Ben Anderson

Formula 1

Which current F1 drivers can drive around a car’s problems?

Whether it’s down to driving style, adaptability, work ethic or intelligence, some Formula 1 drivers can make a difficult car work for them while others flounder if things aren’t to their liking. Ben Anderson takes an in-depth look at how the 2022 field stacks up on that front

Formula 1

Why Mercedes thinks ‘no one’ will touch its record in new F1 era

Formula 1’s hoped-for utopia still feels a long way off, but Mercedes boss Toto Wolff is convinced none of its rivals are about to replicate the record eight consecutive titles his team achieved from 2014-21

Formula 1

The sad logic behind Ferrari’s latest act of F1 scapegoating

For all the good Mattia Binotto did in stabilising Ferrari, its failings in the 2022 F1 season were all in familiar territory. It squandered its chance, and its progress faltered – and for that he paid the price

Formula 1

Schumacher was in trouble once Ferrari lost interest

Throughout his junior career, Mick Schumacher required time before revealing the best of himself. That story’s been similar in F1 – but once it became clear Ferrari might lose patience, Haas had no reason to do any favours for its engine supplier

Formula 1

Ferrari admits early unreliability forced F1 engine power drop

Ferrari admits it was forced to “lower the power” of its Formula 1 engine during the 2022 season, following numerous failures suffered in the early part of the campaign

Formula 1

Verstappen helps Perez to seal Red Bull front row in Abu Dhabi

Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen claimed pole position for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, leading a Red Bull 1-2 as Sergio Perez narrowly beat Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari to the front row

Formula 1

Hamilton avoids penalty as stewards cite Verstappen precedent

Lewis Hamilton has escaped sanction for overtaking Kevin Magnussen’s Haas under red flags during final practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix

Formula 1

Hamilton facing red flag investigation after Perez tops FP3

Lewis Hamilton is facing an F1 stewards’ investigation, as Red Bull again set the pace in final practice for the Abu Dhabi GP

Formula 1

Binotto defends record as Ferrari F1 boss amid ‘rumours’

Mattia Binotto broke his silence concerning “speculations” that Sauber’s Fred Vasseur will take charge of Ferrari’s F1 operations in 2023

Formula 1

Ricciardo closes on Red Bull return with F1 2023 role

Daniel Ricciardo is closing on a return to Red Bull, most likely as reserve, while targeting a full-time return to the F1 grid in 2024

Formula 1

Furious Verstappen on ‘ridiculous’ reports, ‘disgusting’ attacks

Max Verstappen furiously hit back at “ridiculous” media reports and “disgusting” attacks and threats towards his family on social media in the wake of the Red Bull F1 team orders row at the Brazilian GP

Formula 1

Everything that happened in first Brazilian GP F1 practice

Sergio Perez narrowly beat Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to the fastest time in first practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix, as just two tenths of a second blanketed Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes

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The strengths and weaknesses of the 2022 F1 grid

Formula 1

McLaren issues Massa warning over mechanical flag leniency

McLaren’s Andreas Seidl has reminded F1 to consider Felipe Massa’s 2009 Hungarian GP accident when taking a lenient approach towards the use of the mechanical flag

Formula 1

Don’t be fooled by Mexico, Mercedes is ‘months’ behind Red Bull

Mercedes’ hopes of winning the Mexican GP amounted to nothing. Now that Toto Wolff has conceded the team is still months behind Red Bull, where does that leave it for 2023 – and is there any hope of a win before the season is out?

Formula 1

Did Mexico’s qualifying star fold too easily?

Alfa Romeo Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas starred in Mexican Grand Prix qualifying, splitting the Ferraris, but a difficult race meant he was fortunate to come away with even a point for 10th

Formula 1

The key Mercedes mistakes that ‘surprised’ Red Bull in Mexico

Red Bull’s Christian Horner did not pass up an opportunity to publicly raise an eyebrow at how Mercedes approached the Mexican GP

Formula 1

Verstappen takes record 14th win of 2022 F1 season in Mexico

Max Verstappen took his 14th victory of 2022 in the Mexican Grand Prix, breaking Formula 1’s record for most wins in a season as the hoped-for Mercedes challenge failed to materialise

Formula 1

Five key factors behind Bottas’s Ferrari-beating qualifying

A Ferrari-beating performance from Valtteri Bottas in qualifying in Mexico owed a little to underperformance elsewhere, but he and Alfa Romeo did such a good job that Bottas surprised himself

Formula 1

Will Red Bull’s aero penalty really hurt as much as it claims?

Christian Horner says Red Bull will lose up to half a second of laptime thanks to its cost cap penalty, but rival Formula 1 teams think he’s overstating the potential impact

Formula 1

Russell leads Mercedes 1-2 as rivals struggle in practice

Mercedes heads into Mexican Grand Prix qualifying looking strong after George Russell tops the final practice session ahead of Lewis Hamilton

Formula 1

The failings exposed yet again in FIA’s F1 penalty U-turn

Fernando Alonso’s US Grand Prix ‘penalty-that-wasn’t-a-penalty’ is another bizarre episode that yet again calls into question the FIA’s ability to implement Formula 1’s rules and procedures correctly

Formula 1

Hamilton: Cost cap pointless if Red Bull gets ‘slap on wrist’

Lewis Hamilton led rival drivers’ calls for Mercedes’ 2021 Formula 1 title opponent Red Bull to receive truly meaningful penalties for its cost cap overspend

Formula 1

‘Facts will come out, people will understand’ – Red Bull speaks

Red Bull Formula 1 drivers Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen believe “people will understand” their team’s cost cap breach when facts emerge

Formula 1

Norris says he rejected Red Bull – what if he hadn’t?

Lando Norris signed a big-money new McLaren deal on the eve of the 2022 Formula 1 season – but has revealed he also spoke to Red Bull before committing his future to McLaren. Just how different might things have looked if Norris joined Max Verstappen at Red Bull?

Formula 1

McLaren makes Red Bull ‘cheating’ penalty proposal to FIA

McLaren boss Zak Brown has called for tougher penalties and tighter spending limits to protect the integrity of Formula 1’s new cost cap, arguing any proven overspend “constitutes cheating”

Formula 1

Red Bull doesn’t actually need to breach F1’s cost cap to win

There’s a key detail being overlooked in the furore over Red Bull’s Formula 1 cost cap breach, reckons Ben Anderson: The fact that Red Bull doesn’t actually need to spend more than Ferrari and Mercedes to beat them

Formula 1

Latifi explains bizarre Suzuka wrong turn and ‘skewed’ radio

Nicholas Latifi says the way Formula 1 TV pictures and radio were relayed “skewed” perceptions of his strange Suzuka wrong turn during Japanese Grand Prix free practice, but admits “it was my mistake”.

Formula 1

When Alonso and Raikkonen both hit their F1 peaks at Suzuka

It’s rare to have Formula 1 champions deliver era-defining performances in the same weekend but that happened at Suzuka in 2005

Formula 1

‘Another five years’ – Wolff on Hamilton’s F1 future

Toto Wolff says a Mercedes contract extension for Lewis Hamilton “is going to happen” and that Hamilton thinks he can continue for at least another five years in Formula 1

Formula 1

‘This is really bad for us’ – Verstappen vents at Red Bull error

An ‘incredibly frustrated’ Max Verstappen says the Red Bull fuel miscalculation that robbed him of pole for Formula 1’s Singapore Grand Prix is a “really bad” mistake that’s “never acceptable”

Formula 1

Leclerc on Singapore GP pole after Verstappen aborts final lap

Charles Leclerc claimed pole position for Formula 1’s Singapore Grand Prix, as championship leader Max Verstappen aborted his final qualifying lap and wound up only eighth fastest

Formula 1

Hamilton tops his first F1 practice of 2022 in Singapore FP1

Lewis Hamilton led the way for Mercedes in the opening F1 practice session of the Singapore Grand Prix weekend

Formula 1

Ricciardo fears racing outside F1 in 2023 would hurt his image

Daniel Ricciardo knows he faces a stark choice if he wants to resurrect his Formula 1 career in 2023, and he also knows he cannot afford to give the F1 paddock the wrong impression when he makes that decision

Formula 1

Red Bull’s Tsunoda reprieve reflects the F1 status it lost

Red Bull’s trademark ruthlessness is nowhere to be seen with Yuki Tsunoda’s 2023 F1 deal – but that’s because its junior monopoly is gone

Formula 1

Perez now looks less convincing at Red Bull than Albon did

He’d earned himself a new two-year Red Bull F1 deal with a strong start to 2022 – but Sergio Perez’s performance has tailed off alarmingly since

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Can F1 really afford to axe DRS in the future?

Formula 1

‘Pessimistic’ Norris lays out how far McLaren has fallen in F1

‘Pessimistic’ Lando Norris laid out the harsh reality for McLaren ahead of Formula 1’s Italian Grand Prix, where a repeat of last season’s 1-2 result looks highly unlikely despite both cars starting on row two of the grid

Formula 1

‘Not in racing’s DNA’ – Monza grid mess shows system untenable

F1’s current grid penalty system effectively collapsed in on itself in the aftermath of the Italian GP qualifying at Monza

Formula 1

Leclerc beats penalty-hit Verstappen in Italian GP qualifying

Charles Leclerc claimed pole position for the Italian Grand Prix, beating Formula 1 title rival Max Verstappen to the fastest time at Monza