Force India's F1 talent hunt begins in Mumbai

Force India recently announced the launch of its new Formula One Team Academy, which is an initiative by the Force India Formula One Team with title sponsor Mobil 1, aimed at identifying racing talent from all across the country via a karting program.

 The first of seven selection rounds pan India have begun in the city of Mumbai, the finalists of which will be announced on the 1st of May. In order to be eligible each entrant will have to drive at least 10 practice laps at the venue to obtain the pre-qualifying certificate allowing them to participate in the qualifying rounds.

Button wants to end F1 career with McLaren

Jenson Button says he wishes to end his career with his current team, McLaren, saying he can't see himself racing in F1 unless it's with the British outfit.

The 2009 world champion joined McLaren at the start of the 2010 season after leaving Brawn GP, having clinched the drivers' title. He has been with the team in various guises since joining them from Renault in 2003.

He started his F1 career with Williams over ten years ago.

"When I finish racing here, I won't be racing in Formula 1 anymore," Button told Autosport magazine. "I'm very happy here. I want to enjoy my racing and I'm really enjoying my time here. I can't see any reason to be anywhere else.

"I'm driving for one of the best teams in the world. It's a position that most drivers would love to be in and I've worked very hard for it. I might be around for three years, five years...I don't know."

Tips to help you choose the auto transport

It is essential to understand that transporting a vehicle needs special skills and expertise. So the mover of household articles may not be the right person to transport your vehicle. Always engage auto transport mover or Auto shipping company for any kind of your vehicle shifts be it a local or international. Your car is probably one of your big assets and you would naturally want to make sure that it is transported safely Therefore, when choosing a car transport company you need to be diligent because you want to ensure that your car gets to your new home safely and on the appointed date of delivery.

Fernando Alonso says Scuderia Ferrari can stage a comeback – Formula 1

Ferrari driver, Fernando Alonso, has stated that the Ferrari team has the ability to come from behind and surprise with a win. The Spaniard added that the start to the 2011 Formula 1 season is not what the team expected but Ferrari’s team is working hard in Maranello to maximise the potential of the car.

After putting up quite a show in his home track in Spain, Alonso had completely failed to repeat his performance in the first three races of the 2011 season. His team-mate, Felipe Massa, has also not done anything miraculous in the opening round of the 2011 season.

However, Alonso thinks that the team will tie up some lose ends and will strike back in the European part of the season. “I trust in the team: I know what it's made of and I can feel the will to fight back from everyone at Maranello. In the past I have experienced, first as an opponent and then as an insider how capable the Scuderia is of staging a comeback,” commented the Spaniard.

Coulthard predicts tight season in F1

SINGAPORE - More than 50,000 people, including petrolheads and curious onlookers, gathered at Orchard Road yesterday to catch a whiff of Formula 1 action on Singapore's most famous strip.

They lined both sides of the famous street from Ion Orchard to Mandarin Gallery, as David Coulthard drove a Red Bull Racing showcar, at the Red Bull Speed Street event.

The former Formula 1 ace delighted the crowd down the 800m stretch with short sprints and manoeuvres like burnouts and doughnuts in 20 minutes of action.

The 40-year-old Scot, who retired in 2008, has kept his eye on the first few races of this season's campaign, was hugely impressed with the drive of Lewis Hamilton at the last race in Shanghai, when the McLaren ace took the chequered flag ahead of Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel, who had seemed unbeatable after two wins out of two, in Australia and Malaysia, respectively.

Lack of interest, financial troubles axe future of Formula 1 in Turkey

The Formula 1 Grand Prix races were expected to contribute to the city of İstanbul in many ways when it won hosting rights for the event before 2005, when first race on the İstanbul circuit took place; however, a lack of interest and financial problems threaten the future of the event in Turkey, İstanbul Mayor Kadir Topbaş has said.

In recent years, it has been rumored that Turkey’s rights to host Formula 1 Grand Prix races may be terminated after this year’s races. The speculation unofficially turned out to be true when İstanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO) head Murat Yalçıntaş tweeted, “It looks like the Formula One race will not be held in İstanbul next year,” on Thursday. The future of the races is believed to be in peril due to a disagreement between the races’ Turkish officials and Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone over payments for the race.

Safety for your vehicles at All America Auto Transport

Auto shipping is a challenging task and prone to a lot of risks and therefore it is therefore of paramount mportance that you select an auto shipping company that takes personal care of your vehicle till it is safely delivered at the end destination.

Vehicle transport does not mean mere shifting of vehicles from one state to another or one country to another - the crux of the issue is on shifting the vehicles safely. Most individuals and organizations take a lot of pride in maintaining their vehicles and they would obviously want the auto transporting service to appreciate this sentiment.

In earlier times, most people were diffident about auto transport and there were not many auto shipping companies. As a result, vehicle owners had no choice but to sell their vehicles when they migrated to other states or another country. But since then, things have changed for the better and today you have a lot of reputed and reliable auto transport companies.

Vehicles are not only costly objects, but they are also huge in size and weigh heavily and this makes safe shipping of vehicles all the more difficult. Thus to ensure complete safety of the vehicle, many auto shipping companies employ professionals who understand and appreciate the value of the vehicle. The workers are taught how to handle the vehicle with undivided attention and care.

To facilitate safe shipping of your vehicles, it is necessary that you do the following prior to handing over the vehicle to the auto shipping company:

Thoroughly check your vehicle prior to your shipping and ensure that your vehicle is in good condition
Inflate the tires to the recommended pressure for safe loading and unloading so that no damage is caused to the tires.
Completely empty the vehicle and remove all the additional fittings except the necessary items such as spare tires or jack.
Make it a point to remove all the antennas and roof racks
Disable your alarm system and remove the EZ pass device if there is one in your vehicle
There should be only 1/4 tank of fuel and not more.
Get bill of lading signed so that if you find any damage to your vehicle after it reaches the destination - you can claim the insurance amount
Do not forget to get the documents of current conditions of your car
Remember to verify the condition of the vehicle when delivered and do not accept the delivery during night times.
Choosing enclosed mode of transport would be safer and having proper auto transport insurance for your vehicle would be essential.
You can visit the website of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to check if your vehicle transport company is properly licensed.

The wise thing to do if you really want your vehicle to be transported safely, is to handover your vehicle to a reputed auto shipping company that has the experience and expertise in transporting vehicles. Vehicle shipping is made safe through All America Auto Transport (AAAT) that is in the business of transporting vehicles within the country and overseas since 1964.

Williams' Adam Parr backs Formula 1's 'greener' engines

Williams chairman Adam Parr believes Formula 1's switch to more efficient 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbo engines in 2013 is essential for the sport.

F1 commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone has warned that the change is an unnecessary expense that risks alienating fans, but Parr disagrees.

"The sport will lose its interest very quickly if people think that it is standing still," said Parr.

"The technology is dated, it is not what's going on out in the real world."

Parr believes that the alternative of retaining the current V8 engine technology would create "a major, major barrier to bringing in new partners and growing the sport".

The move, approved by governing body the FIA in December, has run into opposition from Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, who described the planned units as "a bit pathetic".

Mercedes were another team concerned that the extra financial burden on teams would counteract the sport's attempts to cut costs in the wake of the global economic crisis.

But Parr, whose team have yet to score a point after three races of the 2011 season, believes such criticisms are self-interested.

Formula One may race electric cars

Plug-in electric cars seem to be everywhere these days. My office building has a charging station in the parking garage, as does a Whole Foods Market near me. Up until now, I've thought of electric cars as a gas-saving choice for people with a short daily commute to work; an attractive option for upper-midle class suburbanites. But my impression might be about to change.

The European Union has asked Formula One to start a series of races for electric cars on Grand Prix courses around the world, and European auto racing officials believe a worldwide race series featuring the eco-friendly electric vehicles would go a long way toward promoting green technology.

"One of the priorities of my mandate is to give a concrete start to the ultimate conversion of the European car industry," says Antonio Tajani, the industry commissioner for the EU government.

Automakers from around the world are rolling out plug-in electric cars in rapid succession. American automakers have introduced the Chevy Volt and the Ford Focus Electric in the United States. Japanese car companies are in the market with the electric Nissan Leaf and the upcoming plug-in version of the Toyota Prius, while Korean automaker Hyundai has announced an electric car under the Sonata brand.

The EU has a vested interest in promoting European car companies, which are developing electric cars as well. German auto company BMW has announced its BMWi series of electric cars, and the plug-in Smart fortwo electric car comes from a division of Mercedes-Benz.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa turns around his season

Felipe Massa's strong performance at the Chinese Grand Prix could be the breakthrough that will rescue his Formula 1 career.

He was a little disappointed at how his race fell away in the late stages at Shanghai.

Having spent much of the distance within a couple of seconds of Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull, the Ferrari's rear tyres finally surrendered and left Felipe tumbling down the order in the last few laps, unable to hold off a host of three-stopping cars on fresher rubber.

It left him crossing the line in sixth place.

But disappointment in a race in which he finished 15 seconds clear of team-mate Fernando Alonso demonstrates a real turnaround in both his form and mentality.

It built upon a breakthrough that had actually been made a week earlier in Malaysia but was disguised there by a problem pit stop that lost him vital places.

Otherwise, he might have beaten Alonso there too.

But do not get the idea that this is anything other than Alonso's team.

The double world champion remains the absolute focus of Ferrari, as emphasised by the words of team boss Stefano Domenicali when asked if he had any observations on Alonso's somewhat low-key China race.

"I do not want to get into anything that might be interpreted as negative about Fernando. He is a fantastic driver and the biggest asset of this team," he said.

Massa and his engineer Rob Smedley fully understand this reality.

The key to rescuing a reputation that is now far below that of 2008 - when Massa came close to delivering the team a world title - will be in working within that understanding.

Insurance Protection from All America Auto Transport

As is known to all, car transport is a risky affair as any vehicle that is shipped is susceptible to dents, scratches and/or other forms of damage. The only assured way to protect the likely damages that occur to your vehicle during shipping is to go for auto transport insurance. Auto shipping insurance also protects your car from natural calamities as also the vagaries of the weather.

Insurance policies offered by various auto transport companies may be different.
It is essential that you ascertain from the auto shipping company  what types of damages will be covered if the vehicle is impaired during the shipping process. If you consider the coverage provided by the auto transport company to be inadequate, you can find out if it is possible to buy an additional coverage.

Further it is necessary for you to know which parts of the vehicle will be covered in case of an accident and more importantly, the insurance coverage offered by the auto transport company should also protect you against vehicle theft. One important factor that should weigh with you before choosing an auto transport company is the amount of insurance coverage that will be provided by them.

There are a few things that you must check to receive proper insurance coverage. Never hesitate to ask questions about the auto shipping company’s insurance policies. You should study the insurance policy documents of the auto shipping company and to satisfy about the genuineness of the documents, you can even crosscheck with the auto transport insurance provider.

Beware that some auto movers may provide only very restricted insurance coverage – at times, it will be even less than your vehicle’s actual market value. It has to be stated that there may be a few unscrupulous auto transport companies that may try all types of tricks to evade paying insurance claim. It is also important to personally verify whether the auto transport company has a valid insurance certificate.

Please note if your auto shipping company avoids or deliberately delays settling your damage claim, you are at liberty to file a complaint with local Better Business Bureau. This apart, you can also report the matter to the Department of Transportation for speedy redress and as a last resort you can also approach the law courts. But it is prudent to first attempt to sort out your complaints with your auto shipping company and if you still feel that you are not getting justice, you can take recourse to other measures.

Quite often, the insurance coverage provided by the auto transport company may not be sufficient to cover the expense of the vehicle replacement. It is therefore preferable you contact the company's insurance agency and know firsthand the terms and conditions in the policy. When transporting luxury vehicles or any other unique types of vehicles, you must ensure that the insurance coverage includes the blue book value of the vehicle.

Most reputed and frontline auto transporters that are licensed and bonded like All America Auto Transport (AAAT) will ensure safe shipping and will carry proper insurance so that they can quickly reimburse your damage claims.  AAAT guarantees proper insurance coverage for vehicles and ensures that full coverage is provided in the event of damages to the vehicle during its custody.

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso unhappy with pace of his car – Formula 1 news

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso unhappy with pace of his car – Formula 1 news

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso was not pleased with the performance of his car in the Formula 1 2011 Chinese Grand Prix held on Sunday, 17 April.

He claimed that a three-stop strategy would have also resulted in a similar race which he had while stopping twice.

The Spaniard stated, “We need to improve the car above everything. We'll see now which one (strategy) was the best. It's very easy to choose the strategy when you have the fastest car and it's very hard when you are slow. Webber today showed qualifying is not very important.”

Alonso further claimed, “The most important thing is to have a good tyre degradation and a good strategy, and this year we can overtake. As I say, the easiest thing is to have a quick car, like Red Bull, you pit three, two, one times and you end up on the podium.”

The two-time Formula 1 champion admitted that the scarlet car was very slow on Sunday compared to the front-runners. He said that there was no particular problem with the car, but it did not have the speed to finish on the podium.

Both Ferrari drivers Felipe Massa and Alonso ended the race in 6th and 7th positions respectively. They opted to stop twice in the race for the tyre change, but this appeared to be a wrong strategy, as the tyres degraded a lot towards the end.

The outcome of Sunday’s race will be very disappointing for the Italian team, as they have failed to score a podium in all three races of the season so far.

Although Massa had a chance to finish in the top three, the Brazilian was caught by Red Bull’s Mark Webber and Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg in the final few laps. Both drivers were on a three-stop strategy and had fresher tyres compared to the Ferrari of Massa.

On the other hand, Alonso was also under a threat of losing his place to Michael Schumacher. The veteran Mercedes driver was on fresher tyres and closed the gap significantly on the Spaniard in the last ten laps. However, the seven-time Formula 1 champion ran out of time in the end, finishing the race 8th overall.

Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo disappointed with team performance in 2011 Formula 1 season so far

Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo disappointed with team performance in 2011 Formula 1 season so far

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has said that the team must improve their new car in order to compete alongside the top running teams of the sport.

The team has been unable to compete alongside the top running teams like McLaren or Red Bull Racing Team in terms of pace or reliability. Ferrari have so far not scored a single podium since the beginning of the 2011 Formula 1 season.

“This cannot and must not be the team's level. It's a very delicate moment. I expect our engineers to act with determination and know-how, unleashing the maximum of their capacity to improve the performance of the car in a short time,” said Luca.

He stated that he wants to see his team at its best and the fans demand it as well. With Fernando Alonso by their side, Ferrari are expected to score the best possible results this season keeping in mind that their car was looking very good during the pre-season testing period which further raised the fans expectations.

It is believed that the team started to go through a host of problems after its final upgrade package which was added to their car in Barcelona before the season opening race of the season in Australia.

However, the team’s technical director Aldo Costa stated that the car looked pretty good in the wind tunnel after the upgrade but it proved to be a failure on the track.

“In the winter development, in the last test, we have tested a lot of new components and some of them are not delivering the performance expected, so we started an investigation so we are doing correlation job between the track and the wind tunnel, trying to understand why that should be,” said Costa.

Aldo believes that a Formula 1 car is a very complicated aerodynamic machine and Ferrari need to review theirs before heading on to Turkey for the Turkish Grand Prix which is expected to take place in three weeks time.

Mark Webber desperate for Red Bull to fix KERS

MARK Webber has warned Red Bull will fall off the pace quickly unless it can resolve its KERS curse.

Formula One's leading team has struggled from the start of the season with the power-boosting device.

Despite either having KERS part-functioning or not working at all, Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel managed to win the first two races and was second in China last week behind McLaren's Lewis Hamilton.

Webber carved his way through the field from 18th to third in perhaps his best-ever drive but says Red Bull won't be able to hold McLaren at bay for long unless its KERS issue is fixed.

"McLaren have a huge amount of experience with Mercedes from 2009 and they're doing a good job of it, and that's not an excuse," Webber said.

"It means that we have to work harder, we have to work as cleverly as we can and as fast as we can.

"Fortunately, we now have a bit of a break, so it will be a clear focus for us in terms of durability and consistency and also understanding the system.

"We have awesome guys on the case. With the limited experience we have, that's the way it is and we're still going okay in the constructors' championship, so let's regroup, get to (the next race in) Turkey and work hard on it."

Webber said the KERS problem was doing more than just slowing down Red Bull's cars.

"It's not only a performance thing but it's also incredibly disrupting in the garage. My car was rebuilt about four times this weekend," he added.

"It makes it so much harder for them in terms of making mistakes, when you open a car up and put it back together all the time, it's not easy."

Webber has yet to run a working KERS in a race this season, and Vettel has only had it part-time at the last two grands prix.

According to Vettel, the lack of KERS cost him his third win of the season in Shanghai.

Team boss Christian Horner said Red Bull would make the reliability of their KERS a priority during the three-week break to the start of the European leg of the season in Turkey next month.

Ingram: Tandems Better Than 4-Wide, Formula 1

Talladega, Ala. – The Top Ten reasons why I like tandem racing at Talladega:

1. It’s the best racing in terms of speed and skill. (Most of the world’s major series were in action this weekend, including an extraordinary Formula 1 race in China. But even the 4-Wide Nationals in Charlotte couldn’t match the demands of tandem racing – much less the finish on the plains of Alabama.)

2. “The Big Ones” are smaller. (For years, drivers and fans have decried the huge multi-car incidents at Talladega. NASCAR has tried everything from roof flaps to changing the fuel tank sizes to break up the big drafts. Tandems have done it better than anything else in the restrictor plate era.)

3. Two-car pods drive the complainers crazy. (Not enough contact at Bristol? Well, there’s more than enough at 200 mph at Talladega. Mid-race snoozes? You’ll miss some extraordinary recoveries, if nothing else, if you nap during Talladega. All that passing for the lead at Talladega is meaningless? Yeah, right. Just like the first four cards dealt in five-car stud are meaningless.)

4. The little guy looms large. (Just as Trevor Bayne had a shot at winning in Daytona, the team of Tommy Baldwin Jr. and driver Dave Blaney had a legitimate chance to score the biggest upset since

Little dogs can run with the big dogs at Talladega. (RacinToday/HHP photo by Alan Marler)

the days of Ron Bouchard and Richard Brickhouse.)

5. Dale Earnhardt Jr. is not on board with the new style of racing, even though he helped push Jimmie Johnson to the victory. (I guess NASCAR doesn’t build its rules around Earnhardt Jr. winning at Daytona and Talladega after all.)

6. Tandem racing sells tickets. (Two years after Carl Edwards and Brad Keselowski introduced the tandem concept at Talladega, everybody knew what was coming. In a stadium with 131,000 grandstand seats, reasonable estimates put the crowd count at well over 100,000, including the infield, which remains as wacky and weird as ever.)

7. The “exchange” is one of the more demanding maneuvers in motor racing. (If you don’t get the switch done right, you’ll lose valuable time, especially in the closing stages. Is it more difficult than less cooperative overtaking? No. But in many respects, it’s more interesting in terms of overtaking the other tandems.)

8. Some guys just can’t seem to get the hang of it. (Which proves it’s not as easy as it looks. See Michael Waltrip at Daytona and Kurt Busch at Talladega.)

9. The drives are more friendly than usual on tandem racing weekends. (Maybe it’s just me, but the cooperative and spontaneous aspect of racing in pairs – the drivers never know who they might be “dating” at any given moment during the race – seems to put them in a more cooperative and friendly frame of mind prior to the event. Hell, some drivers even dropped into the media center at Talladega at times other than their appointed media conferences. Next thing you know, drivers might start thanking the fans first when they get out of their cars instead of their sponsors.)

10. There’s still only one winner. (That would be the individual who does the best job and gets to the checkered flag first.)

International shipping at All America Auto Transport

It is common knowledge that car shipping from one destination to another is a risky proposition and it becomes increasingly so if you are moving your vehicle internationally. For this reason, many moving companies were quite reluctant to accept assignments for overseas auto transport.

However, things have since changed with the arrival of some frontline auto transport companies like All America Auto Transport (AAAT). AAAT in America has been transporting vehicles both within USA and overseas for the last four decades and more. Auto transporting – be it nationally or internationally - needs lot of experience and skills and AAAT is adept in doing this.

Further, the advantages of entrusting your auto transport assignment to AAAT are - the company is scrupulously honest, thoroughly reliable, known for its professionalism and unique sense of customer service. Surprisingly, the rates quoted by AAAT are extremely competitive and in keeping with market norms – that is to say, you will not be spending more though engaging a frontline auto transport company.

The company is known to provide free auto transport tips and suggestions to its prospective customers and have all the auto transport resources at their command. AAAT will send you free international car shipping quote without obligation.

If you are planning to move your vehicle internationally and at the same time want to feel relaxed and carefree, it is necessary that you engage an auto transport company that has a sound track record in overseas auto transport – and AAAT can easily be the right choice.

AAAT is known to deftly handle the complicated task of international auto transport using the best tools and professionally qualified workforce. The company has a team of seasoned personnel to do all the related functions like car inspection, preparing the vehicle for shipping, pick up and drop etc.

Like all vehicle shipping companies, AAAT also offers you two modes of vehicle transportation - open and enclosed and it is a question of your personal preference to select the one you need. Either enclosed or open, AAAT offers you these services at an affordable and competitive price.

All the same, you must appreciate that moving your vehicle overseas is a costly proposition and the rates will vary depending on the distance to be covered and taxes and other levies of the destination countries. Remember that to drive your vehicle after it reaches its destination country, you should possess a state/country issued valid driver’s license and also pay the applicable registration fees and obtain the new license plates.

Following are some valuable tips to help you successfully transport your vehicle overseas:
Please ensure that your vehicle doe not contain more than ¼ tank of fuel.
Ascertain from the U.S Department of State details regarding the applicable fees and the nature of documents needed to drive your vehicle after it reaches the new destination country.
Note down the vehicle speedometer reading and thoroughly clean the vehicle before bringing it to the port.
Make sure to carry a valid ID card and two sets of keys.
In the event the vehicle is financed or leased, you should possess a clear written permission from the finance or leasing company allowing you to move the vehicle overseas.
Make it a point to read and understand the liability statements and obtain all the relevant documents from AAAT.

Chinese Grand Prix 2011: Lewis Hamilton remains 'committed' to McLaren

Lewis Hamilton has distanced himself from comments which hinted he would soon be looking for a way out of McLaren if they fail to provide him with a title-winning car.

The Briton yesterday stoked speculation over his future when he responded to a question about whether loyalty had its limits by saying: "It definitely does."

He added: "I have always enjoyed racing here and would like to continue but you also, at the end of the year, have to assess what position you are in and what happened."

The comment was taken by some as an indication that his commitment to McLaren might be wavering, but the Briton quelled that speculation today.

Asked about his comment on loyalty, he told BBC Radio 5 Live: "That's just a saying. That's the way of life, but there's no questioning my loyalty to my team. It's been my team since I was six years old.

"But I'm here, I'm committed to them. I want to try and help them as well as becoming one of the most successful drivers myself. I want them to be able to do that for me.

Pirelli seek to reduce F1 toffee-like tyre debris

SHANGHAI: Formula One's new sole supplier Pirelli has said it will seek to reduce the amount of toffee-like debris shed by its tyres during races after some drivers expressed concern.

The Italian company added in a statement at the Chinese Grand Prix on Thursday that the slippery 'marbles' left behind on the track posed no danger for competitors or spectators.

"The faster tyre wear compared to previous years can lead to strips of rubber being deposited on the track, which vary in size but are generally the shape and consistency of toffees," Pirelli said.

"These strips are pliable when warm but become more rigid when they cool down, just like toffee.

"These rubber `marbles' have always existed in Formula One, but the characteristics of Pirelli's new compounds mean that the pieces are on average larger and softer than the hard and round `marbles' that have been seen at grands prix in the past."

Pirelli has replaced Bridgestone as sole supplier this season with tyres that degrade far quicker than the previous Japanese rubber.

The company says this is by design, leading to increased overtaking opportunities and many more pitstops.

The downside has been much more residue deposited on the circuit, with the marbles catching out some drivers -- Renault's Russian Vitaly Petrov suggesting in particular that they might have triggered his crash in Malaysia last weekend.

Pirelli said the marbling phenomenon was most pronounced at circuits with high tyre wear like Malaysia.

According to their calculations a new F1 tyre, weighing about 8.5 kilos, will lose about 1.5 kilos over the course of a racing stint.

"The rubber `marbles' on the track are a natural consequence of the increased degradation that has led to more exciting races," said Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery.

"All that rubber has to go somewhere, just as it has always done in the past. Having said that, we're here to serve the teams' best interests and we're looking at ways of reducing some of the deposits in the future.

"But that's not going to change our fundamental philosophy: we want to give racing back to the racers."

David Coulthard: China and Formula One – a love affair which never really took off

China's potential remains untapped. This is now the eighth grand prix in China but the world's second largest economy still sleeps when it comes to F1.

It provides a lot of money to Formula One through race hosting fees, but little else.

I remember everyone getting very excited in 2003 when we were about to come here. Teams were scrawling Chinese messages on their cars and the like but the country has still not responded to the sport.

Certainly not on a commercial level. It is surprising when you think about it; China and Formula One should be a marriage made in heaven. Instead what we have is a half-empty, fairly soulless track about an hour out of town where the grandstands are largely empty and you need a bus to get from one end of the paddock to the other.

Martin Brundle will not be doing his grid walk because he physically cannot get from the grid to the TV compound in time to start his race commentary.

You would think Chinese companies would be trying to capitalise on F1's marketing potential but very few appear to want to. McLaren have Aigo but that is about it.

Ferrari targeting China upgrade

Ferrari is planning to take immediate action after another disappointing race weekend at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso finished the race fifth and sixth, although Alonso had looked capable of a podium until he ran into the back of Lewis Hamilton's McLaren with 10 laps to go. Ferrari had been hoping the hotter weather at Sepang would help its plight after problems with tyre temperature in Australia, but it was still a second off the pace in qualifying.

There were no major updates to the car, with the team instead trying to understand its problems before enacting a development plan to get closer to the promise it showed in winter testing. With over 100 laps of data gathered on Friday plus the race itself, team boss Stefano Domenicali is hoping a quick turnaround of new parts will see boost to performance in China.

"Felipe and Fernando both drove great races: it's up to us to give them a better car," he said. "We find ourselves in a situation where we need to be perfect to maximise our potential, given that we are lagging behind in terms of performance: we did not manage that and we must do all in our power to avoid that situation repeating itself.

"At the same time, we have to seriously ramp up the development of our car to make up the lost ground compared to the best. We will try and complete an analysis of the aerodynamics of the car as quickly as possible and introduce some developments as soon as we can, maybe right from the next race in China."

Technical director Aldo Costa said: "We are working on different areas. There will be something new in China, and something more significant in Turkey and for the rest of the season. Will it be enough? I don't know the answer to that now. Clearly we have to push harder than the others because we have to make up the ground we have lost."

Costa said the lack of performance had not gone down well back at base but had worked as an incentive to work harder.

"At Maranello, we have a lot of talented people and they are very peed off with this situation and I know that everyone is very keen to fight back."

Looking back at Sunday's race, Domenicali added that both drivers missed out on a podium in Malaysia due to unfortunate incidents; in Alonso's case the failure of his DRS while trying to pass Hamilton and in Massa's case a problem with the front-left tyre at his first pit stop.

"We cannot be pleased with this result, because today, we had the possibility to finally leap up onto the podium," Domenicali said. "Two incidents, linked one to a reliability issue and one at a pit stop cost us very dear. It's a shame, because in terms of race pace the 150º Italia seemed much more competitive when compared to its qualifying performance, as we had already seen in Melbourne. Once again today one driver, Vettel, was probably uncatchable but we were capable of fighting with all the others."

Useful Auto Transport Services Providers

There are many uses of car shipping services today. Not only are they useful in transporting your vehicle but you can also make use of services like storage or garage.  You might be moving for many reasons. It might be for work or for vacation. If you want to take your car along in the tow then you need to make use of auto transport services.

Auto transport is also known as vehicle shipping. These services move vehicles from one place to another. The source and the destination need not be standard points. This means the source of the trip need not be your home and the destination need not be your vacation spot or your new home. You can literally move your vehicle from anywhere to anywhere using auto transport service.  This is however no ordinary task or service. Most auto transport companies use large trucks to move a bulk of cars together.  Most transport services will not list auto transport as its standard feature. This is because auto transport requires special requirements and equipment. It is an industry by itself. You will get many references for auto transport anyhow.

 You need to make some wise choices before you embark on hiring an auto transport company.  Always go for a company that has the highest reputation. This might prove a little expensive for you but this will also end up saving you irresponsible handling of your car. There are horrific stories of many auto transport companies not handling the vehicles properly. The cars generally arrive at their destination with scratches and even with missing accessories. Therefore you need to make right decisions when hiring these auto transport services.

Most auto transport companies would ask you book two or three months in advance. This is because the need for auto transport has reached its peak these days. With the amounts of people who are moving around, the need to move their vehicles has also increased. Also most auto transport companies will move vehicles in a bulk. Therefore you have to wait till they have enough cars to make the trip from one place to another. Of course, there are those companies that will give you the option of immediate transport. This might cost you’re a little more but you can exercise this if you have the option to.

There are many auto transport companies that are in the market today. You can make a simple search on the net to get a list of such companies. Most of these companies will offer you a free quote. You can then compare the quotes from various companies and see which one works for you the best. Also read all the terms and conditions of the company that you select before you enter into any kind of agreement with them.

The 2011 Malaysian F1 Grand Prix A Special One For Malaysians

KUALA LUMPUR, April 6 (Bernama) -- The upcoming 2011 Petronas Malaysia F1 Grand Prix at Sepang International Circuit will indeed be a special one for Malaysians as three Formula One (F1) teams are 'carrying' the Malaysian flag.

"F1 has always been a special event for Malaysia. This year, however, it is even more extraordinary," said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, in reference to the alliance of Malaysian corporate companies with F1 teams --Mercedes GP Petronas, Lotus Renault GP and Team Lotus.

"Never has the event been associated with so many Malaysian companies; making the 2011 Formula 1 Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix and Sepang Circuit as their 'home race' this season," said Najib in a message in the event's official programme book, and quoted in a statement released by race promoter Sepang International Circuit Sdn Bhd.

Najib said Malaysia's interest and its glorious image would be prominently projected this year, throughout all the rounds across the globe, through the participation of Mercedes GP Petronas, Lotus Renault GP and Team Lotus.

This year marks the 13th edition of the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix which started in 1999 when it was first developed as a tourism tool to sell Malaysia as an international destination and a national agenda to uplift the country's image worldwide.

Formula 1, the world's most prestigious motorsports event and Malaysia's tool in promoting the country for so long, is now adopted by more Malaysian companies as their business tools, as well," he said, adding that before Sepang Circuit came into the picture in 1999, Malaysia had Tourism Malaysia riding the popularity of the Stewart Grand Prix team in 1997.

Before that, Petronas became the presenting sponsor for Red Bull Sauber in 1995 and over the years, the national petroleum company expanded further its investment in the sports, including becoming the title sponsor for the Malaysian race and deeper involvement in the F1 racing teams.

"With an extensive global audience; reaching hundreds of millions, televisions on Race Day alone, the sport is undoubtedly, the most effective platform for international mileage and worldwide recognition.

"Apart from global branding, it's also the place for business networking, a stage to showcase a country; and an engine for transfer of technology. As such, for Malaysia, as a nation aspiring to be a major player in the automotive industry, its deep association with Formula 1 is only natural," said Najib.

The new F1 season opened at Albert Park in Melbourne with the Australian Grand Prix on March 27 and Malaysia will host Round 2 of the 2011 F1 World Championship, which now runs for 19 rounds with the cancellation of Bahrain Grand Prix.