Formula One News — March 1998

THERE are signs that the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone are keen to solve the outstanding problems between the governing body and the European Union. In what is being seen as a conciliatory gesture, the FIA last week announced that it is releasing the TV rights to a number of FIA series to individual promoters on the understanding that the copyright of the film belongs to the FIA and that the coverage is fair and accurate. The FIA will, however, continue to have direct control over the exploitation of the TV rights for Formula 1, Formula 3000, the World Rally Championship and the International GT series.

AS exclusively predicted earlier this month Las Vegas is still bidding seriously to host the United States Grand Prix with the race promoter Tommy Baker saying that the event will go ahead if the Federal Bureau of Land Management awards a development contract on a 160-acre site to him.

DUTCHMAN Jos Verstappen, out of work since he was dropped by Tyrrell in favor of pay-driver Ricardo Rosset, is to test for the Benetton team this week at Silverstone although it is by no means certain that he will be signed up as the team's test driver this year.

ONE rumor doing the rounds in the paddock at Interlagos is that Ferrari is planning a last-minute switch to Bridgestone tires, because of the lack of competitiveness of the team this year.

FOR many years Bernie Ecclestone was little-known to the general public but as Grand Prix racing grew so Ecclestone became more of a public figure.

THE CART race at Motegi came and went without any announcement about Honda's Formula 1 plans but our sources continue to insist that British American racing will have the Japanese V10 engines, despite the fact that Honda has announced that it is planning to build its own chassis in addition to engines.

PROST GRAND PRIX is not having an easy time at the moment.

THERE are whispers in the Formula 1 paddock that Stewart Grand Prix is looking for a new technical director because of the problems which have been encountered with the team's innovative new gearbox.

BENETTON boss David Richards and his technical director Pat Symmonds were recently spotted visiting Cosworth Racing in Northampton, adding to speculation that the Benetton team is discussing a switch to Ford V10 engines next year.

THE Formula 1 teams indulged in a huge political fight at Interlagos, centered on whether or not the directional braking systems being used by McLaren, Williams and Jordan were legal. In the days before the meeting began the FIA formalized a ban on regenerative electrical motors, thus closing a loophole which McLaren was rumored to have exploited in Australia with the electrical motors running the auxiliary pumps of the engine at certain places on each lap, giving the drivers what amounted to a boost button.

RACE fans all over the world were shocked by the scale of McLaren's domination of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. But it is emerging that the system which allegedly gives the team the advantage it enjoys could turn out to be a massive boost for Grand Prix racing in the long-term.

IT is over a year since reports first emerged from Japan that Toyota was looking seriously at entering Formula 1 as an engine manufacturer, as part of the company's international expansion plans under its go-ahead President Hiroshi Okuda.

FORMER Formula 1 and Indycar Champion Nigel Mansell is to make a racing comeback this season at the wheel of a Ford Mondeo in selected rounds of the British Touring Car Championship.

THE ongoing dispute between the FIA and the European Commission's Competition Directorate over whether the governing body of the sport is abusing a monopoly position continues with the FIA World Council last week voting for a motion supporting all of FIA President Max Mosley's moves to date and giving him "total support to ensure the defence of the sporting rights and legitimate prerogatives of the 116 member countries of the FIA".

THE Formula 1 teams did not waste any time after returning from Australia to get back to testing in preparation for the forthcoming races in South America.

IN the finest tradition of nonsensical decision-making the FIA World Council has decided to crack down on team orders in Grand Prix racing.

THE FIA World Council has finally managed to confirm a 16-race calendar for this season but there is no guarantee that this is the final change to the F1 dates for 1998.

THE Ferrari Formula 1 team announced last Thursday that it will protest the two McLaren-Mercedes MP4-13s of Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard after the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos.

THE French Grand Prix, which has been hanging in the balance for the last six months, is back on with the Formula 1 teams scheduled to race at Magny-Cours as expected on June 28.

PROST GRAND PRIX has relocated its drawing office, marketing and communication departments to its new headquarters at Guyancourt, near Versailles.

BRITAIN's IMPERIAL TOBACCO COMPANY is looking closely at an involvement in Grand Prix racing, as part of its plan to expand sales around the world, particularly in Asia.

THE HONDA MOTOR COMPANY has confirmed that it is going to return to Formula 1 racing with its own team.

THE German magazine BILD last week reported that Fiat has offered Michael Schumacher $82m to stay with the Ferrari team for another three seasons.

HAVING been embarrassed by the pace of McLaren in Melbourne both Ferrari and Williams wasted no time in getting back into action after the Australian Grand Prix.

MUCH fuss has been made in newspapers around the world about team orders after the Australian Grand Prix, in which David Coulthard moved over to let Mika Hakkinen win the race.