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HAAS: QUALIFYING AND TYRES WILL BE CRUCIAL AT MONACO

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Fresh off a double-points finish in the Spanish Grand Prix May 12 at Circuit de Barcelona – Catalunya, Rich Energy Haas F1 Team heads into the sixth round of the FIA Formula One World Championship May 26 at Circuit de Monaco intent on a repeat performance.

Drivers Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen delivered the organization’s first double-points result in the 2017 Monaco Grand Prix when Grosjean finished eighth and Magnussen 10th.

Barcelona marked Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s eighth double-points effort since its 2016 debut and, more importantly, provided a much-needed reset after three finishes outside the points dropped the squad from fourth to eighth in the constructors’ ranks.

But thanks to the seven collective points earned in Barcelona, Rich Energy Haas F1 Team bounced back to sixth in the standings, two points behind fifth-place Racing Point with a two-point margin over seventh-place Alfa Romeo.

A driver’s finish at Monaco is often predicated on their qualifying effort. When Grosjean finished eighth in 2017, he started eighth. And Magnussen’s 10th-place drive came from 11th on the grid. Qualifying has been Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s strong suit in 2019. Only once has its two drivers qualified outside the top-10 this season, and if there ever was a venue where another top-10 qualifying performance was needed, it’s Monaco.

The 3.337-kilometer (2.074-mile), 19-turn street circuit is the most iconic and challenging track in Formula One, featuring many elevation changes and the tightest corners on the 21-race calendar. Monaco is the series’ shortest circuit and is home to the sport’s slowest corner – the hairpin turn six – which drivers navigate at a pedestrian 50 kph (31 mph) while in maximum steering lock.

The track has remained relatively unchanged since 1929 when Anthony Noghes, son of a wealthy cigarette baron, proposed a grand prix through the streets of Monte Carlo and along the French Riviera. That inaugural race on April 14 was won by William Grover-Williams in a Bugatti and it came on the same basic layout that challenges today’s Formula One drivers.

Ninety years later, the layout remains tight and unforgiving, putting a premium on passing. But when Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s season-long qualifying prowess is combined with its recent form from Barcelona, the only American team in Formula One makes for a good bet in Monaco.

Guenther Steiner, Team Principal

Barcelona delivered Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s first double-points finish of the season and its eighth since joining Formula One in 2016. Scoring points is always good, but how much of a shot in the arm was it for the team to have a strong weekend from beginning to end that yielded some tangible results?
GS: “Obviously, having a result like this boosts the confidence of the whole team, because the previous three races were not very good at all. We didn’t score any points. A result like Barcelona, where we had a very good weekend – it’s a big boost – and it gives us confidence with the potential of the car going forward.”

You brought numerous upgrades to Barcelona, but it was Grosjean who began the weekend with the upgrades on his car while Magnussen ran with the previous specifications. Walk us through this process and how it hastened the team’s learnings regarding the Haas VF-19.
GS: “We had the possibility to do the back-to-back with the two cars, between what we now call the old spec and the new spec. It’s always good to know what you’re doing and if it works, so if you can do a back-to-back it’s always the best way to do it. You can prove things. Data’s data obviously, and the wind tunnel’s the wind tunnel, but the car is the car. We utilized this to our advantage and tested both specs of car. We came out clearly that the upgrade kit is better, so that’s why we then put it on Kevin’s car for Saturday and Sunday.”

Getting the tires into the proper operating window and then keeping those tires in that operating window had been the team’s challenge prior to the Spanish Grand Prix, but that didn’t seem to be a problem in Barcelona. What made the difference?
GS: “The biggest difference is the layout of the racetrack. The Barcelona track allows quite a lot of energy into the tires, and therefore we could heat them up, which didn’t happen in the other three races. We were pretty confident coming to Barcelona that it would work but, again, we needed to prove it, and we know now that at circuits like this it works. Hopefully going forward, by using the softer type of tires over the next few races, that will help as well, and we can get the heat into the tire. Monte Carlo and Canada will not be easy for us, but we will try our best to get the tires to work and get a good result.”

Can what you learned about the Haas VF-19 and its relation to its tires carry over to Monaco?
GS: “I think the biggest difference for Monte Carlo will be the choice of the tire. We’re running the C4 and C5s from Pirelli – the softest types of tires we can use. With those tires, we hope we can get the temperature into them and have a good result. We have to try, and we’ll only find out on Thursday what is happening.”

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team has proven strong in qualifying this year, placing both its cars into the final round of knockout qualifying in all but one race this year. Knowing how important qualifying is at Monaco, is that the team’s best asset to secure another points-paying performance?
GS: “In Monaco, you always have to qualify well to get into the points. In qualifying, we’re normally very good. We’ve been in the top-10 with both cars in four races out of five. Hopefully, we can do the same in Monte Carlo. If we get in at the front of the field in qualifying, normally in the race you can keep the other people behind – even if the race pace isn’t as good. Qualifying is crucial, though.”

Romain Grosjean

Barcelona delivered Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s first double-points finish of the season and its eighth since joining Formula One in 2016. Scoring points is always good, but how much of a shot in the arm was it for the team to have a strong weekend from beginning to end that yielded some tangible results?
RG: “I think it was good. The car felt good from FP1, and that’s important. The first free practice always gives you the first clear idea of how the weekend is going to go. It went really well in Barcelona. We were happy with that, and we could get the tires to work nicely. In the race, the pace was pretty good. I think at one point we were faster than a Red Bull, which is very good for us. Obviously, the safety car didn’t help us, but the car felt really good.”

You were able to sample all of the upgrades for the Haas VF-19 from the opening practice of the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday right through to the checkered flag on Sunday. How much of a difference did these upgrades make, and how impactful were they in achieving your first points-paying performance of the season?
RG: “The upgrades worked great because our pace was very close to that of Red Bull. That’s amazing. I still believe without the upgrade we would have finished seventh, but maybe not so close to the top teams because our main issue since the start of the year has been getting the tires to work, and we did that in Barcelona. That’s where the performance came from.”

Getting the tires into the proper operating window and then keeping those tires in that operating window had been the team’s challenge prior to the Spanish Grand Prix, but that didn’t seem to be a problem in Barcelona. What made the difference?
RG: “I guess the difference was made by the track layout and the energy going into the tires with the high-speed corners, and the higher track temperatures really helped us. We know where we need to get. We know our windows are correct, but now it’s a question of how do we get them into the window at every race.”

Can what you learned about the Haas VF-19 and its relation to its tires carry over to Monaco?
RG: “It’s a good question. I think the team’s going to keep working hard in the background and make sure we get the tires into the window in Monaco. If that’s the case, we’re going to be very competitive again.”

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team has proven strong in qualifying this year, placing both its cars into the final round of knockout qualifying in all but one race this year. Knowing how important qualifying is at Monaco, is that the team’s best asset to secure another points-paying performance?
RG: “Yes, definitely. In Monaco you want to be in the top-10. You want to be as high as you can on the grid to be able to get a good result. Monaco qualifying is going to be important. Hopefully, tires are not holding us back, as that’s something that can clearly hurt us a lot. But when it works, it really works.”

Kevin Magnussen

Barcelona delivered Rich Energy Haas F1 Team’s first double-points finish of the season and its eighth since joining Formula One in 2016. Scoring points is always good, but how much of a shot in the arm was it for the team to have a strong weekend from beginning to end that yielded some tangible results?
KM: “It was great to have a strong weekend from start to finish. I was very happy for the team to score points with both cars.”

You had to begin the Spanish Grand Prix race weekend running the old specification of the Haas VF-19 as the team worked to diagnose in real time the benefits of the upgrades it brought to Barcelona and put on Grosjean’s car. How impactful was your work with the old specification in getting a better understanding as to how the upgrades would make both cars better?
KM: “I think it was a good plan to split the cars, running with the old and the new in order to compare directly. We got some good data. So, hopefully we’re able to make some quick progress because of that.”

Getting the tires into the proper operating window and then keeping those tires in that operating window had been the team’s challenge prior to the Spanish Grand Prix, but that didn’t seem to be a problem in Barcelona. What made the difference?
“Temperatures on the track surface and the layout made the difference. It’s still an issue we’re investigating and making progress on.”

Can what you learned about the Haas VF-19 and its relation to its tires carry over to Monaco?
KM: “It’s a very different track. We’ll see about the temperatures there, but I think we might struggle to use what we had in Barcelona in Monaco, which is always the case. We’ll see how we go.”

Rich Energy Haas F1 Team has proven strong in qualifying this year, placing both its cars into the final round of knockout qualifying in all but one race this year. Knowing how important qualifying is at Monaco, is that the team’s best asset to secure another points-paying performance?
KM: “Hopefully, we can be strong in Monaco qualifying. The race is always a different story there as it’s so hard to overtake. Obviously, we still want to be fast in the race. We’re going to work hard to have good pace and keep the tires in their windows.”

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VERSTAPPEN: MONACO HAS NOT BEEN THE BEST ONE FOR ME

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Max Verstappen will be looking for redemption this weekend at the Monaco Grand Prix after his FP3 error last year cost him a shot at pole and a race win, the accolade going instead to Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

During his 2015 rookie season with Toro Rosso, Verstappen also crashed at the Principality when he was ‘brake-tested’ by Romain Grosjean during the race.

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“It was great to be back on the podium in Barcelona and now I’m looking forward to Monaco. It’s a very special and hectic weekend, and for sure it’s a lot of fun.”

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Verstappen’s best result to date at sports most glamorous race is the fifth place he scored in 2017.

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LAUDA SUFFERS SETBACK, WON’T BE IN F1 PADDOCK ANYTIME SOON

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Triple Formula 1 World Champion Niki Lauda is back in hospital as his recovery from last year’s lung transplant continues to be a tough one.

Earlier this year there was talk that the Mercedes F1 team chairman would be back in the paddock as early as Spain last week, but this proved to be way off the mark as the latest setback to his health will scupper any short-term plans for a return.

OE24 reported that Lauda was transferred to a private clinic where he is receiving dialysis treatment, which had not been available at the Cereneo rehabilitation clinic, near Lucerne, where he was undergoing his recuperation programme.

The F1 legend’s brother Florian Lauda confirmed, “Niki is making progress but he is still in Switzerland.”

Since his lung transplant in August last year, the 70-year-old’s journey to recovery has been slowed by setbacks including a flu infection, while building his muscle mass appears to be taking longer than expected.

Nevertheless, Lauda has reportedly been in close contact with Mercedes team boss Toto Wolf and a few of his close confidants in the Formula 1 paddock.

But word is that for now, once he gets the green light, Lauda wants to return his estate on Ibiza and continue his rehab at home. Thereafter, health and strength permitting, of course, his target will be a return to the F1 paddock where his legendary “no-bullshit” presence is sorely missed.

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Claire Williams praises drivers amid 2019 malaise

Williams battle with Alfa Romeo in Spanish GP

Claire Williams says George Russell and Robert Kubica have been “extraordinarily instrumental” in maintaining morale at the team amid its ongoing slump.

Williams slipped to last in the 2018 Constructors’ standings and has lost further ground through the early events of 2019.

Rookie Russell and returnee Kubica have spent the season rooted to the rear of the field in both qualifying and the races, with Kubica – who has finished each race – already having been lapped 10 times.

“Both drivers have done more than we could possibly expected them to,” she said.

“They knew as much as we did going into this season it was going to be difficult but both have been extraordinarily instrumental in maintaining and supporting the morale within the team, being team players, and keeping a level head.

“That must be incredibly difficult year for them.

“Even if it is not Robert Kubica’s rookie year he has been away for a long time so it must be difficult for them going out each week knowing that they will probably qualify last and finish last but they have done a great job so I hope that continues.”

Williams also went on to laud the spirit in the race team and at its factory in Grove, despite its chasm to the rest of the midfield in 2019.

“It is good, it is hard work to make sure moral is good and where you want it to be for everyone to be at their best but it is something we’ve always worked hard on for a number of years,” she said.

“We have a programme in place to make sure we keep morale where it needs to be.

“The signs of how well we do, last year on the race team we only lost one person and that wasn’t down to team performance or wanting to jump ship.

“That tells you the spirit we have in the team at the moment and the very fact that people are going over and above to make sure the two or three chassis are ready.

“Everybody knows the journey that they are in and they want to be a part of it. For me the spirit is a typical Williams spirit, everyone is enjoying the challenge.”

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NIKI LAUDA FORMULA 1 LEGEND HAS DIED

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Three-times Formula 1 champion Niki Lauda, regarded as one of the finest and bravest race drivers of all time and who later became a successful airline entrepreneur, has died at 70 after battling declining health.

Austrian Lauda, who was hospitalised in January for about 10 days while suffering from influenza and had a lung transplant last August, died on Monday, his family said in a statement.

“His unique achievements as an athlete and entrepreneur are and will remain unforgettable,” the statement, published by Austrian media, said.

“His tireless zest for action, his straightforwardness and his courage remain a role model and a benchmark for all of us, he was a loving and caring husband, father and grandfather away from the public, and he will be missed.”

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Lauda won two world championships in 1975 and 1977 with Ferrari and a third in 1984 with McLaren.

He had a near-fatal crash in 1976 when racing at the Nürburgring but despite suffering serious burns, he was soon back in his Ferrari with a modified helmet and went on to claim his second F1 title.

His rivalry with British driver James Hunt, the 1976 champion for McLaren, was intense and became the subject of the acclaimed 2013 film “Rush”.

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After two less successful years at rival outfit Brabham and then a two-year hiatus, Lauda returned to F1 for another four seasons at McLaren and won the 1984 title by a half-point over team mate Alain Prost.

While taking his first break after Brabham, Lauda set up a charter airline and returned to his aviation business full-time after bowing out of racing.

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Through the 1980s and 1990s, he grew ‘Lauda Air’ into an international carrier with long-haul flights out of Austria across the globe before it was merged into Austrian Airlines in 2012.

Lauda also returned to F1 in management roles, first with Ferrari in the 1990s and later with Mercedes, where he was appointed non-executive chairman in 2012.

He is credited for helping bring five-times F1 champion Lewis Hamilton to the team from McLaren.

Lauda’s death rocked the F1 community days before the Monaco Grand Prix, the jewel in the circuit’s racing calendar.

“All at McLaren are deeply saddened to learn that our friend, colleague and 1984 Formula 1 World Champion, Niki Lauda, has passed away,” the team said. “Niki will forever be in our hearts and enshrined in our history.”

British former F1 champion Jenson Button, who won a title with Brawn GP in 2009, tweeted: “A legend has left us. Rest in peace Niki.”

barnard, McLaren, Lauda

Early Life

Born in Vienna on Feb. 22, 1949
Got into motor racing against his family’s wishes.
Started his career as a Formula Two driver in 1971 with March Engineering.

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Formula 1 Career

Raced with March (1971-1972) and the British Racing Motors team (1973) where he impressed Ferrari despite having an unreliable car.

Signed by Ferrari in 1974 and finished fourth in the World Drivers’ Championship in his debut season with the Italian team where he won his first race at the Spanish Grand Prix.

Won two championships with Ferrari over the next three years (1975 and 1977).

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Had a near-fatal crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix after a failed race boycott over safety measures at the track. He suffered severe burns to his face and damaged his lungs while he was trapped in his car that had burst into flames.

Made a remarkable comeback after missing two races but lost out on the 1976 title by one point — to arch-rival James Hunt of McLaren — after retiring in the final race in Japan due to dangerous conditions.

Raced with Brabham, owned by former Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone, from 1978 to 1979 before retiring after two unsuccessful seasons.

Made his Formula One comeback in 1982 with McLaren.

Won his third title and his first with McLaren in 1984, beating team mate Alain Prost by 0.5 points — even though Prost won more races.

The 1985 season was his last as a Formula One racing driver, retiring with 25 Grand Prix wins.

Inducted into International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1993.

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Management Roles and Business Interests

Founded Austrian airline Lauda Air in 1979.

Had a consulting role with Ferrari in 1993.

Jaguar’s team principal between 2001 and 2002.

Founded Niki, an Austrian low-cost airline, in 2003. He held a commercial pilot’s licence and occasionally took command of their Airbus jets.

Named Mercedes’ non-executive chairman prior to the 2013 season and was involved in negotiations to sign Lewis Hamilton, who would go on to win four championships with the team.

Took over another Austrian chartered airline in 2016 and renamed it Laudamotion.

Board member of Mercedes AMG Powertrains.

Special adviser to the Board of Daimler AG.

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Sebastian Vettel, Niki Lauda

2016 Belgian Grand Prix, Saturday

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Thank you @MIKA27 for the detailed bio on Niki Lauda.

Had the pleasure of having him on board to Singapore and he was a guest in the cockpit for landing there.

Great personality and a true gentleman. RIP Niki Lauda.

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9 hours ago, nino said:

Thank you @MIKA27 for the detailed bio on Niki Lauda.

Had the pleasure of having him on board to Singapore and he was a guest in the cockpit for landing there.

Great personality and a true gentleman. RIP Niki Lauda.

546285066_nikilauda.jpg.b0a3abb868c702adcc86532c2c542b14.jpg

I feel immensely fortunate as a fan of F1 to live in the era of so many legends and Niki is one of them.

But to see that picture of yourself and Niki, I am truly envious. What a wonderful memory for you!!

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PROST: MY MOST SPLENDID AND BRILLIANT YEARS WERE AS TEAMMATE TO NIKI

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Four-time Formula 1 champion Alain Prost says former teammate Niki Lauda was his role model, the pair drove together as teammates for two seasons with the McLaren team in 1984 and 1985, both winning titles during those years.

Prost told AFP, “The world of F1 loses a character but above all a gentleman. There are champions, people with awards, but here we lose a gentleman who has never complained about anything in his life, his condition, his accident, and who has always won.”

“I am totally upset, moved and very sad, it is an incredible shock for me. These are much stronger feelings than I could have imagined. It’s about 40 years of my life, someone who means a lot to me.”

“When I started to take an interest in Formula 1, I had two models: Jackie Stewart and Niki. And I had the chance to spend two years by his side. These were the two most beautiful and best seasons of my career.”

Lauda beat Prost for the title by half a point in 1984, but the Frenchman said he never resented his former teammate, who died on Monday, aged 70.

“Then there was the period when we were teammates, which was the most splendid and brilliant period I’ve ever known because there was this mixture of success with McLaren – he won the championship in 1984, me in 1985 – but above all this very strong friendship that was created at that time.”

“He taught me how to put things into perspective. When I did not feel well, after a loss, he taught me how to get detached. He made me drink my first whisky in 1984 to take things off my mind.”

“He taught me how to compartmentalize. That was his philosophy,” added Prost.

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LAUDA FAMILY: WE WERE BY HIS SIDE FOR EVERY MINUTE

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The Associated Press has put together a timeline regarding the announcement of Niki Lauda’s passing which shocked the world this morning (European time) as the sport lost a true great.

Niki was a living legend who on track claimed three Formula 1 World Championships and won the hearts of all with his heroic comeback, after being administered the last rites, in the wake of a gruesome crash that nearly robbed us of him too soon.

But his resilience gifted him to us for another 43 years. However, today, Niki fought his last battle surrounded by loved ones and in the best care possible for his condition.

Tuesday, 21 May 2019

11:50 a.m.

The family of Niki Lauda said in another statement on Tuesday that the Formula One great died at a hospital in Zurich, the Austria Press Agency reported.

“We were by his side for every minute of the last 10 months,” it said. “We laughed, cried, hoped and suffered with him.

“Niki, you were a unique fighter and an extraordinary person. We love and will miss you forever.”

The statement was signed off by his second wife Birgit, his ex-wife Marlene, and children Lukas, Matthias, Max and Mia.

11:15 a.m.

A doctor who oversaw Niki Lauda’s lung transplant last year says the three-time Formula One champion had been in poor shape for some time.

Walter Klepetko of Vienna General Hospital told the Austria Press Agency on Tuesday “it was a long process at the end of which the patient passed away.”

He added “Niki Lauda fought. He was a great man. But it had been clear for some time that we could not get him back on the ‘racing track.'” He said he wouldn’t give further details, citing privacy issues.

Lauda underwent a lung transplant in Vienna in August. His family said the 70-year-old Lauda died on Monday.

10:15 a.m.

Mercedes F1 team principal Toto Wolff says Niki Lauda “will always remain one of the greatest legends of our sport” after the three-time world champion passed away.

Lauda, who won two of his world titles after a horrific crash that left him with serious burns, died on Monday. He was 70.

Lauda remained closely involved with the F1 circuit after retiring as a driver in 1985, and in recent years served as the non-executive chairman of the Mercedes team.

In a statement on Tuesday, Wolff said Lauda “combined heroism, humanity and honesty inside and outside the cockpit. His passing leaves a void in Formula One. We haven’t just lost a hero who staged the most remarkable comeback ever seen, but also a man who brought precious clarity and candor to modern Formula One. He will be greatly missed as our voice of common sense.”

3:30 a.m.

Formula 1 great Niki Lauda, who won two of his world titles after a horrific crash that left him with serious burns and went on to become a prominent figure in the aviation industry, has died. He was 70.

Lauda’s family issued a statement saying the three-time world champion “passed away peacefully” on Monday.

Walter Klepetko, a doctor who performed a lung transplant on Lauda last year, said on Tuesday: “Niki Lauda has died. I have to confirm that.”

The family statement said: “His unique successes as a sportsman and entrepreneur are and remain unforgettable. His tireless drive, his straightforwardness and his courage remain an example and standard for us all. Away from the public gaze he was a loving and caring husband, father and grandfather. We will miss him very much.”

Lauda won the F1 drivers’ championship in 1975 and 1977 with Ferrari, and in 1984 with McLaren.

In 1976, he was badly burned when he crashed during the German Grand Prix, but he made an astonishingly fast return to racing just six weeks later.

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Rio de Janeiro track layout revealed as city bids to host Formula 1

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The proposed layout for the new Rio de Janeiro-based circuit has been revealed as the city bids to replace Sao Paulo as the host of the Brazilian Formula 1 race.

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro recently stated that Rio would host the race from 2020 onwards at a new purpose-built facility on the site of a disused military base.

Although the date seems unlikely given Sao Paulo's Interlagos track has a contract for next season, the race could well happen in 2021 if construction goes ahead as planned.

Rio's city hall is keen to get things moving and this week appointed Rio Motorsports – a US-based consortium of companies – with the challenge of realising the idea and a 35-year deal to build on the land and operate the facility.

The plans are likely to not only be objected to by Sao Paulo, but also environmental groups and government departments, with the Brazilian economy in decline and a development price tag of over $170 million (£130m) – although Bolsonaro claims the track will be privately funded.

The circuit itself has been designed with assistance from F1 regular Herman Tilke and tweaked since plans were first revealed.

MIKA: Dear god... not Herman Tilke :covereyes:

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Pierre Gasly eyes Red Bull defeat of Ferrari in Monaco

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Pierre Gasly believes Red Bull’s strength through slow-speed corners means it has a realistic chance of beating Ferrari at this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Ferrari has shown significant prowess in terms of straight-line speed this season but its pace through slow- and medium-speed corners was identified as a relative weakness at the most recent event in Spain.

Max Verstappen qualified just a tenth of a second down on Sebastian Vettel and went on to claim third place on the opening lap to deliver his and Red Bull’s second podium of the campaign.

When asked whether Red Bull could get the better of Ferrari in Monaco, Gasly replied: “I hope so.

“I think Ferrari is really strong in the straights, we know they have the best engine at the moment, and in the corners we seem to be a bit more competitive than they are.

“So in Monaco, it suits the Red Bull car usually pretty well, and we know it's all about qualifying.

“It will be important to just manage the perfect lap on Saturday and I think we could have a chance to be in front of them.”

Gasly last year finished seventh in Monaco and is eager to embrace the challenge of the Principality’s streets now he has stepped up from Toro Rosso to Red Bull.

“It's a track I like, you feel more alive in Monaco, you have the walls everywhere, it keeps you really sharp and awake every time you jump in the car,” he said.

“So I think Monaco is probably the best feeling you can have in an F1 car in terms of adrenaline, it's just so intense, should be a good one, especially when you have a Red Bull car there it's even more enjoyable.”

MIKA: If there is a race for Mercedes to lose, it will be this one.

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Renault: Too dangerous to switch focus to 2021 already

Renault: Too dangerous to switch focus to 2021 already

Renault executive director Marcin Budkowski thinks it is too "dangerous" for any Formula 1 team to gamble on switching focus to its 2021 car design right now, despite the advantages a head start would give.
As Brawn famously showed in 2009, a major overhaul of rules can be a good opportunity for a team to steal the march on the opposition by throwing its resources at the car much earlier.

Ahead of a big revamp for 2021, teams are already juggling their resources in terms of future developments – and there could be temptation to invest more in longer term plans because of the advantages it could bring.

But Budkowski thinks the fact that the rules are unchanged for 2020 actually means that there is less to gain now by devoting effort towards 2021, because there is a danger of falling too far behind next year.

Asked by Motorsport.com if there was temptation to switch focus to 2021 already, Budkowski said: "I doubt it because 2020 at the moment looks like a year of regulation stability, so whatever you are doing today on 2019 will benefit you in 2020.

"If you stop any development on 2019 now you will hurt in 2019 and 2020. It could be a possibility next year because the impact would only be on 2020, but at the moment it is too dangerous. However, it is a balancing act.

"We are doing three car projects with the resources you normally have to do two. You have to make compromises and you have to pick your priorities carefully.

"Yes, we have an important milestone for 2021 with the changes and therefore opportunities, but we have 2019 and 2020 in the meantime that we still have ambitions for."

The balancing of resources for 2021 is also further complicated by the fact that a cost cap is coming in then, which could require a complete overhaul of team infrastructure.

Budkowski says that until it is clear what will and will not be included in the cap, then it is very hard to plan ahead.

"It is difficult to comment because the cost cap has not been finalised in terms of cost and perimeter," he said. "There is talk about the level [of the cost cap] but the level doesn't mean anything without the perimeter.

"So you can keep the level and change the perimeter and you have effectively changed the level by doing so. So both level and perimeter are still being debated, and at the moment it is fairly high…."

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Niki Lauda's interview with Lewis Hamilton

In memory of Niki Lauda, here's a throwback to 2009 Formula 1 season, when Lewis Hamilton got a ride with the Austrian through the streets of Valencia

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Giorgio Piola’s key cars of Niki Lauda’s awesome F1 career

Giorgio Piolaâs key cars of Niki Laudaâs awesome F1 career

Legendary technical illustrator Giorgio Piola drew all of the key cars of three-time Formula 1 World Champion Niki Lauda, who has passed away aged 70. Here are his best illustrations of some fantastic machinery, as driven by the legend himself.

March 721

March 721 1972 detailed overview

A development of the first car Niki Lauda drove in Formula 1, the March 721 retained the lozenge-shaped front end and the madcap "tea-tray" wing, but didn't live up to the success of the preceding 711 chassis.

After two races, the 'X' specification of car was rolled out with a transverse gearbox, but the package proved unsuccessful - instead, the 721G was ushered out of the factory after round five.

Lauda scored no points for March, instead defecting to BRM at the end of 1972.

BRM P160C

BRM P160 1971 detailed overview

A third-year development of the P160, the BRM chassis was somewhat long in the tooth by the time Lauda joined - partnering Clay Regazzoni at the team.

Powered by BRM's in-house V12 engine, the car proved to be unreliable - Lauda only completed five of the fifteen races in 1973, scoring just two points during the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder.

Regardless, Lauda proved himself as a driver to watch and, when Regazzoni returned to Ferrari for 1974, gave the Austrian such a glowing review that he was signed as well.

Ferrari 312B3

Ferrari 312B3 1974 detailed overview

The car that brought Lauda his first victory, the 312B3 was an evolution of the already-successful 312B family of Ferrari F1 cars. The chassis design was more contemporary than its forebears, falling in line more with the Lotus 72 and McLaren M23 of the time.

After celebrated designer Mauro Forghieri was moved upstairs by parent company FIAT, Ferrari hit a lean patch until reinstalling Forghieri as technical director - and he immediately set about shortening the car's wheelbase to produce a more nimble car.

The radiators were also moved to the side, assisting the weight distribution, while Ferrari's flat-12 engine kept the weight distribution low.

Lauda took his first win in the 1974 Spanish Grand Prix, then took his second four races later to finish fourth overall in the standings.

Ferrari 312T

Ferrari 312T 1976 detailed rear view

After being outscored by Regazzoni in 1974, Lauda suffered no such repeat when the 312T was pressed into service.

With its roots in the 312B3, the gearbox became transverse - hence the 'T' in the chassis designation - while the suspension and the chassis were reworked to improve the handling characteristics, an area in which the B3 was problematic.

The 312T began modestly, but as 1975 progressed Lauda began to march towards the title - winning five races en route.

1976 began with far more promise, and the 312T2 was introduced after the high, slender airboxes were banned from F1. Lauda looked irrepressible, until his accident at the Nurburgring took the rails off his year. After his miraculous recovery, Lauda couldn't beat Hunt to the '76 title - but won out in '77, again with the 312T2.

Brabham BT46

Brabham BT46 1978 overview

After Lauda moved to Brabham, he was initially paired up with the BT45C for two races - scoring podiums in both - until the BT46 became available.

Initially unreliable, Lauda managed just one finish - a second place at Monaco - in the first five races with the car. The famous 'fan car', the BT46B, joined the fray at Anderstorp, and Lauda won by over 34 seconds thanks to the obscene levels of the downforce the car could produce - before it was removed from competition

Lauda won again in Italy, but retirements were all too common - the Alfa Romeo V12 becoming a particular source of consternation - stifling any championship challenge.

The following BT48 was even more unreliable, and Lauda called it quits with two races remaining on the season's calendar.

McLaren MP4/2

McLaren MP4-2 1984 exploded-detail overview

After Lauda was tempted back into the F1 fold in 1982 by Ron Dennis, McLaren had undergone a colossal change of fortunes. John Barnard's carbon fibre MP4 chassis changed the game, and Lauda returned to winning ways after just three races.

However, the Cosworth DFV was starting to show its age as the turbo era had begun, prompting McLaren to get Porsche to build a bespoke turbo engine - financed by TAG - for 1984.

Using 1983 as a transition season, '84 was Lauda's final title. Beating Alain Prost by half a point, the McLaren MP4/2 was the class of the field - using sidepods that swooped around the rear tyres, the car was able to generate plenty of rear end grip thanks to the improved suction at the rear.

The TAG engine was one of the most reliable on the grid too, creating a perfect combination with McLaren's engineering prowess.

In the MP4/2B, rolled out for 1985, Prost beat Lauda by a healthy margin, winning the title and outscoring him 73 points to 14. Sensibly, Lauda called it a day at the end of the year - putting an end to an illustrious F1 career.

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Niki Lauda: An F1 legend remembered

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Veteran F1 journalist David Tremayne pays a personal tribute to three-time Formula 1 world champion Niki Lauda, who has passed away aged 70...

It’s rare these days to meet genuine heroes, let alone to be privileged to call them a friend, but Andreas Niklaus Lauda was just such a man.

Of course the Austrian was one of the world’s greatest race drivers, with three world championships to back up such a claim. But he was so much more than that. Never was that more evident than the manner in which he returned, almost literally from the dead, to race again within five and a half weeks of the fiery crash at the deadly Old Nurburgring during the 1976 German Grand Prix.

Days after he had been very critical of racing on the 14.1-mile track, he had exactly the sort of accident he had predicted. A suspected suspension failure pitched his Ferrari into the barriers at the Bergwerk corner, and as his stricken car was hit by others his helmet was torn off and he lay trapped in the cockpit as the car caught fire. His life was saved by fellow racers Brett Lunger, Arturo Merzario, Guy Edwards and Harald Ertl, plus some brave marshals, as they rushed into the flames and extracted him. His face was badly burned and he inhaled flames and toxic extinguisher powder, and was given the last rites. But in typical Lauda style he railed at such an apparent impertinence and decided that he was not going to die that day.

Working with famed physiotherapist Willi Dungl he fought back to life, and much to Enzo Ferrari’s embarrassment he was back in the cockpit of a Ferrari at the Italian GP. The tough and unsentimental Italian team owner had already hired Carlos Reutemann to replace him, but Lauda blew off the Argentine to finish an heroic fourth and keep his world title hopes alive.

That was the year of his great fight with his close friend James Hunt – subsequently portrayed in the movie Rush – and Lauda had already come close to death when he rolled a tractor just prior to the Spanish GP.

“It was a bloody heavy thing, four tonnes or more, and it caught me when I turned it over. My fault entirely,” he admitted in his clipped, no-nonsense tones. When James caught him by surprise and overtook him, he ran wide over a kerb and bashed his broken ribs, but still carried on to finish second. His build was wiry, but he was tough and very durable.

Later that year he marched into Hunt’s bedroom on race morning for the United States GP at Watkins Glen and declared:

“Today I vill vin ze world champeeonsheep!” before striding out again.

Hunt thought it was hysterically funny.

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Lauda did not win that year’s title, as things turned out. In the rain in the finale in Fuji he simply could not see well enough with eyelids still raw from the Nurburgring fire, so with typical candour, he retired after the opening lap (though some suggest that had been the plan, for everyone to do so in protest against the conditions).

At the wheel they called him a computer, and he was always one to see things in black and white. But he was also a great pragmatist. And a gambler.

He started racing with a Mini, then in Volkswagen-powered Formula Vee single-seaters, before driving an unloved McNamara in Formula 3, which is where he met Hunt, and the journalist, the late Alan Henry, who would become a close friend.

“I watched this buck-toothed Austrian trying to make sense of this uncompetitive car and thought he was a bit of a berk initially, to be honest,” Henry said. “But a year or so later we watched him overtake Ronnie Peterson for a lap in a heat in a Formula 2 race at Rouen, and realised he was actually pretty good.”

Blond Peterson, the dashing ‘SuperSwede’, was seen as the fastest man in racing at that time, taking over the mantle of Lauda’s countryman Jochen Rindt, F1’s sole posthumous world champion.

March designer Robin Herd recalled an F2 test at Thruxton, when Peterson would go out and set a time, only for team mate Lauda to beat it, a cycle which went on for many runs.

“I thought, ‘Oh God, we have a problem!’” Herd laughed. “We haven’t got one superstar here, but two!”

Lauda, however, also had the analytical mindset to sort out racing cars, which would serve him brilliantly throughout his career.

Boldly, and against the wishes of a grandfather to whom he would never speak again, Lauda parlayed family wealth and a life insurance policy into a £35,000 bank loan and used it to buy his drives with March in F2 and F1 in 1971/72. It was a bold and desperate ploy which in later years he admitted should never have worked. But after struggling with indifferent cars in 1972 he used his apparent 'sponsorship’ to bluff his way into the fading BRM team for 1973.

Soon he was the star, notably running third for a while at Monaco and leading the Canadian GP in the wet. Enzo Ferrari’s interest was piqued and he signed him for 1974. The great team had been in decline, and after trying one of the cars for the first time, Lauda plainly told the Old Man that it was junk. But working with mercurial designer Mauro Forghieri and an elegant young man called Luca di Montezemolo who came in as team manager, he turned Ferrari round.

In 1974 he still had a streak of impetuosity that, with a spin at Nurburgring, put him out of championship contention. But he dominated in 1975, missed out to Hunt by a point in 1976 and won again in 1977.

In that latter year he thrashed Reutemann as he won in South Africa.

But his joy at winning in a car which had run over debris and been running with no oil and water for the last 10 laps evaporated completely on the podium when he was told of Tom Pryce’s death.

Later, he was asked questions by a journalist he thought he recognised.

“I know you, don’t I?” he asked. “I don’t think so,” the journalist replied.

But Lauda the computer read his memory bank, and recalled how cruel the man had been when he was vulnerable during the first press conference he made after his accident, when people saw for the first time the ravaged and scarred image he would forever present to the world.

“I remember,” Lauda said. “You’re the guy who asked me what my wife would do now that I was ugly.”

Raising his fresh-won trophy, he pointed it at the miscreant and said, “Well, you can shove this up your ass.”

That was such a typical Lauda story. Blunt, to the point.

Just like when you might ask him what he thought of a certain driver.

A Briton might suggest that he was ‘okay’, meaning they didn’t rate him.

Lauda would present his ungarnished truth, then say, “Well, you did ask me what I thought.”

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Lauda drove a few laps at the 1979 Canadian Grand Prix weekend before announcing his (first) retirement

In late 1979 he was driving the exciting new Cosworth-powered Brabham BT49 on Canada’s Ile Notre Dame circuit during practice for the Grand Prix, when it suddenly came to him that he no longer wanted to drive round in circles. He sought out team owner Bernie Ecclestone, and told him he was retiring. He was on a plane home by the time the paddock realised it was the Argentine driver Riccardo Zunino driving the car, wearing his gear.

Lauda had a new mission and set up his own airline, Lauda Air, and threw himself into a different challenge. But when McLaren boss Ron Dennis, with whom he had won the BMW ProCar series that ran at Grands Prix in 1979, kept calling through 1981, Lauda began to realise that the “old disease” was still in his system. He tested a McLaren and decided on a comeback. His contract stated there would be a review after the first three races, but it was unnecessary. He won the third, at Long Beach in California. He was back.

After infuriating Dennis and technical partner John Barnard by going over their heads to sponsor Marlboro to race their new TAG-funded, Porsche-designed turbo engine late in 1983, Lauda went on to beat team mate Alain Prost by half a point to the 1984 title. But ever the pragmatist, he knew that the Frenchman was much quicker in qualifying and would be faster still in races in 1985. So it proved, but Lauda rallied to score the last of his 24 victories in Holland, beating Prost by a hair just as his mate Hunt had beaten him there nine years earlier.

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Lauda made his F1 comeback with McLaren, claiming one more title in 1984

In his second retirement, Lauda focused on his airline businesses, but later returned in advisory roles with Ferrari and Jaguar. But it was in his role as non-executive chairman of the Mercedes team from 2010 that he found further success, working closely with team boss Toto Wolff. Theirs was a difficult relationship initially – Wolff reportedly fined him every time he used the word 'I' instead of 'we' – but subsequently melded into one of the most sensational partnerships in history. No other team has won either the drivers’ or constructors’ world championship since the turbo-hybrid formula was inaugurated in 2014, and the Silver Arrows of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas lead the series this year, too.

No story of Niki Lauda better summarises what sort of man he was than the crash in which Lauda Air Flight 004 from Bangkok to Austria perished on May 26 1991, when an engine on this Boeing 767 deployed reverse thrust of its own accord. All 213 passengers and the 10 crew members on board were killed.

“If I make a mistake and die in a race car, tough luck,” Lauda said.

“That’s my fault. But the people who fly with me have the right to expect safe travel.”

He took on Boeing, threatening if they did not make a full statement about the cause of the incident to fly a 767 over Seattle and demonstrate that it was not, after all, safe to select reverse thrust in flight. By the time he had got back to his hotel, Boeing had capitulated.

But, equally, none better illustrates his zany sense of humour and refusal to take himself too seriously, than his response when informed that a book of every driver's race statistics ironically did not actually record him as starting the 1976 German GP because the first start, in which he had crashed, did not count as it was officially replaced by a second.

“So what happened to my ear?” he enquired amid laughter.

Forty years later, he ‘discovered’ the answer. He and his close friend Karl-Heinz Zimmermann, formerly Bernie Ecclestone’s personal chef, went to Nurburgring and visited the Bergwerk corner.

“You’re Niki Lauda!” a nearby fan exclaimed.

“I know.”

“But what are you doing here?”

“I’m looking for my ear…”

At which point Lauda ducked down and picked something up and placed it near his head. It was a pig’s ear that Zimmermann had just dropped there…

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Lauda helped turn Mercedes into a winning machine

It’s easy to say when such a character passes that we will not see his like again. But in Niki Lauda’s case that is the hard, unvarnished reality. He was unique, and so was his story.

We are desperately saddened to know that he succumbed after the double lung transplant that he endured last year, and by the knowledge that we shall never hear those familiar and much-loved clipped tones again, nor be able to grab the perfect Lauda quote at races. To ask for a quick interview and be told, “I have a piss, then we do it.”

But like the other greats who have left us, this great warrior will live forever in our hearts and our memories, and will echo in the fond imitations we will inevitably enact over the coming years. And just like the scars he bore with such pride, humility and dignity, the marks he left in the record books and in the annals of motorsport history will never fade.

RIP Niki Lauda: 1949-2019

 

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VETTEL: WE DESERVE A GOOD RESULT FOR EVERYBODY’S SAKE

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For Ferrari, the Monaco Grand Prix could be the last chance to get back into the Formula 1 title race because after five races and no wins for either Sebastian Vettel or Charles Leclerc, the Scuderia’s hopes of ending the dominance of Mercedes are already hanging by a thread.

Vettel, the four-time F1 champion, was in championship contention for the past two seasons only to fall away during the second half of them as Lewis Hamilton went on to win both titles for Mercedes.

This time he is already nearly 50 points behind championship leader Hamilton, who is chasing a sixth F1 title and facing far sterner competition from teammate Valtteri Bottas than he is from Ferrari.

Mercedes has swept the past five drivers’ and constructors’ titles and looks likely to repeat that after placing 1-2 in the first five races . Bottas sits only seven points behind Hamilton and the Finnish driver has taken the past three pole positions to underline his improving credentials.

Ferrari’s drivers, meanwhile, are drifting worryingly far behind. Vettel is fourth overall in the standings, behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, while Leclerc is fifth. Few would have predicted such a poor start, especially after encouraging signs in pre-season testing.

“Others have done a better job than us,” Vettel said Wednesday at the Ferrari motorhome. “There have been some negative signs, for sure.”

Still, the German driver insists Ferrari can begin to stop the rot with a morale-boosting win in Monaco, “We deserve a good result, for everybody’s sake. We’ve been working hard, it’s not like we’ve been leaning back and taking the sun the last couple of weeks.”

Although the Mercedes drivers are free to compete against each other, without the sometimes irritating imposition of team orders, there appears to be none of the animosity that spilled over into open conflict when Hamilton and Nico Rosberg competed for Mercedes from 2014-16. Rosberg won the 2016 title under intense pressure from Hamilton, but they fell out before that.

Things are far smoother at Mercedes now, with Hamilton and Bottas often speaking about – and showing – mutual respect.

But over in the Ferrari garage, tensions have already crept in between the two drivers, as the 21-year-old Leclerc has twice been curtailed by team instructions favoring Vettel despite being the faster driver on race day.

With 52 wins to his name, the 31-year Vettel remains the No. 1 driver. But more so because he has seniority on his side – rather than greater speed.

The only race where Ferrari has had the upper hand was Bahrain, the second of the season, where Leclerc took a stunning pole position and looked certain to win the race until his engine betrayed him and inexplicably lost power late on.

Ferrari essentially gifted Hamilton a win, because Vettel spun his car under pressure from a Hamilton attack shortly before.

The mishaps and malfunctions in Bahrain struck a worrying comparison with the past two years , and set the tone for the season so far.

Instead of looking strong, Ferrari was put immediately on the back foot and the pressure is firmly on team boss Mattia Binotto to turn things around with Ferrari nearly 100 points behind Mercedes in the constructors’ championship. Ferrari last won it in 2008, an eternity for its devoted fans.

Because Monaco’s sinewy 3.3-kilometer (2-mile) street circuit is one of the most difficult in F1 for overtaking, getting pole on Saturday could prove crucial to stopping Mercedes. Otherwise, as is often the case, the 78-lap race could turn into a procession for the race leader.

As a Monegasque, Leclerc has extra motivation to get another pole. He watched his first F1 race when he was a small boy in an apartment overlooking the track.

“I was at a friend’s apartment, out of turn one, playing with (toy) cars and watching the Grand Prix at the same time,” Leclerc fondly recalled. “I think Michael (Schumacher) was at Ferrari. (I was) obviously watching the red cars more than the others.”

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FERRARI: WE ARE BRINGING FURTHER UPDATES FOR MONACO

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The 66th Monaco Grand Prix gets underway in sombre mood following the death on Monday night of the legendary Austrian racer, Niki Lauda at the age of seventy.

In total, there have been 77 editions of this event, the earliest dating back 90 years to 14th April 1929, the race won by British driver William Grover-Williams.

The race has always been run on the same streets of the Principality, although the layout and length of the circuit has been slightly changed eleven times. The current length is 3.337 kilometres and Scuderia Ferrari has nine wins to its name at this track.

The debut. The first Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix was held in 1950, the second ever race in the history of the championship and the one in which Scuderia Ferrari made its debut. 19 cars started, but the race ended for ten of them as early as the opening lap.

Incredibly, a wave came over the harbour wall at Tabac corner, which caused Giuseppe Farina to crash in the Alfa Romeo. He was hit by the Maserati of Jose Froilan Gonzalez, causing a road block which several of the chasing pack could not avoid, causing a major collision. Juan Manuel Fangio won for Alfa Romeo, with Alberto Ascari second in a Ferrari.

Trintignant and Lauda. The next race in the Principality took place in 1955 and it was won by a Ferrari 625 driven by Maurice Trintignant. The Frenchman had a tidy driving style and profited from the errors of others, having started from ninth on the grid, which is the second furthest place down the grid from which any driver has won.

While the Scuderia enjoyed plenty of success elsewhere in the years that followed, it had to wait no less than twenty years for it’s next victory in the streets of Monte Carlo when, in 1975, none other than Niki Lauda won at the wheel of the 312 T, a feat he repeated the following year.

Jody and Gilles. The 1979 race featured an all-Ferrari front row with Jody Scheckter taking pole ahead of Gilles Villeneuve, but only the South African managed to hang on to his starting position to win. The Canadian’s turn came two years later when he passed Alan Jones in the Williams with just four laps to go.

This spectacular win, the first for a turbo-engined car at Monaco was worthy of a story in the American Time magazine, featuring Gilles and the number 27 Ferrari on the cover, an honour only previously given to Jim Clark.

Three for Michael. There would be no more Ferrari wins until Michael Schumacher’s 1997 victory. In 1996, the German put a Maranello car on pole but failed to finish what was a crazy race, with only four cars seeing the flag, including the Ligier of winner Olivier Panis, who had started from 14th.

The following year, Schumacher produced a master class in the wet at the wheel of the F310B. He finished 53 seconds ahead of Rubens Barrichello in the Stewart and over a minute in front of his team-mate Eddie Irvine.

Two years later, Schumacher and Irvine finished first and second, with 2001 seeing Michael take his fifth win in the Principality, equalling Graham Hill’s total, just one short of record man Ayrton Senna.

Sebastian. In 2017, Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen monopolised the front row, with Sebastian going on to win, beating Kimi by a little over three seconds. It was the German’s second win on the streets of the Principality.

Charles. The only Monegasque driver to finish on the podium in his home race was Louis Chiron who finished third in 1950, in the second ever F1 World Championship event. That’s where Charles Leclerc finished in Bahrain this year and there’s no doubt the driver of the number 16 SF90 would love to be on the podium in front of his home crowd this weekend.

Charles Leclerc: “The news about Niki Lauda came as a shock to me and to everyone. Whenever we met in the paddock, he was always kind, always willing to talk. He was a great champion and his personality will be much missed in our sport.”

“It’s my first home GP as a Ferrari driver and it’s bound to be a special weekend. I remember as a kid, I would spend the afternoon with a friend who lived in a flat with a balcony overlooking the Ste. Devote corner. We used to play with toy cars while the real ones rushed past beneath us.”

“I always told myself that one day, it would be great to be driving in this race. And yes, that did happen and the fact I’m taking part in a Ferrari this year means I can honestly talk about a dream come true.”

“To do well in Monaco, you need everything in place, from courage to bravura, from luck to having a competitive car. I hope I can put on a good show in front of my own people and I will definitely be giving it my best shot.”

Sebastian Vettel: “Niki leaves a void that will be difficult to fill. He was a genuine motor racing icon. Nevertheless, we are here to race.”

“There’s no doubt that Monaco is the most iconic race of the season, driving uphill at first and then down through the city streets, before going through the very quick tunnel in the dark, coming out into the port section. It’s really unique.”

“For the drivers and engineers, this bumpy track is a world away from the circuits we are used to and that makes it even more challenging. The cars need maximum aero downforce and a set-up that gives the driver the confidence needed to brush the walls to chase the fastest lap time.”

“There’s no room for error in Monaco and with just seven corners and no real straight, overtaking is almost impossible. That’s why it’s vital to qualify well. The track is so short that, in free practice and qualifying, there’s always traffic. You just have to keep going to try and find a clean lap.”

Mattia Binotto Team Principal: “The run-up to this Monaco Grand Prix has been perturbed by our sadness at the news of Niki’s death. His straightforward no-nonsense approach will be missed in Formula 1 and it will seem strange for all of us not seeing him in the paddock.”

“Niki was a standard bearer for Ferrari and for Formula 1 and he pushed through changes in motor racing that made it even more professional, being ahead of his time in terms of being a stickler for detail which is now very much a key element of our sport.”

“Turning now to this weekend’s race, last week’s testing in Barcelona and analyses carried out in Maranello confirmed just how much this year’s tyres, which are very different to those we had in 2018, require different mechanical and aerodynamic settings to work properly.”

“We are already working in Maranello on evaluating new concepts, as well as bringing some initial further updates here.”

“This Grand Prix is celebrating its 90th anniversary, as indeed is the Scuderia, which makes this weekend even more special. It’s a very different sort of race, where the track characteristics that can shake up the order could be jumbled up still further this weekend.”

“As usual, qualifying will be very important because of the fact it’s almost impossible to overtake. Of course, Monaco is Charles’ home race and we know how much it means to him. It means a lot to us too.”

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LAUDA TRIBUTES PLANNED FOR MONACO GRAND PRIX

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Formula 1 will honour Niki Lauda at this weekend’s showcase Monaco Grand Prix, with teams and drivers on Wednesday still coming to terms with the triple F1 World Champion’s death.

The Austrian, who died on Monday aged 70, won in Monaco with Ferrari in 1975 and 1976 but was latterly the Mercedes team’s non-executive chairman and shareholder with principal Toto Wolff.

An F1 spokesman said a tribute was in the works, with details to be confirmed. Others said a minute’s silence was planned for before the race.

Five times F1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton, who paid an emotional tribute to the Austrian on Instagram, made a paddock appearance but was exempted from a scheduled FIA-organised news conference.

A team spokesman said they had asked for Hamilton to be excused on the grounds that he had “lost a very close friend in Niki.”

Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas took the Briton’s place instead and said Hamilton seemed OK when he saw him earlier.

“He (Lauda) meant a lot to me but was a key member of ours in the race team and factory, a big part of the Mercedes family and was a massive motivation for everyone and myself as well,” Bottas told reporters.

Mercedes said team members would wear black armbands from Thursday and there would be a tribute, as yet undecided, on the cars.

Ferrari said they too would honour their late champion, who won two of his titles with the Italian team in the 1970s and came back from severe burns in a fiery near-fatal 1976 crash, on their cars.

McLaren, with whom the Austrian won his third title in 1984, said they would have something on their cars too., while Toro Rosso have revealed today a tribute for him on their rear-wing endplates.

Photographs and television footage of Lauda’s famous 1976 duel with rival and eventual champion James Hunt were being played constantly on screens in the Ferrari and Mercedes hospitality units.

British rookie George Russell, a Mercedes-backed driver who was the team’s official reserve until securing a race seat with Williams, recalled how he and Lauda used to watch MotoGP races together.

“He just loved everything racing really,” he said. “I remember at Silverstone when I won my first or second GP3 race and he was down at the podium with Toto and I couldn’t believe it really.

“I’d only been part of Mercedes for half a year and there’s Niki Lauda congratulating me at the podium. He was just an amazing person.”

F1 managing director for motorsport Ross Brawn, who worked with Lauda at Mercedes in 2012, said the Austrian had been key to Hamilton’s move from McLaren, particularly in persuading the Mercedes board to part with the money.

“Niki’s loss is of huge significance to Formula One,” said the Briton. “Ours is a sport that revolves around larger than life personalities and Niki was one of racing’s most formidable characters.

“His presence in the paddock was a reminder that F1 is a sport of heroes, an arena for competitors who push past common limits of fortitude and endurance and find an elevated plane beyond the ordinary. Simply, he was a legend.”

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KIMI RAIKKONEN 300

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Kimi Räikkönen does not appear too excited about his 300th Formula 1 weekend which comes up with the running of this edition of the Monaco Grand Prix.

The veteran Finn was typically blunt when he said in the team’s preview, “Everyone is talking about my 300th race, but I’m more interested in our performance.”

And added, “The test in Barcelona was important for us to understand our problems better, but I honestly don’t know how good our car fits to the street course in Monaco.”

Nevertheless, 300 is a big number and puts him in fifth place on the all-time list of grand prix involvements behind Rubens Barrichello (326), Fernando Alonso (315), Jenson Button (311) and Michael Schumacher (308).

It must be noted that Raikkonen has 297 grand prix starts ahead of Monte-Carlo this weekend – a couple of times he did not start the race.

Apart from the epic tongue-in-cheek ‘300’ movie graphic they used to honour the occasion, his Alfa Romeo team also wrote of the veteran driver’s milestone occasion:

Few drivers in the history of F1 have ever reached such heady heights in terms of race entries, and next weekend will mark this important milestone for our very own Kimi Räikkönen. Yes, he had to be told.

“Driving is the only thing I like about F1”, the Iceman famously said, so it’s safe to say numbers do not mean a lot to him.

Do not expect a commemorative helmet, either.

“It protects my head”, that is all it does – how to disagree? And were F1 to organise a special commemoration on the grid before the race, well, we can only hope it doesn’t clash with Kimi’s loo break…

Like Gerard Butler’s Spartan king in the “300” movie, Kimi’s a man of few (if sharp) words. Unlike Leonidas and his heroes, who fought to keep the Hot Gates of the Thermopylae well shut, our man likes his gates open… especially on Brazil’s support paddock pitlanes (remember his off-track… search for an alternative route in Interlagos 2012?).

Mostly, and we’re really stretching this metaphor to its extremes, like the cinematic Greek warriors, Kimi doesn’t give a monkey about what others think of him (and would tell you so, in slightly more colourful words).

From his debut (in a Sauber) in Australia 2001, Kimi Räikkönen has gone on to become one of F1’s iconic characters. A winner of 21 races, he may claim 19 years in the sport (with a brief, two-year hiatus) didn’t change him… truth is, they have.

The fresh-faced boy who rocked up in Melbourne nearly two decades ago, almost missing his first race start as he was having a nap in the garage, is now a World Champion and a proud family man, husband to Minttu and father to Robin and Rianna. Professionally, he’s enjoying his driving at Alfa Romeo Racing as a relaxed, happy driver doing what he does best.

Time and experience change people. But the core Kimi, that never changes. For sure, we will never try to do so – to try and change Kimi to fit a mould is a futile exercise.

We just leave him alone. He knows what he’s doing.

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