The first example of this was seen in 1989 when Alain Prost hit Ayrton Senna on the first lap of the final race at Suzuka. While Senna carried on and won the race, he was disqualified for cutting the chicane and thus handing the championship to Prost. Twelve months later, at the same venue, Senna took redemption by deliberately crashing into Prost to win his first F1 championship.

While F1 took note of the incident, little was done to avoid further incidents, and thus, in 1994, things repeated with Michael Schumacher turning in on Damon Hill to clinch the championship by one point. Schumacher repeated this attempt on Jacques Villeneuve three years later, only to be disqualified from the championship for deliberately hitting another driver. These incidents forced then FIA president Max Mosley to intervene and set up rules to stop drivers from taking out each other. But two decades since the Schumacher incident, no driver has tried to put the rules to the test, barring the 2016 season when tensions were running high between teammates Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, leading to multiple collisions through the season. But looking at the 2021 season, it seems like the rule will be finally implemented. The heated battle between Hamilton and Max Verstappen is through the roof, with the duo colliding on two occasions in the 2021 season. 

Coming into the 2021 season, things looked heated as Red Bull finally fielded a competitive car that is considered the best on the grid. On the other hand, affected by the recent rules change, Mercedes started on the backfoot during pre-season testing. With protagonists from both teams gunning to clinch the title, things began to heat up from the first race in Bahrain, where the Mercedes and Hamilton won the race after a close wheel to wheel battle with Verstappen. Determined to win the title, Verstappen and Red Bull adopted every tactic in the book to win the next round in Italy and swing the championship in their favour.

With Verstappen aiming for his maiden title and Lewis for his eighth, both drivers gave their 100 percent on the track, resulting in fantastic wheel-to-wheel racing in Bahrain, Imola, Portimao, Barcelona and France that was missing from F1 for over a decade. This close wheel to wheel racing has resulted in the championship swinging both ways, race after race. During the initial phase of the championship, both drivers raced with mutual respect. But just before the summer break, during round 10 of the championship at Silverstone, the rivalry took an ugly turn. Verstappen and Hamilton collided at the Corpse corner on the first lap of the race, resulting in a 51G crash that saw Verstappen spinning into the tyre barrier. This was the spark that ignited it all.

Following the crash, Lewis was handed a 10-sec time penalty which in no way affected the result of the race. In the end, Lewis won his eighth British GP and celebrated in style. This trigged Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who accused Hamilton of ‘dirty racing’. While the drivers refused to engage in a war of words, the team principals were going at each other. F1 went for its summer break, with Lewis leading the championship by just six points.

Coming back from the summer break, Verstappen won back to back at the Spa-Franco champs and at his home track in the Netherlands.

Just when the war of words had started to settle down and the championship had swung in Red Bull and Verstappen’s favour, the two championship rivals collided on lap 26 of the Italian GP at Monza. Frustrated by an 11.1-second pit stop which put him directly into Hamilton’s path, Verstappen was pushing hard on a fresh set of hard tyres. On lap 26, Hamilton pitted for a new set of tyres and caught McLaren’s Lando Norris and Verstappen at the pit exit. After letting Norris pass, Hamilton stuck to the racing line into the Variante chicane. Seizing the opportunity, Verstappen attacked to the outside of Hamilton. Not yielding, both drivers stuck to their racing lines and collided. The collision saw Verstappen’s car bounce off the sausage kerbs and pitched onto Hamilton’s car, clipping the rear wing and roll hoop of the Mercedes before landing heavily onto the Halo. Both the cars got beached in the gravel with one on top of the other.

A disgruntled Verstappen got off the car and walked away, blaming Hamilton for the crash. Talking post-race, Verstappen complained, “He kept on squeezing me to the left. I expected him to give me space going into turn 2, but he left me without enough road.” Reacting to it, Hamilton, said, “I left him a car’s width going into the first corner and I was ahead going into the corner. The next thing I know, Max was over me. He obviously knew at that point he wasn’t going to make the corner and drove into me.”

After the race, the stewards reviewed the incident and handed Verstappen a three-place grid drop for the Russian GP. The stewards found that Verstappen was never in front of Hamilton and hence was predominantly to blame for the collision. Reacting to the penalty, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff accused Verstappen of a tactical foul.

Verstappen will be ready for redemption at the Russian GP. Eager to bounce back from his three-place grid penalty and win at the Sochi Autodromo and break Mercedes dominance at a circuit that suits the Mercedes car the best. While the blame game continues, F1 pundits predict that the two title rivals will clash again before the end of the championship. With eight rounds left in the championship, Verstappen leads Hamilton by just five points. It’s all to play for in the championship, with either driver giving it their 100 percent.

With a three-place grid penalty to serve at a track that does not favour the Red Bull Car, will the Milton Keynes-based team opt to take engine penalty and push during the race with a new engine, or will they postpone the new engine for another race? Will Verstappen adopt a more polite approach towards his driving? Will the teams and drivers race fair with mutual respect? We have to wait and watch. But for the fans, this championship is an exciting one that will go down to the wire and enter the record books as the most entertaining season in the recent past. (TT)

Bridgestone will supply tailored-made tyres for Lamborghini’s Huracán STO, which will be launched in 2021.

Bridgestone ensured the high-performance tyre can maximise the Huracán STO’s traction, handling, control, and extreme overall performance.

Key to the tyre’s success in maximising the super sports car’s performance is the combination of pattern and cavity design. The Potenza tyres apply an asymmetric tread design for enhanced steering response and cornering stability, and an internal crown structure that distributes footprint pressure evenly when cornering.

As well as the road-focused, custom-developed Potenza fitment, Bridgestone will also be providing a track-oriented, road-homologated version of the tyre that applies “race” technologies to maximise the vehicle’s track performance, especially in dry conditions.

Steven De Bock, VP Consumer Replacement and OE at Bridgestone EMIA, said, “It’s been a pleasure for our team to work so closely with Lamborghini for the first time, and on such an exciting project. The Huracán STO is an incredible piece of engineering that deserves a custom tyre that can fulfill its full potential. I can proudly say that Bridgestone has delivered such a high-performance tyre. It has been fantastic for the team to have worked on a project that is at the forefront of technology in so many ways.”

Hankook, one of the major global tyre brands, has started testing and development operations at its new ultra modern facility in Spain.

The testing facility has been set up on the premises of the Applus+ IDIADA Group and can also cater to European premium car manufacturers that have their own demanding tyre tests. The facility is completely automated and will host a 20-member team from the Spanish testing centre, which is affiliated to the Hankook Europe Technical Centre.

Klaus Krause, Head of European Research and Development Centre, said, "With the further expansion of our testing capacities in Spain, we are reaching the next level together with our local partner Applus+ IDIADA."

He also added, "We are confident that the newly installed testing facilities in particular will significantly improve our efforts to provide the best tyre testing conditions and services to our employees and customers. In addition, we will also be able to conduct significantly more tests on site." (TT)

ASCENSO introduced a construction tyre - BLB 730- which is used for boom lift vehicles used in construction and other industries. It comes with several features that cater to the unique needs of aerial lifting equipment.

The BLB 730 tyre is available in different sizes to fit various boom lift vehicles. This range of sizes provides versatility and compatibility with different types of aerial lift work platforms.

“ASCENSO's BLB 730 tyre is a significant advancement in specialised equipment for the construction industry. It focuses on load capacity, stability, traction, and durability to improve the performance and safety of boom lift vehicles. Whether working at heights or manoeuvring on tough terrains, this tyre offers reliability and durability for efficient operations,” said the company in a statement.

The BLB 730 tyre is built to handle heavy loads and stabilise boom lift vehicles. It has solid lugs and a more extended shoulder design, which ensures good traction and prevents slipping during operation. This is important for safely carrying heavy weights at high elevations. ASCENSO has used a special rubber compound in making the BLB 730 tyre, making it durable and long-lasting, resulting in less downtime and more productivity on construction sites.

To make the tyre even better, the company has optimised its inner volume to reduce tyre fill consumption, reducing the risk of tyre punctures, minimising the need for maintenance, and keep the vehicles running smoothly.

Falken Tyre Europe is an official IHF Men's World Championship 2023 partner for the upcoming tournament, the company has announced. The tournament is taking place at nine venues in Sweden and Poland from 11-29 January, 2023. Falken Tyre claims that the partnership was organised by the sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE. SPORTFIVE is responsible for exclusive marketing and media rights for all IHF World Championships until 2031.

Falken Tyre claims that this is its second agreement with the International Handball Federation. In addition to title and logo rights (Official IHF Men's World Championship 2023 Partner), the company has also secured advertising rights, including the Falken logo in each goal and centre circle of the courts, as well as the presence of Falken branding in the official tournament social media communications and print materials. According to Falken Tyre, this is complemented by 30-second video ads that will be shown on the big screens in the nine sports halls before the start of each match and at half-time.

Sharing his views, Robert Müller von Vultejus, Chief Growth Officer at SPORTFIVE, said, “With Falken, the IHF World Handball Championships have secured a great partner who is positioned with far-reaching influence in the relevant core markets. We are delighted to have been able to bring two global partners together for one of the most exciting sporting events of next year.”

Markus Bögner, COO and President of Falken Tyre Europe GmbH, explained, “Handball isn’t just of great importance in Europe, but all over the world, which has led us to partake in this top-level tournament once again. The fact that the international tournament is taking place in countries that are among our core markets is another great reason for our involvement. We can also look back on a long partnership with our colleagues at SPORTFIVE, who always offers us excellent opportunities that are an excellent fit for the Falken brand, which stands for enthusiasm, performance and achievement.”