The 2012 season may not be Michael Schumacher's last with Mercedes. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

New Schumacher Contract 'Absolutely Possible' - Zetsche: Dieter Zetsche has admitted it is possible Michael Schumacher will still be a Mercedes driver in 2013. At the end of his initial three-year F1 comeback contract, the 43-year-old's existing deal runs out this season. There has been speculation Mercedes has offered him a new two-year contract for 2013 and 2014. "There is no contract at the moment," team boss Ross Brawn was quoted on Sunday by the Daily Star, "but we are open minded." Zetsche, the chairman of German marque Mercedes' parent Daimler, agrees: "He is still the icon of motor racing. If his performance and his interest is still there, then a continuation would be an absolutely attractive possibility," he told this week's Sport Bild. Schumacher has said there is no timetable for any talks, but Zetsche revealed: "We will get together during the season and see what the interest is on both sides." Alan Jones, the 1980 World Champion, told GMM last week that, if he was running the Mercedes team, there are also purely financial reasons to re-sign Schumacher. "If you pay him 10 million then most likely he would bring in 20 million," said the Australian, "because of who he is and what he has done in his career."

Williams Admits Mistake To Let Newey Go: Sir Frank Williams has admitted it was a mistake to let F1's most respected engineer Adrian Newey leave his beleaguered team more than a decade ago. Aerodynamic specialist and Briton Newey, who has since built championship-winning cars for McLaren and Red Bull, left Williams in 1997 — the year Jacques Villeneuve won the Grove based team's last title. Williams, a woeful ninth in the constructors' standings last year, has not won a race since 2004. "He (Newey) wanted some shares that I didn't want to give to him at the time," Williams told F1 Racing magazine. "(That) was arguably, with hindsight, a mistake." Wheelchair-bound Williams, 69, also admitted that last year's Cosworth-powered car was not good enough, triggering a restructuring of the famous team and a switch to Renault engines. "It (the FW33) was deficient in most of the areas that matter, but we were completely lacking in the most important one of all, which is aero," he said. "And probably a bit of horsepower. It just wasn't a quick car." But Williams admitted that there is one element his team will continue to lack in 2012. "There's only one of him," he said, referring to Newey. "Adrian is quite a remarkable individual."

Exhausts 'The Key' To Tech Success In 2012: As was the case in 2011, the exhausts look set to remain the key to technical success this season. "I don't know if it's the key," said Sauber's Sergio Perez, "but of course the exhaust is the area of greatest potential for improvement. That's where we are focusing the most time in this preseason," he is quoted by Spain's Marca newspaper. After the deliberate and off-throttle blowing of exhaust gases for aerodynamic effect was banned after 2011, teams are still looking for the optimum solution for the new set of rules. "The cars this year are very difficult to drive," Fernando Alonso is quoted as saying, amid reports Ferrari ended the recent Jerez and Barcelona tests with vastly different positions for the exhaust exits. When asked about it, the Spaniard said it was an usual question for the media to pose. "I can only say that we are continuing to work on the best configuration of the car for Melbourne," he said this week. Marca, meanwhile, said McLaren has three preset exhaust outlet positions for possible use in 2012, while Red Bull has also been experimenting this winter.

UK Taxman Taking Look At Ecclestone: The British government has reportedly launched a detailed investigation into Bernie Ecclestone's tax affairs. Last year, amid speculation the Gerhard Gribkowsky corruption probe had piqued the interest of the UK's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) department, a spokesman said it was ensuring "everyone pays the right tax under the law." It was reported the government would pay particular interest to the F1 chief executive's offshore family trust, which he insists is outside his control. The Daily Mail newspaper now reports that, on the basis of the informal investigation, an official probe could be launched that might cost Ecclestone billions in tax. "HMRC has put a team of investigators on Bernie Ecclestone to look into his involvement in the trust and exactly how much he has to do with it," an official is quoted as saying. "They are now in the process of making inquiries and researching every minor detail as they look to build a case. There is movement. They have opened a book." Ecclestone played down the report. "I have not received any correspondence from HMRC and don't anticipate any," he said. "There is no reason for it. As far as I am concerned, if they write to us, we will reply, but I hope I don't get a knock at the door in the night. I received a letter from HMRC in 2008 that everything was OK in relation to the trust. It would be silly to check again when they have already said everything was in good order." HMRC declined to officially comment.

'Impossible' To Make Friends In F1 - Vergne: Relations remain cool in the Toro Rosso garage, but rookie Jean-Eric Vergne is not expecting to be friends with any of his other rivals in 2012. The Frenchman said recently that although he and Toro Rosso teammate Daniel Ricciardo may be fighting it out for a 2013 Red Bull seat, they need to work together to push the Faenza-based team forward this year. But outside the Toro Rosso garage, 21-year-old Vergne is not hoping to make friends in Formula One. "With Daniel and I it's going well, we've known each other for a long time," he told the L'Equipe sports daily. "He is someone I get along well with and it's a pleasure to work with (him). "We can be friends, but otherwise it's impossible to be friends with the F1 drivers — unless you know you will be always in first place with the best car. For me, it's inconceivable to be friends with someone you want to beat."