Misc F1 News

[Ali]

Coming soon - the definitive Formula One documentary

Production is underway of the definitive feature documentary on Formula One racing. Scheduled for cinema release in spring 2011, the new film will tell the story of the golden Grand Prix age and will include interviews with the sport’s leading personalities, drivers, designers and engineers.

Featuring the most iconic F1 locations, from historic Monaco to the futuristic Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, the film is being produced by Exclusive Media Group’s (EMG) documentary unit, Spitfire Documentary Films, along with Flat-Out Films and Diamond Docs.

Writer Mark Monroe’s credits include the 2010 Academy Award nominated documentary, The Cove, while director Paul Crowder is the man behind the Spitfire documentary, Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who and Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos.

“We are truly honoured to make this film, to tell this story which has never been told,” said EMG’s Co-Chairman and CEO Nigel Sinclair. “The heyday of Formula One racing was a very different time, when the risks were high and the characters were larger than life.”

Producing the film are Emmy award winning producer Michael Shevloff and Nigel Sinclair, who produced the Grammy Award-winning documentary No Direction Home: Bob Dylan, directed by Martin Scorsese.

“Our goal is to achieve a big screen ‘action documentary’ experience with all of the style and charisma of the era,” Shevloff stated. “With Paul Crowder and Mark Monroe’s bold style we plan to tell a great story as well as transport the audience on to the track and in to the car.”

Crowder added: "Mark and I are thrilled to partner again with Spitfire and to team up with Flat-Out Films. This is a fantastic opportunity to take the history of these men and the grandeur of Formula One and translate that into a cinematic experience.”

The project has the support of Bernie Ecclestone and Formula One Management. EMG is also in discussions to partner with the Executive Affairs Authority of Abu Dhabi to co-finance the project. Exclusive Film Distribution is handling worldwide sales and distribution, and will be representing the film at the forthcoming European Film Market (EFM) in Berlin.

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http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2010/2/10423.html

--- We had an F1 News section, where is it? I think we should keep it. ---

[phil1993]

--- We had an F1 News section, where is it? I think we should keep it. ---

We locked it because it was being confused with the current season, so we're going to rename this Misc F1 News and start a new 2010 season discussion for news at Bahrain

[Wolfie]

BUTTON'S EXAMPLE IS TAKING HÄKKINEN TO HAMILTON'S MANAGER

Turun Sanomat 29.4 2010 19:14:45

Mika Häkkinen's hint that in a way or another he is returning to the GP-paddock has made rumours stronger that he, together with Didier Coton, will be Lewis Hamilton's new manager.

The Italian Tuttosport -magazine predicted on Wednesday that this manager deal would be sealed in the recent future.

Martin Whitmarsh wants that Hamilton has someone who takes care of his things. Inside the British team they see Häkkinen as a very appropriate supporter to Hamilton.

Last year Anthony Hamilton took care of his son's contract matters. According to British sources things got mixed up in the Hamilton-family after Jenson Button came to McLaren.

Whitmarsh ordered the drivers to a joint training camp so that they could get to know each other. There, at the camp, Hamilton asked Button how much he pays his father John Button for taking care of his contract matters.

Button told that his father is only travelling with him for his own joy. His son pays for his trip, hotel and presents if he finds something he likes.

When Hamilton heard to his surprise that Button has a special manager who takes care of his things he immediately ended his own co-work with his father in quarreling moods.

Häkkinen and Coton have been in the picture all the time. Hamilton has done a lot of co-work with Häkkinen in different promotions and he has seen how sincerely Mika has always been one of McLaren's men.

Häkkinen's and Coton's Aces Management -company has young drivers as their clients.

Bernie Ecclestone doesn't respect managers. He tells straight away that he would never hire a driver who has a manager if he would still be a team manager.

– I think that a driver who is walking in his manager's leash isn't able to take care of his own things. Gerhard Berger never had a manager. He made his own contracts and was always one of the best paid drivers, Ecclestone said recently to the Italian media.

Sebastian Vettel doesn't have a manager and he is Ecclestone's current favourite.

Turun Sanomat

HEIKKI KULTA

[Dracaena]

I've never been a fan of Heikki even though he seems to be a really nice guy. But this makes me want to go buy a hat so that I can take it off for him .

A massive charity donation from Kovalainen

Lotus F1 driver Heikki Kovalainen has donated 300 000 euros to charity.

Kovalainen's donation goes to Elton John's foundation which works to prevent HIV/AIDS and to support the lives of HIV positive people.

Kovalainen made his donation on Friday at the Amber Fashion party in Monaco.

MTV3 – Jani Merimaa and Anette Latva-Piikkilä

http://www.mtv3.fi/urheilu/f1/uutiset.s ... 05/1123810

This is how Kovalainen explains his giant donation

Heikki Kovalainen donated a massive sum of 300 000 euros to Elton John's foundation for improving the lives of HIV positive people in Cambodia.

- This was something that I've been thinking about for a long time. The money is going to a good cause. I don't need money for myself right now. Lotus pays me enough to get by. It was the right time to do this, Kovalainen told MTV3.

The foundation gathered altogether 520 000 euros on Friday in Monaco. Kovalainen's contribution was by far the largest since the second highest donation sum was 50 000 euros.

MTV3 – Jani Merimaa

http://www.mtv3.fi/urheilu/f1/uutiset.s ... 05/1124043

[Wolfie]

Thanks Dracaena, great news

And some sad news....

Briatore is about to become Ecclestone's right hand

Turun Sanomat 23.5 2010

According to information Turun Sanomat has Briatore is surprisingly close to return fulltime to the F1-paddock because the delicate negotiations held during Monaco GP were successful.

When FIA dropped the claim to return Briatore's lifelong ban it turned out that it won't take long before the ex team manager is seen again in F1-business.

Bernie Ecclestone has on several occasions said that he misses Briatore and his visions about F1-development. The old truth is that what Bernie wants, Bernie also gets.

So it didn't come as a surprise to see Briatore wandering on the paddock in Monaco on Friday when there was no racing activity on the track. Briatore visited former colleagues, friends and other people from other teams. Ecclestone was seen on Force Blue -yacht Saturday evening together with Max Mosley having dinner with Briatore.

Mosley tried to stop the cancellation of Briatore's ban by using his contacts with Jean Todt but Ecclestone used his own means to settle down the situation.

Ecclestone has let us believe that he is certain that Briatore will be back working on the F1-paddock in the near future. The head of F1 Management has emphasised that he isn't going to reduce his own input but he is going to delegate more and he sees Briatore as his natural successor.

According to British sources Ecclestone will soon nominate Briatore as his closest assistant who will get the responsibility to get new partners and sponsors to F1-sport. Ecclestone himself will keep the negotiations with GP-hosts and organising countries' managment in his tight grip. He enjoys this side of business mostly and he isn't going to delegate it to anyone else.

Now that Ecclestone has Mosley's support it shouldn't be difficult to get Todt too to accept the return of Briatore. We guess that by the time summer starts properly Briatore will once again be among the regular people on the GP-paddock.

Turun Sanomat

LUIS VASCONCELOS
http://www.ts.fi/f1/uutiset/133543.html

[cformula1]

Thanks Dracaena, great news

And some sad news....

Briatore is about to become Ecclestone's right hand

Turun Sanomat 23.5 2010

According to information Turun Sanomat has Briatore is surprisingly close to return fulltime to the F1-paddock because the delicate negotiations held during Monaco GP were successful.

When FIA dropped the claim to return Briatore's lifelong ban it turned out that it won't take long before the ex team manager is seen again in F1-business.

Bernie Ecclestone has on several occasions said that he misses Briatore and his visions about F1-development. The old truth is that what Bernie wants, Bernie also gets.

So it didn't come as a surprise to see Briatore wandering on the paddock in Monaco on Friday when there was no racing activity on the track. Briatore visited former colleagues, friends and other people from other teams. Ecclestone was seen on Force Blue -yacht Saturday evening together with Max Mosley having dinner with Briatore.

Mosley tried to stop the cancellation of Briatore's ban by using his contacts with Jean Todt but Ecclestone used his own means to settle down the situation.

Ecclestone has let us believe that he is certain that Briatore will be back working on the F1-paddock in the near future. The head of F1 Management has emphasised that he isn't going to reduce his own input but he is going to delegate more and he sees Briatore as his natural successor.

According to British sources Ecclestone will soon nominate Briatore as his closest assistant who will get the responsibility to get new partners and sponsors to F1-sport. Ecclestone himself will keep the negotiations with GP-hosts and organising countries' managment in his tight grip. He enjoys this side of business mostly and he isn't going to delegate it to anyone else.

Now that Ecclestone has Mosley's support it shouldn't be difficult to get Todt too to accept the return of Briatore. We guess that by the time summer starts properly Briatore will once again be among the regular people on the GP-paddock.

Turun Sanomat

LUIS VASCONCELOS
http://www.ts.fi/f1/uutiset/133543.html

I'd hate to see Briatore back in F1, especially so soon. However if I were Flavio I'd be more worried about this:

Briatore in trouble
Briatore is being investigated for fiscal fraud, and had his yacht confiscated.
He hasn't paid 4 million euros in VAT's and 500 thousand in petrol taxes.
He claims that the boat isnt in his name and its owned by a rental company, HQ'd at the British Virgin Islands, but the prosecutor says that the boat was never rented and its only Briatore who uses it.

And he has a history too of dodgy dealings

Briatore was sentenced for gambling-motivated fraud, cheating and swindle by fake playing cards. Briatore was also involved in the bankruptcy of Paramatti, and eventually convicted on various counts of fraud in Bergamo and Milan and sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison. To avoid imprisonment, he fled to Saint Thomas,Virgin Islands. He never went to prison and he came back to Italy only thanks to an act of oblivion.

[Wolfie]

I'd hate to see Briatore back in F1, especially so soon. However if I were Flavio I'd be more worried about this:

Briatore in trouble
Briatore is being investigated for fiscal fraud, and had his yacht confiscated.
He hasn't paid 4 million euros in VAT's and 500 thousand in petrol taxes.
He claims that the boat isnt in his name and its owned by a rental company, HQ'd at the British Virgin Islands, but the prosecutor says that the boat was never rented and its only Briatore who uses it.

And he has a history too of dodgy dealings

Briatore was sentenced for gambling-motivated fraud, cheating and swindle by fake playing cards. Briatore was also involved in the bankruptcy of Paramatti, and eventually convicted on various counts of fraud in Bergamo and Milan and sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison. To avoid imprisonment, he fled to Saint Thomas,Virgin Islands. He never went to prison and he came back to Italy only thanks to an act of oblivion.

Good heavens, the man is dishonesty personified

It is really concerning that a man like that can so easily come back to the paddock and start dealing with Bernie of all people

Juha Kankkunen who is now Jean Todt's consultant said a few things about Mosley - let's hope for some changes:

- Max Mosley was under Bernie Ecclestone's thumb and he only took care of F1. Todt again is such a tough guy that even Ecclestone can't tell him what to do. Todt understands what motorsport is about and he is an independent guy when it comes to making decisions, Kankkunen tells.

[cformula1]

Illegal immigrants attempt to sneak onto Formula One Management truck into England

A group of illegal immigrants sneaked into Britain by hiding in Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone's convoy returning from the Monaco Grand Prix.

The lorry drivers were oblivious to the stowaways hiding in one of their big TV trucks which carried them across the Channel until they arrived at their depot in England.

The immigrants were arrested shortly after being discovered at Biggin Hill Airport in Kent, where Ecclestone's Formula One Management (F~0~M) company is based.

F~0~M is a corporate body that controls the worldwide media distribution, management rights and promotion of the Formula 1 circuit.

The trucks were returning four days after the sixth race of the F1 season in Monte Carlo on May 16.

It is thought the immigrants climbed on board while they were parked in Calais, France.

Had they not been found, they could have joined the estimated 725,000 other illegal immigrants living in Britain.

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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/motorsport/7760715/Illegal-immigrants-sneak-into-Britain-in-Bernie-Ecclestones-F1-convoy.html

Could this raise some legal issues for F~0~M?

[syncmaster]

Austin boss says finances are in place

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/83928

A repeat of Donington Park?