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Red Bull Formula 1 drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen will head to next weekends Austrian Grand Prix bidding to improve their teams home race form, having scored just one podium over the past three years in Spielberg. <\/p>\n
Austria returned to the F1 calendar in 2014 after an 11-year absence, but the past three races at the Red Bull Ring have been difficult ones for the home team. <\/p>\n
Max Verstappen finished second last year after the late clash between Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, outstripping Red Bulls previous best finish of eighth in Austria from 2014. <\/p>\n
After claiming its first victory of the season last time out in Baku, Red Bull now returns home with its sights set on impressing at one of its most important races of the year. <\/p>\n
I had a really good result in Austria last year coming second, Verstappen said. Before the race it was a bit unknown how the tires would play out so I just tried to feel my way in and keep life in them. <\/p>\n
This allowed me to complete a one-stop strategy, which was always going to be a gamble, but in the end worked out really well. <\/p>\n
This year we have to make sure the car is working well in the corners in order to be up with the front-runners and then just try and be as competitive as possible on the straights, its always a bit of a compromise. <\/p>\n
The fans at the Red Bull Ring are always extremely passionate and of course there was a big Dutch turn out last year which is always special for me to see, plenty of caravans and orange around the area. <\/p>\n
At any kind of power circuit like Austria you want to be smooth and get good exits in order to give yourself the best chance on the long straights, added Baku winner Ricciardo. <\/p>\n
The compromise is always the aero package. In the middle to the end of the lap you want more downforce because the corners are quite fast but more downforce means you are slower on the straights, so the key is to find a good balance throughout the lap. <\/p>\n
I really enjoy the track and the only downside is that I wish it was a bit longer. I wish it had a few more corners, but the corners that do exist are great fun. <\/p>\n
Back in May, Ricciardo and Verstappen completed a fun caravan race at the Red Bull Ring in promotion of the race, causing havoc in the process. <\/p>\n
We have done some pretty crazy things at the track, wearing the lederhosen race suit is something different and a few weeks ago Max and I raced caravans there, Ricciardo said. <\/p>\n
To be honest Im not sure they would have let us do that anywhere else as the caravans were destroyed, but we loved it! <\/p>\n
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Williams Martini Racing has announced that a new documentary profiling the story of the Formula 1 team will be released this summer. <\/p>\n
Based on Lady Virginia Williams 1991 bookA Different Kind of Life, the film entitledWilliams will depict the true story of the team, led byBAFTA-winning director Morgan Matthews. <\/p>\n
As per a release from the team: The film features legendary racing footage, interviews with much-loved Formula One stars including Sir Patrick Head, Sir Jackie Stewart, Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet and candid never-before-seen accounts of what really went on behind closed doors. <\/p>\n
It is an honest, authentic and incredibly revealing portrait of one of the most extraordinary stories in motorsport. <\/p>\n
I hope the fans enjoy the film as much as Ive enjoyed being part of motor racing, team founder and owner Sir Frank Williams said. <\/p>\n
Im glad that both the people behind the team and my family come out as the true heroes of the story. <\/p>\n
Deputy team principal Claire Williams added: This film is a tale of two great loves in my fathers life. Everyone knows of Franks pure passion for motor racing, but not everyone knows the remarkable story of my parents marriage and how those two things co-existed during the highs and lows of the teams journey. <\/p>\n
I am pleased that it shines a light on exactly how instrumental my mother was in the teams success while also capturing the setbacks and her bravery in holding the family, and ultimately the business together, as the team went on to make history. <\/p>\n
We are incredibly proud of the film and its enduring message of what the human spirit is capable of achieving in the face adversity. I hope that is inspires people as much as my parents story inspires me. <\/p>\n
As my dad would want it though, we are proud of our past but ready for the future. The most exciting part is our plan to build on Franks legacy and write a new chapter in the Williams story something we are building momentum towards. <\/p>\n
Williams will premiere in London, England on July 11 before going on general release in the UK in August. <\/p>\n
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Jolyon Palmer wants to end his run of bad luck in Formula 1 and begin to build momentum in next weekends Austrian Grand Prix to carry through to the sports summer break. <\/p>\n
Palmer has endured a point-less start to the season with Renault, with his sole top-10 finish in F1 coming in last years Malaysian Grand Prix. <\/p>\n
Speculation has been rife about the Britons future at Enstone amid suggestions he could be replaced mid-season, with a difficult weekend in Azerbaijan last time out not aiding matters. <\/p>\n
Palmer suffered problems in his car on all three days of the race weekend, preventing him from taking part in qualifying or finishing the race. <\/p>\n
There isnt a lot to say from my weekend, but it was a crazy race to watch! Palmer said of Baku. <\/p>\n
I enjoyed watching it, but I wish I was in it, I think there were some points up for grabs for us. <\/p>\n
We will make sure we have a better one in Austria, the target is always the same: to bring home some points. <\/p>\n
Palmer is treating the Austria weekend as a catalyst to kick-start his season, having previously enjoyed strong outings at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg. <\/p>\n
We started on the penultimate row last year but I managed to work my way up to 12th, beating my teammate. I was quite happy with the race, we just needed a little bit of extra luck and I think we could have been in the points, Palmer said. <\/p>\n
It is a circuit I enjoy having raced there in GP2 in 2014 and then a Free Practice session in 2015. It was definitely one of my strongest races of last season, so it is important to build on the knowledge we have and my confidence at the track and work towards a positive result. <\/p>\n
We need to change our luck. I hope we can make it all stick heading into the final few rounds before the summer break beginning here. <\/p>\n
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Former FIA president Max Mosley believes that Sebastian Vettels behavior in his clash with Lewis Hamilton during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix was intolerable, adding that the German should have been excluded from the race as a result of the incident. <\/p>\n
Vettel and Hamilton came to blows behind the safety car in Baku, with the Ferrari driver making a sideways swipe after believing he was brake-tested. <\/p>\n
Vettel received an in-race stop\/go penalty for making contact with Hamilton, but the matter will be re-examined by the FIA on Monday to see if further action is warranted. <\/p>\n
Speaking toSky Sports, Mosley, who helped run F1 as FIA president between 1993 and 2009, made his feelings on Vettels move clear, believing he should have been punished much more harshly at the time. <\/p>\n
I will certainly not make friends with Ferrari but fact is fact: my recommendation would have been to take Vettel out of the race and bring the whole matter to the World Council to negotiate, Mosley said. <\/p>\n
From my point of view, it is intolerable that you behave as Vettel has done. <\/p>\n
If he did that on the road he would lose his license. <\/p>\n
The incident helped stoke the rivalry between championship rivals Vettel and Hamilton, who are currently separated by 14 points at the top of the drivers standings. <\/p>\n
Should Vettel be excluded from Azerbaijan and the drivers finishing below him move up a position, the pair would be tied on points with 12 races remaining this season. <\/p>\n
Formula E\/LAT <\/p>\n
Pipo Derani and Filipe Albuquerque are among the drivers substituting for Formula E regulars in the FIA World Endurance Championship round at the Nrburgring next month, as confirmed with the publication of the entry list for the latter event. <\/p>\n
The clash between Formula E and WEC on the July 16 weekend has been a long-running saga for both series, with no resolution workable due to a lack of communication regarding the placement of the Formula 1 race in Germany that was ultimately canceled. <\/p>\n
With drivers racing in both series, a number were left with a key dilemma to make when picking which race to entry, ending with a majority opting to partake in Formula Es double-header race weekend in New York. <\/p>\n
Two drivers have chosen to prioritize WEC, including Formula E championship leader Sebastien Buemi, who is bound by his contract with Toyotas LMP1 team. Jose Maria Lopez is also in a similar position, racing in the sister TS050 Hybrid at the Nrburgring. <\/p>\n
Heres a run-down of the drivers who had to work around the clashesand where theyve ended up, and who will be replacing them. <\/p>\n
Sebastien Buemi <\/p>\n
Formula E championship leader Buemi had hoped to be racing in New York where he could have sewn up the title but is now risking a 50-plus point loss by missing the double-header. <\/p>\n
Buemi said that his Le Mans result would decide whether or not he could have the chance to skip the Nrburgring, only for the No. 8 Toyota crew to have a miserable race, finishing eighth overall after two hours in the garage. <\/p>\n
Buemis replacement for New York will need to be decided in the next 24 hours when the race stewards are informed of the entry list. Red Bull youngster Pierre Gasly is thought to be leading the chase for the seat. <\/p>\n
Jose Maria Lopez <\/p>\n
Like Buemi, Lopez was tied down by his Toyota contract and was not able to get out of his duties, meaning he will be missing New York as well. <\/p>\n
Lopez will return to the No. 7 Toyota for the Nrburgring round, having been moved into the third car for Le Mans given his lack of prior experience following his Silverstone crash and the subsequent injury that forced him to miss Spa. <\/p>\n
Lopez will be replaced at DS Virgin Racing in New York by Alex Lynn, the teams reserve driver. Lynn, in turn, will miss the Nrburgring race with G-Drive in LMP2, with Ben Hanley taking his place. <\/p>\n
Sam Bird <\/p>\n
Lopezs Formula E teammate, Sam Bird, is another driver who said his dilemma would be solved by his Le Mans result. The Briton is fourth in the WEC GT drivers championship with AF Corse and just 14 points off the lead, yet he opted to prioritize his Formula E duties in New York. <\/p>\n
Bird will be replaced at AF Corse in the No. 71 Ferrari 488 GTE by Toni Vilander, who races in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship for Risi Competizione and featured at Le Mans earlier this month. <\/p>\n
Nicolas Prost <\/p>\n
Renault e.dams appeared the face the prospect of having neither of its regular drivers in place for New York, only for Buemis teammate Nicolas Prost to put his Formula E duties first. <\/p>\n
Prost has raced with Vaillante Rebellion Racing in LMP2 so far this season, but will step back for the Nrburgring. Seasoned sportscar racer Filipe Albuquerque takes his place. <\/p>\n
Nelson Piquet Jr. <\/p>\n
Nelson Piquet Jr. is another driver who had the same decision as Prost, putting Formula E over his duties with Rebellion in the sister Oreca 07 Gibson. Piquet will be replaced in the No. 13 car by Pipo Derani, whose three-race stint with Ford Chip Ganassi Racing came to an end at Le Mans. <\/p>\n
Jean-Eric Vergne <\/p>\n
Jean-Eric Vergne has made a flying start to life in the WEC this year with Manor, regularly featuring at the top of the timesheets, and stood out at Le Mans with some mammoth quintuple stints. <\/p>\n
Vergne wont be at the Nrburgring, though, putting his Formula E duties with Techeetah a team he also has commercial interests in first. Roberto Merhi takes his place, returning to Manor after previously racing for the team in both F1 and WEC. <\/p>\n
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Red Bull heads to Austria bidding to improve home race form - NBC Sports - Motorsports (blog)<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Getty Images Red Bull Formula 1 drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen will head to next weekends Austrian Grand Prix bidding to improve their teams home race form, having scored just one podium over the past three years in Spielberg. Austria returned to the F1 calendar in 2014 after an 11-year absence, but the past three races at the Red Bull Ring have been difficult ones for the home team. Max Verstappen finished second last year after the late clash between Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, outstripping Red Bulls previous best finish of eighth in Austria from 2014. Continue reading