Eddie Jordan has advised Lewis Hamilton to stick with McLaren.
With the 2008 world champion’s current contract coming to an end this year, he said recently he would address the issue of his future “sooner rather than later”.

“After the first couple of races it’s something we will probably want to get out of the way,” said Hamilton last month.

For the moment, however, there is speculation, after Bernie Ecclestone said he doubts the 27-year-old will stay with the Woking based team forever.

The major German daily Bild then reported that Hamilton has been earmarked as Mercedes’ ‘plan-B’ in the event Michael Schumacher does not stay in 2013.

But Jordan, a former F1 team owner and boss, believes Hamilton should stay put.

“Given their (McLaren’s) resources and level of investment, can you tell me that Lewis would be better off in another team?” he said on Tuesday at a BBC event.

Jordan believes, however, that the famous British team can do a better job of handling Hamilton.

“I think – and this is in some way a criticism – that they will have learned from their mistakes last season,” he said.

One remedy is the placement by Hamilton’s management of Mika Hakkinen’s former manager Didier Coton, and another is the driver’s move from secluded Geneva to bustling Monaco.

Hamilton has also reunited with his girlfriend Nicole, and had a long winter break.

“McLaren appear to have given him a chunk of time off, to go away and to focus,” former long-time McLaren driver David Coulthard said.

Mark Webber has backed his rival Lewis Hamilton to bounce back in 2012.
McLaren’s 2008 world champion had a tumultuous season on and off the circuit last year, but has returned having reunited with his girlfriend and with extra support in the form of Mika Hakkinen’s former manager Didier Coton.

“It’s normal for a sportsman or woman to go through some headwinds in their career — particularly someone like him who had so much success so early, and he’s black, and he’s got interest, and he’s got a girlfriend of profile,” Red Bull driver Webber is quoted by the Sun newspaper.

“Let’s hope he’s strong but not too strong. As a competitor you hope he can realise his potential but clearly we still want to beat him,” added the plain-talking Australian.

Despite winning the season ending Brazilian grand prix last year, Webber also had a less than ideal 2011 as his teammate Sebastian Vettel utterly dominated.

The 35-year-old, however, has lost a couple of kilos over the winter and insists he is ready for 2012.

F1 chief executive Ecclestone backs Webber to succeed.

“I think Mark will be the guy who will threaten him (Vettel) if anybody,” the 81-year-old told The Australian newspaper.

“The last time I spoke to him about it, he was really motivated.”

 A former world champion has dealt Lewis Hamilton a mild rebuke after the Briton refused to appear at Adrian Sutil’s assault trial.
Not only did the McLaren driver defer to his team’s looming car launch date rather than leap to his former friend’s aid in Munich, he has also refused to contact Sutil or answer a single question on the matter posed by the media.

Sutil’s father has called the 2008 world champion “pathetic” while the former Force India driver himself described Hamilton as a “coward”.

“I don’t know whether you’d call him a coward,” 1980 title winner Alan Jones told GMM, “but I don’t know whether I’d like to have him in the trenches with me.”

Hamilton, who recently reunited with his girlfriend Nicole, had a tumultuous 2011 season and so this year will be accompanied to races by experienced manager Didier Coton.

When involved with Mika Hakkinen’s career, Coton worked for the management company headed by Keke Rosberg.

“In the past, Lewis has certainly made mistakes in the professional organisation of his life,” Rosberg, backing the changes Hamilton is making, commented to the Finnish broadcaster MTV3.

“You can’t go flying every other week to America when you’re making a serious job of being a formula one driver,” he said.

Keke Rosberg also questioned a recent claim made by the 27-year-old Briton.

“He says he wants to win all the races this season. That’s quite a claim.

“I would think Jenson Button wonders how he will do it when he will probably win a few races in the same car,” said Rosberg.

Lewis Hamilton has a new day-to-day manager, British newspapers have revealed.
As his on and off-track woes worsened last year, the 2008 world champion insisted he was happy with his management team headed by pop industry agent Simon Fuller.

But Fuller’s company, XIX Entertainment, has now appointed Didier Coton – the famous F1 driver manager who handled Mika Hakkinen’s career – to look after McLaren’s Hamilton.

Formerly with Keke Rosberg’s outfit, Coton now heads his own management firm, Monaco based Aces Group.

“Didier’s appointment builds on the existing strengths of XIX and I am delighted to have him as part of the team,” Hamilton is quoted as saying.

British tabloids also report that Hamilton, 27, has reunited with his girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger.

Sebastian Vettel could wrap up his second world championship in Singapore.
The German pulled out another 20 points in his runaway title lead on Sunday by dominantly winning the Italian grand prix at Monza.

There are just 150 points left to win in 2011, and Vettel’s lead is now 112.

“Are we watching one of the true greats?” BBC commentator David Coulthard wondered.

Asked if he will be celebrating his second title in two weeks, Red Bull’s Vettel answered with a grin: “I think we have put ourselves in a very good position.”

F1′s other two-time world champions are Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Emerson Fittipaldi, Mika Hakkinen and Fernando Alonso.

The author of a newspaper column erroneously attributed to Mika Hakkinen has been dismissed.

This week, the Finn was quoted by Munich newspaper TZ as describing Michael Schumacher as a “tragic ex-hero” who made “a ridiculous mistake” at the start of the recent Abu Dhabi grand prix.

“In my view, he is dismantling his own legacy bit by bit,” Hakkinen – who also called the German “too arrogant” – reportedly wrote.

But TZ has now issued an apology and correction, admitting that the column had not been authorised by double world champion Hakkinen.

“The statements attributed to Mr Hakkinen, particularly in relation to Michael Schumacher, were not true and were not authorised.

“We regret this and apologise to our readers, to Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher, and as a consequence we are no longer working with the staff member concerned,” added TZ.

Michael Schumacher will have a new race engineer at Mercedes next year, according to reports.

The French-language Eurosport said the identity of the engineer is Mark Slade, who this year is working alongside Vitaly Petrov at Renault.

Slade moved to Renault this year from McLaren, where he worked with famous Finns Heikki Kovalainen, Kimi Raikkonen and Mika Hakkinen.

After 15 years with the British team, he left McLaren early this season due to a technical staffing reshuffle.

Schumacher’s engineer in 2010 is Andy Shovlin, who in 2009 worked at the Brackley based team – then Brawn GP – alongside world champion Jenson Button.

It is expected that Shovlin will have a more general engineering role next year.

Schumacher’s teammate Nico Rosberg will also have a new race engineer in 2011, having worked this year with Jock Clear. It is expected that Tony Ross, Rosberg’s former race engineer at Williams, is switching to Mercedes.

Meanwhile, French commentator Jean-Louis Moncet wrote in his latest Auto Plus column that Mercedes GP chiefs Ross Brawn and Norbert Haug will have more distinct roles in 2011.

Moncet said he believes team boss Brawn’s role will be partially factory-based.

Valtteri Bottas has refused to criticise the Williams team for not scheduling a test day for him in November.

The 20-year-old Finn has been a frontrunner in the F3 Euroseries in 2010, whilst serving as the famous British team Williams’ test and reserve driver.

He said earlier in 2010 that he has done some aerodynamic straightline testing in the FW32 this year “and after the season (I will do) the young drivers test in Abu Dhabi”.

But whilst confirming that Bottas is staying as test driver next year, Williams announced this week that it will be F2 champion Dean Stoneman and Pastor Maldonado at the wheel of the car for November’s Abu Dhabi test.

But Bottas is not critical of the team, despite missing out on the test opportunity.

“They need to test someone else,” he is quoted by Turun Sanomat newspaper. “It doesn’t change anything for me.

“I respect their decisions and I’m working as usual to support the team,” added Bottas, who is managed by Mika Hakkinen.

Bottas will still be in Abu Dhabi, having scheduled a test with the GP2 team ART.

Mika Hakkinen followed eagerly the current World Championship match between Webber and Vettel. The criticism of Michael Schumacher does not understand the ex-F1 racer.

Mika Hakkinen has hung up his F1 helmet while 2001 to the nail, but the two-time champion continues to pursue racing. Specifically, the current World Cup situation has done to the Finns. “The last few years in F1 were exciting, but this year surpasses everything. This is just unbelievable, because so many drivers are still fighting for the championship. This is great,” gushed Häkkinen. Mark Webber has impressed with his performance Häkkinen.
“Webber has made 2010 a great job. He has shown a trend and become very mentally strong. Something has changed with him in a positive way,” said the Finn. Although the Australians in the lead, Hakkinen will not be fitted into a championship favorite. “There are still three races and Vettel is not an easy opponent. He is a young, energetic man, and he pushes to the limit,” said the Finn. The former McLaren Mercedes driver can see parallels between Vettel and his former rival Michael Schumacher.

“Vettel has to go no fear over the limit, as then Schumacher. But reckoned with the fact that mistakes happen when you go over the limit. This can be painful, but I myself have also preferred to be on the limit as under. I understand the mentality of the two “, said Hakkinen. The Finn also follows the progress of Schumacher in his comeback season trusts, however, not to evaluate the performance of the record world champion.
“I still know from my F1-time for the people to practice criticism and a fast rate. This is really hard. I do not want to say anything about his performance, because you never know from the outside, making the team, what the reasons for performance, or what the team is working. Therefore, the criticism of Michael is unfair, “said Hakkinen. For him, the German has lost none of his skill. “I know Michael and he is an incredible racer and a great person. I think his comeback is great for F1,” said the Finn.

Whether Schumacher will drive in 2011 in Formula 1, he could not answer because he knows how hard the F1 world. “F1 is a great challenge. It takes a lot of energy, because you experience more disappointments than successes. It is a very tough world, but if he can handle it and enjoy it, then I wish him all the best,” said Hakkinen off of the DTM race at Hockenheim.

(TMS)

The minority share of the Williams team now owned by Austrian Christian ‘Toto’ Wolff is 10 per cent, it has emerged.

sThe stake bought in 2009 by the motor racing enthusiast and investor, whose girlfriend is the Scottish DTM driver Susie Stoddart, was not disclosed at the time.

But according to a report in London’s Evening Standard, based on company filings by the Oxfordshire based team, the figure is 10 per cent.

The report said Wolff is believed to have paid about $16 million for the stake, which would value the British outfit at about US $160m.

Sir Frank Williams’ stake has therefore dropped from 70 to 63 per cent, and Patrick Head’s from 30 to 27 per cent.

Wolff, 38, also owns shares in Aces Management, the driver management firm involving Didier Coton and Mika Hakkinen, as well as the F3 engine supplier HWA.

Williams reserve driver Valtteri Bottas has put his hopes of stepping into the team’s race cockpit on hold until 2012.

The 21-year-old Finn, third in the F3 Euroseries standings, admitted recently that British team Williams was “not likely to change” its current driver lineup for 2011.

“The next step would be GP2,” Bottas, who is managed by Mika Hakkinen, said in July.

He has now told Finland’s Turun Sanomat newspaper that Rubens Barrichello does indeed look set to have his Williams deal extended.

“He is still fast,” Bottas is quoted as saying.

“He has been really useful to the team and it’s true to say a big part of the development of the car is due to him,” he added.

Meanwhile, Williams’ Austrian minority co-owner Toto Wolff has told the Kleine Zeitung newspaper that Barrichello’s rookie teammate Nico Hulkenberg is also likely to keep his seat.

“Of all the young drivers he is probably the best at the moment,” he said.  “He is actually remarkable; only the experience is missing.

“I feel quite comfortable with this driver combination.  My word has at least as much weight as the others on the board, and this applies to the drivers as well,” added Wolff.

Mika Hakkinen, Fernando Alonso continued to his World Cup account – and not just since the home victory in the Ferrari Grand Prix in Monza …

After the failure at Spa-Francorchamps, it was for Fernando Alonso already bleak as far as the chances of his third world title but, since the victory in Monza, he is back in the middle in the battle for the Formula 1 crown 2010th The former world champion Mika Hakkinen also looks like that the Ferrari driver still has on the bill.

“There are always opportunities to make up points,” the champion knows the 1998 and 1999 and gives an example: “Look at Indianapolis in 2005, when only six cars are driven. Anything can happen and you have to believe it. Can in Formula 1 crazy things happen. Fernando must believe it, to bet, thinking that he can do it. ”
Currently, the Spaniard only 21 counters missing on championship leader Mark Webber, less than a victory. It can also only one of the five remaining candidates for the title on the full support of his team are, as we know at least since the team orders at Hockenheim – with Red Bull and McLaren are still the two pilots in World Cup races.
In addition to Lewis Hamilton Alonso Hakkinen is now also the way to their favorite drivers. In the McLaren-season in 2007 showed that the two superstars do not work, at least in the same team. But Hakkinen believes that there is still no fault of his former employer was McLaren, Alonso and Hamilton to undertake.

“Alonso has realized that he and Hamilton can not be in the same team. They have found that they work under the same roof is not easy,” he says in ‘Marca’ interview. “I would not say that Alonso was a wrong decision – and certainly not Lewis. McLaren had earlier already Senna and Prost, but it was different …”

Mika Hakkinen’s 9-year-old son has begun a serious karting foray.

Hugo Hakkinen, born at the end of 2000, made his debut recently at a round of the Italian WSK Master Series at Siena.

He now races in the series’ Mini class, open to youngsters between 9 and 12, wearing a white helmet with the light blue Finnish cross.

1998 and 1999 world champion Hakkinen, 41, attended the event with his new partner.

“Hugo is making good progress, but it takes a little bit of time to develop,” said the Finn.

“We chose Italy to start off Hugo’s karting, and I’m really happy with the choice,” added Hakkinen.

Williams reserve driver Valtteri Bottas is targeting a place on the 2012 grid.

“Williams is not likely to change drivers for next season, but 2012 might be different,” the 20-year-old Finn, a frontrunner in the F3 Euroseries, is quoted by Turun Sanomat.

Currently, Bottas conducts some straightline tests for the famous British team, and like his predecessor Nico Hulkenberg undertakes tasks at the Grove factory.

“It is a bit like an apprenticeship for an F1 driver,” he said.

Bottas said he will do some more aerodynamic testing in 2010, “and after the season the young drivers test in Abu Dhabi”.

“The next step would be GP2,” he explained.  “Williams will probably be involved in the decision about the team when the time comes.”

Bottas could also immediately step into the FW32 if either Hulkenberg or Rubens Barrichello are unable to race, even though he does not currently possess a mandatory super license.

He is managed by 1998 and 1999 world champion Mika Hakkinen, who works for his own manager Didier Coton’s organisation.

“My career is in good hands and I never would have reached this point without them,” insisted Bottas.

After the lost tempers and the blame game, Red Bull is now moving to put its championship campaign back on track in the ten days before reconvening in Canada for the next grand prix.

Turkey not only staged a crash between teammates Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel whilst leading, it triggered a hotbed of intrigue as fingers were pointed and garage divisions were revealed and strengthened.

Australian Webber, now the clear championship leader but at odds with both his team and his apparently favoured teammate, indicated he wants to patch up and move on.

“We’ll probably have a difference of opinion about what happened until we go to our graves, but we’re both adults and we need to find a way of racing together that doesn’t compromise the team,” he wrote in his column for the Australian newspaper Daily Telegraph.

A Red Bull source told the Independent that a calm-down meeting had already been held in Turkey, but that is at odds with reports that Vettel left the circuit early.

“We had a detailed meeting and everyone had their say.  There was no way that feelings were going to be allowed to fester.  The matter is now all talked through,” said the unnamed source.

Speaking to Finland’s Turun Sanomat newspaper, former McLaren driver David Coulthard warned of the dangers of an internal conflict.

“It is a fact that within a racing team, it’s the worst possible scenario,” the Scot said, recalling his collision with Mika Hakkinen in Austria in 1999, where afterwards the Finn “did not want to talk to me”.

But “You need to sort out these messes before the next race, otherwise it just continues to be a distraction,” said Coulthard.

“The team’s task is to get the drivers to talk it through.”

At the same time, Red Bull’s nearest title rival McLaren is attempting to use the saga to its advantage.

“If they don’t kiss and make up it means they won’t be sharing information as much at the next race,” said Jenson Button.

Offering advice to the warring Red Bulls, he added: “It’s about owning up and moving forward.  If they can’t do that, it will play into our hands.”

And Lewis Hamilton took a dig at Webber and Vettel by pointing out that he and Button did not collide when they similarly diced for position in Turkey.

“That’s why we are world champions.  I am proud to have him (Button) as my teammate,” said the Briton.

(GMM)