Formula One stewards cleared Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams to race in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix after rejecting the protests of three rival teams on Thursday. After six hours of deliberation at the Albert Park circuit, the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) said the officials had dismissed protests by Red Bull, Renault and champions Ferrari.
The Brawn GP, Toyota and Williams Formula One teams face an attempt to bar them from the Australian Grand Prix Thursday in a controversy that threatens to sour Sunday's season-opening race. The governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) said Red Bull, Renault and Ferrari have lodged protests on grounds the rivals' cars did not comply with technical regulations.
Lewis Hamilton has mended fences with McLaren a day after castigating his Formula One team for denying him a podium with their 'fricking terrible' pitstop strategy at the Australian Grand Prix.
Red Bull have denied using a controversial ride height control system in their cars after McLaren suggested their Formula One rivals could be using technology which they had considered illegal.
Formula One world champion Jenson Button has set his sights on the successful defence of his title, but remains less certain about his path back to the winner's podium after a disappointing season opener.
Will Davison and Will Power will be fitted with an individually moulded Minardi seat in the team's garage during the March 4-7 Australian Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton is confident McLaren can close the gap on Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull after staging a stunning turnaround to finish second behind the world champion at the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel made a perfect start to his Formula One world title defence with a pole to flag victory at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
A stony-faced Michael Schumacher was brought crashing back down to earth on Saturday when his Mercedes failed to break into the third qualifying session at the Australian Grand Prix.
Narain Karthikeyan's hopes of a triumphant return to Formula One at the Australian Grand Prix after a six-year break may yet be put on ice with concerns that the untested Hispania (HRT) cars may struggle to meet minimum pace in qualifying.
Formula One commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone says the Australian Grand Prix is as important to the sport as the iconic Monaco race but he could not force Melbourne to keep it if it was too expensive for the city.
McLaren handed a suspended three race ban for lying to race stewards at the season-opening 2009 Australian Grand Prix. The team were told the ban would be enforced if further facts emerged or there was another breach in the next year.
However, McLaren's David Coulthard warned Button not to be under any illusions.
Struggling Super Aguri confirmed Japan's Takuma Sato and Britain's Anthony Davidson as their 2008 drivers on Tuesday after agreeing to a takeover of the Formula One team. Super Aguri, who finished ninth overall last season, arrive in Melbourne with minimal pre-season mileage under their belts after taking part in just one full test since December while focusing on securing their financial future.
The Formula One champion broke the lap record in practice for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.
Melbourne may not continue to host the Australian Grand Prix after the current contract runs out in 2014, the Premier of the state of Victoria John Brumby said on Wednesday.
Force India's second qualifying goal didn't materialise but lady luck smiled on them and Giancarlo Fisichella will start 15th while his teammate Adrian Sutil 16th after the Toyota cars were pushed to the back of the grid for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix for breaking technical rules.
Brawn GP can lead a 'clean fuel' revolution in Formula One, British entrepreneur Richard Branson said on Saturday after his Virgin Group agreed a sponsorship deal with the sport's newest team. The Virgin Atlantic owner, whose interests range from space travel to soft drinks, told a news conference at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix that a Virgin-backed company had developed a clean fuel that could change Formula One's dirty image.
British entrepreneur Richard Branson's Virgin Group has agreed a substantial sponsorship deal with the new Brawn GP team, both sides announced at the Australian Grand Prix on Saturday.
Lewis Hamilton broke ranks with other drivers who said they were comfortable with assurances received from the governing FIA, even as other sports cancel events and competitions around the globe.
Former world champion Lewis Hamilton has been charged with 'intentional loss of control of a motor vehicle' after performing a stunt in his Mercedes road car on a public street at the Australian Grand Prix in March.
Formula One legend Michael Schumacher has accused rivals Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso of coming in his way during various stages of qualifying for the Australian Grand Prix.
Formula One world champion Jenson Button timed his pitstop to perfection to chalk up his first win for McLaren in a rain-affected and entertaining Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Formula One world champion Jenson Button timed his pitstop to perfection to chalk up his first win for McLaren in a rain-affected and entertaining Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
Force India's Adrian Sutil breezed into the third qualifying session (Q3) and will start Sunday's Australian Grand Prix 10th on the grid which will have India's lone F1 driver Karun Chandhok in the last row. Both the Force India cars should have been in Q3 but Sutil's team mate Vitantonio Liuzzi was caught up in traffic and the Italian, who scored the outfit's first points in Bahrain, would be 13th on the starting grid.
Lewis Hamilton was stopped by police for behaving like a boy racer Friday only hours after he had wowed a Melbourne crowd with the fastest lap in Australian Grand Prix practice.
Force India cars figured in top 10 in both the segments ahead of Sunday's Australian Grand Prix but India's lone F1 driver Karun Chandhok could complete only 20 laps before a gearbox problem ended his run in the free practice sessions in Melbourne on Friday.
After his Bahrain debut ended inside two laps, India's Karun Chandhok reckons finishing the race at the Australian Grand Prix would be a strong result for his rookie F1 outfit.
Michael Schumacher was the slowest driver to complete a lap, behind even the two Minardis and 27.4 seconds slower than Fisichella.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa needs to repeat last year's dominant victory in Bahrain on Sunday to silence his critics after a poor start to the Formula One season. While McLaren's Lewis Hamilton leads the standings with 14 points, three clear of Ferrari's World champion Kimi Raikkonen and BMW Sauber's Nick Heidfeld, Brazilian Massa is yet to score.
Kimi Raikkonen made a forgettable start to his world title defence when a fuel pump problem ruined his chances of securing pole position at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. The Finn will start Sunday's race from the unfamiliar place of 16th on the grid after his Ferrari broke down at the end of Saturday's first qualifying session at Albert Park.
The Italian driver broke into the top 10 in practice for Sunday's season-opening Australian Grand Prix. Fisichella, 35, lapped ninth fastest in Friday's afternoon practice session at Albert Park after ending the morning with the 12th best time. German team mate Adrian Sutil was 17th.
Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso have swerved suggestions their bitter relationship could turn nasty during this weekend's season-opening Australian Grand Prix. Lewis Hamilton said it had been an honour to work with the Spaniard last year.
"The reality check is a race weekend so there is nowhere to hide from that," said the Scot.
The Canadian driver will lose 10 places on the Australian GP after his team confirmed engine change for Saturday qualifying.
Lewis Hamilton will have a chance to equal his childhood hero Ayrton Senna's tally of three world titles. It is a goal that has the Englishman giddy with excitement.
Britain's Jenson Button led an astonishing one-two on his Brawn GP team's racing debut in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on Sunday. No Formula One team had won on their debut since Wolf in 1977 while the last to secure the top two places first time out was Mercedes in 1954.
Jenson Button and Brawn GP team mate Rubens Barrichello rocked Formula One to the core on Saturday by running away with Australian Grand Prix qualifying. The team who arrived in Melbourne with no sponsors, a barely-tested car and two drivers written off as has-beens only a few months earlier, were in a class of their own.
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