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Apparently the alternative candidates will not even be included on the ballot...
Sainz agrees with Alonso in criticizing F1's fixation on celebrities.
"It’s turning into a bit of a trend"

Carlos Sainz has joined Fernando Alonso in criticizing the television coverage of Formula 1, claiming the sport is emphasizing celebrity reactions over actual racing action. In an interview with Spanish radio show El Partidazo de COPE, the Williams driver expressed that F1 has gone too far in its emphasis on glamorous visuals and paddock guests instead of presenting significant racing moments. "It’s becoming a bit of a trend that seems to be working for them - showcasing our girlfriends and famous individuals on TV, the reactions," Sainz remarked.

"I can understand showing a reaction during an overtake or a tense moment, but last weekend they didn’t cover any of the four or five overtakes I made at the end, nor Fernando’s pursuit of Lewis. They missed a lot of significant moments.
Ben Sulayem alleged to have excluded competitors from the FIA election.
Controversial new electoral regulations

Mohammed Ben Sulayem is facing allegations of creating barriers that make it nearly impossible for any challenger to compete against him in the upcoming FIA presidential election this December. Three individuals—American Tim Mayer and Europeans Laura Villars and Virginie Philipott—have expressed their intent to oppose the current president. However, Soy Motor of Spain reports that "it's not that the candidates struggle to win the elections, but rather they can't even enter the race."

According to the publication, the contentious new electoral rules implemented by Ben Sulayem mandate that any contender must assemble a complete leadership team of ten by October 24, which must include seven sport vice-presidents selected from a pre-approved list of just 28 names.
Verstappen acknowledges that Mercedes is likely to be at the forefront with the 2026 regulations.
"I truly believe Mercedes will be leading the way."

Max Verstappen anticipates that Mercedes will have an advantage when the new regulations for Formula 1 come into effect next year. Although Toto Wolff made a strong effort to attract the four-time world champion, Verstappen ultimately decided to remain with Red Bull, despite Christian Horner's departure and the uncertainties surrounding the team's internal power unit project.

"Next year will be challenging with our own engine, of course," Verstappen mentioned to Sky Deutschland. "That poses a new risk for Red Bull, but they accepted that risk by entering Formula 1, and they've performed quite well.
Wolff and Brown state that F1 is 'missing' the removed Horner.
"It's beneficial for Formula 1 to have divisive figures"

Two of Christian Horner’s former rivals in the paddock—Toto Wolff and Zak Brown—have both expressed that Formula 1 feels altered in the absence of the former Red Bull chief. Mercedes head Wolff, in an interview with Sport Bild, appeared almost heartfelt about Horner’s departure.

"He’s certainly absent," Wolff remarked. "The presence of polarizing figures is crucial for Formula 1. This sport requires personalities. It needs a villain. Christian excelled in that area because he embraced the role."

Wolff noted that Horner’s knack for media engagement also contributed to the drama within the paddock. "He understood how to leverage the cameras to his benefit. That’s somewhat missing now due to the lack of conflicts.
Lawson: Children should know that dreams come true.
Liam Lawson's path to Formula 1 was not an easy one. He was born in New Zealand and moved to Europe at an early age, but he achieved his goal and hopes others will follow…

Liam Lawson: "I'm happy to represent New Zealand in Formula 1. As children we're often told that breaking into Formula 1 is very difficult, almost impossible, and I believe that needs to change.
You know, if at a young age you want to become an astronaut, you can become one. I was six or seven when I was told not to even dream about Formula 1. It seems kids are often told that nowadays. I consider myself very, very lucky to have made it to Formula 1, and I hope my example will change things at least a little.
There are a lot of New Zealanders in modern motorsport. Look at the WEC, IndyCar, NASCAR, Supercars – New Zealand drivers compete everywhere, and many of them are at the top.
Former Formula 1 driver Mark Blundell was disqualified from driving for six months for speeding. In November 2024 Blundell was driving a Land Rover on the A14 and, near a junction by the village of Cold Ashby in Northamptonshire, exceeded the speed limit by 26 miles per hour, travelling the stretch at 96 mph. A hearing took place the previous day, at which Blundell’s interests were represented by a lawyer. On behalf of the former driver the lawyer admitted the offence. The court ordered that Blundell be disqualified from driving for six months and imposed a fine of £1,042. Mark Blundell raced in Formula 1 from 1991 to 1995 for Brabham, Ligier, Tyrrell and McLaren, and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1992.
Leclerc does not expect Ferrari to make progress until the end of the year.
Charles Leclerc finished sixth in Singapore and delivered a gloomy prognosis for Ferrari fans. The Monegasque doubts that the team's results will improve before the end of the season.
Charles Leclerc: "I don't think we're going to see anything outstanding before the end of the year. The picture we saw in Singapore more or less corresponds to how the rest of the season will go for us.
It's hard when you're not fighting for wins, but it's especially hard when you have high expectations, because last year we were fighting for the Constructors' Championship. At the start of the season expectations had to be lowered, and over the course of the year we haven't seen any progress, so it's been tough.
Enrico Cardile: We'll succeed in 2026!
In an interview with the press office journalists, Aston Martin’s new technical director Enrico Cardile spoke about leaving Ferrari, his vision for the future, and the team’s prospects in 2026…

Question: Enrico, can you describe the duties of a technical director? What do they include? What does your typical workday look like?
Enrico Cardile: Describing my duties isn’t difficult. I am fully responsible for the development of the car. That includes all activities related to its design and the development of the tools needed to improve its performance – from the initial concept to realization in material through work in the wind tunnel and CFD.
Describing the day-to-day is harder, because there is absolutely no routine. In that respect I’m lucky. Throughout the working week I take part in discussions and see how various projects develop and progress.
Kalle Rovanperä is moving from rallying to circuit racing.
Two-time World Rally Champion Kalle Rovanperä will end his rally career at the end of the season to compete in circuit racing. The Finnish driver for Toyota’s works team said he will make his debut in the Japanese Super Formula series in 2026 and plans to move to Formula 2 in 2027.

"The decision wasn't easy for me, but I've been thinking about it for a long time," Kalle Rovanperä says in an official press statement. "For my age I have already achieved a lot in rallying, so I started looking into what other opportunities I might have and what challenges I'm ready to take on.

The decision turned out to be difficult, but it seems right to me to pursue a dream and reach new goals. Toyota Gazoo Racing has supported me in this endeavor from the very beginning, and thanks to them I will compete in Super Formula.
Carlos Sainz named the drivers he considers the fastest in 2025.
On air on the Spanish radio station Cope, the Williams driver listed three colleagues: "On a single flying lap Charles Leclerc is the fastest. Although between him and Lando Norris it's practically equal. But over a race distance the fastest is Max Verstappen."
At the same time Carlos avoided a direct answer to the question of who would be faster if all Formula 1 drivers raced in identical cars: "It all depends on which specific car we are driving. If it's a Red Bull, then obviously Max will be the fastest.
If we were all given a Mercedes, it would be hard to beat George Russell, because he is very good behind the wheel of his car. If we all had a Williams, I'd say the same about Alex Albon and me. It all depends on the car."
In an interview with Sport Bild, Wolff was asked whether he misses Christian Horner, who has left the paddock, and he replied — "it's less interesting without a villain"...

Toto Wolff: "It would be an exaggeration to say that I miss him, but it's different without Christian. He is definitely missed.

Our sport needs personalities. Someone has to be the villain. Christian was comfortable in that role; he was masterful in front of the camera and knew how to use it to his advantage. Right now we miss that a bit. It's less interesting without a villain.

A return to Formula 1? Christian will have to decide that for himself. I don't know whether he feels the need to prove anything. In any case, he has already proven that he can win races and titles. You can't deny his success."
Formula 1 circuits are isolated from the rest of the world on Grand Prix days. Anyone who wants to get inside must have a ticket and pass multiple checks. But in Singapore a 22-year-old fan got onto the circuit without a ticket and now faces jail or a fine.

Local mothership.sg reports that on October 6 a Swedish citizen, Alkallas Karam, was charged with illegally entering Grand Prix premises, specifically the racetrack, the pit lane and the Paddock Club without a valid entry ticket.

On October 4 at about 19:47 Karam entered through Gate No. 1 on Republic Boulevard without a ticket. At about 20:40 he entered the Paddock Club, and at about 21:00 he went onto the pit lane.

This offence is punishable under Article 447 of the Penal Code. If convicted, the offender faces imprisonment for up to three months, a fine of 1,500 Singapore dollars, or both.
Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali has repeatedly said that a large number of countries are interested in hosting a Grand Prix. Recently mentioned were South Korea, Thailand, Portugal, Germany, Turkey, South Africa and even motorsport-exotic Morocco and Rwanda.

Now Uzbekistan has been added to that impressive list. British journalist Joe Saward writes that representatives from Uzbekistan traveled to the Singapore Grand Prix to hold preliminary talks about possibly staging a Formula 1 round in the future.

Sport is currently in the spotlight in Uzbekistan. The national football team has qualified for the final tournament of the FIFA World Cup for the first time, which will take place in 2026, and in early December the FIA Champions Gala award ceremony and the election of the FIA president will be held in Tashkent.
Mercedes' chief engineer Andrew Shovlin is pleased that the problems that had plagued the team in Singapore for many years have been successfully resolved…

Andrew Shovlin: "It's hot in Singapore and the asphalt offers high grip. In those conditions we had problems for many years, but now we won this race convincingly. It's nice to see the results of the hard work we've put into developing this car. I hope this is a positive trend, and that going forward we will be quick in hot weather on high‑grip tracks.

The new front wing helped achieve a better balance and the drivers feel more comfortable in the car. We tried to spare them the need to work the throttle on corner exit for the car to keep turning. Now the corner is taken optimally, which helps a lot. We also tried to isolate the tyres from the heat of the brake drum to help keep them cool. The whole team worked on that, and I'm glad that together we achieved the desired result."
The former Haas F1 team principal Günther Steiner commented on Christian Horner’s negotiations with his former team on The Red Flags podcast…

Günther Steiner: “Will Horner move to Haas F1? According to official documents we know how much he earned at Red Bull. I don’t think Gene Haas will pay him that much. Draw your own conclusions. I would like to be paid as much as Christian, but I wasn’t paid that much.

Aio Komatsu said that they did have talks, but Christian previously worked at Red Bull, in the team with the biggest infrastructure in Formula 1. They now build their own power units! Why would he want to get involved with that? I think it’s just rumors.

This often happens in Formula 1. Christian just talked to someone at Haas F1 and everyone decided there would be more to it. And that’s by no means a fact.”
Sainz doesn't like the quality of television broadcasts.
Carlos Sainz doesn't like the quality of Formula 1's television broadcasts. The Williams driver thinks the directors are going too far by paying too much attention to showing celebrities and drivers' girlfriends while there is intense racing happening on track.
Carlos Sainz: "It's becoming a kind of trend that maybe worked once, when people were interested in watching our girlfriends and celebrities and seeing their reactions.
I understand that after an overtake or a tense moment the TV crews can briefly show their reaction if they know that approach worked in the past. But they should do it with respect for the main events and always show the important moments of the race.
Last weekend they didn't show four of my five overtakes closer to the finish. And they didn't show how on the final lap Fernando Alonso was closing in on Lewis Hamilton.
Former Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner may continue his career at Ferrari, German outlet F1-Insider writes, citing its source. According to the publication, Ferrari president John Elkann is seriously considering dismissing Frederic Vasseur from the position of Formula 1 team principal and inviting Christian Horner to take his place. However, such a scenario would effectively put an end to Ferrari’s prospects of obtaining Max Verstappen in 2027, since it is believed that Horner’s departure was a condition under which the four-time world champion would remain at Red Bull Racing. “Despite the contract extension, Ferrari apparently want to get rid of Vasseur,” the F1-Insider article claims. “John Elkann, it seems, is focused on getting Christian Horner, who has fourteen championship titles to his name. John Elkann is considered a very emotional person who is interested not in what he thought yesterday but in what he thinks today. They extended Vasseur’s contract, but his position has been shaken again. And that’s where Horner comes into play. Apparently, people at Ferrari do not realize that by doing so they are closing the door on Verstappen.”
George Russell and Mercedes have been discussing the details of a new contract for several months — both sides know it will be renewed, but they want to sign it on terms more favorable to themselves.
Former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner believes that in negotiations with Mercedes George Russell has the advantage thanks to his excellent results and the team's lack of a real alternative.
Guenther Steiner: "George will not be left without a contract. If he doesn't get one at Mercedes, he'll sign with someone else. George knows his worth and is not willing to accept Mercedes' terms. He wants to protect his interests as much as possible.
Last year everyone was scared. 'Oh, Lewis is leaving. Do you think George can lead the team?' And he could. He proved himself and is waiting for a contract that suits him. He's simply trying to negotiate the best possible terms for himself and, it seems, wants a longer contract than a one-year deal.
I suppose Toto thinks: 'We'll give him one year, so if Max becomes available or wants to leave Red Bull, I'll have room for Max and my favorite Kimi Antonelli.'
The situation is complicated. But Russell's position is stronger, because he has scored far more points for Mercedes than Antonelli, and the board is unlikely to be willing to part with their best asset."
The Austrian company Red Bull, which owns two Formula 1 teams – Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls, received an offer from a consortium of investors to buy the "junior" team for $2.3 billion. Similar offers have been made to Haas and Alpine, but the teams' owners are rejecting them.

"The value of Formula 1 teams is rising rapidly, so their owners receive many offers from investment groups prepared to part with huge sums to be among the participants in the championship," writes British journalist Joe Savar, who is knowledgeable about Formula 1 business affairs. "To date the most striking example is the willingness of insurance magnate Mark Walter [founder of TWG Global] to invest at least $1 billion in a new Formula 1 team that is being positioned as Cadillac. He sees that owning a team offers the opportunity to multiply the invested funds many times over.

"I have reliable information that Red Bull recently turned down an investors' group's offer to sell Racing Bulls for $2.3 billion. The Austrian drinks company receives roughly one offer per month. The previous offer of $2 billion was made to them in August.

"The same story applies to Haas and Alpine, but Gene Haas and the Renault company do not want to part with their shares.

"Some teams still do not make a profit because they continue to invest and develop. According to Williams' latest financial reports, the team lost $67.5 million in 2024, although revenue for the year grew by 25%.

"On paper McLaren is the most valuable Formula 1 team, since part of its shares recently changed owners and the entire team was valued at $4.1 billion."
Ugo Ugochukwu set the fastest time on the final day of Formula 3 testing in Jerez.