Intriguing US F1 development as key new location trademarked – F1 news round-up

Sunday’s F1 news round-up includes the latest on speculation about a new US GP location, as well as Daytona glory for a former F1 racer!

With launch season and testing still a little while away, a quiet day on the F1 news front still included some revelations about a possible future Grand Prix in the United States as well as proving a great day for a former midfield F1 driver!

Catch up on all the latest F1 news in our Sunday evening round-up!

F1 lodges trademark applications for Chicago Grand Prix

Last week, F1 lodged trademark applications in the United States to include several phrases related to a possible Chicago Grand Prix – in similar fashion to how the Miami and Las Vegas Grands Prix were trademarked as far back as 2017.

But is there a genuine chance of a Chicago GP happening any time soon?

Not yet anyway, as PlanetF1.com understands there are currently no plans in place to go racing in Chicago – even at a negotiation stage – and that the move could be simply pre-emptive to protect intellectual property and prevent other entities from using that branding.

For instance, F1 lodged similar trademarks for a New York Grand Prix in late 2017 but, over six years later, a race in the city hasn’t transpired. The trademarks for the New York race were registered in the same year as Miami and Las Vegas, with two of those three races having become a reality since.

Read more: F1 sparks major intrigue as new United States race trademarks lodged

Renowned F1 expert weighs in on Drive to Survive portrayal of F1 competitiveness

Mark Gallagher has pointed out how the Netflix show Drive to Survive has taken to presenting Formula 1 as a type of democracy – suggesting that all F1 teams are in the hunt for wins and are playing on a level field.

But the reality couldn’t be further from the truth, and he said the 2023 season may have proven “devastating for Formula 1”.

“There have been a few commentators – even in America – talking about the fact that Formula 1 has built this crescendo, but there’s now a threat hanging over it because the dyed-in-the-wool fans, the fanbase who really understand Formula 1 and have followed it for years and years and years will stick with it through thick and thin.

“Whereas the more transitory fans who have come into perhaps in the last two years may just suddenly now start to find that it isn’t compelling enough to make them want to watch all the races and indeed, in this case, turn up to Miami, Austin, Las Vegas and actually buy some tickets.”

Read more: Drive to Survive slammed for portrayal of Max Verstappen’s F1 dominance

Felipe Nasr takes win in IMSA Rolex Daytona 24 Hours

In the latest success for a former F1 driver after leaving the grid, former Sauber racer Felipe Nasr crossed the line to win the IMSA Daytona 24 Hours and return Penske to the top of the Daytona podium for the first time since 1969.

Nasr shared driving duties of the #7 Porsche with Dane Cameron, Josef Newgarden, and Matt Campbell as the quartet completed 791 laps to win by just two seconds over the #31 Cadillac after a thrilling final stint battle with Tom Blomqvist.

Jenson Button and Felipe Massa were amongst the other former F1 drivers taking part, with varying levels of success.

Read more: Daytona 24 Hours results: How Jenson Button, Felipe Massa and more ex-F1 drivers fared

Sky F1 presenter recounts cringy first F1 live interview… with Michael Schumacher!

While it may seem impossible to imagine some of the polished and professional Sky F1 broadcast team as nervous newcomers, every single one of them have had to get stuck in in situations where nerves could have got the better of them.

Natalie Pinkham, now a veteran on the Sky team, made her F1 debut at the 2011 Australian Grand Prix with BBC Radio, and was thrown in the deep end by having to do her first live interview with Michael Schumacher!

“I just grabbed him!” she told the crowd at the 2024 Autosport International Show.

“I was just holding him! He just looked down as if to say ‘What are you doing!?’

“I went, ‘I’m so sorry. So sorry!’ But then we kind of had a bit of a laugh because I just literally grabbed him and then he gave me lovely answers! So I just thought ‘Well, I’ll just keep grabbing them and hope for the best!’”

Read more: Sky F1 presenter recounts hilariously awkward and ‘intimidating’ interview with Michael Schumacher

James Allison points out ‘room for innovation’ with Mercedes W15

Mercedes technical director James Allison said that, contrary to the belief that every team could slowly converge upon the same design philosophy as Red Bull as the current regulations mature, there’s still plenty of room for teams to show some ingenuity of their own.

“I think most people will be iterating down a similar sort of avenue,” he said as per Motorsport.com. “But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for innovation at all.

“These cars, and it is no secret, run super-near the ground and that’s where they get their best performance.

“But there is also the ground there, so it is just trying to figure out how you can reliably, precisely, and in an informed way, place the car at a point above the ground that you know will be survivable from a skid legality point of view, but will also give you every bit of downforce that the car is capable of offering.”

“There is plenty of action there still.”

Read more: Mercedes hint at W15 ‘innovation’ with ‘plenty of action’ still to be found