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      Fernando Alonso reveals biggest ever F1 rival as two-time world champ snubs Lewis Hamilton despite epic McLaren battles

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      FERNANDO ALONSO singled out Formula One legend Michael Schumacher as his greatest ever rival.Alonso snubbed famous foe Sir Lewis Hamilton, with whom he had such an intense feud when they were team-mates at McLaren for one season in 2007 that he quit the team.
      Alonso snubbed Sir Lewis Hamilton when naming his greatest ever rivalCredit: Splash
      Marco Alonso named Michael Schumacher as his fiercest ever rivalCredit: Getty
      The Aston Martin driver has instead opted for Schumacher, whom he beat to the top in 2005 and 2006 to win both of his world titles.
      The 41-year-old admits it is “difficult” to choose his fiercest ever opponent but the Ferrari legend’s dominance in the mid-2000s ranks him above everyone else.
      Alonso told Bang & Olufsen: “It is difficult to choose one because they were all great rivals and very talented drivers as well.
      “When I came to this sport, Michael Schumacher was dominating the races and everything, probably that fight with him would still be the one I would choose.
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      “Fighting against Michael was very special, so I would say that.”
      Alonso and Hamilton rekindled their rivalry last year after the crashed at the Belgian Grand Prix.
      The Spaniard put the seven-time world champion on full-blast as he branded him “an idiot”.
      The ex-Renault star also claimed the British great “only knows how to drive and start in first” in a petulant attack.
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      But the Mercedes superstar cooled their rift by insisting he is trying to “be a better driver”.
      The 38-year-old then joked on social media that he’d offer Alonso a signed cap as a peace offering.
      Hamilton said: “It’s not a thing for me. It doesn’t change anything, it doesn’t really affect me in the slightest.
      “With the cap it was just a little fun thing. It’s good to have fun sometimes with these things. For me, I am always trying to be a better driver.
      “Also, I know there are a lot of young kids that are following me and it’s important the steps I try to take in my behaviour, so I am always trying to learn and be better.” More

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      Toto Wolff joins billionaire’s club with Tiger Woods and Lebron James despite horror F1 season for Hamilton and Mercedes

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      TOTO WOLFF has become a billionaire – according to the latest Forbes rich list.The Mercedes boss has taken his place in the 2023 World Billionaires list, which includes fellow sportspeople Tiger Woods and basketball star LeBron James.
      Mercedes chief Toto Wolff has officially become a billionaireCredit: Getty
      Forbes have listed the Australian’s net worth an $1billionCredit: EPA
      Wolff and Mercedes have struggled to keep pace with Red Bull over the last two seasonsCredit: Rex
      The report lists Wolff’s net worth at $1billion, with Forbes saying Netflix’s F1 series, Drive To Survive, turned Wolff “into a celebrity billionaire with [its effect] on the value of Formula One teams”.
      Wolff arrived in F1 when he bought a share of the Williams F1 team in 2009 and joined its board of directors, before selling them off after he joined Mercedes.
      In 2020, Wolff also purchased a stake in Aston Martin, who have close links with Mercedes.
      Mercedes have struggled to keep pace with Red Bull over the last two seasons, although Sir Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are currently fourth and seventh respectively in the Driver Standings.
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      The team’s shortcomings have prompted calls for Wolff’s departure.
      But the Austrian has remained bullish in the face of criticism, saying: “Whether it is good or bad, I really enjoy being the team principal of the team.
      “I think I can contribute. But, if one day I come to the conclusion, or people that are close to me are going to tell me that I’m not, then I will consider giving the baton to somebody else.
      “I would have no shame that I’ll criticise from the sidelines, from a TV screen and know it better.
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      “But, until then, I think I still have fun doing it. And obviously turning the ship around, after so many successful years, that’s really a good challenge.
      “The people in charge in Mercedes and in INEOS, they are high-performance individuals within the core business or in sports.
      “We have all been through downs and ups and there is not a millimetre of doubt.
      “There is so much support from them in order to get us back on track.”
      The F1 season resumes on April 30 with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit.

      Complete F1 2023 race calendar – details on every Grand Prix this year More

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      Lewis Hamilton becomes latest star to support Lukaku after racist abuse at Juventus as F1 legend follows Mbappe

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      FORMULA ONE star Lewis Hamilton has become the latest star to show his support to Romelu Lukaku after he was on the receiving end of racist abuse. The Inter Milan striker was the subject of vile chants from Juventus fans in the Coppa Italia semi-final first leg that finished 1-1 on Tuesday.
      Romelu Lukaku was targeted by racists during Inter Milan’s clash with JuventusCredit: AP
      Lewis Hamilton has rushed to support Romelu LukakuCredit: EPA
      Kylian Mbappe has also showed his solidarityCredit: Getty
      Lukaku scored his team’s equaliser and celebrated by putting his fingers on his lips in front of the home supporters.
      He consequently got a second yellow card for the “excessive celebration” and was sent off.
      The Belgian has since released a statement explaining what happened and demanding an apology from Juve and action from the authorities.
      Meanwhile, Hamilton took to his Instagram story and posted a picture of Lukaku shushing the racist fans.
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      The seven-time world champion has been the victim of disgusting slurs in the past.
      Former F1 driver Nelson Piquet was slapped with a £780,000 fine for his racist and homophobic remarks.
      Hamilton is not the first huge sports star to show their support for Lukaku after Kylian Mbappe expressed his solidarity with him.
      The Paris Saint-Germain ace wrote: “2023 and still the same problems. But we’re not going to let it keep happening.”
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      Mbappe suffered racism after France were knocked out of the European Championship in 2021.
      It led to him questioning whether he should retire from playing for the national team.
      Romeulu Lukaku’s gesture sparked a brawl between playersCredit: Getty More

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      Watch ‘legend’ Lewis Hamilton get soaked as he snowboards into freezing Antarctic water.. then hike up hill to try AGAIN

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      LEWIS HAMILTON swapped his Formula One car for a more basic mode of transport, but ended up getting soaked in the process. The 38-year-old tried his hand at snowboarding with three-time Olympic gold medallist Shaun White.

      Lewis Hamilton wringed out his clothes after going for a freezing bathCredit: https://www.instagram.com/p/CqqM6DeNvde/?hl=en
      But he was praised for climbing up the hill and trying againCredit: https://www.instagram.com/p/CqqM6DeNvde/?hl=en
      And White was left impressed by Hamilton’s desire to succeed, even if his snowboarding skills were not always up to scratch.
      White posted a video to his Instagram page of him snowboarding over freezing Antarctic water after coming down a hill.
      Hamilton then followed suit, but was unable to adjust as he hit the water, losing his balance and consequently falling in for a freezing bath.
      After getting up and wringing out his wet clothing, the Brit incredibly hiked back up to the top of the hill to try again.
      READ MORE ON LEWIS HAMILTON
      And on the second go he succeeded in copying White’s move.
      White captioned the video by saying: “@lewishamilton is such a legend.
      “He had the guts to follow me over the Antarctic water, and after not making it he immediately hiked back up, soaking wet and freezing to do it again!
      “That’s the champions mind set and I loved seeing it.”
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      His trip to the bottom of the world comes just days after his F1 race Down Under for the Australian Grand Prix.
      Hamilton finished P2 behind championship leader Max Verstappen during a chaotic race which saw EIGHT drivers retire and three red flags. More

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      Red Bull ‘to axe Sergio Perez and turn to 22-year-old rising star to partner Max Verstappen’ in shock move

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      RED BULL are ready to replace Sergio Perez with rival driver Yuki Tsunoda, shock reports claim. The Mexican is clinging onto teammate Max Verstappen with the driver’s championship looking certain to be won by one of the Red Bull drivers due to their incredible speed advantage.
      Yuki Tsunoda arrived in F1 with much expectation on his shoulders and is steadily growing at Alpha TauriCredit: Getty
      But Verstappen has the edge in the early-season standings after Perez had to start from the back of the grid in the last race in Australia following a poor qualifying.
      And while the 33-year-old managed to climb up to fifth place amid the chaos in Melbourne, speculation has intensified over his position.
      Marca report that Red Bull may turn their attention to their sister team Alpha Tauri where Tsunoda, 22, is impressing.
      The Japanese driver arrived at the team in 2021 but his first season saw the driver crash repeatedly and go viral over his furious team radio rants.
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      But since then Tsunoda has been more consistent and managed to land his first point of the season in Australia despite his underwhelming car.
      Red Bull have often turned to their sister team for drivers with Verstappen initially driving for them before being fast-tracked in 2016.
      Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon also started at Alpha Tauri – formerly named Toro Rosso – before being upgraded by Red Bull.
      Albon’s struggles saw Red Bull abandon their promotion policy and opt for experienced driver Perez at the end of the 2020 season.
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      Complete F1 2023 race calendar – details on every Grand Prix this year
      Racing Point had chosen to bin the star at the end of the year but he enjoyed one of the best seasons of his career and won the Sakhir Grand Prix despite being last at the end of the first lap.
      Red Bull saw Perez, who has been on the grid since 2011, as the perfect experienced counterpart to Verstappen.
      Their first season together saw Verstappen locked in a fight with Lewis Hamilton for the title as Perez played his part with a titanic defence against the Brit during the infamous race in Abu Dhabi.
      But cracks in their partnership appeared at the end of last season when Verstappen furiously refused to switch positions with Perez in Brazil, despite the Dutchman having already won the title.
      That tension continued into this season with Perez demanding a “review” into information drivers were receiving from pit walls after fending off Verstappen to win in Saudi Arabia last month. More

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      Watch moment streaker runs naked along Australian GP track before he is tackled by security

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      A STREAKER ran naked around the Australian Grand Prix circuit after security failings in Melbourne.Max Verstappen won a chaotic race Down Under on Sunday as a record THREE red flags were shown.
      A streaker runs naked along Australian GP track before he is tackled by securityCredit: Twitter
      A record 131,124 people attended Sunday’s race in MelbourneCredit: Twitter
      The Dutchman, 25, navigated the various incidents to secure a second win of the season, ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.
      And the craziness spilled over to the crowds in attendance in Australia.
      A record 131,124 people attended Sunday’s race, while a staggering 444,631 made it to the Melbourne track across the four days.
      Organisers were criticised after a number of spectators managed to break through security and make their way onto the track before the race ended.
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      They were also able to gain access to Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas after he went off at turn two during the final restart.
      Another fan also criticised the staging of the event by revealing he was struck by a piece of debris from Kevin Magnussen’s car.
      Then, when the F1 race had officially finished, one overly enthusiastic supporter was filmed running naked on the circuit.
      He celebrated making it onto the track as stunned fans watched him disappear around the corner.
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      He was eventually tackled by security.
      Organisers of the race, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, were told by Formula One to provide a “formal remediation plan” following the lapses in security.
      This included a review of the marshals that were supposed to be protecting Hulkenberg’s car.
      Stewards said in an FIA statement: “All of this presented significant danger to the spectators; race officials and the drivers.”
      The stewards also called for the incident to be referred to the World Motor Sports Council to determine whether penalties need to be handed out.
      The AGPC have asked to be given until 30 June to submit a review. More

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      Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen’s rivalry has flipped with Mercedes F1 ace having to be aggressive, says Sky F1 expert

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      LEWIS HAMILTON and Max Verstappen’s rivalry has flipped now the Dutchman is in a dominant car according to Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz. Verstappen took his first win in Australia last weekend having only managed a best of third from his previous six races in Melbourne.
      Lewis Hamilton is looking for his first win since the 2021 Brazilian Grand PrixCredit: Splash
      Hamilton controversially missed out on a record 8th title to Verstappen in 2021Credit: Getty
      The Red Bull driver appeared to be cruising to victory until a second red flag following Kevin Magnussen’s crash set up a tense two lap shootout from a grid start.
      Verstappen managed to hold off fellow world champions Hamilton and Fernando Alonso as he secured his second win of the season.
      Hamilton and his Mercedes team mate George Russell had to be aggressive to get past Verstappen on the opening lap and Kravitz sees similarities to when Hamilton was fending off a young Verstappen.
      Speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Podcast, Kravitz said: “What’s fascinating to me is, we now have a complete flip of the Mercedes-Lewis Hamilton seasons from 2014 to 2021, when Hamilton has been going for the championship, knowing he has the fastest car and needs to play it safe.
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      “You had the upstart Verstappen challenging him and wanting to get in there. And now you’ve got Hamilton challenging Verstappen, saying, ‘it’s no cares given’, ‘I’m out there to take all the risks’, putting it back on the defending champion.
      “Hamilton knows he’s not going to win the championship this year, not unless something really weird happens, so he can go in there and be aggressive with Verstappen, knowing that he is probably going to have to give way.”
      Hamilton, who is looking for his first win since the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2021, will have been encouraged by the improved performance of the Mercedes compared to the opening two rounds.
      The seven time champion will be hoping that the upgrades arriving on the Silver Arrows will bring them closer to the dominant Red Bull and challenge for race wins.
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      Whilst Hamilton isn’t challenging for the title in 2023 he does have a battle on his hands with team mate Russell.
      Russell is currently seventh in the standings, three places off Hamilton in fourth after his retirement in Australia, but got the better of the seven time world champion last season.
      Verstappen leads the standings from team mate Sergio Perez by 15 points with Alonso in third.
      Due to the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix, there is now a four week break until the Formula 1 season resumes in Baku. More

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      Four arrested over Charles Leclerc’s stolen £265,000 Richard Mille watch as police release footage from robbery

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      ITALIAN police have made four arrests over Charles Leclerc’s stolen £265,000 watch.The Ferrari driver’s Richard Mille timepiece was swiped from his wrist in Tuscany last April.
      Police have arrested four people over Charles Leclerc’s watchCredit: Alamy
      Police released a video showing two of the alleged thieves on a motorcycle
      And they are believed to be meeting with another accomplice
      Leclerc and the watch that was apparently stolen
      The police said in a statement that they discovered two “valuable watches, the provenance of which will be investigated further” upon a search of one of the suspect’s homes.
      However, it has not yet been confirmed whether either of the watches belongs to the F1 star.
      Three men and one woman have been arrested.
      The police also released a video showing the alleged thieves on a scooter meeting up with another accomplice.
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      The theft happened as fans noticed Leclerc in the Tuscan city of Viareggio and began gathering to take photos with.
      But the F1 driver, from Monaco, eventually became mobbed while signing autographs for fans and a thief managed to grab his watch.
      Leclerc did not realise his watch had been stolen until later when he reported the incident to the police.
      Richard Mille sponsor the Ferrari driver and is also a popular brand with the other racers.
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      Leclerc will now be hoping his form on the track improves following a poor start to the F1 season.
      The driver was forced to retire in Sunday’s Australian GP after a first lap collision.
      He is currently 10th in the championship and 63 points behind leader Max Verstappen.
      The driver was also recently left fuming after F1 introduced a ban on riding a bike around a track before races.
      He insisted that he would just watch videos of the track instead of walking around it. More