Latest F1 news in brief

Sainz pans slow F1 cars: "It's not so nice in the cockpit when you're going so slowly"

Barcelona staying on F1 calendar
Ferrari switch 'no problem' for Hamilton – Ecclestone
Lauda says Ferrari now 'closer' to Mercedes
Audi can win in F1 with Red Bull – Berger
Sainz disappointed with speed of F1
Marko urges F1 to act at meeting next week
Marciello determined to show potential in 2015
Ferrari picks successor for ousted Rivola
Wins 'impossible' for McLaren in 2015 – Rosberg
F1 'will be happy' with final calendar – Ecclestone
Lotus tension brewing over 'Friday' issue
Susie Wolff to rethink F1 role after Silverstone

Barcelona staying on F1 calendar
(GMM) Barcelona is staying on the F1 calendar.

The Circuit de Catalunya, scene of this weekend's Spanish grand prix, announced that the contract with Bernie Ecclestone has been extended until 2019.

"We are extremely proud to announce this renewal in such a special year, marking the 25th anniversary of formula one being hosted uninterruptedly at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya," said official Vincec Aguilera.

"We thus extend this fruitful relationship and look forward to the next 25 years," he added in a statement.

Ferrari switch 'no problem' for Hamilton – Ecclestone
(GMM) Niki Lauda has admitted there is a "delay" in the finalization of Lewis Hamilton's 2016 contract.

The comments come amid rumors in the Barcelona paddock that Hamilton, the on-form championship leader and reigning world champion, is seriously considering a switch to the fabled and resurgent Ferrari team.

"There is no hitch, there is a delay," Mercedes team chairman Lauda is quoted by Express newspaper, "but I can't say any more."

The speculation suggests Hamilton is not just holding out for a big pay-rise, but genuinely keeping his options open should Ferrari emerge as the likely force for 2016 and beyond.

Bernie Ecclestone only added fuel to the fire in Barcelona by saying: "Lewis will be in the right place next season."

Asked if that might be Ferrari, the F1 supremo answered: "He wouldn't have a problem with it but I don't think Sebastian Vettel would like it."

Even team boss Toto Wolff appeared to admit that a Ferrari switch is still a possibility for Hamilton.

"Lewis is a rock-star driver and every team would like him, but I am ok (with that)," he said.

Contradicting colleague Lauda's claims, Wolff then added: "There is no delay.

"We have very much agreed the terms and now it (the contract) just needs to be done properly, and it is being done properly."

When asked about the hold-up, Hamilton said in Barcelona: "You should ask Toto really.

"I think Niki said something about getting it done ahead of the next race in Monaco, so that should be the target."

Lauda says Ferrari now 'closer' to Mercedes
(GMM) Niki Lauda insists Ferrari is continuing to close the gap to championship leaders Mercedes.

The resurgent Italian camp arrived in Barcelona with arguably the bigger update package, but Sebastian Vettel said after practice that he is not yet on Mercedes' pace.

"The gap is still there — that is the bad news for us," said the German.

"If we can keep this trend up that would be great, but four tenths is still a gap and it could be more than that."

According to Mercedes team chairman Lauda, however, Ferrari has actually made up ground ahead of the crucial first European race of 2015.

"If we talk about qualifying then I think pole will be between Lewis and Nico," said the F1 legend, "but we have only had practice.

"I think we need to wait for the race to make judgements, because I think that Ferrari is not far away still. In fact I think they are closer."

Silver-clad Nico Rosberg, however, is not so sure about that.

"Ferrari is pretty close," he told Spain's Marca, "but we are still the best team, as we were in Bahrain.

"We are very quick in qualifying and they are closer in the race, but I think we can win on Sunday."

But Lauda is talking up Ferrari's prospects, amid lingering speculation that Mercedes is playing a political game to safeguard the current rules by artificially keeping the gap between itself and the red team within limits.

"I don't think they're doing that," Mercedes-powered Williams driver Valtteri Bottas said in Spain.

"Ferrari are putting pressure on them and have already taken some points away from them — I don't see any reason why they (Mercedes) would try to do that."

Audi can win in F1 with Red Bull – Berger
GMM) The latest rumors about Audi are now growing by the day.

Former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo poured on fuel just days ago when he said a "mutual friend" had told him Red Bull mogul Dietrich Mateschitz is pushing hard for the Volkswagen brand to enter formula one.

And Gerhard Berger, a confidante of Mateschitz's and a former Toro Rosso co-owner, agrees: "I would say there is a lot of discussion.

"Mercedes in the last two years has put the game up three steps and Renault just didn't invest," he told Britain's Sky. "I doubt that they're going to be able to catch up.

"But somebody like Volkswagen, fresh coming in, I think they would and I'm sure that would be a good story for Red Bull," Berger added.

The Austrian newspaper Kleine Zeitung cited an "insider" who said a "secret formula one engine" is "more or less finished" at Wolfsburg, VW's headquarters.

Berger said in that report: "If Volkswagen decides to come in, they will want to win from day one. And that is only possible with a super team, and the best team of all is Red Bull."

Finally, the Kolner Express tabloid said the suddenly-ousted Ferrari sporting director Massimo Rivola is being linked with Audi, who have already accommodated the former Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali.

Sainz disappointed with speed of F1
(GMM) Carlos Sainz says he is disappointed with the speed of modern formula one.

The Spanish rookie is the reigning champion of Formula Renault 3.5, and he said after practicing in his Toro Rosso on Friday: "I've driven faster cars here.

"It's not so nice in the cockpit when you're going so slowly," Sainz told Auto Motor und Sport in Barcelona.

Indeed, Sainz's best time in the afternoon was 1.28.6, which was just six tenths quicker than Stoffel Vandoorne's pole lap for the 'junior' series GP2.

Vandoorne is therefore quicker than the Saubers, Force Indias and Manors.

Pirelli is being pointed at for some of the blame, with Pastor Maldonado saying: "The harder tires are probably a little too hard."

Also underwhelmed is the Ferrari-backed junior Raffaele Marciello, who was just half a second quicker in the Sauber on Friday than he then qualified for his GP2 team Trident.

"The power and torque of the (F1) power unit is bigger," he is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport, "but for the rest it is not so different from GP2.

"We (GP2) are only a couple of seconds slower — even the braking points are almost the same," Marciello added.

However, in the FIA press conference on Friday, most of the team representatives present warned against changing the F1 regulations too radically for 2017.

"Formula one is in the early phase of a major regulation era," said Mercedes' Paddy Lowe. "So I think we've got a period now where we will stretch out relative to some of those other formulae."

Marko urges F1 to act at meeting next week
(GMM) Dr Helmut Marko has launched a new stinging attack on the current F1 regulations, urging the sport to act during a crunch meeting next week.

Lead Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo struck even more Renault engine trouble in Barcelona practice, meaning the team could not fully evaluate its major new aerodynamic package including a radically-short nose.

Referring to the rules, Marko told Austria's APA news agency: "It makes our work impossible to prepare for the race in a professional way."

The Austrian official is equally frustrated with Red Bull's engine partner Renault, who are currently having to focus simply on getting to the bottom of its reliability problems.

But Marko said: "Reliability alone would not help us, as we are falling behind.

"What we lose with the engine we can more or less compensate by developing the chassis. But in the end we would rather be third and the engine blows than finish sixth or eighth," he charged.

Next week, the powerful Strategy Group will get together for a crunch meeting, and near the top of the agenda will be a proposal to add a fifth engine to each driver's 2015 allocation.

But Marko said: "For us it doesn't matter — we need seven or eight.

"The (long life engine) rules are absurd because they do not reduce costs — on the contrary. No one will finish the season on their fourth engine," he claimed.

Marko urged the Strategy Group to act urgently and reform the rules for 2017, even though many top teams are opposed to the idea of radical change.

"I hope something reasonable comes out of the meeting," he said.

"It is important not only for us but for the whole of formula one. TV ratings and crowds are down; there are hardly any new sponsors.

"Our boss (Dietrich Mateschitz) has already indicated that we will need to rethink our engagement if something does not change," Marko added.

He pointed the finger at the current mechanisms for change.

"The system with the FIA, FOM and the teams does not work," Marko charged. "You cannot always ask everybody what they want — there should be an independent mechanism."

Marciello determined to show potential in 2015
(GMM) Raffaele Marciello is determined to make his mark in 2015.

The Swiss-born Italian is now the cream of Ferrari's development program.

This weekend in Barcelona, the 20-year-old is splitting his time between a 'Friday' practice program for Sauber and his GP2 racing duties.

And next week, he will re-emerge for the post-race Barcelona test.

"I have to prove to those who decide that I am ready for the big jump," he is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

2015 is Marciello's second year in GP2, and he said the time is now to leap into F1 rather than take too long to win the title like champions Fabio Leimer and Jolyon Palmer.

"There are drivers who took four or five seasons before they won," he said, "but I think that if you have the potential you have to show it within a couple of years."

Meanwhile, it is reported that F1 backmarker Manor will not be present for the post-race Barcelona test next week.

Ferrari picks successor for ousted Rivola
(GMM) Ferrari has already nominated a replacement for its absent-in-Barcelona sporting director Massimo Rivola.

Earlier reports said Rivola, a key figure at the resurgent Maranello team, as well as a logistics manager and chef, had been suspended or dismissed over an unknown matter.

For now, team boss Maurizio Arrivabene is shedding no light.

"He needed a week off and we gave it to him," he is quoted by La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"All of us here at Ferrari have a backup, and this applies to me as well. As for the cook, I think we are all eating regularly and well, but thank you for your concern," Arrivabene added.

Gazzetta said Rivola will be replaced by Antonello Coletta, from the GT program, although for now operations manager Diego Ioverno is stepping in at short notice.

Germany's Kolner Express tabloid suggested Rivola and the other two Ferrari team members' absence is connected to an accounting anomaly regarding catering supplies.

The report also said Rivola is being linked with a move to McLaren, or even to Audi, where he would be reunited with his former Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali.

Wins 'impossible' for McLaren in 2015 – Rosberg
(GMM) Fernando Alonso must be patient for success at McLaren-Honda.

That is the claim of Alain Prost, who won three of his four world championships with the British team, including his Honda-powered win in 1989.

But the diminutive Frenchman told Spain's EFE news agency that Alonso cannot expect immediate success.

"It is a new project with a new engine," said Prost, now 60.

"It is going to take many races, perhaps the whole year. You cannot just come in and be as competitive as teams like Mercedes, Red Bull or Ferrari.

"I think the situation we are seeing now at McLaren is normal," he added.

Some believe Alonso clearly erred in leaving the now resurgent Ferrari for struggling McLaren, but Prost said: "It was his decision. His choice.

"Of course you want to be at the right place at the right time, but if he is happy, then there's no problem."

Asked how long he thinks it will take McLaren to reach the front of the grid again, Prost answered: "I don't know — nobody does.

"But it may be faster than we think, although winning the world championship will be another step again that takes even longer."

According to Nico Rosberg, who has been with the now dominant Mercedes team since 2010, McLaren-Honda's rise will probably take years.

"We worked for four years until we could win regularly," he told Spain's Marca sports daily. "Red Bull also took four, while it was five years before Schumacher won the title at Ferrari.

"This season it's impossible for Alonso to be fighting for wins," Rosberg insisted.

F1 'will be happy' with final calendar – Ecclestone
(GMM) Bernie Ecclestone claims "everyone will be happy" when he finalizes the 2016 calendar.

However, some drivers are worried about the recent trend, with Germany missing in 2015 and the F1 supremo warning that historic Monza could be next.

"Silverstone, Spain, Italy, Germany — they're the foundations of this sport," reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton is quoted by DPA news agency in Barcelona.

When asked about the endangered Monza, Fernando Alonso added: "The German grand prix is also very important and it's not there this year anymore, so who knows?"

New hosts on the recently-leaked, 21-date 2016 calendar are Mexico and Azerbaijan, with some reports saying Ecclestone is under pressure to drop at least one of the existing races.

But the 84-year-old Briton insisted in Barcelona: "Don't worry. Everyone will be happy."

Lotus tension brewing over 'Friday' issue
(GMM) Tension is reportedly brewing between Romain Grosjean and his Lotus teammate Pastor Maldonado.

In China and Bahrain, Frenchman Grosjean sat out Friday practice so that team reserve Jolyon Palmer – who reportedly brings EUR 4 million to the team – could drive.

Ahead of this weekend's Spanish grand prix, it emerged that the Enstone team's deputy Federico Gastaldi had asked Maldonado to take a turn on the Friday bench, but the Venezuelan driver and his entourage "refused".

Maldonado, who is strongly backed by the Venezuelan oil company PDVSA, "made it clear to the team that his agreement gives him the right to drive in each session at every grand prix," Turun Sanomat correspondent Luis Vasconcelos reported.

However, Germany's Auto Motor und Sport now reports that, when asked about the issue, Maldonado apparently replied that if he is asked to step aside for Palmer, he will.

But Grosjean, who sat out Friday practice again on Friday, said in Barcelona: "I have raised it already ten times, and still nothing has happened."

Susie Wolff to rethink F1 role after Silverstone
(GMM) Susie Wolff is expected to rethink her role at Williams after Silverstone.

On Friday, the 32-year-old test driver made her opening Friday practice appearance of 2015 for the British team, and she will reprise the role at Silverstone in July.

But earlier in 2015, Wolff admitted her disappointment when Williams made clear that she is not the 'reserve driver' — that role was handed instead to Adrian Sutil amid Valtteri Bottas' back problems.

"I am in no way bitter about what happened," she insisted in Barcelona. "Yes I was disappointed, but this is a tough environment. I was well aware it was going to be a tough fight and it is."

However, much is made about Wolff being the closest female to actually racing in F1 at present, but after the Sutil incident she said she actually feels "very far away" from lining up on the grid.

It is believed Wolff, whose husband is the Mercedes team boss Toto, will complete her second Friday outing in July "and then see where that brings me".

"I am not someone who lets my head get down," she insisted. "I am completely realistic.

"If I did not think I was capable of racing at this level I would be the first to take myself out of the game," Wolff said. "I 100 per cent believe a woman can compete at this level.

"In the same respect, I've always said that if I cannot make progress and I cannot improve, I would be the first one to hang up my helmet.

"I'm not going to keep pushing hard if I don't see any opportunities," she added.