APRIL 23, 2003

Russians lurking...

The Imola paddock was a little less frenetic than usual but whether this was due to better security or lack of interest was not entirely clear. This made it rather easier to spot interesting visitors and one who stood out a mile was a representative of Lukoil, the Russian oil giant, who was at the event to take a look and see if the company might be interested in supporting the Russian Grand Prix, which is currently under discussion for the city of St Petersburg. It is not clear whether a deal was struck but money is clearly not at issue, given the designer gear the visitor was wearing.

Lukoil has been involved in topline racing already as a backer of the Arden team in Formula 3000.