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(Current Affairs For SSC Exams) Sports,Nov. 2012 - Formula One

Sports

November 2012

Topic : Formula One

F1 SECOND INDIAN GRAND PRIX

Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel won the Indian Grand Prix 2012 on 28 October 2012 at the Buddh International Circuit (BIC) for the second time in a row extending his Formula One championship lead.

The rival Fernando Alonso of Ferrari kept the pressure on with finishing up for a second-place. The win put Vettel (240 points) 13 points clear of his rolling Ferrari rival Fernando Alonso. It was Sebastian Vettel’s fourth straight win for the first time in his career completing a clean sweep of the Asian swing -- and now leads the drivers’ championship by 13 points with three races to go, chasing a third successive F1 title. Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull teammate Mark Webber finished third, the Australian fending off a strong late challenge from Lewis Hamilton of McLaren who finished fourth ahead of his teammate and fellow Briton Jenson Button. Earlier on 26 October 2012 Vettel clocked the fastest time with 1 minute 25.283 seconds to grab pole, his teammate Webber finished second with a timing of 1:25.327.

FIRST WOMAN TEAM PRINCIPAL IN FORMULA ONE

India-born, Monisha Kaltenborn Became the First Woman Team Principal in Formula one on 11 October 2012 after taking the control of team Sauber, a Swiss Formula one team with the stepping down of team founder Peter Sauber from day to day management.

The news of Monisha Kaltenborn appointment came after Peter Sauber made it clear that he did not wish to run the team, which he built more than fourty years ago. Monisha Kaltenborn joined Sauber in 2000 as head of its legal department and has been its CEO since January 2010. Monisha secured her bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Vienna in 1995 and also holds a Master’s degree in International Business Law from the London School of Economics which she did in 1996.

ABOUT SAUBER TEAM

Sauber F1 Team is a Swiss Formula One team. It was founded in the 1970s by Peter Sauber, who progressed through hillclimbing and the World Sportscar Championship to reach Formula One in 1993. The team was sold to BMW in 2005; the reason was not winning a Grand Prix as an independent. The team thereafter competed as BMW Sauber from 2006 to 2009, achieving one victory. At the end of the 2009 season, BMW pulled out of Formula One and the team’s future remained uncertain for several months, until it was sold back to Peter Sauber and granted a 2010 entry. However, due to issues with the Concorde Agreement, the team remained as “BMW Sauber” for the 2010 season. In March 2010, Peter Sauber announced plans to change the team name during the season, but the FIA announced that they would have to wait until the end of the season to change their name. From the beginning of the 2011 Formula One season the team dropped BMW from their name. Peter Sauber currently owns a controlling 66.6% stake in the team, with the remainder belonging to Monisha Kaltenborn.

JAPANESE GRAND PRIX

Sebastin Vettel on 7 October 2012 won the Formulae One title race of the Japanese Grand Prix for the season.

He left Ferrari’s Felipe Massa 20 seconds behind in the race to conquer the title. Kamui Kobayashi, the home favorite of the tournament took the third position on the podium. Sebastin Vettel is this year only man to bag back-to-back victories in the Grand Prix.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER ANNOUNCED RETIREMENT

Michael Schumacher, the German Formula one driver and the seven times world Champion on 4 October 2012 announced his retirement from Formula one Race.

Michael Schumacher will retire from Formula 1 for the second time at the end of the 2012 Season. He first retired in 2006 but made a comeback with the Mercedes team in 2010. The retirement came after Mercedes announced that Lewis Hamilton would replace him in the side although it was clear that the Michael Schumacher will join Sauber for the next Formula one season. Michael Schumacher dominated the F1 world at the start of 20th century when he won five world titles in a row from 2000-2004. He is popularly regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time. Michael Schumacher made his debut at the Belgium Grand Prix in 1991 and won 91 Grand Prixes in his career.