Former Renault F1 team principal Flavio Briatore is no shrinking violet and he certainly puts his money where his mouth is. True, he was banned from F1 for allegedly being responsible for rigging the result of the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix but he protested and successfully convinced a French court to overturn the World Council's decision. In January he began legal action to claim damages from the FIA which, just three months later, allowed him to return to the sport from 2013.

Simply because he is not currently involved with F1 Briatore isn't keeping quiet about what he thinks of the sport and its most senior personalities. "What Jean Todt did in Austria to swap the drivers, this takes the sport into disrepute," he told Pitpass' business editor Chris Sylt. Many may have argued that this is precisely what Briatore himself did in 2008 but he managed to overturn his punishment whereas Ferrari did not do so in 2002.

Clearly there is no love lost between Briatore and Todt and although the flamboyant Italian has yet to reveal whether he will return to F1 there is little doubt that a character such as his sure brings a little colour to the sport.. At a time the positions of power in F1's teams are becoming increasingly swamped by a sea of suited executives Briatore's absence is often obvious.