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| quote: | Paddock Talk: Brawn under spotlight
Eurosport - Wed, 18 Mar 16:09:00 2009
Spain: Rubens Barrichello dismisses suggestions that Brawn GP has pulled clear of the F1 field in testing because the BGP001 contravenes rules governing weight and the rear diffuser. He told Marca: "You're asking are we legal? When someone is behind, it is easier to say that your rivals are breaking the rules than to do better work yourself. Our team is very much within the regulations."
Germany: McLaren bucks a trend which has seen many of Brawn's rivals, including Renault and Ferrari, level the accusations. "We accept the rule interpretation of the FIA," Norbert Haug told Express. "Therefore the solutions seen so far are legal."
Germany: The former Honda team's head Ross Brawn has been likened to Albert Einstein in a caricature by German newspaper Bild. "It will take the other teams some time to copy our ideas, if they manage to at all," he said.
Britain: The press have come down hard on FIA's decision to award the 2009 drivers' title to the driver with most race wins. The Guardian opined: "It would be a shame if, while encouraging drivers to do what they are paid handsomely to do by winning races, the FIA has adopted its own flawed scheme purely to snub the teams and keep them in line."
The Daily Mail, meanwhile, suggested anti-Britain motives: "It is a fact that, if the new system was retrospectively applied to the 2008 results, Felipe Massa would have won the title. Are grand prix bosses out to get (Lewis) Hamilton?"
France: The FIA has also introduced a voluntary budget cap following a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris. The annual limit, set at 33 million euros, is "an alternative to running under the existing rules", and allows teams greater technical freedom relating to the car's underbody, moveable wings and engines without rev limits or frozen development; plus no limits on testing during the season.
Britain: Bernie Ecclestone has ruled out a return to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix, even if that means the race disappears altogether. If Donington - which has a 10-year deal but faces construction problems - does not join the calendar as scheduled, their place will be awarded to another host nation. "We left there because I'm trying to improve facilities throughout the world, and when I get people to build new circuits to the standard which we're trying to reach, how can we go back to Silverstone?"
Germany: Meanwhile, the future of the loss-making German GP at Hockenheim will be decided next week. News agency SID reported that authorities have scheduled a meeting on March 25 to determine whether or not they should organise a race at the circuit in 2010. Currently the race alternates with the Nurburgring to minimise financial outlay.
South Africa: The commercial backing of South African province Gauteng has moved from Renault to BMW-Sauber ahead of the 2009 season. However, that does not mean the country is definitely set to return to the F1 calendar.
Spain: Pedro de la Rosa has said he will leave F1 at the end of 2009 if he does not return to a race cockpit. The Spaniard, who at 38 is the oldest driver in the sport, said the new test restrictions make a full-time test role untenable. "If I cannot race and I cannot even test, I will go to another category. Life does not end at Formula One," he told Spanish journalists.
Switzerland: Takuma Sato's manager has taken a parting shot at Red Bull. The Japanese driver tested several times over the winter for Red Bull's secondary team Toro Rosso but failed to secure a role even as a reserve driver. Andrew Gilbert-Scott told Motorsport Aktuell: "What they said and what happened often did not match up. I tried to arrange a discussion with (Red Bull founder) Dietrich Mateschitz, but he didn't want it. It was always 'get sponsors, get sponsors!' Everything was confusing, not open, disappointing. We are now looking at IRL or sports car projects in the United States."
Germany: BMW driver Nick Heidfeld has revealed he will not compromise on comfort despite the biting economic situation. "I know that many in the team have, for example. had their flights downgraded, and also their hotels. Obviously more attention is being paid to (expenses)," he told the DPA news. "(But) it doesn't affect me with the flights - because my contract states which class I fly."
Britain: A museum honouring David Coulthard will be shut down, curator Wendy McKenzie has confirmed. Four years ago Coulthard's sister Lynsay moved away from their birthplace Twynholm and passed on responsibilities to fan McKenzie. However, with the Scot now retired and set to act as a commentator for the BBC from 2009, interest has waned.
Finland: Heikki Kovalainen has bucked the trend among drivers this winter by putting on a significant amount of weight. Most of his rivals have shed kilos due to the introduction of heavy KERS systems, but the McLaren driver weighs nearly five kilos more than he did a year ago, according to newspaper Helsingin Sanomat, which reported he looked to put on more muscle mass.
Germany: Mark Webber fears Red Bull Racing has been left behind by its rivals ahead of the opening race in Australia. "The car did not feel bad, and that is the most alarming thing," Webber told Auto Motor und Sport. "The others have developed better than we have."
Britain: Frank Williams believes 2009 represents his team's best opportunity in a decade to re-establish itself amongst F1's front-runners - due to the sport's sweeping rule changes and cost-cutting initiatives.
Britain: Long-time McLaren team member Tyler Alexander, who worked with founder Bruce McLaren after joining the Woking squad in 1963 as a mechanic, is to retire this month. The American later served as chief engineer and a company director, with many years also spent on the US racing scene. |
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