FORMULA 1 - 2010

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Sun: Virgin, HRT, Force India, Renault

Virgin and Hispania brought their cars home at the back of the field in Japan while Force India and Renault failed to finish...

Virgin:

Timo Glock: "The start of the race was reasonable for me but the safety car came out straight away, so we decided to do two pitstops in a row to get the Option tyre out of the way, which we hadn't been able to get to work on the car in Free Practice. We ended up behind Yamamoto and just couldn't get past him. He blocked me for most of the race and in the end all I could do was focus on just getting to the end of the race. It has been a strange weekend here in Suzuka and I think we'll be happy to head to Korea and hope for better things."

Lucas di Grassi: "I was happy with my qualifying performance in the morning but also confident there was more to come out of the car as I only managed 25 laps in total in Suzuka before qualy. I am disappointed that I wasn't able to take part in the race. I had a big crash in the 130R corner while preparing the car to go to the grid. I'm glad I'm physically fine and will keep pushing harder than ever together with my team."

Hispania:

Bruno Senna: "I am really happy with today's result, as I was able to achieve my best result in a race this season, as well as helping the team who has now finished six races with two cars since Bahrain. After an exciting start and many incidents, it was a good decision to do an early pit stop, and I was able to fight for positions and do a good race. I can't leave Japan without saying thank you to all the spectators who have been supporting us during the weekend."

Sakon Yamamoto: "I am glad about my best race result this season and I want to especially thank the Japanese crowd for their great support. It was a tough race and I had some fuel pressure drops. But even though we could fight for positions and could control one of our competitors during many laps. In the end, it was a special feeling to race again here in Suzuka and to be able to help the team achieve its sixth double-car finish this season. I also want to thank the team for doing a great job."

Force India:

Adrian Sutil: "It was a real shame today. In qualifying we really struggled with the softer tyres and couldn't get as good a result as we would have liked but I made a fantastic start off the line and was already in the top ten by the end of the first lap. We came in quite early so I could push when everyone else pitted and I was in for a good shot of the points. Then coming up to the end of the race I went into the 130R corner and the tyres started to slide around and smoke started to come out the back of the car. I felt the car let go and then that was it: I had to bring it into the pits. At the time we didn't know what was wrong, but when I stopped we could see oil coming out of the car. A disappointing end to a hard day, but let's focus on Korea now."

Tonio Liuzzi: "I'm disappointed that for the second race in a row I couldn't do more than a couple of laps. At the time I was a passenger really. I had a great start and passed five or six cars before the first corner and thought I was pretty safe but then when I went into turn one I saw Felipe coming up on the inside - I don't know if he had broken something on the car but he seemed to come into my side like a bullet. I don't think he was in control of the car at the time, but it's a shame as it's another first corner accident and then retirement for me. I'm now going to go back to the factory to prepare for Korea and not dwell on this - it happens and we need to move on and concentrate on the next challenge."

Renault:

Robert Kubica: "We made a good start and managed to gain one position up to P2, but then in the second lap behind the safety car I was warming up the tyres and I nearly lost the car. I thought to begin with it was a problem with the driveshaft, but apparently it was the wheel. I don't know if there was a technical problem but it became difficult to follow the safety car so I moved to the side of the track and then I Iost the wheel."

Vitaly Petrov: "I made a good start and managed to overtake Massa. I was then going passed Hulkenberg with Heidfeld on my right when he started to move left and so I also had to move left to avoid him. Unfortunately I hit the side of Hulkenberg's car and this is why I crashed."

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Webber concedes: I need to win again

Mark Webber admits he needs to get back onto the top step of the podium if he wants to boost his chances of winning the World title.

Webber finished second in Sunday's Japanese GP, dropping seven points to his Red Bull Racing team-mate Sebastian Vettel, who claimed a comprehensive victory.

However, the Aussie's advantage in the Championship actually increased as he finished ahead of Fernando Alonso, who is now 14 points behind the Aussie, tied with Vettel on 206 points.

"The most important thing is the gap is going in the right way. I have to keep it like that. We have three races to go and it is a good result for me," said Webber.

"Seb deserved the victory but five of us can win races. I need to win again in the future and I am confident I can do that. That could be beneficial.

"Reliability could play a role. We have 75 points to go. These guys have a bit less but in the end I am confident."

Speaking about his Sunday's running in Japan, which kicked off with qualifying in the morning before the grand prix in the afternoon, Webber says he had no complaints with how his day progressed.

"A very good day for me. I was close to Seb in qualifying and we know how crucial that is. After that it was difficult for me to win the race unless I got the start right. There was a bit of luck when Robert (Kubica) had the wheel nut come off.

"It was a beautiful but it was a formation finish. We were following each other around and it was impossible to get closer than 1.5-1 second.

"I am very happy with how I drove here. Seb deserved the victory and Fernando did not drive bad either."

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The Japanese crashers speak out

The start of the Japanese GP proved to be rather eventful as six drivers crashed out before Lap 4 was even complete - and one before the race even started.

Lucas di Grassi was the first of the crashes as he shunt at the R130 on his out-lap on his way to the grid, causing heavy damage to his car. Thankfully, though, he walked away unhurt.

"We actually don't know what happened," the Virgin Racing driver told the BBC. We were preparing the car as normal, there was nothing unusual, and at that point I just lost control.

"There was nothing I could do. I am glad that I am safe."

Meanwhile, Tonio Liuzzi was the one of four drivers caught out on the opening lap as Ferrari's Felipe Massa, who had lost control of his own car after touching the grass, pushed the Force India driver off the track, sending him into the barriers.

"I had a really great start, I had passed five or six cars before the first car. But then I saw Felipe coming like a rocket into my side. I don't think he can take the blame as I don't think he had control of the car," said Liuzzi.

But while Liuzzi holds no blame whatsoever, the same cannot be said of Vitaly Petrov, although he insists he too was not responsible.

"I made a good start and managed to overtake Massa," he said. "I was then going passed Hulkenberg with Heidfeld on my right when he started to move left and so I also had to move left to avoid him. Unfortunately I hit the side of Hulkenberg's car and this is why I crashed."

Petrov, though, wasn't the only Renault driver to retire early in the race. Robert Kubica became the sixth of the six not to even see lap five as his right-rear wheel literally fell off his car. The cause of the incident has yet to be determined.

"We managed a good start but then in the second lap, when I was behind the Safety Car, I nearly lost the car," said the Renault driver. "I [initially] thought it was the drive shaft, like at Siverstone.

"It was difficult to follow the Safety Car so I moved to the side and then lost the wheel."

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Schu: No need for Merc position swap

Michael Schumacher conceded that there would have been little point in Mercedes moving him ahead of team-mate Nico Rosberg in Japan despite his superior pace, given the team didn’t have the car to make any further progress.

The German duo found themselves in close company from mid-way through the race until Rosberg’s late crash after Schumacher came out of his pit stop marginally behind the sister Mercedes, who had made his stole stop under the early safety car.

With Schumacher therefore enjoying a tyre wear advantage in the first laps following his stop in particular, the 41-year-old tried to line up a realistic passing chance on several occasions but his advances were successfully rebutted by his younger compatriot.

Schumacher was told over the radio by his race engineer Andrew Shovlin that while there would be no team orders used to move Rosberg aside, his team-mate wouldn’t make it difficult for him if he got alongside.

The 41-year-old admits he did enquire whether it would have made sense for the team to switch the positions so to not leave them vulnerable to cars behind, but understood their reasons for not doing so.

“Well I had asked obviously whether it would make sense to let me go and try and push ahead or avoid any circumstance in latter stage towards the back situation,” Schumacher told reporters after finishing sixth, which was 20s behind fifth-placed Lewis Hamilton alone.

“But the team obviously monitored the situation well and decided it wasn’t necessary [to let him through] and let us race.

“It was exciting and nice, to a point.

“I think it wouldn’t have been necessary to change the position at the end of the day because we wouldn’t have been really up the front.”

Asked to elaborate what he meant by “to a point”, Schumacher explained that the battle was particularly enjoyable when he had the clear tyre advantage.

He added that Rosberg had been hard, but fair, in his defence of position, while the strong tail wind down the main straight had compromised his passing opportunities.

“Nice to a point that you feel so much quicker due to the fact that you have fresh tyres, you would like to go by,” Schumacher explained.

“He blocked very cleverly, and fairly, but on the hard side – but that’s what I enjoy, racing to the point.

“I was putting myself in position to make my manoeuvres, but we had a lot of tail wind on the straight today so everybody was down in the [rev] limiter and every time you got into the slipstream and got into the overrun you suddenly hit the limiter and you were then equal speed.

“So there was no chance to pass down the straight. That was a little bit frustrating sometimes from that point of view, but nothing otherwise.”

Schumacher only got ahead of Rosberg after the sister car crashed out with five laps to go after one of his rear wheels suddenly detached itself.

It meant the six-time Suzuka winner finished sixth, his best result since finishing fourth in Turkey in May.

“I think it’s what we have seen sort of [over] the last races, that is our sort of position,” he added.

“Occasionally the Renaults are a little bit in front, or a little bit behind. They seemed to be strong all weekend long and probably Kubica would have been difficult to hold up with.

“But with the rest, that was sort of our target.”

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Mercedes looking into Rosberg crash

Mercedes says it is still investigating what caused Nico Rosberg’s dramatic exit from the Japanese Grand Prix after a wheel came off the German’s W01 at high speed.

The Brackley-based squad was on for an important two car points finish going into the closing stages of Sunday’s race with Rosberg running just ahead of team-mate Michael Schumacher in sixth and seventh places respectively.

But with five laps to go Rosberg was pitched off the circuit at the S Curves and into a heavy impact with the tyre barrier when its car lost one of its rear wheels.

Team boss Ross Brawn was relieved to see his driver walk away from the accident unscathed and says the team is launching a thorough investigation into the incident.

"We had a strong race today with both cars and it is very disappointing and frustrating that Nico was unable to finish the race,” Brawn said.

“Our prime concern was for his safety and thankfully he is absolutely fine. Prior to the incident, he was in an excellent position having taken advantage of an early stop under the safety car to make up places lost at the start.

“We are looking into the cause of Nico's accident now and as always there will be a thorough investigation into what happened."

Rosberg was disappointed that a race that had turned around so positively following a poor start ended in such fashion, adding that prior to that he had been pleased to be able to keep Schumacher at bay on older tyres.

"It was a disappointing end to the weekend today,” he said.

“Due to a clutch problem, my start was poor but our strategy was good to change tyres under the safety car on the first lap which enabled me to recover the places and be racing in sixth position.

“My tyres were suffering from having done such a long stint so it was tough to maintain a good pace but it was enough to keep Michael behind.

“Then something broke on the rear of the car and put me into the tyre barrier which ended my race early."

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Lotus jubilant after best results yet

Heikki Kovalainen and the whole Lotus team were ecstatic after the squad moved a step closer to ending the year in the lucrative 10th spot in the constructors' championship by finishing 12th and 13th at Suzuka with the Finn and team-mate Jarno Trulli.

With none of the new teams likely to score a point barring crazy circumstances in the remaining races, their battle for 10th will be decided by a tie-break on their best results - and today's Japanese Grand Prix finish was one place better than Kovalainen managed in previous benchmark Melbourne - raising the bar a little higher for Lotus' rivals.

"It was a great race, the best of the year for our team by a little margin," said Kovalainen.

"With the performance, the leaders only lapped us once - nearly twice but not quite, I saw Sebastian [Vettel] take the flag behind me as I started my last lap, so that was good news.

"It was pretty excellent for me.

"I started with the soft tyre and tried to build enough of a gap to Jarno to come in ahead of him.

"It just worked out, and after that it was good fun.

"We were on the limit with the car - there was nearly a fireman needed again, but not this time!"

He said the performance had come as a surprise as Lotus has long since stopped developing its 2010 car in favour of its 2011 efforts.

"This is strengthening our position, we nailed the Virgins properly today," said Kovalainen.

"Both in qualifying and race pace we were very, very strong, whereas we didn't expect to be so strong relative to them coming here because this is a circuit where you need the performance in the car and they've been doing a lot with their car and we haven't."

Team boss Tony Fernandes was also overjoyed to see his cars dominating the new teams' class and getting closer to the established midfield on race pace - especially amid the backdrop of the ongoing row with the Lotus car company over brand rights.

"I am absolutely delighted, just so pleased for the whole team," said Fernandes.

"The result today is a tremendous response to the negativity that we have been dealing with off-track over the last week or so.

"This is the best ever result in the as yet very short life of Lotus Racing, and 12th and 13th far exceeds any of the expectations I had at the start of the season.

"The future for our team is so bright, and the decisions we have been making recently are giving us an incredible platform from which to build on days like this."

Lotus recently announced that it will use a Red Bull transmission next year, part of a package of upgrades that is also set to include a move to Renault engines.

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Missed opportunity frustrates Renault

Renault F1 boss Eric Boullier expressed deep disappointment after both his team’s cars made dramatic early exits from the Japanese Grand Prix.

Robert Kubica had qualified a superb third, and immediately snatched second with a lightning start – only for his right-rear wheel to detach itself on the third lap while the field was running behind a safety car period that had been partly caused by his team-mate Vitaly Petrov.

The Russian rookie had sealed his departure from the race within seconds of the start when he chopped across Nico Hulkenberg’s Williams, sending him heavily into the barrier beside the main straight.

Boullier admitted Kubica’s retirement was a big missed opportunity.

“After such a strong performance this morning during qualifying, it's very frustrating to come away from this race empty-handed,” he said.

“Our car has been competitive throughout the weekend and we were looking forward to showing that in the race.

“Both cars made good starts off the line, but then we had the double disappointment with both cars out of the race after just three laps.

“We don't know exactly what happened with Robert, but it's a real shame for him because he has been exceptional all weekend and I'm sure we could have had a strong result today.

“All we can do now is regroup and look forward to the next race in Korea, which will be a new experience for everybody.”

Kubica recounted: “We made a good start and managed to gain one position up to P2, but then in the second lap behind the safety car I was warming up the tyres and I nearly lost the car.

“I thought to begin with it was a problem with the driveshaft, but apparently it was the wheel.

“I don't know if there was a technical problem but it became difficult to follow the safety car so I moved to the side of the track and then I Iost the wheel.”

Chief race engineer Alan Permane said the nature of the failure on Kubica’s car was still unclear.

“It was an extremely disappointing race for us and for Robert retire from second place so early on is a real shame,” he said.

“At the moment we don't know what happened to Robert's car.

“We suspect some sort of mechanical failure, but we will conduct a full investigation to find out.”

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James Allen's Japanese GP verdict

Red Bull utterly dominated the Japanese Grand Prix, with Sebastian Vettel untouchable in qualifying and the race.

Although his team-mate Mark Webber was never far behind, you had the feeling that Vettel had something in hand at all times and showed in qualifying that he is the Suzuka specialist.

It was only the second time in six years that qualifying took place on the race day, due to the adverse weather conditions, but Red Bull still locked out the front row.

It was also only the second time in eight attempts this year that Vettel has managed to win from pole position.

A huge day for Red Bull Racing, it brought Vettel back into the title race, increased Webber’s lead to 14 points and virtually secured the constructors’ championship. They are now 45 points ahead of Ferrari.

With three races to go, it is starting to look as though the champion will be either Webber, Vettel or Fernando Alonso.

McLaren trailed in here this weekend, Lewis Hamilton suffering gearbox problems in practice and then again in the race, and they need a 1-2 finish in Korea to get back into the hunt.

The track has a long straight so the F-duct will help there, but you get the impression that they don’t have quite enough in the technical locker to make the difference.

It was a real shame that Robert Kubica lost a rear wheel early on, as he had qualified an astonishing third in the Renault and then jumped Webber at the start. Had he stayed out there it would have been quite interesting.

Jenson Button took a gamble on the hard tyre in qualifying and the race, but it didn’t really work for him.

He was nowhere near Alonso and battled his team-mate Hamilton, who had to start eighth due to the gearbox penalty.

Given that Hamilton was able to outqualify Alonso on the soft tyre before his penalty, Button ought to have been able to do the same, which means McLaren handed Alonso a podium today.

And with Button now 31 points behind in the standings, the gamble today doesn’t look so good.

Despite the performance of Vettel, the real star driver of the day was Kamui Kobayashi, who started 14th on the hard tyre.

He made some fantastic passing moves, mainly at the hairpin, where his victims included Jaime Alguersuari, Adrian Sutil, Rubens Barrichello and Sauber team-mate Nick Heidfeld.

Michael Schumacher had a much better day than of late.

Although he qualified behind his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg due to a problem with the F-duct on his car, he got ahead of him at the start.

Rosberg was able to undercut him on strategy, by pitting earlier, and Schumacher was forced to follow him for most of the second half of the race.

It was clear that he was faster than Rosberg, but couldn’t pass until Rosberg’s car appeared to fail and it flew off the road.

The teams now move on to the great unknown in Korea.

The track will still be receiving the finishing touches long after F1 moves on to Brazil, but we will have to make the best of it.

There will be no compromises on safety and the FIA’s Charlie Whiting will inspect the track this week to ensure that the safety equipment and race control are all fully functional.

The track is a real unknown, because the asphalt was only laid this week, so all the team’s simulations are going to be inaccurate.

This is quite exciting, as it will mean they will have to think on their feet on set-up.

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Horner: McLaren sacrificed Button for Hamilton

Christian Horner reckons Jenson Button was used as a "sacrificial lamb" in Japan to help Lewis Hamilton - but it didn't work out.

Button was the only driver in the top ten to start the grand prix on the harder option tyres, meaning he could run longer than his rivals and hopefully get the jump on any of the three ahead of him.

However, instead of getting the jump, Button started to lose ground as the Red Bull drivers, who had pitted before him and where therefore behind him on the track, started to close the gap to the McLaren driver.

Horner believes it was at that time that McLaren switched Button's strategy to favour Hamilton, opting to pit him later than initially planned in the hope that he could back the Red Bull duo up, allowing Hamilton to close the gap.

But, a gearbox problem for Hamilton, which saw him lose third gear, put an end to any chance he had of catching the Bulls.

"We were a bit concerned by Jenson's race strategy, as we knew we would come out behind him and then he started to back everybody up towards Hamilton," Horner told the Telegraph.

"It was sort of like being in a McLaren sandwich. But then it looked like Hamilton developed a problem and they aborted that strategy for Jenson.

"It looked a little bit like he was a sacrificial lamb. I don't know. It just seemed strange."

However, McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh has denied using Button to help Hamilton.

"Yes there was (the possibility to do that) but at that point we also had to consider Jenson," said Whitmarsh.

"We wanted to give him enough time on the option tyre, to have a go. If we had left him out there longer... it is not how we play our game. Maybe others would but that is not how we go motor racing."

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Button: Korea will be the decider for us

Jenson Button says if McLaren don't trounce Red Bull at the upcoming Korean GP, they can say goodbye to this year's World title.

Red Bull dominated Sunday's Japanese GP with Sebastian Vettel leading home his team-mate Mark Webber while Fernando Alonso claimed third place to stay in touch with the Bulls in the Drivers' Championship.

For McLaren there are concerns that the race signaled the end of their title challenge as Button, who was already 25 points behind Webber in the standings heading to Suzuka, dropped a further six points as he could only manage fourth place.

The Brit, however, isn't ready to admit defeat, although he does concede if he doesn't defeat the Bulls in Korea it will be over for him.

"It's a lot more difficult for us now," said the reigning World Champion. "If we don't have the legs on the Red Bulls in Korea it will be almost impossible.

"There are so many cars fighting at the front and we're at the back. We couldn't be trying harder. I've never seen so many new parts put on a car each race but we are not quick enough."

Button is drawing hope from former Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen's 2007 Championship run, which saw the Finn come from third place in the standings ahead of the final race to win the title by a single point over Hamilton.

"Stranger things have happened, of course. When Kimi Raikkonen won the Championship, Lewis looked like he was going to walk it. He only needed something like two points from two races.

"So it can turn around, but I'd like to be in a position where I didn't need the Red Bulls to crash or have reliability issues, because if we carry on like this they will cruise it."

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Japanese GP photo gallery

Follow the story of an incident-packed Suzuka race through high-quality photos in our gallery.

At the start Vettel easily converted his pole into the lead, but behind the other Red Bull of Webber lost out to Kubica

As the pack streamed away towards the first corner, Petrov spectacularly exited the stage in the background after a coming together with Hulkenberg

Petrov prepares to clamber out of his stricken R29

Massa slithered into the path of danger after getting out of shape into the first corner

The out-of-control Massa only succeeded into ploughing into the right-hand side of the luckless Tonio Liuzzi’s Force India

Liuzzi's Force India was wrecked in the impact with Massa's Ferrari

Having missed Q3 earlier in the day, a first-corner retirement compounded a dismal day for Massa

The race was now under safety car conditions but Kubica’s chance of a podium was cruelly taken away when his right-rear wheel suddenly detached itself at the hairpin

After the restart Michael Schumacher pulled a decisive move on old team-mate Rubens Barrichello at the chicane

Fernando Alonso quickly lost touch with the two Red Bulls, but held a handy advantage over the McLarens

Kovalainen flew in Japan

Schumacher, enjoying one of the strongest days of his comeback, came out from his stop right behind team-mate Rosberg and put him under immense early pressure, but to no avail

Rosberg successfully defended from team-mate Schumacher prior to his late exit

Vettel was rarely more than 2.5s ahead of Webber, but he never looked like surrendering his advantage

Kamui Kobayashi had another of his barnstorming afternoons, and having already picked off Alguersuari once at the hairpin prior to his own late stop, was it at it again on his fresh soft tyres, despite the Spaniard’s desperate tactics to keep him behind

More misfortune for Hamilton left him without third gear for the closing stages and his pace slowed, allowing Button to move ahead into fourth after his hard-tyre strategy had failed to pay dividends

Schumacher eventually got past Rosberg with five laps to go – but not in the way he would have liked after his team-mate crashed nastily at the S Curves after his W01 shed one of its rear wheels

Vettel always seemed to have enough in hand over Webber and finally returned to the winner’s circle, moving to within 14 points of his team-mate in the process

It was Vettel's day, but Webber was content to leave Japan with his points lead increased again

Vettel gives himself a cool down after one of the busiest days of his racing career

Alonso was more than content with third given RBR’s Suzuka advantage

Red Bull mechanics celebrate the end to a perfect weekend, which has seen it take a giant step towards a first constructors’ title

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Ferrari President: Massa will 'surprise'

Luca di Montezemolo insists Ferrari will do everything they can to help Felipe Massa bounce back after a dismal Japanese GP.

With qualifying at Suzuka delayed due to torrential rain, Sunday proved to be an all-round disappointing day for Massa.

In the morning he failed to get into the pole position shoot-out, qualifying in 12th place, while his afternoon's race was over before it began - the result of an accident at the start.

The Brazilian's disappointing outing comes in the wake of di Montezemolo's calls for Massa to take points off Fernando Alonso's Championship rivals.

However, the Ferrari President is confident Massa will do just that in the remaining three races of the season.

"I'm sorry for Felipe, who was certainly not lucky this weekend: I'm sure that he will be the surprise of the last three races of the season," di Montezemolo told the team's website.

"After the bad day he will be desperately keen to react and we will do everything to give him the possibility to win."

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Horner: There is nothing we fear

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner insists his team has nothing to fear in the last three races as they close in on the Championship double.

With their 1-2 finish in Sunday's Japanese GP, Red Bull extended their advantage in the Constructors' Championship to 45 points over McLaren while Mark Webber's lead in the Drivers' standings is now up to 14 points over his team-mate Sebastian vettel and Ferrari's Fernando Alonso.

The next grand prix on the calendar, though, is an unknown for all the teams as F1 is scheduled to pay its first visit to South Korea.

With long straights and tight corners, it's anybody's guess which of the teams will come out on top, although Horner says his outfit isn't afraid of being undone by the new challenge.

"Mark Webber has extended his lead and Sebastian Vettel has put himself back into contention," said the Red Bull Racing team boss.

"There is nothing that we fear in the last races. There is a steely determination in the team."

He added: "The dream scenario would be to pull out a big enough gap so that it was just down to Mark and Sebastian."

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Alonso: Luck and wins wouldn't go amiss

Despite trailing in Japan, Fernando Alonso and Ferrari determined to overhaul Red Bull in the final three races of the season.

Alonso, who finished third behind Championship leader Mark Webber and the Australian's Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, says he believed staying on the podium holds the key to the title.

The Spaniard is now joint second with Vettel in the Drivers' title race with 206 points, 14 behind Webber, who is bidding to become Australia's third World Champion after Jack Brabham and Alan Jones.

"We need some luck, we need some wins too, but mostly I feel that it is important to keep arriving on the podium to stay in the Championship," Alonso said Monday.

"This was always going to be a difficult race for us because I think Suzuka was for Ferrari the worst circuit we go to in the last races of the year."

Team boss Stefano Domenicali said Ferrari would now work intensively on improving their qualifying performance so that Alonso has a good chance of starting at the front of the grid, ahead of at least one of the two Red Bulls.

Alonso's team-mate Felipe Massa crashed out of Sunday's race at the first corner.

Domenicali said: "In race pace we were not too bad, but the problem is that if you start behind it is very difficult with this kind of performance to get ahead.

"Here (at Suzuka) with the hard tyres, above all, we were really very good. I know that maybe they (Red Bull) were controlling a little bit the pace, but in the end everyone was pushing," he said.

"I think that they are doing a great job in preparation and qualifying but, as we have seen, if we do a better job than them in qualifying then we are able to beat them (in the race).

"Otherwise it is tough, but we will see in the next races - everything is possible."

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Renault back Kubica for future title

Renault technical director James Allison is convinced Robert Kubica will win a World Championship if the team provide him with a competitive car.

Many consider Kubica to be one of the top drivers on the grid, but he is yet to get the machinery to complement his driving skills.

"If we can give him a car that's even half capable of getting a Championship he'll get one," Allison told the BBC's Mark Hughes. "Not everyone in the pit lane can say that about their drivers.

"He's properly committed to being a World Champion, no doubt about that. He is one of those very, very top guys where you know that if the car is not running at the front it's because of the car, not him.

"He's not only incredibly fast but you just know you can rely on him to do a fast lap when that's what's needed.

"You know he will not make mistakes when the pressure is on him and he'll plough out lap after lap after lap at a really good pace.

"He expects a lot from everyone all the time; he's positive, demanding and pushing but puts the work in himself too.

"Having a really top-flight driver like that gives you a fantastic baseline to work from.

"In that regard he's similar to Fernando [Kubica's predecessor at Renault] but the area where he's different is he is more intense about it, seems more fully immersed in racing and wanting to be a Champion."

With three races still remaining this year, Renault are fifth in the Constructors' Championship with Kubica picking up the bulk of their 133 points.

Alison is confident their 2011 challenger will help them to return to the front of the grid next year.

"We also have much better tools in conceiving next year's car," he said. "Our CFD department is now a very powerful tool and we now have a tunnel that gives us a much better and more realistic simulation to what happens on the track.

"There's a bunch of other things very helpful, such as how much quicker it speeds up and slows down than the old road.

"Although it's only two or three minutes per run, when you do as many runs as we do that stacks up to an awful lot of time and throughput is a very important thing in a tunnel.

"Our old road used to take about 30 seconds from one yaw angle to our other yaw angle, whereas this one does it in a couple of seconds and that productivity improvement is actually quite substantial.

"I see no reason why we can't be competing at the front in 2011."

[MIKA27]

Teams want level tyre playing field

Formula One teams have agreed that everyone will compete on a level playing field when it comes to the use of Pirelli tyres.

Pirelli will take over from Bridgestone as the sport's official tyre supplier next year and there have been fears that some teams could get one over their rivals by forming a close relationship with the Italian manufacturer.

According to Autosport, the teams held a "lengthy meeting at the Japanese Grand Prix" and "agreement was reached for there to be total transparency of tyre development.

"I think it is less a case of pooling information, more an agreement for people to be open," Virgin Racing CEO Graeme Lowdon told Autosport.

"What no one wanted was to see a special relationship developing between the new supplier and a particular team, so everyone is of the opinion for there to be no special relationships

"There is no established system, but the idea if someone goes to the tyre supplier and asks for some information then everybody will get it, rather than something special or unique.

"You will still have your tyre man allocated to you, and still work on a one-to-one basis there, but the general picture is that everyone is afforded the same information."

[MIKA27]

Schu: Cars haven't always been the same

Fresh from one of his best displays of the season, Michael Schumacher has revealed that he hasn't always had the same machinery as team-mate Nico Rosberg.

Schumacher was expected to challenge for the title in his comeback season, but Mercedes GP have been nowhere close to the front-runners while the seven-time Champion has also been outperformed by younger team-mate.

The 41-year-old, who finished sixth in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, says he often had problems which were not picked up by those on the outside.

"The car worked great this time," he told broadcaster RTL after the race.

"Unfortunately, I cannot say it has been that way at all the races. There have often been problems - especially on my car, in terms of the consistency - that were not always noticed from the outside. You only saw that I was slower, [but] both cars have not always been the same."

[MIKA27]

Horner shrugs off fresh flexi-wing furore

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is unperturbed by the latest comments regarding the team's front wings.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit's front wings caused a major storm earlier in the season as the ends of the wing appeared to flex down towards the track at speed.

Their rivals raised concern and the FIA introduced stricter tests regarding the flexibility of a car's front wing. Red Bull, though, passed the tests.

Mercedes GP boss Ross Brawn brought the issue back into the spotlight at the Japanese Grand Prix by suggesting that the regulations need to be tweaked again.

Although he insisted that Red Bull are playing within the rules of the game, Brawn told Autosport that changes may be needed.

"I think the difficulty is that those [wing] tests, people comply with those tests and if the teams and the FIA feel that things are not correct then we have to change the tests," he said.

"If the teams feel, and the FIA feels that there are some abnormalities, then we have to change the tests."

Horner, though, says his team have nothing to worry about.

"At the end of the day two people equivalent to the size of Ross [brawn] stand on each side of the front wing to pass the test - and the cars passes," said Horner.

"It complies with the regulations and our technical guys should only take it as a compliment because, at the end of the day, the car fully complies.

"And it is down to what you do on the track and not what you say in the press."

[OZCUBAN]

Korea passes FIA track inspection

The inaugural Korean Grand Prix will take place as scheduled next week after the FIA finally gave the new venue its seal of approval.

South Korea’s Formula 1 debut had been in doubt for months amid persistent speculation about the state of the building work at the circuit in Yeongam.

Having already had to compromise on its own 90-day rule for inspections of new tracks, the governing body’s technical delegate Charlie Whiting on Monday started a two-day inspection of the Yeongam circuit to make sure it was up to the required standards and safe for racing.

And on Tuesday morning it was confirmed by the race organisers that Whiting had given the venue the green light and that it would be issued with the ‘A’ licence needed to host F1 races.

“It is satisfactory, and I will issue the license through [Korea’s motorsport authority] KARA,” Whiting said in a statement.

Although race promoters KAVO have always maintained the anticlockwise track will be ready for its October 24 race debut, Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone raised the prospect for the first time last month that the event could be cancelled given work had fallen behind schedule.

The top layer of asphalt on the 3.49-mile circuit was only laid last week and newly-released pictures of the venue show much of the facility away from the pit and paddock complex around the track to still resemble a building site.

However, Whiting saw enough during his two-day inspection to signal that the track was ready for F1 competition – a verdict that was naturally warmly welcomed by the organisers.

“We are delighted that all works are now finished to the complete satisfaction of the FIA, and we join the whole of Korea in welcoming the Formula 1 fraternity to the Korea International Circuit for the first time,” said KARA chairman Yung Cho Chung.

"The KIC has been constructed to the highest standards, and will become the epicentre of motorsport in the country. We believe the 2010 Formula 1 Korean Grand Prix will be the catalyst to ignite enormous interest in the sport across the nation.”

Korea’s confirmation ends the possibility that the season will be cut from 19 to 18 rounds and will be welcomed in particular by world championship leader Mark Webber’s four title rivals, who still have three races in which to overhaul the Australian’s points lead.

OZ

Lets hope this also a good track and a great race ,being the first time any of the teams have been there it will be a level playing field for all

I took a spin around here the other day on the PS3 and it is a good track with some really good corners on it ,looking forward to it ,and for mark to extend his points lead ,and for Vettel and Alonso to have a DNF

On i side note good work on this thread Mika ,I see you are nearly at 100 pages great achievement my friend,love to read and contribute when i can.

keep it up

OZ

[OZCUBAN]

McLaren hoping updates revive title bid

Martin Whitmarsh says McLaren will continue to throw new development parts at its MP4-25, as it strives to find the performance gains needed to win the final three races and the world title.

The Woking squad now faces an uphill struggle to win either championship after a disappointing Japanese Grand Prix which resulted in both its drivers slipping more than 25 points off the pace in the drivers’ chase, and the team 45 off Red Bull in the constructors’.

Its four-five finish at Suzuka was achieved despite the introduction of a host of new parts onto its car for that weekend – although it didn’t race with its new rear wing having not had enough time to experiment with it in Friday practice.

But team boss Whitmarsh is hopeful this part be able to be raced at the next round in Korea, as well as a new front wing.

“We’ll have a new front wing. Hopefully the rear wing that didn’t have enough track time here we’ll have there…” he said at Suzuka.

“There’s a few things coming, so we’ll be throwing everything at the remaining three races.

“It’s still in play – until it can’t be done you keep pushing.”

Both Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button conceded their respective hopes of winning a second drivers’ title were looking increasingly difficult after Suzuka, with the pair realistically needing the Red Bull drivers and Fernando Alonso to slip up at least once apiece over the final three rounds.

Whitmarsh, though, is remaining upbeat and says the team has to keep focused on making its package as reliable and fast as possible.

“We don’t spend time worrying about it, you spend time doing things about it,” he said about its increasingly perilous championship position.

“The fact is we’ve got to make sure we’re reliable, keep improving the car and do our best in the next few races.”

Although Hamilton’s weekend was compromised by gearbox problems in qualifying and the race while Button’s gamble on a different tyre strategy failed to deliver any real reward, Whitmarsh believes McLaren was faster than Ferrari around Suzuka despite finishing behind Alonso.

“Red Bull were quickest here I think,” he said.

“Looking at it overall, we were obviously disappointed with some of the reliability issues, disappointed about with not getting enough track time.

“I think Lewis did a fantastic job when you realise [he completed] six laps of this circuit before qualifying, went on to the intermediate, then onto the prime, option [tyres in qualifying], ‘bang’ he was there and quick enough to be in third place [on the grid].

“I think we had the second quickest car here. During the race we did what we could. I think looking back now it didn’t quite work out with the Jenson strategy – if we had put him on the option tyre in qualifying could he had been in front of Alonso and beaten him on a conventional strategy?

“Possibly, but I don’t think too much time needs to be spent wasted on that one.

“Overall we go away from here 28 points behind, 75 points in play, three races to go.”

The McLaren chief also expressed confidence that Hamilton wouldn’t require another out-of-sequence gearbox change prior to Korea after he lost third gear in Sunday's race.

“Third [gear] was probably a dog,” Whitmarsh said.

“That’s not a problem for the next race obviously.

“We’ve taken the penalty for this weekend so we had a free gearbox change for the next race.

“Probably a third gear failure so he had to run from fourth to seventh thereafter, which I’m sure was obviously hampering him.

“But he kept calm after a fairly difficult weekend, but I think we’ve seen how quickly Lewis can bounce back.”

[OZCUBAN]

Winning title 'very difficult' now, says Lewis Hamilton

McLaren's Lewis Hamilton thinks winning this year's world title could be beyond him after he lost more ground to his rivals at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Hamilton finished fifth and now lags 28 points behind championship leader Mark Webber, who was second as Sebastian Vettel led home a Red Bull one-two.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso also came third as Hamilton's gearbox struggled.

"These guys continue to pick up points," he said. "It will be very difficult, but we'll keep pushing."

Just three races of the 2010 season remain and although Hamilton - who started the race 20 points behind Webber - managed to cross the finishing line for the first time in three grands prix, the Englishman had a difficult weekend overall.

He was penalised five places on the grid for changing his gearbox, leaving him to start eighth.

The 25-year-old 2008 world champion then looked certain to finish ahead of his team-mate Jenson Button but, running with good pace in fourth position with 10 laps remaining, he lost third gear and his compatriot was able to pass him and finish a position higher.

"It's a bit disappointing for myself and my team," he told BBC Sport.

"We worked very hard, as always, and we're doing everything we can to score points.

"I made a mistake on Friday, then we had the gearbox problem. Then losing third gear I lost ground to Jenson.

"But I'm just thankful and happy I saw the end of the race, it's been a while.

"You have to try and remain optimistic, but I didn't think I'd make it [when I lost third gear]. It was making a lot of noise. But I had a big gap behind me so I could waste a bit of time.

"Still three races to go, still 75 points available. But these guys continue to pick up points. It will be very difficult, but we'll keep pushing."

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh refused to give up the title fight for either Hamilton or the defending champion Button, who sits fourth in the standings.

But he admitted it will be tough for them.

"It hasn't run to plan," he told BBC Sport. "We've come away with some reasonable points. It's not a great day, but not as big a disaster as it looked at some points this weekend.

"It's tough [the championship]. Anything can happen. This was damage limitation, to an extent, but I think we showed here the pace isn't too bad.

"We've got to improve the car and carry on racing. We've got some more performance coming through, a new front wing we didn't race here. And a new rear wing."

Button - the only driver inside the top 10 on the grid to start the race on the harder tyre at Suzuka - admitted the defence of his world title will be difficult, and said he felt McLaren did not pit him early enough to get the best out of his alternate strategy.

Unless we're competitive in Korea, it's going to be very tough

McLaren's Jenson Button

"It's getting more and more difficult, and unless we're competitive in Korea, it's going to be very tough," he said.

"I'm still in the same position I was coming into this race. The Red Bulls were quick here - they were unbeatable - and Fernando [Alonso] was quick in the Ferrari.

"We have to hope that when we put a [new] package on the car in Korea, we get the best out of it.

"We came here with new parts - some of them worked well, and some of them need some work."

"I have to have a look at the data, but to stay out when they all pitted was probably the wrong thing. But whatever strategy we did today, fourth was probably the best we were going to finish."

[OZCUBAN]

Red Bull rivals 'can aid McLaren'

Vettel reignites his championship hopes at Suzuka

Ex-Formula 1 driver John Watson has said the battle between Red Bull team-mates Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel could play into the hands of McLaren.

Vettel is 14 points behind Webber in the standings with three races to go, while McLaren duo Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button are fourth and fifth.

Watson told BBC Radio 5 live: "I'm concerned by the internal machinations between the Red Bull drivers.

"That's going to be the biggest ray of light for Hamilton and Button."

Red Bull were denied a one-two finish at the Turkish Grand Prix in May when Vettel and Webber collided. Vettel was forced to retire and Webber finished third.

Those events led to reports that German Vettel was being favoured by the team and these rumours were fuelled when Australian Webber said on his team radio after winning the British Grand Prix at Silverstone: "Not bad for a number two driver."

Watson, who drove for McLaren in F1 between 1979-83 thinks this fierce rivalry could boost the chances of the drivers in that team.

"McLaren may have to rely on the internal competition between the Red Bull drivers, like we saw in Turkey. There is no doubt in my mind that Sebastian Vettel is the chosen son in that team but Webber has that 14 point advantage," stated Watson.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso is tied with Vettel in second place on 206 points in the title race behind Webber. Hamilton is 28 adrift of Webber, with Button 31 behind the Australian.

Watson is looking forward to how the championship unfolds for the final three races of the season, starting at the brand new track in Korea later this month.

"I think this has been the best season for grand prix racing in the last decade. With this season's changes in the points system, with 25 for a win, many people thought Vettel was out of the equation but now he is back in contention and suddenly both Red Bull drivers could lock out the championship in the remaining three races," added Watson.

After heading into the unknown in Korea, the drivers head to Brazil before the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Watson thinks all three venues will favour Vettel and Webber.

"Red Bull have the momentum, the most competitive car and it will be competitive on all three circuits," said Watson.

[OZCUBAN]

Meet the best driver in F1

Although Robert Kubica's Japanese Grand Prix lasted only a couple of laps behind the safety car, his qualifying performance emphasised again the Renault driver's claim to being a future world champion.

On the Formula 1 calendar there are only three outstanding driver's tracks - where there is scope for a great driver to transcend the level of his car. They are Monaco, Spa and Suzuka.

The remainder are 'technical tracks', where the lap-time potential is defined almost totally by the car, the difference between a great and a good driver on the stopwatch relatively small.

At each of those three special tracks this year, Kubica has qualified what is otherwise a lower-top-10-level car on the front or second row.

It is confirmation of a very special talent but one that is still under-appreciated by the wider world.

It is the sort of anomaly that occurs only with very special prospects, such as: Michael Schumacher qualifying the Jordan seventh at Spa on his F1 debut in 1991; Mika Hakkinen out-qualifying Ayrton Senna the first time they were paired together at McLaren in Portugal in 1993; Senna terrorising the field at Monaco in 1984 with a car from the unfancied Toleman team; in 2001 Fernando Alonso qualifying the outclassed Minardi in places it had no right being in.

When taking into consideration the machinery at their disposal, how much they have squeezed from what they have, how few errors have been made, there is a very real case to be made for putting Kubica ahead of all the other drivers this year.

If we can give him a car that's even half capable of getting a championship he'll get one

James Allison Renault technical director

But for such status to be taken seriously, the 25-year-old Pole desperately needs a front-running car from Renault next year, something the team have not delivered since the Alonso glory days of 2005-06.

That is a long time ago now and technical director James Allison is acutely aware of the responsibility that Kubica's presence brings with it.

"If we can give him a car that's even half capable of getting a championship he'll get one," Allison said. "Not everyone in the pit lane can say that about their drivers.

"He's properly committed to being a world champion, no doubt about that. He is one of those very, very top guys where you know that if the car is not running at the front it's because of the car, not him.

"He's not only incredibly fast but you just know you can rely on him to do a fast lap when that's what's needed.

"You know he will not make mistakes when the pressure is on him and he'll plough out lap after lap after lap at a really good pace.

"He expects a lot from everyone all the time; he's positive, demanding and pushing but puts the work in himself too.

"Having a really top-flight driver like that gives you a fantastic baseline to work from.

"In that regard he's similar to Fernando [Kubica's predecessor at Renault] but the area where he's different is he is more intense about it, seems more fully immersed in racing and wanting to be a champion.

"I guess Fernando had already done that but Robert is just brilliantly committed to making this team and relationship a success and helping us to drag ourselves back to where we need to be."

The Renault guys love Kubica and not only because he is fast and almost error-free but also because there is nothing he would rather be doing than sitting in the garage talking about how to make the car faster.

And if it is not that it will be regaling the mechanics with stories from his karting days or talking about the rally car he competes in as a hobby between races.

When Kubica was a BMW driver he was asked what he would like as a company car and they did not know quite how to react when he replied:

Allison is quietly confident that the team can give Kubica something more worthy of the driver's ability for next year. He puts the shortfall of this year's R30 down to key personnel losses in the aerodynamics department that have now been fully recovered.

"We also have much better tools in conceiving next year's car," he stated. "Our CFD department is now a very powerful tool and we now have a tunnel that gives us a much better and more realistic simulation to what happens on the track.

"There's a bunch of other things very helpful, such as how much quicker it speeds up and slows down than the old road.

"Although it's only two or three minutes per run, when you do as many runs as we do that stacks up to an awful lot of time and throughput is a very important thing in a tunnel.

"Our old road used to take about 30 seconds from one yaw angle to our other yaw angle, whereas this one does it in a couple of seconds and that productivity improvement is actually quite substantial.

"I see no reason why we can't be competing at the front in 2011."

That's the technical man talking. So long as the commercial side is resolved to allow that potential to be accessed, there is reason for optimism about Kubica's prospects.

The team's new ownership regime - it is effectively leased from Renault by investment group Genii Capital - has had its rocky moments this year as it adapts to life in the F1 paddock at a time of global economic restraint.

The bald fact is that Renault need a car somewhere close to as good as the Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari have been this year if Kubica is to excel at anywhere other than Monaco, Spa, and Suzuka next year.

If they fail to provide that, Kubica may reluctantly be forced to seek confirmation of his stature elsewhere.

Mark Hughes has been an F1 journalist for 10 years and is an award-winning author of several books

Story from BBC SPORT:

[OZCUBAN]

F1 big picture

Formula 1 big picture is a feature designed to showcase a side of a dramatic, visual sport that television cannot always portray.

Over the last 20 years, Darren Heath has carved a reputation as one of F1's most original photographers.

This is Darren's story behind his latest image:

"While pristine Formula 1 cars are a sight to behold, there is something strangely alluring about a damaged one.

"These meticulously prepared machines, once bent and broken, reveal a fragility that belies their honed image of solidity.

"Sat forlornly trackside at Turn Two during the Japanese Grand Prix is Felipe Massa's Ferrari F10, carbon-fibre bodywork ripped away, exposing a crumpled mess of heat-stained exhaust pipes crushed in the Brazilian's first-corner shunt with Force India's Vitantonio Liuzzi.

"While 99% of F1 photographers need to concentrate on the race, I am fortunate to have the time to look for something a little different and always try to show a side to the sport that would perhaps remain unseen.

"There is so much more to a grand prix than 24 cars and 60 or so laps on a Sunday afternoon, providing the observant lensman with a perfect opportunity to be constantly busy.

"The devil, so they say, is in the detail. Nowhere is that more true than in Formula 1."

Camera: Canon EOS1 DS Mark 3; Lens: 200mm; Exposure: 1000th sec @ f/3.2

Story from BBC SPORT:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/sport2/hi...one/9080149.stm

Published: 2010/10/11 10:33:08 GMT

© BBC MMX

[MIKA27]

Some great posts Oz, thanks for your contributions my friend, always a welcome sight!

Yes, 100 pages, a HUGE milestone which could not be if it were not for all who read this very thread. Thank you to all who read, that is a contribution in itself which has kept me posting.

I'm hoping to reach the 100 pages before the season ends.

A most successful thread in that the 'hits/read counts' are so high on a daily basis as well as being on such a wonderful forum.

Reagards and thanks to all.

Mika.