2018

Recapping all of the additional news and notes from the Yas Marina Circuit following Thursday’s media activities ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, Crash.net F1 Digital Editor Luke Smith brings you his paddock notebook.

Lewis Hamilton says as he’s grown older alongside Fernando Alonso the respect and positive rivalry between the two drivers has flourished and he’ll miss competing against the two-time Formula 1 world champion.

The all-new FIA Formula 3 Championship car - which will replace current GP3 machinery - has been revealed in Abu Dhabi ahead of the inaugural 2019 campaign.

Valtteri Bottas has labelled his 2018 campaign as the “worst season” of his Formula 1 career based on his results.

Sergey Sirotkin says he’ll assess all future options including a potential reserve role at Williams after losing his Formula 1 race seat to Robert Kubica for 2019.

Stoffel Vandoorne will play a role in Mercedes’ Formula 1 programme from 2019 as part of his Formula E deal with HWA, which is linked to the German manufacturer.

Sebastian Vettel has defended Max Verstappen’s reaction following his clash with Esteban Ocon which lost him victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix and triggered a physical confrontation between the pair after the race.

Kimi Raikkonen feels there is no reason to be sad ahead of his departure from the Ferrari Formula 1 team following the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen says he has no regrets about pushing Formula 1 rival Esteban Ocon following the Brazilian Grand Prix, adding he felt his actions “could have been a lot worse”.

Fernando Alonso has opened up on what he’ll miss most in Formula 1 and how experiences in other categories have allowed him to appreciate the sport more as he prepares for his retirement after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Francesco Bagnaia believes he is already “on the correct line” after an eye-catching debut on MotoGP machinery at the two-day end of year test at Valencia.

Andrea Dovizioso has indicated Ducati has “found something interesting” with the early version of its GP19 machine, after the Italian was competitive throughout the two-day MotoGP test at Valencia.

Robert Kubica has conceded his Formula 1 comeback is a story “nobody has believed” during his battle to return to the sport after his rallying crash.

Sergey Sirotkin’s Formula 1 backer SMP Racing claims it decided to split with Williams due to the team’s poor performance and lack of development throughout 2018.

Williams has confirmed Robert Kubica will complete his Formula 1 comeback after signing a deal to race for the team in 2019.

Amid the buzz and excitement of new machinery, teams and personnel, Johann Zarco was arguably the rider wearing a most pained expression at the end of the second day of MotoGP testing, stating his experiences with KTM’s RC16 were “worse than expected.”

Fernando Alonso will remain “first on the speed-dial list” for McLaren if required in the future despite his decision to quit Formula 1 at the end of the season, according to team boss Zak Brown.

Carlos Sainz Jr. will drive for McLaren for the first time next week in Abu Dhabi after being confirmed by the Formula 1 team as part of its line-up for the post-Abu Dhabi Grand Prix tyre test.

Despite leading both days of the Valencia post-race MotoGP test, Maverick Vinales is reserving judgement on which of the two new Yamaha engines he prefers until trying them again at Jerez next week.

Third fastest while using a 2019-spec Yamaha engine on the opening day of the Valencia MotoGP test, Valentino Rossi slipped down to ninth (+0.6s) on the final day while trying a second new powerplant.

Following Sunday's season-ending Valencia MotoGP, riders and teams returned to the circuit for the start of 2019 testing.

Aleix Espargaro was left unconvinced by a new frame for his Aprilia but is eager to continue the experiment at next week’s Jerez test and is certain “we know exactly what areas to improve on” having matched his feedback with new team-mate Andrea Iannone.

Following Sunday's season-ending Valencia MotoGP, riders and teams returned to the circuit for the start of 2019 testing.

Following Sunday's season-ending Valencia MotoGP, riders and teams have returned to the circuit for the start of 2019 testing.