The former finance minister of the German state of Rhineland-Pfalz, INGOLF DEUBEL, "has been sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail for his role during the attempted privatization of the Nürburgring expansion in '09." A Koblenz court found the 64-year-old "guilty of embezzlement in 14 cases, as well as of providing false statement while not under oath." Former Nürburgring Managing Dir WALTER KAFITZ "was sentenced to one year and seven months on probation." He was "found guilty of embezzlement in 14 cases" (SID, 4/16). ... Four-time F1 world champion SEBASTIAN VETTEL began preparations for this weekend's Grand Prix in competitive spirit, racing wheel-to-wheel against a host of Chinese celebrities in downtown Shanghai. Vettel took the wheel of the new Infiniti Q50 and battled on a purpose-built race track against Chinese movie star JIMMY LIN, snooker player PAN XIAOTING and businessman YAO JINBO (Infiniti). ... League One side Crawley Town defender PAUL CONNOLLY has been banned for five matches by the FA "after confronting a supporter who threw the ball at him from the stands during an English League One match last week" (REUTERS, 4/16).