Latest F1 news in brief
- Alguersuari back in Europe after 50 hour voyage
- Montezemolo steps down at Fiat, wants Rossi in F1
- Canada GP sponsor possible but not crucial – promoter
- Hamilton welcomes more moderate stewards in 2010
- Toro Rosso not working on F-duct system
- Briatore not interested in making up with Mosley
Alguersuari back in Europe after 50 hour voyage
(GMM) It took them nearly 50 hours, but F1 drivers including Jaime Alguersuari and Mark Webber are now back home.
Toro Rosso's Alguersuari, who travelled with Virgin test driver and countryman Andy Soucek, lost count of how many times they landed at airports to change plane and destination.
"We feel like we've been around the whole world," the Spaniard told the EFE news agency. Mark Webber's return to his UK home took him 44 hours.
The F1 cars could soon begin their journey back to Europe, with McLaren confirming they are "likely to be freighted to Bilbao within the next 24 hours".
Many of the sport's personnel are not so lucky. Williams' PR Claire Williams, the daughter of Sir Frank Williams, has been told by British Airways in Hong Kong that there may be no flights until May 5.
"They have to be kidding," she wrote on her Twitter.
Montezemolo steps down at Fiat, wants Rossi in F1
(GMM) Luca di Montezemolo has stepped down as chairman of the Italian carmaker Fiat.
He will, however, remain president of Ferrari, with 34-year-old John Elkann – a descendant of the founding Agnelli family – replacing him at Fiat because Montezemolo has "finished the task" he began in 2004.
Montezemolo, 62, denied the move is a precursor to moving into Italian politics or even founding his own party, insisting he is staying on the Fiat board and will not stop heading Ferrari.
On the same day, Montezemolo announced that he still wants "major teams" such as Ferrari "and McLaren" to be allowed to enter third cars in grands prix.
"We want a third car and I would do everything to have Valentino (Rossi)," he told reporters.
"When he wins this year's MotoGP, enough is enough, he must also win in formula one," the Ferrari chairman and president added.
Canada GP sponsor possible but not crucial – promoter
(GMM) A naming sponsorship is possible but not crucial ahead of Canada's return to the F1 calendar in 2010.
After its absence in 2009, the popular Montreal race is back this year with a June 13 date.
But unlike most other events on the calendar it has not yet announced a title sponsor.
"Yes, there are companies (interested in sponsorship)," the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve event's new promoter Francois Dumontier told RDS.
"But with a partnership the important thing is long-term visibility. So we are working on that rather than solely on 2010."
The new $75 million Canadian GP contract is for five races.
Hamilton welcomes more moderate stewards in 2010
(GMM) Lewis Hamilton has contradicted Martin Brundle's claim that F1 stewards this year are being too lenient.
Former driver and British commentator Brundle said on Tuesday that Sebastian Vettel and Hamilton should have been penalized rather than merely reprimanded for their wheel-to-wheel pitlane stoush in China.
Brundle also said Jenson Button should have received a penalty for unduly slowing behind the safety car in Shanghai.
But after several years of harsh judgments from the stewards at grands prix, Hamilton said he welcomes the seemingly more hands-off approach of 2010.
"Racing stewards this year have been the best that I have probably experienced in formula one, I think," the Briton said at a sponsor event at Kyalami in South Africa.
Despite claims by his fellow drivers that the maneuvers were dangerous, Hamilton was warned but not penalized for weaving in front of Vitaly Petrov in Malaysia two and a half weeks ago.
"More racing has been out there. You know there are drivers who are (now) not afraid to have a real battle with someone without having the worry of receiving the penalty," added Hamilton.
Toro Rosso not working on F-duct system
(GMM) Toro Rosso has vowed to buck the current trend in formula one by not working on a F-duct device.
With the exception of the sport's three new teams, it is believed the Ferrari-powered STR5 will therefore soon be the only car on the 2010 grid not exploiting the downforce-spoiling concept pioneered by McLaren.
Technical boss Giorgio Ascanelli said Toro Rosso's decision is based on financial considerations.
"If I have ten euros and am hungry, I would buy two sandwiches instead of three grams of caviar," he is quoted as having told the Italian magazine Autosprint.
So far, Sauber, Ferrari, Mercedes and Williams have tested F-duct-like devices on their 2010 cars, with varying levels of success.
Mercedes' Ross Brawn said in China that those teams who are hoping to match McLaren's straight-line advantage are now "learning just how complex" the integration of an F-duct is.
Ascanelli added: "You might see some benefit after five months of development, but in that time we can improve and develop other parts of the car."
It is believed Red Bull, Red Bull and Force India will be the next teams to run F-ducts on their cars at forthcoming grands prix.
Briatore not interested in making up with Mosley
(GMM) Flavio Briatore has revealed he has no intention of attempting to reconcile his broken relationship with former F1 colleague Max Mosley.
In his last year of FIA presidency in 2009, Mosley oversaw the imposition of ousted Renault team boss Briatore's lifetime ban over the crashgate scandal.
But Mosley has since turned 70 and is now effectively retired, replaced by Jean Todt who has halted crashgate by agreeing to end Briatore's ban in 2013.
Italian Briatore, now 60, also celebrated a birthday this month, and is currently at home with his model wife Elisabetta and their newly born son Falco.
But he told the Italian magazine Chi that he is not interested in making up with Mosley.
"He sent me a text message to congratulate us on the birth of Falco, but Mosley is part of my former life. In my future there will be no place for him," said Briatore.
"I'm happy for Jean (Todt)," the Italian added, "my friend of 20 years. Thanks to him, the FIA can now quietly and serenely breathe new air."
Briatore, who has always maintained his innocence despite conspirators Pat Symonds and Nelson Piquet admitting to plotting the deliberate crash of Singapore 2008, said he is not about to forgive the stain on his reputation.
"It was very bad for my story. I suffered an injustice. But the truth, the power of the truth, wins every time," he insisted.