Renault is edging towards signing Romain Grosjean to complete its 2012 driver lineup alongside Vitaly Petrov, according to reports. The Enstone based team has already announced that Swiss-born Frenchman Grosjean, the Genii-managed new GP2 champion, will drive in Friday morning practice in both Abu Dhabi and Brazil later this month. "I don't feel too much pressure going into this," said the 25-year-old, looking to get back into F1 next year after his abortive part-season debut in 2009. Clearly, however, the pressure is on, given that […]

Renault endured one of their worst races of the season in India. Here's what Vitaly Petrov, Bruno Senna, Eric Bouiller and James Allison had to say: Vitaly Petrov (11th) “My start was good especially as I started with the hard tyres. I made an early pit stop but made a mistake with the clutch which lost me time as I couldn’t pull away. This disrupted our plan as I was supposed to come out in front of Sergio (Perez) and the Force India but didn’t […]

Romain Grosjean will get a new chance to prove his talents to the F1 world before the 2011 season is out. The Swiss-born Frenchman made an abortive formula one debut in 2009 amid the 'crashgate' scandal but was replaced at the end of the year. The 25-year-old, now managed by Renault team owner Genii, switched to GP2 this year and recently wrapped up the title. Grosjean will drive the R31 in Friday morning practice in Abu Dhabi and Brazil, the Lotus-sponsored team announced in India […]

'Marbles' is a sensitive topic in the formula one paddock at present. The fact this year's Pirellis leave rubber shards all over the track is well-known, but in Korea recently the phenomenon badly affected Lewis Hamilton's bid for victory. Indeed, the frong wing used by the Briton in Korea - with big rubber marbles stuck between the aerodynamic elements - was quarantined by McLaren and rolled out for deep evaluation in Indian practice on Friday. It emerges that Bruno Senna's Renault was similarly affected at […]

A stray dog delayed the first ever practice session at India's new Buddh circuit early on Friday. The black dog caused a five minute delay until it was chased down by officials at the smog-affected venue. In 2008 in Turkey, Bruno Senna struck and killed a dog at speed with his GP2 car, damaging his suspension. Another point of note on Friday was fastest driver Lewis Hamilton's helmet, which unusually featured a picture of Bob Marley on the top. A day after the 2008 world […]

The F1 world is continuing to adjust to its new surroundings in India. Bruno Senna revealed to O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper that he is carrying around in his pocket a bottle of disinfectant. "Each time I greet someone, I use it (on my hands)," said the Brazilian, referring to the risk of food poisoning. Rubens Barrichello, meanwhile, laughed when he revealed that one of his rivals - believed to be Sebastian Vettel - is carrying around a bottle of whiskey. "Someone told him to […]

As Sebastian Vettel drinks in his unprecedented success, two of his German countrymen are hoping simply for a place on the 2012 grid. Adrian Sutil has been with Force India since the Silverstone based team's Spyker days, but speculation is mounting that Vijay Mallya is planning to pair Paul di Resta with Nico Hulkenberg next year. "I still have no contract (for 2012)," the German newsmagazine Focus quotes the 28-year-old as saying this week. "For sure we'll have a meeting soon," Sutil, referring to his […]

Without setting a time in the decisive Q3 at Suzuka, local hero Kamui Kobayashi moved up three places and will start the race from seventh. The provisional results had showed the Japanese in tenth place, as the driver with the highest race number behind fellow non-runners Michael Schumacher, Bruno Senna and Vitaly Petrov. Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali hit out at the growing trend of drivers sitting out qualifying in order to save tyres for the race. "I think it shows something is not right […]

Robert Kubica and Renault may be out-of-sync on their deadlines as the Pole bids to return from injury to formula one. His doctor Ricciardo Ceccarelli and manager Daniele Morelli reported the good news this week that Kubica, 26, will almost certainly recover from his horror February crash to contest grands prix in 2012. But Renault team boss Eric Boullier - also with Vitaly Petrov, Bruno Senna and Romain Grosjean in the frame - has imposed a strict end-of-October deadline for the finalisation of his driver […]

Mere weeks ago, Bruno Senna stared around the formula one paddock and acknowledged that his future was probably somewhere else. "40 days ago my perspective was very bad," the Brazilian admitted in Singapore to the O Estado de S.Paulo newspaper. Before the summer break, Ayrton Senna's nephew was merely Renault's reserve driver, but by the time August was over he had replaced race driver Nick Heidfeld. Now, the rumours are strong that team boss Eric Boullier regards the 27-year-old as a better bet commercially than […]

Vitaly Petrov has lashed back at suggestions he will not be racing with the Renault team in 2012. With a contract already in his pocket, the rumours began to swirl in Monza two weeks ago but the Russian insisted: "My contract is safe for next year." But in the last few days, new speculation has suggested team boss Eric Boullier could be planning to keep Bruno Senna for 2012 and pair him with GP2 champion Romain Grosjean. As for 27-year-old Petrov's signed deal, Boullier said: […]

Christian Klien managed a joke on Thursday as he denied he is now a million miles from the world of formula one. "8,000 kilometres," said the former Red Bull driver, speaking to the APA news agency from his home in Switzerland and referring to the approximate distance to Singapore. A year ago, the Austrian had returned to F1 with the struggling Spanish team HRT, where he out-qualified Bruno Senna two out of three times. "That's some validation," he insisted. "Two thirds of the time I […]