Formula One is feeling a fresh wave of optimism under its new owners, while Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso are the two most popular drivers, according to an extensive fan survey released on Friday.
The German is 40 points adrift of Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton with six races remaining and is running out of time to reassert himself in the battle of the four times world champions.
Team mate Sebastian Vettel was second fastest to complete the front-row sweep, with championship leader Lewis Hamilton third for Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton is hoping rain will come to the rescue as a Hockenheim heatwave threatens to dash Mercedes's hopes of a home German Grand Prix win on Sunday.
Formula One championship leader Sebastian Vettel pumped in a stunning late lap to snatch pole position from team mate Kimi Raikkonen as Ferrari dominated Chinese Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday.
Nico Rosberg won the Austrian Formula One Grand Prix for the second year in a row in a Mercedes one-two finish with team mate Lewis Hamilton on Sunday.
The Briton lapped the Albert Park circuit in a searing one minute and 21.164 seconds to cross the line 0.664 seconds clear of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.
Team by team prospects for the 2016 Formula One season.
'I think we're still the top three teams. Merc (Mercedes) and Ferrari and us. I think we're still going to be leading the pack for now, so, yeah, hopefully we're deep in that front group and have a chance to stand on that podium'
Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton won the Hungarian Grand Prix from pole position for Mercedes on Sunday to go into the August break with a 24-point lead over Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel.
World champion Lewis Hamilton splashed through the puddles at a rain-soaked Sepang International Circuit to secure pole position for Mercedes in a hectic Malaysian Grand Prix qualifying session on Saturday.
Silverstone can provide the antidote to Austria for Lewis Hamilton this weekend, with a record sixth British Grand Prix win -- and his fifth in a row -- there for the taking.
Lewis Hamilton's hopes of clinching his fifth Formula One World championship at the US Grand Prix were boosted on Friday when Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel was handed a three-place grid penalty for a practice infringement.
World champion Lewis Hamilton took pole for Mercedes in qualifying on Saturday for Formula One's season-opening Australian Grand Prix.
Jehan's rookie year in F3 got off to a solid start in the previous weekend at Silverstone where the multiple Indian and Asian Karting champion earned himself two rookie podiums.
Finland's Valtteri Bottas took his first Formula One pole position at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Saturday with a sizzling lap that ended Mercedes team mate Lewis Hamilton's bid for a seventh in a row.
The German, winner of the season's first two races, had been second before coming in for a fresh set of tyres while Hamilton won with one stop from pole position.
Nico Rosberg's hopes of a third successive Austrian Grand Prix win took a hit on Saturday when he crashed in final practice and damaged his Mercedes' gearbox, incurring a five-place grid penalty.
The German was joined on the front row of the grid by reigning world champion and closest rival Lewis Hamilton, in a Mercedes.
World championship leader Nico Rosberg ended the opening day of practice for the Formula One Japanese Grand Prix in a strong position after setting the pace in both sessions on Friday.
The Mercedes driver was fastest in every phase of qualifying to take pole with a time of one minute 42.553 seconds, a track record.
From bloody noses to sparks on the race track, Rediff.com has the best pictures from the last week snapped right here...
Lewis Hamilton took pole position at the Italian Grand Prix for the third year in a row on Saturday with Mercedes team mate and title rival Nico Rosberg joining the Briton on the front row of the grid.
World champion Nico Rosberg's retirement announcement on Friday came as a complete surprise even to the man who knows most of Formula One's best-kept secrets, commercial supremo Bernie Ecclestone.
Formula One legend, Niki Lauda, thinks it's going to be a tighter fight between them, because the latter wants to make sure now he can beat the Briton.
On a rainsoaked afternoon that saw the race twice stopped and re-started with the safety car deployed five times, there were also those who felt the sport had erred too far on the side of caution.
French driver Esteban Ocon will race for Force Indianext season after agreeing a multi-year deal, the Silverstone-based Formula One team said in a statement at the Brazilian Grand Prix on Thursday. Ocon replaces experienced German Nico Hulkenberg, who is moving to Renault, alongside Mexican Sergio Perez at a team co-owned by Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya and currently fourth in the championship. The 20-year-old is contracted long-term to Mercedes, Force India's engine provider, and made his debut this year with the lowly Manor team as a mid-season replacement for Indonesian Rio Haryanto.
Every young racer wants to be the next Lewis Hamilton but most are in too much of a hurry to give themselves the best chance of success.
'Every great Formula One season is marked by a great rivalry. Last year it was our internal battle between Lewis and Nico and this year it seems that the fight is on between Ferrari and Mercedes and Lewis and Sebastian'
Formula One's 'halo' head protection device makes its race debut this season in a 21-round championship with France and Germany back on the calendar and some new faces joining the old favourites on the starting grid.
Former world champion Kimi Raikkonen has renewed his contract with Ferrari and will race for them again next season, the Formula One team said.
Lewis Hamilton pulverised the track record to claim pole position on Saturday ahead of a US Grand Prix that could secure the Mercedes driver's fourth Formula One world championship.
Formula One leader Lewis Hamilton smashed the Suzuka track record to seize a dominant Japanese Grand Prix pole position on Saturday with Ferrari rival Sebastian Vettel lining up alongside on the front row.
2016 is at the halfway stage and the year has already seen some stunning sporting wins, underdogs emerging triumphant on the biggest stages of them all.
Finland's Valtteri Bottas seized the first Formula One victory of his career at the Russian Grand Prix on Sunday after jumping both Ferraris at the start and then holding his nerve over the tense closing laps.
The four times world champion is enjoying his best start to a season since he was at Red Bull in 2011, leading Lewis Hamilton by seven points after two wins and a second place from the first three races.
Formula One championship leader Nico Rosberg's hopes of an eighth successive win, and fifth of the season, disappeared on Sunday after a collision with Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap of the Spanish Grand Prix.
The triple champion, who started the race from a record 69th career pole position, led Finnish team mate Valtteri Bottas to a runaway one-two finish in front of the massed ranks of red-shirted Ferrari fans.
Hamilton's flying lap of one minute 22.188 seconds set a new record at Albert Park but was only 0.268 seconds in front of German Vettel, offering the tantalising prospect of a competitive championship after three years of domination by the Silver Arrows.
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