World Touring Car independent Mehdi Bennani has joined Wiechers-Sport for the full 2010 season.

The Moroccan driver, who made his series debut on home soil in a SEAT Leon at the Marrakech street race last season, will drive one of the team’s BMW 3 Series.

“We are very pleased that Mehdi has joined us,” said Wiechers team manager Dominik Greiner. “From his very first laps in the WTCC he proved to be very competitive. Our common aim is a place on the podium in the Independents’ Trophy.”

Aly Horma, president of the Marrakech race, added: “As the only Moroccan driver in a world championship, Mehdi will be carrying high the colours of Morocco on the world’s most prestigious circuits.”

Skoda’s factory IRC team will contest the next two South American rounds of the championship, the Czech firm has announced today.

Beyond admitting it will run an expanded IRC programme this year, Skoda has not yet finalised its precise plans for 2010 – but Juho Hanninen and Jan Kopecky will make the trip across the Atlantic for the Curitiba Rally and Rally Argentina in March.

Skoda did not contest the Brazilian event last season, but it has competed on the WRC-qualifying Rally Argentina four times, with its best 2002 result coming in Carlos Paz when Toni Gardemeister placed his Octavia WRC in fifth place.

Skoda spokesperson Karel Pokorny said: “We will run two cars in Brazil and Argentina. Skoda has some experience in Argentina from the World Rally Championship but we have never been to Brazil so that will be something new.

“We saw last year the pace of the Fabia Super 2000 on gravel on the [rallies in] Azores and Russia and we hope this will continue when we go to Brazil and Argentina.”

Singapore Grand Prix chiefs are considering making changes to their Formula 1 track for 2011 in a bid to speed the circuit up.

According to a report in respected Singapore newspaper Today, Marina Bay chiefs are considering making significant changes to the 3.152-mile layout of the Marina Bay circuit after this year’s race to raise the track’s average lap speed.

Formula 1’s night-race venue is one of the longest on the calendar, with Fernando Alonso’s lap record standing at 1m48.240s. Both the events held so far have run to nearly two hours – the FIA’s stated maximum time limit for a grand prix.

The Singapore Tourism Board is not planning to make any changes before this year’s race, but is looking at modifications to two areas of the track for 2011.

The light-right-left zig-zag from Turns Seven to Nine could be changed into a simple 90 degree left-hander around the War Memorial, instead of inside it.

But more significantly, the changes may also remove altogether the bus-stop chicane sequence that runs underneath the grandstand near the end of the track – near where Nelson Piquet crashed in 2008.

Justin Chew, the Singapore Tourism Board’s executive director, told Today: “We are always looking to see how we can improve the Singapore Grand Prix. If it is for the good of the race and makes it more exciting for fans and drivers, we will consider it.”

Singapore Grand Prix chiefs are considering making changes to their Formula 1 track for 2011 in a bid to speed the circuit up.

According to a report in respected Singapore newspaper Today, Marina Bay chiefs are considering making significant changes to the 3.152-mile layout of the Marina Bay circuit after this year’s race to raise the track’s average lap speed.

Formula 1’s night-race venue is one of the longest on the calendar, with Fernando Alonso’s lap record standing at 1m48.240s. Both the events held so far have run to nearly two hours – the FIA’s stated maximum time limit for a grand prix.

The Singapore Tourism Board is not planning to make any changes before this year’s race, but is looking at modifications to two areas of the track for 2011.

The light-right-left zig-zag from Turns Seven to Nine could be changed into a simple 90 degree left-hander around the War Memorial, instead of inside it.

But more significantly, the changes may also remove altogether the bus-stop chicane sequence that runs underneath the grandstand near the end of the track – near where Nelson Piquet crashed in 2008.

Justin Chew, the Singapore Tourism Board’s executive director, told Today: “We are always looking to see how we can improve the Singapore Grand Prix. If it is for the good of the race and makes it more exciting for fans and drivers, we will consider it.”

Singapore Grand Prix chiefs are considering making changes to their Formula 1 track for 2011 in a bid to speed the circuit up.

According to a report in respected Singapore newspaper Today, Marina Bay chiefs are considering making significant changes to the 3.152-mile layout of the Marina Bay circuit after this year’s race to raise the track’s average lap speed.

Formula 1’s night-race venue is one of the longest on the calendar, with Fernando Alonso’s lap record standing at 1m48.240s. Both the events held so far have run to nearly two hours – the FIA’s stated maximum time limit for a grand prix.

The Singapore Tourism Board is not planning to make any changes before this year’s race, but is looking at modifications to two areas of the track for 2011.

The light-right-left zig-zag from Turns Seven to Nine could be changed into a simple 90 degree left-hander around the War Memorial, instead of inside it.

But more significantly, the changes may also remove altogether the bus-stop chicane sequence that runs underneath the grandstand near the end of the track – near where Nelson Piquet crashed in 2008.

Justin Chew, the Singapore Tourism Board’s executive director, told Today: “We are always looking to see how we can improve the Singapore Grand Prix. If it is for the good of the race and makes it more exciting for fans and drivers, we will consider it.”

Ferrari boss Luca di Montezemolo has suggested the door will be open for Valentino Rossi if he wanted to make a switch to Formula 1 next year.

The Italian MotoGP champion recently tested for the Ferrari team again at the Barcelona circuit, and the Italian squad was impressed with his performance.

Rossi had been linked with Ferrari in the past, and rumours have reemerged again following the test.

Di Montezemolo said during the launch of Ferrari’s new car that he would welcome Rossi if the possibility arose next year.

“He’s a friend and an undisputed champion, from Emilia-Romagna, a great fan of Formula 1 and engines, and also a potential Formula 1 champion,” said di Montezemolo.

“If there was the possibility in 2011 and he wanted to do it and had the possibility for testing and adapting to F1, then why not?”

The Ferrari head insisted he is in favour of allowing teams to run three cars in the future, a move that would help drivers like Rossi or young stars race in Formula 1.

“I want to be a little more general: I spoke about the possibility of a third car, but I didn’t say that Ferrari needs to have three cars,” he said. “I’m well aware of the objections coming from the small teams. I was talking from the point of view of the interest of Formula 1 and of potential new entries in Formula 1.

“The third car could also be helpful for young drivers, to let them grow. It’s not right that a boy, who has never driven in Formula 1 starts into a race without training and tests. Here’s the idea: I would happily give a Ferrari to an American, German or Australian team and let the car be managed by them.

“They would definitely spend less than if they had to build a car on their own from scratch. They could hand it over to a talented and strong driver or try it with a young driver with a certain potential.

“I told Domenicali to work on the possibility that some teams, like ours, could hand over cars to other teams.”

The building works to update Silverstone are well under way with the new Arena layout set to be ready for the 2010 season.

As AUTOSPORT reported on Tuesday, circuit bosses are confident that this year’s British Grand Prix will be able to run on the new configuration, while MotoGP’s first race back at Silverstone will use the new track on June 20.

The infield area of the circuit is being redeveloped to include the new Arena section, the current start/finish straight is being widened, the Stowe circuit is being extended, and work has begun on a new pit and paddock complex between Club and Abbey corners.

The site has 230 people working full-time on the building with £7million already invested. So far, 180,000 tonnes of earth have been moved and 8000 tonnes of new asphalt already laid.

The grandstands on the current pit straight have been removed so the track can be widened on the run to Copse corner. They will be re-built once the track works are complete. Ninety per cent of the circuit’s kerbs are being replaced to accommodate both bikes, for MotoGP, and cars.

The new pit and paddock complex is due to be completed for 2011, with 2010 events still using the current pits. The new pit lane entry will leave the current circuit on the inside of the track in the Vale section, between Stowe and Club corners.

The National straight will become part of the GP circuit, with the track joining it from the new Arena section. As a result, an asphalt run-off area has replaced the gravel bed at Brooklands corner.

To see a picture gallery of the work at Silverstone this week, click here.

Ferrari is confident that its all-new F10 design is a big step forward over last year’s car, as it eyes a full-scale world championship assault this season.

The team’s 2010 challenger was unveiled in Maranello on Thursday morning, with the Italian squad hoping that its early focus on the new car will see a return to form after the difficulties of last season.

Technical director Aldo Costa said: “We think this new car is a good step forward in aero development, car settings and also engine – and we are pretty much convinced we have taken a big step forward.

“We cannot know what our competitors have done, and only during the first race will we realise that. But it carries all our passion and the determination of a group that wants to forget what happened last year and go back to being competitive from the very first race.”

Ferrari began work on the F10 as early as last spring, and by the summer its design staff were working wholly on the new car after abandoning development of the F2009.

Costa said that a lot of development work had been spent on optimising the double diffuser on the new car – having been forced to integrate as best as possible on last year’s machine.

“As you know double diffusers were made legal during the previous season,” he said. “It revolutionised and changed the design of the cars – and we had to start it from zero, from scratch.

“We have adopted the concept, and this is something that was not possible during the last championship when the car had already been designed.

“A big change has taken place – not a dramatic change like from 2008 to 2009, but the car is substantially different from the previous cars.”

Ferrari plans a host of aerodynamic upgrades prior to the first race, and has pencilled in major aerodynamic and mechanical upgrades over the course of the year.

Chief designer Nikolas Tombazis added: “F10 is totally revised compared to the previous one.

“We are very much satisfied with the work we have done, although we are very aware of the fact that we will see on track if we have worked enough.

“It was good team work and all of the departments have worked hard. We are confident this car represents a step ahead and we look forward to seeing the first races.”

This year’s DTM season will finish with a street race in Shanghai, the series announced on Thursday.

The German series had been planning a race in the Chinese city for several months, but it had not been expected to form part of the championship.

However, after DTM promoter ITR was unable to find a replacement for Dijon when the French circuit asked to cancel its contract, discussions began in an effort to incorporate the Shanghai race into the calendar.

While the deal has not been finalised yet, the race is scheduled to take place on October 31, two weeks after the second race at Hockenheim, which has hosted every DTM finale since the series was reborn in 2000.

The DTM has raced in Shanghai before. In 2004, the series hosted a non-championship event on a street circuit, with Gary Paffett taking victory for Mercedes.

The only other new addition to the calendar for 2010 is the switching of the Spanish round from Barcelona to Valencia. The Ricardo Tormo circuit will host the second round of the season on May 23.

2010 DTM calendar

Hockenheim          April 25

Valencia            May 23

Lausitz             June 6

Norisring           July 4

Nurburgring         August 8

Zandvoort           August 22

Brands Hatch        September 5

Oschersleben        September 19

Hockenheim          October 17

Shanghai            October 31

The Ferrari team has been forced to call off the shakedown of its new car due to the poor weather conditions at the Fiorano circuit.

Brazilian Felipe Massa was scheduled to give the new F10 its first run today after the car was unveiled in Maranello this morning.

However, the Italian circuit was covered with ice due to the low temperatures and Ferrari has been forced to postpone the run.

The team said it will carry out the shakedown as soon as the weather allows it.