Thursday’s online truck stop

• You know you want a Jeff Gordon action figure. Comes with free “choking hazard” sticker. Awesome [From the Marbles]

• Nascar is bad for the environment. How is that news? [With Leather]

• Takuma Sato’s undeniable Japaneseness of great interest to Honda and Red Bull [F1 Live]

• First pics of Mazda’s sleek new Kiyora concept car [Car]

• Sebastian Vettel wasted at Red Bull? [Times F1 blog]

F1’s rising star quicker than title contenders

They say the younger you are, the easier it is to learn, and Seb Vettel, 21, proved that by lapping faster than older, more experienced drivers in the first open practice session at Valencia’s new street circuit. The odds on Vettel ending up at a top team in 2010 get shorter and shorter. Vettel’s team-mate, Sebastien Bourdais, also had a fine morning. He finished fourth in the rankings.

It’s perplexing that the Toro Rosso upstarts are suddenly going so well, while Red Bull Racing - supposedly the senior team to STR - are way off the pace: in contrast to the two Sebs, David Coulthard and Mark Webber were slowest this morning, finishing 19th and 20th respectively.

Lewis Hamilton looked like setting a faster time than Vettel, but the Englishman spun while on a quick lap, and so had to settle for third place. Sandwiched between Vettel and Hamilton was Felipe Massa, who again got the better of Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.

Lil’ Lewis wasn’t the only driver to find the going tough on the new track; several other drivers spun off, but no one crashed into the concrete walls.

Full morning timesheet below:

Gerhard Berger thinks Vettel will be world champ. Is he right?

Sebastian Vettel will graduate to the senior Red Bull team at the end of this season. It’s the next step in a career that many experts predict will take Vettel to the very top of F1.

Gerhard Berger, Vettel’s boss at Toro Rosso, believes the young German has what it takes to become world champion.

Ayrton Senna’s nephew in demand for 2009

No less than five F1 teams are interested in signing GP2 driver Bruno Senna for 2009. They are: Toro Rosso, Honda, Toyota, Williams and BMW Sauber.

Ayrton’s nephew claimed earlier this year that he wasn’t yet ready for F1, but it seems F1 is more than ready to welcome another Senna into its paddock. Think of the publicity his arrival would generate - Wee Bernie Ecclestone must be rubbing his hands at the prospect.

Red Bull shine in Spain again

Mark Webber topped the timesheet at Jerez yesterday, to compete another strong day for the Red Bull team; Seb Vettel - who will team up with Webber in 2009 - set the pace for Toro Rosso, Red Bull’s junior team, on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Steady Webbo was pleased with his team’s efforts in Spain:

“The car ran pretty reliably, and we’ve clocked up some good mileage. Today we were mostly getting ready for Budapest, as well as looking at developments for a little later in the season. Yesterday we were focusing more on ‘09, and it was quite a challenging day. Today was better in terms of what we learned mechanically and aerodynamically. It’s been a hot week for the guys working here, and they’ve done a good job.”

Full timesheet after the jump…

Toro Rosso runs with 2009 specs

In scorching conditions, Seb Vettel again was the man to beat in F1 testing at Jerez. He was the only driver to dip below the 1:19.00 mark, beating the likes of Kimi Raikkonen, Mark Webber and Nico Rosberg.

In preparation for the new regulations in 2009, Vettel ran on slick tyres all day, and with reduced downforce. Red Bull, Honda, Williams and McLaren also sent thier drivers out on Bridgestone slicks.

Full timesheet below:

Toro Rosso’s rising star shines in Spain

Seb Vettel was quickest at Jerez yesterday, although he was one of only two grand prix drivers to test - Toyota’s Jarno Trulli was the other. Vettel and Trulli apart, Tuesday was a chance for the test drivers to do what they’re paid for.

Full timesheet below:

Toro Rosso’s rising star will replace DC next season

It’s been the worst-kept secret in F1 for a couple of months now: Seb Vettel will step up and replace David Coulthard at Red Bull in 2009. When Coulthard himself called for Vettel to be his replacement last week, it became clear that the deal was 99% done.

This not-so-shocking news, which is set to be officially announced later today, at least puts paid to the rumour that Red Bull were sweet on Fernando Alonso - there is no way that Red Bull will want to ditch the uber-reliable Mark Webber.

McLaren prodigy leads the pack for second day in a row

Lewis Hamilton can’t be touched at Hockenheim. He was the only driver to dip under 1:15.00 at the German track yesterday, in a McLaren that featured a new front-wing design. Nico Rosberg put in a solid stint for second place, perhaps a consequnce of Williams now placing more emphasis on this year’s car, rather than the 2009 development programme. World champ Kimi Raikkonen was third for Ferrari, less than half a second off McLaren’s pace.

In a brief interview after Tuesday’s session, Lewis admitted that he was NOT thinking about sacking his dad (despite what Marca thinks), and that he believes the 2008 championship will go down to the last race of the season. The British driver also revealed that after his stunning win at Silverstone, he was in bed by 11pm after a celebration dinner with his family - not exactly the behaviour of F1’s greatest ever playboy.

Full timesheet below…

We rate Red Bull’s little brother, based on the first half of 2008

SCUDERIA TORO ROSSO
Drivers Sebastian Vettel (Germany) & Sebastien Bourdais (France)
Championship points 7

Read our verdict on Toro Rosso below: