Formula One 2011

[LUKIE]

Great race. Vettel's move at the start was dickish, but it certainly didn't merit a penalty, which he didn't receive anyway. Hamilton's move, there was nothing in it at all. A great race though, with so much happening. Really was pulling for the Alonso win.

[Twist]

I'd argue it not deserving a penalty. He forced jenson onto the grass and caused him to lose a position. The fact he had to make a second mOve to get back onto the racing line for the corner proves it was intentional.

[LUKIE]

I believe the reason he wasn't given a penalty, was because Button wasn't beside him, he could have lifted off the accelerator slightly and moved behind Vettel.

[Lineker]

Not had a chance to watch the race in its entirety yet but a massive congrats to Seb. Very much deserved. Massa really hates Hamilton!! It's quite comical now.

Sebastian Vettel clinched the 2011 Formula 1 world championship with third place in the Japanese Grand Prix, as Jenson Button took victory for McLaren ahead of Fernando Alonso's Ferrari.

The result was Button's first win for McLaren in a totally dry race, and while Vettel's Suzuka winning streak ended, the Red Bull man's podium finish was still more than adequate to make him the champion for a second consecutive year.

Vettel clearly would have preferred to clinch his title with a win - underlining his determination by very firmly defending his lead against the faster starting Button off the line. The McLaren had to flirt with the grass in the close call, prompting Button to enquire over the radio whether Vettel ought to get a penalty. The incident was investigated, but no action was taken.

As Button lost momentum, his team-mate Lewis Hamilton swept around the outside of him into second, where he would stay until signs of a right rear puncture forced him to slow abruptly and make a slightly early pitstop at the end of lap seven. This would drop Hamilton to fourth once the first stops were completed, behind Alonso - who had passed his Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa into the first corner early on.

Button was keeping his tyres in better shape than Vettel, and closed right in on the Red Bull at the end of the stint. Vettel pitted a lap earlier and stayed ahead in the first stops - but not in the second stops on laps 19 and 20, where Button's superb in-lap pace and a great McLaren stop got the Briton out in the lead.

The safety car came out shortly afterwards to clear some debris, including a chunk of Massa's Ferrari bodywork deposited at the chicane when he made contact with Hamilton while trying to go around the outside of the McLaren for fourth. This clash was also investigated, but no action was taken.

With the pack bunched up by the yellow, Vettel found himself back in traffic when he made an early third stop to switch to medium tyres on lap 33.

Button ran three laps longer and extended his lead, with Alonso staying out a further lap still and emerging just ahead of the frustrated Vettel.

The soon-to-be-champion was all over Alonso for a while, until Red Bull suggested now was not the time to take any risks. Alonso then shot off after leader Button, closing to within a second before the McLaren raised its pace in response.

Mark Webber jumped Massa and Hamilton with an early second stop and secured fourth, while having lost out to Massa in the same pit sequence just after their clash, Hamilton overtook the Ferrari again into the first corner on lap 37.

Michael Schumacher took sixth, staying out very late before his third and final stop and therefore leading a grand prix for the first time in his F1 comeback. That strategy also allowed the Mercedes driver to beat Massa to sixth.

Two-stop strategies worked brilliantly for Sergio Perez (Sauber) and Vitaly Petrov (Renault) as they took eighth and ninth. Nico Rosberg charged from the back row to take the final point for Mercedes.

Home hero Kamui Kobayashi's hopes of a great race were ruined by a poor start that left him in traffic all afternoon. He could only finish 13th for Sauber, behind the two Force Indias.

Bruno Senna also lost out on lap one, getting away slightly slowly, then running wide. That and a slow first stop left his Renault only 16th.

The only retirement of the race was Sebastien Buemi, whose Toro Rosso left its first stop with its right front wheel dangling off.

PROVISIONAL RACE RESULTS


The Japanese Grand Prix

Suzuka, Japan;

53 laps; 307.573km;

Weather: Sunny.


Classified:


Pos  Driver        Team                       Time

 1.  Button        McLaren-Mercedes           1h30:53.427

 2.  Alonso        Ferrari                    +     1.160

 3.  Vettel        Red Bull-Renault           +     2.006

 4.  Webber        Red Bull-Renault           +     8.071

 5.  Hamilton      McLaren-Mercedes           +    24.268

 6.  Schumacher    Mercedes                   +    27.120

 7.  Massa         Ferrari                    +    28.240

 8.  Perez         Sauber-Ferrari             +    39.377

 9.  Petrov        Renault                    +    42.607

10.  Rosberg       Mercedes                   +    44.322

11.  Sutil         Force India-Mercedes       +    54.447

12.  Di Resta      Force India-Mercedes       +  1:02.326

13.  Kobayashi     Sauber-Ferrari             +  1:03.705

14.  Alguersuari   Toro Rosso-Ferrari         +  1:04.194

15.  Maldonado     Williams-Cosworth          +  1:06.623

16.  Senna         Renault                    +  1:12.628

17.  Barrichello   Williams-Cosworth          +  1:14.191

18.  Kovalainen    Lotus-Renault              +  1:27.824

19.  Trulli        Lotus-Renault              +  1:36.140

20.  Glock         Virgin-Cosworth            +    2 laps

21.  D-Ambrosio    Virgin-Cosworth            +    2 laps

22.  Ricciardo     HRT-Cosworth               +    2 laps

23.  Liuzzi        HRT-Cosworth               +    2 laps


Fastest lap: Button, 1:36.568


Not classified/retirements:


Driver        Team                         On lap

Buemi         Toro Rosso-Ferrari           35



World Championship standings, round 15:                


Drivers:                    Constructors:             

 1.  Vettel       324        1.  Red Bull-Renault          518

 2.  Button       210        2.  McLaren-Mercedes          388

 3.  Alonso       202        3.  Ferrari                   292

 4.  Webber       194        4.  Mercedes                  123

 5.  Hamilton     178        5.  Renault                    72

 6.  Massa         90        6.  Force India-Mercedes       48

 7.  Rosberg       63        7.  Sauber-Ferrari             40

 8.  Schumacher    60        8.  Toro Rosso-Ferrari         29

 9.  Petrov        36        9.  Williams-Cosworth           5

10.  Heidfeld      34       

11.  Sutil         28       

12.  Kobayashi     27       

13.  Di Resta      20       

14.  Alguersuari   16       

15.  Buemi         13       

16.  Perez         13       

17.  Barrichello    4       

18.  Senna          2       

19.  Maldonado      1       


All timing unofficial[/code]


Sebastian Vettel has won the 2011 Formula 1 world drivers' championship after finishing third behind Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso in the Japanese Grand Prix.


The Red Bull Racing driver needed just one point in Suzuka to guarantee himself the crown, and achieve the landmark of becoming the youngest double world champion in F1 history.


Unable to fend off the quicker McLaren of Button at Suzuka, Vettel eventually settled for third as he decided to take no risks in his late-race fight with Alonso.


Button was the only man who could have stopped Vettel taking the world championship, but to achieve that feat he needed to win all of the remaining five races of the campaign with his German rival not finishing in the points.


Speaking before the race, Button paid tribute to Vettel's achievements this year - and said that even though Red Bull Racing's car had been dominant, the driver had still played a vital role in the outcome of the battle.


"He has really proven himself this year," said Button. "I think last year he had some great drives but he was pretty inconsistent and had more incidents than I expected him to have, considering he won the world championship.


"But this year, he has been exceptional this year. He is doing a great job, and you don't win a championship without a great car. But he is doing what is asked of him from the team.


"He is driving very well. I haven't really spent that much time racing wheel-to-wheel this year, and I don't think many people have. The only real time was in Hungary, maybe once or twice before, but this year he seems a lot calmer.


"My memory goes back to Spa last year when we had our little incident. But since then he has been driving very well and, to finish every race on the podium except for one, is very impressive. You cannot do it without a great car, but he has done exactly the job he was asked to do."

An emotional Sebastian Vettel was thankful to the Red Bull Racing team after securing his second title at the Japanese Grand Prix.


The German became Formula 1's youngest double champion on Sunday after finishing in third place behind Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso.


Vettel, 24, secured the title with four races to go after a sensational season in which he has scored 12 poles and eight victories.


The German admitted it was hard to find the right words after clinching the title, but was very grateful to Red Bull for its work during the year.


"It is difficult to know where to start," said Vettel, who became F1's youngest champion last year. "Obviously it is such a long year and we had a fantastic year, and the best thing is it is not over yet.


"A strong result again today to win the championship here, it's fantastic. There are so many things you want to say in this moment but it's hard to remember all of them, so I am just so thankful to everyone in the team.


"We have so many people here at the track and at Milton Keynes, day in and day out, not only Friday, but also Saturday and Sunday and Monday to Friday, every day pushing hard, fighting hard for points and fighting for the championship.


"We find ourselves in a very strong position and it is great to achieve the goal we set ourselves already now."


He added: "There are so many people. It is hard to name them all, but one person that really stands out this year is the person I spend most of my time with, he is my trainer Tommy Parmakoski, and regards to his family in Finland. They have a great son with a great heart. He was the first one who stopped me from thinking about things not in our control."


Vettel admitted winning back-to-back titles was a very hard thing to achieve, even with last year's experience.


"The hardest thing is winning after winning last year," he said. "We won the championship, it was so close and we were so excited, even knowing how to do it doesn't allow you to forget all these steps. I could not have done this all alone. It is as confusing as the first one I must say. It is hard to find the right words."


Vettel started from pole position but was unable to keep Button and Alonso at bay as he had a hard time with the softer tyres.


"Today's race was not so easy. We were not that quick on soft tyres as we hoped to be. It was difficult as we lost two positions, and it was difficult to get past Fernando. I got my move of the year in Monza and obviously he is not letting me through this way twice." 

Sebastian Vettel said he was driving as hard as possible to try and win the Japanese Grand Prix, without thinking too much about the championship.


The German driver needed just one point to secure his second crown, but Vettel said after the race that he was "as hungry as ever" and trying to win the race without the championship in mind.


In the end the Red Bull driver had to settle ford third position behind Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso.


Vettel claimed he was pushing very hard in order to try to have a shot at victory.


"To be honest I wasn't thinking about the championship at all and I tried to get close to Fernando," said Vettel. "I lost connection a little bit after the backmarker we had to pass, I think one of the Virgins, which obviously was hard to get back again because I was benefiting from the tow and from the DRS.


"And especially when I saw we were closing in on Jenson, I thought this is going to be fun, these last four laps, the victory is in sight again.


"So I was as hungry as I ever have been and going for victory, throwing the car around and trying everything to get close to the guys again.


"I would have loved the race to continue a little bit longer but that's why it was a bit shocking when I crossed the line; that's it, full of adrenaline, charged to get back to them and then all of a sudden, chequered flag.


"Then it was time to realise that we had won the championship and we can take a little bit of time, which I think we will have tonight together."


Vettel, Formula 1's youngest ever double champion, believes it was crucial to stay focused all the time despite his huge advantage in the championship.


And the 24-year-old admitted he will need time for the feeling to sink in.


"Obviously a lot of people have been quite confident on that but I think one of the important things was that we didn't allow ourselves to drift away on it too much," he added. "Everything we did this year, everything we achieved, we achieved as a team. It's not just us on the track it's the guys in the factory pushing very hard as well.


"Every single one from the post office, to the design office, to the engineering office to hear on the track - it's incredible. It's hard to imagine that we've built two cars, we've got two drivers and we carry in a way all that weight on our shoulders when we are on track.


"Sometimes when we are on the track we don't always treat the cars as good as we should, but obviously we try to get every single bit out of them.


"We set ourselves the target to win the championship this year, to achieve it by Japan already with more races to go is difficult to put in words. It will take time, it's as confusing as the first one. I'm sure we have a little bit more time tonight within the team and the rest of the season."


Vettel conceded having seven-time champion Michael Schumacher on track with him as he became a double champion made it all more special for him.


"I tell you what I never imagined that I would win my second world championship and Michael [schumacher] drives past me doing this (makes a gesture with his hand). That's really weird because when I was a little boy he was already Formula 1 world champion.


"So that imagination was far out of sight. It's those small things that make it really, really special. I have a lot of good memories back then and today. I feel in a way quite fortunate and blessed to be able to experience all that.


"We had so many fans today, I saw so many excited people during the drivers' parade, to see the grandstands were full. That's really one of the last thoughts that I have before I put my helmet on.


"Life for me and I think all the drivers doesn't get much better than this. Sunny days, a lot fans, everyone excited to see what you do. I think that is what life is about. To wrap up the championship here, which has been the ultimate target this year, is difficult to put in words. It's more than fantastic."

Michael Schumacher says he is proud of Sebastian Vettel's achievements after securing his second title in a row.


The Red Bull driver became Formula 1's youngest ever double champion after finishing in third place at the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday.


Mercedes driver Schumacher said he was very happy for his compatriot.


"I would like to congratulate Sebastian and his team who have been exceptional the whole year," said Schumacher, a seven-time champion.


"It is extremely emotional to see him win the championship again - I am very happy for him and even a little bit proud."


Team boss Ross Brawn added: "Congratulations to Sebastian and Red Bull Racing on his second world championship - he has driven impeccably all year, and together they have set the standards we must now aim for and exceed."


Schumacher finished the Suzuka race in sixth position, and admitted he was pleased with the result, as he felt it was the maximum he could have achieved.


"I'm very happy with what we achieved in Suzuka today as we maximised our potential of the car, and managed to put in a good race," said Schumacher. "The team did a great job the whole weekend in finding performance and transforming it into the race. I think there was not more to expect and achieve.


"The pitstops were perfectly timed and everything worked out according to plan.


Team-mate Nico Rosberg was also happy with his race after finishing in tenth, having started from the back because of his problems during qualifying.


"I'm pleased to score a point today and had fun out there with a few nice overtaking manoeuvres," he said. "This is definitely one of the toughest tracks for overtaking so starting from the back of the grid meant that I had a pretty tough job.


"Before the race, I hoped to achieve between eighth and 10th places and, whilst it would have been nice to be a bit higher, it's still a decent result."

Sebastian Vettel said he had no idea Jenson Button was alongside him when they nearly made contact at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix.


Pole-winner Vettel made a slightly slow start and then eased across towards the faster-moving Button, who ran out of space and had to take to the grass before backing off and dropping to third behind McLaren team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Button recovered to win the race, while Vettel came home third and clinched the 2011 title.


Vettel said he apologised to Button after the race, insisting he had not seen him, but also joked that he had coped fine when edged towards the grass himself by Fernando Alonso as they battled for the Italian Grand Prix lead last month.


"Ask Fernando, I think Formula 1 cars can go on grass with two wheels..." Vettel said to television reporters.


"I didn't mean to push [button] on the grass. Initially I thought I had a very good start, I knew that it wasn't perfect but I knew it was good because I was pulling away from Lewis.


"When I stop in my box, when the lights go off I can't see Jenson. The reference really, after I have done my bit, is Lewis. I thought maybe Jenson didn't have a good start because of the dirty side of the track, so I pointed to the right naturally - I think it's in all our blood when you are on pole to pull to the inside to make sure.


"And I saw him, saw that there wasn't much room and that he was a bit on the grass and had to obviously lift. But I spoke to him straight after the race and obviously there was no intention to put him in danger."


Button admitted it had been a very unnerving moment.


"I got a very good start, Seb didn't, and I think he realised immediately that he didn't get a good start and he started coming across," said Button.


"I was using as much KERS as I could to get up the inside and he kept coming, he kept coming and he kept coming. I thought in the end he was going to stop, because I was halfway alongside him.


"But he didn't stop, so I got onto the grass and then ended up backing out - I had to, because it would've been an almighty shunt into Turn 1.


"I was a bit surprised. He said that he didn't see me coming until he saw me backing out. And if that's the truth, then it's one of those things.


"I got out of there and I lost a place, which is disappointing, but in a way it's quite nice fighting your way through."


After the incident Button radioed his team to say Vettel ought to receive a penalty, but said that opinion had been expressed in the heat of the moment.


"That's how I felt at that time. Emotions were running high," Button said.


"I've spoken to Seb since and he's said he didn't see me until I backed out of it when I was on the grass. I hope that Seb doesn't lie, so I take his word for it. We're all tough on each other. It's difficult to find the limits.


"The important thing is that I beat him in the race and won the grand prix. But I want to say congratulations to him, he's driven a great year."

Red Bull's advisor Helmut Marko has warned the team's rivals that it plans to continue its domination of Formula 1 into 2012.


Sebastian Vettel clinched his second world championship title in as many years after finishing third in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, and Marko said afterwards that he believes the team is well placed to go for a hat-trick next season.


"We are just going from race-to-race and of course we want to win as many as possible," the Austrian told the BBC. "The whole crew stays together so I don't see a reason why we shouldn't be successful next year."


Speaking of Vettel's championship run, which saw the 24-year-old wrap up the title with four races still to go, Marko was keen to point out Red Bull's contribution to the success.


"He did a very good job, he didn't make nearly any mistakes and he also was very lucky that his car was so reliable," said Marko. "There wasn't one technical issue in comparison to last year. If you remember two times he had technical problems when leading [in 2010].


"Unfortunately today I think we lost it in the pits, but anyway being the champion the second time we are all very happy and we will fight for the next one."


Suzuka winner Jenson Button says the Japanese Grand Prix result shows that Formula 1 is in for a highly competitive end to the season, despite Sebastian Vettel clinching the world championship today.


Button's victorious McLaren finished just 1.1 seconds ahead of Ferrari's Fernando Alonso at Suzuka, with Vettel's Red Bull a further 0.8s behind.


"It gives us as a team a lot of motivation," said Button. "It is good to see three different cars within three seconds, it shows how competitive F1 is at the moment."


The result was Button's first win for McLaren in a totally dry race, and his third of the season. He praised the improvements the team has made recently.


"I need to say a big thanks to the team for the improvements we had over the last few races and today they were impeccable, congratulations to them," said Button.


He also took time to congratulate Vettel on his second world championship.


"I think it should be Seb who we talk about because this guy has done a good job this year," Button said. "However hard we tried we have not been able to touch him all year, so congratulations."


Button added that he was particularly pleased to win in Japan given what the country had suffered this year after the earthquake and tsunami in March.


"This circuit is very special to all of us," he said. "We love this place so to get a victory here in front of such an amazing Japanese crowd really does mean a lot, and we put a good show on for the fans.


"The fans are so supportive, we tried to do a bit to help them and plant a little memory in their minds."


Fernando Alonso described Ferrari's performance in the Japanese Grand Prix as a huge motivation for the team.


Alonso finished second, charging onto winner Jenson Button's tail in the closing laps, and giving Ferrari its best result since he was runner-up to Lewis Hamilton at the Nurburgring in July.


"It was a fun race, at the start we did not overtake any cars, then there was a lot of tyre degradation," said Alonso.


"We had the pace today to fight with McLaren and Red Bull Racing.


"It's fantastic podium, it is a good thing for the team after difficult races where we were not so competitive. This podium means a lot to the team and is a big motivation for the team."


Alonso qualified only fifth, before passing team-mate Felipe Massa early on. He then jumped Hamilton in the first pitstops and new champion Sebastian Vettel at the final stops, before chasing after Button.


The result keeps Alonso third in the drivers' championship, eight points behind Button and eight ahead of Mark Webber.


Kamui Kobayashi said a problem with his Sauber's anti-stall system was the main reason why his home grand prix went so wrong at Suzuka today.


The Japanese driver had started a career-best seventh, but lost five places off the line. He struggled to make progress through the field, and trying to hang on to one set of tyres from the mid-race safety car period to the finish did not pay off.


"It was a tricky race for me," Kobayashi admitted after finishing 13th. "At the start when I released the clutch the car suddenly was in anti-stall mode, and that was why I lost five positions straight away.


"I tried to fight other cars then but overtaking wasn't as easy as it was here last year. Then the safety car came out in what was a bad moment for our strategy.


"I did my second stop when the safety car was out, we changed from the soft to the medium compound and with those tyres I then had to go to the end of the race - 29 laps. In the end they were just so bad that I couldn't defend my position anymore.


"Anyway, I had a good qualifying here and the car's performance in the race has definitely improved, so we will keep pushing at the remaining races."


Team boss Peter Sauber expressed his sympathy for Kobayashi.


"Everybody in the team hoped Kamui could score a good result in his home grand prix," said Sauber. "He would have deserved that after his strong qualifying performance, but then things went wrong at the start. He lost a lot of positions, and his aggressive strategy didn't work as a result of that."


Sauber still scored in the race, thanks to Sergio Perez's drive from 17th on the grid to eighth on a two-stop strategy.


"Sergio drove a brilliant race," said Sauber. "Starting from 17th and finishing eighth says it all. He was aggressive and consistent at the same time.


"His result also proves that we made a clear step forward with our car, which is important for the upcoming races."


Felipe Massa has hit out at Lewis Hamilton once again after the pair clashed in the Japanese Grand Prix - as he urged the FIA to get tough with his McLaren rival.


Massa and Hamilton were battling for fourth place in the Japanese GP when they came together at the chicane – as the Brazilian tried to go around the outside at the same time that the Briton moved to the left.


With a piece of Massa's front wing coming off in the minor collision, and him suffering floor damage, the FIA stewards looked into the matter to see if either driver was at fault - but it was judged to have been a racing incident.


Hamilton said that the coming together had been the result of him being unable to see where Massa was behind him.


"The only thing I have to say is that I can't see anything out of my mirrors and they vibrate down the straight so much that I had no idea he was there," explained Hamilton. "Maybe it's something we can fix, but anyway I have no problems with him."


Despite Hamilton's explanation, Massa remained furious about their latest clash – following accidents between the pair in Monaco and Singapore.


Reacting to comments that Hamilton had been unable to see Massa coming up behind him, Massa said: "I don't care, to be honest, about what he [Hamilton] said. The only thing I care about is what he did. He was so slow in 130R and he stayed on the right-hand side.


"I was much quicker, so I went to the left-hand side and I braked there. I stayed on my line; he moved his car and touched my car. There's nothing more to say. For what he says, I don't care. I care about what the federation says and what the FIA does.


"They have penalised people for much less this year and this time they didn't do it. It's the second time in a row after the problem in qualifying as well in the last race, and after what happened yesterday. And after many times this year. The FIA needs to take care of that. They are the only ones who can take care of that."


When asked by AUTOSPORT if it would not be better for him to speak face-to-face with Hamilton to sort out the issue, Massa replied: "No. He doesn't learn. As I said before, I don't care. I race against him, against whatever driver in the same way. I don't really care. He has already passed the time to speak, which I tried and he didn't."


Massa did suggest, however, that he may bring the matter up if he has a chance to speak to FIA race director Charlie Whiting.


"Maybe if I see Charlie, I will speak to him. But there's nothing really to say now," he said.


Formula 1 team bosses have expressed some concerns about the ongoing political situation in Bahrain, just six months ahead of the sport's intended return to the Gulf state.


Although the FIA has sanctioned the comeback of the Sakhir event, following its cancellation this year, F1 outfits are not totally relaxed because of ongoing political troubles there - which have included clashes between police and protestors, and the jailing of medical staff.


And although there are no calls yet for the event to be called off, a number of team bosses are mindful that the situation needs to be monitored carefully.


Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner told the Press Association: "Obviously it's worrying when you hear the type of news that's come out of Bahrain.


"But [F1 supremo] Bernie [Ecclestone], more than anybody, is probably acutely aware of the situation there. When the time is right for difficult decisions that have to be made, he's demonstrated he's not afraid of making them. But yes, some of the reports that have come out of Bahrain recently, the situation is rather worrying."


McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh, who is chairman of the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA), believed there was plenty of time to deal with matters.


"We will make a decision," he said. "As far as I know it is quite a bit calmer than it was six months ago when we were having this discussion before. But we have enough time. To speculate on next year is probably a bit premature I think at this moment.


"There was clearly unrest; there was clearly some aftermath to that. But I don't know what is going to happen in the coming months, and we have a fair amount of time. To speculate on what may or may not happen there next year is a little bit premature."


Renault boss Eric Boullier made it clear that the teams would be more than happy to compete in Bahrain, providing it was safe to do so.


"On the human side, it's not nice to see all these problems," he said. "We keep an eye on it. On the sport side, we want to be back in Bahrain, clearly. We have not changed our position from last year.


"Bahrain is part of Formula 1 for many years, they have invested in F1 and we like to go there and it's part of the show now. So we want to be back. But not at any price."


Post-race press conference:

[spoiler]TV Unilaterals


Q. Jenson, coming into this weekend you said all you wanted from the rest of the season was to take another grand prix victory. Job done. Congratulations.


Jenson BUTTON: Thank you very much. I think this circuit is very special to all of us. We love this place, so to get a victory here in front of such an amazing Japanese crowd really does mean a lot. I need to say a big thanks to the team for the improvements we have had over the last few races and today they have been impeccable. Congratulations to them and congratulations to the fans. I think we put on a good show for them today.


Q. Fernando, a brilliant podium, a great strategic race and a fabulous battle with Sebastian. It looked like a lot of fun.


Fernando ALONSO: Yeah, first of all, congratulations to Sebastian. World Champion in this race. It was a fun race. From the start we didn't overtake any car but then the strategy was quite important, with a lot of tyre degradation, so we picked the right moment to stop and we had the pace today to fight with McLaren and Red Bull and finally, a fantastic podium. I think it is a good thing for the team after difficult races where we were not so competitive that we came back to a good level here, and this podium means a lot for the team, a lot of motivation for the remaining races of this year and, for sure, a big boost for next year's motivation.


Q. Sebastian, probably not the result you were hoping for today but you came into this weekend needing one point and with a podium you have done it.


Sebastian VETTEL: Yes, it is difficult to know where to start. Such a long year. We had a fantastic year. The good thing is it is not over yet. Today's race was not so easy. I think we weren't that quick on the soft tyres as we hoped to be and then it was difficult. We lost two positions. In the end, I think we had a very good car. It was difficult to get past Fernando. I think I got my move of the year in Monza, so I don't think he is letting me through this way twice. But phenomenal, strong result again today. To win the championship here is fantastic. There are so many things you want to say at this moment but it's hard to remember all of them. I am just so thankful to everyone in the team. We have got so many people here at the track but also at Milton Keynes working day in day out. Not only Friday, Saturday, Sunday, but also Monday to Friday, every day, pushing hard to build those two cars and to fight for a lot of points and to fight for the championship. We found ourselves in a very, very strong position and it is great to achieve the goal we set ourselves going into this year already now. There are so many people it is hard to name them all to thank, but I think one person that really stands out this year is the person I spend most of my time with during the year. It's my trainer Tommi Parmakoski. Also, regards to his family. I think back in Finland they have a great son with a great heart. He was the one not allowing me at any stage this year to lose the grip, start to fly, or think about things that are not in our control. Congratulations to Jenson, congratulations to Fernando. I think today we saw that it is extremely tight. Tighter than maybe sometimes it looked this year. In the end, the top four cars were within not even 10 seconds and it is great to know that it is so tight but that we can come so strong out of it. They also know how to drive as well and are doing a fantastic job, but I think this year we have always been just this one step ahead. It is down to people like Tommi and other individuals, every single one is pushing more than 100 per cent to do his job and keeps us on the right track. There is no secret. It is step-by-step. I think in a way the hardest thing is after winning last year... we won the championship it was so close and we were so excited. To go out and do it again, even though you know how to do it, it doesn't allow you to forget all these little steps and as I said I could not have done this alone. I needed all the support I could get from the team, from Mark [Webber], from everyone outside the team working for me, so it is just as confusing as the first one I have to say. It is hard to find the right words.


Q. Jenson, everyone knows the affinity you have with Japan and its people. What's it like to win here on this incredible circuit with these fabulous fans and how much motivation does that give you going into the last few races of the year?


JB: It gives us, as a team, a lot of motivation. It is good, as Sebastian said, to see three different cars within, I think, about three seconds. It shows how competitive Formula One is at the moment. There are a lot of fans here. They are so supportive of the sport that we are in and I think we have all tried to do a little bit to help them, to plant a good memory in their mind as this has been a tough year for Japan. This is a special race and a very special crowd. I think we need to thank them for supporting us. But, lastly, it should be Seb that we talk about, as this guy has done a great job this year. However hard we have tried we haven't been able to touch him in a lot of races so congratulations. PRESS CONFERENCE


Q. Jenson, a great race, and in the dry. Does that give you some satisfaction?


JB: I can't believe you just said that! I have won other races in the dry! No, it was a great race. The start was very good, maybe too good, and I ended up on the grass, which lost me a bit of time. Very interesting race as tyre wear was massive. It was a very exciting race and it wasn't just down to being quick over one lap. You really had to think through the race. I really enjoyed it out there. It is always a very special place to race, Suzuka, a fast, flowing circuit and it is unforgiving, so one little mistake and it is game over. This is one of the most perfect circuits in grand prix racing and also with one of the most special crowds as well. The Japanese people here have been so supportive of us and it is great to see so many fans here supporting this weekend and hopefully we have planted a small, good memory in their heads as it has been a very difficult year for them. To get the win here is one of my most special victories as I don't think I have ever won a race on such a high-speed circuit, so it means a lot to me.


Q. Going down into the first corner, over the radio, you thought maybe Sebastian should have had a penalty for that.


JB: Yeah, I did at the time. I am not going to lie. From my point of view I felt that he kept coming when I wasn't alongside him but I had half my car up the inside. I thought he was coming across more than I expected and didn't give me any room and I was on the grass but I am sure when I watch it back on TV, or maybe when I watch it back on TV, I will have a different opinion. But at that moment in time, yes, I felt that it was a little bit more than was needed. But it was obviously fair, as the stewards said it was fair, so that's it. Sometimes, when you get a good start and the guy in front doesn't get such a good start these sort of things happen. If we all get off the line at the same speed it is not normally an issue. We will put that behind us. But a great weekend. I felt very strong in the car all weekend and this is promising for the next four races. I know Seb has wrapped it up today, which is pretty impressive with so many races to go, but there are still a few races left and there is a lot of fighting to be done and a lot of wins to fight for, which I am very excited about.


Q. We saw the pair of them catching you in the final moments, but then you popped in the fastest lap. Were you just conserving tyres? What was going on?


JB: Well, I have been watching Seb drive all year and I have decided that is the way to go racing. Just cruise it and stick in a fast lap. That's what he seems to do at the end of the race, so I thought I would give it a go and it worked pretty well, so it was good.


Q. But were you conserving tyres or were you in trouble there?


JB: I was looking after tyres, also looking after a bit of fuel, so it wasn't the easiest few laps. The last five laps weren't the most enjoyable, I must admit, but we got it home. The car has been great around here. The Red Bulls are always so strong on these fast circuits, especially with the change of direction, so for us to win here really does mean a lot for us, as we have been fighting this for two years now. It is good to be up there with the Red Bulls. In a way, it is nice that the Ferrari is up there as well. A three-way battle at the end, four seconds between us or less, this is what racing is all about and hopefully it will be the same for the next few races.


Q. Fernando, among the euphoria of the winner and the new World Champion, that was a great race for Ferrari as well?


FA: Yeah, I think it is a good race, a good weekend in general for us. Trouble-free in practice and then a good qualifying performance, fourth and fifth, so in the top five and both Ferraris in front of Webber, so in general quite competitive here, the car. At the end, with a perfect race, good start, good strategy, good pit-stops, and a good pace throughout the race second feels much, much better than expected probably before the start at three o'clock. It is a good result and gives us some extra motivation for the remaining races knowing that it is going to be tough as the updates on the car will be minimal but in some races, some circuits, we are still competitive, so why not fight for victory in one of the remaining races.


Q. And what about those last few laps with Sebastian right behind you and Jenson just ahead?


FA: First, with Sebastian it was difficult to keep him behind as at that part of the race he was quicker than us. I tried to defend the position in braking for the last corners and into the first corner as well, where the DRS was active. After we had done this job we saw we were catching a little bit Jenson, so we tried in the last couple of laps but, as we saw later on, Jenson was taking care about tyres, about his car, so it was impossible to fight for victory this time. Also, we start fifth, so when you start fifth you have to recover always all through the race and you arrive two seconds behind the leader. If you start second or third that gap is already done maybe 10 laps before the end.


Q. Sebastian, was your approach any different today? This was one of your more difficult races; you saw two drivers come out ahead of you after pit stops which hasn't happened.


SV: No, which I didn't enjoy. I think we were a little bit too weak today on the option tyre, against those two guys at the end of the stints. I think in comparison to Lewis - I don't know what was happening to the end of his race - but in the first stint we were able to pull away. Then obviously I got informed that Jenson passed him - Jenson was seven, eight tenths quicker at that stage, which clearly is not because he found a short cut all of a sudden but he took care of his tyres better than the rest and is able to push harder at the end of the stints, and any time on the soft tyre, we had to come in quite early. On the hard tyre, I felt much much better but as you said, I came out behind Fernando, lost a little bit of time to the Force India when I tried to get past, which didn't work straight away and then I was sticking to Fernando quite well until the Virgin…


I don't know, maybe he should use both of his mirrors, it was a bit dangerous. Fernando was right behind him, he pulled to the right, let him by, before taking the corner before turn eight and I knew that I wouldn't take any stupid risks but I didn't expect him to go back on line but he did so I lost quite a lot. I lost the connection which is obviously important. You get some lap time for free if you're always behind because you are in the DRS zone so it's easy to catch up a little bit on the straight. Unfortunately I was never really close enough to pass Fernando. Their straightline speed was quite good, which we already knew on Friday.


It was a fun race though, and especially seeing as we were closing in on Jenson, I thought here you go, now you see how it feels when the guys are catching up at the end of the race. It's not the most comfortable feeling. But obviously he had quite a bit in hand and he was able to react three laps to the end. I think this race has been a little bit the story of the year, even though sometimes the results look pretty clear. You see that in the races the cars are pretty close to each other. Ferrari played a major role today with Fernando, they looked much better than what people expected. It was a fun race. Obviously I would have loved to sit in the middle which, to answer your question, was the target going into the race. I wasn't targeting one point. If we targeted one point, I think the race would have been a bit different, but we targeted to do our optimum, which in a way today was third place, and that's what we got.


But to win the championship here is pretty special and a bit funny at the same time, because it's as confusing as the first one. All of sudden, you're supposed to… yep, that's the moment, now enjoy. I think it will surely take a little bit of time but the season has been fantastic. I think with a less dominant car than last year we were able to do a very, very good job. We are very strong as a team. Every time it mattered, we made very few mistakes, especially at those times when it was critical, we were there, we were performing. I think everyone working for Red Bull Racing can be very proud today. Renault has done a fantastic job; very often they get forgotten. We have had no problems with the engine at all. They were sending a lot of support all the time, pushing very hard in Viry, back in France, close to Paris.


Obviously this year I think it has been more about engines than in any other year, not maybe in a performance perspective as in raw power but playing around with engine modes. We had a lot of discussion midway through the season, exhaust blowing etc, and I think Renault has pushed very hard and a lot of our performance is down to them. It's hard to name one individual. In the end, I think the secret, if there was one this year, is that we could trust, one hundred percent, the guy next to us and that's for the whole team. I think what we have achieved so far in Red Bull Racing is just incredible and we obviously hope to enjoy the rest of the year. The target for the next race will be exactly the same as this race and the last race, but also make sure that we are fighting those guys in the future.


QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR


Q. (Livio Oricchio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Sebastian, could you describe your manoeuvre at the start of the race? Jenson said that it was not so fair.


SV: I just spoke to him. He expressed his feelings. Initially I wasn't sure where he was, I didn't really see him. I thought he was either on the right or he was far away on the left. I saw Lewis and I thought I had a good start and kept moving to the right, looking for him. By the time I saw him, I realised that maybe I was a little bit too far to the right and then he was backing off. Obviously no intention to put him in any danger but I think we can run with two wheels on the grass, can't we Fernando?


JB: Did you think I was Fernando?


SV: No, no, I said we can race with two wheels on the grass, and then I said Fernando. Obviously, as I said, I didn't want to put him in danger but I think we have to race each other hard and I thought it was a shame… at the end, I thought we were all getting together again and maybe have another fight. For a moment, I was thinking that maybe the victory was not out of my hands, which it looked like going into the last stint, but yeah, it was close. It would have been fun if it had continued for another five or ten laps.


JB: I probably would have struggled with another five laps.


SV: That's why!


Q. (Joris Fioriti – Agence France Presse) Jenson, I may have been mistaken, but when I saw you on the podium you were not really overwhelmed with joy. I thought that you were at the same time happy to win, but very disappointed to lose the title. Did I imagine that or is that the way you feel?


JB: I was really surprised to lose the title today, yeah! I think I had given up on that quite a long time ago. I was very happy on the podium, maybe just the way I express my feelings isn't as obvious as maybe I think.


SV: Maybe you were still exhausted, you had to run down from the pit lane.


JB: I had to run the whole pit lane. For some reason, I seem to do that quite a lot: parking in the wrong place and running down. I've never realised how uphill the pit lane is as well. Amazing. But no, I was very happy, ecstatic, this is a very special race to win, as Seb knows for the last couple of years, not just because of the layout but because of the history here and also, as I said before, the crowd here. So a very special victory; it's obviously not as big as Seb winning the World Championship today but winning a race like this does take a little bit of time to sink in. I remember when I won the World Championship, immediately it was a strange feeling, it was like: what am I supposed to feel right now? And it takes a little bit of time. It normally comes when you're on your own and you can really think about what you have achieved. I'm sure Seb's going to look forward to that tonight or about five or six in the morning.


SV: Oh no. Afternoon.


Q. (Frederic Ferret – L'Equipe) Fernando, now Seb is the youngest two time World Champion; you've lost that title. What does it mean to you now?


FA: Really nothing special. I think now we will see who is the youngest three time World Champion.


JB: I'm feeling the odd one out here, I'm feeling uncomfortable.


SV: Did you notice that Michael is the youngest seven time World Champion – ever!


JB: Really? Wow. Is he? That surprises me. He's also the oldest racing driver in F1.


SV: No. No. Not.


Q. (Paolo Ianieri – La Gazzetta dello Sport) One year later, Sebastian, what's going through your head? Last year was perhaps a surprise at that last race; is it any different this year?


SV: Every year… I think every race is different. I wouldn't say last year was a surprise. That's what we were fighting for and even if the odds weren't looking too good, we kept believing. Even the year before I remember very, very well the moment in Brazil, probably as well as Jenson does. It's not a nice feeling, knowing that you lose the title, so but it's always these important moments that you remember, the good and the bad and in particular the bad because I think you are able to learn so much from the times that you are being beaten in a way. But the funny thing this year is that next week there is the next race, so that's a bit difficult to understand. I think all year we tried very, very hard to keep our feet on the ground and always tried to focus on the next step, on the next race which, I think, in the end, if there was any, was one of the secrets. Last year, after the chequered flag it was all over, there was a long period of time when you weren't in the car again etc, so it's a bit different this year, and it makes it even more special in a way. So I'm very much looking forward to the rest of the season. We have a great car, a great team, and obviously we use everything we have to make the next step and do well or perform well at the next race. It does take some time to understand and I think those quiet moments that I will have, at some point, either tonight, tomorrow or the next week or weeks, for myself, but also with people who are very close to me, to take time and let things sink in a little bit.


Q. (Sarah Holt – BBC Sport) Seb, you've almost answered my question because I was going to say it's been a long time since we've had the championship won with four races left to go. Do you think…


SV: It's probably Michael, I think he won half of his championships…


JB: Bloody Germans!


SV: What exactly do you mean?


Q. (Sarah Holt – BBC Sport) Do you think in some ways we should read that your championship this year was easier than it was last year, and for all three of you, how are going to race now that the championship has been won? Will it be free-er, how is your attitude different now?


SV: I think that it's very likely for people to draw the wrong conclusion, to say that we had a very easy run this year. Things like this, they happen for a reason; I strongly believe that, not because things were easy for us. We had a very, very good car, no doubt, but we had an even stronger team, and as I said, a couple of times already, I think the car this year was less dominant than the car last year. Last year we had so many races where sometimes you may say we were unlucky but we made stupid mistakes as well. We did things which cost us a lot of time and cost us a lot of points in the end. A championship is not one race, it's a lot of races pulled together and I think that's where the difference came from this year. Obviously, after a very good start to the season, if you are on a good run, and you have this certain momentum and you're able to keep that momentum, by not allowing yourself to start to fly or think too far ahead, really just stay present and just stay at that moment and focus race by race, and not thinking anything else. If you are able to keep that momentum that way, I think it makes you very strong and if you are on that sort of wave, then things might come a bit easier to you but it doesn't mean that they are easy. So all in all, I think there was a lot to learn again this year, and hopefully that made us stronger for the remainder of the season, in which I think the approach will be very similar. Obviously a lot of the pressure has fallen away but nonetheless, there is a lot of pressure on us, because naturally we want to win, we want to beat those guys. We didn't do so today so obviously we are over the moon to wrap up the championship today but we didn't win today, so we've got another chance in the next races and we want to use those chances. It's about using the opportunities you have, rather than seeing what could go wrong.


JB: Hopefully (we will race) exactly the same.


SV: So you're always going to park just after the chequered flag?


JB: Yeah. I might not lift off next time you pull across at the start though.


SV: That means I'm on pole, so that's good.


Q. (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando, during the race, in the car, did you really believe you could win, and is it really possible to finish second in the championship?


FA: In the race, I never thought about victory, if I'm completely honest with you. I only had a small possibility, maybe five or six laps from the end, when Jenson was dropping back a little bit and we closed the gap. Then I thought maybe if we were close enough maybe two laps or one lap from the end I could use the DRS and maybe have a chance, but I knew that it was difficult, but during the race, no, no time to think.


And second place in the championship. It's nice to be second, better than fourth or fifth, but as I said on Thursday, I prefer a win and finish fifth in the championship than finish in second not winning one of the remaining races. Hopefully we can do one of those two things, either second or win a race but probably it will be difficult to win a race and will be difficult to be second so that's the worst combination, but it's very possible as well.[/spoiler]

[Lineker]

Sebastian Vettel still has the capacity to improve his driving heading in to next year, despite having been the class of the field throughout his title-winning 2011 campaign.

That is the view of his Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner, who reckons that Vettel will not rest on his laurels after becoming the youngest ever double world champion.

Vettel capped his brilliant season in the Japanese Grand Prix by delivering a third place finish that put him out of reach in the points' standings of race-winner Jenson Button.

And although his results this year have been almost perfect, Horner says Vettel will still look to see where he can improve.

"It will be hard for him to better what he has achieved so far this year, but knowing Sebastian he is never satisfied and he will always be looking to improve," said Horner, whose team is still chasing the constructors' championship title. "And that is what makes him such a strong driver."

Horner says that the team will regain its focus for this weekend's Korean Grand Prix as it bids to clinch the constructors' championship, where it currently stands 130 points ahead of McLaren. Once that is wrapped up, it well then set its sights on records like most wins and most pole positions in a season.

"I think the main target now is to close out the constructors' championship, but of course there are a few records that are potentially available, particularly to Sebastian," he said. "But I am sure that while his main focus will be to help the team win the constructors', I am sure he has got half an eye on maybe matching some of those records."

Red Bull Racing's rivals have all been pushing hard with their 2012 cars in recent weeks to try and ensure they start next year in the best possible shape - and Horner said that the outfit would not take anything for granted in its ambitions to keep itself at the top of F1.

"We have had a phenomenal 2011, we have had a phenomenal 2010, we had a great 2009 and the team has worked phenomenally well as a group of people, and as a team," he said. "The effort that has gone into this weekend with components coming out late: it demonstrates the passion and effort and desire that burns within the team.

"But you would be foolish to underestimate our competitors and rivals, and of course unlike in previous years the regulations are fixed. There are common tyre suppliers and much more stringent regulations in certain areas, so to have achieved the level of performance that we have is quite exceptional, and one that we will be looking to try and maintain not only into next year but obviously throughout the close of next year as well."

He added: "Obviously everything we do this year we learn and benefit from for next year. So until the chequered flag drops in Brazil there will be no change to our approach.

"The priority is to get Mark up there as well, we want to see him take the runners' up position and finish the season on a real high, and whatever we learn and take out of this year will apply to next year's car."

Horner also suggested that the team would be bringing 2012 development parts to races over the remainder of the campaign.

"It is the only opportunity track-testing wise that we have really before RB8 is born, so of course we will look to optimise all the track time left that we have this year," he said.

Sebastian Vettel is capable of achieving more success in Formula 1 than Michael Schumacher, according to former world champion Niki Lauda.

Vettel became Formula 1's youngest double champion on Sunday at Suzuka, after securing his second title in a row at the age of 24.

Schumacher, the most successful driver in the history of the sport with seven titles and 91 wins, clinched his second title at the age of 26.

Lauda, a triple world champion, reckons Vettel has all the ingredients to surpass Schumacher.

"He has all the circumstances to do it," Lauda told Reuters in an interview. "If the car and his career and where he drives and which car continues in the right direction, then yes.

"If you choose the wrong car or the car you are driving doesn't work, then you can't win because its always the combination of the two.

"But he certainly theoretically can win more than Schumacher if he sits at the right time in the right car because he himself is certainly capable of it."

He added: "It is the best performance so far in Formula 1, at his age to win two (titles).

"To win the first one is always the most difficult because all your career, starting from go-karts all the way up, is years and years of work for this particular day. The second one is easier in a way because there is less pressure."

Lauda, 62, believes Vettel has a huge hunger for victory and sees no reason why he will lack motivation in the future.

"He is this kind of person, every lap he is doing and every race he is doing he wants to get quicker and quicker," added the Austrian.

"I came to a point where I really decided I wanted to find something else for my life. But in his particular case, with his age and what is all in front of him, there is no way he will be demotivated. He drives himself."

World champion Sebastian Vettel says Red Bull Racing will use the final four races of the season to try and learn how to be stronger in the 2012 season.

The German driver clinched his second title at Suzuka on Sunday, after a dominant season that saw him wrap up the crown with four grands prix to go.

With the title already in his pocket, and with Red Bull nearly on the verge of securing the constructors' title too, Vettel says his team has now the freedom to try new things that may help them be even stronger next year.

"The best thing is that this season is not over yet," said Vettel in a post-race interview in Japan. "We still have four races to learn a lot and in a way a certain freedom to explore, to make sure next year we are even stronger and more prepared."

Vettel, the youngest ever double world champion at 24, hailed the progress made by Red Bull since the 2009 season, the German claiming the team is now on a different league.

"I think if you look at the team at the beginning of 2009 and now it's a completely different team," he said. "It's mostly the same people but I think we are all playing in a different league now, on a different level.

"You can see the trust we have. Every single one is able to trust in the one next to him or her. It's fantastic, and I'm very proud of what we have achieved as a team and very, very proud to be part of it."

And the Red Bull driver admitted he was struggling to accept he was a double world champion now.

"It was impossible to imagine. When I was a boy I loved racing and, to be honest, I was dreaming about Formula 1 but you never imagine you could be there one day. It is as confusing as the first championship in many ways, because it's so hard to grasp and difficult to understand.

"I'm obviously very happy, very proud, especially because I think the team did a great job. It's not easy to come back after the strong season we had last year and achieve a little bit more, so so far it has been great."

Lewis Hamilton will bounce back from his current troubles to rediscover the kind of form that helped him become a world champion, according to McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh.

Whitmarsh thinks that Hamilton has lost none of his ability, but is currently suffering on the back of some confidence-sapping outings.

And, despite fresh scrutiny of Hamilton's driving after another controversial collision with Felipe Massa during the Japanese Grand Prix, Whitmarsh thinks it will only take one good result for the British driver to get back to his best.

"I think he has got to be comfortable in himself, and it will come," said Whitmarsh, when asked by AUTOSPORT about his views on the situation Hamilton finds himself in at the moment.

"He is a great racing driver. His heart is in it, and he is very open about his emotions. He doesn't like not winning, but it will come good. I hope that this time next week we are celebrating one of Lewis' greatest ever victories, and that is entirely possible.

"We all know he has got it, we know we have got a car that can give him a win and he has got the capability to do it. We just have to make sure he has got the focus and ensure that we do that."

Whitmarsh thinks that Hamilton just needs some events to go his way for his outlook to be totally different.

"You look at any top international athlete. Their confidence and form ebbs and flows a little bit, and you have to say that, at the moment, some of it is luck. He is in a situation where he will, and can, recover very, very quickly from that."

Although Hamilton was on the receiving end of yet more criticism from Massa after their Japanese GP coming together, Whitmarsh thinks the incident at the chicane was nothing more than a simple racing accident.

"Sadly they do seem to be magnetised don't they?" said Whitmarsh about Hamilton and Massa. "Lewis did not see him. You could say 'well he should have done', but are the mirrors big enough, good enough? Maybe not, but it was one of those things.

"You could say, because of previous form, it was one of those types of incidents, but I don't think it was. He didn't see him and he moved over. In truth he [Massa] had more space than Jenson [button] had at the start [after being squeezed by Sebastian Vettel], and if he had moved off line harder he would have avoided it, wouldn't he?"

Whitmarsh believes that Hamilton's biggest hindering factor in the Japanese GP was the slow puncture he suffered during the early laps of the race.

"He paid the price for a slow puncture. We could see it coming, and he had a big misbalance across the rear axle from that. It cost him a couple of places and the coming together with Felipe didn't help either.

"It was a combination of those things that lost him some places and it was tough to come back from that. In fairness to Lewis, he drove a controlled and disciplined race to score some valuable points. But, by his own standards, he will be disappointed by it."

McLaren believes it can now fight for victory in the final four races of the year on the back of Jenson Button's brilliant victory in the Japanese Grand Prix.

Button made the most of the latest developments from McLaren to take the fight to Red Bull Racing at Suzuka - and great tyre management plus intelligent driving helped him edge out Fernando Alonso and world champion Sebastian Vettel.

With that performance coming at a track that has traditionally been perfect stomping ground for Red Bull Racing in the past, McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh says hopes are high for a strong end to the campaign now.

"We have a race car, and we have felt this for the last few races, that we can win races with," said Whitmarsh. "That is what we have been saying about these last five races: they are all winnable.

"We would like to win them. We are in that interesting situation where the championship is finished but there is a good fight in the drivers' championship for second place now. That does not inspire many of us, but we have to concentrate on that because the constructors' championship looks reasonably settled in terms of the top four places now.

"For us, it is now about winning races and we will concentrate on that. We like winning races and this is our fifth victory this year. If we win the next four then we will consider it a half respectable season."

Whitmarsh believes that one of the most encouraging aspects of the Japanese GP weekend was how close the team came to pole position - and he thinks it would be a big matter of pride for his outfit if it could end Red Bull Racing's lock-out of the top grid slot at some point in 2011.

"I think to me the biggest disappointment was not getting pole position [in Japan], as we felt we could get pole," he said. "There are no points in it, there is nothing in it. There is only your own pride. But we would like to score a pole position or two before the end of this season and we would like to score another four wins if we can."

Whitmarsh has, however, played down talk that a strong end to the season will mean much more in terms of a title challenge for next year.

"There is very limited development we are going to do on this year's car now," he explained. "We are concentrating on next year, and that is a programme that is going on at Woking. In the field, we just want to win races.

"Psychological momentum? I don't know what that counts for, but I don't think it counts for too much. If your car is quick enough at the beginning of next year then you will win races, and if it is not then you will struggle. We have to make sure we are quicker at the start of next year."

Whitmarsh also praised Button's driving in Japan, where he conserved his tyres during the early stages of the race and perfectly managed his fuel consumption at the end of the event.

"We were looking after it and it was causing a little bit of tension," he said. "I think he drove the right race. You have to win by one second; you don't have to win in these circumstances by seconds.

"Jenson drove well. He was lifting and coasting at various times at all points of that race. Not chasing, not getting tucked up someone's diffuser. It is very difficult and non-intuitive of a race driver if you have a car in front and you think you can catch him, but actually not catch him.

"But that is the maturity and the brains that Jenson brings to bear at the moment in terms of how he goes motor racing."

Ferrari has no doubt that it will take only a small improvement in pace with next year's car to get itself back into world championship contention, following its strong performance at the Japanese Grand Prix.

The Italian outfit halted development of its 2011 car several months ago, after failing to get on terms with Red Bull, and instead focused its efforts on what it promises to be a more aggressive concept for next year.

But with Fernando Alonso having been able to fight both McLaren and Red Bull for victory at Suzuka last Sunday, team principal Stefano Domenicali thinks there is evidence that getting the most out of its tyres is just as vital as out-and-out downforce - which has lifted hopes that a small amount of progress will be enough to transform its form next season.

"I am convinced about it," Domenicali said. "If you look at the way of what happened in Japan, there was not such a huge gap to overcome, I must say.

"So we need to be spot on in the preparation of the car without getting too anxious of being so far behind. That means we are maybe closer than what we were thinking and we need to, on the other side, make sure everything is under control in terms of development and in terms of the baseline of the car.

"One element that is crucial is to understand the tyre performance, and [we need to] make sure we really use that as a performance factor because I think there is a lot to learn after this season on that."

Ferrari reverted to an older specification of design at the Japanese Grand Prix, after planned upgrades that had arrived at the car since that race had failed to deliver the steps forward the team had expected.

And that is what makes Domenicali even more positive that his team is not in such bad shape as it plots a fight back.

"I think that I was impressed by our performance because it was close to be first, we were second, and to be honest with you we were not expecting to be so competitive," he said.

"It means that there must now be two elements under investigation so we can understand everything to be of benefit for next year. It is really the combination of the effect of the tyres, which is new in all different track conditions and surfaces, plus the effect of the blowing exhaust, which is the main element on the aerodynamic side.

"The combination of these two has to be really understood in order to be ready for next year's car, because we haven't touched this car since Hungary.

"Unfortunately, as you know and as we already said, we brought new updates in Belgium and Italy that we were hoping to be an upgrade but it was a downgrade unfortunately! So we went back. This is the car we had in Hungary and we were very close to the car that won.

"As far as we understood both McLaren and Red Bull brought some new pieces, new parts in the last couple of races, so there is something that is not clear about how this is possible. On that respect it is a good base and means we are not that far away."

Domenicali says that the Japanese GP performance, which featured Alonso closing right in on winner Jenson Button during the closing stages of the race, means the outfit can target victories in the final four races of the campaign.

"This weekend shows that the most important element that comes out is that the equilibrium of being very strong and not so strong is on the edge. So this has to motivate everyone at home to make sure that we keep pushing, because in the last four races of the season we have to make sure that we maximise the points and we can achieve a win.

"That is within our possibilities. Plus we are still fighting for second position with Fernando."

Ferrari has urged Formula 1 teams to make an effort at this weekend's Korean Grand Prix to try and end unease about overspending in the sport on the back of fresh concerns about the Resource Restriction Agreement.

With Red Bull Racing having long been forced to deny speculation that it overspent en route to its maiden world championship last year, the matter has not been helped by unease about Mercedes GP's expansion plans that includes the recruitment of Aldo Costa and Geoff Willis.

Now, Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali hopes that F1 teams can get together in Korea this weekend to thrash out their concerns about the matter - amid increasing suggestions that the RRA could collapse if nothing is done.

Should that scenario happen then it would open the way for a spending war to erupt in F1 at a time when the world is facing a financial crisis.

When asked about AUTOSPORT about the growing concerns on the RRA, Domenicali said: "I think that it is a subject that is quite sensitive. It is a subject where we need to make a final clarification because, at the end of the day, the RRA was very important to keep the level of expenditure as low as possible.

"It should not become a performance differentiator so that you are able to do something that some others are not able to do. But, in that respect, I am not saying anything on top of what I said. We need to clarify this up until the end.

"This is a matter based on a lot of trust between teams and we need to get out from these doubts. We will have a meeting, I think, in Korea where we need to close this point because it is really a very crucial factor within all the teams that have to work together."

The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) is expected to hold meetings in Korea this weekend to try and make progress on the RRA matter, at a time when Red Bull Racing's rivals are working hard on their plans to recover lost ground to the reigning champions.

Speaking about the impact of the Mercedes GP appointments at the weekend, Red Bull Racing technical chief Adrian Newey said: "I'm going to worry about what we do in Milton Keynes, not what's happening in Brackley, to be perfectly honest."

Sauber technical director James Key added: "It's always difficult to comment on what other teams are doing, because you never really know how they are structured and how they work. It's a pretty strong line-up of people, all with good experience.

"Personally, I've only really worked for relatively small teams and I guess the one thing I could say from a small team's perspective is that efficiency is certainly better when you're small and I guess with more people, particularly good experienced people, maybe that takes a bit more managing, to make sure it all fits in together – but it's not really for me to say."

Despite the mounting unease about the RRA, which was introduced for the start of 2009 and was revised after the famous Singapore Agreement last year, FOTA chairman Martin Whitmarsh remains upbeat that the matter can be dealt with to the satisfaction of all parties.

Speaking to reporters in Japan he said: "Fortunately the RRA doesn't limit the number of technical directors, so you can have 20 of them if you like.

"We are a competitive bunch of people and there will always be people who want to speculate on any issue, but overall we are working quite well together."

Pirelli plans to hold talks with the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) in Korea this weekend to try and find a solution to the problems of cars not running in Q3.

The Italian tyre manufacturer is unhappy that the spectacle of Q3 is being lessened by cars at the back end of the top ten choosing not to run so they can save tyres for the race.

In Japan, four cars failed to complete timed laps so they could start the race on fresh rubber - which led to criticism from Pirelli, team bosses and F1 fans.

Having written to FOTA on the back of comments from several team principals that the situation needed looking at, Hembery has pencilled in talks with FOTA for the Korea weekend to try and make progress.

"Something needs to happen," Hembery told AUTOSPORT. "I am going to have a sit down with Oliver [Weingarten] from FOTA, and the Sporting Working Group, in Korea this week, and we will have a formal meeting in India about the whole thing.

"We need to come up with some proposals. We have some ideas and we have to try and find a common ground to how we solve it."

Pirelli has toyed with the idea of qualifying tyres to solve the problem, but such a move was rejected by F1 teams.

Now, Hembery says, the focus will be on tweaking the sporting regulations to ensure there is no benefit to cars skipping Q3. One solution could be that those cars that sit out the final session of qualifying will have to start the race on the same set of tyres that they used in Q2.

"You can solve it instantly by regulation change without increasing costs or anything, so we will have proposals for that," added Hembery. "That might be what we need to do next year and, maybe for 2013, move towards something different just to give the sport something new.

"There is nothing too wrong with the qualifying. This three session system is very good: it is just that conserving tyres is nonsense. And it is nonsense because if [sebastian] Vettel and the top six can win races having gone through the three sessions, then it means everyone can do it.

"It is nonsense; you don't need to conserve your tyres. You have enough to do the whole race anyway. We are happy to go through with whatever we can to solve it."

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Renault boss Eric Boullier plans to speak to Robert Kubica this week to find out the latest on his recovery, so he can begin to make a decision on whether or not he needs to find a replacement driver for 2012.

Boullier has made it clear that a seat will be left open for Kubica if the Polish driver is fit enough to race again next year.

However, he has also said that he needs a definite answer on the matter imminently so the team is not left hanging on for months - which could hurt its chances of finding the kind of top-line driver it needs if Kubica cannot return.

Speaking to AUTOSPORT, Boullier said that he wanted to move towards working out what the team's plans were going to be in the next few days - which is why he wants to get news from Kubica himself.

"I am going to make a call this week to see where he stands and then to start planning something," said Boullier.

"I've no idea how quick we can make a decision. This is not a normal process, there is no normal process. We need to meet, we need to speak, we need to test, and there is the matter of everything he needs to do and everything we need to do as well."

Renault's options in case Kubica cannot return are limited, as the outfit wants a clear number one driver to base its future ambitions around.

Rubens Barrichello is the only current race-winning driver that is available for next year, although he is coming towards the end of his career so would not be a long-term solution for Renault.

The outfit could take a gamble on a young driver, however – like Bruno Senna or its third driver Romain Grosjean, or try and secure a talented youngster like Paul di Resta and Nico Hulkenberg who do not yet have firm deals at Force India for 2012.

Renault's plans to be renamed as Lotus next year have been given the full backing of the French car manufacturer, as it will finally clear up confusion about the involvement of its former parent company.

In the wake of the Singapore race-fixing controversy at the end of 2009, Renault sold its F1 team to Genii Capital and was faced with a difficult situation when British sportscar maker Lotus became title sponsor this year.

With progress being made on the Lotus name issue, however, a decision will be made at a Formula 1 Commission meeting on November 3 as to whether or not Renault can be renamed Lotus and Team Lotus called Caterham for 2012.

Renault Sport's managing director Jean-Francois Caubet is optimistic that the changes will be approved, and welcomed the decision - which he says will not alter the commitment his company has to the team.

"We sold the team two years ago, and the strategy was not to cut the whole relationship with the team because, when you are a big car maker, you cannot stop like that," Caubet told AUTOSPORT. "The strategy decision was to decline step-by-step, to push the technical partnership.

"With the chassis name, it was a little bit embarrassing for Renault because the control of the team was done by Genii, the main sponsor was Lotus and for the British press it was a Renault team!

"We didn't push too much to change, but we asked Bernie if he could help us, and Lotus will be a good solution."

Caubet thinks it vital that Renault has another strong customer team alongside Red Bull Racing, as it would be wrong to focus all its efforts around a single outfit.

"We will provide engines, and we will continue to push because we need a second team strong to push Red Bull. We don't want to leave Red Bull alone, and when you have two good teams you can compare all the time.

"It is very important to have an internal competition. So even if the relationship will be different and it will be a customer, it will still be a very important customer for us."

Sebastian Vettel says the magnitude of winning his second straight title, and becoming the youngest double champion in Formula 1 history, is yet to fully sink in.

The 24-year-old joined an elite list of drivers including Fernando Alonso, Emerson Fittipaldi and Jim Clark in winning his second world championship crown.

While the title was all but assured following victory one race earlier in Singapore, Vettel says he was never thinking about the championship during the Japanese Grand Prix and that it will take time to fully appreciate his feat.

"You see all these double world champions, names I have known for a long, long time, and it's a weird feeling - it's difficult to understand that yes, you are a part of them," Vettel said in a press conference on the Monday following Suzuka.

"Sometimes you have to press pause to realise what is happening. Even last year winning the world championship was the ultimate target of my life, so seeing yourself close to these guys is outstanding.

"In Suzuka I didn't really think about the championship - I was busy with other things. The adrenaline is pumping, you are focussed on the race and then it's a big relief, but to switch into 'we've done it, we've won the championship' – it's not as easy as that. That's why I think it takes time."

Vettel said it was impossible to compare his sensations in winning his first and second titles, as he hailed the impact of his team – and the winning culture which they have fostered – on his performances in 2011.

The first title will always remain something special, very similar to the first grand prix victory," he said. "You can't say that was better than this, it doesn't work that way. If you look at last year and this year it's completely different – last year we led it once, at the end, this year we led it all the way.

"We have raised our level and everyone has become much more mature. If there is anything, that's the secret. We have done it our way, our own style, and coming out on top – that feeling is in many ways unbeatable.

"Sometimes you have to pinch yourself. I am a normal person, I love what I do and I am very fortunate to do something so many people around the world follow. It's hard to beat that, so you have to enjoy it."

The Red Bull driver also said he would keep his feet on the ground despite his success, saying: "I think you are the person you are and you change, you grow up, so life changes and its not so easy to remember the person you truly are.

"There might be temptation but ultimately everything that flies has to come back down so it's not too wise to start flying. Yesterday night we were flying a little bit but I think that's fine."

Red Bull Racing must keep pushing for the remainder of the 2011 if it is to lay down the foundations for more title success next year, reckons team owner Dietrich Mateschitz.

On the back of Sebastian Vettel's title triumph in the Japanese Grand Prix, Mateschitz thinks that the team's focus must now be on making as many improvements as it can over the final four races because rivals Ferrari and McLaren will provide a harder challenge next year.

"For sure we will keep working hard until Sao Paulo," Mateschitz told AUTOSPORT. "The development work will not cease. As there are only minor changes in technical rules coming up, all we do now will benefit next year's RB8.

"We now build the basics to run for another championship in 2012. And we are clearly aware of how Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes will increase their efforts to be on top next year. We have to get out the best of our development in the final weeks of 2011 for the benefit of 2012."

Mateschitz said that Vettel's title triumph was not such a surprise after his strong start to the campaign, and claimed that there had been a feeling of quiet confidence from the day the team's RB7 hit the track in pre-season testing.

"We knew from the first test, from the first roll-out that our car would be quick again," he said. "But between having a good chance and taking that chance there is always something you cannot calculate.

"For some time the lead was big enough that Sebastian's second title is not that surprise anymore. We believed in it for some time. However, with opposition from teams like McLaren and Ferrari, you can never be sure. It's only over when it's over mathematically.

"The whole team was very confident for this season after the first test. Of course we started with some advantage on our side; however you have to keep this advantage which is never easy. Everyone knows how quick in F1 this can be turned around."

Mateschitz thinks it is unlikely that Red Bull Racing will not win the constructors' championship this year, and he is already eyeing a post-season party in Brazil for the whole outfit.

"The constructors' championship is not clinched right now, but the situation is similar to the one in the drivers' standings. It is improbable that we won't score in the remaining races. Ferrari and McLaren will again take points away from each other. But we all know: the devil never sleeps.

"The team will probably celebrate in Sao Paulo Sunday night. Maybe we will have another party in Salzburg as last year, but nothing is fixed yet.

"This season means a lot to us also economically. Our net budget this year was lower than in 2010 due to the benefits of last year's results. The 2012 team budget will be (net) even lower than this year because of our success."

Mateschitz has also praised Vettel's performances this year - claiming the German has been amazing all throughout the campaign.

"Sebastian's performance this year was incredible," he explained. "Mainly because of his constant shape. Everyone knows he is very good. He's got all the talent, the discipline, concentration, the capability to get totally focused on one single lap, and to raise his game when it is necessary. But if you look on the continuity of his performances, it's incredible.

"For Mark (Webber) it was not easy to find the motivation and to get adjusted to the tyres. He had to cope with the kind of bad luck that struck Seb in the beginning of last season. However, Mark is a proven top driver on whom we can rely."

Sebastian Vettel's greatest challenge in Formula 1 will not be in maintaining his dominance after back-to-back titles, but in how he deals with one day not having the best car.

That is the view of Mercedes GP team principal Ross Brawn, who believes that the true extent of Vettel's position among the greats will be made evident when does not enjoy a machinery advantage.

"For Sebastian, what will come now, which will be an interesting phase of his career, will be when he has not got the best car," explained Brawn, who famously helped Michael Schumacher turn around Ferrari after he joined the team following back-to-back titles for Benetton.

"I think you have a fantastic driver in the best car, and that combination is unbeatable. It will be interesting to see Sebastian's role, Sebastian's influence, Sebastian's position when perhaps he does not have the best car, he has to make it the best car, and has to create the best car.

"That will be another chapter of Sebastian Vettel when it comes - and it will come.

"Perhaps he will make it happen himself, because he will go to another team as he wants them to be successful, and the challenge for Sebastian will be exactly the same as it was for Michael, that you have won two world championships, so what is next? What is the new challenge for me? What is the motivation?

"For Michael the motivation was to go to Ferrari and make that successful. I am sure Sebastian will look at that because everybody thinks Sebastian is doing a great job, but the Red Bull is a fantastic car. His ambition may take him a different direction, who knows?"

Brawns believes that one of the attributes Vettel has brought to F1 is in being able to achieve great success without losing his bubbly personality.

"I think what happens with new guys like Sebastian is that he is a young, fresh guy - these drivers always have different characters. He brings a very natural relaxed approach, at least from our side, to his achievements.

"He is very easy externally, obviously quite different when he gets in a car which you can understand, but from a personality point of view he is very relaxed.

"Michael was always very intense, very concentrated on it. I am not saying Sebastian isn't, but the way Michael needed to approach the job to succeed was with a high level of intensity both within and outside the car, certainly at the race track.

"Take Michael away from the race track and he was great fun. But Seb seems a little bit with a lighter character. He is clearly a huge talent. And still seems to be getting stronger.

"This year everybody said wait until he comes under pressure and then you will see he won't cope, but he copes very well. And I think with another championship under his belt, then he will have another level of confidence that he will deal with. "

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh believes Formula 1 chiefs may need to look into the rules regarding mirror dimension, following the latest clash between Lewis Hamilton and Felipe Massa.

Hamilton claimed that he could not see Massa behind him as they ran into each other at the chicane at Suzuka.

And, on the back of a similar collision between Hamilton and Kamui Kobayashi in Belgium this year, rear view visibility could now be a big enough issue for action to be taken.

Whitmarsh says that big progress has been made in improving mirrors over the years, but he suggests that perhaps F1 teams should look at doing more.

"By comparison to the old school of 20 years ago, they are big," said Whitmarsh. "But in terms of vibration, probably we don't do enough.

"If you talk to any driver going along the straight, they are not great. Normally you will see them for picking out colour: 'there is a piece of colour behind me that means there is another car'. Maybe it is something we have to look at.

"I think Lewis was distracted at the time, he knew he had a puncture, and he knew he was nursing a car, so I think you can always have bigger mirrors, you can always have better mirrors, you can always have better positioned mirrors and you can always be more attentive to using mirrors. But it is one of those things."

Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali says former technical director Aldo Costa was no scape-goat, denying firing the Italian was more an emotional than a rational decision.

Costa, who will join Mercedes later this year, left the Italian squad in May after a poor start to the season for Ferrari, which was hoping to fight for the championship this year.

Instead, it has scored just one win and has rarely been a match to Red Bull this year.

Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, Domenicali said the decision to replace Costa so early in the season was with the future in mind.

"I can understand it may have appeared to be so, but it wasn't," said Domenicali when asked if firing Costa was an emotional decision. "Costa had given a lot to Ferrari, he was a key man in successful years.

"I've never seen him as a scape-goat, but it's also true that the responsibility for a car's project in the end is the technical director's. There were internal reasons: if the players don't get along with the manager, changing 11 players gets difficult.

"Also, design for the following year's cars begin in spring. That's why we made that decision at that time with the future in mind."

The Italian says he feels supported by the team's bosses despite Ferrari's failure to be a match for Red Bull over the past years.

"I always do, that's my strength," he said when asked if he felt he was called into question. "However, I'm comforted by the fact that I have the company's and the president's support behind me."

Domenicali also ruled out the possibility of Fernando Alonso wanting to leave the team if it does not manage to give him a competitive car in the near future.

"I rule that out, as that would mean that the technical structure is not improving in order to give us a competitive F1 car in 2012," he said. "Alonso has extraordinary team spirit: inside the outfit that is felt as a stimulus to work better."

The team boss also reckons the Spanish driver would have no problems with driving alongside Sebastian Vettel at the team if the opportunity arose.

"I think so, I think he could live with him," Domenicali said. "Fernando's strength is being scared of no one. It's the kind of consciousness that come with maturity."

Rubens Barrichello has praised the 'brave' efforts of new Williams chief operations engineer Mark Gillan, who had his first race in charge at last weekend's Japanese Grand Prix.

Gillan has been brought in to try and turn around Williams' fortunes on the back of its worst-ever season in F1, and he can already see areas where the Grove-based outfit can make good progress.

Barrichello believes that Gillan has already made his mark at the team, and says he is enjoying working with him.

"The team has the basis of what Sam [Michael, previous technical director] did in the past, and now it is early days for Mark," Barrichello told AUTOSPORT. "He has been putting good words and been brave to stand up for the problems we are having, and we are having a good time."

Barrichello thinks that one of the key things Williams must achieve in 2011 is in ending the season at an operational level where it can exploit any improvements that come from its car next year.

"The most important thing is to try and get everything together in a good way," he said. "I want Mike Coughlan, I want Jason Somerville, I want Mark Gillan to understand what has been happening through the year - what I have been shouting about and why there are situations that are worse than others.

"Of course there are still new faces, but they are learning quite quickly what the problems are. Next year's car is going to be a totally different beast, but there are some situations that we still need to improve within everyone and the factory, and that cannot happen next year. So I think we have a good group together and they are changing things."

Barrichello believes there is still room to bring improvements to the car for this year, though – with an upgrade package likely for the Indian Grand Prix.

"It is not a lot of things, but there are situations that are still allowing us to improve the car, as we go along. There is a big push from the team to try and get things done, to get more performance and more points to improve our situation in the constructors'," he said.

"There is some stuff that is coming for India which is nice to hear, but this car has not been competitive, so it is going to be very difficult to change from night and day. But if we have some stuff and some tracks that might suit us, we might just score big time."

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Indian sports promoter Sahara India Pariwar has taken a 42.5 per cent shareholding in the Force India team, which will be renamed Sahara Force India.

The $100 million deal was announced at a press conference in New Delhi today. Team principal Vijay Mallya retains 42.5 per cent ownership, with the remaining 15 per cent share remaining in the hands of the Mol family, who became co-owners during the squad's Spyker era.

Sahara chief Subarata Roy Sahara said: "India is reaching new heights in all spheres, including sports. Formula 1 car racing has always remained a bastion of the western world. The advent of India in this exciting sport has remained a matter of pride for all our countrymen.

"I feel doubly proud that Sahara is the co-owner of India's only F1 team and I am sure that through the Sahara Force India F1 Team, we will together bring pride and laurels to our beloved nation."

Mallya also welcomed the deal, which was completed just over three weeks before India's inaugural grand prix.

"I am delighted to welcome Saharasri Subrata Roy Sahara as chairman of Sahara Force India," he said.

"It has indeed been a matter of pride for me to put India on the F1 map with Force India and raise the performance of the team to its current levels.

"The Sahara Group has played a very important role in the development of sport in the country and is an ideal partner to take the Force India F1 Team to greater success in the Formula 1 World Championship."

Red Bull protege Jean-Eric Vergne will drive for Toro Rosso in Friday practice at three of the four remaining 2011 grands prix.

The 2010 British Formula 3 champion and '11 Formula Renault 3.5 runner-up will make his GP weekend debut for the team in Korea this week, where he will take over Jaime Alguersuari's car for the Friday morning session.

He will not run at the Indian GP so that regular drivers Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi can maximise their running time at the brand new track, but will return for Abu Dhabi and Brazil.

"Jaime sits out the session because the last time a driver was replaced on Friday morning, it was Sebastien Buemi who gave up his seat to Daniel Ricciardo," said a Toro Rosso statement.

"Vergne will not drive at the Indian Grand Prix, because this is a new circuit and therefore both our race drivers will be given the maximum amount of track time.

"He will return in Abu Dhabi, replacing Buemi. At the final round of the season in Brazil, whichever of the Toro Rosso drivers has the least points will give up his seat to Vergne for FP1."

AUTOSPORT revealed in August that Vergne was set for some Friday outings at the end of this season and could be Toro Rosso's official third driver in 2012. The 21-year-old Frenchman took part in last year's young driver Formula 1 tests in Abu Dhabi with STR and is expected to do the same this winter.

Martin Donnelly will make his debut as the driver representative on the Formula 1 stewards' panel at this weekend's Korean Grand Prix.

Donnelly made his debut in F1 as a substitute driver with Arrows at the 1989 French GP, and was signed for a full season with Lotus the following year.

His career was cut short by a horrific accident in practice at Jerez in 1990.

But he recovered sufficiently to occasionally race again in national events, where he was also successful in team management, and to undertake some demonstration runs in F1 cars.

Sauber technical director James Key believes the updates his team introduced in Japan will give it a great shot at regaining sixth in the constructors' championship.

Kamui Kobayashi got through to Q3 at Suzuka with the upgraded Sauber, and though a poor start and strategic miscue turned his seventh place on the grid into a 13th-place finish, his team-mate Sergio Perez came through from 17th in qualifying to eighth place.

The result leaves Sauber seventh in the standings, eight points behind Force India and 11 clear of Toro Rosso.

Key said there was a lot more to come from the new package, so he was highly encouraged by the immediate gains seen in Japan.

"It's such a wide-ranging thing, we still haven't really got the car 100 per cent with it yet, the balance is still not there and so on," he told AUTOSPORT.

"But the numbers and the data and the deltas between the parts we did back-to-backs on all look correct. You never know when you come to a track with new bits, but it all looks as we expect. I think there will be a bit more to come from it, there will be a few new items to come, following on from this.

"I'd like to think that if [the Japan performance] is what we can expect from the next few races, then we're going to get back on track.

"There will be one modification for Korea already and then there will be more for Abu Dhabi, and small tweaks around the package we've brought."

He expects Sauber to spend the remainder of the season in a tight on-track battle with Renault, Force India and Toro Rosso.

"I think Renault are for sure out of sight [in the championship] now, though we seem to be not too dissimilar to them on pace," said Key.

"They were quick in qualifying but we weren't too far from them over the weekend. I think they will be in that mix even though they're far away in the championship.

"I think there are four teams that are going to have a very, very tough battle with all sorts of to-ing and fro-ing, trying to get strategies right and that sort of thing. I suspect the rest of the season's going to be like that, so it's going to be hard work."

McLaren managing director Jonathan Neale says Lewis Hamilton should have no doubts whatsoever about the level of support for and understanding of him within his team, despite the 2008 champion's current run of difficulties.

Hamilton has not finished on the podium since winning the German Grand Prix in July, and has been involved in a series of on-track incidents during that time - while his team-mate Jenson Button has taken two wins and pulled away in second place in the championship.

But Neale said McLaren was giving Hamilton maximum support rather than putting pressure on him to rediscover his form.

"Lewis's biggest critic is himself," said Neale in a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes phone-in teleconference.

"He desperately wants to win and he's understandably not happy when either his team-mate beats him, or somebody else is winning the race or the championship. He's seen this championship slide away to Red Bull. He's tough on himself and he's massively disappointed. We'd be disappointed if he didn't feel that as well.

"Lewis is a phenomenal driver. He's had 16 race wins. He's constantly exciting on the circuit, always in the action and we love him for that.

"Certainly I'm concerned to make sure that he feels and understands that we're 100 per cent behind him, and this team certainly is. The workforce here love everything about Lewis Hamilton.

"We want to take care of him. It's been a difficult season for him. We didn't really give him the car to get the job done this year, but what he's done with it has been fantastic."

Neale said the factory staff at McLaren were keen to have a chance to emphasise their continued belief in Hamilton.

"The sense of the workforce is that they'd like to see more of Lewis," he said. "With the flyaways recently we haven't been able to get him back as much as they'd like. They're very keen to make sure that he understands and feels the warmth and the love from this end."

He also warned against reading too much into short-term form and the press criticism Hamilton has received recently.

"You do have to remember that professional sport - as the England rugby team will be feeling when they read the papers - is a brutal business," Neale said.

"One of the journalists there wrote that it's a sport where the winners are deified and the losers are vilified.

"We can all turn round and say 'where's Lewis?' but the reality is that he's a really quick driver. He's a really nice guy and he puts his heart and everything into it."

Hamilton only finished fifth in last weekend's Japanese Grand Prix, while Button won the race. Neale believes McLaren hampered Hamilton by misinterpreting data that led to him making an early first pitstop on lap eight.

"We have to look to ourselves in the team as to why he wasn't able to get the performance out of the rear tyres that Jenson was able to get," said Neale.

"If you watch the race traces as I have done, and look at the way he carved through, overtaking a number of people, when he got the opportunity, I think he did a good job to bring that car back.

"But he was always going to be on the back foot with a three-stop strategy called in before lap 10. When we were looking at whether that was puncture, tyre pressure or tyre temperature related, I think we may have got a slightly wrong steer from the data in that first stint and I think we might've compromised him on his second stint."

Neale added that Button's current form was a reminder that the 26-year-old Hamilton was also still developing as a driver.

"Both drivers are getting better," said Neale. "Many would argue that Jenson is probably driving the best he ever has and continues to get stronger.

"I'm confident that Lewis has some stuff to learn and can get better, but then I'm twice Lewis's age and the same goes for me as well - I'm anything but the finished product."

The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) has the strength and unity to stay focused on the best course of action for the sport despite the growing tension over the Resource Restriction Agreement (RRA) - according to McLaren's managing director Jonathan Neale.

Speculation over both Red Bull's spending on the way to its world championship successes, and the RRA implications of Mercedes' recruitment of big-name technical figures Bob Bell, Aldo Costa and Geoff Willis, has led to concerns that the deal could collapse.

Meetings between the teams are expected in Korea this weekend to try and resolve the issue before it becomes more serious.

Asked by AUTOSPORT during a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes phone-in teleconference whether he felt the RRA was in jeopardy, Neale moved to play down the current issues.

"There's always going to be a degree of tension between the teams," he said.

"There has been some recent speculation about whether Red Bull are complying or not. But none of us really know because we're not in there, we don't really understand how their business operates or how it's divided. Quite understandably, many of the teams mask the way in which their public accounts are provided so that you can't reverse engineer what's going on.

"Formula 1 has, for decades, been surrounded with a bit of mistrust and rumour between the teams - 'what are they doing?', 'are they cheating on the circuit?', 'do they have some new wonder device?'. I think that's all part of the sport.

"In reality, the bigger prize is that Formula 1 does need to stick together."

Neale said FOTA had already withstood numerous challenges and survived, and he had faith that its members would not let their teams' self-interest jeopardise that unity this time either.

"FOTA has been very good at capping the costs in many areas, and I think it has set an exciting and ambitious challenge with the FIA for technology development from 2014 and beyond," he said.

"There will inevitably be pressures, there are those who would seek to divide the teams as we get ourselves ready for the next round of commercial negotiations, and there will be tensions of course.

"Everybody wants the best for their team. But I think that this generation of professional team principals are more than equipped to see the bigger picture as well as fight their own team's corner."

Mercedes GP team boss Ross Brawn says that recent technical signings Aldo Costa and Geoff Willis can have an immediate positive effect on the squad's performances when they join, even though it will take time for the full impact of their presence to take effect.

Former Williams, BAR/Honda and Red Bull man Willis joins Mercedes as technology director next week, with ex-Ferrari technical chief Costa becoming Mercedes' engineering director from the start of December. They will work under technical director Bob Bell, formerly of Renault, who joined Mercedes earlier this year.

Although Willis and Costa's arrival will be too late for them to have a great influence on Mercedes' 2012 car, Brawn is optimistic about the boost their presence can give.

"It will take a while, but so much stuff goes on when you sit down and debate issues with the car, with someone with that calibre and experience, they can have an effect straight away," said Brawn.

"In terms of philosophy of the car it will take a while before their influences feed in, but in many ways they will have the effect that they want."

Although Mercedes has yet to win a race in its current guise and has rarely been a threat to Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari this year, Brawn is pleased that it has managed to stabilise the distance to the teams ahead.

"We are behind where we want to be, but we have managed to close that gap," he said. "We do a reasonable amount of analysis to understand where we are. We got worse about a third of the way through the season and then got back.

"The fact that we have managed to keep the gap down while we know Red Bull and McLaren were in the middle of the development way, that is a tribute to the developments we have made.

"You see some of the teams who have not made many developments have fallen behind us, and that is the vicious thing about F1 - that standing still is falling backwards. We have to introduce a step change in our performance to be fully competitive."

Asked whether that step was possible in 2012, Brawn replied: "Some of it, yes. Whether we can achieve all of it, that is a big step to make. But some of it we will do next year."

He also denied that there was any potential for over-complication by bringing in several big names accustomed to high degrees of technical responsibility at their previous teams.

"I can understand the comments about too many cooks," Brawn acknowledged.

"I think the important thing is to have a clear structure in terms of who does what. We have taken time with both Aldo and Geoff to discuss and define the structure, to make sure that lines of reponsibility and lines of authority are very clearly stated.

"I think any team that doesn't allow its people to have an opinion, state an opinion and contribute towards the overall plan is failing, so we are not going to have a situation where Aldo is not allowed to comment on the aerodynamics or Geoff is not allowed to comment on the chassis. It will not be like that, but clearly their day-to-day responsibilities are well defined."

He added: "Also contractually the opportunity to get people like Aldo and Geoff doesn't come along very often, and the stars lined up in terms of where our ambitions are and Aldo and Geoff became available.

"Aldo I know extremely well as we won world championships [together at Ferrari] and Geoff, I think, and although he doesn't say it himself, was pretty instrumental in setting the direction of Red Bull, and changing Red Bull's future."

Brawn underlined that the pursuit of figures like Costa and Willis did not signify a lack of faith in Mercedes' existing personnel.

"There are three teams that are better than us - Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull are incredibly strong teams, and ones that have been well structured for many years so we must not throw away what we have already got because it is very, very good," he said. "This just adds a level of strength, and we need to manage the situation."

He also insisted that there was no danger of Mercedes straying beyond the boundaries of the Resource Restriction Agreement in its technical restructuring.

"At the end of day, Aldo and Geoff are two headcounts," said Brawn. "So I am sure once they settle in they will have their thoughts on ways to make the organisation stronger, but we will respect the RRA.

"We do have space under the RRA, as we look to increase our capacity."

Formula 1 teams will face a major challenge with tyre strategies in Korea, reckons Pirelli motorsport boss Paul Hembery, as he revealed that his company had taken a bold approach to the final races of the 2011 season.

Tyre graining was an issue for Bridgestone at last year's inaugural Korean Grand Prix, though the Sunday rain meant there was no chance to see how the problem might have played out in the race.

Despite this, Pirelli has selected its soft and super soft compounds for its first Korean GP, and Hembery admitted that with the championship decided, Pirelli had made a conscious decision to give the teams a challenge

"We are not making it easy for them in any way or form, and they are right at the limit," he told AUTOSPORT. "And that is the only way they can do it, because if you give them too much margin they will fly off in the distance and go back to norm.

"So, that is what we are trying to understand for next year. We are trying to see where we are. If this race had happened after race two or three, then you would definitely be here with the hard and medium, you wouldn't possibly come here as we did. But we felt that we wanted to understand the limits really.

"There were a few people in my team who would probably not have taken the choice that we did, and Korea is a very aggressive choice, super soft and soft, but what we find with those guys is that they need challenges."

Hembery admitted that the Korea tyre choice was likely to provoke plenty of discussion during the weekend, but thinks the teams will ultimately find solutions.

"They will moan but they adapt to it," he said. "They have all got the same to deal with, and it gives them an extra challenge or from a strategy or statistics point of view.

"A lot of them enjoy it and if you talk to some of the engineers they really get excited by it because they have a lot to think about and work about, and some like a pain in the arse and something extra to worry about but the public seem to like it a lot, which is the main thing for everybody.

"As long as they all start the same it is a challenge for drivers and engineers. I don't feel it falsifies it because everybody has got the same. It is how they manage what they've got."

Hembery expects four-stop strategies to be a possibility in Korea.

"We had rain last year and there was a lot of graining of the tyres, which suggest that it needs some grip from the compound - so that is the plan," he said. "We might be on a four stop in Korea."

He added that Pirelli's choice for India was also likely to make teams work hard.

"The championship has been won now, so we wanted to experiment a bit. Same in India," Hembery said.

"We are doing hard and soft there, the hard generally won't have a place for next year but you need something for a back-up for the circuit.

"The actual surface and layout suggests it could be a tough circuit, but we are giving them a lot of soft tyres to work with on the Friday so there will be some extra sets as well so they have running time and also we hope that will help rubber the track in a bit and clear it up."

Renault Sport managing director Jean-Francois Caubet says the soul searching his organisation had to go through when its works team was embroiled in the 'race-fixing' crisis was a key factor in its return to title success as an engine supplier with Red Bull.

Although the old Renault works team still bears its name, the car company is now in Formula 1 purely as an engine supplier to its erstwhile in-house squad, champion team Red Bull and Lotus - with Williams also returning to Renault power from 2012.

Renault gradually changed its role after considering pulling out of the sport when the scandal over the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix broke two years ago. After seeing its partner team Red Bull clinch a second title for Sebastian Vettel at Suzuka last weekend, Caubet said Renault's results with RBR vindicated its response to the crisis of 2009.

"I think it is a fantastic result because three years ago we were nowhere, and we decided to continue on the engine side, we fought internally to obtain the budget and secure the organisation, and we started to push hard," he said. "Last year was a good championship but this year was the best one."

Caubet said the results with Red Bull proved that Renault had made the correct decision when reassessing its place in F1.

"I think all the employees, the board, they were convinced that F1 is a key value in Renault," he said.

"It is a key value but the problem is to find a good strategy with the key value. When you are a carmarker it is not easy to find a good strategy because sometimes you can push too hard, be too ambitious and after the first crisis, everything collapses.

"So I think the decision to be an engine provider, to choose the best one with Red Bull, to push in terms of technology and partnership and to push in spirit... we are not a team, but we are big enough."

Red Bull and Renault have started on pole position at every grand prix this year and won nine races with Vettel.

But Caubet does not think his engine is the most powerful in the field, more that it provides the best package for its teams.

"I think we are not the most powerful," he said. "I think Mercedes has the most, between 20-22bhp more, but on the fuel consumption, on the driveability, on the torque, on the services also because you need to provide a fantastic service, and I think Renault is the best.

"I think it is a term of philosophy, more than budget, power or tactics."

Williams's new chief operations engineer Mark Gillan says there is no reason why the team cannot return to form, or any need for it to write off the rest of the 2011 season.

The former champion team has struggled to get into the top 10 throughout this year, and is only ninth in the constructors' championship, with just five points on its tally.

But Gillan is confident that Williams still has the potential to be a leading team again, and to recover some ground before 2011 is over.

"Obviously we need to do a better job with next year's car, and to do that we need the processes in place, but that doesn't preclude better performance on this year's car," he said.

"There's a couple of things we were very late to the party with in terms of development, which we are still developing hard and still have updates coming certainly for the next few races.

"We aim to make a good jump in terms of points. At the moment we are on the cusp of getting into Q3 or not, it's very difficult. By the end of the season that has to be the goal. Moving forward we need to make a big change."

Gillan started with Williams at the Singapore Grand Prix, and says he has already identified areas where improvements can be made to its practices.

"There's a number of areas," he said. "First of all it's just a very simple one, getting quick and timely communication from the factory to the race team and vice versa to ensure that the factory, if we take aerodynamics, know exactly what is required, the operating envelope of the car, where we run it, where we would like to run it, so when we get a part to the track it's been optimised for that particular track.

"Those are the things we are looking to improve, so to try and manufacture less parts but make a bigger impact when we bring a particular part to the track, so that when the driver tests it there is a clear performance improvement. I think in the past we have made a lot of things but not as big a jump as it could have been."

But he said Williams's spirit remained strong despite the tough times it is enduring.

"I have been really impressed," Gillan said. "Coming in here it's very difficult to know what to expect with a new team, but I worked at McLaren, Toyota, Jaguar, and this is a very friendly, open team despite obviously not having the results for a while.

"There is an absolute hunger and desire to get back to where we should be, and there is an eagerness to push forward, take on new ideas and to really accelerate the development programme as quickly as possible. That's very evident even in two weeks."

He added: "We have the facility, the people and now the direction to do a much better job than what we have been doing, and I am quietly confident.

"Nothing is overnight, it just doesn't happen in this game, but given the time that we can be back where we should be."

Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn wants the FIA to re-evaluate the Drag Reduction System (DRS) concept at the end of the season to see whether the device has been worthwhile.

DRS has been an element in the most eventful Formula 1 season in years, with overtaking increasing dramatically at almost every race.

But Brawn remains unsure over whether Pirelli's aggressive approach would have generated a similar level of action without any need for the wing device.

"It has been hard to judge its value because the DRS influence is not as big as the tyre," said Brawn.

"I think tyres have been a major element. DRS, as far as we are concerned, was introduced to stop the racing being processional and it hasn't been because of the tyres, so I think at the end of the season with the FIA we should take a step back, look at where it hurt, look at where it helped, and see what we gained, and see if it has achieved all of its objectives."

Brawn is concerned that overtaking has occasionally been made too easy - and therefore devalued - by the DRS, and wants to be certain that fans appreciate this style of racing.

"We had a couple of races this year where we wished there had been no DRS because we lost places. Montreal was a good example," he said.

"It is frustrating but we need to understand from the fans if they feel that overtaking with DRS is exciting to watch or not, or whether they preferred for overtaking to be more difficult, so we work around the tyres and other factors.

"So I think if we had kept the consistency of the Bridgestone tyres, which were very consistent in the past, then the DRS definitely would have been a very important requirement. It has been less critical because of the tyres."

Rubens Barrichello says he will do anything to keep racing in Formula 1 next season, and remains confident he will be on the grid in a competitive car.

There are doubts over whether the veteran Brazilian will retain his Williams drive, with the team linked to a deal with Kimi Raikkonen, among others, and on course to keep Barrichello's team-mate Pastor Maldonado.

Barrichello said his performance at Suzuka, where a problem-strewn practice included a heavy Friday afternoon crash, showed there could be no doubts about his motivation or ability. He qualified 13th in Japan, one place ahead of Maldonado.

"I want to be racing," said Barrichello. "They can see that coming from a crash and the problem I had [in practice], to put in a qualifying lap like that, they know I have so much motivation going through, so with that it only helps their thinking, but at the end of the day I already said what they need to know.

"I am here, I am ready to talk about anything with regards of anything for me to be here next year, whatever it takes, wherever, I want to be racing next year.

"So I am talking to the whole paddock and the situation here is no different, they know what I would like to have next year - and the only thing I would like to have next year is a competitive car."

Barrichello said every team he was in discussions with had the potential to be on the pace in 2012.

"The teams that I am talking to are on the verge of having good cars for next year," he said. "That is pretty much it."

Barrichello and Williams have had a difficult 2011 season, with two ninth places his only points finishes of the campaign so far.

[Lineker]

Narain Karthikeyan believes his practice runs for HRT since the Singapore Grand Prix have been vital for getting him in shape for his Formula 1 return at the Indian Grand Prix.

After being replaced by Daniel Ricciardo from the British GP, Karthikeyan has been slotted in for a one-off race outing at his home event in Delhi in a fortnight's time.

And, with high temperatures expected at India's inaugural event, Karthikeyan says the biggest benefit from taking part in P1 sessions for HRT is in getting him physically prepared.

"I really felt it in Suzuka," said Karthikeyan in Korea about the value of his P1 runs. "Singapore was all stop and go and it was easy. But Suzuka with the fast flowing corners, you feel it much more.

"You saw my sector times compared to Ricciardo, they were okay. The first sector was faster, but you feel the body, the neck and your lower back - you feel it. It doesn't matter how long you train in the gym, because I have been training a lot, but when you get into the car it is like: wow! It was like I had been away from it for a long time.

"So it is very important. India is not Suzuka by any means, but still driving here will help a great deal."

He added: "Speed doesn't go away like that. It is just the physical aspects of driving an F1 car: you can't just jump into and get quick. You can be on it for a lap, but to be on it for 20 laps is a different matter."

With Delhi currently experiencing temperatures in the mid-30 degrees Celsius, Karthikeyan thinks it is vital he completes as many laps as possible in practice in Korea.

"I am just trying to do loads of laps, more for the physical aspects of things. I cannot train any harder – that is about it. It should be okay. It is surprisingly hot in Delhi, the day before it was 37-degrees – so it is very, very hot right now."

A recovered Paul di Resta is determined to help Force India maintain its sixth place in the standings in this weekend's Korean Grand Prix.

The Force India driver had to battle a high fever during last weekend's race in Japan, where his team failed to score for the first time in the last six events.

Di Resta says he is now feeling better.

"I wasn't too bad by Sunday in Suzuka, obviously on the mend. Having three days off has been quite good. I am not fully there, but I am definitely feeling a lot more lively than I did back at Suzuka," said di Resta in Korea on Thursday.

The Scot said it was hard to tell if his illness affected his performance at Suzuka.

"I suppose you don't know that. At the time I felt I was driving the car as hard as I could, I think we were on for a reasonably positive finish until the safety car.

"It affected our strategy quite a bit because we made a big impact in the beginning and that was our plan from Saturday and from the simulations of what we had to do, to keep other guys behind."

Force India is not bringing any new parts for this weekend's race, but di Resta believes the team failed to optimise the package in Japan and is aiming to take a step forward in Korea.

"We have come here with the same package. It was the same in Suzuka as it was in Singapore. Maybe didn't get the optimum out of it in Suzuka, which we can try to achieve here, but it is obviously going to be different temperatures, different tyre compounds again.

"I think it is relatively open in terms of us battling with Sauber and Renault and it can quite easily change, it is how well you get yourself prepared on Friday.

"At the end of the day we qualified 11th and 12th, and there was a Mercedes not there. We finished 11th and 12th and as I said, our optimum strategy was what we went on, and I think out of luck some other teams got there and closed the gap. But we were very close to scoring points as a team, but we didn't.

"That is the kind of thing you have to accept. We came off the back of scoring two races with points, so it can change - and I have always said it is tight, it is not easy, and it will be a fight all the way to maintain position in the constructors' championship."

Di Resta said his team may introduce some updates for the next race in India.

"The guys are not standing still in the factory. I believe there may be something small for India. We haven't been told yet but it is not going to be anything that will make a huge difference, but India will be a big race for us, and it is important that we try and get a strong result there."

Bruno Senna is confident that the Renault team's approach to this weekend's Korean Grand Prix will create a better platform for success than in Japan last weekend.

According to the Brazilian, the team must avoid wasting too much time making big set-up changes during Friday running if it is to maximise its potential.

This means that the baseline set-up that Renault starts tomorrow morning's free practice session needs to be immediately in the right ballpark.

"We have been very seriously discussing the need to get everything ready as soon as possible on Friday in terms of having a car that behaves properly," said Senna. "We need to chip away and find the limit in stead of making massive changes.

"Finding the right set-up window is very important. We have been outside of the window a few times so more effort needs to put into this.

"This will help us to achieve much better performance from the car during the weekend. We are aiming for this and the way that we are starting this weekend is potentially much better than the way we started last weekend."

Senna added that the Yeongam circuit is not ideally suited to the Renault, which features an innovative forward-exit exhaust that has proved ineffective in slow corners.

The track has a blend of fast turns and slow corners, with the latter dominating in the final sector, meaning that Renault could face a challenging weekend.

"This place is not ideal for our car," said Senna. "There are a few corners that put us in a similar situation to Singapore and that doesn't help us.

"But we understand our problems and our trying to fight against them. It's going to be a very tight battle."

Kamui Kobayashi is hoping for a "boost" in the Korean Grand Prix after a series of disappointing races.

The Japanese driver has not scored a point since the German Grand Prix in July, and he endured a disappointing home race last weekend despite a strong qualifying effort.

Kobayashi admitted he needs to return to the points this weekend in Korea.

"We'll see. We need a boost," said Kobayashi. [suzuka was] a bit of the boost, but only qualifying for me. Sergio did a great job, so that is why it looks like that. For me I have to really find some points in the race."

The Sauber driver said, however, that the upgrades introduced by his team at Suzuka were a step forward.

"I think the Suzuka update was pretty good so definitely our car performance is improving," he said. "Last year the track was very slippery, so we have to think about tyres as well.

"Hopefully if there is more grip it will be helpful for everybody, but with the super soft and soft is something tricky."

And Kobayashi admitted the Korean race will be easier for him, conceding the Japanese Grand Prix was tough because of the pressure.

"Yes, exactly," he said when asked if Korea's reduced pressure would be better for him. "Suzuka was tough."

Rubens Barrichello says he has been assured he will not go into the winter without any news from Williams on his future with the team.

The veteran Brazilian is still hoping to secure a new deal with the squad, although Williams is set to wait to decide on its line-up for the 2012 season.

Barrichello has made it clear he will do whatever it takes to be racing in Formula 1 next year, and says he has been told by Williams that he at least will not be kept waiting going into the winter.

"I hope before Brazil we know," said Barrichello. "The fans need to know. Williams told me they would like to make a decision before Brazil, so I hope at least that is a positive. I would like that to happen."

Barrichello admitted Renault would also be a possibility for him if there was a seat available.

But the Brazilian insists he does not want to be in Formula 1 without a competitive car.

"For sure. I think that there are two or three opportunities that are quite good," he said. "I would not drive in F1 for anything, just for the sake of saying, 'oh yes I completed 20 years now even though I don't have a competitive car'.

"That is not the question. The teams I am talking to have the qualities to build a good car and perform."

He added: "If my destiny tells me that it is not for me to be involved in F1 then I had a wonderful 19 years. I am going to try and think of something and see if they want me to drive the Disney cars at Disneyworld!

"I've had a wonderful time. All I want to say is that I belong here, and I have never been as quick as I am right now and I want to be driving next year. But if destiny turns it into a way that is not for me, then I will be home."

Lewis Hamilton says he has no problems with Felipe Massa despite the criticism the Briton has been subject to by the Brazilian in recent races.

Massa has been critical of the McLaren driver after clashing in Singapore and again at the Japanese Grand Prix, where the duo made contact as the Ferrari driver tried to overtake his rival.

Despite Massa's comments, Hamilton said on Thursday in Korea he still has no issues with the Brazilian.

"Of course, the situation has not been great for some time now, but I think I've always had respect for Felipe and I still do today regardless of the negative comments that he is coming out with," said Hamilton.

"It is easy in this sport when you are competitive and in the heat of the moment to say things you don't mean.

"Whether or not he does mean them, regardless, I have tried to show respect and particularly in the last race... I am really sorry for that, I really didn't see him, and I saw the replay: he was quite far up alongside me, out of my mirrors and I could not see anything, so by the time I saw him it was too late.

"I've been I the wrong place in the last few races. I had the car to be a bit further ahead. Perhaps if I was doing the right job I wouldn't be in this situation with Felipe, but all respect due and I hope in the future we can put our guards down and he can be cool with me. I am cool with him."

Reacting to Hamilton's comments, Massa said he had nothing to add about his problems with him, and vowed to move on.

"I have nothing to say. The only thing is that, we always need to think about moving forward. I really saw many mistakes from him, and that is it. I tried to speak to him, he didn't want it, and to be honest I don't care anymore. I will not go and speak to him. I will carry on doing my job like always, so it is okay. I always look to the future."

The Ferrari also driver ruled out complaining officially to the FIA.

"No, no. For sure, the only thing that is important is to be consistent. We saw some penalties, even for less things than the last race, and even Lewis has also excused himself. So, that is the only thing - to be consistent with the FIA penalties. There is nothing more than that to say."

And, amid suggestions from McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh that mirror rules may need tweaking in order to allow drivers to see better what's behind them, Massa said he had no problems with the current mirrors.

"I can see everything, no problem. In my car I don't have a problem to be honest, so..."

Lewis Hamilton says he simply has to do a better job in order to bounce back from his run of disappointing performances in recent races.

The McLaren driver has not been on the podium since he won the German Grand Prix in July, and has clashed with rivals several times in recent grands prix, including Belgium, Singapore and Japan last weekend.

He has dropped to fifth place in the standings and has also been overtaken by team-mate Jenson Button, the Briton having taken a superb win at Suzuka on Sunday.

Hamilton says his problems are due to a combination of elements, but admits that is not a excuse and he simply needs to raise his game.

"I think it is a combination of things," said Hamilton of his problems in recent races. "I think I put most of it down to myself.

"There are times when you find yourself unfortunately with yellow flags or traffic, but that is not an excuse.

"We have to do it, we all have to do the job, others have to do it. It is a lack of some pace, a lack of being in the right place at the right time, and that is what we are working on improving."

Hamilton says that Button's recent results show that McLaren is competitive enough to fight near the top, and the 2008 world champion feels that if his team-mate can do it, so can he.

"I think my approach every weekend is to have a good weekend but for some time now that is not the case," he said. "I always come back and have another shot and hope for a better result. I prepare myself in the best way I can.

"Clearly Jenson showed that we are competitive. I think if he can do it I can do it, so I need to get on with things, hopefully we will have our time properly in qualifying and hopefully able to compete with the best cars here.

"I have two two-time world champions next to me [Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel], and my goal in life is to emulate them so I need to catch up with them."

Group Lotus shareholder Proton has denied plans to sell a stake in the sportscar manufacturer to Renault team owner Gerard Lopez.

Sources revealed last weekend that Lopez and his Genii Capital company were in talks about the possibility of taking a financial interest in Group Lotus.

The deal was rumoured to be poised to go as far as Lopez taking a majority shareholding in the car maker.

On Thursday, however, Proton said the reports were "untrue and highly speculative", and that it had no plans to make a deal with Genii Capital.

"Proton hereby states that the alleged moves between Group Lotus and Genii Capital are untrue and that the reports are highly speculative in nature," Proton said in a statement.

"Proton's relationship with Group Lotus is as good as it has ever been. Our priority now is to ensure that the Lotus Business Turnaround Plan is executed according to schedule and that both parties are committed to its success.

"Proton and Lotus have reached a juncture whereby the market is eagerly waiting for Lotus' new products and all our energy and efforts have to be channelled towards achieving this critical goal.

"Furthermore, the scope of Lotus' involvement in Formula 1 as title sponsor to Lotus Renault GP is to create dynamic marketing and branding synergies.

"Proton does not wish to further entertain any unsubstantiated news of speculative nature and we hope this statement will put all speculation to rest.

"However we wish to add, that as a proactive business entity, the Proton Group of Companies will continue to initiate and consider viable business opportunities and arrangements which will benefit and add value to the Group's interest."

Fernando Alonso says he is not too interested in finishing runner-up in this year's championship, and claims he will try to enjoy racing as much as possible in the final events of the year.

The Ferrari driver is currently in third place in the standings, having dropped behind McLaren's Jenson Button, who is now eight points ahead with four races to go.

Although Alonso had said earlier this month that the runner-up spot was valuable to him, he said in Korea on Thursday that he feels no pressure to finish second and that it will not make a big difference to him.

The Spaniard also admitted it will be hard for him to win a race in the remaining part of the season, even if that is his main goal.

"I will try to win one race if possible, but we know that it is going to be difficult," said Alonso. "Red Bull will remain favourites for the remaining races and McLaren is strong in this part of the championship so we know it will be difficult.

"We will try to enjoy racing, with no pressure about the championship position because I think finishing second or fifth in drivers' championship is not a big difference.

"Once you cannot be champion there is no big interest and in the constructors' championship, which is more important, McLaren is a long way ahead of us.

"We need to do the maximum but it's difficult to catch them. We will try to enjoy racing. When you can be aggressive at at the start, enjoy Sundays, maximise the potential of the car, and we know if we do that then the podium is very possible and if there is one opportunity to win one remaining GP we will try to take it."

Alonso also said he was very happy with his team-mate Felipe Massa, following comments from team boss Stefano Domenicali that the double champion would welcome Sebastian Vettel at Ferrari in the future.

"I am extremely happy with the team-mate I have alongside me," said Alonso. "Now I am happy with Felipe, we have a strong team at the moment.

"Different drivers with different styles and we can help each other, with the way of driving and the way of approaching the weekend, so I've been constantly learning from Felipe in these two years.

"In the future nobody knows. I have a long-term contract with Ferrari. In the next five or six years I don't know if we will keep going with Felipe or if there will be a change, and if someone else is coming we will work as close as we work with him and try and help Ferrari win as many races as possible, so it will be good."

Sebastian Vettel says he and Red Bull will still put pressure on themselves to do the best possible job despite having wrapped up the drivers' championship in the previous race.

The German clinched his second title in a row at Suzuka last weekend, while Red Bull looks set to secure the constructors' crown this weekend in Korea.

Vettel insists, however, that the team will not change its approach, and will be aiming to do the best possible job in all the remaining races.

"We love racing and the moment you come to a race thinking it doesn't matter where you finish is moment you stay at home," said Vettel. "The championship was the ultimate target. Reaching that before the end of the season is not the usual but nevertheless we come here with pressure.

"Even if people don't put pressure on us as usual, we put pressure on ourselves because we love racing. We will enjoy racing as usual but we will make sure that we do the best we can and we will not be happy knowing we can do better.

"The approach will remain the same. It was a tough venue for me last year. I was in good shape until 10 laps from the end, so obviously there is still something to be done. I've never been on podium here."

Vettel, who endured a difficult race in Japan as he struggled with the degradation of the softer tyres, says the team has been working to find some answers to the issue, and is hopeful things will be better in Korea.

"It is true that in other races we always had the luxury to go a lap longer or two but had to pit for strategy reasons, whereas in Suzuka we were the ones pulling into pits first," he said. "We were there quite early, earlier than we expected or we wanted.

"We suffered more degradation than we thought, so we have a couple of ideas. On Sunday everything turns out to be a little bit different, and the race is long so you have to look after the car and not only the tyres as well.

"We understand to some extent why the tyre wear was more excessive than we thought, but we need to come here and confirm it. We have a good chance to understand more about tyres, as the tyre approach this weekend is very, very aggressive, so not sure how many stops we will see, surely more than two, maybe five, we do not know yet."

Scuderia Toro Rosso is hoping to be able to run the modified exhaust blown diffuser package that it tried and then abandoned during Friday practice at Suzuka in this weekend's Korean Grand Prix.

High temperatures caused the new exhaust exits to break after several laps at Suzuka, forcing the Italian team to ditch its package even though there were no problems with overheating of the floor itself.

Before the exhaust problem manifested itself, the package was reckoned to have delivered a performance improvement.

The team has worked to correct the problem since Suzuka and will try the package again tomorrow.

"We only had a few days to try to sort them out but we have tried to do something," said Sebastien Buemi when asked by AUTOSPORT about the possibility of using the package.

"We are not sure if it is going to be enough, but we will definitely try them on Friday morning and see if the reliability is good or not.

"On Friday morning in Japan, it seemed to bring what was expected, but the only thing was that the exit part of the exhaust broke, so we couldn't do more than three or four laps."

Although Buemi does not believe that being able to run the exhausts is key for the Toro Rosso's chances of scoring points, he thinks that any small gain can make a big difference in the tight midfield pack.

Toro Rosso is currently eighth in the constructors' championship, but is only 11 points behind seventh-placed Sauber and Buemi believes that his strong performance in the Japanese Grand Prix before his wheel fell off thanks to a cross-threaded wheelnut is proof that even without the upgrade the car is competitive.

"If we can improve your car by just a little bit then maybe we can get the edge over the other guys in the big group. Renault is the start of this group with Force India, Williams, Sauber and Toro Rosso in it. If you are at the head of that, you will be between eighth and tenth.

"We believe that we would have ended the race at Suzuka in eighth or ninth place, maybe just in front of Sergio Perez. That is the first place after the big teams.

"We were quite competitive until we lost a wheel."

Jenson Button is confident McLaren can now challenge Red Bull on all high-speed circuits, having outpaced the team at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Button scored his third win of the season at Suzuka as he outperformed world champion Sebastian Vettel, despite the German starting from pole position.

Vettel had to settle for third position behind Ferrari's Fernando Alonso after struggling with the degradation of his softer tyres.

Button believes McLaren has raised its game on high-speed tracks where Red Bull has been strongest in the past few years.

"I think our overall pace forgetting the strategy and looking after the tyres has been pretty good on high-speed circuits," said Button on Thursday in Korea.

"I think our car works well on high-speed circuits and it's good to see that because that was a weakness of ours if you compare us with Red Bull. At high-speed corners we were always looking at them and go 'how the hell are they doing that?'. Then we went to Spa and we were very competitive. And it's the same thing in Suzuka.

"Our car worked very well, and in the first sector of the lap we were actually quicker than the Red Bulls for the first time in three years. So I think our car is generally competitive in high-speed circuits."

Button, who has outshone team-mate Lewis Hamilton in recent races, downplayed the benefit this year's tyres have had in his strong season, despite the general belief that his smoother driving skill is helping him.

"I don't know. I think if we were on last year's tyres this year I'd be pretty happy anyway, because you still have a lot of tyre work on high-speed circuits," he said.

"I don't know, maybe it does suit my style more. It's difficult to know. But at some circuits I've really struggled with tyre wear, so it's not always gone my way."

The McLaren driver also reckons the Korean Grand Prix will be very hard on tyres, and he thinks drivers could be forced to stop up to five times in the race.

"It's going to be tough. The softs are pretty tough tyres to do a long run with anyway, so with the supersoft is going to be interesting. You could see a lot of stops here. We can only have five stops, we can't have any more, but I think we might be using all of them.

"Qualifying is going to be interesting, as you don't want to flat-spot a tyre, because you are going to need them all maybe. And then we have India, which is a fast circuit like Suzuka and at the moment is 35 degrees, so it's going to be like Suzuka but even hotter, so even tougher on tyres.

"So we have a tough couple of races coming up. It's not just about sheer speed, it's whether you can look after the tyres or not."

Mercedes GP has rubbished talk that it is on the verge of breaking Formula 1's Resource Restriction Agreement, ahead of talks in Korea this weekend to end unease about spending limits.

The Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) has scheduled a meeting for Sunday morning in Korea to talk through a range of issues - and on the agenda are discussions about the RRA.

There has been growing unease in recent weeks about elements of the RRA – including where Mercedes GP's ramp-up of investment will put it, plus ongoing issues surrounding Red Bull Racing after a recent benchmark study of RRA terminology by Dutch consultants Capgemini.

With Ferrari in particular having urged FOTA talks to get a grip on the matter, any unease is likely to be brought out into the open this weekend.

However, Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug has strongly refuted any suggestion his team considering breaking the RRA – and says it fully supports the concept.

"We are well inside the limit, absolutely. No doubt," he said when asked by AUTOSPORT about the situation regarding the RRA. "We were not at the limit before and we still are taking it very seriously.

"We don't know if all people are acting in the same way, but we are 100% RRA and, especially with Ross [brawn], we were one of the prime movers for that concept, and really are living with it. This is the basis for Mercedes Benz for the future. We want to have decent limits and not spending money unnecessarily."

Despite insisting that Mercedes GP was committed to the RRA, he did suggest that not all teams were being totally in line with the spending limits – although he did not elaborate on which outfits he felt may be outside.

"I do not think that the interpretation is the same in each and every place, but it is mostly the same," he said. "Having said that, I am not a specialist because I am just not running the operation. I am not involved and I absolutely can stress that we are well inside the limits, and we will be.

"If people are questioning it, they should question us. If they are questioning the hiring of two engineers, are they inside or outside [the RRA]? They are inside..."

When asked if he felt it important all the unease about the RRA needed properly clarifying in this weekend's meeting, Haug said: "This is an ongoing business. They have I think a very constructive approach and I do not want to go into detail, who is just probably not on the same page. But most of the teams are."

Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali said in Japan last weekend that he believed it vital the RRA was enforced strongly, because he felt it important that spending power did not become a key factor in delivering on-track performance

"I think that it is a subject that is quite sensitive. It is a subject where we need to make a final clarification because, at the end of the day, the RRA was very important to keep the level of expenditure as low as possible," he said.

"It should not become a performance differentiator so that you are able to do something that some others are not able to do. But, in that respect, I am not saying anything on top of what I said. We need to clarify this up until the end.

"This is a matter based on a lot of trust between teams and we need to get out from these doubts. We will have a meeting, I think, in Korea where we need to close this point because it is really a very crucial factor within all the teams that have to work together."

Thursday's press conference:

DRIVERS - Jaime ALGUERSUARI (Toro Rosso), Fernando ALONSO (Ferrari), Lewis HAMILTON (McLaren), Pastor MALDONADO (Williams), Sergio PÉREZ (Sauber), Sebastian VETTEL (Red Bull)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q. Sergio, a good race last weekend, finishing eighth. Can we expect the same this weekend?

Sergio PEREZ: Well, it was a very special race for me. It was quite a good race, very good race, starting on P17. We had a hydraulic problem. We thought the race was lost and our pace was very strong in the race. We managed very good strategy and it was very good to score some good points and hopefully we will keep up the momentum in the last races.

Q. Presumably you have sent a birthday card to Peter Sauber if you want to keep your drive for next year, as it is his birthday today?

SP: Yes, of course. It was his birthday and we all congratulated him. It is a very good atmosphere in the team, everybody is very happy, and we are looking forward to the last four events.

Q. This is a new circuit for you and I believe you have driven it on the simulator. Now you've seen it for real what are your initial impressions?

SP: I went for a walk this morning and, of course, it looks very dirty. The track, the layout, looks very promising. I have driven the circuit on the simulator already and I am looking forward to doing a good job this weekend. It is a very challenging circuit.

Q. Jaime, you started 15th last year and drove up to 11th. Similar or better this year?

Jamie ALGUERSUARI: I hope better. We had a problem in the pitstop last year and I think a top-seven position was possible here. It was a chaotic race with the rain, a very difficult one for all of us. I expect a lot from this year and especially now we are not far away from Sauber. I think we can manage to score some points in the last four events and hopefully to finish the race in the top 10. That would be awesome.

Q. You are not doing FP1 at this race. How much does that potentially upset the weekend?

JA: At the moment, not much. Tomorrow it is raining at the moment. That's the prediction that we have. We know that on Sunday possibly the race will be in the dry conditions and also the Saturday, so at the moment it is not a bad job. Also the fact I know the track so it is also fine and it is not bothering me so much.

Q. One other story is all about your music CD. How much does that take up your time. It sounds as though it is very successful.

JA: Yeah, at the moment the first release has been quite good. It was number one in the chart of iTunes in Spain and top five in the UK, so working a lot in the studio and hopefully with more releases for the winter and next year. Keep on working at that as well. It's a part of my life, what I love. I obviously cannot do it when I'm here but I try to do it at home. I have my studio there in Barcelona so I spend a lot of time there having fun.

Q.So a good second career?

JA: Yeah, absolutely.

Q. Pastor, first time here. Have you driven it on the simulator? What are your first impressions of this circuit?

Pastor MALDONADO: No, I've never driven it on the simulator. It will be my first time tomorrow. The track looks really interesting; challenging. I think especially the second sector will be quite technical. I hope to improve our last results and be a little bit more competitive here. Even if it will be my first time here, I think after P1 I will be competitive.

Q. You have got a new technical leadership in the team. What are your thoughts about that?

PM: I think the team now is having many changes and important at the same time, but we are really happy, we are pushing, concentrated, focused on improving even this year's car. I hope to do well, especially in this last part of the season and even working so hard with the team. I think the changes are really important. All the people feel comfortable in the team, so looking forward to this end of the season.

Q. And your thoughts about your first grand prix season?

PM: I think it was really difficult, especially at the beginning. We didn't run a lot because of so many problems in the car. But now we are getting the pace, more confidence, more experience, so I think I am doing good. I feel good in the team, with the people. As I mentioned before the team is really compact. It is a big family and I hope to improve and score some more points in the last part of the season.

Q. Fernando, the championship is over but what are your goals for the last four races? And obviously you won here last year.

Fernando ALONSO: Try to win one race if possible. We know it will be difficult. Red Bull will remain favourites for the remaining races. McLaren is very strong at this part of the championship as well, so we know it is going to be difficult. But we will try every Sunday, we will try to enjoy racing, with obviously not the pressure of the championship position or whatever, as I think finishing, second, third or fifth in the Drivers' Championship is not a big difference. Once you cannot be World Champion it is not any more a big interest on that. And then in the Constructors' Championship, which is maybe more important, McLaren are still quite a long way ahead of us, so we need to do the maximum, but we know it is also going to be difficult to catch them. As I said try and enjoy racing like we did at Suzuka last weekend, when you can be aggressive on the starts, you can play a little bit with the strategy. We can enjoy Sundays, try do good races, maximise the potential of the car and if we do that then we know a podium is very possible and as I said if there is one opportunity to win one of the remaining grands prix we try to take it.

Q. Suzuka was a very good result. You were right there with the leaders, but Singapore say wasn't such a good performance. How do you explain those ups and downs?

FA: I think this year there has been some up and downs for everybody which no-one can understand 100 per cent. We can have some ideas of what happened in Singapore to us and we are quite convinced that we know the problem. We are also quite convinced we know why we were a little bit better in Suzuka. Obviously, I will not tell you now. I think it is the same for everybody. I think everybody was expecting a strong Red Bull in Suzuka and they finished third so more and more difficult to understand Formula One for everybody in these days.

Q. Have you got more bits and pieces coming here? Is there a new wing, maybe a development for 2012?

FA: I know some things but I plan not to tell you what we have new in the car, [this would] give you an easy life.

Q. Sebastian, I expect you have had a fairly busy week. Tell us about it, well not even a week, five days.

Sebastian VETTEL: Yeah, we had a very busy Sunday to be honest. After the race there were a lot of things to do but once we got beyond that and once I found myself in the bar with the boys we enjoyed that night very much. We had a very good time. Did some karaoke, which I think is traditional in Japan. It was a very good night, very special, and after a couple of drinks everyone was quite happy so we definitely had a good time and it was quite special as some time in the night Michael [schumacher] came as well and joined us and we had a couple of drinks together. I think after he came I felt much worse as I started mixing a little bit, which wasn't the best strategy. No, all in all, it was a fun night. We continued going straight to Tokyo. I had an event there with Infiniti and saw a lot of fans there so it was good. We weren't as fit as usual maybe, so still quite tired but it was quite a nice day as well. Tuesday, I had a bit of time for myself and allowed myself to let things sink in a little bit more. I had a good time in Tokyo and then got here yesterday.

Q. So the second World Championship, has it sunk in as the first one jumped up on you? This one has crept up on you more?

SV: Yeah, it is obviously a big difference. I think last year we did it the last minute and we always kept believing and got it done in the very end of the championship. We never led the championship. This year it has been a different story. We led it from start to finish so it is obviously a different year. Even though it was likely and the championship got closer and closer in the last coupe of races we always tried to focus on that particular race. In some ways when I crossed the line, of course we knew we could have done maybe a little bit better and always you have the freshest emotions in your head and we knew what we could have done better for that race on Sunday. We got beaten by Jenson (Button) and Fernando. We would have loved to win, but we are out again this weekend and try to get another win. Surely the championship in that regard is decided bit it doesn't change anything to our approach really.

Q. Lewis, this weekend marks McLaren's 700th World Championship event, which you may or may not know. How does it feel as a World Champion to play a part in that history and such an important part in that history?

Lewis HAMILTON: It feels great. My dream was always to race for this team so to have become a part of the history of the team and to be here now representing them on their 700th grand prix, I am very proud of that. I am very proud to be a part of it. I have got some incredible people behind me supporting me within the team and I think I am very blessed to have that.

Q. Jonathan Neale said that the team had given you a standing ovation. Not awfully certain where it was, but how does it feel to have that support when you are trying to refocus on your season in 2011.

LH: I don't really know anything about that. I've not had a standing ovation for a while. I have been with the team since I was 13-year-old. I think I have quite a unique relationship with the team and regardless of how tough a year it has been or how many problems we have had I stay very close to their hearts and I think the same with me. They continue to support me and it is great to see that when they are having tough times us as drivers, me and Jenson, are able to lift them and vice versa.

Q. And you must have been very heartened by the fact that Vodafone McLaren Mercedes won the grand prix last weekend?

LH: Well, I wouldn't say heartened is the word. I think I was very proud as we had worked very hard to beat the Red Bulls this year and to beat them on such an important weekend, when Sebastian won the World Championship, I think was quite significant for us. It is quite an achievement and as always we celebrated in the same manner as we always do and I think that continues to show strength in our team.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

(Giusto Ferronato - La Gazzetta dello Sport) Fernando, Stefano Domenicali said in the future you could accept Sebastian in Ferrari. is it true? And do you think that Ferrari has the ability to manage two World Champions in the same team?

FA: Well, I am extremely happy with any team-mate I have alongside me. I think now I am extremely happy with Felipe (Massa). I think we have a very strong team at the moment. We are different rivers with different styles that we can help each other with a way of driving and a way of approaching the weekend. I am constantly learning from Felipe in these two years and I am extremely happy. In the future, nobody knows. I have a long-term contract with Ferrari for the next five or six years so I don't know, if we can keep going with Felipe or if there will be a change in the future. If someone else is coming we will try to work as close as we work now as we do with him and try to help Ferrari in as many races as possible so it will be good.

(Marco Degl'Innocenti – La Gazzetta dello Sport) May we know the opinion of Sebastian about that?

SV: Well, I think, I mean I have a contract as well. I am very happy where I am. I think we have just won the second title together, now we are focused on the Constructors' Championship and not really thinking what is happening in, I don't know, five or six years. As I said I am very, very happy where I am and I think if you look in everyone's face in our team we are having a good time, we are very competitive, we are very focused when it comes to racing. But the proof of last Sunday was we also know how to have a good time so I am very happy.

(Fulvio Solms – Corriere dello Sport)Fernando and Lewis, do you think Sebastian with his young team could be a serial winner in the future as well?

FA: I think Formula One is very difficult to predict. We have seen in the last two years, or two years-and-a-half, that Red Bull dominate the sport and they were the best prepared guys and they did a better job than anybody else so we need to congratulate them on these two championships and this very good performance. But next year we all start from zero again, we all try to improve and I think no-one here can say that next year who will be the fastest car or fastest guy. It will be pretty close I think and Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes will start again like the most powerful teams as they are maybe the best teams now. All of them will start like favourites and Sebastian will be one of them next year, I am sure.

LH: I agree with what Fernando said. You cannot really predict what is going to happen, but they have been very competitive the last two-and-a-half-years so we have to assume they are going to be competitive next year but we all start from scratch and have another chance to win again. I think one thing is for sure is that we are all determined to win the championship so whatever the case it won't be easy for any of us.

Q. (Bianca Leppert – Auto, Motor und Sport) Sebastian, have you and the team already analysed what the problem was with your tyre wear, because it was much higher than at Ferrari and McLaren?

SV: Maybe Lewis had even a little bit more? It's true that in other races we always had – in a way – the luxury to go maybe a lap or two longer but had to pit for strategy reasons, so we were never really limited by tyre wear, whereas in Suzuka we were the ones pulling into the pits first – well, Lewis was – we were quite early, earlier than we expected and earlier than we wanted and we suffered more degradation than we thought, especially after the strong performance we had on Friday. We have a couple of ideas. Obviously on Sunday everything turned out to be a little bit different. You know the race is long, so you have to look after the car and not only the tyres as well. I think, to some extent, we understand why tyre wear was more excessive than we thought, or we need to come here and confirm that I think we have another good chance in that regard, to understand more about tyres as the tyre approach for this weekend is very, very aggressive. So I'm not sure how many stops we will see but surely more than two, maybe even up to five. I don't know – we don't know yet. It all depends tomorrow – on the other hand, if it's wet, it doesn't really give us an idea, so we could be surprised on Sunday, we will see.

Q. Gary Meenaghan (The National) Sebastian, I'm just wondering if you could tell us what you sang at the karaoke on Sunday, and also, if you've had a chance to explore South Korea?

SV: You wanted to know which songs? We had Yellow Submarine, Hey Jude, My Way – no Japanese songs, our Japanese is not so fluent. I think the funny thing is that whereas I might usually be quite in control of not showing the German accent too much, I think after a couple of drinks it was quite obvious where I come from. It was a fun night and then, as I said, I spent a day in Tokyo on Tuesday and came here yesterday, so I didn't see much of Korea. I think really to judge the country you have to go up to Seoul which I have heard a lot of good things about. It should be a nice city. It's a shame that we are so far away. Obviously it's a bit different down here, a bit more quiet but tomorrow we start the engines again and we will create our own action.

Q. (Sarah Holt – BBC Sport) Question for Lewis: this was an interesting and demanding new track last year which you did really well on. Are you looking for a particular result this weekend, a particular experience here this weekend to help you get back in your groove?

LH: My approach every weekend is obviously to have a good weekend but for some time now it's not been the case but I always come back, I always come back and give it another shot and hope for a better result. I've prepared myself in the best way I can, with the situation that stands, and I hope that... clearly Jenson showed that we're competitive, so I think that if he can do it then I can do it, so I really need to get on with things this weekend. Hopefully we will have our timing a little bit better in qualifying and get our second run in and hopefully we will be able to compete with the two guys here. I've got two-time World Champions next to me and my goal in life is to emulate those, but really I think I have to catch up with them so I'm working on that.

Q. (Sarah Holt – BBC Sport) Could you talk a little bit about the track for us?

LH: The track's fantastic, it's a nice track to drive. Last year there were obviously some difficult conditions but I believe this weekend is going to be dry. You've got a couple of very long straights which enable you to follow and to overtake. With the DRS zone I think it's going to be quite a challenging circuit and I think staying ahead of people is going to be tough when they're right behind you, of course. But I think our car will be quite quick here as well as the two guys next to me, so it's going to be very close but fingers crossed, we show some positive performance as we did in the last race.

Q. (Joris Fioriti – Agence France Presse) You keep saying that you're going to keep trying, for Fernando and Lewis to win some races and to keep on winning ; I was wondering how hard it is to still have motivation when everything is done. Racing for fun can't be as good as winning when races count.

FA: I think we all want to win, in any race we participate in. Even when we do the Race of Champions in December, for fun, if we finish second it's a very bad feeling, and a very bad night. Even here, in Formula One grand prix, in four different countries, racing for our teams, for our sponsors, for our fans, it's impossible not to be motivated to win that grand prix.

SV: Yeah, I think we love racing and I think the moment you come to a race thinking that it doesn't really matter where you finish it's the moment when you should probably stay at home. Of course, the championship was the ultimate target. Reaching that, before the end of the season, is not usual, but nevertheless we come here with pressure, even if people don't put pressure on us as usual or as much as usual, we put pressure on ourselves because we love racing, we will enjoy racing as usual, but we will make sure that we do the best we can and we will not be happy leaving this track knowing that we could have done better. That's what I said: the approach will remain the same. This has been a tough venue for me last year, we have been in very good shape until ten laps to the end, so obviously there is still something to be done. Obviously I've never been on the podium and I'm looking forward to a good race but first of all we need to focus on Friday to prepare our car as much as we can, to be in good shape. I think that's for the whole team, we're not lacking motivation.

LH: I think no matter who you are, every challenge, every competition, every race or obstacle that you come across in life is important and every race that I come across… every race is important. To me, racing is the biggest part of my life apart from my family and it doesn't matter if it's a practice race or whatever, it still holds significant value to me. Whether or not the championship is still up for grabs, I think there are still some fantastic races ahead of us and there's always another chance to revive yourself, so I'm excited for that.

Q. (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Lewis, the last few races have not been very exciting for you. What's your explanation for this, is it linked by the tyres, just bad luck or something else?

LH: I think the last… I think it's been more than two races, it's been since… at least since Hungary, so that's quite a few races, but even before that we had some… yeah, so it's been a good five bad races. I think it's a combination of things. I put most of it down to myself and of course, there are times that you find yourself a little bit unfortunate but whether it could be a yellow flag or something like that or traffic, it's not really any excuse, we all have to do it, we all have to do the job. Others are able to do it, so I think it's just been a lack of some pace, a lack of some being in the right place at the right time so that's what we're working towards improving.

Q. (Carlos Miguel – La Gaceta) Fernando and Jaime, this is the first time that we see you in the same room after Singapore; how is your relationship, is everything OK after the problem during the race?

FA: First of all, we have no problem. I think we were in the same plane after Singapore, today we were in the gym in the morning, so we don't need to tell everyone with whom we are at any moment. And in Singapore, as I said, maybe Jaime agreed, that there was no problem. We were lapping cars in front of us after the restart. They took very long to let us pass, 13 corners and whoever took the opportunity. This is normal, the restarts are always different and difficult, especially in Singapore on a street circuit, but we said it there, no problem, but after three weeks now, you keep talking about that, so the problem is not in us, it's maybe in you.

JA: I agree with everything that he says.

Q. I have a question for Lewis; is it possible that you have again become a friend of Felipe Massa?

LH: I think so. Of course the situation has not been great for some time now. I've always had respect for Felipe and still do today, regardless of the negative comments that he's constantly coming up with. It's easy, in this sport, when you're competitive and in the heat of the moment, to say things that perhaps you don't mean, whether or not he does mean them. But regardless, I've tried to show respect, particularly in the last race, I'm very, very sorry for that. I really didn't see him. I've just seen the replay today and he was quite far up the outside of me but out of my mirrors, I can't see a thing, and I was looking to the right and I couldn't see him, so by the time I realised he was on the left it was too late. I think I've been in the wrong place in the last few races. We've had the car to be quite a bit further ahead as Jenson showed and so perhaps if I was doing the right job I wouldn't be in this situation with Felipe but again, just all due respect and I hope that in the future we can put our guards down and he can be cool with me again. I'm cool with him, so I have no problems with him.

Q. (Frederic Ferret – L'Equipe) Sebastian and Fernando: last year the track was nearly ready for the Grand Prix, have you seen any improvements to the track this year and are you happy with them, if there are any?

SV: I think generally there hasn't been a lot going on since we left, but they obviously made some changes, for instance, at the last corner they moved the wall so it's a little bit better to see, a bit easier for us. The pit entry becomes a bit more visible – things that were a little bit borderline last year are a bit better this year but other than that… The circuit was ready just in time last year. Obviously they've had a year break to finish everything if there were some things still to be finished. As I said, it looked unchanged in many ways. I don't know how much racing has been going on so for sure we will see a lot of track improvement throughout the weekend.

Q. (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) Sergio, I think you played a bit of a practical joke on your team over the last few laps at Suzuka; I wonder if you could just explain what happened and how they reacted to it?

SP: They were very excited that we were getting into the points. We had a problem, we had some vibrations and in the last part of the track, the last corner, I told them that I was losing power and they were quite afraid about it and when I crossed the line, it was a just a few seconds after they realised that it was just a joke.

Q. ( A Young Shin - SBS/ESPN Korea) There's been a lot of talk about races, but since you're in Korea, I would like to ask a question that is specific to Korea. The Korean interest in motor sports is not that high, unfortunately, so a lot of the F1 driver hopefuls are struggling to become professional drivers. Sebastian, Fernando and Lewis, you all became World Champions despite difficult conditions so can you say a word of encouragement to F1 hopefuls in Korea, based on your experiences?

SV: As you described, I think it's the same for all of us. We know pretty well what is going on in our own countries in terms of what possibilities there are because we've run through the system ourselves, therefore it's hard to judge what's going on over here. I think that generally we are very open for new races to come onto the calendar, so this one was spectacular in terms of the race we had last year. Unfortunately, as I said, I think there's a lot more going on in the area around Seoul, there are a lot more people. Down here it seems to be a bit too quiet but we obviously hope that our appearance here helps the interest in motor sport in this country and therefore maybe the chance that one day we will have a Korean driver in Formula One. I came across a couple of kids – not many to be honest – from Korea, one or two, I remember, I forgot the names, a little bit hard to pronounce for us. There's nothing that speaks against a Korean driver but I think it's a bit difficult to judge, as we don't know really, especially in karting, how much support there is and how much opportunity there is for people here.

FA: The first thing to improve motor sport in Korea is to host a Grand Prix, and that's already done, and this will be a huge improvement for the future in Korean motor sport and for the young kids, watching the race here. For us, and I think for Korean kids or whatever, when we started we all moved to Italy to race in go-karts because Italy was and still is the best place to race in go-karts and to improve your talent and your driving. So we all made some sacrifices to get into Formula One and we all tried to dedicate our lives and our careers to motor sport. So if any young Korean guy wants to grow up, he needs to enjoy, to love this sport and then I'm sure that at one point he will have to sacrifice something in his life.

LH: I agree with both the drivers, and particularly Fernando's comment there. I was going to say the same. I think it's definitely possible to have a Korean driver in the future and I think it just appears that the formula for proving a young driver's talent is to go to Europe to race. The majority of the drivers that you see here in the paddock would have gone to Italy to race as that's generally where the… they have great weather, they have great circuits, generally most of the greats went racing there. That's the place where you will be seen, that's the place where you will really have your skills and your talent challenged and so it's about making… it's quite a big sacrifice to move countries all the way from Korea to Europe, but if you feel confident in yourself, believe in yourself enough then you should do that.

[Lineker]

In keeping with his recent renaissance, Michael Schumacher set the fastest time in first practice session for the Korean Grand Prix, though his position was enhanced by changing track conditions following a very wet start to the day.

The Mercedes driver survived a trip across the muddy pitlane border as well as late attacks from newly crowned world champion Sebastian Vettel and Paul di Resta to stay top of the times as the surface water dissipated slightly in the final moments of the 90 minutes.

The rain threatened to completely wash out first practice until the session came alive in the last 30 minutes.

After nearly an hour of waiting around in the rain - with the exception of some development laps for Lewis Hamilton's McLaren - the Briton re-emerged from the pits and triggered a mini burst of activity as five or six cars joined him within minutes.

Hamilton was the first to post a time with a 2m03.391s lap, which was quickly usurped by Toro Rosso's Sebastien Buemi (2m03.182s).

That time stood for a while as Kamui Kobayashi's Sauber and the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg and Schumacher all failed to bump the Swiss from the top spot. Meanwhile Pastor Maldonado's Williams ran off the track twice in the space of 10 minutes.

It seemed as if Buemi had enjoyed the best of the conditions as with 10 minutes of the session left, both Force India drivers Adrian Sutil and di Resta had a crack at the top spot. Sutil's lap looked strong until the final sector, while the Scot had to catch a wild moment as the rain continued to fall.

Around the same time, Vettel ran wide around Turn 11, almost dinking another front wing against an unsuspecting wall. As if to emphasise the low grip level, Karun Chandhok also spun his Lotus harmlessly.

Vettel then posted the fastest lap, only to be outdone by Schumacher, whose 2m02.784s was enough to take the top spot. Di Resta persisted to take the third fastest time, ahead of his team-mate, as the chequered flag waved.

Buemi ended up fifth, followed by Kobayashi, Hamilton, Rosberg, Sergio Perez (Sauber) and Mark Webber (Red Bull), as only 18 cars set times. One of those was French rookie Jean-Eric Vergne, who made his practice debut for Toro Rosso and ended the morning 13th.

FP1


Pos  Driver                Team                    Time                Laps

 1.  Michael Schumacher    Mercedes                2m02.784s            10

 2.  Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault        2m02.840s  + 0.056    8

 3.  Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes    2m02.912s  + 0.128   12

 4.  Adrian Sutil          Force India-Mercedes    2m03.141s  + 0.357   12

 5.  Sebastien Buemi       Toro Rosso-Ferrari      2m03.182s  + 0.398    9

 6.  Kamui Kobayashi       Sauber-Ferrari          2m03.292s  + 0.508   13

 7.  Lewis Hamilton        McLaren-Mercedes        2m03.391s  + 0.607    6

 8.  Nico Rosberg          Mercedes                2m04.311s  + 1.527   12

 9.  Sergio Perez          Sauber-Ferrari          2m04.797s  + 2.013    8

10.  Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault        2m05.183s  + 2.399    5

11.  Karun Chandhok        Lotus-Renault           2m06.350s  + 3.566   11

12.  Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Cosworth       2m06.852s  + 4.068   11

13.  Jean-Eric Vergne      Toro Rosso-Ferrari      2m07.541s  + 4.757    9

14.  Rubens Barrichello    Williams-Cosworth       2m08.218s  + 5.434    5

15.  Narian Karthikeyan    HRT-Cosworth            2m08.832s  + 6.048   14

16.  Daniel Ricciardo      HRT-Cosworth            2m09.232s  + 6.448   14

17.  Jerome D-Ambrosio     Virgin-Cosworth         2m12.658s  + 9.874    7

18.  Timo Glock            Virgin-Cosworth         2m14.508s  + 11.724   4

19.  Felipe Massa          Ferrari                 no time               1

20.  Fernando Alonso       Ferrari                 no time               5

21.  Bruno Senna           Renault                 no time               1

22.  Vitaly Petrov         Renault                 no time               1

23.  Heikki Kovalainen     Lotus-Renault           no time               1

24.  Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes        no time               1


All Timing Unofficial[/code]




McLaren dominated the times for the second free practice session for the Korean Grand Prix as the second 90 minutes of running provided no more dry running than the first had.



Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button were split by 0.104s, but the pair were 1.7s quicker than the rest of the field - headed by new double world champion Sebastian Vettel.



The second session exploded into life as soon as the pitlane opened with all the vivacity the first practice had lacked. None of the teams had achieved any worthwhile running in the first one, and even with the track still wet, the priority seemed to be to put the laps on the board.



Very quickly the Red Bull pair established themselves at the top of the times, with Vettel leading Mark Webber. But that only lasted as long as it took for the McLarens to get out of the garages and up to speed. Then Button and Hamilton began trading times over first position.



By the time they'd settled the initial argument, half an hour of the session had gone by, and Hamilton was top with a 1m50.828s, Button 0.5s behind - the track still wet enough for inters with the rain sporadic. The silver cars were two seconds faster than their Red Bull rivals.



Button returned to the track with 35 minutes gone and began setting fastest split times, improving to within 0.104s but staying second before returning to the pits, his set of inters finally shot.



Things stayed the same for a while until Fernando Alonso fired in a lap good enough to put him third fastest with 40 minutes to go - still the Ferrari driver was 1.9s behind the two McLarens, which seemed the car most happy in the intermediate conditions.



The Red Bulls returned to the track at the turn of final half hour and Vettel immediately re-established himself in third, but only just – the world champion still 1.8s off Hamilton's time. It was about this time that the most curious incident of the day occurred when Nico Rosberg collected Jaime Alguersuari's Toro Rosso as the Spaniard exited the pits.



The Mercedes driver ran wide on the exit of the very tight left-hander that is Turn 1 and simply skated into the Toro Rosso, damaging both cars. Not long after Alguersuari was on the radio complaining about the dangers of exiting the pits in Korea.



They weren't the only ones going off though: Hamilton, Alonso, Rubens Barrichello, Bruno Senna and several others all had similar moments.



Into the final ten minutes and still the track wasn't entirely dry. Sebastien Buemi tried the super soft tyres, but a spin on his out lap gave Toro Rosso its answer as to the adhesion levels on the track.



Webber too went on to the softer slicks and fared better – in that he didn't spin – but no way was the Red Bull changing the order.



So in the end the McLarens headed Vettel, Alonso and Webber with Alguersuari remaining an impressive sixth. Felipe Massa ended up seventh ahead of Rosberg, Buemi and Paul di Resta completing the top ten.





[code]FP2


Pos  Driver                Team                   Time               Laps

 1.  Lewis Hamilton        McLaren-Mercedes       1m50.828s    	       26

 2.  Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes       1m50.932s  + 0.104   19

 3.  Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault       1m52.646s  + 1.818   30

 4.  Fernando Alonso       Ferrari                1m52.774s  + 1.946   25

 5.  Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault       1m53.049s  + 2.221   27

 6.  Jaime Alguersuari     Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m53.402s  + 2.574   25

 7.  Felipe Massa          Ferrari                1m53.707s  + 2.879   24

 8.  Nico Rosberg          Mercedes               1m53.914s  + 3.086   18

 9.  Sebastien Buemi       Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m53.948s  + 3.120   27

10.  Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes   1m53.957s  + 3.129   32

11.  Vitaly Petrov         Renault                1m54.200s  + 3.372   26

12.  Adrian Sutil          Force India-Mercedes   1m54.392s  + 3.564   26

13.  Rubens Barrichello    Williams-Cosworth      1m54.831s  + 4.003   30

14.  Michael Schumacher    Mercedes               1m54.965s  + 4.137   21

15.  Bruno Senna           Renault                1m55.187s  + 4.359   28

16.  Sergio Perez          Sauber-Ferrari         1m55.203s  + 4.375   24

17.  Kamui Kobayashi       Sauber-Ferrari         1m55.544s  + 4.716   23

18.  Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Cosworth      1m56.067s  + 5.239   22

19.  Heikki Kovalainen     Lotus-Renault          1m56.669s  + 5.841   20

20.  Jarno Trulli          Lotus-Renault          1m57.173s  + 6.345   19

21.  Timo Glock            Virgin-Cosworth        1m58.269s  + 7.441   25

22.  Jerome D-Ambrosio     Virgin-Cosworth        1m59.458s  + 8.630   26

23.  Daniel Ricciardo      HRT-Cosworth           1m59.958s  + 9.130   19

24.  Tonio Liuzzi          HRT-Cosworth           2m00.165s  + 9.337   20


All Timing Unofficial

Michael Schumacher says the most important thing for him this year is that Mercedes GP starts delivering progress on track, rather than ending the campaign ahead of his team-mate Nico Rosberg.

A recent run of good form has lifted Schumacher to within three points of Rosberg in the drivers' standings, with much interest now being stirred up on whether or not the veteran can get himself in front of his young team-mate.

Speaking ahead of the Korean GP however, Schumacher said that beating Rosberg would only matter to him if they were right at the front of the field.

"To me that is not what matters," he said. "I think we have spoken about this some time before, whether I am placed in front or behind him, that is not what matters. To me it matters that as a team we are going in the right direction, that we get the car that we need to really fight for front positions, and then it will matter where I am against him."

Schumacher believes that his recent run of form, which has seen him score 28 points in the last three races, is simply the result of him and his team finally being able to deliver its maximum potential.

"I guess in the end it is a combination of many things," he said, when asked about the reasons for his recent progress. "The point is that we are able to achieve more often to get 100% out of the car. That has not always been the case and, it has been very clearly noticeable for about three or four races, that we are pretty consistent this way."

Schumacher also reiterated his belief that recent staffing appointments at Mercedes GP will help lift the team forward in its quest for victory.

"I came here to succeed together with Mercedes and on the way there, after the first one and a half years, it was obvious that we needed to raise our game," he explained. "Despite the fact that we have fantastic engineers and great guys, we just need capacity and that is what has arrived with two guys that won.

"Aldo I know from the past working together with in the Ferrari days, and Geoff I've heard that he has been involved in the team in the past. So they are two men with a lot of experience who should help for the future."

And although Schumacher recently led an F1 race for the first time since he came back to F1, after heading Jenson Button for a few laps at Suzuka, he says he does not view that as a proper achievement yet.

"You know what, I didn't even know that until after the race," he said. "I wasn't following my pit board as I knew positions roughly, and who I had to fight, and I was not aware of that in the race.

"I was told after the race, and it is a nice side effect. You all know why - everybody goes to the pits and I happened to be out there and lead the race. So I don't count those laps as real leading laps."

Mark Webber has warned Red Bull Racing's rivals not to automatically expect to close the gap to his team in 2012 despite stability in the regulations.

With McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes GP all confident that they can make the steps needed to knock Red Bull Racing off the top, Webber still has faith that design genius Adrian Newey can still deliver improvements for 2012.

"I think they [Red Bull's rivals] would probably prefer to keep it pretty similar, because if you give Adrian [Newey] a clean slate again they'd probably be a bit nervous," said Webber about the implications of stable rules for 2012 - with the only major change being the effective ban on blown diffusers.

"We still know he's capable of designing good cars in between small regulation changes. That'll have to be the case next year."

Although Webber's points tally has contributed to helping Red Bull Racing's position in the constructors' championship, the Australian admits that he has not done as good a job as team-mate Sebastian Vettel this year.

However, he does not believe the campaign has been a total write off, and he is optimistic he can still challenge strongly in the remaining races of the year.

"I think it hasn't been a disastrous season," he said. "It's been a long way from what Sebastian's done. He's had a strong year in anyone's book. Any of us.

"If you look at any of the guys who have wrapped championships up, it was quite unusual what happened this year, purely because of the form he's had. And he's put together a great campaign and still is. So that's what happened.

"I've had one non-finish, scored quite a few points and still done okay. Even though Seb has won a lot of races, they've been tight races and that's the way it's been. Whether you say, 'I'd like to be fifth in the constructors' with three DNFs and two wins, or... It's like saying how do you skin a cat?'

"There are still some good races to come, and I am looking forward to ending with some good races. In Suzuka I was pretty happy. I couldn't have done much more. The four of us were very equal on pace so yes, I had a pretty good start and a pretty positive race."

Webber believes that this campaign has shown how form can turn around quickly in F1 - with Jenson Button having a brilliant campaign at McLaren.

"It is different to last year, where I led a lot of laps and won a few races. This year I haven't looked like winning a race or leading much. It's gone the opposite way for Jenson.

"Last year he won some races, but didn't really have the form in the dry. This year he's driving sensationally well; had a great year, while it's gone the other way a bit for me and for Lewis. But you never give up. You keep going. That's what it's about. This year will be over soon.

"I'm not wishing it away at all. I really enjoyed Suzuka and I think it'll be a cracker here too. Brazil, India… there are some good races to come."

Lewis Hamilton should ignore the critics and stick with his beliefs and the support of those close to him to get himself back on form.

That is the view of Formula 1 veteran Rubens Barrichello, who reckons that Hamilton holds within himself everything he needs to regain his confidence and rediscover the speed that made him a world champion.

When asked by AUTOSPORT about the kind of situation that Hamilton has found himself in, Barrichello said: "It is important the day that you understand you can only depend upon yourself. What others say doesn't matter.

"You need to be 100% right on your thoughts and you can put it out of your head. Opinions are there and criticism is there, and you just have to deal with it and stop reading, and stop learning what others think.

"The most important thing is to have a good heart, to be a good human being and perform the way that your family raised you. The rest: you are going to have bad times and good times."

Barrichello believes that Hamilton's current difficulties have been made more of because he is a high-profile driver - which has further exacerbated the situation.

"I never had that because I always came back to my original answer: Lewis is in the limelight a bit, so people say so many things, and when so many things are said you start to believe that they are right. But I am on the outside - he is the one who has to believe."

Hamilton admitted ahead of the Korean GP that he needed to do a better job, but reckoned he has all the support around him that he required.

"I have been with the team since I was 13-year-old. I think I have quite a unique relationship with the team and regardless of how tough a year it has been or how many problems we have had, I stay very close to their hearts and I think the same with me," he said. "They continue to support me and it is great to see that when they are having tough times us as drivers, me and Jenson, are able to lift them and vice versa."

Formula 1 teams have discussed the idea of increasing the sport's qualifying limit to 110 per cent for next season, but the move appears unlikely to find any support.

At a meeting of F1's Sporting Working Group in Korea on Thursday, one of the ideas that was talked about was an opening up of the current 107 per cent limit.

Such a move would help the outfits at the back of the grid avoid the risk of being sent home from races next year if a team like Red Bull Racing makes a big step forward in form.

However, despite the concept being debated by teams and FIA race director Charlie Whiting, the idea of changing the 107 per cent rule did not garner much support and is almost certain to be dropped.

HRT team principal Colin Kolles, whose outfit was keen for a discussion about the 110 per cent idea, told AUTOSPORT: "It is an idea that has been discussed many times, but we are happy to keep the current limit at 107 per cent. We have no problems with it."

The return of the 107 per cent rule this year has only caught out HRT once - when neither Vitantonio Liuzzi nor Narain Karthikeyan qualified for the season-opening Australian Grand Prix after a difficult run through practice.

Since then, every team has been allowed to start races after regularly completing laps within the cut-off point, even on occasions when their actual Q1 times have been outside the 107 per cent margin.

Karun Chandhok was happy with his pace during Friday morning free practice ahead of the Korean Grand Prix despite limited running.

The Team Lotus driver, who took over Jarno Trulli's car for the 90-minute session, completed only 11 laps because of the wet conditions. He ended the session 11th overall, just 3.566 seconds off pacesetter Michael Schumacher.

"The pace was good," Chandhok told AUTOSPORT. "It you look at the time delta, it was about right for where we are. And it was on a circuit that I don't know.

"Last time I came here [for a demonstration run a month before last year's inaugural Korean Grand Prix] there were no kerbs, there were cranes parked on the circuit and only two layers of asphalt, so it's effectively a new circuit for me.

"After only seven [timed] laps, the team seemed quite happy. The grip level is really quite low and there was a lot of standing water, so it was tricky. But I'm pleased with the job that I did, ending up ahead of both of the Williams drivers."

Chandhok's performance comes off the back of encouraging Friday morning outings at Spa, Monza and Suzuka, during which he has been able to build his confidence in the car.

He has now driven during eight free practice sessions in 2011, as well as contesting the entire German Grand Prix weekend in place of Trulli.

"The last few Fridays have been encouraging," he said. "It gives me a lot of confidence compared to where I was a few months ago."

Mercedes GP has the potential to turn the fight at the front of Formula 1 into a four-horse race next season, providing it can hit the ground running with its new car at the start of the campaign.

That is the view of Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug, who believes the fact the team has not lost ground in the development battle against Red Bull Racing and McLaren has provided encouragement about what it needs to do to make good progress.

"The last four circuits were on very, very different tracks - and we challenged the top three teams and finished three times in the top six," said Haug. "It shows that the trend goes in the right direction and I think the team expects more and more.

"Generally saying, we did not lose ground. There was a huge development race within the top teams, all the teams, but we basically did not lose out compared to where we started. So we could follow the rhythm by and large.

"If our basis [for 2012] is a better one - then maybe there are four top teams next season. Maybe there are eight cars challenging for victory. This is certainly our target."

Haug does not expect a major transformation in Mercedes GP's form for next year, but believes that the outfit can move another step closer the front.

"We are far from being satisfied but we need to stabilise, then do another step, and be in the top three and top four with a regular challenge, with a regular possibility to challenge for podium finishes.

"It is fair to say that to beat these six guys ahead, not a lot of people are in a position to do so and this is quite a challenge. We are expecting it from ourselves. We did not spend a lot of money on it, but we have a good concept, we brought Michael [schumacher] back, and we have a very good talented driver in Nico [Rosberg].

"So, if all that fits together and goes in the right direction, we have reason to be very pleased."

Haug also believes that both his drivers are delivering at a consistently high level – especially with the progress that Schumacher has shown in recent races.

Speaking about the seven-time world champion, Haug said: "I never had the slightest doubts, although I can understand people criticising him - and he accepted that.

"If you look deeper you see what is going on: if you measure and compare yourself against Nico Rosberg. Nico has the image of being one of the fastest, thorough current young generation drivers, and it is fair to say that Michael sometimes jumps over that bar.

"If you jump over the Nico Rosberg bar, who is said as being one of the top five guys, then you cannot be bad. His spirit in racing, the moves you can see, it is not a coincidence if after 25-35 races you are the guy who has the most overtaking manoeuvres after the first lap."

And although Schumacher said in Korea that he does not care if he beats Rosberg in the drivers' standings this year, Haug has a different view on whether it will matter.

"Of course it does. It matters for us, it matters for everybody. Tell me one driver who wants to be behind his team-mate? Nobody wants to be behind his team-mate."

Nico Rosberg has called for the design of the pitlane exit at the Korea International Circuit to be reconsidered after colliding with Jaime Alguersuari during today's second free practice session.

The Mercedes driver was on a run on intermediate tyres when he locked up and went wide at Turn 1. At the same moment, Alguersuari's Toro Rosso emerged from the pit exit, which runs around the outside of Turn 1.

The resulting contact forced Rosberg to pull off the track with front wing damage. Alguersuari lost time after returning to the pits for repairs, but later returned to the track.

"I would be worth reconsidering if the pit-exit couldn't be done a little bit differently," said Rosberg after the session. "It was not great circumstances, it just all came together. He came out at the exact wrong moment.

"I thought he was going to stop a little bit more to let me go through, but then he didn't and by the time I realised that, it was too late. It was just unfortunate."

Rosberg admitted that the clash was the result of a small error under braking on his part.

However, in normal circumstances this would have led to him only running wide had the pit exit not intersected with his trajectory.

"I just locked up a little bit," he said. "I couldn't have avoided him any more.

"I could have made it back to the pits, but I didn't want to risk damaging the car. I didn't lose anything because it didn't dry out, but we were going really well with the intermediates."

Rosberg has been summoned to the stewards in relation to the incident.

Nico Rosberg has been fined 10,000 Euros, of which 5,000 Euros will be suspended, for failing to visit the stewards in a 'timely' manner after second free practice.

The Mercedes GP driver was summoned to see the stewards for his involvement in a collision with Jaime Alguersuari in FP2.

Although there was no doubt Rosberg had collided with Alguersuari, the stewards decided that because of the circumstances of his crash, and the fact he had no previous offences, that he would escape a punishment.

A statement from the stewards said: "The stewards having regard to the extenuating circumstances involving the Pit Exit, the wet track and the telemetry which indicated the Driver of Car 8 was on full braking from the time where he apparently noticed Car 19, and further, taking into account Mr Rosberg's good record during his years in Formula 1, decide to impose no penalty."

Despite escaping the punishment for his part in the collision, the stewards were not impressed that Rosberg did not attend his meeting with them as soon as he could.

AUTOSPORT understands that part of the issue was the fact that Rosberg spoke to the media for his regular post-practice interviews before visiting the stewards. In those interviews, Rosberg talked about his views on the incident.

Article B of the 2011 FIA International Sporting Code relating to 'Obligation of Co-operation' states: "All FIA Licence-Holders and all Participants in International Events undertake to cooperate fully and entirely with any disciplinary investigation conducted by the FIA."

For not visiting the stewards in time, Rosberg was fined 10,000 Euros, with half of that being suspended pending no similar breach occurring during the next 12 months. He can, in theory, appeal that decision though.

Formula 1 drivers will be warned via lights on the main straight about rivals exiting the pits at the Korean circuit, in a bid to avoid a repeat of the Nico Rosberg/Jaime Alguersuari collision.

The design of the pitlane exit at the Korean Grand Prix means cars exiting the pits join the track on the outside of Turn 1 - which sets up the scenario of any car that runs wide having the potential to collide with one that is coming on to the circuit.

With drivers unhappy with the design, especially after Rosberg slid into Alguersuari in second practice, the matter was brought up in the Friday night drivers' briefing.

However, with it being impossible for the pitlane exit to be reconfigured for this weekend, it has been agreed that drivers both on track and in the pits will be warned of potential problems via lights on both the circuit and in the pitlane.

This solution, which will likely mean white lights on the circuit and extra blue lights in the pitlane, should make drivers more cautious about their entry into the first corner.

Alguersuari believes that circumstances were mostly to blame for the Rosberg incident, and he was hopeful the light solution would improve matters.

"At the moment, it is not easy for a driver to find yourself in a crash without really doing anything because I hardly saw Nico," said the Scuderia Toro Rosso driver. "I just felt the contact and I thought he arrived late.

"We cannot change the track, but you can prevent accidents by warning those drivers on the racing line on the main straight that some car is exiting the pitlane.

"They are going to advise the drivers by blue light, and I think it will help the situation. In the meeting with Charlie we asked for a possible solution, knowing that they could not change the pitlane towards Turn 2 which would be better.

"But knowing the situation, the best thing to do is to make a situation like Monaco which is to show a light and advise someone. From Nico's point of view, he did not see anyone - when he was in his braking point he did not see me, so I think the idea is to advise the driver before he sees the car."

Several drivers had expressed concern about the pitlane exit design in the wake of the Alguersuari/Rosberg collision.

Vitaly Petrov said: "The pit exit is very dangerous. I think they should go more around to make it more safe. But can you imagine if it is wet, if I will lose the car during the race?

"I will crash into him and at 300km/h I might have problems with the brakes or something else, the guys who I will hit will not be nice. In my opinion the pit exit is too dangerous."

Sebastian Vettel admits the tyre situation in Korea is a concern, with the high wear set to mean drivers will have to stop several times during the race.

"We can do maximum five [pitstops] and that is all the tyres we have, then maybe we will have a set of inters again to cross the chequered flag," joked Vettel after Friday's practice sessions.

"Maybe it turns out to be better than expected or worse. It is quite a tough track on tyres. I think even with long straights, there is hardly any rest after that. So it's not that easy.

"Everything we learned today is not worth a lot for the next two days but the car feels alright so that is most important."

Pirelli has brought the soft and the super soft tyres for the Korean event, something that is also likely to mean drivers will save sets during qualifying.

Vettel finished the day as third quickest behind the two McLarens, which dominated the running in the wet this afternoon.

Although the German Red Bull driver was nearly two seconds off the pace, he admitted he was not too worried.

"I don't think it is tougher than the other weekends," he added. "It would be bad if the others had gone around with half the throttle in the other races, but I don't expect it to be more difficult than other races.

"We will see who is more competitive. In the conditions this afternoon McLaren looked very strong but we have seen that a couple of times on a Friday so it is hard to say."

Lewis Hamilton is adamant McLaren has the pace to challenge Red Bull this weekend in Korea, despite labelling Friday practice as irrelevant.

The British driver set the pace in the second practice session of the day, finishing nearly two seconds ahead of world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Hamilton admitted it would be great to be able to stop Vettel's run of poles on Saturday, the German having been on top on Saturday 12 times already.

"It would be great to get him here tomorrow," the Briton said. "Again, on a Friday we don't know what they are doing so today doesn't mean anything. But I think we are quick. I think our car was good.

"Jenson showed in the last race that we can be very, very competitive, so I have no doubt that we will be out to challenge them. Whether or not we can outdo them in qualifying, which has not been done all year, will be interesting."

Hamilton, who finished ahead of team-mate Jenson Button today, admitted the wet conditions had made today's work irrelevant, as the rest of the weekend is expected to be dry.

"Today is not a particularly important day and I heard the next two days are going to be much better, so today is kind of irrelevant set-up wise and all that kind of things," said Hamilton.

"Tomorrow we'll get a much better feel for where the car is at. But if it rains we are in a good position, so that's a positive."

Timo Glock expects teams to have to take a gamble on set-up tomorrow after Friday practice was hit by rain.

Drivers will have at the most one hour of dry running in the morning before heading into qualifying, which will lock their set-ups for the race, meaning that there is little time to recover if the morning set-up is incorrect.

"It's not a perfect situation for everyone, but at least we are all in the same boat," said Glock. "It's a gamble for tomorrow to see how the car is in dry conditions.

"Set-up wise you can't do much for dry conditions [in the wet] but in general if the car is okay to drive in wet conditions it should be okay in the dry as well."

The Virgin driver, who ended the day 21st fastest, is downbeat about the chances of the wet weather continuing on Saturday and Sunday.

Wet conditions would likely suit Glock, who ran as high as eighth in last year's race in wet conditions before being crashed into by Sebastien Buemi.

"It was pretty good last year and it opens up some possibilities," said Glock. "But it's pretty clear that it will be dry tomorrow and Sunday so there are no big hopes for us in that direction.

"It felt like there was quite a lot of grip compared to other tracks in wet conditions, but it is challenging. The trouble is that the white lines and the kerbs are quite slippery."

Friday's press conference:

TEAM PRINCIPALS - John BOOTH (Virgin Racing), Ross BRAWN (Mercedes GP), Paul HEMBERY (Pirelli), Christian HORNER (Red Bull), Martin WHITMARSH (McLaren)

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q. Paul, can you tell us what is the thinking about the tyre choice here and in India as well?

Paul HEMBERY: Here we have come with the soft and super soft. From the information that we saw it is a track that needs compound grip. It is an aggressive choice, we don't deny that, but from what we saw with the inters running today, the surface is not very aggressive. The wear rates were quite low. That's the reasoning for that. India, being a new track, we have gone with the soft compound and the hard compound. The soft that we have used throughout the season, in every race in fact, and the hard because it is an unknown and it gives us a back-up. It also helps us to prepare for next year. We do need some more data to ensure that we make our choices correctly for next year. These guys are a moving target. They do improve the cars a lot during the season and what maybe was true at the start is certainly not true now. We are seeing they are lighter on their tyres from some points of view and more aggressive in others so it is a pretty good challenge.

Q. If tomorrow is going to be dry and Sunday is going to be dry, first of all we haven't had any running on dry tyres, and there were predictions of multiple pit-stops in the race on Sunday. So what do we know?

PH: I think some people were mentioning five or six stops, I doubt that is going to be the case. I am willing to do a private bet on that one with Martin. I think three, four stops yes. It's unfortunate, but we cannot control the weather. It would have been ideal for everybody to have run today in some dry conditions. We didn't manage that. We ran another wet race, a wet morning and more or less afternoon. Martin reminded me quite rightly that we did make a change to the rules this year that the teams do get an extra set of intermediate tyres for use over the Saturday and Sunday and that has proven this year to be a correct move as we have had a lot of wet running. We have made a change for the better from that point of view. Going forward, what can you do, as you can't control the weather? I know last year as well it was a lot of wet weather here so it has been a tough one for the teams for sure.

Q. Finally, the burning question. The Q3 tyres. What's your idea. How can you make sure that everyone runs in Q3.

PH: Well I don't know about idea. We understand why people have maybe not wanted to run, from a sporting point of view, trying to obtain a better result by holding onto a set of tyres. From a fans' perspective it is clearly not ideal. From our point of view, if we can do something we are happy to sit down with the teams and try and find a solution that works for everybody.

Q. Have you got any ideas of your own?

PH: Have we?

Q. Yes.

PH: Well, we have some ideas but those are obviously imperfect when you haven't had a two-way discussion. We need to have a two-way discussion and if we can do something then we will try and do the best we can to find a solution going forward for next season.

Q. When's that discussion likely to happen?

PH: We have had a couple. We are having a chat tonight as well with Oliver (Weingarten) and representatives of the Sporting Working Group so that's a starting point for going forward.

Q. John, I don't know how much is happening in the garages themselves but there is quite a big push going on back in the UK for next year isn't there?

John BOOTH: Yes, absolutely. Pat (Symonds) is back at base building his design team, well finalising his design team, for development of the 2012 car and, of course, the partnership with McLaren is getting stronger and stronger as we go forward and learn more about each other.

Q. How is that developing? How does that move forward?

JB: Well it is a very, very positive thing for both sides. Both sides are very keen to make it work as well as possible and it will get stronger and stronger. It covers most aspects of race car, not the design obviously, but the theory behind design and the testing facilities and, of course, the wind tunnel eventually.

Q. Do you have a programme of what you ask them or is it ad-hoc? What happens?

JB: I am sure Pat is on the telephone every five minutes asking something. There is a programme in place and structures are starting to form and it's becoming a very good relationship.

Q. Is it purely chassis? Is is suspension, aerodynamics?

JB: It covers the full spectrum of the car. Not engine, of course.

Q. I was going to ask about driver line-up, but I've been told there is an answer but it will be fairly short, even shorter than the previous ones?

JB: Same as. We will make that decision towards the end of the year. Jerome (D'Ambrosio) is doing a fantastic job and the more races he has like the last two, the better for him.

Q. Is that the end of the year or the end of the season?

JB: End of the season.

Q. Right, so we can expect something before Brazil?

JB: Ask me in Brazil.

Q. Martin, 700 grands prix for the team. It must be something you are very proud of.

Martin WHITMARSH: Obviously we are very proud. I think our friends at Ferrari have been around longer than us, but 700 is still an important milestone. I think it is something we are recognising within the business. It is nice to look back on the 100th, 200th, 300th, 400th cars. It is just a moment of reflection. Apart from that clearly we have got to look forward. It would be nice to think we'll be here, still alive and competitive in another 700 grands prix time, but it is a great achievement for the team and for the brand.

Q. After last Sunday at Suzuka, is there sort of renewed confidence within the team?

MW: Well I don't think our confidence was lacking, our pace was on a few occasions, be we always thought we could win. We set out, rather belatedly, to try and catch our friends at Red Bull. We felt we could go into the last five races with an opportunity to potentially win some of those. Delighted, of course, to do so particularly on a great circuit like Suzuka. It was a fantastic win from Jenson (Button). He is driving better than ever so that was great. We've only had a few days to celebrate it, that's the trouble with winning the first of a backto- back but hopefully we will move on from there and be successful here.

Q. This is a question for both you and Christian, looking back at Suzuka. In the press conference on Saturday afternoon, Jenson said 'looking at Red Bull Racing's long runs on the Friday, I think we are in major trouble' and yet it didn't seem to turn out that way.

MW: Well, again, you never know fuel loads so we try to be realistic or we always assume they are lugging about 150 kilos of fuel on their long runs. I don't know if they were or they weren't. I think also as you improve the balance of the car, as a driver learns how to drive that circuit, I think Jenson in particular did a good job of looking after the tyres. It was a circuit where the tyre degradation wasn't linear, they fell off when they were worn. That is an interesting thing. That is not a criticism of our friends from Pirelli. I think it is fact, just as we have here. The challenge for the engineers and drivers now is 'it's the same for all of us, now we have got to try and exploit that the faster cars will tend to put more load, more potential to wear the tyres, but, between us, when we have to try and get the right balance, look after the tyres, and see how we can exploit that strategy in the race'.

Q. Christian, what's your reply to that?

Christian HORNER: Certainly on the Friday in Japan, McLaren's single lap performance looked mightily impressive and the opposite on the long run. Our long run pace looked as impressive as McLaren's short run pace. Of course, you are trying to find a trade off between qualifying and the race and the tyres have been a challenge this year. A good challenge for the engineers and certainly the behaviour of the tyre on Sunday wasn't quite perhaps what we expected certainly from the lessons learned on what we had seen on Friday. It is always finding that trade off and at the end of the race it was fascinating to see three cars split by nothing really once the rate had settled down into that final stint. There was plenty of data, feedback and information to go through following the weekend but it has been a trait of this season that you can sometimes think of a Friday that we are looking in really good shape, or vice versa, and things on Sunday can be quite a bit different.

Q. Going back to the result on Sunday which gave you your second Drivers' Championship, which is fantastic, but what has been the reaction within the team and even from Red Bull themselves?

CH: Well it's phenomenal. Sebastian (Vettel) thoroughly deserves the championship and to have done it so early, with four races to go, is a fantastic achievement. The level at which he has performed this year has been absolutely huge in terms of the performance, the consistency that he has managed to achieve. Nine grands prix victories, he has had I think four or five second places, one third, one fourth place, it has been a massive performance rate that he has been scoring at week in and week out. Not all of those victories have been runaway victories. If you think back to Monaco, if you think back to Barcelona, there have been a lot of tough victories that he's had to earn there. But he has been the stand-out driver. The team are hugely proud to have defended his drivers' championship. Of course we celebrated and enjoyed that result in Suzuka with a few fairly poor renditions of various karaoke, but your focus immediately changes to the next target and that target is winning the Constructors'. Both championships carry equal weight to us. I think to the public the prestige sits with the drivers' championship, but I think amongst the teams the Constructors' in many ways is ranked with equal weight. Immediately focus turned following the Japanese race to Korea after a few bleary eyes appeared on Monday morning.

Q. Does the approach change?

CH: No, not at all. I think our approach this year has been very strong. Operationally we have been very strong. I think tactically we have been strong. Our rate of development has been strong. We have won races where we haven't expected to be competitive at, such as Monza and indeed Spa, and going into Japan we had won three on the trot so our approach this weekend will be the same as it has been at the previous 14 or 15 races. That will continue all the way through to the chequered flag in Brazil.

Q. Ross, I don't often spend races in the press room but I was amused to see journalists actually taking pictures of the screens during the Japanese Grand Prix of Michael Schumacher leading a grand prix. The performance oddly enough seems to have improved, in spite of the fact that you have said there wasn't a huge amount of development coming. But have you been heartened by the performance over the last few races, not necessarily from him but from the team?

Ross BRAWN: We are not where we want to be and that's a fact but the guys at Brackley and the team put in a huge effort to maintain where they are. I think from our analysis we are still about the same gap behind Red Bull that we were at the beginning of the season. Now, Christian just talked then about the development rate and the fact that we have managed to maintain that gap I think is a credit to all of our staff as it is not easy and you have seen that some of the teams haven't done that and have fallen further behind. There is a tremendous rate of progress in Formula One and we have managed roughly to keep up that rate of progress but we have got to make a step change in performance to get where we want to get to. It was heartening to see, slightly artificially of course because of the pitstops, Michael leading a race, but it was nice to see and certainly from Michael, the last four or five races he has had quite a good run, the incident with (Sergio) Perez in Singapore excepted. But he has done a very, very solid job. It just confirms my view that with the right car both of our drivers can win races and mount challenges so it is for us to produce the car they deserve and we need to produce.

Q. The next grand prix is India. A brand new circuit and no-one knows anything about it. How does a team go about preparing for that?

RB: You do gather a lot of information beforehand. We have got circuit maps, we have got as much information as we can. We are doing simulations, we are doing models. We have got some rough work going on, on the driver simulator. Of course, there is not a huge amount of information available yet about the circuit so we are doing all the prep and all the simulations and modelling that we can do so we can go as well prepared as possible. What you can't anticipate is the surface roughness, the bumpiness of the circuit. There are various things that you just can't know about until you get there and you experience it. So just all the normal prep and very similar to what we do at all the other races, except we are lacking a bit of information so we have to make some assumptions.

Q. Because it is an unknown does that give you a better chance of taking on the teams ahead of you?

RB: No. No. I think, if anything, the strengths of the teams come to the fore when they are faced with those sorst of circumstances and I think we are pretty strong in that respect. But I think the top teams can all deal with those new challenges more effectively than the less strong teams.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q. Fulvio Solms - Corriere dello Sport) Christian, Red Bull won one title - or is it better to say one-and-three-quarter - and your drivers used at the moment six engines of the available eight. Are they going to close the year with seven?

CH: Well Renault don't give us a refund so we are planning to use all of the engines between now and the end of the year. It is testimony to the reliability, touching wood, that we have had throughout the season that we are in that situation so I think there will be a plan to utilise, probably, one of those engines here and the remaining engine at possibly Abu Dhabi. That's for the engineers to decide. It's at their disposal and we will see. Renault have done a great job this year and it is very different to the situation we were in 12 months ago.

Q. (Dieter Renken – The Citizen) Martin, as chairman of FOTA you have been fairly upbeat about the RRA. That it is working, that it's not broken, and the teams are adhering to it. Yet there continue to be allegations that certain teams, more particularly Red Bull and Mercedes have been pushing the bounds of the RRA. I wonder whether each of the four team principals could give us your views of the RRA, whether it is working and how to go forward on this thorny subject.

MW: I think, firstly, we have achieved quite a lot with RRA. We are pretty good at focussing on issues and concerns but I think RRA has in the way we've restricted testing, the way we have restricted the number of operational personnel we have at the circuit, wind tunnel time, CFD time... I know that within our business the spirit and nature of conversations between engineers now, talking about efficiency, the need to do things with a finite level of discourse, I think that is a very healthy level of discussion, very healthy debate, and undeniably RRA has saved money and had been to the benefit of Formula One. Is it perfect? Will it ever be without contention, challenge, suspicion and paranoia? Almost certainly no. Just as technical regulations, sporting regulations, particularly if a team is doing very well or doing a good job it is always a more comfortable assumption to assume they have got a dodgy wing or they have got something else. I think that is the nature and spirit of Formula One. I think we have got to continue to work hard together as teams to see that we can make, improve and refine the RRA. I think it would be a shame for the teams to say this is so difficult, we'll walk away from it and we'll turn to a spend-what-you-like culture or spend-what-you-canlay- your-hands-on culture within Formula One. It is not perfect, there are concerns. What I can say is that I have been reasonably involved with the process, there has been no evidence other than, if you like, the normal paddock gossip or accusation, but there has been no evidence of a breach of the RRA. Each of the teams and team principals continue to assure FOTA that they are abiding by the limitations that are contained within the Resource Restriction Agreement. Bear in mind that although, clearly, there is a lot of media interest we are doing this for one reason. We are doing it for ourselves. We are doing it for the sustainability of Formula One. It is not intended to be part of the show or the spectacle of Formula One. It is an internal process, but I understand people are interested in it and like to speculate if there is some controversy behind it, but certainly my view is it isn't perfect, there will always be challenge. I think we have got to improve it, I think we have got to work together to enhance trust and mutual respect in the process. Will we ever reach a stage where everyone is very comfortable, has no concern, no accusation? I doubt [that], just as there isn't with technical regulations in my experience. But I think it has been the right thing for the sport and I think we have got to continue to persevere with it.

CH: I think Martin sums it up very well, in reality. I think that RRA has been a positive thing for Formula One, or a positive thing for our business. It's saved genuine cost, taking out testing cost, reducing engine costs to affordable levels, to all of the independent teams. Restrictions on personnel coming to the circuit, the ratio between CFD and wind tunnel time have all been hugely beneficial to driving costs down within the sport. Certainly for Red Bull to compete with teams such as Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes, RRA is important with that. Now, inevitably there has probably been more speculation about our team than others, inevitably with performance does come paranoia. Red Bull does favour the RRA being around, but in a way that's clear, tangible, policeable and encompasses all of what Formula One is rather than cherry-picking elements of it. I think that all of the teams would agree that the RRA, which came out of the back of the financial crisis at the end of 2008, beginning of 2009, has been the responsible thing to do for the sport and I think that the stage now is that, as the first agreement draws to a close next year, we focus on a new more workable, more transparent agreement for a longer duration potentially, that is clear for all to understand and that doesn't involve commenting or politicking. That's the most fundamental thing for us and hopefully in the latter months of this year, the teams will be able to achieve that.

RB: I think for us, we're respecting the RRA but I think it's at a crossroads, I think it's at a crossroads because it's now starting to bite to those three or four teams who have to control their resource to comply. I think there's seven or eight teams for whom RRA means nothing because they're always going to be below the limit. Now we're at a stage where the targets that were set are starting to bite into the three or four teams and this is where it starts to get contentious and we haven't structured it well enough yet to have the controls and checks and reassurances in place that gives everybody comfort and [that] leads to the innuendo and accusations that get thrown around. We're total supporters of the idea of RRA, but for us, it has to be much more robust in how it's controlled, how it's monitored, how it's policed, because it is a performance differentiator. You can't deny that a team spending five million more each year will have an advantage over a team that doesn't do that, and therefore it has to be very well controlled, very strongly audited and it has to be done by a reference which is the same for all teams, otherwise we have no guarantee of parity, and I think for us, RRA is at a crossroads. We support it totally, but the teams have to come together to find a solution to make sure that we're all comfortable with the way we go forward or else we will have a continuation of the problems that we're having at the moment, all the comments, the rumour, the innuendo, the distrust that we have. Christian commented, quite rightly, that the agreement's coming to an end. Well, we're working on an agreement that we thought we already had, which doesn't end for several years, and that's the problem that we have at the moment. We don't have complete unity on RRA and we have to have it, because Mercedes are total supporters of the concept of RRA but it has to be a fair and proper, correctly policed, correctly monitored, correctly audited system which is the same for everybody.

JB: The RRA is very, very important to us. Remember we gave up a lot, together with the other new teams, we gave up a lot in the entry to the sport. We gave up the option B and we gave up the price cap and bought into the RRA wholeheartedly and it's very, very important to us that it continues and we work towards the agreement. I think a spending formula where three or maybe four teams could thrive is not what people want and we must work very hard to avoid that.

Q. (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) I just wondered if Christian, Ross and Martin could talk about the pit lane exit; we saw Nico going into Alguersuari this afternoon. Obviously it's not a problem that can be resolved in the space of a weekend but does something need to be fixed on the track, is it safe at the moment?

RB: Well, we're obviously the ones that got involved in that – I don't know what's happened, but our driver and our team manager are up with the stewards at the moment, presumably having to explain the circumstances behind it. I have to say that it's a little frustrating that we have that problem on a brand new circuit like this, because if you look at the number of cars that went off at turn one during practice and of course, when we have wet conditions, difficult conditions, I think 20 or 30 cars went off. It was neither driver's fault, neither Alguersuari nor Rosberg's fault, but that is the consequence of that pit lane exit. That's what we will live with. Obviously, we will try and help the drivers, particularly during the race. It's a little more difficult during practice because cars stop and do practice starts from the end of the pit lane. You can't always anticipate where they are going to be, but we will try and help the drivers during the race but it's not ideal.

CH: I guess, as we saw today, as Ross has said, it's an unfortunate incident and a lot of cars will run wide into turn one and unfortunately when you exit the pit lane and it filters back in at that point, it was a law of averages that an accident was going to happen. It's a shame that that one hasn't been addressed. It's good to see that the visibility at the pit lane entry – the wall has been moved back so there's better visibility coming in to the pit lane or pit lane entry. It's probably impossible to do anything, certainly for this weekend.

MW: Well it can be improved upon and hopefully it will be by the time we come here next time.

Q. (Joe Saward – Grand Prix Special) Ross, you were talking about there being two levels of team; that's also true in name changing. You have a bit of a problem going on at the moment with some teams wanting to change the names and others not wanting it to happen. How many brands do you think are essential to Formula One and how many teams should be allowed to change their names just to survive?

RB: We've been fairly ambivalent about the name change. Obviously, we're a team that has changed its name a number of times over the last 10 to 15 years. In fact – I know it's a slightly debatable point – but we are also one of the oldest teams in Formula One, because we started as Tyrrell and that is the same company all the way through to now, with some variations of our name. So we don't have any strong views. I think it would obviously be very very disappointing if a brand of the strength of Ferrari changed its name, but we know that's never going to happen and if it suits the commercial purposes of teams to change their name and it helps them survive, helps them prosper, then we should consider it. So we don't have any strong views and we wouldn't stand in the way of a sensible proposal. We don't want anything that's perhaps derogatory to Formula One. We wouldn't want someone naming their team… I shan't make any suggestions as to what you could call it but we don't want that sort of thing going on but otherwise we have no strong views.

CH: I think the situation is a tricky one in many respects because there are two sides to it. On one side, it doesn't make any sense for a team to be called Renault when it isn't Renault, therefore a name change in a situation like that makes sense. I think that where Formula One needs to be a little bit careful is that the teams are brands and when the promoter is selling Formula One around the world, can sell Ferrari, can sell McLaren and now sell Red Bull Racing and Mercedes – they are all strong brand names. I think it's something to perhaps consider for the future, that there needs to be more careful consideration given to the names of teams and the mechanism by which they can be changed. As Ross says, if there's a logical, sensible reason then why not, but I think we also have to be careful that it just doesn't end up in a merry-go-round and companies that have the same company number just change effectively [the] entrant name on a yearly or biannual basis.

RB: One thing I'd add that is unfortunate about Formula One is that if this becomes a judgement call, people start to make judgements on the merit then that's fine, you're entitled to a judgement. Unfortunately, if it becomes a trading position and I guarantee those teams that are trying to change their name will have had approaches from other teams who want different favours paid in order to agree to the name change, and that's not correct. I know that happened to us when we wanted to change our name. People sought to get favours from that decision. That's what we mustn't have. If there's a genuine reason why a team shouldn't change its name, because it's not in the interests of Formula One, that's correct, there should be a proper debate. It needs to be done in an adult way and not used in a divisive way.

MW: I agree with what Ross has just said. Philosophically, I can understand the desire to retain names and Ferrari, McLaren hopefully, proud brands, are not going to plan to change, so I understand that but I think also that we've got to recognise that we're in a commercial environment, I think it makes a lot of sense that for there to be two Lotus teams in the sport doesn't seem very sensible. The issue that Ross that just raised… I recall, within the last couple of years, when there was a desire to change the team name to Mercedes Benz, how a number of people conspired against that, which was a ridiculous position to take and very damaging to the sport. Hopefully, the established brands are just that, and they would have no motivation to change. I think if it was a small team and it's going to help them commercially… there are a lot of teams there whom we talked about there being two tiers, obviously it's not quite that simple but there are a number of teams for whom it's a reasonable struggle, to stay in Formula One, it's a reasonable struggle to generate the budgets to go racing. I think we should encourage them to remain in the sport. As we mentioned earlier, this is the 700th Grand Prix of McLaren, but in that time 107 teams have failed. Now that's a sobering thought. I think we should be doing, as a Formula One community, everything we can to help and facilitate teams and as Ross said, if they come up with a clearly silly, divisive name or a name that's damaging to Formula One, then we should be able to use good judgement to prevent it, but if it's clear that the name change facilitates the funding and the retention of that team within Formula One, then we shouldn't use the polemics and politics of Formula One to prevent it.

JB: Yeah, we are a team that has changed our name this year for commercial reasons, and it was very important for us to have that flexibility, so in general, we are in support of it.

Q. (Gary Meenaghan – The National) Christian, Red Bull have obviously come a long way since 2005; I was just hoping that maybe you could just speak a little bit about that journey and some of the struggles and highlights, also the importance of Abu Dhabi in that journey. In 2009, you won there, to set yourself up for a successful 2010 season and then you obviously won there again last year, to get Seb's title.

CH: It's been an incredible journey in a relatively short space of time. I think McLaren have done 700 Grands Prix, we've done about 120 odd. This is only our seventh car. When Red Bull bought what was the Jaguar team at the end of 2004, Dietrich Mateschitz had a vision of what he wanted to achieve and he set that out and spelled that out at a very early stage, internally, and it was a question of getting the right people in place, the right structures, empowering the right people and taking what was there already and developing that, and I think the first few years were building years for the team as we put the right infrastructure, the right facilities into place. Obviously Adrian was a key recruitment, together with other key placements within the team. When the 2009 regulations came along, which were probably the biggest regulation changes in the past 20 years, it was a perfect opportunity for the design team with a clean sheet of paper to demonstrate what they were capable of. Obviously 2009 was a strong year for the team, certainly the second half of the year was a tremendously strong period for the team and we managed to carry that momentum through into 2010 and at the same time saw the emergence of Sebastian, who had joined the team from Toro Rosso in 2009 into '10 and last year was a classic year in the sport, I think. For it to go down the wire on that evening in Abu Dhabi with potentially four drivers that could have won the World Championship that evening was phenomenal and our expectation, to win it with Sebastian, was quite low going into that race. It was quite a long shot, it was Fernando's championship to lose but it all panned out and Sebastian won the race, the results went his way and he became the youngest World Champion. And then obviously again, with more regulation changes, with the introduction of a new tyre supplier, with double diffusers being banned, with F-ducts going, with DRS being introduced, you've got some challenges to incorporate into a new car and what I'm especially proud of what the team has achieved is the continuity that it managed from the end of 2010 into 2011 and then throughout this season, to deliver at a consistent level. It's been a phenomenal journey so far, and a very exciting one and one that is testimony really to the people behind the scenes, the level of commitment, the level of effort. The super-human efforts that have gone in from each member of the team, men and women alike, has just been phenomenal to achieve the kind of results that we have. Obviously we're keen to build on that, not only in the remaining races of this year but obviously into 2012 and beyond.

Q. (Ian Parkes – Press Association) We're all aware of the culinary dangers of going to India – Delhi belly doesn't get its name for nothing. I was just wondering what you were all doing, health and safety-wise, above and beyond what you would normally do for a Grand Prix, what you are doing food and drink preparation-wise for that particular race. We hear that you're all taking your own produce rather than using local stuff, which you would normally do.

PH: I don't know what the Italian chefs have done but they seem to conjure up some sort of Italian food wherever we've been around the world so far. I think it's a bit of a mix: sometimes we do take some things with us and then the rest of it is sourced locally. It's a bit of a mix.

JB: I took (cricketer) Freddy Flintoff's advice at Silverstone. He's done 15 tours of the subcontinent: eat street curry and drink lots of beer was his advice so maybe we will follow that.

MW: We shouldn't overstate the issues there. I think there's a logistics challenge for the team to go anywhere in the world. I'm sure we're enjoying local supplies and there will be some taken, but that's very normal. I don't think we should single out India as a particular challenge in that regard.

CH: We've had a running show car team out in India for the past couple of weeks now. They've done show runs in Delhi and then they've gone off to the Himalayas where they drove up the highest road in the world, up to 18,000 feet. We've only had one incident of an upset tummy, but I don't think that had anything to do with the food, probably more to do with the beverage. No, we're not taking any additional precautions. We'll be buying local produce and obviously as a British team, curry is a relatively popular dish. Page 9 of 9

RB: I think the same as Christian's just described. We'll be using local supplies, really the same as every other race. We'll be relying on local produce.

[Lineker]

Jenson Button proved that McLaren's Friday pace was not down to the weather as he went quickest in the final practice session for the Korean Grand Prix at Yeongam

The 2009 world champion initially hit the front with 23 minutes of the hour-long session to go in a time of 1m38.005s, but was knocked off the top spot by his team-mate Lewis Hamilton shortly afterwards.

Hamilton looked as though the fastest time would be his as he improved his pace to 1m37.199s with five minutes to go on supersoft tyres. But a later attempt to go even quicker was spoiled when he came across the slower Mercedes of Michael Schumacher at the twisty final section of the lap.

Free from traffic, Button - fresh from a change of chassis overnight - then grabbed the top spot on his final lap of the session in 1m36.910s, a time 0.289s quicker than Hamilton's.

Mark Webber was Red Bull's top representative in third, ahead of the Ferraris of Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa and Schumacher's Mercedes.

Vitaly Petrov was seventh for Renault with Adrian Sutil - very quick in the wet on Friday - next up in his Force India.

World champion Sebastian Vettel was only ninth, the German having flat-spotted a right-front supersoft tyre during a long run midway through the session.

He did have one final attempt on a fresh set of Pirellis, but was unable to capitalise on setting the fastest first sector of the session after catching the slower Toro Rosso of Jaime Alguersuari later in the lap.

Nico Rosberg completed the top 10 for Mercedes, ahead of Alguersuari and Sebastien Buemi.

Bruno Senna wound up 16th after spinning his Renault at the exit of Turn 13 and breaking his front wing against the wall, while Jarno Trulli understeered off at Turn 14 a minute earlier after locking-up his front-right tyre.

Daniel Ricciardo was another to lose a significant amount of track time, the HRT driver suffering a water leak on his car.

FP3


Pos  Driver                Team                   Time               Laps

 1.  Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes       1m36.910s            18

 2.  Lewis Hamilton        McLaren-Mercedes       1m37.199s  + 0.289   18

 3.  Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault       1m37.723s  + 0.813   23

 4.  Fernando Alonso       Ferrari                1m38.029s  + 1.119   21

 5.  Felipe Massa          Ferrari                1m38.434s  + 1.524   18

 6.  Michael Schumacher    Mercedes               1m39.559s  + 2.649   23

 7.  Vitaly Petrov         Renault                1m39.612s  + 2.702   20

 8.  Adrian Sutil          Force India-Mercedes   1m39.660s  + 2.750   22

 9.  Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault       1m39.695s  + 2.785   22

10.  Nico Rosberg          Mercedes               1m39.743s  + 2.833   25

11.  Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes   1m39.847s  + 2.937   22

12.  Jaime Alguersuari     Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m39.851s  + 2.941   20

13.  Sebastien Buemi       Toro Rosso-Ferrari     1m39.964s  + 3.054   21

14.  Kamui Kobayashi       Sauber-Ferrari         1m40.005s  + 3.095   17

15.  Sergio Perez          Sauber-Ferrari         1m40.030s  + 3.120   18

16.  Bruno Senna           Renault                1m40.451s  + 3.541   28

17.  Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Cosworth      1m40.529s  + 3.619   20

18.  Rubens Barrichello    Williams-Cosworth      1m40.711s  + 3.801   22

19.  Heikki Kovalainen     Lotus-Renault          1m41.909s  + 4.999   18

20.  Jarno Trulli          Lotus-Renault          1m41.945s  + 5.035   13

21.  Timo Glock            Virgin-Cosworth        1m43.275s  + 6.365   19

22.  Jerome D-Ambrosio     Virgin-Cosworth        1m44.377s  + 7.467   16

23.  Vitantonio Liuzzi     HRT-Cosworth           1m44.421s  + 7.511   22

24.  Daniel Ricciardo      HRT-Cosworth           1m45.958s  + 8.233   11



All Timing Unofficial[/code]




McLaren's Lewis Hamilton ended Red Bull's domination of 2011 qualifying in Korea, as he beat world champion Sebastian Vettel to pole position at Yeongam.



The result was Hamilton's first pole since last year's Canadian Grand Prix, and interrupted a run of Red Bull poles stretching back to Abu Dhabi last year.



Hamilton was quickest in the first two parts of qualifying, then pipped Vettel's Red Bull by 0.03 seconds as they made their first Q3 runs.



Jenson Button briefly made it an all-McLaren front row with his final Q3 shot, and though Vettel managed to beat the Suzuka winner by improving to a 1m36.042s on his second run, Hamilton was already delivering a 1m35.820s to beat the Red Bull. Vettel was still satisfied on the radio, though, having adopted an unusual qualifying strategy by using super softs in Q1 and saving a set of softs for the race.



Mark Webber abandoned his second flying lap and was fourth in the second Red Bull, ahead of the Ferraris. Felipe Massa outqualified Fernando Alonso for the second race in a row.



Mercedes' Nico Rosberg and Renault's Vitaly Petrov will share row four, with the Force Indias both reaching Q3 but choosing not to set times.



Rosberg was the only Mercedes driver in the top 10 as Michael Schumacher was squeezed out of the Q3 positions in a busy end to Q2. Troubled by a tyre vibration on his last lap, Schumacher was shuffled down to 12th, between the two Toro Rossos, with Jaime Alguersuari narrowly missing out on the top 10 when di Resta jumped ahead in the closing moments.



Bruno Senna was 0.6s down on Renault team-mate Petrov in Q2 so ended up 15th.



It was a low-key session for Sauber, as Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez took only 14th and 17th, while Williams struggled again - Pastor Maldonado knocking team-mate Rubens Barrichello out in Q1 then only making it to 16th.



At the back, the Lotus, Virgin and HRT drivers lined up in familiar order, with Daniel Ricciardo unable to set a time due to a technical issue.



[code]Qualifying


Pos  Driver                Team                 Time           Gap   

 1.  Lewis Hamilton        McLaren-Mercedes     1m35.820s

 2.  Sebastian Vettel      Red Bull-Renault     1m36.042s  + 0.222

 3.  Jenson Button         McLaren-Mercedes     1m36.126s  + 0.306

 4.  Mark Webber           Red Bull-Renault     1m36.468s  + 0.648

 5.  Felipe Massa          Ferrari              1m36.831s  + 1.011

 6.  Fernando Alonso       Ferrari              1m36.980s  + 1.160

 7.  Nico Rosberg          Mercedes             1m37.754s  + 1.934

 8.  Vitaly Petrov         Renault              1m38.124s  + 2.304

 9.  Paul di Resta         Force India-Mercedes no time

10.  Adrian Sutil          Force India-Mercedes no time

Q2 cut-off time: 1m38.254s                                   Gap **

11.  Jaime Alguersuari     Toro Rosso-Ferrari   1m38.315s   + 1.789

12.  Michael Schumacher    Mercedes             1m38.354s   + 1.828

13.  Sebastien Buemi       Toro Rosso-Ferrari   1m38.508s   + 1.982

14.  Kamui Kobayashi       Sauber-Ferrari       1m38.775s   + 2.249

15.  Bruno Senna           Renault              1m38.791s   + 2.265

16.  Pastor Maldonado      Williams-Cosworth    1m39.189s   + 2.663

17.  Sergio Perez          Sauber-Ferrari       1m39.443s   + 2.917

Q1 cut-off time: 1m39.464s                                    Gap *

18.  Rubens Barrichello    Williams-Cosworth    1m39.538s   + 2.013

19.  Heikki Kovalainen     Lotus-Renault        1m40.522s   + 2.997

20.  Jarno Trulli          Lotus-Renault        1m41.101s   + 3.576

21.  Timo Glock            Virgin-Cosworth      1m42.091s   + 4.566

22.  Jerome D-Ambrosio     Virgin-Cosworth      1m43.483s   + 5.958

23.  Tonio Liuzzi          HRT-Cosworth         1m43.758s   + 6.233

24.  Daniel Ricciardo      HRT-Cosworth         no time


107% time: 1m44.351s


* Gap to quickest in Q1


** Gap to quickest in Q2

Jenson Button will use a new chassis for the remainder of the Korean Grand Prix weekend after McLaren discovered wear damage to the tub he had originally been down to drive following Friday practice.

As part of its standard post-practice work, the British team uncovered minor damage to the engine mounting struts on chassis 04 - which it believes was through regular use, rather than a specific incident.

With repair work unable to be completed at the track, however, McLaren elected to prepare a new chassis for him overnight.

With work on that finished early on Saturday morning, the team put the new chassis - number 01 - through scrutineering ahead of the final free practice session.

Formula 1 drivers will have to adhere to a stricter definition of the 'one move' defensive rule from this weekend's Korean Grand Prix as part of a process that is likely to put it formally into the sporting regulations next year, AUTOSPORT can reveal.

There is currently no official definition in the rules about what constitutes a legitimate defensive move - with the matter currently only governed by Article 16.1 of the Sporting Regulations.

This article states that drivers can be punished for causing an 'incident' - which includes if he has "illegitimately prevented a legitimate overtaking manoeuvre by a driver."

The FIA's Sporting Code also states that: "manoeuvres liable to hinder

other drivers, such more than one change of direction to defend a position, deliberate crowding of a car beyond the edge of the track or any other abnormal change of direction, are strictly prohibited."

Despite the 'one move' rule being mentioned in the rules, there is no proper definition of what it constitutes - and what a driver can do after he has used his single manoeuvre.

However, there is an unwritten rule that if a driver returns to the racing line after blocking the inside of a corner, he must leave enough space for his rival on the outside.

Although enforcement of the one move rule has worked for many years, the issue was thrust back into the spotlight at the Italian Grand Prix when Michael Schumacher vigorously defended his position against Lewis Hamilton.

Despite not being given a penalty for what some believed was driving that pushed the limits of the regulations, there were times when he was reminded by race control to leave enough space for Hamilton.

Following the Monza events, moves were made to re-examine the one move rule - and it has subsequently been approved by the FIA Sporting Working Group that it should become a part of the regulations.

With input from the Grand Prix Drivers' Association to put together a rule that the drivers are happy with, sources have confirmed that the one move rule will now be put forward for ratification by the FIA World Motor Sport Council so that it can be put into the 2012 F1 Sporting Regulations.

The wording will confirm that drivers can make one move to defend their position, and must then leave at least one full car's width of asphalt on the outside (which does not include the kerb) if they return to their racing line.

Even though this definition is not yet in the regulations, AUTOSPORT understands that the FIA will adopt this viewpoint as a benchmark from this weekend's event in Korea.

As well as the tougher interpretation of the one move rule, race stewards have also been reminded in Korea that they are able to add reprimands to any penalties handed out in races.

With fresh scrutiny on driver punishment after Hamilton's recent spate of drive-through penalties, the FIA now reserves the right to start adding reprimands to other punishments, such as drive-throughs, in races if offences are deemed to warrant it.

With F1 operating a 'three strikes' system whereby drivers can be handed grid penalties for totting-up three reprimands, it means that serial offenders now run the risk of facing further sanctions.

Article 18.2 of the Sporting Regulations states: "Any driver who receives three reprimands in the same championship season will, upon the imposition of the third, be given a 10 grid place penalty at that event. If the third reprimand is imposed following an incident during a race, the 10 grid place penalty will be applied at the driver's next event. The 10 grid place penalty will only be imposed if at least two of the reprimands were imposed for a driving infringement."

The discussion about these extra reprimands came up as part of talks in the SWG looking into the possibility of a points system being used on superlicences, whereby drivers could face ran bans if they accrue too many offences. This did not garner much support, but will be discussed further in the future.

Fernando Alonso insists his motivation remains high for the remainder of the season - even though the world title has now been lost.

The Spaniard has only won one race so far this season in what he had hoped would be a campaign that delivered the championship back to his Maranello team.

But despite the disappointment on that front, and the team's focus being entirely on next year's car, Alonso says there is still plenty to play for in 2011.

Talking about his feelings for the rest of the campaign, Alonso said: "It's not a big importance in the way we will prepare next year or the motivation of the team, but it's important because we want to do well and we don't like to finish second in a race.

"When we are on the grid we want to be on the first row, we don't want to see all these teams ahead of us. We are competitive people and we want to be in the front.

"Motivation is always high, and I think in the remaining races we will fight as if it was the first race of the championship, knowing and being realistic that our position at the moment maybe is not so strong compared to Red Bull and McLaren."

Pirelli is hoping to give its 2012 tyres a first proper test on contemporary Formula 1 cars at the forthcoming Abu Dhabi young driver test, AUTOSPORT has learned.

Although the final details of the test have not yet been finalised, Pirelli's director of motorsport Paul Hembery has said that he is making preparations for a selection of its 2012-specification rubber to be available for the three-day test at the Yas Marina circuit.

"Our knowledge is that we are going forward with a selection of products for 2012, with the new structure profiles and some of the new compounds," said Hembery, when asked by AUTOSPORT about the tyre plans for the test that takes place in the week after the Abu Dhabi Grand?Prix.

"Things seem to be progressing along those lines. It is good for us and good for the teams, so they can start thinking about what will happen next year.

"And it is important because there will be changes. The grip from the rear tyre will be higher, and change the balance of the car."

Pirelli is planning a range of revisions to its tyres for next year, which include new profiles for both front and rears, a new structure for the rear tyre and different compounds.

As part of the programme, it is hoped that teams will get a selection of the 2012 rubber to compare with standard 2011 tyres that will also be made available at the test.

"We have a programme detailed for that," added Hembery.

"The 2012 designs have so far only run on the Pirelli test car - an updated 2009 Toyota - which has now reached the end of its useful working life.

Pirelli is trying to find a solution so that it can conduct some track testing next year, rather than relying entirely on simulation data.

Sebastian Vettel said he got closer to McLaren's pace than expected in Korean Grand Prix qualifying, so could not be too disappointed that Red Bull's pole run had finally been ended.

McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton became the first man to take pole in anything other than a Red Bull this season as he claimed the top spot at Yeongam.

But champion Vettel said that getting ahead of the second McLaren of Jenson Button and lapping within 0.03 seconds of Hamilton was satisfying given McLaren's speed so far this weekend.

"To be honest I think McLaren was very very competitive yesterday," said Vettel. "I know conditions were completely different, but you can see they were a fair chunk ahead of everyone else - as well as this morning in the dry.

"Once again, we pushed them very, very hard in qualifying and got very close, closer than probably they expected and closer than we expected so we did a very good job in qualifying."

Red Bull used a set of super softs in Q1 to keep a fresh set of soft tyres back for the race, which Vettel thinks will prove to be a big advantage.

"We saved all our prime tyres which will be crucial tomorrow," he said.

The German expects a very open race tomorrow and an eventful first lap.

"It's not a long way down to the first corner and Turn 3 is a little bit exposed," Vettel said. "It's a long race, lots of things can happen. Tyre wear is crucial and Jenson did a good race last race, so that will be important tomorrow."

Lewis Hamilton said he was delighted to be on pole position for the Korean Grand Prix, but admitted it is the race that counts.

The Briton secured his first pole since last year's Canadian Grand Prix, also putting an end to Red Bull's run after the team had been on top in every race during this year.

The McLaren driver finished ahead of world champion Sebastian Vettel, who had been on pole for the last six events.

"I am happy. I am very happy," said Hamilton. "I am happy to be here and very proud of what the team have been able to achieve over the course of the last few races and for Jenson to have won the last race and us to be on front two rows again and us the only ones able to compete with Red Bull.

"I am very happy. But tomorrow is what counts."

Hamilton admitted his pole was one of the first "positives" he's had in recent races, having endured a tough time as team-mate Jenson Button has shone.

He insisted, however, that nothing was won yet and that it was Sunday that counts.

"It is probably one of the first positives I have had a for a while, so to be back on pole is a great feeling of course," he said.

"But tomorrow is the most important day. We had some difficult races in the past, so hopefully I'll try to redeem myself tomorrow and as long as we can get some strong points for the team as they have worked hard. I hope tomorrow me and Jenson can repay them."

Heikki Kovalainen believes he produced his best qualifying performance of the season in spite of the fact the Team Lotus driver will start from his habitual 19th position on the grid.

"Next to Hungary, I think I got as much as I possibly could out of the car and nailed every sector, so it's a good feeling to know when you’ve wrung as much as you can from a single lap," said Kovalainen. "We worked hard last night and today to find a balance that would suit the dry conditions today and tomorrow, and I think we've done that, so I’m feeling pretty good about the race.

"It’ll be very interesting to see how the tyre strategies play out, and if we can keep up the pace from Suzuka we’ll be there or thereabouts."

Team-mate Jarno Trulli was less satisfied with his lap, feeling that there was more to come from his car.

"I think we did ok today, but there was definitely a bit more in the car," said the Italian, who lined up 20th. "This morning I had a really good setup and found a lot of grip, but this afternoon it just didn’t feel quite the same so I wasn’t able to get as much out of the car as I could.

"Still, I’m reasonably happy with where we are - we’re well ahead of the cars behind and close enough on race pace to a couple of the teams just ahead, so another good start tomorrow and we’ll be ok."

Jamie Alguersuari is targeting a strong finish in the points in Korea after just missing out on Q3 on Saturday.

The Toro Rosso driver will start from 11th position after being outpaced by Force India's Paul di Resta by just 0.030 seconds in the second qualifying segment.

Alguersuari is now hoping to score good points to close the gap on seventh-placed Sauber in the standings.

"Just three hundredths off Q3 so we can say this was a good qualifying for the team," said Alguersuari. "We did a good job, starting yesterday when the car felt fine in the wet. I think we now have a better understanding of some of the upgrades we introduced in Suzuka and made the most of them.

"I was also encouraged by the long run I did, as there was not as much tyre degradation as we had expected, so this issue should not trouble us tomorrow. I am expecting a lot from the race in which I hope we can score enough points to close up the gap to Sauber, who are starting behind us on the grid."

The Spanish driver also explained his incident with world champion Sebastian Vettel in this morning practice session, where the Red Bull driver was unhappy with Alguersuari for not letting him through.

"As for the incident this morning with Vettel, it's clear to me what happened: I was on a long run, he was on his fast lap, so I let him by. Then he made a mistake so he was behind me, but he caught me again. Having already let him by once, I pushed for another lap on my long run. You cannot keep letting one driver pass you.

"I know it would have been easier for him if I had moved over again, but I also had a job to do to get enough data, because we had no information regarding a long run in the dry because of yesterday's rain. I'm sorry about that, but they have to understand my point of view too."

Team-mate Sebastien Buemi will start the race from 13th position, and the Swiss admitted he could have done better.

"I am reasonably happy with my performance in today's qualifying, even if thirteenth is not where we really want to be," he said.

"However, we are getting very close to Q3 which is very important. Being two tenths off getting into the top ten is a sign that the car is improving.

"I am sure I could have done a bit better, but this still looks good for tomorrow, especially considering we had a strong long run in free practice this morning, during which we got a good idea about tyre degradation. This means we should be well prepared for the race, in which we have every reason to believe we can get a good result."

Jenson Button believes that victory in Sunday's Korean Grand Prix will go to either McLaren or Red Bull as the two teams dominated the top four position on the grid in qualifying.

Button starts third on the grid, having been bumped off the front row by new world champion Sebastian Vettel as Lewis Hamilton took pole, but says he reckons the race is wide open given the high tyre degradation expected in the race.

"As a team and in terms of the car, I think we are in a great place right now," said Button, "I really don't know how the race is going to go tomorrow but you would think it would be between us and the Red Bulls. I don't think Ferrari is that far behind in terms of consistency over one lap they don't have the pace in race consistency.

"It is a great way to end the season, as a team we are obviously disappointed we could not get this performance earlier in the year, but it can only be good for next year. Obviously there are rule changes but having a good base for this year going into 2012 is something we really need."

Button added that while he was a bit disappointed not to be on pole, he felt he was in a strong position to record back-to-back victories following his Suzuka triumph last weekend.

"We all want to be on pole position, and congratulations to Lewis for getting pole, he's been quick all weekend and tough to get hold to," he said. "I am reasonably happy and we can race well from here, as Seb [Vettel] said there is lot to play for.

"We haven't a clue in terms of tyre degradation on high fuel so it's a little bit of an unknown but another challenge tomorrow."

Asked what the key performance factors in the race would be, Button replied: "Being quick! That is something we have been good at in the last few races in terms of consistency.

"We know the tyres have a short life here and if you can make any difference by looking after them is a little bit unknown tomorrow. We will see, but I think everyone is looking forward to tomorrow, it should be a lot of fun.

"We are finding our feet on high fuel, seeing how it feels and acts. Today was a reasonably good day for me, obviously thought we could fight for first but Lewis was too quick today but all in all a pretty good day and looks good for tomorrow."

Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez said their cars were simply off the pace in Korean Grand Prix qualifying, as they struggled to 14th and 17th on the grid.

After appearing to take a step forward with a new update package in Japan, Sauber never looked like reaching Q3 at Yeongam.

"We have had a difficult time here so far," said Kobayashi. "Fourteenth on the grid is obviously not what we were hoping for, and we are quite far away from our competitors.

"The main problem is still a lack of grip, which is caused by a combination of factors. My lap as such in Q2 was okay, I can't complain about traffic and didn't make a mistake. It was pretty much the best I could achieve today."

Perez, who will start 17th, said he compounded his problems with a scruffy Q2 lap.

"For me this was a very bad qualifying," said the Mexican. "After our only dry running was this morning and also for me the track is new, I am not happy with the balance and the set-up of the car.

"I didn't feel at all confident in the car. My final lap in Q2 was particularly bad because I hadn't got the brake balance right and had the fronts locking. I now have a bad grid position and I think we should go for an aggressive race strategy."

Michael Schumacher blamed a vibration during his final run for being unable to make it into the top ten in qualifying in Korea.

The German driver will start from 12th position after being unable to complete his final flying lap because of the problem that emerged right after he left the pits.

Schumacher was still positive about having saved a set of super soft tyres.

"To start with the positives of today's qualifying, I have saved two fresh sets of option tyres which is always helpful," said Schumacher. "On the other hand, it was obviously a pity what happened. Everything went normally in Q1, and from what you can expect of the tyres under normal circumstances, it was absolutely justified to go for just one run in Q2.

"But unfortunately I could feel that something was not right when leaving the pits as I had vibrations straight away. All that was left for us to do was hope that the gap would be big enough to remain in the top ten but that turned out not to be the case.

"We will now have a close look into what exactly happened and fully concentrate on trying to make up some positions in the race tomorrow."

Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg had a better session, finishing in seventh position. The German was happy with the result, but admitted it will be hard to do better than that in the race.

"I'm quite pleased with today," he said. "To find the right set-up for the qualifying and the race is always a compromise, particularly after such limited dry running, so I'm happy that we saved one set of option tyres.

"It will be tough to catch one of the top six drivers tomorrow but hopefully I'll have a good start and may be able to gain a position there. It will be an interesting race from the tyre perspective with a lot of stops, and I'm confident that our boys will do a great job in the pits again."

McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh believes pole position for the Korean Grand Prix will cheer Lewis Hamilton up after a series of disappointing results.

"I'm sure pole will cheer Lewis up, not as much as a race win, but for any racing driver being on pole position is a proud moment," Whitmarsh told the BBC after the British driver secured his first pole of the season.

"To be sort of on the top step on Sunday is probably a little bit better. He's set himself up to be in a good position tomorrow. I think we've got a reasonable balance.

"It's still a little bit of an unknown just how the tyres are going to survive but I think it will be quite intriguing. Hopefully we can get the job done, we'll see tomorrow."

Although Whitmarsh conceded the team was mainly targeting victory on Sunday, he did admit ending Red Bull's run of poles was a good feeling.

"Obviously we are here to win races but pole feels fairly good if you haven't had one for a long time," he said.

"We've missed a few that we felt we should have had this year, so I think both drivers did a great job. Sebastian also does a pretty good job himself in qualifying, so to come out on top [of him] in qualifying is important, but I think tomorrow's another day, it's a long race.

"There are going to be some interesting tyre decisions and some interesting strategies. I think ourselves, Red Bull and Ferrari - who knows? It could go anyway, but I think both of our guys fancy their chances tomorrow."

Fernando Alonso is not ruling out fighting for victory in Korea despite a disappointing qualifying on Saturday.

The Spanish driver qualified in sixth position as his Ferrari was unable to match the pace of McLaren and Red Bull.

Alonso, who finished second in Japan last weekend, was also outqualified by team-mate Felipe Massa for the second time this season.

Although Alonso conceded that Ferrari was no match for its rivals in qualifying trim, he believes the race could be very different, especially with the high tyre degradation expected.

"I can't be happy with sixth, but the position reflects our current situation: McLaren and Red Bull are stronger than us so it just leaves us to fight between ourselves for fifth and sixth places," said Alonso. "That's how Saturday goes, but maybe tomorrow will end up like Sunday in Suzuka and we will find ourselves again fighting for the win.

"When tyre degradation is very high, usually we are in good shape, but here the situation is not very clear, as the behaviour of the super softs over a long run and on full tanks is still an unknown quantity. We had considered using this tyre right from Q1 but then we decided not to take too many risks.

"Unfortunately, I start from the dirty side of the grid, which should be a major disadvantage here, so I hope I don't lose a place to Rosberg. We will have to keep an eye on what happens ahead of us and exploit the strategy in our favour."

Massa, on the other hand, was pleased with his day's job after finishing over a tenth of a second ahead of Alonso.

"I am happy with my performance today," he said. "I think I got a good lap on my final run, after the first one in Q3, when I used the same set of Super-softs I had already run in Q2. My impression is that we are now also improving our Saturday performance, but there are still four cars in front of us and so the grid position stays more or less the same.

"Going into this Grand Prix there was a lot of concern about tyre degradation but, at least from what we have seen today, it seems to be less severe than expected. Let's see how things go tomorrow. I am confident: if nothing strange happens to me, as has been the case in the last few races, then I think I can do a good job."

Christian Horner is hoping that Red Bull's decision to take an alternative approach to tyre use in qualifying will pay off in tomorrow's Korean Grand Prix.

With high degradation expected in Sunday's race, Red Bull took the unusual decision to burn through a set of fresh super soft option tyres during the initial phase of qualifying rather than use up freshness of one its prime sets.

And while Sebastian Vettel just missed out on pole, which went to Lewis Hamilton, and Red Bull failed to secure the top slot for the first time since the penultimate race of last season, Horner remains confident the team will be able to compete with McLaren - which has had the upper hand on pace throughout the weekend.

"We took a different approach to qualifying so obviously the guys didn't take too much out of the first set of the super-soft tyres in Q1," Horner told the BBC. "They drove to a target lap time and we will see. The McLarens have been very quick here this weekend and in all honesty we didn't expect to get close to them.

"[it was a] phenomenal lap by Seb in the end to get himself on the front row. Although it's the first time since Brazil last year that we've not been on the pole I think we are in good shape for tomorrow."

Horner added that the strategy was pre-planned and that the team is very much race-focussed this weekend, with tyre wear rates remaining a mystery largely due to the lack of dry running on Friday.

Pirelli has brought its softest combination of tyres to Yeongam and no one is quite sure how long they will last.

"This race with the tyre choice that Pirelli have elected here, it's going to be very strategic, and I think it will be crucial," said Horner. "We've got our cars on the first two rows. Looking at McLaren's performance yesterday we weren't expecting that, so I think we are content and can hopefully mount a good challenge tomorrow.

"The strategy was something we discussed beforehand and we'll see if it works. Theoretically McLaren have put five laps on that set of primes that we have the equivalent as new. If we end up using those tyres, hopefully that will be an advantage."

Sebastian Vettel is under investigation for having cut through a corner during qualifying for the Korean Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver cut out Turn 5 during one of his slowing-down laps in the final qualifying segment.

The FIA announced after qualifying that the incident was under investigation.

Vettel, who clinched his second title last Sunday, qualified in second position behind McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton.

Jenson Button is keeping his fingers crossed that Sebastian Vettel does not lose his second place slot on the grid for the Korean Grand Prix for cutting the track - because he does not want to start on the dirty side of the track.

Vettel was called to see the stewards after qualifying in Korea for having cut the track between Turn 4 and Turn 6 as he rushed to get back to the pits after his first qualifying lap.

That has been viewed as a breach of the regulations that state drivers must use the track at all times.

Article 20.3 of the F1 Sporting Regulations states: "For the avoidance of doubt the white lines defining the track edges are considered to be part of the track but the kerbs are not."

Although Vettel could face a drop down the grid for the offence, Button is hoping that it does not happen - because starting on the dirty side of the grid could be a penalty for the start of the race on Sunday.

"Looking at the last two years, we had a wet race last year, very wet rolling start, so nobody has started on those grid slots yet in a Formula 1 car, with our type of rubber," said Button, while waiting for news of the stewards' investigation.

"Every lap we do, we drive across the right hand side of the grid. I don't think we have driven once across the left hand side yet, so the odd numbers should have an advantage. It is a good drag down to Turn 1.

"I am pretty happy being P3. I can't be P1 as Lewis has done a better job than me and he is P1, so being P3 is probably the second best place. I hope they don't give him a penalty. A reprimand maybe..."

Despite hoping that Vettel is not punished too much, Button did suggest that cutting the track like he did was not accepted behaviour.

"You are not supposed to," he said. "You are supposed to stay within the white lines. Unless you make a mistake you don't drive off the circuit really at any point, until the chequered flag is finished."

Sebastian Vettel has escaped punishment for cutting the track after his first qualifying lap at the Korean Grand Prix.

The German was called to see the stewards after qualifying because he was deemed to have used an escape road to miss out the section of track between Turn 4 and Turn 6.

But after an investigation by the stewards, it was decided that no penalty should be handed out because the world champion had not gained an advantage.

A statement issued by the stewards said: "Having heard from the driver and team manager, and having noted that Car 1 started what was its fastest qualifying lap with 17 seconds to spare prior to the chequered flag, the stewards determined that no advantage was gained when car 1 left the track.

"Accordingly no breach of Article 20.13 occurred on this occasion and the stewards decide to take no further action."

The stewards added that specific instructions will be issued to the drivers by race director Charlie Whiting about the use of the Turn 4 exit road ahead of Sunday's race.

The decision to not penalise Vettel means that he will keep his second place on the grid, and leave Jenson Button relieved - as the McLaren driver wanted to keep his slot on the clean side of the grid in third place.

"I am pretty happy being P3," said Button. "I can't be P1 as Lewis has done a better job than me and he is P1, so being P3 is probably the second best place. I hope they don't give him a penalty. A reprimand maybe..."

McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh has played down Lewis Hamilton's low key mood after securing pole position for the Korean Grand Prix - insisting it is not mandatory for drivers to celebrate in wild style like Sebastian Vettel does.

Hamilton and his McLaren team ended Red Bull Racing's lock-out of pole positions this season with a strong performance in Korea – delivering the 2008 world champion's first top grid slot since last year's Canadian Grand Prix.

And although the performance was greeted with joy at McLaren, Hamilton surprised observers by appearing quite calm about the achievement – and needing to explain to the media that he was actually happy inside.

"It is not obligatory to whoop!" explained Whitmarsh. "The fact is that we all have different styles and different views. We all enjoyed the moment but at the same time we are focused on the fact that we have a race that we think we can win tomorrow, and we are looking and concentrating on that."

Hamilton said that he only found out he had got pole position a few corners after his qualifying lap, once main rival Vettel had crossed the line.

And, although there was no joyous outpouring of emotion in the car or in the pits afterwards, Hamilton said he was delighted with the performance.

"I wasn't on the radio. It felt great in the car. I didn't know whether I had got pole position until I got to Turn 3 or Turn 4, so it was good to hear. I had not heard that for a long time so it was a comforting feeling."

He added: "It is a great feeling when you come across the line knowing you have done a lap and eventually when you have your engineer come across and say you do or you don't have it.

"It is very rare that I have my engineer tell me that I am on pole so I wasn't sure what his words were leading to. But eventually he got to it that I was doing a good job. And I could hear it was satisfying, as I could hear the guys in the background cheering."

When asked about his focused mood, and whether any element of his approach to the weekend had changed on the back of recent struggles, Hamilton said: "No. I am the same as always. I am happy. I have a great position for tomorrow.

"It is nice to have a full qualifying session and to be able to get us on the front two rows. It was a great qualifying session for us. I've not changed anything; I don't plan to change anything. It is still the same as it has been."

Whitmarsh added that one of the best elements of Hamilton taking pole was that he did not have to make a move for the radio button to turn off Vettel's normal post-chequered flag celebrations.

"Pole position is lovely to get but we are here to try and win the race, and I think that is more important to us," he said.

"I have to confess we do listen to some of the other drivers and, on the monitor, I have a driver button. Afterwards, when they have gone on pole, I have to turn it off immediately so I don't have to hear Sebastian whooping it up in the car. Today I wasn't feverishly looking for that button to turn it off, so that felt good!"

Jerome D'Ambrosio admitted he was mystified by his lack of pace during qualifying for the Korean Grand Prix.

The Virgin driver finished in 22nd position nearly 1.5 seconds off the pace of team-mate Timo Glock as he struggled with a lack of grip.

D'Ambrosio said he could not understand the reason for his car's poor speed.

"At the moment none of us really understand. The pace is not there, but it's not like one sector or like I'm losing somewhere. It's everywhere," D'Ambrosio told AUTOSPORT.

"I think we have to get down to the bottom of this looking at the data, trying to understand. There's a feeling that there is something going massively wrong. My feeling is a lack of grip everywhere and that's it.

"But I don't want to go crazy on this. I think I just continue to do my job as best as I as can tomorrow and then we'll see. I'm sure we can improve and get to the bottom of it. Bad days happen and the most important thing is to understand where it's coming from."

He added: "The car balance was not the best I've had but not to explain 1.4 seconds. So it's very difficult to understand. This is the thing I can't explain at the moment. There are a couple of things we are looking at the moment and hopefully we can sort them out."

The Belgian said he will still give his all to try to have a good race on Sunday.

"Tomorrow I'll drive my heart out. It's a race and I'm a racing driver. Tomorrow is a new day and I will do everything I can to have a good race like in Suzuka, Singapore and Spa. That's my goal. To get in the car and drive my heart out."

Post-qualifying press conference:

TV UNILATERALS

Q. Lewis, congratulations, your first pole position in over a year. I would have thought that you'd have had a smile as wide as the sea between here and Japan. But you don't seem to be too happy? Is everything okay?

Lewis HAMILTON: No, I am happy. I am very happy. Happy to be here and very proud of what the team have been available to achieve over the course of the last few races and for Jenson to have won the last race and for us to be on the front two rows again and the only ones competing with Red Bull I am very, very happy about it. But tomorrow is the day that really counts.

Q. Sebastian, it seems a strange position to see you the right of Lewis and not sat in the middle here. No pole position for yourself. Did you expect this renewed challenge from McLaren today?

Sebastian VETTEL: Well to be honest I think McLaren looked very, very competitive yesterday. I know the conditions were completely different but you could see that they were a fair chunk ahead of everyone else, including us, as well as this morning in the dry so they looked extremely quick. But I think, once again, we pushed them very, very hard in qualifying and got very, very close. I think closer probably than they expected and closer than we expected in some regards so I think we did a very good job in qualifying. Also we saved all our prime tyres, which I think will be crucial for tomorrow. We had only a rough idea this morning with a little bit more fuel in the car. I think we are in a good position. It is not a long way down to the first corner and then Turn Three is a little bit exposed so we will see. It is a long race, a lot of things can happen. I think tyre wear will be crucial. Jenson did a very, very good job last race in particular so I think that, again, will be very important tomorrow.

Q. Jenson, third place for you. If tyre wear is so vital and the teams haven't got as much data as they would normally expect at this stage of a weekend, how handily placed are you for another race victory?

Jenson BUTTON: Well it is not perfect, we all want to be on pole position and congratulations to Lewis for getting the pole. He has been pretty quick all weekend and tough to hold onto. I am reasonably happy where we are. It is not perfect, but we can race very well from here. As Seb said there is a lot to play for still and we really haven't got a clue what is going to happen tomorrow in the race in terms of tyre deg on high fuel, what the car is really going to feel like on high fuel, so really a bit of an unknown. But looking forward to the challenge tomorrow.

Q. Lewis, after all your disappointments in recent races and whatever does happen tomorrow, how much does it mean to you to be hitting the track running and being on pole position and being the fastest man out in the car this weekend?

LH: Well it is probably one of the first positives I have had for a while and to be back on pole is a great feeling. But, as I said, tomorrow is the most important day. I have had some difficult races in the past so hopefully will try to redeem myself tomorrow. As long as we can get some really strong points for the team as they have put an incredible amount of effort into getting us to where we are today so a big thank you to them and I hope that tomorrow me and Jenson can repay them.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q. Lewis, first pole for you and McLaren this year. How much satisfaction do you get from this?

LH: Well it is very early days and it is not the most important day but it is a great start. As I was just saying the team have worked incredibly hard all year to catch up the deficit that we had to the Red Bulls. Particularly the last few races, at least the last five races Jenson has been massively quick and we have been able to compete with them and constantly be on podium but not really finish ahead of them on the podium too often. Fortunately after the last race and here today we are as competitive as them and hopefully tomorrow we can continue with that performance.

Q. Just describe what sort of work you did this morning as you are virtually starting from scratch?

LH: No, we pretty much drove the same car as we had on Friday. Made a couple of changes as the track improved but I think we have made a big change to the set-up compared to the last race and that made a big difference.

Q. In terms of tyre wear what sort of programme was there this morning?

LH: I think everyone anticipated it would be quite poor the degradation of the tyres and looking at the Red Bull's long runs it doesn't look so bad. The performance over one lap is longer than what the specialists anticipated so I think tomorrow is going to be very, very similar to what we had in last race.

Q. After the problems that you have had the last few races you just seemed to nail Q1, Q2, Q3. Every single one you were fastest so that must have been a satisfaction as well.

LH: Yeah, I think we have had several Q1's and Q2's at the top of the leaderboard but never really been able to pull through in Q3 and particularly the last couple of races I have not had my last run so it was quite important that we got that today. It made a significant difference otherwise I don't really know if Seb improved, I am sure he did, so it was important that we got that lap.

Q. Sebastian, obviously you would have loved to have been on pole position but again it has been a pretty tough day today. I don't suppose you learnt that much yesterday and really all the work was done this morning?

SV: Well I mean yesterday was a different day. Different conditions. But we saw already that McLaren is very competitive this weekend. In the end it doesn't really matter the conditions. I think if your car is quick, if you feel the balance is there, then you are quick no matter what conditions and we were a little bit behind or quite a bit behind, including this morning. But again we pulled ourselves together and when it mattered most for today we were there, Q3, we were very, very close in the first run. I thought we would have a crack at pole. My second lap was very good again. There wasn't much left but, obviously, Lewis had a very good lap and deserves pole. It was close. Closer than many people thought or we thought as well as they were looking so, so strong this morning and the pace came so easy for them. At least by the looks of it. It is good that we made a fair step in the right direction and caught up so tomorrow should be an interesting day. A long race. We saved all our prime tyres so there is a little difference there. Whether we can use that to our advantage or not remains to be seen, but I think we are in good shape. It is a long race here. Tyres are reasonable soft, both compounds, so we will see.

Q. You predicted multi pit-stops yesterday, does that still stand?

SV: I think so. It did look a little bit better this morning than some people thought so I think five stops is too many. Two is impossible so somewhere in between. You know three or four stops is not a big secret. We know that if there is a lot of tyre wear we have seen races where we end up three stopping and races where we end up four stopping. All in all we should be in good shape and looking to tomorrow. Also considering that the last week wasn't the easiest, and preparation wasn't easy, but very quickly we refocused and as I said we were there when it counted. Not enough this time, but tomorrow is another day.

Q. Jenson said just now 'we don't know where we are'. What do you think of that quote?

JB: When did I say that?

Q. In the unilateral.

JB: Did I? Well, I will have to watch that back. I think if I did say that, in terms of the race, [i meant] running high fuel. We haven't done that yet, so we don't know how competitive we're going to be yet, but looking at the pace today, I would say that we would be reasonably competitive.

Q. Is that something you've done, Sebastian? Did you do high fuel runs today?

SV: Yeah, we did a little bit. You can't turn the world upside down. Yesterday, we had no preparation in dry conditions because it was wet. This morning we still had only one hour. I think we had a lot of work to do and we got most of it done, so we were very happy with this morning, gave us direction with the car, with the conditions, with the fuel. The runs we did didn't look too bad. We will see.

Q. Jenson, what are going to be the principal factors in the race?

JB: Being quick, and that's something we've been pretty good at for the last couple of races, in terms of consistency throughout the whole race. It's very difficult to know what to do in terms of strategy tomorrow because again, we haven't really run the tyres. We know that they've got a short life but how short and if you can make any difference by trying to look after them? It's very difficult to know, so a little bit unknown tomorrow so we will see. I should think everyone's looking forward to the race tomorrow especially us three at the front. It should be a lot of fun out there. Finding our feet is going to be the first thing on high fuel, to see how the car feels and acts with that much fuel on board. Today was a reasonably good day for me. I thought we would be able to fight for first but Lewis was just too quick today. All in all, a pretty good day and it looks good for tomorrow.

Q. Does the chassis change make any difference at all?

JB: No. I didn't think about it at all. It's got a number one on it now, so that's quite nice but no, it doesn't make any difference at all. At this high level, the tubs themselves are identical, so that's not an issue.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q. (Andrea Cremonesi - La Gazzetta dello Sport) Sebastian, what tyres were you using on the last run, super soft but used or new, because you used one set in Q1?

SV: We used new tyres in both runs of Q3.

Q. (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Jenson, why did you change the chassis this morning?

JB: There was a problem at the back of the chassis where the engine bolts on, so they couldn't fix the problem here and it wasn't worth risking trying to fix the problem here so that's the reason why they changed the chassis yesterday. The guys did a great job of turning it around, I think they left pretty early last night considering they had a complete chassis change, so thank you very much to them on both sides of the garage, so cheers.

Q. (Dan Knutson – National Speed Sport News) To any of you, lots of pit stops tomorrow, how much of a concern is the pit exit?

JB: If you look at how many times we've exited the pits over the last two days and also last year, there's been one incident and that was in wet conditions. It's very different in the dry; it's more unusual to lock up into turn one. It obviously does make it a little bit tricky if someone's exiting and you're racing that person exiting the pits, knowing where to really place the car through the apex but I'm sure everything will be fine tomorrow with the pit exit. I don't think we will see any issues.

Q. (Livio Orrichio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Lewis, please understand this question; for a driver who broke a series of 15 poles of a competitor you look very sad, you haven't smiled. Is there any reason for that in your behaviour to the criticism you have received in the last few races?

LH: No, no. I am happy, I am happy. As I said, it's been a tough second half of the season and it's great to get pole. It doesn't really mean a huge amount because tomorrow's really what counts. As I said, I'm happy, I'm proud of... I am proud of my team, the support that I've had from them has been just incredible, so to be up here is kind of… it's a great feeling for that but tomorrow is the most important day so I look forward to that.

Q. (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Lewis, you were getting close to Mark Webber in the last sector, did it affect your lap time?

LH: No, I saw that he was backing off and my last sector seemed to be OK, to be honest. Through the last corner was a little bit slippery but I can't really say that was because of him. I think it was the tyres really falling off. I don't know how many seconds ahead he was but I think the gap should have been enough.

Q. (Joris Fioriti – Agence France Presse) Jenson, you were the fastest guy in Japan apart from in qualifying, where you missed pole by a very tiny margin. Your car, the McLaren, seems to be the fastest car here too. Should we see that as an indicator for the end of the season, McLaren becoming faster than the Red Bulls?

JB: If you looked at practice in Suzuka, yes, we were very quick and the same here. I think some of it is due to maybe us running less fuel than other people, especially compared to the Red Bull because they seem to be a lot more competitive in qualifying. But as a team, in terms of the car, yeah, I think we're in a great place right now. As I said, I really don't know how the race is going to go tomorrow but you'd think that it would be between us and the Red Bulls. So we will have to wait and see, but I don't think Ferrari are that far behind in terms of consistency. Over one lap they maybe don't have the pace but in terms of consistency we saw them very strong in Suzuka so they might also be there tomorrow. It's a great way to end the season. As a team, were obviously disappointed that we couldn't get this performance earlier in the year but I think we've done a great job through the latter part of the season and it can only be good for next year. Obviously there are rule changes but having a good base at the end of this year, going into 2012, it's something that we really need, I think.

Q. (Joris Fioriti – Agence France Presse) Sebastian, was there a sense of disappointment in the team not to score all the pole positions until the end of the season?

SV: It was never really the target, to be honest, because it's so far away, there are so many races, but the run we've had so far is quite impressive and even today we are still on the front row and we're not so far off. I'm very happy with that, but as I said, now you mention it, it would have been nice, but it has never really been our target. Tomorrow is more important for us.

Q. (Kate Walker – Girl Racer) Lewis, you said that you had problems with your tyres losing grip on the last sector in your qualifying lap; are you concerned that this might disadvantage you coming off the line tomorrow?

LH: No, no. Generally, when you're driving these cars, particularly in qualifying, you do quite a slow enough lap that you don't take too much out of the tyres on the first lap and when you do your lap, naturally you've extracted everything. If you've extracted everything from the tyres, they should start going off in the last sector. That's natural, but once they cool down again, as they will be for tomorrow, the grip will be back to exactly where everyone else has it.

Q. (Frederic Ferret – L'Equipe) Sebastian, you're second and Mark is fourth and the two McLarens are on the right side of the track. Does that bother you for the start tomorrow?

SV: Not really. I think our side is maybe not the cleanest side, but we've seen a couple of times this year that in the end there's not a big difference. I think the tyres are different to last year so… we are seeing different starts to the races. Jenson had a very good start at the last race from second, didn't you?

JB: Can't remember.

SV: So we will see. It's a bit tricky here because it's not a long way to the first corner or the first two, then there's a long straight after that, and another straight after that so it could be interesting.

[Lineker]

Sebastian Vettel cruised to his 10th win of the season at the Korean Grand Prix, wrapping up back-to-back Constructors' World Championship titles for Red Bull in the process.

The German, who took the drivers' title last weekend in Japan, started second on the grid alongside Lewis Hamilton, but outbraked his McLaren into Turn 4 on the opening lap to take a decisive advantage.

A four-second lead was wiped out when Vitaly Petrov took Michael Schumacher out of the race at Turn 3, the resultant debris bringing out the safety car. But when racing resumed, Vettel was again able to pull away. His eventual winning margin over Hamilton was 11s.

Hamilton's runner-up spot was anything but easy. Mark Webber, in the second Red Bull, was never more than 1.5s behind him, and closed onto the McLaren driver's tail during the second half of the race.

A quick decision to bring Hamilton in for his final pitstop just as his rear tyres were beginning to go off managed to keep him ahead of Webber - who stopped on the same lap.

The Australian seemed to have more pace than the Briton, the pair running side-by-side for a number of corners on lap 34, and Webber eventually making it into second at the first corner with five laps to go.

Blessed with the superior traction of the McLaren, and employing a tactic of using all his KERS and DRS at the same time, Hamilton retook the position seconds later on the long run down to Turn 3, and held it to the finish, even setting the fastest lap on the penultimate tour.

Jenson Button fell from third to sixth on the opening lap following strong starts from Ferrari drivers Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso. Such was Massa's lack of pace on worn tyres, that Nico Rosberg made it a four-way battle for the position as they approached the opening round of pitstops.

While Alonso dropped out of the battle after staying out too long on worn rubber, the action concerned Button and Rosberg, who pitted together on lap 14.

Rosberg got out ahead of Button, the Briton giving way at the pit exit after running side-by-side with the Mercedes driver down the pitlane, but then surrendered the position by outbraking himself and running wide as the rejoined the track.

Rosberg regained the place with the aid of DRS a few seconds later, but could only keep the McLaren behind him for another lap.

Massa, by this stage, had fallen behind the pair, and was also overtaken by Alonso at the second round of stops, after a couple of sensational laps from the Spaniard on old rubber.

Button and Alonso finished fourth and fifth, just behind the Hamilton/Webber battle, while Massa was next up.

Jaime Alguersuari put in another strong performance to finish seventh, the Spaniard passing Rosberg for the position on the final lap after a couple of unsuccessful earlier attempts, while his Toro Rosso team-mate Sebastien Buemi was one place further back.

Paul di Resta completed the points scorers, ahead of his Force India team-mate Adrian Sutil, while Pastor Maldonado - who was in the mix with the Force Indias behind the safety car, was given a drive-through penalty for hitting a bollard at pit entry, and later retired.

PROVISIONAL RACE RESULTS


The Korean Grand Prix

Korea Auto Valley, Yongam, Korea;

55 laps; 305.909km;

Weather: Dry.


Classified:


Pos  Driver        Team                       Time

 1.  Vettel        Red Bull-Renault           1h30:01.994

 2.  Hamilton      McLaren-Mercedes           +    12.019

 3.  Webber        Red Bull-Renault           +    12.477

 4.  Button        McLaren-Mercedes           +    14.694

 5.  Alonso        Ferrari                    +    15.689

 6.  Massa         Ferrari                    +    25.133

 7.  Alguersuari   Toro Rosso-Ferrari         +    49.538

 8.  Rosberg       Mercedes                   +    54.053

 9.  Buemi         Toro Rosso-Ferrari         +  1:02.762

10.  Di Resta      Force India-Mercedes       +  1:08.602

11.  Sutil         Force India-Mercedes       +  1:11.229

12.  Barrichello   Williams-Cosworth          +  1:33.068

13.  Senna         Renault                    +     1 lap

14.  Kovalainen    Lotus-Renault              +     1 lap

15.  Kobayashi     Sauber-Ferrari             +     1 lap

16.  Perez         Sauber-Ferrari             +     1 lap

17.  Trulli        Lotus-Renault              +     1 lap

18.  Glock         Virgin-Cosworth            +     1 lap

19.  Ricciardo     HRT-Cosworth               +     1 lap

20.  D-Ambrosio    Virgin-Cosworth            +     1 lap

21.  Liuzzi        HRT-Cosworth               +    3 laps


Fastest lap: Vettel, 1:39.605


Not classified/retirements:


Driver        Team                         On lap

Maldonado     Williams-Cosworth            31

Petrov        Renault                      17

Schumacher    Mercedes                     16



World Championship standings, round 16:                


Drivers:                    Constructors:             

 1.  Vettel       349        1.  Red Bull-Renault          558

 2.  Button       222        2.  McLaren-Mercedes          418

 3.  Alonso       212        3.  Ferrari                   310

 4.  Webber       209        4.  Mercedes                  127

 5.  Hamilton     196        5.  Renault                    72

 6.  Massa         98        6.  Force India-Mercedes       49

 7.  Rosberg       67        7.  Sauber-Ferrari             40

 8.  Schumacher    60        8.  Toro Rosso-Ferrari         37

 9.  Petrov        36        9.  Williams-Cosworth           5

10.  Heidfeld      34       

11.  Sutil         28       

12.  Kobayashi     27       

13.  Alguersuari   22       

14.  Di Resta      21       

15.  Buemi         15       

16.  Perez         13       

17.  Barrichello    4       

18.  Senna          2       

19.  Maldonado      1       


All timing unofficial[/code]


Red Bull Racing has secured the Constructors' Championship after Sebastian Vettel's victory in the Korean Grand Prix.


The Milton Keynes-based outfit had headed into the Korea event only needing to outscore main rivals McLaren to clinch its second successive crown.


And although McLaren had looked stronger in qualifying, Vettel's strong run to the win and Mark Webber's third place was enough to deliver it another title.


Red Bull Racing's success in the Constructors' Championship comes just one week after Vettel clinched his second successive drivers' crown in Japan.


Sebastian Vettel celebrated what he labelled as a fantastic victory at the Korean Grand Prix, as Red Bull clinched the constructors' title for the second year in a row.


Although the team failed to start from pole position for the first time this year, Vettel took the lead early on and never looked back.


The German, who clinched his second title last weekend in Japan, took his 10th win of the season, finishing over 12 seconds ahead of McLaren's Lewis Hamilton.


Vettel was delighted for his team.


"I think it is good to see that the whole team keeps on pushing," said Vettel. "In terms of preparation it was not ideal because most of us were tipsy after Sunday night but we deserved that.


"But to come here and have a tough Friday and a tough Saturday morning, and to come back in qualifying and in the race was fantastic.


"It was so fun to drive. The car was getting quicker and quicker. It is fantastic, after last weekend the drivers' championship, this weekend the Constructors' Championship for the team. It is fantastic.


"I want to say a lot of thanks to Renault. They have been pushing so hard. The package is fantastic, so thank you very much. I am very, very happy today."


The double world champion admitted he was surprised he managed to stop just twice during the race, despite fears about tyre degradation.


"In the end we ended up stopping way less than we thought," he said. "We expected a bit more degradation, and eventually it came, but we delayed the first stop, and in the end you realise you don't have to stop three times.


"It was a very good race from that side. The tyres and tyre management were not easy, especially towards the end of the stint. I was able to gain on Lewis. I always wanted to stay clear of DRS with the headwind of Turn 2 to Turn 3.


"I was pushing hard. The tyres did not help in the second stint but they came back. It was crucial to control race from there."


Renault team principal Eric Boullier is willing to give Robert Kubica more time to prove his fitness for a possible Formula 1 return next season.


The Frenchman spoke with Kubica's manager Daniele Morelli during the build-up to this weekend's Korean Grand Prix for an update on the Pole's progress. Boullier had previously given him a deadline of mid-October, which was subsequently pushed back to the end of the month.


Now, he is willing to extend that deadline to give Kubica every chance to prove that he will be fit enough to attempt a comeback.


"Maybe a little further," said Boullier when asked by AUTOSPORT whether he will make a decision at the end of the month. "If I can wait a little bit longer, I will maybe have to because he's not fully ready and I want him to be in a fair situation to make sure he will be back.


"I spoke to Daniele Morelli and they are very confident that Robert will be back, which is nice to hear. We still have to go through some processes so he is basically fighting against time.


"If Robert can driver a Formula 1 car, I want him to be with us so I have to give him a chance. It's up to me to be flexible."


Boullier admitted that there is a limit to how long he can hold on as if he pushes the deadline back too far and Kubica cannot return, it could jeopardise Renault's 2012 campaign.


This means that he is unlikely to delay much later than mid-November, when time will be running out to make alternative arrangements.


"I need not to go against the interests of this team, so if I can see anything going wrong with next year's driver line-up, I will have to take a decision," he said.


Kubica has yet to attempt a simulator test as the first step in assessing his ability to drive an F1 car.


Originally, it was hoped that he would be able to do so as early as late-September. But based on the latest updates Boullier now estimates that "maybe within a month he can do it."


Mark Webber has backed the plan to have Formula 1's one-move rule put into next year's regulations - and now wants to see it expanded into all major racing championships.


As AUTOSPORT revealed on Saturday, the FIA;s Sporting Working Group agreed this weekend for a proper definition of the one move rule to be ratified – which stewards will use from this weekend's event and is set to be written into the 2012 Sporting Regulations.


Webber believes the idea will be a step forward for F1, and reckons that it could be good to eradicate dangerous incidents in junior categories too.


When asked by AUTOSPORT if he believed the one move rule would be a benefit for F1, Webber said: "Yeah. It will. But it needs to be very consistently interpreted from the stewards' perspective as well, because not all stewards have raced in F1 cars.


"A lot of stewards have, but that is very important if they are going to put things in black and white and we stick to them.


"The one move rule is certainly, I believe, a step forward, particularly with the DRS and things like that," he added:


"Ultimately it would be good if we could see it drop to the junior categories. We see a lot of big accidents in the junior categories. The guys are super, super, super aggressive driving in the lower formulas, and standards-wise that is not acceptable in F1, because if you do this at Monza with 350 kph...


"You have to race hard and fair. I love racing hard and fair as you know, but only when you give it a little bit of room when you need to at certain points, you have to know when the fight is over. It's mainly in the braking zone.


"That is where there will be a little bit of ambiguity in the future with the braking, but straight lines are quite easy. Once you get into brakes that will be their challenge."


Nico Rosberg also believed that a clarification of what constitutes one move would be of benefit to the stewards, as he thinks there have been questionable incidents in the last few races.


"From my point of view there have been several incidents in the last few races where drivers haven't had penalties and they should have had," said the Mercedes driver. "I think it would be a very good thing to clarify that again, even more precisely, because it is a dangerous area.


"If drivers are doing something not leaving space for the guy outside, it could be a very dangerous incident. I think it is important and that should solve things, so it should be better for next year."


Michael Schumacher was, however, not so convinced about the benefits of the one move rule being put into the regulations.


"Honestly, I think it is clear what you can and cannot do," he said. "It is just a point of view that the stewards may take, and we don't always have the same stewards.


"It is not always exactly the same incident or situation, so there is always room for interpretation. I don't think it is always possible to see things absolutely black and white."


Formula 1 team bosses have agreed to hold further discussions about the Resource Restriction Agreement at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, following a meeting aimed at ending unease about the concept in Korea on Sunday.


The executive committee of the Formula One Teams' Association met in the Yeongam paddock ahead of the race to try and make progress about resolving differences of opinion about the implementation of the RRA going forward.


This has come after concerns that both Red Bull and Mercedes could be adopting a more aggressive interpretation of the RRA than their rivals - which could leave the way open for an all-out spending war if the agreement fell apart.


Most of the FOTA meeting in Korea was devoted to trying to forge a way forward that all teams would be happy with. Although no final agreement was reached, sources have told AUTOSPORT that it was agreed that another meeting would take place at the Abu Dhabi GP next month to try and make further progress.


The teams elected to choose Abu Dhabi, rather than the next race on the calendar in India, because the Buddh event is expected to be a busy one in terms of corporate guests and other meetings.


Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn said earlier in the Korea weekend that he believed the RRA was at a key moment, which is why agreement on the matter now was important.


"We're respecting the RRA but I think it's at a crossroads, I think it's at a crossroads because it's now starting to bite to those three or four teams who have to control their resource to comply," he said.


"I think there's seven or eight teams for whom RRA means nothing, because they're always going to be below the limit.


"Now we're at a stage where the targets that were set are starting to bite into the three or four teams and this is where it starts to get contentious and we haven;t structured it well enough yet to have the controls and checks and reassurances in place that gives everybody comfort. [That] leads to the innuendo and accusations that get thrown around."


FOTA teams also discussed plans for the forthcoming F1 Commission meeting in Geneva on November 3, where a vote on the Team Lotus and Renault outfits' name changes for next year will take place.


It is understood that all FOTA teams made it clear that they would not block the name changes to Caterham and Lotus going ahead, despite seeking clarifications about the impact on the F1 brand of name changes.


Ferrari has warned that the future of the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) will be cast into doubt if agreement cannot be reached on the Resource Restriction Agreement at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.


As AUTOSPORT reported earlier, teams have agreed to roll forwards discussions on the RRA until the penultimate race of the season, amid growing concerns that some outfits are being more aggressive than others in their interpretations of the deal.


But rather than being viewed as an opportunity to make progress, Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali thinks it is critical that a unified approach to the RRA is achieved at Abu Dhabi.


And he fears that, if that does not happen, then it will show teams cannot trust each other - which implies that FOTA as a concept could be finished.


When asked by AUTOSPORT about whether the concerns he had voiced in Japan about the RRA had been eased by Sunday morning's meeting in Korea, Domenicali said: "What we have said about RRA is that I think we are in a situation where we take a certain direction, or we recognise that there is an element of mistrust between teams that is not good.


"So what we have discussed is to go to Abu Dhabi to make sure that a solution, a final solution, has to be taken.


"On top of that, what we said is really if this [mistrust] will come out of FOTA activity then what is FOTA all about? We know the reason why FOTA started, and now we need to understand if FOTA is still needed. What are the objectives of the future of FOTA, if there is a future for FOTA?


"We need to do that in a very constructive way, a very open way. That is the discussion that I believe in the next weeks is important to take over. On the RRA with Abu Dhabi either there is a solution or we will see."


Domenicali's comments echo the stance put forward by Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner earlier on Sunday, who suggested that FOTA was at a key moment in its existence.


"I think that FOTA has reached the crossroads where it needs to deal with some of the key issues moving forward or we'll stop. It's as simple as that," he was quoted as saying by Reuters.


"The principal issues are obviously the Concorde Agreement, the direction that goes in, and fundamentally the RRA (Resource Restriction Agreement). If we can't find agreement within FOTA on that, then what is the purpose of FOTA?"


Pirelli has been invited to meet Formula 1 sporting directors at the Indian Grand Prix in a bid to forge an agreement on tyre regulation tweaks for 2012, AUTOSPORT has learned.


Following recent controversy about teams electing not to run in Q3 in a bid to save tyres plus the implication of unused rubber and a testing plan going forwards, the teams and Pirelli have had varied opinions about a way forward that satisfies both them and the fans.


Pirelli's motorsport director Paul Hembery met Oliver Weingarten, the secretary general of the Formula One Teams' Association in Korea this weekend to try and make progress on the matter.


And following encouraging talks, it was agreed that Hembery will now discuss the situation with FOTA's Sporting Regulations Working Group in India.


Weingarten told AUTOSPORT: "We had a constructive meeting with Pirelli on Friday, where we discussed a number of issues and we look forward to further discussions with Pirelli going forward, and that is why we have invited them to the SRWG meeting in India."


Hembery said that recent remarks expressing his frustration at the Q3 situation were not aimed at criticising teams - but purely out of a desire by Pirelli to try and help improve F1.


"We are being held account by the public just as much as they [the teams] are, and all we are saying is that we are willing to try and find a solution," said Hembery. "That is why we are here, we are here as a partner. We are not here to say, 'you are all crazy, why are you doing this?'


"We are saying, 'come on, we have found an area here that is a little bit grey, let's try and sort something out together'. That is our only message really. I know some people have really taken it the wrong way, but that has not been our intention. Our intention has been to be proactive.


"We are not in the game to create problems, we are here to find solutions and make things better. Not only for the teams, but also the public. We are in the entertainment business and you cannot forget that."


Lewis Hamilton said he never questioned the belief in himself after returning to the podium at the Korean Grand Prix.


The McLaren driver had endured a difficult series of races that have put him under the spotlight, but on Sunday he delivered a strong drive to finish in second place.


Hamilton, who had started the race from pole position, said he never stopped believing in himself.


"I would never question by belief in myself," said Hamilton. "That is not something that needs doing.


"I've got the trust and the confidence from the team so it is about trying to stay out of trouble, try and stay out of stewards' office, keep my head down and get better results."


The Briton said he was happy with his result despite having started from first place, and admitted he had a difficult race because of the handling of his car.


"It was okay. It wasn't too bad. Mark drove really well through the race and congratulations to Seb. They were massively quick throughout the weekend and in the race it was hard to catch Seb and overtake.


"In the race I struggled. I had full lock everywhere and was struggling with understeer, but it was good weekend for me compared to what I have had in the past so I am happy."


Mark Webber admitted he was disappointed not to get second place in the Korean Grand Prix on Sunday.


The Australian put on a solid performance and was involved in a long battle with McLaren's Lewis Hamilton for the runner-up spot.


In the end Webber lost the battle and had to settle for third position.


The Red Bull driver was delighted to see his team clinch the constructors' title again, but admitted he wanted second place in the race.


"It was the team's day today," said Webber. "The constructors' title is a massive thing today. I'm disappointed not to get second today. We did a good job in the first stop and then got ourselves in a good position.


"The safety car got everyone back together and in the second stop we did the worst thing as we didn't stop before or after, we stopped at the same time.


"I had a good battle on the first lap and that was how it was today. Looking forward to the next one."


Webber, who is yet to score a win this year, said he is aiming for "perfect" weekends in the remaining grands prix of the year.


"I think pulling off a clean perfect weekend," he said of his goals for the remaining races. "There are lot of positives for me today. We know how sensitive it is around, you need everything right to win.


"So a lot of positives today for me but the initial reaction is a bit of disappointment. I am sure I will be happy tomorrow when I wake up and look forward to the next event."


Heikki Kovalainen says the Korean Grand Prix was Team Lotus's strongest Formula 1 race to date after coming home in 14th place.


The Finn beat both Sauber drivers Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez and finished close behind the Renault of Bruno Senna in one of the team's best displays since joining the sport last year.


Kovalainen, who finished a lap down, was elated with his team's performance.


"After the fantastic performance last weekend in Japan this is another big step forward for us," said Kovalainen.


"Finishing 14th today, ahead of both Saubers and within touching distance of Senna on the final lap is for sure our strongest ever race and it's a great feeling for me and the whole team to see us fighting with a big group of cars right from the very first lap.


"We've been strong all weekend and it's great for the whole team that we're heading towards the end of the season with a car that is giving us a chance to really show what we can do.


"Honestly, I'd like to get straight back in now and do it all over again - now I can't wait for India!"


Team-mate Jarno Trulli finished in 17th position, also a lap down.


Jaime Alguersuari was delighted with his Toro Rosso team's performance in the Korean Grand Prix, and he reckons the squad can now overtake Sauber in the standings.


The Faenza-based squad put on its strongest performance of the year in Korea, with Alguersuari finishing in seventh position and team-mate Sebastien Buemi in ninth.


The result left Toro Rosso just three points behind seventh-placed Sauber with three races left.


Alguersuari, now 13th in the championship with 22 points, praised the team's efforts to have raised its game in recent races.


"The reality is that the Toro Rosso team has done a fantastic job, not just this weekend, but also going back to Suzuka, where we introduced some updates on the car," said the Spaniard. "In Japan, we did not make the most of them but in the few days in between the races the team has done really well to move forward for here.


"The car had fantastic straight line speed which is how I managed to pass Nico on the final lap. I must say I did not think I could do it, I did not expect it, but I gave it one last effort at the end I was able to get past, partly helped by the fact he made a small mistake on that lap.


"Combined with great pitstops, that is how we managed to produce this fantastic result. I am very happy for the team who have worked so hard, especially the mechanics fitting all these new parts.


"We are closer to Sauber now and with three races remaining, I think we have a chance of passing them, as long as we continue to perform like this, finishing in the top ten."


Buemi was also elated with his performance after having to charge back following an incident on the opening lap.


"I am extremely pleased with my race," he said. "Someone drove into me at the first corner which cost me four places and I'm not really sure what happened. After that, I had to work hard to pass other cars - the two Williams, the two Saubers and both Force Indias - to move up the order.


"The car was very competitive with good top speed down the straight. The pit stops also went very well, so I want to thank the team who did a great job right from the start of the weekend."


Michael Schumacher said that he had no idea Vitaly Petrov was going to hit him and had no way of avoiding the accident which resulted in the pair's retirement and provoked a safety car on the lap 16.


The German was taken out of the race by the Renault driver when Petrov tried to pass him at Turn 3, but instead collected the Mercedes and terminally damaging both cars.


The Russian was later given a five-place grid penalty for his part in the accident.


"I didn't see Vitaly coming," said Schumacher. "I was just suddenly spun into a direction I had not intended to go, and then I saw my rear wing hanging off. It was unfortunate but these things happen when you fight hard - that's racing."


"Another unfortunate end to a race which could have been encouraging today," he added. "It's a big pity as the car was again very good in race trim and I had already gained some positions.


"It would have been interesting to see what was possible, and I think we could certainly have taken some points."


Team-mate Nico Rosberg said a flat spot on his left-front tyre during his second stint in the Korean Grand Prix which was the cause of him fading out of contention for fourth position in the middle of the race.


Rosberg had started the race strongly, and battled with Jenson Button and the two Ferraris for fourth early on. But pushed too hard after pitting for prime tyres while in fifth position ahead of the Ferraris and damaged his front left and forced him into pitting earlier than planned, which then left him powerless to keep up with the group he was racing with later on.


"I had good speed at the start of the race today but after we changed to the prime tyres, it became more difficult as the degradation was too strong," he said. "I had some nice battles against Jenson and the Ferraris, and was pushing hard to defend my position against Felipe and Fernando in the middle stint. During this, I flat-spotted my front tyres so I had to pit earlier than expected which made my last stint on the primes very long.


"I didn't have enough grip by the end and so I just wasn't able to defend the position against Jaime. A difficult race for me today but I'm still happy to score some points."


Paul di Resta said his Force India team should have opted for a more aggressive tyre strategy for the Korean Grand Prix, although the Scot believes it would have been unlikely to get a better result anyway.


Di Resta finished in tenth position, having started the race with the soft tyres, something he reckons it was a mistake in the end.


Nonetheless, the Force India driver was happy to get a point, admitting the Toro Rossos were too strong today.


"It's good to come away with a point, but ultimately we didn't have the performance to match Toro Rosso today," he said. "It looked like we might be able to hold off Buemi in the final laps to stay ninth, but we came up six or seven laps too short with the tyres and I couldn't hold him back.


"In terms of tyres, we probably should have been a bit more aggressive with the strategy and used my new super softs at the start of the race, rather than the used set, but I'm not sure it would have changed where we finished. Still, every point counts come the end of the year and we've managed to gain a point on Sauber, which is important."


Team-mate Adrian Sutil also conceded the Toro Rossos were too quick today, after finishing in 11th position.


"It was not the easiest race today and I'm disappointed that I missed out on points," Sutil said. "The start of the race was okay, but Schumacher and Alguersuari came by me quite early on.


"I think our strategy was good and I made my first stop when the safety car came out, but our main competitor today was Toro Rosso and we just didn't have the pace to beat them.


"It's clear that we have to fight really hard in the final three races because the race pace of our close competitors is strong and we will need to score points to hold on to our sixth position."


Vitaly Petrov has been handed a five-place grid penalty, plus a reprimand, for his part in a collision with Michael Schumacher in the Korean Grand Prix.


The Renault driver was in a slipstream battle with Fernando Alonso down the long straight into Turn 3 following the first round of pitstops on lap 16, which resulted in the pair arriving the corner too fast.


While Alonso was able to take avoiding action to steer around slow cars ahead of them, Petrov had nowhere to go and slid into the back of Schumacher - putting both cars out of the grand prix.


Petrov was called to see the stewards after the race and, following an investigation, it was decided that he would be handed a five-place grid penalty for the Indian GP as well as a reprimand.


AUTOSPORT revealed earlier in the weekend that from this weekend's race in Korea, stewards would reserve the right to add a reprimand on top of penalties under the totting up system – so serial offenders run the risk of facing further sanctions.


The HRT team has been fined 5,000 Euros for the unsafe release of Daniel Ricciardo during the Korean Grand Prix.


The incident, in which the Australian driver was released from a pitstops into the path of a rival car, was investigated after the race and the stewards decided to fine the Spanish squad.


Ricciardo finished in 19th position, one place behind Virgin's Timo Glock.


Fernando Alonso says he is refusing to give up on wining one of the remaining races of the year despite a disappointing result in Korea.


The Ferrari driver, who had been fighting for victory last weekend in Japan, had to settle for fifth position after being unable to match the performance of the leading cars.


Alonso said Ferrari must try to raise its game in qualifying in order to have a better chance in the races, and claimed he is still seeking another win in the three remaining grands prix.


"All in all, it was an interesting race, with plenty of action," said Alonso, who is 10 points behind second place in the standings.


"At the start, I was struggling a bit to match the pace of the leaders, because, after just a few laps, the super softs were already producing a lot of understeer. On top of that, being in traffic all the time compromised still further the tyre performance, because there was less aerodynamic downforce.


"When we switched to the softs, the situation improved significantly and, with a clear track, I was able to push as hard as I could, but by then it was difficult to reach the small group that was fighting for the podium: hence what I said on the radio, having given my all for twenty laps, but there was no way I could do more with just two laps to go.


"We must try and improve our Saturday performance, but we will not give up trying to secure a win in the remaining races of this season. Furthermore, we will continue to work towards next year, trying new things and maybe, taking a few risks with our strategy."


Team-mate Felipe Massa finished in sixth position, the Brazilian claiming he was robbed of a better position because of some problems during the race.


"I'm not pleased because small problems prevented me from getting a better result," Massa said. "Today, our performance level was better than it had been in qualifying, which has been a constant factor this year. Now we are off to the Indian Grand Prix, a new venue for Formula 1.


"I don't know the country and I am very curious to see what it's like, because I think it has a lot in common with Brazil, given that both are going through a period of strong growth."


Jenson Button believes that a better first lap in the Korean Grand Prix would not have made any difference to his result after finishing a distant fourth in Sunday's race.


The McLaren man could not recapture the blistering form that helped him to victory in Japan seven days earlier as he struggled with significant understeer from the beginning of the race.


And while he lost several places after running wide on the exit of Turn 4, on the opening lap, he admitted that it was that understeer that made it impossible for him to catch the leaders later in the race.


"My biggest problem was that I didn't have any front grip," he said afterwards. "We were putting a lot of 'front-end' in the car throughout the race by adjusting the front wing during the pitstops, but still I really struggled in the last sector.


"I just couldn't get close enough to the cars in front to use the DRS, and when you are out of the DRS zone it's really tricky because the car in front, if he is using DRS, is gaining half a second on you. So to make that time up around the rest of the lap to try and get at the DRS is pretty tricky.


"Towards the end of the stints the pace was okay but I just couldn't get close enough in the last sector to use the DRS," he added. "I think I used it once in the whole race, so not perfect, but if this is a bad day, it's not so bad."


Button admitted afterwards that he had not seen Felipe Massa coming on the opening lap as he was caught out by the Ferrari driver at Turn 3, which resulted in the Briton dropping to eighth after starting third on the grid.


"The start was alright," he said. "I thought Mark [Webber] was behind me down into Turn 3, I don't know where Massa was, and I braked where I felt it was correct to brake, turned in and there was a car there - I couldn't see him at all before I actually turned in.


"Then I was stuck on the outside and lost a lot of places. But I don't think not having a bad start would have changed my race, I just wasn't quick enough today." 


McLaren boss Martin Whitmarsh has revealed that Lewis Hamilton lost about 10 points of downforce early in the Korean Grand Prix because of an unidentified problem.


The British driver has started from pole position but was overtaken early on by Red Bull rival Sebastian Vettel, who went on to open a gap that allowed him to enjoy a quiet race from the front.


Vettel won the event by 12 seconds over Hamilton, who had to do his best to keep Mark Webber at bay to maintain second place.


Whitmarsh, whose team had looked as favourite for victory since Friday, said Hamilton was hit by a loss of downforce that cost him valuable time during the race.


"We had a reasonable launch, we had a shocking first lap and after that we appear to have lost some front downforce," explained Whitmarsh. "Whether that is damage or debris or something else caught in the front wing, so Lewis lost about 10 points of downforce, which meant it was a bit of a handful.


"In those circumstances we were not fast enough today but the stand out drive has to be Lewis because I think who would have said with 30 laps to go he had a car behind him that was at that point of the race quicker, he had a powerful DRS and Lewis should take a lot of satisfaction from this weekend.


"To take pole was good and given the circumstances in the race, that was a truly fantastic race from him. So congratulations to Red Bull but Lewis did an outstanding job and made what was a fairly gripping race for us, he will not be satisfied by not being first but professionally he should be satisfied with the job he did this weekend."


Whitmarsh said Hamilton's team-mate Jenson Button, who dropped from third to eighth on the opening lap, was also having a similar issue.


The team boss described the first lap as "shocking" and said it is something the British squad will have to analyse.


"During the race we are concentrating, but during the first stint we could see a loss and when I asked what it is, quantify, it - I was told 10 points," he added.


"I don't know whether there was damage, whether we have got some rubber in the slot of whatever, but in fairness Jenson was losing front downforce as well so it is something.


"We had a shocking first lap and we need to understand that – maybe there is something we are doing wrong on the first lap but that is not the first time we have had a shocking first lap, to come around second and eighth after the first lap is not quite what we had in mind."


Post-race press conference:

[spoiler]TV UNILATERALS


Q. Sebastian, a 10th win of the season and any thoughts that after last week's celebrations you'd start taking things easy now quickly dispersed?


Sebastian VETTEL: Well, I think it is good to see that the whole team keeps on pushing. In terms of preparation it wasn't ideal, as I think most of us were a bit tipsy after the last race after the Sunday night. But we clearly deserved that. Now to come here and after a tough Friday and tough Saturday morning to come back in qualifying and then in the race, the car was fantastic. It was so much fun to drive. The car was getting quicker and quicker. When the safety car came I didn't really need that to be honest. Lewis came closer again and I was struggling a little bit with the tyres but then the car seemed to stabilise and come back and I was able to open a gap just before we had the second pit-stop and then to the end it was just fantastic. On the prime I could push when I had to and got a little bit of a gap as those guys were fighting. But it is fantastic. After last weekend the Drivers' Championship, this weekend the Constructors' Championship for the team is fantastic. Also I want to say, especially and in particular at this place, a lot of thanks to Renault. They have been pushing so hard. I think we showed as a team a lot of morale after last year when we had the engine failure here to come back and still win the championship last year. Faultless from the Renault side. The engine is working fantastically well. We are very competitive on those circuits with long straights like Monza or here again so all in all the package is fantastic. The guys are enjoying it and I think we do as well so thank you very much and I am very, very happy today.


Q. Lewis, it was fun for Sebastian but how much fun was it for you and how much did you spend looking ahead given all the pressure that was coming your way from behind?


Lewis HAMILTON: It was okay, wasn't too bad. Mark drove really well throughout the race and congratulations to Sebastian. They were massively quick throughout the weekend and particularly in the race it was impossible to really be able to catch Sebastian and overtake. Then later on in the race just really struggled. I had pretty much full lock on everywhere and was struggling with a lot of understeer but, nonetheless, it is a good weekend for me compared to what I have had in the past so I am happy.


Q. Mark, your thoughts on the battle with Lewis, which seemed to go on and on and on and somehow you couldn't quite find a place to get ahead and stay ahead.


Mark WEBBER: Yeah, well, it is the team's day today. The Constructors' is a massive thing, back-to-back. Very, very impressive from the guys and the girls. As Seb touched on, Renault as well. Reliability is faultless this year from the car, 100 per cent reliability from everyone there, with the exception of my non-finish in Monza, so it has been a phenomenal year. Disappointed not to get second today. We did a good job in the first stop and then got ourselves in good position. Obviously, the safety car was not a big deal for everyone I don't think. It obviously just brought everyone back together. But I think at the second stop we did the worst thing. We didn't stop before or stop after [Hamilton], we stopped on the same lap. That was disappointing as clearly we had some good pace to pull away from Lewis, but in the end it was a good battle all the way through. I had a good battle on the first lap as well. That's the way it was today so look forward to the next one.


Q. Sebastian, given what Mark was just staying, how difficult was it to get strategy right today? You gambled and saved a set of the harder tyres in qualifying, but then decided not to use all your harder tyres in the race.


SV: Yeah, we ended up stopping way less than we thought. The first couple of laps the car felt good and the balance was alright. I think for all the cars it was a little bit the same thing. We expected much more degradation, but it didn't come, and then eventually it came but much later, so you delayed the first stop, the second stop and by the time you found out you realise that you don't have to stop three times within 10 laps. It was a very good race from that side. Tyres and tyre management wasn't easy. I think we were on top of it for most of the race, especially towards the end of the stints on the soft tyre I was able to gain on Lewis. In the beginning he put quite a lot of pressure and I always wanted to stay clear of the DRS. We had quite some headwind down the long straight from turn two to turn three, where the DRS zone is as well, and I knew at the moment he would start to come into the DRS he would be very close. I was pushing hard which the tyres didn't thank me in the second stint. But, fortunately, they came back and I was able to pull away at the end which was crucial to then to have a gap for the final stint and control the gap from there.


Q. Lewis, you mention a good weekend overall for yourself. The championship might not be there for you now, but how much is the rest of the season about restoring your belief in yourself that you can go out and fight for wins on a regular basis?


LH: Well I would never question my belief in myself, so that's not really something that needs doing. I have got the trust and the confidence from the team so it is really just about trying to stay out of trouble, stay out of the stewards' office and just keep my head down and hope for better results.


Q. Mark, back on the podium once again. What are your aims, your goals, for the rest of the season?


MW: Well, I think pulling off clean, perfect weekends. That's what we have got to try and achieve. Lot of positives again for me today. We know how sensitive it is around the stops and to get everything right to win. Seb had a good first lap. Looks like he got past Lewis straight away. My first lap was also pretty good, up to third, so things like that, keep boxing. Overall, a lot of positives for me. The initial reaction is a bit of disappointment, but that's normal as a competitor and I am sure I will be happy tomorrow when I wake up and look forward to the next event.


PRESS CONFERENCE


Q. Sebastian, how difficult was the strategy today as you mentioned degradation later in the race. How often does that happen?


SV: Well I think it was a little bit go out and find out. Difficult to know what to expect as we had zero experience on Friday. Saturday morning looked pretty confident. We were then trying something different in qualifying, why not, which we didn't really use today. As it turned out the options were fine for the first two stints and carried us a long way through the race. Much more than I think we all expected so we ended up fitting options again and then going for the prime and going to the end. Going into the weekend I think we were thinking about a lot of stops, but it turned out to not really be the case. Tyres were fine and simply lasted longer than expected and then you end up pitting less.


Q. Tell us about the start and the first lap?


SV: My start was not perfect. I think Lewis got away off the line a little bit better than I did. I had a very good launch for the formation lap, but it doesn't really help. Race start was about the same, but I think, as I said, lost out a little bit to the McLarens. Then, as I touched on before the race, a very long straight after that. A big headwind and I was able to close the gap to Lewis and focused then on the straight from turn three or four. Very late decided for the gap. Lewis was very fair going into turn four. I was right on the edge, nearly went straight. It was crucial and then I was a little bit afraid as I had really pushed hard. I knew that with the headwinds down the straight from the second to the third corner it would be very easy for the cars behind to close the gap as I would be the first one facing the wind. Once I got away in the first stint I think I was able to pull away a little bit more every lap. In the second stint I struggled a bit in the beginning and Lewis caught up and it got reasonably close. I was always afraid for him running into the DRS or being close enough to open his rear wing. I didn't want that. Fortunately then, after a little bit of a wobble and the tyres starting to go off, the car seemed to stabilise and I was able to get quicker again and pull away just before we came in for the second stop.


Q. You said recently that you always wanted to go for fastest lap right at the end of the race; now you're allowed to, are you?


SV: I think they will kill me now. On the radio, they said 'you didn't get the fastest lap' which obviously isn't true, and then they came on the radio and said 'idiot, you got it.' It's really stupid. I think in other races, it doesn't really make sense but on the last lap I had a good feeling and yeah, I was pushing a bit harder to get the fastest lap. It's a small thing; it's probably more to do with the ego because there are no points so it's really stupid from my side but now I've got one, I'm happy.


Q. Lewis, how did you feel about the start, how did you feel that first lap went?


LH: Well, it wasn't too good for me. The start was good, lost a position to Sebastian and that was really the end of the opportunity of winning. It was probably my fault, I left a bit of a gap but I'd already moved once and I thought that moving again, I would probably be in trouble. I left a gap and it was impossible really to catch him again, to get close enough to overtake him.


Q. As Sebastian said, after the safety car, you really did seem able to hold on to him. That seemed to be your best opportunity.


LH: Yeah, but again, when it got to the last sector, he just had... he was probably flat through the last corner and I was having a big lift, struggling with a lot of front end, and it got worse and worse through the race, so eventually I just started losing him.


Q. How hard was Mark pushing, because he did get past you once?


LH: Mark was pushing… we were both pushing massively quick, as hard as we could. For some reason the car got worse and worse, in terms of… on the front end of the car. The rear of the car was fine but I was having more and more lock throughout the race and I had all the front wing I could possibly have on the car, which is unusual. Nonetheless, we managed to stay ahead of him, but it was a serious battle.


Q. We could imagine the choice Australian words of frustration in your car Mark…


MW: Well, first of all, it's the team's day today, a great job from them, the Constructors, second year in a row, it's a sensational effort from everyone: in Milton Keynes, Viry, Fuschl, everyone at Red Bull in Austria. My race was good, but we know how key it is to get everything right to get released and get the race pace that you really have. In the end, we did a good job. I think that the McLaren was very strong off the corners, it had very good bottom end and midrange and this made it a little bit more difficult to pull the move off. In the end, I tried to mix it up a little bit by passing him into turn one and then tried to get a bit more of a tow on the straight and then create some more pressure later in the lap. But in the end, I think the second… or the last pit stop was really what snookered us, I suppose. I was informing the team that my tyres were still good, but we still pitted. Yeah, that was a bit disappointing to do the same thing as Lewis because we should have done something different. In the end, I think it was a good battle for both of us, that's what Formula One racing should be about, it was on the edge, and… well, it wasn't on the edge really but it was just a good race and we pushed each other hard so that was it.


Q. And a good start when you got Jenson as well?


MW: Yeah, very good start. When did I get him? Not off the line, actually. Yeah, I got him in turn… Felipe tried a pretty big move into turn three on the first lap. He got me and JB (Jenson Button) and then out of there I was under pressure from Fernando into turn four and I managed to get JB and Felipe in the tight section. Very rewarding, that's an important part of the race so it went well for me.


QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR


Q. (Sarah Holt - BBC Sport) Hello. Sebastian, you seemed really happy to get your tenth victory when you came on the radio at the end of the race. Is that something that was particularly important to you; you sounded even more excited than last weekend. Are you trying to match a record?


SV: Not really, but I was very happy with how the race went today. I had the feeling that we got everything out of the car. You know last week was a very, very special day but it took some time to really sink in and we finished third. I had the feeling that it was very close and maybe we could have done a little bit better. It doesn't meant that I'm not satisfied with third place; obviously I was extremely happy to win the Championship but if you know that your race wasn't the best from your side and there was a little bit left at the end there, then of course it's difficult, as I said after the race, to switch into a different mode, whereas here, I think we got everything out today, it was a brilliant race from start to finish. We were very clever with the tyres, able to read the tyres and pull the gaps at the end of the stints when it was important, where we were struggling in particular last week, so in that regard we came back much stronger and had a much better race and it was just fantastic. It was a great day for the team, as Mark touched on, securing the Constructors'. I knew that if we finished on equal points or a little bit ahead of McLaren as a team today we could secure the Constructors' and ten is a nice number so yeah, it was a nice day.


Q. (Frederic Ferret – L'Equipe) Mark and Sebastian, everybody talks about the title for Drivers. Can you explain to us what the Constructors' title means, that no one speaks about outside the paddock? How is it important for a driver?


SV: You need to understand that we have so many people off the track, especially in Milton Keynes, in the factory, working day-in, day-out, every day of the week, every month of the year, really trying to make or to build two very competitive race cars. It's not just one person or one area where things need to come together, it's everything. Even the staff of the kitchen matters and everything needs to come together. Obviously for us, the drivers, the most important championship is the Drivers' championship but for the team, it's the other way round, it's the Constructors', to know where they match with the other teams and it's very good to see that we had another very strong year after the strong season last year. As Mark touched on, to win back-to-back is outstanding and the guys are surely very happy and I think there will be a little bit of a bonus for them, so they will be happy.


Q. (Dan Knutson – National Speedsport News) Lewis, from the outside, you've seemed a bit downcast this weekend to us who have been watching you. You didn't win but you had a very solid result. Do you leave, maybe, feeling a bit happier than when you came here?


LH: Not really. I think I came here in a decent mood, a good weekend, but I didn't win, I went backwards so I wouldn't say that I'm happy about that. But nonetheless, I was able to keep the car on the track and not get into trouble. I didn't have any penalties, so that's a positive on one side.


Q. (Michael Schmidt – Auto, Motor und Sport) Mark, you mentioned that your set of tyres was still good. Could you have taken the risk to do a one-stop race?


MW: I don't know if that was possible but yeah, earlier in the stint we spoke about going longer but I just stayed with Lewis to keep using the DRS and I was expecting to go quite a bit longer but we didn't get to do it in the end. I felt much more comfortable on the prime than in the first stint. I had extremely poor balance but I was very comfortable in the car on the harder tyre but I couldn't do much with it.


Q. (Joris Fioriti – Agence France Presse) Lewis, you say happy, which I can't really see, looking at you. Is the fact that you were not able to catch the Red Bull and were thinking of victory; could that explain that you are a little bit down?


LH: I'm not, I'm fine. I've got a flight to catch so I would much rather be on that flight than sitting here. I just don't want to miss the flight. I think me and Mark have the same flight together. Oh, I don't know what else you want me to say. I'm not ecstatic, I didn't win but I finished second and that's a strong finish, compared to where I finished in the last five or six races, whatever. I am positive, but there's no need to celebrate, there's nothing to celebrate.


Q. (Julien Febreau – L'Equipe) Could you talk a bit more about your fight, Mark? What did you think about Lewis's attitude during your fight, and the same question for Lewis about Mark?


MW: It was absolutely fine on track. Lewis knew where his car was strong, he knew where my car was strong. We had a fight before the pit stop, we had a fight after the pit stop. Obviously I think the fight after the pit stop was haymakers, full-on into each other. It was a good battle. So I think overall I'm satisfied how the battle turned out. It was nothing extreme, just a good car race.


LH: Yeah, Mark drove fantastically well. He was very, very fair and as he said, the only way I could stay ahead of him was just using the strength of my… the power that we had at the exit of turn one and two. Otherwise, he was massively quick throughout the rest of the circuit and it was very, very fortunate that I was able to keep him behind me, but it was a long, long battle and to be honest, I wasn't very sure whether I would be able to keep him behind that whole time, especially when they said you have 15 laps and then eight laps and still (seemed) forever. But nonetheless, it was a good fight. [/spoiler]

[Lineker]

Lewis Hamilton should be immensely proud of his performance in the Korean Grand Prix, claims his team boss Martin Whitmarsh.

After another tough weekend for Hamilton, whose off-track demeanour prompted speculation about his mindset, the Briton delivered a great drive in the race to hold off a determined Mark Webber to claim second place behind Sebastian Vettel.

And although there was again little emotion from Hamilton after the race, Whitmarsh reckons that inside his driver will be satisfied with what he was able to produce.

"He wanted desperately to win," said Whitmarsh. "He has had a lot of speculation about him and his private life which he doesn't want, and doesn't welcome I am sure. There is some pressure of expectation on him.

"I think he actually is a sensible, rational individual, so he will look at what he achieved today and it was truly fantastic. I don't know how many people here, 30 laps to go, thought he was going to hold on to second place? Behind him there was a car with a determined driver like Mark, which was clearly quicker at that point, with a DRS that he didn’t have. So to be able to defend was impressive.

"That was an absolutely stonking drive and I think he should be, and I am sure he will be, proud. That was a very, very satisfying drive for him."

Hamilton's mood through the Korean GP has prompted speculation that issues in his private life could be affecting him, but Whitmarsh says that in terms of the job the former world champion is producing at the track there is no question that he is delivering 100 per cent.

"I think professionally he is happy," he said. "I think he is very focused. When you are being told to smile all the time you tend to not to want to respond to that. I think you have got to deal with it.

"If I keep telling you, 'why aren't you smiling a bit more, you are lucky to be here so get on with it?' You would be wondering whether to do so or not.

"The fact is, he has done a stunning job here, and that is first and foremost what I want and what the fans want.

"I think the fans, and hopefully you guys, will recognise that and he will as well."

Team principals must decide for themselves if the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) has a future, reckons its chairman Martin Whitmarsh, amid questions about its long-term viability.

On the back of tensions about the implementation of the Resource Restriction Agreement (RRA), Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali warned on Sunday that FOTA could collapse if problems are not resolved at a meeting scheduled to take place at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

With Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner also warning that FOTA is at a crossroads, the get together at the penultimate race of the season appears to be now key to the organisation going forward.

But Whitmarsh, who has been chairman of FOTA for the past two years, says he is not worried of its collapsing due to the RRA controversy.

"No I am not," he said, when asked by AUTOSPORT if he was concerned about FOTA's future. "I think FOTA is an association that has private meetings and I don't think I have often, I hope never, spoken about what goes on in the meetings. That would be the wrong thing to do.

"We are not a PR machine, we are there to make some progress. FOTA should be very proud of what has been achieved so far. It can only achieve what its membership wants it to achieve and I think we have still got work to do to play a strong and contributing part to this sport, but we will see going forward what we do."

When asked about the stance of Horner, who also said recently in an interview that he does not spend much time thinking about FOTA, Whitmarsh said: "He probably doesn't. I don't think any of us want to spend too much time, I think we all want to go racing.

"We have a business to run and I think we have a range of vulnerable teams. Historically the winning teams and the big teams haven't cared two jots about the small teams.

"This is McLaren's 700th grand prix, and 107 grand prix teams have failed since we have been in motor racing. One of the reasons why I subscribe a little bit of time to FOTA is that we have an obligation to try and minimise [this situation] - we cannot afford to spit teams out at the rate we have over the past few years, or over the history of the sport.

"We have an obligation to try and make those teams survive. There are teams here that would openly concede that they would not be here without FOTA. That in itself is a positive, regardless of anything else we want to claim or point to."

He added: "It has never achieved as much as I would have liked, just as my car is never as quick as I would like it to be, and just as I am never as rich as I would want to be, but that is life. But I am proud of what it has achieved. And we can do more if all the teams want to and want to cooperate.

"We are an association that generally required unanimity to go forward on lots of these strategic issues and we are a sport full of egos, personalities, competitiveness and paranoia, but so far what has been achieved is fantastic.

"We have genuinely bought costs down for the big teams, we have arrested a number of things - things like DRS came out of FOTA, and things like Fans' Forums, but you can never do enough. F1 doesn't do enough for the fans, it doesn't do enough to promote itself, but FOTA has contributed.

"There are people around who don't want FOTA to be here I am sure, and ultimately the people that count are the teams. So if the teams reach a decision that, for the time being, we don't need it, then great. We will go and do something different."

Red Bull Racing expects a much stronger challenge from its rivals next year, with team principal Christian Horner thinking its back-to-back title success will have 'upset' the opposition.

The Milton Keynes-based outfit delivered its second successive title double at the Korean Grand Prix, with its clinching of the constructors' crown coming just one week after Sebastian Vettel won the drivers' championship.

And, as the team now switches its focus to 2012, Horner says his team does not expect it will be able to repeat the level of dominance that it produced this year.

"It never gets easier that is for sure, it would be foolish to underestimate the likes of Ferrari," said Horner, when asked by AUTOSPORT about the challenge his team will face gunning for a third consecutive title in 2012.

"They are a phenomenal team with tremendous pedigree, as are the likes of McLaren, the likes of Mercedes-Benz.

"But we are not foolish enough or arrogant enough to think that this kind of performance is normal. It is abnormal, and it takes a super human effort to try and achieve.

"For sure our competitors are going to be pushing hard over the winter. To do it [win the title] once they can probably tolerate, to do it twice probably upsets a little. But for sure we have got continuity in all areas and that is very important."

Red Bull Racing's technical chief Adrian Newey elected to skip the Korean Grand Prix so he could return to the factory to ramp up efforts on next year's car

And Horner says that the outfit must make the most of the limited track running opportunities it has before RB8 hits the track next February.

"The focus has to start moving towards next year," he said. "We have less than four months to design and build a completely new car, which is why Adrian elected not to attend this race. He is busy back in the UK focused on RB8.

"The remaining races are the only track time other than a young driver test between now and when the new car is born, so we will look to learn everything we can out of the track with the time we have available and that means pushing right up until the chequered flag in Brazil."

Horner also paid tribute to the efforts of his staff this year in delivering a second world title in a manner that was even better than its first.

"It is very special because when you do it for the first time, there is all the emotion of having achieved it and having done it for the first time.

"To go into the season as the reigning world champion and constructor there is that expectation and pressure to retain it, and what I am especially pleased with is the way the team has dealt with that pressure.

"The team has improved in all areas and we are a stronger unit that we were 12 months ago, and I think that if you look at the level of consistency we had, operationally, strategically, on the development side as well, I think the whole team has worked in total harmony. And that enables you to achieve the kind of results we have here."

Although both titles are won, Horner said that there was still some business to finish this year - which would be helping Mark Webber finish runner-up in the drivers' standings.

"The priority now is to get Mark into second in the championship," he said. "Effectively it is like three FA Cup finals. I think they will be very exciting races. We can see that both McLaren and Ferrari have been competitive here and it will be tight in India, Abu Dhabi and Brazil. It is going to be some exciting racing. In Korea certainly the race for second was a fantastic race."

Fernando Alonso thinks Ferrari must improve its qualifying performances in the remaining races of the season if it is going to win another race.

The Spaniard once again showed strong long-run pace in the Korean Grand Prix, but his chances of fighting for the podium were dented by a lowly grid slot and a poor opening stint.

Speaking after the race, Alonso believed that Ferrari still had work to do to extract more speed out of its car over a single lap on Saturdays.

"We had the pace at the end of the race and, it is true, with the soft tyres we were quite quick. But in the beginning I was nearly at the maximum as well, so I don't think that with free air I could do much better than what I was doing.

"This is a consequence of a bad qualifying. It is something that we normally experience on Sundays - a better pace than Saturdays but always because the qualifying performance is not too good we find ourselves arriving to the leading group at the end of the race, a little bit too late.

"We need to improve pure performance on Saturday, try to start a bit further up and then on Sunday, we know for whatever reason, our pace is similar to them. We arrive to the chequered flag once more to the group, in two seconds four or five cars, so it confirms again that on Saturday we are struggling a little bit, and on Sunday things improve a bit for us. We try to improve."

Alonso also admitted to having been lucky in his incident with Vitaly Petrov early in the race, when they arrived side-by-side at Turn 3 too quick for the corner.

"We were coming out of the pits, with a group of cars coming, and it was quite difficult this pit exit.

"We went to the DRS detection point quite close all together, Vitaly and me, and we had DRS available. He took the slipstream on me and overtook me. I took the slipstream of him and, with the double slipstream, we arrived 30 km/h quicker than everybody else!

"We braked too late both of us. I had the luck to be on the run off area and he did not have the luck and found Michael [schumacher]. One of the cars nearly hit me but I saw in the last moment and avoided the accident, so it was okay."

When asked about his radio comment in the closing stages of the race where he said, 'I give up', Alonso said: "I did 20 laps like qualifying laps to catch the group of cars in front of me.

"Two laps from the end I had a moment in the last corner, and I nearly crashed into the wall. I asked the team how many laps were left, and they told me two laps. I said I cannot do it guys, it was enough for today."

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Korean Grand Prix organisers are seeking the help of Bernie Ecclestone to allow them to renegotiate their race contract terms in a bid to keep the event on the calendar.

Amid question marks about the future of the Yeongam GP, race promoter Won-Hwa Park has admitted that the event faces financial difficulties because of the huge hosting fee that had been agreed before he arrived in his current role.

With a fresh mandate from the South Jeolla provincial government to try and reduce costs, Mr. Park has said that the key factor going forwards is in trying to bring down the outgoings - which includes the race hosting fee.

According to local media, the cost for the race this year stands at £52 million - which includes a £35 million fee for hosting and television rights. The current deal with Formula One Management, which runs until 2016, includes a 10 per cent escalator for hosting rights over its duration.

With income from tickets estimated to be around £16 million, the venue is currently loss making unless financial support can be got from the national government.

Despite widespread speculation last weekend that the financial situation could mean Korea elects to drop its event off the calendar as early as next year, Park is determined to do what he can to keep the race going.

In an exclusive interview with AUTOSPORT explaining the future of the Korean GP, Park said: "We are trying hard, but we need the co-operation of Mr. Bernie Ecclestone. We certainly want to continue with this event because it is a big event, even though we have losses.

"We want to give this region momentum by holding this event to help boost its economy and to boost the image, and to change our farming background in this region."

When asked what the situation would be if Ecclestone was unwilling to change the terms of the original deal, Park said: "It is too early for me to say at the moment."

He added: "He knows perfectly well our current situation, and I hope he is more co-operative."

Speaking about the focus of his efforts since he took over, Park said: "My main focus has been on reducing the costs as much as possible.

"This is the core issue. Some local people in this region are against the race because of a big financial loss in hosting the race and organising this event.

"Those citizens, who have a background as farmers and are normally poor, want to have the funds distributed for other purposes rather than be used for this so-far unpopular event.

"At the same time, I must increase the awareness of motor sport so that people and citizens understand what we are doing. This would be an indirect way to convince the national government. Motor racing is not known here as much as it is in other developed countries."

Karun Chandhok is still hoping to be given the dream chance to race on home soil for Team Lotus at the Indian Grand Prix, as he awaits a final decision from his bosses.

With excitement building ahead of the inaugural event in Delhi, Chandhok is keeping his fingers crossed that team principal Tony Fernandes will allow him to delight his home crowd and compete in the race.

"I've just got to India and it's the question on top of many people's minds here especially in the media - my phone is just going crazy," Chandhok told AUTOSPORT.

"I wish I had something new to say to the people here but unfortunately it's up to Tony and the team. Tony has said many times recently how personally he would love for me to do the race.

"In the last three Friday sessions I felt a lot more comfortable and confident in the car. It showed as the pace was much better, especially considering Suzuka and Korea were two new tracks for me."

Chandhok hopes that many of his fans who have bought tickets to the event to see him in action are not left disappointed if Team Lotus elects to stick with Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli.

"It's no secret that I would love to do the Indian race - to be on the grid for the first grand prix at home will be a huge honour," he said. "I know a lot of people have bought tickets and the Indian media seem excited about the prospect, but it's not up to me."

Ferrari is happy to see Team Lotus and Renault change names next year, but has made it clear it wants a framework laid out to ensure that such identity swaps do not become regular.

A meeting of the Formula 1 Commission in Geneva on November 3 will vote on whether or not Team Lotus can become Caterham, and Renault can switch to Lotus, for 2012.

Ahead of that meeting, AUTOSPORT recently revealed that Ferrari, Sauber and HRT have asked for clarification about the name change situation going forward, to prevent teams regularly altering their monikers.

The name change situation was discussed in a meeting of the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) in Korea last weekend, and Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali confirmed that his outfit told its rivals it would not stand in the way of the name changes this time.

"We don't have an issue on that," said Domenicali. "But we want to clarify the fact that for the future we need to put certain rules in place in order to make sure that this is not becoming every two weeks a trade off position that some teams can use.

"We need to make sure that there is something that is relevant for the promoter. On one side, we think that for the benefit, to have two Lotuses can cause confusion, but we need to establish the rules to say, yes we can do it, or sorry that is not possible."

Rubens Barrichello thinks it is vital that Williams gets an understanding of why this year's car did not perform if it is to ensure that its 2012 challenger is a big step forward.

With Williams enduring its worst ever season in F1, Barrichello thinks the target for the remainder of the campaign is not in improving the current car but in getting to grips on what went wrong last winter.

"The car was born bad and there is no way of turning that back," said Barrichello.

"There are ways of massaging and improving it - but the most important thing is not to improve this car, it is to understand what went wrong and to make the next one better. Otherwise, the next one will be born the same way. It needs addressing.

"There are two or three causes of the problem, and that is what makes it an unknown situation. With a different engine and a different guy building it, the car will have a different characteristic anyway. But if they solve the problems of this year in full, the chances of building a much better car next year are greater."

When asked if one of the biggest problems this year has been the inconsistency of the downforce, Barrichello said: "It is more than that. We have been having problems with the quality of parts, because one day the car could be okay, and the other car with the same wing will not perform in the same way. So we need to address that as well."

Barrichello is encouraged that the arrival of new chief operations engineer Mark Gillan is helping matters - and think communication between factory and track is being improved.

"The whole situation of Mark is for the communication to be fully addressed back to the factory," he explained.

"F1 is such a difficult business. You could say that I had a good car, but I am in Japan, it gets to England and it is like, 'Rubens sort of said he had a good car' but the phrase could get longer or shorter. It is never straight to the point. And that is the thing that is so difficult to address.

"So to have Mark as a brand new guy, actually addressing the problems to Jason [somerville] and Mike [Coughlan], back at the factory, that is a good thing."

Paul di Resta thinks it is wrong that teams like Force India are being criticised for electing not to run in Q3 sometimes because of tactical reasons.

Due to the way the tyre regulations are at the moment, it is sometimes advantageous for outfits that get through to Q3 to not actually set a time - because it ensures they have fresher tyres for the race, as well as being free to choose which compound they start on.

Big teams like Ferrari, as well as tyre manufacturer Pirelli, have been critical of such tactics – because they believe it is robbing fans of a better spectacle on Saturday afternoons.

However, di Resta has jumped to the defence of teams that do it – and thinks ultimately too much has been made of the issue.

"Take the Japanese GP for example - Force India I believe did 13 laps in qualifying, and Red Bull Racing did eight and were on pole," he said when asked by AUTOSPORT for his views on the Q3 controversy.

"Now, the number of laps tells you what we need to do to get through. The quick teams do not need to use a set of soft tyres to get through Q1. To me, that is the advantage they have got, although they are obviously doing a better job with the car. So already there is a compromise you have got from the start.

"With the race strategies, the middle teams are always having to do a stop less because you cannot get yourself clear of all the traffic, whereas they [the top teams] are quick enough to clear it. They are able to do more stops, be more aggressive, and their qualifying performance is better. It is a roller ball. You cannot get yourself out of it.

"The only way to get out of it, is to find one second in performance. It means you can go ultra aggressive with cambers, and you can then always clear the traffic. But when you are right on the cusp of it, you cannot get yourself out of it."

Di Resta believes that even if even teams like Force India did run extensively in Q3, it would make little difference to the show on a Saturday.

"At the end of the day, you are not going to watch the likes of us at Force India qualifying eighth," he said. "You will see whoever it is battling for pole – whether it is Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel, Jenson Button, or Fernando Alonso.

"However, us not running puts us in a stronger position to fight with them in the race, so I don't see why there is a big thing behind it.

"There is a whole world of people working in this industry in F1. They have some specialities and they are doing the best at what they are doing, and different strategies apply to F1 – like we used to see with different fuel loads.

"Equally, when you started 11th you could have a free chance to be ultra aggressive and have a go at a quicker car than you, as the people quicker than you were compromised. They never knew who their next competitor was going to be."

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Ferrari believes that the Formula One Teams' Association (FOTA) faces a key few weeks as it prepares for a crunch meeting at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to map out its future plans.

Team principals are set to meet at the Yas Marina circuit ahead of the penultimate race of the campaign to try and iron out differences of opinion about the Resource Restriction Agreement - amid fears that some outfits are being more aggressive in its interpretation than others.

With genuine concerns that this could lead to a situation where some teams enjoy a competitive advantage by simply spending more money, Ferrari believes that the Abu Dhabi meeting must eradicate all mistrust – and lay out a way forward that everyone is happy with.

Team principal Stefano Domenicali told Ferrari's official website that 'suspicions' over the RRA need to end, if FOTA is to continue the good work it has done in helping teams get through the first wave of the world's financial crisis.

"FOTA has played an incredible role in recent years," explained Domenicali. "Its achievements meant that this sport was able to tackle the global crisis in an efficient manner.

"The impetus that came under [Luca di] Montezemolo's presidency has been carried forward with diligence and dedication by Martin Whitmarsh, who is doing a great job.

"Clearly, at this stage however, we need to understand how to move forward without leading to suspicions and polemics, elements that are always present in such a competitive environment as Formula 1."

Whitmarsh, who is chairman of FOTA, said in Korea last weekend that the future of the teams' body would rest with its members – and that only they can decide if they should continue sticking together.

Fabio Leimer will join the Sauber team for the young drivers' test in Abu Dhabi later this year, the Swiss squad has announced.

The 22-year-old will join the team's reserve driver Esteban Gutierrez for the test that will take place on 15-17 November after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

"We are pleased we can offer Fabio this opportunity," said Sauber CEO Monisha Kaltenborn. "The test opportunities for young drivers are extremely limited nowadays, and it is always exciting to see how they deal with all the complexity of a Formula 1 test."

Swiss Leimer competed with the Rapax team in the GP2 Series during the 2011 season, finishing in 14th position after one win and one podium finish.

"When I found out that I will definitely take part in the Formula 1 test I realised for the first time what this actually means," said Leimer. "Being a racing driver, of course, you always dream of Formula 1. That this dream is now coming true is almost unbelievable.

"On top of that not many Swiss drivers have ever had the chance to test for the Sauber F1 Team. For this reason it is an even more special honour for me to be able to get my first laps in an F1 car under my belt as a Swiss for the Swiss team.

"I am very much looking forward to that challenge and want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has made it possible."

Mercedes is experimenting with an innovative front wing that uses the F-duct concept to boost downforce.

The airflow entering the slot on the front of the nose is, under certain air pressure conditions, diverted through channels in the front wing assembly and then redirected out of slots in the bottom of the main plane.

This airflow is fed to the diffuser, boosting the downforce generated at the rear of the car. This has also improved the way that the Mercedes uses its rear tyres.

While the F-duct, which required the driver to cover a hole in the cockpit with his hand, arm or leg, has been outlawed, the Mercedes design is legal as it does not depend on any such direct influence.

Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner says his team will attack in the final three races of the season despite having wrapped up both titles.

The Milton Keynes-based squad secured the constructors' title last weekend in Korea, just seven days after Sebastian Vettel had clinched his second drivers' crown.

Despite that, Horner says his team wants to make sure it finishes the year on a successful note, and has also vowed to help Mark Webber secure the runner-up spot.

"We want to finish the year on a high, get Mark into second in the drivers' championship and it would be great to see him win a race," said Horner during a media event on Wednesday.

"We are going to attack the final races. They are like cup finals - we can really go for it now both titles are resolved."

He said the team will use all the lessons learned this year to try to be even stronger in 2012, but without underestimating its rivals.

"It would be very arrogant though to underestimate our rivals. Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes are huge teams with excellent pedigrees. We'll apply the lessons of this year, as we did in 2010, to next year's car.

"You can always learn in this sport, from the races you win as well as lose, and that will drive us forward. For now we will focus on the next three races and enjoy the moment."

Vettel also said the team will be trying to prove itself in the remaining three races, despite what he labelled as an extremely successful year so far.

"It has been an extremely successful year, it's incredible what we have achieved," said Vettel during the media event.

"It is the small things, like coming home and opening the door, which make you realise what happened, and that all the hours have paid off. The season is not yet over though, we have three more races to go and the chance to prove ourselves again."

The world champion praised the efforts of his team this season, insisting Red Bull is now on another level compared to a few years ago.

"I'm very happy where I am. I think we have achieved a lot together in the last three years. We were able to raise our game in more or less all areas. The whole team has become more professional, more committed and everyone is working hand in hand for success.

"It's not usual to be a part of something like that, and I don't see myself in a position to say this is what I have done. This is what they have done. We are a team and we are happy to do all we do."

Despite having won 10 races this year, the German driver said there is still room for him to improve.

"It's always a difficult question to know where to improve. I think being 24 there are a lot of areas to understand, a lot of bits inside and outside the car.

"You always need to be ready to learn, and small steps can make the difference. When I look at Korea, we were able to learn from Japan - both the team and myself. Small things, but we addressed them and did a better job. You have to be open like that, ready to learn."

And Vettel made it clear he does not care about statistics, insisting he has not set any targets to reach during his Formula 1 career.

"I put it this way - I care about the sport, I know its history and the numbers according to the drivers," he said. "I like to see from time to time your name somewhere, but I don't set myself targets about the number of wins. I'm not racing for statistics. I'm a big fan of the sport. I love Formula 1, I always did as a small kid and that hasn't changed.

"If you get beaten, my point of view is it happens. If you expect to be unbeatable, that's the day you get beaten. No matter what sport there is always someone better than you some days. That's why even more you have to seize the moment and enjoy it.

"We have been on an incredible journey, we took every race step by step. I remember after Hungary we would get a print out of the race results and championship standings after every race and the first thing I would do is rip the championship standings off and throw them in the bin.

"If you get beaten you might not like it - or you shouldn't like it - but you have to accept it. You never get beaten without a reason, and I think racing this year has been very close even if the results haven't. In the end it is not every day you have a massive advantage and win the championship with four races to go.

"Seasons like this don't happen too often, we know that and that's also why we should be extremely proud of the season."

Adrian Newey has not ruled out introducing new developments to Red Bull's RB7 chassis before the end of the season, but only if there is no risk of giving away the team's 2012 design secrets to rival teams.

Newey, whose RB6 and RB7 designs have scooped up the last two drivers' and constructors' world titles with Sebastian Vettel, insisted that all focus is now going into the new RB8 project which he said would likely be influenced by the change in blown diffuser regulations for next year.

"All our research is on next year, but if we find something that comes out of that in regards to this year's car we may choose to do so depending on whether it could give the game away," he said at the team's headquarters during its world title media event in Milton Keynes.

"There aren't huge regulation changes for next year except on the exhaust positioning, and that does have a huge knock-on effect of the car.

"We're working our way through that restriction and trying to find the best solution."

Newey added that he had derived enormous satisfaction from the success his design team's cars have generated and said that it was all the more special having been a part of the team as it grew from a midfield squad to world beaters.

"It's been so special because I joined Red Bull in its infancy, and then we grew the team with the hope of winning races and maybe championships," he said. "To prove this year that 2010 wasn't a flash in the pan was just as special.

"When I joined we had Jaguar employees, Christian [Horner] started employing people and it's really been about getting everyone to work together and gel. 2007 and 2008 we weren't quite there, we were still growing the infrastructure.

"It takes time - at Williams and McLaren my job was very much design-based, but we realised it wasn't working here. What we have achieved is fantastic. There is a fantastic atmosphere born out of passion."

Sebastian Vettel has already proved he can deal with not having the best car of the field, reckons David Coulthard.

Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn said last week that the test of Vettel's true skill will come when he does not have the fastest car in Formula 1, unlike over the past two years.

"For Sebastian, what will come now, which will be an interesting phase of his career, will be when he has not got the best car," said Brawn. "It will be interesting to see Sebastian's role, Sebastian's influence, Sebastian's position when perhaps he does not have the best car, he has to make it the best car, and has to create the best car."

Coulthard, however, believes Vettel already showed he can lead a less successful team in 2008, when he gave Toro Rosso its maiden win at the Italian Grand Prix.

"I have tremendous respect for Ross Brawn, but what Seb was able to achieve at Toro Rosso already showed he is a team leader," said Coulthard during a media event at Red Bull's factory.

"Whoever thought they would win a grand prix? But he was able to put it on pole in the wet and then win the grand prix, which was truly remarkable. He's already done it, culminating in two championships.

"What I do think is valid is how he handles the inevitable disappointment when his car isn't for whatever reason the best."

Coulthard also thinks that Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso could be a good benchmark for Vettel if he gets a competitive car.

"Alonso won two championships when Michael [schumacher] was in his prime. Since then the car has not quite been there but once it is he will be very hard to beat. All you can do, if you look at the history of the sport, you need a reference to another driver.

"Mark Webber is no slouch, he's a fantastic driver and Seb has largely dominated him this year, so that has to be acknowledged.

"I don't think we're getting carried away saying how good he could be - he's fought for the win when he didn't have to, his pass on Lewis Hamilton at Korea, that was ballsy stuff."

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Mercedes GP chief Ross Brawn fears that Formula 1's attempt to ban blown diffusers next year may not have gone far enough in closing off potential loopholes for teams to continue exploiting exhaust gases.

With technical chiefs due to discuss further the issue of exhaust exits at a meeting of the FIA's Technical Working Group this week, Brawn believes attempts to restrict outfits to vertical pipe exits may not be strict enough to prevent some exploitation of the regulations.

"I don't think it is 100 per cent sorted unfortunately, and there is another meeting of the TWG," said Brawn, when asked by AUTOSPORT about the latest situation regarding exhausts.

"I think everyone, as they get more and more into it, are trying to close off the loopholes, but there is no guarantee that somebody will not come up with some scheme. It is fairly robust, but I would not say it is 100%, and I think the difficulty now is it is reaching a stage where teams will take their opportunities rather than change the regulations.

"Teams go through a period of finding the best regulations they can with good spirit and proper intent, and then you reach a stage where those regulations are fixed with the best intent. But if an engineer comes along with a good idea we have to consider it.

"In our case it is still relatively conventional, but whether someone else will come up with something dramatic I would have to wait and see. I would not say I am confident that there will not be an innovative exhaust scheme because once we have learned something you cannot unlearn it.

"The strength and performance that comes from the exhaust, using exhaust energy, is substantial, and people now have a better understanding of what they can do with exhausts/engine mapping to extenuate the effect."

Brawn's comments about exhaust regulations come at a time of great interest in his own outfit's use of airflow at the front of the car - with Mercedes GP appearing to direct air through a hole in the nose and out through the rear of the front wing to help tidy up flow under the floor.

McLaren says there is every reason to feel excited about the forthcoming Indian Grand Prix - because, as well as the prospect of having the new event on the calendar, it believes it has a good chance of victory there too.

Formula 1 is preparing itself for its newest grand prix, with the Buddh International Circuit near Delhi set to host India's first race on October 30.

McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh says his team is heading there relishing what is on offer, and upbeat that it can fight once again with Red Bull Racing for the victory.

"I am expecting something exciting, I think we all are," said Whitmarsh about the Indian GP. "It is a venue we have not been to, it is a country we have not visited on the grand prix calendar, so it is going to be interesting.

"I think we felt quite strong in Japan, we felt quite strong in Korea, but Red Bull did a good job. Hopefully it can swing our way in India, and that is what we are trying to do."

The layout of the Buddh circuit will put a premium on both downforce and straight-line speed, something Whitmarsh reckons should put McLaren in good stead.

However, he thinks that unknown factors – such as the type of track surface – make it difficult to make too firm predictions beforehand.

"I don't know until we get there, until we see the surface and until we see what it is like," he explained. "There is no reason why we cannot be strong there, but I am sure Red Bull will be, I am sure Ferrari will be trying to beat us as well. I think that is the exciting challenge that we have looking forward to India."

As well as trying to get to grips with the new track as quickly as possible, McLaren is also likely to spend some time in Friday practice trying to seek a definitive answer on why Lewis Hamilton's car suffered a front wing downforce loss in Korea.

Hamilton's front wing lost 10 points of downforce during the Korean Grand Prix, which the team suspects was caused by tyre marbles getting stuck between the slop gaps in the wing – and affecting the air flow.

Keen to ensure that there will be no repeat in the future, McLaren may run some tests in practice to check that other factors did not contribute to the problem.

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Formula 1 teams have been told that there will be stricter limitations on engine mapping next year, as part of a clampdown by the FIA to prevent teams exploiting exhausts gases.

Although moves to outlaw blown diffusers have already resulted in teams being forced to run with periscope exhausts in 2012, there have been mounting concerns that some outfits are still trying to exploit loopholes in this area of the regulations.

Earlier this week, Mercedes GP team principal Ross Brawn voiced his fears on the matter - especially because it had become clear to everyone this year just what benefit can be had from using exhaust gases for improved aerodynamic performance.

"In our case it [the exhaust design] is still relatively conventional, but whether someone else will come up with something dramatic I would have to wait and see," he said. "I would not say I am confident that there will not be an innovative exhaust scheme because once we have learned something you cannot unlearn it.

"The strength and performance that comes from the exhaust, using exhaust energy, is substantial, and people now have a better understanding of what they can do with exhausts/engine mapping to extenuate the effect."

With the FIA keen to ensure that off-throttle blowing of exhausts does not continue, sources have revealed that the governing body has this week issued a Technical Directive to teams informing them that there will now be severe limitations on what is allowed next year.

To prevent teams using off-throttle blowing through extreme engine maps, the FIA has made it clear that the 2012 version of the software used by F1's standard ECU will now put certain limitations on engine mapping.

AUTOSPORT understands that the FIA acted because it had become aware that, although the positioning of exhaust tailpipes was more tightly controlled, there was still some potential for off-throttle engine mapping to be heavily exploited.

Although the move has not delighted all teams, with some expressing reservations in a meeting of the FIA's Technical Working Group this week, the majority of outfits have welcomed the move - because it effectively removes a grey area of car development.

The FIA argued earlier this season, during an intended push to ban off-throttle blown diffusers which eventually had to be abandoned, that such extreme engine maps were a breach of the famous Article 3.15 of F1's Technical Regulations.

This was based on its view that there was an aerodynamic benefit from a moveable part, plus it was being influenced by the movement of the driver through the throttle. Neither are allowed in the rules.

Williams chief operations engineer Mark Gillan said in Korea last weekend that all teams were likely looking at ways of exploiting the new exhaust regulations.

"I think with all regulations, I have never seen a year where there isn't the potential for a loophole," he said.

"That is part of the fun of the development side. I don't think there have been any regulations that don't have them. Our job as F1 designers and aerodynamicists is to seek out potential areas where the regulations are potentially vague and exploit them."

Lewis Hamilton believes his McLaren team will be competitive in all the remaining races of the 2011 season.

The team has been strong in recent events, with Hamilton ending Red Bull's run of pole positions in last weekend's Korean Grand Prix before finishing in second place to Sebastian Vettel.

Speaking ahead of the Indian Grand Prix, Hamilton said he sees no reason why McLaren can't fight for victory again next week.

"It's too early to say, but I think we're set to be competitive at all of the final three races," said Hamilton in a team preview.

"We were quick at Singapore, Japan and Korea - and I think the pattern at the front has sort of settled down now as we reach the end of the season.

"I think we have a car that can be quick anywhere, so I'd like to think we'd be in the hunt again next weekend."

Team-mate Jenson Button, the winner of the Japanese Grand Prix less than two weeks ago, said he is targeting more victories before the end of the season.

"Our car's been pretty competitive recently and we'd like to win more races before the end of the season," added Button.

Williams has settled out of court with NASCAR team Michael Waltrip Racing (MWR) over its signing of Mike Coughlan as chief engineer earlier this year.

MWR, where Coughlan used to work, took Williams to court in the United States earlier this year over the move, citing breach of contract and interference from the Grove-based outfit.

However, with discussions having taken place in private between the two teams, a settlement has been reached that brings the matter to a close.

Court documents filed in the Charlotte Division of the United States District Court, which have been seen by AUTOSPORT, said that MWR and Coughlan: "hereby dismissed with prejudice all of their respective claims against each other. The parties shall bear their own costs."

A statement issued by MWR confirmed that an 'amicable solution' had been reached that now leaves the way clear for Coughlan to focus purely on his new job with Williams.

Rob Kauffmann, who is co-owner of MWR, said: "I have always been an admirer of Frank Williams and his team and am delighted that we have found a good way forward.

"I wish the team well with its move back to the front of the F1 grid and am sure that Mike Coughlan can make a big contribution with that."

Frank Williams added: "We are grateful to Rob for working this problem out with us. Waltrip is a super team competing in a fantastic sport - the best thing for me is that as part of the deal I will get to see my first NASCAR race."

Sauber believes that its struggles in the Korean Grand Prix were down to set-up issues that hurt its front tyres.

The Hinwil-based outfit had a troubled time at the Yeongam circuit, with Kamui Kobayashi finishing 15th and Sergio Perez one place behind after failing to extract any speed from their cars.

A post-race investigation into what went wrong has pinpointed that the team's woes were related to its use of the front tyres.

Technical director James Key said: "After our performance in Korea was clearly below our own expectations, we analysed all the data carefully and came to the conclusion that we underestimated the limitation on the front axle and front tyres. As a result we suffered from too much understeer, which resulted in over loading the front tyres."

Key is hopeful that the lessons learned will put it in better stead for next week's race in India, where track temperature will likely have a bit influence on performance.

"The downforce level is most likely similar to recent events," he explained. "We will have the soft and the hard tyre compound there. It's quite some time since we ran the hard compound, so we'll have to see how that goes.

"A lot depends on track temperatures, but given the nature of the track with several highly loaded corners, it could be that the hard tyre will warm up okay and last. Maybe the soft will struggle, but you never really know until you're there. On the car we will have some small modifications to the rear wings and some small updates on the front wing."

Willem Toet will return to his old role as Sauber's head of aerodynamics, the Swiss team has announced.

Toet held the position from 2006 to 2009, during the period when the squad was BMW-owned, but stepped down after the German manufacturer's departure.

He will retake the position from 14 November, replacing Seamus Mullarkey, who has requested a change of role.

"The British engineer favours more technical and less management-oriented assignments and will be in charge of Aerodynamic Research," said a Sauber statement.

Prior to joining BMW Sauber in 2006, Toet worked at Toleman/Benetton, Ferrari and BAR.

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Huge news - New Jersey race is set to join the calender from 2013.

Formula 1 is set to have two grands prix in the United States from 2013, with plans for a race around the streets of New Jersey expected to be confirmed as early as next week.

Although F1 is returning to the US for the first time next year with an event in Austin, Texas, Bernie Ecclestone has made no secret of the fact that he would like another event in the country - with his preferred location being New York.

Ecclestone told AUTOSPORT last year: "It's happening. We are talking to them and trying to do our best. Let's see what happens."

High level sources have revealed that the plans have now reached fruition, and an announcement is expected to be made by New Jersey governor Chris Christie and other local politicians next week.

It is understood that the New Jersey GP will take place in June 2013, so it can be a back-to-back race with Canada, which will then leave the Austin event to keep its place at the tail end of the schedule to tie up with the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Last year, the Mayors of Weehawken and West New York revealed that they were in the preliminary stages of talks with a group of investors, led by former YES TV Network executive Leo Hindery Jr, to hold a grand prix in the area from as early as 2013.

It is not confirmed where the track will be, but it is likely to run along the banks of the Hudson River - using the waterfront and the iconic Manhattan skyline as a backdrop.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday that a press conference has been scheduled at Port Imperial in Weehawken for next Tuesday, where an announcement could be made.

Liuzzi unsuprising makes was for Karthikeyan:

Narian Karthikeyan will replace Vitantonio Liuzzi as he returns to HRT for his home grand prix in India, the team has confirmed.

After being replaced by Daniel Ricciardo at Silverstone, the 34-year-old Indian will line up alongside the Australian for the Indian Grand Prix. AUTOSPORT revealed last month Karthikeyan was confirmed for India, with HRT confirming today that he will slot in to Liuzzi's seat for a one-off appearance.

Karthikeyan, who has been given practice runs for HRT since the Singapore Grand Prix in preparation for his home bow, said competing at the Buddh International Circuit would be a surreal experience.

"Driving in front of the home crowd cheering on is a once in a lifetime experience and I feel extremely fortunate," he said.

"It's going to be a surreal experience. There is a huge buzz around the grand prix already and I'm sure that it'll be a resounding success.

"For sure I'll race hard and try to get a good result for myself and the team."

Karthikeyan said he was also hoping to be part of a lasting motorsport legacy within his home country, and to "motivate more youngsters towards the sport and give us future F1 drivers.

"Making it into F1 at the time I did was a seriously uphill task and the thought of being able to compete in the inaugural Indian GP was non-existent. But it is finally here and I'll be on the grid."

Team Principal Colin Kolles said Karthikeyan would only drive in India, but said his presence made the Indian Grand Prix feel like a home race for the team.

"Despite not being the most popular sport in India, the excitement around the Grand Prix makes us think that it will be an extremely popular event," Kolles said.

"And for HRT, it is even more special. Having Narain Karthikeyan, the first Indian driver in F1 history, and Tata with us makes it feel like a home race.

"Narain is a talented driver and we are proud to be going down this path with him. I have asked Tonio Liuzzi to step aside for the Indian GP and I have to thank him for his professional approach and attitude."

[Lineker]

Pirelli says its distribution of tyre compounds for the Indian Grand Prix could form the basis of its 2012 strategy if it proves successful.

The usual practice is for teams to get five sets of the softer of Pirelli's tyre choices each weekend, and six of the harder - but some of these tend to be unused.

For India, the allocation will be the other way around, with six softs and five hards provided.

Pirelli's motorsport boss Paul Hembery says the results of that choice this weekend will help the firm plan what to do in 2012.

"We've opted for a deliberately conservative nomination in selecting the hard tyre alongside the soft, simply because on a brand new circuit you are never quite sure of the exact race conditions you will encounter," he said.

"But we've structured the allocation in such a way that we think the teams will run more on the softer tyres, particularly because we are bringing an extra set of soft compound tyres for Friday.

"This will help us to make some decisions about our strategy for next year, particularly after we saw the excellent durability of the softer compounds."

HRT driver Narain Karthikeyan reckons the difference in speed between the hards and softs will be dramatic.

"The lap time difference between the hard and soft tyres is going to be huge, maybe in excess of two seconds a lap," he said.

"I'd expect the teams to use the hard as less as possible: maybe just a short final stint in the race as the benefits in lap time produced by the soft tyre should outweigh its shorter life as the track surface isn't abrasive at all and track temperatures I think should be under 40 degrees during the weekend."

Hembery agreed that this was likely.

"It's too early to talk about the number of pitstops we expect this weekend, but we anticipate a reasonably significant lap time difference between the two compounds," he said.

Narain Karthikeyan says Formula 1 will find India an 'eye-opening' experience when the grand prix fraternity comes to race in the nation for the first time this weekend.

Karthikeyan will return to an HRT race seat, replacing Tonio Liuzzi, for his country's first GP, which takes place at the new Buddh International Circuit, and he thinks F1 will love - and be surprised by - his home nation.

"It will certainly be an eye-opener, there's no two ways about it," said Karthikeyan.

"There are many things that they will be surprised about, but it will be an interesting place and 90 per cent of the [F1] people will love it."

Karthikeyan also reckons drivers will be impressed by the Buddh circuit.

"They've taken a lot of corners from many tracks - they've kind of taken the best and put it there," he said. "There are a lot of medium-speed corners, and a long straight. It's very wide in places. It's nice."

The circuit is another brainchild of established F1 circuit designer Hermann Tilke, but Karthikeyan does not think it will be regarded as just another Tilke track.

"In all the safety aspects, yes. But it has more character," he said. "There is a lot of up and down... even on the main straight you climb up and then come down and then climb up and brake. It's come out really well."

The 34-year-old admitted that the Indian public were likely to be disappointed to see him at the back of the field with HRT, and that those new to F1 might struggle to understand his lack of pace.

"Obviously there is a lot of buzz happening and a lot of media interest," said Karthikeyan.

"Everyone is expecting me to do well, but it's going to be hard to explain to the Indian public why you're at the back of the grid because they don't understand like the Europeans. But nevertheless, I think they'll enjoy it.

"It will be very difficult [to explain]. The easiest way is to say that we can't compete with Ferrari or McLaren because we don't have the resources, and that's absolutely true.

"But what they do realise is that equipment is important in Formula 1, because Michael [schumacher] has a huge following in India, and they realise that he was dominating and now he has come back and since then he hasn't even had a podium, so people do realise that it's not only about the drivers, in Formula 1 it's also the cars."

A consortium including the designer of the 2012 London Olympic Stadium has been appointed to plan the building of a Formula 1 standard circuit in Mumbai in India.

Capita Symonds, Populous and DIMTS (Delhi Integrated Multi Modal Transit System Ltd) will "prepare the masterplan and business case for a new multipurpose race circuit and regeneration project", according to a statement from the consortium.

The ambition is for the circuit to be suitable for the highest levels of car and motorcycle racing.

Capita Symonds' Jerry Muscroft said: "We are committed to delivering the next generation of racing circuits, with great racing, overtaking, world-class facilities and architecture; but above all the intention is to create a sustainable venue that will not need continuous financial support, and will facilitate investment and regeneration."

India will host F1 for the first time this weekend at the purpose-built Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida.

Adrian Sutil says he wants a quick answer from Force India about his future, amid speculation that the team will replace him with Nico Hulkenberg.

While Sutil's team-mate Paul di Resta is considered secure in his seat for 2012, there have been rumours that the team will take up its option to put current third driver Hulkenberg in a race seat at Sutil's expense.

Team boss Vijay Mallya had previously indicated that it would not be taking any driver decisions until after the 2011 season was finished, but Sutil told reporters at media events ahead of the Indian Grand Prix that he wanted talks with Mallya before then.

"I can't wait till December," Sutil was quoted as saying by Reuters.

"I will speak to him very soon and see what his ideas are. I don't need to wait so long for a seat. I think I know what I can do, so I don't feel insecure."

Mallya told AUTOSPORT last month that his focus was currently on ensuring Force India beat Sauber and Toro Rosso to sixth in the constructors' championship rather than sorting its 2012 line-up.

"I have told them, please don't bother me about driver choices right now," Mallya said. "We will focus on getting a good position in the constructors' and we will talk about everything else later.

"Just leave it to me: I will think about it, but right now I am just enjoying the moment."

Experienced designer Jorg Zander has decided against a return to Formula 1 for now, despite being close to a deal to join HRT.

As part of a technical reshuffle at HRT following the arrival of new owner Thesan Capital, Zander was in discussions to head up the design of the team's 2012 car - with the plan for him to work closely with chief aerodynamicist Stephane Schosse out of a new technical base in Munich.

However, having evaluated what was on offer, Zander has elected to stay focused on his successful JZ Engineering GmbH company, which does work for the automotive industry, for now.

"I am very happy with what I am currently doing," said Zander. "I have developed very good relationships with the car manufacturers in Germany, working on very interesting and challenging research and development projects."

Zander has a depth of experience in F1, having worked at Toyota, BAR, Williams, BMW Sauber, and then Honda/Brawn GP - leaving in the middle of the team's title-winning 2009 campaign.

Jaime Alguersuari says he is becoming a better and better driver as Toro Rosso's form improves in the latter part of the 2011 Formula 1 season.

Seventh place finishes for Alguersuari in Italy and Korea have helped STR close to within three points of seventh-placed Sauber in the constructors' championship.

Earlier in the season the Spaniard had struggled in qualifying, getting eliminated in Q1 in four straight races - although he salvaged points finishes on race day at three of those events.

Alguersuari believes he is still making up for his hurried arrival in Formula 1, having been parachuted straight into a Toro Rosso race seat in mid-2009 without testing when the team decided to drop Sebastien Bourdais.

"I don't think it is related to qualifying, I think as a driver, especially on my side, you always learn something because I was driving F1 when I was 19, so there is always something to show and something to develop," e said.

"And I still have a lot of things to learn. This year we had a lot of potential in the race, and less in qualifying, due to the tyres.

"We are solving these problems now because we have been working a lot on the car and we do have more downforce than we had in the past, so it is more easy to work on the car.

"But it is still difficult between qualifying and the race. I always say this - when you have a more competitive car, life becomes more easy, driving and overtaking, and now we can show [our potential]."

Both Toro Rossos finished in the points in Korea despite having struggled at Suzuka, and Alguersuari put this down to the team getting to grips with its latest upgrade package more effectively at Yeongam.

"The car was the same as Suzuka, we just did a better job of understanding all the upgrades that we brought in Suzuka," he said.

"In Suzuka we did not do a good job on that. So I was happy with that, happy with the progress of the team, and we really deserved the result - especially because the mechanics have been working so hard to get the best out of the car. So I am really happy."

The Spaniard now expects to be fighting for points in all three remaining races.

"The top 10 is our place and this is what we will target until the end of the year - and to stay in front of Sauber if possible," Alguersuari said.

[LUKIE]

The Pirelli tyre situation this year has been fantastic, and has really invigorated the sport. I am glad they moved to Pirelli, and Pirelli didn't do what Bridgestone did for years, and develop ever-lasting tyres. Purposefully making them so they degrade after a certain time was genius.

[Lineker]

New Jersey governor Chris Christie confirmed on Tuesday the state will host a Formula 1 grand prix from 2013, as reported by AUTOSPORT last weekend.

Christie said the race will take place on a 3.2-mile street circuit, running on existing roads through Port Imperial and at the top of the Palisades in Weehawken and West New York.

"I'm pleased that New Jersey will play host to Formula 1 beginning 2013, bringing one of the world's most popular and exciting sports right to our backyard," Christie said.

"I can assure Formula 1 that this is one of the wisest decisions you have ever made, to come and hold this event in New Jersey".

The country last hosted a Formula 1 grand prix in 2007 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

"People from the whole world will come to New Jersey to see this unique and exciting course," Christie added.

The street race at New Jersey will join the F1 calendar in 2013 with the title Grand Prix of America.

It will join the Unites States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas which is due to join the calendar next year. It will potentially increase the number of races on the F1 calendar in 2013 to 21.

The event organisers revealed a revised 5.15km (3.2 mile) clockwise street circuit for the race:

The USA last held two F1 races in 1984, when street races in Detroit and Dallas were held within two weeks of each other.

Karun Chandhok will not be racing in the Indian Grand Prix, despite high hopes that he would return to the cockpit for his home race.

Team Lotus boss Tony Fernandes had said last month that he would have liked Chandhok to race in the inaugural Indian race alongside Heikki Kovalainen.

But Fernandes said on Tuesday that it is vital for the team to maintain its performance levels in order to secure 10th place in the standings.

With Chandhok not having been able to drive in dry conditions as much as desired, the team has decided Jarno Trulli will keep his racing seat.

Chandhok will be driving in the opening practice session on Friday, though.

"From the team perspective the key goal for us this weekend is to maintain the performance levels we saw in the last two races and while I am sure there will be fans in India who want to see Karun race for us on Sunday we had to make the best decision for the future of the team," said Fernandes in a team preview.

"While all the emotional reasons for him driving were right we were conscious that the limited running he has had in the car this season, largely due to the weather conditions that have hit most of his FP1 sessions, has not given him the best preparation for this race, so we have taken the very difficult decision not to run him in the race this weekend.

"It is absolutely vital that we secure tenth place in 2011 to give us the platform to keep growing and despite the fact that Karun's performance levels have continued to improve every time he has driven for us in 2011, it was considered too much pressure to put on Karun to drive in his first home race, deal with all the attention he would have had and be able to perform at the same level as either of our regular race drivers over the whole weekend.

"For that reason we had to take the pragmatic decision to put our faith in the experience and pace we have in Jarno and Heikki, and are confident they will continue to perform at the level they have over the last two years with us. While this is obviously not the decision Karun wanted us to take he understands that we have to take the long-term view and do so in the best interests of the team.

"He also understands that his relationship with our team is not about just one race, it is about growing together and while this is an historic event, there will be many opportunities to race in India in the future, and he is in the best possible place with us to take advantage of those chances in seasons to come."

Karun Chandhok admits that he is disappointed by Team Lotus's surprise decision not to let him race in the inaugural Indian Grand Prix.

The 27-year-old was widely expected to take Jarno Trulli's seat and had run in Friday morning practice eight times this year, as well as competing in the German Grand Prix, in preparation.

Chandhok is a high-profile figure in India and although he is still set to run during Friday practice, his absence from the grid is a setback for the race.

"I'm obviously disappointed that I won't be on the grid for the first Indian Grand Prix," Chandhok told AUTOSPORT.

"Everyone knows the most important and emotional race for any driver is their home race and particularly so in my case.

"I've been involved with the project since the track was an empty piece of land. There's such a buzz in India at the moment - I've done 28 interviews in the last two days."

The team has decided not to run Chandhok because it in a close battle for tenth in the Constructors' Championship with HRT and Virgin. It was felt that Trulli's experience was the safer bet despite the Italian having endured a tough season.

Chandhok is hopeful that he can continue with the team in the long-term and that he could have opportunities to race in the future after showing improving form during recent Friday outings.

"I'm sure it's been a tough call for Tony [Fernandes, team principal] to make and on some level I think he's feeling some pain about it as we've always had a good personal relationship," said Chandhok.

"I joined this team mainly because of him and his faith in me while looking at the long term. I continue to hope that this long term plan bears fruit and I hope that one day I get to race for him again."

"The team have opted to go for experience at this time but I will go to the paddock in Delhi with my head held high because I feel I did everything possible in and out of the car especially over the last three months to show Tony that I can be in F1 in the longer term."

Although Chandhok's absence from the grid is a major setback for the inaugural Indian Grand Prix, he is hopeful that the race will be a success and that the fans who bought tickets in the hope of seeing him compete will still enjoy it.

"I'm so proud to support the Jaypee Group in this historic weekend for Indian sport," said Chandhok. "For all the fans, including the hundreds from my home town in Chennai who have bought tickets in the hope of seeing me race and are travelling thousands of kilometres to Delhi, I hope that they all still have a wonderful time at the BIC."