Paul di Resta is expected to sit down with Force India this week to discuss his role with the team for 2011.
The new DTM champion served as the Silverstone based outfit's reserve and Friday driver in 2010, and is a contender for a race seat next year.
Team Lotus' new car is heading for a launch in January, chief executive Riad Asmat has revealed.
Amid the naming and livery dispute with new F1 competitor Group Lotus, Asmat insists the confusion is not affecting the progress of the T127 car's successor.
Renault have revealed the first genuine photographs of their current R30 F1 car in the new 2011 Lotus livery.
It has a black-and-gold design similar to that which Tony Fernandes’s Lotus Racing team also intends to use in 2011, harking back to the John Player Special Lotuses of the 1970s and 1980s.
Renault announced this morning it will be sponsored by Lotus Cars in 2011, who have also invested in the team.
Group Lotus on Wednesday finally unveiled its collaboration for 2011 and beyond with the Renault F1 team.
It had been expected that the famous British sports car maker, now owned by Malaysia's Proton, would tie up with Renault either in the form of a title sponsorship or by actually buying some of the Enstone based team.
Rubens Barrichello has revealed he has been asked to lose some weight ahead of the 2011 season.
Prior to the introduction of KERS systems in 2009, many drivers slimmed down to counteract the additional weight.
Ferrari has confirmed that 2010 was Luca Badoer's last year as test driver.
The almost 40-year-old Italian has been in the role since the late 90s, reportedly accumulating more than 130,000 kilometres at Fiorano in Ferrari's F1 cars during that period.
MINI's Kris Meeke says Dani Sordo would be a welcome addition to the team when it makes its debut in next year's World Rally Championship.
Sordo, from Spain, has tested MINI’s Countryman WRC with a view to driving for the UK-based squad next season. Although Sordo’s plans for 2011 have yet to be finalised, MINI is one of the 27-year-old’s main options after his contract with the factory Citroen team expired.
Michael Schumacher has set out his stall for a much more competitive car in 2011.
After three years of retirement, the 41-year-old struggled this year alongside his younger teammate Nico Rosberg, but neither were able to win with the W01.
Jerome d'Ambrosio is on the verge of securing his Formula One race debut.
The 24-year-old completed the 2010 season as Virgin's Friday morning driver in the place of Brazilian rookie Lucas di Grassi.
Lotus has not changed its mind about running a KERS system in 2011.
In May this year, team boss Tony Fernandes said the Norfolk-based team had "good reasons" to build the 2010 car's successor without the energy recovery technology.
Proton intends to push ahead with a partial takeover of the Enstone based Formula One team Renault.
Previously, it was believed the Malaysian carmaker was only in talks over a potential title sponsorship, with Renault F1 to be renamed after the Proton-owned British sports car maker Group Lotus.
The Ducati Team Manager discusses the 2010 campaign with Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden and also previews 2011 in a video feature interview.
Vittoriano Guareschi reviewed his first season as Team Manager of the Ducati factory team in a special post-season interview, which can be viewed in the attached video, discussing the 2010 campaigns of Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden.
Felipe Massa has denied that he is under any pressure to restore his reputation in 2011, despite his difficult 2010 season, and pointed out that he had held on to his Ferrari drive for five years despite regular rumours about his future.
The Brazilian was overshadowed by his new team-mate Fernando Alonso this year, finishing 108 points behind the Spaniard in the standings. With 2009 having been spoilt by Ferrari's lack of competitiveness and his head injury, Massa has now gone over two years without a race win.
Formula1 | Massa denies 2011 is 'make or break' | motorsarena.co.ccDaniel Ricciardo will drive for Toro Rosso in Friday practice sessions at all grands prix in 2011, the team has announced.
The Australian, a product of Red Bull's driver development system, was already a reserve for both Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso, and dominated the recent Abu Dhabi rookie test for the former team.
With blue skies finally appearing over the Circuito de Jerez, Marc Marquez got his first taste of Moto2 while Scott Redding went to hospital following a crash
Official Suter test rider Damien Cudlin was the first to go out at just after 10:30 local time. The Australian did 48 laps on the Suter MVDS MotoGP bike, with a best time of 1’45.5. Carmelo Morales, fresh from winning the CEV Moto2 championship, also tested for Suter Racing, doing 15 laps in the afternoon.
Toro Rosso has a long winter of hard work ahead if it is to improve on its ninth place in the constructors' standings, reckons team boss Franz Tost.
Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari had just eight points finishes between them in 2010, and Tost says the team needs to make improvements if the pair are to be more competitive in 2011.
With conditions consistently overcast, testing carried on through the afternoon, with a few more riders opting to get out onto the damp track.
Tom Luthi (Interwetten Moto2) and Andrea Iannone (WTR/Speed Master Team), did 10 and 35 laps respectively on their new bikes, with Iannone recording the best unofficial Moto2 time of 1’57.6. Both teams have been working to reconfirm their base settings on the Suter chassis which they first tested in Valencia.
Adrian Sutil has confirmed his manager's claim this week that he is set to stay with the Force India team in 2011.
The German's manager Manfred Zimmerman said on Monday that his charge has agreed a new deal with the Silverstone based team but not yet signed an actual contract.
Dietrich Mateschitz has invited Sebastian Vettel to sign a long-term contract guaranteeing him a competitive car each season.
New world champion Vettel remains under contract only to the end of next year, and last week he nominated Ferrari and Mercedes as "the past, present and certainly the future of Formula One".
"But this (move) is still a long way away," he wrote in a column for Bild newspaper.
Red Bull mogul Mateschitz thinks Red Bull is safe so long as it continues to deliver the young German a top car.
"If not, we would let him go even if he had a contract," he told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.
And Mateschitz told the Cologne tabloid Express: "Seb wants to drive for Ferrari some day. We will make it as difficult a decision for him as possible."
Dr Helmut Marko stood on the podium with Vettel in Abu Dhabi, and even he admits that the lure of Ferrari for a F1 driver is strong.
But the Austrian does not think the Italian team will want to "hurt" Fernando Alonso by pitting the Spaniard against Vettel any time soon.
"We all know the political sensitivities at Ferrari. And he (Vettel) has seen with us that he has a comfort factor.
"He needs a team that doesn't throw a knife in your back at the sign of trouble," said Marko, Red Bull's motor racing consultant.
"Let's be clear: there is not going to be a ten-year contract, because we are not able to guarantee we will have a competitive car for that long. And Sebastian cannot guarantee that he will always be comfortable with us.
"But in the medium term, the next three or four years, we are firmly planning to be with him," he revealed.
A month before Christmas, F1 teams and drivers have retired to consider the impact of the sport's new sole tyre supplier.
The 2010 grid got its first taste of new partner Pirelli's recent development efforts with a two-day test in Abu Dhabi.
Paying particular attention were drivers like Felipe Massa and Michael Schumacher, who notably struggled with departed Bridgestone's tyres this year.
Schumacher's Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg raised alarm bells when, asked to compare Pirelli with Bridgestone after his running on Friday, he used words like "worse", "weaker" and "slower".
Massa, however, set Friday's best time and said he was happy, while Schumacher was cautious.
"We were using the 2010 car," he said on Saturday after almost matching pacesetter Fernando Alonso's best time, "and it will be all about how these tyres suit our 2011 car."
But Brazil's Agencia Estado quoted him as sounding more positive.
"These are not the final tyres but the ones I used today seemed to suit my style a bit more, especially the fronts," said Schumacher.
Toro Rosso's Sebastien Buemi also noticed some key differences compared with Bridgestone.
"We did our best start of the year!" the Swiss enthused to Auto Hebdo when talking about his first impression of the Pirellis.
"You can also brake very hard and very late. On acceleration, the traction is poor and you lose a lot of grip, and the wear also seems higher.
"And on a long run the soft tyres wore much less than the hard tyres. In my opinion, they (Pirelli) made a mistake and they've already said they'll change it.
"The front tyres are good. They respond well," added Buemi.
To Agencia Estado, Williams' Rubens Barrichello concurred: "The front of the car grips a little more than the rear."
Said Pirelli's Paul Hembery: "According to what we have learned in Abu Dhabi, we will change the compounds, but not the construction."
And he added: "The drivers especially enjoyed the performance of our front tyre, which is an area that we have worked on considerably."
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Mark Webber | RBR-Renault | 70 | Winner | 2 | 25 |
| 2 | 8 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 70 | +17.8 secs | 3 | 18 |
| 3 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | RBR-Renault | 70 | +19.2 secs | 1 | 15 |
| 4 | 7 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 70 | +27.4 secs | 4 | 12 |
| 5 | 12 | Vitaly Petrov | Renault | 70 | +73.1 secs | 7 | 10 |
| 6 | 10 | Nico Hulkenberg | Williams-Cosworth | 70 | +76.7 secs | 10 | 8 |
| 7 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 69 | +1 Lap | 9 | 6 |
| 8 | 1 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 69 | +1 Lap | 11 | 4 |
| 9 | 23 | Kamui Kobayashi | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 69 | +1 Lap | 23 | 2 |
| 10 | 9 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams-Cosworth | 69 | +1 Lap | 12 | 1 |
| 11 | 3 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 69 | +1 Lap | 14 | |
| 12 | 16 | Sebastien Buemi | STR-Ferrari | 69 | +1 Lap | 15 | |
| 13 | 15 | Vitantonio Liuzzi | Force India-Mercedes | 69 | +1 Lap | 16 | |
| 14 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen | Lotus-Cosworth | 67 | +3 Laps | 19 | |
| 15 | 18 | Jarno Trulli | Lotus-Cosworth | 67 | +3 Laps | 20 | |
| 16 | 24 | Timo Glock | Virgin-Cosworth | 67 | +3 Laps | 18 | |
| 17 | 21 | Bruno Senna | HRT-Cosworth | 67 | +3 Laps | 22 | |
| 18 | 25 | Lucas di Grassi | Virgin-Cosworth | 66 | +4 Laps | 21 | |
| 19 | 20 | Sakon Yamamoto | HRT-Cosworth | 66 | +4 Laps | 24 | |
| Ret | 2 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 23 | +47 Laps | 5 | |
| Ret | 11 | Robert Kubica | Renault | 23 | +47 Laps | 8 | |
| Ret | 4 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 15 | +55 Laps | 6 | |
| Ret | 14 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Mercedes | 15 | +55 Laps | 13 | |
| Ret | 17 | Jaime Alguersuari | STR-Ferrari | 1 | +69 Laps | 17 |
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Time/Retired | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | RBR-Renault | 1:20.087 | ||
| 2 | 8 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:20.584 | 0.497 | |
| 3 | 6 | Mark Webber | RBR-Renault | 1:20.597 | 0.510 | |
| 4 | 7 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:20.986 | 0.899 | |
| 5 | 12 | Vitaly Petrov | Renault | 1:21.195 | 1.108 | |
| 6 | 2 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:21.308 | 1.221 | |
| 7 | 11 | Robert Kubica | Renault | 1:21.375 | 1.288 | |
| 8 | 10 | Nico Hulkenberg | Williams-Cosworth | 1:21.623 | 1.536 | |
| 9 | 1 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:21.730 | 1.643 | |
| 10 | 3 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 1:21.773 | 1.686 | |
| 11 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 1:21.809 | 1.722 | |
| 12 | 9 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams-Cosworth | 1:21.844 | 1.757 | |
| 13 | 4 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 1:22.039 | 1.952 | |
| 14 | 23 | Kamui Kobayashi | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 1:22.212 | 2.125 | |
| 15 | 17 | Jaime Alguersuari | STR-Ferrari | 1:22.469 | 2.382 | |
| 16 | 14 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Mercedes | 1:22.507 | 2.420 | |
| 17 | 16 | Sebastien Buemi | STR-Ferrari | 1:22.602 | 2.515 | |
| 18 | 15 | Vitantonio Liuzzi | Force India-Mercedes | 1:23.138 | 3.051 | |
| 19 | 18 | Jarno Trulli | Lotus-Cosworth | 1:24.553 | 4.466 | |
| 20 | 24 | Timo Glock | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:25.376 | 5.289 | |
| 21 | 25 | Lucas di Grassi | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:25.669 | 5.582 | |
| 22 | 21 | Bruno Senna | HRT-Cosworth | 1:26.745 | 6.658 | |
| 23 | 20 | Sakon Yamamoto | HRT-Cosworth | 1:26.798 | 6.711 | |
| 24 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen | Lotus-Cosworth | 1:27.705 | 7.618 |
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Time/Retired | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | RBR-Renault | 1:20.976 | 29 | |
| 2 | 6 | Mark Webber | RBR-Renault | 1:21.106 | 0.130 | 27 |
| 3 | 11 | Robert Kubica | Renault | 1:22.072 | 1.096 | 21 |
| 4 | 1 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:22.444 | 1.468 | 17 |
| 5 | 9 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams-Cosworth | 1:22.601 | 1.625 | 25 |
| 6 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 1:22.764 | 1.788 | 24 |
| 7 | 8 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:22.772 | 1.796 | 25 |
| 8 | 4 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 1:22.777 | 1.801 | 25 |
| 9 | 3 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 1:22.792 | 1.816 | 26 |
| 10 | 10 | Nico Hulkenberg | Williams-Cosworth | 1:22.966 | 1.990 | 25 |
| 11 | 14 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Mercedes | 1:23.003 | 2.027 | 19 |
| 12 | 7 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:23.007 | 2.031 | 26 |
| 13 | 12 | Vitaly Petrov | Renault | 1:23.249 | 2.273 | 24 |
| 14 | 23 | Kamui Kobayashi | BMW Sauber-Ferrari | 1:23.327 | 2.351 | 23 |
| 15 | 15 | Paul di Resta | Force India-Mercedes | 1:23.520 | 2.544 | 19 |
| 16 | 16 | Sebastien Buemi | STR-Ferrari | 1:23.780 | 2.804 | 22 |
| 17 | 17 | Jaime Alguersuari | STR-Ferrari | 1:23.868 | 2.892 | 28 |
| 18 | 2 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:24.075 | 3.099 | 15 |
| 19 | 18 | Jarno Trulli | Lotus-Cosworth | 1:25.032 | 4.056 | 22 |
| 20 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen | Lotus-Cosworth | 1:25.210 | 4.234 | 23 |
| 21 | 24 | Timo Glock | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:25.990 | 5.014 | 21 |
| 22 | 25 | Lucas di Grassi | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:26.686 | 5.710 | 17 |
| 23 | 21 | Bruno Senna | HRT-Cosworth | 1:26.990 | 6.014 | 34 |
| 24 | 20 | Sakon Yamamoto | HRT-Cosworth | 1:28.157 | 7.181 | 24 |
