Kubica’s manager disputes Renault claims

F1 Fanatic round-up

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In the round-up: Robert Kubica’s manager says they will “look for alternative solutions” to Renault.

Links

Top F1 links from the past 24 hours:

Kubica hopes to start season – manager (ESPN)

Renault will go its way with regards to the drivers, while we will look for alternative solutions. His contract does not extend into 2012. It ends at the end of December, so from January 1 will we be free to go in whatever direction.”

US F1 Grand Prix circuit owners tear up Bernie Ecclestone’s contract (The Guardian)

“Cota issued a statement on Thursday claiming it is prepared to pay Ecclestone, the Formula One supremo, the race sanctioning fee that will allow the event to go ahead next year in Austin, Texas but, in an astonishing show of defiance, it has also torn up the standard race agreement and sent Ecclestone its own version in return, which it is now expecting him to sign.”

Ecclestone dismissive of Austin contract offer (Reuters)

“Asked whether his contract was really ‘unrealistic and unfeasible’, Ecclestone replied: ‘Yeah, well they shouldn’t sign it. My advice to them is don’t sign it. And they probably won’t get the opportunity.'”

F1 for a tenner! Sky to make dedicated channel available to Freeview (Daily Mail)

“In a move aimed at appeasing frustrated British F1 fans following the unprecedented switch from terrestrial to pay-TV, I’m told that Sky will operate the package at a cost thought to be around 10-a-month.”

Horner wants FOTA progress on RRA (Autosport)

“It is important that a direction with RRA is resolved. It is an issue that is crucial to resolve quickly if FOTA is to have a chance of succeeding in the areas that it needs to focus on.”

Lewis Hamilton: ‘I still love Nicole’ (Daily Telegraph)

“Formula One racing driver Lewis Hamilton has spoken of his hopes of a reunion with his former girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger.”

Dave Ryan back in paddock with Renault (Adam Cooper)

“He is believed to be back this weekend in a temporary role with the job of taking a good look at the team and its operations, and reporting back to the management.”

Montezemolo writes to Massa: “You are part of our history” (Ferrari)

Must resist the urge to add, “…but not our future”.

??5.5 million losses for Belgian Grand Prix (GP Update)

“Although five percent less tickets were sold this year in comparison with 2010, the legendary Ardennes track enjoyed greater revenues than 12 months ago; however, a higher number of outgoings resulted in overall losses of ??5.5m (4.7m), half a million Euros down on the losses of last year. With 45,000 tickets having been sold for the latest race, the circuit would need to vend some 20,000 more in order to break even.”

Lloyds directors risk prosecution as Virgin heads for F1 scrapheap (The Independent)

“This could push Virgin out of Formula 1 since the company facing dissolution owns Manor Grand Prix Racing limited, the direct signatory to the Concorde Agreement, the contract which grants the team a slot on the sport’s grid.”

Brazilian GP – Conference 1 (FIA)

Rubens Barrichello: “I’ve been there for 19 seasons, I’ve been doing this for such a long time, I’ve been wanted for such a long time here, so I feel good. I feel that I still have a lot of youth on me, and it’s not something that I’m asking ‘please, give me the drive’. If somebody wants me to drive on a competitive basis it’s because they believe I can do a very good job – that’s why I’m here.”

John Sertori via Twitter

“Expect to see a lot of Rubens on TV this race. A special camera has been mounted over his car in the Williams garage.”

Rubens Barrichello's helmet, Interlagos, 2011

Rubens Barrichello via Twitter

“Finally the picture… my helmet for the weekend.”

A very negative report on Bahrain (Joe Saward)

“All things considered the government of Bahrain does not come out of the report well. Much work needs to be done to heal the wounds created and there continues to be regular trouble on the streets.”

F1 Fanatic via Twitter

“There will be a tribute to Nelson Piquet (Snr, of course) on Sunday before the race. It’s 30 years since he won his first championship.”

Indianapolis 500 winner Jim Rathmann dead at 83 (AutoWeek)

“Jim Rathmann, winner of the 1960 Indianapolis 500 and 1958’s international 500-mile ‘Race of Two Worlds’ at Italy’s famous Monza circuit, died on Wednesday 23rd November.”

Leveson: Max Mosley on “outrageous” invasion of his privacy (YouTube)

Lewis Hamilton on Google+

“26 years old, Formula 1 Racing Car Driving. Love my family and friends. This is my life…”

Follow F1 news as it breaks using the F1 Fanatic live Twitter app.

Comment of the day

The DRS debate goes on – here’s a sample of the pro- and anti-arguments yesterday:

Just have not enjoyed the racing as much and have not enjoyed a single pass aided by DRS, All just too artificial for my liking. I think this season would have been a lot better and had more exciting on track duels had we not had DRS.

Looking at the Mercedes statistics, There is still a high level of overtaking not including DRS moves, More than enough to please the “We just want more overtaking” crowd so I don’t think we really even need DRS.
GT_Racer

It takes just a look on the “rate the race” articles to realise how great this season has been. Even if DRS was “gimmicky”, it has definitely helped improve the show, alongside KERS and Pirelli tyres.
Fixy

From the forum

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Testing some changes to ad delivery on the site today. If you notice any problems please report them via this link as usual:

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Happy birthday to Matt Aitch!

If you want a birthday shout-out tell us when yours is by emailling me, using Twitter or adding to the list here.

On this day in F1

Stirling Moss won the Australian Tourist Trophy at the wheel of a Maserati 300S on this day 55 years ago.

Moss won the race, held on the original Albert Park circuit, by over a lap from team mate Jean Behra in another 300S.

Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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101 comments on “Kubica’s manager disputes Renault claims”

  1. I find it funny that renault can’t get a story right between themselves and now they hire the Dave ryan known for telling 100% truth.

    1. LOL @mcmercslr!

      I read some tidbits today from Boellier being suprised at the reaction from Kubica’s manager, saying they had the text of the Renault press release agreed with him previous to sending it out!

    2. Here’s that story, look what Boullier says:

      He approved the communication so everything was fine. He approved it, and now he is upset with I don’t know what to be honest. I don’t want to comment more because it’s a waste of time.”

      1. The fact is the guy who KNOWS what the contract says feels free to look around come Jan 1 though I doubt he looks further than Ferrari. They can chuck him in a car a couple of years old and he can see how He fares.

        Good for the US team – I’ve wondered why they sign these contracts without pushing back.

  2. “in an astonishing show of defiance, it has also torn up the standard race agreement and sent Ecclestone its own version in return, which it is now expecting him to sign”

    Well, good luck …

    1. Good Luck indeed, it is about time the circuit owners stood up to Bernie, so they could at least break even on the cost of holding a GP meeting ( see Spa headline ) or all we will get is Tilkedromes in the dunes hosted by despots who think nothing of spending $50 million for a days fun.

      1. Actually, I don’t think the organisers are bothered by the cost at all – they’re willing to pay the sanctioning fee for the 2012 race up-front, in addition to a downpayment on every race for the rest of the contract as a show of good faith. That doesn’t sound like the kind of thing that someone who is upset about the cost of the contract would do.

        1. @PM I do think they would like to make some money (this is the USA) Bernie normally takes everything but ticketsales and refreshments and he keeps the money even if the race is cancelled by force majeure. Americans take their contracts seriously and prefer the grey areas to be in their favour.

          1. Why do you assume it’s all about money? Money isn’t the only thing in the contract. For all we know, they feel the contract is too long and they want the ability to discontinue the race sooner rather than later if they feel it isn’t feasible. Or perhaps they don’t like the way the responsibilities are divided up between the parties.

        2. I think you are right there PM, its not about them not having the money available but about other things in the contract.
          Bernie answering them with saying “if they cannot pay up, its their choise to leave it be” shows this is a bit of hard boiled negotiation about paragraphs going on.
          Actually I find it encouraging because it means the money is there and they are in talks. Far better than seeing it postponed into 2013 and beyond just like that and never hear a word about it anymore.

          1. @badcb – I think the organsiers in Austin might be offering to put a downpayment on every race in advance to try and get something else changed in the contract.

          2. @prisoner-monkeys, I hope that

            @badcb

            was a typo :-D
            Sounds like a reasonable way of dealing.

            Or maybe Bernie now wants a lettor of credit for the whole contract period up front, when the state will not guarantee payment?

    2. I am more worried about whether the circuit can even be completed in time, never mind all of this nonsense regarding the contract!

      1. @damonsmedley – I believe the circuit was still aiming to be completed by June (as per the original calendar) at the time of the work stoppage the reason being that they wanted to avoid a repeat of Korea. The actual race is planned for November, so they’ve still got a year to finish construction.

        1. I’m still worried about how long this interruption will last.

          1. It will last right up to the moment they do have a contract confirmed by Bernie and a place on the calendar (because that safeguards that the investment makes sense), is my guess.

    3. Bernie needs F1 in the USA more than circuit promoters / owners in the USA need F1, and it seems these circuit owners have worked that out, and are saying, “well, you wanna race on our circuit, you do it on our terms”. Given that one of the stakeholders in Circuit of the Americas is Red McCombs, a guy who made his fortune selling cars, he probably knows more so than most that you should be suspicious of a used car dealer and that you never accept the first offer they lay down.
      At the end of the day Circuit of the Americas stakeholders do not have much to lose. If Bernie doesn’t come to the party what does it matter? They have MotoGP signed up, V8 Supercars signed up, and they could probably get IndyCar, and GrandAM there in an instant, plus some other touring car series such at WTCC, some American Le Mans series etc, and then private circuit hire / club racing etc would fill in the gaps in the calendar nicely. Come to think of it the circuit would probably be more profitable because they wouldn’t be making a loss off hosting the F1 every year, and they could probably trim back on some of the infrastructure / circuit requirements.

      1. Totally agree, where would Bernie be if the circuit owners all cancelled?

        1. Come to think of it where would Bernies daughters be, if all the circuit owners refused to pay.

        2. All being the operative word there. Even then there is more supply than there is demand.

          1. @DVC yes, divide and conquer, I’d love to know how Bernie does it.

        3. @HoHum – Bernie would be fine if all the circuit owners cancelled: he’s got legally binding contracts, with penalty clauses etc. He, FOM and Formula One will get paid either way.

          1. which is exactly why the Texans want a different contract.

    4. Brave. But stupid. Still these guys have some mammoth testies.

  3. On the surface it would seem that this might be the beginning of the end for Kubica and Lotus. They have decided to protect themselves as much as possible for future actions that may be viewed as defending their position only as a reaction to Kubica’s inability to meet the terms of a previous agreement. Not sure, but I also think that Kubica may have a future with the prancing horse.

    1. A distant futute, maybe. Ferrari won’t sign Kubica unless they are confident that he is a) fully recovered, and b) just as competitive as he has been in the past.

      1. I agree PM.

        But where do you think he will go if not Renault?

        Mclaren, Mercedes and Red Bull are committed.

        That leaves teams like, Force India? Williams?

        Torro Rosso is unlikely, there are probably dropping Buemi so that they can continue the driver training program with someone else.

        For me it looks like a year with Renault is the safest bet.

        I’m pleased that his recovery is apparently going well though. Even if he doesn’t race, no one deserves what he went through.

        1. I have no idea where he might go. For one, whoever signs him will have to be confident that he is competitive. They’ll be watching him very closely once he gets behind the wheel of a test car. And a lot will be riding on what Kubica himself wants to do, and how the sport will change between now and his return.

          1. I see it as Kubica’s management waiting until their current contract runs out at the end of the year.

            He is then free to negotiate a deal with anyone, so that will bring up the price. And I guess some extensive testing with older cars will be part of any deal, be it with Renault or with Ferrari or even with the likes of Red Bull, Mercedes or McLaren.

      2. I’m not so sure the Ferrari link can be discounted.

        What about a testing/reserve driver role at Ferrari? Get him in for Friday practice to get him back up to speed.

        Meanwhile, keep spouting off about the need for three car teams to accommodate all their talent, so that Massa doesn’t feel totally unwanted and demoralised despite the writing on the wall – remember how they did the same thing when it was clear that either Kimi or Massa would have to give way for Alonso?

        That’s certainly the type of move the Kubica’s manager seems to be angling for – not forgetting that, despite being a very quiet, humble and likable guy, he has shown on a few occasions that he is just as ruthless and hungry for success as the other top drivers. And this would be best for both Kubica and Ferrari – he’s not under as much pressure to immediately return to top performance and he gets his foot in the door, they get to “try before they buy”.

    2. They’re not lotus yet

    3. I think Renault have understood that Kubica is not going to be the driver he was before, at least not in the foreseeable future. Kubica’s manager understandably tries to convince people of the opposite. Watching this, prospects of Kubica returning to F1 don’t look very bright to me.

  4. Lewis Hamilton: ‘I still love Nicole’ (Daily Telegraph)

    That’s the first step in the transition from F1Fanatic.co.uk to F1Romantic.co.uk!

    1. No teasing Keith, he is trying to appeal to female segment… and he is failing …;)

      1. when LH was breaking up with her, a reader complained about it not being posted in the round up and I remember Keith saying “I don’t want F1F to be Heat magazine” or something along those lines.

        F1Heat.co.uk maybe? :P

        (joking Keith! don’t take it the wrong way!)

        1. When they actually broke up I thought it was of interest, if only because a lot of people attributed that issue to Hamilton’s poor performance. Tabloids speculating shouldn’t be considered of interest on this site though (although it was quite funny when Button had to deny rumours that he’d said he would marry his gf after winning in 09).

          1. I remember that press conference after Abu Dhabi 2009, Vettel and Webber give him hell… was lotta funny… Michibata had said in the middle of the season that Button will propose after he obteined the championship…

            SV: I hear you are getting married.
            JB: Are you proposing?
            SV: I heard you will get married.
            JB: You know, they write great things in the press. Thank you for that one Seb,

            2nd round

            Q: (Anne Giuntini – L’Equipe) To all three of you: considering there is a long break before February, I suppose you won’t be on holiday all the time. What is your working programme?
            SV: Jenson’s getting married, we heard. So he’s busy.
            MW: And we’re all invited as well.
            SV: Yeah, everyone.
            JB: Next question.
            MW: But Japan’s a long way.


            JB:…Oh, I’ve got my 30th birthday in January as well. Thirty! Imagine that, Sebastian.
            SV: It’s a long way to go.
            JB: Trust me, it goes by very quickly.

            3rd Round

            JB: (Giving a long answer, VET and WEB are talking to each other) ‘scuse me, I’m just trying to talk – you might want to listen to this.
            MW: We’re just talking about your wedding day, mate. We’re just trying to clear our schedules.
            JB: But with four teams at the front, eight drivers fighting out for wins, I think that’s exciting, so, yeah.

            Final Round

            Q: (Bob McKenzie – The Daily Express) What’s the date for the wedding, Jenson?
            JB: It’s my birthday, did you say? By the way, I’m looking forward to my present, thank you very much, Bob. What did you call me before?
            BMcK: The World Champion?
            JB: That’s the one, thank you. I’m not getting married this year.
            SV: Why not? You don’t love her?
            MW: Clear up January, clear it up.
            JB: I think some things need to be kept private in your life and that’s one of them. Thank you very much.

          2. Wow! Thanks @celeste , I hadn’t read that before :)

            Talking about Lewis, I’m slightly disappointed. I thought he was secretly in love with Felipe! #f1romantic

          3. @Girts Don´t worry, He is just in denial, sooner or later he will stop trying to fool himself.

            I´m sure Felipe is his #truelove.

            #f1romantic #toomuchpassiontohide

            :D

          4. @celeste :D

            By the way, there was an article in AUTOSPORT after the Indian Grand Prix that contained three paragraphs, which sound really funny if taken out of the context:

            “We cannot avoid the fact there were a lot of kisses between them on the track. We cannot have these things being bigger than they are because they will be on the mind of the drivers which is not good. It will be solved by what I said before and a little bit of time.”

            When asked about Hamilton’s attempt to settle matters with Massa before the race by putting him arm around him, which he claims was snubbed, Domenicali said: “You will recall that Felipe went to see him in Singapore, and Lewis decided to do other stuff.

            “Felipe showed that he wanted to speak with him. That’s a fact. But we need to overcome this issue and solve it because it is not good for anyone.”

            Ain’t this the most heart-breaking F1 love affair ever? :)

          5. (Teenage girl mode on)
            #OMG you are totally right…is like Romeo & Juliet… so sad :( </3

            They are probably at trouble because one is with Ferrari and the other with Mclaren…

            #fightforit #f1romantic :D

          6. @matt90 To be fair, I don’t think the tabloids are off the mark with this one. This on/off relationship affects Lewis like you said, so it’s at least noteworthy.

  5. if THaT news abouT sky is True i will be Truly ECsTaTiC. I Had resigned myself To THe Idea of only waTCHing Half THe raCes liVe buT iT looks like i may be able To afford To waTCH all of THem!!! (sorry abouT CapiTals, broken lapTop…kinda illusTraTes my problem wiTH noT being able To afford F1)

    1. @jleigh – I think your shift key is broken.

    2. thats…a special problem you have there lol. But don’t pay for the “free”view channel just watch online for free I’m sure many registered f1 fanatics could personal message you a few great websites. Sky are only doing this because no one bought into their £60 a month sky sports channel, make em worry more by not buying this either maybe in a year or two it will be genuinely free again

      1. Don’t know where you get the £60 figure from. Basic Sky is £20, plus £20 for Sky Sports. So that’s £20 cheaper than what you think. Admittedly, HD is another £10.25 but £60 is still an exaggeration. Also, within this announcement of £10 a month for freeview customers, they state that the F1 channel will be free to Sky/Virgin customers, so you may not even need the sports package.

    3. I agree – if they can chuck in Indycar and some GP2 or similar it seems like a pretty good deal. I’m sure lots of people are going to be up in arms about it, but £10 isn’t that much.

      I’m on BT vision, and was looking at the £12 deal for Sky Sports 1&2, but it’s still not clear if they’ll shunt anything onto Sky Sports 3 or 4. Did consider switching to Sky altogether when my BT contract was up a couple of months ago, but it’s too late now.

      Speaking of which, I’m pretty peeved that they are leaving it so late to confirm any details about what is being shown and where. I get they are leaving it until the season is over, but that’s awfully late.

      @jleigh sorry about your caps problem!

      @keithcollantine sorry about my little swear in my last go at this post, got caught in moderation so I’ve posted this amended version :)

      1. @graham228221

        if they can chuck in Indycar

        Sky already has IndyCar. They do a decent job with it. There are ads, but only half as many as the poor Americans have to put up with!

        GP2 is on Eurosport but has rarely been shown live this year. There have been rumours Sky will take over all the support race broadcasts, not seen anything substantial backing that up, though. Their channel in Germany does show them, I believe.

        1. I’m not holding out much hope Keith! My initial optimism that this might turn out to be ok for the sport is waning pretty quickly.

    4. This from the Daily Mail’s Phil Duncan:

      “BRDC president Derek Warwick: There is a very cheap package that is going to be available for those who only want to watch the motor racing. […] Warwick: ‘They understand they can’t charge £50, 60, 80 quid just to watch Formula One. I actually think we’ll end up with more viewers.'”

      http://twitter.com/PhilDuncanF1/statuses/140015856045391872

      1. Either someone with too much time on their hands has been making up a logo or we have a Twitter feed for the channel too:

        http://www.twitter.com/SkySportsSpeed

        1. It’s likely to be fake; the channel has been revealed on the Sky website and will be available free “to full Sky Sports customers and Sky+ HD users”. The channel will be called Sky Sports F1 and be launched in March 2012.

  6. Ferrari or Mercedes for Kubica?

    1. A Rosberg-Kubica team in 2013 would be (for me) the best thing to ever happen in F1

    2. I would not rule out Red Bull, given Webber might retire at the end of next year.

  7. So much to take in today, it’s hard to say what’s most exciting!

    Lewis Hamilton is a great racing driver. It’s hard to leave judgements at that when he’s so blatant with his emotions – he’s inviting us in in a way that no other driver does.

  8. Watching that I do kinda feel sorry for Mosley. I guess we’ve all got private things that would be horrifying if it went in the media and around the world (although granted it probably doesn’t extend to orgy’s and prostitutes – i should hope). It must have been so embarrassing and I actually give the man credit for how he handled it.

    1. The new comic strip ” holier than thou versus holier than thou” apologies to Mad Magazine.

    2. Must have been embarrassing, but embarrassment he brought upon himself, sneaking away from his wife to do this. He’s a victim in this, but an extremely dishonest one.

      1. But is not fair to judge him… we don´t know the circustances… for all that we know he could have been apart from his wife at the moment of the photos… and even so, is not up to a third part to judge and gain something by exposing and probably hurting a person

        1. We do know the circumstances Celeste. Both Mosley and his wife have been talking about it during the whole affair. It cought her off guard, and hurt their relation a lot as it had been his guilty secret for years.

          It was a big show of tabloids hunting down “news” and then putting an extra spin on it with their headlines (the “Nazi” thing).

      2. I don’t agree that should have been made public…

        Everyone has the right to personal privacy.

        However, I don’t agree that he use it to attack not only the bad, but also the very very good forms of investigative journalism. Which is how it appears to me.

        1. No he doesn’t.

          If you are acting as judge and arbiter in a competitive and commercial sports administration … you should not be doing any monkey business on the side you wouldn’t want published.

          It is a blackmail risk.

          When they decided to go after him, News International almost instantly caught Mosley getting his bum paddled. It wasn’t difficult it seems.
          Are you absolutely certain that during all this time, the owner of any F1 team didn’t have similar footage or negatives in a locked top drawer. An envelope of video tape that could be employed to make sure FIA decisions or judgements or penalties went one way and not the other.

          It is nothing to do with privacy, and nothing to with bored working girls in Kensington basements, it is about the impartiality of a supposed to be neutral sports administration being prejudiced, or risk of being prejudiced, because its president needed to keep secrets.

          1. I think, he should be free to do dodgy things. Even if it is not the right choice to make.

            I think that is a fundamental thing. Individual freedom and all that rubbish.

            What you are talking about is responsibility. Which I think is secondary to his right to do what he did.

            It’s distasteful in so many ways, but I’d go a long way to defend his right to be wrong.

          2. He has the right to do whatever he wants. No-one is sensibly arguing otherwise.

            What he doesn’t have is the right to do things that he wants kept secret while acting in a role where such secrets could risk the integrity and fairness of any FIA decisions.

            If it turns out that Ferrari during spygate had a similar video tape that News International had so easily acquired, could that affect the outcome or the size of the fine?
            In a parallel universe, if it transpired that McLaren private investigators had that tape or hacked voicemail, and McLaren were then acquitted, is that important?

            He can choose to indulge in some particularly tame BDSM, or he can choose to be a supposed impartial arbiter in a multi-billion dollar sport/business … he doesn’t get the right to be an impartial arbiter trying hard to keep a secret. That doesn’t work, that’s not an option.

          3. If you are acting as judge and arbiter in a competitive and commercial sports administration … you should not be doing any monkey business on the side you wouldn’t want published.

            It is a blackmail risk.

            Isn’t that essentially the argument that was used for decades to justifying keeping gay and lesbian people out of the armed forces, intelligence services, senior government posts, etc? Just to be clear that I’m not accusing you of any prejudice in this respect.

            I don’t think the potential blackmail argument really stands up. It gives the green light to the press to rake through the personal life of anyone who could be remotely considered to be a public figure, just in case. Most people who would regard themselves as having a relatively normal sex life probably don’t want to see it plastered all over the media. I know I wouldn’t.

            Mosley’s point was that he had done nothing illegal, that it was between consenting adults (I think he also highlighted that none of the women involved were prostitutes) and it was conducted in private. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an interview with Mosley where he sets himself up as some sort of moral authority. On this basis, there was no public interest justification for the media to intrude – he wasn’t breaking the law or being a hypocrite. The News of the World simply wanted a salacious story to boost their circulation figures.

            Mosley also points out that the way the NOTW got their scoop was by threatening and blackmailing the woman who wore the hidden camera – suggesting that if she didn’t do as they asked they wouldn’t hide her identity. He also suggested that the journalist involved had already decided that it was going to have a “Nazi” theme before anything had actually happened. Pretty nasty tactics.

            Much of the evidence heard by the Leveson Inquiry has been about the impact of media attention on non-public figures – friends and family members. Mosley suggests the media coverage of his story led indirectly to his son’s death. Nasty stuff.

          4. Isn’t that essentially the argument that was used for decades to justifying keeping gay and lesbian people out of the armed forces,

            No, it is exactly the opposite. It was the argument for decriminalization. It was rightly recognized that the activity was of little concern, it was the fear of exposure, and of trying to keep secrets, that represented a potentially dangerous conflict of interest.

            If he was out and proud about his hobby then he would be fine, he wasn’t, so he put himself, the FIA and F1 at risk of him being extorted. That is the unacceptable part, not his enjoying his botty being skelped.

        2. I also don’t think it should have gone public, (I did say he was the “victim” in this case), and yes, everyone, whether in the public eye or not has the full right to personal privacy.

          I’m just pointing out he shouldn’t have been doing it anyway, when it was most likely behind his wife’s back. Because of the damage the revelations did, I do have some sympathy for him, but because of his dishonesty, not as much as some of the other people affected by the paparazzi.

  9. I thought HRT is in deep ****
    but now it appears that Virgin are more trouble than HRT
    While HRT is slowly stabilize them self and looking good for 2012

  10. Nice touch rubey and adios manor/virgin/marussia.

  11. That message from Luca to Massa seems… Less than heart warming.

    I think the best think Luca could do to help Massa, would be to leave him be, and let Smedley be the one to motivate Massa…

    1. Or better yet, let Smedley drive. He tells Massa what to do so often that he’s practically already behind the wheel.

  12. Saw the Kubica story yesterday, sure looks fun.

    THE SKY DEAL! I really hope the channel goes through successfully. Being a Virgin Media customer, I can get the full benefit. But I can’t help thinking it’s gonna pull more viewers away from the BBC team.

    USGP: Same stance as before, if they get the Austin race sorted out, then they need to cancel the NJ race, or they’ll end up with 2 races in a country again.

    Barrichello’s helmet looks nice.. Can’t wait!

    Sorry about the directness of this comment, but the space bar on this keyboard isbroke and it’s a rightroyalpain…

    1. I think it’s likely to depend which channels you currently get through Virgin Media. The package I’m on (not available any more) doesn’t include any Sky channels, and as such I’d be surprised if I got access to this new F1 channel.

  13. For the first time I think that is possible that both drivers at Toro Rosso will loss their seats:

    Autosport magazine today printed a snippet from Giorgio Ascanelli, Toro Rosso’s highly respected technical director…

    Ascanelli told Autosport that the current drivers may have peaked. “I believe they (Sebastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari) are complete. They have done what they can and I don’t think that after 50 races there is a margin for improvement.”

    Whilst Ascanelli will not ultimately decide Toro Rosso’s line up, his words will be heeded by Dr Helmut Marko. He on the other hand will decide their line up for next year.

    1. Seems that Keith isn’t alone in trying to convert his website to #f1romantic, blokes at F1Zone are supporting his efforts by having a Ronan Keating’s song title as the headline :)

      On a more serious note, Ascanelli’s words really indicate that Toro Rosso’s line-up is going to change. I wonder what Buemi’s and Alguersuari’s chances of getting race seats with other teams are if they get dropped by TR? I’ve heard that Alguersuari has some Spanish sponsor money to offer.

      1. @Girts lol I notice that… and since I read the title I have been singing the song…

        Yeah, and know it seem that both Toro Rosso guys have notice that this may be their last race on F1:

        EFE news agency quotes the Spaniard as saying he will either stay at the second Red Bull team next year or leave formula one altogether.

        “I would go,” he confirmed. “If Red Bull does not want to continue with me, I will go and look for other things.

        “I like it here and I am happy, but if I am not (kept) then I don’t think I will continue in formula one,” Alguersuari insisted.

        Alguersuari insists: “We (Alguersuari and Buemi) both deserve to continue with our team and it would be a shame if we did not. With us two, the team will continue to grow.”

        He said Toro Rosso has made a “big leap” in recent times, leaving him personally “happy”.

        “I’ve done as much as I could and I’m very calm about my future. Happy and proud,” said the 21-year-old

        And it seem that Heidfeld is finally giving up on F1. Maybe he will go to DTM or try Le Mans

  14. Good news about the Sky channel, but what I’d really like to know is what will the BBC be doing with regard to F1 on iPlayer? It’s rare I’m home to watch the race live, so usually catch up on iPlayer when I am home, I’m still hoping that the BBC will be able to have the full races on there for download as they currently do…

    …because otherwise I’ll need to fork out for a new freeview box so that I can get the Sky F1 channel…

    1. @Adrian-j I would guess the BBC will treat it like any other programming so whatever they show on TV should be available on the iPlayer. There won’t be any full races available that aren’t on TV.

  15. This is as I said yesterday, effectively the end of Kubica in Renault/Lotus. And to be honest, it looked that way for at least half of year, when Lopez started to say even If Robert is fit he will not get to drive. Than the strange misinformation campaign began, target at Renault. It will not an overstatement to say that Ferrari knows more about Kubica’s health than Renault. I think we will not hear or read anything credible until at least January about If and where he’s going to drive.

    Here in Poland, we have been prepared for Kubica leaving Renault for at least couple of months by journalist having personal relationships with Kubica and who, judging by his own words, are somehow involved in this whole information chaos Morelli is creating, no doubt on purpose. As much for English-speaking F1 community this might be just wishful thinking, as we understand, Kubica is closer to Ferrari than ever and his comeback was put off because of strategic reasons. Just look what was said about his physical condition: he can walk, move hand etc. We have seen photos confirming this in August.

    1. I remember back in 2007 Noble from Autosport reporting that Polish media have a little hand on inventing or taking a creative sight on and around Kubica.

      The note reportef how a suposed fight between Vettel and Heidfeld, back them both Kubica´s mates having a big fight, that have to be broken down by Thiessen.Just to continue later in the hotel. This was back in Bahrain testing at the beggining of the year. Just to be later expose as a fraud because Vettel at the time was testing for Formula Renault at Monza or some other place…

      I know how hard it most be for Kubica… but to see him do some actions it doesn´t mean he is ready to come back… My aunt broke her arm in a much less dramatic way that Kubica and she had has to have a lot of operations and therapy since them… just yesterday my dad told me that she was going to have another operation…

      That Kubica is alive is a miracle, that he wish to comeback to F1 is great for him and the sport… but being realistic maybe he should try something less stressfull at the beggining, maybe a fedder category, and not going to Ferrari where people expecto you obtein great results or to be Alonso number 2 driver…

  16. I really hope Sky do do a channel on Freeview. I can’t find any other sources apart from that Daily Mail blog which is a shame. It would be a saving grace for many fans who can’t afford the ridiculous prices.

    1. @smifaye See the stuff I’ve posted earlier in the comments.

      1. @Keith Collantine thanks Keith, should have checked really

        1. @Smifaye No worries, it’s a big round-up today!

  17. Kubica’s manager disputes Renault claims

    I’ve learnt never to trust anyone in F1 so who knows where Kubica will end up and when.

    1. @Steph

      Is that a rhetorical question or would you like me to deduce who would actually know? :P

      (Lovely to see you active on the site!)

      1. You can try but it would be a very short list!

        (Thanks :P )

  18. http://www.marca.com/2011/11/25/motor/formula1/1322221953.html

    La Marca are reporting that Kimi Raikkonen wants $12 million from Williams.

    1. I wouldn´t trust Marca…

  19. http://en.espnf1.com/renault/motorsport/story/64748.html?CMP=OTC-RSS;utm_medium=twitter;utm_source=twitterfeed

    ESPN reporting that Romain Grosjean is Boullier’s top pick to take Kubica’s warm seat

  20. Thanks @KeithCollantine for my first COTD!

    1. @fixy Is that your first? Thought you’d had some before.

      1. I’ve had three mentions @KeithCollantine but unless I’ve missed any other one (which would be a shame, and unlikely as I read all the articles) it’s my first Comment of the Day.

        1. Mentions = my comments, from the forum or from the blog, have been mentioned in an article, but not in a daily round-up.

  21. Today’s La Gazzetta Dello Sport quotes Boullier to say, with much irritation, “We don’t want to train Robert for others, if he is testing with us, he has to stay for 2012 and 2013”. This pretty little piece directly implies that there are others interested in signing Kubica, yet another hint his not a cripple as some ‘well informed sources’ would suggest. These pretty ugly games between Morelli and Boulliere are emerging because Renault/Lotus are losing Kubica, having put in him a load of many and care, and can’t do anything to prevent it.

    1. ehh, sorry for typos.

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