In brief, November 2009

Nico Rosberg looks increasingly likely to move to Brawn next year as Mercedes involvement makes the hiring of a German driver more attractive. Rubens Barrichello has been linked with a move to Williams, where reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg is set to be promoted to a race seat.

Michael Schumacher has extended his contract as a consultant-cum-advisor to Ferrari for a further three years. Prior to the German’s headline-grabbing aborted comeback it was widely thought that he would not be retained. Ferrari has said that Schumacher will focus on road car development.

The domination of the Mercedes-Benz engine this season has persuaded the FIA to allow a re-equalisation of power units. Instead of allowing other manufacturers to catch up, however, the move will see the best power units being pegged back. The re-equalisation is subject to agreement from all the engine suppliers.

Giancarlo Fisichella has committed to being Ferrari’s reserve driver for 2010. While most observers expect Fernando Alonso to partner a recovered Felipe Massa in the race team, the Italian provides a useful safety net. Kimi Räikkönen’s future is still unclear, but he has been tipped for a return to McLaren.

After almost two years away from F1, Vitantonio Liuzzi made an impressive comeback at the Italian GP. The Italian, who has most recently raced in A1GP, made it to Q3 and put his Force India seventh on the grid, while team-mate Adrian Sutil qualified second. Liuzzi had a strong race before being forced to retire with transmission problems.

The F1 in Schools competition, designed to encourage a new generation of motor sport engineers, took place in London in September. Lewis Hamilton and Bernie Ecclestone were on hand to present awards to the winning Koni Kats team from Wicklow, Ireland. The awards included motor sport engineering scholarships to City University, London.