More than half of Michael Schumacher’s German compatriots think the seven time world champion will return to retirement at the end of this year.

After three years of retirement, the 43-year-old returned to F1 in 2010 on a three-year Mercedes contract, which runs out in 2012.

SID news agency commissioned the German market research company Promit to carry out a survey as to whether respondents think Schumacher will quit at the end of this year.

55.4 per cent answered yes, while only 26.2 per cent said they think Schumacher should sign on for at least another season.

The winner of a record 91 grands prix has failed to see the chequered flag in three of the five races so far this year, finishing just tenth in both Malaysia and Bahrain.

In contrast, teammate Nico Rosberg’s three top-seven finishes in 2012 included pole and victory in China, netting him 41 points compared with Schumacher’s 2 overall.

“I don’t think we can write him (Schumacher) off yet,” insisted Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary this week.

“His pace hasn’t been bad and he started the season very well. (He) was unlucky in quite a few races, his wheel fell off when he was running second in China and could have had a big haul of points.

“He is making mistakes in wheel-to-wheel racing though. But if he gets a few decent finishes or even wins a race then we could see him continue (in 2013),” added Cary.

Construction of the facilities for the 2013 New York grand prix is speeding ahead.

At the same time, there remain grave doubts about the Texas project, despite the permanent Circuit of the Americas venue being scheduled to host its inaugural US grand prix in November.

The Austin American Statesman newspaper has this week quoted county commissioner Sarah Eckhardt as saying: “It appears they (the organisers) don’t have the cash flow to prepare the site for the event.”

It is a very different story so far at Port Imperial, where the American grand prix will take place mid next year on the streets of West New York and Weehawken, amid the Manhattan skyline.

Wheels.ca published a photo depicting the advanced construction of the pit and garage building, which will reportedly house the F1 teams in June next year.

Many F1 insiders are now expecting next weekend’s Bahrain grand prix to be called off.

“We’re not going to Bahrain, the decision will be announced soon,” wrote Livio Oricchio, the correspondent for Brazil’s O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper.

In the wake of the latest reports about the ongoing political situation inside the island Kingdom, Oricchio said he expects the news about the race to be known “today or tomorrow”.

He referred to the direct threat made by the protest organising group February 14th Youth Coalition, who said it could not “ensure the safety” of the sport’s travelling members.

A spokesman for the international group Human Rights Watch admitted it is worried.

“On the ground we see an increasing number of deaths, and serious injuries from tear gas and beatings,” he is quoted as saying by the BBC.

And the latest fears have been intensified by the explosion of a bomb that injured seven policemen on Monday, and news that a jailed activist on hunger strike is now close to death.

An unnamed team boss admitted he is worried about his employees “and their families”, but an advisor to Bahrain’s interior ministry tried to play down those fears.

“People can be assured that if problems arise, then there will be a plan to deal with that as there would be with any public event in the world,” former London police assistant commissioner John Yates told the Associated Press.

But even Bernie Ecclestone, who will be in China this weekend, could now be stepping back from the controversy.

“If the teams don’t want to go, then we cannot make them,” the F1 chief executive told the Times.

All the FIA has said is that it is “monitoring” the situation, with it believed that contingency plans are in place so that F1 can cope with a cancellation decision made as late as this Saturday or Sunday.

The Bahrainis, meanwhile, are confident.

“We anticipate formula one will continue and hope it will be a success,” said government spokesman Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Mubarak al-Khalifa.

The Bahrain circuit’s Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa added: “The race is going ahead — there is no doubt about that.

“There are several reports doing the rounds that are saying a lot of things which are baseless,” he told the Gulf Daily News.

“We are ready and there is a plan in place to ensure the safety of the teams, officials and fans.”

Malaysia is not yet committing its future to the formula one calendar beyond its 2015 deal.
Sepang was Hermann Tilke’s first full creation that made its grand prix debut in 1999.

But Razlan Razali, the Kuala Lumpur circuit’s chief executive, said on Wednesday he is unable to say if there will be a race in 2016.

“We can recommend all we want, but as (the) prime minister announced last year, the decision will be made by the cabinet,” he told the New Straits Times.

Sepang commissioned consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) last year to study the economic impact of the Malaysian grand prix.

“PWC advised us to have another study on this year’s event,” revealed Razali.

He also pointed some criticism at the lack of enthusiasm from some parts of the government, particularly when it comes to promoting the annual race.

“Not all ministries seem interested,” Razlan admitted.

According to simulations done by Sauber, Silverstone is not set to become the fastest circuit on the formula one calendar.

When the British track’s new Arena layout was launched, organisers indicated that Monza could lose its mantle as the F1 venue with the highest average speed.

While actually adding more slow bends to the layout, the new half-mile Arena section is indeed due to make Silverstone faster on average.

But to investigate the claim that Monza could be knocked off the perch as F1′s fastest, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport commissioned a study with the help of the Swiss team Sauber.

A simulation lap of the revised layout processed by Sauber’s famous Albert II supercomputer projected a laptime of 1.31.0, resulting in an average speed of 233.4kph.

Monza’s average speed is about 248kph.

The Sauber simulation, however, shows that the new right-hander at the abolished Abbey chicane will be taken at 279kph, followed by a 281kph left sweep, making it the fastest chicane on the calendar.

(GMM)

Italy’s motor racing sanctioning body has backed Ferrari’s raging complaint about the outcome of the European grand prix.

Maranello based Ferrari has argued loudly that the credibility of the sport is at risk after Lewis Hamilton overtook the safety car in Valencia but still managed to finish the race on the podium.

The Italian team is also critical that penalties against 9 drivers for speeding during the safety car period did not promote Fernando Alonso higher than just eighth place.

“The success of a sport is measured by its ability to be credible and above all understandable to the general public,” said CSAI (Commissione Sportiva Automobilistica Italiana) president Angelo Sticchi Damiani in an Italian-language statement.

“What happened on Sunday … damages the credibility of the category; I don’t think anyone, whether in the grandstands or in front of televisions around the world understand what has happened,” he added.

“Drivers who pass the safety car came to the podium.  Others, taking advantage of the same situation, also had an advantage over their rivals.

“But others – those who respected the rules – were the victims.

“Perhaps some of the regulations about behaviour in formula one must be investigated and evolved so that they do not create more uncertainty and confusion.”

Italian reports also quoted Sticchi Damiani as saying CSAI’s support of Ferrari is not “to be controversial, but (to be) constructive”.

“We would like clarification about the penalties … and on what criteria they were given,” he added, suspecting that a “degree of subjectivity” was applied.

(GMM)

The press round of Stefano Domenicali after the race began in Valencia because of the late decision of the stewards was later than usual, but very rewarding. For Ferrari had just made the website a controversial review online, in which the Grand Prix of Europe as a “scandal” was called.

Earlier, Fernando Alonso has indicated that he thought the race had been manipulated. But Ferrari back row: On the website you have not published the opinion of Ferrari, but the Ferrari fans around the world, Alonso had made his statement “in the heat of battle.” Team boss Domenicali attempted to clarify this point in discussion with media representatives from around the world.
Question: “Stefano, on the Ferrari website, the race today called scandal, Fernando said that it has been manipulated …”
Luca Colajanni (Ferrari spokesman): “The speech by the voice of the fans – you should have read the message carefully!”
Stefano Domenicali: “I am the official voice of Ferrari. Ask me, I then answer that.”
Technical progress made

Q: Can you explain why you are so angry today? ”
Domenicali: “Naturally we are very angry because we did not get the points we have in this race because of our performance really need to do. If I analyze this weekend even from the technical side, we have but one step forward, even if he is still not large enough to catch Red Bull. In the first round we saw that things were in the right direction. ”

“The frustration is so great because we made the right move, but still less points than in the most difficult race of the year. This is very frustrating. Do I have to say from the sporting angle that we had bad luck today. The only four cars on the home straight were when the safety car was on, were Vettel, Hamilton, Fernando and Felipe. Vettel stopped before the safety car, Hamilton had ignored the yellow flags and the yellow light, but we had a full lap behind the Safety- Car driving. In the meantime, took the field that was in the pits, back on us, so we fell behind when we came into the pits. The plan you can not. ”

“Before some decisions are made, you should be sure they are right and wrong. If we now know, however, that the date of a decision affects the race, then they must be taken quickly, otherwise the consequences of unfair have. Today, the Ferrari has affected quite badly, so we must make sure that something like this happen again. More I would say not really. also ran against a lot of cars still an investigation. That I think is not good. ”

Question is: “When the FIA driver got into the race management – today it was Heinz-Harald Frentzen – first of all were happy, but in the last race there were many contentious decisions. How do you comment that?”
Domenicali: “had the present situation to do with the driver Commissioner nothing, I think. They had indeed nothing to do with the fact that a driver knows that there is slowed down or this and that is in the cockpit. I think that was the day a normal thing for the Commissioners.
“But I want to say something else. First of all, I am very pleased that Mark Webber doing well, because that is the most important thing. In life, have possible priorities. Today he had a very tragic accident, so I am happy that He’s healthy. But the accident has clearly shown that the large performance difference between the cars can be very dangerous. We’re talking about for some months, but today we were fortunate that we have not seen play. As braked different and there are different lines driven. Furthermore, we need to think about. ”

Q: If the safety car not normally catch the leaders and all others to pass through? ”
Domenicali: “I know that the race management, the safety car rausschickt regardless of what happens on the track, if it is necessary. I think correctly. The cars should also be waved through to the leader as quickly as possible behind the safety car is. This as I understand it, they wanted to now the medical car to protect the safety car to prevent the cars rushing around the track. ”

Q: You just said something about the big speed difference and that is dangerous. If the by the adjustable rear wing does not get worse? ”
SD: I think we need to examine carefully. When the leader must not press the button and Hintermann already created a difference in speed. Today we have seen, this can lead to.

Q: Just to clarify again: On your website is a scandal of the speech. If you say that this is not the Ferrari’s opinion? ”
SD: You were here all the time. Did I say scandalous? ”
Only the opinion of the fans

Q: No. But it is on the Ferrari website. ”
Domenicali: “The text there is the opinion of all Tifosi against the world. But I am the official voice of Ferrari and I have never said that.”

Q: Fernando, says the race was manipulated. ”
Domenicali: “We need him to admit that he has said in the heat of the moment, but I can understand him, because the race was broke by factors that were beyond our control. That is why he said that.”

Q: Will you bring this matter to the FIA or discuss with the teams? ”
Domenicali: “We have submitted the topic already in the FIA. That is completely incorrect.”

Q: What does this mean? Could it even be a different race result?
SD: No. The outcome is certain, but we are concerned about the future. We want to talk about it, so something in the future can not happen. ”
Q: You had prior to this Grand Prix a PR day of shooting, on some team bosses have complained. Must be made clear what a day of shooting and what is a test? ”
Domenicali: “It is not my style, something the public unsubscribe, but if there is something to discuss, then I pick up the phone. That’s my style. The shooting day was clear. If people want to change the wording of the rule We have no problem with that. ”

Q: one hand, you walk the day of shooting on a very fine line when it comes to the limits of the rules to explore the other hand, the rules today against you … ”
Domenicali: “One can not even compare it. To day of shooting, we have the allowed 100 kilometers used to supply our customers, our network and our dealers with material. Under such conditions it is difficult to learn about the car . But as I said: If someone has a problem, he can talk to us, then we explain it. ”

Q: Let’s auspicious on a topic. Pat Fry moves from McLaren to you. Can you describe his area of responsibility?
Domenicali: “When we found out that he has been on the market, we immediately realized that he was a great technician with much experience. I know that he also had offers from other teams, but we saw this as a good opportunity to join our team. He works as vice-head of technology. This is a very important task, not only for this year, but especially for the future. ”

Q: Do you find it okay that the drivers who have violated the safety car rule were punished only with five seconds? ”
Domenicali: “The danger of today’s decision is, I think that one might be tempted in future to violate the rules against better knowledge, to have an advantage. This is dangerous.”

Jun.9 (GMM)  F1 drivers could be penalised by the FIA if they behave badly on the roads, Jean Todt has suggested.

Lewis Hamilton was arrested after caught ‘hoon’ driving in Melbourne earlier this year and later charged and summoned to court.

But when asked about the incident in Turkey two weeks ago, the McLaren driver said the local authorities were “loving the publicity”.

Victorian traffic commissioner Ken Lay was unimpressed with Hamilton’s “flippant” reaction.  “The bottom line is people die on our roads because of hoon behaviour and he has set a really bad example,” he said.

Also apparently unimpressed is FIA president Todt, who was rumoured to be considering commissioning a protocols list informing drivers about respecting the unique rules and practices of each GP host nation they visit.

It has additionally been rumoured that drivers could face FIA penalties if convicted of committing traffic offenses.

“I have actually asked this question,” Todt admitted to the French newspaper Le Parisien.

“There is an incompatibility between the status of a role model champion, and a possible infringement on the road.  We are therefore trying to see whether to do something, and how.”

May 6 (GMM)  HRT will build its own car for the 2011 season, according to the new Spanish team’s boss Colin Kolles.

After the car commissioned by the team’s founder Adrian Campos and designed and built by Dallara was heavily criticised, Kolles confirmed that the contract with the Italian constructor has ended.

HRT’s Romanian-born chief is believed to be close to announcing a deal with a wind tunnel, so the team can develop the Dallara car throughout 2010.

Kolles told sport1.de in an interview: “The next step is that we get our own development programme running and then for 2011 build our own car.

“We are going to try to improve this car as much as possible.  But eventually we will have to draw a line and focus on next year,” he added.

Kolles likened his vision for HRT to the team he formerly led at Silverstone, which since being sold by Jordan in 2004 is now a respected midfield outfit called Force India.

“For Force India it took five years.  We are going to try to do it in three,” he said.

Kolles said he is the right man to be in charge of a fledgling F1 team.

“I cannot afford to do F1 personally, so I create value for other people.  I did it for Midland, for Spyker and the Mol family, and so on.  The team always sold for more money because it had developed.

“And people who know about it know that I am the only one who can do it.  I don’t mean that arrogantly, it’s quite simply because no one else has the infrastructure and the know-know,” added Kolles.

He said James Key, the new technical director at Sauber, is a good example.

“I made him from simply an engineer into a technical director.  This is the strategy,” said Kolles.  “We cannot afford superstars.”