Bourdais penalised, Massa gets another point
The FIA Stewards issued a weird ruling at the end of the Japanese Grand Prix, penalising Sebastien Bourdais 25secs for a collision with Felipe Massa. The additional time meant that Bourdais loses his sixth place, falling to 10th behind Sebastian Vettel, Felipe Massa, Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld.
Race Results (revised)
Japanese GP - Race Results
Tony Blair and F1 - the truth
Newly-released documents in Britain have revealed that British Prime Minister Tony Blair did intervene in the British government's tobacco policies, just hours after a meeting with Bernie Ecclestone back in 1997.
Qualifying Report - Advantage Lewis
Lewis Hamilton took pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, ending all the fantasies that had gone on in the earlier practice sessions.
Todt to leave Ferrari in November
The word in the paddock in Fuji is that Jean Todt will leave Ferrari at the end of the month and it is expected that he will take a new role at the FIA at the next General Assembly in November.
Qualifying Results
Japanese GP - Qualifying Results
Practice 3 Report - Pole vaults to number one
Robert Kubica set the pace for BMW Sauber in the Saturday morning session for the Japanese Grand Prix, but the times were not deeply significant with Timo Glock's Toyota second fastest, Nelson Piquet's Renault third quickest, Nick Heidfeld's BMW Sauber fourth and Kazuki Nakajima's Williams-Toyota fifth.
Practice 3 Results
Japanese GP - Practice 3 Results
Practice 2 Report - The car in front IS a Toyota
Friday is traditionally a day when teams can make themselves look good if they choose to do so, and thus it was no great surprise to see Timo Glock go fastest in his Toyota, at the Toyota-owned Fuji Speedway in Toyota-mad Japan.
Practice 2 Results
Japanese GP - Practice 2 Results
Santander and Ferrari
The pages of Le Monde in Paris are rarely filled with Formula 1 stories, but an interview yesterday with banker Emilio Botin of Spain's Santander served to confirm rumours that have been kicking around in F1 circles for some weeks. "On the F1 scene," the article said, "his business sponsors the Spanish driver Fernando Alonso and, soon, the red cars of Scuderia Ferrari."
Practice 1 Report - Hamilton on top at Fuji
Lewis Hamilton led the way in the first practice session in Japan beating World Championship rival Felipe Massa by a tenth of a second.
Practice 1 Results
Japanese GP - Practice 1 Results
Engine dealings
The word on the street in Fuji suggests that there might be a change of engine supplier next year for the Force India team. Vijay Mallya's operation has been using Ferrari engines for the last two seasons, but the team has never been competitive.
A Hack Looks Back - On Japan and China
By Mike Doodson
As the F1 circus sets up its show this weekend at the foot of an extinct volcano in Japan's wettest prefecture, you might be tempted to imagine that Britain's own rain-master, the web-toed Lewis Hamilton, has a fine chance of repeating last year's five-star performance in torrential conditions and wading home to an easy win for McLaren-Mercedes.
Insight - Applying science and commonsense to overtaking
By Joe Saward
The Singapore Grand Prix was a disaster for Ferrari because despite being fast, the red cars could not overtake anyone. Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo blamed Formula 1 for holding races "on tracks where staging a circus or something else would be better" and said that the only spectacle "is supplied by the Safety Car".
Globetrotter - That loving' feeling
By Joe Saward
Twenty years ago, as a much younger Formula 1 reporter, I went to Adelaide for the first time. I had done a lot of travelling already by that point and knew Australia well after several visits to Bathurst and such places.
Globetrotter - Perceptions and balance sheets
By Joe Saward
Oh Singapore, I am not quite sure that you quite get the concept of what Formula 1 is supposed to do for your country. Stop for a minute and think about why the racing is coming to town.
The Mole - A green valley far away
The little old lady at the Barristers Benevolent Association telephoned The Mole on Monday to say that she had received a postcard addressed to WH Smith. The Mole knew that this meant that his most important asset, an agent called Dusty Road, wanted a meeting.
Thoughts after the yelling and screaming
There continue to be different opinions about Lewis Hamilton's penalty in Spa, including some rather bizarre comments from Surinder Thatti, the Tanzanian steward (who represents Kenya), who was part of the decision-making process.
What games are these?
Bernie Ecclestone has told the BBC that he would welcome Max Mosley back into the Grand Prix paddock after the sado-masochistic sex scandal in March, which has kept Mosley out of F1 for most of the year. The FIA President made a brief appearance at Monaco, but this was simply a photo opportunity designed to give the impression that it was business as usual.
And so to Valencia
Formula 1 teams have been visiting the city of Valencia for some time, to test at the Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tormo. This was not enough for the local government, which was looking for a sporting event to draw people to the city, following the successful America's Cup event in 2007.
An interesting settlement
Ferrari and McLaren have announced that they are bringing to an end the various legal disputes between them. McLaren has agreed to pay Ferrari's legal costs arising from the actions, which relate to the spying scandals of 2007.
Planning permission in England
Donington Park says it will be the home of the British Grand Prix by 2010, but there are many obstacles to be got over before that announcement becomes a reality.
Analysing the World Council
The FIA World Motorsport Council did not produce the fireworks that had been suggested might happen. However there are clear indications that Max Mosley is pushing ahead with his strategy to improve his historical reputation by creating the sport as it ought to be - rather than the sport he had fashioned before the scandal began.
What makes sense and what does not make sense
There have been a series of denials regarding rumours that there have been talks between CVC Capital Partners and News Corp about the possible sale of the Formula One group of companies.
The judgement of history
The decision by the FIA General Assembly to support Max Mosley paints the federation in a very poor light, at least in the eyes of the general public. A large number of people in this world believe that married men should not break their vows and involve themselves with lurid sexual games, involving professional uniformed dominatrices.
