With HRT not going to Mugello and given the statements of Williams and Marussia in respect of the driver line-up I think it's significant that none of the three high profile signings are racing at Mugello. You would have thought that publicity would be high for any of the foregoing teams were they to give lap-time to either the first Chinese driver (HRT) or the two female drivers (Williams and Marussia).
With HRT not attending there is no high profile opportunity to launch Ma Qing Hua onto the F1 scene - something which would no doubt impress potential Chinese sponsors as to the teams commitment to their "young driver development programme".
But really it is Marussia and Williams who have missed the trick. Their hiring of female racing drivers has provided them with a massive publicity opportunity, much greater than that achieved by their original decisions. If the teams are serious about this gender balancing act then the appearance of Maria Villota or Susie Wolff in testing would have generated reams of column inches and TV coverage - all the better to gain valuable sponsorship. I can see it now: "The Marussia L'Oreal Team" taking on "Williams Wonderbra" - The latter with the Bernie tag:
"If Susie is as quick in a car as she looks good out of a car then she will be a massive asset to any team and on top of that she is very intelligent."
Sky would just love to cover that!
