Adam Cooper F1

Lewis Hamilton appeared unperturbed at losing pole to team mate Nico Rosberg in Brazil, and said there was nothing to be read into the German’s run of form.

This is the fifth race in a row where Rosberg has emerged on top on Saturday.

“I’ve had the most poles of the year and I’ve won the World Championship,” said Hamilton. “So there’s nothing really to read into it. You don’t always get it right; you can’t always get it perfect every single time.

“It was good today, actually. I got a really balance with the car, I was very happy with the work we did with the engineers, the laps were looking quite good, very good through Q1 and Q2 and just Q3, I just wasn’t able to find that small bit of edge. I think at the end I didn’t maximise the first sector but the other two sectors were OK.”

Hamilton has never won in Brazil, but he played down the significance of that as a target for this weekend.

“Well, my main job is done this year, so it’s not the most important thing, but of course that’s the target. I’ve come here, a circuit that I haven’t actually won at, so… last year I was strong in the race and I hope to be able to carry that through to tomorrow and try and see if I can make the difference.”

Former McLaren man Dave Ryan is to return to the F1 paddock in the newly created role of racing director of the Manor F1 team.

His appointment comes ahead of the imminent departures of team founders John Booth and Graeme Lowdon as new owner Stephen Fitzpatrick flexes his muscles and reorganises the team.

Ryan joined McLaren in 1973 as a mechanic and rose to the heights of sporting director. However he left the team abruptly after the scandal at the 2009 Australian GP, when Lewis Hamilton waved Jarno Trulli past under the safety car – and then denied doing so when he met the stewards, which led to a penalty for the Toyota driver. As subsequent FIA investigation saw Trulli reinstated in third place and Hamilton excluded. Ryan, who was with Hamilton in the stewards’ room, left the team shortly afterwards.

Ryan has since rebuilt his career with the successful Von Ryan Racing GT team.

“Along with our new Mercedes Benz power unit, technical partnership with Williams and recent additions to the design and technical team, Dave’s arrival is another important step towards our goal of creating a truly competitive racing team,” said Fitzpatrick.

“I am also able to confirm that John Booth and Graeme Lowdon will be leaving the team at the end of the current season. I have the utmost respect for them as individuals and for all they have achieved, both with this team and in their long careers in Motorsport, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their hard work and dedication during this season in particular. Like every great story, there comes a time to start a new chapter.”

Ryan added: “I’m very excited to be joining the Manor Marussia F1 Team at a pivotal time in their development. Having spent time with Stephen, and understood his vision for the future, it is clear he has ensured there is a strong platform from which the team can make big steps forward in the seasons ahead.

“Manor has all the hallmarks of a fiercely competitive racing team, but having grown up in a much more contemporary Formula 1 era, it is a very lean operation with a collaborative culture, which leaves it well placed to contend with the sport’s future direction. There is clearly a big challenge ahead and a lot of work to do, but I can’t wait to meet the wider team and get down to business.”

The FIA has wasted no time in pushing ahead with its plans to have an alternative engine on the grid in 2017, and to that end has already issued a formal call for expressions of interest on its website.

It had been thought that there would be more discussions before the FIA set the process in motion. Although no details are given, as previously noted the plan is for a single manufacturer to earn the right to supply a 2.2-litre twin turbo V6. A deadline of November 23^rd has been put in place.

The FIA said it “has decided to launch a consultation among the engine manufacturers in order to potentially identify for the 2017, 2018 and 2019 seasons of the aforementioned Championship an exclusive alternative engine manufacturer which will be solely entitled to supply this alternative engine to the competitors entered for said seasons of the Championship.

“The FIA is now calling for expressions of interest to identify candidates interested in becoming the exclusive supplier of the alternative engine to the competitors.”

Candidates have to supply a detailed dossier regarding the suitability and experience. Intriguingly the detailed requirements state that the “the candidate declares to be entirely independent of a major car manufacturer.”

The FIA notes that after an assessment the “candidates whose expression of interest meets the requirements stated in this document may be entitled to participate in a tendering procedure the aim of which would be to identify an exclusive supplier of the alternative engines to the competitors.”