Formula One Vault

This Grand Prix – Spanish

Hello, Max Verstappen won the Spanish Grand Prix but the big question going into this race was by how much? Not much at a circuit which is seen as the benchmark, but it’s not clear who is closest as Ferrari had a tough weekend

General News

The Brad Pitt – Lewis Hamilton F1 movie has been given a release date by Apple of 25^th June 2025 and in cinemas from 27^th June 2025, though its UK cinema release hasn’t been announced. The as-yet-untitled film was made in collaboration with Formula 1 and boasts the Top Gun: Maverick director-producer combination of Joseph Kosinski and Jerry Bruckheimer. Pitt, along with British actor Damson Idris, were present at multiple 2023 F1 races – including the British Grand Prix at Silverstone – for filming.

A statement said, “The movie is a landmark for the sport and cinema, filmed in real-time during grands prix around the world and involving the Formula 1 community, including all 10 teams, the drivers, the FIA and race promoters.”

“The new feature film is set in the exhilarating and cinematic world of Formula 1 and will immerse audiences in the spectacle of the most popular annual sports series, celebrating the skill and heroism of the drivers while showcasing the incredible challenge of competition in Formula 1.” Production will conclude in Abu Dhabi in December with filming on-going through the season.

Hamilton has said in a YouTube video recently, “Racing movies, I feel like it’s very, very hard to capture them. You know, each year you have to do filming (where) you’re following a truck that has a camera on the back, so it’s hard to catch that capture speed. You know, you can’t have a truck following filming us at 200 miles an hour, so it’s all kind of faked at a slower speed and they speed it up. But this is all real-time, real speed.”

Weekend Recap

FP1 saw Lando Norris top the times with a 14.228 going nearly a quarter of a second faster than Max Verstappen. Carlos Sainz put his Ferrari third the Spaniard going just over three-tenths behind Verstappen, as he went four hundredths faster than George Russell

FP2 was topped by Lewis Hamilton with a 13.264 to go two hundredths faster than Sainz. Hamilton vaulted himself up the times midway through to displace the Ferrari who had led most of the session up to that point. Verstappen could only manage fifth going a quarter of a second behind Gasly, this weekend has been seen as a key test in how close the field has got to Red Bull

FP3 was topped by Sainz with a 13.015 which put him three hundredths faster than Norris. The McLaren driver managed to split the two Ferraris after going seven thousandths faster than Leclerc. Verstappen could only go fourth nearly four hundredths behind Leclerc.

Qualifying Norris beat Verstappen by two hundredths with the perfect lap in one of the closest qualifying sessions of the session. Norris lit up the times in the closing moments of Q3 to take his second pole in five races and take his second pole in his career, while Verstappen has not looked comfortable all weekend in his Red Bull. Hamilton put his Mercedes third but his challenge for pole failed to materialise, with the seven-time champion nearly three-tenths behind Verstappen as he went two-thousandths of a second faster than his teammate George Russell

Verstappen took a two-second win ahead of Norris and Hamilton, as the world champion looked unable to pull away. But the moment which gave him victory came early on thanks to his the way strategy played out, after Verstappen swept past Norris on lap three along with Russell. That cost Norris just over two seconds which stuck with him throughout the race he was unable to get any closer.

Norris in the closing stages looked to be closing once again but ultimately ran out of laps and finished second. Hamilton couldn’t join the fight as the step forward in practice on race pace failed to translate as he finished fifteen seconds behind Norris to take his first Grand Prix podium of 2024. Russell eventually dropped behind his teammate and finished five seconds behind.

Red Bull

Max Verstappen has called on F1 to triple the weight reductions under the 2026 regulations to be “at least 100kg to 150kg.” about a month ago, the FIA released the new proposals with the cars set to be slightly narrower and shorter, as well as reducing weight by 30kg.

That weight drop will be welcomed by drivers, who have called for lighter cars after the trend in recent years of cars getting heavier and heavier making them less enjoyable to drive. However, the question will be how to do that as many of the teams are struggling to meet the current minimum weight, thus costing lap time.

Verstappen told Motorsport.com, “It’s gonna be very tough with how everything is, but let’s see. I mean, even now, some teams are overweight, right? So, to go even 30 kilos less… of course, I know that the dimensions change a little bit, but I’m not sure that 30 kilos will be the perfect scenario.”

His goal of 100-150kg Verstappen admitted he wasn’t sure if it was possible, because of engine and battery weight and length. But also accepted that current safety measures also added weight which couldn’t be compromised.

During practice, Verstappen was complaining about his car being “loose”. The three-time champion later explained that these messages where as a result of the team trying out various setups on the car. The possible theory is that most of this looseness of the car being in the lower-speed middle sector.

He said after practice, “We just tried a few different setups out there in FP1, FP2. Just trying to fine-tune it a little bit. At least I think the day itself was a bit more normal without any issues so that’s what we were hoping for.”

Friday was also tough for Sergio Perez who was thirteenth in Fp2, who has retired from the last two races and has a three-place grid penalty from the last race. Reflecting on his day in Spain, Perez said: “I started the day well but then into FP2 we did quite a bit of changes and we lost track somewhere. Plenty of things to analyse.

Red Bull has been at pains to play down the extent of modifications made to its car aimed at improving cooling. As the European summer begins the need to add more cooling is needed so the cars don’t overheat similar to what we see in the Middle East at the start and end of the year.

But while the size of the inlets has indeed been adjusted, there has also been a great deal of work done by its aerodynamicists in order to optimise the shape of the undercut and beltline thereafter, which will undoubtedly yield more performance as a consequence.

Following the race, Verstappen said that his first-lap move down the inside of polesitter Lando Norris, and swift clearance of leader George Russell. The opening laps where he overtook the two Englishman gave him the edge throughout the remainder of the race.

Although the Dutchman wrested position from Norris, it ultimately proved to be for second as Russell swept around the outside of both drivers and led the first two laps. Russell’s lead lasted for little longer than that, as Verstappen captured a tow on the exit of Turn 14 and cleared the Mercedes driver with DRS to start the third lap out in front.

He told Sky Sports, “I think what made my race was getting the lead in lap two and basically getting also ahead of Lando. That’s where I basically won the race with the gap that I have to Lando, since that first stint I had been driving a very aggressive and defensive race, being quite early with the stops compared to Lando.”

“They were definitely just a bit faster today, better on tyres as well and that is of course a little bit concerning. That’s not what you like to see but as a team, I think we operated really well today. We maximised everything that we had.” This race was close throughout and we know that overtaking can be difficult here and Verstappen needed to clear Norris in that first stint because of offset strategy potential.

Mercedes

Mercedes went into the weekend not expecting to be “right at the front,” after finishing on the podium for the first time this season in Montreal. Mercedes’ progress has come after several upgrades to the W15, and while more are set to arrive in Barcelona, Allison believes the track and conditions won’t quite be as suited to the car.

In the team’s preview, Allison said, “The changes we have made are making this car a better car. And that will be true at every circuit we go to. The characteristics of Montreal make it look a little quicker than we have a natural right to command at the coming races.”

“In Barcelona, I think it more likely that we will be competitive, but not right at the front. Because the next tracks are a little bit of a sterner test of a car. Hot asphalt, wider cornering speeds.”

Mercedes and Northamptonshire Police have launched an investigation into an anonymous email which has claimed Lewis Hamilton’s car has been “sabotaged” by the team this year.

The letter, which claims to be written by a Mercedes team member, was sent to senior figures in Formula 1 including Wolff and members of the media. Toto Wolff rejected the claims in the letter as “mad” and said he and Hamilton were determined to end their relationship on a high following his decision to drive for Ferrari from 2025.

The Mercedes CEO and team principal Wolff told the media, “It is not from a member of the team. When we get these emails – and we get tonnes of these kinds of emails – it is upsetting, particularly when someone is talking about death.”

“Online abuse like that has to stop. People can’t hide behind their computers and abuse teams or drivers like this.” The email alleged that Hamilton was being disadvantaged by the team deliberately in comparison with team-mate George Russell.

Hamilton who is leaving Mercedes at the end of the season to join Ferrari, said at the Spanish Grand Prix on Thursday that he was not aware of the email.

He said: “Of course, things can always be done better within the team and that comes through conversations and communication. That is something we are consistently working on. We all want to finish on a high and I feel we owe that to our long-term relationship.”

On track, despite going into the weekend not expecting to be at the front, Hamilton topped FP2 going two hundredths faster than Sainz. which suggests that they are getting stronger as Barcelona’s mixture of corners that tests every part of the car.

He said, “We learned a lot in that session then P2 felt quite a bit better. Made some good changes to the car and I felt great today. Very hot track, very tough on the tyres, especially on the long run. It doesn’t feel like we were too far off. I won’t take too much notice of lap times necessarily.” I think that this is what we needed to see this weekend for Mercedes to be in the mix with Ferrari and McLaren for the remainder of this season.

But Hamilton rightly suggested the car is definitely in a better place, but the car still needed to improve overnight.

George Russell was eighth quickest and half a second off his Mercedes team-mate, but he has delivered when it mattered most in qualifying this year and is not concerned about the gap to Hamilton. Russell said Mercedes had the best long-run pace, which also bodes well for Sunday’s race, but expects Red Bull to improve.

he said, “I am feeling good,”. “The car is performing well around this circuit. Need to have a closer look at it but Lewis top of the timesheet, really great to see, I felt really strong on the medium tyre. Long run in P1, we were up there with the quickest. It is only Friday but it has been a while since we have been consistently at the upper end.

Hamilton was third and Russell fourth in qualifying with the seven-time champion beating his teammate by just two thousandths. On a personal level, it also marked a mini breakthrough for Hamilton after being out-qualified 8-1 by Russell across the opening nine Grands Prix of the season, with the younger Briton taking P4.

Hamilton after qualifying said, “I’m super grateful to be in the top three. “It’s been quite a difficult year, so a huge amount of work from everyone back at the factory and finally we’re starting to see those incremental steps, moving closer to the guys ahead.”

“I didn’t expect us to be fighting for pole necessarily, but every now and then there looks like there were bits there and maybe we’ll be close, so to be there, I’m just grateful.”

I think Mercedes are going to probably join the winners club, it’s remarkable how they have turned it around thanks to the upgrades. They are continuing to push to get the upgrades and maybe a win could come for Hamilton if they make more progress before he goes to Ferrari at the end of the season.

Russell himself offered a similar assessment of the session as he took plenty of positives despite being out-paced by his teammate.

Asked if P3 and P4 is proof that Mercedes’ steps are real, he said: “Yeah, absolutely. I think we’ve shown it now three races in a row. I think in Monaco we were 20 milliseconds from P3, and that would have been a podium. In Canada, obviously pole. Here, the gap was maybe slightly bigger than we hoped. I think Lando did an exceptional job.

Hamilton went on to take his first podium of the season describing the weekend as the best of the season. The seven-time world champion recovered from a bad start before finding a pace advantage to overtake his teammate Russell using a soft-medium-soft strategy to finish five seconds ahead.

Here is what he said after the race, “After a bad start, to recover and get back into P3 is a really, really great job. I’m really happy – particularly my second and last stints were very, very strong. And I think the first one, I was just recovering from such a bad start, so that was a bit more tricky. But we’re getting there, we’re getting closer, and a big, big thank you to the team, because we’re slowly closing the gap.”

Hamilton said this has been the teams best weekend of the year, I agree as they have looked to be in the mix with McLaren and while I don’t think we saw the true pace of Ferrari this weekend. Mercedes upgrades have been consistent this weekend and since they understood their upgrades from Imola have had two podiums in two races.

Ferrari

Carlos Sainz says it is “time to make a decision” about his future – but admits he has not yet decided who he wants to drive for. While Sainz said he had no news to share on the eve of his home Spanish GP, he admitted that the time had come for him to imminently decide on who he was going to sign for. In the press conference ahead of his home race, the Spaniard said, “The latest is a decision will be taken very soon.”

Adding, “I don’t want to wait any longer. It’s getting to a point where it’s taking space out of my head for quite a few weeks and months now. It’s time to make a decision and the decision will be taken soon. Hopefully, soon we will have things to talk about.” Sainz is key in the driver market as it will dictate where other drivers go in 2025 as eight other drivers have not confirmed they will be on the grid next year.

Tensions could be brewing between Sainz and teammate Charles Leclerc following their fight early on in the race. The Spaniard pulled off an aggressive move into the first corner and that made Leclerc frustrated as Sainz didn’t leave enough space.

After the race, Leclerc was very unhappy with Sainz’s approach, revealing that they had agreed beforehand to save their tyres.

Leclerc said, “We had a clear strategy at the beginning of the race with both to save tyres to attack later on. Carlos didn’t do any saving in Turn 14 and of course had an opportunity to overtake me in Turn 1, which is a bit of a shame because we lost time between us. I damaged my front wing because of Carlos making the turn and not seeing I was inside and that made our race more difficult.”

It as Leclerc said at that stage in the race seemed unnecessary but I think it proves they are both hungry to maximise results.

Responding to Leclerc, Sainz said “I was trying out what I have to try out there as a driver. He elected to manage more, in the end, it kind of paid as he beat me at the end on a soft-medium-soft. For me, I elected to be aggressive soft-medium-hard and it didn’t pay off. I think George and I on the hards were too slow while the guys on soft were very quick.”

Sainz ultimately ended up on different strategy, progressing to a stint on the mediums and then ending on the hard, but he reckoned that the undercut strategy failed to offer much.

McLaren

Going into the weekend, McLaren believed its low-speed gains hasn’t compromised its performance at high-speed circuits. The team in recent years has excelled in high-speed corners, but there has been a shift in the characteristics of its 2024 challenger off the back of upgrades that arrived at Miami. While it has improved across the spectrum it is has been unsure why it has made those gains.

However, with teams having found that one of the biggest challenges is in delivering a car that is good at both low and high-speed corners, there has been some uncertainty about whether or not McLaren’s gains in one area would come at the expense of its form in the other.

But ahead of what will be an intriguing Spanish Grand Prix weekend, which is more in the medium and high-speed range than recent circuits, McLaren sees no cause for alarm.

Oscar Piastri reckoned that while there was no doubt other teams had closed the gap in high speed, McLaren had every reason to feel it can be in the mix at the front. he said, going into the weekend, “I think we can still be confident. I wouldn’t say we’re weak in high speed, it’s just that others have probably caught up a little bit. I’m pretty confident we’ll be somewhere towards the front as well. Red Bull will probably be a bit stronger than they have been, but we’ll be in the fight.”

While the team does understand the dynamics at play but has refused to elaborate on the reasons why in case it hands an advantage to the opposition. I think the team are right as this is a sport not to give answers if that will help their rivals in closing the gap. Going into this weekend in the last three races they have scored the most points.

Piastri feels the team  can consider itself a potential championship challenger. he said, “It’ll be tough, definitely, but I think we’re in the fight. We scored the most points in Canada as a team, not by much [it was equal to Mercedes], but it’s definitely a really good result for us.”

In qualifying McLaren got the perfect answer with Norris taking pole by two-hundredths ahead of Verstappen. But the close field this weekend going into the race made Norris believe eight cars could have been in the mix going into the race, I think as I’ve written throughout the weekend it looks like the gap has closed and we may have answers to whether Red Bull’s advantage has been closed.

Norris said in the post-qualifying press conference, “ I’m excited It’s a long run down to Turn 1 so it’s one of the places you don’t want to start on pole. But it’s an opportunity for us to go out and try and win a race. We’ve not done loads of long-running. We’ve done a bit and I think we were close – as it always has been.”

“So, I think tomorrow is not like ‘this car or this car is way quicker’, I think between Mercedes, ourselves, Red Bull, Ferrari there’s eight cars that probably could’ve been on pole today and have a chance of probably winning the race tomorrow.” Going into the race stats were on his side nearly 70% of the races here have been won from the pole. Overtaking isn’t easy either but the opening stint and pit strategy I think are going to be key

Norris was frustrated after losing ground which cost him two seconds and gave Verstappen victory, as he claimed the team had “the quickest car.” Verstappen headed Norris out of the opening turns and made light work of Russell at the start of lap three, Norris would spend the first stint behind the Mercedes and only get by when making the most of fresher tyres having pitted at the end of an extended soft tyre run.

Addressing the critical opening to the race, Norris told Sky Sports, “It really wasn’t like it was a bad start. It was like two meters, Max just got there and I couldn’t cover him. And that was it. Also from George’s side, George has such a good slipstream.

“The cars are getting almost more and more draggy in some ways because you’re having more and more downforce but in an efficient way. George has slipstreamed past both of us. Even if you took me out of it, George still would have got ahead of Max.”

I think that start was where the race was lost as this is a difficult circuit to overtake and had he got that right he may have had the opportunity to fight with Verstappen throughout the race.

Norris’ pace across the previous two months has made clear the step in performance made by McLaren, asked if the car was now the fastest on the grid, he replied: “Today, yes. Yesterday, no. Yesterday, 100%, the Red Bull was quicker. I don’t care what people say. Today, we were the quickest car. Fact. So the team deserved it.

Aston Martin

Aston Martin believes that having exceeded expectations last year its being judged too harshly this season, with team principal Mike Krack saying the team  is now battling inflated expectations. Aston Martin is currently lagging behind 2024’s four top teams and has slipped back to battle the improving RB outfit in recent races, with the team’s standout driver Yuki Tsunoda frequently finishing ahead of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.

This time last year Alonso had taken six podiums over the first eight races, before Aston was overtaken by the surging McLaren team. The team has put this down to the transition into its new factory at Silverstone as well as the gap closing between McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari, which have made a lot of progress since the start of 2023.

asked by Autosport why there is a disconnect between the progress Krack claims the team is making and its lack of on-track results, he replied: “These processes take time and there are not many businesses where you have less time than Formula 1.”

“So that is the constant juggling between expectation management and the expectations you generate also with what we had last year. Last year, we exceeded [expectations] massively, and we are measured on this today. And that is why we have to put this year a bit more in perspective.” These comments come halfway between owners Lawrence Stroll’s target of challenging for titles ‘in four to five years.’

Krack wasn’t with the team yet at that time, warned that the squad’s long-term focus means its progress won’t necessarily be linear. He added, “Last year, at this time, you said: ‘You are much ahead of the plan’. Now, we are much behind the plan. And that’s fine, we have to face also these questions if we put these statements out. Last year, we were obviously better than we were thinking. That trajectory will go up, it will go down, depending on what your competitors are doing. It is like the stock exchange.”

I think Aston are still in the building phase and not everything has come together yet and the likes of McLaren have closed the gap over the last year, but they are further ahead in their own rebuilding phase. I don’t doubt that they will close up over the next few years and then it will be a case of execution in races and development battle. I was impressed by Aston last year, but my brain always thought it was unlikely to continue over the whole season which it didn’t

Fernando Alonso says the team needs to ‘to talk less and deliver more’ following a disappointing weekend in Barcelona. Alonso added the team “did not deserve to score any point” after he lost a place after qualifying twelfth for his home race and only gained one place.

Alonso warned that more pain could follow through the tipple header with Spielberg and Silverstone next. He said: “It is frustrating but there’s nothing you can do now so you start thinking in Austria immediately when you see the chequered flag and what you can do differently.”

“But I think it’s gonna be painful as well because it has some characteristics of Barcelona, with the long corners. It’s going to be another tough weekend, also in Silverstone, arguably. We cannot get too frustrated. It’s time to work harder, to talk less, to deliver more. It’s what we want to do.”

This I think highlights one of the big issue we have talked about all season the team has fallen backwards since this time last year, the upgrades didn’t allow them to close the gap. When asked why the team has got it wrong and the upgrades are not working, he added: “I’m a driver, not a technician”.

Alpine

Alpine are reported to be in talks to abandon its works engine deal and become a customer of another manufacturer. the team which is owned by the French manufacturer Renault, has had a difficult start to the season prompting a review of the team and what it needs to do to turn itself around.

The current power unit is the least competitive on the grid compared to its rivals, there are no guarantees that in 2026 when the new power unit regulations come in that they will get it right. That’s why they are questioning if the investment is needed to produce its own power unit.

However, despite talks with the team, it is thought that the chances of a Red Bull – Ford deal are unlikely because of the logistical complications that the Milton Keynes-based team would face in supplying a third team alongside itself and sister squad RB for its debut campaign in 2026.

Red Bull CEO and team principal Christian Horner said: “I think we need to establish ourselves first. We don’t want to overstretch ourselves. I think already supplying two teams in ’26, that is probably even slightly beyond optimum in year one, but it just gives us the capacity and capability for further down the line. So I think first of all, we need to firmly establish ourselves and then we have the capability to take more on from there.”

I think this would be a big u-turn by Renault and a strange one which could open questions about its long-term commitment to the sport and manufacturers leaving is not the best image for the sport and Renault/Alpine brands. Renault CEO Luca de Meo made it clear recently that he was committed to the future of Alpine in F1, despite interest from potential buyers.

Speaking to Autocar, he said: “It’s not my style. We will not sell even a part of this thing. We don’t need the money. I’ve had people making offers left and right, then talking in the press about it. But we’re not interested. It would be stupid, and I won’t do it.” But Alpine declined to comment on the situation when contacted by Motorsport.com.

Former team principal Flavio Briatore has returned to the team as executive adviser. Its an extraordinary return to the team after he was forced to resign in 2009, and was later banned over race fixing the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. CEO Luca de Meo said Briatore would “predominantly focus on top-level areas of the team.”

It added that his roles would include “scouting top talents and providing insights on the driver market, challenging the existing project by assessing the current structure and advising on some strategic matters within the sport”.

Briatore’s recruitment is the latest development at a team that has been through a period of management turmoil in the last year.

Since July 2023, the former chief executive Laurent Rossi has been dismissed and Alpine have lost a team principal, sporting director, technical director, head of aerodynamics, operations director and engineering consultant, with driver Esteban Ocon joining that list at the end of the season. This season the team has continued the decline this season with one of the slowest cars on the grid.

His return completes his rehabilitation following the so-called ‘crashgate’ scandal, despite being found guilty by the FIA courts, Briatore has always denied involvement – and in 2010, France’s high court overturned that ban. Since then, Briatore has retained a peripheral role in F1, primarily through his involvement in the management of Alonso’s career.

Briatore had carved a reputation as one of the sport’s most effective managers. However not without scandal, he was convicted of fraud in Italy in 1980s before becoming team principal of what was Benetton/Renault/Alpine in 1988 to 2009, except for a brief period between 1998-2000. But the team were also embroiled in another cheating scandal in 1994, when the team’s car was found to have illegal traction control software buried in a concealed menu system. Benetton were not penalised because the FIA could find no proof it had been used.

Williams

F1 has learned that Williams has promoted Adam Kenyon to Head of Aerodynamics, a position that has been vacant for more than a year the latest in team principal James Vowles’s attempts to rebuild the team, since joining from Mercedes around eighteen months ago.

Adam Kenyon to Head of Aerodynamics, a position that has been vacant for more than a year. Vowles confirmed the move, saying “Adam Kenyon is our Head of Aero – that was done without a big fanfare in March this year. I worked with Adam back at Mercedes and he was at Red Bull prior to that.”

In Montreal, the Englishman said the team were working hard to grow the teams workforce and were in the process of signing some “big names” across their technical organisation.

RB

Sauber

Valtteri Bottas says he fancies his chances of finding a place on the grid in 2025, although he acknowledges he will need to act quickly. The Swiss team which will become Audi in 2026, have already signed Nico Hulkenberg for next year with the second seat set said to be Carlos Sainz who is deciding between the team and Williams.

Sainz is said to be the cork in the driver market, his decision could be key in who ends up where in 2025, as well as Bttas and teammate Guanyu Zhou. It thought now that Sainz or Bottas will see their futures decided by where Sainz decides to go next year.

But as time drags on and some of the aforementioned teams are poised to pull the trigger rather than keep waiting and missing out on the best options altogether, Bottas similarly realises he will need to act soon to avoid missing the cut.

Bottas acknowledged in Canada, “I think I need to make my choice quickly. Nothing has been signed yet from my side, but I’m still working with all the options and need to make a move soon.”

“[Audi] is willing to wait for a long time. But I can’t forever, so this team is definitely still an option but I don’t think I have the time to wait for too long, so that’s why I want to speed things up.”

Asked by Motorsport.com if there was a chance he would end up on the sidelines, he replied: “I’m confident I’m going to get a seat, but obviously in this sport nothing is confirmed so it’s never 100% sure until you are signed. But how I see the situation at the moment I’m not worrying. It should be an interesting week or two ahead for sure.”

Bottas says his time at Mercedes where his contracts were renewed annually has made it easier for him to handle uncertainties.

Teammate Zhou also believes he could still find a place for next year, fighting for the same spots at Haas and Alpine as his more experienced teammate. he said, “I think all the seats are still available. We’re in discussion about my future, but nothing’s been confirmed. I feel like there should be a spot for me in the future on this grid, but I just don’t know where.”

Haas

The Swiss arbitration court mediating the dispute between Haas and Uralkali over the former’s decision to end their sponsorship agreement following Russia’s 2022 Ukraine invasion has issued a ruling. Nikita Mazepin was dismissed after a year with the team as they terminated the sponsorship with his father fertiliser company because of his links to President Vladimir Putin.

Uralkali was seeking a refund on the $13 million fee it already paid to Haas to cover the 2022 season. Haas then wholly rejected Uralkali’s claims and the matter went to court, with both sides now claiming victory.

At the time, Uralkali claimed it was acting “to protect its interests in line with applicable legal procedures and reserves its rights to initiate judicial proceedings, claim damages and seek repayment of the significant amounts Uralkali had paid for the 2022 Formula 1 season”.

The company said it had provided “most of the sponsorship funding for the 2022 season” to Haas and felt that “given that the team terminated the sponsorship agreement before the first race of the 2022 season, Haas has thus failed to perform its obligations to Uralkali for this year’s season”.

Uralkali claimed in a statement “The tribunal found that Haas was in violation of the contract and obliged the team to pay compensation to Uralkali” and said, “The tribunal also rejected all of the team’s counterclaims toward the company”.

Haas also has claimed victory saying  “the arbitration panel ruled that Haas had ‘just cause’ to terminate its sponsorship contract with Uralkali, and denied Uralkali’s claims for breach of contract”.

The statement added: “Haas terminated its agreement with Uralkali on 4 March 2022, shortly after Russian military forces invaded Ukraine.” The court ruled the team ‘could not be expected to continue the Sponsorship Agreement’ following the invasion of Ukraine.

Haas has been ordered to pay $13m of the sponsorship for the period after 4^th March 2022.

Results Summary

Championship Standings