Michael Schumacher family request made as brother Ralf shares memories – F1 news round-up

Oliver Harden 27 Dec 2023 10:00 PM

Ralf and Michael Schumacher on the podium at the 2003 Canadian Grand Prix.

Christmas Day may have come and gone but the F1 news just keeps on coming.

As the poignant 10th anniversary of Michael Schumacher’s tragic skiing accident edges ever closer, it is no great surprise that the seven-time World Champion is dominating the headlines right now.

Michael’s brother Ralf has shared his reflections of December 29 2013 – and has made a request on behalf of the Schumacher family. That leads today’s roundup…

Michael Schumacher’s brother pleads for privacy

Ralf Schumacher has called for reflected on his brother’s skiing accident as the 10th anniversary of the incident approaches.

Michael Schumacher suffered life-changing injuries in a skiing accident while on holiday with his wife and children in Switzerland.

His injuries have been such that the seven-time F1 World Champion has not been pictured or seen in public since the date of the accident.

Mercedes 2024 W15 launch date surfaces

Mercedes are set to launch their 2024 car on February 14, PlanetF1.com understands.

A growing number of teams have confirmed their launch dates for 2024, with Williams and Sauber announcing a launch date of February 5 with Ferrari earmarking February 13 for the presentation of Project 676.

Mercedes are set to follow Ferrari by launching the W15 on Valentine’s day.

We can already hear Natalie Pinkham turning to Lewis Hamilton after the covers have come off at launch saying: “So, Lewis, is it love at first sight?”

The time Fernando Alonso got peachy with Ron Dennis

You may remember Fernando Alonso and senior management at McLaren not seeing eye-to-eye with each other back in 2007…

Alonso was at the heart of a bitter inter-team battle with Lewis Hamilton at McLaren in his first spell at McLaren, with the two-time World Champion parting ways with the team after just one season.

McLaren’s former head of communications, Matt Bishop, revealed how Alonso would wind up McLaren boss Ron Dennis in particular as their relationship deteriorated beyond repair – using a peach as a prop in a tense press conference in Hungary…

Guenther Steiner predicts 2025 driver merry-go-round

Haas team boss Guenther Steiner believes up to a quarter of the F1 grid could end up being replaced for the 2025 F1 season.

2024 is set to be the first time in F1 history that a new season will start with the same driver lineup as the previous campaign ended, with no team switches, retirements or rookies signed at the end of 2023.

With the contracts of 12 different drivers set to expire at the end of 2024, Steiner is predicting the silliest of silly seasons.

George Russell reveals Fernando Alonso influence

George Russell has revealed how he got some inadvertent advice from Alonso that he’s taken to heart.

The British driver has spent the last two years adjusting to life at the forefront of Formula 1, having made the switch from Williams to Mercedes at the end of 2021.

Having improved towards the end of the year, Russell claimed that it came after a change of mindset he applied listening to advice from Alonso – on a podcast!