Lewis Hamilton ‘mega offer’ could give Mercedes dilemma

05/04/2023

F1 preview: A lap of the Miami Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton will be desperately hoping to return to contention for a podium finish at the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday after failing to trouble the top three in Baku at the last time of asking. The Mercedes ace was no match for the likes of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez last weekend but will have renewed hopes of challenging at the front in Miami, with Mercedes still working hard behind the scenes in their efforts to close the gap to Red Bull at the top of the pecking order.

Toto Wolff has been optimistic about Mercedes’ chances of improving their pace in recent weeks and will be looking for tangible progress to be made in Miami as the Silver Arrows continue to battle back in their bid to rival Red Bull and Ferrari for Grand Prix victories. They looked some way off the pace over the course of the weekend in Baku, with their Constructors’ Championship rivals still very much ahead in terms of outright car performance as things stand.

Hamilton, meanwhile, has seen his long-term future at the team called into question as a result of their recent struggles and his own contract situation, with his current deal set to expire at the end of the season as things stand. The 38-year-old is firmly expected to sign fresh terms before the campaign draws to a close, although there has been plenty of speculation that he could be replaced by Charles Leclerc if he ultimately decides against committing himself to Mercedes for at least another year.

Follow Express Sport‘s live updates below.

George Russell sends warning to Max Verstappen

George Russell has warned Max Verstappen he will not change his on-track behaviour after the pair clashed at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The Mercedes star stressed he would “continue racing the same” and suggested he didn’t understand the hype around the feud.

Verstappen called Russell a “d***head” after the duo came together at the start of Saturday’s sprint race.

He said: “I’ll continue racing the same way I always would.

“I mean a lot has been said about that coming together but from my side it was pretty straightforward. I went for a move, got the move done and moved on.”

Sergio Perez Red Bull future could be safe after Christian Horner comments

Sergio Perez’s F1 future may be secure after Christian Horner gave his opinion on one of the Mexican’s main potential replacements.

The team principal claimed Yuki Tsunoda was “not at that level” yet when pushed if the Japanese star would soon be Red Bull material.

It will come as a blow to the 22-year-old who is in his third season at Red Bull’s junior squad Alpha Tauri.

According to Speedcafe, Horner said: “I don’t think he’s at that level yet, but he’s making great progress.

“We’re seeing that he’s maturing as a driver. He certainly has speed, and I think as he gains experience, I’m sure he’s going to become more rounded.”

F1 announce new PUMA deal

F1 have announced a new partnership with PUMA ahead of the Miami Grand Prix.

The sportswear brand will have the rights to produce F1 branded products including footwear and accessories.

PUMA already provides clothing for a range of teams including Mercedes, Ferrari and Alfa Romeo.

F1 boss Stefano Domenicali said: “As F1 continues to grow around the world, we have been reaching new fans through exciting collaborations and are seeing the sport enter areas of mainstream culture we have not seen before.

“PUMA has a rich history in motorsport, making them the perfect fit for F1 as we take the sport’s apparel to the next level for fans on the street, drivers in the paddock, and everything else in between.”

Lewis Hamilton ‘gone past his peak’ as Mercedes offered advice

Lewis Hamilton has “gone past his peak” but Mercedes have been told to deliver the seven-time champion a strong weekend to help get him back to his best level.

Former Sky Sports F1 pundit Johnny Herbert feels Hamilton will be motivated to deliver better performances if Mercedes give him a car capable of challenging.

Herbert told Ice36: “Lewis may not be at his peak, that peak has gone by, but it is still a bloody high ability that he still possesses.

“I don’t see that being an issue at all. As we all know, for instance, if you play golf and you hit a great shot, that makes you feel ‘I want to crack on’.

“That is the thing that can suddenly reignite that fire in Lewis which I think is slightly turned down at the moment.”

FIA introduce Miami GP rule changes despite criticism

The FIA has introduced major DRS changes for this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix just a week after criticism from drivers.

Two out of the three DRS zones have been shortened ahead of the weekend despite opposition to similar updates in Azerbaijan.

The first activation zone on the run out of turn 11 has been cut by 75 metres ahead of this weekend’s race.

Meanwhile, the second zone on the back straight has also been cut from 525m last year to just 450m in 2023.

Last weekend, DRS reductions were blamed by many as the reason behind a lack of overtaking.

Lewis Hamilton highlights major concern for Miami GP

Lewis Hamilton has highlighted a major concern for Mercedes just days before the Miami Grand Prix.

The seven-time champion star has stressed Miami’s high temperatures could cause havoc for the Silver Arrows’ two cars.

Speaking at an IWC Schaffhausen event, Hamilton said: “The weather is insane, it’s one of the most gruelling tracks for us.

“Not only as drivers but also the car with this heat. It’s exciting to be here.”

Lewis Hamilton set to prove pundit wrong over Mercedes contract

Lewis Hamilton looks set to prove Karun Chandhok wrong with the Mercedes star closing in on a new contract at Mercedes.

The seven-time champion is yet to put pen to paper on a new agreement but has repeatedly sworn his allegiance to the Silver Arrows.

Ahead of last season, Chandhok predicted Hamilton would walk away from F1 completely at the end of this year.

He said: “My personal belief is that it could be his last Mercedes contract.

“I can see him walking away from the sport but to go cold turkey?”

Ferrari deliver promising update

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur has claimed that the Italian outfit have already halved their performance deficit to Red Bull over the course of this season to date.

“If you consider where we were in Jeddah and where we are today I think we did more than 50 per cent of the gap,” said Vasseur.

“The next 50 per cent it’s not the easiest one. We know we have to improve and we know where we have to improve.

“The most important is that this kind of weekend [in Baku], we took pole position and had a good stint in the race that will give us more confidence.”

Hamilton happy to be back in Miami

Lewis Hamilton has said that he is delighted to be in Miami ahead of this weekend’s Grand Prix in the city, which will mark the first of three races to be held in the United States this year.

“It is a dream for us to be in Miami and in the United States,” said Hamilton. “They have the Miami Heat and the Dolphins too.

“They are massive sporting fans here so to be in such an important city like Miami where sport is huge and now Formula One is part of that. It is great to see.

“For such a huge country, it is amazing that we finally have three races here. The difficult thing with Formula One is that you usually visit a country once a year, but the growth has been huge and it is such a big market for the sport.”

Verstappen urged to copy Hamilton

Max Verstappen would benefit from taking a leaf out of Lewis Hamilton’s book in terms of improving his racecraft in order to steer clear of avoidable setbacks, according to Mercedes simulator driver Anthony Davidson.

“Lewis would always see the bigger picture, play the long game, and I think that’s the only thing now that Max can just tidy up in going forward,” said Davidson as he ran the rule over Verstappen’s tangle with George Russell during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix sprint.

“There was no need to fight George quite as hard as he did into that corner early on in the sprint race, because he was going to sail past anyway with that the level of performance he has in that Red Bull.”

Red Bull staff members reject Ferrari

A number of Red Bull’s key employees have turned down the opportunity to jump ship to Ferrari from next season onwards, according to Gazzetta dello Sport.

It is said that Enrico Balbo and Pierre Wache are among those to have rejected the chance to work for the Maranello outfit, with the pair having instead chosen to stay at Red Bull for the foreseeable future.

Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur recently hinted that new members of staff would be appointed over the next few months as part of a ‘massive recruitment operation’, with Laurent Mekies poised to leave for AlphaTauri at the end of this year.

Mercedes tipped to let Hamilton leave

Former Williams manager Peter Windsor has claimed that Mercedes will not be looking to stand in Lewis Hamilton’s way if he receives a ‘mega offer’ from Ferrari in advance of next season.

Windsor said on his YouTube channel: “If he [Hamilton] said to Toto Wolff: ‘Toto, I’ve given you everything. I’ve now had two years of a bad car. I’ve got a mega offer from Ferrari and I want to take it. Will you look into my eye and shake my hand and we’ll call it quits?’

“I think Toto would do that. I don’t think he would say: ‘No, you’ve got a contract. You must drive for us’.

“I think Lewis would just say: ‘OK, well, I’m stopping in that case. Ciao’.”

Sainz rubbishes Alonso feud rumours

Carlos Sainz has insisted that there is no bad blood between himself and Fernando Alonso following a number of clashes and battles with his Spanish rival over the course of the season to date.

“There is no problem between Fernando and me despite what some have tried to show,” Sainz told Marca.

“Our relationship is still very good and it is neither the first nor the last battle that we are going to have on the track. It is normal that some actions are tighter than others, but with the visor down we all want the same thing and fight for what is ours.

“It’s the beauty of racing and as long as there is respect between all the drivers there will be no problem.”

Brundle fires F1 warning over tyre blankets

Martin Brundle has urged F1’s decision-makers to rethink their plans for 2024 by insisting that the proposed ban on tyre blankets for next year would not make any sense to implement.

He tweeted: “[It] doesn’t make sense for F1 to ban tyre heaters. Cars will get crashed negating any cost savings [and] efficiencies. Drivers [and] marshals at higher risk.

“The most expensive and inefficient way of heating racing tyres during testing, practice, qualifying and racing has to be using an F1 car.”

Red Bull unveil Miami livery

Red Bull have taken to Twitter to reveal the one-off livery that will be used by the team at this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

The special design features an eye-catching blend of interwoven blue and pink stripes on the sidepods and on the nose of the car.

It was announced in pre-season that fans would have the opportunity to submit designs for each of this year’s three races in the United States, with further one-off liveries set to be introduced in Austin and Las Vegas later in the campaign.

Wolff aims subtle Red Bull dig

Toto Wolff has claimed that Red Bull’s car is the ‘least rubbish’ on the grid as a result of his belief that ground effect aerodynamics have not helped to improve the F1 spectacle over the last two years.

“You have two cars sailing off into the sunset on merit and there is a 20-second gap,” he said.

“I wouldn’t know between Aston Martin and Ferrari and us who was quicker because you are stuck where you are stuck and that is pretty much it.

“You can see [Red Bull’s] car is barely moving, be it on straights or over bumps. Corner-through balance looks easy.

“You look at all the other onboards and the cars are tricky. Generally, ground-effect cars are rubbish cars. It is just who has the least rubbish is ahead.”

Verstappen makes Hamilton confession

Max Verstappen has has admitted that trying to break the record held by Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher for the most world titles in F1 is not an ‘explicit goal’ of his.

“Honestly, that doesn’t appeal to me,” the Dutchman told Sport Bild. “It was my dream to become world champion.

“I always said that as a child. Not that I want to win eight titles. If I win eight titles, that would of course be nice, but it’s not my explicit goal.

“I just want to stay where I am, at the top.”

Good morning

Hello and welcome to Express Sport’s live coverage of the latest F1 news from across the paddock ahead of this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.

The dust is still settling on what happened in Baku at the last time of asking but there is little time to dwell on the past, with the next race of the new F1 season just around the corner.

We’ll be bringing you the biggest stories and latest build-up throughout the day, so grab a coffee and stay tuned…

Source: Read Full Article