Latest F1 news in brief – Tuesday (Update)
11/11/14
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Massa will not help Rosberg McLaren now deciding Alonso's teammate
- Vettel needs 'spectacular' Ferrari car – Briatore
- McLaren, Mercedes play down three cars for 2015
- Force India financial rumors must 'stop' – Mallya
- Massa says he will not help Rosberg win title
- Lowdon still fighting for former Marussia team New
- Geri Halliwell Engaged to Christian Horner New
- Video: Nico's Brazilian GP Review New
McLaren now deciding Alonso's teammate
(GMM) For the first time since 2007, Fernando Alonso will make a visit to Woking this week, authoritative media sources are reporting.
Spain's El Mundo Deportivo claims that after a deal between the Spaniard and McLaren was finally struck in Brazil, he is set to travel to the team's British headquarters on Wednesday to sign what is probably the most lucrative contract in F1 history.
Flavio Briatore, involved in Alonso's management throughout his F1 career, hinted at the McLaren move in an interview with Italian radio Rai.
"Fernando wants to go to a team where there is the possibility to win in the future, even if it is not immediately," said the Italian.
Briatore suggested Alonso's patience with Ferrari had slowly faded over five championship-less seasons.
"Ferrari will always remain in Alonso's heart, it is a team he loves, even though every year it was always spoken about the next one and nothing happened.
"There was also a little disappointment in not seeing an aggressive recruitment of engineers and staff that could raise the bar of the team," Briatore added.
It is believed the only obstacle to a McLaren-Honda announcement being made now is the collaboration's decision on who will be Alonso's teammate.
On the face of it, and judging by his comments and body language in Brazil last week, Jenson Button looks set to be ousted, leaving the young Dane Kevin Magnussen as Alonso's teammate.
But Alonso is said to prefer to have Button on his side, as the former world champions' combined experience will push along the development of the new Honda V6 engine.
"I hope he (Button) stays (in F1)," France's Le Figaro quotes Alonso as having said at Interlagos.
"He is a very talented driver and a good person. People like him are good for our sport."
Button, however, is not so sure Alonso will have the power to influence the decision.
"It's a tricky one. Who knows what's going on inside Fernando's head?" Button is quoted by British newspapers after the Brazilian grand prix.
In the end, McLaren's decision could be a financial one, with Button costing the team multiple millions per year more than the rookie Magnussen.
Button, however, has hinted that he might be prepared to take a pay-cut.
"I still want to earn money from it," he said, "but I'm not a driver who takes the mick and I will race somewhere even if I'm not getting the big bucks, unlike a few drivers who are out there."
If he does go, it will be a sad farewell for F1's long-serving Button, who might be forgiven for sounding disappointed in McLaren for not going him more notice after an illustrious 15-year career.
"It's like if your parents were to turn round and say 'We're not sure we want you at Christmas this year. But your brother can come, he's great'," Button said.
"Feeling part of a family is more important than money."
Former McLaren driver David Coulthard agrees that McLaren has treated Button disrespectfully, having accusing the Woking team of seeing drivers as "light bulbs".
"Maybe it (that comment) has had some reaction from the team, but I stand by my view," the Scot told the Telegraph newspaper.
"The right thing is to treat people well. To have him (Button) hanging on like this is unfair. Going into the last race should be a celebration – if it is to be his last – but we may not know.
"He deserves better," Coulthard added.
Vettel needs 'spectacular' Ferrari car – Briatore
(GMM) Sebastian Vettel needs to hope for a "spectacular" Ferrari next year, according to Flavio Briatore.
When Fernando Alonso's switch to McLaren-Honda is finally announced, Ferrari can also lift the lid on the open secret of German Vettel's move from Red Bull.
But Briatore, a flamboyant former F1 team boss and closely aligned to Alonso's management, says Vettel needs to hope for a highly competitive Ferrari if he expects to add a fifth drivers' title to his tally.
"With all due respect I have for him," the Italian told Rai radio, "I think Sebastian always had a very good car.
"In this first year with a car that is not perfect, Ricciardo beat him," he noted. "I hope he finds a spectacular Ferrari."
There are rumors that although Red Bull is blocking Vettel from doing the post-Abu Dhabi test for Ferrari, he will be free to join Ferrari in the days immediately after.
So the rumors suggest Vettel will be presented formally as Ferrari's 2015 driver at the Finali Mondiali event in Abu Dhabi in early December, at the Ferrari World theme park.
Meanwhile, the Osterreich newspaper reports that Gerhard Berger is once again being linked with a possible move to become Ferrari team boss from 2015.
McLaren, Mercedes play down three cars for 2015
(GMM) As the 2014 season winds to a close, the prospect of three-car teams for 2015 remains a mystery.
Angry small teams departed Brazil believing the sport's establishment is trying to push them out, leaving five powerful teams supplying cars to customers.
Outspoken former F1 team boss Flavio Briatore agrees that something needs to change.
"Either opt for four or five teams with three or four cars each, or drastically change the formula one we see today," he told Italian radio Rai.
"If you look at the audience and what is happening to the teams, this is not a great time," he insisted. "The economic model is broken."
Briatore argued that it is not F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone's fault.
"His power is not so big anymore so his guilt is minimal," he said. "I would say it is the teams' fault."
It is believed Red Bull and Ferrari are prepared to run third cars next year, but that may not be enough willingness to see the initiative get up and running.
Spain's Marca, for instance, reports that McLaren and Mercedes are not so keen.
"I do not think it's possible," said McLaren's Eric Boullier.
"I think next year, with nine teams, you can make a good championship. In 2016 we have the American team (Haas), so I think we need to think a lot before doing something as radical as three cars."
Mercedes' Toto Wolff agrees: "The first thing is you need the infrastructure to do it, then you need the rules.
"Who has it? Who drives it? What points will it score? There is so much that I do not see it as feasible," he added.
Finally, Sauber's new signing Felipe Nasr suggests he only decided to put pen to paper for 2015 after the issue of three cars for 2015 became clear.
"We starting working on 2015 very early but I had all this waiting to see if there would be three cars," he told Brazil's Estado.
"And then came the information that it is not coming," Nasr revealed, "so we came to Sauber, who had the best possible package on offer."
Force India financial rumors must 'stop' – Mallya
(GMM) Vijay Mallya has played down the latest reports questioning the financial health of his F1 team Force India.
Newspaper reports in the last days have suggested the auditors of the Silverstone based team's parent company doubt the viability of Force India as a "going concern" due to mounting debts.
The claims follow Force India having joined fellow struggling privateers Lotus and Sauber in reportedly threatening to boycott races if F1's commercial rights holder does not urgently release more revenue.
"All this speculation I think needs to stop," Mallya, a former Indian billionaire whose airline Kingfisher has been grounded, told Reuters.
"It's not doing anybody any good. The bottom line is we're ok."
Reports have emerged that Force India's 2015 car has been developed in Toyota's state-of-the-art wind tunnel in Cologne.
Mallya said it will "definitely" race in 2015, even though backmarkers Marussia and Caterham collapsed this year and were absent in Austin and Brazil.
Mallya had also said earlier in Brazil that Bernie Ecclestone promised to discuss the idea of extra payments this week with CVC chairman Donald Mackenzie.
Ecclestone, however, departed Brazil saying that topic would not be discussed this week with Mackenzie.
"If I don't hear by the end of the week I'll send him a gentle reminder," said Mallya.
Massa says he will not help Rosberg win title
(GMM) Felipe Massa has rejected Nico Rosberg's call to help him win the 2014 world championship.
Williams' Massa was strong all weekend in Brazil and eventually finished third.
But if Rosberg has any chance of beating his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton to the title at the Abu Dhabi finale, he needs a strong rival like Massa to split the silver cars on the podium.
"He's the man," said Rosberg after winning at Interlagos. "I need some Felipe Massa help."
Brazilian Massa, however, has bad news for the German.
"I'm not helping anyone," he insisted on Monday to Brazil's Sportv.
"I told him (Rosberg) 'I want to win the race, and not to help you!'" Massa added.
"Nobody helped me when I could have won the championship, in fact a certain German only harmed me," he said.
He is referring to the dramatic Interlagos finale of 2008, when Massa momentarily appeared to have won the title only to find that Hamilton passed the backmarker Timo Glock at the final corner.
Massa says that now, in 2014, Briton Hamilton deserves to beat Rosberg to the drivers' title.
"I think Hamilton does deserve the championship," he said. "But sometimes things turn out in a different way, as we have seen several times."
Lowdon still fighting for former Marussia team
The Marussia F1 team may have already ceased to exist after the administrator opted to pull the plug on the team.
But for the teams former President and Sporting Director Graeme Lowdon, the fight to save the team in some guise is far from over.
He believes that interest from potential investors remains and whilst that hope is still there he hasn't given up on trying to save the team and the 200 jobs that are at stake at the Banbury factory.
The former team had already submitted their entry into Formula One for 2015 under the name Manor F1 and the teams development of a new chassis was still on schedule right up until the factory doors were locked by the administrator.
"I don't feel like there's no way back. We're very competitive people and we'll keep fighting until there's absolutely no chance at all. Lowdon told Sky Sports.
"At the moment there's still very much a chance that we can compete in 2015 and beyond and indeed in Abu Dhabi.
"It's been a very busy weekend; we've worked very closely with Geoff Rowley, the administrator. I think we owe it to all of the guys who've helped get us here, the fans, our drivers including Jules [Bianchi]; we owe it everybody to try everything we can to ensure that this team continues."
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| Halliwell and Horner |
Geri Halliwell Engaged to Christian Horner
Spice Girls star Geri Halliwell is engaged to marry Formula One team boss Christian Horner.
The pop star, 42, announced the news in a notice in British newspaper The Times, which reads, "Mr. C.E.J. Horner OBE and Miss G.E. Halliwell: The engagement is announced between Christian, son of Mr. and Mrs. G.M. Horner and Geraldine, daughter of the late Mr. L.F. Halliwell and Mrs. A. Parkinson."
Horner, head of the Red Bull motor team, was awarded a Most Excellent Order of the British Empire medal for his services to the sport last year.
The singer went public with their romance earlier this year.
Halliwell and Horner both have children from previous relationships.
Video: Nico's Brazilian GP Review
Nico Rosberg is speechless after his victory in Brazil… literally!