Tost: Tsunoda did nothing wrong in Mexico F1 qualifying fracas

Tsunoda came under fire from Red Bull’s drivers and management after him running off track in the closing stages of Q3 was blamed for wrecking the final laps of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner claimed that his drivers “got Tsunoda’d” after Mercedes took a shock 1-2 in qualifying, with Valtteri Bottas leading Lewis Hamilton.
But Tost is adamant that Tsunoda …Keep reading

Haas: Drivers should listen, not try to be strategists

Mazepin was left annoyed in qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix when he was refused a request to overtake his teammate during a preparation lap in Q1.
When told he could not, he responded on the radio: “Are you having a laugh?”
Haas’ chief race engineer Ayao Komatsu intervened and made clear the team was not joking, and told the Russian that he should drop back if he wanted a …Keep reading

Horner wants to avoid “action replay” of 2019 Mexico F1 clash

Mercedes stunned Red Bull by locking out the front row of the grid for Sunday’s race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, as Valtteri Bottas headed up a 1-2 finish in Q3.
Hamilton qualified second, one place ahead of title rival Verstappen in third, leaving the Dutchman on the back foot heading into the race as he bids to build on his championship lead.
Verstappen sits 12 points clear of …Keep reading
WTCR – Urrutia passes Guerrieri for victory

WTCR – Urrutia passes Guerrieri for victory

Sport news

Santiago Urrutia took a sensational second win of the season at WTCR Race of Italy despite losing the lead to Esteban Guerrieri at the start of Race 1 in Adria.

Starting from the reverse-grid pole position, Urrutia’s Goodyear-equipped Cyan Performance Lynk & Co was beaten off the line by Guerrieri’s ALL-INKL.COM Münnich Motorsport Honda Civic Type R TCR. But a determined pass on the Honda at the final corner at the end of lap one allowed Urrutia to grab back the advantage, which he maintained until the chequered flag.

The move began at the penultimate corner, before Urrutia muscled his way on the inside line at the next turn to pull off a brilliant move. “He hit me at the previous corner,” Guerrieri complained, but he was now left to defend from a charging Tom Coronel in his Comtoyou DHL Team Audi Sport RS 3 LMS.

Dutchman Coronel made his move at the end of lap 10 of 14, pulling off a great pass on the outside line at the final corner. Guerrieri fought back as they started lap 11, but eventually was forced to cede. Coronel’s second place was his second podium of the season and gave him the WTCR Trophy victory.

“I knew the start would be difficult,” said Urrutia. “Honda is always a little better than us. But then Esteban left the door open and it was good. I could then control the race. It’s a good result and I’m happy for Cyan.”

Urrutia was heard on the radio to voice concerns about the state of his brakes during the race, but he said it was no major problem. “My car was fine, but when you push it is normal. With all the hairpins at this circuit it is hard on the brakes.”

Behind the top three, Norbert Michelisz fought off Yvan Muller to claim fourth. Frédéric Vervisch battled his way from ninth on the grid to finish sixth ahead of team-mate Gilles Magnus, the pair appearing to work together in the interests of the former’s title hopes. They shuffled Néstor Girolami back from fifth, the Argentinian finishing eighth.

Title chaser Jean-Karl Vernay made the best of starting only 12th on the grid, working his way up to finish ninth despite contact with Nathanaël Berthon, whose Audi ended up in a barrier. The Frenchman recovered, but retired to the pits.

Home hero Gabriele Tarquini completed the top 10 from P11 on the grid after passing Goodyear #FollowTheLeader Yann Ehrlacher at the start of the last lap. Ehrlacher, who started P10, drove conservatively to bank vital points.

Ahead of Race 2, the Frenchman now leads Urrutia and Gurrieri – who are tied in second – by 21 points. Vernay is now fourth, 24 points behind Ehrlacher having started the day 26 behind. Ehrlacher will line up in pole position.

The other points scorers in Race 1 were Mikel Azcona (Zengő Motorsport CUPRA Leon Competición), Thed Björk (Lynk & Co), Rob Huff (CUPRA) and Luca Engstler (Hyundai).

Race 2 at WTCR Race of Italy is due to get underway at 12h15 local time.

World Touring Car Cup

WTCRWTCRSEASON 2021SportCircuit1SportWorld Touring Car CupCircuitWTCRSEASON 2021WTCR00Sunday, November 7, 2021 – 12:05pmSunday, November 7, 2021 – 12:05pm

Why Tsunoda wasn’t at fault in Mexico F1 qualifying controversy

Horner’s outburst came after the AlphaTauri driver was deemed to have ruined the crucial final qualifying laps of stablemates Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen, allowing Mercedes a surprise front row lockout. 
But was the Japanese rookie really at fault?
While it often happens at other stages of qualifying, it’s rare for a driver to be on a slow in-lap right at the end of Q3, when …Keep reading