INDIA in F1

Author: David Bodapati

  • Time to support FIA and Jean Todt

    Jean Todt, an FIA photo

    Bangalore, 24 Oct 2012: The Concorde Agreement to rule the sporting conditions for the FIA, Formula One Teams and the commercial rights holder FOM will be delayed for another few weeks as no agreement is reached by the stakeholders in view of the FIA demanding full control of the sporting activities, a legitimate demand. A full text of the Press Release by FIA on the Concorde Agreement is given at the end of the article. Your website www.INDIAinF1.com strongly believes that the FIA, the sporting federation should be incharge of the sport and not the commercial rights holder or the ring master Bernie Ecclestone, who has the legal rights to control the TV rights.

    Any international sporting federation is the sole body which controls and administers that particular sport. Perhaps the only exception is The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile, popularly known as FIA. It is the governing body for world motor sport and the federation of the world’s leading motoring organisations.

    However, the premier championship under its aegis, the Formula One World Championship, appears to be controlled by different companies of Formula One Group like Formula One Management, Formula One Administration et al under an agreement called Concorde Agreement. The commercial rights are controlled by these companies with Bernie Ecclestone ruling the roost. However, the present Concorde Agreement comes to an end this year and the president of FIA Jean Todt is trying his best for the Federation to regain control and to enhance revenues for better running of sport.

    Founded in 1904, FIA has its headquarters in Paris. The FIA is a non-profit making association. It brings together 232 national motoring and sporting organisations from 134 countries on five continents. Jean Todt, a French automotive executive, is the current president of FIA and has completed three years today (23 Oct 2012). He took over the responsibility of FIA chief when the International body is going through a governing crisis after its long-term president Mas Mosley was forced not to contest after he made stern efforts to see that FIA gets more revenues at the end of the then Concorde Agreement in 2009. Mosley, proposed various measures to cut the costs of running the teams and the championship including budget cap for the teams where teams choosing to cut budgets would be given freedom to greater technical changes. However, Formula One Teams Association believed that allowing some teams to have more technical freedom would create two tiers. FOTA also threatened a break-away series with only Force India and Williams supporting the FIA chief. Finally, Max Mosley agreed not to contest again and the teams reached a Concorde Agreement in August for three years ending 2012 and Mosley also supported the candidature of Jean Todt as the new president.

    The FMSCI, the Indian federation chief, Vicky Chandhok, was also tipped to the post of the FIA president but eventually Jean Todt defeated former WRC champ Ari Watanan by a huge margin and had made tremendous improvements to the World body in the last three years including greater importance to Road safety.

    Jean Todt took advantage of FIA Foundation for the Automobile and Society which was existing within the FIA since 2001 and launched the “Decade of Action for Road Safety” in 2011 along with his partner, an actress who believes in the same road safety. He dwelled on issues such as safety, mobility, the environment and consumer law  and made sure that the FIA actively promotes the interests of motorists at the United Nations, within the European Union and through other international bodies.

    He also wants the FIA to gain control and get better revenues and INDIAinF1 strongly believes that the International Federation should take full control of things and the sport, including Formula One should be under the control of the FIA and not by the commercial rights holders.

    Recently, Jean Todt was quoted by the Financial Times defending certain rumours: “It makes me smile when I read that we are going to lose control . . . I will never allow things which are under our responsibility to be dealt with by anybody else.”

    Todt also put forward the case for the FIA earning a large share of F1’s revenues. “If you sometimes read the figures, F1 is a $2bn [revenue] business or $1.5bn. The FIA is a non-profit organisation, but we need to run our organisation. We need to encourage the development of the sport, we need to encourage development of action for road safety.”

    The meeting in Paris was supposed to be held on 23 October 2012 but it was held a day before and no agreement was reached.

    It is believed that the Concorde Agreement will take several weeks to get everyone on the same thread.

    Hope the ring master will let the ownership of the sport go to its natural owners, the FIA!

    From FIA website:

    2012 Concorde Agreement

     22/10/2012

    During a constructive meeting, Jean Todt, the FIA President, in co-operation with Bernie Ecclestone, the Commercial Rights Holder, has presented to all F1 Team Principals the new structure of governance, including the new conditions of entry for the Concorde Agreement, starting in 2013.

    All the participants in the meeting were encouraged to seek clarification which resulted in a fruitful and helpful debate on how the new structure would operate in 2013 and beyond.

    A further important step has been achieved today to secure the future of the F1 World Championship which should lead to a final settlement to be reached between the FIA, the Commercial Rights Holder and the Teams in the coming weeks.

    ends

     

  • Sahara Force India looks forward to home race

    New Delhi, 23 Oct 2012: Even as newspapers and channels report that the beleaguered Kingfisher employees are planning a dharna at the Airtel Indian GP this week-end, the  Sahara Force India team looks forward to its home race, the Indian Grand Prix and the team Principal Vijay Mallya talks about the team’s form in the second half of the year and gets set for the team’s home race.
    Dr Mallya, the team continued its run of points finishes in Korea. What is your assessment of the season so far?
    Sahara Force India team principal Vijay Mallya. File photo from SFI F1 team.

    It certainly feels like we have upped our game since the summer break and it has been satisfying to see us up there fighting for good points. The only frustration is that we have not always managed to get two cars in the points and that has hurt us in the championship. But in terms of outright performance, I think we can be pleased with our level of consistency. We’ve had at least one car in the top ten of qualifying in over 80% of the races and scored points in 75% of the races. While we may not have finished on the podium this year, it is our consistency that has been key to our success and kept us in the fight.

    The second Indian Grand Prix is upon us – what can we expect second time around?
    Last year’s race was already a tremendous success and I’m sure we can expect an equally spectacular event this year. Buddh International Circuit always looks after us very well and I know that they have been working hard behind the scenes to fine-tune the circuit and facilities even more. But above all else, the most important thing is the layout of the track because last year all the drivers loved it. It’s certainly one of the best tracks in the world.
    How is the team approaching its home race?
    I remember how proud I felt last year to see our cars racing in India in the colours of the Indian flag. It was a moment I had dreamed about and a great sporting achievement for our country. To score points was the icing on the cake. This year I would like to go one better and see both our cars in the points – at the very least – so that we can give our fans something to smile about. The gap to Sauber is now 27 points. It’s a big lead, but not impossible to catch them before the end of the year. There’s still a lot of racing to go and we will keep the pressure up for the final four races.
    Nico on India
    Nico Hulkenberg reflects on his performance in Korea and looks ahead to the Indian Grand Prix.
    Nico, after two strong results in Japan and Korea, you must be feeling pretty confident coming into the team’s home race…
    The last two races were a lot of fun and probably two of my best races of the year. Korea was pretty much a perfect weekend. I said at the start of the weekend that we needed things to be perfect and that’s what we had: no mistakes, a smooth qualifying and a clean race.
    Since the summer break you’ve scored 26 points – it seems you’ve found the sweet spot with the VJM05…
    I feel comfortable and confident in the car and the team is doing a good job. We’ve just got a good rhythm and momentum, and that’s so important in Formula One. I’ve still had some tough weekends, like Monza and Singapore, but on the whole things have been going well. We just need to make sure we can repeat what we did in Korea during the final four races. We really need to stretch ourselves to get everything we can from the remaining races.
    This is your first Indian Grand Prix and you’re driving an Indian car – how excited are you ahead of the weekend?
    I was at the first Indian race last year, but obviously I didn’t get a chance to drive. I’ve been around the track in a road car and tried it on the simulator, but I still have a bit to learn on Friday. As a race it’s as big as they come for this team. We will be in Delhi at the start of the week to meet the local media and fans and they always show lots of enthusiasm for us. I hope that we will see their support at the track with lots of fans cheering us on.
    Paul on India
    Paul Di Resta looks ahead to the team’s home race.
    Paul, tell us your thoughts heading into such an important weekend for the team…
    It’s obviously our home Grand Prix and a special weekend. There’s pressure on us to perform and clearly we need to go there ready to keep the momentum going. It’s a busy week for everyone involved with the team and there’s a lot going on in terms of media work and extra events, but it won’t distract from our focus to come away with the best result we can.
    What targets do you have in mind?
    We’ve got to go there and qualify in the top ten. That will get us in contention and allow us to concentrate on the race. All year we’ve shown that we have a car capable of reaching Q3, but the grid is very close and we don’t have any margin so we need everything to come together perfectly. Also, based on our performance last year, we looked quite competitive at this track so you’ve got to hope that will carry over for this year.
    What are your thoughts on the Buddh International Circuit?
    It’s one of those new-style Herman Tilke circuits so there’s a good mixture of corners, plenty of run-off and a few areas where overtaking is possible. We found last year that the grip built up quite quickly and the track was exciting to drive with some satisfying corners. I remember that tyre wear was quite high last year and I had to stop three times during the race, so understanding the tyres on Friday will be the priority.
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  • Send queries to Narain Karthikeyan on twitter

    20 years ago it was unthinkable to consider having an Indian driver in Formula 1 and even less so to have an Indian Grand Prix. But Narain Karthikeyan has made it and accomplished a dream: to drive a Formula 1 car in front of his countrymen. This year he will be doing it for the second time. This week we’re giving you the chance to ask Narain anything you want and he’ll respond in the hotline.

    To send in your question simply mention us on Twitter (@HRTF1Team) and type #HRTonline followed by your question. You have from today up until next Wednesday the 24th of October at 23:59 CET. The answers will be posted on Thursday the 25th. Don’t miss out!

    A HRT file image of F1 driver Narain Karthikeyan.

  • Double podium brings constructors title for Mahindra Racing in Italy

    Rome, 14 October 2012: Mahindra Racing – the first and still the only Indian company to enter the world of motorcycle grand prix racing – created history by winning the prestigious ‘Constructors Title’ in the 125GP class at the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (CIV) in Italy. The exciting final race of the 2012 season concluded at the Vallelunga Circuit on Sunday, 40 kms from here.

    The team won the premier title armed with two young but very promising and talented riders – 17 year old Miroslav Popov and the Austrian teenager Lukas Trautmann. Bringing to the fore a phenomenal performance, Miroslav Popov ended the season in style and brought about a stunning finish for 1st place. Displaying great skill on the track, the team’s second rider Lukas Trautmann, put in yet another impressive performance to finish 2nd in the 16 lap race, says a Press Release.

    Popov started the race from pole position after the outstanding performance displayed in qualifying. His team mate Lukas Trautmann, at his very first weekend on the bike, moved off from the third row of the grid after finishing the two qualifying sessions as the fourth 125GP rider in the classification.

    After the lights went out Popov got immediately in the lead, while Trautmann was third at Turn 1. Both riders displayed a very good race pace that allowed them to put some gap between themselves and the other

    Finishing 1-2, Mahindra riders clinched the Constructors' title in the Italian Racing Championship, received by Mafaddal Choonia (centre). Mahindra Racing photo

    125 GP riders.

    As the race progressed Popov and Trautmann rode carefully and made no mistakes, crossing the line in first and second position. Miroslav Popov also set the fastest lap of the race with a 1’47’’041 lap-time.

    Though he did not compete in the last race of the season, 27-year-old Riccardo Moretti claimed an impressive second place in the overall all Riders Rankings thanks to his phenomenal performances during the season behind leader Lorenzo Dalla Porta in the Riders Classification of the championship. He has already secured five podiums so far in the seven rounds of the season.

    “This historic win by Mahindra Racing at the CIV demonstrates the superb performance our bikes, the skills and commitment of our riders and outstanding team work – all hallmarks of Mahindra Rise philosophy. Our continued success in international motor sports events such as the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship is strengthening the Mahindra brand globally.” said S. P. Shukla, Member of Group Executive Board and President of Group Strategy, Mahindra Group.

    Mr. Mufaddal Choonia, CEO of Mahindra Racing said, “Winning a highly competitive event like the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship is a historic achievement for Mahindra Racing and Indian motorsport. We competed against the best in the world with a pair of young and energetic riders and our victory marks a big step forward for the team. The year wasn’t all easy but we remained determined and committed and are thrilled with the results.”

    Commenting on his performance in the race, Popov said, “I feel very content to have finished the season on a winning note. There were moments that were challenging but we worked hard, beat the odds and have come out victorious. We are working together very well as a team and I couldn’t have hoped for a better result than this. The credit for our victory goes to the team.”

    Lukas Trautmann said, “I am happy with the results of the race and am gaining more and more confidence after each outing. I thank the team and Mahindra. The future looks promising and I am glad to be racing for Mahindra Racing.”

    After making its CIV debut in 2012, Mahindra Racing became the first from India to win an international motorsport event when Moretti took the chequered flag at the season-opening race in Mugello, Italy on 25th March this year. The team won 6 out of the 8 races in the championship with 3 spectacular double podiums. The Indian manufacturer is one among a handful of entrants using its own chassis and engine, developing new technology at the same time challenging the might of established racing factories that fill the rest of the grid.

    CIV Manufacturers Title – 1) Mahindra 176 – 2) Aprilia 162 – 3) Honda 50 – 4) KTM 34

    Vallelunga Circuit Results – 125 GP CIV Italian Championship Round 8 : 1) Popov (Mahindra) – 2) Trautmann (Mahindra) – 3) Carpi (Aprilia).

    About Mahindra Racing

    Mahindra Racing is the first Indian team to participate in the FIM MotoGP™ World Motorcycle Racing Championship (in 2011) and the Italian National Motorcycle Racing Championship (CIV, in 2012).

    On the world stage, the Indian factory team signed off its 2011 debut season on a high note with action packed performances by both its riders. Marcel Schrötter finished 15th overall in the 125cc Rider’s Championship and the team finished a strong third overall in the Constructor’s Championship. Danny Webb made history when he secured pole position in Valencia in the last race of the 125cc era. The team has taken this learning into its participation in the all new Moto3™ class which replaced the 125cc class from the 2012 season onwards.

    In the CIV in Italy, the team competes in the 125 GP Class with ex-Italian Champion Riccardo Moretti. The team became the first from India to win an international motorsport event when Riccardo took the chequered flag at the season-opening race of the CIV in Mugello, Italy on 25 March, 2012. Since then, the team has recorded five victories from seven races with only one round remaining. Having secured second place in the Championship, Moretti has now joined Webb on the MGP-30 for the remainder of the Moto3 season.

    For further information please visit: www.mahindraracing.com

    About The Mahindra Group

    The Mahindra Group focuses on enabling people to rise. Mahindra operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in tractors, utility vehicles, information technology and vacation ownership. Mahindra has a presence in the automotive industry, agribusiness, aerospace, components, consulting services, defence, energy, financial services, industrial equipment, logistics, real estate, retail, steel and two wheelers.

    A USD 15.4 billion multinational group based in Mumbai, India and is the only global group that is present in the complete transportation chain from two wheelers, passenger vehicles and trucks to boats and aeroplanes.

    Mahindra employs more than 144,000 people in over 100 countries.

    In 2011, Mahindra featured on the Forbes Global 2000 list, a listing of the biggest and most powerful listed companies in the world. Dun & Bradstreet also ranked Mahindra at No. 1 in the automobile sector in its list of India’s Top 500 Companies. In 2010, Mahindra featured in the Credit Suisse Great Brands of Tomorrow.

    In 2011, Mahindra acquired a majority stake in Korea’s SsangYong Motor Company.

    For further information, please visit www.mahindra.com, www.mahindra2wheelers.com

    Connect with us on www.facebook.com/mahindragroup, www.facebook.com/mahindrascooters

     

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  • Webber takes Korean Pole

    Webber takes pole in Korea. Red Bull Racing photo

    While practice times had Sebastian Vettel favourite to take pole position in Korea, it was team-mate Mark Webber who finished qualifying in P1.

    Red Bull Racing’s Webber won the Monaco GP earlier this year after inheriting pole position when quickest man Michael Schumacher was. However, at the Korea International Circuit, pole position was all Webber’s own work.

    “It was a tight session for all of us,” he said after beating his team-mate by just seven hundredths of a second. “I think as the session unfolded, people were having different balance issues on different tyre compounds. I was happy with my lap there, it was solid and it’s good to get pole. It’s a great place to start the race from. I’m looking to get off the first corner very well, that’s important as there are two long straights after that.”

    The Red Bulls looked like being the only cars in the hunt for pole position. Having dominated practice, the carried the form into qualifying, going immediately to the top of the timesheet in Q1 when they emerged from the pits. Vettel was the quicker by two tenths, and given his form in practice was a strong favourite for pole.

    Elsewhere, championship leader Fernando Alonso had a difficult opening session and the Ferrari driver needed to put on the supersoft tyres to ensure progress to the second session. Even then he could only manage 16th place. That was one place better than Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton opted to stay in the garage during the final stages of the session. As fastest times came in his name dropped down the leaderboard until he was perilously close to the drop zone. He was teetering on the brink of elimination when Bruno Senna abandoned his last lap and ensured Hamilton progressed. “It was quite a shocking session for me: didn’t get a lap, did quite a poor job… I’m very lucky that I got  through,” said Hamilton afterwards.

    Further back, the drop zone shaped up as expected with the Caterhams, Marussia and HRTs all being eliminated. HRT’s Narain Karthikeyan endured a big spin at Turn 3 that sidelined him from the rest of the session. The problem was later reported to have been caused by a broken brake disc.

    The second segment largely followed the pattern of the first, at least for Vettel. Fernando Alonso set the pace on his first run with a lap of 1:38.987 but the German beat by just over two-tenths. His team then opted to keep the World Champion in the garage for the remainder of the session, his time being good enough for him to remain top. The big casualty of the second session was McLaren’s Jenson Button. The Briton needed a good final run to ensure he’d be around to fight for pole but at the tail end of Q2 Toro Rosso’s Daniel Ricciardo stopped out on track with a gearbox problem. As the yellow flags came out, a number of drivers were forced to back off, including Button.  He finished in 11th place, ahead of Sergio Pérez, Kamui Kobayashi, Paul Di Resta, Pastor Maldonado, Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne.

    After dominating the opening two segments, the final 10 minutes should have been all about Vettel’s march to a 35th career pole. Webber, though, had other ideas.
    After the duo’s first runs, Vettel had the upper hand, putting in a time of 1:37.316. Webber, meanwhile, could do no better than fourth. In the final runs however, it was the Australian who found the extra injection of pace. Vettel, though, was still lapping but the German’s first sector was poor as he was forced to back off when he encountered the much slower Felipe Massa shortly before the start of his lap. Mistakes in the second sector then compounded the damage.

    “Overall we can be very happy with the result,” said Vettel. “We were quite quick in the first and second qualifying sessions and had a good start to Q3. On the last run, I had to back off starting the lap as Massa was there, it wasn’t his fault, but I had to back off. Nevertheless, the second lap in Q3 wasn’t good enough. I lost time in the middle sector, which seemed to be okay all weekend, but when the circuit ramped up I wasn’t able to go with it, so I lost a bit.”

    Webber then will start from pole for the first time since Monaco with his team-mate on the front row beside him. Hamilton will start from third with Alonso alongside. Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen will start fifth, with Ferrari’s Felipe Massa lining up alongside him. Seventh place went to Lotus’s Romain Grosjean, follwed by Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg and the twin Mercedes of Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher.

    ends

  • FIA Saturday Press Conference – Korean GP

    DRIVERS

    1 – Mark WEBBER (Red Bull Racing)

    2 – Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing)

    3 – Lewis HAMILTON (McLaren)

    TV UNILATERAL

    Mark, congratulations, your first pole of the year.

    Mark WEBBER: Yeah, OK, well Monaco was by default but yeah, the first one of track I suppose, nip and tuck with Fernando in Silverstone so, as most qualifying sessions this year have been tight and, yeah, very, very happy to get the job done today, get the pole position. It was as reasonable lap and we did it when it counted obviously. So that’s what qualifying’s all about, it’s been a tricky last few events for me but really happy to start on pole. Tomorrow’s the main day and we’re in a good position to get a good result.

    Red Bull have been looking so good last weekend but also this weekend all the way through – what’s been the secret?

    MW: Well, I think off the back of Suzuka we felt that we’d improved the car a bit but you never, ever get ahead of yourself these days. We had a good car in Valencia and then after that it was not that easy for us. We were a bit open to that after Suzuka, coming here knowing that it’s not going to be a given, but we have a pretty handy car around here for sure, and I think that the guys have been working very, very hard and there’s no question, the hard work’s paying off but we focus on ourselves and just keep pushing the lap times down as much as we can – and it’s lucky we do because obviously the gap is not that big to Lewis.

    Sebastian, what happened on that last lap? You mentioned Massa.

    Sebastian VETTEL: Overall I think we can be very happy with the result obviously. We were quite quick in the first qualifying session, quite quick in the second one and then had a good start to Q3. But the last run, I don’t want to blame it on Felipe, I thought he was coming in but then on the last sector he was right in front of me so I had to back-off. Not ideal, just starting a timed lap, and just before that to back off but I think nevertheless the second lap wasn’t good enough. Lost a little bit today in the middle sector, which seemed to be OK all weekend but yeah, when the circuit ramped up I wasn’t able to go with it. Lost a little bit but I think second is a very good position to start from. Obviously around here you never know – you have a long straight, straight away after the start, so it could be interesting tomorrow.

    And third on the grid Lewis, first time you’ve started third, what can you do about these two guys ahead of you?

    Lewis HAMILTON: I think it will be very tough to get ahead of them but we’ve put ourselves in as good a position as we could. It was very tough this weekend, these guys have clearly made quite a big step within the last two races and so we’ve just got to keep pushing. We’re not far off and the race pace for Jenson looked quite good yesterday. I’m just happy I got a clear lap and was able to put it as high up as possible.

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Mark, well done, how did you feel about the lap?

    MW: Pretty good. We had a few plates spinning, to be honest, with some little background issues that we were managing as best we could on the lap but the lap was very good, apart from Turn 15, I made a mistake there so, yeah, probably got in OK but the exit wasn’t great but apart from that it worked well. I think I got 11 and 12 as good as I could get. So, yeah, take the rough with the smooth. I think it was a tight session, I think, for all of us: up and down; scrubbed tyres; new tyres. Fernando did a pretty solid laptime on the scrubbed at some point there. So, yeah, that’s just the way it is. With the old Pirellis, things can move around quite a bit.

    After this morning’s problem, presumably you went pretty blind into qualifying?

    MW: Yeah, we didn’t get to run anywhere near as much as we would have liked to in P3, so our information on the option was limited. So there was a bit of catch-up going on for sure. After my first run on the option in Q2, I had not the best sector two and three for balance issues and also some other things that Ciaron was working on to get the car to finish the lap better – so that’s what we focussed on in Q3. And got the job done.

    A little disappointment not to be on pole Sebastian? Although you’ll be pleased to hear that no-one’s every won from pole so far.

    SV: Yeah, obviously I have good memories from last year with Lewis, when he was on pole. I think we’ll see tomorrow that it’s a long race. Surely the lap was fine but I should have been a little bit quicker, so yeah, wasn’t able in the end to do the final step, especially in the second sector. I think sector one and sector three were fine but yeah, got a little bit mixed-up second sector, so I think if you look at the laptimes in the end it was fairly close, so y’know, I think we’re happy with second and a front row for Red Bull Racing. Obviously the car seems to work well, I think in the race we might be even in a little bit better place. Let’s see what we can do tomorrow.

    Not being on pole, that wasn’t part of the plan?

    SV: It’s difficult to have a plan going into qualifying because you never know what happened. If you catch the yellow flag in the wrong place, etc., we saw last week it can be quite tricky. We’ve seen this week in Q2 there was some yellow. These things can happen to you all the time so therefore it’s impossible to have a certain plan. But surely after the Q1 and Q2 we had where it looked very good, the target was to go on pole – and we missed that by a little bit. I think it was possible to get it but we didn’t get it in the end – and it’s as simple as that.

    Lewis, the biggest worry, as far as I could see, was Q1. You nearly didn’t make it – was that a concern?

    LH: Definitely. It was quite a shocking session for me: didn’t get a lap, did quite a poor job, struggled to get… when the tyres weren’t so bad temperature-wise I just had a bit of traffic, locking up. It was very poor. But I’m very lucky that I got through.

    We’ve seen various drivers going off at various parts of the circuit, particularly down at Turn One. Is that still a concern for you? You’ve been off there a couple of times as well.

    LH: I’ve been off there a lot this weekend yeah. It’s like these guys have ABS brakes – when we attack the corners it’s very easy to lock-up, so it’s quite tricky. We have to try to work around and sometimes you just have to drive with flat-spots. But fortunately my tyres from that lap, I didn’t have any lock-ups, so hopefully that will remain the same throughout the race.

    And what sort of confidence for the race itself?

    LH: Well, I didn’t do a long run yesterday, again I had not a great session, particularly in P2 yesterday, but Jenson did a great job and quite a competitive long run, so I hope I’m able to do the same tomorrow.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR.

    Q: (Frederic Ferret – L’Equipe) To the Red Bull drivers: how much has the car changed for you since this summer and how happy are you with it?

    MW: Since the August break? Yes, we have been making small developments at each Grand Prix, that’s the way it is. If you look at where the car is from Spa, obviously it’s a different aero package for Spa and Monza, but to where it is now, the base of the car for sure is probably a decent step but it’s always… every Grand Prix, we try to just put little bits on the car to help. At some Grands Prix we don’t put anything on, we miss and at the next one we catch up a bit more, and also, you have to bear in mind that it’s circuit-specific as well. You have to understand what each track needs and those type of things, so the last two venues have probably been pretty good for us in terms of layout, especially the last one. Yeah, happy drivers are drivers at the front so when you’re towards the front it makes you satisfied but we can still improve the car, there are always areas to improve. That’s what we’ve got to keep working on.

    Q: (Kate Walker – Girl Racer) Sebastian, you’re going to be starting on the dirty side of the grid tomorrow and at this track, it’s particularly dirty due to the lack of use. What kind of concerns do you have going into the first corner?

    SV: Well, I don’t think it’s a big disadvantage. Surely I think I would rather be on pole but qualifying is over so we start from second and I don’t think it’s a big problem. Last year we made a good launch and I think here that you never know what happens. You might as well start third, fourth, fifth and you could end up first by turn four, so you don’t know. There’s a long straight after the second corner. Obviously I had a tight battle with Lewis last year so these things you have to take them as they come, so it’s difficult to know now what’s going to happen, but first of all I will focus on the start and then go from there.

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Sebastian, coming back to the development; yesterday you had different bodywork than your teammate, why did you change, why did you come back (to the original)? And the second question is that in Italy they are saying that there was a red car in front of you on your last run; is that correct? Did you have a problem with that?

    SV: I don’t want to blame it on Felipe. I don’t like all these discussions; we’ve had a lot of them lately. These things happen, it’s not Felipe’s fault at all. I should have known earlier. If anything it was my mistake. I might have lost a little bit but I’m not a fan of blaming anyone or anything for a certain result or not. I was happy with my qualifying, a little bit at the end.

    The first question was why… because it’s faster, that’s why I changed it.

    Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, we saw a problem in the pit lane with your future teammate or Michael, I don’t know which to be honest, we couldn’t see. What happened exactly?

    LH: I didn’t have any problems. I was let out of my garage before he was and then they tried to get him ahead of me but he was coming out slowly so I overtook him, because I was already on the speed limit which is 100 and he was doing maybe 20 or 30. But it gained position which is important, position is everything here. If you can get by safely throughout the lap that’s very important.

    Hamilton takes P3 at Korean GP. McLaren photo

    Ends

  • JPSI makes Airtel Indian GP 2012 bigger and better

    New Delhi, 11 October 2012: Jaypee Sports International Limited (JPSI), today, shared their Traffic, Transport and Logistics update for the 2012 Formula 1 Airtel Grand Prix of India which will take place at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC), Greater Noida, between

    Aerial view of BIC. Photo courtesy JPSI.

    October 26 – 28, 2012.

    JPSI, as promoters of Buddh International Circuit, presented a way forward to ensure that neither the participants nor the spectators faced any issues commuting to and from the Buddh International Circuit (BIC), a press release said here today.

    As part of their elaborate plan this year, the parking at BIC will be able to hold more than 21, 000 private cars and 1,000 motorcycle parking. Apart from the private cars, more than 200 Pre-booked chartered buses from the NOIDA City Centre Metro Station and 200 chartered buses that can be availed as a Park and Ride facility from the nearby Knowledge Park II. There will also Free access provided to Delhi-NCR Radio cabs to enter the circuit parking with  dedicated taxi parking area and the Circular Shuttle that were successful last year, will be in service this year too around the circuit to drop spectators at entry gates and at dedicated shuttle stops at each seating stand.

    Mr. Qamar Ahmad, Senior Vice-President, Traffic & Security, JPSI said “Last year we managed to host the race successfully and building on those learning, we have made improvements in the traffic and transport facilities for this year. The Yamuna Expressway is now open to public and all ticket holders are allowed to take that to reach the Buddh International Circuit without any hassles. We are getting full support from all the authorities to help remove bottlenecks and all efforts are being made to ensure a comfortable experience for the spectators.”

    To make the second edition of the 2012 Airtel Grand Prix Of India a memorable, a host of entertainment events have been lined up by JPSI. The race day, October 28, 2012 will witness playback singer Shaan and music director duo of Vishal and Shekhar perform. Along with Vishal-Shekhar and Shaan, six selected college bands will perform at India’s biggest motorsport event through Rock the Race, a JPSI initiative to find talent in the youngsters of the country India.

    The Buddh International Circuit, this year will have the Turn 8-9 Kerb extended from 5m to 15m with the height of all the kerbs across the circuit now at 25 mm and Turn 2-3 and 7-8 will have Astroturf lining to provide additional safety to run-off areas. Apart from the track modifications, video screens around the track have been increased from 11 to 17 to make sure the spectators are able to catch every inch of racing at the Buddh International Circuit on the big screens.

    Mr. Farhan Vohra, General Manager – Race Operations, JPSI said, “We are extremely excited about the Indian Grand Prix 2012 as there are some changes that we have made to the run off areas that will enhance the overall experience of the race. We have extended the width of a few turns from 5m to 15 m and height of the kerbs to 25 mm. We have hired special mechanized dusters from Bahrain and these will start working after 15th October to clean up the minutest of dust particles from all over the track which cannot be washed with regular dusters.”

    The race equipment – the race tires and the fuel for the cars have already arrived along with the Paddock setup area, and has already been cleared by the customs at the circuit. More than 30% of the equipment as arrived, while the cars are expected to reach the circuit by the 15th of Sept after the Korean Grand Prix. Before the 24th of October, 95% of all equipments will have cleared customs and are expected to be at the race track.

    Mr. Sougoto Das, AGM, Cargo & Logistics, JPSI said, “With the experience of hosting the race last year, the movement of cargo has been smooth. We are getting full support of the authorities. The F1 cargo comes in two lots, one by ship and the other by air. The ship cargo has started coming here such as tyres, car fuel, etc. However, cars will start coming after the Korean GP this weekend.”

    About Jaypee Sports International Limited (JPSI)

    Established in October 2007, Jaypee Sports International Ltd., a subsidiary of Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. (JAL), has constructed India’s premier motorsports destination – Buddh International Circuit (BIC) – which hosted India’s first ever F1 Grand Prix on October 30, 2011. In addition to F1, the track is also expected to host other top-level international motorsports events. BIC will be a part of Jaypee Sports City, which is spread over 2,500 acres. This facility will include a Cricket stadium that is being developed in two phases and which will have a seating capacity of 100,000 people. There will also be a hockey arena, a sports training academy and infrastructure for other sports. Jaypee Sports City, the country’s first fully integrated megacity built around a sporting lifestyle and featuring premium residential and commercial spaces, has been designed by world renowned architects and planners, WATG. One of the world’s leading design consultants for the hospitality, leisure and entertainment industries, WATG has made a significant contribution to making Jaypee Sports City the best of its kind anywhere in the world.

    ends

  • Battle intensifies ahead of Korea GP

    FIA Thursday Press Conference – Korea

    File photo of Sebastian Vettel. Courtesy Red Bull content pool

    DRIVERS – Nico ROSBERG (Mercedes), Romain GROSJEAN (Lotus), Pastor MALDONADO (Williams), Mark WEBBER (Red Bull Racing), Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari), Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull Racing)

    PRESS CONFERENCE

    Nico, coming first of all to you. It has been mentioned that this is a better circuit for you than Suzuka. What are your feelings about that?

    Nico ROSBERG: Already in the race in Japan things were looking better. Michael put in a consistent pace there. For sure here this track should suit us more. All the conditions, all the circumstances, the long straights and everything. I’m definitely looking forward to it and I’m confident that we can do better again.

    The big problem is keeping Sauber at bay in the Constructors’ Championship, isn’t it?

    NR: Personally, I’m looking forward, so I want to try to maximise the points that we can get and I’m convinced we can do (that)… there are still a lot of points to be had in the next few races and that isn’t going to be a concern.

    So you’re quite happy with the way things are going?

    NR: Yes.

    Romain, there is a new exhaust system on the car. What are you hoping for from that?

    Romain GROSJEAN: Hopefully some good performance. We were one of the only teams not to use it so it may help us to go quicker. We know our weakness this year on the car and this may help us to improve quite well.

    Obviously you had the problem last weekend and went to see Mark after the race. What did you say and are you quite happy that you’ve cleared the air?

    RG: Yes, Mark came to see me and I completely understand that he was unhappy. The only thing I could say was to apologise and that’s what I did. I’m clearly conscious of the risk at the start, I’m working on changing on quite a lot of things but work doesn’t come from one day to the other one. There is a process going on. I said I was very sorry. I’m not stupid and I’m conscious of the risk. And hopefully by now it will be a different and I will not make the mistake of focusing on the wrong targets.

    And Mark, are you happy with that?

    Mark WEBBER: Yeah, absolutely. I went to see Romain, we had a discussion about it and that was that. So, yes.

    Pastor, again a team that feels the car is suited to this circuit. Is that your feeling?

    Pastor MALDONADO: I hope so! I hope to have a competitive car and a part of that is to be quite competitive in quali. We missed a couple of tenths in the last qualifying in Suzuka and we were out of Quali 3. It was quite a good pace during the race but we are really looking forward here to being in Quali 3 and very competitive. But it’s very difficult to know exactly where we’ll be.

    At the moment your future seems to be undecided. Is it your decision and have you been in contact with other teams apart from Williams?

    PM: To be honest I realty want to stay with Williams. It’s a good team and the team is getting better and better every day. We’ve been rebuilding everything in the team and I think now it’s more compact and the car is looking, as I mentioned before, every day better and better. So good confidence with them but at the moment there is not confirmation. So looking forward to seeing that but otherwise looking forward to remaining in Formula One for sure.

    Mark, you’ve had an unfortunate second half to the season, since your win at the British Grand Prix. This is a circuit that has been up and down for you. You pretty much sealed the championship here for Red Bull Racing when you finished third. Can you get it back? Can you turn things around here?

    MW: Yes. That’s the goal, mate. As you’ve said, we’ve had a few ropey runs of late. Lost of different reasons: a few on my side – not driving well enough – a few on some dodgy strategies, and last weekend was out of my hands. In that case, all of a sudden, three or four or five races with definitely not the points you want. I’m really looking forward to this race. It’s… in terms of atmosphere it’s not off the charts, we know that, but in terms of the race track, it’s not a bad little circuit to drive on so I think the car will go well here.

    Fernando, how badly do you need a good result this weekend?

    Fernando ALONSO: Well, I think we all need some good points this weekend but it’s the same situation for everybody, if not worse, so that’s it.

    And with five races how much are Ferrari pushing as well.

    FA: I think we have been pushing from the first test in the winter, so nothing has changed in the last five races. We just need to keep doing the things we’ve been doing so far. I think it has nearly been a perfect championship for us at the moment, with good strategies, good starts, good approach to the races. Everything we had in our hands on Sunday we maximised the points. We had one zero in Spa and one zero in Suzuka but things completely outside of our team, so apart from that we don’t need to change too many things.

    Of course your rival is Sebastian there, winner here last year and winner of the last two races this year. Does that give you confidence? What is the feeling coming to this race:

    Sebastian VETTEL: Of course. We had a good two last races as you mentioned. We obviously come here on a high and we try to produce the momentum to have another very strong result here. We know that this circuit should be quite good for us. Historically we have been competitive here. The two years we have been racing here before I think we always had a very good car, so try again.

    It’s interesting that people say this circuit suits the car or vice versa, as this seems to be a circuit that has a bit of everything: it has a lot of straights, it has the twisty section at the end, it’s got some fast, flowing corners in the middle. Is it just an all-round car that you have?

    SV: In the end I think it’s the nature of the track that maybe we used to like in the last two years. We should be reasonably competitive but then again, this year I think it has been very unpredictable and you don’t know what happens so it could be the case here. We have to try our best to get another strong result. If you look at the layout, for sure you start off with a lot of straights and then you finish off with corners. It looks a little strange compared to other places because usually it’s a bit more of a mix. But here you get the straights first and then the corners.

    QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

    (Johnny Herbert – Sky Sports F1) Romain, clearly you have the speed to be a Formula One driver, it’s a first time here in Korea, we’ve got a tricky couple of corners on that first lap, Eric Boullier said it’s really down to you now to sort out your situation. Tell me what you’re going to do different here this weekend.

    RG: Not having any contact on the first lap, that’s clearly one of the objectives. I’d say there’s work in progress and it takes a bit of time but yeah, it’s a cycle as well: things have been going bad, and the more it goes bad… I’m conscious of the risk at the start. The Spa accident was quite impressive and I was the first one to be happy that Fernando had nothing [injured], I’m conscious of the risk; I paid the price as well for my mistake. In the team we spoke quite a lot; they are not happy, I am not happy the way we have been going through the first laps. There is 550 people working at Enstone to give us the best car and if you ruin everything in the first 100m it’s not good. I’m conscious of all of that and will try to take as many precautions as possible to go through the first lap – and then normally in the race we are OK.

    (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, what is Ferrari bringing here as updates, and do you feel confident that you’re going to have the speed to fight with Red Bull?

    FA: Not many updates, obviously it has been only four days from Suzuka to here so we will try to set up the car as best we can for this race, this layout. But, I remain reasonably confident that we will be competitive. We’ve been more or less competitive in the last eight, ten races – maybe not the fastest but always in position to fight for podiums etcetera. I think here will be no different.

    (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando, do you believe that Kimi Räikkönen must apologise with you, like Romain with Mark Webber?

    FA: No, I think in the start in Suzuka it was very tight in between all of us, that’s the problem of starting in the middle of the group: I had Jenson on the right, Kimi on the left and you cannot disappear in those moments. It was an unlucky situation with the front wing of Kimi and my rear tyre. After the puncture I could not start the car on the corner – so it was a mix of things that were not in our part – but y’know, in the last seven, six races, when we were in Suzuka, now five races, one or two have gone wrong, and one or two will go wrong for the others.

    (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Mark, you are sixty points behind the leader of the championship. How is your role now? To help Sebastian or try to recover this gap?

    MW: I need to win, so that’s my goal, I’ve come here to push. It was a good little battle between Seb and I in Suzuka, he did a very good job in Q3. We did a very good job, and looking to finish the season as strongly as possible for myself.

    Q: (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, with only four points advantage, obviously your strategy has to change in the last few races. Are you going to attack more?

    FA: I think we’ve been attacking in all the races. We were fighting in all the races the maximum we can, approaching the races to maximise the points we have available. Sometimes we were on the podium, sometimes we were fourth, sometimes we were fifth and this will not change now. I don’t we can over-drive or over-do what is available for us. As I said, now we have lost many points, in the last four races let’s say, because at Spa we had a DNF which we had nothing to do with. In Monza we had a Q3 problem and started in tenth, and in Suzuka we had a puncture at the start, in the first corner. All these last four races, in which we lost a lot points, I think are just some unlucky situations. Things normally change, they go up and down. Hopefully our bad run will finish and we will start a run of good runs until the end.

    Q: (Luis Fernando Ramos – Racing Magazine) Sebastian, in all your complete seasons in Formula One, we have seen an improvement in terms of results in the second part of the season, after the summer break. Is it just a coincidence, or do you feel that you put all the bits together and feel more confident and improve in the second part of the season?

    SV: I have good holidays in the summer, so I should consider doing the same in the winter break! I don’t know. As Fernando has said a couple of times now, I think it has been fairly up and down for a lot of us. We have seen this year that there are a lot of cars that can surprise. Look at the race we had in Barcelona for instance, where the Williams was very competitive. Pastor drove a fantastic race and won. In China Nico was very strong and won the race so there’s more than one or two cars that are able to win. Of course you need to get everything right for every weekend in order to be competitive but I think it has been the story of the championship. It has been up and down. Same for us, we have good races, bad races. I think the last couple of races were good for us but again, only three races ago we didn’t finish the race in Monza. Things can change quickly, so we need to stay focused and concentrated on what we have. Whether there is a trend where we do better in the second half I don’t know, but throughout the season we are pushing very hard, trying to get our maximum.

    Q: (Jonathan Ledgard – BBC Sport) Fernando and Mark, as very keen cyclists and very knowledgeable, I was wondering what you made of the news overnight about Lance Armstrong, who has allegedly been involved in the most systematic, professionalised form of cheating ever, and how much your faith in your beloved sport has been shaken?

    MW: Yeah, disappointing. I was a keen cyclist fan through the early 2000s. But slowly, slowly, slowly, over time lost a little bit of passion for the sport. It has been quite obvious, in the last few years, that this was probably going to come, from people on the inside, but the damn wall has now broken and I think that obviously he was the last tree in the forest they wanted to drop down, and a big tree at that. It’s good that they’re trying to clean the sport up, and even retrospectively, it sends a message to lots of different sports that irrespective of what you’ve achieved and how you’ve done it at the time – first of all, it’s a good message –  the karma, we’ll come and get you.

    FA: The same. Nothing really to add. Obviously I love cycling, I love bicycles and sure Lance was more than another rider, he was some kind of idol for many people and inspiration for many of us and many media people in the world. It’s not easy and I think he will remain an inspiration for many people, whatever happened, whatever the result. Not easy to put together all things.

    Q: (Flavio Vanetti – Corriere della Serra) To Fernando and Sebastian: Lewis seems to downplay his chances in the championship. What’s your opinion on that?

    FA: I don’t know how many points he’s behind now. Well, I think it’s more difficult (for him) because now there’s not only one driver ahead that you need to take some points off. We are now two with more or less the same points ahead and he’s behind, so for sure the chances for him are a little bit lower. If we see the form of McLaren and Lewis before Suzuka, there’s still plenty of time and plenty of points to do it. I think he still has the possibility…

    SV: I think they are still fighting for the championship. I think that is their target, or has to be their target. I think if you look at the races we had after the summer break, so far, I think if you summed them up, in average, I think McLaren was the most competitive car. They are the ones which will be very competitive, no matter where we go, at least that’s what the last couple of races showed. I think they still have a very good chance.

    Q: (Kate Walker – Girl Racer) To anyone who wants to answer it: we’ve all heard a lot about how the season is up and down. Psychologically, from a driver’s point of view, does that make it easier for you, when you’re gearing yourself up, mentally knowing that it could be anyone’s weekend, or is it more difficult, knowing that it’s more variable, that it’s not necessarily about your car, your talent or about that circuit?

    NR: Well, for us, in our situation, for example, for me it’s an extra motivation, because I come here and I’m not sure that I’m definitely going to be in the same position as in Suzuka. There’s a chance that I will be able to be a lot further up and fighting for much better positions, so it’s quite a nice thing.

    PM: All the races are difficult, not only this year. For sure this year, the championship is more competitive. The strong teams, the medium grip teams get closer and we have more chance to fight for good results, but for sure it’s more challenging for us but we are enjoying that.

    MW: Not really. I think that as a competitor you want it to be more consistent and obviously achieving nice results. I’ve enjoyed the racing, to be honest, that’s been quite good, but ultimately we like to have the taste of success and that’s what we strive for each weekend so I prefer that than the enjoyment of the racing, I suppose. That’s the balance we try to strike, but obviously we work hard as a team. We would like to make it more boring if we can, but we’ve got some tough opposition so that’s the name of the game and let’s see how the season finishes off.

    Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) I’d like to ask anybody who would like to answer it really, but Sauber put out a press release earlier on this morning announcing that Monisha (Kaltenborn) was going to be taking over from Peter (Sauber) as team principal, which will make her the first woman team principal. I know we’ve got used to seeing Monisha around and being chief executive, but it is quite a breakthrough. Maybe you could comment on this?

    MW: Yeah, I think it’s great. Why not? There’s absolutely no reason why… we have very successful businesswomen around the world so there’s absolutely no reason why she cannot run a successful racing team. Some of the qualities that females have in terms of making decisions faster than a room full of men might be a positive thing. I look forward to seeing how she goes.

    SV: I don’t think her job really changes; I think she was already doing what she’s doing now. Obviously I still know some of the guys at Sauber from a couple of years ago, but I think that at this stage they would probably be happier to put out a press release saying that they’ve found a lot of cash for next year.

    Ends

  • Baton change at the Sauber F1 Team

    Hinwil/Yeongam, 11th October 2012: Some time ago, Peter Sauber announced that he did not wish to be on the pit wall when he turned 70. The company founder is proving true to his word: in two days’ time – on 13th October – he will turn 69 and is now stepping back from the day-to-day running of the team.
    Monisha Kaltenborn (41), CEO of Sauber Motorsport AG and responsible for business operations at Hinwil since early 2010, will additionally take over the role of Team Principal at trackside with immediate effect. Peter Sauber will continue in his capacity as President of the Board of Directors of all Sauber Group companies and remain responsible for the Group’s strategic direction. Monisha, an Indian-born law expert is settled as an Austrian citizen and is the only lady CEO in F1.

    Sauber (left) and Monisha. A file photo of Sauber F1 team.
    “We decided a long time ago that Monisha would take over from me,” explains Sauber, “but we left the timing open. Now is a good time for both of us, so this is the right moment to pass on the baton. After all, there have been a number of races I’ve been unable to attend – most recently the Japanese Grand Prix, where the team put in an excellent performance. I’m in no doubt that Monisha has all the necessary skills to be an outstanding Team Principal, and I’m equally certain she will ensure that the values underpinning the company live on. That is very important to me.”
    Monisha Kaltenborn, an Austrian of Indian origin, joined the company in 2000 to run the legal department, was appointed a Member of the Board of Management not long afterwards, and took over as CEO in January 2010. In late 2011 Peter Sauber transferred a third of the company’s shares into her name.
    “Naturally I’m very aware of the major responsibility I have for Peter Sauber’s racing team,” says Kaltenborn. “He founded the team over 40 years ago, and in the spring it will be 20 years since Sauber lined up for its debut Formula One grand prix. We are the fourth-oldest team in Formula One. To build up a project like this and keep it alive in a difficult environment is a tremendous achievement. I have set my sights high and am committed to taking the team forward as Peter Sauber would want and leading it on to success.”
    ends

  • Title chase wide open at Korean GP

    Mokpo, 10 Oct 2012: After the Driver’s championship became wide open with Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing closing the gap with Fernando Alonso to just four points in Japan, the Round 16 of the 2012 Formula One World championship sees the teams make a relatively short journey from Suzuka across the Sea of Japan to the South Korean port city of Mokpo and the nearby Korean International Circuit.

    With only five legs

    The circuit, completed just in time for the inaugural race here in 2010, presents some stern challenges for the teams, mostly centred around how to maintain the integrity of the tyres around its 5.615km distance. With the facility being used very infrequently, the Yeongam circuit is always dirty during the weekend’s opening sessions and is low on grip. To cope with this Pirelli has brought its softest compounds. However, the circuit also has a relatively abrasive surface and a mix of mostly medium and high-speed corners, so lateral loads are high and wear rates can be debilitating. The tyres take a beating as a consequence. Good management or rubber could be the deciding factor here in Korea.

    Drivers’ Championship leader Fernando Alonso suffered a shock first-lap exit in Suzuka and the incident leaves the chase for the 2012 title finely balanced. Sebastian Vettel’s win in Japan has put the Red Bull Racing driver within touching distance of the Ferrari man’s increasingly fragile lead in the standings and Alonso has thus called the final five races of the season a “mini-championship”. If that’s the case then, with just four points separating him from Vettel, the Spaniard needs a big result in round one in Korea to keep his title hopes alive.

    Vettel, meanwhile, became the first driver to score consecutive wins this season with victory in Suzuka and the momentum now seems firmly with the defending champion. But the KIC has been both cruel and kind to the German, with a DNF in the inaugural race being followed by victory last year. He’ll be hoping for a repeat of 2011 but if the teams and drivers have learned one thing this season it is to expect the unexpected and this race should be no exception. A fascinating weekend awaits.

    ends