Formula One News — July 2001

THE strongest team so far in the FIA Formula 3000 Championship, Nordic Racing, has secured another novel means of sponsorship - this time through The Bauer Partnership, a financial institution.

DONINGTON PARK has lost its round of the World Superbike Championship to Silverstone.

THOMAS HAFFA, the CEO of German media conglomerate EM.TV, has resigned, leaving the future of EM.TV's shares in Formula 1's commercial rights open to question.

HEINZ-HARALD FRENTZEN was fired by the Jordan-Honda team today only two days prior to the start of practice for his home race, the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim.

FORMER Jaguar test driver Tomas Scheckter has tested for the European Minardi F3000 team at Spa in case the team's regular driver, Belgian David Saelens, is unfit for duty on the support race bill for this weekend's German Grand Prix.

MIKA HAKKINEN swapped a V10 Formula 1 car for a V8 touring car, when Mercedes-Benz arranged for him to try one of its all-conquering CLK coupes from the German Touring Car championship (DTM), at the Czech circuit of Brno.

HEINZ-HARALD FRENTZEN could switch to the Toyota F1 team next season after his summary firing from the Jordan-Honda squad earlier today.

LATER today (Wednesday) there is due to be a press conference in Munich and there is intense speculation in Germany that the announcement will be that Thomas Haffa is selling his 43% share in EM.TV & Merchandising AG to Leo Kirch.

THE whisper this week is that Jacques Villeneuve may have signed for Toyota.

JOCK CLEAR, Jacques Villeneuve's technical mentor and senior race engineer at British American Racing has launched a scathing attack on his team, suggesting that to drive for his present team in the manner that he did on the way to the 1997 world championship title would be an 'abuse' of his natural talent.

ARROWS driver Jos Verstappen has poured cold water on the plans to revive the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, claiming that in no way is the seaside circuit ready to host a modern Formula 1 event.

COCA-COLA has slipped quietly into frontline motor racing this year with the Nordic Racing team in Formula 3000.

IT seems that Jarno Trulli may well be staying with Jordan for 2002 after all, completing his third season alongside Heinz-Harald Frentzen with the Silverstone-based team.

ALTHOUGH Scuderia Ferrari has denied that it is interested in the services of Felipe Massa as a member of the Formula 1 test team, the Brazilian who is reigning European Formula Renault champion and current leader of the Euro F3000 championship will try out for the equally scarlet and equally historic Alfa Romeo marque as a part of its European Touring Car squad.

DARIO FRANCHITTI may not have won many races this year but he is now just three points behind Kenny Brack in the CART Championship.

THE results of the enquiry into the business affairs of Octagon Motorsports by the British government's Office of Fair Trading is some days away from publication, but already it seems that the American giant is preparing to adjust itself to the most likely criteria to be set.

FORMULA 1 aspirant Gianmaria Bruni spent the British GP weekend meeting F1 team bosses and he followed this up with his first Formula 3 victory at the weekend at Donington Park.

COSWORTH's plans to lease Tom Walkinshaw's Arrows team F1 engines with the same specification as the factory Jaguar V10s next season will have caused many raised eyebrows from various corners of the Grand Prix paddock.

ROSS BRAWN visited the Ferrari Festival at Brands Hatch this weekend, joining Sir Jack Brabham and Sir Stirling Moss in a celebration of the marque - as was Michael Schumacher supposed to have done, until defeat at the British Grand Prix and a heavy testing accident at Monza waylaid him.

FORMULA 1 promotional supremo Bernie Ecclestone has spoken out in favor of the circuit currently under preparation on the Nagatino floodlands near Moscow.

THE recent months have seen a stream of stories suggesting that Formula 1 will go to Moscow in 2003.

THIS week saw the Prost team running a car at the Michelin testing facility at Ladoux. It is the first time that the facility has been used for F1 since the 1970s when Renault carried out secret tests with its prototype Grand Prix car.

THE prodigiously powerful BMW Williams team believes that it has got itself into contention for victory in the series of high speed races that take the 2001 Formula 1 world championship to a close.

FORMER World Champion Nigel Mansell has confirmed that he will chauffeur guests around Donington Park on August 21 in the European Minardi F1x2 two-seater Formula 1 car.

AMONG the many detail changes to the Concorde Agreement currently under discussion in London is the future specification of Formula 1's powerplants - a key issue for the motor manufacturers - to succeed the current 3-liter formula when the current agreement expires in 2007.