Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/859132
22 maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 9 AUGUST 2017 Sport FORMULA 1 Mercedes in contract talks with Valtteri Bottas about 2018 extension MERCEDES have opened con- tract talks with Valtteri Bottas about an extension for 2018. Bottas joined the Silver Ar- rows from Williams in Janu- ary on a one-year deal as a last-minute replacement for Nico Rosberg. The Finn has already claimed two race wins and he sits third in the championship stand- ings after 11 races, 33 points behind leader Sebastian Vet- tel. Team boss Toto Wolff has previously been non-commit- tal on whether Bottas would be retained as Lewis Hamil- ton's team-mate in 2018 but he admitted at the Hungarian GP that he hoped for progress over the summer break. Wolf said: "It's a good time to talk and to think things through. "We had some good discus- sions with Valtteri before Hungary and I'd certainly like to dash over to Asia for the fi- nal races with a decision." Bottas claimed his first F1 victory at April's Russian GP, two weeks after breaking his pole duck in Bahrain, and was also victorious at last month's Austrian GP. For his part, the 27-year-old has insisted there is no rush to get an extension signed. "There could be some pro- gress to be made on that dur- ing the break because obvi- ously the last month has been pretty hectic," Bottas said. "It's been difficult to have proper meetings and discus- sions with so many races. For sure there is some time but there is no rush, we don't need to get anything done before Spa." Valtteri Bottas MCLAREN Racing Director Eric Boullier says the op- eration has until Septem- ber to decide on its engine partner for 2018, due to the deadlines in designing next year's car. McLaren reunited with Honda in 2015, the Japanese manufacturer returning af- ter six-year absence from the sport, in a bid to rekin- dle the dominant partner- ship of the late 1980s/early 1990s. However, McLaren has yet to capture its desired results, taking a best race result of fifth, and holds ninth in the standings, amid Honda's struggles with its revised 2017 power unit. McLaren has criticised Honda on a regular basis this year and sounded out rival manufacturers over a potential 2018 supply, though Honda, also linked with Toro Rosso, has re- peatedly reiterated its de- sire to stay. On a deadline for finalis- ing its 2018 partner, Boul- lier said: "Technically you could change an engine in 12 weeks, let's say. "Then you can change it any time before the [next] season up until, let's say, three months before. "It's going to be Septem- ber, if you want to do the base design around an en- gine – September." Boullier also emphasised that McLaren has been thoroughly disappointed by its showing across the first 11 races of 2017. McLaren holds ninth po- sition in the Constructors' Championship, having only demoted Sauber to the foot of the standings at the pre- vious event in Hungary. "Well, obviously, we fin- ished the last year sixth, and we can't be happy with where we are with the situ- ation, the reliability, and performance," Boullier ex- plained. "If we have to say after half a season where we are: we are working hard to re- cover. "After [our] performance and competitiveness we had last year [we had] the ambi- tion to do a better job this year but this is not where we are and where we want to be. "We can't be very happy so far." McLaren has September PU deadline - Boullier Nadal has eyes on world number one ranking in Montreal RAFAEL Nadal will return to the top of the ATP world rank- ings for the first time in three years if he reaches the semi-fi- nals at this week's Rogers Cup in Montreal. The 31-year-old Spaniard, top seed in Canada in the ab- sence of current world number one Andy Murray, ended last year ranked nine after taking time off to recover from a wrist injury. While the return of the Mal- lorcan to the summit would be an incredible turnaround, the French Open champion is re- fusing to get carried away as he seeks a fourth Rogers Cup title. "I don't even think about that now. I'm trying to have the right preparation now and that's it," Nadal told the ATP's website. "I'm going to keep trying to play the way I did in the first part of the season, so if I'm able to make that happen, I hope to have a chance to do well," said Nadal, who is preparing for his first action since losing an epic contest to Gilles Muller in the fourth round of Wimbledon. Fifteen-times grand slam champion Nadal has spent a career total of 141 weeks as world number one -- seventh on the list. Murray, who is missing from Montreal as he treats a hip problem, has been ranked number one since last Novem- ber having claimed five succes- sive titles. Nadal opens in Montreal against either Croatia's Borna Coric or Russian Mikhail You- zhny. Second seed Roger Federer also returns to action in Mon- treal having won his eighth Wimbledon title last month. The 35-year-old Swiss is also challenging to return to the world number one spot he has occupied for a record total of 302 weeks during his career. Rafael Nadal