Going to be a great day, looking forward to seeing him go around again.

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Mark Webber crashers more than my computer! Go Raikkonen. Although I'd must admit I'd love to see Webber win one, and if it was the Aussie GP even better, wouldnt that be somehting?

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March 27, 2009

Formula One's latest controversy turned serious on Friday when all but one of the top seven cars in practice for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix ran with bodywork considered illegal by most teams.

Only Mark Webber drove with conventional rear underbody sections on his Red Bull.

The Australian was fourth quickest but quickly declared he would be nowhere near that fast in qualifying.

Williams, Toyota and Brawn GP are the three teams using the contentious rear diffuser, said to give them an advantage in terms of grip and airflow.

Williams driver Nico Rosberg dominated both 90-minute practice sessions, leading the timesheets throughout.

The Brawn of Rubens Barichello was second ahead of the Toyota of Jarno Trulli with Webber fourth in the day's second session.

Jenson Button's Brawn finished fifth while the Toyota of Timo Glock was sixth and Kazuki Nakajima's Williams seventh.

Red Bull boss Christian Horner led a protest to the FIA against the use of the radical diffuser but early on Friday morning race stewards ruled it legal, allowing the cars to race.

This means the issue will go to the FIA's court of appeals and it could be months before the results of the Australian Grand Prix are finalised.

Webber said no one would know the real affect of the diffusers until race day.

"No one here knows the ultimate pace until we get going on Sunday and even then we might see some teams not show their full pace on Sunday if they've got something up their sleeve so I think they will be very keen to keep this advantage if they can, legality-wise, which so far they seem to have done," Webber said.

"But I don't fear there will be two different championships in the race.

"I think it will still be a competitive grand prix and that should not get in the way of what the ruling is.

"The drivers, as you know, can't do much about this stuff, it's up to the boffins to sort it out."

Defending champion Lewis Hamilton confirmed the trend of disappointing pre-season test results for McLaren by finishing a lowly 18th in practice, one spot behind teammate Heikki Kovalainen.

"Obviously we are not as quick as we would love to be but we are working very hard," Hamilton said.

"In general it's a good car, it's just a general lack of grip everywhere pretty much, it's not particularly in one area of the track, it's everywhere.

"The guys back at the factory are working very hard to rectify that but it's no quick fix," he said.

There will be another practice session Saturday morning before qualifying in the evening.

March 28, 2009

British driver Jenson Button amazed with pole position for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix but the rear of the grid is almost as interesting after penalties to world champion Lewis Hamilton and both Toyota drivers.

Hamilton had the 15th fastest time in Saturday qualifying but was penalised five spots because a broken gearbox caused him to miss the middle session.

That meant last grid position until a slight reprieve to 18th on Saturday night when the Toyotas of Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock were banished to the back.

Their cars were found to have rear wings that were too flexible - Glock dropped from sixth position and Trulli from eighth.

That was good news for Mark Webber, the Australian improving two places to eighth grid position in his Red Bull.

Button is joined on the front row by Brawn team-mate Rubens Barrichello followed by Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel and BMW's Robert Kubica.

Nico Rosberg's Williams moved to the fourth row with Felipe Massa's Ferrari then his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen alongside Webber.

Just a few months ago Button and Barrichello looked likely to be out of a job as Honda quit racing due to the global economic crisis.

But they earned a last minute reprieve when technical guru Ross Brawn line-up finance to run the team under his name.

Throughout pre-season testing the Brawn cars set the pace as hope began to rise from the ashes of the Japanese car maker's outfit.

"The last five or six months for both of us have been so tough because from going from not having a drive or any future in racing to putting it on pole here is just amazing," Button said.

"This is where we deserve to be I think after the tough times I've had.

"It's been a long time since we've had a car that's been competitive. It was 2006 when I put it on pole here so it's been very tough.

"There are a lot of people who stand by you, which is fantastic, but there are obviously a few people who don't, and they forget and they don't believe.

"But the important thing is the people in the team believe and that's all we care about - and they've proven it with this car.

"I think we've done a good job this weekend so far considering the amount of mileage we've had in the car.

"This is a great moment but obviously not the most important moment of the weekend," Button said.

Brawn, whose white cars arrived in Melbourne without sponsors, lured last minute backing from Virgin.

Company boss Sir Richard Branson paraded down pit lane to announce his support on Saturday and the cars emerged for qualifying sporting his red logo.

Barrichello said the new money was critical if Brawn were to maintain their position at the head of the field throughout the season.

"I was very glad to see Virgin signing us this morning because it now means we have the attitude on the team to carry on," Barrichello said.

"That could have been the problem during the year. I think this car will be very, very good for the first four races but definitely we need to have things coming in to keep on going."

Vettel was delighted after a dismal practice session on Friday when he encountered a mechanical problem in the first session then made a mistake and spun out in the second.

"This is for sure a good starting point but (for) points tomorrow we will have to work hard," he said.

Vettel echoed several drivers who were concerned about visibility in the setting sun during a twilight race.

"It was tricky, for instance you go down the main straight, the sun is very low, you cannot see the white line for instance when you exit the pits so you just keep right and hope you are far enough to the right.

"The same if you go to turn three with the trees, it's quite tricky as you have a lot of shadows there," he said.

Starting Grid
1st row
Jenson Button (GBR/Brawn-Mercedes)
Rubens Barrichello (BRA/Brawn-Mercedes)

2nd row
Sebastian Vettel (GER/Red Bull-Renault)
Robert Kubica (POL/BMW Sauber)

3rd row
Nico Rosberg (GER/Williams-Toyota)
Felipe Massa (BRA/Ferrari)

4th row
Kimi Raikkonen (FIN/Ferrari)
Mark Webber (AUS/Red Bull-Renault)

5th row
Nick Heidfeld (GER/BMW Sauber)
Fernando Alonso (ESP/Renault)

6th row
Kazuki Nakajima (JPN/Williams-Toyota)
Heikki Kovalainen (FIN/McLaren-Mercedes)

7th row
Sebastien Buemi (SUI/Toro Rosso-Ferrari)
Nelson Piquet Jr (BRA/Renault)

8th row
Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA/Force India-Ferrari)
Adrian Sutil (GER/Force India-Ferrari)

9th row
Sebastien Bourdais (FRA/Toro Rosso-Ferrari)
Lewis Hamilton (GBR/McLaren-Mercedes)

10th row
Timo Glock (GER/Toyota)
Jarno Trulli (ITA/Toyota)

Australian F1 Grand Prix

F1 Australian GP Top 3 29/03 - Top 3
Odds updated at 18:48:47
Select ONE driver to finish on podium 17:00 Sun 29 Mar 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
32037 BUTTON Jenson 1.22 $
32038 BARRICHELLO Rubens 1.35 $
32034 VETTEL Sebastien 2.65 $
32025 KUBICA Robert 2.75 $
32035 ROSBERG Nico 2.75 $
32024 MASSA Felipe 3.25 $
32023 RAIKKONEN Kimi 3.75 $
32030 GLOCK Timo 5.00 $
32029 TRULLI Jarno 5.00 $
32033 WEBBER Mark 5.00 $
32027 ALONSO Fernando 7.00 $
32021 HAMILTON Lewis 13.00 $
32026 HEIDFELD Nick 13.00 $
32036 NAKAJIMA Kazuki 15.00 $
32022 KOVALAINEN Heikki 23.00 $
32028 PIQUET Nelsinho 51.00 $
32032 BORDAIS Sebastien 67.00 $
32031 BUEMI Sebastien 67.00 $
32040 FISICHELLA Giancarlo 81.00 $
32039 SUTIL Adrian 81.00 $


F1 Australian GP Quinella 29/03 - Quinella
Odds updated at 20:36:15
First and Second in any order 17:00 Sun 29 Mar 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
32091 Raikkonen/Button 15.00 $
32092 Raikkonen/Alonso 251.00 $
32093 Raikkonen/Massa 51.00 $
32094 Raikkonen/Barrichello 26.00 $
32095 Raikkonen/Hamilton 401.00 $
32096 Raikkonen/Kubica 101.00 $
32097 Raikkonen/Vettel 101.00 $
32098 Raikkonen/Heidfeld 501.00 $
32099 Raikkonen/Glock 201.00 $
32100 Button/Alonso 31.00 $
32101 Button/Massa 11.00 $
32102 Button/Barrichello 1.60 $
32103 Button/Hamilton 41.00 $
32104 Button/Kubica 11.00 $
32105 Button/Vettel 11.00 $
32106 Button/Heidfeld 51.00 $
32107 Button/Glock 23.00 $
32108 Alonso/Massa 201.00 $
32109 Alonso/Barrichello 51.00 $
32110 Alonso/Hamilton 751.00 $
32111 Alonso/Kubica 201.00 $
32112 Alonso/Vettel 201.00 $
32113 Alonso/Heidfeld 1001.00 $
32114 Alonso/Glock 401.00 $
32115 Massa/Barrichello 21.00 $
32116 Massa/Hamilton 301.00 $
32117 Massa/Kubica 81.00 $
32118 Massa/Vettel 81.00 $
32119 Massa/Heidfeld 401.00 $
32120 Massa/Glock 151.00 $
32121 Barrichello/Hamilton 81.00 $
32122 Barrichello/Kubica 21.00 $
32123 Barrichello/Vettel 21.00 $
32124 Barrichello/Heidfeld 101.00 $
32125 Barrichello/Glock 41.00 $
32126 Hamilton/Kubica 301.00 $
32127 Hamilton/Vettel 301.00 $
32128 Hamilton/Heidfeld 1001.00 $
32129 Hamilton/Glock 601.00 $
32130 Kubica/Vettel 81.00 $
32131 Kubica/Heidfeld 126.00 $
32132 Kubica/Glock 151.00 $
32133 Vettel/Heidfeld 401.00 $
32134 Vettel/Glock 151.00 $
32135 Heidfeld/Glock 601.00 $
32136 Combinations Not Quoted 2.50 $


F1 Australian GP Winning Team 29/03 - Winning Team
Odds updated at 20:19:41
Team of winning car 17:00 Sun 29 Mar 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
32089 Brawn 1.40 $
32082 Ferrari 7.00 $
32087 Red Bull 9.00 $
32083 BMW Sauber 11.00 $
32088 Williams 11.00 $
32085 Toyota 13.00 $
32084 Renault 31.00 $
32081 McLaren 34.00 $
32086 Toro Rosso 201.00 $
32090 Force India 251.00 $


F1 Australian GP Top 8 29/03 - Top 8
Odds updated at 20:01:04
Select ONE driver to finish in Top 8 17:00 Sun 29 Mar 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
32057 BUTTON Jenson 1.16 $
32058 BARRICHELLO Rubens 1.18 $
32045 KUBICA Robert 1.30 $
32044 MASSA Felipe 1.30 $
32043 RAIKKONEN Kimi 1.30 $
32054 VETTEL Sebastien 1.30 $
32055 ROSBERG Nico 1.33 $
32050 GLOCK Timo 1.45 $
32049 TRULLI Jarno 1.55 $
32047 ALONSO Fernando 1.85 $
32046 HEIDFELD Nick 1.90 $
32053 WEBBER Mark 2.00 $
32041 HAMILTON Lewis 2.75 $
32056 NAKAJIMA Kazuki 2.75 $
32042 KOVALAINEN Heikki 3.00 $
32048 PIQUET Nelsinho 7.00 $
32051 BUEMI Sebastien 11.00 $
32052 BORDAIS Sebastien 13.00 $
32060 FISICHELLA Giancarlo 15.00 $
32059 SUTIL Adrian 15.00 $

^ Top
F1 Australian GP Winner 29/03 - Winner
Odds updated at 20:39:53
Pays on Podium (over the Line) Position 17:00 Sun 29 Mar 2009
Sportsbet No. Selection (default) Price Amount Total
32017 BUTTON Jenson 2.10 $
32018 BARRICHELLO Rubens 3.50 $
32014 VETTEL Sebastien 11.00 $
32005 KUBICA Robert 12.00 $
32004 MASSA Felipe 15.00 $
32003 RAIKKONEN Kimi 15.00 $
32015 ROSBERG Nico 16.00 $
32010 GLOCK Timo 31.00 $
32007 ALONSO Fernando 34.00 $
32009 TRULLI Jarno 34.00 $
32013 WEBBER Mark 34.00 $
32001 HAMILTON Lewis 51.00 $
32006 HEIDFELD Nick 67.00 $
32002 KOVALAINEN Heikki 126.00 $
32016 NAKAJIMA Kazuki 126.00 $
32008 PIQUET Nelsinho 301.00 $
32011 BUEMI Sebastien 401.00 $
32012 BORDAIS Sebastien 501.00 $
32020 FISICHELLA Giancarlo 501.00 $
32019 SUTIL Adrian 501.00 $

March 29, 2009

Briton Jenson Button won the Australian Formula One Grand Prix as his fledgling team Brawn GP debuted in remarkable one-two style.

Button survived an incident-filled race at Melbourne's Albert Park to convert pole position into just his second grand prix victory in 154 starts.

The 29-year-old was never headed in the 58-lap race, beating teammate Rubens Barrichello and Toyota's Jarno Trulli.

Reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton finished fourth in his McLaren.

The race finished behind the safety car after Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel and BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica first collided, then crashed separately, when running second and third respectively with three laps remaining.

Australian Mark Webber had a nightmarish start to his home town race.

He was caught up in a first corner skirmish with several other drivers, causing substantial damage to his Red Bull car and forcing him into an early pit stop which wrecked his hopes of earning championship points.

Webber emerged from the pits a lap down.

But he eventually finished 13th - the last of the cars to survive the race.

F1GP - ING Australian Grand PrixPos No Driver Team Time/Retired
1 20 Jenson Button Brawn 01:34:15.7840
2 21 Rubens Barrichello Brawn 01:34:16.5910
3 9 Jarno Trulli Toyota 01:34:17.3880
4 1 Lewis Hamilton McLaren 01:34:18.6980
5 10 Timo Glock Toyota 01:34:20.2190
6 7 Fernando Alonso Renault 01:34:20.6630
7 16 Nico Rosberg Williams 01:34:21.5060
8 12 Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso 01:34:21.7880
9 11 Sebastien Bourdais Toro Rosso 01:34:22.0820
10 18 Adrian Sutil Force India 01:34:22.1190
11 6 Nick Heidfeld BMW Sauber 01:34:22.8690
12 19 Giancarlo Fisichella Force India 01:34:23.1580
13 14 Mark Webber Red Bull +1 Lap
14 15 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull +2 Laps
15 5 Robert Kubica BMW Sauber +3 Laps
16 4 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari +3 Laps
17 3 Felipe Massa Ferrari DNF
18 8 Nelson Piquet Jr. Renault DNF
19 17 Kazuki Nakajima Williams DNF
20 2 Heikki Kovalainen McLaren DNF

March 29, 2009

The first corner carnage that ruined Mark Webber's Australian Grand Prix was one of the most frustrating and disappointing things to happen in his motor racing career.

The Australian had shown speed through practice and qualifying and his Red Bull car started the Formula One season-opener from eighth on the grid.

But any hope of bettering his fifth place finishes in 2002 and 2005 were gone inside the opening 10 seconds of Sunday's race.

Webber was caught in a first-corner sandwich between Brawn GP's Rubens Barrichello, BMW-Sauber's Nick Heidfeld and Heikki Kovalainen's McLaren, and his car emerged sliced and diced.

"It's one of the most frustrating and disappointing things that's happened to me," Webber said immediately after the race.

"All the people come to see you at your home track, you're hoping for a good race for them, and that happens on the first lap.

"These things (cars) don't do demolition derbies too well."

Webber was forced into a pit stop for running repairs which put him a lap down, though he did keep circling to eventually finish 13th.

But the damage had been done to his car - losing downforce and making handling cumbersome for the remaining 57 laps.

Webber felt Barrichello, who went on to finish second to Brawn GP teammate Jenson Button, was to blame on first impression.

"I thought it was all okay until Rubens arrived but I haven't seen it, so it's hard to tell. The damage to the car was done from that point," Webber said.

"I lost virtually all downforce after that."

But Barrichello blamed another car for nudging him into the 32-year-old Australian.
Webber, who went into his home GP still recovering from a broken leg and shoulder competing in an off-season adventure race in Tasmania, looks to be facing a challenging year.

While he limped around Albert Park, Webber's German teammate Sebastian Vettel showed rocket-like speed throughout to sit second until he crashed spectacularly with three laps left.

Vettel's tangle with third-placed Robert Kubica's BMW-Sauber brought out the safety car to close an eventful GP.

Vettel - 11 years Webber's junior and clearly F1's coming man - showed enough speed to raise the bar for both his Red Bull team and his Australian teammate. But the youngster still finished one place behind the veteran.

March 30, 2009

Less than 24 hours after their Australian Grand Prix fairytale, Formula One newcomers Brawn GP have sacked more than 270 workers.

Brawn GP chief executive Nick Fry confirmed one-third of the F1 team's workforce would be cut - announcing the mass sackings at their factory in England amid the euphoria of Briton Jenson Button's victory in Melbourne.

"It's about 270 (job losses)," Fry told the BBC.

"We are about 700 people at the moment and we talked to the staff about going down to about 430, which is where we were in 2004.

"It's very unfortunate that we've got to do that but it's the change of technical regulations and obviously we are now a private team."

Brawn GP arose from the ashes of the now-defunct Honda - the team's spot on the F1 grid saved at the last minute by a management buyout.

But after inheriting a huge staff and needing fewer workers because of this year's change in F1 rules banning mid-season testing, Fry said the job cuts were inevitable.

It has shattered the feel-good factor around the team's remarkable one-two finish in their debut Grand Prix, with Button leading home Brazilian Rubens Barrichello.

The team also signed Richard Branson's Virgin Group as a major sponsor in Melbourne at the weekend.

Despite their Albert Park win and the promise of a new world order in the sport as Ferrari and McLaren struggled to keep pace with them, Brawn GP will also have to sweat it out until April 14 to find out if their controversial rear diffusers are legal.

F1's governing body, the FIA, will hear appeals from Ferrari, Red Bull and Renault over the diffusers used by Brawn, Williams and Toyota.

Stewards in Melbourne ruled they were legal ahead of the season-opening Grand Prix, allowing their use until the appeal is heard.

But if the FIA appeals court rules against the technology, Brawn face having their Australian GP victory struck out, as well as losing any points they earn at the Malaysian GP this weekend.

Not that it bothers Button, who believes his car is legal.

"That's nothing we can change as drivers," Button said.

"We're here to put on a show, and also to get the best out of the equipment on offer, which is exactly what we did over the weekend.

"We will continue to do so over the next few races or for the whole of the season, and we have to see what happens.

"At the moment, I'm enjoying this victory because it is a victory, and I think it should stand."

Honda, which quit the sport in December, also joined in the congratulations for Brawn GP's debut win.

"We are incredibly delighted that our teammates, with whom we worked until last season, have started from extremely difficult circumstances to earn this victory," Honda said in a statement.

Mark Webber's Red Bull team head to Malaysia licking their wounds after a tough start to the year.

Webber was caught in a multi-car shunt on the first corner in Melbourne, putting him a lap down, though he kept circling to trail the field in 13th place.

And young gun Sebastian Vettel faces a 10-place penalty on the Malaysian grid for causing the late-race collision with BMW-Sauber's Robert Kubica as the pair duelled for podium finishes.

He also was fined $72,000.

April 05, 2009

Jenson Button has won a chaotic Malaysian Grand Prix for a second straight victory after the race was abandoned on 32 laps when a ferocious storm lashed the Sepang circuit.

Nick Heidfeld in his BMW Sauber came second, benefiting from pitting only once to Button's four times in a race that became a lottery.

Timo Glock in a Toyota was third.

It was finally halted after 32 laps as rain pelted down, lightning flashed around the circuit and visibility deteriorated, the first time since Brazil in 2003 that a race has been called off due to weather.

Formula One supremos must take some of the blame after pushing for a 5:00pm local time start instead of its regular 3:00 pm slot to satisfy European television audiences.

With tropical Malaysia routinely getting wild storms, it was clear that if one hit during the 56-lap race they would have trouble finishing with daylight disappearing.

Toyota's Jarno Trulli came fourth, Rubens Barrichello in the other Brawn was fifth and Mark Webber in the Red Bull was sixth.

World champion Lewis Hamilton picked valuable points by coming seventh with Nico Rosberg filling out the top eight.

However, the drivers and constructors only get half the usual number of points with the race halted at less than three-quarter distance.

With black clouds threatening rain, the race got off to a sensational start with pole-sitter Button half asleep as the lights turned green.

The Briton, who won last week in Melbourne, went to the first corner in fourth behind Rosberg, Trulli and Fernando Alonso.

Undeterred, Button soon woke up and sped past Alonso before the opening lap was over and started closing on the leaders.

"My start was pretty bad. I don't think I'd got enough heat in the tyres and had a lot of oversteer," said Button, who began on pole and now has 15 points in the drivers' standings ahead of his teammate on 10.

"But I went back to fourth, got up to third, eventually got back up to the front and I was pretty happy with that, our pace was pretty good."

"Choosing the tyres was very difficult, because normally here when it rains it pours, but it didn't to start with," he said.

"We went for the full wet tyre and it destroyed itself, and then I saw Timo (Glock) flying up behind us with the inter, so we put the intermediates on.

"Just as he came by I saw his tyres were bald and it was raining out the back, so he was struggling quite a lot and had to pit.

"I got one lap in on the inter at a reasonable pace and was able to get in and put the wet tyre on and get back in front."

Barrichello, who started ninth with a five-place grid penalty for changing his gearbox, stormed up to fourth and the top four started to pull away.

By lap eight, they had a 13-second gap on fifth-placed Alonso, clearly benefiting from their controversial rear diffusers.

Only Williams, Toyota and Brawn have them fitted and they have been the subject of protests by BMW Sauber, Ferrari, Renault, Red Bull who claim they are contrary to the rules, generating more down force.

While the the top four were flying, there was disaster for the troubled McLaren team with Heikki Kovalainen careering onto the gravel on the opening lap and crashing out.

Robert Kubica in his BMW Sauber also had a race to forget, stalling on the grid and only completing one lap.

Leader Rosberg made his first pit stop on lap 15 and came out fourth. Trulli followed a lap later, along with Button and Barrichello.

They all elected slick tyres despite the threat of rain and when the dust settled Button was leading ahead of Rosberg, Trulli and Barrichello.

It was a mistake as the rain started to fall just minutes later and they were forced back in to get their wets, but all emerged in the same 1-4 formation.

Button was firing, pulling 18 seconds clear of Rosberg by lap 27 but Glock, running on intermediate tyres, was clocking four seconds a lap faster and rapidly making inroads.

The leaders soon realised that's what they needed too and all went into the pits again but as soon as they came out it started raining again, so back in they went.

As the conditions worsened, the safety car was deployed and the red flag was raised.

The race was finally abandoned 50 minutes after it was first stopped.


F1GP Ladders

F1 Drivers Ladder
Updated APR 2009
Driver Team Pts
1 Jenson Button (GBR) Brawn 15
2 Rubens Barrichello (BRA) Brawn 10
3 Jarno Trulli (ITA) Toyota 8.5
4 Timo Glock (GER) Toyota 8
5 Nick Heidfeld (GER) BMW Sauber 4
6 Fernando Alonso (ESP) Renault 4
7 Nico Rosberg (GER) Williams 3.5
8 Sebastien Buemi (SUI) Toro Rosso 2
9 Mark Webber (AUS) Red Bull 1.5
10 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) McLaren 1
11 Sebastien Bourdais (FRA) Toro Rosso 1
12 Adrian Sutil (GER) Force India 0
13 Felipe Massa (BRA) Ferrari 0
14 Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA) Force India 0
15 Kazuki Nakajima (JAP) Williams 0
16 Sebastian Vettel (GER) Red Bull 0
17 Nelson Piquet Jr. (BRA) Renault 0
18 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) Ferrari 0
19 Robert Kubica (POL) BMW Sauber 0
20 Heikki Kovalainen (FIN) McLaren 0

Updated APR 2009
Team Pts
1 Brawn 25
2 Toyota 16.5
3 BMW Sauber 4
4 Renault 4
5 Williams 3.5
6 Toro Rosso 3
7 Red Bull 1.5
8 McLaren 1
9 Force India 0
10 Ferrari 0

April 16, 2009

Ron Dennis has quit as chief executive of McLaren, handing over to team principal Martin Whitmarsh, the Formula One team.

Ron Dennis has quit as chief executive of McLaren, handing over to team principal Martin Whitmarsh, the Formula One team said.
Dennis is to focus on the automotive side of the company, with the aim of launching a new McLaren sports car in 2011.

The 61-year-old, who has been involved with Formula One for 43 years, took over as McLaren Racing boss in 1981, but handed that responsibility to Whitmarsh earlier this year.

Although Dennis attended the season-opening Australian Grand Prix last month, he then chose not to attend the subsequent race in Malaysia, the first time he had not been present for many years.

McLaren, home to world champion Lewis Hamilton, were recently embroiled in a damaging controversy after being accused of giving false information to race stewards about Hamilton's tactics in the Melbourne Grand Prix, which resulted in a penalty for Toyota's Jarno Trulli.

"I passed the role of team principal to Martin on January 16, the day of the launch of our new Formula One car," Dennis said.

"That day I was asked many times whether I would attend the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. My answer was 'yes'.

"I duly attended it - albeit not as the person in charge of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. It was, I admit, a strange feeling.

"The next race, the Malaysian Grand Prix, I watched on TV in the UK - an activity I found surprisingly easy.

"I'd expected to be more emotional about it, after an unbroken run of attending so many grands prix for so many years."

Dennis has endured a stormy relationship with Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and FIA president Max Mosley and admitted he didn't go out of his way to cultivate good relations with the sport's bosses.

"I admit I'm not always easy to get on with. I admit I've always fought hard for McLaren in Formula One," he said.

"I doubt if Max Mosley or Bernie Ecclestone will be displeased by my decision. But no-one asked me to do it. It was my decision.

"Equally, I was the architect of this restructure of the McLaren Group. Again, no-one asked me to do it. It was my decision.

"I feel enormously enthused about the prospects for the McLaren Group and for McLaren Automotive, and have no qualms about leaving Martin to report to the board regarding matters connected with Formula One."