Formula One News — March 2001

THE organizers of the Malaysian Grand Prix have cancelled plans for live television coverage of the event within Malaysia.

LEO KIRCH, the man who is on the verge of taking commercial control of Formula 1, has tightened his grip on Thomas Haffa's EM.TV operation with the appointment of Kirch New Media chief executive Rainer Huether to the EM.TV management board.

THE seemingly endless battle between motor racing's rule makers and the engineers who craft today's high technology F1 cars is set to take another dramatic twist in the wake of the tragic fatal accident in the Australian grand prix which cost the life of a track marshal.

OLIVIER PANIS has expressed his dismay at the race steward's decision to penalize him 25-seconds after the Australian Grand Prix.

ARROWS new test-driver and veteran Formula One racer Johnny Herbert has supported the sport's governing body the FIA as the safety of Grand Prix racing has come under scrutiny this week.

BRAZILIAN Rubens Barrichello failed to appear at Ferrari's Fiorano test as Luca Badoer continued his duties at the Italian circuit on Thursday.

JORDAN's Ricardo Zonta topped the times in the second day of testing at Silverstone on Thursday as he won the battle of the test-drivers in poor conditions.

Clay Regazzoni, the former Ferrari driver, has called for FIA president Max Mosley to resign after the death of marshal Graham Beveridge at the Australian Grand Prix.

SPANIARD Pedro de la Rosa test-drove the Jaguar R2 for the first time on Wednesday morning at the Silverstone circuit.

FIA president Max Mosley has promised that the governing body will be monitoring cornering speeds during practice and qualifying for the Malaysian and Brazilian Grands Prix. If they confirm the evidence of Melbourne, namely that the cars have been speeded up to an unexpectedly high level thanks to the onset of an F1 tire war, then he will take steps to slow them down by mid-season.

FERRARI test driver Luca Badoer continued testing duties at Fiorano on Wednesday with the Italian driver clocking a best time of one minute and 01. 458 seconds.

DESPITE losing the first tire battle to their rivals Bridgestone, the Michelin company have expressed delight with their first performance for 16 years.

FERNANDO ALONSO will be the revelation of the season according to his European Minardi boss Paul Stoddart.

EXPERIENCED racer Johnny Herbert will return to the cockpit of a Formula One car today (Wednesday) when he undertakes for the first time his test-driver duties with Arrows.

JOHNNY HERBERT made an impressive return to Formula One on Wednesday as he topped the times during testing for Arrows at Silverstone.

THE family of the race marshal who died during the Australian Grand Prix visited the site of the accident that caused his death at the Albert Park circuit on Monday.

MAX MOSLEY, the president of Formula One's governing body the FIA, has expressed his concern at the increased speed of Grand Prix cars this season.

AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX winners Ferrari demonstrated their intent to retain their double world championship when they returned to testing just 48 hours after winning in Melbourne.

AZMI MURAD, the general manager of the Sepang International Circuit, on Monday vowed to make safety the major priority at the track for the Malaysian Grand Prix on March 18.

AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX winner Michael Schumacher has called for the FIA to improve safety measures in the sport after his victory was marred by tragedy.

IN the aftermath of the fatal accident which took place during the Australian GP in Melbourne on Sunday, British American Racing will need to rush to build up a new car for the Malaysian Grand Prix as the chassis which was involved in the crash has been impounded by the Australian police as evidence in the inquiry which will be carried out by the Victorian Police Major Collision Unit which will prepare a report for the Melbourne coroner.

AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX officials have named the race marshal who died during the event as Graham Beveridge.

THE fatal accident which befell a trackside marshal in the Australian Grand Prix and which was caused by Jacques Villeneuve slamming his BAR into the back of Ralf Schumacher's Williams-BMW highlights the precarious role of the unpaid enthusiasts without whom this multi-million pound sport would have stalled in the pits.

THE British Grand Prix has become the latest big sporting event to be under threat from the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Britain.