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This is what the new Lotus livery will look like

The deal to bring Group Lotus into F1 in partnership with Renault has finally been concluded, and the team has announced that it will be ‘Lotus Renault GP’ in 2011.

Group Lotus has bought the remaining Renault shares and the team has confirmed that it will race in black and gold, an idea that Tony Fernandes announced first…

We now await news of what will happen to Team Lotus, which has already been given an an official entry under that name by the FIA – using a ‘Lotus Renault’ chassis.

This what has been announced this morning:

“Genii Capital and Group Lotus plc today announced the creation of Lotus Renault GP, the successor to the Renault F1 Team that will contest the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship. This exciting announcement is made in the context of a strategic alliance between the two companies that will provide Group Lotus with significant technological and commercial opportunities for its range of road cars.

“Following the return of the Lotus name to Formula 1 in 2010, under licence from Group Lotus, this historic announcement marks the complete return of the Lotus manufacturer to the sport, with the full backing of its parent company Proton. Group Lotus plc will become a major equity partner of Genii Capital in Lotus Renault GP, and the two parties have concluded a title sponsorship agreement that will run until the end of the 2017 season. With the continued support of Renault as a supplier of engines and technological and engineering expertise, Lotus Renault GP enjoys a strong, stable platform for future success.

“Gerard Lopez, Chairman of Renault F1 Team, commented: “We are delighted that we can now go public with the news that we will be racing as Lotus Renault GP in 2011. It is extremely exciting to begin a new era for the team in partnership with Group Lotus, and we will continue to enjoy a strong relationship with Renault over the coming seasons. It is a tribute to the excellent work this year by the team in Enstone that we have been able to attract both major sponsorship and new investment for a very bright future.”

“Group Lotus CEO Dany Bahar said: “I can think of no better platform for automotive brand communications than motorsport and F1 is the very pinnacle of open-wheel racing. We’re well aware that there has been a lot of controversy around the usage of our brand in F1 and I’m delighted to be able to formally clarify our position once and for all: we are Lotus and we are back.”

“The new partnership has been enabled by Renault selling its remaining shares in the team to Genii Capital. Group Lotus plc will subsequently become a major equity partner in Lotus Renault GP, which it will co-own with Genii Capital.

“Renault will continue its strong support of the team with which it won the 2005 and 2006 world championships, as a supplier of engines and technological and engineering expertise. Reflecting this technological support, Lotus Renault GP will continue to compete with the Renault chassis name and Renault will enjoy pre-eminent brand exposure on the livery.

“For 2011, the Lotus Renault GP cars will race in a new interpretation of the iconic black and gold colours that were last used when Lotus and Renault joined forces in the 1980s. This livery, which has been on the drawing board for over two months in order to reinterpret its iconic graphic signature to suit modern media requirements, is sure to strike a powerful chord with the sport’s enthusiasts around the world.”

The Singapore 2008 ‘crashgate’ scandal reared its ugly head today when it was announced that Nelson Piquet Sr and Jr had won damages and costs from Renault F1 in relation to a statement issued by the team last year.

In announcing the result of the proceedings the Piquet family issued the following statement from lawyer Dominic Crossley:

“Today the Renault Formula One Team apologised in the High Court for defaming my two clients, the motor racing father and son Nelson and Nelsinho Piquet. This marks the start rather than the end of the long journey they are both taking to correct many of the wrongs that took place during last year’s “crashgate” scandal.

“They were both treated appallingly by Renault F1 when they dared to reveal the scandal to the governing body; and Nelsinho was abused terribly throughout his absurdly short career in F1. It is to the immense credit of both my clients that they have refused to be deterred from righting the wrongs despite the ferocity of the attacks and the size of the opponents they have had to confront.

“Nelson Piquet dominated F1 during the early 80s and his reputation as a motorsport legend should remain untarnished by this saga. F1 has been deprived of the best of Nelsinho and it is to its detriment that his talent is now being demonstrated elsewhere.

“Whilst neither of them should ever have had to prove Renault F1’s allegations false they are both delighted with the successful conclusion of the case.”

In making their case in court, the Piquet’s legal counsel said:

“Nelson Piquet Junior is a Professional Racing Driver and was one of the Defendant’s drivers until July 2009. His father, Nelson Piquet Senior, was also a well-known Formula One driver himself and three time World Champion.

“On 11th September 2009, the Defendant issued a Press Release in which they suggested that Nelson Piquet Junior and his father had lied by making false allegations that he and members of the team had caused a deliberate accident at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix to benefit the Team’s other driver. The Press Release came at a time when, as the Defendant knew, the FIA were investigating the circumstances of Mr Piquet Junior’s crash at the Singapore Grand Prix.

“The Defendant’s Press Release also suggested that the Claimants had not only lied in making these allegations but that they had deliberately invented them in order to blackmail the Defendant into allowing Mr Piquet Junior to drive for the Team for the remainder of the 2009 season, and they were therefore guilty of a serious criminal offence.

“The Defendant fully accepts – as it did before the World Motor Sport Council (“WMSC”) of the FIA and as found by the WMSC in its decision of 21 September 2009 – that the allegations made by Nelson Piquet Junior were not false. Renault F1 Team also accepts that Mr Piquet Junior and his father did not invent these allegations in order to blackmail the Team.

“As a result, these serious allegations contained in the Press Release were wholly untrue and unfounded, and the Defendant now withdraws them unreservedly. The Defendant is here through its lawyer in order to apologise to the Claimants unreservedly for this regrettable publication. As a mark of its apology and regret, the Defendant has agreed to pay the Claimants substantial damages and costs, as well as not to repeat these allegations at any time in the future.

“It is an unfortunate but not surprising consequence of the sensational nature of these allegations and their appearance on the Defendant’s website whilst the FIA was investigating the charges against the Defendant, that the allegations were widely republished throughout the press. It is hoped that through the making of this statement, the Defendant’s apology and unequivocal withdrawal of these allegations will also be picked up and repeated throughout the media.

“In the circumstances, having achieved everything they set out to achieve through the commencement of legal proceedings, the Claimants are now prepared to let the matter rest.”

Renault meanwhile accepted the allegations and offered an apology.

The following formal statement was issued in the team’s name:

RENAULT APOLOGY

“On 11th September 2009, Renault F1 Team Limited (“the Team”) issued a Press Release, which was repeated on our website, in which we suggested that Nelson Piquet Junior and his father had lied by making false allegations that members of the Team and Nelson Piquet Junior caused a deliberate accident at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. We also suggested that these lies were invented in order to blackmail the Defendant into allowing Mr Piquet Junior to drive for the Team for the remainder of the 2009 season, and he and his father were therefore guilty of a serious criminal offence.

“The Team accepts – as it did before the World Motor Sport Council (“WMSC”) of the FIA and as found by the WMSC in its decision of 21 September 2009 – that the allegations made by Nelson Piquet Junior were not false. It also accepts that Mr Piquet Junior and his father did not invent these allegations in order to blackmail the Team.

“As a result, these serious allegations contained in the Press Release were wholly untrue and unfounded, and we withdraw them unequivocally. We would like to apologise unreservedly to Mr Piquet Junior and his father for the distress and embarrassment caused as a result. As a mark of the sincerity of our apology and regret, we have agreed to pay them a substantial amount of damages for libel as well as their costs, and have undertaken not to repeat these allegations at any time in the future.”

Hopefully that will be the last we hear of any of this…

Bernie Ecclestone has recruited O2 Arena boss David Campbell as F1’s new marketing and commercial guru, according to reports.

Campbell is credited with taking over London’s unloved Millennium Dome on behalf of US billionaire Philip Anshutz and AEG Europe, and turning it into a huge success as the O2 Arena, popular with both fans and music business insiders.

Born in Scotland, he moved to the USA with his family at age 16, and was based there for nine years. He worked for General Mills and Pepsi before returning to the UK. He then worked for Richard Branson at the Virgin Group and with Chris Evans at Virgin Radio, while his CV also include a stint with the London Tourist Board.

Ecclestone has long talked to the teams about having someone on board to properly fulfil such a role, but they could never come to an agreement.

It’s only in recent years that Bernie has made a bigger push to exploit the F1 brand and bring on board partners such as LG and Hublot.

The UK media is touting Campbell as a potential replacement for Bernie, but whether his role will extend that far remains to be seen…

Sebastian Vettel was the star of last night’s Autosport Awards in London as he picked up the prize for International Racing Driver of the Year.

It was Vettel’s first appearance at the prestigious event, which is already one more than Michael Schumacher made in his long career, despite numerous invitations – although once he was kept away by plane trouble.

Vettel charmed the crowd with his good humour and modest demeanour, admitting that he had ‘sounded like a little girl’ when he cried on the radio after clinching the title.

He also made some interesting observations about his relationship with Mark Webber.

“We had the opportunity after the race in Abu Dhabi to talk to each other. Obviously we are not similar, so some things, we have a different opinion, which is fine, it’s normal, human. We talked about it, some of the stuff we got rid of. Other things, we might still have different opinions, but it doesn’t mean that I’m not looking at him anymore or don’t talk to him anymore.

“It’s good, I think we have pushing ourselves very hard this year, and very often it has been very marginal in qualifying. He was a ahead, I was ahead. It was a tough season. I’m looking forward to beating him, that must be the target. I’m sure if you ask him, he will tell you exactly the opposite.”

Intriguingly the news broke today that Webber contested the last four races of the season nursing a shoulder injury from a mountain bike crash. Perhaps the Aussie will be stronger than people think next year…

In possibly the least surprising announcement of the winter Williams has finally confirmed that Pastor Maldonado will join the team in 2011.

It was confirmed the day after the Abu Dhabi GP that Nico Hulkenberg had left the team, and with Maldonado subsequently completing four days of testing with Williams and its future gearbox customer HRT you didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to work out who would replace him.

Maldonado brings massive funding from Venezuela but as the current GP2 champion he is obviously more than qualified for an F1 seat. Like Robert Kubica, he is also an ex-Renault Driver Development squad member.

Frank Williams said in a statement: “Pastor first caught my eye in 2007 when he drove a masterful race at Monaco. Since then, he has regularly reminded us of his unquestionable talent with some skilful wins, particularly during this year’s GP2 championship, taking an unsurpassed record of six successive victories. Of course, we already know Pastor from the time he spent with the team at the Abu Dhabi test, but we are very much looking forward to developing his talent over the winter and a fruitful season with him next year.”

Maldonado was quoted thus: “I feel very privileged that Williams has selected me as one of their race drivers. It is a great way to end what has already been an amazing year for me. I tested with the team in Abu Dhabi, but can’t wait to start working with everyone properly to be in the best possible shape going into next year. I will be doing my best over the winter to prepare myself, and I know the team will be working hard to ensure a successful season. 2011 will be the first time in nearly thirty years that a Venezuelan has driven a Formula One car so I will be looking to get some good results in return for the support my country has given me to help get me to this position today.”

Peter Sauber says that  no plans are in place to sell his team – and insists once more that the deal with Telmex is purely for sponsorship, and will not involve any kind of stake.

Yesterday the Swiss outfit was confirmed on the FIA entry list as the ‘Sauber F1 Team,’ marking the end of the unwanted association with the BMW name which dragged into 2010.

In a Q&A issued by the team today the team boss gave his thoughts on next season. What he had to say is worth a look:

Have you ever regretted the decision to buy the team back?

“No, never. And I never will, although I knew that keeping the team alive would be a very difficult task. But if I hadn’t taken the plunge, every day I’d have been asking myself why. We’ve cleared one obstacle after another from our path; when I compare the situation a year ago to where we are today, everybody in the team can be proud of what we’ve achieved.”

The team’s progress early in the season was very slow. What was going through your mind?

“That was tough, no question. The car was not only too slow, it was also unreliable, which is extremely unusual for this team. And then, as so often happens in sport, we also had a fair amount of bad luck. That wasn’t just annoying, it also made negotiations with potential sponsors pretty much a non-starter.”

But then, from Valencia onwards, things suddenly picked up. What was the catalyst?

“In April James Key took over as Technical Director and achieved a great deal in a short period of time. He and his team identified the weaknesses of the C29 and laid down a clear roadmap for improvements. These ideas were quickly put into practice and had a positive effect. After collecting just a single World Championship point in the first eight races of the season, we added another 36 over the next eight GPs – plus seven in the final three races. Added to which, James also implemented a series of organisational changes. Our success in finding a way out of such a difficult situation over the course of the season represents a fine advertisement for the quality and spirit within the team.”

You made a driver change ahead of the race in Singapore, replacing Pedro de la Rosa with Nick Heidfeld. With the benefit of hindsight, would you make the same decision again?

“Yes, I would. We were in a situation where we didn’t know how far we had come in terms of performance. Both drivers were new to the team, we didn’t know them very well and we didn’t know how good the car was. What we were missing was a reliable benchmark. We know Nick well after working with him for many years, and that allowed us to gauge the progress of various elements.”

How happy are you with Kamui Kobayashi?

“Kamui inspires us all within the team. His refreshing, attacking style really puts a smile on your face. You can tell from reactions in the stands that the Formula One fans love him too; his overtaking moves are always great to watch. However, it would be doing him an injustice to only focus on this aspect of his driving. Kamui is also a very clever driver and understands how to put a pre-defined strategy into action. He’s progressed wonderfully well this year and I’m certain that there’s more to come from him in the future. When I signed him a year ago, I had to put up with critical comments from some experts. But my gut feeling told me that Kamui was something special. And today I’m just delighted to have him in the team.”

This year coming you’ll be lining up with Sergio Pérez – a rookie – and Kamui Kobayashi, who only has a year’s experience in Formula One behind him. Is that not something of a risk?

“I’m confident that we’re going into next year in good shape from a driver point of view. Kamui has also made big steps forward this year on the technical side of things, and I have no doubt that he will continue to grow with his new responsibility. Sergio is brimming with talent. For him, it’s a question of learning quickly. Here, he can pick things up from Kamui in the same way that Kamui did from Pedro and Nick. Plus, it’s worth remembering that 2001 was one of the most successful years to date for Sauber – and that season we had a rookie by the name of Kimi Räikkönen alongside Nick, who was in only his second year in F1, as our drivers.”

Will Kamui Kobayashi then automatically be the team’s number one?

“There’s no number one driver in our team; the drivers will be given equal treatment in every respect. But, of course, I’m expecting Kamui to bring his extra experience into play.”

How is the development of the new car progressing?

“The development of the Sauber C30-Ferrari is running according to plan. We’re setting our sights high, and things are looking good so far. James Key has proved in the past that he knows how to build fast cars. All the changes to the technical regulations – including the ban on double diffusers, the introduction of Pirelli tyres, adjustable rear wings and the option of using KERS – make this a particularly exacting challenge this year.”

A lot has been written about the team being up for sale. What’s the current situation?

“I own 100 percent of the team and there are at present no plans to sell the team or any part of it. Our partnership with Telmex, which will come into force on 1^st January 2011, does not include any kind of stakeholding and is purely a sponsoring agreement.”

How long will you stay on as team boss?

“A year ago I said that I didn’t want to remain on the pit wall when I turned 70. That’s still the case, and I’m now 67. The critical thing for me is to ensure that we bring even greater stability to the team and that we have a financial basis on which to move forward from a sporting point of view. When that is in place, the time will have come for me to take a step back.”

The FIA has published the 2011 F1 entry list, which is notable more for what is missing than what is actually on it.

No drivers are listed for Force India, Toro Rosso (although the team has named Buemi and Alguersuari), Virgin and HRT, while there is no second driver for either Williams or Renault.

Aside from the addition of Marussia to the Virgin name, BMW Sauber has now become the Sauber F1 Team, while Lotus Racing is listed – as announced in Singapore – as Team Lotus. Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen are confirmed as drivers for the first time.

Heikki Kovalainen proved yesterday in Dusseldorf that any kind of motor sport can be dangerous when he was knocked unconscious after a spectacular crash at the Race of Champions.

In the very first race of the day Kovalainen was matched against rally ace Sebastien Loeb. In his efforts to stay in touch Heikki touched the wall with his Audi R8 coming out of the final corner, and then suffered a suspension breakage as he crossed the line and headed into Turn One. He hit the blocks that mark the inside of the track, and then spun into the wall on the outside.

Heikki was briefly unconscious but after a trip to the hospital he returned to the venue a few hours later.

“The rear suspension broke when I touched the wall, and also the throttle jammed at the same time,” he told this blog.

“I actually hit the wall for quite a long way. I sort of planned it beforehand, that I can afford to bounce a little bit on the wall. So I was actually going on the power earlier than before, because I knew that it was going to be a close fight with Loeb. And it broke the rear suspension.

“When I lifted I still had full throttle, so I went on the brakes and the car turned to the left, and I was a passenger. I hit with the left rear corner, and that’s when it knocked me out. I was unconscious and a little bit dizzy.

“Half an hour after the impact I didn’t really know where I was or what was happening, but on the way to the hospital everything started to come back. It’s sort of normal. I’ve had this feeling before, when I hit the wall in Barcelona [with the McLaren in 2008], but then the blackout was longer. Now everything came back, I remember every single corner and moment before.”

It’s customary to take VIPs on passenger rides at the RoC, and by chance Hekki was accompanied on his dramatic ride by none other than his girlfriend, Catherine Hyde.

“Catherine is fine, she just has a little bit of back pain. She didn’t lose consciousness. It was quite an experience for her.  The only thing that worried her was when I was sitting there unconscious!

“She’s fine, she’s cool, just a little back pain on the left. I think the belts pulled her a little bit.”

The accident did of course put an end to Heikki’s participation in the event, which he famously won back in 2004.

“It’s a shame, it was a close fight with Loeb, and I thought I had him. The second lap wasn’t quite as good as the first lap, but really after that kind of impact it’s kind of game over, and it’s better to be pleased that nothing happened…”

Footage of the crash can be found here:

Daniel Ricciardo has been confirmed as Toro Rosso’s third driver for 2011 – and the Aussie will also appear on Friday mornings on race weekends, replacing either Sebastien Buemi or Jaime Alguersuari.

Ricciardo, who impressed when he drove the Red Bull RB6 at the recent rookie test in Abu Dhabi, will also continue in the Renault 3.5 series.

Team boss Franz Tost said: “When our team was created, its stated aim was to bring on young drivers from the Red Bull Junior Programme, so Daniel’s appointment as our third driver is an obvious one. Although Daniel has done some F1 testing already, running on Fridays at the Grands Prix will give him a valuable insight into the additional pressures of doing it for real during a race weekend. I am also sure that having a hungry youngster on the books will keep our current driver pairing nice and sharp!”

Ricciardo added: “I am really excited at the prospect of driving for Scuderia Toro Rosso in the Free Practice 1 sessions at the Grands Prix next year, so I have to say thanks to Red Bull for this great opportunity. My main priority for 2011 is to win the Formula Renault 3.5 championship, but my ultimate aim is to be a full-time Formula 1 driver and this new role has to be the best step towards achieving that ambition.”

Bernie Ecclestone was mugged in London on Wednesday night and had to go to hospital after getting a bump on the head. However he was reportedly back at work the following day.

Bernie and his girlfriend Fabiana Flosi were returning to his apartment when they were attacked by four men. They were forced to hand over watches and jewellery that are said to be worth £200,000.

Bernie was involved in a similar attack four years ago, when thieves attempted to steal his Mercedes.

A police spokesman told the Daily Mail: “We were called to reports of a man and woman who had been robbed in south west London at approximately 10.30pm on Wednesday night. The man, aged 80 years old, was taken to a west London hospital for treatment to a minor head injury. The woman was not injured.

“At this early stage it is believed a quantity of jewellery was stolen but we cannot disclose details of what was stolen as yet. No arrests have been made at this time and inquiries are continuing.”