F1 News

January 2004


23 January 2004 Zsolt Baumgartner will be on the grid in a Minardi at Melbourne. His amanger, Tamas Frank, said that the driver would start the season at Albert Park, despite the loss of nearly 2 million US dollars from oil firm Mol Rt. Baumgartner's management team have made the first of several scheduled payments to Paul Stoddart and are in talks with other sponsors to find the rest of the money. Baumgartner's supporters have set up a bank account into which individuals and businesses can pledge their aid to the driver.

22 January 2004 Zsolt Baumgartner has refused a rescue pack from an Austrian firm, that would have given him enough funds to sponsor his seat at Minardi. The young Hungarian said that he has decided to race in Formula One in Hungarian colours only, so he would not accep an offer from a non-Hyngarian firm.

22 January 2004 The McLaren team has extended its sponsoring partnership with Siemens.

21 January 2004 he European Commission warned Formula One supremo Max Mosley and team chiefs that they are not above the law. The team chiefs have threatened to boycott European Grand Prix this season in protest at new EU rules relating to death on the track. A spokeperson for the European commissioner for Justice and Home Affairs told the media that European Arrest Warrants apply to all citizens and that Max Mosley is not above the law.

21 January 2004 There still is no confirmation of Dutch driver Jos Verstappen joining the Jordan team. Verstappen’s manager Raymond Vermeulen said that they are one step closer to reaching an agreement after talks with the team.

21 January 2004 The Mild Seven Renault F1 Team has announced a new Official Supplier agreement with DMG, the world's leader of machine tools for milling and turning.

21 January 2004 The Lucky Strike BAR Honda Formula One team has signed a three-year extension to the five-year Technical Partnership agreement with market-leading software company, UGS PLM Solutions.

20 January 2004 Formula 1 team bosses have threatened to boycott races in Europe because of new European Union (EU) regulations relating to deaths of drivers. The team chief want the governmnets to give them an exeption from being arrested in the case of the death of fatalities. Max Mosley is going to talk to the European Commission and to various governments to try and solve the situation.

19 January 2004 The Sauber Petronas team and sportwear manufacturer Puma have extended their existing supplier contract. As part of the extension both Sauber drivers, Giancarlo Fisichella and Felipe Massa, will wear Puma fireproof racewear and footwear in the 2004 season.

18 January 2004 The Jaguar Racing team has launched its 2004 challenger, the R5, at the Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona (Spain). The new car and engine specifications are as follows:

R5

CR6

17 January 2004 The Toyota team has unveiled the 2004 contender, the TF104, at a media open day at its Cologne headquarters. The new car and engine specifications are as follows:

TF104

RVX-04

16 January 2004 Zsolt Baumgartner's manager, Tamas Frank, admitted that there are problems with the Minardi seat. Baumgartner's main sponsor, petroleum company Mol Rt., only gave their approval for a contract between the Hungarian driver and Jordan, while Tamas Frank is blaming Mol Rt. for changing their agreement on the date limit, just before making the first payment to Minardi.

16 January 2004 The McLaren team has taken up its option of kimi Räikkönen for an undisclosed sum. the promising Finn will partner Juan Pablo Montoya from 2005, meaning the end of David Coulthard's career at McLaren.

16 January 2004 The French GP has been reinstated in the 2004 calendar after a meeting between FIA president Max Mosley, Formula One management president Bernie Ecclestone and the Formula One team bosses in London. The GP has been given a 4th of July slot.

16 January 2004 oyota Motor Corporation and Toyota Motorsport GmbH have announced a deal with Denso Corporation, that becomes a corporate sponsor for the Panasonic Toyota Racing F1 team from the 2004 season.

16 January 2004 Jacques Villeneuve has confirmed in an interview to Swiss weekly L'Illustré that he will not race in Formula 1 in 2004. The Canadian said that he feels very tired and that the last two years have taken their toll on him. he said that he knew that everything would go wrong as soon as David Richards arrived twi years ago. Villeneuve feels that he has given his career to BAR for nothing.

15 January 2004 Toyota Motor Corporation and Toyota Motorsport GmbH have announced that they have come to a basic agreement on a sponsorship deal with Intel Corporation, the world's largest chip maker. The agreement includes substantial technical and marketing collaboration between the two companies.

14 January 2004 The Ferrari team announced that Rubens Barrichello's contract has been extended by two years until the end of 2006.

12 January 2004 Sauber Petronas have presented the new C23 racing car to international media representatives at Red Bull's Hangar-7, Salzburg Airport. The team also unveiled two new sponsors, "Sokhna Port" and "Tai Kang Life". The new car and engine specifications are as follows:

C23

04A

11 January 2004 The new McLaren MP4-19 suffers from having a very small cockpit. Only test driver Pedro De La Rosa, the shortest McLaren driver, fits well into it. Alexander Wurz, the tallest, has never tried getting into the MP4-19 yet.

9 January 2004 Jos Verstappen's manager Raymond Vermeulen has denied the roumur that the Dutch driver has signed a contract with Jordan.

9 January 2004 Ferrari has announced that it has established a technical and commercial agreement with manufacturer of professional tools and high-quality equipment, Beta Utensili S.p.A., which will be an Official Supplier to the team until the end of the 2006 season.

8 January 2004 Lucky Strike BAR Honda has announced that it has signed a Technical Partnership with Alcon, which will supply bespoke brake calipers and master cylinders for the team's 2004 contender, the 006.

8 January 2004 According to reports in the Dutch media, Jos Verstappen has signed a contract to drive for Jordan in 2004.

7 January 2004 A source clsoe to the Williams team said that the negotiations between the team and R. Schumacher have reached a deadlock over the driver's salary. R. Schumacher wants an increase on his 12 million pounds a year deal, while team boss Sir Frank Williams would rather pay him less and give him performance-related bonuses.

7 January 2004 The Mild Seven Renault F1 Team has announced a multi-year deal with Puma AG as an official supplier.

6 January 2004 A spokesman for Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has denied the rumour that the tycoon is about to buy the Jordan Formula 1 team.

6 January 2004 Robert White has been appointed as new Technical Director (Engine) of the Mild Seven Renault F1 team.

5 January 2004 Lucky Strike BAR Honda has signed a two-year deal with UK communications firm STL as an official Team Supplier.

5 January 2004 The BMW WilliamsF1 team has unveiled their 2004 contender, the FW26, at Valencia. The car resembles last year's FW25 execpt for the new-concept nosecone. The new car and engine specifications are as follows:

FW26

PS84

5 January 2004 Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, who bought the British football club Chelsea in 2003, has put in an offer to buy the Jordan team. According to reports in the British media, Abramovich has offered Eddie Jordan 150 million pounds for the outfit. Abramovich wants to turn the team into a Championship winner and he is eyeing M. Schumacher to achieve his goal.

5 January 2004 A Ferrari spokesman has denied claims in the Swiss press that Barrichello's contract extension has been agreed, saying that the team is still in talks with the Brazilian.

FedeF1 News Archive


Last updated on by Federica Massagrande