Hermia

This is just the best news I've heard all year. Hopefully it will make the last few races a bit more interesting, perhaps draw some attention away from another Ferrari dominated season.

*MH*

FORD PULL THE PLUG ON JAGUAR
Last Updated: Friday, 17, September, 2004, 14:35

Jaguar will disappear from F1 at the end of the season after Ford announced they were putting the team up for sale.

Ford have also put engine supplier Cosworth on the market, raising questions over the future of Minardi and Jordan too.

The company announced on Friday that they had finally lost patience with the team after five years of disappointing results.

Jaguar chairman Joe Greenwell said: "Ford has decided it can no longer make a compelling business case for any of its brands to compete in F1."

The decision is part of a major rethink of Ford's motorsport strategy. The company's WRC team is also under threat.

There had been whispers in recent weeks that the Detroit giant was considering re-branding the team as Ford - but chief technical officer said this idea had been discounted.

He explained: "“We looked at rebranding the team Ford but it did not create a compelling business argument."

Ford have insisted that there are several buyers interested in the team but could not guarantee that a sale would go ahead.

Parry-Jones said: "If it does not, we would be forced to face a closure scenario but we're not thinking about that at the moment."

Of the decision to sell Cosworth and the likely effect it would have on Minardi and Jordan, Parry-Jones added: "Supplying subsidised engines for teams is no longer possible.

"We have talked to Jordan and Minardi and we intend to work with them to find a solution."

The news comes on the day that Jaguar's road car division announced they would be axing 1,100 jobs at their Coventry base, with production switching to West Bromwich.


JV STEPS IN AT RENAULT
Last Updated: Friday, 17, September, 2004, 16:21


Renault have confirmed that Jacques Villeneuve will drive for them in the remaining three races of the year.

Villeneuve replaces Jarno Trulli as Renault seek to pip BAR to second in the constructors’ championship.

The 1997 world champion tested for Renault at Silverstone this week but has already signed to race for Sauber in 2005.

Team boss Flavio Briatore said: "We are very excited to welcome Jacques Villeneuve to Renault for the final three Grands Prix of the 2004 season.

“He is highly motivated and has impressed us with his performance this week. I would also like to thank Peter Sauber for his collaboration in this matter.

"The Renault F1 Team's objective is now to claim second place in the Constructors' Championship and we are focused intently on doing so."

Villeneuve had not driven a modern F1 car for almost a year before stepping into the Renault R24 at Silverstone on Wednesday.

He completed nearly 450 miles over two days, setting the third fastest time on Thursday.


TRULLI COMPLETES TOYOTA DEAL
Last Updated: Friday, 17, September, 2004, 11:06

Toyota have finally confirmed the signing of Jarno Trulli - and the Italian has already had his first drive for the team.

Trulli completes a strong driver line-up alongside Ralf Schumacher and test driver Olivier Panis.

The 30-year-old drove a Toyota for the first time at Silverstone on Thursday morning, having severed his ties with Renault on Tuesday night.

But Toyota insisted that Trulli will have to wait until the start of next season to make his race debut for the team.

The deal has been on the cards ever since Trulli announced he would be leaving Renault at the German GP - but Toyota team principal Tsutomu Tomita said negotiations had not been concluded until this week.



Tomita said: "It is no secret that we have been speaking with Jarno Trulli for some time about the possibility for him to join Panasonic Toyota Racing, but contrary to recent reports, we have only finalised contractual details this week.

"Jarno has really shown his maturity and all-round talent this season, both in qualifying and in races, and we believe that he will be the perfect team-mate to Ralf at Toyota from next season.

"On that note, I would like to set the record straight early and stress that there are no driver orders at Toyota; Ralf and Jarno will have equal number one status with us."

Tomita also confirmed that Ricardo Zonta, who has replaced Cristiano da Matta at the last three races, will remain with the team in 2005 (see separate story).

He said: "With Ralf, Jarno, Olivier and Ricardo, I think that Panasonic Toyota Racing will have one of the strongest driver line-ups in Formula 1 for next season."




I went to Silverstone yesterday and saw Jarno driving his Toyota for the first time. I wish he was still with Fernando at Renault though

Mei Zhuo

i was rooting for jenson to win too and iw as so sad when kimi retired but iw asn't expecting ferrari to win again! but congrats to reubens!

and i'm right now with all that's going on in f1! so many changes! so JV is driving for renault instead of trulli? and ralf is back? cool! trulli is in toyota!

L i N d $ @ y

villenueve is back next year for sauber AND trulli's driving for toyota opposite ralf! who'll be driving with alonso for renault next year? all these changes are crazy!

but i can't wait for beijing! new track and i wonder how the trophy looks like?

hopefully KR, FA & JB will all finish the next race!

*MH*

Lindsay - a few races back Renault announced that Alonso and Fisichella would be driving for them next season.

L i N d $ @ y

oh yeah. i remember. all these team transfers are making me confused! i just can't BELIEVE JPM's with mclaren.

Mei Zhuo

same here linds, i still can't imagine JPM going to McL next year! it will definetely be weird!

and i'm still confused over the other changes for next season!

marie

²Jens

I wonder how much teams we will see next year on the track.

Ford(Jaguar) leaves the F1. Jordan and Minardi are praktical bankrupt and without engines for next year. That development displeases me!

But ok now it's 2004 and I can't wait for the next race in Beijing.

Oh and last weekend It was unfortunately to late to make my predictions for Monza because of my study.

foreva_99

I think that it is funny that we all still can't believe that Monty will be driving for McLaren next year even though we have known since before the season started. Guess it takes awhile for bad news to sink in

Sad news about Jaguar

*MH*

Three cars each or cheap engines?
What next as F1 faces a new challenge?


With Ford announcing last week that they are to cease Formula One activities and place Jaguar Racing and Cosworth on the market, speculation turned to the future of both Minardi and Jordan who are currently supplied by Cosworth. With the real possibility that Ford may not be able to find a buyer for either Jaguar Racing or Cosworth, it is debatable how long both Minardi and Jordan can remain in the series as things stand today.

Formula One needs to have 20 cars on the grid for each race in 2005 and there is the strong possibility that that will not be achieved. One solution would be for the remaining teams to stump up the money and field a third car each. This has logistical and financial implications that for some would simply be too much. Another option is for the manufacturers to provide the privateer teams with engines at what is deemed a reasonable cost. The manufacturers now need to weigh up the options, the costs and reach a decision of either running a third car or financing engines for the smaller teams.

Bernie Ecclestone believes that the prospect of the top teams fielding a third car is the best option. “At least if the other teams provide an extra car each, we will have 20 competitive cars on the grid, unlike now,” the Times report Ecclestone as saying. “We have to be prepared for the fact that two more teams might not be around next year and that is what I am doing now. I do not see why I should have to pay for two small teams to go racing. That is not my job.”



One option that could be available to Minardi is the use of some elderly Cosworth V8s that team ran several years ago. The team completed some development work on the units and if push came to shove, they could be raced again.

Recent history has shown that neither Arrows nor Prost Grand Prix were able to sell on the team to new buyers when placed in financial difficulties. For many in Formula One, a white Knight is certainly needed for Cosworth Jaguar Racing and the privateer teams.

Gavin Fisher injured in motocross accident
WilliamsF1 designer recuperating in the US

WilliamsF1 Chief Designer Gavin Fisher is recuperating in the United States following a motocross accident and subsequent surgery according to SPEEDTV.

Fisher is said to be in a stable condition following surgery and will convalesce in Los Angeles until he is fit enough to return to the UK.

“It is fortunate that we have strength in depth in the design office, and Mark Loasby will cover Gavin’s post during his recuperation,” WilliamsF1 Technical Director Sam Michael explained. “Much of the fundamental layout work for the FW27 is underway. We wish Gavin all the best for a speedy recovery.”

F1-Live also wishes Fisher a speedy recovery.

foreva_99

I like the idea of the top teams each fielding three cars. It would definatly make the racing more exciting and make it very comptetive at the top as well because there could them be the potential of having nine guys all fighting for the lead. That is something that has not happened in formula one for a very long time. Wonder which teams would be willing to field three cars. My guesses would be: Williams, Ferrari and McLaren. Although BAR and Renault have been really competitive this year I don't think that they would have the finances to add an extra car.

L i N d $ @ y

JV driving for sauber...davidson fastest in free practice. i'm so excited for the beijing grand prix! new track and trophy as well! i wonder if the trophy has some chinese characters?

Mei Zhuo

i forgot to post my predictions for quali, i'm not sure if it's gonna be counted since it's on going now, but here it is:

Quali:
1. MS
2. RB
3. JB
4. TS
5. KR
6. FA
7. RS
8. JPM

Race:
1. MS
2. RB
3. JB
4. KR
5. JPM
6. FA
7. RS
8. TS


linds, i wonder if there are celebrities who went to the grand prix?

L i N d $ @ y

hmmm, i hope there's this particular celebrity who goes to the grand prix, fla!

here are my predictions, sorry if they're way too late:

Quali:
1. MS
2. RB
3. KR
4. DC
5. FA
6. JB
7. RS
8. TS

Race:
1. KR
2. MS
3. RB
4. JB
5. RS
6. JPM
7. TS
8. MW

bold prediction on kimi huh? i just assume since china's as hot as malaysia, maybe we'll see another mclaren win.

L i N d $ @ y

okay...can i just say that i reacted along with the crowd at the last lap of quali a while ago? whoah! who would've thought schumi would make that kind of mistake? its so not schumi to just spin-off like that! the crowd was in shock! even the whole ferrari team was in shock! ross brawn & jean todt now have to re-think what kind of strategy they'd have for him now that he's starting at the back!

and can i just say that i the track! lots of tight corners and a real long straight one great for overtaking! its gonna be so exciting tomorrow!

and its was soooo nice to see ralf racing again! i did miss him! i was like "OMG, its ralf, wheee!" and to see JV back was nice too but not really, well at least for me. i laughed when the commentators said, while JV was doing his lap:

commentator #1: oooh, he understeered there and was late on the breaks...
commentator #2: welcome back villenueve...



well, i can't wait for the race tomorrow! schumi at the back is just way too perfect! rooting for Kimi of course! i'm sure at one point in the race, he'll try to overtake rubens. YAY!

ETA: the new radio-to-pit thingy was awesome! and i read this at the f1racing site.