As much as I hate to say it, I think the Michael Schumacher deal may be done. I know the sources stating the news are about as creditable as the National Enquirer. There is just so much steam behind the “rumor” and all of the press reporting has finally turned me into believing this is finally a reality. Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo helped the rumor along today stating he would release the 7 times champion if he requested. The question then comes to mind why? Granted we know that…
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F1 – Lotus Confirm Drivers
Team Lotus is the first of the new F1 teams to announce their full lineup for the 2010 season. Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen were announced Monday as the main two drivers with Fairuz Fauzy being named as the official test driver. Trulli will continue his career in refugee status as he lost out in the Toyota pullout (not so sure he would have stayed anyways). As for Heikki, this drive has to be a bit sour after losing his McLaren seat. Both drivers will be looking to have some…
Read MoreF1 – 2010 Calendar Finalized
The FiA have fired off a number of news stories in recent days ranging from a new points system all the way to embracing modern media. One thing that was also released was next year’s final calendar. Listed below is the final 2010 calendar for the FiA Formula 1 World Championship. Key changes see Australia moved to second and Bahrain up to the season opener. This change was sought by the Australians as they host a number of sporting events in the February-March time frame. Canada is back on the…
Read MoreF1 – Rosberg Would Welcome Schumi
As speculation about a Schumacher return picks up steam, the man forgotten in all of this finally speaks. Nico Rosberg left Williams F1 in pursuit of a winning team and a championship. That was of course until the greatest F1 pilot in history started stirring the pot. Not all is bitter in the Mercedes garage however. Rosberg has been recently quoted as saying he would welcome Michael Schumacher to the german marquee’s team and would gladly share a seat with the seven times champion. Rosberg was quoted as saying to…
Read MoreF1 – Schumacher Contract Free?
We here at openpaddock.net have been trying our best to keep up with the Michael Schumacher to Mercedes circus and an interesting development has been posted at motorsport.com that may make things a little easier for the now German outfit. In September it was though that Michael Schumacher had signed a contract extending his stay at Ferrari as a consultant/test driver. According to some suspect media statements by Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni, the German may have actually not signed the agreement. Colajanni indicated he was not aware of a physical…
Read MoreF1 – Canada is Back!
A deal to secure the Canadian GP has been made official after the Canadian Government stepped in to secure the race for another five years. The race which was absent for the first time ever in 2009, has been given a new life and will be back on the calendar for 2010. We heard a lot of the chatter all season as the promoters of the event worked to restore it to the calendar. The plan is for 8.5 million pounds annually for the five year deal. This is only…
Read MoreF1 – Qadbak Out; Sauber In
BMW announced earlier this year that they would not be returning to Formula 1 next year. Shortly after that, the team was purchased by Swiss firm Qadbak who had been considered suspect. That deal has failed and will now be purchased by the man who started it all, Peter Sauber. Originally the team had been sold to Qabak who had some suspect issues come up. In recent days it would appear as though the deal was going to fall through. Now with the Swiss firm gone, Peter Sauber will now…
Read MoreF1 – Force India Reveal Line-up
Force India made amazing progress with the Mercedes package in 2009. They now will retain their current line-up for the 2010 season in hopes of adding consistency. Adrian Sutil and Viantonio Liuzzi will pilot the Force India Mercedes for 2010 which adds yet another full driver line-up to the grid. Lost is Fisichella who jumped ship in the later part of the season to have a sorry run with Ferrari. Fisi gave the Indian team its best ever finish of 2nd at Spa. However, Liuzzi and Sutil both had strong…
Read More#F1 – JR Hildebrand Tests for Force India
2009 Firestone Indy Lights champion, JR Hildebrand, will test for the Force India F1 team in the first days of December. Read the full article at Autosport.com. JR has been searching for a ride at the next level ever since August (probably before), but many, including myself, thought that meant a seat somewhere in the IZOD IndyCar Series, or perhaps with USF1 USGPE. Turns out that he has his sights set well above the doubtful USF1 USGPE and on a ride with a legitimate team that actually has a car…
Read MoreF1 – Button/Brawn Fallout
We now know that Jenson Button is with McLaren and Brawn is now Mercedes and the two are not together. However, reports that have surfaced within the last 24 hours shows how ugly the situation really was. The feelings between the two bring back not so distant memories of Fernando Alonso and the McLaren team. While there are obviously differences in the two situations, the bottom line is the same. Ross Brawn has stated that Jenson Button was in breach of his contract while visiting the Woking based team. At…
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