F1: Grand Prix News Briefs (Update 5)

Formula 1

F1: Grand Prix News Briefs (Update 5)

Contrary to reports, Williams has not yet debuted its 2012 car...

SPEED Staff / GMM | Posted January 04, 2012 GMM Newswire

Pastor Maldonado will give the new Williams its maiden outing Tuesday at Jerez. (Photo: Getty Images)

Williams Has Not Run 2012 Car Yet: Contrary to reports, Williams has not yet debuted its 2012 car. It was said the British team ran the unlaunched FW34 at the Idiada facility near Barcelona, with tester Valtteri Bottas at the wheel. In fact, "the shakedown could not take place due to bad weather conditions," a spokesperson is quoted as saying in the German press. Pastor Maldonado will instead give the newly Renault-powered car its maiden outing, at Jerez on Tuesday. With the rollout of the new Ferrari cancelled in Italy due to similarly bad weather, it means the Force India is the first 2012 car to have run on a circuit. Paul di Resta drove the VJM05 at Silverstone after its launch on Friday. "It looks good and it feels great and I look forward to running it again in Jerez on Tuesday," the Scot is quoted by the Guardian.

Santander Extends Ferrari Deal Through 2017: The Spanish bank Santander has extended its major sponsorship contract with Ferrari yet again. On the day of the launch of the famous Italian team's new F2012 car, Europa Press news agency reports that the three-year contract extension will now push the existing Santander deal through to the end of 2017. The report said the new deal involves increased signage on the car's livery, while Santander continues to sponsor the Italian, British, German and Spanish Grands Prix. The bank's chairman Emilio Botin said on Friday he is "delighted. ... Our sponsorship with Ferrari is the best marketing operation in the 150-year history of the bank," he said.

Button Wants To Avoid Retiring Too Soon: While his teammate's plans beyond this year are unclear, McLaren driver Jenson Button is sure his career is on the right track. Lewis Hamilton has been making headlines this week after saying he wants to think about his future beyond 2012 – when his existing contract expires – soon. "Probably, after the first couple of races, it's something we will probably want to get out of the way, probably in the earlier part of the year rather than later," said the Briton. Button, however, inked a new multi-year contract last season, now telling the Sun newspaper that at the age of 32, it is too soon to think about retiring. Agreeing that 2007 World Champion Kimi Raikkonen's return to F1 this year is good for F1, Button said: "It also tells me not to leave F1 too early." Also among the six World Champions on the 2012 grid is Michael Schumacher, who returned two years ago at the age of 41. "Two of the six champions have left and come back again. You always think the grass is greener but you've got to be careful about when you retire," said Button. The quality of the 2012 grid is also making predictions about the outcome of the World Championship particularly difficult. "It will be close," said McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh. "It's a massively competitive championship these days. No one, in my view, is going to run away with this victory, not us, not anyone else."

Whiting To Attend Jerez Amid Legality Rumors: The teams, the fans and the world's media will not be the only ones with their eyes firmly on the action at Jerez next week. It is rumored Charlie Whiting, the technical delegate of the FIA, has scheduled to attend the first test of the 2012 preseason. The news follows speculation some teams are flying too close to the limits of the regulations with their new cars, notwithstanding the banning of blown exhausts. At the launch of the new McLaren, for instance, the exhausts and the diffuser were carefully hidden. "The fact of the matter is that exhausts exist on a car, you have to have them, they blow gas," said the team's technical director Paddy Lowe. "That will always generate some performance, a finite level of performance." When the very aggressive-looking new Ferrari was unveiled in Italy on Friday, team president Luca di Montezemolo said he hoped arguments about the rules would not overshadow 2012. "There are reports that ... Whiting may travel to Jerez next week due to concerns over the designs of the new cars," correspondent Tom Cary wrote in the Telegraph.

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