F1 News & Gossip (2009)

WHERE TO START.... IR

Branson in F1 exellent he's good at everthing he does...almost

Rubens or Senna I like Rubens but i'd love to see just how good the genes are with Senna

As for Danica Does she come in blue?

This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Feb 19 2009, 09:49 PM

SPOTTED: Williams FW31 2009 Livery


The Williams F1 Team make a habit of running an interim livery in the off-season on their new cars, to keep us guessing well past the launch of their new car to what exactly it will look like.

This interim livery is usually a lovely dark metallic blue, which if F1Fanatics had influence within the Grove based team would be there to stay!

However, these liveries make way for a white/blue one first used in 2000 when Compaq joined the team as a sponsor.

Anyway, a spy for the Dutch F1 site, F1-Today.nl, managed to sneak into a back garage in Jerez and get this snap of an almost finished livery Williams FW31. Only the Philips and RBS sponsor logos are missing.
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Source: F1 Fanatics Blog



EDIT: Added source link Jeremy221 - Motoring Moderator

This post has been edited by Jeremy221: Feb 21 2009, 01:12 AM

Sure thing  danica_patrick_si.jpg ( 144.93K ) Number of downloads: 2

Mateschitz: Teams should own F1
17/02/2009


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Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz has hit out at the current owners of Formula One claiming that they care only for money and that it is the participants, the teams, who should run and own the sport.

In late December, early January, Bernie Ecclestone was involved in a public spat with Ferrari President Luca di Montezemolo, who was wearing his Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) hat at the time. The Italian took a swipe at the sport's current management, both commercial and regulatory.

"We think that Formula 1 has to be a normal sport that is not connected to single people," he said. "There must be a triangle: at the top there are the teams, who invest and innovate, today more than ever before; then there's someone who manages the commercial aspects, a type of super agent, just like Ecclestone has been doing; last but not least a sporting and political authority, which takes the teams' unanimity into account and protects the sports nature."

Now, in a surprise move, Mateschitz, who is a close friend of Max Mosley, has launched a stinging attack on the owners of the sport in which he has two teams.

"They have neither expertise nor passion about and for motorsport," he told Deutsche Presse-Agentur. "Their engagement, which is a natural under the circumstances, is simply a financial one, geared towards maximizing profits."

In the wake of Honda's withdrawal from the sport, the result of a global financial crisis that is causing sponsors and manufacturers to seriously reconsider whether they can afford to be in F1, Mateschitz is worried that so far F1 has only seen the tip of the iceberg.

"It's not only Renault, it's the same with Toyota and apparently even BMW," he said. "Virtually everyone in F1 one is looking at themselves in these difficult times."

He is also concerned that despite the fact that it is the teams who put on the show, it is CVC, JP Morgan and Ecclestone who own it.

"All of these factors contribute towards the instability of the sport," said the Austrian. "It is the teams that are carrying all the financial risk. It is the teams that not only have the necessary competence, they also have the necessary passion for motorsport. There is just one logical and ethically justifiable owner of Formula One and that is the teams. That is the only way that the survival of motorsport is guaranteed on a long-term basis. The teams need to maximize their marketing value, but they also need to own the assets."

The billionaire believes that the only positive way forward is for the teams to come up with a plan to take over the sport from its current owners.

"Everybody can see that the value of Formula One is not that which it was a year ago," he said.

With the Austrian having lit the blue touchpaper it will be interesting to watch the firework display that will surely follow.


Source: PitPass



*This certainly makes sense to me, it should have been set up this way to begin with. It would be a great move if the teams were to follow up and pull something like this off.*

I want one.... She's almost as pretty as the aston martin DBS...................
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Bite the back of your hand beautiful.......................

This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Feb 21 2009, 10:32 AM

Honda still seeking buyers for its F1 team (Source)

Automaker Honda says it has no serious buyers for its Formula One racing team.

"Various people are making offers but none of them are serious," Honda Chief Executive Takeo Fukui said at a news conference Monday, when he also announced he was stepping down and being replaced by research expert Takanobu Ito.

Honda has been trying to find a buyer for its team after it announced in December it was quitting F1 to focus on its core business of making and selling cars. Like other Japanese automakers, Honda has been battered by the plunge in global auto demand after the U.S. financial crisis struck last year.

The Honda team, with an operational budget of around $294 million, finished next-to-last in ninth place in the F1 constructors' standings last season. Honda, which originally entered F1 as a constructor for a stint in the 1960s before returning as an engine supplier in the 1980s, bought out BAR Racing in 2005.

The company reportedly spurned a buy-out offer from F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone that would have allowed the team to race this season, according to Sunday's edition of British newspaper The News of the World.

British businessman Richard Branson said over the weekend that his company Virgin may be ready to take over the team, but only if the sport is ready to make major changes.

Fukui said negotiations were difficult, although a deal "was not totally impossible."

Incoming president Ito was hopeful Honda may some day recover enough to again tackle F1, although he did not elaborate.

Bourdais admits F1 nearly lost him to USA (Source)

Sébastien Bourdais has revealed that in re-signing him for a second campaign in Formula 1 in 2009, Scuderia Toro Rosso acted only just in time to prevent him from returning across the Pond to compete in America once more.

The Frenchman made his bow in the top flight last season, following four years of domination in Champ Cars, during which time he achieved no fewer than 27 race victories. Though he initially struggled to get to grips with the Red Bull 'junior' outfit's STR3, he made impressive gains as the year went on, and for much of the second half was all-but a match for his highly-rated team-mate Sebastian Vettel, F1's newest and youngest-ever grand prix winner.

With the global credit crunch leading to a tightening of belts across the spectrum, however, his performances rapidly became secondary to how much money he could bring to the team when STR was debating its 2009 driver line-up, and Bourdais went head-to-head with ex-Super Aguri refugee Takuma Sato for the second seat alongside grand prix debutant Sébastien Buemi.

With America calling and a mooted offer from former team Newman/Haas/Lanigan Racing on the table to jump ship to the IndyCar Series, Bourdais stated on numerous occasions over the winter months that he was neither willing nor able to wait indefinitely on a decision from STR. The 29-year-old's prospects looked bleak – until earlier this month, when the small Faenza-based outfit finally gave him the news he had been so badly hoping for.

“I was definitely relieved,” he confessed, speaking exclusively to Crash.net. “I mean, it's a nasty situation. You wait and wait and wait. I was obviously trying to investigate other options, because over being a F1 driver, I'm a professional driver.

“That's what I make a living from, so I needed to make sure that this was still going to be true for '09 and that was not easy. It's been a very long and difficult winter, no need to deny that. It's never easy when you are left uncertain for so long.

“At some point I was not hoping so much anymore; I was just trying hard to get a seat in particular in the States. In the end Toro Rosso came back to us before anything in the States was completed, so here I am!”

USF1 Team is here (Source)

The official announcement has taken place, but there's hardly any news. In an unorthodox mix of TV show and press conference, Ken Anderson and Peter Windsor presented their new team on US TV Channel Speed on Tuesday. Unfortunately it seems all news have been leaked by the two in previous interviews. The team will operate out of Charlotte, North Carolina, where it will be based on the "exceptional infrastructure and indigenous technology companies". Anderson stated that "there are more tools there than anywhere else in the world" and they could find test bays, software and hardware specialists and the best wind tunnel in the world. And most F1 teams were said to use US-produced simulators.

The idea of a US F1 team seems to have been around since Brazil 2006, when Windsor approached Bernie E. with the idea. Ecclestone seems to have been very supportive, providing video and other materials for investor presentations. There has been no decision on drivers, team members or engine yet, but the team plans on employing around 100 highly qualified personnel.

To boost the show effect even more, former F1 champion Mario Andretti joined the conference by telephone and declared he was very interested by the project, it being everything a US F1 fan could wich for. And of course he mentioned his grandson Marco Andretti as a potential driver. "I'd really like to see Marco in a F1 car, it would remind me of my youth. If I had to design a perfect F1 driver, I would design him. He learns fast and can cope with every aspect of racing. He would like to do it, we'll see what the future holds for him. First he has to show some results in IndyCar."

This post has been edited by InterRaptor: Feb 24 2009, 07:18 PM

USF1 car to be ready in autumn (Source)

Even if the plans for the US F1 team have been officially announced only yesterday, they are much further in the heads of Anderson and Windsor. The former Ligier and Onyx technical director stated: "We should have a car by September or October". A detailed plan of the entry into F1 will only be formed in the next few months, but USF1 is confident they will be able to start testing in January 2010. Anderson said there are still a few things open, in particular who the engine supplier will be and when a contract with them can be signed. This should be decided in the next four to six weeks, though.

As to the goals for the first years in F1, the mindset is quite conservative. It would already be a great success to have two reliable cars in 2010, finishing races and maybe getting the odd decent position. In the second year, it would be great to regularly finish in the top ten and collect some points. "We are a young team and need to learn to walk before we start running.





Also in the news...

Honda wants to test before Melbourne (Source)

The future of the former Honda team is still very vague, as neither a new buyer nor a management buy-out has been confirmed yet. Nevertheless, the preparations have changed up inside the team to get the car on the track before the season start in Melbourne.

It is as of yet unsure whether the preparations are advanced enough to take part in the tests next week in Jerez, but the team wants to have its roll-out at the final test in Barcelona at the end of March latest. If even that shouldn't succeed, testing in the UK somewhere in between would be an alternative for the team.

Williams F1 hit by RBS cutbacks

The Royal Bank of Scotland is to end its sponsorship of the Formula One team Williams as a result of the economic downturn, BBC Sport has learned.
The partnership, which began in 2005, will conclude when the current contract finishes at the end of the 2010 season.
The move is part of RBS proposals to cut its funding of British sport by a massive 50% by 2010.
The bank also says it plans to review its sponsorship deals with individuals such as tennis star Andy Murray.

"We recognise that we are now operating in a very different economic environment and have been reviewing all of our activities since October," said Dr Andrew McLaughlin, RBS group director.

"It is imperative that we respond to the reality of the situation we face and that we do so in an orderly way that respects the commercial agreements we have in place and the implications for our partners and the jobs they support."

"We are in a strong position to ride out the inevitable challenges of the next two years."
Sir Frank Williams


The news is another blow to Williams, who have already lost their sponsorship deals with Baugar, Lenovo and Petrobras, and F1 in general.
The sport is already going through a tough time, having seen Honda withdraw from the sport and Renault lose their main sponsor, ING, from 2010.
As one of the few independent teams in F1, Williams rely largely on sponsorship as their main source of income.
Yet team principal Sir Frank Williams says they will battle on.

"RBS has been a great partner for this team and we are grateful for the way that they have handled this difficult situation," he said.

"We are in a strong position to ride out the inevitable challenges of the next two years."

The RBS deal, thought to be worth around £10m a year, amounts to around 10% to 15% of the team's budget.
Williams revealed there is a "95% chance" the team will be able to name a replacement within the "next 12 months" and said the team was well covered for this season and next.
However, he admitted it is getting harder to attract sponsors in the current economic climate.

"We have to work hard to find them, keep them and look for others all the time," he told BBC Sport.

The team's title sponsor is telecommunications firm AT&T but the loss of RBS, albeit at the end of 2010, is a major setback.
According to Williams, sponsorship provides as much as 70% of the team's income.

"A lot of that money goes on designing and building the cars and advancements in technology," he said.

"The cars have relatively short lives, and engines and aerodynamics and advancements are needed all the time."

Williams has won seven drivers titles in its history, but the last was delivered by Jacques Villeneuve in 1997.
In 2008, the team celebrated its 500th Grand Prix, but finished eighth in the championship.
RBS, which is expected to announce a loss of up to £28bn on Thursday, is reviewing all sponsorship activity as part of an ongoing strategic review.
It has cancelled trackside advertising for 2010 and hospitality costs in all RBS sponsorships have been reduced by around 90% in 2009.
The move is part of the bank's plans to cut its sponsorship deals by 25% in 2009 and by around 50% by 2010.
Contracts with individuals such as Murray, Sir Jackie Stewart, Zara Phillips and Sachin Tendulkar are set to come under review.

However, the bank, which is now majority-owned by the government, recently extended its sponsorship of the Six Nations rugby union championship for a further four years in a deal worth £20m.

Source

Uncertainty over STR debut

25 February 2009


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Scuderia Toro Rosso is yet to finalise plans for a shakedown of its new car. The STR4's track debut is due to take place at Italy's Adria circuit next week, although whether the test will go ahead remains to be seen.

"We are planning to give our new car a shakedown next week at Adria, although this is not yet certain," commented a team spokeswoman. However the team has confirmed to GPUpdate.net that it is planning to launch the car at the final official pre-season test in Barcelona.

Toro Rosso is one of only two teams yet to debut its 2009 car, with Mercedes-Benz powered Force India's launch taking place on Sunday, 1 March.


Source: GPUpdate.net





Honda hope to attend Barcelona test

26 February 2009


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The Honda team are hopeful of testing their new car before the start of the 2009 season.

Still in search of a buyer ahead of the season opener in Melbourne on March 29, the 'team with no name' is still planning to go testing in Spain before the start of the championship, according to Autosport.

It is unsure as to whether they will be joining next week's Jerez test, but are at least hoping to attend Barcelona's session which runs between 9-12 of next month. It is also believed that the squad could be running their 2009-spec car in the UK at some point over the next few weeks.

As Honda management warned of a possible disbandment of the team last week, the clock continues to tick for the team with the start of the season now just over four weeks away.


Source: GPUpdate.net





Major US breakthrough imminent - Whitmarsh

26 February 2009


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With the arrival of the USF1 team for the 2010 season looking more than likely, McLaren's CEO believes this could be all Formula One needs for an overdue breakthrough to the USA.

Martin Whitmarsh, recently appointed McLaren's CEO following the retirement of Ron Dennis, believes that USF1's efforts could be exactly what is needed to finally get Formula One back on track in America. "The United States is clearly a crucial market for all of F1's car manufactures as well as sponsors," Whitmarsh explained to Autosport.

The American Grand Prix returned to Formula One in 2000 having been missing from the calendar for nine years. However, 2007's event at Indianapolis was the last to date in the USA following the major blow that was the farcical six-car debacle of 2005.

Whitmarsh has revealed that the likes of himself and Renault chief Flavio Briatore are just two of the main forces attempting to push a new deal between American Grand Prix organisers and F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone.


Source: GPUpdate.net

USF1 looking for experienced drivers (Source)

The new USF1 team are likely to target an experienced Formula One driver to lead their line-up in the first season in 2010, according to sporting director Peter Windsor.

USF1's long-term goal is to be a national team running two American drivers, but Windsor says it could be better for the team to use a driver with F1 experience to help them progress in the first season or two.

"In year one, certainly there is an argument for having an experienced F1 driver in the car," said Windsor. "We're going to need to get all the information we can as quickly as possible, particularly in an era when they're cutting right back on the amount of testing you can do. There's definitley and argument for that, and then maybe having a young American in the other car.

"But actually finding the right experienced driver to put in the car for those first two years, or maybe just the first year, is not easy if you actually think about. We are going to be a new team on the block and a driver who brings a lot of expereince and a record of success with him could be a difficult driver for us to work with, because his expectations are going to be a lot higher than ours. So it would need to be exactly the right sort of driver with the right sort of temperament."

Windsor added that USF1 will be looking for a driver willing to grow with the team and says he would steer clear of drivers whose expectations would be too high for a new outfit.

"In Rubens Barrichello's case he would be good, because he's known two bad years at Honda and that would be a very useful baseline for our operation. But he's almost unique of the drivers out there who would potentially fill the role of the experienced driver.

"You can't imagine Jenson [Button] in a start-up team, driving at 100 per cent knowing that the best he's going to qualify is 14th - which would be good for us - and finishing maybe 10th on a good day. Jenson would want more than that and it would be very difficult working with somebody like that.

"If you took a big American star from NASCAR, he'd be quite happy not to qualify last and to finish 12th. That would be a great result for him in his first Formula One race, and that would be a great result for us too. We are a new team and we are going to walk before we can run - we will all grow at the same pace."

When asked about IndyCar racer Danica Patrick and NASCAR's Kyle Busch - the two American drivers with the biggest profiles in Europe - Windsor said: "Both of those drivers bring with them a lot of reputation and PR, the question is whether that's the right thing for USF1 in the first or second year.

"What we don't need is a driver coming in, dominating the team and expecting more than the team can give. Equally, we don't want a driver who is going to underperform because he's so inexperienced, so it's a very difficult balance to strike.

"The concept of taking somebody like Danica to Formula One and being successful with her is mind-blowing. And, equally, taking a NASCAR star driver, putting him into F1 and seeing him do well would be just as pleasurable. Both of them would be great people to talk to. I don't know if Kyle has any interest at all in F1, I don't know if Danica has either for that matter, but it would be interesting to see."

USF1 team principal Ken Anderson believes they will be able to produce home-grown star drivers.

"We're a big country and I think it's fair to say that anything we put our mind to, we end up doing pretty well," he said. "We have a big enough pool to do it. If we're taking a flier on a German or Brazilian, why not take a flier on ours.

"The ladder (for young drivers) doesn't really exist in the United States right now, as far as Formula One for sure. Part of our sponsorship will go towards helping kids do that. Max (Mosley) has just started F2 which is brilliant for £195,000 and ridiculously cheap compared to GP2 or F3. What better place to send a kid?

"I grew up in the early 70s in motocross and the Europeans used to come over and kick our butt, then within five years we were holding our own and in 10 years we were world champions."

Ross Brawn rumored (again) to head up Honda

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A well-placed source said that Brawn should be in a position to confirm whether or not a deal has been done "by the end of the weekend".

The takeover would see the team's annual budget cut by at least two thirds, to £50million, which would necessarily mean a sizeable reduction in the 700-strong staff at Honda Racing's headquarters in Northamptonshire.

There is speculation that the buyer may be Dave Richards, the chairman of Prodrive, which was brought in to run the BAR team in 2001. Richards was made team principal, but was replaced by Prodrive's then managing director, Nick Fry, when BAR was taken over by Honda in 2004.

Fry is now the CEO of Honda Racing, although it is unlikely he would stay were Richards to be successful in his bid.

Richards has tried before to start up a Formula One team with Prodrive, and were even officially entered for the 2008 championship before pulling out last year.

Any takeover would be good news for Jenson Button, the British driver who suddenly found himself without a race seat in the wake of Honda's confirmation that they were pulling the plug on their Formula One enterprise.

"It came as much of a shock to me as everyone else, and the first couple of hours were the most painful," Button said. "But after that I thought, 'What's the point of being down and trying to look at every reason for it?'.

"We need to stay positive in ourselves, and as one team, because if we're not, then who is going to be interested in taking us over?"

As speculation mounted yesterday that other manufacturers were set to follow Honda's lead, Toyota settled a few paddock nerves by releasing a statement insisting they were "committed to succeeding in Formula One".

Nevertheless, the current uncertainty surrounding the future of the sport gave FIA president Max Mosley, who has long been championing the need to reduce spending drastically, all the ammunition he needed to reinforce his message.

In an open letter to the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA), Mosley revealed that the FIA is now in exclusive talks with engine suppliers Cosworth, along with Xtrac and Ricardo (XR) for the use of transmissions, that could result in an annual engine and transmission cost of less than £6 million from 2010."

The use of standardised engines has split the Formula One teams down the middle, with big budget manufacturers such as Ferrari and Toyota threatening to quit the sport of they are imposed. But that is exactly what Mosley said he would do from 2010 unless teams get behind him.

"This is a watershed," Mosley said. "It is very likely we will lose another manufacturer or two unless we demonstrate to them that expenditure has got to cease.

"It's too late for 2009 - although the teams are making a big effort to cut costs. But I'm talking about a budget of 20 percent of what it is now. £30-£40million should be competitive.

"If push comes to shove, we'll say 'Those are the rules, here's the entry form. If you don't like it then you can leave."

Formula One's commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone endorsed Mosley's point of view, calling Honda's demise a "wake up call" for the sport.

"The trouble is the teams are basically run by technicians who should probably be at home playing with their PlayStations rather than spending fortunes to win races," Eccelestone said.

The final word in put-downs went to Mosley, though, who dismissed as irrelevant one question about Ecclestone's controversial new medals system. He said: "Imagine we're all on an ocean liner and we're sinking, and people are talking about the colour of wallpaper in their cabin whereas anybody sensible would be looking for a seat on a lifeboat." source

This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Mar 2 2009, 02:06 PM

Rubins is back in demand

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Feb.27 (GMM) After an entire winter of uncertainty, Rubens Barrichello's name is now strongly linked to not one formula one team, but two.

With the Ross Brawn-led management buyout of the Honda team set to be announced, the latest speculation is that the Brackley camp would prefer the unmatched experience of Barrichello alongside Jenson Button in 2009.

Previously, the 36-year-old's rookie countryman Bruno Senna was linked most strongly to the team, but it now appears that his sponsorship ties to Brazilian sponsors were not as lucrative as earlier was reported.

Meanwhile, just as Barrichello's Honda chances re-emerge, a principal of the new USF1 team for 2010 has confirmed reports the veteran of more than 270 grands prix is a leading candidate for a drive.

"We need someone experienced who in the first two years can give us as much information as possible.

"One name is Rubens Barrichello, certainly," the team's British sporting director Peter Windsor is quoted as saying by RTL.

Latest "Team Brawn" rumours


Rumours abound
Mar.2 (GMM) With the Ross Brawn-led management buyout said to have been approved by Honda's Tokyo board, speculation about the Brackley based team's new name is now rife.

We reported last week that the neutral 'Brackley F1' was a frontrunner, but another likely alternative has now emerged.

Although reference to a specific individual was thought unlikely, due to the several officials (and therefore shareholders) involved in the buyout, the team may in fact use principal Ross Brawn's name, rumours suggest.

The internet domain brawnracing.com and similar iterations have reportedly been registered in recent days by Caroline McGrory, who has been the Honda team's legal counsel for some years.

The latest rumours, meanwhile, suggest that the airline Emirates may be lined up as a 2009 title sponsor.

Also whispered is that while former chief executive Nick Fry is no longer leading the buyout, he may still be involved in the team's new guise, although not as chief executive.

There had been suggestions that the team might make it to Jerez this week for the penultimate group test of the pre-season, but the session kicked off on Sunday without Honda.

At a recent media gathering, however, Williams' Adam Parr indicated he believes the team's survival is likely.

"The fact that they are still talking is important because if Honda wasn't faced with any serious opportunity then they would have called it a day," the Grove team's chief executive said, referring to recent events.

Parr added: "So the fact that we are four weeks away from the start of the season and they are still making kit must mean that Honda are taking the proposals very seriously."


Written: Mon, 02 Mar 2009 09:29: source

Jenson rides again

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Feb.27 (GMM) With a blank livery and Jenson Button at the wheel, the team currently known as Honda will return to action at a Silverstone shakedown of its 2009 car next Thursday, sources from inside the Brackley factory are reporting.

With the Ross Brawn-led management buyout now approved - but not officially announced - by Honda Motor Co.'s Tokyo board, information is leaking from the outfit that had until recently looked likely to be wound up ahead of the 2009 season.

Now, however, suggestions of at least one (and possibly two) full tests at Spanish circuits in March are gaining credence, and one source told us that these will be preceded by a run-out with Mercedes power at Silverstone late next week.

With the Honda board also insisting upon a name change, the frontrunner at present is 'Brackley F1', but a final decision on this has not been taken.

Also likely - but not confirmed - is the identity of Button's teammate. Bruno Senna has all winter been named as the frontrunner, but given the nature of the challenge faced for 2009, it is believed the veteran Rubens Barrichello is now favourite to retain his seat.

Under Brawn's leadership, the funds for the team this year will come from increased and advanced FOM income, commercial sponsors, and Honda itself, who have concluded that it is cheaper to offload the squad as a going concern rather than fund the closure and compensate contracted staff, including the very highly paid Button.

The Swiss newspaper Blick said of rookie Senna: "The young Brazilian will drive in the DTM championship (in 2009)."

same source



This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Mar 2 2009, 10:44 PM

Ex-Honda team 'seal F1 survival'

The former Honda team have been saved and will race in Formula One in 2009, according to chief executive Nick Fry.
Honda pulled out of F1 in December as a result of the global financial crisis, leaving the British-based outfit to search desperately for a buyer.
But Fry said the team had survived thanks to recent cost reductions in F1.

"All the teams and their support have helped us preserve our team. So I, [team principal] Ross [Brawn] and our 700 employees thank them," he said.

Fry would reveal no further details - including how the team would be funded or what it would be called - saying only that there would be more news "very soon".
A source told BBC Sport that the team would probably be called Brawn Racing, and that the car would test for the first time at Silverstone on Friday - but that has not yet been officially confirmed.
He was speaking after a meeting of the F1 teams' association Fota, which announced on Thursday its proposals for the future of F1.

"Our team will benefit from Fota," said Fry, who attended the meeting with Brawn.

"The cost reductions will help us over the next two to three years. But equally important is the support we've received from the other teams."

It is unclear who the new owners would be or what the team will be called but speculation has focused on a buy-out led by the current management of Fry and Brawn.

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Barrichello has been linked with a seat at the saved Honda team

BBC Sport has learned that Englishman Jenson Button will be one of the drivers.

The second seat is between Brazilian veteran Rubens Barrichello and his fellow countryman and F1 novice Bruno Senna, the nephew of three-time world champion Ayrton Senna.
There have been widespread reports this week that Barrichello has won the drive, but a source close to Senna told BBC Sport that his management was still in negotiations with the team. The car will be fitted with a Mercedes engine.
Even if the team make it to the final pre-season test in Barcelona in mid-March, they still face an uphill struggle to be competitive at the start of the season.
At the time of Honda's withdrawal, Brawn expressed his belief that the car could run in the top three in 2009, despite the team's poor form in the last two years.
But the recent uncertainty will have affected development effort and they have lost running time to their rivals, most of whom have completed at least two full four-day tests already.

Source

Honda team to return as Brawn GP

The former Honda Formula One team has been saved and will contest the 2009 season as Brawn GP

The Honda Motor Company Limited and ex-Honda boss Ross Brawn, 54, have reached agreement to preserve the team.
Britain's Jenson Button and Brazilian veteran Rubens Barrichello, last year's Honda line-up, will continue to drive for the British-based team.
Brawn GP will use Mercedes engines when the new F1 season starts in Australia on 29 March.

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Brawn was Ferrari technical director before joining Honda last season

Honda pulled out of F1 in December as a result of the global financial crisis, leaving the team to search desperately for a buyer.
The statement, released on the new Brawn GP website, did not reveal the financial details of the buyout.
Brawn, a former Ferrari technical director, said: "The past few months have been extremely challenging for the team but today's announcement is the very pleasing conclusion to the strenuous efforts that have been made to secure its future.

"Firstly, it is a great shame that having worked with Honda Motor Company for so long we can no longer continue together.

"I would like to thank Honda for the fantastic co-operation and support we have received throughout this process, particularly those members of the senior management who were closely involved with concluding our agreement, and for the faith they have demonstrated in myself and our team."

Brawn, who joined Honda at the start of last season, added that he was delighted to retain the same driving line-up.
"The vast experience and knowledge that both drivers bring to our team will prove invaluable as we aim to get up to speed in the shortest possible time to be ready for the first race of the season," he said.
"In what will be their fourth season together, their experience with our team in Brackley, our systems and our engineers, will prove a real asset."

He added: "I would like to express particular appreciation for the support we have received from Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, the FIA (Federation Internationale de L'Automobile), FOM (Formula One Management), Fota (Formula One Teams Association) ... and our many fans the world over.

"The journey ahead will be challenging but exciting and we know we can count on their continued enthusiasm for our team and its ambitions."

Hiroshi Oshima, managing officer of Honda Motor Company Limited, wished Brawn well in his new role as team owner.
"Since announcing our withdrawal from Formula One racing on 5 December of last year, we have conducted various studies and discussions so that the team can continue its activities as a new team," said Oshima.

"We are very pleased that we could sell the team to Ross Brawn, with whom we have been partaking in the challenges of F1 competition, and are grateful for his decision. We offer our sincerest wishes for the new team which will be led by Ross."

Brawn GP will attend the remaining pre-season tests, in Barcelona starting on 9 March and Jerez starting on 15 March.
With the team's survival, Formula One will start the season with 10 teams - one fewer than at the beginning of 2008 before Super Aguri folded.

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Mark Webber admits he has never encountered such a close pre-season as the winter of 2009, with as many as seven teams in the reckoning to win in Melbourne in less than 20 days.

"It is really difficult to read who is doing what," the Australian driver said in an interview with Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper.

"I think it is too close to call," the Red Bull driver explained while at home in Britain.

32-year-old Webber said the F1 community expected the sweeping rules changes for this year to leave bigger than usual gaps between teams.

But the opposite is true, according to analysis of recent tests, and Webber reveals that several teams have shown race-winning pace over the crucial 'long runs'.

"It is literally us, Toyota, Williams, Ferrari and BMW. We have all, at certain times, done the business," he explained. "And the Renault as well.

"You would expect McLaren maybe to have done a bit more, going by the testing over the last few years. But apart from that, we all know they are more than capable of turning up in Melbourne and spanking everyone," said Webber.

Webber's young German teammate Sebastian Vettel was the quickest of all in qualifying trim at the Jerez group test last week, and deeper analysis has shown the new Ferrari to have a slight edge with race levels of fuel.

sauce

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Jenson Button, driving for the newly formed Brawn GP team, ended the first of four days of testing fourth fastest after an encouraging day in Barcelona.

Button and Brazilian Rubens Barrichello have retained their places for this season in the new Mercedes-powered car.

But he finished fourth behind the BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and Toyota's Jarno Trulli.

"I am so happy the team is on the grid and that's the most important thing for me," said Button.

Button, who has taken a big pay cut to stay in Formula One, spent the morning at the top of the timesheets.

He added: "Whatever people have said about drivers in the past, and me personally, I'm here to race.

"I love racing, this is the best place to be doing it and you've got to make a lot of sacrifices.

"But I'm not the only one, we all do, especially at this difficult time. We all have to make sacrifices."

Owner Ross Brawn said he hopes the team make a "respectable" start to the season in Australia on 29 March.

And the early signs from the Circuit de Catalunya, home of the Spanish Grand Prix, were promising.

Button's fastest lap for Honda in last year's Spanish Grand Prix was 1:22.353 but he recorded an unofficial time of 1:21.140 in the Brawn car, running without branding in its new black, white and yellow colour scheme, on his first full day driving since 19 November. Button's time was 0.8secs slower than Heidfeld's best. SPORT EDITORS' BLOG
Our plans for F1 coverage this year...

BBC Sport's Mark Wilkin
Honda Racing decided to withdraw from F1 in early December as a result of the global financial crisis, but ex-team principal and former Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn confirmed last Friday that he had taken over the team.

McLaren's partners Mercedes have replaced Honda as the engine provider, with the new V8 unit believed to be providing around 60 horsepower more than the one used by Button last year, and they are hoping for a big step up in performance.

In 2008, Honda had a miserable season with Button scoring just three points from 18 races.

But after Honda announced their departure Brawn said the new car was considered a potential race winner.

And 29-year-old Button admitted that racing for the newly formed team had given him a huge lift and a different perspective on his career.

"I wouldn't say in the last few years it all went a bit stale but, when something happens like that (Honda pulling out), it's like 'Wow!' and it does become a fresh start," said Button. We all do feel like kids again

Jensen Button

"Getting into a Formula One car now, I feel like a kid again. It's so exciting.

"It feels like 2000 again (the year he started out in F1) but with nine years of experience, so it's the perfect position to be in.

"I have the experience but I have the hunger to achieve and I'm not the only person that feels like that within the team.

"It's all of us, especially after having produced a car I think is competitive and very different to the last two cars.

"We all do feel like kids again and you can see that within the team, the smiles on people's faces, and that was before we drove the car today.

"There's a great atmosphere and it's brought everyone that much closer together, and it's a great thing to be a part of."

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This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Mar 10 2009, 09:47 AM

Rubens Barrichello : We will be the surprise of 2009

The times set by the new Brawn BGP001 after just four days’ running in this week’s Barcelona test - the last major session before the season starts - have left the entire paddock reeling and put a smile back on Rubens Barrichello’s face.

Four months ago Barrichello’s Formula One career looked over. Now, with his fans hailing him a hero once more, the Brazilian is ready to go racing - for victory…source


ooooo can I change my vote........

This post has been edited by bigbaldybloke: Mar 14 2009, 08:11 PM

A museum cataloguing former F1 driver David Coulthard’s career is set to close.

The Scottish driver who retired at the end of last season had a fruitful racing career eventually leading him to be in F1 for over 10 years and gain race wins with the McLaren team.

Four years ago Coulthard’s sister abandoned running the museum after she moved away from their birthplace of Twynholm. Afterwards, a Coulthard-Superfan - Wendy McKenzie - took over running the museum.

McKenzie told F1Live: “Short of a miracle, it will not be opening to the general public again.”

It is believed that diminishing interest in Coulthard, who is now an advisor to Red Bull Racing and a pundit of the BBC Sport F1 coverage is the reason for close.

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The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) are calling for a minor adjustment to the current point-scoring system that would see the race winner handed a greater advantage.


FOTA released the results of their global audience survey on Thursday, citing five main areas that came up with F1 fans around the world.


The survey revealed that spectators have no quibbles with the format of grands prix and as such do not want to see 'handicapping, sprint races, reversed grids or one-on-one pursuit races.' They also did not feel that qualifying should undergo a major overhaul and nor should pit stops be done away with. But, if refuelling is taken out of the pit stop mix, there won't be too many complaints.


One for the television broadcasters is that fans reckon F1 needs to do more to become consumer-friendly, with many complaining that local broadcasters limit their F1 viewing.


The fifth point to be raised was regarding F1's current points-scoring system. At present first place gets 10, second 8, third 6, fourth 5, fifth 4, sixth 3, seventh 2 and eighth 1 point.


Fans, though, would like to see the race winner given a greater reward for his efforts and therefore FOTA have called for first place to now be awarded 12 points.


The driver who finishes second would get 9, third would get 7, fourth would get 5, fifth 4, sixth 3, seventh 2 and eighth 1 point.


McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh, speaking at FOTA's meeting on Thursday, confirmed the request for a change in the system.


"Audiences desire greater Championship recognition for race winners and our proposal is to offer greater rewards for the race winner," he said.
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