Sebastian Vettel has admitted it is “difficult to judge” whether his friend Kimi Raikkonen will be at full speed when he returns to formula one next season.
The pair often meet near their Swiss homes to play badminton, but reigning world champion Vettel does not want to predict a smooth comeback for the 2007 world champion after two years in world rally.

“We have all seen Michael’s comeback,” the 24-year-old is quoted by France’s 20minutes.fr on a visit to Red Bull’s engine supplier Renault.

“He (Schumacher) left when he was at the top, but when he came back he said a lot had changed and that he needed time to adapt.

“If I think about the car I drove two years ago, so many things have changed,” said Vettel. “It’s amazing. Even during a season, new buttons appear on the steering wheel.

“I can imagine it would be very difficult to return straight away to the same level as before,” added the German.

Renault/Lotus boss Eric Boullier revealed on Tuesday that Raikkonen will soon be able to use the team’s new driver simulator, and get some laps under his belt in a two-year-old “demo car” before real testing begins in February.

But the former McLaren and Ferrari driver insisted on Tuesday that while his neck may be out of shape, his motivation is back at full power.

Britain’s Guardian wrote: “If he got fed up with driving a Ferrari … what will happen at Renault, a midfield outfit who are unlikely to be challenging the top teams next year?”

Mercedes’ Norbert Haug is quoted in German reports: “I look forward to seeing Kimi back if he is motivated, and that seems to be the case.”

 Kimi Raikkonen on Tuesday insisted he “never lost passion” for racing in formula one.
The 2007 world champion, who left F1 two years ago for world rallying and NASCAR, also denied he might not be sufficiently motivated ahead of his return to the sport with Lotus Renault in 2012.

“The main reason for coming back to F1 is I never lost the passion for racing except for maybe all the things around it,” the 32-year-old said.

The former McLaren and Ferrari driver explained that he began to think about a comeback whilst competing recently in NASCAR, when he got a feel for wheel-to-wheel combat after many contests merely “against the clock” in rally.

“I got a call from certain people in F1 and all sorts of things happened. In the end we managed to have a nice conversation with the people at Lotus Renault and made a deal.”

Mere days ago, Williams was the front-runner to secure the services of the 18-time grand prix winner.

“There was two options; this team and Williams and in the end everything worked out as we wanted with Lotus Renault GP,” said Raikkonen.

After leaving F1 at the end of 2009, the Finn – nicknamed ‘the Iceman’ – insisted he didn’t miss or follow the sport at all in 2010.

He said on Tuesday he watched F1 a “bit more” this season, including the last 20 laps of Sunday’s season finale at Interlagos.

“Because I knew that it (the deal) was going to happen so I watched how the team did but before I didn’t know that the deal would happen.”

Raikkonen revealed that he has been in specific training for his return for about a month, but thinks Pirelli’s tyres will be the main difference compared to the F1 he left in 2009.

“I don’t know if I’m different or not, it will be interesting to get back in the F1 (car) but I’m a few years older and nothing else has changed really.”

What about his motivation, which two years ago had seemed at a low?

“I wouldn’t come back if I wasn’t motivated,” insisted Raikkonen. “There’s always a lot of talk about it but nobody really knows what I do or what I think so I don’t really care what people say.

“I (will) enjoy to come back, I wouldn’t put my name in a contract if I wouldn’t think that I’d really enjoy it.”

 Kimi Raikkonen will return to formula one in 2012, the Lotus Renault GP team announced on Tuesday.
The former McLaren driver, 2007 world champion and winner of 18 grands prix, who left F1 after the 2009 season with Ferrari, has “signed a two-year agreement”, a media statement read.

“My time in the world rally championship has been a useful stage in my career as a driver, but I can’t deny the fact that my hunger for F1 has recently become overwhelming,” the 32-year-old Finn is quoted as saying.

With Austin’s 2012 US GP project all but dead, the first signs of construction at F1′s New York round for 2013 have emerged.
The car weblog Jalopnik published a photo by a New Jersey local: “It might just be the paddock/parking garage, located in exceedingly glamorous Weehawken, but it’s a start,” the report read.

But after Indianapolis left the calendar and the Texas bid hit the dust, obvious cynicism was evident in the report’s title ‘Construction has begun at America’s next failed F1 circuit’.

Indeed, the Texas project has little more than a single day remaining to sort out its contractual dispute with F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone.

According to the Associated Press, the 81-year-old “has set a Wednesday deadline” for the organisers “to guarantee (the race’s) long-term financial backing”.

 Heikki Kovalainen has added his denial to rumours he might return to the Renault (now Lotus) team in 2012.
Albeit under former boss Flavio Briatore’s management, the Finn made his debut for the Enstone based team in 2007, before switching first to McLaren and more recently to Team Lotus/Caterham.

He remains under contract to Caterham for next year, but speculation at Interlagos nonetheless linked him with a switch to Renault after it emerged injured team leader Robert Kubica is not yet ready to return.

“The list is long,” Renault team boss Eric Boullier is quoted by Spain’s Marca sports newspaper when asked about the driver candidates for 2012.

“There are also some drivers with other teams who have some provisions for breaking their contracts,” the Frenchman revealed. “So the list is quite long.”

But German reports quote Kovalainen as insisting: “I am bound to Lotus for next year. I’m sticking with Caterham.”

It is believed Boullier’s push for a clear team leader – and not just an interim solution – could be related to speculation that when Kubica does return to F1, it will not be with Renault.

“I need to understand if he (Kubica) is coming back and with a commitment of the medium term,” said Boullier.

“I will not put aside a car for him to test if he has signed an option to be elsewhere in 2013.”

Boullier’s counterpart Stefano Domenicali played down the Kubica/Ferrari link.

“We’ve been speaking about drivers for Ferrari since February last year,” the Italian insisted. “Maybe next year we’ll come back to (talking about) Valentino Rossi.”

 Despite losing his Virgin race seat, Jerome d’Ambrosio sounds confident about his future.
The Belgian will be replaced at the newly-renamed Marussia team for 2012 by the French GP2 driver Charles Pic.

It means Interlagos was 25-year-old d’Ambrosio’s last race for now.

“I finished on a high note with a great weekend; probably my best of the season,” he is quoted by French website toilef1.com.

He said he was told the bad news by his bosses when he arrived at the track on Thursday.

“I will not be with the team next year but the team was happy with my season,” said d’Ambrosio. “The new goal of course is to be here (in F1) next year.”

He is managed by the Gravity group, which is headed by Renault/Lotus boss Eric Boullier.

“Without saying any names, we have discussed various options,” said d’Ambrosio.

“My situation is the same as last year, except that I have done a very good season and I have not gone unnoticed in the paddock. So I have more credibility than before.

“I think a lot of things can still happen on the driver transfer market, so we’ll see what happens.”

 Daniel Ricciardo can expect to learn about his future in formula one before Christmas.
That is the claim of Red Bull Racing team boss Christian Horner.

In 2011, Australian rookie Ricciardo began the season as junior team Toro Rosso’s Friday driver before – still with Red Bull’s backing – moving into the HRT race seat.

For next season, he is tipped to race at Toro Rosso, or alternatively the Red Bull driver deal might switch from HRT to the Caterham team.

“Daniel has done a good job this year and now we need to look at the opportunities available,” Horner is quoted by France’s autohebdo.fr.

“He has learned from the races, albeit in difficult circumstances with a car that was far from the pace. But still he gained some experience and fought against a talented teammate.

“I am confident that his programme for next year will be decided before Christmas,” added the Briton.

One word has set Red Bull apart from its rivals McLaren and Ferrari this season: “Innovation.”
That is the claim of Marc Gene, a test driver for Ferrari.

“I have no doubt,” he wrote in his column for El Mundo newspaper. “It was they who came up with the blown diffuser and then hid the innovation from the other teams.

“I can assure you that the difference between running with or without the exhaust is huge.

“Aerodynamic innovations like this have dominated F1 in recent years, like the F-duct as well, and so I hope everything is more equal next season,” added Gene.

The Spaniard is referring to the FIA’s clampdown for 2012.

“The fact that we (Ferrari) won at Silverstone when the blown exhausts were not there makes me think that our car was not so bad,” he explained.

Back to back world champion Sebastian Vettel, however, is not worried.

“No,” he is quoted by O Estado de S.Paulo, “because I trust that our engineering group will respond with a series of interesting solutions.

“They are quite clever,” the German smiled.

The international press suspects Red Bull imposed team orders during the season ending Brazilian grand prix.
The team has already strongly denied the claims, but publications like Spain’s Marca suspect Sebastian Vettel pulled over for Mark Webber because of a “phantom problem” with his gearbox.

“Webber gets the loyalty prize,” said Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Agreed Corriere della Sera: “Vettel gave Webber the gift of the last crumbs after a huge feast and saved him a trip to the psychologist.”

Spain’s Diario Sport added: “Nobody believes Vettel really had a problem with the gearbox.”

Austria’s Der Standard said the team order “made sense”, given Webber’s mathematical chance of finishing the drivers’ championship in second place.

Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali is quoted as joking to La Stampa: “Maybe they forget that team orders can now be issued freely.”

Agreed Fernando Alonso: “I don’t care, except to say that they were bothered with certain behaviours when we did them.”

Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport, however, reported that Vettel personally watched when his gearbox was taken apart after the race and confirmed that “there was almost no oil left in it”.

 Rubens Barrichello has revealed he is unlikely to race out of formula one over an argument about money.
It is believed Kimi Raikkonen’s talks with Williams ended suddenly because the parties could not agree on the size of the Finn’s retainer.

“I don’t need a big contract,” 39-year-old Barrichello is quoted by Brazil’s Globo, with the report claiming the veteran had ruled out settling for a seat at HRT, Virgin or Caterham.

“All I need is to drive something next year that is competitive.”

It is possible Interlagos was Barrichello’s last ever grand prix, and so the cameras duly captured him waving to his countrymen on the slowing down lap.

“The only thing is that the fans might have thought I was saying goodbye, but I was just waving. I know I’ll be back and I feel almost like I deserve to,” he said.

“In F1, many people come and go because the pressure is so big, which is a situation unlike in F3 or GP2.

“Several fast drivers quit because they didn’t feel happy. When Montoya left all he said was that F1 sucks, but I love it,” said Barrichello.

Another Brazilian fighting to stay on the grid next year is Bruno Senna.

“I know I made some mistakes,” said the 28-year-old, who was drafted in by Renault mid-season to replace Nick Heidfeld.

“I did not score 10 out of 10 but I think it was not bad. I hope that the people deciding the places for next year also think so. I was very rusty,” added Senna.

Lewis Hamilton has admitted he may soon be ready to sit down with his boss and sign a new contract beyond 2012.
The 2008 world champion has had a tumultuous season on and off the track, while his teammate Jenson Button finished behind Sebastian Vettel in the drivers’ championship and inked a new long-term deal.

But British newspapers insist McLaren is keen to extend Hamilton’s contract as well, even though the 26-year-old said he is in “no rush”.

“I don’t think there is any real pressure about my commitment to the team so there is no rush to have to do anything,” he said.

“Martin (Whitmarsh) has spoken to me about re-signing already. I know it is there. At some stage, when we have time, we will sit down and discuss it,” said Hamilton.

The Mirror said his new contract will be worth about $23 million a year.

“It is more than likely I’ll stay,” he is quoted by the Sun.

Nico Hulkenberg did not look like a driver with an uncertain future as the 2011 season closed at Interlagos.
When asked by BBC commentator David Coulthard to put a figure on the likelihood he will return to the grid in 2012 after a year as Force India’s Friday reserve, the young German grinned widely.

“It’s a high percentage. Two digits, a high percentage,” he said.

It is believed Hulkenberg will replace long-time team driver Adrian Sutil, who is hoping to rescue his career by signing with Williams or Renault.

In Brazil, he sounded frustrated.

“I think I’ve done my job,” said Sutil. “I can not do better and if people can’t see it then I can’t do anything about it,” added the German, who ended the season with 15 more points than his 2011 teammate Paul di Resta, who is tipped to stay.

Asked how much longer he will have to wait to find out, Sutil replied: “Hopefully not very long.”

“We will see what Force India says, and then we’ll see what some others say. I feel fairly safe.”

SID news agency quoted his manager Manfred Zimmermann as saying clarity awaits within the next 10 days.

That ties in with the confident Hulkenberg’s news.

“We’ve just got to be patient for another one or two weeks,” he said.

 His cars were lapped twice at Interlagos on Sunday, but Team Lotus boss Tony Fernandes could not hide his smile.
Despite scoring no points all season, the fact Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli finished the race ahead of their Virgin and HRT rivals yet again finally cemented the team’s tenth-place finish in the 2011 constructors’ championship.

It means Team Lotus, becoming Caterham for 2012, is now what is referred to as a ‘Column 1′ team in terms of the income distribution tables in the sport’s Concorde Agreement.

Fernandes is quoted by Finland’s Turun Sanomat newspaper: “The monetary value is about 25 million dollars.”

And Australia’s Sydney Morning Herald ‘Business Day’ said tenth place is worth around US $28 million to Caterham.

“It’s critical. We’ve gone from earning less than $8 million to $36 million, something in that region,” Fernandes is quoted as saying.

Rubens Barrichello left the Interlagos paddock late on Sunday without saying goodbye.
It is believed the 39-year-old Brazilian’s longest-ever F1 career might have ended as the chequered flag waved at Interlagos, as Adrian Sutil and Valtteri Bottas appear more likely candidates for the Williams seat in 2012.

But former Jordan, Stewart, Ferrari and Brawn driver Barrichello is refusing to give up.

Even in Williams’ official post-race media statement, he is quoted as saying: “There’s been a lot of talk over the weekend, but I believe I will be back again next season.”

He has even selected his helmet colours.

During his post-race chat with more Brazilian reporters than usual, Barrichello showed them a picture drawn this weekend by his six-year-old son Fernando.

“I know that your first question is (going to be) ‘Are you ready to stop?’ I’m not,” he insisted.

“So I will show you the helmet that Fefe made for me to start next year. That is the answer to the question,” laughed Barrichello.

Bernie Ecclestone on Sunday sounded certain next season will drop from the scheduled 20 grands prix.
He insisted Korea and Bahrain will take place as planned, but cast huge doubt on the ability of the US grand prix organisers to overcome their problems.

“They might pay something now, but it’s the future we are looking for,” F1′s chief executive, referring to the inaugural Austin event, told reporters in Sao Paulo.

“They haven’t gotten enough security. We are looking for security in the long term.”

France’s L’Equipe quotes the 81-year-old as playing down speculation Turkey – having fallen off the calendar due to a sanctioning fee dispute with Ecclestone – could fill the void if the 2012 US grand prix is ultimately dropped.

“I think everybody will be pleased,” said Ecclestone when asked about the calendar probably shrinking from 20 to 19 races next year.

“The teams are complaining that there are too many races so this will solve the problem.”