F1 - The Indian Grand Prix - 30.10.11

Sebastian Vettel cruises to Indian GP victory ahead of Jenson Button

Sebastian Vettel strolled to his 11th victory of the season at the Buddh International Circuit to become the winner of Formula 1's first ever Indian Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver's latest triumph was one of his most straightforward of his ultra-successful year. As his front row partner and team-mate Mark Webber was attacked by Jenson Button's McLaren and Fernando Alonso's Ferrari at the start, Vettel was free to pull clear.

He sat on a four to five second lead for most of the distance, as he led every lap and completed a perfect performance with the fastest lap of the race as well.

Button got through to second on the first lap, as Alonso twitched under braking and ran wide, letting Webber keep third. The Australian mounted some vigorous attacks on Button over the opening laps, before the McLaren managed to escape and head off for an ultimately uncontested second.

Webber then lost third to Alonso at the final stops, when being the first of the frontrunners to change to the hard Pirellis cost him.

Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa's turbulent season continued with yet another collision between them. The Ferrari had got ahead of the McLaren on the first lap and was a safe distance ahead until an error just before half-distance left Massa vulnerable to attacks from Hamilton.

They eventually collided as Hamilton went down the inside at Turn 5 - with the stewards deciding Massa was at fault for leaving insufficient room and giving the Brazilian a drive-through penalty. Massa later retired when he smashed his suspension on a kerb, just as he had in qualifying, while Hamilton recovered from ninth to seventh after pitting for a new front wing.

He finished behind the two Mercedes, which were led by Michael Schumacher, who had moved onto Nico Rosberg's tail with a fast start then jumped him for fifth with a late final pitstop.

Toro Rosso looked set to get both cars in the points until Sebastien Buemi stopped with smoke pouring from his machine. Jaime Alguersuari went on to take eighth, ahead of Adrian Sutil in the leading Force India, and Sergio Perez, as the Sauber man proved the most successful of those who ran ultra-short opening stints on hard tyres then switched to softs for the duration.

Perez narrowly beat Renault's Vitaly Petrov, who followed the same strategy. Bruno Senna challenged for points in the second Renault but was hampered by KERS issues and finished 12th, followed by Paul di Resta (Force India) and Heikki Kovalainen's Lotus - which showed strong race pace to run as high as 10th.

The Buddh layout proved tricky for the field to safely navigate as one on the first lap. First a brush between the two Williams sent Rubens Barrichello into Kamui Kobayashi's Sauber, which then rejoined in the path of Timo Glock's Virgin. Among several other brushes of wheels around the lap, Jarno Trulli was left with a puncture after his Lotus was punted into a spin by an HRT.

The Indian Grand Prix
Noida, New Delhi, India;
60 laps; 308.220km;
Weather: Dusty.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h30:35.002
2. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 8.433
3. Alonso Ferrari + 24.301
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 25.529
5. Schumacher Mercedes + 1:05.421
6. Rosberg Mercedes + 1:06.851
7. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 1:24.183
8. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
9. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
10. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
12. Senna Renault + 1 lap
13. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
14. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
15. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps
16. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
17. Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
18. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
19. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 4 laps

Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:27.457

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Massa Ferrari 33
Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 25
Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 13
Glock Virgin-Cosworth 3
Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 1


World Championship standings, round 17:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 374 1. Red Bull-Renault 595
2. Button 240 2. McLaren-Mercedes 442
3. Alonso 227 3. Ferrari 325
4. Webber 221 4. Mercedes 145
5. Hamilton 202 5. Renault 72
6. Massa 98 6. Force India-Mercedes 51
7. Rosberg 75 7. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 41
8. Schumacher 70 8. Sauber-Ferrari 41
9. Petrov 36 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Sutil 30
12. Kobayashi 27
13. Alguersuari 26
14. Di Resta 21
15. Buemi 15
16. Perez 14
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

RACC Rally de Espana - 20 - 23 Oct 11

Sebastien Loeb clinches victory for Citroen in Spain

Sebastien Loeb will take an eight-point lead into the World Rally Championship decider in Wales next month after clinching victory in Spain.

The Citroen driver led home title rival Mikko Hirvonen, who had struggled for speed all weekend and only gained second via team orders issued to his Ford team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala. Sebastien Ogier (Citroen) retired on the final loop.

Loeb's rivals' hopes rested on the champion losing time when running first on the road on the mostly-gravel first day - but they would be disappointed when the dust hanging in the air proved a bigger obstacle for drivers behind than the slippery surface was for Loeb.

As conditions improved on Friday afternoon, Latvala moved past Loeb to lead and Ogier closed to within two seconds of him, only for both Latvala and Ogier to lose time with punctures and errors.

Latvala remained second, but fell half a minute behind Loeb - a gap he could not close on the remaining two days on asphalt. In any case, Latvala was always likely to be asked to relinquish second to Ford's title contender Hirvonen, with the switch occurring when Latvala deliberately picked up a penalty for checking in early before the final stage.

Ogier dropped more time with a second puncture on Saturday morning, and was only fifth when an engine problem brought his rally and championship hopes to an end with one stage to go.

Mini's Dani Sordo lost too much ground in Friday's dust to repeat his France podium, but finished fourth ahead of team-mate Kris Meeke. Meeke and Sordo took a one-two on the bonus points power stage, having correctly taken soft tyres for the damp conditions.

Petter Solberg never had chance to join the lead fight, taking a wheel off his Citroen on the very first stage of the weekend.

Mads Ostberg was a lonely sixth in the top Stobart Ford. His regular team-mate Evgeny Novikov switched to a Citroen Racing Tecnologies entry this weekend to sample the DS3 and beat Stobart's Henning Solberg to take his first points of the year in seventh. Third Stobart driver Matthew Wilson crashed out of a points finish on the penultimate stage when pressured by Dennis Kuipers' FERM Ford.

Juho Hanninen added the 2011 S2000 WRC class title to his 2010 Intercontinental Rally Challenge crown by beating Nasser Al-Attiyah to the division victory and 10th overall in Spain. Hanninen's championship rival Ott Tanak's title hopes ended with a crash on the very first stage.

Production champion Hayden Paddon failed to start Friday's leg due to electrical problems, leaving Patrik Flodin to beat Michal Kosciuszko to class victory by just two seconds.

Leading finishers after SS18:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen 4h05m39.3s
2. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 2m06.9s
3. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 2m32.4s
4. Dani Sordo Mini + 3m24.1s
5. Kris Meeke Mini + 5m15.0s
6. Mads Ostberg Stobart Ford + 5m54.2s
7. Evgeny Novikov CRT Citroen + 9m31.8s
8. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 9m40.1s
9. Dennis Kuipers FERM Ford + 11m13.8s
10. Juho Hanninen Red Bull Skoda + 13m49.2s

Other WRC finishers:

12. Khalid Al-Qassimi Ford + 14m39.0s
16. Federico Villagra Munchi's Ford + 17m36.6s
17. Peter van Merksteijn Van Merksteijn Citroen + 18m45.7s
25. Daniel Oliveira Brazil Mini + 38m50.0s

WRC retirements:

Sebastien Ogier Citroen SS17
Matthew Wilson Stobart Ford SS17
Ken Block Monster Ford SS13
Armindo Araujo Italia Mini SS13
Kimi Raikkonen Ice 1 Citroen SS3
Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen SS1

Leading power stage times:

1. Kris Meeke Mini 2m45.7s
2. Dani Sordo Mini + 0.2s
3. Sebastien Loeb Citroen + 4.9s
4. Daniel Oliveira Brazil Mini + 8.0s
5. Juho Hanninen Red Bull Skoda + 8.9s

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The Korean Grand Prix - 16.10.11

Vettel takes commanding win in Korea

Sebastian Vettel cruised to his 10th win of the season at the Korean Grand Prix, wrapping up back-to-back Constructors' World Championship titles for Red Bull in the process.

The German, who took the drivers' title last weekend in Japan, started second on the grid alongside Lewis Hamilton, but outbraked his McLaren into Turn 4 on the opening lap to take a decisive advantage.

A four-second lead was wiped out when Vitaly Petrov took Michael Schumacher out of the race at Turn 3, the resultant debris bringing out the safety car. But when racing resumed, Vettel was again able to pull away. His eventual winning margin over Hamilton was 11s.

Hamilton's runner-up spot was anything but easy. Mark Webber, in the second Red Bull, was never more than 1.5s behind him, and closed onto the McLaren driver's tail during the second half of the race.

A quick decision to bring Hamilton in for his final pitstop just as his rear tyres were beginning to go off managed to keep him ahead of Webber - who stopped on the same lap.

The Australian seemed to have more pace than the Briton, the pair running side-by-side for a number of corners on lap 34, and Webber eventually making it into second at the first corner with five laps to go.

Blessed with the superior traction of the McLaren, and employing a tactic of using all his KERS and DRS at the same time, Hamilton retook the position seconds later on the long run down to Turn 3, and held it to the finish, even setting the fastest lap on the penultimate tour.

Jenson Button fell from third to sixth on the opening lap following strong starts from Ferrari drivers Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso. Such was Massa's lack of pace on worn tyres, that Nico Rosberg made it a four-way battle for the position as they approached the opening round of pitstops.

While Alonso dropped out of the battle after staying out too long on worn rubber, the action concerned Button and Rosberg, who pitted together on lap 14.

Rosberg got out ahead of Button, the Briton giving way at the pit exit after running side-by-side with the Mercedes driver down the pitlane, but then surrendered the position by outbraking himself and running wide as the rejoined the track.

Rosberg regained the place with the aid of DRS a few seconds later, but could only keep the McLaren behind him for another lap.

Massa, by this stage, had fallen behind the pair, and was also overtaken by Alonso at the second round of stops, after a couple of sensational laps from the Spaniard on old rubber.

Button and Alonso finished fourth and fifth, just behind the Hamilton/Webber battle, while Massa was next up.

Jaime Alguersuari put in another strong performance to finish seventh, the Spaniard passing Rosberg for the position on the final lap after a couple of unsuccessful earlier attempts, while his Toro Rosso team-mate Sebastien Buemi was one place further back.

Paul di Resta completed the points scorers, ahead of his Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil, while Pastor Maldonado - who was in the mix with the Force Indias behind the safety car, was given a drive-through penalty for hitting a bollard at pit entry, and later retired.

The Korean Grand Prix
Korea Auto Valley, Yongam, Korea;
55 laps; 305.909km;
Weather: Dry.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h30:01.994
2. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 12.019
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 12.477
4. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 14.694
5. Alonso Ferrari + 15.689
6. Massa Ferrari + 25.133
7. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 49.538
8. Rosberg Mercedes + 54.053
9. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:02.762
10. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:08.602
11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1:11.229
12. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1:33.068
13. Senna Renault + 1 lap
14. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
15. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
16. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
17. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
18. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap
19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 1 lap
20. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap
21. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps

Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:39.605

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 31
Petrov Renault 17
Schumacher Mercedes 16


World Championship standings, round 16:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 349 1. Red Bull-Renault 558
2. Button 222 2. McLaren-Mercedes 418
3. Alonso 212 3. Ferrari 310
4. Webber 209 4. Mercedes 127
5. Hamilton 196 5. Renault 72
6. Massa 98 6. Force India-Mercedes 49
7. Rosberg 67 7. Sauber-Ferrari 40
8. Schumacher 60 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 37
9. Petrov 36 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Sutil 28
12. Kobayashi 27
13. Alguersuari 22
14. Di Resta 21
15. Buemi 15
16. Perez 13
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1

By Jamie O'Leary
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The Japanese Grand Prix - 09.10.11

Vettel clinches second F1 title as Button wins the Japanese Grand Prix

Sebastian Vettel clinched the 2011 Formula 1 world championship with third place in the Japanese Grand Prix, as Jenson Button took victory for McLaren ahead of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari.

The result was Button's first win for McLaren in a totally dry race, and while Vettel's Suzuka winning streak ended, the Red Bull man's podium finish was still more than adequate to make him the champion for a second consecutive year.

Vettel clearly would have preferred to clinch his title with a win - underlining his determination by very firmly defending his lead against the faster starting Button off the line. The McLaren had to flirt with the grass in the close call, prompting Button to enquire over the radio whether Vettel ought to get a penalty. The incident was investigated, but no action was taken.

As Button lost momentum, his team-mate Lewis Hamilton swept around the outside of him into second, where he would stay until signs of a right rear puncture forced him to slow abruptly and make a slightly early pitstop at the end of lap seven. This would drop Hamilton to fourth once the first stops were completed, behind Alonso - who had passed his Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa into the first corner early on.

Button was keeping his tyres in better shape than Vettel, and closed right in on the Red Bull at the end of the stint. Vettel pitted a lap earlier and stayed ahead in the first stops - but not in the second stops on laps 19 and 20, where Button's superb in-lap pace and a great McLaren stop got the Briton out in the lead.

The safety car came out shortly afterwards to clear some debris, including a chunk of Massa's Ferrari bodywork deposited at the chicane when he made contact with Hamilton while trying to go around the outside of the McLaren for fourth. This clash was also investigated, but no action was taken.

With the pack bunched up by the yellow, Vettel found himself back in traffic when he made an early third stop to switch to medium tyres on lap 33.

Button ran three laps longer and extended his lead, with Alonso staying out a further lap still and emerging just ahead of the frustrated Vettel.

The soon-to-be-champion was all over Alonso for a while, until Red Bull suggested now was not the time to take any risks. Alonso then shot off after leader Button, closing to within a second before the McLaren raised its pace in response.

Mark Webber jumped Massa and Hamilton with an early second stop and secured fourth, while having lost out to Massa in the same pit sequence just after their clash, Hamilton overtook the Ferrari again into the first corner on lap 37.

Michael Schumacher took sixth, staying out very late before his third and final stop and therefore leading a grand prix for the first time in his F1 comeback. That strategy also allowed the Mercedes driver to beat Massa to sixth.

Two-stop strategies worked brilliantly for Sergio Perez (Sauber) - who surprisingly set the fastest lap - and Vitaly Petrov (Renault) as they took eighth and ninth. Nico Rosberg charged from the back row to take the final point for Mercedes.

Home hero Kamui Kobayashi's hopes of a great race were ruined by a poor start that left him in traffic all afternoon. He could only finish 13th for Sauber, behind the two Force Indias.

Bruno Senna also lost out on lap one, getting away slightly slowly, then running wide. That and a slow first stop left his Renault only 16th.

The only retirement of the race was Sebastien Buemi, whose Toro Rosso left its first stop with its right front wheel dangling off.

The Japanese Grand Prix
Suzuka, Japan;
53 laps; 307.573km;
Weather: Sunny.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h30:53.427
2. Alonso Ferrari + 1.160
3. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 2.006
4. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 8.071
5. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 24.268
6. Schumacher Mercedes + 27.120
7. Massa Ferrari + 28.240
8. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 39.377
9. Petrov Renault + 42.607
10. Rosberg Mercedes + 44.322
11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 54.447
12. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:02.326
13. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1:03.705
14. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:04.194
15. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1:06.623
16. Senna Renault + 1:12.628
17. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1:14.191
18. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1:27.824
19. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 1:36.140
20. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
21. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
22. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 2 laps
23. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 2 laps

Fastest lap: Button, 1:36.568

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 35


World Championship standings, round 15:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 324 1. Red Bull-Renault 518
2. Button 210 2. McLaren-Mercedes 388
3. Alonso 202 3. Ferrari 292
4. Webber 194 4. Mercedes 123
5. Hamilton 178 5. Renault 72
6. Massa 90 6. Force India-Mercedes 48
7. Rosberg 63 7. Sauber-Ferrari 40
8. Schumacher 60 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 29
9. Petrov 36 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Sutil 28
12. Kobayashi 27
13. Di Resta 20
14. Alguersuari 16
15. Buemi 13
16. Perez 13
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1

Rallye de France Alsace - 29 Sep - 02 Oct 11

Sebastien Ogier brings himself back into title hunt with Rally of France victory

Sebastien Ogier is now just three points behind Sebastien Loeb with two rounds of the World Rally Championship to go after winning a hard-fought Rally of France.

Loeb had led the first two stages of his home event, only to suffer a rare Citroen engine problem on SS3 and have to retire.

That left his team-mate Ogier in a huge three-way battle with Petter Solberg (Solberg Citroen) and Dani Sordo - who was driving a remarkable rally in the new Mini.

All three had spells in the lead, and while Solberg fell back to third with a puncture on Saturday, Sordo kept the pressure on Ogier until the end.

Ogier had got his lead up to 9.5s on Saturday night, only for Sordo to strike back and get it back down to 4.9s on day three's first three stages. But Ogier was able to edge clear again on the home stretch and secure a vital fifth win of the year by 6.3s.

"Very good feeling, it was a bit difficult at the end, I had a not so good drive on the power stage but the most important thing is to get the victory," said Ogier. "For sure it's good for the championship, now we'll have to do two good last rallies of the season."

Sordo admitted to some disappointment at not winning, but was still thrilled to claim Mini's best

"It's incredible," said Sordo. "A little bit disappointed because in the end I didn't take the victory, but we have to be happy."

Ford was unable to fully capitalise on Loeb's misfortune. Both Mikko Hirvonen and Jari-Matti Latvala made mistakes on Friday morning, and the former was off the pace all weekend - requiring team orders to receive Latvala's fourth place on the final stage. Latvala checked in early at the pre-SS23 regroup to take a two-minute penalty and fall to fifth. Hirvonen is also now within three points of Loeb in the standings.

FERM Ford driver Dennis Kuipers produced his best WRC performance yet to hold off Henning Solberg's Stobart Ford and take sixth.

Three punctures relegated Mads Ostberg to eighth in another Stobart entry, while team-mate Evgeny Novikov had a puncture on Friday then crashed on Saturday.

Ken Block was another man showing his best WRC form to date as he took the Monster Ford to ninth, just ahead of Pierre Campana, driving a Mini entered by the French federation. Armindo Araujo looked set for seventh in another private Mini before crashing out this morning.

Ott Tanak moved into the S2000 championship lead by taking a dominant win on a weekend when rival Juho Hanninen was delayed by a puncture then crashed while trying to fight back.

Leading finishers after SS23:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Sebastien Ogier Citroen 3h06m20.4s
2. Dani Sordo Mini + 6.3s
3. Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen + 1m23.8s
4. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 3m26.6s
5. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 3m30.3s
6. Dennis Kuipers FERM Ford + 6m42.0s
7. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 7m08.3s
8. Mads Ostberg Stobart Ford + 7m58.3s
9. Ken Block Monster Ford + 8m25.5s
10. Pierre Campana France Mini + 8m38.7s

Other WRC finishers:

11. Matthew Wilson Stobart Ford + 10m00.8s
13. Khalid Al Qassimi Abu Dhabi Ford + 12m28.2s
24. Evgeny Novikov Stobart Ford + 39m25.8s

WRC retirements:

Armindo Araujo Italia Mini SS18
Daniel Oliveira Brazil Mini SS15
Kris Meeke Mini SS13
Peter van Merksteijn Van Merksteijn Citroen SS8
Sebastien Loeb Citroen SS3
Kimi Raikkonen Ice 1 Citroen SS3

Leading power stage times:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford 3m09.4s
2. Dani Sordo Mini + 2.1s
3. Sebastien Ogier Citroen + 2.5s
4. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 2.5s
5. Matthew Wilson Stobart Ford + 4.6s

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The Singapore Grand Prix - 25.09.11

Vettel on brink of title after Singapore Grand Prix victory
Sebastian Vettel moved to the brink of a second title by winning the Singapore Grand Prix, but Jenson Button's runner-up finish meant the German was one point shy of the championship lead he required to wrap things up for 2011.

Vettel utterly dominated the majority of the race. The Red Bull man was a second per lap faster than his pursuers at first, and though the pack closed up with a mid-race safety car after Michael Schumacher clipped Sergio Perez and was launched into a violent accident - from which he emerged unhurt - Vettel had a cushion of backmarkers behind him at the restart and was eight seconds clear again after just one lap.

McLaren driver Button started closing in with some very rapid late laps, but Vettel always appeared to have everything under control as he clinched his ninth win of the season.

Button had claimed second with a quick start, while Vettel's front row partner team-mate Mark Webber got away slowly. Lewis Hamilton challenged Webber down the inside in the second McLaren but ran out of space and fell as low as eighth, while Fernando Alonso took his Ferrari around the outside of everyone to grab third from fifth on the grid.

Webber twice passed Alonso on the road, having to get back ahead after the Ferrari reclaimed third in the first pitstops following an on-track exchange. But a bold dive into the Turn 10 chicane amid traffic on the restart lap secured Webber's third place and he pulled away thereafter.

Hamilton had a highly eventful run to fifth. He quickly recovered from being wrong-footed on the first lap but then clipped Felipe Massa while racing with the Ferrari immediately after the first stops. The McLaren picked up both wing damage and a penalty, while Massa was left with a puncture.

A fightback charge from Hamilton took him from a post-drive-through 15th to fifth in the end, helped by the safety car closing him onto the lead pack again. A string of DRS passes got him back into the top five, though having to pit for another set of tyres while those behind him did not meant Hamilton had to make a lot of his moves twice before his top five finish was secure.

Paul di Resta secured the best result of his Formula 1 career so far in sixth for Force India. A very long first stint and the ability to make his second and final stop just as the safety car came out got him ahead of Mercedes' Nico Rosberg and the second Force India of Adrian Sutil.

Massa fell to 20th following the clash with Hamilton, before clawing his way back through to salvage some points in ninth.

Perez's Sauber was undamaged in the incident with Schumacher, which happened when the Mercedes was coming back through after a pitstop, and he finished 10th.

The Singapore Grand Prix
Singapore, Singapore;
61 laps; 309.087km;
Weather: Dry.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h59:06.537
2. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 1.737
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 29.279
4. Alonso Ferrari + 55.449
5. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 1:07.766
6. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1:51.067
7. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap
8. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
9. Massa Ferrari + 1 lap
10. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
12. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
13. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
14. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 2 laps
15. Senna Renault + 2 laps
16. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
17. Petrov Renault + 2 laps
18. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 4 laps
20. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 4 laps
21. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 5 laps

Fastest lap: Button, 1:48.454

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Trulli Lotus-Renault 48
Schumacher Mercedes 29
Glock Virgin-Cosworth 10


World Championship standings, round 14:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 309 1. Red Bull-Renault 491
2. Button 185 2. McLaren-Mercedes 353
3. Alonso 184 3. Ferrari 268
4. Webber 182 4. Mercedes 114
5. Hamilton 168 5. Renault 70
6. Massa 84 6. Force India-Mercedes 48
7. Rosberg 62 7. Sauber-Ferrari 36
8. Schumacher 52 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 29
9. Heidfeld 34 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Petrov 34
11. Sutil 28
12. Kobayashi 27
13. Di Resta 20
14. Alguersuari 16
15. Buemi 13
16. Perez 9
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The Italian Grand Prix - 11.09.11

Vettel closes in on title with dominant Monza victory

Sebastian Vettel cruised to his eighth victory of the 2011 Formula 1 season as he proved that Red Bull had firmly conquered its Monza weak spot by dominating the Italian Grand Prix.

Jenson Button won a battle with Fernando Alonso for second, with Lewis Hamilton having to settle for fourth after spending much of the race trapped behind Michael Schumacher. Mark Webber - Vettel's closest challenger in the points prior to the weekend - crashed out early.

Alonso had briefly raised the Italian crowd's hopes by surging his Ferrari to the front in a spectacular start from fourth on the grid. Poleman Vettel was slow away and was attacked first by Hamilton's McLaren before Alonso appeared down the inside, briefly took to the grass and slipped ahead, with Hamilton running out of space and falling to third behind Vettel.

Carnage further back would prompt an immediate safety car. Tonio Liuzzi lost control of his HRT under braking and spun down the inside grass before slamming into Nico Rosberg's Mercedes and Vitaly Petrov's Renault in the middle of the Rettifilio. Rubens Barrichello's Williams and Kamui Kobayashi's Sauber picked up damage in the consequent traffic jam, while Bruno Senna (Renault), Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) and Adrian Sutil (Force India) all had to trundle through the gravel in avoidance.

At the lap four restart Hamilton was caught unaware by Schumacher, who had thrust his Mercedes to fourth at the start and then grabbed third from the McLaren.

Webber was taking sixth from Button at the same time, both having lost ground at the start. But when the Red Bull attacked Felipe Massa into the first chicane a lap later, Webber ended up tagging the Ferrari into a spin and smashing his front wing, which then folded under the car and caused him to crash at the Parabolica.

The other Red Bull was faring better. Vettel was all over Alonso as soon as racing resumed, and on lap five he managed to get through into the Roggia chicane despite having put two wheels on the Curva Grande grass moments earlier as the Ferrari defended. After that, Vettel was unstoppable, storming away and holding a 15-second cushion for most of the rest of the race as he notched up yet another victory.

Alonso then came under attack from Schumacher and Hamilton for a while, but soon the latter pair were too busy with each other. The Mercedes' incredible straightline speed and some firm defending from Schumacher kept Hamilton at bay despite the Briton trying move after move.

Button caught them too, and was able to pass both in quick succession on lap 16 - taking Hamilton when he had to abruptly back off as Schumacher slammed the door shut at the Curva Grande, and then slicing down the outside of the Mercedes into Ascari.

That left Button free to chase down Alonso, who he overtook shortly after the second pitstops when the Ferrari got a poor exit from the first chicane.

Hamilton finally overtook Schumacher using the pre-Ascari DRS zone on lap 27, and then mounted his own pursuit of Alonso - catching the Ferrari on the final lap and just running out of time to try a pass.

Massa recovered from the Webber incident to take sixth behind Schumacher.

Sergio Perez looked assured of seventh on a one-stop strategy until his Sauber's gearbox failed, which meant Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) could take the place after a strong drive from 18th on the grid.

Di Resta, Senna and Buemi recovered from their first-corner delays to complete the points-scorers.

A fine start and a safe passage through the first-lap mess saw Pastor Maldonado run as high as sixth for Williams. But he did not have the pace to stay there and slipped to 11th by the finish.

Behind the delayed Barrichello, the high attrition rate allowed Lotus duo Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli, and Virgin's Timo Glock, to take potentially useful finishes in 13th through 15th places.

RACE RESULTS

The Italian Grand Prix
Autodromo di Monza, Italy;
53 laps; 306.720km;
Weather: Sunny.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h20:46.172
2. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 9.590
3. Alonso Ferrari + 16.909
4. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 17.471
5. Schumacher Mercedes + 32.677
6. Massa Ferrari + 42.993
7. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
8. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
9. Senna Renault + 1 lap
10. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
12. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
13. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
14. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
15. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps

Fastest lap: Hamilton, 1:26.187

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 40
Perez Sauber-Ferrari 34
Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 23
Sutil Force India-Mercedes 11
Webber Red Bull-Renault 6
D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 3
Petrov Renault 1
Rosberg Mercedes 1
Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 1


World Championship standings, round 13:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 284 1. Red Bull-Renault 451
2. Alonso 172 2. McLaren-Mercedes 325
3. Webber 167 3. Ferrari 254
4. Button 167 4. Mercedes 108
5. Hamilton 158 5. Renault 70
6. Massa 82 6. Force India-Mercedes 36
7. Rosberg 56 7. Sauber-Ferrari 35
8. Schumacher 52 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 29
9. Petrov 34 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Kobayashi 27
12. Sutil 24
13. Alguersuari 16
14. Buemi 13
15. Di Resta 12
16. Perez 8
17. Barrichello 4
18. Senna 2
19. Maldonado 1

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

Rally Australia - 08 - 11 Sep 11

Mikko Hirvonen closes on Sebastien Loeb with team-assisted Rally Australia win

Mikko Hirvonen claimed Ford's first World Rally Championship victory for nine rounds in Australia, after a rally that began with rain and chaos, and ended with a flurry of team orders.

Ford ended its drought in emphatic style, with Hirvonen's team-mate Jari-Matti Latvala coming home second. The team had not won since the season-opener in Sweden, but Hirvonen's consistency in the interim meant that the Australian result brought him straight back into title contention - placing him 15 points behind Sebastien Loeb with three rallies to go.

Friday had seen heavy rain and extraordinarily slippery conditions, and at first it was Citroen duo Loeb and Sebastien Ogier who battled for victory as both Ford men made minor errors and lost time.

But after Loeb rolled and Ogier slid into a tree, Hirvonen and Latvala found themselves back in first and second - and were able to charge away from third-placed Petter Solberg (Solberg Citroen).

With Latvala almost out of mathematical title contention but Hirvonen still in with a shout, Ford had no qualms about hinting that the elder of its Finns was going to be in front by the finish whatever happened in the interim.

So while Latvala moved into the lead on Saturday, when Hirvonen lost time running first on the road, a reversal of positions was always inevitable. Sure enough, on the penultimate stage of the rally Latvala slowed significantly and dropped into second place as Hirvonen reclaimed the lead and went on to clinch the win.

"I do like this place, it's been really kind to us, but we have this victory only because of the fantastic teamwork we have done," said Hirvonen, who has now won the last three Rally Australias.

"It's a fantastic result and it's so important for Ford. Of course big thanks to Jari-Matti for slowing down on the long stage and giving me the points for the championship. Now we're back in it."

Both Citroen drivers were able to rejoin under superally for Saturday. Initially Ogier seemed to have by far the better chance of salvaging something from the event, as his charge brought him within sight of eighth place, while 11th looked to be Loeb's limit.

However Citroen decided on the final day that with Hirvonen gaining so much championship ground, it had to throw all its efforts behind Loeb - despite Ogier having started the rally second in the standings, 25 points from his team-mate.

Ogier was therefore ordered to check in late before the penultimate stage to incur a penalty, and then to park on the stage for 10 minutes. That dropped him back to finish 11th, and ensured Loeb was able to grab 10th place. The world champion then added a further three points to his tally by winning the power stage, which saw Latvala and Solberg take the second and third bonus points.

"The team made a decision because we are now under pressure from Mikko after our mistake," said Loeb. "That is the situation."

Overshadowed by the Ford and Citroen adventures, Solberg was buoyed by the pace he showed on the way to third, feeling he was back in contention after two low-key rallies.

Attrition was high from the outset, and Matthew Wilson (Stobart Ford) and Khalid Al Qassimi (Abu Dhabi Ford) were the only other WRC drivers to get through the three days unscathed. That gave them fourth and fifth places - equalling Wilson's best-ever World Rally Championship result, and Al Qassimi's highest finish to date.

Wilson's team-mates Henning Solberg and Evgeny Novikov had eventful weekends. Novikov was challenging Petter Solberg on Friday before damaging his car and having to retire. He got back to 10th under superally only to have an enormous crash on Sunday morning. Solberg ran fourth until an electrical glitch, and then made it to the end in 14th under superally despite rolling on Sunday afternoon then sustaining a double puncture on the power stage.

The WRC carnage allowed several Production class runners to finish in the overall points, led by rising star Hayden Paddon (Symtech Subaru). The New Zealand driver claimed the Production title with class victory and a superb outright sixth place, having charged back past rival Michal Kosciuszko after a turbo gremlin on Saturday. Paddon has won on all four of his Production appearances this year.

Leading finishers after SS26:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Mikko Hirvonen Ford 3h35m59.0s
2. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 14.7s
3. Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen + 44.8s
4. Matthew Wilson Stobart Ford + 8m45.2s
5. Khalid Al Qassimi Abu Dhabi Ford + 12m33.3s
6. Hayden Paddon Symtech Subaru + 17m29.3s
7. Michal Kosciuszko Lotos Mitsubishi + 19m01.3s
8. Oleksandr Saliuk Mentos Mitsubishi + 21m08.5s
9. Benito Guerra GMA Mitsubishi + 22m48.9s
10. Sebastien Loeb Citroen + 30m02.9s

Other WRC finishers:

11. Sebastien Ogier Citroen + 30m19.4s
13. Peter van Merksteijn Van Merksteijn Citroen + 32m21.0s
14. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 32m23.7s
19. Ken Block Monster Ford + 42m01.9s

WRC retirements:

Evgeny Novikov Stobart Ford SS22
Daniel Oliveira Brazil Mini SS22

Leading power stage results:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen 2m18.1s
2. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 1.2s
3. Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen + 1.3s
4. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 1.6s
5. Ken Block Monster Ford + 3.3s

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F1 - The Belgian Grand Prix - 28.08.11

Sebastian Vettel returns to the top by winning Belgian Grand Prix

World championship leader Sebastian Vettel claimed his first victory since Valencia in June as he triumphed in a hard-fought Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.

Vettel led Mark Webber in a Red Bull one-two, while Jenson Button tore through from 13th on the grid to third for McLaren. His team-mate Lewis Hamilton's day ended in a clash with Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi. Fernando Alonso was a victory threat until falling to fourth in the final stint on harder tyres.

A chaotic start had seen Webber stutter off the grid and fall from third to eighth, as Nico Rosberg burst through to second and then slipstream past Vettel to take a shock lead for Mercedes by Les Combes, with Felipe Massa, Hamilton and the fast-starting Alonso next up.

Rosberg's lead lasted until lap three, when Vettel triggered his DRS and eased ahead on the Kemmel Straight. But the tyre issues that had been feared prior to the race started early for the Red Bulls, with Webber pitting after just three laps, and Vettel coming in from the lead next time around.

That put Rosberg back in front, though he had Alonso on his tail as the Spaniard had swiftly passed Hamilton, then outbraked team-mate Massa when the sister Ferrari lost momentum in a failed move on Rosberg. Hamilton also capitalised to further demote Massa as the shuffle unfolded.

By lap seven Alonso was sweeping past Rosberg on the Kemmel Straight to move into the lead, with Hamilton doing likewise on the following lap.

The Ferrari and McLaren managed to keep their initial tyres intact until laps eight and 11 respectively, but the Red Bulls' earlier stops had worked out better for them - and as Hamilton pitted from the lead, Vettel was sweeping around the outside of Rosberg in an epic pass into Blanchimont ready to move to the head of the field again. Shortly beforehand, Webber had produced a similarly spectacular move on Alonso into Eau Rouge as the Ferrari emerged from its pitstop, though Alonso would repass the Red Bull next time around.

Hamilton's challenge then ended on lap 13, when a brush of wheels with the yet-to-pit Kamui Kobayashi's Sauber on the run into Les Combes spat the McLaren violently into the barriers, prompting a safety car period.

Vettel immediately pitted for more tyres, which meant that although Alonso was able to lead again from the restart, the champion was soon easing ahead once more with a DRS pass.

From then onwards Vettel was effectively untouchable, inching away from Alonso through the next stint and clinching his first win in two months. When the Ferrari switched to the harder tyres for the final run to the flag, Alonso's pace tailed off dramatically and he found himself being passed by first Webber, then Button. The Hungarian GP winner had driven another epic race, getting the harder tyre out of the way early, then overtaking car after car in the middle of the race to move himself into podium contention. He secured his place on the rostrum by passing the troubled Alonso with two laps to go.

Michael Schumacher took a superb fifth place from the back of the grid - like Button using the harder tyre in the first stint then charging spectacularly. His Mercedes team-mate Rosberg drifted back to sixth as the race progressed, ahead of Adrian Sutil (Force India).

An additional stop to replace a deflating tyre left Massa eighth, gaining a place when Vitaly Petrov's Renault was delayed on the final lap, while Pastor Maldonado put Saturday's controversy behind him to score the final point for Williams - the first time that the 2010 GP2 champion had scored in Formula 1.

Bruno Senna's return to a race seat brought only a 13th place in the second Renault, as his outstanding qualifying result was wasted in a first-corner tangle with Jaime Alguersuari's Toro Rosso, which earned the Brazilian a drivethrough penalty (and almost took Alonso out too, the Ferrari lucky to continue as Alguersuari smashed his suspension against it). Virgin's Timo Glock was also given a drivethrough after being adjudged to have triggered further multi-car mayhem at the tail of the pack.

The Belgian Grand Prix
Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium;
44 laps; 308.052km;
Weather: Dry conditions.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h26.44.893
2. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 3.741
3. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 9.669
4. Alonso Ferrari + 13.022
5. Schumacher Mercedes + 47.464
6. Rosberg Mercedes + 48.674
7. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 59.713
8. Massa Ferrari + 1m06.076
9. Petrov Renault + 1m11.917
10. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1m17.615
11. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1m23.994
12. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1m31.976
13. Senna Renault + 1m32.985
14. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
15. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 1 lap
16. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
17. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap
18. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 1 lap
19. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 1 lap

Fastest lap: Massa, 1:23.415

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Perez Sauber-Ferrari 27
Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth 13
Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 12
Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 6
Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1



World Championship standings, round 11:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 259 1. Red Bull-Renault 426
2. Webber 167 2. McLaren-Mercedes 295
3. Alonso 157 3. Ferrari 231
4. Button 149 4. Mercedes 88
5. Hamilton 146 5. Renault 68
6. Massa 74 6. Sauber-Ferrari 35
7. Rosberg 56 7. Force India-Mercedes 32
8. Schumacher 42 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 22
9. Petrov 34 9. Williams-Cosworth 5
10. Heidfeld 34
11. Kobayashi 27
12. Sutil 24
13. Buemi 12
14. Alguersuari 10
15. Di Resta 8
16. Perez 8
17. Barrichello 4
18. Maldonado 1

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

ADAC Rallye Deutschland - 18 - 21 Aug 11

Sebastien Ogier triumphs in Germany as Sebastien Loeb's winning streak ends

Sebastien Ogier ended Sebastien Loeb's unbeaten Rallye Deutschland run by cruising to an easy win after the world champion suffered a puncture while leading at the end of day two.

Prior to this year, Loeb had won every time the German event had featured on the World Rally Championship calendar, notching up eight triumphs to date.

He looked set for number nine as he established a small lead over Ogier in the first half of the event, with Citroen then instructing its drivers to hold station as they had pulled out a big lead over their rivals.

But Loeb then lost over a minute with the puncture on Saturday's closing Panzerplatte stage, leaving Ogier to collect his fourth win of 2011.

"We knew before the start that it's a rally where my team-mate is so strong, and we got the victory, so it's a perfect weekend," said Ogier.

Loeb, who was at least able to pick up bonus points for winning the power stage, was sanguine about his winning run ending.

"It cannot be perfect every year," he said. "It's what I've said every year - one day it will stop. We did a good rally. We were a bit unlucky yesterday and there was nothing we could do for that."

Dani Sordo gave the new Mini project its first podium with an outstanding third place. He had gained the position as the works Fords suffered various issues - starting with an errant tyre choice for a damp Friday stage and then punctures for both cars - and then had enough pace to stay comfortably clear of fourth-placed Mikko Hirvonen.

Sordo's Mini team-mate Kris Meeke battled for fifth with Petter Solberg's Citroen for most of the weekend, until he had to retire with a loss of power just two stages from the end.

Ford's Jari-Matti Latvala was hampered by punctures, an engine problem and a Saturday crash, and finally made it to the finish in 14th.

Kimi Raikkonen took his best result of 2011 so far in sixth, winning a rally-long contest with Stobart Ford's Henning Solberg. Dennis Kuipers had been in this fight too until his FERM Ford picked up a puncture. Armindo Araujo scored his first points since switching to a WRC Mini in eighth.

Results after SS19:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Sebastien Ogier Citroen 3h32m15.9s
2. Sebastien Loeb Citroen + 39.8s
3. Dani Sordo Mini + 1m55.6s
4. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 2m43.7s
5. Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen + 3m48.0s
6. Kimi Raikkonen Ice 1 Citroen + 7m24.6s
7. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 7m45.9s
8. Armindo Araujo Italia Mini + 9m29.8s
9. Peter van Merksteijn Van Merksteijn Citroen + 10m01.6s
10. Dennis Kuipers FERM Ford + 10m09.0s

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F1 - The Hungarian Grand Prix - 31.07.11

Button wins action-packed Hungarian GP in 200th F1 race

Jenson Button claimed victory in his 200th grand prix as he perfectly judged an absorbing race in changeable weather in Hungary.

McLaren could have had a one-two, with Lewis Hamilton leading much of the race, but a tyre strategy misjudgement and a penalty ruined Hamilton's afternoon.

World championship leader Sebastian Vettel had to settle for second, ahead of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari and the recovering Hamilton.

McLaren had taken the advantage early in a race that began on a damp track with everyone on intermediates, Hamilton attacking Vettel relentlessly through the opening laps as both slid around in a dice more reminiscent of a karting scrap than Formula 1.

The lead finally changed on lap five, when Vettel ran wide at Turn 2 and Hamilton breezed past and pulled away, soon extending a four-second lead over the championship leader, who was at least able to drop Button at this stage.

Laps 10 to 13 saw all the leaders decide the track was ready for slicks, and coming in one lap sooner than Vettel paid off for Button, who made the most of his warmer tyres and greater confidence to take second place into Turn 2.

Mark Webber pulled off the same move on Alonso for fourth at the same time. The Ferrari had lost ground through the first corner on the opening lap, then charged back up the order despite two minor trips off the road.

The relatively serene middle phase of the race saw Hamilton holding a comfortable gap over Button, who had a similar 5s advantage back to Vettel, while Webber fended off Alonso 10s behind them.

Alonso decided to make a relatively early third pitstop and take another set of super softs, while all the other leaders except Hamilton switched to the harder softs at this point.

The burst of pace on fresh Pirellis allowed Alonso to jump both Red Bulls during his rapid laps before they pitted, though the tyres then began to wear and he lost third to Vettel again.

Hamilton followed the same strategy as Alonso, which left him looking very vulnerable to Button as he looked unlikely to pull out enough of a gap to pit again for the softs, but in the event the return of the rain rendered these tactics rather irrelevant.

The sudden shower hit on lap 47, causing Hamilton to spin at the chicane. He tried to rejoin as quickly as possible, but could not prevent Button taking the lead - and also forced Paul di Resta's lapped Force India off the road as he rotated, a move that would ultimately earn Hamilton a penalty.

With the rain increasing, Button slipped up at Turn 2 four laps later, allowing Hamilton back into the lead. Button retaliated on the following lap and briefly regained first place on the pits straight, only to go wide again at Turn 2 as the top spot was exchanged yet again.

But just as Hamilton moved back into first, he made what turned out to be the costly decision to pit again for intermediates. It was obvious almost immediately that this was the wrong call, as the rain rapidly vanished, and the Briton was soon back in for slicks. His drive-through penalty for nearly wiping out di Resta soon followed, dropping him to sixth and leaving Button clear to win.

The 2009 champion briefly came under pressure from Vettel, but had the pace to pull away again and clinch his second victory of the year.

With Webber also switching to intermediates unnecessarily, Alonso regained third, which he held despite a quick late spin.

Hamilton battled back to fourth ahead of Webber, with Felipe Massa recovering from an early spin to sixth in the other Ferrari.

Kamui Kobayashi tried to go the distance on just two tyre stops and held seventh heading into the closing stages, albeit with a massive queue of cars chasing his Sauber. The plan did not work, and he had to pit for fresh rubber after tumbling down the order, as di Resta came through to seventh and Sebastien Buemi turned 23rd on the grid into an eighth place for Toro Rosso.

Mercedes only took ninth place, Nico Rosberg having also pitted for intermediates late on. Michael Schumacher had a gearbox problem shortly after spinning while dicing with Massa in the opening stages. Jaime Alguersuari (Toro Rosso) clashed with Kobayashi during their late battle but still took 10th.

Adrian Sutil (Force India) and Sergio Perez (Sauber) saw their great qualifying results wasted in a first lap incident that delayed both.

One of the most spectacular incidents of this highly eventful race befell Nick Heidfeld, whose Renault caught fire in the pit exit after a long stop, with a minor explosion on its left-hand side as the marshals dealt with the blaze.

The Hungarian Grand Prix
The Hungaroring, Hungary;
70 laps; 306.663km;
Weather: Mixed conditions.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Button McLaren-Mercedes 1h43:42.337
2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 3.588
3. Alonso Ferrari + 19.819
4. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 48.338
5. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 49.742
6. Massa Ferrari + 1:17.176
7. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
8. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
9. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap
10. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
11. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
12. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
13. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps
14. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 2 laps
15. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 2 laps
16. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps
17. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 4 laps
18. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 4 laps
19. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 5 laps
20. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 5 laps

Fastest lap: Massa, 1:23.415

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 56
Schumacher Mercedes 27
Heidfeld Renault 24
Trulli Lotus-Renault 18


World Championship standings, round 11:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 234 1. Red Bull-Renault 383
2. Webber 149 2. McLaren-Mercedes 280
3. Hamilton 146 3. Ferrari 215
4. Alonso 145 4. Mercedes 80
5. Button 134 5. Renault 66
6. Massa 70 6. Sauber-Ferrari 35
7. Rosberg 48 7. Force India-Mercedes 26
8. Heidfeld 34 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 22
9. Schumacher 32 9. Williams-Cosworth 4
10. Petrov 32
11. Kobayashi 27
12. Sutil 18
13. Buemi 12
14. Alguersuari 10
15. Di Resta 8
16. Perez 8
17. Barrichello 4

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

Neste Oil Rally Finland - 28 - 30 July 11

Sebastian Loeb secures brilliant Rally Finland victory.

Sebastien Loeb, Citroen, Finland 2011Sebastien Loeb has clinched the second Rally Finland victory of his career and stretched his points lead with a superb drive on the 2011 event.

The world champion spent the whole weekend battling with his Citroen team-mate Sebastien Ogier and Ford's Jari-Matti Latvala, but made a crucial break on the final morning.

All three used various tactics to try and ensure that they were not running first on the road on Saturday, with Loeb seeming to luck out and end up leading overnight.

Yet after all their efforts to avoid being first in the final day running order, Loeb found it no problem at all, at least on the opening stages, where he quickly opened up a 10-second lead, which he duly protected for the rest of the day. The result made Loeb the first non-Scandinavian ever to win the event twice.

"It feels very good. A very difficult race," he said. "We cleaned the road for three days and finally we were still the fastest in the end. We had to really fight until the end so it may be the greatest win."

A frustrated Ogier lost second to Latvala with a late puncture that forced him to drive carefully thereafter as he lacked further spare tyres. Latvala could not always match the Citroens, though as his set-up became increasingly to his liking, he was able to edge slightly closer to Loeb late on.

"I just woke up a little too late for the rally," Latvala admitted. "It's been a great really and I've really been enjoying it. Of course it's a little disappointing because I wanted to win and I couldn't get it."

His Ford team-mate Mikko Hirvonen was by far the fastest man for the most of the weekend. But an error on stage one that saw him damage his Fiesta against a tree left him two minutes off the road and in 36th on Thursday night.

That set the stage for a ferocious charge back through the order that eventually took him to fourth, just 1m09s off the lead, claiming the bonus points for the power stage win along the way.

Petter Solberg was a resigned fifth at the end of a weekend when he never had the pace to challenge for victory.

The Stobart Fords of Mads Ostberg, Henning Solberg and Matthew Wilson filled sixth to eighth places ahead of Kimi Raikkonen (Ice 1 Citroen) and S2000 winner Juho Hanninen, after the late retirement of both Minis due to overheating issues. Dani Sordo and Kris Meeke had earlier run comfortably in the top eight.

Ostberg pushed hard and kept Solberg under pressure to the finish, while Solberg, Wilson and Raikkonen were engaged in a very close dice throughout the event.

Local stars Jari Ketomaa and Matti Rantanen both starred early on in one-off outings in WRC machinery, with Ketomaa even leading briefly, but would crash out.

Leading finishers after SS22:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Sebastien Loeb Citroen 2h39m37.0s
2. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 8.1s
3. Sebastien Ogier Citroen + 12.8s
4. Mikko Hirvonen Ford + 1m09.1s
5. Petter Solberg Solberg Citroen + 1m16.2s
6. Mads Ostberg Stobart Ford + 1m27.8s
7. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 3m25.5s
8. Matthew Wilson Stobart Ford + 3m53.2s
9. Kimi Raikkonen Ice 1 Citroen + 3m59.8s
10. Juho Hanninen Red Bull Skoda + 5m13.7s

Other WRC finishers:

11. Dennis Kuipers FERM Ford + 7m41.3s
14. Khalid Al Qassimi Abu Dhabi Ford + 9m47.8s
20. Armindo Araujo Italia Mini + 12m53.0s
37. Daniel Oliveira Brazil Mini + 34m01.6s
38. Mattias Therman Therman Mini + 1h03m05.2s

WRC Retirements:

Dani Sordo Mini SS21
Kris Meeke Mini SS20
Rene Kuipers FERM Ford SS17
Evgeny Novikov Stobart Ford SS16
Jari Ketomaa HJ-Autotalo Ford SS8
Matti Rantanen Mini SS2

Power stage results:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Mikko Hirvonen Ford 2m39.6s
2. Jari-Matti Latvala Ford + 0.3s
3. Sebastien Ogier Citroen + 0.6s
4. Sebastien Loeb Citroen + 0.6s
5. Henning Solberg Stobart Ford + 0.8s

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F1 - The German Grand Prix - 24.07.11

Lewis Hamilton wins thrilling German Grand Prix

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton took his first grand prix victory since China in April as he emerged on top in a race-long battle with Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber in the German Grand Prix at a dry Nurburgring.

Polesitter Webber's third place behind Ferrari driver Alonso was Red Bull's best result of the day, as championship leader Sebastian Vettel had a muted home race and came home fourth after a lengthy dice with Felipe Massa in the second Ferrari.

Webber almost got swamped at the start, with Hamilton instantly sweeping past him and the two Ferraris then going either side of the Red Bull into Turn 1. Neither made it through, and while Alonso held on in third ahead of Vettel, Massa was edged out wide and dropped to sixth behind Nico Rosberg.

Vettel would get past Alonso for third when the Ferrari ran wide in the first complex on lap two, but six laps later the Silverstone winner was able to successfully retaliate into Turn 1. Soon afterwards, Vettel lost touch with the lead battle when he brushed the damp white marker line under braking for Turn 10 and snapped into a spin. He rejoined without losing a place, but the top three were long gone.

The lead briefly changed on lap 12, when Hamilton ran wide at the chicane and Webber got a successful run into the final corner - but the McLaren was able to get better momentum onto the pits straight still and squeeze back ahead.

Webber was the first of the evenly-matched lead trio to pit on lap 14. He initially lost time in traffic, but once in clear air he was able to start setting new fastest sector times, meaning that when Hamilton and Alonso pitted in unison on lap 16, they came out just behind the Red Bull.

Once the late-stopping Massa came in for his first tyre change, Webber finally found himself leading a lap for the first time in 2011, though he could not shake off Hamilton and Alonso.

Webber was again the first to come in when the second stops began on lap 30, with Hamilton and Alonso following suit over the next two laps.

This time the under-cut did not work. Hamilton rejoined ahead of Webber and determinedly fended off the Red Bull through the complex. Alonso managed to jump both of them, but Hamilton made the most of his warmer tyres to drive around the outside of the Ferrari at Turn 2 to retake the lead and then start edging clear, holding a three-second cushion while Webber began to drift away from Alonso.

With the medium tyres felt to be significantly slower, the leaders tried to stretch their third set of softs as long as possible. Hamilton came in on lap 50, and though Alonso held on for two laps longer, the McLaren was able to stay narrowly in front.

Webber rolled the dice and ran until lap 56 of 60 before finally taking the harder tyres, but it did not pay off, as he rejoined still some distance behind Hamilton and Alonso, with the McLaren taking what ultimately became a straightforward victory - setting the fastest race lap on the penultimate lap for good measure.

Vettel fell behind Massa at the first stops and spent the rest of the afternoon on the Ferrari's tail. Only when they finally pitted for hards with just one lap to go did Vettel manage to get fourth back as a day after missing the front row of the grid for the first time all year, he finished off the podium for the first time in 2011.

Adrian Sutil's best drive of the year brought him sixth place for Force India, as he made a two-stop strategy work superbly to beat the two Mercedes of Rosberg and Michael Schumacher. The latter had been challenging his team-mate until losing time with a mid-race spin at Turn 10.

A great start and a two-stop strategy helped Kamui Kobayashi come through from 17th on the grid to ninth for Sauber, just ahead of Petrov, who lost ground by staying out too long on his first set of tyres.

Jenson Button never featured at the front. A slow start dropped him to 10th, and he then spent the race in traffic, couped up behind Vitaly Petrov's Renault for most of the first stint. Just after making it past Rosberg and into sixth, the McLaren developed a hydraulic problem and had to retire.

Completing a disappointing day for the majority of the large home driver contingent, Renault's Nick Heidfeld tangled with Paul di Resta's Force India on the opening lap. The German earned a drive-through penalty for the incident, but never got chance to take it as by then he had crashed out for good in a clash with a wandering Sebastien Buemi (Toro Rosso) on the approach to the chicane.

The German Grand Prix
Nurburgring, Germany;
60 laps; 308.863km;
Weather: Cloudy.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1h37:30.334
2. Alonso Ferrari + 3.980
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 9.788
4. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 47.921
5. Massa Ferrari + 52.252
6. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1:26.208
7. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap
8. Schumacher Mercedes + 1 lap
9. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
10. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
11. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
12. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
13. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
14. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
15. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
16. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
17. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps
18. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps
19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
20. Chandhok Lotus-Renault + 4 laps

Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:34.587

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team On lap
Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 37
Button McLaren-Mercedes 35
Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 16
Heidfeld Renault 6


World Championship standings, round 10:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 216 1. Red Bull-Renault 355
2. Webber 139 2. McLaren-Mercedes 243
3. Hamilton 134 3. Ferrari 192
4. Alonso 130 4. Mercedes 78
5. Button 109 5. Renault 66
6. Massa 62 6. Sauber-Ferrari 35
7. Rosberg 46 7. Force India-Mercedes 20
8. Heidfeld 34 8. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 17
9. Schumacher 32 9. Williams-Cosworth 4
10. Petrov 32
11. Kobayashi 27
12. Sutil 18
13. Alguersuari 9
14. Perez 8
15. Buemi 8
16. Barrichello 4
17. Di Resta 2

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The British Grand Prix - 10.07.11

Alonso takes commanding British GP win

Fernando Alonso ended Ferrari's victory drought by charging to his team's first victory of the year in the British Grand Prix.

Championship leader Sebastian Vettel and poleman Mark Webber had to settle for the remaining podium spots in the two Red Bulls, with Vettel just holding on in a huge late battle between the pair.

None of the British drivers made it onto the podium - Lewis Hamilton faded to fourth for McLaren after a superb early charge, and Jenson Button retired following a pit error.

The race had got underway in half-wet/half-dry conditions, with the area around the original start/finish area sodden but the new grid relatively dry by comparison.

Vettel got the jump on poleman Webber off the line, and charged into a comfortable early lead, while the Australian kept Alonso at bay in third.

Hamilton provided most of the initial action, making very rapid progress from his disappointing 10th on the grid to attack Felipe Massa's Ferrari for fourth within a handful of laps.

Michael Schumacher triggered the move to slicks tyres somewhat accidentally when he slithered into Kamui Kobayashi's Sauber on lap 10 and had to pit for a new front wing on his Mercedes, taking on dry rubber at the same time.

The German's immediate burst of pace convinced everyone else to come in, with Webber, Alonso and Hamilton choosing lap 12 while Vettel and Massa stayed out till lap 13.

Earlier proved slightly the better option, as by the time everyone was back up to speed on slicks, Vettel's lead over Webber was down to 3.3s, and rapidly getting smaller, although once the two Red Bulls were within 1.5s Vettel managed to raise his pace and keep his team-mate under control.

Alonso initially struggled to get temperature into his slicks and not only fell away from the Red Bulls, but lost third to a charging Hamilton into Copse.

But once the Ferrari and Pirellis were working in harmony again, Alonso started flying. He used DRS to sweep past Hamilton into Brooklands on lap 23, and both then started hunting down the Red Bulls.

They got close enough that when both Vettel and Webber had slow second pitstops on laps 26 and 27, they fell to third and fourth behind new leader Alonso and Hamilton.

Now in clear air, Alonso began to look unstoppable - storming away from Hamilton at a second per lap as the McLaren had to start focusing on holding off the Red Bulls.

He succeeded until the final pitstops, when Vettel stopped a lap sooner and jumped ahead. But even with the McLaren out of his way, Vettel could not catch the now dominant Alonso, who was long gone and heading for his first win since Korea last year.

With his team instructing him to save fuel, Hamilton backed off and lost third to Webber, who then caught Vettel and mounted a huge late effort to overtake his team-mate until ordered to 'maintain the gap' on the final lap.

The slowing Hamilton had Massa all over him going into the closing moments, but retained fourth in a wild, wheel-banging battle through the last corners of the race.

Button ran fifth until the final stops, when he was sent out with his right front wheel not properly attached and hard to park and retire in the pit exit.

Nico Rosberg made a two-stop strategy work to take sixth for Mercedes, just ahead of Sergio Perez's Sauber. Nick Heidfeld salvaged eighth from Renault's tough weekend, with Schumacher recovering well to take ninth, followed by Toro Rosso's Jaime Alguersuari, Adrian Sutil's Force India and Vitaly Petrov in the other Renault.

Paul di Resta's brilliant qualifying effort was wasted when a pitstop miscommunication badly delayed the Force India. He later needed a new front wing after clashing with Sebastien Buemi in an incident that forced the Toro Rosso to retire due to damage from a resultant puncture.

The British GP
52 laps;
Weather: Wet, then dry.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Alonso Ferrari 1h28:41.194
2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 16.511
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 16.947
4. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 28.986
5. Massa Ferrari + 29.010
6. Rosberg Mercedes + 1:00.665
7. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1:05.590
8. Heidfeld Renault + 1:15.542
9. Schumacher Mercedes + 1:17.912
10. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1:19.108
11. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1:19.712
12. Petrov Renault + 1:20.600
13. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
14. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
15. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
16. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
17. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
18. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 2 laps
19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps

Fastest lap: Alonso, 1:34.908

Not classified/retirements:

Driver Team Gap
Button McLaren-Mercedes 11
Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 26
Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 28
Trulli Lotus-Renault 41
Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 49

World Championship standings, round 9:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 204 1. Red Bull-Renault 328
2. Webber 124 2. McLaren-Mercedes 218
3. Alonso 112 3. Ferrari 164
4. Hamilton 109 4. Mercedes 68
5. Button 109 5. Renault 65
6. Massa 52 6. Sauber-Ferrari 33
7. Rosberg 40 7. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 17
8. Heidfeld 34 8. Force India-Mercedes 12
9. Petrov 31 9. Williams-Cosworth 4
10. Schumacher 28
11. Kobayashi 25
12. Sutil 10
13. Alguersuari 9
14. Buemi 8
15. Perez 8
16. Barrichello 4
17. Di Resta 2

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com

F1 - The European Grand Prix - 26.06.11

Vettel eases to European GP victory

Sebastian Vettel resumed his domination of the 2011 Formula 1 season after his Montreal blip, by winning the European Grand Prix in Valencia with ease.

The world champion broke his rivals' challenge with an early charge that saw him establish a three-second lead within a few laps and then nurse a similar advantage for the rest of the afternoon, before a push for fastest lap in the final stint took his winning margin up to 10.8 seconds.

Fernando Alonso finished a very encouraging second for Ferrari in front of his home crowd. Both Ferraris had jumped Lewis Hamilton's McLaren at the start, with the flying Felipe Massa dodging between Hamilton and Alonso, then trying to get down the inside of Mark Webber for second. But as he had to back out of the move, Alonso went around the outside of his team-mate and took third.

Alonso then stayed close behind Webber and managed to grab second place with an outbraking move on lap 21. The Spaniard could not shake the Australian off, and when the Red Bull made its second stop one lap sooner, Webber was able to vault back ahead of Alonso.

But the battle was not over, as at the final tyre changes Alonso regained the advantage by running three laps further on used softs while Webber was on his new medium tyres. The Ferrari rejoined just in front, and any hope Webber had of coming back at Alonso ended when the Red Bull team ordered him to back off and take care of a gearbox finish. He held on for third.

Running longer at most pitstops did not help Massa, who fell back to fifth in the end behind Hamilton, closing on the McLaren late on without ever threatening.

Montreal winner Jenson Button had a very low-key afternoon. He was passed by Nico Rosberg at the start and by the time he had dived back ahead of the Mercedes with a bold move at Turn 2 on lap six, the rest of the leaders were out of reach. A later KERS fault ensured Button would finish a lonely sixth.

Rosberg took seventh, having battled for a while with the impressive Jaime Alguersuari, as the Toro Rosso driver converted his miserable 18th on the grid to an eighth place finish by making a two-stop strategy work on a day when nearly everyone else had to pit three times. Alguersuari fended off Adrian Sutil to the finish, as the Force India escaped from an early battle with Nick Heidfeld's 10th-placed Renault.

Sauber's Sergio Perez pulled off a unique one-stop strategy but narrowly failed to convert it to points, chasing Heidfeld home in 11th.

Michael Schumacher's hopes of points ended when he made contact with Vitaly Petrov's Renault as he joined from the pit exit after his first tyre change. That meant an extra stop for a new front wing, leaving the Mercedes 17th. Petrov was only 15th, having never really recovered from a bad start.

The European Grand Prix
Valencia, Spain;
57 laps; 310.080km;
Weather: Sunny.

Classified:

Pos Driver Team Time
1. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h39:36.169
2. Alonso Ferrari + 10.891
3. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 27.255
4. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 46.190
5. Massa Ferrari + 51.705
6. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 1:00.000
7. Rosberg Mercedes + 1:38.000
8. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
9. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
10. Heidfeld Renault + 1 lap
11. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
12. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
13. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap
14. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap
15. Petrov Renault + 1 lap
16. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap
17. Schumacher Mercedes + 1 lap
18. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap
19. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
20. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 2 laps
21. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
22. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 2 laps
23. Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps
24. Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps

Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:41.852

World Championship standings, round 8:

Drivers: Constructors:
1. Vettel 186 1. Red Bull-Renault 295
2. Webber 109 2. McLaren-Mercedes 206
3. Button 109 3. Ferrari 129
4. Hamilton 97 4. Renault 61
5. Alonso 87 5. Mercedes 58
6. Massa 42 6. Sauber-Ferrari 27
7. Rosberg 32 7. Toro Rosso-Ferrari 16
8. Petrov 31 8. Force India-Mercedes 12
9. Heidfeld 30 9. Williams-Cosworth 4
10. Schumacher 26
11. Kobayashi 25
12. Sutil 10
13. Alguersuari 8
14. Buemi 8
15. Barrichello 4
16. Perez 2
17. Di Resta 2

By Matt Beer
http://www.autosport.com