Peter Sauber has admitted his Swiss team is flattered after Red Bull apparently copied the C31′s exhaust layout ahead of the 2012 season.
Red Bull ran at the initial Jerez and Barcelona tests – and then the two opening days of the final Barcelona test – with its own solution in the wake of the FIA’s blown exhaust clampdown.

“We had a nice surprise on the penultimate day (of winter testing),” Sauber team boss Peter Sauber wrote in his column for Sonntagsblick newspaper.

“Red Bull announced their plans to use a heavily modified car, as it will race in Melbourne.

“Compared to their first version it had a completely different rear, which differs significantly from most cars — but not ours.

“The Red Bull and our C31 have a very similar concept, concerning the management of the airflow at the rear.

“For our engineers, it was an extra confirmation that they have chosen the right development direction. They are convinced that this concept has the potential for further development,” added Sauber.

 Sebastien Buemi must up his game if he wants to practice on Friday morning ahead of next month’s 2011 season finale in Brazil.
Toro Rosso has told the Swiss, and his teammate Jaime Alguersuari, that whoever has the least amount of points after the penultimate race in Abu Dhabi will give up his car at Interlagos to French hopeful Jean-Eric Vergne.

Vergne, the latest cream of Red Bull’s young driver programme, will kick off his new Friday morning duties this weekend in Korea at the wheel of Alguersuari’s STR6.

“Jaime sits out the session because the last time a driver was replaced on Friday morning, it was Sebastien Buemi who gave up his seat to Daniel Ricciardo,” the Faenza based team said in a statement.

Vergne will sit out India because it’s a new circuit, and will return on Friday morning in Abu Dhabi “replacing Buemi”, the Red Bull junior team added.

And for Brazil, “whichever of the Toro Rosso drivers has the least points will give up his seat to Vergne for FP1″.

Currently, three races before Brazil, Buemi trails Spaniard Alguersuari by three points.

And also looming in the background is Red Bull’s other young hopeful Daniel Ricciardo.

“In the next couple of years not only the loss of practice laps is threatened, but also the complete loss of their seats,” noted Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

Fabio Leimer could be a formula one race rookie in 2012.
The Sonntagsblick newspaper reports that the 22-year-old Swiss’ career is backed by Rainer Gantenbein, who says he has spent more than $17 million already.

Leimer is currently ranked 14th in the GP2 championship.

The Swiss newspaper said Gantenbein is in “intensive negotiations with several F1 teams” about the 2012 season.

“If Virgin demands five million (Swiss) francs, then that is what I will raise,” he said at Monza.

The first step for Leimer will be his debut F1 drive during the young drivers’ test session in Abu Dhabi after the penultimate grand prix of the season.

Bridgestone ready for Interlagos – The short but fast circuit with the winding inside the tires poses a special challenge
Interlagos is the penultimate disconnect for Bridgestone. For the route, which runs counter-clockwise to bring the Japanese with the mean and the super soft compound. The weather could also play a role, but the intermediates and the rain tires have recently done in South Korea a good job.

“Brazil is a beautiful country and South America is an important growth market. So it is important for Bridgestone to show presence in the form of the race,” said motorsport director Hiroshi Yasukawa. “. We have manufacturing facilities in Brazil and appreciate the support from our staff, we have worked in the past with many Brazilian drivers and enjoyed their feedback we are looking forward to the enthusiastic fans at the track.”
Interlagos is a short distance with a narrow core, but fast sections. The asphalt is very bumpy, leading to a compromise on the voting. “It is a beautiful but challenging course,” said Hirohide Hamashima, which is responsible for tire development. “Although it is the second shortest track on the calendar, it has an impressive line and exciting corners.”

“There are mainly medium-fast and slow corners. This means that the mechanical grip and stability are important on the rear axle. The weather can be a deciding factor because it can be very hot or very wet. To maximize performance, needs is a good balance through the turns before it goes uphill towards the finish. There is something reminiscent of an oval. ”
“The first corner is a good overtaking Elle, but you can barter for quick there a brake disks. Caution is called for,” says Hamashima. “In the last two races, we should show a strong performance, but mainly it comes to safe tires. Our engineers work closely with the teams so they can get the best.”

Sebastian Vettel sounds unlikely to voluntarily fall in line behind Mark Webber as Red Bull pushes for its first ever drivers’ world championship.

Although heading for the championship lead in Korea before his engine failure, Vettel is now 25 points off Fernando Alonso.

It means Ferrari’s Spanish driver is the favourite for the title, with Vettel’s Australian teammate Mark Webber the most likely challenger due to his 11 point deficit.

But Germany’s Bild newspaper said it sounds unlikely that Vettel is going to give up.

“Nothing is going to change in my approach to the final two rounds,” he is quoted as saying. “My (engine) failure makes everything more interesting and difficult. But it is still possible.

“I am going to fight until the end,” Vettel vowed.

Like McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh who is in a similar situation, Red Bull chief Christian Horner said before leaving Korea that team strategy will be discussed internally before the season’s penultimate event in Brazil.

Former Ferrari driver Jean Alesi thinks Red Bull made a big mistake by not establishing a hierarchy some time ago.

“They needed to take advantage of the fact they had the best car,” the Frenchman told CNR Media. “It’s doubtful they will have the same advantage next year, so you have to say they have mismanaged this season.

“I think they’ve missed a great opportunity,” added Alesi.

Joan Villadelprat, a veteran F1 team manager who now operates his own Le Mans team Epsilon Euskadi, agrees.

“There has been a lack of solidarity at Red Bull, who have not been able to manage their superiority and are now giving the title away to Ferrari,” he wrote in his El Pais newspaper column.

“When a double world champion like Alonso takes the kind of advantage he has now, he does not fail,” the Spaniard added.

Heikki Kovalainen made the Grand Prix of Singapore at the end once more exciting and put out his blazing Lotus itself
The air seemed to be already out of the Grand Prix of Singapore, as Heikki Kovalainen in the penultimate round again caused a drama. Because after a light touch with the Toro Rosso of Sebastien Buemi, he was suddenly slow – and in the last sector ignited the back of his Lotus!

Kovalainen not turned off the box, but drove over the finish line. However, he was not here for an additional round for the final result was as suspected at first: “I wanted to with such a car will not go into the pit lane, because that would put many people Instead, I saw a fireman at the start and finish and stayed. there are, “he describes the exciting incident.
Curious: Kovalainen rose calmly from the car that was burning brightly in the rear, and still had the overview, to make themselves rich on the pit wall by a Williams mechanic with a fire extinguisher so that it could even lend a hand! “Something always looks dramatic,” he grins. “The car is a bit damaged, but at least no one was injured. That’s the main thing.”
Given that reasoning, it is unlikely that the race stewards will issue a penalty against him. Usually, it is well known, not allowed to drive on with an obviously badly damaged car – especially not when the pit exit would be located on the road. But Kovalainen reasoning makes sense, because it was so actually less risky.

By the way: through the smoke on the finish line and the yellow flags came Sebastian Vettel in the last round again threatening close to leader Fernando Alonso. Alonso, however, kept a cool head and saved his second victory in Singapore over the distance.

For Casey Stoner on the first long fast is over, stop the bad streak of 11 races without a pole. Now the Motorland Aragon is the time to stop the sequence of victories that has gone missing from the penultimate race of the 2009 season: the restored confidence in the Ducati Desmosedici GP10 this weekend seems to be right, at least according to the same 2007 World Champion.

“In the last race weekend we tried different things to make the bike more competitive, without ever being able to make decisive progress, whereas here it seems that we have found something, “says Casey Stoner. “We have changed a bit ‘weight distribution and this gave me more grip and more confidence. Maybe it’s just the bike that fits well with this track, but in any event, we are happy to have made the pole for the first time in Qatar.

I also like to drive new circuit is always exciting where you have not already tried a million times. We wait to see how you put the race to see if I can be with other people, because this season there has already happened to realize less than has proof but we feel good in the race and I’m looking forward to tomorrow.

Casey Stoner does not win the Grand Prix of Malaysia last year, a long fasting in 13 races, the longest since he started to win in MotoGP.