F1 News
F1 Today | Verstappen makes thoughtless error and Haas kickstart their season
As the season edges closer, GPblog has more F1 news to share with you. Max Verstappen has made a costly off-season racing error with his personal squad Team Redline. Haas has kickstarted their season early, and in an exclusive interview, singer Per Gessle discusses a paddock story from an iconic F1 race.
Verstappen makes costly error
Max Verstappen participated in the IMSA Esports Global Championship on Sunday night, representing Team Redline. The team was locked in a fierce battle with Williams Esports to win the championship title. However, Controversy arose early in the race when Verstappen was involved in a first-corner collision with the Williams car, sparking debate about the incident.
Race control noted Verstappen’s aggressive move and ultimately issued him a drive-through penalty. This setback caused the Formula 1 driver to drop down the order. Despite the early drama, Verstappen and his teammate, Gustavo Ariel, managed to recover somewhat, eventually finishing the race in 12th place. Watch the incident here.
Haas kickstart their 2025 season
Formula 1 teams are in full preparation for the new season, which starts with the official test at the end of February. In the run-up, several teams take the opportunity to do a so-called TPC test. That is a Testing of Previous Cars. Haas has announced it will hold such a test next Wednesday and Thursday. It will take place at the Jerez circuit in Spain. It is a historic moment for Haas, as it is the first TPC test in the team's history. Thanks to new revenue streams and especially the arrival of Toyota as a partner, it will be possible to hold such a test in 2025.
On Wednesday, Oliver Bearman steps in first, followed by Toyota protégée Ritomo Miyata in the afternoon. A day later, it is Esteban Ocon's turn, again followed by a session with Japan's Miyata. Read more on Haas' early start now.
Per Gessle reveals paddock stories
Swedish Roxette singer Per Gessle spoke exclusively to GPblog about his car collection and love for Formula 1. Gessle told an interesting story from the F1 paddock. As a regular visitor, he has many, but one sticks out for him. Here's an extract from the full interview, which you can read by clicking this link.
Gessle was present at Max Verstappen's first Formula 1 victory. However, what stands out more in his memory is the dramatic incident that set the stage for Verstappen's triumph in Barcelona: the collision between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, which ended in both drivers retiring from the race.
"In that particular race, I was a guest at Mercedes. So, I was in the pit when that happened. And there came this girl, told the guests like me, ‘You have to leave now because there's going to be a war.’ So, they just threw us out of the pit. So I went to someone else, probably Ferrari," laughs Gessle.
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