The Weekly #2: The Formula 1 news to remember from the past 7 days
Motors Inside offers you a recap of the Formula 1 news that you shouldn't have missed last week. We present you with a summary of the 7 days between January 26th and February 2nd (before the Red Bull and Williams presentations).
The Haas reveals itself
The Haas VF23 is the first car unveiled for the 2023 season among the 10 teams. The VF23 is a mock-up, presented through a few images on social media, and its main focus is to highlight the different color scheme compared to 2022. There are also some technical details mentioned, but for now, there is no guarantee that they will be included in the private testing version.
Jabouille has passed away.
Jean-Pierre Jabouille, one of the French Formula 1 drivers from the generation before Alain Prost, unfortunately passed away at the age of 80.
Alunni replaces Fred Vasseur at Sauber.
The replacement for Frédéric Vasseur at Sauber will be Italian engineer Alessandro Alunni Bravi. He will take Vasseur’s position trackside this season. He was appointed by Andreas Seidl, Sauber’s new team principal.
Audi buys a part of Sauber.
Moreover, Sauber has confirmed that Audi has taken a minority stake in the Swiss team. It is far from a complete takeover and the percentage is said to be less than 49%, although the exact percentage has not been specified.
Mick Schumacher becomes McLaren’s reserve driver.
Mick Schumacher was already announced as a reserve driver for Mercedes, and as a result, some customer teams of Mercedes can also call upon the German-Swiss driver if necessary. Schumacher will also become a reserve driver for McLaren. He recently molded his seat in both teams last week.
The FIA is starting the selection process for an 11th team.
The number of teams in Formula 1 could evolve in the years to come. Indeed, the FIA is starting the process to receive applications from several potential teams, in order to select an 11th or even a 12th team. If no team is strong enough, it will not be chosen.
Private tests for McLaren, Mercedes, and AlphaTauri.
McLaren was on track in Barcelona with Norris and Piastri using a 2021 test car. Mercedes and AlphaTauri ran with 2022 test cars to test the 2023 tires brought by Pirelli as part of the Pirelli tests. It took place at Paul-Ricard.
Jean Alesi President of the Castellet Paul-Ricard.
The Paul-Ricard welcomes its new President. Jean Alesi, originally from Vaucluse, a few hundred kilometers from Castellet, becomes the President of Paul-Ricard.
The livery of the Red Bull RB19.
Red Bull has unveiled the livery of the RB19, but unsurprisingly, there are no changes in style. As for the technical plan, it is a 2022 version, so we will have to wait for the F1 pre-season tests to see a concrete difference.
Ford is returning to F1.
Starting from 2023, Ford is partnering with Red Bull Power Trains engine production facility and is returning to Formula One as an engine supplier.
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