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Schumacher ready to flex Brawn at Mercedes

German drivers Nico Rosberg (L) and seven time World Champion Michael Schumacher (R) pose next to a Mercedes GP Formula One race car during the team presentation at the Mercedes museum in Stuttgart, January 25, 2010. [Photo/Agencies]
Mercedes GP launched their new Silver Arrow car on Monday but the real fire power in the German team’s camp is set to be the renewed partnership between Michael Schumacher and Ross Brawn.
Brawn was in Schumacher’s pits for all seven of his world title wins – two at Benetton and five at Ferrari – and Brawn’s involvement at Mercedes was a significant factor in enticing Schumacher back to Formula One.
Having retired in 2006, the 41-year-old Schumacher has broken his three-year hiatus to sign a three-year contract to race for Mercedes which will reunite him with Brawn ahead of the new season which starts in Bahrain on March 14.
Schumacher has made no secret of his desire to win an eighth world drivers’ championship title with Brawn as team principal at Mercedes and Nico Rosberg as his teammate.
“We have everything it takes to succeed but it is one thing to have the correct ingredients and another to manage them,” he said.
“With the experience of Ross and with all the know-how of Mercedes: I am sorry, but there can only be one target for us to achieve.”
Even though Schumacher retired after the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2006, he stayed in touch with Brawn and the chance to work together again proved too strong.
“We have been in contact almost every year, when Ross went to Honda (in 2007 as team principal), he sort of suggested there was an option but I wasn’t ready for it,” said Schumacher. “We always kept in contact: sometimes he asked serious questions (about working together), sometimes it was a joke.
“When he called me at the end of last year, I knew why.”
Brawn will be responsible for making sure the Silver Arrow car is in perfect condition when the season starts and the 55-year-old Briton said he is excited about the chance to work with Schumacher again.
“Working with Michael again is a treat, it is something I didn’t think would happen again and it is something I am excited about,” said Brawn.
“Nico is an exciting prospect and I think he will be good for Michael – it will also help him to see how a world champion operates.”
Mercedes face stiff opposition in their assault on the world drivers’ championship from McClaren’s Lewis Hamilton and current champion Jenson Button, as well as Red Bull pair Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber.
“We are looking forward to closing the gap behind the other teams and we hope to have success in our cars, that is the aim,” said Schumacher.
“It is rare to have two or three teams in close competition like last year but this year might also be an exception again.
“It doesn’t really matter honestly: we are there to win whoever we are up against.”
And in terms of his advancing years, Schumacher says he has nothing to prove.
“I just want to prove to myself that I am still able to do it,” said the German. “The main reason I am doing it is because of the thrill.
“I feel a huge sense of excitement just to drive and compete at the highest level.”

First Russian racer to embark on F1 circuit

 Russian auto racing driver Vitaly Petrov is set to become Russia’s first Formula One driver starting from next season, local media reported on Thursday.
The 25-year-old Petrov, runner-up of the 2009 GP2 series, will partner with Polish Robert Kubica to compete for French F1 team Renault.
Born on Sept. 8, 1984 in Vyborg of the Leningrad region, Petrov is known as “Vyborg Rocket” in Russia.
According to local media, Petrov would possibly bring a sponsorship of 15 million euros to Renault, as he was backed by state-owned Russian saving bank Sberbank and gas monopoly Gazprom.

Argentine driver Lopez to join F1 new member USF1

Argentine driver Jose Maria Lopez confirmed Friday to join the new Formula One team USF1, according to his spokesman Miguel Mattos.
The 26-year-old, will debut for the American team at the Bahrain Grand Prix, which will kick off the 2010 world championship on March 14.
Local media said the USF1 team will officially present the driver on Monday as the USF1 team’s co-owner Peter Windsor and Lopez’s sponsors reached agreement in the Argentine capital after several days of meetings.
A former Renault test driver, Lopez won Argentina’s TC 2000 and Top Race V6 categories last year, will be the first Argentine to race in F1 since Gustavo Mazzacane, who raced for Minardi in 2000 and Prost in 2001.

Neck injury is no issue: Schumi


Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher said on Wednesday the neck injury which hampered his return to Formula One last August is no longer a factor as he prepares for the 2010 season.
Despite retiring from F1 in 2006, Schumacher signed a three-year contract with Mercedes GP last December and has been testing with Mercedes in Jerez, Spain, but says last year’s neck injury has long since healed.
Schumacher insists any concerns over the injury he sustained in a motorbike accident nearly a year ago and forced him to abort a return to Ferrari last year are no longer an issue and it feels like he has never been away.
“The after-effects of that accident are long gone, that’s why I was sure that the neck would not cause any problems,” he said on his website.
“This was one year ago – that’s over.
“I have been practising since December very carefully and feel extremely fresh and fit.
“That was one of the reasons I felt so good in the car in Jerez.
“But then, F1 is another thing, the g-forces are higher, that’s not really comparable.
“That is why I look forward so much to testing in February.
“Only then the old feeling will be completely back. I can’t wait to be back there.”
Schumacher says testing of Mercedes’ GP2 car went better than expected with his first drive in the F1 car set to take place next month.
“The test was super, I can’t tell the difference,” said Schumacher.
“We have been handicapped a bit because of the wet weather in the first two days but on the third day we could do a lot and even simulate a race on slicks.
“It went better than I had expected.
“I immediately felt well in the car, it was as if I never was gone.”
The 41-year-old said he has signed a three-year deal to race with Mercedes because he wants to win the world championship again having linked up with Ross Brawn, who orchestrated the pits in each of his seven world championship wins.
“I signed because we want to achieve something together,” said the German.
“The set up we have here is pretty unique – with Ross and his world championship-winning team, with the know how of Mercedes, with the best engine at the moment, we want to use that.
“We have a clear aim: we want to win the championships.
“That’s what we will fight for from the beginning.
“That is my personal standard too.”
Despite repeatedly saying he would never return to Formula One during the years of his retirement, Schumacher explained his decision to return to the track.
“I couldn’t imagine my return before last year,” he said.
“After my retirement at the end of 2006, I was very happy, I felt relieved: like I had been freed.
“I enjoyed that feeling because especially in the last two years of racing, F1 had demanded a great deal from me.
“It was not just the racing, I loved during that time but all those things which relate to living under constant observation.”

Schumacher wraps up GP2 test ahead of F1 return

Michael Schumacher successfully wrapped up a GP2 test session Thursday that is expected to aid his return to Formula One.

Formula One seven times world champion Michael Schumacher of Germany poses on a GP2 car during a test drive at Jerez circuit in southern Spain, January 12, 2010. Schumacher set his Formula One comeback rolling on Tuesday with a test of a GP2 development car. The 41-year-old German, returning with Mercedes after retiring as a Ferrari driver in 2006, completed 52 laps before heavy rain and gusty conditions halted the session in the afternoon. [Photo/Agencies]
The 41-year-old German driver had his most productive day, setting a best lap time of 1 minute, 24.621 seconds from 130 laps _ more than he managed over the first two days combined _ around the Jerez Circuit.
Schumacher says everything worked out “perfectly” and that he felt “fit” and “comfortable immediately back in the car.”
Schumacher, who will drive for Mercedes after three years in retirement, ran wet tires for 23 laps before switching to slicks as the track was not as wet as the past two days.
Schumacher is helping develop the F1 feeder series’ 2011 car.
F1 testing begins February 1.

F1 supremo proposes GP “shortcuts”

Bernie Ecclestone wants to introduce “shortcuts” on Formula One race tracks to encourage drivers’ overtaking for the sport’s promoted entertainment, the F1 supremo said on Wednesday.
The idea would be another radical change to the sport with nothing similar ever having been adopted, but it needs to seek teams’ support first.
“I’ve tried to push the teams with a number of proposals. Imagine a shortcut which a driver can use five times every race. It would stop people getting stuck behind others. It would be good for TV,” Ecclestone told reporters at Ferrari’s pre-season ski retreat in Madonna Di Campiglio of Italy.
Ecclestone complained that brakes in Formula One cars were too efficient and reduced the amount of overtaking which fans like to watch.
Despite believing the sport can be improved, the Briton reckoned this season would be among the best with Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and the returning Michael Schumacher all on the grid.
Ecclestone confirmed an agreement had been signed to hold a grand prix through the streets of Rome in the coming years, although no date has been set.

Hamilton expects most exciting F1 season yet

Lewis Hamilton looked forward to his most exciting Formula One season yet on Monday while jokingly casting himself as ‘just a number two driver’ alongside Jenson Button at McLaren.

Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton (R) of Britain leaves the track with his girlfriend, singer Nicole Scherzinger, after winning the 2008 FIA Formula One Championship at the Brazilian F1 Grand Prix in Sao Paulo in this November 2, 2008 file photo. Hamilton and Scherzinger said on January 11, 2010 they have ended their 20-month relationship. [PhotoAgencies]
The 2008 world champion, who celebrated his 25th birthday last week, will have the number two on his car while fellow-Briton Button enjoys the number one after taking the title with Brawn last year.
Both will be battling each other while also having to contend with seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher, making his comeback with Mercedes at the age of 41 and after a three-year absence.
“I think it might be one of the most exciting seasons in Formula One yet, at least for myself,” Hamilton, who has yet to race against Schumacher, told ITN television at an appearance for a sponsor.
“Especially having Michael Schumacher back, I’ve got the world champion sitting next to me as my team mate. Felipe Massa’s back, Fernando (Alonso)’s at Ferrari.
“Really I would say the best drivers are in the best teams and so the competition this year should be the most exciting I think.”
Switzerland-based Hamilton and Monaco resident Button have yet to overlap at the British-based team’s Woking factory but the younger of the two Englishmen said he looked forward to working with the new champion.
“He’s got a huge amount of experience of Formula One so hopefully I will learn a lot from him and vice versa,” he said.
“Obviously we both want to win but hopefully we will both go in the same direction with the same goal which will help the team move forward and get some good success.
‘NUMBER TWO’
“I think it’s all a level playing field but clearly I have been in the team a little longer than him,” added Hamilton, who has been at McLaren since 2007 but backed by them for more than a decade.
“The team is working very hard to get him up to speed as fast as he possibly can, but then he is the world champion you know. I am not the world champion, I am just, I am the number two driver,” he laughed.
McLaren announced earlier that both drivers would have new race engineers with Button having a crew built around him just as Hamilton did in 2007.
While that will help level the playing field and stave off accusations that McLaren is built around Hamilton, the former champion has been deeply involved in the new car that Button will drive for the first time only next month.
“I’ve had a very close eye on the car since it started development back in September or so, and I had a huge amount of input into it,” said Hamilton.
“Every year I seem to have more and more input into the car. Last year actually I didn’t have much input into it, thank goodness,” he added, referring to a car that was woefully uncompetitive in the early races but then became a winner.
“Through the year obviously I had a lot of input into it and it got better and better, but with this one I was at the factory quite a lot, really trying to give as much input into it as possible.”

Schumacher signs to race for Mercedes


Michael Schumacher is seen posing for a photograph at the Brawn GP headquarters in Brackley, southern England in this December 22, 2009 handout photograph received in London on December 23, 2009. Michael Schumacher targeted an unprecedented eighth Formula One title on Wednesday after Mercedes announced he was coming out of retirement to race for them at the age of 41. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

Renault reaches deal to remain in F1

Renault is staying in Formula One racing after agreeing yesterday to sell a “large stake” in the team to a private investment firm to keep the cars on the grid in 2010.

The French carmaker had been weighing whether to continue in F1 or pull out following a crash scandal that led to the departure of former team principal Flavio Briatore.

After the proposed sale to Luxembourg-based Genii Capital, Renault said in a statement that the two companies would operate the team together.

The team will continue to race under the Renault name, using Renault engines.

Neither Renault nor Genii elaborated on the size of the stake to be sold, though reports said it could be as high as 80 percent.

“In 2010, the team will retain its name, its identity and the core ingredients that led to the successes achieved in 2005 and 2006,” Renault said.

“The team will continue to be supplied with engines by its sister company in Viry-Chatillon.”

The companies said a letter of intent should be concluded early next year.

Renault’s reputation was recently damaged by the crash scandal, which caused it to lose sponsorship deals with insurance companies Mutua Madrilena and ING.

There had been speculation that Renault would follow Honda, BMW and Toyota out of F1 due to the economic downturn.

At the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Renault driver Nelson Piquet Jr purposely crashed his car to help teammate Fernando Alonso, who went on to win the race.

Gerard Lopez, the businessman behind Genii Capital, said restrictions on spending in Formula One had made it a more attractive investment for new owners.

“This is a period of opportunity for Formula One, not a period of uncertainty,” Lopez said yesterday. “Formula One has an extraordinary level of global awareness that can be used to develop new business-to-business opportunities in traditional and developing markets, and there are exciting new revenue streams to be explored.”

Genii said it intended to run the team on a restricted-budget model, similar to that of new team Virgin Racing, which was unveiled on Tuesday.

“Together with Renault, we intend to run the team with the same values as any of our other investments, prioritizing ambitious performance targets without neglecting cost efficiency,” Genii chief executive Eric Lux said.

“We strongly believe that on-track performance can be compatible with business performance, and we will use all our entrepreneurial spirit and commercial know-how to achieve this goal.

Renault also said it will continue as engine supplier for Red Bull next season.

Polish driver Robert Kubica will drive for Renault.

Hamilton to learn from Shanghai low

Lewis Hamilton was a hair’s breadth from securing his first world championship here in his rookie season last year but crashed out of the race and squandered a massive 17-point lead in the driver standings.

McLaren Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain celebrates taking poll position in front of team mate Heikki Kovalainen after the qualifying session for Sunday’s Japanese F-1 Grand Prix at Fuji Speedway in Oyama, central Japan, October 11, 2008. [Agencies]
Now at his second Shanghai Grand Prix, again as championship leader, he is ready to learn from the mistake that triggered a late meltdown last year and drive an error-free race.
“There is always some experiences that build you as a person and add to your character,” the McLaren-Mercedes driver said of last year’s painful withdrawal during a promotion for technical partner Mobil 1.
“That was not the end of the world.”
Hamilton would have secured the championship in the Chinese financial hub provided he finished the Shanghai race in the top eight and ahead of then teammate Fernando Alonso.

Briton Lewis Hamilton answers questions at a press conference on Tuesday in Shanghai. Gongguan
However, the Briton and his team approached the race too riskily and wore out tires before pit stop.
The incident was a big blow to then sizzling rookie driver, who made no mistakes before coming to Shanghai in his astonishing and record-breaking debut season.
But the 23-year-old son of a Caribbean immigrant said he is not haunted by the memory and believes the experience was vital to his development.
“Having such a fantastic year, it was a good time to have an experience like that because it prepared me to come here for this race,” the 23-year-old said of this weekend’s return event.
Ahead of it he is in a similar position to what he was in last year: He had previously won four titles before; he can still become the youngest champion in Formula One history and has an opportunity to secure the title with one race remaining.
“It’s another opportunity to prove myself in Shanghai,” he said. “I have a great opportunity (to win the championship).”
“My confidence is not knocked and it is not different (with previous races),” he added.
“I still come here with confidence, perhaps with more humility.”
Hamilton stressed he and his team would not push the envelope too much to secure more points but play things safely.
“I hope with the same approach, we can do a better job this weekend,” he said.
“I hope this time in Shanghai will be better than last year.”
After a disappointing weekend in Fuji, Japan, where he incurred drive-through penalties with title contender Felipe Massa of Ferrari and scored no points, Hamilton said he can’t wait to race in Shanghai in front of a swelling fan club.
“It’s great to be back. There were more fans in the airport and I am more excited,” he said. “I had not so great a weekend in Fuji. But I learned from the experience and I am still positive.”
Hamilton is sitting on 84 points, five ahead of Massa. BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica is in third with 72 points followed by defending champion Kimi Raikkonen on 63.
Hamilton’s McLaren teammate Heikki Kovalainen is fifth with 51 points.
In constructor standings, Ferrari leads McLaren Mercedes by seven points.
Former champions urge Hamilton to keep his cool
Britons Jackie Stewart and Damon Hill have told compatriot Lewis Hamilton he must keep his cool in the season’s last two races if he is to join them as a Formula One champion.
The 23-year-old McLaren driver leads Ferrari’s Brazilian Felipe Massa by five points and could become the sport’s youngest champion if circumstances favour him in China this weekend.
However Hamilton failed to score in Japan on Sunday, reviving fears that history may be repeating itself after he allowed a commanding lead to slip through his fingers at the same stage last year.
“This was not his finest hour,” triple champion Stewart told the RBS website (www.rbssport.com/f1), commenting on Hamilton’s wild start and subsequent drive-through penalty at Fuji.
“His approach in that first corner was slightly arrogant to other drivers.
“The Japanese race demonstrated that Lewis is still very young, in only his second season, and although he comes across as very cool in interviews, he doesn’t always have the same level of mind management when he’s racing.
“Lewis Hamilton can still win the championship, but not if he drives the last two races the way he drove in Japan.”
Both leading contenders have struggled for consistency in the final run to the title, with Massa finishing seventh in Japan and failing to score in the previous race in Singapore due to a team blunder at his first pitstop.
Renault’s Fernando Alonso, the double world champion who was Hamilton’s team mate and foe at McLaren in 2007, has won the last two races.
Hamilton had scored 107 points by this stage last year but currently leads with just 84.
Whoever wins the title will end up with the lowest overall tally by a champion since Ferrari’s now-retired Michael Schumacher triumphed with 93 points in 2003.
“If Lewis keeps a cool head, then he’ll be fine. I think he will get the job done,” Hill, Britain’s last champion with Williams in 1996, told BBC radio.
“There is no question about his speed or ability, he just needs to stay cool and let it happen.
“Lewis is impatient to win that first title but you can’t force it.
“It is a mark of Lewis’s career that he’s always been very keen to get the job done and move on, and you need that impatience. But it can sometimes trip you up if you’re not wary.”