Formula One teams are planning an innovative joint launch ahead of the 2010 season.

In a further effort to cut costs, the move would see all 13 teams on show in a special event in Valencia at the end of January.

In the past, teams have either held their own special launches at their factories, or revealed their cars at one of the pre-season tests.

Mercedes-Benz GP chief executive Nick Fry outlined the initiative at the Motor Sport Business Forum in Monaco.

"I don't want to go into too much detail about what the plans actually are, but we have agreed between all the teams to do a joint launch and we do wish to turn it into a proper event," said Fry.

"We are getting a lot of help from the venue and investment in communication and marketing to do that.

"I wouldn't wish to spill the beans on what we are going to do, but it is going to be hugely innovative.

"It is going to be a clear demonstration of how we are going to be working together.

"We are not all going off and doing our own individual launches, so we can do something that is a lot more customer friendly."

It is understood the new teams - Virgin Racing, US F1, Lotus and Campos - may struggle to have their cars ready by then, but they would certainly be present at the event.

Silverstone has agreed a 17-year deal to host the British Grand Prix from 2010, ensuring the prestigious race is not axed from the Formula 1 calendar.

The Northamptonshire circuit stepped in to stage the event, which next year takes place on 11 July, after Donington Park was stripped of the rights.

And the news ensures the oldest race on the F1 calendar retains its place.

Under the new agreement, Silverstone, which hosted this year's British Grand Prix in July, will be redeveloped.

The modernisation of the facilities at Silverstone, which first staged the British Grand Prix in 1948, will focus on rebuilding the pit lanes and paddock - with work due to start as soon as possible after Christmas.

"This announcement is tremendous news," said 1996 F1 world champion Damon Hill who is president of the British Racing Drivers Club president (BRDC), which owns Silverstone.

"It's not easy to enter into an agreement of this magnitude. It's a big commitment.

"But the BRDC felt we wanted this relationship to continue, and we were prepared to back the negotiating team, with the level of risk satisfactory for the deal to go ahead."

F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone said: "This will ensure the British Grand Prix is included on the Formula 1 calendar for many years to come, which is something I've always wanted to happen."

Talks had been ongoing between Formula 1 management and Silverstone since Donington Park failed to show it had the necessary £135m funding.

The main delay in establishing a deal appears to have been the length of the contract and the inclusion of a 7% annual escalation fee.

Silverstone admitted it needed to improve its ageing facilities, but insisted it needed the security of a longer-term contract to justify and help raise the finances needed to upgrade.

The contract on the table is believed to demand a £12m fee for 2010, with an increase of 7% per year after that.

BBC F1 commentator Martin Brundle: "It's brilliant news. I always assumed it would happen in the end because everyone wanted the same thing. The new circuits are exciting and interesting but they always had to balance up with the historic circuits, like Silverstone."

Silverstone managing director Richard Phillips said: "We've always had five-year deals and never been able to get the investment we needed to redevelop.

"But 17 years gives us the ability to invest and move forward.

"We've always had the belief the British Grand Prix was an important cornerstone of Formula One but, with Bernie, you're never quite sure, at the end of the day, though, you have to have a British Grand Prix."

Source: BBC News

Kimi Raikkonen will drive a Red Bull-backed Citroen in the World Rally Championship next year.

The 2007 Formula 1 champion, who agreed to leave Ferrari a year early in return for a substantial payoff, has been mulling his options since talks with McLaren about a 2010 drive fell through last month and the Woking team instead signed Jenson Button.

Citroën Racing has now confirmed that Raikkonen will join its ranks and drive for its second-string rally outfit, the Citroën Junior Team, which will now have Red Bull branding.

The Finn will compete on all 13 WRC rounds except the Rally of New Zealand and will campaign the same C4 WRC car as six-time champion Sebastien Loeb, who leads the main Citroën factory squad.

“I always wanted to compete in rally, especially in the World Rally Championship, at some point in my career,” said Raikkonen.

“Thanks to Red Bull, I have the opportunity to drive the best car of the series with the Citroen C4.

“This is a new but very exciting challenge.

“I am really looking forward to testing the car and taking the start of the first rally.”

Raikkonen has long expressed an interest in rallying and impressed when he drove an S2000 Abarth at his home WRC round in Finland during F1’s summer break.

His absence from F1 in 2010 is being billed as a sabbatical and he has indicated that he is keen to return to F1 the following year – but only if he is certain he will have a competitive car.

Raikkonen confirmed that his Citroën deal is for one year only: “For the moment we have a one-year contract and we will see how it goes for the future.”

Citroën team boss Olivier Quesnel added: “It is with immense joy that we welcome Kimi to our ranks.

“We are very proud that he has chosen Citroën.”

auber has been granted the final place on next year’s Formula 1 grid - finally securing the team’s future after months of uncertainty in the wake of BMW’s withdrawal from the sport.

After the planned sale to investment group Qadbak fell through, BMW announced last Friday that it had sold the Hinwil-based squad back to its founder Peter Sauber, but the deal was contingent on the team being guaranteed an entry in next year’s world championship.

BMW had initially forfeited its place when it declined to sign the new Concorde Agreement - committing teams to F1 until 2012 - but Toyota’s announcement last month that it would be quitting the sport with immediate effect appeared to have handed it a lifeline.

Sauber was still in limbo, however, as the FIA stated on Monday that Toyota had yet to extract itself from its contractual obligations.

There were reports that the Japanese manufacturer might try to sell on its entry in a bid to avoid any legal ramifications, possibly to Serbian organisation Stefan GP, which was one of the teams rejected by the FIA in the initial decision over 2010 entries six months ago.

But Toyota has instead relinquished its entry and the FIA confirmed on Thursday that it has handed the coveted 13th slot to Sauber.

“The FIA has written to inform BMW Sauber AG that their application for an entry in the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship has been successful,” said a statement from the governing body.

“Subject to their signing the Concorde Agreement, BMW Sauber will be awarded the 13th entry in the championship, taking the place of the departing Toyota team.

“The FIA has worked closely with the Commercial Rights Holder and the teams involved over recent weeks and is grateful for their support in achieving the best outcome for the sport.

Gary Paffett topped the times for McLaren on the second day of Formula 1’s young driver test at Jerez, outpacing the competition by nearly half a second.

The Mercedes DTM star worked through a varied programme of aerodynamic calibration work, evaluation of suspension modifications and simulation of 2010 fuel loads to determine their effect on car balance and tyre degradation.

Paffett set the benchmark time of 1m18.718s just before the arrival of a lunchtime shower, which left the track slippery and prevented any lap time improvements until the last hour of running.

Once the circuit finally recovered its lost grip, Williams’s Nico Hulkenberg vaulted up the order to second place with a 1m19.184s.

The GP2 champion is the only driver at Jerez with a 2010 race drive already secured, and used his first day back in the cockpit since pre-season to refamiliarise himself with F1 machinery.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo again gave a good account of himself to finish third fastest in the Red Bull, while Paul di Resta likewise shone for Force India to take fourth despite only running in the morning.

The young Scot was entrusted with testing some 2010 development items as well as general set-up work and fuel system evaluation.

“Yesterday the programme was to get comfortable in the car and to see how everything worked,” said di Resta.

“I was able to get to a reasonable level quite quickly after one run so I felt prepared and had progressed enough for the team to be able to use me to test some development items, which will of course help them in 2010.

Testing times from Jerez (December 2)

1  PAFFETT     McLaren      1m18.718s (80)

2  HULKENBERG  Williams     1m19.184s (94)

3  RICCIARDO   Red Bull     1m19.243s (92)

4  DI RESTA    Force India  1m19.411s (58)

5  GUTIERREZ   Sauber       1m20.190s (68)

6  CONWAY      Mercedes     1m20.222s (83)

7  ERICSSON    Mercedes     1m20.440s (37)

8  HILDEBRAND  Force India  1m20.517s (49)

9  BIANCHI     Ferrari      1m20.586s (113)

10 DI GRASSI   Renault      1m20.898s (54)

11 TUNG        Renault      1m21.492s (67)

Andy Soucek won the early bragging rights as Formula 1’s three-day young driver test got underway at Jerez on Tuesday.

The 24-year-old Spaniard, who earned his outing with Williams by winning the revived Formula 2 series this year, topped the times by 0.2s despite a spin at the hairpin.

DTM ace Paul di Resta was an impressive second quickest after just half a day’s running.

The 23-year-old Scot took over Force India’s Mercedes-powered VJM02 from Indy Lights champion JR Hildebrand in the afternoon and set his best time near the end of the session.

Di Resta, who will be back in action on Wednesday morning, said: “Today was very constructive and we achieved what we wanted to achieve, which was to get familiar with the car and build up to speed slowly to fully prepare for the rest of the test.

“The VJM02 is certainly impressive and although I am still learning, I felt I could get to grips with it fairly quickly.

“I wasn't trying to go for a time as such, just to get the most out of the car and myself to set up for the coming two days.

“In the end I could set a good time, but this wasn't the overall goal for today.”

Di Resta’s fellow DTM star Gary Paffett was third quickest on his return to the cockpit of a McLaren, while another Briton, Oliver Turvey, was given a run in the MP4-24 late in the afternoon as his prize for winning the prestigious McLaren Autosport BRDC Award back in 2006.

British F3 champion and Red Bull Junior driver Daniel Ricciardo recovered from a hiccough early in the morning – when he spun in avoidance of Toro Rosso stable-mate Brendon Hartley – to set the fourth fastest time.

“I don’t think I stopped smiling all day,” enthused the Australian, who amassed the day’s highest lap tally (113).

“Working with the team was great and they let me go at my own pace until I built up some confidence.

“After that, we began working on things that will be useful for next season.

F3 Euro Series champion Jules Bianchi was fifth quickest for Ferrari, while Brawn Mercedes fielded both British IRL racer Mike Conway and Swedish teenage hotshoe Marcus Ericsson.

The pair were split on the timesheet by 18-year-old Californian Alexander Rossi, who impressed BMW Sauber with his feedback and how well he coped with the physical demands of driving an F1 car.

Belgian Bertrand Baguette, who earned his drive by winning the World Series by Renault category this season, covered some 105 laps in Renault’s R29 en route to the ninth-best time ahead of Hildebrand and Turvey.

Hartley’s day got off to an inauspicious start when he spun the Toro Rosso at the quick right-hander after the chicane and almost collected the close-following sister Red Bull car of Ricciardo, bringing out the red flag.

The damage was repaired in time for Hartley to return to the track by the end of the morning, but the 20-year-old New Zealander propped up the timesheet after completing a 2010-oriented job list including aero measurement testing, running the car with ballast to simulate the weight of next year’s cars with full fuel tanks, and brake testing.

Testing times from Jerez (December 1)

1  SOUCEK      Williams     1m19.158s (87)

2  DI RESTA    Force India  1m19.369s (46)

3  PAFFETT     McLaren      1m19.426s (54)

4  RICCIARDO   Red Bull     1m19.534s (113)

5  BIANCHI     Ferrari      1m19.626s (91)

6  CONWAY      Mercedes     1m19.920s (58)

7  ROSSI       BMW Sauber   1m20.227s (82)

8  ERICSSON    Mercedes     1m20.333s (50)

9  BAGUETTE    Renault      1m20.511s (105)

10 HILDEBRAND  Force India  1m20.537s (49)

11 TURVEY      McLaren      1m20.856s (27)

Frenchman Jules Bianchi has signed a contract for more multiple years with the Ferrari Formula 1 team. A Ferrari spokesperson told GPUpdate.net. Bianchi joined Ferrari for two days of testing in the South of Spain.

Bianchi's exact role within Ferrari remains unclear but the Ferrari spokesperson did explain the F3 Euroseries champion will become involved in the development of the car.

The Frenchman will not become the team's test or reserve driver for the upcoming season though. "Giancarlo Fisichella will be our third driver in 2010, but Bianchi will be involved in the upcoming years with Ferrari's development," a Ferrari spokesperson told GPUpdate.net. 

Jules Bianchi will join ART Grand Prix in the GP2 Main series next season.

After a dissapointing season in Formula 1 in 2009 with Felipe's horrific eye accident, Felipe has some good news as he became a father.

Ferrari driver Felipe Massa became a father on Monday evening when his wife Raffaela gave birth to their first child.

The baby boy (weighing 3.4kg) was born at 6.27pm at Sao Paulo’s Albert Einstein hospital, where Massa spent part of his rehabilitation from the head injuries he sustained in his Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying crash.

Felipe Massa made a successful return to competitive racing by taking a heat victory in his charity karting event in Brazil this weekend.

This weekend he has made his first racing starts since the accident in his annual International Challenge of the Go-Kart Champions event at the Florianopolis track.

He finished third in Saturday's opening leg, which was won by Michael Schumacher ahead of Force India driver Tonio Liuzzi.
In today's race Massa and Schumacher charged through the field from the reverse grid start to pass early leader Rubens Barrichello and have their own battle for victory.

Massa held off his former Ferrari F1 team-mate by 0.087s to secure the win, although Schumacher took the outright title when the results of the two heats were aggregated.

Barrichello fell back to fourth today behind IndyCar driver Vitor Meira, while Liuzzi was caught up in a series of tangles.

The event also featured Nelson Piquet, in his first race against his F1 rivals since his controversial exit from Renault and the subsequent race-fixing scandal.

Piquet was involved in incidents in both races.

The Canadian Grand Prix has moved a big step closer to returning to the Formula 1 calendar after securing major government investment.

The popular Montreal race had fallen off the schedule this year when organisers were unable to reach an agreement with Bernie Ecclestone, and although it was pencilled in for a return in 2010, that deal was dependent on a financial deal falling into place.

Yesterday it was announced that a $15 million funding injection from the governments of Canada and Quebec, and the city of Montreal and its tourism authority, had been secured.

The return of the Canadian GP is therefore set to be ratified at the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting next month.

Montreal's mayor Gerald Tremblay had been at the centre of negotiations to revive the race, and was delighted to have succeeded.

"The return of Formula 1 to Montreal attests to our sustained efforts and determination," said Tremblay.

"This win-win deal falls in line with the terms we set and the taxpayer's ability to pay and will create stability for the next five years.

"I am very pleased that our metropolis is bringing back this crucial stage in the Formula 1 series for fans from around the world and an outstanding opportunity in terms of the event's international reach."

The 2010 Canadian GP is set for 11-13 June on the latest draft of the provisional calendar.

The return of Montreal will be welcomed by the F1 fraternity.

The teams had been concerned by the lack of a North American date this year following the loss of Montreal and Indianapolis in recent seasons, and although they are still clamouring for a GP in the United States, returning to Canada will be seen as a step in the right direction.