F1 information LIVE: Russian driver Nikita Mazepin going through ban from FIA as Mercedes monitor Purple Bull sidepods

It’s a busy build-up to the beginning of the 2022 F1 season, and now we’re in March, there are the primary two races of the calendar to stay up for – so notice these dates in your diary:

• March 10-12: Testing Bahrain
• March 11: Drive to Survive Season 4
• March 20: Bahrain Grand Prix
• March 27: Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Alpine technical director Pat Fry considers Fernando Alonso to nonetheless be among the many elite drivers in Method 1 and contains the Spaniard inside the highest 4.

“He helps us to do all the things higher, on a regular basis, and that’s an encouragement, having pushed various kinds of automobiles in his Method 1 profession,” stated Fry.

“It’s helpful to have totally different opinions whenever you’re altering to such a distinct automotive.”

George Russell maintains it’s too quickly to consider a maiden title in his debut season with Mercedes.

The Briton has already impressed in Barcelona throughout testing forward of the 2022 F1 season, however Russell is remaining calm.

“It’s not even one thing I’m enthusiastic about, to be trustworthy. I believe it’s fairly unimaginable how racing drivers’ minds work, that whenever you put the helmet on – doesn’t matter should you’re preventing for a win or, for me for the previous couple of years, preventing in the back of the grid – you at all times get on with the very same mindset.

“And I had the very best instance of that in Bahrain once I raced for Mercedes [in 2020]. For me, that was simply one other race, whether or not I used to be out in entrance or beginning on the entrance row, the strategy is similar, the mindset is similar, the work you place into the occasion, post-event, is precisely the identical. So, work on the method and fear about all the things afterwards.”

Charles Leclerc is assured transferring ahead after a promising first spherical of testing for Ferrari in Barcelona forward of the 2022 F1 season.

“Properly, I’m feeling fairly good. I imply, we’ve executed all of the exams that we’ve wished to do, which was an important factor we wished to do throughout this take a look at – doing as a lot mileage as we might – and we did, with out main issues. So it’s a optimistic first take a look at for this, and by way of efficiency, nothing to say for now,” stated Leclerc.

“However, I believe we’re working more durable than ever to simply try to maintain our heads down. It’s in fact at all times good to see yourselves P1, however it doesn’t imply something… I believe everyone seems to be conscious of this within the workforce. So, sure, we aren’t actually specializing in the efficiency in any respect; we’re simply specializing in ourselves… Now we’re already targeted on Bahrain.”

Ferrari anticipate an “intense combat” this season in Method 1 after leaving Barcelona testing on a excessive.

After Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz banked the best mileage complete of everywhere in the three days of pre-season working, along with topping the timesheets as soon as, Racing Director and Head of Observe Space Laurent Mekies added warning regardless of optimism for the Scuderia difficult Mercedes and Purple Bull.

“For [the drivers], it was a helpful warm-up earlier than what might be a protracted and intense season, getting used to procedures such because the pit stops and, for the assorted crews that make up the workforce, to all be again working collectively once more and interacting effectively with our drivers,” stated Mekies.

“We nonetheless have a whole lot of work forward of us and we are able to anticipate an intense combat, so everybody has many gadgets on their job checklist now. It’s solely step one of a protracted yr, after we intend to push very laborious, working all collectively.”

The pre-race ‘We Race As One’ second was introduced in for begin of the 2020 season and noticed drivers given the chance to take a knee on the grid to protest in opposition to racism and promote social justice.

Hamilton is a forthright proponent of equality inside and outdoors of the game and was a driving drive behind Mercedes’ all-black race livery used over the last two seasons.

Lewis Hamilton’s accusations of doable bias amongst race stewards has provoked a fast response from the FIA.

The Mercedes man spoke on Wednesday a few lack of range within the stewards’ room, calling for extra feminine illustration amongst these within the hotseats, including that it “can be superior to have a female and male as the 2 race administrators.”

Haas workforce principal Guenther Steiner has backed Nikita Mazepin after the Russian driver was abused by Jeremy Clarkson on Twitter over his stance on the Russian Grand Prix.

The race, as a result of be held in Sochi on 25 September, has since been cancelled following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and F1 are set to carry additional conferences to debate the disaster.

Method 1’s chief government has hailed the affect of Drive to Survive on the game after the discharge of the trailer for the fourth sequence of the Netflix present.

The behind-the-scenes documentary has granted new followers unprecedented perception into the workings and personalities of the F1 grid and has been reported to have been a key driver in resurgent reputation of the game, significantly in america.

The success of Drive to Survive has triggered quite a lot of imitations, with MotoGP among the many sporting organisations launching behind-the-scenes documentaries.