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F1's Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton face off again in Austria

SPIELBERG, Austria - Sebastian Vettel celebrated his 30th birthday on Monday, but it can be safely assumed that Lewis Hamilton will not be bringing any gifts to Austria this weekend. After the "road rage" of Azerbaijan two weeks ago, the Formula One title rivals head to the bucolic surroundings of the scenic Red Bull Ring and its backdrop of hills and forests, with controversy still simmering. Vettel, Ferrari's championship leader, had risked a heavy penalty for his moment of madness in driving into Hamilton's Mercedes behind the safety car in Baku but instead the German arrives in Austria with no further sanction and the matter officially closed. Vettel has had to accept full responsibility, and apologize to Hamilton, and will have to stay on best behavior with a race ban looming if he collects any more penalty points on his license this weekend. The FIA said Monday's meeting was attended by top officials including race director Charlie Whiting and safety director Laurent Mekies. "Following detailed discussion and further examination of video and data evidence related to the incident, Sebastian Vettel admitted full responsibility," the FIA said. "In the heat of the action I then overreacted, and therefore I want to apologize to Lewis directly, as well as to all the people who were watching the race. I realize that I was not setting a good example." A formal apology was published on Vettel's personal website. "During the re-start lap, I got surprised by Lewis and ran into the back of his car. With hindsight, I don't believe he had any bad intentions," he said. "In the heat of the action I then overreacted, and therefore I want to apologize to Lewis directly, as well as to all the people who were watching the race. I realize that I was not setting a good example. "I love this sport and I am determined to represent it in a way that can be an example for future generations." But the incident, the sport's major talking point post-Baku, is unlikely to die down immediately even if Mercedes say they have moved on. Hamilton, for one, has said nothing. But he has kept social media buzzing with news he had "liked" a fan's supportive post on Instagram that said the Paris decision had sent the message that "you can do whatever you want on track, smash into each other but if you suck up and just apologize and you get away with it." Hamilton is now 14 points behind Vettel after eight of 20 races, with a loose headrest costing the Briton victory in Azerbaijan.

Mercedes plans Audi TT fighter

With the growth in popularity of modular platforms in the auto industry, it's rapidly becoming commonplace to see a company with multiple models that look different but share a significant number of parts underneath. One such an example is Mercedes-Benz's line of compacts, including the A-Class hatchback, CLA-Class sedan, GLA-Class crossover. Two derivatives lacking from German brand's current, small-car range are a coupe and convertible, but that might be changing soon. Mercedes is hard at work on a coupe with 2+2 seating, a liftback roof and styling inspired by the AMG GT, according to Autocar. Daimler Chairman Dieter Zetsche reportedly supports the idea, too. The new two-door could be on the road as soon as 2019 to target models like the Audi TT and BMW 2 Series, and a convertible version might follow later. This little, luxury two-door would ride on Mercedes' next-gen, front-wheel-drive compact platform, according to Autocar. It reportedly allows the German company to vary a model's size more than the current version and can better adapt to hybrid powertrains. A previous report also suggested the coupe and convertible might use this improved chassis, if they got the green light. Of course, a Mercedes model is hardly complete without an AMG version, so that would also be a possibility. According to Autocar, the performance brand's 2.0-liter four-cylinder could see output pushed to 400 horsepower compared to the current 355-hp unit. Earlier rumors also indicated a more powerful version of the boosted mill might be on the way. With Autocar backing all this up only with unnamed sources, the rumors should probably be taken with a grain of salt at the moment. However, a small coupe from the brand doesn't seem entirely impossible. After all, after two-door versions of the C-,E-, and S-Class, why not a smaller one, too?

Race recap: 2016 Monaco Grand Prix gets very wet, a little wild

More than at any other race, the Monaco Grand Prix question is: which combination of demolition derby, Safety Cars, and bad pit strategy will decide the podium? Last year Lewis Hamilton's late, confounding pit stop cost him victory. The year before, Nico Rosberg's qualifying "mistake" put him on pole and Mercedes-AMG Petronas' pit strategy sealed his win – good for Nico, bad for Hamilton and the rest of the field. In 2013 Hamilton dropped from second to fourth when he lollygagged in the pits. In all three years, Rosberg won. The new X factor for 2016: a Red Bull resurgence that helped Daniel Ricciardo clinch his first career pole. Nevertheless, bad pit strategy had its say in the results. Ricciardo built up a 13-second lead by Lap 15 in spite of heavy rains that forced the Safety Car to lead the first eight laps of the race. Ricciardo stopped on Lap 23 to switch to intermediate tires for the drying track, ceding the lead to Hamilton. Hamilton pitted from the lead on Lap 31 for softs, then Red Bull pulled Ricciardo in again on Lap 32 and made a snap decision to put him on ultra softs, but the tires weren't ready when Ricciardo reached his pit box. What should have been a three-second pit stop turned into a 13.6-second pit stop. Ricciardo left the pits as Hamilton came down the straight and the Aussie lost the lead into the first corner. Despite two attempts to pass later in the race, Hamilton finished first, the Aussie second. It's the second race in a row where pit strategy cost Ricciardo a near-certain win. Conversely, Force India nailed both tire strategy and pit timing with Sergio Perez. The Mexican started in eighth but got into third before half the race was done, passing four cars in the pits, and finished on the podium's final step. Otherwise the order barely changed from about half distance, with Ferrari driver Sebatian Vettel in fourth, followed by Fernando Alonso in the McLaren, Nico Hulkenberg in the second Force India, Rosberg in the second Mercedes, Carlos Sainz for Toro Rosso, Jenson Button in the second McLaren, and Felipe Massa taking the final point for tenth for Williams. Storms didn't only hover over the area, though – dark clouds hung around several teams and drivers. Mercedes' reliability is no longer so reliable. The Silver Arrows suffered engine issues on both cars in qualifying, and Hamilton's problem almost kept him from setting a time in Q3.