According to a report, due to the refueling ban this season, pit stops will take around three seconds. (Photo: LAT Photographic)

Pit Stops To Take Sub-3 Seconds In 2010: F1 looks set to stage lightning-fast pit stops in 2010. Williams’s spokeswoman Claire Williams revealed that the Grove based team was Thursday practicing pit stops for the upcoming season. Refueling has been banned for 2010, meaning that the only routine action to take place during pit stops this year will be the changing of tires. "The guys have made it into the sub-three second range to change a set of tires!" she exclaimed.

No F1 Return For Willis With Sauber: Geoff Willis is not returning to Formula One with Sauber. The Briton was one of the most well known technical directors in the sport, but he mysteriously left Red Bull in the middle of last season. He has also worked with Williams and McLaren, and more recently he was ousted from his position at Honda. There was speculation late in 2009 that he could return this year with Ferrari or Sauber, but the Swiss camp earlier this month said its technical team would continue to be led by Willy Rampf. It is believed Willis had been in talks with the new Qadbak management, but when that buyout fell through, founder Peter Sauber opted for a different route.

Buemi Drove Red Bull In Icy Canada After All: Contrary to reports, Sebastien Buemi drove in icy conditions in Canada last weekend. The Swiss driver's demonstration run in a Red Bull car on the frozen waters of the Olympic Basin, located behind the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, was called off due to "unstable ice conditions". But around the snow-lined Canadian GP circuit itself, and at the Lac-a-l'Eau-Claire in Quebec, Toro Rosso's Buemi got up to speed with his set of special tungsten-studded Bridgestone tires. "(It was) a bit cold but in the end, it is good to be back!" said the 21-year-old.

Santander Confirms De La Rosa Backing: Pedro de la Rosa is being personally sponsored in 2010 by Santander. In addition to sponsoring races and the F1 teams Ferrari and McLaren, the Spanish bank said on Wednesday it is supporting de la Rosa's return to the grid with Sauber. It is believed the backing is in the form of the Santander subsidiary Universia, the network of Spanish and Portuguese speaking universities. Santander communications boss Juan Manuel Cendoya, however, played down reports that de la Rosa's new employer Sauber is being directly sponsored. "Pedro is a friend and a very intelligent person who impressed us very much in our three years together (at McLaren). We are going to support him personally, but we are not going to be at Sauber with any of our brands," Cendoya said. He added that Santander would have liked to sponsor Bruno Senna's debut this year, but deemed the Spanish bank's F1 involvement is already fully subscribed.