MOTORSPORT NEWS WRITING PORTFOLIO 2024
Yashraj Singh(a few of my favourites from the past couple of years)
(2024): Lewis Hamilton Makes Shock Move To Ferrari From Mercedes For 2025, Everything You Need To Know
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Excerpt: The most successful partnership in F1 history will come to an end at the end of 2024.
Highlights:
Lewis Hamilton, F1's most successful driver, surprises fans by leaving Mercedes after 11 years to join Ferrari, creating a major buzz in the motorsport world.
Hamilton's move is driven by a desire for an eighth world title and a chance to solidify his legacy, potentially surpassing Michael Schumacher's achievements with Ferrari.
Hamilton's exit sparks a frenzy in the F1 driver market, with speculation around the vacant Mercedes seat for 2025. Key contenders include Alonso, Sainz, Albon, Ocon, and young talent Antonelli.
Body:
Yes, as borderline blasphemous as it sounds, your eyes and ears do not deceive you. After 11 years, six world championships and 82 race wins with Mercedes, Sir Lewis Hamilton will indeed don the famous Scarlet Red of the Scuderia Ferrari F1 team, replacing Carlos Sainz alongside Charles Leclerc from 2025 in a multi-year deal.
The most successful F1 driver in history will join the most successful team in history in possibly the most mind-meltingly unexpected driver transfer ever.
But Lewis Hamilton, the primary bane of Ferrari’s life since 2007 will now…drive for the Prancing Horse? That’s like Cristiano Ronaldo signing for Barcelona, Virat Kohli moving to Chennai Super Kings, or Travis Head suddenly becoming captain of the Indian Cricket Team. But why? What? How? It almost doesn’t sound right, right? How does it make any sense?
But for Hamilton, it makes all the sense in the world. To put it bluntly, he has absolutely nothing to lose.
Hamilton is in, presumably, his final few years in F1 coupled with the veteran coming off the back of two winless seasons for a man with 103 career wins surely has his heart yearning for greener (or should I say redder) pastures away from his once beloved Mercedes team.
Despite his shocking move the champion had this to say about his darling Silver Arrows: “I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I'm so proud of what we have achieved together. Mercedes has been part of my life since I was 13 years old. It's a place where I have grown up, so making the
decision to leave was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make. But the time is right for me to take this step and I'm excited to be taking on a new challenge. I will be forever grateful for the incredible support of my Mercedes family, especially Toto for his friendship and leadership and I want to finish on a high together. I am 100% committed to delivering the best performance I can this season and making my last year with the Silver Arrows, one to remember.”
The 7x world champion’s desire to add a record breaking eighth to his collection is something he’s emphasised repeatedly since he cruelly lost it on that fateful day in Abu Dhabi, and he seems to think Ferrari is his best bet at reclaiming the crown once and for all.
His close friend and Mercedes team principal and CEO, Toto Wolff had this to say regarding his star driver’s imminent departure, “In terms of a team-driver pairing, our relationship with Lewis has become the most successful the sport has seen, and that’s something we can look back on with pride; Lewis will always be an important part of Mercedes motorsport history. However, we knew our partnership would come to a natural end at some point, and that day has now come. We accept Lewis’s decision to seek a fresh challenge, and our opportunities for the future are exciting to contemplate. But for now, we still have one season to go, and we are focused on going racing to deliver a strong 2024.”
Ferrari had already shown interest in Hamilton’s abilities as early as 2019 when then-team principal Mattia Binnotto acknowledged him as a strong rival and someone they wouldn’t mind driving their cars.
Let’s not get it twisted however, this is a legacy move. Best case scenario: should Hamilton’s move to Ferrari deliver the pair even a single championship, in the eyes of many including even his harshest critics, the achievement will undoubtedly cement the Briton as the greatest F1 driver to have ever lived.
As most fans know, winning a championship is a ridiculously tough task on its own, but to do so with Ferrari is a completely different ball game. The pressures that come with driving for Ferrari are unlike any other and very few have ever been able to handle them, hence why their champions are revered so highly. It's why every driver dreams of one day lifting the world title with them, it’s why some sacrifice their entire careers away in pursuit of the coveted prize, as it rewards them with one thing above all else. Immortality. And that is exactly what Lewis wants.
It will also allow him to not only step out from the shadow of the great Michael Schumacher but to completely eclipse him and put to rest any debates regarding who the one true undisputed “Greatest of All Time” really is; a title many feel the Brit already has a reasonable claim to.
Legacy mumbo jumbo aside, the insanely lucrative monetary incentive would be enough to convince even the most hard-nosed of businessmen. Undoubtedly, Ferrari will be paying the 39-year-old an exorbitant amount of money not only for his driving services, but also his enormous global brand. As we speak, based on the initial rumours alone, Ferrari’s valuation went up a staggering $7 billion.
Worst case scenario, it all goes horribly and implodes in usual Ferrari fashion, and Hamilton joins the back of a long line of fellow legends such as Prost, Alonso and Vettel who went chasing glory in Maranello only to come back empty handed. It likely wouldn’t affect his legacy much even if he underperforms compared to Ferrari starboy Charles Leclerc, as Lewis has already proved whatever he needed to. A final title would only be the proverbial icing on an already blindingly shiny cake indeed.
Hamilton and Ferrari aside, this transfer will and probably has already undoubtedly kicked off what is affectionately known as “silly season”. This refers to the driver transfer market that tends to get a bit frantic and unpredictable when a top driver makes a high-profile switch.
This means every driver whose contract expires at the end of 2025 (spoiler alert, that’s most of them) will be gunning for that second Mercedes seat but let’s take a quick look at the most likely candidates.
Fernando Alonso: If he isn’t satisfied with Aston Martin’s progress in 2024, the veteran 2x world champion is already rumoured to have started putting out feelers.
Carlos Sainz: With him now being out of a job for 2025, the Spaniard will be eager to prove his worth, something he probably thought he did already, what with him being the only non-Red Bull Grand Prix winner in 2023.
Alex Albon: The Williams driver had an extremely strong showing in 2023, regularly scoring points, and with ex-Mercedes chief strategist James Vowles and a Mercedes engine behind him and a strong friendship with George Russell it could make for an easy move.
Esteban Ocon: The French driver is managed by none other than Mercedes head honcho Toto Wolff himself and has proved himself as a race winner under pressure, coupled with what seems to be a toxic work environment brewing at Alpine, he could be aiming to replace Hamilton with haste.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli: The 17-year-old Mercedes academy prodigy is set to make his F2 debut in 2024 and should he do well from the jump, we could very well see a Max Verstappen-esque fast tracking to the top flight of open wheel racing for 2025.
It’s about to get really interesting. Stay tuned and watch this space for updates.
(2024): RED BULL REIGNS SUPREME IN SUZUKA AS VERSTAPPEN AND PEREZ CRUISE TO 1-2 VICTORY
Excerpt: A flurry of strategic gambits unfolded throughout the race, with Leclerc opting for a risky one-stop, Mercedes opting for a surprising switch to hard tires and Perez staging a strong comeback to second place.
Highlights:
Max Verstappen and Red Bull dominated the Japanese GP with a commanding 1-2 finish.
Ferrari solidified their position as the second-best team, securing third and fourth places respectively with Sainz and Leclerc's strong performances.
Early chaos ensued as Ricciardo and Albon collided, triggering a red flag while home hero Tsunoda scored the final point.
Body:
The Dutch Lion, Max Verstappen and his Red Bull RB20 roared back from their Australian setback to restore order as they claimed a commanding 1-2 finish in front of their beloved Japanese fans. The
reigning three-time world champion claimed his 57th career win as he joined Michael Schumacher as the only drivers to have won the Japanese Grand Prix three times in a row.
Behind the Bulls, Ferrari fiercely asserted themselves as the season's second-best team with strong performances from both Leclerc and Sainz, the latter taking the final step of the podium.
Verstappen's Suzuka hat-trick was another masterclass in control, leading from pole to podium with brutal efficiency, even after a nail-biting restart following a dramatic collision further back. Ferrari, on the other hand, unleashed strategic wizardry (who would’ve thought?), with Charles Leclerc pulling off a tall one-stop wonder and Carlos Sainz executing a bold offset strategy, securing third and fourth places respectively.
The race kicked off with fireworks as Daniel Ricciardo and Alex Albon tangled early on, triggering a red flag. While it was deemed a racing incident, both will likely be rueing the crash for their own reasons; Ricciardo needed a good result to prove his worth as the threat of losing his seat once again looms large whilst Albon will be praying his chassis remains undamaged as Williams has none left at their disposal.
A myriad of strategic gambits up and down the field kept the race interesting, with Mercedes throwing a curveball by opting for a switch to hard tires, shaking up the order. Sergio Perez mounted a thrilling comeback to second, while teammate Verstappen capitalised on a crucial pitstop to extend his lead.
McLaren's Lando Norris initially posed a threat but found himself outmanoeuvred by Ferrari’s strategy. Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz showcased his podium prowess with a masterful drive, notching up his third consecutive top-three finish of the season.
Mercedes endured a rollercoaster race, with Lewis Hamilton struggling to match the pace of his teammate and rivals finishing a lowly ninth. Russell seemed to extract the most out of the tricky W15 as he executed some daring overtakes in the dying stages to cross the line in seventh right behind Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin.
Meanwhile, Yuki Tsunoda, the lone RB ranger for most of the race, sent the home crowd into a frenzy with his gutsy performance, clinching the final point amid fierce competition in the midfield.
Alpine's dreams fizzled in the Japanese heat, with Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly failing to make a dent in the leaderboard. Despite others' misfortunes, they could only muster 15th and 16th places respectively.
Excerpt: Behind the Bulls, McLaren's Lando Norris secured a strong third on the grid, while Ferrari's Charles Leclerc struggled to eighth place, beaten by his teammate Sainz in fourth.
Highlights:
Max Verstappen clinched pole position at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix after a tense battle with Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso expressed surprise at the team's improved performance following recent upgrades.
Despite qualifying struggles, Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton praised the car's handling improvements at Suzuka.
Body:
Max Verstappen was once again the class of the field in a pleasantly surprising qualifying session at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, securing his 35th career pole position amidst a fierce battle with his Red Bull teammate, Sergio Perez.
The Dutch driver faced close competition from Perez, who showed impressive pace from the onset of the weekend and managed to keep Verstappen within striking distance throughout the session. Despite encountering rear instability in Suzuka's slower corners, Perez narrowed the gap to just 0.023s on his final run, marking his closest gap to Verstappen since claiming pole in Miami last year.
McLaren's Lando Norris also put in a strong performance, securing third on the grid ahead of Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, who led the Maranello squad as Charles Leclerc struggled to eighth place.
Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso expressed surprise at the team's unexpectedly strong showing following recent car upgrades, clinching fifth on the grid. However, Alonso remained cautious about maintaining the position in the race, anticipating challenges from competitors.
Lower down the field, RB’s home favourite Yuki Tsunoda continued his streak of strong qualifying outings, narrowly edging out teammate Daniel Ricciardo to secure a spot in Q3.
Despite securing pole position, Verstappen voiced concerns about his car's race pace at Suzuka, emphasising the need to address performance issues ahead of the race. Meanwhile, George Russell analysed Mercedes' qualifying struggles, attributing inconsistencies to the car's deficiencies in highspeed corners, exacerbated by lighter fuel loads in qualifying.
Nevertheless, Lewis Hamilton remained optimistic about Mercedes' improvements, praising the car's enhanced balance and handling at Suzuka despite his seventh-place qualifying result. As the stage is set for an exhilarating race, all eyes are on Verstappen and Red Bull as they aim to maintain their advantage in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix.
(2022): Lewis Hamilton’s Shocking 2022 Decline: A Natural Changing of the Guard or a Harsh Truth Exposed?
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After losing the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship on the final lap of the final race under slightly dubious circumstances, seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was expected to return to Formula 1 in 2022 with an unquenchable thirst for vengeance. The shocking reality of the situation has turned out to be the complete opposite.
The 37-year-old Briton is currently languishing in an underwhelming sixth place in the championship standings, whilst being comfortably and consistently outperformed by his new fresh-faced teammate, George Russell. The latter currently sits in fourth and is building an ever-widening, near-40 point gap to his compatriot.
There are a variety of potential reasons for this unforeseen drop in performance for the former champion, all of which could be true simultaneously. Let’s start from the top shall we.
Quite simply, he’s old now. Although his shirtless Instagram mirror selfies suggest otherwise, Hamilton is now 37-years-old meaning he is officially borderline geriatric (by F1 standards). After a certain point in a professional athlete’s career, age no longer means experience and wisdom. It starts to represent something a little more sombre, especially in a sport as ridiculously fast paced as Formula 1, where reflexes and awareness are paramount. In the past couple of years, Lewis seems to getting increasingly fatigued after races, often seen leaning or kneeling against a nearby wall to catch his breath.
This potential drop in performance due to age isn’t unheard of amongst racing drivers with key examples of previous drivers like fellow seven-time world champion, Michael Schumacher. Schumi, who was famous for revolutionizing driver fitness in the 90s and early 2000s, revealed that he struggled immensely with neck muscle fatigue towards the end of his career. This hindered his ability to be as unfathomably quick as he once was. Former F1 race winner, David Coulthard had also stated that after a certain age his natural reflexes started to slow down and gaps he would usually go for during his younger years, were no longer there.
Is it possible that age has finally caught up with that once hungry, young lion from 2007?
Mercedes struggles. It’s been no secret that since the start of the 2022 season that the eight-time consecutive constructors champions, Mercedes, have had a poor run at the new ground effect era of F1 cars. Whilst they’ve looked quick a few occasions, they still aren’t consistently on the pace of the front running Red Bulls and Ferraris. And of their two drivers, Lewis definitely seems to be struggling more.
This unexpected lack of performance has been made even worse by (and yes, I’m really tired of this word) porpoising, i.e the phenomenon that makes the current crop of cars look more like a raging jackhammer rather than a sculpted, bleeding edge, racing prototype. Hamilton has been very vocal about his struggles with the bouncing, evident by him holding his back for support every time he gets out of the W13 as well as team principal Toto Wolf incessantly apologizing over team radio for the “sh*tbox” (his words, not mine) the German, Brackley-based outfit has developed. Some claim that Hamilton’s pace deficit is due to “experimental” set-ups and upgrades, but it’s also possible that he simply hasn’t adapted well to this new generation of car.
Teammates. If you’ve watched F1 long enough, you’d know the only true measure of a racing driver’s ability is how they compare to their teammates, since they’re the only ones in the same machinery. While this isn’t the first time Hamilton has been outshone by a teammate; namely Jenson Button in 2011 at McLaren and Nico Rosberg in 2016 at Mercedes (both of whom are world champions), it would be foolish to question Hamilton’s ability and legacy in a race car. However, this season’s performance begs the question, is he underperforming or is George Russell, who is touted to be a future world champion himself, outperforming the car, or could it be both?
Nothing else left to prove? Hamilton is currently the most successful driver in the entire history of the sport with almost every single record worth having under his banner, which solicits the question of what else does he have left to do in the sport? And has his motivation to keep giving his entire energy to racing finally dwindled after 16 seasons at the sharp end of F1?
With Mercedes rumoured to be bringing some substantial wing upgrades to Silverstone, and Lewis returning to the podium in Canada, we could definitely see a turn in form for the legendary Brit. So don’t count him out, as we could yet again hear Bono scream those famous four words.
(2021): The Hero of France Quartararo Wins the War Against Ducati to Become 2021 MotoGP Champion
What defines a hero? According to the Oxford English dictionary, a hero is an illustrious warrior who shows great courage in times of impending doom. Fabio Quartararo’s title winning charge against the Ducatis in the 2021 MotoGP season was nothing short of heroic.
However, there is one thing they don’t tell you while growing up. Heroes often fail. They need to fail in order for that eventual triumph to be that much more euphoric. In this tale, our hero also experienced his fair share of failure. For one to truly understand the magnitude of the 22-year-old’s ultimate achievement, a brief recap of the season prior is imperative.
Despair. Anguish. Pain. Frustration. All of these are words that aptly describe the emotions Fabio Quartararo went through at the end of 2020. Despite mounting a stellar challenge for the title in the first half of the 2020 season, the Frenchman’s chances fell into an abyss towards the latter half. Although he won three races, the most of any rider that year, which in itself was a testament to how crazy that season was, the Yamaha rider lacked consistency. This was his inevitable downfall. Tipped as the favourite or at the very least, a serious contender for the title, he ended the season an extremely disappointing 8th in the world championship standings.
Despite the monumental challenge ahead of him, Fabio vowed his championship hopes would not end in tears again. Once more, the flying Frenchman got off to a ballistic start to the season with consecutive wins in Doha and Portimao but the road to becoming champion was still a treacherous and unpredictable one. He finished 13th in Jerez due to an arm pump -related injury and a penalty for a loose chest plate dropped him off the podium in Catalunya. He won again in Mugello, Assen and Silverstone. The Silverstone victory, was the only race he said, that he knew he was going to win before the grand prix even started. A further five podiums followed as he rounded off the season with 278 points. Enough to seal his maiden world title.
What makes his championship victory that much more impressive was the sheer levels of raw talent he was up against. If his main rivals in the previous season were the consistent, fast charging Suzukis, his new foes in 2021 were not to be underestimated for a split-second. Fabio was now up against not two but five near-supersonic missiles that Ducati had spawned as challengers. Heading the factory Ducati line up was the young VR46 protégé himself, Francesco Bagnaia and the amazing Aussie, Jack Miller. A couple of hundredths behind, were the PRAMAC Ducati men with the venerable Johann Zarco and rookie sensation, Jorge Martin. The challenge from Suzuki was spearheaded by the 2020 champion, Joan Mir and one simply cannot talk about competition in MotoGP without mentioning the undeterrable eight-time world champion, Marc Marquez. Although not a title contender due to his recovering injury, the Spaniard took his Honda to three wins across the season. The level of competition and skill on the grid was so incredibly high that towards the end of the season, even Enea Bastianini, former Moto2 champion and current Gresini Racing rider, wanted a piece of the action as he wrestled a couple of podiums away from the eventual world champion, on a two-year-old Ducati.
If you were to ask a true fan about the number of wins Quartararo recorded that season, while impressive, they’d probably tell you that it simply does not do justice to the quality of riding that was put on display by the Yamaha rider. Aptly nicknamed El Diablo, race after race Fabio executed such positively ridiculously moves on track with a finesse and ruthlessness that even the lord of the underworld would be proud of. One of these many jaw-dropping dropping moments came at the Red Bull Ring in Austria. During the last five laps, Fabio was in 5th, behind a train of quicker Hondas and Ducatis. In a move that left all in attendance in awe of the irrepressible Frenchman, he lunged down the inside of his rivals at the end of the second straight to gain three places in a single corner. As he feathered the brakes as late as possible, he left the rest looking unbelievably silly.
Going into the antepenultimate round at Imola, the job was yet to be finished. Quartararo’s only potential rival, Francesco Bagnaia was on pole position with his Australian teammate, Jack Miller on the front row with him as a resurgent Marc Marquez lined up behind the two. The Italian had to win this race to even have a chance at the title. Fabio, meanwhile suffered a poor qualifying and even sorrier start which saw him drop from 15th to 17th on the opening lap. Back at the front, Miller had resigned himself to play a support role for his teammate, defending with all his might against the fast-charging Marquez while Bagnaia scampered away. A little further behind, El Diablo had finally found his groove as he scythed his way through the pack in an almost Rossi 2015-esque fashion. Just as we all thought the title hunt would go on to the next race all hope was lost in a split second for the Bologna Bullets as Jack Miller crashed out in front of Marquez and crucially, Bagnaia followed suit a few laps later at the exact same corner as his fallen comrade. Marc Marquez went on to win the race with Fabio only beaten to the podium on the finish line by the impressive rookie, Enea Bastianini. Regardless, Quartararo had done just enough to achieve his dream of becoming the undisputed Champion of the World in 2021.
The young Frenchman, famous for wearing his heart on his sleeve, held nothing back right after he won the title. He fluctuated between a state of perpetual tears, screaming in joy and speechlessness. He was awarded a ‘Championship Gold’ version of his own crash helmet design to commemorate his crowning moment as he celebrated with all his fans and teammates. Even his great rivals showed their respect for the new king as Bagnaia, Zarco, Mir, Marquez and Rossi amongst many others took time to personally congratulate the young man on this milestone.
This was an extremely symbolic race for many reasons. Ducati had proven that they easily had the quickest bike on the grid and were the favourites for the next season. Marc Marquez had finally won at a clockwise oriented circuit indicating that his return to form was imminent after his terrifying accident almost two years prior. Fabio Quartararo had become only the fifth youngest premier class world champion in history and the only French premier class champion ever. It was also Valentino Rossi’s final race appearance in front of his adoring home crowd which was made sweeter as The Doctor managed an impressive top ten finish. No matter what happens from now on, Fabio Quartararo has cemented his name in the sport’s league of legends. He joins a select few in a group of elite riders who were able to win the championship on a slower bike than their rivals. A true hero who defied the odds and overcame hardship to achieve eternal glory.