F1 | Gp Abu Dhabi, MINARDI “The most important grand prix on the political side. A tug of war between Mercedes-Liberty Media”

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We have come to the last grand prix of the season. After the chaos in Interlagos it will be interesting to the reaction by Ferrari which will try to take away third place on the drivers’ ladder from Verstappen, even if the leap is dicey at the moment.

An exciting season is closing, one that gave new life to the world championship. Although there is still the duel between Renault and Toro Rosso for fifth place with Tost’s team galvanized by the second place two weeks ago with an excellent Gasly which the team second place for the season, I expect a purely political weekend.

The new Concorde Agreement is still at stake and foreign rumours talk about strong disquiet in Mercedes. After having won six world championships a tug of war has begun for the division of the proceeds between Liberty Media and Daimler President Ola Kallenius that could lead to taking a major decision such as withdrawing the team led by Toto Wolff.,

To date the unanimity of views between the teams in both the sporting and financial aspects needed for the Concorde Agreement is lacking. To date we have strong inequalities between the various teams that, with the insertion of the Budget Cap starting in 2021, will inexorably increase since those who have the strength will use next season to make major investments that will guarantee them a huge advantage in the following years. A mistake in evaluation was made since it should have progressed in stages, inserting a spending limit in 2020 and only after the new technical regulations.

The fact remains that we are faced with a delicate moment for the future of the series that cannot afford to lose precious constructors since Mercedes is not the only one to threaten withdrawal. Mercedes which currently is also the supplier of the Power Unit to Racing Point and Williams with a contract already signed with McLaren in light of 2021.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | Gp Brazil, THE POINT by Gian Carlo MINARDI “Wrong not to punish Vettel. A foul action”

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We witnessed a good grand prix that was characterized by different strategies between drivers of the same team in a weekend dominated by Verstappen, just as we announced.

This was also race characterized by two incredible mistakes by two world champions who have won ten world titles between them. They were two very different episodes. Once more Leclerc was able to make Vettel nervous who, with an action that was as incredible as it was insane that ruined both his own race as well as that of his team mate and gave Ferrari an incredible zero in the score sheet. In Maranello they will have a big problem to solve. Hamilton instead spoilt second place for an excellent Albon and denying Honda a historic treble. The 5” second penalty was also too little. For his part the British champion apologized but it was not a simple weekend for the team from Stuttgart, orphan in Brazil of Toto Wolff. They had problems of reliability and from the sporting point of view.

All this however arose from the entry of the safety car, which did not make sense since Bottas’ car was off the track and not in a dangerous position. The management seemed “too American” to me.

Congratulations to Gasly for both having brought Toro Rosso to second place in the race and the excellent weekend, He was reborn and answered the “failure” with deeds. Carlos Sainz was just as good as the protagonist of a good recovery. This was a historic result by Alfa Remo’s two drivers as well who took fourth and fifth place. I was especially happy for Giovinazzi who managed the race very well while protecting his team mate’s back as the times showed.

Gian Carlo Minardi

F1 | Gp Brazil, MINARDI “The Budget Cap should have been brought forward”

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Despite having reached the penultimate grand prix of the season there are a number of different things to consider starting with qualifying at 7.00pm with the race scheduled for 18.10.

Third place is at stake for the drivers, with the internal duel in Ferrari between Leclerc and Vettel and the sixth and seventh place between Racing Point and Toro Rosso,

The last few editions were characterized by bad weather and severe thunder storms and care will need to be taken in the first downhill bend to the left which is often the stage for side swipes. Leclerc will have to pay a ten place penalty for having replaced some components of his power unit but seeing the characteristics of the Sao Paolo track it may not be so penalizing since the track favours overtaking as we saw last year with Ricciardo who, having started from 10th place, in a few laps had already reached the top six. Keep an eye opt for Red Bull because without the Verstappen-Ocon clash last year the Dutchman could have brought home the win.

For Mercedes this will be the first grand prix without Toto Wolff and it will be interesting to see how the team will be manages, even if they are still the point of reference.

The last few weeks have been very intense for the future of Formula 1 that is oriented towards zero emission between 2025 and 2030, but staying closer to us, 2021 will be the stage for major technical and sporting changes one of which is the inclusion of the Budget Cup

On this matter, I believe that a serious mistake has been made by not bringing it forward to next season. With the current regulations 2020 will be the scene for crazy spending by the three top teams which will have the possibility to move far ahead of the remaining 7 teams. Those who will be able to spend money next season will be able to enjoy a considerable advantage that will have a positive impact on the following years. For this reason I do not expect a major inversion of the forces in play which as it happens was the main objective for containing the costs.

Gian Carlo Minardi

Historic Minardi Day 2020 in pursuit of Formula 1, the ACI Storico Festival and the Elegance Competition

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The organizational machine of the Historic Minardi Day is already working at full speed to prepare the 5th edition which, as per tradition, will have as its home Imola’s Enzo and Dino Ferrari Circuit which will open the gates from Friday April 24, 2020.

There are many confirmations but there will be many new attractions, as Gian Carlo Minardi unveiled at the ACI Stand at the Padua Festival.

“The fact that we extended the event by one day is already a major development. Next year the engines of the Formula 1 and all the extraordinary cars that will come to Imola will be turned on starting from the Friday and they will only be turned off on Sunday April 26th,” said Gian Carlo Minardi.

“The other great development is represented by the participation of ACI Storico which will be our main partner through the ACI Storico Festival (ACI Historic Festival), a get together for all the ACI clubs in Imola. There will be no lack of occasions for meetings and conventions in a setting of fantastic cars and great enthusiasts. We must not forget that many historical races belong to ACI and that for some years it has started up many activities including Ruoti Nella Storia (History in wheels) in Italy’s most beautiful towns” in Italy’s,” continued the manager from Faenza.

“The fifth edition of the Historic Minardi Day will also be the stage for the first elegance competition dedicated to historical cars. Staying in the field of history, the “Savio Trophy” has been confirmed, as well as the non competitive outing in the hills of the Romagna.”

Amongst the new developments there will many confirmations. “The DNA of the event remains solid. The single ticket(which can be bought at the circuit-Ticketone) willgive access to the Circuit’s paddock, pits and terrace to be in direct touch with the racing cars and their protagonists. Last year we hosted 32 F1 racing cars for a trip through more than half a century of history to which were added many F2, F3, F Junior, Prototypes, Gran Turismo and Lancia Martini Racing which gave life to an extraordinary spectacle that recalled an exciting sound. In addition, many enthusiasts had the chance to experience the excitement of a lap of the Santerno Circuit aboard a Supercar of the calibre of the Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio, Renault Alpine, Dallara Stradale, Lamborghini and Pagani.

“Our objective is to bring back to the Circuit the atmosphere of the paddock in the early years of Formula 1 be eliminating the barriers that risk keeping fans away. With the chance to give you an appointment for April I want to thank the more than 15,000 passionate fans that that literally invaded the paddock and the pits,” concluded Gian Carlo Minardi.

 

F1 |Gp USA, THE POINT by Gian Carlo MINARDI ” Mercedes’ undisputed supremacy. Ferrari indecipherable”

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The third last round of the Formula 1 world championship has been archived under the sign of Mercedes that was the protagonist of a supremacy that was never questioned with Bottas who won first set pole position and then achieved the win and with Hamilton who put his hands on his sixth world title.

This grand prix must make Ferrari think, especially in light of next season in which there will be only minor changes and these final rounds could represent the first design of the forces in the field next season. Ferrari said goodbye to Austin with Leclerc’s fourth place who however paid a gap of 52” from the leader and with Vettel’s retirement due to a failure. This was surely a step backwards from what we have seen in this second part of the season. It was a heavy null score for Vettel who now finds himself in fourth place on the ladder and behind his team mate. This year’s ladder could influence the hierarchy within the team.

The people at Maranello must understand, amongst other things, what did not work, especially in the first stint when both drivers paid the large gap compared to its direct rivals Mercedes and Red Bull. Once more they struggled to interpret these tyres that have a minimal difference from one mix to another.

It was another positive weekend for Albon who brought home important points after a race aimed at recovering, for Ricciardo’s Renault and the two McLaren drivers. In qualifying we saw a good compaction of the times, something that was not respected in the race with only seven drivers covering all the laps.

Two weeks and then Formula 1 will go to Brazil for the penultimate round.

Gian Carlo Minardi