F1 gossip: Vettel, Toro Rosso, Hamilton, Mercedes, Pirelli

Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel admits he feared missing British Grand Prix qualifying after picking up a neck complaint during practice at Silverstone. (autosport.com), external

Toro Rosso's front wing upgrade introduced for the Austrian Grand Prix has confused the team and not yet delivered any boost in performance, says driver Pierre Gasly. (motorsport.com), external

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner says Mercedes have been pushing for Pirelli's special, thinner tyres to be used in the remainder of the championship having dominated the Spanish and French Grand Prix where the special tyres were in action. (f1technical), external

Mercedes are set to offer Lewis Hamilton a deal worth £250m over the next five years. It would be a two-year extension to the new three-year, £130m deal that will be announced at the German Grand Prix. (Express), external

Daniel Ricciardo says he is "leaning toward staying" with Red Bull when his contract expires at the end of the season. Rumoured interest from Ferrari has failed to materialise, leaving the Australian with "limited options". (Motor Sport Magazine), external

Williams team boss Claire Williams says the outfit are going through a process to identify "the talent that we do have in-house" as they consider a management reshuffle similar to McLaren's after a disappointing start to the season. (Sky Sports), external

The problems that forced the changes at McLaren will "take some time to fix", according to team boss Zak Brown, who concedes it could take between two and 10 years. (PlanetF1), external

Lewis Hamilton says he will take time off from his busy Formula 1 schedule to travel to Russia and cheer on England if they make it to the World Cup final. (Sky Sports), external

Fernando Alonso is confident that the changes to McLaren will eventually lead to success, after racing director Eric Boullier quit the team. (Marca), external

Alonso has denied he is running the team, saying: "I just drive cars". McLaren's re-structuring of its leadership team was seen to be heavily influenced by the Spanish driver. (ESPN), external

Max Verstappen says he will only try to emulate Alonso by winning Le Mans 24 Hours when he is "old and slow". (Motorsport Magazine), external

Formula 1 could start awarding points all the way down to 20th place as part of plans to enliven the sport.(Motorsport.com), external

David Coulthard believes Lewis Hamilton deserves to be "mentioned in the same breath" as F1 great Ayrton Senna. (Scotsman), external

Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel says he does not "feel special" because of his job and says being an F1 driver does not define him as a person. (Guardian), external

Vettel has spoken out against 'unnecessary' Formula One grid penalties, saying drivers were now being penalised for incidents that were once considered a normal part of racing. (Reuters), external

Force India driver Sergio Perez will have the name of a cancer patient on his car at the British Grand Prix. (Twitter), external

Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas took part in a special "Silverstone shootout". (Twitter), external

Kimi Raikkonen says it is still too early in the season for him to start supporting Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel in the championship and said the team has "clear rules" on team orders.(ESPN), external

Lewis Hamilton says Formula 1 is not worth dying for but he feels "God has his hand over me" when racing. (Guardian), external

Mercedes have admitted they are still not completely certain Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas will avoid grid penalties at this weekend's British GP following their car failures in Austria. (Sky Sports), external

Haas boss Gunther Steiner believes his team can target overhauling Renault for fourth place in the constructors' standings. (Motorsport.com), external

Ferrari will bring a new floor to the British Grand Prix in response to the major update package that Mercedes introduced in Austria. (Autosport.com), external

Australian Daniel Ricciardo has joked that he wants to "get one back on the English" as "they are doing a bit too well in sport at the moment", by beating Lewis Hamilton at the British Grand Prix. (Express), external

Mercedes have helped a youngster who lost his F1 items in a burglary at his home. (Twitter), external

Red Bull boss Christian Horner believes his team should be leading the championship, but are still an "outside contender" to win the title. (ESPN), external

Horner says it was "bizarre" for Mercedes chief strategist James Vowles to "throw himself under the bus" and publicly apologise for his strategy error at the Austrian Grand Prix to "motivate" Lewis Hamilton. (Guardian), external

Sauber's Swedish driver Marcus Ericsson says he will be watching his country play England in the World Cup quarter-finals in "enemy land" on Saturday, with the British Grand Prix on Sunday. (Twitter), external

Ex-McLaren designer John Barnard says the current team lacks leadership. (Reuters), external

Formula 1 needs drivers like Fernando Alonso, says F1's managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn. (Motorsportweek), external

Mercedes have ruled out making changes to their strategy team following the Austrian Grand Prix, which cost them the lead in both the drivers' and constructors' championships. (Sky Sports), external

Valtteri Bottas has described his recent run of bad luck in 2018 as a "bad joke". (ESPN), external

Lewis Hamilton says he is ready to "fight" after losing the championship lead at the Austrian GP. (Twitter), external

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has praised Max Verstappen's "disciplined and mature drive" after he won the Austrian GP. (ESPN), external

One of Ayrton Senna's F1 helmets could sell for more than $100,000 (£76,000) at auction. (Autoblog), external

Carlos Sainz says his Renault car was "undriveable" due to the tyre blistering issues in Austria. (Planet F1), external

Sebastian Vettel says Ferrari were right not to order Kimi Raikkonen aside at the end of the Austrian GP. (Sky Sports), external