Five races in, F1′s cleverest brains are still yet to decode the mystery of the bizarre and fascinating 2012 season.

As was the case when he utterly dominated last year, Sebastian Vettel is still leading the drivers’ points chase.

But, before last weekend, if he had been told that Williams’ Pastor Maldonado would be the winner of the Spanish grand prix, the German admitted: “Well, I would have put a lot of money on them!

“I think the odds weren’t bad,” he smiled.

Indeed, the major British bookmaker William Hill was taking bets at 500-1 prior to the Barcelona weekend.

A spokesman confirmed that only two bets at 10 pounds or above were placed on Maldonado prior to qualifying.

“I’m sure Williams don’t understand why they just won the race here,” McLaren’s Jenson Button is quoted by the Guardian newspaper.

But the previously-derided ‘pay driver’ Maldonado is not the only potential new winner in 2012, after Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso, Nico Rosberg and Vettel won the opening four grands prix.

A detailed look at F1′s specialist reporting in the past few weeks shows that Lewis Hamilton, Mark Webber, Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean, Michael Schumacher, Sergio Perez and Kamui Kobayashi are all also widely regarded as genuine victory candidates in 2012.

And given that their teammates have won grands prix this season, even the struggling Felipe Massa and Bruno Senna should be added to that list.

“Dammit, let’s go for (HRT’s) Karthikeyan!” wrote Chris Hockley in the Sun newspaper.

“It’s really quite crazy right now,” Vettel, who despite his young age would count himself among F1′s currently perplexed purists, told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

“What’s happening is difficult for us to explain,” he added.

The situation has split the F1 audience, with the purists shaking their heads, and others marvelling at the unprecedented spectacle.

“The spectacle has taken over the sport,” said the Paris daily Le Figaro.

“Even the teams can’t be sure who will be the hare and who will be the tortoise at any given track,” wrote Hockley.

Alonso, who is the joint championship leader, is in the purists’ camp.

“Of course it is attractive for the spectators that we are going to Monaco not knowing if we will fight for victory or be left out of the points,” he is quoted by El Pais.

“But in a way, after eleven years in formula one and now I’m at Ferrari, I would like to have more stability,” the Spaniard admitted.

Sir Jackie Stewart said: “What’s going on is unbelievable, which I think is the outcome of the new rules, new tyres — I think it’s many factors,” he told the Spanish sports daily AS.

“What’s happening,” said Maldonado’s race engineer Xevi Pujolar, “is that these tyres are allowing teams who do not have the biggest budgets to be eligible for really good results.

“The reason is that the most important thing now is to have a good setup and also some luck with the temperature.”

Pirelli, F1′s tyre maker, has received both criticism and praise for its huge role.

“Pirelli have been both bold and brave,” Sun journalist Hockley said. “It can’t be easy for a manufacturer to make tyres that sometimes wear out faster than you can say Mercedes.”

Marco Tronchetti Provera, the Italian marque’s company chief, is unapologetic.

“What we have provided is what the teams have asked for, and it was not easy,” Italian language reports quote him saying. “Our engineers have done an extraordinary thing.”

Australian F1 fans are this week rejoicing in local hero Mark Webber even more than usual.

Pressure applied by the Red Bull driver was reportedly instrumental in returning the sport to the live television airways in Australian capital cities.

Fans were outraged with Australian broadcaster Ten’s decision to take formula one from its high definition channel One, which in turn meant viewers in Perth and Adelaide had no live coverage at all.

Angry fans bombarded Ten’s Facebook and Twitter pages with criticism abuse, and urged Webber to help their cause.

Webber obliged.

“Come on (Ten), I hear our great Australian motor sport fans are not happy with rescheduling of timings of the GPs,” he wrote on Twitter.

“Let’s go live.”

Within an hour, Ten reinstated Perth and Adelaide’s live broadcasts — and in full HD.

“The next time Ten wants to tangle with its motor sport audience, perhaps they should ask Mark Webber first,” read a report at The Australian newspaper.

With the F1 world now returned from Bahrain, the sport is assessing the fallout of one of the most controversial grands prix in history.

The drivers were conspicuously quiet over the saga in the island Kingdom, but – with no contract tying him down – former Force India driver Adrian Sutil admitted he was glad he was not there.

“In a situation like that, it is probably better not to go,” the German said on Sky Deutschland.

“On the one hand, the decision was made (to go to Bahrain), on the other hand, it’s very difficult when there are so many problems in a country.”

Red Bull reserve driver Sebastien Buemi, who has family living in Bahrain, does not agree at all.

“I arrived on Monday and I had no problem — maybe there were a few more police than two years ago, but nothing happened to me,” the Swiss insisted on Austrian Servus TV.

Force India and Sauber, however, witnessed Molotov cocktail attacks on their treks to and from the circuit.

And Caterham team spokesman Tom Webb told the Sun that there was “one minor incident when one of our (hire) vans slowed down in traffic and its occupants saw a local youth on the side of the main road brandishing a bottle with a rag stuffed in its neck”.

World champion and race winner Sebastian Vettel also admitted the feeling was tense in the paddock throughout the weekend.

“It was not easy for anyone,” the Red Bull driver admitted, according to SID news agency, “but I’m glad that nothing happened to any of us (in F1).”

And the Telegraph quotes Vettel adding: “Hopefully, we come back in the future when everything’s a little bit safer.”

Reuters reports that Vodafone, the main sponsor of the half Bahrain-owned McLaren team, sent no staff to the country and expressed concerns to the British outfit.

But Jim Wright, an F1 sponsorship expert, told the Guardian that he thinks while the sport’s image took a beating last weekend, sponsors will be happy.

“Most teams handled a difficult decision very well,” he said. “On that basis I think a lot of people would be pleased with that and happy to get involved with them.”

The television audience was also unaffected – even boosted – with the BBC reporting more viewers for Bahrain than Australia and Malaysia, and Germany revealing similarly strong figures.

Still, there remains criticism.

“Now is an opportunity to reflect,” former F1 driver Alex Zanardi told Tuttosport, “and make sure that major sporting events are assigned only to governments that deserve the honour of hosting them.

“Ecclestone is brilliant and has made formula one what it is, but he can’t administer races at any cost and above all else,” insisted the Italian.

Due to security fears, Force India sat out a practice session on Friday so that staff could return to their hotels in daylight.

F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone was reportedly enraged, and according to rumours got his revenge by instructing Formula One Management’s television cameras to ignore the Silverstone based team’s cars in qualifying.

“There was a bit of fuss about what we did,” deputy team principal Bob Fernley is quoted by Spain’s AS newspaper, “and it was not easy, but I think it turned out to be the right response.

“We had a lot of pressure, our attitude was not well received,” he confirmed, “but I think that we had a duty of care to our employees, and to do the right thing by the team.”

A typically hot, humid and thundery weekend is forecast for the Malaysian grand prix.
New championship leader Jenson Button travels to Kuala Lumpur eyeing a weather forecast of possible rain for all three days of track action.

And as ever in tropical Malaysia, the highest chance of rain is always in the late afternoon.

“Bernie (Ecclestone) loves a late start,” smiled Red Bull’s Mark Webber, “and, once again, the race has a late kick-off.”

Indeed, qualifying and the race are not scheduled until 4pm local in Malaysia, ensuring a more civil early morning wake-up for F1′s bulk live audience in Europe.

“Late afternoon is usually when the rain comes in Malaysia, and when it comes you know about it,” said Australian Webber. “It’s something to be wary of.”

Even more nervous about the rain forecasts will be HRT.

After sitting out almost the entire winter whilst rebuilding the struggling Spanish team following Colin Kolles’ departure, Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan failed to qualify in Melbourne.

“In Australia we were only able to complete seven timed laps so I need to get more track time, get to know the car better and improve the setup,” said de la Rosa.

 Sepang will not modify its circuit in order to organise a formula one night race, organisers of the Malaysian grand prix said on Friday.
Melbourne – in a similar timezone – is coming under increasing pressure from Bernie Ecclestone to install floodlights and host its race at night, to better serve the core live television audience back in Europe.

But Razlan Razali, Sepang chief executive, said the F1 chief executive is putting “no pressure” on Malaysia, whose 2012 race will be held next weekend.

“Why do a night race when most other circuits do not do it?” he told reporters.

Already, Singapore hosts its annual street race under lights, while the Abu Dhabi grand prix begins at twilight and concludes at night.

 Bernie Ecclestone has played down the controversy over the future of Australia’s grand prix by daring organisers to walk away from the sport.
“When the contract comes up, they don’t have to renew,” the F1 chief executive, speaking from London, told local Fairfax Radio ahead of the 2012 Melbourne race.

“That is the nice thing. We are not going to force anyone into doing anything because we can’t.”

The current contract expires in 2015, and Ecclestone has offered to ease the taxpayers’ burden if race organisers agree to host the race at night, to better service Europe’s live television audience.

But the 81-year-old Briton is also furious, after a federal politician for the ruling Labor Party scorned the millions paid to Ecclestone in order to bankroll the billionaire’s flamboyant “bogan” daughter Tamara.

“Who was the halfwit that said these things?” Ecclestone told 3AW radio.

“You’re not a communist state there, are you? Any money that my children have got, they didn’t steal.

“I’d like him to say what he said to me face to face.”

The latest spat is yet another threat to the highly popular Albert Park race, with Ecclestone surmising: “From all the things I read that the government say, I don’t think that they want to continue.”

Australian driver Mark Webber hopes the race has a future.

“I don’t think it’s a gain to lose it, put it that way,” he said.

“It was successful in Adelaide and in Melbourne as well and it would be brilliant to keep it here for a long time yet.”

Bernie Ecclestone has risked triggering speculation about FIA president Jean Todt’s future.
In an interview with Germany’s Die Welt, the F1 chief executive looked ruefully back on the infamous era alongside Todt’s predecessor Max Mosley.

Ecclestone, who turns 81 on Friday, admitted recently he does not always see eye-to-eye with Frenchman Todt.

“It’s a shame these days how democratic formula one is now. Max and I were able to solve issues and problems in most cases very quickly, a few days or weeks, where now we sometimes need years.

“That (the past era) benefitted everyone — the teams, the audience, everybody,” said Ecclestone.

Referring then to Todt, he said: “I think he went into the job not knowing what to expect. Max helped Jean to become president.

“But I suspect that if he was true to himself and he could choose again between the presidency and Ferrari, he would return to Maranello,” added the Briton.

Fascinatingly, Ecclestone’s comments coincided with Todt telling the Italian-language goalcity.com: “I am still in love with Ferrari.

“The ‘Rosso’ will always have a special place in my heart.”

Ecclestone agrees that – operationally – F1′s past is better than its present.

“It’s tempting to talk about the good old days,” he said. “Maybe it wasn’t like that really but I get the impression that it was much, much better than it is now.

“I tell you: if Max wanted to be re-elected as president, he would go through with ease. He is supported by 90 per cent of the teams.”

David Coulthard will not be driving a formula one car on the streets of 2012 US grand prix host city Austin this weekend.

The 13-time F1 race winner was slated to drive the Red Bull show car pending the approval of a city filming permit.

“Due to feasibility, a formal formula one show car demonstration that is open to the public will not be executed this week,” the energy drink company said in a statement.

Red Bull, whose F1 show car is already in the US, added that it is “excited about the upcoming US grand prix … and eager to drive awareness of the race and the sport in general to a broad audience”.

The likelihood that F1 will be broadcast in high definition next year has taken a backwards step.

Bernie Ecclestone boosted the hopes of F1′s global television audience in September when he indicated the sport will be moving to HD “probably next year”.

But in an interview with Christian Sylt and Caroline Reid, the F1 chief executive now insists he is “not sure” the 2011 feed will be broadcast in HD.

One of the main problems, he indicated, is that high definition cameras are too big to be installed in the cars for the popular on-board footage.

That would mean the F1 feed is “50 per cent HD and 50 per cent standard definition”, the 80-year-old Briton is quoted by Germany’s motorsport-total.com.

Sylt and Reid hypothesise that Ecclestone’s reluctance to embrace the new television technology could be related to the failure of his multi-channel digital feed for F1 in the 90s.

The first win after an injury to the Mugello Valentino Rossi has had a special flavor. The 46th with Yamaha, but also demonstrate that they have finally overcome the difficult time that he had influenced in the last race of the season. With the newfound competitiveness in absolute terms for the nine times world champion this weekend is the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island, waiting for him.

A very busy and important weekend for the foreseeable future: it is possible to confirm at high levels, but also to verify once and for all the health status of the injured shoulder in one of the more technical circuits and fast the whole calendar champion.

“Sunday was a truly fantastic day, “says Valentino Rossi,”get back to winning was wonderful. It ‘was one of my best victories of his entire career, the 46th with the Yamaha, I’m really happy.

Now I want to try to finish the season and are excited to get to Phillip Island which is one of the most spectacular circuits where race bikes. There are a number of years that I can not win in Australia, I would like to change that.

Many members of my team are Australians, and the audience is always very enthusiastic, so Phillip Island is always a very special race. “

Team bosses and F1 figures are to appear for a question-and-answer session with fans.

The initiative, organised by the teams association FOTA, will see bosses including McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh and Lotus’ Tony Fernandes front an audience at London’s British Academy of Film and Television Arts next Thursday.

Telegraph writer Tom Cary revealed that Nico Rosberg’s race engineer Jock Clear, as well as Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni and Force India reserve driver Paul di Resta, will also be on the panel.
(GMM)

Because Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone and Normand Legault promoter were not unanimous, the Grand Prix of Canada last year disappeared from the calendar. Ecclestone today regretted this step.

“For us, it has been sorry, but in the end you have to pay the price as organizer” said Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug, the Mercedes is of course as representatives keen that you drive in the important North American market race.
With the new organizer Francois Dumontier Ecclestone himself has come to an agreement and is now back completely happy as he is quoted by ‘GMM’: “It is wonderful to be back in Montreal. To be honest, we would not be here until way to go. ”

The organizers of the race in Canada expect during the three days of sensational audience of 300,000. The race is sold out, it has already begun to sell tickets for next year: “We are pleased with the response of the public very happy,” says Dumontier.

Many countries complain of declining audience figures at the Formula 1 race, but after the Turkish is pleased to now, the Canadian Grand Prix on a regular Plus. In Montreal today, even had the tickets be set because the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is now completely sold out!

Even at today’s pit walk, thousands Formula 1 fans, even though it was raining heavily in part. But the Canadians have always had something left for the Grand Prix racing after a year and are downright hungry. What is more, much more fans than in past years have come from Europe to the famous flair in Montreal once even able to witness live.

“There are thousands of fans that the Canadian Grand Prix have ever seen on TV and were now ready to fly across the Atlantic to a Formula 1 Grand Prix in Montreal-style witness,” said organizer François Dumontier of the Octane Group. “We welcome them, just like all the other fans. And I invite all of Montréal to come too!”

As the tickets were issued last December, there was in Quebec immediately a run on the Formula 1 Montreal will be the first Grand Prix to be completely sold out this season. Therefore, the organizers have decided to commence with the advance booking for 2011.

Jamie McMurray held off Dale Earnhardt Jr. at the Daytona 500 on Sunday, a finish so thrilling it just about made up for a pothole that nearly derailed the Super Bowl of  NASCAR.

NASCAR needed two stoppages of well over two hours total to patch a pesky pothole between turns 1 and 2 of Daytona International Speedway. The setback brought the biggest race of the season to a frustrating halt and had NASCAR executives fretting over the potential fallout.

Hoping for a spectacular season-opener to re-energize the industry, the delays instead sent NASCAR chairman Brian France into the broadcast booth to calm an agitated audience.

In the end, though, the hole inadvertently improved the racing.

The action picked up tremendously after the second patch was applied, partly because drivers had to race as if the hole could rip open again and end the event on any lap. And did they ever.

They beat and banged their way through the field in a white-knuckle final 32 laps. Then a flurry of late-race accidents put NASCAR’s ”green-white-checker” policy — an overtime of sorts — to the test.

McMurray, using a boost from former teammate Greg Biffle, powered into the lead on the second and final green-white-checkered attempt. But Earnhardt, who restarted the final sprint in 10th place, was slicing his way through the field.

He weaved in and out of traffic, shoving his Chevrolet into three-wide lines, eventually darting his way to McMurray’s bumper. It was vintage Earnhardt — he’s a 12-time Daytona winner spanning NASCAR’s top two series — and McMurray was terrified to see him growing in his rearview mirror.

”When I saw the 88 behind me, I thought, ‘Oh no.’ He had a good car and I just thought — Earnhardt and Daytona, they win all the time it just seems like,” McMurray said. ”You never know what to expect.”

But with just two laps to make up so much ground, Earnhardt ran out of time and had to settle for second as McMurray sailed to his first career Daytona 500 victory.

”I didn’t know where I was, you know, ’til I really kind of got done almost wrecking down the back straightaway,” Earnhardt said of his charge. ”Then I looked up — there’s just one car in front of me, ‘Jamie’s gonna win this damn race!’

”I was happy for him. He deserves it. They’ve been through a lot. It’s a great team.”

McMurray climbed from his car and ran to the Daytona 500 logo in the infield, dropping to his knees and pounding on the painted grass. Overcome with emotion, he sobbed in Victory Lane as he celebrated with his Earnhardt Ganassi Racing team.

It was McMurray’s first race back with Chip Ganassi and Felix Sabates, who gave him his Sprint Cup Series shot in 2002. But McMurray left and spent four frustrating seasons with Roush Fenway Racing, only to lose that ride at the end of last season when NASCAR forced Roush to drop a team to meet its four-car limit.

McMurray had to fight to get a seat back with Ganassi, and it included convincing sponsor Bass Pro Shops’ owner Johnny Morris to take a chance on him.

The risk was well rewarded Sunday with the biggest win of McMurray’s career.

”It’s unreal,” McMurray sobbed. ”You know, to be where I was last year and for Johnny Morris and Chip and Felix. What a way to pay them back. It’s just very emotional.”

Biffle, a close friend of McMurray’s, was disappointed in finishing third because he was the leader when the caution came out after the first green-white-checkered attempt. But he was able to give McMurray the push that got his buddy into Victory Lane.

”I just made my move too soon, a mistake on my part probably,” Biffle said. ”This is a big, big win for anybody’s career. You got to be happy for anybody that ever wins this race. I was especially happy, the guys I was up there beating and banging with, you know, I would rather see Jamie win than those guys.”

Clint Bowyer finished fourth and was followed by David Reutimann and Martin Truex Jr. — teammates for Michael Waltrip, who finished 18th in what’s expected to be his final Daytona 500.

Kevin Harvick was seventh and was followed by Matt Kenseth, last year’s race winner, Carl Edwards and Juan Pablo Montoya, McMurray’s teammate.

After the race, DIS president Robin Braig apologized for the hole and the delays that caused many fans to head to the exits long before the finish.

”We’re the World Center of Racing. This is the Daytona 500. This is not supposed to happen, and I take full responsibility,” Braig said. ”We can come back from this. We know how to fix it. This is hallowed ground. We understand that. We accept the responsibility.”

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Finally, the Silverstone circuit has the approval to utilize the new section of the circuit for the 2010 British Grand Prix.

The “complex stage” was originally designed for MotoGP, but when Silverstone recovered the contract to hold the British Grand Prix at Donington, it immediately approached FIA and Formula One Management (FOM) to be able to run in the new racetrack.  Today, Thursday, the FOM consented on the use of this new area, which the organizers hope will improve the view for the audience.

“The circuit was always designed for two and four wheel competitions,” explained Silverstone’s managing director, Richard Phillips. “We have been very careful, together with the marshals and pilots to insure that we are improving and increasing what Silverstone has to offer – one for the pilots and another view for the audience.”

The F1 circuit will keep most of the high-speed racetrack, but will lose Chicane Abbey, Corner Bridge and the left in Priory –all of which have been left untouched to provide an alternative design.  Contrary to this, the drivers will now turn to the right at the Abbey, before entering a 90 degree right turn that opens in two at the left to again go to the existent National Circuit and, finally, the F1 circuit.  It is expected that the extra length will increase the F1 times per lap in four seconds.