SpeedRead

Force India is keeping a watchful eye over the development of fledgling Lotus' 2010 car after seeing photographs of the team's wind tunnel model.




Two things the teams have in common? Former wind tunnel Aerolab and Mike Gascoyne.

The team believes Lotus has copied the front wing it used at the beginning of the season, and that the model was fitted with tires bearing handwriting belonging to employees of the Indian squad, AUTOSPORT reports.

Gascoyne defended the development process, subcontracted to Fondtech.

"Some of the staff had been working on different projects. And whereas you cannot copy anything or take anyone else's IP, you can use your expertise - and you will base that on what you know and what directions you know have been happening. That is what has happened."

Aerolab denied it has passed along information, and claims instead Force India is trying to draw attention away from the company's suit against Vijay Mallya's concern.

"These rumours are designed only to tarnish the company's reputation and professionalism and to divert attention away from the facts. The truth is that Aerolab is suing Force India for not fulfilling its obligations."

Renault: Go/no-go announcement by the end of the year

Renault's Carlos Ghosn told the F1 world it will have to wait for a decision on whether the French team will stay in the sport, Reuters reports.

"You will have to be patient."

Three courses of action seem to be on the table: Stay in as a manufacturer team, scale back to being an engine supplier, or pull out completely.

When Toyota pulled out at the beginning of the week, the FIA made noise about "clarifying" the team's obligations to the sport after signing the Concorde Agreement last summer. It may be Renault is waiting to see how that works out before announcing a decision.

Williams expects good things with Cosworth

Despite Cosworth's having been away from the sport since 2006, Williams technical director Sam Michael told AUTOSPORT he believes the team will have a competitive engine in 2010.

"Cosworth has got two big hurdles. Fuel consumption is critical with no refuelling, and their target for the winter is to improve that. The other is reliability. Everyone has accumulated three years of running on their engines while Cosworth has been out and gained thousands of kilometres of knowledge."

Alonso in Maranello

Fernando Alonso met with mechanics, Stefano Domenicali and Luca di Montezemolo in his first visit to Ferrari HQ this week.

Alonso will be cleared to test with the team when the winter test ban expires. In the meantime, after checking in on the 2010 car's development in the wind tunnel and having a seat fitting, the Spaniard drove Fiorano in a 458 Italia sportscar.

Concerns over Toyota's commitment to Formula 1 were answered today as the company announced its immediate withdraw from the sport.

"TMC (Toyota Motor Corporation), which had viewed its participation in F1 as contributing to the prosperity of automotive culture, remained dedicated to competing at the pinnacle of motor sports even in the face of the abrupt economic changes that started last year," the team said in a statement. "However, when considering TMC's motorsports actitives next year and beyond from a comprehensive mid-term viewpoint reflecting the current severe economic realities, TMC decided to withdraw from F1"

While the company had been rumored to be on the bubble for some time, the decision still had an element of surprise about it. Much of that may be due to the team signing the Concorde Agreement, tying it to the sport through 2012.

This would seem to assure BMW Sauber's buyers of a place on the 2010 grid. Whether that will be a 26-car grid remains to be seen. AUTOSPORT reports Renault is discussing its F1 future today as well.

Kolles officially out at Force India

Colin Kolles has severed ties with Force India, AUTOSPORT reports.

The veteran of Midland and Spyker was replaced as team principal by owner Vijay Mallya last year, but had been serving in a director position.

The team thanked Kolles in a statement.

Silly season

While Toyota's exit changes things a bit, grandprix.com has an interesting analysis of Who goes where in 2010?

As promised, Williams named its 2010 lineup Monday, with Rubens Barrichello joining from Brawn GP and test driver Nico Hulkenberg making the step up from GP2, where he is the reigning champion.






The duo replace Nico Rosberg, likely to take Barrichello's slot at Brawn, and Kazumi Nakajima, destination unknown.

Rosberg made it known before the finale he was departing, Nakajima's departure seemed certain after Williams announced it was dropping Toyota power for Cosworth. Nakajima has a close relationship with Toyota.

"Nico Rosberg and Kazuki Nakajima remain our drivers until the end of 2009 and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their contribution to the team," Williams said on the team Web site. "Nico and Kazuki have represented AT&T Williams and our partners with dedication, discipline and skill and we wish them every success with their future endeavours."

Ross Brawn had kind words for Barrichello in a message on the Brawn GP Web site, who made a strong run for the championship this season and logged his 300th race as an F1 driver during his four-year stint with the team.

"We are very pleased for Rubens that he will be driving in Formula One once again next year… 2009 was a very special season for Brawn GP and I am extremely proud of the spirit in which our drivers Rubens and Jenson fought for the Drivers Championship… We wish Rubens the very best with his new team and thank him for his contribution to Brawn GP this year."

New rubber for 2011

Bridegstone announced Monday it is withdrawing from F1 when its current contract runs out at the end of 2010.

"Over the years, the company has benefited directly from its involvement in Formula One racing. The lessons learned through Bridgestone’s successful participation have translated into innovations that can be applied to the design and manufacture of high performance tyres," the company says in a statement on its Web site. "In addition, its collaboration with F1 has contributed to increased brand awareness and the recognition of Bridgestone as a leader in the global tyre industry. Having achieved these goals, Bridgestone is now poised to take its technological and brand building efforts to the next level."

The company has been involved in the sport since 1997.

Trulli wants GPDA guidelines for stewards

Jarno Trulli is calling for the Grand Prix Drivers' Association to set guidelines for stewards to follow when judging incidents.

This follows the Italian's continued criticism of Adrian Sutil following their first-lap clash at Interlagos.

Recent comments from Nico Rosberg questioning the lack of penalties regarding aggressive driving by other drivers in Brazil have added fuel to Trulli's fire.

"I think we have to generally talk about safety inside the GPDA, that was the feeling of lots of drivers," ITV-F1 quotes the veteran. "For me, the accident is over, and I don't have any problem with anyone. I think we really have to stick together and talk, and maybe give the FIA some guidelines in order to judge us better."

Trulli stressed his motivation wasn't the incident with Sutil, or their exchange of words in last week's press conference.

"At the moment it seems like people tend to concentrate only on my accident because of what has been said, but I didn't come here to fight. It was only after I'd cooled down, I just tried to reflect and see if what happened was wrong or right, and to understand the anatomy of the accident. I think if you're a mature driver, you can talk with someone else and be cool, and without using bad words, but clearly that was not the case."