Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona
Friday, 11th of May 2012
Weather: Sunny – Air 30ºC, Track 45ºC

10.00-11.30 FORMULA 1 PRACTICE SESSION 1
Pedro de la Rosa F112-02 #22 23rd (19 laps) 1:29.107
Dani Clos F112-03 #23 24th (19 laps) 1:31.618

14.00-15.30 FORMULA 1 PRACTICE SESSION 2
Pedro de la Rosa F112-02 #22 23rd (26 laps )1:28.235
Narain Karthikeyan F112-03 #23 24th (2 laps)

The time has finally come and the highly anticipated Spanish Grand Prix finally got underway today with the first free practice sessions at the Circuit de Catalunya (4.655 km). The day started with Dani Clos lining up alongside Pedro de la Rosa, making it a historic moment for the team and Spanish motorsport as a whole. The Spanish duo were able to try out the aerodynamic upgrades and compare data until Clos’ car came to a halt as a result of an electrical issue towards the end of the session.

The team worked hard at midday to solve the problem and get Narain Karthikeyan out on the track on time for the second session. It wasn’t to be but the team continued to fight against the clock and, in the end, the Indian driver was able to get on the track with half an hour to go in the session. But the car said enough was enough immediately and Karthikeyan wasn’t even able to finish two laps. On his behalf, de la Rosa completed a total of 26 laps comparing the two aerodynamic options with the two tyre options.

“I’m happy to have got into the car for the first time today, albeit for a short first encounter. The feeling I had when I left the pits and saw the Spanish crowd, whilst driving for a Spanish team alongside Pedro, was unbelievable. It was my first time in the new car and I wasn’t 100% comfortable since the car is built for Narain, so I had to adapt. We were able to carry out some aerodynamic work and try out some different things on the car so I’m pleased to have completed my job for the team”.

Pedro de la Rosa: “Today was the day to try out the aero package we’ve brought to Barcelona, so we completed various short stints to see how the car behaved with the changes. It was interesting because the car has effectively taken a step forwards, but we need an even bigger step, especially at such a tough circuit as this one where there are many quick turns and where you need to improve the balance of the car. There’s still plenty to do and a lot of data to analyze to have a better understanding of how to get the most out of these upgrades”.

Narain Karthikeyan: “I’m disappointed to have not got any laps under my belt today; it’s certainly not how I was aiming to start my weekend in Barcelona. Tomorrow will be an uphill struggle as we’ve only got one hour in the morning to get the car ready for qualifying in the afternoon, so we’re really going to have to get our heads down and work hard. Hopefully we can make up for the time lost today and turn things around tomorrow”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “Today was a day of mixed feelings. On one hand it was very nice to see Dani make his debut but on the other hand we suffered a lot of electrical issues on Narain’s car. It’s a new chassis and there’s a lot of work to do with any new car so it’s not that strange for things to not work out first time round. It looks like the upgrades we’ve brought have worked well, which makes us optimistic for the future. Now we have to fix our immediate problems and work so that the weekend turns out the best way possible”.

HRT Formula 1 Team incorporates Kyocera Document Solutions as its Official Supplier through a collaboration agreement for the 2012 season. The Spanish team will count on Kyocera’s services, which include needs for management and printing of documents, both at the team’s permanent offices in the Caja Mágica and at the mobile offices that travel throughout the world during the Formula 1 season.

Kyocera Document Solutions has a vast experience in the sporting world and, even more so, in the motorsport one, since it’s responsible for the management and printing of documents at the F1 and MotoGP Grands Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya, Valencia Street Circuit and Motorland Aragón. At all of these Kyocera offers high quality devices and services that adapt to the rigurous demands that any F1 Grand Prix has, meeting the demands of the media office and the organization at the circuit itself, including a permanent 24-hour service.

The ceramic components of Kyocera are not only integrated in our printing devices, giving them a greater durability and resistence, but they are also present in many other industries, such as some F1 cars where there are parts incorporating Kyocera’s ceramic components that have to cope with extreme temperatures.

HRT Formula 1 Team continues to progress firmly towards its objective of consolidating itself and growing and it now takes another step forward thanks to the partnership with the multinational Japanese company Kyocera. It’s another support for the young Spanish outfit who, thanks to the seriousness and hard work that it proves day by day, has more national and international companies willing to back HRT, contributing to its consolidation and progress in the pinnacle of motorsport.

Óscar Sánchez, KYOCERA Document Solutions General Manager: “A team such as HRT Formula 1 Team needs to be backed by the most advanced and reliable technology during the most demanding of championships. Kyocera has the latest printing machinery and a highly experimented staff, which makes us a leader in offering documentary services at any sporting events”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal HRT Formula 1 Team: “Count on a renowned multinational company as Kyocera is amongst our partners gives us a confidence and calmness of great value for our day to day work. That calmness enables us to focus on pure competition aspects knowing that our backs are covered. Our needs in terms of printing, copying and scanning are high because the engineering, operations, marketing and communications departments are continuously putting the machines to the test and it is of vital importance that this work is not interrupted. In Formula 1 you work to the limit and Kyocera gives us the support and confidence needed to be able to do it”.

ABOUT KYOCERA DOCUMENT SOLUTIONS

KYOCERA Document Solutions is one of the world’s leading management solutions and document printing companies in the world. With a staff of almost 15,000 employees, its range of products and services includes ECOSYS printers, reliable multifunction printers, high-quality printer supplies, an array of software solutions and managed document services. KYOCERA Document Solutions offers innovative products built with long lasting components. Its clients benefit from the market’s lowest total cost of property and from the highest efficiency in any working environment. Its portfolio of solutions and its managed document services contribute not only to reduce the environmental impact but also to improve the efficiency and reliability of business.

Mercedes is “on the verge” of quitting formula one.

That is the alarming claim of the London newspaper The Times, in an article written by its authoritative F1 correspondent Kevin Eason.

Eason wrote that while rival top teams Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull will get to appoint directors once F1 is floated on the Singapore exchange, Mercedes has not been extended the same offer.

“Why should Mercedes have the same deal as the others?” F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone is quoted as saying. “What have they done in formula one?

“They won a race and that is it.”

That attitude, Eason argues, has left Mercedes “on the verge of quitting formula one”, having apparently conducted a study into how its Brackley based works team could be withdrawn.

Eason also quoted Ecclestone as having “scoffed” at the suggestion Mercedes quitting could wipe 20 per cent off the value of F1′s stock market floatation.

Force India deputy boss Bob Fernley has dismissed reports the Silverstone based team could pull out of the controversial Bahrain grand prix.

Two members of the team were allowed to return to Europe this week following a Molotov cocktail attack en route from the Sakhir circuit to the hotel.

There were high-level meetings involving Force India on Thursday, sparking speculation the entire team could follow its frightened members back to the UK.

But Fernley, admitting that security has been ramped up after the incident, is quoted by Express newspaper: “We are definitely taking part, that is decided.”

Bahrain’s information affairs authority also released a statement featuring quotes by Bernie Ecclestone.

“I have no knowledge of any teams planning to withdraw from the race and we are all looking forward to racing in Bahrain,” the F1 chief executive said.

According to Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary, however, another incident like the one involving Force India this week could force F1 to change its decision to go ahead with the race.

“If that happened again and someone was injured then that’s the nightmare scenario for organisers as it might push the teams over the edge,” he said.

Many drivers, like Kimi Raikkonen, have said the situation is normal this weekend in Bahrain, but Cary does not agree.

“Normally there would be PR events in town, you know, ‘meet the fans’ and that sort of thing but certainly as far as I’m aware there aren’t any of those happening,” he said.

World champion Sebastian Vettel said he will be happy when track action begins on Friday.

“I think it’s not a big problem,” the German said when asked about the security situation this weekend, “and I’m happy once we start testing tomorrow because then we worry about the stuff that really matters — tyre temperatures, cars.”

Earlier, Vitaly Petrov’s manager indicated the Russian would only travel to Bahrain if F1 could guarantee his safety.

“If it was dangerous they wouldn’t let us in,” the Caterham driver told The National in Bahrain.

“If they make sure nothing gets thrown onto that track to hurt us, then we’ll be fine. We are here; if it happens, it happens,” added Petrov.

In fact, almost everyone in Bahrain has been reluctant to comment in detail, but there is an obvious feeling of unease.

Peter Sauber told Blick newspaper: “I feel like a guest, and so it is not polite to criticise your host.”

But 1996 world champion Damon Hill allowed himself some criticism of F1, including the sport’s most powerful figures, Bernie Ecclestone and Jean Todt.

He pointed out that FIA president Todt has said “next to nothing” about the Bahrain saga.

“This I find baffling,” Hill wrote in the Guardian. “Surely it is possible to condemn acts of inhumanity without taking a side?”

As for F1 chief executive Ecclestone, who has consistently trivialised the Bahrain issue, Hill noted that “few” in the paddock “dare to publicly disagree” with the imperious 81-year-old.

“Perhaps we should (criticise him), instead of just muttering under our breath, scared of losing our passes,” said Hill.

Hermann Tilke, the German architect who designed the Sakhir circuit, sees the entire saga as a storm in a teacup.

“It is safe in Bahrain,” Tilke, whose company has an office there, told the Kolner Express newspaper. “I’ve never heard about any problems from our people.

“Of course there is some unrest, but it is protests, not civil war. As Bernie Ecclestone has said, we do sports, not politics,” he insisted.

“And if they demonstrate peacefully now, the media will report on it, so both sides benefit.”

Fernando Alonso’s win was a complete surprise, but the name of another team was on more paddock-dwellers’ lips after Malaysia — Sauber.

“Only one team could do consistently good laptimes on all the tyres and in all the conditions, and it was Sauber,” confirmed Martin Whitmarsh, whose McLaren team had travelled to Sepang with arguably the fastest car.

Also in Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner agreed: “They (Sauber) have somehow managed to get all of the tyres to work perfectly, which at the moment is the key to success.

“The (tyre) window is so small that it’s very easy to not be in it,” added the Briton.

And Sepang winner Fernando Alonso, whose victory was only ensured by a late-race mistake by Sauber’s Sergio Perez, admitted: “No doubt about it, they were quicker than us.”

Some believe it was only the Malaysian weather chaos that brought the Ferrari-powered C31 to the top of F1′s form-guide, but the Sauber was in fact also fast in Australia.

“Our cars were severely damaged at the start (in Melbourne),” explained chief designer Matt Morris. “At the front for Perez, the rear for Kobayashi.”

Nonetheless, both finished inside the top eight.

“The race in Malaysia showed very clearly how fast our car is,” insisted team boss Peter Sauber, writing in Blick newspaper.

“After two very different tracks, we have the assurance now that the C31 is a success.”

The next question is precisely how the small Hinwil based team has managed to build a pace-setting car.

One possible answer is the end of the blown diffuser era, and the fact that Sauber’s 2012 solution has already been copied by F1′s formerly-dominant Red Bull.

Italy’s Autosprint, meanwhile, claims Ferrari is next, mischievously suggesting that the updated F2012 might aptly be called the ‘Ferrauber’.

Referring to the FIA exhaust clampdown, Morris admitted: “We had to give up less than our opponents.”

Peter Sauber added: “When I saw that Red Bull had chosen a similar route to us, I was sure that we were right.”

Another trick on the C31 is a clever use of the loophole allowing an opening at the front of the car for driver cooling.

“It’s no match-winner,” Morris insists, “but it gains us some (lap) time.”

And Autosprint reports that another “trick” on the Sauber is located in front of the rear wheels, exploiting yet another “grey zone” in the regulations.

The FIA could sanction F1′s reigning back-to-back world champion for his behaviour during the recent Malaysian grand prix.

Before calling backmarker Narain Karthikeyan a “gherkin” and “idiot” in the wake of their collision, Sebastian Vettel was captured by his on-board camera twice displaying his middle-finger to the Indian driver.

“I think he’s highly frustrated because he’s having a tough season,” Karthikeyan told the Deccan Chronicle on Wednesday.

“It’s completely unprofessional to blame me for the incident. The derogatory remark only goes to show him in bad light.

“Just because he has a good car, he can’t call others an idiot,” Karthikeyan continued.

“I have won races in all the previous single-seater championships I have participated in so I don’t need a certificate from Vettel.”

Reports in Germany, including in the Kolner Express, Bild and Die Welt newspapers, claim that Red Bull driver’s behaviour may have breached the new stricter code of conduct introduced by FIA president Jean Todt.

The FIA has been contacted for comment.

“He has breached the code of conduct,” former F1 driver Marc Surer told Germany’s Sky television. “You sign it when you get the license and then you have to behave correspondingly.

“Any behaviour that hurts other people or the sport is an offense,” added the Swiss.

Asked what the penalties might be, Surer explained: “Anything from a warning to a license revocation. In this case I think it was quite understandable and there will be a mild punishment, if there is anything.”

Hans-Joachim Stuck, however, is slightly less forgiving.

“When you’re overtaking, misunderstandings can occur. I think Vettel needs to learn this.

“With him, the curve was always upwards and now it’s not the case, and he needs to deal with that,” the German legend told the DAPD news agency.

As for Vettel’s description of Karthikeyan as a “gherkin”, Stuck insisted: “It’s better than ‘asshole’.”

Vettel’s attack, however, was sustained, with Kleine Zeitung newspaper now quoting the Red Bull driver as having said: “Maybe formula one is not the place to learn how to drive.”

Stuck responded: “If Sebastian had left more space, it would not have happened. It happens sometimes so it’s a racing incident.

“He (Karthikeyan) didn’t do it on purpose and it always takes two.”

The HRT driver hit back by calling Vettel a “bully”, and even David Coulthard – a Red Bull team consultant – defended Karthikeyan.

“He can’t make his car invisible,” the Scot is quoted as saying by the Mirror.

Also defending Karthikeyan was Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg, who told the Indian press this week: “From what I saw, it was not Narain’s fault.

“So I don’t really understand why he (Vettel) said all that.”

Hukenberg’s Force India teammate Paul di Resta added: “Narain is entitled to do as much on the track in comparison with someone like Vettel.

“Both are F1 drivers and are there to represent their teams.”

Sepang International Circuit, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Sunday, 25th of March 2012

Weather: Rainy – Air 26ºC, Track 28ºC
Race: 56 laps
Track distance: 5.543 km

Pedro de la RosaF112-02 #2221st
Narain KarthikeyanF112-01 #2322nd

Mission accomplished for HRT Formula 1 Team today as Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan crossed the finish line in the 56-lap race that took place at the Sepang International Circuit. It was an eventful race from the beginning with De la Rosa’s car having to start from the pit lane, but a correct tyre strategy gave its rewards when it started raining heavily and the HRT’s were two of a few cars who were running on extreme wet tyres. The event came to a halt only 9 laps in with Karthikeyan and De la Rosa in 10th and 17th place respectively .The cars were on the grid for almost an hour before the restart and Pedro was penalized with a drive-through penalty but, despite all of this, both drivers put in a fantastic shift at the wheel of the F112 that needs as much running time as possible to be at the level it should be. The team also did a good job with the strategy and the mechanics completed their first pit stops.

Overall it was a satisfying result for the team who now has two weeks ahead to prepare for the Chinese Grand Prix in better conditions.

Pedro de la Rosa: “I must say I really enjoyed myself in that race. It really was the best race to make my debut with HRT. I don’t think anyone could imagine we would finish after starting from the pit lane due to an issue with the fuel pressure that we were dragging over from yesterday, I was penalized with a drive-through penalty, we completed our first real pitstop… to sum up, a lot of things happened but, in the end, the car held out really well given where we were at the beginning. We have to improve many things but this was a perfect test. My teammate also finished so that’s doubly satisfying. I’m very happy for the team, we accomplished our objective. Now we have to go a little bit further”.

Narain Karthikeyan: “It was a very interesting race in really wet conditions. We were running in 10th at one point, which I think is the best position we’ve ever been in but unfortunately the rain stopped and the track dried out and it was impossible to keep ahead of the rest. I made a mistake, locking up the front, and went off on turn 9 but apart from that it all went pretty well. We finished the race, did some mileage and made up two positions from 23rd so that’s something to smile about. Everyone did a great job and we’re all really happy with the result, now we have to go on from here and try to progress in China”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal: “Yesterday after qualifying we were satisfied and today, thankfully, we are again. We met another target which was to finish the race with both cars. There are aspects that need improving, without a doubt, such as reliability and the speed of the car, but by completing the race we have accumulated a lot of data which will be of great use to continue progressing. We also need to improve pit stops and team coordination but it was the first time they did it and from the first stop to the second you could already tell the difference. Today I want to highlight the work everyone did and thank them for their effort these past weeks and today’s result is a small reward for that enormous amount of work that is taking place”.

Michael Schumacher has played down expectations he or Nico Rosberg could put their 2012 Mercedes on pole in Malaysia.
“I think we will be somewhere near the top,” Rosberg is quoted by Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport. “The race is more of a worry for us.”

Last weekend in Australia, the W03 was strong in qualifying but faded in the race as it ate through the Pirelli tyres.

Mercedes insists it is working on the race pace problem, but the Brackley based team could shine even brighter in Sepang qualifying, with the innovative W-duct working particularly well on the long straights.

So could Schumacher secure his 69th pole on Saturday?

“That would be too optimistic,” said the 43-year-old German. “I think the battle for fifth place is the maximum.”

A really good qualifying for Mercedes, however, would be a problem for a team like Red Bull.

“With the (W-duct) system, the Mercedes will be very difficult to overtake,” Dr Helmut Marko told Bild newspaper.

It is believed the reigning champions, despite insisting the system is illegal, are hard at work on their own F-duct.

But Marko admitted: “It is very difficult to recreate.”

Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn believes all the fuss about the W-duct is a ploy by teams like Red Bull.

“They are bombarding the FIA with questions about our technology in the hope of finding out the secret,” he said.

 With an eye on the usual suspects McLaren and Ferrari, Red Bull mogul Dietrich Mateschitz thinks yet another team could be a real challenger in 2012.
Referring to Mercedes, he told the Austrian newspaper Kurier that the Ross Brawn-led team seems to have come up with “very good improvements” and “a major development”.

He is believed to be referring to clever new systems on the W03, with the latest discovery said to boost top speed significantly by combining ‘DRS’ with a new and legal F-duct solution.

Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko agrees that the Mercedes idea is “shrewd”, adding that there is not time to fit a similar system to the RB8 before Melbourne.

Triple world champion Niki Lauda told Germany’s RTL television: “I think the McLaren and the Red Bull cars are on par.

“Mercedes is the big question mark — I think they are also really fast.”

Finally realising Mercedes’ apparent speed, a newspaper recently crowned the Brackley based team the ‘Bluff champion’ of the 2012 winter.

Michael Schumacher, however, insists it has not been a deliberate strategy.

“Formula one is just so complex that we simply don’t know much about how the other teams are going. Clearly, the W03 is a step forward,” he told Bild-Zeitung.

“The question is how big our step has been compared to the others. We really need to wait until the first race.”

Alain Prost has conceded it will be difficult for the once-great Williams to return to the top in formula one.
The legendary Frenchman won the last of his four world championships with the famous British team, which in 1993 was utterly dominant.

But Williams has not won a single race since 2004, and last year finished the constructors’ standings a woeful ninth, having scored only a handful of points.

“I talk often with Frank Williams,” Prost told the Russian website F1News, “and this winter I even tried to help find him some sponsors, but failed.

“It’s difficult for them,” he continued, “as when you get yourself into financial problems, it’s so hard to get out of them.”

Prost’s own team collapsed in 2001.

 HRT’s 2012 campaign looks set to finally get off the start-line, after the new single seater passed the mandatory crash tests.
Earlier, the reportedly step-nosed car failed two of the FIA’s 2012 impact safety tests, which according to new rules meant the struggling Spanish team could not run as scheduled last week in Barcelona.

But writing in AS newspaper, correspondent Manuel Franco said the Cosworth-powered chassis has finally passed all the crash tests, meaning it can now debut this week at the Circuit de Catalunya.

The final pre-season group test begins on Thursday, but Franco wrote that it is not clear precisely when the new HRT will make its debut, probably in Pedro de la Rosa’s hands.

“But is expected that he (de la Rosa) and his teammate Narain Karthikeyan will be in Catalonia,” he added.

After months of evaluations and negotiations in which diverse options have been assessed, Spanish team HRT has finally opted for the facilities of the Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica to locate its permanent headquarters.

The team will occupy part of the Caja Mágica facilities and will coexist with the Masters 1000 Madrid Open. HRT F1 Team will be specifically situated in the Indoor Sur and Indoor Central buildings, occupying a total surface of 11,000m2.

In only seven months, the new directors have carried out a restructuring process with the objective of providing the team with stability and viability, besides having a new identity. To reach these targets, a lot of hard work has been focused on three fronts in these last three months: the new car, the renewed operational and technical team and a permanent headquarters which, besides from uniting the whole team in a workspace with F1 standards, will contribute an added value to the team.

With the signing of Pedro de la Rosa this past October a long desired objective was accomplished, which was none other than to incorporate a Spanish driver. The recent addition of Narain Karthikeyan completes a driver line-up packed with experience, which is of great value in this new chapter for the team.

The renewal of the technical team started once the 2011 season was over and the new team members have been working ever since at the temporary logistical base in Paterna, Valencia, until the definitive relocation to the permanent headquarters is carried out. The chosen venue had to meet very specific and ambitious requirements.

And the Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica meets the requirements that HRT Formula 1 Team considers indispensable for this new chapter. It is a versatile and sustainable space that will take in the different departments that make up the team besides being an area open to fans, sponsors, suppliers and collaborators.

Remodeling and adaptation of the space will begin immediately and it is calculated that in under a month the first workers will be able to move in. The technical and operational sectors of the team won’t do so until Formula 1 returns to Europe but the headquarters is expected to be fully operational for May. The Technical Design Office is anticipated to move in progressively as of early June, thus completing a programme which is calculated to generate more than a hundred jobs with different degrees of specialization.

The headquarters won’t only be a technological and R&D centre, but also a way of getting closer to the public, sponsors, suppliers and collaborators with accessible areas such as a future museum, guided tours or a conference area, whilst also becoming a formation centre.

Electric mobility and sustainability are fundamental aspects for HRT and something it shares with the Complejo Deportivo Caja Mágica. The team is a pioneer in the Formula 1 world after integrating alternative energies to petrol in its mobility plan and using electric bicycles to move around both at Grands Prix and away from them.

The Complejo Deportivo Madrid Caja Mágica is a multifunctional centre designed by the architect Dominique Perrault. It is located in the Parque Lineal del Manzanares, in a space of 17 hectares which includes large garden areas. The design and distribution of this space enables the celebration of all kinds of events, not only sporting ones, such as presentations, spectacles and conventions.

Saúl Ruiz de Marcos, HRT F1 Team CEO: “For us it is fundamental to have a headquarters that, apart from uniting the team and ending with the dispersion, is beneficial from a logistical and industrial point of view. But that also enables us to maintain a closer relationship with our fans, suppliers and sponsors. Madrid and the Caja Mágica facilities fit perfectly with the standards we were looking for. In the last few months we have assessed different options, looked at their pros and cons, and we feel that the decision to establish our permanent headquarters in Madrid was the best one. I want to thank Madrid Espacios y Congresos for the interest they have shown in this going ahead and I’m sure that this relationship will be very beneficial for everyone”.

Luis Pérez-Sala, Team Principal of HRT F1 Team: “We’ve been working hard for months and establishing our permanent headquarters was very important. Finding a space in which we could all work together was vital, in order to optimize work and generate a good team feeling, a sense of belonging. When the adaptation of the facilities is completed and every department starts working under the same roof in a few months, we will only have one step left to take, which is to have the design department in Madrid too. All this implies not only becoming a place to feel identified with and carry out activities for the team, its sponsors, suppliers and fans, but also an important reference in technology and R&D in the centre of Madrid”.

Adrian Sutil insists he has not been ousted by Force India.
Reports are growing strength that the German, who has been with the Silverstone based team since its Spyker days, will be replaced in the race seat next year by Nico Hulkenberg.

Boss Vijay Mallya, however, will not be making the 2012 driver announcement until mid December.

“Vijay has told me that there has been no decision yet and that the (Hulkenberg) news is not right.

“I have no reason to disbelieve him as he has always been open and honest with me,” Sutil told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport.

The magazine, however, is convinced that Sutil’s “marriage to his long-time employer seems over”, with new team co-owner Sahara meaning Force India is “no longer dependent on Sutil’s sponsors”.

His only alternative for 2012 appears to be Williams, with Sutil’s manager Manfred Zimmermann reportedly ruling out a switch to Lotus, Virgin or HRT.

Renault has a vacancy for next year, but Sutil remains locked in a legal dispute with that team’s co-owner Eric Lux.

For its driver choice, Williams is in a position of luxury, with Sutil but also Rubens Barrichello and apparently Kimi Raikkonen all keen on the seat alongside Pastor Maldonado.

Auto Motor und Sport said 2007 world champion Raikkonen has tired of rallying, has some sponsorship in tow and is “training hard” for his F1 comeback.

“A quick decision by Williams, as hoped for by Sutil, is not likely,” said the German report.

Sebastian Vettel is a brilliant driver and his countryman Nico Rosberg is in the same league.
That is the view of Gerhard Berger, who watched Vettel’s first grand prix win in 2008 as the team co-owner on the Toro Rosso pitwall.

“He is a killer,” the great Austrian told Bild newspaper, “and his great advantage is he doesn’t look like it. He looks like a nice young man from your neighbourhood.”

Two years older than 23-year-old Vettel is fellow German Rosberg, who has not yet won a single race despite having almost two seasons more experience.

But the son of 1982 world champion Keke Rosberg has consistently beaten Michael Schumacher at Mercedes, prompting Berger to observe: “I see him on a par with Vettel.

“All he lacks is a fast car.”

The future of another senior member of Williams’ technical team is reportedly in doubt.

On the back of a near unprecedentedly bad start to the famous British team’s 2011 season, it emerged that chairman Adam Parr is heading a radical restructuring that could result in technical director Sam Michael losing his job.

And Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport reports that other personnel changes could be implemented, possibly as soon as next weekend’s Turkish grand prix.

The report said Williams’ 38-year-old chief aerodynamicist Jon Tomlinson could be set to leave the Oxfordshire based team.

He entered F1 with Jordan in 2000 and has also worked with Renault.

Auto Motor und Sport also said team co-founder, shareholder and long time engineering director and Patrick Head is looking to step down completely.

“This would start a whole new era for Williams’ technical department,” read the report.

The rumours are reportedly circulating not only in F1 circles but also among those in the know at the Frankfurt stock exchange, where Williams’ shares have been in decline.

The team’s senior driver Rubens Barrichello is quoted by Speed Week as defending Sam Michael, the Australian who turns 40 on Friday.

Michael joined Williams in 2001 and three years later replaced Head as technical director.

“I have known Sam since our days at Jordan,” said Brazilian Barrichello. “The problem is not that he is the wrong man for the job, but that he has too much to do.”

Speed Week said the feeling in the Shanghai paddock two weeks ago was that Williams should not be looking to blame Michael for its current situation, but rather chairman Parr.