Formula One News — August 2000

EDDIE JORDAN, the chairman and team owner of Jordan Grand Prix, has said that plans to alter the face of Formula One Grand Prix weekends would place increased restraints on teams and their staff.

BRAZILIAN Bruno Junqueira has had a firm offer to move to Chip Ganassi Racing in America's Champ Cars next year - further suggesting that Juan Pablo Montoya will be joining BMW-Williams in Formula One next year.

BRITISH AMERICAN RACING's Jacques Villeneuve topped the times in a rain-hit shortened day three of testing at Monza, Italy on Thursday.

MINARDI have denied reports in the Italian press that a Ferrari takeover bid is on the cards.

BMW-WILLIAMS have announced that Senior Operations Engineer James Robinson will be leaving the team immediately, but have not yet lined up a replacement.

MCLAREN'S David Coulthard topped the times in Wednesday's rain-hit testing session at Monza, Italy, despite criticizing the new set-up of the Italian circuit.

ALL the Formula One teams congregated at Monza to begin testing for the coming Italian Grand Prix on Tuesday.

SAUBER announced on Monday that young Prost driver Nick Heidfeld has agreed a three-year deal and will drive for the Swiss team from 2001 in the Formula One World Championship.

JAGUAR chairman Neil Ressler has promised that the team will be a more competitive outfit in 2001 after he insisted that they are close to achieving the targets set this year.

BMW MOTORSPORT director Gerhard Berger has branded Briton Jenson Button 'the best driver of his age' he has ever seen.

THERE were suggestions in Belgium that McLaren's technical director Adrian Newey has been approached by Ferrari with a massive financial offer to lure him to Maranello, where he would replace Ross Brawn.

THE Formula 1 team bosses are to meet this week in London to discuss the future shape of Formula 1.

THE paddock in Spa was buzzing with rumors that CART team owner Barry Green could be about to take over the runningof British American Racing from current chief executive Craig Pollock.

IN the course of the Belgian Grand Prix weekend it was decided that Arrows will not change its driver line-up next year with both Jos Verstappen and Pedro de la Rosa staying on for a second season with the team.

TOYOTA confirmed at Spa that Mika Salo will be joining Allan McNish to test the company's Formula 1 cars next year.

WITH Mika Salo and Pedro Diniz both leaving Sauber at the end of the year, the Swiss team has been looking for two new drivers for the 2001 season.

BRAZIL's Pedro Diniz is expected to leave Sauber at the end of the year and move to Prost Grand Prix where he will partner Jean Alesi next season.

THE highly rated Jordan race engineer Sam Michael was widely tipped to be going to Ferrari next year but our sources say that the 29-year-old Australian will be moving to Williams.

FORD have drawn up plans to build a new £75 million base for all their motorsport activities at Silverstone.

BMW director Gerhard Berger saw his long-standing 'team-mate' record broken by McLaren pair Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard but admitted he was glad to rid himself of the feat.

A gritty overtaking move by championship leader Mika Hakkinen with five laps remaining earned the Finn a nail-biting victory over nearest rival Michael Schumacher at the Belgian Grand Prix.

PEDRO DINIZ has criticized his Sauber team over the organization of a recent test session at Mugello that pitted him against test-driver Enrique Bernoldi.

GERMAN Heinz-Harald Frentzen has insisted that Jordan team-mate Jarno Trulli has been an ideal partner this season -- and predicted a future Grand Prix win for the Italian.

AS David Coulthard firmly underlined his world championship challenge by setting fastest time here in the first free practice session for the Belgian grand prix, FIA president Max Mosley proposed a package of radical changes designed to counter accusations that the racing is just too dull and processional.

FIERCE rivals David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher were in rare agreement when both drivers opposed plans to turn qualifying into a two-day affair.