Honda and Red Bull have opened talks about a possible future power unit supply deal for 2019, with a first official meeting taking place in Azerbaijan over the weekend.

Red Bull's deal with Renault is due to expire at the end of this season, with the partnership expected to come to an end after the French manufacturer – which has its own works team – took on McLaren as a customer. While Red Bull insists there is still a possibility of continuing with Renault next year, it also has the option of switching to Honda after the latter started supplying Toro Rosso this year.

In May, power unit manufacturers must inform the FIA of the teams it intends to supply the following season – although the reshuffle of supply deals between McLaren and Toro Rosso was confirmed in September last year – and that has led to the opening of official talks between Red Bull and Honda.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko visited Honda in the Baku City Circuit paddock for meetings this weekend, with Honda motorsport boss Masashi Yamamoto confirming a "positive" opening to discussions.

"Because it was the very first meeting, we discussed the conditions of both sides, what do we expect of each other," Yamamoto told F1.com. "It was the first discussion.

"Yes, it was positive. We do believe we were both satisfied. There's a good relationship between us. However, it's the first time we have an official meeting. It's the starting point for a potential future."

And Yamamoto says any deal would be to supply both Red Bull and Toro Rosso next season, which would mark the first time Honda has supplied two teams at once since returning to F1 in 2015.

"We have the obligation to present the documents on the 15 May to the FIA. It's something we are starting to discuss now and it has to be smooth between Honda and Red Bull. I want to use the time we have left to discuss with the Honda board members before I take the feedback back Red Bull to take the next steps.

"When we decided to come back to F1, the plan was not to just stick with one team but work with multiple teams. The board members are aware of discussions and there is a big respect for the relationship [with the Red Bull organization]."

Toro Rosso Honda has scored 13 points so far this season, including a fourth place for Pierre Gasly in the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Murray Walker's famous quip about the unpredictability of Formula 1was proven for the fourth consecutive time in the 2018 season, at Sunday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix, whose excitement rivaled that of the 2017 race, arguably the best of the season. In the wake of the race, however, rumors began to circulate that F1's third visit to Baku would be its last.

Dutch sports channel Ziggo Sport parroted via twitter the words of a closely-associated F1 journalist, Jack Plooij, whose translated quote suggests Azerbaijan could be ditched for Florida's largest city, Miami.

"This could well be the last GP in Baku, next year to Miami," Plooij was quoted as saying by Ziggo Sport.

Dutch F1 fan blog GP Fans expanded on Plooij's statements, stating the the circuit's pit boxes have allegedly been sold to Miami.

Miami is known to be a serious candidate for a Grand Prix. Commercial representatives of F1 visited the city in November to scout out six conceptual street circuit routes and discuss, and though city officials were receptive to F1's patronage, they admitted little funding was available to support hosting of a Grand Prix. Local opposition sprung up in response, citing the closure of streets, possible infrastructure upgrades, and noise pollution (ha) that could result from the race.

The Floridan urban center is in direct competition with New York City and Las Vegas to host Liberty Media's desired additional Grand Prix within the United States, with Long Beach no longer in the running. Los Angeles was at one point in consideration, but little evidence suggests that F1 will grace Hollywood with its presence. Between Liberty Media's known visitation to Miami and the alleged sale of hosting equipment to the city, it appears the city is pulling ahead of its peers. The announcement is alleged to arrived within a few weeks' time, so we need not wait long for the answer.

The Drive reached out to F1's communications office for comment on the allegations.

Formula 1 aerodynamics are set to get simpler in 2019 with one simple purpose in mind: to promote closer racing and more overtaking…

Following a presentation made to the F1 teams at the Bahrain Grand Prix regarding proposals aimed at promoting closer racing and more overtaking in the Formula 1 World Championship, the Strategy Group, the F1 Commission and the World Motor Sport Council yesterday approved a number of regulation changes for the 2019 season.


The changes, approved by e-vote, are as follows:

• Simplified front wing, with a larger span, and low outwash potential
  
• Simplified front brake duct with no winglets
  
• A wider and deeper rear wing

The vote follows an intense period of research into the FIA’s initial proposals, which were made with the support of the F1 Commercial Rights Holder, conducted by a majority of the F1 teams. These studies indicated the strong likelihood of a positive impact on racing and overtaking within F1 and as such have now been ratified for implementation in 2019.

The approved changes are separate to the ongoing work being undertaken in regard to defining Formula 1’s regulations for 2021 and beyond.

In addition to the aerodynamic changes ratified on Monday, the FIA is continuing to evaluate a range of other measures aimed at encouraging closer racing and boosting overtaking in F1.

A raft of other measures have already been put in place for 2019, including an increase in race fuel allowance to allow drivers to race at full power for longer, the separation of driver weight from car weight to end the disadvantage of heavier drivers, and the requirement that drivers wear biometric gloves.


Ross Brawn, Managing Director - Motorsports (F1) says...

“One of the key episodes of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix was the collision between team mates Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen. I don’t want to comment on who might be held responsible or how a team should manage these issues during a race, but I do think the Steward’s decision to reprimand both drivers was the right course of action.

"But I would like to highlight a technical point. Once Daniel had settled for his line, and Max had changed direction blocking that line, the Australian became a passenger. The downforce loss experienced by Ricciardo in the wake of Verstappen’s car would have made it unstoppable. We often think of downforce applying in cornering, but the impact the extra grip has in braking is huge. Take away that grip in braking and what happened on Sunday was inevitable.

"Whilst this was a very severe example, it did highlight once more the need of finding a way to develop the rules to make the cars more raceable in these conditions.

"The decision of the Strategy Group and the F1 Commission taken yesterday, sanctioned by the FIA World Motor Sport Council, to approve a number of aerodynamic modifications, aimed at promoting closer racing and more overtaking for the 2019 season is definitely an important step.

"It’s also important to note that the decision has been taken after an intense period of research into the FIA’s proposals, which were made with the support of Formula 1 and, conducted by a majority of the teams. A good spirit, a good way of working together for a better and more spectacular Formula 1, which is what the FIA, Formula 1, the Teams, and most importantly, the fans want. Bravo."

Statement from Sean Bratches, Managing Director Commercial Operations, Formula 1:
“Earlier today the City of Miami Commission took an important step by adding an item to their upcoming agenda, that if approved, will make way to bring Formula 1 to downtown Miami next season. We appreciate the community’s interest in hosting a Formula 1 race and look forward to working with local officials and stakeholders to bring this vision to life.

"With over half a billion fans worldwide, Formula 1 is the greatest racing spectacle on the planet, and Miami’s status as one of the world’s most iconic and glamourous cities, combined with its robust tourism infrastructure, makes Miami the perfect destination for Formula 1 and its fans.”


Stephen Ross, US entrepreneur and supporter of the proposed race added:
“Miami is a first-class global city and Formula 1 is a first-class global brand. In cooperation with the City of Miami and Miami-Dade County, I am confident we can deliver yet another global event that will be a destination for people from around the world and drive economic value to South Florida. From football and soccer to tennis and motorsports, Miami deserves only the best in music, food, art, fashion, and sports and entertainment, and that is exactly what we plan on delivering with a Formula 1 race.”

Notes for editors

The exact timing of a Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix would be a matter for further discussion between F1, the FIA and the Miami authorities, but if approved we hope at this stage that the inaugural race would take place in October 2019.

Later this year, as part of a fan experience that has already seen us deliver F1 Live London last season, and the hugely successful fan festival in Shanghai, we will be hosting further fan festivals in Marseilles ahead of the FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE 2018, and of course in Miami itself, ahead of the FORMULA 1 2018 PIRELLI UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX in Austin Texas.

We will not be commenting further at this stage.

Sauber have parted ways with Technical Director Jorg Zander with immediate effect, just four races into the 2018 Formula 1 season…Zander only joined the Swiss team ahead of the 2017 campaign from Audi as Sauber carried out a restructure of the outfit following the arrival of new owners the previous summer.

He and his team overhauled the design concept of the 2018 challenger, the C37, and it has shown promise, with Sauber scoring points in two of the first four races.

But on Tuesday, Sauber announced Zander, who was chief designer for BMW Sauber between 2006 and 2007, “will stop working for the team with immediate effect”.

The team added: “Various heads of departments and the current project leaders will continue to work on the development of the C37 and the 2019 car with the supervision of [Team Principal] Frederic Vasseur.

"We would like to thank him for his dedication and we wish Jorg Zander all the best and success for the future."

Lawrence Barretto [Senior Writer, F1.com] says...

The timing of this announcement is far from ideal, given next weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix is the traditional point for teams to introduce their first major upgrade package of the season.

Sauber have made a good step forward this year, hauling themselves back into the midfield and in contention to score points so this news threatens to halt that momentum.

The team have spent the last few years restructuring the technical department, with Jan Monchaux joining last month as their new Head of Aerodynamics.

His predecessor Nicolas Hennel de Beaupreau moved to another role in the company as the team focused on getting the most out of their new, aggressive package.

This is not the first time Sauber have found themselves without a Technical Director. For large periods under Monisha Kaltenborn’s reign, a group of team leaders ran the department collectively.

It will be interesting to see if Sauber pursues a way forward without a figurehead leading the department or chooses to begin the hunt for a replacement.

The FIA has introduced a further clampdown on improving performance via oil burning by expressly forbidding Formula 1 teams from replenishing oil systems during qualifying.

Oil burning has continued to be a contentious subject in the paddock, despite ongoing efforts by the governing body to stamp out the practice by restricting consumption levels.

The intention of the latest clarification is to enable FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer and his team to properly monitor oil consumption during the session where teams have the most to gain by pushing the rules to the limits and boosting performance, especially on the critical laps in Q3.

The FIA has now made it clear that teams cannot add oil or transfer it from an auxiliary oil tank to any part of the lubrication system during qualifying.

While that raises the obvious suspicion that some teams may have been doing that to disguise higher consumption, sources suggest it is more of a pre-emptive strike from the FIA in to stop that possibility happening.

In a technical directive the FIA's head of single seater technical matters Nikolas Tombazis told the teams: "Following numerous discussions on the subject, we wish to clarify that in order to allow the FIA to monitor oil consumption during the qualifying practice session in a precise and timely manner, no oil may be added to the car nor may any auxiliary oil tank (AOT) be activated, i.e. there may be no oil transfer between an AOT and any part of the engine lubrication system.

"Exceptions to the above may however be granted on specific occasions following a request from the team concerned, any such exception will be made at the sole discretion of the FIA technical delegate."

ESPN is treating viewers by expanding its coverage for next weekend’s Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix with the addition of more televised on-track action.

For the event from Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, viewers will be able to watch coverage of the first two F1 practice sessions of the weekend on ESPNU.

For the first four races of the season, coverage of the first two practice sessions was only available for viewing on ESPN3 via the ESPN App.

The third Spanish Grand Prix practice session, qualifying and the race will air on ESPN2.

After a 20-year absence, Formula 1 racing returned to ESPN and ABC this year as part of a multiyear linear and digital partnership. All 21 races in the championship will be televised on either ESPN, ESPN2 or ABC, with practice and qualifying sessions for each race also airing.

The race and qualifying telecasts, presented by Mothers Polish, are airing commercial-free.

The Spanish Grand Prix schedule (all times Eastern):

Friday, May 11
4:55 a.m. – 6:30 a.m.Practice 1 ESPNU
8:55 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.Practice 2 ESPNU

Sat, May 12
5:55 a.m. – 7 a.m.Practice 3 ESPN2
8:55 a.m. – 10 a.m.Qualifying ESPN2

Sun., May 13
7 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.Qualifying (encore) ESPN2
8:30 a.m. – 9:05 a.m.On the Grid ESPN2
9:05 a.m. – 11 a.m.Race ESPN2
7:30 p.m. – 10 p.m.Race (encore) ESPN2
10 p.m. – 12:30 a.m.Race (encore) ESPNEWS