Latest F1 news in brief

Danial Ricciardo with his Italian parents Grace and Joe Ricciardo in Monaco

Daniel Ricciardo with his Italian parents Grace and Joe Ricciardo in Monaco. Grace was born in Calabria, Italy and Joe in Sicily. Daniel pronounces his name 'Ricardo' instead of the Italian pronunciation 'Rit-char-do'

No penalty for Ricciardo in Canada

Toyota's Makinen says Ferrari should keep Raikkonen
Wolff confirms Force India team order
Renault eyes Vandoorne for future seat
Amid F1 quit rumors, Alonso 'not happy' – Sainz snr
Red Bull suspects Ferrari DRS illegal
Hamilton suggests Monaco should extend F1 layout
Williams pins Lance Stroll's punctures on overheating rims
Wolff: Not sure if Bernie's old deals are sustainable

No penalty for Ricciardo in Canada
(GMM) Daniel Ricciardo will not be penalized at next weekend's Canadian grand prix.

The Australian won in Monaco, despite nursing his Red Bull to the line using just six of the eight gears with a MGU-K problem.

"I felt a loss of power and thought the race was done," he said.

But Auto Motor und Sport reports that the part will not have to be replaced in Montreal. "Cyril Abiteboul told Helmut Marko that the MGU-K has survived," correspondent Michael Schmidt said.

A replacement part would have cost Ricciardo a grid penalty.

Red Bull's Marko confirmed: "It looks like there will be no grid penalty for us in Montreal.

"But at some point, at one of the next races, we will be caught out," he warned.

However, there is more good news. Renault is bringing upgrades to its 'power unit' to Canada, and Red Bull team boss Christian Horner expects "fewer problems with the MGU-K".

Marko is not even ruling out a championship tilt for Ricciardo, even though he is 38 points behind.

"We now have a great car," he said. "The upgrade from Barcelona is the base. Without the technical problems in Bahrain and the collision in Baku, we would be right up there."

Toyota's Makinen says Ferrari should keep Raikkonen

This year's Ferrari has been to Raikkonen's liking

(GMM) Toyota world rally boss Tommi Makinen has played down speculation Kimi Raikkonen could leave Ferrari at the end of the year.

Makinen, who heads the works Toyota Gazoo Racing rally team, was a guest of Raikkonen's at Monaco.

His deputy Mia Miettinen, also in the Principality, said: "Kimi could be a Toyota (rally) driver, but first he has to decide if he will continue his career with Ferrari."

Amid rumors Ferrari is looking to replace him for 2019, and faced with the rally speculation, Raikkonen insisted he has "no agreement on anything".

Makinen said he thinks it is likely Raikkonen will stay in formula one.

"I have not talked to Kimi about it," he told Ilta Sanomat newspaper.

"It is rumored that he could possibly continue with Ferrari. He has been doing excellently this year and the results would have been much better without bad luck.

"I would like to see Kimi continue where he is currently," Makinen added.

Wolff confirms Force India team order

Ocon had to move over in Monaco after Wolff asked him too.

(GMM) Toto Wolff has admitted he asked for Esteban Ocon to let Lewis Hamilton past in Monaco.

Wolff is the team boss at Mercedes, and Ocon is a Mercedes junior driver.

The Frenchman currently drives for Mercedes-powered Force India, and after Monaco he seemed to hint that 'team orders' were in play when Hamilton sped past during the race.

"I'm a Mercedes driver," Ocon said. "You should ask the boss."

Wolff was asked by a reporter for La Derniere Heure if he gave the order for Ocon to let Hamilton through, and responded: "Yes."

Asked why, the Austrian added: "It is how it is."

Renault eyes Vandoorne for future seat

Vandoorne's F2 speed did not materialize in F1

(GMM) Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul has admitted he has an eye on Stoffel Vandoorne.

Renault might have a vacancy for 2019, as Carlos Sainz is linked with a return to Red Bull to replace Daniel Ricciardo.

And Abiteboul has admitted McLaren driver Vandoorne is an attractive option for the future.

"Do not say that Stoffel will join Renault because it is absolutely not the case," he told La Derniere Heure.

"But he is a driver that we look at. When I wonder about the possible options, I take Vandoorne into consideration."

Vandoorne entered F1 as a highly rated rookie last year, but has at times struggled alongside Fernando Alonso at McLaren.

Abiteboul said: "I think his situation is quite difficult. I don't know the ins and outs, but sometimes a change of environment allows a driver to get the oxygen to bounce back.

"He was fast, talented, consistent in all of the lower categories and there is no reason for all that to disappear," he insisted. "But when you have Fernando next door it's complicated, especially in McLaren's circumstances of recent years.

"But he is a high level driver that we can look at in the future, depending on how our situation evolves," said Abiteboul.

Amid F1 quit rumors, Alonso 'not happy' – Sainz snr

Alonso plots his IndyCar future with his manager Abad (behind him), Eric Boullier and Zak Brown

(GMM) The signs are growing ever stronger that Fernando Alonso's F1 career is coming to an end.

This week, a McLaren delegation including Zak Brown, Gil de Ferran and Alonso's manager Luis Garcia Abad are heading to Detroit for the Indycar race.

It seems that Alonso may be central to McLaren's plans for a full-time Indycar assault in 2019.

"I spoke with Alonso in Monaco and got the impression that he will not continue (in F1)," former F1 driver Martin Brundle said.

And another figure, Renault driver Carlos Sainz's father Carlos Sainz snr, agrees that Alonso is getting frustrated.

"He is in a period when he would like to be in a different situation," Sainz told EFE news agency. "He wants to fight for podiums and wins.

"When you've won before, and in his case he has won two world championships and fought for others, if you are not fighting for podiums, races, championships, it is logical that you are not happy," the Spaniard added.

"And it's especially true if you are as experienced as he is and with the character that Fernando has," said Sainz.

"This year at McLaren the situation is a little bit better and let's hope it improves more, but it's true that maybe he and all of us who want the best for him were expecting something more."

Red Bull suspects Ferrari DRS illegal

The Brits are looking for every excuse possible as to why Ferrari are beating them

(GMM) Yet another aspect of Ferrari's 2018 car may now come under the microscope.

After the Maranello team had to remove 'Halo winglets' after Barcelona, and amid concerns about oil consumption in the turbo, the FIA ran detailed checks on the car's supposed 'double battery' system in Monaco.

Ferrari got the green light, but Charlie Whiting said more checks in Canada may be necessary.

And now, yet another part of the Ferrari is coming under the microscope.

Auto Motor und Sport reports that Red Bull is concerned that, at full speed, Ferrari's 'DRS' flap in the rear wing opens more than the allowed 6.5cm.

Hamilton suggests Monaco should extend F1 layout

Monaco Circuit

Reigning World Champion Lewis Hamilton has suggested that officials at the Automobile Club de Monaco should evaluate whether tweaks to the circuit layout could aid the quality of racing.

Last weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix came in for criticism from some quarters for its processional nature, with the leading six grid positions converted in race trim, and most position changes coming through pit stop strategy.

Monaco has historically been a processional affair, though the situation was accentuated in 2017 through the introduction of wider and faster cars, meaning a larger gap – and time delta – was required in order to attempt a move.

This year’s running was also tire-limited, with fears over the degradation of the Hypersoft – and Ultrasoft – compound prompting drivers to back off, setting lap times several seconds off the pace, in order to ensure a one-stop strategy was possible.

Monaco’s circuit layout has remained fundamentally unchanged since the introduction of the Piscine section in 1973, with only minor alterations to some corners.

Despite the logistical and practical limitations, Hamilton has suggested that the track layout could be tweaked – or F1 could investigate Monaco-specific regulations.

“I said to Prince Albert the other day maybe it’s time to make it longer," said Hamilton on Monaco, the shortest circuit on the current calendar.

“We are doing 1:11s around here, there’s more roads. Do we change this great track and make it even better?

“Maybe it’s got to be a different format, something here. You shouldn’t be able to do a one-stop because that’s less exciting for fans.

“There’s got to be more [things] mixed up but I don’t know what it is.

“Jeez if you look at NASCAR they put in a bunch of Safety Cars in for no reason at all to bunch the pack up. Like there’s a tear off on the track which they don’t even have tear offs!

“There’s like a hundred yellow flags, I mean Safety Cars. in the race but it brings them altogether.

“[Monaco] is just the greatest track. Maybe we need two races here, who knows. There’s all this build up.

“It was the longest 78 laps ever, oh God. It was long. I had 46 laps… [the team] were like you’ve just got 46 laps to do on this tire and I am like no, how many did I do already, I swear I did another 30 laps already."

Williams pins Lance Stroll's punctures on overheating rims

Lance Stroll at Monaco

Williams has blamed Lance Stroll’s punctures at the Monaco Grand Prix on an overheating wheel rim, caused by the brakes becoming too hot.

Williams suffered another dismal event as both Stroll and team-mate Sergey Sirotkin were hampered by problems that scuppered their slim points aspirations.

Stroll started the race from 17th on the grid but suffered two punctures in the race and eventually came home as the last of the 17 classified runners, two laps down.

Sirotkin, meanwhile, was hindered by a 10-second stop/go penalty that came after Williams failed to fit his tires prior to the three-minute signal pre-race, and was 16th.

“Lance had a puncture on lap nine due to the brakes becoming too hot, which overheated the rim and caused the failure," said technical chief Paddy Lowe.

“We failed to control that on the second set of tires and he suffered another puncture. The issue was managed for the rest of the race, but with so many pitstops and blue flags, Lance was in no position to make any progress.

“On Sergey’s side, we suffered a wheel assembly problem on the grid which meant we fitted the wheels after the three-minute deadline.

“His race was ruined [after the penalty]. He spent the afternoon in that situation suffering constant blue flags. We converted to a two-stop strategy as that is actually the quickest race if you’re not holding a position.

“It was good to see that he could put in some quick laps at the end whilst in free air."

Stroll expressed his frustration at the outcome of the race, commenting: “It was a pretty terrible day.

“I got a puncture on lap nine and lost a bunch of time, like a lap, just getting to the pits. After that, I was busy letting cars through with blue flags as I was a lap down.

“Then we had temperature problems all race, and I was told to give gaps and let cars by, so there was not much of an opportunity and we just weren't racing."

Williams remains at the foot of the 10-team Constructors’ Championship, with just four points.

Wolff: Not sure if Bernie's old deals are sustainable

Ecclestone was the ultimate deal maker for F1

Formula 1 can no longer count on raking in huge sums of money from grand prix hosting fees and is on the correct path exploring and chasing fresh revenue streams, according to Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff.

A number of race promoters were in Monaco last weekend for talks with commercial rights holders Liberty Media, who took over in January last year and ousted former supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

Several have called for revised contracts, while there has been speculation that a proposed new race in Miami for 2019 will have much cheaper terms because of its strategic importance.

“Sanction fees were one of the three key revenue generators in the old Bernie Formula 1 business model. And he was exceptional at these deals," Wolff told reporters.

“I am not sure that is sustainable. It is clear that when there is a change of regime, people and promoters will negotiate and try to restructure the business model. Bernie was squeezing the last cent out for the benefit of the shareholders and the teams but it left certain promoters in a very difficult economic situation."

Silverstone activated the British Grand Prix’s break clause last year while Hockenheim, which hosts Germany’s race, says it needs a no-risk deal after this year. Monaco, the flagship race, pays far less than others.

Formula 1’s other main revenue generators under Ecclestone were television broadcast deals and trackside advertising and sponsorship.

Liberty are building up a digital strategy, that includes an F1 TV streaming service, to tap new revenue streams and audiences.

Wolff expressed confidence in Formula One’s management to make the right decisions, “But it is also clear that maybe that one pillar (hosting fees) is going to be difficult to maintain on the levels we have seen before."

“We have to grow in other areas, we have to grow broadcast deals and digital revenue and monetize alternative revenue streams."

Any drop in overall revenues hits the teams, who receive a percentage of the total.

Although contracts are confidential, the global average fee of the current 21 races is around $30.6-million and some $40-million for those outside of Europe, according to various sources.

Azerbaijan Grand Prix promoter Arif Rahimov told reporters in Monaco that he wanted his race to pay closer to the average.

Azerbaijan, Russia, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi are among those who pay most. Baku’s bill, thanks to an annual escalator clause, is estimated to have climbed to more than $60 million since its debut in 2016 when it was first known as the European Grand Prix.