F1

[souliv]

They have Hamilton has been disqualified

"Lets get real here, IF Maclaren/Hamilton are proved to have done wrong in this instance, then don't for one minute think the other teams are all 'Whiter than White."

I am not saying that they are my point is there seems to be a very Anti Ferrari bias in this thread and all I am saying is McLaren are just the same as the others.

[Vermilion]

They have Hamilton has been disqualified

"Lets get real here, IF Maclaren/Hamilton are proved to have done wrong in this instance, then don't for one minute think the other teams are all 'Whiter than White."

I am not saying that they are my point is there seems to be a very Anti Ferrari bias in this thread and all I am saying is McLaren are just the same as the others.

I agree, and most of it comes from their behaviour over the years, fitting bendy wings and such like, cheating in other words, yet they always seem to be given the least punishment available, always seem to get treated differently is what i'm saying, more leniently if you like, a 'spade' never seems to get called a 'spade' when the authorities deal with Ferrari, they never come out and imply they cheated when they blatantly have, that's how it has seemed over the last 10yrs for me anyway, although i'm not really a big fan of F1 any more.

Ah well wtf, look at Schumacher, he's forced opponents off the track to win, never did his career any harm, i suspect Hamilton will be just fine too.

Also, for the people who run F1 to say Hamilton has brought the sport into disrepute....well............ Max Mosley !!

[Harv]

Hamilton is such a little ****. Cant stand him.

[Assassin]

Hamilton is such a little ****. Cant stand him.

[Vermilion]

Don't know him well enough myself to make a judgement like that, but from what i've seen of him, and all things considered...fame..fortune..etc, he seems a polite enough bloke, but that Mark Webber on the other hand...

[Joe King]

Hamilton is such a little ****. Cant stand him.

Mark Webber

[souliv]

Excellent performance so far from Brawn and Jenson, not surprising as he was the master tactican in alot of Schumacher's victories

[Carras_Shin_Pads]

What a joke today!

[Joe King]

Rather disappointing today but more than understandable. Safety was definitely today.

[Liverpool]

Should have started an hour early and there would have been no problems.

[Joe King]

Duhh.

[Liverpool]

No but last weeks and this weeks race took place 2 hours later than normal for tele etc.

[Joe King]

Its for the European market

[Neil Young]

Is there any news yet on what position Hamilton has been relegated to this time?

[meffin]

cLaren's Dennis quits Formula 1
Lewis Hamilton and Ron Dennis
Dennis, right, stepped down as Lewis Hamilton's team boss on 16 January

Ron Dennis has handed over complete control of McLaren Racing to team principal Martin Whitmarsh, ending his 43-year involvement in Formula 1.

The 61-year-old stepped down as world champion Lewis Hamilton's team boss on 16 January, but stayed involved in F1.

Dennis will now concentrate solely on McLaren's new sports car project.

"I am the architect of this restructure of McLaren. I have no qualms about leaving Martin to look after all matters connected to F1," said Dennis.

"I feel enormously enthused about the prospects for both the McLaren Group and for McLaren Automotive."

As executive chairman of McLaren Automotive, Dennis will lead the group's project to develop a range of pure McLaren sports cars, with the launch date for the first model set for 2011.

606: DEBATE
Pity his recent years have been clouded in controversy as he really has given F1 a hell of a lot

Rufus McDufus

And with McLaren set to face the sport's governing body, the FIA, on 29 April to answer charges of breaching the International Sporting Code, Dennis admits his departure will be welcomed by two of F1's biggest names.

"I admit I'm not always easy to get on with. I admit I've always fought hard for McLaren in Formula 1," he said.

"I doubt if (FIA president) Max Mosley or (F1 supremo) Bernie Ecclestone will be displeased by my decision."

However, Dennis, who first took over as McLaren team principal in 1981, insisted at a news conference that the timing of his departure from F1 was "purely coincidental" and not linked to the team's upcoming FIA hearing.

McLaren were found guilty of misleading race stewards following the Australian Grand Prix, which led to Lewis Hamilton - who had been awarded third place - being disqualified from the race and stripped of his points.

I asked Ron whether he was leaving F1 to improve McLaren's chances at the hearing and he said 'no'

BBC sports news correspondent Andy Swiss

Hamilton subsequently apologised for his involvement in the incident, claiming he had been told to lie by sporting director Dave Ryan, who was suspended and then sacked within 24 hours of the FIA's announcement of its findings.

But BBC sports news correspondent Andy Swiss reported: "There has been speculation about Ron's reasons for leaving and I asked him whether he knew about Ryan's and Hamilton's decision to mislead stewards. He said he didn't know anything.

"I then asked whether he was leaving F1 to improve McLaren's chances at the hearing and he said 'no'.

"I also asked him about relationship with Hamilton and his father Anthony, because there were reports that it was not as strong as before. He said this wasn't the case. He revealed he had spoken to Lewis and his father a few days ago in Australia. He also praised Lewis' public apology following the incident in Australia."

Dennis went to to explain in a statement: "I passed the role of team principal to Martin on 16 January, the day of the launch of our new Formula 1 car. That day I was asked many times whether I would attend the 2009 Australian Grand Prix. My answer was 'yes'.

"I duly attended it - albeit not as the person in charge of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes. It was, I admit, a strange feeling.

"The next race, the Malaysian Grand Prix, I watched on TV in the UK - an activity I found surprisingly easy. I'd expected to be more emotional about it."

With planned additional investment in the company of £250m... McLaren Automotive's expansion will represent a significant investment in the UK automotive industry

Ron Dennis

Dennis first became involved in F1 in 1966, at the age of 18, working alongside driver Jochen Rindt at the Cooper Formula One team.

There followed a three-year spell with Brabham prior to Dennis working on a number of projects in Formula Two and Three for a decade.

However, Dennis longed to return to F1, and in 1981 the opportunity eventually arose with McLaren, with the then 34-year-old assuming full control, building it up into the company it has become today.

Although the global credit crisis has had a major impact on the car industry, Dennis is determined to plough ahead with his plans for a revolutionary new sports car.

McLaren Automotive is intending to raise fresh equity, in addition to the existing investment in the business, to complete the development of the planned vehicle programmes.

Dennis added: "With planned additional investment in the company of £250m, proposals in place for a new McLaren car production facility in the UK, and the potential for up to 800 skilled jobs, McLaren Automotive's expansion will represent a significant investment in the UK automotive industry."

On June 1, Richard Lapthorne, currently chairman of Cable and Wireless, will be appointed non-executive chairman of the McLaren Group, and a non-executive director of McLaren Automotive.