Lewis Hamilton has confirmed that he has sold his entire car collection, adding that he much prefers to collect art instead. But he says he still has a soft spot for a certain Italian supercar.

Speaking ahead of the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the seven-time Formula 1 champion was asked whether he'd be interested in purchasing the Ferrari F80 - the Scuderia's latest flagship supercar.

“I don't have any cars anymore," he responded. "I don't have any cars, so I got rid of all my cars. I'm more into art nowadays. If I was going to get a car, it would be the F40. But that's a nice piece of art.”

Hamilton's garage has been a talking point for many years, with his collection boasting a number of rare, expensive, high-performance vehicles. From hypercars to classic cars and special editions, the former Mercedes driver seemed to have it all. But judging by his recent comments, his love for collecting these machines has dwindled.

Before selling up, he was reported to have owned a selection of irresistible machines estimated at a total value of £13million, kept in his private garages in Monaco and Los Angeles. While his full collection has never been officially confirmed, these are the cars he has been seen driving or has previously confirmed owning:

• Pagani Zonda 760 LH
• Mercedes-AMG Project One
• Mercedes-AMG SLS Black Series
• Mercedes-AMG GT R (ex-F1 safety car spec)
• Mercedes-AMG G63 6×6
• Mercedes-Maybach S600
• Ferrari LaFerrari
• Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta
• Ferrari 599 SA Aperta
• 1966 Shelby Cobra 427
• 1967 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 (“Eleanor” replica)
• McLaren P1
• 1995 McLaren F1 (chassis 044 per reports)
• Mini Cooper
• Mercedes EQC

While the driver is known for his four-wheeled driving, he much prefers to ride motorcycles. He's been seen arriving at race weekends, including at the Monaco Grand Prix and the Italian Grand Prix, on a Ducati Panigale V4 S superbike, dressed in the Italian tricolore livery. He can also be seen riding his MV Agusta F4 LH44 - a limited-run model built in collaboration with the Italian manufacturer.

But if the Briton is to be believed, he would still make room for a Ferrari F40 - one of the marque's most famous and coveted cars.

“One of the things I really want to do is I want to design a Ferrari," he said earlier this season. "I want to do an F44. Baseline of an F40, with the actual stick shift. That’s what I’m gonna work on for the next few years.”

Before selling up, he was reported to have owned a selection of irresistible machines estimated at a total value of £13million, kept in his private garages in Monaco and Los Angeles.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has admitted that it was at one stage “touch and go” regarding George Russell’s participation in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with the Briton feeling unwell as the event got under way.

Russell skipped Thursday’s media duties at the Baku City Circuit after coming down with 'flu and was heard nursing a particularly hoarse voice over the radio during Friday’s pair of practice sessions.

While he battled through to reach Q3 in Qualifying and then finish a fine second in the race, Mercedes reserve driver – and future Cadillac racer – Valtteri Bottas was on standby to replace Russell if needed.

Wolff, having joked that “'flu does good for you” in a congratulatory radio message to Russell, explained during his Sunday press briefing just how ill his driver was at the start of the weekend.

Reflecting on Russell’s performance, Wolff said: “Very impressive, considering that on Friday morning it was touch and go whether Valtteri would be in the car.

“It was George himself that said, ‘I’m not sure I can do it’. Then he recovered a little bit in the morning and decided to be in the car, and then every day he went strong.

“Doing a one-and-a-half-hour race here in Baku, not putting a single foot wrong on both tyres, that was a super merited P2.”

Wolff was also encouraged by an improved display from rookie driver Kimi Antonelli, who pipped Russell to fourth in Qualifying and came home in that position on race day.

“It was a really good rebound after Monza,” said Wolff. “He had such a difficult spell with the European races and, coming in here with a solid P4, running in the front group, that’s something to continue to build on and consolidate.”

Asked what he had discussed with Antonelli after calling the youngster’s performance at the Italian Grand Prix “underwhelming”, Wolff added: “I think we always speak very openly with each other. There’s no such thing as holding back.

“For himself, he was not meeting his own expectations with what happened in Monza, and the driving just wasn’t how he had expected it to be, or how he wanted it to be.

“Here, maybe there was a bit missing in ultimate performance that maybe made the difference between a podium and not, but such a good consolidation in my opinion; it was important to score that result.”

Mercedes’ haul from Azerbaijan puts them second in the Teams’ Championship on 290 points – just ahead of Ferrari on 286 and Red Bull on 272.

Romain Grosjean will drive a Formula 1 car for the first time since his dramatic crash in the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix when he gets behind the wheel of a 2023-spec Haas during a test at Mugello on Friday.

Grosjean’s Haas was engulfed in flames when he crashed through the barriers on the opening lap of the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2020, leaving him with extensive burns on both hands.

It turned out to be his 179th and final Grand Prix, with the Frenchman going on to compete in the IndyCar series in America, taking six podiums and three poles over the course of four seasons.

On Friday, he will return to a Formula 1 car following an invite from his former team Haas, with whom he spent five seasons competing between 2016 and 2020, when he drives the VF-23 in a Testing of Previous Car (TPC) test.

Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu, who was Grosjean’s race engineer when they worked together at Lotus, will once again serve as his race engineer at Mugello.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be welcoming Romain Grosjean back into a Formula 1 car for the first time in five years but especially proud he’s returning in one of our cars – it’s only fitting,” said Komatsu.

“Romain and I have worked together throughout his entire Formula 1 career so this test at Mugello is of particular significance to us both.

“I’m delighted he embraced the opportunity to come and get back behind the wheel with us, a day that’s going to be made extra special by having so many members of the original crew back together to witness it.

“It should be a fun day and knowing Romain as I do, I know he’ll want to give it his all as usual – I’d expect nothing less, not least as we’ve talked about making this happen for a long time now.”

Grosjean added: “I’m incredibly grateful to Gene Haas and to Ayao Komatsu for inviting me to participate in the TPC at Mugello.

“To say I’m excited to get back behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car would naturally be an understatement. I really can’t believe it’s been almost five years, but to come back and have this outing with my old team is truly something special.

“I’m excited to see everyone, I’m sure we’ll spend a bit of time reminiscing about the old days, but I’m also keen to be of use regarding the trackside agenda with the VF-23 – it’s great the team now has the TPC program as part of its on-going development.

“Finally, my kids had designed my helmet for what was meant to be my final Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi back in 2020 – I’m at last going to be able to give it a go in a Formula 1 car on Friday.”

Haas has revealed that it received an approach from Christian Horner about a potential role at its Formula 1 team.

However, despite some exploratory talks between the former Red Bull boss and a senior member of management close to owner Gene Haas, it was decided that there was no scope for a deal to happen.

Speculation ramped up last week that one of Horner’s options for a hoped-for F1 return in 2026 could be with Haas – as it was suggested he could be slotted in at CEO level.

Haas could potentially have offered Horner the opportunity to get involved in a midfield outfit and look to expand it and take it to the front of the grid.

But the idea of that happening has been swiftly shut down, with Haas’s current team principal Ayao Komatsu explaining in Singapore on Thursday that, despite some initial talks, any idea of a partnership between the team and Horner was not moving forward.

Asked by The Race about the rumours linking Horner with Haas, Komatsu said: “It’s true that he approached us and one of our guys had an exploratory, let's say, talk.

“But that was it. Nothing's going any further. I’ve got nothing more to say on that one.”

While Horner wants to return to F1, it is understood that he wants it to be in a position that brings him overall control of a squad – so it is not just as a team principal that reports into an owner.

The most likely route for Horner to assume this is to be involved in some form of buy-in – whether it’s a partial or total takeover of a squad.

One of the key stumbling blocks for any deal with Haas is the fact that its owner Gene Haas has not shown any interest in selling any part of his shareholding – despite several parties putting the idea to him over the years.

With Haas not a route for Horner, the most likely possibilities remain Alpine or Aston Martin.

One other interesting option has emerged, however, with The Race revealing that Horner has been evaluating the idea of helping set up a 12th F1 team in conjunction with private backers.

​​​​​​​Christian Horner's recent $100million settlement with Red Bull has triggered a ton of speculation about where and when a potential return to Formula 1 will happen.

He has been linked with several current squads, but another possibility is also understood to be under consideration - and that is of him potentially going it alone and setting up a 12th team.

All options appear to be on the table right now, with a specific agreement in his Red Bull severance package that allows him to return to F1 in the first half of next year making it clear he wants a grand prix racing comeback as soon as possible.

Otherwise, he would not have agreed to a reduced payout from Red Bull in exchange for being allowed to embark on an early adventure with one of the energy drinks firm's rivals.

There is no shortage of interest from other F1 teams, so Horner now just needs to settle in his own head what he wants to do - and in particular whether he joins someone else or does his own thing.

It is widely understood that Horner is only interested in a role that gives him full control over a squad, so he does not want to accept simply being a team principal and reporting into bosses above him.

Horner controlled all aspects of the Red Bull F1 operation: up until his dismissal he was in charge of not just the Red Bull Racing team but the engine division, marketing and the advanced engineering arm.

He believed that level of control was key in Red Bull becoming a multiple title-winning machine, and his stance on that being the way to run an F1 team has not changed.

This is why he previously turned down offers to join Ferrari and is not especially eager to wait to see if an opportunity opens up there over the next 12 months if the team fails to nail the 2026 rules and decides to overhaul its management.

One other aspect in F1 that would especially interest Horner, that he did not have at Red Bull, is equity: not just control over a team, but a stake in its ownership structure too.

There has been plenty of talk in recent weeks that Horner has investors that are ready to back any project he gets involved in and that potentially opens the door to a team buy-in.

The most obvious options that have emerged so far for Horner that would tick all the boxes are with Alpine and Aston Martin, two teams that are determined to get to the front of the grid and where he could get the control he seeks.

Horner is friends with Alpine executive advisor Flavio Briatore and it is entirely logical that some form of equity deal could be pulled together for him to buy into the squad.

That would put him in a senior role and give him the freedom that would be needed to help turnaround the Enstone-based operation.

Aston Martin also has big ambitions and, while Andy Cowell is currently CEO and team principal, it is not impossible that team owner Lawrence Stroll could position things to slot Horner into a role that would be attractive.

Getting some equity in the team could also be a part of that; there is already a precedent here, as it was revealed when design genius Adrian Newey was signed that his package included a stake.

As Newey said about that element of his deal: "To have the chance to be a shareholder and a partner is something that has never really been offered to me before."

There have been recent suggestions that an Aston Martin alliance would not work with Newey there, as it is known that friction in their relationship last year prompted Red Bull's former technical chief to leave the squad.

However, it is understood that things have moved on over the past 12 months and their friendship, which helped Red Bull to multiple championships, is now much repaired.

It is why they have enjoyed a number of social occasions together in recent months, including a trip together to see an Oasis concert.

Haas has also been mentioned as an option as well recently, and the Banbury-based team would clearly give Horner plenty of opportunity to make an impact and move it up the grid.

However, team owner Gene Haas is understood to not be interested in selling up at the moment, so this does not appear to be a front-running target unless circumstances change.

It is clear that there are big opportunities for Horner among the current grid, but it is understood that a more leftfield idea is also being evaluated: setting up a team from scratch.

With suggestions of potential investors behind him and ready to support any team buy-in, why not go full in and build up something from scratch together?

F1’s governance agreements allows for up to 12 teams on the grid, which means there is, in theory, currently one vacant slot with Cadillac joining the field in 2026 as the 11th outfit.

To take it, Horner would need to pull together a pool of investors to help fund it - with the costs likely to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars. And an entry would be unlikely before 2028, even if things advanced quickly.

While this would be the most expensive route for Horner to take, it is equally one that would make a lot of financial sense.

With current team valuations being well north of $1billion, spending around half of that to get a team up and running would appear to be good value.

Horner was very commercially savvy as a team boss and having pooled together major corporations to back Red Bull, he may well have the necessary contacts needed to find partners willing to support the project to the extent it needs.

Sources have suggested that preliminary discussions on this front have already taken place.

But finding the necessary backers and putting the financial package together is one thing; it could be another when it comes to getting the entry across the line - as the Andretti operation originally behind the now Cadillac-fronted project found.

Despite having the money to enter F1, and even with the FIA's technical approval, its original effort was rejected by Formula One Management (FOM) because it was felt that Andretti did not bring added value to grand prix racing.

It was only when the plans evolved for a full-on, GM-backed Cadillac operation that F1 finally gave the team its seal of approval.

If Horner went ahead with the idea of a 12th team, he would need to ensure that any proposal he had would win over the support of rival teams, the FIA and FOM.

This could involve the support of a manufacturer, a game-changing sponsor or backer, or another key element that stakeholders in F1 feel would be difficult to reject.

For now, though, nothing is decided in Horner's head beyond his belief that he has unfinished business in F1.

Formula 1 has declared its first ever heat hazard for the Singapore Grand Prix, meaning drivers now face a critical call on whether they want to wear cooling vests in the race or carry extra ballast.

As a response to the problems that drivers faced at the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix, when extreme temperatures and humidity left some needing medical attention, the FIA implemented a cooling vest system.

The idea was for the vests, which feature a cooled liquid that is pumped around a series of tubes, to be made mandatory for this season if conditions are predicted to exceed 31°C at some point during the race.

However, following complaints from some drivers about complications fitting the tube elements within the tight confines of the cockpit, a change of plan was made.

Instead of making the cooling vests mandatory, the FIA agreed for 2025 only that if a heat hazard is declared then the use of the cooling vests will be voluntary.

However, concessions were added to the regulations that meant those drivers that elect to use the vest for the race will not be penalised by carrying extra weight.

The rules require that, with a heat hazard in place, all the components that comprise the cooling system must be fitted to the cars – and be in working order.

However, drivers have the option of not wearing the actual vest system if they feel that the tubing elements are too uncomfortable.

The rules state: “In such circumstance, all other components, including any cooling medium, of the driver cooling system must be fitted.

“In addition, the difference in mass between the driver’s personal equipment normally used and any items of a driver’s personal equipment that form part of the system must be compensated by the fitting of 0.5kg of ballast in the cockpit.”

With the heat hazard having now been declared, it will remain in force for the remainder of the Singapore weekend – meaning drivers will have to make a call on Sunday about what to do.

While some drivers are not fans of the cooling system, others have got their devices to work and believe it has brought benefits in hot races.

Mercedes driver George Russell gave an F1 cooling vest an under-the-radar debut on his way to second place in this year’s Bahrain Grand Prix – and reckoned it had made a big difference to his comfort in the car.

“It was definitely very noticeable when I turned on the cool water,” he said. “I think at the start of the race, it was about 16°C pumping around my body, which feels quite nice when you're in a cockpit that's 50°C-plus.

“Of course there's always room to improve. But for us as a team, they've been putting in so much hard work and had the confidence that the system would work that I wanted to give it a whirl. So far, so good.”

There have been recent suggestions that an Aston Martin alliance would not work with Newey there, as it is known that friction in their relationship last year prompted Red Bull's former technical chief to leave the squad.

However, it is understood that things have moved on over the past 12 months and their friendship, which helped Red Bull to multiple championships, is now much repaired.