Saudi Arabia GP: Leclerc a tenth faster than Ferstappen in the first tests in Jeddah - Sportish
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Saudi Arabia GP: Leclerc a tenth faster than Ferstappen in the first tests in Jeddah

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Saudi Arabia GP: Leclerc a tenth faster than Ferstappen in the first tests in Jeddah

Charles Leclerc and Max Ferstappen renewed their appointments to Bahrain in the opening freestyle of the Saudi Arabian GP, ​​where Ferrari’s Monegasse was 0.116s quicker than RBR’s Dutchman.

After winning an early fast lap on a hard tire, Max Ferstappen led the RB18 for almost the entire first hour of the Jeddah free test, which opened the second three-day race of this year’s Formula One Championship.

The process was soon interrupted by red flags for a few minutes when Lando Norris hit a braking point indicator on the first corner and filled the tarmac with debris.

Ferstappen returned after the break with the soft (red) eraser and set the fastest time on the first lane of the track – but then abandoned that fast lap and had a small exit at Turn 10.

The Dutchman then went on the laps on more fuel until Charles Leclerc made an effort in the closing minutes with fresh soft tires to celebrate the first year. Both Monegasque and Carlos Saint didn’t manage a quick lap before the break, so they left their efforts with the soft rubber for the end.

Sainth was more than three and a half tenths off Leclerc and said he had very bad jumping problems. In fact, the Spaniard ended up falling behind Valteri Botas with the Alfa Romeo and the same engine as the Finn made his fast attempt with the soft rubber.

Everyone in the top ten drove their fastest lap on the soft tires. The two Alpha Tauri ended up in the top six with Pierre Gasley and Yuki Tsunoda, who was very close to the top in all tests and overtook Sergio Perez.

The two Alpines Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso, among whom was Lewis Hamilton, both finished in the top ten. The Briton again reported that the Mercedes W13 had serious problems with porpoises and ended up staying more than a second and a half from Leclerc. It’s worth noting that in these tests, Hamilton and George Russell tested two different wings – higher and lower lift – to solve the porpoise’s problem.

The only unlucky person was Kevin Magnussen von Haas. The Dane only completed two laps with the hard eraser and spent the rest of the time in the pits due to a problem in the hydraulic system.

Saudi Arabia GP: Leclerc a tenth faster than Ferstappen in the first tests in Jeddah
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Red Bull finally decides on Verstappen’s team

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Red Bull finally decides on Verstappen’s team

After several significant personnel changes in the team, Max Verstappen has finally learned who he will be working with in the Red Bull pits for the new season.

At the end of last year, it became known that three key members of the four-time world champion’s headquarters had left. According to De Telegraaf, Jeff Ayton replaced Verstappen’s vehicle control engineer Michael Manning, who left the team after the 2025 season. He has previously worked with other Red Bull drivers and worked temporarily with Verstappen in Manning’s absence last year.

Verstappen’s former engine mechanic David Mart has moved to Audi and his replacement at Red Bull has not yet been determined. Performance engineer Tom Hart is also leaving the team; He will join Williams but will continue to work with the Milton Keynes-based team for a while.

Changes also occurred among mechanics. After Matt Culler moved to the position of Audi’s chief mechanic, Verstappen was replaced as his first mechanic by his twin brother John Culler. He is well known to Max, who has previously held a similar position on the other side of the Red Bull pits, working alongside Sergio Perez, Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda.

Despite rumors about the winter break, Gianpiero Lambiase will remain Verstappen’s race engineer for another season.

Source: Sport UA

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Ferrari will have a red-white livery. Images of the Scuderia jersey have been revealed

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Ferrari will have a red-white livery. Images of the Scuderia jersey have been revealed

Photos of the allegedly leaked Ferrari F1 team jerseys for the 2026 season have appeared on the internet.

The published photos show a red T-shirt with white inserts.

Ferrari will officially announce its color on January 23. At the same time, some sources reported that the design of the 2026 car should be “pleasantly surprising”.

Given that Ferrari and other teams have used darker shades of their primary colors (red in the Scuderia’s case) in recent years, the introduction of red and white team uniforms could signal a move towards a lighter color scheme.

The same idea is put forward in a video published on the Scuderia’s official account.

Source: Sport UA

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F1 champion: “We may see a complete surprise in the championship fight this year”

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F1 champion: “We may see a complete surprise in the championship fight this year”

Former Formula 1 champion Damon Hill has warned fans that the winner of the 2026 season could be a real surprise.

The current large-scale changes to the regulations are among the biggest in the history of the sport. They are expected to change the balance of power in the starting grid for a long time.

Hill is confident that the pundits have no idea who will start the new season with the best cars because the cars will be completely different, even in terms of handling.

Particular attention of the expert is drawn to Aston Martin, which was able to make a leap from the middle of the table after signing Adrian Newey from Red Bull.

Hill noted the following about Lando Norris’ chances of defending his title:

“All bets are off for this year. We don’t know who will be in uniform. You can’t automatically assume that pilots who performed well under previous regulations can now do it again.”

The cars are completely different. “50% of engine power is now provided by the electric battery, and this affects the way cars are controlled, their aerodynamics and their design.”

Hill added that the season could be a complete surprise:

“Yes, you can [ожидать смену эпохи в Ф1 в этом году]. We may see a complete surprise. It’s like Jenson Button beating Brown; Everyone was surprised because they understood the rules better.

“And the master of understanding the rules is Adrian Newey, who went to Aston Martin. He left Red Bull and Max Verstappen, Christian Horner also left that team. But he went to Aston Martin.”

“So we’re waiting for him to wave his magic wand over Aston Martin. And it could happen.”

Source: Sport UA

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