Fuji Speedway is the place to be this time of the year as two of the biggest events of the calendar are hosted at the international circuit. I am of course talking about the Toyota Motorsports Festival and the Nismo Festival, which this year are held within two weeks of each other. This past weekend was Toyota’s turn, which managed to attract a pretty impressive 28,000 people to the freezing race track in order to celebrate the past year’s achievements in motorsport. Continue reading over at Speedhunters.

—By Dino Dalle Carbonare

Tomorrow morning Flavio Briatore will begin his fight back against the lifetime ban imposed upon him by the FIA World Motor Sport Council for his part in the 2008 Singapore scandal.

His appeal against the decision will be heard at the Tribunal de Grande Instance de Paris, at the Palais de Justice. Justice has been handed out on this site since medieval times, and the Palais was once the seat of the French parliament.

But will Briatore get the justice he craves and that he believes he deserves?

Little is known about what Flav will argue but his options appear limited. We know, thanks to leaks to the press, that he will seek €1 million in compensation and to have his lifetime ban from FIA competition overturned. We know that he will argue that the case had been decided before it had even been heard and that he was made a scapegoat for the situation due to the personal vendetta of Max Mosley. But, as I said, how he hopes to argue this is, and may remain due to French judicial procedure, a mystery.

One of Flavio’s strongest arguments may well be the simple fact that both Nelson Piquet Jr and Pat Symonds were offered immunity to testify against Briatore. This could quite easily be argued to signal that the FIa was only intent on prosecuting Briatore and could give credence to his claims of a witch hunt. That Symonds ultimately chose not to take that offer, however, led to his own downfall. He will also be arguing his five year ban tomorrow.

Briatore and Symonds will try to argue that the case was heard without them being present, despite both of their testimonies to FIA investigators being used in the hearing at the WMSC. Had they wished to have been present to represent themselves, they could easily have done so. Their choice in not attending may thus stand their claims of a decision in absentia void.

Personally however, I do not believe that Briatore expects to win his case tomorrow. Frankly I don’t even think he wants to.

Had he wanted the decision overturned, he could have appealed in the first instance to the FIA’s International Court of Appeal. A body separate and independent of the WMSC and one filled with legal minds, he could easily have argued his case here and stood a good chance of being reinstated.

He has gone a different route however, taking his appeal through the French court system. But why? And why do I think he will lose?

He will lose because if he wins, the regulation of sport… any sport… could fall into chaos. Sporting bodies have always been and must continue to be free to punish those who break their rules.

We are not, for the most part, talking about legal issues when it comes to sporting penalties. Take the Bloodgate controversy in English rugby. While it is not illegal to bite down on a blood capsule, the fact that a player in a match of rugby did so to initiate a “blood replacement” led to him being suspended and his manager and physio being banned from the game for a period of some years. The Renault Singapore scandal isn’t too dissimilar.

So what happens if Flavio wins tomorrow? It essentially tells anyone who has been handed a penalty by a sport’s governing body that if they want to get it overturned they should appeal the decision through the courts. Can you imagine what that would do to world sport? Every yellow card, every red card, every sending off, every touchline ban, relegations, promotions, points dockings… every sporting penalty in every championship on earth could be appealed through the courts. It could create an enormous mess, and one which effectively strips the world’s sports’ governing bodies of any real power to govern their own sports.

But, as I said, I don’t think Flavio even wants to win this one. For me, tomorrow’s case was always one he was going to lose, and I think he knows that.

Flavio has gone the route he has because he expects to lose the case so that he can appeal to a higher body. And ultimately, when all other appeal courts in France have been expended he will take the case to where he really wants it to be heard… and that is the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

He will take his case to the highest court in Europe and he will argue that the FIA has stripped him of his basic human rights. In doing so he will seek to further discredit the reign of Max Mosley at the FIA, and to smash any chances Mosley might have had at entering European Politics, if indeed that is where Max had wished to end up after his FIA Presidency, as has been rumoured for many years.

I will not be surprised in the slightest if Flavio loses his appeal tomorrow. Afterall, if my hunch is right, it’s exactly what Flavio wants.

A Mercedes-Benz GP, compradora da Brawn GP, anunciou no site oficial da escuderia o acerto com Nico Rosberg para a próxima temporada. O alemão, que disputou este ano pela Williams, chega para ser um dos titulares da escuderia. O outro nome ainda não foi confirmado, embora sejam fortemente especulados Michael Schumacher e Nick Heidfeld.

No anúncio, Rosberg se diz orgulhoso por poder atuar na Mercedes-Benz e trabalhar com Ross Brawn. “Estou muito feliz por fazer parte do retorno das Flechas de Prata em 2010 como piloto da Mercedes. Tenho muito orgulho de poder pilotar para a nova equipe Mercedes novos e de trabalhar com Ross Brawn”, disse.

O filho de Keke Rosberg é considerado uma das promessas do automobilismo mundial e um dos potenciais sucessores, ao lado de Sebastian Vettel, de Michael Schumacher.

A novata norte-americana USF1 estreia em 2010 na Fórmula 1. E seus dois pilotos já estariam praticamente definidos. Um deles é o argentino José María López, que faria parceria com o experiente – e cobiçado entre as novatas – Pedro de la Rosa.

O argentino López precisaria garantir recursos de patrocinador para conseguir um lugar na Fórmula 1. O piloto já teria obtido 70% do requerido pela USF1, faltando pouco para os 30% restantes serem garantidos. Assim, é possível que os argentinos tenham novamente um representante na categoria após quase dez anos de ausência.

Já o espanhol De La Rosa é cogitado em todas as novatas (exceto a Manor, que já definiu seus dois pilotos). O diretor da USF1, Ken Anderson, confirmou à revista Auto Hebdo que o preferido da equipe é o experiente De La Rosa. Um ótimo desenvolvedor de carros, ele seria considerado a ferramenta ideal para ajudar no crescimento da equipe.

Correriam por fora ainda Jacques Villeneuve e Franck Montagny, mas os favoritos seriam mesmo De La Rosa e López.

Sim, ele pode mesmo voltar. Até então mera especulação, as negociações entre o heptacampeão da Fórmula 1 e a Mercedes-Benz GP, que entrou no lugar da Brawn GP, foram confirmadas pelo site da BBC. A informação é de Eddie Jordan, ex-dono de equipe da categoria, que vendeu seu espaço à Force India.

De acordo com Jordan, a Mercedes está negociando com Schumacher para que ele volte a correr na Fórmula 1. A boa relação entre o chefe de equipe da escuderia, Ross Brawn, a nacionalidade do heptacampeão e a vontade de Schummy de voltar a correr seriam os principais fatores para as conversas acontecerem.

A Mercedes-Benz já havia confirmado o interesse no negócio e os empresários do alemão não negam a possibilidade. Será?

Jetzt steht also der erste Fahrer für das neue Team Mercedes GP (früher Brawn GP). Es ist Nico Rosberg. Das gab das neue F1 Team Mercedes GP heute bekannt.

Einen Dämpfer gab es von Teamchef Ross Brawn für die Gerüchte um einen möglichen Transfer von Michael Schumacher zu Mercedes. Ross Brawn nannte es einen Traum der Medien. Weiter sagte Brawn, das an dem Gerücht nichts dran wäre.

Ich persönlich hätte mir das auch nicht vorstellen können, das Michael Schumacher noch ans Lenkrad geht. Bei Ferrari wollte er dies ja auch nur aushilfsweise tun. Er hat seine Karriere gehabt, nun sind andere dran!!!

Quando tuto gira per il verso giusto sembra non avere rivali; cosi Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) vince il GP di Abu Dhabi, davanti al compagno di team Mark Webber e al neo campione del mondo Jenson Button (Brawn GP).
Il campionato si chiude quindi con la vittoria del baby fenomeno e la sensazione è che quest’anno Vettel abbia buttato alle ortiche (causa errori suoi e del team) una grande occasione per portarsi a casa il titolo.

Durante le qualifiche Hamilton aveva messo in riga tutti ma Vettel si era insediato in seconda posizione con una monoposto più carica di benzina dell’Inglese, facendo presagire una facile vittoria, mentre le Brawn GP di Barrichello e Button, in quarta e quinta posizione, seguivano la seconda Red Bull di Webber.
Male, anzi malissimo le Ferrari con Raikkonen 11esimo e Fisichella ultimo.

Allo start Hamilton tiene la posizione grazie al kers, con Vettel Webber e Button a seguirlo, mentre Barrichello in un contatto col compagno di squadra rovina l’ala anteriore, fortunatamente senza che ciò leda le sue prestazioni.
Fisichella recupera diverse posizioni, mentre Raikkonen ne perde una a favore del debuttante Kobayashi.
Nel primo stint di gara la sfida è tutta fra Hamilton e Vettel, con l’Inglese obbligato a costruirsi un vantaggio tale da poter ritornare in pista dopo il pit stop davanti a Vettel, ma il Tedeschino sebbene con una monoposto più pesante, gli resiste incollato ai suoi scarichi.
Al primo pit stop si fermano nell’ordine Barrichello, Kubica, Hamilton, Button e dopo tre giri anche Vettel, che nel frattempo, liberatosi di Hamilton timbra giri veloci a ripetizione.
Tornato in pista in testa, seguito da Hamilton, Vettel allunga ma proprio in quel momento il pilota della McLaren accusa pesanti problemi ai freni che lo obbligano al ritiro, il primo della sua carriera per problemi meccanici.
Vettel quindi non ha più nulla da temere visto che il secondo in classifica Webber, subisce da lui distacchi pesanti ad ogni giro; nelle posizioni di rincalzo, grazie ad una gara impostata su di una sosta, Kobayashi e Raikkonen risalgono il gruppo con il Giapponese in terza posizione ed il ferrarista in sesta.
Purtroppo per Kimi però le enormi difficoltà della F60 nello scaldare gli pneumatici lo obbligheranno a remare e perdere molto terreno dopo la sosta, vanificando ciò che di buono poteva fare; Kobayashi dal canto suo contiene benissimo il ritmo arrembante dei piloti su due soste e riesce ad installarsi in sesta posizione.

Nell’ultimo stint di gara, dopo la seconda sosta, le posizioni rimangono invariate, con Vettel al comando con un margine di una ventina di secondi su Webber, il quale negli ultimi giri deve fare i conti con l’arrembante Campione del Mondo Jenson Button che, montate le gomme morbide, recupera quasi un secondo al giro, piombando addosso all’Australiano nelle ultime due tornate.
Jenson ci prova, forza un paio di staccate, ma Webber resiste mostrando i muscoli e Button deve arrendersi e rinunciare al secondo posto.
Barrichello conclude quarto seguito da un costante Heidfeld, poi l’ottimo Kobayashi che si mette dietro il caposquadra Trulli e in ottava posizione Buemi della Toro Rosso.
Nulla da fare per la Ferrari per il terzo posto nel mondiale costruttori perchè nonostante lo stop di Hamilton, gli zero punti conquistati da Kimi Raikkonen e Giancarlo Fisichella non hanno permesso il sorpasso e la conseguente conquista di svariati milioni di dollari di premio.

Il mondiale quindi si chiude con un Vettel in piena forma e con le Ferrari mestamente ai box a coronamento di una stagione perlomeno fallimentare; unico momento positivo del 2009 per il team di Maranello è da considerarsi la vittoria di Kimi Raikkonen sul circuito di Spa, teatro delle imprese dei più grandi piloti della storia.
La Formula 1 volta quindi pagina, in attesa di vedere confermati i nuovi team che prenderanno parte al campionato del prossimo anno e in attesa di capire quali saranno i loro piloti.
La Ferrari, come già annunciato, schiererà Fernando Alonso e Felipe Massa, nella speranza di poter tornare a conquistare quel mondiale piloti che nell’era post Schumacher solo Raikkonen è riuscito a vincere.
o farà contando anche sull’esperienza di Giancarlo Fisichella come terzo pilota; un Fisichella deludente che negli ultimi 5 GP non è riuscito a conquistare nemmeno un punto mondiale (a fronte degli ottimi risultati di Kimi) e proprio di un punto la Ferrari non è riuscita a sopravanzare la McLaren nel mondiale costruttori.
A Maranello si libereranno di Kimi Raikkonen quindi, il pilota di ghiaccio che non ama parlare e fare polemica, il pilota che dall’uscita di scena di Massa ha conquistato tre podi ed una vittoria, trascinando da solo il team per tutta la seconda parte della stagione.

Nel 2010 probabilmente i valori in campo cambieranno; la Ferrari lavora da almeno 6 mesi al progetto della monoposto per il prossimo anno, mentre la Brawn GP a fronte delle poche risorse disponibili perderà sicuramente il vantaggio di svluppo avuto durante il 2009.
La McLaren con Hamilton sarà sicura protagonista mentre in Red Bull Vettel partirà con l’obiettivo di vincere il mondiale, ma gli errori del team dovranno essere ridotti a zero perchè a quanto pare le squadre in lotta per l’iride non saranno più solo due.

Καμία απολύτως έκπληξη δεν μας επιφύλλασε η Mercedes GP ανακοινώνοντας τον Nico Rosberg σαν 1ο οδηγό της ομάδας για το 2010.

McLaren working out garage space (courtesy @TheFifthDriver)

It’s only been a few weeks since the end of the F1 season and you would have thought that with a total of 133 days between the last race and the first of the next season in Bahrain, everyone would be taking a rest. However, being F1, things never stand still, even when this years cars are being put away.  The engineering teams are busy putting the final touches to the car designs and crash testing components ready for a roll out in January; the commercial people are settling sponsorship deals and designing the livery of the new cars and the teams even spend a lot of time working out how everything will fit in the garages next year.

Something extra is happening this year though. Usually the ‘Silly season’ – the speculation over who is driving where next year – is normally done and dusted by now. Or at least only, a few relatively minor placements are still to be decided but a number of events have conspired to delay matters. The threat of a breakaway series (read more here); the fallout of Toyota and BMW leaving the sport; new teams entering and Ferrari needing to sort out Kimi Raikkonen’s contract have all meant that deals have backed up whilst the large pieces of the puzzle were arranged.

It’s all falling into place now and there are some surprises too. Well, actually “surprise” may be the wrong word. For months it’s been speculated that Mercedes would be buying into the Brawn team, so it wasn’t really a surprise that it happened. However it’s not something one might have expected at the start of the year. Brawn’s ability to capitalise on having a far superior car for the first half of the year, meant they could hold station for the second half and thus win the drivers and constructers crowns. This gave Mercedes and opportunity to take over a team that is probably more willing to integrate with the main company than perhaps McLaren was and also to retain the services of Ross Brawn. Often called “the master tactician”, he now has the honour of being the man who ran the only team to win both championships in the only year of their existance. They’ve existed in one form or another for the last ten years, but the history books will record the name BrawnGP in only one of those.

Mercedes GP speculative image.

So for next year, the team becomes Mercedes GP. The surprise though has been regarding the drivers. It’s been known for some time that Nico Rosberg had signed a deal (which will be announced later today) but previously it was thought Jenson Button would stay with the team that helped him to the title. He has ended up going to McLaren, apparently for a fresh challenge. And challenge is something he’ll get racing alongside and against Lewis Hamilton. The internet is awash with comments about how Jenson will struggle next year. Certainly it looks like it could be the making or the breaking of him. If he doesn’t match up to Hamilton in any respectable way, then his championship year will be re-examined in the light that it was the advantage the Brawn car had early this year that won him the title, not any ability on his part. So Jenson has to do well.

Who will partner Rosberg at Mercedes? Recent speculation has linked a return by Michael Schumacher to F1 but this has been dismissed by all parties, so will it be Kimi? His wage demands were too much for McLaren, who felt that as he was being paid by Ferrari not to race for them next year, it was unreasonable for him to expect another full salary on top of that. Mercedes is on record as saying they want to reduce costs, so will they put up the cash? All they are saying is that the second driver will be a surprise.

So with Alonso/Massa at Ferrari, Hamilton/Button at McLaren, Vettel/Webber at RedBull and Rosberg/TBA at Mercedes, then the coming year is shaping up nicely. Kubica has signed for Renault, but at this point there are still question marks over Renaults commitment to the sport. So one theory is that when the team announce their future plans in December, Kubica will get out of the contract and be the second driver at Mercedes. The specualtion is far from over !

As for the new teams coming in, Lotus are at least trying to show they are the most advanced and ready for the new year. They have been crash testing components and showing pictures of their wind tunnel models. Manor haven’t shown anything due to the fact their car is being designed and tested in cyberspace, the first car to be prepared this way. They have announced Timo Glock as a driver and should be changing their name to Virgin F1 before launch. Campos Meta have announced Bruno Senna (nephew of the late Ayrton) as one of their drivers but otherwise have been fairly quiet. Whereas USGP have more or less been forced to make a series of announcements due to speculation over their participation. Speculation says they won’t make the grid, but the team insist they will. None of them are expect to trouble the existing teams, so they are all vying to be the “best of the newcomers”.

The rules will be slightly different. Skinnier tires on the front will change the handling of the cars, as will the fact there’s no more refuelling mid-race. So the cars will have to carry a full race load of fuel on the grid. Consequently the cars will be a bit longer to accommodate a bigger tank. The rules for qualifying will change slightly too because of this and the cars will run with minimum fuel in all sessions.

Regarding the politics, most of the manufacturers have gone and so has Max Mosely.  Although there’s still a fear that Jean Todt, the new FIA president will simply be doing Max’s bidding, but time will tell. In any event the year should be less confrontational for all parties and that can only be good for the sport.

So really, there’s a lot to look forward to next year. I really can’t wait, and as the title of this piece says why can’t someone invent a time forwarding device ?

Το μεσημέρι αναμένεται ανακοίνωση της Mercedes για οδηγό ή οδηγούς. Θα ακούσουμε Rosberg μόνο; Η ανακοίνωση έχει προγραμματιστεί για τις 2μμ ώρα Ελλάδος.

Την Παρασκευή διαβάσαμε ότι η Williams πούλησε μερίδιο της ομάδας στον Toto Wolff. Ακούσαμε ότι κάτι παρόμοιο σκαρώνει και η Renault. Μας αναφέρεται ότι πιθανώς να έχει συμφωνηθεί κάτι τέτοιο το Σαββατοκύριακο που πέρασε. Είχε ακουστεί το όνομα του Ρωσικού κολοσσού τηλεπικοινωνιών Megafon, αλλά κάτι τέτοιο δεν αληθεύει, σύμφωνα με την πηγή μας.

Σύμφωνα με τον Ελβετικό Τύπο πίσω απο την μυστηριώδη Qadbak η οποία λέγεται ότι στηρίζει την Sauber για την συμμετοχή της στο πρωτάθλημα του 2010 βρίσκεται ο Βρετανός Russell King, γνωστός απατεώνας. Πληροφορίες που έχουμε στην διάθεσή μας αναφέρουν ότι αυτός έφυγε όμως απο την Qadbak πριν απο ένα μήνα. Οπότε ο Peter Sauber ενδέχεται να έχει απλώσει τα δίχτυα αλλού για την εύρεση επενδυτών.

Θα παρατηρήσατε ότι δεν γράψαμε τίποτα για το θέμα Schumacher και Mercedes. Δεν γράψαμε γιατί δεν υπήρχε θέμα. Ο Ross Brawn μίλησε στην Bild και είπε τα εξής : «Ελπίζω να βρούμε δυο έμπειρους οδηγούς. Ξέρω ότι το θέμα απασχολεί τα ΜΜΕ. Δεν υπάρχει κάτι όμως. Απλώς τα ΜΜΕ χτίζουν ένα όνειρο. Ο Michael θα έμπαινε στην Ferrari προσωρινά. Δεν έχει βλέψεις για νέα καριέρα». Όλη η συνέντευξη εδώ.