2023-05-25 09:56:15
Not spoken
Nyck de Vries is under pressure, at least in the media. The sporting achievements of the Dutchman are also observed by Red Bull, as motorsport consultant Dr. Helmut Marko in an interview on the formula1.de YouTube channel said.
When asked about the many reports and alleged ultimatums, de Vries spoke during his media round in Monaco on Thursday. “It’s perfectly normal to talk to your bosses and we talk regularly, but haven’t done that in the past few weeks.”
Consciously asked about the rumors, whether he had read them and then the conversation with Dr. Marko, says de Vries, “No, not at all. I try not to watch the media on and around race weekends because it doesn’t really help me. I’ve noticed some things through messages that have been sent to me, but I have haven’t read anything myself.”
Does de Vries feel safe with AlphaTauri at the moment? “Yes and it’s no shock to me that it’s the way it is now because that’s the way business is and that’s the way it’s always been, at Red Bull and in Formula 1. I honestly think it’s different than at the beginning of the season, you always have to perform, deliver and it’s always been like that throughout my career.
As a driver you always have to fight to advance your career successfully. So it’s all normal, like it’s always been.”
© circuitpics.de
Attack to win?
Fernando Alonso’s form this season has been impressive. The Spaniard finished third in every race and, apart from Sergio Perez, is Max Verstappen’s only real competitor for the world championship at the moment, so a win in Monaco would be a strong sign for the competition and your own team, wouldn’t it?
Alonso climbed the top step of the podium in the Principality in 2006 and 2007, will he be able to do so at the weekend? His team boss Mike Krack is cautiously optimistic and says “it would be nice to say yes and do it. We all have high hopes for Monaco here with our two drivers, we have a great car. In the simulator they were all pretty excited. “
But there are also pitfalls on the way to the top, which he clearly names: “We must not forget the competition. We have not yet seen a Red Bull, Ferrari or Mercedes in a configuration with high downforce”, so qualifying will be on Saturday play a very important role, “I think if you don’t start on the front two rows it’s going to be very, very difficult to get the win. And that’s the first thing you have to do. You have to get through training , you have to get through qualifying without making any mistakes.”
Nevertheless, he makes it clear again that it is absolutely not a matter of course for Aston Martin to be even remotely among the favorites for a victory in Monaco in 2023, “twelve months ago we would not have talked about a victory in Monaco. I think , we must never forget where we came from, we have to keep our heads down and work hard to see where we ended up,” Krack said in his media round.
Not only in focus in 2026
Mike Krack also pointed out that yesterday’s news primarily relates to the year 2026, but that as a Mercedes customer you still have tasks to fulfill and want to take development steps until then.
“We are still in our old factory, are now gradually moving and we have a customer package. Development will be more on the chassis side in the next few years.”
Fernando Alonso said a few weeks ago that they are ahead of their target plan to reach the top flight by 2024, which Krack also spoke about:
“Yes we can say we are ahead of schedule but if you had asked me the question a few months ago we would have been behind schedule. It shows how fast things are going in Formula 1 and I believe it is sampling is dangerous, you should always look at the longer term, but we’re confident enough that we can still improve, which doesn’t mean we’ll be at the top next year, but we can try to get even closer to be.”
© Motorsport Images
Factory Support Benefits
“We will be a full-fledged Honda factory team, but we will carry the Aston Martin name beyond 2026. That’s for sure. So we will remain Aston Martin,” were the words of Aston Martin Group CEO Martin Whitmarsh as part of the announcement of the Aston Martin and Honda partnership.
Of course, Mike Krack also received further questions on this subject, how factory support and being a Honda factory team can help. In his media round in Monaco, he particularly emphasized the integration of engine development with the design of the chassis:
“If you look at the engine regulations for the 2026 season and the chassis regulations that will develop from them, you can see that you need full or at least a high degree of integration with the drive unit in order to develop the right chassis for these regulations.
So if you have a factory partnership, the flow of information is much more open, you get data earlier, for example on energy management, which aero configuration you should choose to achieve the right goal. That’s a big advantage for this interpretation of the regulations.”
Moving in begins, so does development
Things are changing at Aston Martin.
The team from Silverstone will start moving into the new factory over the weekend and, among other things, push ahead with the development of their own transmission, which is then to be installed in the car from 2026.
In a media session on Thursday morning, team boss Mike Krack said it was a challenge not having your own gearbox yet, but “space has been set aside in the new factory for us to be able to develop our own gearbox. Over the next few months should we’ll be able to do that and be ready for 2026.”
ServusTV does not play at home
In Austria, due to the cancellation of the Grand Prix in Imola, there will be a reallocation of the Formula 1 races to be broadcast by ServusTV and ORF.
ServusTV holds the exclusive rights to Formula 1 in the land of mountains and streams, but has sublicensed them to ORF for the entire season.
The Hungarian Grand Prix will run on ServusTV and for “reasons of economy and efficiency”, as stated in the official press releasedecided that the home game, the Austrian Grand Prix, would no longer be shown on both channels at the same time.
The ORF will take over the transmission of the race weekend at the Red Bull Ring, that was announced today.
Incidentally, the Monaco Grand Prix is being broadcast in Austria on ServusTV this weekend.
Sidebox Comparisons
Albert Fabrega is still looking for the best photos of the new Mercedes W14 and has now put the side boxes in the comparison.
As you can see, the “Zeropod” is indeed history. It looks like they’ve really gravitated towards Aston Martin and Alpine, which makes perfect sense. I’m totally interested in how the sidepod looks with the whole car and what the undercut will be like.
We will, of course, also send our photographers out so that we will soon have even better quality photos that we can show you.
Redemption
Red Bull uses the famous “Helmut lap” in the simulator as a benchmark for assessing the quality of the driver. The speed, the accuracy, the perspective.
Of course, Daniel Ricciardo also drives in the simulator, collecting important data for the team and helping to find the setup. Of course, the times are compared to those of regular drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez. The verdict of Red Bull motorsport consultant Dr. Helmut Marko in a detailed interview with Formel1.de: “Not at their level.”
In 2018, Ricciardo was clearly on the same level in Monaco. In 2016, victory in the Principality was taken away from him by a gruesome pit stop, but two years later it was time for “redemption”. That wasn’t an easy race for the Australian either, he didn’t have seventh gear and the MGU-K was gone too. It was a strong performance.
Bulging?
Yesterday the Spanish journalist Albert Fabrega was already on the trail of the “new Mercedes” W14 and photographed the front view of the side box inlet.
He actually managed to get a side view and if you look at the picture from his Twitter channel, you can actually say goodbye to the “Zeropod”.
The sidepod of the updated W14 does indeed appear to be conservatively bulged and somewhat more like the Red Bull in shape, although not as heavily undercut. But these are early pictures, we hope to get some more impressions from our photographers later in the day.
press conferences on Thursday
The drivers not only send us the statements from our colleagues on site, but like every Thursday we are also excited to see what they say in the press conferences.
There are again two groups today who will be sitting in the official FIA press conference from 2:30 p.m. This is how they look:
2:30 p.m.:
Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri)
Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
Kevin Magnussen (Haas)
Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
3:05 p.m.:
Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)
Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
Alexander AlbonWilliams
I think it’s clear whose impressions we’re most excited about in each group, right? Fernando Alonso and his Aston Martin team’s partnership with Honda from 2026 will be a big topic, but Lewis Hamilton will certainly also have to answer questions about the updates to the Mercedes W14.
I’m looking forward to it!
© Motorsport Images
Bonjour
A wonderful good morning, dear Formula 1 fans,
Media day in Monaco! It’s finally starting again with a regular Formula 1 racing weekend and, as always, it starts on Thursday with the press conferences and discussions between the drivers. Kevin Scheuren welcomes you to the Formula 1 live ticker.
I will try to keep an eye on everything that was said as best as possible and present it to you here in the ticker. It’s going to be an exciting day, because there are enough questions for the pilots, including those that they certainly don’t want to ask. Key word: GP2 engine.
If you have any questions, topic tips or suggestions, please feel free to contact me Twitter or use the hashtag #FragMST, Instagram or our contact form. I’m always happy about opinions and input on what I’m writing here for you.
Here you can read yesterday’s live ticker again.
Have a nice day!
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