Author Profile: Leopold Pleijsier

Leopold Pleijsier

Leopold Pleijsier

F1 Journalist

30348 published articles
15 Oct 2026 latest publication

Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

Latest story: Ferrari Protégé Rafael Câmara Secures Haas F1 Seat for 2027

Ocon now fights four rivals for his seat next year

Haas has spent the summer quietly running alternatives at Jerez and Portimao. Now its team boss has put the position in writing: five drivers,...

4 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

Antonelli will tow Russell at Monza after grid penalty

A grid penalty usually wastes a Saturday. Mercedes has found a use for Antonelli's, and Ferrari is weighing the same trick, though Sainz is...

0 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

Could Hadjar's wrist keep him out in Madrid too?

A simulator day in Milton Keynes was meant to settle it. L'Equipe says the wrist did not cooperate, and Red Bull's bench has rarely...

0 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

Sainz asks F1 to keep an open mind after Madrid

Madrid's ambassador is bracing for the reviews before a wheel has turned. Sainz points to Miami, Mexico and Baku, all of which needed a...

0 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

Perez now plans his own young driver programme

Perez knows exactly what a backer is worth, because without Carlos Slim he says he would never have reached F1. Now he intends to...

0 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

Is F1 bringing back its group season launch?

A teaser video, three dates and a lingering shot of Italy. F1 has said almost nothing, but the format it is hinting at was...

0 comments  | 
4 Sep 2026

How Formula 1 Became a Global Fan Phenomenon

Formula 1 was once seen as a specialist European motorsport watched mainly by dedicated racing followers. Today, it is a global entertainment property built...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Hamilton hints at Ferrari stay beyond 2027

Hamilton has a deal for 2027 and nothing beyond it. Yet he talks of racing for years, of feeling at home in red, and...

2 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Antonelli shrugs off starting last at Monza

The championship leader takes a fresh Mercedes engine at Monza and starts from the back. He is unbothered, and the upgrade he really wants...

1 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Ferrari's new engine arrives at Monza as a small step

Ferrari's first ADUO upgrade lands at Monza worth roughly 15 horsepower. Vasseur calls it a step forward, then concedes the gap to Mercedes remains...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Leclerc admits his manager explored rival teams

Leclerc never sat in a rival team's office himself. His manager did the looking, and what he brought back only confirmed that staying at...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Ben Sulayem rejects bias claims before Monza weekend

Two Zandvoort penalties turned into a row about fairness. Ben Sulayem denies the FIA favours anyone, promises rotating stewards, and says he will call...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Schumacher: modern F1 lets older drivers last longer

Ralf Schumacher does not doubt Hamilton's speed. His complaint is with a formula that no longer punishes anyone, and with the young drivers left...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Norris now launches junior team to enter F3 in 2027

The reigning champion is now a team owner. LN4 Fusion takes over AIX Racing's F3 entry for 2027, with F4, FRECA and a pending...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Verstappen linked to a GT3 return at Portimao?

A free weekend after Singapore, a regular GT3 teammate and a car that nobody will confirm. Verstappen's Portimao plans are taking shape without anyone...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Domenicali says the smallest F1 team is now worth $2bn

The cheapest way into Formula 1 now costs at least two billion dollars, says Domenicali, who also sees no room for a twelfth team...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Barrichello returns to world karting after Monza

Days after driving Schumacher's F2002 at Monza, Barrichello heads to Le Mans for his first FIA karting world championship since 2016, with his own...

0 comments  | 
3 Sep 2026

Verstappen tipped to spring a Monza surprise on Sunday?

Red Bull arrives at Monza with a new Head of Racing confirmed for 2027 and a genuine low-drag chance, while McLaren counters with its...

0 comments  | 
2 Sep 2026

Marko says Monza comes too soon for Verstappen

Marko rates a Monza win unlikely after Zandvoort, points to Texas and Las Vegas instead, and wants the engine rules that flatter Red Bull-Ford...

0 comments  | 
2 Sep 2026

Argentina can return only if another race leaves first

The FIA president says Argentina has the history, the fans and the economy for a comeback. What it does not have is an empty...

1 comments  | 
2 Sep 2026

Bottas expects to stay as Cadillac keeps changing leaders

Cadillac has already changed team principal and still has no points. Bottas says he is staying, and that the shake-up he expected at the...

1 comments  | 
2 Sep 2026

Qatar insists its November F1 race is still going ahead

Qatar lost its endurance race to the region's turmoil, but insists the November grand prix is on. Its motorsport chief still will not promise...

1 comments  | 
2 Sep 2026

Ferrari brings back Schumacher's first livery 30 years later

Thirty years after Schumacher first pulled on red, Ferrari has dressed the SF-26 in his 1996 colours, and Vettel and Barrichello take the F2002...

3 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Pirelli may reopen a straight-line question it closed months ago

Alonso's rear wing stayed shut at Zandvoort and left him last of all 22. Pirelli now says the safety debate it closed in mid-season...

1 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Why F1 25’s 2026 Cars Feel So Different To Drive

Formula 1 changed in 2026, and those changes have made their way into F1 25. The cars in the 2026 Season Pack feel different...

0 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Hadjar expected to stay at Red Bull into 2027

Red Bull will not rule on Isack Hadjar's Monza fitness until Wednesday, yet the German press already reads the Frenchman's 2027 seat as good...

1 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Button urges Alonso to stay a little longer at Aston

Jenson Button's appeal for Fernando Alonso to race on carries extra weight, because Aston Martin itself chose to publish the tribute on its own...

1 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Honda insists Spec 2 delivered, yet still trails at Monza

Honda's trackside chief accepts the drivability complaints from Alonso and Stroll, but insists the numbers Spec 2 showed on the dyno did arrive on...

0 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Madring wins early praise as legal rows keep growing

Bruno del Pino's 93 laps of Madring produced far better reviews than the photographs promised, even as residents and rival designers head for the...

1 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026

Milei pushes for a Buenos Aires return with Colapinto

Argentina's president used the FIA American Congress to lobby Ben Sulayem in person, and framed the whole pitch around a single name: Franco Colapinto.

1 comments  | 
1 Sep 2026