Trulli - Toyota will stay strong

Jarno Trulli is confident his Toyota team will be able to stay competitive all season long following its strong start to the campaign.

"I believe we have a good chance to be competitive all season but of course we have to keep on working hard, then time will tell," said Trulli.

"The car is really competitive right now and we are focused on what we are doing so I'm sure we can continue to fight at the front.

"Naturally, those teams who have historically been successful, but have struggled so far this season, are always capable of improving so we have to continue our development and never give up pushing. I have faith in my team."

The Japanese squad has enjoyed its best start to a season to date, having scored podium finishes in three of the first four races.

Trulli started last Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix from pole position but finished down in third position, a result that left him disappointed.

The Italian, however, admitted that it was encouraging that the team was unhappy with a podium finish.

"Absolutely. To be disappointed with third place makes such a difference compared to the previous few seasons.

"Last year my third place at Magny-Cours was a really special moment and the season before it was pretty much impossible to get near the podium so you can see that we have made a really big step this year.

"We have three podiums already from four races and that is the same number we had from the previous three seasons combined."

Horner - Still much more to come from RBR

Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Honer insists there is still much more to come from his outfit following its latest showings.

Sebastian Vettel has moved into third place in the standings after winning the Chinese Grand Prix and finishing second in Bahrain.

The Shanghai victory was the first for Red Bull Racing, but championship leader Jenson Button reckons the Milton Keynes-based squad is now the team to beat despite the Brawn driver having won the last race at Sakhir.

Red Bull is yet to introduce a double-decker diffuser, as well as other updates, and Horner reckons there is still a lot of potential to be realised.

"I think that we have got a good car," said Horner. "We have got a lot of developments to come and we still have the double-diffuser to look forward to.

"So it is still early days, but we have clearly demonstrated in wet and dry conditions now what our potential is."

Horner added that is convinced Vettel could have won the Bahrain Grand Prix last Sunday if he hadn't been stuck behind Lewis Hamilton and Jarno Trulli for several laps.

"You will see on the race plot that we would have followed Jenson, and we had the overlap of about three or four laps on each stint," he added. "So I think we would have jumped him at the stop. It was hard to follow other cars as well, as it was doing quite a lot of damage to the tyres.

"We could see we had the pace, but well done to Jenson for making his opportunity work for him."

He added: "Toyota tried a different strategy, but we were very happy on the option. Sebastian was trying to look after them the best he could, behind Trulli and Hamilton. He did a brilliant job of doing that, so he could exploit the benefit from them in free air.

"Then on the prime at the end we had no real problem. We went out the pits 14 seconds behind the Brawn and with three laps to go we had closed it down to about nine seconds. Then obviously they turned their engines down."

Alonso - Next three race crucial for Renault

Fernando Alonso believes the next three grands prix in Spain, Monaco and Turkey will be decisive to see if Renault can recover from a poor start to the season and fight for the title.

The Spaniard and his team have scored just five points in the first four races, as the R29 car has not proved fast enough to fight near the top.

Alonso says the updates the teams will bring in the next three races are likely to determine the course of the season.

"I think the next three races are quite important - Spain, Monaco and Turkey," said Alonso, who finished in eighth position at the Bahrain Grand Prix last Sunday.

"I think more or less, all the teams will bring all the big parts for the next three races.

"Some of the teams will put everything in Barcelona, some of them will have something in Monaco and the last couple of teams will put what they have on in Turkey.

"So after that, we will see who is challenging for the championship, and who is challenging for podiums and who is completely out of everything."

The Renault driver also said Brawn and Red Bull, the two teams who have won races so far this year, have all the resources to stay ahead, despite not being backed by a major manufacturer.

"We will see. I think two private teams are leading now, but they are big teams," he said. "We cannot forget that sometimes we call them small teams, and they are not so small. Red Bull and Brawn have the resources, maybe more than even Renault, and more facilities than Renault.

"This is something that we need to be aware of, and it is a shame for Renault and Mercedes that they spent the money, they keep developing the engines and then they gave to Brawn and Red Bull and they fight for the championship - but that is the way it is."

Brawn - Jenson could be regular race winner in Formula 1

Jenson Button's impressive start to the season has given the 29-year-old the self-belief to be a regular race winner in Formula 1, according to team boss Ross Brawn.

Button has won three of the four races in 2009 after two difficult seasons with Honda during which he scored only nine points.

Brawn says that although all the elements needed to be a consistent winner existed in Button before, his growing confidence has been crucial in his emerging as a championship contender.

"Jenson is driving so well this year," said Brawn. "He's had the ingredients and the skills that you need and now he is getting the confidence.

"He's realising that winning a race is something that he can do. It's not so easy that you could ever say that winning comes naturally, but he knows he can do it when the environment is right.

"Jenson is exceptional. Even last year with the car we had there were races when I saw flashes of things that were special, but it's about putting it together on a consistent basis.

"All the guys in the team told me he was pretty special, but I wasn't lucky enough to see much of it. Now I am. He's such a smooth driver. You watch him in the car and nothing's happening because everything is under control. He's not exciting in the car because everything is working well."

Brawn added that seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher had always rated Button highly.

"I've spoken to Michael," said Brawn. "He always had lots of respect for Jenson when we were at Ferrari. He has the highest respect for him."

Brawn is cautious about his team's championship chances, despite Button having a 12-point lead over team-mate Rubens Barrichello with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel a further point adrift.

The team will introduce its first major set of updates at next week's Spanish Grand Prix, which Brawn hopes will ensure it is not overtaken by its rivals.

"We have got a long way to go in the championship - 13 more races," said Brawn. "This is a great start, but all we can do is push very hard for upgrades and improvements.

"You've seen the progress of some of the other teams, so we have to starting hitting our slopes of progress again."

McLaren accepts WMSC decision

This morning the FIA World Motor Sport Council met in Paris with McLaren Mercedes Team Principal Martin Whitmarsh to discuss events that took place at the Australian and Malaysian Grand Prix, commonly referred to as 'lie-gate'.

As a result of its actions, the Woking-based team has been handed a suspended three race ban and warned that the penalty will be applied should the team again be found in breach of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code within the next 12 months.

In a statement issued this afternoon, McLaren said that it 'accepts the FIA World Motor Sport Council's decision' and went on to thanks the WMSC for a 'very fair hearing'.

"I would like to thank the FIA World Motor Sport Council members for affording me the opportunity to answer their questions this morning," Whitmarsh stated.

"We are aware that we made serious mistakes in Australia and Malaysia, and I was therefore very glad to be able to apologise for those mistakes once again."

"I was also pleased to be able to assure the FIA World Motor Sport Council members that we had taken appropriate action with a view to ensuring that such mistakes do not occur again," he added.

Once again, the team were keen to emphasise its efforts 'to develop a closer and more co-operative relationship' with the sport’s governing body.

WMSC decided to suspend McLaren for three race

McLaren Mercedes were invited to attend an extraordinary meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Paris today to face charges of multiple breaches of Article 151c of the International Sporting Code - essentially fraudulent conduct which brings the sport into dispute.

Today a statement from the FIA WMSC announced that the Woking-based squad has received a suspended three race ban for its actions, a light sentence that essentially reflects the team’s efforts to apologise to the governing body and fans of the sport.

“Having regard to the open and honest way in which McLaren Team Principal, Mr Martin Whitmarsh, addressed the WMSC and the change in culture which he made clear has taken place in his organisation, the WMSC decided to suspend the application of the penalty it deems appropriate," the statement read.

“That penalty is a suspension of the team from three races of the FIA Formula One World Championship. This will only be applied if further facts emerge regarding the case or if, in the next 12 months, there is a further breach by the team of article 151c of the International Sporting Code,” it concluded.

The whole sorry ‘lie-gate’ situation dated back to the season-opening Australian Grand Prix where Lewis Hamilton was instructed by the team to allow Jarno Trulli to pass him whilst behind the safety car. Trulli had made an error and slipped off the circuit allowing Hamilton to initially gain the position.

Following the race the stewards deemed Trulli’s pass illegal on Hamilton and handed the Toyota driver a 25 second time penalty dropping the Italian from third to a non-points scoring position. It later emerged that Hamilton had deliberately let Trulli past and the time penalty was retracted.

There were five charges against the McLaren Mercedes team. Firstly, on 29th March they told Australian Grand Prix stewards that no instructions were given to Lewis Hamilton to allow Trulli pass when behind the safety car. This was untrue. Secondly, the team ‘procured’ Hamilton to confirm this untrue statement to the Melbourne stewards.

Thirdly, the team knew that as a result of its actions, Trulli would be stripped of his third position and the team made no attempt to rectify the situation. Fourthly, on 2nd April a second meeting with the stewards in Malaysia saw the team continue with its untrue statement despite being allowed listen to team radio instructing Hamilton to allow Trulli past. Finally, the team again ‘procured’ Hamilton to continue with his false statement.

Sporting Director Dave Ryan, present with Hamilton in the stewards’ hearings, took the fall for McLaren with the team announcing on 3rd April that he had been suspended from his position. Four days later when acknowledging the 'invitation' to attend the World Motor Sport Council meeting, the team announced that the long-serving Ryan had been sacked.

Hamilton meanwhile was busy making his apologies to the media in Malaysia claiming he had been 'misled' by Ryan. It was uncomfortable viewing as the defending champion deflected all calls that he had deliberately lied to the stewards.

“I went into the meeting. I had no intention of... I just wanted to tell the story of what had happened and I was misled," he said. "That’s just the way it went.”

“I’m not a liar, I’m not a dishonest person,” he claimed. “I’m a team player and every time I’ve been instructed to do something I’ve done it. This time I’ve realised it was a huge mistake and I’m learning from it. It’s taken a huge toll on me.”

Back at the Woking base Ron Dennis announced on 16th April that he was severing all ties with the race team to focus on the road car division of the company. Many saw this is an action to try to appease the sport's governing body, given the long-running feud between Dennis and FIA President Max Mosley.

"I admit I'm not always easy to get on with," Dennis said at the time. "I admit I've always fought hard for McLaren in Formula One. I doubt if Max Mosley or Bernie Ecclestone will be displeased by my decision. But no-one asked me to do it. It was my decision. Equally, I was the architect of today's restructure of the McLaren Group. Again, no-one asked me to do it. It was my decision."

The team regrouped, completed the Chinese and Bahrain Grand Prix before Martin Whitmarsh travelled alone to Paris today to give his account of the team’s actions.

While McLaren certainly has a lot to learn from 'lie-gate' the same can be said for the FIA stewards who initially took the words of two individuals to penalise a rival driver without checking the facts thoroughly.

Horner - Vettel will not return to BMW Sauber

Christian Horner has dismissed speculation that Sebastian Vettel could be lost to the BMW Sauber team in less than two years.

The double Grand Prix winner is under contract to Red Bull for both this year and next, but is believed to retain links with BMW.

Vettel made his Formula One debut for BMW Sauber in 2007, leading to suggestions that the Swiss-based team may be able to recall the German once his current contract expires.

But Red Bull team boss Horner categorically denied that BMW retains an ‘option’ on Vettel's services.

"Definitely not," the Briton said in an interview with Sport Bild.

"They could have had him, they did have an option on Sebastian, the condition being that they give him a race cockpit for the 2008 season.

"In the middle of 2007 they let him go to the Red Bull family, to Toro Rosso, and they lost their rights to him," Horner explained.

Spanish Grand Prix concern with swine flu crisis

One solution to the swine flu crisis for Formula One would be to stage Grand Prix without spectators in the stands.

That is the claim of Motorsport Aktuell, after reports emerged this week that the Spanish region of Catalunya is recording the highest incidence of flu infections on the European continent.

The report quotes German health minister Ulla Schmidt as concurring that a potential pandemic, and public gatherings of thousands of people, do not mix.

"Everyone understands that there cannot be a major gathering of 70,000 people, if thousands of them could become infected," she said.

The Mexican death toll rose above 150 overnight, leading to the closure of schools, universities, museums, libraries, cinemas, theatres and churches.

A major football game at the Azteca stadium took place on Tuesday in front of deserted grandstands, after spectators were barred.

Engine change possibility for Red Bull

Christian Horner has refused to rule out the possibility of Red Bull switching customer engine suppliers at the end of the 2009 season.

The Milton Keynes based team's Renault contract runs out this year, and reports have indicated a switch to Mercedes-Benz is a possibility for 2010 and beyond.

Team boss Horner, however, told Sport Bild that Red Bull is happy with Renault, after the French marque was allowed to catch up its more powerful rivals over the winter amid the engine freeze.

"For the moment it is my belief that Dietrich Mateschitz does not intend to negotiate with a new engine partner," the Briton said. "Fortunately we have time."

But Horner does not totally rule out a switch.

"In these times, who knows what engine manufacturers are still going to be there in 2010?" he pointed out.

"Ross Brawn has proved that it is possible to have a very good car even with a very new engine partner. In this case Mercedes is attractive, not only because of the engine."

Horner said Mercedes' KERS technology might also be of interest to Red Bull.

"It seems to be the best system in the field," he acknowledged. "It's compact and has no negative effect on the car balance, which is really the fundamental problem of (other makers') KERS."

As well as McLaren, Mercedes-Benz already supplies the Force India and Brawn teams.

Santander and Ferrari rumours

Speculation that the Spanish bank Santander is set to switch from McLaren to Ferrari got a fresh shot in the arm last weekend.

Photographed entering the famous Italian team's private building in Bahrain, for a 20 minute meeting with Luca di Montezemolo, was Santander boss Emilio Botin.

Spain's Marca sports newspaper reports that Botin also met with Fernando Alonso at the Sakhir track, as well as Bernie Ecclestone.

Botin's meeting with Ecclestone explains the F1 Chief Executive's eye-wateringly bright red jacket on the grid of the Sakhir race: apparently it was a gift from the Santander chief.

No KERS plans for Toyota and Red Bull

With the start of F1's European season now looming, two teams not yet running Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems have revealed they have no immediate plans to implement the new technology.

Toyota, who locked out of the front row of the Bahrain grid last weekend, announced last year that they would begin the 2009 season without KERS. "So far at the moment we are not planning to use KERS," German driver Timo Glock said in Bahrain.

The same is true of Red Bull, who as Renault's engine customer would use the energy recovery technology developed by the French squad.

But team boss Christian Horner said: "In terms of ultimate performance we don't feel it has earned its place on our car yet but that's not to say it will not do in the future.

"We retain a very open mind about KERS but at the moment there is no fixed date at which to introduce it," he added.

Similarly, Toro Rosso, Force India and Brawn would use the active systems of their engine suppliers Ferrari and Mercedes respectively, but are currently holding off.

Williams is working hard on its unique flywheel system and intends to race it as soon as possible.

But two teams already using battery-based KERS are having second thoughts. Renault's Flavio Briatore in Bahrain said the team will "maybe use it for another one or two races, if everything goes well."

Ferrari, meanwhile, were analysing the KERS benefit in detail last weekend, running it in practice on Felipe Massa's car but not Kimi Raikkonen's.

Said boss Stefano Domenicali: "Our project was born around KERS and it is very difficult to change the complete car, thinking that KERS is not there, so we need to find the best compromise."

McLaren heading to WMSC

Bernie Ecclestone is sure Mercedes-Benz will deem the outcome of Wednesday's World Motor Sport Council ‘fair’.

On April 29, the FIA congregation will consider multiple fraud charges levied against McLaren Mercedes amid the 'lie-gate' affair.

Last weekend, Mercedes and Daimler chief Dieter Zetsche warned that an ‘unreasonable punishment’ on Wednesday could cause the carmaker to ‘consider our engagement’ in F1.

But the signs ever since have strongly indicated that while a penalty for McLaren is likely, the prospect of multiple race bans, huge fines or championship exclusion is not.

"I am absolutely positive that Mercedes would like to look upon this as fair for everybody and, if there is any punishment to be meted out, it will be fair and I am sure they would support that," Ecclestone told London's Times newspaper.

"I don't think they would decide to leave Formula One because somebody had done something wrong and been punished.
I think they will be very fair," the F1 Chief Executive added.

It is rumoured that a points deduction, or even a single race ban for Lewis Hamilton, is possible, and the Spanish press reports that McLaren reserve Pedro de la Rosa is on standby for the forthcoming Spanish Grand Prix.

Former McLaren driver David Coulthard thinks the Woking-based team should not be formally punished.

"Their card has been marked, their reputation tainted. Do we really need to see more?" he wrote in his Telegraph column.

Tost agreed with Prost that Bourdais too negative

Team boss Franz Tost agrees with Alain Prost's recent criticism of Toro Rosso racer Sebastien Bourdais.

Last week, quadruple world champion Prost said France's only Formula One driver "begins to look at things in a negative way very quickly."

To Germany's Auto Motor und Sport, Tost agreed: "He knows how to drive a racing car fast, however his negative attitude gets in the way too often."

Bourdais has scored just one of Toro Rosso's four points so far this season, but even the impressive rookie Sebastian Buemi did not escape Tost's reprisals.

Buemi and Bourdais qualified 17th and dead last respectively in Bahrain, and although hard braking circuits apparently do not suit the STR4, team figures suggested driving errors worsened the situation last weekend.

Tost said: "With such a close field, you cannot afford errors. Our drivers must understand that."

Kubica questioned BMW Sauber's development direction

Robert Kubica, having last year questioned BMW Sauber's development direction, renewed his criticism of the Swiss-based team before leaving Bahrain.

After a disastrous outing at the Sakhir circuit, the Pole is quoted by the German news agency SID as saying: "We perhaps need to take a different path, because like last year the speed of our development has not been good."

Similarly, his German team-mate Nick Heidfeld was heard to remark in Bahrain that the F1.09 has seemed to get ‘worse and worse’ with every passing race so far this season.

Team Principal Mario Theissen said: "This situation is unusual for all of us. Since we began three years ago we only ever were going uphill."

In the Swiss newspaper Blick, he added: "If we had nothing in the pipeline for Barcelona, we could be talking about us being in a low moment."

Kubica is even pessimistic about BMW's planned development upgrades for the forthcoming Spanish Grand Prix.

"Overall I don't think the picture is going to change much. We might be a bit closer (in Barcelona) but we are not suddenly going to jump from the seventh to the front row."

Interview with Ross Brawn

Q. Three race wins from four races. Has the start to the season gone a little better than you expected?

Ross Brawn: Yes, it has. Just getting to the first race was a huge challenge. We had a feeling the car would be competitive after what we were seeing from other car's performance, and that proved to be the case. But what we have seen in the races is really unbelievable.

Q. Were you expecting victory in Bahrain because after qualifying people were not so sure?

RB: It was a tough one today. It wasn't a given. Perhaps Australia was one we could only throw away, whereas here was one we had to win. My worry was really to look after the engine because in qualifying the engine was running too hot because of the cooling, and because it all got thrown together at the last minute we have underestimated the water cooling and since it was so hot on Saturday it was compromising the car.

They could only do one fast lap and then they had to cool the car down. And that is not great for using the tyres and getting into it. So qualifying was compromised. We felt we could cope with it in the race, and we did that. Friday had shown we could look after the tyres.

Q. So can that issue be corrected in Spain and do you have enough of an upgrade to keep yourself ahead of the field?

RB: Well, the cooling will not be a problem in the normal European climate, but there will be some races like Hungary in July/August and Abu Dhabi at the end of the year where there might be some problems. But we have got to do something about it, because when the engine runs that hot we lose some power. We will fix it, and we have a series for upgrades for Barcelona and beyond. We have to be optimistic. We have had no upgrades for the first four races, because there was nothing there. Getting to the first race was as much as we could manage and there was nothing in the cupboard. The process is starting again from the point at which we were able to buy the company and we got our programme well into the swing again and Barcelona will show us the benefit of getting it running again.

Q. How crucial was it to maximise your chances in the first four races, because you had the development advantage and now the others will catch up?

RB: Yes, it was fairly important. You always sneed to maximise your chances when you have a strong group performance. But it is also taking the points when you are not so on top of things, like we were in China. We were not fastest, and that is important as well because those points will be vital towards the end of the season. You need to strike when you've got the tools.

Q. Can you believe that you have enough budget/staff to win the title?

RB: I believe so, but I am not thinking that way. We are going out there to win races. We have got a great driver pairing and we've had a painful restructuring of the company, that is behind us now, and everyone can see what can be achieved. I am optimistic. We have some great drivers the rest is up to us.

Q. Where do you think you stand at the moment pace wise - are you the quickest?

RB: It is pretty close. There are two or three cars that are all quite similar, as we saw today. We had a good race strategy and that is what made the difference today.

Q. Do you feel they have developed more towards you in these races, or are they just getting more out of the cars?

RB: A bit of both. I think probably they are optimising the package they have and adding bits. Quite genuinely we've had nothing on the car since it was launched in Barcelona. Now is the time that we can start adding things and trying to improve.

Button - Red Bull now in front

Jenson Button believes the Red Bull Racing team has overtaken his Brawn squad in terms of performance, despite the Briton's victory in Bahrain.

Button scored his third win in four races in Bahrain, having started from fourth position after a difficult qualifying.

The Briton finished ahead of Chinese Grand Prix winner Sebastian Vettel, whose race was compromised after being stuck behind Lewis Hamilton in the early stages.

The Red Bull racer finished seven seconds behind Button.

Despite his win, the championship leader reckons Red Bull has already leapt ahead of Brawn.

"This one was very sweet because we didn't expect it in a way as Saturday was very poor in qualifying," said Button. "Everyone has caught up and I think red Bull has actually overtaken us, so this one is great and all credit to the guys - it has been a tough few weeks for all of us away from home.

"The parts on the car are getting very old now, so we can go back to Europe, freshen the parts up, add the aero kit to the car and hopefully make another step forward."

Team boss Ross Brawn says the Brackley-based squad will introduce updates from the start of the European season that should allow it to stay optimistic.

"We have a series for upgrades for Barcelona and beyond. We have to be optimistic. We have had no upgrades for the first four races, because there was nothing there."

He added: "Getting to the first race was as much as we could manage and there was nothing in the cupboard. The process is starting again from the point at which we were able to buy the company and we got our programme well into the swing again and Barcelona will show us the benefit of getting it running again."

Brawn was also adamant that his team has all the necessary resources to fight for the title in the long run, but the Briton admitted he's not thinking of that yet.

"I believe so, but I am not thinking that way," he said when asked if he thought his team has all the ingredients to win the title.

"We are going out there to win races. We have got a great driver pairing and we've had a painful restructuring of the company, that is behind us now, and everyone can see what can be achieved. I am optimistic. We have some great drivers the rest is up to us."

Raikkonen - Sixth place was not good enough

Kimi Raikkonen welcomed his first point-scoring finish of the season at the Bahrain Grand Prix, but the Finn admitted Ferrari's performance was still below par.

The Maranello squad avoided enduring its worst start to a Formula 1 season on Sunday thanks to the Raikkonen's sixth place finish.

The former world champion, however, finished over 40 seconds behind race winner Jenson Button ahead of the start of the European season next month.

Raikkonen said he had extracted the maximum from his car in today's race, but conceded that was not good enough for Ferrari's standards.

"I am happy to have picked up a few points but I can't be that pleased with our performance level," said Raikkonen. "I've been around long enough not to get very excited about a sixth place. We are well aware we have to improve.

"In theory, the new package we will have in Barcelona should see us make a good step forward, but we won't know just how big it will be compared to the others until we are on track in Spain.

"Today, we got the most out of the F60's current potential, even if I lost a bit of time in my final pitstop because of a problem with a part of the fairing on the left front wheel which cost me the chance of exiting pitlane ahead of Barrichello."

Hamilton has meet new Mclaren boss

Lewis Hamilton says he is embracing McLaren's future with fresh optimism after meeting his new 'boss' for the first time at the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The world champion has had a turbulent beginning to his title defence, which has included seeing his former mentor Ron Dennis choose to step back completely from the F1 team.

However, having committed his own future to McLaren in talks with team principal Martin Whitmarsh at the Chinese Grand Prix, Hamilton says he is now even more encouraged about the future after meeting new group chairman Richard Lapthorne in Bahrain.

"Ron has been a huge force in my life and we all owe him more than we could ever repay him for building this team," Hamilton said.

"It is an exciting time for him with his new focus, but also for everyone in the team.

"I met our new boss, Richard Lapthorne, in Bahrain. He seems like a great guy and he is clearly passionate about McLaren. Together with Martin and Norbert [Haug] I am confident we can go onto more things with this team in the future."

Theissen - Formula One is valuable for BMW

Mercedes may be rethinking its commitment to Formula One, but the same is currently not true of fellow German carmaker BMW, motorsport boss Mario Theissen insists.

Like Mercedes, however, the Munich marque's executive committee does regularly review its support for the Swiss-based team BMW Sauber, he admitted.

"Formula One (for BMW) is valuable," Theissen is quoted as saying by RTL.

"Before the season the project was evaluated again in detail and the financial situation was part of the analysis," he explained.

"But in the long-term we also need success," said Theissen.

So far, the 2009 ambition to fight for the championship is in tatters, with just four points on the board after the first four races.

Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld, who collided in the first corner in Bahrain, were ultimately lapped by the leaders and dead last at the finish, and now desperately waiting for a technical update for the Spanish Grand Prix.

iSport aims Formula One

With Lola and Prodrive eyeing a move into Formula One next year, should the proposed budget caps be agreed, there is now another new name looking to join the grid for the 2010 season.

iSport International, currently racing in the GP2 series, is reportedly bullish on its chances of taking a step up to the pinnacle of motorsport according to Motorsports-Magazine.com.

“I aim to give a few people in F1 a kick up the backside and to show them that they are chucking money out of the window for nothing,” team boss Paul Jackson told the publication.

Any decision to enter Formula One will however depend on the budget restraints being in place for next season with FIA President Max Mosley keen to see spending capped at £30 million a season.

Such a figure would mean massive changes for current ten teams as they that spend many times that level, leading Jackson to conclude that it would be better to start a new team rather than merging with an existing outfit.

“The existing teams aren’t structured to operate within a 30-million budget,” said Jackson. “So it would probably be better to start with a blank sheet. We’re accustomed to doing a great job on limited resources."

Button minor injuries

Championship leader and Bahrain winner Jenson Button revealed a minor injury after Sunday's Grand Prix - and gave key rival Sebastian Vettel another chance to display his wit.

It is well known that Brawn were concerned about how its Mercedes-powered car would cope with the scorching temperatures this weekend, amid stories that holes in the bodywork were being cut before the race.

After crossing the chequered flag first, 29-year-old Button admitted: "I've burned the top of my left buttock on a box - there's an electrical box there."

Vettel, who has named his Red Bull 'Kate's Dirty Sister' because it is even faster and more aggressive than the original RB5 he shunted in Melbourne, leaned over during the post-race press conference and stroked his British rival's shoulder.

Button retorted: "I'll get you stroking it later, Sebastian, don't worry!"

The winner of three races from four so far this year also gave a backhanded thanks to Anthony Davidson, when he was told his former Honda tester believes Bahrain was the best performance of Button's entire career.

"Thanks to the Ginger Racer, as I call him, for those nice comments," Button grinned.

Trulli still chasing Toyota first victory

It was a small case of déjà-vu with Toyota showing so well in qualifying and then fading in race conditions, something that former driver Ralf Schumacher experienced in Japan in 2005 and Jarno Trulli at Indianapolis the same year.

"We expected more from today but I'm happy with third place,” admitted Team Principal Tadashi Yamashina. “This is our third podium of the year [but] when we have conditions like these we must now aim for the centre of the podium, starting at the next race in Barcelona."

In fairness to the German-based team, the pole position for Trulli alongside team-mate Timo Glock was much more convincing than their previous efforts, but with a light fuel load both drivers were soon in the pits in Bahrain to relinquish their first and second positions to eventual winner Jenson Button.

"I am a little bit disappointed because I was waiting for the first win for Toyota," said Trulli after finishing in third position at the Sakhir circuit. "I was following my team-mate. I was going longer and then during the second stint we used a very long stint on the hard tyres, so I was trying to fight and it was really hard fighting with a lot.”

The second stint on the harder prime tyre cost Trulli and Toyota between half and a second a lap to their rivals and allowed Sebastian Vettel to take over second position in the second and final pitstop, something Trulli acknowledges.

“I was not extremely quick but competitive being on the hard tyres and then eventually Sebastian took the position after my last stop,” Trulli continued. “He was on the hard tyres and I was on the soft and I was pushing him. I was quicker but there was no way to overtake him, so that was how the race was."

Trulli was keen not to blame the team for switching him to the relatively slower prime tyre at the first pitstop, a decision that would cost him the runner-up spot in Bahrain, saying that it would be an issue he would go through with his engineers. “I think all in all the strategy wasn’t too bad but we needed a little bit more pace,” he concluded.

Button - Three from four

Three wins from four races, it could not be going much better for Jenson Button and the Brawn Mercedes team.

"This was a tough race for us," Button began. "You might say I was leading for most of it but this race we had not the pace we had in the first three races. I don’t know where it has gone. I guess these guys have just caught up and maybe passed us. But the first lap of the race I knew was very important because Sebastian (Vettel) was going longer, so I made it work and I came out of the first corner in third. From then on it was a tough race but very enjoyable."

After starting the Bahrain Grand Prix from fourth position, the championship leader battled hard with the fast-starting Lewis Hamilton on the opening lap before retaining the position behind the Toyota duo of Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli.

Talking of his crucial pass on the defending champion for third position at the start of the race, Button explained: "I must say because he was blocking very well but then at the last corner he made a slight mistake, so I pulled alongside him on the straight and I knew as soon as we got to the start-finish line he was going to push his KERS button and he did and he pulled away again, so I had to jump in behind and then did him into turn one.

“The first lap was what made the race really. I’d certainly say it was the finest first lap of my career, for sure."

As the first Glock and then Trulli pitted early courtesy of their light fuel load, Button was able to take advantage of his longer first stint and Toyota’s decision to switch to the harder prime tyre to ensure that he emerged at the head of the field following the first round of pitstops.

From that point, the Brawn racer was able to build a cushion of up to 15 seconds on the field and duly recorded his third win of the season as the chequered flag flew at the end of the 57-lap race.

"A fantastic performance today from Jenson and all credit is due to him for an outstanding opening lap which made today's victory possible," said Team Principal Ross Brawn with reference to Button's pass on Hamilton. "We have had a challenging weekend in dealing with the extreme temperature conditions which was made more difficult by our lack of hot weather testing prior to the season. I am very proud of the way that the team here in Bahrain has worked together to overcome the issues that we faced and how they performed in the race today."

Button’s latest success sees him extend his championship advantage from team-mate Rubens Barrichello to 12 points and 13 ahead of Sakhir runner-up Sebastian Vettel. Brawn Mercedes dominate the constructors’ championship as they lead Red Bull Renault by 22.5 points.

The team may well however facer a stiffer challenge in Barcelona in two weeks time as the big guns wheel out their latest double-diffuser designs. This is something that Button recognises.

"We’ve had four races; they’ve been pretty important to us, especially at the start of the season when people have got reliability issues or making mistakes, we’ve been able to pick up the points which is great,” Button explained. “When we get to Europe we don’t know where anyone is going to be. We know that these two teams alongside me here are going to be competitive but we don’t know how and the same for McLaren. We have an upgrade coming in Barcelona, I just hope it’s enough. We have to wait and see. Nobody knows..."

Whitmarsh to face FIA by himself

McLaren Mercedes will face the FIA next Wednesday without its usual swathe of lawyers.

Amid the 'lie-gate' scandal, the British team has been summoned to the World Motor Sport Council to face multiple charges of fraud.

But, as indicated in boss Martin Whitmarsh's leaked letter to FIA President Max Mosley, McLaren is simply prepared to face the consequences for lying to the stewards in Australia and Malaysia.

The team's approach to the Paris hearing means Whitmarsh will simply front up alone, not contesting the charges. The approach is expected to net a points deduction and suspended race ban, but not harsher penalties like exclusion or draconian fines.

"I will go into the hearing alone.

But I have yet to take the advice of the stakeholders and the FIA," Whitmarsh said in Bahrain on Sunday.

"It's not a complicated hearing. We have chosen not to contest the charges and that makes the process simpler," he added.

Alonso suffered from dehydration

Fernando Alonso gave reporters at the Sakhir circuit a scare immediately after the Bahrain Grand Prix, when he 'nearly fainted'.

The Spaniard finished eighth in the sweltering Sakhir heat, but was almost overcome by dizziness as he spoke with the media in the aftermath of the 57-lap race.

His Renault team explained that Alonso was dehydrated because his drinks pump failed to work during the race.

"He subsequently suffered from dehydration as he got out of the car. He has now fully recovered," said a statement.

Alonso concurred, telling the media he is 'fine'. He finished eighth.

"We only scored one point and so we need to improve at the next Grand Prix," he said.

Schumacher role at Ferrari

Michael Schumacher never occupied a crucial role at Ferrari in his years outside the cockpit, team President Luca di Montezemolo insisted on a visit to Bahrain on Sunday.

"He came to a few races last year, he came at the beginning of this season and he will come again," the Italian is quoted as telling reporters at Sakhir by the German SID news agency.

"But he does not have a responsible role because he does not have the time to be at Maranello," Montezemolo added.

Schumacher, 40, was harshly criticised for his role in strategy blunders when he stood on the Ferrari pitwall in Australia and Malaysia.

Montezemolo said: "He gives ideas and proposals as an advisor - no more and no less."

He said he once asked the German to take over from Jean Todt as Team Principal, but Schumacher emphatically answered ‘no’.

"Michael has a good mentality, but I understand that his life is now something else. So I asked him to come to a few races and support us," said Montezemolo.
Meanwhile, when asked to summarise F1's new pecking order that has left Ferrari ninth in the constructors' championship, Montezemolo hit out at "very badly written rules."

Hamilton considering to quit from F1

As McLaren's difficult season hit a high point with fourth place in Bahrain, Lewis Hamilton admitted he did consider throwing in the towel. Amid scandals and public criticism, the reigning world champion said he recently paused seriously to reflect on his negative image.

"I wasn't 100 percent sure I wanted to be here for the next five years," the Briton told the BBC.

"There was so much going on. Do I want to be in the limelight with people slating me? Do I want be in the spotlight where I can't even go... to go to the fish and chip shop or the cinema and have fun without people taking pictures of me?"

Hamilton, 24, ultimately concluded that driving a F1 car to success was most important, and - despite admitting his earlier indecision - wonders why his commitment to the team was ever questioned.

"My commitment should never be questioned because I'm very committed to the sport and I'm very, very committed to my team," he insisted.

But Hamilton said his questionable commitment when addressing the media a week ago in China was "because I wasn't 100 percent sure I would be here (in F1) for the next five years."

He said some of the shine of being a Formula One driver is now completely gone.

"I love driving the car. I love my job. But when you're surrounded by politics and all these different things going on, you know ..." said Hamilton.

BMW Sauber early season was a disaster

A year ago BMW Sauber looked to be challenging not just for their first victory, but for championship success. The team did go on to take its first win and then opted to focus on the 2009 challenger and thereby compromising Robert Kubica’s title aspirations.

Based on the first four races of the new season, this was a poor decision from the Hinwil-based management, especially given the fact that the F1.09 just isn’t very good in its current form.

Yesterday in qualification for the Bahrain Grand Prix, Kubica – who claimed the pole at the same circuit a year ago - and team-mate Nick Heidfeld lined up a disappointed 13th and 14th. Race day would bring early incidents for both with the duo taking the chequered flag last.

“We knew it would be another difficult race weekend for us, and it was also clear the danger of a collision would be higher the further down the grid we were," explained Team Principal Mario Theissen. "As we feared, both our drivers had early collisions and as a result the race was practically over."

"During the pit stops we gave them a lot of fuel and sent them out with hard tyres, because the only chance of getting back into the race would have been during a safety-car period," he continued. "But even if this had happened scoring a point would have been impossible. We are now concentrating on the next race in Barcelona, where we will compete with a new aero package.”

Naturally Kubica was less than thrilled with his day in the desert. "My race was destroyed after corner one," he said.
"I was between Nick and another car, we touched each other and I destroyed my front wing. Then after the crash there was a miscommunication with the pit crew. I asked to come in straight away, but was only able to pit after the second lap. Then the race was very difficult, as for a long time I was in a heavy car on prime tyres. We were really nowhere with our pace. I hope we make a big step forward in Barcelona..."

Team-mate Heidfeld was equally as disappointed. "The result is a disaster, although we were unlucky with the collision in the first corner," the German veteran said. "At first I thought the suspension was broken, but I only had to have a new nose fitted in the pits and then continued. The first half of the race with the harder tyres was difficult, but the softer compound made it a little bit easier."

"However, it is another race to forget and we all hope for improvements in Barcelona," he concluded.

With the team aiming to make gains with the new aero package next time out at the Spanish Grand Prix, a glance at the constructors’ standings shows that they have a mountain to climb. After four races the team has four points, 46 less than Brawn Mercedes.

Bahrain GP Race - Button dominated the race

Toyota aced the front row with Jarno Trulli claiming their first pole position since the Japanese Grand Prix four years ago ahead of team-mate Timo Glock. As expected however, both TF109’s were lightly fuelled and it was Jenson Button who made best of the situation to take control of the race following the first round of pitstops.

It was a fairly routine race, the first of the season not to feature a safety car, but the battle for the race victory was fairly straight forward for Button as Glock got the jump on Trulli and led the field in the early stages but then opted to run the harder prime tyres during the second stint and quickly fell away from the Brawn Mercedes.

Toyota’s strategy allowed Sebastian Vettel to get the jump on Trulli in the second and final stop and the Red Bull Renault racer would finish in second position, withstanding the late race pressure from Trulli back on the softer option tyre.

The opening lap was key to Button’s success as he initially lost position to Lewis Hamilton who made best of his KERS-equipped McLaren Mercedes off the line, but a brave move from the Brawn driver later in the lap daw him regain the position and therefore allow him to tail the Toyota duo to the first round of stops...

Full report to follow...

Toyota celebrating front row slot

Toyota today secured their first pole position since a light fuel run gave Ralf Schumacher the team the number one grid slot back at Suzuka in 2005.

Both Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock have had strong runs in race conditions and qualifying in the first three rounds of the new season but today at the Sakhir circuit everything clicked for the German-based squad as Trulli claimed the pole, the fourth of his career, from team-mate Glock.

"It wasn’t an easy qualifying I think for everyone but for me it made everything more difficult as after the first run we found out a couple of troubles on my car especially I was struggling with the brakes," the pole-sitter explained. "The pedal was getting longer and longer and I was not able to brake the way I wanted. Nevertheless I did not give up as I knew I had a good car and I could fight for pole, so it was really nice to end up with first and second for the team especially for Toyota.

"To be honest I did not feel very confident for the qualifying lap," Trulli continued. "I have been working quite a lot more on the race pace and I felt more competitive and this is why probably I am on pole as today when we fuelled the car, it felt better."

While Trulli celebrates the pole, it is also a special day for the hard-working team.

"We're obviously delighted with today's result," said the man charged with the TF109 chassis, Pascal Vasselon. "We have been competitive throughout the weekend so we were targeting pole and things went as expected - though the gap to the cars behind us is a bit bigger than we anticipated.

"Tomorrow's race will be very interesting because the tyre situation generates huge differences between the two specs and it opens windows for very different strategies. We already saw yesterday that our pace over one lap and our consistency over long runs has been good. Now we have to convert this perfect start into a result tomorrow."

Timo Glock is currently riding high in the drivers' championship with ten points and fourth position overall. Now in his second full season of Formula One with the team, the German racer is looking to capitalise on his front row starting position.

"We found quite a lot overnight as we struggled yesterday with the brakes quite a lot," he said. "You know overnight we did the right changes to the car and I was really, really happy this morning. I was quite surprised that I was still quickest at the end and I was quite happy for qualifying. I knew when I crossed the start-finish that it would not be enough for Jarno as he is really, really good in qualifying, especially in Q2 getting everything out of the fuel load. I had one mistake in it when I lost a bit of time but at the end I think it would not have been enough for pole but I am happy for the team."

The final word goes to Jarno Trulli. "I feel especially confident for tomorrow. I should not have any problems apart from the fact that we need to analyse the brake and see the situation there."

Bahrain GP Qualifying Weight - Toyota running light to secured front row

Toyota aced the front row of the grid for the Bahrain Grand Prix today with Jarno Trulli taking the pole position from team-mate Timo Glock. Trulli secured the top spot with a best time of 1:33.431s with Glock just under three tenths of second adrift while third placed man Sebastian Vettel just under six tenths off the ultimate pace.

This evening the FIA published the qualifying weights and for the top ten runners they are now locked into that fuel level for the first stint of the 57-lap Grand Prix. As a rule of thumb, 10kg of fuel lasts four to five laps while 10kg of fuel slows the car by roughly 0.3s a lap – depending on the circuit type and length.

Timo Glock and Jarno Trulli have the lightest fuel loads on board with their Toyota TF109’s weighing in at 642kg and 648.5kg respectively while third placed man Vettel has some 16kg fuel on board than Glock and ten more than pole-man Trulli.

Assuming sandstorms do not hit the desert region as feared, the Chinese Grand Prix winner should therefore be in a position to shadow the Toyota duo and wait for them to pit before putting in a string of hot laps as his fuel level burns down to take the lead following his first stop.

This of course is all hypothetical as Vettel could be eliminated at the first turn or make a poor start, but it’s clear that Toyota will be forced to pit first while the likes of Kimi Raikkonen, starting tenth on the grid, will be running a very long first stint.

As ever, we shall see on race day.

Bahrain - Qualifying Weight (kg)
1 . T. Glock - Toyota TF109 - 643.0
2 . J.Trulli - Toyota TF109 - 648.5
3 . R. Barrichello - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 649.0
4 . F. Alonso - Renault R29 - 650.5
5 . G. Fisichella - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 652.0 *
6 . J. Button - Brawn Mercedes BGP 001 - 652.5
7 . L. Hamilton - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 652.5
8 . M. Webber - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 656.0 *
9 . S. Vettel - Red Bull Renault RB5 - 659.0
10 . F. Massa - Ferrari F60 - 664.5
11 . S. Bourdais - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 667.5 *
12 . N. Rosberg - Williams Toyota FW31 - 670.5
13 . K. Raikkonen - Ferrari F60 - 671.5
14 . N. Piquet - Renault R29 - 677.6 *
15 . S. Buemi - Toro Rosso Ferrari STR4 - 678.5 *
16 . H. Kovalainen - McLaren Mercedes MP4-24 - 678.5 *
17 . A. Sutil - Force India Mercedes VJM02 - 679.0 *
18 . K. Nakajima - Williams Toyota FW31 - 680.9 *
19 . N. Heidfeld - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 696.3 *
20 . R. Kubica - BMW Sauber F1.09 - 698.6 *

* Declared weight (outside of top ten)

Vettel is riding high

Sebastian Vettel is riding high following his superb pole position and race win last weekend in Shanghai. Today in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix the Red Bull Renault racer qualified third behind the Toyota duo of Jarno Trulli and Timo Glock.

"I think it was a good session for us," the young German racer said. "I think we could see already in Q1 that it was very tight. It was not enough to do one run on the prime, so I think everybody had to put the option on. The whole field, we could see already this morning, is very close together. But to come back I think it was a smooth qualifying session for us, we did not have any problems."

"We have a very, very quick car," Vettel continued.

"In Q2 we only needed one run and we still managed to stay quickest, so that was very good. Even the circuit was improving. But I think in Q3 the two Toyotas today were just a bit too quick. I am looking forward to tomorrow though. I reckon they will pull in a bit earlier but it is a long race. Let’s see...”

Three places drops for Sutil on blocking Webber

Stewards at the Bahrain Grand Prix have penalised Adrian Sutil by dropping the Force India driver three places down the grid ahead of Sunday's race.

The German, despite qualifying a best ever 16th at the Sakhir track, was found guilty of impeding Red Bull's Mark Webber in the first round of qualifying. Sutil drops to 19th, promoting Webber to 18th.

"Mark was on a flying lap, but I didn't know that. I just tried to stay in my position to get a clear start to the lap," the 26-year-old, who apologised to Webber in person on Saturday, said.

Webber, whose team-mate Sebastian Vettel qualified third, said the block ruined two of his decisive flying laps in the session.

"I had nowhere to go in the last corner of my first lap and then Sutil slipstreamed past me for the start of my second, so my race is screwed," he said.

Brake concern for Trulli

Bahrain pole sitter Jarno Trulli admitted after qualifying that he is concerned about an issue aboard his Toyota.

The Italian headed the Japanese team's first ever front-row lockout in the Sakhir desert, but revealed afterwards that his brakes were not working properly.

"I was struggling with the brakes, the pedal was getting long and I was not able to brake the way I wanted," said Trulli, who also put his Toyota on pole with very light fuel at Indianapolis in 2005.

The problem did not stop the 34-year-old from emerging quickest from Q3, but admitted he is concerned ahead of Sunday's 57-lap race.

"We need to analyse the data to see if we have a problem with the brakes, it is a bit of a worry," Trulli said on Saturday.

Another worry might be strategy, which will become clearer when the FIA publishes the car weights later this afternoon.

Red Bull's Christian Horner said after qualifying: "I think they (the Toyotas) might be three-stopping. We'll find out later I suppose."

Hamilton done excelent in qualifying session

McLaren Mercedes has enough issues to deal with away from the circuit without problems during the Grand Prix weekend. Today however in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix the team put in its best performance of the season with Lewis Hamilton lining up fifth in his ever-improving MP4-24 package.

“We have been pushing incredibly hard over the last couple of months and this is a result of all our hard work," said Hamilton as he split the once all-conquering Brawn Mercedes duo. "I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved: firstly, it was good to get into the top ten, then it was even better to battle inside the top ten! We’ve got a similar pace to some of the guys in the top five; as long as everything goes smoothly we should be able to get a top five finish tomorrow. I can almost see pole position now – and I’m really looking forward to getting there soon!”

Hamilton's view was backed up team-mate Heikki Kovalainen as he targets a points paying position from 11th on the grid and Team Principal Martin Whitmarsh.

“After our top-ten qualifying position in Shanghai last weekend, today’s performance once again shows that we are continuing to make progress with MP4-24," he said. "Lewis’s top-five position is a fantastic achievement and, considering he began the first race of the season from 18th on the grid, a fantastic indicator of just how much progress the team has made."

"Of course, while our qualifying positions mark the team’s best Saturday performance of the season, they were made without compromise to our race pace; both Lewis and Heikki are well placed to pick up some more points for the team tomorrow.”

Mercedes-Benz Motorsport Vice President went on to explain that the stop-start nature of this 5.412km circuit play into the hands of the team as they can take advantage of their strong and so far trouble free Kinetic Energy Recovery System.

Bahrain GP Qualifying - Trulli on pole for Toyota

Toyota had already shown impressive pace in practice ahead of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix and were one of the three teams to spend two week’s testing at the 5.412km circuit in the off-season. The hard work paid off handsomely for the German-based squad today as Jarno Trulli stormed to pole position from team-mate Timo Glock.

As ever, we do not know the fuel loads until later today, but the TF109 package looked strong and Trulli put in a faultless performance to stop the clocks in 1:33.431s, just under three-tenths of a second clear of Glock.

While Toyota celebrate a superb qualifying result - and their first pole since Suzuka 2005 - Chinese Grand Prix victors Red Bull Renault had a very mixed day with Sebastian Vettel qualifying a solid third while team-mate Mark Webber fell at the first hurdle courtesy of some inattentive driving from Adrian Sutil.

Championship leader Jenson Button lines up fourth and was disappointed with the qualifying pace of the Brawn Mercedes while team-mate Rubens Barrichello was sixth best in the second BGP 001. Defending champion Lewis Hamilton meanwhile enjoyed his most competitive qualifying session of the season as he split the Brawn duo with the fifth fastest time in his McLaren Mercedes.

Fernando Alonso lines up seventh in the leading Renault while team-mate Nelson Piquet was at least able to make the second round of qualifying for the first time this year and was 15th fastest in his updated R29. Still, there will be no escaping the massive second plus gap between the Renault duo in the second round of qualifying plus another error from the under-pressure Brazilian racer.

Ferrari are having a tough start to the season with the F60 package but at least today both Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen both made it into the final round of qualifying. Massa starts eighth with Raikkonen seemingly heavily fuelled starts tenth.

The team are of course chasing their first points of the season and while the car may not yet feature any developments, the Italian squad seem in much better shape than in recent events.

Williams Toyota have flattered to deceive again this weekend after Rosberg looked very strong in practice only to qualify ninth in his updated FW31. Team-mate Kazuki Nakajima starts 12th behind the second McLaren Mercedes of Heikki Kovalainen.

BMW Sauber have not looked fast for some time now and today was no exception as Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld slithered around to 13th and 14th positions on the grid. For a team leading the championship a year ago, the updates to the F1.09 package cannot come soon enough.

Adrian Sutil qualified 16th in the leading Force India Mercedes behind Piquet, but was involved in an incident late in the first round of qualifying that saw him inadvertently block Webber. The end result was the Red Bull Renault driver had his final qualifying lap severely compromised and the disappointed Australian was 19th fastest. However, the Force India racer was later handed a three position grid penalty dropping him to 19th and promoting Webber up one position.

Sebastien Buemi qualified 17th in his Toro Rosso Ferrari and will therefore start 16th in his Toro Rosso Ferrari ahead of Giancarlo Fisichella in his Force India, Webber, Sutil and Sebastien Bourdais in the second STR4.

Haug denied Hamilton and Mercedes pulling out

If the wilder reports are true, part-owner and engine partner Mercedes is pulling out while Lewis Hamilton scans the fine print of his contract to look for an escape to his five-year contract.

But, in the Bahrain paddock, the reigning world champion, and Mercedes' racing representative Norbert Haug, sang a different tune when asked about their commitment to the embattled team McLaren.

"Some people have suggested that Mercedes are pulling out," Haug told reporters at Sakhir. "Mercedes is not pulling out."

The German, however, admitted last week that parent group Daimler's commitment to F1 - as would be the case with all other carmakers amid the global recession - is not open-ended.

But as for 2009, "We have the confirmation ... for our activities," said Haug.

While outwardly business-as-usual, McLaren will be nervous ahead of the 'lie-gate' scandal hearing in front of the World Motor Sport Council next Wednesday.

Team boss Martin Whitmarsh's letter to Max Mosley has been interpreted as akin to the Woking team throwing itself at the mercy of the governing body, while moods were ragged a week ago in Shanghai when Hamilton addressed the media.

The 24-year-old Briton again did not face the press on traditional 'media day' Thursday in Bahrain, but his grim mood of China has at least improved.

"I'm here, I'm enjoying myself and my time (with) the team," said Hamilton, asked again about his future following his non-committal reply of Shanghai.

"I don't abandon my team when times get tough. We ride the bad and good times together, so I am happy where I am. We've a long way to go, and hopefully I've got a long, long time here with them, so I am looking forward to it," he added.

Less believable was his insistence that next week's looming Paris date is not a ‘distraction’, but he admitted he has turned to the advice given to him personally last year by Nelson Mandela.

"He said at 90 years old he is still learning, so I know I am going to continue learning every day of my life," said Hamilton.

"I definitely feel stronger and far more experienced after what has happened over the past few weeks. I am growing all the time, learning."

Bahrain GP Free Practice 3 - Glock on top

The final practice session ahead of qualifying is always a confusing one as some opt to run with a heavy fuel load in preparation for the final round of qualifying and some opt to run with a very light load as they simulate the first and second rounds of qualifying. Today at Sakhir was no exception with a number of drivers very much out of position from where we would normally expect.

Timo Glock suffered a mechanical problem with his Toyota right at the end of the session but the German racer had just posted a time of 1:32.605s, a time that would remain unbeaten in the final minutes of the hour long session. Glock, who has had very little luck this year, is one of those expected to be in the final top ten shoot-out and the battle for the pole position this afternoon.

Felipe Massa showed well on both the harder prime tyre and then the softer option tyre as he set the second fastest time in his Ferrari. Given the recent pace of the f60 package, it is pretty safe to assume that this was a low fuel run aimed to simulate the second round of qualifying.

Nico Rosberg had to be content with the third fastest time on this occasion as he continued to run the latest developments on the Williams Toyota package. Rosberg had proven the pace of the FW31 time and time again and will be aiming for a top five position in qualifying.

McLaren Mercedes do seem to have made a small gain this weekend and Lewis Hamilton was the first to run the option tyre this morning. Undoubtedly on a low fuel load the defending champion ended the session with the fourth fastest time, less than four-tenths of a second off the ultimate pace.

Kimi Raikkonen was fifth fastest in the second Ferrari ahead of Nelson Piquet in the leading Renault. Robert Kubica pulled a rabbit out of the hat late in the session to vault seventh fastest in his BMW Sauber ahead of Kazuki Nakajima in the second Williams, Jarno Trulli in the second Toyota and Nick Heidfeld in the second BMW Sauber.

Chinese Grand Prix winner and pole-sitter Sebastian Vettel was tenth fastest in his Red Bull Renault, undoubtedly content to lap with a relatively heavy race fuel load on board, confident that his RB5 package has the pace to clear the first two rounds of qualifying.

Heikki Kovalainen lost a little time at the start of the practice session with a minor mechanical problem on his McLaren Mercedes, but was soon on track and went on to record the 11th best time ahead of Fernando Alonso in the second Renault.

Once again Alonso languished at the bottom of the timesheets for much of the session and it was only a late push on the option tyre that saw him improve to 12th. Unlike team-mate Piquet, hoping to make it into the second round of qualifying for the first time this year, Alonso is focused on the third and final round.

Adrian Sutil was 14th best in his Mercedes-powered Force India ahead of the Brawn Mercedes duo of Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. The BGP 001 is a front-running car and at roughly a second off the ultimate pace, will have been running with race fuel levels on board.

Sebastien Buemi was 17th in his Toro Rosso Ferrari while team-mate Sebastien Bourdais had a mechanical problem on his STR4 limiting him to just one short stint early in the session. The Frenchman was 20th and slowest as a result behind Mark Webber in the second Red Bull Renault and Giancarlo Fisichella in the second Force India.

Kimi hit back on Coulthard - "What a guy"

Kimi Raikkonen hit back at his former McLaren teammate David Coulthard on Friday, after the retired Scot questioned the Ferrari driver's car development abilities.

Amid Ferrari's current slump, 38-year-old Coulthard suggested the Italian team would do better to dump the 2007 World Champion and instead hire Fernando Alonso.

"The Finn has never shown me he can lead a car's development," Coulthard, now Red Bull's reserve driver and a pundit for British TV, wrote in a column.

To the Finnish broadcaster MTV3 in Bahrain, 29-year-old Raikkonen responded: "I don't know any driver who develops the cars."

"I think it's pretty funny to hear comments like those from people who never really achieved anything. It's none of my business, what a guy," the Finn added.

Martin Whitmarsh, boss of the McLaren team, also contradicted Coulthard's comments.

"The fact is, he is very sensitive to what makes a car quicker and is very intelligent -- he just doesn't always give it all away," said the Briton, referring to Raikkonen, who raced for the Mercedes-powered team between 2002 and 2006.

"Based on my experience of when he was here he was a very committed development driver. When he spoke those few words they were always very valuable," Whitmarsh added.

Mosley is now welcome again in Bahrain

Max Mosley is once again welcome on the island Kingdom of Bahrain, Crown Prince Sheikh Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa insists.

The FIA President was asked to stay away from the event last year, while he embroiled in the much publicised sex scandal.

Mosley, who was subsequently backed by FIA members and won legal action against the tabloid newspaper News of the World, never intended visiting Bahrain this season.

But he is now welcome, the Crown Prince told the Times newspaper at the Sakhir track.

"Yes, absolutely. He was cleared and re-elected," he said.
"And as long as the court case and the re-election has taken place, he is the representative of the FIA and therefore is due respect and is welcome."

Briatore seemingly spoiling for a fight with Brawn

As the global recession continues to bite and the major manufacturers in Formula One continue correspondence with the sport’s governing body regarding cost cutting and suggested budget caps for the 2009 season. Today Renault boss Flavio Briatore confirmed previous reports of salary reductions amongst the high earners within the Anglo-French team.

“We are cutting the costs across the whole team, not only my salary but the top people. Myself, Bob Bell and Pat Symonds have taken a cut of twenty percent,” Briatore said. “The second level have taken a cut of ten percent and everybody else has taken a cut of five percent.”

Briatore has been especially vocal against the Brawn Mercedes team in recent times and at Sakhir today there was no exception as he accused the team and its former owners Honda of going against proposed cost cutting measures.

“I don’t see Ross Brawn with 1200 people looking for cost reductions,” the Renault boss stated. “Maybe we are talking about something else. I don’t see this aggression at Honda last year regarding cost cutting, even though they have thirty or forty percent more people than us.”

The Brawn GP team of course has and is making significant cuts in its Brackley-based workforce.

Red Bull still revelling in maiden win

Red Bull Renault scored a stunning one-two result last time out in Shanghai and while both race winner Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber ran well today in practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix, the team were rightly savouring the break-out result from last Sunday.

"It was a fantastic result for the team, for Red Bull, for Mr Mateschitz who has put so much effort into the teams and into Formula One," declared Team Principal Christian Horner today at the circuit.

"It was a massive high - a monkey off our back to get the first pole, first win and a one-two. We have had great support from our partners. A quite good engine and I thank Flavio (Briatore) and Renault for that. It has just been a great week and the whole team in Milton Keynes have worked tremendously hard to achieve that result. We have just got to do it again now. We did not have long to enjoy it and we are focussed on the next one."

One concern a week ago in China was the driveshaft failures that compromised both drivers ahead of - and in – qualifying, but Horner is confident that the situation has been resolved and the RB5 package will have no such issues at the Sakhir circuit.

“We believed that it was a batch problem,” he explained. “We had done over 6000km of racing and testing and there was no problem in the race on Sunday and no problems at all here, so it looks like a rogue batch.”

While the similarly powered Fernando Alonso was second fastest today for the Renault team, Flavio Briatore was making no bones about the fact that Red Bull has simply done a better job than his team this year.

When asked what makes the difference between the pace of the RB5 and the R29, the Italian Team Principal simply replied ‘the chassis’ as the Anglo-French team pins their hopes on development of the diffuser.

“Red Bull at this moment do a better job,” Briatore explained. “We have no excuse. What we need is to improve the chassis and we have our first version of the diffuser which is not what we believe is the best but at least we have done something. In Barcelona we will have another step and I am sure in Monte Carlo we will have a big one. We started very late like everybody and we try to have the short cut and to be ready, at least in Monte Carlo, to be competitive and to fight for the podium and to win races.”

Red Bull Racing already seems to have the advantage however and are in a similar position with regards to aero updates. The Milton Keynes-based team targeting Monte Carlo for the introduction of its ‘Brawn-style’ double diffuser.

Montezemolo set to arrive in Bahrain today

As Ferrari's fortunes flagged even further, word spread in the Bahrain paddock that Luca di Montezemolo is set to arrive in the Persian Gulf on Saturday.

The Ferrari President may also be on official Formula One Teams' Association business, but figures in the Italian press insist Montezemolo is desperate to avoid his team sinking to the Scuderia's lowest ever trough this weekend at Sakhir.

Never in the history of the Prancing Horse has it attacked the opening four races of a championship without recording a single points finish.

The news coincided with Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen slumping to 16th and 18th respectively on the second Friday timesheet, after Raikkonen earned a 4000 euro fine for speeding in the pitlane.

As the sport's pecking order seems to turn upside down, Force India's Adrian Sutil soared to seventh in the afternoon heat, as he and team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella made use of a new 'double diffuser'.

On the other hand, BMW Sauber 's good morning form fizzed in session two, while Williams' Nico Rosberg topped the times ahead of Fernando Alonso.

In the sister Renault, Nelson Piquet got his hands on the same 'double diffuser' as Alonso, but trailed the famous Spaniard's pace by nearly a full second.

Championship leader Jenson Button settled not only behind the two Red Bulls but also Jarno Trulli's Toyota, while the morning pacesetter Lewis Hamilton dropped to 11th.

"We haven't made significant progress, we didn't bring anything new here this weekend - our goal remains to score some more points," said the world champion.

McLaren set to face the WMSC on wednesday

The 'lie-gate' saga has continued to be a topic in the Bahrain paddock, as McLaren Mercedes' World Motor Sport Council grilling looms for next Wednesday.

The latest twist in the scandal is the leaking to the press of a letter from Martin Whitmarsh to FIA President Max Mosley, in which the McLaren Team Principal acknowledges that McLaren broke the rules and apologises.

"Certainly, there's been no leak about it from us and I can't comment on it," Whitmarsh, asked about the Times newspaper leak, said in Bahrain.

The Guardian said the contrite letter is a break from McLaren's ‘previously oppositional stance towards motor sport's governing body’.

Some have therefore interpreted the letter, and the leak, as a manoeuvre to reduce the prospect of a harsh penalty next week.

According to rumours, the most likely punishments are either a 30 point reduction or race bans.

"It's very difficult to predict what the court will do," Red Bull's Christian Horner commented. "It would be a shame to lose a team for a couple of races but then again there has to be a penalty for lying to the stewards."

Mosley agreed to reduce 2009 drivers superlicences

Max Mosley has also agreed to lower the cost of this year's Formula One superlicences.

It was reported last month that the FIA President had backed down in his dispute with the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association, who were unhappy about recent price hikes for their mandatory credential.

The FIA said a month ago that a proposal "will be made to the World Motor Sport Council to revise super licence fees for drivers in the 2010 championship."

But Germany's Auto Motor und Sport insists that the lower price will also apply to 2009.
Instead of 2000 Euros being charged per point, the FIA has agreed to charge only €500 per point scored.

Drivers have already paid for their 2009 licences, so they will be issued refunds to reflect the change, the magazine said.