In the round-up: Red Bull team principal Christian Horner believes Sergio Perez’s poor performance in the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix is likely to prove a one-off.
In brief
Perez “very strong” until Imola – Horner
Perez finished a lowly eighth having started 11th on the grid. He failed to make the cut for Q3 by just one hundredth of a second, and lost time in the race when he went off between the two Rivazza turns.
However Horner said Perez has turned around his form since last season and expects last weekend’s dip in performance will prove a one-off.
“I think he has had a much better start to this year, bar this weekend, which has been an anomaly,” said Horner. “He’s been very, very strong.
“I think that his approach, he’s been more relaxed, less focussed on what Max is doing, just focusing on himself. And I think he’s responded to that.”
F2 teams fined after simultaneous wheel errors
Formula 2 teams Hitech and Campos were fined £855 (€1,000) each for releasing their drivers from the pits with loose wheels when they came into the pits together during yesterday’s feature race. Amaury Cordeel and Pepe Marti retired following the errors by their respective teams.
In the Campos case, the stewards “acknowledge that the loose wheel from the nearly simultaneous unsafe release of car 16 [Cordeel] was a distraction to the crew of car 21 [Marti]. Nevertheless, safety is paramount and the obligation to release the car in a safe condition remained.”
First Super Formula win for Makino
Tadasuke Makino passed pole-winner Ayumu Iwasa at the start of yesterday’s Super Formula race at Autopolis and went on to claim his first victory in the series. The pair were separated by five seconds at the end, while Sho Tsuboi took third.
Tomoki Nojiri and Makino are tied for the championship lead on 23 points, with Red Bull junior Iwasa three points behind.
Pitt impressed F1 drivers – Bruckheimer
Formula 1 drivers have been impressed by Brad Pitt’s performance at the wheel in filming for his forthcoming film about the series, says producer Jerry Bruckheimer. Pitt, 60, has been cast as one of the drivers in the film which Lewis Hamilton is co-producing.
“These are really fast cars,” Bruckheimer told Entertainment Tonight. “It’s really fantastic to watch Brad train and command these cars the way he does it. The drivers are amazed what a great athlete is.”
“This is something he always wanted to do,” Bruckheimer added. “He always wanted to make a race car movie and fortunately, we’re the lucky ones to make it.”
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Links
Motor racing links of interest:
Why are so many women leaving top jobs at FIA? (The Times)
‘There was only one woman on the six-person ethics committee and since the FIA statute No 9.14.6 says that there has to be a minimum of two, the decision was unconstitutional. The FIA intends to update the ethics committee to include two women from June 13. The FIA statutes (18.2.4) also state that if it is the president who is being investigated, it is not for the ethics committee to adjudicate; instead the report should be submitted to the FIA Senate to decide. So it wasn’t just that the committee was unconstitutional, it was actually the wrong body of people altogether.’
F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix COO says she’s leaving race in ‘stronger position’ (Fox)
‘The chief operating officer for the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix is leaving the race. Betsy Fretwell was announced as COO on January 9th of this year.’
‘Tickets to Formula One can cost thousands of dollars, and Florida law prohibits elected officials from accepting gifts from companies that lobby them — a category that includes the Miami Dolphins, which receives millions in Miami-Dade subsidies, including $4 million in county money earmarked for the weekend Formula One race.’
Black IndyCar driver Myles Rowe says Penske equality program ‘changed my world’ (Detroit Free Press)
‘During a station break, my dad changed the channel and turned to another, which had a Formula One race on. I couldn’t stop watching it. There was so much energy, it just stuck.’
Ellis Island targets Las Vegas Grand Prix in lawsuit (Las Vegas Review-Journal)
‘Ellis Island claims that the race impeded access to its property during the race and during its months-long set-up and tear-down. That infrastructure work impeded both employees and customers from accessing the property on Koval Lane near the Grand Prix Plaza, the suit alleges.’
We always endeavour to credit original sources. If you have a tip for a link relating to single-seater motorsport to feature in the next RaceFans round-up please send it to us via the contact form.
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Social media
Notable posts from X (formerly Twitter), TikTok and more:
Straight-shooting @Max33Verstappen in the post-race press conference.#F1 #EmiliaRomagnaGP #RaceFans pic.twitter.com/VZLUkGJN1c
— RaceFans (@racefansdotnet) May 19, 2024
My helmet for the 108th Indianapolis 500 💥
Inspired by a dream my Grandma had about me racing with a comic-themed helmet. So, I’ve turned my racing journey into a comic strip for this special race. Hope you like it as much as I do! 🙌#Indy500 pic.twitter.com/VIYG6qo0op
— Alex Palou Montalbo (@AlexPalou) May 17, 2024
Today has taken it out of me. It was so nice being back on @5liveSport but also incredibly hard trying to find the words. Sometimes they come, sometimes, not so much. My brain feels like it’s run a marathon. Thanks to everyone for their ongoing support. 😴
— Jennie Gow (@JennieGow) May 19, 2024
Huge shoutout to @nolan_siegel 👏 had to go for it. Left it all on the line. Such a tough one #indy500
— Conor Daly (@ConorDaly22) May 19, 2024
The pole that still eludes me.
But stoked for @smclaughlin93 & @Team_Penske 💪#INDYCAR // #INDY500 pic.twitter.com/AggAIhe5i6
— Will Power (@12WillPower) May 19, 2024
Pleasantly surprised by that one. Suspect McLaren have left Imola knowing that was a win that got away from them. Fascinated to think what @OscarPiastri might have done from second without his unnecessary qualifying penalty.#F1 #EmiliaRomagnaGP #RaceFans
— Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine) May 19, 2024
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Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Ned Flanders, Rui Pinto, Thed4N1El, Dirk and Andy!
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