FORMULA 1 - 2014

[MIKA27]

FIA pushing to reduce costs

It may be too little too late for Caterham and Marussia but the FIA concedes something needs to be done about the "economic balance" in F1.

Last week it emerged that Caterham had gone into administration and the doors to the factory shut while days later Marussia suffered the same fate.

Although both teams are hoping to find buyers and continue in F1, neither will be on the grid in America nor Brazil as they don't have the funds to compete.

It is a sad showing for Formula 1 as just 18 cars will line up in Austin, the smallest grid since 2005.

Some, though, would say it has been a long time coming and that Formula 1 has brought this on itself by failing to heed the warnings.

Now the FIA has said something must be done to ensure that sport remains an "attraction" championship.

"The FIA has been informed of the financial difficulties of the Caterham and Marussia teams and of the considerable uncertainty surrounding their participation in the final races of the 2014 championship," read a statement.

"It is the responsibility of the FIA Stewards to determine whether or not a team has failed to fulfil its regulatory obligation to take part in all events on the calendar and to take whatever action they deem appropriate. However, we have every confidence that the Stewards are fully aware of the financial situation of the teams concerned and these matters are always assessed with extreme care and due regard for the circumstances involved.

"Looking beyond the end of the 2014 season, these failings once again acutely raise the question of the economic balance of the FIA Formula One Championship and justify the position, expressed many times by the FIA, in favour of any initiative that will help reduce costs in order to ensure the survival of the existing grid or attract potential new entrants.

"As such, the FIA, in close cooperation with FOM and the different stakeholders in F1, will continue to work towards maintaining the attraction of the championship and the equitable participation of the teams in it in the years to come."

[MIKA27]

JEV urges STR to 'keep going together'

Jean-Eric Vergne feels Toro Rosso should retain him for another season, adamant he's the best person for Max Verstappen to learn from.

At the beginning of this month, Vergne believed his Toro Rosso career was over as Daniil Kvyat was set to partner newcomer Max Verstappen.

However, Sebastian Vettel's announcement that he is leaving Red Bull was followed by the team confirming Kvyat will step up.

Now with Toro Rosso a driver short, Vergne is hoping he can keep his seat.

"There are a lot of benefits [to keeping me]," he told Autosport.

"They [Red Bull] see Max as a great talent and I think he can learn from me like Dani did this year.

"I think it's a win-win for everybody.

"To be fair everything is pretty open for next year and I cannot say really what is going on, but all I can say is I wish to continue with this team and we will see what happens in the next few days and weeks."

However, he believes it is not just Verstappen who would benefit by him staying on for a fourth year.

The 24-year-old said: "I think it [retaining me] is the best option for the team and myself," he added.

"We've built up Toro Rosso [together]. When I arrived they had a brand new team with a new technical director, a lot of new people, and the plan was in a few years to be really one of the top midfield teams.

"We're getting there, and I think it will be really important for all of us that we keep going.

"This year we lost so many points with the retirements I had.

"If next year I don't have the retirements and get a better car, we will be in a really strong position.

"I think we can be a really strong team next year if we keep going together."

[MIKA27]

Grid penalty for Button

Jenson Button will start his US GP on the back foot as news broke that he has a gearbox change penalty.

Last time out in Russia, the McLaren driver recorded one of his best results of this seaosn as he brought his MP4-29 home in fourth place.

His chances of putting in a repeat performance this Sunday, though, have been dealt a blow.

McLaren tweeted: "Jenson has just confirmed that he'll get a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change for this weekend's #USGP"

Under F1 regulations, all gearboxes need to last for six consecutive events and, if they don't, the driver is hit with an automatic five-place penalty.

[MIKA27]

Nurburgring sold to Russian billionaire

The famous track has been sold once again.

The iconic and notorious Nurburgring circuit is going through its third ownership change this year. Bloomberg has revealed that Russian billionaire Viktor Kharitonin has bought a majority stake in 'The Ring.'

He is the chairman of Moscow-based Pharmstandard, a decade old pharmaceutical company. Motorsport industry supplier Capricorn Group failed to complete their acquisition of the track in March, reported to be a deal upwards of 100 million Euros.

Before Capricorn, the previous owners became insolvent in 2012.

About the Nurburgring

The Nurburgring has been around for just under a century, famous for its massive 154-turn 20.8km (12.9 mile) track known as the Nordschleife, and more ominously as 'The Green Hell.' It certainly earned that moniker with hundreds of lives ended there during its existence.

A 12-turn Grand Prix circuit was built in 1984 and is 4.556 km (2.831 miles) in length. The track also features more than 300 meters (1,000 feet) of elevation changes.

[MIKA27]

VETTEL CONFIRMS PLAN TO SKIP US GRAND PRIX QUALIFYING, BUT ARE RED BULL TAKING LIBERTIES?

Although his team mate had said an hour earlier in the FIA press conference that the plan is “not 100%” for world champion Sebastian Vettel to skip qualifying and start the race from the pit lane with a new power unit in Austin, Vettel himself said in his media briefing in the Austin paddock that he would be doing that,

“As far as I know the plan is to pull in a sixth one of all the components obviously and for that, according to the regulations you have to start from the pit lane. For the weekend our plan could be a little bit different in terms of how we approach practice and qualifying in particular.

“You try to prepare more for the race, it’s not a big secret. When you start from the pit lane, your focus is only on the race. So for practice we will try to focus largely on the race.”

“I didn’t make the rules, so when you have to start from the pit lane it doesn’t matter what you do in qualifying. If you look at the people who come to see the cars, to watch qualifying, it’s a very bad rule.”

Ricciardo however seemed to suggest that the matter was still up for discussion,

“I don’t think anything’s 100 per cent yet,” he said. “If he qualifies on pole he still has to start from pitlane so why would you put miles on the engine? It’s not 100 per cent but that’s the thought behind everything. It’s not ideal for him and for everyone, for the fans if that is the case. You want to be out there. You want to drive. For yourself, you want to learn more, you want to be on track, and yeah, you want to give the fans what they came for, so, yeah, we’ll obviously see what happens but that’s the rules and the regs for this year, and unfortunately that’s a negative from it – if that is the case.”

Other teams mutter about Red Bull deciding not to take part in qualifying, simply because there’s “no point” in going out on track. If a driver fails to qualify, the right to take part in the race itself is at the discretion of the stewards, usually based on his practice times. But if he’s already foreshadowed that he has no intention of qualifying, does that change the dynamic?

These engines are lived to five Grands Prix, so putting 12 or 16 laps on an engine (55 miles) is neither here nor there.

It appears, as with the kerfuffle at the start of the season over fuel flow meters, that Red Bull is taking the opportunity to have a dig at the FIA, call into question the new 2014 rules and in this case to ridicule them.

Effectively Red Bull is trying to take all its penalties all in one hit, as one team pointed out and at the same time set the car up aerodynamically and tyre wise for optimum race performance, which you can do when starting from the pit lane, without having to compromise with an effective qualifying set up.

[MIKA27]

RAIKKONEN: WE DON’T EXPECT TO SUDDENLY JUMP TO THE FRONT

Kimi Raikkonen during a promo event in Austin

Kimi Raikkonen met the media at the Circuit of Americas this morning as usual on Thursdays and said he was looking forward to the next few days.

“Hopefully we can have a nice clean weekend, starting with getting everything sorted in practice and then be as strong as possible,” said the Ferrari man. Looking much further ahead, the Finn was asked what he expected from next year’s car.

“I have a hundred percent trust in the people who run the team and build the cars,” he began. “I am sure we can have a good package: will it be good enough? Only time will tell. We have a lot of work to do and we have learned a lot from this year.

“We don’t expect to suddenly jump to the front and be winning the races, but we can make a big leap and be up there fighting. Until we put it on track and do those first laps at the first test we won’t know.”

“We know where the issues are and our people are smart enough to fix them. According to the rules, there are limits to what we can do but we will improve.”

There is no hiding the fact this has been a tough year for Raikkonen, but it has not dented his confidence, “For sure I made a hundred percent the right decision to return to Ferrari.”

“The results have not been the ones I wanted or the team wanted, but that’s how it goes. We have made progress from where we started, but it’s not easy to get things exactly as you want. But I am happy to be here. I’d rather be with Ferrari than with any other team.”

“So I’m sure I made the right decision coming here.” Asked to elaborate on the problems he has encountered in 2014, Kimi did not want to go into too many details: “I’ve been suffering with lots of small things, but the front end has not been as good as I wanted and that’s not easy to fix. It’s better, but it’s taken a bit too long.”

The final question concerned the Finn’s views on the double points on offer at the final round and, as usual, Kimi’s view was very straightforward.

“That’s how the rules are now and if we like it or not, it makes no difference as we drivers do not decide the rules,” concluded the Finn. “Obviously, whoever has the most points at the end of the year, whether he has won ten races or one race wil won and I’m sure whoever it is will deserve it.”

[MIKA27]

BUTTON VERY MUCH IN DEMAND SAYS MANAGER

Jenson Button is a wanted man, even if McLaren ultimately decide they do not want to retain the 2009 Formula One world champion for next season.

“I’m getting phone calls from everyone because he is an exceptional driver, he’s still in his prime, everyone wants to hire him. He is a wanted individual,” the Briton’s manager Richard Goddard said on Thursday.

“I’ve had loads of different approaches, as I would and you have to expect that I would, from loads of different sports – driving sports obviously, his tennis isn’t up to much.

“But we haven’t got any serious conversations, talking about different levels of where we are, where we are going to be … obviously we’d like to stay in F1, and to stay driving for McLaren, but maybe there will come a point when we get offered something and it’s a great opportunity, a great place to be.”

Button’s future is the subject of much speculation, with McLaren strongly linked to Ferrari‘s double world championFernando Alonso.

McLaren are switching to Honda engines next season and Alonso is seen as the No 1 target to lead the new partnership on the track despite falling out with McLaren boss Ron Dennis when he last drove for the team in 2007.

In the latest of many such stories, Spanish daily Marca reported on Thursday that a contract with McLaren was missing only the Spaniard’s signature.

Goddard said the team had told him they were in a “holding pattern” and no decision had been made about their 2015 line-up with the future of Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen equally up in the air.

“We haven’t been told anything apart from they don’t know anything,” he said at the US Grand Prix. “I know that sounds ridiculous, but it’s not like they’ve made their mind up as to one path or another.

“I’m in regular contact with Ron and there is nothing new. He speaks to me and he says ‘I’m really sorry, but we’re still in a holding pattern. I know perhaps we shouldn’t be, but we are’. That is where we are.”

There has been speculation that Button could be headed out of Formula One and into sportscar racing, something the Briton did not rule out when asked on Thursday.

“Anything is possible in life if you have the right circumstances or the right situation, but that has to be there to make it happen,” he said.

Button said he had felt “under massive pressure” before the Japanese Grand Prix but since Russia earlier this month he had just focused on enjoying his driving and was far happier. “What happens next year happens,” he added.

The Briton has been at McLaren since 2010, the year after he won his championship with Brawn. Eight of his 15 race wins have been with the team, the last coming in Brazil two years ago.

“He is very loyal to this team, loves this team and would like to stay at this team. It’s as simple as that from the F1 perspective,” said Goddard, who recognised the driver’s options in Formula One might be limited of his own volition.

“Obviously he is not going to drive at a much, much lower level because he wants to win races and championships. He is not interested to make up the numbers, he just wants to win again,” he explained.

“So if he is not going to get to win in this championship and he gets offered a fantastic deal somewhere else, then perhaps he’ll go somewhere else.”

[MIKA27]

Grosjean has opt out clause

Romain Grosjean has revealed there is a performance clause in his Lotus deal that would allow him to leave the team.

The Frenchman has yet to commit his future to Lotus, who are nearing the end of a dreadful 2014 season.

Last year Lotus were fighting for podium finishes but this year they are struggling even to get close to the points.

Grosjean has scored the team's only points, netting eight after back-to-back P8s in Spain and Monaco.

Next season, though, could be a better one for the team as they are swapping from Renault to Mercedes power.

But whether that's enough to persaude Grosjean to re-sign remains to be seen.

For now he's refusing to put to pen to paper until such a time as the seats at the top teams are filled.

"I have the option to leave if I want to - this is from some performance clause," he revealed.

"So far there are still places available at top teams or they haven't been confirmed and that's there where I want to be in the near future and that's what we try to do."

That, though, doesn't mean Lotus is out of the running as Grosjean is encouraged by their plans for next season.

"For a long time I've said that Lotus will be much better next year than they are this year, for a few reasons. There's been a lot of work at the factory and the fact that the team brings a new nose here just to try to prepare for 2015 is a strong sign."

[MIKA27]

Formula 1 figures warn third cars would be bad for the sport

Leading Formula 1 figures are adamant that a move to third cars would be bad for the sport.

Although some drivers have suggested that an extra entry would open up more opportunities for them, others believe third cars are not a permanent solution to F1's woes.

The reduction in grid size to 18 cars with Caterham and Marussia absence from this weekend's United States Grand Prix has raised the prospect of some top teams being compelled to add third entries in 2015.

Felipe Massa reckons that if there had been three Mercedes cars this season then the title battle would have been decided months ago.

"The idea is to have as many cars on the track, as that is what people want to see," said the Williams driver. "But if they decide to put a third car on the track we need to understand how the rules will be.

"Just thinking about this year, putting a third car on the track, the championship would have been finished in the middle of the season.

"You will have had three Mercedes all the time, first, second or third in most of the races. So in the middle of the season the championship is finished."

Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn believes there were too many consequences from having an extra car.

"I don't think that is a concept we should be going for because it changes far too much in the sport," she said.

"It might initially sound an interesting concept but how are you really going to use that car and operate that car? You totally distort the show.

"If you have a dominant team, a third car in there, which is not getting points, then what is it doing there?

"It's just keeping people away from points. There are so many issues you really have to look at and I don't think you will ever find agreement on that."

McLaren's Jenson Button argued that third cars could ultimately create less a competitive picture.

"I don't like the idea of three cars," he said. "Personally, I'd rather there were more teams on the grid that are competitive.

"There's a positive that there are more good drivers [with third cars], but if one car is a step above everyone else - like the Mercedes has been this year pretty much every race - they lock out the podium, and you'll never get another team on the podium.

"It hurts the teams that aren't quickest, so I'm not a big fan of that idea."

[MIKA27]

FIA has to take action over F1 crisis, says Sauber's Kaltenborn

Sauber team principal Monisha Kaltenborn has demanded the FIA do whatever it takes to address Formula 1's cost crisis, or risk the sport destroying itself.

In the wake of Caterham and Marussia's absence from the grid, Kaltenborn is in no doubt about the seriousness of the situation F1 is facing right now.

"I think I am beyond the stage of frustration," she said ahead of the United States Grand Prix.

"I am first of all very disappointed, because it is one thing to always talk about this terrible scenario that some teams are not going to be there. But that the sport as such and the people responsible for the sport have let it come this far is extremely disturbing.

"I think some stakeholders or people are just not willing to understand where the problems lie."

Kaltenborn believes it is up to the FIA to address the situation and suggests that the governing body should go as far as putting pressure on F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone to change the way the sport's finances are structured.

"For me it is the duty of our federation to take some action," she said. "This is a sport under their ruling.

"They have outsourced the commercial aspects to it which is fairly normal. But we are a part of the FIA. We are under their governance and this can be very much part of the governance.

"It is for the FIA to see if something has been done that is damaging the sport. And that is very much the responsibility of the FIA."

When asked what could be achieved to change the way F1's prize structure works, since this is laid out in individual deals between Ecclestone and the teams, she said: "There is no contract that you cannot change, and what is a contract worth when you see what is happening to the sport?

"The way we are going, it is definitely going to harm the income at some point of time."

She believes F1 will have a very short future if nothing is done quickly to address grand prix racing's current problems.

"I don't think the way it is will last for many years to come," she said. "We have also seen in the past that manufacturers come and go.

"What are you then left with, with your product? That's why I think it is particularly for the owners of the sport to think about what's happening to the product."

[MIKA27]

US GP: F1 alters qualifying for Austin with Caterham, Marussia out

Formula 1's qualifying format has been altered for the United States Grand Prix because of the absence of Caterham and Marussia.

With the F1 grid reduced to 18 cars, the old format would have meant that just two cars would be eliminated from Q1 if no change had taken place.

The matter was further complicated by the fact that Sebastian Vettel is unlikely to take part in qualifying at all because of an engine penalty.

In light of the situation, and the fact that the F1 regulations do not cater for a scenario where there are only 18 cars, the Austin GP stewards met on Thursday to discuss what to do.

They agreed that the format would be changed so that four cars would be put out in Q1 and four cars would be put out in Q2, leaving Q3 as a traditional shootout between the fastest 10 drivers.

A statement issued by the stewards said: "Having regard to the principles established in the Formula 1 sporting regulations article 33.1, the stewards decide that the slowest four cars in Q1 will [be] prohibited from taking any further part in the session, and the slowest four cars in Q2 will likewise be prohibited from taking any further part in the session."

[MIKA27]

AUSTIN QUALIFYING: ROSBERG STUMPS HAMILTON

Nico Rosberg launched himself back into the 2014 Formula One title fight by claiming pole position ahead of championship-leading team-mate Lewis Hamilton as the Briton suffered brake problems.

Both Mercedes drivers have complained of braking issues in the build up to tomorrow race at the Circuit of the Americas, but while Rosberg suffered in final practice, it was Hamilton who was set back in qualifying.

The title leader finished at the top of the timesheet in the opening segment of the hour-long session but thereafter he slipped back, with Rosberg taking the honours in Q2 and the crucially running faster and faster in the final 12-minute shootout. He eventually finished four tenths clear of his team-mate, who leads the championship battle by 17 points.

Behind the Mercedes pair, Valtteri Bottas took his sixth third place qualifying position of the year, the Finn finishing three tenths ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa.

With 18 cars contesting qualifying, the decision had been taken to alter the qualifying format, with just four cars being eliminated from each of the opening two segments.

With last year’s US GP winner Sebastian Vettel set to start from the pitlane having changed both his power unit and his gearbox, his Red Bull team opted for a single run in Q1. By the end of that run the champion was in ninth, but as the times began to improve he slid back to a finishing position of 17th.

Only Lotus’ Romain Grosjean went slower in the opening phase. The Frenchman struggled with balance and on his final run he slid wide at Turn 12, thus ruining his chances of making the cut. He duly apologised over the team radio saying that the car was “not the same one as this morning”.

The battle then was for P15 and P16 and as the final runs began the men in those slots were Toro Rosso’s Jean-Eric Vergne and Sauber’s Esteban Gutierrez. Neither could find the necessary improvement, however. In the end, Gutierrez was well wide of the mark, finished over three tenths off the P14 time of Force India’s Sergio Perez. Vergne was more unfortunate, finishing just five hundredths of a second behind the Mexican.

At the front, Hamilton finished ahead of the Williams due of Massa and Bottas, with Rosberg fourth ahead of Fernando Alonso and the McLarens of Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button.

After the first runs in Q2 the drop zone saw Nico Hulkenberg in P11, with Sauber’s Adrian Sutil, Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado and Perez backing up the German.

And surprisingly, it was Sutil who made the leap forward, the German giving Sauber its first top-10 start of the season with a lap of 1:38.378, just under a tenth clear of Maldonado in P11. The Venezuelan finished ahead of Perez, Hulkenberg and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat in P14. The Russian was also facing a 10-place grid drop due to a change of ICE prior to the session, the seventh such unit used by the rookie so far this season.

Ahead, Rosberg topped the Q2 timesheet, finishing almost a second clear of Hamilton with a time of 1:36.290. It might have been only a segment of the session overall but it was the first time all weekend that the German had ended a timing phase ahead of the championship leader.

Third place went to Massa, with team-mate Bottas fourth. The remaining Q3 slots were taken by Ricciardo, Alonso, Button, Magnussen, Kimi Raikkonen and the impressive Sutil. Button, though, is also facing a grid penalty, of five places, for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Rosberg was again the pacesetter in the first runs of final 12-minute segment. The German’s opening effort of 1:36.282 was 0.161 quicker than Hamilton and 0.7s clear of Bottas., with Massa fourth ahead of Button. Sutil, meanwhile, elected to remain in the Sauber garage during the opening exchanges.

And Rosberg maintained his ascendancy in the final run. The German, second out on track after Daniel Ricciardo, lit up the timing screen with three purple sectors to log a lap of 1:36.067. Hamilton, meanwhile, was clearing the first sector with a personal best time but some way shy of Rosberg’s time.

Matters worsened with a scrappy second sector of 38.4 seconds and despite putting in a session best third sector he finished almost four tenths down on the German. Afterwards, the title leader admitted that he had struggled with brake problems throughout the session.

Behind them Bottas finished third ahead of Massa. Ricciardo took fifth place ahead of Alonso, with Button seventh, though facing a grid drop. His McLaren team-mate Magnussen finished eighth, with the final top 10 places going to Raikkonen and Sutil.

[MIKA27]

F1 TEAMS PLAY DOWN TALK OF ANOTHER US GP BOYCOTT

Formula 1’a struggling teams played down talk of a possible boycott of Sunday’s U.S. Grand Prix on Friday as argument over division of the sport’s revenues grew more heated on Friday.

With the indebted Marussia and Caterham teams in administration and absent from Austin, there was speculation that others could refuse to race in protest at what they see as an unfair playing field.

Britain’s Times newspaper reported in its Saturday edition that despair had turned to anger with Lotus, Sauber and Force India — who have all had their own financial problems — discussing the possibility of not racing.

“It is 50-50 whether it happens but what else is there?,” one unnamed executive was quoted as saying. “The small teams have complained for months and warned what was going to happen but no one listened.”

Lotus principal Gerard Lopez told Reuters that he knew nothing about such a plan, which would revive painful memories of the farcical 2005 U.S. Grand Prix at Indianapolis when only six cars took part in the race after those using Michelin tyres all withdrew.

That race was widely held up as Formula One shooting itself in the foot in a key market for sponsors and the car manufacturers.

“I’ve just found out about the [new boycott] story now, so my answer is no. I’ve no idea. I have to say a bit surprised,” Lopez said. “I’ve had a meeting with them [the other teams] about the cash distribution and so on, and that’s it.

“I’m not aware of this. I don’t even know where this comes from,” he added.

Force India team bosses also professed to be unaware of the suggestion, while there was nobody at Sauber immediately available for comment.

However Force India deputy principal Bob Fernley suggested there was an agenda at play, however, and said more teams risked folding unless something was done.

“Two teams have now gone and I think the commercial rights holder is comfortable to thinking there might be 14 cars next year. How many do they want to lose?,” he told Reuters.

“He (commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone) thinks there could be 14 cars next year. So the question is, if we are driving teams out of the business to what agenda is it? And what’s the game?”

The Times quoted Ecclestone as saying there was a risk of two more teams falling by the wayside.

“If we lose another two teams that is what will happen,” he said. “We need (them) if they are going to be there performing properly and not moving around with begging buckets.”

Fernley spoke after a news conference that went on for nearly an hour and that also spoke volumes about the crisis engulfing the sport.

The Sauber, Lotus and Force India bosses all sat on the back row while in front of them, emphasising the division in the paddock, sat McLaren‘s Racing Director Eric Boullier and Mercedes motorsport head Toto Wolff.

The calls of the back row for a revision of how the revenues were divided, in a sport with turnover in excess of $1.5 billion a year but where the big teams get far more than the less successful ones, seemed to fall largely on deaf ears.

“If you look at the budgets of Marussia and the highest spender, whether it is Ferrari or Red Bull, we are talking about a gap from $70 million to $250 million,” said Wolff.

“So if you want to start with a cost cap, how do you do that? Do you make two thirds of the people redundant in the big teams? How does it function?”

Wolff said teams had always come and gone in Formula One and the sport was a tough business.

“Maybe Formula One is just a different ball game,” he said. “This is the pinnacle of motor racing and if you want to compete at the pinnacle you need to have the resources.”

[MIKA27]

TOST WANTS VERGNE NOT SAINZ FOR TORO ROSSO IN 2015

Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost has admitted he would like to keep Jean-Eric Vergne on board for the 2015 Formula 1 season, to help with highly rated newcomer Max Verstappen.

Mere weeks ago, the 24-year-old Frenchman was ruled out of the running after the Faenza team announced that Daniil Kvyat will be joined by the controversially-young and inexperienced rookie Verstappen, who is just 17.

But then, at Red Bull‘s senior team, Sebastian Vettel announced his shock impending departure, leading to Russian 20-year-old Kvyat being called up to replace him.

Initially, the obvious favourite to replace Kvyat at Toro Rosso next year was Carlos Sainz jr, who had already been surprised to miss out on the Verstappen seat.

But Tost and others expressed concern that pitting Verstappen against Sainz might be a risk too far even for the junior team Toro Rosso, given the drivers’ unprecedented inexperienced and youth. Suddenly, keeping Vergne for at least another season seemed the better option. Tost does not hide it.

“I am still convinced that Jean-Eric can do a very good job in Formula 1 if he gets a competitive car,” he told Formula 1’s official website ahead of the US Grand Prix. “He has shown this a couple of times and I personally would like to continue with him — but we have to wait to see what Red Bull decides.”

A big hint that Red Bull will indeed follow Tost’s advice and keep Vergne is that, in next month’s post Abu Dhabi test, Verstappen will have both days to himself.

“Ah,” Tost replied, “that Max would get that heavy mileage was decided quite some time ago as we have to give him the chance to get used to the car, the team and all that goes with it.”

But he doesn’t deny that he believes keeping Vergne is the wisest choice for 2015, “Formula 1 has become fairly complicated and normally you need a reference – especially with the new car that we will have next year – and with two rookies you don’t have that reference. That is why I would prefer an experienced guy in the second cockpit alongside Max.”

Vergne, who until recently was contemplating his potential exit from Formula 1, is now clinging to hope that he will get another chance in 2015.

“This year, I lost a lot of points through retirements and I feel we could be in a really strong position if we keep going together,” he is quoted by the team’s official website.

“I would love that to happen.”

[MIKA27]

ANDRETTI ADVISES VETTEL TO TAKE NEWEY TO FERRARI

American Formula 1 legend and 1978 world champion Mario Andretti has tipped Sebastian Vettel to emulate Michael Schumacher’s success once he switches to Ferrari from 2015, but advises the quadruple world champion to take Adrian Newey along to Maranello.

“Michael knew exactly what he was doing,” the 74-year-old told the German newspaper Die Welt ahead of the US Grand Prix. “He took the men who he succeeded with at Benetton to Ferrari and after a few years they were unbeatable.”

“I would advise Sebastian to do the same — maybe he will even persuade Adrian Newey to go with him. That would certainly be the ideal situation, because – for sure – Ferrari needs more than just a new driver,” Andretti added.

[MIKA27]

Alonso mulled pitlane start

Fernando Alonso nearly joined Sebastian Vettel in the pitlane for the US GP, but Ferrari decided to use an older engine.

Having already exhausted his allocation of five engines for the season, Vettel opted for a brand new power unit for Sunday's race in Austin and the automatic penalty is a pitlane start.

Alonso is also cutting it fine in terms of engines and Ferrari considered a pitlane start, but they decided to go down another route, and the lack of power from the old engine told on Saturday as the Spaniard was only sixth fastest.

"We were a couple of tenths down on the engine because we have some limitations there after the Monza engine failure," he said.

"In fact we were discussing last week using the sixth engine and starting from the pitlane like Red Bull will, or using a very old engine with a little bit less power but at least we wouldn't need to recover places.

"We chose the second option, so probably we are missing a little bit of performance here and there."

Asked by Autosport if he thought he could get through the last three grands prix of 2014 within the five-engine limit, Alonso replied: "We are doing all these things to not take the sixth.

"If we can manage here and Brazil, then we must not have a penalty in Abu Dhabi because it is double points.

"We have a better engine available. We need to put the better one in Abu Dhabi, so we'll manage these races.

"I think we'll be OK. We have probably lost out today because of the power, but I'm still in my normal position of sixth.

"I'd prefer to start sixth, a couple of tenths down because of power, rather than at the back."

[MIKA27]

Ricciardo eyeing Austin podium

Daniel Ricciardo is hoping for some good clean battles with Williams on Sunday as he looks to finish second best behind Mercedes.

Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton are expected to fight it out for the first two places at the Circuit of the Americas on race day, leaving the rest to scrap over the final podium position.

It's advantage Williams at the moment as the Grove squad locked out the second row of the grid with Valtteri Bottas third and Felipe Massa fourth.

Ricciardo, who was fifth fastest, was just 0.039s off Massa's time though, and he is feels Red Bull can challenge for the final podium spot.

"I'm pretty happy with the top five, realistically we're fighting for the last spot on the podium, if Mercedes have a clean race, and we've put ourselves in a good position for that.

"We were close to Felipe, but hopefully the clean side of the grid will help me out a bit, so we'll see what happens. I'd say we're better on tyres than the Williams, but their straight line speed makes that advantage disappear. Hopefully we'll have some good clean battles on track tomorrow, the circuit certainly allows for that and provides some good opportunities, so hopefully we can have some fun!"

[MIKA27]

Yet another good qualy display for Bottas

Valtteri Bottas will start P3 for the third consecutive race as Williams locked out the second row of the grid in the United States on Saturday.

With Nico Rosberg claiming pole and his Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton taking P2, the rest of the pack was left to battle it out for the second row and it was Bottas who came away with the honours.

Bottas was 0.839s slower than Rosberg's pole time of 1:36.067, but he was 0.299 faster than his Williams team-mate Felipe Massa, who was fourth fastest.

It's good news for the Grove squad as they look to stay ahead of Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship with only three more races to go this campaign.

"It was a pretty good qualifying again for me," he said. "I'm pleased with two good laps in Q3 and happy to have locked out the second row for the team. It's an important race as we try to keep a good position in the Constructors' Championship."

[MIKA27]

Seventh engine, new penalty for Kvyat

Daniil Kvyat will head into Sunday's United States GP with another engine penalty as he is set to use his seventh power unit in Austin.

The Toro Rosso rookie was the first driver this season to fall foul of the rule limiting drivers to just five engines per season.

He incurred his first penalty back at the Italian GP and now faces another in Texas.

Toro Rosso broke the news on Saturday that the Russian needed a seventh power unit and had opted to take it this weekend.

The reason for this is that the rules state that if the full ten-place penalty is not used, the remaining places will carry over to the next race and Toro Rosso don't want that to affect Kvyat in the season finale where double points are available.

[MIKA27]

Williams pair to miss US GP

Williams team principal Sir Frank Williams and deputy team principal Claire Williams will miss this weekend's US GP as the former is to undergo a "routine treatment" in hospital.

The 72-year-old is currently being treated for a pressure sore on his back at Stoke Mandeville hospital and his daughter, Claire, has opted to remain by her father's side.

Although Sir Frank, a quadriplegic following an accident in 1986, will remain in hospital for a "couple of weeks", Claire is set to return to the Williams garage for next week's Brazilian GP.

A spokesperson for the Grove squad said: "They've decided hospital is the best place for routine treatment, and he is responding well.

"Claire wanted to be there for his admission to ensure he settled in and was fine, as you would, but she will be in Brazil next weekend.

"He is expected to be in hospital for a couple of weeks whilst they keep an eye on him.

"They will naturally assess and decide whether he requires any further treatment which would naturally require a longer stay."

[MIKA27]

Kamui 'would be happy' with tester role

Following Caterham falling off the grid, Kamui Kobayashi says he would take a test driver role in order to remain in Formula 1.

Kobayashi returned to the sport this season with Caterham in the hope that a good campaign would see him move up the grid.

The chances of that happening, though, were dealt a blow last month when Caterham went into administration.

As a result, neither Kamui Kobayashi nor his team-mate Marcus Ericsson will contest either this weekend's United States GP or the race in Brazil.

But while Ericsson is at least looking attractive to a rival team with the help of his €11 million in Swedish sponsorship, Kobayashi concedes he brings with him no funding.

" some weeks looking for [another] role, but I think technically I am still a Caterham driver so maybe I cannot do too much," he told Autosport.

"I can't bring money but I would be happy to be a third driver to get some more opportunity.

"I want to get the best optimum thing if I see something on the table.

"Still I'm trying to get contact with all the possibilities and opportunities, I'm looking for that."

The 28-year-old also revealed that he was not informed by Caterham of the team's demise but rather found out from the internet and his manager.

"I think they are pretty busy so we can contact them, but we don't want to disturb," he said.

"I see on the website it says we are not racing here, [and] I just got some information from my manager that we're not racing.

"The company is nothing right now but maybe I should get a sorry or I should call, but I don't need sorry or whatever.

"I need more in the future and I want to use this time for next year's approach, so I don't really think about [the lack of contact] being a problem for me.

"I don't know any great detail because I am a driver, but I think finally they don't have enough money, they don't have enough financial stuff and it's getting difficult."

[MIKA27]

Sauber F1 team signs ex-Caterham driver Marcus Ericsson for 2015

Sauber has signed Caterham refugee Marcus Ericsson as its first driver for the 2015 Formula 1 season.

The 24-year-old Swede moved up to F1 with Caterham for 2014 after four seasons in GP2, but he has been left without a drive at present after his team went into administration.

Sauber team boss Monisha Kaltenborn said Ericsson had made a good impression despite being in a difficult situation at Caterham.

"We have got to know Marcus as a highly motivated driver," she said.

"He did not have an easy rookie season this year in Formula 1, however, he kept calm and improved continuously, mainly in the last races.

"We are convinced that signing Marcus can give the team a fresh impetus."

Ericsson described his 2015 Sauber deal as an incredible turnaround in fortune amid Caterham's problems.

"Fresh from a very turbulent week, I was suddenly given my best early Christmas present ever," he said.

"Sauber has put its trust in me for 2015, and it makes me proud, as Sauber is known to be one of the best teams in developing young drivers.

"It will be a great challenge. I will give my very best to develop both as a driver, and to be part of the challenge to put Sauber back closer to the front where it belongs."

Sauber currently has Adrian Sutil and Esteban Gutierrez as its race drivers, with Giedo van der Garde as reserve.

[MIKA27]

Bernie Ecclestone: Big F1 teams must make sacrifices in cost crisis

Bernie Ecclestone says top Formula 1 teams are going to have to make sacrifices to solve the cost crisis, and admitted financial structures he had put in place were wrong.

In a surprise confession that commercial arrangements agreed with teams had contributed to F1's current woes, he said that only assistance from the big outfits could now help him sort matters out.

"The problem is there is too much money probably being distributed badly - probably my fault," said Ecclestone in a lengthy media briefing at Austin on Saturday.

"But like lots of agreements people make, they seemed a good idea at the time."

When asked if he regretted the deals in question, he replied: "If the company belonged to me I would have done things in a different way because it would have been my money I was dealing with.

"But I work for people who are in the business to make money."

REDISTRIBUTION OF MONEY

One idea Ecclestone mooted is for the big teams to contribute a share of their prize money towards a fund for the smaller outfits.

"We have to open the eyes of those people in a position to turn the lights on and off to what they need to do," he said.

"I wouldn't want to be in a position where I was too strong, F1 disappears and someone says it is because of you it disappeared.

"I said to people getting a chunk of money that I would like to take a percentage of their performance-related payment.

"I would put that money together to divide among the three or four we know are in trouble but are not going to run away with the money, and then I will put in the same amount of money."

However, Ecclestone admits that getting such a fund together would not be easy because F1 rules allow teams to block such changes.

"We have to decide the best way to sort this whole thing out. Frankly, I know what's wrong but don't know how to fix it.

"No one is prepared to do anything about it because they can't. The regulations have tied us up.

"We can't all sit back nicely relaxed and think the problem will go away. It's not like having the flu and taking a few tablets and it will disappear.

"I think the situation is such that if enough people want it resolved, we can resolve it. It's a case of the people that are involved in the sport will have to want to look after the sport and be prepared to make some sacrifices.

"I would tear all the contracts up. Take all the money, pay all the teams' debts that should be paid so people haven't suffered because of Formula 1."

NO BOYCOTT THREAT

Ecclestone denied there was a threat of a boycott this season, even though Force India's Bob Fernley repeatedly suggested it was an option.

"Forget all that crap," Ecclestone said. "I promise they will be racing. They will be racing, I give you a guarantee - but I worry if they will be racing next year."

He also played down the possibility of three-car teams.

"Forget third cars," he said. "Nobody can afford two cars."

[MIKA27]

Lewis Hamilton troubled by brakes as Nico Rosberg takes pole

Lewis Hamilton says that braking problems in qualifying for the United States Grand Prix cost him in his battle for pole position with Mercedes Formula 1 team-mate Nico Rosberg.

Rosberg stormed to pole at Austin on Saturday, leaving Hamilton trailing by 0.376 seconds in the deciding Q3 session.

Hamilton, who struggled with locking brakes throughout free practice three and qualifying, and even suffered a spin in the morning running, said that he had been held back by brake temperature problems.

"Nico did a great job today," said Hamilton. "I really struggled with braking.

"The left brake was always around 100 degrees less than the right-front.

"It kept catching. No matter what I did, it would still lock. That is perhaps where I was losing a lot of the time."

Hamilton admitted that his brakes could be problematic in the race on Sunday, while Rosberg said he hopes Mercedes can stay on top of the small problems that have affected both drivers this weekend.

"If I cannot fix that left-front brake it will be a continuing issue in the race," said Hamilton.

"Flat spots can lead to blistering so I have to make sure I can try to fix that during this evening."

Rosberg added: "We have had a few issues in general this weekend on both cars, so we need to try to get it all right tomorrow.

"Personally I am not worried about it at all. I am confident the team will get the job done and I just focus on what I can influence."

[MIKA27]

HAMILTON TO DITCH FULLER AND HANDLE OWN AFFAIRS

Lewis Hamilton is scaling back his deal with Simon Fuller, the entertainment manager famed for his involvement with American Idol and the Spice Girls.

In Fuller’s XIX Entertainment stable, Hamilton lucratively switched from McLaren to Mercedes following the split from his manager-father Anthony, announcing at the time he wanted to expand his profile beyond Formula 1 and into the world of film and music.

But as he approaches the business end of his 2014 title assault and mere weeks before starting negotiations for a new Mercedes deal beyond next year, The Times reports that Hamilton has “decided to play an increasing role in his own management”.

Hamilton’s girlfriend is the pop star Nicole Scherzinger, he counts rappers among his personal friends and on Thursday he appeared in the official FIA press conference wearing a huge gold replica of an Andy Warhol artwork around his neck.

At the same time, “XIX have faded from the Formula 1 scene”, said Times correspondent Kevin Eason. Another British newspaper, the Daily Mail, agrees that 29-year-old Hamilton’s contract with XIX “recently expired”.

An insider said: “Lewis is concentrating on the world championship for now and will assess how to progress with his management around New Year. He has been muttering for a year or so about changing his relationship with Fuller. He wants to stand on his own two feet — and cut down on commission fees.”