FORMULA 1 - 2013

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Rosberg going through a 'phase'

Nico Rosberg is "very confident" that he'll get back on a level footing with Lewis Hamilton as the Brit has jumped in their personal battle.

Rosberg emerged as the stronger of the two Mercedes drivers at the start of this season, taking two race wins in the first eight grands prix. Added to that he also had three pole positions to Hamilton's two.

However, in the races since Hamilton has gone on a charge.

The Britisih driver had secured three pole positions to go with his earlier two and also claimed his first victory for Mercedes in Hungary. And although he didn't win the other two races, he did win the intra-team battle, beating Rosberg out on track.

Rosberg is refusing to let it get to him, saying that while he acknowledges Hamilton as a strong driver, he himself is going through a trying phase.

"For one, Lewis has been doing a really, really good job and he's on it," said the German. "But that was clear from the beginning he was going to be a tough competitor, so he's just done really, really well.

"From my side, just a bit of a phase where not everything is going 100 percent right.

"I go through these phases as a driver and come on out the other side then they'll be a phase where everything does go right like at the beginning of the year in qualifying.

"Even though the racing didn't go well back then for our struggles that we used to have in the races, qualifying was going right."

The 28-year-old added that he believes the tables will yet again turn.

"I'm very confident that the phase will come again," he told Sky Sports.

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Webber wants maiden Monza podium

Mark Webber is chasing his first Italian GP podium in what will be his very last visit to Monza as a Formula One driver.

In 11 seasons in the sport, Webber has never excelled at the Italian Grand Prix. In fact the nine-time grand prix has never even finished on the Monza podium.

The Red Bull racer's best result in Italy so far was the sixth-placed he secured in 2010. That was also the last time he was in the points as he crashed out the following season and in 2012 was classified P20 despite not reaching the chequered flag.

This year, in what will be his final Italian Grand Prix, the 37-year-old is hoping for better.

"I like Monza a lot because it's very Formula One in terms of its history and its atmosphere," said the Aussie. "All of the greats have raced there and I have an affinity with Italians from my Minardi days.

"The track is one of a kind, it's an incredibly fast circuit with high top speeds, so there's a lot of heavy braking.

"Monza has never been that kind to me; I've had a few retirements and have never finished on the podium, so I want to get a good result there this year!"

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McLaren announce Commercial partnership with YouTube

The McLaren Group has this week announced a commercial partnership with online video-sharing giant, YouTube, as a way of offering their stakeholders a greater insight into the company.

The collaboration, which will include investment in to Mclaren’s already large YouTube commitment and following, is aimed at bringing fans closer to what can often be a very closely guarded sport.

With YouTube being a world leader in allowing a global database of uploaded videos, the notion of a ‘Commercial Channel’ has become increasingly popular in business. The ability to advertise and promote a brand on a website that is accessed so frequently promotes your chances of recognition, and in turn generates revenue.

In the last year the number of subscribers to McLaren’s YouTube channel has increased by 397%, with the revenue received from this being re-circulated to create more videos.

“As a business, this partnership is extremely positive,” said McLaren F1 Team Principal and McLaren Group CEO, Martin Whitmarsh. “McLaren and YouTube are both highly respected brands and combining our content with their expertise will help us both to achieve even more. Being able to gain revenue from our content will also enable us to invest more in future videos, which will be good for our brand, good for our partners and good for our fans.”

Stephen Nuttall, Senior Director of Sports for YouTube in EMEA added, “McLaren is a world-class racing and engineering company that tells compelling and entertaining stories. YouTube is the destination on the web where current and future sports fans go to watch, engage with and share great video. We’re delighted that fans of this top Formula 1 team will be able to enjoy its stars, see more about F1 off the circuit, and much more through their YouTube channel”

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Ferrari preparing to switch focus to 2014 at the end of September:

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali says the team are planning to switch all their efforts to the 2014 car at the end of September.

Teams face a big decision as to when to stop developing this year’s car to allow them to divert more resources to next year when the regulations change dramatically with the introduction of new 1.6 litre V6 turbo engines.

Ferrari are third in the constructors’ championship, 94 points behind Red Bull with eight races remaining. In the drivers’ standings, Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso is second, 46 points adrift of Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel, with team-mate Felipe Massa seventh, 130 behind.

The Italian team have decided to keeping pushing until the end of September, which will be after the Italian and Singapore Grands Prix, and then decide whether to continue pushing in pursuit of Vettel and Red Bull or completely switch their attentions to 2014 to ensure they don’t lose ground from the start of the season.

Domenicali told www.f1.com: “September is the month where we will basically start to shift, as the 2014 project is very complex. At the end of September we will then basically switch everyone, depending, of course, on how the situation is with the championship.

“All the top teams realise that if they want to be a force in 2014, then they have to start very quickly to switch resources, as it is a very complex matter – especially for the big teams. My guess is that we might see huge surprises next season in terms of the pecking order.

“In my view – and as far as I remember – the changes that we are facing are the biggest changes we have ever had in Formula 1. It is really important to get it right, otherwise you’re lost.”

Domenicali also said that he would like to retain Massa, whose contract expires at the end of the season, for 2014 – however, he says the Brazilian, who has driven for Ferrari since 2006, must start to deliver results immediately.

Massa’s future at the team was the subject of speculation at this time last year but a strong run of results saved his seat. The Brazilian continued that form into the early part of this year but following two crashes at the same corner in Monaco in May, his form has dropped off and he is now 84 points behind team-mate Alonso.

He has scored just two podiums since the start of last year and is without a win since 2008, the year where he challenged for the world title before missing out by a point to Lewis Hamilton.

Last time out at the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, Massa’s fastest lap was eight tenths slower than team-mate Alonso’s best. While the Spaniard finished second, Massa crossed the line seventh, 26 seconds behind his team-mate.

Domenicali said: “We have to wait and see. My favourite choice would be, of course, to keep Felipe because Felipe is a very good guy – very dedicated to the team – and when you look around there are not so many drivers out there that you swap and they immediately deliver.

“But, of course, we need good results from Felipe, so that’s why we will not rush as we have to make the right decision for the team. As soon as we have made up our minds we will announce it officially to silence the rumours once and for all. When we are ready.”

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Happy 50th birthday McLaren! An inspiration to everyone in motorsport

Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Limited was formally incorporated on September 2 1963, when the 26-year-old New Zealander mustered together a small crew of committed individuals to design, build and race cars bearing his own name, operating from a small, cramped workshop in New Malden, Surrey.

From that tiny base, the team migrated through various premises in Colnbrook and Woking before settling upon its current site at the McLaren Technology Centre, home to all of the team’s businesses, and workplace to more than 2000 people.

For any organisation, that’s quite an incredible transformation. Yet the company’s sporting successes have equally blossomed beyond measure since those early days.

Bruce took the team into Formula 1 at the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix – and, since that day, no team in Formula 1 has scored more victories [182] than McLaren. Elsewhere, the team dominated the iconic North American CanAm sports car series, taking 43 wins between 1967 and 1972, won the Indy 500 three times between ’72 and ’76, and took the Le Mans 24 Hours on its first attempt, in 1995.

Bruce Mclaren

Our great champions – Emerson Fittipaldi, James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and Lewis Hamilton – are all household names and legends of motorsport.

McLaren’s long-lasting relationships with some of the world best-known brands have also set new standards in the world of commercial and sporting partnerships.

Our lengthy list of blue-riband partners includes the race team’s current title partner, Vodafone, global brands such as ExxonMobil, Diageo, GlaxoSmithKline, Santander, SAP and the Hilton Group, and world-class consumer brands such as TAG Heuer and Hugo Boss, both of whom have partnered with us for more than half our existence – a phenomenal achievement.

The organisation’s current scope is particularly broad: we have grown from a humble racing outfit to encompass McLaren Electronic Systems, which supplies technologies to every team in F1, NASCAR and Indycar, and McLaren Applied Technologies, which applies our expertise to a wide range of industries from elite sport and healthcare to energy and product design.

In 1993, our roadcar division, McLaren Automotive, launched arguably the purest and most focused supercar in history, the F1, perfectly honouring Bruce’s legacy. Even 20 years on, it is still regarded by many as the greatest supercar of all time. More recently, it has successfully launched both the ground-breaking 12C and 12C Spider high-performance sports cars and the superlative McLaren P1TM – our newest and most exciting supercar.

However, our 50th anniversary is merely the starting-point for even more ambitious growth. We are increasingly establishing ourselves as one of the world’s most dynamic high-technology companies.

Following the outstanding acclaim that greeted the arrival of the P1TM, McLaren Automotive is already working busily to extend the line-up, and McLaren Racing’s exciting technical partnership with Japanese manufacturer Honda, which hits the track in 2015, promises a return to the greatness achieved during our previous link-up, which won 44 grands prix and eight world titles in the 1980s and ’90s.

Emerson Fittipaldi was McLaren’s first F1 world champion

Despite the broadening of the group’s business interests, McLaren’s goal remains singular: we exist to win – and aim to do so in every endeavour we undertake. Less a corporate slogan and more a matter of personal pride, McLaren’s ethos cuts deep into the organisation, creating a workforce unified by the same passion – it’s the quality that ensures McLaren remains such a relentless force in everything it does.

Ron Dennis, McLaren Group chairman, said: “McLaren started as the dream of one man, and it’s since grown to encompass the hopes and dreams of more than 2000 men and women, who work as tirelessly as Bruce McLaren himself once did to ensure that everything we do reflects well when compared with everything we’ve ever achieved.

“So, our 50th anniversary provides an opportunity for every single McLaren employee to realise that he or she is an utterly crucial part of an organisation with a history and a culture that really mean something.

The last time McLaren won the F1 world title was in 2008 with Lewis Hamilton

“Call it McLaren’s DNA, if you like.Call it McLaren’s brand continuity, if you prefer. Call it McLaren’s corporate culture, if you will. Call it McLaren’s undiminished hunger to win in everything we do, and you’d probably be getting closest to what I mean, what I think, and what I feel.”

Martin Whitmarsh, McLaren Group CEO, said: “Marking McLaren’s 50th anniversary is an extremely proud moment for me, and for every single person who works for this organisation.

“We are a group that thrives on the passion, determination and belief of our employees. We are also grateful to have received outstanding support from all our partners over the decades, whose backing has given our world-class engineers and drivers the tools they need to win races.

“We make no secret of the fact that we are a hugely specialist set of businesses, but far from that being a limiting factor, our adaptability and determination have made us restless, dynamic and inventive.

“To witness the scope and scale of our growth across the past five decades has been truly astonishing. From our humble beginnings, McLaren has not only become a world-renowned sporting force, but also a byword for superlative technical excellence and attention to detail.

The McLaren F1 team spawned the organisation’s supercar projects

“That’s an incredible legacy, and a testament to the consistent adherence to the highest of standards. Everything we do – from racing grand prix cars around the world to developing groundbreaking new medical technologies – is approached with the same mindset: how can we be better? How can we be the best?

“That is the methodology that continually motivates me and still makes me feel incredibly proud to work for McLaren.”

Mike Flewitt, McLaren Automotive CEO, said: “McLaren is a truly inspirational company which has been synonymous with success for five decades. McLaren Automotive is still young, by comparison to the rest of the group, but we already have a great deal to be proud of.

“When the company was established it was set some very challenging objectives. By bringing three new cars to market, establishing a global sales network and developing a truly world-class manufacturing facility, we have more than met those challenges and laid solid foundations for what, I believe, will be a very bright future.

“We owe a huge thanks to our technical partners Pirelli, ExxonMobil, Akebono, AkzoNobel and TAG Heuer, whose support has been invaluable; and particularly to our staff, who have demonstrated unwavering commitment and enthusiasm. McLaren Automotive is already an important part of the McLaren story and we have an exciting opportunity to play an even greater role in the company’s future.”

Jenson Button said: “I’ve never hidden my pride at being a McLaren driver. I grew up watching this team achieving great things with Ayrton Senna and my racing hero, Alain Prost. And I firmly believe this team will be great again; this is an organisation you can never discount – their appetite for winning is unlike anything I’ve ever seen and, rest assured, we will be back at the front soon.

“For me, it’s hugely gratifying to not only be at MTC on the actual day of the anniversary, but to spend time with the thousands of people who all work with such skill and enthusiasm to make McLaren great.

“Happy 50th birthday McLaren – you are an inspiration to everyone in motorsport.”

Sergio Perez said: “Ayrton Senna was my hero when I was growing up and getting into Formula 1. Ever since then, I’ve had huge respect for McLaren – throughout my whole life they have been winning races and championships, and have consistently been one of the best teams in Formula 1.

“To drive for McLaren in their 50th year has been a great personal achievement for me – ever since I first arrived, I’ve found a team utterly hungry for success, yet always friendly and considerate. It’s this human quality that has really struck me about the team – they are completely united, so you always know they are pushing hard for you. In turn, that makes you want to step up and deliver yourself.

“It’s unbelievable to think that McLaren is 50 today – I want to wish the team every success for the next 50 years.” (McLaren)

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Raikkonen and Massa still key to 2014 driver moves as F1 silly season drags on

After Ferrari ruled out making a driver announcement during its home race at Monza, Formula 1′s sillier-than-usual ‘silly season’ is set to continue into yet another week.

A cursory look at the Italian team’s situation would conclude that only Felipe Massa’s expiring contract is under review.

“I know I must have a better second half of the season, after a first one where unfortunately, the results were lacking in some races, but the performance has always been up there,” the Brazilian said whilst accepting an award in Italy at the weekend.

“I think I still have a very strong chance of staying with Ferrari.”

Team boss Stefano Domenicali has said that his “first choice” is to keep Massa at Maranello, ”When you look around,” he told Formula 1′s official website, “there are not so many drivers out there that you swap and they immediately deliver.”

That comment is perhaps a sign that only someone like Kimi Raikkonen – the jewel in the 2013 silly-season – is under consideration, rather than a riskier choice like Nico Hulkenberg.

Indeed, Finn Raikkonen is the fly in the ointment, and not only at Ferrari. Definitely wanted by Lotus and possibly still Red Bull, Ferrari’s 2007 world champion has in recent days even been linked with a return to McLaren.

Raikkonen’s candidature is causing ructions not only at Ferrari, but also Red Bull.

Helmut Marko wants to promote Daniel Ricciardo from Toro Rosso to become Sebastian Vettel’s teammate next year, but the world champion team’s British faction – Christian Horner and Adrian Newey – reportedly favours Raikkonen.

But the only man with the power to decide is team owner Dietrich Mateschitz.

According to Bild newspaper, the Austrian billionaire has been holidaying in the South Pacific in recent days, and preparing to press the button on Ricciardo alongside Vettel for 2014.

However, turning down Raikkonen could gift the highly talented 33-year-old to direct rivals Ferrari or McLaren, potentially creating formidable lineups such as Alonso-Raikkonen or Button-Raikkonen.

With Mercedes already fielding Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, can Red Bull afford to battle those sorts of all-star lineups with Vettel-Ricciardo?

Might a sign of Mateschitz’s ultimate choice be the news that Red Bull has stepped up as the title sponsor of Raikkonen’s ‘Iceone’ motocross team for 2014?

A major factor counting against a possible return to Ferrari for Raikkonen is Fernando Alonso, the team’s clear ‘number 1′ who openly would prefer to keep Massa on board.

Kimi Raikkonen does motocross and next year his MX team will have Red Bull sponsorship

“Kimi is not worried about the others,” former Formula 1 driver Mika Salo told Turun Sanomatnewspaper.

“He will not pay attention to Alonso’s status or try to take an advantage wherever he can. But it can be expected that Fernando would not like [being paired with Raikkonen],” he noted.

One reporter at a media conference at Spa recently said that Alonso gave only a ‘strange shrug’ when asked directly if he will be at Ferrari next year, irrespective of his long contract.

Now, Alonso has the ‘Twittersphere’ buzzing after issuing a tantalising ‘tweet’ on Sunday.

“I have important news coming these days,” he wrote. “Stay tuned here on Twitter and on the web.”

Of course, the 32-year-old might just be preparing to announce a new personal sponsor. Or perhaps his engagement to his Russian model girlfriend Dasha.

Perhaps he’s still just being mischievous; sending yet another message to Ferrari that he needs a better car. And his preferred choice of teammate.

Boss Domenicali denies that there is a ‘power struggle’ between the team and Alonso.

“No, no, this is something that I totally reject,” he said. “We want to win together.”

According to Gerhard Berger, that’s where the laconic Finn also comes in. Asked by Bild am Sonntagto name his ideal driver lineup for 2014, the ‘other’ famous Austrian answered: “Alonso and Raikkonen.”

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Calado to do FP1 with Force India starting at Monza

Formula 1 hopeful James Calado will drive a Force India Formula 1 car on Friday morning at Monza.

A month ago, rumours suggested that the GP2 frontrunner – a 24-year-old Briton Calado – would soon be signed as the Silverstone based team’s new reserve driver.

The news was confirmed officially by team boss Vijay Mallya on Monday.

“I’m pleased to confirm that we’ve signed James as our third driver,” he said.

Mallya said that Calado, who is managed by Nicolas Todt, will drive on Friday morning at Monza, and also in initial practice “at several other races this year”.

“It’s always useful to get another driver’s feedback on the car and it will help us evaluate James,” he added.

Force India’s current race drivers are Paul di Resta and Adrian Sutil.

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Alonso buys World Tour professional cycling team

Formula 1 World Champion Fernando Alonso is poised to become the partner owner of a professional cycling team.

On Sunday, the Ferrari driver sent the ‘Twittersphere’ into a frenzy when he announced that “important news” would shortly be announced.

Some wondered if he would announce a switch to Red Bull, confirm Kimi Raikkonen as his next teammate, or perhaps reveal his engagement to Russian model girlfriend Dasha.

Actually, specialist cycling media outlets on Monday said that Alonso, a road cycling and fitness enthusiast, has bought the Spanish World Tour team Euskatel-Euskadi.

El Periodico said that Alonso and his sponsors will fund a € 6 million budget for 2014 for the team, which was set to fold at the end of this year.

Euskaltel-Euskadi, from the Basque region, released a statement confirming the agreement with Alonso, adding that more information will be forthcoming.

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Berger: Too many cooks spoil the broth

Gerhard Berger says it is up to Jean Todt and Bernie Ecclestone to come together to find a way to make F1 sustainable.

In recent months several teams have highlighted the growing costs of competing in Formula One, which are again set to rise next season.

Asked about it in an interview with the Bild, former team boss Berger stated that the situation is not being helped by Todt and Ecclestone's vastly different views.

"The time is now," the Austrian told the German publication. "In Formula One, the old adage 'too many cooks spoil the broth' is more and more true.

"Previously president Max Mosley and Bernie Ecclestone worked as a unit. Today we have in Jean Todt and Ecclestone two chefs who have different tastes and different spices.

"This leads to confusions and it is difficult for many of the more experienced fans to understand."

He added: "Staying with the picture: the spices are used according to personal taste and are not always to the liking of the sport.

"The rules must be clear and sustainable and cannot be permanently changing. In football one could also make the field bigger, smaller, allow 15 players, 10 players, make the goal bigger, smaller. But they don't.

"Football is easy to understand, Formula One is not."

Asked whether a budget cap was 'inevitable', Berger said: "At first glance yes but it's not easy. I know all the arguments both for and against and you have to weight it up."

The former driver added that it is up to Todt and Ecclestone to find a solution.

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Red Bull Confirms Ricciardo for 2014:

Red Bull today finally confirmed the worst kept secret of the season; that Daniel Ricciardo will replace Mark Webber as team mate to Sebastian Vettel next season.

The team says this deal, which puts the 24 year old from Perth Australia into a winning car with a great opportunity to make a name for himself is a ‘multi-year agreement.’ It was important for the Red Bull young driver programme that another graduate hit the top of the ladder as it hasn’t produced a world beater since Vettel in 2008/9. Many young drivers have fallen by the wayside since then.

Ricciardo drove for the team at the Young Drivers Test at Silverstone in July and impressed with his consistency. His speed was already known from previous young driver tests and from his performances with Toro Rosso.

At the recent Belgian Grand Prix, Webber told Australian Network 10 TV that the decision was already made, but Ricciardo insisted that he had yet to be informed, although he hinted that he was feeling quite confident he’d done enough to get the seat.

Only this evening has team boss Christian Horner confirmed it with a short statement.

“It’s fantastic to confirm Daniel as the team’s race driver for 2014, ” said Horner. “He’s a very talented youngster, he’s committed, he’s got a great attitude and in the end it was a very logical choice for us to choose Daniel. He joined the Red Bull Junior Team in 2008 and we’ve seen in his junior career in Formula 3 and Renault World Series that he’s capable of winning races and championships.

“He’s stood out in each of these categories and we’ve followed his progress with great interest. He’s got all the attributes that are required to drive for our team: he’s got a great natural ability, he’s a good personality and a great guy to work with. Daniel knows what the team expects from him; he’ll learn quickly and it’s very much a medium to long term view that we’re taking in developing him. The seat within the team is a wonderful opportunity and I think he’s going to be a big star of the future.”

Adrian Newey commented, “Since Mark announced his retirement, Christian and I have been looking carefully at the driver market, along with Helmut Marko and Dietrich Mateschitz. We could have taken an experienced driver, somebody guaranteed to deliver to a relatively known level, or equally we could take on a much younger driver in the hope that they’ll develop to a very high level. We looked at the latter option and concluded that of the younger drivers, Daniel is the most promising.

“From Red Bull’s point of view that also fits well because the driver that Christian and I feel is the most promising is part of the Red Bull young driver programme. The decision actually reminded me a little bit of a similar situation we had when I was at Williams. Nigel Mansell was leaving and we needed someone alongside Alain Prost. We could stick with Riccardo Patrese or take a punt on a young driver called Damon Hill who was our test driver at the time. I think it’s good to bring young blood in and give promising drivers a chance.”

“I feel very, very good at the moment, ” said Ricciardo. “And obviously there’s a lot of excitement running through me. Since joining F1 in 2011, I hoped this would happen and over time the belief in me has grown; I had some good results and Red Bull has decided that this is it, so it’s a good time. Next year I’ll be with a Championship-winning team, arguably the best team, and will be expected to deliver. I’m ready for that.

“I’m not here to run around in tenth place, I want to get the best results for myself and the team. I would like to thank the team for giving me the opportunity to show what I can do. I know the team quite well already since being its reserve driver in 2010, which should make the transition easier. It will be a great challenge to be up against Sebastian Vettel, I’m looking forward to that. My aim is to finish this season as strong as possible, for myself and Scuderia Toro Rosso. Then, once the off-season is here, I’ll be fully focussed on next year and the next stage of my career.”

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Ferrari expects major boost from arrival of James Allison

James Allison's arrival at Ferrari should provide an instant boost to the team, reckons director of engineering Pat Fry.

Following a spell of gardening leave from his previous Lotus team, Allison started work at Ferrari this week as its new chassis technical director.

Fry, who was previously overall technical director, believes his change of role and the arrival of Allison is a huge positive as it frees him up to work on areas that will be more beneficial to the Maranello outfit.

"I think getting James on board is a great asset for us, as he is a top bloke," said Fry, who joined Ferrari from McLaren in 2010.

"In reality there is a huge amount of work to do; a change in the organisation, and the way we run the company.

"For me it is good because I will have more time to concentrate on what will make the car quick.

"The two of us we will divide the work up, and there will be more balance, so it will really help."

Ferrari cited Allison's imminent arrival as one of the reasons to remain positive when it appeared to be drifting down the Formula 1 pecking order prior to the summer break.

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Ron Dennis did not try to block Lewis Hamilton's McLaren F1 exit

McLaren executive chairman Ron Dennis says he did not try to stop Lewis Hamilton leaving for the Mercedes Formula 1 team last winter.

After a career with McLaren that began when it took him under his wing when he was karting and ultimately led to six F1 seasons together and the 2008 world championship, Hamilton jumped ship for Mercedes at the start of 2013.

Speaking in a team interview as part of McLaren's 50th anniversary celebrations, Dennis said he understood that Hamilton might need to move on as part of his 'maturing' process.

"I recently read a very nice quote from Lewis in which he said that, unlike other drivers who had joined McLaren once they'd already raced in F1, his apprenticeship with the team in his youth meant that he was a seed that had grown within McLaren, which I thought was an extremely eloquent way of putting it," said Dennis.

"Lewis knows that he's part of the McLaren family and that, like that seed, he's grown deep roots within our organisation.

"Last year I didn't seriously seek to prevent his efforts to explore new pastures with the Mercedes AMG F1 team - perhaps it was a necessary part of his maturation – but I'll always remember his time with us very fondly, just as I'm very proud of having been McLaren's CEO and team principal when he became world champion with us in 2008."

Dennis added that the effort McLaren had put into nurturing Hamilton before he reached F1 should not be underestimated. The Briton came close to winning the title in his rookie season in 2007.

"The fact that he adapted so quickly was not only a mark of his hunger and ability, but also a tribute to the quality of the education and support that McLaren had spent so many years providing for him," said Dennis.

"While it wouldn't be unfair to call Lewis 'an overnight sensation' in F1 – and many understandably did – we at McLaren know that it took many years of unseen hard work to make him one."

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Toro Rosso confirm Vergne for 2014 but in no rush to name second driver

Having missed out on the coveted Red Bull seat, Jean Eric Vergne will nevertheless remain in Formula 1 with Toro Rosso for at least another year, but the team are in no rush to make a decision on who will replace Daniel Ricciardo.

In a statement congratulating Ricciardo, Tost said, “As to who will replace Daniel at Toro Rosso in 2014, we will now look at all our options and make a decision at a later date, as there is no immediate need to rush.”

Even before Ricciardo’s appointment speculation over Toro Rosso’s next driver was rife, with the perception being that Antonio Felix da Costa – next in line in the energy drinks’ young driver programme – would step up.

But most recent reports indicate that highly rated Felipe Nasr has entered the picture, and reportedly has substantial backing from Banco do Brasil and Sky Brasil.

Also an option for Red Bull is to promote young Carlos Sainz Junior who impressed during his stint in the Toro Rosso during the Young Drivers Test at Silverstone in July.

Meanwhile, despite losing out to Ricciardo on promotion, Vergne has done enough to retain his seat for 2014 with Toro Rosso.

Red Bull consultant Helmet Marko said, ” Jean-Eric [Vergne[ will have another opportunity next year at Toro Rosso. He is also slightly younger — he just needs to have patience.”

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Tost: We at Toro Rosso have given Ricciardo a good racing education

Toro Rosso team boss Franz Tost was one of the first to congratulate Daniel Ricciardo on his appointment to the Red Bull team, and points out that the promotion vindicates the energy drinks company’s investment in their junior programme.

Tost said in a statement, “Congratulations to Daniel, although we would have liked to keep him, because he is a talented driver who has done a great job with Scuderia Toro Rosso. At the same time, we are very pleased to see him make this move, which means he will follow in the footsteps of Sebastian Vettel.”

He pointed out, “When Dietrich Mateschitz acquired the team that became Toro Rosso, his stated aim was that it should be the final step in the training of young drivers, with the eventual goal of graduating to the ‘senior’ team. Daniel’s move thus vindicates the work of the Red Bull Young Driver Programme and also proves that we at Toro Rosso have given him a good racing education.”

“Daniel already knows his new team, having tested for them a few times and I am sure he will soon feel at home there next year – they won’t even have to change the Australian flag on the side of his car!” joked Tost.

Before adding, “As to who will replace Daniel at Toro Rosso in 2014, we will now look at all our options and make a decision at a later date, as there is no immediate need to rush.”

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Minister says Monza future secure and untouchable

The immediate future of the Italian Grand Prix is secure, claims the Lombardy minister Antonio Rossi, rejecting reports that historic Monza could be the victim as Bernie Ecclestone seeks to further expand the Formula 1 calendar beyond Europe.

“The Formula 1 Grand Prix in Monza is untouchable,” he is quoted by Tuttosport.

“Not only because it is an engine for the economy of Brianza, but also because of Expo 2015,” said Rossi.

Indeed, he said the Autodromo Nazionale, in the Villa Reale park, will play a role as Milan hosts the next Universal Exposition, Expo 2015.

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Formula 1 preparations for 2014 Austrian GP begin

Work to prepare the Red Bull Ring, formerly known as the A1-Ring, for its return to the Formula 1 calendar next year has begun.

Now owned and rebuilt by the energy drink company, the Austrian Grand Prix circuit in the Styria region of Austria is now called the Red Bull-Ring.

Austrian radio ORF said that construction work to get the venue ready for Formula 1 next year is now underway.

A spokesman for the Red Bull Ring operator Projekt Spielberg GmbH confirmed the report.

It was announced in July that Dietrich Mateschitz and Bernie Ecclestone had agreed a provisional deal to return Formula 1 to Austria on July 6 next year.

Kleine Zeitung newspaper subsequently reported that the 2014 race will in fact take place a week earlier than that, on June 29.

The same newspaper now reports that an embankment on the front straight is currently being removed.

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Button and McLaren close to signing new deal

Jenson Button has not denied suggestions that he is on the verge of signing a new three-year deal to stay at McLaren beyond the 2013 season.

The 2009 world champion counted himself into the ‘silly season’ recently when he revealed that team boss Martin Whitmarsh is yet to take up an option on his current deal.

Red Bull has subsequently confirmed Daniel Ricciardo as Mark Webber’s successor at Red Bull, but Ferrari still has an opening alongside Fernando Alonso for 2014.

Asked about the fabled Italian team, Briton Button answered: “I should say ‘never say never’, as all the drivers do.

“I don’t like to predict the future,” he is quoted by Italy’s La Repubblica, “and Ferrari is legendary, but so too is McLaren.”

Indeed, the Woking based team is this week celebrating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Limited in September 1963.

“Why should I change?” 33-year-old Button asked rhetorically.

Actually, Button’s age is perhaps the best argument that, if he does harbour a desire to wear red, he should jump at the opportunity now.

With Mark Webber’s exit to Le Mans, Button will be the oldest driver on the grid next year.

Asked if that bothers him, Button insisted: “No, because age is not important, what is important is whether you’re losing your speed or your reflexes or your reaction time.

“We do all of those tests and if anything I am improving, not to mention that I have more experience and strategic intelligence.”

Asked specifically about the rumours of a three-year extension, which would take Button well into McLaren’s new Honda era, he said: “ as long as I feel competitive.”

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Name tweak for Formula 1 track in Barcelona

The Spanish Grand Prix venue in Barcelona has undergone a name change.

Since it was built in 1991, and began hosting the Spanish Grand Prix, the track has been called Circuit de Catalunya.

But after a new sponsorship deal with the Barcelona City Council was agreed recently, the track will now be known officially as the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.

The news, reported in Spanish newspapers including El Mundo Deportivo and the sports daily Marca, was confirmed by circuit president Vicenc Aguilera.

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Buemi admits 2014 Formula 1 comeback unlikely

Former Toro Rosso driver Sebastien Buemi has admitted that his career will probably stay on its current course in 2014, with a Formula 1 race seat not likely.

Daniel Ricciardo has been signed by Red Bull’s champion team for at least three years, and the other energy drink-owned Formula 1 squad, Toro Rosso, looks likely to field Jean-Eric Vergne alongside rookie Antonio Felix da Costa next season.

This means that if the current Red Bull reserve Buemi, the 24-year-old Swiss, wants to return to the grid, he will have to do so at a non-Red Bull team.

“The doors are still open,” he told Brazil’s Totalrace, “but nowadays it is very difficult because of the financial situation.

“It is not easy when [teams] are looking for [drivers with] money.”

For the last couple of years, Buemi has split his time between serving as the Red Bull reserve at grands prix, and racing for Toyota in endurance sports cars.

He said: “My goal is to return to Formula 1, obviously.

“But I am very happy to be here,” said Buemi, referring to Toyota, with whom he finished second in this year’s fabled 24 hour Le Mans race.

“It’s a great car, we are in a big fight, and I’m doing my best to succeed here.

“I am happy with the situation here at Toyota and what I’m doing with Red Bull, so why not go on like this for another year?” said Buemi.

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Massa adamant his Ferrari future now brighter than a year ago

Felipe Massa is adamant that he has the necessary speed and requirements to keep his seat at Ferrari beyond the 2013 season.

The Italian team is openly considering replacing the Brazilian, who joined Ferrari as Michael Schumacher’s teammate in 2006, at the end of the season.

The leading candidates are reportedly former champion Kimi Raikkonen, or German hopeful Nico Hulkenberg.

But 32-year-old Massa, who has ruled out clinging on to his Formula 1 career at a small team, insists that he has a strong chance of staying put.

“The situation last year was worse than this year,” he told Brazil’s Totalrace, “because my performance (in 2012) was well below what I could do.

“So it was much more difficult. This year, I have had a good performance in almost every race.”

Massa said only the actual results have been lacking – he is 84 points behind teammate Fernando Alonso – because of a roll-call of “several things” going wrong in qualifying sessions and the races.

“Many things have happened,” he repeated, “but if they had not, the championship would look very different because of the points that I should have.

“Now we just have to end these problems and put things in place for the second half of the season,” added Massa.

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Mercedes revises its low-drag aero package for Monza after Spa form

Mercedes will run with a revised version of its low-drag package at this weekend's Italian Grand Prix as it bids to make up for its disappointing race pace in Belgium.

The Brackley-based team had hoped to take the fight to Red Bull at Spa, but Lewis Hamilton struggled to find a good set-up with the car throughout the weekend and finished third.

With Monza also demanding the kind of low-drag performance that was required for Spa, Mercedes has been working hard on implementing solutions that it hopes will deliver a step forward in form for Italy.

Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff said: "In Monza, we will use a refined version of the low-drag package introduced at Spa. We hope to see an improvement in race pace after the lessons we learned over the race weekend in Belgium."

Team principal Ross Brawn revealed after Belgium that the outfit had been slightly baffled as to why its pace was lacking.

"I don't think we quite got the car right," he said. "We were there or thereabouts but it didn't feel quite as sharp as we have had the last few races: whether that was because of the set-up philosophy, or some of the changes we made, we will have to go back through.

"The aero package certainly did what it should do, but we were not very good in sector one, and our performance through Eau Rouge was poor.

"Our car had good grip in the [other] fast corners though, which was slightly odd."

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Current title battle won’t hurt Red Bull in 2014 says Marko

Reigning world champions Red Bull can win this year’s Formula 1 world championship and also be ready for the enormous challenge of the radical new rules that come in to play for the forthcoming 2014.

That is the claim of Helmut Marko, as this year’s title-charging teams grapple with the even-more-delicate-than-usual task of balancing two parallel development tasks.

“With these huge technological changes, it is a difficult situation for a team like us,” Marko said on Austrian television Servus TV.

Indeed, while some big teams like McLaren are basically now fully immersed in the 2014 programme, abandoning this year’s car is not a luxury Red Bull can afford.

“Our plan is that we are going to keep developing to win the (2013) world championship and, at the same time, work on the new car as well,” Marko confirmed.

“We are not a small team, but we are not the biggest either,” he insisted.

But counting in Red Bull’s favour, Marko said, is the renowned skill of technical boss Adrian Newey, who not only is good at balancing two development programmes, but he also relishes a raft of sweeping rule changes.

“I am convinced that we will come again next year with solutions that are not conventional,” Marko said.

“It’s not as though we have the new car just sitting in the corner — some teams in the technology group under Adrian Newey are working only on 2014,” he revealed.

“One thing we have learned over the years is that, whatever you develop, you always learn something, even if the rules are changing.”

Yet another challenge for teams at present is the uneasy prospect of an eleventh-hour switch from Pirelli to Michelin tyres for 2014.

McLaren’s Sam Michael said the change would affect the car’s aerodynamics, suspension geometry and setup parameters, but teams have no option except to “assume” their cars will be running Pirelli tyres next year.

“Right now we’re fully down the road of designing our car for Pirelli tyres,” he told reporters during the Vodafone teleconference on Wednesday.

“If that changed, like anything in Formula 1, then you’d adapt, because Formula 1 is all about change management.”

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Mallya: P5 race neck and neck

Force India team principal Vijay Mallya admits his squad have some work to do if they are to reclaim fifth place from McLaren in the standings.

The Silverstone squad were ahead of their more illustrious rivals for most of the season, but they slipped to sixth in the Constructors' Championship at Spa after they picked up only two points.

"We could have had both cars in the points, but for the unfortunate incident where Paul [di Resta] was taken out by [Williams' Pastor] Maldonado," Mallya said.

"Nevertheless it's good to be in the points in the first race back after the break. We've still got some more work to do because McLaren got ahead of us, but they are only four points ahead and that's not too much to catch up."

It will be tricky for Force India to get ahead of McLaren as they have already stopped development of the VJM06 in order to focus on their 2014 challenger.

"I guess it will be a neck and neck race. McLaren have obviously spent a lot of time working on this year's car and they have improved significantly," Mallya said.

"We've stopped the development of the 2013 car and have focussed mainly on 2014 because there are so many technical challenges for next year. So we need to extract the best of what we have to maintain our competitiveness going forward for the rest of the season."

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McLaren concede podiums unlikely

Sporting director Sam Michael concedes McLaren are unlikely to pick up any podiums for the rest of the season as they have switched most of their attention to 2014.

If Jenson Button and Sergio Perez don't to make it onto the podium in the last eight races then it will be the first time since 1980 that the Woking squad fail to go through an entire season without finishing in the top three in at least one race.

Although the team have made improvements in recent races, Michael concedes they are still a far way off the likes of Red Bull and Mercedes while Lotus and Ferrari are also still ahead of them.

"If you look at the last couple of races, in Budapest and Spa, we've definitely improved our performance," he said during a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes phone-in. "It's not where we need to be as McLaren, but previous to those last two races we didn't have the ability to run with some of the top cars and indeed challenge them. But it's still a gap between us and Red Bull and a decent gap between us and Mercedes as well. If you look at the other teams such as Lotus and Ferrari we are getting close.

"Spa was a good race for us and we finished sixth there on merit - no-one dropped out. There was nothing unusual about the race that resulted in us inheriting the positions, so it was done on pace. Monza should be good for us as well, but it will be difficult to score a podium based on merit between now and the end of the year, particularly because we are starting to focus on the 2014 car.

"Although we are still bringing parts to the [2013] car, they are not the normal sort of intricate developments you would bring to push in a performance race against other teams, they are parts as a result of studies for 2014. They can still be quite effective, but they are less known in terms of looking forward three or four races to know what is coming. To predict a podium before the end of the year is quite tricky to know when that will happen but we will keep pushing until the last race to try and make that happen."

It has been a nightmare season for McLaren as they initially struggled to come to grips with the problems of the MP4-28, but their engineers have managed to get to the bottom of it and they are slowly but surely fixing it.

Michael says the team are determined not to make the same mistakes next year.

He added: "I think the main thing is to fully understand where we went wrong and I think we've got a pretty firm handle on that now, but with not as much ability to change that back during the season as we would like. As long as we understand that we should be able to avoid that error in the future. That's definitely been the big focus internally at McLaren.

"Looking at the rule changes now, if anything, they take the car in a different direction yet again, so you're almost forced into taking risks. With this year's car we took too many risks compared to what we had to, considering we were winning grands prix towards the end of last year. We know that, we know that we've made a mistake and we've had a many an engineering discussion about that internally and we know what we are doing going forward.

"The team of guys that designed this car are the same team of guys that designed the winning cars previously. They are all the same team of designers, engineers and technicians, and we've got every confidence that they can do the same thing again next year."

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Monza Offers exciting possibilities: Italian Grand Prix race strategy Briefing:

In the refueling era of F1, Monza was always the track around which the engineers used to design the fuel tanks, as the objective would always be to make it large enough to do a one-stop race at Monza.

Strategy has always been central to this race.

Last year we saw Sergio Perez move up from 12th on the grid thanks to a bold strategy of starting on the hard tyre, running a long first stint and then picking off cars struggling for pace, using the faster medium tyres. It worked perfectly and he finished second, a result that set him up for the McLaren move.

This year, with the new lower pit lane speed limit of 80km/h, the teams will be even more likely to stop only once. But how you attack the race, what tyre you start on and when you make your stop will still be pivotal to the outcome.

With an average lap speed of over 250km/h, Monza is the fastest circuit in Formula 1. Monza is one of the great, classic venues on the F1 calendar. It has hosted a Grand Prix since the very first season of F1 in 1950 and provides variety to the calendar, with its high speed character. The cars run in low downforce mode here with thinner wings than usual. The aerodynamic package for this event is unique in the season. This makes it an outlier in the calendar and teams do not always devote much resource to developing a package for this one-off race.

For this reason, it can be a race where smaller teams can do well, as they sometimes do decide to focus some resource in it, in the hope that it can give them a chance to shine.

From a strategy point of view, Monza is not particularly hard on the tyres as there are few fast corners, which put energy into them. The track is basically a series of long straights, punctuated with chicanes. There are only three corners in a traditional sense; the two Lesmo bends and the Parabolica.

However the wheel rotation speeds are very high so overheating can be an issue and if the track temperature is high, this can create problems. Also the cars hit the kerbs hard and this means that the construction needs to be robust.

Last year the FIA decided that there should be two DRS zones in the race, so the pursuing car could open his rear wing to shed drag and attempt an overtake. One was on the main straight, the other between the Lesmo bends and Ascari corner. One of the key decisions was how to balance the use of the DRS wing (giving a 6-8km/h speed boost) while not hitting the rev limiter, which is set at 18,000 rpm.

Track characteristics

Monza – 5.793 kilometres.

Race distance – 53 laps = 306.72 kilometres. 11 corners in total.

Average speed 247km/h. Historic race track in a Royal Park.

Aerodynamic setup – Low downforce.

Top speed 340km/h (with Drag Reduction System active on rear wing) – 334km/h without.

Full throttle – 74% of the lap (high).

Total fuel needed for race distance – 135 kilos (ave).

Fuel consumption – 2.5kg per lap (ave)

Time spent braking: 11% of lap.

Number of brake zones – 6. Brake wear- High)

Total time needed for pit stop (at 80km/h): 23 seconds (ave/high)

Fuel effect (cost in lap time per 10kg of fuel carried): 0.35 seconds (ave/high)

Form Guide

The Italian Grand Prix is the twelfth round of the 2013 FIA F1 World Championship.

So far Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso have all won races, while only Hamilton, Vettel and Rosberg have also been on pole position.

Red Bull has never had the best straight line speeds, but managed to win the race in 2011 due to clever gearing which kept Vettel ahead on acceleration out of the chicanes. His wins in Belgium and on the low downforce track in Canada this year indicate that he and Mark Webber should be very competitive.

From a driver perspective, Alonso, Vettel and Hamilton are the ony drivers in the field who have won the Italian Grand Prix. Alonso and Vettel have won it twice, Hamilton once.

Weather Forecast

The long term weather forecast predicts a hot and sunny weekend with temperatures of 27-28 degrees.

Likely tyre performance and other considerations

Pirelli tyre choice for Monza: medium (white markings) and hard (orange markings). This combination of revised specification tyres was seen in Belgium.

As it is a low downforce circuit, the tyres will tend to slip under traction out of the low speed chicanes and this increases the degradation.

With the two hardest compounds in the range brought to this race, we should not see high wear rates on the tyres. What the teams have to watch out for is thermal degradation caused by very high wheel rotation speeds. When the car is travelling at in excess of 330km/kh, it’s easy to overheat the inside shoulder of the tyres, causing blisters.

Track temperatures tend to fluctuate a lot at Monza, as it is the early Autumn so with cloud cover the temperature drops, while it quickly heats up in direct sun. This can have a marked effect on performance.

Number and likely timing of pit stops

Last year’s pre-race simulations showed that one stop was faster than two stops by 10 seconds. However one notable factor was the wear on the inside shoulder of the right front tyre. This was showing signs on some cars of wearing down to the nylon, so managing that was crucial.

If it turns out that drivers have to stop twice, the ones who plan it from the outset and space out the stops ideally will have an advantage over those pushed into it by fading tyre performance.

For top ten cars that start on the medium tyres, the target will be to reach lap 20-24 and then use a set of hard tyres to the finish.

There will be opportunities to “do a Perez” for any quick car that finds itself outside the top ten after qualifying. Having new tyres at your disposal makes the challenge easier, thanks to the extra laps of life.

The time needed for a pit stop at Monza is on the high side at over 23 seconds thanks to the new regulation that pit lane speed limits are set at 80km/h. It’s a long pit lane and the cars on track exit the final corner at over 200km/h and go down the pit straight at over 300km/h.

Chance of a safety car

The chance of a safety car at Monza is statistically very low at 43% and 0.4 Safety Cars per race. There was however a Safety car three years in a row recently from 2007- 9.

Pit Stop League Table

Of course good strategy planning also requires good pit stop execution by the mechanics and we have seen tyre stops carried out in less than two and a half seconds by F1 teams. The record is a 2.31s stop in the German GP by McLaren.

However with recent safety measures introduced by the FIA, following a loose wheel incident in a pit stop at the German Grand Prix, teams seem to have slowed the process by a second or so and closed up considerably in performance.

The league table below shows the order of the pit crews based on their fastest time in the Belgian Grand Prix, from the car entering the pit lane to leaving it.

1. Ferrari 22.444s

2. McLaren 22.465s

3. Mercedes 22.682s

4. Red Bull 22.685s

5. Sauber 22.712s

6. Toro Rosso 22.871s

7. Williams 23.411s

8. Lotus 23.445s

9. Force India 23.475s

10. Marussia 23.916s

11. Caterham 23.998s