Hamilton ‘rapped’ Monaco sorrow away

Lewis Hamilton blew off his frustration after finishing second in the Monaco grand prix by picking up a microphone.

The McLaren rookie would soon be at the centre of the team orders storm, but on Sunday evening he headed to Monte Carlo’s VIP nightclub Amber Lounge, which is the brainchild of former Ferrari driver Eddie Irvine’s sister Sonia.

The Spanish newspaper Diario As published a photo of Hamilton, 22, ‘rapping’ on stage during a stint as a DJ.

Trulli to wear pink helmet in Canada

Jarno Trulli will swap his usual chrome helmet for a special pink design for the Canadian grand prix.

The Italian driver witnessed his lifelong friend Danilo di Luca win the recent Giro d’Italia cycling race, and Trulli will honour the victory by copying the colour of his riding gear and helmet.

Like Toyota’s Trulli, di Luca is also from Pescara, a small city in central Italy, according to the report in the sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Villeneuve hits out at Hamilton tactics

1997 world champion Jacques Villeneuve says Lewis Hamilton’s start-line tactics are beginning to remind him of Michael Schumacher.

Villeneuve, who left the BMW-Sauber team and the sport mid-way through the 2006 season, was among the most outspoken critics of Schumacher’s tendency to ‘chop’ his rivals on the dash to the first corner at races.

And “Lewis is not getting penalised” either, Canadian Villeneuve marvelled to the British print magazine Autosport.

Villeneuve said McLaren’s Hamilton has therefore been “lucky” to avoid the stewards’ wrath, and suggested that his popularity might be one explanation for why he is getting away with it.

Versailles could be alternative venue for French GP

Another name can be added to possible alternative venues for the French grand prix — Versailles.


With the race almost certain to move away from uninspiring Magny Cours after this season’s running, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone is keen to set up a new French event either in downtown Paris or the capital’s Disneyland Park.


A report in the sports publication L’Equipe on Wednesday, however, said officials of Versailles - which is not far from Paris itself - had put forward the historic city or suburb as a possible alternate F1 venue.

Rift Between McLaren, Mercedes?

Rumours of a rift between McLaren and Mercedes-Benz have emerged in the specialist motoring press.

The duo are closely aligned in the world of formula one, with Mercedes-Benz providing works engines and owning the largest slice of Ron Dennis’ company.

But Automotive News Europe reports that, despite their collaboration on the $600,000 SLR supercar, Mercedes is actually getting ready to pair with its German car partner for the DTM touring car series, HWA, for the SLR’s successor.

Other sources said Mercedes had been “disappointed by the performance” of the original SLR, which is built at McLaren’s F1 factory.

Schu, Liuzzi, watch MotoGP at Mugello

After attending the most recent Spanish and Monaco grands prix, Michael Schumacher this weekend switched his attention to the two-wheeled world of MotoGP.

The German, now an ‘advisor’ for the formula one team Ferrari following his sixteen year driving career, was spotted on the grid prior to motorcycling’s Italian grand prix at Mugello.

The Autodromo Internazionale di Mugello, occasionally used for formula one testing, is owned by Ferrari.

38-year-old Schumacher was observed chatting with Ducati’s championship leader Casey Stoner, and also Valentino Rossi, who rides for the Fiat-backed Yamaha team and in the past tested Ferrari’s single seaters.