HRT refugee Vitantonio Liuzzi has re-emerged on the grid of the Italian-based touring car series Superstars.
Despite having a 2012 contract, the 30-year-old Italian lost his race seat at the struggling Spanish team HRT for this year to the well-backed Indian Narain Karthikeyan.

So, in 2012, he will race a Mercedes C63 AMG – which he tested last week at Monza – in the Maurizio Flammini-organised Superstars series.

Also on the grid will be former F1 drivers Christian Fittipaldi, Mika Salo, Gianni Morbidelli and Johnny Herbert.

“I’m persuaded that Superstars is a great choice to open yourself to other categories than F1,” said Liuzzi.

The season begins in April at Monza, then moving on to Imola, Donington, Mugello, the Hungaroring, Spa, Portimao, Vallelunga and Sentul (Indonesia).

Since 2005, Liuzzi also raced in F1 with Red Bull, Toro Rosso and Force India.

After failing to win a race in July, Sebastian Vettel had a keen look around parc ferme at the Hungaroring.
“I can see some very familiar things on the other cars,” the Red Bull driver is quoted by Der Spiegel.

The Adrian Newey-inked blown exhaust has been the most obvious example of F1 rival copy-catting in 2011, but journalist Ralf Bach wrote that the RB7′s so-called ‘rake’ is also being emulated.

The aggressive ‘rake’ – the car’s attitude from front to rear – is the most likely reason the Red Bull has generated additional downforce amid the mystery previously attributed to flexing front wings.

Der Spiegel said Force India and Ferrari are the latest examples of teams emulating Red Bull’s high rear end, with the result that the front of the cars is lower.

“You can see clearly that the Red Bull sits higher at the rear,” an unnamed FIA official is quoted as saying.

Mercedes’ Ross Brawn, however, doubts that simply copying Red Bull is the answer: “A copy is never as good as the original,” he said.

Heikki Kovalainen says he is happy his teammate Jarno Trulli is back up to speed.
Italian veteran Trulli struggled with Team Lotus’ power steering system in the first half of the season and actually sat out the Nurburgring before updated technology was added to the green T128 in Hungary.

Trulli was duly delighted with the new system at the Hungaroring, and his Finnish teammate Kovalainen admits it was also a relief for him after sharing the garage with Indian Karun Chandhok a week earlier.

“The fact that the new steering is better for him is positive for the whole team, and me as well,” he told motorline.cc.

“When you’re on your own, you don’t know if you’re doing your job well or not. You need a good comparison.

“Karun did a respectable performance (in Germany) but Jarno has much more experience and that’s exactly what we need in our team at the moment.

“I can say that the stronger my teammate is and the better he feels in the car, the better it is for me, because I am driven so much more to the limit,” added Kovalainen.

Bernie Ecclestone has proposed to ink a new contract with the Nurburgring with terms equal to those of Hungary’s formula one race.

The new politically-sensitive coalition government has announced it no longer intends to offer funding for the Nurburgring’s grand prix, which alternates annually on the F1 schedule with the other German venue Hockenheim.

Talks about a new contract began at the German grand prix last weekend, and DPA news agency reports that Bernie Ecclestone has offered to lower the sanctioning fee.

The report said Ecclestone is willing to offer a contract identical to that possessed by organisers of this weekend’s race at the Hungaroring.

“The contract in Hungary is definitely cheaper,” a spokeswoman for Nurburgring GmbH confirmed.

It is believed the Nurburgring’s current contract involves a EUR 20 million per race sanctioning fee, and that the race last weekend recorded a loss of 13.5 million.

After a cold and damp week at the Nurburgring, some of F1′s travelling circus are already reporting rain in Hungary.
British commentator and former driver Martin Brundle travelled straight from Sunday’s German grand prix to the Hungarian capital, scene of the eleventh round of the world championship at the Hungaroring this weekend.

“Pouring with rain,” he wrote on his Twitter channel. “Looks set to stay that way until mid week.”

International weather reports say the outlook for the weekend is indeed better, but with a continuing risk of rain and the absence of Hungary’s usually scorching conditions.

“It is raining a lot here and it’s not so warm!” Team Lotus’ Brazilian test driver Luiz Razia said.

Christian Horner on Sunday said he thinks Red Bull will be better next weekend in Hungary.
Championship leader Sebastian Vettel ended his 15-race run of front row berths at the Nurburgring, while pole sitter Mark Webber was the team’s best finisher with third.

“Yes, it’s been interesting,” said team boss Horner, referring to Fernando Alonso’s win at Silverstone two weeks ago, and Lewis Hamilton’s in Germany.

“It’s been Ferrari one race, the next McLaren — and the constant factor is Red Bull. Hopefully now we’ll get a few tracks that should be good for us,” he told German Sky television.

Confirmed Australian Webber: “The car should go ok in Budapest. It should be better than this track for us.”

In post-race news, Sebastien Buemi has been handed a five-place grid penalty for Hungary for his crash with Nick Heidfeld.

But there is also bad news for German Heidfeld, who will have to hand over his Renault to test driver Bruno Senna on Friday morning at the Hungaroring.

Meanwhile, Alonso will keep his second place on Sunday despite fears his stricken Ferrari might not have contained the mandatory one litre of fuel for the scrutineering checks.

And he has also not been penalised for hitching what he described as a “taxi” ride back to parc ferme on his friend Webber’s Red Bull engine cover.

“They are friends and it would have been a long walk back,” grinned Horner.

Jenson Button intends to celebrate his 200th grand prix next month in Hungary, the scene of his first formula one race win in 2006.
F1′s official website lists the 2009 world champion as having “entered” 198 grands prix, meaning his double centenary could technically be marked at his home event at Silverstone.

But the typical practice is for the sport to only count grands prix that drivers actually start.

Button, 31, did not start in Monaco in 2003 after a practice crash, while in 2005 at Indianapolis all the Michelin runners pulled into the pits after the formation lap.

“I only count my race starts,” the Briton confirmed to Roger Benoit, the veteran correspondent for the Swiss newspaper Blick.

“So my 200th will be on the 31st of July in Hungary,” confirmed Button.

On August 6, 2006, then contesting his 113th grand prix at the wheel of a Honda, Button recorded his first formula one win at the Hungaroring.

Only Jarno Trulli (118) and Rubens Barrichello (123) took longer than Button to become grand prix winners, while with 179 races under his belt Nick Heidfeld is still trying to join them.

Only 11 F1 drivers have contested more grands prix than Button, with current rivals Rubens Barrichello (310) and Michael Schumacher (274) topping the list.

The Briton will climb to eighth on the all-time list by the end of the 2011 season, by surpassing the records of Alain Prost (198), Jean Alesi (201) and Nelson Piquet (203), and equalling Andrea de Cesaris’ 208.

Fellow ten-time grand prix winner Gerhard Berger retired after his 210th grand prix.

The addition of Bulgaria to the F1 calendar could mean the end of the sport’s Hungarian and Turkish rounds.

That is the claim of organiser and Bulgarian motor racing official Bogdan Nikolov, who said this week that a contract for a debut race in 2012 could be signed as soon as next month.

The news follows a scandal earlier this year, when Abu Dhabi investors reportedly reacted furiously to funding claims about the Bulgarian event.

But Nikolov insists the Arab investors are still interested in the project, suggesting that the scandal was more due to “competitive” interests.

“If there is formula one grand prix in Sofia, there won’t be races on Istanbul Park (in Turkey) and (the) Hungaroring. We will be the only grand prix in eastern Europe,” he told the Sofia news agency Novinite.

The Red Bull team does not fear straight lines as much as it did earlier in 2010, according to a German media report.

After dominating on the slow, corner-dominated Hungaroring in August, the RB6 was subsequently beaten to the flag at Spa and Monza; circuits punctuated by long stretches of asphalt.

Then, before he dominated at Suzuka, Sebastian Vettel said the Japanese layout was “designed for” the Adrian Newey-penned car, even though the Renault engine was not expected to be strong on the front straight and the long run between Spoon and the chicane.

Team consultant Helmut Marko has been vocally worried about F1′s forthcoming trip to Korea, with the new layout featuring twistier sections separated by some very long straights.

After Mark Webber and the team pulled out leads in both world championships at Suzuka, the Austrian said “we need a cushion, especially for the next race”.

“One of the three long straights (in Korea) is 1.2 kilometres long,” Marko groaned.

According to Auto Motor und Sport, however, the RB6 is now performing better on the straights, thanks to the latest development of the car’s F-duct.

The report said Newey has essentially aped the Renault team’s F-duct solution, and as of Suzuka the RB6 is producing better straight line speed.

“We are no longer losing so much on the straights,” confirmed Vettel.

His good result from the Hungaroring and the innovations of James Key let Pedro de la Rosa’s growing self-confidence
Just like Michael Schumacher was also returning to Pedro de la Rosa race break after three years at first some difficulty with the formula first But during the seven-time world champion more still further behind, shows the shape of the curve Sauber veteran apparently sharply upward.

De la Rosa at Silverstone for the first time secured a one-digit start position (9) repeated this feat in Budapest and went there even for the first time in seventh in the points. This is of course the one hand, because the C29, directed by technical director James Key (“Our progress is also his merit”) was developed, but the Spaniard is indicated that even after getting better.
“I do not know,” he answers to the question of ‘Autosport’, why it works better for him than for Schumacher, “but I feel better with every race. The failure at Silverstone to accept struck me hard, because we were very competitive, but in Hungary we moved back in Q3 and collected points for the team. I think I’m getting better with every race. To other drivers, I’m not thinking, but still can slow a very good level. ”

Fast curves were for the C29 anyway “never a problem,” said de la Rosa. That, however, he was just as competitive on the narrow Hungaroring, was a surprise, “because our biggest problem was always low speeds – and Hungary is just as slow as Monaco”. But the new features introduced since Valencia appear to be exactly as desired auszuwirken.

“The targeted all aimed at slow corners,” said de la Rosa. “So I had to Hungary so excited, because Hungary would indicate to us whether it is in the right direction or not. Without testing, it is now difficult, but we have definitely made the right changes in the way. Now we can say, that We compete not only in ultra-fast circuits like Silverstone. “

Gerhard Berger says Michael Schumacher’s defensive driving in Hungary earlier this month was a blast from the past.

The Austrian, who won 10 of his more than 200 grands prix in the 80s and 90s for top teams including Ferrari and McLaren, said the tactics deployed by Schumacher against Rubens Barrichello alongside the Hungaroring pitwall used to be commonplace.

“We drove harder and more brutally,” said the 50-year-old, a former teammate of the great Ayrton Senna.

“Three times a lap we drove each other into the walls without complaining.  This was just part of it.

“We would have thought nothing of an action like Michael’s against Barrichello,” Berger told the Austrian Tiroler Tageszeitung newspaper.

But Berger doubts whether Schumacher, who returned to formula one this season with Mercedes, will add an eighth title to his record-holding championship haul.

“Before the season I would have answered this question with a resounding yes,” he said.  “Today I have to say no.  His teammate Nico Rosberg clearly has his nose in front.

“Michael is trying to counter Nico’s youthfulness by pulling tricks out of his bag of experience, but it’s not working.

“His teammate is faster, and he has to learn how to deal with it,” added Berger.

Christian Horner does not think Red Bull will need to modify its 2010 car ahead of the Belgian grand prix.

Amid suggestions the front of the RB6 and Ferrari’s F10 are running too low to the ground at high speed, the FIA has served notice that scrutineering tests will be amended for Spa-Francorchamps and beyond.

It had been expected that most teams would need to make changes in order to pass the new tests, but team principal Horner does not think Red Bull will be among them.

“Based on the correspondence the FIA has sent us, we believe our car still meets those criteria,” he told the print edition of Autosport magazine.

If true, and rival teams do need to make changes to pass the new tests, the Austrian team could find itself with an even bigger performance advantage.

Championship leader and Hungaroring winner Mark Webber thinks the RB6 will be competitive at every remaining circuit in 2010.

“We’re a little bit worried about how the long straights might go at some of the other venues, at maybe Monza,” he said in a Red Bull video interview.

“But the car is very, very strong at most tracks so we’re ready to take on anyone at any venue and I’m looking forward to all the races coming up,” added the Australian.

Lewis Hamilton has vowed to contribute to McLaren’s off-track efforts ahead of the final seven races of 2010.

The team’s factory is currently closed for a mandatory two-week shutdown, so the Briton headed from a difficult race in Hungary for a holiday.

But when Woking’s doors re-open, Hamilton vowed to “be on the tail of all the team, all the engineers, making sure they don’t miss anything” ahead of Spa-Francorchamps late this month.

“If we were not going on holiday I would love to go straight to the factory,” he said.

“I’m not an engineer but I would drag the chief designer down to the wind tunnel, question him many times and try to understand it because that is what I do.

“Things I have suggested in the past have worked.  I don’t think I am going to come up with the idea this time, but the more you ask, the easier you get to the solution,” added Hamilton.

The 25-year-old lost his championship lead with a gearbox failure at the Hungaroring, but the MP4-25 was off the pace all weekend.

In-season testing is banned, but Hamilton says there are other ways he can influence McLaren’s push to improve.

“I feel it’s just as much my job to kick them as it is for them to kick me,” he said.

In the eyes of the foreign language media, Michael Schumacher was the bad-boy of Sunday’s Hungarian grand prix.
In English, British tabloids called for the 41-year-old to return to retirement after pushing his former Ferrari teammate Rubens Barrichello towards the pitwall at the Hungaroring.

And even the Daily Telegraph said the Mercedes driver’s “arrogance can no longer be tolerated in formula one”.

In Italy, La Gazzetta dello Sport said the German finally “went too far” with the violent defence of tenth position.

“The arrogant Schumacher showed no remorse but is the same as ever; never his fault. It was a miracle that this manoeuvre did not end badly.”

The Italian sports daily referred to the fact that the seven time world champion is an ambassador for the FIA’s road safety campaign.

“A little advice for those starting their holidays; if someone tries to overtake you, please to the exact opposite of what the celebrated ex-champion did in Hungary.”

La Repubblica and Corriere dello Sport called the move “madness”, Il Secolo XIX said it marked his “demise”, and Tuttosport said it was “dangerous”.

“Barrichello just avoided crashing into the wall and landing in hospital, if not worse,” added the report.

Corriere della Sera added: “Schumacher the villain, as he has always been.”

Spain’s sports newspaper Marca said: “Schumacher’s return to formula one is one of the darkest chapters in the history of the sport.”

At the same time, Schumacher posted an apology on his website, after viewing replays of the incident.

“I have to say the stewards were right in their decision. My move against him was too hard,” he said.

“I clearly showed him that I didn’t want to let him pass but, looking at it rationally, I wasn’t seeking to endanger him (Barrichello) with my manoeuvre.

“If he feels I was then all I can say is sorry, this wasn’t my intention,” he added.

Michael Schumacher has received a ten-position grid penalty after Sunday’s Hungarian grand prix.

Rubens Barrichello was furious at the Hungaroring after narrowly avoiding the pitwall as his former Ferrari teammate vigorously defended tenth position.

The stewards agreed with the veteran Brazilian, ordering Schumacher’s Mercedes ten places down the grid at Spa-Francorchamps later this month.

The FIA officials, including former driver Derek Warwick, said the German 41-year-old “illegitimately impeded” Barrichello, with whom he shared the Ferrari team for six years.

“For me it should have been a one race ban,” said Lotus technical boss Mike Gascoyne.

David Coulthard added: “It could have been a horrible accident. He never knows when to give it up, but perhaps now he should with his comeback.”

The stewards also penalised Mercedes $50,000 for releasing Nico Rosberg into the pitlane with a loose wheel, and a similar fine was levied against Renault for Robert Kubica’s pitlane crash with Adrian Sutil.