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Force India deny Fisichella-Ferrari reports

Force India have denied reports that Giancarlo Fisichella is set to move to Ferrari for the forthcoming Italian Grand Prix, to take over from Luca Badoer, who has stood in for the injured Felipe Massa at the last two races.

In a statement issued by Force India on Monday, boss Vijay Mallya insisted Fisichella, who scored the team’s first world championship points at Spa on Sunday, had received no invitation from Ferrari, adding that the Italian was looking forward to driving the Force India car again at Monza.

Force India also distanced themselves from quotes in the press attributed to the team’s commercial director, Ian Philips, which suggested they were expecting a request from Ferrari to release Fisichella.

“Ian Philips’ comments do not reflect the views of the Force India Formula One Team Management since he is not the designated spokesperson for the team nor is he authorized to speak to the media,” said Mallya. “His comments should be ignored.”

Ferrari are expected to make a decision on their Monza line-up later this week once they have received the results of medical tests that Massa is undergoing in Miami.

Barrichello clinches for Brawn GP in Valencia Grand Prix !!

Rubens Barrichello claimed victory at the European Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton finishing a close second.

An extraordinary pit-lane blunder by McLaren cost Lewis Hamilton a second successive victory as Brawn GP's Rubens Barrichello took the chequered flag at today's European Grand Prix in Valencia.

Pole-sitter Hamilton was leading the Brazilian veteran by around four seconds prior to his second stop on lap 37 but his afternoon came unstuck when McLaren's mechanics failed to have a new set of tyres ready.The incident cost Hamilton around six seconds and allowed the hard-charging Barrichello through for his first victory since the 2004 Chinese Grand Prix.

A great day for Brawn was made better by Jenson Button's damage-limiting drive to seventh, ahead of his nearest rival in the drivers' standings heading into this weekend, Red Bull's Mark Webber, who finished outside the points in ninth.Webber's team-mate Sebastian Vettel suffered an engine failure for the second day in succession to bring a premature end to his afternoon, and Brawn come away from Spain looking stronger than ever to claim both world titles.

Button's lead in the drivers' championship is now 18 points over Barrichello, while Webber is now 20.5 points back and Vettel 25. Brawn are 27.5 points clear of Red Bull in the constructors' championship.

Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen produced a solid drive to third place from sixth on the grid while McLaren's Heikki Kovalainen failed to deliver on his front-row start as he came home fourth.

Williams' Nico Rosberg produced a typically consistent drive to fifth ahead of Renault's Fernando Alonso, while BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica took eighth and the final point.

But the day belonged to Barrichello, who celebrated his 10th career win with characteristic emotion on the podium.

"It's been fantastic," said the veteran of 281 grands prix."It's been a weekend that I will never forget, especially because after five years, it's tough."Although you are pushing, there are some things that go through your mind - you want to do it for yourself, for your family and for your country."Hamilton, meanwhile, refused to point the finger of blame at his team for the pit-lane error which cost him a shot at victory."We win and lose together," he said."We had a great team effort to get here, so we cannot at all take second place for grated, or be disappointed that we did not get a win."I still believe it was a tremendous effort, and these things happen."At the start, Hamilton made a clean getaway from pole but further back Button suffered a miserable start.

Starting fifth on the grid, the world championship leader dropped to eighth after struggling through the first couple of corners, while a lunge on Alonso failed to come off further round the lap.Button's tribulations in the pack prompted Webber to come on the team radio claiming the Briton had cut a chicane, and on lap five Webber swept past him for eighth after Button's team told him to give up the place to avoid a penalty.

Vettel's doomed afternoon suffered its first setback on lap 15 when a problem the Red Bull fuel rig at his first stop meant no fuel went into his car and he had to complete another lap at a slow pace before finally refuelling and emerging down in 15th place.The German's race lasted just another eight laps, however, his Renault engine letting go once again following its failure in practice yesterday.After running third early on, Barrichello was on the move on lap 20, the Brazilian stopping four laps later than Kovalainen and getting ahead of the Finn.

And second became first on lap 37 when Hamilton suffered his setback in the pit lane.

All appeared calm when the 24-year-old pulled into his pit box as fuel went in and his used tyres came off, but it quickly became clear there were no fresh tyres to go on and the Briton lost crucial seconds while a set was brought out and the warmers removed.

Barrichello, who had been on the pace all weekend as his Brawn thrived in the sweltering Spanish heat, duly swept through to take a comfortable lead, which he held after his second pit stop and all the way to the flag, his margin of victory over Hamilton just under four seconds.

Elsewhere, It was another bad day for stand-in Ferrari driver Luca Badoer, who suffered a spin and a drive-through penalty for crossing the pit-lane exit line on his way to 17th and last of the finishers on the track.French debutant Romain Grosjean also suffered a spin in the Renault but was rather more impressive than Badoer on his way to 15th place at the flag.

Lewis Hamilton leads in European Grand Prix ..

McLaren confirmed their re-emergence in Valencia on Saturday afternoon as Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen set the fastest times to wrap up the front row of the grid for the European Grand Prix. Kovalainen was on course to take pole but made a small error on the last corner and failed to beat Hamilton’s 1m 39.498s best. The Finn's earlier 1m 39.532s was enough for second, however.

Rubens Barrichello confirmed Brawn GP’s return to form with the third fastest time of 1m 39.563s, with team mate Jenson Button fifth on 1m 39.821s. It was Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel who found himself the meat in the Brawn sandwich. After his engine failure this morning, the German was able to lap his Red Bull in 1m 39.789s for the other second-row slot.

Kimi Raikkonen made a late improvement to sixth for Ferrari on 1m 40.144s, and will be a dangerman at the start with his KERS.

Behind the Finn, Nico Rosberg took seventh for Williams with 1m 40.185s, ahead of Renault’s Fernando Alonso on 1m 40.236s, Red Bull’s Mark Webber on 1m 40.239s and BMW Sauber’s Robert Kubica on 1m 40.512s.

Q2 weeded out Nick Heidfeld in the second BMW Sauber, who lapped in 1m 38.826s (Barrichello was quickest in 1m 38.076s so the times were very close), and Adrian Sutil was on his tail in the Force India with 1m 38.846s. Timo Glock was 13th for Toyota with 1m 38.991s. Romain Grosjean looked promising on his Formula One debut and was 14th in the second Renault on 1m 39.040s, comfortably ahead of Sebastien Buemi who wheeled the lead Toro Rosso round in 1m 39.514s for 15th.

Q1 accounted for Force India’s Giancarlo Fisichella, Williams’ Kazuki Nakajima, Toyota’s Jarno Trulli, Toro Rosso’s Jaime Alguersuari and Ferrari’s Luca Badoer, as Button set the pace with 1m 39.531s.

Fisichella lapped in 1m 39.531s, while Nakajima had worked down to 1m 39.795s before going off the road. Trulli’s best was 1m 39.807s, and Alguersuari lapped in 1m 39.925s (a second off Buemi’s time in the session). At the back, Badoer’s return was not impressive. The oldest man in the field lapped the second Ferrari in 1m 41.413s.

McLaren Mercedes driver collide with Massa in Japanese Grand prix !

Lewis Hamilton's World Championship lead has been cut to six points after he could only finish 12th in the Japanese Grand Prix.

Starting from pole position, the McLaren Mercedes driver was passed by Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen on the run down to Turn One at the Fuji Speedway before he dived to take the inside line at the corner.

However, Hamilton then ran wide and dropped down to sixth place. Matters worsened on the following lap when he attempted to pass Championship rival Felipe Massa.

Hamilton again took the inside line, this time into the Turn 10 chicane, and forced Massa over the kerbing. The two then collided, sending the McLaren into a spin and to the back of the field.

Massa received a drive-through penalty for the incident, while Hamilton subsequently got the same for his opening-lap move on Raikkonen.

The Brazilian eventually finished eighth after passing the Red Bull of Mark Webber late in the race.

Renault's Fernando Alonso was the chief beneficiary and went on to take his second successive victory ahead of BMW Sauber's Robert Kubica.

Raikkonen finished third for Ferrari, a result which helped them take the Constructors' Championship lead back from McLaren.

Renault's Nelson Piquet finished fourth ahead of Toyota's Jarno Trulli, with Toro Rosso pair Sebastien Bourdais and Sebastian Vettel finishing sixth and seventh.

Although Hamilton's lead remains a healthy one, his hot-headedness at the start of the race was worringly reminiscent of that seen when last season's Championship came to a boil.

Given that Massa was starting fifth, Hamilton may have decided with hindsight that letting Raikkonen - 27 points behind him coming into the race - go might have been the better option.

"I made a mistake and I paid for it," Hamilton told ITV1 after the race. He wasn't the only one in trouble, however, with David Coulthard's race soon run when he left the track at the exit of the corner and impacted heavily with a tyre barrier.

As Alonso led Kubica and Heikki Kovalainen on lap two, there then came Hamilton's collision with Massa.

The McLaren had to make an impromptu pit stop following the incident and rejoined the race in 18th. However, with damage suffered to his car's bodywork, Hamilton's race was effectively over.

By the time the opening round of pit stops were underway the third place Kovalainen appeared in strong contention for victory, an outcome that would have handed McLaren much needed Constructors' Championship points.

However, the luckless Finn was soon parking his car by the side of the track, the victim of an apparent engine failure.

After Piquet had pitted on lap 28, team-mate Alonso held a seven-second lead over Kubica, with Raikkonen third.

However, the Pole's attempts to challenge for the win were dashed during the middle stint of the race as understeer and poor traction on his car allowed Alonso to get away.

The double World Champion had built a 13-second lead by the time of his second stop on lap 44, with Kubica making his own second stop two laps later.

By this stage Raikkonen was the quickest man on the track. However, he could not get ahead of Kubica after making his own second stop on lap 48.

As they had towards the end of the opening stint, Trulli and Piquet pitted having held the lead, with Alonso once again resuming control.

Running second, Bourdais - who led a grand prix for the first time between laps 21 and 26 - made his second stop behind Trulli on lap 51.

However, rejoining the race, the Toro Rosso then collided with Massa, sending the latter into a spin at turn one - an incident due to be investigated after the race.

The closing laps saw a battle develop between Kubica and Raikkonen - the pair duelling wheel to wheel and the Finn briefly leaving the track before tyre problems saw him drop back.

Piquet joined them for a short while before going off the track - the Brazilian electing instead to settle for fourth place.

His performance backed up Alonso's second win in as many races, with Renault's late-season form surely consolidating fourth place in the Constructors' Championship.

Meanwhile, Massa's late flourish, passing both Nick Heidfeld and Webber late on as well as setting the race's fastest lap, earned him a point which could yet prove invaluable.

Karthikeyan wins the Zhuhai A1 GP …

With Narain Karthikeyan sizzling on the Zhuhai International Circuit, Team India zipped to its first A1 GP victory by winning the Feature Race on Sunday.

Having lost his status as Williambrs' test driver after the Formula One team jettisoned him earlier this week, Karthikeyan took the circuit by storm and raced to the chequered flag, quelling late charge from New Zealand and South Africa.

The Indian clocked 1:08'30.759 to finish 0.502 seconds ahead of Kiwi Jonny Reid.

India thus became the 14th nation to record a win in A1GP.

Starting third in the grid, Karthikeyan stepped on the gas on lap 16 when Portugal slipped back, allowing India to trail Switzerland. And by lap 22, the gap between the Swiss and Indian car had been whittled down to 4.6 seconds.

In lap 26, Neel Jani of Team Switzerland developed a problem with the right rear tyre and had to bring the car into the pits, which allowed Karthikeyan to grab the lead.

There was hardly any moment to relax, however, with Pakistan toppling India from the lead before Karthikeyan showing again who was the boss.

Kiwi Jonny Reid then closed down on the Indian with less than half a second separating them but Karthikeyan used all his experience of racing in the top flight and survived the late assault to drive his team to glory.

Alonso packs off his bag from McLaren ...

Two-time Formula One champion Fernando Alonso left McLaren on Friday after a stormy first season with the British team.

Alonso joined McLaren after winning the championship the past two years with Renault. He clashed with management and teammate Lewis Hamilton throughout the season, and finished behind champion Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari and Hamilton.

"Since I was a boy I had always wanted to drive for McLaren, but sometimes in life things do not work out," Alonso said in a statement.

Alonso, who still has a two years left on his contract, reached an agreement that allows the driver to leave without penalty.

"(We) want to wish Fernando all the best for the future," McLaren team boss Ron Dennis said. "He is a great driver but for some reason the combination of (our team) and Fernando has not really worked out, and in the end we reached a stage where none of us could find a way to move forward."

Alonso has been linked with a possible return to Renault or a move to Williams or Red Bull.

Alonso had complained that as a world champion he deserved preferential treatment, and accused McLaren of favoring the 22-year-old rookie Hamilton. Dennis and Alonso didn't talk to each other for a period.

"I know there have been suggestions of favoritism within the team and people say a lot of things in the heat of battle, but in the end I was always provided with an equal opportunity to win," Alonso said. "Yes, we have had our ups and downs during the season, which has made it extra-challenging for all of us, and it is not a secret that I never really felt at home."

Alonso was one of the drivers whose name was involved in the spying scandal that overshadowed the second half of the season.

McLaren was fined a record $100 million by the World Motor Sport Council on Sept. 13 after FIA found the team guilty of using leaked data from Ferrari. The British team was kicked out of the constructors' championship, and authorities contended that Alonso had some knowledge of the facts.

"We all believe that our joint decision to part company is for the best, and we will now continue to focus on our 2008 world championship challenge," Dennis said.

Kimi Raikkonen snatches the ultimate title ..

It has been a real roller coaster of a season and the finale in Brazil was a fitting climax to a year that has enthralled fans both on and off the circuit. Kimi Raikkonen has achieved what seemed all but impossible and he overcame a seven point deficit by winning the this afternoon at Interlagos while Lewis Hamilton suffered his own problems.

The start of the 71 lap Grand Prix saw pole-sitter Felipe Massa sprint in the lead with Kimi Raikkonen making a good getaway and slotting into second. One man not making a good start was Lewis Hamilton who dropped from second to fourth and then compounded his problems by running off track and losing another four positions.

At that point Hamilton will have been frustrated but he was still in the race and the championship race was very much still on. Lap seven however saw the McLaren Mercedes slow dramatically with a gearshift issue. Hamilton dropped from sixth position to 18th and while he was able to reset the electronic systems and get back under power, his title hope were in tatters.

Out front Raikkonen shadowed Massa and seemed content to bide his time behind his Ferrari team-mate. The turning points for Raikkonen came in his second round of stops as he was able to stay out a few more laps and once he had made his final pit stop, emerged in the lead of the race. Fernando Alonso at this point ran in a lonely third and was not able to mount a serious challenge

Raikkonen took the chequered flag by just over a second from 2006 race winner Massa and with 110 championship points on the board, takes the title by one point from Hamilton who battled back to seventh position on track and Alonso who finished third.

"I always believed we could recover from our poor results and do a better job than our rivals," Raikkonen said. "So I never gave up and it was a great result for me and the team.

"I wasn't really 100 per cent sure of what was happening at the end as we were still waiting for still to finish - I had to wait a long time to hear that I had finally won it. I waited and waited. It was amazing for me that after all the last races we have had such a good finish to the season and I am very happy now."

Nico Rosberg put in a great drive in his Williams Toyota and finished in fourth position after a rather hectic battle with the BMW Sauber’s of Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld who finished fifth and sixth. With Hamilton seventh, the final point went to Jarno Trulli who put in a strong performance for Toyota to claim a much needed championship point.

Hamilton delighted with Massa taking the pole ..

Lewis Hamilton did all that could be reasonably expected when he qualified on the front row for today's Brazilian Grand Prix. Felipe Massa, probably running less fuel and enjoying a small weight advantage, claimed pole position for his home grand prix. The Brazilian is likely to play a significant part in the settling of the championship in this final round, particularly as Hamilton finds himself in the middle of a Ferrari sandwich, Kimi Raikkonen having qualified third. The third contender, Fernando Alonso, qualified fourth for the second race in succession

Hamilton was immediately thrown into another dispute when he was accused, during a press conference, of having blocked Raikkonen after emerging from the pits just as the Finn was starting his last lap. Hamilton stayed off the racing line but Raikkonen had been distracted enough to run wide slightly at the exit of the next corner. Hamilton said he had been told by radio of Raikkonen's approach.

'I couldn't tell just how close he was,' said Hamilton. 'I stayed where I was, backed off and he went past me. I don't feel that I hindered his lap. I apologised afterwards in case I had caused a problem. I just need to do a completely clean job this weekend. If anything, Kimi could win this race and that would be good for me in terms of the championship because my first priority is to beat Fernando.'

Raikkonen was his usual phlegmatic self when discussing the incident. 'I don't know how much time I lost,' said Raikkonen. 'For sure he could have found a slightly easier way to let me past but what's happened has happened.'

Hamilton, realising that Massa could be a wild card, said he was happy to be on the front row.

'It was really close,' said Hamilton. 'I really enjoyed the session. The car was nice to drive; it was a really good lap. It was quite straight forward. I lost a bit of time in the last corner, not because of a mistake but because I didn't want to spoil the lap right at the end. I'm just buzzing, feeling really excited. The car feels great and I love the circuit. I feel very relaxed and it was good to see quite few British flags out there. I appreciate the support.'

Massa said he made a small mistake on his last lap and was surprised to win pole position at this race for the second year in succession.

'It's a fantastic feeling,' said Massa. 'I made a mistake and I was afraid Lewis could beat me. It was very close and I was expecting to hear I was second, but I had done enough. The reaction of the crowd was fantastic. I'm in front and I'm sure the team is happy with me. We'll see what happens in the race.'

One of the few positive points from Hamilton's retirement in China two weeks ago was the knowledge that the championship would be settled at one of the oldest and most charismatic venues on the F1 calendar. Perched on an escarpment, Interlagos is 750 metres above sea level. At the time of track's inauguration in 1940, the view of Sao Paulo in the distance clearly showed Congonhas, but the local airport is now lost within the urban sprawl that has engulfed Interlagos, thus adding further ambiance to a track that may be frayed round the edges but which has always been loved for its challenge and character.

When Interlagos staged a round of the championship for the first time in 1973, the track measured 4.9 miles as it twisted and turned spectacularly within itself. Unable to pay the price of incorporating the necessary safety standards, the owners cut the circuit length in half during a 10-year absence from the F1 calendar. When the Brazilian Grand Prix returned from a period at Rio de Janeiro, the drivers were delighted and relieved to find that the essential flavour of Interlagos remained. Named after a Brazilian F1 hero killed in a plane crash in 1977, the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace stands out as a proper place to go motor racing in a series increasingly populated by immaculate but bland facilities.

The pits may be ancient and cramped but the view from the back of the paddock, on the highest part of the track, sums up the appeal. Interlagos comprises a twisting infield section on the valley floor and a long, fast climb to the main straight before plunging left and downhill at the first corner. Setting up an F1 car to meet the disparate requirements of this track is as tricky as actually tackling it. While a driver may want aerodynamic downforce to provide grip and traction in the tight corners, the wings necessary to achieve that are a major hindrance in the quest to reach 185mph at the end of 17 seconds of flat-out driving on the top straight. A shortfall in performance here would leave a driver vulnerable to an overtaking move when approaching the braking area for the first corner.

The track has been recently resurfaced and while that may have removed some of the notoriously difficult bumps, the fresh asphalt has created unforeseen problems with tyre wear. With the track temperature yesterday reaching 57 degrees, the highest this season, drivers were struggling to avoid excessive wear on the softer of the two types of tyre, both of which must be used during today's 71-lap race.

Formula One set for three-way thriller in Brazil !!!

Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen fight for the Formula One title in Brazil on Sunday in what promises to be one of the sport's great showdowns.

The final grand prix of an astonishing and controversial season, in a city as crazy about motor racing as Italians are about Ferrari, has all the elements of a three-way thriller.



McLaren's Hamilton, the 22-year-old Briton who has been the revelation of the year whatever happens at Interlagos, can become the first rookie champion in 58 years and also the youngest.

Formula One's first black driver has 107 points, four more than his estranged Spanish team mate and double world champion Alonso.

Alonso can join a select band of triple champions as well as becoming the first driver since the late Argentine Juan Manuel Fangio in 1957 to win back-to-back titles with different teams.

Three points behind Alonso is Ferrari's Raikkonen, who has won more races than the other two but has also paid the price for his team's comparative unreliability.

If the unflappable Finn were to add the drivers' title to Ferrari's constructors' crown, it would be a remarkable fightback for a man who was 17 points adrift of Hamilton with two races remaining.

Formula One has seen nothing like it since the Australian Grand Prix of 1986, the last time that three drivers entered the final race of the season vying for the title.

“Motor racing and Formula One has never been more popular than it is just now,” said Britain's triple champion Jackie Stewart, a big fan of Hamilton's. “We've had a better season than we've ever had.”

Raikkonen and Alonso will be going all out to win while Hamilton can afford a more strategic approach, knowing that third or even fourth place could be all he requires at an unfamiliar and tricky anti-clockwise circuit.

The youngster has learnt his lesson from the last race in China, where he might have wrapped up the title had he not skidded into a gravel trap at the pit lane entry.

“China was another valuable lesson for me this season, and an incident I will take from and try to develop as a driver,”

Hamilton said in a team preview.: “I moved on from the disappointment pretty quickly and since leaving Shanghai, my sole focus has been on Brazil,” added the Briton, whose boyhood idol Ayrton Senna was born and buried in Sao Paulo.




“Whilst I might be ahead by four points, this Championship is still very open. I will do what I can to score the points I need, and the rest is out of our hands,” he added.

While Hamilton must be considered the favourite, and will revive local fans' memories of Senna with his similar yellow helmet, Alonso won both of his titles in Brazil and has experience on his side.

The Spaniard will also have a special scrutineer appointed by the governing body to make sure, despite McLaren's oft-repeated policy of driver equality, that Hamilton receives no special treatment from the British team.

“We can categorically state that they will be given the exact same opportunity to win the race and the Championship,” said McLaren chief executive Martin Whitmarsh

Raikkonen sets up an enthralling three-man battle for the drivers' crown in the final race

Formula One's world championship was blown wide open on Sunday after Lewis Hamilton dramatically slid into a gravel trap in the Chinese Grand Prix and Kimi Raikkonen snatched victory for Ferrari.

Raikkonen triumphed from Hamilton's McLaren team-mate Fernando Alonso to set up an enthralling three-man battle for the drivers' crown in the final race of the season in Brazil on October 21.

Britain's Hamilton still leads with 107 points from Alonso's 103 with Raikkonen on 100 points after his fifth victory of the season for Ferrari, which was their 200th win overall.

Hamilton, 22, looked on course to become the first rookie and the youngest driver in history to win the world championship until it all went wrong on lap 31 of the 56-lap race.

The championship pacesetter went into the pits for a badly-needed change of tyres but could not stop himself sliding into the gravel at the side of the track. It was his first retirement of the season, yet Hamilton remained defiant. "I'm sorry for the team but I can still do it, don't worry," he said. "When I got out of the car I was just gutted because it was my first mistake all year and to do it on the way into the pits was not something I usually do. "You cannot go through life without making mistakes. But I am over it and we look forward to Brazil. The team will be working hard to make sure the car is quick enough there, and we still have points in the bag. "The tyres were getting worse and worse and you could almost see the canvas underneath. When I came into the pits it was like ice, I couldn't do anything about it," he added.

Hamilton had controlled the race from pole until his intermediate tyres suddenly became un-drivable in the changing track conditions caused by the on-off rain. He was lapping over six seconds slower than his rivals having already lost the lead to Raikkonen when the Finn darted inside two laps earlier. But Hamilton knew that second place was enough to guarantee his place in history because of his 12 point lead.

He will now have to recover his mental strength for the final race in Sao Paulo knowing that his two more experienced rivals will have been boosted after being handed the miracle they needed. The sport's first black driver watched the rest of the race from the pit-wall as Raikkonen led home Alonso to claim the 14th victory of his career. "We are back in the championship and it will be interesting in the final race," said Raikkonen. "Hopefully the car is good and it will be a battle all weekend. It is not just up to us though, we saw today that anything can happen, but we are back in the championship."

Double world champion Alonso had looked a beaten man after qualifying fourth but now finds his bid to become only the third man to win a hat-trick of titles still alive.

"The result was good today and the eight points are a help for sure," he said. "I think the championship will still be very difficult because I know it will not be easy to take four points from Lewis. "I need something dramatic if I want to win. With a normal race it will be impossible." It will be the first time since 1986 that three drivers go into the final round of the season still in contention for the drivers' crown. Frenchman Alain Prost triumphed that momentous final day in Adelaide after Nigel Mansell's tyre blew in spectacular fashion and his team-mate Nelson Piquet was called into the pits.

Brazil's Felipe Massa filled the other podium place Sunday for Ferrari. Toro Rosso's Sebastian Vettel finished a career best fourth with his team-mate Tonio Liuzzi sixth. The duo were separated by Britain's Jenson Button. Germany's Nick Heidfeld was seventh for BMW Sauber with David Coulthard picking up the other point for Red Bull.

Alonso to leave by the end of the season ...

FERNANDO ALONSO has been informed by Ron Dennis, the McLaren Mercedes principal, that he can leave the team at the end of the season.
The Formula One rumour mill is in full flow over the future of Alonso, after his role in the vain attempt to prevent Lewis Hamilton, his team-mate, from taking pole position during qualifying for last Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.
A source said yesterday: "My understanding is that he's been told he can go because they're so fed up with him. Ron is just very pissed off with both of them (Alonso and Hamilton)."

Alonso, who is contracted to McLaren until the end of 2009 on a salary of about pound stg. 10million ($23.6m) a year, has indicated in remarks to the Spanish media that his future at McLaren is in doubt, as have key advisers in his entourage.

Even before the row over the attempt to delay Hamilton, sources close to the Spanish driver were making it clear that he was unhappy at the team and was dismayed at what he regards as McLaren reneging on their initial deal to make him the lead driver. The prospect of Alonso leaving McLaren has encouraged speculation in the paddock about where the double world champion may go.

Among the possibilities are a move to Ferrari, at the expense of Felipe Massa; a return to Renault, where he would probably replace Giancarlo Fisichella, his former team-mate; or a switch to BMW Sauber or even Toyota. Dennis acknowledged in Budapest on Sunday that Alonso's future was the subject of serious discussion in rival teams. "There is an inevitability that these things are rumoured and discussed," Dennis said. But the embattled McLaren principal was, at that stage, hoping that Alonso would fulfil his contract. "We have two drivers who are contracted for several years into the future," he said. "We will respect our part of the bargain - we hope that the drivers respect theirs, because that's what a contract is about." The long-held McLaren tradition of allowing its two drivers to fight it out for supremacy on the track, which Alonso dislikes, is not going to change, Dennis said.

"We will continue to function as a grand prix team with specific values and if anybody does not want to be part of those values - irrespective of where they sit in the organisation - ultimately they will have a choice," he said. "But we will not deviate away from our values."

McLaren has yet to decide whether to pursue its appeal against the decision by the stewards to withdraw constructors' points in Hungary as part of the punishment handed to the team over the infamous orchestrated pit stop during qualifying although indications are that it probably will not.

The penalty handed to Alonso over the affair that demoted him from pole position to sixth on the grid was met with outrage by the popular Asturian driver's fans in Spain, who have the support of the RFEA, the Spanish motorsport federation.

"We want to publicly show our support and absolute trust in Fernando Alonso, who has shown his professionalism and honesty during his successful sporting career," the organisation said.