FORMULA 1 - 2012

[MIKA27]

Button: It was totally my fault

Jenson Button has absolved Narain Karthikeyan of all blame, saying only he is responsible for their lap 15 tangle at Sepang.Second at the restart after a 50-minute rain delay, Button pitted for intermediate tyres and found himself behind Narain Karthikeyan on the track.

The Brit, quicker than the HRT driver, closed the gap only to close too much and hit the back of the HRT.

The impact broke Button's front wing and he was forced to pit for repairs, dropping him well down the order.

Button attempted to work his way back into the points but just couldn't find a way through the field and finished a lowly P14.

"It was totally my fault," the Brit said.

"I couldn't do anything but hit him and after that my race just spiralled out of control. Everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong.

"All I can do is laugh - it was so bad."

"I won't be looking at any of the footage of this race. I just think it was one of those races that sometimes happen.

"We'll put it behind us and move on in China."

[MIKA27]

Hamilton 'satisfied' with third

Lewis Hamilton says he won't complain about his Malaysian GP result after claiming his second podium in as many grands prix.

Despite starting from pole position and holding on through the rain delay on lap 9 and the subsequent restart, Hamilton could only manage third in Sunday's 56-lap race.

In the tricky wet conditions, the Brit lost out to Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez, finishing almost 15s down on the Ferrari winner.

However, while he wasn't too happy last time out in Australia when he lost out on the victory, this weekend Hamilton said he had no complaints with the result.

"I think we can be satisfied," Hamilton said.

"Fernando and Sergio drove fantastically today and it was very tough to catch them.

"We would have liked to have more points this weekend but I can't complain as I'm on the podium for the second weekend in a row."

Speaking about the grand prix, Hamilton admitted he just didn't have the pace to catch the leading duo especially after losing ground when he had issues with a rear jack in first his post-suspension pit.

"It was just a very eventful race, really," he said.

"Trying to find the right time to change from the extreme tyres to mediums. We were probably a bit late with that, and then to slicks.

"Making the call is down to whether you take the risk or not, and the others went a little bit earlier.

"We lost a bit of times in our pit stops, so I lost a bit of time there. Trying to close a 12-second gap was pretty tough."

[MIKA27]

Horner shrugs off Red Bull's woes

Horner dismissed the race as "quite peculiar" after Vettel, starting from sixth, battled through the chaotic, rain-hit grand prix before being hit by a puncture in the dying laps, leaving him out of the points.

Fernando Alonso was the surprise winner in Ferrari's clunky F2012, with Sergio Perez finishing a career-high second for Sauber, the team's best result since reverting to the ownership of founder Peter Sauber in 2009.

Horner said it was hard to draw conclusions from the race, which left Vettel sixth in the overall standings after the first two rounds. Team-mate Mark Webber finished fourth on Sunday and lies fourth overall.

"Looking at today's performance, one would have to say that Sergio Perez is currently the top favourite," Horner told reporters.

"Today was quite peculiar because if you look at it Sergio Perez was the quickest car on track. He was catching a Ferrari... and pulling away from a McLaren.

"It's difficult to draw too much out of the first couple of races... We know we have got things that we can improve on, and that's what we'll be focused on for China. But it's fairly unpredictable at the moment."

He said the strategy to bring Webber in for an early pit stop ahead of the field had been right, but Webber was unlucky as many others followed him, causing him to get stuck in the pit lane.

Meanwhile, Vettel's car faced multiple problems, including when the onboard radio broke and the team lost communications with him around lap 20.

Later, Vettel's left back tyre punctured and damaged the braking system, prompting frantic - and unheard - radio calls for the German to stop racing for safety reasons. However, Vettel brought the car home unscathed.

"We tried and tried on the radio but obviously he wasn't picking up on the radio. Thankfully the car did get to the end without the left rear brake failing," Horner said.

"That (puncture) was frustrating for Sebastian because for sure at least a fourth-place finish was on for him today."

Horner added that Ferrari and Sauber's performances were unexpected but he congratulated both teams, saying Perez especially drove a "great race".

"I think the only good thing is that the fans are in for a good year. The pace has moved around an awful lot," he said. "I think consistency will be important all the way through," he added.

[MIKA27]

Alonso: 'Victory changes nothing at Ferrari'

Fernando Alonso may have won the Malaysian Grand Prix with a stunning drive from eighth on the grid, but he admits the victory changes nothing at Ferrari.

The team have struggled for pace, particularly on Saturday's, with the Spaniard just making it through to Q3 in Malaysia, but failing to do so in Australia last weekend.

Despite his win, he admits the changeable conditions contributed toward the victory, and Ferrari must concentrate on making gains in the dry.

"It changes nothing to be honest," he said after the race. "We are in a position that we don't want to be in by fighting to go into Q3 and then fighting to score some points; we want to be fighting for pole positions and victories.

"We were not competitive in Australia, not competitive here and our goal for these first races is to score as many points as possible and we got as many as possible today with 25."

The double World Champion described the result as a "big surprise", but said the win wouldn't go to their heads during these difficult times.

"Unbelievable result, great result for the team and trackside I think we maximised the potential we had. We had a good qualifying getting into Q3 and today we kept calm in some extreme conditions - switching to the inters at the beginning with a lot of water and then switching to the dry tyres at the right moment with perfect pit stops. Congratulations to the team. They deserve this victory and it's tough times for us at the moment. We will remember this Sunday for a long time.

"Coming to China, Bahrain, Barcelona there is a lot of stuff coming to improve the car and this is the difficult job we need to do and I know the team is putting in a lot of effort. We trust each other in the team and we are very united at the moment. This win will make us very happy today and maybe the next two days in the factory, but it doesn't change our determination to improve the car and to keep winning."

[MIKA27]

Montezemolo delighted with Ferrari victory

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has described Fernando Alonso as 'extraordinary' after the Spaniard took victory in Malaysia against all odds.

The Ferrari driver managed to climb from ninth to first after taking advantage of the chaotic weather conditions which at one point resulted in the race being suspended.

"I am very happy about this victory: today it rained in Sepang, but in the end the sun came out for us!"

"Once again, Fernando drove an exceptional race, confirming his status as an extraordinary driver, from every point of view," said Montezemolo.

However, the Italian is under no illusions that Ferrari must improve if they're to win more races in 2012.

"I am also very pleased for Stefano Domenicali and all his people who got a nice reward for doing a perfect job on track, from the strategy to the pit stops to the car preparation," he added.

"There is still a lot of work to do, but this win is a further shot in the arm that was much needed at a time like this."

[MIKA27]

Karthikeyan penalised for contact with Vettel

Narain Karthikeyan has been handed a 20-second post-race penalty for his part in the collision between himself and Sebastian Vettel, which resulted in a puncture for the Red Bull driver.

As Vettel came to unlap himself, he pulled in ahead of the HRT driver too soon and clipped the cars front-wing, which punctured Vettel's left-rear and dropped him from fourth to P11.

The contact looked as though it was entirely Vettel's error, but the FIA has opted to penalise the Indian for causing an avoidable collision under Article 16.1 of the FIA Formula One Sporting regulations.

Karthikeyan was earlier involved in a second collision with Jenson Button, with the latter admitting blame for the incident.

"I was struggling to keep the tyres up temperature and it was totally my fault," Button admitted. "I hit the brakes, I lost the rear. I was struggling to get the car slowed down. I tried to get around the corner but I couldn't do anything but hit him really."

MIKA: IMO - Narain shouldnt be in F1. Even in Qualy this guy showed no knowledge of F1 rules by way of pulling aside where incomming, faster traffic was behind him even when he wasn't attempting to perform a qualifying lap himself.

[MIKA27]

Sauber denies suggestions that Perez was ordered to not attack Alonso in Malaysian GP

Peter Sauber has denied any suggestions that Sergio Perez was ordered to not attack Fernando Alonso for victory in Malaysia - because it would prevented engine partner Ferrari taking an important win.

Perez was closing in on Alonso for the lead of the race in Sepang when a call came on the radio late on for him to take care.

His engineer told him: "Checo, be careful, we need this position, we need this position"

Shortly after that order was made, Perez ran off the track and lost valuable time – which cost him any chance of overhauling Alonso for a shock win.

That radio message prompted wild conspiracy theories that Ferrari may have requested Perez to back off to protect Alonso's chances – but Sauber has rubbished such talk.

"We told him, be careful – we need the result – because behind us, all of our competitors scored points," Sauber said when asked by AUTOSPORT about the situation.

"[it was because] we needed the result, not the position, so there is some misunderstanding. Behind us our competitors, all the midfield teams, scored points and it was so important that we kept the result not the position."

When asked if there had been any discussion with Ferrari about the situation, Sauber said: "One hundred per cent nothing. We had no discussion about Checo and we had no discussion about the position."

[MIKA27]

Vergne praises Toro Rosso improvements after taking first F1 points in Malaysia

Jean-Eric Vergne praised the improvements made by Toro Rosso during the early part of the season after scoring his first Formula 1 World Championship points by finishing eighth at the Malaysian Grand Prix.

After starting 18th, Vergne made a strong start and found himself seventh when the race was stopped early on after electing to eschew a stop to change from intermediate tyres to full wets when the rain was at its heaviest.

With race control mandating that all cars used wets upon the restart for safety reasons, the Frenchman did not lose any further time making an extra stop compared to the drivers he was racing.

"To go from 18th on the grid to eighth and in the points at the end is great," the former British F3 champion said. "I stayed out for a long time on the intermediates after the start and then the red flag came along to help me so I was able to switch to extreme wets on the grid. If I'd had to resume behind the safety car on the intermediates it would have been very hard to stay on track!"

Vergne did switch back to intermediates and eventually to slicks as track conditions improved, but abandoned his chase of seventh-placed Paul di Resta with 10 laps to go in order to focus on maintaining his position.

"As soon as the track was dry enough I came in again for intermediates, but I lost a bit of time before I made the switch to slicks. After that I was catching di Resta, but with the backmarkers in between us I could not get close enough to pass, so I just managed the situation, concentrating on bringing the car home," he added.

"I am happy to settle for this eighth place and I plan to keep improving step-by-step. After these two opening races, the overall performance has been quite good and I feel we can make progress in China starting from this good base line."

[MIKA27]

Kimi Raikkonen wants a 'normal' race after taking fifth in wet/dry Malaysian GP

Kimi Raikkonen says he is eager to have a 'normal' grand prix weekend to figure out where Lotus stands, after adding a fifth place at Sepang to his seventh-place finish in Melbourne.

The Formula 1 returnee started 17th in Australia after a mistake and a timing misjudgement, then had to take a gearbox change grid penalty at Sepang which put him 10th on the grid, before recovering for a top five finish in the wet/dry race.

"Hopefully we can get a normal race next time," said Raikkonen. "All the time there is something going wrong or the weather changes a lot.

"It would be nice to just have a normal weekend and just see where we are. Right now, nobody really knows where anybody is. But we seem to have a pretty strong package everywhere."

Raikkonen felt he could have done better in Malaysia if he had managed more wet running in winter testing.

"I didn't have any experience on the inter tyres or the wet tyres," he said. "We'd only done one installation lap and it was a bit of an odd feeling to go directly into the race with tyres we hadn't run.

"I just tried to stay with the others and stay on the circuit, and then pushed harder and harder. It took a few laps for me to pick up speed when I changed to dries, but after that it was OK."

[MIKA27]

Webber says stint on intermediate tyres cost him during the Malaysian Grand Prix

Mark Webber admitted that he took too long to get up to speed on intermediate tyres after only finishing fourth in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

Red Bull was unable to fight for victory at Sepang, with Webber only moving up to fourth when his team-mate Sebastian Vettel relinquished the position late on having sustained a puncture in contact with Narain Karthikeyan's HRT.

Webber said he did not think that the result meant Red Bull was fundamentally off the pace, more that its set-up had not been quite right to instil confidence in the drivers on the slippery track.

"I think when it's mixed like that, on intermediates especially, it's down to how you have the balance, how the pressures are, the feeling and the confidence of the driver in those conditions," he said.

"I felt more confident before the red flag, and then after, on the restart, we went to the inters pretty quickly. Everyone decided to do that and it was the right thing to do.

"But it took me too long to get comfortable with the car on the intermediates, and that a very, very long stint - it was not very Formula 1 driving around with that little grip.

"But all of us had to get on with it, and when the track started to get dry, I felt much happier and we were going along alright."

After dominating the 2011 season, Red Bull has yet to win in 2012, but Webber insisted there was no hint of crisis - and felt the Sepang result was decided more by tyre tactics and wet race incidents than actual car performance.

"Still plenty of positives for us out of this weekend," he said. "We would've liked a slightly better result, but there were some inspired calls, we saw that with some strategy up the front, and hats off to those guys.

"When you're in a position to roll the dice a little bit, you might get a double six, and those guys did today."

[MIKA27]

Rubens Barrichello content with IndyCar debut in St Petersburg

Rubens Barrichello described his IndyCar debut in St Petersburg as 'enjoyable', despite running out of fuel near the end of the race.

The Formula 1 veteran looked to be on target for a 13th-place finish before his fuel problem relegated him to 17th, but he said that his first taste of IndyCar racing was a good experience nevertheless.

"I had fun out there," said the KV Racing driver. "Unfortunately we had a [fuel] meter reading problem, so I ran out of fuel at the end.

"I enjoyed the race, and dicing with other cars, although I would have liked to have been able to push more. It has been a good learning experience this weekend, and I look forward to being back in the car in a few days for the next race."

The series continues next weekend at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama.

MIKA: Would have loved to see Rubens in 2012 Williams especially in Malaysia. Rubens is THE BEST wet weather driver IMO.

[MIKA27]

'Merc could challenge new Concorde deal'

Mercedes have still not offered a comment on the new Concorde Agreement that was announced on Saturday, with supremo Bernie Ecclestone claiming "the majority" of Formula One teams had agreed terms.

In announcing the the agreement Ecclestone confirmed that three of the 'big four' teams, namely Red Bull, Ferrari and McLaren had come on board with the new contract.

The Concorde Agreement is the three-way contract that spells out the commercial terms under which the teams, the FIA, and F1 owners operate. It is pivotal to the running of the sport and the current iteration of the contract is set to expire at the end of the year.

Mercedes are the one major marque that have still not come out in support of the Agreement. It has been suggested that they are sufficiently unhappy with the current terms that they could challenge it under European competition law.

Mercedes are said to be unhappy with the clauses in the Agreement which use a sliding scale to reward teams such as Ferrari, for their longevity in F1, at the expense of outfits like Marussia and HRT, who are only in their third year, and who therefore don't earn anything.

Should they look to test the Agreement in court, Mercedes would likely argue that the Concorde Agreement constitutes a cartel between competitors, and that Ecclestone is abusing his power as chief executive and organising payments as he sees fit.

Aside from the three major sides, all of whom benefit significantly from the proposed agreement, it is unclear which of the other teams have signed, or indeed even seen the document.

It is thought that Marussia, HRT and Caterham have yet to see the Agreement while Lotus, Force India, Toro Rosso and Sauber are said to be on-board.

Williams, who have been in F1 since their debut at the Argentine GP in 1978, and who would therefore benefit from the terms of the agreement are still to make their position clear.

Commenting on the agreement McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh told PA Sport, "We want a situation where every team in this paddock is happy with the commercial circumstance, and stable.

"We've done a fair amount of work to control costs, but we have to do a fair amount more to ensure we continue to have fantastic racing.

"That was the case last season, and looks like it is going to be the case this season, and that's the most important stuff.

"But in the background, to make the sport sustainable, we have to ensure we balance up the costs of our competitors.

"We also have to ensure their income is in excess of their costs otherwise ultimately they won't be around."

[MIKA27]

Sun: Ferrari, Sauber, McLaren, Red Bull

Fernando Alonso clinched the victory at a wet Sepang circuit with Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton completing the podium...

Ferrari:

Fernando Alonso: "It was an incredible race! I am very happy, for me and for the whole team: I am proud of this fantastic group of people. While we have been going through this difficult time, no one gave up, in fact everyone has doubled their efforts to try and catch up. The strategy was perfect, the mechanics did an impeccable job, the engineers did their best in preparing the car and I drove at my maximum for all 56 laps of the race. I would never have bet on this win and I would think anyone who did so must have picked up a tidy sum! As I returned to the pit lane on the cool down lap I didn't even know where to park the car: to win with all the problems we have got is something quite extraordinary. In the wet, I was going very well, but then when the track dried out, our weaknesses showed themselves. Sergio got very close and I was trying to stay on the only dry line: if he wanted to pass me, he would have had to take a risk. Yesterday, he and I ended up ninth and tenth and today we found ourselves fighting for the win, which shows how unpredictable is this championship. Our aim was damage limitation for these early races of the championship and now we even find ourselves leading the classification. Now we absolutely have to improve the performance starting right away with the races in China and Bahrain. We must get back to work immediately so as to find at least the two or three tenths that could put us back in the fight for the top places."

Felipe Massa: "First of all, I want to congratulate Fernando on this great win, which came thanks to him driving a fantastic race. It is a very important victory for the team, although it must not let us forget that our car is not yet at the level of the best. Obviously I am disappointed with my result. Things were going well at the start and I was able to fight with the drivers directly ahead of me. When the track was drying, I suffered more and more with tyre degradation and I could not maintain a good pace. We opted to follow what Rosberg was doing ahead of me, as he too was apparently struggling with his tyres, but it did not work out and we lost a lot of time with this extra stop, given also that the others stayed on track for around a dozen laps more before switching to the dry tyres. It is important for us to try and understand why there is such a strong difference in the way our cars perform, but ultimately, our aim is to have a more competitive car in as short a time as possible."

Sauber:

Sergio Perez: "It is a great day for me. The team did a very good job and I feel very happy for them. It is a really nice feeling to have been on the podium here, but I think victory was also within reach. Twice in the race I was catching Fernando (Alonso). On the final stint, when I was on the hard tyre compound, my tyres had degraded quite a lot. It wasn't easy and I went wide and touched a curb. I actually was lucky not to go off. Before that Fernando had just pitted on the perfect lap for dry tyres, just one lap before me, and I lost a bit of ground to him. It was very difficult to make the right calls today and I want to thank my team. They always called me in at the right time, the first stop after lap one was especially important and it was also good to take the hard compound in the end, as the medium compound was not working too well for us. It is only our second race in 2012 and I think we have a great season ahead of us. I knew we had potential to fight today, our car is not far away from the top cars and a good crew and a driver can also make a difference in such conditions."

Kamui Kobayashi: "It is great for our team to have scored so well today, but for me personally, of course, it was a very disappointing race. Technically I struggled with the brakes and that was then also why I had to give up after 47 laps. Besides that for me the strategy didn't work out, which, of course, is always easy to realise in hindsight. I had a good start but then it was a long time before I changed from intermediates to rain tyres. It was not easy to keep the car on track, and almost as soon as I had changed the red flag came out. But nobody can know this in advance. Later in the race then it was the other way round. I would have loved to get dry tyres, but we were expecting more rain so, again, I could not get rid of the intermediate tyres."

McLaren:

Lewis Hamilton: "This was a tough but fascinating race - firstly, I want to offer my congratulations to Fernando [Alonso] and Sergio [Perez] - they both drove great races and did a fantastic job. It was pretty eventful race: it was difficult trying to judge the best time to change from Extreme Wets to Intermediates, and we were probably a little late on that - but that's how it goes sometimes. Today wasn't perfect - making the call for slicks is always a risk, and the others went a bit earlier than us. In general, we lost some time in the pitstops and I was pushed out of the fight somewhat. But, all in all, it's been a positive weekend and I'm not too frustrated. My aim for this season was always to be consistent - I did it in 2007 so I'm trying to repeat that! A big thanks to Lucozade for doing such a great job with the new race hydration formulations this weekend - they've really made a difference in such a hot and humid climate. For me, the next races will be all about converting our really strong qualifying pace into equally strong race pace - that's what I'll be working in the few weeks ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix."

Jenson Button: "Today was a pretty difficult day; pretty much everything that could have gone wrong in the race did go wrong. And that's just one of those things - a lot of my issues were brought on when I wiped my front wing off at the start: I locked up the rears, couldn't slow the car down and hit Karthikeyan, which was a bit frustrating. So I had to pit for a new nose, and that was pretty much it. And it's always going to be tough when you're down in 14th or 15th position. All the cars were so close and it was difficult to overtake, too. That made it very difficult. Big congratulation to Fernando, Sergio and Lewis, who scored more good points for the team - but it just wasn't a good day for me today. The amazing thing is that I'm still third in the championship after not scoring any points! This wasn't really the result I wanted - but, hey, chin up: we'll move forwards and hopefully have a much better weekend in China!"

Red Bull:

Mark Webber: "It was busy with a lot of calls going on at the re-start and with the tyres. My stint on the intermediates after the red flag was tricky and I didn't have much confidence. When I went onto the dry tyres, I felt much more confident, but it was a little bit too late then. You've got to take your hat off to Fernando and Perez today, there were some good calls made at the front. It was a mixed-up race and it was good to get some points. There were some great strengths to take from this weekend. The team has been working really hard, so thanks to them. We know there will be more opportunities in the future."

Sebastian Vettel: "Most crucially we lost radio communication and that makes it very difficult in these conditions to know what's going on. Nonetheless we did our maximum today and got up to fourth. To then lose the race how I did is very frustrating. Some people need to look more where they are going. Today it was crucial to come in at the right time. Having no radio meant we were delayed getting the messages and I didn't hear anything from the team at the end. There were problems with the car after the incident, but I wanted to see the chequered flag. There were no points for me today. Before the incident with HRT the way the race had unfolded was good for us I think, so it's frustrating to lose the race like that."

[MIKA27]

Sun: Caterham, Marussia, HRT

Formula One's three new teams; Caterham, Marussia and HRT; were the only three outfits not to score a single point in Malaysia...

Caterham:

Vitaly Petrov: "I am really happy with the performance today. We didn't show the car's true potential in qualifying, but today I was able to put in similar lap times to the cars ahead and didn't make any mistakes in the tricky conditions. The car felt good all afternoon and the team worked really well to help me get the most out of it, both on the pitwall and with the stops, so I'm very pleased I've been able to record my first race finish for the team and to start to show what we can do in races. This gives us a good base to work from so it's been a good Sunday, particularly in front of our home fans."

Heikki Kovalainen: "That was one of those races when we could have had a really good result, but a bit of bad luck and a car I didn't really have a great balance on meant I'm just pleased to have got it home. I made a small mistake on the inters and had to come in for a new nose, and that dropped me back a few places which basically ended my race. Despite that, it's good that we got both cars home and we also showed again that we have a car that can race on Sundays. Now we need to focus on getting more out of it in qualifying and pushing on at the next race in China."

Marussia:

Timo Glock: "A great weekend again for us. We finished with both cars once more, which is a great achievement for the team and we have to be very happy with that. It was a difficult race but I think we made the right tyre choice and changed at the right time, going from the intermediate to the extreme wets and then after the restart changing back from the extreme wets to the intermediates. Coming in straight away was the right thing to do and I just managed to keep the 'inters' on for as long as possible and keep them alive. Again, we were one of the first to switch to slicks and we were able to keep pushing to keep ahead of Kovalainen, so really well done to the team. Everyone kept cool and calm when the red flag came out. Proper job by the team and specifically my car crew, who've done a great job in the first two races. Now we concentrate on improving again for China."

Charles Pic: "It was a tricky race today in difficult conditions. It was my first time with the extreme wet tyre so it was hard to know the best time to change to the Intermediate at my second pitstop. Then we had a problem with the clutch at the third stop, which is a shame as we lost some time. Overall I am happy with my pace as it was consistent with Timo on the Intermediate and at the end on slicks, which is positive for me. A great job all weekend by everyone in the team as I know it has been very difficult, in many ways. I look forward now to China and even more progress."

HRT:

Narain Karthikeyan: "I must say I really enjoyed myself in that race. It really was the best race to make my debut with HRT. I don't think anyone could imagine we would finish after starting from the pit lane due to an issue with the fuel pressure that we were dragging over from yesterday, I was penalized with a drive-through penalty, we completed our first real pitstop... to sum up, a lot of things happened but, in the end, the car held out really well given where we were at the beginning. We have to improve many things but this was a perfect test. My teammate also finished so that's doubly satisfying. I'm very happy for the team, we accomplished our objective. Now we have to go a little bit further."

Pedro de la Rosa: "It was a very interesting race in really wet conditions. We were running in 10th at one point, which I think is the best position we've ever been in but unfortunately the rain stopped and the track dried out and it was impossible to keep ahead of the rest. I made a mistake, locking up the front, and went off on turn 9 but apart from that it all went pretty well. We finished the race, did some mileage and made up two positions from 23rd so that's something to smile about. Everyone did a great job and we're all really happy with the result, now we have to go on from here and try to progress in China."

[MIKA27]

Sun: Lotus, Williams, STR, FIndia, Merc

There were points in the Malaysian GP for Kimi Raikkonen, Bruno Senna, Paul Di Resta, Jean-Eric Verge, Nico Hulkenberg and Michael Schumacher...

Lotus F1:

Kimi Raikkonen: "It was a bit difficult today. It was my first time on the wet weather Pirellis and I didn't know how the intermediate or wet tyres would react - I had only completed one installation lap on them before. I just tried to stay on the road and push as much as I felt comfortable with. When I changed to the dry tyres it took a couple of laps to get heat into them, and my visor was pretty dirty so seeing the dry line was difficult. Once I found my way I could push much harder. It was difficult to have another mixed weather weekend. The conditions changed a lot today so it was always a case of adapting and looking for grip. Overall, we seemed to have a pretty strong package again this weekend, so I'm relatively happy. A fifth today was okay, but we're always looking for better results."

Romain Grosjean: "It felt like a perfect start off the line; I got a good jump on the others and with the KERS I managed to weave through the cars in front without touching anybody. Coming out of the first two corners I was up to third, which was an amazing feeling. In turn four Mark (Webber) managed to carry a bit more speed through the corner and edged in front. Michael (Schumacher) tried to follow him through but there was not enough space so we touched and I spun. From there things became really tough. The visibility was so poor I couldn't see anything in front of me. We made the decision to stay out on the intermediate tyres but the rain got heavier and there was far too much water. I had massive aquaplaning into turn five and unfortunately ended up going backwards into the gravel."

Williams:

Bruno Senna: "I am really excited about the result today. I'm so happy that I have scored points for the team after a very tough race. It's on days like to today that you can show what you can do in difficult conditions. I knew we had to attack after the restart, so it was very satisfying to push hard, not make any mistakes and to make my way up through the field. I'm so happy for everyone in the team."

Pastor Maldonado: "It was very difficult today with conditions changing so quickly at the start. I had poor visibility in the pitlane so missed the box entry after the restart, which dropped me down the order. I was then just pushing every lap and our pace was very consistent. I had a good race to come through from 20th to 10th with just two laps remaining. Bruno had a great race and we have both been able to show that the car is competitive."

Toro Rosso:

Jean-Eric Vergne: "To go from eighteenth on the grid to eighth and in the points at the end is great. I stayed out for a long time on the intermediates after the start and then the red flag came along to help me so I was able to switch to extreme wets on the grid. If I'd had to resume behind the safety car on the intermediates it would have been very hard to stay on track! As soon as the track was dry enough I came in again for intermediates, but I lost a bit of time before I made the switch to slicks. After that I was catching di Resta, but with the backmarkers in between us I could not get close enough to pass, so I just managed the situation, concentrating on bringing the car home. So I am happy to settle for this eighth place and I plan to keep improving step-by-step. After these two opening races, the overall performance has been quite good and I feel we can make progress in China starting from this good base line."

Daniel Ricciardo: "Unfortunately, after being delayed in the early stages - when I lost places after the start in the rain - I never managed to fight my way back into the points. I think there were moments in the race when I ran at quite a good pace, but I did not have that extra edge to move up the order. When the track was drying before the pitstops, that's when I again lost time, so of course I am a bit disappointed, but there are still 18 races remaining and I'm sure I will have plenty more opportunities to do well."

Force India:

Nico Hulkenberg: "I think today's performance with two cars in the points is a great team result and I'm very happy to pick up my first points of the season. It was quite a complicated race and the rain certainly helped mix things up, but we made the most of our chances and made good calls on the strategy. I have to say that the wet conditions today were some of the worst I've raced in and the visibility was almost zero before the race was stopped. It was much better when the race restarted, but I struggled with the balance of the car on the intermediates, so it was just a case of trying to stay in the points and catch Vergne ahead."

Paul di Resta: "The start of the race was a bit of a mess and it was all about trying to stay on the track and stay out of trouble. I did pretty well until Maldonado hit me just before the red flag, which spun me around and cost me about three places. At the restart our pace was very good on the intermediate tyres and we were able to get well up the order and stay with the leading group. As it dried out we switched to dry tyres at the same time everyone else did, which was the safe way to play it, and just tried to hold position in the points. We were a bit lucky with some of the issues for cars ahead, but in races like this you need a bit of luck and given where we started I think we can come away from here very happy with this result."

Mercedes:

Michael Schumacher: "From where I started the race, it's a real shame to grab just one point at the end today, and of course I would have wished for a better finish for our team after their hard work. However I was touched at the back soon after the start and the car spun which really decided my afternoon. During the first part of the race, I just tried to stay on track as you couldn't see anything, and it was the right decision to halt the race. After the re-start, the pace wasn't that far off but it was the same for a lot of teams so there was no way to gain positions. It's clear from today that there is still a lot of work for us to do to take our pace from qualifying into the race, and I am sure the guys are already thinking very hard about finding a solution. But this will not be done from one race to another, it will take some time, and we need to give it that time. Still it is a fact that we have improved, so I can fly home now being sure about this and looking forward to fighting in the races to come."

Nico Rosberg: "That was an unlucky day for me after an eventful race. I had a good restart and because of a good strategy I was in fourth position. But then I had problems with my intermediate tyres; the degradation was very high which forced me to do another pit stop for a new set. The positive thing is that on my last stint with the slicks, I had good pace and because of my tyre management, I was able to beat Jenson. We are strong in qualifying but not yet in the race, and we need to work on that before the next race in China."

[MIKA27]

F1 cabs: Now you can ride in the passenger seat

Fancy a ride in a Formula 1 car? Well sorry to disappoint, but unless you're a F1 driver, incredibly rich or so small you can sit on a drivers lap, then your chances are pretty slim.But you can now experience that feeling (sort of) thanks to Sky's F1 taxi cabs. Take a ride in a Red Bull around Big Ben, or hop in a Lotus for a trip to Tower Bridge... the choice is yours.

The cars will be driving around London for the next few weeks.

[MIKA27]

Hungary marks the 100th race for Mercedes V8

The Hungarian Grand Prix marks several anniversaries this year, including 100 races for Nico Rosberg and a massive 200 for Jenson Button, but a more obscure one will be the 100th race for the Mercedes 2.4 litre V8 engine.

This particular engine formula for Mercedes made its debut at the 2006 Bahrain Grand Prix in which it managed its first podium with Kimi Raikkonen in the McLaren MP4-21.

However, the 2006 season was Mercedes worst. The engine failed to secure a single win. The engines best? The 2009 season when it powered Brawn GP to Constructors' and Drivers' titles. It secured 59% of the race wins that season (10) with Brawn and McLaren as well as 10 pole positions and five fastest laps.

In total, the Mercedes V8 has taken 32 wins from 81 races, an impressive 40%.

This years engine, the FO108Y, designed, developed and built by Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines in Brixworth, UK, powers Mercedes GP, McLaren-Mercedes and Force India. It has so far taken three race wins, all of those with McLaren.

Since 2006, the combined distance travelled by the Mercedes V8 is a massive 102,427 km, or 2.55 times around the earth - that translates into 89% of the possible total - so the reliability is pretty good too!

The engine has, prior to Hungary, completed 99 races. Of those races, it has achieved 30 pole positions, 25 fastest laps and 94 podium finishes with four teams, Mercedes, McLaren, Brawn and the one-time podium finish (2nd) for Giancarlo Fisichella with Force India at the 2009 Belgium GP.

The Mercedes V8 was also the first engine to take three race wins, using the exact same unit, achieved in 2009 when Button won the Bahrain, Spanish and Monaco GP's using the FW049-01.

It was also the first hybrid-engine to win a race, thanks to Lewis Hamilton's 2009 Hungarian GP win.

[MIKA27]

Singapore reaping the rewards that F1 brings

Singapore has reaped the benefits which come with hosting a Formula 1 race, according to a report by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

Much is said and written about the economical and financial impact of luring an F1 race to a country. The views are mixed with many believing it to be massive waste of taxpayers money, whilst others look at the broader spectrum and how a race can benefit the host country or city indirectly.

Singapore is a great example of when the organisers get it spot on.

The race costs the government an estimated £70 million ($112m) to host. Whilst that may sound an awful lot which could be spent better elsewhere, according to the STB report, over £80m ($122m) was generated in extra tourism as a direct result of the race in 2010.

"After the first year, people stood up and took notice, Singapore just exploded on the world stage," Ben Heyhoe Flint of sponsorship consultancy Fuse told the BBC.

"It showcased that the city had a lot more to offer than just being a transit point for trans-Pacific travellers."

Not only does tourism boom, local businesses also benefit.

Pankaj Tandon, managing director of Go India, says much of his revenue comes from the race weekend alone, despite his restaurant being open all year round.

"We have a revenue jump of close to 30 to 40% for the month, due to our sales at the Formula One kiosk," Tandon said.

"Formula One has become one of those events which we look forward to year after year. It lets us break away from the regular monotony of a restaurant and get into something much bigger, much larger," he added.

That's also the case for one of the world's most famous nightclub chains which has coincided its Singapore opening with the F1 weekend.

Club Pangaea sells tables for almost £10,000 per night and has totally sold out during the race weekend. It expects to see revenues of nearly £500,000 over the next few days alone.

"All the billionaires, the lead corporate chief executives and lots of celebrities are going to be in town for the weekend," Michael Van Cleef Ault, principal of The Pangaea Group told the BBC. "It is a great time to open, because you get a world stage automatically presented to you without a lot of work.

"Because there is so much wealth that comes in this week, the demand for tables at top clubs outstrips supply," he added. "The Formula One weekend is the best time to throw a party."

[MIKA27]

Marussia asks FIA to investigate possible Concorde Agreement breach by Team Lotus

Marussia has asked the FIA to investigate whether or not the former Team Lotus outfit breached the Concorde Agreement by using parts that rival outfit Force India owned the copyright to.In the wake of a British Court ruling that Lotus - now competing as Caterham - had misused a small number of parts in its 2010 car, Marussia has notified the FIA that it would like the governing body to look into the matter.

This comes after Force India made it clear last week that it too plans to approach the FIA about the situation.

In the court ruling that related to the dispute between Force India and Lotus/Aerolab, the judge stated: "In my judgment the Aerolab/FondTech CAD files do reproduce a substantial part of the corresponding Force India CAD files for the following parts: the vortex generator, rear brake duct lower element and rear view mirror. It follows that the copyright claim succeeds to that extent, but not otherwise."

Under Schedule 3 of the Concorde Agreement, the document by which Formula 1 is run, teams are not allowed to use certain parts of the cars that they do not own the Intellectual Property rights to.

Although it is not clear whether the parts at the centre of the dispute were actually raced, Marussia sporting director Graeme Lowdon has revealed that his team is in discussions with the FIA over the matter.

"We are in communication with the FIA, and wish to make no further comment on that at the moment," he said. "But we are happy that the suitable processes are being followed."

The FIA is aware of the situation, but is planning to await the outcome of legal action that is underway between Force India and Aerolab/Lotus in Italy before deciding whether a breach of the regulations has taken place.

[MIKA27]

F1: Ferrari approached Sauber amid Massa rumours

Amid speculation regarding Felipe Massa's immediate future, Sergio Perez's father has revealed that Ferrari approached Sauber.

Earlier, Sauber driver Perez played down the rumours about Massa's future, including the suggestion he was at the very top of Ferrari's replacement list.

"Sergio was focused one hundred per cent on (performing in) Malaysia," the 22-year-old Mexican's father Antonio is quoted by the Spanish-language Medio Tiempo.

Perez snr's son is the cream of Ferrari's development driver 'academy' programme.

"Since last year, Ferrari has had three drivers: Alonso, Massa and Perez," he said.

"'Checo' has a great relationship with the team but I can say today that Perez is signed only with Peter Sauber."

Nonetheless, it has been suggested Ferrari made an approach to Sauber recently, amid Massa's performance slump.

"Yes, Monisha (Kaltenborn), who is the chief executive of Sauber, confirmed that Ferrari people approached her to talk about Sergio," said his father Antonio.

At the very least, Perez is a candidate for Massa's seat next year.

"That would be a good package," the Mexican answered when asked about the potential pairing of his son with Fernando Alonso.

"I see it only as a matter of time. We have to wait and be patient rather than distract Checo from what he is doing now.

"Sergio was not even aware of the statements made by Ferrari: he was training and focused on his fitness," added Perez snr.

Luca di Montezemolo, Ferrari's president, urged calm over the famous team's current situation, including the calls for Massa's scalp.

"I understand that the fans are disappointed," he is quoted by Stuttgarter Nachrichten newspaper, "but I ask them to remain calm.

"We must remain calm and focused."

Still, the rumour mill waits for nobody, and even Ferrari's official 'Tweet' about the "reasonable job" done by Massa on Saturday did not go unnoticed.

"I take that to mean, 'You're useless!' German RTL commentator Christian Danner joked.

[MIKA27]

MALAYSIAN GRAND PRIX - WHO WAS YOUR DRIVER OF THE DAY?

Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez tore up the formbook at Sepang International as torrential rain caused havoc at the Malaysian Grand Prix. Who was your driver of the day?

Fernando AlonsoArrived in Malaysia adamant that Ferrari had plenty of work to do despite an encouraging fifth place finish in Melbourne. Looked uncompetitive in first practice on Friday but improved when the team bolted on a new specification wing. Sneaked through into top 10 in qualifying and started eighth. Inherited the lead after the restart when the McLarens pitted and then pumped in the lap times on the intermediate tyres to get a gap. Ferraris quick pitstops ensured he stayed ahead of Sergio Perez and despite late pressure from the Sauber driver, the Spaniard held on to secure his 28th career victory and take the lead in the drivers' championship.

Sergio Perez

Showed encouraging pace in Friday practice sessions and then outperformed his Sauber team-mate Kamui Kobayashi by making it into Q3 in qualifying. Started ninth but dropped two places at the start. The team decided to pit him for full wets when the safety car pulled in – a move which proved inspired as the Mexican found himself third after everyone else had followed suit. Third turned into second when Lewis Hamilton had a problem in the pits and then the Mexican turned up the heat on Alonso. Came within a second of the Spaniard after setting a flurry of fastest laps in the dying stages, but a mistake saw him go off track and he ultimately finished second – the best result of his career.

Lewis Hamilton

Showed brilliant form on Friday to top the times in both practice sessions and then followed that up with a stunning lap in qualifying on his first attempt in Q3. Made a good start from pole to retain the lead into the first corner, unlike in Australia, and proceeded to pull out a gap over Jenson Button. Lost out to Fernando Alonso and Sergio Perez in the pitstops, first having to wait to be released from his pitbox because of traffic and secondly having to wait for the team to remove take from the brake ducts. Struggled to with the intermediate tyres but limited the damage in the drivers' standings, trailing Alonso by only five points.

Kimi Raikkonen

Started the weekend on the backfoot as he struggled with his steering and was then forced to change his gearbox following damage sustained in Australia. Showed the Lotus had good pace by qualifying fifth, though that became 10th after the five-place grid drop for the gearbox change. Got clean off the line and performed some good overtakes to rise back up the field. Admitted that he didn't push to his maximum because of his lack of experience on Pirelli's wet weather tyres but still showed impressive pace to finish fifth.

Bruno Senna

Outqualified by Williams team-mate Pastor Maldonado for the second successive race and started 13th. Made a good start, but contact early on forced him into the pits. Began the restart in last place, but battled his way through the field, including a brilliant move on Michael Schumacher around the outside of Turn 5. Good strategy from the team and strong pace on the intermediate tyre allowed the Brazilian to work his way into the points and finish sixth. His points tally was in this race was more than Williams managed to score in the entire 2011 season.

Jean-Eric Vergne

Had a nightmare in qualifying when he was knocked of qualifying in Q1 having flat-spotted his tyres and started the race in 18th place. Stayed out on intermediate tyres and found himself in seventh position when the safety car came back out. Managed to make the intermediate tyres work and though he lost a place later on, the Frenchman held on to score his first F1 points in only his second race.

[MIKA27]

WILLIAMS HEIR-APPARENT ADAM PARR QUITS TEAM:

Williams has been forced into another change of senior management after its chairman Adam Parr announced on Monday that he is quitting the team after over five years.

The unexpected news was delivered early on Monday morning, with team owner Sir Frank Williams pointing to Parr's desire to achieve "a better balance in his life" for the decision to cut his ties with Grove which stretch back to 2006. Former CFO of alcoholic drinks firm Diageo Nick Rose will take over as non-executive chairman with Parr's leaving date set as this coming Friday (March 30).

After joining the team as CEO, Parr quickly established himself as a trusted lieutenant of Williams and was credited with putting the team on a surer financial footing before being chosen by the team's founder to succeed him as chairman of the company in July 2010. Last year Parr oversaw the major restructure of the team's technical department and its historic floatation on the Frankfurt stock market. Only last month in an interview with F1 Racing did Williams describe the trained lawyer as his heir apparent: "If for whatever reason I couldn't come in to do my job, Adam would fill the gap."

However, that expected passing of the baton will now not happen after Monday's announcement. Williams says they part on good terms and thanked him for his contribution to the team's history.

"I asked Adam to join Williams at the end of 2006 to support me in the running of our team," he said. "Over five years, Adam's achievements have surpassed my expectations and I must thank him for his service. Not least for the decisive role he played in the technical changes made last year which are beginning to show through in the team's improved competitiveness this season, and for leading this company to a successful IPO.

"Adam leaves us on good terms to pursue a better balance in his life for which I wish him and his family well. He has left us in good shape and I have every confidence that the Board and senior management team at Williams will continue to drive the business forward into a promising future."

After experiencing the worst season in their long and illustrious history last year, Williams have begun this season in much improved form and Bruno Senna's sixth-place finish in Sunday's Malaysian GP mean they already have three more points than they achieved in the whole of last season.

Parr, whose time at the team has also coincided with a period of diversification into areas away from F1 including hybrid technology base in Qatar, said: "I am very grateful to Frank for giving me the opportunity to work for Williams over the past five years a period that has been both challenging and rewarding. Williams is a unique team with over 500 great-hearted and talented people and many superb partners in and out of Formula One. Williams is now set up to move forward and I wish everyone at Grove well."

The team say that Frank Williams will continue to oversee the company with the support of minority shareholder Toto Wolff, CEO Alex Burns and the rest of the board.

[MIKA27]

Massa not worried by Perez's form

Felipe Massa has denied that the pressure on his shoulders has been upped with Sergio Perez's Malaysian GP podium.

Massa is a driver under fire this season as the even the Brazilian acknowledges that he needs results or he risks his Ferrari race-seat.

But while the line of thought was that Massa would at least have half a season to show his worth, a disappointing start to the season has resulted in rumours that he could be replaced before the next race in China.

And that man who would replace him is Perez, who claimed a stunning second place in Sunday's wet Malaysian GP while Massa again failed to score.

Asked by Autosport where Perez's P2 was a concern, Massa said: "I'm happy for him and for his team, but (how) disturbing (is it for me)? Zero.

"I'm looking more for myself, my driving, my work.

"I'm never looking for the others and whether them doing well is a problem for me or the opposite. I'm not like that.

"I'm happy for him because he did a great job."

Meanwhile, Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali has vowed to do all he can to help Massa through this difficult period, insisting the at least some of the blame rests with the car.

"We need to stay close to Felipe in this moment," said the Italian. "It's a difficult moment and we need to find a way for him to get confident in his car.

"We saw, for example, one step that was in the right direction in qualifying because we saw there was an improvement compared to last weekend. Now we need to understand what happened today in terms of his race pace and in terms of his performance.

"In my view the problem is that this car is quite difficult, not easy. It can be very good and it can also be quite difficult.

"We showed this today that in certain conditions you have to have a certain driving style and you can be very, very good, and in other conditions you can destroy the tyres.

"The priority for me and what I need to make sure is that Felipe has around him the protection of the team that tries to work hard with him.

"And on our side we need to make sure he's confident to drive the car on the limit, without overdriving it, where the situation could be as bad as not being able to reach the limit."

[MIKA27]

Perez 'fully committed' to Sauber

Sergio Perez has downplayed rumours of a pending move to Ferrari insisting he will stay with Sauber for the "whole" season.

With Felipe Massa's days at Ferrari reportedly numbered, Perez, a member of the Ferrari Young Driver Academy, is believed to the favourite to replace him.

Fuel was thrown on the fire in Malaysia on Sunday where, after finishing second to Fernando Alonso, Perez was spotted in conversation with Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali.

The Mexican driver, though, insists there was no talk of him leaving Sauber for Ferrari.

"I only congratulated him," Perez said. "As a team, they did a great job."

He added: "For me, my full commitment is with my team, with Sauber F1.

"It's only the second race of the season and there's still a long way to go, so we have to keep improving, especially because we are a small team.

"For us, it's about getting closer to development, the others can improve more so it's important we remain focused.

"Obviously it's only rumours but no, I will stay with Sauber for the whole season."

[MIKA27]

Whitmarsh: Championship is wide open

McLaren may be the kings of qualifying but Martin Whitmarsh says the title race is "wide open" after Ferrari claimed a surprise win at Sepang.

McLaren have dominated Saturday afternoons to date this season with Lewis Hamilton taking pole position in Australia and Malaysia. But while the Woking outfit leads the way on single lap pace, their rivals are a lot closer on race day.

This has resulted in just one victory for McLaren thanks to Jenson Button's P1 in Australia while the Sepang event was won by Fernando Alonso, who made the most of the wet tricky conditions.

And although the general consensus is that Ferrari did not have the pace to win in Malaysia, the fact that they did means Alonso is leading the Drivers' Championship by five points over Hamilton.

"The Championship is wide open," Whitmarsh told Autosport.

"We are in a reasonable position to win more races and the Championship, but that requires us to perform well, not make mistakes and continue to develop car at a decent rate."

Pressed as to whether he had concerns that Ferrari could leap ahead of the chasing pack when they introduce a radically updated car in time for the Spanish GP, Whitmarsh said: "You always do.

"When trying to win the Championship you are always worried, and you hope you can deliver a little bit more performance.

"If you are honest about it, at the back of your mind you worry that someone may turn up having had a Eureka moment and might overhaul you.

"But it is a long, long Championship ahead.

"We are not in bad shape but certainly nothing is taken for granted. No one can say with confidence the outcome of this year's World Championship, and that is just how it should be."