McLaren's Lewis Hamilton gave his Formula One title hopes a huge boost when he took pole position for the Chinese Grand Prix on Saturday with his main rival Felipe Massa of Ferrari qualifying third.
Force India's Giancarlo Fisichella will start his 200th Formula One race, Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix, in last place. The Italian, who had already collected a five-place penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change, was the slowest qualifier on Saturday.
Poland's Robert Kubica believes he can still pull off a miraculous turnaround and win this year's Formula One world title for BMW-Sauber.
Lewis Hamilton told a F1 appeal court that he had gained no advantage from a chicane-cutting controversy that cost him victory in this month's Belgian Grand Prix.
Bringing Fernando Alonso to Ferrari to partner world champion Kimi Raikkonen would not be desirable, team president Luca di Montezemolo said on Tuesday. "To line up a Raikkonen-Alonso double act would mean wanting to damage yourself. I want two equal drivers that work together," the president said.
Force India, without a point in their debut Formula One season, achieved a modest but noteworthy first on Saturday when they reached the second phase of qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix. Giancarlo Fisichella will start his home race from 12th on the grid on Sunday after mastering the wet qualifying conditions better than world champion Kimi Raikkonen and championship leader Lewis Hamilton, who were 14th and 15th respectively.
Sebastian Vettel made full use of the virtual safety car to sneak in front of Lewis Hamilton midway the race before the German held off the frustrated Briton to win the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was stripped of victory in a thrilling Belgian Grand Prix after stewards decided he had gained an advantage by cutting a chicane during a last-gasp duel with Kimi Raikkonen.
Ferrari's on-form Felipe Massa set the pace in Belgian Grand Prix free practice on Friday while world champion team mate Kimi Raikkonen again looked out of sorts.
Brazilian Grand Prix stewards cleared BMW's Sauber's Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld and Williams' Nico Rosberg of alleged fuel irregularities.
Ferrari chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo said on Wednesday he is confident his team would bounce back in Malaysia this weekend after making a terrible start to the season at the Australian Grand Prix. Neither of the Italian team's drivers completed last weekend's Grand Prix, although world champion Kimi Raikkonen picked up a point after Honda's Rubens Barrichello was disqualified from a race that only seven cars completed. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won.
Red Bull's Dutch 20-year-old Max Verstappen took the chequered flag in second place with Kimi Raikkonen completing the podium for Ferrari and Australian Daniel Ricciardo finishing fourth for Red Bull.
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton took pole position for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Saturday after World champion Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari suffered an early breakdown. The 23-year-old pipped Poland's Robert Kubica to line up a perfect start to his second season in Formula One. Finland's Heikki Kovalainen, in the second McLaren, qualified in third place with Ferrari's Brazilian Felipe Massa alongside on the second row.
Sebastian Vettel cruised to a third straight Singapore Grand Prix victory on Sunday and moved closer to a fourth consecutive Formula One world title with a dominant drive under the floodlights at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
The 31-year-old German fell 30 points behind race-winner Hamilton after a collision with the Briton left him struggling to finish fourth in Monza last time out, one of several races where Vettel has frittered away a position of authority.
Ferrari's Felipe Massa was quickest on Thursday's final day of Formula One testing for next week's German Grand Prix at Hockenheim while Giancarlo Fisichella crashed heavily in his Force India. The Brazilian, level on 48 points with world champion team mate Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren's Lewis Hamilton at the halfway point in the season, was the only driver to lap inside one minute 15 seconds with a best time of 1:14.989.
Daniel Ricciardo showed Red Bull's pace on Wednesday by lapping Barcelona's Formula One circuit faster than anyone since the track was reconfigured in 2007.
Hamilton and Alonso happy to see old rival Kubica return
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc held off Lewis Hamilton to win his first Formula One race on Sunday in the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix.
McLaren's Lewis Hamilton won the Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday but the battle for the Formula One title will go on to the season finale in Brazil.
Ferrari's world champion and Formula One leader Kimi Raikkonen took his first pole position of the season at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Force India began the European leg of the Formula One season on a promising note as both its drivers notched up top 10 finishes in the second practice session ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona. Fisichella was 17th on the timesheet in the first practice session while Sutil was 16th. In the afternoon, both bettered their timing, Fisichella finishing ninth, just ahead of his younger German teammate. Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was fastest in both sessions.
Fernando Alonso is almost certain to rejoin Renault next season, team boss Flavio Briatore said.
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.
Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo praised McLaren driver Fernando Alonso after he lost his world title by just one point to the Italian team's Kimi Raikkonen.
The seven-times Formula One world champion is glad to be watching this year's gripping conclusion at home on television.
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.
Finnish team mate Heikki Kovalainen second quickest on the second day of Formula One's final pre-season test.
Formula One's governing body has banned teams from sending drivers coded messages under a controversial clampdown on the use of radio communications from this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton will have to pay $335,700 for his licence to race in Formula One in 2008.
Felipe Massa led a Ferrari one-two to win the French Grand Prix on Sunday and take the lead in the Formula One championship for the first time.
Force India signed off its three-day testing in Valencia in style, with its Italian driver Giancarlo Fisichella completing 96 laps and clocking just under two seconds behind time-sheet topper Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari.
The 23-year-old McLaren driver kissed goodbye to his championship lead with the most embarrassing moment of his fledgling Formula One career.
Poland's Robert Kubica took his and BMW Sauber's first Grand Prix victory to wrest the Formula One championship lead from McLaren's Lewis Hamilton on a miserable afternoon for the Briton.
Rediff readers debate the controversies surrounding Formula One.
The Finn lapped the six-km Baku street circuit in one minute, 40.495 seconds, just 0.059 seconds faster than team mate and championship leader Lewis Hamilton.
Vijay Mallya's die-hard optimism finally gave away and the Force India owner could not hide his disappointment after Adrian Sutil's fairytale race in the Monaco Grand Prix came to a heart-breaking end in Monaco on Sunday. Sutil was running fourth and with seven minutes to go looked certain to pocket four championship points when Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen rammed into the back of the VJM01 car he was driving, putting paid to his hopes of a dream-come-true finish.
Ferrari's new champion Kimi Raikkonen was fourth on the timesheets.
Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton ended Ferrari's domination of French Grand Prix practice with the fastest time in Saturday's final session.
Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton put Mercedes on pole position for their 200th race at the German Grand Prix on Saturday while engine problems dashed Ferrari's hopes.
