Adrian Sutil on Monday warned he might walk away from Force India before the team has decided its 2012 driver lineup.
Reports in recent days have suggested team boss Vijay Mallya has already settled on pairing Paul di Resta alongside Nico Hulkenberg next season.

That would leave the experienced German Sutil out in the cold, but the 28-year-old has been spotted recently at Williams’ Grove headquarters.

Mallya has said Force India’s 2012 drivers will not be announced until very late this year.

“I can’t wait until December,” Indian media reports quote Sutil as saying.

“I will speak to him soon and see what his ideas are. I don’t need to wait so long for a seat.

“I think I know what I can do, so I don’t feel insecure,” he added.

Nico Rosberg has hinted strongly that he intends to stay at Mercedes GP beyond the expiry of his current contract.
The German’s current deal reportedly runs to the end of next season, but boss Norbert Haug has revealed he intends to keep the current team together beyond 2012.

Asked if the talks are already taking place, Rosberg told Germany’s T-Online: “Yes, they are.

“We have talked about a long-term commitment as I feel very comfortable in the team. It is a great project. I don’t want to go into more detail than that.”

When asked if he is also “actively” looking for possible opportunities with other teams, Rosberg insisted: “Actively, no.”

Rosberg was also asked about his countryman and new back to back world champion Sebastian Vettel’s 2011 season, with the interviewer describing it as “flawless”.

“Flawless? I’ve had a season like that, too,” said the German. “I have made very, very few mistakes.

“The same as last year. I have driven very consistently but it’s not so obvious because we are driving further behind.”

He is also expecting Red Bull to be ahead of the pack in 2012.

“They have a head-start, obviously,” said Rosberg. “We need to catch up and that will take some time.”

Finally, he denied that the constant questions about his teammate Michael Schumacher are “annoying”.

“That’s not the right word. It’s just that I have to talk about it all the time. They (the questions) always used to be about my father, now they’re about Michael Schumacher.

“I’m used to it now,” smiled Rosberg.

A young Swiss is paying handsomely to test Sauber’s 2011 car next month.
The Hinwil based team announced last week that 22-year-old Fabio Leimer will get a day at the wheel of the Ferrari-powered C30 during mid November’s Abu Dhabi young driver test.

“We are pleased we can offer Fabio this opportunity,” said team boss Monisha Kaltenborn.

But according to the Swiss newspaper Blick, Sauber might also be pleased to be banking hundreds of thousands of euros.

GP2 driver Leimer was at Sauber’s Swiss factory on Monday for a seat fitting.

There, he confirmed: “Yes, we have had to pay for this test. That’s just the way it is in formula one, but first you have to be in the position to do so.”

Leimer would not reveal how much the Sauber ride is costing, but Blick said Toro Rosso is selling its Abu Dhabi test day – probably to Frenchman Charles Pic – for EUR 200,000.

“So with Sauber, the amount is probably in the hundreds of thousands,” said reporter Stefan Meier.

One of Robert Kubica’s doctors has revealed that the Pole is already driving a road car and preparing to step imminently behind the wheel of a much faster vehicle.
F1′s well-known Dr Ricciardo Ceccarelli sparked pessimism about Kubica’s 2012 return last week when he said the 26-year-old will have to spend “a few more months” in rehabilitation.

That would likely race him long past Renault’s deadline as the team presses ahead with deciding its next driver lineup.

But Kubica’s hand surgeon Igor Rossello has told Polish radio Trojce this week that the driver “has recovered; he can move and lift with all his fingers.

“We can now think about getting him back as soon as possible into a car. Sorry, into a racing car, because he is already in a (road) car.

“His recovery is a miracle but the unknown thing is whether he will be able to be as fast.

“We still have to do a small intervention for improving the mobility of his wrist, as with this type of accident the hand is never as flexible as it was before. Then it will take a lot of exercise.

“But he will be able to drive his formula one car again and press all the buttons — we’re talking about a racing driver, not a pianist,” added Rossello.

“I look at him and I can’t stop wondering how well it has all gone; all the breaks and the wounds have healed, the only question is whether he will drive as he did before.

“He will have some limitations; remember that we considered amputation.

“But that (whether he is fast enough) will be assessed by the (F1) specialists. We have done our job perfectly.”

For only the second time in 2011, there will be two separate DRS zones in use this weekend.
The debut of two independent DRS detection and activation points was at the Monza race in September.

Now, Pastor Maldonado’s race engineer Xevi Pujolar has revealed that there will be two separate DRS zones in India, even though the news is “not official yet”.

The detection zone for the first zone will be at the exit of turn 15, with chasing drivers then able to pass down the pit straight.

The second zone’s detection point will be on entry to turn 3, with activation between turns 3 and 4, according to the Spanish website caranddriverthef1.com.

Sepang will look into the safety of the Malaysian grand prix venue following Sunday’s death of MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli.
The Italian, whose helmet came off during the incident, died in Malaysia after he partially fell from his Honda and was struck from behind by rivals Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards.

Sepang, built ahead of its 1999 debut, also hosts F1′s annual Malaysian round.

Circuit chairman Mokhzani Mahathir told AFP it is a “safe track”.

“It is a sad and unfortunate racing accident but the circuit is designed to the highest safety levels,” he said.

“(The) accident was beyond anybody’s control or expectation.”

He added however that officials will look into whether safety can be improved at Sepang.

“We will see from it (the investigation) if there is anything we could have done differently,” said Mokhzani.

Also referring to Dan Wheldon’s recent death, Force India driver Adrian Sutil told reporters in India on Monday that “everybody knows” MotoGP and Indycar are more dangerous than F1.

“I can say that formula one is pretty safe and secure,” said the German.

The addition of a second American formula one race will not affect the state funding of the 2012 US grand prix.
That is the claim of Texas comptroller Susan Combs, amid speculation the New York street race set for 2013 could endanger the $25m annually set aside for Austin’s separate event on a purpose-built circuit.

“The New Jersey race has no bearing on the Austin race,” said a spokesperson for Combs, according to the local American Statesman newspaper.

The spokesperson clarified that the funding would only be endangered if two events were scheduled in Texas.

But lawyer Bill Aleshire, an opponent of the Austin race, does not agree.

He said in a letter that the Circuit of the Americas will be “disqualified” from the state funding now that New York is also headed to the F1 schedule.

“By our state law, the Texas tax kickback is available if Texas has the only F1 US grand prix,” he wrote.

The Circuit of the Americas declined to comment.

 Team Lotus will contest the Indian grand prix with its regular driver lineup, the BBC said on Tuesday.
Reserve driver and Indian native Karun Chandhok had been hoping to move into the race cockpit this weekend but had flagged issues relating to Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen’s 2011 contracts.

It is also believed the Tony Fernandes-led team does not want to jeopardise its lucrative tenth place in the constructors’ standings.

Chandhok told the Press Trust of India on Sunday: “You will definitely see me in Friday’s practice session and there I will definitely give my best.”

Bernie Ecclestone could be sued at the conclusion of former F1 banker Gerhard Gribkowsky’s corruption trial.
The trial, surrounding a multi million payment from the F1 chief executive to Gribkowsky amid the sport’s sale some years ago, began this week in Munich.

According to a British newspaper report, prosecutors say that if Gribkowsky is found guilty, the $44 million must be paid to BayernLB because the Munich bank owned the relevant share in F1′s commercial rights.

But as Ecclestone and his family trust have only been called as witnesses, the prosecutors would “have to sue Mr Ecclestone and the trust to recover the … shortfall suffered by BayernLB”, the Independent said.

But “it is hard see how this could succeed, given that the bank’s investigations showed that it agreed to the fee and other board members were aware of it”, wrote journalists Christian Sylt and Caroline Reid.

(Reuters) – IndyCar officials have begun an investigation into the cause of the 15-car crash that killed two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon, series boss Randy Bernard saying on Monday they need to understand what went wrong.

After attending Wheldon’s funeral in Florida on Saturday, many of the Briton’s fellow drivers were back in Indianapolis on Monday to meet with IndyCar officials for what was described as a frank discussion about driver safety.

“We must continue to move forward with a thorough investigation,” IndyCar CEO Bernard said in a statement. “Fortunately, that has already begun, and we have the protocols in place to get this done.

“This was a tragic accident, and IndyCar needs to understand everything possible about it.”

Phase one of the investigation, led by series safety and competition officials, has already begun and is expected to last several weeks.

An evaluation of the data will be used to make a factual determination of the circumstances surrounding the entire incident and the results handed over to an independent, third-party group for validation.

In the aftermath of the crash, which occurred during the opening laps of the IndyCar season-ending finale on October 16 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, drivers voiced concerns over several factors, including the safety-fencing that surrounds the oval and the number of cars and extreme speeds that produced dangerous “pack” racing.

Investigators will have access to data retrieved from the Accident Data Recorders (ADR) from all 15 cars involved in the accident.

The investigation will also include analysis of hours of photos and videos, including footage from in-car cameras and safety vehicles.

“We’re heading in the right direction,” said 2004 series champion Tony Kanaan. “(The meeting is) not something that is being done because something happened now. We set the standards. We’re just trying to make it better.

“What people have to understand is that we’re not going to make motor racing 100 percent safe. That’s the fact. We’re the lab and hopefully we can make it better, make it safer but we’ll never make it 100 per cent safe.”

By Steve Keating

F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone has long hoped to bring the world’s most lucrative motor sports championship to the New York City area and that will be realised as a deal was reached with a consortium of investors and city and state governments.

Formula One will unveil a New Jersey Grand Prix for the 2013 season, the mayor of West New York told Reuters on Monday.

New Jersey governor Chris Christie will announce the deal at a press conference in Weehawken, New Jersey, on Tuesday.

“This is going to be an economic boom for this whole region. While political and public servants talk about creating jobs, the governor has put the pedal to the metal and delivered,” West New York mayor Felix Roque told Reuters.

“This is the top of the line in motor racing, it’s incredible.”

The race will run along the Hudson River in Weehawken and West New York, according to Joe DeMarco, an attorney with West New York.

“It will provide a very challenging course – they compare it to Spa in Belgium, but will have the feel of Monaco,” said DeMarco, who added that the race will take place on a four-lane highway, two lanes in each direction.

The proposed course should offer easy access to New York city residents and visitors staying in central hotels.

DeMarco said that it was hoped the event would become a long-term part of the global F1 calendar.

“It has been contemplated to at least run for ten years but there are options and so on depending on the success of it,” said DeMarco. “Hopefully it will be a long term event, embraced by residents and the community.”

The US returns to the Formula One calendar next year with a stop in Austin, Texas, but the New Jersey race will provide a cost-effective way to twin the event with the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal.

F1 had previously held races in the state of New York at the track at Watkins Glen in Schuyler County, some 250 miles from New York City.

Watkins Glen International held the United States Grand Prix from 1961 to 1980 while F1 races have also been held at Long Beach in California, Las Vegas, Detroit, Dallas, Phoenix and Indianapolis.

The last F1 race in the US was held at Indianapolis in 2007 and was won by British McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton.

(reuters) According to Sauber chief executive Monisha Kaltenborn. Her Swiss-based team are sponsored by dairy company Amul for Sunday’s Delhi race and she suggested other Indian firms might also now see the sport as part of a bigger picture rather than just focusing on one or two local drivers at the slow end of the grid.

“In India, all these years, it’s been so difficult to get a sponsor from the country,” the Indian-born Kaltenborn told Reuters in an interview.

“India has got such big brands and the market is huge and still people have been very cautious to get into Formula One.

“It wasn’t that easy (for a team) to get a brand from India without having any link to a (local) driver. So I think it’s all the more remarkable a brand (like Amul) has done this and I hope a lot more will follow now,” added Kaltenborn.

Narain Karthikeyan is the only Indian to have scored points in Formula One, with the now-defunct Jordan team in 2005, and he will be back on the starting grid with struggling HRT for Sunday’s race at the Buddh International circuit.

While he has healthy support from industrial giants Tata and Hero Motors, Karthikeyan will still be languishing among the tailenders.

Spanish-owned HRT have yet to score a point since their debut in 2010 and Karthikeyan’s is likely to be a one-off home appearance after he was dropped to make way for Australian rookie Daniel Ricciardo.

Karun Chandhok, India’s other F1 driver, is now only a reserve at Team Lotus – also yet to score a point.

Sauber have Mexican Sergio Perez and Japan’s Kamui Kobayashi as their drivers and are battling against Force India for sixth place in the constructor championship.

Force India, owned by liquor and aviation tycoon Vijay Mallya along with Indian business conglomerate Sahara Group, do not have Indian drivers either.

“Maybe more (Indian companies) will follow that don’t necessarily just look for the link with the driver,” continued Kaltenborn, an Austrian citizen who is married to a German and lives in Switzerland.

“Here it’s the team, the people, the drivers, the key personnel. I think if one brand is prepared to associate themselves with the team, and a team name, I hope it gives others the kick as well to do that.”

Kaltenborn said the arrival of India on what is now a 19-race global calendar provided a direct link with the public for local companies to build on.

“Since cricket is so big (in India) it takes a lot now for a company to say ‘No, we choose the platform of Formula One’,” she said.

“Until there was a race there was not really a link to the sport. Now with the first race being staged there they have a direct link, they can use it in their prime market.

“It could be the start of something to attract more Indian partners into the sport.”

Many of those companies may not have products to sell outside India but the likes of Sauber are hoping they will wake up to what the sport can provide in increasing brand visibility to a growing domestic audience who watch the races on television.

Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel has already signed up for the race title sponsorship.

Kaltenborn, who was born in Dehradun and whose parents emigrated to Austria in 1979 when she was eight, looked forward to going to a race in a country where she had a personal as well as professional connection.

“I think it’s going to be really great,” she said.

“Suddenly the media attention and also from the people has just ramped up whereas half a year ago it was not that much. It has just suddenly come. I think that tells you what dimension this event is going to have.”

Karun Chandhok has advised F1′s travelling circus to take care this week in India.
Some team bosses recently played down fears about ‘Delhi belly’, but Team Lotus reserve driver Chandhok – a brand ambassador and also a consultant of the new Buddh circuit – has admitted some caution will be necessary.

He told the Swiss newspaper Blick: “The Indian culture will be a shock to many.

“It is organised chaos, maybe like a mixture of Brazil and Malaysia. It affects everything — the traffic, the food, our way of life. We are very loud, chaotic.

“From the moment you arrive you will experience this madness, which will surprise everyone but it also means India is a country with soul.

“Nothing is structured — if someone says 12.30, he means 1 or 2 o’clock. So then you could think of Italy,” he laughed.

Veteran Blick correspondent Roger Benoit asked Chandhok how F1′s travellers should prepare for their forthcoming adventure.

“Many will get vaccinated, yes, but you definitely need to be careful with food,” he answered.

“Only drink bottled water, don’t use ice, don’t eat salad. Only eat cooked food. This should mean you won’t have problems.”

The FIA is moving to clamp down even harder on the aerodynamic use of exhaust gases ahead of the 2012 season.
F1′s governing body had already announced the end of the so-called ‘blown diffuser’ era by dictating the positioning of the exhausts and limiting the allowable off-throttle engine maps for 2012.

But Italy’s Autosprint reports that, following fears the new rules could also have been exploited by teams, the FIA has “turned the screw” even tighter.

The Paris federation has reportedly said that the 2012 version of the software to electronically control the engine will be “even more limited” than was previously expected.

Williams’ new chief engineer Mark Gillan is quoted as saying: “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a year when there were no loopholes in the technical regulations.

“That is one of the most enjoyable aspects of our work — to seek out areas in which the rules are vague and can be exploited.”

Kimi Raikkonen may have now signed a contract to return to formula one with Williams in 2012.

The Finnish daily Ilta-Sanomat reveals that its source is the Monaco-domiciled former Simtek and Footwork driver Taki Inoue, a Japanese who last raced in F1 in 1995.

Inoue is apparently still well connected in formula one circles, given his efforts to advance the careers of several rising Japanese drivers.

Earlier this month, Ilta-Sanomat reported that the key to Raikkonen’s return to formula one was whether Williams could sign the Qatar National Bank as a major new sponsor.

Brazilian journalist Livio Oricchio wrote in O Estado de S.Paulo last Friday: “In recent days Frank Williams travelled to Arab states Qatar and Saudi Arabia.”

The beleaguered British team rose to the front of the grid some decades ago with Arab-linked sponsors including Saudia, TAG and Albilad.