Formula One: Max Verstappen's title bid backed by 8 billion laps of Las Vegas

Formula One: Max Verstappen's title bid backed by 8 billion laps of Las Vegas

The Saturday night race on a street circuit running along Nevada City's famous strip is on November 23, and a win will win the championship for Worst.

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The Saturday night race on a street circuit running along Nevada City's famous strip is on November 23, and a win would clinch the championship for Verstappen with two rounds remaining. (AP)

When Max Verstappen heads to Las Vegas in pursuit of a fourth consecutive Formula One title, he will be racing around a flooded track his Red Bull team has already simulated about eight billion times.

The Saturday night race on a street circuit running along Nevada City's famous strip is on November 23, and a win would clinch the championship for Verstappen with two rounds remaining.

“We run four billion simulations before we get to the track,” Jack Harrington, head of Red Bull's partnerships group, which works with software giant and title sponsor Oracle, told Reuters.

“And then we take the data from FP1 and FP2 (the first and second exercises) and introduce them into the simulation and run those four billion times again.”

Billions, not millions, he stressed – although there's no need to speculate too much on who will win the title this year, given that Verstappen is 62 points ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris.

“It's always been said that sometimes you have to stick your hand out to see if it's raining in the pitlane, but there are always changes that will surprise you,” Harrington said.

“The more simulations you run, the more things you'll see and the more chance you'll have of being able to react to them efficiently.”

Red Bull uses Oracle's cloud infrastructure to run simulations to hone strategy and be prepared for every situation.

Red Bull is also building its own engine for 2026 and Taylor Newill, senior director of product management at Oracle, said high-performance computing is playing a big role in development simulations there too.

Race simulations are run all year round, but especially when there is a big decision coming up, such as when might be best to take an engine penalty – as Verstappen did in Brazil last weekend when he finished 17th Had raced on the spot.

That wet race was further complicated by accidents, red flags and safety cars.

Red Bull's strategy was risky, with Verstappen staying out during the safety car period after losing to McLaren title rival Lando Norris, but it paid off when the race was stopped due to worsening conditions.

“For more detailed planning of in-event strategy, we will start about two weeks in advance,” said Stephen Knowles, Red Bull senior race strategy engineer.

“Preliminary simulations illustrate a wide range of possible outcomes in terms of tire and car performance, as well as a wide range of possible events and their timing.

“This allows us to plan our weekend and especially our tire usage ahead of time, with the aim of scoring as many points as possible, but also having enough contingency to deal with the unexpected.”

Harrington said using Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) also has cost and stability benefits as teams operate under tight cost limits.

“We can switch to the cloud before race weekend… run this large amount of simulation, turn the cloud off and turn it on again when we need to do it again,” he said. Explained.

“Whereas before we had to invest in physical things to be able to run these, so it's also much more cost effective for us. Every race-winning strategy call we've made since 2021 has been on OCI.”

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First publication date: 11 November 2024, 08:03 am IST

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Lewis Hamilton says everything is fine with team after criticism of Singapore GP strategy

Lewis Hamilton says everything is fine with team after criticism of Singapore GP strategy

  • Lewis Hamilton said his focus is on the next race, scheduled for Austin next month.
Britain's Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton drives his car during the qualifying session of the Singapore Formula One Grand Prix at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore. (AP)

Seven-time Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton said things were fine between him and the Mercedes team, days after criticizing his tactics during last weekend's Singapore Grand Prix, in which he finished sixth.

The 39-year-old Hamilton had qualified third, but he was disappointed when his team told him to start with the soft tyres, when he wanted to use the medium tires instead.

Hamilton later said at the event, “I tried as hard as I could to go to the medium tyre, but the team suggested I start on the soft…everyone was on the medium tyre.”

Team technical director James Allison admitted the mistake, saying it ruined the race for Hamilton, who is sixth in the championship with 174 points, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen leads with 331 points.

However, Hamilton said on social media on Saturday that the soft tire strategy was a bold and risky move that could have given him an advantage early in the race but it did not pay off.

“I know there was a lot of talking about our strategy last time out and in Singapore, which didn't work. When that happens, it's natural to be disappointed and it's easy for me to voice that disappointment,” Britton said on Instagram. Wrote on the app.

“Make no mistake though, things are good with the team… We're not afraid to have those tricky conversations and challenging moments, which is why we've achieved so much together. We'll support each other to the end “

Hamilton said his focus is on the next race, scheduled for Austin next month.

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First publication date: 30 Sep 2024, 08:00 AM IST

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24-race Formula 1 calendar announced for 2025; to kick off with Australian GP

24-race Formula 1 calendar announced for 2025; to kick off with Australian GP

The 2025 F1 season will see the Australia Grand Prix as the season opener instead of Saudi Arabia, which has been the case in recent years since the d

The 2025 Formula 1 season opener will be held at Melbourne’s Albert Park between March 14-16

The FIA and Formula 1 have announced the calendar for the 2025 season, which will see the championship kick off in March next year. The 2025 F1 season will see the Australia Grand Prix as the season opener instead of Saudi Arabia, which has been the championship opener in recent years. The switch has been made owing to the holy month of Ramadan which will take place between March 1-30 next year.

This puts the Middle East venues including Saudi Arabia and Bahrain out of contention to host the early rounds. This takes F1 to the land down under the 2025 campaign set to kick off at Melbourne’s Albert Park between March 14 and 16.

Also Read : US-based Liberty Media announces MotoGP takeover for 4.2 billion Euros

F1 2025 Calendar
The 24-race calendar for 2025 will conclude in Abu Dhabi at the Yas Marina circuit on December 7 (F1)

Speaking about the calendar announcement, Formula 1 CEO and President Stefano Domenicali said, “2025 will be a special year as we celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the FIA Formula One World Championship, and it’s that legacy and experience that allows us to deliver such a strong calendar. Once again, we’ll visit 24 incredible venues around the world, delivering top-class racing, hospitality, and entertainment, which will be enjoyed by millions of fans worldwide. We’re grateful to the FIA, our promoters, host city partners, and all the related ASNs for their commitment and support in delivering this schedule and securing what promises to be another fantastic year for Formula 1.”

Following the Australian GP, the Shanghai GP is scheduled next between March 21 and 23. This will be followed by a two-week gap after which F1 will head to Suzuka for the Japanese GP on April 6. The F1 circus will then head to the Middle East for Bahrain on April 13 and Saudi Arabia on April 20 in back-to-back races. The action will then move to the US with the Miami GP scheduled on May 4.

Formula 1 will then move to Europe for a triple header starting with Italy (May 18), Monaco (May 25), and Spain (June 1). The Canadian GP will be held next on June 15, followed by the Austrian GP on June 29 and British GP on July 6. A doubleheader would next in Belgium (July 27) and Hungary (August 3) before the scheduled summer break.

F1 will return to the track with the Dutch GP on August 31, followed by Monza GP (September 7), Baku GP (September 21), Singapore GP (October 5), Austin GP (October 19) and Mexico GP (October 26).

The last set of races starts with Sao Paulo (November 9), Las Vegas (November 22), and Qatar (November 30), with the finale at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi on December 7, 2025.

First Published Date: 12 Apr 2024, 20:06 PM IST


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Year Ender 2023: 5 biggest highlights from the world of F1

Year Ender 2023: 5 biggest highlights from the world of F1

Let us take a look at the top five moments from the world of F1 in 2023 and what made them exciting.

2023 was a smashing year for Max Verstappen and Red Bull with 19 victories of 22 races (REUTERS/Rula Rouhana)

The 2023 Formula 1 season had its fair share of ups and downs. While it was undoubtedly the best year for Max Verstappen and Red Bull with 19 victories in 22 races, there was plenty more drama and action where you’d least expect it. The complete season was entertaining if not the most exciting when it came to wheel-to-wheel racing.

So as we bid adieu to the year 2023, let’s take a look at the top five moments from the world of F1 and what made them exciting.

Fernando Alonso Aston Martin
Fernando Alonso concluded the year with 8 podium finishes (Jewel SAMAD / AFP)

1. Fernando Alonso’s big comeback

Fernando Alonso managed to be a regular on the podium making this a rather eventful year for the legendary Aston Martin driver. The former three-time world champion took a shocking podium finish in the opening race in Bahrain as he battled with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz to snatch third place in the race. He went on to replicate his pace and claimed six podiums in the first eight races of the season including his career’s 100th podium finish in the 2023 Saudi Arabian GP. However, the team couldn’t keep up with the veteran driver and slow development meant Alonso could pick up only two more podiums by the end of the season.

Max Verstappen Dutch Grand Prix
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen passes the chequered flag to win the Dutch Grand Prix (Pool via REUTERS)

2. Max Verstappen dominates the Dutch GP

Max Verstappen came to nearly achieving the ‘GOAT’ status with his performance in the Dutch GP. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner declared him “untouchable” as the best driver in the world after Verstappen managed to drop to 13th due to the double downpour but made his way to the top of the pack lapping two seconds faster than everyone else. The race equalled Sebastian Vettel’s nine-race winning streak and was Verstappen’s eighth victory from pole this season.

Abu Dhabi GP 2023
The Austrian GP became the high point when 47 laps of qualifying were deleted due to drivers exceeding track limits (REUTERS/Rula Rouhana)

3. Track Exceptions

2023 was a messy season due to drivers constantly exceeding track limits. The Austrian GP became the high point of the year when 47 laps of qualifying were deleted. The FIA also reported over 1,200 instances of cars leaving the track during the race. Several drivers ended up with time penalties and another 12 received punishments after the race, which makes for almost half the grid. Three of the top 10 drivers dropped places as a result of the penalties.

Alpha Tauri Daniel Ricciardo
Alpha Tauri had three driver changes in 2023 with Nyck de Vries replaced by Daniel Ricciardo, who was replaced by Liam Lawson (USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con)

4. Musical chairs at Alpha Tauri

Red Bull and its B-team Alpha Tauri are known for swap drivers mid-season but Alpha Tauri took it further with three driver changes throughout the year. The season started with former Formula E champion Nyck de Vries in the seat but he was disposed of after ten races with Daniel Ricciardo stepping in. However, the Australian ended up breaking his wrist and had to take a sabbatical, allowing rookie Liam Lawson some crucial time in the F1 car. Lawson made full use of the opportunity finishing seventh in Mexico, which may help him get a full-time seat in the future.

Carlos Sainz Las Vegas GP 2023
Sparks fly from the car of Ferrari’s Spanish driver Carlos Sainz Jr. as he races during the qualifying session for the Las Vegas GP (Jim WATSON / AFP)

5. Viva Las Vegas

The Las Vegas GP was added to the calendar this year and saw a healthy mix of conversations most outside of racing. With complaints about how the event was organised to a manhole cover damaging Carlos Sainz’s car, the race weekend had a rocky start at best but managed to culminate into an exciting weekend with some action-packed racing at the end of it. Verstappen was penalised for pushing Leclerc off track and even crashed into Russell. But the driver raced to victory with a damaged wing, making it a dramatic win.

First Published Date: 31 Dec 2023, 16:50 PM IST


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F1: Max Verstappen wins inaugural Las Vegas GP concluding a chaotic weekend

F1: Max Verstappen wins inaugural Las Vegas GP concluding a chaotic weekend

He changed his tune — literally — following his 18th win of the season.

“Viva Las Vegas! Viva Las Vegas!” sang Verstappen as he crossed under the checkered flag waved by Justin Bieber. Verstappen had slammed Saturday night’s spectacle at every chance, yet raced in an Elvis-inspired firesuit and took the victory on the famed Las Vegas Strip.

“I hope everyone enjoyed it, we definitely did. Excited to come back here next year and try to do something similar,” said Verstappen, who had markedly reversed his weeklong position on the Las Vegas spectacle.

“It was a fun race. I enjoyed it,” he conceded.

Verstappen passed Charles Leclerc at the start then overcame a penalty to pass Leclerc once more with 13 laps remaining to continue his season-long dominance. Verstappen, Leclerc and Sergio Perez were driven in a limousine to a stage located near the Bellagio — “we go straight to the nightclub,” Verstappen told his fellow podium finishers — but they were instead treated to the casino’s famed fountain show.

The Bellagio fountains had been turned off all week and restarted as part of the victory celebration. None of the participants seemed remotely interested as they stood chatting. After receiving their trophies, they were treated to a New Year’s Eve-style fireworks show over the Strip.

Martin Garrix then launched into a throbbing DJ set to entertain those who opened their wallets for the most expensive spectator race of the season. Celebrities danced along on the grid and everyone seemed thrilled with the show. The stars in attendance included Brad Pitt, Rihanna, Usain Bolt and Shaquille O’Neal as F1 said it drew more than 315,000 spectators over the weekend and estimated an economic impact of $1.2 billion to Las Vegas.

“I really enjoyed it and I am especially happy that we finished the weekend on a high note because it was hurting me to see the sport that I love so much starting so wrong on Thursday,” said Leclerc. “The fact that we had an amazing race makes it all better.”

The race was the third stop this season in the United States, more than any other country, and was promoted by F1 and owner Liberty Media. But the event has been lambasted — especially by Verstappen — for its emphasis on becoming a neon extravaganza.

Tickets were expensive, hotels along the famed Strip hiked their prices, and the sporting element of the 21st race of the season was overshadowed by everything from celebrities, musical acts and a myriad of Elvis impersonators roaming the paddock that included a wedding chapel where former F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve was married earlier in the week.

Liberty expected to spend $500 million on the first grand prix it self-promoted, but paddock speculation before Saturday night’s race was that Liberty had gone well over budget. The entire event nearly imploded nine minutes into the first practice session on Thursday night when Carlos Sainz Jr. ran over a water drain valve cover on the track that badly damaged his Ferrari and F1 had to close the 3.85-mile (6.2-kilometer) circuit for inspection.

Fans were forced to leave at 1:30 a.m. Friday morning after witnessing just nine minutes of track activity. The second practice started at 2:30 a.m. and ran until 4 a.m., and instead of an apology, F1 simply offered $200 credits to the LVGP merchandise store to any ticket holders who had only purchased Thursday access. A class-action lawsuit was filed Friday against the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

It made it critical for F1 to deliver a good race Saturday night and, even though it was Verstappen’s sixth consecutive victory, it was one of the most spirited events of the season. Additionally, a track that had been likened to a “flying pig” because of its layout was praised for its raciness.

Seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton, who finished seventh for Mercedes, said the circuit “provided a better race than most of the tracks we go to.”

“I don’t think the music stopped this entire weekend in the paddock,” said Logan Sargeant of Williams, the only American driver in F1.

Leclerc and teammate Sainz had qualified 1-2 on Friday but Sainz was handed a 10-place penalty on the starting grid because Ferrari was forced to change his car due to the damage from hitting the drain cover. That pushed Verstappen up to second for the start and he immediately pounced.

The Dutchman forced Leclerc off track to take the lead, and although Leclerc demanded that Verstappen be forced to give the position back, Verstappen was only handed a five-second penalty. He served it during a later pit stop, but his Red Bull is so strong, he remained in contention the entire race.

Leclerc passed Perez for the lead with 17 laps remaining, and then three laps later Verstappen passed his teammate to take second. He and Perez then worked to create a tow that allowed Verstappen to catch Leclerc for the win with 13 laps remaining.

Perez had worked his way past Leclerc for second but Leclerc grabbed it back at the finish to deny Red Bull its seventh 1-2 finish of the season.

“I wanted that win so bad,” Leclerc said. “I enjoyed it so much. Second place with a lot of fights. There is no better race for the first race in Vegas.”

With Hamilton finishing seventh, Perez locked up second to Verstappen in the season driver standings.

The Leclerc finish helped Ferrari cut its deficit to Mercedes to four points for second in the constructor championship heading into next week’s finale at Abu Dhabi.

Lando Norris of McLaren was involved in an early accident and taken to a local hospital for precautionary reasons. He was released shortly after the fireworks show.

First Published Date: 19 Nov 2023, 18:24 PM IST


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