Latest F1 news in brief

Ecclestone to Briatore – these engines sound sick

Ecclestone not worried as F1 TV ratings decline
No 'explosion' as Alonso's Ferrari tenure ended – Briatore
Alonso eyes McLaren-Honda success 'soon'
Mercedes still favorite for 2015 – Haug
Wolff wants new Hamilton deal before Melbourne
Marchionne not expecting 'miracles' from Ferrari
Mercedes yet to show full potential – Costa (i.e. they are sandbagging)

Ecclestone not worried as F1 TV ratings decline
(GMM) Television ratings and major car manufacturers would appear to be ingredients Bernie Ecclestone cannot do without.

F1, however, shed no fewer than 25 million viewers last year, but the sport's supremo insists he is not worried because it "reflects the move FOM has made towards pay TV in several markets over the last three seasons".

A prime example is the situation in Britain, where only a select number of grands prix are now shown free-to-air on the BBC, with only pay-channel Sky having the exclusive live rights.

That model has now been adopted in other key markets, and it has "boosted F1's bottom line as pay TV networks are prepared to pay a premium for rights to sports events since they drive subscriber numbers", Forbes' F1 business journalist Christian Sylt explained.

Another fundamental shift could also be occurring in Ecclestone's mind with regards to the very structure of the grid, which is currently dominated by the German giant Mercedes.

Ralf Bach, a correspondent for Sport Bild and TZ Munchen, claims that the 84-year-old Briton's vision of the future is F1 potentially with 'customer cars'.

It emerged this week that, to boost dwindling grid numbers, Ecclestone – reportedly backed by Colin Kolles and Flavio Briatore – could be hatching a deal with Red Bull to package its 2013 car with a Mecachrome V8 engine and offer it at low cost to struggling small teams.

Writing on his f1-insider.com blog, Bach claims: "In January, Ecclestone met Dietrich Mateschitz in Salzburg to discuss, inter alia, the topic of customer cars."

Bach said that while some of the sport's biggest players like Mercedes might not agree, Ecclestone will not necessary mind even if the German marque pulls out.

Similarly, Ecclestone might also be happy that Volkswagen is staying out of F1 for now, as its patriarch Ferdinand Piech is said to be no fan of the Ecclestone reign.

Briatore in disbelief when he hears how crappy the new F1 engines sound

Leo Turrini, a well-known Italian F1 insider, this week quoted Briatore as apparently sharing his friend and ally Ecclestone's vision of the sport's future.

"The tragic mistake was with the choice of this type (turbo V6) of engine," the former Renault boss said.

"With the noise, they killed the excitement and replaced it with technology that the public does not care about. Add that these power units are expensive and the circle is closed," added Briatore.

"I remain of the opinion that F1 should be a championship for drivers, not for constructors.

"It's not that I support the idea of a one-make championship, but if you introduce a technology where someone like Mercedes has a huge advantage, the basic interest in formula one declines."

No 'explosion' as Alonso's Ferrari tenure ended – Briatore
(GMM) Flavio Briatore has hit back at claims Fernando Alonso's relationship with Ferrari was in ruins when he left the fabled team.

One of the Spaniard's former contemporaries, David Coulthard, this week repeated the paddock perception of Alonso as perhaps the very best driver but with a fiery character.

And now, more fireworks might be expected as the 33-year-old returns to McLaren, where his relationship with Ron Dennis ended in calamity in 2007.

"I agree that he is the best of the best," Scot Coulthard told Spox this week.

"He always manages to collect more points than his teammate and in the race is probably in a class of his own.

"But his time at McLaren ended badly and in the end it was not working at Ferrari either," said Coulthard.

"One cannot deny it: as good as Fernando is, his integration into a team does carry a risk of explosion."

But Briatore, who has guided Alonso's management throughout his career and was running Renault when he won his two titles, hit back at suggestions the driver had to leave Ferrari because his relationship had soured.

"Regarding the last five years," the Italian told F1 insider Leo Turrini, "I'll tell you this: a lot of nonsense has been said.

"He (Alonso) felt good in Italy and had a good relationship with the Scuderia and the people who worked there.

"Yes, in the end there was some misunderstanding with the management, but nothing serious or unrecoverable," Briatore added on Turrini's Quotidiano blog.

"Just things that happen when results do not come."

Alonso eyes McLaren-Honda success 'soon'
(GMM) Arguably the biggest question mark heading into the 2015 season is the form of McLaren-Honda.

Team management are hailing the tight packaging of their "size-zero" MP4-30, but problems with the returning Honda's first turbo V6 effort meant McLaren left Jerez with low mileage and uncompetitive laptimes.

Matt Morris, McLaren designer, admits Jerez was "frustrating" for the team's star recruit Fernando Alonso, who left Ferrari after losing patience with a lack of championship-winning results.

"But he is happy," Morris is quoted by the Spanish daily Marca, "and will push us on as a team."

Indeed, Alonso said at a Honda press conference in Tokyo on Tuesday that after five years in red, "I once again feel new motivation and adrenaline to compete at the highest level".

No one, however, can hide that the kind of success Alonso is seeking will take some time.

"Hopefully soon," is what Alonso said when asked when that success will come, while team supremo Ron Dennis predicts 80s-style McLaren-Honda form in the "not too distant future".

"The first challenge is the first victory," Spanish media reports quote Dennis as saying. "In the short term, we intend to get the best possible result in Australia."

Alonso added: "The message to the fans is to support us this season."

Even Honda president Takanobu Ito cannot disguise the teething issues of Jerez, admitting: "We identified several problems but we are now in the final stages of tuning the engine.

"We will try to fix the problems and want to start from a good position on the grid in Melbourne," he insisted.

"The McLaren-Honda team is very united and we have started to write a new page in our history. Please keep your expectations high," Ito added.

Flavio Briatore, a guiding hand throughout Alonso's long F1 career, told insider Leo Turrini's blog: "Alonso at McLaren is a good thing for everyone.

"I guess it will take time, but Honda has not returned to create a bad image.

"Let's see how they manage to develop their project during the season, and then we'll talk more," the Italian added.

Haug

Mercedes still favorite for 2015 – Haug
(GMM) Former chief Norbert Haug doubts that Mercedes' rivals have been able to track down the German giant's advantage ahead of the 2015 season.

At the opening pre-season test at Jerez, it was Ferrari who surprisingly set the headline times.

But Haug, the former head of Mercedes motor sport, said: "There are no points for testing.

"If there was, we would have seen a completely different game," he is quoted by Germany's Sky.

"I think Ferrari has taken a step," Haug agreed, "but I believe that the gap Mercedes had (in 2014) means they are clearly once again the favorite."

Wolff wants new Hamilton deal before Melbourne
(GMM) Toto Wolff has admitted he would like to agree a new deal with world champion Lewis Hamilton before the season begins.

The Briton remains under contract for the full 2015 season, but at the Jerez test recently he was spotted in intense negotiations with boss Wolff and team chairman Niki Lauda.

Last week, reports in Germany claimed 30-year-old Hamilton, who manages himself following his split from Simon Fuller's XIX Entertainment, was on the cusp of agreeing a new multi-year deal.

Wolff has now told the PA Sport news agency that he would like to have ink on a contract before the new season begins in Australia in just over a month.

"It is always beneficial to have a clear situation, for the driver and ourselves," said the Austrian.

"Therefore we should aim to finish the discussions before the start of the season."

Wolff insisted, however, that he is not setting a firm deadline because "we don't want to put him or us under pressure".

But that doesn't mean the talks are not going well, with Wolff confirming that "so far the discussions have been as expected".

Sergio Marchionne

Marchionne not expecting 'miracles' from Ferrari
(GMM) Sergio Marchionne insists he is not getting carried away with Ferrari's winter test form.

The fabled Maranello marque struggled in 2014, prompting Fiat Chrysler chief Marchionne to take over from long-time president Luca di Montezemolo amid a radical personnel shakeup.

The Italian-Canadian has warned that Ferrari's return to winning form will not happen overnight, but then the new SF15-T set the timesheets alight as pre-season testing began last week at Jerez.

"I am encouraged by the performance of the new car," Marchionne said in New York on Tuesday, "but it is one thing to do a quick lap and another to do them over a whole grand prix.

"I have so much confidence in the team and the work of the guys and they deserve time," he is quoted by Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I am proud of their work but we will see when the championship begins in Australia. There is still some way to go.

"I do not expect miracles," Marchionne added, "but it is important to see progress.

"At the Barcelona test I expect further proof of what we have done so far."

The second of three winter tests begins next Thursday at Spain's Circuit de Catalunya.

Mercedes yet to show full potential – Costa (i.e. they are sandbagging)
(GMM) Designer Aldo Costa denies Mercedes has played it too safe with the new title-defending W06.

The Brackley team utterly dominated the first season of the new turbo V6 rules in 2014 and is expected to maintain that advantage this year.

But as testing kicked off at Jerez last week, it was Ferrari that set the headline times amid rumors it has found between 40 and 80 horse power over the winter.

Indeed, La Gazzetta dello Sport told Mercedes' Italian designer Costa that the new W06 does appear at least visibly very similar to the 2014 car.

"The car is an evolution," he confirmed. "But in reality it is very different in many parts that cannot be seen from the outside."

As for Jerez, he said the test was "positive in all respects" for the team, even if more work needs to be done on reliability.

"The improvement compared to 2014 was in line with what we expected," added Costa.

"We did not go to Spain to verify performance, but rather (to verify) reliability and the behavior of the car."

Amid suggestions Mercedes was actively sandbagging at Jerez, Costa was asked how much of the 2015 car's potential has now been seen, and he answered: "Very little.

"But I think it is the same for us as it is with all the other teams.

"Only at the first race in Melbourne will we understand the true situation. And maybe not even there; we may need to wait four or five grands prix."

Costa refused to be drawn on how many unfreeze 'tokens' Mercedes has already spent on its 2015 engine, but he did reveal: "I can confirm that we are using our new power unit for 2015, which is different from the last one".

As for whether Mercedes can keep its level of dominance over its rivals in 2015, Costa answered: "We have set ourselves significantly higher targets compared to last year."