Formula One News — August 2001

MCLAREN's former champion Mika Hakkinen set the pace on the first day of Silverstone's latest F1 test.

IF Mika Hakkinen could drive as well every weekend as he did on his way to winning the British Grand Prix, McLaren boss Ron Dennis would probably be pushing a new two year contract under the Finn's nose and urging him to sign it as quickly as possible.

ITALY and Germany have gone Formula 1 crazy after Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello scored their 1-2 finish in the Hungarian Grand Prix, netting both the drivers' and constructors' world championships.

WHEN Jaguar entered F1 at the start of the 2000 season its arrival was heralded as a marketing tour-de-force, capitalizing on possibly the most magical marque name after Ferrari in the pantheon of high performance car makers.

JACQUES NASSER is being forced to take drastic action to keep Ford Motor Company competitive, and there is little or no solace for its Jaguar Racing team.

NIGEL MANSELL today crashed heavily at Donington Park competing in a demonstration race while carrying a passenger in a special two-seater F1 Minardi.

MUCH to the amusement of Ferrari president Luca Montezemolo, McLaren was forced to capitulate the 2001 season after the drivers' and constructors' titles were both sealed in a 1-2 finish in Hungary.

BRITISH AMERICAN RACING says it will have two full-time test teams next year but that it intends to cut back on its four test drivers.

THE Chinese are still dreaming of hosting a Grand Prix, despite the failure of Zhuhai to impress the Formula 1 authorities.

AN explosion is expected later this week at Jaguar Racing with a shake-up of the management of the team looking like an inevitability. That will mean that either Bobby Rahal or Niki Lauda is going to be out.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER could easily win another twenty F1 victories before he retires from motor racing according to Alain Prost, the man whose record of 51 wins and four world championships he equalled with his victory in Sunday's Hungarian grand Prix.

PATRICK LONG, the Inside F1 Young Driver of the Year, won Sunday's round of the Slick 50 British Formula Ford Zetec Championship and has now moved to the head of the championship standings.

THE European Minardi team is staging a big promotional event on Tuesday at Donington Park at which there will be the first ever two-seater F1 race.

AS the victorious Ferrari team members hugged each other, sprayed champagne and danced jigs around the base of Michael Schumacher's victory podium, the rest of the formula one fraternity was left licking its wounds and, briefly at least, allowing itself a touch of self pity.

INDIANAPOLIS MOTOR SPEEDWAY owner Tony George turned up in Hungary to have a look at the circuit and to have a number of business meetings with Formula 1 people, including F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone.

ALAIN PROST left Formula 1 observers speechless on Friday in Budapest when he said that his team has no problems paying for his Ferrari engines.

THE curb that launched the McLaren of David Coulthard out of the running in Friday's Free Practice session was ground down to size after discussions between several teams and drivers and the FIA's Charlie Whiting.

GIANCARLO FISICHELLA is likely to remain a Renault driver next season, despite the fact that the Regie opted against coming to an agreement before the Roman's option to re-sign expired.

BERNIE ECCLESTONE was presented with the Midcross Honor of the Hungarian Republic on Friday afternoon, in a ceremony at the Hungarian Parliament.

DOMINANT championship leader Michael Schumacher is positively impatient for the action to get underway this weekend, which could well see him seal his fourth world championship.

THE senior member of Prost grand Prix's junior program, its Formula 3000 team, has signed Norberto Fontana to partner Zsolt Baumgartner for the remainder of the 2001 season.

DARIO FRANCHITTI has resolved to stick with his current employers, Team Kool Green, in CART Champ Car racing until the end of 2003.

JEAN ALESI, Jarno Trulli and Giancarlo Fisichella are all claiming to have had offers of employment from Jordan Grand Prix for 2002, further muddying the somewhat turbulent waters at the British-based team since the sacking of Heinz-Harald Frentzen in the run-up to the German Grand Prix last month.

JOHNNY HERBERT's hopes of getting an Indy Racing League drive have been boosted considerably by a very impressive test with Heritage Motorsports at the Kentucky Speedway on Tuesday.

IT is no secret that Formula 1 would like to have an American driver to help the sport grow in the United States and one or two of the more far-sighted F1 team bosses have been keeping a closer than usual eye on the domestic scene while also keeping track of the rise of US stars in European racing.