Formula One News — September 2006

Italian GP - Practice 3 Results

Formula 1 drivers want work done at Monza to improve safety at the Autodromo Nazionale. This creates a number of problems as the circuit runs very close to the outer wall of the park and increasing run-off would involve going outside the parkland area.

The Midland F1 team has been sold to the Dutch-Arab consortium led by Michiel Mol.

Sebastian Vettel is clearly a man that BMW want to use in the future as the Munich firm has been very carefully building up the youngster's profile in F1 with a series of good results in practice sessions in Turkey and now in Italy.

Italian GP - Friday Photos

Italian GP - Friday Press Conference

Italian GP - Friday Team Quotes

All 11 current Formula 1 teams have confirmed their intention to participate at the 2006 Motor Sport Business Forum - and they will be joined by the sport's future 12th team Prodrive, represented by chief executive David Richards.

Italian GP - Practice 2 Results

The Formula 1 teams arrived at Monza with a lot on their collective minds. The engines that will be used this weekend are the ones that will be frozen for use in 2007 and 2008 and so many of the engine-makers had decided to take risks.

Italian GP - Practice 1 Results

Peter Brock, Australia's biggest motor racing star for the last 30 years, has been killed in a rallying accident in Western Australia. The 61-year-old was driving a 1964 AC Cobra Daytona Coupe on the Targa West in Western Australia.

Italian GP - Thursday Press Conference

Michael Schumacher's manager Willi Weber has told the German news agency Deutsche Presse-Agentur that a decision has been made about Schumacher's future. Inevitably, Weber will not talk about the decision and Michael Schumacher is refusing to even talk about the subject.

The plans have been in place for some time but the Italian government has now confirmed that it will be providing $13m for work at Autodromo Enzo & Dino Ferrari and that work will begin in October and be completed by March.

Weather forecasting is a famously imprecise art but at the moment the meteorologists are suggesting that this weekend's Italian Grand Prix will be troubled by rain at various points during the weekend.

As we reported a fortnight ago, the news that Spyker is negotiating for Ferrari engines for the Midland F1 team in 2007 should not come as a surprise.

When he is not banging himself on the head while having accidents racing old sports cars, Red Bull Racing's Adrian Newey is worrying about next year's RB3 Formula 1 car.

We suggested a month ago that Michael Schumacher was on the verge of retiring and while that suggestion was knocked down by a number of sources at the time, there is now increasing speculation that Schumacher will announce his retirement at the Italian Grand Prix this weekend.

Renault's announcement that Heikki Kovalainen will join Giancarlo Fisichella next year with the addition of two new test drivers and the news that Flavio Briatore will stay or for two more years has obscured one important fact: the team does not have a title sponsor for next season.

Heikki Kovalainen goes into the 2007 season as replacement for World Championship Fernando Alonso. These are big shoes to fill.

The Ford Motor Company has named Alan Mulally as its new chief executive. Mulally is currently head of Boeing's commercial aircraft division. Mulally (61) will take over the job from Bill Ford, although he will remain involved as the company's executive chairman.

Renault F1 loses Fernando Alonso at the end of the current season and the team was somewhat caught out by the Spaniard's move to McLaren and, unable to hire a top name driver, has finally settled on Giancarlo Fisichella and Heikki Kovalainen, with test drivers Ricardo Zonta and Nelson Piquet Jr.

Silverstone has announced that it will gives fans $95 back if they buy an adult grandstand seat before the end of September and Jenson button wins the race in July next year.