FORMULA 1 2009

[MIKA27]

Another one I haven't got my head around is Lotus' involvement in the new Lotus F1 team. Are they actually part of the car development or is the F1 team just using their brand name?

Is it Lotus' Malaysian owner who will be running the team or what?

My understanding is the following:

Lotus F1 Team, also referred to as 1Malaysia F1 team by Malaysians in the media is a Formula One team granted entry to the 2010 Formula One season.

The team gained its entry after BMW announced they would withdraw from Formula One at the end of the 2009 season. They will join Manor Grand Prix, Campos Grand Prix and Team USF1 as new teams for 2010.

Ownership

The team is a partnership between the Malaysian Government and a consortium of Malaysian entrepreneurs such as Proton (who owns Lotus Cars), Sepang International Circuit (SIC), AirAsia, Naza Motors, the Motorsports Association of Malaysia and Automobile Association of Malaysia. The Malaysian Government, has, however emphasized that the government itself is not going to invest in the team and that the Malaysian government’s investment is only through Proton.

It marks the return of the Lotus name as a constructor to Formula One for the first time since 1994, when the original British company Team Lotus stopped competing in Formula One.

Management

Tony Fernandes, founder and CEO of the Malaysian-based Tune Ventures, owner of the Air Asia airline, is the team principal. The team's technical director is Mike Gascoyne.However, Tony Fernandes has said that he plans to step down shortly after the 2010 season begins.

[MIKA27]

Do you have spare 'change'? Bid for Schumi's car

Do you have a couple of million euros lying around not knowing what to do with it? Why don't you bid for Michael Schumacher's 1994 Championship-winning car?

Schumacher won the first of his seven World titles in the Benetton B194 and the car has been put up for auction on eBay's German website.

The German won the 1994 Championship by one point from and the final race of the season was remembered for the duo's collision.

A brief description from the current owner states: "This is a B194 made by Benetton equipped with a Ford-Cosworth Zetec-R 3.5 litres V8 engine.

"The car is in condition as in the 1994 Formula One season with paddle shift and traction control. The car is in racing condition, with the painting and sponsoring scheme as in 1994.

"The engine was overhauled by Langford Performance Engineering / Wellingborough (UK) and was since then just running a few minutes for test and check reasons."

Bidding has already passed the 2.5m euro mark and the final offers will need to be made before midnight on November 16. The winning bidder will have to fork out an extra 10,000 euros to pay for shipping costs.

The car is located in Toronto, Canada, and bidders are welcome to head there to view their potential purchase.

MIKA: If we all pitch in guys, we can work out a roster to share the car!

[MIKA27]

Brawn unlikely to match Button's salary demands

Jenson Button's contract negotiations has taken a new twist with team principal Ross Brawn suggesting they are unlikely to match his salary demands.

Newly crowned World Champion Button is looking for a big increase after taking a pay cut at the start of the year following the demise of Honda.

However, his bosses at Brawn are yet to match his demands and McLaren are reportedly ready to pounce should the negotiations end in deadlock.

Team boss Brawn, who recently stated that he is "99 per cent certain" that the Englishman will stay, hinted that they will probably offer him more freedom to negotiate his own sponsorship deals instead of giving him a contract worth more than £6m a year.

"We can offer a higher proportion of driver freedom and that will probably be the route we will go," Brawn is quoted in The Guardian.

"Jenson has some freedom for his own endorsements but has a commitment to meet our obligations."

MIKA: Well I think an F1 WC deserves an increase and if BRAWN can't match what is being asked, then maybe JB should leave the team. What does Ross Brawn think, the guy already took a pay cut for this season, BUT NOW DESERVES an increase.

[MIKA27]

Thanks for that. It will be interesting to see if all these parties will be able to agree how to run the team and if they quota in a Malaysian driver. AFAIK they haven't contracted any drivers yet?

I don't believe they have contracted as yet however I'm sure alot of drivers are eagre to join so they have a race seat as a 'Stepping stone'. Hre's a link to their web site, not much to it however and to me, they seem like a very small outfit:

http://lotusf1racing.my/

[MIKA27]

Flav seeking 1m Euros for damage to his reputation

Disgraced former Renault team boss Flavio Briatore is seeking one million euros in compensation as part of his appeal against his lifelong ban from F1.

Earlier this year, Briatore was effectively banned from Formula One for life for his part in Renault's race-fixing scandal, which motorsport's governing body said was of "unparalleled severity."

The flamboyant Italian's punishment was the most severe of those handed out with Renault only given a two-year suspended ban while former director of engineering Pat Symonds was banned for just five years.

A month later, Briatore announced that he was taking the matter to court, applying to a French court to have the ban overturned, saying at the time that it was "disproportionate and illegal".

Now Briatore has gone even further, alleging that former FIA President Max Mosley was "clearly blinded by an excessive desire for personal revenge".

The Guardian newspaper reports that the 58-year-old is not only seeking 'a total annulment of the FIA's instruction to its members - race organisers, teams or drivers - not to have any dealings with him' but also 'a minimum of €1m (£900,000) in compensation for the damage to his reputation.'

In his statements, Briatore claims that the FIA contravened both it's own International Sporting Code as well as the laws of France, referring to the "the excessive and abusive power clearly exercised by both the World Council, in particular, and the FIA, in general" and "the breach by the World Council of the most basic rules of procedure and the rights to a fair trial."

In a damning verdict of Mosley's own role in the outcome, Briatore said: "The decisions to carry out an investigation and to submit it to the World Council were taken by the same person, Max Mosley, the FIA president." Mosley "assumed the roles of complainant, investigator, prosecutor and judge."

As for why Mosley would have a personal vendetta against him, Briatore claims it was due to the "extremely violent disputes" between himself, representing the Formula One Teams Association, who were planning a potential breakaway series, and Mosley.

"Mr Briatore had, in the constructors' names, in fact threatened the FIA and the FOM (Formula One Management) group... to instigate a parallel competition, organised without the FIA and without the FOM as rights manager."

Briatore's comments, though, were not solely aimed at Mosley as he also felt Bernie Ecclestone "could, moreover, be hostile to Mr Briatore as a result of stances taken by him during the previous year on behalf of the constructors involved in Formula One."

Briatore's case against the FIA will be heard by France's high court, the Tribunal de Grande Instance, on 24 , however, he won't be standing alone as the newspaper claims Pat Symonds will join his appeal.

[MIKA27]

Horner: We can mix it with the big boys next year

Christian Horner is confident Red Bull will be able to challenge the big teams for next year's Championship honours.

The 2009 season was dominated by the so-called minnows with Brawn claiming the Drivers' and Constructors' Championship and Red Bull finishing second.

Although Ferrari and McLaren are expected to be as competitive as ever next year, Horner believes his Milton Keynes-based outfit will be able to mix it with the big boys at the front of the grid.

The Red Bull team principal told Autosport: "We have got some formidable opponents.

McLaren and Ferrari are big teams that have demonstrated this year their ability to come back after bad starts by both winning grands prix in the second half of the season.

"They are going to be pushing extremely hard, but we can take the fight to them next year with continuity in many areas including drivers and personnel.

"We are confident that we have got a great team of people here that has really come of age this year

"The new regulations provided that opportunity and the lessons learned this year will only stand us in good stead for 2010."

MIKA: RB racing team are a great team and by that I mean, they have 2 great drivers with loads of combined potential, they have an F1 racer that is well designed by Adrian Newey but what they lack in is a good strategist and I believe is their only weakness.

[MIKA27]

Renault test for Baguette

2009 Formula Renault 3.5 Series Champion Bertrand Baguette will test for Renault in Jerez next month, taking part in the junior drivers' test session.

Baguette claimed five wins and ten podium finishes to win the Formula Renault 3.5 Series and has been handed a Renault test driver as part of his reward for his success.

The Belgian driver will get his first taste of Formula One behind the wheel of Renault's R29 at Jerez on December 1.

"This will be a great first for me," he said, "it's all my childhood dreams come true and, at the same time, it's every racing driver's ultimate goal.

"It's thanks to Renault that I was able to get into single-seater racing, by winning a programme set up by Renault in Belgium to discover up-and-coming young talent from karting.

"Since then, I've driven every Renault single-seater, from Formula Renault 1.6 to Formula Renault 3.5 via Formula Renault 2.0. Driving the Renault F1 R29 kind of completes the set as far as I'm concerned!

"The first few laps in Formula 1 must be really unbelievable, with a lighter, more powerful car that has just phenomenal cornering speeds.

"I'll have everything to learn, not just the car itself, but also a new environment, lots of new parameters, a different way of working. The only thing I will be familiar with will be the Jerez circuit!"

[MIKA27]

Also, we mustn't forget to congratulate the new British F3 champion and Perth boy Daniel Ricciardo (spelling...) to his upcoming F1 test with Red Bull. Would be great if he could get some financial backing to make the step into F1 within a couple of years. Maybe an Aussie can replace an Aussie when Webber retires in a couple of years..

Perhaps you're correct Magste, lets watch this space, I believe your prediction could be right on the money provided 'someone' assists with some finances.

[OZCUBAN]

Mercedes takes over Brawn F1 team

German car giant Mercedes has bought the Brawn Formula 1 team in a move that is likely to see Jenson Button join McLaren as Lewis Hamilton's team-mate.

Mercedes will buy 75% of Brawn in partnership with an Abu Dhabi investment company but will continue as McLaren's engine partner until 2015.

Brawn, who won both world titles in their debut season in 2009, will be rebranded as Mercedes Grand Prix.

Nico Rosberg will be their lead driver, with Nick Heidfeld his likely partner.

Fellow German Timo Glock, who drove for Toyota last season, is also a possibility.

The team has not yet confirmed Rosberg, who drove for Williams in 2009, but he is widely known throughout F1 to have already signed for the Mercedes team.

As part of a deal that will see the McLaren Group buy back Mercedes's 40% shareholding by 2011, the German company will continue to supply free engines and sponsorship to the team for at least the next six years.

It's a win-win situation, both for McLaren and Daimler

Ron Dennis McLaren boss

The team's official name will remain Vodafone McLaren Mercedes.

McLaren chairman Ron Dennis described the deal as "a win-win situation, both for McLaren and Daimler".

Button, who won the drivers' title this year, has been trying to secure a pay-rise from his £3.5m salary but it seems Mercedes is not interested in keeping him on.

He and his manager Richard Goddard visited McLaren on Friday and Button is now expected to join the Woking-based team for a salary around double what Brawn were offering.

Button's decision is understood not to be solely about money - sources say he considers McLaren might have a more competitive car than Brawn in 2010.

Finn Kimi Raikkonen, who has been forced to leave Ferrari to make way for Fernando Alonso, remains an outside possibility for the seat alongside Hamilton.

Mercedes Sports boss Norbert Haug said on Sunday that he was trying to secure a drive for Heidfeld, a former Mercedes protege who has driven for BMW since 2006.

"We are speaking with Nick Heidfeld as well," Haug told the German news agency DPA.

"Mercedes-Benz supports the idea of signing an experienced and capable German driver. There is however no reason to finalise the driver situation too hastily."

Ross Brawn will stay on as team principal.

He and chief executive Nick Fry will retain a 24.9% shareholding in the team. The remaining 75.1% will be split between Mercedes, which will own 45.1% and Abu Dhabi company Aabar Investments, which will own 30%.

Brawn said: "Brawn GP has been through an incredible journey over the last 12 months. From fighting for our survival to forging a strong relationship with Mercedes-Benz High Performance Engines, winning both the constructors' and drivers' world championships, and now accepting Daimler and Aabar's offer to buy our team, which will secure its future."

McLaren and Mercedes said one of the reasons for them to split was because of McLaren's road-car building ambitions.

McLaren is launching a high-performance sports car called the MP4-12C in 2011.

Dennis said: "I've often stated that it's my belief that, in order to survive and thrive in 21st Century Formula 1, a team must become much more than merely a team.

"That being the case, in order to develop and sustain the revenue streams required to compete and win grands prix and world championships, companies that run Formula 1 teams must broaden the scope of their commercial activities.

"In the MP4-12C, which will be introduced to market in 2011, we have a car that has inherited the genes of the iconic McLaren F1 of 1994 and has already been the subject of much global media acclaim."

Oz Well this rumor has been brewing for a while, don't know if this has anything to do with Mclaren's recent history

personally i think Jenson has a better chance of stringing two championships together at mclaren than at brawn ,and they get free engines for a while any way, It is the end of a long marriage

Next years shaping up to be a cracker I think

Cheers Oz

P.S Better stock up on Brawn merchandise next year it will be gone

[MIKA27]

Nick Heidefeld is an underated driver and has shown he has consistancy.

I am positive NH will do well provided he has a good car to drive.

[MIKA27]

Czech Republic aims to join F1 fold

The Czech Republic is the latest country to express an interest in Formula One, targeting Prague as a potential venue for a grand prix.

Plans are already underway for the new venue, which will be located outside Prague city centre. The design of the track has been drafted by F1 circuit designer Hermann Tilke and will run through the streets of the city, including a 1.3-mile permanent section.

But before F1 hits the track, the venue could play host a round of the DTM series.

"F1 is the ambition," circuit promoter Toni Charouz told Autosport. "If we put on a good show with the DTM, then maybe we can have a grand prix, but we've got nothing on paper yet.

"This track will be very central in a city of 1.5million people. This type of track is the future of motor racing."

Charouz added that work on the track is expected to begin next year as planning is "90 per cent complete."

[OZCUBAN]

What Mercedes buy-out of Brawn could mean

What was already shaping up to be a fascinating 2010 Formula 1 season got a whole lot more intriguing in the wake of the announcement that Mercedes is to take over the Brawn team.

Of greatest interest to most people in Britain will be the now-very-likely prospect that Jenson Button will become Lewis Hamilton's team-mate at McLaren, the new world champion's negotiations with the Mercedes-nee-Brawn team having reached an impasse.

While it is still just about possible that Button could stay at what will now be called Mercedes Grand Prix, it is very unlikely and, on the face of it, that leaves McLaren with an all-British line-up that, in terms of publicity at least, lives up to the billing of 'dream team'.

The last two world champions - both of them English, good-looking, with glamorous girlfriends and immensely marketable - in the same team would surely guarantee McLaren the lion's share of interest at the start of next season.

It will be surprising to many that Button will almost certainly not be staying with the team that made him world champion.

But it seems his desire for a pay-rise came up against Mercedes's wish to produce a German world champion driving a German car, and they have not been able to secure a mutually satisfactory deal.

It seems odd that a global car company setting up its own F1 team would not want to have the current world champion driving for them.

But, despite Mercedes's insistence on Monday that its team will be an international one, in the same way as it is a global brand, it seems Button's face does not fit - at least not at the price he wants.

Having taken a pay cut from £8m to £3.5m to help secure Brawn's future last winter, Button was after something like £6m for 2010. Mercedes/Brawn refused to budge. And now Button is likely to receive something like £7-8m from McLaren - still a long way off the salaries of Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, and what Kimi Raikkonen will earn not to drive next year, unless he can find a seat after being forced out of Ferrari to make way for Alonso.

I'm led to believe, though, that Button's failure to agree a deal with Brawn/Mercedes is not solely down to financial reasons.

McLaren have a vacancy, and in the context of their dramatic rise back to competitiveness in 2009 - and Brawn's relative fall from it - many in F1, Button perhaps among them, believe McLaren may well have the quicker car next year.

On Friday evening, I texted a friend, a respected F1 journalist, to tell him that Button had been given a tour of McLaren that day, the implication being that he was close to signing for the team.

"Mmm. Not sure that would be wise," was the response.

It's a fascinating match-up, to be sure, but good though Button is you would not find many people in F1 who fancied his chances of beating Hamilton in the same car.

Hamilton and Button share a joke - but how would they get on as team-mates?

Hamilton is widely regarded as the out-and-out fastest driver in F1. On top of that, McLaren is very much Hamilton's team - he has been nurtured by them from the age of 11.

McLaren insist they treat both their drivers equally, and that they provide them equal equipment. But Alain Prost, David Coulthard and Alonso have all found that does not stop the unfavoured driver feeling very much an outsider.

Complicating things further for Button is the fact that his and Hamilton's driving styles are diametrically opposed.

Unusually, Hamilton thrives on oversteer, using an unstable rear end to get his car quickly turned into the corner and pointing in the right direction for the exit - and the McLaren has been developed in that direction.

For Button, though, an oversteering car is anathema. He prefers a car that has a touch of understeer, which he can control with his delicate application of throttle and brakes.

It's not impossible for a single team's cars to be set up in two such contrasting ways, but development will generally take the car in a direction that suits one style or the other - and not both.

There will be days when Button will beat Hamilton - perhaps at Turkey, for example, where Hamilton's acrobatic style has caused him problems with excessive tyre wear in the past - but I am not alone in suspecting these are likely to be few and far between - unless Button is very much better than he is currently considered to be.

Meanwhile, Mercedes's decision to buy its own F1 team completely flies in the face of the approach being taken by all other car manufacturers.

Honda, BMW and Toyota have gone already; Renault is teetering on the brink. Yet Mercedes is investing millions in creating its own team, when it already had a 40% shareholding in a perfectly good one.

Despite buying Brawn and selling back its 40% shareholding in McLaren, Mercedes will continue as both engine supplier and major sponsor of McLaren at least until 2015.

That has come about because the contract that tied McLaren and Mercedes together included a clause that neither could do anything in F1 without the other's permission.

McLaren did not want Mercedes to buy Brawn so when the German company insisted, they demanded a quid pro quo that, as far as McLaren are concerned, contains all the positives of a Mercedes involvement but none of the negatives.

Mercedes has justified its decision on the basis that, following the political battles of 2009, running an F1 team is much cheaper than it was, and teams are guaranteed more income from the commercial rights holders.

Whether Mercedes makes a better job of running an F1 team than its fellow manufacturers remains to be seen.

More than a few people, though, have questioned the wisdom of selecting Nico Rosberg as its lead driver.

Quick though the German undoubtedly is, he has done nothing in his four years in F1 to prove he is one of the true elite. Yet this is the man Mercedes has apparently chosen to represent them in battle with Hamilton in a McLaren and Alonso in a Ferrari.

Mercedes almost certainly has at least one eye on prising Sebastian Vettel out of the grasp of Red Bull, but that will have to wait at least another year, and even then the young German rising star would have to be bought out of a contract that ties him to his current team until the end of 2012.

One final thought. What a difference 11 months have made to Brawn bosses Ross Brawn and Nick Fry.

They spent last winter desperately trying to save their team following Honda's decision to quit F1. To do that, they engineered a management buy-out that involved them paying a figure widely believed to be a euro for the team, which was largely funded by Honda this year.

Now, Mercedes has taken a 75% shareholding - which it has bought from Brawn and Fry. I have no idea how many millions it paid but, as well as securing the future of their team, Brawn - already a millionaire thanks to his years at Ferrari - and Fry are now undoubtedly rich beyond most people's wildest dreams.

Oz

All I hope for is that jenson gets a good deal ,after all he took a big pay cut to keep Brawn afloat,maybe he knows something about Mclaren we don't, hopefully next years car is pretty neutral so they can tweak in a bit of under/over steer to suit each driver but not damage the integrity of the car

Next year can't wait

Cheers Oz

[MIKA27]

'Button agrees three-year McLaren contract'

Jenson Button has reportedly agreed a three-year contract with McLaren that will see the reigning World Champion earn £6m per year.

According to the Guardian, Button 'has agreed terms to join McLaren on a £6m-a-year deal and could sign his formal three-year contract to partner Lewis Hamilton in an all-British line-up within the next few days.

'The Guardian understands that the World Champion has turned his back on Brawn following protracted negotiations and will almost double his salary with the Woking-based team. '

'For Button the prospect of going head-to-head with a close friend and the man regarded by many in the pit lane as possibly the fastest of all will just be part of the challenge of defending his title.'

And although current McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton has said he would welcome Button, the newspaper was quick to point out that McLaren would not have given the 2008 Champ a say in the matter.

'It is unlikely either Hamilton, who earns about £12m a year at McLaren, or his father Anthony, who has managed the 2008 World Champion since his days as a teenage kart racer, will have been consulted on this beyond the normal deployment of good manners,' claimed the report.

'McLaren have always had the resources and philosophy required to field two fully competitive cars and have always sought the strongest possible driver line-ups they could engage.'

Button's reported signing comes just hours after Mercedes let go of their 40 percent stake in McLaren in favour of a take-over at Brawn GP, prompting speculation that the team would take on an all-German line-up, leaving Button out in the cold.

However, Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug was quick to downplay the rumours.

"I read some speculation and I understand this because we could not give this information earlier. But this will be an international team for Mercedes-Benz is a global player," he said.

"We want to have the best ones and we definitely do not want to have the pure German team - it's an international Silver Arrows team and we want to have the best drivers in the car."

Haug's comments were followed by Mercedes GP chief executive Nick Fry stating that the team is still keen to hold onto Button, although not at any price.

"I hope Jenson is still with us next season," Fry told the BBC. "We've been together for a good few years now and we have succeeded in winning the World Championship together and we want Jenson to be with us."

But despite the statements by both Haug and Fry, the Daily Mail claims that 'an exasperated source close to Button dismissed the comments as 'lip service.'

The newspaper also says that 'Button is expected to sign for McLaren before the end of the week rather than risk ending up without a team after Mercedes' buy-out of Brawn yesterday pushed him closer to the exit door.'

[OZCUBAN]

This really does not come as any great surprise ,at least not to me anyway,so much for being world champion

I personally think that 6 million is not a lot for the current F-1 WORLD CHAMPION.

Cheers Oz

[MIKA27]

This really does not come as any great surprise ,at least not to me anyway,so much for being world champion

I personally think that 6 million is not a lot for the current F-1 WORLD CHAMPION.

Cheers Oz

6 Million pounds for an F1 WC is p*ss poor really!!

Considering a great many former WC's still command triple that amound AND get it.

[OZCUBAN]

Button joins Hamilton at McLaren

Jenson Button has signed to drive alongside Lewis Hamilton in an all-English line-up at McLaren next season.

The world champion's move was announced on Wednesday following news that former world champion Kimi Raikkonen will not race in F1 next year.

Button described leaving the Brawn team for whom he won the title as a "difficult decision".

But the 29-year-old added: "Life is about challenges. Most important of all, it's about challenging yourself."

In new team-mate Hamilton, Button will be competing against a man many regard as the fastest driver in F1.

And while the move leaves McLaren with one of the most exciting driver line-ups, Button is facing arguably the toughest challenge of his career.

He added: "Although I won the World Championship with Brawn GP last year, and I'll never forget that, I was always adamant that I wanted to continue to set myself fresh challenges.

Lewis is a wonderfully gifted driver who has earned the respect of every Formula 1 driver - I'm sure there's plenty that we can learn from each other

Jenson Button

"That's why I've decided to join Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. You can't help but be affected by this team's phenomenal history.

"McLaren is one of the greats of world sport, and its achievements and list of past champions read like a Who's Who of Formula 1 - Emerson Fittipaldi, James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen and of course my new team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

"I've followed the McLaren team ever since I was a small boy, and it feels unbelievable to finally be a part of it.

"When I visited the McLaren Technology Centre earlier this month, it wasn't simply the technical resources and the incredible standards of excellence that impressed me.

"No, I was equally struck by the ambition, the motivation and the winning spirit that flow through everybody there. And then there's the team's epic history: put it this way, the trophy cabinets seem to stretch for miles.

"From a personal point of view, it's also a great pleasure to be joining a fellow British world champion.

"Lewis has achieved an incredible level of success in a very short period of time, and he's a wonderfully gifted driver who has earned the respect of every Formula 1 driver.

"I'm sure there's plenty that we can learn from each other, and I'm really looking forward to using our combined knowledge to push the team forward."

Button paid tribute to Brawn, whose participation in F1 last year was only confirmed with a month to go before the start of the season following Honda's decision to quit F1.

"I want to say that the 2009 season will always have a special place in my memory, and I'm absolutely sure that everybody at Brawn GP who worked so hard to achieve our world championship successes feels exactly the same way about it," he said.

Button's switch means McLaren will be fielding the last two world champions in the same team, with Hamilton having won the drivers' title in 2008.

"It has always been our policy to employ the two very best possible drivers," said McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh.

"In Jenson and Lewis, we feel we not only have the fastest pairing on the 2010 grid but also the two most complete, professional and dedicated drivers in Formula One.

"I want to make clear that Jenson's decision to join us was in no way motivated by money. We'll be paying him no more than he could be getting elsewhere."

Hamilton wished his former team-mate Heikki Kovalainen the best for the future, describing the Finn as "one of the nicest human beings I've ever met".

Hamilton added: "It's fantastic news that Jenson has decided to join McLaren - and I'm looking forward to working with him and our engineers to make sure we kick off the 2010 season with a car that's competitive enough to win the world championship

"I already know Jenson, and we get on very well together.

"We both really want our team to succeed. Although we'll be pushing each other hard, I'm sure we'll very quickly establish a great working relationship.

"He's an exceptional driver: very controlled and very smooth, and he has a real depth of knowledge and experience. I think we'll complement each other very well, and our collaboration will make the team stronger as a result. I believe we can pull together to make McLaren the best team on the grid."

Button's former team Brawn, who have been taken over by Mercedes, made Button an offer, but he did not consider it acceptable.

After a poor start to the 2009 season, McLaren came back strongly in the second half of the year, while Brawn, after dominating the first third of the season, slipped back in competitiveness as the year went on.

McLaren will be the first team to start a season with the last two world champions as their drivers.

And it will be the first pairing of two British world champions since Graham Hill joined Jim Clark at Lotus in 1968.

Brawn emerged from the ashes of the former Honda team, after the Japanese company pulled out of F1 last winter.

Button took a pay cut last winter to help secure the team's future and they went on to win the world championship together in Brawn's debut season.

Now renamed Mercedes Grand Prix, the team have already signed the German Nico Rosberg as one of their drivers.

His fellow German Nick Heidfeld is the favourite for the second seat.

Oz Lets just hope that Mclaren can promote team harmony and that Lewis and Jenson can feed of each other and push the team forward.I do believe that Mclaren do have the momentum carried over from last season

Go Mclaren

[MIKA27]

'Raikkonen to sit out the 2010 season'

Kimi Raikkonen will not participate in the 2010 Formula One campaign according to reports in the Finnish press.

Local newspaper Turun Sanomat has quoted Raikkonen's manager, Steve Robertson, as saying that following a breakdown of talks with McLaren the Finn had decided to sit out the 2010 season. The former World Champion would seemingly prefer not to race at all rather than race in a car in which he had no hope of challenging for the title.

"The options in F1 were with McLaren next season or not at all," said Robertson.

"Kimi and McLaren were unable to reach an agreement, so he will not drive at the F1 level - at least not next year."

"A gap year means nothing for Kimi. He is more interested in fighting for wins and the world championship. F1 will miss Kimi. He worked hard over the summer - doing things in a Ferrari that only the best drivers are capable of," he added.

The sabbatical could see the 30-year-old focusing his efforts on the World Rally Championship.

MIKA: This is what really annoys me with Kimi.....

I think he is one of the best drivers around and should not have been asking so much money from McLaren. What I find frustrating is that he is NOT driving in the 2010 season because of his own greed. McLaren were more than happy to have him on board and offer him a potential WC winning car for 2010 BUT money was all that Kimi had on his mind.

Kimi will take the sabatical, TRY World Rally Championship BUT he wont be great at it. He will either return to F1 in 2011 (Hard to see he will get a drive with McLaren if they are signing drivers for 2 - 3 years) or he will not return such as Mika Hakkinnen who also took leave for 1 year but has never returned even when he wanted to.... I'm still torn up by that.

[OZCUBAN]

Button move is mistake - Stewart

Former Formula 1 drivers Sir Jackie Stewart and John Watson believe world champion Jenson Button's decision to join McLaren next season is a mistake.

Button will drive alongside 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton in an all-English line-up for the 2010 campaign.

"It's a mistake and will be like walking into the lion's den for Jenson," Stewart told BBC Sport.

Watson added: "It's hard to understand what it is about McLaren which Jenson Button wants to engage in."

Stewart, a three-time world champion, and former McLaren driver Watson agreed that Button faces an uphill battle to impose himself in a team where Hamilton is the established number one.

"Hamilton has had it his own way at McLaren for three years and it will be tough for Jenson to marry into that," said Stewart.

Putting himself in Button's shoes, Stewart, who won the world title in 1969, 1971 and 1973, added: "I would have wanted to do a deal with Brawn because I know the culture of the Brawn team and have a high respect for Ross Brawn and I know the mechanics intimately.

McLaren can handle this kind of ego and talent

BBC Sport pundit Eddie Jordan

"It's a totally different culture in McLaren. They have a clinical culture that doesn't have the emotion or drive in the same passionate way that say Brawn would have had with Button in there as reigning world champion.

"The McLaren car will be one of the best cars on the grid though, so he is going to a team that wants to succeed.

"However, Hamilton has had it his way. He disposed of Fernando Alonso and I think he will want to retain a position of prominence in team.

"He will be a tough guy for Jenson to marry into, whereas at Brawn he had the advantage of being with a team he's been with for a few years.

"We are looking at two guys who want to be number one and in one team they are sometimes not perfect bed partners, because there will be differences."

Watson, who raced for McLaren between 1979 and 1985, thinks money was the key factor in Button's decision to leave Brawn.

"I think his heart was still really with the Brawn team," he said.

"I think he would have preferred to have stayed but the deal he was offered to him wasn't satisfactory.

"It didn't acknowledge the fact that he was world champion. I think he was hurt by that. McLaren came along with a much better offer but also it's a longer contract."

Watson was equally sceptical about Button's ability to challenge Hamilton's status at McLaren.

"I don't think Jenson has ever been matched against a driver of the quality, the ambition and out-and-out skill of Lewis Hamilton," he added.

"It is a challenge and Jenson will have to reassess his aims and objectives over the next three years, because for sure, Lewis Hamilton will not be a walk in the park."

Watson, who rates Hamilton as marginally the better driver, also questioned McLaren's ability to fashion a car suited to the contrasting styles of the two British world champions.

"Lewis is an out-and-out racer, I call him a hot rod. He just grabs a racing car by the steering wheel and drives his wheels off," he said.

"Jenson Button is more like an artist. His car is a palette and he uses it to paint a lovely picture of a driving style that is rhythmic, fluid, a joy to watch.

"But when the team has to work with two drivers which such diverse styles of driving, that's going to be difficult for McLaren to get their heads around."

However, BBC Sport pundit Eddie Jordan believes McLaren will be able to deal with having the last two world champions on their team.

He said: "The team was built for Hamilton and the whole McLaren team is behind him but Jenson brings something different to the team.

"There are two world champions, but McLaren can handle this kind of ego and talent."

Oz lets just hope this Marriage can go the distance,and more importantly that Mclaren can keep their nose clean

[OZCUBAN]

MIKA: This is what really annoys me with Kimi.....

I think he is one of the best drivers around and should not have been asking so much money from McLaren. What I find frustrating is that he is NOT driving in the 2010 season because of his own greed. McLaren were more than happy to have him on board and offer him a potential WC winning car for 2010 BUT money was all that Kimi had on his mind.

Kimi will take the sabatical, TRY World Rally Championship BUT he wont be great at it. He will either return to F1 in 2011 (Hard to see he will get a drive with McLaren if they are signing drivers for 2 - 3 years) or he will not return such as Mika Hakkinnen who also took leave for 1 year but has never returned even when he wanted to.... I'm still torn up by that.

I think your right on the money with that one mika ,might be making the biggest mistake of his career,but in my opinion as good as Kimi is he has always run hot and cold in my mind.

cheers Oz

[OZCUBAN]

Hi MIKA

A big Congratulations on becoming a Prominentes all well earned i might add, we were level pegging for a while,but then i hit a patch when i did not post much (bloody work )

Enjoy your new found status

Cheers Oz

[MIKA27]

Hi MIKA

A big Congratulations on becoming a Prominentes all well earned i might add, we were level pegging for a while,but then i hit a patch when i did not post much (bloody work )

Enjoy your new found status

Cheers Oz

Thanks OZ though my new found status doesn't get me much...

Would be great if PREZ offered a few stogies for contributing!

[MIKA27]

Hopes rise that Raikkonen will join Mercedes

Hopes that Kimi Raikkonen could yet stay in F1 have been rekindled after his manager downgraded his announcement that the Finn would be taking a sabbatical next year and reports emerged claiming that the former Ferrari driver is in talks with Mercedes.

According to one report originating in Brazil, Raikkonen has in fact already secured a deal with the team for a 2010 drive. That seems unlikely given that Jenson Button's departure was only confirmed this week, but it would be no surprise if the newly-formed Mercedes Grand Prix are considering Raikkonen - or if Raikkonen is considering making a deal.

Having announced earlier in the week that his client would be taking a sabbatical, Steve Robertson, the Finn's long-time manager, has hinted at a u-turn by acknowledging that "you could never say 100 per cent."

Pressed on the possibility of Raikkonen joining Mercedes in an interview with Autosport, Robertson confirmed: "This is Formula 1. If they can offer, or convince us, that they can provide Kimi an opportunity that Kimi is happy with, and that we are happy with, and he feels he can win races and the championship then never say never. There is always a possibility."

MIKA: Well, that's a surprise....

Perhaps Kimi has re-thought leaving F1 knowing that moving onto a different field of motorsport would not be as successful as what he is really good at. Its a rare thing to have a driver come over to F1 from a different field of motorsport and win a F1 WC. Look at Juan Pablo Motnoya, was a great driver in Indy Car, came over to F1 and whilst he was pretty good, he just didn't have it in him to be a WC. Look at Sebastian Bordais, I could be wrong but wasn't he a 3 or 4 time WC in Indy Cars? Look how bad he was in F1.

Then there were rumours about Valentino Rossi from Moto GP, Sebastian Loeb from WRC, now Kimi moving on to WRC, it's nuts. Completely different field of sport and whilst Kimi may be a gifted speed freak, I really think F1 is his calling. Hope he makes a deal and sticks with it.

[MIKA27]

'I joined McLaren because I wanted the challenge'

Jenson Button has revealed he joined McLaren because "I wanted a challenge and that's exactly what I'll get against Lewis Hamilton."

The reigning World Champion confirmed that he had departed Brawn despite the team offering him more money than he will be paid to partner Hamilton.

In an interview with the BBC, Button also revealed that he has yet to speak to Hamilton since making the transfer, and he spent Wednesday at Brawn's Brackley base making his farewells to the team with which he spent seven years.

"It was 100 per cent my choice. I thought the challenge of going up against Lewis in his environment would be exciting," he told Radio 5 live. "I'm earning less than I would have at Brawn, so it's not for money - everyone involved knows that's the case.

"I feel like I needed a new challenge. I'll be earning less than I did at Brawn, so it's not about the money. It's because I wanted something new."

"I know I'll have to work hard to achieve what I want in 2010."

Button admits his decision, which means the Woking-based company now have the last two world champions in an all-British star line-up, did not come easily.

"I was excited but there was a lot to think about because I'd been with Brawn for seven years," he added.

"On the emotional side there was definitely a lot to think about but I thought the challenge of going up against Lewis in his environment would be very tough but very exciting.

"I know the environment in both areas and I know what I want to do and I want new challenges."

Button also paid tribute to Brawn - "I couldn't have done it without him" - but accepted things will change from now on after he said goodbye to the Brawn mechanics.

"It's going to be a different relationship because I am not within the team any more, we're not fighting for a world championship together," Button added.

"We've achieved that goal so I am going to be a rival. We'll still have a good relationship, we've been through a lot together."

MIKA: Button moved from Brawn GP for a challenge....?

Button just made WC by sheer fluke as far as I'm concerned and was out driven mid way onwards of the 2009 calendar by many drivers including his team mate Rubens. He had a tough year full of challenges and he was really lucky he was so successful in the earlier 5 races to win because without those, he wouldn't be 2009 WC.

[MIKA27]

Trulli decision expected 'soon'

Jarno Trulli says he will "soon" make a decision about his Formula One future.

The Italian, who is without a race-seat for next year's Championship after Toyota withdrew from the sport, has been linked to drive with the new Lotus F1 team.

But as yet, Trulli has not made a decision.

"I haven't signed yet," he told Autosport when asked about the situation with Lotus.

"I'm in talks with several teams and soon I will take my decision.

"You never know in life. I keep my door open, but definitely I'm dealing closely with some team."

MIKA: I think JT's time is pretty much up in F1. He is a good driver but whilst his forte is qualifying, he never really could give a solid result come race day.

[MIKA27]

Schumacher linked to new Mercedes F1 team

German racing driver legend Michael Schumacher is rumoured to be in line to race for Mercedes GP in 2010.

Seven-time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher could make a shock return to the sport in 2010 as a driver for the new Mercedes Grand Prix team.

Mercedes this week bought a 75 per cent stake in the Brawn GP team that won this year's constructors' championship with the German car maker's engines, and the company is openly seeking at least one German racing driver for the rebranded outfit.

Nico Rosberg, Nick Heidfeld and Timo Glock have all been linked with the two seats available, though Mercedes has always rued never having a chance to run Schumacher in the McLaren F1 cars it has powered with much success since 1995.

Schumacher retired from F1 in 2006 but was on the verge of temporarily replacing the injured Felipe Massa in a Ferrari last season, only to be forced to reluctantly abandon the plan due to fitness issues regarding his neck.

The 40-year-old has retained a role with Ferrari since retiring, though it has been reported the Italian marque no longer wants Schumacher as an advisor to its F1 team and instead wants him to only continue helping to develop its road cars.

In response to the speculation, Schumacher's spokeswoman Sabine Kehm told Britain's Autocar that "You never say never in this sport".

Schumacher would be expected to sever his close ties with Ferrari if he were to move to Mercedes, the car maker he drove for in sports cars before making his F1 break in 1991 with the Jordan F1 team.

Mercedes-Benz's move to set up its own team is a welcome one for a sport that has lost three major car makers in the past 12 months. Honda (which became Brawn GP) pulled out at the end of 2008, while BMW and Toyota announced their exits more recently.

Mercedes, which purchased the majority share in Brawn in conjunction with an Abu Dabhi-based investment group, will continue to supply engines to long-time partner McLaren until 2015.

MIKA: If MS returned to F1, that would be amazing!

Perhaps its best he left Ferrari if they no longer wish for MS to be affiliated with F1 which is MS's passion.