Formula 1 News

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BARRICHELLO PONDERS RETIREMENT

Rubens Barrichello has revealed a small part of him is thinking of quitting Formula One at the end of the season.

The Brazilian says he is still in love with the sport, but after 17 years and 276 starts, a tiny seed of doubt is in his mind.

Barrichello is still in the hunt for this season's championship, 24 points adrift of Brawn GP team-mate Jenson Button, but there have been issues.

The 37-year-old has twice this season vented his frustration at the end of races, initially following the Spanish Grand Prix when he felt Button was being favoured by the team.

Then 12 days ago after the race in Germany, Barrichello vented his fury in finishing sixth despite leading early on, claiming the team had cost him victory.

The waters have since been smoothed, but for the first time he has dropped a hint that he could call it a day.

"I love the sport, I've been doing this for 17 years," remarked Barrichello

"Ninety-five per cent of my feelings are to keep on. I love it, I have a lot of speed in myself, but five per cent tells me 'Why do you need it?'

"It's something that's on my mind, even though it's only five per cent, but next year is too far away for me to decide anything."

Barrichello is convinced there is no favouritism within Brawn, and that he still sees himself as a title contender.

"I have to," commented Barrichello.

"I'm here for the love of the sport more than anything else.

"You ask me why I haven't won yet? It's not like I don't care. I'm a better driver with all the problems.

"So I have to go for the next one (Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix)

"I cannot put pressure on myself, but things could be brighter, so I'll keep on smiling and pushing.

"This weekend can be quite good, so I'm definitely not putting any of the problems of the last race into this one."

 

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SOLID START FOR ALGUERSUARI



Jaime Alguersuari suffered just one minor glitch during the first practice session of his Formula One career.

Despite other drivers expressing their concerns at Alguersuari's introduction into the sport at such an early age - he has even been derided as 'a dangerman' in some quarters - the young Spaniard came through 90 minutes and 42 laps at the Hungaroring relatively unscathed.

Ultimately, and as expected, he finished bottom of the timesheets, but was far from disgraced, finishing just under two seconds off the pace.

At 19 years 126 days, Alguersuari will become the youngest driver in Formula One history when he competes in Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

The likes of Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Mark Webber and Felipe Massa had all commented on the youngster, suggesting he could destroy his career and that he was too young to be competing at this level.

The first couple of laps were a little like watching Bambi on ice as Alguersuari tentatively made his way around the 2.7-mile track on the outskirts of Budapest.

His first timed lap was a one minute 34.716 seconds, a full 19 seconds adrift of the fastest lap set in last year's race.

Slowly but surely, the British F3 champion chipped away at that, and within 10 laps had managed to shave nine seconds off the time.

Come the conclusion of the opening session, Alguersuari had set a time of 1:24.228, just 1.950secs behind leader Heikki Kovalainen, and 0.230secs off team-mate Sebastien Buemi who finished 19th.

Alguersuari's only mistake came on one of his returns to the pits as he stalled the car at the top of the lane, arguably as he hit the rev limiter button to ensure he did not exceed the pit lane speed limit.

At the head of affairs, McLaren gave further rise to the suggestion their woes of earlier this season are behind them as Kovalainen and Hamilton were first and third.

For Kovalainen, race winner here last year, it was the first time he had topped the standings, with his best lap coming at the close with a time of 1:22.278.

Kovalainen knocked Williams' Nico Rosberg off top spot within moments of the German displacing reigning world champion Hamilton.

Rosberg was 0.059secs down, with Hamilton 0.276secs adrift, followed by the Red Bull of Mark Webber and second Williams of Kazuki Nakajima.

Toyota's Jarno Trulli, the Ferraris of Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa, Fernando Alonso in his Renault, and then Button in his Brawn GP completed the top 10, the latter 0.852secs off the pace.

Fellow title challengers Rubens Barrichello and Sebastien Vettel were 13th and 15th respectively for Brawn and Red Bull, the latter a second behind Kovalainen.

 

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McLAREN FIGHT BACK



Lewis Hamilton led a McLaren one-two in practice for the first time this season, sparking hopes of a long-overdue victory for the team.

With both cars now sporting significant upgrades - Hamilton alone ran the new package in Germany 12 days ago - the silver machines were again back at the top of the timesheets in Hungary.

The reigning champion deposed long-time leader Kovalainen at the end of the session with his final hot lap, that after making errors on the previous two when he was gunning for a quick time.

Hamilton finished the day with a lap of one minute 22.079 seconds, just 0.047s ahead of Kovalainen, with Williams' Nico Rosberg third, a mere 0.075secs adrift, such was the close nature of the second session at the Hungaroring.

In fact, just 1.097secs separated the top 19 drivers, with rookie Jaime Alguersuari cast adrift at the bottom by 0.766secs to Toro Rosso team-mate Sebastien Buemi.

All the talk ahead of practice had surrounded Alguersuari, who on Sunday will become the youngest to compete in Formula One at the age of 19 years 126 days.

The likes of Jenson Button, Hamilton, Mark Webber and Felipe Massa had all commented on the youngster, suggesting he could destroy his career and that he was too young to be competing at this level.

Certainly, the first couple of laps were a little like watching Bambi on ice as Alguersuari tentatively made his way around the 2.7-mile track on the outskirts of Budapest.

But as he slowly became accustomed to the feel of a Formula One car, so he naturally improved, with his first timed lap 1:34.716, and finishing the day with a 1:23.942 after 82 laps overall.

Alguersuari far from disgraced himself during the two 90-minute sessions, finishing 1.950secs behind Kovalainen at the end of the first and 1.863secs off Hamilton after the second.

Expectedly defending the British F3 champion, Toro Rosso team boss Franz Tost said: "I hear some people say he is not experienced enough.

"It is always a difficult question to answer about when is a driver experienced enough to come into F1.

"I can only say Jaime has so far done 118 races, won 17 and been on the podium 46 times.

"He won last year's British Formula 3 championship, and this year in the World Series (by Renault) has been improving his performance race by race.

"I think he has a good background, and he is experienced enough to do a good job."

As a mark of respect, after competing with Henry Surtees in the British F3 championship last year, Alguersuari sported the words 'Ciao Henry' on the side of his helmet.

The dedication was in memory of the 18-year-old who was killed in a F2 race at Brands Hatch on Sunday.

Alguersuari still faces a considerable amount of work ahead of him, and it will probably take at least two or three grands prix before he is fully up to speed.

Completing the top five in practice were Red Bull's Webber and Sebastian Vettel sandwiching the second Williams of Kazuki Nakajima.

Rubens Barrichello was sixth for Brawn GP, with Button a surprising 13th, even though the heat of Hungary - with temperatures hitting 30 degrees - is supposedly more to the liking of the team's cars.

Ferrari duo Kimi Raikkonen and Massa were 11th and 18th, yet expect both to be strong in Saturday's qualifying sessions.

Times
01 L. Hamilton McLaren 1:22.079 36 laps
02 H. Kovalainen McLaren 1:22.126 36 laps
03 N. Rosberg Williams 1:22.154 47 laps
04 M. Webber Red Bull 1:22.369 29 laps
05 K. Nakajima Williams 1:22.426 40 laps
06 S. Vettel Red Bull 1:22.550 30 laps
07 R. Barrichello Brawn GP 1:22.641 38 laps
08 J. Trulli Toyota 1:22.663 28 laps
09 N. Heidfeld BMW 1:22.690 43 laps
10 T. Glock Toyota 1:22.751 45 laps
11 K. Räikkönen Ferrari 1:22.763 38 laps
12 F. Alonso Renault 1:22.739 37 laps
13 J. Button Brawn GP 1:22.806 42 laps
14 R. Kubica BMW 1:22.870 36 laps
15 N. Piquet jr. Renault 1:22.927 36 laps
16 A. Sutil Force India F1 1:22.978 28 laps
17 G. Fisichella Force India F1 1:23.029 39 laps
18 F. Massa Ferrari 1:23.156 32 laps
19 S. Buemi Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:23.176 45 laps
20 J. Alguersuari Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:23.942 40 laps

 

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CONCORDE NEARS TAKE-OFF



The future of Formula One should finally be resolved by the end of the next week.

A new Concorde Agreement, the commercial document that governs the sport, is due to be signed by the FIA, Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Association and all 13 teams due to compete from next year.

The situation would bring to a close months of wrangling between motor sport's world governing body - primarily outgoing president Max Mosley - and the Formula One Teams' Association.

A copy of the proposed new agreement has been sent to the World Motor Sport Council for their consideration, and if ratified, F1 will have peace at last.

A statement from the FIA read: "Subject to the approval of the WMSC and on receipt of confirmation that a satisfactory cost-reduction agreement is in place, the new Concorde Agreement should be ready for signature at the end of next week."

Confirming the situation, Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali said: "We are very, very close to reaching a solution.

"As always with something so complex, the closer you get to the goal, the more everyone is trying to squeeze or find different things around it.

"But I'm optimistic before the August break (an enforced two-week shutdown of all teams that starts on August 3) everything will be sorted out."

 

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NO EXCUSES FROM BUTTON


Jenson Button has insisted there can be no excuses this weekend as he looks to rediscover the winning habit in the heat of Hungary.

Cool conditions in the last two races in Britain and Germany ended Button's early dominance this year in which he won six of the first seven grands prix.

Successive one-two finishes from Red Bull Racing at Silverstone and the Nurburgring, with Sebastian Vettel winning the former and Mark Webber the latter, have thrown the title race open again.

Button and Brawn GP claimed the temperatures at both tracks worked against their car, but with the sun blazing over Budapest and the fans sweltering in 30 degree heat, the Briton believes he is back on track for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

Defending a 21-point lead over Vettel, with Webber a further 1.5 points back, Button said: "There are no excuses.

"It's hot, we've got the temperature now, which is great for us, so saying we've no more excuses means there is not that (the weather) to fall back on.

"We've some updates, mostly aerodynamic, that will move us forward a good chunk.

"Although you see what it says in the wind tunnel, you don't know whether it's going to be reality on the circuit.

"But I'm happy with the step forward and hopefully it'll be enough to challenge the Red Bulls and make it more exciting.

"Certainly we have everything to play for this weekend. They will have us to contend with here - in the last races they didn't - and we'll be pushing them a lot more.

"But we have to start beating them and challenging them again, otherwise they will take too many points off us.

"They've already taken 11 points from me in the last two races - that is too many."

Although Button finished a surprisingly lowly 13th after the second practice session at the Hungaroring, he feels it is not indicative of his car's true performance, and what we will see in qualifying tomorrow.

"I'm happy with the way things are going," confirmed Button.

"There's still some work we need to do to be really competitive, but our pace is good, and the direction we are taking with the car is the correct one, and I'm happy with the balance.

"I don't know where we stand after today. I was 13th, but we're quicker than that, and I feel we're in reasonable shape.

"We won't know until qualifying, but we're in a better position than we were in the last two races.

"So I'm happy to be here and in a position to drive this car, and it's a good car to drive here.

"I don't know if it's the same as Turkey, but it's nice, and I haven't felt that for the last two races."

 

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BUTTON READY FOR WINNING RETURN



Jenson Button is ready to return to winning ways on Sunday now he has the sun on his back.

The title leader ended Friday's two practice sessions for the Hungarian Grand Prix in a positive frame of mind, even if 13th quickest did not bear that out.

Button, though, was happy enough to be back in Budapest, scene of his maiden victory in Formula One three years ago.

With the cool damp conditions of Silverstone and the Nurburgring firmly behind him, two scenes of struggle in his Brawn GP, Button should revel under blue skies this weekend.

"The last two races it's been pretty much a case of do as well as we can, bring it home and score some points," assessed Button who was sixth and fifth in Britain and Germany.

"I didn't have the best of races. We were quite quick at times, but as soon as we started falling back in the pack, it got complicated.

"Maybe we lucked in at other races, but we didn't at the last two. The luck went the other way.

"But coming here I'm pretty positive. We've made an improvement with the car, the temperature helps us and the tyres we have are good.

"Our pace is also good, but I don't know how good. There's a lot of work we still need to do, so we won't know until qualifying.

"But I'm happy to be here and in a position to drive this car. It's a good car to drive here.

"I don't know if it's the same as I experienced in Turkey, but it's nice, and I haven't felt that for the last two races."

Button currently has a 21-point lead to Red Bull Racing's Sebastian Vettel, with his team-mate in Mark Webber another 1.5 points adrift

Although Button's own team-mate in Rubens Barrichello is 24 points behind, the 29-year-old feels the Brazilian is still very much in the hunt.

Barrichello may have had his issues with the team, notably accusing them of costing him victory in Germany.

But as far as Button is concerned, that does not mean to say the 37-year-old has a point to prove this weekend.

"We're all here to do the best job that we can and Rubens is going to be trying very hard every race," stated Button.

"He won't just suddenly think 'I'll push harder now because I've got the bit between my teeth'.

"He has been competitive all season, so nothing is different here. It's all positive, because everything is in our favour."

Button, though, did feel Barrichello's outburst in public was the wrong forum to air his views, and that he has perhaps learned his lesson from that.

"He was leading the race for the first part and was very excited to be in that situation," added Button.

"Obviously it didn't go his way and he lost four or five seconds in a pitstop which cost him a position or two, so I can understand he was a little bit angry.

"But as we know, and Rubens knows, we talk about it first, discuss the issues and get angry within the team. He understands the situation there."

It was the McLaren duo of reigning champion Lewis Hamilton and team-mate Heikki Kovalainen who topped the practice times in their back-in-form McLarens, with the duo poised to be a force this weekend.

 

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HAMILTON LOOKS FOR PODIUM FINISH



Lewis Hamilton has never felt as excited at the wheel of a McLaren he can finally keep on the road, and now he is desperate to savour that podium feeling again.

It is a remarkable nine months and 10 grands prix since the world champion last sprayed champagne after a top-three finish, that in the wake of his victory in China in October.

Arguably, Hamilton should have enjoyed such an experience at the end of the last race in Germany as McLaren handed him a car free of the woes that blighted the first half of this season.

Hamilton's whoops of joy over the team radio during practice at the Nurburgring emphasised his uplifted feelings, only to suffer a down-in-the-dumps moment again within seconds of the start of the race.

The 24-year-old was poised to emerge out of the first corner with the lead, but was clipped by eventual winner Mark Webber's Red Bull on entry, sustaining a puncture that wrecked his dreams of ending his points drought.

It is now five scoreless races for Hamilton, without question the worst run of his F1 career, but again hopes are high that will come to an end in Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

At the end of the two 90-minute practice sessions around the Hungaroring, Hamilton and team-mate Heikki Kovalainen - also now equipped with the upgraded package - finished first and second quickest.

As Hamilton has started on pole in the last two races here, winning in 2007 and with Kovalainen victorious last year, it is not beyond the realms of possibility such a sequence will be extended.

Agreeing it is likely to be a season of two halves, Hamilton added: "We got the upgrade package at the last race, which was exciting to see, and here we will try to extract a bit more from it.

"It's just good to have because we've had updates all the time, but not had the feeling in the car it has really helped.

"It's just been updates after updates after updates, but we've not really had the step forward.

"So to finally get that step forward, it's something we waited a long time for.

"Driving a car with little grip and you're sliding around, it's just been such hard work. Keeping it on the track has been the hardest thing.

"Now it's great to be able to push, to have the confidence in the car and to be able to race because that's what we're here to do.

"I'm more excited than ever, just to get in the car and see what it's like around these different tracks, how it will perform.

"At some tracks there'll be a much bigger gap to the others, at some tracks - fingers crossed this one - we'll be a lot closer."

It was a case of what might have been in Germany, which is why Hamilton is now fervently hoping fortunes will turn in Budapest.

"I reckon I would have been in the top three," assessed Hamilton with hindsight on the race at the Nurburgring.

"We were competitive enough to have retained the position I would probably have emerged out of turn one.

"Say I had come out second to Rubens (Barrichello), which was most likely, potentially with the troubles they (Brawn GP) had through the race, we'd have been competing for a good podium.

"That's just guessing, but that was the feeling we had in the team.

"We were very positive, that finally we had a car we could push and enjoy the race weekend.

"What a podium result would do for this team, you can't imagine how good the feeling would be to get on the podium again.

"Even though we've had podiums in the previous two years, it would feel very special."

Although team boss Martin Whitmarsh has suggested the car is now equipped for victory here, Hamilton was a little more cautious.

"We can never get ahead of ourselves," replied Hamilton, who knows Red Bull Racing, Brawn GP and Ferrari will all be in the mix.

"The other guys are seriously quick, but we're definitely on the right track now to try to catch up.

"Ferrari have gone very well here the last couple of years. In fact, ourselves and Ferrari have been the strongest teams here.

"It's funny because the two teams that competed for the world championship last year have been a good six months behind.

"Now six months into the new season we're starting to catch the other guys up - unfortunately a bit too late.

"But all we can do is our best. I'm sure Ferrari will be very competitive here, and the Red Bulls will still be pretty special."

 

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SURGERY FOR MASSA AFTER HORROR CRASH


Felipe Massa is to undergo emergency surgery following his horrific accident on Saturday at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Although word emerged after a chaotic qualifying session that Massa was "okay" after being airlifted to a nearby Budapest hospital, Ferrari later confirmed the Brazilian would need an operation.

A statement read: "After the accident during the qualifying session, Felipe was airlifted to the AEK hospital in Budapest.

"Felipe was conscious at the arrival of the hospital, and his general conditions remain stable.

"Following a complete medical examination, it emerged he had suffered a cut on his forehead, bone damage to his skull and a brain concussion.

"These conditions need to be operated on after which he will remain under observation in intensive care."

Massa was struck by a rear damper that had remarkably worked loose off the Brawn GP car of Rubens Barrichello.

Seconds later, and with the piece of debris still bouncing along the Hungaroring track, it flew over the front of Massa's Ferrari, striking the Brazilian on the helmet just over his left eye.

The 28-year-old appeared to be knocked unconscious, with his right foot jamming down on the throttle as he proceeded to straight-line into a tyre barrier.

The impact was at least softened by the fact Massa's left foot had also come to rest on the brake as there were tyre marks across the considerable run-off area before he ploughed into the tyres.

As Massa made no attempt to turn the steering wheel, it appeared to underline the fact he was not conscious prior to the impact.

With the Brazilian stricken in the car, photographs later emerged showing a fist-sized dent in his helmet and, with the visor up, there was a large cut over a blackened left eye.

Massa was soon attended to by trackside medics before being taken to the circuit's medical centre, then onto hospital for further examination 22 minutes after his shunt.

The accident comes a week after Henry Surtees was killed in an F2 race at Brands Hatch after being hit by a bouncing tyre from a rival car and then ploughing into a tyre wall.

It also brought memories flooding back of Ayrton Senna's death at Imola in 1994 when a piece of debris penetrated his helmet prior to the three-time world champion hitting a concrete wall at the Tamburello Curve.

Barrichello refused to believe the two incidents this week were merely coincidence, and insists further improvements in safety can be made, despite the enormous strides taken over the years since Senna's death.

"I honestly don't believe in coincidences in life," said the 37-year-old.

"Things happen for a reason and I think this is the second message.

"Imola was a message and the cars were improved. Unfortunately, we lost a boy, which is tremendously sad.

"It is not a coincidence something happened right now. In the GPDA (Grand Prix Drivers' Association) we talked quite a lot about it yesterday - and something needs to be done. Yes. Absolutely.

"But I don't know what. We need to sit down and have a look at it. I think the cars are a hell of a lot safer, really a lot safer, but there is no coincidence on this and something needs to be looked at."

Not appreciating at the time it was a spring from his car, which weighs up to a kilo, that had caused the accident, Barrichello decided to see Massa at the circuit's medical centre.

"I looked at the impact, and it wasn't huge, and I said he was okay,'' remarked Barrichello.

"But then I asked somebody from Ferrari and they said he was not speaking very well, he was not actually talking to the team.

"Then I started to get worried.

"It was only later someone told me it was a bit of my car but it had nothing to do with me going to see him. The fact is I would have gone there anyway.

"I wanted to see him myself because I've been in situations like that.

"We are Brazilians and sometimes we have a family, sometimes we don't, and when we wake up all we want to see is someone we know.

"I wanted to be there in case there was nobody from his family there.

"But he was conscious, he was moving, although he was very agitated with the fact he had a cut on his head.

"With that, they sedated him to calm him down before they moved him to hospital.''

Echoing Barrichello's sentiments, world champion Lewis Hamilton also feels more can always be done to improve safety.

The 24-year-old also recalled team-mate Heikki Kovalainen's crash in qualifying for last year's Spanish Grand Prix.

On that occasion, the Finn also ploughed nose first into a tyre wall, albeit burying his McLaren under it, unlike in Massa's case as the barrier worked well.

"During qualifying I saw the crash. It's very scary and I do hope he is okay,'' remarked Hamilton.

"It has to be a big shock for any driver to have that happen, and very unfortunate because rarely do you see it happen.

"On the positive side, with the GPDA and the FIA, they seem to have made a good step with safety.

"If you look at Heikki's crash, he went under the barrier there in Barcelona, whereas here the barrier did quite a good job.

"I believe things happen for a reason, and for two incidents (referring to Surtees) to happen in such a short period of time, we can't ignore it.

"We've got to make sure we learn from it and improve if we can.'

 

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ALONSO GRABS HUNGARY POLE


Renault's Fernando Alonso will be on pole for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel, of Red Bull, qualified second fastest on Saturday afternoon, with his team-mate Mark Webber third.

Confusion reigned at the end of the session with the timing screens at the Hungaroring going black towards the end of the top-10 shootout.

After several minutes, it finally came through that Alonso had taken pole, followed by the Red Bull duo, with Lewis Hamilton fourth for McLaren.

It was the double world champion's first pole since the Italian Grand Prix in 2007, and the 18th of his career.

However, it came via the lightest fuel load of the top 10.

Despite that, the Spaniard said: "It's nice to start on pole at any place, but here is a special circuit for me anyway.

"I had my first win here in 2003, so I'm always very happy when I drive in Budapest.

"It will be interesting tomorrow. Obviously we have made a step forward and we are now a little bit more competitive.

"We're maybe not as quick as these two guys (Vettel and Webber), but we hope to score some good points tomorrow."

Hamilton's fourth place means he starts on the 'dirty side' of the grid but with the aid of KERS je could propel himself to the front given the long starting straight.

If Hamilton is fortunate to find himself in that position, given the lack of overtaking opportunities at the Hungaroring, he feels he has a chance of victory at a circuit where he won in 2007.

"It's difficult to get first place being on the dirty side of the grid," assessed Hamilton.

"However, it's a long drive all the way down to turn one, with quite a heavy headwind down there, so KERS could still play a major role for us and help me pass the guys in front.

"If that's the case, if you get in front here and with a decent strategy compared to the rest, then there's no reason why we can't compete for the win."

Behind world champion Hamilton will be Williams' Nico Rosberg, the second McLaren of Heikki Kovalainen and Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, with championship leader Jenson Button down in a disastrous eighth.

The heat of Budapest was meant to aid Button's cause after the cool of Britain and Germany had led to Red Bull one-twos in the last two races.

But not even the sunshine could come to Button's aid, and his 21-point lead in the title race threatens to be eroded further at the Hungaroring.

"The car felt reasonably good through the first two sessions, although none of my laps were perfect due to traffic and yellow flags," remarked Button.

"I thought we would be competitive in Q3, but unfortunately the work required on the car meant I was only able to get one run and that was on a heavy fuel load.

"Starting from eighth isn't ideal, and I'm on the dirty side, but we're remaining positive and will see what we can do from there."

Behind Button are Williams' Kazuki Nakajima, with Felipe Massa 10th as he took no part in the closing 10 minutes following a serious crash which saw him taken to hospital. He will miss Sunday's race as he requires surgery.

In the 15-minute Q2, the biggest loser was Rubens Barrichello, with the Brazilian failing to make it into the top 10 for the first time this season due to the part that broke off his car and resulted in Massa's crash.

The 37-year-old will start a miserable 13th, with that failure potentially wrecking his championship chances, which could now prompt Brawn into putting all their eggs into Button's basket.

Either side of Barrichello are the Toyotas of Jarno Trulli in 12th and Timo Glock 14th, while Toro Rosso's Sebastien Buemi will start 11th and Renault's Nelson Piquet 15th.

After being given a reprieve by Renault, as the race in Germany was expected to be the Brazilian's last, Piquet's F1 career is poised to draw to a close.

Given equal equipment for this race with team-mate Alonso, Piquet finished half-a-second adrift of the double world champion in Q2.

Although rookie Jaime Alguersuari became the youngest to take part in a Formula One qualifying session, there was no fairytale for the 19-year-old.

Alguersuari had run faultlessly through three practice sessions, at least proving he was anything but 'a danger' as suggested by triple world champion Niki Lauda.

In qualifying, however, Alguersuari was undermined by an electrical fault that forced him to pull his Toro Rosso off track in the final sector.

Come the conclusion of the 20-minute period, Alguersuari sat at the bottom of the timesheets, in many respects where he was expected to finish even if his car had not let him down.

However, he finished just 0.4secs shy of Robert Kubica as there was no respite for the wretched form of the BMW Saubers, with team-mate Nick Heidfeld also ditched in Q1 as he will start 16th.

Sandwiched in between in 17th and 18th are Force India's Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil, the latter only just managing to set a time.

Sutil's car spent the majority of the session in the garage as his mechanics attempted manfully to make repairs after a crash in final practice in which he buried the nose of his car in a tyre wall.

 

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WHITMARSH: LESSONS TO BE LEARNED


McLaren team boss Martin Whitmarsh believes Felipe Massa's horror smash will serve as a wake-up call for Formula One.

Massa remains in a stable condition in a Budapest hospital after undergoing emergency surgery to repair a fractured skull sustained during a freak 170mph accident in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The 28-year-old Ferrari star, currently in a medically-induced coma, will undergo a further CT scan later to ensure his brain is functioning normally, and there is no damage.

With the incident coming a week after the death of 18-year-old Henry Surtees, son of the legendary John - the only man to win world titles on two and four wheels - motorsport has been hit hard.

Whitmarsh believes it is now time for F1 to focus on what matters most in the wake of months of bad-natured politicking that has overshadowed and damaged the sport's image.

"You can never do enough to improve the safety in Formula One," commented Whitmarsh.

"Motor racing is dangerous and racing drivers are incredibly brave, and that is something we should all remember.

"Every time a racing driver goes up the pit lane we become a bit nonchalant about it.

"Sometimes we give them a hard time if we don't think they are pushing hard enough, but in fact they're incredibly brave.

"In Formula One we've perhaps concentrated too much on politics.

"We've got to get back to the championship, the fight, the show and safety."

Massa's accident was a freak one, with the 28-year-old struck by a spring still bouncing along the Hungaroring track that had worked loose from Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP just seconds earlier.

Unconscious as pictures later showed a fist-sized dent in Massa's helmet, the Brazilian then ploughed into a tyre wall before being attended to by trackside medics and airlifted to hospital.

"Obviously what happened (with Massa) was a shock for all of us, and we've got to make sure we do everything we can," added Whitmarsh.

"The helmets are better than they were in 1994 (at the time of the death of Ayrton Senna).

"Maybe we can improve visors and helmets, but having said that, a spring coming off a car and being in a collision four seconds later...

"It must have bounced five or six times, and for it to still be on the racing line is an incredible circumstance and coincidence."

But as far as Whitmarsh is concerned, that is not to say more cannot be done.

He added: "Inevitably we all become complacent if we're not confronted with a serious accident.

"Obviously '94 was a massive wake-up call for all of us in Formula One at the time.

"That led to everyone, the FIA, teams, contributing to a lot of big steps forward in safety, and I think we have to go again.

"Of course, there's always been a danger of wheels coming off, and whilst we have wheel tethers which are pretty good most of the time, they can always be better.

"We have to be mindful for next year we are going to have cars with probably 160 kilos of fuel (on board as re-fuelling will be banned) going into a first corner, which is going to be challenging.

"We have to make sure the brakes, suspension, safety systems, the energy absorbing systems are up to it because that's quite a big step forward."

Brawn team boss Ross Brawn has called for any approach to be a considered one, rather than knee jerk.

Insisting the accident was "freakish" after the first failure of one of his team's cars this year, Brawn said: "We need to keep a perspective.

"From what has been seen last weekend (Surtees) and this weekend we need to have a proper study to see if there is a need to do something.

"You are into structures, windscreens and canopies, and anything is possible. We just need to digest what has happened, and understand it properly.

"You can have covers, canopies, but you have to get at the drivers to extract him if there is a problem.

"You don't want a structure that collapses down on the driver, so there is a lot of secondary considerations.

"But the sides are quite high now and we have the headrests around the drivers.

"It is something we will look at I am sure, but in the history of F1 it is a fairly freak occurrence, albeit one we must take seriously and see if there is something we can do.

"If there is a need to react I am sure F1 will react very promptly, but it is about making sure we don't do anything to make the situation worse on balance."

 

[sky star 2]

REACTION: BMW, RENAULT, F INDIA, T ROSSO

BMW

Nick Heidfeld: "From 15th on the grid, finishing 11th was the best I could achieve today. Over the first few metres my start was good and I immediately made up some places, but then later on the first lap I lost them again. First somebody hit me from behind and later I went wide in turn 11. Then it took a while before I was able to overtake Sébastien Buemi, and after that I got stuck in traffic again. That's why we decided to make my first pit stop a couple of laps earlier than planned. This is, of course, a disadvantage, but due to the traffic situation it still paid off. Despite the rather heavy car, the pace wasn't too bad. But overall looking at the situation we found ourselves in, I would say the car has been quicker this weekend and it is a shame we didn't convert this progress into points."

Robert Kubica: "I had a good start and a good first lap, and managed to make up a lot of positions then. At least this is something positive. Unfortunately, I had massive understeer and a lot of front tyre wear during the entire race. About ten laps into each stint my front tyres degraded a lot and I was very slow."

RENAULT

Nelson Piquet Jr: "I made a very good start and managed to overtake several cars, but then I was always stuck behind somebody, which didn't help my race. I was also a bit unlucky with the strategy and I think my race would have worked out a lot better if I had been in some clean air. The car was good today and I'm glad that I benefited from the new updates this weekend."

Fernando Alonso: "Today we missed an opportunity to finish on the podium. I made a good start and the car was quick during my first stint, but then we had a problem at my first stop fitting the right front wheel to the car. When I left the pits there was a lot of vibration and it felt like I had a puncture, but then a few corners later the wheel flew off my car. I made it back to the pits to replace it, but then the problem I'd had with my fuel pump since lap two returned and started to get worse so we had to retire the car. It's a shame that we missed this chance, but these things happen in racing and I'm trying to look on the bright side because we saw this weekend that the car is very competitive. I'm now looking ahead to the next race in Valencia, where I hope we can build on the promise we have shown."

FORCE INDIA

Giancarlo Fisichella: "The race was quite tough for us. The grid position wasn't great and in the beginning we struggled a little bit with the grip. On the second and third stints though the car balance was actually pretty good and I was quicker than Barrichello and Kubica so I could push quite hard. Unfortunately here you just can't find a way past so we had to settle for 14th. Now we can really start to look forward to the next Grand Prix in Valencia."

Adrian Sutil: "We had a problem with the water temperature so after one lap it had climbed to the maximum so the engine was running very hot. We had our first suspicions on the way to the grid and after a few corners it was clear that there was no way we could do the race. I had to retire to save the engine. It's been a difficult weekend overall but I'm looking forward to Valencia now where we have a big upgrade package coming through."

TORO ROSSO

Jaime Alguersuari: "I am very happy to have finished, but the last five laps were very difficult from the physical point of view. I found it hard to keep the car on the pace, but I am very satisfied. P15 is not so bad, but the main objective was to complete the 70 laps, with no mistakes, maintaining my pace. I have learned a lot but I have to say there are some aspects of F1 which made me think, 'shit this is tough'."

Sebastien Buemi: "I am very disappointed with this race, as I made a lot of mistakes and I am not at all happy with my performance. I don't think starting on the harder tyres was the right decision. I lost several places at the start and got stuck in traffic. Just a bad race. The car was good, as we showed in qualifying but today I was the one who made the mistakes. The only positive thing is that the car is definitely improved with this new package."

 

[sky star 2]

REACTION: WILLIAMS, TOYOTA, BRAWN

WILLIAMS

Nico Rosberg: "I am quite pleased with the outcome today as it was quite tricky, especially at the start against the KERS cars. Initially I had no chance off the line, but the first corner was quite a big mess and I managed to profit from this and climb back to fifth place, which was important. As the race settled down, I had to manage the tyres cautiously because of graining in both the first and second stint. Given all of these issues, we have to be very happy with fourth place and I am now up to fifth in the championship, although of course this was in part due to the fact that Felipe wasn't able to start today. Anyway, I am enjoying working with the team and everyone is pushing on really well, so we'll continue to improve if we keep moving in this direction."

Kazuki Nakajima: "After the first lap when I got past Jenson, I couldn't hold the position and once he had got back past me, it dictated my race - it was a big moment for me and made it very difficult to improve for the rest of the day despite good car pace as I was running in traffic. We just need to keep pushing and one race soon we are going to get the result."

TOYOTA

Timo Glock: "I thoroughly enjoyed my race and to finish inside the top six after starting from 13th is a very good result. I have to say thanks to the team for their good work this weekend, especially to my car crew who have done such a great job. Our strategy was really strong today and the car felt spot on, so it was a nice race for me. In the first stint, on such a heavy fuel load, I struggled a little to start with but then I found a good rhythm and made up a lot of time, especially in the second stint. I had a really good feeling for the car and the tyres performed very well; really consistent. This result is better than I expected today so I am happy and it's nice to be back in the points again."

Jarno Trulli: "I said yesterday that I never give up and I think today's result shows that because I made up several positions and finished in the points again. The car felt strong early in the race and I think I had good pace but I was also stuck in traffic and that made things a little tricky. Later on I started to lose a bit of grip but I kept fighting because I knew we could get in the points. It's a pity we qualified outside the top 10 because who knows what could have been possible but I am happy to be in the points again and this is a positive result for the team. Now I am looking forward to the European Grand Prix in Valencia where I hope we will be even stronger."

BRAWN GP

Jenson Button: "We felt positive that we could get a good result today but unfortunately it turned into damage limitation for our Championship challenge. I was heavily fuelled after qualifying and our plan was to get a good start, stay with the cars in front and then I was going longer at the first stop. My rear tyres grained massively in the first few laps which took away any chance that I had of keeping pace with the front-runners. We don't know what the problem is right now as our pace on the option tyre on Friday was pretty good and we were able to manage the rear end much better than some of the others. The car just doesn't feel like it did a few races ago but we'll work hard to identify the problems before Valencia. It's disappointing as we had high hopes for this race but we were fortunate to come away with two points."

Rubens Barrichello: "There was some good action out there but my race was really compromised from the start which is a shame as the potential was definitely there for a points finish. I had some contact from another car when I turned into the second corner which dropped me to the back of the field. It was always going to be difficult to make progress from there but there were flashes of pace, particularly during the last stint when I was able to close up to the cars ahead. It's been a very difficult weekend and one to forget really. We know that we have a lot of hard work ahead of us to find out what is affecting our performance."

 

[sky star 2]

REACTION: McLAREN, FERRARI, RED BULL

McLAREN

Lewis Hamilton: "It's an incredible feeling to be back on the top spot after what feels like such a long time and such a struggle. This was one of my best races - I never gave up and, more importantly, neither did anyone in this team. I'm so proud of all the guys. We didn't expect to win today - we didn't think we quite had the overall pace - but the car was just perfect to drive, it felt fantastic for the entire race. We need to take as much as we can from this weekend. We'll continue to push because that's the only way this team knows. Now we want to be winners on a regular basis. Finally, my thoughts are with Felipe today. Despite our celebrations, it's important to remember that there's a guy lying in a hospital bed tonight, and I think I speak on behalf of everyone when I say that we all had Felipe in our hearts and minds today and we wish him a speedy recovery."

Heikki Kovalainen: "This was a great race for the whole team and particularly for Lewis. Hopefully next time it will be me! This victory proves just how much the team has improved the performance of our car during the past few months: this is the result of the hard work of every single man and woman in our team - and this victory must be especially sweet for all of them. Our thoughts are also with Felipe - I want to wish him all the best and hope he'll be back in Formula 1 soon."

FERRARI

Kimi Raikkonen: "Today's result is very important for the team in such a difficult weekend because of what happened to Felipe yesterday. I am pleased with second place, even if it is not completely satisfying as I always race to win. On this type of track, we are certainly closer to the best than at other circuits and today, honestly we were actually even closer than we had expected to be. I got a good start, ending up fourth after the first few corners. We knew it would be crucial to make up places at the start to be in with a chance of fighting for the podium. After the first pit stop we began to have problems with the right hand exhaust and so, at the second stop, the team asked to leave using a different procedure to usual. It lost me a bit of time but I still had a reasonable advantage over Webber so I could manage the situation. Today, the car wasn't bad, but it was not quick enough to go for the win."

RED BULL

Mark Webber: "I expected us to be a little bit quicker after our running on Friday, but to be honest we expected these guys (McLaren and Ferrari) to be around us. We knew it would be a more difficult venue for us and that we wouldn't have the advantage that we maybe had at the last two events so, all-in-all, I'm happy to get the result we did today. I think we would have had a better chance to fight with Kimi (Raikkonen) if we'd made a slightly different pit stop and chose a different tyre for the middle stint, but that was my call. I was worried about how long the middle stint was, so it was quite difficult to know which tyre to put on. Overall we still have a lot of positives to take away from here - we're still up there, we're in the hunt and know that we can take our car to a lot of venues and be competitive. Red Bull and Renault have a lot to be proud of, we're still a strong force and it's a positive day."

Sebastian Vettel: "I had a collision on the first corner with Kimi (Raikkonen). I was on the inside and had a clear run to accelerate, his car came sideways and we touched - he crashed into my car, it can happen. This was why my first pit stop was bad and, at some point, the front-left suspension gave up and we had to retire the car. We knew it would be close with the other teams here, but at the start of the race there's nothing you can do other than putting your foot down. We have a button on our steering wheel, which is similar to the other teams, but nothing happens if you press it. You go into the first corner and you have five or six cars next to each other instead of three or four, so it's a different situation. There are still a few races left this season and the race is still on, so we will see what we can do."

 

[sky star 2]

RENAULT BANNED FROM VALENCIA RACE


Renault has been suspended from next month's European Grand Prix in Valencia following the wheel loss suffered by Fernando Alonso in Sunday's race in Hungary.

The suspension applies to the entire team, which means double world champion Alonso will not now race in front of his own supporters at the street circuit in the Spanish city.

The incident occurred on lap 13 of the 70-lap race, immediately after Alonso had made his first pit stop.

On exiting the pit lane it quickly became apparent Alonso, who turns 28 on Wednesday, had an issue with his right-front wheel.

Within seconds, and as he slipped backwards through the field, Alonso initially lost the wheel cover.

But more horrifyingly, and as he continued to tour around the track, the tyre eventually worked its way loose off the rim.

It then bounced across the circuit and into a barrier before coming to rest along the side of the circuit.

After the race, won by McLaren's Lewis Hamilton, the panel of three stewards studied available film footage and radio recordings.

They determined that:

# the competitor knowingly released car number seven (Alonso) from the pit-stop position without one of the retaining devices for the wheel nuts being securely in position, this being an indication that the wheel itself may not have been properly secured.

# being aware of this, failed to take any action to prevent the car from leaving the pit lane.

# failed to inform the driver of this problem, or to advise him to take appropriate action given the circumstances, even though the driver contacted the team by radio believing he had a puncture.

# this resulted in a heavy car part (wheel trim) detaching at turn five, and the wheel itself detaching at turn nine.

The stewards found Renault to be in breach of two specific articles of FIA Sporting Regulations:

# (i) Competitors must ensure their cars comply with the conditions of eligibility and safety throughout practice and the race.

# (ii) It is the responsibility of the competitor to release his car after a pit stop only when it is safe to do so.

It is arguably unsurprising the stewards have chosen to clamp down in the wake of the events of the past week.

Last Sunday 18-year-old Henry Surtees was killed by a flying wheel, while Felipe Massa crashed in qualifying on Saturday after being hit by stray debris.

Less than half an hour after the stewards announced their findings, Renault filed notification of their intent to appeal, with the hearing almost certain to take place at the FIA's headquarters in Paris during the forthcoming summer break.

 

[sky star 2]

HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX: LAP-BY-LAP

FINISH: Great result for McLaren as Hamilton screams in joy "fantastic, fantastic!" And that's exactly what it was: Fantastic!

FINISH: Nico Rosberg, Heikki Kovalainen, Timo Glock, Jenson Button and Jarno Trulli complete the points

FINISH: Kimi Raikkonen takes second place, his best result of the season while Mark Webber does his Championship the world of good with his third placed result

FINISH: Lewis Hamilton wins the Hungarian GP! His first victory since last year's Chinese race. Well done Lewis

Lap 70: McLaren mechanics, Hamilton's dad and girlfriend all rise to their feet as the Brit covers the last lap

Lap 69: Hamilton is getting ready for the final lap and what should be his first win of the season

Lap 68: Barrichello is still fighting for ninth place with Nakajima

Lap 67: 14.9s is Hamilton's lead over Raikkonen

Lap 66: McLaren are having a great afternoon out in Hungary. While Hamilton is on course for the race win, Kovalainen is currently fifth. For both it will be their best results of the campaign

Lap 65: Webber sets a new fastest lap time, a 1:21.931

SKYBET SAYS: "So looking at the Championships, we've eased Red Bull to 2/5 after they failed to take a significant chunk out of Brawn's lead, with Button's team now 7/4 to lift the Constructors' crown

"In the Drivers title, Button remains an 8/11 shot, with Webber the new challenger at 5/2. Vettel is available at 11/4"

Lap 63: Webber is in third place, six seconds behind Raikkonen

Lap 62: Toro Rosso are bringing up the rear of the race with Alguersuari just ahead of his team-mate Buemi. They were 15th and 16th

Lap 61: Great battle for eighth place between Trulli, Nakajima and Barrichello. Just 1.2s separate the trio

Lap 60: Glock finally comes in for his second stop of the afternoon. He stops for 7.0s and comes out in sixth place

Lap 59: Trulli pits from seventh place

Lap 58: Hamilton leads by 16.9s

Lap 57: Glock is still tagging onto the back of Raikkonen's Ferrari, determined to bother the Finn at least until he has to stop

Lap 56: Button pits from eighth place. The Championship leader puts on the softer tyres and comes out 10th

Lap 55: Three retirements so far this afternoon; Alonso, Vettel and Sutil

Lap 54: Nakajima is all over the back of Button's Brawn GP as the duo fight over the last points-paying position

Lap 53: Kovalainen is reportedly having a brake problem. They are running too hot. McLaren, though, have given the Finn some instructions on what to do to ensure his brakes see the end of the race

Lap 52: Raikkonen is coming under serious pressure from Glock but the Toyota driver does still have to stop

Lap 51: Webber stops. He's fighting for a podium finish here today. The Australian comes out ahead of Rosberg in fourth place. But Glock still has to stop, which means Webber should get third

Lap 50: Now Rosberg pits, which will drop him out of the battle for the podium places. He comes out in fifth place

Lap 49: Piquet pits. Is this the Brazilian's very last F1 pit stop? Rumours say yes it is

Lap 48: Fisichella pits from 14th place. He's the only Force India still in the race

Lap 47: Is Hamilton now on track for his first win of the season? In fact his first podium finish of the season!

Lap 46: Hamilton pits from the lead. He stops for 8.3s, puts on the softs and comes out in first place

Lap 45: Raikkonen pits for the second time today. he stops for over 10 seconds as he has a problem getting away. He comes in fourth place

Lap 44: Hamilton passes the pits so it must be for Kovalainen. And yes the Finn pits from fourth place. He comes out in sixth place

Lap 43: McLaren are ready for one of their drivers

Lap 42: Button is currently holding the final points-paying position. Not a great race for the Brawn driver

Lap 41: Hamilton has his lead up to 7.5s as Webber is given the hurry up from his team

Lap 40: Bernie Ecclestone is in the paddock signing autographs for a youngster

Lap 39: A bit of a wobble from Raikkonen, he runs a bit wide but continues on his merry way

Lap 38: Toyota are also have a great afternoon with Glock sixth and Trulli seventh after the first round of stops

Lap 37: Buemi is off into the gravel and has to pit. He is now behind Alguersuari on the track

Lap 36: Meanwhile, Rosberg is having a solid race. The Williams man is in fifth place and going strong

Lap 35: Webber is driving fantastically as he holds Kovalainen at bay despite the McLaren man's KERS. It does, however, look as if it's only a matter of time before Kovalainen takes Webber for third

SKYBET SAYS: "Hamilton, Raikkonen, Webber is our latest prediction at Skybet, with the trio available at 1/8, 9/2, and 25/1 for the win respectively. It's good news for Webber in the title, but he will have mixed feelings if it stays this way until the end"

Lap 34: Hamilton is maintaining a lead of roughly 6.5s over Raikkonen

Lap 33: Barrichello comes into the pits from sixth place. The Brazilian, who is not having the best race, comes out in 13th place

Lap 32: Glock pits while Button is complaining to his team about the handling of his car. Super softs for Glock who gets out ahead of Trulli

Lap 31: Kovalainen is looking for a way to overtake Webber but the Australian is holding firm

Lap 30: Vettel comes into the garage and parks his car. Race over

Lap 29: Alguersuari comes in for his first ever pit stop to great applause from his sister in the Toro Rosso garage. No problems for the Spanish teenage

Lap 28: Trulli pits and Raikkonen is back into second place. Just 6.5s behind Hamilton and closing

Lap 27: Vettel pits and gets a new nose cone but it looks like his right rear suspension is a problem

Lap 26: Buemi comes in from 11th place while Vettel complains "nothing is broken, nothing broken but i can't control the car any more"

Lap 25: Button pits from second place. He stops for 8.7s and comes out behind Barrichello and under attack from Fisichella. Fisichella overtakes him on his much lighter fuel load

SKYBET SAYS: "Hamilton is driving so consistently quickly, we've put him into 1/8, with Raikkonen 10/1 now second favourite. Webber might yet receive a penalty is 16/1"

Lap 24: Piuqet pits while team-mate Alonso is seen giving interviews outside the Renault motorhome. Disappointing afternoon for the pole-sitter

Lap 23: So Hamilton is leading ahead of Button and Trulli with Piquet behind them. Those three, though, all still have to stop, which means technically it is Raikkonen who is second even though he's fifth on the track

Lap 22: Nakajima pits from third place and comes out 15th

Lap 21: Kovalainen and Vettel pit. Vettel comes out ahead of Buemi

Lap 20: Hamilton pits for 10.3s and puts on the super soft tyres. He came out ahead of Glock

Lap 20 They came out behind Piquet and ahead of Glock. Glock takes Webber while the Aussie is still adjusting to a heavier fuel load

Lap 19: Webber and Raikkonen pit with the Ferrari getting out ahead of the Australian driver. The two almost hit as Red Bull release Webber into the path of Raikkonen. There could be a stewards' investigation into that

Lap 18: Heidfeld pits in what is yet another dismal afternoon for the BMW team. He was 13th while his team-mate Robert Kubica is 12th

Lap 17: And Alonso retires. Too much damage to the car after that wheel came flying off

Lap 16: So Hamilton is leading and flying! The Brit has a 4.2s advantage over Webber who in turn is 1.5s ahead of Raikkonen

Lap 15: Alonso has dropped from first to stone last

Lap 14: That could have been a really bad accident. What is going on in Formula One this weekend?

Lap 13: Problems for Alonso who has a loose wheel. He slows down to make his way back to the pits when WOW the front right wheel comes flying off. It bounces harmlessly across the track and he's back in the pits

Lap 12: Alonso pits from the lead with extremely worn tyres. He stop s for 6.4s and comes out in tenth place ahead of Nelson Piquet

Lap 11: Stewards have announced that Raikkonen will be investigated AFTER the race for the incident which saw him bump Seb Vettel

Lap 11: Alonso, Hamilton, Webber, Raikkonen and Rosberg are all separated by just six seconds as Alonso starts to hold the pack up

Lap 10: Newbie Jaime Alguersuari is still in the race. He may be last but he's only 0.8s behind one of the sport's most experienced drivers, Giancarlo Fisichella

Lap 9: Webber is now the quickest man as he tries to pull away from Raikkonen

Lap 8: Vettel is told to 'save fuel' as he team wants to jump Kovalainen and Rosberg in the first round of pit stops

SKYBET SAYS: "What a start for Lewis, and he's reeling in the Renault. We bet Hamilton 2/7, Webber 7/2 and Alonso at 10/1 despite leading!"

Lap 7: Hamilton is the fastest man on track as he chases down Alonso. Just 2.1s between first and second. Meanwhile, Raikkonen is catching Webber, just a second between those two drivers

Lap 6: The boys on the Renault pit wall warn Alonso that Hamilton is by Webber and catching fast

Lap 5: Vettel is still holding onto seventh place despite his earlier problems. Button is right behind him as the two title rivals duke it out

Lap 4: Hamilton powers by Webber around the outside. Amazing to watch that KERS power boost in action

Lap 3: Alonso is pulling away from the field, helped by the battle behind him which has Webber doing all he can to make his car big enough to keep Hamilton at bay while Lewis girlfriend, Nicole, jumps around in the pits like a ... well, can't quite put that one into words!

Lap 2: Adrian Sutil is in the pits and his car is wheeled back into the Force India garage

Lap 2: Button takes Nakajima for eighth place, nice aggressive driving from the Championship leader

Lap 1: Vettel is reporting possible front wing damage from his gamesmanship with Raikkonen at the start

Lap 1: Great start from Alonso while leaves Hamilton and Webber to fight for second place with the Aussie taking it after Raikkonen gives Hamilton a bit of a nudge. Kimi goes on to play with Vettel, dropping him down the order as the Ferrari takes fourth place

START: And it's go in Hungary!

13H02: The front runners are starting on the super soft tyres

13H00: The formation lap is underway

12H59: Track temperature is 43'C and the air temperature is 24'C

12H57: Almost ready for the start as the grid is cleared

SKYBET SAYS: "It's been the most competitive betting heat of the year, with plenty of opinions about who will win. Pole Position has a great record here over the years, but Alonso is Skybet's fourth favourite despite holding P1 at 11/2.

"Vettel is our 5/4 favourite, with Hamilton's KERS assisted McLaren available at 10/3 and Market Webber third in the betting at 7/2"

12H52: Alonso is having a last minute chat with his Renault team

12H49: Blue skies are overnight with light, white puffy clouds... therefore no rain expected

12H45: Pit lane is now closed

12H39: Button, Alonso and Rubens Barrichello are also heading out

12H36: Alguersuari is also on his way out of the pits as he prepares for his first ever F1 start

12H34: Raikkonen is making his way to the grid. He is the sole Ferrari lining up today

12H30: Pit lane is open

12H25: It was a great qualifyingfrom the Swiss driver while his rookie team-mate Jaime Alguersuari, who is taking part in his first GP this weekend, will line up 19th and last on the grid

12H21: Nico Rosberg, Heikki Kovalainen, Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button make up the top eight with Kazuki Nakajima lining up behind them. Next would've been Massa but instead that position will go to Toro Rosso's Sebastien Buemi

12H16: The two Brawn GPs are behind him on the grid with Sebastian Vettel ahead of Mark Webber. The duo look to be on similar strategies as is Lewis Hamilton behind them. The McLaren man, though, is armed with KERS which should allow him to take the fight to Red Bull at the start

12H12: The Spaniard, though, has already written off any chance of winning the race and given his extremely light fuel load, points are probably his best bet

12H09: Therefore only 19 drivers will be starting today's race, which sees Fernando Alonso on the pole position slot. It's the Renault driver's first pole since 2007

12H05: Massa will not compete today after undergoing emergency surgery in Budapest last night. The Brazilian suffered a brain concussion and damage to his skull when he was hit by a spring that had come loose from Rubens Barrichello's car at the end of Saturday's second qualifying segment. Massa was knocked unconscious by the impact and crashed into the barriers. It was yet another reminder of the dangers of motorsport and the risk the drivers take for a sport they - and we - love

12H03: Before we start off the coverage, we just want to wish Felipe Massa a speedy recovery with all our thoughts going out to the Brazilian, his wife and family

12H00: Welcome to coverage of the 2009 Hungarian GP, which takes place over 70 laps around the Hungaroring - a circuit that can best be described as Monaco but without the barriers or glamour

 

[sky star 2]

SCHUMACHER RETURN RULED OUT

By Ian Parkes, Press Association Sport, Budapest

Michael Schumacher's manager has ruled out the possibility of the seven-time world champion returning to Formula One racing after Felipe Massa's crash.

Massa fractured his skull in two places during a freak accident in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday and will remain under sedation for 48 hours after undergoing a "reassuring" CT scan on Sunday.

With Schumacher, 40, currently working for Massa's Ferrari team as an advisor, Niki Lauda had claimed the German was a logical choice.

But Schumacher's manager Willi Webber told Germany's Bild newspaper: "A comeback by Michael is out of the question."

Sebastien Bourdais, released last week by Toro Rosso and managed by Nicolas Todt who also represents Massa, has also been mentioned.

But Lauda said: "What do you want to do with Bourdais? I can drive! Honestly.

"Bourdais did not do anything in Formula One with Toro Rosso. He is a real waste of time.

"There is no way Ferrari would even consider him when he couldn't perform in a Toro Rosso against (Sebastien) Buemi.

"The problem is there is a lack of up-and-coming guys."

Ferrari's current test drivers are Marc Gene and Luca Badoer but the latter was overlooked in 1999 after Schumacher broke his leg at the British Grand Prix, with Ferrari instead going outside the team by appointing Mika Salo.

 

[sky star 2]

COLLEAGUES WISH MASSA SWIFT RECOVERY

Felipe Massa was "in the thoughts and prayers" of all the Formula One drivers following Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton enjoyed his first victory for nine months but the race was overshadowed given Massa's condition in a nearby hospital following the freak accident in qualifying which left him with a fractured skull.

Massa, who also sustained concussion, was struck on his helmet by a spring that had worked loose off Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP before he then straight-lined into a tyre barrier.

The 28-year-old was on Sunday evening in a stable condition in Budapest's AEK military hospital after undergoing emergency surgery but is to remain in a medically-induced coma until Tuesday.

Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali departed the Hungaroring track immediately after the race to be with Massa, along with team-mate Kimi Raikkonen, Barrichello and Brawn GP team principal Ross Brawn.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo is due to fly into Budapest on Monday to see Massa, who already has pregnant wife Raffella, mother and father Ana Elena and Luiz Antonio, and brother Eduardo by his side.

Although Hamilton was naturally jubilant with his win, he made sure Massa was not too far from his thoughts following the race.

"Maybe I can speak for all the drivers, but yesterday was quite a sad day, and we missed Felipe today," remarked Hamilton.

"For me, I've had a great relationship with Felipe for quite a few years now, and some great battles with him.

"I'm just glad the surgery went well and we're just going to keep him in our thoughts and prayers, and we wish him a speedy recovery.

"He's got a child coming, so he needs to get back into top shape so, when he's finally a dad, he can do the job well."

Barrichello had tears in his eyes when he spoke about Massa, notably as he was not allowed to see him when he visited the hospital on Saturday as only immediate family were given access.

"If I can be of any help then I will stay," said Barrichello on Sunday before he left for the hospital.

"Last night they didn't let me see him, but I would love to see him because he is a friend, not just because the spring came from my car.

"It is for the fact that I know he would have done the same for me.

"But at the same time I have to think of my kids, of my family, and to be there for them, so it is a bit of an emotional moment.

"It is burning a little bit in my stomach, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't thinking of him in the the middle of the race."

Raikkonen, who scored Ferrari's best result of the season with second, is convinced Massa will make a full recovery.

"It's a sad thing that's happened from a very unlucky situation," said the Finn.

"But as long as we race with open cockpits our heads are always the first place that's going to be hit if something is flying around. It is part of racing and we all know that.

"What happened was really unfortunate, but luckily enough he's more or less okay.

"He's probably going to be 100 per cent fine in a little time. We in the team all hope he's going to be fine and come back soon."

Mark Webber, who finished third for Red Bull Racing to maintain his title challenge, also labelled the accident "incredibly freakish".

"Of course, we're relieved he's okay," added the Australian.

"The surgery went okay and I'm sure he will be a million bucks in a few months, so that's the main thing.

"He has good people around him, and the FIA did a good job at the scene.

"Of course, we don't want to get too carried away with it, but he will be fine and we're fully behind him.

"We missed him on the grid today, but the show goes on."

 

[sky star 2]

HAMILTON HITS HUNGARIAN HEIGHTS

Lewis Hamilton hailed an "incredibly special" return to the top step of the podium after winning Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

Following a long nine months, Hamilton and McLaren savoured the sweet taste of victory champagne after taking the chequered flag at the Hungaroring.

You have to go back to China last October for Hamilton's last win, following which he became world champion at the next and final race in Brazil.

However, up until now this season Hamilton has far from honoured that title due to a woefully uncompetitive car.

But following a radical revamp, McLaren have finally rediscovered the winning formula again, and with number one on his car, the 24-year-old duly delivered on that.

"It's an incredible feeling to be back here after what feels such a long time away, and after such a struggle for me and my team," said Hamilton.

"I'm just so proud of the guys, especially when I go to the factory and see how hard everyone is pushing.

"Everyone wants to win just as much as I do and they've never given up, which is something very rare to see in such a large group of people.

"Although we have caught up quite a bit of late, we didn't expect to win this weekend. We never felt we had the pace to win.

"But the car felt fantastic and it is incredibly special to not only be back on the podium, but to get a win. It is amazing.

"So I have to say a big thank you to all the guys and all the fans that have always given me support, who never gave up on me, and to all my family."

Hamilton is now naturally hoping this is the start of a renaissance for the team, even if retaining the championship is out of reach as he trails Jenson Button by 51 points with seven races remaining.

"We need to definitely take as much as we can from this weekend and continue to push," added Hamilton.

"By no means can we start slowing down, but that is not the way my team work anyway, so we just have got to keep pushing.

"We've still some improvements to make and some work to do to be able to beat these guys (his rivals) on a more regular basis.

"But this is one huge leap for us, and hopefully we are now on the right track, so let's keep going.

"For sure we hope we can compete for more podiums."

It was the first time this season a KERS-aided car has emerged at the head of affairs, with the device proving beneficial from the start for Hamilton.

With pole-man Fernando Alonso away in his Renault, Hamilton managed to pass the Red Bull duo of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber on the run down to turn one, taking second from fourth on the grid.

Although Hamilton ran slightly wide, allowing Webber to slot into second, the Briton regained the place at the start of lap five with a move around the outside of the first corner.

Hamilton then inherited the lead on lap 13 following Alonso's first stop, and subsequent drama when he lost his wheel, resulting in a one-race ban which the team have appealed.

From that moment Hamilton was never troubled, going on to claim the 10th win of his 45-race career with McLaren, with Pussycat Doll girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger on hand to cheer him home.

Behind Hamilton, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen offered Ferrari a little light relief from a grave weekend for the team following team-mate Felipe Massa's horror smash in qualifying by finishing second.

The Finn avoided punishment from the stewards who investigated his collisions with Hamilton and Vettel, who later retired with a front suspension failure because of the accident, in the opening moments of the first lap.

"Even though it has not been an easy weekend for the team, we have got a good result," said Raikkonen.

"It is something positive at least this weekend, and hopefully we can keep going like this."

Webber claimed third, with Red Bull also avoiding a penalty following an unsafe release from the pits as he came within inches of colliding with Raikkonen, with the stewards issuing a reprimand.

Webber is now second to championship leader Jenson Button, 18.5 points adrift, after the Briton finished a season-low seventh in his Brawn GP.

After a weekend which failed to live up to expectations, Button said: "We felt positive we could get a good result, but it turned into damage limitation for our championship challenge.

"The car just doesn't feel like it did a few races ago, but we'll work hard to identify the problems before Valencia (the European Grand Prix on August 23)."

Williams' Nico Rosberg and Heikki Kovalainen were fourth and fifth, with Toyota duo Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli sixth and eighth either side of Button.

Jaime Alguersuari finished his F1 debut 15th, becoming the youngest driver in the sport's history to compete in a race at the age of 19 years and 125 days, and ahead of Toro Rosso team-mate Sebastien Buemi.

 

[sky star 2]

HAMILTON HITS HUNGARIAN HEIGHTS

Lewis Hamilton hailed an "incredibly special" return to the top step of the podium after winning Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix.

Following a long nine months, Hamilton and McLaren savoured the sweet taste of victory champagne after taking the chequered flag at the Hungaroring.

You have to go back to China last October for Hamilton's last win, following which he became world champion at the next and final race in Brazil.

However, up until now this season Hamilton has far from honoured that title due to a woefully uncompetitive car.

But following a radical revamp, McLaren have finally rediscovered the winning formula again, and with number one on his car, the 24-year-old duly delivered on that.

"It's an incredible feeling to be back here after what feels such a long time away, and after such a struggle for me and my team," said Hamilton.

"I'm just so proud of the guys, especially when I go to the factory and see how hard everyone is pushing.

"Everyone wants to win just as much as I do and they've never given up, which is something very rare to see in such a large group of people.

"Although we have caught up quite a bit of late, we didn't expect to win this weekend. We never felt we had the pace to win.

"But the car felt fantastic and it is incredibly special to not only be back on the podium, but to get a win. It is amazing.

"So I have to say a big thank you to all the guys and all the fans that have always given me support, who never gave up on me, and to all my family."

Hamilton is now naturally hoping this is the start of a renaissance for the team, even if retaining the championship is out of reach as he trails Jenson Button by 51 points with seven races remaining.

"We need to definitely take as much as we can from this weekend and continue to push," added Hamilton.

"By no means can we start slowing down, but that is not the way my team work anyway, so we just have got to keep pushing.

"We've still some improvements to make and some work to do to be able to beat these guys (his rivals) on a more regular basis.

"But this is one huge leap for us, and hopefully we are now on the right track, so let's keep going.

"For sure we hope we can compete for more podiums."

It was the first time this season a KERS-aided car has emerged at the head of affairs, with the device proving beneficial from the start for Hamilton.

With pole-man Fernando Alonso away in his Renault, Hamilton managed to pass the Red Bull duo of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber on the run down to turn one, taking second from fourth on the grid.

Although Hamilton ran slightly wide, allowing Webber to slot into second, the Briton regained the place at the start of lap five with a move around the outside of the first corner.

Hamilton then inherited the lead on lap 13 following Alonso's first stop, and subsequent drama when he lost his wheel, resulting in a one-race ban which the team have appealed.

From that moment Hamilton was never troubled, going on to claim the 10th win of his 45-race career with McLaren, with Pussycat Doll girlfriend Nicole Scherzinger on hand to cheer him home.

Behind Hamilton, Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen offered Ferrari a little light relief from a grave weekend for the team following team-mate Felipe Massa's horror smash in qualifying by finishing second.

The Finn avoided punishment from the stewards who investigated his collisions with Hamilton and Vettel, who later retired with a front suspension failure because of the accident, in the opening moments of the first lap.

"Even though it has not been an easy weekend for the team, we have got a good result," said Raikkonen.

"It is something positive at least this weekend, and hopefully we can keep going like this."

Webber claimed third, with Red Bull also avoiding a penalty following an unsafe release from the pits as he came within inches of colliding with Raikkonen, with the stewards issuing a reprimand.

Webber is now second to championship leader Jenson Button, 18.5 points adrift, after the Briton finished a season-low seventh in his Brawn GP.

After a weekend which failed to live up to expectations, Button said: "We felt positive we could get a good result, but it turned into damage limitation for our championship challenge.

"The car just doesn't feel like it did a few races ago, but we'll work hard to identify the problems before Valencia (the European Grand Prix on August 23)."

Williams' Nico Rosberg and Heikki Kovalainen were fourth and fifth, with Toyota duo Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli sixth and eighth either side of Button.

Jaime Alguersuari finished his F1 debut 15th, becoming the youngest driver in the sport's history to compete in a race at the age of 19 years and 125 days, and ahead of Toro Rosso team-mate Sebastien Buemi.

 

[sky star 2]

MASSA CONDITION IMPROVING

Felipe Massa will have another scan today as he continues to recover from emergency surgery.

Massa remains in intensive care and in a medically-induced coma at the AEK military hospital in Budapest following a freak accident during qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday.

After Sunday's race at the Hungaroring, Massa was visited by Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali, team-mate Kimi Raikkonen and Brawn GP's Rubens Barrichello and boss Ross Brawn.

It was a spring that had worked loose on Barrichello's car that hit Massa on his helmet at 162mph, causing his injuries and subsequent crash into a tyre barrier.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo is also due to visit the 28-year-old Brazilian, who is expected to be out for at least six weeks even if he makes a full recovery.

A Ferrari spokesman said: "Felipe had a quiet night. He is okay, and he is due to have another CT scan today."

Doctors at the hospital were encouraged by the positive results of Sunday's first CT scan following surgery, with the hope Massa continues to show steady improvement.

A spokesman for the Hungarian defence ministry, under whose jurisdiction the hospital is run, has been quoted as saying on local television that Massa is starting to "communicate actively."

"He reacts when he's spoken to. We are optimistic a slow recovery is beginning," said Istvan Bocskai, who also confirmed Massa could move his hands and legs.