F1 Features

Daniel Ricciardo’s charge to pole position in Formula 1 qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday may have come as a surprise given the sport’s formbook, yet all of the signs we’ve seen so far this season pointed towards a Red Bull topping Q3.

It may be a rest day for Formula 1 on-track, but there's still lots going on in the paddock - the same going for Crash.net F1 Editor Luke Smith's notebook.

One of the first lessons you learn when working in Formula 1 is the way in which the tracks that are fan favourites often tend to be the races paddock people most dread. 

With a round-up of all the additional news and notes from the paddock in Monaco on Thursday, Crash.net F1 Editor Luke Smith brings you his notebook.

2018 marks a number of significant anniversaries for McLaren in Formula 1.

- Romain Grosjean will be racing with his spare chassis from Spain this weekend after his race chassis was damaged during the Lap 1 crash in Barcelona. The chassis for Monaco is the same chassis that was severely damaged in the crash in Baku before being patched up.

Almost a decade has passed since Sauber scored its one and only victory in Formula 1. Friday practice for next month’s Canadian Grand Prix will mark exactly 10 years to the day since Robert Kubica took an iconic win for the then BMW-backed squad in Montreal.

Looking back on a busy Spanish Grand Prix weekend, Crash.net brings you its full Formula 1 driver ratings as we see our first perfect 10 of the season. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 10

- Lewis Hamilton broke Michael Schumacher’s all-time record for F1 wins from pole position on Sunday, converting P1 in the grid into P1 in the race for the 41st time of his career. “It’s still very surreal,” Hamilton said.

After thrilling contests in Bahrain, China and Baku, Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix saw Formula 1 revert to a more leisurely, perhaps even predictable beat.

Recapping all of the news and notes from qualifying day for the Spanish Grand Prix, check out Crash.net's Paddock Notebook.

The final battle for pole position in Formula 1 is often one of the most exciting and entertaining parts of the race weekend.

Aside from car launches and the second week of pre-season testing, the Spanish Grand Prix represents one of the biggest tech fests in Formula 1.

- Ferrari became the first team to hit the track with its rear-view mirrors affixed to the Halo of its car on Friday in practice, with Sebastian Vettel reporting it improved his vision: “It was quite difficult for us to see cars behind.

The only thing most paddock people miss about the Valencia Grand Prix was the proximity of the beach to the circuit.

Rounding up all the added news and notes from media day in Barcelona ahead of this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix, here is Crash.net's F1 paddock notebook.

Frequent lower order fighters who celebrate survival like a title triumph, Sauber and Swansea City continue to win affections as the underdog

Huge success in the 1980s, 1990s and the millennium before a drought without major silverware and two axed top bosses, McLaren and Arsenal must see similarities in one another's fortunes.

New lights at the top table, Haas and Bournemouth have shared so huge highs and lows in their recent history

The building blocks are in place for Toro Rosso to make a Southampton-like ascension up the pecking order

Renault and Liverpool both enjoyed stints of success in the 1980s and mid-2000s but are now working hard to plot a return to the very pinnacle of their sports

With the glories of the past now a distant memory Williams and Everton both find themselves going through strange cycles of form

In a world dominated by the big boys both Force India and Leicester City have punched above their weight in recent seasons

Despite boasting a history stretching back many more decades both Red Bull and Chelsea really emerged in the mid-2000s out of relative obscurity