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Melbourne a wealth of entertainment plus F1 on the 16th!

The Australian Grand Prix makes a relaxed and popular start to the season on a track in Melbourne's Albert Park.

The circuit often produces a good race, despite a certain lack of overtaking opportunities, but is not particularly challenging for the drivers.

Rather than being locked in motorhomes, drivers and team personnel often sit on garden furniture behind the garages, helping create an informal atmosphere. And cosmopolitan Melbourne provides a wealth of other entertainment.

Metro is a good place to start your exploration of clubland. It's a huge and impressive club with eight bars over three levels. Often featuring notable local and international performers, the Metro also hosts a number of themed nights. 20 Bourke St, Melbourne.

Heat Nightclub and Cocktail Bar,
A total glamour club, Heat is located within the Crown Entertainment Complex and is frequented by Melbourne soapie stars, footballers and music industry figures. The interior tells the story; the sound system rocks and the space-age surrounds are uber chic. Level 3, Crown Entertainment Complex, Southbank

Sitting on the corner of Bourke St and Exhibition St., is a traditional English/Irish pub called the Elephant & Wheelbarrow

Goldfingers
584 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne 3000
Sit back, relax and let the gorgeous Goldfinger Girls get upclose and personal with you. See the most erotic showgirls from Australia and around the World perform live.

Bar 20
46 King Street, Melbourne 3000
Welcome to Melbourne's first established Gentleman's club, where Australia's most glamorous personal and podium dancers perform continuously.

Posted by Sven Schindler at March 4, 2008 in Formula1
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Hamilton fires warning to Ferrari

Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton believes McLaren will match the pace of rivals Ferrari this season.

The 23-year-old, second in the 2007 drivers' championship, will lead the McLaren charge when the new campaign begins in Australia on 16 March.

Ferrari were ahead by maybe three or four 10ths of a second, but now McLaren are in equal cars.

Hamilton is also adamant that his second season in Formula One will be an easier proposition than the first, when he won four races after achieving nine podium finishes in a row.

Posted by Sven Schindler at March 4, 2008 in Formula1
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BMW is on their way

Willy Rampf has no regrets about pushing the new BMW Sauber F1.08 to the limits as he believes that is what it will take to challenge the front-runners.

Team principle Mario Theissen admitted back in December that the team would need to find over half a second to be in the running for Grand Prix victories in 2008, and the engineers were handed the difficult task of ensuring the car evolved into a true contender.

At the official launch of the F1.08, Rampf, the team's technical director, said he was delighted with the new set-up and believes the team were right in pushing the car.

BMW Sauber enjoyed their best season in 2007 with second place in the constructors' championship and Rampf is confident the team can score a maiden win in 2008. Whilst it doesn't necessarily expect to finish so high up again, it at least expects drivers Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica to get closer to the silver and scarlet machines on the circuit this year, and reach the top step of the rostrum along the way.

Whether the F1.08 is considerably quicker than the F1.07 is yet to be seen, and to exploit its full potential at any given time and condition can not be done on the test track alone. A better understanding of the car will be gotten from the races themselves - I have no doubt that BMW is on their way!

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 20, 2008 in Formula1
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Super Aguri cancel Spain testing

Super Aguri have withdrawn from testing in Spain, prompting fears about the financial future of the team ahead of the Australian Grand Prix on 16 March.

Next week's test in Barcelona will be their last chance to try the cars before they are flown to Melbourne.

The cash-strapped Japanese team have held talks with potential backers but have yet to strike a deal.

Super Aguri had postponed their official launch of their 2008 car last week in the hope of finding an investor. And the Honda-backed team have yet to confirm their drivers for the forthcoming season.

But they have said they expect to continue with Japan's Takuma Sato and Britain's Anthony Davidson, who drove the team to ninth place overall in 2007.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 20, 2008 in Formula1
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Hamilton Gets Laureus

British driver Lewis Hamilton has won the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year award after his remarkable debut Formula One season.

The 22-year-old driver powered his way to four Grands Prix victories in 2007 before finishing second in the F1 championship behind Kimi Raikkonen.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 20, 2008 in Formula1
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Super Aguri seeking new investors

Formula One minnows Super Aguri are in talks with new investors to avert a potential financial crisis.

The Japanese outfit has struggled to find enough funding since ex-F1 driver Aguri Suzuki founded the team in 2005.

There are many things to be resolved at all levels. But we will be alright, we will never disappear.

Suzuki also confirmed his Honda-backed outfit intends to retain Takuma Sato and Anthony Davidson as his team's drivers for the 2008 season. An Indian consortium, led by the Spice Group telecom company, last week said it was interested in buying into Super Aguri on condition that Indian driver Narain Karthikeyan be put in the cockpit this year.

Karthikeyan, 30, became India's first F1 driver with Jordan in 2005. He tested for Williams in the past two years but his contract was not renewed.

The website of the American broadcaster Speed TV also reported rumours that an unidentified Russian consortium had emerged as a potential investor in Super Aguri. And it was claimed last week that Spanish businessman Alejandro Agag had bought as much as 50% of the team, which is based in Leafield, England, but this has also been denied.

Suzuki said: "We are holding talks with a few companies not mentioned before.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 11, 2008 in Formula1
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Approval for Silverstone upgrade

Plans to secure Silverstone's future as a Formula One circuit have received the backing of a second local authority.

The Northamptonshire circuit's facilities are due to be upgraded as part of plans to keep the British Grand Prix on the F1 race calendar.

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said it is the sport's worst circuit, jeopardising the future of the British GP.

But South Northamptonshire Council's Cabinet committee has adopted the Joint Silverstone Circuit Development Brief.

Aylesbury Vale District Council previously endorsed the same blueprint.

The development brief, which has been prepared by independent consultants on behalf of South Northamptonshire Council and Aylesbury Vale, sets out plans for sustainable development of the circuit.

Proposals include a new pit and paddock complex for the circuit along with a manufacturer test centre, business park, two hotels, a university campus and new homes near the circuit.

A planning application for the new pit and paddock facility is now being finalised with a submission expected to be made in the spring.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 11, 2008 in Formula1
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Force India confident in new car

Force India launched their 2008 Formula One car on Thursday and co-owner Vijay Mallya said he is confident it would mark the start of better performances.

Force India raced as Spyker last season before being bought and renamed by a group headed by billionaire Mallya. The Ferrari-powered VJM01 has the same basic chassis as used by Spyker last year but has aerodynamic changes.

Spyker scored just one point and finished 10th overall in the 11-team championship - after McLaren were stripped of all their points for a spying controversy. Force India's new car will be tested for the first time in Barcelona on 25 February, and the test drives will be spread over three days.

The experience of the drivers - Italian Giancarlo Fisichella and German Adrian Sutil - provided value to the engineering team, Mallya said. Sutil was the most successful driver from last season's team, which was known as Spyker, while Fisichella joined Force India from Renault.

Force India's budget for the season has been set at $120m, an increase of $50m from last year.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 11, 2008 in Formula1
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BMW plotting F1 title challenge

BMW Sauber are hoping to break the stranglehold of Ferrari and McLaren in 2008 and turn the new Formula One season into a three-horse race.

BMW were second in the constructors championship last year, 103 points behind Ferrari, but only after McLaren had been stripped of all their points.

Speaking at the launch of their new F1.08 car, team boss Mario Theissen was optimistic for the coming season.

We're confident we can turn the battle into more than two teams

BMW are still awaiting their first F1 victory, but German driver Nick Heidfeld did finish second in Canada - the team's highest ever placing - and was third in Hungary.

Heidfeld and Polish team-mate Robert Kubica have again been confirmed to drive for the team in 2008, and Heidfeld is targeting victories.

The new season gets underway in Australia on March 16.

 

 

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 7, 2008 in Formula1
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Hamilton 'can surpass Schumacher'?

Max Mosley predicts - Lewis Hamilton could go on to beat Michael Schumacher's all-time record of seven Formula One world titles.

Hamilton made a spectacular F1 debut in 2007, losing the drivers' title to Kimi Raikkonen by a single point.

However, the 23-year-old's debut season was also marred by his spats with former McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso and the fall-out of the "spy row".

We spend a fortune on safety, and most is to the benefit of the drivers

McLaren were fined £50m and lost all their constructors' points after being found in possession of confidential Ferrari technical data.

The pressure of the politics surrounding the sport and the media spotlight even led to suggestions by Hamilton that he could quit.

But instead he has signed a new five-year deal with McLaren, reported to be worth £10m per year, and Mosley says that was the right decision.

Mosley also insisted that new FIA guidelines, which will see drivers charged £7,441 for the required super licence and £1,488 per point they win, will be used to improve safety.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 7, 2008 in Formula1
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Fernando's Homecoming - de facto number one driver

Alonso is certainly back amongst familiar faces at the team who gave him his first Grand Prix win in Hungary, 2003, and where he says he grew up in F1.

The first day back it seemed as though time had not moved on

The reality is, since Alonso left Renault, after winning his second world title with the French team, a lot has changed for both of them.

The Spaniard struggled to cope with an intense rivalry both on and off the track with his rookie team-mate, Lewis Hamilton, at McLaren - What a horror show!

They finished tied on points behind Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, with Hamilton second on a countback of second-place finishes.

The pair's relationship deteriorated as the season wore on and so did Alonso's relationship with Dennis. Alonso certainly looked like the older not so favorite son in this family.

A return to Renault may not offer Alonso a shot at a third world crown in the short-term but what they can offer is something he found hard to find at McLaren - a sense of belonging - the prodical son returns.

I believe that this is why Alonso rejected the overtures of Red Bull, Toyota and Honda and sign a two-year deal with Renault.

There is of course another reason why Alonso is likely to feel at home, though both Briatore and Alonso skirted the issue in Paris. The Spaniard will be the de facto number one driver ahead of rookie Nelson Piquet - a status he was not afforded at McLaren. And of course that would make me feel better as well!

For me, questions remain over what the possibilities are for Alonso in 2008, but one thing is for sure - he needs to be focused on the future and not the past.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 6, 2008 in Formula1
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Raikkonen's searing desert pace

Ferrari fired out a warning to its rivals back in Europe during the second day of the Bahrain test as Kimi Raikkonen set a searing pace in the new F2008.

The world champion’s best lap of 1m30.595s was two seconds faster than the best effort recorded during last year’s race weekend at Sakhir as he completed a full grand prix simulation.

In milder and less windy conditions than the opening day, Raikkonen ran through a practice of all three qualifying sessions and an entire race distance.

Ferrari’s veteran test driver Luca Badoer was once again second on the timesheets, on a 1m32.230s, and spent the session focusing on general development of the F2008.

Meanwhile the other team in action in Bahrain, Toyota, welcomed Jarno Trulli back for day two of the test.

However both the Italian and team-mate Timo Glock were out on track for less time than planned after both of their TF108s ran into gearbox problems.

Glock ended up third on the timesheet, half a second up on Trulli’s best effort.

The final day of the first leg of the Bahrain test will see Felipe Massa make his first appearance of the week for Ferrari alongside Raikkonen.

Testing times from Bahrain (February 5)

1. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 1m30.595s
2. BADOER Ferrari 1m32.230s
3. GLOCK Toyota 1m32.889s
4. TRULLI Toyota 1m33.379s

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 6, 2008 in Formula1
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Kimi fastest on first day in Bahrain

Ferrari and Toyota began their testing programmes at Bahrain’s Sakhir circuit on Monday – with world champion Kimi Raikkonen going fastest in the new F2008.

Both teams opted to head to the Middle East for the first of two three-day tests instead of joining the eight teams at Barcelona in pre-season testing last weekend.

Raikkonen and Ferrari test driver Luca Badoer unsurprisingly set the two fastest times on day one, with Raikkonen setting the pace on a 1m32.079 compared to Badoer's 1m33.323s.

The pair concentrated on general development work on the new F2008 and finding the best set-up for the circuit.

Toyota had Timo Glock and Japanese tester Kamui Kobayashi at the wheel of the two TF108 challengers.

Glock finished the session just under a tenth of a second behind Badoer’s best effort, as the team continued with the set-up work it began at its last test outing in Valencia.

Both drivers each had a harmless spin into the gravel on a fairly windy Monday at the circuit.

Testing times from Bahrain (February 4)

1. RAIKKONEN     Ferrari 1m32.079s

2. BADOER       Ferrari 1m33.323s

3. 

GLOCK

      Toyota 1m33.418s

4. KOBAYASHI   Toyota  1m33.856s

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 5, 2008 in Formula1
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2008 Who's Who and Where

Ferrari
1. Kimi Raikkonen
2. Felipe Massa
Luca Badoer (test driver)
Marc Gene (test driver)

BMW Sauber
3. Nick Heidfeld
4. Robert Kubica
Christian Klien (test driver)
Marko Asmer (test driver)

Renault
5. Fernando Alonso
6. Nelson Piquet Jr
Romain Grosjean (test driver)
Sakon Yamamoto (test driver)

Williams
7. Nico Rosberg
8. Kazuki Nakajima
Nico Hulkenberg (test driver)

Red Bull Racing
9. David Coulthard
10. Mark Webber
Sebastien Buemi (test driver)

Toyota
11. Jarno Trulli
12. Timo Glock
Kamui Kobayashi (test driver)

Scuderia Toro Rosso
14. Sebastien Bourdais
15. Sebastian Vettel

Honda Racing
16. Jenson Button
17. Rubens Barrichello
Alex Wurz (test driver)

Super Aguri
18. Takuma Sato
19. Anthony Davidson

Force India
20. Giancarlo Fisichella
21. Adrian Sutil
Vitantonio Liuzzi (test driver)

McLaren
22. Lewis Hamilton
23. Heikki Kovalainen
Pedro de la Rosa (test driver)
Gary Paffett (test driver)

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 5, 2008 in Formula1
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Klien becomes BMW back-up driver

Austrian Christian Klien has landed the job of test and reserve driver for BMW Sauber for the 2008 F1 season.

Klien, 24, competed for Jaguar and Red Bull from 2004 to 2006 before spending a year testing for Honda.

 

We wanted a third driver with Formula One racing experience.

Christian is familiar with the format of a Grand Prix weekend and can step into the breach right away should one of our drivers have to back out.

Estonian Marko Asmer, 23, will be the team's second test driver.

BMW Sauber needed to use German Sebastian Vettel as a stand-in at last year's US Grand Prix after Poland's Robert Kubica crashed heavily in Canada.

Vettel subsequently moved to Toro Rosso as a full race driver while Germany's Timo Glock, who took over as BMW's  reserve in 2007, will be competing for Toyota when the season starts in Australia on 16 March.

Klien had hoped for a race seat with Force India but lost out to Italian Giancarlo Fisichella.

Posted by Sven Schindler at February 5, 2008 in Formula1
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Bourdais joins Toro Rosso in 2008

Frenchman Sebastien Bourdais will race in Formula One for Toro Rosso next season after deciding to turn his back on the US-based Champ Car series.

The 28-year-old, who has won the Champ Car title for the last three years, made the decision to fulfill a long-held dream to race in F1. Bourdais moved to the US after failing to win an F1 drive despite winning the Formula 3000 title in 2002.

Bourdais's move comes after he impressed Toro Rosso in a series of tests this summer. And it marks a rethink of the Red Bull junior team's driver strategy, with both of the drivers who have raced for them since 2006 being dumped.

Last month they dropped American Scott Speed in favor of German Sebastian Vettel with immediate effect, and now Bourdais will replace Italian Vitantonio Liuzzi.

Bourdais becomes the latest driver to try to convert success in the States to the much more demanding world of F1, a career path that has proved to have mixed results.

Canadian Jacques Villeneuve and Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya proved competitive on both sides of the Atlantic. But Italian Alex Zanardi was sacked after a single season with Williams in 1999 - after moving in the wake of winning two consecutive titles in the US.

Posted by Sven Schindler at August 14, 2007 in Formula1
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Feudal Times

Boys will be boys... Isn't that what one says... Eddie Jordan has warned Lewis Hamilton not to turn his dispute with McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso into a political fight - I'd like to see Alonso the Spaniard suck this up and go quietly to his corner - Yeah Right!

Hamilton leads the world standings but a feud may prove costly.

It's magic what's happening to Hamilton's career, but he has to be very careful he doesn't get too political. Politics can kill after all. He has to be careful he doesn't say too much that ostracizes him or puts him in a position Ron Dennis has to make a choice. Hamilton was Dennis' protege for several years before making his remarkable entrance into the world of F1.

But while Hamilton has thrived on the track, off it his relationship with Alonso has become strained.

It reached a new low at the Hungarian Grand Prix this past weekend where Alonso was relegated on the grid for blocking Hamilton in qualifying. A childish move you say, but hey, I think it was directed at Ron Dennis than at Hamilton. Hamilton needed to recognize that some of his success was do to having Alonso in the team.

I believe McLaren is giving him a car that's good enough because of what Alonso has brought to the team. So whether he likes to believe it or not, Hamilton has a benefit from Alonso being in the team.

Alonso does feel ostracized as would anyone. He feels the team, initially anyway, was going for Hamilton. He was the big story as was Alonso just last year. Hamilton is playing the media brilliantly, and driving like a champion - at this moment, you'd have to say Hamilton deserves to be world champion.

Hamilton's done everything brilliantly, he just has to be careful. And let's not hand Alonso the second prize by default - try and give each driver a silver spoon not just the new baby.

Posted by Sven Schindler at August 7, 2007 in Formula1
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Why so Public?

What's with McLaren allowing the row between Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso to be made public?

Hamilton said Alonso was not speaking to him after his victory in Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix but I think the matter should have stayed private.

It's something for the team to deal with. It's not something for the public to be part of as is the case these days with everything.

I just feel some of the things that are happening and the way certain things are being managed were managed far differently years ago and it is a great shame.

Too much is said most of the time, but that seems to be the way of the world more and more.

I'm also amazed that Formula One's governing body, the FIA, is getting involved in the row between the two drivers. Why? What's that have to do with them?

The FIA prevented McLaren from scoring any constructors' points in Hungary after the incident between Hamilton and Alonso in qualifying.

The thing I find extraordinary is that the powers that be are intervening. It's between two drivers from the same team and it shouldn't affect anyone else.

If they want to cause problems between themselves, then it's surely up to them and their team bosses - not the FIA - don't they have anything better to do?

Posted by Sven Schindler at August 6, 2007 in Formula1
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Hamilton Conquers Hungarian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton drove a copybook race to win a close battle with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Englishman led from start to finish but the McLaren driver was pushed hard throughout the race by the Finn.

But Hamilton stayed cool in the face of intense pressure in the closing laps to extend his championship lead over team-mate Fernando Alonso to seven.

The world champion was fourth after being dropped to sixth on the grid for delaying Hamilton in qualifying. Alonso spent the last 12 laps right behind the BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld, but despite fighting hard was unable to pass the German.

Heidfeld's team-mate Robert Kubica was fifth, with Toyota's Ralf Schumacher, Williams's Nico Rosberg and Renault's Heikki Kovalainen filling the final points positions.

Hamilton looked comfortable in the first stint of the race, quickly building a lead of three seconds and holding it there as he and Raikkonen pushed their cars to the edge.

But after the two men came in for fuel and tires together on lap 19 Raikkonen began to close in on Hamilton, and by lap 27 the Ferrari was just a second behind the McLaren.

On a track where overtaking is notoriously difficult, though, Raikkonen was never close enough to pass and the Ferrari driver's hopes faded when he came in for his final stop before Hamilton, on lap 46.

Hamilton did not make his stop for another three laps, but was still not able to break free of Raikkonen's challenge.

The Ferrari again closed to less than a second behind Hamilton, but again the McLaren star held his nerve to take his third win of the season.

It's been an eventful weekend and quite emotional for all the team

Raikkonen fell to 20 points behind Hamilton with just 60 still available in the remaining six Grands Prix.

But he said he had not given up hope of winning the title.

Alonso's actions in qualifying have increased the tensions within McLaren, with Hamilton saying after the race: "He doesn't seem to have been speaking to me since yesterday, so I don't know if he has a problem."

Alonso spent much of the race stuck behind the Toyota of Ralf Schumacher.

The Spaniard finished the first lap in eighth place after being blocked by Williams's Nico Rosberg as he attempted to make up places at the start, and then sliding wide at the last corner.

Alonso passed Red Bull's Mark Webber and Kubica on consecutive laps to move up to sixth by lap three.

But, his car's aerodynamics hampered by following the Toyota, Alonso could not get past the German before their first pit stops for tires and fuel on lap 17 of 70.

Alonso was given a heavy fuel load, the plan being for him to do a long middle stint and leapfrog some of the slower cars in front of him during the first pit stops.

Even so, he quickly closed in on Schumacher, but again the McLaren was unable to pass - and only got a clear track when the Toyota came in for its final stop on lap 48.

Alonso pitted on the next lap, and emerged comfortably ahead of Schumacher in sixth place.

Suddenly, though, he was in contention for a podium place, when the cars of Heidfeld, Kubica and Rosberg came in for their third stops - one more than used by McLaren and Ferrari.

Alonso leapfrogged Kubica and Rosberg in the pits, and Heidfeld emerged not far in front of the Spaniard, a gap Alonso quickly reduced to almost nothing.

Alonso tried everything to pass, but Heidfeld managed to hang on.

---

Hungarian Grand Prix result after 70 laps of Hungaroring:

1.  Lewis Hamilton (GB)     McLaren-Mercedes     one hour 35 minutes 52.991 seconds
2.  Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)     Ferrari             +0.715 secs
3.  Nick Heidfeld (Ger)      BMW Sauber       +43.129
4.  Fernando Alonso (Spa)      McLaren-Mercedes          +44.858
5.  Robert Kubica (Pol)       BMW Sauber         +47.616
6.  Ralf Schumacher (Ger)    Toyota      +50.669
7.  Nico Rosberg (Ger)       Williams-Toyota   +59.139
8.  Heikki Kovalainen (Fin)  Renault          +1:08.104
9.  Mark Webber (Aus)      Red Bull-Renault  +1:16.331
10. Jarno Trulli (Ita)         Toyota           one lap behind
11. David Coulthard (GB)    Red Bull-Renault    1 lap
12. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Renault              1 lap
13. Felipe Massa (Brz)        Ferrari              1 lap
14. Alexander Wurz (Aut)     Williams-Toyota    1 lap
15. Takuma Sato (Jpn)          Super Aguri-Honda  1 lap
16. Sebastian Vettel (Ger)   Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1 lap
17. Adrian Sutil (Ger)       Spyker-Ferrari     2 laps
18. Rubens Barrichello (Brz)  Honda                2 laps
R Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita)    Toro Rosso-Ferrari 52 laps completed R Anthony Davidson (GB)   Super Aguri-Honda  51 laps
R Jenson Button (GB)      Honda               45 laps
R Sakon Yamamoto (Jpn)       Spyker-Ferrari     4 laps

Key: R = retired

Fastest Lap: Kimi Raikkonen, 1:20.047, lap 70.

Posted by Sven Schindler at August 6, 2007 in Formula1
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Axe for Speed replaced by Vettel

Toro Rosso Formula One team have axed Scott Speed and replaced him with BMW's third driver, Sebastian Vettel.

The 20-year-old became the youngest driver to win F1 points when he drove for BMW Sauber in the US Grand Prix in place of the injured Robert Kubica.

Vettel raced karts for the Red Bull Junior team before driving for BMW in Formula Three.

Speed's future had been in doubt after an angry row with team chief Franz Tost after the European Grand Prix.

Once the German driver received the offer, there was no way they could stand in his way

When he stood in for Robert Kubica in the USA Grand Prix he made history by becoming the youngest debutant to earn a world championship point.

However, the current testing rules mean that he barely gets a chance to drive. Now he has been offered the opportunity to get inside a Toro Rosso cockpit. Toro Rosso have sponsored and coached Sebastian over a number of years.

To place obstacles in his career path now would go against the concept of talent promotion.

Also, Japanese driver Sakon Yamamoto will be back in Formula One as a race driver this weekend at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Yamamoto will finish the season with the Spyker Formula 1 team as replacement to Christijan Albers. Yamamoto enjoyed his last race in October 2006 at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Christijan Albers largely owed his place in Formula One to being able to pay for his drive - and in the end that was his downfall at Spyker.

He had in any case been overshadowed by rookie team-mate Adrian Sutil this season, and when a sponsorship payment failed to turn up they dropped him.

The Dutchman has a smooth, committed driving style allied to a racer's edge. But the speed shown by Sutil underlined what many suspected - that he was not out of the top drawer.

Posted by Sven Schindler at August 1, 2007 in Formula1
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Massa and Kimi - what now?

Felipe Massa should have won the European Grand Prix after being robbed of victory by Fernando Alonso four laps from the end. - Yeah, yeah - I know what you're saying - "then he should have driven faster" - but it's still pretty disappointing.

I'm also very upset with Ferrari's continued problem of failing to maximise on points when the team has the obvious performance advantage over McLaren - the main reason why the Maranello-based outfit trails its British counterparts by 27 points in the constructors' championship.

I'll describe this European Grand Prix nothing other than disappointing. Ferrari had a very competitive car and they were starting from first and third places. But they are going home with just eight points thanks to Felipe's second place.

At the end of a race run in changeable weather, - dry, wet, dry again and more rain at the end - Felipe saw himself miss out on a win which he richly deserved, losing out in the very last moments when the track was wet once again. Unfortunately, he said he had vibrations with his rain tires which made the car difficult to drive.

I'm also very disappointed for Kimi, stopped on lap thirty five by a problem with the hydraulic system. WTF?! Once again it shows that you do not go far without reliability. There is still a long way to go in this season and anything could yet happen in the seven remaining races.

This was a race in which Ferrari were capable of picking up maximum points. There is much to regret because if they do not make up ground in the classification while they are as competitive as they were in Nurgurg, then the situation gets more complicated.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 25, 2007 in Formula1
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Toro Rosso to dump its drivers

It's not a secret anymore: Scuderia Toro Rosso would rather get rid of its drivers sooner than later. Earlier this week Scott Speed already admitted that his bosses weren't too happy with him and team-mate Liuzzi, but today team boss Franz Tost has said he would like to get rid of his drivers.

Earlier this week Scott Speed complained that he didn't feel any support from his team boss. He was quoted as saying: "It's been that way for the last two years, and it's a lot more now. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to read the press and know that Franz and Gerhard are pushing like hell to get rid of me and Tonio."

Some reports said Speed was assaulted by Franz Tost after the race as Tost would have grabbed Speed by his shoulder to stop him from walking away. But the Scuderia Toro Rosso team boss said it was nothing like that. He told Swiss newspaper Blick: "When Speed returned from his incident on Sunday I asked him why he flew off the track. He just smiled at me and asked 'Why did my pitstop have to take that long?' and walked away immediately. At that point I grabbed his shoulder and told him that this is not the way to discuss these matters."

Tost doesn't believe there is a war going on in his team but he is pretty unhappy with the way his drivers are performing at the moment. He said: "I'd rather have none of my current drivers in our car at the moment."

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 25, 2007 in Formula1
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Alonso wins at the Nürburgring 2007

Lewis Hamilton's championship lead was slashed as he failed to score points in a dramatic European Grand Prix won by his McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso.

The Spaniard took the lead from Felipe Massa's Ferrari with five laps left in a race defined by rain showers.

Hamilton finished ninth and is now just two points ahead of the world champion, with Massa a further nine behind.

Mark Webber's Red Bull was third as Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen retired, dealing his title hopes a heavy blow.

The Finn was in third place at Germany's Nürburgring behind Massa and Alonso when his engine started to cut out shortly after half distance and he was forced to retire.

Raikkonen remains 18 points behind Hamilton with a maximum of only 70 still available in the remaining seven races.

Hamilton's hopes of scoring points were dashed in a torrential early shower of rain.

After starting 10th following his crash in qualifying, he was up to fourth after the first few corners.

But it was pouring down by the time the cars were halfway around the first lap.

Debutant Markus Winkelhock in the Spyker, who had started from the pit lane on wet-weather tires, assumed the lead as everyone else pulled into the pits to change tires.

But the rain was soon so hard that cars were spinning off all over the place and the race was stopped after four laps.

Hamilton was among six drivers - including Honda's Jenson Button - to go off at the first corner, where the track was under water, but he kept his engine running and was able to rejoin the race at the back of the field.

The re-start took place under blue skies on a still-damp track, and Massa and Alonso wasted no time in passing Winkelhock.

But Hamilton gambled on using dry-weather tires at the re-start, and initially it did not pay off - he ran off the track and into the gravel on the first racing lap.

He managed to rejoin, though, and was soon setting fastest laps as he attempted to make up lost ground, prompting the other leading runners to come in to the pits to follow his lead in fitting dry tires.

Hamilton drove flat out for the rest of the afternoon and had hauled himself up into eighth place when a late shower of rain hit with  nine laps to go.

While the other drivers immediately pitted to change tires, Hamilton stayed out on his dry-weather tires, hoping to benefit from the others' stops.

But his second gamble of the afternoon also failed to pay off - the rain continued and Hamilton was forced to stop with five laps to go, dropping him to 10th.

He gained one place before the end at the expense of Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella.

The battle at the front was equally eventful.

Once the race had settled down after the re-start, Massa led from Alonso and Raikkonen, and the Brazilian slowly began to build an advantage over the McLaren driver.

Massa and Alonso made what they thought would be their final pit stops shortly after Raikkonen's retirement, on laps 37 and 38, and soon the world champion began to make in-roads into the Ferrari's seven-second lead.

Alonso had cut Massa's lead to four seconds when the weather played into his hands.

Much faster than Massa in the slippery conditions, he quickly caught the Ferrari.

The Brazilian earned the world champion's wrath with some robust defensive driving - although Alonso later apologised for saying Massa had driven into him deliberately - but the Spaniard finally took the lead with a brave move around the outside of turn five.

"I enjoy this kind of race, it was incredible," Alonso said during the interview on SPEED.

"In dry conditions the Ferraris were quicker than us. The rain at the end helped, our car seems to be quicker in the wet. Always when it rains I am quite happy and I have some fun."

Webber drove a strong race to reward Red Bull with their first podium finish in a difficult season plagued by poor reliability.

The Australian had to fight off a late challenge from Williams driver Alexander Wurz, who used all his experience and guile to take advantage of the chaotic conditions - just as he did in Canada last month - and finish fourth.

Heikki Kovalainen looked set to finish fifth after the latest in a series of impressive races, but he and Renault gambled on stopping early for wet tires with 10 laps to go.

That dropped the Renault driver to eighth and promoted Webber's team-mate David Coulthard to fifth.

The BMW Saubers of Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica were sixth and seventh.

 

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European Grand Prix result after 60-lap race:

1.  Fernando Alonso (Spa)      McLaren-Mercedes  two hours six minutes 26.358 seconds
2.  Felipe Massa (Brz)        Ferrari   8.155 seconds behind
3.  Mark Webber (Aus)      Red Bull-Renault  at 1:05.674
4.  Alexander Wurz (Aut)     Williams-Toyota  1:05.937
5.  David Coulthard (GB)    Red Bull-Renault    1:13.656
6.  Nick Heidfeld (Ger)      BMW Sauber           1:20.298
7.  Robert Kubica (Pol)       BMW Sauber           01:22.415
8.  Heikki Kovalainen (Fin)  Renault              1 lap behind
9.  Lewis Hamilton (GB)     McLaren              1 lap
10. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) Renault              1 lap
11. Rubens Barrichello (Brz)  Honda                1 lap
12. Anthony Davidson (GB)   Super Aguri-Honda  1 lap
13. Jarno Trulli (Ita)         Toyota               1 lap
R Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)     Ferrari              34 laps completed
R  Takuma Sato (Jpn)          Super Aguri-Honda  19 laps completed
R  Ralf Schumacher (Ger)    Toyota               18 laps
R  Markus Winkelhock (Ger)  Spyker-Ferrari     13 laps
R  Jenson Button (GB)      Honda                two laps
R  Adrian Sutil (Ger)       Spyker-Ferrari    two laps
R Nico Rosberg (Ger)       Williams-Toyota    two laps
R  Scott Speed (US)           Toro Rosso-Ferrari two laps
R  Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita)    Toro Rosso-Ferrari two laps

R = retired

Fastest lap: Massa, 1:32.853, lap 34

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 25, 2007 in Formula1
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Even Matched Practice One in Germany

McLaren and Ferrari duked it out at the Nurburgring as practice for the European Grand Prix got underway this morning, with BMW Sauber right in there with them.

So far it appears all three teams are evenly matched, with Hamilton setting the pace on 1m 32.515s chased by Kimi (1m 32.751s), Alonso (1m 32.932s) and Heidfeld (1m 32.975s).

Not far behind of course, Robert Kubica (1m 33.205s) and Felipe Massa (1m 33.605s), were fifth and sixth , with Ralf Schumacher (1m 33.825s), Jenson Button (1m 33.936s), David Coulthard (1m 34.062s) and Rubens Barrichello (1m 34.142s) flying the respective flags for Toyota, Honda and Red Bull.

The Nurburgring is quite a high-grip circuit, but there were nevertheless a fair number of off-track excursions as drivers pushed too hard. Massa erred in Turns Three and Four, Winkelhock in Turn Four, Speed in Turn Three, Fisichella in Turn Six, and Schumacher in Turn 10. None sustained anything more than temporary embarrassment.

German Markus Winklehock was confirmed as Spyker's reserve driver, and made his Formula One race debut with the team this weekend’s European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring.

Winkelhock temporarily steps into the seat left vacant by Christijan Albers, who parted company with Spyker last week after contractual difficulties. The team have yet to confirm who will partner their other race driver, Adrian Sutil, for the rest of the season.

Winkelhock, 27 and from Stuttgart, is the son of the late Formula One and sports car racer Manfred Winkelhock. He made four Friday practice appearances for Spyker (then Midland) last year and was named an official test driver ahead of the 2007 season. This year he has also continued to compete in the DTM touring car series in Germany.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 20, 2007 in Formula1
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Kimi's Germany

Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen hopes he can make it three in a row on Sunday. The Finn doesn't have a strong record at the Nürburgring though. In 2005 he was close to winning the race but in the final lap his tire exploded.

I don't know what it is about Germany - Kimi has never had any luck there during his entire Formula One career. He's always been competitive at the Nürburgring and at Hockenheim, but something always happened to stop him from winning. Let's hope that he can turn around things here in his first time with Ferrari.

Raikkonen is currently third in the Formula 1 championship standings with 52 points.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 19, 2007 in Formula1
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Honda keep Button & Barrichello

Britain's Jenson Button and Brazilian Rubens Barrichello have been confirmed as Honda's drivers for next year's Formula One campaign.

It means that 2008 will be Button's sixth year with the team while Barrichello will be entering his third season, having joined in 2006.

These guys just haven't had the performance to be competitive this year. But what they do have is a very solid team of people which has been boosted recently by some key new appointments.

Every team has good times and bad, and I think that their recent difficulties are behind them and that next year looks promising.

Button has only picked up one point this season, while his team-mate has yet to get his name on the drivers' standings.

Let's see how they do in the remaining eight races.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 19, 2007 in Formula1
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Is Hamilton Human Afterall?

It looks as if the British Grand Prix opened up the first tiny cracks in the phenomenon that is Superboy Lewis Hamilton.

At his first pit stop at Silverstone on Sunday, the 22-year-old who monopolized the coverage of the weekend made what appeared to be his first mistake under pressure.

Hamilton must have known as he came into the pits that the race was not going to plan.

Despite running less fuel, the Englishman had failed to shake off Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and his McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso before his first pit stop.

With a lighter car, he should have been able to open up a gap, but they had both stuck resolutely to his tail. Hamilton had been holding them up, and he knew they were out on the track proving it.

Desperate to rejoin the race as soon as possible, he misinterpreted the movements of his pit crew and started to accelerate away while the fuel hose was still attached.

Hamilton being Hamilton, he reacted quickly enough to stop the car before doing any damage, but not before a point had been made.

Clearly the guy is human, after all.

It says a lot about the impression Hamilton has made this year that there should be any surprise about a rookie making that sort of mistake. But Hamilton, it has become abundantly clear, is no ordinary rookie.

The telling thing about this incident was not just that it was the first obvious error Hamilton has made in a race all year, but that it came in his least competitive showing since the Malaysian Grand Prix in March.

Although his stunning pole position lap hid the problem, Hamilton struggled throughout the Silverstone weekend - and more obviously than he has done at any race this year.

He was not happy with his car, and he was not a match for Alonso through the demanding, high-speed corners of Copse and Becketts, which - as Whitmarsh pointed out - are a pride thing for racing drivers.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 12, 2007 in Formula1
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McLaren summoned by FIA

McLaren have been summoned by Formula One's governing body, the FIA, to face charges of breaking the sport's rules.

The team are embroiled in a spying row following claims their chief designer Mike Coughlan illegally received information from rivals Ferrari.

McLaren face charges at a 26 July hearing of "unauthorised possession of documents and confidential information belonging to Ferrari".

Coughlan has already agreed to tell Ferrari how he got hold of the data.

Following an internal investigation, the FIA has called McLaren to answer charges of breaching Article 151c of the International Sporting Code.

That rule states something like ..."any fraudulent conduct, or any act prejudicial to the interests of any competition, or to the interests of motor sport generally"...

In a statement the FIA said the information "could be used to design, engineer, build, check, test, develop and/or run a 2007 Ferrari Formula One car."

Coughlan was suspended last week by McLaren after a 780-page dossier of Ferrari design information was found in his house.

Ferrari have accused Coughlan and his wife Trudy of stealing that information.

A hearing at the High Court on Wednesday was cancelled when Coughlan agreed to provide an affidavit to explain how he acquired the documents.

McLaren team boss, Ron Dennis, has maintained the team's innocence throughout and is confident the FIA will clear them of any wrongdoing.

Dennis said: "I can categorically state there are no developments whatsoever that have occurred on our cars relating to this."

Will this cause McLaren any embarrassment? What do you think?

If McLaren are found guilty the FIA has the power to expel the team from the championship or deduct points.

McLaren's British rookie Lewis Hamilton leads team-mate Fernando Alonso by 12 points in the drivers' standings, while McLaren have a 25-point lead over Ferrari in the constructors' race.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 12, 2007 in Formula1
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Heidfeld sits out Spa test

Nick Heidfeld has decided to miss BMW Sauber's test at Spa due to a recurring back pain. The German driver first complained of the problem on the Friday of the French Grand Prix and sat out practice as a consequence.

However, he recovered well enough to participate with the rest of the weekend and was also able to contest the British Grand Prix last weekend, finishing fifth on race day. It is believed the decision to not test is just a precaution and after two grands prix on consecutive weekends it is probably the best time to rest. The team's other race driver Robert Kubica will be testing today instead. 

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 10, 2007 in Formula1
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Spyker drops Albers

Spyker have dropped Dutch driver Christijan Albers with immediate effect because of a problem with sponsorship.

Spyker, who have yet to score a point in nine races, have not yet named a replacement for Albers ahead of the German Grand Prix on July 22nd.

But the team's ambitious program has been seriously compromised by non-payment by one of his sponsors and we are faced with no other option.

Albers, 28, was in his second year with the Formula One minnows after making his debut for Minardi in 2005.

The Dutchman scored his only points haul that season, claiming four points after finishing fifth at the US Grand Prix.

Albers has been outperformed by his German team-mate Adrian Sutil this year, his best result his 14th-place finish in Spain.

Does it have anything to do with Christijan's recent performances?

Spyker, who took over the Midland team in 2006, has been open about its need for drivers to bring funding with them.

The Dutch team have also hinted that India's Narain Karthikeyan or Austrian Christian Klien could be a potential replacement for Albers.

Karthikeyan is the second Williams test driver while Klien is testing for Honda after three seasons with Red Bull.

Markus Winkelhock, already under contract to Spyker as a test driver, could also be drafted in for the German Grand Prix.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 10, 2007 in Formula1
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BMW looking sweet!

The BMW team has made massive progress this season. Last year the team finished in fifth position in the constructors' championship standings, but this season the team is steady in third position and claimed its first podium position last month in Canada.

BMW has been able to establish themselves as the third strongest team after McLaren-Mercedes and Ferrari. Following their fifth place in the constructors' championship in their debut season, this means an improvement of two positions, a development which was difficult to predict - but not unexpected from a great manufacturer like BMW. After all, the gap to Renault, the world champions in 2005 and 2006, is already 25 points. Naturally, BMW are determined to hold on to this third place until the end of the season. I don't think they can hope for more - at least not this season. They've already collected 56 world championship points in total, alternatively 36 in the whole last season. Additionally, they have recorded points in every single race of the year and their drivers have reached top ten positions in qualifying for every race so far. Now that is sweet!

It all looks very positive for BMW. Better than expected! All of this is even more satisfying when you consider that BMW hasn't concluded their two-year development phase yet.  BMW is heading in the right direction.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 9, 2007 in Formula1
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Ferrari in good shape again?

I predict that we are going to see the fortunes swing either way in what's going to be a classic and exciting championship between Ferrari and McLaren.

There have now been nine races and 16 times McLaren had a car on the podium. That helps them with the points. It is so tight now in performance and reliability that any of them can trip up now and that would be very significant. If just one of the cars doesn't score points, then the pendulum swings very quickly.

As I see it - Ferrari needs to score one-two finishes in order to make progress cutting into McLaren's championship lead. The last two races show they're back in form, obviously to get back in the championship they need to do better more often and be consistent - so there's still a lot of work to be done - Kimi is no Schumi. I'll go and say that it looks like Ferrari won courtesy of the fact its car was easier on the tires than McLaren.  Although Kimi's blinding speed on the track is nothing to sneeze at.

It looks like Ferrari was just quicker at Silverstone and they had a bit of an advantage with tire degradation. We saw in the middle stint Fernando was able to build a gap at the start, but they had a bit more fuel on board and when his tires started to go off Ferrari was able to start gaining.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 9, 2007 in Formula1
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Raikkonen All The Way at Silverstone

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen shattered Lewis Hamilton's dreams of a debut British Grand Prix victory with a copybook second victory in a row.

The Finn, who won at Magny-Cours last weekend, drove a superb race to beat Hamilton's McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso, with Hamilton a distant third.

Revitalised Raikkonen has won the last two races

Hamilton was unable to convert his pole position into a win, losing the lead at the first round of pit stops.

But the Briton still holds a 12-point lead over Alonso in the standings.

Raikkonen's victory moves him into third place, one point ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa but still 18 points adrift of Hamilton.

Massa finished fifth following an impressive fightback after he stalled on the grid and was forced to start from the pit lane.

"We had a good car all weekend," said Raikkonen. "At the beginning, I tried to save some fuel and look after car and tires.

"Once we knew had enough fuel I was able to close on Lewis and try to overtake him. But we knew he was coming in so didn't take too much of a risk.

"It was a very nice feeling to win the race. We've been close here a few times but something has happened and we haven't been able to win. Now, finally, we have done it and it's one of the nicest races and feelings.

"Hopefully, the championship is not over. It's still going to be a long season.

"We seem to have good speed now but I think it also depends on the circuit at conditions at the places we go."

Alonso admitted Raikkonen's Ferrari had just been too fast for him to handle.

"We changed the strategy, thinking that we should be able to maintain the lead even at the second stop, so we short-fueled in the first pit stop and started the second stint ahead of Kimi," he said.

"But I was not able to open a gap that was big enough I knew I had to open at least an eight-second gap, and I was only five seconds ahead when I pitted for the second time, so I knew already that maybe it was not enough.

"I lost a little bit of time when I left the pits passing three cars together.

"Kimi had six laps' more fuel, two of them I was overtaking people, so I lost a little bit of time, but I think the result wouldn't have changed. I think the Ferrari was a little bit too quick today."

Hamilton said a lack of speed had denied him the chance of victory in his home Grand Prix.

"We had an interesting race," he said. "It started off quite well. I was trying to open a gap to Kimi but obviously he was very quick, and at the end of the stint the tires were starting to fall away.

"All weekend I was struggling to balance the car. In the last stint it was better. I was very consistent, but I just didn't have the pace."

Hamilton led away at the start, aggressively defending his lead from Raikkonen on the run down to the first corner, with Alonso slotting into third place.

But the Englishman was unable to break clear of Raikkonen, whose looming presence in the 22-year-old's mirrors made it clear he had a faster car.

Hamilton was the first of the leading trio to make a pit stop on lap 16, suggesting he had won pole position by virtue of a lighter car. And he didn't help himself by trying to accelerate away before his crew had finished refueling.

Hamilton couldn't fulfill the expectations of British fans

Then, when Raikkonen emerged from his own first stop two laps later, he was ahead of Hamilton.

But Alonso was still out on the track, and he leapfrogged ahead of both men after his first stop two laps later.

The race soon distilled into a battle between Alonso and Raikkonen, as Hamilton dropped further and further back with an as-yet-unknown problem.

The Spaniard and the Finn were very evenly-matched - Alonso had rejoined with a lead of just under four seconds.

The gap ebbed and flowed with traffic, but averaged around 4.5secs throughout the second stint.

Alonso eked out another second on lap 35 as Raikkonen encountered traffic, but then the world champion himself ran into slower cars on lap 37, when he came in for his final stop.

Had Raikkonen had only a couple of laps of extra fuel, Alonso might have hung on, but the Finn continued until lap 43 and emerged from the pits with a 3.2-second lead.

Underlining the impression that Raikkonen and Ferrari have been the strongest combination all weekend, he edged further ahead as the race wound to a conclusion.

Hamilton dropped further and further behind his team-mate but was under no threat whatsoever from BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica in fourth place.

The Pole was far more concerned with fending off Massa's Ferrari in the closing laps, which he managed to do.

Nick Heidfeld finished sixth in the second BMW Sauber, ahead of the Renaults of Heikki Kovalainen and Giancarlo Fisichella.

The Hondas ran reliably but slowly, with Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button completing the top 10, ahead of Red Bull's David Coulthard.

 

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British Grand pri race result:

1 K Raikkonen (Fin)        Ferrari         1:21:43.074
2 F Alonso (Spn)         McLaren-Mercedes          +00:02.459
3 L Hamilton (GB)        McLaren-Mercedes           00:39.373
4 R Kubica (Pol)          BMW Sauber        00:53.319
5 F Massa (Brz)           Ferrari           00:54.063
6 N Heidfeld (Ger)         BMW Sauber        00:56.336
7 H Kovalainen (Fin)     Renault              1 lap behond
8 G Fisichella (Ita)    Renault              @ 1 lap
9 R Barrichello (Brz)     Honda               @ 1 lap
10 J Button (GB)         Honda               @ 1 lap
11 D Coulthard (GB)       Red Bull-Renault   @ 1 lap
12 N Rosberg (Ger)          Williams-Toyota     @ 1 lap
13 A Wurz (Aut)        Williams-Toyota    @ 1 lap
14 T Sato (Jpn)             Super Aguri - Honda @ 2 laps
15 C Albers (Ned) Spyker-Ferrari     @ 2 laps
ret  V Liuzzi (Ita)       Toro Rosso-Ferrari 53 laps completed
ret  J Trulli (Ita)            Toyota              43 laps competed
ret A Davidson (GB)      Super Aguri-Honda   35 laps completed
ret  S Speed (US)              Toro Rosso-Ferrari  29 laps completed
ret  R Schumacher (Ger)       Toyota              22 laps completed
ret  A Sutil (Ger)          Spyker-Ferrari    16 laps completed
ret  M Webber (Aus)         Red Bull-Renault   8 laps completed

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 8, 2007 in Formula1
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F1 spy saga continues

A third team has become embroiled in the Formula One spying saga.

It has emerged that Nigel Stepney, the man accused of leaking Ferrari secrets to McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan, also approached Honda.

Stepney and Coughlan met Honda team boss Nick Fry last month to discuss them joining the outfit.

A Honda statement said: "At no point during this meeting was any confidential information offered or received."

Honda said Fry had informed the team bosses of Ferrari and McLaren about the meeting and "offered to provide [them] any information required."

The row has dominated the first day's action at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, where McLaren boss Ron Dennis insisted his team would ultimately be "completely vindicated".

McLaren have said from the start that Coughlan - who they have not named - was acting independently, and that no other team member was involved.

Stepney has been fired by Ferrari following an internal investigation into allegations that he leaked confidential information.

Ferrari technical information was discovered at Coughlan's house, and he has been suspended by McLaren while they investigate the situation.

Before Honda released their statement, Dennis said he believed further information would come out that would "give a better insight into what has happened, and people's motives".

He added that he had kept Todt and Max Mosley, the president of the F1's governing body the FIA, fully informed of any new developments.

Dennis said that "there was very early on in the discussions with Jean an indication that he was not questioning my personal reputation or that of the company".

He added: "This concerns the intellectual property of another Grand Prix team and there is  no intellectual property of another team on our cars, nor will there be, nor has there ever been.

"We have very high standards in our team. My own integrity is welded into the fabric of our company. I am able to say with certainty that as this unfolds over the next few days people will clearly understand all the facts behind what has been a difficult experience for McLaren.

"I am sure we will be completely vindicated with the passing of time."

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 6, 2007 in Formula1
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British Grand Prix Day 1

Kimi Raikkonen and Ferrari look in ominously good form ahead of Sunday's British Grand Prix.

The Finn, who won in France last weekend, was comfortably quicker than team-mate Felipe Massa and both McLarens in Friday's second practice.

Raikkonen's best lap of one minute 20.639 seconds was 0.449secs quicker than Massa. Lewis Hamilton was fourth fastest nearly 0.75secs behind.

Hamilton's McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso was down in sixth.

Hamilton, who leads the world championship by 14 points, had been fastest in the day's first 90-minute session, with Raikkonen and Massa just behind him.

Despite having a less successful afternoon, he was happy to take positives from his morning's display.

Alonso had the edge on Hamilton early in the morning session, but failed to keep pace as the day progressed.

The world champion ended the session 0.575secs adrift of Hamilton, and was 0.317secs slower in the afternoon.

As often happens in Friday practice, slower cars appeared in among the Ferraris and McLarens at the top of the times as the teams went about their programs evaluating different set-ups for the race.

And despite the Ferraris' apparent superiority, it is notoriously difficult to predict form from the Friday times as the teams do not reveal the specification in which they run their cars.

In the afternoon, Ralf Schumacher's Toyota - which will almost certainly struggle to make it into the top 10 on pace - was third fastest.

His team-mate Jarno Trulli, who was eighth on the grid in France, was fifth, ahead of Alonso.

Williams's Nico Rosberg was fifth fastest in the morning session, nearly a second behind Hamilton.

The BMW Saubers of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld were next, followed by Rosberg's team-mate Alexander Wurz and the Toyota of Jarno Trulli and Englishman Anthony Davidson's Super Aguri.

Strong winds made conditions tricky for the drivers at the exposed Silverstone circuit, and several had spins.

Among them was David Coulthard in the Red Bull, whose car is sporting a new livery for this weekend.

Coulthard ended the first session 18th. In the afternoon, after it had been announced that he would be staying at Red Bull for another season, Coulthard moved up to 14th.

Jenson Button had to sit out the afternoon session for treatment on a bad back. His compatriot Anthony Davidson was 10 th for Super Aguri, behind the Williams cars of Nico Rosberg and Alexander Wurz and Coulthard's team-mate Mark Webber.

 

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Times from second practice session (Fri):

1 K Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:20.639
2 F Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:21.138
3 R Schumacher (Ger) Toyota 1:21.381
4 L Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.381
5 J Trulli (It) Toyota 1:21.467
6 F Alonso (Sp) McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.616
7 N Rosberg (Ger) Williams-Toyota 1:21.619
8 A Wurz (Aut) Williams-Toyota 1:21.650
9 M Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault 1:22.137
10 A Davidson (GB) Super Aguri-Honda 1:22.143
11 H Kovalainen (Fin) Renault 1:22.189
12 G Fisichella (It) Renault 1:22.257
13 R Kubica (Pol) BMW Sauber 1:22.372
14 D Coulthard (GB) Red Bull-Renault 1:22.428
15 N Heidfeld (Ger) BMW Sauber 1:22.486
16 T Sato (Jpn) Super Aguri Honda 1:22.487
17 R Barrichello (Brz) Honda 1:22.511
18 C Klien (Aut)  Honda 1:22.833
19 S Speed (US) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:22.840
20 V Liuzzi (It) Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:23.105
21 C Albers (Ned) Spyker-Ferrari 1 1:23.113
22 A Sutil (Ger) Spyker-Ferrari 1 1:23.720

Times from first practice session (Fri):

1 L Hamilton (GB) McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.100
2 K Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:21.211
3 F Massa (Brz) Ferrari 1:21.285
4 F Alonso (Spn) McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.675
5 N Rosberg (Ger) Williams-Toyota 1:22.006
6 R Kubica (Pol) BMW-Sauber 1:22.107
7 N Heidfeld (Ger) BMW-Sauber 1:22.176
8 A Wurz (Aut) Williams-Toyota 1:22.216
9 R Schumacher (Ger) Toyota 1:22.878
10 R Barrichello (Brz) Honda 1:33.956
11 J Trulli (Ita) Toyota 1:23.030
12 A Davidson (GB) Super Aguri-Honda 1:23.037
13 H Kovalainen (Fin) Renault 1:23.099
14 G Fisichella (It) Renault 1:23.179
15 J Button (GB) Honda 1:23.517
16 T Sato (Jpn) Super Aguri-Honda 1:23.548
17 M Webber (Aus) Red Bull-Renault 1:23.564
18 D Coulthard (GB) Red Bull-Renault 1:23.618
19 S Speed (USA) Toro Rosso Ferrari 1:23.854
20 A Sutil (Ger) Spyker-Ferrari 1:23.954
21 V Liuzzi (It) Toro Rosso Ferrari 1:24.154
22 C Albers (Ned) Spyker-Ferrari 1:24.172

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 6, 2007 in Formula1
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The Ice Man Freezes the French GP

Ferrari reignited their season as Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa finished first and second at Magny-Cours to end Lewis Hamilton's run of victories.

But Hamilton, 22, took third place to extend his lead to 14 points at the top of the drivers' standings with his eighth consecutive podium finish.

The Ferrari pair had too much pace for McLaren, with Raikkonen gaining the lead from his team-mate on lap 47.

Britain's Jenson Button came eighth to claim his first point of the season.

Defending champion Fernando Alonso, who started from 10th place after a gearbox failure in qualifying, battled his way to seventh place but still lost ground on his McLaren team-mate in the title race.

Alonso trails Hamilton by 14 points, with Massa a further three points behind and Raikkonen five adrift of the Brazilian.

Hamilton started from second on the grid but Raikkonen got off to a lightning start to overhaul the Briton at the first corner.

Raikkonen's 11th victory of his career in France

The Finn called on his superior pace again to get beyond Massa after his second stop on lap 47, overtaking him as he surged out of the pits.

Finally the start worked for him - the 11th victory of his career in France, and his first since his opening day win in Australia.

Massa, who started on pole, had amassed a three-second lead over Raikkonen just before his second stop but his chances faded when he got held up by the back-markers.

He lost the race because of the traffic, he lost too much time and speed, and that was the biggest problem for him.

Hamilton made a sluggish start and, on an unusual three-stop strategy, never really threatened the Ferraris.

However, the British rookie showed his class when he jinked past Robert Kubica at the tight Adelaide Hairpin to regain third after his second stop.

It still says a lot for Hamilton that this result in Magny-Cours was his worst since he was third on his debut in Melbourne, following four successive runner-up places and back-to-back wins in Canada and the United States.

His team-mate Alonso will also be looking for a fresh start after a frustrating French race.

The Spanish double world champion did well to battle back to seventh from 10th on the grid, his hopes stopped cold by a strategy based on the belief that he would be starting from the front of the grid.

But Alonso will nevertheless be disappointed to finish behind Nick Heidfeld and Giancarlo Fisichella after overtaking both of them during the race .

Button will go to next weekend's British Grand Prix with renewed confidence after claiming Honda's first point of the season, following extensive upgrades to his car.

David Coulthard finished 13th for Red Bull while Anthony Davidson, the fourth Briton in the field, retired his Super Aguri after tangling with Vitantonio Liuzzi on the first lap.

Jarno Trulli's race also came to an end in an incident-packed opening lap when he ran into Heikki Kovalainen's Renault and sent him spinning.

That was bad news for Kovalainen, who finished 15th after qualifying in sixth.

It was a much better day for Kubica, who claimed fourth in his first race back after his high-speed crash in Canada.

 

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Results from the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours:

1.  Kimi Raikkonen (Fin)        Ferrari   1hr 30min 54.200
2.  Felipe Massa (Brz)           Ferrari         +00:02.414
3.  Lewis Hamilton (GB)        McLaren-Mercedes          00:32.153
4.  Robert Kubica (Pol)          BMW Sauber       00:41.727
5.  Nick Heidfeld (Ger)         BMW Sauber       00:46.801
6.  Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita)    Renault          00:52.210
7.  Fernando Alonso (Spa)         McLaren-Mercedes          00:56.516
8.  Jenson Button (GB)         Honda            00:58.885
9.  Nico Rosberg (Ger)          Williams-Toyota  01:08.505
10. Ralf Schumacher (Ger)       Toyota               1 lap
11. Rubens Barrichello (Brz)     Honda                1 lap
12. Mark Webber (Aus)         Red Bull-Renault    1 lap
13. David Coulthard (GB)       Red Bull-Renault    1 lap
14. Alexander Wurz (Aut)        Williams-Toyota    1 lap
15. Heikki Kovalainen (Fin)     Renault              1 lap
16. Takuma Sato (Jpn)             Super Aguri-Honda    2 laps
17. Adrian Sutil (Ger)          Spyker-Ferrari       2 laps
r.  Scott Speed (US)              Toro Rosso-Ferrari  15 laps
r.  Christijan Albers (Ned) Spyker-Ferrari      42 laps
r.  Anthony Davidson (GB)      Super Aguri-Honda   69 laps
r.  Jarno Trulli (Ita)            Toyota              69 laps
r.  Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita)       Toro Rosso-Ferrari  70 laps

r = retired

Fastest Lap: Felipe Massa, 1:16.099, lap 42.

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 2, 2007 in Formula1
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Massa edges out Hamilton for pole

Ferrari's Felipe Massa starts Sunday's French Grand Prix in pole position after beating McLaren's Lewis Hamilton into second in Saturday qualifying.

Massa's team-mate Kimi Raikkonen is third but Fernando Alonso's McLaren was hit by mechanical problems will go off 10th when the race starts.

Brazilian Massa clocked one minute 15.034 seconds, just 0.070secs ahead of Hamilton.

Hamilton leads the standings by 10 points from Spanish team-mate Alonso.

Massa's pole was his fourth of the season and seventh of his career, suggesting Ferrari are becoming a real threat again at Magny-Cours.

But the biggest story of the day surrounded Alonso, who suffered his lowest qualifying position since September's Italian Grand Prix.

The Spaniard endured a troubled morning as he spent most of the hour in the garage as mechanics had to replace the brake-sensor system.

It was not until the dying minutes he finally emerged on track, so when a problem occurred at the start of Q3, it was clear the gremlins had bitten again.

It appears his best chance of making his way though the field on Sunday is if conditions are wet at Magny-Cours.

Team-mate and championship leader Hamilton was in upbeat mood despite missing out on pole.

Even Ferrari's apparent revival failed to faze Hamilton.

Massa seems delighted to have a competitive car again.

Behind the front three came Robert Kubica for BMW Sauber, followed by the Renaults of Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen.

Nick Heidfeld is seventh in the second BMW Sauber, with Jarno Trulli eighth in his Toyota and the Williams of Nico Rosberg in ninth.

Earlier in qualifying, the unreliability of the Red Bulls again came home to roost, with David Coulthard forced to abandon the second session with a mechanical problem, which means he will start in 16th.

For fellow Briton Anthony Davidson, who broke the nose of his Super Aguri car on the left-rear tyre of Liuzzi's Toro Rosso in the pitlane in practice on Friday, it was his worst qualifying performance of the season as he finished in 20th.

 

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Official qualifying result:

1.  Felipe Massa (Brazil)           Ferrari            1:15.034
2.  Lewis Hamilton (Britain)        McLaren            1:15.104
3.  Kimi Raikkonen (Finland)        Ferrari            1:15.257
4.  Robert Kubica (Poland)          BMW Sauber         1:15.493
5.  Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy)    Renault            1:15.674
6.  Heikki Kovalainen (Finland)     Renault            1:15.826
7.  Nick Heidfeld (Germany)         BMW Sauber         1:15.900
8.  Jarno Trulli (Italy)            Toyota             1:15.935
9.  Nico Rosberg (Germany)          Williams-Toyota    1:16.328
10. Fernando Alonso (Spain)         McLaren
11. Ralf Schumacher (Germany)       Toyota             1:15.534
12. Jenson Button (Britain)         Honda              1:15.584
13. Rubens Barrichello (Brazil)     Honda              1:15.761
14. Mark Webber (Australia)         RedBull-Renault    1:15.806
15. Scott Speed (U.S.)              Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:16.049
16. David Coulthard (Britain)       RedBull-Renault
17. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Italy)       Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:16.142
18. Alexander Wurz (Austria)        Williams-Toyota    1:16.241
19. Anthony Davidson (Britain)      Super Aguri-Honda  1:16.366
20. Christijan Albers (Netherlands) Spyker-Ferrari     1:17.826
21. Adrian Sutil (Germany)          Spyker-Ferrari     1:17.915
22. Takuma Sato (Japan)*            Super Aguri-Honda  1:16.244
*awarded a 10-place penalty after overtaking under yellow flag conditions at US Grand Prix

Posted by Sven Schindler at July 1, 2007 in Formula1
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Interview with BMW's Robert Kubica

Interview with BMW Sauber F1 Team Driver Robert Kubica.

21 June 2007
Q. Robert, how do you feel?

Robert Kubica: "I feel very well and it was touching how often I was asked this question! I received so many good wishes from all over the world and want to thank everybody for this."

Q. What have you been doing since you left Indianapolis?

Robert Kubica: "I am pretty bored with doing nothing. I am not used to resting for such a long period - no test, no pr days. But, of course, I have used the time for my fitness preparation in Italy and am also in constant contact with Josef Leberer, our team's physio."

Q. How was the reaction in Poland?

Robert Kubica: "Although I did not go to Poland I know from my family that my accident in Montreal was quite a shock in Poland and I have received a lot of cheering messages from all my friends and fans living in Poland. The 30 minutes after the accident were very tough for my relatives in Poland until they got the information that I was not injured."

Q. Do you think the accident will have an influence on your driving in the future?

Robert Kubica: "No, definitely not. I always knew that with a single seater and open wheels an accident like this could happen. Also it can always happen again. This is the same for every driver and we are all aware of it. I feel what happened is more encouraging than worrying thanks to the outcome that you still can climb out without being hurt. The improved safety regulations from the FIA plus the "safety first" approach of our BMW Sauber F1 Team engineers and designers have made this possible. I would like to say a big personal thank you to all of them. If I had been born earlier I would have still wanted to race in Formula One, but most likely would have suffered injuries. I feel I am lucky to be racing in modern Formula One."

Q. What are your feelings ahead of the French Grand Prix?

Robert Kubica: "Well, as I said, I can't wait to race! But whether I am allowed to or not is down to the decision of the official doctors, who I have to see before the race in Magny-Cours."

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 21, 2007 in Formula1
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BMW Sauber F1 Team - Test in Silverstone - Day two

Timo Glock started the first of his two days of testing. He was able to complete the tire testing in the morning as the rain did not come until the afternoon. Other work on the program included suspension development and aero work. Unfortunately the schedule was disrupted by the afternoon showers, so the team was not able to complete all the work it had planned. Despite this the results were positive and the team was happy.

The team is hoping that Timo will be able to finish the race preparation for the Grand Prix at Silverstone on the 8th July, but this will be weather permitting as the forecast is not good.

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 21, 2007 in Formula1
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Is Kimi Cursing his move from McLaren to Ferrari?

The World Formula One championship is many hundreds of laps from being done and dusted, but Kimi Raikkonen would not be human if he hasn't already asked himself if he has made the wrong move in jumping from McLaren to Ferrari this year of all years.

With McLaren Mercedes looking so strong, and Ferrari seemingly off the boil, was it a mistake to leave McLaren when he did? Was advice to stay ignored?

Of course, it is true that McLaren's recent past had some problems, but it is a team that has always had the capacity to recover.

Raikkonen would have been more competitive this year had he remained at McLaren, where he had won races, though never the world title.

I was hoping that Raikkonen would get his own fortunes back on track in Canada or maybe at Indy this past weekend. But the cheers were again urging Lewis Hamilton to a win.

Raikkonen started karting at the age of 12 and enjoyed considerable success in the sport before turning to single-seater racing in 1999 for four races in British Formula Renault. He had a few outings in Formula Ford and then decided to concentrate on Formula Renault and entered the Winter Series in Britain with Manor Motorsport. He won all four events. Her stayed with Manor for the 2000 season and won seven of the 10 races and was on the podium in the other three events. he also took part in three European races, winning two of them.

Such was his success that in September 2000 the Sauber team tested him at Mugello and immediately decided to sign him up for 2001 as team mate to Nick Heidfeld. It proved to be an inspired choice and Raikkonen finished sixth on his Grand Prix debut in Australia and went on to score on three more occasions (twice finishing fourth) in the midseason. McLaren decided in August to make a bid for the Finnish driver to replace Mika Hakkinen and he was signed by McLaren on a five year deal in September. In 2002 he failed to win a race but looked strong on several occasions and he won his first F1 victory in Malaysia in 2003. There would be more than 18 months of frustration with poor cars before he won again in Belgium in 2004.

In 2005 he was joined at McLaren by Juan Pablo Montoya. The team was very competitive and Raikkonen won a string of races and would have won the World Championship but for poor reliability.

There was further frustration in 2006 as the McLaren was not fast enough and Raikkonen decided to take up the offer to join Ferrari in 2007, as replacement for the great Michael Schumacher.

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 20, 2007 in Formula1
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Ralf fastest at Silverstone - 1st day

Ralf Schumacher served notice and topped the times on the opening day of testing at Silverstone this week. The under-fire Toyota driver finished the day 0.1s ahead of McLaren test driver Pedro de la Rosa.

Red Bull Racing's Mark Webber was third fastest but his car stopped on the track in the afternoon. Luca Badoer was  on duty for Ferrari, the Italian focusing on set-ups as  well  as  the development  of  new  components to  be  used  in  the upcoming Grands  Prix.  Having lost track-time due to a technical problem in the morning, Badoer eventually completed 57 laps, finishing almost a second off the pace. Kimi Raikkonen  takes over tomorrow. Let's see what the "ice-man" can do.

The most dramatic incident of the day came when Williams tester Kazuki Nakajima went off track in the finals sector and damaged the car's front wing in the morning.

Adrian Valles and Giedo van der Garde were in action for the Spyker team.

Rain was expected, but it held off all day allowing plenty of running. The three-day test continues tomorrow.

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 19, 2007 in Formula1
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Is F1 really boring? - I say No!

Who's really bored lately watching F1? Some have said that they had written off Formula One as an unsporting, processional bore. Along comes a British driver who seems to combine raw talent and a naked desire to race, with the ability to make good on the hype and what seems genuine humility.

The racing this season isn’t any better... you say... still isn’t much competitive overtaking? Well you might be right, but Kubica’s sickening accident was a timely reminder of the fear the drivers must face down just to exit the pit lane. This remains a very high-consequence sport, and that alone demands our attention. As does the endgame of Ron Dennis’s extraordinarily precognitive decision to sign a pre-pubescent Hamilton to McLaren a decade ago.

I suspect he may really be that good

At first I thought Hamilton - sure a fluke, just wait until Alonso - or maybe the ice-man Kimi comes out of the woodworks. But the way he won in Canada and Indy suggested he could win the drivers’ championship at his first attempt, so I suspect he may really be that good. I suspect I'll watch more F1 as normal - looking too see if Alonso or Kimi - or hopefully the BMW boys can become challenging. Otherwise we may have another "Schumacher-syndrome" on Sundays. Where every race is dominated by one man - Hamilton.

I know I'm tuning in to see who can challenge this new knight in his silver racer every weekend. The same thing will be happening to other former Formula One fans across the world - I'm sure. Gardens will go untended. Cars will go unwashed. Whole sections of the Sunday papers will go unread. And I reckon there’ll be a Brit at the top of the drivers’ standings at the end of the season.

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 19, 2007 in Formula1
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Standings so far

Drivers' world championship 2007
Name	Car	Nat	Points
1 Lewis Hamilton	McLaren-Mercedes	GB	58
2 Fernando Alonso	McLaren-Mercedes	Spa	48
3 Felipe Massa	Ferrari	Brz	39
4 Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	Fin	32
5 Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	Ger	26
6 Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	Ita	13
7 Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	Pol	12
8 Heikki Kovalainen	Renault	Fin	12
9 Alexander Wurz	Williams-Toyota	Aut	8
10 Jarno Trulli	Toyota	Ita	7
11 Nico Rosberg	Williams-Toyota	Ger	5
12 David Coulthard	Red Bull-Renault	GB	4
13 Takuma Sato	Super Aguri-Honda	Jpn	4
14 Mark Webber	Red Bull-Renault	Aus	2
15 Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	Ger	2
16 Sebastian Vettel	BMW Sauber	Ger	1
17 Rubens Barrichello	Honda	Brz	0
18 Jenson Button	Honda	GB	0
19 Vitantonio Liuzzi	Toro Rosso-Ferrari	Ita	0
20 Christijan Albers	Spyker-Ferrari	Ned	0
21 Scott Speed	Toro Rosso-Ferrari	US	0
22 Adrian Sutil	Spyker-Ferrari	Ger	0
23 Anthony Davidson	Super Aguri-Honda	GB	0

                   

Constructors' world championship 2007
Team	Points
1 McLaren-Mercedes	106
2 Ferrari	71
3 BMW Sauber	39
4 Renault	25
5 Williams-Toyota	13
6 Toyota	9
7 Red Bull-Renault	6
8 Super Aguri-Honda	4
9 Honda	0
10 Toro Rosso-Ferrari	0
11 Spyker-Ferrari	0

Positions after US Grand Prix

Posted by Sven Schindler at June 19, 2007 in Formula1
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Hamilton All The Way at Indy!

Lewis Hamilton produced yet another incredible display to claim his second straight win in a McLaren one-two at the United States Grand Prix.

The victory, in his first-ever race in Indianapolis, saw the Briton extend his lead over team-mate Fernando Alonso in the title race to 10 points.

Hamilton held off an attempted pass from Alonso on lap 39 but after that the pair did not race each other again.

The Ferraris of Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen took third and fourth place.

Just seven days after claiming a maiden Grand Prix win in Canada, Hamilton delivered another assured drive at the famous Motor Speedway circuit.

"What a dream," said the 22-year-old, after he had climbed onto the podium for the seventh time in his fledgling seven-race Formula One career.

"To come to two circuits (Montreal and Indianapolis) that I didn't know and to really come out with such pace and to see the team moving forward is great.

The last 15 laps seemed a lifetime, but I was in the lead, I was able to do it and I'm very emotional now.

After taking a second straight pole, Hamilton was able to complete a grid-to-flag victory, coolly dealing with Alonso's two attempts to pass him.

The Spanish world champion tried to hustle pole-sitter Hamilton off the grid but the roo