F1

EXPRESS SPORT brings you all the updates from Baku on the opening day of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

"So why would the drivers with their IP rights and everything be capped, who actually bring the show and put their lives at risk? His public positions in support of relevant issues such as the environment, animal rights, Black people, women and human rights must also be remembered and highlighted." So it was good that we agreed so early with the contract.” The idea had been proposed by Brazil congressman Andre Figueredo last year in celebration of Hamilton’s love for the country. Mick Schumacher has also been issued a warning by Haas boss Guenther Steiner, claiming the German will face ‘serious conversations’ if he crashes this weekend. So the earlier the better. Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes may still be struggling for pace on-track this weekend, but the seven-time champion enjoyed a big win overnight. Speaking ahead of practice, Perez said: "I certainly feel like as a driver you want certainty. It comes just months after a terrifying accident at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at the start of the season. So for me, it’s completely wrong.” The Mexican signed a new two-year extension ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix, a race he went on to win. The Mercedes star unfurled the Brazilian flag on the podium after securing victory in a heated battle with Max Verstappen. Meanwhile, F1 teams and drivers have raised their dissatisfaction at the FIA’s handling of the sport.

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix offers a unique challenge to teams and drivers, but the wrong aerodynamic setup can mean the difference between finishing first or ...

In 2021, Red Bull ran Max Verstappen and race-winner Sergio Perez's cars with a high-downforce setup, and both drivers had the performance advantage in the race. The third sector is a low-downforce one, meaning that the less resistance an F1 car has, the faster it can go and the closer it can get to the ultimate top speed by the time it hits the brakes before Turn 1. This means that the forces pressing the car to the ground are much more significant, allowing for extra speed to be carried. Should a team opt for a low-downforce setup, they should, theoretically, be strong in qualifying. But in the race, the driver is vulnerable to increased wear on the tyres because the F1 car will be prone to sliding. Starting at Turn 16, through the small kinks that are Turns 17 to 20, is a 2km straight that allows cars to reach speeds of up to 350km/h.

Max Verstappen has voiced his opposition to a salary cap for Formula 1 drivers, and pointed out that it could make it harder for youngsters to attract ...

So I think that's one of the main points." "So why would the drivers with their IP rights and everything be capped, [the people] who actually bring the show and put their lives at risk? "I think no one really knows where it's going to go.

The Baku City Circuit represents a unique challenge for the teams, given the opposing requirements on downforce levels for the different parts of the track.

Also note how it is using the rearward cooling louvre panel, which arches down around the engine cover. Red Bull had already modified its front brake and caliper arrangement for Monaco and has made further changes in Baku to improve cooling. Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fastest during an incident-packed Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice on Friday, the eighth round of the 2022 Formula 1 World ...

Perez went off again, this time botching the laps of Verstappen and Sainz, who were running behind him. Leclerc then locked up and overshot Turn 8. Verstappen finally got a lap in on well-used softs but stayed third from a soft-shod Alonso in fourth. AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly also suffered a huge lock-up but didn’t hit anything. Azerbaijan Grand Prix FP2 results: Leclerc fastest from Perez Azerbaijan Grand Prix FP1 results: Perez fastest from Leclerc

Lewis Hamilton says comments from FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem will not deter his activism on non-sporting issues, and has encouraged all Formula One ...

"There's a lot of energy with music and colours, over the years I've had amazing times there. "Brazil has always been a place that I've loved and admired as a kid, obviously following Ayrton [Senna] you naturally are drawn to the country. "I encourage all of the drivers to be more outspoken in future and speak about things they care about. On Thursday, Hamilton was made an honorary citizen of Brazil as the lower house of parliament passed a bill. So, that's part of my role." "It's a really cool project.

Lewis Hamilton has urged all his fellow Formula 1 drivers “to be more outspoken” in response to the FIA president initially seeming to question his and ...

“I'm proud to see what Seb does and to be an ally of his.” “I encourage all the drivers to be more outspoken in the future about things they care about. The seven-time champion added that regardless of the FIA president’s views, he would not ease off in his activism and that all F1 drivers should be similarly “outspoken” on issues close to their hearts. The Mercedes driver, who has previously said he wants to be “an ally” to the president in response to the clash over jewellery, suggested Ben Sulayem might have been taken out of context. “In the same way, I value the commitment of all drivers and champions for a better future.” “To me, it is about deciding whether we should impose our believes in something over the sport all the time.

YUKI TSUNODA and Sebastian Vettel have spoken out against the FIA ahead of this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

But I hope things calm down and we find a way to work together, as in the drivers and the FIA. Tsunoda's comments have since been echoed by four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, who believes the sport would reap the rewards of having a more experienced race director following Masi's dismissal at the end of last year. Plenty of drivers have already criticised the FIA as a result of their inconsistent decision-making at Grand Prix weekends, with the problem having been highlighted after F1's latest outing on the streets of Monaco earlier this month.

From pointless for a whole campaign to fifth place in the 2022 Formula 1 season opener. Haas has come a long way in a short time, so what can it achieve?

Although the 2022 Formula 1 season is destined to be forever linked to the word ‘porpoising’, this is not a new phenomenon. Michael Schumacher’s son has served his apprenticeship with a Haas team that brought up the rear of the Formula 1 field in 2021. From pointless for a whole campaign to fifth place in the 2022 Formula 1 season opener.

Talk of a new salary cap for drivers in the future has not gone down well with the world champion, who cited concerns about how it would affect the junior ...

"It's difficult enough to get into F1 at all, so as soon as you have a backer or investment as a driver, they obviously want their money back at some point. I think it's going to limit that a lot because they'll never get their return in money and if you get a cap, so it will hurt all the junior categories as well and I don't think you want that." If F1 bosses were to press ahead with plans to introduce a salary cap, drivers would find their earning potential limited.

Seeing its place on the Formula 1 calendar threatened by the sport's expansionism, Spa's Belgian Grand Prix is grabbing its last chance to try and convince ...

Whether all of that is enough to wow F1 and be awarded with a new contract remains to be seen. It's a big plus that they'll be able to experience it first-hand in August." "It's happened before that we headed into a grand prix without having certainty about the following year, so it's not a big issue. If we want to continue hosting races in the future, we have to modernise." "We are planning all sorts of entertainment, with DJs, exclusive events, fans zones and activations around the circuit. We have decided to listen and follow their new way of delivering F1 events.

While his Mercedes is uncompetitive, Hamilton has not let that slow him down in using F1 as a platform to speak out from.

Elsewhere, he is now a Brazilian citizen after after a bill passed by the country’s lower house of parliament. He clarified his recent comments on Twitter this week and said that sport should be “a catalyst of progress in society.” I had an epic win in São Paulo last year and my biggest following is in Brazil.” In Azerbaijan on Friday, Hamilton underlined he had no intention of stepping back and urged more drivers to become involved. After seven years of unprecedented Mercedes domination helped him to 103 GP wins, Hamilton’s 2022 car is not at the level of Red Bull or Ferrari. Once again, it looks like a supporting role for the seven-time world champion on the track in Baku this weekend. “For every single one of us here to do more, to speak out more, to spark more conversations.

Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin says Mercedes 'needs fundamental improvements' after struggling massively during Friday practice for ...

We're facing the same problems as in the last race. We did have some new parts on the car today, so we'll review whether those were contributing to our issues. "We've got a bit of work to do to find time on single lap and long run.

Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin says the team 'needs fundamental improvements' after struggling massively during Friday practice for ...

We're facing the same problems as in the last race. We did have some new parts on the car today, so we'll review whether those were contributing to our issues. "We've got a bit of work to do to find time on single lap and long run.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc was fastest during an incident-packed Azerbaijan Grand Prix practice on Friday, the eighth round of the 2022 Formula 1 World ...

Perez went off again, this time botching the laps of Verstappen and Sainz who were running behind him. Sainz was fifth, relying on his earlier medium-tyre time, ahead of Gasly. Leclerc then locked up and overshot Turn 8. AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly also suffered a huge lock-up but didn’t hit anything. Azerbaijan Grand Prix FP2 results: Leclerc fastest from Perez Red Bull’s Monaco winner Sergio Perez was fastest in FP1 but was beaten in FP2 by Leclerc, who was almost a quarter of a second quicker than the Mexican.

Katie Milner on Female F1 drivers ... F1 doesn't have a female driver on the grid because there is a smaller talent pool of women than there is of men, according ...

I think the fact that people aren't willing to make the gesture to give her a seat after having won two W Series seasons blows my mind.” I think because it would have been great for her to reintegrate and prove that she’s not just limited within W Series, that she is a very talented driver. One of the important reasons W Series needs to exist is we need to create female role models for young girls so that their parents or whoever it may be, see the sport as a sport for women as well and start getting women involved at the grassroot levels.”

False dawn for F1 giants as Mercedes star fumes; Ferrari gun's ominous warning: Practice Wrap.

We seem fast on the straights and it’s sometimes a set-up compromise with this type of circuit, but let’s see how we go tomorrow.” AlphaTauri seems like it’s striking that compromise better despite lacking the headline times. The Baku track is punishing for engines given around three-quarters of the lap is spent at full throttle, and it’s little surprise Red Bull Racing has wheeled out fresh power units for both drivers this weekend. Russell’s clearly had enough of the infernal bouncing. “It’s crazy out there through those high-speed corners, the car’s fully bottoming out. “There was a difference between the cars. “Obviously we’ve seen it,” Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner told Sky Sports, “We’ve got the data from it. For one, both RBR drivers believe they made set-up errors on Friday afternoon, the rectification of which might swing momentum back in their favour. Some of that was down to the bouncing, of which George Russell has clearly had enough. Red Bull Racing battled rear wing problems on Verstappen’s car in first practice. He even beat the Bulls in the speed trap. “Weight is always a critical factor, you’re obviously chasing that all over the car,” Horner said.

Piastri has been made to bide his time as Alpine's reserve driver this year, despite winning three consecutive title in a stellar junior racing career. Stream ...

He’s crashing at most race weekends and he’s in a tricky place. “If you want to mature someone in Formula 1, like Piastri, then Alpine has set aside a decent budget for this: a budget to park him and get him used to Formula 1,” he said. With Alpine set to retain Ocon and Alonso as its driver line-up for 2023, Coronel said the team would be foolish not to give Piastri the chance to gain any experience he can in F1. And the opportunity to drive in F1 could happen sooner than anticipated, largely because of the underwhelming form of Nicholas Latifi at Williams. But the French-based team announced earlier this year it would allow Piastri to be loaned to another team with the goal of developing his craft before eventually returning to Alpine. Piastri has been made to bide his time as Alpine’s reserve driver this year, despite winning three consecutive title in a stellar junior racing career.

The F2 champion was overlooked for a seat in the top category this season, but might get to race after all with another driver facing the axe unless he ...

If they were to do so, Piastri is reportedly seen as a ready-made replacement to come in at short notice and grab his F1 opportunity with both hands. Haas found themselves with a late vacancy after sacking Nikita Mazepin in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but they preferred to bring the experienced Kevin Magnussen back into the fold. Despite that, he was overlooked for a spot in the premier series due to a lack of seats available.

The organisers of the Belgian Grand Prix say they are willing to make changes to ensure the race remains on the Formula 1 calendar.

“We are planning all sorts of entertainment, with DJs, exclusive events, fans zones and activations around the circuit. If we want to continue hosting races in the future, we have to modernise.” We have decided to listen and follow their new way of delivering F1 events.

Charles Leclerc says there are still 'question marks' over the true formbook after topping the times in Friday practice for Formula 1's Azerbaijan GP.

"It was a solid day," said the Mexican. "We have work to do. "It was a good start to the day. "But we have good data with both tyres as well in the long run. We were just exploring, and it was just not coming, and we were not able to sort out our problems. "Actually, it was not a power unit problem," he explained. Asked if he expected a hard fight for pole with Red Bull, Leclerc said: "I think it will be.

The Baku City Circuit represents a unique challenge for the teams, given the opposing requirements on downforce levels for the different parts of the track.

As a consequence, the front wing has new rearward elements to reduce their chord length and incidence level to help balance the car. Red Bull had already modified its front brake and caliper arrangement for Monaco and has made further changes in Baku to improve cooling. Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Valtteri Bottas says his 15th place in Friday practice for Formula 1's Azerbaijan GP is not representative and that new parts will boost Alfa Romeo's ...

"There's a clear picture of where we need to improve and that just will gain so much more speed. "And I think today the main focus is that as a team, we need to just find some more speed. "It was a struggle, but we sort of like figured out what happened after the weekend. It's quite a sensitive track, but once you get the set-up right, then you can find quite a lot of laptime." "But I think we learned quite a bit with the set-up. We did quite a lot of set-up changes today, and towards the end, it was getting much better."

Baku plays host to the eighth round of the 2022 Formula 1 season. Here's how you can watch the 2022 Azerbaijan GP qualifying.

Viewers from selected countries can subscribe to F1 TV to stream qualifying on a device of their choice. - Denmark - TV3 / TV3 Sport / Viaplay Can’t find your country or region in the list?

EXPRESS SPORT brings you all the F1 updates ahead of this weekend's crucial Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the qualifying sessions.

At the moment, they just have an inherently faster car than us and we've done everything we can to try and catch up." Elsewhere, there's trouble in paradise for Max Verstappen and his Red Bull team. He added: "I'll get by. I'm a bit sore but yeah. Both Hamilton and Mercedes have been warned they may need to "take some big decisions" to give their Formula One season some direction again. The Silver Arrows looked to have turned a corner in Spain but struggled in Monaco and had a tough Friday at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

McLaren boss Andreas Seidl admits his team is expecting to breach the Formula 1 cost cap by the end of the season.

Everyone has an interest that we have a defined solution for this year." "I'm absolutely happy we have the cost cap in place. And so I don't have any concerns on that."

The third free practice session for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix is scheduled for early Saturday afternoon. On the street circuit of Baku, the lights will jump ...

The third free practice session for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix is scheduled for early Saturday afternoon. The team that we usually see back in Q3, has to recover from a poor first day in Azerbaijan. During the first two free practice sessions, the margins were minimal, although Ferrari seems to be slightly faster than Verstappen and Sergio Perez over one lap.

McLaren boss Andreas Seidl admits his team is expecting to breach the Formula 1 cost cap by the end of the season.

Everyone has an interest that we have a defined solution for this year." "I'm absolutely happy we have the cost cap in place. And so I don't have any concerns on that."

Mercedes Formula 1 boss Toto Wolff believes it is untenable for a cost-capped F1 not to have a driver salary limit.

“Those teams that will be affected already have long-term agreements with their drivers. “Formula 1 is looking at it without an immediate solution to it,” Wolff continued. Major League Baseball has no salary cap but rather a luxury tax, in which teams are forced to contribute extra money if their payroll exceeds a certain threshold. “Now clearly drivers will have an opinion on that, and maybe as a driver, I’d say the same thing. And I think the talk about [even a] $30-40million salary allowance is inadequate when you take that perspective. They already are.

Mercedes Formula 1 team principal Toto Wolff says the team's lack of top speed in Baku is the result of a draggy 'parachute' of a car coupled with a return ...

So between the draggy car and the bottoming this is the main deficit that we are seeing here on the straight," Wolff explained. And as a consequence, the ride is not very good. "In Barcelona we had a big rear wing, and the car was pretty stable on the straight and we were among the quickest, but there is never one thing and certainly the engine is not the area I want to point at."

Mercedes Formula 1 team principal Toto Wolff says the team's lack of top speed in Baku is the result of a draggy 'parachute' of a car coupled with a return ...

So between the draggy car and the bottoming this is the main deficit that we are seeing here on the straight," Wolff explained. And as a consequence, the ride is not very good. "In Barcelona we had a big rear wing, and the car was pretty stable on the straight and we were among the quickest, but there is never one thing and certainly the engine is not the area I want to point at."

'Never totally objective': Red Bull boss hits back at Max's dad — F1 Qualifying LIVE.

That’s why Checo got the call on the pit stop, Max wouldn’t even have had track position for example on that lap.” He’s got opinions and that’s absolutely fine, that’s his opinion. “Jos is his own person and personality.

Daniel Ricciardo has headed back into the pits after being told by McLaren can still find five meters braking for Turn One. "You made a good step," says his ...

The Ferrari boys are trading blows for fastest lap time. The rules say qualifying cannot start less than two hours after P3. Have checked with the FIA that qualifying will now start 15 mins later than scheduled (so 1515 UK). They say yes. Daniel Ricciardo has headed back into the pits after being told by McLaren can still find five meters braking for Turn One. "You made a good step," says his engineer. George Russell is still in the top five on the timing sheets but the Mercedes man is not happy with his latest effort. Alpine were also running a low-drag set-up and Alonso was fastest of all down the main straight. Alpine have big upgrade this weekend, with new wings, different sidepods and a new beam wing.

Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto has admitted to some concerns over the appointment of a former Mercedes Formula 1 team executive to a senior FIA role.

But the FIA is changing its structure and its organisation, and then the president has to make his decisions. He's certainly got a lot of competencies and experience. I think it's down to them [the FIA] to make sure that there will be no conflicts of interest at all, to behave properly, and it's down to the president to ensure it. “And we certainly shouldn't interfere into any of those decisions. She's got a lot of experience, she will certainly be capable of doing the job. “Yes, certainly it's a concern,” said Binotto when asked by Motorsport.com. “I think she's a great person.

Formula 1's qualifying session for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix will start 15 minutes later than originally scheduled as a consequence of earlier barrier ...

The slight delay to F1 qualifying will be of good news to some motorsport fans as it means there is no longer a direct clash with the start of the Le Mans 24 Hours race that begins in France. It said: "Following the delay to the start of FP3 which was due to barrier repairs after the F2 sprint race - the start of qualifying will be 15 minutes later than scheduled in accordance with Article 39 of the sporting regulations." But with the FIA electing to run the session for it full hour, rather than starting the clock at the original start time so it ended as scheduled at 4pm, it meant a finish time of 4.15pm local time.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff thinks the proposed driver salary cap should be lower than what F1's highest-earners Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen get.

“So while I understand the point, while we understand the importance of it, I don’t think that anyone today got a solution. It’s not only a tricky one I think it’s even not an urgent one. Maybe as a driver I would say the same thing but the U.S. American leagues that are the most successful in the world have introduced salary caps 15 years ago. “F1 is looking at it without an immediate solution to it,” he added. “But we have a cost cap. “It certainly has come up as a controversial topic,” Wolff said in Azerbaijan. “We can see that we are facing a very difficult situation in F1 overall.

The time has come: qualifying for the Baku Grand Prix is about to begin. From 15:00 UK time, 20 drivers will compete to start from pole position on Sunday.

Ferrari will need to make gains in qualifying in the slower corners, while Red Bull will excel in the final sector. The Ferrari's seem to be favourites in qualifying compared to Red Bull Racing so far this weekend. The time has come: qualifying for the Baku Grand Prix is about to begin.

Pirelli has defended its wet weather Formula 1 tyres in the wake of strong criticism from Sebastian Vettel and Jos Verstappen after the Monaco Grand Prix.

"We need to test, otherwise we cannot develop a new tyre for the future. "We don't have a lot of opportunities to test the wet and intermediate tyres," he explained. "I believe that Monaco is not the right track to make a proper assessment of the wet tyres.

Charles Leclerc put his Ferrari on pole position for the Azerbaijan F1 GP while Lewis Hamilton was facing an investigation for 'driving unnecessarily ...

Stroll was forced to park his wounded machine as race director Niels Wittich deployed the red flag. Russell will start fifth on Sunday, two places ahead of Hamilton, who could drop further down the field if he is penalised for his qualifying misdemeanour. Q1 was red-flagged with two and a half minutes remaining after Lance Stroll crashed out. The Monégasque saw off Sergio Pérez, who took advantage of Leclerc’s flat-footed Ferrari team in Monte Carlo to claim his third career win, by 0.282sec. After claiming his sixth pole of the season and fourth in succession, Leclerc said: “All poles feel good but this one I did not expect because I thought the Red Bulls were stronger. He responded by saying: “I don’t know what you expect from me, man, sometimes.”

Reigning Formula One world champion Max Verstappen has slammed the idea of capping driver salaries to save money, saying it would have a negative impact on ...

That's a suggestion but I can imagine what the response would be and the topic would disappear. "I think it's going to limit that a lot because they'll never get their return in money and if you get a cap, so it will hurt all the junior categories as well and I don't think you want that." F1 introduced a budget cap last year to curb spending among the sport's top teams and level the playing field across the grid.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc took pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the eighth round of the 2022 F1 World Championship.

Vettel locked up and nosed into the wall at Turn 15 but escaped to set the seventh-fastest time. km/h Gap Time Driver Cla

Lewis Hamilton says he was well within his delta time after being called to the Formula 1 stewards' office for driving unnecessarily slowly in Azerbaijan ...

They had the choice to go by, they didn't. I was within my delta. "I was within my delta. "And that's why they were so quick.

Sebastian Vettel has suggested that Formula 1 team earnings should be capped rather than introducing a driver salary cap.

So I will leave it to you.” We are a huge part of that. The teams are earning more money than ever before. “I think maybe they should be capped in terms of having certain fixed earnings and everything beyond that should go to a certain pool to do great things with it and have a positive impact. But he turned the subject to the recompense he believes drivers should receive for their role in F1, which is enjoying a huge increase in popularity, and both Vettel and Alonso agreed. Although a driver salary cap is unlikely to be introduced in 2023 as initially suggested, F1 and the FIA are pressing on with discussions about it in the background.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc took pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the eighth round of the 2022 F1 World Championship.

Vettel locked up and nosed into the wall at Turn 15 but escaped to set the seventh-fastest time. km/h Gap Time Driver Cla

EXPRESS SPORT brings you all the F1 updates ahead of this weekend's crucial Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the qualifying sessions.

You've got lots of races coming up and still a lot of time, but they need to find a direction." Hamilton reacted: "I wasn't below that out-lap pace so within the delta time so I should be able to drive at the speed I want. The three cars on this portion of the track at the time were all on 'out' laps." "None of them wanted to answer, it was really awkward… He added: "I'll get by. I'm a bit sore but yeah. At the moment, they just have an inherently faster car than us and we've done everything we can to try and catch up." Both Hamilton and Mercedes have been warned they may need to "take some big decisions" to give their Formula One season some direction again. And I was off line, so I wasn't holding everyone up. Elsewhere, there's trouble in paradise for Max Verstappen and his Red Bull team. he said: "It's not a bad thing to be in the midfield team. "Even if it's Lewis Hamilton in front of me or behind me it's the same, one of the other drivers I have to beat."

Mercedes driver George Russell believes it is just a matter of time until the traits of the latest generation of Formula One cars result in a major ...

Russell's Mercedes team has struggled with porpoising more than most, which has had a knock-on effect on the performance of his car. "I think it is just a matter of time before we see a major incident," he said. I don't really know what the future holds but I don't think we can sustain this for three years or however long these regulations are in force for."

To varying degrees Formula 1 teams have suffered from either porpoising or bouncing with the 2022 era cars, which are being run as close to the ground as ...

"It's a recipe for disaster. And it's sort of just unnecessary with the technology we have in today's environment. The issue was amplified in Baku where many teams up and down the paddock were suffering from the effect on the 2.2km long straight.

George Russell accidentally exposed Mercedes' secret ahead of Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Brit will start fifth on the grid at the Baku City Circuit ...

His teammate Hamilton was cleared of wrongdoing and will not be punished by the FIA despite having been summoned to the stewards at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for allegedly driving unnecessarily slowly during qualifying in Baku. The slowest car on the grid is closer to us than we are to Ferrari and Red Bull, to put it in perspective. After qualifying, Russell played down the Silver Arrows' hopes of challenging Ferrari and Red Bull in Baku. He suggested the 'slowest car on the grid' was closer to Mercedes than they were to the constructors battling at the top of the standings. At the start of the year we flip a coin and whoever wins gets a choice of who gets first or second in the first race and then we just alternate it." It's so tricky because you only get the benefit down the big long straight at the end of the lap so you have to try and plan it and time it right. "I aborted my lap so it happened that I was ahead of him and he took the benefit on that lap,” Russell said.