Diddy to buy F1 team?
07/05/07, 04:44pm, EDT
Diddy, Puff Daddy, P.Diddy? regardless of what Sean Combs goes by today, he's rumored to be looking into purchasing a Formula 1 team. Apparently Combs and driver Lewis Hamilton, a sensational rookie driver, discussed the rapper buying into a race team.
The London Times reports that Combs was at a launch for his new fragrance - "Unforgivable" - in London, when he made an informal announcement that he is seriously pursuing ownership of a Formula 1 team. He's hardly the first Hollywood star to have expressed interest in racing, although his automotive interests prior to the comment have mostly been limited to his line of Sean John-branded custom wheels. No word yet on when to expect chrome 24" wheels on Formula 1 cars.
Combs and Hamilton are rumored to have spent a good bit of the night discussing a potential F1 team. Hamilton races for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes and is currently leading the series - an impressive feat given his rookie status.
Now Spyker's involved!!
No Spy-ker scandal
Espionage once again reared its ugly head yesterday, when it was revealed that nobody at all was spying on the Spyker team.
Sabotage has also been ruled out for the Dutch squad, with one source suggesting that following his bizarre exit from the French Grand Prix, Christijan Albers was managing that side of things pretty well on his own.
The Gravel Trap
hahahahahahahha poor spyker, I hope they win a GP soon.
I dont.
I just cant get excited about Spyker.
Spyker want FIA to look at Aguri updates
By Jonathan Noble Friday, June 29th 2007, 09:52 GMT
Honda and Super Aguri cars in IndianapolisPressure is mounting on Super Aguri to accept the latest offer to end Formula One's customer car row, with rivals Spyker wanting the FIA to look into whether or not the team are actually receiving current Honda Racing parts.
In the latest twist to the ongoing row over chassis sharing in Formula One, Spyker have written to the FIA with the intention of getting them to look into the latest updates that appeared on Super Aguri's SA07 at Indianapolis.
Spyker have created an official dossier that includes photographic evidence that they believe supports their claims that Honda are now heavily influencing the rear end of the Super Aguri.
The dossier, a copy of which has been seen by autosport.com, has been sent to the FIA, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone and all teams on the grid. It features photos that apparently show identical rear wing endplates, mountings, rear impact structures and rear suspension on both the Super Aguri and Honda car.
Spyker boss Colin Kolles confirmed that his team had written to the FIA with the document.
"We want a response from the FIA, as we believe the situation is unfair," Kolles told autosport.com.
Spyker's decision to write to the FIA comes after Super Aguri stalled on accepting a proposal at the United States Grand Prix that would have brought an end to the customer car row.
Spyker, Scuderia Toro Rosso and Super Aguri were offered a deal where they would share any television rights money earned this year, if arbitration action hanging over the two 'customer car' teams was called off.
Super Aguri did not agree to that idea. The team have always maintained that their running of an updated RA106 is within the regulations, because the intellectual property rights are owned by Honda in Japan and not the Honda Racing team.
"We know what we did, we know what we are doing and we know that we are completely legal," Super Aguri's managing director Daniel Audetto said earlier this year.
"So it is not our problem. The most important thing is that we want to respect the rules. We don't want to cheat. We don't want to go against the rules."
Super Aguri suggest Spyker should protest
By Jonathan Noble Saturday, June 30th 2007, 09:43 GMT
Super Aguri have told rivals Spyker that they should just lodge a protest against them, rather than simply write complaint letters, if they are unhappy about their car.
As autosport.com reported yesterday, Spyker have written to the FIA to try and get them to look into new updates that appeared on Super Aguri's SA07 at the United States Grand Prix. The team feel that Aguri may be receiving current Honda Racing parts.
Although the document that contains photographic comparisons between the Aguri and Honda cars has also been sent to Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and all the other teams on the grid, Super Aguri say they are unmoved by the latest action.
Managing director Daniel Audetto thinks that his rivals should go through the official channels if they are so unhappy.
"Why don't they just protest?" he told autosport.com. "We have rules - they can just protest. Tell them to protest - if I have something to complain about, I will make a protest. So why all this noise and complaint?"
Audetto insisted that his team were doing nothing wrong, and although he conceded that parts of various cars may look similar he was sure that his team were not running the same bits as Honda.
"Of course the parts aren't the same ? we are within the rules 110 per cent," he said. "And if they don't think we are, they have to protest. What more can I say?
"They may look the same, but take the 22 cars in F1 and they all look the same. The rules are so restrictive. If you take the wings or spoiler ? how many look alike?"
Spyker should just focus on their cars and improving them, not other teams and their cars.
There was confusion in Formula 1 this week following the appearance of a mysterious new British driver in last Sunday?s French Grand Prix. Calling himself ?Jenson Button?, the previously unheard of racer managed to bag a remarkable eighth place at Magny-Cours, even though no one in the paddock could recall ever seeing him before.
?His slightly rat-like face did look strangely familiar,? admitted Maurice Ital of Every Other Sunday magazine. ?But I?m sure we?ve never seen this British driver before. Not like that lovely Lewis Hamilton, for example.?
Another paddock insider was more sceptical about this mysterious Brit talent. ?I think this might be an elaborate ruse,? our source said. ?I mean, just look at his name: ?Jenson Button?. It just sounds so made up. It?s not a proper name like, say, Lewis Hamilton?.
F1 observers say that if ?Jenson Button? does indeed turn out to be a real British driver with a made up name, this will make him the exact opposite of Anthony Davidson, who has a real name but doesn?t actually exist in any of the F1 coverage so far this year.
They failed because they followed the wrong process, not because it was proven SA aren't in breach of the regulations.
But you're right - writing letters is pointless, they need to submit a proper protest. I get the impression that they were hoping for more support from others in the pitlane.
Honda confirm approach by Stepney and Coughlan
Honda have revealed that former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney and McLaren?s chief designer Mike Coughlan paid a joint visit to the team last month, but stressed that no confidential information was offered or received during the meeting.
It follows news earlier this week that Ferrari are pursuing a case against Stepney and an unnamed McLaren engineer over the alleged theft of technical information from the Italian team. McLaren have since suspended the staff member in question.
?Given the speculation surrounding the legal investigations at Ferrari and McLaren, the Honda Racing F1 Team would like to clarify that earlier this year Nigel Stepney, formerly of Scuderia Ferrari, requested a meeting with Nick Fry, Chief Executive Officer of the Honda Racing F1 Team,? said Honda in a statement released Friday.
?Nigel Stepney subsequently met in June of this year with Nick Fry and brought with him Mike Coughlan of McLaren, with a view to investigating job opportunities within the Honda Racing F1 Team.
?Honda would like to stress that at no point during this meeting was any confidential information offered or received. Nick Fry informed Jean Todt and Ron Dennis of the meeting and has offered to provide any information required by Ferrari and McLaren.?
Wouldnt you get suspicious though, if a Ferrari employee had a meeting with you and they brought a McLaren employee along aswell??
Customer car row set to be settled
By Jonathan Noble Friday, July 6th 2007, 13:11 GMT
Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone is hoping teams will finally sign an agreement to end the sport's customer car row by tomorrow after a breakthrough meeting at Silverstone on Friday, autosport.com can reveal.
Following months of arguments about whether Super Aguri and Scuderia Toro Rosso were right to run their versions of customer cars this season, matters reached a head in a team principals' get together that took place after first free practice for the British Grand Prix.
After more than one hour of talks, sources claim that Ecclestone finally got Super Aguri and Toro Rosso to agree to a compromise settlement that will result in Spyker dropping arbitration action against them.
It is understood this settlement revolves around a financial deal whereby the three teams will pool their television rights money for this season - thus ensuring that Spyker will not lose out financially if the two teams beat them.
This settlement had been offered to the teams at the United States Grand Prix, but Super Aguri stalled on accepting it then. However, sources claim the team have now been persuaded to accept the deal ? although it is not clear what made them change their mind.
Furthermore, the teams agreed that from next season customer car teams will not be eligible for the full television rights payments, although they will still receive a proportion of them.
Super Aguri managing director Daniel Audetto refused to confirm what happened in the meeting when asked by autosport.com.
"We have nothing to say," he said. "You will have to ask Bernie Ecclestone."
Ecclestone duly confirmed an agreement had been reached, but admitted that until paperwork was signed then it was too early to believe the customer car row was finished.
"It has," he said when asked about whether agreement had been reached. "But until everyone has signed a document then anything can happen. They should sign it tomorrow."