Some news tidbits from the world of Formula 1:

‘Outboard’ Mirrors To Be Banned: This weekend’s Grand Prix will be the last for the sort of ‘outboard’ rear view mirrors that are becoming commonplace in F1. In Australia last week, veterans Rubens Barrichello and Pedro de la Rosa led the calls for better driver visibility, with mirrors increasingly integrated on flimsy aerodynamic bodywork mounted away from the cockpit sides. “They have to come back to the monocoque, with the old style, as that is the best position to work,” said Spaniard de la Rosa. “We have to compromise — this is a safety issue,” he added. Ahead of this weekend’s Sepang event, Williams driver Barrichello said: “As far as I’m concerned it’s agreed that we need better visibility, so the change could come as early as the next race.”

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Bigger ‘Shark Gills’ To Help Cool Ferraris At Sepang: The first major evidence of Ferrari’s push to improve the cooling efficiency of its 2010 car can now be seen in the team’s pit garage at Sepang. Boss Stefano Domenicali vowed to improve the F10 after both Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa’s engines had to be changed due to heat stress after qualifying for the season opener in Bahrain. “The temperature of the engine is the result of the aerodynamics of the car, so we have to work on that in order to make sure that we don’t have any more of these kinds of issues for the next hot races,” he said. Although rain is forecast in Malaysia this weekend, the ambient temperatures are nonetheless certain to be high, and Ferrari confirmed that the red cars “will have some updates aimed at dealing with the unique characteristics of this event”. The most obvious change is to the engine cover, which now features much more pronounced ‘shark gills’. The (smaller) gills were present in Bahrain, but not at all during the cold winter testing period.

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No Points For Toro Rosso On Tilke Tracks – Alguersuari: Toro Rosso is not likely to trouble the points-scoring ranks on the “predictable” circuits like Malaysia. That is the admission of Jaime Alguersuari, who battled throughout last Sunday’s Australian grand prix with Michael Schumacher but ultimately lost the final championship point to the seven time world champion. But ahead of this weekend’s event at Sepang, which was the first of the modern breed of Hermann Tilke-designed circuits in F1, the 20-year-old Spaniard is not confident of a repeat of his Melbourne battle. “At the permanent circuits, especially the wide, safe and predictable Tilke ones, right not we are not able to score,” said Alguersuari, who was just a 1-year-old baby when Schumacher made his Grand Prix debut in 1991. Quoted by the Spanish agency Europa Press, he added: “But I am convinced that we are close and soon we will have aerodynamic improvements that will help us make a good step.”

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Haug Admits DTM Deal Chance For Coulthard ‘Good’: Norbert Haug has admitted there is a “good” chance that David Coulthard will race for Mercedes in the German touring car series DTM in 2010. Scot Coulthard, 39, recently tested the C-Class car and had said he was hoping to “complete the final details” of a deal in Melbourne last weekend. He said he now plans to sit down with Haug, who is the German marquee’s competition boss, on the sidelines of the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang. “There is still no contract signed, but David and I will have talks before the grand prix of Malaysia,” the German confirmed to the SID news agency. “The chance that we will find a solution is, I think, good,” added Haug. Coulthard drove for McLaren-Mercedes between 1996 and 2004, but finished his grand prix career two years ago at the wheel of a Red Bull. He is still close to the energy drinks company, and attends all the F1 races as an expert pundit for British television.

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Petrov Mourns Terrorist Victims: Russia’s first Formula One racer Vitaly Petrov said Wednesday he will wear a black armband during this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix in memory of the victims of the two terrorist attacks in downtown Moscow. Two suicide bombings hit the Moscow metro on Monday morning, killing at least 39 people and injuring dozens more. The rush-hour blasts took place about 40 minutes apart at the Lubyanka and Park Kultury stations. “I was shocked when I learned about the tragedy. I will race at the upcoming grand prix in Malaysia with a black armband in memory of the people who died or were injured at Lubyanka and Park Kultury,” Petrov told the Russian news agency Novosti.

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Johnny Herbert To Be Steward In Malaysia: Johnny Herbert will be the driver steward on duty at this weekend’s Malaysian Grand Prix. The Jean Todt-led initiative, with experienced former drivers sitting alongside the regular F1 stewards, is designed to give credibility and bring a new relevant perspective to their decisions. Alain Prost kicked off the scheme in Bahrain, followed by 8-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen for last weekend’s Australian Grand Prix. Also touted for appearances in 2010 are Nigel Mansell, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Damon Hill and Alex Wurz. 45-year-old Briton Herbert won three Grands Prix during his F1 career spanning 165 races until 2000. His last role in F1 was as sporting relations manager with Jordan and Midland in 2005/6.

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Lotus Confirms Fauzy For Friday, New Sponsor: Lotus has now confirmed two pieces of news that were revealed recently. The first is that the new Malaysian team’s Kuala Lumpur-born test driver Fairuz Fauzy will be driving race regular Heikki Kovalainen’s green T127 car at Sepang on Friday morning. “I’ve been told to get ready for Friday’s practice and it will be a fantastic feeling for me,” said the 27-year-old. And we reported on Tuesday that the Norfolk-based team would shortly confirm a sponsor deal with leading Malaysian mobile network Maxis, with a logo to be placed on car’s nose section. “There is money in the sponsorship,” confirmed Maxis’ COO Jean Pascal van Overbeke. “It is a firm one year sponsorship with long intentions.” Like fellow new entrants Virgin and HRT, Lotus will be at the back of the Sepang grid this weekend, but team boss Tony Fernandes insists his plan is to bring the team forwards. “If we’re still last in three seasons, we’ve wasted our time,” he is quoted as saying by the AP news agency.

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Malaysian Weather ‘Greatest Challenge’: After monsoonal rain halted running during last year’s twilight Malaysian Grand Prix, afternoon thunderstorms are again forecast for the 2010 edition at Sepang. The race time has at least been brought forward from 5pm to 4pm for this weekend’s race outside Kuala Lumpur, after the Grand Prix last year ended in near-darkness. But the threat of late afternoon rain, in unbearable humidity and high temperatures, has again been a feature in and around the city so far this week. Mercedes’ Norbert Haug said: “This climate is the greatest challenge for the teams, cars and drivers.” The same sort of weather is forecast throughout the weekend, although the chance of very heavy rain is mercifully smaller for the decisive qualifying and race sessions on Saturday and Sunday.

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Horner Insists Title Not Over For Vettel: According to Niki Lauda, Red Bull could look back on the first two rounds of 2010 and rue precisely where the team blew the world championship. Back-to-back pole sitter Sebastian Vettel left Melbourne on a direct flight to Malaysia on Monday, after retiring from the lead of the Australian Grand Prix with a wheel-mounting problem caused by a loose wheel nut. Two weeks earlier, also whilst leading in the dominant RB6, he dropped to fourth place with a failed spark plug. “There will be consequences,” triple world champion Lauda told the German newspaper Bild, in an article headlined “Vettel mad at his Schrott (Scrap)-Bull”. Added Lauda: “Red Bull can forget the title.” But team boss Christian Horner has urged Vettel’s fans not to “panic”, arguing that it is not the end of the world for the 22-year-old to be travelling to Kuala Lumpur with a 25-point title deficit. “We know we have got a fast car and I would far rather have a fast car than a slow car. It’s a long season,” the Briton is quoted as saying by The Sun. “There is still a long way to go and the season will have many different twists and turns.”

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McLaren Admits Victory Repeat In Malaysia Unlikely: Two days after Jenson Button scored McLaren’s first win of the 2010 season, the British team has warned that a repeat in Malaysia this weekend is unlikely. The MP4-25 car was better suited to Melbourne than it had been at the Bahrain season opener, but reigning world champion Button said on Tuesday: “I think we travel to Sepang mindful that the characteristics of the (Sepang) circuit probably won’t suit our car as well as it will suit some of the others.” Teammate Lewis Hamilton played up the situation, noting that this year’s car “will be far better” in Malaysia than its predecessor was a year ago, when it qualified just 13th at Sepang. But team boss Martin Whitmarsh said the Woking based team is “under no illusions” that it will be the “regular pacesetters” – presumably Red Bull and Ferrari – who will be “up at the front” this weekend. Button, however, is not ruling out his chances of defending his title in 2010, with his Melbourne win propelling him to within 6 points of Fernando Alonso’s early lead. “I always thought the (2010) title might be on. It’s a long season,” the Briton is quoted as saying by the Mirror.

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Todt To Tell Teams Of Local GP Nation ‘Protocols’: FIA president Jean Todt will respond to the lingering saga following incidents involving Lewis Hamilton and Mark Webber during the 2010 Australian GP event. Lewis Hamilton was charged by local Victorian police for doing a burnout on his way out of the Albert Park circuit late on Friday, prompting Mark Webber to slam the “nanny state” that now exists in Australia. Following high-level meetings in Australia on Tuesday, race promoter Ron Walker said Todt will respond by informing teams about the “protocol” of all the host nations they visit. “The protocol will be about a list of what can be done in this country and the rules and regulations for the (other) places they visit,” he said. I actually don’t think he (Hamilton) knew he was breaking any laws or would have any problems doing wheel spin-outs. “They are going to Malaysia this week … he would probably get a big round of applause there,” added Walker.

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