HIS name might be above the door, but don’t expect to see Craig Lowndes running the show when he steps out of the Supercars cockpit for the final time.
The 43-year-old veteran has called Triple Eight Race Engineering home since 2005 and penned his latest deal with them in May last year, one which takes him through to the end of the 2019 season.
But while his new squad may be branded as Autobarn Lowndes Racing, team ownership is not on Lowndes’ radar.
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“I always want to be part of a team and be involved in a team, there’s no doubt about that.
“But actually owning a team? I’ve got enough grey hair now, I don’t need any more from worrying about whether the sponsorship’s coming or going, or employees.
“For me, Roland (Dane, team owner) runs a very good ship. I’d be happy to stay at Triple Eight long term if we can get a position within the team and do something else beyond driving, if and when that point comes.”
Logo for Autobarn Lowndes Racing.Source: Supplied
Only time will reveal when that point will be, but Lowndes makes clear that he has no intention staying past his used-by date.
“I think it’s really going to come down to how these next two years unfold; how motivated I am at the end of this year and next year,” he said.
“Roland and I have talked about it; I don’t want to sit in a seat of a car and just be a number man, you want to be competitive, you want to be at the front.
“Last year was probably one of the poorest years I’ve had in a decade and we’re very motivated to turn that around this year.
“You don’t want to be making up the numbers; you want to be there as a driver and a racer to hopefully win races and championships, if not win Bathursts and Sandowns.
“We’ll see how this year pans out. If 2020 turns into a co-driving role, I’m sure I’ll sit with Roland before then and we’ll make that work.”
Beyond that, Lowndes is eyeing a role in the media or as a mentor to younger drivers coming up through the ranks, much like his precocious talent was nurtured by Peter Brock.
“At the moment I haven’t even focused on or thought about it because I’ve been worried more about the driving, but definitely down the line I’d like to help someone develop,” Lowndes said.
“Todd Hazelwood, we spent some time with him at the Adelaide Festival of Speed and he’s a great kid, very enthusiastic, very level-headed. He’s got a great future in front of him.
“Hopefully with the experience and knowledge that we’ve got, we can help people like that to get into bigger and better teams and get the results they deserve.”
George Russell has backed down and admitted his own mistakes after launching a furious attack on Valtteri Bottas following the Italian Grand Prix on the weekend.
Russell, a Mercedes-contracted driver racing for Williams, and Silver Arrows star Bottas failed to finish after crashing on lap 32.
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Russell blamed Bottas for a late movement when he was trying to overtake, accusing the Finn of failing to respect “the speed and the conditions”.
“I was coming up to Valtteri massively fast. I had the slipstream. I had the DRS,” Russell said. “And just as I pulled out, he jolted very, very slightly to the right – which is a tactical defence that drivers in the past used to do. It was sort of the Verstappen move of 2015.
“There is a gentlemen’s agreement that that is not what you do because it is incredibly dangerous. In completely dry conditions I would have been fine, but it put me onto the wet patch and I lost it.
“There’s absolutely no reason to jolt like that.”
Verstappen takes out Imola
3:33
Russell suggested Bottas “was trying to kill us both” while the Mercedes star defended himself, saying it was “completely his (Russell’s) fault.
The British young gun was seeing red immediately after being robbed of the chance to score his first points of the season, but later cooled down and acknowledged the error of his ways in an apologetic post on social media.
Both drivers were fuming after the collision.Source: FOX SPORTS
“Yesterday wasn’t my proudest day,” Russell wrote. “I knew it would be one of our best opportunities to score points this season and, when those points matter as much as they do to us right now, sometimes you take risks.
“It didn’t pay off and I have to take responsibility for that. Having had time to reflect on what happened afterwards, I know I should have handled the whole situation better.
“Emotions can run high in the heat of the moment and yesterday mine got the better of me.
“I apologise to Valtteri, to my team and to anyone who felt let down by my actions. That’s not who I am and I expect more from myself, as I know others expect more from me.
“I’ve learned some tough lessons this weekend and will come out of this a better driver and a better person for the experience.
“Now it’s full focus on Portugal and a chance to show what I’m really about. Thanks for all the messages, both positive and negative. They will all help me to grow.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said Russell was in the wrong and should not have tried to overtake Bottas at that point, but seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was ready to forgive the 23-year-old.
“Strength comes from vulnerability,” Hamilton wrote on Instagram in the comments section of Russell’s post. “If you don’t make the mistake you can never learn the lesson. Respect for taking responsibility. On to the next one.”
The Dutchman was less than a second adrift of Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton at Bahrain, but cashed in on an uncharacteristic display from the seven-time world champion at Imola to comfortably win the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo was thoroughly outdriven by McLaren teammate Lando Norris all weekend, but there’s more than one reason to be optimistic about the Australian’s season.
Here’s five things we learnt from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.
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Lewis Hamilton said he went through a “rollercoaster of emotions” on Sunday after salvaging a second-place finish at Imola.
While the recovery by the Mercedes driver was impressive, it was an uncharacteristically untidy performance on race day.
Despite being among the best wet weather drivers of the modern era, Hamilton was slow off the line, and powerless to stop losing first place to Max Verstappen at Turn 1.
Later, he was overly-conservative entering the pits, which cost him more time, before he almost ended his race trying to catch Verstappen.
After pitting for dry tyres, Hamilton pushed too hard on a slippery track at Tosa corner and ran across the gravel before bumping into the wall. He was eventually able to engage reverse, stop for a new wing, and continue his race.
From there, Hamilton drove well to limit the damage to a second-place finish.
Nonetheless, it was a day in which Hamilton — who so rarely makes a mistake on race day — was left to rue multiple errors.
“I want to acknowledge and congratulate Max, he did a solid job today to not make mistakes in the trickiest of conditions,” Hamilton told Sky Sports.
“Obviously, I lost position to Max at the start which made it tricky, but then I was catching there and so it was getting exciting but there was only one line and I was probably a bit too impatient I would say, which is rare for me.
“Just got caught out on the wet patch, off towards the wall and I was there for a long time.”
Hamilton vowed to learn from the experience.
“I’m just really grateful today and for the lesson and for the battle,” he said.
RED BULL FINALLY THE REAL DEAL
Verstappen takes out Imola
3:33
There have been plenty of pre-season false dawns for Red Bull, but this finally appears to be the real deal.
In fairness to Red Bull, talks of a resurgence were usually perpetuated by those on the outer, including Mercedes who have often refused to accept their superiority before race one.
But while Mercedes is still the team to beat, it’s becoming clearer that 2021 will indeed be its closest battle of the hybrid era, with the possible exception of 2018’s against Ferrari.
Verstappen was just 0.746 seconds adrift of Hamilton in Bahrain, while he won comfortably at Imola. Hamilton lost a significant chunk of time after leaving the track and nudging a wall, although it’s likely Verstappen would have had untapped pace as he cruised towards the line with a big advantage.
“I surprised myself. We worked really hard to make that better. In these tricky conditions we did a great job,” Verstappen said after the race.
The one-lap pace of the Red Bull also appears to be up to standard; Hamilton beat Sergio Perez to pole by just 0.035 seconds at Imola, while Verstappen comfortably claimed pole in Bahrain by almost four-tenths.
We could finally have a tight contest on our hands.
TOO EARLY TO JUDGE RICCIARDO
While Daniel Ricciardo was still growing accustomed to life at McLaren, Lando Norris was stealing the show at Imola.
On Saturday, Norris was millimetres away from putting his car on the front row before his time was invalidated for narrowly breaching track limits.
On Sunday, he climbed from seventh on the grid to the finish on the bottom step of the podium, claiming driver-of-the-day honours in the process.
It’s an unfamiliar place for Ricciardo to be in. The Australian has historically dominated his teammates, while he was at least level-pegging with Verstappen at Red Bull.
Nonetheless, he’s only two races into his chapter at McLaren where he is being forced to adapt his driving style, which will take some time.
“I try not to say as excuses from the past, but there are probably still some old habits that I need to still flush out a little bit, and things that perhaps don’t work as well for this car,” Ricciardo said before the race.
“I think each lap I turn it is getting better. So when will I perfect it? Hopefully sooner rather than later, but I think naturally the more laps I do, the faster and faster I’ll get.”
Speaking after the race, Ricciardo said he was under no illusion that driving for a third team in four seasons was going to be an easy task.
“I don’t think I underestimated it, I was well aware of this when I left Red Bull for Renault, but it’s just unfortunately going to take a bit of time,” he said.
“But the season is long, it’s only race two, of course I want to be quicker already but if I look probably by race seven and I look back at race two, I’m probably giggling because panic not.”
For all his teething issues at McLaren, Ricciardo has still picked up a handy 14 championship points.
What he could achieve once fully adjusted is a scary thought for his rivals.
RICCIARDO JUMPING SHIP THE RIGHT CALL
Ricciardo wasn’t at his best in Bahrain or Imola, but it hasn’t taken long for his shift to McLaren to look like the right call.
Spending just two seasons at Alpine F1 (formerly Renault) raised some eyebrows, particularly as the team made big strides in 2020, in which Ricciardo racked up 119 points — 14 more than McLaren’s Carlos Sainz and 23 more than Norris.
But after two races in 2021, Alpine drivers Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon look well off the pace with just three championship points.
The same can be said for Aston Martin’s (formerly Racing Point) Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll who have five points.
In 2020, the difference between McLaren in third and Renault in fifth was razor thin at just 21 points.
McLaren now looks set to blow its mid-table rivals out of the water — and Ricciardo will be on the winning side of the battle.
FERRARI GETTING BACK TO WHERE IT BELONGS… ALMOST
With the resources at its disposal, Ferrari could hardly be expected to stay down for long.
And unsurprisingly, Ferrari has shown signs of life in the early stages of 2021.
Charles Leclerc improved on his sixth-place finish at Bahrain to come fourth at Imola, Ferrari’s unofficial ‘home track’ near its Maranello base.
It was Leclerc’s best result in 15 Grands Prix.
He was at one stage running in second but saw his advantage swallowed up by a red flag, while the Ferrari was more vulnerable in drier conditions later in the race.
That left the Monagasque with mixed feelings, although he’s pleased with the direction the team is heading in after a disastrous stretch.
“I’m very happy and I think we should all be happy as a team,” Leclerc said. “We are coming from a long way back and we are step after step doing the right step in the right direction and it’s looking good for the future.
“So for that, I’m very happy. There is still a lot of work to do but that’s what we’re doing.”
Ferrari has 34 constructors championship points after two races, just seven behind McLaren.
Tearful six-time world champion Marc Marquez said on Sunday his return to MotoGP felt like being back at school with “the older boys who tell you what to do and where to go.”
The 28-year-old Spaniard finished seventh at the Portuguese Grand Prix in his first race since last July when he broke his right arm at Jerez.
Three surgeries and nine months later, Marquez was back, ending the race as the best-placed Honda rider.
“The hardest part were the first laps because I felt out of place,” said Marquez, who saw Fabio Quartararo claim a third win in three for Yamaha this season.
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“Like at school when you play football with older boys and they tell you what to do and where to go!
“In the early laps, I had no rhythm, no control of my bike and a lot of people started to overtake me.
“Then I calmed down and I found my place. I got my fastest lap at the end of the GP. And if we analyse it, finishing 13 seconds behind Fabio Quartararo, it’s incredible.”
Quartararo won his second consecutive race, while Italian Francesco Bagnaia on a Ducati was second with Spanish world champion Joan Mir of Suzuki third.
Aussie Jack Miller was one of a host of stars to crash out alongside Alex Rins, Valentino Rossi, Johann Zarco, and Pol Espargaro.
“I made a stupid mistake,” Miller said of his crash five laps in.
“I braked in the wrong place at the wrong time – explained his fall – I was behind Aleix Espargarò, I lost the reference, but it was only my fault”.
“I had made another mistake before, I was too close to Mir at the first corner, I had gone to the curb and lost some time – he said – I tried to handle the situation, picked up my pace and then made a stupid mistake that cost me dearly. I’m sorry for myself and the team “.
Marquez received a standing ovation from his team when he returned to the pits, and another from journalists around the world during his Zoom press conference afterwards.
He said he usually prefers to keep his emotions in check but returning to the sport which he has dominated, having won four consecutive world titles from 2016-2019, was a day he will remember.
Explosión de emociones! Sólo puedo agradecer todos los que me habéis apoyado durante todo este tiempo. Me he vuelto a sentir PILOTO! P.7!😁 Explosion of emotions! I can only say thanks to everyone who has supported me during this time. I felt like a RIDER again! P.7#PortugueseGPpic.twitter.com/xKrjsosqqd
“I couldn’t control my emotions. Finishing a race is the biggest step in my rehabilitation and feeling like a MotoGP rider again was my dream. That’s what happened today,” he said.
“Of course, coming back to the garage I was tired, exhausted, but it was mostly an outpouring of emotions that I couldn’t control. But it was very nice.”
His performance on Sunday gave him nine points, 52 behind early season leader Quartararo.
There are still 16 races left with possibly two more in Argentina and the United States to come.
However, Marquez is not even thinking of a title challenge.
“It depends on the circuits, if they’re physical or not. The last seven laps here I wasn’t able to use my elbow. I was driving weird,” he said.
“Another important point is that the doctors told me that when I came back to competition I will have to train less at home.
“Between races I will not be able to ride a motorcycle or train indoors more than three or four times a week without using a lot of weight.
“The bone in the arm is fine but the stress imposed on it must be gradual. It cannot be every day and every week.”
The next race takes place at Jerez — where he crashed last year — on May 2.
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Quartararo’s compatriot Johann Zarco (Ducati-Pramac), who had led the riders’ standings before Sunday’s race, crashed out on lap 20 while challenging for the podium after leading in the early stages.
That allowed Quartararo to take a 15-point lead in the overall standings after three races.
Despite a poor start from pole position, Quartararo patiently climbed back up to take the lead on the ninth of the 25 laps.
He benefitted from the crash of his most threatening rival, Spain’s Alex Rins (Suzuki), on lap 19, and steadily extended his lead to take the win by 4.809sec.
“Now we know what we need to work to feel fast. What pace. I was riding easy but still making a gap to Paco,” said Quartararo, who turns 22 on Tuesday.
“It will be a great celebration for my birthday in two days.” Starting from 11th, Bagnaia said his aim “was to finish in the top five”. “I overtook a lot of riders,” he said. “I’m very happy to be second.” Mir gained his first podium of the season.
“Really difficult race,” he said. “So fast, also so hot.” Spaniard Maverick Vinales (Yamaha), winner of the first race of the season in Qatar, was only 11th after a poor start.
Italian Valentino Rossi, who has been struggling since the beginning of the year and his arrival at Yamaha satellite team SRT from the Japanese factory team, also fell.
Spaniard Jorge Martin (Ducati-Pramac), who injured his right hand and ankle in a heavy crash on Saturday, missed the race and will undergo surgery in Barcelona.
AUSSIE GUN TAKES MOTO2 LEAD
Spain’s Raul Fernandez, on a Kalex, claimed his maiden Moto2 victory ahead of compatriot Aron Canet on a Boscoscuro with fellow Kalex rider Remy Gardner of Australia in third.
Gardner leads the world championship after three rounds, four points ahead of Fernandez.
Meanwhile, Spanish 16-year-old Pedro Acosta took his second straight Moto3 win. Acosta, on a KTM, held off Italian 20-year-old Dennis Foggia of Honda on the final lap. Another Italian Honda rider, Andrea Migno was third.
Acosta extended his lead at the top of the world championship to 31 points after his first three Moto3 races.
He won in Qatar on April 4 and also finished second in the season-opener on the same Doha track a week earlier.
