December 2003

29 December 2003 The McLaren Mercedes team has announced that it has agreed a long-term extension to its Partnership with Henkel Technologies.

24 December 2003 The Foreign Office has warned Formula One that it has reason to suspect that there could be terrorist attacks at the Bahrain Grand Prix in April 2004.

23 December 2003 Hungarian Zsolt Baumgartner is Minardi's second driver for 2004. the announcement was made today by European Minardi Cosworth.

22 December 2003 Sauber said that they do not have the budget to run three cars at every practice session. The new rules state that the bottom six teams are all allowed to run a third car and their spare car during the practice sessions at race weekends.

22 December 2003 Kimi Raikkonen’s manager Dave Robertson said that the Finn sees his future at McLaren, denying recent reports that Kimi was looking in Ferrari's direction. Meanwhile, Williams' R. Schumacher is still finding stambling blocks and has not signed an extension to his contract, that expires at the end of 2004.

19 December 2003 In September Minardi tested the Arrows A23, which the team had bought at auction, renamed PS04. The intention was to use this as the 2004 car, but now the team has decided to use the PS03 as a basis to develop the PS04 instead, taking only a few select parts from the A23.

19 December 2003 Jos Verstappen will not drive for Minardi next season. After extensive talks between Paul Stoddart, manufacturer of technological products Trust and Verstappen's management, it was decided that Trust and Jos Verstappen did not want to be associated with a team that lacks in technical development and achievements.

18 December 2003 Barrichello has alsed Ferrari to let him know whether he will still have a place in the team after his contract expires at the end of 2004.

18 December 2003 Weekly magazine WirtschaftsWoche has reported that the car manufacturers will receive more decision-making powers and a bigger share of the proceeds from advertising, following a deal with Bernie Ecclestone. The deal eliminates the risk of the threatened berakaway championship going ahead.

17 December 2003 FFSA President Jacques Regis said that he is not willing to pay out more cash to host a race, dashing France’s hopes of securing its provisional slot on the 2004 Formula One calendar.

14 December 2003 Luca Cordero di Montezemolo was named 2003 Man of the Year at the Golden Helmets ceremony organised by Autosprint magazine.

13 December 2003 Italian Gianmaria Bruni, 22, has signed a driving contract with Minardi for the 2004 season.

12 December 2003 Sauber Petronas and Philips AG Consumer Electronics, Switzerland, have entered into a new partnership agreement. The electronics giant will supply Sauber with plasma screens, DVD equipment and LCD projectors primarily for the new wind tunnel but also for trackside use. Philips will be providing other services, as well, in return for which the company will be granted various marketing rights, including use of the wind tunnel for exclusive events.

12 December 2003 German driver Heinz-Harald Frentzen is quitting Formula 1 to join the DTM championship, according to German agency SID.

11 December 2003 FIA President Max Mosley has proposed a new penalty system to be used in Formula One, replacing drive-through penalties with a licence points system that would see drivers’ earn points for their misdemeanours. The points would be tallied after the race, when the stewards have the time to examine all the evidence available to them. Repeat offenders would be handed a race ban.

11 December 2003 An English court has issues a warrant for the arrest of former Formula One driver Eddie Irvine, after the Ulsterman twice failed to attend the hearing in London for speeding. Irvine was caught going 30 mph over the speed limit in London’s Hyde Park on July 24 this year. He failed to to appear before the magistrate to answer the charge in November, receiving an automatic guilty verdict. He then failed to attend his sentencing yesterday.

9 December 2003 R. Schumacher missed today's promotional work with BMW for the introduction of BMW's F1 yearbook "Racing on the edge" after being hit by food poisoning.

9 December 2003 Sports goods manufacturer PUMA and the mobile network company O2 will be official suppliers of BMW in 2004, while Gore will support the team as promotional partner.

7 December 2003 Willi Weber has warned the Williams team that R. Schumacher would go elsewhere if his personal demands were not met. The German driver said that he is not happy with some of the contract details and that is why he is not signing it yet.

5 December 2003 Ross Brawn has received an honorary degree in Mechanical Engineering from Università Politecnica delle Marche.

5 December 2003 the Lucky Strike BAR Honda team has announced that it has renewed its supplier agreement with Koni, which has provided BAR with dampers since the team’s debut race in 1999.

5 December 2003 Talks between car manufacturers and the Formula One's commercial rights holders have averted plans by leading Formula One teams to create a breakaway world championship. A statement issued jointly by the GPWC and SLEC read: "We are very happy that today we reached a breakthrough in our negotiations about the future of Formula One. The outcome is in the best interests of Formula One and the millions of its fans around the world."

3 December 2003 Sao Päulo court has overturned the ruling of Judge Vincenzo that suspended the contract between the prefecture and the Grand Prix promoters, effectively cancelling the Brazilian GP from the calendar. This new court decision will enable local authorities to start negotiating with Bernie Ecclestone for a contract renewal.

2 December 2003 Jaguar Racing has confirmed today that Austrian Christian Klien, 20, will be Mark Webber’s team mate for the 2004 Formula One season. Klien is joining the team immediately and today he joined Webber for a three-day test at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.

1 December 2003 James Robinson is joining the Jordan team as Head of Race and Test Engineering.

1 December 2003 Nick Heidfeld has signed a preliminary contract to drive for the Jordan team in 2004, after reducing his wage demands, according to Heidfeld's manager Werner Heinz.

Last updated on by Federica Massagrande