Latest F1 news in brief
- Brazil tried to thwart Hamilton title – Dennis
- No cash bonus for Hamilton title – Dennis
- Hug means Alonso hostility over – Hamilton
- Hamilton admits need for more bodyguards
- Hamilton in no rush to return to cockpit
Brazil tried to thwart Hamilton title – Dennis
(GMM) Toy black cats were not the only weapons used to try and throw Lewis Hamilton's championship bid off the rails in Brazil a week ago, McLaren boss Ron Dennis has revealed.
Local comedians hurled the cats, a sign of bad luck in Brazil, at not only the British driver at a sponsor press conference, but also his disabled brother Nicholas in a hotel lobby.
"(There were) efforts to disrupt Lewis' sleep, telephone calls, threats of putting an all-night samba band into Lewis' hotel, all sorts of silly things," Dennis, 61, is quoted as saying by The Times.
"But you smile, you don't waste energy on it and just get on with the job," he added.
No cash bonus for Hamilton title – Dennis
(GMM) McLaren boss Ron Dennis has countered reports that Lewis Hamilton is set to perhaps double his retainer as a reward for securing the British team's first drivers' title in nearly a decade.
"We have no links to performance in any of our contracts with either drivers or sponsors," the 61-year-old clarified.
It was reported by the British press after Interlagos a week ago that Hamilton's career could make him a billionaire, amid claims that McLaren may renegotiate his current contract to stave off the temptation of a switch to Ferrari.
Dennis told The Times: "Lewis's income is fixed for the duration of his contract. There is some flexibility in respect of what we can do together outside the contract, but his salary is not linked to success."
Hug means Alonso hostility over – Hamilton
(GMM) Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, previously the bitterest rivals on the formula one grid, seem to have buried the hatchet more than a year after their stint as McLaren teammates ended.
We reported nearly a week ago that Alonso, the former double world champion who split with the British team following a venomous single season in 2007, returned to the McLaren garage at Interlagos to congratulate 23-year-old Hamilton on his drivers' title triumph.
"It took a big man to do that," Hamilton admitted at the Mercedes-Benz 'Stars and Cars' end of season event in Stuttgart.
"I was very thankful for it and I respect him for that gesture.
"I got back to the garage and he was there. He shook my hand and gave me a hug and then he said congratulations to the rest of the team," Hamilton said.
Spaniard Alonso, 27, had previously boasted that McLaren is now his least favorite F1 team, vowing to help Ferrari's Felipe Massa beat Hamilton to the championship.
Hamilton admits need for more bodyguards
(GMM) 2008 world champion-elect Lewis Hamilton has admitted his title success is likely to lead to him organizing extra personal security.
The McLaren driver, who secured the championship at Interlagos a week ago, was surrounded by four bodyguards at the Stars and Cars end-of-season Mercedes-Benz event in Stuttgart this weekend.
In Brazil last weekend, he was driven around Sao Paulo in a bullet-proof car.
"I rarely go around on my own any more," the 23-year-old admitted.
"The more I go through my life then the best it is to be safe. I may need extra security," he is quoted as saying by the News of the World newspaper.
Hamilton in no rush to return to cockpit
(GMM) One week after securing the world championship in Brazil, Lewis Hamilton has admitted he is in no rush to return to the cockpit of his McLaren.
"There are three tests coming up but I haven't decided which ones I will do, if at all," the Briton said at the Mercedes-Benz end-of-season event in Germany.
23-year-old Hamilton said it is important to recharge his batteries ahead of the 2009 season.
"I have done a lot of driving this year, so to jump straight back into the car is probably not wise," he said.