August 18th- Floods pose no threat to GP.

The authorities of Budapest were not concerned about threats of flooding in the city on Saturday affecting the happenings on the Hungaroring circuit this weekend. While rain hammered down and the Danube river was bursting its banks, the Budapest track has suffered very little side effects, the main one being cooler temperatures than normal and just a few spots of rain during Friday's opening practice sessions. "You do not have to worry you about floods or about an unspecified rescue plan,” officials stated yesterday.

“For the moment, all is under control in the city.” The official statement came after the Danube overflowed into certain parts of Budapest following a violent storm on Friday night. However the sun and warmth had returned to the city on Saturday with temperatures reaching 28 degrees. The forecast for today is partly cloudy conditions with a top of 26 expected.

August 17th- Ferrari to clinch Constructors Championship

Ferrari will launch their bid to claim the 2002 world constructors' championship from the front row of the grid in tomorrow's Hungarian Grand Prix after Rubens Barrichello, who is also aiming for second place in the drivers' table, clinched pole position in this afternoon's qualifying hour.The Brazilian driver recorded the fastest lap of the day with a 1:13.333, on his Bridgestone tyres while teammate Michael Schumacher will start the race alongside him from second on the grid.

“There is great competition between our two drivers and it has been a wonderful day for them. As it warmed up, our competitors clearly improved and became more of a challenge,” remarked Ross Brawn.“However, we are in the best starting position, which is critical here because overtaking is so difficult. There are things one can do with strategy and pit stops but good starts will be crucial.” Bridgestone teams' dominance of the weekend continued today with a total of five cars in the top eight. Giancarlo Fisichella continued his recent form in qualifying by driving to a potential points scoring 5th place on the grid while the Sauber Petronas drivers, Felipe Massa and Nick Heidfeld, qualified 7th and 8th.

August 15th- Ecclestone backs Turkey's bid

With several new venues vying for a place on the Formula One schedule in future seasons, Bernie Ecclestone has headed to Turkey to inspect several different sites in Istanbul, Antalya and Izmir. Turkey is hoping to secure a place on the 2005 calendar but at this stage of proceedings, there is no viable track for the F1 circus to compete on. With the amount of other countries hoping to host a race in the coming years, such as China Bahrain and Egypt, Ecclestone has backed Turkeys bid and part of his journey includes the assessment of surrounding areas to ensure that fans attending the proposed race will be adequately looked after in terms of accommodation. "I think it was a great decision to support Turkey's bid. We are going to look at these three cities and see which one would be good for us and good for Turkey. It is important that the city we choose is known worldwide. For instance when you say Istanbul everyone knows where it is," Ecclestone said. "We also have to make sure there are enough hotels. We are hoping you will get 30,000-40,000 people from overseas so we have to make sure they are looked after properly."

August 14th- Toyota aiming for Reliability

Formula 1 action resumes in Hungary this weekend with round 13 of 17, the only grand prix to take place in Eastern Europe, on the 3.975-kilometre Hungaroring circuit situated 20 kilometres outside the capital city of Budapest. The Hungarian Grand Prix has been on the F1 calendar since 1986, when 200,000 people turned out to watch the country's inaugural international motor race. Since then it has remained a popular race with fans and drivers alike, despite lap speeds being just 25kph faster than at Monaco. In preparation of this weekend's event, Toyota engineers spent much of the three-week break completing simulations of Budapest circuit in an effort to set-up the TF102s prior to arrival. While the test team worked diligently back at base, Mika and Allan have been enjoying the free time away from on track duties, Mika on his boat in the Mediterranean and Allan in Corsica.

August 10th- Arrows announcement expected soon

According to reports in the British press an announcement regarding the future of the Arrows Formula One team is expected some time today. The cash-strapped team is rumoured to be about to reveal who the new owner will be. Recent reports have linked former BAR boss Craig Pollock as the possible buyer, as well as the Austrian-based drinks firm Red Bull. Meanwhile other possibilities include Saudi Arabian investor Prince Khaled Al-Waleed. However these reports have all been pure speculation, and only time will tell who will come to the rescue of the team. There is also speculation that the announcement could be about who will be replacing Heinz-Harald Frentzen within the team, after the German driver was released from his contract with Arrows earlier this month. Various names have been mentioned here in the press recently as well, with Jos Verstappen, F3000 driver Sebastien Bourdais, and Fernando Alonso the most likely candidates.

August 8th-Honda ready for Hungary

After a relaxing three-week break following the German Grand Prix the Sauber team is ready to return to action next weekend at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Held at the Hungaroring, the circuit is situated 12 miles north east of Budapest, and is set in a natural amphitheatre. The 3.975 kilometre long circuit starts on one side, and goes down into a valley before going down the far side. It then turns back and comes back in the opposition direction, offering a scenic view together with the power and passion of Formula One. Overtaking is virtually impossible here, as the track is narrow, with many slow corners making grid position here is as important almost as important as they are in Monaco. The overall speed with is usually slow with cars set up for maximum downforce and the heat of the Hungarian summer can often mean a number of retirements will take place during the race.

August 6th- Panis confident about future

Olivier Panis' future in Formula One is one that is very much shrouded in mystery at the moment. Although his current team, BAR, confirmed Jenson Button for next season, the team did not say whether it would be Panis or Jacques Villeneuve teaming up with the young Brit in 2003. Panis has been in F1 since 1994, and at 35-years-old is one of the eldest drivers in the sport, but rather than being concerned that his age will exclude him from a drive, he believes that his experience will stand him in good stead. Should he lose his seat at BAR at the end of this season, Panis could have a few other options available to him such as Sauber, Jaguar, Toyota and the cash-strapped Arrows team. But at present Panis is not willing to say which teams he is in talks with other than to say that there are two or three teams.

August 4th

 

August 3rd- Frentzen leaves Arrows

Heinz-Harold Frentzen could be lining up a move with either Sauber or Jordan when he quit the Arrows team yesterday. Frentzens manager Monte Field said "I cannot say (where)at the moment but we do intend to do everything we can to ensure he will drive at some time".Heinz-Harold Frentzen has driven 12 races for the struggling team and despite the teams poor run, he has been responsible for Arrows only points this season. It is thought unlikely that he will join a new team for the Hungarian Grand Prix.