Nico Rosberg will not be allowed to enter the F1 paddock for the remainder of the 2022 due to Covid restrictions as the 2016 world champion is not vaccinated.

Rosberg collaborates with Sky F1 as a consultant but Formula 1's Covid rules require that any individual - team members, officials or members of the media - entering the paddock must be fully vaccinated, which isn't the German's case.

This year, Rosberg has worked with Sky remotely from his home and one assumes that situation will continue for the Mercedes driver.

​​​​​​​A spokesperson for Rosberg said: "Nico recovered from a coronavirus infection and currently holds a recovery certificate.

"He has his antibody levels tested regularly and, on the recommendation of his doctor, does not currently need any vaccinations.

"In addition, he continues to comply with all necessary hygiene and precautionary measures."

Talks to put Kyalami back on the Formula 1 calendar have now reached an advanced stage, according to a report.

Recent years have seen plenty of alterations to the Formula 1 schedule, with multiple new grands prix joining the fold, the Saudi Arabian and Miami GPs serving as examples, while past venues like Zandvoort and Imola have made a comeback.

In 2023 the Las Vegas Grand Prix will debut, while after appearing for the first time in 2021, the Qatar Grand Prix is set to begin its 10-year deal as of the 2023 campaign.

And it would seem that another face from Formula 1’s past would like to return to the present, perhaps even as soon as 2023.

Sportsmail state that talks are now at an “advanced stage” for Kyalami to return to the calendar, which hosted the South African Grand Prix from 1967-1985 and then in 1992 and 1993.

Since then Kyalami has been absent from Formula 1, as has a grands prix in South Africa in general, but the report states that Formula 1 president Stefano Domenicali will “make a whistlestop tour to South Africa next week”, where he will speak to Kyalami owner Toby Venter and chief executive Tom Hamilton as he looks to wrap up the deal.

If successful, we could well have a South African Grand Prix on the 2023 calendar, with the Kyalami track reportedly needing only a “minor tweak to its facilities” to be deemed Formula 1-worthy.

The reworking of the Formula 1 calendar has focused on grands prix outside of Europe, with the American market in particular exploited as Formula 1’s popularity in the nation continues to climb.

With the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of The American safe, it means that there will be three United States-based races in Formula 1 come 2023 when the Las Vegas Grand Prix debuts.

In addition to Kyalami, returning to China for multiple races has also been mentioned as a potential development. Colombia has even expressed an interest in hosting Formula 1.

Domenicali stated recently that the European leg of the season will not be made to suffer for such expansion, though Sportsmail’s report does speak of a threat for several events.

They state that the French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard is set to be axed, while the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps is also under threat, with the potential for it to alternate on the calendar if it is retained in some capacity.

The Monaco Grand Prix is also without a contract beyond 2022.

​​​​​​​Formula 1 aims to have the South African Grand Prix on the 2023 calendar, potentially creating a 24-race season that the Belgian Grand Prix may not be part of.

As previously reported by The Race, a revival of the South African GP at Kyalami has emerged as F1’s next priority for its calendar expansion.

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali arrived in South Africa on Monday after the Azerbaijan GP to meet with Kyalami stakeholders to discuss more details about the race.

It has been suggested it will take a few more weeks before an agreement can be reached but the intention is for South Africa to be on the 2023 calendar.

F1 has not had a presence in Africa since the last Kyalami race in 1993.

The effort to change that could result in a South African GP being part of either a 23- or 24-race schedule next year.

This season’s championship will run to 22 races but the Qatar Grand Prix will return next year, a Las Vegas Grand Prix has already been confirmed as well, and China is supposed to rejoin the calendar for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

If all these races, including one at Kyalami, came off then F1 would have 26 grands prix to schedule.

F1 can contractually hold a 25-race season but has repeatedly stated it wants to avoid that.

Getting Shanghai back on the calendar is proving difficult as the country is still impacted by the pandemic and it has previously been suggested that this may thwart a Chinese round in 2023.

And the expansion of the calendar has put added pressure on established European races, at least one of which will be lost next year.

While there has been much speculation over the fate of the French and Monaco Grands Prix, another race is a serious contender to drop off the calendar next year.

The Belgian Grand Prix is one of F1’s oldest and longest-running races, as there have been 66 Belgian GPs since the first world championship season in 1950.

But the race has not been an ever-present and Spa itself has been dropped several times, most recently in 2003, while it was also absent from the 2006 calendar as repair works could not be completed in time for its September slot.

And as F1 continues to expand in the Liberty Media era it is becoming clearer that Spa is now considered to be falling short of the required standard – economically and in terms of infrastructure – despite efforts to renovate the circuit.

It has now been suggested that Spa is unlikely to be part of the 2023 calendar.

Any European race that does have to forfeit a place is likely to seek a rotation with another event to at least become a biennial grand prix, assuming it cannot win back a permanent place.

Mercedes is playing "the usual political game" by pushing for rule changes to end the phenomenon of so-called porpoising in F1's new ground effect era.

Lewis Hamilton was in visible back pain after Sunday's Azerbaijan GP - but not everyone was convinced.

"He sees the camera, and then starts walking away with his hand on his back," said well-known Dutch commentator Olav Mol on Ziggo Sport.

"He wanted everything to see that because they want the FIA to change something, because they say it is too dangerous. That's what they are trying to achieve."

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says seven time world champion is in "bad shape" after Baku, adding that there is "definitely" a question about whether he will be fit for Montreal this weekend.

"We can see that it is not muscular, it goes deep into the spine," said the Austrian. "The solution is to have someone on reserve, which we do at any race."

Behind the scenes last weekend, Formula 1 teams met to discuss potential rule changes designed to stop porpoising - as did the Grand Prix Drivers' Association.

"Even us," said George Russell, referring to the collective group of F1 drivers. "I think we voted against it.

"We want change but who knows what that change is," Hamilton's teammate added. "Nobody's looking to take advantage of this, we're just looking for a safer, easier solution."

Alpha Tauri's Pierre Gasly agreed: "We discussed the problem at the drivers' meeting. I hope the FIA finds a solution, because we don't want to be walking with a stick at the age of 30."

But even Red Bull team boss Christian Horner suspects that Mercedes may be playing a political game.

"If we had difficulties like they have, I would tell the riders to swear as much as possible on the radio too. This is part of the game," he said.

As for the drivers' meeting, Wolff claims: "All the drivers agreed that this is a problem except for one - Alonso."

According to 1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve, a solution is already available for Mercedes - it's just that implementing it will make the team even slower.

"I understand their concerns but there is a solution for Mercedes," he told the Dutch publication Formule 1. "Raise the car's ride height.

"Nobody is forcing them to run so low, but Wolff's call to change the rules is, in my opinion, nothing more than the usual political game in Formula 1," said Villeneuve.

"Mercedes will do anything to get closer to Red Bull and Ferrari, just as they wanted to change as little as possible in recent years."

Formula 1 has signed a contract extension with the Australian GP, guaranteeing that the event will stay in Melbourne until at least 2035.

The current deal runs for three more years until 2025, and the 10-year extension is the latest in a series of announcements as established venues rush to secure long-term contracts in the face of stiff competition for a place on the sport’s calendar.

A third US race in Las Vegas has already been confirmed for November 2023, while F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali visited Johannesburg between Baku and Montreal to conduct further talks with the South African government about a race at Kyalami, potentially with an April 2023 date.

Melbourne is understood to have faced domestic competition, including a bid from Sydney. The fact that the extension was signed with three years remaining on the current contract gives some indication of how keen the Victorian city was to secure its long-term future.

It has also made it clear that as part of the arrangement the Albert Park venue, which was used for the first time in 1996, will be updated.

F1 noted: “Over the past two years the promoter has made significant investment to upgrade the circuit and will continue to improve the overall fan experience and facilities, including the paddock and pitlane, at the circuit over the coming years.

“This will enhance the fan experience but also modernise the facilities for the teams that will be essential for the smooth running of the event over the next decade.”

Unexpectedly it has been confirmed that from 2023 the FIA F2 and F3 championships will both become part of Melbourne’s weekend schedule.

Historically travel costs have kept the usual F1 support series away from Australia, and the promoter has had no problem filling the timetable with popular local categories. It remains to be seen how much track time will still be available for them.

“The race has always been a favourite for the fans, drivers and the teams," said Domenicali. "And Melbourne is an incredible and vibrant international city that is a perfect match for our sport.

“This year we saw huge crowds and passionate fans at the Grand Prix, and we are very excited by the future in Australia as our sport continues to grow.”

“This is a sensational announcement that is simply great for Melbourne and Victoria,” said event CEO Andrew Westacott.

“It builds on our rich motor sport history as well as Melbourne’s love of big sporting events and provides aspiration to the next generation of Aussie racing stars.

“We’re proud of our strong relationship with F1 and together we will grow the sport in Australia and the broader Asia-Pacific region. Everyone at the Australian GP Corporation looks forward to taking the F1 Australian GP to new levels over the course of the next 13 years.”

Martin Pakula, Victoria’s Minister for Tourism, Sport & Major Events, stressed the contribution made to the local economy by the race.

“The Australian Grand Prix has never been bigger, with more than 419,000 people flocking to Albert Park for this year’s race,” he said.

“We know how important this event is to our economy and that’s why we’ve delivered the longest extension for the race since it has been held in Melbourne.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has accused his opposite number at Mercedes, Toto Wolff, of overplaying concerns about the ride of the current generation of Formula One cars.

New technical regulations introduced over the winter have had a knock-on effect on the ride of F1 cars this year, resulting in some cars bouncing dramatically over bumps as well as being susceptible to an aerodynamic phenomenon known as porpoising, which also results in the cars bouncing uncontrollably on their suspension.

On the bumpy street circuit of Baku one week ago, the bouncing issues were so severe for some teams that the sport's governing body, the FIA, decided to intervene on safety grounds by introducing a technical directive (TD) to police the bouncing.

However, the details of the FIA's intervention have yet to be finalised and a meeting on the issue at the Canadian Grand Prix on Saturday led to reports of an intense debate between Wolff, arguing for the changes, and Horner and Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto arguing against them.

After the meeting, Wolff labelled his rivals' position as "disingenuous", adding that their behaviour in the meeting was "pitiful".

Horner, whose Red Bull cars have won the last six races and are among the least affected by the bouncing, has long argued that the bouncing is not a matter for the FIA to address but for the teams to sort out independently.

Meanwhile, Ferrari has questioned the validity of the FIA's recent actions, with Binotto saying the purpose of a technical directive is to clarify rules rather than change them.

"Ferrari presented its position regarding the TD and Toto is campaigning for a change in regulations -- which is somewhat ironic because his car looked quite quick today [during Sunday's race in Canada] with not a lot of bouncing," Horner said. "And I think it was just pointed out to him clearly that perhaps his issues were within rather than everybody's issue."

Asked if Wolff was perhaps playing up to Netflix cameras present in the meeting to record footage for the next season of the docuseries "Drive to Survive," Horner added: "I think there was an element of theatre going on in that meeting, so maybe with Lewis's new movie coming along he's getting in role for it."

Part of the FIA's technical directive allows teams to run a second stay between the main bodywork of the car and its floor on both sides to improve the stiffness of the floor and mitigate against porpoising. Mercedes was the only team to test a second stay in Friday practice, but removed it from the car ahead of qualifying and the race.

Given that the technical directive allowing the second stay was only issued on Thursday, both Ferrari and Red Bull have questioned how Mercedes managed to produce the part so quickly.

"What was particular disappointing was the second stay because that has to be discussed in a technical forum and that is overtly biased to sorting one team's problems out, which were the only team that turned up here with it even in advance of the TD. So work that one out," Horner added.

Horner stressed that the onus should be on teams struggling with bouncing to modify their designs rather than the FIA tweaking the rules to ease the issues.

"The teams have got some of the brightest engineering talent in the world," Horner said. "Things will converge.

"I doubt we will be sitting here next year talking about the bouncing even if the regulations were left alone. These cars are still relatively new, they are still as teams add developments to their cars you'll probably see them start to address some of these issues.

"You can't just suddenly change technical regulations halfway through a season. If a car is dangerous, a team shouldn't field it. It has that choice. Or the FIA if they feel an individual car is dangerous, they always have a black flag at their disposal."

A camp is forming in the Formula 1 paddock among those who think the sport's drivers should toughen up about 'porpoising'.

Former driver David Coulthard, now a highly respected broadcaster, says he is from an era in which F1 drivers "take the pain" of their job in the cockpit.

"What I would say is if any driver feels uncomfortable, if any driver feels like he's doing himself long-term damage - step aside," said the Scot.

"There's a whole bunch of guys and girls that would very happily step into your car if you feel uncomfortable."

Many active drivers have spoken out against the bodily harms the ground effect cars may be having this year, but reigning world champion Max Verstappen certainly sides with Coulthard.

"There are a lot of sports out there where I think you damage your body in general," the Dutchman said.

"I mean, once you retire from your career, you won't be like you were when you were 20. That is simply how it is."

1996 world champion Damon Hill insists: "All I can say is that when I was racing, nobody was interested."

Alpha Tauri boss Franz Tost went a step further, telling German media that some current F1 drivers are "sissies".

Former F1 driver Christian Danner told Servus TV: "I was tall in my day and never finished a grand prix without pain.

"I got to drive Lewis' car a few years ago and nothing hurts you. It was like a Rolls Royce feeling."

He also suspects that Lewis Hamilton's post-Baku back pain was mainly theatrical.

"It's all prearranged and I thought the way he got out of the car was very theatrical.

"We used to have pre-loaded springs, no power steering, you changed gear by hand. After 300 kilometres you were completely exhausted," Danner explained.

AlphaTauri have confirmed that Pierre Gasly will remain with the team for the 2023 season, ending speculation that the Frenchman might depart for new pastures at the end of this season.

Following confirmation that Sergio Perez would be staying on at Red Bull until 2024, and thus blocking Gasly’s route back to the team he drove 12 races for in 2019, Gasly was open about wanting to have conversations with Red Bull’s motorsports advisor Dr Helmut Marko regarding where his own future lay.

But with team boss Franz Tost stating in Canada that it was “100% confirmed” that Gasly would stay with AlphaTauri for 2023, this has now been corroborated by the team on Friday morning, with Tost saying: “We are really pleased to confirm that Pierre stays with us in 2023. He is definitely in the group of the best and most competitive drivers in F1 and has proven his abilities during all the time he has spent with us.

“Undoubtedly, Pierre can play a major role in the team having a successful season next year and it will be down to us to provide him with a competitive car, so that he can continue to deliver excellent results.”

Gasly made his F1 debut with the team, then known as Toro Rosso, at the 2017 Malaysian Grand Prix, and has subsequently taken three podiums with the squad, including his win at the 2020 Italian Grand Prix.

Speaking of the new deal, Gasly said: “I have been with this team for five years now and I am proud of the journey we’ve been through together and the progress we have made. I’m happy to remain with my Scuderia AlphaTauri team.

“This year’s new regulations have created new challenges for us and being able to plan our development with the team for the next 18 months is a good working basis for the future.”

It’s not been the easiest start to Gasly’s 2022 campaign, the Frenchman currently 11th in the standings on 16 points – while last year was Gasly’s first in F1 where he took over 100 points.

Formula One plans to introduce a sustainable fuel in 2026 as part of its pledge to be carbon neutral by 2030.

The synthetic fuel will be introduced in line with the sport's next iteration of hybrid engines, which will make their debut the same year.

F1 hopes the fuel will be used in standard internal combustion engines and be rolled out across the car industry.

According to the BBC, only 1% of the worlds cars were hybrid or electric in 2020 and F1 wants to be a force to increase that number in future years.

It has also made several other steps towards its carbon neutral pledge, including remote broadcast operations to reduce freight.

Last year's British Grand Prix was the first carbon-neutral broadcast production and F1 plans to deliver the same again at Silverstone this week.

F1 has also redesigned its freight containers so more efficient aircraft can be used to take them around the world.

SILVERSTONE, England -- Lewis Hamilton said "old voices" from Formula One such as Nelson Piquet's are irrelevant to what the sport wants to achieve in the future and should not be given a platform to promote discriminatory opinions.

Three-time champion Piquet has been banned from the F1 paddock after he used a racial slur to describe Hamilton in a 2021 podcast that gained media attention this week.

Hamilton said the 69-year-old Brazilian former driver is part of an era and generation F1 is trying to move away from.

"I've been on the receiving end of racism, criticism, negativity and archaic narratives, for a long, long time, and undertones of discrimination," Hamilton said ahead of the British Grand Prix, which he is looking to win for a record-extending ninth time Sunday.

"So there's nothing really particularly new for me. I think it's more about the bigger picture. I'm not really sure, I don't know why we are continuing to give these older voices a platform.


"They're speaking on our sport and we're looking to go somewhere completely different, and I don't think it's representative of who we are as a sport and where we're planning to go.

"If we're looking to grow in the U.S. and other countries, South Africa, and grow our audience and look into the future and give younger people a platform that is more representative of today's time and who we are trying to be and the direction we are going, it's not just about one individual, it's not just about one use of that term -- it's the bigger picture."

Hamilton, the only Black driver in F1, has frequently been a subject of criticism in the media, with British newspaper the Daily Mail regularly featuring interviews with former drivers such as Jackie Stewart and John Watson and former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone criticising his driving, his fashion sense or his interest in music.

Hamilton later added: "These old voices ... whether they're subconscious or consciously ... do not agree people like me should be in a sport like this, do not agree women should be here.

"It's not helpful, the comments we've seen from these people. I don't think, in the last couple of weeks, I don't think a day's gone by where there's not been someone who's not been in our sport or relevant for decades, saying negative things or trying to bring me down, but I'm still here, I'm still standing strong."

Hamilton also called on F1 and other companies around the world to stop relying on scripted responses to examples of racism and abuse and instead respond with meaningful action.

The seven-time world champion has done this himself, pumping millions of pounds of his own money into the Hamilton Commission, which set out a list of recommendations to increase diversity in the sport.


Through his Mission 44 charity he has launched an initiative called Ignite, which this week announced its first grants as a push to bring people from low-income and ethnic minority backgrounds.

"I think we're just living in a time where there's a lot of people who have said they're supportive over the last few years, but a lot of lip service. And we're not doing that, we're about action and putting our money where our mouth is. I'm really proud. I think we need to get everyone naturally on board and do something because we can't do it online," Hamilton said.

"You've got to imagine that everyone's PR agency have a script ready for something like that, crisis management. It's not enough. Now it's about actual real action."