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☆ F1 needs Perez to keep performing at his best
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, March 20 (Reuters) - Sergio Perez may have had his best race yet in Sunday's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix but Formula One desperately needs the Mexican to keep it up in a season turning into a tale of two Red Bull team mates. Verstappen won 15 of the 22 races last year to Perez's two triumphs. "We've had those years where we were as strong, but it's a meritocracy," the Austrian told reporters when asked about the sport's popularity taking a hit if Red Bull kept winning everything. Perez agreed: "I think we did a great job," he said of the race in Jeddah. "I don't know if it's my best weekend so far with the team, but I'm sure Melbourne will be even better."

☆ Even from 15th, Verstappen remains a big threat
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 18 (Reuters) - Red Bull's Max Verstappen will start the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 15th place but none of his rivals were ruling out the Formula One championship leader fighting for victory on Sunday. Mercedes driver George Russell, who qualified third on a circuit where overtaking is relatively easy, expected to see Verstappen in his mirrors. "We saw what Max did last year from 15th in Spa and he's got a faster race car this year." Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, who will start 12th after qualifying second but with a 10 place grid drop, said Red Bull were on another planet. Red Bull boss Christian Horner preferred to praise Perez's pole lap.

☆ In homeland of Pope Francis, long absence prompts prayers for return
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Lucila Sigal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/4] Catholic faithfuls pray during a mass at the Basilica San Jose de Flores, where Pope Francis used to attend in his childhood, in Buenos Aires, Argentina March 6, 2023. Some in Argentina claim Pope Francis as a Peronist, part of the powerful political movement forged by Juan Domingo Perón in the 1940s based on social justice values. She accused him of taking sides politically and once avoided him by shunning a traditional Mass in Buenos Aires. "We shouldn't rule out the possibility that (the pope) is concerned his presence will sharpen the political divide," De Vedia said. Bergoglio, he pointed out, had gained the nickname "Papa villero" - Pope of the villas - due to his closeness with the people.

☆ F1 team bosses have their own light-bulb moment
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-26 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LONDON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - The late McLaren boss Teddy Mayer liked to compare Formula One drivers to interchangeable light-bulbs, declaring "you plug them in and they do the job", and nowadays the same might be said for team principals. The Frenchman is on his third different team, after stints at Sauber and Renault. "It shows also that the role of the team principal is maybe sometimes also a bit over-rated because if you can change it so quickly and there is no big impact, it tells also something. Sauber, with Swedish billionaire Finn Rausing as chairman of the board, will become the Audi works team from 2026. "But other than that we must not forget that F1 teams have developed into big organisations where the owners are not any more the team principals... some have engineers as team principals, some have more an old-fashioned rule."

The government is aiming to reach 2 million sales of electric motorbike in 2025 as the Indonesia attracts billion of dollars of investment in processing its rich nickel reserves into battery materials. Indonesia sold less than 40,000 electric motorbikes between 2019 and 2022, while its total motorbike sales in 2022 alone were 5.22 million units, industry data showed. Now their (annual) electric motorbike sales have reached more than 30 million," he said. Indonesia's government is targeting as much as 300,000 units of electric motorbike sales for 2023. The plant would have 10 Gigawatt hour capacity which would be enough to power 200,000 electric cars or up to 2.5 million electric scooters.

☆ Mercedes’s F1 Dynasty Ended With a Thud. Toto Wolff Has a Plan to Bring it Back.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Joshua Robinson | Jonathan Clegg | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Toto Wolff was at the Miami Grand Prix last spring, gazing out at the most sophisticated cars in the world racing around the sun-baked, palm-fringed circuit, when a jarring realization hit him like a bucket of cold water at 180 mph. His Mercedes team, Formula One’s eight-time defending constructors’ champion and arguably the greatest dynasty in modern sports history, wasn’t just off the pace. It was completely uncompetitive. The run of dominance that he had helped to build as Mercedes team principal was coming to a definitive conclusion. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton would finish the season without a single Grand Prix victory for the first time in his entire career.

☆ Nothing will stop me speaking out, says Hamilton
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton vowed on Wednesday to continue speaking out despite Formula One's governing body clamping down on drivers making 'political' statements. The governing FIA updated its International Sporting Code last December requiring prior written permission to make or display "political, religious and personal statements or comments" at races. "It doesn't surprise me, but nothing will stop me from speaking on the things that I'm passionate about and issues that there are. Asked whether he would be prepared to take a penalty, Hamilton added: "It would be silly to say that I would want to get penalty points for speaking out on things. "But I am still going to be speaking my mind as we still have this platform, there are still a lot of things we need to tackle."

☆ Nintendo cuts sales forecast for its ageing Switch console after disappointing holiday season
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Nintendo said its Pokémon Scarlet and Pokémon Violet games for the Nintendo Switch hit an all-times sales record for the company. Nintendo on Tuesday cut the outlook for its Nintendo Switch console and games sales and slashed its profit outlook for its current fiscal year. The Japanese gaming giant said it now expects to sell 18 million Switch units for the fiscal year ending March 2023, down from a previous forecast of 19 million. Nintendo said it now also expects sales of 205 million software units, down from a previous projection of 210 million units. Nintendo sold around 8.23 million Switch consoles in the December holiday quarter, down around 22% year-on-year.

☆ Let Hamilton speak out, says Bahrain rights group
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - The London-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD) urged Formula One's governing body on Tuesday to allow seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton and other drivers to speak freely on 'political' issues. read moreMercedes' Hamilton, the sport's all-time most successful driver, has used his profile and platform to address human rights abuses and racial injustice around the world. The Middle East has four races this year -- In Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. The FIA has said the update is merely aligned with "the political neutrality of sport" but Alwadaei said it appeared to target Hamilton. "We are saying to Mohammed Ben Sulayem that this policy is wrong and it must be reversed immediately," he added.

☆ Mafia boss Messina Denaro held in top security Italian prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] A general view shows the prison where Italy's most wanted mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro is detained, in L'Aquila, Italy, January 18, 2023. REUTERS/Gabriele PileriL'AQUILA, Italy, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro was being held on Wednesday in a high-security jail in central Italy, subject to special restrictions applied to the country's most dangerous prisoners. "I've no criminal record," Messina Denaro, who was caught on Monday after 30 years on the run, told prison guards when he was admitted to the Costarelle prison close to the city of L'Aquila, Italian media reported. Police on Tuesday found the apartment where they believe Messina Denaro had been living for the past few months under the assumed name of Andrea Bonafede. Prosecutors say Messina Denaro was one of the leading figures in Cosa Nostra but preferred to remain in his own region and was not the "boss of bosses" like the late Salvatore "Toto" Riina.

☆ Factbox: How top Mafia boss Messina Denaro escaped justice for 30 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Alvise Armellini | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

ROME, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Matteo Messina Denaro, a brutal Sicilian Mafia boss who was Italy's most wanted criminal before his capture on Monday, had been on the run for 30 years. Messina Denaro, 60, was the last runaway member of a generation of mobsters who masterminded a string of bombings and murders that terrorised Italy in the early 1990s. Nobody knows for sure, but there have long been suspicions that Messina Denaro had his back covered by politicians and other establishment connections. Crime writer Roberto Saviano has pointed out that a former junior justice minister, Antonio D'Ali, has been convicted for collusion with the Messina Denaro family. Messina Denaro was eventually caught outside a clinic in Palermo after police discovered he was sick with cancer.

☆ Italy arrests Sicilian Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

1 fugitive, convicted Mafia boss Matteo Messina Denaro, was arrested on Monday at a private clinic in Palermo, Sicily, after 30 years on the run, Italian paramilitary police said. Messina Denaro was captured at the clinic where he was receiving treatment for an undisclosed medical condition, said Carabinieri Gen. Pasquale Angelosanto, who heads the police force's special operations squad. Messina Denaro was taken to a secret location by police immediately after the arrest, Italian state television reported. Messina Denaro, who had a power base in the port city of Trapani, in western Sicily, was considered Sicily's Cosa Nostra top boss even while a fugitive. Messina Denaro, who tried in absentia and convicted of dozens of murders, faces multiple life sentences.

☆ Arrest of 'last godfather' deals new blow to ailing Sicilian mafia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Angelo Amante | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Messina Denaro, 60, was Italy's most wanted mafia boss and had been on the run for three decades. Experts describe Cosa Nostra, its fame amplified by movies such as "The Godfather", as an ailing crime group facing several difficulties, including competition in the highly lucrative drugs market. "Messina Denaro was the last godfather, he represented all the secrets of Cosa Nostra. Sergi said it was not clear who would step in to replace Messina Denaro in what is now a more factionalised mafia. Any revelation from Messina Denaro on the group's activities - including 1993 bomb attacks in Florence, Rome and Milan which killed 10 people - could be a further major development.

☆ Vowles says Williams will not become a 'mini-Mercedes'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Williams' new principal James Vowles said after his appointment on Friday that the struggling former champions would be no Mercedes 'B' team in Formula One. "There's no mini-Mercedes or B team or any of that," said Vowles. Vowles told reporters that Williams were entirely independent and he would act in their best interests. "There was always the speculation that Williams, because of the Mercedes engine, was a subordinate but none of that was obviously true." That’s why James is going to do what's good for the team, what's good for James in order to bring that forward.

☆ Vasseur starts a new era for Ferrari with big targets
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Schumacher won an unprecedented five crowns in a row from 2000-04 under Todt's leadership while Ferrari won seven constructors' championships between 1999 and the end of 2007, when Kimi Raikkonen took their last drivers' title. Vasseur, 54, is an old hand and on his third F1 team after joining Renault in 2016. The team have still not won a title since 2008 and have been making some glaring mistakes with their fans increasingly frustrated. Vasseur, who joins from Swiss-based Sauber where he ran the Ferrari-powered Alfa Romeo team, has more than nationality in common with Todt. Nicolas Todt manages Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc, last year's runner-up who also raced for Vasseur at Sauber in his debut season.

☆ Microsoft to bring Call of Duty to Nintendo, Sony on the spot
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Microsoft (MSFT.O) has entered into a 10-year commitment to bring the gaming title "Call of Duty" to Nintendo (7974.T) platforms, the chief executive officer of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer, said in a post on Twitter on Wednesday. The agreement will bring the popular first-person shooter series from Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O) to Nintendo game consoles for the first time. "I think this is an attempt by Microsoft to pressure Sony into signing a deal with Activision and to make it easier for Microsoft to finish and close the deal with Activision," said Serkan Toto, founder of the Kantan Games consultancy. Microsoft competes with Sony and Nintendo in the global video game industry, which saw strong growth in recent years with people spending more time at home because of the coronavirus pandemic. Shares in Nintendo closed up 0.3% after the Microsoft announcement, outperforming the Nikkei average's (.N225) 0.7% slide and Sony's 1.3% fall.

☆ Microsoft offers Sony 10-year deal for Call of Duty on PlayStation if Activision deal goes through
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Regulators have raised concerns that Microsoft could block the hit Call of Duty franchise from being released on rivals' games consoles. Microsoft said it has offered Sony a 10-year contract for Call of Duty to be released on the PlayStation on the same day it comes to the Xbox. Microsoft President Brad Smith said the company offered Sony a 10-year contract to make each new release of Call of Duty available on Sony's PlayStation console at the same time as the U.S. giant's Xbox. Sony shares sank initially after Microsoft announced the acquisition plans in January as investors feared PlayStation would not get access to hit Activision games. "That's why we've offered Sony a 10-year contract to make each new 'Call of Duty' release available on PlayStation the same day it comes to Xbox.

☆ Hamilton has one last shot to avoid first winless season
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nov 16 (Reuters) - Lewis Hamilton has one more chance to avoid his first Formula One season without a win and it comes on Sunday in the place where last year he suffered one of the biggest blows of his career. The prospects look a lot brighter with Mercedes ending their season-long blank in Brazil last weekend with George Russell's breakthrough win. "I think he mentioned before that this race record of winning a race in every single season is less of a priority for him. Hamilton took only six races in his debut 2007 season to become a winner and has won at least once in every campaign since then. "I'm not focused on the record but of course, I'm trying to get that win this year," Hamilton said in September.

AbbVie and lawyers for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The lawsuit claims the settlements were so-called "pay for delay" deals that violated competition laws in 30 states and resulted in higher prices. The generic companies previously settled with the health plans for a combined $2 million. Allergan previously reached a $750 million settlement of antitrust allegations brought by direct purchasers of Namenda, such as drug distributors. The case is In re Namenda Indirect Purchaser Antitrust Litigation, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

Web Summit, the sector’s annual bash held in Lisbon, is doing the opposite. And the usual welter of tech companies, investors and celebrities are still milling around. That new strain of reality-based tech investing has a lot further to go, though. The relative lack of investor focus at Web Summit on new technologies that could really move the dial, such as ways to ease climate change, is striking. The sector, Smith told Breakingviews, will increasingly “influence what people talk about and who comes to Web Summit”.

☆ Mercedes tell Hamilton the seat is his to race into his 40s
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"It's 100% his seat," team boss Toto Wolff told reporters at the Mexico City Grand Prix when asked whether Mercedes, who have Britain's George Russell in their other car, might consider anyone else. Mercedes still harbour hopes of overtaking Ferrari for second place overall in a year dominated by Red Bull and Max Verstappen. The oldest race winner of the modern era remains Nigel Mansell at 41 in 1994, with Kimi Raikkonen also a winner at 39 in 2018. "As long as you continue to look after yourself and develop your cognitive sensors, I think he (Hamilton) has many more years in him. I'm pretty certain that's going to be the case here in the team," said Wolff.

CNN —Red Bull driver Max Verstappen finished in first place at the Mexican Grand Prix to claim his record-setting 14th win of the season on Sunday. Earlier in October, Verstappen claimed his second career world championship at the Japanese Grand Prix, and last week he won the US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, which saw him share the record for number of season race wins. Red Bull pitted their drivers first, opting for medium tires while Hamilton fitted hard tires so that he would not have to pit again. RBR were found to have breached the cost cap by £432,652 ($501,409). That comes in from now, it has a direct effect on next year’s car and it will be in place for a 12-month period.”Two races remain on the F1 calendar for Verstappen to add to his record tally with the Brazilian Grand Prix scheduled on November 13 and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 20.

☆ Energised Hamilton says he will return Mercedes to the top
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Oct 23, 2022; Austin, Texas, USA; Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport driver Lewis Hamilton (44) of Team Great Britain waves to the fans after the running of the U.S. Grand Prix F1 race at Circuit of the Americas. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"We are much closer now, the upgrade worked and we were racing for a win," said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff. Hamilton has had two other runnerup results this season in France and Hungary but it was the manner of the fight in Texas that had both the Englishman and his Mercedes team looking ahead to next year. "What's happened this year in terms of our performance and everything to get a win would be a huge triumph for us," said Hamilton. "I felt amazing to even just be in shooting distance of Max for some parts of the race," said Hamilton.

☆ Tech Meets the Track: George Kutz & Toto Wolff on F1
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailTech Meets the Track: George Kutz & Toto Wolff on F1Ahead of the Austin Grand-Prix, Crowdstrike CEO George Kurtz and Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team Principal and CEO Toto Wolff sit down exclusively with CNBC TechCheck's Deirdre Bosa. They discuss the technology behind F1 racing, the sport's surge in popularity post-Netflix series, and the outlook for demand in a softer economy.

☆ Hundreds flee massive flooding in Chad capital
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

N'DJAMENA, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Hundreds of inhabitants of Chad's capital N'Djamena have fled their homes due to massive flooding that has hit since Thursday, leaving parts of the city navigable only by boat. "I drove the children to school this morning and on my return our house was completely flooded with river water. In one area women have built an emergency camp out of thin wooden branches and cloth to provide shelter for their families. Floods are not uncommon during the central African country's rainy season, which usually runs from May to October in its southern regions. But this year the rains came early and were the heaviest in decades, quickly overwhelming drainage channels and waterways.

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