FORMULA 1 - 2012

[Bartolomeo]

Hi Bart,

This will prove hard to find but I think your best bet would be to contact Pirelli International.

http://www.pirelli.com/tyre/ww/en/f1.html

There's a truck load on eBay but can not vouch for authenticity.

Thanks!

[MIKA27]

Hmmm...webber in a ferrari...would not mind seeing that. I'd like to see lewis in a scuderia car but that wont happen as long as alonso is on the team and lewis cant be the no.1 driver. personally though i dont think it will be either. I think they will try to find the next young talent and groom him...hopefully an Italian driver LOL

I agree. Where would hamilton go? LOTUS? (Romain Grosjean would have to leave if he doesn't perform well this season but thus far, he's doing well enough).

Would be great to see another Italian come along for ferrari but I don't see it happening too soon..

[MIKA27]

Ecclestone casts doubt over New York GP

Bernie Ecclestone has for the first time cast doubt over whether or not the New York race, taking place in New Jersey, will go ahead as planned in 2013.

Ecclestone revealed that the organisers were yet to sign the necessary contracts, with the deadline having already past.

"I don't know if it is going to happen," he said. "I hope everything will be OK. They are sorting things out internally with some of their funds. If they are ready for 2013 we will have them.

"We are waiting for different parts of the contract to be agreed," he added. "They are late."

However, it's expected Ecclestone will allow them some leeway given his efforts to secure a race near New York for many years.

Meanwhile, in response to the 81-year-old's comments , the organisers have denied they are behind schedule for their debut race next year.

"We don't comment on our contractual relationship with Formula 1 or its details," said a spokesperson. "We are on track for a June 2013 race, with all course engineering and construction progressing precisely on schedule, a strong management team in place, and strong ongoing support from New Jersey, New York City and the local communities involved. We are very confident that the 2013 F1 Grand Prix of America will be a great event."

[MIKA27]

Barrichello earns $330k as Indy 500 'rookie'

Rubens Barrichello earned more than US $330,000 in Sunday's Indy 500.At the age of 40 and with an unprecedented 326 grands prix behind him, the famous Brazilian was the highest placed newcomer in the fabled American oval race.

It means he was crowned the official 'rookie of the year' title for his eleventh place finish, earning him $331,080 in prize money.

"My first oval experience, it was very different than anything I've done," said Barrichello.

"It's a pity that we didn't finish top ten but I can be proud of that for my first time out."

Winner Dario Franchitti's earnings were almost $2.5 million.

Barrichello's fellow grand prix winner Jean Alesi, however, went home empty handed, having been disqualified for lapping too slowly in his Lotus-powered Indycar.

"It was frustrating but the (105pc) regulation is fair and I leave with a lot of respect for the Indy 500," said the 47-year-old Frenchman.

"I hope to return next year. I will start to prepare now."

[MIKA27]

Button defends Schumacher's comeback

Jenson Button has defended Michael Schumacher following much criticism of the seven time world champion, who's so far been unable to match the same level of performance he once enjoyed.

The McLaren driver says the 43-year-old's previous achievements shouldn't be forgotten so easily now that he's winning races.

"Michael's come in for a lot of criticism over the last couple of years since he's been back," Autosport quote him as saying. "I think we all forget what he achieved in his previous career, if you want to call it that."

Schumacher looked his former self in Monaco last weekend when he set the quickest time on Saturday during qualifying, proving he's more comfortable in his machinery, which Button says can "take time.'

"Sometimes it takes time to feel comfortable with a car and comfortable with the people you're working with," he added.

"But I think he put a great lap together, didn't make any mistakes and he obviously deserved it very much.

"I'm sure when he got out of the car he was very happy, but also disappointed that he was put back to sixth [on the grid] at a place like Monaco."

[MIKA27]

Alonso's £24m salary dwarfs entire grid

Fernando Alonso easily tops the driver salary table with a wage almost double that of his nearest rivals, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.

Ferrari pay out £24 million to the Spaniard each year compared to just £8 million for his team-mate Felipe Massa.

The McLaren duo are both on £12.8 million each, though a reported contract extension for Hamilton would increase that to almost £20 million, comfortably putting him second highest and just below Alonso.

Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel are the big gainers, having jumped from reported salaries of £3.4 million and £1.6 million in 2010 to £8 million apiece in 2012.

One of the biggest surprises is that of team-mates Nico Hulkenberg and Paul di Resta. The former earns £400,000 per annum compared to the Scot who's the second lowest paid on the grid at just £120,000.

Note, these salaries don't include personal sponsorship and bonuses which can stretch into many millions. The figures are based on accurate estimates.

Reported driver salaries according to Business Book GP:

01.F. Alonso 30m€

02.L. Hamilton 16m€

03.J. Button 16m€

04.S. Vettel 10m€

05.M. Webber 10m€

06.F. Massa 10m€

07.N. Rosberg 10m€

08.M. Schumacher 8m€

09.K. Raikkonen 5m€

10.H. Kovalainen 4m€

11.T. Glock 3m€

12.K. Kobayashi 1m€

13.R. Grosjean1m€

14.N. Hulkenberg 500,000€

15.S. Perez 500,000€

16.V. Petrov 500,000€

17.P. de la Rosa 500,000€

18.J. Vergne 400,000€

19.D. Ricciardo 400,000€

20.P. Maldonado 400,000€

21.B. Senna 250,000€

22.N. Karthikeyan 250,000€

23.P. di Resta 200,000€

24.C. Pic150,000€

[MIKA27]

Massa slow to adapt to new tyres - Alonso

Fernando Alonso has thrown his support behind his team-mate Felipe Massa, who has struggled to match the Spaniard in race conditions.

Massa currently sits 14th in the drivers' championship with ten points, eight of which were scored in Monaco last weekend. Compare that to Alonso who sits at the head of the table with 76 points, you could be forgiven for thinking they were driving different cars.

However Alonso believes the Brazilian's lacklustre pace is the result of 'bad luck' and 'slow adaptation' to the new Pirelli tyres.

"It's been an unfortunate start to the season [for Massa] because of a number of things: bad luck and a slower adaptation than before to the tyres. Felipe's results weren't normal. He's got all my support," said Alonso at the opening of Ferrari's latest store.

"He's got all the support of the team to change the situation around. Or to change his results, because many times in practice or qualifying we're very close but then in the race, because of the start or because he got hit, he would be towards the back early on."

Alonso truly believes his team-mate will be fighting for podiums and race wins in the latter part of the season.

"In Monaco it looks like his results changed, so we hope that from here on it will all go well for him," he added.

"It's hard to think that Felipe won't win many points in the second part of the season, that he won't make podiums or fight for wins. He's got the talent for it."

[MIKA27]

SAUBER CUT AN F1 IN HALF TO REVEAL ALL:

It took two years, but Sauber have finally finished cutting one of their 2008 F1 cars in half to reveal its guts.

MIKA: Amazing!!

[MIKA27]

FAMOUS F1 FACES TO FEATURE ON RED BULL'S BRITISH GP CHARITY LIVERY:

The famous faces of Bernie Ecclestone, Niki Lauda, Damon Hill and David Coulthard are among those from the Formula 1 paddock that will appear alongside thousandths of those of fans' on Red Bull's cars at next month's British Grand Prix.

The world champion team is running with special one-off liveries on its two RB8s over the course of the Silverstone weekend featuring collages of more than 25,000 pictures in aid of the team's official charity, Wings for Life, which funds research into finding a cure for spinal cord injuries.

The Faces for Charity appeal has received some high-profile backing with F1 supremo Ecclestone lending his support to the campaign along with world champions Niki Lauda, Damon Hill and Sir Jackie Stewart, former drivers turned-TV pundits Johnny Herbert, David Coulthard and Anthony Davidson, ex-team owner Eddie Jordan and current Toro Rosso drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne.

With the slogan 'Upload, Donate, Race', fans can still ensure their face is part of the livery on Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber's cars by going to the Faces for Charity website to make a €15 (£12) donation to the cause alongside uploading their photo of choice. Red Bull Racing is promising to match every donation made and all entrants will also be entered into a free prize draw to attend the race and get behind-the-scenes access with Red Bull.

Photos can be uploaded until 17 June 2012 or until all the spaces are sold out.

[MIKA27]

HAMILTON AND SCHUMACHER THE KEY TO 2013 F1 DRIVER MARKET:

The F1 driver market is starting to move for next season as drivers who are out of contract at the end of the year review their options and start discussions.

Unlike football, where there are rules about players being "tapped up" by rival teams without their team's permission, as well as defined transfer windows, F1 drivers and their agents talk quite a bit and stay in touch with other teams. This constant ebb and flow leads to rumours of driver moves, which turn out to be wrong.

The key to the 2013 driver market is whether Michael Schumacher retires at the end of the year and whether Lewis Hamilton decides to try his luck away from McLaren.

Schumacher has had a tough comeback, but his pole in Monaco will have renewed his confidence and he may be on for a big result in Montreal. He's outstanding there, having won the race seven times and the track will suit the Mercedes better than any other team, with its double DRS and good traction out of slow corners. It's like Monaco with straights, so Schumacher should get at least a podium. Whether one strong result would encourage him to leave the sport for good or to continue, only he knows. But he will be 44 in January and time waits for no man.

If he quits, there will be a seat at Mercedes, which Hamilton would be prime candidate for. Should Hamilton stay at McLaren or move elsewhere it is felt that Paul Di Resta will get the Mercedes seat, which would create a vacancy at Force India.

Hamilton is the interesting one. He grew up with McLaren, so it would be a wrench to leave, but his vocal criticisms of the team, particularly in Monaco, have alerted observers to the possibility that he may be looking around.

It's impossible to imagine Ferrari wanting to put him alongside Fernando Alonso. Not because they don't get on; they do and the respect is clear between them when you see them together off camera. But the Ferrari/ Santander/ Alonso project is clearly defined and requires a driver like Mark Webber or Robert Kubica riding shotgun, not Lewis Hamilton.

Red Bull remains a possibility, although Sebastian Vettel and the current management would look at it like Ferrari do. However the team is run by Red Bull in Austria, not the race team management and if HQ thinks that Hamilton would be good for the business and the brand they may push for him to be hired.

McLaren want Hamilton to stay and for its principal partners like Vodafone and GSK Hamilton is certainly a big draw. But McLaren is no longer manufacturer-backed and infinitely resourced. It depends whether Hamilton's management company XIX, which comes from the entertainment industry and has a different view on value from racing people, push for maximum value from their asset. If it came to a bidding war between McLaren and Mercedes, as XIX would love it to, then who would dig the deepest?

Complicating the picture is the uncertainty over Mercedes' continued participation in the sport beyond December 31st. At present the terms on offer to them to continue are less favourable than the other teams. That must be resolved first before long term driver contracts are signed.

By getting Jenson Button's signature on a three year contract, McLaren have covered themselves to a point. But XIX is sure to try to create a market for Hamilton's services and that's what a lot of the talk in the papers over the next three months will be about.

[MIKA27]

Surprise favourites ramp up pressure on drivers

Within memory of him delivering the beleaguered team's first victory for more than seven years, Williams has expressed disappointment in Pastor Maldonado.

After soaring from pole to victory in Barcelona, breakthrough winner Maldonado suffered an horror Monaco grand prix two weeks later.

The Venezuelan was pushed ten places down the grid for apparently colliding deliberately with Sergio Perez in practice, and at the start of the race got caught up in the first lap chaos.

"The car was good enough for a P4 or P5 qualifying position and our race pace was also good so it is disappointing not to have come away from this event with a decent haul of points," said Williams' chief engineer Mark Gillan.

When asked about Maldonado's crash with Perez, he insisted: "I think that the incident was avoidable and therefore disappointing and that the penalty was therefore understandable."

And even in light of Maldonado's Barcelona triumph, the Oxfordshire based team's disappointment is also understandable, given the competitiveness of the Renault-powered FW34.

German magazine Auto Motor und Sport cited "GPS" evidence in claiming that the Williams and the Sauber are the best cars in the 2012 field when it comes to aerodynamics, based on data from Barcelona's demanding turns 3 and 9.

And at Monaco, Sauber's Perez recorded not only the fastest lap of the race, but "for long periods he was the fastest driver on the track".

"This clearly shows what we can achieve if everything goes right for us," said the Swiss team's boss. "Now it is up to the entire team to turn our opportunities into success."

Journalist Michael Schmidt said: "With Fernando Alonso, Sebastian Vettel or Lewis Hamilton in the cockpit, Williams or Sauber would probably be leading the championship."

The pressure is high, therefore, on the surprise favourites' drivers.

"The team (Williams) are looking forward to Montreal as we believe that we should be strong again, but we need to deliver in both qualifying and the race," Gillan insisted.

[MIKA27]

WHO WILL BE THE FIRST TWO TIMES GRAND PRIX RACE WINNER IN 2012?

It’s been an extraordinary season of F1 racing, with six different winners in six races.

There’s every chance that we could get a seventh in Montreal, as Lewis Hamilton’s McLaren, Michael Schumacher’s Mercedes and the Lotus cars should all be competitive there.

But who will be the first driver to win a second race this season?

My guess will be Webber.

[MIKA27]

FIA forces Red Bull to redesign car before Canadian Grand Prix

Red Bull will have to revise the design of their car before next weekend's Canadian Grand Prix after the FIA said that the controversial holes in the rear floor of their RB8 could not be employed.

The team have been using the holes, which sit just in front of the rear wheels and are used to channel air underneath the car, since the Bahrain Grand Prix, where Sebastian Vettel won. However neither his, nor Mark Webber's victory at Monaco last week, will be affected by the decision.

The issue of the design's legality had been raised unofficially during the Monaco Grand Prix but the FIA technical delegate, Charlie Whiting, had declared it within the rules. An official protest was considered by teams including McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes after the race but it is understood it was deferred to avoid negative publicity for the sport at one of its most high-profile events and a clarification of the rule was requested instead.

The Red Bull manager, Christian Horner, was confident only hours before the clarification was issued, saying: "The rules are written in such a way that they are open to interpretation and our interpretation of that particular rule was accepted." He added: "We were always confident that our car complied fully with the regulations."

However, the FIA statement, which referred to "discussions in Monaco, during which it became clear that certain misunderstandings existed", was unequivocal, stating, in reference to the location, that "fully enclosed holes may not be located there".

The aerodynamic feature, pushing air to the underfloor of the car and toward the diffuser, is designed to improve downforce. That there is an advantage to be gained in this area seems clear, since both Ferrari and Sauber have similar holes in the same position but featuring a small gap in the edge of the floor that allows them to be defined as "slots". That is a redesign and redefinition that Red Bull may look to pursue in a bid to regain the lost grip in the short time before the race in Montreal.

[MIKA27]

'Seven could be Schumi's lucky number'

Michael Schumacher wants to make his trip to Montreal "especially worthwhile" as he looks to follow up his Monaco pole with Canadian success.

In the third season of his comeback, Schumacher finally tasted some success when he achieved pole position at the previous outing in Monaco.

The German dropped to sixth on the grid due to his Spanish penalty and failed to see the finish line due to fuel pressure problem.

However, his showing in Monaco has boosted Schumacher's confidence and he heads to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve seeking a "worthwhile" result.

"The Canadian Grand Prix is all about the great atmosphere at the track and in the city. The Canadian fans make the whole weekend into a real celebration and, for us drivers, it's great to feel their passion for motorsport," he said.

"That gives us a natural boost and it would be great to give them even more reasons to celebrate at the end of the weekend.

"The race in Montreal is usually action-packed, like we saw last year. The characteristics of the circuit should suit us, and we are counting on our car performing well there.

"As I said: a trip to Montreal is always worth it. And let's hope we can make our trip this year especially worthwhile."

Meanwhile, Mercedes motorsport VP Norbert Haug is hoping that it is a case of seven is the lucky number for Schumacher next weekend.

"As his fastest qualifying time in Monaco demonstrated, Michael has the speed to compete at the front," Haug said.

"He has won seven times in Montreal, his Silver Arrow carries number seven and Canada will be race seven of the 2012 World Championship..."

[MIKA27]

Hamilton: Errors must stop

Lewis Hamilton has urged McLaren to put together an error-free weekend in Montreal as he seeks to break his 2012 victory duck.

Six races into this year's Championship and already six different drivers have claimed victories, breaking Formula One's previous record of five different winners in a row which was set back in 1983.

However, the one name that many expected to see on this year's list - but which is notable in its absence - is that of Hamilton.

The Brit has had a difficult start to the season as, while he already has three podium results to his credit, costly errors from his McLaren team have robbed him of a chance at the top step.

The latest batch of mistakes came at last Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix where a clutch setting change on the grid meant Hamilton was slow to get away while the 27-year-old also complained of a slow pit stop.

Hamilton, though, is determined to put that behind him and focus on the next race, the Canadian GP, where he hopes McLaren can put in an error-free showing.

"It's not hard to look forward at all," said Hamilton.

"I'm excited for every race, and whatever happens in a race, I always lift myself up and get myself pushing again.

"I'll be in the gym working as hard as I can, I'll get my mind in the same frame it has been in every race, making sure I'm doing my job - which I am.

"I just hope we get some updates to edge us closer to the others, and then I hope we have a weekend where we have nothing go wrong, because the other guys are doing a fantastic job."

Asked if he could believe that six drivers had each won a grand prix and yet he had yet to take to the top step of the podium, Hamilton said: "I can, yeah.

"For what reason, though, I really don't know. We haven't had a grand prix weekend where something hasn't gone wrong.

"The start of the race in Monaco was the beginning of things, and then I don't know what else happened after that.

"My pit stop didn't feel very quick, but generally we weren't quick throughout the race, which is strange.

"It really wasn't great when we lost positions to Fernando, and then to the Red Bull by such a short period of time, I don't know, half a second or something.

"But we still got points, even though it wasn't the best of weekends."

[MIKA27]

Montezemolo says Perez not ready for Ferrari

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has quashed speculation that Sergio Perez is being lined up to replace Felipe Massa at the end of the current season.

The young Mexican driver, who finished second in Malaysia just behind Ferrari's own Fernando Alonso, is part of the Italian team's young driver programme - but Montezemolo doesn't believe he's ready to make the step up to Ferrari yet.

"Perez is a good driver but to drive a Ferrari you need more experience," he told Reuters on Friday.

"I think he is one of the potential best young drivers for the future, but before putting a young driver in a Ferrari I need [to see] more experience and more results."

Meanwhile Massa has restored some faith in his abilities after making it through to Q3 in Monaco for the first time in 2012. He also finished sixth to score eight points, giving him a total of ten after six races.

"I'm sure that, because we are improving our car, the car will be less difficult to drive," added Montezemolo. "And I expect from Felipe better performances as I have already seen in Monte Carlo, because in Monte Carlo he was among the five quickest drivers on the track and in the qualifiers.

"So I hope he will continue like this. At the moment we are not taking any decision yet for the future, because it is too early."

[riazp]

Montreal GP next, love GP week here in montreal..hopefully the student protesting idiots wont ruin things for us. I wont be going to the race as it has gotten way to expensive for my taste. been a few times though. I think Lewis has a good chance of winning this race, he has always done well here in montreal, so has schumi if he can keep his car on the track. Who can be the first two time winner this season? I think Alonso has a good chance at it on the mtl track. Montreal has always been a home track for ferrari lol

[MIKA27]

THREAT OF PROTESTS PROMPT CANADIAN GP ORGANISERS TO SHELVE FAN EVENT:

Organisers of the Canadian Grand Prix have cancelled the traditional open pit walk for fans on Thursday morning at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in the wake of threats of protests over the race weekend.

The province of Quebec, in which the largest city is Montreal, has been gripped by student protests against a planned tuition fee hike since February and on Saturday street demonstrations in the region took place for the 40th consecutive day. More than 2,500 people have been arrested since the onset of protests with tensions having risen further recently following the government’s passing of a law aimed at restricting the right to protest.

Some protest groups have suggested they might use this week’s F1 race as a platform from which to further air their grievances and that has now prompted race organisers to act, the circuit on Sunday announcing that the ‘open house’ pit lane access that is normally made available to fans on the Thursday of the meeting had now been shelved.

A statement on the circuit’s website read: “With regret, the Grand Prix du Canada announces today the cancellation of the popular ‘’Open Doors’’ day, originally scheduled for the morning of Thursday, June 7. Following a serious examination of the situation, made necessary by public disruption threats and the difficulty to measure their precise validity, the organizers came to the conclusion that it is necessary to restrain the access to Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve and precisely the F1 pit lane, on the day preceding the first sessions on track.”

Canadian GP president François Dumontier was quoted by the local Montreal Gazette as saying he was “extremely sad” to have had to cancel the free event and apologised to fans who had planned to attend.

[MIKA27]

Red Bull play down floor ruling

Red Bull Racing have downplayed the impact the FIA's ruling on their 'hole' will have, saying they weren't going to use it at every race.

On Saturday, the FIA ruled that the holes in the floor of Red Bull's RB8 were illegal.

Motorsport's governing body stated that they "consider it implicit that fully enclosed holes may not be located" on the step plane of a car's floor.

As such, Red Bull have to remove the hole ahead of next weekend's Canadian Grand Prix.

However, according to advisor Helmet Marko the team had no intension of using that specific floor in Montreal.

"We had not planned to use this floor in Montreal anyway," Marko told Autosport.

"We had prepared a different configuration using a flat version of the floor. Therefore we do not need to modify the cars in Canada."

Marko also revealed that Red Bull are not the only team impacted by Saturday's ruling.

"This concerned other teams too, not only RBR," he said.

[MIKA27]

Boullier: We're in the fight for both titles

Lotus team principal Eric Boullier believes his team still remains fully in contention of fighting for both titles', given how small the gap to the front currently is.

The Enstone based outfit currently sit joint-third in the constructors' championship on 86 points alongside Ferrari, whilst Kimi Raikkonen is just a race win from Fernando Alonso who leads the drivers' title.

"This season has been interesting as no-one has been able to dominate, in either the drivers' or constructors' championships," said Boullier.

"We have the same number of points as Ferrari in third position in the constructors' championship, while Kimi is 25 points away from Fernando Alonso who's leading the drivers' classification. Anything can still happen and the championship is wide open."

Asked if either Raikkonen or Grosjean could be the seventh different winner this season, Boullier responded: "Let's hope so. Both Kimi and Romain are capable of winning and the E20 has shown race winning pace.

"Winning a Grand Prix is not the easiest thing in the world to achieve however, and I don't imagine that we'll have a different winner for every race this year; a pattern should begin to emerge before too long.

"We're looking forward to Montreal. It's the first low downforce track of the season, where the E20 should be strong. Our 500th race may not have been one of our best, but I hope the 501st is!"

[MIKA27]

No 'race win' ultimatum at Williams - Senna

Bruno Senna has played down suggestions he is under pressure to match the achievements of his teammate Pastor Maldonado.

While Maldonado confounded his critics by winning from pole in Barcelona, Brazilian Senna has failed to similarly shine in 2012, scoring half as many points so far at the wheel of the sister Williams.

But Senna, 28, denied that he must win in order to save his race seat, amid speculation Williams is keen to promote its reserve driver Valtteri Bottas.

"I know that I don't need to win this year," Senna is quoted by Globo Esporte.

"I have to have consistency, to score regularly, and have races that show a lot of potential.

"To win in formula one, everything has to be right: the car has to be fast, you have to be in the right position, using the tyres correctly and the strategy working out for you.

"All those variables are difficult to put together, and everybody in the team knows that," he insisted.

"They are giving me the chance to learn this year so that next year I can be expected to be in a position to win a race," said Senna.

According to Globo, Senna pointed out that the fact he is sitting out most Friday morning sessions in deference to Bottas is affecting his ability to fully understand Pirelli's tyres.

He said the effect of that lack of running was most obvious in Barcelona, where Maldonado won.

"Pastor has been able to learn very well about the condition of his tyres. This all comes with experience and it's not something you can skip over," said Senna.

Meanwhile, when asked about a likely title winner in 2012, Senna said it has rarely been more difficult to predict the outcome of the world championship.

"In my opinion, the fastest car is the Lotus, but they're not always getting it into the right window," he said, referring to his former team that was in 2011 known as Renault.

[MIKA27]

Steering issue creating Lotus-Raikkonen rift

The mere issue of 'steering' risks creating a rift between Lotus and its star driver Kimi Raikkonen.

The 2007 world champion has complained about the steering system aboard the black and gold E20 from his very first lap this season.

For Monaco, the team debuted a special system tailored to the Finn's needs, but it lasted just a single out-lap on Thursday morning.

"He was asked to consider running the session with it as it was (but) he refused and took no further part", Sky Sports' technical expert Mark Hughes reported.

That has triggered speculation Lotus is close to "giving up" on fixing the issue for the famously laid-back Raikkonen, who might have to simply adapt instead.

"By no means are we 'giving up' on fine tuning the development of the steering system according to Kimi's exact preferences," a Lotus team source is quoted by the Finnish broadcaster MTV3.

But the Enstone based team also appears to have highlighted the impact of Raikkonen's refusal to practice on Thursday.

Monaco, according to a report on Lotus' official website, showed "the importance of getting the steering system exactly as he likes it, whilst also underlining the fact that even an experienced challenger can be affected by missing running time at such a technical circuit".

[riazp]

THREAT OF PROTESTS PROMPT CANADIAN GP ORGANISERS TO SHELVE FAN EVENT:

Organisers of the Canadian Grand Prix have cancelled the traditional open pit walk for fans on Thursday morning at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in the wake of threats of protests over the race weekend.

The province of Quebec, in which the largest city is Montreal, has been gripped by student protests against a planned tuition fee hike since February and on Saturday street demonstrations in the region took place for the 40th consecutive day. More than 2,500 people have been arrested since the onset of protests with tensions having risen further recently following the government’s passing of a law aimed at restricting the right to protest.

Some protest groups have suggested they might use this week’s F1 race as a platform from which to further air their grievances and that has now prompted race organisers to act, the circuit on Sunday announcing that the ‘open house’ pit lane access that is normally made available to fans on the Thursday of the meeting had now been shelved.

A statement on the circuit’s website read: “With regret, the Grand Prix du Canada announces today the cancellation of the popular ‘’Open Doors’’ day, originally scheduled for the morning of Thursday, June 7. Following a serious examination of the situation, made necessary by public disruption threats and the difficulty to measure their precise validity, the organizers came to the conclusion that it is necessary to restrain the access to Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve and precisely the F1 pit lane, on the day preceding the first sessions on track.”

Canadian GP president François Dumontier was quoted by the local Montreal Gazette as saying he was “extremely sad” to have had to cancel the free event and apologised to fans who had planned to attend.

See I knew some BS like this would happen due to these protesting idiots. They are ruining the GP with it not even having started yet. People are cancelling hotel rooms, tickets for the event are still easily availeble...its a damn shame.

[MIKA27]

Hamilton may have decided to quit McLaren

Lewis Hamilton may already have decided to quit McLaren, according to a reliable source.

That is the claim of the French TF1 television commentator Jean-Louis Moncet, writing in his Auto Plus column.

It emerged recently that McLaren has offered the 2008 world champion - whose current contract runs out this year - over $30 million a season to stay at the British team for five more years.

But Moncet said "one of my best sources" is reporting that Briton Hamilton has effectively already decided to leave McLaren at the end of 2012 "and even earlier if the situation does not improve".

British newspapers reported after Monaco that Hamilton was angry at the end of last weekend, the 27-year-old insisting "the team definitely have some work to do" to cut out errors and return to the pace.

Moncet said there has been "serious contact between McLaren and Paul di Resta", the rising Force India driver who ironically is managed by Hamilton's father Anthony.

Referring to the speculation surrounding Hamilton at present, former driver, driver manager and respected British commentator Martin Brundle noted: "He's comfortable at McLaren.

"But will he fancy a bit of fresh oxygen by going somewhere else?" he wondered to Sky Sports. "I imagine he's weighing that all up at the moment."

[MIKA27]

See I knew some BS like this would happen due to these protesting idiots. They are ruining the GP with it not even having started yet. People are cancelling hotel rooms, tickets for the event are still easily availeble...its a damn shame.

Those damn Canadians!!