INSIDER
20 F1 RACING JANUARY 2020
PICTURESPICTURES:ZAK MAUGER;MARK SUTTON;MOTORSPORTIMAGESQ
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MASTERMIND
Yourchosenspecialisedsubject:
theworld’sgreatestsportWhatyear did Pirelli became the sole supplierof
tyresin Formula 1?
Who was the first driverto win a world
championship F1 racedrivinga Brabham, and at
which race did heachieve thefeat?
Which two circuits with a lap length under two
miles have held world championship races?
True or false: Jenson Button’s only pole position
for McLaren was at the Belgian GP in 2012?
Clay Regazzoni won the first and JohnWatson
the last F1 races at which Americanvenue?
The Turkish GP was only held seven times, but
which driver won three of those races?
Alan Jonestook Shadow’s only GP win, but which
two drivers claimed pole positionsfor theteam?
Where didValtteri Bottas claim his first F
podium: was itAustria in 2014, Germany in 2014
or Canada in 2015?
Which driverhas started more F1race s for
Mercedes:Lewis Hamilton or Nico Rosberg?
Whom did Antonio Giovinazzi substitutefor at
Sauber in2017, for his first two races in F1?Monaco and 3 Dan Gurney, 1964 French GP 2 20111Jean- 7 Felipe Massa 6 Long Beach 5 True 4 ZeltwegHamilton 9 Austria 2014 8 Tom Pryce Pierre Jarier andPascal Wehrlein 10 (140 to Rosberg’s 136)After spending 2019
testing and runningin
FP1 for Williams (below),
Latifi makes the step up
to a race seat in 202003
LATIFI TAKES
KUBICA’SSEAT
FOR
The2020Formula1gridisnowcomplete after
Williams confirmed ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
that Formula 2 runner-up Nicholas Latifi will replace
Robert Kubica as George Russell’s team-mate.
The Canadian completed six Friday practice sessions
and four days of testing for Williams in 2019, and has long
been favourite to take the seat after Kubica announced
after the August break that hewou ld be leaving the team
at the end of the season. Latifi needed to finish in the
top five of the 2019 F2 championship to guarantee enough
superlicence points to graduate to F1. He achieved that
when he finished second to Nyck de Vries.
“For me it’s a dream come true,” Latifi said. “I think
I’m joining a great team for the first year. They havea
great history ofdevel oping young drivers and are one of
the most successful teams in Formula 1. Two bad years
doesn’t define a team’s legacy; doesn’t define what they’re
capable of. I have complete faith in everyone, fromwhat
I’ve seen so far working in the team, thatwe will get on
top of the problems and be back to a morecompetitive
running order. I’m looking forward to doing mypart.”
Latifi, whose father Michael is a McLaren shareholder
and founder of Sofina Foods, one of Canada’s largest food
companies, is understood to be bringing a budget worth
€15m, matching the level of Kubica’s 2019 funding.
The length of Latifi’s deal has not beendisclosed.
“We’re reallyplease d Nicholas is going to step up
next year,” said deputy team boss Claire Williams.
“It’s something we’ve had under consideration for a while.
It probably was an inevitability, and one we’re really
delighted about. He’s been a fantastic part of the team
this year as our reserve driver. He has the right kind of
personality thatwe’re looking for in our drivers.
“When you’re a team that isn’t necessarily doing
so well, you haveto consider the personalities of the
drivers probably a whole lot more than maybe you would
otherwise. Both George and Nicholas have the type of
personalities we’re looking for – thattruly understand the
importance of playing their role in the development of the
team, motivating theteam andinspiring the team.”
The announcement confirms Nico Hülkenberg will
not race in F1 in 2020, though he had already ruled out
returning to the team that gave him his debut in 2010.
Kubica is now expected to dovetail a test and simulator
driver role in F1 with a race programme in German
touring cars. The Pole has held talkswith Haas and is also
in discussions with Racing Point about his F1 future.