Formula One News — August 2005

The Rotterdam newspaper Het Algmene Dagblad this morning reported that a Dutch group is looking to buy a share of the Minardi team from Paul Stoddart. There were, it seems, meetings in Turkey to this end which included Stoddart and Bernie Ecclestone.

Rick Weidinger's A1 Team USA is still to announce its full plans for the coming season but the team has now listed three drivers and it is interesting to note that all three of them are Red Bull drivers.

The SuperNova Racing GP2 team will run the German A1 Grand Prix team. The German franchise is owned by Willi Weber, manager of Michael and Ralf Schumacher.

The Malaysian cabinet decided last week to ratify the World Health Organization's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, which will mean new rules for tobacco companies in the country.

British American Racing boss Nick Fry has given Anthony Davidson a very clear message by saying that "if Anthony feels he cannot wait for the final decision over Jenson, then he is free to secure a race drive elsewhere".

The German press has been known to get a little excited over the years about rumours concerning Michael Schumacher but the revelations that the seven-time World Champion has been talking to McLaren are interesting and pose a number of questions.

Michael Schumacher is widely accepted as being the greatest driver of his era, although his complete domination of F1 statistics is sometimes mistaken for him being the greatest racing driver of all time.

With two laps to go before the end of the Turkish Grand Prix, things were looking as good as they get for McLaren. It was, at that moment, a question of maximum points. Eighteen of them. Amazingly, only one team has scored maximum points at a race this year.

Red Bull has a problem. The Austrian drinks firm has been sponsoring a young driver programme for the last few years and is keen to be seen to be backing young talent as this is apparently something which appeals to its young customers.

The Turkish Grand Prix was a great success, with a huge crowd, despite the high costs for spectators, and a big boost for the country's tourist trade. Profiteering from the race did not seem to be too bad in Istanbul, unlike some of the other venues were all prices are hiked dramatically when the F1 circus comes to town.

Given the intensity of the tyre war this year, it is not entirely surprising that Michelin is less than happy with the news that Sauber driver Felipe Massa will be testing at Monza this week for the Ferrari team.

There remains plenty of talk in F1 circles about Jenson Button and the tug-of-love between Williams and BAR for his services next season. Nothing seems to be happening, which is odd given that it is in the interest of everyone that the matter be sorted out as quickly as possible.

Turkish GP - Race Notes

Turkish GP - Sunday Photos

Turkish GP - Sunday Press Conference

Turkish GP - Race Incidents

Turkish GP - Sunday Team Quotes

Turkish GP - Race Results

Kimi Raikkonen gave notice that he is still the man to be feared as he set the fastest time in qualifying for the Turkish Grand Prix. The Finn put his McLaren on pole, beating the two Renaults of Giancarlo Fisichella and Fernando Alonso, although the biggest challenge should have come from Jenson Button.

Takuma Sato has been dumped to the back of the grid for getting in the way of Mark Webber in qualifying on Saturday in Istanbul. The BAR-Honda driver imposed the penalty after Sato cost the Australian around three-tenths of a second.

Turkish GP - Saturday Photos

Turkish GP - Saturday Press Conference

Turkish GP - Saturday Team Quotes

Turkish GP - Qualifying Results

Kimi Raikkonen was half a second faster than the rest of the field in the final practice session for the Turkish Grand Prix on Saturday morning. The Finn confirmed that McLaren is still well ahead of the game after F1's midseason break.