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2008 FORMULA 1 GULF AIR BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX
2008-04-06 15:44:00
1 2 Felipe Massa Ferrari 57 Winner 2 102 1 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 57 +3.3 secs 4 83 4 Robert Kubica BMW 57 +4.9 secs 1 64 3 Nick Heidfeld BMW 57 +8.4 secs 6 55 23 Heikki Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 57 +26.7 secs 5 46 11 Jarno Trulli Toyota 57 +41.3 secs 7 37 10 Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 57 +45.4 secs 11 28 7 Nico Rosberg Williams-Toyota 57 +55.8 secs 8 19 12 Timo Glock Toyota 57 +69.5 secs 13 10 5 Fernando Alonso Renault 57 +77.1 secs 10 11 17 Rubens Barrichello Honda 57 +77.8 secs 12 12 21 Giancarlo Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 56 +1 Lap 18 13 22 Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 56 +1 Lap 3 14 8 Kazuki Nakajima ...
More About: Formula , Formula 1 , Bahrain , Grand , Gulf

Dannii Minogue dates F1 ace Lewis Hamilton
2008-04-03 11:37:00
SINGING star Dannii Minogue has organised a secret rendezvous with Formula 1 young gun Lewis Hamilton at next month's Monaco Grand Prix.Hamilton has reportedly been bombarding the younger Minogue sister with text messages after they swapped numbers following his win in last month's Melbourne race.Of course wooing the world's fastest men is nothing new for Minogue, who was once engaged to Canadian driver Jacques Villeneuve.“Lewis has been texting Dannii like mad since they met in Melbourne. He took a real shine to her," one F1 insider told Britain's The Sun newspaper."Lewis thought she was gorgeous and was really impressed with her knowledge of cars. He wanted to take her out for dinner that night but she had something on that she couldn’t cancel.“He’s kept at it and she’s finally agreed to meet him for dinner at the Monaco Grand Prix.”Minogue isn't holding back, either.“I think the guy is incredible," she gushed after their meeting. "He is mostly perfect in every ...
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Sex row 'will not hinder F1'
2008-04-03 11:26:00
PREPARATIONS for the forthcoming Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix will not be affected by a "Nazi sex games" scandal involving Formula One boss Max Mosley, officials here said yesterday. Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) chief executive officer Martin Whitaker said the next leg of the championship would go ahead "without a hitch" regardless of developments in the UK. He was speaking after the British tabloid News of the World published footage that reportedly showed Mr Mosley in compromising positions with five alleged prostitutes. The newspaper reports that Mr Mosley was due to officiate at the race in Bahrain this weekend, while sources told the GDN yesterday that he had been a regular visitor to the BIC since it began hosting the Grand Prix five years ago. However, Mr Whitaker would only say that preparations would continue at the track as normal. "I have no other comment to make, but only say it is business as usual," he told the GDN. "We are preparing hard and will hold yet anoth...
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STARS TOUCH DOWN
2008-04-02 11:34:00
FORMULA One stars Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso and Heikki Kovalainen arrived in Bahrain yesterday as the kingdom gears up for this weekend's Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix. The trio arrived on separate flights along with a few other drivers, including Toyota tester Kamui Kobayashi. McLaren's British superstar Lewis Hamilton was the first to arrive on Monday, along with Force India's Adrian Sutil. Massa, last year's Bahrain Grand Prix winner, was one of those to land early last night, as was two-time world champion Alonso. Hamilton's McLaren team-mate Kovalainen also arrived at roughly the same time. At the airport to greet the international stars were the Bahrain International Circuit's (BOC) 'meet and greet' staff, led by BIC administration director Abdul Rahman Qarata, who was delighted to be welcoming the drivers back into Bahrain for its fifth hosting of the F1 race weekend. Massa was seen earlier this year in Bahrain as the Ferrari team flew over to test their all-new F20...
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Kimi Raikkonen wary of BMW threat
2008-04-02 11:26:00
Kimi Raikkonen is convinced Ferrari and McLaren will not have it all their own way this season.The Ferrari driver and reigning world champion thinks there are three teams and six drivers in the running for the two championships. "It's much too early to make any kind of conclusion as to who is who," said Raikkonen. "We will have to wait a few more races to get the picture as to who are the main contenders for the title, but its going to be as tight as it was last year." Lewis Hamilton and Raikkonen have shared the spoils in the first two races this season but the 29-year-old is aware that BMW Sauber are hot on their heels. BMW driver Nick Heidfeld was runner-up at Melbourne while Robert Kubica finished second in Malaysia. "It's a battle between three teams instead of two because whilst Ferrari and McLaren might have won the first two races, let's not forget BMW have had two second places. So any slip up by Ferrari and McLaren and they will be there to pick up the points. "This tim...
More About: Kimi Raikkonen , Threat , Kimi

Schumacher fourth in debut bike race
2008-04-01 11:35:00
Retired Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher [Images] finished fourth on Sunday in his first competitive motorbike race.The 39-year-old German, whose seven titles and 91 grand prix wins make him Formula One's most successful driver, recorded the second fastest lap in the KTM minor series race at the Misano circuit on Italy's [Images] Adriatic coast.Schumacher, who has tested a Ducati MotoGP bike since retiring from Formula One at the end of 2006, rode a 990cc KTM Super Duke in the 10-lap KTM Trophy race having finished third in Saturday's qualifying.Schumacher, an advisor and occasional test driver for Formula One champions Ferrari [Images], enjoys riding bikes but has made it clear he has no intention of trying to race in MotoGP or superbikes but may compete in other minor events.Michael Schumacher"There'll be no second career on motorbikes," he told reporters. "This is just a hobby. At the start I was a bit too careful, I didn't begin well and I was well behind. Then...
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Caught on tape: F1 boss in 'Nazi-like' sex orgy
2008-04-01 11:31:00
London: FIA wants to stay clear of the situation involving its president, Max Mosley, and a British tabloid that reported he engaged in sexual acts with five prostitutes in a scenario that involved Nazi role-playing.''This is a matter between Mr Mosley and the newspaper,'' the governing body of world auto racing said Sunday.Mosley, the son of British Union of Fascists party founder Oswald Mosley, reportedly took part in the scene on Friday at a London apartment near his home, according to the News of the World in a front-page story.In a video on the newspaper's Web site, it shows a man identified as Mosley arriving at an apartment. The man is then greeted by a woman playing the role of a prison guard, checking his hair to see if he has been kept clean ''at the other facility.''Later, another woman in a prisoner's uniform enters the video and the man said to be Mosley is heard speaking German.The paper said it obtained the video from its ''investigators,'' but gave no f...
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Piquet hails 'great' team-mate Alonso
2008-04-01 11:29:00
Rookie driver Nelson Piquet Jr has lifted the lid on his relationship with double world champion Fernando Alonso at Renault - and revealed no problems to match those between Spaniard Alonso and Lewis Hamilton at McLaren.The Woking outfit was in turmoil for much of the 2007 season as Alonso - who won both of his titles at French team Renault before making his single-season switch - struggled to accept competitive British rookie Hamilton's assault on the world championship and equal footing within the team.Brazilian Piquet, the son of the eponymous triple world champion with the same name, told El Mundo that Alonso is a "great team-mate"."We are working very well together," Piquet said. "When we are at the circuits, he tells me how to tackle some corners, or warns me about the problems of the track."He is a really great team-mate.Piquet insisted that he also has a good relationship with former GP2 title rival Hamilton, but stopped short of saying they are friends.Asked by the paper i...
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Chandhok chasing 2009 F1 drive
2008-04-01 11:24:00
India's longing for a driver in Formula 1 will end next year, if starlet Karun Chandhok has any say in the matter.The 24-year-old is hoping that an impressive season in this year's GP2 championship will help him secure a much sought after role within one of the 11 teams on the F1 grid."2009 is the deadline I have set for myself," Chandhok, who has previously tested with Red Bull, told The Asian Age. "I am hoping to win two or three races this year in GP2 series. That will put me in a good position to go to the negotiating table with Formula 1 teams."I have met with over half the teams already, Force India being one of them. The response has been positive. Now I have to put the results on the table."One Indian ruling out a short-term return to the sport is ex-Jordan racer Narain Karthikeyan, who will now concentrate his efforts on A1 GP after failing to secure a position in Formula 1 over the winter.The 31-year-old said that the series can 'wait for the time being' , adding: "I w...
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Bernie Ecclestone defends F1 boss Max Mosley in sex scandal
2008-04-01 11:22:00
The claims were made by a Sunday newspaper, which published a video apparently showing Mr Mosley giving orders in German as he lashes girls wearing mock death camp uniforms and is himself whipped until he bleeds. Max Mosley Mr Mosley's father was British World War II fascist Sir Oswald MosleyBut Mr Ecclestone denied that the claims threatened Mr Mosley's position as president of the motorsport's governing body."I find it difficult to believe. It's his business but it sounds to me like a set up. Has he in anyway damaged F1? No," he told the Daily Mail.Mr Ecclestone also ruled out the possibility that Mr Mosley's actions had any Nazi overtones. "Knowing Max it might be all a bit of a joke rather than anything against Jewish people," he added.Mr Mosley is the fourth son of British World War II fascist Sir Oswald Mosley, a friend of Adolf Hitler, and is currently serving his fourth term as the president of the FIA, which manages Formula One.The FIA has refused to comment on the a...
More About: Scandal , Boss , Bernie Ecclestone , Bernie

Karthikeyan Unveils F1 Car Built By Bombay Students
2008-03-31 11:20:00
States Rishabh Bhandari, the overall coordinator and the brain behind IIT Powai’s dream machine, “About a year ago, while I was interning with Maruti in Delhi, I interacted with the students from IIT Delhi’s team, who had participated in the competition before and gained some much-needed experience.The team spends 25 hours every week on the car and in the winter vacations they ended up working for around 15 hours a day.Rishabh, “We started work on designing and fabrication simultaneously, as we had inputs from our interaction with the teams who had participated earlier that they had last minute problems as they spent too much time on designing and less on fabrication. One important thing we did, and maintained all throughout, was to constantly take feedback from experts, which helped us in complex fabrications. As of now, we are just finishing the final designing and fabrication of the car.” Mumbai PlusesStudents at IIT Bombay have built a formula-racing car for an interna...

Schumi to help distribute McLaren 'spy fine'
2008-03-27 13:35:00
Seven time world champion Michael Schumacher has been appointed to the body that will distribute the $60 million cash 'spy fine' paid by McLaren-Mercedes to the FIA.The German 39-year-old, who is also an advisor to the Ferrari team, will join FIA president Max Mosley on the management committee of the fund, and representing the manufacturers involved in the espionage saga are Jean Todt (Ferrari) and Mercedes' Norbert Haug.A statement issued by F1's governing body said the $60m would be called the Motor Sport Safety Development Fund, and be used "for the benefit of motor sport worldwide"."The intention is to disperse the fund over the next five years", the FIA added.
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F1: Massa spin not caused by Ferrari defect
2008-03-27 13:32:00
A spokesman for Ferrari has ruled out any lingering doubt that Felipe Massa 's terminal Sepang spin was caused by a technical problem.Amid rumours that his seat for 2009 may not be safe, Ferrari officials said they would check whether any aspect of the car could be blamed for what appeared to be the Brazilian's second major driving error in a one week period, leaving his points tally so far at zero.Asked by the German magazine Sport Bild if a defect had caused Massa to spin into the gravel at Sepang, the spokesman is quoted as saying: "No. The car was okay."Team boss Stefano Domenicali, however, is confident that the 26-year-old can put his flagging reputation back on track in Bahrain next weekend."We must not over-dramatise. I'm convinced that from Felipe's and our point of view, a response won't go amiss in Bahrain," he said. "Felipe has all the qualities and the capabilities to do well."Massa's former boss Peter Sauber, though, was not surprised when he observed the driver'...
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F1: Jordan blocks access to Force India factory
2008-03-27 13:30:00
Team founder and former owner Eddie Jordan has thrown a spanner in the works of the Force India outfit, according to reports.The Swiss publication Motorsport Aktuell claims that the Irishman, despite no longer owning the team, still controls some of the land surrounding the Silverstone factory in rural England.Jordan has apparently been trying to sell to Force India a section of land that provides access to the team factory.But because the Vijay Mallya and Mol family-owned team has so far refused to buy, it is reported that Jordan blocked access to the factory while the race team and bosses were away for the Malaysian grand prix.Motorsport Aktuell claims that Jordan ordered the dumping of a truckload of concrete on the access road.
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Ecclestone denies Briatore to succeed him
2008-03-27 13:29:00
Bernie Ecclestone has played down speculation that he has lined up Flavio Briatore as his preferred successor as F1 chief executive.The 77-year-old is close friends with Italian Briatore, who entered formula one team management in the late 80s and is still boss of the Renault outfit.Ecclestone and Briatore, 57, also recently went into business, with ownership of the London football club Queens Park Rangers. But Briton Ecclestone, albeit with no intention of retiring, doubts that one man will be able to replace him."And I don't think he is even interested in this job; he has different priorities than me," Bernie, referring to Briatore, told FHM magazine in Spain.Also in the interview, Ecclestone branded F1's current world champion Kimi Räikkönen as "completely the opposite" of 2008 challenger Lewis Hamilton."Hamilton attracts all the attention, because he likes to talk," he said. With Kimi it is so different. Nobody even knows what he is going to do from one year to the next, so ...

Sepang makes night race top priority
2008-03-27 13:27:00
Sepang officials have made it clear that it now their top priority to ensure next year’s Malaysian Grand Prix is held at night for the first time. The track admitted earlier this year that it was keen to transform its 2009 event into a floodlit race, but said in the run-up to last weekend’s GP that no plans had yet been finalised and that it would first consult F1 personnel over the matter. However the circuit’s general manager Datuk Azmi Murad has now confirmed officials have decided to push ahead with the plan in time for next year. "After 10 successful years, we need a new challenge and this is the challenge we are looking for,” he told his country’s New Straits Times newspaper. “Efforts will now be focused towards that. "We will start working on the night race and if all goes to plan, it will be next year.” Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has tried to persuade several of the sport’s Asian venues to follow the lead of Singapore and run their races at night, s...
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Whitmarsh delighted with Kovalainen
2008-03-27 13:26:00
Martin Whitmarsh is delighted by the manner in which McLaren have started the 2008 world championship but has called on all of his staff to raise their game even further ahead of the next race in Bahrain.The British squad was hampered by a qualifying penalty which saw both Heikki Kovalainen and Lewis Hamilton docked five grid places, with the Finn eventually come home third and his team-mate back in fifth."Heikki did a terrific job. He and his crew developed his car’s set-up to the point that he was quicker than Lewis in qualifying - even though he had a marginally heavier fuel load," Whitmarsh explained."He did an excellent job in the race, too. Despite a five-position grid penalty, for obstructing another car during qualifying, he recovered to finish third. Without it I’m confident he would have been second."He was supposedly struggling for confidence last year, when people were starting to question his potential, but I’m delighted to see how hard he’s worked since joining...

BIC eye another bumper F1 race
2008-03-27 13:24:00
ANOTHER record-breaking year is in store for the Bahrain Formula One Grand Prix, set to take place at the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) from April 4 to 6. The Sakhir track yesterday announced that the 34 VIP corporate lounges above the Main Grandstand are now completely sold out to blue chip regional and international clients. Maximum capacity is also in sight for the circuit's Oasis Complex lounges and the F1 Paddock Club located directly above the team garages with a perfect view of the pit lane. "The growth of popularity of the F1 and motor sport in general among sports fans since the BIC was built is extraordinary and highly rewarding to see," said BIC chief executive Martin Whitaker. "It is no less important that corporate interest is following suit. The step-by-step increases in corporate sales that we have seen through the first four Grands Prix has taken a huge leap for 2008. "Almost every key decision-maker in the Middle East business community is expected in Bahrain...
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Alonso hints at a Ferrari move as Massa messes up
2008-03-27 03:37:00
Former world motor-racing champion Fernando Alonso has revealed that he can leave Renault at the end of the season — and he is eyeing a move to Ferrari . After a torrid season alongside Lewis Hamilton at McLaren, Alonso rejoined the team with whom he won the championship in 2005 and 2006, but he has struggled with an uncompetitive car in the first two races of the season. Now the Spaniard has told a newspaper in his homeland: "I'm at Renault because we won in 2005 and 2006 and I want to get back to that, if not this year then next year. "But as I have a clause that allows me to leave, I will try to be in the best car possible and it's clear that Ferrari is one of the best." Felipe Massa 's below-par performances for Ferrari this season, in which he has retired from both races, plus Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo's declared admiration for Alonso, has meant speculation linking him to the Italian team has resurfaced. Alonso said: "It's early to talk about moves and rumo...
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F1 faces calls for change after Hamilton penalty
2008-03-27 03:35:00
LONDON: Formula One’s governing body faced calls to modify qualifying procedures for safety reasons after McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen were penalised in Malaysia at the weekend.Championship leader Hamilton and his team mate were demoted five places on the starting grid at Sepang for impeding rivals when they slowed to save fuel after completing their final qualifying laps.The rules have changed this season, preventing the 10 drivers who take part in the third and final session from refuelling between the end of Saturday’s qualifying and the race on Sunday. The final sesssion has also been shortened by five minutes, allowing enough time for each driver to do only two laps with new tyres.The revised format has raised safety concerns with drivers slowing to save fuel immediately they finish while some others are still at full speed.“I clearly don’t like the dangers implicit in this situation,” said BMW Sauber team boss Mario Theissen at the weekend.“T...
More About: Change , Faces , Calls , Penalty

Qatar to Upgrade Losail Circuit to F1 Standards
2008-03-26 17:17:00
Qatar plans to improve its Losail MotoGP circuit to cater eventually for Formula One, the head of the Gulf country's motor sports federation said on Wednesday. "We are planning a massive upgrade of the Losail circuit to make it possible to host Formula One races when the time comes," Qatar Motor and Motorcycling Federation president Nasser Khalifa al-Attiyah told Qatar's Gulf Times newspaper on Wednesday. "We will be shortly inviting tenders for the job and once we decide on whom to award the contract, work will start soon," he added. Losail hosted MotoGP's first night race earlier this month but may have to wait many years for the chance to host a Formula One Grand Prix, with Bahrain already on the calendar and Abu Dhabi making its debut next year. "You cannot say what is going to happen in the future," al-Attiyah said. "Formula One teams can use the track for testing which will put Qatar on the map and also help us earn good revenue." Bahrain hosts the only Middle Eastern Grand...
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Kubica shines as Heidfeld proves pass master.
2008-03-23 17:49:00
The rain held off, the sun shone, and so did BMW's Polish star - despite admitting to not having felt his best all weekend.Coolly, calmly and very nearly imperceptibly, Robert Kubica raced to his second career rostrum finish in the Malaysian Grand Prix.The BMW star made amends for the disappointment he suffered in Melbourne a week ago - when he failed to capitalise on his front row starting position after lucking-out with the safety car periods - with a stunning and seemingly effortless drive to the runner-up spot in Kuala Lumpur."It's a fantastic day for the team, for Petronas and for me - the second consecutive podium," rejoiced the ecstatic 23-year-old. "After Monza 2006 I finally managed to get another podium myself. I want to thank everybody in the team who has worked very hard over the last two months to improve the car."For a brief moment it looked as though Kubica would be overtaken by his team-mate Nick Heidfeld into the first corner, only for a tangle between the German ...
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F1-Coulthard Will Retire Soon
2008-03-23 17:48:00
David Coulthard could still be a fixture of the formula one paddocks next year, even if he is no longer on the grid.The Scot, who is the oldest active driver in F1, is adamant that his racing days are not nearing an end, even after thirteen years and 13 grand prix wins."Something you are passionate about, something you enjoy, you don't give yourself a timeline," he said in Australia a week ago.But according to whispers in the Sepang paddock, should Coulthard not be retained by Red Bull for a fifth consecutive season in 2009, he is being lined up as a F1 commentator for British TV.Amid the news that the BBC has won the rights to take over from rival channel ITV as Britain's host broadcaster, it is rumoured that 36-year-old Coulthard is high on the list to become a Martin Brundle-style 'colour' commentator.Elsewhere, Brundle's fans have been organising online petitions in the hope that the former Williams and McLaren driver makes the switch with Britain's change of F1 broadcaste...
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F1 - Are Vettel Going To Ferrari ?
2008-03-23 17:46:00
50 per cent Toro Rosso team owner Dietrich Mateschitz has played down persisting rumours that Sebastian Vettel could end up racing a Ferrari in 2009.Even though the Austrian billionaire intends to sell his Red Bull stake in Gerhard Berger's team next year, Mateschitz rubbished speculation that the prized young German driver is also on the move.He said there is no link between the rumours and the fact that Ferrari is Toro Rosso's engine supplier."First, we pay for our Ferrari engines," Mateschitz told the Swiss publication Motorsport Aktuell."Secondly, we did not want even Alonso if it is just for one year."We have supported (Vettel) for six or seven years, even when BMW temporarily borrowed him. I don't like to talk about contractual details."But one thing is clear: with Sebastian we have a long term contract."It also emerged on the sidelines of the Malaysian grand prix at Sepang that, while Sebastien Bourdais signed a one-year Toro Rosso contract for 2008, Vettel's deal is sole...