F1 Gossip: F1 braced for a wet and wild start to 2020 season

- The long-awaited opening round of the 2020 F1 World Championship could also turn out to be a very wet one if early forecasts for the upcoming weekend are anything to be believed. As it stands, the Styrian region – home of the Red Bull Ring – is going to experience wet weather for much of this week, with a high chance of rain on both Friday and Sunday, with Saturday remaining sunny. Coupled to the short practice sessions to get some people up to speed after more than three months on the sidelines, anything but dry weather won’t be welcomed by many… (Weather.com)

- Difficult weather conditions could spell bad news for reigning champions Mercedes as they predict Red Bull could emerge with the upper hand in Austria. Red Bull’s eponymous home track, the team has often performed well there with Max Verstappen claiming a famous victory over Charles Leclerc in 2019. As such, Toto Wolff knows exactly which rival he will be watching most closely this weekend; “I expect a very tight fight between Red Bull and us.” (Grand Prix News via Kronen Zeitung)

- Having maintained a silence ever since he confirmed he would be exiting Ferrari at the end of the 2020 F1 season, Sebastian Vettel will no doubt be a key figure of interest in Austria this week amid uncertainty around his future. The latest rumours – published in Gazzetta dello Sport – suggests he could be courted by the incoming Aston Martin Racing team, which takes over from Racing Point in 2021. However, it adds Vettel isn’t the only big name signing it could consider, with fellow veteran Fernando Alonso also a potential target. (Marca via Gazzetta dello Sport)

- Speaking of futures, Vettel isn’t the only ‘maybe-retirement’ coming in 2020, with Kimi Raikkonen refusing to give anything away ahead of what will be his 18th season in F1. Embarking on his second campaign with the Alfa Romeo team, Raikkonen is out of contract at the end of the year, with fellow Finn and ex-F1 driver Mika Salo believing the recent pandemic could influence him to favour a life spent at home: “It's hard to say how Kimi has reacted to this long vacation. After all, the message may be that vacationing is fun and driving is no longer of interest. Of course, everyone hopes that Kimi will continue, but it's up to him” (MTV Uutiset)