Ekstrom handed grid penalty after Glock clash

Mattias Ekstrom has been handed a three-place grid penalty for Sunday’s DTM race at the Moscow Raceway.

The Swede clashed with BMW’s Timo Glock while battling for fourth position during Saturday’s opening race.

Ekstrom attempted a pass on the inside of the German into Turn 7, colliding with Glock and sending both cars spearing into the barriers, prompting a second safety car of the race.

While the pair were both eliminated from the race, Ekstrom’s title rival Pascal Wehrlein  claimed a second win of the season to pull eight points clear at the head of the championship standings.

Cassidy joins Prema in European F3

Japanese Formula 3 points leader Nick Cassidy will race for Prema Powerteam at the next two rounds of the European F3 Championship at Portimao and the Nurburgring.

Cassidy will replace Brandon Maisano at Prema after the Italian quit the team mid-event during the last round in Austria.

The 21-year-old, who scored a third place finish at Macau last year, last raced in European F3 in 2013.

“I would like to thank Prema Powerteam for this opportunity, one that I am really looking forward to,” said Cassidy.

“With their knowledge I am looking to learn as much as possible, to develop myself, with the aim of good results in these two race meetings.

“I am sure there will be a few little differences to racing in Japan, but I feel prepared, and am looking forward to the challenge.”

Prema team boss Rene Rosin added: “I am delighted to rely on Cassidy, a very quick and consistent driver who has not yet had the chance to show his real value at European level.

“I wish that, driving with Prema at Portimao, where two days of testing will be held before the race, and at Nurburgring, Nick will be able to score the results he deserves.”

Force India sits out second practice

Force India will sit out second practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix, as investigations into Sergio Perez’s accident in the morning continue.

Perez crashed heavily at Turn 11 of the Hungaroring circuit during opening practice, rolling his Force India.

A suspected right-rear suspension failure pitted Perez into a spin, and into the barriers on the right-hand side of the track.

Perez’s front-right wheel then became trapped up the car, forcing the Force India into a roll, where it came to rest upside down.

The Mexican was unhurt in the accident, but Force India will not run again on Friday as a precaution.

“Sahara Force India will not take part in this afternoon’s second practice session at the Hungaroring as the team continues to investigate a suspension problem, which caused Sergio Perez to crash this morning,” reads a team statement.

“Sergio’s car suffered significant damage to the bodywork, wings and floor, and repairs are ongoing.

“As a precaution, the team has chosen not to run Nico Hulkenberg this afternoon.

“The team will work hard to fully understand the cause of the failure and find a resolution in order to be ready for Saturday’s free practice session.”

This article first appeared on Richland F1 – Image courtesy of Sahara Force India

Perez unhurt after heavy practice crash

Sergio Perez walked away unhurt from a heavy accident in opening practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Perez suffered a suspected right-rear suspension failure coming out of Turn 11, spinning across the track before hitting the barriers on the right-hand side of the circuit.

Perez’s right-front wheel then became trapped underneath the car, pitching the Force India into a roll, where it came to rest upside down.

As the Mexican clambered free of his broken car the session was immediately red flagged, with a medical car sent to the scene.

After a brief precautionary check at the circuit’s medical centre Perez returned to the pits, giving a wave to the onlooking crowd.

“It was a really bad accident, really unlucky,” he told Sky Sports F1.

“I went in at the wrong angle, which made the car roll over, but everything’s all right.

“It was a bit of a strange accident, I thought I was under control but I guess the Astroturf was very dirty and that’s why I went into the wall, but we have to check everything in detail.”

Perez’s accident comes just a week after the death of Jules Bianchi, who passed away on Friday from injuries sustained in a crash at last year’s Japanese Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton topped the interrupted opening session of the weekend at the Hungaroring, lapping a tenth clear of Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg.

This article first appeared on Richland F1 – Image courtesy of Sahara Force India

Gasly: Formula 1 test debut was ‘something special’

Pierre Gasly says his maiden Formula 1 test with Toro Rosso was a ‘special’ experience.

The Frenchman, currently racing with DAMS in GP2, completed 131 laps on route to seventh on the timehseets.

Gasly will drive for the senior Red Bull squad on Wednesday, as testing continues as the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

“It was a wonderful day,” he said. “This morning, getting into a Formula 1 car for the first time was something special.

“The feeling you get from the car is unbelievable. Everything is almost perfect, with elements like the power steering for example and of course there’s much more power than in the other formulas and you have more grip too.

“I really enjoyed the experience and I made the most of it, doing a lot of laps. All drivers dream of driving a Formula 1 car and having now done it, I am even more determined to reach my goal of racing in this category.

“It was awesome and I can’t wait to try it again. Thank you Red Bull and thank you Toro Rosso.”

Image courtesy of Scuderia Toro Rosso

Rosberg pleased with ‘great’ day of testing in Barcelona

Nico Rosberg hailed a ‘great’ day of testing at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

The Spanish Grand Prix winner returned to the site of his win on Sunday for the opening day of the first in-season test.

Rosberg clocked the fastest time of the day with a 1:24.374, completing 146 laps, the most of any driver on Tuesday.

“Today was a great test day for sure,” he said. “The track was a little bit quicker than over the race weekend and we did many laps, so I’m a bit tired! But it’s my only test during the season so it’s important.

“Today, we tested a lot of different things – some more generally for the rest of the season and some for the next race.

“Monaco has very unique setup characteristics so we evaluated a few of those. The last sector here has a lot of tight corners – so it’s like Monaco in a way, which is useful.

“The car felt very good there so I’m feeling optimistic and ready for the next race. It’s in my home town, it’s a legendary circuit and it should be a good weekend so I’m really looking forward to it.”

Image courtesy of Daimler

Teams confirm Barcelona in-season test driver line-up

Formula 1 teams will remain at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the two-day post-Spanish Grand Prix in-season test.

The first of two tests will kick off on Tuesday in Spain, with the second test set to follow next month’s Austrian Grand Prix.

Spanish Grand Prix winner Nico Rosberg will run for Mercedes on the opening day, before handing over to reserve driver Pascal Wehrlein, who last drove the W06 Hybrid at the Barcelona circuit during pre-season.

Wehrlein will also test for Force India on Tuesday, with GP2 racer Nick Yelloly set for his maiden Formula 1 outing with the team on day two.

Raffele Marciello will drive on day one for Ferrari, before fulfilling his role as Sauber reserve driver with the team on Wednesday, taking over from Marcus Ericsson.

Esteban Gutierrez will make his testing debut for Ferrari on day two, after two seasons spent racing for Sauber.

Reigning GP3 champion Alex Lynn will get his maiden outing for Williams on Wednesday, while rival Pierre Gasly will test a Formula 1 car for the first time with Toro Rosso on the opening day before handing over to Carlos Sainz Jr.

Gasly will return for the final day, taking over at the wheel of the Red Bull RB11 from Daniil Kvyat.

Pastor Maldonado and Jolyon Palmer both get a day each at Lotus, with Oliver Turvey splitting testing duties at McLaren with Jenson Button.

The Manor Marussia team confirmed last week that it will skip the test.

Team – Day 1 – Day 2

Mercedes – Nico Rosberg – Pascal Wehrlein

Red Bull – Daniil Kvyat – Pierre Gasly

Williams – Felipe Massa – Alex Lynn

Ferrari – Raffele Marciello – Esteban Gutierrez

McLaren – Oliver Turvey – Jenson Button

Force India – Pascal Wehrlein – Nick Yelloly

Toro Rosso – Pierre Gasly – Carlos Sainz Jr.

Lotus – Pastor Maldonado – Jolyon Palmer

Sauber – Marcus Ericsson – Raffaele Marciello

Stevens says Spanish GP Manor’s ‘best race yet’

Will Stevens says the Spanish Grand Prix was probably Manor Marussia’s ‘best race yet’.

Stevens came home a lapped 17th on his first Formula 1 start at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

“It’s good to finish another race with both cars,” he said. “From a set-up and car balance point of view, this was probably our best race yet, so a good result for the team.

“I didn’t get the best start and I was behind Roberto for the first 12 laps. After I passed him, I pushed as much as I could.

“I’m looking forward to Monaco now, which I think is a track that will suit our car a little more.”

Team-mate Roberto Merhi jumped Stevens off the start but crossed the line 18th after losing time with a flat-spotted tyre during his second stint.

“I’m pleased we achieved another two car finish for the team,” said the Spaniard. “The reliability of the car is obviously very good but we have to find some more performance.

“I got a good start and managed to get ahead of Will and stay there for 12 laps but we were on different tyre management strategies. On my second set of tyres I had a flat-spot and as that was a long stint I lost a lot of time.

“I’m happy to finish my first home race though and to have a good team result here in Spain.”

Manor team boss John Booth hailed the effort of both drivers, and is hoping for more at what he expects will be a special Monaco Grand Prix.

“Both drivers did a good job and we are obviously very pleased with the reliability of the cars,” he said. “Clearly there is some work to do, but our development programme is still in its infancy, so race finishes are key for providing the information we need.

“The next race should be a bit better and of course it is a very special venue for us, as the track where Jules achieved our first two Constructors’ Championship points one year ago.”

Image courtesy of Manor Marussia

I extracted everything to finish seventh – Ricciardo

Daniel Ricciardo says he extracted everything from his Red Bull RB11 on route to seventh place in the Spanish Grand Prix.

Starting from tenth, Ricciardo drove a lonely race to finish a lapped seventh, the best of the rest behind 2015 front-runners Mercedes, Ferrari and Williams.

The Australian is already onto his fourth and final allocated power unit, after encountering a series of failures during the early part of the season.

“I am more satisfied today as we achieved everything we could and seventh was the maximum I could get out of the car,” he said.

“There were some parts of the race that were encouraging but we’re still further off than where we want to be, but we’ll keep pushing.

“We came here with upgrades this weekend but they didn’t give us what we were expecting, so that’s something we’ll keep working on.

“We’re still a fair bit behind Williams at the moment but I think we have a good chance to close the gap a bit further in Monaco.”

Daniil Kvyat came home tenth in the sister Red Bull, surviving a late scrap with Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz Jr. to pick up the final point on offer.

“We didn’t have enough pace today,” the Russian admitted.

“I had a poor opening lap, dropping a few places and from then on that compromised my race. Because here at this track, if you lose places at the start, it’s almost game over, as it is so hard to get close enough to pass.

“I had a nice battle with Sainz towards the end, but now we will wait and see what the Stewards say about how it ended.

“We need to improve the car in every area at the moment. On the positive side, both our cars finished the race, which is good on the reliability front.

“This was a bad day for me, so now I just want to look ahead to Monaco in the hope we can be more competitive there.”

Image courtesy of Red Bull Content Pool

Bottas pleased to split the Ferraris in fourth

Valtteri Bottas was pleased to split the two Ferraris of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen after finishing the Spanish Grand Prix in fourth.

Bottas ran comfortably in fourth throughout the race and held off the late advances of Raikkonen to secure 12 points for Williams.

“It feels good to split the Ferraris for a second race in a row and this has been another solid points haul for the team,” Bottas said.

“Tyre life was better than we expected and as a result we changed from a three-stop to a two-stop race, which was a good strategic choice from the team because it allowed me to keep Räikkönen behind.

“The big positive is that we were closer to the leaders than we have been at any point this season. That gives me a lot of hope because we have shown that the updates we are bringing are improving our performance.

“I want to thank all the team here and in Grove for providing me with a great car to go racing with, and I’d also like to thank Mercedes HPP as they continue to push hard on the power unit to help us keep our competitors at bay.”

Williams team-mate Felipe Massa recovered from his worse starting position of the year to come home sixth at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

“It was a good race for the team, scoring 20 points, not losing too much to Ferrari, but also getting a lot more than Red Bull which is really important and positive for our championship position,” he said.

“I managed to overtake cars on the first lap and then fought hard with Kimi [Raikkonen] for a long time, which was hard on the tyres.

“Because of the extra degradation a three-stop race was better for me today, but it meant the others were too far ahead.

“We finished with one car in front of a Ferrari so we have shown that we can be competitive with them and we can now look forward to Monaco which will be a very different test for the car.”

Image courtesy of Williams F1 Team