Formula One News — February 2001

THE leading lights of the European Automobile Constructors Association are meeting this week at the Geneva Motor Show in Switzerland and there is no doubt that one of the subjects which will be discussed is the plan for them to be involved in an agreement to buy into SLEC, the company which owns the promotional rights to Formula 1.

THE European Commissioner for Competition Mario Monti has applauded the efforts of the FIA, the governing body of world motor sport, to reorganize itself in line with Europe's complicated competition regulations.

PROST GRAND PRIX officially launched their 2001 challenger at Albert Park on Wednesday with the promise the new Prost Acer AP04 will impress in the opening races of the season.

THE Benetton Formula One team has undergone big changes during the off-season, and their late preparations may cost them dear in Melbourne, according to technical director Mike Gascoyne.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER will find out if he will be penalized for switching helmets on Thursday, when a court ruling is expected in Belgium.

FORMER world champion Damon Hill has joined an ever-growing band of ex-Formula One stars to join the car sales business.

ONE of Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone's lesser-known sidelines is in publishing. Ecclestone is the owner of a company called European Press which publishes a business magazine called Eurobusiness.

TOYOTA have continued signalled their plans to build a top motorsport development program by signing young Australian Ryan Brisco.

THE TIMES newspaper in London, once an impeccable source of information but of late rather less reliable, has reported that Bernie Ecclestone is selling his family's shares in SLEC to a consortium of automobile companies which includes Renault, BMW, Fiat, Ford and Mercedes.

PAUL STODDART, the new owner of Minardi, used the state parliament building in his home town of Melbourne to launch the Minardi-European PS01 chassis.

MIKA HAKKINEN is looking forward to competing in the 2001 championship and challenging for the title with less pressure than last year.

EUROPEAN MINARDI will officially launch their 2001 challenger on the steps of Victoria Parliament's House in Melbourne on Wednesday, it has been revealed.

ADELAIDE has ditched its "Race of a Thousand Years", the sportscar event which was introduced to revive the old street circuit on which the Australian Grand Prix was held between 1985 and 1995.

TOYOTA MOTORSPORT announced on Monday a collaboration with information system experts EMC that will boost their testing program this year.

JUAN PABLO MONTOYA is aiming to challenge the top two teams - Ferrari and McLaren - as he prepares for his debut race in Australia this weekend.

BRIDGESTONE's director of motorsport Hiroshi Yasukawa has played down the potential tire war that is set to engulf the Formula One world championship this year with the re-introduction of Michelin.

WORLD CHAMPION Michael Schumacher must wait until Wednesday to discover if he will be forced to pay around $1.5 million costs to helmet distributors Sports Europe.

ENRIQUE BERNOLDI, the new Arrows driver, has expressed his eagerness to get onto the track for the Australian Grand Prix, where he hopes to start his Formula One career in style.

ONE is bound to speculate whether Kirch, the German media group, have somehow acquired the rights to the late Margaret Mitchell's epic Gone With The Wind.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER will appear in a Brussels court on Monday after Sports Europe, the distributor for Bell Helmets, accused the world champion of a breach of contract.

FERRARI are reported to be working on a titanium gearbox, which will be this year's major innovation for the championship-winning team.

FORMULA ONE pre-season testing came to a close on Friday as McLaren completed an indifferent day of work at the Circuit de Catalunya.

EUROPEAN MINARDI have signed a contract with Christijan Albers that could see the young Dutchman become a test and reserve driver -- and even land a full-drive in the future.

LEADING rock/metal band Deep Purple have confirmed that they will be performing at this year's Formula One curtain-raiser in Australia.

JORDAN driver Jarno Trulli said on Thursday that he wants to stick with the team until he wins his first Grand Prix.