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Andretti’s Bid to Enter Formula 1 Faces Resistance

American racing legend Michael Andretti’s quest to enter Formula 1 as the Andretti Cadillac F1 team by 2025 or 2026 has been a tumultuous one. Despite securing a powerful partnership with General Motors, Andretti’s endeavours have faced resistance from existing Formula 1 teams. The latest development reveals that Formula 1 management went so far as to ask General Motors to consider partnering with someone other than Andretti.

Andretti Global, in a partnership with Cadillac, presented its ambitions to join Formula 1 earlier this year. While the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile), the governing body of Formula 1, approved Andretti Global’s application, the final decision rests with Formula One Group, owned by Liberty Media. This decision has stirred controversy and raised questions about the sport’s willingness to welcome new entrants.

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F1 Could Use V10s And Still Be ‘Green’

V10 engines were last used in the championship in 2006, just before the FIA outlawed them. Teams shifted to V8 engines from 2007 through 2013, and starting in 2014, they have been using the modern 1.6-litre V6 hybrid engines.

To comply with the FIA’s directive that all championships attain carbon neutrality by 2030, Formula 1 will employ “drop-in” 100% sustainable fuels in 2026.

The head of Red Bull Racing offered his opinions on Honda’s return, pointing out that the company had momentarily departed Formula One in 2020 as they switched their attention away from internal combustion engines.

The hybrid technology used in Formula 1 will continue to be used through the end of the decade despite persistent criticism from drivers and fans. A chance for change was offered by the revised power unit requirements for 2026, but the governing board decided to continue with a modified version of the current V6 hybrid power unit.

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, two prominent Formula 1 drivers, have voiced their concerns about the increasing weight of Formula 1 cars and the apparent contradiction with the sport’s sustainability initiatives.

Leclerc expressed his dissatisfaction with heavier cars, stating that he doesn’t favor their handling characteristics. He mentioned that he had the opportunity to drive a Formula 1 car from 2003, and he could feel the significant difference in weight compared to modern cars. Lighter cars tend to handle more responsively and can be more agile, which can be preferred by drivers who prioritize handling and performance.

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F1: Austrian GP Had 1,200 Track Limit Breaches

Several hours after the Austrian Grand Prix, the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) handed down 12 penalties to eight drivers following an investigation into new track limit breaches after Aston Martin filed a protest.

Track limits are the white lines that define the border around the outside of a circuit. If a driver crosses the line with all four wheels, they are considered to have violated track limits. Drivers are required to use the track at all times and are not permitted to leave it without a valid reason.

Due to this, 47 laps of the Austrian GP qualifying were discarded due to track limits. Sergio Perez was responsible for three of them after failing to set a competitive lap time in Q2 and missing Q3 for the fourth straight Grand Prix.

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F1 (Round 4): Preview & Starting Positions Of 2023 Azerbaijan Grand Prix

Following a 4-week break, the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship returns for the fourth round in at the Baku City Circuit in Azerbaijan. This is the seventh time that Azerbaijan is having a F1 round since the first one in 2016, which was actually the European Grand Prix. The 2020 round had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This weekend’s racing will also see the first of six Sprint races for 2023, as well as mark the debut of a new standalone Sprint format, including a Sprint Shootout qualifying session. The objective of this new format is to separate the Sprint and the GP more distinctively, increasing the level of intensity across the weekend and encourage the drivers to push harder.

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F1 (Round 3): 2023 Rolex Australian Grand Prix Highlights & Results

With no rain likely, the Australian GP was expected to have just one stop for most teams, with tyres switched from starting mediums to hards. The first cars were expected to start coming in around lap 15 of the 58-laps of the Albert Park Street Circuit,

Max Verstappen rocketed off from his pole position, but Mercedes-AMG’S George Russell was close as Turn 1 came up and got through the turn first. Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton also moved forward together and somehow, after getting ahead of the Aston Martin driver, Hamilton also slipped past Verstappen.

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F1 (Round 3): Preview & Starting Positions Of 2023 Rolex Australian Grand Prix

After two opening rounds in the Middle East, the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship is in Melbourne this weekend for the Rolex Australian Grand Prix. This event used to be the opening round for a long time but that ended in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Although some teams had expressed reservations about participating as the pandemic began to look very serious, the organizers wanted to go ahead. It seemed like it was on until government authorities ordered the race to be cancelled – just 2 hours before the first practice was to be run.

In 2021, the Australian GP was again chosen as the opening round but due to the restrictions on travellers, it was moved to November, but cancelled in July. 2022 was the first year that the F1 round returned to Australia and a new contract extends the venue till 2035. The event will also be one of the first 3 rounds of each season, and will be the opening round for at least 5 seasons.

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F1 (Round 2): 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Highlights & Results

The second round of the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship saw reigning champion Max Verstappen starting from 15^th after driveshaft failure forced him out of qualifying, and Charles Leclerc in 12^th after taking a 10-place grid drop for using more than his 2 allotted ECUs for the season,

Verstappen’s team mate in Red Bull Racing, Sergio Perez, had a poor start from pole position and was passed by a forceful Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin. However, the Stewards would give Alonso a 5-second penalty for incorrect starting location.

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F1 (Round 2): Preview & Starting Positions Of 2023 STC Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

The 2023 Formula 1 World Championship continues in the Middle East after the opening round in Bahrain with Round 2 at the seaside resort and port city on the Red Sea where the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is being held this weekend. Situated 30 kms from Jeddah, the is the third time that the city is hosting a round on its Corniche street circuit.

Like the Bahrain GP, the Saudi Arabian GP will also be run at night on the 6.174-km circuit, the second longest in the 2023 calendar (after Spa-Francorchamps). Designed by Carsten Tilke, the son of the famous F1 circuit designer, Hermann Tilke, this is the fastest street circuit in the F1 calendar at the moment. Speeds on simulators have averaged over 250 km/h around the track which has 27 turns, the most of any circuit this year.

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F1 (Round 1): 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix Race Highlights & Results

As the lights went out to signal the start of the first round of the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship, Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen pulled away from the field cleanly. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc sneaked by Verstappen’s team mate Sergio Perez in pursuit of the world champion. .

Red Bull would be aiming to win at Bahrain for the first time since 2013 while Lewis Hamilton would hope that he could add one more win to the five previous ones that have made him the most successful driver at this circuit.

Although Fernando Alonso started from P5 and his team mate in the Aston Martin team was in P8, they somehow came in contact as the pack went through Turn 4. It appeared that Stroll was eager to get past Mercedes-AMG’s George Russell who had started from P6 but instead caused Alonso to drop to 7^th. The Stewards considered the Aston Martin incident and decided that no action was necessary.

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F1 (Round 1): Preview & Starting Positions Of 2023 Bahrain Grand Prix

After much anticipation over the past few months, a new Formula 1 season has started. Bahrain again has the honour of being season-opener where it used to be towards the end of the season and it was Australia that started the season.

Apart from the new cars, there are also three new faces – Oscar Piastri with the McLaren F1 Team, Logan Sargeant with Williams Racing, and Nyck de Vries with Scuderia AlphaTauri. While the first two drivers are making their debut in F1, de Vries (who also raced in Formula E) actually made his unplanned debut last year at the Italian GP. He took over Alexander Albon’s place in the Williams team when the Thai driver had appendicitis and could not race. 27 years old then, the Dutch driver did well to ninth position, scoring points on his first F1 outing.

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