A rear brake issue forced Jean-Eric Vergne out of qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix. The French driver left the pits for his second run in the first knockout segment when his Toro Rosso developed a brake problem. The brakes subsequently caught fire and the session was suspended while marshals recovered Vergne's stricken car. "As I was going out of the pits, my engineer was on the radio to me, so I had to wait until the middle of sector 1 before I could tell […]

Hans-Joachim Stuck, a German motor racing legend, has backed Sebastian Vettel after the reigning world champion was booed on recent F1 podiums. He told Munich's Abendzeitung newspaper that the dominant Red Bull driver doesn't deserve the scorn simply for winning, or that he's not "cool" or "cute" like Kimi Raikkonen and Nico Rosberg respectively. "All I can say is, dear Sebastian, don't worry about," said Stuck. Stuck said he was sometimes booed as a driver, although the situation is not comparable to Vettel's because the […]

Michael Schumacher thinks it is possible his record haul of seven world titles can be matched by fellow German Sebastian Vettel. Earlier this week, the Spanish sports daily Marca quoted Vettel as saying comparisons between himself and his former mentor Schumacher are "ridiculous". "I have three titles, which is nothing compared to seven," he said. "Beating his record is not something that can happen in the next couple of years, so I don't even think about it," the Red Bull driver added. "I have had […]

Pirelli has all but confirmed reports it will make only minor changes to its controversial 2013 tyres for next month's Spanish grand prix and beyond. It was thought Sebastian Vettel's dominance in Bahrain last weekend might calm Red Bull's loud criticism of this year's heavily degrading Pirelli tyres. But team boss Christian Horner was quoted by AFP news agency after the race: "I think the tyres are still too on an edge." Earlier, we reported that most teams are in fact pushing for the status […]

Toto Wolff, the new Mercedes co-owner and director, has played down reports of a growing rift between the team's German and British factions. After German Nico Rosberg was ordered by Ross Brawn to stay behind Briton Lewis Hamilton in Malaysia, Austrians Wolff and Niki Lauda admitted their disapproval. But RTL now quotes Wolff as saying: "The decision was unpopular, but right." The incident is being compared to the situation at Red Bull, where team bosses tried - but ultimately failed - to impose a 'hold […]

Hans-Joachim Stuck, the motor racing boss for the German federation as well as Volkswagen, has picked a curious favourite for this weekend's 2013 season opener. "I think Nico Hulkenberg will win the first race in Melbourne," he said on Austrian television Servus TV. "In my eyes, Sauber is the dark horse. It's a nice car and many in the paddock have said the same after the tests. "And Nico has what it takes," added Stuck. Team founder Peter Sauber, however, is not so sure, writing […]

One pundit has changed his mind about Kimi Raikkonen's return to F1. "Before it happened, I was actually very sceptical when he decided to return to Formula One," said former grand prix driver Hans-Joachim Stuck, who is now president of the German motor sport association DMSB. Legend Stuck, who contested 80 grands prix, admitted his main concern about the unique Finn was his "way of life". Calling himself 'the iceman', 32-year-old Raikkonen is famously laconic, often short-tempered with journalists, and has a reported fondness for […]

Sebastian Vettel has been warned to watch his manners, according to Germany's Kolner Express newspaper. After Valencia, where following his retirement the Red Bull driver admitted he suspected a conspiracy, German motor sport association president Hans-Joachim Stuck said Vettel needed to be careful about being cited for "unsportsmanlike conduct". Vettel had suggested the safety car was called onto the Spanish circuit chiefly to cut his huge lead. "Sebastian Vettel should learn to be a good loser," said Stuck. The Cologne tabloid Express said Vettel's theory […]

Sebastian Vettel and Red Bull should tread carefully in accusing the FIA of a conspiracy to enliven last weekend's Valencia race. That is the view of Hans-Joachim Stuck, the president of the German motor sport association DMSB. After Vettel retired at Valencia from a commanding lead, the reigning world champion and his team's Dr Helmut Marko suggested the FIA called the safety car period chiefly to close up the field. "Vettel was too far ahead and so the field was brought back together," said Marko, […]

Red Bull has hit back at claims the team lied about a technical problem in Malaysia in order to gain a tactical advantage for the forthcoming races. Near the end of the Sepang race, Sebastian Vettel's engineer repeatedly instructed the back-to-back world champion to retire his RB8 car. Team boss Christian Horner said the brake temperatures had risen to a dangerous level, but Vettel nonetheless raced to the chequered flag and finished eleventh, one position out of the points. Horner explained Vettel did not hear […]

Paddock regulars insist the formerly-dominant Red Bull team cannot be written off after a single defeat in Australia. On paper, reigning back-to-back champion Sebastian Vettel's second place on Sunday doesn't look bad. But Melbourne was in fact the first race since before either of the German's title-winning campaigns in 2010 and 2011 that a Red Bull car failed to lead a single lap. "You cannot discount them, they (Red Bull) are always there," said Albert Park winner Jenson Button, "but it seems that the tables […]