WILLIAMS TO USE COSWORTH ENGINES IN 2010

“Cosworth have impressed us with the quality of their technical team and convinced us that their programme will deliver a competitive Formula One engine,” said Frank Williams, whose team last used Cosworth power in 2006. “In addition, like Williams, Cosworth is an independent company whose owners share our passion for racing and engineering. We believe that, working together, we will develop not only a competitive racing car for 2010 but also a long-term partnership that can take on the best in Formula One.”

US F1 TEAM CHOOSE SPAIN FOR EUROPEAN BASE

“MotorLand Aragon is the ideal motorsports complex for our European operation,” said sporting director Peter Windsor. “From the excellent location and weather, to the rich racing heritage and diverse track configurations, MotorLand provides America’s first Formula One team in more than 40 years with the perfect facility to manage the 2010 season and train for 2011 and beyond. MotorLand is the only facility of its kind in Europe and we’re thrilled to call it our European home. Between the Formula One-inspired, Tilke-designed road course and accompanying circuits, as well as the elaborate amenities of the leisure and cultural area, MotorLand is truly the perfect complex for US F1, from both competitive and business perspectives.” said Ken Anderson, US F1 Team principal.

SPONSORSHIP BOOST FOR RENAULT

Renault has secured its first new sponsor since the race-fixing scandal erupted earlier this year, after reaching a deal with Dutch watchmaker TW Steel.

In the wake of the ‘Crashgate’ affair in September title sponsor ING and Spanish insurer Mutua Madrilena terminated their contracts with the Anglo-French squad, forcing it to remove all branding from its cars ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix.
The team announced on Wednesday that it had signed a three-year deal with TW Steel, which will become its official timing partner.

The logos of the watch brand will appear on the nose cone, front wing flaps and sidepods of the R29 from this weekend’s race in Abu Dhabi, and on the team's timing monitors and uniform from next year.

Renault’s managing director Jean-François Caubet said: “The partnership brings great value for both the Renault F1 Team and TW Steel and confirms the team’s positive outlook for the years ahead.”
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ROSEBERG CONFIRMS EXIT FROM WILLIAMS

“Williams is a great team, I think, and there's no reason why they can't be just as good as this year, but I'm not sure they can win races at the moment, especially with budgets still being rather free, and there's an engine change coming up which won't help – although I'm convinced they can still do very well.

But I'd like to win races, and that's what convinced me to try to push for the next step. You never know, but I'd like to try and get into a car where I think there is going to be a very good chance of winning,” said the 24-year-old.
Rosberg’s departure has been rumoured for much of the summer, and while he has been tipped to join Jenson Button at world champion squad Brawn, he has also been linked with the second McLaren seat alongside Lewis Hamilton.

RAIKKONEN AIMS TO EXIT FERRARI ON A HIGH

“The race in Abu Dhabi will be my last Grand Prix with Ferrari and as usual I will give it everything to gain the best possible result," the Finn said on Ferrari's website. "We'll try to conclude this difficult year with a good result, hoping that it will be enough to gain the third place in the Constructors' Championship, As I wrote before, it's time for me to say goodbye to the guys at Ferrari after three years together. I'm proud of the things we achieved, especially the drivers' title in 2007 and the constructors' title in the same year and in 2008.”

KOBAYASHI TO RACE FOR TOYOTA IN ABU DHABI

Toyota have confirmed on Tuesday that their third driver Kamui Kobayashi will race again for the team at this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"I am really looking forward to my second Grand Prix and I want to make the most of this unexpected chance. I didn't know the track in Brazil and that was a little bit of a disadvantage because almost all the other drivers had some experience of it. But that's not the case in Abu Dhabi; this is a new track for everyone so that should help me.

I am also more familiar with the car now, as well as other procedures during a race weekend like pit stops and the two tyre compounds, so I expect to be more competitive in Abu Dhabi. I am sure the car will be strong and I will do everything I can to try to score my first points in Formula One. Of course it will be extremely difficult because the field is very strong and this is just my second Grand Prix but I will give my all." Kobayashi said
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HONDA: NO REGRETS DESPITE BRAWN SUCCESS

Honda says it has no regrets about its decision to pull out of Formula 1 at the end of last year, despite seeing the Brawn GP team go on to capture both World Championships.
The Japanese car maker felt that the worldwide financial crisis meant it could no longer continue funding an F1 program, and it withdrew from the sport in early December. That left the Brawn team facing a fight for survival, and it only made it onto the grid thanks to a financial injection from Honda.
Despite the fact that the withdrawal decision saved little money in the short term and failed to see it capitalise on Brawn's 2009 success, Honda's president and CEO Takanobu Ito insisted his company had still done the right thing.
Speaking to Autoweek, Ito said: "I have no regrets. After our withdrawal, we've seen our team doing extremely well. The reason why I say this is because of all the efforts we put into the team prior to our withdrawal that led to this result."
Ito believes the fact that Brawn has made a success of this season has actually made Honda's decision to quit easier to justify.
"Usually when we decide to withdraw our team from Formula 1 racing, there are fights and anguishes ... fortunately the team has succeeded. It has produced very good results, so people seem to be very happy which is quite unusual.
"Honda is very proud of the fact that we were able to make such a smooth withdrawal based on a very well-thought out plan.... I think we did very well with the withdrawal and after the withdrawal; we managed very quickly to inject all our resources into environmental technology development. We are very proud the management was so speedy in making this change."
Ito said the decision to withdraw from F1, made by his predecessor Takeo Fukui, was justified by the financial crisis and the environmental considerations that Honda needed to make.
"Just a year ago, Mr. Fakui made the decision to withdraw from Formula 1 racing and I think it was the correct decision," Ito said. "We do love Formula 1 racing, but even more than that, we had to think about our company; following the worldwide recession our management environment had truly deteriorated, also due to the need to comply with environmental needs, which meant we had to develop new technologies. So this came first.
I can surely say the few hundreds of people that were working on Formula 1 and the tens of billions of yen used for Formula 1, this has been converted to the development of environmental technologies." He said