Latest F1 news in brief
- Boss says Heidfeld 'must contribute'
- Five-place demotion for Coulthard
- Mosley will survive Clinton-esque scandal – Lauda
- Money no obstacle to Honda F1 success – CEO
Boss says Heidfeld 'must contribute'
(GMM) BMW-Sauber team boss Mario Theissen has acknowledged that Nick Heidfeld's poor qualifying performance at Monaco has only added to the pressure on the struggling German driver.
While teammate Robert Kubica will line up fifth on Sunday's grid, 31-year-old Heidfeld was a full second slower as he dropped out in the 'Q2' round.
"Of course it is disappointing," Theissen, who is believed to have penned a new two-season contract with Heidfeld last year, is quoted as saying by the German newspaper Bild.
Heidfeld will start the race from the distant seventh row.
Theissen added: "Nick has said that the tires are really not working for him here.
"But, naturally, everybody must make his contribution, so I hope he can get out of this slump."
Five-place demotion for Coulthard
(GMM) David Coulthard must start the Monaco grand prix a further five positions back, following his big qualifying crash.
The Scot missed his chance to join the top-ten qualifiers, despite securing a spot in 'Q3' on Saturday, after losing control of his RB4 and crashing heavily at the exit of the tunnel.
Coulthard, 37, has a headache on Sunday morning but is otherwise fit to race.
His gearbox, however, was damaged in the high speed shunt, meaning that he will receive a five-position grid demotion for the unscheduled change.
Coulthard will therefore start from fifteenth place rather than tenth, although the news is yet to be confirmed officially.
His Red Bull crew was able to repair the actual chassis, though, saving him the penalty of starting with a spare car from the pitlane.
His original Renault engine, which if changed would have resulted in a further ten-place demotion, was also intact.
Mosley will survive Clinton-esque scandal – Lauda
(GMM) Former triple world champion Niki Lauda on Sunday said he believes Max Mosley will keep his job in the forthcoming confidence vote of the FIA senate.
"If Bill Clinton can survive a sex scandal, Max Mosley can — easily," the great Austrian is quoted as saying by the newspaper Kleine Zeitung.
Lauda, 59, also backed the embattled FIA president's controversial decision to attend the Monaco grand prix this weekend.
"He is the president, so I don't understand (the criticisms)," the winner of 25 grands prix said.
"He had to come. In his place, I would have done exactly the same thing," Lauda added.
Money no obstacle to Honda F1 success – CEO
(GMM) The CEO of the Japanese automobile giant Honda Motor Company is determined the carmaker's UK-based formula one team ultimately succeeds.
"When it comes to F1, our score is zero," Takeo Fukui, a keen motor racing enthusiast, reportedly said.
"It kills me," he added. "If I could fix it with a trillion yen I would, but it's not a problem that money can solve."
For the record, one trillion yen converts to nearly 10 billion US dollars, or 6 billion euros.