The Super Aguri team heads for Round 17 of the 2006 Formula One World Championship at the Japanese Grand Prix. The SAF1 Team, which was 'Born in Japan', has been eagerly awaiting its 'home race' at the Suzuka Circuit and the team's arrival in Japan this week has been enthusiastically anticipated by Japanese and international racing fans alike.

Australian Grand Prix organisers are blaming this year's Commonwealth Games for a dramatic loss generated by the Formula One event at Melbourne's Albert Park. The Victorian state parliament heard how the Australian Grand Prix Corporation recorede a loss of over 21million Australian dollars (approximately $15million US dollars) - almost double the loss of the previous year.

Dutch bank to sponsor Renault?

The Australian Grand Prix lost $15.6m in 2006, according to the financial results presented to the Victorian state parliament on Wednesday.

Hard times in Melbourne?

Plumbing the depths

The Fuji circuit expects to be one of the main events of 2007 when it returns to the F1 calendar after a thirty-year absence. The Toyota-owned circuit is built in the shadow of Mount Fuji and organisers expect some 300,000 to flock to the venue during the weekend next season.

Honda is planning to keep its line up of Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button together for at least another season, the team's president Yasuhiro Wada told reporters ahead of this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix.

Just seven days after the Chinese GP the Formula 1 circus will race on the Japanese track of Suzuka, one of Michael Schumacher's favourite tracks: "With our win in Shanghai I'm looking forward even more to the race in Suzuka, which is anyway always one of the season highlights. This track is like a dream; especially the first sector. To drive that part of the track is just fabulous: the s-curves, the rhythm, just incredible."

After Sunday's thrilling Chinese Grand Prix victory by Michael Schumacher, which saw the seven time world champion draw ahead in the drivers' championship for the first time this season, Bridgestone heads straight to its home turf at Suzuka, Japan in preparation for one of the most challenging and pivotal races of the year. 

There are reports from Italy that Jacques Villeneuve has signed a deal with Jack Roush to race for the Roush Racing organisation in NASCAR. The team leads Ford's challenge in the Nextel Cup and is one of the top operations, having won the title in 2003 with Matt Kenseth and 2004 with Kurt Busch.

Team Netherlands signs rookie van der Zande