A Frenchman may have moved into pole position for a Virgin race seat in 2012.
Reporting that Jerome d’Ambrosio’s seat is in danger, the Belgian newspaper De Morgen this month said Charles Pic, fourth in this year’s GP2 series, has “more money” from his sponsors to spend next year.

Pic, 21, is also in talks with Toro Rosso about next month’s Abu Dhabi young driver test, team boss Franz Tost revealed last week.

But it was in the column of French commentator Jean-Louis Moncet that Pic’s links with 1996 Monaco winner Olivier Panis were revealed.

Pic is working with “his mentor” Panis through the Lagardere management outfit, and Moncet reveals that officials made a “very important working visit” to Suzuka recently.

“The Virgin team could soon announce the arrival of Charles Pic as a race driver for 2012,” said Moncet in his Auto Plus blog.

Lewis Hamilton’s split with pop star girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger will make him a better man and driver.
That is the claim of the 2008 world champion’s father, following the news that Pussycat Dolls singer Scherzinger and Hamilton, 26, have parted after a four-year relationship.

The split would explain Hamilton’s foul mood in Korea just over a week ago, towards the end of arguably the Briton’s worst ever season in his professional career.

But Anthony Hamilton, despite no longer managing his son’s career, indicated the McLaren driver is now steering onto the right track.

“He’s turned a corner in everything he’s done, his life, his loves and his love of motor sport. Next year is going to be interesting,” he is quoted as saying by the Mirror.

“You’ve only seen a young Lewis Hamilton. Now Lewis Hamilton the man is coming,” added Hamilton Snr.

Bernie Ecclestone has accused Indycar of playing with drivers’ lives by organising “wrestling”-style races.
Briton Dan Wheldon was killed just over a week ago in a 15-car crash at Las Vegas speedway, a 1.5-mile oval whose event boasted Indy 500-like speeds.

“We would never have let that race take place in Las Vegas last week,” F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone told the Daily Mail.

“With 34 cars racing on a 1.5-mile oval track, they were heading for disaster.”

Wheldon started the race dead last and, in an Indycar season finale gimmick, he stood to share a $5 million prize with a fan if he carved through the field and won.

At the time of his crash, he had already passed ten cars.

“It made the race a little like all-in wrestling — with a high risk attachment,” said Ecclestone, referring to British no-holds-barred professional wrestling.

“While our sympathies lie with Dan’s family, the whole episode has not been good for motor sport in general.”

The cracks in the unity of the formula one teams association FOTA are continuing to show.
After talks broke down in Japan just over a week ago, the next round of meetings will take place in Abu Dhabi next month.

The main bone of contention is the cost-limiting resource restriction agreement, with some teams – but primarily Red Bull – suspected of swerving around the gentleman’s pact.

A recent audit by a company called Capgemini involved visits to the Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari, Mercedes, Sauber and Williams factories.

Auto Motor und Sport reports that after the visit to the unnamed ‘Team 4′, the auditors had to write the words “no information” in almost every column.

“The allegations will only stop when all the teams agree to any inspection,” Mercedes’ Ross Brawn is quoted as saying.

The concern is that FOTA will have to abandon the resource restriction agreement amid turbulent economic times, or even fold the Geneva-based organisation altogether.

Red Bull chiefs last week dismissed the allegations as “gamesmanship”.

“This year it has moved away from the car to the RRA (agreement) which gets a little bit boring after a while,” team boss Christian Horner is quoted by the Guardian.

“It is almost inevitable within the sport that there are those areas of gamesmanship.”

 Bernie Ecclestone has admitted he would welcome Max Mosley back to the FIA presidency.
The F1 chief executive told Germany’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper that coming out in opposition to his long-time fellow F1 powerbroker amid the 2008 scandal ranks among his biggest ever regrets.

“One of the worst things I’ve done in my life – and for which I am ashamed – is to not defend Max Mosley when he had his big problems. There’s no excuse,” said Ecclestone.

The 80-year-old is referring to his call for Mosley to step down as pressure rose in the wake of the then FIA president’s sex scandal involving sadomasochism and prostitutes.

“I made the mistake because so many people – executives and decision-makers from big companies and banks – convinced me that Max must go in the circumstances,” Ecclestone explained.

He said his own opinion of the sex affair was that it was “purely private” and “nothing to do with formula one”.

“But I was influenced very strongly and badly not to support him. I have apologised personally to Max and also publicly before the FIA World Council,” added the Briton.

The FIA is now headed by former Ferrari boss Jean Todt, and it is known that Ecclestone is not a fan.

“I have nothing against the present incumbent, Jean Todt, but I would welcome Max’s return,” insisted Ecclestone.

Another hurdle has been mounted ahead of India’s troubled preparation for its inaugural grand prix.
Amid talk the new Buddh circuit is barely ready for this weekend’s race, the Indian supreme court last week ordered that a quarter of the proceeds of the ticket sales be withheld over a tax dispute.

But the latest dispute could cost organisers Jaypee crucial national media coverage, and worryingly the row is with the sport’s powerful Formula One Management (FOM).

The Hindustan Times reports that Indian television channels are threatening to boycott covering the event because of FOM’s restrictive access to the race feed.

Jaypee’s communications boss Askari Zaidi warned reporters that they must cover the race.

“When they signed their accreditation form, they agreed to the terms and conditions, so I expect them to cover the event,” he said.

He added that FOM is so restrictive when it comes to the television feed that even Jaypee, the promoter of the event and owner of the circuit, was denied access.

“We requested them to allow us to bring in cameras, but were refused. Even after we asked them to look into the matter, they refused, saying we could only buy a one minute feed of the race,” said Zaidi.

It has been a troubled build-up for the Indian race, but motor sport clubs of India president Vicky Chandhok insists the organisers will learn for the future.

“India has never hosted such a big event. It’s the largest ever,” he told the Times of India. “No IPL (cricket), no Commonwealth Games comes anywhere close to it.”

 Narain Karthikeyan insists he does not regret gambling his future on an abortive return to formula one in 2011.
The Indian was settling comfortably in the NASCAR system last year before the opportunity arose to take his sponsors back to formula one with the struggling HRT team.

But after Valencia in June, the now 34-year-old lost his seat to the Red Bull-backed Daniel Ricciardo, and is only now returning for a one-off drive this weekend in his native India.

Karthikeyan insists it was worth the gamble.

“F1 is the pinnacle of motor sport and it is definitely worth the sacrifices that I’ve made,” he told the Press Trust of India.

“The fact that (the) Indian GP was on the calendar did play a part in my decision to return to F1 despite my comfortable position in NASCAR last year.

“But (I have) no regrets, I didn’t want to think ‘What if?’,” added Karthikeyan, who made his debut with Jordan in 2005 and has also been a Williams test driver.

He reveals that he did not consider returning to NASCAR when he lost his full-time F1 seat in June.

“I have been completely dedicated to F1 this year so I didn’t have any thoughts of going back,” said Karthikeyan. “The circumstances were difficult but I was assured that I’d be driving the Indian GP which was certainly encouraging.”

Formula one teams have appointed a company to assess the sport’s media value ahead of crucial negotiations over the next Concorde Agreement.
The confidential agreement is set to expire at the end of next year, and the Financial Times reports that the teams – currently still united in their FOTA alliance – are “anxious to secure a larger share” of formula one’s income.

To that end, they have reportedly hired Evolution Media Capital, a boutique investment bank, to value F1′s media rights before signing the new Concorde.

“This sport is probably the second or third largest in the world and the teams who take all the financial risk receive a minority share of the revenues,” said a source.

“There is so much value that these guys are sitting on that they are not realising.”

Evolution Media Capital, reportedly to also look into the value of F1′s “new media” impact, did not comment.

The company, affiliated with Hollywood talent agency Creative Artists Agency, has reportedly advised on the recent sale of the Philadelphia 76ers basketball team and other sports deals worth billions.

The new Concorde negotiations will surely follow the high profile corruption trial of former F1 banker Gerhard Gribkowsky, which begins in Munich on Monday.

“It’s going to be fascinating,” said Liverpool University professor Tom Cannon, a formula one finance expert.

“(Bernie) Ecclestone has found ways of resolving conflicts before they got to court; this time, he hasn’t managed to,” he told Bloomberg.

 Karun Chandhok and his father on Sunday insisted they still do not know if the Indian will be on the inaugural Buddh grid in seven days.
Team Lotus boss Tony Fernandes has said consistently he would like to see the reserve driver contest his home grand prix, but it seems Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen are firmly under contract to race at every opportunity.

“You will definitely see me in Friday’s practice session and there I will definitely give my best,” the Press Trust of India quotes Karun Chandhok as saying.

“But for the rest of the two days, we will have to wait and see.

“It’s a complicated thing because there are contractual complexities as the team has to honour the two contracted race drivers. But from my side I would love to race,” he added.

“Tony Fernandes has said many times that he would love to see it happen. But at the end of the day, one has to understand that F1 is a business.”

Chandhok’s father, federation of motor sports club of India president Vicky Chandhok, was also asked on Sunday if his son will be on the grid next week.

“That’s a question which Karun and Team Lotus have to answer … He has proved himself in Korea, but the question is beyond me,” he said.

At 14:56 the announcement: Marco Simoncelli , following the tragic accident during the second lap of the race for the MotoGP at Sepang, has died. In the 2008 250cc World Champion Marco Simoncelli was engaged for two years in MotoGP with Team San Carlo Honda Gresini a contract renewed for next season, HRC rider.

During his career, “SuperSic” has won 14 victories, 31 podiums, 15 poles, 2 this year in the top class in Barcelona and Assen.

By all the staff at BIKEracing.it, my deepest condolences to the family of Mark, his friends and all the members of Team San Carlo Honda Gresini.

Bernie Ecclestone is confident formula one remains ahead of the pack in terms of safety.
The F1 chief executive was speaking after the death of Indycar driver Dan Wheldon in Las Vegas last week, and before Italian MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli was killed on Sunday in a sickening crash at Sepang.

“What a horrible week for our sport,” said Team Lotus reserve driver Karun Chandhok late on Sunday.

Added his boss Tony Fernandes on Twitter: “People forget how dangerous a sport racing is.”

Ecclestone told the Daily Mail that he is confident this weekend’s racing in India will prove F1′s safety record, with the sport not recording a driver fatality since 1994.

“In formula one we do everything possible to secure the safety of the drivers and the spectators,” he told the Daily Mail.

As recently as two weeks ago, Bernie Ecclestone feared the inaugural Indian grand prix might have to be called off.

The F1 chief executive and other officials have sworn for months that, contrary to eyewitness reports and speculation, the new Buddh circuit would be ready for its late October race date.

But Ecclestone told the Guardian on Saturday: “I was pessimistic a fortnight ago. I was sent pictures of the track and I thought Christ, we’re not going to get it finished in time.

“But what they have done in the meantime – and I’ve been sent more recent pictures – is incredible.”

Added HRT’s Indian driver Narain Karthikeyan, who has been in Delhi this week: “There is still some work being done on the landscaping but everyone is working 24-7 to make sure everything will be fine on the day.”

(Yalla F1) Twenty years ago, on October 20th 1991, Ayrton Senna won his third world championship in Japan, bringing joy to millions of fans all over the world as he did so.

The overcoming of such great challenges and the intense battles fought out on track throughout that great season make up part of the Brazilian driver´s legendary figure, whose shine remains strong to this day.

Now, for the first time fans will have the chance to virtually relive the Senna experience racing to the limits on race tracks around the world, as Reiza Studios is proud to announce a partnership with the Ayrton Senna Institute to develop a new Game for Windows – PC.

With the recently released Game Stock Car, the Brazilian developer has already demonstrated its capacity to combine professional level simulation with first-class gameplay, in order to create the most realistic and immersive racing games.

The new project will see Reiza going beyond, combining a brand new Game engine with a meticulous research process – passion and technical perfectionism in the best Senna style, to recreate in all its details a magic era in racing, when Ayrton wrote his history

The new Reiza project will also have a social purpose, as part of the revenue will be destined to the various educational programs developed by the Ayrton Senna Institute all over Brazil, which every year benefits over 2 million children and youngsters with quality public education.

The Ayrton Senna Game is currently under development and is predicted to be released at the end of 2012.

He reached his teammate Casey Stoner in the computation of the poles in his career won the World Championship in three classes (37). A great result for Pedrosa , back in pole position, the second of the season after Brno, this time with the stated goal of winning a victory to mortgage the third position in the league. With these conditions evidence, by his own admission, will not be easy …

” It ‘was a very difficult session, it was very hot, I could hardly breathe inside my helmet , “says Dani Pedrosa. ” At first I slipped and I did not expect this. Luckily we were able to return to the track, solve problems and win the second pole position this season.

I think it was possible to improve again, but unfortunately on my last run I met the traffic. However, it’s nice to be back on pole and I hope that our race pace is just as competitive. We must continue the work of setting up the bike and choose the right tire to face a tough race, because here our rivals are very competitive.

Will no doubt be a tough race especially as weather conditions will test your fitness level, I hope to stay focused and to repeat today’s result although opponents will not fail . “