You would think Formula One racers would be used to images of beautiful women. I mean, a bunch of drivers are already dating some very delectable dames, such as Lewis Hamilton & Nicole Scherzinger and Jenson Button & Jessica Michibata.

But I guess it’s one thing to witness such beauty in person, and another thing to spot it on a billboard when you’re trying to concentrate on the track. A collection of trackside ads for Martini featuring the lovely lady pictured above had become too much for F1 racers preparing for the Grand Prix in Monaco. So the distracted drivers asked for the bothersome billboards to be taken down.

What kind of an advertisement could be so aggravating to the auto racers? See for yourself (along with more pics of the marvelous mischief-making Martini model) after the jump.

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• He hasn’t even thrown a pass yet, but Jets QB Mark Sanchez is already cementing his status as a Big Apple sex symbol with a GQ photo spread:

And Hilary Rhoda, the bikini-clad babe sharing the snapshot spotlight, is also apparently Mark’s new main squeeze.

• Tony Kornheiser gives up his “Monday Night Football” gig, so ESPN tabs Jon Gruden as his replacement. It should be fun, considering what the ex-Bucs coach has said in the past about the Worldwide Leader.

• Will recent sex scandals cause Australian rugby to ban its cheerleaders?

• The Pepsi Center double-books a Nuggets-Lakers playoff game & WWE’s “Monday Night Raw” on the same night. Of course, Vince McMahon is going to have lots of fun with this Denver Debacle.

• Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger is hoping her boyfriend, Formula One star Lewis Hamilton, will soon race with her to the wedding altar.

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• New Jets QB Mark Sanchez struts his stuff in a new photoshoot for GQ:

• Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger is hoping that Formula One star Lewis Hamilton will soon be driving her to the wedding chapel.

• Nice to see the 1962 Mets show up at Dodger Stadium Monday night.

• Michael Strahan is all set to fill in the gap of Fox sitcom programming.

• Vancouver’s sex workers are getting some tips on how to deal with the upcoming Olympic media onslaught.

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In the European sports scene, it’s not just soccer players who can score some fine female companionship. Formula One drivers do pretty well for themselves, too. Like Jenson Button getting to celebrate his victories with marvelous model Jessica Michibata. And Lewis Hamilton getting to party post-race with Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger.

But now it seems that Nicole wants Lewis to make an honest woman out of her. Good luck with that, Lew - you’ll need it.

Oh wait, she means she wants to get married. (More pics of the possible bride-to-be after the jump.)

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In the United States, the sports media freaks out every time an athlete or other sports figure says anything remotely controversial or interesting. ESPN blows up every salacious soundbite they can into a major media controversy, proof of which is the fact that Skip Bayless is still gainfully employed. As a result, interviews with sports celebrities tend to be the media equivalent of room-temperature tapioca pudding (bland, yet at the same time utterly revolting).

(Artist’s rendition of Ecclestone’s dream driver)

Across the pond in Europe, things work a little differently. Our European cousins go mad for wacky sports like “soccer,” “cricket,” and “Formula 1,” and sports figures like Formula 1 owner Bernie Ecclestone talk freely about their desires for Black, Jewish women. Read more…

A true story: a friend was in line at BevMo last week, and was behind someone buying massive amounts of booze. It wasn’t for a party - he had just been laid off, and was stocking up for the holidays. It’s a brutal story, but perhaps also a sign that beer and spirit makers like Diageo, the brand behind Guinness, Smirnoff, and Johnnie Walker, might be one of the few companies to be recession-proof.

Still, it’s a little shocking to read in the TIMES ONLINE (UK) that in a time when sports advertising and endorsement deals worldwide are being impacted, Diageo is planning on going ahead full scale with their deals in 2009. Chief among these deals is one that places the Johnnie Walker logo square on the visor of Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton. The cost? Roughly $22 million a year.

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What does Lewis Hamilton want, more than anything thing in the world? (Other than Spanish fans to stop being racist. Good luck with that, Lewis.) Only the coolest, fastest car in the world. And he only needs two more Formula One championships.

McLaren racing team boss Ron Dennis promised Hamilton last year, before he entered F1, that he would give him the rare McLaren F1 LM if he won three titles. After the 23-year-old clinched his first crown in last week’s Brazilian Grand Prix, the next two seem like a formality. (More car porn, after the jump.) Read more…

Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls, who happens to be the gfriend of new F1 champ Lewis Hamilton, stars in a new viral ad for Nike.

Lebron James also appears. Video after the jump (and obligatory piccie of Ms. Scherzinger): Read more…

• It’s deja vu all over again, as Tommy Lasorda will be back managing the Dodgers this year - in some exhibition games.

• AOL FANHOUSE doesn’t think it’s turrible that Charles Barkley will be in Playboy next month (hopefully just talking & not posing).

• JOE SPORTS FAN feels their hearts racing after checking out this NASCAR dating site.

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