Formula One News — June 1998

THE financial details of the new Concorde Agreement remain a mystery but there is no doubt that at least some of the benefits will only be paid out to the top 10 teams, based on their performances in the previous two half-seasons.

HEINZ-HARALD FRENTZEN emerged fastest during a weather-hit three-day test last week at Silverstone.

MIKE GASCOYNE, Tyrrell's deputy technical director, is expected to move to Jordan Grand Prix shortly to take over as technical director from Gary Anderson.

IN Canada there were whispers in the paddock that British American Racing may be in the process of concluding a deal to run Reynard-Lamborghinis in the 1999 Formula 1 World Championship.

CANADIAN Health Minister Allan Rock last week introduced legislation which will result in a complete ban on tobacco sponsorship in Canada within five years.

THE future of Grand Prix racing in the United States of America remains a subject of much speculation at the moment with various different groups vying to organize a race in the year 2000 when Bernie Ecclestone is planning to relaunch the sport into the US.

EUROPE's biggest car manufacturer Volkswagen has agreed to buy Cosworth, the engine-building subsidiary of Vickers.

THE Formula 1 paddock is waiting impatiently to hear details of Craig Pollock's all-singing, all-dancing British American Racing package for the 1999 season.

UNLESS there is a decisive move shortly from the management of Goodyear in Akron, Ohio, it will soon be too late for the American tire-maker to reverse its incomprehensible decision to pull out of Formula 1.

AS we suggested in March, Toyota is considering a Formula 1 program and company president Hiroshi Okuda last week refused to deny the possibility of a Toyota F1 team.

DAIMLER-BENZ chairman Jurgen Schrempp last week told the company's annual general meeting that it was "absolute nonsense" to suggest that Michael Schumacher would join the McLaren-Mercedes team in 1999. Schrempp said that Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard were "very successful" and were "very likeable people".

THERE has been a lot of talk in recent days suggesting that the Renault car company is considering a return to Formula 1 as an engine supplier.

BENETTON, Stewart, Jordan, Arrows and Tyrrell were all in action last week at Silverstone with Rubens Barrichello surprising everyone by setting the fastest time of the three-day test.

ALTHOUGH the Monza testing last week was badly disrupted by rain, the dry sessions gave Williams the chance to test arevised version of its FW20 chassis, which has been reworked at the rear.

SAUBER is still maintaining its illogical refusal to sign the Concorde Agreement and in recent days Sauber Petronas Engineering chairman Fritz Kaiser has been quoted as saying that this because of the problems between Formula 1 racing and the European Commission.

FURTHER details are emerging about the future of Grand Prix racing in South Africa with the recent announcement by the cellular telephone company Vodacom that it will pour as much as $50m into the sport in the course of the next five years.

SYLVESTER STALLONE and a party of Hollywood movers and shakers were present in Monaco to see how they are going to make a movie about Grand Prix racing.

AS we predicted a month ago the FIA is to sue the European Commission for damages resulting from press leaks by the European Competition Commissioner Karel Van Miert and his staff which has harmed the reputation of the sport's governing body and its business transactions.