Latest F1 news in brief

Rosberg's title clinch will come when the Mercedes engineers key the commands into the car's computer

Rosberg 'aware' of Mexican match point
Italian press says Ferrari misses Alonso
Sainz has 'long future in F1' – pundit
Horner praises Pirelli's 2017 tires
Wolff: Austin becoming 'Hamilton country'
Ecclestone gives his support to Ron Dennis
Horner: 50/50 input from Newey for 2017

Rosberg 'aware' of Mexican match point
(GMM) Nico Rosberg says he is "aware" that he could be crowned the 2016 world champion as soon as this weekend.

Although his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton won from pole in Austin, Rosberg's 26 point lead means that if he wins in Mexico and Hamilton retires, the German would be champion no matter what happens in Brazil or Abu Dhabi.

Hamilton clearly thinks that is a possibility, revealing that he worried throughout the US grand prix about a repeat of his recent engine failure in Malaysia.

"All I could think about was the car making it to the end. Nothing else," Hamilton was quoted as saying by British newspapers.

So when asked about his first 'match point' ahead of Mexico this weekend and the possibility he could be champion, Rosberg told the APA news agency: "Of course I'm aware of it."

But he insisted he will not change his approach anyway.

"I will focus on Mexico and trying to get the victory there," said Rosberg.

He also told Bild newspaper: "In formula one, you can't expect anything. If you start thinking in your mind that it's over, then you've already lost.

"So I'm still going to every race to win."

Team boss Toto Wolff, however, thinks Rosberg also needs to ensure he does not DNF — which could throw the championship battle wide open.

"He has to be careful he does not DNF — that's what counts," the Austrian said.

"Nico is in a difficult situation," Wolff added. "He has to stay aggressive on one side, but on the other side not risk a crash."

Team chairman and F1 legend Niki Lauda agrees that Rosberg will definitely be thinking about the title now.

"Nico is thinking about the championship, no matter what he says. Sometimes you just have to go tactical, but if you go too slow then things can start to go wrong."

Ferrari was just as much a backmarker when Alonso drove there. If Aldo Costa or Adrian Newey are not designing your car you are a backmarker in F1. F1 is 99% car and 1% driver

Italian press says Ferrari misses Alonso
(GMM) Amid a difficult closing phase of the 2016 season, Ferrari and Sebastian Vettel are continuing to get a battering in the Italian media.

Pino Allievi, arguably the most respected Italian journalist in the paddock, was looking not at the Maranello team's present but back to the past in assessing the US grand prix.

"We again saw the best from Fernando, who is limited by his McLaren," La Gazzetta dello Sport quoted him as saying.

"There are many at Maranello who still lament his departure."

As for Alonso's successor, German Vettel, Gazzetta had this to say: "The performance was not bad, but he is still very far from the top, with a car that is no longer guaranteed."

So while Vettel struggles, it is his teammate Kimi Raikkonen who is getting the praise.

"Raikkonen had Vettel behind him all the time until he was forced to retire. They had different strategies, but it was yet another convincing race" for the Finn, the authoritative sports daily added.

Corriere dello Sport, meanwhile, called Austin a "Red disaster", saying "The light at the end of the tunnel seems far away".

Team boss Maurizio Arrivabene, however, is putting a brave face on it, insisting that while the current situation is "tough, we are strong".

"What is happening, especially with things outside of our control, puts a strain on the b—s of anyone," said the Italian.

"I should say shoulders: you cannot say bad words," Corriere della Sera quoted Arrivabene as clarifying.

Also amid the 'disaster', Vettel keeps smiling.

"Yes, why not," the German told Sport Bild. "A bad mood doesn't make you better.

"I cannot be happy with the speed of the (Austin) weekend, but the positive is that we are learning so much that could be useful for next season.

"You must not forget that, first of all, we have a long term project. And we are not fighting against Donald Duck or Mickey Mouse, but very prepared opponents.

"Even if it's a steep and bumpy road, I'm sure the day will come when we will be on top."

To show you how rigged the 'driver of the day' vote is by his big fan base, Max Verstappen was again beaten by his teammate Ricciardo up until his car was sidelined, hence he did not even finish the race. But he was voted the 'driver of the day.' That is what Donald Trump calls a rigged election.

Sainz Jr. has 'long future in F1' – pundit
(GMM) Max Verstappen may have won the popular vote, but a spotlight is also being shone on another bright performance in Austin last weekend.

The young Dutchman won the official 'driver of the day' fans' vote after the US grand prix, but the Red Bull driver actually had a troubled race.

Bosses Christian Horner and Helmut Marko were actually openly angry with Verstappen for his unnecessary pitstop.

"We have 80 engineers and strategists, but it's all useless if a driver decides alone to come into the pits," Austrian Marko told Bild newspaper.

It was actually a driver in the Red Bull family who finished sixth on Sunday who really got praised.

"I think with performances like Austin, and many other messages he has sent this season, Carlos has a very long future in F1," Spanish pundit Antonio Lobato told El Mundo.

He is talking about Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz Jr., whose famous father with the same name was also impressed.

"I think it was his best race since he has been in F1," Sainz snr is quoted by Marca.

Red Bull supremo Marko, who did not allow Sainz switch to the works Renault team for 2017, agrees: "It was the best race I've seen him do in F1."

The highlight was Sainz's duel with his friend and hero Fernando Alonso, causing the Spanish daily AS to say the 22-year-old is a "worthy successor".

"I think Fernando is still the best driver on the grid," Sainz said, "but I'm also very happy because I think I put everything I have and more into our fight."

Wide Pirelli tires being tested by Gasly

Horner praises Pirelli's 2017 tires
(GMM) The first real praise about Pirelli's all-new bigger and wider tires has finally emerged.

Until now, although the aim is to make next year's tires faster, grippier and more durable, the drivers doing the testing have been offering mixed reviews.

Now, the reason for that may have emerged.

Auto Motor und Sport said that Ferrari's modified 2015 test car is not producing any more detail than its 2016 machine, and the Maranello team is too focused on 2017 to improve it.

Mercedes' offering, meanwhile, is only a few per cent better than its title-winning 2016 machine.

But the modified 2015 Red Bull is reportedly producing up to 11 or 12pc more downforce.

At the wheel at the most recent test session in Barcelona was Pierre Gasly, and team boss Christian Horner seemed impressed with the results.

"Despite high temperatures and fast laps in a row, they did not overheat and the laptimes were pleasingly consistent," he is quoted as saying.

Hamilton owns Austin with his Aldo Costa car

Wolff: Austin becoming 'Hamilton country'
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says that Austin is becoming "real Lewis Hamilton country" after the Briton's dominant run from pole position to victory in the United States Grand Prix.

Hamilton took his third successive win at the Circuit of the Americas, and fourth overall, to cut Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg's championship lead from 33 points to 26.

"This race in Austin in becoming real Lewis Hamilton country: three wins in a row, and four in total, after a perfect and really controlled drive," Wolff commented after the race.

"We have had some pretty dramatic races in recent weeks, including what happened in Malaysia, so it was good to have a drama-free afternoon and see Lewis put in such a strong drive."

Wolff, meanwhile, suspects that the championship situation played a role in Rosberg dropping behind Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo at the start, before he recovered to second position.

"He's in a tricky situation because he knows he cannot afford to have a DNF," he said.

"Probably that was part of why he lost position in Turn 1, but then he was looking good to get back to P2 with an offset tire strategy before the VSC meant we could pit and gain the position in that way."

Wolff added: "It was great to see our pace: things looked much closer with Red Bull in practice but our team did some good work and we had a nice advantage in qualifying and the race."

A lot of people want Ron Dennis out of the F1 paddock

Ecclestone gives his support to Ron Dennis
F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has thrown his weight behind Ron Dennis whose future at McLaren appears uncertain.
Following claims last week that his contract at McLaren may not be renewed at the end of the year, Ron Dennis remained the center of intense speculation for much of the United States Grand Prix weekend.

Unable to raise the necessary funding to buy out his partners, who between them own the remaining 75% of the company, many feel that the Briton's days with the team are numbered.

Ironically, this comes at a time Dennis celebrates the fact that it is 50 years since he first attended a Grand Prix, when as a 19-year-old he flew out to Mexico to work on a fifth car entered by Cooper for local hero Moises Solana.

Leaping to Dennis' defense in Austin was a man who has seen off more than his own fair share of rebellions and Machiavellian plots, Bernie Ecclestone.
"If I was going to run a team I'd like to have Ron with me," he told Reuters. "I think he does a good job.

"Anyone that chucks him out is stupid," he continued. "He's dedicated.

"I think we ought to try and support him so they don't get rid of him," he concluded.

Adrian Newey and his son Harrison

Horner: 50/50 input from Newey for 2017
Christian Horner says long-time technical chief Adrian Newey is still playing a sizeable role in Red Bull's Formula 1 operation, ahead of next year's regulation overhaul.

Newey stepped back from the day-to-day running of the Formula 1 outfit ahead of the 2015 season to pursue other projects, including a hypercar, with Aston Martin.

Newey returned to the Red Bull garage at the United States Grand Prix, and Horner confirmed a 50/50 split in his time between Red Bull Technologies and Formula 1.

For 2017, cars will feature revised aerodynamics and wider tires.

"It's probably about the same," said Horner, on Newey's involvement.

"I mean, Adrian is splitting his time maybe 50/50 between Red Bull Advanced Technologies, with this Aston Martin project we've taken on, which is quite exciting

"So he's designing a road car for half the week and designing a Formula 1 car for the other half.

"[Newey attended last weekend's United States Grand Prix] to keep up to speed with trackside, with what's going on, and it's always good to have him at an event."

Newey-designed Red Bull cars notched up four successive Drivers' and Constructors' titles from 2010-2013, before the current V6 turbo power unit era began.