rivals Renault at the Singapore Grand Prix.

Haas scored two points at Marina Bay courtesy of Romain Grosjean’s ninth place, but Jolyon Palmer’s sixth place ensured Renault moved ahead, and is now five points clear.

Haas set a pre-season target of improving on its rookie result of eighth in the standings, but now finds itself in the same position, a situation Steiner is keen to address.

“To go away with two points [in Singapore], for sure we worked hard for it, but we didn’t expect it,” said Steiner.

“All in all, we got a bit of a good end, but on the other side, we’re now eighth in the championship and not seventh.

“Coming in [to Singapore] we knew these things could happen, but we will fight hard to get back to seventh.”

On Haas’ performance in Singapore, Steiner said: “Our drivers, our whole team, did a good job. There was nothing wrong with our strategy.

“We always reacted very well. Both drivers kept the cars safe. Kevin [Magnussen] would’ve brought his home but he had an electronics issue. We’ll investigate that and why we had to shut it down.

“Romain did a good job and came home ninth with two points. We keep on going.”

Magnussen thanked Formula 1 officials for allowing drivers to race in the wet conditions early on, despite fears over spray.

“It was tough out there, but it was fun,” Magnussen said.

“It was challenging, but good on Formula 1 for letting us race and not having to start behind a Safety Car.

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McLaren: Fernando Alonso wants to stay for 2018

McLaren Racing Director Eric Boullier insists that Fernando Alonso wants to stay at the team into 2018, with the squad’s engine situation now resolved.

Alonso is out of contract at the end of the year, but McLaren’s prospects of retaining the Spaniard were greatly enhanced by the outfit’s decision to split with Honda and sign a three-year deal with Renault.

In an interview with the official Formula 1 website, Boullier commented: “Fernando wants to stay. You can see it in his body language and the way he speaks.

“There are marketing details that have to be sorted out and that Zak [Brown] is working on.

“He is only interested – and he’s been saying this for months – in a competitive car. That is for him.

“For us – McLaren – we are happy that the shareholders have made a sporting choice and not a business choice and changed the engine.

“McLaren’s DNA is to be competitive – the team has always been in the top three and we belong there again.

“Today we know that we have a decent chassis, which would allow us to be in the top three again with an equal level engine, so for us as a business it is important to be competitive, no matter what role Fernando plays.

“We had to make this decision for us. But if you want to be competitive you not only need an engine, you also need a driver.

“That is when Fernando comes into the picture. We did what we did for McLaren first – but the package includes also the driver.”

Boullier is also confident that McLaren can plug the financial hole vacated by Honda’s departure, due to the expected improved performance.

“When you look at the last three years it’s been a proper disaster for us in terms of credibility and getting new sponsors,” he said.

“And then you have to take the long-term view: in the next five years I am absolutely sure that we will go back to where McLaren belongs.

“And with this bouncing back we get our credibility back and it will rebuild our sponsor portfolio. It might take two to three years.

“We are ninth in the championship – with a top engine I think we would be fourth right now and just on the FOM money we could cover the engine side, so it will not be a big risk on the monetary side.”

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Jos: Politics saved Vettel from penalty

Jos Verstappen believes only politics and the championship race saved Sebastian Vettel from being penalised for his antics in Singapore.

Vettel triggered the opening lap chaos when the pole-sitter moved across the track to cover Max Verstappen.

But with Kimi Raikkonen coming up the inside of the Red Bull driver, the trio found themselves wanting the same piece of tarmac.

The contact results in Verstappen and Raikkonen retiring immediately while Vettel spun later in the lap, crashing out.

Jos Verstappen, Max’s father, believes the German was entirely to blame but acknowledged that no penalty was handed down because of Vettel’s position in the championship race.

He told Motorsport-Magazin.com: “Maybe it’s a political excuse because Vettel cannot allow anything.

“If they gave a real punishment, the championship will be over. That’s why I do not think there’s anything there.”

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Brown: Renault deal isn’t a short-term fix

Zak Brown is adamant McLaren’s switch to Renault engines for 2018 is not a “short-term fix” but the start of a “long-term partnership.”

McLaren announced in Singapore that they would be parting with Honda at the end of this season, bringing that ill-fated relationship to an early conclusion.

Moments later the Woking team confirmed that they would instead run Renault engines having signed a three-year deal.

But despite the deal only running for three years, McLaren chief Brown says he hopes that it is just the start of a successful long-term collaboration.

“No, this is not a short-term fix,” Brown insisted.

“At the end of the day, no one knows yet what the engine rules are in 2021, so I think it’s hard for anybody to look beyond 2020, because we don’t know what ’21 looks like.

“We think we’ve got a long-term partnership, the foundation for it.

“Renault’s got a great history in the sport, won a lot of championships with Red Bull, won a lot of championships themselves, so we’re very happy where we are.

“We think that we’ll be very competitive together.”

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Hamilton: Mercedes won't fix weaknesses on 2017 F1 car

Lewis Hamilton feels Mercedes won't be able to address its current Formula 1 car's main weaknesses until next season.

Although Hamilton claimed victory in the Singapore Grand Prix, Mercedes has generally struggled on high-downforce, low-speed F1 circuits such as Marina Bay.

Ferrari finished one-two in Monaco and Hungary, and Sebastian Vettel took pole in Singapore before crashing out at the start, while Hamilton qualified 0.635 seconds off the pace in fifth, with teammate Valtteri Bottas 1.319s adrift of Vettel.

Bottas revealed after the previous race at Monza that Mercedes is working on upgrades to the W08 that weren't ready in time for Singapore, but Hamilton says the car's flaws are too fundamental to be fixed before the end of the season.

"I think this weekend really shows the strengths and weaknesses of our car and the characteristics," Hamilton said.

"In the dry conditions we were nowhere, so to come to probably our weakest circuit, perhaps second or first to Monaco, and win is obviously a great result.

"We've got to stay on our toes and keep trying to extract everything out of this car.

"We understand what we can do, potentially for the future, to make it better. It won't happen with this car; potentially for the next one.

"We've just got to make sure [when] we do it that it doesn't make it worse, because it's actually pretty good elsewhere."

Although he has now opened a 28-point lead over Vettel in the championship, and the remaining circuits on the 2017 calendar should better suit Mercedes, Hamilton is anticipating a close battle until the end of the year.

"Malaysia, I think we should be OK," he added. "Then we have Japan, high downforce circuit, could be close – [the] Red Bulls are very, very strong at that circuit, it won't definitely be our strongest circuit.

"Austin, I think we'll be fine. I think Brazil would be a place where these guys will be particularly strong. Ferrari will be particularly strong. Honestly, I think it's going to be very close in the next races.

"It's hard to predict. Maybe when you go to Mexico, for example, you've put your maximum downforce on, but because it's so high [in altitude] there's little drag and maybe the cars that have a bit more downforce might just have the edge on us.

"But it's all hearsay. We'll find out when we get there."

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Mexico City’s F1 track escapes damage during huge earthquake

The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, where the Mexican Grand Prix will take place next month, did not sustain any damage in the massive earthquake that hit the country on Tuesday.

Despite the emergency situation in Mexico City, and several adjacent parts of the country, the authorities of the venue managed to conduct an exhaustive review of the facilities. After this, they concluded there was no structural damage to the circuit or its immediate surroundings.

“There is no damage to the circuit – it was examined completely,” a circuit spokesperson told Motorsport.com. “We released all our personnel from work so they can spend some time with their families, but the moment everybody is back we will continue with the setup of the circuit for the Grand Prix.”

The circuit’s facilities are not being used as shelter for those affected in the earthquake because the city already has a disaster plan in place for such eventualities.

Sadly, 200+ people were killed in Mexico City as a result of the earthquake, with 52 people reported pulled alive from the rubble of a total of 38 collapsed buildings.

Seismologists believe that this earthquake, and the one 11 days ago, weren’t necessarily related – although they took place along the same Cocos tectonic plate. Mexico City sits on an ancient lake bed, which can magnify the shaking caused by earthquakes.

The Mexican Grand Prix is set to take place on October 29 as the 18th round of the 2017 season.

MIKA: Part of me thinks who cares about the track, so many people dead, but the other part is optimistic thinking perhaps this is still a good thing to proceed to lift spirits and also inject some cash into the economy?

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PROST: AT THE END OF 2018 MANY DRIVERS WILL BE WITHOUT CONTRACTS

Renault have secured the services of Carlos Sainz to partner Nico Hulkenberg in 2018, but the French team is still keeping a close eye on the 2019 driver market when several heavy hitters will become available and Alain Prost hopes, at that time, a seat with in the yellow cars will be an attractive option for a top driver.

The Sainz deal was a sweetener for Renault amid complicated negotiations that resulted in McLaren ditching Honda for Renault power and Toro Rosso agreeing to take on the Japanese power units from 2018 and beyond.

Part of the deal was that Red Bull agreed to loan Sainz to Renault. The fine print in the deal reportedly allows the energy drinks outfit to recall Sainz in 2019 should a position at the Red Bull team become available, although a clause is said to exist which precludes the Spaniard from returning to Toro Rosso.

Thus it is no surprise that Renault are keeping tabs on the drivers that will become available at the end end of next year. These include the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas, Daniel Ricciardo, Sergio Perez and possibly Max Verstappen.

Renault special adviser Prost admitted, “The driver market is important and we are in position for the end of 2018 when it is a little bit open for discussion.”

“At the end of 2018 there are a lot of drivers without contracts. We want to be better as a team, next year we will prove we are better than we are now and we want to be in the key market.”

“We have Carlos next year but he is remaining in the Red Bull family. But if he performs well and wants to stay we will find a solution,” added Prost.