Category: Formula 1

F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone celebrated his 82nd birthday in late October. Luca di Montezemolo, Ferrari president, recently suggested Ecclestone might be too old for F1. Certainly, Bernie can’t go on forever. Although, someone might need to tell him that.

Bernie hit back at di Montezemolo’s claims earlier in the week, “I don’t feel 82, and as a matter of fact I’m now going to Geneva, then to Istanbul to see if we can get back the Turkish GP and [will then] participate at the World Council.”

He continued in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, “And I’m not stopping here, I have a thousand more ideas.

“Do I look in such a bad shape, two weeks after the USA GP that I wanted and somehow created?

“I’m 82 and nobody can deny that. But time ago I used to discuss things with an 88-year-old gentleman when Luca was a 40-year-old. His name was Enzo Ferrari.

“Believe me, at that age he could make me shiver because he was terribly tough, incisive and clear-minded.”

Despite the audacity of di Montezemolo daring to suggest Bernie might not be up to speed, the octogenarian doesn’t hold a grudge against the Ferrari man, “More than once he has attacked me, but in the end we understand each other. I don’t have hard feelings towards him.

“Anyway, I respect his opinion. It’s no drama.”

[Source: Planet F1 | Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

The FIA’s World Motor Sport Council has revised the 2013 F1 calendar in reaction to the Grand Prix of New Jersey postponement. That race was originally scheduled for 16 June, the week after the Canadian Grand Prix.

Instead, F1 teams will get an extra week to prepare for the British Grand Prix (30 June). The German Grand Prix has been brought forward a week, to 7 July, and will form a back-to-back pairing with Britain.

This has enabled the FIA to open up a space on 21 July which can be used for an extra European-based race, possibly Turkey. Assuming this goes ahead it will maintain F1’s current desire for a 20-race season.

The WMSC also made some changes to F1’s Sporting and Technical Regulations which will affect the 2013 and 2014 seasons. These can be read after the break, along with an update 2013 F1 calendar.

[Pic: Lotus F1 Team/LAT Photographic]

Luxury watch brand Rolex was today announced as the official timepiece for Formula 1. According to Rolex CEO, Gian Riccardo Marini, it’s a match made in heaven.

“This is an exciting step for us at Rolex as the fit between Formula One and our brand feels very natural and, like all great partnerships, needs little explanation,” Marini said.

“In our respective fields, Rolex and Formula One embody the spirit of adventure, superlative engineering and a strong desire to push the limits of technology. These aspirations are enormously appealing to younger generations,” he added.

Mr F1, Bernie Ecclestone, is happy he’ll be getting a new gold watch as well.

“The brand’s prestige, the excellence of its watches as well as Rolex’s passionate and long-standing commitment to motor sports gives it true credibility. This partnership is something that many people interested in Formula One will have been waiting for and should rightly be excited about. Rolex has incredible sporting heritage and therefore Formula One is the right place for Rolex to be,” he said.

[Source: Formula1.com | Thanks to Micky for the tip]

Dumped Williams driver Bruno Senna is hoping either Caterham or Force India will provide him with a future in F1. Speaking to Autosport the likeable Brazilian says he hopes to have an answer by the end of the year.

“You’re never relaxed until you have a nice signed contract, but we’re working very hard. Chris [Goodwin, manager] is a busy little bee. He’s been doing his job very well.

“Hopefully before the end of the year we’ll have a nice clear path to follow.”

Senna finished 16th in this year’s world championship, surprisingly only 14 points behind teammate and Spanish Grand Prix winner Pastor Maldonado. However, the 29-year-old feels his performance was compromised by giving up so many practice sessions to his eventual replacement, Valtteri Bottas.

“It’s a tough world championship. This has probably been the toughest Formula 1 world championship in many years. I think that coming into it as my first real year in Formula 1 was already a challenge,” Senna explained.

“And then missing practice sessions all over the season, probably missing about 30 per cent of all the practice sessions of the year, is a lot of practice missed.

“It’s made my year much more difficult. But still I’ve learned a lot. It’s been a very big learning curve for me, and a very good one.”

[Source: Autosport | Pic: Williams F1/LAT Photographic]

The FIA has announced the official entry list for the 2013 F1 season. The first casualty, of course, is the HRT F1 Team, which means a full grid next year will contain 22 cars instead of 24.

You’ll also notice several teams have TBA listed alongside their driver names, although only Caterham, Force India, Lotus and Marussia are yet to confirm their full lineup for 2013.

Sauber has signed Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Gutierrez. Toro Rosso will continue with Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne.

Caterham has confirmed Charles Pic as one of their drivers, with the other seat still up for grabs. Similarly, Force India is expected to keep Paul di Resta, with his teammate to be confirmed. Timo Glock will keep his seat with Marussia and is expected to be joined by Max Chilton.

Romain Grosjean is expected to keep his job with Lotus, despite a sometimes rocky ride in 2012. Although, the team is yet to confirm his position.

[Pic: Red Bull/Getty Images]

The HRT F1 Team, in its current guise, has run its final race. The Spanish-based outfit was unable to find a buyer before last Friday’s entry deadline for the 2013 F1 season.

At this stage the team is yet to comment publicly on its demise. The news leaves drivers Pedro de la Rosa and Narain Karthikeyan out of a job and unlikely to find a seat next year.

In the previous two years HRT had managed to finish ahead of fellow backmarkers Marussia, but in 2012 they were stone motherless last.

[Source: Autosport | Pic: HRT F1 Team]