Fernando Alonso has signed up with Ferrari for another five years, the Italian team announced on Thursday.
Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo said last week he hopes to keep the Spaniard, who joined the Maranello based outfit last year, for “a long time”.

Thursday’s press release said Ferrari “has renewed its technical and racing agreement” with Alonso, 29, through the end of 2016.

“Fernando has all the required qualities, both technically and personally to play a leading role in the history of Ferrari and I hope he will be enriching it with further wins very soon,” said Montezemolo.

Alonso said there is “no doubt” he will end his F1 career with Ferrari.

Giedo van der Garde and his management have started work on ‘plan B’, after missing out on the second Virgin race cockpit for 2011.

The Dutchman, managed and sponsored by officials of the McGregor fashion brand, was in the running for the seat alongside Timo Glock until the British team said on Tuesday it has signed Belgian Jerome d’Ambrosio.

Asked if he had heard the news before Virgin’s press release was issued, 25-year-old van der Garde told the Dutch press: “No, we were not informed in advance.

“It is unfortunate, but what you do know in advance is how difficult it is to get a formula one seat,” he admitted.

“F1 remains the goal even if it is a tough business. You have to ignore the setbacks and keep going.”

The Dutch magazine formule1.nl said ‘plan B’ for van der Garde is another season in GP2, or perhaps test seats with the Williams or Force India teams.

Van der Garde replied: “This news is so fresh. First I have to sit down with my management to see what is best for my career.

“Plan B is to be GP2 champion, as we have seen what it did for Pastor Maldonado. He was in GP2 four years before he was champion.”

His manager Jan Paul ten Hoopen admitted that Tuesday’s news has “narrowed the opportunities” for van der Garde in F1 for 2011.

“With Virgin we had a realistic option,” he added. “We are still talking with two other teams, including Force India.

“But you can never rely on something in formula one. It’s a big casino,” added ten Hoopen.

Jerome d’Ambrosio has described securing his formula one debut for 2011 as the ultimate birthday and Christmas present.

Although described in Virgin’s press release as 25, the Belgian rookie is actually still 24 until two days after Christmas.

The new British team announced on Tuesday that he is replacing Brazilian Lucas di Grassi for the 2011 season.

“It’s a nice Christmas gift but also a birthday present — I was born on December 27,” he told Belgian television RTBF.

“This has come after many weeks of waiting, and everything finally came together just recently.

“I didn’t sleep last night because I was so excited,” confirmed d’Ambrosio, Renault’s 2010 F1 reserve who finished the season as Virgin’s Friday driver.

“I only heard the news last night and it was hugely emotional. Doing a grand prix season is a dream come true, but now is the time to start working,” he added.

Lewis Hamilton’s slim championship hopes are still alive after stewards decided not to penalise him on Saturday night.

With a Friday reprimand already over his head, the Briton was summoned to the FIA officials after collecting a bollard and almost Ferrari’s Felipe Massa after delaying the Brazilian during an out-lap in Q2 in Abu Dhabi.

The 25-year-old said on the radio that it had been Massa’s fault, to which the Brazilian replied that Hamilton must be “crazy”.

It has emerged from the Yas Marina circuit late on Saturday that the stewards have decided to take no further action.

“These things happen,” Hamilton had told reporters, before the team’s post-session press release made no mention of the incident.

The official document did, however, contain an apparent warning, with the Briton’s championship hopes resting on a race win and then the hope that his rivals run into trouble on Sunday.

“On the grid, I don’t have to worry about who’s around me — they all have to worry about who’s around them. I’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.

“It’s the other drivers who’ll have to worry,” added Hamilton. “I don’t have to be cautious at all in the race. Perhaps they need to think about that.”

Sir Jackie Stewart thinks the only uncertainty surrounding Nico Hulkenberg’s future is that Williams could lose him to a richer team.

Despite the 23-year-old achieving his maiden pole position in Brazil, the British team is reportedly considering replacing the German rookie for 2011 with Venezuelan pay-driver Pastor Maldonado.

But triple world champion Sir Jackie Stewart, who was in the Williams garage when Hulkenberg captured pole at Interlagos in his role with sponsor RBS, doesn’t think so.

Rather, the Scot thinks Hulkenberg will now be in the sights of the bigger teams.

“I would be very surprised if he is not taken. The biggest chance he has now is of being grabbed by a more affluent team, not the risk of not having a drive,” Stewart is quoted by gpweek.com.

“He is never going to be without a job.”

Indeed, there are signs now that Williams intends to keep Hulkenberg. In an official press release, technical boss Sam Michael described his performance in Brazil as “exceptional”.

And in a news report posted on the Williams website on Monday, team founder and principal Sir Frank Williams used the same word to describe Hulkenberg’s latest performances.

Meanwhile, Maldonado has been scheduled for three days of post-season testing with HRT, the back-of-the-grid team that recently became a buyer of Williams’ gearbox for 2011.

Tony Fernandes has reportedly lost the support of Clive Chapman.

The news was reported by the well-known French commentator Jean-Louis Moncet in his latest Auto Plus column.

He said he received the information from “a very good source” at Lotus Cars.

The famous British sports car maker is locked in a legal battle with Fernandes, who intends to continue to use the Lotus name in formula one next year, despite Group Lotus withdrawing its official license.

Moncet’s source said Fernandes, Lotus Racing’s majority owner and team boss, continually says he has the backing of Chapman, the son of the late Lotus founder Colin Chapman.

But the source said Chapman in fact has dissociated himself from Fernandes’ team.

Chapman has reportedly written a letter to Bernie Ecclestone to this effect, and may also issue a press release to confirm his stance officially.

The issue could be doubly problematic for Fernandes’ Lotus Racing, with Renault believed to be holding off confirming its supply of engines for 2011 until the wrangling has stopped.

Lotus Racing said last week it will not be making “any further comments” on the issue on the advice of Tun Dr Mahathir, advisor to Group Lotus owner Proton and the former Malaysian PM.

HRT will deploy its “regular drivers” at Suzuka this weekend, Colin Kolles moved to clarify on Tuesday.

The struggling Spanish team earlier sent out a confusing message about its Suzuka campaign by declining to mention any of its contracted drivers in a pre-event press release.

Karun Chandhok, Bruno Senna, Sakon Yamamoto and Christian Klien have all occupied the two race seats at times in 2010.

Japanese Yamamoto was believed to have moved into a permanent role at HRT, but he was sidelined in Singapore two weeks ago with what the team described as food poisoning.

Austrian Klien stepped into Yamamoto’s cockpit and impressed, while one of his personal sponsors took a prominent place on the roll hoop of the F110 car.

Asked to nominate HRT’s race lineup for Suzuka, Kolles told Germany’s motorsport-total.com on Tuesday: “We’re planning with our regular drivers.

“They are Senna and Yamamoto,” he said.

However, he declined to guarantee that will be HRT’s lineup in Japan this weekend.

“You never know what’s going to happen,” said Kolles.  “What happens if someone breaks a leg?”

An intense duel, at least, spectacular. Jorge Lorenzo came out “losers” by comparison with Valentino Rossi at Motegi, falling off the podium for the second consecutive race finishing in fourth place. Some maneuvers Rossi did not go to the genius of “almost” World Champion, and was able to confide in the press release also disclosed by the same team Fiat Yamaha.

“It ‘was a great battle with Valentino, “says Jorge Lorenzo. “We were two warriors with the killer instinct! In my opinion, exaggerated in some places, we were both at the limit, but some of his moves were a little too over the top as we touched and went off course. We’re teammates, I am fighting for the title and the Yamaha has yet to win the constructors’ title and the team: we had to take it into consideration in the race today. “

Apart from the duel with Valentino Rossi, the two-time 250cc world champion can not be satisfied with the result, although in 7 days at Sepang can celebrate winning the world title with three games to spare …

“I’m disappointed because I wanted particularly missed the podium here in Yamaha’s home race, but that’s racing. We chose to run with the old engine to be safe, but unfortunately we were not in place, especially the front. Now I am close to realize my dream, I really hope we can do it at Sepang.

Before flying to Barcelona, where tomorrow will be operated by Doctor Xavier Mir at the University Clinic Dexeus, Dani Pedrosa has hired a press release on Repsol Honda Team commentary of what happened. The three-time world champion, now out of contention to win the MotoGP title, explains the dynamics of the incident and his feelings, with the promise to return soon to the track (Phillip Island or at the latest, Estoril).

“Obviously this was a bad day. It ‘been a strange fall, it was only my second lap I was in a lagging sector of the track. I tried to brake, but I knew immediately that something was wrong and I could not do anything to avoid falling.

After the accident I understood very well that I hurt, I felt so much pain. I had a big impact on the ankle and also fractured his collarbone when I hit the pavement: I was very unfortunate, because this time we were doing very well.

This year I had no physical problems since the pre-championship race after race we have reached a good level. It did not take this injury, I do not deserve.

Now back in Spain, so we decided after a consultation and medical examinations here in Japan. I hope to get back on track as soon as possible. “

Speaking of the causes of this fall, the HRC found that this was a problem with the accelerator, making sure it is already solved in the upcoming tests at Motegi where, unfortunately, there will be Dani Pedrosa.

As the ‘team orders hearing’ broke in Paris on Wednesday evening, it emerged that Ferrari has escaped further penalty.
The disciplinary panel decided not to add to the Italian team’s $100,000 fine for imposing team orders, despite former FIA president Max Mosley and others insisting recently that Ferrari deserved an additional sporting sanction.

In fact, the governing body has instead ordered a review of the regulations, which is an indication that the team orders ban will be amended or scrapped altogether.

F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, as well as FIA president Jean Todt, were present for Wednesday’s proceedings.

The news about Ferrari escaping further sanction was confirmed by another attendee, Angelo Sticchi Damiani, the president of Italy’s sanctioning body CSAI.

Ecclestone refused to comment beyond saying a press release will be issued shortly.

Whilst being checked by doctors in Valencia’s medical centre on Sunday, Mark Webber and Heikki Kovalainen shook hands.

Webber’s Red Bull had backflipped spectacularly at full speed after hitting the back of Kovalainen’s slower Lotus, before ploughing headfirst into a tyre barrier.

Pundits immediately said Finn Kovalainen should have let Webber pass, due to the big speed difference between their cars.

“In the end the thing that surprised me was how early he braked, that’s the thing which caught me out,” Webber told the BBC.

He was slightly critical of Kovalainen’s “aggressive” driving, but said the real reason for the crash was the difference between the cars.

“It turns out it’s about 80 metres before I braked for the previous lap so I mean it’s a different category,” said Webber.

Also to the BBC, Kovalainen said he thought Webber was “surprised how early I had to brake”, but in a press release said he must have “missed his braking point and he ran into me”.

Jun.12 (GMM)  Stewards are looking into whether Lewis Hamilton should be penalised for an incident at the end of qualifying.

The 2008 world champion achieved pole position in Montreal, but on his ‘in lap’ was asked by a McLaren engineer to stop the MP4-25 at the side of the track.

The radio call, broadcasted live on television, informed 25-year-old Hamilton that the reason for the stoppage was to ensure there is enough fuel in the tank for the FIA to test a sample.

“The FIA don’t take kindly to you not having enough fuel to get into the pits at the end of the lap — they’ll be taking a look at that,” predicted BBC commentator Martin Brundle.

Allowing McLaren to get away with running Hamilton’s car too light in Canada, which is a performance advantage, would set a precedent whereby cars are regularly fuelled to stop on the circuit after a final flying lap.

McLaren did not mention the incident in its post-session press release.

HRT on Wednesday morning confirmed that its relationship with Italian chassis maker Dallara has ended.

Amid multiple criticisms of the F110 car from within the new Spanish outfit, it has been reported for some time that the Dallara contract was terminated.

“It was clear from the outset that the contract with Dallara is completed,” team boss Colin Kolles was quoted as saying last month.

“It ended on the date on which we ran our cars,” he added.

In a press release on Wednesday morning, the team confirmed the split, insisting it is “on amicable terms”.

But the statement also revealed that after six races in 2010, “no further chassis development was made by Dallara”.

“HRT … will continue to develop and improve the Dallara designed F110 chassis via its own development programme,” the statement added.

Amid suggestions the Dallara split would convince consultant Geoff Willis to sign up as technical director, Kolles said earlier this month that the team will build its own car for 2011.
(GMM)

May 3 (GMM)  Speculation about Michael Schumacher’s mood continues to rise, but the seven time world champion insists he is “extremely motivated” ahead of the fifth race of his 2010 comeback.

After three years of retirement, the 41-year-old German has been consistently outpaced by his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg so far in 2010, but will have a car with a longer wheelbase in Spain that should better suit his driving style.

“When he has that (revised car) I think we will have to reassess the whole story,” commented former triple world champion Sir Jackie Stewart.

“If he then doesn’t deliver, then I think he has a problem,” added the Scot.

70-year-old Stewart thinks part of Schumacher’s problem will be reassessing his desire to honour the full three years of his new contract.

“You know, I don’t think he should have retired when he did in 2006 because I don’t think it was out of his system,” he said.  “This might take it out of his system.”

Schumacher’s old title rival of the 90s, Damon Hill, is not ruling out that “the old Schumacher magic” could soon return.

“Is it still there?” he told the Daily Mail, whose headline accuses Mercedes of “wasting money” on Schumacher.

“I’m sure that’s a question Michael will be asking himself — and it’s one that is starting to become valid after four races,” added Hill.

In an official Mercedes press release, Schumacher played down the likely effect of the car upgrades for Barcelona but sounded bullish about his own outlook.

Team boss Ross Brawn also said the German is “determined to succeed” despite the setbacks so far.

Added Schumacher: “Our step forward in Barcelona will be bigger than you can make at each race during the flyaways but it would not be realistic to expect us to suddenly be competing right at the front,” he said.

“However the good news is that after three years away, I am feeling extremely motivated.  So I am clearly ready to take this challenge,” added the record winner of 91 grands prix.