In the round-up: Mercedes will expand their Brackley factory with a major, multi-million pound development
Mercedes’ main F1 team headquarters in Brackley will undergo a £70m redevelopment and expansion. The team announced it has purchased local land around their existing factory grounds and will expand their design offices, staff facilities, and pedestrianise large parts of the site.
“Our campus was originally built to accommodate 350 people,” said team principal Toto Wolff. “Today, we are at 1,250.
“The development of the campus over the last five years was done at an astonishing pace. Now, what we are planning to do is to expand with multiple new buildings and creating a modern style campus. There will be break-out areas, restaurants, and a state-of-the-art gym and marketing building.”
Kamui Kobayashi and Pastor Maldonado’s driver ratings for F1 23 have been unveiled by EA Sports ahead of the game’s release next month.
Both ex F1 drivers will feature in the game for players to hire in the MyTeam mode. Sauber and Caterham star Kobayashi earns an 85 rating with an impressive 94 racecraft rating, while 2012 Spanish Grand Prix winner Maldonado will be rated 82 with an awareness rating of just 65.
Three-times W Series champion and Indy Nxt driver Jamie Chadwick will also be featured as a MyTeam Icon, however the Williams junior driver’s ratings have not yet been revealed.
Indianapolis 500 pole winner Alex Palou says he went aggressive with his car’s set-up to secure the front spot on the grid for Sunday’s race.
Palou set a four-lap average speed of 234.217mph (376.936kph) – the fastest pole position run in history.
“We went aggressive,” said Palou. “We were the car that was more trimmed [on Saturday] I would say and also [Sunday].
“It’s what we had to do. It was the way that we could fight for pole, and I’m glad that it worked.”
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Motor racing links of interest:
Ferrari are set to offer Lewis Hamilton £40MILLION deal to race in red next season (Daily Mail)
"Several well-placed sources in the UK and Italy confirmed that the Ferrari hierarchy are seriously considering two Hamilton-related scenarios. The first, and favoured option, is to partner the veteran with current No 1 Charles Leclerc from next season. That would mean shipping out Carlos Sainz to another team, something they would be prepared to do."
Racing drivers blink at the same points when going round a track (New Scientist)
"Different racing drivers blink at around the same points in a circuit, which could reflect their synchronised mental states as they concentrate on controlling the car. Blinking lubricates our eyes, but how it links to other aspects of our health are unclear. Studying this further could help us better understand conditions where blinking rates change, such as Parkinson’s disease."
F1 ace Valtteri Bottas completes Scottish gravel cycling race (BBC)
"Formula 1 star Valtteri Bottas traded four wheels for two at the weekend to take part in a gravel cycling race in southern Scotland. The Finnish driver was able to compete due to the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna grand prix in Italy. He was also there to support his girlfriend Tiffany Cromwell who won the women's race at The Gralloch event. Bottas finished 114th overall in a time of just over four hours for the 70 mile course at Gatehouse of Fleet."
Abbi Pulling: I'm always looking to have the perfect race (Sky)
"Following her second-place finish in the F1 Academy Barcelona Race 1, Abbi Pulling shared her disappointment at not having the 'perfect race'."
FIA President comments on Baja Rally attack (FIA)
"I am horrified by the reports of an appalling attack at the Baja California Rally in Mexico. Motor sport events should be safe places for participants and spectators. On behalf of the whole FIA family our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this senseless violence."
F1 in America: The Grand Prix stars who tamed the Brickyard – and how F1 changed the Indy 500 forever (F1)
"It was left to Colin Chapman to affect the sea change, partnering with Ford and installing their 4.2-litre V8 engine in his Lotus 29 in 1963. Only some dubious politicking from the race stewards prevented the great Jim Clark from winning first time out as the Establishment closed ranks to ignore an oil leak on Parnelli Jones’ Watson roadster, which took a narrow and controversial victory over what the Americans had taken to calling the “funny car”."
Roman Stanek: My Greatest Influences (F2)
"My grandfather was actually the one who got me into motorsport, but the first sport that I loved and did was motocross because there as a motocross track near my house, like a two-minute walk away. I started to ride motorbikes there when I was six or seven years old, and I was doing anything that had the smell of the fuel. I really loved it, and then my parents said no it was too dangerous."
A 360 yard drive with Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck de Vries (Honda Racing via YouTube)
AlphaTauri drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Nyck de Vries hit the driving range.
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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Notable posts from Twitter, Instagram and more:
This is a powerful story of how @BBCSport presenter, @JennieGow, overcame one of the biggest challenges of her life after suffering a devastating stroke last year.
To mark Stroke Awareness Month, she's offered to share this story… #TheOneShow 👉 https://t.co/eNLUi3kjTn pic.twitter.com/wxBpAzwDfK
— BBC The One Show (@BBCTheOneShow) May 22, 2023
Bravo 💪💪💪 @AlexPalou 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 https://t.co/4wPjinmcS5
— Fernando Alonso (@alo_oficial) May 22, 2023
👀 Save the date: Friday 26th May at 12:00 pm (BST) #GulfxWilliams #F1 #FormulaOne #Racing @WilliamsRacing pic.twitter.com/sIxjmCwVti
— Gulf Oil International (@GulfOilIntl) May 22, 2023
A busy few days for the #SauberAcademy!
Léna Bühler secured a pole position and her maiden @f1academy win at @Circuitcat_eng! 👏
Meanwhile, a tough weekend for Marcus Amand in #FRECA and Taym Saleh in the OK-Junior FIA #Karting Championship saw each take a best finish of P20. pic.twitter.com/uuix8UFMpX
— Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake (@alfaromeostake) May 22, 2023
Ask Me Anything is back and this time we’re looking for your questions for one of our Performance Engineers, Trevor Green-Smith!
Ask away in the comments👇#HaasF1 pic.twitter.com/MfiK9PYwOY
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) May 22, 2023
My angels were with me today. #Indy500 pic.twitter.com/UBkXiy5izN
— Marshall Pruett (@marshallpruett) May 22, 2023
Poor FRO. 🤣#INDYCAR // #Indy500 pic.twitter.com/yszXvUgJZC
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) May 22, 2023
The interview @jack_harvey93 gave (which was truly classy) showed the stress of this day. It was relief, not elation. He said he couldn’t wait for the day to be over. This team doesn’t expect to be in that position, but the #30 car did an amazing job to pull it off. GL Sunday.
— James Hinchcliffe (@Hinchtown) May 21, 2023
This team @IMS does not waste time! Already painting the walls back to glistening white! pic.twitter.com/vCuN9VFsp0
— J. Douglas Boles (@jdouglas4) May 22, 2023
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Happy birthday to Emmet!