Say hello to Little Nicky’s lady

Don’t let the clean-shaven appearance fool you, the chap enjoying an Oktoberfest beverage in the picture above is F1’s very own scruffbag Nick Heidfeld. The lady with whom he is clinking glasses is wife Patricia Papen - unlike some (Cora Schumacher), she rocks the natural look and tends to keep out of the limelight.

Say hello to Mrs Felipe Massa

The lady wearing a leopard and smoking an imaginary cigarette in the pictures above is Anna Rafaela Bassi, who married potential 2008 World Champion Felipe Massa last year.

If Vince Vaughn’s character in Swingers were to describe her as “money”, he would be entirely accurate: the Brazilian’s family own the Guarana Brasil fashion label, ensuring she is never short of decent threads or a private jet.

McLaren man shows off his new toy

One of the perks of making sure that every other sentence you say includes the word “Vodafone” is that they give you a free Blackberry Storm to play with before most people get their hands on one.

Use the force, Lew

The force is strong in F1. Lewis Hamilton has been using his Jedi ways to help him prepare mentally for the Japanese Grand Prix. Here he is pictured in quiet Jedi contemplation. Now we just have to wait and see how the Ferrari Empire Strikes Back after Singapore.

Expect to see Jenson Button with fuel hose in-tow very soon

This week Ferrari finally admitted defeat in their battle to prove that their semi-automated pit-stop strategy was the way forward. Imagine our surprise then to learn that Honda are introducing a very similar system for the final three races of the season. Just like Ferrari’s failed technology, the Honda strategy involves a red, amber and green light display and three or four mechanics sitting with their finger hovering nervously over a big red button.

Whether this is something Honda has been working on for a while or they bought down the pub from Stefano Domenicali last night, we do not know. Given that the only team to use this system before has scrapped it because it put a huge dent in their championship challenge, you would have to question Honda’s logic.

And if anyone has a job going for a redundant lollipop stick, let us know.

Ferrari title contender will stop trying on last lap at Interlagos

Lewis Hamilton’s title hopes have been given a boost after Felipe Massa revealed that he will stop fighting for the title on the last lap of his home grand prix in Brazil. The Ferrari driver hinted that he would stop giving it his all on the final lap at Interlagos.

“We are still seven points behind, but we still have 30 points in front of us,” said Massa. “We’re going to do the best we can to fight until the last lap in the last race.”

What and then just give up, Felipe? We are not quite sure what he has planned for the last lap. Coasting round waving to his compatriots perhaps. In the interests of fair play we will suggest that he fights until the chequered flag.

Team bosses want Canada back on the Formula One calendar

Formula One team bosses are set to discuss ways of getting the Canadian Grand Prix reinstated for next season. The race had been scheduled on the original 2009 calendar, but was controversially scrapped earlier this week. It seems likely that Bernie Ecclestone has made the decision on economic grounds, but the F1 teams seem just as disgruntled with the decision as the Candian Grand Prix’s many fans.

“I don’t think it is a short-term problem, but it is a problem that does need to be addressed,” Honda CEO Nick Fry told Autosport. “We are a global series and not to be performing in one of the major continents is a serious problem - even more so because it is a continent that is very important for the motor manufacturers who are involved in F1.

Singapore tram firm strike back at Red Bull

The company responsible for Singapore’s tram network has refuted suggestions that one of their vehicles forced Mark Webber out of the Singapore Grand Prix. Red Bull had suggested that the transmission problem which messed up the Australian’s gears at Turn 13 had been caused by static electricity from a nearby tram. But Singapore’s Mass Rapid Transit have - after a strange delay - denied that his was the case.

“There is no MRT track beneath Turn 13,” an SMRT official said, possibly whilst giving the Vs. “The nearest MRT tunnel is about 200 metres away with a depth of about ten metres. And train wheels and running wheels do not generate static electricity.”

Spotted on Forumula1.net