Latest F1 news in brief

Pascal Wehrlein

Wehrlein says Mercedes in super license talks
Technical expert says Ferrari back on track
Vettel exit could hurt Red Bull – Webber
Nurburgring says German GP cannot afford Ecclestone fees
Arrivabene denies Gutierrez is Ferrari 'pay driver'
Cloud still hangs over Monza GP
Palmer chose reserve seat over Manor for 2015

Wehrlein says Mercedes in super license talks
(GMM) Rising star Pascal Wehrlein is hoping talks with the FIA clear the path for his potential formula one debut in 2016.

The 20-year-old German is now one of the hottest new names in the paddock, having been appointed Mercedes' official reserve driver for 2015.

He tested the title-winning W05 last November in Abu Dhabi, and then last week in Barcelona split his time between the new W06 and the 2014 car fielded by Force India.

Under the existing rules, he has obtained a 'super license' for 2015, should he be needed by Mercedes to race this season.

But in the wake of Max Verstappen's highly controversial debut and the FIA's clamping down on its credentialing system, a driver like Wehrlein will technically not be allowed on the grid from 2016.

That is because he races in the German touring car series DTM, whose drivers are not even eligible to earn super license 'points' according to the FIA's new system.

So given that the heavily Mercedes-backed Wehrlein is likely to be a frontrunner for a grand prix debut next year, the German marque has commenced talks with the FIA over the matter of his 2016 super license.

"Mercedes has discussed it with the FIA," the young German is quoted by Italy's Tuttosport.

"This season would not be a problem, but in 2016 we will have the new system of points, so we'll see.

"I have already done a lot of testing and so it should not be a problem to race next year in formula one," Wehrlein added.

Early indications suggest the 2015 Ferrari challenger is a huge improvement over the 2014 model

Technical expert says Ferrari back on track
(GMM) One of F1's most respected technical journalists agrees that Ferrari is back on track after its disappointing 2014.

Giorgio Piola, a veteran of hundreds of grands prix as a technical illustrator, said the biggest step forward taken by the Maranello team is on the 'power unit' side.

"The car seems better overall and certain fundamental errors were eliminated," he told the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat.

Piola claims Ferrari's 2014 engine was designed with the car's aerodynamics in mind, but it resulted in a lack of power and efficiency from the crucial 'energy recovery' and turbo side.

"This side has been fixed and now it works in the same way as most competitors," he said.

Piola also said the move away from bosses like Stefano Domenicali and Marco Mattiacci has helped, as last year the team "seemed confused due to a lack of control".

"Jean Todt had a lot of discipline," he recalls, "and now I see Sergio Marchione and Maurizio Arrivabene also as strong leaders."

Piola also said the change of drivers is helpful to Ferrari, as the driving styles employed by Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso last year was so different.

"Now, Kimi and Sebastian Vettel's styles are largely similar," he explained, "and all the car development can be done in the same direction."

He said Ferrari has also made changes in the area of front suspension, with the 2014 layout unable to be adapted that resulted in Raikkonen's season-long struggle.

"Ferrari's unique pullrod suspension is difficult to adapt," said Piola, "but now with the new car, even this has been improved."

At the end of the day, however, Piola does not think the changes have been enough to totally catch up with Mercedes.

"Certainly, we know that Mercedes is stronger," he said. "How much? It is still impossible to say during winter testing."

Mark Webber (R) thinks Sebastian Vettel will be hard to replace at Red Bull

Vettel exit could hurt Red Bull – Webber
(GMM) Sebastian Vettel's team switch for 2015 could hurt Red Bull and help Ferrari.

That is the claim of the former F1 star Mark Webber, even though they were the best of enemies as teammates.

During their time as Red Bull teammates between 2009 until Webber's retirement in 2013, Vettel won 38 grands prix compared to the Australian's nine.

So today, Webber freely admits his total respect for Vettel's talent, and backed his move to Ferrari on the basis that he needed "fresh motivation and a change".

As for the impact it will have on Red Bull, Webber told the Herald Sun: "The line is not 'they won't miss Vettel', the line is that when he wants to do something else and be in a different environment, then he is better off going somewhere he might feel he will get more out of himself.

"That's definitely a question for the team halfway through the season, whether they are missing some of that experience," he added.

Webber's countryman Daniel Ricciardo has stepped into Vettel's old number 1 role for 2015, and given the Australian's impressive 2014 campaign, Webber is expecting another "solid" year for the energy drink-owned team.

"Obviously a wealth of knowledge and Daniel's experience is only going to help him," he said.

"They are lacking a little bit of continuity at Red Bull now — there are a few people who have left the team," Webber added.

"So that will be interesting to see how technically good the car is over the course of a full season, not just at the start.

"Mercedes are the clear favorites," he insisted. "They had a great season last year and should come out of the gates very strongly."

Could Hockenheim be in play for 2015?

Nurburgring says German GP cannot afford Ecclestone fees
(GMM) A deal to keep the German grand prix on this year's F1 calendar still has not been struck.

The Nurburgring was scheduled to return in 2015, but the financially-troubled circuit is tied down in an ownership crisis.

Bernie Ecclestone has said the sport could simply revert to Hockenheim, but amid the F1 supremo's high race fee demands, a deal there is also yet to be struck.

Nurburgring official Carsten Schumacher said the circuit remains open to compromise.

"We have said that, for the sake of the fans and the region, we are prepared even to make an economically acceptable loss," he told the Swiss magazine Motorsport Aktuell.

His comments suggest that, at Ecclestone's standard contractual rate, the Nurburgring can no longer afford to host formula one races.

"This is also the reason why we have said that we do not want to carry the organizer’s risk," said Schumacher, who earlier indicated that Ecclestone could step in to be the 2015 promoter and also collect the ticket revenues.

"There is no question that, as a formula one organizer, you deserve to make money, but the problem is the entry fee and we need to talk about that," he explained.

"I think it makes little sense to organize events in which you only spend money rather than making any. In the long run, no one can afford that, and that includes any other race track in Germany," said Schumacher.

Arrivabene denies Gutierrez is Ferrari 'pay driver'
(GMM) Ferrari has denied that even the great Italian team is now heading down the 'pay driver' road.

Outspoken former F1 driver Mark Webber insisted this week that the fact drivers have so readily "paid their way" onto the grid in recent years is "rubbish".

"That's not what we want in the sport," he told the Herald Sun newspaper.

But until now, the concept of taking on drivers who promise vast sums of money and sponsorship has been the reserve of mainly small and struggling teams.

Esteban Gutierrez, for instance, debuted at Sauber with close ties to the Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, and logos of the brands Telmex, Telcel and Claro were duly added to the livery of the Swiss-made car.

For 2015, those logos have switched from Sauber to Ferrari, and Gutierrez is now Ferrari's new official reserve driver.

"I've heard and read a lot of criticism because of Esteban's signing," Ferrari's new chief Maurizio Arrivabene, formerly an executive of the Ferrari sponsor Marlboro, is quoted by Speed Week.

"For instance, that he only got his job at Ferrari because of the large budget of America Movil," he said.

"But that is not true," Arrivabene insists. "The negotiations with America Movil and Carlos Slim did not involve Esteban, because I myself am friends with Carlos.

"I called him and we agreed," he claimed.

Arrivabene thinks Ferrari can now do a better job of preparing Gutierrez for his return to the race grid.

"Esteban came into formula one too early," he said.

"I do not want to be disrespectful, but he also came to a team that had a lot of problems. That (Sauber) was not the place for him.

"These two aspects must be taken into account, if one wants to evaluate his performance.

"Among other reasons, we have signed Esteban because he knows our engine of last year. He works at Maranello every day and starts now by attending a day of filming with us and working in Barcelona.

"This is the right way to make a young driver familiar with formula one," Arrivabene added.

Could the future of the Italian GP at venerable Monza be in doubt?

Cloud still hangs over Monza GP
(GMM) A cloud continues to hang over the future of the iconic Italian grand prix.

Last year, Bernie Ecclestone warned that because the current contractual terms are "a disaster", once the deal expires after the 2016 race, formula one will say "bye-bye" to Monza.

Worsening the situation, it then emerged that the new, so-called 'stability law' passing through parliament could cost Monza up to about EUR 20 million in tax exemptions.

Francesco Ferri, the new director of the Monza race organizer Sias, said in the Italian press at the time: "2017 will arrive anyway, with or without Bernie Ecclestone".

But Angelo Sticchi Damiani, the president of the Automobile Club d'Italia (ACI), insisted this week that every effort is being made to save the grand prix.

"Monza is the oldest circuit in formula one, a record that we don't want to lose," he said during an awards ceremony on Tuesday.

"The matter is complex and difficult. There is no room for mistakes.

"We have to work together to see how to reach our target, which is Monza remaining the venue of the Italian GP from 2017 to 2020," added Damiani, according to the Italian news source AGI.

Palmer chose reserve seat over Manor for 2015
(GMM) Jolyon Palmer opted for the reserve seat at Lotus rather than hoping talks with the former Marussia team bore fruit for 2015.

24-year-old Briton Palmer, whose father Jonathan was also a F1 driver, won the GP2 title last year and had hoped it would be his ticket to a race seat.

Instead, he has signed to be Lotus' reserve driver this year, including some winter testing and the promise of some Friday practice outings.

But his dream of actually racing in F1 might have come true in 2015, if he had kept up talks with the team formerly known as Marussia.

Now called Manor, the backmarker is currently rushing to ready a 2015 rules-conforming car, having emerged from administration only last week.

"We had a little bit of contact from them just before I signed the deal with Lotus," Palmer revealed.

"There's so many unknowns with it to be honest and it's a team that struggled already last year with full backing," he told the F1i website.

"I think it will take a big effort for them to get on the grid.

"I hope they do get on the grid, but it was a big risk for my career and to sign for a very solid team like Lotus was really I think a good decision and the only one we could take at that point," Palmer added.

And even if Manor does complete its resurrection and race in 2015, Palmer thinks he would still prefer his current role with Lotus.

"I don't know if Manor turn up what they will turn up with, but they still want the old car I think and the old engine which wasn't so competitive already last year and the cars have taken a big step forward this year," he said.

"I don't want to be in formula one at the back really, I want to be in it with the best opportunity possible, so I'm here."