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2007.03.08.

ZSOLT BAUMGARTNER NAMED AS TEST AND RESERVE DRIVER

LAGUNA SECA, CALIFORNIA, March 8, 2007 - Minardi Team USA is pleased to announce that Zsolt Baumgartner has been appointed official test and reserve driver for the 2007 season. The 26-year old Hungarian racer, who previously competed for Minardi in the 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship, will join Dutch driver, Robert Doornbos, for the two-day Champ Car World Series Spring Training session, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, commencing today. He will also be present at the majority of Champ Car weekends this season.

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2004.12.23.

ALBERS TO RACE FOR MINARDI IN 2005

AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS, December 23, 2004 - Formula One fans in the Netherlands can celebrate a little earlier than normal this festive season with the announcement today that Christijan Albers is to drive for the Minardi Cosworth team in 2005. The identity of the first of Minardi's two race drivers for the new season was announced this morning to a packed press conference at the prestigious Bilderberg Garden Hotel in Amsterdam.

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2004.11.25.

ALBERS AND MALDONADO TEST AT MISANO

MISANO, ITALY, November 25, 2004 - The fourth day of the Minardi team's week-long test at the Autodromo Santamonica saw the Faenza squad continuing with its driver test and evaluation programme after the Minardi F1x2 cars were in action on the circuit yesterday.

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2004.11.24.

MINARDI F1x2 CARS TAKE TO MISANO CIRCUIT

MISANO ITALY, November 24, 2004 - After to days of concentrated testing the focus of the Minardi team at the Autodromo Santamonica today switched to its F1x2 two-seater program. In the course of the morning and afternoon sessions, drivers Christijan Albers, Patrick Friesacher, Zsolt Baumgartner and Nicolas Kiesa took 45 passengers for high speed, high adrenalin tours of the challenging, 4.060km misano circuit. The majority of the passengers on t is occasion were nominated Minardi technical partner, Bridgestone, plus commercial partners, Superfund and The Global Group. At the conclusion of the day's activities, the hard working two-seaters had covered a combined total of 550 kms, and will now be checked over and re-prepared for there final Misano session, Friday.

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2004.11.23.

AUSSIES ON PARADE AT MISANO TEST

MISANO, ITALY, November 23, 2004 - The second day of Minardi's week-long test session at the Autodromo Santamonica saw a distinctly "Down Under" flavour at the Italian circuit, as young Australian drivers, Will Davison and Will Power, both experiencing Formula One performance for the first time, joined Israeli driver, Chanock Nissany, who was completing a two-day programme with the team.

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2004.11.22.

MONTEIRO, FRIESACHER AND NISSANY OPEN MINARDI TEST

MISANO, ITALY, November 22, 2004 - The first day of a five-day Minardi test got under way today at the Autodromo Santamonica in Misano.

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2004.11.20.

FORMULA ONE AUCTION MAKES HISTORY

LEDBURY, ENGLAND, November 20, 2004 - The largest-ever auction of modern F1 cars and memorabilia came to a highly successful conclusion this afternoon with Minardi Team Principal, Paul Stoddart, and auctioneers, Bache Treharne LLP, pronouncing themselves extremely pleased with the overall result of the sale.

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2004.11.17.

ADDED SPICE FOR F1 AUCTION

LEDBURY, ENGLAND, November 17, 2004 - As if staging the largest-ever auction of modern Formula One cars and memorabilia wasn't enough, Minardi F1 Team Principal, Paul Stoddart, has decided some added excitement is in order at what is already shaping up to be a truly memorable four-day sale.

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2004.11.15.

MINARDI CONFIRMS 2005 ENGINE SUPPLY ARRANGEMENTS

FAENZA, ITALY, November 15, 2004 - Following today's news concerning the ownership of Cosworth Racing, the Minardi F1 Team is pleased to confirm that it will be supplied with the Cosworth TJ engine in 2005.

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2004.11.04.

AUCTION FEVER BUILDS

LEDBURY, ENGLAND, November 4, 2004 - It's still two weeks to go until the start of Paul Stoddart's exciting auction of F1 cars, equipment and memorabilia, but already the numbers make impressive reading. The unique event, overseen by highly experienced auctioneers, Bache Treharne LLP, has now been extended to four days, and will take place from November 17th to 20th, at one of Minardi's two facilities in Ledbury, Herefordshire. The auction will also be webcast live on the Internet, allowing interested parties to bid in privacy, should they so wish.

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2004.10.24.

20 YEARS ON

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, October 24, 2004 - The Minardi F1 Team celebrated the concluding race of its 20th season in Formula One with a strong two-car finish, drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni finishing 16th and 17th respectively in today's 71-lap Brazilian Grand Prix.

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2004.10.23.

UPS AND DOWNS

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, October 23, 2004 - The second day of practice for Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix, final round of the 2004 Formula One World Championship, again took place in warm, dry conditions at the Autodromo José Carlos Pace. Minardi Cosworth drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni continued their preparations for qualifying and the race during the two practice sessions before turning their attention to the afternoon qualifying session.

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2004.10.22.

THE BOYS IN BRAZIL

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL, October 22, 2004 - Practice for the final round of the 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship got under way today at the Autodromo José Carlos Pace in dry, sunny conditions, Minardi Cosworth drivers, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni, plus test driver, Bas Leinders, all coping with the demands of the Brazilian circuit in a Formula One car for the first time.

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2004.10.12.

MINARDI F1 AUCTION DATES ANNOUNCED

LONDON, ENGLAND, October 12, 2004 - Bache Treharne announced today the dates for Paul Stoddart's Formula One Auction. The three-day sale is set for November 18, 19 and 20, and will include approximately 50 per cent of the Minardi Team Principal's collection of F1 cars and memorabilia.

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2004.10.10.

ONE HOME, BUT BOTH DRY

SUZUKA, JAPAN, October 10, 2004 - After the dramatic weather generated by an approaching typhoon that caused Saturday's programme to be cancelled on safety grounds, the 2004 Japanese Grand Prix turned out to be a much quieter affair for Minardi Cosworth.

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2004.10.10.

BACK TO BUSINESS

SUZUKA, JAPAN, October 10, 2004 - After yesterday's near-miss of the Suzuka area by Typhoon No 22, the approach of which led to the cancellation of all Saturday on-track activities, it was back to business for Formula One teams today with the postponed pre-qualifying and qualifying sessions, plus the Japanese Grand Prix, all taking place on Sunday.

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2004.10.08.

WHEN THE RAIN CAME

SUZUKA, JAPAN, October 8, 2004 - The first day of practice for the 2004 Japanese Grand Prix, penultimate round of the 2004 Formula One World Championship, turned out to be a decidedly soggy affair, courtesy of a typhoon moving in from the south of the country.

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2004.09.26.

ALL-ACTION WEEKEND IN SHANGHAI

SHANGHAI, CHINA, September 26, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth had an incident-packed afternoon in what turned out to be an action-packed inaugural Grand Prix of China.

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2004.09.25.

THE CHINA SYNDROME

SHANGHAI, CHINA, September 25, 2004 - The final day of preparations for Sunday's inaugural Grand Prix of China saw Minardi Cosworth drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni carry on with the team's normal technical programme during the morning's final two practice sessions.

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2004.09.24.

F1 DEBUTS IN CHINA

SHANGHAI, CHINA, September 24, 2004 - Formula One made its long-awaited debut in the People's Republic of China today as the stunning new Shanghai International Circuit echoed to the banshee wail of Formula One engines being used in anger for the first time. In common with all the F1 teams competing at SIC, Minardi Cosworth began Friday's official practice sessions without a bank of previous track data from which to draw, but drivers Zsolt Baumgartner , Gianmaria Bruni, and Friday tester, Bas Leinders, soon began to familiarise themselves with the challenging 5.451-km circuit.

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2004.09.17.

MINARDI ENGINE SUPPLY ARRANGEMENTS FOR 2005

FAENZA, ITALY, September 17, 2004 - Following the announcement from Ford Motor Company this afternoon concerning its decision to bring its current Formula One participation to a conclusion at the end of the current season, the Minardi F1 Team wishes to confirm that there is a contract in place with Ford-owned Cosworth Racing for the supply of engines to the team in 2005.

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PUMA KEEPS MINARDI TEAM SAFE

FAENZA, ITALY, September 15, 2004 - It is sometimes said that "clothes maketh the man," but for the Minardi Cosworth pit crew who suddenly found themselves surrounded by flames during last Sunday's Italian Grand Prix at Monza, it was more a case of "clothes saveth the man".

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2004.09.12.

DRAMATIC AFTERNOON AT MONZA

MONZA, ITALY, September 12, 2004 - It turned out to be a dramatic afternoon for Minardi Cosworth, the Faenza team's Italian Grand Prix overshadowed by a brief but frightening pit fire which, mercifully, did not result in any serious injuries to team personnel. It did bring the race to a premature conclusion for Gianmaria Bruni, however, who experienced breathing difficulties after inhaling fumes during the pit stop and was unable to continue. The race was rather less incident-packed for Zsolt Baumgartner, who gambled on starting the Grand Prix on dry tyres after the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza had been soaked by heavy rain on Sunday morning.

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2004.09.11.

WHEEL OF FORTUNE

MONZA. ITALY, September 11, 2004 - After making smooth progress yesterday in their preparations for the Italian Grand Prix, Minardi Cosworth staff today experienced a decidedly more problematic set of circumstances. Both Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni continued to work on developing a suitable chassis balance for the high-speed, low-downforce requirements of the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. Unfortunately, on his first lap out of the garage at the beginning of the second practice session of the morning, Baumgartner's car was hit by Giorgio Pantano's spinning Jordan as he turned into the Prima Variante. Luckily, the young Hungarian driver emerged unscathed from the heavy impact, but the tub of his Minardi Cosworth PS04B was seriously damaged.

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2004.09.10.

GAS, GAS, GAS!

MONZA, ITALY, September 10, 2004 - Preparations for the final European round of the Formula One World Championship, the Italian Grand Prix, got under way today at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. Minardi Cosworth race drivers, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni , and regular Friday tester, Bas Leinders, were all on track from the start of today's first official practice session, aiming to build on the productive work carried out by the team during last week's Monza test. The ultra-fast circuit, near Milan, rewards those teams that are able to run the lowest of possible downforce configurations on their cars while still retaining good cornering and braking stability.

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2004.09.10.

3rd Annual Winning Attitudes Awards

The 3rd Annual Winning Attitudes Awards - Charity Dinner was a really emotive event that took place last Thursday at Monza. We got together all F3000 Team Members, Sponsors, Outstanding F1 Drivers, Press and FIA & FOM Authorities.

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2004.09.02.

WORK ONGOING

MONZA, ITALY, September 2, 2004 - The second day of the FIA Formula One test at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza saw Minardi Cosworth drivers, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni , both in action. Bruni drove briefly during the morning session, a gearbox problem bringing his planned technical programme to a premature conclusion after 12 laps.

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2004.08.31.

MINARDI AND COSWORTH CONFIRM FOR 2005

FAENZA, ITALY, August 31, 2004 - The Minardi F1 Team is today pleased to announce that it has successfully concluded an agreement with current engine partner, Cosworth Racing, for the supply of power units in 2005. The new arrangement will result in Minardi being provided with the Cosworth TJ engine, the same powerful, 90-degree V10 used by Jaguar. It will provide the Faenza-based team with the opportunity for significantly enhanced performance from its 2005 car.

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2004.08.29.

BAD LUCK IN BELGIUM

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, BELGIUM, August 29, 2004 - Cosworth Minardi personnel had high hopes for a strong showing from drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni in today's Belgian Grand Prix.

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2004.08.28.

DODGING THE SHOWERS

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, BELGIUM, August 28, 2004 - A combination of driving skill, good fortune and benevolent weather gods helped Minardi Cosworth achieve one of its better qualifying results of the season at the Spa Francorchamps circuit this afternoon. Drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni wrung the maximum from their cars in the treacherously slippery conditions created by torrential rain that soaked the famous Belgian circuit.

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2004.08.27.

STRONG START AT SPA

SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, BELGIUM, August 27, 2004 - Today's opening practice sessions for the Belgian Grand Prix saw Minardi Cosworth drivers, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni, plus Friday test driver, Bas Leinders, all having their first experience of F1 performance around this legendary 6.973-km circuit, located deep in the Ardennes forests.

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2004.08.24.

TESTING TIMES

FAENZA, ITALY, August 24, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today confirms its provisional testing schedule for the next two months.

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2004.08.15.

CHEQUERED FLAG FOR ZSOLT AND BRUNI IN BUDAPEST

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, August 15, 2004 - After a couple of tricky moments at the beginning of today's Hungarian Grand Prix, the race settled into a consistent rhythm for Minardi Cosworth drivers, Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner, and the Faenza squad had the satisfaction of seeing its cars take the chequered flag in 14th and 15th places respectively.

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2004.08.14.

A PLEASING PERFORMANCE

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, August 14, 2004 - The grid positions achieved by Minardi Cosworth drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni for tomorrow's Hungarian Grand Prix - P18 and P19 respectively - did not do justice to the fully committed performances turned in by both men on the challenging Hungaroring circuit this afternoon.

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2004.08.13.

ZSOLT COMES HOME

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY, August 13, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth launched into the first official day of the Hungarian Grand Prix - home race for driver, Zsolt Baumgartner - and made steady progress during Friday's two one-hour sessions. There was a minor hiccough for the Budapest-based driver, when his car coasted into the pits 20 minutes into the morning session, the result of a sensor problem. This was rectified, however, and he was soon back on track.

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2004.08.09.

ZLOBIN TO RESUME TEST PROGRAMME

FAENZA, ITALY, August 9, 2004 - The Minardi Cosworth team is pleased to announce that Russian driver, Sergey Zlobin, has signed to continue his testing programme with the Faenza squad. The Moscow-based racer - the first Russian to drive a modern Formula One car - initially tested for Minardi in 2002, and made steady progress in the course of three sessions with the team, at the Fiorano, Valencia and Mugello circuits, covering 840 kms in total.

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2004.07.28.

STATEMENT REGARDING WILUX

FAENZA, ITALY, July 28, 2004 - The Minardi F1 Team has today released the following statement regarding its relationship with Wilux B.V. Netherlands...

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2004.07.25.

SATISFACTION GUARANTEED

HOCKENHEIM, GERMANY, July 25, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today experienced a satisfying German Grand Prix, drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni both taking the chequered flag after very consistent performances in the 66-lap race.

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2004.07.24.

A BALANCED APPROACH

HOCKENHEIM, GERMANY, July 24, 2004 - Other than a small excursion over a curb early on in the day, which damaged the front wing of Zsolt Baumgartner's car, Minardi Cosworth enjoyed a trouble-free final day of preparations for tomorrow's German Grand Prix.

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2004.07.23.

HOT STUFF

HOCKENHEIM, GERMANY, July 23, 2004 - With track temperatures over 50 deg C and the air temperature hovering around 34 deg C at the Hockenheimring, preparations for this Sunday's German Grand Prix posed even more of a challenge today than normal. Nonetheless, Minardi Cosworth race drivers, Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner, plus test driver, Bas Leinders, worked steadily through their assigned technical tasks for the opening day of the 12th round of the 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship.

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2004.07.11.

MINARDI REMEMBERS JOHN

SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND, July 11, 2004 - In a heartfelt tribute to Sporting Director, John Walton, who died late Friday night following a serious heart attack earlier in the week, the cars of the Minardi Cosworth team competed in today's British Grand Prix devoid of any corporate identification. Prior to the start of the race, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni were both determined to reach the chequered flag as a fitting tribute to the man who regularly directed the team's race strategy from the pit wall.

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2004.07.10.

DOING IT FOR JOHN

SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND, July 10, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth staff today did what they knew their Sporting Director, John Walton, would have wanted them to do, and that was to get on with the business of preparing for tomorrow's British Grand Prix.

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2004.07.10.

JOHN WALTON

SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND, July 10, 2004 - The Minardi F1 Team is profoundly saddened to report that its Sporting Director, John Walton, passed away peacefully at 23:18 last night at St Thomas's Hospital, in London, with his family at his bedside.

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2004.07.09.

STAYING FOCUSSED

SILVERSTONE, ENGLAND, July 9, 2004 - As was the case at the French Grand Prix last weekend, Minardi Cosworth had a very productive initial day of preparations for Sunday's British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

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2004.07.08.

A SENSE OF GREAT OCCASION

LONDON, ENGLAND, July 8, 2004 - The Minardi F1x2 team has participated in some exceptional events in the course of the last three years, but there is no doubt that last Tuesday's Formula One Comes to Regent Street was the most memorable yet.

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2004.07.08.

UPDATE ON JOHN WALTON

FAENZA, ITALY, July 8, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth Sporting Director, John Walton, suffered a serious heart attack in the early hours of Monday morning, while in London to attend the Formula One Comes to Regent Street promotional event later that day.

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2004.07.08.

BRIGHT LIGHTS OF THE PIT LANE

FAENZA, ITALY, July 8, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today announces that it has signed an agreement with another Faenza-based company, Vire s.r.l., jointly to promote the innovative Trilly LED safety warning triangle.

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2004.07.04.

MIXED FORTUNES AT MAGNY-COURS

NEVERS MAGNY-COURS, FRANCE, July 4, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth started today's French Grand Prix full of optimism following its point-scoring finish in the United States Grand Prix two weeks ago. Unfortunately, a combination of an extremely low rate of mechanical attrition among the team's rivals and a small driving error from Zsolt, which landed his car in the gravel at turn three on the 33rd lap of the race, put paid to the Faenza squad's hopes for a top-10 finish in today's event.

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2004.07.03.

POSITIVE SIGNS IN FRANCE

NEVERS MAGNY-COURS, FRANCE, July 3, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth carried on today where it left off after Friday's two initial practice sessions for the French Grand Prix, taking full advantage of the warm dry weather that followed yesterday's heavy showers. The team spent the morning further developing their chassis set-ups for both the afternoon qualifying sessions and tomorrow's race, making useful progress that was reflected in the lap times of both Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni.

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2004.07.02.

DODGING THE SHOWERS

NEVERS-MAGNY COURS, FRANCE, July 2, 2004 - Like all other Formula One teams, Minardi Cosworth personnel today found themselves having to deal with highly changeable weather conditions during the first two official practice sessions for Sunday's French Grand Prix. In similar conditions last year, with heavy rain showers rolling in quickly across the nearby French countryside and soaking the track, Minardi achieved one of its most notable results of the season by posting the fastest time in the Friday qualifying session.

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2004.06.20.

THE SWEET TASTE OF A POINT

INDIANAPOLIS, USA, June 20, 2004 - There were podium-magnitude celebrations in the Minardi Cosworth garage at the end of today's United States Grand Prix as the Faenza squad's Zsolt Baumgartner scored the team's first point in 41 races.

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2004.06.19.

CHASING THE TRACK

INDIANAPOLIS, USA, June 19, 2004 - Among the oval-racing fraternity, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway is particularly notable for the fact that a change in the track temperature of just a very few degrees can make a significant difference to the amount of grip available. The same appears to apply to the Speedway's road circuit, site of tomorrow's United States Grand Prix. Minardi Cosworth drivers Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni both set commendable times in this morning's third and fourth practice sessions, having developed a good chassis balance for their cars.

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2004.06.18.

SETTLING IN AT INDY

INDIANAPOLIS, USA, June 18, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today commenced preparations for the United States Grand Prix - the second half of a North American Formula One double-header that saw the World Championship teams in Montréal last weekend for the Canadian Grand Prix.

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2004.06.18.

GOLDENPALACE.COM BETS ON MINARDI

INDIANAPOLIS, USA, June 18, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth is pleased to announce that, following a successful introduction at last weekend's Canadian Grand Prix, GoldenPalace.com has signed to become a commercial partner of the Faenza team for the remainder of the 2004 Formula One World Championship season.

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2004.06.13.

BAUMGARTNER FINISHES, BUT GEARBOX GREMLIN STOPS BRUNI

MONTREAL, CANADA, June 13, 2004 - Like a number of teams in today's Canadian Grand Prix, Minardi Cosworth experienced an action-packed race in front of a sell-out crowd of 112,000 enthusiastic Formula One fans. Zsolt Baumgartner, was forced to take evasive action on several occasions in the opening laps of the race to avoid incidents taking place near him, and survived a spin in his second stint caused by a collision with another competitor.

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2004.06.12.

JUST REWARD LACKING

MONTREAL, CANADA, June 12, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth drivers Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner both showed good pace in the final two practice sessions for tomorrow's Canadian Grand Prix at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve near Montréal.

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2004.06.11.

SETTLING IN NICELY

MONTREAL, CANADA, June 11, 2004 - In near-ideal motor racing conditions, Minardi Cosworth enjoyed its best Friday practice session so far this season as preparations got under way today at Montréal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for this weekend's Canadian Grand Prix.

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2004.06.08.

Nelson Mandela calls on F1 Teams to support South African F1x2 Grand Prix

Johannesburg, South Africa, June 7, 2004 - In a landmark statement, Nobel Prize winner, Nelson Mandela, is sending a request to Formula One drivers, past and present, to support the first Altech South African F1x2 Charity Grand Prix, from the 6-9 August, at the AA Kyalami International Raceway.

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2004.06.06.

RAPTUROUS RECEPTION FOR MINARDI F1x2 CARS AT KYALAMI

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA, June 6, 2004 - Watched by a hugely enthusiastic crowd of 12,500 people at the AA Kyalami Grand Prix circuit, the Minardi team today introduced South African motor racing fans to the excitement of its unique two-seater Formula One programme.

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2004.06.03.

Zsolt and the MINARDI F1x2 IN SOUTH AFRICA

LEDBURY, ENGLAND, June 4, 2004 - The Minardi F1x2 team will break new ground this coming weekend when its exciting two-seater Formula One cars appear for the first time in Africa.

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2004.05.30.

HARD, BUT REWARDING DAY

NURBURGRING, GERMANY, May 30, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth driver, Gianmaria Bruni, celebrated his 23rd birthday in satisfying style today, finishing 14th in the Grand Prix of Europe and leading team mate, Zsolt Baumgartner, home to the chequered flag, the result providing the Faenza squad with a solid, two-car finish.

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2004.05.29.

SOLID PERFORMANCE

NURBURGRING, GERMANY, May 29, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth kept yesterday's momentum rolling during the final day of preparations for Sunday's Grand Prix of Europe. Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni continued fine-tuning their cars for Saturday afternoon's official qualifying session and tomorrow's race, although the programme didn't go quite according to plan. Not entirely happy with the behaviour of his car yesterday, Bruni took over the team's spare chassis for the two 45-minute, Saturday morning practice sessions, as well as the pre-qualifying run. He then elected to switch back to his race car for qualifying. By comparison, Baumgartner had a straightforward day, and recorded a promising 17th fastest time during the morning sessions.

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2004.05.28.

MOVING FORWARD

NURBURGRING, GERMANY, May 28, 2004 - The Friday technical programme for this weekend's Grand Prix of Europe at the Nurburgring took the same basic form as usual for Minardi Cosworth: fine-tuning of the chassis, software assessment and evaluation of the available tyre choices.

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2004.05.23.

SO NEAR, YET SO FAR

MONTE CARLO, MONACO, May 23, 2004 - For the first time this season, Minardi Cosworth was able to contemplate the prospect of scoring World Championship points in today's action-packed Monaco Grand Prix.

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2004.05.20.

PRODUCTIVE DAY BY THE HARBOUR

MONTE CARLO, MONACO, May 20, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today launched into its preparations for Formula One's most glamorous event of the season - the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix - in very positive fashion. By the end of the second of the two official practice sessions, race drivers Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner had set the 21st and 22nd fastest laps, with test and reserve driver, Bas Leinders, in 23rd spot.

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2004.05.09.

EARLY SHOWER

BARCELONA, SPAIN, May 9, 2004 - Today's Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Catalunya turned out to be a disappointing race for Minardi Cosworth, the Faenza squad failing to get either of its cars to the chequered flag. After experiencing a technical problem at the start, which saw his car held up leaving the grid, Zsolt Baumgartner spun off the track at turn nine on race lap 19, while allowing a faster car to pass.

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2004.05.08.

FULL MARKS FOR EFFORT

BARCELONA, SPAIN, May 8, 2004 - After two smooth and untroubled official practice sessions on Friday, Minardi Cosworth experienced a problematic start to the second day of preparations for the Spanish Grand Prix when the car of Gianmaria Bruni suffered a loss of hydraulic pressure during the first morning session. Impressive work by the team's mechanics allowed Bruni to take to the track again with just under 10 minutes of the second session remaining, although it meant he was short of preparation time for qualifying. By comparison, Zsolt Baumgartner had a quieter time, working steadily on qualifying and race set-ups during the morning.

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2004.05.07.

QUIET PROGRESS

BARCELONA, SPAIN, May 7, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth arrived at the Circuit de Catalunya to commence preparations for Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix with a useful Mugello test behind it. The one-day session last week enabled the Faenza squad to gain further data and a better understanding of the latest aerodynamic package fitted to the Minardi PS04B chassis.

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2004.04.29.

DIRECT CONNECTion

FAENZA, ITALY, April 29, 2004 - CONNECT Communication is a recently formed, Swiss-headquartered telecommunications service provider with clearly stated goals, and it has chosen commercial sponsorship of the Minardi F1 Team as its preferred marketing strategy to support a major move into international markets. As a result, the Minardi Cosworth entries of Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner will carry the CONNECT Communication logo for the remainder of the 2004 season.

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2004.04.25.

BAUMGARTNER'S BEST SO FAR

IMOLA, ITALY, April 25, 2004 - It was a race of contrasting fortunes for Minardi Cosworth drivers, Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner in today's San Marino Grand Prix. Both men started well and ran on the anticipated pace during the first of their four scheduled stints. Unfortunately, soon after his first stop, on lap 13, Bruni felt he was experiencing a problem with the brake balance of his car and came into the pits. As it was a clear safety-related issue, the car was withdrawn from the race, and the team is currently analysing the relevant data in an effort to discover the problem. By comparison, Baumgartner had a solid race, setting his quickest time on the final lap and finishing 15th - his best result so far this season.

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2004.04.24.

NOT AS PLANNED

IMOLA, ITALY, April 24, 2004 - It was a case of maximum effort and minimum return for Minardi Cosworth at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari today. The team's preparations for tomorrow's San Marino Grand Prix continued to progress according to plan during the morning's two 45-minute practice sessions. Unfortunately, however, the second session ended on a low note when Zsolt Baumgartner lost his car over the curbs at Variante Alta on his final run of the morning and spun into the barriers.

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2004.04.23.

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL?

IMOLA, ITALY, April 23, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth today used the occasion of a "home" race weekend and the first European round of the 2004 Formula One World Championship season to assess a range of new components resulting from its recent wind tunnel programme. In addition to the normal Friday technical programme that generally focuses on chassis balance, software assessment and tyre evaluation, Gianmaria Bruni, Zsolt Baumgartner and Bas Leinders also sampled the revised aerodynamic package, all three drivers reporting that it shows considerable promise.

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2004.04.23.

SENNA REMEMBERED

IMOLA, ITALY, April 23, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth and title sponsor CEO, Ruud Wildschut, have chosen to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the death of Ayrton Senna with their own unique tribute to one of motor racing's greatest stars.

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2004.04.04.

A TOUGH DAY IN THE DESERT

MANAMA, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN, April 4, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth drivers, Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner, had an eventful start to the inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix, the cars of both drivers experiencing electronics difficulties on the way to the grid. Baumgartner was able to rectify the problem by resetting the cockpit controls, but Bruni was less fortunate, his car having to be pushed from the grid and started in the pits. He joined the race two laps down, and despite pressing on in determined fashion, his best efforts were hampered by a lack of straight-line speed. A revised pit-stop strategy that took into account the pit-lane start saw Bruni stop twice for fuel and tyres on the way to a 17th-place finish. By comparison, Baumgartner's race settled down after the initial problem with his car was solved, and he was able to run at a competitive and consistent pace. All three of his scheduled stops for fuel and tyres went to plan, but unfortunately, his afternoon's efforts came to a premature end on lap 46, when his car stopped on the circuit with a suspected engine problem.

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2004.04.04.

RACE REACTIONS - BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX

Zsolt Baumgartner: "Straightaway, I was struggling with an electronic problem, like 'Gimmi', but I was able to reset the software from the cockpit and fix the problem."

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2004.04.04.

BAUMGARTNER BACKS UP

Minardi's Zsolt Baumgartner will join Nick Heidfeld and Kimi Raikkonen at the back of the grid for the Bahrain Grand Prix, the Italian team having opted to change the Hungarian's engine ahead of the race.

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2004.04.03.

DIFFERING FORTUNES

MANAMA, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN, April 3, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth drivers, Zsolt Baumgartner and Gianmaria Bruni experienced differing fortunes during the final day of preparations for tomorrow's Bahrain Grand Prix, a situation that reflected in their respective afternoon qualifying performances. The drivers spent the morning practice sessions working with the team's technical staff to finalise the race specification for their Minardi PS04B chassis and to decide on a suitable qualifying trim for the changeable track conditions at the Bahrain International Circuit.

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2004.04.02.

GETTING TO GRIPS WITH BAHRAIN

MANAMA, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN, April 2, 2004 - The opening day of preparations for this weekend's inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix turned out to be a distinctly positive one for Minardi Cosworth drivers, Zsolt and Gianmaria Bruni, as well as for the Faenza squad's test and reserve driver, Bas Leinders.

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2004.04.02.

ARAB SPONSOR DEBUTS WITH MINARDI IN BAHRAIN

MANAMA, KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN - Minardi Cosworth is today pleased to announce that its cars will carry the colours of a brand-new sponsor this weekend at the inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix. The logo of Capital Union E.C.C. will appear on the sidepods of the Minardi Cosworth PS04Bs of Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner, as well as that of test and reserve driver, Bas Leinders, who will participate in Friday's official practice sessions.

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2004.03.21.

GRITTY PERFORMANCE NETS TWO-CAR FINISH - ZSOLT 16th

Minardi Cosworth had the satisfaction of seeing both its drivers finish today's Malaysian Grand Prix, an event that lived up to its reputation as one of the most gruelling on the Formula One calendar, with track temperatures well in excess of 40 deg C, and humidity to match. To the outside observer, Zsolt and Gianmaria Bruni looked to have relatively uneventful races at the challenging Sepang International Circuit, both men making good starts, having trouble-free pit stops and benefiting when other drivers encountered problems.

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2004.03.21.

THE RIGHT CHEMISTRY: ALLEGRINI AND MINARDI

Minardi Cosworth is pleased to announce that one of its most loyal sponsors, Allegrini, has not only re-signed as a commercial partner to the Faenza team for a sixth season, but also increased its financial support.

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2004.03.20.

SATISFACTION AT SEPANG - Zsolt is 17th

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, March 20, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth personnel carried on with their preparations for Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix in the same vein as yesterday, working steadily through a technical programme aimed at finalising details for this afternoon's two qualifying sessions and setting the final specification for the Minardi PS04B chassis to be used in tomorrow's race. Ultimately, qualifying produced a positive result for the Faenza team, Gianmaria Bruni recording the 16th fastest time of the afternoon, while Zsolt was 17th.

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2004.03.19.

ZSOLT ON TRACK IN MALAYSIA

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA, March 19, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth enjoyed a very positive start to the Malaysian Grand Prix weekend, running three chassis in today's two one-hour official practice sessions. The Faenza team's race drivers, Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner, were joined for the first time by official test and reserve driver, Bas Leinders, the Belgian having completed the necessary Formula One testing distance required to qualify for his Superlicence this past week.

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2004.03.11.

LEINDERS GOES THE DISTANCE

FAENZA, ITALY, March 11, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth official Test and Reserve Driver, Bas Leinders, today successfully completed 315 kms in a Minardi Cosworth F1 car, under observation, at Ferrari's Fiorano test track.

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2004.03.07.

PERSEVERANCE ABOVE ALL

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, March 7, 2004 - Minardi Cosworth personnel had something of a torrid time during this year's Australian Grand Prix, as drivers Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner both encountered problems with their cars during the opening Formula One race of the 2004 season. The Hungarian driver first experienced difficulties on lap eight, but despite an early pit stop to allow the team to investigate the cause, he was forced to retire from the race on lap 16. The problem was eventually traced to a faulty electronic engine control unit. Bruni, making his Formula One debut in Melbourne, drove with maturity and assurance, passing four cars on the first lap and then settling down to a consistent race pace. Unfortunately, his car began to lose power on lap 20, after his first pit stop, and despite persevering with the problem through a second stop for fuel and tyres, he eventually had no choice but to call at the pits again on lap 37. Determined to help get Bruni to the finish of his first Grand Prix if at all possible, the team's technicians succeeded in curing the engine misfire, and the young Italian was able to rejoin the race for the final 10 laps. Having lost too many laps to be classified, Bruni's perseverance in finishing the race nonetheless benefits him in terms of his position in the qualifying order at the next World Championship round, in Malaysia, in two weeks' time.

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2004.03.06.

MIXED FEELINGS - Zsolt put in an excellent lap

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, March 6, 2004 - It was a case of mixed fortunes for Minardi Cosworth and drivers Gianmaria Bruni and Zsolt Baumgartner during the second day of preparations for tomorrow's Australian Grand Prix. The team made further progress during Saturday morning's two 45-minute practice sessions, carrying on with the technical programme commenced yesterday, while also preparing the Minardi PS04B chassis for the afternoon's new-format, back-to-back qualifying sessions. Baumgartner was first out, recording a time of 1 min 32.606 secs, followed by Bruni, who produced a lap of 1 min 30.912 secs. After a break of only two minutes, while the cars were readied for the second session, Baumgartner put in an excellent lap of 1 min 30.681 secs, slicing nearly two seconds off his previous time. Bruni's afternoon unfortunately came to a premature end when a loss of hydraulic pressure meant he was unable to start his final run. Despite the disappointment, the team has been encouraged by the progress made this weekend and looks forward to the first Formula One race of the 2004 season.

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2004.03.05.

FIRST DAY BACK AT SCHOOL

Zsolt was quicker than Bruni in practice one, and than faster then the two Jordan

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2003.12.05.

ZSOLT BAUMGARTNER SIGNS FOR EUROPEAN MINARDI

European Minardi Cosworth has today officially signed Hungarian, Zsolt Baumgartner, as the second of its two race drivers for the 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship season.

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