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The gamble which almost paid o . High down- orce and the F-duct saw Jenson Button able tohold Alonso at bay, just, until the pit-stops, when the Ferrari snuck past, just ...

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GPWEEK OPENING Shot>>

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SEEING IS BELIEVING

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Headline: Ferrari escapes urther sanction plus the latest rom the worlds o F1 and MotoGP

CLick on any advertisement for more details

GPWEEK NEWS>>

M oto GP: The reign of Spain>>

F1: Italian Renaissance>>

ISSUE 099 SEPTEMBER 13, 2010

>> Go to

>> Go to

>> Go to

>>

First they get o ; then Fernando goes and drives a stormerto win in Monza ... not good i youre not a Ferrari an!

Michael Scott looks at the history behind Spains currentMotoGP domination

WRC: Seb2 strikes again >> Go to

The other Seb came out on top as the WRC went to Japan;Seb 1 was nowhere to be seen ...

>>

EDITOR: ADAM HAY-NICHOLLSadam@gpweek.com

Editorial AssistantsNaoise Holohan, JamesFrankland

MotoGP Editor : Michael Scottmichael@gpweek.com

Rally Editor : Martin Holmesmartin@gpweek.com

Production Artists (Australia):Cedric Du our, Kieryn Hyde

PhotographySutton Motorsport Imageswww.sutton-images.comKeith Sutton keith@gpweek.com

PublisherChris Lambden

publisher@gpweek.com

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FULLY GREENIn orming motorsport

ans world-wide and not asingle treedestroyed

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FERRARI ESCAPESFURTHER PUNISHMENTFERRARIs epic win on Sunday points to achange o ortunes or the Italian team, whichlooked to have its back to the wall as its seniormanagement headed to Paris on Wednesday tode end its Hockenheim antics but they neednthave worried.

Formula Ones ban on team orders is to bereviewed a ter the season ollowing the FIAsdecision not to urther punish Ferrari or breachingthe regulations at the German Grand Prix, thoughthe stewards initial ine o $100,000 was uphelda ter the Scuderia declined to protest.

In addition, Ferrari has been asked to pay the FIAslegal costs (which are likely to be over $100,000).

The FIA has re erred the team orders clari icationto the Sporting Working Group.

Ferrari, unsurprisingly, welcomed the decision.Sir Frank Williams and Peter Sauber have alsocome out in support o the verdict and plans to

review the rules, citing them as being currentlyunworkable and unpoliceable.

However, Red Bull Racing team principalChristian Horner says it sets a worrying precedentthat the title contenders now have e ective carteblanche to use team orders over the remainder o the season as long as theyre able to stomach the$100,000 ine:

"I think the key to come out [o the Paris court]was that the regulation needs to be dealt with," hesaid.

"You either have to get rid o team orders orhave them and very transparently have them because you cannot be hal pregnant. You have tobe one way or the other.

"I don't think the regulation is particularly wellworded and that is what has been the stumblingblock that the regulation needs to be betterworded or removed."

FIA to review team orders ban follo wing German GP scandal

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FIA rejects 13thteam proposalsFORMULA One will continue with amaximum o 12 teams in 2011 a ter the FIAdecided against awarding the 13th teamslot during the week.

The World Motor Sport Council (WMSC)met in Paris on Wednesday morning and wastold that none o the applicants had met therequired standards to secure the spot.

It was considered that none o thecandidates met the requirements to begranted an entry into the Championship,read an FIA statement.

Consequently, the allocation o the 13thteam will not be granted.

Joan Villadelprat, boss o Epsilon Euskadiwhich was avourite to take the honours, saidhe respected the FIAs decision and evensuggested that it was best or the governingbody to have taken the decision they did:

As a personal opinion, I think that it is bestto leave it vacant rather than having a team

that, given the deadlines and requirements,would almost be impossible to be ready or2011, said Villadelprat.

Joan admitted that he had not put thenecessary inancial package together to

und an F1 team:We knew it would be very di icult or us

to be chosen since we still don't have theeconomic package granted, he continued.

Without this capital it would be un easibleto carry out the F1 project that we want.

Another candidate or the 13th team slot,the Durango/Jacques Villeneuve partnership,is still looking to break into Formula Onenext year however:

Now we turn to our Plan B, which isto take over one o the existing teams,Villeneuve told Rue Frontenac.

It is probably going to be a bit moreexpensive and we must ensure we have a

ree hand.

Grid to stay at maximum of 24 cars

2011 calendarexpands:20 races, 11FlyawaysNEXT years F1 calendar, whichsees the inclusion o Indiabetween Korea and Abu Dhabi inlate October, has been describedas a marriage breaker byseveral members o the travelingcircus.

Now two weeks longer, thuscutting into development time orthe ollowing years car, it starts inBahrain on March 13 and ends inBrazil on the November 27.

13/03 Bahrain27/03 Australia10/04 Malaysia17/04 China08/05 Turkey22/05 Spain29/05 Monaco12/06 Canada26/06 Europe10/07 Great Britain24/07 Germany31/07 Hungary28/08 Belgium11/09 Italy25/09 Singapore09/10 Japan16/10 Korea30/10 India*13/11 Abu Dhabi27/11 Brazil

* Subject to the homologation o the circuit.

One an o the calendar, though,is Rubens Barrichello who said theraces were better spaced apartthan this year and that more racesis good news:

I we have 20 races its goingto be much better or you to goand have two weekends racing inAsia than to ly to Brazil and thengo back to Abu Dhabi, so I think this is much more clear to us. Ivealways said that I wish to have30 races and no testing becauseI think that would be morecost-e ective.

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F1 NEWS>>

For your daily doseof Formula 1 news ...

Hispania went high downforcefor MonzaHISPANIA Racing became the irst team in decades to run a

conventional aerodynamic set-up at the Italian Grand Prix,having not had the budget to develop a low-drag package.

Hispanias rear wing has remained entirely unchangedthroughout this season, with the wing pro ile and set-up havingbeen identical at all races.

The team is there ore in the unique situation o having racedan identical rear wing at the Monaco and Italian Grands Prix,despite the vastly di ering track characteristics. Thats becausethe rear wing setting was ixed at the beginning o the seasonand, without load testing, the team has been unable to modi yit.

In act, Hispanias F110 has gone almost entirely unchangedsince the start o the year, other than a minor uel system change.

Bruno Senna acknowledged the uniqueness o Hispanias situation:

It is a bit abnormal to come here with a normal wing thatyou use everywhere else in the championship, but it was notprepared be ore so there was no point doing something crazylike chopping a piece o the wing and seeing what was goingto happen because it would just be dangerous or us and I'm in

avour o doing things sa ely.It's not like we're ighting or pole position so we don't need

to experiement that badly.You need to modi y the endplates [to be able to change the

wing angle] and without load testing it's very dangerous to doso. So it was a bit o a rush and un ortunately didn't get done.In the planning they didn't get to do it, so without the propertesting it's not sa e to do so.

It was there ore a huge endorsement o Sennas talent thathe was able to lap within nine-tenths o a second o VirginsLucas Di Grassi in quali ying, despite the Virgin having beendeveloped throughout the season.

Ran Monaco-spec car in Italy

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THE FIA is seeking to introduceCcompetitors Sta Licences or allteams in F1, WRC, FIA GT1 and WTCC ina bid to better deal with conduct issuessuch as Flavio Briatore and Pat Symondsinvolvement in the 2008 Singapore GrandPrix race ixing scandal.

"A new mechanism will be introducedto control access to areas under the jurisdiction o the FIA and no pass o any kind will be issued to any person orbody who is not in good standing or thepurposes o the FIA International SportingCode," said an FIA statement.

"Entrants will also become responsible ortheir sta , meaning any person connected

directly or indirectly with the entrant inconnection with their participation in anevent."

In addition, drivers have been toldthat they may lose their Super Licencesshould they be caught misbehaving onpublic roads. FIA president Jean Todt irstraised this ruling a ter Lewis Hamilton wasbooked or hooning in Melbourne, whenhe spun his rear tyres leaving the circuit inhis Mercedes road car.

And i a driver commits a "serious roadtra ic o ence", the FIA "may issue awarning or re er the matter" to the WorldMotor Sport Council, says the governingbody.

F1 on best behaviour

GP2 unveils third-gen Red Bull Racing has laughed o suggestions that by running a show car atthe Korean F1 circuit the weekend be ore lastthey have gained an advantage over other

teams. Karun Chandhok drove a 2005 car at thepromotional event in Yeongam. "It was close toa six year-old car with a V10 engine especiallyderived or running show car projects with avery basic telemetry system, on a track that wasmissing its inal sur ace and kerbs, with a driverthat isn't our regular driver," said team principalChristian Horner. The car has absolutely zerorelevance to what we are running here. Itwould have been the same i we had run a GP2car."

n Lewis Hamilton dodged questions aboutSebastian Vettels racing maturity in Monza, butconceded the German is still so young and hestill has much to learn. Asked whether he couldempathise with what many have described as'growing pains', the McLaren driver admittedthat his sometimes troubled 2007 campaignwas beginning to ade rom memory. "I cannotremember how I elt in 2007, [but] I can just saythat I expected to make mistakes.

n Jenson Button has waded into the teamorders debate, saying he would rather quit thanaccept being a number two driver: While youare still ighting or the world championship

it is very strange to me that a driver is told tomove over. I don't understand that at all andI don't understand anyone in the sport whowould want to race in those circumstances. Youare not racing to win are you? What is the pointo inishing second?" The world championadded that he has never been asked to moveover or a team-mate or vice versa.

n Karun Chandhok, who was illing in orAnthony Davidson commentating on BBCRadio 5 Live this weekend, had a Saturdaynight hed rather orget. You might say hesbeen robbed once by Sakon Yamamoto thisyear. Well, thieves struck again as Karun haddinner in a restaurant. His car, parked outside,was broken into and his brie case, containinghis laptop, was pinched: Amazingly theythrew my credit cards, passport and F1 passback in the car! Bruno Sennas manager ChrisGoodwin, with whom Karun was sharing acar, was less ortunate and unsure how he wasgoing to get on a plane a ter the race.

n With Williams per ormance improving inthe latter hal o this year, several o the teamsmechanics are re using to shave until Rubens

Barrichello scores a podium. I the Braziliandoesnt get one soon theyll look like the oldmen o the sea in Bahrain!

ShortStraights

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Hamilton himsel , while supporting roadety plans, says hes staunchly against

ch a move:What we do in our private li e is ourvate li e. I'm sure Jean Todt has hadpeeding ticket," said the 2008 worldampion.We're all making mistakes and learning.on't eel that everything I've workedr should be taken away rom me or

mething that could be small," he added.But McLaren team-mate Jenson Buttonagrees:I think a serious o ence is correct or it touse an issue or your racing career," said

30-year-old.

m now on

ration carTHE GP2 Series organizers took the

wraps o their latest third-generationcar, the GP2/11, in Monza on Thursday.It takes several obvious aerodynamic

cues rom current F1 machinery, such asa raked nose, wider ront wing, narrowrear wing, and an anvil engine cover. Buttechnical director Didier Perrin says thebiggest change is the enlarged di user,which will have a signi icant impact onset-up:

"As the di user works across a muchwider ride-height range, there will be thepossibility to play with much so ter rear

suspension to improve the traction," saidthe Frenchman.We wanted was to be as close as

possible to F1 in terms o behaviour sowe decided to use the same type o rearwing narrower, and a bit orward. Wehave lost a lot o down orce rom therear o the car, and to recover that wehad to do a lot o work on the di user.And to get more room to play with thedi user, we moved the exhaust on topo the gearbox. So that gives you thecon iguration o the rear o the car.

And to balance this big down orce thatwe obtained rom the di user we had togo with a large, F1-style wing.

The car will next be tested in Jerez with2008 champion Giorgio Pantano at thehelm.

F1 NEWS>>

Our exclusive partnership withVodafone McLaren Mercedesmeans you can stay in thecentre of the F1 action whenyou book a Grand Prix weekendpackage. For more informationor to book, please visithiltonracing.com

Click here to book your

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JAPANs Kamui Kobayashi has retained his seat at theSwiss-based Sauber team or 2011, meaning he willstay on in the sport or a second ull season next year.

Kobayashi joined Sauber in December 2009ollowing the sudden withdrawal o Toyota rom

Formula One, and has proven his worth this year with astring o strong per ormances in the C29.

We had a very di icult start to the season, but

we've worked together to pull ourselves out o thatsituation, began Kamui.I eel very much at home in Peter Sauber's team and

am very pleased we'll be working together again in2011. However, or now I'm ocusing one-hundred percent on this year. There are still six grand prix weekendsto go in 2010, and we'll be hoping to make up moreground.

Team principal and owner Peter Sauber said therewas never any doubt about Kamui retaining his seat or2011:

We enjoy having our rookie as part o the team both as a driver and a person, says Sauber.

We never had any doubts about working with himagain in 2011.Kamui has de initely ul illed our expectations in

terms o his speed and ighting spirit. Plus, his work with the engineers and his technical understandinghas also developed very well. The experience he hasbuilt up over his irst ull season in Formula One willcertainly stand him in good stead or 2011. And ouraim is to give him a ast and reliable car rom the outsetnext season.

The team is yet to announce the identity o Kamuisteam-mate, but all rumours point in the directiono Mexicos Sergio Perez, likely to be this years GP2

runner-up. He will bring signi icant sponsor backingwith him rom Telmex and has more than proven hisworth as a competitive driver.

Kobayashikeeps Sauber

seat or 2011Perez tipped as team-mate

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F1 NEWS>>

STEVE Walker is now a GraduateEngineer working or Mercedes-BenzHighPer ormanceEngines, but eightyears ago he took his irst step toachieving his childhood dream o working in Formula One by entering theF1 in Schools competition.

Initially he ound out about the F1 inSchools competition through a poster onthe wall at school and together with a ew

riends started a two year journey whichwould end with the team attaining the titleo National Post 16 Age Group Champions.

Initially, the team had little experienceo CAD/CAM engineering processes, butas design engineer Steve grasped theopportunity to develop his technical skillsin a role he thoroughly enjoyed.

During their irst season o competitionthe team won the Best Team Marketingand Sponsorship award at the Midlandsregional heats, but ailed to progress tothe national inals.

At the time, I elt a huge amount o disappointment with the result, butthis inspired me to work even harder

to achieve national success, explainedSteve. Following months o development,the team returned to F1 in Schools

with an improved car and increasedpro essionalism to sweep three regionalawards and progress to the national inals.It would be at the 2004 inals where thetarget laid out two years earlier would beachieved.

Taking the con idence gainedthrough the F1 in schools process, Stevesuccess ully applied to LoughboroughUniversity to study AutomotiveEngineering, where he became a membero their Formula Student Team. Steve

elt Formula Student was the national

progression rom F1 in Schools, o eringhim the opportunity to urther develophis skills whilst competing againststudents rom around the world withsimilar ambitions.

When I irst started Formula StudentI elt along way out o my depth, but Ipersevered knowing that the experiencecould only bene it me, recalls Steve.Following three years o competitionSteve became chie designer or the 2008car and although he stepped back toconcentrate on his studies in his inal year

o university he still played a large role inthe design o the 09 challenger.During 2006/07, Steve completed

a years work experience at Nissan Technical Centre Europe. This gave himthe opportunity to take all o the skillsdeveloped during his studies and applythem to mass market vehicle design.During this time he worked with suppliersthroughout Europe and Japan, o eringthe opportunity to work with people

rom many di erent cultures. Steveirmly believes that all his extra-curricular

activities aided his academic studies,seeing a signi icant rise in module grades

ollowing his work placement year.

All this work culminated in the awardo a irst class degree at the end o Stevesstudies. A ter success ully passing throughtwo stages o assessment centres atMercedes-Benz HighPer ormanceEngines,Steve was able to embark on the careerhe had been dreaming about sincechildhood. Today, Steve wants to act asinspiration by proving that dreams can beachieved i you are willing to work hard

or them. As or the uture, he wants tohelp Mercedes-Benz HPE to continue tobuild on its reputation as the best engine

marque in F1 and be an important part o World Championship winning teams inyears to come.

F1 in Schools a case studyWith the World Final of the unique F1 in Schools competition looming up, GPWEEK looks at a paSteve Walker

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Technical Update: Italian GPMonza is normally very simple low, low down orce. But the F-duct hascomplicated things. GPWEEK Technical Editor Paolo Filisetti explainsMonza is a very unique circuit in the F1 calendar,

eaturing very long straights connected bytight chicanes and only ew high speed corners,notably at Lesmo, and Parabolica.

This unique layout impose a completelydi erent set up rom the aero point o view, withall teams normally adopting low down orcecon guration.

This year, however, the situation was changedby the adoption o the F- duct. This device allowed

most o the cars to run a higher level o down orce,use ul on the ast corners, wheile generatingreduced drag thanks to the F-duct itsel .

This was particularly interesting, especially as itallowed us to make direct comparison in terms o per ormance between the cars that adopted theF-duct, although modi ed, and Lewis Hamilton,who decided to not run this device. We can saythat, simply, the usual low down orce set up, seenin the past in Monza is no longer necessary, or atleast less extreme than in the past.

Lets have a look to the solutions on show inMonza:

FerrariA ter a long back-to-back comparison, duringFriday and Saturday practices, o the rear wingcon guration in Monza, the Italian team ran thesame low-down orce package on both F10s.

The rear wing worked together with a modi edrevised F-duct, eaturing a much smaller pipeinside the engine cover. Also, the wing itsel was modi ed, eaturing a smaller ap with acompletely at pro le. The main wing pro le wasalso completely at.

RenaultIn Monza, Renault ran a new ront wing, based onthe previous version, but simpli ed with no upper

aps and a multiple endplate section, as seen inprevious events. The V cut in the main ap hasthe unction o vortex generator which energisesthe air ow under the cars central section.

McLarenMcLaren ran two di erent aero set-ups or theMonza race. While Button used the F-duct andthe same rear wing adopted in Belgium, Hamiltonadopted a very low-down orce rear wing.

This one is a sort o mix, adopting last years endplates. The F- duct was removed also utilising ashorter engine cover.

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F1 NEWS>>

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IN SUPPORT OF SPORTSPROMOTION

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Red fag controversyHIGHSIDES

n Riders are looking orward toAragons one-race return to a our-session practice schedule, givingthem work to do on Friday morningonce again. They get our 45-minutesessions against the usual three o one hour, as when practice was irstcut back in 2008. Back then, theswitch to three sessions was also inresponse to rider complaints.

n There will be a minutes silenceon the grid or the late Shoya Tomizawa at Aragon, but it has notyet been decided i it would bebe ore the Moto2 race, or the mainMotoGP event. Another tribute isscheduled or what would have beenhis home GP at Motegi: JapaneseF1 driver Kamui Kobayashi worean black armband in his honour atMonza.

n Italian ans are notoriouslylight- ingered and a canny thie preserved the reputation at Misano.In the con usion surround heroRossi a ter the race, the recentlyintroduced high-tech level-horizongyroscopic camera was stolen romhis bike.

n Rizla Suzukis Loris Capirossi is adoubt ul starter or next weekendsAragon GP, a ter his right-hand little

inger was rebuilt a ter his turn-two collision with Nicky Hayden atMisano. Surgery on the small butcomplex injury took 90 minutes, withthe tendon having to be re-attached.

n With Randy de Puniet in talkswith the actory Suzuki team or2011, runaway Moto2 championshipleader Toni Elias may get his longed-

or chance at a MotoGP return withthe LCR Honda team.

n British teenager Scott Redding,unwittingly involved in the Moto2crash at Misano, is determined toreturn to racing as soon as possible. The 17-year-old, who was deeplyshocked by the crash, was scheduledto test at Valencia today (Monday) tosee i he will be it to ride at Aragon.Redding sustained a gash in his back in the crash.

RACE director Paul Butler de ended thedecision not to red- lag last SundaysMisano Moto2 race a ter the crash thattook down three bikes and claimedTomizawas li e.

Many people elt at the time anda terwards that the race should havebeen stopped (see Opinion page 24).

In practical terms, the track was clearo debris and riders and track sta behind the barriers. But i doctors andparamedics on the spot had deemed itwise not to move any o the riders, ori race control had not received clearin ormation rom doctors on the spot,then the race would have been s toppedat once, he said.

Tomizawas quick removal was ul ly justi ied by his condition, but Butler

was unwilling to pass judgement on thequick removal also o Redding rom thetrack:

You have to go with the decisions o the medical people on the spot, he said.

The protocol was and is that i a riderhas sustained li e-threatening injuries,he should not be moved without theinstruction o a doctor.

I there was no doctor or paramedicat the scene, or i radio communicationwith race control had ailed, then thered lag would be immediately deployed.

This has happened several times thisseason, especially at the Sachsenring.At that circuit, Butler continued, limitedlines o sight and a short lap also madeit more likely that a race would bestopped.

Doctors decided the issue RaceDirector

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Ridersquestioned i nfata l crash afterm at h

ALEX de Angelis and Scott Redding,the two riders unable to avoid the

allen Japanese racer Shoya Tomizawa,

have both been questioned by theRimini prosecutors o ice, in the legalinvestigation into the atal accident inthe Moto2 race at Misano two weeksago.

But although the investigation, inaccordance with local law, is into

culpable homicide by persons unknown,no charges were expected to bebrought, as the investigation drew toa close at the end o last week. Thoseexonerated include not only MotoGPand circuit o icials, but also the marshal

carrying the stretcher who stumbled inthe gravel, dropping the victim in theprocess.

The investigation released details o the autopsy, which determined that theprinciple cause o death was massive

crushing injuries to his chest, whichdamaged his heart and lungs irreparably.It also raised questions as to the time o death: determining that it had actuallytaken place in the ambulance takinghim to hospital in Riccione rather than atthe hospital, although urther attemptsat resuscitation were made.

Tomizawas heart-broken parentslew to Italy rom Japan, and visited the

scene o the accident be ore returninghome in advance o the riders remains,which were lown to Japan in Friday. A

uneral was to be scheduled this week. The Technomag-CIP team and Tomizawas amily released a moving

joint statement, saying: We have notonly lost a talented rider, we have losta riend and a son who radiated the joy

o li e and transmitted a good eelingto all those around him. This will alwaysremain in our memories.

The statement concluded:Without Shoya, nothing will be as it

was be ore, but thanks to its passion orthe sport and the encouragement o his amily the Technomag-CIP team willcontinue its adventure and challengesin Moto2. His parents want us to keephis smile and mischievous look in ourmemory, and remember that he passedaway doing what he loved.

Tomizawa had signed a new contractto stay with the team in Moto2 earlier inthe weekend.

Tomizawas body fown home

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THE trackside Astrotur , blamed bysome or l icking Shoya Tomizawas bikesideways and back on to the racing line,will be top o the agenda at next FridaysSa ety Commission meeting at theAragon Motorland circuit, when ridersmeet with racing management or the

irst time a ter the Misano tragedy.Jorge Lorenzo is one critic o the material,

while Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden havespoken out against paved run-o areas,which encourage over-con idence. Butthere is much disagreement among riders:

We will probably argue about the kerbs

and whether to have grass or gravel onthe other side but it is something wehave discussed at great length, said racedirector Paul Butler.

Current delegates are Rossi, Capirossi,Stoner and Pedrosa, though the Fridayevening meetings are open to all riders,and the Aragon meeting is likely to bewell-attended. O icials on the commissioninclude the FIMs Claude Danis and sa etychie Franco Uncini as well as Dornarepresentatives.

Analysis o video o the crash shows therider sliding o the track and onto the kerbbe ore touching the Astrotur . As Rossi saiat Misano, it is more usual in a high-speedcrash or the rider to slide away rom thetrack. Was it the Astrotur ?

Hayden said the arti icial grass wasgrippier than real grass, to the extent thatthe 125s could even ride on it.

Butler said: You need a maintainablesur ace beyond the kerb that discouragesriders rom using it. We believe Astrotur is a better solution than gravel or grass,which in any case tends to get damagedwhen cars use a circuit. But the debatecontinues.

Moto2 grids likely to remain 40-strongTEAMS association IRTA is expecting a floodof entries for next years Moto2 grid and,with two weeks to go before the closingdate on October 1, at least one new high-profile team is set to swell numbers andkeep the grids at the current crowded levels.

This is in spite of all efforts to reduce thefield to a more manageable 36. This was the

original target for the first year of the class,exceeded because there were so many ex-250 teams applying for the class, as well asnew interest from outside and MotoGP teamslooking to add another layer.

IRTA hoped to reduce numbers for nextyear, but general secretary Mike Trimby is

once again expecting to be faced with toomany candidates.

But according to Trimby, in spite of Moto2sfirst-corner pile-ups, safety is not an issue.

The reduction is required for practicalreasons. Paddock space is already at apremium, and with more MotoGP entriesexpected when the 1000cc rules kick in for

2012, as well as a rash of new Moto3 entries,Moto2 needs to be trimmed.It will not happen next year. Although a

couple of current teams were in trouble, andone had gone toes-up (the defunct RSM

Team Scot), there are some very high-qualitynew teams applying.

Trimby declined to give names, but saidthat there were current famous riders (inthe plural) who want to be involved in teammanagement, and it will be very difficult toturn them down.

There are also 125 teams wanting to moveriders up to the middle class, though somewill be disappointed.

FOOTNOTE: In a blow to traditionalpaddock life, junior-class motor-homes willbe banned from the paddock from 2012, inthe battle for space. We have informed allthe teams no new homes will be allowed in,said Trimby.

Sa ety Commission will hone in on Tomizawa cra

to access a HUGE

global audience

A D V E R T IS E in G P W E E K

Safety not an issue IRTA

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M oto GP news>>

WITH next years calendar expectedto be a virtual carbon copy o this,big changes are expected or thenew 1000cc MotoGP era o 2012,

with new circuits in India and AbuDhabi hoping to join the calendar.

The Indian circuit is alreadyprovisionally on the F1 calendar or2011, and wants to run a MotoGPevent as early as the ollowing year.

The Greater Noida circuit, on theoutskirts o New Delhi, is part o avast sports complex, Jaypee SportsCity, also including a cricket stadium,a gol course, and other amenities.

The ast 5.5 km track has beendesigned by Herman Tilke.

The Yas Marina circuit in AbuDhabi, already used by F1, is another

Tilke exercise o similar length. Earlierthis year, Casey Stoner and LorisCapirossi visited the circuit to discussits suitability or MotoGP.

Ducati: no more bikesA rumour that yet another new Ducati teamwill join MotoGP next year with GermanSuperbike rider Max Neukirchner has been

irmly squashed by the Italian actory:We can supply no more than seven bikes, said

team manager Vittoriano Guareschi, questionedabout a report o the new team, reportedlybacked by a big-money German company.

The rumours started in Italy, but were lateralso denied by the rider. But it again raised thequestion o whether Ducati could go one step

urther, to outnumber Hondas on the grid.HRC has said it does not expect to increase the

current tally o six. Ducati next year will also havesix: the two actory bikes or Rossi and Hayden,two Pramac machines or Espargaro and (almostcertainly) Capirossi, and one each or the satelliteriders Hector Barbera and newcomer KarelAbraham.

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T h e w o r l d o f M o T o r s p o r T d i r e c T ly T o y o u r d e s k T o p

I s su e N o . 1 4 6 M a rc h 16 -2 2 2 0 10

W HINCUP INA

F ORMUL A 1C A RA T

A LBE RT P A RK RE IGNINGCH A MP S SE T FORF 1/V 8 C A RSW A P NE XT W E E K F ULLDE T A ILS INSIDE ! P OW E R P L A Y !

A uss i es f ight i t out i n Ind y Car opener and W il l w ins !

E X CLUSIV E !

India, Abu Dhabi aim or MotoGP in 20

21

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(Chie Mechanic to Jorge Lorenzo)Behind every good rider is the chie mechanic who got him there. For champion-elect Jorge Lorenzo, it is the experienced ellow-Spaniard Ramon Forcada. Onthe brink o his frst premier-class World Championship, he spoke about how hegot there, and why. By Michael Scott

5 MINUTES WITH ...

RAMON FORCADA

GPWEEK: How did you start in GP racing?RAMON FORCADA: I rode motocross, then Iprepared bikes or the Spanish championship,and I met with (two-stroke guru) EduardoGiro and asked him or some in ormation.Then we got good results.

In GP, I started working on the test bench

in 1989 or JJ Cobas, the Alex Criville bike,and then in 1990 I came to the circuit as chie mechanic or Aspar on the Cobas 250.

What sort o quali cations do you need oryour job?I studied at university, but I did not get thetitle. University knowledge is good, butexperience is the most important. Working onbikes has been my hobby, all my li e. Now it ismy job, but it is still my hobby. I still preparebikes at home, or Supermotard and Enduro.

What riders have you worked with?A ter Aspar, then Criville again in 250, thenCarlos Giro on a actory bike in 125. A ter thatI was with Showa when they built up theservice working or many riders , and in 1995I started with Checa in the Pons 250 team. In500s I was with Puig, Kocinski, Borja, Barros,then Ukawa, then Casey Stoner, then Checaagain ... and then I came to Yamaha with Jorge.

Jorge apart, who was the most interestingrider?Probably Casey. He has very high talent. At a

new circuit, the rst rider to be really ast isCasey. But that year we had a lot o problemwith the Michelin ront tyre. With his style itwas difcult or him to eel the limit, so wehad a lot o crashes.

He needs a good group around to buildcon dence, but he has a very good base. Heis able to understand things that are difcult.. he can eel very small things.

Jorge is more ... methodical than Casey. Heis working a lot at the track and away romthe track.

Some think Jorge has taken the bene to Rossis development skill. What aboutJorges ability?

The bike is developed by the engineers. Therider has to be clear about what he needs tobe ast. Di erent riders need di erent things.

The engineers job is to create the base o the bike, and it is our job to adjust the bike inevery circuit and every condition. The basehas to be wide enough or the right setting at

every circuit.I the bike is really radical then maybeat one circuit it will work very well, but at adi erent circuit you are out o the range. TheYamaha is well-balanced. It has enough rangeto adapt or every circuit.

The rider needs to understand what heneeds to be ast. I we solve one problem andgo hal a second aster, then you nd anotherproblem. The important thing is to be ast. Tobe com ortable and smooth doesnt matter.

The rider can say he is struggling with grip,braking and turning, but ... go or the braking,

because i we brake well we can get a betterlap time.Jorge understands this. But he is not a

technician/rider. He never asks the details o what we do. Sometimes a rider wants to bemore technical, and this can be worse. Maybethe technician has a di erent idea, and thereis a ght. Jorge will say we need to improvethe traction: but i we do it by suspension, bypower, or by the colour o the bike, he doesntcare.

How does the wall down the Yamaha pit

afect you? This is a very good solution, just to keep theconcentration o the mechanics and theriders. It is there or a di erent reason, becauseValentino wants to stop the exchange o in ormation ... this is another story.

But to keep the working areas separate,or me is very good. You just work on your

own bike and your own problems. In the endevery rider needs a di erent setting. Even onthe same bike.

What about Valentino re using to share data

this year?No problem. We know rom the partial timesin which point o the circuit we might be

losing. It is easy to analyse i it is braking orhandling.

In any case, Yamaha are not stupid. Yamahahas the data rom all the riders, and i one hasa problem Yamaha will use all that data to tryto help. We cant see the data on the pit-boxserver, but i we have a problem Yamaha will

not leave us because o the private data. Theywill try to help us.

What is your relationship like with Lorenzo?Pro essional. Now it is more usual or a riderto move with his crew ... like Valentino, andalso Casey, and I think this is correct becauseo the understanding you build up.

We train sometimes together in Barcelona,at a motocross track, but we dont have areally close relationship because we aredi erent ages. He is 23 and I am 53. It isnormal. I dont imagine I will go to the

discotheque with him.

Is he the best rider youve ever worked with?It is difcult to say who is the best rider. He isthe one with the best results.

He has one very good point ... he is alwayspushing himsel to be better. Not just inracing, but in everything. This is the pressurehe creates around himsel and the peopleworking with him. It is good: nobody can relax.

For me his mentality is one o the bestthings. He has been enough strong to notsu er the pressure rom the other side.

Valentino tries in interviews and di erentstrategies, but Jorge says: okay. I do it my way.

Finally, with your years o experience, doyou pre er two-stroke or our-stroke.For racing? Two-strokes. You use your hands... working, grinding. I worked a lot on the testbench with two-strokes. Many times you losepower, you lose more power ... but in the endyou nd something.

The our-stroke is much more difcult ... a job that only the actory can do. With thetwo-strokes, even with the best actory

bikes, you could modi y something. You havesomething to play with, but now almostnothing.

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PRE-F1 CHAT>>

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Email usSomething to say?Email us atmail@gpweek.com

Ferrari verdict unpopular ...No urther penalty or Ferrari. Well I did notsee that coming. Much!

Just a good job they were not silver andred with Voda one on the sides.

So the FIA hammers one more nail intothe co in o Formula 1 credibility.

Any logical person would think i a rock concert is required to attract crowds to aGrand Prix meeting, why isn't it they cometo see the racing?

Thank God or NASCAR!Gordon Dicksen (Australia)

Gordon@dqh.com.au

So a ter the verdict o 8th o September it'sallowed to buy yoursel some team orders

or $100.000.Maybe in the next race Red Bull should

drive the whole race on so t tyres withoutmaking a pit-stop or the mandatory tyrechange.

Costs: $200,000 ?Now you can break the rules without ear

o getting a ew race bans or something ...Oops, sorry, only Ferrari is allowed to do

these kind o things.... Alex Bernadina (Germany)alexbernadina@gmail.com

What makes a great race?Apart rom everything else, what was sogood about Monza was Button's radicallydi erent set-up, which created a sizeabledi erence in per ormance between his carand that o Alonso at di erent parts o thetrack.

That's what created such a rivettingcontest even though there was no

on-track passing between the two.Per ormance di erences around the track.

Hmmmm. how couild we do more o that?I know. Remember when tyre companiesraced each other in F1? That createdper ormance di erence everywhere. Wortha thought?

PS: hats o to Webber. Championshipat stake, he was the only one in the top 10to put it all on the line and pull o threesuperb passes around the outside, into thechicane. Uncompromising.

I'd like to see Vettel try that ...Matthew Pinkerton

Camberwell (UK)

Some commentators have beenup in arms since Wednesday,convinced Ferrari should havebeen guillotined at Place de laConcorde and criticizing JeanTodt and the FIA or missingan opportunity to smash theperception that theyre glove

puppets or the prancing horse.Personally, I think doing nothing

was the best option. Ferrari hasbeen ound guilty, and has beenmodestly punished. Sure, $100k isnothing to a team like Ferrari, butthat was the most the stewardscould demand at the scene and

or the World Motor Sport Councilto have increased the penalty, thedamaging story would have beenheadline news again. Best sweep itunder the carpet.

It was important to investigateit though. The FIA will now reviewArticle 39.1, which was poorlywritten. Most team bosses agree itwas vague and unpoliceable. Thequestion is, when do team orders

become acceptable?

There are several precedents inthe last two years alone o teamsordering a driver to yield to histeam-mate urther down the ield(McLaren Germany 2008), or todemand the pursuing driver holdsposition (McLaren Hungary2010). But in my view, bothare di erent. Neither exampleexplicitly changed the winningresult. Fans dont want ake results.

This isnt wrestling.However, we do become more

accepting o these things i oneteam-mate is in the championshiphunt, and the other isnt. Germanywas Round 11 o a 19 race seasonthats all to play or, and Felipe wasstill very much in with a shout. Tome, there ore, Ferraris team orderwas very poor show and they wereright to be ound guilty o Article151, o bringing the sport intodisrepute.

But with the points di erencenow, ive races be ore the end,

were Massa asked to yield orAlonso, we would accept that.So either they need to ditch

the ban on team orders whichI wouldnt particularly like tosee, as I believe its in the spirit o

o p i n i o

n ADAM

HAY-NICHOLLSGPWeek Edi or

The loss o one o the grand prixbrethren is deeply elt. Years agothe risk o sudden death wasblatant. Massive strides in sa etyhavent removed the implicit threat,but it is so distant as to be severely

shocking when it arises.Culprits are sought; blame needs

to be attached.In the sad case o Shoya Tomizawa,

there are many questions: mainly why was the race not red- lagged,and why was the victim so rapidlyand roughly removed? Was thisunseemly haste in any way to blame?

The explanations showed theactions made no di erence to hischances. And that while nothingcould have been done to save poorShoya, everything was done all the

same. The race continued simply because

MICHAELSCOttMo oGP Edi or o

p i n i o n

Li e a ter Death

When do team o

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GPWEEK OPINION>>

racing that its every man

or himsel or they re-write it with explicit clausessaying when and how it ispermissible, and when itisnt.

Another decision to comeout o the WMSCs get-together is this move to takedrivers racing licences awayi theyre caught drivingdangerously on the road.

You can see why the FIAwants this. They use F1

drivers to promote theirvery worthwhile road sa etycampaigns. BUT there isa total gul between themethodology o race drivingand road driving. Its likenight and day. Theresno reason to believe apro essional racing drivershould automatically be asa e road driver. Or that theyare in any way sensible. Inmy experience and Ive

grabbed enough li ts withF1 drivers to know this thecomplete opposite is true.

I the FIA want to useracing drivers to promoteroad sa ety, its their gamble!

the track had been cleared be ore thepack arrived the next time. Assumptionso enslavement to TV schedules are notvalid: there was still a lunch break tocome and time in hand.

The haste was because Tomizawawas not breathing, and there was apotentially li e-saving respirator in thenearby ambulance.

Its less easy to explain why ScottRedding was likewise so hastily bundledo on a stretcher a ter looping 50metres through the air and landing veryheavily. I there had been spinal injuries,rough handling could have made themmuch worse. Surely the 17-year-oldshould have been cared or where hewas?

As it turned out, there were no

complications. Redding by a greatmercy, needed stitches in his back, butnothing was broken. Whew!

But it looks like something needs tobe done to standardise the medicalprotocol: the race was stopped instantlyin Germany a ter de Puniet had beenrun over (broken leg). All o us wouldlike to see allen riders treated withthe same conspicuous caution, always.

Take note, Motegi track sta . This roughtreatment should not be seen again.

There is one culprit rather morenebulous. It lurks within ourselves, andeverywhere else in the sport. Indeed, itis the sport.

Consider the dilemma presented bythis horrible crash.

For many, it crystallised the thought

that Moto2, with 40 bikes with identicalengines, is just too dangerous. Therehave been several multiple crashesalready this year: by pure luck with noserious injuries until now.

But this same thought needs to inda way to exist alongside another: thatMotoGP is in serious doldrums, becauseit has become so processional. Theresbarely any overtaking at the ront.Politely spaced out, its ollow-my-leader.Literally.

We want closer racing.At the same time, we also dont want

it to be too close.Just close enough.I hope, in sad and respect ul memory

o Tomizawa-San, that this nirvana isattainable.

ders become acceptable?

2

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A L O N S O S I T A L I

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F1 MONZA>>

N R E N A IS S A N C E

2

F ernando Alons o said, going into the weekend, that

victory at Mo nza was pretty critical in order to stay in the championship hunt. W ith Hamilton fa iling to score,he and Jenson Button are very much b ack in the gam e.

Adam Hay-Nicholls was there

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Fernando Alonso was hailed as a king as he stoodarms alo t on Monzas podium, elevated above the

Autodromos start/ inish straight, packed with answaving Ferrari lags and climbing over the railings.

It had been a superb win, taken rom rivals McLaren thanksto a super quick 3.4 second pit-stop.

Starting rom Ferraris irst pole since Brazil 2008, Alonso lostout to P2 man Jenson Button and the pair touched as theysqueezed through the irst chicane:

I thought something had broken so I was cautious or thenext two laps, explained Alonso, who also traded paint withteam-mate Felipe Massa. Despite running a higher down orceaero con iguration, Button couldnt lose the Ferraris through thecorners. On the straights, with a top speed 10km/h slower thanAlonso, he was open to attack and it was mentally draining orthe Briton to nail the inal corner, the Parabolica, per ectly everytime so as to maintain the necessary gap. Nevertheless, he madeno mistakes.

Lewis Hamilton lost his lead in the championship when hemade an error on Lap 1, clouted Massas car at the secondchicane, and went shooting o the track with a broken ront-right wishbone. He was urious with himsel , stomping back tothe pits with his helmet on, in no mood to talk to reporters.

Button pitted on Lap 36, one lap earlier than Alonso, which helater admitted was the wrong call. Said Alonso:

When we saw Jenson coming in, there was one lap to pushand rely on the mechanics. I think the lap was more or lessokay, nothing special, but the pitstop was superb. Not only wasJensons stop 0.8 seconds slower than Fernandos, he struggled

on resh tyres on his outlap, just as the Spaniard was settingpurple sectors.

I looked in my mirror as I exited the pitlane and saw Jensonwas a long way back, said Alonso. I thought good, the positionis ours, but I orgot he was coming at me at 340km/h. We wereside-by-side at the irst corner. When I pressed the throttle at theexit I nearly lost it.

Button said his runner-up result was still great, given theboost its given to his championship standing, but added

obviously Im disappointed not to be on the top step, and ashe said that, you could hear the lump in his throat. He reallythought he had this one in the bag.

Sixth place was enough to promote Mark Webber to the titlelead, though the big gains have, o course, been made by Alonsoand Button. With victory worth 25 points, third-placed Alonso isnow 21 o the lead, and Button a single point behind him.

But Massa warns that Ferrari and McLaren will have their work cut out i theyre to beat Red Bull Racing at the next two races.:

I you compare Monza to the tracks that are coming up, itscompletely di erent. Singapore is like Monaco, and Suzuka islike Silverstone. Red Bull loves these kinds o circuits.

Alonsos hat-trick o pole, win and astest lap makes Monzathe irst per ect weekend or a driver since Sebatian Vettelsper ormance last year at Silverstone. As or winning or Ferrari

irst time out in Italy, Alonso was glowin:It's something I can only compare with winning my home

grand prix at Barcelona in 2006, Alonso said. "t was a veryspecial moment, and this one is a very special moment as well.It's a antastic eeling.

F1 MONZA>>

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IT was clearly a mistake by mysel , one o those things that happenswhen you're racing and you're pushing hard. I was trying to positionthe car in a certain way and I was too close to Massa and he clipped mywheel and damaged the car. Nothing I could do.

Holding his hands up or the error that pitched him out o the race onthe opening lap, Lewis demonstrated that while mistakes can still happento the best drivers in the world, its how you deal with them that counts.

Hell know that, had he just eased o a raction going into the secondchicane, ourth place at worst was his or the taking and that would havemaintained his championship lead.

His right- ront wishbone ractured by the contact with Massa,Hamiltons wheel snapped askew as he turned in or the irst Lesmo and

kept going, grinding across the gravel. Locked away with his engineer or30 minutes be ore speaking to the media, he needed time to calm downand evaluate.

In Belgium Alonso, Button and Vettel all ailed to score, whereas hereHamiltons DNF and Webbers sixth place served to allow to the title raceto close up once again. There are now just 24 points - less than a race win

between the top ive.It's not over, but it's days like this, and mistakes like I made today, that

lose you world championships, he said.I only have mysel to blame.

HISPANIA Racing was ined $20,000 or the unsa e release o SakonYamamoto rom his pitstop on lap 22 o Sundays Italian Grand Prix.

Yamamoto was given the all-clear to leave his pitbox by thelollipop man, but his radio technician was tending to his cockpit atthe time, and was hit violently by the car as Sakon pulled away. Hewas reportedly out o sight o Yamamoto and he pulled away notknowing he was there.

The technician never lost conciousness during or a ter the accidentand was taken to the circuits medical centre. He was then trans erredto hospital where he spent Sunday night as a precaution.

Although the incident was not caught on the international televisioneed, pitlane CCTV cameras ilmed the nasty scene, with stewards

subsequently ining the team $20,000 or the misdemeanour.Yamamoto said a ter the race that he was concerned or the

Hispania member:I was very worried about the incident in the pit-lane, said Sakon. I

asked i he was okay and I was told that he was not badly injured.A Hispania spokesperson re used to reveal the identity o the

technician to GPWEEK or his protection. Perhaps dressing him insome orm o bear suit would best deal with his needs or protectionwhenever he returns to the paddock.

Hispania fned $20,000 or pits

Lewis: Only myself to blame Championship blown wide open by Hamilton DNF

Radio technician not seriously hurt

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p incident

F1 MONZA>>

FORMULA 1 Round 1 MONZA

Points Drivers: Webber 187, Hamilton 182, Alonso 166, Button 165,Vettel 163, Massa 124, Rosberg 112, Kubica 108, Schumacher 46, Sutil 45,

Barrichello 31, Kobayashi 21, Petrov 19, Hulkenberg 16, Liuzzi 13, etcManu acturers: Red Bull 350, McLaren 347, Ferrari 290, Mercedes GP 158,Renault 127, Force India 58, Williams 47, Sauber 27, Toro Rosso 10.

Pos # Driver Team Laps Time Grid

1 8 Fernando Alonso Ferrari 53 1:16:24.572 1

2 1 Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 53 +2.9 secs 23 7 Felipe Massa Ferrari 53 +4.2 secs 34 5 Sebastian Vettel RBR-Renault 53 +28.1 secs 65 4 Nico Rosberg Mercedes GP 53 +29.9 secs 76 6 Mark Webber RBR-Renault 53 +31.2 secs 47 10 Nico Hulkenberg Williams-Cosworth 53 +32.8 secs 88 11 Robert Kubica Renault 53 +34.0 secs 99 3 Michael Schumacher Mercedes GP 53 +44.9 secs 1210 9 Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 53 +64.2 secs 1011 16 Sebastien Buemi STR-Ferrari 53 +65.0 secs 1412 15 Vitantonio Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes 53 +66.1 secs 1913 12 Vitaly Petrov Renault 53 +78.9 secs 2014 22 Pedro de la Rosa BMW Sauber-Ferrari 52 +1 Lap 16

15 17 Jaime Alguersuari STR-Ferrari 52 +1 Lap 1516 14 Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 52 +1 Lap 1117 24 Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 51 +2 Laps 2418 19 Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Cosworth 51 +2 Laps 1819 20 Sakon Yamamoto HRT-Cosworth 51 +2 Laps 2320 25 Lucas di Grassi Virgin-Cosworth 50 +3 Laps 21Ret 18 Jarno Trulli Lotus-Cosworth 46 Gearbox 17Ret 21 Bruno Senna HRT-Cosworth 11 Hydraulics 22Ret 2 Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 0 Accident 5Ret 23 Kamui Kobayashi BMW Sauber-Ferrari 0 Gearbox 13

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Stewarts take no action on rookie

Webber rustrated by

Hulkenbergs chicane-hopping MARK Webber was le t rustrated andannoyed a ter inishing just sixth, despiteretaking the championship lead romHamilton.

The source o Marks rustration wasWilliams rookie Nico Hulkenberg, whode ended his position rom Webber in thelast 20 laps by jumping the chicane no less

than three times, be ore the Australianinally got by with ive laps remaining.Although Webber urged his team to get

the stewards involved via the radio, racedirector Charlie Whiting took no action.

Williams is reported to have argued thatWebber was never close enough to havetaken the position rom Hulkenberg whenhe jumped the chicane. The spat meantWebber was unable to close on Rosbergin time and he had to settle or sixth in theend.

I lost a lot o time behind Hulkenburg

he seemed to spend every secondlap going through the chicane, butthe stewards le t him alone which was

rustrating, said Webber a ter the race.I got him in the end, but I lost a lot o

time.Hulkenberg said he had been struggling

with the brake pedal at the time, adding tohis woes:

I seemed to be ighting one or othero the Red Bulls or the whole a ternoon,and there wasnt a moment when therewas any let up in the pressure, recalled

Hulkenberg.It was made all the more di icult as I

was struggling with the brake pedal, but itwas an exciting a ternoon o attacking andde ending.

3

RED Bull Racing says that brake binding was to blame orSebastian Vettel slowing on lap 20 o Sundays Italian Grand Prix,and was not related to the engine despite Vettel believing it waslosing power at the time.

During the race, Red Bull believed the problem had been causedby binding brakes or a visor tear-o in the airbox, but post-raceinvestigations ound that one or more o his brakes had remainedpartially locked a ter the Ascari chicane, giving him the sensation o an underpowered engine.

Team-mate Webber made his way by amid his problems, but thebrakes then returned to normal a ter braking or the Parabolicacorner.

Thank ully the problem didnt cost him anything in the end, and acunning strategy to run until the inal lap o the race on the so t tyremeant he was able to jump to ourth, ahead o team-mate Webberand Mercedes Nico Rosberg.

Around lap 20 something happened to the car, I dont know whatit was, maybe there was some riction in the car, but ortunately theproblem solved itsel , Vettel said a ter the race.

In the meantime though, I lost connection to the group ahead andthe tow, so around three to our seconds. I had to come back romthere and it was a tough ight.

Brake bind the cause o Vettels troubles

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F1 MONZA>>

was Nico Hulkenbergs best GP date, but he pushed the limits o -track usage ...

33

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MEXICOS Esteban Gutierrez produced thedrive o a champion to secure the inauguralGP3 series crown a ter beating title rivalRobert Wickens in a ascinating duel.

Pole position on Saturday morning meantGutierrez had put the title beyond thereach o the Canadian, but it didnt stop himdriving out o his skin in that evenings race.

Although he kept the lead on the irst lap,he struggled to keep the place and by lap

ive he had dropped back to i th. He soongot to grips with he slipstreaming e ect onMonzas long straights though and six laps

later was right on the tail o leader Wickenswho had ought his way up rom i th on thegrid, be ore taking the lead with a daringovertaking manoeuvre into the irst chicaneat the start o lap 13.

Although Wickens was able to keep himwithin a second over the remaining laps, hewas never close enough to challenge and thepair crossed the line in championship order.

The tables turned on Sunday morning

though and, rom a reverse grid seventh,Wickens took the lead be ore the secondchicane, a ter orcing his way passed Merhi

out the irst chicane. He was never headedtherea ter and looked completely in controlbe ore taking the chequered lag 1.6 secondsclear. Gutierrez was unable to make a repeatper ormance a ter spinning to a stop on theopening lap while trying to avoid contact,a relatively minor blip in an otherwiseimpressive weekend and season overall.

Gutierrez there ore takes the 2010 crownwith 88 points, ive wins and nine podium

inishes to Wickens 71 points, three wins andseven podium inishes. Nico Mller takesthird on 53 points.

GP3: Gutierrez takes inaugural title with champions drive Runner-up Wickens hits back with copybook Sunday performance

3

GP2: No points and three crashes secure title or Maldonado GP2 veteran Pastor Maldonado secured the 2010 GP2 Series championshipin Monza on Sunday, despite ailing to score a point all weekend a ter chie title rival Sergio Perez su ered a similarly unrewarding pair o races.

Maldonado went into this weekends action with six consecutive eaturerace wins under his belt, but blotted his copybook with three crashes,bringing his quali ying, eature race and sprint race to premature inishes.

A ter quali ying on pole on Friday evening, ARTs Jules Bianchi lost the leadon the opening lap, as team-mate Sam Bird shot through at the start, be orecruising clear at the ront o the ield to win at a canter by 8.5 seconds. Chaosreigned in the mid ield behind the ART duo, and Sergio Perezs title hopes

looked all but over when he was punted out o the race on lap 6.However, Maldonados crash at the irst chicane on lap 8, where he had

crashed during quali ying, meant the title ight stayed alive until Sundaymorning, but the Mexicans hopes remained monumentally slim.

And sure enough, a ter slipping back to 22nd and last on the irst laphaving run wide at the Parabolica, he was never going to be able to recoverthe positions to take the win and astest lap he needed. Maldonado was le tcelebrating in the pits with his team a ter de initively securing the 2010 crown,having ollowed Perez into the gravel at the Parabolica on the irst lap, but hadbeen unable to avoid the barrier and retired on the spot.

Athe ront o the ield, a blistering start by Chris Vietoris saw him catapultedrom i th to irst a ter threading the eye o a needle through his rivals on

lights-out. The series concludes in Abu Dhabi in mid-November, but where alleyes will be on the teams championship ight between Rapax and Addax.

Nightmare weekend for title challengers

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Esteban Gutierrez

inaugural GP3 Champion

GPWEEK: How does it eel to be the inaugural GP3 Serieschampion?

ESTEBAN GUTIERREZ: It was a great season, the team was veryspecial to grab the results we had this weekend. We were able toclose in a very strong position, with a very good per ormance.

Yes, weve been very hapy, very satis ied, because we werenot just able to win the championship but also we were able to

acomplish a lot o things that we put as a goal at the beginning,and one o the main things was to be consistent the whole year,try to avoid making mistakes as much as possible. In the end wewere really consistent at a really high level. This is something thatwe eel very satis ied with.

Is it disappointing that you had a dip in the last two races,scoring points just once in our starts?

We have to look at the positive. In Spa it was di icult with thepenalties, the situation with the track, the weather was reallyvariable.

In the end it is about racing we have had a very good seasonthroughout the whole year. O course there is always ups and

downs in a season, there is always the worst moment and thereis always the best moment. This weekend has been very positivealthough we didnt inish the race today.

Yesterday we wasted a lot o energy, it was completely themaximum that we could do. Doing the pole lap and also winningthe race, starting on pole, going back to i th and recovering allthe positions. It was a very intense day and today I made a smallmistake. Merhi made a mistake in ront o me, I was coming rombehind and had to avoid contact, I didnt want to end someoneelses race because o my mistake. He might have been ighting

or a position in the championship. I tried my best to avoidcontact and in the end I lost the car and I couldnt continue, thecar didnt keep running. I didnt crash into the wall, the car justdidnt work.

Whats the aim or next year?We have to take it step-by-step, GP2 is a good option. For me

its either Formula One, GP2 or GP3. I am already doing what I like.I have to live the moment in the present, I just have to try to enjoythe best, take the most o each experience, learn as much aspossible and arrive in Formula One in the best possible way, notonly to arrive but to arrive strongly.

Is it an option to jump into an F1 seat at Sauber next year?My main ocus is to do GP2. Whatever [else] comes will be

something extra, but our plan is to do GP2.

F1 MONZA>>

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Team-By-Team:Italian GranMcLaren arrived in Monza as the hot

avourites or the victory and it was there ore

no surprise that there was a somewhatdownbeat tone in their motorhome post-race.

Despite leading the irst stint, Button hadto settle or second at the end having lost aplace during the pitstops, although the teambelieves it was still the right call to pit when

they did.Title leader Hamilton didnt even make it as

ar as the irst pitstop a ter damaging his carin contact with Felipe Massa at the secondchicane.

Coming away rom their weakest track onthe calendar with the lead in the driverschampionship retaken and their constructorschampionship lead extended by two pointswas a pleasing result or Red Bull.

Webber was highly rustrated by NicoHulkenbergs de ensive tactics and althoughhe got by eventually he was unable to close in

on Rosberg in time or i th.A ter working through a bizarre brake

problem that he thoughgt were engine dramas,(see separate story) Vettel had a long irst stintto thank or taking ourth.

He pitted on the second-last lap or tyres andstayed ahead o Rosberg to close in on Webberin the title ight.

A antastic start rom ninth on the gridcatapulted Kubica into i th place by the end o the irst lap, but un ortunately he was unableto keep the place until the inish a ter losingthree spots during the pitstop phase.

He could have inished sixth but was caughtout by Webber and Hulkenberg when the latteremerged rom the pitlane on lap 37 and was

unable to mount a challenge therea ter. Team-mate Petrov inished outside the

points in 13th a ter a poor quali ying. Underthe circumstances, he did well to climb rom20th.

Mercedes GP scored another double pointsinish, with Rosberg and Schumacher inishingi th and ninth respectively, an outcome

team principal Ross Brawn called respectablehaving started 7th and 12th on the grid.

Rosberg was happy to have got back aheado Kubica in the championship, but wasdisappointed to have dropped a place to

Sebastian Vettel in the closing laps.Schumacher had a superb start to thank or

his points-scoring a ternoon.He jumped to eighth, but was soon

passed by Webber where he stayed until the

chequered lag.

Williams continued to close in on Force India inthe constructors championship with its thirddouble points inish o the year, albeit onlyseventh and tenth.

Hulkenberg called his race tough butrewarding a ter ighting all day long withone or the other Red Bull, eventually cedingto Webber in the inal ew laps. Barrichello

inished where he began in tenth and had aquick pitstop to thank or jumping Buemi toget the inal point.

With ive races remaining, Williams lie just 11points behind Force India in the ight or sixthin the constructors championship.

Fernando Alonso could scarcely have hopedor a better weekend to get his championship

hopes back on track, a ter taking pole position,victory and astest lap and having seen chie title rivals Lewis Hamilton and Mark Webber ailto score signi icant points.

Other than a poor start, Alonso was utterlylawless and took ull advantage o Button

pitting be ore him to pass him on lap 37, be oretaking the win three seconds clear.

Team-mate Massa was his rear-gunnerthroughout, but was unable to pass Button tomake it a Ferrari 1-2.

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Prix, MonzaForce India ailed to score a point in thethird race o the last our in Monza, a ter a

disappointing and luckless Italian GP weekend.Sutil was hoping or points starting 11th, but

was pushed into the gravel at the irst cornerbe ore pitting to drop to last place.

He recovered to 16th at the inish, one lapdown.

Team-mate Liuzzi started 19th a ter engineproblems in quali ying and had risen to 12th

by lap 10, but ailed to progress any urtherand took the lag just two seconds outside thepoints.

Sebastien Buemi was pleased with his raceper ormance despite missing out on points orthe i th consecutive race.

He lamented tra ic and coming in early orhis pitstop as reasons or dropping behind

Barrichello, and despite intensely pressurisingthe Brazilian or the inal stint he was unable topush his way through.

Team-mate Alguersuari was ba led as towhy he was handed a drive-through penalty,having been deemed to have gained anadvantage by cutting the irst chicane.

Nevertheless, he was pleased with his

per ormance and his laptimes.

Gaining our places on the irst lap was as goodas it got or Pedro de la Rosa and BMW Sauberin Sundays race, a ter a di icult weekend orthe Swiss-based team.

De la Rosa was in 12th at the end o the irstlap, but had allen to 13th by lap 10 and lost a

urther place when he pitted on lap 17. Team-mate Kobayashi didnt even complete

the irst lap a ter gearbox problems meant hehad to retire just a ew hundred metres intothe race.

The problems struck on his installation lap,but couldnt be repaired in time.

Yet another gearbox-related problem costLotus the chance to win the new team battlein Monza on Sunday, a ter Jarno Trulli retired

rom a com ortable position at the head o thenew teams.

He had led the battle rom the irst lapbut began to slow on lap 36 be ore retiringaltogether on lap 46.

Team-mate Kovalainen spent the entire racelooking at the gearbox o Virgins Timo Glock and despite being obviously quicker he wasunable to get by.

Despite losing the race o the new teams,they remain tenth in the championship.

It was a bitter-sweet Sunday in Monza orVirgin Racing, as it got just one car to the

inish and inally got back on top in the battleo the new teams, albeit because o a Lotusretirement.

A ter starting last on the grid, Glock jumped to 17th on the irst lap, and despiteintense pressure rom behind, he kept Heikki

Kovalainen at bay or 52 di icult laps.Di Grassi was disappointed not to make theinish a ter retiring on the inal lap.He is already looking orward to Singapore.

Despite running Monaco-spec wings thisweekend, Hispania Racing was surprisinglycompetitive on Monzas long straights, andlooked to be a match to Virgin in Sundays race.

It was marred by a violent accident ortheir radio technician however, a ter he wasknocked down by Sakon Yamamoto duringthe pitstops, through no ault o the Japanese

driver.He went on to inish the race while team-

mate Bruno Senna did not a ter su ering ahydraulic ailure 11 laps into the race.

F1 MONZA>>

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G r e e t i n g s f r o m I t a l y

H ugh G r a nt

xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxx

T he S t e r e o phoni c s

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SleepingBeauty:The Italiansummer heat proved to be toorelaxing or some.

F1 MONZA>>

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T H E R E I GN OF

M A I N L Y I N Unders ta temen t: Mo toGP is e x traordinaril y0

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FEATURE>>

SP A I N ST A Y S T H E F R A M E

g in Spain. MICHAEL SCO T T look s a t the reasons wh y

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NEXT weekends trip to the newmiddle-o -nowhere AragonMotorland circuit is the thirdtrip to Spain this year. A ourth is

coming, Valencia to round out the season.Not to mention another just over theborder in Portugal.

The circus arrives at the new venue withall Spanish lags waving. For the past iveGPS in a row, every race in every class hastriggered the Spanish national anthem.

Class by class, MotoGP has had ten in a row,between Lorenzo and Pedrosa; while the lasttime any other national won a 125 race wasat Catalunya last year. It was Italian Iannone,and that was only because race leader JulianSimon had celebrated one lap too early. Thatmakes 21 Spanish 125 wins in a row.

It is not a trend that seems likely to runout o steam.

Nor is it something that has happened byaccident.

We are seeing the ruits o a long-termdevelopment plan pushed orward with

the help o Dorna and generous inancialbacking, rom among others Tele nicaMoviStar and then Red Bull. The riders at the

top today are either direct graduates o that junior programme or a by-product.

Spains passion or motorcycle racing hasnever been in doubt. The national resources,however, meant the industry and byextension the racing e orts were rooted inthe smaller classes; and things didnt reallyget going until the late 1960s. Angel Nietowon his irst title in 1969, the same year thatthe heroic Santiago Herrero won his irst 250races on the all-Spanish Ossa, inishing third

overall. The next year he was killed in a crashat the Isle o Man TT, an event that meantthe Spanish ederation orbade its licenceholders to race there every again, andcontributed to the end o the TT as a WorldChampionship round. It also persuadedOssa to turn rom road racing to trialscompetition.

Nieto was also riding an all-Spanishmachine, the little jewel-like Derbi, andit was in the smallest 50/80cc class ( seeopening pic, previous page! ) that Spanishriders achieved the greatest success,

topping the results by some margin. Bycomparison, Spain lies behind Italy in the125 class, 153 wins to 220; and third in the

250 class, with 85 wins to 90 or Great Britainand a whopping 200 or Italy. The class was in existence rom 1962 until

1989. Thanks mainly to Nieto and later JorgeAspar Martinez, the nation amassed 69 racewins. Next best was Germany, with 31. It waseven more emphatic when you count thechampionships, all scored by the above pair:eight, to Germanys our.

Derbi is still a amiliar name: Ossa islost in the mists o time. Founded by theGiro amily, the monocoque racer wasthe independent brainchild o two-stroke

genius Eduardo Giro. There were otherSpanish racing machines, rom otherorgotten Hispanic manu acturers, Bultaco

Angel Nieto

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FEATURE>>

and Montesa. Derbis race on, in name only:the company is now Italian-owned by

Piaggio, which also owns Aprilia. Thats whythe current bikes are clones o the Italians.Derbi was still making its own little hand-

wrought two-stroke jewels up to the 1990s;and Manuel Herreros won the marqueslast title as an independent manu acturerin 1989.

But the torch was kept alive or a ewmore years by engineers like AntonioCobas, whose JJ Kobas 125s and 250ssometimes used engines o their owndesign, and took Alex Criville to the World125 Title in 1989. That year marked both a

high point and a turning point in Spanishracing ortunes. As in 1988, all three smallerclasses were won by Spanish riders (Pons

250 and Martinez 125 and 80 in the earlieryear). But a ter that, national success in

GP racing waned somewhat until the newgeneration o cadet racers turned up. Theone high point was when Criville took Spains irst and until now only premier-class World Championship on a Honda in1999.

The legacy o those days remainsthroughout the paddock. Ramon Forcada,Lorenzos crew chie , is just one o many inthe pits rooted in that era. Forcada cut histechnical teeth working with Eduardo Giroat Ossa, and with Cobas a ter that.

But it is a whole new generation

that has risen to take over racing now.Success eeds on success, and Spanishriders do more than dominate the winsand rostrums. There are more and morecoming behind: out o 23 125-classregulars at Indy, or instance, well over onein three spoke Spanish a total o nine.

The ratio is a little less intense in Moto2:ten out o 40; and in MotoGP stood equalwith Italy, at ive apiece.

This is the continuation o a quitedeliberate trend, initiated and stillpowered by Alberto Puig, whose own

racing career was cut short by injury a terhe had been one o the ew riders everto de eat Mick Doohan in a straight ight

during the Australians reign. The irst dawning was a three-year

programme that began in 1999: Puigsecured big-bucks backing rom Tele nicaand whittled down 600 applications to 25,

or a one-make 125 series in Spain. Fromthese he handpicked our riders.

Two were Raul Jara and Joan Olive, thelatter a mid- to ront-runner today inMoto2 a ter an up-and down 125 career.

The other two were Dani Pedrosa and Toni Elias. O whose prowess we need noreminding.

Out o this grew a more ormal structureor riders that is still in place: the Spanish

national 125 championship is a ertilebreeding ground.With the involvement o Dorna and the

creation o the Dorna Academy, the netwas spread wider than only Spain. BradleySmith, the Ginger Gringo in the Aspar 125team, is just one o a long list o graduatesnow in GPs.

But the Spanish impetus was not diluted.It continues to bulldoze all be ore it.

Spain is on a roll in bike GP racing. Thisyear we expect to see only the secondSpanish champion in the premier class.

The di erence rom when Criville (andCheca and Gibernau) were winning racesis that Jorge Lorenzo is not alone.

SantiagoHerrero

Alex Criville

Alberto Puig

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a ga i nS e b 2 s t r ik es

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WRC JAPAN>>

Sebastien won again, but or the second time thisyear the winner was Ogier rather than Loeb. No worldtitles were sealed this time, although the championdriver is still likely to be the Loeb version.

Leader or hal the event, and inally only de eatedby a tactical ploy by Ogier and then a shock absorber

ailure, was the Norwegian privateer Petter Solberg atthe wheel o another Citroen.

Ford drivers Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvalaought hard but were rustrated by mechanical

problems and Latvala was only able to gain apodium inish position when Dani Sordo had handlingproblems late on in the event.

And the big question where was Loeb in allthis? Remarkably, he inished only i th overall, beingunusually uncompetitive or no apparent reason.

The world can hardly have gone out o the WorldRally Championship on a more exciting level. This inalappearance outside Europe o the current WRC cars,be ore they are replaced next year by converted Super2000 cars, provided excitement and mystery galore.

O ten the lead changed unexpectedly, like whenPetter Solberg was given a jump-start penalty in mid-rally; when Latvala had a drive-sha t break; and thenwhen Ogier passed Solberg a ter a tactical manouevrewhich gave the Frenchman a better running positionon the inal day.

But this years Rally Japan will be best rememberedor an incredible per ormance by Petter Solberg in his

privately run Citroen C4 WRC. He su ered a ever allrally but nothing could stop his attempt at winning theevent outright, which he very nearly did.

The late summer warmth o northern Japan wasquite unlike the experiences o previous rallies inHokkaido but the conditions o the stages worriedcompetitors.

Damage to the roads su ered when the rally waslast on these stages two years ago had been repairedby adding more gravel, but clearly there was going tobe urther degradation as the rally progressed. It wasa mystery what the conditions would be like. Wouldrunning irst car on the road be good or bad?

This was not the only mystery. Number two was thesurprising lack o pace o the world champion-electSebastien Loeb, on an event which he stated was not tohis liking, but on which he tried hard even i without hisusual success.

While Loeb was azed by running irst car on theroad on Day 1, how was it that the Day 2 leader PetterSolberg could de y the terror o running irst car onthe road on stages which were very similar? Then,

Seb won in Japan but, or the second time this year, it was Ogier, not Loeb.

The world champion-elect f nished

only f th Martin Holmes reports

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what about the times at the end o Day 2 orOgier, who dropped back and gave himsel better running order or the inal day? Tactic orcoincidence?

Petters penalty mis ortune made a closeevent even closer only 5.7 seconds separatedthe top our drivers mid-rally.

Run or the second time in the Sappororegion, in the west o the Hokkaido islandpre ecture, using stages which were largelysimilar to 2008, one novelty was the decision touse some new stages to the north o Sapporoon the inal day.

Another novelty was running the stadiumstages at the Sapporo Dome, no ewer thaneight times plus, or the registered drivers, themandatory our times at shakedown as well!

This section held on slippery concrete in theDome was ar removed rom the loose gravelsur aces o the orthodox stages, but crews stillhad to use the same gravel tyres as everywhereelse on the event. With the total stage timespent at this venue being over ten minutes, thiswas a stage venue worth taking inordinatelyseriously.

Ogier started o determined to avenge thememory o his last stage disaster on thelast long-haul WRC event, New Zealand, making

astest times on the opening two superspecial

stages but then big news on the irst real26km stage was the lack o per ormance o

ront running Loeb.Loeb was around a second per kilometre

slower or no apparent reason, with road-cleaning not an apparent problem at that stage,but this did become a problem on the nextstage where ourth-running Petter pulled aheadinto a lead he held or the next 24 hours.

A ter a series o mis ortunes in recent times,Mikko Hirvonen was lying and moved up tosecond place, passing Ogier on the way, whileLatvala was pressing hard in ourth place.

On Stage 11 Petter, now running irst car,ound road cleaning was not signi icant

and extended his lead to 21.5 seconds, butsubsequent stages worked against him. A terStage 13 his lead was back down to 5.9 seconds.Hirvonen had a spin and dropped back soLatvala was up to second.

Then came the news o a 10 second jumpstart penalty or Solberg which, true to hischaracter, simply intensi ied Petters challenge.As a result the results showed Latvala inheritedthe lead a ter Stage 13.

Ogier was pressing hard, but then Latvala hadhis drivesha t problem, giving Ogier a chance togo ahead. But the Frenchman decided to playtactics, with an eye on Day 3 running order andslowed down, so instead Solberg ound himsel

back in the lead again!On stage 19, the irst stage o Day 3, Kimi

Raikkonen went o or good. Ogier made themost o his running order chances and retook the lead a ter the second stage where therunning order was especially signi icant, on thetwisty stage.

By then, Solberg had problems with a brokenshock absorber which made the steering veryimprecise. Hirvonen was slipping back withgearshi t and di erential problems while Sordowas quite unhappy, unable to make his carwork the way he wanted so a ter Stage 22, Loebwas able to make progress up to i th place and Latvala got past Sordo into third.

Finally this was Ogiers event, his secondWorld rally win.

Citroen Total now leads BP Ford by 95 pointsin the Makes championship, with CitroenJunior now dropping out o contention.

In the Drivers series Loeb now leads Ogier by43 points, with Latvala in third, and still in thetitle race, though a urther 26 points behind.

Citroen is now treading water, waiting or itsnext batch o world titles these now wait tobe won at the next event, the Rallye de France,run this year in the Strasbourg region, an eventwhich is being held as a orm o homage toAlsace incredible rally champion.

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WRC BULGARIA>> WRC JAPAN>>

PATRIK Flodin walked awayin the PCWRC category a terlocal driver Toshi Arai wento the road at the beginningo the rally, though NewZealander Pirelli Star DriverHayden Paddon, this timeat the wheel o his privateMitsubishi came second andgentlemen drivers illed theother positions, headed byItalian Gianluca Linari.

In the championshipstandings Flodin took thelead rom the non-competingAraujo by seven points withPaddon 14 points adri t. Arai isnow out o the championshipand although mathematicallyLinari could still be champion,the ight is between the currenttop three drivers.\par

AFTER the non-arrival o anentry or a Toyota driver romCzech Republic, there wereonly three entries in the SWRCcategory, all with Ford Fiestacars, headed by Jari Ketomaa.

\The Finn soon establisheda minutes lead over MartinProkop, which he kept to theend. Third driver BernardoSousa retired a ter su eringelectrical troubles.

Prokop has now drawn levelwith Pons in the lead o theSWRC series ahead o Ketomaain third although he has wonthe category on more events

than Pons and Prokop. Withthe Ru a Teams exclusion,

ollowing their non-appearancein Japan, Andersson has lostall the points scored under itsentry but retains the 25 points

rom his win as a Guest driverin Sweden.

In the teams WRC Cup thetop three positions remainunchanged with Pons Nupelteam ahead o Red Bull.Ketomaas win in the categorybrings the Shanghai FCACA itsthird win in the category andthey now lie ourth. Team Ford/Quinta do Lorde and BarwaWRT are now both out o thetitle race in this category.\par

THIS event was stronglysupported by two-wheel-drivecars which dominated theirown classes.

Most impressive was theper ormance o Fiestas which,including the result o GroupN winner Ketomaa, won no

ewer than three classes.Veteran Mitsubishi driver FumioNutahara inished the topplaced two-wheel-driver in hisFiesta R2, taking advantage o the regulatory chance to runon Yokohama tyres while ShowAikawa won N3 in a Fiesta ST.Other class winners were typeso Toyota (aYaris and a Run-X),a Suzuki Ignis and DaihatsuSirion.

Flodin, Ketomaa, Nutaharatake the supports

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Citroen Juniors in troubleTHE Citroen Junior teamhas been ined 6000 Euros

or breaking, or a secondtime, the testing regulationslaid down in the WRCChampionship regulations.

Regulations control not onlythe number o days which ateam can make tests but also thenumber o sessions, the numbero days each car is testing. It wasthe rule governing the numbero sessions, not the number o days spent testing, that wasbroken.

The team admitted that itdid not observe the number o sessions, explaining that testinghad been disrupted becauseRaikkonen had been su eredback pains.

The stewards noted that theteam had already incurred apenalty o a Reprimand orbreaking testing rules in Finland.

Firstly the IRC,

hen the WRC!This years Ypres Rally had a stage whichcrossed a rontier, starting in Belgium andending in France.

Now, encouraged by the FIAs interest inhaving cross-border world championshipevents, the 2011 Swedish Rally organisers arecontemplating a stage which starts in Sweden,crosses the border into Norway, and inishesback in Sweden!

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WRC BULGARIA>> WRC NEWS>>

Go Hybrid?Russian pro essional rally organiser DmitryKrivtsov is deputy Clerk o the Course o RallyJapan and, as a oreigner, thus has a uniqueopportunity to observe li e in the Land o theRising Sun

Dmitry (nicknamed Dima) has a theory as to whythe Japanese manu acturers, none o whom enteredthe event o icially, are not involved.

The main reason why the Japanese manu acturers

are absent rom the world championship is that theygenerally do not have su