Adrian Sutil outshone the likes of Lewis Hamilton to lap ninth quickest in both the practice sessions for Sunday's Australian Grand Prix as Force India's new car promised a turnaround in the fortune of the Vijay Mallya-owned outfit.
Michael Schumacher broke the record of late great Ayrton Senna by storming to his 66th pole position of his career
The Renault team's title sponsor ING Group announced Monday that it was pulling out of Formula One at the end of the 2009 season. 'In light of the recently announced cost reduction program, ING confirmed today not to renew the three year sponsorship (2007-2009) contract with Renault F1 and to end its presence in F1 beyond the 2009 season,' ING said in a statement.
Ferrari have extended Brazilian Felipe Massa's contract by two more years to the end of the 2010 season.
The 22-year-old McLaren driver needed to win or finish ahead of team mate Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen at the Chinese Grand Prix to win the world title but his race ended when he slid off the asphalt and into the gravel when approaching the pit lane.
The 22-year-old Briton will line up alongside Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen on the front row for Sunday's race.
The Fuji circuit, which mixes slow corners with the longest main straight in Formula One, will allow for plenty of overtaking in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix.
The feeling in the paddock is that the FIA's World Motor Sport Council could hit them with at least a heavy fine and points penalty.
Lewis Hamilton joined Massa on the front row, with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen lining up third.
Brazilian Felipe Massa put Ferrari on pole position for the French Grand Prix on Saturday.
The 22-year-old British rookie secured his second victory in a row and moved 10 points clear in the Formula One championship.
Renault took second and third place with Italian Giancarlo Fisichella and newly-crowned champion Fernando Alonso respectively.
India's Narain Karthikeyan finished last, at 20, with a classification time of 1:51.675
Ferrari's Felipe Massa took pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix with a scorching last lap in Saturday's qualifying.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen sang "Viva Las Vegas" after racing to a record-extending 18th victory of the season and joining Sebastian Vettel in third place on Formula One's all-time winners' list.
Formula One's move to a single tyre supplier has hit champions Renault hardest, team boss Flavio Briatore said after Sunday's season-opening Australian Grand Prix.
Briton Lewis Hamilton was congratulated by Formula One greats Jackie Stewart and Stirling Moss after a sparkling start to his grand prix career in Australia on Friday.
Renault rookie Heikki Kovalainen escaped unhurt from a 200kph crash in Formula One testing in Bahrain.
The International Automobile Federation (FIA) said in a statement that it was reviewing Sunday's race result after a timing discrepancy came to light.
Charles Leclerc put Ferrari on pole position for Sunday's US Grand Prix after Red Bull's triple Formula One world champion Max Verstappen had a faster lap deleted for exceeding track limits and dropped to sixth on the grid.
Kimi Raikkonen will race for Ferrari next season after agreeing a two-year deal that takes the 2007 Formula One World champion back to the glamour team he left in 2009.
Michael Schumacher was left with a mountain to climb in the last race of his Formula One career after qualifying 10th for the title-deciding Brazilian Grand Prix.
Fernando Alonso hailed his surprise Japanese Grand Prix victory as a gift from God.
Dominant Formula One leader Max Verstappen ran away with the Hungarian Grand Prix by a mighty margin on Sunday as Red Bull made history with a record 12th victory in a row.
Optimism and tributes to Michael Schumacher on the Rediff F1 Chat following the Italian Grand Prix.
The Finn pipped the seven times champion by just 0.002 seconds.
Title contenders Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher were pushed out of the top 10.
Lewis Hamilton expects McLaren to be a far more harmonious team now that Heikki Kovalainen has replaced Fernando Alonso.
With 13 races to go, fans can expect a season-long duel between ageing warrior Michael Schumacher and 24-year-old Fernando Alonso.
