Formula 1

[mickey]

Race positions:

1 M. Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 1:22.795 22
2 J. Button (GBR) Honda 1:22.988 20
3 R. Barrichello (BRA) Honda 1:23.242 20
4 F. Massa (BRA) Ferrari 1:23.702 22
5 F. Alonso (ESP) Renault 1:23.709 21
6 R. Schumacher (GER) Toyota 1:23.772 26
7 J. Montoya (COL) McLaren 1:24.021 24
8 K. Raikkonen (FIN) McLaren 1:24.158 21
9 J. Trulli (ITA) Toyota 1:24.172 27
10 M. Webber (AUS) Williams 1:24.795 21

11 G. Fisichella (ITA) Renault 1:23.771 6
12 J. Villeneuve (CAN) BMW 1:23.887 9
13 N. Rosberg (GER) Williams 1:23.966 9
14 D. Coulthard (GBR) Red Bull 1:24.101 12
15 N. Heidfeld (GER) BMW 1:24.129 10
16 V. Liuzzi (ITA) Toro Rosso 1:24.520 16

17 C. Klien (AUT) Red Bull 1:25.410 6
18 S. Speed (USA) Toro Rosso 1:25.437 8
19 T. Monteiro (POR) Midland 1:26.820 6
20 C. Albers (NED) Midland 1:27.088 6
21 T. Sato (JPN) Super Aguri 1:27.609 6
22 Y. Ide (JPN) Super Aguri 1:29.282 8

We will see, how Alonso will race, cause he still has the engine from the last race... Racers must compete on two races with the same engine...

[Big Steak]

mickey said:

Race positions:

1 M. Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 1:22.795 22
2 J. Button (GBR) Honda 1:22.988 20
3 R. Barrichello (BRA) Honda 1:23.242 20
4 F. Massa (BRA) Ferrari 1:23.702 22
5 F. Alonso (ESP) Renault 1:23.709 21
6 R. Schumacher (GER) Toyota 1:23.772 26
7 J. Montoya (COL) McLaren 1:24.021 24
8 K. Raikkonen (FIN) McLaren 1:24.158 21
9 J. Trulli (ITA) Toyota 1:24.172 27
10 M. Webber (AUS) Williams 1:24.795 21

11 G. Fisichella (ITA) Renault 1:23.771 6
12 J. Villeneuve (CAN) BMW 1:23.887 9
13 N. Rosberg (GER) Williams 1:23.966 9
14 D. Coulthard (GBR) Red Bull 1:24.101 12
15 N. Heidfeld (GER) BMW 1:24.129 10
16 V. Liuzzi (ITA) Toro Rosso 1:24.520 16

17 C. Klien (AUT) Red Bull 1:25.410 6
18 S. Speed (USA) Toro Rosso 1:25.437 8
19 T. Monteiro (POR) Midland 1:26.820 6
20 C. Albers (NED) Midland 1:27.088 6
21 T. Sato (JPN) Super Aguri 1:27.609 6
22 Y. Ide (JPN) Super Aguri 1:29.282 8

We will see, how Alonso will race, cause he still has the engine from the last race... Racers must compete on two races with the same engine...

he he he hes still no 1 i guess
cya big

[Big Steak]

he he he dont say word about schumy.Like i sad hes still no 1....
cya big

[mickey]

Results from Today's race:

1 M. Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 1:31:06.486
2 F. Alonso (ESP) Renault +2.0 sec
3 J. Montoya (COL) McLaren 15.8
4 F. Massa (BRA) Ferrari 17.0
5 K. Raikkonen (FIN) McLaren 17.5
6 M. Webber (AUS) Williams 35.5
7 J. Button (GBR) Honda 38.0
8 G. Fisichella (ITA) Renault 39.5
9 R. Schumacher (GER) Toyota 41.0
10 R. Barrichello (BRA) Honda 72.5
11 N. Rosberg (GER) Williams 75.0
12 J. Villeneuve (CAN) BMW 80.5
13 N. Heidfeld (GER) BMW + 1 lap
14 D. Coulthard (GBR) Red Bull + 1 lap
15 S. Speed (USA) Toro Rosso + 1 lap
16 V. Liuzzi (ITA) Toro Rosso + 1 lap
17 T. Monteiro (POR) Midland + 1 lap
18 T. Sato (JPN) Super Aguri + 1 lap
19 C. Klien (AUT) Red Bull out
20 Y. Ide (JPN) Super Aguri out
21 J. Trulli (ITA) Toyota out
22 C. Albers (NED) Midland out

During the race, Alonso was faster than Schumacher, but was unable to beat him, because Imola is a circuit, on which it is almost immposible to overtake the driver infront of you...
I don't think that we can expect simillar ending in the next race, cause Alonso will get a new engine and will be ready for other rivals, and he will be able to gain places, apart from today's race...

Overall standings:

1 F.Alonso 36 points
2 M.Schumacher 21
3 K.Raikkonen 18
4 G.Fisichella 15
- J.Montoya 15
6 J.Button 13
7 F.Massa 9
8 R.Schumacher 7
9 M.Webber 6
10 N.Heidfeld 5
- J.Villeneuve 5
12 R.Barrichello 2
- N.Rosberg 2
14 D.Coulthard 1
- C.Klien 1


Teams:


1. Renault 51 points
2. McLaren Mercedes 33
3. Ferrari 30
4. Honda Racing 15
5. BMW Sauber 10
6. Williams 8
7. Toyota 7
8. Red Bull Racing 2

[mickey]

Michael Schumacher has delighted the Italian Tifosi by beating Renault's Fernando Alonso to victory in Sunday's San Marino Grand Prix. In a reverse situation to last year's race, Schumacher had to call upon his experience to hold off persistent pressure from Alonso and notch up his 85th career win.

Ferrari will be celebrating tonight after Michael Schumacher produced yet another determined drive to hand the Scuderia its first true victory in over 18 months, but for Renault, the champions will be ruing one that got away.

Starting from pole, Schumacher comfortably led the opening part of the race as suspected three-stop strategy soon developed into a more competitive two-stopper that rocked rivals Renault. The seven-time champion pitted with twelve seconds and the plan was working perfectly.

However, a decision to use up three sets of Bridgestone tyres in practice and qualifying soon proved to be the wrong one as Schumacher's pace suddenly dropped in the middle part of the race, allowing Alonso, who had leapfrogged Jenson Button and Felipe Massa thanks to a late pit stop, to close that deficit at over a second a lap.

Ten laps later and an exact reverse of last year's race began to develop with Alonso this time looking for a way through. It was expected that Spaniard would ease by at the next round of stops, but strangely, Renault decided to bring their champion in five laps early.

Ferrari reacted instantly and Schumacher jumped at the chance to rid himself of the poor tyres by pitting on the very next lap. He maintained his lead and the was able to keep the evidently quicker Renault at bay for the remainder of the race.

"It started off okay after the first pit stop but then we hit some trouble with graining and the car never really came back and it was a bit of a struggle," Schumacher said, "but as we saw last year, overtaking is very difficult and so it worked out."






Alonso, who nonethless extended his lead in the championship by a point, was critical of Renault's decision to bring him in early for that critical second stop. "We should have won the race," Alonso moaned. "We should have stayed out but the team decided otherwise and brought our second stop forward. We will never know."

Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya finished third, proving the pace of the McLaren after qualifying seventh, but both he and team boss Ron Dennis are now looking forward to some stronger performances in the coming races.

"We are going in the right direction, the car is quick, we passed a lot of people and then we got up to third but we were already 13 seconds behind so I couldn't do anything," Montoya said.

"We have some good races coming up and we hope to show our true pace," Dennis said. "Montoya had a strong race but Raikkonen paid the price for a mistake in qualifying and got stuck in traffic. We are in a stronger position this time compared to last year and the wins will come."

Brazilian Felipe Massa finished fourth, his best result since joining Ferrari, with McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen marginally adrift in fifth. Australia's Mark Webber (Williams) equalled his best result of the season so far in sixth with Jenson Button (Honda) settling for seventh after a pit stop error robbed him of a podium.

What should have been a routine stop turned into a disaster when Honda's lollipop man reacted to early, and with the signal already given for Button to go, he inadvertently took the entire fuel rig with him. With mechanics falling like flies, Button stopped and lost valuable seconds before the rig was finally removed.

"It was a disaster," Button said. "We had a wheel nut problem on the first stop and then Alistair (Lollipop man) made a big mistake on the second stop. He is a professional and is kicking himself but that doesn't hide the fact that we should have finished on the podium today."

Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella was the final points scorer in eighth after a forlorn drive from 11th on the grid.



Eurosport - BT - 23/04/2006

[mickey]

Ferrari want to extend Michael Schumacher's contract for two more years and have offered him an immediate opt-out clause if he wins another Formula One title, Bild newspaper reported on Tuesday. Schumacher's spokeswoman Sabine Kehm dismissed the report as "pure speculation".

The newspaper reported that Ferrari had offered the seven times champion an annual salary of 35 million euros, which it said was identical to the conditions of his current deal.

"The best part of it is that it doesn't tie Schumacher unconditionally for two more years," Bild said. "He could, if he wanted to, get out of it without any problem sooner.

"He could opt out after the 2007 season - or even after the current season - because the new €70 million contract has a 'world champion clause'. If he had the title in his pocket he could quit the next day, if he wanted to."

Schumacher took his 85th career win at Imola on Sunday and moved into second place overall in the driver's standings, 15 points behind Renault's world champion Fernando Alonso, and has been boosted by the sudden increase in performance of his Ferrari.

"It is incredible to see how the team manages to go on improving," he told Ferrari's media website. "Days like yesterday are especially important as they boost our motivation. This is good for our dream team, one that knows how to fight!"

Bild suggested Schumacher could even announce his decision to stay another two years at that race, near his hometown of Kerpen, though team boss Jean Todt admitted that the seven-time champion was thinking the idea through carefully.

"Michael is trying to analyse the situation in a much deeper way," the Frenchman said. "But one thing is sure: Michael likes to win, Michael likes to have the winning car and he knew at the beginning of the year that it is more like that this year than it was last year."

Schumacher's manager, Willi Weber, was also quoted today as saying that the German was close to a decision. "If he continues to drive it will for sure be in a Ferrari," he told the German press agency, DPA, "I'm waiting for Michael's decision. If I were him I would stay in the F1 for another 2 years."

[mickey]

Former Renault test driver Franck Montagny will return to the F1 paddock at next week's European GP after being confirmed as Super Aguri's official reserve driver. The Frenchman will drive the team's first third car since the start of the season and could eventually replace the struggling Yuji Ide.

Ide, who was reprimanded after last weekend's San Marino race for causing a collision that sent Midland's Christijan Albers cartwheeling off the track, looks to be on the way out of the sport after struggling through the opening four races of the season.

"Discussions continue regarding further opportunities within the team," the team said in a statement, while confirming that Ide and Japan's Takuma Sato would continue as race drivers at the Nuerburgring. "Franck will also be on stand-by as the team's reserve race driver."

Montagny served as a reserve for newcomers Super Aguri, currently the slowest team in Formula One, at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix and In Malaysia but they had no third car then for Friday practice.

With a new car due at the French Grand Prix in July, Super Aguri have stopped development of the existing one and have decided to run a third car on Fridays at race weekends instead of testing elsewhere.

All the teams, apart from the top four from last season, are allowed to run third cars.

"It is good to have Franck with us again at the European Grand Prix. His feedback on the SA05's performance will be extremely useful to our engineers as he has a high level of F1 technical knowledge," said team head Aguri Suzuki.

Team manager Daniele Audetto told Reuters at the weekend that they were considering a potential replacement for Ide but not before the Nuerburgring.

"We should give him a little bit more time, not too much but certainly a little bit more," he said. "We should see how he races at the Nuerburgring, which is not a difficult circuit, and then we will make the decision."



Go Aguri?

[mickey]

Jackie Stewart has called on Silverstone's owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club, not to frighten away potential investors in the circuit at a key meeting on Friday.

Although the BRDC president and triple Formula One champion is standing down, with Damon Hill set to replace him, the board faces a confidence vote at an extraordinary general meeting at the British Grand Prix venue.

The vote has been called by members opposing a now-stalled plan to grant a 150-year lease to developers St Modwen as part of renovation plans to secure the future of the Formula One race at the former World War Two airfield.

"If our members don't want the St Modwen deal, they say so," Stewart told Britain's Autosport magazine on Thursday.

"But don't steer away other property development people because of the irrational behaviour of some of our members."

Stewart said the infighting at the BRDC threatened to damage the club's business credentials.

"Now, if you are doing a joint venture, and you go out to one of the big developers, are they going to take the BRDC seriously?," he asked.

Silverstone has the rights to host the British Grand Prix to 2009 but the BRDC needs to raise money to bring the circuit up to the standards of other more state-of-the-art facilities overseas.

[mickey]

Formula 1 must be doing something right, despite regular attempts to shoot itself in the foot, if 22 teams have applied for 12 slots in the 2008 championship. The governing body will announce the successful candidates on Friday, with David Richards's Prodrive expected to get the nod as the newcomer.

Yet the fact that so many new and apparently serious contenders have emerged begs several questions - such as why not let more in?

It is an argument that International Automobile Federation (FIA) president Max Mosley says he is sympathetic to, providing safety is not compromised.

"The problem is that we limited it to 12 for reasons of safety and so there would have to be changes to the pits, changes to the garages, changes to some of the circuits to have more than 12," he told Reuters.

"But if all the organisers and promoters want to make the investment, there's no fundamental reason why it shouldn't be done," he added. "As it's safety, we would have to make sure every point was covered."

One Mosley idea, although not one likely to appeal in the slightest to those teams already on the starting grid, would be to institute an annual soccer-style promotion and relegation system.

"I would like to see that. I would like to see the possibility of the last two dropping out and two new teams coming in, at least the possibility of that. But again, that needs thought and discussion," he said.

"The ideal, I reckon, is what we had some years ago which is 30 people went out to qualify and 26 got to start. Or 30 qualify and 24 start."

"I certainly couldn't say never but it would take quite a bit of adjustment to what we've got at the moment," added Mosley. "Thirteen teams would be possible but it would require the agreement of all the teams."

[mickey]

Renault will head into the coming back-to-back races at the Nurburgring and Barcelona in full confidence after dominating the final day of testing at Silverstone on Thursday. Giancarlo Fisichella topped the times, edging out Honda and McLaren, as a new Michelin compound produced rave reviews.

McLaren may have began the test with the fastest time on Tuesday, but Renault have dominated ever since with Fernando Alonso and Giancarlo Fisichella setting the pace on the following two days as they completed an important Michelin tyre programme.

Fisichella ended the day with a best time of 1:18.506 after praising the new compound which reportedly gets up to operating temperature much more quickly than its predecessor. "We had good pace here and we know that Silverstone is a good barometer of overall performance," said Renault test chief Christian Silk.

Buoyed by his improved performance at last week's San Marino Grand Prix, Brazilian Rubens Barrichello continued to take vital steps forward after setting the second fastest time, just a tenth shy of Fisichella and equal with McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen in third.

The Finn was given the responsibility of putting further mileage on the new Mercedes engine - the one that he'll debut at next week's European Grand Prix, clocking up an impressive tally of 96 laps in the process.

Renault test driver Heikki Kovalainen was fourth fastest as concentrated solely on tested Michelin tyres, with Red Bull Racing's Christian Klien giving the team a welcome boost in fifth despite an early Ferrari engine failure.

Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya managed only 40 laps as he dropped to sixth with Honda test driver Anthony Davidson seventh after a mammoth 143-lap day. Vitantonio Liuzzi was back in action for Scuderia Toro Rosso in eighth with David Coulthard finally covering a significant amount of mileage in ninth.

Australian Mark Webber was tenth fastest as Williams tested new clutch and brakes parts, while test driver Alex Wurz, 13th quickest, concentrated on a Bridgestone tyre programme. BMW Sauber only had one car on track for Robert Kubica, 11th, but his day was hampered by an engine failure in the morning.

Midland MF1 Racing had two cars on track for Christijan Albers and Adrian Sutil, who made a short debut for the team after running off track in the morning before stopping an hour later with mechanical problems.




Will blue and yellow color of Renault dominate again or is it time for red one of Ferrari? Time will bring the answer

[mickey]

Here is a picture of my good pal Big Steak, who is on photo with the formula 1 car of Fernando Alonso (he is the guy behind the formula, but you probably recognized him anyway...).
I guess he became his fan ;D

[mickey]

Jackie Stewart has called on Silverstone's owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club, not to frighten away potential investors in the circuit at a key meeting on Friday.

Although the BRDC president and triple Formula One champion is standing down, with Damon Hill set to replace him, the board faces a confidence vote at an extraordinary general meeting at the British Grand Prix venue.

The vote has been called by members opposing a now-stalled plan to grant a 150-year lease to developers St Modwen as part of renovation plans to secure the future of the Formula One race at the former World War Two airfield.

"If our members don't want the St Modwen deal, they say so," Stewart told Britain's Autosport magazine on Thursday, "But don't steer away other property development people because of the irrational behaviour of some of our members."

Stewart said the infighting at the BRDC threatened to damage the club's business credentials.

"Now, if you are doing a joint venture, and you go out to one of the big developers, are they going to take the BRDC seriously?" he asked.

Silverstone has the rights to host the British Grand Prix to 2009 but the BRDC needs to raise money to bring the circuit up to the standards of other more state-of-the-art facilities overseas.

[mickey]

The chances of Michael Schumacher extending his Ferrari contract after the end of the season are 50-50, according to Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, who on Saturday told Italian press that he expected the seven-time Formula One champion to decide his future within the coming month.

He denied reports in Germany that the 37-year-old was seeking a two-year extension after the expiry of his contract at the end of the season and that Ferrari were considering the request.

"It's up to him to decide and he knows that if he wants to stay for two years then we will agree. He has to say it," declared Montezemolo. "Having a competitive car helps, but Michael had already realised that (was the case before he won the last race at Imola), added the Italian.

"His future depends more on his head than on Ferrari. I think Michael wants to continue for a year, but not to find himself in five months' time facing the same questions he has now.

"It would suit him to sign for another two years, but he is assessing whether he will still want to race in 2008."

Schumacher won the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, Ferrari's home race, last month -- his first victory since the hollow triumph at the six-car U.S. Grand Prix last June.

Asked about other potential signings, and specifically McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen and MotoGP champion Valentino Rossi, Montezemolo replied:

"I am of the opinion that one does not have to risk indigestion in life but abundance is always to be preferred. We do not have a driver problem today.

"We will talk to Rossi in the coming weeks to make a decision. With Raikkonen, there is absolutely nothing other than the fact that we believe he is one of the best three (drivers) at the moment."


Reuters

[Big Steak]

mickey said:

Here is a picture of my good pal Big Steak, who is on photo with the formula 1 car of Fernando Alonso (he is the guy behind the formula, but you probably recognized him anyway...).
I guess he became his fan ;D

he he he i think this will not happened in my life time.... Push it ...Push it real good.....But nice pic anyway .....
cya bigsteak

[mickey]

Ferrari's Michael Schumacher says his victory in last month's San Marino Grand Prix was no flash in the pan. Assessing his team's patchy form before Imola, Schumacher recognised mistakes had been made but believed the last race was a more accurate reflection of Ferrari's championship potential.

"We weren't up to the mark a couple of times, that's true, and we were wrong about our choice of tyres once," the seven-times world champion said on his website. "But in general, the performance we showed at Imola is what Ferrari is capable of now.

"I don't think it will be like last year, when Imola was just a brief ray of light -- nor like the year before that, when we were the dominant force," added the German. "I think we will be able to show a performance close to that at Imola all year, even though it may vary depending which circuit the race is at."

Sunday's European Grand Prix at the Nuerburgring is Schuamcher's home race, the closest circuit to his boyhood home in Kerpen, and he expected to be challenging for victory there as well.

"We should be competitive again, and naturally I will do my very best there," said the 37-year-old, who has yet to decide whether to continue racing beyond the end of the year.

Schumacher's win at Imola was his first since the six-car U.S. Grand Prix fiasco of June last year, a truly hollow victory, and his first 'real' triumph since October 2004 when he won 13 of the 18 races.

However Ferrari also went well at Imola last year, with Schumacher hounding Renault's eventual champion Fernando Alonso over the final laps in what proved to be the Italian team's strongest race of the season.

The roles were reversed this year, with Schumacher winning the April 23 race at Ferrari's home circuit, but the Nuerburgring could see the advantage swing back again to Michelin-shod champions Renault, McLaren and Honda.

"Overall, I think the advantage will remain with Michelin this year," said Renault technical director Bob Bell. "Ferrari are clearly very quick, and you can never write off Michael or the team. They will be pushing us all year long. But from the next races, I expect the balance to swing back in Michelin's favour."

[mickey]

With Toyota's Jarno Trulli racing near his team's home, the Italian hopes to get his first points of 2006 at the European GP. "At the Nürburgring the weather will be a crucial factor and I am glad to know the circuit well from my time in German F3," Trulli told Toyota's official website.

The Nürburgring is the closest to a home circuit that the Cologne-based team can claim and after solving the grip issues that plagued Toyota at the start of the season, Trulli is looking to better his best-placed ninth and two DNFs.

"I've had nothing but bad luck in the races so far this year so it's time for a change," he said on the Toyota F1 racing website. "Now that we have resolved our set-up problems we can concentrate on pushing the team forwards."

The forecast for Sunday calls for an cloudy 16°C but Trulli knows how unpredictable the elements can be and how they can affect the race in Nürburgring...and so does his team.

"[My] experience helps to predict what the weather could do and to plan strategy, as it did when I finished second in a rain-affected race there in 1999."

Racing close to where, team-mate Ralf Schumacher grew up, too, is looking to perform and feels optimistic about the tests and developments, the younger of the Schumacher brothers points to the work Toyota has done since the San Marino GP on the TF1 chassis.

"We struggled on race day in Imola but our pace shows that we've made big steps forward since the start of the season," he said. "Now we hope to regain that good form with another good result at our home race."

[mickey]

McLaren-Mercedes has shown lingering signs of last year's unreliability and is overdue for a win this weekend in the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, where Kimi Raikkonen will be running the '06-spec Mercedes-Benz engine at the manufacturer's home race in a newly developed chassis.

Since Imola the team have covered 1,689 kilometres in testing at Silverstone and have developed the new package that Raikkonen will sport on Sunday in the hope of a return to the top podium step at the birthplace of the "Silver Arrow", which celebrates its 72nd anniversary this year.

The demands on the cars are not so high at the Nürburgring so the European GP will present an ideal opportunity for McLaren to concentrate on the overall picture without the pressure of extreme settings.

"The track does not see an over-dependence on a particular element of the car, be it the chassis, engine or tyres," said McLaren F1 CEO Martin Whitmarsh, "And as a result will provide an opportunity to maximise performance of the package as a whole."

Last year at the Nürburgring Raikkonen seemed assured of victory before disaster hit on the last lap - a suspension failure resulting from vibrations from a flat-spot when he locked up his wheels halfway through the race.

"I am hoping to have a less dramatic race this year; however this track seems to always see exciting and close racing," said the Finn. "Although it is not like some of the wider tracks such as Bahrain and Turkey, there are a couple of genuine chances to overtake at the Nürburgring,

"At Imola it was impossible to pass even if you had the pace, so hopefully we will be able to make the most of our strategy for the qualifying and race and get a good result here."

[mickey]

Scuderia Toro Rosso have yet to decide their engine plans for when their contract with Cosworth's ex-Minardi V10s expires in one year; Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz saying they intend to honour the contract despite protests from other teams concerning the advantages of using V10 engines.

Rumours circulating the San Marino Grand Prix were suggesting that the Toro Rosso would take on the Ferrari engines and the Red Bulls would switch to Cosworth V8s, and although STR co-owner Gerhard Berger is convinced the Ferrari engine woes evident earlier this season are over, he hinted the team would stay with the detuned V10s.

"I think that Ferrari has by now mastered their engine gremlins, but I consider the Cosworth to be the best V8 engine currently," he said. "What we shall do for 2007 regarding engines has not been decided yet."

Berger also acknowledged the scepticism about STR's moving up the starting grid from the habitual last that Minardi occupied.

"You see, this was Minardi, a race team which had enormous sympathies because they were the eternal last. Now, the comments against has have become much sharper, which is understandable, since we are not here to be last."

[mickey]

Former Renault test driver Franck Montagny has finally been given his chance to compete in a F1 Grand Prix after being confirmed as the second Super Aguri driver for this weekend's European GP. The Frenchman replaces rookie Yuji Ide, who, under advice from the FIA, has been demoted to third driver.

Montagny is probably the most talented test driver never to have competed in Formula One, and despite impressing in the role at Renault ,and more recently Jordan, the opportunity never arose.

However, the 28-year old has finally been given the opportunity to show his worth after being confirmed as Takuma Sato's team-mate at this weekend's European Grand Prix, replacing erratic rookie Yuji Ide who has been demoted to test driver in order to further his knowledge of a Formula One car without putting fellow drivers at risk.

"We accept the advice offered by the FIA to allow Yuji to accrue the mileage he requires to improve in Formula One during our testing days only," said team principal Aguri Suzuki.

"I wish that I could have given Yuji more time in the car before the start of the season, but with the team being put together so rapidly we were unable to allow him the proper testing that he should have experienced," he added.

"As a result, Franck Montagny will drive for us in the second race seat at the European Grand Prix."

Montagny, who filled the reserve role for Jordan at the Nuerburgring last year, will be the first French race driver since Toyota's Olivier Panis retired at the end of 2004.

[mickey]

This weekend's European Grand Prix should answer many questions about who can challenge Renault for this season's titles, but at the same time, more doubts over the true pace of certain teams could unfold as the Eifel region is famed for producing precarious weather conditions.
The top three teams, McLaren, Ferrari and Renault, all have reason to be optimistic ahead of round five of the Formula One championship. McLaren are to introduce an important engine step for Kimi Raikkonen, Fernando Alonso will also benefit from a few extra horses and Ferrari insist that their Imola pace was no flash in the pan.

Renault are obvious favourites for this weekend's European Grand Prix given their strong pace in the opening four rounds of the season, but the questions is whether or not McLaren and Ferrari have done enough to close the gap.

Ferrari introduced a whole range of changes to their 248 F1 in order to improve performance of both the tyres and chassis, including a new front and rear suspension, new aero parts and a new floor that allowed the Scuderia to run Bridgestone's softest compounds at Imola.

Williams are reported to have used the mid-range Bridgestone and Toyota the hardest, which is surprising given their tyre problems earlier this season, but the fact remains that Ferrari suffered greatly in stints two and three while running used tyres, and it will be interesting to see what strategy they choose this weekend.

At Imola, the Scuderia only had one choice: to get Schumacher as high up on the grid at all cost. To do so, Schumacher used all four sets of tyres, ran a lighter car compared to his rivals, took a record 66th pole, controlled the race from the front and took victory.

However, the Nurburgring is a totally different circuit to that of Imola and such a strategy would be risky. Therefore, it is on true pace that Ferrari will have to combat Renault this weekend and with the Nurburgring thought to be more of a Michelin circuit, that could prove difficult.

McLaren, meanwhile, are at home. Thousands of Silver Arrow employees and bosses will pack the Mercedes Arena with the hope of seeing either Juan Pablo Montoya and Kimi Raikkonen take victory. However, history seems to be against them.

The Finn dominated last year's race before a flat-spotted tyre took its toll and literally shook him into a spectacular retirement on the final lap, handing the victory, and possibly the title the Fernando Alonso, while a driveshaft failure in 2003 whilst leading also robbed Raikkonen of the title, eventually losing out to Schumacher by just two points.

The Ice Man will benefit from a new-spec Mercedes engine for the German manufacturers home race but a question remains over his motivation. A poor performance in Imola and persistent media attention linking him with a move to Ferrari seems to be taking its toll.

Juan Pablo Montoya is reported to be much happier with the balance of his McLaren MP4-21 following a modification of the front suspension, but with the Nurburgring being renowned for producing understeer, it is vital that the Colombian gets on top of this early.

Honda are likely to challenge for positions 1-8 in qualifying but their race pace remains a concern. The team worked hard to resolve the problem at Silverstone, running a new chassis fitted with a revised suspension, and with Michelin set to bring tyres from the soft range, they could mount a surprise.

However, while most of these questions could be answered by Sunday afternoon, the fickle weather that has become part of the Nurburging tradition could turn the Grand Prix on its head and leave the fans guessing until the Spanish Grand Prix a week later.


Will it be Schumacher?





or Raikkonen?









Perhaps Renault will win again
Time will bring the answer...