A major golf tournament is set to go ahead in Bahrain.

The BBC is reporting on Wednesday that “a number” of formula one teams now fully expect next weekend’s Bahrain grand prix to be called off – with the final decision to be made this weekend in China – due to the security risk.

If that happens – despite Bahrain’s contract to 2016 – it could be the end of the grand prix forever, with rules stating that a cancellation for two years running will result in exclusion from the calendar.

It is interesting, therefore, that organisers of the inaugural Bahrain Invitational – a Pro-Celeb-Am golf competition – are reporting that the two-day event is definitely going ahead this weekend.

“We are looking forward to welcoming all the participants and safety around the event is assured,” said a spokesman.

Sir Jackie Stewart, a triple world champion in F1, backed the continuation of sports in Bahrain, admitting that if the grand prix is cancelled again “they may never get it back”.

“If this race is cancelled then I think it is a very backward position to have in sport,” he told the Herald Scotland.

“Sport is a positive force, it brings people together.”

Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund has been named as the likely buyer of the lease of British grand prix venue Silverstone.
The Independent said Qatar Investment Authority – already owning shares in the London Stock Exchange, Volkswagen, Harrods, Miramax and French football club Paris Saint-Germain – is in exclusive talks with owner the British Racing Drivers’ Club.

Due diligence is taking place now and “a final decision is expected in the next six months”, said the British newspaper.

The report said part of the deal is that the 150-year leaseholders will have to maintain Silverstone “to make it suitable to retain the British grand prix” beyond 2017.

Qatar is one of the Arab emirates in the Middle East, located next to South Arabia and across the strait from Bahrain.

As the blown exhaust row between Red Bull and McLaren subsided late on Friday, the latter team was already working hard to catch up with the ever-changing rules.
GP2 driver Oliver Turvey was in McLaren’s Woking driver simulator after it emerged the Renault teams – including dominant Red Bull – have been allowed by the FIA to use 50 per cent throttle under braking.

Earlier, the FIA intended to limit off-throttle engine blowing to 10 per cent, but the Renault teams argued that they need at least 50 per cent on reliability grounds.

McLaren team figures said they only discovered Renault’s 50 per cent concession during free practice on Friday, when Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali was heard telling his counterpart Martin Whitmarsh “The (Red Bull) ******* are doing it again”.

“We were saying ‘Wait a second, can we do that (too)?” Jenson Button told AS newspaper.

It also emerges that Mercedes have been allowed to use 20 per cent throttle, based on the engine maps of the pre-exhaust blowing era in 2009.

“I am sure it has put many teams this weekend a little bit on the back foot so we are trying to cope with that at the moment,” said Whitmarsh.

Brazilian O Estado de S.Paulo journalist Livio Oricchio reports that a further rule clarification is due in the wake of yet another technical meeting on the subject late on Friday.

“The climate of the meeting was tense,” he revealed. “Today (Saturday) the final decision of the FIA should be announced.”

Sauber on Friday was uncertain Sergio Perez will be back in the C30 for next weekend’s Canadian grand prix.
The Mexican rookie spent two days in hospital but has now returned home after his big crash during qualifying in Monaco.

On Friday, his Swiss team Sauber explained that – because the 21-year-old was concussed – he will have to “pass the usual medical test with the FIA doctors” before being cleared to race in Montreal.

“I feel very good and fit. Of course I want to race in Montreal, but I also know the final decision is up to the FIA doctors,” he said.

Perez revealed he had to call off his scheduled session in the Ferrari simulator this week due to his crash.

“Anyway, it is not the first unknown circuit for me and I have never had difficulties adapting,” he said. “I found it very hard to be just a TV spectator for the race in Monaco, and can’t wait to get into the car again.”

Team technical director James Key sounded confident the FIA doctors will give Perez the green light.

“When I spoke to him he sounded very well and was looking forward to getting back to work. We are looking forward to having him back in the car,” he said on Friday.

F1′s governing body is considering banning the ‘DRS’ moveable wing systems for Monaco.

Italy’s Autosprint magazine said the reason for the ban would be the danger of the system’s deployment on the famously tight and twisty street layout.

Moreover, DRS would probably be of limited benefit in the Principality, given the lack of a proper straight.

Autosprint said the main fear regarding DRS and Monaco is the free usage of the system in practice and qualifying, and the fact that the curving high-speed tunnel is the most logical place for deployment of the system in the race.

“The final decision will be taken by the FIA after a meeting with the teams and drivers at the Turkish grand prix,” the report said.

It is believed most formula one teams would like next month’s season opener in troubled Bahrain to be cancelled.

Western countries are advising against travel to the island Kingdom, where mainly peaceful protesters have been clashing violently with the government in past days.

“The F1 community has agreed privately that it would be both irresponsible and indefensible to arrive in Bahrain at a time when the country is counting its dead after a week of bloodshed,” read a report in the Daily Mail, one day after a FOTA meeting in Barcelona.

However, the official line is that the teams are waiting on Bernie Ecclestone and the FIA – which has been strangely silent amid the saga – to make the call.

But the Sunday Times reports that “at least one leading team” will boycott the race if authorities decide to go ahead, and it emerges that new world champion Sebastian Vettel’s father Norbert has cancelled his flight.

Ecclestone told BBC radio that a final decision about the race will probably be made on Tuesday, curiously explaining that it will be Bahrain’s Crown Prince who will decide.

“If anybody’s going to sort it out he’s the guy to do it,” said the 80-year-old.

“He would decide whether or not it’s safe for us to be there. Let’s hope it will be all right as it’s already scheduled.”

Countries’ advice not to travel to Bahrain, however, could void insurance policies, and teams face ramifications if they decide unilaterally not to race unless ‘force majeure’ is declared.

Adrian Sutil on Thursday confirmed reports he looks set to stay another season with Force India in 2011.

The German had flirted with moves to Renault or Williams but admitted at Interlagos that he is now leaning towards signing a new deal with his long-time employer.

“The tendency is to (stay at) Force India,” Sutil is quoted by Auto Motor und Sport.

“We are currently in close talks. I am definitely ready to stay here for another year. The trend is with this team, but it’s not signed yet,” he added.

Sutil said it will take at least another two weeks before the deal is sealed.

“The final decision won’t be made until after the season unfortunately,” he revealed. “I would have wanted it sooner, but it didn’t happen.”

The news is a blow for Nick Heidfeld, who had hoped to move to Force India. The Silverstone based team already has a contract for 2011 with Vitantonio Liuzzi.

“If Sutil is staying there, probably I have no chance with Force India,” confirmed Heidfeld, who is being replaced at Sauber by the Telmex-backed rookie Sergio Perez.

There might be a vacancy at Renault, but the Enstone based team is thought likely to re-sign its well-funded Vitaly Petrov.

Meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg’s place at Williams is under threat by the Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado, who is backed by state petroleum company PDVSA.

Sir Frank Williams last week spoke highly of Hulkenberg, but the young German pointed out that “with praise I can buy nothing”.

“Williams have told me that there is still a chance (of staying in 2011),” added Hulkenberg.

He is disappointed at the thought of being ousted by his GP2 teammate of 2009.

“In qualifying, I beat him I think 10-0,” noted Hulkenberg.

Joan Villadelprat on Monday insisted he has not given up on bringing his Spanish Le Mans team Epsilon Euskadi into formula one.

The Spaniard tried to acquire the thirteenth and final team entry for 2011, but the FIA ruled that none of the applicants had the financial resources to justify the go-ahead.

But Villadelprat told the Noticias de Gipuzkoa that the 13th entry is not the only route into F1.

“We have not thrown in the towel,” he confirmed.

“The most important thing in formula one is the funding that allows you develop for the long-term. We already have the infrastructure and human capacity.

“We are still working with a range of investors and we hope soon to have a final decision,” added Villadelprat. “If the decision is positive, we have a range of options.

“We can go for the 13th entry in 2012, or for 2011 buy an existing team.”

He ruled out buying the struggling HRT team.

“We are not in contact with them,” said Villadelprat, with decades of experience in F1 with Ferrari, McLaren, Benetton and Prost.

“But we are confident that there are licenses available, because there are several teams in a very delicate economic situation,” he added.

“If we secure the budget for the next four years to take over the project of one of these teams, we will — otherwise, no.”

Because even Nico Hulkenberg has shortened a chicane was not punished for it, sets a Force India Adrian Sutil for protest
As expected, Force India Adrian Sutil, with respect to subsequent time penalty at the Grand Prix of Singapore officially announced to want to protest. The German had been full in the first round a chicane and was therefore punished with a retrospective time penalty of 20 seconds, threw it back from eighth to tenth place.

But because the racing line 60 laps had time to investigate the incident and to express even a penalty during the race, the Sutil could react strategically, Force India will not justify the verdict. It is doubtful whether any actual protest is successful.
Force India also calls for an investigation of an incident by Nico Hulkenberg. The Williams driver will have during the race, also abbreviated as a chicane, but conceded it no penalty. Sutil and his team feel this inconstancy unfair.

When a final decision will be made in the Cause is not yet certain.

With one swift retort, Colin Kolles extinguished rumours that the Jacques Villeneuve/Durango venture might be rescued by struggling F1 team HRT.

After the alliance missed out on the 13th team entry for 2011, 1997 world champion Villeneuve said another potential route onto next year’s grid was to buy an existing outfit.

The most affordable would most certainly be Hispania Racing, slowest on the 2010 grid and reportedly struggling for survival.

“To be honest, I’m really speechless that you believe this speculation,” said team boss Kolles, when also asked in Singapore about speculation linking HRT with Stefan GP.

“Why should I answer you if you mention the name Durango and the people you just mentioned before?  I cannot make any comment because I never spoke to these people,” he added.

Villeneuve also responded to the speculation on Friday, in conversation with the French Canadian publication Rue Frontenac.

“We have not yet made a formal bid for an F1 team at all,” said the 39-year-old.

“As the deadlines are less pressing than those imposed by the FIA, we are evaluating all our options before making a final decision,” added Villeneuve.

He admitted that turning his attention to NASCAR is perhaps now the most likely outcome.

“We are looking at how the funds that would have been for the F1 side can be transferred to North America to develop a programme in NASCAR,” said the Canadian.

Sauber is yet another team considering removing the F-duct system from its car for the forthcoming Italian grand prix.

McLaren intends to have a non-F-duct rear wing and engine cover at Monza next weekend, with simulations showing that weight saving and aerodynamic efficiency could mean a conventional setup is the more competitive option for the high speed circuit.

Robert Kubica has also hinted that his Renault will not have an F-duct at the Autodromo Nazionale, even though Ferrari’s Stefano Domenicali indicated that the F10 will still be running the device at Monza.

It has now emerged that Sauber could be yet another team contemplating its F-duct options for Italy.

“We will have the option to take off the F-duct,” said the Swiss team’s new technical director James Key.

“We will only make the final decision at the track,” he added in an interview with Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

Key also said Sauber is already working on the 2011 car at its Hinwil base.

“There are some areas of the regulations that are not yet 100 per cent clear, such as the functionality of the (adjustable) rear wing.

“But there is already enough for the teams to move forward with the development for next year,” he revealed.

Key also said he is confident about Sauber’s financial situation for 2011 and beyond.

“That is not my area, but I have no great concerns,” he said.

“I know we are actively working on it and that at Spa we were able to show a new logo on the rear wing.

“The direction is positive. With the improvement of the car, we have shown what we are capable of. If we can maintain that, I expect a further step forward next year.

“I am planning for the long term with Sauber,” added Key.

Charlie Whiting has hit back at Ferrari’s latest criticisms about the timing of F1 officials’ in-race decisions.

After Valencia, the Italian team was furious that Lewis Hamilton’s penalty for overtaking the safety car arrived so late it had little effect on the McLaren driver’s race.

And at Silverstone, this time with Fernando Alonso penalised for overtaking Robert Kubica on the grass, Ferrari said the instruction to allow the Pole to re-pass his Spanish rival came so late he was far behind and already slowing with a technical problem.

In a website report on Monday, Ferrari repeated La Gazzetta dello Sport’s claim that F1 had become ‘Formula Lullaby’ because of the slow decision-making.

Ferrari’s controversial website writer described it as a “fact” that “decisions are taken slowly” by F1′s officials.

But Briton Whiting, the FIA’s F1 race director, said on Tuesday that in fact he advised Ferrari immediately after Alonso’s overtaking move that the position should be given back to the Renault.

“On the radio, I suggested to them that if they exchange position again, there would be no need for the stewards to intervene,” he is quoted by Italy’s Autosprint magazine.

“We told Ferrari three times that in my opinion they should give the position back to Kubica,” Whiting added.

“And we told them that immediately, right after the overtaking manoeuvre.  But they didn’t do that and on the third communication they said that Kubica was by then too far back to let him regain the position,” he revealed.

Team boss Stefano Domenicali was quoted on Monday as saying Ferrari needed to wait for the FIA’s final decision about whether Alonso should give back the place, “otherwise we would be accused of being not aggressive enough”.

Jul.6 (GMM)  Williams will decide whether to race a Red Bull-like blown rear exhaust layout at Silverstone this weekend after Friday’s practice sessions.

With official confirmation on Tuesday, the British team will become the third team to emulate on track Red Bull’s low-exhaust concept, with engine gases diverted through the double diffuser to boost downforce.

“We’ll evaluate the exhaust during the practice sessions on Friday and will make a final decision as to whether we race it that night,” said technical director Sam Michael.

In the hands of Finnish test driver Valtteri Bottas, the new package made its debut on the runway at England’s Kemble airport on Tuesday.

After no less than three meetings in Monaco, a final decision about F1′s tyre situation for 2011 still has not been made.

The latest meeting was held on Sunday morning, with team bosses discussing solid proposals made by Michelin, Avon and Pirelli, amid reports Bridgestone might be persuaded to stay.

According to the BBC, FOTA’s technical chief Ross Brawn said the Italian marque Pirelli’s proposal is a viable one.

“We’ve had a good proposal from Pirelli which we’re looking into seriously,” he said.

It is believed another meeting will be held within the next few days, where a final decision is likely.

(GMM)

The French GP2 outfit ART Grand Prix is bidding to become the thirteenth team on the 2011 formula one grid.

“Yes, we have applied to join the world championship in 2011,” Frederic Vasseur, co-founder, confirmed to France’s Auto Hebdo.

The team is also headed by Nicolas Todt, son of FIA president Jean Todt and manager of the Ferrari driver Felipe Massa.

ART also races in F3 Euroseries and GP3.

Expressions of interest for the 13th place closed on April 15, and the FIA is said to be moving towards a final decision by July.

“We did not want to confirm our willingness to engage in formula one until now, to best prepare for this very complex issue and not compromise our current activities,” Vasseur added.

Vasseur also said the existing F1 teams have been informed “of our intentions”, adding that he has “good relationships with Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault”.

“The choice of engine is not yet defined,” he insisted.

Auto Hebdo said Epsilon Euskadi, Durango and Stefan GP are also bidding for the last place in the 2011 pitlane.

(GMM)