Latest F1 news in brief

Sebastian Vettel – Why were they testing rain tires in 40 degree F temperatures?

Vettel bruised after Fiorano crash
Alonso to debut 2017 McLaren
Raikkonen to open karaoke bar
India moves for Mallya's extradition
Private companies to pay Russia GP race fee
Renault not replacing boss Vasseur – Abiteboul
F1 engines not ready to crack 1000hp – Abiteboul
Perez backs Mexico GP anti-Trump campaign
Bottas hits back at Hamilton 'career killer' jibe
Zak Brown Says F1 Teams Continue To Push For Standard Parts
Tost calls for Mercedes engine to be frozen

Vettel bruised after Fiorano crash
(GMM) Sebastian Vettel got his 2017 season off to a bad start this week by crashing.

Although official testing doesn't begin for another two weeks, the German was at the wheel of Ferrari's 2015 tire test 'mule' car on Thursday.

Vettel was testing Pirelli's wet tires when amateur video footage depicts him evidently aquaplaning at speed before hitting a barrier at Ferrari's artificially-watered Fiorano circuit.

Reports indicate the 29-year-old, who had been circulating in temperatures of 5 degrees C, was "unharmed", although the car was so damaged that running may not be able to resume on Friday.

Pirelli reportedly called it a "normal" accident.

Auto Motor und Sport said Vettel sustained "minor bruises" in the impact.

Alonso to debut 2017 McLaren

Alonso to get first crack at new McLaren

(GMM) Fernando Alonso will give McLaren's 2017 car its track debut later this month.

It has been a period of change for the Honda-powered team, since the forced departure of McLaren supremo Ron Dennis.

The traditional "MP4" will be removed from the official name of the 2017 chassis, and there are rumors McLaren will have an orange livery this year.

Cadena Cope, a Spanish radio station, said Alonso will be at the wheel of the MCL32 when official testing begins in Barcelona on February 27.

But new chief Zak Brown is playing down expectations, telling 'Road and Track' that although team members have been "frustrated" with a lack of recent results, "We are not going to be winning any races" in 2017.

However, team boss Eric Boullier has played down the impact that many of the changes will have on McLaren, such as the loss of team manager David Redding to Williams.

"I think you have to realize that formula one is all about change," said the Frenchman, who revealed a wider internal reshuffle.

Asked if he thought about looking outside of McLaren to fill the void instead, Boullier insisted: "No, not even for a second."

And as for the 2017 car that will debut in Alonso's hands on February 27, Boullier said it boasts some "exciting changes" compared to last year.

"But we want those to be kept secret until we show it to the world on February 24," he said.

Raikkonen to open karaoke bar

Kimi Raikkonen

(GMM) Kimi Raikkonen is set to open a karaoke bar in Helsinki, the capital of his native Finland.

That is the claim of the Finnish entertainment magazine Seitseman Paivaa.

The report said the Ferrari driver and 2007 world champion wanted to keep the precise location of the venue secret, but it is apparently close to where he keeps his yacht.

Seitseman Paivaa said Raikkonen is a karaoke regular, and Youtube footage from 2009 indeed depicts the 37-year-old singing in his native Finnish in a bar.

The report said work on the establishment will begin in April.

India moves for Mallya's extradition

Vijay Mallya

(GMM) Force India chief Vijay Mallya has a new battle on his hands ahead of the 2017 season.

Reportedly now a former billionaire, the Indian businessman was unable to attend grands prix in 2016 after having his passport revoked amid financial scandals in his native country.

Now, the Indian government is moving to extradite Mallya, 61, from Britain, where his F1 team Force India is based and he now permanently lives.

Reports last year indicated that if Mallya did return to India, he may ultimately be jailed.

So the Times of India and other sources report that an official request was made to the UK high commission for Mallya's extradition.

"We've today handed over the request for extradition of Vijay Mallya", an Indian government official is quoted as saying.

"We have an extradition treaty with Britain and a legitimate case against Mallya. Now, it's up to the British authorities to take further action," the spokesman added.

Private companies to pay Russia GP race fee
(GMM) The race fee for the Russian grand prix will be paid entirely by private investors in 2017.

Until now, the state has been deeply involved with the running of the race in Sochi, which since 2014 has been attended by president Vladimir Putin.

But the Russian news agency Rambler reports that responsibility for the race fee, payable to F1's commercial rights holder each year, will now be handled privately.

Russian deputy prime minister Dmitry Kozak confirmed that the major investors are Lukoil, a major Russian oil company, VTB, a finance bank, and aluminum company Rusal.

"Now the contribution is paid by Lukoil, VTB, Rusal and many other companies. A pool of about ten investors," he said.

Renault not replacing boss Vasseur – Abiteboul

Frederic Vasseur

(GMM) Renault will not be directly replacing departed team boss Frederic Vasseur.

That is the claim of Cyril Abiteboul, despite some media reports naming the Frenchman as Vasseur's successor as team principal.

After just a year in charge of the French works team, Vasseur left amid speculation of a management dispute involving Abiteboul.

But Abiteboul remains managing director.

Asked by Germany's Auto Motor und Sport if he is the new boss, he answered: "No.

"But I will be at every race and attend the meetings of the team principals. I will ensure there is harmony in the group and between the factories in Enstone and Viry Chatillon.

"Alan Permane and Ciaron Pilbeam will fulfil the tasks on the pitwall very well," Abiteboul added.

"The decision not to replace Frederic directly is because our current management is strong enough to shoulder the task."

Renault had a difficult return as a full works team in 2016, and now Abiteboul is playing down hopes of significantly better performance this year.

"We are not looking for excuses — we want to take a step in 2017," he said.

"On the other hand, the management needs to think about the medium and long term future. Our people must feel comfortable in the structure, because success depends on it," added Abiteboul.

"Our roadmap is that we want to go for the championship in 2020," he revealed. "If we want to get there, we have to be able to get podium places now and then in 2018.

"This means being in the midfield again this year," said Abiteboul. "It is anything but easy, but we have legitimate hopes of being between places five and seven."

Asked if that will be enough to satisfy the paymasters and decision-makers on the Renault board, Abiteboul sounded relaxed.

"Renault is not new to the sport. We've been in formula one for 40 years, and when the decision was made to return, everyone knew it would be difficult.

"We have to prove that we are on the right trajectory and achieving our goals," he said.

F1 engines not ready to crack 1000hp – Abiteboul

Cyril Abiteboul – psst, quick tell him Mercedes is already there

(GMM) F1's 'power unit' era is not quite ready to crack the incredible 1000 horse power barrier.

That is the claim of Renault managing director Cyril Abiteboul, even though the Frenchman admitted the sport's engine makers will come close to four-digit numbers in 2017.

"I think the top performance of the power units will be between 900 and 950hp," he told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport.

"The teams counting on 1000hp may be a bit too optimistic — I think not even Mercedes will achieve it. But it definitely is achievable within the current regulations," Abiteboul added.

"We have some radical concepts to jump ahead, but not for this season. We need more time."

Still, there is confidence. Red Bull's Dr Helmut Marko said this week that Renault's first upgrade in 2017 should bring the French-made engine up to Ferrari's level, just behind Mercedes.

Abiteboul said: "We do not assume that we will be with Mercedes at the start of the season. But we like to believe we are close enough to have Red Bull fight against them if they build a good chassis. And I'm sure they will.

"Our goal is to overtake the Mercedes engine in 2018."

He played down suggestions that because Renault and Red Bull have different oil and fuel partners in 2017, that could affect performance this year.

"The power unit has been developed for our partner, so BP and Castrol," Abiteboul admitted. "But we make sure that it also works with Exxon Mobil's petrol and oil for Red Bull and Toro Rosso.

"The engine will be the same for all three teams," he said.

Perez backs Mexico GP anti-Trump campaign

Sergio Perez

(GMM) F1 driver Sergio Perez has stepped up his rejection of controversial US president Donald Trump's Mexican border wall policy.

In November, the Force India driver dumped a sunglasses sponsor after it made a joke about the wall following Trump's shock election win.

"I will never let anyone mock my country," Perez said.

Now, the 27-year-old driver has backed a campaign by organisers of the Mexican grand prix promoting the hashtag 'BridgesNotWalls'.

Perez posed at the circuit in Mexico City, where sponsor bridges have been decked out with the official F1 logo and the political anti-wall hashtag.

"It represents many Mexican motor sport fans' views currently," the race organisers said.

Although the campaign does not name Trump specifically, Perez had earlier made clear his view about the US election outcome to the Spanish newspaper El Pais.

"Rather than worrying, I believe Mexicans must be united and well informed to keep our country on track," he said.

"2018 is presidential election year in Mexico and it is then that we can raise our voices."

Bottas hits back at Hamilton 'career killer' jibe

Valtteri Bottas

(GMM) Valtteri Bottas has replied to what might be seen as the opening salvo in a new psychological battle between Mercedes' F1 drivers.

Claims by Lewis Hamilton's father Anthony that the triple world champion is a "career killer" for his teammates was widely interpreted as the first mind game fired at Finn Bottas.

On a one-year contract, Finn Bottas has been signed up by Mercedes to replace the now retired Nico Rosberg, who shared a famously strained relationship with Hamilton dating back to 2013.

When asked about the "career killer" jibe by the Finnish broadcaster MTV, Bottas commented: "Well, I wouldn't want to be my teammate, either.

"Let's wait and see. The season starts soon so we'll see how it goes," the 27-year-old reportedly smiled.

Zak Brown Says F1 Teams Continue To Push For Standard Parts
McLaren Exec Dir Zak Brown said that F1 teams "remain eager for the increased use of standard parts as a cost-cutting measure," according to Rowlinson & Barretto of MOTORSPORT.

As F1 embarks on the post-Bernie Ecclestone era, some focus "is being put on bringing costs under control while making the racing better."

The standardization of parts "has been discussed at length several times in previous years," and Brown believes it "would be a good way to reduce costs."

However, he insisted it "would not be the answer to all of F1's problems and thinks it should instead become part of a wider plan that includes a budget cap."

Brown: "There are some that think we should standardize some parts. Teams have shown they're very clever."

Former Team Principal Ross Brawn, who is working in a three-man team alongside new CEO Chase Carey and Commercial Operations Managing Dir Sean Bratches, "has spoken about taking a long-term approach and moving away from reactive decisions F1 has recently been guilty of," such as the qualifying format tweaks early in '16. MOTORSPORT

Tost calls for Mercedes engine to be frozen

Franz Tost

Motorsport journalist Barretto reported Toro Rosso Team Principal Franz Tost said that F1's bosses "should freeze the Mercedes team's engine development until its rivals catch up."

Mercedes has led the way in the V6 hybrid turbo era, which began in '14, with its power unit ahead of Ferrari, Renault and Honda.

Mercedes' rivals "have closed the gap in the last couple of years, but Mercedes remains out in front and Tost believes something needs to be done."
He proposes the FIA "puts a freeze on the Mercedes engine to allow its rivals to catch up and then completely freezing development."

Tost: "If the power unit parity is not coming then normally the FIA should come up with a regulation to freeze it. I would freeze the power unit from Mercedes, the others should catch up and then they freeze all of them." MOTORSPORT