The drivers are rated after the European Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso takes his 29th career victory at the European Grand Prix

As was the case in Monaco, Williams showed flashes of pace but were unable to convert that into a strong performance in qualifying. After their victory in the Spanish Grand Prix, more has been expected of a resurgent Williams team but their performance in Monaco was frustrated by errors when the car appeared to be quick and the same could be said in qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix. Bruno Senna qualifying down in 16th place and will start one position ahead of team-mate Pastor […]

Lewis Hamilton continued his fine form in Montreal by topping the afternoon practice session at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Hamilton set his time of 1:15.259 around the halfway point of the ninety minute session and his time was never bettered. Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa completed the top three as Ferrari continue their improvement after a dismal start to the season. Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel was fourth, ahead of Paul di Resta and Kamui Kobayashi. The red flags came out after Bruno Senna crashed […]

Williams Chief Operating Engineer Mark Gillan has said he is disappointed with the outcome of the Monaco weekend for the British team. Pastor Maldonado's race ended on the opening lap following a collision with Pedro de La Rosa, while Bruno Senna could only managed a point courtesy of tenth place. "The car was good enough for a P4 or P5 qualifying position", Gillan said in a team press release, "Our race pace was also good so it is disappointing not to have come away from […]

Michael Schumacher set the fastest time during qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix but will start sixth following a penalty for previous indiscretions. Schumacher's time of 1:14.301 eclipsed Mark Webber by 0.08s but he won't start from the front after he was penalised for crashing into Bruno Senna during the Spanish Grand Prix. It means that Webber will lead the way in Monaco for the second time in three years, having blitzed the opposition in 2010. Nico Rosberg lines up second, while Lewis Hamilton continues […]

Jenson Button set the fastest time in second practice ahead of this weekend's Monaco Grand Prix. The 2009 world champion set his time of 1.15.746 on option tyres early on in the session. A brief shower after fifteen minutes left the circuit damp, although a couple of drivers ventured out on dry tyres. The rain intensified and the drivers were forced to switch to the Intermediate tyres. On an unusually error free practice day around the streets of Monte Carlo, most of the action came […]

Sir Frank Williams has urged Bruno Senna to step up. Even before teammate Pastor Maldonado's breakthrough Barcelona win two weeks ago, speculation had begun to circulate that Senna needed to up his game in order to keep his race seat. Williams is pushing the credentials of its young reserve driver Valtteri Bottas, a Finn who is managed by team shareholder Toto Wolff and already attracting sponsors. "Well, of course, as a racing driver I want to get into the car as soon as possible," Bottas […]

The F1 car photographed amid the charred remains of Williams' burnt-out garage in Barcelona will be back in action this weekend at Monaco. We reported last week that an initial inspection of Bruno Senna's Renault-powered FW34, which was sitting in the pits when the fire broke out during the team's celebrations for Pastor Maldonado's victory last Sunday, showed it had emerged with minimal damage. A spokesman has now confirmed that Senna will race the very same chassis on the streets of Monaco this week. Otherwise, […]

Sebastian Vettel has defended his former mentor Michael Schumacher. The seven time world champion has been roundly criticised since last Sunday's Spanish grand prix, after crashing into Williams' Bruno Senna at the end of the Barcelona straight. He called the Brazilian driver an "idiot" on the radio and later defended the outburst, but the FIA did not agree, imposing a five-place qualifying penalty for Monte Carlo for causing a collision. "For us, that manoeuvre of Michael's cost us a lot," Red Bull team principal Christian […]

Toto Wolff has rubbished suggestions Williams might soon replace Bruno Senna with the team's rising reserve driver Valtteri Bottas. Finnish commentator Mika Salo last weekend said that, following an interview with Sir Frank Williams, he sensed the team was thinking about ousting Senna in favour of 22-year-old Finn Bottas "this season". "That story is bullshit," Wolff, who is not only a 15 per cent Williams shareholder but also Bottas' manager, told Austria's Sportwoche. The reports, however, sounded credible, given Brazilian Senna's recent struggle at the […]

Williams F1 Team Press Release Pastor Maldonado won the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, giving Williams F1 its 114th victory in Formula One. He came home 3.1s ahead of Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso. Our Chief Operations Engineer, Mark Gillan, sums up the weekend. Q: Mark, how much satisfaction do you derive from Pastor Maldonado’s victory in the Spanish Grand Prix? MG: This is a massive result for Williams and of course it is incredibly satisfying, especially given the tribulations of the 2011 season.  However, this business […]