FORMULA 1 - 2012

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Red Bull preview the Bahrain GP

Mark Webber: We haven’t been to the circuit for two years and the last time we raced on the current track layout was in 2009. We also haven’t been there with Pirelli tyres or the DRS, so it’s going to be interesting to see how those new features go; the ingredients are all there for another exciting Grand Prix. It’s going to be important to understand the tyres quickly and you need good top speed and braking. It’s a hot race, hotter than it was in Australia and Shanghai and more like the temperature in Malaysia. It would be nice to get a podium before we go back to Europe.

Sebastian Vettel: The track requires a lot from the drivers, because the constantly changing character of the corners means you never really get time to settle in to a lap. Also, as the track's built in the middle of the desert, you have to manage the sand there. It moves with the wind, so it can suddenly appear in new places on the track on each lap – so you’re never quite sure where it will be slippery. For the teams, it’s always a challenge to anticipate the grip levels for the race. In Friday Practice, when the track is still "green", you often require a different set-up than you need for Sunday. Due to the nature of the circuit, the brakes are in high demand.

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BBC launches F1 app for internet connected TV's

The BBC has launched a new service for internet connected TV's which allows users to watch extra content, videos, interviews and live TV.

The most exciting feature is the ability to switch between cameras. The 'app', currently only available on Virgin's TiVo service (but to be rolled out to more platforms soon), will allow the viewer to choose between the race feed, several on-board cameras, timing data and their driver tracker.

The BBC hope to roll the service out on internet connected TV's using such services as Sky and BT Connect, mobile devices such as Apple's iPad and home enertainment systems, such as the Sony Playstation 3 and Microsoft Xbox.

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Williams's Mark Gillan says tyre management fundamental to race performance

Managing tyres properly will be key to strong race performances this season, according to Williams's chief operations engineer Mark Gillan.

Last weekend's Chinese Grand Prix highlighted the fact that this year's tyre strategies can make or break a race for a team, and Gillan reckons that not upsetting the tyre balance will have a huge influence on getting good results regardless of how strong a car is.

"Tyre management is fundamental," Gillan told AUTOSPORT. "The tyres are the number one item on the car, followed by aero and then engine. But understanding the tyres and managing the tyres is the key to unlocking race performance. Qualifying as well, but of particular performance in race.

"Aerodynamics is still a key driver and better aerodynamic performance and efficiency will deliver more laptime, as long as you don't upset the tyre balance, and that's something that's always a factor.

"It's never not been an issue, but this year it seems to be a particular balance between the two. It's not just the aero, it's a whole mechanical balance."

Gillan says that finding the right balance between tyre use in qualifying and in the race is also a key element that Williams is still working hard on to try to improve.

"That's the fine balancing act that needs to be done, and is becoming more important. All teams are working in that direction and we're looking to improve in that direction too."

Gillan is optimistic that Williams can get its tyres working properly both in hot and cool conditions, but admits the temperature changes between qualifying and the races will be hard to manage.

"I think we can manage both, but where it becomes difficult is when you have a big temperature swing, particularly with the parc ferme conditions. In qualifying and the race if there's a big temperature swing, you have to primarily err towards the race and then just a question of how much that temperature swing is in terms of the set-up.

"So it's becoming really interesting. In this race Mercedes and Rosberg did an excellent job. I've never seen it so tight with the chasing pack. It was like lap two or three of the race on every lap.

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Heavy security as Formula One arrives in Bahrain

The first tranche of the Formula One teams were greeted by the sight of hundreds of protestors as they arrived in Bahrain for this weekend's controversial grand prix. The bulk of personnel are expected later today (Wednesday).

While a number of team members have been in the kingdom for up to a week helping to prepare for the race, most will land in the immediate build-up. Security has been increased around the circuit and on the road leading to the hotels in Manama after threats of an escalation in disruption as well as specific protests expected aimed at Formula One.

"No going back; we will continue our protests," read banners carried by demonstrators who were gathered at the Shiite-populated village of Al-Deir, near the airport. "Peaceful, peaceful, our revolt is peaceful," they chanted, while others held up banners that read "Down Hamad", a direct attack on Bahrain's king.

Although Formula One's bosses have continued to insist sport and politics should not mix, protestors have countered that the ruling elite are using the race to give credibility to the kingdom. In demonstrations yesterday the F1 trademark was hijacked with the 'F' replaced by a smoking sub-machine gun, while the crowd chanted anti-F1 slogans.

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Journalists greeted by relative normality

A travelling F1 journalist believes this weekend's controversial Bahrain Grand Prix could go ahead without problems.

Ahead of the island Kingdom's highly-contentious return to the F1 calendar this weekend after a two-year absence due to civil unrest, some of the sport's correspondents have this week been reporting from the scene of often violent protests.

Daily Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary said he was approached at a protest on Tuesday by a man wearing a Ferrari shirt. "I love F1," the man said, "but not over our blood."

Some other F1 regulars have skipped Bahrain altogether, as only 260 journalists are registered to attend, about three-quarters of the usual number.

Writing in the German-language Speed Week, however, Mathias Brunner endeavoured simply to make his way from the airport to his hotel, and on to the Sakhir circuit, where he will spend the week reporting about the grand prix.

"I am a Formula One journalist," he wrote. "I travel to countries where grands prix are held. After China, I wanted to get my own idea about what is true: the picture of the [bahrain] government, where everything is fine, or the picture of the activists, where the entire place is in a state of civil war."

Brunner said FIA president Jean Todt had "no time" to answer questions about Bahrain when he visited the Chinese Grand Prix last weekend.

"My job is not to seek out unrest and talk with the opposition, but it's also not to parrot the slogans of the government. I just want to get an impression about where the grand prix is taking place. My first impression is that it's stiflingly hot. After a quarter of an hour's drive it is clear that there are more police about than on our last visit two years ago. I have counted more than 50 vehicles, at least. Then I saw a burned-out police car on the right of the main road."

Brunner said he was questioned at a police check-point before reaching the Sakhir circuit, and questioned again when he parked too close to a police car in the media parking lot. He also said he saw some police inside the circuit, before stopping for a "one-stop strategy" at a fast food outlet on the return to his hotel.

"I drove a different route on purpose, and there were a lot of police on the roads there as well. But what is clear is that the view about Bahrain in the Shanghai paddock [last weekend] in no way reflects the true situation in the country."

Italy's La Gazzetta dello Sport claimed on Wednesday the race could theoretically still be cancelled as late as Thursday.

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Senna aims to continue momentum

Bruno Senna wants to continue the momentum that he has built up through two points-scoring finishes with another good result in Bahrain.

After a disappointing opening weekend in Australia, Senna has bounced back with sixth place in Malaysia and seventh last weekend in China. As a result Senna finds himself in the top ten of the drivers' championship at this early stage of the season, and he said that while he was unsure how the car would perform in Bahrain he was focused on extending his good form.

"Bahrain is a challenging track with a number of long straights followed by big braking areas so the car has to be set up differently to many other circuits," Senna said. "Cars with a big DRS effect will have an advantage so it will be interesting to see how teams will perform. We have good momentum from the first three races of the season and hopefully we can carry that into this race."

Senna's team-mate Pastor Maldonado is equally keen to build on his last result having scored points in China.

"I like the circuit layout, and it should suit our car because of the hot conditions," Maldonado said. "It is also a challenging circuit for tyre degradation so we need to prepare for that. It was satisfying to score my first points of the season in China and hopefully I can pick up some more points in Bahrain."

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Damage limitation for Ferrari in Bahrain

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali says that the team will need to "limit the damage more effectively" in Bahrain.

Having won the Malaysian Grand Prix, Ferrari was keen to stress that the race was not a true reflection of the car's pace and that it would struggle in China. That proved to be the case as Fernando Alonso scraped two points in ninth place and Felipe Massa was outside the top ten. Domenicali told the official Ferrari website that the difficulties were expected, but that it needs to do a better job in Bahrain this weekend.

"We knew we would have problems in Shanghai and Sakhir," Domenicali said. "Of course, we're unhappy at not being able to bring home the points tally we could have done in China. I think we had the potential to at least get Fernando into the top five and Felipe into the points, but both of them spent almost all their time in traffic and, especially in the Spaniard's case, never managed to lap consistently with a clear track ahead of them. As a result of the lack of top speed, Fernando therefore had to try and overtake at other parts of the track and take risks. In Bahrain, we will try and limit the damage more effectively, as we did not manage to do so in China.

"Above all, we will have to get the most out of the tyres, both in qualifying and in the race. Understanding when and how much can be got out of the tyres has been the key factor to this first part of the season. It can make the difference and we must improve our ability to analyse and predict their behaviour."

With Alonso having the same amount of points after three races as he did in 2010 - when he was leading the championship going in to the final race - Domenicali said it would motivate the team to improve the car and mount a title challenge.

"This has to be a stimulus to further speed up our car development. The real contest in these weeks is the one taking place in Maranello, where everyone is pushing strongly to try and find any available hundredth of a second in performance terms, in every area. We will have a few new things in Mugello, but we will take right up to the last available day prior to the Spanish Grand Prix to introduce the very latest updates. I am sure that our rivals will also be doing the same, so it will be a case of showing that we can be cleverer than them and do a better job."

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New Jersey organiser denies race delay claims

The organisers of the New Jersey Grand Prix have denied reports that the inaugural race, planned for 2013, is behind schedule and could be delayed until 2014.

The claims were made by F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone, who cast doubt over the event in an interview with the BBC.

"Maybe the New York race will be 2013," Ecclestone said, adding: "It's a when - 2013 or 2014."

However, a spokesman on behalf of the races organisers, told NJBiz that the rumours were false and everything is going ahead as planned for next season.

"There's nothing to it [the rumours]," said the spokesman, Stephen Sigmund. "The race is on, as scheduled, for 2013."

Carl Goldberg, managing director of Roseland Property Co. which owns the land under development, also refuted the claims.

"As the primary land owner for the race site, we continue to plan and prepare for a June 2013 race," he said.

The construction of the circuit looks to be on-track with the pit building nearing completion, whilst much of the circuit is already in place.

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History in the making

Sky Sports F1's David Croft on the record-breaking feats the 2012 season is witnessing, the challenges being presented by a topsy-turvy grid, and why the heat is now on Mercedes...

First off, big congratulations to Nico Rosberg this week for his first win in Formula 1, the 103rd different driver to win a Formula 1 World Championship Grand Prix and the first since Mark Webber took the 2009 German Grand Prix, 49 races ago.

It's been a long time since we've had a different winner - it's been the longest gap between maiden wins in the history of the championship, in fact - and Nico's victory underlines some of the pre-season thinking that this could be a very tight championship battle indeed.

Rosberg drove superbly but revealed this week that he wasn't able to race flat out for a single lap. Far better to preserve his tyres. Far more important to make each stint last as long as possible before the lap times increase dramatically. The ability to calculate when to push and when not to, as well as the know-how to find a line through the corners that punishes the rubber less severely, is at the moment every bit as necessary as the instinct to spot a gap and go for it. By midway through the season, drivers and teams may get a better handle on how to keep their tyres alive for longer, but at the moment there's a lot of guesswork going on and whilst that happens we could be in for some very exciting races.

But back to Nico who, after a swift Stein to celebrate, returns to the scene of his Formula 1 debut this weekend. Whatever stories lie behind the sporting headlines here in the kingdom of Bahrain, for the Mercedes driver it must be quite comforting to return to a track where he has not only won a title - GP2 in 2005 - but followed that up with a points-scoring F1 debut and a Fastest Lap at the same time.

That 2006 race was my Formula 1 debut too, albeit as a commentator and not a driver. If only I was about a foot shorter and five stone lighter, and oh, had some ability as I driver as well! In terms of pace I'm probably more Niki Lada than Niki Lauda.

But I certainly remember Nico charging through the field after a first corner spin. One of the drives of the day on an afternoon dominated by the three-time winner here, Fernando Alonso.

Can Rosberg make it back-to-back wins? I'm not sure, but then like many in the paddock, I didn't think he'd win in China and look how he proved so many wrong there. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see him in pole, but after starting 4th, 3rd and then 2nd, will the sequence continue in the right way for his Mercedes team-mate? 4th, 3rd, 2nd and now Pole, surely it's got to be Schumacher's turn this week!

If not Michael, then take your pick from a host of drivers queuing up for a successful weekend on a track that will be very dusty at the start - and possibly still dusty come the start of the race. Sand and wind are always a problem at a circuit that is also punishing on brakes and likely to have a very high track temperature.

Good traction is vital coming out of the slow corners at Turns One and Ten. You need to reduce the downforce for the long straights and avoid flat spotting your tyres. It's easily done here and can cost you dear.

Plenty will go into this weekend desperate for a good result and to head back from the last of the long flyaway races for a while with a decent points haul in the bag before the European legs of the season get underway.

And if Mercedes can pull off another master class in tyre management, then maybe this year has the potential to be a golden one for the Silver Arrows. But let's not get carried away just yet.

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Explaining the Red Bull dilemma

Sky Sports F1's Commentary Expert Mark Hughes on why the RB8 currently suits Mark Webber more than Sebastian Vettel - and what the turnaround reveals about both drivers' styles...

Mark Webber's qualifying advantage over Sebastian Vettel in the opening two races played a significant part in Vettel's decision to revert to the original-spec RB8 for China. Webber's qualifying advantage continued regardless.

Although we've already got used to a Red Bull that is considerably less competitive than last year, it was still a shock to see the World Champion fail to make the Q3 top-10 run-off in qualifying. Webber fared a little better, seventh fastest in the run-off, the third time in three events that Mark has out-qualified Seb, totally against the play of last year.

Ever since the RB8 first hit the track, both drivers have been struggling to get a balance between the car's low speed and high speed behaviour. In low-fuel, qualifying trim the rear tends to be a little unstable upon corner entry at low speed, yet the car is understeery through high-speed bends. Improving one aspect of those two limitations by changing the set-up makes the other worse, leaving the drivers in a qualifying limbo. In race conditions, as the more highly stressed rear tyres lose their new rubber grip faster than the fronts, the high-speed balance improves and the car becomes very competitive in race trim.

Because it's the degrading rears that bring the balance in the race and the set up cannot be changed between qualifying and race, the compromise for Saturday - for this particular car in its current state of development - has to err towards slow corner instability, because any set up that would cure that aspect for Saturday would make the car an oversteering handful through fast corners on Sunday.

What Vettel was exceptionally good at last year was using a little bit of oversteer in the initial part of a slow turn to help get the car pointed at the apex sooner - but the rear of the car needs to recover its grip quickly for that initial oversteer not to have too much momentum, building into a slide that costs time. The blown diffuser car was perfect for that, and as the car had that initial twitch of oversteer Seb would then stand on the throttle - giving the rear end even more exhaust-enhanced grip than when off-throttle - and the oversteer would vanish. In this way, Seb could get pointed early at the apex and be early on the power. It demanded a lot of sensitivity for the balancing point of the rear tyre.

Furthermore, in the way you had to use the engine revs to get the correct balance between on-throttle and off-throttle grip at the appropriate part of the corner, it was counter-intuitive. It was certainly something that Webber could never get his head properly around. It also felt very unnatural to be considering applying more throttle to reduce oversteer.

This year's car, although currently less competitive, is much more conventional in how it needs to be driven in the slow corners - and suddenly Webber can drive it better. There can occasionally be a disconnect between how a car feels to a driver and how quick it is - and last year's RB7 was that car for Webber. He didn't care for its feel - that slow corner pat head/rub tummy combination really didn't suit him - but it was fantastically fast, something that Vettel could show more convincingly than him. There is an echo of that disconnect this year in how Webber and Vettel respectively have reacted to the development of the RB8.

When first introduced, the RB8 had an exhaust system as far rearwards as the 2012 regulations allow, blowing over the aero-profiled brake ducts, over the top of the diffuser and over the beam wing. This would produce only a small fraction of the exhaust-derived downforce of the 2011 blown diffuser cars, but it was at least worth having. An alternative bodywork configuration Adrian Newey had devised based around this exhaust layout that would have worked more powerfully was ruled illegal by the FIA in November, before testing even started.

In response to that ban, Red Bull devised a more McLaren-like exhaust arrangement and this made its debut in the last two days of winter testing. The exhausts were as far towards the front of the car as the regulations allow and used the airflow over the downwards slope of the rear of the sidepods to pull the exhaust flow downwards with it (even though the exhausts must point upwards by at least 10-deg). This flow made its way between the rear wheel and the sides of the diffuser - reducing the leakage of the under-floor airflow being pulled through there. Again, it gives only a small proportion of the effect of the full-fat blown diffuser of last year, but Red Bull's simulations said it created more downforce than the RB8's previous arrangement.

From the moment Webber first tried this revised car in testing, he agreed it was better. Still not great, but better. Vettel, however, said he preferred the original. With the car in its revised trim, Webber could find a better compromise between low and high speed set-up than Vettel. Now that Seb could no longer rely on the blown-diffuser acrobatics of technique that Webber could never do, they were much the same in dealing with the slow corner instability, but Webber could deal slightly better with the high-speed understeer. The revised car, with slightly more rear grip, is not quite as unstable in slow speed but a little more understeery in the high. It therefore suits Webber better than Vettel.

This seems to have tripped Vettel into believing the old car must be better. For China therefore, the team agreed to let him try it throughout the weekend. Webber in the newer car was again faster. You may have seen Anthony Davidson's excellent Sky Sports F1 HD analysis from the cockpit of Seb's car, showing just how tentative he was having to be on turn-in as he felt that rear instability. The revised car of Webber, whilst not great, did look better than that.

"I think it's pretty clear what direction we should be going in," said Webber - perhaps not disingenuously - after qualifying. What was also perhaps significant was that Newey seemed to be spending most of his time on Webber's side of the garage rather than Vettel's. Adrian is not someone interested in looking backwards. His focus will be on unlocking the greater potential of the revised car and as such he will have been far more interested in Webber's progress in China than Vettel's.

Vettel is way too good not to come back from this - but it's a situation that has cast further illumination on how he achieved his dominance of last year and why Webber struggled. That wasn't representative of the talents of each - and nor is the current situation. It's just that each of the situations have favoured a different driver. When the car is finally sorted to have a decently wide set-up window so that slow and fast corner performance can be better resolved, both drivers will move up the grid - and the battle between them can start from where it left off in 2010.

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New Jersey and Grand Prix are not words that should be associated to one another LOL!

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UNEASY SENSE OF CALM AS F1 SETTLES DOWN TO BUSINESS IN BAHRAIN:

Source: JamesallenonF1.com

The F1 paddock went about its everyday business today, media briefings, team managers' meetings, all gearing up for Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton says that he's a better man in 2012 for his difficult years, Sebastian Vettel says that he's going to use the new specification Red Bull exhausts, Michael Schumacher says that Mercedes' challenge is to hit the sweet spot on the race tyres, like they did in China.

The Grand Prix is moving up into gear. Everywhere there are banners proclaiming that Bahrain is "UniF1ied", while the slogan "back on track" is also evident. It's quite surprising the extent to which the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone have allowed the government to use the F1 brand in its political messaging about the country moving forward.

The road to the circuit is lined with chequered flags interlinked with Bahraini flags. A former leader of the opposition Al Wefaq opposition party, Jasim Husain, was paraded around the paddock this morning (see photo above), giving the event the thumbs up, but outside in the real world, the anti F1 rhetoric from the current opposition and from human rights campaigners is unequivocal.

Inside the paddock there is an edge in the air, a sense of uneasy calm, for the moment. Pre-race uncertainty and anxiety about what kind of situation the hard working professionals of this sport would be walking into this weekend, found a focus with an incident involving four Force India technicians and mechanics, who stumbled into a frightening incident on Wednesday night as they drove back into town at 8pm along the highway.

A temporary road block had been thrown up by activists and in the melee as the traffic slowed, a Molotov cocktail was thrown, which landed a few metres from their car. There was no sense that they were targeted, nor that the perpetrators had any idea that there were F1 people in the traffic jam, but it is the kind of spontaneous and random act of violence which is hard to anticipate or prevent, which no-one wants to get caught in. Two members of the team, one of whom was not even in the car, have been allowed to travel back to the UK.

Comparisons are often made with the road out of the circuit in Sao Paolo, where gun toting gangs used to occasionally terrorise F1 personnel in their cars until the police cleaned up the slum area for last year's race. Such an incident happened to Jenson Button and his entourage two years ago, as well as to several mechanics. Sao Paolo is a place where it is easy to get mugged on the street, you have to take care, but this is different as one doesn't feel targeted in that sense. However there is a feeling of volatility, a fear of getting caught up in someone else's violent protest. The police, after all, cannot be everywhere all the time.

"My wife happened to be travelling on that road at the same time (as the Force India incident) and she sent me a picture of it," said Zayed al Zayani, the manager of the Bahrain International Circuit. "It was an unfortunate incident and hopefully it won't happen again.

"We are 'back on track' in the sense that the cars are racing on our track. Some people have interpreted that we are saying that the country is back on track. I don't think so and I've made it clear that politically there is a long way to go to get the stability we had before. But that's not our job, that's left to the government; we run a social and sports event."

Former Metropolitan police chief John Yates, now consulting for the Bahraini police, was not exactly reassuring in his assessment of the situation, "There will be protests over the weekend," he said. "But we want to make this a sporting event not a security event. I judge it more likely there will be protests on the route and protests around the villages. I just hope it's a good event and I hope it goes off without too much trouble."

The security on arrival at the track today was surprisingly sparse, a couple of men in yellow, shirts, no military, no guns. That is sure to change as the weekend goes on. There is so sign on the roads and in the city of any problems, but they can spring up from nowhere. Everyone will breathe a sigh of relief on Sunday night if they can get out of here without a major incident.

The drivers aren't keen to get drawn into discussions about the political side. Some rather naively say that the racing is 'more important', others just say that they are 'here because it's on' and leave it at that.

Paul Di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg shared their team's anxiety over the incident on the road last night, Hulkenberg questioning why they should be put in this position,

"It is obviously not right that that sort of stuff happens," he said. "We are here to race. The F1 business is about entertainment, and these sort of things should not really be happening to us.

"Whether it is right or not I don't really know. It's difficult to say. I am not a politician, I am a Formula 1 driver, but it should not really be happening should it? It is not good that we have to worry about it."

The condition of the hunger striker Abdulhadi al-Khawaja could also have a bearing on the events this weekend.

Once the cars start running on Friday a greater sense of normality should descend on the weekend, but it will only take one serious incident for everyone who works in F1 to feel very differently about being here.

The sport is holding its breath.

MIKA: I love reading up on James Allens stuff. I should try getting him to post on this thread, just once...?

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ALONSO AIMS TO STILL BE IN TITLE HUNT ONCE ORDER EMERGES:

Source: JamesallenonF1.com

Fernando Alonso is expecting the battle for the championship to distil into a much smaller group of protagonists than currently appears the case and says that when that time comes Ferrari must ensure it is right in the fight.

The pattern of the season's first three races has mirrored that of 2010 when there were also three different winners from three different teams and a championship leader who had yet to win a race. Six different drivers have also stood on the podium so far in 2012, which is just one less than the total for the whole of last season.

But Alonso, who currently sits behind the McLaren drivers in third place in the standings largely thanks to his unexpected Sepang win in rain-affected conditions, reckons the unpredictability seen so far will prove the exception rather than the rule once a more established pecking order emerges.

Speaking in Bahrain today, the 2005-2006 world champion said: "So far in three races we have seen three different scenarios, but I expect the championship will settle down and while now there are maybe four teams and a few drivers fighting for the championship, I expect later it will be a couple of drivers and two teams and we need to be in that group."

With Ferrari having to wait until the sport's return to Europe to begin to roll out some more fundamental changes to the underperforming F2012 in a bid to close the pace gap to the front, Alonso isn't expecting much to change this weekend, but is hopeful for the Mugello test and beyond.

"We are hoping for a good step forward for the start of the European season because, at the moment, we are too far behind and not in a position to fight for the championship," he admitted. "We hope the change comes soon: Mugello will be an important test and then Barcelona is traditionally a race where all the teams bring improvements, so we will have to make a bigger step than the others and recover some of the gap."

Meanwhile, in wake of technical director Pat Fry's verdict at the last race that Ferrari needed to bolster its aerodynamics programme, it was revealed today by Autosport that former Benetton and Red Bull aerodynamicist Ben Agathangelou is joining the team. The British engineer, who left RBR in late 2007, has since returned to F1 to work first with HRT and, most recently, Marussia.

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F1 team Mercedes to lose Aabar ownership

Mercedes GP could be set to lose a major shareholder.

Citing informed sources, the German 'Manager Magazin' reports that the Abu Dhabi investment vehicle Aabar is in talks to end its involvement with the Brackley based team as well as Mercedes' parent Daimler.

Daimler and Aabar did not immediately comment.

Aabar owns 40 per cent of Mercedes GP, but recently watered-down its Daimler involvement from 9 to just 3 per cent.

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Force India team member leaving Bahrain after attack

A member of the Force India team is returning to Europe following a firebomb attack in Bahrain.

The BBC reports that an incident occurred near a Force India hire car as members of the Silverstone based team came to a halt in a traffic jam after leaving the circuit.

No one was hurt, but "one team member not involved in the incident asked to return to the UK", the BBC said.

"A spokesman said they were not the target of the attack, which took place on the outskirts of the capital Manama," the report added.

The news was confirmed by The Times' Kevin Eason, who said the incident involved a Molotov cocktail, as well as Telegraph correspondent Tom Cary.

Cary said Force India confirmed team members were "momentarily caught up in (a) disruption".

"One team member will go home, they tell me," he added.

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Rumours fly after Sauber sponsor 'teaser'

Sauber's 'teaser' has done the trick, triggering paddock speculation about its forthcoming major backer.

Last weekend in China, off the back of Sergio Perez's recent push for victory at Sepang, the small Swiss team ran mysterious 'Out of the blue' signage on the C31's engine cover.

The Blick newspaper said it was a "teaser" for a "big sponsor" that will be "announced in a few weeks".

So who is it?

Germany's Auto Motor und Sport relayed paddock rumours hinting that the deal could be with AT-T, the American multinational who last year pulled its title sponsorship of the then-struggling Williams team.

Another paddock whisper is that Sauber's new deal could be with the Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, to promote his English premier league club Chelsea.

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Rosberg now in top F1 drivers' league - Berger

Nico Rosberg's F1 breakthrough proves he is ready to fight even for the world championship.

That is the view of former grand prix winner, team boss and co-owner Gerhard Berger, following Rosberg's first pole and win in China last weekend."It surprised not me, but all the others who had doubted him," the Austrian told Auto Bild Motorsport.

"It was about time. I was worried," Berger smiled, "because I have always said I thought Nico was faster than Michael (Schumacher).

"Now he is finally where he has belonged for a long time -- in the same league as Vettel, Hamilton, Alonso and Button," he insisted.

"And when the (Mercedes) car is good enough, he is already ready for the world title."

Berger, then as BMW motor sport director, said he was instrumental in 2002 in convincing Sir Frank Williams to give the then 17-year-old Rosberg his first F1 test.

Also welcoming Sunday's breakthrough is Nelson Piquet junior, another son of a world champion who actually went to kindergarten with Rosberg in Monaco.

"It's funny how in F1 things can take so long to happen," the Brazilian told Globo.

"It took him more than six years to get his first victory, which for me is a long time considering how good a driver he is," added Piquet, now in Nascar.

MIKA: Nico in the same league as Hamilton, Button, Alonso and Vettel...? One GP win in 111 starts doesn't tell me that, even though Button is the exception seeing it took him 113 starts to win a GP race. It's great Nico won a GP but faster than Schumacher, I don't think so considering Schumacher has out qualified Nico 2 out of 3 races this season as well as making up the most positions in 2010 and 2011 from the grid. IMO. Schumacher was unlucky to get more DNF's last season otherwise he would have beaten Nico in points in the 2011 season. But, that's motorsport.

What is it with the Austrians like Lauda and Berger that always seem to talk down on Schumacher? Is this the only way they feel they can stay in the F1 media??

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Ecclestone meets again with French gov't minister

Bernie Ecclestone has met yet again in London with David Douillet, the French sports minister.

The F1 chief executive confirmed this week that a deal to alternate an annual calendar spot between France and Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps beginning next year is now close.

"Spa have agreed; apparently they're going to do it in (Paul) Ricard," Ecclestone told the BBC.

The French sports daily L'Equipe reports that the 81-year-old's latest meeting with Douillet is "another step towards the return of the grand prix de France".

The meeting, reportedly confirmed by "several sources including those in Belgium", is Ecclestone's second with Douillet in 2012.

MIKA: Call me selfish but whilst I am pleased to see France back in F1, I am unhappy that Spa will be an event 'every alternate year'. SPA is THE BEST race of teh F1 calendar IMO.

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Schumacher: Bunched up field exciting

Michael Schumacher feels the bunched up field is making for a "very exciting" season, but admits it also means there's a fine line between success and failure.

F1 has already had three different drivers from three different teams on the top step of the podium this campaign with Jenson Button, Fernando Alonso and Nico Rosberg the men to claim the wins.

However, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes haven't been the only ones to be competitive this year with Red Bull and even Sauber also challenging for wins.

Schumacher, who was forced to retire in China, is delighted that the pack is so close, but he knows it also means the smallest mistake can cost your dearly.

"I think it is very exciting," he is quoted as saying by Autosport. "If you don't manage to get everything right you are stuck behind people and you can't get through, which can be frustrating.

"That does make it exciting. It's fun if you see the side we had in Shanghai, not the side we had in Malaysia.

"Not hitting it spot on means you can be first or 10th. Take Sebastian [Vettel] in China, out in Q2. This is what we have to live with."

Mercedes were the team to beat in China after Rosberg claimed pole position and followed it up with the race victory, but the 43-year-old German admits the running order can change pretty quickly as various track conditions will suit teams differently.

"Everything is so tight," he said. "If you imagine every race weekend we start with a puzzle with a thousand pieces, and you have to put them together in the best way.

"It is possible to get the puzzle together, maybe not always spot on. But then it is a question of each track with its different characters. Will your car fit with these? This is another point as well as getting it right or wrong.

"We have to see. Bahrain will be very different [to China], very hot temperatures, which is to be expected. But what does that mean [for the competitive order]?"

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Hamilton: It is tight at the front

Lewis Hamilton believes consistency is key during the early stages of the season with so many teams on top of their game.

The first three races of this campaign have seen drivers from McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes reach the top stop of the podium. Besides those three teams, you also have defending Champions Red Bull challenging for race victories.

Although the 27-year-old hasn't won a race yet, he has been a model of consistency as he finished third in Melbourne, Sepang and Shanghai.

Hamilton admits it is difficult to know exactly where McLaren are at the moment as several of the teams are doing well.

"It is very difficult this season, you look at qualifying, I was competitive there, Mercedes is now the quickest, but it is quite close between a lot of the cars," he said at the pre-race press conference on Thursday.

"But then you look at the race pace and you've got the Red Bulls are very quick, the Mercedes are very quick, even the Saubers are quick now.

"It's just about trying to be consistent and scoring as many points as you can."

He added: "The target every year is to have consistency and some years it doesn't go to plan.

"But this year I am fortunate to be on the podium at each of the three races, so it's fantastic."

Hamilton had a difficult 2011 campaign both and off the track and he often spoke about how he needs to rediscover his "happy bubble".

However, he feels e is back on the right path.

"I definitely think that the last three years have added to where I am today," he said. "A lot of lessons learned and a lot of great and good experiences.

"We all have to keep our mind in a certain way. It is really a massive mental game, which is why I never gave up in getting on the right path, but I feel there or thereabouts now."

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Massa happy with progress

Felipe Massa is optimistic that he will have "nice race" in Bahrain and score a "good number of points" for Ferrari.

While team-mate Fernando Alonso has already accumulated 37 points, including a race win in Malaysia, Massa is yet to open his account for the 2012 season.

His best result to date was at last weekend's Chinese Grand Prix where he finished P13 after starting in 12th place on the grid.

Massa, though, is upbeat about his chances at the Sakhir circuit, and he has every reason to be positive heading into this weekend's race as he won the race in 2007 and 2008.

"I've always had a great time here and this is a very nice track to drive," the Brazilian said.

He added: "I am expecting to have a good race here, hopefully the best of the season so far. In Shanghai, we definitely made progress, even if the final result for myself, Fernando and the team was not satisfactory.

"However, it was what I would say is a normal race in that qualifying was normal, our race pace was not bad and it was definitely a very different race compared to the first two of the season.

"That is why I am optimistic and hope to have a nice race on Sunday, scoring a good number of points and for that to continue in the other races from now on."

Ferrari have often struggled in cooler conditions, but good news for the Scuderia is that the temperatures are likely to be very high.

When asked if it will suit the Italian outfit, Massa replied: "It would be nice to think so, but we still need to make our car much more competitive and we have to consider that the car we have here is not very different to the way it was in Shanghai last week."

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De la Rosa has no concerns over safety

Pedro de la Rosa, chairman of the Formula One Grand Prix Drivers Association (GPDA), said on Thursday he had no concerns over safety at this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix.

The 41-year-old HRT driver told reporters that he had complete faith in the ruling body, the FIA.

De la Rosa spoke at the Sakhir circuit where the controversial event begins with practice sessions on Friday ahead of Sunday's race. He said he had not noticed much difference in the on-the-ground security arrangements compared to his previous visits to the Gulf state.

Like the 2009 World Champion Briton Jenson Button, the Spaniard underlined that the drivers' union had complete faith in the FIA's decision-making process.

He said: "It's not a concern. Our view is that we don't know about the situation here in Bahrain well enough to have a strong opinion about it and we rely on the people who have done all of the research, which is the FIA.

"We haven't looked into any more details. We trust that people that have done it. That's the best that you can do - and stay away from the controversy. We are sportsmen and we have to perform at the track full-stop."

Several drivers have talked about the possibility of making extra security arrangements, but de la Rosa said he is not treating Bahrain this year any differently to any previous running of the event.

He said: "I am following the same process and the same travel arrangements as any other Bahrain Grand Prix that I've been involved in. I haven't seen any differences so far.

"Maybe there is a little bit more security at the entrances of hotels, but I haven't seen anything different."

Asked about an incident on Wednesday night when four Force India mechanics, in a car, were caught up in a clash between protesters and the police, and a firebomb was thrown and exploded close to their vehicle, de la Rosa said he was not aware this had happened.

He said: "I don't know about it. Of course, it's not a safe situation if that happens, but I don't know enough about it to say anything."

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Hulkenberg questions Bahrain decision

Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg has questioned the governing body's decision to allow the Bahrain Grand Prix to go ahead following continued violence.

Four members of the Force India team were caught up in a violent clash between protestors and police on Wednesday, which has prompted the German driver to question the position they have been put in.

"We shouldn't have been put in this position," he told BBC Sport on Thursday. "It's an uncomfortable situation, what happened on Wednesday."

Hulkenberg tried to remain impartial, but he admitted the violence was a concern and the race shouldn't be happening when such clashes are taking place.

"It is obviously not right that that sort of stuff happens," he told Autosport. "We are here to race. The F1 business is about entertainment, and these sort of things should not really be happening to us.

"Whether it is right or not I don't really know. It's difficult to say. I am not a politician, I am a Formula 1 driver, but it should not really be happening should it?

"It is not good that we have to worry about it: that is the way it is now, and let's see and hope that the rest of the weekend is good and calm."

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Changes made to improve Monaco safety

Several changes will or have been made to the Monaco Grand Prix street circuit which runs around the tight streets of Monte Carlo, in a bid to improve safety.

The changes will be in place for this year's race and feature a wider and straighter pit exit which will allow cars to exit the pits at higher speeds thanks to the removal of a row trees.

Improvements to the chicane between turns nine and 11 have also been made in light of Sergio Perez's accident last season. The surface, which is thought to have been a major contributor in his accident, has been re-surfaced and levelled following a laser study which found drops, rises and bumps as big as 20cm.

The TecPro barriers which Perez hit have been moved 14.6 metres further back, giving additional run-off area for cars to slow down in the event of an accident as they exit the famous tunnel.

High-grip surfaces will also be applied to several run-off areas, whilst some tyre walls at St Devote and the Swimming Pool section will be replaced with TecPro barriers.

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Williams has 'turned the corner'

Sir Frank Williams believes that his team has "turned the corner" and is on track to return to the front of the grid.It has been eight years since Williams last won a grand prix and 15 years since its last championship, with the steady decline culminating in the team scoring just five points in 2011. Having gone with a younger driver line-up and refreshed the structure of the technical team, Williams has enjoyed a much more productive season so far this year which has already yielded 18 points.

Williams told Sky Sports that the first race of the season - where Pastor Maldonado crashed out on the last lap attacking Fernando Alonso for fifth place - had proven a real shot in the arm for the team.

"The team has struggled in the last two or three years," Williams said. "And manifestly earlier this year it became apparent that this year's car was a good car, a much better car than previous vehicles. But that was the first race of the season where they really demonstrated that of which it was capable and that was very encouraging for everybody here. A lot of people work here very hard and they needed a light at the end of the tunnel and they've got a bright one in front of them."

Having been used to challenging for championships on a regular basis in the nineties, Williams also said that the team had the infrastructure in place to return to the front.

"I think we'll do better as the season goes on, we must do better, and we have the equipment to do that. We've been much better than this before in the past but that's rather too long ago to mention really. We really have to pull our socks up as I say in an old fashioned way, and make better racing cars. That's the basic requirement of any grand prix team, to make his cars better than everybody else's, get the best drivers you can to follow of course - they generally follow the best cars, the best teams - and we seem to have definitely turned that corner and are engineering and designing our way back towards the top. That's what I think should and might happen."