India Government Doesn't want Formula 1

The India Government has refused to provide financial support for Formula 1 racing in the country - as it doesn not believe that racing is a sport!!

This is the argument released by the government:

"Formula 1 racing would have no impact on the development of sports in the country. Formula 1 is not purely sports. It is entertainment and this venture by JKSP is a commercial initiative. It will not have an impact on Indian sports in terms of either participation, broad-basing or promotion of excellence."

The First Totally Ecological Race Track in the World

A plan to build a new Formula 1 race track outside Paris that would be, according to the architect, the first totally ecological race track in the world has turned into a row between France's sports car-mad prime minister and two cabinet members who say it would be an ecological disaster.

Hundreds of environmentalists demonstrated over the weekend in Versailles against the track with banners saying: "F1: Non, Organic (farming): Yes".

Alain Prost, the former quadruple world champion who has lobbied for the Paris area track, said that it had become the victim of a "political problem".

"Things have to be clear at the government level," he told Le Journal du Dimanche. "It's typical of France." "A Grand Prix around Paris would be as strong (a message) as the football World Cup," he added. Mr Prost recently declared that France was "anti-cars".

McLaren and Renault Threaten to Pull Out of Melbourne Race

Britain's Times newspaper reported that Renault team boss Flavio Briatore and McLaren Chairman Ron Dennis threatened to organise a boycott of Sunday's race unless Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone paid up.

Ecclestone in return has reportedly threatened to cancel the charter plane taking the cars to Melbourne. A statement posted on the official Formula 1 website (www.formula1.com) by his Formula 1 Administration accused FOTA of making "inaccurate and misleading" comments. "Neither CVC nor FOA owes any amount to any team," it said.

McLaren team Principal Martin Whitmarsh said that while he had not been at the meeting, he believed Ecclestone's version of events to have been "relatively theatrical".

"There is a lot of tension in this climate about lots of teams being owed lots of money," he said. "I think that is a business between the teams and Bernie that needs to be resolved urgently."

McLaren Does Not Have The Pace This Year says Lewis Hamilton

It seems everyone but the reigning champion himself is the only person who is not sure he will repeat his historic triumph this year, if his comments are anything to go by.

"We don't know what to expect this weekend," Lewis Hamilton said. "It will be a real challenge for everyone, so much has changed. It doesn't only affect drivers but the teams.

"People will be making adaptations and getting used to it."

"We'll have pretty much the same people up there as last year, except for us obviously," Hamilton said at a publicity event on Thursday.

"I've reset the targets again. I want to be world champion again, although it will be tough this year."

New Changes Are Unilateral Claims Ferrari

Ferrari is leading the opposition against the latest changes announced in Formula 1 racing.

Among the most contentious rules agreed to by the FIA on Tuesday is the move to award the world championship to the driver with the most race wins for the year rather than the most points, starting at this month's season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Ferrari boss and Formula One Teams' Association chairman Luca di Montezemolo says "The framework of the regulations as defined by the FIA, to be applicable from 2010, runs the risk of turning on its head the very essence of Formula 1 and the principles that make it one of the most popular and appealing sports".

More Cost-cutting in Formula 1 racing

More cost-cutting measures are due in Formula 1 racing if reports from the International Automobile Federation are to be believed. Formula 1's governing body is due to present a further round of cost-cutting measures overnight and vote on whether to change the scoring system for this year's championship.

While no details have been given, they are likely to involve more standardisation of parts and the possible imposition of a budget cap on top of significant steps already taken.

The Formula 1 Teams' Association has put forward cost-cutting proposals it says will halve the expense of competing next year compared with last year.

Bernie Ecclestone - Most Powerful Man in Formula 1 Gets Divorced

Formula 1 tycoon Bernie Ecclestone was divorced by his wife yesterday on the grounds of "unreasonable behaviour". Slavica Ecclestone, 50, was granted divorce by a judge in central London. So, Slavica will be taking home a lot of money as Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is all set to pay the world’s most expensive divorce settlement to his wife of 24 years. The settlement could amount to almost £1 billion, according to legal experts. So, Slavica will be taking home a lot of money as Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is all set to pay the world’s most expensive divorce settlement to his wife of 24 years. The settlement could amount to almost £1 billion, according to legal experts. Most of the property owned by the racing boss is in the name of his ex-wife because of tax reasons. It includes a hotel in Switzerland and ownership of the Queens Park Rangers Champions League soccer team, apart from Alpha Prema, the holding company of Formula 1 racing.

It is interesting to learn that Bernie, often called “Mr Formula One”, had to pursue his future bride before winning her. In 1984, at the age of 54, Bernie met the 26 year old Croatian model, Slavica Radic, during a Formula 1 event. Despite being nearly a foot shorter than the 6′ 2″ Slavica, Bernie fell for her and chased her relentlessly. At the time Bernie spoke no Croatian and Slavica spoke only her native tongue and Italian, so the courtship must have been a bit difficult.
Yet, in true determined Ecclestone fashion, Bernie won his bride and they were married. They have two daughters, Tamara and Petra, and the marriage had lasted for more than twenty years.

Formula 1 technology used in cycle

It's possibly the world's most advanced bicycle, in fact, and it's been officially unveiled yesterday at the Science Museum in London as part of the "Fast Forward" exhibition which covers 20 ways F1 tech is changing the world.

It's made out of carbon fiber which gives it excellent structural rigidity as well as being very light--the entire machine weighs less than 7 kilos, and was designed using the same modeling and analysis tools used to create the F1 cars. It's specifically designed to help athletes train, so the entire machine is laced with different sensors.

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19 years 350 days - Sebastian Vettel youngest to score a point in F1

Its Baby Boom in the Formula One world. After the wonder boy the new young sensation is Sebastian Vettel of the BMW Sauber Team who, at 19 years and 350 days, became the youngeat ever driver in F1 to score a point.

Vettel broke the record held by Jenson Button of Honda who scored a point at the age of 20. The German has already named him 'baby Schumi.

He finished 8th at the United States Grand Prix.Mike Thackwell remains the youngest driver to compete in a championship Grand Prix race; Nico Rosberg the youngest to drive an F1 car in private testing[1]). He also became the quickest driver to get a fine in F1, being fined $1,000 nine seconds into his career, after speeding in the pitlane.[2] He also became the sixth youngest driver to start a Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton - Past and Present - and a Lover

Lewis Hamilton's life has changed for ever. He can now never remain in annonimity. Media, and indeed the whole world of motorsports, are going to watch his every step, bring under scrutiny his past deeds, his love life and family, and every microscopic detail.

Home

Home was a small flat in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, where he lived with Anthony, who split from Carmen, Lewis’s mother, when he was 2. Anthony once held down three jobs to keep the money coming in. When McLaren stepped in to finance the young racer’s career, Lewis, his father, Linda, his stepmother, and Nicholas, his younger brother, who suffers from cerebral palsy, moved to a house in Tewin, a village near Stevenage. Linda and Nicholas followed Sunday’s victory on television, although they sometimes go to Lewis’s races.

Lewis now lives mostly in a £1 million mansion in Woking, Surrey, to be near the McLaren factory. Will he follow the advice of accountants and move abroad to avoid the long arm of the British taxman, to a harbour-front apartment in Monaco alongside Jenson Button and David Coulthard, or to Lake Geneva, along with Fernando Alonso, his team-mate? Or will he want a vast Swiss farmhouse like Michael Schumacher’s, complete with health centre, cinema and petrol station?

The Women

The first kiss-and-tell has appeared in a British tabloid as a schoolmate from Stevenage breathlessly told of their first romantic encounter in the back of Hamilton’s Mini. But he proclaims himself in love with Jodia Ma, the teenage sweetheart he met at Cambridge Arts and Science College. The drawback is that she is from Hong Kong and he travels the world. Hamilton has ordered a £10,000 diamond bracelet for Ma, but Formula One is awash with beautiful women and he would not be the first racing driver to have his head turned.

Lewis Hamilton is next Michael Schumacher says Derek Daly

According to Derek Daly, former Formula 1 and Indy car driver, Lewis Hamilton has the potential to replace Michael Schumacher as the next greatest driver in Formula 1 racing."He can have the same effect here as he's had elsewhere, very much so," said Daly. "Without a doubt.

"He has managed that Mansell touch and become the people's favourite almost overnight. Add to that that he's the first black guy and that he appears to have the whole package and he's a potential replacement for Michael Schumacher. He's that good."

"I expect similar scenes at Indy as there were in Montreal. He drives with such flair, and confidence and the way he sits in the car is like Mansell.
"Gilles Villeneuve had a similar impact but the promise was never fulfilled. He wasn't as well prepared as Lewis is.

"(Juan Pablo) Montoya had the impact with all his flair but he was not the complete package in terms of discipline and preparation that Hamilton appears to have.
"There's still a long way to go but he's so well spoken, he's got his Dad with him all the time and he looks to have the whole thing."

War of Words Between Formula 1 drivers Scott Speed and Mark Webber

Formula 1 drivers and rivals Scott Speed(Scuderia Toro Rosso) and Mark Webber(Red Bull) got into a war of words prior to the Canadian Grand Prix followinf an on track incident during qualifying.

Scott Speed's Scuderia Torro Rosso car hit Mark Webber form behind and both drivers blamed each other for the incident.

"At the end of the session, for some reason I don't understand, Mark did the most strange thing I have seen since I've been in Formula One," Speed said.

"I haven't been brake-tested like that since my karting days and I'll be interested to see what Mark has to say about that."

Webber was unrepentant after the incident, saying: "We managed to fall over each other. I think he was a little bit asleep initially but then we managed to wake each other up.

"It was ongoing from a few laps before. He never once let anyone through by going off-line, he always sent everyone down on the inside on the marbles and was doing his thing.

The next time up, we got the chequered flag but we were both still pushing on the in-lap and I had a look at Turn Six and I thought if he was going to co-operate there then he will, but he didn't.

"I said to myself 'OK, fair enough' and we went down to Turn Eight and I thought we were cruising down there and I was very close to the rear of him and he braked 100 metres earlier than the previous lap.

"I thought I was going to harpoon him big time, really big, but managed then to get my stuff together and get down the inside, and then went round the next corner quite slow."

Michael should be proud of former student Massa

If the current Formula 1 championship point standings are any indication then Michael Schumacher can be proud of his former student - Felippe Massa. Massa has proved himself a serious title contender to the Formula 1 title as well as the No. 1 driver in the Ferrari paddock - both positions which were once held by Michael Schumacher before his retirement.

Giancarlo Fisichella believes Ferrari young gun Felipe Massa is now reaping the rewards of a Formula One education at the side of Michael Schumacher.

The 26-year-old Brazilian has been in Formula One since 2002, starting out alongside current team-mate Kimi Raikkonen at Sauber.

Massa was a former team-mate of Fisichella before his big break came in 2006 when he got the chance to drive at Ferrari with Michael Schumacher. He won twice and finished third in the drivers' championship behind the German and world champion Fernando Alonso.

Says Fisichella "He's a good driver and he's learned a lot in the last couple of years, especially at Ferrari next to Michael"

"Now he's doing really well, he's really comfortable with the team and he's doing his best, and at least at the moment, he's quicker than Raikkonen."

"Obviously when I was his team-mate I was quicker than him most of the time and I scored more points than him but he's learned quite a lot and he's grown up for sure."

One answer, many questions

Formula One’s Monacco Grand Prix on May 27 gave one expected answer and asked a lot of unexpected questions.

As many predicted, McLaren Mercedes scored a double win in Fernando Alonso’s first place and Lewis Hamilton’s second.

After the finish, the time for questions came.

Is there a number one driver in McLaren’s team?

Did Ferrari concede the defeat in Monte Carlo even before the start of the race?

Is Ferrari’s top driver Kimi Raikkonen still a contender for the title?

Rules Makeover Will Improve Spectacle, Mosley Says

Max Mosley believes that moves to improve the spectacle of Formula 1 should be focused around boosting overtaking rather than a radical overhaul of the race weekend.

Earlier this year, Renault team boss Flavio Briatore suggested a shake-up to F1’s format, with a GP2-type double header instead of the traditional single race (click here for story). Mosley says the FIA will consider all possibilities, but he reckons making passing easier should be the first priority, rather than changes to the established race format.

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